Excellent GQ Article on the Hottest New Porn Star: James Deen

http://www.gq.com/entertainment/celebrities/201207/james-deen-porn-star-gq-june-2012-interview

Chart of the Week: Popularity of Congress

Great chart showing how popular Congress is compared to things/people such as banks, lawyers, etc...

https://philebersole.wordpress.com/tag/congress-approval-rating/

Secrets to Cheap Flights

*Book on a Tuesday at 3pm EST.
*Search everyone: Expedia, Travelocity, Orbitz, Kayak, AirFareWatchdog, Yapta, and Hipmunk.
*Book six weeks in advance.
*Search the actual airline sites.

http://www.businessinsider.com/23-secrets-to-booking-cheap-flights-2012-7#book-on-tuesday-at-3-pm-eastern-time-5

Duckeasies

Article on clandestine restaurants in California that have been cropping up since July 1, 2012, when the state banned the production and sale of foie gras.

Foie Gras Goes Underground in 'Duckeasies'
by Alison Vekshin and James Nash
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-07-17/foie-gras-goes-underground-at-california-duckeasies

How Can You Make Yourself Luckier?

http://www.bakadesuyo.com/how-can-you-make-yourself-luckier

Does One Orgasm = Two Cheeseburgers

Approximately. When you measure the release of dopamine that food, sex and drugs cause you can roughly quantify the amount of pleasure each delivers.

http://www.bakadesuyo.com/does-one-orgasm-equal-two-cheeseburgers

Crude Oil Prices & Gas Prices

It's worth noting that the general rule of thumb is every $1 change in crude oil prices results in a 2.5-cent change in gasoline prices.
The Gas Price Disaster That Didn't Materialize
by Bob King & Darren Goode
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0712/78575.html

How Much Gold Can You Safely Eat?

Conspicuous Consumption
by L.V. Anderson
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/explainer/2012/07/the_666_gold_wrapped_douche_burger_is_it_safe_to_eat_gold_.html

On Outsourcing & Worker Discretion

It is these systems — the rules, the procedures, in effect the operational software — that allow companies to take relatively low-skilled, low-paid workers with relatively little experience and have them do tasks that were once done by people with higher skills, higher pay and more experience. And it is the very nature of these systems that workers are discouraged, if not prohibited, from exercising their own discretion. Their only job is to follow rules, stick to the script and leverage the experience and expertise that are embedded in the system.

That’s why the person in the airline call center in Bangalore can’t do what is necessary to help you catch your honeymoon cruise after your flight has been canceled because a co-pilot failed to show up on time. Her computer simply won’t allow her.

It’s why the person from the credit card company can’t speak to you about your account until you put the cardholder — your recently deceased husband — on the line to give the authorization.

It’s why your company cafeteria won’t serve an Ethiopian option even if half the staff is Ethiopian.

It’s why the security guard won’t let you into the building you’ve worked in for 25 years because your identification card has expired — not even to go to the security office to renew your card.

It’s why, when you call the utility company to tell them your service is down for the third time that week, the person at the call center is completely uninterested in what you learned from the last two repairmen, assuring you that somebody will be out to check the problem and asking if there is anything else he can do for you today.

It’s why, when you call the 800 number for tech services while working at home over the weekend on a crucial project, they tell you they don’t support the application you are using and can’t find somebody who does.

Lifeguard's Ordeal is Parable About Outsourcing
by Steven Pearlstein
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/lifeguards-ordeal-is-parable-about-outsourcing/2012/07/13/gJQAN6TtkW_story_1.html

Business Idea of the Week: Cuddling

This woman charges $1 per minute to cuddle.  If she works full-time (as in more or less nonstop Mon-Fri) for eight hours a day, that means she can pull in $120,000/year.

http://www.businessinsider.com/this-woman-is-charging-1-a-minute-to-cuddle-2012-7

Kinsey Institute Sex FAQ

http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/resources/FAQ.html

White House Salaries

View salaries at the White House:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/21stcenturygov/tools/salaries

Real World Middle Class Tax Rates: 75%?

*Social Security and Medicare: 15.3%
*Federal income tax: 25%
*State income tax: 5%
*Healthcare insurance: 15%
*Property tax: 15%

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-real-world-middle-class-tax-rate-75-2012-7

Quote of the Week: Millionaires

The person who minds nobody's business but his own is probably a millionaire.

-Anonymous (found on Forbes.com website)

Drive A Tank

There are several options for the Drive-A-Tank experience. The basic package, which costs $399, includes driving one tank with an open hatch and the opportunity to shoot one machine gun. For $549, drivers can navigate two different tanks and shoot three machine guns. For an additional $549, you can drive a tank over a car and for $749, you can smash two cars. And for the extra adventurous, customers can drive a tank through a trailer home for $3,500.

http://news.yahoo.com/drive-tank-crush-car-minn-firm-153648120--abc-news-topstories.html