Randomness

While holding a report and shuffling the papers to make it look like he is reading them, Bush is thankfully distracted from bombing Iran by a report on the disparity that exists between the can rich and poor.

"The typical American spends an average of $65 on beverages for every dollar he or she earns back through redeemable deposits, and the rest of that money goes to the country's can and bottle barons," the report stated. "Americans who are at a foraging disadvantage due to over-employment and home ownership therefore have limited access to these discarded commodities, causing the market to unfairly favor those with an exclusively disposables income."
Perhaps more alarming, the report continued, the can monopoly enjoyed by the poorest 1 percent has been unintentionally buoyed by millions of environment-conscious Americans who leave plastic bags full of recycling in front of their homes, which are in turn preyed upon by enterprising collectors.
"These people were born into a lifestyle, often going back generations, where any can left on the street is seen as their birthright, whether they purchased it or not," Houston resident Dale Palmer said. "They have the knowledge and ability to get out there and scoop up all the good cans before anyone even knew they were there."
The vast disparity in can-wealth distribution is difficult to understand for many Americans. Most people, according to the report, cannot relate to the lifestyles of the super-poor, who never have to go to work, pay a mortgage, or struggle to find money for rent.

Meanwhile his cabinet is hard pressed to finalize the neo-con agenda before the end of the term.

