Just Some Poor Schmuck

Damn! I Already Quit. Maybe I Should Start Again So I Could Use This Stuff To Quit.

Anti-Smoking Drug Can Cause Spontaneous Orgasm

Link from Tim Blair

Amazing Editorial In The Portland Oregonian

Approve class-action reform

The real winners of the case were the lawyers who filed the class action against Blockbuster in Madison County, Ill., where courts are unusually sympathetic to this kind of claim. The lawyers split $9.25 million -- which, despite the recent coupons, will show up one way or the other in the price we pay for videos in the future.

[...]

Trial lawyers successfully lobbied against the bill in the last Congress. Oregon's four House Democrats voted against it in March. Republican Greg Walden voted for it. It's in for rough sledding in the Senate because trial lawyers are a key Democratic constituency.

But it deserves passage and the Senate should overcome partisan considerations to approve it. The Class Action Fairness Act is a rational response to an abuse of the process that has been allowed to go on too long.

In fact, this fix should carry a late fee.

Usually the Oregonian can be found faithfully carrying water for Democrats, no matter how far to the left they get. In fact, the lefter the better. I guess they have to do something so they can point at it and say "Look, we went against the Democrats this time.

With the Democrats controlling the Senate, this bill has exactly zero chance of passage, so the Democrats have given permission for their mouthpieces to write disapproving columns to shore up their declining credibility.

A Tale Of Two Democrats

I think everyone got the message. Don't cross the Democratic party or you're going down. Look at the difference between the two.

James Traficant was wild, he frequently was at odds with the Democratic leadership, He quite often voted with Republicans, spoke out against Bill Clinton during the impeachment hearings, and horror of horrors, appeared as a guest host on the radio show of the devil incarnate, Rush Limbaugh.

Traficant to Seek Votes From Prison (washingtonpost.com)

Expelled from Congress a week ago, an unrepentant James A. Traficant Jr. was sentenced to eight years behind bars for corruption Tuesday and made it clear he intends to run for re-election from his prison cell – and expects to win.

On the other hand we have Robert Torricelli. He too took gifts from people but never crossed the Democratic leadership. They knew that Torricelli was a sure vote, an unquestioning backer of whatever the Democratic leadership wanted. They also knew that if he were expelled, it might endanger their control of the Senate. So they cut a deal.
Senate Ethics Panel Rebukes Torricelli (washingtonpost.com)

The Senate ethics committee, rendering one of the sternest condemnations of a member in recent years, "severely admonished" Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.) last night for accepting expensive gifts from a political donor-turned-convict.
Chang was convicted of illegally funneling $50,000 to Torricelli, the U.S. attorney's office in New York decided in January not to seek an indictment of the New Jersey Democrat.

No subtlety here. If you want to be taken care of, you have to go along. That's the Democratic party message for all it's member "Go Along To Get Along". Have I heard that before?

Activists Wax Hysterical Over New Boogieman

Hanford waste analysis alarms Oregon, activists

ANDY DWORKIN (Portland Oregonian)

Oregon officials and anti-nuclear activists are criticizing a federal report on the environmental impact of shipping thousands of truckloads of radioactive waste through Oregon to the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington.

The draft considers three plans for dealing with waste once it is shipped to Hanford, although one involves no new technology or construction and is included mainly as a comparison for taking no new action. The Energy Department estimates that impacts on the environment "are relatively small and would not be expected to contribute substantially to cumulative impacts of other activities at Hanford or in the surrounding region."

For instance, he said, the draft report does not "identify volumes or types of materials they might dispose of at Hanford," information he called "a basic necessity" for determining the impact of the solid waste. Rather, the draft mentions three broad categories of waste: low-level ; mixed low level chemical and nuclear waste ; and transuranic waste. And it considers a widely varying volume of material, from about 9.2 million square feet to 21.2 million square feet.

Sounds pretty well defined to me. (check the links.) I guess the reporter couldn't be bothered to do a search on the terms and see what they meant. We're not talking "hot" here, this will be medical waste and mostly equipment and clothing contaminated from being used in a Nuclear plant. The hot stuff is going to Yucca Mountain in Nevada.

"We don't believe the Department of Energy has done the type of analysis it needs to do," Niles said. "And we'll ask them to take it back and do a better job."

And we will insist that they keep doing it until they give up.

Representatives of five such groups explained some of their worries at a Monday news conference in Portland. Generally, the activists are upset that the draft continues the government's plan to truck radioactive waste from other sites to Hanford. Many also are upset that the plan considers burying much of the low-level radioactive waste in soil trenches without protective liners. They said the plan did not consider many reasonable alternatives, including not shipping waste to Hanford at all.

I see, it all comes down to NIMY and anti-nuclear hysteria. Aren't these the same arguments that they made about Yucca Mountain and lost?

This Is Just Too Cool.

This Is Just Too Cool.

StrategyPage.com - Gallery

Democrats Used IRS Against Watchdog Group.

IRS reveals smoking gun

The mystery surrounding Internal Revenue Service tax audits against critics of President Bill Clinton during his administration has been cracked. A smoking gun has just been released by the IRS. The unmistakable evidence is that the supposedly nonpolitical tax agency responds to complaints by prominent politicians

Who was that other president that used the IRS against his enemies? Oh, yeah. That was Richard Nixon. How is this different? Well, when Nixon asked them, the IRS refused. What a difference 25 years make.

A Letter From My Congressman. (I'm Sorry To Say)

The following appeared in the Albany, OR Democrat-Herald, my local paper. Defazio shows up every other year about election time and does an interview with the paper. Sometimes it looks like he brings copies of both the questions and the answers with him. He never seems to get any tough questions. The following ran on July 26, 2002 in the Letters to the Editor but the letters from that date are not on-line. Huh. Why just that day? Luckily, recycling day hasn't come yet so I still have the dead tree edition.but I had to retype the whole damn thing.

Estate Tax Repeal Would Help Only A Few

Mr. Beckham was right about my vote against the budget-busting bill to permanently repeal the estate tax, legislation which would dramatically benefit a fraction of Americas most elite families (mailbag, July 12).

You mean the trial lawyer, union bosses and environmentalists that you kow-tow to, Peter? Oh, you don't mean the Kennedys, the Clintons, the Streisands or the Baldwins, you mean the people who make too much money and don't contribute to the correct political party.

Alternatively, I voted for a reform of the estate tax to eliminate all taxes on the first $6 million of an estate to insure that no family farm, small business or tree farm would have to be liquidated to pay estate taxes. The bill I voted for doesn't grant huge windfalls to gigantic estates, many of which have never paid taxes on accumulation of their wealth, because they are in form of unrealized capital gains not wages.

What's so great about wages? It means you're working for someone else. It always seems the Democrats are singing the praises of the small businessman in public while doing their best to put him out of business. If they go out of business, who will pay the wages that you are so enamored of?

$6 million? $6 million? Where have you been Peter? You have companies and farms that when all the "unrealized capital gains" have been counted easily exceed that. Oh, it's a small paper, with limited circulation. You never win Linn County anyway.

Legislation to permanently and totally repeal to estate tax would reward the CEOs we read about every day who stole hundreds of millions of dollars from employees and stakeholders.

How did we get to CEOs? Other than riding on the current press reports I mean. Are CEOs the only ones that will benefit? Would you kindly spell out whose estate should be looted upon their death, there can't be that many.

For instance, Kenneth Lay of Enron would get $59 million under a repeal of the estate tax. Dennis Kozolwski of Tyco (who has been charged with tax evasion) would get $149 million. Gary Winnick of Global Crossings would get $$366 million. I’m not willing to spend hard-earned Social Security funds to benefit such notorious scoundrels.

Ohh, good, you're naming names. O.K. How about Terry McAuliffe the DNC chairman that made a sleazy deal with Global Crossings ? Do we get to loot his estate too? How about the financial genius's Bill and Hillary Clinton? Can we take back all the money, gifts, and amazing deals that they have made?

And correct me if I'm wrong, but don't these "beneficiaries" that you named have to be dead to get this?

And how do they "get" this money if it is theirs in the first place. If I don't take money from someone it hardly adds to their bank balance.

This only makes (slight) sense if you believe that all money belongs to the government in the first place and should be given to people only when they show the correct political beliefs. If you want to charge CEOs with crimes, go ahead. If you convict them, you can fine the hell out of them. But waiting until they die and looting their estate is rather ghoulish isn't it?

Now that the government is running a deficit, an estate tax repeal will draw $100 billion each and every year directly out of the Social Security trust fund.

Aww. I know it would come to this. Peter, don't you have any shame? Well, if you're an officer of the Progressive Caucus] with Cynthia McKinney, I guess you don't.
Give me a break. You know and I know, that Social Security payroll taxes when they are collected are used to pay the current recipients, whatever is left over is sent to Treasury who then issues special non-negotiable bonds which are then held in the "trust fund". The money is then put in the general fund. The bonds are a promise to pay back the "trust fund" money at a later date. This can only be done by taxing someone again to get the money. There is no money in the "Social Security Trust Fund".

I also don't understand how not collecting money draws it directly out of a trust fund that has no money in it. My guess is that, along with most Democrats, you subscribe to the Red Queen's theory of believing at least two contradictory things before breakfast each day.

A permanent repeal benefits fewer than 5,000 of America’s wealthiest families at the expense of 53 million Social Security Beneficiaries, and represents an unprecedented transfer of wealth from the payroll taxes of hard working families to the heirs of American families worth millions or billions of dollars.

Argh, There you go again transferring non-existent funds by not collecting it. What is with the Social Security Trust Fund deal anyhow? Any cut in collection or expenditure requested by the Bush administration comes directly from the social security trust fund, but requests for funding for Democratic initiatives do not? You'll have to explain that one to me sometime. (oh, never mind. You never explain anything to anyone. As I remember from other meetings, any questions bring an immediate and unending stream of accusations of mugging kittens and drowning little old ladies. Or have I got that backwards?)

The inevitable result, when millionaires and billionaires don’t pay their fair share, is a tax increase on lower and middle income families

I guess you haven't read the news lately, have you Peter? Fair Share? According to this ABC news story "The wealthiest 5 percent pay more than half the taxes, while people in the bottom half pay just 4 percent." I guess it just depends on what you consider fair.

