Ummmm. Pizza.

super luminous velocity has this photo of a pizza vending machine and many pizza related facts.

Where Are We Going and Why Are We In This Handbasket Part IV

A 48 year old grandmother leaves her grandchild alone unattended but takes her dog with her!

Loretta McGill-White, 48, was charged with risk of injury to a minor. McGill-White left the toddler unattended in a crib, police said. About 40 minutes after police and state child welfare officials arrived at her home, she returned and got out of her car holding the dog, authorities said.” I think the officers were a little taken aback when she pulled into the driveway with a poodle on her lap," police Capt. Jeffrey Blatter said. "It draws the question of what's more important.” Police said she told them she left briefly to take her husband to work.

What's more important indeed? This grandma obviously thinks her dog is more important than her grandson. But it isn’t surprising. The boy’s mom is in jail on drug related charges. I don’t think grandma wanted to be in charge of the baby. The article goes on to say that the house was unlocked. So what was she thinking?

I would like to err on the side of compassion. So I believe grandma suspected the police would come to check on the baby and she deliberately arranged things so that she would be gone and ultimately Children’s Services would come and collect the boy, freeing her from all obligations. She just couldn’t handle a baby. And why should she? After all she already raised at least one child to adulthood, why get saddled with a baby at her age? Better to allow the baby be raised by strangers until mom is out of jail and can fight for custody.

That’s my theory. There are some holes in it. For one, Mrs. McGill-White left the baby alone to take her husband to work. That means there was a second adult home and aware of the situation. Two adults leaving a child alone, even if one had to work is inexcusable. Given grandma’s hyphenated last name I suspect hubby isn’t a blood related grandpa to the baby. That is the only reason I could think of as to why a grown man would agree to endanger a baby that way. But it is all speculation on my part.  For all I know, these are two bitter people, in a dysfunctional family who like dogs more than babies. Well grandma could get 10 years. No word on why hubby wasn’t charged. Maybe he didn’t even know the child was there. Go figure.

EddieButler.com: Tough Love

I found this at EddieButler.com. A mom dishes out some old school type discipline to her 13 year old son. The sign says "Hi!! I'm 13 years old. I steal. I want to go to prison and be with Daddy!"

Eddie writes

Aside from being funny, the fact that a mother would go to such an extreme to keep her son from following in the same footsteps of his father (in prison, according to the sign) is commendable.

In today's world where it's considered child abuse to spank a child, it seems like so few parents are willing to take necessary measures to keep their children from going down the wrong path in life. The proverbial (and sometimes literal) "swift kick in the pants" does wonders. Sounds so "old-fashioned" doesn't it?

Hat Tip: Booker Rising

Childrens Books That Never Were

Children’s Books That Never Were

I saw these over at LittleJoe’s Soapbox. Here are some of my favorites from the list.

• You Are Different and That's Bad


• The Boy Who Died From Eating All His Vegetables


• Dad's New Wife Bruce


• Fun Four-letter Words to Know and Share


• Kathy Was So Bad Her Mom Stopped Loving Her


• Curious George and the Rottweilers


• All Cats Go to Hell


• The Little Sissy Who Snitched


• Some Kittens Can Fly.


• That's it, I'm Putting You Up for Adoption


• Grandpa Gets a Casket


• The Magic World Inside the Abandoned Refrigerator


• Strangers Have the Best Candy


• Things Rich Kids Have, But You Never Will


• Pop! Goes The Hamster...And Other Great Microwave Games


• The Man in the Moon Is Actually Satan


• Daddy Drinks Because You Cry

There were some contributions to the list in his comments.
Hat Tip Bad Example (Where Harvey is ASKING for more titles!)

Am I Taking This the Wrong Way?

Please pray for the survivors and rescue workers in Louisianna, Mississippi and Alabama. You have no doubt heard that Katrina is being called the most "catastrophic" hurricane in recent history. But what got me was this from AP news FEMA Head: Katrina Was 'Catastrophic'

Some 6,000 National Guard personnel from Louisiana and Mississippi who would otherwise be available to help deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina are in Iraq.

That struck me as a bit of an anti-war dig. Like the people of these states will not be helped because the National Guard is in Iraq. Then I thought "Nah, I am being too critical of the statememnt. They are just pointing out that the Guard is in Iraq that's all."

But the next paragraph said this:

Even so, Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita said the states have adequate National Guard units to handle the hurricane needs. He said about 6,500 National Guard troops were available in Louisiana, about 7,000 in Mississippi, nearly 10,000 in Alabama and about 8,200 in Florida..

So now I'm back to thinking that it was a deliberate jab at the President and adminsitration over the war in Iraq, especially since Cindy Sheehan and her circus are still parked out in Crawford. Why mention 6000 troops in Iraq when there are almost 32,000 available locally? Is it just me?

Hey Moe! I'm Just a Normal Kinda Guy/Computer God

I found this quiz thanks to fellow NE Ohio blogger at The Geek Revolution:
(I hate the formating but don't want to play with it right now.)

