Cat blogging

Yeah, I could have gone with Liz Taylor.


Or even closer to cat blogging...Maggie.



But one of my objectives here is to make you mentally agile.

Have I mentioned before my head is full of unbelievably useless trivia? Thought so.

Jonco gold

Why the hell do I feel so hungry?


Via Jonco.

Must read IMHO

Its about the swift-boating of Kerry.

This could prove to be good theater.

Michelle Malkin

While we're in the neighborhood, let's touch on Michelle "anchor baby" Malkin.

Well, not physically touch. I mean that would be just spooky and probably illegal.

Granted Michelle is a very attractive woman (in most photos I've seen) and obviously intelligent. Hell, she might even be nice to animals. I've no clue. But...

Does she believe what she writes/says? Or does she do such things to:

1. Stir up the rabble.

2. Ensure speaking engagements or interviews.

3. Sell books.

Any day now I expect her to attack Filipinos, which she is, simply to make a point.

Michelle, can you spell these words?

Scruples.

Integrity.

Morals.

Cat.

Antidisestablishmentarianism.

Hahaha. Gotcha!

Quote of the day

"Because Michelle Malkin has far more class than John Cole ever will."

-- Patterico
Simpleton?

Don't ya just love these blogger feuds?

Maxtor drives contain password-stealing Trojans

Oh, isn't this just so precious?

Seagate Technology LLC has shipped Maxtor disk drives that contain Trojan horses that upload data to a pair of Chinese Web sites, the Taiwanese government's security service warned this weekend.

You can run, but you really can't fucking hide.

Via The Signs.

Spare me

I don't want to know what "annus horribilis" is. It ain't Goatsee (no link and you don't wanna go there unless you wanna be repulsed)

I'm naïve. Not anywhere near virgin, but this stuff scares me.

Via Reuters.

Russia abandons key Cold War arms treaty

This can't be good.

The Russian senate voted Friday to abandon a key Cold War treaty limiting conventional military forces across Europe, a move strongly criticised in the West and by NATO.

Why don't we just throw down the gauntlet and duke it out?

Oh yeah, we haven't the resources. How stupid of me.

Via Channel NewsAsia.

U.S. chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis rates rise

You mean that's what the fucking itching is all about?

Shit!!!1!!

Via The Signs.

Go here

If you aren't totally brain dead or hate music.

OK, let me make this completely clear. If you don't go to Radio Paradise you are a terrorist, you hate America and you are a fucking traitor.

Sorry, I love this site.

Great save

Where does he find this stuff? The guy is genius and has good sources.

Great soccer save.

You have no clue

You have no idea how often, when reading posts and posting, I laugh until my stomach hurts.

And I even snuck in a little cat blogging. I'm just so fucking nefarious.

We all need hobbies.

Woman seen scattering ashes at Disneyland

You have no clue where this story is going. Believe me.

Uh, that's like HUMAN ASHES.

Just shoot me now. This world is getting too strange for my pea brain to handle.

Everyone who rides Disneyland's popular "Pirates of the Caribbean" attraction knows "dead men tell no tales," and its animatronic figures aren't talking either. But, oh, if they could.

On Friday, workers at the Anaheim theme park spotted a guest on the ride sprinkling an unidentified substance into the water, prompting them to close the attraction and alert police.

Have you ever considered scattering your ashes? If so, at which amusement or theme park?

Well at least it wasn't "Its a Small World". I would have to come back and haunt her ass. I hate that song more than "Singing in the goddam Rain".

Via LA Times.

Radio Paradise

Concerning my earlier post about Radio Paradise. I was completely remiss.

If you have a piece of shit computer like mine and poor bandwidth, you might want to try this feed which seems stable most of the time.

128k RealPlayer

Yeah, its listed under broadband, but seems to work with my snail paced connection.

Insanity

Just go. Its extremely short and sour.

Via Balloon Juice.

About that negative mood

Radio Paradise is helping with it.

If you're here now. GO! Dire Straights!

Help required

I need a new RSS aggregator. Bloglines is totally fucked.

Rangeragainstwar is one of my favorite sites. Jim and Lisa post everyday, but many days go by and fucking Bloglines doesn't give me the feeds.

My guess is it only supplies a limited number of feeds each day and rangeragainstwar doesn't make the cut.

What's good out there?

And if you spam me or send malware links I'll hunt you down and kill you like a rabid dog. You are forewarned.

I'm in a negative mood which I don't expect to change soon.

What the fuck is it with the Blogger dictionary? I enter RSS aggregator as a term and...

I'm offered:

Aggregate
Aggregates
Aggregated
Aggregate r

About 30% of the time I have to add words to the dictionary.

Hey, this a legitimate "computer world" term. Someone is sleeping at the fucking keyboard. Their job is to add words to the dictionary and they need my unpaid help?

Our pathetic lives (F word alert)

We have to get out more often.

