The Noble Pundit

Amazing

Incredible. A while back I wrote a post about the telemarketing industry and how they were starting to get a little nasty at the time (as if they aren't most of the time). Today, I had a comment spammer post a "spamment" on that post. Talk about proving the point....

As a side note, I had seven spamments left over the last two days - all have been deleted and the IP addresses banned.

I don't mess with legitimate comments even when I disagree with them or they call me names. I reserve the right to do so but to date have not exercised it. Spamments are fair game and the IP addresses will be banned.

Quick Links

Chirac stokes Muslim veil debate - Ooooo. Chiraqi is expressing concern over Islamic fundamentalism is France. What what a foresightful genius he is!

64 Die in Congo From Anti-Sorcery Potion - They did it to ward off evil spirits. It sure warded them off, ALL of them.

Soldier's family facing eviction - There are a bunch of things about this story that stink. Something just doesn't seem right with the way that this was handled, by almost everyone involved, even disregarding the fairly obvious slant in the piece.

Two Court Decisions Have Declared Marriage "Irrational" - Marriage is irrational? Gee isn't that what men have been saying for years? Oh wait, this time you're serious, not just blowing smoke? Ohhhhhhhh.

Controversial fence proves its worth - A postive story about the Fence? Can it be that there might be some benefit to border security? Nah. Surely you jest!

U.S. Officials Fear Socks Represent New Way to Smuggle Bombs Aboard Planes - No one ever thought before this to be a little suspicous of socks tied around a traveller's neck? Or is this just another excuse to make going through airport security even more of a hassle? Little half-measures like this are next to useless. We need to come up with a comprehesive security system, not a collection of security Band-Aids. And it's time to face facts, some sort of profiliing will almost certainly be needed. Uncomfortable or not.

How Low Can You Go?

Yesterday, I was emailed a post from BushBlog with mentions how certain groups of people are getting together to conspire to Googlebomb certain phrases, in this case "miserable failure."

OK. If you think that Bush is a miserable failure, that's your perogative. I won't agree with you, but if that's what you believe, so be it. I have no problem with that.

What I do have a problem with is the deliberate manipulation of the search results provided by Google simply for political reasons. People use Google to research information, not to get a undesired dose of your political fantasies.

Where I really have a problem is that this is very similar to spam. You are using someone else's resources, in this case Google's algorithms and web traffic, to promote an idea that people are likely not looking for. In your quest to destroy the Bush Presidency you are also destroying the usefullness of Google. Why should Google deserve to have its reputation damaged (as it becomes even more widely known that it can be manipulated) and its potential base of users diminished as they become frustrated with politcal keyword grandstanding? Should Google be put in a position where it may lose advertising revenues due to lower traffic, all so that someone can get their kicks Googlebombing "miserable failure."

I think not.

Spammers may end up being the death of email as a useful tool. Will the political Googlebombers be the death of the Google in their quest? Is it worth destroying the usefullness of a popular internet tool for political gain? Was Machiavelli right? Do the ends justify the means?

I certainly hope not.

Bush Derangement Syndrome

My uncle sent me a link to a pretty good Charles Krauthammer piece in the Miami Herald: Bush Derangement Syndrome.

Krauthammer points out some of the most egregious examples of folks wracked with this disorder and also points out how it has been around since the days of Cynthia McKinney and her "Bush knew" crusade.

It's really an excellent piece, exposing a few of the anti-Bush crowd for what they are: knee-jerk overreactionaries relying on the recycling of old rhetoric.(Hitler and Frankenstein? War in Iraq to protect the logging industry? Bush knew about 9/11?)

Give me a break. Come up with something new or admit to intellectual bankruptcy. Just don't keep trying to tell me that the horse is still alive.

Quick Links

Hollywood loses control of the political script - I'll bet that this has Tinseltown all in a tizzy that, basically, we don't care what their political beliefs are. We'd be much more happy if they'd go back to making the occasional movie that people wanted to watch.

