Famously feisty Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia yesterday denied that he made an obscene gesture Sunday inside the Cathedral of the Holy Cross, accusing the Herald staff of watching too many Sopranos episodes.
In a letter to the editor, an almost unheard-of step for a Supreme Court justice, Scalia said a reporter misinterpreted the gesture he made when she asked whether his participation in Sundays special Mass for lawyers might cause some people to question his impartiality in matters of church and state.
Your reporter, an up-and-coming gotcha star named Laurel J. Sweet, asked me (o-so-sweetly) what I said to those people. . ., Scalia wrote to Executive Editor Kenneth A. Chandler. I responded, jocularly, with a gesture that consisted of fanning the fingers of my right hand under my chin. Seeing that she did not understand, I said, Thats Sicilian, and explained its meaning.
In his letter, Scalia goes on to cite Luigi Barzinis book, The Italians: The extended fingers of one hand moving slowly back and forth under the raised chin means: I couldnt care less. Its no business of mine. Count me out.
From watching too many episodes of the Sopranos, your staff seems to have acquired the belief that any Sicilian gesture is obscene - especially when made by an Italian jurist. (I am, by the way, an American jurist.)
Unlike most of his colleagues, Scalia is not shy about taking on the media, and has a penchant for doing so in a way that has caused some critics to question his decorum, if not his maturity.
In 2000, he wrote a letter to the editor of the Legal Times, accusing the Washington weekly of making a mean-spirited attack on his integrity when it reported that he supported allowing federal judges to accept money for speeches.
Scalia called the article Mauronic, an apparent play on the name of Legal Times Supreme Court reporter Tony Mauro.
I was in grade school the last time someone made fun of my name like that, Mauro told the Associated Press at the time.
Historic 1993 International Blue Bird Orleans Parish Schools Bus #93-97
This New Orleans Public School Bus is a 1993 International Blue Bird with 147,797 miles. The bus was substantially submerged for at least 10 days following Hurricane Katrina, and would require extensive repair to return to full working condition. Please see the photos below. Only 147,797 Original Owner Miles. Buyer is responsible for shipping/delivery. This bus is sold "as is". No warranty or guaranty is expressed or implied. Clear title will be provided. Because the Orleans Parish School District is a public entity, your purchase price less salvage value of the bus may qualify as a charitable contribution! Check with your tax advisor. This is a collector's dream come true.
We will provide a certificate of authenticity attesting that this bus was at the Orleans Parish Schools Almonaster Bus Barn and was flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina! Other buses may be available in future auctions.
Reserve price of $9000, currently only bid up to $5100. Well, it's not like it's a limited edition.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/29/2006 13:57 ||
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Down side: since many school districts are chronically underfunded, this could end up taking your kids to class; somehow a salt water damaged frame and brake system is something i want my grandkids riding around in. and if there was insurance involved, wouldn't this border on fraud? Oh wait, its N.O. where fraud runs like, like, well, like a ruptured levee..
The ruling by the state Court of Appeals Thursday makes Juan Soto a millionaire with $400,000 to spare.
By a 4-to-3 vote, the judges concluded that Soto, who was 18 at the time of the 1997 incident, was "undeniably reckless" for walking near the electrified rails in Queens along the No. 7 line.
He and his pals thought they could outrun the train when they saw it coming. His pals made it; Soto didn't. His legs had to be amputated below the knee.
Soto's lawyers argued that their client could run as fast as 8 mph - an estimate based on how he once ran on a treadmill. Impossible to verify but
Based on that calculation, a Queens jury accepted the argument that the motorman had enough time to stop the train before striking Soto - even though he never should have been on the tracks.
"Individuals who put themselves in this type of position, and suffer injuries as a result, shouldn't be able to seek financial recovery from the public treasury," TA spokesman Charles Seaton said. "It's clear that he had no business on the roadbed."
Soto couldn't be reached for comment.
The TA had claimed that Soto had gone to a Manhattan bar with three pals, consuming six beers and a shot of whisky. BTW- Soto was 18 and the minimum Drinking age in New York at the time was 21.
Soto's lawyer, Brian Isaac, insisted there was no proof that Soto was drunk. Isaac conceded yesterday that his client may have had as many as seven drinks, but they were spread over at least seven hours.
In any case, Isaac said, the train's motorman, who gave inconsistent statements of his observations and actions, should have spotted Soto in time to stop his train, Isaac said. "It's the duty of any motorist to avoid preventable accidents," Isaac said.
According to court documents, Soto and his friends had been waiting for a train at Queensboro Plaza, but became convinced that the trains weren't running. Red tape was strung between platform pillars, suggesting that subway repairs were underway. The young men walked along a narrow path abutting the track called the catwalk. But as they neared the 40th St. station, a train materialized behind them. Hoping to reach the station first and board the train, the teens ran single file. Soto was struck.
A jury initially awarded Soto $1.4 million, finding the TA 75% at fault. An appellate court affirmed the decision by a 3-to-2 vote.
Writing for the majority, Judge Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick indicated that the TA might have been cleared of responsibility if Soto's actions were a bit more egregious. Just to clarify, being drunk under the legal age limit and trying to outrun a train is not egregious behavior in New York. Maybe if he had his pants around his ankles it would be a different story. Ciparick cited a lawsuit filed more than two decades ago against a firecracker salesman. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of an injured teenager, who was injured trying to make a pipe bomb with the firecrackers. Another lad with aspirations for the Darwin Achievement Award.
In a minority opinion, Judge Robert Smith asserted that Soto's own conduct was the sole legal cause of his injuries. "I think it is fair to say the plaintiff's injuries were entirely his own fault, even if a nonnegligent motorman might have been able to stop the train in time to avoid the accident," Smith wrote. "Anyone of normal human compassion will sympathize with plaintiff; Tap Tap nope my meter must be broke. he is not the only 18-year-old who ever acted recklessly, and he has paid a much higher price for it than most. "But I do not think it consistent with law or wise policy to hold, as the majority does, that the New York City Transit Authority must compensate him in part for his loss."
