Blogging will be spotty due to armageddon in Kentucky

Most of Kentucky got hammered with an ice storm a few days ago. Will likely be without power for 2-3 weeks minimum. Best way to describe it is pics of WWI battlefields where only tree trunks remain standing.

Thanks to good advice from some Quiet Professionals a few years ago we slowly stockpiled enough food and supplies to last 3 months off grid. We have back up heat sources and a generator so we should be set.

Posting from the iPhone is tedious so it will be infrequent.

Dear FOX News

If you really must replay programming all night with the exception of Red Eye can we at least get a replay of Glenn Beck. I work nights you know do I really have to hear O'Reilly 3 times? Maybe just take Greta out of the replay lineup. All she has talked about for months is the Caylee Anthony case I mean really what angle is left?

Why class action suits are a waste of time

Florida driver's license settlement: $2.9M for lawyers, $1 for you

Facing a $3.5 billion deficit next year, Florida desperately needs all the money it can get. But millions more will disappear because the state has settled a lawsuit that affects millions of motorists.

The Legislature will spend $10.4 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over allegations that the state illegally sold drivers' personal information to marketing firms over a four-year period in violation of a federal law barring the practice. The state made $27 million each year on the deal, according to the lawsuit.

The settlement to drivers? $1.

The four South Florida motorists who sued will get $3,000 each, and five law firms that pursued the case for more than six years will divide $2.85 million in legal fees, which is separate from credits paid to consumers.

Looks like the state is making a nice profit of $98 million from breaking the law.

250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns

Thousands gather to celebrate birthday of the Bard

THEY came in their thousands to celebrate the birthday of one of Scotland's most famous sons.
Gathering in churches, parading through the streets and feasting on haggis, neeps and tatties, crowds joined together to mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns.

Events were held across Burns country to toast the Bard and kick off Homecoming 2009, a series of events throughout the year that, it is hoped, will prove a much needed tonic to the Scottish economy.

In Dumfries a crowd estimated at 15,000 paraded through the streets to converge on the banks of the Nith bearing homemade lanterns inspired by the words of Burns.

Meanwhile.................


Sir Sean says let voters decide on independence

SIR Sean Connery used the launch of Homecoming 2009 yesterday to urge unionists not to block the Scottish Government's plans for a referendum.
The James Bond star and prominent SNP supporter insisted that allowing the people to decide the country's constitutional future was both the "democratic way" and "the Scottish way".

Sir Sean made the plea as Scotland celebrated the 250th anniversa
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ry of the birth of Robert Burns – who, he said, had a "passionate belief in Scotland".

More than 300 events are planned for this year, starting on Burns' Night and finishing on St Andrew's Day, in November.

The SNP administration has put forward proposals for an independence referendum in 2010. The Nationalists plan to introduce a referendum bill in January of that year, in the expectation that the vote will take place in the autumn.

Sir Sean said: "Next year, the SNP Scottish Government plan to bring forward a referendum to give the people the opportunity to choose independence and equality for Scotland.

"That is the democratic way to decide the nation's future – and the democratic way is the Scottish way."

He added: "The future of Scotland is for the people to choose – not politicians in London or anywhere else.

Chrysler jobs bank over for now?

Chrysler jobs bank ends Monday

The controversial jobs bank -- a program that allowed UAW workers to receive pay while not working -- ends Monday at Chrysler, the union has told its members.
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In a letter obtained by the Free Press, General Holiefield, the UAW's vice president of the Chrysler department, told members that the change was to comply with the terms of the federal loan agreement that gave Chrysler $4 billion to stay afloat.

"Without this loan, the corporation would most certainly" have "been forced to file for bankruptcy protection," he wrote in the letter dated Thursday.

"In order to be in compliance with the mandate, the jobs bank will be eliminated effective Jan. 26," he added. "Employees that are either in the jobs bank or would have been in the bank will be placed on unemployment ... until such time that we have a clarification of all of the stipulations ... in the 'terms of agreement.' "

Chrysler told employees in a letter Friday that workers now in the jobs bank would be placed on "enhanced layoff," effective Monday, until a final agreement has been reached with the UAW.

Workers going into enhanced layoff were advised to apply for jobless benefits and told they will keep medical, dental and group life insurance during that time.

Holiefield advised members that the changes are temporary until negotiations are completed.

"It is important that everyone understand that these provisions will only be in effect until such time as the mandates from the U.S. Treasury Department have been clarified," he wrote.

So its not over til it over or?

When squirrels attack

Workers ordered to walk in pairs as protection against furry fiends

Staff at a UK hospital have been ordered to wear protective headgear and carry an umbrella as a weapon after aggressive squirrels attacked a district nurse.

The hospital also wants workers to walk in pairs amid fears a rampaging squirrel could knock someone unconscious.

The rodents reportedly struck while the nurse was making a home visit to a farm in Langley Park, County Durham.

Okay I am curious what kind of headgear?

Maybe before Kentucky cuts services or raises taxes it should collect on some of its debt

Pay up! State's tax liens are big money

The state of Kentucky has a budget deficit forecast to be $456 million by June 30, but most of that would disappear if people paid their taxes.

As of mid-January, the state had outstanding liens that totaled more than $380 million, which breaks down into $280 million owed by individuals and $100 million by businesses.

Kentucky Listing of Delinquent Debtors

The pipes

Amazing how easily the Taliban has moved into Pakistan

For Pakistanis under Taliban, a reign of terror via radio

Almost seems like they have had lots of support from a govt unwilling to stop them.

1,474-Megapixel Photo from President Obama’s Inaugural Address

How I Made a 1,474-Megapixel Photo During President Obama’s Inaugural Address

That is an amazing picture that you can zoom into to see which Senators are sleeping.

Maybe some stimulus money needs to go for pandemic preparedness?

China reports 4th bird flu death in 2009

A woman in China's far west has died from the H5N1 strain of bird flu, the Health Ministry said Saturday, the country's fourth death from the virus this year as the biggest festive season approaches.

The victim, a 31-year-old woman from Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang region, had been to a live poultry market before she fell ill on Jan. 10, the official Xinhua News Agency reported, citing Wang Xiaoyan, a deputy director of the regional health department. She died Friday.

A woman in eastern China, a teenage boy in southwest China and a woman in Beijing have also died from the disease this month.

A 2-year-old girl was also sickened with H5N1 but recovered. The Health Ministry said her mother, who like the toddler went to a live poultry market, had died of pneumonia in early January. Doctors said they could not confirm the cause of death.

I am glad China is being more open about this.

Meanwhile to our north:

Bird flu confirmed on Canada turkey farm

Tests have confirmed an outbreak of bird flu at a turkey farm near Vancouver, but it appeared to be a less virulent strain and posed little risk to humans, officials said on Saturday.

