As the desktop computing world moves more toward high-quality virtualization, arguments about OS X versus Linux versus Windows seem to do little more than waste breath. Those in the know can set up systems with all three running at the same time. Each system can do what it does best. The actual operating system is little more than an application you can kick off when you need to perform some task or test some software. Check out my fatty Ubuntu box with VMWare.
Of course, if you’d like to run OS X you’ll probably want Apple hardware. I feel that most of the “I can’t afford a Mac” arguments are disingenuous. Sure, you can point out specific examples where there are significant price differences (hello macbook pro), but after considering the full price of that Windows white-box (Virus signature subscriptions, software licenses for things that just aren’t included in Windows) I’d say just about everyone can afford a Mac. Why don’t people just say “I don’t like Apple because people that buy them are pretentious” or whatever the real reason is.

Vegemite contains folate, which in the US can be added only to breads and cereals

Never underestimate the ability of bureaucracies to push out logically absurd yet wildly popular rules. Goooooo government.

UPDATE:

Ok, Kelly called shenanigans on this one, Vegemite wasn’t really banned. Snopes confirmed it for me.

I have a preferred route when travelling to and from work, but if the lights or traffic just aren’t going my way I can make a turn and take an alternate route. WTOP graces us with traffic and weather together on the 8’s so we can intellegently choose the best route. Getting home faster is good for me, but it helps other people too.

I have very little concern about the commute time of random strangers, but my actions help them get home more quickly. I see congestion and I follow my own interest – but in doing that I get out of the way for others. I help distribute traffic more evenly. My little car makes very little impact on the average travel time of the DC Metro commuter, but a whole lot of people making decisions impacts traffic greatly. Out of the chaos of all those individuals comes a strange sort of organization. If the roads and number of commuters stayed the same, could a well-intentioned bureaucrat do a better job directing traffic than all the self-motivated individuals?

Those who stayed awake in Economics 101 will recognize this as yet another example of the “invisible hand”, an idea introduced by Adam Smith in his keystone book The Wealth of Nations. Could he be right? Even though we are selfish and greedy could we be inadvertently helping society?

Washington Post $85 – got me a few losers and no-shows
Roommateclick.com $45 a few nibbles – haven’t given it much of a chance yet
Roommates.com $25 – had a good handful of people out to the house based on this
Craig’s List $FREE – probably have had more calls from craigs list than anything else

Maybe if there were a service that was less than $FREE I would do even better.

So I was thinking about Christmas and wondering why it is we are encouraged to ask for gifts that we would not buy for ourselves. By definition haven’t we determined that these items are not worth purchasing ourselves? Otherwise we would have already purchased them. We are increasing the market for shit we don’t need. How much better off would we be if we all asked for the things we were going to buy anyway – toothpaste, sandpaper, and a set of 50-weight ball bearings?