The TA wants state legislation that would make it tougher for such lawsuits to succeed, Seaton said.
#1
Make sure Soto is charged the going rate for all of his amputation surgeries and prosthesis fittings. That should suck down a substantial portion of his judgement. Idjit.
#2
In Germany, as poetic justice I suppose, the fine for stepping on the third rail of a streetcar exactly matches the number of amperes that will flow through your body at that moment.
I have only one word to say, and this word is : "YUCK!"
By PAUL GARWOOD, Associated Press Writer
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Surgeons operated on a 2-month-old Pakistani girl Tuesday to remove two fetuses that had grown inside her while she was still in her mother's womb, a doctor said.
The infant, who was identified only as Nazia, was in critical condition following the two-hour operation at The Children's Hospital at Pakistan Institute of Medical Science in the capital, Islamabad, said Zaheer Abbasi, head of pediatric surgery at the hospital.
Abbasi, the chief doctor who led the operation, said the case was the first he was aware of in Pakistan of fetus-in-fetu, where a fetus has grown inside another in the womb.
"It is extremely rare to have two fetuses being discovered inside another," Abbasi told The Associated Press, adding that he did not know what caused the medical abnormality. "Basically, it's a case of triplets, but two of the siblings grew in the other."
The baby comes from Abbotabad, about 30 miles north of Islamabad. She is the fifth child of a woman in her 30s, who was at the hospital to be with her daughter. Her father works in the Arabian Gulf.
Abbasi said surgeons removed the two partially grown fetuses, totaling about two pounds, that had died at about 4 months.
Other fetus-in-fetu cases have been reported elsewhere in the world. A report in a June 2000 issue of the U.S. journal Pediatrics called such occurrences rare and estimated their rate at about 1 per 500,000 births.
#1
Booze, Drug, Gambling..eveyone has had family or friends who have been DUMB enough to take the header into addiction.
>>>
*Math/Biz entrepreneur Test*
1) Kieth has 2 ounces of cocaine and he sells an 8-ball to Jackson for $320, and 2 grams to Billy for $85 a gram. What is the street value of the remaining cocaine that he doesn't cut?
3) Sponge Bob wants to cut his 1/2 pound of heroin to make 20% more profit. How many ounces of cut will he need to reach his goal?
4)W Houston gets $200 for stealing a BMW, $50 for a Chevy, and $100 for a 4x4. If she steals 2 BMW's and 3 4x4's, how many Chevys will she have to steal to make $800?
>Crack is God's way of telling you that you have too many brain cells.
#2
Iff MADONNA is a bad girl gone Kabbala legit, WHITNEY is a good/legit girl trying to go bad, and ole Bobby isn't helping. Brought to you by 1968, Ollie Stone and JFK, and AEROSMITH SINGING IN A [FUTURE]MOVIE CALLED ARMAGEDDON [Let Justice be Done/Let the Truth be told, or the Heavens fall - see Exploding Moon Year 2030, etal]
#5
Actually, a Crack Ball is broken into 16 units (rocks) which sell at about $10 each. Most Crack addicts can get by with 2 units per day, usually smoked 6-8 hours apart. An addict with unlimited funds could afford double or triple hits, which would make them non-functional. Whitney's family should seek intervention. Even if cops caught her with Crack, she would end up in another diversion.
#6
After deep consideration over the past few days, it finally occurred to me that CAPLOCK JOE is the political mouthpiece for Dr. Bronner. Ever scan the stuff on the side of those peppermint shampoo bottles and bags of organic chips? Reads about the same.
As to Witless Houston; Some people just aren't happy unless they are making a trainwreck out of their life. The woman has one of the finest sets of pipes since Dianah Ross and all she can do is spew mindless pop music drivel while dating total loser boyfriends. With her sort of earnings, she has had every opportunity and then some to turn her life around. She deserves herself.
#8
Maybe that guy who wrote A Million Little Pieces can help her out. I hear he kicked a wicked crack habit [smirk].
I still thank that Joe is an AI that escaped from a secret DoD lab. And here everyone thought that the first AI would try to take over the world. It turns out that all it really wants to do is spout off about politics.
#9
And here everyone thought that the first AI would try to take over the world. It turns out that all it really wants to do is spout off about politics.
I don't know why, but for some reason that is incredibly funny. Good one.
#13
Thanks, Zenster. I have a sick, sardonic sense of humor that I usually keep under wraps since it seems to piss off about as many people as it makes laugh.
I had this whole druggie schtick that used to get me into so much trouble in the military. Your average Kansas farmboy with a high and tight has a hard time discerning between lampooning druggies and being one.
The Botswana government is under pressure from some of its MPs to take a tougher stance against President Mugabe, blaming him for the influx of illegal Zimbabwean migrants into their country.
According to media reports from Botswana, the MPs said the deteriorating socio-political and economic situation in Zimbabwe was having a knock-on impact on their country. They said the number of illegal migrants fleeing hunger and political persecution was increasing. They reportedly condemned the victimisation of border jumpers by Botswana's Special Support Group, saying it was Mugabe who deserved to be punished instead. Botswana's state-owned Daily News reported that Chapson Butale, the MP for North-East and other legislators, were putting pressure on President Festus Mogae to denounce Mugabe and urge him to address the crisis in his country.
The MPs expressed their concern during a recent session of Parliament. "We are punishing the victims instead of the man who caused all this," said Butale. "Let us take on the Zimbabwe government because that is where the problem lies." Mompati Merafhe, Botswana's Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation Minister, was reported to have reiterated:"We want to be constructively engaged with Zimbabwe because the country is our important neighbour and we believe our interests can be best served if we maintain a healthy dialogue."
