In my line of business, discovering secrets is put at a premium. If you've got information that somebody else doesn't have, you've got the upper hand. Finding out where anonymous information comes from can be very important. Caller ID has been used for years, but the use of cell phones has driven many of us crazy. I found this Reverse Cell Phone Lookup that can find the source of a cell phone number and who owns that number.

I know there are many people out there that have been looking for this type of service for a long time. I just hope the government doesn't step in and try to shut this type of thing down due to some bogus privacy concerns.

I found a great article for you history buffs out there. It turns out there are many similarities between the Roman Empire during its decline and the America that we see today.

To sum up some of these similarities (read the article for details): increasing debt per capita, currency devaluation (I question this one, the dollar has not been devalued that much, if you put it into perspective), and a huge trade deficit (definitly a major problem). An overstretched military and poor leadership are also similarities that can be debated.

It's a good article, and worth your time.
The Weekend Economist "Quaerere Verum": #22 The new "Silk Road"

Are you having trouble selling yourself to potential clients? Want some free business cards? Check out that link right there, because they have free business cards, as well as business card templates and other great business card resources.

I know a lot of people who spend a lot of time and money to make their business cards just right. There are so many options out there, it can get a bit mind-boggling. I advise having one set of business cards for professional use and another for other networking and meeting people. Sometimes you just want to sell yourself, not the company you work for. I have a friend who actually meets a lot of women and gives them one of his "personal" business cards. It's got his contact information on it, and it reminds the other person that he's a successful and confident person.

Fundraising.com is a site geared toward... you guessed it: fundraising. I think every youth in America should be involved with fundraising efforts at some point when they're young. The things I learned selling popcorn as a Boy Scout helped me in later life when I was doing sales, and then again when I was doing... well, fundraising for politicians.

Fundraising.com may or may not have the products you want to sell for your particular group or charity, but at least they have some ideas to get you going. Look in their "Fundraising Programs" section for ideas for your type of group, be it a church, a school, or a sports team.

I know many entering the private sector will end up owning their own business, and they'll need a lot of good tips along the way. I found this one site, filled with
business advice, which is a great read for those who have made the leap now own their own business.

Some of the advice on this site is really great, such as the posts about taxes and the best ways to advertise. One post I found interesting, titled Search Ads Not A Good Option for Small Businesses showed me something I didn't even think about. Small businesses will have trouble with search ads because the people who click on them are already demonstrating an ability to shop around. That means they'll often find the lowest price, which usually won't come from a small business.

No matter how skillful a person is while working in the public sector or on a campaign, there are going to be things they just never think about when they make that move into business ownership. The Incparadise news blog is just the kind of site they should have bookmarked.

Barack Obama has formed an exploratory committee. I'm not sure exactly what that means, but I think they measure the drapes in the White House and make sure they match the carpets he'll be bringing with him from home.

The Obama movement is about as strong as any unofficial presidential campaign two years before the next election ever. There are plenty of worries that the campaign could peak too early, but Obama's honesty is something Republicans are increasingly worried about overcoming.

The GOP frontrunners include Rudy Guiliani, who cheated on his wife and had other tabloid worthy problems while in office; and John McCain, who fought a noble campaign against George W. Bush in 2000 but has since flip-flopped on most of his positions, even speaking alongside a bigot like Jerry Falwell, a man whose views he once deemed "dangerous".

Obama has admitted to such things as marijuana and cocaine use, and he didn't try to claim he never inhaled, a move that cost Bill Clinton some credibility in 1992. George W. Bush, on the other hand, has lost all credibility on the issue by just saying he's not going to talk about the past. His arrest record speaks for him: multiple DWI arrests in the 1970's (a time when you REALLY had to be drunk to get a DWI), and at least one cocaine arrest that his lawyers have tried to erase from the record.

Obama does not have the arrest record to match President Bush - likely because he really was an curious college student and not an Animal House pledge, like that beast of a man currently occupying the White House. Obama even admitted that he enjoyed smoking the sticky icky, a real sign of honesty that will win him votes with young voters who are prone to distrusting politicians.
Barack Obama - Obama Exploratory Committee

President Bush was just trying to comfort some troops being sent to the hellhole that is Iraq, but what he told them is really a microcosm of the Bush administration.

While talking to troops at Ft. Benning, in Georgia, Bush said that the escalation plan is supported by both the Iraqi government and his own generals. Reports released earlier this week show that this assertion is clearly not the case. It seems the escalation plans come from Bush's team of advisors, and them alone. I realize what the president is doing, because it's one of the oldest tricks in the political playbook: make it seem like someone else came up with the ideas that you are putting into action. If they plan succeeds, take full credit. If it fails, blame the people who you claimed came up with the idea.