Peter A. DeFazio
Member of Congress [D-Or-4]
[Officer of the Progressive Caucus]
Washington D.C., July 24 [2002]

Posted by John Dunshee at 08:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack

New York Times Reporters More Skilled Than Researchers

Side Effect of Welfare Law: The No-Parent Family

But new research underscores a smaller, unwelcome trend: a rising share of children, particularly black children in cities, are turning up in no-parent households, left with relatives, friends or foster families without either their mother or their father.

Researchers say they cannot pinpoint the forces driving parents and children apart. But among them, they said, may be the stresses of the new welfare world — loss of benefits, low-wage jobs at irregular hours and pressure from a new partner needed to pay the rent.

Pretty unsurprising for the NYT actually. They find that even if researcher and "experts" cannot pin down the problem, they can.

Amazingly the problem always seems to be something that is politically conservative. Their antidote? Return to the same old, same old, in this case doling out millions for single women to stay at home and take care of their children.

Except that it wouldn't be that. The women who chose to stay home and take care of their children while their husbands work, would not be covered. No, the NYT wants to restore the dependance drug - Welfare. I guess having fewer people that believe that they depend on you for their daily existence is a sacrifice that the NYT staff is not willing to make.

If you really enjoy having people depend on you, why don't you just resort to handing out MD 20-20 and Old English 40 Ozers to the homeless. I'm sure they would appreciate it more.

George McGovern On Airport Security

OpinionJournal - Featured Article

I'll probably yield to the computer age eventually despite my strong instincts against it. But deep inside I'll never yield to the airport terrorism that President Bush has imposed on us as his answer to Osama bin Laden

I guess all that "Sturm Und Drang" in the House and Senate was just for the six-o-clock news. Bush did it!

Just Changed To Blogger Pro

Yeah, I can't really afford it. Being a schmuck doesn't pay very well but let's see how it works. Well, The spellcheck doesn't work on the headlines.

A Junk Science Antidote

Number Watch - the guide to wrong numbers in science, media and politics

All about the scares, scams, junk, panics, and flummery cooked up by the media, politicians, bureaucrats, so-called scientists and others who try to confuse you with wrong numbers

Thanks to ElGordillo in beautiful Costa Rica. Costa Rica? Must be on the lam

How Many Editors Will Cut This Part Of The Story?

Woman Arrested in California Wildfire

Thomas Bonnicksen, a forest science professor at Texas A&M; University and a national sequoia expert, said mammoth fires that have burned nearly four million acres this year in Western states should sound a warning to environmentalists whose opposition to forest management have allowed the undergrowth to proliferate.

"My only hope is that this threat to a national treasure will make people understand that the forests have to be managed," Bonnicksen said. "The sequoia is one of the most durable trees in the world, but it cannot resist this kind of fire -- it's too hot."

Link from EdDriscoll.com

Something To Think About Next

Something To Think About Next Time You Hear Some Utopian Idea

Sorry. Not much posting today. I do have a life (such as it may be) Had to try to dig out a broken fence post (to be continued) and went to dinner with my wife.

I picked up a book at Daltons. "The Good Old Days--The Holocaust as seen by its perpetrators and bystanders" It is a collection of letters and documents from people who participated or observed the actions against Jews mostly in Poland and Eastern Europe. Fascinating and disturbing. I lived in Germany for seven years (1975-1984) and thoroughly enjoyed it. Several of the people that I worked with were WWII vets.

Johann was Afrikakorps, was captured and spent most of the war in Canada.

Walter on the other hand, joined the Waffen-SS in 1938. He denied having anything to do with any "special actions" He mostly would talk about his time in the Balkans and the mule he had. He was never captured. In 1945 he found himself stranded on the west side of the Rhine at Worms. He threw his uniform and rifle in the river and then played dumb. "Nazi? Ich Bin Kein Nazi." and evidently got away with it.

Ernst was a motorcycle courier on the Eastern front. When the war ended he headed west as fast as he could.

None of them had horns or tails. But Johann once told me very quietly that "Hitler was right, the Jews control everything". He died of a heart attack in 1980.

I also knew some Cambodians back in the early 70's. I don't know what happened to them, whether they were killed or were killers. But I do know that we got along great and I certainly never noticed anything obviously evil about them.

Now I answer 911 calls and dispatch police and fire for a living. I still am amazed at the depths of depravity and the heights of humanity that ordinary people can achieve. The present situation in Israel and the Palestinian occupied areas is just the latest example. I have in previous post compared the Palestinian people to animals. I still have a very low opinion of them, but I am reminded that it is the human condition.

(Update: 3:19 PM PST) Michael Gersh over at Zero Base Thinking has an excellent post on the difference between Arab and Western mindsets. There are other good examples of the difference between the mindsets of Westerners and the different Asian (Oops, almost said Oriental) cultures. The idea that we are all totally different is a fallacy, and so is the idea that people in other cultures share the same values as we do.

Clinton -" I actually tried

Clinton -" I actually tried to do something about it, and their party stopped it"

Clinton Rejects Blame in Corporate Crisis, Criticizes Bush on Mideast

Former president Bill Clinton has chastised the Bush administration for suggesting he bears part of the blame for the corporate accounting scandals and said President Bush made a mistake with his first-year Middle East policy



Clinton, who made the remarks to WJLA-TV Channel 7 as he left a memorial service in Washington on Friday, breached the tradition recent presidents have maintained of refraining from criticizing their successors.

And why not? He has never bothered with following agreements, laws or anything that would interfere with what he wanted to do.

Bush administration officials have suggested that corporate practices got out of hand under the Clinton administration's Securities and Exchange Commission.

Well, Duh. These practices didn't start on Jan 20 2001, they were happening long before that. Of course the fact that Clinton's Secretary of the Treasury was a Wall Street insider had nothing to do with it. Rubin would never try to affect policy to help someone like Enron would he? Oh, yeah. He did. Well forget that.

"These people ran on responsibility, but as soon as you scratch them, they go straight to blame," Clinton said. "Now, you know, I didn't blame his father for Somalia when we had that awful day memorialized in 'Black Hawk Down.' I didn't do that."

No, because Bush 41 sent troops to deliver food and you changed the mission to building a nation. The food got delivered, but the nation was never built.

The book and film "Black Hawk Down" tell the story of a deadly 1993 attack on U.S. special forces, which had been sent to the famine-ravaged East African country by President George H.W. Bush during his last days in office.

Oh, never mind. You don't have to blame him, The Washington Post will do it for you.

A White House official called the remarks "surprising." Jim Dyke, press secretary of the Republican National Committee, said they were "a typical Clinton response: Attack and politicize."

When asked at a news conference on July 8 if Clinton had contributed to the corporate excesses of the 1990s, Bush said, "No." Later in the news conference, when asked about his SEC chairman, Bush said, "I think Harvey Pitt was put in place to clean up a mess." Bush's aides often point out to reporters that most of the corporate malfeasance uncovered occurred on Clinton's watch.

And this is not true, Why?

Clinton began gingerly when WJLA's Rebecca Cooper asked if Bush's policies were taking the country in the right direction. "I don't think I should offer an opinion on that," he said. But then he said, "I think it's a mistake for them to try and blame us for it, though, because we actually have a clear and unbroken record of trying to clear up a lot of these corporate abuses."

Clinton said Republicans on Capitol Hill had impeded his proposals for protecting investors. Referring to Bush, Clinton said, "There was corporate malfeasance both before he took office and after. The difference is I actually tried to do something about it, and their party stopped it."

And what exactly did you try to do? There was government malfeasance throughout your administration. I can't seem to recall any initiatives regarding corporate accounting practices though, maybe your minions can remind us. (don't hold your breath)

In April, Bush said that Clinton's failed efforts at peacemaking had resulted in more Palestinian violence. In the interview, Clinton criticized Bush's initial disengagement from the Middle East. "I think it was a mistake to get out for a year," he said. "The important thing is that, right now, that they be involved. I always thought that Secretary [of State Colin L.] Powell wanted to do that."

In other words, thing were going fine, they just need to keep doing what you had been doing for eight years. Tell us how Camp David II was such a rousing success or regale us with stories of the success of the Oslo agreement that you got involved with just in time to get on TV.

One thing you can say about Clinton though, He is absolutely shameless.

So, What's The Problem?I.R.S. Loophole

So, What's The Problem?

I.R.S. Loophole Allows Wealthy to Avoid Taxes

The technique is legal, blessed by the I.R.S. in 1996

Tax "loopholes" will be with us as long as there are laws and lawyers. Loopholes don't seem to bother liberals when they are used to get a murderer off death row or introduce a child molester back into the community. But they sure have a fit when they are used to avoid paying the Imperial Federal Government their pound of flesh.

We Environmentalists Are Smart And

We Environmentalists Are Smart And We Know What Is Good For You. So Shut Up

Daimnation!

As John Rennie at Scientific American so aptly states, the story of the Skeptical Environmentalist is about a naive statistician, who enters the immsense and unsettled literature of environmental science, emerges with a fraction of what is to be found there, picking and choosing studies that support his views, and packaging this as "the true state of the world", which is utter nonsense. Lomborg claims to have written his book in about 18 months, an amazing feat considering that experts in the various fields he brushes over have spent the better part of their lives on their subjects of study. As I told the audience in Holland recently, each chapter itself covering specific fields could easily be 400 pages long, with 3,000 references.

Over at Damian Penny's Blog, Jeffrey Harvey takes exception to Damien's takedown of his criticism of The Skeptical Environmentalist. His argument seems to be that environmentalists are smarter that most other people and anyone not specifically trained in a particular field does not know enough to criticize it. Haven't we heard this song before? "Trust Us. We have only your best interests at heart".

Not Embarassed Enough I GuessWoman

Not Embarassed Enough I Guess

Woman sues Delta, claims she was humiliated by public inspection of sex toy

A woman who says she was pulled off an airplane and asked to take a sex toy out of her luggage after it started vibrating is suing Delta Air Lines, saying she was publicly humiliated.

