you know what?

if you're eating at kfc (or micky d's or wendys or burger king or the like) chances are you are NOT going to be getting the healthiest meal on the planet. NO ONE IS FORCING YOU TO GO INTO A KFC. NO ONE IS FORCING YOU TO EAT FRIED CHICKEN (or a burger, or whatever). it's similar to the suit (which was dropped i believe) saying certain foods make you fat. DUH DUH AND DUH. it's YOUR body, it's YOUR mind it's YOUR CHOICE you bunch of steamin' wankers.

Fat is a consumer issue: KFC in dock over cooking oil
By Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles
Published: 15 June 2006
A US food safety organisation is suing Kentucky Fried Chicken for its use of a type of cooking oil that government scientists agree can be potentially damaging to consumers' health.
The Centre for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) filed the suit in Washington arguing that KFC, more than any other restaurant chain, relies on partly hydrogenated oils for its food. Those oils contain trans fat, a notoriously indigestible substance that food reformers have been campaigning to eliminate from the American diet.
According to the suit, a typical KFC Extra Crispy combo meal, containing a chicken drumstick, two wings, potato wedges and an American-style breakfast biscuit contains 15g of trans fat, more than anyone should consume in a week. CSPI is suing on behalf of all KFC consumers, with one named plaintiff, a retired doctor from Maryland who alleges he had no idea his purchases from KFC over the years were exposing him to trans fat-related health risks..........

(and just an fyi, i have NEVER in my whole life had fried chicken. not at kfc, not homemade, not anywhere. since i'm now vegan, it ain't gonna happen in the future either. the last meat i ate, probably longer than a lot of you have been alive, was a whopper jr avec cheese)

2,500 is JUST a number

and my head hangs in both sorrow AND shame

White House: 'Everybody would like the war to be over now'
RAW STORYPublished: Thursday June 15, 2006
When asked about the landmark 2,500 US soldiers killed in Iraq today, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow claimed that "Everybody would like the war to be over now." He also said the 2,500 figure was a "number." You can watch the video here.
A transcript of the exchange follows:...............


Tony Snow on U.S. Death #2500 in Iraq: "It's a Number"

By E&P Staff Published: June 15, 2006 4:20 PM ET
NEW YORK As Congress carried out a rare debate on Iraq today, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow was meeting reporters a few miles away.Not surprisingly, the first question had to do with a landmark today -- the announcement that the American death toll in Iraq had reached 2500. A later question asked about specific progress in the war. Here is how those exchanges went down. *Q Tony, American deaths in Iraq have reached 2,500. Is there any response or reaction from the President on that?MR. SNOW: It's a number, and every time there's one of these 500 benchmarks people want something. The President would like the war to be over now. Everybody would like the war to be over now. And the one thing that we saw in Iraq this week is further testimony to the quality of the men and the women who are doing that, and the dedication and determination to try to ensure that the people of Iraq really do live in a free, effective democracy of their own creation and design.

more pussies in the news

i watch animal planet (way way way too much animal cops BUT a lot of those stories DO end happily. not all of course, but many. it gives my heart song when a dog or cat that was abused gets a new human companion who loves them) but have not heard of this show

Cats compete on TV reality show

Ten cats are competing to find their perfect owner on a reality TV programme being shown in the US.
The feline competitors, who all come from animal shelters or rescue groups, are being filmed in a New York shop window until 23 June.
As on Big Brother, the cats will have to complete tasks, and will be graded on purring and catching toy mice..........

......The show is being broadcast on US cable channel Animal Planet. ...........

(just checked out the animal planet sight and can't find this show. perhaps it will be broadcast in the future)

the title of the story is; bush fails women in afghanistan

well that indeed is true, but he fails women EVERYWHERE. oh, and he fails men everywhere too

how unbelievable it is to have places where you can be killed for being the teacher of a grrrl, much less being that grrrl

oh and of course i still think laura is full of shite just as much as king george is.

Bush Fails Women in Afghanistan
by Joan Smith

The Taliban are back. Less than five years after British and U.S. troops drove them out of Afghanistan, they are launching increasingly audacious attacks, including an ambush of British troops in Helmand province last weekend. British soldiers were jumping from helicopters when they came under fire, beginning a battle in which 21 Taliban fighters were killed. One observer warned that British troops must regain control of Helmand or "the whole of southern Afghanistan will be lost to the Taliban insurgents."
I could make a sarcastic remark about another great success in President Bush's war on terror, but the situation in Afghanistan is too horrifying.
At the same time, I can't help recalling the lunatic optimism of the president's wife a few weeks into the Afghan campaign in 2001. "Because of our recent military gains in much of Afghanistan, women are no longer imprisoned in their homes," Laura Bush declared. "The fight against terrorism is also a fight for the rights and dignity of women." ........

