PSoTD

I gave. How about you?

And they're damn lucky it didn't end in tragedy.

A teenage boy was rescued from a flood-swollen creek at Lykens yesterday after he ran into trouble and was abandoned by three companions as the boys rode rapids created by the recent rains.

The boy, who was not identified, was found shortly before 2 p.m. clinging to one of the rocks in the normally shallow Rattling Creek, said Carl Slough, chief of Liberty Hose Company.

"The rescue didn't take that long," Slough said.

He said the boy and three friends had been riding the creek's rapids. Three made it safely down the stream, but one didn't. The others didn't hang around to help, Slough said.

"They left their friend stranded," he said. "They went home. All three were scared that they were in trouble, and they didn't bother looking for him."

The boy's cries for help caught the attention of an employee at Reiff and Nester Co. in Lykens, Slough said. The creek flows behind the business.

Emergency crews from Lykens and surrounding areas found the boy stranded on the rock with the swollen creek raging around him. His deflated tube was found nearby.

As a crowd gathered to watch, the rescuers tossed a rope to the boy and a ladder was extended to the rock, Slough said.

A firefighter eased out onto the ladder to the boy, grabbed him and pulled him onto the ladder, Slough said. The boy was taken to shore and examined by an ambulance crew.

Slough said the boy appeared to be suffering from hypothermia and was taken to Harrisburg Hospital. His condition was not known last night.

I'm not sure the public deserves to know who the kids were that abandoned the stranded boy, but that information is likely to get out. I don't know how old they are, but they did make a decision - try to avoid trouble rather than help a friend in need. I expect - and the Harrisburg area ought to have - a discussion about personal responsibility for kids, and the life-and-death ramifications when that responsibility is abdicated. I'd like to hope my kids wouldn't abandon someone in trouble, but I'm going to do more than hope it. I'm going to discuss with them this story as a reminder about expected responsibility.

Again, from China Daily:

Koizumi will eat chocolate bonsai tree

As long as the Congress is ruled in both houses by Republicans that choose to support President Bush on almost anything he does, I vow to:

Always refer in my blog to the current Federal Government as the Bush Republican Administration rather than the Bush Administration.

Tar the entire party with Bush. Let them deal with it.

We'll just see how much the Republican Administration - President and Congress - gets pushed around on this issue.

China opposes US lifting of Taiwan contact ban

Beijing said yesterday that it strongly opposes US moves to lift decades-old restrictions on contact between American and Taiwan officials, saying it runs counter to the one-China principle.

The US House of Representatives approved the measure on Wednesday but it has not yet been considered by the Senate.

"China has always resolutely opposed any form of official contact between US and Taiwan authorities," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a news conference.

She called the resolution a "serious violation of the fundamental principles of Sino-US relations" and said it ran contrary to the commitment to the one-China policy the United States has affirmed many times.

US restrictions that prevent high-ranking American military officers from travelling to Taiwan have been in force since 1979, when it established diplomatic relations with Beijing.

Also prohibited are meetings between US and Taiwan civilian officials in certain government buildings, including the White House.

The House approved the measure in an amendment to a funding bill for the State Department; and the Senate could debate the issue later this summer.

That would be Lil' Kim... that's the day she's scheduled to be released from prison.

Today's entry:

Bush the Younger would breastfeed the military if he could.

Just what might make Peggy Noonan say such a thing?

I found this web site advertised from an Ugandan newspaper. (Don't ask, I'm an info junkie)

Green Card Lottery Live and Work in the U.S.A. Usafis Green Card Lottery Application Service

for a group known as USAFIS

Theoretically, Ugandans register online. But "In order to win the American Green Card to Live and Work in America" Ugandans have to pay a fee with your online registration. Registration, however, is free for people who actually register US State Department of State. So why go through USAFIS? Here's the come-on... *Winners will get FREE Airline ticket to the USA

The fine print? Green Card Lottery winners will receive airline ticket1 for free, up to $500 value. Terms mentioned herein are limited to winners who registered through usafis.org and hired Usafis.org affiliated law firm to process their Green Card application.

Oh... you have to hire the affiliated law firm, too.

The whole USAFIS web site reads like one of those "Repair Your Credit for $400" outfits from the 1980s. It is piggybacking on an official American government program, which means it can impact on the impression of citizens of other nations on the actions of our Department of State. In fact, there are stories about Green Card fraud circulating already. Is Congress looking into businesses like USAFIS?

A lobbying job seems to be the goal of a high percentage of Congress, too. I have not done the actual count, but I would be surprised if there were not more former members of both houses of Congress employed as lobbyists than there are current members of Congress. The salaries are incredible: Jim Greenwood of the Biotechnology Industry Organization makes $650,000 a year salary, and salaries and income in the range of $300,000 to $500,000 are increasingly common. When serving in Congress is increasingly seen as an important credential on a resume rather than as an opportunity to serve the public, our country is deep trouble.

From Pennsylvania State House Rep. Mark B. Cohen.

Hmm. So the Sacramento Kings drafted Quincy Douby, a guard from Rutgers. Not sure what to think of it... what do others in the blogosphere have to say?

Complete Sports: I like the pick.