Read it. You'll be appalledIncompetence

Read it. You'll be appalled

Incompetence and Murder

Link from Daily Pundit

Drivers TrainingMike's Rules Of The

Drivers Training

Mike's Rules Of The Road
My brother is a trucker and has been for about 30 years. The stories he tells of idiots on the road would curl your hair. The point is, there are laws of physics that cannot be ignored. Mercedes SUV's will slide on ice, 4 wheel drive doesn't mean instant stop and any vehicle will tip over if you turn too fast.

Ralph Peters In The WSJ

Ralph Peters In The WSJ

(registration required)

Civilian Casualties: No Apology Needed

Critics persist in claiming that attacks upon terrorists do not work, since results are not instantaneous. But the war against terror is a war of attrition and can only be won over decades. We may not know the real effects of Israel's current efforts for several years. But there is no course worse than cowardice and inaction.

The same critics will tell you that by killing civilians in their attacks, the Israelis--or the Americans--simply turn other civilians against them. This is nonsense. Civilians who shield the enemies of Israel or the U.S. are already anti-Israel or anti-American. But if our strikes against the masters of terror come to seem inevitable, those same civilians will turn against terrorists who try to use them as living shields--as villagers in Afghanistan already have done.

Terrorists and their supporters must learn that they will be allowed no hiding places. Not in their homes, not in churches or mosques, and not in foreign countries to which they might flee. This is a war that must be fought without compromise. It is, above all, a contest of wills. Every apology is a surrender

Right-Wing Fanatics Have Taken Over

Right-Wing Fanatics Have Taken Over California 3rd District Court of Appeals

law.com

"The fact that attorneys even requested a fee award of that absurd magnitude from the taxpayers is a testament to the unreal world of greed in which some attorneys practice law in this day and age."

Actually it was fine with California politiciians until it became public.

Link from Bob Owen

Those Enlightened Brit'sSurgeon halts operation

Those Enlightened Brit's

Surgeon halts operation over foreign nurses' poor English

A surgeon at a leading hospital has said he had to stop halfway through an operation because foreign nurses could not follow his instructions. As a result, he said he has been threatened with disciplinary action for racism.

Link from A Dog's Life

New Cause-Of-The-Week: Voting Rights For

New Cause-Of-The-Week: Voting Rights For Murderers, Thieves and Child Molestors

A Growing Gap in American Democracy

You have to get to the seventh paragraph before you find the actual reason of this concern.

At the last election, if even a small proportion of Florida's disenfranchised population had voted, and if they had broken 60-40 in Al Gore's favor — a highly conservative estimate given the demographics of this group — George Bush would not have won an Electoral College majority.

That's it. Dubya cheated. Those people were denied their chance to vote for Gore just because they were felons. Awww.

NYPD Response Normal For Unexpected

NYPD Response Normal For Unexpected Situation

Report on 9/11 Finds Flaws in Response of Police Dept.

The frank assessment by the consultant, McKinsey & Company, said that many officers did not know who was in charge or whom they should report to after the attack. It also said that some officers in the field acted without direction from field commanders.

Oh..My..God "acted without direction", in other words, they showed initiative instead of standing around with their thumbs up their asses. What would the story have been then; "NYPD Officers Indecisive"? Gimme a break. (The New York Times is getting so far out, it's getting hard to tell them from The Onion.)

How much did they spend for this "frank assessment"? The city couldn't do their own assessment? Whose campaign did McKinsey & Company contribute to?

Federal Prosecutors Re-Try Until They

Federal Judge Sets 4th Trial for Ex-Officer

Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn said yesterday that they planned to retry Charles Schwarz, the former police officer charged with taking part in the torture of Abner Louima, and a judge scheduled what would be Mr. Schwarz's fourth trial for September.

Democrats Cripple Government

So Few Agencies, So Many Official Seats Unfilled

Killing Civilians - Bad For Israelis, Acceptable For Palestinians

Costs of Targeting Civilians

Killing civilians rarely if ever offers success in war or enhanced security, and in an age when global public opinion is of dramatically increased importance, it only undermines a nation's force in both the field and the international arena.

Another mind boggling contortion of thought from the New York Times.

What's The Mystery?

Rash of Wife Killings Stuns Ft. Bragg

Daddy comes home and find that Mommy has been playing house while he was gone and kills her. Check out the action near any military base when the unit's deployed. Not new, not surprising. It usually ends with divorce not murder, but when you come right out of combat back to civilization, the civilized veneer isn't stuck on real tight. But I guess the "Army" can't say that. Bad press you know.

Around Here People Complain About Cats

Residents bid to ban elephants from city

Ayutthaya, the ancient capital defended in numerous battles with the help of war elephants, may soon be declared off-limits to the animals.

Numerous complaints from residents have been made to the city authority about traffic jams caused by elephants used in shows and tours on Koh Ayutthaya, as well as bad smells from the animals' excrement and urine, officials said.

Unions Get What They Pay For With Bradley

In reversal, state finds Sizemore union-dues initiative lacks signatures

The Oregon secretary of state's office reversed itself Thursday and said an anti-union initiative sponsored by tax activist Bill Sizemore does not appear to have enough valid signatures to win a spot on the November ballot

John Lindback, the state elections director, said Thursday that the Voter Education Project -- the union-backed group that has scrutinized the petitioning process this year -- told him it had found two duplicate signatures missed by county clerks, who keep voter records. The group has been conducting its own audit of the signature verification process

Marian Hammond, a spokeswoman for (Secretary of State) [Bill} Bradbury, the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate against Republican Sen. Gordon Smith, referred all questions to Lindback.

Obviously, the unions yanked his leash and reminded him where a large amount of his funding comes from.
"Here, Billy."
"Roll Over"
"Play Dead"
"Good Billy, now sit up and beg for a campaign contribution"

No Contrary Opinions Required

Member of Sex Abuse Panel Upsets Some

With memories, some from long ago, at the heart of many reports that priests committed sexual abuse, the appointment to a national lay board of a prominent psychiatrist who has crusaded against the validity of repressed memories has upset victims' groups and reignited a fierce debate among psychiatric professionals.

I guess this panel is just supposed to rubberstamp the case against the priests. This will result in a great service to humanity. The lawyers won't have to actually do anything to start collecting their fees. Look for Hillary and the Democrats to support his exclusion from the panel.

Says It All

ArabNews: Left-wing Jews rally behind Rep. McKinney

Thanks to The Indepundit for the link

I love to bash Cynthia McKinney.

Cynthia Stays True To Her Owners

Some McKinney Contributors Support Terrorist Groups

www.CNSNews.com - Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) - The congresswoman who accused the Bush administration of allowing energy and defense industry profits to guide its war policy has accepted campaign contributions from employees of groups that support terrorist organizations, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Yeah, I know, that's a pretty harsh thing to say about an african-american (or black person, as they used to be called) but Cynthia has earned it. The Demcrats in general are beholding to them that write the checks such as the NEA but Cynthia has gone above and beyond that in her quest for whatever in the hell it is that she wants?

Link from dcthornton.blog who is in no way responsible for my very incorrect opinion.

What Was Your PastLife?

What Was Your PastLife?

But I Thought It Was The Americans Who Were Supposed To Be Insensitive Bobos

British 'world's worst tourists'

Britons have been labelled the world's worst holidaymakers in a survey of tourist boards around the globe.

Americans were judged the most courteous and the British the rudest, alongside the Russians and Canadians.

Link from Beers Across America

My, how thing have changed. I spent one night in Bangkok partying with the British Navy and they all seemed to be really good blokes. But that was 1970 and this is now.

The Difference Between People And Animals

Israel Opens Probes on Gaza Strike Amid Trading of Blame

Amid intense debate and finger-pointing, Israeli military and intelligence agencies launched investigations Wednesday into what went wrong in an airstrike that pulverized part of a Gaza City neighborhood and killed 15 residents, most of them children.

"The truth is Israel has been playing with fire for quite some time," Amos Harel, military affairs correspondent of the liberal Haaretz newspaper, wrote in a front-page analysis. "In light of the horrifying terror attacks on Israeli citizens and the urgent need to prevent further attacks, a kind of apathetic indifference to the possibility of Palestinian casualties has set in."

Notice the difference here. A terrorist leader was taken out and in the process 9 children including the man's 14 year old daughter were also killed.

Now come the shouts, the moans, the shrieks of grief and outrage over this. The Israelis are being pummeled in the World and U.S press and are having fingers pointed at them by all the usual suspects.

Funny, I don't remember the same reaction when Palestinian "gunmen" ran through an Israeli neighborhood shooting 5 year old girls in their beds. Nor was it apparent when other Palestinian "militants" blew up a bus killing several Israelis including a grandmother and her granddaughter. No the reaction then was "It's unfortunate, but what do you expect from people with no hope"

Notice the difference?

The difference is that the entire world know the Israelis' are actually not inhuman monsters that take pleasure in killing civilians. In fact the Israelis' are a civilized western country with traditions and laws that preclude murderous activity just for the sake of headlines and gory pictures. When a Palestinian child is killed most Israelis see this for the tragedy it is, instead of a cause for celebration.

On the other extreme we have the Palestinians. After each homicide bombing they bring out relative of the bomber to relate their pride in the now deceased bomber and urge others to follow in their chalk outlines. They have children that run away to attract Israeli neighborhoods and cheer when Israeli children are butchered.

The difference is that the world realizes that the Israelis are a cultured and civilized people and the Palestinians are little more than animals.

Of course, civilized people also realize that killing young animals is not something that you should do without a damn good reason and even then it is an unpleasant act. This is why the present outcry about the deaths in Gaza. They went to kill a junkyard dog and ended up killing some puppies too. Everyone, of course, is sorrowed and outraged that the puppies were killed. We are supposed to believe that these children of Palestinian animals are more pure, more deserving, and had a greater potential than any of the Israeli children killed by Palestinian "militants".

I'm sorry; I don't think so.

(come to think of it, No, I'm not sorry.)

HON. DAVID E. BONIOR

HON. DAVID E. BONIOR
OF MICHIGAN
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Tuesday, July 23, 2002

Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, our state is a cathedral--not a dumping ground for Canadian trash.

