The Primary Main Objective...

What's This About Record Low Temps...

In the northeast?

I got a mild sunburn today while snorkeling in Oahu....

*gloat*

New Travel Regulations

The local media is driving me nuts.

They're all teasing "new travel rules taking effect today", but what they neglect to mention in the tease, and then bury in the main report, is that it only applies to foreigners entering the US.

If you don't pay attention, it would be easy to assume that everyone is going to be photographed and fingerprinted for every flight, starting today.

FWIW, it looks like the same technology the CA DMV has been using for several years. A digital photo and a thumb or index print.

You know the Segway is a Flop...

When the nerd magician in Arrested Development is the first TV character I've seen ride one - and they make him look like a dork when he's on it.

And when Brookstone "The store full of things you won't ever need" is the first physical retailer that I know of to sell them.

Wow

Green Bay vs Seattle.

Major nail biter.

Lesson learned? Don't get smart during the OT coin toss.

Also, Tivo is not your friend when games go into OT. Note to self. Record the game and the show after the game in the future.

(I switched to live TV just in time to see the winning interception so I'm not a complete loser.)

Green Uniforms in the Desert?

Hopefully they'll migrate to the desert uniforms in May/June - otherwise there are going to be a lot of extra sweaty Marines.

I don't know if anyone's done a scientific study, but a green and black uniform has to absorb more heat than a tan uniform does.

Via my Bro

Safety's in fashion

Marines may go back to Iraq in high-visibilty uniforms as psychological move toward reducing attacks

Rick Rogers
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
January 3, 2004 Associated Press
San Diego-based Marines soon will learn whether it really does pay to advertise wearing highly visible uniforms rather that the traditional desert-brown camouflage garb. Much more than a fashion statement, it's a psychological ploy aimed at ensuring that the Iraqis know who they are – tough troops who will treat them fairly.

"It sounds like we are going to be going over in . . . woodland uniforms, at least initially," said Maj. T.V. Johnson, a spokesman for the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, based at Camp Pendleton.

An estimated 20,000 to 25,000 Marines from Camp Pendleton and Miramar Marine Corps Air Station will head to Iraq early this year for seven months to occupy a chunk of that country now managed by the Army's 82nd Airborne Division.

Bad Product Placement

I was watching The Simpsons tonight and it was the The Computer Wore Menace Shoes episode where Homer sets up a Drudge-style gossip webpage.

He gets kidnapped and taken to a The Prisoner style island (he's #5) because he published a fake story (that turned out to be real) that a secret government is controlling people's minds through flu shots.

In one of the commercial breaks, Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson tells all of us to be good citizens and get our flu shots.

Coincidence? I think not!

PS I have it on TiVo in case any local SoCal skeptics want to come over and witness it.

Travel Notes

Whoever is in charge of the muzak at United terminal 3 (or is it C?) needs to be shot. They were still playing christmas carols on the 28th.

The TSA folks at Tulsa airport built a spiffy little contraption out of PVC pipe and a sheet of plexiglass and a metal detector wand.

It's basically a little box you can step on to see if your shoes have metal in them, saving you the inconvenience of removing them if you don't have to. All airports should have them. Total cost is probably less than $25 + wand.

I'd forgotten all about the silly shuttle busses at Dulles that move you between terminals. What a pain.

Although the main terminal at Dulles is quite interesting architecturally, it's really not a good design for an airport.

Right now I'm still a big fan of Seoul International. It's the only place where I've been to that makes a 777 look small when you look at it from the waiting area - at first I thought a 737 was parked at our gate. Of course, they only built it a few years ago, so they were able to fix everyone else's mistakes.

Note to airlines. If your flights are running late because of mechanical problems, you can buy a lot of passenger goodwill by providing free drinks - and by providing some service during the time we're stuck on the ground.