The Barnesyard: The Kings went with guard Quincy Douby with the 19th pick. While I can't have too many negative feelings about a guy who's name is pronounced "doobie", I was shocked that Geoff Petrie didn't go with Connecticut point guard Marcus Williams.

Beard's Eye View: I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I was secretly hoping that Quincy Douby would fall to the Cavs. If you need a shooter, as the Cavs do, you can’t ask for more.

Multiply: Just some of my thoughts to the pick Sacramento made: Douby was predicted by many to be a late first-round pick. Why Sacramento chose him at 19th is a questionable one. It doesn't matter anyway, I do not really trust much in mock drafts and predictions, who I believe in is Kings GM Geoff Petrie. He has never let the Kings Organization down, ever since Chris Webber's initial acquision, to the Stojakovic-Artest trade, and the very good draft picks for the past two years: Kevin Martin and Francisco Garcia. Let's hope the successful trend continues.

I wonder why Russ Diamond thinks he should spam me about his running for Governor. I'm sure I didn't sign up for any spam. For somebody who's so concerned about the personal property of Dan and Joan, he doesn't seem to care much about my personal property - my computer - and my preference to not have it clogged up with dunderhead political campaign marketing.

I smell gerrymandering disasters by the truckload coming up...

On a different issue, the court ruled that state legislators may draw new maps as often as they like — not just once a decade as Texas Democrats claimed. That means Democratic and Republican state lawmakers can push through new maps anytime there is a power shift at a state capital.

The Constitution says states must adjust their congressional district lines every 10 years to account for population shifts. In Texas the boundaries were redrawn twice after the 2000 census, first by a court, then by state lawmakers in a second round promoted by DeLay after Republicans took control.

That was acceptable, justices said.

I wish we didn't have to let the games begin, but that is coming...

I think the author is reacting to something that isn't so much Western as is species methodology for sexual attraction. The individual use of the human body to attract others has been under constant increase in Western society, but that doesn't make it a Western trait. I think (although I'll admit, I'm not an expert) it is related to two things: the general world population increase - in many species, the mating "dance" becomes more pronounced when there are greater numbers and competition for a preferred mate; and communications technology, which allows for the much faster distribution of options for such dance. Neither are really Western.

From The Express Online (Tanzania):

Should we?

By Amil Shivji Recently I had gone to sea-cliff with a couple of friends just to take a break since our examinations had ended. It is quite far and a lot of teenagers hang out there. So as usual it was packed with teenagers. But the thing which astonished me the most was the fashion these teenagers had chosen to wear. Girls were wearing tight tops and dresses so short that instead they could be worn by their eight-year old sisters! And some of the guys were wearing earrings and others had highlighted their hair brown and red. For a moment I thought these people must be tourists but apparently they were citizens of Tanzania and some of them were actually from my school.

I went up to one of class mates and asked him why he had pierced his ear. His reply was, "It looks cool." And I asked another friend of mine why he had highlighted his hair and his reply was, "Chicks dig it." I was surprised by both answers. Another shocking sight was when I saw one of my Tanzanian friends, who was known for being very fair, wearing a T-shirt written Mzungu on it! Almost instantly I asked him what he was doing and he said, "They don't know!" Pointing towards a group of popular teenagers. I was disgusted.

I could not believe these new heights people were trying to reach to get in to the crowd. I twisted my head around to catch a glimpse of my surroundings and I realized that I was the only one who was wearing reasonable and decent clothes. I felt as if I wasn't in Tanzania but in some western country.

What has happened to two of Tanzania's greatest characteristics, decency and respect? Should we not maintain these characteristics? Should we forget our past and give in to the western culture?

I see another blog that I have blogrolled and visit from time to time is slowly biting the dust...

I'm just waiting for the robot invasion

People get busy, get less satisfaction out of their blogs, and move on. But I wonder how much readership plays into the satisfaction. IJWFTRI is averaging 31 visits per day at this point. Spending time determining conversation points, then writing them, posting them, checking them, for 31 readers a day probably starts getting somewhat... uninteresting. Of course, if the 31 readers were decisionmakers, maybe... but most decisionmakers follow the crowds, and if the crowds aren't at your blog, neither are they.

If your blog was down to 31 readers per day, would you continue? And if you are below 31 readers per day, do you expect to increase visits? We're not all activists or newsmakers or top-echelon analysts or satirists. Some of us are just regular people with jobs and families and a multitude of interests but still feel passionately about things and want to find a way to be heard, if only by some others in the same boat. But... how many people make it worthwhile? Will we all eventually get to a point where we decide there isn't enough to continue? Is blogging a stage, to be outgrown? Is it a niche in which eventually only the most talented or resourced will survive, and all others will fade from Google's memory? I've seen a LOT of bloggers quit in the past six months or so, and I wonder if we're all on similar plotlines, just at different points and ranges, and eventually almost all of us are destined to find ourselves at 31 readers a day, and ready to hang it up.

One of the most enjoyable baseball folks on television, Peter Gammons underwent brain surgery Tuesday after he was stricken with an aneurysm. I hope it goes as well as possible for him.

What's the worst chewing gum you've ever chewed?

We really don't need to hear publicly why Limbaugh had Viagra.

