What Caught My Eye Today

European Union - The new euro coins feature a revised map of Europe that does not include Turkey. The first euros, minted in 2001, showed a map of just E.U. members. Teh new euros were supposed to sport a map of the entire European continent including countries that are not in the union. E.U. members included non member countries, such as Ukraine and Belarus, but left off Turkey. Turkey wantws to open official membership talks to join the E.U. but many member states are reluctant to include a Muslim-majority country. Nope, no religious discrimination with these guys. And the Western world wonders why Muslims dislikes us so much.

Kosovo - A powerful bomb exploded in a shopping district in the Kosovar capital, Pristina, killing two people and destroying at least a dozen restaurtants and stores. The blast, on Bill Clinton Boulevard, was one of the biggest bombings in Pristina since 1999. Police believe the bombing is gang related. Kosovo has been under U.N. administration since the end of the NATO bombing campaign, which forced Serbian troops out of the mostly ethnic-Albaninan province. The U.S. and E.U. support Kosovar independence from Serbia. Bill Clinton Boulevard? What up with that?

Violent Crime - Violent crime in the U.S. unexpectedly surged in 2206, led by a 7.2% jump in robberites and a 1.8% rise in homicides. Overall violent crime rose 1.9% in 2006 which follows a 2.3% rise in 2005. This is the first time since 1993 that crime is up two years in a row. Yeah, that may be true, but it is increasing at a decreasing rate. We've got that going for us.

Offensive Language - The Udink family of Oregon was ordered to turn in their vanity license plates because the state decided some people might be offended by them. Teh state DMV informed the family that that the word 'dink' has several derogatory meanings, one of them sexual, the other a racial slur for Asians. And 'U' can be read as 'you'. Consequently, the family's UDINK1, UDINK2 and UDINK3 must be surrendered. Two observations here. First, I always knew dink as 'dual income, no kids'. Secondly, how bad do you feel for the poor kids in that family? I can see it now--poor Stevie is sitting quietly as attendance is being taken...'Steve Udink, Steve Udink.' This kid is going to get crucified in the playground.

Language - According to SDL International, a major translator of languages, the rise in demand for translations into Eastern European languages outpaces translations into Asian languages. Here is a sampling of growth in demand for translations:

• Latvian - 81%
• Bulgarian - 78%
• Estonian - 77%
• Lithuanian - 67%
• Slovenian - 49%
• Chinese - 44%
• Russian - 38%
• Turkish - 36%
• Japanese - 28%

Cars - Speaking of lists, women bought 37% of new vehicles sold through August, 2007. According to J.D. Power & Associates here are the top ten premium models with the highest female owners:

1. Volvo S40 - 53%
2. Jaguar X-type - 51.2%
3. Lexus IS - 47.7%
4. Acura TSX - 47.3%
5. Mercedes-Benz C Class - 47.2%
6. Lexus RX - 46.9%
7. Volvo S50 - 46.6%
8. Acura RDX - 45.3%
9. Volvo s60 - 45.1%
10. BMW X3 - 44.6%

Do you notice that not a single American car made the list. Who says women know nothing about cars.

Sports - Business Week published its list of the top 100 most influential people in the world of sports. Here are the top 10:

1. Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner
2. Tiger Woods, Golfer
3. David Stern, NBA Commissioner
4. George Bodenheimer, President of ESPN and ABC Sports
5. Bud Selig, MLB Commissioner
6. Brian France, Chairman & CEO, NASCAR
7. Dick Ebersol, Chairman NBC Sports
8. Phil Knight, Chairman, Nike
9. Sean McManus, President, CBS News & Sports
10. Rupert Murdoch, Chairman & CEO, News Corp.

This in a nutshell sums up the problem with sports as I see it. Out of the top 10, only one guy, Tiger Woods, is an actual athlete. Sports, at least professional sports, is more about business than the pursuit of athletic excellence.