From the WTOC Story:
http://www.wtoc.com/Global/story.asp?S=12032853
A possible Slave grave site was found while construction crews were doing demolition work at some property on East Waldburg St. in Savannah. The demolition has been stopped until archaeologists and historians can look at the site and determine exactly what was found. It should be interesting to follow this in the news; hopefully WTOC will continue to cover the story as it develops.
Mac McCormick III
25 February 2010
22 February 2010
Danica Mania for the Second Week in a Row
Before anyone thinks I've got something against Danica Patrick, let me assure you that I don't. I really wish her well in both NASCAR and the IRL. Once again, this week, my problem is with the media. Just as they did at Daytona, they completely over covered Danica Patrick to the detriment of everyone else at the track. Never before have I seen a backmarker, and let's be honest - that is what she was at California, get so much TV time.
To be honest, I feel sorry for Danica and the microscope she's been under. It's really unfair to have such attention and expectations placed upon you when NASCAR's rules don't allow for a lot of testing. She has not had the chance to test in these cars and learn about them before coming to the race tracks. It really puts her behind the eight ball because most of the other rookies come from a stock car background rather than the open wheel background she comes from.
Mac McCormick III
To be honest, I feel sorry for Danica and the microscope she's been under. It's really unfair to have such attention and expectations placed upon you when NASCAR's rules don't allow for a lot of testing. She has not had the chance to test in these cars and learn about them before coming to the race tracks. It really puts her behind the eight ball because most of the other rookies come from a stock car background rather than the open wheel background she comes from.
Mac McCormick III
21 February 2010
Newman Hass Lanigan Signs Mutoh
I read several sources over the last couple of days that indicate that Newman Haas Lanigan has signed Hideki Mutoh for the 2010 IRL season. This leaves Graham Rahal out in the cold as far as a ride for 2010 goes. It shows the sad state of affairs the IRL and Motor Sports in general is in when a mediocre driver gets a ride instead of a race winning driver just because the mediocre driver can bring money and a sponsor. I can make the list longer: Takuma Sato, a driver with no experience in Indy Cars (but with F1 experience) gets a ride with KV Racing yet drivers like Paul Tracy and Oriol Servia go rideless. Once again, Sato gets the drive because of money and his connections with Honda, not because he is the best driver available.
Mac McCormick
Mac McCormick
15 February 2010
DanicaMania Invades NASCAR
The Danica 500 week, sorry - I mean Daytona 500 week is over. No offense to Danica Patrick, but SpeedTV, ESPN, and other media outlets made it seem like it was the Danica 500 instead of the Daytona 500. She isn't to blame. The media is and they went overboard.
First, entirely too much attention was paid to Danica. The coverage seemed, at times, to be All Danica, All the Time. No doubt she was a major story line for the week, but you would have thought she was the only story of the week. What about the stories of Mike Bliss, Max Papis, and Joe Nemechek making the Daytona 500 with small under-budget teams? What about what seems to be the best restrictor plate package in Cup in quite awhile? What about teams who are working hard to make a full season in Nationwide or Cup but don't have the sponsorship; some media attention to their efforts could help them find that sponsorship.
Second, there were some absolutely ludicrous statements made during the course of the last week's NASCAR coverage. One analyst referred to Danica Patrick as the most important driver to come along in decades (not a direct quote, but a paraphrase). Huh? Seriously? Just to go back one decade, are we going to say she is more important than Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jimmy Johnson, or Tony Stewart? Another analyst stated that coming to NASCAR would make Danica Patrick a better driver in Indy Cars and inferred that the reason Dario Franchitti won last year's IRL title is that he spent a year in NASCAR (He also won an IRL championship BEFORE he came to NASCAR!). When she heard talk like this, I can't imagine how embarrassing it must have been for her.
In closing, I would like to say that I think Danica Patrick did a great job this past weekend. She raced well and finished well in ARCA and got an education in the Nationwide race. Her performance bodes well for her IRL season in that she seemed to handle adversity even better than she did last year; her temper control seems to be getting better. I don't understate her importance in NASCAR either; she probably has the best chance of any female to win a NASCAR race given the team she is racing for.
Mac McCormick III
First, entirely too much attention was paid to Danica. The coverage seemed, at times, to be All Danica, All the Time. No doubt she was a major story line for the week, but you would have thought she was the only story of the week. What about the stories of Mike Bliss, Max Papis, and Joe Nemechek making the Daytona 500 with small under-budget teams? What about what seems to be the best restrictor plate package in Cup in quite awhile? What about teams who are working hard to make a full season in Nationwide or Cup but don't have the sponsorship; some media attention to their efforts could help them find that sponsorship.
Second, there were some absolutely ludicrous statements made during the course of the last week's NASCAR coverage. One analyst referred to Danica Patrick as the most important driver to come along in decades (not a direct quote, but a paraphrase). Huh? Seriously? Just to go back one decade, are we going to say she is more important than Dale Earnhardt Jr, Jimmy Johnson, or Tony Stewart? Another analyst stated that coming to NASCAR would make Danica Patrick a better driver in Indy Cars and inferred that the reason Dario Franchitti won last year's IRL title is that he spent a year in NASCAR (He also won an IRL championship BEFORE he came to NASCAR!). When she heard talk like this, I can't imagine how embarrassing it must have been for her.
