Iraq Study Group No Real Help

I have little support or enthusiasm for the much overestimated report from the Iraq Study Group.

You don't have to be a foreign relations expert, or former Bush the First appointee to know that the situation on the ground in Iraq has been grim and yes, deteriorating for some time.

Counting on diplomatic pressure from the likes of Iran and Syria -- no, wouldn't recommend that. Those countries actively, aggressively oppose democratic goals. And prior to the US war in Iraq, even I could have advised White House officials that a weak Iraq and a weak Afghanistan would create the basis for a very powerful Iran.

Let's be honest - Iran has been the poster child for anti-U.S. philosophy since hostages were taken during the U.S. Embassy seizure in 1979. And Syria is a haven for Hussein loyalists.

Despite hopeful admiration for the report, little attention is being paid to two key problems with the U.S. strategy -- contracting out the training of Iraqis to private companies has been rife with fraud and failure; and likewise failure has been achieved at insuring a stable infrastructure of basics like electricity, hospitals, and even oil production.

Facing the house-to-house battles, soldiers are constantly in harm's way. The policies in place and those being weighed now seem only to pull in directions with little advantage for the U.S., our allies and the Iraqis.

In short, the U.S. is in one hell of a mess and clear decisive policies to resolving the war are still elusive. At the very best, the report may perhaps open the eyes wide shut at the White House -- but I doubt seriously if anyone can achieve that.

Wedding Day

There are some recent events which need/deserve blog attention this weekend.

However, real life is interfering. That means I am going to Chattanooga this morning for the wedding of my niece. And I do wish her much happiness.

The will of the triad of my mother, my sister and her daughter is indeed a mighty thing. So I'm suiting up and going in.

UPDATE: In addition to the wedding in Chattanooga, which was a very nice time and my niece was looking even more exceptional than ever, my extended family grew via the wedding (also on the 9th) in Nashville of my brother-in-law, a most excellent fellow who once made me welcome for a long stay in Manhattan, and is one of the newest and bestest songwriters working the Nashville music scene. And his bride is an aspiring screenwriter. So the family kinda doubled in size yesterday. Yay for all of us!!

Camera Obscura - Classic TV on DVD, Christmas Movie Advent

The complete first seasons of two classic TV series arrive finally, and both are must haves.

One is fascinating for capturing the high points and the low for a show that started out as a kind of underground oddity and has become an international giant of entertainment. I do recall very well that first night when NBC aired a show they called only "NBC's Saturday Night" with the Not Ready For Prime Time Players. Putting together the entire 1st season of SNL (and other season sets will follow) was too long in arriving. The show has forever changed television.


The first few seasons all looked as if it had been made in small nooks and around the edges of the NBC building and it isn't all sheer genius and brilliance. There are clunky skits and odd scenes, but the show was almost a nearly instant hit, a collection of loose cannons wildly taking shots at television and fame, with eclectic music and much self-parody. They were mavericks and outsiders, lumping together college style comedy and outrageously bizarre short films with performers singing musical standards and unknown musicians getting their first national exposure.

It was an evolving show too, from the credits design to the structure of opening monologues and the Weekend Update news satire. Hosts, like Richard Pryor, frightened the NBC suits. If you've read any of the so-called histories of the show, you know too that backstage chaos was constant (as was the drug and alcohol).

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Also new to DVD is the complete first season of "Mission:Impossible" and within that first season are the reasons why the show has remained so popular that almost 40 years later audiences flock to the movies with that title today.

Intense action, serious writing and storytelling made with style and rapid-fire editing. The show made a template still being followed by other shows, like "24" and even "Lost."

Fans and newcomers alike can see that first season headed by actor Steven Hill as Dan Briggs, as the character of Mr. Phelps played by Peter Graves did not arrive until season two.

It was those other actors and characters that made the show most watchable - Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, Greg Morris and Peter Lupus. The scam everyone, including the audience, in spy games and disguises with ultra-cool attitude and backed by a music theme which is still a part of the movie franchise today.

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Thanks to the intrepid Cinemonkey, I can point you to a web site which has an Advent Calendar where you can open the li'l doors on the calendar for each day of December and read about a movie to encourage a Christmasy mood.

Check it out here.

Some movies on this list I truly do NOT like however - such as "Home Alone". I thought the whole movie was vapid and dull and, let's be honest, it is also rather sadistic as the Boy Left Alone (not saying his name, sorry) beats and brutalizes some would-be thieves. Just not my idea of 'holiday fun'.



Also - they leave off some movies which I think are great films to bring out that holiday cheer. The 2003 comedy "Elf" is infectious fun with Will Ferrell as the overgrown elf with an addiction to syrup and sugar. Another movie worth the time to watch is "A Christmas Story' -- overplayed to death on TV, I can still enjoy it for many reasons -- Scott Farkus fears and the fishnet hose clad female leg lamp, which the Dad calls "a major award" and the Mom secretly destroys. And where are movie versions of "A Christmas Carol"??

The photo here is via the Tennessee Christmas Tree Growers Association, a site to tell you where you can get the finest in locally grown trees for the holidays.

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Do you have a holiday movie favorite?

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Mention must be made of the dangers of the Wii Game Console, which will be under many a Christmas Tree this year. Be careful with the dang thing, people!

Actually, the danger is in the controller for the game - seems some people using this wireless controller have gotten so intense during gameplay that they have snapped the wrist-loop on the controller and smashed in their TVs and other household items.

A website devoted to such events is here, where they have gotten the attention of Nintendo's executives, who promise a better wrist-loop is on the way.

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On the way for 2008 -- the long-awaited movie version of the Stephen Kind/Peter Straub fantasy novel "The Talisman." The TNT network and producer Steven Spielberg will create the mini-series!

We Have A RoboWinner!

Congratulations goes to a reader here, known as CarpenterJD, whose entry into the Win A RoboReptile Contest was short, sweet and ridden with longing for the new toy. He wrote:

"I would like to win the Robo-reptile because I am a frustrated adult/child that still loves to play with toys. Besides, when I was a youngster it was implied that in my adult years I would be aided by robots and flying cars. I have seen neither & I would love to have just a small sample of what life would be like with a Robo-reptile."

'Nuff said, CarpenterJD. Look for the RoboReptile in your mailbox!

My thanks to the DiscoveryStore and the folks at Wowee Toys and with Buzztone marketing for offering readers here this free electronic robotic marvel.

And thanks to all the other readers who submitted entries, too!

Mmmmmm, Hydrogenated .....

Most of us have no idea if or when we consume foods which are made using the now-nefarious partially hydrogentated vegetable oil. Brittney has an interesting post today about the current trend to ban the use of trans fats in food and says:

"The restaurant I used to work at fried their frozen crinkle fries in a vat full of trans fats, and they were awesome. Did I eat them every day? I wanted to, but I didn't. Did I eat them once a week? Hell yes, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

I can't believe I'm saying this, it's such a cliche, but everything in moderation. Cigarettes should not be banned, even though you shouldn't smoke them regularly. Same goes for trans fats. I can't believe I'm saying this either, but at what point does personal responsibility for one's diet come into play?"

Some communities and some corporations and some countries are actively banning artificial trans fat usage. Web sites are devoted to the ban. Apparently, it all started with Crisco.

