Posts
DEBTOCRACY- A GREEK FILM WITH LESSONS FOR IRELAND
13 years ago
Saturday, January 31, 2009
"Quel con, ce préfet."
wow king george has a bud in france. it's king nic0las! i fully expect to hear 'OFF WITH THEIR HEADS' any minute now
Officials sacked after Sarkozy hears jeers
By John Lichfield in Paris
To jeer President Nicolas Sarkozy has become a serious offence, punishable by the sacking of any official who allows the boos to reach the presidential ears. The police chief and the most senior national government official in the Manche département (county) of lower Normandy have been fired in successive days, to the fury of local politicians, including members of M. Sarkozy's own party.
The officials' offence was to fail to shield the President from the boos and whistles of protesters when he made a speech in the town of Saint-Lô earlier this month. Their dismissal has fuelled a debate about President Sarkozy's increasingly autocratic behaviour. Two high-profile ministers from ethnic minorities, appointed by M. Sarkozy to much fanfare in 2007, have been placed in the political deep-freeze by the President in recent weeks. Last year he ordered the firing of a successful Corsican police chief after nationalist protesters had invaded the garden of his friend, the actor Christian Clavier............
Officials sacked after Sarkozy hears jeers
By John Lichfield in Paris
To jeer President Nicolas Sarkozy has become a serious offence, punishable by the sacking of any official who allows the boos to reach the presidential ears. The police chief and the most senior national government official in the Manche département (county) of lower Normandy have been fired in successive days, to the fury of local politicians, including members of M. Sarkozy's own party.
The officials' offence was to fail to shield the President from the boos and whistles of protesters when he made a speech in the town of Saint-Lô earlier this month. Their dismissal has fuelled a debate about President Sarkozy's increasingly autocratic behaviour. Two high-profile ministers from ethnic minorities, appointed by M. Sarkozy to much fanfare in 2007, have been placed in the political deep-freeze by the President in recent weeks. Last year he ordered the firing of a successful Corsican police chief after nationalist protesters had invaded the garden of his friend, the actor Christian Clavier............
this is rich
(as in smooth creamy RICH peanut butter)
the FDA is investigating the peanut company?????? turns out the FDA knew about problems a WHILE AGO AND DID NOTHING ABOUT IT. who the fuck is going to investigate the FDA? this is absolutely a farce
FDA Investigating Peanut Company Behind Recall
Firm Could Face Criminal Charges
By Rob Stein
Washington Post Staff Writer
The federal government has begun a criminal investigation of the peanut company responsible for an outbreak of salmonella illness that has sickened hundreds of people, killed at least eight and prompted one of the largest food recalls in U.S. history.
The Food and Drug Administration is working with the Justice Department to explore possible criminal charges against the Peanut Corporation of America of Lynchburg, Va., which shipped contaminated products made in its plant in Blakely, Ga., officials said yesterday.
"There is a criminal investigation that has been initiated through our office of criminal investigation at the FDA. They have to work through the Department of Justice to develop a case and prosecute, if that's what it comes to," said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. "It's an open investigation." ...........
the FDA is investigating the peanut company?????? turns out the FDA knew about problems a WHILE AGO AND DID NOTHING ABOUT IT. who the fuck is going to investigate the FDA? this is absolutely a farce
FDA Investigating Peanut Company Behind Recall
Firm Could Face Criminal Charges
By Rob Stein
Washington Post Staff Writer
The federal government has begun a criminal investigation of the peanut company responsible for an outbreak of salmonella illness that has sickened hundreds of people, killed at least eight and prompted one of the largest food recalls in U.S. history.
The Food and Drug Administration is working with the Justice Department to explore possible criminal charges against the Peanut Corporation of America of Lynchburg, Va., which shipped contaminated products made in its plant in Blakely, Ga., officials said yesterday.
"There is a criminal investigation that has been initiated through our office of criminal investigation at the FDA. They have to work through the Department of Justice to develop a case and prosecute, if that's what it comes to," said Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. "It's an open investigation." ...........
Friday, January 30, 2009
you can't help but smile
and aretha if you're reading this (and i know you ARE) - DONATE THAT LID. don't be giving us excuses. that hat BELONGS in a museum (it sure as shite doesn't belong on ANYONE'S head)
Smithsonian asks for Aretha's hat. Yes, *that* hat
Posted by Luciana Lopez, The Oregonian
The Smithsonian's putting together an exhibit on the historic Obama inauguration -- so of course they want Aretha Franklin's hat. The Swarovski-crystal-encrusted, big-bowed, hat-line-inspiring chapeau (to use Aretha's own word -- so chic!) has since acquired a sort of following of its own.
And as if Aretha needed help making a statement, the Smithsonian's now planning to give the hat an even wider audience. Will she? Won't she?
The full release:
The Inaugural ceremony of President Barack Obama on January 20 had the world talking -- about the official oath of office, the President's Inaugural address, the record breaking attendance, the adorable First Family, Aretha Franklin's gospel-infused rendition of the anthem "My Country 'Tis of Thee," and "the hat." The Smithsonian Institution has now asked Franklin if she will donate the now iconic Inaugural hat to the museum to become a part of an exhibit of President Obama's Inauguration, joining other items scheduled for display including First Lady Michelle Obama's Inaugural night gown. Commenting on the Smithsonian's request, Franklin says, "I am considering it. It would be hard to part with my chapeau since it was such a crowning moment in history. I would like to smile every time I look back at it and remember what a great moment it was in American and African-American history. Ten cheers for President Obama." The now-famous bow-tied, Swarovski jewel-studded, heather grey wool hat worn by the Queen of Soul seemingly took on a life of its own, becoming an overnight sensation worldwide in the media and cyberspace....................big ol' bunch of hat pics
and
a flickr pool o' hats
image: Obamicon.me
i begged y'all to come breed with me
here
i am known as 'rose bush' so look for me
or breed with me on facebook (same handle)
and i'm still begging you. i DID reach my goal state. i got assigned a NEW goal state now though. some COME BREED WITH ME
via the routes game
here's some info from the site (see it's NOT about sex at all, it's about genetics and dna and the like)
..............
