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Fouled fuel: tests reveal rogue ingredient Tests of the rogue petrol which has caused thousands of cars to break down have discovered traces of silicone which could have caused the contamination.
The BBC has struck a content deal with YouTube, the web's most popular video sharing website, owned by Google. Three YouTube channels - one for news and two for entertainment - will showcase short clips of BBC content. The BBC hopes that the deal will help it reach YouTube's monthly audience of more than 70 million users and drive extra traffic to its own website. The corporation will also get a share of the advertising revenue generated by traffic to the new YouTube channels.
Feingold Continues to Step Up for His Country and His Party.
Fouled fuel: tests reveal rogue ingredient Tests of the rogue petrol which has caused thousands of cars to break down have discovered traces of silicone which could have caused the contamination.
The BBC has struck a content deal with YouTube, the web's most popular video sharing website, owned by Google. Three YouTube channels - one for news and two for entertainment - will showcase short clips of BBC content. The BBC hopes that the deal will help it reach YouTube's monthly audience of more than 70 million users and drive extra traffic to its own website. The corporation will also get a share of the advertising revenue generated by traffic to the new YouTube channels.
Feingold Continues to Step Up for His Country and His Party.
News: It's not the Internet that's killing newspapers. It's the equity-chasing investors and their friends at the FCC who have put outsize profits before a free press.
David Simon and Ed Burns, both of "The Wire," are producing a new mini-series about the Iraq War. Thank you for the link, Jason Kottke.
News: It's not the Internet that's killing newspapers. It's the equity-chasing investors and their friends at the FCC who have put outsize profits before a free press.
FOR WANT OF A DENTIST Twelve-year-old Deamonte Driver died of a toothache Sunday. A routine, $80 tooth extraction might have saved him. If his mother had been insured.
David Simon and Ed Burns, both of "The Wire," are producing a new mini-series about the Iraq War. Thank you for the link, Jason Kottke.
when i saw that Paula Zhan had invited Bill Donahue to talk about the "Jesus Tomb" on Feb 26th program i had to pinch myself just to make sure that i am not dreaming a really bad dream.
FOR WANT OF A DENTIST Twelve-year-old Deamonte Driver died of a toothache Sunday. A routine, $80 tooth extraction might have saved him. If his mother had been insured.
After the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the US was able to raid papers in a safe house he maintained. This document was not very telling at the time, but now with evidence of Iranian involvement in Iraq, one passage is startling to read today.
Print stories on McCain's Letterman appearance omitted his "wasted ... lives" comment, despite attention to Obama's
when i saw that Paula Zhan had invited Bill Donahue to talk about the "Jesus Tomb" on Feb 26th program i had to pinch myself just to make sure that i am not dreaming a really bad dream.
After the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the US was able to raid papers in a safe house he maintained. This document was not very telling at the time, but now with evidence of Iranian involvement in Iraq, one passage is startling to read today.
Print stories on McCain's Letterman appearance omitted his "wasted ... lives" comment, despite attention to Obama's
Libby Trial Exposes Neocon Shadow Government By Sydney Schanberg - The article about the Libby trial's broader implications that Sydney Schanburg has written in the NYObserver is a tightly crafted indictment of the entire malignant neocon cabal. To wit: Day by day, witness by witness, exhibit by exhibit, Patrick Fitzgerald, the prosecutor in the trial of Dick Cheney’s man, I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby, is accomplishing what no one else in Washington has been able to: He has impeached the Presidency of George W. Bush.
Libby Trial Exposes Neocon Shadow Government By Sydney Schanberg - The article about the Libby trial's broader implications that Sydney Schanburg has written in the NYObserver is a tightly crafted indictment of the entire malignant neocon cabal. To wit: Day by day, witness by witness, exhibit by exhibit, Patrick Fitzgerald, the prosecutor in the trial of Dick Cheney’s man, I. Lewis (Scooter) Libby, is accomplishing what no one else in Washington has been able to: He has impeached the Presidency of George W. Bush.