Joe Normal 39 % Nerd, 17% Geek, 21% Dork

For The Record: A Nerd is someone who is passionate about learning/being smart/academia. A Geek is someone who is passionate about some particular area or subject, often an obscure or difficult one. A Dork is someone who has difficulty with common social expectations/interactions. You scored less than half in all three, earning you the title of: Joe Normal. This is not to say that you don't have some Nerd, Geek or Dork inside of you--we all do, and you can see the percentages you have right above. This is just to say that none of those qualities stand out so much as to define you. Sure, you enjoy an episode of Star Trek now and again, and yeah, you kinda enjoyed a few classes back in the day. And, once in a while, you stumble while walking down the street even though there was nothing there to cause you to trip. But, for the most part, you look and act fairly typically, and aren't much of an outcast. I'd say there's a fair chance someone asked you to take this test. In any event, fairly normal. Congratulations! If you enjoyed this test, I would love the feedback! Also, you might want to check out some of my other tests if you're interested in either of the following: Buffy the Vampire Slayer Professional Wrestling Love & Sexuality Thanks Again! -- THE NERD? GEEK? OR DORK? TEST

Headlines for Monday 8/29/2005

Legal Terms at Roberts Hearing May Confound
Chief among these being "constitution" and "original intent"

Poverty Shocks Weisz on Location in Africa
She could barely drink her bottled water and eat her catered food

Japanese Robot Knows Words, Can House-Sit
Kato-Kaelinbot on sale in time for Christmas

Iowa Man Accused of Swiping Prosthetic Leg
Prosecution says he doesn't have a leg to stand on

Geese Honked Off About Not Crossing Road
Demand equal time with chickens

Miles O'Brien's hurricane blog
"Chief Engineer's log stardate 2908.5. Katrina's fury is draining the stations shields..."

Photo in the News: Mini Spy Plane Is Shape-Shifter
Deceptacons finally have advantage over the Autobots

Starving won't make people live longer
It certainly hasn't worked in Africa

Downey Jr. says 'I do'
"I do cocain, I do heroine, I do pot...."

420-pound man charged with second Idaho beer heist
Thief arrested after low speed chase down the snack foods aisle

Brazil says Amazon deforestation slows down
Brazil down to last 100 trees

That's it for Headlines today. Remember to visit the usual suspects, basil, Moe, moehawk and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

In Memoriam: Brock Peters

I was really saddened to hear that Veteran actor Brock Peters died Tuesday from pancreactic cancer. He was 78. No one will forget his powerful role as Tom Robinson in "To kill a Mockingbird". The The Telegraph says

In one courtroom scene, in which Robinson is asked by his lawyer whether he has committed the rape, the accused man answers firmly, but with tears in his eyes: "I did not, sir." According to Peters, "There wasn't a dry eye on set filming that scene… [the director] Robert Mulligan sat me down and asked me to prepare for the point where I burst into tears by only going to places in my mind where I remembered and experienced pain, and let me tell you the tears did come."

The Telegraph article does a very good job of listing Peter's significant big screen roles throughout his lifetime. T.V. soap fans will remember him as Frank Lewis in "The Young and the Restless (1982-1989). Trekkers will undoubtedly remember Peters as Admiral Cartwright in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) and in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991) and as Josesph Sisko, Captain Benjamin Sisko's(Avery Brooks) father. Peters also lent his distinctive bass voice to many animated shows.

He is survived by his daughter so please keep her in your prayers.

Filthy Lie: Evil Glenn's Summer Camp

Rumor has it that Evil Glenn has a Summer Camp. My agent Deep Pup went in undercover and managed to intercept this letter from one of the little tykes. He is writing home about his experiences at Camp Glenn.

Dear Mom and Dad
We got to Mr. Glenn’s Summer Camp okay. So far we have been doing lots of stuff. Mostly crafts. Mr. Glenn says crafts is good for us. I wanted to make a pot holder for you, Mom and a wallet for Dad but Mr. Glenn only lets us make DVD players. I made 180 DVD players today. Mr. Glenn called me a slacker. He said Lo Phin and his brothers from China can make 14 DVD players an hour. I only did 10. I asked if we could keep one and Mr. Glenn said his distributors won’t allow it. Johnny tried to hide one under his bench for his mom but the counselors found it and took Johnny away.

When we don’t have crafts we have fun time. The man in charge of fun time is Mr. Jackson. He’s really weird looking, all pasty and skinny. He sings a lot and likes to walk backwards. Today we played a game called “Sit on Mr. Jackson’s Lap”. Billy won 8 times. I don’t think the girls know how to play because the boys kept winning.

The food is terrible. Mr. Glenn says we have to have a liquid diet. So every meal is smoothie this and smoothie that. They all taste the same. And the smell reminds me of the time Scamp got his leg caught in the chipper shredder.

Well I have to go now. Mr. Jackson says it’s time to take my shower. Mr. Jackson is the boys hygiene monitor too. He really likes his job. I will write again tomorrow and tell you how my second day at camp goes.

Love, Brian.

