A pet funny

Found this cartoon while surfing, and it made me laugh (I don't have either cat or dog. Atrocia works better for my lifestyle, as Boa's only need to be fed once every couple of weeks):
Click on the image for full scale

It's about the oil

Most of us knew that the whole Iraq fiasco was about oil. And the Iraqi "oil law" was a sham to allow western companies to profit. But don't take my word for it:

Is Iraq's U.S. Backed Oil Law "Robbery?"

Six Nobel Peace Prize Laureates have released a statement in opposition to the legislation. The laureates include Betty Williams, Mairead Corrigan Maguire, Rigoberta Menchu, Jody Williams, Shirin Ebadi and Wangari
Maathai. The statement read, in part, "The Iraq Oil Law could benefit foreign oil companies at the expense of the Iraqi people, deny the Iraqi people economic security, create greater instability, and move the country further away from peace."

Every time this administration does something appalling, just ask yourself "who profits from this?".

Impeachment

Lots of talk about impeaching the mis-administration. The people support it. And I support it. But it's not gonna happen for one simple reason: impeachment is tried in the Senate. We don't have the votes in the Senate for cloture. Bush and Cheney could eat babies live on TV, and they'd still have 41 votes in the senate.

Still, I'd love to see it, if only for symbolic value.

Hello, CNN readers

I rarely check the sitemeter, but this morning I did and found that we're getting a bunch of hits from CNN. So I took a look:

From the Blogs: Controversy, commentary,
and debate

Blogs talking about this topic:

El Comentario Diario - A Reflection on Today‘s News
1 day ago

Glasgow Terror Suspect Charged

Physician Bilal Abdulla was charged today in connection with the Glasgow
terror bombings lastweekend. Abdulla is expected to be in court Saturday on
charges of conspiracy to cause explosions inthe pursuit of endangering lives.
The seven other physicians have not yet been charged. Wellthat‘s one down and
seven to go. That is for now....I don‘t do...

pygalgia
3 days ago

Paging Dr. Bomber

So the London and Glasgow firebombers are Docters? Huh? British police
focused Tuesday on at leastfive physicians and a medical student — including a
doctor seized at an Australian airport with aone-way ticket — in the
investigation into failed car bombings in Glasgow and London. Atleast four of
the eight suspects were identified as d...

FullosseousFlap’s Dental Blog
19 hours ago

UK Terror Watch: Dr Bilal Abdullah Charged in Glasgow Car Bo...

Dr. Bilal Abdulla arrested at the Glasgow Airport bombing Dr. Bilal Talal
Abdul SamadAbdulla, an Iraqi from Baghdad who arrived in the UK in April
2006. Dr. Bilal Abdulla has beentransferred to Paddington Green
high-security prison in London as the investigation continues Iraqi doctor Bilal
Abdullah tonight became the firs...

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/07/07/uk.terrorism/index.html

OK, I'm really flattered that CNN found us. But come on, there are WAY better blog posts out there. It scares me that someone at CNN would link to me as some kind of authority on anything.
But it is kinda cool.
Added: Now if only Jon Stewart would notice us:

Jon Stewart Sez

: "When I want news, I turn to CNN...and
they...turn...to Skippy...the Bush Kangaroo."

Monsoons

Allright! First Monsoon today, with real rain, hail, thunder, and lightning. Now here's hoping the power doesn't get knocked out, which happens frequently in this type of storm.

Astrology?

Two famous people have birthdays today.

This guy:

and this guy:

So here' a bit from their horoscope for today:

there is good news to report on the love horizon. A Juno-Chiron trine in air signs (12:19AM PDT) and Venus-Mars parallel (4:30AM PDT) favor erotic adventures and passionate expressions. While the morning hours receive the maximum dose of energy, some of the positive vibrations will continue throughout the afternoon and evening.

ewww.