Complaints About Walter Reed Were Voiced For Years
Complaints About Walter Reed Were Voiced For Years
Brain Injuries Overlooked at Some Veterans Hospitals Data obtained by ABC News, shows that 10 percent or more of the Marines and soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have possibly sustained a brain injury. "I can't give you an absolute number, but I think the 10 percent … is a good estimate," Scott said. "But it could be higher." That could mean of the 1.5 million Americans, who have served or are now serving, more than 150,000 people could have a brain injury that is unrecognized by the Department of Defense. While all may not need treatment, the Department of Defense is not routinely screening returning soldiers for brain injuries despite calls from some of the department's own brain injury experts.
Brain Injuries Overlooked at Some Veterans Hospitals Data obtained by ABC News, shows that 10 percent or more of the Marines and soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan have possibly sustained a brain injury. "I can't give you an absolute number, but I think the 10 percent … is a good estimate," Scott said. "But it could be higher." That could mean of the 1.5 million Americans, who have served or are now serving, more than 150,000 people could have a brain injury that is unrecognized by the Department of Defense. While all may not need treatment, the Department of Defense is not routinely screening returning soldiers for brain injuries despite calls from some of the department's own brain injury experts.
PART 1 Investigative Reporter Seymour Hersh: US Indirectly Funding Al-Qaeda Linked Sunni Groups in Move to Counter Iran Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh joins us to talk about his explosive new article in the New Yorker Magazine. Hersh reports that John Negroponte’s decision to resign as National Intelligence Director was made in part because of the Bush administration’s covert actions including the indirect funding of radical Sunni groups - some with ties to al-Qaeda - to counter Shiite groups backed by Iran. Hersh also reports the Pentagon has established a special planning group to plan a bombing attack on Iran and U.S. military and special-operations teams have already crossed the border into Iran in pursuit of Iranian operatives.
Why is George Soros buying up Halliburton stock?
We need to keep calling attention to these sorts of things. Even if we've already come to expect it.
I love memes. They save me the trouble of having to come up with new blog ideas every week, because all this thinking sometimes leaves me with brain fever. What's more I've given up sarcasm and chicken for lent and you can only guess which has been harder. I mentioned in my "books that made me want to write books" blog that those books weren't even for the most part my favourites. But these are:
1. One Hundred Years Of Solitude, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
2. Song Of Solomon, Toni Morrison
3. The Obscene Bird of Night, Jose Donoso
4. Dubliners, James Joyce
5. Guerillas, V.S. Naipaul
6. Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain
7. The Master and Margarita, Mikhail Bulgakov
8. Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys
9. My Name is Red, Orham Pamuk
10.Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen
PART 1 Investigative Reporter Seymour Hersh: US Indirectly Funding Al-Qaeda Linked Sunni Groups in Move to Counter Iran Investigative reporter Seymour Hersh joins us to talk about his explosive new article in the New Yorker Magazine. Hersh reports that John Negroponte’s decision to resign as National Intelligence Director was made in part because of the Bush administration’s covert actions including the indirect funding of radical Sunni groups - some with ties to al-Qaeda - to counter Shiite groups backed by Iran. Hersh also reports the Pentagon has established a special planning group to plan a bombing attack on Iran and U.S. military and special-operations teams have already crossed the border into Iran in pursuit of Iranian operatives.
Why is George Soros buying up Halliburton stock?
We need to keep calling attention to these sorts of things. Even if we've already come to expect it.
Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, Army Chief of Staff, on captruing Osama bin Laden: "I don't know that it's all that important, frankly." Dick Cheney downplaying the importance of capturing Osama bin Laden: "He's not the only source of the problem, obviously. . . . If you killed him tomorrow, you'd still have a problem with al-Qaeda." President Bush on how important he thinks capturing Osama bin Laden is: "So I don't know where he is. You know, I just don't spend that much time on him. ... And, again, I don't know where he is. I -- I'll repeat what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him." "Deep in my heart I know the man's on the run, if he's alive at all...I just don't spend much time on it, really, to be honest with you." President Bush also shut down the CIA operation trying to capture Osama bin Laden. And let him escape in Tora Bora. If they care about capturing the man who actually attacked us on 9/11 and killed nearly 3,000 Americans, they have a funny way of showing it. Honestly, I don't know why the opposition party, the media and the American public are not absolutely outraged by this. I don't have that problem. I am truly outraged. You might get a sense of that by watching what I think of General Schoomaker's comments here. What I say in the video might sound harsh, but it's not nealry harsh enough. Maybe if we were all this pissed off about it, we might motivate someone in the government to care. Are they going to let Osama get away with it? And are we going to let them? The Young Turks
Are Heath Ledger and Michelle Williams on the rocks? Heath's solo Valentine's day at Teddy's might be a clue. Then again, this chummy photo was taken last Saturday. Hmm! [Gatecrasher, second item] PETA activist Pamela Anderson vowed to quit wearing Uggs after belatedly realizing that they are made of sheep. [Daily Telegraph] Hot tips for people looking to get out of jury duty: a) read a book about Lenin while waiting and b) be Steven Soderbergh. [Page Six] Finally, someone explains Jack Nicholson's new Britney hairdo! It's... for a movie. [R&M;, last item]
Cory Doctorow: Stine Gam and Enrico Fratesi's "Ant'ique" wallpaper sports old-timey designs made out of thousands of tiny black crawly ants. Link (via Neatorama)
blogs.foxsports.com
The NBA embraces YouTube. In a battle-picking move, the league has signed a short-term deal to create its own YouTube channel that will air league-approved content and highlight videos uploaded by fans. Talks are also in progress with FaceBook, MySpace and Second Life. [NYT]
CBS News contacts Anna Nicole Smith judge with possible job offer: A letter expressing interest from "Saturday Early Show" senior producer Michael Rosen to Judge Larry Seidlin was obtained by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Seidlin has actively campaigned for his own TV show in the past, while his decisions on the bench have been regularly criticized by CBS legal analyst Andrew Cohen. [Public Eye]
More bad news for paparazzi as camera phone-users learn to sell pics: Business is hurting for celeb-hunting photographers as the influx of new technology enables more and more amateurs to snap and instantly sell quality photos to newspapers and other media. [Guardian]
Steven Hatfill settles $10 million libel suit against Vanity Fair and Reader's Digest: The former Army scientist listed by investigators as a "person of interest" in the 2001 anthrax mailings came to an unspecified agreement with the two magazines after both agreed to retract any implication of his involvement in the attacks. [Guardian]
CNBC's Money Honey scores an eyebrow-raising interview with former Citigroup CEO: Just as the scandal was starting to die down, Maria Bartiromo interviews Sandy Weill, the Chairman Emeritus of Citigroup, for a CNBC exclusive. [TVNewser]
The Guardian sees its website skyrocket in traffic: Numbers rose more than 14% last month with 15.7 million international visitors in January alone. The paper credits in part its new comment and analysis site, "Comment is Free." [Guardian]
blogs.foxsports.com The NBA embraces YouTube. In a battle-picking move, the league has signed a short-term deal to create its own YouTube channel that will air league-approved content and highlight videos uploaded by fans. Talks are also in progress with FaceBook, MySpace and Second Life. [NYT] CBS News contacts Anna Nicole Smith judge with possible job offer: A letter expressing interest from "Saturday Early Show" senior producer Michael Rosen to Judge Larry Seidlin was obtained by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Seidlin has actively campaigned for his own TV show in the past, while his decisions on the bench have been regularly criticized by CBS legal analyst Andrew Cohen. [Public Eye] More bad news for paparazzi as camera phone-users learn to sell pics: Business is hurting for celeb-hunting photographers as the influx of new technology enables more and more amateurs to snap and instantly sell quality photos to newspapers and other media. [Guardian] Steven Hatfill settles $10 million libel suit against Vanity Fair and Reader's Digest: The former Army scientist listed by investigators as a "person of interest" in the 2001 anthrax mailings came to an unspecified agreement with the two magazines after both agreed to retract any implication of his involvement in the attacks. [Guardian] CNBC's Money Honey scores an eyebrow-raising interview with former Citigroup CEO: Just as the scandal was starting to die down, Maria Bartiromo interviews Sandy Weill, the Chairman Emeritus of Citigroup, for a CNBC exclusive. [TVNewser] The Guardian sees its website skyrocket in traffic: Numbers rose more than 14% last month with 15.7 million international visitors in January alone. The paper credits in part its new comment and analysis site, "Comment is Free." [Guardian]