Roommate #1: Man, I fucking love this weather.
Roommate #2: Yeah. Have you been outside today?
Roommate #1: No, I'm looking at it on my computer.

At least no sunscreen is required.

Do you feel pity for us? Just asking.

Via Overheard in New York.

Quote of the day

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens, I almost missed this fantastic quote. My bad.

Actually this might qualify as the quote of the century. We'll see.

"Being poor sucks," Lisi says. "It's hard to figure out the secrets of the universe when you're trying to figure out where you and your girlfriend are going to sleep next month."

-- Garrett Lisi
Surfer/physicist

BTW, why do I feel so fucking inadequate? Oh yeah, its because a surfer dude seems to understand the universe and I don't even understand my life. Guess its all "relative".*

* Yeah, an Einstein reference. Just going geeky on your ass.

I'm gonna take this opportunity to repeat my favorite geeky joke. Most don't find it funny at all, but they don't have this website.

E=MC²± 2.

Quote via my last post.

Surfer dude stuns physicists with theory of everything

File under: Life the Universe and Everything*

My reaction to this news is pretty fucking simple.

WOW!!!1!!

Sometimes things do surprise me. Not often, but from time to time.

An impoverished surfer has drawn up a new theory of the universe, seen by some as the Holy Grail of physics, which as received rave reviews from scientists.

Garrett Lisi, 39, has a doctorate but no university affiliation and spends most of the year surfing in Hawaii, where he has also been a hiking guide and bridge builder (when he slept in a jungle yurt).

In winter, he heads to the mountains near Lake Tahoe, Nevada, where he snowboards. "Being poor sucks," Lisi says. "It's hard to figure out the secrets of the universe when you're trying to figure out where you and your girlfriend are going to sleep next month."

Despite this unusual career path, his proposal is remarkable because, by the arcane standards of particle physics, it does not require highly complex mathematics.

Even better, it does not require more than one dimension of time and three of space, when some rival theories need ten or even more spatial dimensions and other bizarre concepts. And it may even be possible to test his theory, which predicts a host of new particles, perhaps even using the new Large Hadron Collider atom smasher that will go into action near Geneva next year.

* Yeah, its a Douglas Adams reference.

Via The Signs.

TASER® or not to TASER® ? You decide

Sometimes the confluence of stories amazes. And these stories all showed up on one website I visit. I gots me the shivers.

FLASHBACK: Stun guns 'safe', study suggests. Safe for who exactly?

Feel Safer Yet?: Houston Police deal tops recent orders at Taser

UK Police tasered diabetic in a coma - because they thought he was a suicide bomber

Video: Police taser, kill polish man at Vancouver airport

Ah, but we have more from other websites/sources.

Death of Disabled Woman in Wheelchair Following Taser Shock ...

Three have died in Washington after Taser jolts

Quitman-Brooks County Georgia Taser Death of a 59-year-old Veteran ...

Taser Death in Phoenix - TalkLeft: The Politics Of Crime

Man Dead After Being Shot With Taser - Louisville News Story ...

Have I made my case? Yeah, I thought so.

Folks, TASERS® are not innocent tools for law enforcement. They're fucking lethal weapons.

Well, this bogeyman isn't working out too well

First we have a US general severely limiting his advancement opportunities.

Iran seems to be honoring a commitment to stem the flow of deadly weapons into Iraq, contributing to a more than 50 percent drop in the number of roadside bombs that kill and maim American troops, a U.S. general said Thursday.

The comments by Maj. Gen. James Simmons marked rare U.S. praise for Iranian cooperation in efforts to stabilize Iraq. Washington has repeatedly accused the Islamic Republic of aiding Shiite militias and trying to foil U.S. goals in Iraq and the region.

Then we have the IAEA fucking Bush up the ass.

A report from the U.N nuclear watchdog agency on Thursday found Iran to be generally truthful about key aspects of its nuclear history, but it warned that its knowledge of Tehran's present atomic work was shrinking.

The White House said it would continue to push for a third round of U.N. sanctions against Iran despite the findings by the International Atomic Energy Agency report.

And true to form the WH is ignoring the facts.

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens, this nightmare seems interminable.

German paedophile [sic] allowed to work in kindergarten

Is the world going completely bizarre or is it just my interpretation? Just asking.

A convicted paedophile [sic] sentenced to do community service in a German kindergarten will return to court next week to face charges of abusing two children there, a regional prosecutor's office said Thursday.

Via Reuters.

FYI

A bill you may not realized existed: H.R. 1955, the Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act of 2007.

Via GovTrack.

Open season on Christmas (caution at work)

The Australians started it.

Damn. I was gonna be the first. Just a couple hours late on that one.

Military says leaked Gitmo manual is old (AP)

Oops! Its pretty embarrassing when your slip is showing.

An operations manual for the U.S. prison at Guantanamo that was mysteriously posted on the Internet is out of date but still should not have been released to the public, the military said Wednesday.

