Ali Babba Photo Studios

Posted: March 24th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Humor, Uncategorized | Tags: sharia pics | No Comments »

Could someone tell me – what exactly is the point of taking this picture? I got this e mail today and was curious. Is this a Halloween pic, or is someone gonna explain to their grankids who the heck is in these photos?

Ali Baba must have charged good money for these pics.

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Official Obama November 2010 Mid Term Elections Van

Posted: March 24th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Humor | Tags: communism | 3 Comments »

Hey there. Isn’t it great that elected officials just spent over a trillion dollars of your children’s money to insure thirty million people? Let’s do the math. yep a trillion dollars to insure thirty million. Sounds like someone went to a public school to learn math?

Then again, they DID create 17,000 more jobs for the IRS. You know, the tax collection agency with nothing to collect, because all the small businesses are going under due to out of control taxes and regulations. Great job. Nothing better than the most hated organization in America getting more POWER. Wait, don’t government employees vote democrat in overwhelming numbers? Nah! Why would people who make more than average private sector employees feel beholden to their masters? But what I really wanna know is the answer to this one asked by a guy who has a pretty cool van!

Looks like we will have to wait till November 2010 mid term elections to get the answer?

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Warnings Issued for Baby Slings After Infant Deaths

Posted: March 23rd, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Legal and Law | Tags: SlingRider injuries | 2 Comments »

March 22, 2010 (by Attorney Michael Ehline) According to reports by baby sling injury attorney, Michael Ehline, the government has issued warnings about the popular baby slings after deaths. There have been approximately 13 deaths investigated by the Consumer Product Safety Commission of the infant carriers known as baby slings during the last 20 years.

This includes three deaths that were investigated during the past year and one case still under investigation. They also stated some of the infants that died were of low birth weight, a twin, had a cold or were born prematurely. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission twelve of the deaths involved infants that were under four months of age. They are advising parents and caregivers to use caution when using these carriers for infants under four months.

The agency has said that baby slings can cause suffocation into separate ways. The fabric of the sling can cover the baby’s nose and mouth suffocating the infant within one or two minutes. The second way that infants can have their breathing restricted is insulin use that form a C, in which the baby is near mother’s belly or other person and due to weak to control can flop ahead forward to the chest causing restricted breathing that can result in suffocation. In this position the infant will be unable to cry alerting the person carrying them in the baby sling.

The slings are made of a soft material and designed to make carrying an infant easy and allow bonding. These types of carriers have become popular and are known as baby wearing and are used by many nursing mothers. They are promoted by some baby experts as a way to calm a fussy infant. Consumer Reports became concerned, alerting in 2008 about baby slings after there were about two dozen injures including skull fractures after an infant fell from the carrier.
According to court records Safety Advocates warned last year after the death of one week old Derrik Fowlerz from Oregon who died in a baby sling due to positional suffocation.

The bag styled slings concern safety advocates the most due to the fabric that wraps around the parents neck cradling the child in a perfect position. According to the director of the breast-feeding Center for greater Washington not all baby slings are dangerous. Director Pat Shelley says that carrying the newborn infant allows the baby to rest solidly against mother’s body in a preposition. Shelley also stated in an interview that parents should be instructed about positioning the child correctly to keep their chin off of their chest, which can obstruct the Airways and proper breathing. Shelley being a nurse conducts class at the breast-feeding Center on how to properly wear a sling with an infant.

One of the slings that have been singled out by safety advocates is the SlingRider by Infantino, due to the curved position the infant can fall into inside of this baby sling. This is also the type that one week old Derrik Folwer suffocated in according to court documents and his parents claim against the company. A statement by Infantino said while they appreciate the actions that have been taken by the Consumer Product Safety Commission and will work with them, the parents and caregivers to address concerns about the baby slings. The company also stated they maintain their SlingRider infant carrier is safe.

Industry trade group chairman Inez Tenenbaum stated at a meeting of Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association that certifies 20 children’s products warned they were going issue a warning to parents three days ago. The organization that voluntarily sets safety standards have no current rules about the baby slings or the potential dangers associated with them.

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Did My Site Lose Google Page Rank Due To Slow Site Speed?

Posted: March 22nd, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Natural Language Search | Tags: google, matt cutts, site speed | 1 Comment »

Did my site lose PR because Google is now including site speed as a ranking factor? This is a question many, at least me, were asking who had lost PR in the last January 2010 update.

The Buzz in 2009

Matt Cutts announced: “Historically, we haven’t had to use it in our search rankings, but a lot of people within Google think that the web should be fast,” and “It should be a good experience, and so it’s sort of fair to say that if you’re a fast site, maybe you should get a little bit of a bonus. If you really have an awfully slow site, then maybe users don’t want that as much.”

