What Caught My Eye Today

Ecuador - Few legal battles have been more exotic than the lawsuit tried over the past 5 years in a steamy courtroom in the middle of Ecuador's Amazon rainforest pitting thousands of indigenous Indian peasants against U.S. oil giant, Chevron. The suit accuses Chevron of responsibility for the dumping (allegedly conducted by Texaco, which Chevron bought in 2001) of billions of gallons of toxic oil waste into the regions' rivers and streams creating what some environmentalists call an Amazon Chernobyl. Events took an ominous turn when a court appointed expert recommended Chevron be required to pay between $8 billion and $16 billion to clean up the rain forest. Okay, now here's where things get rather interesting. The case has spawned a battle in Washington between Chevron lobbyists and a group of savvy plaintiff lawyers, one of whom has tapped an old schoolmate for support--Barack Obama. I told you it was going to get interesting. Roughly two years ago, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs brought the issue to the attention of Obama, who attended Harvard Law School with him. Obama vetted the issue with Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy and the two drafted a letter urging the White House to let the Ecuadoran peasants have "their day in court." At the risk of stating the obvious, Chevron is trying to settle this issue as quickly as possible, seeing as if Obama wins the upcoming election, he probably won't do much to assist Chevron's cause. I imagine that someone out there is going to try to spin this story negatively against Obama, but other than voicing his opinion that this matter should be settled in a court of law, has Obama done anything that warrants criticism. Sure Chevron is an American corporation, but if the accusations against Chevron are true, then it should clean up its mess. Given the windfall profits that most oil companies have enjoyed over the past couple of years, I'm pretty sure Chevron can afford it.

China - It really isn't my intention to constantly rail on the Chinese for their missteps leading up to the Summer Olympics. It's just that they make it so darned easy to do. China has resumed public executions after a hiatus of several years, part of an effort to deter protests ahead of the upcoming Olympic Games. And this is the best idea that they could come up with? Authorities in western China bused in thousands of students and workers to witness the shooting of 3 ethnic Uighurs who had been convicted of plotting terrorist acts to disrupt the Games. Were thousand of witnesses really necessary? I'm thinking they could have reached a much broader audience by broadcasting the executions on state-run television. I don't want to interfere in an internal matter, but this is the sort of thing that generally does very little to improve one's image on the international stage. Now this isn't a problem for the United States--clearly we don't care who we piss off--but I'm thinking that China should give a bit more consideration to the PR implications of killing people in clear view of the public.

India - Always nice to see another government besides ours ignoring the will of the people. The Indian government narrowly survived a no-confidence vote that could have killed a major nuclear energy deal with the U.S. The ruling party persuaded wavering lawmakers to vote its way by promising special perks and millions of dollars in funding for pet projects. Now where I come from, this sort of thing is called a bribe, but apparently federal governments have different standards than the rest of us. The deal, which gives India access to nuclear fuel and technology in exchange to opening its reactors to international inspection, has attracted strong opposition from leftists who fear it might make India overly reliant on the U.S. Aw, come on. No need to fear us. We're just a like a big cuddly teddy bear, one that happens to have enough nukes to blow you away if you don't do exactly what we tell you to do.

Vampires - One never ceases to be amazed by the lengths that will be taken to protect the rights of the minority...any minority. Before I go any further, let me set the stage for this item. I'm sitting at the table flipping through a magazine and come across a print ad showing the picture of a smiling woman accompanied by a tagline that reads, "Vampires were people too. Support equality for all citizens. Support the Vampire Rights Amendment." Naturally, I assumed this to be some sort of gag, but I could find anything suggesting that this wasn't a legitimate ad. So with that in mind I give you the American Vampire League. The American Vampire League is the largest organization in the United States dedicated to promoting the equality and civil liberties of vampires. The AVL takes a three-pronged approach: lobbying for the Vampire Rights Act at state and national levels, disseminating accurate information about vampires to the general public and offering guidance to vampires seeking to mainstream. Each of these efforts supports one ultimate mission: To eradicate the fear and hatred of vampires that is caused by both widespread misinformation and an entire race's punishment for the crimes of a few. Since the discovery and marketing of synthetic blood, there is no longer any reason for vampires to remain hidden — or to be shunned or discriminated against. To humans we say: Vampires are your neighbors, your nightwatchmen, your ancestors. And to my fellow vampires: It's time we all come out of the darkness. Let's learn to live together without fear. Of course if you actually visit the web site (click here) as I did, and if you scroll to the bottom on any page on the web site, you may notice a little copyright by the fine folks at HBO. You have to hand it those marketing guys for coming up with such a creative stealth campaign for what will hopefully be a rather entertaining television series.