This has been a Filthy Lie Assignment

Red Wheelbarrow: Blogs for the Soul

Another Blogmap discovery; Red Wheelbarrow up in Lakewood had this interesting tidbit. Jerry posts in Blogs for the Soul:

You’ve no doubt seen the ubiquitous Chicken Soup for the Soul books. Like rabbits in Australia, they’ve multiplied at bookstores, and have even speciated into many varieties, Chicken Soup for the Grandparent’s soul, Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, Chicken Soup for the Chinese Jewish pre-Teen Skateboarder’s Girlfriend’s Soul, ad infinitum. Assuming that everything written in books is literally true, this would tell us that not only is there a soul, but that chicken soup is a curative for it’s presumptive ills. This would further imply that the soul is a thing not just requiring God to set it in motion, (or perhaps Odin to hand it an iron sword and a hat) but also nourishment. This leads to an inevitable conclusion:

The soul would likely require Soul Food. I await BBQ Ribs for the Cardiac Surgeon’s Soul.

Ummmm. Ribs.

Headlines for Thursday 8/25/2005

Urine Battery Turns Pee Into Power
Football fans set to power city after games

Katrina Strengthens, Heads to Florida
Resisdents fled once they realized the "Katrina and the Waves" headed their way was not a reunion tour

Researchers cast doubt on fetuses' pain
Bloggers cast doubt on researchers intelligence

Report: Penis issue harming Thai Cabinet
Thai cabinet moves to Ban Cock
That pun was to welcome back moehawk! How ya doin buddy!

Police: Custodian making meth in church
Perp claims he was in his rights as a METHodist

Suspects, Parakeet Sought in Robbery
Stool pidgeon sings like canary to police

Warner Music to Launch Record Label
Label expected to fare better than shuttle

Ad dropped featuring nun holding condom
In keeping with Vatican directives that nuns do it "bareback"

Wal-Mart shooting suspect described as loner who stockpiled ammo
Suspect says was just getting rid of surplus rounds

That's it for Headlines today. Remember to visit the usual suspects, basil, Moe, moehawk and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

Today I Am a God

You may all bow down and worship me.

Woman Offended by Doc's Obesity Advice

Well if you haven't heard about it yet, you will. A woman in NH was told she was fat by her doctor. She got offended and filed a complaint!
Listen to me everyone. YOU DO NOT HAVE A GUARANTEED RIGHT TO GO THROUGH LIFE AND NOT BE OFFENDED! GET OVER YOURSELF! This woman is obviously some clueless moonbat who will unfortunately die from complications of being FAT. Dr. Bennett, told the woman

"I tried to get her attention. I told her, 'You need to get on a program, join a group of like-minded people and peel off the weight that is going to kill you.' "

That was the sane voice of reason trying to reach some numbskull who probably feels McDonalds is to blame for her problems, not the fact that she hasn't met a donut she didn't like. According to the article Bennett could lose his ability to practice in the state.

Before you start calling me a hater and tell me I don't know the hardships of dealing with weight problems, let me put you straight. I am overweight. I can't deny it. I never really thought about it until several years ago when my regular doctor went on sabatical. (WARNING: There are fat jokes below the fold! So if you get offended by them move on to the next post.)

The doctor he had fill in for him examined me and left a very interesting statement in my file. It started out "Kevin is an obese black man..." Funny thing though I didn't go screaming to the medical board looking for this man's head. I started to think about my condition and how it would affect the rest of my life. Unfortunately I didn't deal with it like I should have. Now I am reaping the dividends of my lifestlye. Diabetes and high blood pressure are my prevalent health issues today. Both are controlled thanks to an insulin pump and a boatload of pills. Now I need to bring my weight down and I find it is much harder now that a few years away from closing my first half century.

Things were much easier when I was 25 years old and lost 90 pounds. I was on Physicians Weight Loss plan for 19 weeks. I don't know why I was so disciplined then and not now. Needless to say I didn't maintain the loss and gained almost double the weight back.

Point is, when people notice I am fat I don't get offended. How does one get offended at truth? Dr. Bennett apologized to this woman in a letter. If she hasn't already, I think Dr. Bennett should tell her to find another doctor. It is obvious that she isn't going to listen to him and trying to sugar coat her condition so she isn't offended is far too much work.

And now that this woman has my dander up, It is time to let fly with the fat jokes. Please feel free to add your own in the comments.

• That lady's SO FAT her school photograph was an aerial shot.


• That lady's SO FAT at the table she sits next to everybody.


• That lady's SO FAT her butt has its own congressman.


• That lady's SO FAT her belly button doesn't have lint, it has sweaters.


• That lady's SO FAT her belt size is "equator".


• That lady's SO FAT her cereal bowl came with a lifeguard.


• That lady's SO FAT her driver's license says "Picture continued on other side.
"

• That lady's SO FAT I had to take a train and two buses just to get on her good side.


• That lady's SO FAT she can't even jump to a conclusion.


• That lady's SO FAT she caught a flesh-eating virus and was given 10 years to live.


• That lady's SO FAT she could sell shade.


• That lady's SO FAT she fills up the bath tub then turns on the water.


• That lady's SO FAT she gets runs in her jeans.


• That lady's SO FAT she has to iron her pants on the driveway.