More than 50,000 birds on the Abbotsford, British Columbia, farm will be destroyed to ensure the avian influenza virus does not spread to other farms, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency said.

SAS poser found dead

The fantasy life and lonely death of the SAS veteran who never was

He professed to have been a member of Britain's secretive and elite Special Air Service, writing an account of his time in the Hindu Kush and other places in Afghanistan, training the mujahideen to fight the Soviets during the invasion in the late 1970s. But after selling 50,000 copies of his book Jihad!, Tom Carew was exposed as a fantasist fixated with the SAS whose real name was Philip Sessarego.

This week, the tale of the man whose Walter Mitty-style fictions caused him to be despised by real members of the SAS - who rarely speak of their time in "the Regiment" - took a strange, and final, twist when it emerged that a decomposed body discovered in a rented garage in Antwerp is believed to have been his.

The corpse had lain in the wooden lock-up in the Ekeren area of the Belgian town since last summer, and was not discovered until Sessarego's landlord came banging at the door last November to ask why his rent had not been paid. In the garage, he found Sessarego, 55, lying with his few belongings, a small cooker and a bed. It appeared that the reclusive man had taken to living in the garage and had succumbed to accidental carbon monoxide poisoning.

The family is obviously upset.

Yesterday, neither his ex-wife Diane nor his children could be contacted. But in an interview with the Mirror in 2001, his daughter Claire, who Sessarego had abandoned as a child, said: "Basically, if I'm going to be blunt about it, I think he is a twat. He never served in the SAS . He's just a fantasist who's trying to make money on the back of other people's reputations ... There are a lot of former SAS men who have scores to settle with him - but they thought he was dead. Now they know different and I wouldn't care if somebody killed him because he's brought it all on himself."

Okay maybe not.

Draft Peter Schiff to run against Chris Dodd?

http://www.schiff2010.com/

If you don't know who Peter Schiff is he is one of the few who saw this economic collapse coming. He tried to warn people but the pundits laughed in his face.



I hope that laughing prick Mike Norman lost his ass in this mess and is living in a cardboard box. In the video Payne suggested buying Washington Mutual but I wonder if he invested in them. Meanwhile I see that Art Laffer still owes Schiff that penny.

Wouldn't it be ironic for the idiot Dodd who helped run our economy into the ground had to run against one of the few on the planet who said this was going to happen?

Something to amuse you for the next 4 years

The Obameter: Tracking Obama's Campaign Promises

PolitiFact has compiled about 500 promises that Barack Obama made during the campaign and is tracking their progress on our Obameter. We rate their status as No Action, In the Works or Stalled. Once we find action is completed, we rate them Promise Kept, Compromise or Promise Broken.

Quick links at the top or you can read through all 500.

RIP Col. James E. Swett MOH

World War II Marine Pilot Was Awarded Medal of Honor

James E. Swett, 88, a Marine Corps ace pilot during World War II who received the Medal of Honor for knocking seven Japanese dive bombers out of the air in 15 minutes during his first combat operation, died Jan. 18 at Mercy Medical Center in Redding, Calif. He had congestive heart failure.

RIP Sir

Medal of Honor Citation

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to

FIRST LIEUTENANT JAMES E. SWETT
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE

for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty, as a division leader in Marine Fighting Squadron TWO TWENTY-ONE in action against enemy Japanese aerial forces in the Solomon Islands Area, April 7, 1943. In a daring flight to intercept a wave of 150 Japanese planes, First Lieutenant Swett unhesitatingly hurled his four-plane division into action against a formation of fifteen enemy bombers and during his dive personally exploded three hostile planes in mid-air with accurate and deadly fire. Although separated from his division while clearing the heavy concentration of anti-aircraft fire, he boldly attacked six enemy bombers, engaged the first four in turn, and unaided, shot them down in flames. Exhausting his ammunition as he closed the fifth Japanese bomber, he relentlessly drove his attack against terrific opposition which partially disabled his engine, shattered the windscreen and slashed his face. In spite of this, he brought his battered plane down with skillful precision in the water off Tulagi without further injury. The superb airmanship and tenacious fighting spirit which enabled First Lieutenant Swett to destroy seven enemy bombers in a single flight were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Thmubs up for Senator Kirsten Gillibrand

Kirsten Gillibrand, SandyTreadwell both Endorsed by NRA

“I come from a family of hunters, and preserving this strong upstate tradition is a priority of mine in Congress,” Gillibrand said. “I will continue to oppose legislation that will restrict the rights of responsible gun owners and I will continue to advocate for policies that will keep our rivers, land and air clean, so that future generations can enjoy hunting and wildlife in our region.”

TMI about President Obama's sex life?

Ted Haggard had long time gay affair?

Disgraced pastor faces more gay sex accusations

Disgraced evangelical leader Ted Haggard's former church disclosed Friday that the gay sex scandal that caused his downfall extends to a young male church volunteer who reported having a sexual relationship with Haggard — a revelation that comes as Haggard tries to repair his public image.

Brady Boyd, who succeeded Haggard as senior pastor of the 10,000-member New Life Church in Colorado Springs, told The Associated Press that the man came forward to church officials in late 2006 shortly after a Denver male prostitute claimed to have had a three-year cash-for-sex relationship with Haggard.

Boyd said an "overwhelming pool of evidence" pointed to an "inappropriate, consensual sexual relationship" that "went on for a long period of time ... it wasn't a one-time act." Boyd said the man was in his early 20s at the time. He said he was certain the man was of legal age when it began.

Reached Friday night, Haggard declined to comment and said all interviews would have to be arranged through a publicist for HBO, which is airing a documentary about him this month.

Boyd said the church reached a legal settlement to pay the man for counseling and college tuition, with one condition being that none of the parties involved discuss the matter publicly.

Why am I not surprised.

Kentucky Office of Homeland Security hires PR rep

Homeland Security hires a P.R. man

The Kentucky Office of Homeland Security, the subject of some recent controversy, has hired a spokesman to coordinate its public relations.

Michael Embry, 60, of Frankfort, started at Homeland Security Jan. 5. He is a non-merit employee with a $39,000 salary.

Embry said Thursday that he will write news releases and communicate with the local governments seeking grants. Embry has written for Kentucky newspapers and was the editor of Kentucky Monthly magazine until 2006, when he left to study special education at Eastern Kentucky University.

I bet it was his training in special education that made him an ideal candidate for working for Homeland Security. Our tax dollars at work.

h/t Bluegrass Politics

Overkill

Yes that is one of mine. Normally I have my ACOG mounted but I picked up a 8-32X44 to play with.

Bill proposed to end Kentuckys Early Release Program

Bill to end early inmate release would cost millions

As legislators scramble to plug a $456 million hole in this year's state budget, Senate Republicans are pushing a bill that would cost the Department of Corrections an additional $8.7 million through the next fiscal year.