I need more Boobies

Dang, I'm running out of Boobie pics for the Friday Boobie. Here's a Red Footed for today.

to america's first queen elizabeth

Dear hillary clinton-
You spent some time in the White House as a wife. You liked it there and you just can't wait to get back. Maybe that kitchen has a certain sort of marmalade ya can't get nowhere else. Perhaps there are quilts in the linen closet down the long white hall from the oval office any chick would lose her shit over. Good luck with that. I trust that you have made strident improvements in your ability to (well, y'know) ole Bill. Perhaps you(or somebody) planned this from the start.

crack another beer,

For the uninitiated, this post may be confusing or even infuriating to you, even if you are.

My pet dinosaur eats books . Occasionally, she displays wierd side-effects, like calamitous farting and burping . i fed her Herman Melville yesterday. I am so sorry...
Waaagghhh! Blog!Blog Blog? blog blog blog blog blog ...WHAAAGGHHH? blog. BLOG BlOg ? bLOGGGGGGG!WHAAAGH? blog blog TAPPING ON OUR KEYBOARDS ISNT REALLY ACCOMPLISHING MUCH, IS IT? waaaaaagh blog blog bLOG BLOGG BLOG BLOG bloG BLOGBLOG blogblog blog waqaaaaghhhh bbblogghh blog blog... bLOG! blog? www. BLOG!!!!!!!!!. blog///- BLOG. BLOG>BLOG blog blog blog? Blog- blog-blog WHAGGGh blog WHY IS THERE NO ORGANIZED POTENT POWERFUL OPPOSITION TO THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION? Whhhhhaaaggg!whah waagh waghhhhhhh wwagh blog blog blog blog blog blog blo=g bLog b-logwwwwwwaaaGHblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogwaaaaaagggghhhblog wwaagghh. wwaagghh. blog. b-waag blohhgggawhhhaagghhbbbah!! wagblo? aaagggghhh/ ghogh!WA, WHHHHAAGH WWW. blog blog blog. blog blog blog ? blogblogblogblogblogblogblogblogblgoblogo0blgobWWHHHAAGGGGHBLOGGHHBLOWHAH America is already dead we are all spiraling into unprecedented chaos BLOGb-log@ waggghhhh.BLOGBLOGBLOGBLOGLOGBGOLOBGLOB? GLOB? blogblogblogblogblogblow-me-logwhaaagghhblog Blog? (b-log) BLOG. blog blog blog blog blog blog blog blog blog blgoWWWAAAAGHwhy can't we all just get along? WHHAAG.bog boggle whogglewagblogwho bLOg?

- As you can see, i'll never feed my pet dinosaur anything by Melville again.
- shall i try feeding her James Joyce?

Dang, almost

Fate, thou art a cruel master.

I've been on the phone all evening (I hate phones) because I almost got to be off on another river trip. A buddy of mine is doing 6 days on the Rogue. One of his boatmen was waffling, so he asked me if I could fill in. I haven't run the Rogue, so I said "sure".

But the "waffler" is going, so I'm not. (yes, I know that the pic is of the Salt, not the Rogue. See above). Damn, I wouldn't have minded leaving y'all on your own for 6 days.

Things I learn by reading blogs

I had thought about writing a blog post about a question I had, but today I read the answer. Here's the story: There's a graffiti tag that's been showing up around town, especially in my neighborhood, that reads "D.C. 12/21/2012". I had no clue what it meant, but http://blondesense.blogspot.com/ just explained it for me:

The Final Days (according the the Mayan calendar -- 12/21/2012)

This is a fascinating read that appeared in the July 1 issue of the NYTimes Magazine. It is written By BENJAMIN ANASTAS and provides an excellent insight into this ancient civilization and how the Maya looked into the stars and predicted catastrophic changes to the earth, all pegged to the end date of an historical cycle on one of their calendars, Dec. 21, 2012:

See what you can learn from blogs! Now I'll be looking for a graffiti artist with a Mayan calendar.

a scary sticker

If I start seeing these in real life I'm gonna freak out:

added: I called it "scary" because with this administration things that I thought could only be satire have ended up being policy.