Dean blasts Bush in Texas campaign stop - Dean says "I think it's time that elections in Texas were not about guns, God, gays and abortion. I think it's time elections in Texas were about jobs, health care and education." Well that's just great Howie, except that the people of Texas get to decide what the important issues are to them. It is smug, arrogant, and elitist to think that you have any right to tell the people of Texas what their issues should be. Your issues are no better than theirs and maybe it's time to grow up and learn that politicians are elected to serve, not to lord over the subjects.

Iran still hasn't signed nuke agreement - OMG! Shock! Surprise! Utter disappointment and disbelief at the fact that Iran still hasn't signed that agreement that they promised to. I'll bet if we keep looking, we'll find that they're still an oppressive, totalitarian regime, also. They probably still even support terrorism. How could they do this to us? How could they betray our trust like this? </sarcasm> Did anyone truly expect them to sign the agreement in the first place (besides the media)?

Oops! Not Looking Good For The Wal-Mart Lady

Helpful things to keep in mind. If you're going to go after a store like Wal-Mart, it is not a good idea to have the media figure out that you've sued 16 times in the past.

It's kind of sad that she has turned herself into a professional victim. It's even more sad that in her scams she seems to be netting around $400. A good scam artist would at least figure out how to get something worthwhile out of the deal.

I'm starting to believe that this woman should be the poster child for punishing filers of frivolous lawsuits. I'm not going to comment on the accuracy or legitimacy of this complaint - my mother was trying to get the same DVD at another WalMart and had a less than stellar experience - but I really have to believe that this lady is gaming the system. She's been so obvious that she had one case thrown out in 10 minutes.

What this woman did was shameful. She managed not only to bring the glare of the spotlight on WalMart (that in and of itself is not a bad thing - the way they conducted the sale was deplorable - but her method was wrong), but she has given rise to the whole "Christmas is too commercialized" crowd. She became their poster child.

It's time to make her another.

Illegal Bologna Smuggling

Gee, first it was illegal aliens, then it was illegal narcotics, now people are trying to smuggle bologna across the border.

How did someone think that a border agent wouldn't notice the 756 lb car seat in the back of the truck, even with the kids sitting on it? Are they really so unimpressed with our border security that they think that they can smuggle over a third of a ton of bologna without getting caught?

I can understand the Customs point that the bologna was potentially dangerous. After all who would want to eat bologna that little kids had been sitting on (in addition to the refrigeration issues)? But why are they only going after the guy civilly? What not find some way to charge him with something like endangerment?

We're now smuggling bologna. What's next?

Quick Links

12 posts here today, plus one at my unofficial Orlando History Blog, and I got my book recommendation page up and running. Not a bad day of blogging, but I think I need to do some other stuff for a while. So here are tonight's Quick Links:

Revenue files 'disappear' from PA Finance Ministry - We lost the files. Sounds vaguely familiar for some reason. Something about a Rose. Hmmm.

Salvation Army baffled by lack of applications - I hate to see the toys not get handed out to needy kids, but if the parents are thinking that they're doing well enough to not need the help, well that's a wonderful gift for the parents. It's a little dark cloud with a huge silver lining.

Christmas is more than religion: Those who bemoan the holiday's commercialization should take a historical view - He has some good points, but I think that he misses the basic point of the argument he's attempting to refute. I don't think that many people want to decommercialize Christmas, just to rein in some of the excesses of the season - to remember a little more of the religious underpinnings of the holiday, while still enjoying the commercial and familial aspects of the holiday also.

Amtrak Posts Thanksgiving Ridership Mark - This would be great, except that these are the kind of numbers that need to be normal, not exceptional, if Amtrak is to remain in its current form. Otherwise, we really need to start taking a serious look at privatization or a system of regional rail systems that can better respond to the needs of the local region, rather than through executive fiat from Washington.

Damn Spammers

Arggh. They got through my filtering with another variation of the Nigerian scammail. This time, in the subject line it said "URNET PROPOSAL" and they pretended to be the son of a Zimbabwean farmer (who just happened to have $24.5 million sitting in the bank, yeah right).