But given the vast number of processed foods, is a label on the side with content ingredients via percentages and small typefaces going to be read by a consumer?

If personal choice of foods is to be maintained, will you soon by asked by food service workers, "Would you like an extra hydrogen atom with that??"

Win A Free RoboReptile!! UPDATE

UPDATE: An Executive Committee meeting of the writers and owners of this blog (me) made a recommendation to alter this contest -- if you'd like to one of these robotic toys, just submit in the comments on this post why you should be the winner.

No Poems, no Essays, No Manifestos, No Power Point Presentations.

Just 25 words or less on why you should be the winner. TIP: If there is only one entry in the comments as of noon Friday, December 8 -- guess what, you'll be the winner!! More than one entry means winners will be selected by me, for whatever reasons I determine to be valid.

As for the 'write a poem' idea, it was not mine. I appreciate very much the efforts on behalf of those offering this Free Christmas Gift from Wowee Toys, but the poem thing just had to go.

Now - more hyping of the product you could win!!!! END UPDATE

All week you can register here for a chance to win a free RoboReptile just in time for Christmas. What is a RoboReptile? Check out the video below and read on to see how you can own one!



Thanks to the folks at the Discovery Store for offering this free, much anticipated and highly rated robotic toy. (Winner of Toy of the Year Award from Child Magazine.)

How can you be the winner? Simple. You enter by writing in the comments on this post why you should be the winner of this unique robotic, prehistoric toy. Just put your thoughts down and all entries will be sent to the RoboReptile campaign for use in their advertising campaign. Fame may at last be yours!

RoboReptile is a fully-programmable 28-inch long toy with remote controls. It whips it's head and tail around as it searches for food or explores the world around it. It's very reptilian face has mouthful of rubber teeth and can jump, lunge, hop on it's rear feet and has infared sensors to see and sonic sensors which make it respond to the sounds around it. Oh and it is a hungry, aggressive critter.

The remote has multiple functions, allowing you to "feed" it, guide it around a room, set it on guard mode and even a volume control for it's roaring and snarling. It also comes with a hood to slip over it's head so you can get some rest from time to time too. Explore more about the RoboReptile here at the Discovery Store.

And again, to enter, just leave in the comments on this post why you'd be the perfect owner, or how your home needs a predatory robot. It's up to you! You can put entries here up until noon EST Friday, December 8th and I'll post the winner's name and poem later Friday afternoon. PLEASE: entries must include an email address so I can contact you and have RoboReptile shipped directly to your home.

If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer those as well. The toy is NOT recommended for children under the age of 8. Children over the age of 8, such as myself, will love it.

Forgotten Christmas Music and TV

Ah, the holidaze returns.

A dizzy collection of rare (or maybe just forgotten) Christmas music MP3s can be found at Check The Cool Wax, which includes merry tunes from Tex Ritter, Pee-Wee Herman, a Batman/Superman/Wonder Woman Christmas caper, Liberace's dramatic re-telling of 'Twas The Night Before Christmas, links to sites so you can find that fabled favorite of your Christmas Past and enough odd TV and rare albums to satisfy everyone.

Christmas special on TV are an American combo as good as Egg and Nog (and other ingredients). What other seasonal event could have ever brought together Bing Crosby and David Bowie? A TV Christmas episode is mandatory broadcasting.

Vast collections of music and personal videos await you in the Galaxy of YouTube, as well. This compilation of Christmas specials from The Simpsons is one of my favorites. Includes unaired version of Bart's Christmas Rap.

Jowlers and Peep-Jousting

The dog was watching "White Christmas" the other night. I took it for a sign.

It's a sign of a 21st century life - all new and fancy and rich with ways to cross over through the media looking glass and poke around like casual citizen scientists in a new frontier.

Here are two discoveries I made as the dog's tounge lolled at Rosemary Clooney and Bing Croby.

1.) Jowlers - Where Distortion is Cause For Celebration. There's plenty of pictures and a how-to guide. I'm thinking this is the way to craft a Christmas email this year. A Sample?



2.) Peep-Jousting. We should decide wars and elections this way, perhaps introduce it to the Middle East. Seems as likely to succeed as current efforts. Explanation: Three things are neeeded - Peeps, Toothpicks and A Microwave. Explore here.

Vote Scandal Ends With Guilty Pleas

The former mayor pled guilty to 233 counts on charges related to the voting fraud fiasco in 2004 in the town of Appalachia. I first mentioned the case earlier this year. A host of charges emerged during the presentation of the case, including tampering with absentee ballots and trading bags of pork rinds for votes.

The Kingsport-Times News has a wrap-up of the case here. Look like just about all those involved in an attempted grab for power in the town of Appalachia have all confessed to their crimes.

Former mayor Ben Cooper's attorney, Patty Church, told the press her client was no political kingpin, however.

"Cooper was "not really a Boss Hogg, and his '‘kingdom' was more like Larry, Curly and Moe," she said of a conspiracy that unraveled after a voter complained that she was not allowed to vote at the polls, having been informed she had already voted by absentee ballot. The voter knew otherwise."

Cooper faces a possible 21 months in jail and over $80,000 in court costs.

American Life, Circa 1970

Warning: Connecting to the blogsite being mentioned in this post is likely to cause you to spend a good chunk of time searching past posts and experiencing amazement, maybe a little nausea, laughter and some nostalgia too.

I found this yesterday on MetaFilter, and got lost for waaaaay to long. The site features pics from catalogs of the 1970s, especially toys and clothes and other odd bits of the past as the writer has been faithfully scanning images onto his page since starting the blog in April 2006.

The blog is Plaid Stallions: Ramblings and Reflections on 70s Pop Culture.


Take the pics, add in some hilarious commentary and you get a good idea of why, during the 1970s I clung desperately onto wearing just blue jeans and shirts with few embellishments (other than all the weird-ass t-shirts I have). Case in point - the arrival of what one catalog called Man Mates. Nope, would not be caught dead wearing that kind stuff even back then, though I do remember seeing a lot of people falling for it.

And I too recalled how, for a while, dressing alike for couples was a big thing. And click on the images to "embiggen".

Go visit Plaid Stallions for much, much more.

Camera Obscura: Inconvenient Truth; More Masters of Horror; Kung Fu Mysteries

Documentaries have been elevated into mainstream popularity over the last decade by numerous stellar films, and I would imagine the leading contender for an Oscar this year has to be "An Inconvenient Truth" from Al Gore.

It is out on DVD now and more and more households are checking in for an abundance of science and shock on the theories and ideas behind global warming. In terms of the old days of schlock cinema, it's a Mondo Cane of eco-catastrophic fears. Whatever your views on the notion of global crisis, the movie is hard to dismiss.

And Al is on a roll because of it. Since judicial decisions denied him the White House, he has been one of the more relaxed and fascinating figures in politics and entertainment. He pokes great fun at himself on many "Futurama" episodes and TV cameos, and this month's GQ has a terrific and candid interview with the man on the movie, the Bush administration - all no holds barred and often very funny - that is this week's must read.