Bad analogy

Our Shrub, in a Independence Day speech to the troops:

Facing renewed wrangling with Democrats — and possibly some Republicans — over continuing the Iraq war, President Bush on Wednesday took Independence Day as an opportunity to hark back to another bloody war with no apparent end in sight.

Reading aloud from an article about the first Fourth of July celebration, in Philadelphia in 1777, and its “grand exhibition of fireworks,” Mr. Bush told the
audience of Air National Guard members and their families at the base here, “Our
first Independence Day celebration took place in a midst of a war — a bloody and
difficult struggle that would not end for six more years before America finally secured her freedom.”

Addressing National Guard members with the 167th Airlift Wing

I'm surely not the first to say it, but let's remember together...who won?...the native insurgents or the foreign occupiers?

United by Bush

I was asked what I thought about this:

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez sealed their anti-American alliance Monday by laying the foundation stone of a joint petrochemical plant.

The two leaders pledged to "stand against all enemies," a reference to the United States, as they inaugurated construction of a 700-million-dollar methanol plant in the Asaluyeh industrial zone on the Gulf coast.http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Iran_Venezuela_seal_anti_US_allianc_07022007.html

My response was "not surprised". Both have been demonized by Bush, and both have demonized Bush. Both have reasons to fear America, and for both it is easier to blame America than to actually address the problems within their own countries.

Despite their cultural differences, the two are major oil producers and staunch opponents of US "hegemony and imperialism."

"A long step was taken to bolster brotherly ties between the two revolutionary, people's governments of Iran and Venezuela, whose goal is to build their countries and stand against all enemies," Ahmadinejad said.

"It's a glorious day. We're determined to build things together and give it as a gift to our nations," he added, as Chavez chimed in with snippets of Persian such as "eyval" or "bravo."

"Viva Iran and Venezuela and all revolutionary nations and death to the enemies," Ahmadinejad said.http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Iran_Venezuela_seal_anti_US_allianc_07022007.html

I'm not a fan of Chavez (although I do sometimes enjoy his bombastic rhetoric) or Ahmadinejad (who isn't the real power in Iran), but I don't find either particularly threatening. But given the Cheney administration's saber-rattling, I wouldn't be surprised to see more countries bonding together against America.

Zymurgian's latest IPA

Oh my! To celebrate the 4th, Zymurgian has broken out his latest batch of IPA. Damn, but it's worthy of him. Hoppy, but with a clean finish. Full body, good head, and (I'm pretty sure-ask me in an hour) high ETOH content. Not a beer for the faint of heart, but if you're a fan of big beers this one's impressive. Wish that you readers could stop by and try one. Thanks, Zymurgian.

(y'all do know what Zymurgy means, don't you?)

Urp-date: Yeah, it's got a fairly high alcohol content. One is plenty, and I wouldn't try drinking more than four "unless you are a 30-ton elephant with bronchial pnuemonia".

Independance Day

231 years ago this proclamation was issued. It's still worth reading. And a damn good excuse for barbeques and beer. Enjoy!

Fireworks

I admit that I love fireworks with a juvenile level of zeal. When I lived in the (wet) Pacific Northwest, I made my own for the 4th. Not the wimpy little ones, oh no, but the type used for major exhibits. Yeah, illegal, but a heck of a lot of fun. You can do some amazing stuff with the right mix of chemicals.
As I said yesterday, there won't be any fireworks in our town this year. We're in the middle of a prolonged drought, and the forest is a tinder box. The mere thought of a single spark is scary. So I won't miss fireworks this year. But go here for some virtual fireworks:http://www.maylin.net/Fireworks.html

Seen Downtown

Yesterday I saw a bumper sticker:
"Welcome to America
Now learn to speak Navajo"

thus spoke my dinosaur (pet troublesXXII)