It's sad that the young soldiers in Georgia, some of whom will never come home, are being lied to by the man who is sending them to Iraq. Painting this rosy picture of the situation, with the Iraqi government and U.S. generals working in unison to suppress a few "bad guys" on the streets of Baghdad, only makes it worse for these troops when they land on the ground and find that the country is in a free-for-all civil war, with no defineable allies or enemies.
Pensito Review » Bush Caught Lying to Troops about Escalation Plan

If you're using search engine marketing for an upcoming campaign - and you should be - you should really check out Apogee Search. They are the experts in this type of marketing.

Apogee Search recently became a Google Adwords certified company. They are able to track all the information you need, like conversion rates and comparisons of advertising campaigns. You need that information to improve your strategy as your campaign moves along.

Apogee Search is has experts in things like marketing malpractice, which many campaigns have ran afoul of during the past.

Aside from their valuable products, Apogee also has some great free info on their blog, so go check it out now.

Ron Paul is a very rare breed. The Republican Congressman has stood against the Iraq war, even when the rest of his party was gung-ho for it. Chances are his party won't be backing his run for the presidency either, but he's throwing his hat in the ring anyway. Today, he announced that he will try to win the GOP ticket for president in 2008.

Throughout his political career, Ron Paul has always stood by his libertarian ideals, even when it goes against his own party. Although this campaign seems doomed from the start due to lack of big money support, I think the GOP should be honored to have such a fine man trying for their ticket.
Antiwar.com Blog · Antiwar GOP Rep. Ron Paul Running for President!

If you're in politics, having the right attire is a must. Even aides to politicians have to wear a dress shirt and tie, if not a full suit. Having a good selection of ties is a must, because it is really the only part of a man's wardrobe that will stand out enough to be noticed, unless you happened to spill wine all over your white dress shirt.

The above site has a large selection of ties, including extra long ties and bow ties, which really require a certain personality, but happen to be very popular in many political circles.

I know men hate words like accesorize, but in my business it's important to remember the little things, especially at big events like a fundraiser. Cufflinks are a must, and don't forget about the tie clip. Pocket squares are also important at some events.

I make it my goal to never get photographed wearing the same tie in the same month. If the photos from the Christmas party show you wearing the same tie as the photos from the New Year's Eve party, people are going to start wondering if you're having financial trouble.

Despite all the jokes on sitcoms, ties will always make a great gift for anyone who has to wear them all the time, for the reasons I stated above. Using the site I link to above, you can save money on a variety of designer label ties as well as tie racks and gift boxes. Cufflinks and tie clips are also available at deeply discounted prices.

It's no secret that the FCC is in the pockets of the media industry. The industry has lobbied the FCC (which is not a legislative branch of government, by the way), trying to get them to regulate electronics makers whose products could be used to copy media.

The FCC does not have the authority to force electronics makers to make their products in a certain way, but since when did the FCC follow the rules? Senator John Sununu, (R-NH) is going to make sure they do. He is fighting against the broadcast flag, which is an embedded signal that would prevent some media from being recorded. Of course, it only works if the recording device can recognize the signal and has the instructions hard-wired into it to not record anything with this signal. The FCC, working on behalf of the media industry, wants our recording devices to have this "feature" built-in.

John Sununu has introduced a bill that will stomp out the broadcast flag and rein in the FCC. Don't let anyone tell you I'm in the pockets of the Democratic machine, because I'm supporting a Republican on this issue. Not that I can find any Democrats who are opposing the bill.
Senator to FCC: Don't even think about a broadcast flag

Senator Joe Biden, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has officially warned the president of the United States that he will trigger a "constitutional confrontation" should U.S. troops enter Iran. The president does not have the authority to wage war in countries without approval from Congress.

The Constitution is very clear on matters such as this. It may be news to Bush, but the Constitution is explicit to prevent the "times are different now" mentality that has ruled the Bush presidency. When the Dems took control of Congress earlier this month, they were saying that impeaching President Bush was NOT on their agenda. Biden is now making it clear that their position will change as soon as Bush allows troops to cross the line into Iran without approval.