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The Masters of Horror 2nd season on Showtime, which airs new episodes each Friday night at 10 p.m. is not only getting better and better, it's found great stories and new ways for horror directors to shine. Tonite's episode is a new entry from Dario Argento based on an F.Paul Wilson tale and stars Meat Loaf (or as a friend of mine says, "it's old man Loaf's boy, Meat!") who is now identified in movies and TV as Meatloaf Aday.

Last week's episode - John Carpenter's Pro-Life - was jaw dropping audacity incarnate, daring to mingle demons, anti-abortionists, and gore. Of course, it wasn't the mind-bending weird of last season's too-much-for-cable-TV- broadcast of Takashi Miike's "Imprint," (which I showed to friends during the Thanksgiving holidays, and now qualifies as a "clear-the-room" movie.)

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The Independent Film Channel has picked up the first of the 1973 epic crime films known as "The Yakuza Papers: Battles Without Honor or Humanity", and it airs tonight at midnight and during the month of December. The very influential style of the movie still resonates today, whether as music in Tarantino's "Kill Bill" or the ruthless, non-romantic gangster movie this year, "The Departed." Director Kinji Fukasaku used the story of the crimelords as social critique, but the movie picks you up and never lets you go.

The movie very accurately depicts the rise of the Yakuza crime families following the end of World War 2. Four sequels followed, but this first one stand very well on it's own. The entire collection is now available on DVD - just in time for someone to give it to me for Christmas!!

And speaking of Asian legends, I read a fascinating account of an American in China who is blogging about his life there. He happened upon a super-cheap and non-pirated copy of the DVD collection of "Kung Fu". Like many my age and some younger, that show was the first introduction we had to the stories and myths and entertainment which broke open the cinema and the world to Asian movies. Check out his blog here -- and yes, learning to say "When you can take the pebble from my hand it will be time for you to leave" in Chinese is a truly cool thing. And follow the mystery of Caine's name here.

Thursday Web-Walk

All the variety of information here deserves a separate post, but instead I'm placing them all on one. Not an act of being the lazy blogger - just a sample of other blogs I'm reading, and some stories that bear repeating.

Over the last month, two bloggers I read often both suffered the sudden loss of beloved family. I have (and many others have too) already written about the death of AT's wife, BJ. He has been continuing to write most passionate and vivid posts about what's happening. It's a continuing account of real life which is truly compelling.

And grief has sadly affected Alice at 10,000 Monkeys and A Camera after the sudden death of her mom in a car accident. That, plus a move into a new home has made her take a break for a bit, but she's writing again. And even in the midst of her trials, she too takes time to mention other blog-writers who have been coping with death. Just a classy lady all the way. Condolences to her family. Her mom sounds like an amazing person.

In Tennessee politics, Mike Silence notes there wasn't much blog discussion about Bill Frist's decision to step away and not run for president. And make no mistake, he was running and has raised millions so far. I'm with Kleinheider at Volunteer Voters - Frist has no political pull anymore. He was unable to get much done as Senate Leader, is facing likely charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission. Talk says he may run for governor. I'd suggest not. As for his medical career - wasn't he recently cited for faking some of the work required to keep his medical license active too?

Some members of the state's Transportation Committee are mulling over the idea of charging every driver in Tennessee a gas tax based on your mileage. A sort of test run of the idea in Portland, Oregon has volunteers driving with transmitters in their vehicles and paying 1.2 cents a mile. So many commuters drive from a half-hour to an hour for work commutes here in east Tennessee, not to mention what it would cost to operate city or county or school system vehicles, and those costs would seem outrageous to me.

Don't know about you, but I don't really have good cell phone skills - my fat fingers fumble over the buttons, I don't create individual ringtones, I don't watch movies or listen to music on one either. But in Japan, we are talking about people who have some serious skills. Winners were just announced for the First Annual Mobile Phone Novel Awards. Yep, writing novels on a phone. Even more amazing that someone could do it - there were over 2,000 people who entered their phone-novels for the top prizes.

One other wired-world bit of news sounds most interesting too - live webcasts of rehearsals for "Saturday Night Live." I am always curious about the backstage of performances and production. I'd watch.

Finally, the government is putting together a test-run for a brand new citizenship test, with new questions which focus on how government works rather than on American history.

And there's your Thursday Web-Walk.

Iraq Pays Reparations to Toys 'R Us, KFC????

Who was it that said The business of war is business?

A jaw-dropping post from TGW has got to be the most mind-numbing, irrational and most unbelievable thing I've read in a long time in the fiasco that is the war in Iraq -- the post is about the war reparations which have been awarded to corporations like Toys 'R Us and KFC:

"Here is a small sample of who has been getting "reparation" awards from Iraq: Halliburton ($18m), Bechtel ($7m), Mobil ($2.3m), Shell ($1.6m), Nestlé ($2.6m), Pepsi ($3.8m), Philip Morris ($1.3m), Sheraton ($11m), Kentucky Fried Chicken ($321,000) and Toys R Us ($189,449). In the vast majority of cases, these corporations did not claim that Saddam's forces damaged their property in Kuwait - only that they "lost profits" or, in the case of American Express, experienced a "decline in business" because of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait. One of the biggest winners has been Texaco, which was awarded $505m in 1999. According to a UNCC spokesperson, only 12% of that reparation award has been paid, which means hundreds of millions more will have to come out of the coffers of post-Saddam Iraq."

Beyond bizarre.

Property Rights Debate Continues

Since much debate has taken place this week on these pages regarding the concept and use eminent domain and development, I thought I'd share a few stories with you I read today relating to commercial development and specifically about the current attitudes among Americans on the topic.

First, some good news for the city of Morristown as Alcoa Inc.'s Howmet subsidiary announced a $6 million expansion of the current facilities, which should be completed by next year. Over the last five years or so, the state in general has seen more growth in the expansion of exisisting industries. The announcement did not have details about the number of new jobs which may be created but it's more than likely given this will add 16,000 sq. ft. to their plant.

Not so good news arrived in an annual survey from the Saint Consulting Group. The survey shows growing dislike for land development, regardless of what that development might be. Some highlights from the report:

" - Opposition to development still remains strong: 73 % of Americans oppose new development in their communities.
- 70% of Americans would use taxes to keep land un-developed.
- Even greater opposition surfaces about landfills, power plants, and quarries.
-Not such bad news this year for casinos, though still not welcome in most American communities.
- Opposition to Wal-Mart is more prevalent, though less intense.
- 75 % of US residents give their local elected officials a C or worse, when it comes to deciding what does and does not get built in their communities.
-Development has become a decisive political issue in local and regional elections.
- Significant support turns up for new hospitals, even as opposition grows.
- There is a unquestionable Kelo backlash: 71 % support laws stopping eminent domain for private development."

Yes, there's that phrase again - eminent domain. Just a casual check across the internet reveals intense debate about the long-held legal sanction of taking land from private owners. Type the words into the Technorati search engine and nearly 50,000 web pages appear, covering the dispute from coast to coast, citing abuses and policy debates in most every state of the nation.

Similar results arrive using Topix, or Google and others too. Highly organized grassroots groups are keeping a major presence on the internet to demand more protections for property owners from legislators at the state and and national levels, such as Castle Coalition.

