Kinda geeky post

In the last 24 hours or so I've gotten many more visitors than normal. Most of the hits came from a Google™ search on the words "tough", "love" and "Playboy".

Here's the part I found most interesting, almost every single one of those visitors came from Germany.

For those who don't know, that is the Neuschwanstein castle in Germany. And here is another view of the castle.

This map is so wrong

How can they map the internet and exclude the 15th most visited site?

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Spies put transmitters in Canadian coins: Report

OK, this is the last straw. The US must attack Canada. I'm jumping in here ahead of Rush Limpbaugh and the other wingers. We just can't let such things go on without retaliation. Bomb the suckers.

They say money talks, and a new report suggests Canadian currency is indeed chatting, at least electronically, on behalf of shadowy spies.

Canadian coins containing tiny transmitters have mysteriously turned up in the pockets of at least three American contractors who visited Canada, says a branch of the U.S. Defense Department.

Security experts believe the miniature devices could be used to track the movements of defence industry personnel dealing in sensitive military technology.

"You might want to know where the individual is going, what meetings the individual might be having and, above all, with whom," said David Harris, a former CSIS officer who consults on security matters.

"The more covert or clandestine the activity in which somebody might be involved, the more significant this kind of information could be."

The counterintelligence office of the U.S. Defense Security Service cites the currency caper as an example of the methods international spies have recently tried to illicitly acquire military technology.

To my Canadian friends, I apologize, but you asked for it.

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Libraries are dangerous places

This is so bizarre and at the same time quite frightening.

Even in rural Montana.

I stopped into the friendly little library in Joliet over lunch today. I often do on Tuesdays, when I'm there.

"Friendly" and "little" are accurate descriptions. It's a smallish room in the community center, only open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and (most) Saturday mornings. It is staffed by Larrie-- a lovely woman with short curly hair and a gentle smile, retired from her former life and now serving as a part-time librarian. I like chatting with her; she's a cheerful, interested and practical sort of woman.

She is also apparently a risk to national security.

I learned today that she had recently submitted a request for a patron, ordering books from the large library in Billings. Being a tiny library, this is routine; she does this every week-- for folks who want to read items that aren't available, or maybe for kids who need something for a school report. She submits the order, the books come back, everyone is happy.

Not this time.

This time, she received these books; but they came with a letter informing her that because she had ordered them, she had been placed on a "Watch List." Pursuant to recent policy, with due respect for concerns with the requirements of the Patriot Act, she will have to appear in person in Billings before she will be permitted to order any more books.

No, I am not making this up.

Incidentally, the dust jacket lists glowing reviews from Oliver North, G. Gordon Liddy and Rush Limbaugh. Wonder if they're on the Watch List, too.

(courtesy link)

Bush can call them anything he wants to

But they're sitting ducks he will ignore when they come home in flag-draped coffins.

Ya feeling special visiting SPIIDERWEB™?

Well, ya should because, according to Sitescore:

Your website is ranked 15 in the world. This is excellent and shows you have an exceptionally popular website.

Number 15 in the world!!!1!! W00t!

Truth is, I have exceptionally great readers if not popularity.

Now let me make something abundantly clear. If SPIIDERWEB™ really were the 15th most popular website in the world, I wouldn't be here.

There is no way I could handle the traffic the 15th most visited website would generate. Hell, I can barely afford to post with a free host. No way I could afford servers.

But it's fun to read such.

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Global warming?

Sure looks like too much heat.

(via Jonco)

First Bush and now McCain

I can't stand to listen to either. Can someone keep them off CNN or do I have to go to the cartoon channel?

Shaking head from side to side

This from the Washington Post.

Bush's decision appears to mark the first major disagreement between the White House and key elements of the Pentagon over the Iraq war since Gen. Eric K. Shinseki, then the Army chief of staff, split with the administration in the spring of 2003 over the planned size of the occupation force, which he regarded as too small.

It may also be a sign of increasing assertiveness from a commander in chief described by former aides as relatively passive about questioning the advice of his military advisers. In going for more troops, Bush is picking an option that seems to have little favor beyond the White House and a handful of hawks on Capitol Hill and in think tanks who have been promoting the idea almost since the time of the invasion.