What Caught My Eye Today

Fred's Note: I want to thank all the folks in Hudson for a great visit. Ambrose, you try that stunt again and we're talking about taking the gloves off, my friend.

Bosnia - The Yugoslav war crimes tribunal has Radovan Karadzic in custody, 13 years after indicting the Bosnian Serb leader on genocide charges. Karadzic is charged with 11 counts, including genocide and crimes against humanity, for allegedly orchestrating the Srebrenica murders, the deadly 44-month siege of Sarajevo and brutal ethnic cleansing campaigns. The late Serb despot, Slobodan Milosevic, may have helped prosecutors by blaming Karadzic for Bosnian atrocities. Milosevic had argued that as leader of Serbia, he was not in control of Karadzic and his Bosnian Serb forces who killed tens of thousands of Bosnian Muslims and Croats in the 1992-95 Bosnian war. Well golly, let's take back all those mean things we said about Milosevic. Obviously, he was an unwitting pawn in Karadzic's evil schemes. As for Karadzic, I'm somewhat curious as to which war crimes he isn't suspected of having committed.

Zimbabwe - All I can surmise from this next story is that Zimbabwe has really got its heart set on displacing Venezuela as having the most entertaining government policy decisions. Zimbabwe announced that it is knocking 10 zeros off its hyper-inflated currency — a move that turns 10 billion dollars into one. The move comes a week after the issue of a 100 billion-dollar note — still not enough to buy a loaf of bread. Inflation, the highest in the world, is officially running at 2.2 million percent in Zimbabwe but independent economists say it is closer to 12.5 million percent. I don't want to trivialize the seriousness of this situation, but with numbers like this, how can you not scoff at the absurdity of the numbers we're talking about here? Plus, I'm kind of interested in how this deal turns out. Think about it, if you could just arbitrarily wipe out a bunch of zeros on the debt that you have, wouldn't you break out the old eraser?

Air Travel - Maybe it's just me, but this next story is a bit disturbing. Flight attendants on a Delta Airlines flight discovered the body of a 61-year-old woman in the restroom of a plane shortly before the flight landed. It was unclear how she died, and how long she was in the restroom. See what I mean? And it gets worse. Airlines are not required to track or report the medical incidents they handle, so an exact tally of in-flight deaths is hard to determine. I'm sorry, but why not? Death in the friendly skies seems like one of those things we might want to keep track of. MedAire, an Arizona-based company that staffs doctors on the ground to advise flight crews in a medical emergency, counted 89 deaths for the flights they handled in 2006, which represents about one-third of the world's commercial flights. If the death rate is similar for the rest of the flights, annual deaths on airplanes could exceed 260. But seriously, the flight attendants didn't know how long this corpse had been rotten in the lavatory? I know their a bit overworked--and certainly underpaid--but you'd think that during all those security checks at the beginning of a flight that someone would have noticed the dead body collecting dust on the toilet.

Cycling - Yeah, yeah, I know...the Tour de France is over, but how many of you actually know who won? Spaniard Carlos Sastre of the CSC team won the 95th Tour de France. Among the other jersey winners were: Green (points jersey - best sprinter), Oscar Freire, Spain; White (best young rider jersey), Andy Schleck, Luxembourg; Polka dot (best climber jersey), Bernhard Kohl, Austria. The best American finisher was Christian Van de Velde from team Garmin-Chipotle who came in fifth, 3 minutes five seconds behind Sastre. Of course the bigger story was the doping that continued to overshadow the Tour...again. A fourth rider was revealed on the last day of the Tour as having failed a doping test after the 18th stage. One dude openly admitted taking drugs to enhance his performance. Italian cyclist Riccardo Ricco admitted that he made a “mistake,” taking responsibility after testing positive for the blood-booster EPO during the Tour de France. The 24-year-old Ricco won two Tour stages this month with the Saunier-Duval team. Ricco was among four cyclists involved in doping cases at the Tour.Actually, I think he made two mistakes--the first was cheating in the first place, and the second was getting caught. Dude, if you are going to sell your soul and cheat, you really ought to spend a bit more time on your plan for getting away with it.

What Caught My Eye Today

Fred's Note: We'll be out of action until next week--heading up north to visit Grams. So hopefully today's musings will tide you over...