Reason magazine has an extensive examination of both changes in eminent domain laws and how businesses and elected officials are battling to keep the changes away. Their writer Adrian Moore has a fascinating peice about this battle and what's at stake for property owners:

"It turns out that city and county governments and redevelopment authorities are pretty effective lobbyists. They managed to retain significant authority to use eminent domain and define limits in very subjective terms. As Barron wrote:

Americans have long been of two minds when it comes to property rights. On the one hand, there is the old notion that ownership is inviolable, a home is a castle, and the government has no business messing with private property. On the other hand, there is the equally old notion that no one is an island and that the value in any individual's property is deeply interconnected with the health of the community as a whole.

In a world where legislators and much of the public have gone squishy on what constitutes a right, passing a law that just plain says, '“look, you can'’t take someone'’s land except on rare occasion for public infrastructure projects like roads and dams'” appears just too extreme.

There is a conflict of visions. As one city manager told me, '“What about the community'’s right to improve itself and create new jobs?'” There is a reason the Constitution doesn'’t mention '“community rights' --—they don'’t exist. Only individuals have rights. Communities have desires."

On The Death of Dave Cockrum

Comic book artist Dave Cockrum passed away Sunday at his home in South Carolina, and while I mourn his exit, I really appreciate the way the 63-year-old sauntered away. He was suffering from complications from diabetes, but news reports have made note of his demeanor too:

"Wearing Superman pajamas and covered with his Batman blanket, comic book illustrator Dave Cockrum died Sunday. ...... in his favorite chair at his home in Belton, South Carolina ...

At Cockrum's request, there will be no public services and his body will be cremated, according to Cox Funeral Home. His ashes will be spread on his property. A family friend said he will be cremated in a Green Lantern shirt."

Sounds like a pretty fine way to go to me.

I guess there's some eternal youth quality to comic books, and it has been a business with highs and lows and now CGI effects can bring the fierce and furious action to the screen which has existed in simple pen and ink illustrations for generations. Certainly in many X-Men stories, heroics isn't just a aspect of fantasy - it's about personal struggles within and with friends and foes alike. The illustrations of artists like Cockrum and many others are uniquely American images, provoking drama and humor and acts both human and superhuman.


Dave was typical of many artists who worked for both big publishers, DC and Marvel, and it was his work with Len Wein to re-invent the X-Men franchise in the 1970s which brought him real fame, creating the characters of Storm, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Phoenix, Mystique and others. That's his cover for the relaunch of the X-Men. Much of his design work became the model for all those characters now on the silver screen and in the current run of X-books.

And, like many other artists, he found that his work did not bring any royalties and was in something of a financial crunch in his later years. Marvel and DC both came around eventually.

A history of his work is here, some info on his struggles to receive pay is here, and there are tributes here, and a great gallery of his sketches and drawings here.

Comic writer and friend Clifford Meth writes about Dave's passion for his work and deep appreciation for his fans. He'd go to fan conventions without being paid, would sign autographs for free too. Dave even offered a comic fan from Tennessee to come and visit him in South Carolina even as his health was failing. Meth says:

"If it hadn't been for the burden of his illness, he would never have even mentioned his missing royalties to anyone. For companies that take advantage of that sort of guy, that's a ready-made sucker, a patsy. But for Dave Cockrum, it was about getting on with life. He was happy to have created what he created, to have found a career drawing comics. He never verbalized any regret about his chosen field. At least not to me, and I was his pal. Dave never considered the road not taken. "What else could I have done?�" he�d say. "I love comics!�"

You Got Elvis In My Reese's!

Here's yet another example of a blogging idea so simple and likely quite lucrative, which will make you smack your forehead and say - "Oh, man! I shoulda done that!"

It's Junk Food Blog.

And looky at what they say is now on sale here in the US of A. And it's got peanut butter, chocolate and bananas. Woot! (Thanks to Tits for the link) And the package says "limited edition" so if you spy these on sale somewhere near this corner of East TN, tell me!

The Buzz of War

Honeybee bomb detectors have been created by scientists and researchers at Los Alamos National Lab. The wee critters have been trained to essentially stick out their noses when a variety of explosive material is nearby, according to the reports today:

"Researchers in the program, dubbed the Stealthy Insect Sensor Project, published their findings on Monday.

By exposing the insects to the odor of explosives followed by a sugar water reward, researchers said they trained bees to recognize substances ranging from dynamite and C-4 plastic explosives to the Howitzer propellant grains used in improvised explosive devices in Iraq."

Insects may be emerging as the new warrior, and of course saving human lives through innovation is truly laudable. Earlier this month, the nation of Israel announced their ongoing research and development of a sort of "bionic hornet," a miniature spy drone the size of an insect which might be capable of not only negotiating its way through nefarious hideouts, but perhaps even have a weapons capability - one would expect it to be more severe than a simple sting.

Whether using live or manufactured mini-bugs of warfare, the key is nanotechnology. Many advances have been achieved in just the last few years, and the U.S. has already established a National Nanotechnology Initiative, whose budget has jumped from the millions to an expected $1 billion in research and development. The concerns of developers and theorists alike project startling advances and grim new realities of war as well:

"Virtually every aspect of human life would be affected: for example, tiny robots could be sent into the human body to locate and destroy cancerous cells or viruses, or even correct failing organs at the cellular level, leading to indefinite extension of the human lifespan.

The dangers posed by MNT (molecular nanotechnology) are also nearly limitless: cheap, fast mass production would enable spasmodic arms races; improved smart materials could make current weapons systems much more capable, or permit creation of entirely new classes of weapons.

Perhaps the most publicized danger from MNT is the so-called "gray goo" problem, where self-replicating nanomachines essentially out-compete the naturally occurring life forms on earth."

Human history has already had molecular encounters of many kinds which shifted civilization itself. A microbe can challenge more than just one person, it can challenge a society. A recently published account of how the city of London battled the outbreak of cholera in 1854, "The Ghost Map" details one such encounter, long before science had even connected the "bug with the disease."

It just isn't a science-fiction concept anymore -- yet one of the best examples of that, however, Neal Stephenson's award-winning "The Diamond Age" explores an astonishing world where nanotech is not only the norm, it can affect the ways in which all levels of society develop. A molecular-based have-and-have-not social structure.

Mini-spy drones are presented in the book in ways which current research and development indicate may be active in the very near future.

Debunking the Fertility Gap

A new talking point of nonsense (and yes that is a huge and growing category in today's world o' politics) tumbled out on this page recently in a comment left by a reader, in which he cited something called "the fertility gap".

The comment arrived from Ned, and while I appreciate readers and visitors of all types, that phrase "fertility gap" has been rattling around the media and pundits for some few weeks or months now and so here I am, offering you my take on this new statistical wisdom.

An explanation of this phrase is humbly provided via the opinion page of the Wall Street Journal:

"According to the 2004 General Social Survey, if you picked 100 unrelated politically liberal adults at random, you would find that they had, between them, 147 children. If you picked 100 conservatives, you would find 208 kids. That's a "fertility gap" of 41%"

There are some most significant words in the WSJ article cited, most prominent of course is the word "If."

If you can identify 100 unrelated people who call themselves "liberal" (or perhaps the pollsters just assumed a person they contacted declared they were Democrat, Progressive, Libertarian or Independent really meant the heinous "liberal") and ask them if they have children you have indeed discovered a "random group sample". Emphasis on "random."