The headline on CNN captured the question: Major Revelation or Titanic Fraud? And the first thing to say about the claims by "King of the World" James Cameron and "investigative journalist" Simcha Jacobovichi to have single-handedly debunked Christianity is that they're hardly the first to try. For 200 years, frauds and charlatans have popped up every few months claiming to "prove" that the Bible is true or that it's false. In fact, Cameron and Jacobovichi claimed only last summer to have "proved" the Exodus. Well, which is it? Either their first documentary is false, or this one is false. Of course, they don't care. They profit either way. But for those who do care, here are the problems with their argument. First, at the risk of further promoting their hucksterism, the background. The filmmakers claim that burial boxes found 27 years ago outside Jerusalem contain the remains of Jesus, his mother Mary, and Mary Magdalene. DNA evidence "proves" that Mary was his wife and that they sired a son also found in the cave. If true, this would indicate that Jesus was never resurrected from the grave, thereby debunking a central claim of Christianity. I'm not even a Christian, but I did live in the neighborhood where this cave was found, and I've spent most of the last ten years spelunking in far more important caves, from Jerusalem to Baghdad, looking at the relationship between the Bible and archaeology. Here's why they're wrong. 1. Caves like the ones where the ossuaries were discovered are commonplace in the area and were very familiar features of this neighborhood in the 1st century B.C.E. and C.E. The archaeologist who traveled with me for WALKING THE BIBLE and WHERE GOD WAS BORN, Avner Goren, made the fascinating point to me today that bodies used to be buried in groups but with the introduction of individualism from Greece, they started burying people in single boxes and labeling them. Basically, the bodies would be buried for a year, the family would come back and collect the bones and put them in an ossuary (a stone box). Then they would take the box out once a year and have a memorial service, as Jews still do today with candle lighting. 2. A family from Nazareth would not be buried in Jerusalem. Jewish custom holds that a body should be buried within 24 hours. I recently heard of a family that hired a private plane to get a body from Cleveland to Jerusalem in time. It would have been impossible to get a body from Nazareth, in the Galilee, to Jerusalem in this time period. Also, there's no way for a family to tend a grave this far away. So the idea of a multi-generational family tomb for Jesus in Jerusalem makes no sense. Even the archaeologist who discovered the cave originally, Amos Kloner, has dismissed the show as "nonsense." 3. The names on the ossuaries are very common. As Avner pointed out, 21 percent of names of women are Mary; Joseph and Jesus (Joshua) are among the top four male names. The presence of these names in a tomb would not have been rare. The name Jesus has been found in dozens of tombs over the years. Further, we have no evidence that this is a family tomb; it could have been a communal tomb, or a neighborhood tomb."There is no likelihood that Jesus and his relatives had a family tomb," Kloner said. "They were a Galilee family with no ties in Jerusalem. The tomb belonged to a middle-class family from the 1st century CE." 4. The DNA evidence that Jesus was not connected to the Mary buried in the tomb does not prove anything, other than they are not related matrilnearly. For all we know, they could have been related patrilinearly. Or, they could never have met. There is no evidence the female body belonged to someone who was "married" to anyone else in the tomb. There is no evidence she was the mother of anyone else in the tomb. And we can be sure they checked that! So the claim that Jesus fathered a son with the "Mary" in the tomb is bogus. Avner is a contemporary of Amos Kloner and has known him for decades. "It takes courage to say that the names on these ossuaries were very common," Avner said, "especially when it might benefit him to say otherwise." As for the filmmakers: "There is something cheap about playing on the emotions of people." And therein is the truth of this tale: This exploitation of quasi-science is hardly new, but it's still tawdry. The bottom line: There is more truth in Dan Brown's fiction than in James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovichi's fact.