Matt Cutts Later Clarifies Speed as a Ranking Factor Issue, Noting that Relevance is Still the “Primary Component”

Matt Cutts set the record straight in 2010 to some degree from my perspective. It does appear that there will be some preference, all things being equal as far as number of votes pointing back to a site, to give better ranking to a site that is faster. Cutts is reported to have said “…If you have two sites that are equally relevant (same backlinks…everything else is the same), you’d probably prefer the one that’s a little bit faster, so page speed can be an interesting theory to try out for a factor in scoring different websites…”

So it is clear then, that you should be concerned about site speed, as it could be one of the many Google ranking factors for both Local Search and Organic search ranking factors that Google could utilize in a super competitive industry. And lately, everything is super competitive when it comes to ranking in Google.

The Yellow Pages seem to be tanking as a form of advertising. I never use them. Do you? I mean other than as a doorstop? So as you can see, you need to keep an eye on what is coming and be ready. Site speed is important to some people at Google, as it should be. Slow sites are a bummer. Slow connection speeds add to the problem. So find a way to speed up your site.

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Littlefield Panther Panzer Totally Restored | Video Sd Kfz 171 Panther Aus. A

Posted: March 22nd, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Military Fighting Vehicles | Tags: littlefield panther | 4 Comments »

Many of you may be aware that I was able to get a private viewing of the Littlefield Tank Museum just before Jacques passed away.

I was able to climb on top of the panzer and also go up inside the disassembled turret of this jewel of an Sd Kfz 171 Panther Aus. A. You better believe it was one of the highlights of my life.

In all events, below is the video of the Littlefield Panzer Totally Restored and running. Beautiful site indeed.

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Google Maps With The Latest Technology Google-Buzz Integration

Posted: March 20th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Local Search, Tech, Twitter | Tags: twitter maps api | 2 Comments »

The latest thing that Google has released is called Buzz but it has caused a lot of negative attention from the public. A lot of people have had enough with the social networks and then Google decided to do one with Buzz rather than the much touted Google purchase of DIGG.

The fans of Google Buzz might enjoy one of the latest things that comes with the new version. A new tool with this is called Google Maps api. It allows people to do things such as synchronizing with other friends to see the latest recommendation. With the new navigation tool there is a night mode in it but there is not a European version listed at this time. Other features of the newest 4.1.0 version with Buzz include finding locations, directions, street views, layers and people can search by voice. The navigation is still in the beta version. There is a really great post an Venturebeat that goes into more detail about the Google Maps/Twitter Api.

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Most Swiss Animals are Without Free Attorneys

Posted: March 13th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Humor | Tags: animal rights | No Comments »

March 12, 2010-According to reports most Swiss animals are now without free legal representation after a recent vote.

In a landslide vote on Sunday Swiss voters rejected a proposal to appoint attorneys to represent abused animals in every regional court in the country. Published in The Lede last week it was explained that Zurich currently employs an attorney to speak for animals.

Antoine Goetschel the Zurich attorney stated on Swiss television the publicity immediate prior to the ballot initiative could have led to the 70.5 percent of the electorate votes against employing 25 more attorneys to represent abused animals in the prosecution of humans. Goetschel, whose clients are mostly dogs, believes that many of the voters could have been tired of the topic by the time of the vote.

Another opinion on the outcome of the vote could have been due to one of attorney Goetschel’s recent cases where he represented a dead fish. The case involved a Zurich fisherman that was accused of torturing a land pike that took ten minutes to reel in. This is believed it could have convinced the Swiss voters their food does not need to be represented.

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The “Ice Man” Chuck Liddell MMA Action Figure

Posted: March 1st, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Martial Arts | Tags: chuck liddell, iceman, mma, ufc | No Comments »

This is so freakin cool. I was at Toys R Us shopping for my son and ran across this awesome Iceman Action Figure. Great role model for a little kid right? lol.

Let’s get it on!

You can clearly see his tattoos and painted toe nails. Just really cool.

Come on Chuck. Get em!

Can you dig these Blackberry shots or what? MMA action figures that any adult would want!

And last but not least, a mean lookin headshot!

The “Ice Man” Chuck Liddell MMA Action Figure is dog gone cool and it gets a thumbs up!

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My Journey to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

Posted: February 27th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Marines, Martial Arts | Tags: brazilian jiu jitsu, judo, Martial Arts, nori bunasawa, okinawan karate, rey diogo | No Comments »

My journey to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This is my journal in bits and pieces of what led me to BJJ. Hope you enjoy.

