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Brad

Member since: Jul 6th, 2006

Brad's Latest Comments

Blog Activity
Blog# of Comments
Autoblog12 Comments
ParentDish6 Comments
Gadling2 Comments
AdJab4 Comments
Cinematical2 Comments
Slashfood1 Comment
BloggingStocks3 Comments
Stylelist10 Comments
AOL Elections Blog2 Comments
Switched3 Comments
Politics Daily1 Comment
WalletPop3 Comments
PopEater1 Comment
Digital City Blog1 Comment
Lemondrop1 Comment
Blackvoices Main2 Comments

Recent Comments:

Rumormill: General Motors mid-size sedans going all four-cylinder (Autoblog)

Sep 1st 2010 5:28PM Inferior American products? Are you forgetting the Dodge Neon SRT-4? That was rated at 230 hp/ 250 lbs-ft in 2004! And you must not have recalled that there was a Mopar Performance Stage 3 kit which allowed it to make 360 hp/ 383 lbs-ft on 103 octane race gas! Also, the original Neon's 2.0L DOHC naturally aspirated engine was rated at 150 hp long before the majority of its competition was anywhere close. Shoot, a lot of compact car builders STILL aren't getting 150 hp out of a 2.0L! If motorcycle builders are getting 180 hp out of 1000cc's, I don't see why car companies today can't build a 200+ hp 2.0L without a turbo. Somebody give Lotus a call...

Attractive Salesgirls Could Turn Off Shoppers (Stylelist)

Aug 20th 2009 4:19PM I can see that the article mostly deals with women, dealing with attractive female salespeople in mostly woman-oriented departments.

I'm a guy, and when it comes to shopping for guy stuff, or even gender neutral stuff, I almost will always buy more from a friendly, attractive woman who takes the time to "sell" me on the product...which is their job, anyway, whether they are attractive or not.

I'm generally more apt to buy something I really didn't come in to buy and don't really need if the salesperson is an attractive woman. As long as she is knowledgeable about the product and has a convincing sales pitch. If she is a twit, then it doesn't matter how good she looks.

I recall going to buy a Leatherman tool at a hunting/fishing store and the sales woman was so darned attractive and yet smart about the merchandise that I couldn't help but buy one after all the time she spent helping me pick one particular model. I had only planned to check out their line and compare it to other stores, but she was very much responsible for an assured sale that day.

Don't be "that" tourist - things to avoid when you are abroad (Gadling)

Aug 19th 2009 8:44AM I've found that American tourists who don't understand the differences in a culture to that which we are used to back home often come away with the impression that the nationals of that country are naturally rude or that they hate Americans. I've found that is usually not the case. For example, on a recent business trip to Romania traveling with other guys, they all seemed to think that because people usually just kept walking right on past when they smiled or said "hello" on the sidewalk, that they were intentionally brushing them off. Most left dissatisfied with their experience in Bucharest. On the other hand, I rarely bothered with the sidewalk pleasantries and instead tried to initiate conversations with people during business encounters, such as with waitresses at the restaurants, bartenders, hoteliers, or convenience store cashiers and I found them to be very pleasant and willing to talk. My experience was very positive.

Don't be "that" tourist - things to avoid when you are abroad (Gadling)

Aug 19th 2009 8:24AM Aw, c'mon now...let people gawk. That's the point of visiting places you haven't been! How can you admire the architecture of the Chrysler Building if you don't look up at it? I don't get tired of looking at spectacular things in the area where I live even if I've been there for years. After 4 years in Anchorage, Alaska I still found myself stopping in places like the Wal-mart parking lot to gaze at the Chugach Mountains behind the city. But you make a good point of paying attention to your surroundings while taking in the scenery. No sense in getting run over or having your wallet stolen.

Obama's 'Beer' Summit Fails to Represent Good American Beer (Digital City Blog)

Aug 14th 2009 12:11PM You know what always chapped my a$$? Restaurants that listed Killian's in the import beer section, and then charged more for it accordingly. Killian's is brewed by Coors, and if you buy it at the liquor store it never costs much more than other "premium" American brands like Michelob. I always thought restaurants were pulling off a huge marketing scam by listing it and pricing it in the same import category as real Irish beer like Guinness, or other imports like Beck's or Heineken.

I like Killian's, but even the official George Killian's Irish Red website calls it a "uniquely American beer brewed in the Irish tradition" so listing it as an import is a bunch of bull. It should be on the domestics list. Maybe more people who are all about "drinking American" would buy it.