Cory Doctorow: Brian sez, "This is an electric guitar made to look like the Nintendo Family Computer (Japan's version of the 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System). The individual who crafted this not only created a body that looks like a Nintendo Famicom, but also make replica controllers out of Japanese timber with little wooden buttons." Link (Thanks, Brian!)
Under a measure approved on Monday, the state would hold primaries on the first Tuesday in February instead of in June....
Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, Army Chief of Staff, on captruing Osama bin Laden: "I don't know that it's all that important, frankly." Dick Cheney downplaying the importance of capturing Osama bin Laden: "He's not the only source of the problem, obviously. . . . If you killed him tomorrow, you'd still have a problem with al-Qaeda." President Bush on how important he thinks capturing Osama bin Laden is: "So I don't know where he is. You know, I just don't spend that much time on him. ... And, again, I don't know where he is. I -- I'll repeat what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him." "Deep in my heart I know the man's on the run, if he's alive at all...I just don't spend much time on it, really, to be honest with you." President Bush also shut down the CIA operation trying to capture Osama bin Laden. And let him escape in Tora Bora. If they care about capturing the man who actually attacked us on 9/11 and killed nearly 3,000 Americans, they have a funny way of showing it. Honestly, I don't know why the opposition party, the media and the American public are not absolutely outraged by this. I don't have that problem. I am truly outraged. You might get a sense of that by watching what I think of General Schoomaker's comments here. What I say in the video might sound harsh, but it's not nealry harsh enough. Maybe if we were all this pissed off about it, we might motivate someone in the government to care. Are they going to let Osama get away with it? And are we going to let them? The Young Turks
Unlike a lot of other political bloggers, I started blogging with a distinct lack of interest in politics....
Vice President Cheney sure is active on the international travel circuit all of a sudden. First, there was a trip to Japan -- allegedly to thank Japan for its support of America's war on terror -- though he did all he could to avoid actually meeting Japan's Minister of Defense because of Defense Minister Kyuma's candid comments that the war was wrong-headed. Now, Cheney has made a surprise trip to Pakistan. I'm sure that Cheney's presence in Islamabad is a huge help in bolstering President Musharraf and helping shore up support for the Pakistani government and its president against growing influence of the Taliban and al Qaeda in the mountainous regions of Pakistan. Not. And what is happening at home while Cheney is traveling? The jury in the Scooter Libby trial continues to deliberate. Connection? Of course. -- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note
David Bradshaw has endured countless stings during his life as a beekeeper, but he got the shock of his career when he opened his boxes last month and found half of his 100 million bees missing. In 24 states throughout the country, beekeepers have gone through similar shocks as their bees have been disappearing inexplicably at an alarming rate, threatening not only their livelihoods but also the production of numerous crops, including California almonds, one of the nation's most profitable.
Vice President Cheney sure is active on the international travel circuit all of a sudden. First, there was a trip to Japan -- allegedly to thank Japan for its support of America's war on terror -- though he did all he could to avoid actually meeting Japan's Minister of Defense because of Defense Minister Kyuma's candid comments that the war was wrong-headed. Now, Cheney has made a surprise trip to Pakistan. I'm sure that Cheney's presence in Islamabad is a huge help in bolstering President Musharraf and helping shore up support for the Pakistani government and its president against growing influence of the Taliban and al Qaeda in the mountainous regions of Pakistan. Not. And what is happening at home while Cheney is traveling? The jury in the Scooter Libby trial continues to deliberate. Connection? Of course. -- Steve Clemons publishes the popular political blog, The Washington Note
The launch of the BitTorrent Entertainment Network came out today; there's the AP write-up, which is decent enough but the interview with Bram about it is more interesting. Tangentially, the the education of lawmakers on video DRM is an interesting countweight to all this.