In an unrelated matter, here's a curious place called Viking's Exotic Resort on the Dominican Republic.

I know, I know, the close proximity of those two links might lead to sexual dysfunction...

Now says that the BEST CASE for lifting the boil advisory for water is Thursday.

Warren Buffett understands it.

Billionaire Warren Buffett on Monday called for U.S. lawmakers to retain the estate tax, after announcing plans to leave more than $37 billion of his own fortune to charity, not his children.

"I would hate to see the estate tax gutted," Buffett said at a Manhattan news conference with the Gateses about his donation. "It's a very equitable tax," Buffett said. "It's in keeping with the idea of equality of opportunity in this country, not giving incredible head starts to certain people who were very selective about the womb from which they emerged."

Thank you Mr. Buffett.

Sad story that made me wince... From South Africa:

SIX initiates have died and more than 50 have been rescued from illegal initiation schools in the Transkei.

All the deaths happened during the first week of the start of the circumcision period in the Eastern Cape.

Five were under 18 years of age - although the circumcision laws ban the initiation of boys under that age. The five were aged 13, 14, and 17 years old.

Kupelo said all the six dead initiates had apparently undergone circumcision without their parents' consent and knowledge, and had therefore not undergone the compulsory pre-circumcision medical examination demanded by the Act.

"But the problem is not only caused by boys who attend initiation without their parents' consent, but the bigger problem lies with the people who conduct the circumcisions - iingcibi. I think that's where we need to pull the plug on this," said Kupelo.

He said that traditional surgeons were also making the respected African rite a laughing stock and were charged a chicken for performing the procedure.

"One of the things that kills these boys is that they walk about 100km to the home of iingcibi, are circumcised and walk back home to their respective village bleeding all the way," said Kupelo.

"Our worry is that apart from dying, there is a high possibility that the boys will end up contracting HIV," said Kupelo.

He said bogus traditional surgeons had received no training. They take a spear or a knife and move down the queue, cutting the first boy to the last without sterilising or washing the instrument.

I'm still waiting for a longshot Democrat Congressional Candidate to unleash their

"Elect Me and I'll Personally Punch Karl Rove in the Nose"

campaign. I think it might be a surprise sleeper.

Local Pennsylvania newspapers can be so cold in their election coverage. From the Beaver County Times:

What they found: Weapons of Mass Deterioration

U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Penn Hills, might have - if you can believe it - jumped the gun Wednesday when he and another Republican lawmaker began trumpeting a declassified report that said weapons of mass destruction had been discovered in Iraq.

"We now have found stockpiles," Santorum said, according to The Associated Press.

The AP said Santorum - who trails in most polls to Democratic challenger Bob Casey Jr. - and U.S. Rep. Peter Hoekstra, R-Mich., hounded ... uh ... urged National Intelligence Director John Negroponte to release the report so that they could counter Democratic charges that Iraq did not have WMDs.

Unfortunately, the man who led the hunt for WMDs in Iraq wasn't clued in on the revelation's importance to Santorum's re-election bid.

David Kay said weapons experts agree that the mustard and sarin agents found wouldn't be lethal. He said they were probably made for use during Iraq's eight-year war with Iran in the 1980s.

From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Today's question:

How often does your drinking water provider put out advisories recommending you boil the water before consumption?

Addressing other high school students during graduation ceremonies because you are the class valedictorian is not a right. It is a privilege. If students can't accept it as a privilege and keep their comments within the guidelines offered by the educational institution, then high schools would be best off taking the privilege away, to avoid lawsuits such as what the The Rutherford Institute is committing against Foothill High School in Henderson, Nevada.

Best of luck to them finding a buyer that will keep it as an amusement park. For anyone in the Harrisburg area with little kids, the scope and the price of the park is hard to beat. It would be a shame if we lost it.

A couple of days ago I asked a QotD about membership in homeowner associations. It's a subject I know a little about, I belong to one and am an officer. We're one of those voluntary organizations - we don't have any power to force neighbors to join or pay, and in many ways I prefer that. On the other hand, we have park properties that we are required to maintain, and there's not a guaranteed stream of revenue (but there is a dependable one at this point), and a guarantee sure would be preferable.

But what I want to talk about is voluntary versus required fees or taxes. This development I live in is over 40 years old and has about 400 houses in it. The properties that the homeowner association "owns" are two parks and a natural area that add benefit and value to the neighborhood. Yet, regardless of how hard we try to make that point, we can't get but about 70% of the households in the neighborhood to pay annual dues of approximately $50. There are some folks with financial hardship - older residents, retired residents, ill residents - and I realize that there's no way to expect 100% voluntary participation.

But when we survey residents and ask the remaning 25% why they won't pay, the answer usually is "I don't use the parks". This minority doesn't agree with the community standard that the parks benefit the neighborhood as a whole, that the parks increase the value of each home in the neighborhood, that the parks give kids somewhere else to play noisily other than right outside their bedroom at 8 AM on Saturday morning. They don't see that the parks and the natural area looks a lot better than just more houses in the same area. They don't see that the parks are actually one of the first things that visitors notice about our neighborhood. They don't see any of that.