"If" I asked 100 parking meters if they were created by aliens and they all refused to communicate any response to my question, then is their non-denial an admission they are alien creations or were they forced into silence by their Alien Overlords?

Once the idea of the proposed gap was presented, others took up the notion and called it "news." Here's something from USA Today, seeking to define election outcomes present and future based on who has kids and who does not and where they are and etc etc:

"Democrats represent 59 districts in which less than half of adults are married. Republicans represent only two.

Democrats represent 30 districts in which less than half of children live with married parents. Republicans represent none.

"The biggest gaps in American politics are religion, race and marital status," says Democratic pollster Anna Greenberg."

Jeepers, Anna! There's just gaps everywhere we look! Aaiiiieeee!!!

The above percentages take on even a more curious meaning when The Latest Statistic shows that the number of married Americans is on the decline and now a minority, something Wintermute mentioned in a post recently.

Given the USA Today stats, it would seem the majority of Americans who identify themselves as part of some political party are far more likely to be Democrats. Has this shift caused the Republicans to, as the old saying has it, "do it for Old Glory?"

Ellen Goodman weighed in on the Fertility Gap hoo-ha thusly:

"I never knew there was a conservative gene. If so, can it be tweaked? Is that another reason to support stem cell research?

(writer Phillip) Longman went on to say, '“When secular-minded Americans decide to have few, if any, children, they unwittingly give a strong evolutionary advantage to the other side of the culture divide.'” Imagine giving an evolutionary advantage to folks who don't believe in evolution.

Should neo-con parents expect that lining the cribs with wee plush elephant toys, or wee plush donkeys if they are Democrats, will somehow instill ideologicalical infants?

What might occur "if" during foreplay prior to procreation, one or the other person involved were to think "liberal" and not "conservative" thoughts? Would the caress create some pre-natal political stance?

Should exit polls be focused in the delivery room of America's hospitals? And who should host the TV News special??

Also we now have, for lack of a better phrase and to follow the nonsensical naming of randomly obtained statistics, what could be called The Abstinence Gap.

Our government is now funding millions and millions into programs to encourage adults between the ages of 19 to 29 to simply abstain from having sex. No talk of contraception or anything which might reduce pregnancy, just tell 'em to be celibate. I would imagine at age 30 there might be a preponderance of passion.

So is there some kinda reverse psy-ops taking place? If we tell them not to have sex, they will and hopefully they'll all have conservative babies, or once over the age of 30 the parents will more likely be a conservative whose conservative gene is more enhanced .... but what if ..... if .... if ....

All this reminds me of a question once posed by writer Tom Robbins:

"If a chicken and a half lays an egg and a half in a day and a half, then how long will it take a monkey with a wooden leg to kick all the seeds out of a pickle?"

City Bungles Colgate Site Development

The on and then off and now on again battle for land rights to assist with the major multi-million dollar industrial development of a new Colgate plant in Morristown is evidence of, at best, lousy planning by city officials.

Seems the new facility lacks access to a sewer system. Construction at the Colgate plant has been humming right along until - Surprise!! - the city failed to obtain the necessary easements for sewer access.

The city has a long tradition of reliance of using condemnation of private property and taking it via eminent domain claims, so that's what they did in October for the 11.5 acres owned by Bill Howell who operates an active dairy farm on the site. The city paid for an assessment of the value of the property and came up with a payment offer of $150,000.

In mid-November the local press proclaimed the deal was done, that Howell had signed an agreement to sell -- and added as well that the property in question would also be needed for a 5-lane roadway connecting Highway 160 with a road called Merchants Greene, which is the site of a still developing large retail complex. The bad news was, the report of the deal was bogus.

In the local paper's Nov. 18th edition, they write that no agreement to sell to the city has taken place. All that did occur was that Howell agreed to a future signing of an order of possession, which would grant the right to the city to have access to his property for road and other improvements, like sewer access. But no such signing has occurred in any reports I can find.

(NOTE: I cannot provide links to the local newspaper's articles on this debacle. The Citizen-Tribune will allow you to search their archives if you pay $5.95 for a one day access or $49.95 for a 30-day access and I for one am not willing to pay that much. Their "access to archives" page is here. Since I have a friend who is a subscriber to the paper, at a cost of just over $9 per month, the info on this eminent domain case is from the hard copy.)

Howell has stated he is seeking his own assessment of the property and until that happens, no agreements will be made. However, since the city has already filed their court documents seeking to use eminent domain in October, they are proceeding with that suit.

The poor folks at the Colgate plant, also are awaiting the outcome of the dispute, and are continuing with much hope as they construct their facility, which relocated here from Indiana. The city attracted them here after giving them the property for the facility at no charge and also giving a 7-year tax-free status on property taxes.

Though I can't imagine them presenting their sales package to Colgate with the admission that the city didn't have sewer access for the facility.

This isn't the first time - and won't be the last - that city officials use the forced seizure of land for industrial development. Time and again industrial proponents have claimed that tax benefits (even if delayed for many years) offset the problems private property owners have in selling active family-owned farmland. The city is currently considering using eminent domain to seize the property of the former Morristown College campus for an unnamed developer, since they say the asking price for the property by the current owner is too expensive.

In these times when most communities and states are re-working and improving the old-fashioned heavy-handed tactics of eminent domain to seize property. On Nov. 7, 2006 more than 80 percent of voters in Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire and South Carolina approved constitutional amendments that forbid use of eminent domain for economic development. Arizona, Florida, Oregon, Nevada and North Dakota also passed eminent-domain limits. In all, 35 states have now curbed eminent domain abuse since the Kelo ruling.

The sad reality locally is that forced seizure is the card the city usually plays first. And historically, they usually win, despite any private or public opposition.

GOP: Global Orgasm for Peace

"You don't need a good reason to have an orgasm," he said. "Even a stupid one is OK." (link)

The story of the event planned for December 22nd has been sneaky-Peteing it's way into the news, the internet tubes have begun to mention it, and at best the proposed worldwide attempt for a "synchronized orgasmic event" with participants focusing their .... um ... efforts at projecting hopes and thoughts for world peace can't really hurt anything.

There are some who think the event can produce scientifically measurable results for positive human consciousness enhancement. I have to admit there are scientifically measurable results for, oh, say, hurling bombs and rockets or suicide bombers, which do in fact create a whole heap of negativity all around.

Consider what might happen if it were required that diplomats engage in sexual behavior with each other prior to or following their foreign diplomacy gatherings. No photos or cameras or webcasts of the act, no, but I imagine those press conferences afterward would exude a certain level of honest if awkward discussions as it would surpass the impact of opposing forces just shaking hands at such events.

Is this all a sublimely ridiculous idea? Maybe - but you have to admit those who do participate in this will probably be in a better mood than those who do not.

The Global Orgasm organizers have a blog (of course) and they also remind would-be participants that a partner isn't necessary. Preferable though.

Promotional Shat

I cannot believe some advertising exec got paid and the studio folk approved the following as a great campaign tagline for the new William Shatner hosted game show, "Show Me The Money":

"It's Shat-tastic."

Blame The Atheist?