My pet dinosaur, Noam, as I've explained many times, never wanted to be in our time . She just got sucked into a time-vortex puddle about a hundred million years ago. How did she become my "pet"?- well, I myself was swept into one of them puddles in the guise of a dumpster. How I made it back is in the fossilized archives of this blog.
My relationship with Noam The Dinosaur is astounding and complex. Invigorating. Infuriating. For starts, this massive critter has a keen nose, and as anyone whom has ever time traveled garners a scent distinguishable only to other time travelers, the ole lizard sniffed me out, and slouched on my porch- confused, desperate, overwhelmed, needy, lonely. My body odor is her only refuge.
If some ya'll already know of all this, please excuse the lengthy introduction, but I was aghast to learn that this dinosaur eats books. Noam is also enamoured of sangria wine. I've tried giving her pinot noir, cotes de rhone, gewurtztraminer, to no avail. She sneers at anything that is not really cheap, watery sangria, with a twist-top cap.
Likewise, my experiments with my pet dinosaur's diet have led me to conclude she's quite fussy about the literature she devours.
Tolstoy is a culinary delight for her, as is Dante, Virgil, Chaucer, Kafka, Plutarch, Thackeray. Epictetus, Noam the Dinosaur greedily devours, though she snarls at Darwin, picks daintily at Alfred Lord Tennyson.
Stephen King, James A Michener, and Judy Blume go careening over the fence, with a single whack of her formidable tail.
Okay, let me back up here- MY PET DINOSAUR IS NOT INTELLIGENT. I cannot explain why such a creature feeds as such. I just can't do it. But what is truly astonishing- there are but two writers that affect Noam differently from all other prose or poesy. These would be Melville and Nietzsche.
Usually, when Noam has something to say, it is along the lines of "WAAAAGGHHH". But when feeding on Nietzsche, she belches profusely, and one can hear the sentences devoured!
"WAAAAGGHH I DESPISE YOUR CONTEMPT WAAAAGGH THEY CALL YOU MY APE YOU FROTHING FOOL BUT I CALL YOU MY GRUNTING PIG WAAAGGHHHHH."
Intrigued, I feed my pet dinosaur a few more pages of "Thus Spoke Zarathustra". She masticates it vacantly, swallows, and burps "WAAAAGGHHH YOU SHATTER MY HEART MALICIOUS UNKNOWN GOD WAAAGGH A CRY OF DISTRESS CALLS ME HURRIEDLY AWAY FROM WAAAAGGH YOU. "
Hmm. "Can you repeat what you just said, my sweet good Noam girl? Sweety precious little mama my pretty-good lizard can you say that again? Please?" Nothing but a stupid bovine stare in her yellow feline irises, subjugant thump of a 2 ton tail. "Waagghh?" is all Noam really has to say.
Next time I'll tell ya'll what insues when she munches on Melville!

Some random musings

At the local brewpub this evening (hey, tuesday is 2 beers for $2.00) I had some very interesting conversations. Politics, Baseball, and the Future all were included.
And some of my anger.
One of my river running buddies had to listen to my rant that my research work was stolen, and he just looked at me and said "always charge the cost first, then let them see what you have". It's true. While I feel I got cheated, I also realize that I let myself get screwed.
Most everyone hates the Libby "commutation". Me too. But you knew Shrub was gonna do it. And it was the best political chess move available. Outrage? You bet.
And then there is the future...
I'm working on 3 different alternative energy projects. Everybody in the field knows that this is the REAL RACE.

Hot and Dry

We're in the middle of a heat wave here. Mid 90's for days (OK, I shouldn't complain. Phoenix is about 115), and we haven't seen any rain for month's. So my radio just told me "no fireworks on the 4th" to which I thought "no shit". The forest around me is so dry that one match could be a weapon of mass destruction.

Paging Dr. Bomber

So the London and Glasgow firebombers are Doctors? Huh?

British police focused Tuesday on at least five physicians and a medical student — including a doctor seized at an Australian airport with a one-way ticket — in the investigation into failed car bombings in Glasgow and London.