For nearly 30 years, those of us in Michigan have taken responsibility for our own trash.

O.K. Mr. Bonior, I know a lot of people have a low opinion of you. But You're not Canadian.

If You're Going To San Francisco Be Sure To Wear..Your Body Armor

SFPD dead last in solving violent crime

SF Reporters Say Fire "No Problem" For Giant Sequoias

Resilient sequoias witness inferno

Can't let those uptown environmentalist think their policies may have something to do with it.

Thanks For Banning DDT

Exhibit puts focus on diseases crippling developing nations

In Sudan, Dr. Jill Seaman watched emaciated men and women with a disease called kala azar line up at night under the tree sheltering her clinic, waiting for help in the morning. Often, she knew, there wasn't enough medicine for them all.

The disease -- along with malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and sleeping sickness -- will be highlighted when Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres brings its traveling exhibit, "Access to Essential Medicines," to Portland today.

Malaria was down drastically until the ban on DDT. Now it's back to being one of the worlds' top killers again. Thanks a lot, Sierra Club.

If You Believe This; I Got A Bridge That Might Interest You.

Palestinian Cease-Fire Was in Works Before Israeli Strike

Tanzim, the Palestinian militia connected to Yasir Arafat's Fatah faction, was preparing to announce a unilateral cease-fire with Israel before an Israeli warplane dropped a one-ton bomb early Tuesday on a Hamas leader's home in Gaza City, Palestinian officials and Western diplomats said today.

Who do they think they are kidding. Besides the NY Times, I mean.

More On The "Gored" Student At American University

Free press questioned after incident

A disciplinary conference board found Senior Ben Wetmore responsible for theft and other violations of the AU Student Conduct Code after he videotaped Tipper Gore's April 8 speech in Bender Arena.

Thanks, Sierra Club.

Calif. Fire Threatens Giant Sequoias

A raging wildfire threatened some of America's giant sequoias Tuesday, prompting the Forest Service to call in more than 1,000 firefighters in an all-out effort to save the towering symbols of the West.

The danger to the trees is higher than usual because of a considerable amount of underbrush and weeks of extremely dry weather, Mathes said.

The courts have blocked the removal of much of the underbrush on the monument's forest floor. "Every other project we've tried to do, the environmentalists have filed a lawsuit," said Dale Pengilly, a district ranger.

But He Got An OK From Environmentalists. What's The Problem?

Daschle seeks environmental exemption

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle quietly slipped into a spending bill language exempting his home state of South Dakota from environmental regulations and lawsuits, in order to allow logging in an effort to prevent forest fires.

If Oregon can burn, then South Dakota can burn too.

And What's The Difference Between Toricelli and Trafficani?

The Torricelli Bob-and-Weave

The session, low-key and out of sight, was in line with the way the investigation has gone so far. And if Mr. Torricelli, a New Jersey Democrat, has his way with his colleagues, that's how the investigation will disappear.

Mr. Chang, who was sentenced in May to 18 months' imprisonment for giving more than $53,000 in illegal contributions to Mr. Torricelli's successful 1996 Senate campaign, told federal investigators he had given the senator a Rolex watch, Italian suits and other high-end presents. The senator first denied receiving "illegal gifts," then denied outright having taken any gifts.

Just maybe it's that one voted with Democrats and one voted with Republicans?

And just how is it that a man can be sent to jail for paying bribes but a politician cannot be expelled for taking them?

Thank You, Mr Reynolds, Sir.

Wow, what a rush. My traffic just went through the roof. (for me)

Regarding the letter, I hate to admit it but I found the letter on Neal Boortz' web site and took his word that it was genuine. Anybody else run across it?

Update From Eldorado National Forest

Ag Secy Apologizes for Flagpole Order

Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman apologized Monday for what she called a "misunderstanding" in the U.S. Forest Service ordering a vacationer to remove from his summer cabin a flagpole that had been flying the American flag.

And send the under-employed bureaucrat that ordered this to a job checking water stations near the Mexican border.

Wind Power Is A Winner! Somewhere Else.

Philadelphia Inquirer | 07/19/2002 | Foes of 'green' power: Environmentalists

WAYMART, Pa. - Workers will start building 47 giant windmills this fall along a five-mile stretch of the wooded Moosic Mountain Ridge, a project that will make Pennsylvania the leading producer of wind-based electricity east of the Mississippi.

That is, unless some local environmentalists put a stop to it first.

[...]
Area Sierra Club members also have urged caution, stressing that they support wind power but want to make sure the turbines are put in the right place.

[...]
Other environmentalists question whether the local objections are less about being green and more about crying: "Not in my backyard."

[...]
Tom Gray, deputy executive director of the American Wind Energy Association, said he had heard such arguments before.

"It is frustrating," Gray said. "There are environmentalists that want to compare wind plants with nothing, and we can never win. Nothing is really great, except it's hard to get any electricity out of it. The U.S. demand for electricity is continuing to grow, and it's got to come from someplace."

Ve Haff Vays Of Making You Talk.

`But Officer, I Didn't Do Anything!':

Lakeland, Florida- They call it a ``Voluntary Roadside Interview.''

But for hundreds of motorists flagged down by state troopers Monday on Interstate 4, there was nothing voluntary about it
.
Off-duty troopers, hired at $30 an hour, picked motorists at random and directed them to pull off the interstate into a rest stop, where Palm Pilot- toting interviewers waited.

No, this roadside checkpoint wasn't looking for drunken drivers. The survey, which will cost about $150,000, was commissioned by the Florida High Speed Rail Authority to gauge public interest in riding a proposed 120 mph bullet train.[...]

``The bottom line is, we can do it. It's well within the law,'' said Adrian Share of HNTB Corp., general consultants for the rail authority. ``With the cooperation of state troopers, the state is allowed to pull people over just to seek information.''

Runs Afoul Of American U.? More Like Afoul Of The Gore Political Machine

Student Gadfly Runs Afoul of American U.

[Ben] Wetmore had a pretty shaky relationship with the administration by April 8, when the former vice president's wife went to speak at the campus. Wetmore brought his video camera, suspicious that Gore was drawing a large fee and reasoning that "there should at least be a record of her being here," he said.

Midway through her speech, campus police officers approached Wetmore and demanded that he hand over the tape. After a scuffle, he was arrested and sent to a campus disciplinary panel, which placed him on probation and removed him from his elected office as dorm president. Among the charges: theft of Gore's intellectual property by videotaping her speech.

"Not So Bad" What A Standard To Shoot For

Even Critics Say Some Designs for Downtown Aren't So Bad

As Fast As They Make It; Someone Will Crack It.

Lawmakers Seek Rules to Stop Redistribution of Digital TV

Leading members of Congress are urging the Federal Communications Commission to intervene in a dispute between the entertainment and technology industries over how to prevent television viewers from redistributing digital broadcasts over the Internet.

Good Thing We Have The Government To Protect Us From Corporations

Many Arrested in Crackdown on Corruption in New Orleans

The police began rounding up more than 80 people on bribery charges today in a sweeping crackdown on corruption at the city's auto inspection and taxi-licensing agencies.

A Right To Bear Arms? We're All Gonna Die!

Revised View of 2nd Amendment Is Cited as Defense in Gun Cases

Scores of criminal defendants around the nation have asked federal courts to dismiss gun charges against them based on the Justice Department's recently revised position on the scope of the Second Amendment.

The new position, that the Constitution broadly protects the rights of individuals to own guns, replaced the view, endorsed by the great majority of courts, that the amendment protects a collective right of the states to maintain militias.

That's funny. This "new" interpretation is is the same one that prevailed for the first 150 years of the country. I guess everything old is new again (Hey, maybe I ought to make that into a song.)

You're In Good Company With Den Beste

Looks like I'm not the only one to think this Zero-Emission requirement of California's is a bad idea. Here's Steven Den Beste's post on it.

I changed my links

I changed my links to blogroll.com. Had a bit of a problem trying to get it to match the rest of my page. I am completely clueless about HTML and XML. I used to program in Pascal, Fortran, Basic and even some Assembler. No C++ or web publishing. (We didn't have those things back then) Luckily it just turned out that I had to remove some of the new code and everything is fine now.

CAIR-PAC URGES SUPPORT FOR CONGRESSWOMAN CYNTHIA MCKINNEY

Dear Friends, Assalamu Alaikum
Have you done your part? Take a real step now towards POLITICAL EMPOWERMENT of the American Muslim community. Support Cynthia McKinney Now. She is our strategic choice...
Have you sent your contribution?
Write your check to "McKinney for Congress". In the memo line, please write "Friends of CAIR-PAC"
Send your donations TODAY to:
CAIR-PAC
P.O. Box 20716
Columbus, OH 43220
Include your position and employer's name. Only US Citizens and Permanent Residents can contribute.
Cynthia McKinney is our strategic choice.
- Pro-Muslim Candidate
- Supporter of Palestinian State for over 7 years
- Against Secret Evidence
- Against Aid to Israel
We need to support Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney. She has supported our causes for over ten years. She is facing huge opposition by an Israeli backed candidate. We have to support those who support us!
Send Contributions now.
Congresswoman McKinney has taken political risks in our support, and now she deserves ours!
PLEASE: SEND YOUR CHECK NOW!
Make personal checks payable to: "McKinney for Congress"
--US Citizens and legal permanent residents (green card holders) can contribute.
Send checks to
CAIR-PAC

P.O. Box 20716
Columbus, OH 43220
ACT NOW TO HELP A GOOD WOMAN STAY IN CONGRESS.
Please provide the following information on your check.
Name, address, phone number, employer's name, and your position.
Send checks TODAY to:
CAIR-PAC
P.O. Box 20716
Columbus, OH 43220
YOUR HELP AND SUPPORT IS VERY MUCH APPRECIATED

This is an e-mail that has been sent out by CAIR. Everyone should contribute everything she deserves.

The Next Great Legal Ripoff. Brought To You By The Lawyers And Their Lobbyists The Democrats

Sedentary kids-hyper lawyers

The rush to seize the initiative on childhood obesity and America's increasingly sedentary lifestyle is leading to a swirl of ideas on how to deal with it.