2008 Presidential Race - Busy day for both contenders. Let's start with John McCain. Speculation swirled that McCain might name his vice presidential partner within the next few days — right in the middle of Barack Obama's overseas tour. McCain has told reporters he doesn't care if Obama's trip was stealing attention and thinks it "doesn't in the slightest" undercut his own message. Aw come on. I think he cares a little bit. The McCain campaign released two videos set to love songs and encouraged viewers to choose which one best conveyed this message: "The media is in love with Barack." See, even if McCain says he doesn't care, his campaign sure does. Plus, do you really think these videos would have been released without his approval? Neither do I.

And now to the jetsetting Barack Obama. What up, dawg? Barack Obama stepped into the thicket of Mideast politics Tuesday, declaring in Jordan that neither the Israelis nor the Palestinians are strong enough internally to make the bold concessions necessary for peace. I'm sorry. How exactly does this statement shed any new light on this situation? Obama said he would work to bring the two sides together "starting from the minute I'm sworn into office." But he cautioned it is "unrealistic to expect that a U.S. president alone can suddenly snap his fingers and bring about peace in this region." No kidding. Bush and Clinton didn't have much luck either. Though I hand it to Obama for tempering any unrealistic expectations. Kind of unusual for a presidential candidate to exercise restraint on pretty much anything. He stood by his call for the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from Iraq over a 16-month period and said the United States, NATO and the Afghanistan government must do more to counter a resurgent Taliban and al-Qaida and declined repeatedly to concede that President Bush's decision to dispatch 30,000 troops to Iraq in 2007 had succeeded. Funny thing about success--so much depends on how one defines it. Of course, regardless of the measure, I doubt Obama will give credit to Bush for much of anything, unless it's for something bad.

Serbia - Serb nationalists skirmished with riot police in the capital, lashing out against the new Western-leaning government that captured war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic. Serb officials say they arrested Karadzic near Belgrade after more than a decade on the run. The war crime suspect had grown a long white beard to conceal his identity and had lived freely in the capital before being arrested. Hard to imagine that a beard was all it took to fool law enforcement for more than 10 years. Karadzic is sought on 11 charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for his actions during Bosnia's 1992-1995 war. Karadzic is accused of orchestrating the worst massacre of Bosnia's war, when Serb troops overran the U.N.-protected enclave of Srebrenica and slaughtered thousands of Bosnian Muslim men and boys. Karadzic is also linked to the 3 1/2-year siege of Sarajevo, when Bosnian Serb troops starved, sniped and bombarded the city from hills high above it. Residents were kept alive by a thin lifeline of food and supplies provided by U.N. donors and peacekeepers. The siege lasted from 1992 to February 1996. An estimated 10,000 people died. While on the run in Serbia, the world's top war crimes fugitive worked at a private alternative medicine clinic and wrote for a Belgrade magazine. Not exactly what you would consider to be maintaining a low profile, is it? "This is a hard day for Serbia," said the leader of the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party, adding that Karadzic was "a legend of the Serbian people." Being a legend isn't always a positive thing. Jack the Ripper was a legend too, you know.

Alcohol - Rhode Island State Police arrested a man whose blood alcohol level allegedly was .491 — more than six times the legal limit — which they believe is the highest ever recorded in Rhode Island for someone who wasn't dead. Way to make your way into the record books, sparky. The legal limit in Rhode Island is .08. A blood alcohol of .3 is classified as "stupor," .4 is "comatose" and .5 is considered fatal, according to the health department. "Our only assumption could be that the person has a serious alcohol problem," a police spokesperson said. Gee really, do you think? Why is it that anyone speaking in an official capacity feels it is necessary to state the obvious in such lofty tones. Of course the dude has an alcohol problem. His blood alcohol was just this side of fatal, you moron.

Traffic - This next story is proof positive that if you look hard enough you can find a silver lining no matter how depressing the situation is. Rising prices at the gas pump appear to be having at least one positive effect: Traffic deaths around the country are plummeting, just as they did during the Arab oil embargo three decades ago. See what I mean? Researchers with the National Safety Council report a 9% drop in motor vehicle deaths overall through May compared with the first five months of 2007, including a drop of 18% in March and 14% in April. And here's another brilliant insight, this time from an Ohio commuter. "Fewer people on the road means fewer fatalities." Did you come up with that one all on your own?