I flew KLM from Kenya to Amsterdam a few years back. They had some problem that was going to take a while, and the flight attendants started serving drinks right away. It kept us (relatively) happy and didn't cost much except for forcing the flight attendants to do a little extra work. Why United and American don't do the same is beyond me. (I had a 90+ minute delay on each airline during Christmas.) Luckily, the 2 delayed flights weren't jam packed. They could have been very uncomfortable if they had been.

$30K for a Palm Zire?

$1.2 million Gates grant buys Palms for school officials

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A $1.2 million grant has put palm-size computers into the hands of 40 county school superintendents.

The Zire 71 Palm Pilots are meant to help the officials oversee their school systems, said Manny Arvon, Berkeley County school superintendent.

Click More link for rest of the story.

Let's see... $1,200,000 / 40 = $30,000

I hope those Zire's are diamond encrusted. Or else the evil empire in Redmond ripped off the West Virginia hillbillies.

Oh... Mr AP Reporter Guy, they stopped being "Palm Pilots" several years ago after being sued by the Pilot pen company.

Via Brian.

News Trick I Hate

Nothing makes me change the channel faster than the surprise "loved one reunion".

Let's say the reporter is interviewing a spouse of someone in the gulf.

"And it's been how long since you've seen to your husband?"

"6, 8, 10 months" (pick your month)

"Well we have a surprise for you. We've got your husband on and here's a chance to talk to him."

Well, the last thing I would want to do in my first chat with a loved one is have it broadcast on national TV, especially if I'm the one getting sandbagged.

The right thing to do would be to say we have your husband on camera" - show him briefly, show her reaction and say, "and we'll let you 2 talk while we cut to commercial." before any of the crying starts.

Bastards

Ooooh.... someone's gonna get towed!

Well... maybe not.

DC Grafitti

I ran across this newspaper rack today.

In case you can't read the silver tape, here's a closeup.

And I thought Tony Blair was *our* poodle dammit!

And why is Blair in scare quotes? 'Tards!

Crushing of Dissent

This car was parked across the street from the FBI building in DC. (You can see the reflection of the building in the glass.)

No doubt the owner of the car was being tortured inside the J Edgar Hoover building - by Osama Bin Ladin (we have him you know, we're just waiting for the right moment to "capture" him) - while I took the picture.

Someone Just Blinked...

...and it wasn't us.

My, the Libyans are falling into line nicely.

First they settle Lockerbie, now they give up their WMD programs.

Hmm... whatever could have changed their minds...

#3 Tunnel

Unfortunately they don't allow cameras in the #3 tunnel. It's named that, because it's the third tunnel (out of 4) that we've caught the North Koreans digging under the DMZ. There's an estimate that there are at least 17 tunnels in varying stages of construction under the DMZ.

Fortunately they do allow you to go in it. You take a little car ride (think roller coaster car) down about 70 meters. and then walk to about the midpoint of the tunnel - about 150 meters. Apparently it is protected by 3 concrete walls/doors on the ROK side of the midpoint, each alarmed and monitored.

They estimate 30K troops could get through the tunnel in an hour. All I know is for that number to be true they'd have to be a lot shorter and narrower than I am. You could probably get two combat loaded Americans side by side in that tunnel, but they'd be constantly banging their heads. God help you if you're claustrophobic!

These pictures are of a reunification monument just outside the entrance to tunnel #3. It only has one of the the themes I mentioned below.

Overview

Closeup 1

Closeup 2

More G Dubya Fraud!

He signed this railroad tie, and then they didn't use it! Just like the turkey in Baghdad!

It's in a display case at the last railroad station before the DMZ. As our incredibly naive optimistic tour guide "Louie" said, "Maybe next year we can take the train to Pyongyang, and then all the way to Europe."

Mmmmm... a kimchee scented train all the way to Paris!

Supposedly it's a functional train station, although I didn't see anyone who looked like a passenger there. Our tour group were the only people in the station except for a ROK MP. Note how the little lady is fondling him.

Apparently these guys work under Buckingham palace rules - he was expressionless and immobile during the entire photo nightmare.

I did see three trains scheduled for later that afternoon. It looked like the fare was about a dollar to get back to Seoul.