I really don't care what the President drinks. If I were President I'd have a walk-in cooler filled with beer from all over, but especially Orkney Skull Splitter...an awesome beer from the Orkney Islands of Scotland which I have a heck of a time finding in the U.S. I could give PM Gordon Brown a call. I'd have to give Vladimir Putin a call too, and see if he could send me a case of Baltika #9. And I'd give Sarah Palin a call to have her send me a case of Alaskan Brewing Co. Smoked Porter. Yummy!

This is why I'll never be President...with good beer at my fingertips, I'd be drunk all the time!

The Spyder: America's Newest Street Rider (Blackvoices Main)

Apr 16th 2009 4:45AM Dave, in most states trikes are classified as motorcycles. They should be, since they are. However, the dynamics of riding a trike are different than a bike, so in some states like here in Ohio, for example, if you take your motorcycle exam on a trike, then you can only ride a trike. To ride a bike, you must test on a bike and that qualifies you to ride both bikes and trikes. Not sure if it's the same in every state, but probably in many.

I would recommend going through the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Basic Rider course. It's a good way learn the basic skills you need to ride safe. Bikes are provided for the instruction. Plus in some states, again Ohio as an example, successfully completing the course allows you to get your motorcycle license without having to test again for the ridden portion of the exam. That's how I did it, because as you might be aware, test riding a bike with just a learner's permit is hard to do. Who wants to buy a bike just to be able to take your rider's exam, especially if it turns out it is not an appropriate starter bike for you? Getting a motorcycle license sometimes feels like a "chicken or egg" scenario. The MSF course helps bypass that dilemma and set you on the right path.

The Spyder: America's Newest Street Rider (Blackvoices Main)

Apr 16th 2009 4:19AM Grizz, apparently only dweebs enjoy those "uncool" ATVs, snowmobiles, bass boats, dune buggies, ultralights, etc., by your reckoning. Ever hear of the term "motorsports?"

I like riding a motorcycle. I'm pretty sure I'd like riding a Spyder. Only a narrow-minded dweeb would fail to see that someone might enjoy it BECAUSE it's something different than a bike. Shoot, I'm not even happy riding just one kind of motorcycle. There are cruisers, choppers, dirtbikes, dual-sports, sportbikes, tourers, sport-tourers, standards, sidecar rigs...what's wrong with adding a Spyder to the list? It just means the choices are tougher when it comes time to pony up the money for a new ride.

Things Guys Shouldn't Do in Public. Ever. (Lemondrop)

Mar 25th 2009 9:30AM I'm a guy and I thought this was pretty funny. I also agree with most all of the no-no's except for one. No reading in the bathroom at work? C'mon, let a guy be a guy! Unless you specifically meant "adult magazines." Sure, that is sort of tasteless. But I can barely even "drop the kids off at the pool" unless I take some reading material with me. I recently finished reading "The Politically Incorrect Guide to English & American Literature" during a visit to "my office." Sometimes we get lucky and there is already a Car & Driver, Popular Mechanics, Guns and Ammo, National Geographic, Newsweek or Sports Illustrated in the stall. Time spent "dropping a load" is time wasted without the benefit of the printed word on-hand. Pictures are a bonus. Although a Blackberry and Google or Wikipedia makes an acceptable substitute. You know the cave paintings of Lascaux? I bet they are actually prehistoric toilets...the work of bored cavemen "taking a dump" before the advent of writing.

How about at least letting us read "On The Road" in the privacy of our employer bathrooms?

Don't fall for that Amish heater if you want to save money (WalletPop)

Feb 14th 2009 11:34AM "They're" and "their" (and "there") are not synonyms, because they don't mean the same thing. Those words are homophones because they sound alike.

Pear, pair, and pare are homophones.

Pretty, beautiful, and gorgeous are synonyms (generally speaking, with slight differences in emphasis.)

Don't fall for that Amish heater if you want to save money (WalletPop)

Feb 14th 2009 11:19AM What's surprising about that? Cherry wood DOES cost more than oak, or poplar or whatever the base wood is that they use. Walk into any Amish furniture store. Take a dining room table, for example. The exact same table will cost more in cherry than in oak, and walnut or hickory would be more expensive yet. If you want something crafted in cherry, you pay more. It's that simple. Don't you comparison shop?

As far as I know, the Amish aren't known for making Walmart quality furniture out of particle board and printed laminates. They use solid wood.