Now I have to filter not only against good spellings, but misspellings also. Pretty soon, I may not ever get a single email because I'll have them all filtered out!

These guys are going to kill email as a real tool, absolutely kill it.

A Few Reasons Why Syria Should Not Be Trusted

Earlier I mentioned that Turkey should beware of cozying up to Syria. I ran across another column that details out a few of the reasons why:

Damascus still harbors the headquarters of at least 11 terrorist organizations. By some counts the number is higher. They receive not only safe haven, but also succor from Assad's regime.

While supposedly pursuing peace, Syria is putting the finishing touches on a deal with a former Soviet republic to purchase shoulder-fired rockets capable of downing passenger planes and helicopters, just the sort of weapon for which terrorist outfits hanker. If the deal isn't foiled, there's no guarantee Syria won't pass the portable missiles to Hizbullah or to the various anti-American Iraqi groups it sponsors and aids...

Latest reports suggest that shortly before his ouster, Saddam Hussein sought to purchase weapons of mass destruction from North Korea. The bargaining sessions and initial transfers of funds were all handled in Damascus, not only with Assad's full knowledge but with his active, "helpful" mediation...

Washington believes Syria is "facilitating the flow of people, money and goods" to sabotage the Americans is Iraq....Even British Foreign Minister Jack Straw demanded Syria do more to live up to its international commitments and control the terror emanating from its borders.

Now If I was in a position of power in Turkey, I'd be a little concerned about befriending such a peace-loving nation.

Assad is nothing if not unstable. Sometimes circumstances make for strange bedfellows. The trick is knowing when to get out of bed.

Babes Against Bush

You knew it was coming. A group of, at best, mildly attractive women have gotten together to create a calendar devoted to using pinup (?) photos to help raise funds for defeating Bush in '04. I guess they needed to find a new way for the Democrats to appeal to the male voter.

Now I realize that this isn't some party funded promotion (I'd hate to see that calendar), but that doesn't change the fact that it is nothing more than cheap shtick. Instead of arguing issues or attempting to differentiate themselves from the Republicans, Bush specifically, they instead have chosen to use soft porn to try to win.

The problem with the "sex sells" tactic in a Presidential election is that issues really do matter still. Cheesy photos of scantily clad women or not, Dean, Gephardt, Kerry and friends still have to come up with some kind of a real position, they still have to convince the American people that they are a better choice than four more years of Bush. And so far, I don't see that happening. They keep seizing on issues that are melting away. One of the biggest problems I have with the current crop of candidates is that they seem to stand for things that I personally find objectionable.

They are usually anti-war. They are usually in favor of higher taxes. They favor the UN and a smaller military.

They manage to make highly objectionable statements. They manage to come off sounding like smug elitists. And these women think that posing in various states of undress is going to change my mind?

I don't think so.

The EU Proves Its Mettle Again

I'll bet the Turks are really regretting the day that they decided to tell the US to take a flying leap in the runup to the Iraqi campaign. They succeeded in sucking up to the EU, but nowthey are finding out that the cooperation is a one-way street.

Why are they so surprised that the EU is afraid to act in defiance of the terrorists? Did they really think that the EU had a spine? Or are they really that delusional?

France and Germany still believe that appeasement and negotiation are the best policies when dealing with terrorists. Britain was in the same boat as the US, so there probably is a bit of irritation still at play when it comes to Turkey.

That being said, while the Turks are reaping a bit of what they have sown, it is wrong of the EU, particularly Britain, to stick it to the Turks like this. Combating terrorism is a global concern. To leave the Turks hanging out to dry after they just suffered a major attack is wrong.

Syria and Iran cooperating means nothing. Both are motivated more by political concerns, specifically in diverting the glare of the United States, than they are in truly combating terrorism. The Turks would do well to remember that.