Genetic testing scans DNA for genetic variants related to, eg, disease, ancestry and looks. The decision to be tested is a biggie. Could you take being told you have an above average chance of, say, getting Alzheimer’s or going blind?
It’s thought that Melanoma skin cancer is caused by an inherited faulty gene in only a few cases. But still you’re more likely to contract it if, like Katherine, you have the genetic trait of pale skin that burns easily.
Lupus is an incurable disease where the immune system attacks normal tissue. You’re up to 12% more likely to get it if there’s a family history, so Katherine might carry an inherited ‘Lupus gene’.
Cancer may run in your family if, eg, there are several cancers of the same type or several cases of rare cancers. But don't panic: only 5-10 percent of cancers are thought to be caused by faulty inherited genes.
Genetics Development December 2008: Britain’s first baby screened to be ‘breast cancer gene’-free is due.
Genetics Development June 08: Scientists find evidence of an association between Lupus and certain gene mutations.
i like this video
found it on mason-dixon knitting (yes, i said mason-dixon KNITTING) who found it via Andrew Sullivan
ok this is THE coolest thing
i've seen in a LONG time! watch it. really. i'm not kidding. watch!
Shape-shifting robots take form
25 April 2008 by Jeff Hecht
Shape-shifting robots take form
25 April 2008 by Jeff Hecht
Robot that reassembles itself after being kicked
i'm SO smiling!
i don't have to jazz this post up with anything else. no funny quips, no nasty quips. nada. president obama did it all! (and we ALL thank you)
Obama Signs the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
Posted by: CaraPresident Barack Obama has just signed his first piece of legislation — and in a move that will hold much symbolism for women and all invested in their equality, it was the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.
Ledbetter, now 70, became an icon for Obama during his campaign for the White House. Obama escorted her into the East Room this morning for the signing ceremony, and led a prolonged round of applause for her as they stood together at the podium.
“We are upholding one of this nation’s first principles: that we are all created equal and each deserve a chance to pursue our own version of happiness,” Obama said before signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, which makes clear that workers may bring a lawsuit for up to six months after they receive any paycheck that they allege is discriminatory.
” . . . While this bill bears her name, Lilly knows this story isn’t just about her,” Obama said. “It’s the story of women across this country still earning just 78 cents for every dollar men earn — women of color even less — which means that today, in the year 2009, countless women are still losing thousands of dollars in salary, income and retirement savings over the course of a lifetime.”..........
tolu olorunda says it
waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay better than i do (although i DO say it ALL of the time)
faux 'news' sucks a big one
Fox News Is Using the Obamas to Perfect Its Racist Attacks on Black America
By Tolu Olorunda, The Black Commentator.
"… The matter is that, when Bill O'Reilly gets Juan Williams, the eternal happy Negro, on his show to congratulate him on his racism, that's like Hugh Hefner getting a stripper to come on the show and tell him that he's not a sexist.” --Syracuse University Professor Boyce Watkins, on CNN (Sept. 26, 2007).
"Over 600,000 people of every color across the country are demanding that Fox stop their racist attacks on the Obama family and on black America. We already know that Fox is not a news network ... Fox poisons this country every time they air racist propaganda and try to call it news." -- Hip-hop artist Nas, with ColorOfChange.org, upon delivering boxes with more than 600,000 anti-Fox News signatures at the network's headquarters.
Very few readers are shocked to hear that Fox News hates the first family, and black people in general. Over the years, but most intensely within the last two, the Roger Ailes-controlled cesspool has unabashedly spewed, propagated and transmitted the most repugnant lies ever heard about President Barack Obama, his family and background.
Readers might recall that it was Fox News which first put out the lie, perhaps giddily, that Obama was schooled in a madrassa -- with the intimation that being so, though untrue, is akin to one blemished with the mark of the beast.
It is also Fox News which has consistently supported such unashamed bigots like Don Imus and Duane "Dog" Chapman. With this backdrop, Fox News has successfully set a record for being the only TV network willing to go as far as the unthinkable suggests -- in favor of accruing ratings.
With the mainstream appeal of Bill O’Reilly and Sean Hannity, the cable channel has quickly become a leading voice in public discourse. In the last few years, responsible readers have come to realize that, when applied to Fox News, Stan Lee was wrong to think that "with great power comes great responsibility."..........
i understand
the signs are out there for a reason. i understand it's a crime to mess with them. i in no way shape or form condone messing with the signs BUT if i saw them, i sure as shite would have laughed my ass off!
Construction signs warn
of zombies
Hackers change public safety message
* Shannon Wolfson
AUSTIN (KXAN) - Austin drivers making their morning commute were in for a surprise when two road signs on a busy stretch of road were taken over by hackers. The signs near the intersection of Lamar and Martin Luther King boulevards usually warn drivers about upcoming construction, but Monday morning they warned of "zombies ahead."
"I thought it was pretty funny," said University of Texas sophomore Jane Shin, who saw the signs while driving down Lamar Bouelvard with friends Sunday night. "We wondered who did it."