The Daily News reported Merafhe was reacting to reports that the United States government was urging Harare's neighbours to mount pressure on Mugabe to pave the way for fresh elections by handing over power to a transitional government. An unnamed US official was quoted by the French news agency, recently as saying: "What we are telling them (Zimbabwe's neighbours) is that there has to be a transitional government in Zimbabwe that will lead to a free and fair internationally supervised elections." President Mugabe has previously dismissed such calls.
A student of class five was raped allegedly by her school's headmaster in Sundargram in Rajarhat upazila on Monday. Sources said Md Mokhlesur Rahman, headmaster of Sundargram Putika Govt Primary School, called the student in to his office and raped her during class hours. Hearing the news, locals besieged the school, confined the teacher and demanded his stern punishment. Mokhles was however rescued by activists of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, student wing of ruling BNP, before he was handed over to police, witnesses said. The girl was sent to Kurigram General Hospital.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/29/2006 00:00 ||
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Bet you a dollar that they don't do a damned thing to this guy.
London's moonbat rambunctious mayor, already fighting suspension for comparing a Jewish journalist to a concentration camp guard, landed in fresh hot water on Tuesday for likening the U.S. ambassador to a "chiseling little crook." Mayor Ken Livingstone has been quarrelling with the U.S. embassy since last year, when it announced it would not pay the "congestion charge" fee imposed on cars entering the city center.
The embassy says the charge is a tax and that diplomats are immune under treaty. Livingstone says the charge, one of his flagship policies, is a road toll which diplomats have to pay. "It would actually be quite nice if the American ambassador in Britain could pay the charge like everybody else and not skive out of it like some chiseling little crook," the mayor told a television reporter.
Livingstone's pugnacious streak has helped make him one of Britain's most popular politicians, but his big mouth has lately landed him into big trouble. The Standards Board for England, a little known body that hears complaints against local government, ordered him suspended for four weeks last month after he compared a Jewish reporter to a "concentration camp guard" and a "German war criminal." The suspension, due this month, was postponed pending an appeal. Since then, he has already angered Jewish groups again by saying two Indian-born Jewish billionaire property developers should "go back to Iran and try their luck with the Ayatollahs."
Bob Neill, leader of the opposition Conservative Party's group in the Greater London Assembly said the remarks about the U.S. ambassador proved the mayor is "an embarrassment." "This is the latest in a long line of offensive, offhand and irrational remarks," he said in a statement. "Livingstone needs to show respect for the office he holds."
As for the dispute over the charge, embassy spokesman Rick Roberts said the U.S. State Department considers it settled: it won't pay. "It's been thoroughly reviewed by our lawyers in the United States," he said. "It's not just the United States. We weren't even first to object to this tax -- other missions refused to pay it before us. We pay tolls. We pay parking fines. When I take the bridge to Wales I pay the bridge toll. But this is a tax."
Livingstone has blamed the U.S. decision not to pay the charge on the arrival of a new ambassador, Richard Tuttle, a millionaire car dealership owner, Republican fund raiser and Bush family friend. But embassy spokesman Roberts said the decision to stop paying was taken before Tuttle arrived last July. "That's completely wrong. And the mayor knows better. He knows that this was put into effect on July 1 last year and the new ambassador wasn't even sworn in until July 14," he said. "The mayor has a habit of lying out his ass exaggerating a little in his remarks."
#6
The embassy says the charge is a tax and that diplomats are immune under treaty. Livingstone says the charge, one of his flagship policies, is a road toll which diplomats have to pay.
Ha! Maybe we'll move the UN there. Try collecting from them, you Commie Bastard!
Posted by: Michael Bloomberg ||
03/29/2006 13:23 Comments ||
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EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - A new common driving licence for the EU was approved by transport ministers on Monday (27 March) in a bid to fight fraud and raise road safety across the 25-member bloc.
The new driving licence is to be implemented by member states by 2012 at the latest, and will replace the 110 EU driving licence systems in place today including one dating from the German Democratic Republic, which reunited with Germany in 1990.
"We needed this new updated system," EU Transport Commissioner Jacques Barrot told reporters.
[..]
The new document will have the form of a credit card with a regularly updated photo and some anti-falsification measures - possibly a microchip.
As part of the new scheme, licenses for mopeds and motorcycles will also be standardised, with licenses for mopeds only available after an obligatory theoretical test.
EU citizens under 24 will not be able to obtain a driving licence for heavy motorcycles unless they have two years of experience on lighter types, while anyone wanting to have a motorcycle licence will have to do so progressively for the more powerful bikes.
[..]
A passenger jet which was destined for City of Derry Airport has landed at an Army base six miles away by mistake.
The Liverpool to Derry service, operated by Eirjet on behalf of Ryanair, landed at Ballykelly airstrip at 1440 BST.
Ryanair said in a statement it was due to an "error by the Eirjet pilot who mistakenly believed he was on a visual approach to City of Derry airport". Begorrah!
Around 400 people were arrested Tuesday across France as more than one million people demonstrated to protest proposed labor reforms, security sources said. The arrests were made after gangs of hooligans infiltrated the corteges in several areas and began looting and attacking passers-by and clashing with riot police. Serious incidents were reported in Paris, Rennes and Grenoble and about 200 people were detained in the French capital, alone. Almost 200 others were arrested elsewhere.
Does arresting them involve catch and release, or do they get knobs thumped on their heads?
As the demonstration in Paris wound down in the early evening, clashes were still continuing in Republic Place, where riot police resorted to tear gas and water canon to quell violence. In Paris, the strike mobilized around 700,000 people, mainly from union and student organizations, and organizers claimed that the protest march was the largest since the mid-1990s, and maybe even in history.
Oh, yasss... Something to be proud of. One of La Belle France's proudest moments, in fact...