[...]

Enter the trial lawyers and the misinformed politicians of the nanny state to remind us that they know what's best. They are hatching a plan that would allow them to litigate and tax the food industry right out of business

[...]

Pay real close attention to the motive here. These particular trial lawyers are more concerned about increasing the size of their wallets than helping America's children decrease their waistlines. They are looking for a fat payday and their model for this latest assault is the $368 billion dollar tobacco settlement

[...]

Since this is an election year, many politicians are as quick to play into the trial lawyers' hands as they are to take their money to fund their reelection campaigns. Sadly, State legislatures across the nation are considering legislation that would place additional taxes on soft drinks and snacks.

[...]

They say that it will combat childhood obesity. But clear thinking Americans should recognize the effort for what it is -- another means of filling state coffers.

[...]

The proponents of these so-called "sin taxes" say they can raise billions with a 1 cent per bottle tax. One cent is not going to stop anyone from buying a soft drink, so what this really amounts to is another cynical, punitive attempt to raise taxes, period. Obesity is merely the excuse of the month -- tax breaks for gym memberships and buying exercise equipment might be a better alternative.

The Terrorists Have Already Won.

Forest Service orders removal of poles flying American flag

The Forest Service has told California vacationers to remove poles flying the U.S. flag from property the service has leased to them

Chris Weinkopf Knows What Leftists Hate Most

Looks Like I Was Wrong

In California, Clean Air Rules Force Changes in Autos

Although the zero-emission standard, which was scheduled to take effect with the 2003 model year, has been delayed by a court injunction.

[...]

The mandate, set in motion in 1990, aims to cut emissions of nitrogen oxide and hydrocarbons, large contributors to smog, and particulates, which lead to respiratory ailments. But the mandate has been delayed by a legal challenge from General Motors and DaimlerChrysler, which won an injunction in federal court last month.
The rule requires large automakers to derive 10 percent of sales from vehicles that produce nearly zero emissions, including at least 2 percent from vehicles with no emissions. Auto executives say that 2 percent requirement has forced them to keep alive a technology they would just as soon give up on: the battery-powered automobile, the only pure zero-emission vehicle now made.

[...]

"It forced the auto industry to evaluate and use technologies they never wanted to even look at," said Daniel Becker, director of global warming strategies at the Sierra Club, adding, "As a direct result of that, we have hybrid electric vehicles on sale today."

I was under the mistaken impression that the Z-E requirement was rescinded. No such luck. The "experts" from the California Air Resources Board (CARB), legislators and environmentalists have revived it with a new implementation date of 2013. Hmm, let’s see. It was originally implemented in 1990 with a completion date of 2003 which is next year. The proponents assured everyone that that would force the auto manufacturers to make the vehicles. It is now 2002 and the date has been put aside by court order. The research must have already been done, the environmentalists said so. Why put it off for ten years? (other than being safely retired by then)

Who will buy these magical cars when they are produced? Look at the price tags on the current models

The most familiar vehicle is the electric version of Toyota's RAV4, which can go up to 78 miles an hour and travel up to 126 miles before it requires a recharge. The RAV4 EV sells for $42,510, versus a $17,000 starting price for a gasoline version.

The story says "The rule requires large automakers to derive 10 percent of sales from vehicles that produce nearly zero emissions, including at least 2 percent from vehicles with no emissions". I'm certainly not going to rush out and buy one. Is California going to mandate purchase or will they fine the manufacturers because no one wants to buy them.

I think the market will be limited to California government fleets (I wanna see the Z-E cop car), wealthy environmentalists, and any California Legislator that voted for this (including their staff and family) Remember these are the same bozos who mandated that gasoline additive MTBE that caused so much damage. If they do move to punish the manufacturers I hope they are willing to show that they have done their part also.

They seem to be particularly enamored with electric vehicles. This is really great. California has one of the worst records in the nation with building generating plants. It has cost the taxpayers millions and caused blackouts throughout the state. They like to blame this on Enron but it has continued since the disintegration of that company. Are they going to build the generation facilities that it takes to charge these things or will they just blame the shortage on greedy businessmen again?

I guess it will be goodbye for the VW buses with environmentalist stickers. Anyone driving one of those would be exposed as a huge hypocrite (though this does not seem to be a liability on the left).

Car Makers Lie, But Environmentalists Don't

Cars Can Get Much Cleaner

It's no surprise that the auto companies are poised to go down the same obstructionist road on California's greenhouse gases law. The industry is likely to try to put a citizens' referendum on the ballot that would override the new law. No doubt they will spend tens of millions of dollars trying to swamp the public with the same false warnings.

Fred Krupp is the executive director of Environmental Defense.

It never ceases to amaze me how people in the environmental industry can be such experts on things they have never done. "Of course cars can become cleaner, all you have to do is make it a requirement. " If that's all that it took the auto manufacturers would have done it years ago, just to get people like Mr. Krupp off their backs. Just recently California quietly rescinded one of those requirements because it couldn't be met. There was legislation passed with great fanfare several years ago requiring that a certain percentage of cars sold in California be zero emission (or something like that) by (I think 2002 or 2003) this wasn't going to be met and the requirement went away.

This is more fanfare. Mr Krupp has a very cushy job and he doesn't want to lose it. Therefore he has to generate something in support of his employer’s cause. The NY Times is always glad to oblige. Environmentalists get publicity, the public gets scared (Global Warming, We're All Gonna Die!), Mr. Krupps gets more donations and everyone is happy. Until it is time to come up with another hysterical column. Good work if you can get it.

Give Me All Your Data. I Can Be Trusted. Really.

Oracle's Ellison Says U.S. Should Centralize Data

Larry Ellison, chief executive of Oracle Corp. (ORCL.O) on Friday renewed his campaign for a government-initiated database of U.S. medical and criminal records, the kind of sweeping and controversial project the No. 2 software vendor has offered to undertake before.

I bet he'd provide the software for free too. At least the initial software, any upgrades would, of course, be extra.

I'm not even discussing the security problems with having all this data centralized. I'm sure that it would be as confidential as your FBI file.

Flash - U.S Bombing Less Than Perfect! - Duh.

Flaws in U.S. Air War Left Hundreds of Civilians Dead

The American air campaign in Afghanistan, based on a high-tech, out-of-harm's-way strategy, has produced a pattern of mistakes that have killed hundreds of Afghan civilians.

On-site reviews of 11 locations where airstrikes killed as many as 400 civilians suggest that American commanders have sometimes relied on mistaken information from local Afghans. Also, the Americans' preference for airstrikes instead of riskier ground operations has cut off a way of checking the accuracy of the intelligence.

Notice that this was not a problem for the NY Times in Kosovo. I wonder what the difference is?

Fred On Everything

Why We Fight, Why We Don't, And How We Lie To Ourselves

Having spent over twenty years in the U.S. Army (1967-1989) I can attest that Fred is right on target. I myself was more interested in good booze and bad women than I was in fighting anyone. Some really wanted to be Audy Murphy, but I found that that attitude was inversely proportional to the likelyhood that they might actually have to fight. REMF's (If you don't know what that is ask a Vet.) like me had very good wars and we didn't give a moments thought about the grunts in the bush.

Where Have I Heard This Before?

Nick Denton

At dinner yesterday, a friend tells me a great technique for deterring telemarketers: talk dirty to them. When they call up around dinnertime, for every question they ask, fire one back. Are you wearing underwear? What kind of panties? There is the risk that they'll enjoy raunchy conversation more than selling discount long-distance services, and stay on the phone. Hey, it's cheaper than phone sex.

Oh, Yeah!(scroll down)

Don't Lick The Boobs!

Tim Blair

BEWARE THE insidious Bogota Breast Scam. This is a public service announcement.

The girls in Bangkok have also used this ploy. A western tourist died a couple of years ago from a reaction to the chemical.

The Law Of Unintended Consequences Prevails

www.AndrewSullivan.com - Daily Dish

The war on the pharmaceutical industry has already led to a sharp drop in new HIV drugs in development, for example, from over 250 in 1997 to a mere 170 today - just when new research into a fast-mutating virus is needed. Other research paths will also slow. This is the trade-off when politicians decide to step in and run industries. More votes today. Fewer medicines tomorrow. And we're surprised politicians decided to screw the future?

Arabs For Cynthia

ArabNews: Ode to Cynthia

[T]he politicians [...]docilely raise their hands and sign the pledge promising to send more money to Israeli generals. Support of Israel is not a foreign policy. It is the covenant of the Mammonites, and you sign it with blood. With Palestinian blood.

But one woman refused to sign the pledge. One woman, Cynthia McKinney, a member for Georgia, dared to refuse. Four hundred congressmen signed it; they preferred their own personal advancement to the good of the country.

Ancestors of Cynthia were slaves in her native Georgia. But she is one of a very few free persons in the US Congress. As we Israelis were used to say about our Golda Meir, she is the only man over there. She is a black woman, but she is the whitest man of them all, they would say before the Politically Correct era. She knew the billions of Israeli aid are needed for the poor people of the United States, for her own Afro-American community

State Dept Does Not Want To Discriminate Against Terrorists

Visas for Suspected Terrorists?

The State Department is fighting a terrorism task force's recommendation that suspected terrorists be denied visas — this is the same department that wants to hold onto the visa-issuance power in a time of war when our enemies want nothing more than entry into the United States.

I Wonder If He Had Been "Rehabilitated"?

Child molester arrested on new charges

Eugene police arrested a 36-year-old Eugene man Monday on allegations that he molested three young girls multiple times over the past year.

Kelley previously had been convicted of sexually abusing a young girl. He worked in manufacturing.

Eugene's "Idealism" Runs Medical Center Out Of Town

When business goes south

For decades, Eugene business leaders have promoted their city as home of the biggest and best medical center between Portland and San Francisco. But in a stunning blow to Eugene's image and civic pride, that boast will soon belong to another community.

A generation ago, Eugene's idealistic city leaders tried mightily to prevent downtown blight. Instead they ended up creating it by building a massive pedestrian mall that drove people and retailers away.

Now, idealistic city leaders tried mightily to prevent urban sprawl and ended up adding to it by driving Eugene's big medical center out of town.