The City of Austin does not own the signs, but they are responsible for the message. The contractor on the construction project owns the signs. A city spokesperson said the hacked messages were only up for a few hours, until the construction project manager saw them during his morning commute and immediately ordered them to be changed back.........
Construction signs warn
of zombies
Hackers change public safety message
* Shannon Wolfson
AUSTIN (KXAN) - Austin drivers making their morning commute were in for a surprise when two road signs on a busy stretch of road were taken over by hackers. The signs near the intersection of Lamar and Martin Luther King boulevards usually warn drivers about upcoming construction, but Monday morning they warned of "zombies ahead."
"I thought it was pretty funny," said University of Texas sophomore Jane Shin, who saw the signs while driving down Lamar Bouelvard with friends Sunday night. "We wondered who did it."
The City of Austin does not own the signs, but they are responsible for the message. The contractor on the construction project owns the signs. A city spokesperson said the hacked messages were only up for a few hours, until the construction project manager saw them during his morning commute and immediately ordered them to be changed back.........
why would 32 people vote AGAINST this?
i'm guessing those 32 people had no problem tossing money at king george so he could rip the guts out of iraq. i'm guessing those 32 people do not believe in COMPREHENSIVE SEX EDUCATION. i'm guessing those 32 people don't have a soul
a sick child is a sick child - no matter where her parents are from
Senate Passes Health Insurance Bill for Children
Immigrant Clause Opens Rift
Washington Post Staff Writer
a sick child is a sick child - no matter where her parents are from
Senate Passes Health Insurance Bill for Children
Immigrant Clause Opens Rift
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Senate overwhelmingly approved legislation yesterday to provide health insurance to 11 million low-income children, a bill that would for the first time spend federal money to cover children and pregnant women who are legal immigrants.
The State Children's Health Insurance Program, which is aimed at families earning too much money to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford private insurance, currently covers close to 7 million youngsters at a cost of $25 billion.
Lawmakers voted 66 to 32, largely along party lines, to renew the joint state-federal program and spend an additional $32.8 billion to expand coverage to 4 million more children. The expansion would be paid for by raising the cigarette tax from 39 cents a pack to $1.
The House approved similar legislation on Jan. 14, and President Obama is expected to sign a final version as early as next week...........
Thursday, January 29, 2009
you decide for yourself
here's the ad itself
'Veggie Love': PETA's Banned Super Bowl Ad
i will warn you right now, there is another video that follows the ad that is NOT easy to watch. the embedded video right here does not have it, but if you go to PETA's site linked above, the video will play after the commercial.
now i'm not saying i LIKE the commercical's use of women in underwear or anything. i AM saying this commercical is no more 'naughty' or 'sexy' than most of the OTHER ads that will play on the superbowl. the shaving cream, the corn chip, the car, the website, the whatever. it's OK if you're using your tits and vag to sell shite, it's NOT ok to use your tits and vag to sell animal rights (is what the msm is saying)
Veggie Tales, It's Not: PETA's Super Bowl Ad Is Too Much for NBC to Stomach
By Lisa de Moraes
NBC has nixed a new Super Bowl ad from the animal rights activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals because the ad is too sexually explicit.
It shows beautiful women, dressed in sexy undies, getting very intimate.
With vegetables.
Particularly pumpkins. Total sex maniacs, those pumpkins.
"Studies Show Vegetarians Have Better Sex," reads the tag line.
The ad suggests that changing over to a healthier, vegetarian diet -- or, alternatively, dressing like a broccoli -- will help guys attract hot, horny models.
"Apparently, NBC has something against girls who love their veggies," PETA said of the rejection. NBC's list of images it wanted cut before the network would reconsider the ad "even made us blush!" PETA said prettily. .........
'Veggie Love': PETA's Banned Super Bowl Ad
i will warn you right now, there is another video that follows the ad that is NOT easy to watch. the embedded video right here does not have it, but if you go to PETA's site linked above, the video will play after the commercial.
now i'm not saying i LIKE the commercical's use of women in underwear or anything. i AM saying this commercical is no more 'naughty' or 'sexy' than most of the OTHER ads that will play on the superbowl. the shaving cream, the corn chip, the car, the website, the whatever. it's OK if you're using your tits and vag to sell shite, it's NOT ok to use your tits and vag to sell animal rights (is what the msm is saying)
Veggie Tales, It's Not: PETA's Super Bowl Ad Is Too Much for NBC to Stomach
By Lisa de Moraes
NBC has nixed a new Super Bowl ad from the animal rights activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals because the ad is too sexually explicit.
It shows beautiful women, dressed in sexy undies, getting very intimate.
With vegetables.
Particularly pumpkins. Total sex maniacs, those pumpkins.
"Studies Show Vegetarians Have Better Sex," reads the tag line.
The ad suggests that changing over to a healthier, vegetarian diet -- or, alternatively, dressing like a broccoli -- will help guys attract hot, horny models.
"Apparently, NBC has something against girls who love their veggies," PETA said of the rejection. NBC's list of images it wanted cut before the network would reconsider the ad "even made us blush!" PETA said prettily. .........
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
wow
the places we live
found via kottke org
.............