Transport, education, postal, tax and other civil services were hardest hit, but there were big disparities between different cities concerning the percentage of strikers. In Paris, urban transport was said to be running at 70 percent, but the figure for Marseille was below 50 percent. Thirty percent of flights at Paris airports were also cancelled and others were delayed. Most major train services were running at 50 percent of normal. Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin has invited unions to talks on Wednesday but they have declined the invitation, an indication that more social upheaval may be on the cards.
I suggest setting up a Directorate, getting some tumbrels, and lopping people's heads off. Betcha things quiet down then.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/29/2006 00:00 ||
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I saw some video on the news at a friend's house this evening and all I saw were rioters doing what they wanted, police water streams making people wet, and riot police running in groups hither and thither.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
03/29/2006 2:22 Comments ||
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EFL Inside Estonia's presidential palace in the years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a lanky, white-haired man could occasionally be seen bent over a broken coffee maker or light fixture, screwdriver in hand, dutifully making repairs.
The man was President Lennart Meri. Statesman, survivor and sage, Meri was buried Sunday, dead at 76 after a life that encompassed the disasters and triumphs visited upon his tiny Baltic country, from being shipped to Siberia in a cattle train when he was a boy, to leading Estonia out of the shadows of Soviet oppression as president from 1992 to 2001.
His skills as a handyman had a political overtone. The intellectual writer-turned-president was waging war on all vestiges of Soviet-era sloppiness and neglect, and his weapon of choice was the screwdriver he kept in his pocket ready to pounce on the next flawed appliance. "It was the Soviet way that if you saw one light switch that didn't work properly, you'd say, 'Let's plan to fix all the light switches in a month's time and let's form a committee to organize it,'" he explained in one of several interviews with this reporter during his presidency.
Like Vaclav Havel, the dissident playwright who went on to become president of the Czech Republic, Meri was enlisted to run for president for his cultural pedigree and the moral stature he had won speaking out against the Soviet regime. He displayed encyclopedic knowledge and playful spontaneity, and shunned the blow-dried image of a modern Euro-politician. He liked to break with little warning into discourses on everything from astronomy to Shakespeare.
But he proved to be more than just a man of letters. Meri applied his fix-it-now philosophy to market reforms. He groomed youthful policy makers who speedily privatized state property, slashed subsidies and unilaterally abolished trade tariffs.
It worked; annual growth roared from minus 14 percent in 1992 to plus 11 percent by 1997. He also lobbied hard for Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia to join NATO, ensuring the security of the three small, historically vulnerable Baltic states. "Security is like virginity," Meri explained with characteristic wit about why full membership was essential. "You're either a virgin or you're not. You either have security or you don't."
He also scolded Western governments for offering aid to Russia before Estonia's giant neighbor had shown a commitment to democratic reforms. "They thought that by feeding a tiger more and more meat, it would eventually turn into a vegetarian," he said.
Today, for the first time in almost 50 years, the United States stands on the verge of attaining nuclear primacy. It will probably soon be possible for the United States to destroy the long-range nuclear arsenals of Russia or China with a first strike. This dramatic shift in the nuclear balance of power stems from a series of improvements in the United States' nuclear systems, the precipitous decline of Russia's arsenal, and the glacial pace of modernization of China's nuclear forces. Unless Washington's policies change or Moscow and Beijing take steps to increase the size and readiness of their forces, Russia and China -- and the rest of the world -- will live in the shadow of U.S. nuclear primacy for many years to come.
Is the United States intentionally pursuing nuclear primacy? Or is primacy an unintended byproduct of intra-Pentagon competition for budget share or of programs designed to counter new threats from terrorists and so-called rogue states? Motivations are always hard to pin down, but the weight of the evidence suggests that Washington is, in fact, deliberately seeking nuclear primacy. For one thing, U.S. leaders have always aspired to this goal. And the nature of the changes to the current arsenal and official rhetoric and policies support this conclusion.
Washington's pursuit of nuclear primacy helps explain its missile-defense strategy, for example. Critics of missile defense argue that a national missile shield, such as the prototype the United States has deployed in Alaska and California, would be easily overwhelmed by a cloud of warheads and decoys launched by Russia or China. They are right: even a multilayered system with land-, air-, sea-, and space-based elements, is highly unlikely to protect the United States from a major nuclear attack. But they are wrong to conclude that such a missile-defense system is therefore worthless -- as are the supporters of missile defense who argue that, for similar reasons, such a system could be of concern only to rogue states and terrorists and not to other major nuclear powers.
What both of these camps overlook is that the sort of missile defenses that the United States might plausibly deploy would be valuable primarily in an offensive context, not a defensive one -- as an adjunct to a U.S. first-strike capability, not as a standalone shield. If the United States launched a nuclear attack against Russia (or China), the targeted country would be left with a tiny surviving arsenal -- if any at all. At that point, even a relatively modest or inefficient missile-defense system might well be enough to protect against any retaliatory strikes, because the devastated enemy would have so few warheads and decoys left.
During the Cold War, Washington relied on its nuclear arsenal not only to deter nuclear strikes by its enemies but also to deter the Warsaw Pact from exploiting its conventional military superiority to attack Western Europe. It was primarily this latter mission that made Washington rule out promises of "no first use" of nuclear weapons. Now that such a mission is obsolete and the United States is beginning to regain nuclear primacy, however, Washington's continued refusal to eschew a first strike and the country's development of a limited missile-defense capability take on a new, and possibly more menacing, look. The most logical conclusions to make are that a nuclear-war-fighting capability remains a key component of the United States' military doctrine and that nuclear primacy remains a goal of the United States.
