I know y'all know what's coming next.........

Wishing y'all a VERY MERRY Christmas.............


more animals

For the celebration du jour....

Happy 16th Anniversary,

Suzanne!

I must say today with no delay.................

Suzanne - Happy Birthday!

I just found a tremendous set of vids/music via YouTube.....

Props to Gamer2k4......

He put up a compilation of all the songs from Praise The Fallen by VNV Nation (probably my favorite band). I selected the ones that would be most fitting when running on ye olde treadmill to drop into a little playlist. And here it is:

To all of you out there in the aether......

I hope you have a:

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ummmm, yeah?!?!?

I just finished scanning a story from the news that folks who self-identified themselves as "elected officials" averaged a 44% on a quiz of civic knowledge. The report on this sad state of affairs was released by the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. I haven't yet taken the quiz due to time constraints, but I will. It's very scary when some of the folks we elect to represent us and administer our towns/counties/states/what have you fail a quiz like this....

"Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

-George Santayana

This certainly isn't one of the better vids I've ever put on YouTube......

but here, in all it's glory with the President-elect's likeness and voice (and my music), it is:



I am sure that the folks who will be in power over the next four (or eight if they don't screw things up more than where we find ourselves right now) will provide plenty of fodder for jokes and/or criticism. I just felt that this would be a sufficient point to start....

Hopefully this next tidbit can help someone...

Several months back, I became unable to play music with MySpace's music player. I had sent them several e-mails and NEVER RECEIVED a response. I started fooling around the other night (vamping out to get ready for the night shift) and solved the problem. The MySpace music player is Flash based. It was changed to a much slicker interface several months ago. However, the new player requires the ability of Flash to be able to store third-party content on your machine. I don't even remember when I had changed the setting in Flash, but I do know that the MySpace music player didn't work after they retooled it. In any Flash animation, you can right click the animation and change a number of local settings for permissions and various settings that allow some access to your computer. There is also a series of "Global settings" that can be accessed via http://www.macromedia.com/support/documentation/en/flashplayer/help/settings_manager.html. I discovered that my problem was in the "Global Storage Settings Panel". I changed the settings via this control to allow sites to store 1MB on my machine and now have the "Allow third-party Flash content to store data on your computer" and "Store common Flash components to reduce download times" checkboxes checked. After I closed the browser, the MySpace music player worked like a charm. This problem was a total annoyance because I've discovered some great music via MySpace.com. I just wonder if there's anyone else out there who has had this problem.....

To all of those who have served and sacrificed.......

To that end, I find it very fitting that just one week ago this evening (as is nearly the case every four years), participatory politics determined the next course for the nation and made history at the same time. I know that some folks are exceedingly happy and others are fairly dismayed. I'm just kind of ambivalent. As is frequently the case, I see the potential for good policy AND/OR bad policy over at least the next four years. I know that many on "the right" think that Obama will veer far left and guarantee the GOP a win in four years but I'm not so sure. The world will probably not end (unless the Mayans were right) so hopefully we will see.....

Thank a vet.......

Bob Barr opines on the differences between McBama and Ocain....

I just read the headline "Christian right intensifies attacks on Obama"....

One thing that it references is a COMPLETE WORK of fiction entitled "Letter from 2012 in Obama's America". If you want to peruse this ABSOLUTE PIECE OF TRIPE, click here. I thought this could be made into a killer movie. Someone should start fleshing out the screenplay. I thought that one of the funniest things about this was the statement at the very end.

"© 2008 Focus on the Family Action, Inc.

This letter may be reproduced without change and in its entirety for noncommercial and nonpolitical purposes without prior permission from Focus on the Family Action."

What the hell is the purpose of the letter in the first place? The entire thing has one and only one aim: politics. First of all, much of this is NOT the change that Obama seeks. Focus on the Family is using EXTREME hyperbole and illogical extension of Obama's known policies to hoodwink folks into believing that God is going to damn Christian folks who vote for Obama STRAIGHT TO HELL. Where the hell is Pat Robertson when you need him? He'd probably tell you that God was planning a Category 1,000,000 hurricane if Obama wins on November 4. Granted, the minds of those who receive this junk are probably already made up. I seriously want the hallucinogen that was being used by the folks who concocted this cockamamie piece of CRAP.....

Buck the establishment - vote Barr or Baldwin or Nader or McKinney

Obama v. McCain v. Barr v. Baldwin v. Nader....

I'll start this off with my favorite. Here's some recent Bob Barr video:



Now onto "the maverick". One thing (other than the experience factor he constantly brings up about Obama) McCain often brings up is the absolute necessity of victory in Iraq and how his major opponent didn't support the surge. McCain would NEVER EVER support a timeline. However, one interesting piece of news in recent days is that the final details of a semi-"status of forces agreement" were hammered out between the US and Iraq. Lo and behold, one of the details contained therein is kind of a timeline (looking out to 2011). I wonder what McCain thinks of that. Regarding the surge thing (which was where all of this was going anyway), McCain knocks Obama on it often. The surge itself seemed like a tacit admission that there were NEVER enough troops to FULLY COMPLETE the mission in the first place. In fact, I hope that future administrations remember the lessons of cases like that of General (ret.) Eric Shinseki. Another facet of the "surge" discussion? I was listening to a story about how the US pays money to a number of the "Al-Sahwa councils" in Iraq and how that duty is being transferred into Iraq hands (with what I believe to be Iraqi funds). The US military folks discussed in the story had some concern because some people in the Iraqi military didn't seem to believe the urgency of continuing the program. Ironically, payment to back these Sunni militias started around the end of 2006/beginning of 2007. We were paying folks who were involved in the insurgency. I'm absolutely sure that these payments also had to do something with the downturn in violence in the country through 2007. We were paying people to not perform criminal acts. It will be interesting to watch what develops with the transfer of responsibility for payment into Iraqi hands. Will the money continue to flow? If it doesn't, will there be an upswing in violence? What other factors played into Iraq becoming seemingly more stable over the last 1.5 years? McCain's continued rhetoric regarding the largely irresponsible conflict seems to hold less merit as time goes on....

Finally!

