Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Dollar Starbucks coffees?

They don't say what the size of this "short" cup is (whatever happened to good-old-fashioned reporting?) but interesting news. As household budgets shrink so do the overpriced coffee budgets.

Thanking the Monkey

Like Bill Maher, I'm a carnivore, and I don't make any real apologies about it. But this doesn't mean that I support cruel farm practices. There is a new book out, Thanking the Monkey by Karen Dawn which helps give some balance to the argument.

Despite the strident tones in the video on that site from pro-vegans, the book offers a cornucopia of tips for those who simply want to do right by animals without taking the Full Monty of going vegan. In fact, I think that is the book's greatest strength: While it offers some compelling reasons for a change in diet to eliminate animals from it, it isn't preachy and offers a wide range of options for those of us interested in making changes.

One of the failings of the animal rights movement has been to go extremist and lose a whole range of people who might otherwise be interested in the arguments for moderation (and, in the end, large numbers of people making small changes can bring about greater things than small numbers of people getting extreme and preachy).

Full disclosure: I worked on this book early on, clearing photo and text rights. I don't get anything from book sales, though!

Administration spun hundreds of false statements pre-Iraq, per study

Their excuse now seems to be a rather pathetic "Everyone thought Iraq had WMDs."

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

The Vindictive Rudy: Mayor of 9/12

As someone who lived in New York and witnessed, upfront, the incredible pettiness of Rudy Giuliani, this New York Times article is a nice recap. After the courtly Dinkins, Rudy came in like a loud obnoxious frat boy eager to make up what he thought of as the weaknesses of Dinkins (which were, of course, merely his courteousness--something Rudy simply couldn't fathom.

The Government screwing of Padilla finally climaxes

So. to speak. 17 years, for, as far as I can tell, thinking about being a terrorist.

According to Judge Cooke: "There is no evidence that these defendants personally maimed, kidnapped or killed anyone in the United States or elsewhere"

Talk about hate crimes.

Friday, January 11, 2008

Best bookshops in the world

Pretty sweet list

Iranian speedboats, and the nature of confrontation with this Administration

I've been reading quite a bit about those Iranian speedboats who "threatened" the US ships in the Strait of Hormuz. It sounds like very suspicious behavior, but really kind of nuts--gnats against the elephant kind of thing.

Of course, maybe it isn't so clear after all.

It should surprise no one that Iran is being confrontational in this way. After all, our own Administration (from the President on down) have been confrontational with Iran for several years now. Is there any wonder that Iran is responding in this way?

This isn't a confirmation of their aggressive nature, as Bush would have us believe. This is causal. Brought about because of this Administration's almost pathological need to wave its collective dick around.

We reap what we sow. And we've been sowing fear and discord for several years now. It'll be a bitter harvest until we rotate our crops.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

So, how is it where you live?

Pantless man rescued from kitchen vent after New Year's celebration

When people ask me about how it is around here, I think I'll point to this article if I don't like them.

New Hampshire voting

Maybe the polls weren't wrong...

I tell you--we use an electronic machine here, and I love them. Very easy to use. But it is all moot if they can't give you the right totals at the end of the night.

Saturday, January 05, 2008

It's the end of the world as we know it...

...and Brit Brit does not feel fine.

we've got wars, we've got presidential elections in the U.S., we've got all kinda of chaos and dust-ups in countries all over the world, but all of that pales in comparison to Britney Spears having another breakdown and refusing to give her kids back to her ex-hubby K-Fed, and as a result, losing any visitation rights to said kids.

i mean, shoot, she lost her kids to a guy who doesn't even have a real website at the moment. how lame is that.

and we all thought K-Fed was the loser in this twosome when they got together. how wrong we all were!

personally, i think Brit just is crying for attention. now that 16-year-old sis Jamie Lynn is knocked up, Britney has been as stale as month-old bread.

yessir, it's the end of the world as we know it. so panic if you must, run screaming through the streets as dogs and cats play nice together, but remember, through it all, at least your not likely part of the Spears clan, America's favorite white trash family.