Chris Sacca's 'What is left?'

Impending Caloric Holocaust?

Read a very thought-provoking piece on FuturePundit citing a study that predicts a decline in the average lifespan on Americans due to the obesity epidemic. From a National Institutes of Health release on the study:

"Over the next few decades, life expectancy for the average American could decline by as much as 5 years unless aggressive efforts are made to slow rising rates of obesity, according to a team of scientists supported in part by the National Institute on Aging (NIA), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). The U.S. could be facing its first sustained drop in life expectancy in the modern era, the researchers say, but this decline is not inevitable if Americans — particularly younger ones — trim their waistlines or if other improvements outweigh the impact of obesity."

I pointed my friend Kevin Coady to this article and he replied that, if these figures hold true, obesity might just save Social Security. As he put it, "Bush's plan: more bloomin' onions!"

That said, FuturePundit does a solid job of looking into the science (as always) and noting that the outcomes of this study are predicated upon an assumption that current trends in obesity continue unabated (not unrealistic) and significant advances are not made in developing other medicines and technology that increase life expectancy (very unrealistic).  Nevertheless, now and then, I leave room for hyperbole and marketing if it might inspire someone to put down their Big Gulp.

Nuptial Eclectica

Typing from the free wifi hotspots in the Jetblue terminal at JFK. (These Jetblue guys do just about everything right. I love flying with them.) Headed back to the Bay Area after 48 hours at the wedding of our friends, Amber and Dave, in the Silvermine Tavern in Norwalk, CT. Though the weekend weather was gray and gloomy, there is a palpable  coziness on the east coast that we just don't experience back in CA. The smells of fires, and leaves, and moss growing on stone walls just permeate the cold eastern air. Add to that low ceilings, creaking floors, and worn furniture and you have yourself a full on historical retreat. What a great setting for an entertaining wedding.

That said, I met a couple of characters worth mentioning. First, we were introduced to Chris Murphy, an old bandmate of Dave's, and an accomplished violinist in his own right. He spent most of the weekend cracking one-liners between performing original compositions on his violin. His music was sharp. Ranging from Celtic and folksy stuff, to dark, looming, ambient tunes, he entertained us all. I really enjoyed his use of live loops by which he would create rhythm and bass tracks then loop them to layer on a melody. Highly recommend that you check out his tunes.

The other notable fellow we met was Bill, proprietor of Pooper Trooper. Bill proudly proclaims that he is "Number 1, in the Number 2 Business." By this, he means to say that he has developed Seattle's premiere dog waste cleanup and removal service. Yep, this guy has regular subscription customers for whom he picks up their dog excrement. He charges his customers monthly "doos". Frankly, I think his rates are a little too low. However, it sounds like a killer service and folks really seem to appreciate his work. By the way, don't miss the opportunity to buy one of his dog crap calendars.

Acquisition? Or Vindication?

An announcement from Akamai Technologies issued early this morning brought a big smile to my sleepy face. After years of combat between the market leaders of one of the Internet's  most acerbic sectors, Akamai agreed to acquire Speedera Networks for $130 million worth of Akamai stock and settle all outstanding litigation.

I spent a long time at Speedera during some lean years and I couldn't be happier than to see this outcome for the Speedera guys. The founders are true entrepreneurs and technologists who followed a principled approach valuing employees above all else even when it was not fashionable to do so. I congratulate the team on this deal and look forward to the day I can work with those guys again.