Happy Birfday

0715 - St Gregory II begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1506 - Columbus selects his son Diego as sole heir
1515 - George van Saksen-Meissen sells Friesland for 100,000 gold guilders to arch duke Charles
1517 - Philip van Bourgondie installed as bishop of Utrecht
1547 - Monarch Johan Frederik surrenders to Karel
1568 - English queen Elizabeth I arrests Scottish queen Mary
1571 - Miguel Lopez de Lagazpi founded Manilla in the Phillipines
1585 - Spain confisquates English ships
1588 - Spanish Armada sets sail for Lisbon, bound to England
1608 - Matthias von Habsburgs army reaches Lieben, at Prague
1635 - France declares war on Spain
1643 - Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Connecticut and New Harbor form United Colonies of New England
1643 - Battle at Rocroi/Allersheim: French army destroys Spanish army
1652 - Spanish troops occupy Grevelingen
1662 - Uniformity Act of England goes into effect
1749 - George II grants charter to Ohio Company to settle Ohio Valley
1780 - About midday, near-total darkness descends on much of New England to this day it's cause is still unexplained
1792 - Russian army enters Poland
1793 - Netherlands captures French island of St Maarten (held until 1795)
1796 - Game protection law restricts encroachment on Indian hunting grounds
1802 - French Order of L‚gion d'Honneur forms
1848 - Mexico gives Texas to US, ending the war
1848 - 1st department store opens1853 - Dutch prince Henry marries princess Amalia of Saxony-Weimar
1856 - Sen Charles Sumner, Mass, spoke out against slavery
1857 - William Francis Channing and Moses G Farmer patents electric fire alarm
1862 - Homestead Act becomes law provides cheap land for settlement of West
1863 - Siege of Vicksburg, investment of city complete
1864 - Battle of Port Walthall Junction, VA (Bermuda Hundred)
1864 - Last engagement in series of battles known as Spotsylvania
1864 - Skirmish at Cassville Georgia
1865 - President Jefferson Davis is captured by Union Cavalry in Georgia
1878 - Blanche Kelso Bruce appointed register of treasury by Pres Garfield
1884 - Ringling Brothers circus premieres
1885 - 1st mass production of shoes (Jan Matzeliger in Lynn, Massachusetts)
1885 - German chancellor Bismarck takes possession of Cameroon and Togoland
1885 - Jan Matzeliger begins 1st mass production of shoes
1886 - Camille Saint-Sa‰ns' 3rd Symphony in C, premieres
1891 - Rice Institute, which became Rice University, is chartered
1892 - National Society of Colonial Dames of America founded
1892 - Charles Brady King invents pneumatic hammer
1893 - Heavy rain wash "quick clay" into a deep valley, kills 111 (Norway)
1896 - 1st auto (Benz) to arrive in Netherlands1898 - Post Office authorizes use of postcards1900 - World's longest railroad tunnel (Simplon) links Italy and Switz, opens
1900 - Great Britain annexes Tonga archipelago
1902 - Great Britain and Boers resume peace talks in Pretoria
1905 - Tom Jenkins beats Frank Gotcha for heavyweight wrestling champ
1906 - Portugal's King Carlos I names Joao Franco premier
1906 - Italian King Victor Emmanuel and Swiss president open Simplon tunnel
1906 - Federated Boys' Club (Boys' Club of America) organizes1906 - Dutch King Victor Emmanuel and Swiss president open Simplon tunnel
1909 - Jack Johnson fights Jack O'Brien to no decision in 6 for boxing title
1910 - Cleve Indian Cy Young gets his 500th win, beats Wash 5-4 in 11 innings
1911 - Maurice Ravels opera "L'Heure Espagnole," premieres in Paris
1911 - Phila Athletics are 12« games back in AL, and will win World Series
1912 - AL Pres Ban Johnson tells Tigers if they continue protest of Ty Cobb's suspension, they will be banned from baseball
1913 - Webb Alien Land-Holding Bill passes, forbidding Japs from owning land
1916 - Escadrille Am‚ricaine (Lafayette) transfered to Verdun
1918 - Wash 1st Sunday game, Senators beat Cleveland 1-0 in 18 innings
1921 - Congress sharply curbs immigration, setting a national quota system
1923 - KPD (communist revolts) in German Ruhr cities occupied by Allies
1923 - 49th Kentucky Derby: Earl Sande aboard Zev wins in 2:05.4
1926 - French air force bombs Damascus Syria
1928 - "Firedamp" explodes in Mather Pa coal mine killing 195 of 273 miners
1928 - 51 frogs enter 1st annual "Frog Jumping Jubilee" (Angel's Camp, Cal)