• That lady's SO FAT she has to put her belt on with a boomerang.


• That lady's SO FAT she jumped into the air she got stuck.


• That lady's SO FAT she makes free willy look like a tik-tak.


• That lady's SO FAT she was born with a silver shovel in her mouth.


• That lady's SO FAT she was walking down the street, I swerved to miss her and ran out of gas.


• That lady's SO FAT she went to the movies and sat next to everyone.


• That lady's SO FAT she's got her own zip code.


• That lady's SO FAT she's got smaller fat women orbiting her.


• That lady's SO FAT she's on BOTH sides of the family.


• That lady's SO FAT the back of her neck looks like a pack of hot dogs.


• That lady's SO FAT the last time she saw 90210 was on the scales.


• That lady's SO FAT when she gets in an elevator, it HAS to go down.


• That lady's SO FAT when she goes to a restaurant, she doesn't get a menu, she gets an estimate.


• That lady's SO FAT when she goes to the zoo the elephants throw her peanuts.


• That lady's SO FAT when she lies on the beach greenpeace comes along to tow her back into the sea.


• That lady's SO FAT when she ran away, they had to use all four sides of the milk carton.


• That lady's SO FAT when she turns around, people throw her a welcome back party.


• That lady's SO FAT she’s taller lying down.


• That lady's SO FAT she has to eat from a satellite dish.

Okay most of these you have probably seen before. So give me some new material!

Stop the ACLU - Add Us To The List On Supporting This Cause

It helps sometimes to read your email. I plead vacationitis, I just got back from 5 great days in Indianapolis and it is hard to get back into the groove. Anyway Jay over at Stop The ACLU sent me this link Stop the ACLU-Add Us To The List On Supporting This Cause where you can donate to get voice activated laptops for disabled servicemen. Definiately a worthy cause I think. Go and give. Now back to my email.

The Empire Strikes Gold

While recruitment numbers in the real world are down, It seems that the Galactic Empire never seems to have problems getting the men they need to battle galactic scum.


What is their recruiting secret? The answer is below the fold.

THE EMPIRE WANTS YOU

Spiritual Question Answered at GEN CON Indy

Over 10 years ago we saw people suffering for the first time with a new addiction. This insidious new substance caught on and spread first throughout the U.S. and then quickly the world. No one was safe. Children barely old enough to read and count were dragged into this obsession and hooked. Young adults and older and supposedly wiser men and women also succumbed to the addition, unable to resist the siren call of "just one more". I am not talking about a designer drug although similarities between this and crack have been repeatedly drawn. I am talking about Collectible Card Games (CCG).

The first and most famous is of course Magic The Gathering. Since it's debut there have been many other CCGs that have come and gone and game companies continue to work the lucrative trade in CCGs. That means that there have millions of cards printed for various games. Some rare cards fetch high prices from collectors. It is not uncommon to see some cards listed at over $1000. But the bulk of the cards are common, even worthless if the game is no longer played. So where do all those worthless cards end up?

The go to Cardhalla.

Yes Cardhalla. Land of lost CCG cards.



Every year at GEN CON, Cardhalla magically appears. It arrives with the first gamers on Thursday.



Little by little it grows. New buildings spring up.



Other buildings grow when more cards are added.



Some become mighty towers.



Others become cathedrals and castles.



The only limiting factor is imagination (and that divider belt thingie).



This year Cardhalla’s main components are Dragonball Z and Star Trek cards. But just about every CCG is represented here.



And anything that can be constructed from cards shows up here.

But on the last night, the attendees of GEN CON gather, their pockets bulging with...
change.

At the appointed hour a deadly hail of coinage rains down on Cardhalla. No structure is safe. None is left standing. And then it's done. Cardhalla is destroyed. And yet there is that good comes from this terrifying act. The coins that laid Cardhalla low are gathered up and given to charity. Last year the Make A Wish Foundation received over $500 because of Cardhalla. This year's charity is Boys and Girls Clubs of America. I rest easier knowing that all those lost CCG cards have something to look forward too. Something that will benefit (a small segment of) all mankind.

Headlines for Thursday 8/18/2005

Inca Tax Records Were Tied Up in Knots, Study Says
Inca system model for modern U.S. tax code

Researchers Creating Life From Scratch
At least that's how they're billing this years Annual Biologist Convention and Orgy

Eminem in Rehab for Sleep Medication
"My name is... Slim Shadyzzzzzzzzzz"

Kanye West Calls for End to Gay Bashing
Gay bashers everywhere cease activity. "We just needed to be told by some guy with a grammy."