"It seems clear to me that the president has taken more positive control of this strategy," said Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), one of those pushing for more troops. "He understands that the safety of the nation and his legacy is all on the line here."

Others familiar with Bush's thinking said he had not been happy with the military's advice. "The president wasn't satisfied with the recommendations he was getting, and he thought we need a strategy that was more purposeful and likely to succeed if the Iraqis could make that possible," said Philip D. Zelikow, who recently stepped down as State Department counselor after being involved with Iraqi policy the past two years.

I could comment on almost every sentence of the story, but will spare you.

Truth is, the Iraqi Study Group should have told the asshole to send in 300,000 troops and he would have pulled out all troops there now. He had to do something they did not recommend.

I've said before we're dealing with a petulant 5 year old. Keep that in mind at all times.

Of course Bush knows more than his generals. He has as much experience at military strategy as a 7-11 clerk.

Sometimes ya just wanna give up

Jesus H Christ on a swivel chair, Bush will do anything to fuck US and give the oil companies what they want.

President Bush lifted the drilling ban Tuesday for Alaska's Bristol Bay, clearing the way for the Interior Department to open the fish-rich waters to oil and natural gas development.

Alaska officials as well as local communities had asked for the ban to be lifted, but environmentalists have warned against drilling in the bay, which is also a major fishing area for salmon, crab and cod.

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said one or two lease sales in about 5.6 million acres of Bristol Bay will be considered for leasing in the department's upcoming five-year 2007-12 lease plan.

Separately, Bush lifted a drilling moratorium in an area of the central Gulf of Mexico known as Lease Area 181, making that area available to drilling.

The Gulf waters acted upon by the president is a small part of a much larger 8.2 million acres that were approved for oil and gas development by Congress last month in one of its last acts before adjournment.

"There will be significant opportunities for study and public comment before any oil and gas development could take place in these areas," said Kempthorne. [emphasis mine]

So comment already.

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Another top 10 list

Please be warned. This isn't a top 10 list you want to read. It is the top 10 humanitarian stories which went under-reported in 2006 and they aren't pleasant reading at all.

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Quote of the day

And this one should turn your blood to ice water.

"The President has the ability to exercise his own authority if he thinks Congress has voted the wrong way."

-- Tony Snow
January 8, 2007

NO! Tony. That is the authority of a dictator, not a president. Uh, sorry. I forgot the US has a dictator now.

Check out news from the future

Sure its fake, but so is everything Bush believes in.

Could you do this?

For many reasons, I couldn't. Notice how the clerk averts her eyes. Teh funny.

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Ya gotta see this...pure beauty

Great Eagret

Like this is news?

The Bush WH has been leaking details about his SURGE™ for weeks. So this report isn't new.

The first of up to 20,000 additional U.S. troops will move into Iraq by month's end under President Bush's new war plan, a senior defense official said Tuesday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record) pledged to hold a vote on the increase, which many Democrats oppose.

Details of a gradual military buildup emerged a day before Bush's planned speech to the nation, in which he also will propose a bit over $1 billion to shore up the country's battered economy and create jobs, said a second U.S. official.

Bush is expected to urge friendly Mideast countries to increase their aid to Iraq but will ignore the recommendation of the bipartisan Iraq Study group that he include
Syria and Iran in an effort to staunch Iraqi bloodshed nearly four years after the U.S. invasion, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plan has not yet been announced.

Bush is expected to link the troop increase to promised steps by the Iraqi government to build up its own military, ease the country's murderous sectarian tensions, increase reconstruction and enact a plan to distribute oil revenues among the country's religious sects. [emphasis mine]

Two fucking words, NEW ORLEANS?

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100 best companies to work for according to Forbes

Funny, but mine isn't on the list...again. It is simply because they don't deserve to be on the list and never have deserved to be.

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Hmm...

Isn't that Jack Abramoff with George who doesn't remember knowing him? Just asking.

Argh!!!1!!

For some reason I can't post comments to Bad Attitudes and its driving me crazy.

It really is a traffic accident sort of thing

Many of my recent visits came from searches for "Saddam", "Hussein", "hanging", or a combination of "Saddam", "Hussein" and "photo".

For some reason, most people just have to look. Its their choice of course, but I have no desire at all to see such photos. I've seen one dead person in my life, my maternal grandmother, when I was 13 years old and I would be happy to never see another.