I posted about this earlier and believe Wikipedia has more.

Out of date or not. The military should be ashamed such a manual ever was published considering the techniques suggested.

Via Yahoo! News.

Greenhouse gases rising faster than UN forecasts: report (AFP)

Some days there's just more damn news out there than I can keep up with.

Folks, the world and its leaders have to start taking greenhouse gases and climate change much more seriously.

Greenhouse gas emissions are rising faster than worst-case predictions by the United Nations' top climate change body, said a new Australian report issued Thursday.

The report by the independent Climate Institute found emissions were rising faster than forecast by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), with possibly devastating effects.

"Greenhouse emissions are rising faster than the worst-case IPCC scenarios," it said.

The UN body may be "underestimating the risks of adverse impacts due to increased warming during this century," it said, meaning events previously considered relatively unlikely were now more likely.

Via Yahoo! News.

Dear Alcohol...

Dear Jonco,

Feel free to steal from me anytime you want. I owe you.

Dear Alcohol...

First and foremost, let me tell you that I'm a huge fan of yours. As my friend, you always seem to be there when needed. The perfect gift, post-work cocktail, a beer at the game, and you're even around at the holidays (hidden inside chocolates as you warm us when we're stuck in the midst of endless family gatherings). However, lately I've been wondering about your intentions. While I want to believe that you have my best interests at heart, I feel that your influence has led to some unwise consequences:

1. Phone Calls:
While I agree with you that communication is important. I question the suggestion that any conversation after 2 a.m. can have much substance or necessity. Why would you make me call my ex's? Especially when I know, for a fact , they DO NOT want to hear from me during the day, let alone all hours of the night.

2. Eating:
Now, you know I love a good meal. But, why do you suggest that I eat a taco with chili sauce along with a big Italian meatball and some stale chips (washed down with wine & topped off with a Kit Kat AFTER a few cheese curls & chili cheese fries)? I'm an eclectic eater but, I think you went too far this time.

3. Clumsiness:
Unless you're subtly trying to tell me that I need to do more yoga to improve my balance, I see NO need to hammer this issue home by causing me to fall down. It's completely unnecessary, and the black & blue marks that appear on my body mysteriously the next day are beyond me. Similarly, it should never take me more than 45 seconds to get the front door key into the lock.

4. Furthermore:
The hangovers have GOT to stop! This is getting ridiculous. I know a little penance for our previous evening's debauchery may be in order. But, the 3 p.m. hangover immobility is completely unacceptable. My entire day is shot. I ask that if the proper precautions are taken (water, vitamin B, bread products, aspirin) prior to going to sleep/passing out (face down on the kitchen floor with a bag of popcorn or wherever).The hangover should be minimal and in no way interfere with my daily activities.

Thank you,

Your Biggest Fan

P.S. Please take a moment or two and note the following items below that I think may be of some interest to you.

THINGS THAT ARE DIFFICULT T O SAY WHEN DRUNK:

1. Innovative
2. Preliminary
3. Proliferation
4. Cinnamon

THINGS THAT ARE VERY DIFFICULT TO SAY WHEN DRUNK:

1. Specificity
2. British Constitution
3. Passive -Aggressive Disorder

THINGS THAT ARE DOWNRIGHT IMPOSSIBLE T O SAY WHEN DRUNK:

1. Thanks, but I don't want to have sex.
2. Nope, no more beer for me.
3. Sorry, but you're not really my type.
4. Good evening , officer. Isn't it lovely out tonight?
5. Oh, I couldn't. No one wants to hear me sing.

The clumsiness part is particularly interesting. I hate it when I run into an area with extremely strong gravity. That catches me off guard every damn time.

Courtesy link to Jonco from whom I stole the whole fucking post.

Perspective

All this sub-prime loan shit may be going over your head. Well this will make it easy to follow.

All emphasis mine.

A Bear Stearns investment fund hurt by the decline in the subprime mortgage market and facing creditors' complaints about its management asked a Delaware judge to allow it to dissolve and liquidate its assets.

Bear Stearns High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund LP was linked to a Cayman Islands-based fund shutting down because of the collapse in value of investments tied to subprime mortgages, the investment firm's lawyers said Nov. 13 in a filing in Delaware Chancery Court in Wilmington. New York-based Bear Stearns is the fifth-largest U.S. securities firm by market value.

"The partnership can no longer operate in the manner contemplated" by the agreement that created it, Bear Stearns lawyers said in their request to dissolve the so-called "feeder fund" and have accountants from KPMG International oversee its liquidation.

More than three months ago, Bear Stearns placed several hedge funds decimated by subprime mortgage losses in bankruptcy in the Cayman Islands. The company cited volatility in the subprime- lending market and subsequent margin calls for the July filings.