Tips Lead to Arrest of Clown Assailant
Suspect gave himself away when he started acting funny

British Soldiers Get Germ-Fighting Undies
Anti-bacterial briefs deployed to stop crotch insurgents

Vandals Dump Fecal Matter at Tenn. School
It really hit the fan

Drug Suspect Found Asleep in Woman's Bed
Suspect delivering a message from some bears, also ate the woman's porridge and broke her chair

Big Three Anchormen Leave Sense of Loss
And that was during their newscasts

Lambs at Fair Disqualified Over Tails
Bo Peep to file wool suit

Australian PM: Ban on Word 'Mate' Absurd
Unlike the completely rational ban on Indian mascot names

And that's it for the GEN CON Indy edition of headlines. Don't forget to visit the usual suspects, basil, Moe, and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

Dane Bramage Has Left the Building

And the State. Where am I? Here's a hint: Hoosier daddy? I am in Indianapolis Indiana for the 2005 GEN CON Indy Gaming Convention. I didn't announce it ahead of time because I wasn't sure until the last minute if I was going to make it. But I did and I am taking advantage of the free WiFi in the hotel to post. Unlike this year's Origins Game Fair, I am in good health and plan to do a better job of posting from the con. I am looking forward to seeing some of the guests of honor like Ron Glass, Ernie Hudson, Rob Van Dam, Dean Haglund, Fred Williamson, Mary McDonnell, Trisha Helfer. I got my camera and I'm ready to shoot. Stay tuned.

Cutting Edge Of Ecstasy: Confused Sheep And The Confused People Who Study Them

BlogMap is a neat little tool. If you noticed it in the sidebar it says there are 43 (at the time of this post) blogs in the area. It also created a blogroll of RSS feeds for them which is easily imported into any RSS Reader. One blog here in my hometown of Akron is Cutting Edge of Ectasy. Mark had a post on a study of gay sheep. Confused Sheep And The Confused People Who Study Them is very good. He says this about the study

Breeders used to have a simple and effective solution - kill the homosexual animals. They're useless for breeding. But now 'researchers' get government grants to find out why some rams ram rams.

Breeders also used to understand something everyone else knows - people and sheep are different. Sheep are incredibly stupid animals. When 450 sheep recently jumped to their deaths, nobody conducted a study to find the biological cause. No one got 'research' grants to try to explain human suicides. Why not? Simple.

They're frigging sheep.

Besides being a waste of taxpayers dollars, there is an agenda behind it. Mark points out that studies of homosexual behavior in animals has been used to strike down anti-sodemy laws. Check out the whole thing.

Headlines for Saturday 8/13/2005

Man accidentally runs over wife twice
Distraught man then shoots himself. Twice. In the back.

Jennings Mourners Vowing to Quit Smoking
Finally something worthwhile to attribute to his career

Pedestrian toll tops vehicle deaths in Brazil city
If you don't like the way I drive, stay off the sidewalks

High-tech solution to roaming cows
Bill gives Hillary "invisible fence" collar

Research grant boosts future of chocolate supply
Willie Wonka's lobbying pays off

Doubt a man's masculinity and he'll get macho
Then Elton John should be the another John Wayne right about now

Scientists work out why cornflowers are blue
Major advance in cornflower studies. Researchers unable to find anyone who cares.

Lutherans Reject Easing Gay Clergy Rules
Strictness insures Lutherans will have the best Gay clergy in the world

Bush Motorcade Passes War Protesters
But not overtop like most Americans wanted

3 Wives Greet British Man After Surgery
New surgery scheduled to remove 3 feet from man's behind

And that's it for headlines today. Don't forget to vsit the usual suspects, basil, Moe, and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

Clik4Cathy (Sticky)

This post will stay at the top for a while. New posts will show up underneath.

Chris Muir (whose daily comic can be read on this blog) has a sister Cathy who is battling cancer. He asks that for the next 10 days we click on this banner often to raise visibility for the American Cancer Ablation Center. Read Chris' request here.

It doesn't cost you a thing and can help Chris' sister. Plus the site is a facinating read. Is there anyone who does not know someone whose life has been touched by cancer? Click!

UPDATE: The CLIK4CATHY campaign was a success after only 2 days! Chris thanks you and I thank you. We now return to our regular scheduled blogging!

Widgets and Whatnot

I have been playing around with my Blogger Template. Nothing major just adding a few things I've seen on other blogs. I managed to completely hose the template to where it didn't work. Once I figured out what I did then It only took me a couple days to get it back to total functionality.

Anyway I have added Blogmap, Recent comments, and Cap'n Bob's "Never Forget". I also added some code to create page transitions in IE. Let me know how you like the features if you use them. Most importantly let me know if there is any significant delays in loading. Thanks for your support.

Who Is to Blame?

Some of you may remember back in June when 3 boys climbed into the trunk of a Toyota Camry and died. The bodies were not found until a couple days later by a relative looking for jumper cables. This was despite a massive search effort by local authorities. Now the father of one of the boys plans to file a lawsuit. He charges that the city of Camden, the police and the auto manufacturer were responsible for the death of his son. The Homespun Bloggers Symposium this week has several questions about the situation.

1. Who is ultimately responsible for the loss of these three children?
This was a tragic accident and I don't think anyone is responsible as far as being criminally negligent. My knee-jerk reaction to situations like this is always the parents failed somewhere. They did not keep a close enough watch on these boys and they failed to teach them what is and isn't an appropriate place to play. They should have taught the kids about the dangers of playing in trunks of cars. But keep in mind that these were children and children don't always remember what they are taught.