They see $50, it's theirs, and they don't go in the park. It's voluntary, and the next ten trips to Starbucks is more important to them than joining the community for community benefit.

I'm not venting about our neighborhood. Our neighborhood isn't that different from yours, or anyone else's, in my humble opinion. I think it's representative of the nation at large. There's a 25% out there in your city. There's a 25% in every city. They require immediate gratification for expenditure. They play to pay, not pay to play. They're vocal, too. They don't want to pay taxes for schools, because they don't have any kids. They don't want to pay for Social Security, because they think they have their nest egg already. And if it is voluntary, they aren't going to pay for it. They're not interested in paying for a present or a future in which they don't receive some sort of gratification. And unless there is a force of law compelling them to, they aren't going to do it. Not even a measly $50 a year, not even for their neighbors' kids.

I don't know if that 25% is growing or shrinking in our society, and I don't know if they reach their decision due to nature or nurture. I do know that it's a big mistake for government to expect them to pay ANYTHING for the present or the future on a voluntary basis. The same people who promote such ideas are the people who will skip out on payment the moment it becomes voluntary.

Former Chicago Bears wide receiver Willie Gault set a world record of 10.72 seconds in the master's 100 meters, a division for athletes aged 45 to 49.

Being 47 myself, I find that to be absolutely amazing.

I just thought I'd take a spin a day through the campaign web sites for incumbents running for their current seat in the United States Senate. Who includes Iraq as a specific issue on their campaign web site? No judgement on the quality of their position, but just the mere fact that they specify Iraq as an election issue and provide some position information on it? I didn't include "Veterans" because much of that is about benefits - not about the war/foreign affairs issue.

Includes Iraq as an Issue

Daniel Akaka of Hawaii - Yes
Conrad Burns of Montana - Yes
Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts - Yes
Ben Nelson of Nebraska - Yes
Bill Nelson of Florida - Yes
Orrin Hatch of Utah - Yes
George Allen of Virginia - Yes
Maria Cantwell of Washington - Sorta
Robert Byrd of West Virginia - Yes

Does Not Include Iraq as an Issue

Bob Menendez of New Jersey - No
Mike DeWine of Ohio - No
Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania - No
Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island - No
Jon Kyl of Arizona - No
Dianne Feinstein of California - No
Joe Lieberman of Connecticut - No
Tom Carper of Delaware - No
Olympia Snowe of Maine - No
Debbie Stabenow of Michigan - No
Jim Talent of Missouri - No
Hillary Clinton of New York - No
Kay Bailey Hutchinson of Texas - No
Herb Kohl of Wisconsin - No
Dick Lugar of Indiana - No
Kent Conrad of North Dakota - No

Could Not Find Campaign Web Site

Craig Thomas of Wyoming - Could Not Find Web Site
Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico - Could Not Find Web Site
Trent Lott of Mississippi - Could Not Find Web Site

Why isn't Iraq an issue on so many of these U.S. Senate imcumbent campaign web sites?

It was only a matter of time. So long, billboards...

Internet advertising is the fastest-growing segment of the Canadian ad industry and, for the first time, Web-based commercials are raking in more dollars than billboards.

The out-of-home advertising category, which includes everything from billboards and bus-stop signs to video screens in food courts and elevators, was surpassed last year by on-line ads, which are now a $347-million (U.S.) industry in Canada.

Newspapers are waking up about Congress, slowly. From the Jackson Clarion-Ledger:

As employers on the Mississippi Gulf Coast have found in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the minimum wage won't attract workers. There, signing and retention bonuses are being offered for what are considered "minimum wage" jobs, and still aren't being filled.

The $5.15 an hour level was set in 1997. By comparison, federal lawmakers' annual pay has risen by roughly $30,000 since then. And, now some are pushing for doing away with the estate tax, which only 3 in 1,000 Americans are rich enough to be affected by (only estates worth more than $3.5 million or $7 million for a couple).

Who does this Congress represent?

I think the Clarion-Ledger hinted at an idea there - tie the minimum wage to the salary of Congress (including benefits). Whatever percentage of increase would occur for Congress would automatically be the same percentage of increase for the minimum wage. (But NOT visa versa)

From Hotline:

Sen. John Edwards convened a retreat earlier this week for a bevy of top Democrats in Washington.

Edwards was peppered with questions about a presidential bid. According to one participant, Edwards answered that he is "seriously considering" one, provided wife Elizabeth Edwards remains healthy.

I watched Edwards' poverty speech on CSpan, and it was very easy to be impressed by both the presentation and the approach to the issue. If one believes that poverty is a large contributory cause of a whole slew of social ills, and I do, then you have to want this guy to be a major contender in 2008. If one believes that America can't successfully export solutions to poverty to other countries until it resolves some solutions itself, as I do, then you have to want Edwards to be a major contender in 2008.

And if you believe that America's role in the world will be stronger - and more accepted - when we can export solutions to poverty, then you REALLY want Edwards to be a major contender in 2008.

Daily Kos makes The New Republic cry.

Do you believe "that a free and vibrant media full of diverse, local and competing voices is the lifeblood of America's democracy"?

That "massive consolidation of media ownership has dangerously reduced the number of voices in our nation's media"?