An essay from the ex-boyfriend of Ann Coulter and Laura Ingraham being crammed with ill-informed, ignorant and just plain wrong concepts should be no surprise. The self-righteous posturing of these dubious moralizers gives proof to the idea that no matter how stupid and inaccurate an idea may be, the more it is repeated ad nauseum by writers/pundits the more likely it is to be deemed truth.

The essay I saw recently by Dinesh D'Souza in Christian Science Monitor is a mashup of neo-con buzzwords and idiotic proclamations meant to appeal to thick-skulled xenophobes, that peculiar segment of society who crave desperately for some Bad Evil to blame for every woe of mankind.

A sample:

"Moreover, many of the conflicts that are counted as "religious wars" were not fought over religion. They were mainly fought over rival claims to territory and power. Can the wars between England and France be called religious wars because the English were Protestants and the French were Catholics? Hardly.

The same is true today. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is not, at its core, a religious one. It arises out of a dispute over self-determination and land. Hamas and the extreme orthodox parties in Israel may advance theological claims - "God gave us this land" and so forth - but the conflict would remain essentially the same even without these religious motives
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"Whatever the motives for atheist bloodthirstiness, the indisputable fact is that all the religions of the world put together have in 2,000 years not managed to kill as many people as have been killed in the name of atheism in the past few decades."
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"It's time to abandon the mindlessly repeated mantra that religious belief has been the greatest source of human conflict and violence. Atheism, not religion, is the real force behind the mass murders of history."

D'Souza even has a new book out "The Enemy At Home: The Cultural Left And It's Responsibility For 9/11." It isn't religion, he says, it's those damn secular Left Wingers.

But the sheer lunacy and plain mis-construction of history reveals his willful ignorance of facts, and a bizarre, if not fanatical religious devotion to neo-con morality. Clue phone time: if you expect politics to provide moral guidance, you will soon find yourself in a land governed by the objectives of religious war.

His thesis ignores the reality that Europe was racked by political and religious warfare for centuries, with political might obtained by first creating a religious and moral authority to conduct a God-willed warfare. Also ignored are the intent of the founders of this country, who sought to provide a clear and specific wall to prevent religion from being a state-endorsed objective.

History shows that the 17th century American colonies often saw laws demanding adherence to religion on pain of torture, death or exile. Much of the extermination of Native Americans was due to a moral certainty that the religious beliefs of "savages" were reason enough to destroy those peoples, and debate over whether or not to allow for certain Native American religious practices continues to this very day.

D'Souza also claims the warmongering mindset of Hitler, for instance, was that of an atheist. Yet, as noted in White's Creek Journal recently, Hitler proclaimed "Today Christians stand at the head of our country. We want to fill our culture again with the Christian spirit. We want to burn out all the recent immoral developments in literature, in the theatre, and in the press-in short, we want to burn out the poison of immorality which has entered into our whole life and culture as a result of liberal excess during recent years."

The nonsense of D'Souza's essay is common chorus among so many who bang drums of cultural warfare. It may come as a surprise to some, but Christ teaches in the New Testament that one not attend the "mega-church" but rather gather in small groups in His name.

I noticed again with a frightening regularity this year that so many candidates seeking office felt compelled to include their religious orientation as part of their campaign for federal office. Sadly, none of them seem aware of this section of Article VI of the Constitution:

"...but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."

By all means, attend your church of choice. Be committed to your beliefs. But never confuse the function of government with the function of religion. And be wary of those who seek to combine the two.

Odd Christmas Toys 2006

Forgive my time traveling nostalgia for Christmas Past. I know I'm a few years older than dirt and the toys I desired, even lusted for, when I was a boy were likely to be composed of only two elements: plastic and my imagination.

I do remember the time a friend's older brother one post-unwrapping day brought out an amazing gift he had received. It was the holy of holies It was James Bond's attache case based on the "From Russia With Love" movie. It had the hidden dagger, pistol with barrel extension and stock and silencer, passport, code book, money and even business cards. It sold for around 20 bucks.

Here in 2006, you can get a "new" version of the case for ... wait for it ... $4300. It comes with a Vaio TX Notebook, and various digital goodies. Can't be a spy without the digital toys. (And yes, I marvel at the Bond video game of the entire movie "From Russia With Love" available now. But the comingling of Bond and Barbie is just wrong.)

Way back in the ancient times of my own childhood, I lived in a town so small that toys were available at a dry goods store, or in a teeny section of four-aisled grocery store. And we aren't talking depression era days here. Still, since I was barely eyeball-high to the counter at the dry goods store, I took more pleasure than most could imagine scanning the bins of green army soldiers, red and yellow and blue Indians and Cowboys, and for the hi-tech kids, there was a Hot Wheels section with lengths of plastic track which could create the physics-defying looped section. If memory serves, after about an hour of hurling the wee plastic cars down the ramps, we dismantled the track and used the pieces as swords and smacked the crap out of each other.

Good times.

The knowledge needed here in 2006 for most-popular toys and the amount of money needed just zaps my time-addled brain. And truly, some of the stuff out there is just plain freaky.

Take a look at the kid's tattoo parlor playset. Yeah, kids can now pretend to be practioners of body modification with a toy tattoo gun. And who doesn't yearn for their kid to wear a camo cap backwards?

Maybe you can find a Home Mullet Salon playset for the kids too.







Then there's the most curious looking Dora toy. Kids are never too young to think in Freudian imagery I guess.








For the 0ver-18 game and toy lovers, I'm sure Honky Tonk Homicide, a redneck murder mystery dinner party, is gobs of fun. Marks the first time I've ever seen the words "redneck" and "dinner party" used in conjunction.

Camera Obscura - Faulkner's Vampire; Bond's Revival

A full length screenplay by William Faulkner was discovered a few years ago which is his only unproduced and still complete screenplay. And it's a vampire movie.

Lee Caplin found the script some years back, and is now pitching the project around Hollywood. The original was set in an unnamed Eastern Europe location, but the idea now is to set it in the Deep South. More details can be found at this link.

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This weekend also brings the return on the creation of writer Ian Fleming, a somewhat violent and eccentric spy named James Bond. The actor in the lead is Daniel Craig - a fine choice given his acting chops in movies like the Tarantino-like crime thriller "Layer Cake." And the story this time is based -- make that loosely based -- on the novel "Casino Royale."

Observers have cheered the movie for closely following Fleming's story ... but there are some significant alterations which make me irritable. The novel - and Bond's assignment - are quite specific. He is sent to challenge another spy/terrorist who goes by the name Le Chiffre in Monte Carlo at the baccarat table. Yet the movie changes the game to a high stakes Texas Hold-Em game.

Sorry, but Bond playing Texas Hold-Em is like Bond chugging a bottle of wine while eating a double bacon cheeseburger. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

Fleming's books are tight and compact thrillers, barely 200 pages each. Bond is brutal, yes, and something of a loose cannon. And there has only been one occurrence by my reckoning of the movies following the books closely and that's the first film, "Dr. No."

Don't get me wrong - I like the Bond films, with the exceptions of those with Roger Moore who is more Austin Powers than James Bond. And one I like very much is "You Only Live Twice" yet ever since that film, producers have crafted a series of wildly improbable stunts and goofy gadgets and clever title songs. Fleming's stories for the most part were abandoned.