It was a happy time to see the close of the last of the Presidential debate for this election cycle. This debate, of course, brought more of the same old discussions and half-truths. I don't think McCain succeeded in his promise to whip Obama's "you know what". McCain did a little better this time around but not necessarily well enough to overcome the inertia of the numbers game that we've seen over the past few weeks. Heck, it doesn't matter who wins anyway. They're just opposite sides of the same old weathered coin and though they've both bandied about talk of "change", Washington will still remain largely out of touch in many ways. That's especially true if you're inclined to the Libertarian line of thinking like me.....

We've never tried a recipe from Martha Stewart before this evening. I saw a recipe for "Cheddar Topped Shepherd's Pie" in a Martha Stewart magazine and thought we should try it. The normal cook of the family brought up making some Zatarain's dirty rice but I suggested that we try this shepherd's pie. We used several shortcuts that cut the time in about half. I made the "Spinach, Mushroom, and Red-Onion Salad" to go with dinner. I think I liked dinner better than the wife unit (1 each) because I had two FULL plates and I still saved some leftovers.....

Wayne Root was on Fox News again this past Monday. Check it out:



Peace, y'all!

And so.......

the "you know what" whipping is just about to start. Don't worry about me, I've taken my Vivarin.......

Sadly, I doubt we'll ever see a third party candidate at these debates again unless the candidate is some kind of celebrity already with a coherent message (hence name recognition and potential electability to boot). Check out Bob Barr's "Counter-Debate" here...

I just saw a story on the news talking about the wildfires in California....

They were talking about the fires as seen from space. Here's the picture they were using:


-picture courtesy of NOAA, NASA, and the OSEI

The image is from NOAA's Operational Significant Event Imagery (OSEI) site. Check out the OSEI's current events page....

By the way.....

Here's the location of El Olmeca as a .kmz file for Google Earth.

If you need instant map gratification, here's the Google Maps version:


View Larger Map

And thus the eager anticipation has ended.....

We've been waiting for the Mexican restaurant in the new (and smallish) shopping center right around the corner from our neighborhood to open for a number of months. It finally opened on Monday. I considered going the day it opened, but the wife unit (1 each) was in Florida and I had other stuff to do. However, she got back today and we went to try it out this evening. It's called El Olmeca......




We enjoyed it! If you're in the area, give it a shot. Mmmmmmm, that means restaurant quality margaritas and Mexican food within walking distance. Excellent!

Today's political advertisement.....

Bob Barr on CNN's "Situation Room"


I was interested to see that I received a letter from Senator Jeff Sessions regarding my request that he vote against the "bailout". I was very happy to see that Senators Sessions AND Shelby held their ground and voted against the package the first time around and the second time as well. I suppose that we'll start to see some results within a few weeks or months, but the implications and results will probably take several years.....

Well, I'll probably check out the last snoozer (oops, I mean Presidential debate) on Wednesday night. Old Johnny Mac promised to "whip Obama's you know what". I'm sure the same old tired soundbites and vague half-truths will find their way into this back-and-forth as well. On the other hand, I can handle watching the debates better than SOME FOLKS I KNOW.......

Well, I'm going to cut it off here. Peace, y'all!

Sometimes I surprise even myself.....

I don't claim to be a great cook, but I whipped up a BBQ chicken calzone this evening that was TOTALLY kickin'.

OK, next I think I'll try to provide a VERY simple answer about why I consider myself a Libertarian.....

Folks often ask me why I'd vote for Libertarians when they have no chance and then proceed to suggest voting for the "lesser of two evils". They'll definitely have no chance if people who generally believe in Libertarian principles and policies vote solely based on who is going to win. As for the "lesser of two evils", I will vote for my general principles. At the heart of the matter (for me) is one simple philosophy:

I TRULY believe that most people can live their own lives and make their own choices without excessive government (federal, state, local) intervention in the freedom to make those choices.

We are lucky enough to live in a place where we are extraordinarily free. But, we can always get better. I consider this especially true after the last eight years!

As we know by now (for those who mind that sort of thing), the last time a third party candidate was included in a Presidential debate was in 1992. Bob Barr had an interesting method of getting his word out as an alternative to the debate. Here's a Q&A session with questions submitted via the internet:



I think he's doing it right. Now here's someone who (hey, just my opinion) is doing it ALL WRONG. Maybe I don't "know" the things she "knows", but there's been so much CRAP spread about the Senator from Illinois that I wouldn't have the slightest doubt if some of the info the "letter" she speaks about is infused with the dominant "internet lore" propaganda.

Last words? Something else done right....

I already knew that Lindt made excellent chocolate. A friend had mentioned something about chocolate infused with chili pepper and I knew I had to try it. I found some when I went to the store the other day. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm! I didn't expect excessive "heat". There was just the faint aftertaste of heat. However, I wouldn't necessarily take my word for it. My taste buds are probably desensitized to a lot of that hot stuff. Anyway, the chocolate left a nice warming sensation. Heck, I think I'll eat a square or two right now.

Peace, y'all!

Wayne Allyn Root talks with Neil Cavuto....

September 16, 2008 - $85 billion loan to AIG
September 22-30, 2008 - $440,000 top performing agent trip to St. Regis Resort
October 10, 2008 - AIG seeks additional $36 billion loan

I realize that the AIG executives weren't directly involved and the little junket had been planned for months, but the current business operating environment that AIG finds itself in should probably lead to some belt tightening. This whole debacle raises some question on what kind of waste (other than the widely known "tax earmarks") the $700 billion bailout will create. By the way, here's an interesting blog...

Ye olde Federal Government has established some new guidelines for physical activity for American adults. Two of my favorite activities (sanitized of course):

A couple of hours of hiking
A couple of hours with the trusty old sack

Gotta love those folks at Google....

They are testing a new Gmail feature (you have to turn it on) to help you make sure you want to send that e-mail if you might be slightly blitzed or not thinking straight. They call it "Mail Goggles"....

I will start with some of the more important things in life....

Namely, food! Non-chain local food at that....