If you haven't already, you may want to check out Stop Big Media. They're watching the FCC's newest media ownership rule change proposals.

I don't know, I just can't see Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog-Eating Contest as the "most celebrated sporting event of the year". Mostly due to its lack of "sporting event" status...

Looks like lobbyists are going to be on the Pennsylvania fairways a lot this summer... From PAFundraisers:

14-Jul-06 Friends of Dave Reed PO Box 1440, Indiana, PA 15701 250 - Golf Tom's Run Golf Course, Blairsville 8:30AM

24-Jul-06 The Thomas Petrone Comm. PO Box 8541, Pitts, PA 15220 250 - Golf Highland Country Club, Pittsburgh 10AM

24-Jul-06 Friends of Vince Biancucci 226 Pleasant Dr., Aliquippa, PA 15001 250 - Golf Beaver Lakes Country Club, Aliquippa 11AM

28-Jul-06 Friends of Todd Eachus PO Box 2174 Hazleton, PA 18201 85 - Golf Sugarloaf Golf Course, Sugarloaf, PA NOON

28-Jul-06 Friends of Jim Rhoades Comm. PO Box 35, Mahanoy City, PA 17948 100 - Golf Mountain Valley Golf Course, Barnesville 1PM

25-Aug-06 Comm. To ReElect Bev Mackereth 307 Forge Court, Spring Grove, PA 17362 65 - Golf Briarwood Golf Course, NOON

06-Sep-06 Friends of Bob Mellow PO Box B, Peckville, PA 18452 - Golf Elmhurst Country Club, Moscow Noon

11-Sep-06 Friends of Senator Robert Jubelirer PO Box 2051, Altoona, PA 16603 - Golf Scotch Valley Country Club, Hollidaysburg TBA

20-Sep-06 Friends of Bob Mellow PO Box B, Peckville, PA 18452 - Golf Glen Oak Country Club, Clarks Summit Noon

Jubelirer? Didn't he lose his primary?

I decree that one Joe Biden should go on a two month long diet limited to such.

That should about do it.

If we let our government go against the ideals our country was established by, we risk allowing that government slip into replacing justice with control. Assuming that justice can be returned, the nation's pain haunts for generations. Just remember Argentina:

Over 30 years after the 1976 coup, the shadows of those terrible times continue stalking the country with their presence still felt in recent news items ? even with President N?stor Kirchner absent in Spain and the World Cup entering its decisive stages. On Tuesday the trial of Miguel Etchecolatz (the second-in-command of the notorious Buenos Aires provincial police chief General Ram'n Camps) for crimes against humanity began in La Plata while retired military officers chose the same day to pay tribute to various ex-colleagues slain by terrorists. Perhaps San Isidro Bishop Jorge Casaretto might be tempted to say: ?A plague on both your houses!? over the human rights debate if it were seemly for ecclesiastics to curse ? as it was, he called on society to ?overcome the traumas of the past? in a message of reconciliation last weekend.

In fact much of society needs no second invitation to move past those traumas ?- even if motives range from guilt (personal or collective) or simple discomfort to a strong feeling that the future only belongs to countries which look ahead, not remain stuck in the past. Yet it would be dangerous to regard either the Etchecolatz trial or memories of terrorism as useless anachronisms. Some might challenge the point of trying somebody like Etchecolatz who is too old for anything more than house arrest but however inadequate the punishment, the single word ?missing? which describes the status of so many ?dirty war? victims shows how much remains to be clarified ? the Etchecolatz trial does have this value. Above all, it delivers a necessary message against impunity beyond the passage of time. The tribute to military victims of terrorism also has its place over and above any provocative intentions. In order to say that the 1976-83 military dictatorship employed the worst possible counter-terrorist methods, why should it be necessary to deny the existence of terrorism (as has become almost mandatory in some government circles)? The insistence on only condemning state terrorism is often criticized as resentful or vindictive but, however admirable the forgiveness of a Nelson Mandela might be, those who have suffered should also be allowed the right to rancour (not that the resentful are always victims) what they cannot be allowed is to disregard the truth, which must remain uppermost in any remembrance.

In reviewing the 70s, memories should thus not be limited to Argentina's World Cup triumph 28 years ago this coming Sunday (a day Argentina also played Holland).

Paid Sidebar Ads on Google for search of term "wealthy": 79

Paid Sidebar Ads on Google for search of term "happy": 1

Sell a Super Bowl Ring.

Here's the main PR value of the Miami terrorism arrests, and it's a great value:

Sources told CNN that the arrests culminated a monthslong undercover operation. The suspects believed they were dealing with an al Qaeda operative but the person was actually a government informant, the sources said.

Spreading doubt in a decentralized process just creates more dissuasion in getting involved in that process. Doubt does not stimulate development. This could reduce the number of potential domestic terrorists.

Of course, if this story backfires and embarrasses the U.S. somehow, the value will be destroyed. Law enforcement and the Justice Department have to be right on this, or else.

Pro-baby breastfeeding NGO's images banned

The popular weblog hosting site LiveJournal barred images of breastfeeding mothers posted by a campaign group working to promote natural breastfeeding for babies - after its Abuse Team deemed the pictures "inappropriate".

