Very hot weather in California.
GTA in the news with its trigger of more online subscriptions. Xbox the big winner.
Comcast to buy Plaxo. I found the Plaxo messages annoying.
MySpace gets $225 million from spammers who got sued by MySpace. Hooray.
Google to blur faces.
The FCC to [...]
Those interested in or concerned about climate change will probably know that methane release from melting permafrost in the Arctic is a major unknown as a "tipping point" that could send the climate system into a tailspin as far as human interests are concerned. Until now, I hadn't heard about any ways of stopping the release of methane. Then today I read about a Russian scientist who suggested just the kind of solution that fascinates me:Zimov is reintroducing the grasses and herbivores that dominated northern Siberian steppes 10,000 years ago, and he plans to bulldoze portions of the park's larch forest and shrubland. Foxtail and cotton grass are taking root, providing fodder for Yakutian horses, reindeer, musk oxen and bison Zimov envisions on the park's flatlands.Steppe terrain inhibi
Radley Balko never fails to disturb. He links to a story at Tennesseean.com, which informs us:Defense attorneys would be banned from advertising their expertise with drunken driving cases under a bill advancing in the Senate.Sen. Rosalind Kurita, a Clarksville Democrat, successfully added the provision to a bill that would create an online registry of repeat DUI offenders in TennesseeKurita says
I just wrote an article for the Middle East Times following up on the recent trouble in Kuwait after Mugniyeh's death. You can read the full article here . Here is an excerpt: Hezbollah chief terror master Imad Mugnieh created havoc, terror and a trail of blood during his life. His death is likely to bring more of the same. And this might not be "limited" to potential retaliation terror attacks. Indeed, Kuwait is already paying the nefarious consequences of Mugnieh's death. Mugnieh was not well liked...(read more)
An editorial in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin calls on the Hawaii state legislature to "stop meddling' with the pardon power. According to the editorial. Gov. Linda Lingle (R) has issued more than 70 pardons since taking office five years ago - a number that is "consistent" with past governors. And, according to the Star-Bulletin, none of the pardon have been "controversial." Nonetheless, the state legislature has approved a bill that would require the judicial branch to review all probation applicants, leaving the Paroling Authority to review only applications from those imprisoned or on parole. The bill would also require the governor to give 30 days of public notice, including the reason(s), before issuing a pardon. See more details here.
As always, there is more than one way to look at any story. Is Steve Beshear riding in on a white horse to save the day? Or is he meddling?I suppose that all depends on one's point of view. For those of us who are already on the record suggesting that this search should have been delayed until spring when more highly qualified candidates would likely have been available, this feels like a ray of hope.Tomorrow that could all be different.This from Mark Hebert at WHAS:Governor-elect Steve Beshear has asked for, and received, a meeting with Kentucky Board of Education members. Here's my story.Beshear says he has "concerns" about the board's process for selecting a new state school commissioner, which is now in its final phase. The board has narrowed its list of finalists to four men, all with connections to Kentucky. ...But some lawmakers and others are questioning whether Beshear's insistence on meeting with the board is injecting politics into a selection process that's set up t
Today, the US House of Representatives passed a resolution condemning Syria and Iran for their “gross interference in Lebanon’s internal political affairs.” In particular, the resolution focused on meddling in the Lebanese presidential elections and the campaign of assassinations that threatens to change the pro-West democratically elected majority in parliament. I had an article on Syria’s ongoing problematic role in Lebanon in yesterday’s Los Angeles Times....(read more)
Remember this scam artist? Now he's meddling in the Madeleine McCann case, which I guess was inevitable:
Danie Krugel claims to be able to locate a missing person anywhere in the world, using only a single strand of their hair. Put this into his mysterious "Matter Orientation System" (MOS) and, in less than 30 minutes, the man nicknamed "the locater" says he can give you their precise GPS co-ordinates.
Laugh you may, but on Sunday it was reported in an upmarket British newspaper that Krugel had helped police uncover "traces of Madeleine's whereabouts". Last July, he led her parents to a point on Praia da Luz beach where he claimed Madeleine's body "had either been temporarily buried or was still beneath the beach". The findings were taken so seriously by Portuguese detectives that they ordered two further searches of the beach.
If that's true, then the unprofessionalism of the Portuguese police is simply staggering. This is an unbelievable waste of time and resources.
In his nat
Another regulatory situation has been brewing in the US for some time and it seems to be an odd thing to be fighting over. Fee based accounts are essentially brokerage accounts that pay a fixed percentage of the assets in the account as a commission. So if you are a frequent trader the account makes sense as after a certain point it is effectively commission free.
The problems occur, however,
Dear Useless Men, In light of how insightful you were when answering my last question (#351)--and since following your advice, I've found myself 8 lbs. lighter and far more comfortable cutting off senseless email contact with the "'little' brain"--I would like to ask a new question that I'm completely without an answer to: I recently attended a casual dinner party at a male friend's house with many of his female and male friends. After many drinks and lots of fun, the party disbanded and I was one of the last ones out the door. My friend offered his bed since I was far from home--and he made it clear he would stay on the sofa--but I opted to take a taxi back. After my friend walked me downstairs to a taxi and I was about to hop in, he pulled out his wallet and asked if I had enough cash and started to offer me money. Do purely platonic friends make that kind of gesture? (None of my other cheapass friends have ever behaved that way!) I got a bit of a vibe of interest from him earl
I sat on the sideline of a local soccer field and watched how a father, dressed in hunting fatigue sweats, warmed up his daughter in goal. Clearly a soccer player in his youth, this father appeared to be showing off his skill by luring his daughter toward him, and then, with some fancy footwork, peppering shot after shot by her into the nylon net.
While that night not seem like such a bad thing
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. (Sighs) Please be seated. (Frowns)Earlier today, the Democrats in Congress passed a war funding budget which includes a hard timeline for the pullout of American troops from Iraq. This is unacceptable! (Pounds Fist on Podium)This is MY war. I started it. And don't nobody else get to play with it but ME! (Folds Arms & Pouts)To these folks who don't understand why I'm so set on doing things my way, I want to share a little story: Read full story: http://www.whitehouse.org/news/2007/03/iraq-pullout-veto.asp
The blatant Americaphobia of the Nation never ceases to amaze. So, the United States is wrong in deposing a dictator and trying to establish a democracy, but it’s quite understandable for Iran to attempt to foment sectarian violence so that it could establish a Shia empire. Let’s see:
Bad, evil cowboy.
Pragmatic leader who just wants to protect his country from bad, evil, cowboys.
Why Iran 'meddles' in Iraq
Is Tehran's supposed involvement malign, or are its interests in the war legitimate?
By Adam Shatz, ADAM SHATZ is literary editor of the Nation.
February 18, 2007
THIS TIME AROUND, when the Bush administration presented "intelligence" from unidentified sources about a dangerous foe in the Middle East, the American media was noticeably more skeptical. Eager to redeem themselves for the generally obsequious reporting about Saddam Hussein's alleged weapons of mass destruction and ties to Al Qaeda, journalists don't want to get fooled again as the administrati
