Random Thoughts From This Week (20-26 Feb)

World Events

• Detroit Relocation Plan - Being from Michigan, I'm always interested in the welfare of the state; especially Detroit, because Detroit is what people think of first when they think of Michigan - and it's usually not positive thoughts. Detroit mayor Dave Bing looks to be moving forward with an interesting idea: He is going to try to "downsize" the city by moving city residents from blighted areas to more sustainable areas. The idea is to conserve city resources and focus them on fewer areas. A recent study of the city suggests that thirty-six percent of city property is occupied by vacant homes or empty lots. I'm not exactly sure what that statistic means, but it sounds like a lot to me. Bing's idea is interesting. If nothing else, it's thinking outside the box. In other Detroit news, here's an AP article on a guy who helped further run the city into the ground.
• Global Warming/Climate Change - Record cold weather in Europe. Record snowfall in Washington, D.C. Pummeling snow storms in the Northeast, and snow fall across the Southern United States. Large chunks of ice breaking off the polar ice caps and the shrinking of the polar ice caps. SOMEBODY GIVE ME A STRAIGHT ANSWER ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING/CLIMATE CHANGE!

Technology

• Chatroulette - I read about Chatroulette in a venture capital blog I follow. I gave Chatroulette a whirl and was intrigued by the simplicity of the idea, and could see a bunch of potential. Thought I would pass it along to you all. One of the intriguing things about Chatroulette was nobody seemed to know who created and manged the site. Well, the New York Times figured it out. Give the article a read. It's very interesting. WARNING: Chatroulette does not have any "moral police" control measures, so there can be explicit material.

Sports

• Nothing Significant to Report (NSTR) - I know, people will say, "What about the Olympics?" I'm just not into the Olympics. I follow the headlines, but don't feel inspired to go out of my way to watch any of the events. For me, the months after the Superbowl until the NCAA Tournament are the sports doldrums. I'm mildly interested in the NHL, but really only the playoffs and finals. I have no interest in the NBA. And I only get excited about NCAA basketball for the Tournament.

Entertainment

• iTunes Sells 10 billionth Song - That's mind boggling to me. 10 billion songs!? iTunes, which was introduced in 2003, is the top music retailer in the U.S.