We tried the Athens location of Village Pizza with some friends this evening. We arrived fairly early. That ended up being a good thing because by the time we left, folks were waiting outside to be seated. There's more space in the Athens restaurant AND they serve beer. The food was great (not unexpected)! If you live in Athens, give Village Pizza a shot. Here's the map again:


View Larger Map

Well, the bailout has passed and been signed into law. Bud Cramer (Alabama District 5 Representative) voted yes. It's a good thing he's not up for re-election.

Check out the latest television ad for Bob Barr:

Even as I type, legions of pundits and fact checkers and political aficionados/operatives are slicing and dicing and analyzing tonight's debate....

My two cents...

I think that Sarah Palin did OK. I say OK because I don't think it was exceptional. She may have "saved some face" given some recent trouble, but I don't think she came anywhere near hitting it out of the park. To me, she seemed more engaging than Joe Biden, but not extraordinarily more. Both sides did OK with the standard party talking points (and half-truths). Hey, what's to be expected, the VP is essentially a glorified cheerleader anyway, right? However, all that being said, I'm glad I'll be voting for Bob Barr. McCain isn't a far cry from George Bush and, sadly, Sarah Palin reminds me more of George Bush (philosophy) than John McCain. As for Obama-Biden....YUCK!!!

The Senate voted yes on the "investment"/"bailout" and it's looking as if the House will vote yes as well. Why is the bailout DANGEROUS for American national security?



Let's not forget, the statutory limit on the public debt ceiling will be going up to $11.3 trillion under the current "Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008". Here's a history of the changes to the statutory limit on the public debt from the United States Code. The page (or the various other government pages) doesn't have the $10 trillion (9.815) limit enacted last year......

Of course both of the VP candidates sound like talking points parrots......

But, I think it's funny that Palin continues to attack the Obama/Biden ticket on energy. Why? Oh, I don't know......

Listed at the link in the body of this post.....

are the Senators who voted yea (or nay) for the American taxpayer to take a huge bite out of a multi-billion dollar cow patty. I was extraordinarily happy to see that the Senators from my state voted nay. The House hasn't voted yet and I will CERTAINLY (right after I'm done with this) be contacting my Representative (Bud Cramer) asking for him to come to his senses and vote against the current piece of tripe floating around in Congressland....

As a slight (and trust me.... short) break from the finance/economy fiasco....

Bob Barr talks about civil liberties....



Now back to probably one of the bigger matters at hand...

My take on the "new and improved" bailout plan is that it's still a "cow patty". In fact, this one's even sillier. It's still designed to help the banks and raise the public debt but the "new and improved" version includes some tax breaks and other beans to appease the GOP and the Democrats. As a Libertarian, I'm all for tax breaks, but they are CRAP if you don't curb government spending. I tend to supplement my thoughts with links to professionals who believe the same thing. Sorry....

I, for one, was happy to see that the "bailout" was voted down.......

I believe that Bob Barr was happy as well...



I'm not necessarily happy about the economic downturn that will inevitably follow, but this provides a little bit of breathing room for the Congress to clear their heads and THINK if they (and hence, WE THE PEOPLE) want to dabble in excessive state meddling in the business process with taxpayer money. Additionally, the original package would have raised the public debt ceiling to 11.315 trillion dollars. It was just raised to 9.815 trillion dollars in September of 2007. So, as part of the 700 billion dollar package, this administration (and McCain and Obama if you accept their tepid support as legitimate) and 205 House members wanted to raise the future taxation burden on you and your children and your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren (and so on and so on) by 1.5 trillion dollars. When does it end? I was never overly happy with the Clinton administration but at least the budget was balanced for a few years (on paper, at least). Those folks in DC right now are kind of scaring me! What a time for a protest vote...

I never thought I would see the phrase "cow patty" in the Congressional Record but here (top left of the document) it is.

And now for the latest video from Bob Barr.....

Q&A at Reason with Bob Barr



Other stuff? We enjoyed finding Village Pizza (East Limestone location) and dining there occasionally. FWIW, the East Limestone location has a presence on MySpace.



It was VERY cool to hear that they had opened a new restaurant in Athens, AL. I believe that the address is 222 W. Market St. Athens, AL. It's the northeast corner of the intersection of W. Market St. and N. Jefferson St.

See the Google Map below....


View Larger Map

Today's video from Bob Barr was from the first week of August....

Barr was so right to call both of the major party candidates out on the "politics as usual" attacks on fluff when they needed to be addressing issues like the ones that have led to the "necessity" for a big government bailout plan like the one we are hearing about now.

I've mentioned CRS reports here at least once or twice before. There's some decent reading about the events of the past week at a subsite of the State Department. Another decent spot to find some CRS reports is the Naval Postgraduate School's library site. Click here and then click the digital archive link near the top of the page. That will launch a new window with various electronic media links. One of them is titled "Congressional Research Service Documents". That's the link you'll want to click.....

After doing a SMALL amount of further research....

One of the members of Congress holding out on the Bush administration's version of "ze plan, ze plan" is Senator Richard Shelby. I absolutely believe that he's doing the correct thing in this case. His position can be viewed here and he provides a link to a list of over 200 economists who want, at the very least, a reasonable discussion of the policy issues and effects of the proposed dramatic government intervention in the market.

A third party (Libertarian, of course) view of the bailout provided by Bob Barr...

One might be tempted to dismiss what Bob Barr or Art Metcalf think about the current state of affairs as we are not economists. Here are some articles from economists William A. Niskanen (cato.org) and Pierre Lemieux (Université du Québec en Outaouais) about the big money mess.....

The final plank of the Libertarian Party platform:

"4.0 Omissions

Our silence about any other particular government law, regulation, ordinance, directive, edict, control, regulatory agency, activity, or machination should not be construed to imply approval."

-http://www.lp.org/platform

Although slightly dated, here was Bob Barr's take on the Russia/Georgia conflict....

"3.7 Self-Determination

Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of individual liberty, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to agree to such new governance as to them shall seem most likely to protect their liberty."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

This is what can happen when there's not much good programming on television during primetime....

I've remained silent on the current economic plague that is apparently a huge threat to the American system.....