The world's largest financial institutions have written down more than $21 billion of mortgages, securities and corporate loans whose value fell during the third quarter. A surge in defaults of poor-quality home loans has prompted more than 110 mortgage companies to close, seek bankruptcy protection or put themselves up for sale since the start of 2006.

Via Bloomberg.

No more Vegas visits for Milla Jovovich

Milla Jovovich

This is borderline quote of the day except I don't know if its an exact quote.

Former model Milla Jovovich has vowed he will never go back to Las Vegas because she always leaves the place with a husband.

Sounds like she has a good head on her shoulders. As opposed to a bad head? Never really did understand that expression.

Via Japan Herald.

AT&T to Sell Equipment to Monitor Workplaces

Now "Little Brother" will be watching too.

AT&T plans to introduce a nationwide program today that gives owners of small- and medium-size businesses some of the same tools big security companies offer for monitoring employees, customers and operations from remote locations.

Should we all just make like lemmings and head for the sea?

Via Free Press.

Scientists use monkey clones for stem cells

I'm sorry. There was no way in hell I could avoid this post.

I fought the urge for many hours, but knew ultimately I'd succumb to the temptation.

The researchers at Oregon Health and Science University say the method should also work in humans.

Via IHT.

America and the world's executioners join efforts to block UN moves to end death penalty

Ya just can't fight the need for blood.

In China, a death sentence means a bullet in the back of the head. In Iran, it means death by hanging. In Saudi Arabia, the victim is beheaded by the sword.

World public opinion has been so outraged by the continued use of the death penalty in the 25 countries that carried out executions last year, that a petition carrying five million signatures has been presented to the UN, where yesterday a small group of countries were attempting to block the historic vote on a global moratorium that could lead to an all-out ban.

The UN initiative is the brainchild of Italy, where the association Hands off Cain, campaigning for an end to the death penalty, convinced Prime Minister Romano Prodi to push for an end to the death sentence after the botched and humiliating hanging of the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein last year.

Via Independent.

The politics of ethanol outshine its costs

I've said I won't let this subject go. More people have to realize politicians are playing them.

With gasoline near $3 a gallon, climate concerns rising, and an election season in full swing, politicians are eager to tell constituents that they're doing something to help at the gas pump.

Enter ethanol – or, more specifically, a plan in Congress to mandate that US gasoline refiners add a minimum of 36 billion gallons of ethanol to the nation's gasoline supply – up from the 7.5 billion gallons currently mandated by 2012.

Ethanol's popularity comes despite charges from environmentalists, livestock farmers, and opponents of subsidies that the move won't meet energy goals and may damage the environment as food prices soar. Energy-security experts say the measure also falls short on a key goal: weaning America off foreign oil.

Boosting ethanol production is the political equivalent of motherhood and apple pie these days. Politicians on both sides of the aisle as well as presidential candidates eager to do well in Iowa, the nation's No. 1 ethanol-producing state, are behind the measure, unglamorously named the "Renewable Fuels Standard." The RFS, part of the energy bill in the Senate, is so popular that it may be enough to ram through energy legislation this year, despite bitter disagreements over other parts of the bills.

Via Christian Science Monitor.

Revolutionary Solar Energy?

Do we finally have it? I sure hope so.

Ignoring the northern hemisphere, just think how much energy production could be replaced in the southern hemisphere with this technology.

One of the largest inhibitors to cheap solar power has always been the high cost of solar panels (due to their thick glass, framing, and expensive silicon). San Jose-based Nanosolar, Inc. appears ready to eliminate these barriers with solar technology that utilizes thin sheets of non-silicon components that reduce the production costs by over 90% and decreases the thickness by 99% (the Nanosolar PowerSheets are thin enough to be rolled up).

Via Neatorama.

Going all geeky on ya

Folks, sit back as I introduce you to the Twilight Zone.

Get ready for a new era in which your camera knows not just when you took a picture but who's in it, too.

Many cameras today can detect the faces of those being photographed, which is handy for guiding the camera to set its exposure, focus, and color balance properly. But the more difficult challenge of face recognition is more useful after the photo has been taken.

...

Tags of descriptive data can be attached to digital photos, and they help people find and organize pictures. The only problem is that tagging your photos, today a laborious manual task, is like eating your vegetables. It's good for you but a lot of people don't like it.

...

With autotagging, the camera attaches tags as the pictures are taken. Today, cameras embed timestamps in photos, which makes it possible to sift through pictures by date. But be honest here--how reliably can you remember exactly when you took that picture of your darling daughter a year or two ago that you'd like to e-mail to her grandparents? Being able to screen for photos only of a particular person could dramatically speed up the search process.

Via The Signs.

UK Airport Inquisition: Passengers forced to answer 53 questions in new scheme

Just when I think I've seen/heard/read it all or close to it I'm shocked back into the reality that's now.

Sorry for the size of the image, but its the best I could do.

Travellers face price hikes and confusion after the Government unveiled plans to take up to 53 pieces of information from anyone entering or leaving Britain.