Pro-breastfeeding NGO ProMoM complained that LiveJournal changed the site's rule, and now prohibit "nudity or graphic violence", instead of just "sexually explicit or graphically violent" images. Some of the small 100x100 pixel images were used to identify members of the group in chat rooms, and some showed naked breasts. ProMoM has published a gallery of banned images and invited readers to judge for themselves if the icons are offensive. They add that breastfeeding is exempt from federal nudity law in the US and current rules allow default userpics with racial slurs and all manner of potentially offensive text on free speech grounds.

Today's Question:

Are you a paying member of a Homeowners Association, and if so, what's the benefit?

Looking to buy a house could tell you this: the middle class housing market is shrinking. But now there is statistical evidence to back that up. Hat tip to Thoughts of an Average Woman for this post.

There must be something very very dreadful in Republican polling about the issue of WMDs and Iraq. I suspect it's a longterm ramification - perhaps something such as if people are asked whether Republicans are more or less truthful than Democrats, and answer less truthful, and then are asked for an example as to why they believe that, that WMDs in Iraq comes up often as the star example.

And so, we are going to be treated with an overwhelming campaign to build a mountain out of rabbit turds. I really don't expect the American public to change their minds about this issue at this point.

Diana Irey, who is running against John Murtha in Pennsylvania for Congress, says on her website:

Thirty two years is a long time to spend in Washington. For decades, western Pennsylvania looked to John Murtha to stand up for our values. But as the years have drifted by, John Murtha has drifted further and further from the ideals that made this country great. He has become part of the problem in Washington.

Sounds like Irey believes all the old guard should be retired. Shouldn't some enterprising Pennsylvania journalist be asking Irey if her statement means she believes the following Republicans, with similar amount of time in Washington, ought to go as well?

Ted Stevens?
Don Young?
Pete V. Domenici?
Bill Young?
James Leach?

Just want to see where she really stands on this philosophical point?

This sure seems like a financing solution ONLY until the first investors/bettors lose.

From LatinAmerican Post:

The Mexican government has tapped international markets to issue a special catastrophe bond to finance rescue and rebuilding in case of a disastrous earthquake, finance ministry officials said on Friday.

The $160 million bond is part of a larger $450 million insurance package over the next three years that will cost the Mexican government $26 million.

Mexico is considered more at risk for a strong earthquake than even California, and the memory of the 1985 earthquake is still vivid for many residents of Mexico City. The death toll in that disaster may have been as high as 20,000.

Despite the risks, the government has not bought insurance until now, said José Antonio González Anaya, the finance ministry official who has spent three years trying to structure the deal.

Investors who buy the bonds are essentially betting that an earthquake will not hit Mexico in the next three years.

Swiss Re, the Zurich-based reinsurance group, issued the bonds, which pay 230 basis points over the Libor benchmark interest rate.

"If there's no disaster in three years," the finance minister, Francisco Gil Diáz, said, "the investors keep the premium and the interest" and get back the bond.

But if a quake hits, the government gets the full value of the bonds, and investors lose their money.

I really can't think of a "favored" candidate for either party, at least since Humphrey, with a greater upside for pulling apart the nominating political party.

Do you care about World Cup Soccer?

A couple more thoughts about Boise, Idaho, and then back to regular blogging...

When I was returning the rental car yesterday, heard a fellow ask the lady behind the counter if Boise was growing fast. She said it had doubled in population in ten years.

Also, this:

United Van Lines says Boise is No. 1 in the nation for all that company's moves, and U-Haul, the king of the do-it-yourself movers, said Boise tied with Austin for its top growth city.

As with any land rush, it pays to be at the front of the movement. Bankrate.com predicts that Boise will among the nation's leading places for price appreciation in real estate values in 2006--and that's on top of the 14.3 percent price appreciation in 2005.

Like Arthur Miller.

As I get ready to leave Idaho, a question about the most prominent animal around here:

When and where did you last ride a horse?

When I travel I often find myself in a position to blog from other people's computers. I do not have a laptop nor do I really want one, but it is hard for me to go anywhere for a long time without checking in on the business, and since I'm on the computer anyway, I do a little blogging from elsewhere as well, too.

This means I use someone else's computer. One of the things that I've noticed about doing that is the difference in "comfort levels" about blogging from someone else's computer. I just can't get to the same frame of mind that I can at my own computer, basically because the environmental interruptions and distractions are new and therefore not easily ignorable. Plus, the obvious lack of my trusty bookmarks...

There's also a "broken in" quality about computers that actually can be a distraction in blogging. We all become accustomed to the minute quirks of our own computers - how easily the keyboard depresses, the speed of the mouse's track, the brightness of the monitor, etc., and when you move on to a different computer, these items become noticeable again. And in the noticing, it becomes just another tiny distraction from blogging.

Still, I don't want to drag a laptop around.

The planners of Boise, Idaho ought to talk to the planners of Sacramento, California. Having lived in Sacramento 25 years ago, and having visited Boise the past few days, I feel completely unqualified and yet completely comfortable saying the similiarites between the two, Sacramento 1981 and Boise 2006, are pretty obvious. I'm sure Sacramentans have seen mistakes over the past 25 years they wouldn't want to repeat. Perhaps Boise is, or will, try to learn from those.