The Places We Live
The Places We Live features panoramic photos of slums, narrated by the people who live there (through translators). Really really engrossing. To access the stories in the restricting Flash interface, skip the intro, click on a city, and then on one of the households in the upper left corner................(which was found via boing boing)
picture: jonas bendiksen
you think stuff like the following story
is not important in the grand scheme of things. you're wrong it IS important. when one ignores science (and the environment in general) like king george and his good ol' boy network, one helps to destroy the earth. the earth is our home. that's why it's important. i don't believe in the rapture. i believe in a clean safe earth instead.
thank you king george and buds for fucking up the grand canyon too
Interior Ignored Science When Limiting Water to Grand Canyon
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Interior Department officials ignored key scientific findings when they limited water flows in the Grand Canyon to optimize generation of electric power there, risking damage to the ecology of the spectacular national landmark, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.
A Jan. 15 memo written by Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Steve Martin suggests that the department produced a flawed environmental assessment to defend its actions against environmentalists in court. The Grand Canyon Trust, an advocacy group, has sued Interior for reducing the flow of water from Glen Canyon Dam at night, when consumer demand for electricity is low, on the grounds that the policy hurts imperiled fish species such as the endangered humpback chub and erodes the canyon's beaches. ...........
thank you king george and buds for fucking up the grand canyon too
Interior Ignored Science When Limiting Water to Grand Canyon
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Interior Department officials ignored key scientific findings when they limited water flows in the Grand Canyon to optimize generation of electric power there, risking damage to the ecology of the spectacular national landmark, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.
A Jan. 15 memo written by Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Steve Martin suggests that the department produced a flawed environmental assessment to defend its actions against environmentalists in court. The Grand Canyon Trust, an advocacy group, has sued Interior for reducing the flow of water from Glen Canyon Dam at night, when consumer demand for electricity is low, on the grounds that the policy hurts imperiled fish species such as the endangered humpback chub and erodes the canyon's beaches. ...........
let me get this straight
a peanut processing plant, peanut corporation of america, KNEW there was salmonella in their products yet not only did they not reveal that to anyone (outside the plant that is) but they SOLD THEIR PRODUCTS to unwary customers (none of their products was actually sold to the public. it was sold to other manufacturers who used it to make other products sold directly to the public)? oh that's not even the shocking part. the shocking part is NO ONE EVEN KNOWS IF THAT'S ILLEGAL? come on now. of COURSE it's illegal (not to mention immoral). i'm not a lawyer and i know you can't KNOWINGLY poison anyone. (i hope the peanut corporation of america executives are glad they're not in china where some of the milk scandal people got sentences of death)
Peanut Processor Knowingly Sold Tainted Products
It Found Salmonella 12 Times
By Lyndsey Layton
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Georgia peanut plant linked to a salmonella outbreak that has killed eight people and sickened 500 more across the country knowingly shipped out contaminated peanut butter 12 times in the past two years, federal officials said yesterday. Officials at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which have been investigating the outbreak of salmonella illness, said yesterday that Peanut Corporation of America found salmonella in internal tests a dozen times in 2007 and 2008 but sold the products anyway, sometimes after getting a negative finding from a different laboratory.
Companies are not required to disclose their internal tests to either the FDA or state regulators, so health officials did not know of the problem. ...........
Peanut Processor Knowingly Sold Tainted Products
It Found Salmonella 12 Times
By Lyndsey Layton
Washington Post Staff Writer
The Georgia peanut plant linked to a salmonella outbreak that has killed eight people and sickened 500 more across the country knowingly shipped out contaminated peanut butter 12 times in the past two years, federal officials said yesterday. Officials at the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which have been investigating the outbreak of salmonella illness, said yesterday that Peanut Corporation of America found salmonella in internal tests a dozen times in 2007 and 2008 but sold the products anyway, sometimes after getting a negative finding from a different laboratory.
Companies are not required to disclose their internal tests to either the FDA or state regulators, so health officials did not know of the problem. ...........
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
559 million is NOTHING
to the good ol' boyz at halliburton. money well spent to make this go away (i won't forget though)
oh and i won't forget all the OTHER allegations against them either
Halliburton to pay $559 million to settle bribery probe
By Anna Driver
HOUSTON (Reuters) - Halliburton Co will pay a $559 million fine to end an investigation of its former KBR Inc unit if the U.S. government approves the settlement, the largest penalty against a U.S. company for charges of bribery under federal law.
Halliburton, once headed by former Vice President Dick Cheney, said it was awaiting final approval from the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle claims that KBR violated anti-bribery laws by paying kickbacks to Nigerian officials.
Under the settlement, Halliburton would pay $382 million to the Department of Justice and $177 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission in "disgorgement."
KBR did not comment on the proposed settlement. Halliburton said in regulatory filings last July that it was in settlement talks with the government..............
oh and i won't forget all the OTHER allegations against them either
Halliburton to pay $559 million to settle bribery probe
By Anna Driver
HOUSTON (Reuters) - Halliburton Co will pay a $559 million fine to end an investigation of its former KBR Inc unit if the U.S. government approves the settlement, the largest penalty against a U.S. company for charges of bribery under federal law.
Halliburton, once headed by former Vice President Dick Cheney, said it was awaiting final approval from the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission to settle claims that KBR violated anti-bribery laws by paying kickbacks to Nigerian officials.
Under the settlement, Halliburton would pay $382 million to the Department of Justice and $177 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission in "disgorgement."
KBR did not comment on the proposed settlement. Halliburton said in regulatory filings last July that it was in settlement talks with the government..............
why is it the airways are currently littered with
commercials for high fructose corn syrup? i was wondering that myself. while i have had no issues with it (other than it's a source of empty calories) i sure do NOW
Some heavy metal with that sweet roll?
The FDA sat on evidence of mercury-tainted high-fructose corn syrup
...................
Some heavy metal with that sweet roll?