2. Do you believe that the police were at all responsible for not finding the children in time? (It's hinted that on of the parents has decided to sue the City of Camden New Jersey)
I think the police may shoulder some responsibility here. I can not believe that the vehicle was on the property the entire time and no one, especially the police, searched the car. Just for the sake of thoroughness someone should have checked the car. Of the 150 law enforcement officers who were called in on the search, I realized that only a few would have been to the home. But come on, at some point during the 13 to 33 hours that the coroner said it took for the boys to suffocate, one of them should have said "Check the car."

3. Do you believe that auto manufacturers are responsible for providing additional safety features that would prevent this type of tragedy in the future? (They've also been named as potential litigants in this case.)
Absolutely not. An automobile is designed for a few very specific purposes. Allowing children to safely play in the truck without fear of suffocation goes way beyond the purpose and reasonable use of the car. Cars since 2002 have the release handle inside to prevent people getting trapped. The car in question was a 1992 model and as such did not require one. I can see a potential problem for Toyota. If it was deemed necessary to require manufacturers to install emergency openers on the inside of the trunk, then the lack of a handle in the car in question may be seen as contributing to the tragedy. Some left leaning judge and jury may equate that to liability. Personally I think the lawsuit is just to make the father richer.

4. Why do you think that if this parent feels so strongly about going after the "wrongdoers" in this case, why doesn't he try to sue the parents of the other children lost in the incident?
If punishing wrongdoers is his only motivation then he would not go after the other parents because they have suffered the same loss. He could not hold them more responsible than he holds his estranged wife and himself on that level. If however; he is motivated by money, the obvious answer is the other parents don't have the assets that a car manufacturer, a city, and a police department have.

This was a terrible tragedy. If becomes more tragic for the parents now that the father of one of the boys, a man who didn't even live with his son, plans to rehash the tragedy in court. Someone once said Judge not a father's anger until you become a father. So I admit that this man may be dealing with the situation as he thinks best. I personally don't think there is anything to be gained here, other than a couple million dollars.

Matthew McGrory has Died

I found this at ginasrantings. Matthew McGrory has Died At first it took a moment to sink in who he was.

LOS ANGELES - Matthew McGrory, the deep-voiced 7-foot-plus actor who moved from appearances on Howard Stern's radio show to a high-profile role as a gentle giant in the movie "Big Fish," has died. He was 32.
McGrory died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles, said director Drew Sky, who was working with him on his current movie, a biopic of wrestler-turned-actor Andre the Giant. Paramedics determined he died of apparent natural causes, police said.
McGrory, who had size 29 1/2 shoes, appeared on Stern's show in the 1990s and received other attention from the national media even before he became an actor. He attended law school and showed up in music videos before starting his career in Hollywood B-movies.
He played a human Sasquatch in 2001's "Bubble Boy," an alien in "Men In Black II" (2002) and Tiny in the Rob Zombie horror movies "House of 1000 Corpses" (2003) and its sequel released this year, "The Devil's Rejects."

Go read the rest.

If I am not mistaken, McGrory was in the Guiness Book for having the largest feet in the world. It looked like things were working out well for him. My Prayers go out to his family and friends.
Hat Tip: ginasrantings

Bono?! I May Have to Change My Opinion of Him

IF this World Magazine Article Salty Dogma is true then Bono isn't a TOTAL idiot afterall. An excerpt:

The interviewer asks, What's that? "At the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics—in physical laws—every action is met by an equal or an opposite one," explains Bono. "And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that. . . . Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff."
[snip...]
Bono comes back, "Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: He was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says, No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: 'I'm the Messiah.' I'm saying: 'I am God incarnate.' . . . So what you're left with is either Christ was who He said He was—the Messiah—or a complete nutcase. . . . The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me that's farfetched."(emphisis mine)

Hallelujah Brother Bono. You got Grace right. ANd to give credit where credit is due that was an excellant point. Too bad you are still a political liberal. You would do more good in the world sharing the Gospel message than as a moonbat spokesman for your current causes.
Hat Tip: Appalachian Gun Trash

small dead animals: The Ruins Of War

Back on August 6th, many marked the 60th anniverary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. small dead animals: The Ruins Of War has pictures, but not of what you would think. Take a look. Joey W had this to say in the comments

"And for Japan to be upset about cruel weapons or inhumane treatment is amazingly hypocritical. Their treatment of POW's, atrocities against civilians in China, the Philippines, Singapore - all documented. Where's the hue and cry for THOSE victims? (A rhetorical question; we all know the answer, un fortunately....)

And lest someone think I'm heartless - I mourn for the victims of Hiroshima. And Dresden. And London. And Tokyo. I just don't feel that it's proper to enshrine one set of victims above another - especially those of the agressor state, when that nation was showing every sign of fighting a very prolonged war that was sure to cost countless lives on both sides."

