News -- October 10, 2006

Olbermann - The Difference Between Terrorists and Critics - "The president doesn’t just hear what he wants. He hears things that only he can hear. It defies belief that this president and his administration could continue to find new unexplored political gutters into which they could wallow. Yet they do."

Shut Up and Sing -- Check out the trailer for the new Dixie Chicks documentary.

Reuters fires editor over Coulter book - "Reuters editor Joe Maguire has parted ways with the news agency after it reviewed a copy of his upcoming book, Brainless: The Lies and Lunacy of Ann Coulter, according to a report in today's New York Times. ... "In BRAINLESS, journalist Joe Maguire takes an incisive look at Coulter, both the private and the public personas, and takes aim at those issues at the helm of her agenda – 9/11, Iraq, abortion, Christianity, the Democratic Party, and gender and race issues to name a few – and uncovers her contradictory statements, her questionable research, and her insatiable and socio-pathic need to say just about anything to stay in the spotlight.""

Bush's 'Axis of Evil' Comes Back to Haunt United States - "Nearly five years after President Bush introduced the concept of an "axis of evil" comprising Iraq, Iran and North Korea, the administration has reached a crisis point with each nation: North Korea has claimed it conducted its first nuclear test, Iran refuses to halt its uranium-enrichment program, and Iraq appears to be tipping into a civil war 3 1/2 years after the U.S.-led invasion."

China issues warning to North Korea - "China's Foreign Ministry vented its anger against its communist ally over the test for a second day, with a spokesman saying that relations had been damaged."

Bush Says He Can Edit Security Reports - "President Bush, again defying Congress, says he has the power to edit the Homeland Security Department's reports about whether it obeys privacy rules while handling background checks, ID cards and watchlists."

As Exemptions Grow, Religion Outweighs Regulation - "In recent years, many politicians and commentators have cited what they consider a nationwide “war on religion” that exposes religious organizations to hostility and discrimination. But such organizations — from mainline Presbyterian and Methodist churches to mosques to synagogues to Hindu temples — enjoy an abundance of exemptions from regulations and taxes. And the number is multiplying rapidly."

High-tech school security is on the rise - "Each morning, the 16,000 students in the Spring Independent School District in suburban Houston swipe their ID tags as they climb onto the school bus. A radio frequency tag tracks them, as it does when they arrive at school and as they leave the building. Nearly 1,000 cameras watch them all day. Every visitor — parents, volunteers, the guy who fills the Coke machine — must surrender his or her driver's license to a secretary who checks it against a national database of sex offenders. This fall, nearly one in three schools literally trap visitors inside a "secure vestibule," a bulletproof glass room, until they're checked out. Welcome to the brave new world of school security. In an era when deadly school shootings seem to happen like clockwork, schools are hardening up, trying unconventional means to deter violence and keep track of students and adults."

American Prison Camps Are on the Way - "Kellogg Brown & Root, a Halliburton subsidiary, is constructing a huge facility at an undisclosed location to hold tens of thousands of Bush's "unlawful enemy combatants." Americans are certain to be among them."

Sex's Empire - "How very unsurprising it is that of all things, of irresponsible foreign policy, of negligent domestic policy, and of fiscal disregard, it would be sex that brings down the Republican Party. How very unsurprising."

Voter registrations faked in GOP drive - "At least five apparently bogus voter registration forms were submitted to the Metro Nashville election commission by a worker with ties to the Republican National Committee, and up to 150 other registrations have been called into question, The Tennessean has learned."

Wave of Party Switchers Hits Republicans - "Distorted priorities, the federal deficit and the Iraq war are common themes in their announcements. And in a direct swipe at the far-right ideology that has become a governing credo in the Bush years, they cite intolerance in the party as the chief reason for leaving."

Poll: Dems gain big lead - "Democrats had a 23-point lead over Republicans in every group of people questioned — likely voters, registered voters and adults — on which party's House candidate would get their vote. That's double the lead Republicans had a month before they seized control of Congress in 1994 and the Democrats' largest advantage among registered voters since 1978."

Preacher says GOP delaying 2nd coming - " Voters should oust congressional Republican leaders because U.S. foreign policy is delaying the second coming of Jesus Christ, according to a evangelical preacher trying to influence closely contested political races." -- Jesus.

Google makes video play with YouTube buy - "YouTube will operate independently, and the companies will work together on building new features for independent users as well as for aspiring directors, they said in a press release. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2006."

Idaho tribes want places named 'Squaw' removed from maps - "Members of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe refer to it as the "S Word," but 93 creeks, canyons, peaks and springs in Idaho that include the name "squaw" are not so censored on maps. Linguists debate the meaning of the word, but the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and most other American Indians in the Northwest say it's a derogatory reference for a woman's genitals dating back to the area's frontier past. Now, members of the tribe are pushing to strike 13 squaw references from maps of Idaho."

Move to ban smoking in the street - "From next summer, smoking in enclosed public places will be illegal and those caught lighting up may be fined."

Web sites offer students another way to cheat - "The Internet has given students access to reams of information, made it cheaper to keep in touch with faraway friends and family and even allowed students to attend universities remotely. But it has also given a new lease on life to an old plague of academia -- the term-paper mill."

"Monster" fossil found in Jurassic graveyard - ""One of them was this gigantic monster, with vertebrae the size of dinner plates and teeth the size of cucumbers," Joern Hurum, an assistant professor at the University of Oslo, told Reuters on Thursday. "We believe the skeleton is intact and that it's about 10 meters (33 feet) long," he told Reuters of the pliosaur, a type of plesiosaur with a short neck and massive skull. The team dubbed the specimen "The Monster.""

Male birth control pill soon a reality - "For the first time, a safe, effective and reversible hormonal male contraceptive appears to be within reach. Several formulations are expected to become commercially available within the near future. Men may soon have the options of a daily pill to be taken orally, a patch or gel to be applied to the skin, an injection given every three months or an implant placed under the skin every 12 months, according to Seattle researchers."

No Equal Pay For Mothers - "Women who take time out of the workplace for maternity leave have been told they have no right to the same pay as male colleagues."

Pour on 'maggot juice' to help heal wounds - "Bandages containing fluids secreted by maggots could help accelerate the body's healing process, research suggests."

Heavier weight tied to poorer mental function - "Overweight middle-aged adults tend to score more poorly on tests of memory, attention and learning ability than their thinner peers do, researchers reported Monday. The findings, they say, suggest that a heavier weight in middle age may mean a higher risk of dementia later in life."

Engineers study 'morphing aircraft' idea - "It's a bird. It's a plane. Or it might turn out to be a little like both. Researchers are aiming to find ways to enable aircraft to change shape during flight to improve performance or efficiency. The University of Dayton project is funded by a $580,000 defense contract to further the development of "morphing" aircraft."

Time capsule to be beamed from Mexican pyramid - "Mexico's Teotihuacan, once the center of a sprawling pre-Hispanic empire, is set to become the launch pad for an attempt to communicate with extraterrestrial life. Starting on Tuesday, enthusiasts from around the world will have a chance to submit text, images, video and sounds that reflect human nature to be included in the message." -- So there should be many sounds/images/videos of war, death, destruction, oppression, ...

Worst week of ratings for Katie Couric - "The fifth week was the toughest for Katie Couric, whose viewership on the "CBS Evening News" has dropped each week since her debut the day after Labor Day." -- And you're suprised?




Quote of the Day
"Probably no more than 10 percent of the present college population belongs there."
~ Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.