Ultimately, the wisdom of pursuing nuclear primacy must be evaluated in the context of the United States' foreign policy goals. The United States is now seeking to maintain its global preeminence, which the Bush administration defines as the ability to stave off the emergence of a peer competitor and prevent weaker countries from being able to challenge the United States in critical regions such as the Persian Gulf. If Washington continues to believe such preeminence is necessary for its security, then the benefits of nuclear primacy might exceed the risks. But if the United States adopts a more restrained foreign policy -- for example, one premised on greater skepticism of the wisdom of forcibly exporting democracy, launching military strikes to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and aggressively checking rising challengers -- then the benefits of nuclear primacy will be trumped by the dangers.
#3
Article: But if the United States adopts a more restrained foreign policy -- for example, one premised on greater skepticism of the wisdom of forcibly exporting democracy, launching military strikes to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and aggressively checking rising challengers -- then the benefits of nuclear primacy will be trumped by the dangers.
Let me get this straight - a policy of forcibly exporting democracy, launching military strikes to prevent the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and aggressively checking rising challengers is made safer if we have a weaker nuclear force and/or missile defense? But that same nuclear force and missile defense is what we use to deter enemy nuclear attacks - if they hit us with nukes, we will obliterate them. And the thought of nuclear alliances is a little naive - does anyone seriously think China will trade Beijing for DC in Russia's behalf? Heck, China won't even trade Beijing for DC to get Taiwan back. In fact, the disintegration of Russia due to nuclear attack would be an excuse for China get back all the territory it lost to Russia during the 18th and 19th centuries. Radiation eventually goes away - just look at Hiroshima and Nagasaki just a few years after the atomic bombings.
#4
Unless Washington's policies change or Moscow and Beijing take steps to increase the size and readiness of their forces, Russia and China -- and the rest of the world -- will live in the shadow of U.S. nuclear primacy for many years to come.
#5
I agree with the liberals, lets reduce the size of our nuke arsenal. Send a few to NKOR, Iran, Syria,Sudan,Somalia,maybe even a couple to pakiland, just to let them know they arent towing the line. By the time we're done, whammo! hardly any nuclear arsenal left at all.
(AP) LOS ANGELES The marching orders were clear: Carry American flags and pack the kids, pick up your trash and wear white for peace and for effect.
Many of the 500,000 people who crammed downtown Los Angeles on Saturday to protest legislation that would make criminals out of illegal immigrants learned where, when and even how to demonstrate from the Spanish-language media.
For English-speaking America, the mass protests in Los Angeles and other U.S. cities over the past few days have been surprising for their size and seeming spontaneity.
But they were organized, promoted or publicized for weeks by Spanish-language radio hosts and TV anchors as a demonstration of Hispanic pride and power.
In Milwaukee, where at least 10,000 people rallied last week, one radio station manager called some employers to ask that they not fire protesters for skipping work. In Chicago, a demonstration that drew 100,000 people received coverage on local television more than a week in advance.
"This was a much bigger story for the Latino media," said Felix Gutierrez, a professor at the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication. "If the mainstream media had been paying better attention, there would not have been the surprise about the turnout."
Adrian Velasco first learned of House legislation to overhaul immigration policy on Los Angeles' Que Buena 105.5 FM. Over two weeks, the 30-year-old illegal immigrant soaked up details about the planned march against the bill from Hispanic TV and radio. On Saturday, he and three friends headed downtown.
"They told all the Hispanic people to go and support these things," Velasco said. "They explained a lot. They said, 'Here's what we're going to do."'
One of those doing the most talking was El Piolin, a syndicated morning show radio host who is broadcast in 20 cities.
El Piolin, whose real name is Eduardo Sotelo and whose nickname means "Tweety Bird," persuaded colleagues from 11 Spanish-language radio stations in Los Angeles to talk up the rally on air.
He said he devised the idea of telling protesters to wear white and carry flags to symbolize their peaceful intent and love of the United States. He also urged parents to bring their children to minimize chances of violence and reminded everyone to bring plenty of water and trash bags.
"I was talking about how we need to be united to demonstrate that we're not bad guys and we're not criminals," said Sotelo, 35, who crossed into the United States as a teenager and became legal in 1996.
In Milwaukee, the Spanish-language station WDDW 104.7 made a point of publicizing the House legislation and the protest against it on its morning and drive-time shows two weeks ahead of time.
Operations manager Armando Ulloa said his goal was at least 10,000 people -- and police estimated that was what the rally attracted. After the march, Ulloa said, he called some employers and asked them to be lenient on protesters who missed their shifts.
In Los Angeles, 10 prime-time Spanish-language news anchors filmed a promotion urging demonstrators to show respect, said Julio Cesar Ortiz, a television reporter who covers immigration.
"The Spanish media said, 'Do it in a proper way. Do it in a way where's there's pride behind it when you're done,"' Ortiz said.
Telemundo Chicago, a Spanish-language TV station, began its coverage blitz 1 1/2 weeks before a recent rally, though there was no urging that viewers attend, said news director Esteban Creste.
"We just told them what was going on," Creste said. "While we were not trying to mobilize people, it might have prompted people to decide to go there."
The protests continued Tuesday in at least four states, with thousands of students leaving school again in California, Arizona, Texas and Nevada.
In Los Angeles, the numbers were far smaller than the tens of thousands who marched Monday. Authorities thwarted efforts to block freeway traffic, rounding up some youngsters and issuing truancy citations.
In Phoenix, students marched to the state Capitol for the second day in a row. In Las Vegas, they rallied near the Strip after being directed away from casinos.
And in Dallas, students crowded in front of City Hall, waving Mexican and Salvadoran flags and shouting "We can do it" in Spanish.
The protests jammed roads. A Dallas school district spokesman said a girl's hand was severed when the sport utility vehicle she was in sped into an intersection and overturned.
#1
The marching orders were clear: Carry American flags ...
But they didn't.
students crowded in front of City Hall, waving Mexican and Salvadoran flags and shouting "We can do it" in Spanish.