I plan to see this new Bond within the next few days, but smart money says the most faithful presentation of Fleming's work can be found in "Dr. No."

A side note: the trippy weird version of "Casino Royale" from the 1960s is entertaining as a time capsule only, but a bitter rivalry between actors takes place between Peter Sellers (as Bond) and Orson Welles (as Le Chiffre). The refused to be on set together and each shot their "confrontation" separately and film editors had to do the rest.

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Every movie trailer you can think of for upcoming films is here. Be prepared to spend quite a bit of time saying things like "oooh!! this looks great" and "awww, yer kidding me!"

Speechless

Grim news today from Oak Ridge blogger AT, about his wife who has been so critically ill.

I offer my deepest sympathies to AT and his family, as do so many thousands of others who have been reading AT's accounts of what has been happening for the last few weeks.

Her illness arrived without warning and has been truly devastating. None of it seems fair or right

Words seem a feeble thing right now.

But the hopes and wishes and prayers from so many, I trust, do offer a sense that this troubled time is being shared by friends and strangers alike. We all send you and your family much love and concern.

UPDATE: A memorial fund has been set up for the Atomic Tumor family. To donate, send a check to: Barbara J. Kilpatrick Memorial Fund C/O ORNL Federal Credit Union P.O.Box 365 Oak Ridge, TN 37831.

Carmina Burana on Banjo?

I know the first time I heard the music from the Carmina Burana Fantasy it was in the 1981 movie "Excalibur." I quoted the lines from that movie for days and weeks, but it was the rousing score of the music I recall the most.

It's been a part of many movies - the opening scene to "Jackass: The Movie", "Natural Born Killers," and even in "South Park".

It's been used to sell products like Old Spice, Reebok, Pringles and Volkswagen.

But I've never heard it the way banjo player Sandy Bull has put it together.

Mayor Injured, Bear Killed

I'm not sure if it's something in the air or what. Tennessee officials are packing some heat and they aren't afraid to use it.

Seems that elected officials are not to be messed with. First we had Knox County Commissioner "Lumpy" taking down an would-be robber, (and be sure to check out the accused's MySpace page).

Then State Senator Tim Burchett says he caught a group of youngsters during a break-in and held them at gunpoint, though he did offer them chocolate chip cookies.

And Cocke County Mayor Iliff McMahan, out on a bear hunt on Monday, fell and injured his leg and was somehow still able to take out a bear. The Newport Plain Talk reports:

"The next thing I knew, there was something big and black coming at me. I said, 'Oh heck,' and shot the bear twice, killing the animal as it was about 10 feet away." McMahan, who says he is not a big hunter, said the 337-pound black bear was easily the largest bear he had shot. The mayor had to basically crawl his way out of the woods since the other members had to tend to the dogs and the dead bear who were shot by the club on Monday. Negotiations are under way in the McMahan household as to the final resting place for the prize hunting trophy."

Horrorfest Lands In East Tennessee

A weekend of macabre movies arrives this coming weekend - and the shocking truth that the mini-festival of horrors is playing in Morristown is .... did I say shocking? Well, that's me. Shocked and awed. Score two points (or is it eight?) as the After Dark Horrorfest: 8 Films To Die For will be presented at Paradigm Cinemas.

Part of me is convinced not all 8 films will be here, or that the showtimes won't allow me to see all of them, or some bad thing will happen to otherwise shortchange this horror fan. The fest is marketed as a collection of movies too graphic and ghoulish and disturbing for general audiences, but hey, they are being released to theatres and not right to DVD.

The movies are playing all over the state and the nation. For a full list of theatres and movies, you can check out the official website. Apparently no bulk tickets to all the movies are available, you'll have to pay for each one. Suck.

The movies are a broad mix of low budgets and large, some stars are featured, many are newcomers. How broad is the range? Well, there's the new movie from J-Horror icon, Takashi Shimizu, who created the "Grudge" series and a new funny/scary flick called Snoop Dog's Hood of Horror.

You can go to this YouTube link for a page with a preview to each of the movies. Previews are also on the Horrorfest web page

The Paradigm Cinemas website is here, but sorry, no tickets online.

Otherwise, please allow me to say "Woot!!"

Tax Relief for Elderly A Tall Order

Voters across the state said Yes in huge numbers to allowing for a change in the tax laws and provide some limits for senior citizens regarding property taxes. Today's Tennessean editorial on the topic says Nashville should lead the way in this change:

"So it is not surprising that (Mayor Bill) Purcell would react quickly to the opportunity again to support such relief. In his letter to council members last week, Purcell described the effort as a way to help seniors "live out their lives in dignity in the homes where they raised their families and created the neighborhoods that bind our city together."

As lawmakers consider tax relief for seniors, which is highly popular, they must do so with the knowledge that it will mean other sources of revenue will have to bear more of the burden. Few people will argue with property tax relief for the elderly, but the trick will be in finding ways to make up the difference. So the effort must be handled carefully."

The devil is truly in the details for this measure.

The approved amendment states that cities and counties can enact the change, which could easily create mass confusion - what if the state's 95 counties create 95 different changes in the tax structure? And if cities can likewise draft their own laws, how many different tax laws will be created?

The approved amendment states that cities and counties can enact the change, which could easily create mass confusion - what if the state's 95 counties create 95 different changes in the tax structure? And if cities can likewise draft their own laws, how many different tax laws will be created? And as I understand the change, the General Assembly must first decide how much senior citizens can earn to even be eligible for a tax freeze.

The fact is no county or city is obligated to enact any changes. State agencies which advise cities and counties are certain to push for uniform laws, but the state's communities seldom act in agreement on anything.

This was a poorly conceived amendment, requiring zero compliance. The ballots themselves had errors in the wording of the change and "corrections" to the ballot wording were nearly impossible to find on election day - the polling place I went to had voting machines on one side of the room and the corrected wording for the ballot measure were posted on the opposite side of that room. As I understood it, the change in wording was supposed to be posted on the voting machines. That just did not happen at each polling location.

The size of the senior citizen population nationwide is going to grow by huge numbers within the decade and those in charge of drafting future tax rates are keenly aware of the coming changes.

I would expect changes in tax rates will be very very slow to emerge. I'm sure special committees to investigate the issue will be created and their eventual reports will arrive in some distant future. Glaciers will move quicker than any change in the tax laws.

Keep The Watchdog Alive

An excellent example of bipartisan efforts working to the benefit of all taxpayers and to insure that reconstruction programs in Iraq are effective has been provided by Republican Senator Susan Collins and Democrat Senator Russ Feingold.

The lawmakers are intent on keeping alive the special Inspector General's program to track billions of dollars which Republicans in the House tried to kill. It makes no sense, as both senators argued today, to stop such a highly productive and much needed oversight program.

Sen. Collins says:

"We must keep the watchdog on the job," Collins said. "It is inconceivable that we would remove this aggressive oversight while the American taxpayer is still spending billions of dollars on Iraq reconstruction projects.

The SIGR site details how vital their work has been, how much work remains and clearly deserves to be allowed to complete it's task. Only those seeking to defraud taxpayers would want to see this program end.

But You've Been Murdered!!

Not a good day when you're lying handcuffed on the deck of your own home and deputies tell you that you've been murdered.