What Caught My Eye Today

Iraq - Face to face with Iraq's leaders, Barack Obama gained fresh support for the idea of pulling all U.S. combat forces out of the war zone by 2010. But the Iraqis stopped short of actual timetables or endorsement of Obama's pledge to withdraw American troops within 16 months if he wins the presidency. Math has never been my strong suit, but I'm going to give this a try anyway. Sixteen months from January 2009 would put us solidly into 2010, if I counted my fingers and toes correctly. And if I read this report correctly, Iraq seems to support a 2010 timeframe. So with that in mind, what exactly is the problem with the timetable that Obama presented? Obama also got a military briefing from the top U.S. commander in the region, General David Petraeus, and he met with a few of the nearly 150,000 U.S. troops now well into the war's sixth year. In Washington, the White House expressed displeasure with recent public comments by Iraqi leaders on the withdrawal question and suggested they might have the U.S. election on their minds. These days, who doesn't?

Al Qaeda - U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey said Congress should explicitly declare war against al Qaeda to make clear the United States can detain suspected members as long as the conflict lasts. We've been at this for nearly 7 years. Why all of the sudden does it matter what Congress thinks about this mess? Mukasey urged Congress to make the declaration in a package of legislative proposals to establish a legal process for terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo, in response to a Supreme Court ruling last month that detainees had a constitutional right to challenge their detention. Oh, that's it. So like if Congress says it is okay, we can do anything we want to foreigners that we deem a threat to the United States. That sounds like a pretty sweet deal. The proposed legislation would also prohibit courts from ordering a detainee to be released within the United States, protect secrets in court hearings, ensure that soldiers are not taken from the battlefield to testify and prevent challenges from delaying detainee trials. Basically, he's asked Congress to sanction an American version of the Gestapo. Democrats in control of Congress and civil rights groups reacted coolly, saying Mukasey's proposals would avert legal oversight and stack the deck in favor of the administration. Well, at least he's taking the time to ask. The last Attorney General probably wouldn't have even known that he was suppose to do that in the first place.

Zimbabwe - President Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai have signed a deal outlining a framework for talks on Zimbabwe's political crisis. Well this is new. I didn't see this coming at all. Observers said Mugabe seemed to be in conciliatory - and sometimes good-humoured - mood as he made the unprecedented move of appearing with his arch-rival in front of the media. Tsvangirai said that in signing the deal he and Mugabe were committing themselves to the "first tentative step towards searching for a solution". Quick, somebody check and see if the sky is falling. Mugabe praised South Africa's President Thabo Mbeki, who helped broker the deal, but insisted that it would be Zimbabweans who resolved the crisis, without the influence of Europe or the US. Yeah sure, with his track record, why shouldn't the outside world let Mugabe do things his way. But enough of that. I'm thinking that this guy Mbeki just got himself some new bling to put on the old mantle. I hear that Nobel Peace Prize is quick shiny when the light hits it just so.

Bhutan - I reported on this story a few months ago. The tiny Himalayan nation of Bhutan has formally adopted a new constitution that transforms it from an absolute to a constitutional monarchy, a move initiated by its royal family. You certainly don't see that happen everyday. The king, who remains the head of state, will continue to have extensive powers but Parliament has the power to impeach him by a two-thirds majority. The process of limiting the powers of the king and taking the remote, mountainous nation toward parliamentary democracy was started by the father of the current monarch, who abdicated in favor of his son in December 2006. I wonder if Junior had this in mind when he took the throne. He could have just as easily told his father to shove it and stopped all this well before getting to this stage.

Nepal - My, but it was a busy day for tiny Asian countries that no one has ever heard of. Nepal's governing assembly elected the country's first president, rejecting a candidate backed by former Maoist rebels and creating political uncertainty for the new republic. The assembly was elected in April following the dissolution of the monarchy and is supposed to rewrite the constitution and govern the nation. The presidency is a largely ceremonial post but the decision by the country's three top opposition parties to back a non-Maoist candidate for the job threatened to undermine coalition negotiations. I don't get it. If the presidency is mostly ceremonial, who cares which party wins the post? Seems to me that the real power lies with the assembly and the prime minister. Maoists gave up their armed revolt in April 2006 to join the peace process after 10 years of insurgency that left more than 13,000 people killed. They joined parliament and the government later and contested the April 10, 2008, election for the assembly. They won the most seats in the assembly but were not able to secure a majority. The last king, who went by just one name, Gyanendra, was forced to give up authoritarian rule in April 2006 after weeks of pro-democracy protests and his powers were stripped soon afterward. He has been made to leave the royal palace and now is living as a commoner in a summer home just outside the capital Katmandu. I can see how that might be construed as rough for the former monarch. As for the rest of the population, I'm not exactly sure how many commoners have summer homes. If I had to speculate, I would say most commoners would consider themselves fortunate just having a roof over their heads to keep the rain off.