Senate Bill 11, sponsored by Sen. Jack Westwood, R-Crescent Springs, would end the controversial early-release program that has let nearly 2,000 inmates out of prison early since May.
................
House Speaker Greg Stumbo, D-Prestonsburg, said in a statement that "we would probably be more receptive to Sen. Westwood's proposal if he gave us an idea of how we could make up the savings to the corrections budget."

Sen Westwood needs support for this. $8.7 million to keep criminals in prison is nothing compared to the money our state government wastes each year on pet projects.

Get the cigarette and beer tax rolling that will help with the Medicaid shortfall. Next item is getting the expanded gaming bill passed so the horse parks can compete with the Indiana and Illinois river boat casinos.

Kenielle Finch who killed 5-year-old Claudia Wadlington and 4-year-old Riley Lawrence in a hit and run this summer in Louisville befitted from this program. I blogged about that a few months ago in How could the punishment ever fit the crime? Maybe if Stumbo needs help cutting the budget to find that $8.7 million he should put this picture on his desk.

Home health isn't what it used to be

Short coats

Exchange between a family practice MD and critical care RN as a medical student tries to navigate the maze of the ICU at 5am:

RN: Here comes a short coat is that one of yours?

MD: Where? No not one of mine.

RN: She looks kind of lost....and about 12.

MD: Hey wait did you call me short coat when I was a student too?

RN: Heh.

For the uninformed in a teaching hospital (training wheel hospital) a short white lab coat is worn by medical students and they are not allowed to wear long white coats until after graduation as an MD. Residents wear the long coats but have not completed their training yet (Most impressive but you are not a Jedi yet!) in their specialty field. So the pecking order is MD>Resident>Med student.

Sometimes the the medical students are courteous and the nurses can be nice and helpful. I don't mind giving some of them a little info so they look smart when they present their case. Some seem to think we work for them and I am glad to give them just enough info to make them look like blithering idiots. Other times the little bastards take off with your chart to a quiet room without telling you when you have real live saving shit to do, sit in your chair and generally get in your way showing up at the busiest possible times to play 20 questions.

Eventually most of the grow up to be real doctors and some are eaten. Its the circle of life at its best.

More on the threat to the South

Mexican collapse? Drug wars worry some Americans

Indiscriminate kidnappings. Nearly daily beheadings. Gangs that mock and kill government agents.

This isn't Iraq or Pakistan. It's Mexico, which the U.S. government and a growing number of experts say is becoming one of the world's biggest security risks.
..........................
Retiring CIA chief Michael Hayden told reporters on Friday that that Mexico could rank alongside Iran as a challenge for Obama — perhaps a greater problem than Iraq.

The U.S. Justice Department said last month that Mexican gangs are the "biggest organized crime threat to the United States." National security adviser Stephen Hadley said last week that the worsening violence threatens Mexico's very democracy.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff recently told The New York Times he ordered additional border security plans to be drawn up this summer as kidnappings and killings spilled into the U.S.

Yep sounds like a vacation hot spot!

Positive Bush article from the San Francisco Chronicle?

Bush showed U.S. is no paper tiger

Osama bin Laden once told Time magazine that the U.S. withdrawal from Somalia after the murder of 18 U.S. troops on a humanitarian mission made him realize "more than before that the American soldier was a paper tiger and after a few blows ran in defeat." Members of al Qaeda have told intelligence officials that they never thought that Washington would respond to the 9/11 attacks as ferociously as Bush responded. They expected a few bombs to be dropped, no boots on the ground, a swift withdrawal if casualties mounted - the usual short-attention span foreign policy that warped Lebanon, the Persian Gulf War, Somalia, the African embassy bombings and the attack on the destroyer Cole.

Bush showed America's enemies a country that does not retreat in fear, does not bomb with impunity, and most important, does not desert civilians or foreign governments that trust us. If you think that doesn't matter, look at Libya, which disarmed its weapons program. And see how much easier Obama's presidency will be, because Bush kept the faith.

Osama bin Laden may live, most likely quivering in a cave. But no one thinks America is a paper tiger anymore.

Bring out your dead!

The plague kills 40 al-Qaeda

ANTI-TERROR bosses last night hailed their latest ally in the war on terror — the BLACK DEATH.

At least 40 al-Qaeda fanatics died horribly after being struck down with the disease that devastated Europe in the Middle Ages.

The killer bug, also known as the plague, swept through insurgents training at a forest camp in Algeria, North Africa. It came to light when security forces found a body by a roadside

Jerry Springer Live

Sometimes you are in your patients room while they are watching Springer and you think "where do they find these familys?". Then visiting time rolls around and you think the ones from Springer might be an improvement.

Ugly Friends

Via Drudge an erroneous story?

SPIDER-MAN creator Stan Lee is to unveil the world’s first gay superhero.

No actually I don't think so I remember Alpha Flight member Northstar making an appearance way back in the day. Granted he was not a main character but still Marvel has been on the cutting edge for a long time.

Now if they wanted to say the first gay superhero in a tv show that would be different.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northstar

So if you want to ruin someones life

High Schoolers Accused Of Sending Naked Pictures To Each Other

Three teenage girls who allegedly sent nude or semi-nude cell phone pictures of themselves, and three male classmates in a Greensburg Salem High School who received them, are charged with child pornography.

So if you received the picture you are pretty much screwed even if they didn't go looking for it. Shit I hope some teen doesn't send it to a number by accident your life would be over.

Sucker

Leamington man loses $150,000 in Nigerian scam

A Leamington man has fallen prey to international scam artists who strung him along for more than a year with the promise of millions in cash, but ultimately bilked him and his family of $150,000.
.....................
“I never get calls anymore from my friends. You know, a bad reputation.”

Yeah probably something along the lines of "bah its that moron calling again".

Or maybe he made up the story cause he spent the money on booze and hookers?

City Folks

Willie Pete again

Soldiers and army at odds on phosphorus

Israeli officials continued to deny that the army was using illegal weapons in its Gaza offensive despite accounts by soldiers that tanks with white phosphorus shells were deployed.

Thats because its not illegal dipshit. Nice to see Israel using quality American products.

Raccoon jerky?

The other dark meat: Raccoon is making it to the table

He rolls into the parking lot of Leon's Thriftway in an old, maroon Impala with a trunk full of frozen meat. Raccoon — the other dark meat.

In five minutes, Montrose, Mo., trapper Larry Brownsberger is sold out in the lot at 39th Street and Kensington Avenue. Word has gotten around about how clean his frozen raccoon carcasses are. How nicely they’re tucked up in their brown butcher paper. How they almost look like a trussed turkey … or something.
...........
The meat is almost ready to be boiled, except for one thing: Although its head, innards and three paws have been removed, it still has one. That’s the law.

"They leave the paw on to prove it's not a cat or a dog," Washington says.

You know the "rat on a stick" we are always talking about at the Chinese place? Well I have a new suspicion.