The FDA sat on evidence of mercury-tainted high-fructose corn syrup
Posted by Tom Philpott
High-fructose corn syrup rose from obscurity to ubiquity starting in the late 1970s, borne up by an informal public-private partnership between grain-processing giant Archer Daniels Midland and the federal government. For me, HFCS is at best a highly processed, lavishly subsidized, calorie-heavy, nutritional vacuum...............................
Now comes news that makes even an HFCS cynic like me do a spit-take over my home-brewed morning coffee. Turns out that HFCS is commonly tainted with mercury -- a highly toxic substance -- according to a peer-reviewed report published by Environmental Health (abstract here; PDF of the must-read full text here.)
The Environmental Health study draws on samples of high-fructose corn syrup taken straight from the factory. But no one drinks the stuff straight. What about, say, cookies sweetened with HFCS? The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy plucked HFCS-containing products from supermarket shelves and tested them for mercury. The result?
Overall, we found detectable mercury in 17 of 55 samples, or around 31 percent
Traces of mercury turned up in name-brand products from makers including Quaker, Hunt's, Manwich, Hershey's, Smucker's, Kraft, Nutri-Grain, and Yoplait.............
as they say in the commercial below GET THE FACTS (as in ask the manufacturer if there is mercury in their hfcs)according to the power company
it's the NEIGHBOR'S fault this 93 year old man froze to death inside his OWN home (because that very same power company shut off the electricity on the 93 year old man's home)
i'm not sure, but i believe in connecticut it's against the law to turn the power off in the winter (if it's NOT, it SHOULD be)
i understand utilities are in the bid-nez of making money. i GET it, i really do. but to shut the power off to a 93 year old in JANUARY in michigan? NO that is NOT right. the very LEAST they (the power company) could have done is inform some social service agency they were cutting power to mr schur.
and robert belleman, may you and your family never know the pain mr schur went through. may you never go through rough times. may you, at age 93 have someone to watch over YOU day and night (i mean that. i mean no harm to ANYONE. i just want robert belleman grow an effing HEART inside his soul-less self)
.
Man freezes to death after city limits electricity
93-year-old man had more than $1,000 in unpaid power bills
BAY CITY, Mich. - A 93-year-old man froze to death inside his home just days after the municipal power company restricted his use of electricity because of unpaid bills, officials said.
i'm not sure, but i believe in connecticut it's against the law to turn the power off in the winter (if it's NOT, it SHOULD be)
i understand utilities are in the bid-nez of making money. i GET it, i really do. but to shut the power off to a 93 year old in JANUARY in michigan? NO that is NOT right. the very LEAST they (the power company) could have done is inform some social service agency they were cutting power to mr schur.
and robert belleman, may you and your family never know the pain mr schur went through. may you never go through rough times. may you, at age 93 have someone to watch over YOU day and night (i mean that. i mean no harm to ANYONE. i just want robert belleman grow an effing HEART inside his soul-less self)
.
Man freezes to death after city limits electricity
93-year-old man had more than $1,000 in unpaid power bills
BAY CITY, Mich. - A 93-year-old man froze to death inside his home just days after the municipal power company restricted his use of electricity because of unpaid bills, officials said.
Marvin E. Schur died "a slow, painful death," said Kanu Virani, Oakland County's deputy chief medical examiner, who performed the autopsy.
Neighbors discovered Schur's body on Jan. 17. They said the indoor temperature was below 32 degrees at the time, The Bay City Times reported Monday.......
..........Belleman said city workers keep the limiter on houses for 10 days, then shut off power entirely if the homeowner hasn't paid utility bills or arranged to do so.
He said Bay City Electric Light & Power's policies will be reviewed, but he didn't believe the city did anything wrong.
"I've said this before and some of my colleagues have said this: Neighbors need to keep an eye on neighbors," Belleman said. "When they think there's something wrong, they should contact the appropriate agency or city department."
Schur had no children and his wife had died several years ago..............
just so you know
i work for a very large international company. we had layoffs announced the week before last. lots of them. under 100 in my particular location, still, that means just under 100 people i see nearly every day lost their jobs. (note: my company does have a fair severance package but that doesn't make it any easier). i didn't lose my job (THIS TIME) but what about NEXT time? but lots and lots of others lost their jobs in other locations.
and then this was in the papers yesterday. the corporations are shocking and the figures are staggering.
we really ARE on the edge here. i don't know if everyone realizes that. we're CLOSE. no work, no housing, no food.
Layoffs Cut Deeper Into Economy
As Recession Hits Most Industries, Corporate Giants Slash Jobs
By Annys Shin and Neil Irwin
Washington Post Staff Writers
The nation's employers, including some of its largest and most sturdy, announced plans yesterday to slash more than 55,000 jobs, a staggering one-day toll that highlighted how quickly layoffs are accelerating and how widely misery is spreading throughout the labor market. The cuts extended to companies that were once considered bright spots in the U.S. economy. Construction equipment maker Caterpillar, whose business last year was bolstered by strong exports, said it would cut 20,000 jobs. Pfizer, one of the giants of a health-care sector that had until recently seemed immune from the downturn, said it would cut 8,000. ...........
and then this was in the papers yesterday. the corporations are shocking and the figures are staggering.
we really ARE on the edge here. i don't know if everyone realizes that. we're CLOSE. no work, no housing, no food.
