Stardate 4488.0

Hey y'all. I am taking part in an event with hundreds of other bloggers to raise awareness and aid for the people in New Orleans and all along the southern coast where the Hurricane has hit hardest.

My post today is about the Hurricane and sending aid to the American Red Cross.

Blog for Relief Day

If any other bloggers want to post today or even on your normal sites, then you can sign up Here at TTLB... Please send help if you can. Thanks :)

• You do no thave to have an MSN passport to leave comments.
• The feed is much better and I won't have issues every time I update or edit a list (and not my blog).
• I can fully customize the look using html.
• Frankly, I am just sick of the adverts and seeing "RockstarINXS" every time I am editing my Space.
• There seems to be some problems with trackbacks with non-MSN sites...
• 300MB of photo storage space...
• I can add an entry and date it a year ago... Like a guestbook say :) and it will appear at the bottom hidden away.
• Did I say FULLY Customizeable with a littl ehtml knowledge?

More than 1,000 try to break down gate; 50 Taliban reported slain in battle

BAGRAM, Afghanistan - More than 1,000 stone-throwing Afghans tried to break down an outer gate at the main U.S. base here Tuesday while demanding the release of eight detained villagers, and Afghan troops fired warning shots and used clubs to beat the mob back. U.S. troops also fired into the air.

It was not immediately clear if there were any casualties in the melee outside the base’s main gate as protesters chanted “Die America!” Black smoke billowed from burning tires. An Associated Press reporter was hit by a stone and an AP photographer was punched by a protester.

In southern Afghanistan, meanwhile, a provincial governor said about 50 suspected insurgents and two Afghan soldiers died during an overnight battle. It was one of the deadliest clashes in recent fighting between the government and militants heading into parliamentary elections.

Apparently, the mob of people were chasing US vehicles that had taken Afghan citizens from their homes without calling the Afghan authorities first. Apparently, the men had equipment used in making home-made explosive devices no doubt to be used in "Insurgent" attacks.

“We have supported the Americans for years. We should be treated with dignity,” said Shah Aghar, 35. “They are arresting our people without the permission of the government. They are breaking into our houses and offending the people. We are very angry.”

No doubt. Of course, the US military claims to have attempted to contact the Afghan authorities... but to no avail.

The point of this post is not to report riots in Afghanistan however. It does make a very interesting story though, and I am sure we could pick apart any number of things the US military did, or the Afghan people for that matter. However, this story ties in much more closely with the post I made a while ago about the Media.

Look at the title under the main heading:

"More than 1,000 try to break down gate; 50 Taliban reported slain in battle"

Very interesting.

The title is insinuating (I know I am not a moron because I am wearing my tin foil hat) that the Afghans that stormed the military base were Taliban. Or that the Mob was led by the Taliban. But if you actually *read* the article, you will see that the 50 Taliban soldiers slain is a TOTALLY UNRELATED INCIDENT and the paragraph mentioning it doesn't even belong in this article! Of course, much further down, is the story about the 50 Taliban and the gunfight.

So, why is this?

The writer may simply be trying to combine two stories together in one entry to save space? Like "News from Afghanistan Today"... the semi-colon almost seems to say that. But then, it still reads like the 50 Taliban were part of the mob.

Maybe they were trying to draw attention away from the US raid and the mob scene at the compound by mixing in the other story, specifically, in the title? Many folks would only read the headline anyhow... "Ah Margaret. Got 50 of those Taliban bastiches..." Flips to sports right??

Maybe it was just an oversight on the part of the editors or writers.

No matter what though... put on *your* tin foil hat when watching the news :)

"A flight of US Air Force F-15 Eagle Jetfighters helped to provide air cover over Kennedy Space Center and the shuttle launch pad against terrorist attacks during yesterday's launch countdown of the Space Shuttle Discovery."

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA has cleared a plan to launch the space shuttle Discovery even if a mysterious fuel-gauge glitch reappears during the countdown toward a Tuesday launch attempt, mission managers said.

The new sleek logo represents the new sleek game...

This is the letter sent to fans from NHL.com:

July 22, 2005

Dear Friend of Hockey,

This is a letter I had hoped to be able to send you several months ago. I am certain it is one you had hoped to be able to read long before today, and I will never be able to express adequately my appreciation – along with that of the entire National Hockey League – for the patience you have shown through the most difficult period in our history.