In honor of tomorrow's fun...

What is your favorite airport, and why?

Democrats: Just Say No.

A bit of a misnomer...

Air travel is facing a paperless future, as paper tickets are about to be consigned to the dustbin for good.

From January 1 2008, 94 percent of the world's airlines will stop issuing paper tickets, with digital "e-tickets" being the new standard, it was decided at the World Air Transport summit in Paris on Tuesday.

E-ticketing is not a novelty, the first having been issued in 1995 by Alaska Airlines. Now the goal is for almost all of the world's airlines to use e-tickets by 2008, as set down by the International Air Transport Association (Iata), representing 261 airlines - 94 percent of the world's total.

Paper tickets aren't going away - at least, paper boarding passes and paper receipts for luggage and paper itineraries. It's just that consumers have to print them out - not the airlines.

From Online Casino Reports:

Today, Sunday June 18th, is Fathers Day. It's the national holiday when people of all ages take some time to recognize their fathers and show them some gratitude. Like many other national holidays, Fathers Day always sees an increase in traffic at the online casinos. The fact that the holiday falls on a Sunday is also perhaps another reason that online casino operators are reporting a high volume of players at their sites. Typically, the weekend brings more activity to the online casino sites. Add a big holiday like Fathers Day to the mix and it should come as no surprise that the online casinos will be extra busy today.

From KFMB:

This is the perfect weather for outdoor weddings, and a lot of people will be saying their "I do's" this weekend. But will they be exchanging rings with their vows, or exchanging alternative jewelry? And instead of saying 'with this ring I thee wed', will it be 'with this bracelet I thee wed'?

Wedding planner Merilee Norman is an expert on what brides want, and she says they want diamonds.

"All the brides primarily that we have worked with, first time brides, they are just excited to be wearing that engagement ring with the diamonds on it," Norman said.

Well, not all brides. Some wedding experts are noticing a new trend -- couples shunning the "bling" and traditional wedding bands for commitment jewelry.

From my standpoint the Reds are, unfortunately, tanking.

Barnstormin' has a great blog post on the day, and fathers in general. Give it a read.

Since a lot of us travel sometime this summer:

What's the last book you've read?

It sure reads like Ann Coulter is in the process of some overwhelming mental breakdown with her newest screed on (In)Human(e) Events. Honestly, assuming she has family that loves her, where are they? Aren't they concerned that she continually verbally soils herself in public for far rightwing purposes? And when do the conservatives consider Ann Coulter the person, and not the tool of rightwing rhetoric?

Where is the love amongst conservatives for Ann Coulter? Aren't they concerned that she needs some serious help? She seems so unhappy. Why is she so unhappy? Is it really to the benefit of conservatives that their spokespeople are so incredibly publicly unhappy and filled with venemous anger? Don't they care about Ann Coulter finding happiness? Ann Coulter is as successful as any conservative pundit, and she's not a happy person. She's full of venom. Does she think she's lost? Does she think she's failing? Why isn't she happy with herself?

Somehow I think the world would be a better place if Ann Coulter could find a path to happiness. And less decorated with hate, too.

Wow, one day after I post a most memorable letter, another email comes in that completely surprises me...

Hi,

I just found your poop blog entry:

http://www.psotd.com/posts/1145286080.shtml

and I think you may be of some help to me. I'm reaching out to you on behalf of M80 and Ignited Minds regarding the launch of an online game called Donkey Pong And The Adventures Of Rimdiana Jones. Have you heard of it? If not, it is the first from The Turds collection of roguish comedic characters born from the best of toilet humour. Since you mentioned poop, would you mind checking out the site and possibly posting a review on your blog? You seem like a reputable influencer, so I think you'd be a big help to us.

As complimentary as it is to be considered a reputable influencer on the subject of poop, I'm not providing the URL. And I'm rethinking my whole blogging approach. (not really)

Streaking at events, such as the World Cup, is moronic. There was a time - back in the 1970s - that there was a novelty to such actions. The novelty is gone. There's no message. There's no philosophical point.

It is just disruption of an event that everyone else wants to continue.

Still... I don't think that people should feel comfortable that serial streakers had their passports taken because of the possibility they may streak at the World Cup.

English police have got to grips with a streaker, stripping him of his passport to stop him going to the World Cup, they said Tuesday.

Craig Bowler, 28, was banned from domestic and international matches after charging naked across the pitch as Wimbledon played Sheffield United in September 2003.

He should have surrendered his passport to police before May 31 under the terms of his football banning order.

But he failed to do so and he was arrested Friday and questioned by officers. He will appear in court next Tuesday.

Serial British streaker Mark Roberts has also been banned from travelling to the World Cup in Germany.

Hey... doesn't NTodd live in Vermont?

This may come as a surprise to many people, but if you wanted to bike, roller blade, stroll or sunbathe on the Burlington bike path in the buff-- it's perfectly legal.

Phinneas Sosin expects 100 bicyclists will join him for the second annual bike ride through Burlington to protest energy policies-- all of them completely naked.