In closing, I would like to say that I think Danica Patrick did a great job this past weekend. She raced well and finished well in ARCA and got an education in the Nationwide race. Her performance bodes well for her IRL season in that she seemed to handle adversity even better than she did last year; her temper control seems to be getting better. I don't understate her importance in NASCAR either; she probably has the best chance of any female to win a NASCAR race given the team she is racing for.
Mac McCormick III
Jinright's Seafood House
Last Friday, I decided to treat myself to a seafood dinner. I hadn't had seafood in awhile and it sounded like a good idea. I was out and about in Brunswick and stopped by Jinright's Seafood House off of US17 just south of the Golden Isles Parkway.
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The first thing I noticed on the menu was a disclaimer that the service may not be quick, but that the quality would be good. After perusing the menu further, I ordered the fried shrimp and scallops dinner for $14.95. The service was actually pretty quick; the meal was out in no time and I was surprised with the portions. The plate was piled with shrimp, scallops, and fries along with a bowl of cole slaw. The shrimp and scallops were great, not overly greasy as you can find with a lot of fried foods and the fries were thick and plain with no fancy seasonings. The slaw was simple (just like I like it).
I'll definitely be visiting again!
Mac McCormick III
View Larger Map
The first thing I noticed on the menu was a disclaimer that the service may not be quick, but that the quality would be good. After perusing the menu further, I ordered the fried shrimp and scallops dinner for $14.95. The service was actually pretty quick; the meal was out in no time and I was surprised with the portions. The plate was piled with shrimp, scallops, and fries along with a bowl of cole slaw. The shrimp and scallops were great, not overly greasy as you can find with a lot of fried foods and the fries were thick and plain with no fancy seasonings. The slaw was simple (just like I like it).
I'll definitely be visiting again!
Mac McCormick III
Luge Death in Vancouver - The Track Design is to Blame
I'll preface this by acknowledging that I am not a winter sports expert, much less a luge expert. I am a racing fan though, and as soon as I saw the video of what happened to Nodar Kumaritashvili, the Georgian luger at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, it was obvious why he died. The track is unsafe. It was built unsafe and it should be obvious to anyone but a blind man why it is unsafe.
In this instance, it matters not what caused him to lose control of his sled. The simple fact of the matter is that he did lose control. What killed him was a product of track design. His death was from injuries sustained when he hit vertical supports of some sort that were immediately at track side. When he came off of his sled, momentum slung him into those poles causing horrible injuries. Those poles should not have been that close. You also have to wonder why they didn't back the poles off from the track and provide catch fencing, a wall, or something to prevent the lugers from hitting the poles. Motor Racing tracks, even temporary road courses provide some sort of barrier or catch fencing when there is no choice but to have something like a light pole immediately trackside.
It is my belief that the fault for this athlete's death lies in the track design and in the hands of the officials who didn't see that there was a safer venue for the race. This appears to be a death that did not have to happen. The organizing bodies for luge, skeleton, and bobsled have to look more closely at track design and layout and plan safer tracks.
Mac McCormick III
In this instance, it matters not what caused him to lose control of his sled. The simple fact of the matter is that he did lose control. What killed him was a product of track design. His death was from injuries sustained when he hit vertical supports of some sort that were immediately at track side. When he came off of his sled, momentum slung him into those poles causing horrible injuries. Those poles should not have been that close. You also have to wonder why they didn't back the poles off from the track and provide catch fencing, a wall, or something to prevent the lugers from hitting the poles. Motor Racing tracks, even temporary road courses provide some sort of barrier or catch fencing when there is no choice but to have something like a light pole immediately trackside.
It is my belief that the fault for this athlete's death lies in the track design and in the hands of the officials who didn't see that there was a safer venue for the race. This appears to be a death that did not have to happen. The organizing bodies for luge, skeleton, and bobsled have to look more closely at track design and layout and plan safer tracks.
Mac McCormick III
11 January 2010
The Blackberry
I've had my Blackberry Tour for and I've come to love it. I rarely use it as a phone; it sees much more use a mini-computer. I'm notoriously bad with dates and remembering events so the calendar and its reminders is frequently used. Likewise, I can't remember phone numbers, so the address book is also frequently used. I even use the Blackberry software to synchronize my Outlook address book on the computer with the Blackberry address book. I frequently find myself without internet access so the Blackberry often times serves as my internet access, allowing me to keep up with friends via Facebook and to keep up with news and events via the internet and Twitter. I've found the Blackberry to be a very useful tool as well as a fun toy.