As for Mr. Gul's warning to European leaders that if their countries were attacked "everyone will think twice before co-operating," would best be evaluated in light of Turkey's actions leading up to Iraq. He may be more right than he thinks.

More Banned Computer Terms

Remember how Los Angeles wanted to ban certain computer terms? Well, BBSpot has a list of other computer terms banned by Los Angeles County, along with suggested replacement terms:

11. SCSI - Cleanliness impaired
10. Killer App - Socially Maladjusted App
9. USB - USA
8. Floppy Drive - Erectile Dysfunction Drive
7. DIP Switches - Mentally Challenged Switches
6. HyperThreading - Attention Deficit Disability Threading
5. Heat Sink - He/Sheat Sink
4. Winmodem - Funmodem
3. ATAPI Device - Native American Device
2. Motherboard - Non-gender Specific Parentboard
1. Cancel/Retry/Abort - Cancel/Retry/Allow Woman to Choose

America's Hottest Selling Video?

Well at least the spam is becoming a little different. Now I'm getting emails for Uday Hussein's Private Videos. I can see the girls, the parties, and, most importantly, the beatings. How exciting (right?)!

I have trouble believing that it is really America's Hottest Selling Video. I actually expect that it really falls somwhere behind the Girls Gone Wild series in popularity.

Guess it's time to autodelete the subject line Get Your U.day H.ussien Vid.eo Today.

You're A Mean Pair, Messrs. Grinch

"Twas three weeks 'til Christmas and all through the town, not a Rotarian was stirring, not even a clown. When in the night rose such a clatter, Grinch 1 and Grinch 2 stole the club Christmas trees, it did not matter.

Into their van they did cram and stack and then off on their quest they left, looking for crack.

"Trade the trees for crack or food" is what they told the cop, being more stupid than rude.

"The sad part of it is that anyone would steal Christmas trees," the Rotarians did deplore. But their $350 of trees and stands are on the lam no more.

No one knew if the two had retained attorneys that night, but one thing was for certain, Grinch 1 and Grinch 2 had had their brains squeezed a little too tight.

Gephardt Winning Friends Among The Unions

Now this is the height of arrogance. Dick Gephardt's campaign is apparently so full of itself that it has taken to threatening unions if they support Dean instead of Dick.

Kind of makes you wonder how much of his support is truly support and how much is coerced. It also says something about the viability of the Gephardt campaign if he is being reduced to threatening his own constituents in order to ensure his nomination.

And what is Gephardt's reaction to the whole brouhaha? A generic statement supporting collective bargaining for public employees. No response to the accusation, just a general "leave me alone until this goes away."

I almost feel bad for Gephardt. But then I remember that I don't like him politically and that's the end of that.

Book Recommendations

OK, I've spent most of the afternoon so far revamping my page of book recommendations (what, you didn't know that I had such a thing? Didn't you ever look around my other site, Noble Books & Ancient Coins?)

Well, the new page structure is basically up and running with most of the recommendations moved over. I've also added a new section for political books.

Please note that the books tend to be heavy towards ancient history, ancient Rome in particular because that is what the main subject is for my other site.

If I ever get adventerous, I may try to add a sitebar with rotating recommendations pulled from a database, but that's something for another day.

Also, in the event that you get a frame with a default logo (you'll know it when you see it. There is no picture of a book.), just hit the reload button and it should refresh and display the book without a problem.

If you have any questions or suggestions, email them to me at blog - at - cbnoble.com

Uh Oh, Santa Is Back

This was one of my favorite seasonal blogs last year, Ho Ho Holy Shit!

Looks like they're back for another year, but with the same bad attitude!

Warning: This probably isn't a work safe site. Don't say I didn't warn you.

More Economic News

Getting a late start on things as I came back home and slept for a while after getting the kids off this morning.

On the economic front today, we have a wonderful announcement from the Labor Department that worker productivity grew by 9.4% last quarter, the highest since Q3 of 1983 when it grew at 9.7%. I believe that if this sort of growth (meaning positive productivity growth, not necessarily at 9%+) then we might be seeing the beginning of a good, strong labor market again.