Japan - Okay, I'm assuming most of you have heard of this Asian country. I have to give props to the missus for turning me on to this news item. Nearly 34,000 Japanese killed themselves last year, according to the Japanese national police. That's the second-highest toll ever in a country where the suicide rate is ninth highest in the world and more than double that of the USA, the World Health Organization says. It appears that Lithuania occupies the top spot (at least as of 2004) Japan has long been known as a "nation of suicide." Now there's a bumper stick slogan if I've ever heard one. Authorities are alarmed now that suicide has reached epidemic levels. Reasons:

• For the unemployed, suicide can be "a rational decision." When a man commits suicide in Japan, his beneficiaries can still collect his life insurance. And insurers pay off Japanese home mortgages when a family's breadwinner dies — even if the death is a suicide.
  Who said there wasn't an upside to death?
• The Internet has allowed young, depressed Japanese to get suicide tips and find others with whom they can enter into death pacts.
  I'm not sure that's the sort of social networking site I would want to hook up with.
  Police have asked Internet service providers to ban websites that promote suicide — but with only mixed success.
  Now this is a headscratcher. Are these for profit web sites, or what? And if so, where are they making their money? I'm thinking that advertisers wouldn't be banging at the door to get in on this. Not with the limited lifespan of the target audience.

Golf - Padraig Harrington won the British Openby four strokes at Royal Birkdale on, a year after beating Sergio Garcia in a playoff at Carnoustie. Harrington joined a select group of back-to-back winners of golf’s oldest major, and became the first European in more than a century to win the Open in consecutive years. Harrington spoiled 53-year-old Greg Norman’s bid to become the oldest major winner—15 years after his last triumph, the British Open at Royal St. George’s. Don't feel too bad for Mr. Norman. By finishing in the top 4, he got himself an invitation to play at next year's Masters.

And here's a little postscript on Michelle Wie. So what's a girl to do after she's been disqualified from a tournament one stroke of the lead for failing to sign her scorecard? I'm glad you asked. Fresh off a disqualification on the LPGA Tour, Michelle Wie has decided to tee it up against the men, again. Wie will play next week in the Legends Reno-Tahoe Open, the first time she’ll play on the PGA Tour this year, tournament organizers said. It will be her eighth time playing on the PGA Tour, and she has yet to make a cut. I just don't get this broad.

What Caught My Eye Today

Afghanistan - Barack Obama visited with U.S. troops and Afghan officials in this war-weary nation. While officially a part of a congressional delegation on a fact-finding tour expected to take him to Iraq, Obama was traveling amid the publicity and scrutiny accorded a likely Democratic nominee for president rather than a senator from Illinois. Big surprise there. The area where the meeting took place is not far from where Osama bin Laden escaped U.S. troops in 2001 after his al-Qaida terrorist group led the attacks on September 11. Hard to believe that dude is still on the loose, isn't it? With the ousted Taliban regime resurgent and given the al-Qaida goal of terrorizing the U.S., Obama has argued that the war in Afghanistan deserves more attention as well as more troops. Obama's first overseas tour since securing the Democratic nomination could be key to honing his foreign policy strategy with less than four months before the election. It's certainly not going to help his plan for universal healthcare. A lack of time in the region has not stopped Obama from proposing significant changes to the war effort in Iraq and Afghanistan. So what? When have politicians ever let the lack of factual basis prevent them from making grandiose policy statements? Obama advocates ending the U.S. combat role in Iraq by withdrawing troops at the rate of one to two combat brigades a month. He supports increasing the military commitment to Afghanistan, where the Taliban-led insurgency is at its strongest in seven years.

Yemen - I'm all for respecting cultural nuances that may on the surface appear rather bizarre, but this is just plain wrong. In February, a little Yemeni girl, Nujood Ali, was married at the age of 10 to a man three times her age. Her impoverished father said he was only trying to find her a secure home. The groom agreed no to touch her until she reached puberty. Somehow, that just doesn't make me feel any better about this poor girl's situation. Luckily, the story does have a happy ending...sort of. With the help of a sympathetic aunt, Nujood marched into a courthouse two months later and asked for a divorce. She claimed that her husband had insisted on sleeping in her bed and that he beat her when she tried to stop him from touching her. Under tribal law, the man was entitled to compensation, so a $250 payment was arranged and the marriage was annulled. Put aside for the moment the fact that this jerk essentially got paid off not to molest a child (I could go on for hours on that one). The angle that gets me is that technically, no laws were broken. I am fully aware that I don't have the foggiest clue as to the dire straights that this family must have found itself it, to result in this sort of action, but somebody has got to figure out a way to put a stop to this. Seriously, do you think this was an isolated incident? How many more children don't have an aunt to stick up for them?