When combined with the signing statement fiasco, Bush could face an all-out assault on Constitutional grounds.
Daily Kos: State of the Nation

There it is, the picture everyone has been looking for. It's well-known that the White House has taken great lengths to cover up any connection between Bush and Jack Abramoff. Internal memos have leaked indicating that the Bush team made a huge effort to gather any photos of the two together and destroy them. Insiders have indicated that there likely dozens of meetings, a probably dozens of photos to go along with them. The picture above is the first one to make it out to the public. It was taken in December 2003.

The Congressional Budget Office, a non-partisan committee, has done a study on Bush's tax cuts. To no one's surprise, those earning more than $1 million saw the biggest drop in their federal tax rates.

It's important to note that we're talking about the rate here, not overall tax bill. We would expect the rich to pay more in overall taxes, because 3rd grade math tells us that 35% of $1,000,000 is more than 35% of $25,000. Bush is actually lowering the rate that rich people have to pay on their taxes, which leads to a larger tax levy for the middle and lower classes.

It's easy for most people to see why increasing the tax rate for the rich works much better than Bush's plan. An increase of 1% in the rate that billionaires have to pay in taxes will not harm the billionaires enough so that they will even notice in terms of "way-of-life" changes. Yet that extra 1% may be enough to cover 50% of the tax bill for people earning $20,000 or less. In other words, a small, barely noticeable increase in the rate for a few people will take a huge burden off the shoulders of many people.

This daily economics lesson is over. For homework, think about why "tax cuts" is an overly broad word that can be used in very bad ways by very bad politicians.
Tax Cuts Offer Most for Very Rich, Study Says - New York Times

The increase of troops in Iraq proposed by President Bush will not be matched by our closest ally, Great Britain. Prime Minister Tony Blair has said the country will not match the troop surge, showing that he is not Dick Cheney and Karl Rove's puppet, for once. The "Bush plan" will increase U.S. troops on the ground in Iraq by 20,000 in hopes of putting down the insurgency and restoring order in a country that has not had order since the 2003 U.S. invasion.
Blair refuses to match US troop 'surge' in Iraq | the Daily Mail

With current problems in the Middle East, it seems that the United States will never be able to gain a truly friendly foothold in the region. Even Saudi Arabia, our longtime ally, has demonstrated that their interest in the United States ends when we stop buying their oil. So what countries in the Middle East will take a true interest in the U.S. beyond our massive consumption of oil? Dubai could be the answer.

When people think of Dubai, they think of modern buildings and very creative real estate ventures. The Palm and The World are two man-made island chains made for the richest buyers. That makes Dubai very desirable to American moguls, who might look at the country for a business opportunity as well as a nice place to live. Unlike most other countries in the Middle East, Dubai gets only 6% of its total revenue from oil. By avoiding this reliance on one commodity, they've created a country far more stable than any other in the region.

By demonstrating that a country can be more successful by welcoming the west and not exploiting its interest in oil, Dubai has become a model of what we should want to see in that region in the future.

Let me get one thing clear: I detest Saddam Hussein. He was a disgusting human being and a tyrant. I cheered with everyone else when he was finally captured by US troops. That said, even I have to admit that Saddam Hussein did not receive a fair trial.

The Saddam trial was a sham, in violation of many international laws and agreements, intended to appease the Iraqi people who are trying to build a peaceful country, along with the Americans who continually question why we are in Iraq (like me). In the end, the trial will have accomplished neither, and it will put another blemish on our handling of international affairs.

Saddam was denied access to a lawyer during his first year in custody. During the trial, three of the lawyers on his defense team were assassinated. Witnesses on his behalf were beaten and received death threats. After his conviction, an appeals court was little more than a quick hearing conducted by the same people who convicted him. The entire trial and appeal was done while Saddam was in US custody, yet the punishment was carried out by Iraq. The legal system used was also Iraq's.

From a legal standpoint, nothing made sense about this trial. The evidence against him for this particular case was actually rather weak, and probably not enough to receive a death penalty if it were under US law. It is against the Geneva Conventions to hand over custody of a prisoner of war to an adversary of that prisoner. Some US officials have claimed that the Iraq government is not Saddam's adversary, because he was once the president of the country. We can't make that claim if we also claim that the old regime is gone and the new government is helping our fight against the old regime. By definition, that makes the new government an adversary.

There were other serious charges against Saddam Hussein that likely would have led to him receiving the death penalty, eventually. Instead, we used a kangaroo court to get a quick verdict and punishment. The outcome may satisfy us, but we can't exactly call it "fair", as President Bush did this week, with a straight face.
Bush Lies Again After Saddam Executed: Bush Doesn’t Know What a Fair Trial, or Justice, Is | The Progressive