In a way, the economy is like a person. When you know that you have to make a extraordinary effort in order to pull something off, you almost always have a reserve of capability that you can call on. No one does, or can, perform at a 100% effort level all the time. It would simply wear you down.

The economy is the same. We always have a short term burst capacity in the economy, but the higher productivity cannot be sustained indefinitely. Right now, employers are paying overtime instead of hiring new employees. The current employees are responding with higher productivity, but if this level of output is attempted to be sustained at current employment levels, eventually companies are going to find their productivity tanking due to higher absenteeism and higher turnover. At some point, and probably sooner rather than later, real hiring has got to start or else the recovery will fail.

The higher productivity numbers are certainly not an immediate improvement for the unemployed, but they are a sign of hope for the future.

Unless, of course, you read the Reuters take on this story. They take a story that should engender at least a base level of optimism and try to downplay it with the following quote:

But while already strong productivity was revised even higher in the third quarter, the news was tempered by a drop in U.S. mortgage applications for the week ended Nov. 28.

Sounds scary, huh? So what did the Mortgage Bankers Association have to say about it?

"As expected, last week was a slow week for mortgage application activity. After adjusting the mortgage indices for the impact of the Thanksgiving holiday and other seasonal factors, the purchase index was down only 3.9 percent” said Michael Cevarr, MBA's manager of member surveys. (emphasis mine)

Hmm. The people that make their money selling mortgages don't seem to be too concerned with this at all. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that the week of 11/28 was Thanksgiving weekend. Maybe they realize that all the refinancings that could be done are pretty much done. Refi's are now down to 50% of the mortgage market. That means that more often now, mortgages are being originated for real wealth building purposes (home purchases) rather than for simply saving a few dollars. Again, this is another good sign for the economy. Home purchases lead to other purchases (like furniture, appliances, and so on), which helps to lead the economy into a more stable footing.

To be sure, things still aren't where they need to be. But with every report coming out, we're beginning to find more reason for optimism than pessimism. If this trend continues, I expect to see a much better economic climate including more jobs and higher consumer confidence.

9.4% is a great number, not for what it means now, but for what it potentially means down the road.

Wow! I Made Two Letter Of The Day Lists!

This is pretty cool! My dad called me earlier today to mention that he had seen my site mentioned in Electric Venom's Letter of the Day list (today's letter was "N").

Then tonight, after I finish posting the last post, I go to make sure that I didn't horrifically screw something up, and I notice that The Accidental Jedi had me listed in her Letter of the Day from yesterday (her letter was "M").

Great. Another goal in life. To be part of a list for every letter in the entire alphabet. I guess I need to start writing some better stuff now, huh?

Quick Links

I'm off from work tomorrow, so hopefully we'll get a little more posting in than we have lately. Unless we keep referring to ourself as we, in which case we'll be committed to the loony bin.

Afghans on perilous road to democracy - It is a series of little steps that will make up the entire journey to democracy for both Afghanistan and Iraq. Afghanistan has now taken that first, tiny step on its journey.

Store owner fights display ban - Nice. A year-round Christams store has over $47,000 in levies against it for displaying Santa out of season. The bureaucrats all say "We value his contribution to the community" as they trying to put him out of business. Rules are rules, I've said that many times before and I still believe it, but I think that most every rule has some room for creative interpretation when faced with an unmitigated good that would otherwise be squashed by the heavy hand of government intervention. But this is Palm Beach County, where they're apparently just figuring out how to read and follow those rule things. Thinking must still be out of the question.

Dr. Dean's Infinite Arrogance - Howard Dean, trustbuster a la Teddy Roosevelt. Yeah, right. Want to bet that the only network he tries to break up is Fox?

This Done Pissed Me Off, Y'All

I wasn't going to write anything tonight, but this article just got me all up in arms: Southern identity grows less assertive

They only wish it would. Southern culture and the resulting pride it engenders are just about the most fearful aspect of the South to many outsiders. It is also very likely the most misunderstood.