Layoffs Cut Deeper Into Economy
As Recession Hits Most Industries, Corporate Giants Slash Jobs
By Annys Shin and Neil Irwin
Washington Post Staff Writers
The nation's employers, including some of its largest and most sturdy, announced plans yesterday to slash more than 55,000 jobs, a staggering one-day toll that highlighted how quickly layoffs are accelerating and how widely misery is spreading throughout the labor market. The cuts extended to companies that were once considered bright spots in the U.S. economy. Construction equipment maker Caterpillar, whose business last year was bolstered by strong exports, said it would cut 20,000 jobs. Pfizer, one of the giants of a health-care sector that had until recently seemed immune from the downturn, said it would cut 8,000. ...........
Monday, January 26, 2009
it's NOT art to me
it's the objectification of women all over again. nothing more than tits and a vag. found this on boing boing where one of the commentors got it EXACTLY right:
"
#1 posted by Teapunk , January 25, 2009 3:19 PM
A word of advice, sisters: When you go home with your date and see something like that, run.
Change your phone number and watch Boxing Helena."
here's the story link
speaker system built into mannequin
Here's Bob Turek's MP3 player speaker system, built into a mannequin.
speakers, fiberglas mannequin, hand built stereo amplifier36" x18" x12"
2008..........
it's just like one of those science fiction shows
where the aliens have infiltrated us by LOOKING just like us, but still being their alien (bad) selves on the inside
that's JUST want a lot of king george's appointees and friends are. they've burrowed deep inside and won't be taken without a fight
(and it's not that i think all aliens are BAD. i don't. if an alien is doing a good job, is honest AND INTELLIGENT. well then, i don't mind if they live among us)
A Loyal Bushie Burrows Into Obama's System
By Elana Schor
The Bush administration's participation in the personnel tactic known as "burrowing" has been well-reported in recent weeks. The practice isn't unique to the Bush crowd; during presidential transitions, political appointees eager to stay on the government payroll often wriggle their way into secure civil service positions -- despite the differing political beliefs of the White House's new occupant.
But because the central objective of burrowing is for political appointees to fly under the radar while Washington changes hands, it's often hard to tell when the practice is actually occurring. Consider the case of Kathie Olsen, who just made a very curious move: going from the No. 2 post at the National Science Foundation to the far less influential job of "senior advisor" in the NSF's Office of Information and Resource Management.
As Science magazine observes, Olsen had already submitted her resignation to the Obama administration and would have been out the door had she not slipped into her new, seemingly secure post. And this isn't just any Bush appointee avoiding the need to find a new job -- Olsen was at the forefront of the former president's systematic denial of the human causes of climate change.................
that's JUST want a lot of king george's appointees and friends are. they've burrowed deep inside and won't be taken without a fight
(and it's not that i think all aliens are BAD. i don't. if an alien is doing a good job, is honest AND INTELLIGENT. well then, i don't mind if they live among us)
A Loyal Bushie Burrows Into Obama's System
By Elana Schor
The Bush administration's participation in the personnel tactic known as "burrowing" has been well-reported in recent weeks. The practice isn't unique to the Bush crowd; during presidential transitions, political appointees eager to stay on the government payroll often wriggle their way into secure civil service positions -- despite the differing political beliefs of the White House's new occupant.
But because the central objective of burrowing is for political appointees to fly under the radar while Washington changes hands, it's often hard to tell when the practice is actually occurring. Consider the case of Kathie Olsen, who just made a very curious move: going from the No. 2 post at the National Science Foundation to the far less influential job of "senior advisor" in the NSF's Office of Information and Resource Management.
As Science magazine observes, Olsen had already submitted her resignation to the Obama administration and would have been out the door had she not slipped into her new, seemingly secure post. And this isn't just any Bush appointee avoiding the need to find a new job -- Olsen was at the forefront of the former president's systematic denial of the human causes of climate change.................
two of my favorite subjects
and by favorite, i mean two that make me spew deadly flames from my mouth, ears, eyes and nose
evangelicals (of ANY type of religion. this story happens to be about christians but it doesn't matter to me. they're ALL alike) and women as second class citizens (i.e. submitting to their man. i.e. not being worth anything without a man. i.e. keeping your mouth shut and your brain turned off)
Women's 'Liberation' Through Submission: An Evangelical Anti-Feminism Is Born
By Kathryn Joyce, Religion Dispatches.
This October, more than 6,000 women gathered in Chicago for the True Woman Conference ’08: a stadium-style event to promote what its proponents call “biblical womanhood,” “complementarianism,” or -- most bluntly -- “the patriarchy movement.”
Women gathering to support the patriarchy movement? It’s evangelical counterculture at its most contrarian.
The Associated Baptist Press explains the relationship of biblical womanhood to feminism, highlighting an ambitious initiative that arose from the meeting: a signature drive seeking 100,000 women to endorse its “True Woman Manifesto,” which, the ABP writes, aims “at sparking a counterrevolution to the feminist movement of the 1960s.”
To outside observers of the patriarchy movement, the starkness of the calls for gender hierarchy often seem amusingly outdated (not to mention historically misleading: feminist blogs Feministing and Pandagon have deftly dismantled some of the speakers’ Leave it to Beaver idealizations of the 1950s as a time when women were universally protected).............
evangelicals (of ANY type of religion. this story happens to be about christians but it doesn't matter to me. they're ALL alike) and women as second class citizens (i.e. submitting to their man. i.e. not being worth anything without a man. i.e. keeping your mouth shut and your brain turned off)
Women's 'Liberation' Through Submission: An Evangelical Anti-Feminism Is Born
By Kathryn Joyce, Religion Dispatches.
This October, more than 6,000 women gathered in Chicago for the True Woman Conference ’08: a stadium-style event to promote what its proponents call “biblical womanhood,” “complementarianism,” or -- most bluntly -- “the patriarchy movement.”