At least four of the eight suspects were identified as doctors from Iraq, Jordan and India. One of the doctors from India, 27-year-old Muhammad Haneef, was arrested late Monday at the international airport in the Australian city of Brisbane, where he was trying to board a flight, the Australian attorney general said.

Staff at a Glasgow hospital confirmed that two of the others detained were a junior doctor and a medical student.

I'm having a hard time wrapping my mind around this. We're brought up to think of Doctors as healers, not terrorists (although my own Doctor sometimes seems a little sadistic when it comes to therapy on my knee).

Authorities identified Bilal Abdulla, an Iraqi doctor who worked at the Glasgow hospital, as the other man arrested at the airport. Staff at the Glasgow hospital said Abdulla was a diabetes specialist.

Although this does explain the Mercedes. But the Hippocratic Oath?

The Commutation

I'm not surprised by the commutation. Outraged, yes. But not surprised. In the end, this was about protecting Rove and Cheney who were the true architects of the Plame outing. The other outrage is that 45% of the population don't know who Libby is. The administration has gotten away with constant lying because a large part of the population isn't paying attention. And that's another outrage.
Added: Here's the White House phone numbers if you'd like to express your opinion. Warning, the switchboards are pretty clogged up right now (Guess a few folks care). It took me 4 tries to get through.

The offices are taken from the White House site, and the numbers are formatted like so: 1-202-555-1212 / 1-202-555-1212, where the first number is via internet search, and the second, italic number is from the Directory:
The offices included in the Executive Office of the President.

1. Council of Economic Advisers: (202) 456-1414 / (202) 395-5084
2. Council on Environmental Quality: (202) 395-5750 / (202)
   456-6224
3. Office of Administration: (202)456-7921 / (202) 456-2861
4. Office of Management and Budget: (202) 395-4840 / (202) 395-4840
5. Office of National Drug Control Policy: (202) 395-6738
6. Office of Science & Technology Policy: (202) 456-6021 / (202)
   456-7116
7. President’s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board: (202) 456-2352
8. United States Trade Representative: (202) 395-7360 / (202)
   395-3230

The offices included in the White House Office.

1. Domestic Policy Council: (202) 456-1111 / (202) 456-5594
2. Homeland Security Council: (202) 456-1700
3. National Economic Council: (202) 456-1414 / (202) 456-2800
4. Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives: (202) 456-6708 / (202)
   456-6708
5. Office of the First Lady: (202) 456-7074 / (202) 456-7064
6. Office of National AIDS Policy : (202) 456-7320 / (202) 456-7320
7. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: (202) 456-1066
8. USA Freedom Corps: 1-877-872-2677 / 1-877-USA-CORPS
9. White House Fellows Office: (202) 395-4522 / (202) 395-4522
10. White House Military Office: / (202) 757-2151

And the Vice Presidential Entity, whatever branch he ends up in: Read more

1. Shooter: (202) 456-9000 / (202) 456-1414

Well You Knew It Would Happen...

...but still, the gall.

Bush spares Libby from prison

22 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - President Bush spared former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby from a 2 1/2-year prison term on Monday, issuing an order that commutes his sentence.

To paraphrase the late, great Steve Guilliard, : Fuck the Fucking Republicans!