While it may be said that the greatness of hockey, and the NHL, is best measured by the character and tenaciousness of its players, I would add that the greatness of our game is also reflected by the character and tenaciousness of you, our devoted fans. I thank you all for that passionate support and I apologize to all of you, on behalf of everyone involved, for testing that support as severely as we did.

The negotiation of a new Collective Bargaining Agreement was an extremely complex undertaking and it took a painfully long time to complete. I promise you it did not take one second longer than absolutely necessary; and while it required a lot of work and a lot of sacrifice by a lot of people – including you – the result is that a great game will be even better upon our return.

As we move forward now in partnership with our players, we move equally, to a new era of exceptional entertainment, in partnership with you. We will come back with new rules, with a new spirit of cooperation and with a renewed sense of excitement as the best athletes in the world display their skills for the best fans in the world and strive to win the best trophy in the world, the Stanley Cup.

Over the past year, there has been entirely too much talk about the business of hockey and entirely too little talk about the joys of hockey. At last, it’s time, once again, to have fun – the kind of fun only hockey can offer. I cannot wait to get back to the rink and I very much look forward to seeing you there.

Let’s get ready to drop the puck!


Sincerely,

Gary B Bettman

Now, I am kind of wanting to watch a bit, but then I really don't care. Damn them anyways. I think the new shootout for every game is cool though :D It will also be good to see much more balanced teams. This is somethign that didn't always matter, but mainly because owners pay some guys too much not to win, but to bring in revenue (Brett Hull where are you...)

There are a schwack of rule alterings... including dimensions and such of different zones. Go HERE to see some details on these changes... 

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA engineers believe they have isolated the fuel gauge malfunction that scrubbed the shuttle Discovery's July 13 launch attempt, and with Tropical Storm Franklin headed north, the launch team is set to trigger the countdown Saturday for a Tuesday launch.

Discovery's crew will return midday from a brief respite in Houston while engineers fix the electrical grounding problem they now feel was the culprit.

The biggest concern now, is a tropical storm Franklin that has developed in the area. If it does stay off-shore, the countdown will begin as planned at noon on Saturday. The launch is scheduled for 8:39 am MST on tuesday. If the weather does go sour, NASA is sayign that they may extend the "launch window" that was set to end July 31st into August as opposed to the September time frame.

The launch timing is mainly dependant on the orbital position of the International Space Station and lighting conditions for lift-off and ascent. I wonder about the latter... We can fly planes in the dark using satellites and other optical work-arounds so there must be another reason... Perhaps the media :P

Stardate 4273.5

Beam Me Up Scotty

James "Scotty" Doohan passed away early this morning in Redmond, WA at the age of 85. Wende, his wife of 28 years, was at his bedside when he died of complications due to pneumonia and Alzheimer's disease.

James Doohan (1920 - 2005)

 

Scotty after drinking a Kelvan under the table...

At 19, James escaped the turmoil at home by joining the Canadian army, becoming a lieutenant in artillery. He was among the Canadian forces that landed on Juno Beach on D-Day. "The sea was rough," he recalled. "We were more afraid of drowning than the Germans."
The Canadians crossed a minefield laid for tanks; the soldiers weren't heavy enough to detonate the bombs. At 11:30 that night, he was machine-gunned, taking six hits: one that took off his middle right finger (he managed to hide the missing finger on screen), four in his leg and one in the chest. The chest bullet was stopped by his silver cigarette case.

What a great Canadian!

 

WASHINGTON - President Bush on Tuesday chose federal appeals court judge John G. Roberts Jr. to be the 109th justice of the U.S. Supreme Court and Bush’s first nominee for the high court. The president selected a rock-solid conservative whose nomination could trigger a tumultuous battle over the direction of the nation’s highest court.

“One of the most consequential decisions a president makes is his appointment of a justice to the Supreme Court,” Bush said. “He's placing in human hands the power and majesty of the law.”

Bush said the position called for “a person who will faithfully apply the Constitution.”

 

Bush praised “his intellect, his sound judgment and his personal decency.”

Wow. Coming from a guy who's own "sound judgement" in many matters is somewhat questionable... Heh. Good luck to the guy anyhow.

I understand he is a hard line conservative fellow, so I imagine there will be quite a debate in Senate before he is confirmed. He has some, shall we say, hard stances on women''s rights to privacy and abortion, as well as environmental protection.

