http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ An Unauthorized Free-Speech Zone en-us weblog@brianarner.com 2009-05-22T11:11:28-05:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002422.html This didn't come to my attention until I read it in Michael Zielinski's NY TImes op/ed piece:Last year Congress passed legislation that will have a long-term impact on our pocket change. The law authorized a new series of quarters, to... 2422@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-05-22T11:11:28-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002421.html I was watching BookTV the other night and caught part of a segment featuring Alan Huffman's book Sultana: Surviving the Civil War, Prison, and the Worst Maritime Disaster in American History. I was surprised to hear that the Sultana was... 2421@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-05-12T12:02:34-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002420.html For the past year a section of Interstate 40 near downtown Knoxville has been closed while workers widen the highway and redo a couple intersections. The project is nearing completion. I see on the Knoxville News-Sentinel website that TDOT is... 2420@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-05-03T22:25:40-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002419.html Yesterday I made my first real foray into Google Documents. I've been recording my cycling mileage on Excel spreadsheets and thought it would be a good idea to back them up elsewhere. I noticed that Google has a spreadsheet application... 2419@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-04-20T10:37:30-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002418.html There's been a lot of financial news happening the past eight months--stuff you might miss even if you watch CNBC or Bloomberg news. Reading financial-related weblogs (and accompanying comments) helps keep me up on events. Sure, some Internet commentary may... 2418@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-04-14T14:17:47-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002417.html Today, over at Bike Forums, I received the following message from a new forum member:how ya doin? bike noob here. interested in finding someone close by that knows some good places to ride. know anyone interested in some laid back... 2417@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-03-27T12:01:57-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002416.html Tennessee is facing its highest unemployment rate in decades and a budget shortfall of billions of dollars. So what pressing role has the legislature taken up during this crisis? According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, a House subcommittee has assumed... 2416@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-03-26T01:50:59-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002415.html Every once in a while I reflect on the Movable Type platform, primarily when I want to change something on this site. The software works well enough, but it seems I end up banging my head against the desk every... 2415@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-03-25T13:34:24-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002413.html As someone who frequently rides the roads, I'm interested in driver's attitude toward cyclists. After all, I'm continually at the mercy of the next vehicle coming up behind me. And thus I read Ms. Newman's thoughtful letter published in the... 2413@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-03-23T13:34:36-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002411.html I completed this exercise for a game going around Facebook. I thought I'd repost it here. My general knowledge is a mile wide and an inch deep. I learn just enough about something to be dangerous, then move on to... 2411@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-02-09T07:55:49-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002410.html Click to contribute Tennessee progressive bloggers are having a fund raising drive to support the Tennessee Democratic Party. The blogathon, called "Chip In!", is an independent campaign (not managed by the party) which runs through the end of the... 2410@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-02-04T10:53:06-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002409.html If you want to see what a collapsing economy looks like, in graphic detail, see Calculated Risk's January Economic Summary in Graphs. The bottom seemed to drop out of the economy last September/October and things have been in a free... 2409@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-02-04T00:36:49-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002408.html On Wednesday's Countdown, Keith Olbermann interviewed NSA whistle blower Russell Tice regarding the government's surveillance of American citizens. Here's Thursday's follow up interview: .msnbcLinks {font-size:11px; font-family:Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #999; margin-top: 5px; background: transparent; text-align: center; width: 425px;} .msnbcLinks a... 2408@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-01-25T10:03:14-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002407.html A while back I got wind, from someone who used to work in intelligence, that government surveillance of Americans' private communications is far more extensive than has been reported during the ongoing debate about wiretapping. Last night, for the first... 2407@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-01-22T08:53:10-05:00 http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/archives/002406.html San Francisco Fed President Janet Yellen has a bearish economic outlook:I agree with [Martin Feldstein] that the current downturn is likely to be far longer and deeper than the "garden-variety" recession in which GDP bounces back quickly.She consequently recommends that... 2406@http://www.brianarner.com/weblog/ 2009-01-05T10:19:22-05:00