Southern culture is not about slavery or racism or superiority. It is about honor, independence, and trust. The elitists in the world (both Northern and Southern in origin) don't appreciate the rebellious streak in Southerners and spend a great deal of time trying to smear us as exclusive, backwards and slow.

Look at some of the loaded phrases the author uses:

The South -- the home of good ol' boys and pickup trucks, the stereotypical images recently mentioned by Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean; of yellow dogs with grease spots on their backs; of front porch swings ...

"The only thing I can figure is the past traditions," said Raymond Scott, an African-American UPS driver in his hometown of Cleveland, Tenn. "I know years ago in the South, it was known to be racially slow to change..."

"I think that's why some people consider [being Southern] to be degrading," he said. "Other people say Southerners aren't as bright, not as clean..."

"I think a lot of the older folks are dying out, the kind of people who sit down at a [restaurant] and tell racist jokes, you just see a lot less of it,..."

"There are people up here driving down the street with a huge Confederate flag flying behind them...."

...the South's lagging willingness to desegregate haven't helped the image...

Low test scores and near-bottom rankings in national academic achievement tests...

"I feel some embarrassment and shame because of how underfunded our school system is," said Connell. "You've got a lot of older people who want to stick to the old-fashioned way of doing things. You mention any kind of tax [for the schools] and they think it's just terrible."

Staunch in their Southernness were mainline Protestants and those with no church affiliation, political conservatives, Republicans and the most affluent.

There were, of course, no similar statements of why it might not be so shameful to be a proud Southerner. Consistently, anyone who disagreed that it is shameful to be Southern was portrayed as someone ignoring reality.

There was never any discussion about the honesty and integrity that you find among true Southerners. There was never any discussion about the strong sense of right and wrong that leads to an intense code of honor among true Southerners. There was no discussion about Southerners desiring freedom, independence, and self-reliance.

The one insinuation I found most revolting was that old-time Southerners don't value education. That is absolutely untrue.

Old time Southerners do value education. They just don't value the education of the bureaucrats who arrogantly claim to know best. They don't value an education based around "new math" where the answer is unimportant. They don't value an education in which most kids come out of the system illiterate. They don't want to pay more taxes for a system in which kids learn all the history of Africa and Kwanzaa, but know nothing about their own local deep and rich heritage.

And they certainly don't want to give more money to the NEA educrats for their anti-Southern indoctrinations.

Teach the kids how to speak, read, write and to do proper math - the old Southerners will support you. Teach them real history; teach them something about Robert E. Lee besides the fact that was the Commander of the Army of Northern Virginia and they'll support you. Teach the kids about the respect and honor of a Lee or a Stonewall Jackson and they'll support you.

Teach them about the greatness of Jesse Jackson and they'll run you out of town on a rail.

Southern culture is not perfect. It never has been, and even as much as some Southerners like to pretend, it probably never will be. But it also is not shameful. The accent, the slower way of life, the reverence of traditions - they don't make a person slow, stupid or ignorant anymore than the Massachusetts accent, faster pace of life and utter disregard for traditions make someone from the Northeast smart or brilliant.

Now this study I think has an interesting, and potentially damaging flaw in it. They surveyed 18,000 people, only 10,000 of which had been born here. That's less than 60% of the respondents. The then tried to make it sound better by saying that all but 1,800 respondents had lived here for at least a decade.

I would like to see the numbers for the 10,000. I'm guessing that more than 70% of the life long residents would describe themselves as Southern. Just because someone lives here does not make them Southern any more than me living in Zimbabwe for a year would make me African. The influx of new residents to the region is certainly diluting the perceived strength of the Southern pride, but just because of New Yorker living in Kentucky thinks it might be shameful to be Southern doesn't really mean that it is.

Show me a real breakdown of the statistics. Give me an article which acknowledges some of the virtues of being Southern. Quit trying to shame me into submitting to some idealized elitist vision of what the South should be like.