some people DO deserve a break

there is no doubt in my mind this man deserves to be punished (and put in some sort of drug rehab program if he so wishes. i say if HE wishes because a rehab program will not work unless the person themselves wants to change). he IS a criminal. evidence points to the fact he is a NON VIOLENT criminal though. he saved a toddler’s life, period. that HAS to count for something. why would a man who molests a toddler get a 30 year sentence and a man who burgles get a LIFE sentence? what’s wrong with that picture?
Girl's savior faces 3rd strike
By Sean Webby Mercury News
There is a growing pile of books in Matthew Hahn's cell at Elmwood Correctional complex in Milpitas. Among Plato dialogues, the Tao Te Ching and ``Law for Dummies'' is a paperback titled ``Martyrs'' -- a collection of stories about Christians who sacrificed their lives for their faith.
It was a present from the mother of a young girl, in gratitude for helping bring the girl's molester to justice.
Last year, Hahn, a 26-year-old Los Gatos felon with a rap sheet full of residential burglaries, anonymously sent police some stolen photographs -- photos that showed a man molesting a toddler. Using the photographs, police found and arrested John Robertson ``Robbie'' Aitken. Last month, Aitken pleaded no contest to molestation charges and received a 30-year sentence.
But Hahn, who was later arrested for a burglary spree after he turned in the photos, is facing a prison term that could be longer than Aitken's. The latest series of burglaries was Hahn's ``third strike,'' and prosecutors have decided to seek a life sentence. His trial could begin this month........

i swear this is NOT lewis the cat

June 13, 2006—Perhaps not since the Cowardly Lion has an animal's appearance been so at odds with its attitude.
On June 4 a black bear wandered into a West Milford, New Jersey, back yard, was confronted by a 15-pound (7-kilogram) tabby cat … and fled up a neighbor's tree. Hissing at the base of the tree, Jack the clawless cat kept the bear at bay for about 15 minutes, then ran him up another tree after an attempted escape..........

this particular incident didn't happen here - but it sure could have

the apology from police (which came a couple of weeks AFTER the shooting) said they were sorry they caused 'DISRUPTION AND INCONVENIENCE'.. DISRUPTION AND INCONVENIENCE? holy shite, is that what being shot is now called? an inconvenience?

'He looked at me and shot. As soon as he had eye contact, he shot me' · Brothers tell of moment officers raided their home· Police apology two weeks after Forest Gate alert

Hugh Muir Wednesday June 14, 2006The Guardian

First he heard a scream. The next thing Mohammed Abdulkayar remembered was making eye contact in the darkness with the man who stood at the bottom of the stairs. At that instant, without warning and, he says, without provocation, the police officer fired a shot which tore through his chest and exited through his right shoulder. He slumped against the wall, bleeding and senseless.
Yesterday, three days after he was released without charge having been arrested and held for more than a week under the Terrorism Act, Mr Abdulkayar, 23, gave his account of the events which have devastated his family and plunged an already beleaguered Scotland Yard into even deeper crisis........

........Scotland Yard finally issued an apology for hurt caused by the raid yesterday. The Metropolitan police assistant commissioner Andy Hayman said the force had "listened intently" to the concerns of those affected.
"I am aware that in mounting this operation we have caused disruption and inconvenience to many residents in Newham and more importantly those that reside at 46 and 48 Lansdown Road," he said. "I apologise for the hurt that we may have caused.".........

picture: Abul Koyair and Mohammed Abdulkayar at a press conference after their release. Photo: Chris Radburn/PA

and i thought i couldn't sleep before?

this makes me feel all warm and fuzzy - NOT!
Revealed: the lax laws that could allow assembly of deadly virus
DNA Urgent calls for regulation after Guardian buys part of smallpox genome through mail order
James Randerson, science correspondent Wednesday June 14, 2006 The Guardian

DNA sequences from some of the most deadly pathogens known to man can be bought over the internet, the Guardian has discovered.
In an investigation which shows the ease with which terrorist organisations could obtain the basic ingredients of biological weapons, this newspaper obtained a short sequence of smallpox DNA. The deadly virus has existed only in laboratories since being eradicated from the world's population 30 years ago.
The DNA sequence of smallpox, as well as other potentially dangerous pathogens such as poliovirus and 1918 flu are freely available in online public databases. So to build a virus from scratch, a terrorist would simply order consecutive lengths of DNA along the sequence and glue them together in the correct order. This is beyond the skills and equipment of the kitchen chemist, but could be achieved by a well-funded terrorist with access to a basic lab and PhD-level personnel........

photo: A phial containing an incomplete sequence of smallpox DNA, obtained by the Guardian over the internet. Photo: Martin Argles

we're to get a new poet laureate

(who by the way was born in connecticut and lives in new hampshire)