Cause they don't want the American Dream[tm] anymore than the Goth or Vandals wanted the Roman Dream. They just wanted territory, power, loot, etc. They don't want to assimilate. La Raza. And the joke is that they call the gringo racist.
Impeached Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said on Tuesday that Britains economy, environmental policy and attempts at modernization were envied in the United States, where comparable policies under President George W. Bush were lacking.
Speaking to a packed audience at Londons Guildhall, Clinton specifically responded to criticisms that British Prime Minister Tony Blair and his Labour party were long in the tooth, or at least missing quite a few, or past their prime. If you live where I live in the establishment bubble in Manhattan and you look across the Atlantic, it does not look that way, he said.
Clintons 45-minute speech on progressive politics and globalization, organized by the Smith Institute, a Labour-leaning political think tank, touched on a wide array of topics, including the war in Iraq, job outsourcing, the threat of communicable diseases and even the Danish cartoons that infuriated much of the Muslim world earlier this year.
The 59-year-old former U.S. president, who was introduced by British Treasury chief Gordon Brown, also emphasized the potential impact of global warming, saying that, if it actually existed unchecked, it threatens to destabilize the global economy. This is both the greatest threat and the greatest opportunity of our lifetime, and were not acting like it is, Clinton said.
Clinton briefly spoke about the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq during a question-and-answer session, calling it a delicate issue that, if handled incorrectly, could create a launching pad for terrorist regimes in the Middle East.
About 50 picketers from Britains largest trade unions stood outside the Guildhall during Clintons speech to protest government plans to scrap a key pension rule allowing public sector workers to retire and collect their pension at age 60. Instead, let's lower it, like in France.
#2
Article: Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said on Tuesday that Britains economy, environmental policy and attempts at modernization were envied in the United States, where comparable policies under President George W. Bush were lacking.
OK. It's official. From now on, socialism = modernization.
Sharon Stone has warned Hillary Rodham Clinton to stay out of the 2008 US presidential race, saying the New York senator and former first lady is too sexy to win back the keys to the White House.
Somehow, I've never thought of Madame Clinton as "sexy." Perhaps I've been missing something?
Stone, 48, who appears naked in a soon-to-be-released sequel to the provocative 1992 sex thriller Basic Instinct, said Senator Clinton had an intimidating sexuality that would cost her votes. "I think Hillary Clinton is fantastic in bed, but I think it is too soon for her to run (for president)," Stone said in the latest edition of Hollywood Life magazine. "A woman should be past her sexuality when she runs. Hillary still has sexual power and I don't think people will accept that. It's too threatening."
"Madame President! Hu Jin Tao has just threatened to invade Japan!"
"Oh, he did, did he? Hand me my negligee!"
But while Stone wants the 58-year-old Senator Clinton to wait until her sexuality subsides, singer Madonna is urging her to "go for it" in 2008, even though the timing might not be right for Americans to put their trust in a woman president. "I don't think now is necessarily her time, or the Democrats' time, but she should certainly go for it," Madonna reportedly told Out magazine.
What is this? A Hollywood Battle of Brilliance? Why, the two women's combined IQs must approach dull normal...
"You've got to start somewhere in terms of a woman leading the US. In Europe and Asia and elsewhere, women have ruled over millions. It's not an abstract concept. But in America, men are still afraid.
It's not her gender that frightens me...
"And I don't think women are too comfortable with the idea of a female in charge."
It must be something that's reserved for politix, then. The commander where I work is, as far as I can tell, as female as they come, an Army lieutenant colonel, ordnance branch. Not only do the women working at the place somehow manage to be comfortable with the idea of a female in charge, but the Marines somehow manage, as well. I'm perfectly comfortable with the idea of Condi as president, but the thought of Madame Clinton gives me the cold shivers.
But earlier this month Senator Clinton's standing as a wronged wife cut no ice with actor Susan Sarandon, who said voters should not allow her to return to the White House as America's first female president because she did not vote against the war in Iraq. "I find Hillary to be a great disappointment," Sarandon said. "She's lost her progressive following because of her caution and centrist approach. It bothered me when she voted for the war. There were brave people who didn't. She's not worse than other politicians, but I hoped she would be better. What America is looking for is authentic people." You know, like Hollyweird actors.
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#3
Oh c'mon..the grrrl got some serious junk in that trunk and she know how to work it! Still....wouldn't hurt to keep a liter of Jack handy.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
03/29/2006 0:44 Comments ||
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#4
Stone's such a skank she thinks the troll under the bridge is a hunk. And she's an equal opportunity skank, to boot. She has to go overboard to get any attention cuz once you've flashed your stuff, it's all downhill.
#6
Wasn't that the lead singer of the 1990's Euro group RIGHT SAID FRED in that new Volkswagon commercial - dare AL BUNDY visit Britain, again, dancing to RSF's theme. In any case, for the Dems in 2008 SURVIVING ANTI-GOP AMER HIROSHIMA(S) = SAVING THE WORLD FROM NUCLEAR WAR/CONFLICT. I still say that iff the **** hits the fan wid Iran and NK-Taiwan, POTUS "I'm inocent becuz I'm a Girl" Hillary will at best be VPOTUS to Gore, Kerry, or "They Call Me Mr. Prez Judith" Madman Dean, most likely GORE!?
Sharon Stone said that Hillary Clinton is too sexy to be president. If that's true, she's also too nice, too friendly, too apolitical, too intelligent, too not evil, too in love with Bill, too thin, too good at throwing ashtrays, and on and on . . . .
Now I've been told, I'm afraid I'll start to regularly dream of her at night... yes, afraid, very afraid... because this would have a name : the old hag syndrom!
And this case, sleep paralysis simply cannot be a rational explanation, when Hillary is involved...
