The Av’s now find themselves in a deep, dark hole. Down 3-0 to the Sharks, they need to sweep the remaining four games to advance. After a good first round win over the Stars, the Av’s seem to have fallen back into their late-season funk. It may be a long off-season, I hope that they leave everything out on the ice before they leave.

Please excuse the temporary diversion into politiblogdom. But to back up my previous post on fiscal irresponsibility, here’s an excerpt from Fortune Magazine (the author, Doug Bandow, is a senior fellow at the Cato Institute):

But the biggest impetus for higher spending is partisan uniformity, not partisan identity. Give either party complete control of government, and the Treasury vaults are quickly emptied. Neither Congress nor the President wants to tell the other no. Both are desperate to prove they can “govern” – which means creating new programs and spending more money. But share power between parties, and out of principle or malice they check each other.

The light dawns. Zimran points to an AT&T Wireless customer service meltdown, which goes a long ways towards explaining our previous customer service woes. In our latest interaction, they’ve asked us to pay via paper check rather than via electronic checking. So much for the efficiency of online banking.

They also have the very annoying tendency of dunning for payment while we’re on the road. If it’s coincidence, then their timing is remarkable. If it’s deliberate, then the implied threat of service termination is reprehensible.

I wonder if Gmail is the precursor to a corporate Gmail Appliance? Personal email archives are the great untapped store of corporate knowledge. Start with a Google Search Appliance for formal communication. Add in k-logs and Gmail for ad hoc communication. Stir gently and you have the foundational for a pretty impressive knowledge managment solution.

With the White House looking fiscally irresponsible, I’m crossing the aisle. I attended my first Kerry MeetUp last night at the Westport Library. There was a turnout of 40-50 people. As in any volunteer gathering, we were all at different stages. And unfortunately, that means a lot of milling about takes place before any organization starts to form. Hopefully we got that out of our system last night.

Things are complicated because it’s inconceivable for Kerry to lose Connecticut. I would think that the best thing we can do for Kerry is export help to other states. With Fairfield County being one of the richest counties in the US, that means fundraising. But while fundraising is incredibly important, I think that it’s hard to feel meaningfully connected while doing it.

Belated congratulations to the University of Denver Pioneers for their first NCAA Hockey Championship since 1969. It was a furious finish, with Maine attacking 6 on 3 at the end of the game (DU penalty at 2:09, 2nd DU penalty at 1:34, goalie pulled at 1:13). I didn’t post at the time, but I’ve been given a second chance.

My brother is pictured below with the Championship Trophy. The picture was taken at the Denver Chophouse, where the team was celebrating after being honored at an Avalanche game.

I know that it’s important to follow the script when diagnosing problems. I understand that you have to collect some identification, pull up the records and check for the obvious. But once we’ve exhausted the script, could you just tell me that and pass me up the chain.

Ford is voluntarily recalling 363,300 Escapes with 3.0L V-6 engines built in Kansas City, models years 2001 to early 2003. My girlfriend owns a 2001 Escape with a 3.0L V-6 engine and a built in Kansas City windshield sticker. Her car was not included in the recall and I set out to find out why. After we got the preliminaries out of the way, the conversation went something like this:

Me: “Can you tell me why some cars are not included in the recall?”

Ford: “Sir, you understand that not all vehicles are included in the recall.”

Me: “Yes, but can tell what distinguishes cars that are recalled?”

Ford: “Sir, recalls apply to specific vehicles and …”

Me [interrupting]: “Do you know what distinguishes cars that being recalled from cars that are not?”

Ford: “Sir, you have to understand that not all vehicles are recalled …”

Me [interrupting]: “Yes I understand that, but saying the same thing in different ways does not answer my question. Do you know what distinguishes cars that are being recalled? Yes or No.”

Ford: “Sir, if you would please let me finish …”

Me [interrupting]: “May I please speak to a supervisor.”

Ford: “Please hold.”

After a short hold, I get a supervisor. That conversation goes something like this:

Ford: “Let’s take a look at your vehicle … made in 2001 … 3.0L V-6 … built in Kansas City … Hmmm … The recall consists of a software update. Perhaps it has already been applied. Would you please hold while I go to another computer to access your service records.”

Ford: “According to the service records, this update was applied a year ago.”

Me: “I’ve got the service invoice right here. The stalling problem was investigated, but the invoice doesn’t mention any corrective action.”

Ford: “The records indicate that it was done.”

Me: “Ok, I’ll double check with the dealer. Thank you.”

I’m sure that the customer service reps are instructed to stick to the script. And I suspect that they get graded on avoiding escalation. How stupid is that? Once it becomes obvious that the script does not cover the situation, then can we just move on? The customer is job one. The sooner you get me to someone who can answer my questions, the sooner I’ll get out of your your hair, and the happier we’ll be.

Seth Finkelstein posits that the A-Listers are the new gatekeepers [via Scobelizer: Microsoft Geek Blogger]. I think that he’s just off the mark. Search engines remain the internet gatekeepers. The power of the A-List is an artifact of page rank.

A-Listers are prolific bloggers with wide-ranging interests. I doubt that anyone can reliably recall on which blog they read what after a few days. So limiting your search to a specific blog is a bad strategy unless you’re looking for something in their specialty, such as RSS at Scripting News or Microsoft happenings at Microsoft Geek Aggregator.

I’ve changed my mind about the integration of RSS and email. I value my email archives for their history, while I value weblogs for freshness. There’s a mismatch between the two. I no longer archive A-List blog posts - I go straight to a search engine.

So while I agree that it’s going to take special circumstances before we see a new A-Lister, I’m not really concerned. The A-Listers may rule the general interest categories, but I believe that specialized topics are still up for grabs - for someone with the smarts, drive and persistence. I’m confident that search engines will provide a way to find you as long as you’re worth finding.

The second round schedule of the Stanley Cup is set. Jim Valvano applied the term survive and advance to the NCAA basketball tournament, but that only takes 6 wins. It takes 16 wins over 4 7-game series to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup. The winners are truly the ultimate sports survivors.

I had an opportunity to see game 5 of the Stars-Avalanche, but I had to decline my brother’s offer - my girlfriend has serious business travel this month and it wouldn’t have been right. It would have been my first brush with a NHL playoff series win in person. Hopefully, I’ll get another chance. I need to store up some good NHL memories for what could be an extended off season.

No, Bloggers are not Journalists. Cub reporters are journalists from day 1 because the institutions for which they work extend them that title. If a title means anything, then you cannot just apply it to yourself. Someone else needs to judge your qualifications and grant you that title.

Yes, Some Bloggers could be Journalists. If you were blogging as part of a recognized institution. If that institution provided fact checking and editorial services. And if that institution stood behind your blogging rather than disavowing any responsibility for your posts. Then yes, I think you would be a journalist.

No, I don’t expect it to happen very often. I value the bloggers voice for it’s first person advocacy of positions. I value journalists for their investigative reporting on issues. I don’t think that many people will be able to tread the fine line between the two.

Series Index at Blogging and Journalism.