Joining a Blogswarm

I'll join in on Blog Against Theocracy, which is having a blogswarm through the 4th. To my mind, freedom of religion includes freedom FROM religion.
I'm not religious in any way, but I have studied all the major religions from a perspective of history and philosophy (hey, I'm only a thesis away from a master's degree in philosophy, which would open up some great career opportunities). Historically, theocracies have repressed freedoms in order to maintain power, and dissenters punished to varying degrees. Religions begin as a way to pass on certain "social rules" (i.e. 10 commandments) but evolve into "us vs. them"-isms. Think catholic vs. protestant, shia vs. sunni, etc. In our more tribal history this was a means to control behavior, for the good of the whole tribe, but now is used to judge "morality". One simple example would be the area of sexuality. All major religions have a set of sexual rules which were intended to promote the tribal/family unit for the future. So all religions condemn sexual behavior that is outside their rules. Because the human animal is a sexual animal, there are always some people for the religion to condemn. How dare someone enjoy something other than what is allowed? In truth, the sexual rules were broken all the time, but were kept secret to avoid shaming the tribe/family.
Now, we have "laws" that are the means to maintain social order. Surprise, laws get broken. Just like the rules of religions.
I know many people (including my own family members) who find great comfort in religion. Believing helps them make more sense of their role in society. And I support their right to believe. But I sure as hell don't want their beliefs forced on me (especially the sexual rules). I do like my freedoms.
There was a poll a while back (can't seem to find it now) that said people would be less likely to elect an atheist president than a minority, woman, or gay. I found that astonishing, in that us atheists are a relatively quiet bunch. While our current crop of presidential candidates represent a variety of religious sects, all claim to be religious and some form of christian. None would dare appear as "non-religious". And that's a sad, scary situation.


Your thoughts?

Informed Comment: Global Affairs

Juan Cole has started a new group blog called Informed Comment: Global Affairs. I know, given the quality of Prof. Cole's own work, that it's going to be a daily read.

For Almost As Long As I've Been Alive

Circa 1968:

"Suppose we were planning to impose a dictatorial regime upon the American people - the following preparations would be essential:

1. Concentrate the populace in megalopolitan masses so that they can be kept under close surveillance and where, in case of trouble, they can be bombed, burned, gassed, or machine-gunned with a minimum of expense and waste.
2. Mechanize agriculture to the highest degre of refinement, thus forcing most of the scattered farm and ranching population into the cities. Such a policy is desirable because farmers, woodsmen, cowboys, Indians, fishermen and other relatively self-sufficient types are difficult to manage unless displaced from their natural environment.
3. Restrict the possession of firearms to the police and the regular military organizations.
4. Encourage, or at least fail to discourage population growth. Large masses of people are more easily manipulated and dominated than scattered individuals.
5. Continue military conscription. Nothing excels military training for creating in young men (and women) an attitude of prompt, cheerful obedience to officially constituted authority.
6. Divert attention from deep conflicts within the society by engaging in foreign wars; make support of these wars a test of loyalty, thereby exposing and isolating potential opposition to the new order.
7. Overlay the nation with a finely reticulated network of communications, airlines, and intestate autobahns.
8. Raze the wilderness. Dam the rivers, flood the canyons, drain the swamps, log the forests, strip-mine the hills, bulldoze the mountains, irrigate the deserts and improve the national parks into national parking lots."

It's hard to believe that those words, written about 40 years ago by Edward Abbey, ring so true today as they did when he first put them to paper.

And what has been the Bush administration positions in regards to these propositions? To a 'T', they have been almost like following a playbook (which unfortunately doesn't bode well for Ed, to lay them out so nicely). The only one that hasn't even been remotely broached is a restriction on firearms; when that comes, as I believe it will, this Republic may well splinter, unless we can find a common reason to work together to re-invigorate and re-unite the American spirit.

Unfortunately, a re-invigoration, if it is really to heal broken bonds within our country, may take a position towards a much more isolated international stance for America; contrary to the current demands placed upon our country through international treaties and alliances, as well as our current cultural mythology.

So, what to do? I, personally, am not in favor of America's dominant stance internationally. I believe our arrogance and impudence offends and insults our international neighbors, resulting in a distrust of not just the government of the United States, but also an enmity towards its people as well. However, total disengagement from international affairs isn't possible either. Where the U.S. can lend strength to various international treaties or obligations, we should strive to do so, even if, sometimes, we are not getting the best deal out of the negotiations.

But, of course, that makes me out to be a "dove" instead of a "hawk". And, conveniently, the "hawks" forget that their own guiding tome (no not the PNAC plan, but the Bible) admonishes that for every season (turn, turn, turn) there is a reason. Blah, blah, blah, and all that sixties shit.