In part, this is because I don't claim to understand the entirety of the situation and I, for one, don't truly believe that any one person has a full grasp of the effects of all of the variables involved and what will happen when some (or none or many or all) of them are changed. I am not an economist and wouldn't even want to pretend to be one. With all of that being said, I don't like the idea of the current plan to bail out the ailing finance industry. Ben Bernanke and Les Paulson are trying to sell "the plan" like crazy and warning of dire consequences if Congress doesn't push it through. My gut says (and libertarian inclinations) that, if the economy must be steered AT ALL, it must be done only with the lightest of touches. In all truth, I generally fall right along the lines of laissez-faire capitalism with a slight anarchist tendency. I tend to think that the course correction that will probably be implemented at the hands of the government (your tax dollars at work to stabilize at least a decade of questionable business practices by the biggest names in the game) will be overly heavy and potentially worse for the economy AND your (and my) pocketbook. There is a much better (and more eloquent) explanation of why this plan is problematic here.

Getting away from the economy for the moment, check out this Bob Barr video regarding the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act:



Keep in mind that Barack Obama voted to approve the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 Amendments Act of 2008 and John McCain didn't even vote.

The daily plank.....

"3.6 Representative Government

We support electoral systems that are more representative of the electorate at the federal, state and local levels. As private voluntary groups, political parties should be allowed to establish their own rules for nomination procedures, primaries and conventions. We call for an end to any tax-financed subsidies to candidates or parties and the repeal of all laws which restrict voluntary financing of election campaigns. We oppose laws that effectively exclude alternative candidates and parties, deny ballot access, gerrymander districts, or deny the voters their right to consider all legitimate alternatives."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

Happy autumnal equinox!

Though it's a couple of weeks old, check out the vid of Bob Barr discussing the end of the Republican convention.....



As for the daily "plank"...

"3.5 Rights and Discrimination

We condemn bigotry as irrational and repugnant. Government should not deny or abridge any individual's rights based on sex, wealth, race, color, creed, age, national origin, personal habits, political preference or sexual orientation. Parents, or other guardians, have the right to raise their children according to their own standards and beliefs."

-excerpt from http://www.lp.org/platform

Libertarian Presidential Nominee Bob Barr weighs in on John McCain and Barack Obama's impact on the Constitution

"3.4 Free Trade and Migration

We support the removal of governmental impediments to free trade. Political freedom and escape from tyranny demand that individuals not be unreasonably constrained by government in the crossing of political boundaries. Economic freedom demands the unrestricted movement of human as well as financial capital across national borders. However, we support control over the entry into our country of foreign nationals who pose a threat to security, health or property."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

As you all have probably gathered by now, I am not an Obama supporter. However, if the only choices I had (at the present point in time) were McCain and Obama, I probably wouldn't vote for McCain. Anyway, there's a headline that has been on my Yahoo! News page for the past day or so talking about the negative racial impact on Obama's run for office. I hate to say it, but if we're not over that crap by now, we've got serious issues. I'd much rather see people NOT vote for Obama because of his stances on things.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/files/specials/interactives/wdc/yahoo_poll_race/index.html?SITE=YAHOO&SECTION=HOME

I must start the day out with a hearty......

Happy Birthday Daddy-o!

McCain and Obama have both had their funny moments....

Here is one (on purpose) from Bob Barr:



"3.3 International Affairs

American foreign policy should seek an America at peace with the world and its defense against attack from abroad. We would end the current U.S. government policy of foreign intervention, including military and economic aid. We recognize the right of all people to resist tyranny and defend themselves and their rights. We condemn the use of force, and especially the use of terrorism, against the innocent, regardless of whether such acts are committed by governments or by political or revolutionary groups."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

Change, reform, change, reform, change, reform, I put it on eBay, I told them thanks but no thanks......

Both of the major parties are promising change and reform and better times for America. I still believe that their minds are muddled and all that can happen (with either Obama or McCain) will be more of the same....

A Real Choice



"3.2 Internal Security and Individual Rights

The defense of the country requires that we have adequate intelligence to detect and to counter threats to domestic security. This requirement must not take priority over maintaining the civil liberties of our citizens. The Bill of Rights provides no exceptions for a time of war. Intelligence agencies that legitimately seek to preserve the security of the nation must be subject to oversight and transparency. We oppose the government's use of secret classifications to keep from the public information that it should have, especially that which shows that the government has violated the law."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

Bob Barr talks to an Atlanta Fox affiliate....

"3.1 National Defense

We support the maintenance of a sufficient military to defend the United States against aggression. The United States should both abandon its attempts to act as policeman for the world and avoid entangling alliances. We oppose any form of compulsory national service."

-excerpt from http://www.lp.org/platform

Other things....

I use OpenDNS. You might ask what in the world that is. Visit here for more information. If you like what you see, you can follow the instructions here to start using OpenDNS yourself (home users with that link).

We're thinking about checking out the Monte Sano Art Show on Saturday. It looks like it could be pretty fun! I will, of course, be carrying multiple footbags.

Last, but not least.....

Lest ye forget, tomARRRRRRRRRRRow be International Talk Like A Pirate Day, me hearties!

As usual.....

Cryptome probably has what you are looking for......

And so it goes.......

More on the issue in this video can be learned about here....



" 3.0 Securing Liberty

The protection of individual rights is the only proper purpose of government. Government is constitutionally limited so as to prevent the infringement of individual rights by the government itself. The principle of non-initiation of force should guide the relationships between governments."

-from http://www.lp.org/platform

I totally believe Bob Barr hits the nail on the head here....

Democan, Republicrat, McBama......



"2.10 Retirement and Income Security

Retirement planning is the responsibility of the individual, not the government. We favor replacing the current government-sponsored Social Security system with a private voluntary system. The proper source of help for the poor is the voluntary efforts of private groups and individuals."

-snippet from http://www.lp.org/platform

STOP the Bill of Rights Blackout!

http://www.bobbarr2008.com/rights

"2.9 Health Care

We favor restoring and reviving a free market health care system. We recognize the freedom of individuals to determine the level of health insurance they want, the level of health care they want, the care providers they want, the medicines and treatments they will use and all other aspects of their medical care, including end-of-life decisions."

-excerpt from http://www.lp.org/platform

Bob Barr on McCain's energy plan....