The wonderous world of computing

What I got when I tried to look at Site Meter to see my visits.

Geek post

Update to add photo of iPhone.

Ya gotta love Steve Jobs. The guy never ceases to amaze.

Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs on Tuesday announced the iPod maker's long-awaited leap into the mobile phone business and renamed the company just "Apple Inc.," reflecting its increased focus on consumer electronics.

The iPhone, which will start at $499 when it launches in June, is controlled by touch, plays music, surfs the Internet and runs the Macintosh computer operating system. Jobs said it will "reinvent" wireless communications and "leapfrog" past the current generation of smart phones.

"Every once in a while a revolutionary product comes along that changes everything," he said during his keynote address at the annual Macworld Conference and Expo. "It's very fortunate if you can work on just one of these in your career. ... Apple's been very fortunate in that it's introduced a few of these."

He said the company's name change is meant to reflect Apple's transformation from a computer manufacturer to a full-fledged consumer electronics company.

During his speech, Jobs also unveiled a TV set-top box that allows people to send video from their computers and announced the number of songs sold on its iTunes Music Store has topped 2 billion.

Apple shares jumped more than 8 percent on the announcements, while the stock of rival smart-phone makers plunged. The run on Apple stock created about $6 billion in shareholder wealth.

While Jobs noted the explosive growth of the cell phone market, it's not clear that a device as alluring as the iPhone poses a threat to mainstream handset makers due to the price, said Avi Greengart, mobile device analyst for the research firm Current Analysis.

"My initial reaction is that this product actually lives up to the extensive hype, and I'm not easily impressed," he said. "But the vast majority of phones sold cost way less than $500." Instead, the rivals most likely to face new competition from Apple's handset are makers of higher-end smart phones such as Palm Inc.

Personally, I'm happy he's in this game. He makes things interesting if nothing else.

Oh yeah, there's no way I can afford a $500 phone. I'm lucky if I can afford a new battery for the cell phone I already have.

Its OK to take pity on me. I'm used to it.

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Gimme a break

The Dems are soft on securing the US. They introduce legislation which shows they aren't and the Repugs say they are "posturing". Arghhh!

Anti-terror legislation sped toward passage in the House on Tuesday, the first in a string of measures designed to fulfill campaign promises made by Democrats last fall.

Patterned on recommendations of the commission that investigated the Sept. 11 attacks, the far-reaching measure includes commitments for inspection of all cargo carried aboard passenger aircraft and on ships bound for the United States.

"Our first and highest duty as members of this Congress is to protect the American people, to defend our homeland and to strengthen our national security," said Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (news, bio, voting record), D-Md.

Several Republicans criticized the legislation as little more than political posturing in the early hours of a new Democratic-controlled Congress. Democrats want to "look aggressive on homeland security. This bill will waste billions of dollars, and possibly harm homeland security by gumming up progress already under way," said Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky.

I suppose we need to get used to this. There's much more to come in future.

Damned if they do, damned if they don't seems to come to mind.

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Must Read IMHO

From Jill at Brilliant at Breakfast.

She's absolutely right.

Just say no

I suggest no one help Gannett.

To explain the significance of killing the News Room to those who've never worked in journalism: A newspaper's News Room is usually organized into different areas of expertise such as metro, lifestyle, labor or sports. Gannett-owned papers have broken with this tradition by re-shuffling employees into one of six desks: digital, public service, community conversation, local, custom content, data, and multimedia.

These fancy names represent a shift away from investigation and reporting - and refocus newspapers on distributing content across multiple platforms beyond print; such as video and the internet.

Its your choice and I know you'd love to see your name in print, but please don't help them fuck the real reporters.

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Sometimes I find the world, or its people, amusing

I posted an item mentioning Paris Hilton. It took mere minutes before I got a hit from someone searching on her name.

I still get hits from people looking for Neil Young and Sharon Tay, the newscaster who went missing, months after I posted about them.

I have no idea why people are interested in posts about Sharon, but the pic might explain it. Now Neil Young...?

Bush doing all he can to push Mahmoud Ahmedinejad into a corner

Bush either doesn't recognize Mahmoud Ahmedinejad as someone with a personality similar to his own or he does and is trying to get a rise out of him. At any rate he's going to corner Ahmedinejad and cause him to strike back. Its inevitable.