For every journey, security officials will want credit card details, holiday contact numbers, travel plans, email addresses, car numbers and even any previous missed flights.

The information, taken when a ticket is bought, will be shared among police, customs, immigration and the security services for at least 24 hours before a journey is due to take place.

Anybody about whom the authorities are dubious can be turned away when they arrive at the airport or station with their baggage. Those with outstanding court fines, such as a speeding penalty, could also be barred from leaving the country, even if they pose no security risk.

First off, did you catch that? They need the answers to these questions at least 24 hours before you depart. So forget your fucking mother who just had a heart attack hundreds of miles away. You can go to her hospital bedside later. What's your damn rush?

If you can read the questions, do you believe some of them?

Number 19: Give out your credit card number to a stranger who has no "legitimate" need for it such as a waiter or shop clerk?

Number 36: Bag tag numbers? How do you know what they will be?

Number 48: Actual seat number? Huh? Often I have no clue what seat I'm actually in. I tend to move about. And if I were a terrorist, I sure as hell would change seats. Gimme a break here.

Number 50: Check-in agent's initials? How can you provide this information 24 hours or more before check-in? Let's see, I think John Howard Fleming will be my check-in agent. Hey, it could happen.

And backing up, numbers 1-4 plus 10 are about everything you need to steal someone's identity. Why don't they ask mother's maiden name? Fucking incompetents.

This is lunacy on a grand scale.

Via The Signs.

Chiquita giant sued for Colombia killings

Well, if nothing else comes out, there's always Dole except for that little E coli thing.

Ya can't fucking win anymore.

Leading banana producer, Chiquita Brands International, has been sued for funding and arming a Colombian paramilitary organisation accused of killing banana growers.

Via Mathaba.

House votes Iraq troop withdrawal Bush would veto

I'm gonna be as civil as I can here. At least the House is doing something positive.

As for Bush, fuck him.

Not civil enough? forgive me all to hell.

The Democratic-led House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq, defying President George W. Bush by tying the measure to $50 billion in new war funds.

By a vote of 218-203, the House sent the controversial plan to the Senate, where it faced an uphill fight as Republicans have vowed to block it.

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino called on Congress to send Bush a "clean" emergency funding bill, without withdrawal dates.

"If legislation comes to the president in this form, he will certainly veto it," Perino said in a statement after the House vote.

The House vote came on the same day that an explosion in Baghdad brought more U.S. casualties, adding to what already was the Iraq war's bloodiest year for American forces.

How many flag draped caskets are enough for Bush? Has he no compassion at all? Just asking.

Via Reuters.

Senator: U.S. has become haven for war criminals

More than 1,000 people from 85 countries who are accused of such crimes as rape, killings, torture and genocide are living in the United States, according to Department of Homeland Security figures.

Hey, I'm just a dense idiot, but what am I missing here?

The Department of Homeland Security has figures which show 1,000+ war criminals are in the US?

Forgive me for this: HOW THE FUCK DID THEY GET IN? Why does America even have a goddam Department of Homeland Security if this shit can happen? Just asking.

I think Jill's (Brilliant at Breakfast) idea of stabbing oneself in the head with an ice pick is looking pretty good right now.

Via McClatchy.

Feeling secure? Well don't #22

Sometimes these come in pairs or even triplets. We'll see.

Headline: Pay No Attention to This Spy Scandal, Move Along

A suspected Hezbollah mole who penetrated the ranks of the FBI and CIA pleaded guilty Tuesday to falsely getting U.S. citizenship and snooping in FBI terrorism files.

Former waitress Nada Nadim Prouty, 37, of Vienna, Va., admitted arranging a sham marriage with an American in Michigan to win U.S. citizenship. She parlayed that into sensitive jobs as an FBI special agent and a CIA operations officer, sources said.

Ya getting the warm fuzzies yet? Yeah, me too.

Via No Quarter.

Guantanamo operating manual posted on Internet

A must read although its a little shy of specifics. Perhaps Wikipedia has more, but I don't go there. My computer is just too slow.

It says incoming prisoners are to be held in near-isolation for the first two weeks to foster dependence on interrogators and "enhance and exploit the disorientation and disorganization felt by a newly arrived detainee in the interrogation process."

Via Yahoo! News.

Feeling secure? Well don't #21

Another one. File under you can't make up this shit.

Headline: Airport screeners missed bomb parts (AP)

Government investigators smuggled liquid explosives and detonators past airport security, exposing a dangerous hole in the nation's ability to keep these forbidden items off of airplanes, according to a report made public Wednesday.

Thank gawd for the idiot-in-chief who is watching our backs.

Via Yahoo! News.

Puerto Rico

Ah, true paradise.


Unless your a fucking dog or cat.