"The parts of the nakedness, I believe, is a real symbol against commercialism," says Sosin.

"Simply the fact that you're unclothed is not against the law," says Bill Sorrell, D-Vt. Attorney General.

Sorrell says there is no Vermont law that prohibits public nudity, unless you're a flasher.

Bush danced around this question at his press conference today:

You said yesterday that a standard of no violence in Iraq is an impossible standard to meet, but do you believe that there needs to be a reduction in violence for U.S. troops to begin to draw down? And if so, how much?

The answer, to be summed up, was:

THE PRESIDENT: Enough for the government to succeed. In other words, the Iraqi people have got to have confidence in this unity government, and reduction in violence will enable the people to have confidence.

An obvious lack of followup: does the Administration have any idea how much will allow the government to succeed? What are the acceptable standards of behavior for reducing the violence? Does the Administration have any kind of policy or analysis for calibration?

Sooner or later, people not named Nedra will figure out ways to finding some specificity.

Somehow this person found my blog during her search, and felt I was qualified to answer the following email:

I am trying to get my hair cut like "The Skater" Dorothy Hamil. My hair is wavy but Ihave it straightened. Could you send me a good picture of this hair cut. Iknow myhair will be cut slighly shorter but I am trying to achieve thi look. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Sometimes emails leave me speechless...

Stop in and tell Matt you're glad to see him back at The Tattered Coat.

I'm not sure it's possible to quite put the Fitzgerald decision not to prosecute Rove in context at this time. It just seems to me that there's too much left to play out.

But I do think this: Karl Rove's future doesn't look very enjoyable to me. There's an old saying about Hollywood stars and seeing the people they stepped on while climbing the entertainment ladder a second time, when on their way down. Those people aren't very nice the second time around. Karl Rove seems destined for this, politico-style. And a large segment of America will enjoy it, too.

Here's your chance to get a free "Christian" t-shirt.

There are lots of ways to while away the hours on a continental air flight, but I find it relaxing - although somewhat melancholy - to just look out the window and watch the geography flow by, and wonder what exactly I'm looking at - what is that town, what is that river, what is that highway, etc.

Heck, for $400, I ought to appreciate the view. Not many folks bother to check out the geography much during the trip - too busy watching the movie or working on a laptop or reading a book or whatever.

For example, I'm not sure anyone else on our plane caught this forest fire in northern Arizona yesterday.

Amazing how much airspace is messed up by just one relatively small forest fire.

One of the reasons that NIMBY activity occurs is that government isn't very proactive - and often intentionally so - on what are perceived to be controversial issues. At least, not proactive in communicating and educating the public. Instead, a lot of times there's an effort to move an issue through the pipeline as legally quiet as possible, and then, of course, when the public finds out about it, there's a public squall and for some reason it's the opposition voices fault that they're opposed to something ugly being built in their backyard and they're derided as NIMBY.

It's illuminating how citizens - the folks that businesses are counting on as marketplace to make them profitable - are treated with disdain when they question or oppose a marketplace plan based on their personal or community standards. We're all NIMBYs about something. Apparently we're all local morons, too.

Here's something that is really amazing if you think about it while you're driving just about anywhere in this country:

How is it that we have so many restaurants in our country now?

(yes, I'm back)

We use Dotster for domain registrations, and love the quality of service. But it appears they've run into a bit of legal trouble...

A new federal lawsuit charges that Dotster, one of the largest domain name registrars, has unlawfully participated in a massive cybersquatting campaign targeting companies such as Cingular Wireless, Disney, Ikea, Google, Neiman Marcus, Playboy and Verizon.

The lawsuit, filed Thursday by high-end retailers Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman, alleges that Dotster abused its status as a registrar by "checking out" hundreds of domain names that closely resemble the correct ones--and then keeping only the ones that were visited by Web users who couldn't spell very well.

The misspelled domain name NeimuMarcus.com, when visited by CNET News.com on Thursday evening, included code in its Web page that references Dotster and its subsidiary RevenueDirect.com--and featured advertisements for Neiman Marcus rivals such as Bloomingdales and JCrew. By early Friday, however, that Web site and dozens more had been taken offline.

Cybersquatting, the practice of registering domain names that may violate a company's trademark, is hardly new--it's been around for more than a decade. Also called typosquatting, it's led to high-profile spats such as Apple Computer's successful attempt to claim iTunes.co.uk and Canadian teenager Mike Rowe's registration of MikeRoweSoft.com.

But this Dotster lawsuit involves allegations of a new twist on the concept: a registrar using its special status with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers to secure misspelled domains temporarily for a few days, measure the traffic, and then pay for only the ones that would be lucrative in terms of advertising.

It really is amazing, this Internet thing. Check out the variety of unicycles available.

Some great news: Brook trout making comeback in Smokies.

This whole Ann Coulter thing this week is pretty depressing. It is depressing that the media gave it enough respect to allow for other conservatives to actually "recontext" her comments and support what she said.

But most of all, it is depressing about why these conservatives did this. They don't think twice about ripping apart a former colleague based on a variety of reasons - but going to far in attacking your political opponent is not one of these reasons. What's depressing is that it's abundantly clear that these "media conservatives" don'