I've posted before Iran is not Iraq. Unless Bush decides to turn the country of Iran into glass*, he doesn't have a chance of "winning" there. And I doubt the rest of the world would see such an outcome as "winning".

The United States is expected to announce sanctions against Bank Sepah, a big Iranian commercial bank, under a presidential order aimed at freezing the assets of proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and their supporters, several US officials have said.

A senior US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that action is expected to be announced soon.

The new sanctions - under an executive order from George Bush, the US president, signed in June 2005 - reflects the administration's determination to use US authorities to pressure Iran to abandon its nuclear programme, something Tehran has repeatedly insisted it will not do.

The mind boggles at the damage Bush can do between now and 2009. Even if impeachment should not result in Bush's being put out to pasture, it needs to be launched. Maybe if he has too much on his plate he'll not have time enough to cause more catastrophes.

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* A nuclear blast turns sand into glass (Wikipedia link).

In the crater the desert sand, which is largely made of silica, melted and became glass of a light green color and mildly radioactive; this was named Trinitite.

Thank you Bush you fucking idiot

This is another result of Bush's inept foreign policy. Yes, Japan is nervous because of NKorea, but NKorea hasn't made them feel the need for weaponry for the last, oh, 50 years or so. It took GWB to effect that fear.

One of the few positive things to come out of WWII was a Japan with a pacifist constitution. Since then, Japan has grown into a world leader and impressive economy and it is largely because they didn't have to funnel a ton of money into weapons. But the US military-industrial complex needs new customers and now they'll have one.

Japan has launched its first full-fledged defense ministry since World War II as part of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts to build a more assertive nation.

Abe, Japan's first premier to be born after the war, made the creation of a defense ministry one of his top priorities. He aims eventually to rewrite the US-imposed 1947 constitution that declared Japan a pacifist country.

"Since the Cold War ended, the national security situation facing Japan has changed dramatically," Abe said at a ceremony to mark the creation of a cabinet-level defense ministry to replace the previous defense agency.

"This is a significant step for us to get out of the post-war regime and lay the foundations for our efforts to build the nation," said Abe, adding that the ministry would now be able to shape defense and security policy.

One suggestion Abe, learn from the past and from others. Don't start something you can't stop. Pacifism has worked out fine for Switzerland.

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Saddam Hussein's hanging photo

Not of Saddam, but a look at the rest of the room. There seem to be more photos of Hussein than there are of Paris Hilton.

Absolutely stunning scenes of nature

Just one example of the many pictures
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Must Read IMHO

These two come at this subject from slightly different angles, but ultimately make the case for the same conclusion. The Dems aren't gonna stop the SURGE™ because they won't refuse the funding Bush needs.

I would like to believe both these people are wrong, but seriously doubt they are. We're witnessing political posturing for the folks back home, not a serious threat to Bush's getting his way.

This from P M Carpenter.

The latest unrequited Kabukism -- that of Democrats blustering as though they're going to get tough on Iraq -- is proof positive that the metaphor is merely an anachronism nestled in pre-9/11 thinking: the idea that Congress -- you remember Congress, that theoretical branch of government with war-declaring and budget authority and all that -- can and will influence Mr. Bush's actions. The reality is that Mr. Bush couldn't care less. His attitude? Let them eat Kabuki.

On the face of it, the Democrats' crooning is impressive indeed. As the Washington Post reported: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid declared [Friday in a letter] that 'it is time to bring the war to a close' and warned President Bush that sending more U.S. troops to Iraq would be unacceptable to the Democratic majorities that have just taken over Congress."

Warned. Unacceptable. Sounds pretty tough. It's about to hit the fan, right?

...

I realize the complexities of our democratic system, especially in a time of war. And I understand those arguments that political scientists would offer -- arguments about the unmitigated difficulty of extrication, the antiwar party's not unreasonable fear of voter susceptibility to martial demagoguery, the inherent and unavoidable struggle between a determined commander in chief and nervous legislators -- and most of all arguments about the essential art of nuance in that power struggle.