#14
OK so three hollywood actresses with a staggering single digit combined IQ thinks Hillary is TOO Sexy? Typical actors, picking the pres on looks, not abilities. Condi on the other hand is amazingly smart, respected, has a firm grasp on reality and her own looks. Whats going on here is Hollywood, with all its liberal speak would never endorse a Black female for president, hell, it's a rare day when they allow a female of color to lead in a picture.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
03/29/2006 8:04 Comments ||
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#15
I'm too sexy for my Bill
Too sexy for my Bill
Bill's going to leave me
I'm too sexy for my shirt
Too sexy for my shirt
So sexy it hurts
And I'm too sexy for the Senate
Too sexy for the Senate
The White House, I should be in it
I'm a senator, you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the C-SPAN
Yeah on the C-SPAN on the C-SPAN yeah
I do my little turn on the C-SPAN
And I'm too sexy for your party
Too sexy for your party
Nominate me at the convention, that'd be smart-y
I'm the next president, you know what I mean
And I do my little turn on the C-SPAN
Yeah on the C-SPAN on the C-SPAN yeah
I do my little turn on the C-SPAN . . .
Posted by: Mike ||
03/29/2006 11:44 Comments ||
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#17
Oooh. Sharon Stone, Madonna, and Susan Sarandon debate presidential politics.
Somebody attempt to revive Whitney Houston and let's see what she says...
#22
If the democrats want to run a woman, why don't they find one who is likable, gratious, refined, elegant, appreciated, educated, accomplished, oops, never mind.....democrats.
#23
Sharon Stone used to be hot, but she was never smart. Senator Clinton had an intimidating sexuality that would cost her votes.
I wonder if she meant penis.
LAHORE: The son or daughter of a government servant who dies on the job is eligible for a government job in their parents department in scale 1 to 5 if he or she has the required qualifications, Punjab Ombudsman Abdur Rashid Khan said while deciding a complaint by the widow of a patwari.
Hmmm... Yasss... Hereditary gummint jobs. That oughta make things work better.
The widow of Muhammad Yaqoob said that her husband died on July 19, 1987 when he was serving as a patwari in Daska tehsil of Sialkot district. She said that her son Ijaz Mahmood applied for the post of a naib qasid in Sialkot district, adding that authorities told her that her son had got a job in Narowal district. She sought directions to the Sialkot district revenue officer (DRO) to appoint her son to Sialkot district. In reply, the DRO said that the plaintiff was living in Narowal district, therefore her son was given a job there. The ombudsman directed the DRO to give the plaintiffs son a naib qasids job in Sialkot district under Rule 17-A of the Punjab Civil Servants (Appointments and Conditions of Service) Rules 1975, subject to vacancy and qualification.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/29/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
I suppose what they'll do next is extend this a bit to public service jobs like President and Prime Minister. Just a little tweaking: the job goes to first-born sons, say; and a regent takes the job until the kid is old enough.
Posted by: James ||
03/29/2006 0:43 Comments ||
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#2
As for those top spots, the Soddies fund the place and lord knows they have Royals to spare...
#2
I like the thick cut bacon, not the "paper thin" stuff.
Nothing that some serious over-printing can't solve. What I want to know is whether the print head works using "rasher-scan." I'm just like a ham, but I can't be cured.
#3
A while back, one of my kids had some friends over, and I ordered a pizza for them using the local pizza parlor's Internet ordering service. I said to one of the kids,"Not only can you order your pizza by Internet, if we had broadband, we could actually download the pizza."
I expected to get a laugh, but he actually believed me! This was too good an opportunity to pass up, so I took the gag to the next level: "'Course, that would require us to have the special cheese cartridge in the printer." Only then did he realize I was kidding him.
Posted by: Mike ||
03/29/2006 16:35 Comments ||
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#4
Accessing the servers would merit the death penality in Afghanistan.
Brain Cells Fused with Computer Chip By Ker Than - LiveScience Staff Writer
The line between living organisms and machines has just become a whole lot blurrier. European researchers have developed "neuro-chips" in which living brain cells and silicon circuits are coupled together.
The achievement could one day enable the creation of sophisticated neural prostheses to treat neurological disorders or the development of organic computers that crunch numbers using living neurons.
To create the neuro-chip, researchers squeezed more than 16,000 electronic transistors and hundreds of capacitors onto a silicon chip just 1 millimeter square in size.
They used special proteins found in the brain to glue brain cells, called neurons, onto the chip. However, the proteins acted as more than just a simple adhesive.
"They also provided the link between ionic channels of the neurons and semiconductor material in a way that neural electrical signals could be passed to the silicon chip," said study team member Stefano Vassanelli from the University of Padua in Italy.
The proteins allowed the neuro-chip's electronic components and its living cells to communicate with each other. Electrical signals from neurons were recorded using the chip's transistors, while the chip's capacitors were used to stimulate the neurons.
It could still be decades before the technology is advanced enough to treat neurological disorders or create living computers, the researchers say, but in the nearer term, the chips could provide an advanced method of screening drugs for the pharmaceutical industry.
"Pharmaceutical companies could use the chip to test the effect of drugs on neurons, to quickly discover promising avenues of research," Vassanelli said.
The researchers are now working on ways to avoid damaging the neurons during stimulation. The team is also exploring the possibility of using a neuron's genetic instructions to control the neuro-chip.
Thai protesters seeking to oust the prime minister threatened yesterday to paralyse downtown Bangkok with a new demonstration, as a new poll found dwindling support for their movement. The protesters have camped out for two weeks outside Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra's princely offices in Bangkok's historic district, calling for him to resign over claims of corruption and abuse of power.