1928 - Explosion in coal mine in Mather, Pennsylvania, 195 die
1929 - General Feng Yu-Xiang of China declares war on Chiang Kai-Shek govt
1929 - Cloudburst causes stampede in Yankee Stadium crushes 2 people to death
1930 - White woman win voting rights in South-Africa
1931 - Ironclad cruiser Germany launched in Kiel
1934 - Military coup by Col Damian Veltsjev in Bulgaria
1934 - Sherlock Holmes crossword puzzle in "Sat Review of Lit" Males who solved puzzle became members of Baker Street Irregulars
1935 - NFL adopts an annual college draft to begin in 1936
1937 - John Murray/Allen Boretz' "Room Service," premieres in NYC
1939 - Churchill signs British-Russian anti-nazi pact
1940 - Amsterdam time becomes MET (Middle European Time)
1940 - French counter attack at Pronne under Gen De Gaulle
1941 - New nazi battleship Bismarck leaves Gdynia, Poland
1941 - Germany occupiers in Holland forbid bicycle taxis
1942 - Braves Paul Waner is 3rd NLer to get 3,000 hits (Anson and Wagner)
1943 - Berlin is declared "Judenrien" (free of Jews)
1943 - Churchill pledges England's full support to US against Japan
1944 - German defense line in Italy collapsed
1944 - 240 gypsies transported to Auschwitz from Westerbork Neth
1945 - Start of the 1st Victory Test Cricket between England and Aust Services
1946 - Dutch Cooperation for Sexual Reform (NVSH) forms in Amsterdam
1950 - NY Times reports of worlds smallest and dumbest mechanical brain
1951 - 77th Preakness: Eddie Arcaro aboard Bold wins in 1:56.41951 - UN begins counter offensive in Korea
1953 - Nuclear explosion in Nevada (fall-out in St George, Utah)
1954 - Postmaster General Summerfield approves CIA mail-opening project
1955 - Atkinson and Depeiaza make 347 stand for 7th wkt WI v Australia
1956 - 82nd Preakness: Bill Hartack aboard Fabius wins in 1:58.4
1956 - Pirate Dale Long hits 9th-inning HR, 1st HR in 8 straight games
1957 - Adone Zoli forms Italian govt1958 - US and Canada form North American Air Defense Command (NORAD)
1958 - South Pacific soundtrack album goes to #1 and stays #1 for 31 weeks
1958 - Premiere of Harold Pinter's "Birthday Party," in London
1959 - Jan de Quay becomes premier of Netherlands
1960 - USAF Maj Robert M White takes X-15 to 33,222 m
1960 - Juan Marichal debuts as SF Giant pitcher, beats Phillies on 1 hitter
1960 - DJ Alan Freed is accused of bribery in radio payola scandal
1960 - Belgian parliament requires rest day for self employed
1960 - Alan Freed and eight other DJ accused of taking radio payola
1961 - New pier opens in Scheveningen
1962 - US performs nuclear test at Christmas Island (atmospheric)
1962 - Stan Musial breaks Honus Wagner's NL hit record with 3,431
1962 - Indonesian paratroopers land in New Guinea
1962 - 88th Preakness: John Rotz aboard Greek Money wins in 1:56.2
1962 - "John Birch Society," by Chad Mitchell Trio hits #99
1962 - "Bravo, Giovanni" opens at Broadhurst Theater NYC for 76 performances
1963 - Mickey Wright wins LPGA Muskogee Civitan Golf Open
1964 - US diplomats find at least 40 secret microphones in Moscow embassy
1965 - Patricia R Harris named 1st US black female ambassador (Luxembourg)
1965 - West Ham United wins 5th Europe Cup II
1967 - US bombs Hanoi
1967 - USSR ratifies treaty with Engl and US banning nuclear weapons in space
1968 - Pirate Radio Brumble of Northern England 1st heard
1968 - Frank Howard fails to homer, after hitting 10 in 6 consecutive games
1968 - 20th Emmy Awards: Get Smart, Mission Impossible and Barbara Bain
1971 - USSR launches Mars 2, 1st spacecraft to crash land on Mars
1972 - US performs nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1972 - WMAV TV channel 18 in Oxford, MS (PBS) begins broadcasting
1973 - 99th Preakness: Ron Turcotte aboard Secretariat wins in 1:54.41973 - "Smith" opens at Eden Theater NYC for 17 performances
1973 - "Daisy" A Day by Jud Strunk hits #14
1974 - Joanne Carner Golf Invitational wins LPGA Bluegrass
1974 - Stanley Cup: Phila Flyers beat Boston Bruins, 4 games to 2
1974 - Valeri Giscard d'Estaing wins French presidential election
1975 - 27th Emmy Awards: Mary Tyler Moore Show, Robert Blake and Jean Marsh
1975 - Farm truck packed with wedding party struck by a train, killing 66 in truck, 40 miles south of Poona, India
