the tindog coffeehouse

A new poorly-worded Texas law now (possibly) requires computer repair shops to obtain a private investigator’s license in order to do their jobs (a process that requires either a criminal justice degree or a 3-year apprenticeship under a licensed P.I.).

Depending on how the law in interpreted, anyone in Texas who performs any kind of data analysis in the course of fixing a computer must have a P.I. license or face a $4000 fine, a year in jail, and a $10,000 civil penalty. Simple hardware repairs, such as swapping out memory or a power supply, would not require a license, but anyone who has done any kind of computer repair work knows that such repairs are only a small part of the job.

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A report issued by CIBC World Markets is forecasting that by 2010, oil prices will hit $200 a barrel, which translates to $7-per-gallon for gas.

From Earth2Tech:

To keep it nasty, brutish and short, here’s what that means for U.S. residents:

• Stagflation;
• Driving like Europeans (15 percent less mileage, more public transportation — except Europe has pleasant public transportation);
• Market share for SUVs/vans/light trucks cut in half; vehicle sales collapse to early 80s levels;
• 10 million fewer cars on the road; one in five homes lose their second car;
• Hundreds of thousands of auto-related jobs disappear;
• Spending more per month on gas than food; diminished purchasing power compared to consumers in Europe or Japan.

And oh yeah, the report makes it crystal clear this isn’t a return of the 1970s, when the energy crisis was a painful but shortlived event. No, this one is going to linger for a long time.

Time to look for a new job closer to home!