" 2.8 Education

Education, like any other service, is best provided by the free market, achieving greater quality and efficiency with more diversity of choice. Schools should be managed locally to achieve greater accountability and parental involvement. Recognizing that the education of children is inextricably linked to moral values, we would return authority to parents to determine the education of their children, without interference from government. In particular, parents should have control of and responsibility for all funds expended for their children's education."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Greetings and salutations....

The first two pieces (of three) of the old 20 year reunion have come and gone and they've been pretty fun thus far.....

Politics?



"2.7 Labor Markets

We support repeal of all laws which impede the ability of any person to find employment. We oppose government-fostered forced retirement. We support the right of free persons to associate or not associate in labor unions, and an employer should have the right to recognize or refuse to recognize a union. We oppose government interference in bargaining, such as compulsory arbitration or imposing an obligation to bargain."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

One of Bob Barr's latest for your viewing pleasure...

"2.6 Monopolies and Corporations

We defend the right of individuals to form corporations, cooperatives and other types of companies based on voluntary association. We seek to divest government of all functions that can be provided by non-governmental organizations or private individuals. We oppose government subsidies to business, labor, or any other special interest. Industries should be governed by free markets."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

As far as this blog is concerned...

Please consider this a day of silent remembrance for those who were lost seven years ago and their families and the United States as a whole.

Who said this?

"Medicare is going to go broke (citing director). In 1993 we rejected the Clinton universal healthcare proposal, it was rejected by the American people. The latest proposal is putting lipstick on a pig. I was at Cleveland Clinic yesterday, they are making incredible use of technology, technology that's startling. Heart operation that goes in between the ribs. Capability of monitoring patients online."

The article here attributes it to McCain. I believe that the "outrage" needs to lose the spin and these folks need to lighten up and talk about issues. I know Sarah Palin is supposed to FINALLY do an interview, but it's a handpicked interviewer after a week of learning the "party line". This is not aimed at her personally, but her rhetoric was used once at the convention and it gets kind of old and tired hearing it OVER and OVER again. It almost reminds me a bit too much of the Bush administration a few years ago. "If I say something OVER and OVER and OVER again, maybe it's true." If the election had been held several weeks ago (prior to either VP candidate being named at least) and the only possible choices were McCain or Obama, I would've chosen McCain. That would be different today. Thank God there's a Libertarian out there.....

McCain's Meaning of Is from http://www.youtube.com/BobBarr2008



" 2.5 Money and Financial Markets

We favor free-market banking, with unrestricted competition among banks and depository institutions of all types. Individuals engaged in voluntary exchange should be free to use as money any mutually agreeable commodity or item. We support a halt to inflationary monetary policies, the repeal of legal tender laws and compulsory governmental units of account."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

T-about 3.5 hours and counting.....

The "First Beam" of the Large Hadron Collider should be fired in about four hours. I'll be sawing logs around that time so I hope the world doesn't end....

:-P

Meanwhile, the webcast starts at 0830 CEST. By the way, as of 2220 CDT, it's 0520 CEST.

Nighty-night, folks!

It was sure to come....

Bob Barr speaks about the Fannie/Freddie bailout



" 2.4 Government Finance and Spending

All persons are entitled to keep the fruits of their labor. We call for the repeal of the income tax, the abolishment of the Internal Revenue Service and all federal programs and services not required under the U.S. Constitution. We oppose any legal requirements forcing employers to serve as tax collectors. Government should not incur debt, which burdens future generations without their consent. We support the passage of a "Balanced Budget Amendment" to the U.S. Constitution, provided that the budget is balanced exclusively by cutting expenditures, and not by raising taxes."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Olive Garden doesn't see us visiting that often, but they did this evening. Many folks equate Italian food with spaghetti and meatballs and lasagna and the like. There's a great deal more to Italian food. I had this and IT WAS yummy! Of the places we've lived, we enjoyed Biaggi's in Davenport, IA and Mangia Cafe in Clifton Park, NY (unfortunately it's gone now but there's one in Slingerlands, NY).....

Why would the Republican Party sue Bob Barr?

Bob Barr Sued by McCain's GOP



" 2.3 Energy and Resources

While energy is needed to fuel a modern society, government should not be subsidizing any particular form of energy. We oppose all government control of energy pricing, allocation, and production."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

I'm sure it's old news to most folks, but check out one of the US Navy's most recently christened ships. This ship is going to be an amphibious dock transport ship and will be named the USS New York. Appropriately, it is named in honor of the NYC victims of 9/11. A portion of the twisted steel remnants from the World Trade Center attacks (24 tons worth) has been used in the ship's construction and it is scheduled to be commissioned next year on September 11th in New York City.

I often decry excessive government secrecy here (and point out spots online like http://www.cryptome.org). One of the nation's most secretive agencies (often with good reason but abuse can occur) makes The World Factbook available as a website and a download. I like information....

Peace, y'all!

Are your papers in order, comrade?

" 2.2 Environment

We support a clean and healthy environment and sensible use of our natural resources. Private landowners and conservation groups have a vested interest in maintaining natural resources. Pollution and misuse of resources cause damage to our ecosystem. Governments, unlike private businesses, are unaccountable for such damage done to our environment and have a terrible track record when it comes to environmental protection. Protecting the environment requires a clear definition and enforcement of individual rights in resources like land, water, air, and wildlife. Free markets and property rights stimulate the technological innovations and behavioral changes required to protect our environment and ecosystems. We realize that our planet's climate is constantly changing, but environmental advocates and social pressure are the most effective means of changing public behavior."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Now for your viewing pleasure, here are some recent CRS reports.

I'll be waiting to see/hear Bob's response to the rumored government takeover of Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac...

Fannie & Freddie Bailout Bad for Taxpayers -Barr on FXN 7/14



"2.1 Property and Contract

Property rights are entitled to the same protection as all other human rights. The owners of property have the full right to control, use, dispose of, or in any manner enjoy, their property without interference, until and unless the exercise of their control infringes the valid rights of others. We oppose all controls on wages, prices, rents, profits, production, and interest rates. We advocate the repeal of all laws banning or restricting the advertising of prices, products, or services. We oppose all violations of the right to private property, liberty of contract, and freedom of trade. The right to trade includes the right not to trade — for any reasons whatsoever. Where property, including land, has been taken from its rightful owners by the government or private action in violation of individual rights, we favor restitution to the rightful owners."