Yet, that's what happened according to one Cocke County couple, who have filed a $12 million lawsuit against the deputies and the sheriff's department. They also state in their lawsuit that officers provided no warrant either.

The press report also has fascinating details of the suit:

"The Lovells allege in their lawsuit that Cocke County Sheriff's Dep. David Parton, Sgt. Armando Fontes, and Lt. Doug Atkins attempted to use a large landscape timber to break down the door to their residence, located at 180 Solitaire Way, then entered the residence with guns drawn, including an assault rifle. The lawsuit contends that the Lovells were forced to lie on the front deck, while scantily clad, and that Jean Lovell was tackled and handled roughly by Fontes in the process. The Lovells also contend that, when they asked why the action was being taken, Jean Lovell was told that, "You're the one who was supposed to have been murdered ...."
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"Alternatively, if there existed a valid reason to search for a victim and/or a perpetrator, it is shown to the court that the alleged victim and/or perpetrator were not of a size sufficient that they could fit inside a kitchen drawer, or a bathroom drawer, or a drawer in a piece of furniture. "In short, there was no valid reason to rummage through plaintiffs' personal effects," stated the lawsuit."

I suppose saying "I'm not dead!!" just isn't proof.

UPDATE: I mentioned it in the comments section in this post, but here is the link to the LA Times story on Cocke County, which, naturally, local officials did not look kindly on.

PS3 vs Wii vs XBox 360

The real battle for the next few months won't just be a policy debate in Washington, DC.

From coast to coast and around the world, the battle is about to begin for the minds of young and old alike as crazed consumers begin measuring the wins and losses between the three new videogame consoles - PlayStation 3, Wii and XBox 360. Billions of dollars are at stake.

I know in the gaming community I'm about three days older than dirt. I got addicted early in life, using electronic stimulants like those found on a Commodore 64, the Atari system, and to further reveal my age ... pinball machines.

I still use my ever-reliable PS2, and yes, I'm still playing ancient games like HotShots Golf and Star Wars Battlefront. (I once considered including the fact that I completed God of War and Max Payne 1 and 2 on job applications under Accomplishments.) But, I faithfully watch the most important gaming overview show ever period and amen, and that's X-Play with Adam Sessler and Morgan Webb. I've suffered hand cramps and even missed work a few times lost in button-mashing madness, powered by Doritos and Mountain Dew. And yet I am fully aware that on the Gamers Scale, I barely rate a 3 out of 10 for hip and ultimate gamer.

With Christmas approaching, the stores will be feverishly attempting to keep these competing consoles stocked. But which to buy??

Engadget has an exhaustive round-up of the pros and cons on each system.

And while I really enjoy PlayStation most, I am fascinated by the Wii - wireless controllers where arm and hand movements control the events in the game -- I say "Woot!!"

Come Take A Nashville Ride

You are invited to come join me as I guest blog at Nashville Is Talking this weekend.

Also, I will once again tomorrow offer up some free tickets to performances at the Comedy Festival being held next week in Las Vegas.

Check into Nashville Is Talking tomorrow morning for all the details and your chance to win.

Also, if you're a regular reader of my movie and entertainment posts on Fridays, you'll have to check out the Nashville blog for all the good stuff and the oddest entertainment news I can find. (Like that'll be tough to provide!!)

UPDATE: What is the connection between the remake of "Dawn of the Dead" and the NBC comedy "The Office"? You can find the answers in this post I just added to Nashville Is Talking.

Charges Sought Against Rumsfeld

I'm not sure the charges can stick, but since Donald Rumsfeld has resigned, he also loses immunity protections. However, I can't see the case proceeding very far. Still, a report in Time magazine says a case is moving through the legal system in Germany:

"Just days after his resignation, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is about to face more repercussions for his involvement in the troubled wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. New legal documents, to be filed next week with Germany's top prosecutor, will seek a criminal investigation and prosecution of Rumsfeld, along with Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, former CIA director George Tenet and other senior U.S. civilian and military officers, for their alleged roles in abuses committed at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison and at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba."

Free Comedy Festival Tickets!

I have some free tickets for you to see performances at the Comedy Festival in Las Vegas for next week. That means several lucky readers will get a chance to see Bob Saget and Jamie Kennedy or Nick Cannon or Maxim's Real Men of Comedy. Truly and no joke.

The Comedy Festival website is here, presented by HBO and AEG Live, and there are tons of great acts ahead. Performers for the event, November 14-18 include Dane Cook, Chris Rock, Bill Maher, Dave Capelle, Damon Wayans, Jimmy Fallon and many many more.

If you want two tickets to Saget and Kennedy or Maxim's event - be one of first two people to respond ASAP in the comments. Include an email address to win!!

These tickets are flying fast! Act immediately to win!! Contest here closes at 5 pm EST.

UPDATE: Well the window of opportunity has closed!! Not takers of the freebies mean some other folks will have a chance at the tickets.

Conservative Comedy

Had to do a double take when Colbert collided with Limbaugh.

At least Colbert honestly creates satire.

Limbaugh creates ... well, ratings and money, yes. But satire appears often by nature of the double-sided blade of "truthiness" he flails around with in his ever-diminishing effort to entertain his true believers.

First, take a look at Limbaugh's attempt to get away from the Republican defeat on Tuesday:

"The way I feel is this: I feel liberated, and I'm going to tell you as plainly as I can why. I no longer am going to have to carry the water for people who I don't think deserve having their water carried. Now, you might say, "Well, why have you been doing it?" Because the stakes are high! Even though the Republican Party let us down, to me they represent a far better future for my beliefs and therefore the country's than the Democrat [sic] Party does and liberalism."

Now, comedian Stephen Colbert:

"Tomorrow you'’re all going to wake up in a Brave New World, a world where the constitution gets trampled by an army of terrorist clones created in a stem cell research lab run by homosexual doctors who sterilize their instruments over burning American flags. Where Tax and Spend Democrats take all your hard-earned money and use it to buy electric cars for National Public Radio and teach evolution to illegal immigrants. Oh, and everybody'’s high!!! Whoo!!! I'’ve had it! You people don'’t deserve a Republican majority. Screw this, I quit!"

(hat tip to Liberadio)

For sheer lunacy, however, nobody can touch the witless drooling of Bill O'Reilly.

If I Can Dream

It's the right time for some Elvis.

Goodbye To All That?

A double smackdown for Vice President Cheney has brought quick changes following the elections - Rumsfeld is out as Secretary of Defense (smack one) and Robert Gates, longtime ally of the first President Bush is in (smack two).

While speaking boldly for Rumsfeld last week, the fact was changes were being prompted by the president and Cheney's views on leadership were being pushed aside by President Bush.

"But sources told NBC News’ military analyst Bill Arkin that prior to the election, Vice President Dick Cheney argued with other politicians over whether Rumsfeld should stay. White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten and others said Rumsfeld should be removed, the source said. Both sides agreed the decision would be made after the election, when Bush would make the final call based on how Republicans did.

According to the source, Bush agreed Rumsfeld should be removed after seeing election results favoring Democrats. Cheney then lost another argument, protesting Gates’ nomination as Rumsfeld’s replacement."

I say long overdue.

Next: will John Murtha be the new majority leader in the House?