Yeah I just threw up in my mouth a little too.

Recon the bank BEFORE you rob it

Would-be robber leaves empty-handed after mistaking water office for bank

About 1 p.m. Tuesday, a man entered the office of Jessamine South Elkhorn Water District at 802 South Main Street — formerly a branch of Farmers Bank — showed a revolver and demanded money, Nicholasville police spokesman Scott Harvey said.

Harvey said an employee told the man, "We really don't have any money."

Harvey said the robber responded: "I know you have money. It's a bank." But he was told, "No, sir, it's not a bank any more."

"He looked around, realized it wasn't, and he left with nothing," Harvey said.

Witnesses told police that the robber was a heavyset black man in his mid-30s and was wearing a black parka with a hood lined with brown fur. Police were looking for a van that might have been involved in the attempted robbery.

What kind of parka? Was it genuine aardvark fur?

Ah mugshots on the internet

Being arrested: Free
Having your mugshot posted on the net: Free
Mugshot taken with your sweater inside out and backwards: Priceless

Police: Woman hits daughter's fiancé with car

A 45-year-old Evansville woman is accused of intentionally hitting her daughter's fiancé with her car after an argument over stolen money.

It happened shortly before 2 a.m. today as Darnell, her daughter's fiancé, Trey Feldpausch, and Bryan Shell were outside 1107 E. Columbia St., according to an Evansville Police Department probable cause affidavit.

Police say Darnell accused Shell of stealing money from her. Feldpausch reportedly defended Shell and said he hadn't taken anything.

"Darnell became irate and attempted to strike Feldpausch with her vehicle," Evansville Police Department officer Eric Eberhard wrote in the affidavit.

Feldpausch dodged the car once, but police say Darnell backed up and again drove toward him, striking him in his knees. Feldpausch complained of leg pain and said he would take himself to the hospital, according to the affidavit.

Before leaving, authorities say Darnell intentionally rammed Shell's vehicle, which was parked in the driveway.

Heh

Contingency plan for when Mexico collapses?

U.S. military report warns 'sudden collapse' of Mexico is possible

EL PASO - Mexico is one of two countries that "bear consideration for a rapid and sudden collapse," according to a report by the U.S. Joint Forces Command on worldwide security threats.

The command's "Joint Operating Environment (JOE 2008)" report, which contains projections of global threats and potential next wars, puts Pakistan on the same level as Mexico. "In terms of worse-case scenarios for the Joint Force and indeed the world, two large and important states bear consideration for a rapid and sudden collapse: Pakistan and Mexico.

"The Mexican possibility may seem less likely, but the government, its politicians, police and judicial infrastructure are all under sustained assault and press by criminal gangs and drug cartels. How that internal conflict turns out over the next several years will have a major impact on the stability of the Mexican state. Any descent by Mexico into chaos would demand an American response based on the serious implications for homeland security alone."

Frightening possibilities of who could step into that power vacuum.

A parka to weather the coming ice age

The weather this week is going to drop down the next 2 nights to 5 degrees for the low on Thursday here in Western Kentucky. Just for that occasion I give you my parka of choice the N-3B by Alpha Industries. When you wear pajamas to work its great to have a warm parka that comes down just past your crotch in an icy wind.

I have had this one now 2 years and I have to say its held up well. I wear it to work as well as out and about. I like the deep pockets for storing my gloves and the upper chest pockets for my keys and iPhone. No trouble with the zipper whatsoever and the hood is a godsend. When you fully snorkel the hood up it really cuts out the breeze. I even used it deer hunting this year in place of my camo goretex fleece lined jacket when the wind was whipping. I may well buy a second one to wear out in black and start using the olive one just for hunting I was so impressed.

Patriotism

Obama said he would eliminate programs that don't work

Maybe his choice for FCC head should start working to dismantle the organization immediately

Just heard John Kerry say that "Hillary as Sec of State

would signal that America is back!"

Where do you think America has been you yankee schmuck?

GOP support for Holder?

Warner bucks GOP-ers, backs Holder

Sen. Arlen Specter and other Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee may want to derail or slow down Eric Holder’s nomination to become the next attorney general, but one of their just departed colleagues is going to bat for the nominee.

Former Sen. John Warner (R-Va.), who just stepped down from the Senate after 30 years in the body, will appear on behalf of Holder during Thursday’s Judiciary Committee hearing, according to Sen. Patrick Leahy’s (D-Vt.) office. Leahy is the chairman of the panel.
...........
Leahy's office also released a long list of GOP backers for Holder on Friday, including former Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.); Joseph E. diGenova, a former U.S. attorney and Clinton critic; Manus Cooney, former GOP chief counsel on Senate Judiciary; and Makan Delrahim, former GOP staff director on Judiciary.

The Judiciary Committee is expected to vote on Holder’s nomination sometime later this month. Leahy is predicting strong GOP support for the nomination, both in his committee and the Senate as a whole. At least one Republican on the Judiciary panel, Sen. Orrin Hatch (Utah), has already announced his intention to back Holder’s nomination, and other GOP lawmakers have praised Holder’s nomination by President-elect Barack Obama.

Mitch needs to reign in his people or let someone else lead.

Back to Somalia?

US calls for UN force in Somalia by June 1

The United States circulated a draft resolution calling for a U.N. peacekeeping force to be deployed in Somalia by June 1 to replace an African Union force now confined to a small area of the capital.

The draft obtained Monday by The Associated Press would renew the mandate of the AU force for six months and urge African nations to increase its strength from the current 2,600 to the 8,000 originally called for before the U.N. deploys its force.

The resolution is drafted under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter, which is militarily enforceable, and declares that "the situation in Somalia constitutes a threat to international peace and security in the region."

Here we go again.

Nuts! RIP Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard

WWII officer who said `nuts' to Germans dies

Retired Lt. Gen. Harry W.O. Kinnard, a paratroop officer who suggested the famously defiant answer "Nuts!" to a German demand for surrender during the 1944 Battle of the Bulge, has died. He was 93.

Kinnard, a career soldier who in later years was the principal architect of the Army's concept of using helicopters in infantry warfare in Vietnam, died in Arlington, Va., on Jan. 5, his family told The New York Times.

A native of Dallas, Kinnard graduated from West Point in 1939 and spent 30 years in uniform, retiring in 1969.

He parachuted into Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944, with the newly organized 101st Airborne Division and was decorated for heroism during its drive against German forces in the Netherlands.

When Hitler launched a surprise counteroffensive in December, the 101st, then in France, was rushed into action and seized key road junctions at the Belgian town of Bastogne, where the Americans were quickly surrounded by the enemy.

On Dec. 22, Kinnard, then a 29-year-old lieutenant colonel and the division's operations officer, was present when four German couriers arrived at the American lines under a flag of truce with a written demand to surrender in two hours or face annihilation.

Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe, the 101st's artillery chief and acting division commander in the absence of Maj. Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor, laughed and remarked, "Us surrender? Aw, nuts," and then wondered aloud how he should reply.

As recalled later by himself and other witnesses, Kinnard suggested that McAuliffe tell the Germans "what you just said ... nuts."

McAuliffe scribbled: "To the German commander: Nuts! The American commander."

On the way back to the defense line, a U.S. officer explained to the puzzled Germans that "nuts" meant the same thing as "go to hell."

The paratroopers held against further attacks and four days later the siege was broken by Lt. Gen. George S. Patton's tank forces. The massive German counterattack — the last major offensive effort by Hitler's forces — collapsed two weeks later.

In the 1960s, Kinnard, a trained aviator, was a key developer of the Army's helicopter "air assault" concept at Fort Benning, Ga., and first applied it in combat in Vietnam as commander of the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile).

A memorial is planned for March 19 at Fort Myer, Va., according to the Army Times.

Kentucky on cutting edge of CO2 storage

Work begins on W. Ky. carbon storage project

The drilling pad has been constructed at the Hancock County site and the road up to the pad has been built, said Dave Williams, a principal investigator for the project.

The Kentucky Geological Survey will inject carbon dioxide into an 8,000-foot-deep well to study the potential of storing carbon dioxide in the earth.

Sounds interesting.

Show of hands who is surprised?

Surprise!... Hamas Supporters Use Children as Human Shields At Protests, Too (Video)

Video at Gateway Pundit. I'm not surprised after all last week we saw pictures of the Islamist's cutting their childrens foreheads with knives and razors to "celebrate". Hamas has been using women and children as human shields for years.

They all need special loans like mine!

Dodd: Homeowners need more help

The Senate will not approve more bailout money for banks unless it includes limits on executive pay and help for struggling homeowners, Senate Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd said on Monday.

"Executive compensation needs to be dealt with, we mentioned foreclosure mitigation needs to be part of this as well," Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, said on ABC's "Good Morning America."

"My colleagues in the Senate will not provide any additional funds unless they are assured by the Obama administration that these provisions will be a part of it," he said.

Any additional aid must also include stronger oversight provisions, limits on merger and acquisition activity, and protections for taxpayers, Dodd said.

Yeah if they all just had mortgages like yours they would be set!

OMG Israel using bombs intended to do harm?

Israel uses incendiary bombs in Gaza

Human Rights Watch said Sunday that Israel's military has fired artillery shells with the incendiary agent white phosphorus into Gaza and a doctor there said the chemical was suspected in the case of 10 burn victims who had skin peeling off their faces and bodies.

Anything illegal about that? No but it makes a good headline making Israel look bad.

Seriously so long as they are going after Hamas who gives a fuck what they drop? I think the US still has lots of napalm to be disposed of maybe we could send them some.

Damn shame you can only execute someone once

Harvey teen charged with killing baby; she put 5-month-old in dryer and turned it on

A Harvey teen-ager who admitted to detectives that she put a baby in a clothes dryer so she could watch television without disturbance was indicted Thursday on a charge of second-degree murder.

In the first case, Arielle Smith, 19, is accused of killing Andre Jenkins, 5 months old, on Sept. 11. Smith was watching the infant, his 18-month-old brother, and her 1-year-old son in her home at 512 MacArthur Drive. She was caring for the two brothers for her friend, who was at work, authorities said.

"She was trying to watch something on television," Assistant District Attorney Amanda Calogero said. "She put the two older kids in a room, and she put the baby in the dryer" and turned it on.

During the three minutes Andre was in the dryer, he suffered skull fractures and extensive burns, Calogero said. The baby died at the scene, she said.

Shame we can't stuff her ass in an industrial size dryer.

More Prince Harry "Paki" nonsense

Prince Harry in hot water over ‘Paki’ remark to cadet
Prince summoned for ‘dressing-down without coffee’

Prince Harry has been called before his Army superiors for a “bollocking” after referring to a Pakistani platoon comrade as a “Paki”.

The commanding officer of the Household Cavalry has summoned the third-in-line to the throne for what has been described as a dressing-down “without coffee”.

Military sources said that Lieutenant-Colonel Harry Fullerton could fine or demote the Prince. The general view, however, was that the commanding officer would give him a sharp talking to and remind him of the standard of behaviour expected of an officer in the British Army.

What those in media and those that do not understand military service and bond of mates is that they can call each other dickhead but know they would take a bullet for each other. Sounds to me like the young man was a mate of Harry's and it would be no different if his nickname had been Long Dick Jimmy.

Grow the fuck up you candy asses.

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Joe to media You suck!

Joe the Plumber is here, and he ain't happy

"You should be ashamed of yourself," he told foreign reporters.

"You should be patriotic, protect your family and children, not report like you have been doing for the past two weeks since this war has started," he said.

Give'em hell Joe!

Dancing Hamas

Would someone please help the British find their balls?

Harry 'Sorry' For Racist Insult

The newspaper reports that the tape was made by the third in line to the throne during his Army training.

It says the prince is heard calling one Asian trainee "our little Paki friend".

Holy shit the horror of it all.

In a separate incident, the 24-year-old is heard calling another officer cadet who is jokingly wearing a veil on his head a "f***ing raghead".

Hey if your gonna wear a fucking rag on your head guess what?

A senior Ministry of Defence (MoD) official told Sky News: "This sort of language is not acceptable in the modern army."

A spokesman for the Equality and Human Rights Commission said it would investigate.

The spokesman said: "These appear to be disturbing allegations and we will be asking the MoD to see the evidence, share their investigation with us and their plans for dealing with it."

Yes its disturbing what utter pussies you have become.

Govt healthcare

Anybody else have visions of it being this guy?

Home invasions on the rise in KY?

I read the blog post over at the Bronzes blog about the 2 robbers who were killed in Louisville this week and saw it on the local news here as well. Maybe its just me but it would seem that in Louisville and Lexington both armed home invasions seem to be picking up. Its bad enough to be robbed but to go into a home where you know the owner is there is either brazen or they intend to kill the victim.

Hospital scrubs can kill

Hospital Scrubs Are a Germy, Deadly Mess

You see them everywhere -- nurses, doctors and medical technicians in scrubs or lab coats. They shop in them, take buses and trains in them, go to restaurants in them, and wear them home. What you can't see on these garments are the bacteria that could kill you.
....................
Imagine sliding into a restaurant booth after a nurse has left the germ on the table or seat. You could easily pick it up on your hands and then swallow it with your sandwich. Hospitals should provide workers with clean uniforms and prohibit wearing them in public.

Most hospitals only provide scrubs for those that work in the OR or PACU. I would think the most vulnerable patients in the NICU and ICU/CCU should get the same courtesy of those in the OR.