-excerpt from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Here's another thing....

This is a two hour radio show (one can normally listen locally via NPR) called Democracy Now. If you don't like that video, there's an interview in the included audio stream via archive.org. Amy Goodman's interview of Bob Barr starts at about 1 hour, 46 minutes, 15 seconds. It didn't take too long to load to that point for me, but I'm using cable, so......



The interview transcript is available from this page on democracynow.org.

I'll bet y'all thought I forgot today's daily dose of liberty......

Here goes...

I will start with BunZo's. The food was very good. There was a slight miscommunication/bad assumption on the part of the waitress, but we'll definitely be going again. I figure we'll give them a little time to iron out any kinks (a month, tops) and check it out again. I definitely recommend this place......

Anyway, here's what Bob Barr has to say about John McCain's Iraq strategery:

Bob Barr on John McCain's Iraq Strategy



" 2.0 Economic Liberty

A free and competitive market allocates resources in the most efficient manner. Each person has the right to offer goods and services to others on the free market. The only proper role of government in the economic realm is to protect property rights, adjudicate disputes, and provide a legal framework in which voluntary trade is protected. All efforts by government to redistribute wealth, or to control or manage trade, are improper in a free society."

-excerpt from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

The wife unit (1 each) occasionally meets some folks from in and around Huntsville for lunch.....

As today was my day off, I had the chance to go as well. What was the venue today?

Soul Burger

I'd heard good things about this burger joint before. I must say that the food was really good. I had a monstrosity of a burger (the Double Big Daddy). I definitely recommend this place. Just a warning....

If you're going for lunch, the place stays busy and is kind of small, so you might wait a bit for a table. That's just a testament to the food. If you tell the folks that you're new, they'll ring a bell for you and yell "We've got a virgin!"

I tried to get by without that happening, but was foiled by one of my wife's usual lunch crew. The woman who I believe owns the place will occasionally come out and take orders from folks waiting in line and always has a "How ya' doin', (sweetheart|cutie petootie|sweetie|honey)?" for visitors.

Tonight, it's BunZo's Seafood for dinner. This place is right near Sakura and Mama Mia's Pizza along County Line Road. Here's what Mike Kaylor (dining/night life writer for the Huntsville Times) had to say about the place......

Yeah, I watched McCain speak this evening....

He gave a decent speech but I'm still bucking the major parties.....

After the convention coverage, the local news was on. They did a fluff story near the end of the broadcast talking about a church sign from Blacklick, OH. Hmmmmmmmmm.... What do you think?


More story here.....

Lest I forget.....

I was doing some research last night. I wondered if the old campaign site for Sarah Palin's run for governor was up here in the aether. The web site was http://www.palinforgovernor.com. Oddly enough, if you visit there now, you are redirected to http://www.johnmccain.com. Drat!

Oh, the wonder of the intertubes. It's not exactly "recordificated", but there's always the "Internet Archive Wayback Machine". Here, for instance, is a mapping of the various iterations of the http://www.palinforgovernor.com site for the past couple of years.....

Oh yeah, a video.....

" 1.6 Self-Defense

The only legitimate use of force is in defense of individual rights — life, liberty, and justly acquired property — against aggression. This right inheres in the individual, who may agree to be aided by any other individual or group. We affirm the right to keep and bear arms, and oppose the prosecution of individuals for exercising their rights of self-defense. We oppose all laws at any level of government requiring registration of, or restricting, the ownership, manufacture, or transfer or sale of firearms or ammunition."

-excerpt from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

OK, OK, OK......

I DO NOT SUPPORT Barack Obama... or John McCain.

http://www.bobbarr2008.com

However, there are more silly half truths about Obama floating around the internets than I care to mention...

One of them I noticed recently talks about "Obama's 143 days" and dredges up snippets (out of context, of course) from his books.


Regarding the book quotes, either read the book for yourself, or at least see more of the full quotes at a place like http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/ownwords.asp

As for the 143 days thing, maybe that count is accurate (at least for the time span that was given) or maybe not. Whatever the case may be, from the time he was sworn in (109th Congress), he has sponsored or cosponsored MORE legislation than John McCain during the same period. Don't believe that?

Compare the numbers at http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d109/sponlst.html#sM and http://thomas.loc.gov/bss/d110/sponlst.html#sM

It's rare that an outright lie is invoked in the run-up to the national elections....

However, the truth is definitely stretched sometimes. That's where factcheck.org comes in....

I had posted a link to the press release archives of the Alaska governor earlier...

I had only given it a cursory glance, but on further review, I noticed something interesting. I saw Obama somewhere on the page. Looking a little further, I was surprised to see the following headline under August, 2008:

Palin Pleased with Obama's Energy Plan

All in all, the press release doesn't really mean that much and the end of the release mentions her questioning how some of Obama's plan would be funded. I just thought it interesting that there's one positive statement about Obama on the potential Republican VP's press release page while there is ZERO mention of McCain's vision for the future of the country.

Bob Barr discusses Executive Power and its Constitutional limitations....

For those interested in that kind of thing, here is the page from the House Judiciary Committee regarding the referenced hearing with the prepared statements of those who spoke.

What does the Libertarian platform have to say about crime and justice?

" 1.5 Crime and Justice

Government exists to protect the rights of every individual including life, liberty and property. Criminal laws should be limited to violation of the rights of others through force or fraud, or deliberate actions that place others involuntarily at significant risk of harm. Individuals retain the right to voluntarily assume risk of harm to themselves. We support restitution of the victim to the fullest degree possible at the expense of the criminal or the negligent wrongdoer. We oppose reduction of constitutional safeguards of the rights of the criminally accused. The rights of due process, a speedy trial, legal counsel, trial by jury, and the legal presumption of innocence until proven guilty, must not be denied. We assert the common-law right of juries to judge not only the facts but also the justice of the law."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Speaking of other folks in the lineup for the general election, check out the list of press releases from the Alaska governor's office since Sarah Palin was the occupant. Nothing spectacular really....