Women gathering to support the patriarchy movement? It’s evangelical counterculture at its most contrarian.
The Associated Baptist Press explains the relationship of biblical womanhood to feminism, highlighting an ambitious initiative that arose from the meeting: a signature drive seeking 100,000 women to endorse its “True Woman Manifesto,” which, the ABP writes, aims “at sparking a counterrevolution to the feminist movement of the 1960s.”
To outside observers of the patriarchy movement, the starkness of the calls for gender hierarchy often seem amusingly outdated (not to mention historically misleading: feminist blogs Feministing and Pandagon have deftly dismantled some of the speakers’ Leave it to Beaver idealizations of the 1950s as a time when women were universally protected).............
Sunday, January 25, 2009
the three youtube videos are STILL available
so please watch them NOW, before you know who takes them down
the state of healthcare here is deplorable. it's embarrassing. it's dangerous.
the rich ALWAYS get richer while rome burns
BBC documentary takes on Obama's plans for American health care system
Nick Cargo
A January 19 episode of BBC One's Panorama, the world's longest running television documentary show, tackles the dismal state of health care in the United States, the lengths to which its estimated 45 million uninsured citizens will go to in pursuit of care, the pharmaceutical industry's rigged pricing against the American patient, and the insurance industry's efforts to deny care whenever possible............
..........President Obama faces a difficult task to deliver on his promises of change, the segment explains, the country divided between the "super rich" and the "new poor," and lobbyists putting their power to work to prevent reforms from taking place. Also, 533 members of Congress, out of 535, have received campaign contributions from within the health sector.
............
the state of healthcare here is deplorable. it's embarrassing. it's dangerous.
the rich ALWAYS get richer while rome burns
BBC documentary takes on Obama's plans for American health care system
Nick Cargo
A January 19 episode of BBC One's Panorama, the world's longest running television documentary show, tackles the dismal state of health care in the United States, the lengths to which its estimated 45 million uninsured citizens will go to in pursuit of care, the pharmaceutical industry's rigged pricing against the American patient, and the insurance industry's efforts to deny care whenever possible............
..........President Obama faces a difficult task to deliver on his promises of change, the segment explains, the country divided between the "super rich" and the "new poor," and lobbyists putting their power to work to prevent reforms from taking place. Also, 533 members of Congress, out of 535, have received campaign contributions from within the health sector.
............
lovely!
whip up brings us
quilts for obama
here's just one:
image: Susan Shie
Exhibition: ‘President Obama: A Celebration in Art Quilts’ at Cafritz Art Center, 150 King St., Silver Spring, MD. From February 9 to March 5, 2009 - Opening Reception: Friday, February 13th
quilts for obama
here's just one:
image: Susan Shie
Exhibition: ‘President Obama: A Celebration in Art Quilts’ at Cafritz Art Center, 150 King St., Silver Spring, MD. From February 9 to March 5, 2009 - Opening Reception: Friday, February 13th
fisting?
question: how the fuck can one be a 'sexpert' and not know what FISTING means? well one CAN be a 'sexpert' and not know what FISTING means if one is on FAUX 'NEWS' i guess
Fox News "sexpert": Obamas Do A Lot of "Fisting."
i try my darndest to avoid writing about her
i restrained when she was all over the news the past couple of weeks (note: she was in the news because she has not been getting any press of late and decided she didn't like that. soooooooooooo she has been giving more interviews in the past couple of weeks than the whole time she was running as the republican vice presidential candidate. she's been giving stupid as shite interviews as well. nothing newsworthy. just the same old crap no one cares about).
well i have to post THIS story because it involves something i care about. the earth and it's creatures - both of which are dying due to the human populations.
Palin: Don't Save the Whales
................In 1994, there were some 650 Cook Inlet belugas living off the coast of Anchorage, but their numbers were nearly halved by 1997. This sharp decline was largely attributed to overharvesting by Native hunters, and by 2005 this already small whale population reached an all-time low of 278, by one government estimate. Presently, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimate the number of Cook Inlet belugas at 375.
In 2000, the whales were protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, but government scientists eventually concluded that this wasn't enough. "In spite of protections already in place, Cook Inlet beluga whales are not recovering,” James Balsiger, the acting assistant administrator for the NOAA’s Fisheries Service, said in October, announcing that the whales had received endangered species protection.
Palin begs to differ. Her administration argues that that the belugas are faring just fine under the protections in place, and the population is even beginning to show signs of recovering. For this reason, the state of Alaska contends that additional regulation is unnecessary. “The State of Alaska has worked cooperatively with the federal government to protect and conserve beluga whales in Cook Inlet,” Palin said last week. “This listing decision didn’t take those efforts into account as required by law.”
At the heart of Palin's objections are concerns that additional safeguards will interfere with oil and gas development, among other lucrative projects. “I am especially concerned that an unnecessary federal listing and designation of critical habitat would do serious long-term damage to the vibrant economy of the Cook Inlet area,” Palin said in 2007. Similar fears led Palin's administration to launch a legal challenge in August to the listing of polar bears as a threatened species. (And it was no surprise when a host of business groups, including the American Petroleum Institute, followed her lead. The cases have have been consolidated, and the litigation is ongoing.) ...............
and this, coincidentially was in the wapo
U.S., Japan Negotiate Over Whaling Limits
New Type of Hunting May Be Allowed
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
The United States is initiating a closed-door negotiation that could open up new areas to whale hunting for the first time in decades, part of an attempt to end a long-standing impasse over whaling limits with Japan, the world's most avid whaling nation.