They really don't want those nasty Capitalists in their town after all. Good Riddance.

Madison Avenue And Big Nasty Slugs

Fred On Everything

Globalization! We're All Gonna Die!

Globalization Has Helped Poor, Study Says

Far from creating poverty as critics claim, rapid globalization of the world economy has sliced the proportion of abject poor across the planet, according to a controversial new study released on Monday.

"The proportion of the world's population in absolute poverty is now lower than it has ever been," the study, written by a group of respected economists for the London-based Center for Economic Policy Research, says.

The study has already brought a less-than-glowing response from the European Commission, the European Union's executive body that commissioned the report.

"In many respects, the findings will prove controversial, at least to those outside the circle of professional economists, contradicting as they do certain deeply held beliefs about the negative consequences of globalization," Prodi wrote.

If the facts and the theory don't agree, change the facts.

Michael Moore Vindicated! George Did It!

Proof That Bin Laden Was Framed!

In the deepest recesses of a cave in Afghanistan, a tape recording of a phone conversation was found today. It proves that the attacks on America were planned and executed by the president of the United States, George W. Bush and the Prime Minister of Israel, Ariel Sharon.

No Running In Wilderness - Wilderness Watch

Environmentalists Object To Runners In Steens Mountain Area

EUGENE, Ore. (AP) - Long distance runners attending a high school camp in the state's southeastern wilderness will be allowed to run through the Steens Mountain Wilderness Area despite objections from environmental groups.

At least two groups have raised objections to the runners' presence, saying a special-use permit issued to the camp by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management violates both the spirit and the letter of wilderness law.

Steens Mountain is one of those Wilderness Areas put off limits to ordinary citizens during the Clinton administration.

The 27-year-old commercial camp has staged runs in the gorges for years without any opposition. But now those areas are in the Steens wilderness, established by Congress two years ago.

Wilderness Watch points to no examples of the runners spoiling the area. They've been doing this for twenty-seven years, I think if there were actually a problem they would be able to come up with something that they have done. I think the environmental group just doesn't like the idea of student athletes using the area. "It's so tacky". "They're jocks, you know". "Not the right sort to allow in here". I'm sure if they were protestors or the "Rainbow Family" they would have no objection.

"I don't have anything against the running camp, and we totally support its continued use of public land outside of the wilderness with a valid special-use permit from the BLM and valid analysis,'' said Tina Marie Ekker, policy coordinator for Wilderness Watch.

Of course. "Some of my best friends are runners." Just do it somewhere else, not in my pristine wilderness. Maybe they could run on an Interstate highway or the Las Vegas strip. Not here and not without have in proper papers. But it sounds as if they do have the proper permit from BLM

The group proposed a three-year phasing out of the camp's wilderness activities, but camp directors have rejected that as unacceptable.

I propose a three year phase out of Wilderness Watch. After all, they are a privately funded organization with no special privileges or powers. Just like the running camp.

The camp is just stubbornly refusing to consider any other routes,'' Ekker said.

Just who died and left these bozos in charge is not clear. Chill out, Ekker. Munch a Granola or hug a grizzly bear or something.

The event is held between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on a weekday, when few other wilderness visitors encounter the runners, organizers say.

Other wilderness visitors? What other wilderness visitors? Did they have to get permission from Wilderness Watch? Why? Who are they and what are they doing there.
As a matter of fact, What is Wilderness watch doing there. I am really tired of these non-profits setting themselves up as quasi-governmental agencies. These areas fall under BLM jurisdiction. If they decided to let the running camp athletes continue then get over it. I’d sure like to know where these people get there money.

Good News In The Clone Wars

Congress to Announce "Anna's Law"

WASHINGTON, DC – "Hooeee!" exclaimed Senator Strom Thurmond, while announcing the introduction of a new bill known as "Anna's Law." The proposed law, an exception to the general anti-cloning sentiment in government, would allow for laboratories to create clones of Anna Kournikova.

More Peaceful Muslims

Kashmir Attack Kills 20 Hindus

Islamic guerrillas set off grenades Saturday at a shantytown outside the winter capital of the Indian state of Jammu-Kashmir, killing at least 20 Hindus before engaging in a gun battle with security forces, police and hospital officials said.

Isn't This One Of The Signs Of The Apocolypse?

Four baggage screeners fired at MSP

Four screeners of passengers and carry-on bags at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport were fired Tuesday after they failed to detect forbidden items in tests by federal inspectors

Who Do You Believe?

The Latest Truth, and Trust or Gullibility

There's been a lot of talk about this in the past couple of days - What the "experts" have been telling us for the past 20 years or so might be all wrong. For the past two decades fat and red-meat have been bad; carbohydrates have been good. Now the "experts" have decided that maybe this "healthy" diet is what has been making us too fat and that we should be eating mostly meat, vegetables and fruit.

About ten or twelve years ago I was taking a "Health and Nutrition" class at the local community college. It was one of those "required" classes that they pad their degree programs with so you have to take them whether you have any interest or not.

Our instructor was woman who very proudly told us of her Norwegian ancestry and was very passionate about her subject. I, of course was only taking the class because I had to and absolutely no interest in either nutrition (I love hamburgers) or health (I figure I'll live until I don't). It was almost impossible to fail this class as long as you showed up. It was a morning class so many people didn't. I did, not because I enjoy rising early (twenty years in the Army cured me of that) but because I liked messing with the teacher. I would always question her when she would come up with these claims about how cutting down on cholesterol and red meat would make you live longer. When she would tell us of the new discoveries in diet and exercise I liked to ask her, "If this was just discovered, where did all these old people come from? They should have all died from eating incorrectly."
For some reason I was not her favorite student, but I turned in my work on time, showed up every day and aced her tests so I got a C.

Environmentalist Groups Sue. Again, and Again, And Again...

Klamath pesticide use spawns suit

GRANTS PASS - Conservation and fishing groups have warned the government they intend to sue to force more careful use of pesticides that can harm endangered fish in Klamath Reclamation Project irrigation canals.

Reclamation has failed for six years to send the required reports to Fish and Wildlife, and must now contact Fish and Wildlife to engage in formal consultation, Wood said.

But it wasn't a problem until these groups needed to find an excuse for another lawsuit.

The notice was filed by Oregon Natural Resources Council, the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, the Northcoast Environmental Center, the Institute for Fisheries Resources and Sierra Club.

That list look famililar? Those are the same group that filed every other suit trying to stop the farmers in the Klamath Basin from farming. I wonder how their accounting looks?

Oops.

Judge may have to decide on parents fertility blunder

The case of the white couple who have given birth to black twins has opened up a legal minefield, experts said yesterday.

Nothing today. I have to work and I don't have web access there. My boss said something about "when hell freezes over".

My wife would also like me to spend a little time with her. I guess I can manage that.

Are Earth First! Terrorists?

EarthFirst Protestors Storm Downtown Portland Office Building

PORTLAND, OR - Four protestors were arrested this afternoon during a demonstration inside an office building in downtown Portland.

Approximately 60 members of the environmental group EarthFirst stormed an office building at 200 SW Market.

This has been the topic on every Portland area talk show I listened to this afternoon. Most people are saying "Yes", but there are a few who say that this is just a bunch of people who are tired of the rape of the forests by the big corporations. They are protesting to shut down the cutting of "Old Growth" forests and they maintain that if people knew the truth about them they would support them.

Curiously, this unorganized group that just happens to think alike just finished a "training camp" today in what they refer to as "Cascadia's Gifford Pinchot National Forest in what is temporarily called Washington State". Somehow about 60 of these people found there way to Portland and into the offices of the Umpqua Bank. May be they were not all from this "Rendezvous" but the four people that were arrested probably were. They were all from Seattle and were given citations and released, So what went on at this "Rendezvous"? Here it is from Earth First! themselves

EF! Round River Rendezvous 2002

Collectives of experienced trainers are developing comprehensive "tracks," or workshop series. Running consecutive days in certain skill areas, each track will offer daily workshops between two-three hours long. These tracks are designed to impart a deeper level of understanding than the standard single workshop format. We hope this will encourage the formation of affinity groups with broad skill bases, help create training models to increase movement-wide skills sharing and raise the bar of focus and intent at the rendezvous.

Sure sounds like a terrorist training camp to me. Maybe they aren't teaching weapons and explosive use, but I'm not sure of that either. If you think these are harmless college kids who are just shoeing their concern for the planet, take the case of Earth Liberation Front (a sister group to Earth First) in the New York Times article in April. Craig was one of the people convicted of torching an auto dealership in Eugene, Or.

From Tree-Hugger to Terrorist

I put the question to Craig Marshall: In a perfect world, what would we do to save the earth? ''First, knock down all the concrete,'' he says. Thinking further, he adds: ''The problem is, we've gone too far already. There's no easy solution. For life to survive as we know it, millions of people are going to have to die. It's sad to say that, but it's true. Millions of people are already dying -- it's just gonna have to start happening here.''

One of the discussions this afternoon was what should be done to them when they stage some of these protests. I favor investigation under the RICO statutes. I am not a bug supporter of these statutes but as long as they are on the books, go ahead and use them. That would probably lead to lessening the use against political protestors after the liberals figure out that they can be used against them too.

There is another thing. Taking a page from the pro-life protestors, there could be an environmental version of the "Nuremberg" web site. While there is a hard core of protestors, the vast majority are just college kids with too much free time and too much money. Most will loose their activism after they graduate and have to work. They might donate or hang around the demonstrations to meet the opposite sex (a big draw during the Vietnam protests) but their activism is tempered by having to show up for work, support a family, and fit in in their community.

All the protestors should be identified. They should be detained, identified, photographed and released. No charges, No nothing. This would upset them greatly. Every protest has people who are supposed to get arrested and the majority who are not. Start arresting the housewives and college students and they won’t find it so much fun.

These peoples names and hometowns (no specific personal info) should be posted to a website. This website's address should be made available to everyone including employers. It is not illegal to refuse to hire someone because they took part in a demonstration. It is not even illegal to fire someone for that. I, of course, would not advise doing that. Most of these people are also WTO protestors, Pro-Palestinian protestors, and anti-capitalist protestors.