Back roads, gorges and garbage dumps on this tropical island are littered with the decaying carcasses of dogs and cats. An Associated Press investigation reveals why: possibly thousands of unwanted animals have been tossed off bridges, buried alive and otherwise inhumanely disposed of by taxpayer-financed animal control programs.

And Americans get pissed off because of tainted pet foods from China?

Via Yahoo! News.

Number one and NSFW

Yeah, I'm a threat. I'm a subversive liberal who wants to rot your brain.

Muahahaha.

Via ICEROCKET.

Dollar to stay anchor of China's reserves: Chinese official

Whew! That was close.

The US dollar will remain the anchor currency of China's massive foreign reserves despite suggestions that they were too heavily skewed toward the weakening greenback, a senior Chinese central bank official said here Wednesday.

Via AFP.

NSFW. Trust me on this

Now what the hell am I forgetting? Keys? Handbag? I know its something.

Well, except for that one guy on another page of this newspaper

Ya know, I'm just rocking to music and probably won't get serious at all. Sorry about that.

Oh well, I needed a break.

Via Sadly No!

The Bush Effect: Economy

"The damage done to the American economy does not make front-page headlines every day, but the repercussions will be felt beyond the lifetime of anyone reading this page."

-- Vanity Fair

Genius

The person who came up with this OB Tampon ad is a genius...period.


Via Jonco.

NSFW

I forgot my goddamn fucking password.


Via Jonco.

Putting the fun back in executions

I'll get to the "serious" shit soon, but for now I post what I want because I can.


Via Jonco.

Personal

This post is probably boring. Skip it if you have something interesting to do.

Just got an invitation to a wedding in Taiwan. I wish to hell I could go. Would love to kiss the bride.

I was next to a girl (yes, she was that young) on a plane flight. Most of the time she slept because she wasn't feeling well. But we did talk for about 45 minutes. Exchanged email addresses and said our goodbyes.

Since then she's become a dear friend.

When I met her she was working for her uncle in South Africa. She is from Taiwan. Duh!

She then moved to mainland China where she is now.

Her husband to be is in Canada.

Folks, this is about as fucking intercontinental as we can get.

PS: I don't think that's what she'll wear at her wedding. Hehehe.

COTE D'IVOIRE: Awash in arms

One of the kewl things about the internets tubes and one of the worst things about the internets tubes is you meet people.

A while back I was chatting with a girl in Japan. She had to shutter her windows because a typhoon was coming.

I have at least one regular reader from Cote D'ivore. I hope they are safe.

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens, will the insanity ever stop?

While Ivorian politicians and the international community lament a lack of progress in disarmament and other aspects of the country's peace accord, ordinary citizens are increasingly falling victim to violent crime in their daily activities.

I chose the dancing Doc Martens in hopes my friend is fine.

Via Irin.

Be amazed

Can you say billion? Yeah, I thought you could. This is the two, count 'em, two billionth post to flickr.

I'm not impressed by the photo, but it is a milestone.

How many shoe boxes would you need to save two billion pictures in your closet if your closet were large enough. Oh, just forget it. Silly on my part. Sometimes I go off on goofy tangents.

Via Neatorama.

'Forgotten Coast': A drought, a bay and a way of life threatened

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens, but I'm getting so tired of posting shit like this.

People are suffering and no one seems to care.

It's called the "Forgotten Coast," a sleepy stretch of Florida's Panhandle that is the heart of the state's oyster industry.

A decrease in freshwater in Florida's Apalachicola River has made work difficult for people in the oyster industry.

But residents fear their industry and their way of life may soon be a memory.

"Sad to say I'll probably be the last generation in my family who will do this," said Eugene King, who hails from a family who has harvested oysters here for four generations.

The problem is water and the lack of it.

Apalachicola is located at the meeting of freshwater rivers and the Gulf of Mexico. The combination of freshwater and saltwater creates a unique environment, an estuary where species as diverse as oysters and Tupelo honeybees flourish.

Did you catch that? Four fucking generations, but no more.

Do I have a solution? Yeah. And I can bring about world peace next Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest, not sure about this.

Via CNN.

???????

I have no idea what this fucking language is let alone the country, but they linked to me.

KEWL!!!1!!

Great name

Tomball, Texas.

Who thinks up these names anyway?

Hey, let's name this town after ol' Tom Johnson's football.

FCC

Can't excerpt. There's just too much and too many posts there. Please do go.
Via Free Press.

Blackwater guards killed 14 Iraqis without cause

I've run into this story repeatedly. I didn't post about it because I was sure everyone else would.

But...they haven't. Why the fuck not? Is this just business as usual? No need to comment?

These are mercenary agents of the US killing innocent people.

I also doubt the FBI's assessment. From the reports from witnesses I've read, none of the 17 deserved to die because none were armed, but I'm probably just splitting hairs.

One unjustified death is too many.

FBI agents investigating the Sept. 16 episode in which Blackwater security personnel shot and killed 17 Iraqi civilians found that all but three of the shootings were unjustified.

