Tag Archives: obama

Beware Obama bumper stickers!

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Someone accidentally sent this to me by email yesterday..

A LETTER FROM THE BOSS…..

As the VP of this organization, I have resigned myself to the fact that Barrack Obama is our President, and that our taxes, and government fees will increase in a BIG way. To compensate for these increases, our prices would have to increase by about 10%.

Since we cannot increase our prices right now due to the dismal state of the economy, we will have to lay off six of our employees instead. This has really been bothering me, since I believe we are family here and I didn’t know how to choose who would have to go.

So, this is what I did. I walked through our parking lot and found six ‘Obama’ bumper stickers on our employees’ cars and have decided these folks will be the ones to let go. I can’t think of a more fair way to approach this problem. They voted for change; I gave it to them.
I will see the rest of you at the annual company picnic.

New President, New Website

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Loved this joke from the Onion on Obama’s new web strategy. More fun though less enlightening than the piece in Wired Magazine.

WhiteHouse.gov, the official website of the president and vice president, was relaunched Tuesday and includes links to Obama’s weekly video address and a blog. What do you think?

Asian Man
Mark Judson, Accounting Clerk
“I question the ethics of Rahm Emanuel’s ‘Blind D.C. Gossip Items’ page, but it is pretty dishy.”
Old Man
Scott Carpenter, Aircraft Deicer
“I’m going to miss the ‘Those Who Should Die’ feature on the old site.”
Old Woman
Kristina Keyton, Pharmacy Technician Instructor
“Finally, a president who understands technology. Oh, and human rights. And climate change, foreign policy, and the Constitution.”

Why community is where it’s at

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Loved this post from Community Guy, Jake McKee on why the Obama administration is the first social media government, quoting the value of offline and online communities to connect people in a common cause for good. Now wouldn’t it be great if this same theme was picked up by the UK Government?

Just like your new government, WhiteHouse.gov and the rest of the Administration’s online programs will put citizens first. Our initial new media efforts will center around three priorities:

Communication — Americans are eager for information about the state of the economy, national security and a host of other issues. This site will feature timely and in-depth content meant to keep everyone up-to-date and educated. Check out the briefing room, keep tabs on the blog (RSS feed) and take a moment to sign up for e-mail updates from the President and his administration so you can be sure to know about major announcements and decisions.

Transparency — President Obama has committed to making his administration the most open and transparent in history, and WhiteHouse.gov will play a major role in delivering on that promise. The President’s executive orders and proclamations will be published for everyone to review, and that’s just the beginning of our efforts to provide a window for all Americans into the business of the government. You can also learn about some of the senior leadership in the new administration and about the President’s policy priorities.

Participation — President Obama started his career as a community organizer on the South Side of Chicago, where he saw firsthand what people can do when they come together for a common cause. Citizen participation will be a priority for the Administration, and the internet will play an important role in that. One significant addition to WhiteHouse.gov reflects a campaign promise from the President: we will publish all non-emergency legislation to the website for five days, and allow the public to review and comment before the President signs it.

Web 2.0 delivers new finance model for business?

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I was at a talk at the RSA last night for a sneak preview of a new film Us Now about the potential power of ordinary people using web 2.0 tools to change everything from the way government works to the ownership of football clubs. To quote internet guru Clay Shirky change happens not when we adopt new tools, but when we adopt new behaviours. And web technology can make this happen easier than ever before.

After the film I realised the film’s real power was in describing an alternative model for financing projects, based on web 2.0 technology, from BHO to banking. Fortunately as I work at the ICAEW this realisation came a little quicker, and I blogged it on the ICAEW’s IT Counts.

As you’d expect the US is way ahead of the game on this, it’s already got a catchy title ‘Finance 2.0′, with discussion at a recent Silicon Valley event including the US-version of Zopa called prosper.com.

Maybe accuracy is the next thing we will all search for

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Social networking sites are increasing in popularity and web surfers care more about politicians’ image than their policies, according to a new study.

Bill Tancer, general manager of global research at Hitwise, has been studying internet usage patterns and found that social networking sites are receiving more and more hits, particularly in the 18 to 24 age bracket.

He also found that images of Sarah Palin were searched for more than her policy statements and ditto with Barack Obama, with many particularly interested in his height.

More people visited celebrity websites that those for religion, wellbeing, politics and diets put together.

He worried, however, about the amount of bad information now available.

‘With the explosion of this type of false information on the internet, I think we will see someone come forward and develop a new type of software that can filter for the most accurate information, he said.

‘Maybe accuracy is the next thing we will all search for.’

Internet founder Sir Tim Berners-Lee also recently stated that there should be a mechanism to control falsehoods spread online.

BCS, 19/09/08, ‘Online search habits revealed’.