What Caught My Eye Today

NATO - NATO allies gave President Bush strong support for a missile defense system in Europe and urged Moscow to drop its angry opposition to the program. Fat chance. The unanimous decision strengthened Bush's hand for weekend talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Again, I just don't see it. There were also talks about putting former Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia on a path toward NATO membership. Moscow heatedly opposes any further eastward expansion of the alliance. Summit leaders refused to grant the two countries a membership plan now, but said they would look at the issue again in December and they empowered their foreign ministers to decide it. The Balkan nations of Albania and Croatia were invited to join the alliance. Macedonia was turned aside at the insistence of Greece, which says the country's name implies a territorial claim to a northern region of Greece, also called Macedonia. I reported on this a few weeks back. I just don't see the problem here. France helped resolve a sensitive issue for NATO by pledging to send as many as 1,000 more combat troops to Afghanistan's eastern part. That's the peaceful region isn't it? That would free up U.S. forces to move into the south, home of fierce fighting with Taliban and al-Qaida forces. Yup. Canada had threatened to pull its soldiers from the south unless it received 1,000 reinforcements from another ally. Some allies, notably Germany, Italy, Turkey and Spain, refuse to send troops to the Afghan front lines because of the unpopularity of the war at home. So why is it that these other countries' leaders act upon the wishes of their respective populations, but the United States does not? Last time I checked we were a democracy--will of the people and all that.

2008 Presidential Race - Former President Carter wouldn't quite say it, but he left little doubt this week about who he'd like to see in the White House next year. The former Democratic president noted that Barack Obama had won his home state of Georgia and his hometown of Plains. Carter is one of 13 Georgia Democratic superdelegates — elected officials and party elders who have a vote at the national convention this August in Denver and are free to support the candidate of their choice. Among those who have committed, Obama holds a 7-3 lead. I'm not exactly sure this is earth shattering news, other than the fact that it shows a continuation of a recent trend of superdelegates committing to the Obama camp. Should you still care--and unless you live in Pennsylvania, I'm betting that you don't--the Pennsylvania primary is just 19 days away.

Census - Technology problems will force the government to count all of the nation's 300 million residents the old-fashioned way in the 2010 census — with paper and pencil. The government will scrap plans to use handheld computers to collect information from the millions of Americans who don't return census forms mailed out by the government. Yes, I heard that the plan to use computers to count people was light years ahead of what computer technology can current handle. The change will add as much as $3 billion to the cost of the constitutionally mandated count, pushing the overall cost to more than $14 billion. I bet you most of that cost is associated with the higher gasoline prices that census takers are going to have to pay to get around to count all of us.

Mexico - Mexico City banned cigarette smoking in all public places, from bars to office buildings, to reduce the amount of carcinogens inhaled by residents of the smog-filled capital. Sure that'll help. The city, home to some 18 million people in the metropolitan area, is the latest large city around the world to pass a smoking ban to improve public health and protect nonsmokers from secondary smoke. But not all Mexicans are happy about the prospect of smoke-free cantinas where tequila and cigarettes are traditionally enjoyed hand-in-hand. I see their point. I guess they'll just have to drink more tequila to compensate. Major U.S. cities like New York and Los Angeles as well as countries across Europe have enforced similar bans. The Dutch government is even planning a cigarette smoking ban in Amsterdam that would apply to coffee shops where patrons can legally smoke marijuana. So maybe this is just a technicality, but if Amsterdam is planning to ban cigarettes, then joints are still legal right?

Cuba - Cuba's state-run television broadcaster will start a 24-hour channel with mostly foreign content in a move to provide Cuban audiences with more variety. The Cuban Institute of Radio and Television, ICRT, made the announcement at a conference of the Cuban writers and artists guild, where intellectuals have criticized the poor television programming in the socialist state. So clearly this leaves out the majority of American television programming. Cuba has five channels that are all run by the state. One of them, Cubavision International, can only be seen over cable television. It broadcasts official Cuban news and culture to the world 24 hours a day. Hold the phone, spark plug. I just checked my cable guide and didn't see Cubavision International anywhere. Ay carumba!

Cage Fighting - This next story just blows my mind. Legislators are seeking to ban mixed martial arts competitions — sometimes called "cage fighting" — among children in Missouri, which appears to be the only state where youth matches are allowed. You have got to be kidding me. A trainer in mixed martial arts who is trying to organize a national youth league warned that bans will just drive an increasingly popular sport underground. Back in my day (which wasn't that many decades ago), we played after school soccer. What happened to that--not enough blood and guts?

American Idol - I'll keep it short and to the point. Ramiele is finally gone. Kristy Lee Cook and Brooke White (bit of a surprise there) rounded out the bottom three.