But here's the one and only argument that Congressional Democrats must come to understand in today's political environment: Mr. Bush doesn't do nuance. He doesn't get it, doesn't abide it, and Democrats are wasting their trained talents exercising it. Like any bully, Mr. Bush only understands brute, frontal, uncompromising force.

And in that environment Democrats must give up Kabuki dancing and take up Sumo wrestling. No nuance is useful, just as there's no middle ground in war. We're either in one or we're not.

Which goes hand in hand with this from Dennis Perrin.

The current fantasy making the rounds is that Pelosi and Harry Reid are somehow "antiwar," and this is bolstered by a letter the two of them recently sent to Bush. Now, whatever Nancy Pelosi's current stand on Iraq really is, and I have no doubt that she, like a lot of elite Americans, are tactically opposed to Bush's proposed troop "surge," the new Speaker of the House is hardly antiwar. There's no way a pro-war party like the Dems would promote someone who opposed their view that the US has a right to attack anyone it wants, so long as it's in the "national interest." If that were the case, Dennis Kucinich would be prominent among senior Dems. The invasion of Iraq carried with it a ton of risks, and so there was elite opposition to it --- not because of some philosophical hostility to imperialism, but because the invasion could very well damage the US military system, as well as incite anti-American hatred worldwide. Of course, this has pretty much transpired, which is why Dem leaders like Pelosi and Reid are against further escalation. If there weren't powerful forces supporting them, neither of these pols would dare broach the subject. "Redeployment," on the other hand, is perfectly acceptable --- indeed, necessary, if the US imperial project in the Middle East is to survive. And that, above all, is what Pelosi and Reid are trying to salvage. A complete and total pullout from Iraq is simply not going to happen, not voluntarily, anyway; and it definitely is not going to happen under the gaze of a San Francisco Dem.

This Is Disgusting

But its also very Republican. I don't usually comment on governors, but this reeks.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger will propose a major rollback of the state's welfare system this week, including a cutoff of aid to tens of thousands of children whose parents do not meet minimum work requirements or are in the country illegally, administration officials said Sunday.

The proposed $465-million reduction in California's welfare budget came two days after the governor promised that his second term would feature "post-partisan" cooperation.

It was met immediately with resistance from Democrats, who expressed bewilderment that the governor would attempt to cut welfare aid to children in the same week his administration is expected to move forward with a plan to expand health insurance to many of the same children.

"It's ironic that the governor is proposing healthcare for poor kids while taking away their breakfasts," state Senate leader Don Perata (D-Oakland) said of the cuts, which would affect more than 40,000 families. "Even Republican Gov. [Pete] Wilson, at the time he negotiated welfare reform, agreed that children should not suffer for the behavior of their parents."

The children should always be spared.

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In case ya wanna go green

It looks like the Toyota Prius is actually wallet as well as ecologically friendly. And I think they're pretty kewl looking too.

The higher cost of hybrid cars is worth it in the long run, according to a comprehensive new study. When considering not just fuel economy but insurance, maintenance, depreciation and other factors, a Toyota Prius owner can expect to save $13,408 over five years, compared with a non-hybrid in the same class.

(via Truthdig)

And they wonder why people think Bush is stupid

Taegan Goddard has posted the top 10 "Bushism" of 2006. These 3 are my favorites.

3. It was not always certain that the U.S. and America would have a close relationship.
5. The only way we can win is to leave before the job is done.
10. The fiscal year that ended on February the 30th.

Someone else who sees Iran as a Bush target

I've no doubt Iran is in the cross-hairs and I'm far from alone in that assessment.

George W. Bush has purged senior military and intelligence officials who were obstacles to a wider war in the Middle East, broadening his options for both escalating the conflict inside Iraq and expanding the fighting to Iran and Syria with Israel's help.

On Jan. 4, Bush ousted the top two commanders in the Middle East, Generals John Abizaid and George Casey, who had opposed a military escalation in Iraq, and removed Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, who had stood by intelligence estimates downplaying the near-term threat from Iran's nuclear program.

Most Washington observers have treated Bush's shake-up as either routine or part of his desire for a new team to handle his planned "surge" of U.S. troops in Iraq. But intelligence sources say the personnel changes also fit with a scenario for attacking Iran's nuclear facilities and seeking violent regime change in Syria.

(via Truthout)

Do your part

Colbert needs your help.