Via IHT.

And God Said No, Again

File under ya can't make this shit up.

Does this make ya wanna be gooder?

By Michael D. on General Stupidity

1. Georgia is in severe drought
2. Governor Perdue decides to pray for rain on Tuesday
3. Forecast called for rain Tuesday
4. Prayer service goes ahead as planned
5. Skies completely clear up immediately following prayer service
6. No rain

Maybe God was celebrating Opposite Day!

I stole the whole fucking post so you don't really need a link, but...

OK, a courtesy link to Balloon Juice where you should go anyway.

You need educatin'

If you don't know Hal Ketchum, Sawyer Brown, Chris LeDoux, Jerry Jeff Walker, Anita Cochran, Travis Tritt, your musical world is sorely deficient.

You have to trust ol' SPIIDERWEB™ who rarely steers you wrong.

Well, except that stock purchase suggestion, but that was not normal for me and I'm really, truly sorry.

For non-regular readers. Its a fucking joke. I've never suggested a stock purchase. If I knew that stuff, I'd have a decent computer.

China returns "Taiwan for U.N." stamped mail to senders

Hey, fasten your seat belt because I'm gonna do a fucking 180° turn on ya.

This isn't about the mail in China at all, but about insecurity. I lived with a father who was insecure. You. Did. Not. Question. Him...ever.

Well, you could question my father if you were looking for a fist in the face.

China has the same fucking problem. Criticism is never allowed. Why? They have no faith they can rule adequately? That'd be my guess.

Taiwan can exist independently and pose no threat at all to the mainland. Its simply an insecurity China has with Taiwan. They don't want to "lose face" or whatever.

We can't constantly be revisiting history to "right wrongs". Move on people. Deal with current and future problems and let dead dogs lie.

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens. And yes, I have an endless supply of Doc Marten pictures. Hehehe.

Not really endless supply. That suggests infinity. But I do have a shit load.

OK, rambling over.

Via Boston Globe.

The biofuel scam - and it's a 'beaut'

No I'm not gonna let this topic lie rotting in the dust. This is so perverse it needs our attention.

Am I nagging? Sorry, but I'll do it again. Hehehe.

Because I'm beating this dead horse until it looks like hamburger. Here, here, here, here, here.

Jesus H Christ in Doc Martens, I can't believe how un-lazy ass I was with this post.

Hey, don't those look like Doc Martens Jesus would wear? Pretty cheeky me thinks.

When it comes to navigating a way out of the nation's energy crisis, you have to wonder whether the fix is already in.

The government has picked the winner--even as senior policy makers issue bland pronouncements about finding new technologies to help break our energy dependence on foreign oil. Between now and 2012, biofuel subsidies will total more than $92 billion, according to a recent report conducted under the auspices of the Global Subsidiaries Initiative.

The timing is coincidental, but the report came out just as Senate and House leaders were weighing a plan which would leave renewable energy out of the next congressional energy bill.

I'm sure there's some larger logic to explain that omission. But it might have a little something to do with the political muscle of the farm interests, a powerful lobby that knows its way around the corridors of power.

The 2007 farm bill features strong support for biofuel subsidies--even with crude oil prices hovering over $90 a barrel.

I've read a number of expert studies questioning the environmental impact of biofuels--especially the production of corn ethanol. Yet few policy makers of any national significance are stepping forward to question whether our national bet on biofuels makes good sense.

That hasn't stopped Washington and various state capitols from lavishing billions of dollars on agribusiness' pet project. Most of the $92 billion I mentioned earlier will go to ethanol production.

All this is giving the cynics a field day. Each dollar spent on biofuel subsidies is a dollar not getting invested in other, possibly cleaner technologies. But the only people squawking seem to be the folks involved from those particular fields.

I'm not advocating dumping ethanol research and production, but the selling of biofuels as the all-American favorite has been a marketing tour de force. That doesn't necessarily mean it's smart decision-making.

Courtesy link because I stole the whole fucking article.

We're talking cars here

One kewl thing about having a website is you can post almost anything you want as long as you aren't into child pornography which I definitely am not.

Fact is, a few years ago I was doing a search and was shocked when a picture of a little nude blond girl who I guessed was 11 or 12 popped up on the screen. I immediately closed it. Who needs that shit?

Well, back to the cars. Follow the link please and check out the 10 Craziest Concept Cars from the Tokyo Motor Show post.

Fun stuff.

Via InventorSpot.

Spiderman Rescues Baby!

It ain't all gloom and doom out there. Sometimes heroes appear out of nowhere.

Five-year-old Riquelme Wesley dos Santos of Palmeira, Brazil was dressed in his Spiderman costume last Thursday when a house fire broke out. Riquelme entered the burning house, grabbed one year old Andriele from her crib, and took her to safety. Riquelme is now a national celebrity! The story does not say whether the two children are related.

Link has a picture.