H/T Instapundit

Westboro Baptist is a boil on the ass of humanity

I know I am stating the obvious. I see in my sidebar blog roll over at LT Nixon Rants that ACLU Files Lawsuit on Behalf of Westboro Baptist Church

Now that the ACLU would represent them does not surprise me but I wonder since Fred and most all of his ignorant children are lawyers why they need the help from the ACLU?

Somali karma

This is the dramatic moment a ransom of $3million was paid to Somali pirates to end the world's biggest ship hijacking.

The canister full of cash was parachuted onto the Sirius Star - observed by the U.S. Navy who provided these images - and the two-month ordeal of the 25 crew, including two Britons, was finally over.

However things went badly wrong for the pirates soon after the drop - they squabbled over how to split the money and then a wave washed off their getaway boat and drowned five of them.

Hey sharks gotta eat you know?

My eye my eye!

Texas death row inmate pulls out eye, eats it

A Texas death row inmate with a history of mental problems pulled out his only good eye and told authorities he ate it. Andre Thomas, 25, was arrested for the fatal stabbings of his estranged wife, their young son and her 13-month-old daughter in March 2004. Their hearts also had been ripped out. He was convicted and condemned for the infant's death.

While in the Grayson County Jail in Sherman, Thomas plucked out his right eye before his trial later in 2004. A judge subsequently ruled he was competent to stand trial.

Obviously he was competent but whats the loss if Texas fries him really?

A Jedi's strength flows from the Force

Toy trains 'Star Wars' fans to use The Force

Could The Force be with you? A toy due in stores this fall will let you test and hone your Jedi-like abilities.

The Force Trainer (expected to be priced at $90 to $100) comes with a headset that uses brain waves to allow players to manipulate a sphere within a clear 10-inch-tall training tower, analogous to Yoda and Luke Skywalker's abilities in the Star Wars films.

In the Force Trainer, a wireless headset reads your brain activity, in a simplified version of EEG medical tests, and the circuitry translates it to physical action. If you focus well enough, the training sphere, which looks like a ping-pong ball, will rise in the tower.

A state of deep concentration is needed to achieve a Force-full effect. "When you concentrate, it activates the training remote," says Frank Adler of toymaker Uncle Milton Industries, which is creating the Trainer. "There is a flow of air that will move the (ball). You can actually feel like you are in a zone."

iPhone wireless charging?

Powermat Wireless Charging System

Not really sure how this mat works but to charge all your doodads by just laying them on it at night would certainly be interesting.

If you had to be in a wheel chair this is it

The Tank Chair

Tank Chair is a Custom off-road wheelchair that can go anywhere outdoors. Conquers Streams, Mud, Snow, Sand, and Gravel, allowing you to get back to nature, and can also climb up and down stairs.

Ran across this item from the 2008 CES when searching for pics from the 2009 CES. Wonder if Medicare would cover that?

Show me the money first

Nursing industry desperate to find new hires

Even strong salaries aren't doing the trick. Registered nurses made an average of $62,480 in 2007, ranging from a mean of $78,550 in California to $49,140 in Iowa, according to government statistics. Including overtime, usually abundantly available, the most experienced nurses can earn more than $100,000.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts about 233,000 additional jobs will open for registered nurses each year through 2016, on top of about 2.5 million existing positions. But only about 200,000 candidates passed the Registered Nurse licensing exam last year, and thousands of nurses leave the profession each year.

Not sure where they pulled those numbers from but I don't think I am anywhere near that $60k mark. Maybe hospitals should work harder to keep the experienced RN's they have now instead of training a new flock each year.

Israel should give Hamas and the Palestinians what they want

Death. There is no reasoning with that line of thinking.

H/T Atlas Shrugs

Go home fat ass says Canada

U.S. war deserter, mother of 3 must leave Canada

A mother of three young children reported to be the first U.S. female war deserter seeking asylum in Canada says she's been ordered to leave the country.

Kimberly Rivera said her request to stay on humanitarian and compassionate grounds was rejected at a hearing in Mississauga, Ont., and her family has been told to leave Canada by Jan. 27.

The former soldier moved to Toronto from Texas in early 2007 with her husband and two children after refusing redeployment to Iraq. In late November, she gave birth to a third child in Canada.

She had served in Iraq in 2006 as a gate guard at a forward operating base, according to the War Resisters Support Campaign. The advocacy group said Rivera is the first U.S. female war deserter to come to Canada.

Rivera said she was shocked by the decision and worries about her three children, who have come to see Canada as home.

"It kind of hurts and it feels like a piece of you is being ripped right out of you," she told CBC News.

Supporters had hoped immigration officials would allow her to stay in part because she has a six-week-old daughter, Katie Marie, born in Canada. Rivera's other children are Christian, 6, and Rebecca, 4.

"I was more hopeful about Kim's situation because she's a nursing mother and I thought they might take that into consideration," said Lee Zaslofsky, co-ordinator of the War Resisters Support Campaign.

Zaslofsky said the federal government seems resolved not to allow any war deserters to remain in Canada — a position he believes is not supported by most Canadians.

The group says four other American military personnel and their families face deportation in January.

In July, Robin Long became the first American deserter removed by Canadian authorities. Long was sentenced to 15 months in prison after pleading guilty to a reduced charge of desertion.

Last month, Cliff Cornell, a former U.S. soldier from Arkansas living in Nanaimo, B.C., was ordered to leave Canada by Dec. 24.

Deportation orders were also given to U.S. war deserters:

* Corey Glass.
* Jeremy Hinzman.
* Patrick Hart.
* Matt Lowell.
* Dean Walcott.

Not only was the baby nursing but so was the entire family on the Canadian government teat. I do hope if she is ever brought to justice that not only does she do federal time but has to repay the enlistment bonus as well.

Have another jelly donut bitch.

See previous post for background:

Marie Claire article on white trash donut loving deserter

RIP Ranger Robert Prince

Major Robert Prince 6th Ranger Battalion passed away New Years day 2009. Major Prince was a leader of the liberation of the Cabanatuan Prison Camp on the Philippine island of Luzon during World War II. Those actions were told in the book and movie The Great Raid and the book Ghost Soldiers. Major Prince was also inducted into the Ranger Hall of Fame.

World War II's 'Great Raid' hero dies
Robert Prince led daring mission to free Allied POWs

The great raider has died.

Robert Prince, a Seattle native and Army Ranger who was the assault force commander of the daring World War II mission to liberate Allied prisoners that was portrayed in the 2005 movie "The Great Raid," passed away New Year's Day in Port Townsend, his family confirmed.

RIP Sir

Tractor parts from Iran?

Turkey holds suspicious Iran-Venezuela shipment

Turkey was holding a suspicious shipment bound for Venezuela from Iran because it contained lab equipment capable of producing explosives, a customs official said Tuesday.

An Iranian embassy official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media, said the shipment contained "nothing important."