But of course that will never happen. And the fact that it will never happen is the very proof that the author of this article, despite his employment with the Atlanta Journal Constitution, hasn't a clue about the South.

Why am I not surprised?

Quick Links

Gun Laws do Not Reduce Criminal Violence According to New Study - A Canadian study that shows pretty damning evidence that gun control laws are relatively ineffective in controlling violent crime. Excellent article.

Wayne County Deputies Shop For Potential Jurors At Wal-Mart - Attention Wal-Mart shoppers: Jury Duty on aisle 12! Actually, I give them credit. So long as they're verifying the citizenship of each selectee, this is a good method of finding potential jurors. It's actually pretty innovative.

Louisiana School Punishes 7-Year-Old for Talking About Lesbian Mother, ACLU Alleges - This is wrong. The sins of the mother should not be visited on the son (to paraphrase another quote). His mother is what she is and he should be able to talk about his parents as other kids talk about theirs. If his mother is gay, well she's gay. It's a fact, not a slur. So far as I'm concerned this is another example of an overreacting educational system.

French troops under attack from mobs - Quagmire alert!!! Are the French creating another Vietnam for us to try to clean up? It sure seems like it.

Valuation Wave Reversion 3 - I'm going to have to read this in more detail, but at first glance it looks to be an excellent, if somewhat detail oriented, essay on how valuation can affect your long term returns on investment accounts. Most investors miss out on how important valuation is and how it is one of the worst factors to fight.

Carnival Of The Capitalists #8 Is Up!

HobbsOnline A.M. is hosting this week's Carnival of the Capitalists and has 21 excellent entries up for your reading pleasure. Go over and take a look!

Quick Links

U.S. Troops Kill 46 Iraqis But Allies Suffer Losses - This is a wonderful example of an article full of loaded phrases. Referring to our allies as "foreigners," while technically true, smacks of an certain, over the top brand of arrogance. I certainly hope that someone at Reuters has a conversation of the importance of choosing words with the utmost of care.

Sharon Rejects Palestinian Condition for Talks - Sharon is smart to be refusing to make unreciprocated concessions. The Palestinians need to make more of a real effort at peace, rather than the current making of demands.

Roy Disney Steps Down From Board At Company - Another passing of an era. Now there will be no more living link to Walt on the board of the Walt Disney Company. I have to agree with Roy though, Eisner needs to go. He's gone from media genius in the '80s and early '90s to a mediocre and overpaid CEO now.

Ivory Coast Soldiers Call on French to Leave Line - Gee, why are they worrying about the French military? Are they afriad that the surrendering might get in the way of the fighting between the warring parties?

Only In My Neighborhood

Sorry about the lack of posting lately. I've been pulling some long hours at my new job and by the time I get home in the evening, I'm usually not in a condition to be writing too much. I even ended up working today

Now after I got home tonight I knew I had to make a quick down to my parents house, so I figured I'd stop and pick up the kids and then drive down there. Got sidetracked a little when my neighborhood decided to rear its ugly head once again.

This time, the kid across the street decided to shoot one of his friends with a BB gun. The other kid's mother went over and got into an argument with the shooter's mother - all the way up to involving pushing and spitting.

Now here's the question: Who overreacted more? The shooter's mother, who called the cops to report an assault against her person (never mind that her kid shot another one) or the local Keystone Kops who sent out damn near the whole department (4 cruisers, 5 officers) to repsond to it (lights and sirens going, of course)?

As it turns out, the shooter's mother could report her neighbor for assault - a misdemeanor charge. In turn, the neighbor would have been able to press felony negligence charges for failing to supervise her kid wile he was running around with the BB gun.

Now I'm not a big fan of gun control. I believe that the Second Amendment is pretty clear in it's wording, it's meaning, and it's intentions. But ownership of a gun, even a BB gun, does entail responsiblity. And that was what was missing in this case. The adults involved showed no responsibility.

I have got to get out of this neighborhood. Hopefully I can turn this new job into something that pays enough to achieve that.