What Caught My Eye Today

February 29 - At the risk of stating what hopefully is obvious to everyone, happy Leap Day. Should you have an inclination to learn more fascinating facts about this oddity of nature, click here. And let's face it, if you have time in your day to read this blog, clearly you have some time to kill.

Afghanistan - The Taliban have built a huge and profitable drug operation in Afghanistan while provincial governors look the other way, the latest grim sign of backsliding in a country the U.S. has spent six years and billions of dollars trying to salvage. As I've said time and time again, it's always nice to see those tax dollars hard at work. Afghanistan now produces 93% of the world's opium poppy. I wonder who provides the other 7%--Colombia, maybe? The problems have worsened rather than diminished under the watch of the U.S.-backed government in Kabul and the relatively small number of American forces stationed in the nation while larger numbers are deployed to Iraq. A top U.S. intelligence official told Congress that President Hamid Karzai's government controls only 30% of the country. The resurgent Taliban control some 10 or 11%, while local tribes control the rest. That sounds bad. That's despite the $140 billion Congress has appropriated for Afghanistan since the September 11 attacks that were the original reason given for U.S. involvement. Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden is still at large, thought to have fled through Afghanistan's tribal lands to a hideout across the Pakistan border. All that may be true, but at least we're kicking some ass in Iraq, right? The U.S. money has gone for military operations, base security, reconstruction, foreign aid, embassy costs and veterans' health care. So what does $140 billion buy these days? Military operations? The Taliban is regaining its power and Osama is still on the loose. That's one for the other guys. Base security? I'm not sure about this one, let's give our guys the benefit of the doubt on this one. Reconstruction? Yeah, right. Score another one for the other guys. Foreign aid? Well, opium production is on the rise. One more for the the other guys. Embassy costs? If I'm not mistaken, we haven't been bombed...yet. Score one for us. Veterans' health care? Two words--Walter Reid. Dude, we got hosed on this deal.

Turkey - Turkey's military said it has ended a ground offensive against Kurdish rebels in Iraq, but said that foreign influence did not play a role in its decision. Turkey launched the incursion into northern Iraq more than a week ago against the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, a group fighting for the autonomy of predominantly Kurdish southeastern Turkey. The rebels have carried out attacks in Turkey from bases in Kurdish Iraq. Spokespersons for both the Iraqi government and the PKK speculated that American pressure had forced Turkey to pull out. I suppose there is some truth to that. Despite our best efforts to do otherwise, the U.S. still manages to have some influence in this part of the world. I think the more likely explanation is that the Turkish military accomplished its objectives and having done so, withdrew from Iraq.

The Penny - Asked whether he thought the penny should be eliminated, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson agreed that it would make sense. However, he quickly added that he didn't think it was "politically doable" to eliminate the one-cent coin and it wasn't something he planned to tackle in the final year of the Bush administration. Admittedly, I'm politically naive, but what is it about the penny that causes it to be 'politically undoable." Seriously, it isn't like we're talking about Social Security or health care reform. It's the flippin' penny, for heaven's sake.

Lingerie - Here's a head scratcher for you. According to its top executive, Victoria's Secret, the lingerie company that introduced the Very Sexy bra, the Fantasy Bra, and the Internet server-crashing fashion show, has become "too sexy" for its own good. I told you so. "We've so much gotten off our heritage ... too sexy, and we use the word sexy a lot and really have forgotten the ultra feminine." Okay, so maybe this is because I'm a guy but I fail to see the problem here. I'm okay with the missus dressing up in some smokin' hot undies. Victoria's Secret has gotten younger with a strong focus on its successful Pink line of lingerie and loungewear created for college-age women, and has tried to chase those customers. Sales at Victoria's Secret, like many clothing retailers, have been slipping. As a result, Victoria's Secret wants to increase its level of sophistication. Again, perhaps my perspective is influenced by that Y chromosome, but I'm thinking Vic is pretty sophisticated already. It's not like that lingerie is the simplest stuff in the world to figure out how to remove. All that frilly stuff, the clasps, the straps...I'm telling you, those undies are tough to figure out.

American Idol - The voting public cut loose Alaina Whitaker, Jason Yeager, Robbie Carrico and Alexandrea Lushington, trimming the number of contestants to 16 last night. For the record, I predicted 3 out of the 4 casualties. I had wanna-be rocker, Amanda Obermeyer hitting the bricks over Miss Whitaker. A standout this week was 17-year-old David Archuleta, who sang a soulful cover of "Imagine." I don't get what all the hoopla is about this guy, I really don't. Brooke White, 24, also scored a glowing review from Cowell for her bare-bones performance of "You're So Vain." Cowell joked he thought the song was about him. Cowell would think that, wouldn't he?