This page is an official policy of Wikiality. It's like a decree from the papacy. Why? Because it's so rich with truthiness. It has wide acceptance among members of the Colbert Nation and is considered a standard that all users should follow. When editing this page, make sure that your truthiness reflects the truthiness of others. (You wouldn't want to be different from everybody else, would you?) Discuss big changes first on the talk page.

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Learn from the past. Duh!

This guy is having real problems.

A “heads up” for those of you who may be regular Home Depot customers.

Over the last month I became a victim of a clever scam while out shopping. Simply going out to get supplies has turned out to be quite traumatic. Don’t be naive enough to think it couldn’t happen to you.

Here’s how the scam works:

Two seriously good-looking 20-21 year-old girls come over to your car as you are packing your shopping into the trunk. They both start wiping your windshield with a rag and Windex, with their breasts almost falling out of their skimpy T-shirts. It is impossible not to look. When you thank them and offer them a tip, they say “No” and instead ask you for a ride to another Home Depot or Lowe’s.

You agree and they get in the back seat. On the way, they start having sex with each other. Then one of them climbs over into the front seat and performs oral sex on you, while the other one steals your wallet.

I had my wallet stolen November 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, 17th, 20th, & 24th. Also December 1st, 3rd, twice on the 7th, three times just yesterday and I am concerned about next Thursday.

So be careful.

I really hope he's joking.

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Another One Bites The Dust

From the website.

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

Blog Overboard

Around this blog are writers, journalists, law professors, wise and clever commentary, and the ceaseless raging of fierce debate; within it silence and exhaustion; beneath it the engulfing abyss. There is no resting place. The blog thinks of the shadowy adventures of its lifeless archives in Internet search engines. Inactivity paralyzes it. It clutches spasmodically for inspiration and grasps at nothing. Sports, politics, current events, all are useless! What shall it do? It yields to malaise. Worn out, it seeks termination; it no longer resists; it gives itself up; it abandons the contest; it is rolled away into the dismal depths of the blogospheric abyss forever. [*]

See you around, friends; just not around here, anymore.

posted by Hawspipe at 1/03/2006 Comments (21) | Trackback (0)

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I don't even want to know what this is about

You can check it out if you're curious.

Oscar wining actor George Clooney is planning to buy a second home in Tuscany, Italy, in efforts to deal with the death of his pig, Max.

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Must Read IMHO

I don't know why you aren't going to rangeragainstwar No Quarter regularly already, but anyway...

Updated link name. Thanx Lisa.

Both rangeragainstwar and No Quarter are fine sites I visit daily.

Impeach

Over 1000 people gathered in Nancy Pelosi's district, on Ocean Beach in San Francisco, to spell out the message "IMPEACH!" "America is a great country," said event organizer Brad Newsham, a local cab driver and author. "But President Bush has betrayed our faith. He mislead us into a disastrous war, and is trampling on our Constitution. He has to go. Now. I hope Nancy Pelosi is listening today."
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Geostationary banana

The Geostationary Banana Over Texas project calls itself “an art intervention” and is scheduled for launch in August of 2008. The 300 meter banana will be constructed of bamboo and paper and filled with helium. It will float at 30 to 50 km above the state of Texas, which will put it on the line between Earth’s atmosphere and space. From the ground, the banana will be visible and recognizable day and night all over Texas.

Been meaning to post this. Don't know exactly why, but I like it.

(via Neatorama)

Bush has never wanted to eliminate terrorists

Ya think I'm kidding? Take a look at what one Republican lawmaker is saying.

The U.S. military already knows what half of its most-wanted terrorist targets look like because they have been apprehended and photographed in the past, a Republican congresswoman said Friday.

The United States is operating "a catch and release program for al Qaeda in Iraq," said Rep. Heather Wilson, a member of the House intelligence committee.

You don't kill the geese who're laying those golden eggs.

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A touch of class

Makes one proud to be a progressive.

We decided not to link to articles about Rehnquist's drug abuse. The guy was in pain, after all, and he did go into treatment. Case closed.

He then does link to info on Rehnquist, but only because it relates to Bolton.

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Manipulating Oil Prices For Political Gain

Man, I'm lazy blogging right now. Oh well.