Hall to be named US poet laureate
By Pauline Jelinek, Associated Press June 14, 2006
WASHINGTON -- New Hampshire poet Donald Hall, who has chronicled life's sorrows and celebrations in verse across seven decades, will be the next poet laureate of the United States.
His 15th book of poetry, this spring's ``White Apples and the Taste of Stone: Selected Poems 1946-2006," prompted The Washington Post to praise Hall as a rural poet in the Robert Frost tradition and note ``the delightful variety of his work and the sheer charm of his voice."
Hall's first book of poetry, ``Exiles and Marriages," appeared in 1955. The widower of poet Jane Kenyon, who died in 1995, he published a memoir of their marriage, ``The Best Day the Worst Day," last year. Many of his poems commemorate death and loss in the plainspoken style he employs.
``Donald Hall is one of America's most distinctive and respected literary figures," Librarian of Congress James H. Billington said in an announcement prepared for delivery today. ``For more than 50 years, he has written beautiful poetry on a wide variety of subjects that are often distinctly American and conveyed with passion."...


White Apples

when my father had been dead a week
I woke
with his voice in my ear I sat up in bed
and held my breath
and stared at the pale closed door
white apples and the taste of stone
if he called again
I would put on my coat and galoshes

Donald Hall

duh!

now no one wants to let us play on their swingsets and in their sandboxes. i personally don't blame them. they're afraid if they make one wrong move, we'll bitchslap them silly

Global approval of US falls sharply, even among close allies, survey says
Iraq war called bigger threat than Tehran
By Brian Knowlton, International Herald Tribune June 14, 2006

WASHINGTON -- As the war in Iraq continues for a fourth year, the global image of the United States has slipped further, even among people in countries closely allied with the United States, a new global opinion poll has suggested.

Favorable views of the United States dropped sharply over the past year in Spain, where only 23 percent now say they have a positive opinion, down from 41 percent in 2005, according to the survey, which was conducted in 15 countries this spring by the Pew Research Center.

In Britain, Washington's closest ally in the Iraq war, positive views of the United States fell from 75 percent in 2002, before the war began, to 56 percent this year.

Other countries in which positive views dropped significantly included India (56 percent, down from 71 percent since 2005); Russia (43 percent, down from 52 percent); and Indonesia (30 percent, down from 38 percent)........

awwwwww say it ain't so john!

Cleese 'retires from performing'
Comedy legend John Cleese has said he is retiring from writing and performing sitcoms because he will never manage to top the success of Fawlty Towers.
The Monty Python star will concentrate instead on publishing a book on the history of comedy and will hold classes explaining how to make people laugh.
The 66-year-old told The Times he would be a "comedy professor" to "teach young talent some rules of the game".
He said too much TV comedy was poorly written and aimed at US teenagers.
The Monty Python star criticised modern performers who aren't aware of the "basic principles" of comedy.
"It is very rare today to see someone with that grasp of old-fashioned comedy," he said.
"The last truly excellent performance I saw was Eddie Izzard. But Ricky Gervais is also a match for the great American sitcoms." .......

picture: steppinout1.co.uk

i admit, i LOVE michael musto

in the village voice

i haven't read his column in months (just because i haven't. no particular reason) but today i found this!

At the Garden of Ono party for the compact fashion mag The Daily Mini, I kept wittily screaming, "Show me the Mini!" Sure enough, I got one and was even handed a Mini ha-ha by one of the mag's writers: "In school, guess what they're gonna call SHILOH PITT? Piloh Shit."

i swore i wouldn't mention the you know whos who went to africa to have their bambino. i could care less about them. i fume when i see them in the news while our men and women are being maimed and killed in iraq. at any rate, that joke is the ABSOLUTE BEST. it MADE MY WEEK for sure

photo: goldentrailer.com

justice is blind

and it appears she also has a dildo gag in her mouth

Liberty Beat Closing Our Courts Crying 'state secrets,' the administration seals the courts to avoid scrutiny
by Nat HentoffJune 9th, 2006 5:35 PM

"We have long made clear that a state of war is not a blank check for the president when it comes to the rights of American citizens." Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Hamdi v. Rumsfeld, 2004 .......

