Army Dismisses Gay Arabic Linguist

A decorated sergeant and Arabic language specialist was discharged after an investigation determined that he was gay. He alleges his commanding officer blatantly violated the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, and that investigators asked him if he had close friends who were gay, and if he was involved in community theater.
Thank goodness our military is on top of things. We’ve got too damned many Arabic linguists in the service these days.

Posted on Jul 28, 2006 READ MORE  | 482 READS

Arab Support Swings to Hezbollah

Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have all started sounding off about Israeli aggression. And even Al Qaeda, which is normally hostile to all Shiite groups, has thrown its support behind the militants fighting against the vaunted Israeli military.

Posted on Jul 27, 2006 READ MORE  | 21 READS

Low-Fat Ice Cream Uses Cloned Fish Blood Proteins

Appetizing news from the N.Y. Times: “New industrial processes, including one that involves a protein cloned from the blood of an Arctic Ocean fish, have allowed manufacturers to produce very creamy, dense, reduced-fat ice creams with fewer additives.”
Yum.

Posted on Jul 27, 2006 READ MORE  | 57 READS

Profits up 40% at Shell, 36% at Exxon

No need for creative accounting at these outfits: It’s good to be an oil company these days.

Posted on Jul 27, 2006 READ MORE  | 53 READS

Tour de France Winner Flunks Drug Test

Floyd Landis tested positive for high levels of testosterone, which Landis claims is either a mistake or the result of natural bodily processes. He was tested after his near-superhuman comeback win on an Alpine stage of the race, which the New York Times called perhaps the greatest single-day push in Tour history.
If this accusation proves true, Wheaties may have to find a new cover boy.

Posted on Jul 27, 2006 READ MORE  | 34 READS

Al Qaeda Calls for Holy War Against Israel

The terrorist group’s No. 2 leader, Ayman al Zawahri, called for Muslims to rise up against Jews in Lebanon and Gaza until Islam reigns from “Spain to Iraq.”

56% Want Deadline for Leaving Iraq

According to a new New York Times/CBS poll, 56% of Americans support a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.  Of that group, more than half support a withdrawal even if it leads to insurgent control of the country.

Posted on Jul 27, 2006 READ MORE  | 43 READS

Deadliest Day for Israel in Lebanon

More than 100 Hezbollah fighters staged a fierce ambush on Israeli ground forces entering a Lebanese border town, killing at least eight Israeli soldiers. Meanwhile, 24 Palestinians were killed in fighting in the Gaza Strip.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 18 READS

NYU Prof Launches Experiment in ‘Open-Source’ Journalism

It’s called NewAssignment.net, and the idea is for everyday citizens to fund specific reporting projects that will be assigned to professional journalists. This could be the birth of an entirely new paradigm in reporting: professionals and amateurs working together in a truly networked way. Check it out.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 33 READS

Washington State Upholds Gay Marriage Ban

Bigots are delighting at this blow against tolerance. Massachusetts is now the only state still extending full marriage benefits to homosexual couples.
On an intellectual level, it’s interesting to read the logical flights of fancy that judges have to make in their opinions to codify this kind of hatred into law.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 81 READS

A Sea Change in Bush’s Thinking on Iraq?

Don’t miss this observation by the Washington Post’s Dan Froomkin: “President Bush and national security adviser Stephen Hadley yesterday for the first time publicly acknowledged the momentous shift in the role for U.S. troops in Iraq, from fighting terrorists to trying to suppress religious violence.”

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 27 READS

US Airways to Sell Ads on Air Sickness Bags

Seriously, we’re not making this up: ads on barf bags. You have to wonder: How do you value the publicity that comes from associating your product with vomit? (above picture a Truthdig spoof)
And if it works, we’re suddenly one step closer to the advertising hell depicted in Spielberg’s “Minority Report.”

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 319 READS

Half of U.S. Says Iraq Had WMD’s

According to a new Harris poll, about 50% of Americans now say Iraq had weapons of mass destruction when the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003. This is up (up!) from 36% last year.
We can only hope, perhaps naively, such a moment represents a low-water mark ... that (with apologies to Fitzgerald) we are face to face for the last time in history with something commensurate with our capacity for ignorance.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 301 READS

Europe’s Hijack-Proof Plane

Airbus, Siemens and dozens of other European companies are working on a system that would reroute control of hijacked aircraft to the ground.  The system would then safely land the plane at the nearest airport.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 34 READS

No Gas, But Zero to 60 in Four seconds

The Tesla company’s new all-electric car can go 250 miles off a 3.5-hour charge and hit speeds of 130 mph. And although at $100,000 apiece, they’re not ready for the masses, the Teslas represent a huge leap over GM’s 1996 all-electric model, and offer a glimpse of things to come.

Posted on Jul 26, 2006 READ MORE  | 43 READS