The tentative plan, outlined in documents obtained by The Washington Post, seeks to achieve a breakthrough in the dispute that has raged since the International Whaling Commission voted in 1986 to ban commercial whaling. Faced with the reality that Japan and its allies have continued to hunt whales and have succeeded in blocking new conservation efforts, commission Chairman William Hogarth -- an appointee of President George W. Bush -- has been trying this weekend in Hawaii to craft a pact that would permit a new type of "coastal whaling" in exchange for a commitment by Japan to scale back its "scientific" whale hunts.
The proposal is running into stiff opposition from whaling opponents, however. ......
and i've posted it SEVERAL times before, but i'm going to continue to post it
well i have to post THIS story because it involves something i care about. the earth and it's creatures - both of which are dying due to the human populations.
Palin: Don't Save the Whales
................In 1994, there were some 650 Cook Inlet belugas living off the coast of Anchorage, but their numbers were nearly halved by 1997. This sharp decline was largely attributed to overharvesting by Native hunters, and by 2005 this already small whale population reached an all-time low of 278, by one government estimate. Presently, scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) estimate the number of Cook Inlet belugas at 375.
In 2000, the whales were protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, but government scientists eventually concluded that this wasn't enough. "In spite of protections already in place, Cook Inlet beluga whales are not recovering,” James Balsiger, the acting assistant administrator for the NOAA’s Fisheries Service, said in October, announcing that the whales had received endangered species protection.
Palin begs to differ. Her administration argues that that the belugas are faring just fine under the protections in place, and the population is even beginning to show signs of recovering. For this reason, the state of Alaska contends that additional regulation is unnecessary. “The State of Alaska has worked cooperatively with the federal government to protect and conserve beluga whales in Cook Inlet,” Palin said last week. “This listing decision didn’t take those efforts into account as required by law.”
At the heart of Palin's objections are concerns that additional safeguards will interfere with oil and gas development, among other lucrative projects. “I am especially concerned that an unnecessary federal listing and designation of critical habitat would do serious long-term damage to the vibrant economy of the Cook Inlet area,” Palin said in 2007. Similar fears led Palin's administration to launch a legal challenge in August to the listing of polar bears as a threatened species. (And it was no surprise when a host of business groups, including the American Petroleum Institute, followed her lead. The cases have have been consolidated, and the litigation is ongoing.) ...............
and this, coincidentially was in the wapo
U.S., Japan Negotiate Over Whaling Limits
New Type of Hunting May Be Allowed
By Juliet Eilperin
Washington Post Staff Writer
The United States is initiating a closed-door negotiation that could open up new areas to whale hunting for the first time in decades, part of an attempt to end a long-standing impasse over whaling limits with Japan, the world's most avid whaling nation.
The tentative plan, outlined in documents obtained by The Washington Post, seeks to achieve a breakthrough in the dispute that has raged since the International Whaling Commission voted in 1986 to ban commercial whaling. Faced with the reality that Japan and its allies have continued to hunt whales and have succeeded in blocking new conservation efforts, commission Chairman William Hogarth -- an appointee of President George W. Bush -- has been trying this weekend in Hawaii to craft a pact that would permit a new type of "coastal whaling" in exchange for a commitment by Japan to scale back its "scientific" whale hunts.
The proposal is running into stiff opposition from whaling opponents, however. ......
and i've posted it SEVERAL times before, but i'm going to continue to post it
instead of the pope condemning
president obama's policies why the hell (so to speak) doesn't he condemn a bishop he UN-excommunicated who DENIES THE HOLOCAUST? i ask you that? how horrid is that? millions killed. millions stolen from. millions displaced. ah, but the pope doesn't have a problem with someone who DENIES THE HOLOCAUST
what a load of shite. perhaps the pope is getting advice from mel gibson
Pope lifts excommunications of 4 bishops
By NICOLE WINFIELD, Associated Press Writer
VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunications of four traditionalist bishops, including that of a Holocaust denier whose rehabilitation sparked outrage among Jewish groups.
The four bishops were excommunicated 20 years ago after they were consecrated by the late ultraconservative Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre without papal consent — a move the Vatican said at the time was an act of schism.
The Vatican said Saturday that Benedict rehabilitated the four as part of his efforts to bring Lefebvre's Society of St. Pius X back into the Vatican's fold.
But the move came just days after one of the four, British Bishop Richard Williamson, was shown in a Swedish state TV interview saying that historical evidence "is hugely against 6 million Jews having been deliberately gassed."
Jewish groups denounced the Vatican for having embraced a Holocaust denier and warned that the pope's decision would have serious implications for Catholic-Jewish relations as well as the pontiff's planned visit to the Holy Land later this year..........
what a load of shite. perhaps the pope is getting advice from mel gibson
Pope lifts excommunications of 4 bishops
By NICOLE WINFIELD, Associated Press Writer
VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunications of four traditionalist bishops, including that of a Holocaust denier whose rehabilitation sparked outrage among Jewish groups.
The four bishops were excommunicated 20 years ago after they were consecrated by the late ultraconservative Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre without papal consent — a move the Vatican said at the time was an act of schism.
The Vatican said Saturday that Benedict rehabilitated the four as part of his efforts to bring Lefebvre's Society of St. Pius X back into the Vatican's fold.
But the move came just days after one of the four, British Bishop Richard Williamson, was shown in a Swedish state TV interview saying that historical evidence "is hugely against 6 million Jews having been deliberately gassed."
Jewish groups denounced the Vatican for having embraced a Holocaust denier and warned that the pope's decision would have serious implications for Catholic-Jewish relations as well as the pontiff's planned visit to the Holy Land later this year..........
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