Talk about your one-stop shopping:
It's nice to know some small-town institutions aren't being obliterated in the wired world:
I said in an earlier post that one of the most unforgiveable things a country could do was commit its citizens to war, then just fool around with it instead of trying to win it as quickly as possible. Now comes this:
American and Iraqi forces have killed 104 insurgents in 452 raids nationwide since al-Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed last week, the U.S. military said.
Those of us who occasionally speak out against collectivist intrusions into what should be private decisions are often seen as paranoid loners, anti-communitarian cavemen who are just one missed dose of medication away from standing on the front porch with a shotgun, shouting at the moon about that no-account gov'ment. But, really, how paranoid are we when they don't even try that hard to hide their real agenda?
Just when we think we're making headway against eminent domain, here it comes again:
Thank goodness Indiana has just reworked its fireworks law:
HAMMOND, Ind. -- Investigators believe the fire that completely destroyed a fireworks store Thursday morning was arson.
The blaze began at 4:45 a.m. at the Big Cheap Bombs, on the 1000 block of 5th Ave. in the northwest Indiana city, according to Hammond Fire Investigator Rich Wheeler.
First, they came for cigarettes, and you remained silent, because you were not a smoker.
Then, they came for property, but, you remained silent, because you were a renter.
Then, they came for fried chicken, and you did not speak out, because you were a vegetarian.
Here's a nifty case that should test what people really think when they have to weigh constitutional principles against personal beliefs. San Francisco tried to ban handguns and make possession of long guns tougher. This was done by in a voter referendum, with 58 percent of voters agreeing with the ban. But a judge said no, the citizens of San Francisco did not have the right to make this decision:
Cool, very cool. So, you carry around this cheap, digital screen, which is so flexible you can fold it up and put it in your back pocket. And it costs less than the price of a year's newspaper subscription, so when you subscribe, the newspaper just gives you one. And you can download the entire edition of the newspaper, which will be updated frequently, any time you want.
Now, that Karl Rove has been cleared, I have to remind you of the scientific experiment I conducted way back in July proving that he would, in fact, be exonerated.
I know someone who has been in negotiations with the VA over his World War II disability payments. This guy was a Marine and was too close to a blast, and it affected him just about all over his body -- loose teeth, hearing loss, shrapnel wounds. You should see all the paperwork, the letters, the comments of the doctors doing physical exams. All of this is for a pittance, a difference of a few hundred dollars a year. Does the hearing loss qualify for a 10 percent disability or a 20 percent one?
So, Princeton got a Toyota plant, and the money gushed in, and everyone lived happily ever after. Well, not quite:
Downtown Princeton, while quaint, might strike a visitor as being just one round of layoffs away from extinction.
While the city has profited from increased tax collections and property assessments, its sidewalks are crumbling, and some of its buildings show telltale signs of distress: boarded windows, empty storefronts, degenerating facades.
If the cows are freaked out by daylight-saving time, wonder how they'll handle this?
So, David Lynch and Mary Sweeney get together, have a child, stay together raising that child for 14 years and finally decide to get married, then Lynch files for divorce after one month, citing "irreconcilable differences." That sounds like a David Lynch movie.
Further proof that there is stuff on the Web you can find nowhere else. In today's example, a radio guy (Tiny) takes on a TV news operation (WANE) over its pitiful use of the English language. The selection he cites has some priceless mangling, including this line: "In 1986 for more than a million dollars, Bonsid says at the time it was the highest price paid per customer for a cable station." Also, the guy's name, as Tiny points out, is Bonsib.
Ah, life is good:
Good news for most of us, as recent scientific studies have concluded that coffee, beer, and pizza help cure cancer.
Now, if they'd just hurry up and prove the health benefits of fried food, all my life choices would be validated. Get that study done, KFC! (To tell you the truth, I like the grape more than hops. Have you seen all the studies about red wine?)
A libertarian view of the nanny state -- persuasion is better than coercion:
"Have Gun -- Will Travel" was one of the best of the early TV shows, starrring Richard Boone as Paladin, one of the great existential characters of all time. I don't know if this is more sad or silly, but:
Detroit rapper Eminem will return to the big screen in a remake of the classic television series Have Gun - Will Travel.
[. . .]
Columnist Pat Buchanan is not impressed with Indiana U.S. Rep. Mike Pence's illegal-alien offering, which he calls a stealth amnesty plan:
Which brings us to the Pence plan, named for the conservative congressman from Indiana who heads the House Republican Conference and was the 2005 Man of the Year to the conservative Human Events weekly.
A man is suing an auto-parts store for assault and battery after he attempted to hold up the business and employees responded by beating him with a metal pipe.
The scary thing is that we should not assume he will lose his suit.