Yep nothing to see here move along.

New school honors Master Sgt. Gary Gordon

Gordon Elementary School opens in Harnett

The school is named in honor of the late Master Sgt. Gary I. Gordon, one of two Fort Bragg soldiers who received the Medal of Honor for actions in Somalia in 1993.

“We are officially the Gordon Patriots, in honor of Gary Gordon,” Young said. “We felt like to be the Patriots was the best way to honor him since to give your life for your country is the most patriotic thing you can do.”

Gordon received the nation’s highest military award posthumously for actions in the battle of Mogadishu, featured in the book and movie “Black Hawk Down.” A dedication ceremony will be held at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 27.

The Gordon Patriots that is outstanding!

Breitbart's Big Hollywood launches

BREITBART: A million stories to tell

On Tuesday, I launch Big Hollywood, a big group blog that will feature hundreds of the big minds from the fields of politics, journalism, entertainment and culture.

Big Hollywood is not a "celebrity" gabfest or a gossip outpost - it is a continuous politics and culture posting board for those who think something has gone drastically wrong and that Hollywood should return to its patriotic roots.

Big Hollywood's modest objective: to change the entertainment industry. To make Hollywood something we can believe in - again. In order to give millions of Americans hope.

Until conservatives, libertarians and Republicans - who will be the lion's share of Big Hollywood's contributors - recognize that (pop) culture is the big prize and that politics is secondary, there will be no victory in this important battle.

I hope this goes well for him. I despise Hollywood and the candy asses that pass for actors these days. I watch very little tv or movies these days as they seem to be filled with just the sort of leftist assholes I do not wish to give my money to. Oh yes I have a celebrity shit list that gets longer each day.

To sum up the Burris flap

Blazing Saddles goes to Washington

H/T Instapundit

Burris going to DC was such a sorry ass stunt since he was not certified by the Illinois Sec of State. Feinstein for her part is talking out of her ass when she says he should be seated. Burris needs to take his race card playing dog and pony show back to Ill to get this settled before heading to DC.

They seem like perfectly reasonable people

Afghan Shi'ite Muslims flagellate themselves with chains during an Ashura procession in Kabul via Times online

Lets compare demonstrators

Pro Israel



Pro Hamas


I think that pretty well sums it up.



Pics Via Atlas Shrugs

More bird flu death in Asia

China confirms woman died of bird flu in Beijing

A 19-year-old woman has died of the H5N1 bird flu virus in Beijing after coming into contact with poultry, health authorities in Beijing and Hong Kong said on Tuesday.

This human H5N1 case would be China's first in almost a year. Experts said while the case was not unexpected as the virus is more active during the cooler months between October and March, it points to holes in surveillance of the virus in poultry.

With the world's biggest poultry population and hundreds of millions of farmers raising birds in their backyards, China is seen as crucial in the global fight against bird flu.

When it makes the jump will we realize it before it gets out of control?

9 year old hero

Boy stops pit bull attack with jujitsu choke hold

A 9-year-old Bakersfield boy is being called a hero after he saved a girl and her dog from a pit bull attack.

Drew Heredia said he and a friend were walking a small dog Dec. 30 when a pit bull jumped on the dog. The unidentified 12-year-old girl reportedly tried to save her dog, prompting the pit bull to turn on her.

Heredia said he jumped on the pit bull and applied a choke hold that he learned while taking classes at a Brazilian jujitsu studio in southwest Bakersfield.

"It was kind of a heart-pounding moment," Heredia said. "It was very scary."

He said he held the dog for 20 minutes until an animal control officer arrived.

“At first, I wanted to kick it, but then I thought it’s not a good idea, because it could get my leg,” Heredia said.

The girl was taken to Mercy Southwest Hospital where she was treated for puncture wounds.

The pit bull was quarantined at the animal control office, where it will be euthanized after 10 days. No one has claimed the dog.

The girl's dog was injured, but it's expected to survive. The dog ran away during the attack but returned home Friday afternoon.

Brave little boy! Video at the link of the boy.

Should we start a poll to name this new base?

UN proposes Green Zone-style base in Somalia

Three masked gunmen fatally shot a Somali aid worker Tuesday, as the U.N. envoy to Somalia said the United Nations should create a Baghdad-style Green Zone in the African country so he can base all his aid workers there.

The U.N. now keeps its international Somalia staff members in Kenya to shield them from the risk of attacks and kidnappings. In 2008, at least 13 aid workers were killed in Somalia, which has not had an effective government since 1991.

"It is very difficult to address (the) Somali situation from Nairobi (the Kenyan capital). I think it is even negative," the envoy, Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah, said during a news conference in Nairobi, Kenya. "We should have a Green Zone, if necessary, in Somalia."

Ould-Abdallah did not give a time frame for creating a fortified, walled-off area like the Green Zone in Iraq used by U.S.-led forces, but it would be costly and time-consuming.

Maybe just maybe if you stop worrying about providing them food they will spend more time looking for or growing food they won't have time for shooting each other?

Hamas taking propaganda to the next (lower) level

Shock and Horror: Hamas Says Assoud the Jihad Bunny Mortally Wounded in Israeli Airstrike....

Rabbit jerky?

via Hot Air

Even Dianne Feinstein knows better

Obama's intel picks short on direct experience

President-elect Barack Obama's decision to fill the nation's top intelligence jobs with two men short on direct experience in intelligence gathering surprised the spy community and signaled the Democrat's intention for a clean break from Bush administration policies.

Panetta could face tough questions at his nomination hearing about his background in intelligence. California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, who will chair the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Monday she was surprised by the pick, and neither was informed nor consulted.

"I know nothing about this, other than what I've read," she said. "My position has consistently been that I believe the agency is best served by having an intelligence professional in charge at this time."

Change or recycled Clinton lackeys?

Obama picks Leon Panetta to head CIA

Two Democratic officials say President-elect Barack Obama has chosen former Clinton White House chief of staff Leon Panetta to run the CIA.

Panetta was a surprise pick for the post, with no experience in the intelligence world.

Great.

Team America 300 Trailer

Determination

Just a little first of the year weight loss incentive. Feel free to print this out and post it on your frig.

3 in the front and 2 in the back is that how they train?

Off-duty officer shot woman 5 times

A Nicholas County woman killed Monday on her farm by an off-duty Boone County sheriff's deputy was shot multiple times, including twice in the back, according to the Nicholas County coroner.

Coroner Billy Clark said Friday that Brenda May Pollitt, 55, was shot five times from 6 to 8 feet away by a .40-caliber police weapon. Two entry wounds were in Pollitt's back, Clark said.

Kentucky State Police said sheriff's deputy Scotty Hill, 36, fired after Pollitt threatened him with a pistol. Clark said that he could not confirm Pollitt had a gun; both weapons apparently had been confiscated before he was called to the scene on Headquarters Road.