I might add to this that this seems to be a great distraction from the ROVE scandal that is lighting up the news columns at present.

Stardate 4268.0 

Quote from Acoustic Dad (and written by him too...)

Sister Stang
In February of this year (2005) an activist nun named Dorothy Stang was murdered when hitmen contracted by illegal loggers and ranchers ambushed her in the Brazilian rainforest. Though a tragic loss in itself, her murder represents only a fraction of the sorrow and death that continues to occur in that part of the world. Sister Stang devoted decades - and ultimately her life - to a cause that is often forgotten once the articles fade from the front page of the newspaper. I am therefore including the following folk-poem in the hopes of increasing awareness of her death, her work, and the continuing plight of the people and the environment she sought to protect.

Sister Stang

Sister Stang lived in the Amazon
in a small Brazilian town.
It was a pit of fear and poverty
where corruption coats the ground.
The loggers there are violent;
they’d kill you where you stand.
Land and wealth are paramount
and wield a heavy hand.

Long have peasants suffered there;
long have peasants died.
More tears than rain have fallen
from the mourning eyes that cry.
The people there are starving;
she tried to bring them hope.
Then incurred the wrath of logging men
who brought a hangman’s rope.

Their threats were thick and heavy
like the dark Brazilian mud.
They told her that the forest floor
would soon be stained with blood.
Then movement in the jungle
exposed two shadows in the rain.
Fear hovered in the evening mists
and stained the dawn with pain.

Six shots rang in the darkness
of a still Brazilian night.
A nun lay dead and silenced
by negligence and spite.
Her death was truly tragic;
The aftermath was worse --
from threats and token rhetoric
to tears that seemed rehearsed.

Threat logic is the king out there;
Yet nothing has been done
to curb the acts of violence
burning brighter than the sun.
A village lives in fear
under the shadow of a gun.
The same that silenced Sister Stang;
the same that killed a nun.

©2005 Mike Bogle - All Rights Reserved

This is  a beautiful poem. After reading this, and the story of Sister Stang, it brought back some memories for me that I never witnessed, though I found reading the telling of the events to be heartwrenching indeed.

When I was younger I lived in Africa. For four years, from the age of 12 to 16, I lived, with my family, in Mbabane, Swaziland. We were fortunate to be there with Dad working for CIDA (The Canadian International Development Agency) helping get rural water systems installed to avoid the drinking and use of contaminated water by the Swazis. All in all, it was a terrific experience, and I was lucky enough to attend Waterford Kamhlaba, a private school full of ex-pats and Swazi nobility. It was one of the rare and highly esteemed United World Colleges. I remember one of the first people I had met there was the Headmaster, a British fellow named Richard Eyeington. He and his wife worked at the school there for many years, and devoted selflessly of their lives to helping the children of Africa gain an education they would never otherwise achieve.

It was with great sorrow, one day last year, when I was reading the Waterford website, that I had stumbled upon the news. Richard and Enid Eyeington had been shot dead in their home by unknown gunmen, while watching television, in the normally peaceful Somaliland region of Somalia.

I was immediately touched by reading this news. I had nothing but fond memories of both of them, whether it was seeing them in the Administration building or at Assembly, or learning Geography from one of the true Masters. People like this are of the rarest breed, and to have all of their service and devotion ungratefully taken from them for reasons undoubtedly tied to greed was beyond my comprehension. My memory of first meeting them both at the school in Swaziland now is faded, and the edges curled, but the memory of their service is as stark as ever. I can only hope that the people responsible were brought to justice. Richard E. Grant, the actor, whom attended Waterford in the early 70's, has the article on his site, and really, it is worth reading.

British teachers murdered by gunmen at Somali school

By Declan Walsh in Nairobi.

Two British teachers have been murdered by unidentified gunmen in Somaliland, a normally peaceful enclave of war-racked Somalia.
Richard Eyeington, a 62-year-old headmaster, and his wife, Enid, 61, were shot dead on Monday night while watching television in their house on the grounds of a boarding school they ran at Sheikh, 50 miles east of the regional capital, Hargeisa.

More...

Richard really said it the best... my words are insignificant by comparison.

 "My heartfelt condolences to their children Mark and Louise and to all the students whose lives were enriched by knowing these two extraordinary, unique and inspired individuals."

Extraordinary and Inspired individuals. I can only imagine the number of lives they touched. Just like Sister stang.