BTW, I feel it a personal affront Spiderman isn't in the Blogger dictionary.

Via Neatorama.

Lazy-ass blogging

Technically this isn't lazy ass at all. As fucked up as this computer is, its a chore.

I click on a link, go have a snack, go pea pee (I always spell that goddamn word wrong) and have a cigarette in the bathroom. Incidentally, the only room I smoke in because it has two open windows on either side. Great design for a bathroom for odor control. When I come back the site is still loading. Argh!!!1!! Just shoot me.

But anyway, go to the link and read about the goddamn insanity of Iran. Perhaps you'll need a firearm too.

Via Left I on the News.

This all be da good stuff. So go already

Foreign Policy Watch.

Have fun at work

Update: Ya think this person still has a job? I sure hope so. Life's too fucking short to be taken seriously.

Via Jonco.

Wise up

Via Jonco.

Personal

I don't usually "do" YouTube. My computer is too slow and I have no bandwidth, but...

Trying to relive my days of glory, I had to find Sawyer Brown.

Years ago I entered a karaoke contest just for the hell of it. Funny thing, during the entire contest I was sober as a preacher. Some Girls Do is the song I used.

Anyway, it started with 15,000 people. Yep. Fifteen fucking thousand people.

I made it to the last 100. At that point the contestants were either pros or highly trained singers. I mean we few armatures had to hold the microphone close to get any volume. The others held the microphone 2 feet from their mouths and still blew us away.

I lost, but it was fun. So is the song.

Some Girls Do - Sawyer Brown.

You have arrived

Congratulations to ya.

Old picture. Note the gasoline price. Hahaha. Like really.

Via Jonco.

Lazy-ass blogging

Anybody want to play a little poker?

Via Jonco.

You open minded?

You Are 84% Open Minded

You are so open minded that your brain may have fallen out! Well, not really. But you may be confused on where you stand. You don't have a judgemental bone in your body, and you're very accepting. You enjoy the best of every life philosophy, even if you sometimes contradict yourself.

How Open Minded Are You?

Fidelity was my downfall. I truly believe in fidelity.

Actually that is so fucking true it hurts. My X used to get so frustrated because I always, I mean always saw both sides of any situation/argument. But I deem that a gift.

Assessing the Threat of Nuclear Terrorism

I've been too lazy ass to post about this, but AL does it quite well.

Simple truth: Suitcase nuclear bombs are an urban legend.

Given the nonstop coverage of everything terrorism-related over the last six years, it's amazing that we had to wait until November 2007 for someone to write this article. Katherine Shrader of the AP explores the feasibility of a terrorist detonating a so-called "suitcase nuke" in a major city.

Via Anonymous Liberal.

Judge orders White House to hold e-mails

File under career limiting decisions.

This judge ain't going anywhere while Bush is in office.

A federal judge Monday ordered the White House to preserve copies of all its e-mails, a move that Bush administration lawyers had argued strongly against.
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U.S. District Judge Henry Kennedy directed the Executive Office of the President to safeguard the material in response to two lawsuits that seek to determine whether the White House has destroyed e-mails in violation of federal law.

The White House is seeking dismissal of the lawsuits brought by two private groups — Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Government and the National Security Archive.

The organizations allege the disappearance of 5 million White House e-mails. The court order issued by Kennedy, an appointee of President Clinton, is directed at maintaining backup tapes which contain copies of White House e-mails.

The Federal Records Act details strict standards prohibiting the destruction of government documents including electronic messages, unless first approved by the archivist of the United States.

Justice Department lawyers had urged the courts to accept a proposed White House declaration promising to preserve all backup tapes.

"The judge decided that wasn't enough," said Anne Weismann, an attorney for CREW, which has gone to court over secrecy issues involving the Bush administration and has pursued ethical issues involving Republicans on Capitol Hill.

Oh yeah, we can trust Bush's "promises". Hahaha.

And somehow I find it comforting to read about a Kennedy sticking it to Dim Son. OK, I'm perverse.

Via Yahoo! News.

No point (NSFW). Not even close

I did a Google™ search on "Yahoo! news". Didn't notice it was in Google™ image search. Duh!

And this came up.

Sometimes the internets tubes can be so serendipitous, dontcha think?

Bhutto Residence Encircled by Police to Stop Pakistan Rally

Uh, but Bush says Musharraf can be taken at his word. What the fuck am I missing here?

Thousands of Pakistani police surrounded opposition leader Benazir Bhutto's residence in the eastern city of Lahore and sealed roads with barbed wire to stop her leading a rally against emergency rule.

The government of Punjab province issued a seven-day detention order, placing her under house arrest at the residence where she is staying, Agence France-Presse reported.

"All banners, rallies and long marches are outlawed and are illegal," Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azeem said by telephone from the capital, Islamabad, yesterday. "Those who break the law will be dealt with."

Via Boomberg.

God's smile for ya

H/T Bobby