An autopsy was performed in Frankfort on Tuesday, but state police have not yet released a report.

The shooting occurred about 11:45 p.m. Monday when Hill, accompanied by his wife and daughter, went to Pollitt's farm to pick up a horse purchased from Pollitt's nephew, according to Nicholas County sheriff Dick Garrett.

No charges have been filed; Hill has been moved to administrative duties until the state police investigation is completed, the Boone County sheriff's department said in a statement.

Did he only fire 5 times? This story looks shadier all the time.

It would be cool to have a third hand

A New Cigarette Hazard: ‘Third-Hand Smoke’

Parents who smoke often open a window or turn on a fan to clear the air for their children, but experts now have identified a related threat to children’s health that isn’t as easy to get rid of: third-hand smoke.

That’s the term being used to describe the invisible yet toxic brew of gases and particles clinging to smokers’ hair and clothing, not to mention cushions and carpeting, that lingers long after second-hand smoke has cleared from a room. The residue includes heavy metals, carcinogens and even radioactive materials that young children can get on their hands and ingest, especially if they’re crawling or playing on the floor.
..................
Among the substances in third-hand smoke are hydrogen cyanide, used in chemical weapons; butane, which is used in lighter fluid; toluene, found in paint thinners; arsenic; lead; carbon monoxide; and even polonium-210, the highly radioactive carcinogen that was used to murder former Russian spy Alexander V. Litvinenko in 2006. Eleven of the compounds are highly carcinogenic.

I always found it ironic that most of the respiratory therapists smoke and then go around giving neb treatments.

I remember when my daughter was in the NICU for 11 days you could pick out the nurses that smoked. How ironic they make a big deal about keeping the NICU sterile and making the parents do a 5 minute hand scrub and gown up before visiting their kids but some of the RN's absolutely reek of smoke.

Proof of the stupidity of Hamas

"The Day of Judgement will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews (killing the Jews), when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say O Muslims, O Abdulla, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him." - Article 7 of the Hamas Covenant

Seriously talking trees and stones?

Why we need energy independence now

Cut oil sales to Israel's backers-Iranian commander

An Iranian military commander called on Islamic countries to cut oil exports to Israel's supporters in response to the Jewish state's offensive in Gaza, the official IRNA news agency reported on Sunday.

IRNA said commander Bagherzadeh described oil as "one of the powerful elements of pressure" on the Jewish state's Western backers in the "unequal war" faced by Palestinians in the coastal strip.

"Pointing at Westerners' dependence on the Islamic countries' oil and energy resources, he (Bagherzadeh) called for cutting the export of crude oil to the Zionist regime's supporters the world over," IRNA said, referring to Israel.

How long do we really want to be at the mercy of these dickheads?

Avian flu the return

Just when you thought you could scratch bird flu off your list of things to worry about in 2009, the deadly H5N1 virus has resurfaced in poultry in Hong Kong for the first time in six years, reinforcing warnings that the threat of a human pandemic isn't over.

India, Bangladesh, Vietnam and mainland China also experienced new outbreaks in December. During the same period, four new human cases -- in Egypt, Cambodia and Indonesia -- were reported to the World Health Organization. A 16-year-old girl in Egypt and a 2-year-old girl in Indonesia have died.

I would worry more about killer chickens than killer asteroids at this point.

Yankees will elect anybody

Franken to be declared Senate victor in Minnesota

Seriously WTF is wrong with the people of Minnesota?

Somali authorities means who exactly?

France foils two Somali pirate attacks, holds 19

A French warship Sunday foiled attempts by Somalian pirates in the Gulf of Aden to seize two cargo vessels and intercepted 19 people, the French president's office said.

"Three days after a French vessel thwarted an attack on a Panamanian cargo ship" the frigate Jean de Vienne conducted a "decisive action" against "two new attacks" it said in a statement.

"The 19 Somali pirates who tried to seize the two boats were intercepted," it added, saying they carried weapons, ammunition and material for boarding ships.

"They will be transferred to the Somali authorities," it added.

Somalia has no real government so to whom do you transfer them to? More catch and release it would seem.

RIP Lt Commander Roy H. Boehm

Legendary 'First SEAL' passes away

Roy Boehm of Punta Gorda, a cantankerous retired U.S. Navy lieutenant commander who fought three wars, started the Navy's first SEAL team and shared his harrowing adventures --and his battles against military bureaucracy --in an autobiography, has completed his last mission.

Roy Boehm, who had struggled with health problems for many years, died at home Tuesday night. He was 84.

Wikipedia entry

Why raccoons are not pets

I will stick to shooting them and using them for coyote bait.

NHS cutting edge stupidity costing UK

Surgeons who leave operating equipment inside patients cost NHS £9m

Patients who leave operating theatres with surgical equipment accidentally left inside them are being awarded millions of pounds in compensation.

About two people a week find surgeons have left behind foreign objects such as surgical swabs, clips and screws, according to Government figures released after a Freedom of Information request.

And with the average victim pocketing £17,900, the mistakes have cost the NHS a total of £9million over the past five years, with payouts made to more than 550 patients.

Experts suggest the level of claims is just the tip of the iceberg, as many people do not discover a mistake unless it causes a problem, often years later.

Wow

Hamas shows its class

Bodies of Hamas leader's children paraded as group promises 'painful' revenge for their deaths

The bodies of a senior Hamas leader's small children were today ghoulishly paraded through the streets of Gaza as the group pledged to avenge their deaths.

Nizar Rayan, his four wives and 10 of his children were all killed by in an Israeli air strike on his home after he ignored warnings they should go into hiding.

In grisly scenes, mourners held up the bloodied bodies of the children to the cameras in a clear attempt to blacken Israel's name and highlight its brutality.

Graphic images showed the young children's uncovered faces as the victims were carried by thousands of angry Hamas supporters during the funeral procession.

Using his own wives and children as a human shield much like Hamas uses all of Gaza. Not working now though is it?

Hamas leaders have largely disappeared since Israel launched its operations but Rayan was known for openly defying the country.

Well hell no they are not going to stick around there's a shooting war on now.

Flame throwers

Lets be careful out there

Mother sues over son's death after Taser use

Deters writes in the lawsuit that the police should have known Hughes was mentally ill and should have approached him differently, because he was throwing boxes of bullets and talking incoherently.

Well obviously.

Police say Hughes stood 6-foot-6 and weighed more than 400 pounds. Police say he had a loaded 9 mm handgun and two boxes of ammunition.

Why even bother with a taser confronted with an armed Frankenstein?

Ringing in 2009

New Years eve was spent shooting the Bushmaster and a LWRC M6A2 followed by a nice bottle of Jack Daniels Single Barrel

Looking to score some pot? Try the jail parking lot!

Kentucky police make drug arrest ... in jail parking lot

Maybe they thought it was the last place they would look for drug dealers?