She took the office with reform and ethics in mind and it truly looks like she lives by what she says. You might not agree with her politics (I'm definitely not for everything she stands for), but the record is seemingly squeaky clean.....

Check out the newest offering from the mammoth from Mountain View....

Google Chrome

I've downloaded it and given it a spin. It won't be my default browser yet (that's currently Firefox) because I use funky colors in my setup and Chrome doesn't appear to be able to support that. It's a beta, so I'm certain that it will improve.....

Mavericks: Bob Barr on HDNet 7-29-08



Now for the one thing I disagree with the Libertarian Party on....

" 1.4 Abortion

Recognizing that abortion is a sensitive issue and that people can hold good-faith views on all sides, we believe that government should be kept out of the matter, leaving the question to each person for their conscientious consideration."

-from National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

I disagree because the mainstream LP agrees that the government can make and enforce basic laws such as prohibitions against murder. I don't believe that science will ever definitively answer a central question to this debate ("When does life begin?"). Given the dilemma, I'd much rather fail safe with the stated LP principle of "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness". I'm all for choice.... BEFORE CONCEPTION. In situations where not all parties were willing participants or a mother's life is in question or a few other very limited conditions, I'm absolutely willing to allow exception, but the bulk of procedures are not performed for those reasons.....

OK, I know I'm just contributing to the hype (the linked video has over half a million hits).......

But, check out the rap video about the Large Hadron Collider. I enjoy material about scientific endeavor and the LHC has some folks scared out of their wits about the end of the world. This is a humorous introduction about the basics of the newest machine from CERN (home of the world's first web site and web server).

And for today's daily dose....

" 1.3 Personal Relationships

Sexual orientation, preference, gender, or gender identity should have no impact on the rights of individuals by government, such as in current marriage, child custody, adoption, immigration or military service laws. Consenting adults should be free to choose their own sexual practices and personal relationships. Government does not have the authority to define, license or restrict personal relationships."

-from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

YUCK (at least as of 08-31-08)!!!!!!!!

Source: http://www.goes.noaa.gov/GSSLOOPS/ecir.html









Java must be enabled for radar loops to display.


In Netscape:
Select: Edit -> Preferences -> Advanced
Check "Enable Java" and "Enable Javascript"


In Internet Explorer
Select: Tools -> Internet Options -> Security tab
Select the Internet zone and set the Security level for the zone to "Medium"


You may need to restart your browser after making these changes.

Bob Barr: DC Gun Ban Decision is Great for America

" 1.2 Personal Privacy

We support the protections provided by the Fourth Amendment to be secure in our persons, homes, and property. Only actions that infringe on the rights of others can properly be termed crimes. We favor the repeal of all laws creating "crimes" without victims, such as the use of drugs for medicinal or recreational purposes."

-National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Other links for information about Bob Barr and/or his candidacy:

http://www.bobbarr2008.com/
http://www.myspace.com/bobbarr2008
http://www.facebook.com/bobbarr
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Barr
http://www.lp.org/barr-root

Regarding the Pixelworks USB Driver....

This is the one that works for me. I'm pretty certain that it only works on Windows machines. I TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY IF IT DOES NOT WORK FOR YOU OR SOMEHOW BUSTS YOUR STUFF (it shouldn't as it's just a driver installation). There are two files in the linked zip file. They are pwusbio.inf and pwusbio.sys. As far as installation under Windows goes, right click the .inf file and select "Install". Basically all that does is put the pwusbio.sys file with the Windows drivers and tells your computer what to do with it. Here it is:

http://vejadu.sdf-us.org/USB_Driver.zip

Back to the more important things at hand.....

Election 2008 that is.



Today's snippet from the LP platform:

" 1.1 Expression and Communication

We support full freedom of expression and oppose government censorship, regulation or control of communications media and technology. We favor the freedom to engage in or abstain from any religious activities that do not violate the rights of others. We oppose government actions which either aid or attack any religion."

-National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

The direct link (for those who care to bypass this site).....

to Bob Barr's YouTube channel is http://www.youtube.com/BobBarr2008. I'm definitely a subscriber.

Mine?

http://www.youtube.com/artisvejadude

Obviously, I'm not voting for the Republicrat or the Democan in this election. However, I find it ironic that McCain chides Obama for his lack of experience while selecting a veep (heartbeat away, remember?) with precious little experience herself. I AM NOT knocking on Palin. She'd probably do a fine job. Heck, several good Presidents have had little or no executive experience. It's just ironic and seems to remove some of the potency of the "experience" question (IMHO)....

And now, for something completely unrelated...

Bob Barr talks pocketbooks....

"1.0 Personal Liberty

Individuals should be free to make choices for themselves and to accept responsibility for the consequences of the choices they make. No individual, group, or government may initiate force against any other individual, group, or government. Our support of an individual's right to make choices in life does not mean that we necessarily approve or disapprove of those choices."

-National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado http://www.lp.org/platform

I didn't know that Google was venturing into "profiles" until this morning....

Here's mine....

Hanna?

Oh, by the way...

Create yours at BlingyBlob.com!

So, what does Ron Paul have to say about Bob Barr?

Libertarian statement of principles from the platform:

"Statement of Principles

We, the members of the Libertarian Party, challenge the cult of the omnipotent state and defend the rights of the individual.

We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise sole dominion over their own lives, and have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live in whatever manner they choose.

Governments throughout history have regularly operated on the opposite principle, that the State has the right to dispose of the lives of individuals and the fruits of their labor. Even within the United States, all political parties other than our own grant to government the right to regulate the lives of individuals and seize the fruits of their labor without their consent.

We, on the contrary, deny the right of any government to do these things, and hold that where governments exist, they must not violate the rights of any individual: namely, (1) the right to life -- accordingly we support the prohibition of the initiation of physical force against others; (2) the right to liberty of speech and action -- accordingly we oppose all attempts by government to abridge the freedom of speech and press, as well as government censorship in any form; and (3) the right to property -- accordingly we oppose all government interference with private property, such as confiscation, nationalization, and eminent domain, and support the prohibition of robbery, trespass, fraud, and misrepresentation.