NOTE: This post is reproduced (and edited for updates) from the original post at Bush Out, which prompted hits from the US government departments of Health, Agriculture, Air Force and Army, as well as Australia's Department of Defence, among others. Josh Holland kindly reproduced much of my points in an article for AlterNet. And Josh's original two-part story on Iraq's oil was voted #1 Iraq story of the year at Alternet.

At least I'm going for the gold. No crummy second-rate links.

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The Cuba embargo

My guess is most of you have no idea how far-flung this embargo is. This post points out the many areas where the US is trying its best to hurt Castro.

The U.S. economic war against Cuba reached across the Atlantic to Norway this week. A Norwegian hotel belonging to the local chain Scandic, recently purchased by the US Hilton Group, refused to allow a 14-member delegation of Cuban tourism officials to stay at the hotel, citing the notorious Helms-Burton act. Similar delegations had stayed at the same hotel on five previous visits to Norway.

An official from the Norwegian Foreign Ministry said the decision was "totally unacceptable,” but has thus far taken no action. The Norwegian working class had a more powerful reaction. The Municipal and General Employees Union, with 300,000 members, announced a boycott of all Scandic hotels in the country, declaring it unacceptable for the United States to give orders to the world. Norway’s Federation of Commerce Unions, with 830,000 members, demanded that the government take immediate measures so that corporations that support the US blockade of Cuba cannot operate in the country.

For the record, I've never supported the embargo which is kinda like hunting an ant with an elephant gun.

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Must Read IMHO

My guess is the US Army has a tiger by the tail and will wish to hell it had handled this whole thing much more quietly and avoided the glaring lights of the media.

When does political speech become a crime punishable by imprisonment?
By Sarah Olson | AlterNet Jan 2, 2007

When the Army doesn't like what it hears. o­ne journalist shares the battle she and her source face against censorship. In May of this year, I conducted an independent news interview with Ehren Watada while working as a freelance journalist.

Watada is a 1st Lieutenant in the U.S. Army and is the first commissioned officer to publicly refuse orders to deploy to Iraq. In his interview, Lieutenant Watada asserted that he had a duty as a U.S. Army officer to evaluate the legality of his orders and conduct himself accordingly. For this reason he said that he could not participate in the Iraq War because it was "manifestly illegal" and that his participation would make him a party to war crimes.

In June, Lieutenant Watada made national headlines when he refused to deploy to Iraq.

Lieutenant Watada continues to report for duty at Fort Lewis in the state of Washington while awaiting a February 2007 court-martial o­n o­ne charge of "missing movement" and four charges of "conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman." Each of the latter four charges is based entirely o­n political speech. If convicted o­n all charges, Lieutenant Watada could spend up to six years in prison.

As an element of their prosecution, the U.S. Army has cobbled together portions of my interview with Lieutenant Watada and, together, these statements comprise the foundation of o­ne charge of conduct unbecoming an officer. To substantiate this alleged crime, the U.S. Army has subpoenaed me to testify o­n behalf of the prosecution against my source. The dynamics of the situation are clear. When the military chooses to prosecute a soldier for expressing dissenting political positions to a member of the press, that journalist is unwittingly and inevitably forced into the middle of the conflict.

Among multiple issues this raises, the circumstance begs a central question: Doesn't it fly in the face of the First Amendment to compel a journalist to participate in a government prosecution against a source, particularly in matters related to personal political speech?

The intention is obvious. In the case against Lieutenant Watada, the U.S. Army is attempting to use a journalist as an investigative tool for their prosecution. In this case, the journalist is me. And I wholly object to this attempt at eliciting my forced and unconstitutional participation.

(read more)

The new Hooters® calendar

As we did last year, we bring you the latest Hooters Calendar.

(via Jonco)

How the West will make a killing on Iraqi oil riches

Of course this isn't "new" news to you because you read SPIIDERWEB™ regularly, right?

Like here or here or here.

This is an ongoing saga or the story that won't die because big oil can't let those silly Iraqis control that much black gold.

(via Bad Attitudes)

Perspective

I'm watching the Seahawks vs Cowboys on ESPN.

Its a diversion, but I switched over to BBC and saw guys being shot at. They had no idea if they would die in the next few seconds or not.

Folks, that's reality. Please stop the insanity of Iraq.

I hate spam

And now I'm getting spam from aliens!