I'm not a Blackberry expert nor am I a software, technology, or application expert, but here is a list of suggested Blackberry apps that I've come up with based on my experience:
The Google App
The Google App is my favorite app for the Blackberry. It includes Gmail, Google Maps, Google News, and the Google Reader all wrapped up in a free App. The best part of this app is Google Maps. It integrates with the Blackberry's GPS and radio and turns your Blackberry into a personal navigation device. You can not only see where you are but also get search results based on your location and directions. You can search for what is near you and then tell the application to give you directions to that location. You can also activate Google Latitude and see where other friends that use Latitude are at on the map. Did I mention that this app is free? You can get part of what it does from cell providers at an extra fee, but the Google App is absolutely free.
Facebook
Facebook is a good way to keep up with friends and family. The Facebook Blackberry App is a simplified and basic Facebook interface you can use to keep up with your Facebook News Feed. It's not as full featured as the web version, but it is easy to use on the go. It also integrates with the Blackberry address book and calendar so you can link contacts and dates with Facebook friends, their birthdays, events, etc. You can also set the app to alert you when you have Facebook messages and replies.
Uber Twitter
Uber Twitter is a Twitter client for Blackberry. It goes beyond other mobile Twitter clients in that it can tag your Twits with your location. It can use your location from the GPS or a general location based on the cell tower that the Blackberry is working through.
Twitter is a great way to not only keep up with your friends, but also keep up with the news and what is going on around you. Among the Twitter feeds I follow are: (I tried to follow WTOC as well, but it says that they have blocked me...)
For obvious reasons... The Weather Channel App also intergrates with the GPS and radio to determine you location and you can get weather based on you current location. You can also create a list of locations to check the weather for. In addition to current conditions and forecasts, you can also check weather alerts, get weather radar imagery overlaid on maps, and airport weather/delay information.
The Bolt Browser
More advanced than the Blackberry Web Browser, the Bolt browser views not only mobile sites, but does a much better job on regular internet sites than the Blackberry browser does. It also works, in my opinion, much faster than the Blackberry Browser.
Fuze Messenger
Instead of using seperate clients for AOL IM, Yahoo Messenger, etc. you can use the Fuze Messenger client which is like a Blackberry version of Trillian (if you are familiar with it). You can use AOL IM, Yahoo Messenger, Google Chat, etc. all from the same application.
BBScanner
The BBScanner App is a must for radio geeks. It integrates with Radioreference.com's online scanners and other online scanners and lets you listen to scanner audio from all over the country and the world on your Blackberry.
Mac McCormick III, KF4LMT
I'm not a Blackberry expert nor am I a software, technology, or application expert, but here is a list of suggested Blackberry apps that I've come up with based on my experience:
The Google App
The Google App is my favorite app for the Blackberry. It includes Gmail, Google Maps, Google News, and the Google Reader all wrapped up in a free App. The best part of this app is Google Maps. It integrates with the Blackberry's GPS and radio and turns your Blackberry into a personal navigation device. You can not only see where you are but also get search results based on your location and directions. You can search for what is near you and then tell the application to give you directions to that location. You can also activate Google Latitude and see where other friends that use Latitude are at on the map. Did I mention that this app is free? You can get part of what it does from cell providers at an extra fee, but the Google App is absolutely free.
Facebook is a good way to keep up with friends and family. The Facebook Blackberry App is a simplified and basic Facebook interface you can use to keep up with your Facebook News Feed. It's not as full featured as the web version, but it is easy to use on the go. It also integrates with the Blackberry address book and calendar so you can link contacts and dates with Facebook friends, their birthdays, events, etc. You can also set the app to alert you when you have Facebook messages and replies.
Uber Twitter
Uber Twitter is a Twitter client for Blackberry. It goes beyond other mobile Twitter clients in that it can tag your Twits with your location. It can use your location from the GPS or a general location based on the cell tower that the Blackberry is working through.
Twitter is a great way to not only keep up with your friends, but also keep up with the news and what is going on around you. Among the Twitter feeds I follow are: (I tried to follow WTOC as well, but it says that they have blocked me...)
- WSAV
- WJCL
- Savannah Chatham Metro PD
- Federalfire (he posts public safety incidents)
- GeorgiaEMA
- noradnorthcom
For obvious reasons... The Weather Channel App also intergrates with the GPS and radio to determine you location and you can get weather based on you current location. You can also create a list of locations to check the weather for. In addition to current conditions and forecasts, you can also check weather alerts, get weather radar imagery overlaid on maps, and airport weather/delay information.
The Bolt Browser
More advanced than the Blackberry Web Browser, the Bolt browser views not only mobile sites, but does a much better job on regular internet sites than the Blackberry browser does. It also works, in my opinion, much faster than the Blackberry Browser.
Fuze Messenger
Instead of using seperate clients for AOL IM, Yahoo Messenger, etc. you can use the Fuze Messenger client which is like a Blackberry version of Trillian (if you are familiar with it). You can use AOL IM, Yahoo Messenger, Google Chat, etc. all from the same application.
BBScanner
The BBScanner App is a must for radio geeks. It integrates with Radioreference.com's online scanners and other online scanners and lets you listen to scanner audio from all over the country and the world on your Blackberry.
Mac McCormick III, KF4LMT
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