1975 - Junko Tabei is 1st woman to climb to the top of Mount Everest
1976 - USSR performs nuclear test at Eastern Kazakh/Semipalitinsk USSR
1976 - Senate establishes permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
1976 - Liverpool wins 5th UEFA Cup at Bridge
1976 - Gold ownership legalized in Australia
1977 - "Smokey and the Bandit," premieres
1979 - "In The Navy" by Village People hits #3
1979 - 105th Preakness: Ron Franklin aboard Spectacular Bid wins in 1:54.2
1979 - Guitarist Eric Clapton marries Patti Boyd
1980 - Ringo and Barbara Bach are involved in a car crash
1980 - "Blackstone" opens at Majestic Theater NYC for 104 performances
1981 - Pirate Jim Bibby gives up a leadoff single to Brave Terry Harper, then retires next 27 batters
1982 - IFK G”teborg wins 11th UEFA Cup at G”teborg
1982 - Sophia Loren jailed in Naples for tax evasion
1983 - Weird Al Yankovic gives live performance at Wax Museum in Wash DC
1983 - NASA launches Intelsat V1984 - "King Of Suede" by Weird Al Yankovic hits #62
1984 - 110th Preakness: Angel Cordero Jr aboard Gate Dancer wins in 1:53.6
1984 - STS 41-D vehicle moves to launch pad
1984 - Stanley Cup: Edmonton Oilers beat NY Islanders, 4 games to 1
1984 - Pat LaFontaine scores 2 goals within 22 sec in an NHL playoff game
1985 - Nancy Lopez wins LPGA Chrysler-Plymouth Golf Classic
1986 - Anti-apartheid activist HClane Pastoors sentenced to 10 yrs in S Afr
1987 - 1st American Comedy Award1988 - Red Sox retire Bobby Doerr's #1
1988 - Carlos Lehder Rivas, of Colombia's Medellin drug cartel, is convicted in Florida for smuggling more than 3 tons of cocaine into US
1989 - Sue Ellen (Linda Gray) last appearance on Dallas
1989 - Dow Jones Avg passes 2,500 mark for 1st time, closes at 2,501.1
1990 - 116th Preakness: Pat Day aboard Summer Squall wins in 1:53.6
1990 - General Elvis, TV Drama last airs on ABC
1991 - "Buddy - The Buddy Holly Story" closes at Shubert NYC after 225 perfs
1991 - Pat Bradley wins LPGA Centel Golf Classic
1991 - Sandra Palmer wins LPGA Centel Senior Golf Challenge
1991 - Willy T Ribbs becomes 1st black driver to make Indianapolis 500
1992 - VP Dan Quayle sites Murphy Brown as a poor example of family values
1992 - Ric Flair wins NWA wrestling title
1992 - Englishman Dave Gauder, 224 lbs, pulls 196 ton jumbo jet, 3 inches
1992 - Amy Fisher shoots Mary Jo Buttafuoco in Massapequa LI
1992 - 27th Amendment ratified, prohibits Congress from raising its salary
1993 - Boeing 727 crashes into mountain at Medell¡n Colombia, kills 132
1993 - Dow Jones closes above 3,500 for 1st time (3,500.03)
1993 - Juventus wins 22th UEFA Cup at Torino
1994 - Tennis star Jennifer Capriati (18), checks into a drug rehab center
1994 - Omar Sharif suffers a mild heart attack
1994 - Final Episode of LA Law after 8 year run
1995 - Emmy 22nd Daytime Award presentation - Susan Lucci loses for 15th time
1995 - World's youngest doctor, Balamurali Ambati, 17, graduates Mount Sinai
1996 - STS 77 (Endeavour 11), launches into orbit
2161 - Syzygy: 8 of 9 planets aligned on same side of sun
But in 1968 your baby brother got to celebrate your birthday for the first time. I hope you have a good one this year. So Stew, a lot of really important things happend on your birthday...

Save XP

http://weblog.infoworld.com/save-xp/

The result of seven years of Bush administration policies

All salmon fishing banned on West Coast
Never in the history of fishing has this happened...
Salmon live on a five year cycle, or a seven year cycle depending on the species.
Salmon require a healthy ecosystem to thrive. They are not going overseas like our jobs but rather just gone... The result of cutting off water to give to farmers, industry, and energy producers as well as habitat decline (read increased logging, elimination of protective buffers along streams and increased allowances of pollution emissions by the Bush administration)
and no change in consumption is dramatic and portrays a grim reality.
A finite resource can not be indefinitely extracted without the loss of that resource.
Salmon habitat= healthy salmon
This isn't the fault of the commercial fishing industry.
This is the fault of the Bush administration's values.
Clearly the value lies in a short term extraction of wealth for the benefit of a few.

Does someone see it another way? Please advise.