............With Congress refusing to hold the executive branch accountable for even its clear violation of the law in unleashing the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on us—and also collect all our phone records—only the courts remain to guard the constitutional separation of powers.
As James Banford, the leading authority on the out-of-control NSA and our other intelligence agencies, says:
"You can't get any oversight or checks or balances. Congress is protecting the White House, and the White House can do whatever it wants." (Emphasis added.) ..........

equal rights for women

it ain't happening here (of course not on the level it isn't happening elsewhere) so we all know there is NO WAY it's going to happen in iran.... i can't wait until THIS country becomes our new best friend (in a year or two)


Iran police beat women activists

Police in Iran have beaten a small group of women activists trying to hold a protest for greater legal rights in the biggest square of the capital.
Several people were arrested by the security forces who moved in almost as soon as activists started gathering.
About 20 women sat on the grass in Haft-e Tir Square in central Teheran and began to sing a feminist song.
They were calling for equal divorce and custody rights and a ban on polygamy.
The BBC's Frances Harrison in Tehran says the police who massively outnumbered the protestors, almost immediately started beating the women to disperse them.............

stop me if i'm wrong but

isn't saudi arabia one of THE richest nations in the entire universe? why then were we sending them money? granted, it wasn't much BUT damn, they have ENOUGH of their OWN money!!! (i don't mind sharing with countries that REALLY need it mind you). i didn't realize we were until i came across this. we decided NOW they are a nation of hate and intolerance? NOW? what's up with that? how much money have we sent them in the past i wonder? money that COULD have and SHOULD have been used to help rebuild (including lives) after 9/11 and rebuild (including lives) after katrina. these are JUST TWO examples. i am so taken aback WE were planning on sending money to such a rich nation. and another why here. WHY is this news only found in the jeruselm post and no where else? why couldn't i find it in an american paper?

The US House of Representatives decided Friday to cut foreign aid to Saudi Arabia due to its teaching of intolerance and the lack of action by the kingdom in preventing funding of terror groups. The measure still needs to be approved by Senate, which has not yet voted on its version of the foreign aid bill.
The House voted 312 to 97 to leave out of the bill $420 million slated for Saudi Arabia. The money was to be used for classrooms and educational needs...........

War on Terror

Title: Congress eliminates aid to Saudis Source: Jeruselm Post & AP Published: Jun 10, 2006 Author: none given Post Date: 2006-06-10 06:43:56 by Becket Saunders The House of Representatives voted Friday to forbid US aid to Saudi Arabia, a statement of far more symbolic importance than economic.
The 312-97 vote was to eliminate $420,000 from the $21.3 billion Foreign Operations Appropriations bill. The money has financed $20,000 in military training and education and a $400,000 anti-terrorism program.
President George W. Bush considers Saudi Arabia a vital ally in his campaign against terror, which he began after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. The Bush administration has praised the Saudis for cracking down on terror operations within their borders but has complained about women's rights and other aspects of Saudi domestic policies.........

well you KNOW i HAD to post this

he 'administered' a bockwurst to the woman? oh my! it's NOT funny but yet, in a sick way IT IS

The wurst way to go?

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German police have arrested a man on suspicion of murdering a woman with a sausage.
Prosecutors and police said the 50-year-old was arrested after the woman's body was discovered in an apartment in Zwickau, eastern Germany. They said she had choked on a Bockwurst, a popular large German sausage.
The prosecutors said the man had given a patchy account of events, acknowledging that he may have "administered" a Bockwurst to the woman. They are now working to establish exactly what happened in the run up to her death.

no laptop this weekend

so i didn't blog. this morning while combing through stories, i really didn't find anything i wanted to post. same old same old for the most part. UNTIL i came across this story. it's not earth shattering, it's simply interesting. a character study sort of..........

Most Notorious -- Erik van der Ryjgyn's fascinating - but fictional - life fooled all

By Leslie Slape
Jun 11, 2006 - 12:38:11 am PDT

In 1949-50, Erik van der Ryjgyn was the darling of the Longview-Kelso area. Fans of the KWLK news broadcaster tuned in every night to hear his delicious British accent. He was wined and dined by the upper crust, and his fascinating life put him in demand as a public speaker."I still remember the buzz that was around Longview when he was here," said Buffe Antilla, who knew him only by reputation. "He seemed to refresh the entire community with all the things he had done.""He was supposedly an interpreter for the U.N.," said Holly Bishop, whose wife, Bobbie, worked for van der Ryjgyn's dentist. "She said he told her he was a concert pianist."Van der Ryjgyn (pronounced RY-gin) claimed to be from South Africa and said he also lived in Kenya, where his family had an import-export business. He presented himself as an expert on African criminal law when he spoke to the Cowlitz County Bar Association.But Erik van der Ryjgyn was a sham, from his highfalutin history to his posh accent to his exotic Afrikaner name.'As though they were hosting royalty'.......

.........Many folks were hornswoggled."Women adored him. He spoke at women's clubs and service clubs," said Bishop, who said he never had any reason to disbelieve van der Ryjgyn. "He was very suave, he was smooth, a very likable young fella. He fooled everybody in the city."Bishop said van der Ryjgyn was even made an honorary deputy sheriff............