"Chomsky on Why Bush Does Diplomacy Mafia-Style" Michael Shank recently interviewed Noam Chomsky, noted linguist and foreign policy expert, on the latest developments in U.S. policy toward Iran, Iraq, North Korea, and Venezuela. Along the way, Chomsky also commented on climate change, the World Social Forum, and why international relations are run like the mafia.
The launch of the BitTorrent Entertainment Network came out today; there's the AP write-up, which is decent enough but the interview with Bram about it is more interesting. Tangentially, the the education of lawmakers on video DRM is an interesting countweight to all this.
"Chomsky on Why Bush Does Diplomacy Mafia-Style" Michael Shank recently interviewed Noam Chomsky, noted linguist and foreign policy expert, on the latest developments in U.S. policy toward Iran, Iraq, North Korea, and Venezuela. Along the way, Chomsky also commented on climate change, the World Social Forum, and why international relations are run like the mafia.
In an op-ed in the New York Times, columnist Frank Rich argues that over five years after the events of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush is still ignoring serious terrorist threats to the United States. Faced with warnings from terrorism experts and a White House seemingly more focused on Iraq, Rich begs readers to ask, "Haven't we been here before?" Highlights of the Rich column include: "This is why the entire debate about the Iraq 'surge' is as much a sideshow as Britney's scalp. More troops in Baghdad are irrelevant to what's going down in Afghanistan and Pakistan. ... Who lost Iraq? is but a distraction from the more damning question, Who is losing the war on terrorism? The record so far suggests that this White House has done so twice." "The White House doesn't want to hear it now, either. That's why terrorism experts are trying to get its attention by going public, and not just through The Times." "It is precisely by pouring still more of our finite military and intelligence resources down the drain in Iraq that we are tragically ignoring the lessons of 9/11. Instead of showing resolve, as Bush supposes, his botch of the Iraq war has revealed American weakness." "What's changed in the few months since his lie is that even more American troops are tied down in Iraq, that even more lethal weapons are being used against them, that even more of the coalition of the unwilling are fleeing, and that even more Americans are tuning out both the administration and the war they voted down in November to savor a referendum that at least offers tangible results, 'American Idol.'" "Five years after 9/11, the terrorists would seem to have us just where they want us -- asleep -- even as the system is blinking red once again." The full column is available to Times Select subscribers here.
In an op-ed in the New York Times, columnist Frank Rich argues that over five years after the events of September 11, 2001, President George W. Bush is still ignoring serious terrorist threats to the United States. Faced with warnings from terrorism experts and a White House seemingly more focused on Iraq, Rich begs readers to ask, "Haven't we been here before?" Highlights of the Rich column include: "This is why the entire debate about the Iraq 'surge' is as much a sideshow as Britney's scalp. More troops in Baghdad are irrelevant to what's going down in Afghanistan and Pakistan. ... Who lost Iraq? is but a distraction from the more damning question, Who is losing the war on terrorism? The record so far suggests that this White House has done so twice." "The White House doesn't want to hear it now, either. That's why terrorism experts are trying to get its attention by going public, and not just through The Times." "It is precisely by pouring still more of our finite military and intelligence resources down the drain in Iraq that we are tragically ignoring the lessons of 9/11. Instead of showing resolve, as Bush supposes, his botch of the Iraq war has revealed American weakness." "What's changed in the few months since his lie is that even more American troops are tied down in Iraq, that even more lethal weapons are being used against them, that even more of the coalition of the unwilling are fleeing, and that even more Americans are tuning out both the administration and the war they voted down in November to savor a referendum that at least offers tangible results, 'American Idol.'" "Five years after 9/11, the terrorists would seem to have us just where they want us -- asleep -- even as the system is blinking red once again." The full column is available to Times Select subscribers here.
SOME of America’s most senior military commanders are prepared to resign if the White House orders a military strike against Iran, according to highly placed defence and intelligence sources.
SOME of America’s most senior military commanders are prepared to resign if the White House orders a military strike against Iran, according to highly placed defence and intelligence sources.