JUDO

Having studied Judo under Sensei Nori Bunasawa as a small child of about 6 or 7 years old, I developed an appreciation for the discipline he brought into my life. A short, Japanese man, Nori Bunasawa, at first was strange to me, being a white child in Orange County, California back in the 70’s who had never really met anyone with a foreign accent, let alone, wearing a Bruce Lee martial arts suit.

You see, I had begged my mom, who was estranged from my father at the time, to let me take “Karate.” (Of course back then, we Americans pretty much thought it was all the same. Karate, Kung Fu, etc., all the same.)

So my mom signed me up for Judo at CC Lambert school in Tustin. I remember Sensei always made us meditate and stretch both before and after class at the “Do Jo”. I remember the rolls and throws, and drills and Sensei sometimes had an arrow that he would slap to the mat to get our attention. You see, we were all just a bunch of little kids.

In any event, I was upset that I could not fly through the air and strike/kick my opponent like in the Bruce Lee movies. But Sensei assured me and others that Judo was a superior martial art. I did one competition as a yellow against an orange belt. It resulted in a stalemate.

It was pretty cool having mom and my mates there at the community center. In all events, this was the first step of my journey to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

OKINAWAN KARATE

After moving away, Judo ended for me and my father enrolled me in Okinawan Karate. That lasted about 6 months. I learned horse stance and striking and kicking, but we moved again.

MUAY THAI

Back living with mom, my mom enrolled me at the YMCA for this new martial art in the states that supposedly billed itself as having the most powerful kick in the world. We wore karate gis, and learned a mild version of Thai Kick Boxing. This had to have been circa 1978-79.

INTERVAL

There was an interval of several years where I no longer trained at a do jo, but instead would work the heavy bags, stretch, and lift weights. But that was it till the Marines.

MARINE MARTIAL ARTS

As a Marine, we learned the “line” fighting techniques. Honestly, we did not spend enough time to really learn much. Nope, Marines had a long way to go before their stand up would be as good as their battlefield “tool box.”

BOXING 1

After that, I learned basic boxing techniques for a year and then trained along doing heavy bags and shadow boxing after that. I would always combine kicks I had learned in Muay Thai with my boxing.

UFC CHANGES EVERYTHING

Right around this time, I heard that the UFC Jiu Jitsu guy, a Brasilian, Royce Gracie (pronounced “Hoyce” – Portugese), was choking out guys much larger than him. Then it all clicked right there. Sensei Nori had been right. Ground fighting is the best. But I had noticed that Royce also utilized strikes and kicks. This was traditionally a no no for Japanese Jiu Jitsu. But not for the Brasilians.

I was working 9-12 hour days in sales and paralegal fields and pretty much just lifted weights when I could after that. This went on till:

BOXING 2

So after getting married, finishing law school and five years in a successful law practice, I was burned out on lifting weights, under a lot of pressure, gaining weight, 40 years old, and needing the feeling I had when I was young; of combat and battle. Martial arts were calling me again, but I also wanted to lose weight and improve my cardio. A pro boxer at my gym suggested I train with him.

I did, and lost a lot of weight and really sharpened my “American” boxing skills.

BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU

I really wanted to get into Jits during that period. I had to make a choice. With a law practice and family to feed, I had to choose between MMA, or straight Jiu Jitsu. So finally, I just said, screw it. At my wife’s urging, I enrolled at Rey Diogo Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. This guy is a world champion from Brasil and was the best I could find.

A former Army Ranger who trains there confirmed this. He drives from San Diego to Los Angeles just to train with him. It was further verified by an Austrian and several Englishmen who came to California just to train with Rey. They had the choice of traveling to Brasil and training at the BJJ Mecca there.

And boy was that a wake up call. I was promoted with my first stripe in less than three months. This was also new. Most martial arts go from belt to belt. To be continued.

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Movie Review: Siege of Firebase Gloria | Marines Rescue Army Again

Posted: February 24th, 2010 | Author: admin | Filed under: Marines | Tags: firebase gloria, gunny, movie reviews, us marines | No Comments »

This is one of the greatest movies about Marines in Vietnam. U.S. Marines save a U.S. Army firebase during a major NVA/Vietminh Offensive. Although it is fiction, there are many instances in history of the Marines rescuing beleaguered Army units from WWII to Korea, Nam and even the current wars. Here, R. Lee Ermey (The Gunny – Ooohrah) rescues a bunch of lazy regular army soldiers. Chesty would be proud!

I just love watching R. Lee Ermey being himself. You gotta watch this movie if you like Marines, war movies and bad asses in the genre of John Wayne.

In Siege of Firebase Gloria, the “Gunny” is part of a United States Marine Corps. RECON unit. A few Marines go into the U.S. Army firebase, find a few decent army soldiers who love America, and train, and fight with them to defeat the Vietnamese commies. Great flick. I give it a full ooohra!

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