But, maybe, just maybe, we ought to turn away, just a tad, from the hawk, and pay a little more attention to the dove. After all, we've had the hawks running things for a generation now (1994-2006). Although sometimes the hawks are right, sometimes the doves are right too.

This post make me sound forlorn and helpless. However, there is another line I keep in mind: "Where there is no joy there can be no courage; and without courage all other virtues are worthless."

Today, I went to the market, I planted plants, I met with friends, and I felt a multitude of joy. Maybe, just maybe, with that joy, this "dove" can turn it into courage to battle those "hawks".

Whom? a challenge.

Europe as it was understood during 1000 A.D. By whom, it does not say. Nor, the finer points of Northumbrian brewing styles, or Magyar cuisine. But hey look- there's Baghdad- in the corner, of course. Them folks had their shit together damn near a millennia before us, and here we are, not even on this map, just bombing 'em all to hell. Who are the barbarians now, of whom are those?

Boating with Bush

Ah, this is almost poetic:

KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine - President Bush's presidency is stuck in low gear. On Sunday, his fishing boat was stuck on stop.

Fellow Republicans may not be rushing to rescue his legislative agenda, but the Secret Service bailed Bush out of a jam when his boat anchor got wedged in rocks along the Atlantic Coast.

Relaxing before his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the president went fishing with his father, former President George H.W. Bush, and daughter, Barbara.

They dropped the anchor to fish less than 100 feet from shore at Biddleford, Maine, but when they decided to leave, they couldn't, according to an Associated Press photographer who took pictures of the incident.

A fishing guide along on the trip tried unsuccessfully to pull up the heavy anchor.

Bush yanked hard too, but couldn't dislodge it either.

Soon after, a member of the president's security detail called divers aboard a Secret Service boat that had been following behind.

Some local news

This is an interesting idea:

It may sound a little crude or unreal, but the city of Flagstaff could be the first U.S. city to power its cars from a fuel derived from what residents flush down their toilets.

City officials are evaluating whether to spend nearly $500,000 next year to test a machine that is supposed to turn sewage sludge into heat, liquid fertilizer and a hydrogen-based fuel to power government vehicles.

The device, which is not in operation anywhere else in the United States, would essentially burn some of the biosolids left over from the sewage treatment process at Flagstaff's Rio de Flag plant by putting the waste through a 10,000-degree electric arc.
http://www.azdailysun.com/articles/2007/07/01/news/20070701_front%20page_19.txt

I'm going to do some research to see how viable the plan is, as the company hasn't actually done it before.

Barry Bonds

I'm a lifelong baseball fan, specifically a San Francisco Giants fan. As Barry nears Hank Aaron's home run record there will be a lot of controversy. But this story has more than a few angles to it:

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - San Francisco slugger Barry Bonds has called for increased security at his home ballpark after a fan entered the field and approached him during Friday's game with Arizona.

Bonds, who is on the verge of becoming baseball's all-time home run leader, was told security would be beefed-up as he nears Hank Aaron's record of 755.

"This is about baseball players, all of us," Bonds told reporters.

"This is not my ballpark. I just work here... I'm an employee. All the employees should be protected."

The fan, Andrew Clapp of Fargo, North Dakota, rushed bare-footed onto the field in the seventh inning and ran towards Bonds.

Bonds put his arm around him and walked him off the field to waiting security.

"The guy jumped on the field, had his hands up and was screaming, 'I just want to shake your hand,"' Bonds said.

"I said, 'fine, some shake my hand."'

Bonds said the fan told him he had no shoes, no money, and nothing in his life.

"'I've been down in that neighborhood.' I said, 'Let's just walk back together, though, so those guys don't get itchy and throw you to the ground, and you can show them that you mean no harm."'

Clapp was charged was public intoxication and public trespassing, both misdemeanors. http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=reu-bondssaturdaydc&prov=reuters&type=lgns

Added: He made the all-star team

I think that Barry showed a caring side here. Whatever else you may think about him (steroids), he had the decency to make sure the idiot wasn't hurt.