Gap loses private data for 800,000 people

And the delightful folks at the Gap don't even think that it's important enough to provide any details. Sure, what could really happen with Social Security numbers and contact details? Sheesh, some people need to learn how to relax and put blind faith in a company that is too stupid to protect personal data because they've already proven themselves to be so competent with safeguarding information but are happy to pass the buck to a subcontractor which they are responsible for regardless of the buck passing. Read the rest of this post...

Newt's not running after all

The big tease. Yesterday, Newt was leading the Republicans to believe he was going to run for president. The GOPers are desperate because the presidential field is so pathetic. Newt was their next big hope. But, Newt's campaign is already over:

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich on Saturday decided against running for president in 2008, less than a day after the Republican indicated publicly that he would spend the next month exploring the viability of a White House bid.

Gingrich said the last-minute change of heart, which came as aides readied the newtnow.org website and prepared to file campaign papers, was the result of legal advice that running for president would require stepping down as chairman of his non-profit organization, American Solutions.

That group is the latest vehicle for Gingrich's musings about politics and policy, and opened its first-annual "ideas summit" Saturday at a Georgia college an hour west of Atlanta and with webcasts on the internet.

Yes, American Solutions is apparently bigger platform for Newt than running to be the American President. Read the rest of this post...

5 Witnesses Insist Iraqis Didn't Fire On Guards

Wash Post:

BAGHDAD, Sept 28 -- Five eyewitnesses to a Sept. 16 shooting incident in Baghdad involving the private security firm Blackwater USA insisted that company guards fired without provocation, forcing civilians and Iraqi police to run for cover, and that the Iraqi officers did not return fire.

The eyewitnesses and a senior Iraqi police official close to an investigation of the incident contradicted initial accounts provided by the company and the State Department, which employs Blackwater to protect U.S. diplomats. At least 11 Iraqis died in the shootings, which have focused attention on the actions of largely unregulated security companies operating in Iraq.

Read the rest of this post...

Director of National Intellgience kind of lied to congress

But the Democrats don't do anything when they're lied to anyway, so it's not really any wonder that the Bushies keep doing it. Read the rest of this post...

Saturday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

Big news in the Washington Post. Really big news. They have a front page article about Jenna Bush because she is getting married -- and wrote a book. Wow. No other real news for the Post to cover. So, Jenna gets front page. I'm not even going to link because it's so not worth it.

I'm heading out for a long run. Only four weeks til the Marine Corps Marathon. Read the rest of this post...

Myanmar military shutting down protests, internet

Reports continue to vary with some saying 9 dead and others, including British PM Gordon Brown, believe it is much, much higher. With a steady stream of blogs reporting on the violent government crackdown, the junta responded by shutting down the internet in addition to arresting hundreds (thousands?) of monks and containing monks to their monasteries. Other reports suggested divisions within the military - even two units fighting each other - though today current reports suggest calm and lack of protest.

The new battle at the moment is over corporate involvement in Myanmar such as US and French oil companies Chevron and Total who both continue to operate. Some are calling for them to stop all operations or to pull out completely, requests which have been rejected. I would certainly not consider myself to be supportive of the oil industry though I wonder if it is not better to have some inroads into such a country which can be used to exert influence. The very strong counter argument is that if you do have influence you have to actually use it. So far there are no overt signs of China or India using any of their influence and they are the two countries who have the most interaction with the reclusive government. As for Chevron and Total, when was the last time we saw an oil company stand up for human rights? Yea, I can't recall such an event either. Read the rest of this post...

US savings and loan with $2.5 billion rescued after defaults

Partially rescued, at least. But hey, it's the 1980s all over again! Now how did a savings and loan collapse manage to somehow - mysteriously, really - not get mentioned until late in the day on a Friday? Do they have a loyal Bushie working there or something? It's not exactly a Northern Rock-like failure but it's not insignificant either. At issue with the failed NetBank is over-exposure to loan defaults. Customers have the standard $100,000 FDIC guarantee but it is not clear what happens with deposits that were above that amount though the bank has been purchased by Dutch giant ING.

While dozens of mortgage companies have closed due to soaring defaults of home loans made to borrowers with weak, or subprime, credit, those problems previously had occurred among non-bank lenders such as New Century Financial Corp. NetBank, in contrast, is federally regulated.

Loose mortgage standards in recent years — especially among lenders catering to subprime borrowers — have resulted in a spike in home loan defaults.

Bert Ely, a banking consultant based in Alexandria, Va., said NetBank was in "deep trouble" before the subprime mortgage market's woes accelerated this year. Regulators, he said, "should have closed it a long time ago."

"Regulators?" What regulators? The GOP has made sure such old-fashioned ideas such as oversight and regulation were made a thing of the past. Read the rest of this post...