In cases where damage is done, people are frightened, business is lost, suits should be brought against the protestors individually. They may have nothing now, but twenty years down the road, who knows. If there were judgments against them, they would be unable to buy a home, or accumulate any property. It might prevent this situation that we were reminded of on Sep 12, 2001.

'Fugitive Days' by Bill Ayers

BILL Ayers is a balding white man in his late 50s whose previous writings include To Teach, a book published by Teachers College Press. His honors include the title of distinguished professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

But he's not just what such accolades might indicate. Bill Ayers is an alumnus of at least a half-dozen jails and also of the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list. Thirty years ago he was a leader of a bomb-happy faction of the Vietnam anti-war movement whose members called themselves the Weathermen

I'm sure that Northwestern knew exactly who he was when they hired him and I'm also sure that he would have enough of his father's money to pay any judgment, but many of these Earth First people are not rich kids that can thumb their noses at society all their lives and may think twice if there were some lasting finacial disincentive. Many are rich, pampered "Trustifarians" as they are called in National Review, but not all. They are presently able to blend in with the ordinary people and become big fish in a small pond. If you start draining the pond it is going to make these fish very uncomfortable

Boy, writing this makes me wish that I had paid more attention in school.

Juden Raus!

news.telegraph.co.uk - Fury as academics are sacked for being Israeli

A British academic has sparked worldwide protests after sacking two scholars from her highly respected international journals because they are Israeli.

From The Eleven Day Empire

Update: My orginal headline "Juden Aus" was grammatically incorrect. Thanks to Michael Kielsky at Uncommon Sense for straightening me out.

If You're Gonna Make Latte', You Hafta Crush Some Beans

Measure would ban all but socially responsible brew

Rick Young chooses his coffeehouses carefully. He takes his java strong, fresh and Fair Trade.

The way he sees it, the world, or at least Berkeley, would be closer to perfect if every cafe, every diner, every restaurant, every 7-Eleven and every bake sale served only Fair Trade certified coffee - coffee that guarantees a so-called living wage for small farmers in developing countries. Or the coffee would be shade-grown, protecting rain forests and other sensitive environments. Or it would be grown without pesticides.

The way he sees it, Fair Trade Coffee should be the only game in town. If ya don't like it, he wants to send some of his "boys" around to help you see the light. Don't call the cops or City Hall, he's got them in his pocket.

This is Berkley after all, Fortress of Free Speech, as long as you don't abuse it by uttering something politically incorrect; the Town of Tolerance, as long as you accept that White Heterosexual Males and Jews are the cause of all the problems in the world; and the City of "Choice"; just as long as you don't choose to do something they disapprove of.

I am sure the budding "public interest" lawyer will soon find others that feel the same as he, other willing to back a law that will allow the City to punish anyone who dares to take the opposite position. I'm sure that soon after that, he will find a nice well paying position in some "public interest" law firm that will give him a good signing bonus because of his notoriety. It always seems to work that way. Those who claim they are only trying to do good, do very well indeed.

Starbucks Bombed. Authorities Unclear Why.

Bomb blast damages coffee shop near UO

EUGENE -- A bomb exploded early Saturday near the front doors to a Starbucks coffee shop near the University of Oregon campus. No one was injured

Although Eugene has a high population of Anarchists and Anti-Globalization nutsos, police don't know if it was connected to them. Duh.

Worried About "Superfund" Cuts? Get The Real Story

Toxic Smear Job - The Times "Slashes" Bush with its bogus Superfund budget-cuts story. By Jack Shafer

Although the Times story spewed Superfund hysteria, it never went as far as the Record, which reported (erroneously) that the administration planned "to reduce spending for the nation's Superfund program." That's not the case. The "slashing" cuts of the Times headline, delineated in the seventh paragraph of the story, were merely the difference between what EPA regional offices had requested from the EPA's Washington headquarters ($450 million) and what headquarters had deigned to allocate ($228 million) to clean up 33 specific sites in FY 2002. It's as if you asked Santa for a BMW and accused him of dealing you a cutback when he only gave you a Honda.

Just In Case You Have Any Illusions

Fred On Marx

On the principle that leprosy is more fun if you understand why your fingers are falling off, permit me a few thoughts on Karl Marx, his witless theories, and our descent into a Disney version of them.

Indymedia Nutcase

The European remain humble (english)

The Chicago Police ( a police officer from District 11) injected (micro)chip/transmitter into my cheekbone (head) and other women in the building. American doctors say it is strange artifact; are hestitant to say it is electronic implant. Chicago Police stand by police officer; will not arrest.

What the F**K?

Oh.

Other interested parties: Rev. Paul Jakes 773-265-0909; Mary Powers (COPA) 312-663-5392; ACLU (312) 312-201-9760 (Privacy group that is hesitant to support us); Reverand Damon Lynch (513) 821-0704; Mark Allen (Rainbow Push) 773-373-3366; Al Kindle (773) 536-6400; Walter Perkins (Chicago Urban League); NAACP Director Chicago Illinois; Rev. Al Sharpton, New York City; Rev. Jesse Jackson; Rev. Hatch Organization (Push westside Chicago)

Thanks to Tim Blair

ICC Now In Force

Frodo Baggins Charged With War Crimes

Frodo Baggins of Bagshot Row, Hobbiton, The Shire, Middle Earth, has been called before the International Criminal Court to answer charges of war crimes brought by Sauron the Dark Lord and Saruman the White in a joint filing.

I Like This Guy.

Diplomacy 101 – Lying like a rug


Thank to Instaman

Togo's Eyadema Will Remain"President-for-life".

Togo's longtime ruler seems like he may stay put

Doubts are growing in the west African country of Togo that President Gnassingbe Eyadema, in power for 36 years, will actually respect a pledge to step down in 2003.

Yeah, so what. It's hard to steal any more money when you are not in power.

Officially, Eyadema is duty-bound by his small country's constitution to retire in 2003 after serving two successive five-year terms.

In Africa this is not a problem.

But some voices in the highest circle close to the president say they fear a catastrophic scenario if the succession is not well-prepared. One interpretation of this sentiment is that Eyadema will in fact continue at the helm after 2003.

Of course. His retainers have stolen whatever he hasn't taken first. They need to keep the gravy train going.

"He does not want this to be discussed now," a source close to Eyadema said.

Shut up or you will be fed to the crocodiles

Eyadema, elected in 1993 in a vote that was widely decried as fraudulent, has in fact run the west African country since 1967, when he was installed as military ruler.

As I said, another African President-for-life. He won't go unless he dies, naturally or not.

He has gone on record as saying that he will back whoever the ruling Togolese People's Assembly (RPT) party, which he founded, chooses to be his successor.

Suurre, he will. Just as long as it is some hand-picked puppet

A third term will require a constitutional amendment, something that would be unacceptable to Western countries, according to diplomats in Lome.

The corruption that is the order of the day is unacceptable to the west. It has never bothered them before.

The opposition, on the other hand is badly fractured, and cannot decide on a common leader. A prominent opposition figure Gilchrist Olympio, who lives in exile, cannot stand in the elections as the law stipulates that candidates have to live in Togo.

And if he comes back to Togo he will be fed to the crocodiles. Great way to keep your opposition under control.

Eyadema was recently criticized by his former prime minister Agbeyome Kodjo, who was sacked in June. He issued a 14-page charge against the head of state and his family alleging a slew of misdemeanors including corruption, torture and the spiriting away of funds.

So, what's new?

Kodjo, currently in hiding, has called for an end to Eyadema's regime, declaring it to be "backward-looking".

Why's he hiding? Isn't Eyadema one of those Third World leaders that made the continent a paradise since the fall of the colonials.

In return, Eyadema has been very dismissive of his former prime minister. "This boy represents absolutely nothing politically, I tell you. Maybe he is overworked. It's the opposition which has manipulated him."

Boy? He called him a Boy? Can he do that? Why isn't the U.N., Amnesty International, NAACP and Nelson Mandela swooping down on him. Why aren't they proposing sanctions? He's black? Oh, never mind.

In addition to the political unrest, Togo's economy is in the doldrums, not helped by international donors such as the European Union, World Bank and International Monetary Fund cutting off aid.

Gee, I wonder why the International community cut off aid? Maybe they got tired of having it stolen?

The country, a former French colony that borders Ghana to the east and Benin to the west, has an external debt of some 1,45-billion euros (dollars). - AFP

Which should be forgiven so they can get more money to steal.

South African Deputy President Sucks Up To Iraq

Zuma lashes out at 'bully states'

Deputy President Jacob Zuma on Friday night condemned "bully states" that attempted to coerce other countries and even international organizations into doing their bidding.

Huh, I wonder who he is speaking of? "Bully" states? Are those states that take others lunch money? Maybe it's those who pick on countries that wear glasses? I know it's countries that make fun of other countries' clothes.

He was speaking at a banquet in Durban in honor of visiting Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz.

Why would he say that at a dinner honoring an Iraqi? I thought Iraq tried to take Kuwait's lunch money and I'm pretty such they made fun of the way they dress. Oh, They don't mean Iraq. Gosh, who would he be talking about? All the countries in the area pick on their own people. It's just so hard to choose.

"This is the kind of world order we must continue to seek to change. No part of the world, region or country should give itself a right or authority to decide for others. This we must not allow."

Absolutely correct. South Africa and Iraq cannot decide what course of action the United States or Israel should take. Nor should they be able to demand that the U.S or Israel deal with Yasser Arafat.

Zuma said every state had the obligation to respect international institutions such as the United Nations.

All countries respect the United nations. It has done more to transfer wealth to Third World dictators that any other institution in history. Delegates manage to amass huge fortunes that otherwise would be impossible for them if they had remained in their native lands. Corruption and thievery on this scale commands respect the world over.

Zuma said South Africans were deeply saddened by the suffering of the Iraqi people caused by twelve years of UN sanctions.

Yes. It is a shame that they have this psychotic leader that would rather spend money to kill Jews that to feed children. It must be heartbreaking to have your child die and have to keep his body in a freezer until the nutcase in Baghdad wants to have some kind of sicko show where children's bodies are paraded for the TV cameras.