But with just days to go till snap elections on Sunday, protest organizers said they will move their sit-in Wednesday to Siam Paragon, the city's biggest and newest mall, located along one of the most congested streets in a city notorious for its traffic. "If the protest stays there and blocks the road, traffic throughout the capital would be paralysed," traffic police chief Panu Kertlapphol told AFP. The protesters say they will not stage their sit-in on private property but will camp in the street, which Panu said would be grounds to arrest them for blocking traffic.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/29/2006 00:00 ||
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Oh no! How will I get to Soy Cowboy!!
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
03/29/2006 8:05 Comments ||
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#4
Someone suggested, "I just keep thinking of how nasty that bearskin rug is going to be." And, as an afterthought, "And how some sick f*ck would sell it on ebay."
Los Angeles, Alta California - February 8, 2006 - (ACN) It should now be readily apparent that pro-Israel Jews in Europe and the USA are purposely fomenting violence by Muslims against the West. The constant provocations against Islam by Jews has now placed the world in dire danger. These vile instigations by International Zionists is by design and is, in addition, endangering the well being of our Mexican-American population in the Southwest. It is time to speak out against these nefarious Jewish provocateurs before it is too late.
By now our readership should be aware of the current violence, property damage and deaths caused by the desecration of the Islamic faith by Jews when they published sacrilegious cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in their newspapers and other publications. The purpose of these anti-Islamic cartoons are to enrage Muslims against the West and to create animosity between the people of Europe and the USA against Muslims. The Jews are hoping for a reaction by Europeans and Americans against those they perceive to be enemies of Zionist Israel. They have already succeeded in pushing the USA to attack Iraq and are working diligently to do the same against Iran. The Mexican-American and Latino communities in the USA should not fall victims to Jewish dirty tricks.
Here in Los Angeles, the principal talk radio stations are constantly broadcasting extreme hate and insults against Arabs, Muslims and Islamic religious faiths. There are three Jewish radio talk hosts that are particularly venomous. They are Dennis Prager, Bill Handel and Michael Medved. Dennis Prager and Michael Medved are with KRLA and Bill Handel is with KFI. The programming against Islam on KFI is extremely obscene and the radio station has received many complaints from Islamic, Muslim and Arab civil rights organizations and individuals. There are now numerous documented instances in which the Prophet Muhammad and the Holy Koran have been shown ugly disrespect by Jewish talk radio hosts. Bill Handel proposed that the new Iraqi constitution should include the phrase "all civil unions between consenting Iraqi adults and loving camels and goats will be recognized." Another comment said on the radio concerns the "toilet flushing of the Koran" incident at Guantanamo. The comment, "They should have wiped their asses with the pages of the Koran" was broadcast throughout Southern California. KFI also poked dastardly fun at the deaths of Muslims that occurred during the most recent Hajj in Mecca.
There is no question that the Jews are creating great problems in the world, the USA and here in Los Angeles. They want others to strike out against Islam on their behalf as is being done presently against Iraq and possibly soon against Iran. Many more Mexican-American soldiers will die or be maimed for life because of the Jews.
On Saturday the Arab European League posted a cartoon on their website to teach the Jews a lesson. The cartoon shows Anne Frank in bed with Adolf Hitler. Hitler is pictured saying to Anne Frank Write this one in your diary, Anne. The cartoon is published below. The "War of the Cartoons" has begun! It would be great if this war would simply be fought with cartoons but the reality is far more sinister. We are presently witnessing a coming cataclysmic war against Iran ... a war that is primarily being instigated by the Jews!
#3
Oh Ernesto and his act have been here before. I believe he thinks he's the reincarnation of Santa Ana. But it beats working for a living, which I think is a big part of his plan...
#4
This is the same nutty bunch that want to take California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and whatever other piece of the southwest they can lay their grubby paws on and turn it into some Mexican fantasyland called Aztlan.
They call us Nazi's (No, I'm not Jewish, but they probably don't particularly care), but it's their phrase that translates roughly as "For the race, everything, for all others, nothing."
#9
#4 This is the same nutty bunch that want to take California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and whatever other piece of the southwest they can lay their grubby paws on and turn it into some Mexican fantasyland called Aztlan.
Theyre in for a nasty surprise. The native Americans dislike the 'hispanics' more than they dislike anglos in New Mexico. The native are constantly hammering the hispanic community efforts to promote their agenda. They use the same tactics - history, guilt, etc. The statue of the first Spanish governor is often vandalized by the native groups by cutting off the feet in recognition of the penalty he exacted against rebellious natives. The litany of abuse by their occupiers never is permitted to be buried. The native pueblos along the Rio Grande rose in revolt throwing out the Spanish for several decades in the late 17th Century. And certainly the Apache and other tribes in the region never truly acknowledged rule from Madrid or Mexico City. When the racists groups start to talk about 'their land', they're going to find out who's it was first, and it isn't Mexico's.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The ruling by the state Court of Appeals Thursday makes Juan Soto a millionaire with $400,000 to spare. 
A student of class five was raped allegedly by her school's headmaster in Sundargram in Rajarhat upazila on Monday. Sources said Md Mokhlesur Rahman, headmaster of Sundargram Putika Govt Primary School, called the student in to his office and raped her during class hours. Hearing the news, locals besieged the school, confined the teacher and demanded his stern punishment. Mokhles was however rescued by activists of Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal, student wing of ruling BNP, before he was handed over to police, witnesses said. The girl was sent to Kurigram General Hospital.
London's 
Around 400 people were arrested Tuesday across France as more than one million people demonstrated to protest proposed labor reforms, security sources said. The arrests were made after gangs of hooligans infiltrated the corteges in several areas and began looting and attacking passers-by and clashing with riot police. Serious incidents were reported in Paris, Rennes and Grenoble and about 200 people were detained in the French capital, alone. Almost 200 others were arrested elsewhere.
Inside Estonia's presidential palace in the years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, a lanky, white-haired man could occasionally be seen bent over a broken coffee maker or light fixture, screwdriver in hand, dutifully making repairs.