Since governments, when instituted, must not violate individual rights, we oppose all interference by government in the areas of voluntary and contractual relations among individuals. People should not be forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the benefit of others. They should be left free by government to deal with one another as free traders; and the resultant economic system, the only one compatible with the protection of individual rights, is the free market."
-From the National Platform of the Libertarian Party Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado
http://www.lp.org/platform

Does that weenie Gustav have you on edge?

Bob Barr on The Colbert Report last night...

In continuing with the Libertarian theme, I will include snippets of the Libertarian Party platform (adopted in May 2008 at the national convention) with other Bob Barr vids....

"Preamble

As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.

We believe that respect for individual rights is the essential precondition for a free and prosperous world, that force and fraud must be banished from human relationships, and that only through freedom can peace and prosperity be realized.

Consequently, we defend each person's right to engage in any activity that is peaceful and honest, and welcome the diversity that freedom brings. The world we seek to build is one where individuals are free to follow their own dreams in their own ways, without interference from government or any authoritarian power.

In the following pages we have set forth our basic principles and enumerated various policy stands derived from those principles.

These specific policies are not our goal, however. Our goal is nothing more nor less than a world set free in our lifetime, and it is to this end that we take these stands."

-excerpt from the National Platform of the Libertarian Party
Adopted in Convention, May 2008, Denver, Colorado (http://www.lp.org/platform)

Are you interested in the environmental release impact of nuclear plants (Browns Ferry, at least)?

Federal law requires tha nuclear plants provide an annual assessment of radiological releases to and impact on the surrounding environment. Seeing that I work at a nuclear plant and live within 25 miles of said nuclear plant, I find it interesting to look at this type of information and provide it to folks that it might impact. To that end, check out the "Browns Ferry, Units 1, 2, and 3, Annual Radiological Environmental Operating Report" list from 1999-2007.

2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999

Another site of interest for what comes from Browns Ferry (and other ventures that impact the North Alabama area is the EPA website. In particular, the map below shows various locations that release various things to the environment. Clicking will take you to an interactive map from the EPA where you can get further information on the various sites.

Over the next 60+ days, I am certain that plenty of important things will take place...

But, about 69 days from now, the 2008 election will begin. To that end, I will use this medium as an introduction to Bob Barr, the Libertarian Party candidate for President......

Here goes!

Bob Barr official campaign announcement


People often mention that my vote is wasted because my candidate doesn't have a viable chance at winning. I always beg to differ. I generally agree with almost the entire Libertarian Party agenda (my biggest difference is on abortion). Anyway, why should I vote for "the lesser of two evils" when there's someone else out there that generally mirrors my line of thought? If folks were to expand that logic to consider the electoral college and its impact on elections, voting for a Republican President (or Democrat) in a normally Democratic (or Republican) state is a wasted vote.....

The only way that my vote really counts is by voting for what I believe. Some of my relatives (who were proselytizing for George Bush in 2004) sent me several e-mails about why Bush needed to win and Kerry needed to lose in the '04 election. I stirred the mix up a bit by mentioning that I thought George needed to be sent back to Texas and they needed to vote for Michael Peroutka, the Constitution Party candidate. Several folks blocked my messages after that. I found that so funny. I gave these folks an option that they (some of them, at least) would probably agree with more than the "status quo" (i.e. Republican or Democrat) and they DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR ABOUT IT.

I've maintained a blog since around August 2002.....

I started with blogger.com after Evan Williams spoke at Gnomedex II. I ended up going to Movable Type, but some unforeseen problems led me to end up back with Blogger. I do like Blogger!

Anyway, my stuff has been on the same host the whole time. This is a shameless little plug for the SDF Public Access Unix System. For the low, low price of FREE (actually $1 to prove that you are indeed a human being), you get 80 MB of space on the preeminent site that provides free shell account access. See this page for more details on joining. I started with the free level and quickly moved up to ARPA membership. If you're interested in something more than the standard Redmond experience, give SDF a shot!

Harking back to my 80s days.....

I recently found a site that has various artists doing covers of Depeche Mode. See the MySpace here. Why do I bring this up you ask? Word has it that all the songs from Modeified VII are available for download (starting today) for a limited amount of time. The goods are available at http://www.modeified.com/m7/. Get it while it's fresh and hot! The provider asks that you send him reviews at the e-mail address provided at the site...

One of the bands I am "friends" with on MySpace is Within Temptation.....

I've never seen them, but I would LOVE to see a production like this. This is a trailer for a video the band has coming out in the next month or so. Crank your speakers...



Wow!

I just thought about the fact that I had talked about Sakura on here...

It struck me that I never mentioned a newish pizza place right there in the same shopping center. Mama Mia's has some super-tasty pizza!


View Larger Map

If you're anything like me....

You might not know a great deal about the current state of affairs in Georgia. That's where this nifty little internet thing comes in. For some fairly decent background information, here are some of the usual suspects:

CIA World Factbook entry on Georgia
Library of Congress country study on Georgia
UN Cyberschoolbus entry on Georgia
State Department info regarding Georgia
State Department background notes on Georgia

I found a goldmine of information about the background of the events in Georgia at another one of my favorite web haunts this afternoon. The site?

The Federation of American Scientists Secrecy News site.

In particular, FAS has posted a very recent Congressional Research Service report (08-13-08) entitled "Russia-Georgia Conflict in South Ossetia: Context and Implications for U.S. Interests".

You might ask why a product written to inform our elected folks in Congress (representing the people who pay for the CRS) is available at the FAS site but not at loc.gov or perhaps even another government site. Some answers can be found here (near the bottom). This stuff isn't confidential or anything like that. It's just darn good info. It's too bad that the general policy of CRS is to limit access to their work. As mentioned, FAS has a decent repository of CRS reports. Another site that provides access to a decent collection of these reports is opencrs.com. Enjoy!

P.S. - Two other relatively recent CRS reports about that part of the world are available via the US Diplomatic Mission to Italy's website. They are:

Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia: Security Issues and Implications for U.S. Interests
Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia: Political Developments and Implications for U.S. Interests

I was perusing our little blue marble......

and I was stoked to find the high rise building where my family lived in Germany through the mid-1970s...


View Larger Map

Here's the link to view it in Google Earth.