"We maintain our position that the UN should lift sanctions against Iraq," Zuma said. - Sapa

Then let Iraq live up to the agreement they signed at the end of the Gulf War. Unless of course, they are indeed slimy, corrupt, pariah dogs that cannot be trusted outside of gunpoint.

More Discrimination Against Illegal Aliens

Government told to scrap work permits

A panel on illegal alien workers will propose to cabinet that work permits for alien workers registered in the "special job'' category not be renewed.

Thailand does not want foreign prostitutes. They prefer to keep these jobs "in the family".

What's The Real Story Here II?

U.S. Promises Formal Probe Into Afghan Deaths

KABUL (Reuters) - The United States acknowledged on Saturday there had been civilian casualties during a U.S. bombing raid in central Afghanistan and promised a formal probe into the incident.

Good. But let's do a real probe. Not some have some meeting in Kandahar or Kabul.

But McNeill said the joint U.S.-Afghan investigating team had not been able to see the bodies, which had already been buried, or to confirm the number of deaths for themselves.

The how can they determine if this incident actually happened? Shouldn't they exhume the bodies so they examine the wounds? How many people are in those graves? Is there anybody in those graves?

A U.S. member of the team said they had only seen five graves and 11 injured people during their visit to Uruzgan. ``We are just going with the Afghan account,'' he told Reuters. ``We asked and we asked but they didn't show us (any more graves).''

Please, Oh Please. Pretty Please. Oh, I guess we'll just have to take their word for it.

The story is going to be allowed to stand. Can't piss off our loyal allies even if they were Taliban two months ago. They have been baptized by the American command and their sins are washed away. They wouldn't lie, they're good Muslims. I guess the probe should have stayed in Kabul and had a meeting.

McNeill said there were "ample indications'' that Monday's air strike was launched in response to anti-aircraft fire from the ground, but admitted no anti-aircraft gun had been found.

What kind of indications? You don't think they might have moved it? Nah, the Afghans wouldn't do that.

My God, (if you can still say that) just when you think the Americans are getting their act together, they come up with some crap like this. You know that everyone from Susan Sontag to The Guardian are just lapping this stuff up.

Let's See, Arab Attacks Jewish Airline, Unclear Why. Oh, Give me A Break!

(Apologies to John Stossel)

FBI: LAX Gunman's Motive Unclear.

LOS ANGELES (AP) - The FBI said Friday that the heavily armed Egyptian immigrant who fatally shot two people at the ticket counter of Israel's national airline had gone to the Los Angeles airport to kill.

"Why he did that is what we are still trying to determine," FBI special agent Richard Garcia said

I guess it wouldn't be Politically Correct to say that he was probably expressing anti-semitic urges?

What's The Real Story Here?

U.S. planes bomb Afghan village

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- U.S. planes bombed a village in central Afghanistan on Monday after the U.S. military said U.S. forces came under fire. Afghans said that villagers were celebrating a wedding and that scores were killed and injured, including many women and children.

When this story hit the news, everyone in the world immediately jumped on the "mistaken bombing by Americans" story. It was subsequently shown that it was not a bomb. The errant bomb was visually tracked by a US service member and hit an unpopulated area. Now the complaint has changed to an AC-130 attacking a wedding in a village.

This story hit fast and climbed when the US Forces had no idea what if anything had happened. It was accepted as gospel by news agencies around the world with no checking. Possibly there was an errant attack. But this story is just too convenient, too pat for my tastes.

Not to disparage our gallant allies, but two months ago they were Taliban, now they are allies. The use of Afghan troops during Operation Anaconda proved that they are not completely trustworthy. I would feel better about this story if the wounded had been treated by US doctors and the site examined by US investigators. For several days while the story got prominent play, the location of the village was not even known.

Call me paranoid but it reeks.

It Took Research? 8 Years Of Clinton Should Have Been Enough

Whole truth, and nothing but?

T he latest research on lying shows that most people do far more of it than they realize. And, somewhat disconcertingly, people identified as leaders have a downright gift for it.

Don't Infringe On People's Right To Be Killed Or Injured

Searches At Fireworks Show Will Continue

The anticipated legal battle between an attorney and the ACLU against the City of Vancouver never ignited because the city agreed to moor a security fence at the Fort’s annual July Fourth celebration.

Besides the giant stage, Fourth of July visitors to Fort Vancouver will still see a fence all the way around the parade grounds.

All bags and coolers will still be subject to search because the show down between attorney Perry Buck and the ACLU versus the City of Vancouver didn't come to a head.

No one asked my view (They never do.) So I will give it.

I believe that people should have the right to attend large public gatherings such as the fireworks show without having their persons or possessions searched. But, (there's always a but) there should be large signs at the entrances advising people that by entering into the area, they hold harmless all public and private entities having anything to do with the show in the event of a willful attack. Of course the lawyers could dress it up and make sure that it is unintelligable to anyone other than another lawyer, but that's the plan

If you're gonna go and there are going to be no searches, then there's gonna be no payoff if something happens.

I know it makes too much sense and no money for the lawyers. Yeah, it would never fly.

No, On Euro Campaign Too Effective For Opponents

Storm over celebrity anti-euro advert

THE No campaign against the euro was under pressure yesterday to withdraw an "offensive and tasteless" advertisement featuring an array of celebrities including Bob Geldof, Gordon Ramsay and Harry Enfield.

And You Thought Harassing Phone Calls Were Bad?

Bangkok Post Wednesday 03 July 2002 - Investigators shift focus to debt dispute

Police are checking whether the June 10 cobra venom attack on a woman could have anything to do with a debt conflict, as there was a case in 1996 when two debt-collecting thugs were arrested with a syringe filled with snake venom.

A Good Reason For Cell Phones

Bangkok Post Wednesday 03 July 2002 - Public phone snares user's fingers in slot

A young man who called his girlfriend from a public telephone spent an embarrassing hour with his fingers trapped in the change dispensing slot on Monday night.

A telephone organisation spokesman said public phones were fitted with a finger trap to ensnare people who try to steal coins.

Kinda makes you appreciate your local phone company doesn't it?

Union Goons Sue Signature Gatherers

Group sues to block possibly tainted petitions

A watchdog group filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to bar Secretary of State Bill Bradbury from validating signatures on petitions circulated by four people being investigated for possible election-law violations.

"Watchdog group", Ha. Only in a paper like the "Red Guard" would a Union financed group to harass signature gatherers and people who would sign them be called a "watchdog group"

Oops. That Must Be Because Of The Republican Congress

New Bookkeeping Problems Are Disclosed by WorldCom

The WorldCom accounting scandal threatened to grow yesterday as the company disclosed that its profits might have been exaggerated as far back as 1999, or two years earlier than previously disclosed.

Mail Made Safe, But Workers Suffer

Irradiating Mail to Congress May Be Making Workers Ill

The process used to sterilize Congressional mail after the anthrax attacks last fall could itself be making Capitol Hill workers sick, a report to be issued on Tuesday says.

Typical NY Times. "World Ends Tonight; Women and Minorities Suffer Most."

Eliminate Businesses? No Problem For Government Agencies.

Pair claim agencies dominate road panel

Rerouting traffic at the intersection could require eliminating as many as six area businesses, and some business owners and residents oppose the project for that reason.

Those rotten people. They're only trying to save their jobs or businesses. Closing down those businesses would ease traffic, which is good for everyone.

Jonah Goldberg Finds The Next Victim Group

Jonah Goldberg's Goldberg File on National Review Online

One need only look at the ranks of heart surgeons, bomb-squad technicians, and nuclear physicists to recognize that the stupid and lazy are wildly underrepresented and discriminated against at the top levels of our society.

Gore Faults SEC For Uncovering Scandals

Gore Bashes Bush Policy as Cause of Biz Scandals

Gore also said the Securities and Exchange Commission isn't doing its job, and he called on its chairman, Harvey Pitt, to resign, suggesting Pitt is too cozy with captains of industry.

Now the SEC is going to look at WorldCom's books for 1999-2000. Let's see what is uncovered then. If there's any irregularities during that period, I'm sure it will be the fault of the Republican Congress.

"Under God" Challenger Would Like To Impose Much More On Society

'Under God' Iconoclast Looks to Next Targets

There is so much about society that Mike Newdow would like to change.

He does not understand, for example, why the English language allows itself anything so cumbersome and awkward as masculine and feminine pronouns. The Mike Newdow dictionary would replace "he" and "she" with "re," "his" and "hers" with "rees" and "him" and "her" with "erm."

But Where Are The Pictures?

Ananova - Women pose naked at windows for 'mammogram by satellite'

Four Portuguese women stood topless at their windows because they thought they were getting a mammogram by satellite

Via Rand Simberg

Left-Wing Conspiracy Nut-Jobs

Bush 911 Photo Scandal

[N]o one has asked what George Bush was actually discussing on the phone aboard Air Force One.

And here is a very likely scenario: Bush was approving the shooting down of hijacked airliners, which led Dick Cheney to order the shooting down of Flight 93 - with all of the Heroes on board.

You mean all those stories about the heroic passengers were a lie? If the plane was shot down instead of being forced down by the passengers, then I guess the passengers weren't so heroic, huh? Be sure that you mention that you are Democrats to everyone you peddle this story to. I wouldn't want then to get the wrong idea.

Bush pulled powerful strings to get into the ANG and thereby avoid combat - a fact he still denies - and then missed a flight physical exam and was grounded, and went AWOL for the last two years of his duty

This seems to be some kind of fixation with Democrats. Maybe Bush spent those 2 years at Mena Airport helping Bill Clinton run drugs to black Americans. The records that uphold the Democrats story seem to be non-existant. Obviously Bush sent operatives to remove them and substitute cleverly forged duplicates. Those clever Bushes. It's no wonder that Gore lost. Bush outsmarted him at every turn.

Oh, Wait. Bush is an idiot. Well..., Uhh....Dick Cheney did it all. Yeah, that's it, Cheney is behind it. Cheney outwitted Gore at every turn. Hmmm, that doesn't sound too good either. Well, they're both bad people, just take our word for it. OK?