A very good point. Hat Tip: Baldilocks

Headlines for Tuesday 8/09/2005

A Better Treatment for Head Lice?
Democrats who urged better treatment for Gitmo detainees now seek better treatment for other vermin

WHO Recommends More Pig Disease Tests
Health Organization trying to stop the spread of Mad Sow Disease

Iacocca Teams With Snoop Dogg in New Ads
"Pimp my Sebring" campaign in full swing

Elephant Dung Scares Paris
Hilton decides not to finish safari barefoot

Where Are the War Heroes?
New York Times hard pressed to find heroes. Urged to expand search beyond their office building

Teacher caught licking students' wounds
Claims it is a time tested remedy for jock itch

US singer Cohn shot by carjacker
Came very close to "Croaking in Memphis"

And that's it for headlines today. Don't forget to vsit the usual suspects, basil, Moe, and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

Daylight Come and Me Wanna Club Harry with a Cluebat

In 2002 Harry Belafonte had nothing nice to say about Black Republicans. He even likened then Secretary of State Colin Powell to a "House Nigger". I guess he can't go two years without spouting his anti-black Republican meme. In Harry Belafonte Calls Black Republicans 'Tyrants' Harry is at it again.

Belafonte used a Hitler analogy when asked about what impact prominent blacks such as former Secretary of State Powell and current Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had on the Bush administration's relations with minorities.

"Hitler had a lot of Jews high up in the hierarchy of the Third Reich. Color does not necessarily denote quality, content or value," Belafonte said in an exclusive interview with Cybercast News Service.

"[If] a black is a tyrant, he is first and foremost a tyrant, then he incidentally is black. Bush is a tyrant and if he gathers around him black tyrants, they all have to be treated as they are being treated," he added.

I used to admire and respect Harry Belafonte. He was a role model to many African Americans when they needed positive images to aspire to. Now I pity the cynical self hating loser he's become. I cringe every time I read that he's opened his mouth about something political. Someone should put him out of my misery with repeated applications of a chrome-plated cluebat.

I have no doubt that Harry is trying to stir up controversy. He's making no sense with these groundless accusations against conservative blacks. In the above article the reporter tries to nail Harry down on his tyrant speech.

When asked specifically who was a "black tyrant" in the Bush administration, Belafonte responded to this reporter, "You." When this reporter noted that he was a Caucasian and attempted to ask another question, Belafonte abruptly ended the interview by saying, "That's it."

Liberal black leadership suffers the same disease as all liberal leadership in this country. They come out against everything and they don't stand for anything. They called on us as blacks to improve ourselves, to make the best of every oppurtunity. They made sacrifices so that we could have some oppurtunities that we may not have gotten otherwise. So what happens when black achieve and accel? They are tyrants. The U.S.'s first African American Secretary of State is a tyrant because he was appointed by a Republican. Is the U.S.'s second African American Secretary of State and first African American woman to that post a tyrant for the same reason? It seems to me that Mr. Belafonte has issues with President Bush and he has allowed his feelings to blind him to the fact that the very people he calls tyrants have accomplished the very things black leaders in the 60's called upon us to do. Harry said that color does not denote quality, content or value. He missed the whole point. We have gotten past the part where we judge by color.

Hat Tip: Outside The Beltway

What Wrong With Haloscan

All week I have had trrouble pinging Moe and some other blogs. I get weird messages like

Pinging http://capnbob.us/blog/bblog/trackback.php/155... Malformed response: (Target does not appear to be a valid trackback URL). If you think this is a valid trackback URL and it's a HaloScan problem, please let us know in the forum with the following message attached:

HTTP/1.1 404 Not found
Server: Zeus/3.4
Date: Sun, 07 Aug 2005 03:26:43 GMT
Connection: close
Content-Type: text/html
X-Powered-By: PHP/4.4.0

No input file specified.

capnbob.us
/blog/bblog/trackback.php/155

I use the free comments and trackback service so I usually feel you get what you pay for. I was wondering if any of the paid service recipients were getting the same messages. BTW I did leave a message at the forums but there were over 30 other messages and no responses from any moderator. Hmmm...

John Roberts' Children

Well Moe had a couple of points regarding the investigation into John Roberts adoption of his two kids complete with a link to an alledged video segment with Michelle Malkin on Fox News. Well the link was redirected but after a brief hunt I got to see the segment. Malkin likened the situation to Journalistic dumpster diving. Moe's take on the situation:

But the kids are always off limits. I think adoption is a wonderful thing. I don't have any figures or statistics to give you, but I can say there are way, way, way too many kids in this world who will never know or have the love and security of a good family. All children should have that. I don't give a rat's patootie what political or religious view folks have, as long as they provide a child with a good and loving home. Roberts and his wife did this, so I say leave'em alone.

I agree. Is nothing sacred? Do the liberals in general and the New York times specifically want to derail Roberts and by extension hurt Bush so badly that they would stoop so low? Duh! I guess they must. And that is such a sad, sad statement about our political climate.

On a lighter note, ever notice how reading blogs turns into a stream of consciousness type ordeal? Well after reading Moe I found my way (via sitemeter) to Cap'n Bob who linked to Right Wing News' satirical replay to a question about the NYT's investigation into the Roberts adoption. Here's a sample:

Moreover, let's be very frank here: the fact that John Roberts would adopt children at all, as if children were some sort of property which could be passed around, is a strong indication that he wants to take this country back to pre-Civil War days, where people could be treated as property. Do you want 130 years of civil rights progress wiped out? If not, then tell your Congressman to vote against John Roberts.

Like I said it was satire but you should go read the whole thing.

Wrong on So Many Levels

MC Hilter is in the Hizzy Rappin' and drivin'.

Hat Tip Eric Grumbles before the Grave

New Leadership Blog: Do You Laugh Or Cry?

New Leadership Blog has an article Do You Laugh Or Cry? about this article P.Diddy Rules, Nigga! Freda T Robinson says

An African American tourist was on a 7,000 mile charitable bike trip through Africa when he came across this store in Malawi called "Niggers". According to the writer, the store name was apparently inspired by rapper Sean "P Diddy" Combs. It is ironic that we progress from being called nigger to "nigra". Then we go from colored to black, and now finally we're called African Americans. Now, our people from the motherland embrace a vulgar name we were called when we first arrived here in America!

Daniel Alderidge has a great comment too.
Hat Tip : Booker Rising

Headlines for Thursday 8/04/2005

"How to Survive a Plane Crash"
Don't be on the plane

Bugs Chewing Up Trees, Raising Fire Danger
Wangers hire Elmer Fudd to stop wascally wabbit from doing more harm

New Mouse for Macs Has Multiple Buttons
Six buttons, one for each finger of the typical Mac user

Police Search for Thief With Big Nose
FBI howerver continues to use more traditional investgative devices

DNA Tests Come to Prisoner's Defense
"Your Honor, my client can't help being stupid. It's in his genes."

Troops in Iraq Bring Resistant Bacteria Home
Terrorists praise the efforts of the bacterialogical insurgents striking the immune system of the Great Satan

Is Global Warming Making Hurricanes Worse?
Are they worse or are they better hurricanes?

Ineptitude enough to make you scream...
Howard Dean considers title for autobiography

Activists Want Circumcision Declared a Human Rights Crime
Law enforcement officials standing by awaiting tips


And vsit the usual suspects, basil, moehawk, Moe, and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

ROFASix: To Jane Fonda - From Iraq

Check out this pic from ROFASix: To Jane Fonda - From Iraq. Soldiers have long memories...

And while I'm on the subject, I posted earlier this year that maybe we should show some Christian forgiveness to Jane because of her confession of faith in Jesus(see my post Can You Forgive Jane). Well I also am a firm believer that if you forgive someone you should be able to feel confident that the person involved would not commit the same sin against you, I mean if you forgive a man for robbing you, you don't expect him to come back the next day and steal all your stuff. Well Jane is back to giving aid and comfort to the enemies of America. Shame on you Jane. Forgiveness won't be so easy to come by if at all this time.

Rice: "Stop Making Excuses for the Terrorists"

There is a very good reason why I would not hesitate to make Dr. Condolezza Rice Mrs. Dane Bramage. Her no-nonsense approach to terrorism. In Rice Urges World to Stop Making Excuses for Terrorists she says very succinctly:

"When are we going to stop making excuses for the terrorists and saying that somebody is making them do it?" Rice said.

Rice said terrorists are simply evil people who want to kill. They are attempting to implicate the 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide in their schemes. "They want to kill in the name of a perverted ideology that really is not Islam, but they somehow want to claim that mantle to say that this is about some kind of grievance," she said. "This isn't about some kind of grievance. This is an effort to destroy, rather than to build."

You said it Doc. The liberals have this game where they blame the victim for the crime and exalt the criminal. Thats why we are fighting "insurgents" and "bombers" instead of terrorists. More of our leaders should take the media to task for it.

Headlines for Monday 8/01/2005

Rat Study Links Aspartame to Cancer
Dieting rats beg for more funding to find cure for cancer testing

"Your Pre-Pregnancy To-Do List"
Has just 1 activity on it and you know what it is

Low-Carb Pioneer Atkins Files Chapter 11
The skinny is that the company looking at lean times ahead

Rare Beetle Found in Massachusetts Forest
Recluse Pete Best still bitter after monumental snub

Kenyan waits for Bill Clinton's answer on offer of 40 goats, 20 cows to marry daughter
Slick Willie says throw in some sheep and stogies and Chelsea goes to Kenya

More farmers are using computers, but pace slowing
Farmer commented "After diggin the first furrow the case is pretty much shot and the motherboard is wrecked. I think I'll go back to usin a plow"

And vsit the usual suspects, basil, moehawk, Moe, and The Capitalist for more headliney goodness!

Dead Man Eating Weblog

I would have to classify this as one of those things like a grusome accident. You want to turn away but you just stare. Dead Man Eating Weblog is the blog for Dead Man Eating, a web site that chronicles the last meals of executed felons in the U.S.

It all started when The Capitlaist at Laffin at the Left mentioned a murderer, David Martinez was executed in his home state of Texas. TC linked to Robbie at UrbanGrounds who also covered the execution of Martinez but added that since Martinez did not request a last meal, Dead Man Eating could not post a menu. Well I surfed over to DME and just started reading. I was facinated not just by the food choices, but DME also lists background on each case, including information on victims and their families and reactions of anti-death penalty moonbat groups. Check it out.