Zimbabwe - This is so sad, it's almost funny. Zimbabwe is to introduce a bank-note worth Z$100bn (that's 100 billion, or 1 followed by a whole heap of zeros) in response to rampant inflation - but the note will barely cover the cost of a loaf of bread. Wow. Some Zimbabweans are already calling for higher denominations in a country where the official annual inflation rate has exceeded 2,200,000%. I was going to ask if that was even possible, but evidently it is. Independent economists believe the real rate is many times higher. Let me try again--is that even possible? The country's central bank has introduced several new notes already this year in response to the hyperinflation. In January, a Z$10 million note was issued, followed by a Z$50 million. By June the denominations had reached tens of billions. Zimbabwe was once one of the richest countries in Africa. But it has descended into economic chaos in recent years, with many international observers blaming the policies of President Robert Mugabe. If Zimbabwe was a corporation, dude would have gotten a golden parachute a long time ago. I personally would have disabled the ripcord, but that's just me.

Golf - I have a two-fer for you today, because let's be real...you can never get enough golf drama. First up the British Open. Gusts that approached 50 mph required Greg Norman to manufacture shots from his 53-year-old memory Saturday in the British Open, which he called among the toughest tests he has ever faced in golf. I watched some of the coverage of the third round, and the conditions were bordering on ridiculous. Norman carded a 2-over 72 and has a two-shot lead over defending champion Padraig Harrington and K.J. Choi and is 18 holes from becoming golf’s oldest major champion. Norman is 1-6 when he has at least a share of the 54-hole lead in the majors, his only victory coming at Turnberry in 1986. His career is defined as much by the majors he lost as the two British Open titles he won. Look, the past is the past and tomorrow is a new day. You go, Greg. Oh, and by the way, how much must the suits at ABC be kissing their lucky rabbit's feet? Who would have thought that the British Open would be this compelling without Tiger Woods in it.

And now to the LPGA. Poor Michelle Wie just cannot catch a break. After finishing the first and second round in second place at the State Farm Classic, Michelle Wie was one good round away from finally living up to her deep potential. Then, minutes after tapping in her last putt of the third round, Wie sat in front of a couple dozen baffled reporters and photographers, explaining why she’d been disqualified from the tournament. The 18-year-old, playing her best golf of the year, broke one of the game’s most basic rules: She failed to sign her scorecard before leaving the scoring area. Wie was gone from a tournament where either the $255,000 winner’s purse or the $155,252 second prize would have put her comfortably within the top 80 money winners for the year—and virtually guaranteed her a place on the LPGA Tour next year. She did say that it was an unintentional mistake and the LPGA seems to agree with her, but rules are rules and girlfriend did not follow them. Ironically, she was outside signing autographs when someone told her she forgot to sign her scorecard, which she promptly did. But apparently, according to the rulebook, if you leave the scoring area without signing your card, you are disqualified. Still you have to feel kind of bad for the poor girl.

YouTube - By and large, I'm not exactly what you would call a big fan of YouTube and don't recall ever reporting on a video appearing on it. I have nothing against YouTube, I'm just not a big fan. However, on this particular occasion, I'm going to make an exception. A year after the Sopranos finale lifted Journey back into the zeitgeist, a spoof of Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" has been combined with the upcoming Brendan Fraser flick, "Journey to the Center of the Earth" (click here). Trust me, it's hilarious.

What Caught My Eye Today

Iraq - President Bush has agreed to set a "general time horizon" for deeper U.S. troop cuts in Iraq, a dramatic shift from his once-ironclad unwillingness to talk about any kind of deadlines or timetables. I'm sorry, but what exactly did Bush commit to here? "General time horizon" could mean anything from "tomorrow" to "within a year or two" to "when pigs start flying out of my butt." The announcement put Bush in the position of offering to talk with Iraqi leaders about a politically charged issue that he adamantly has refused to discuss with the Democratic-led Congress at home. No big surprise there. Generally speaking, about the only thing Bush likes to discuss with Congress is about how useless Congress has been over the last couple of years. The White House statement was intentionally vague and did not specify what kind of timelines were envisioned. That allows Iraqi officials, who are facing elections in the fall, to argue they are not beholden to Washington or willing to tolerate a permanent military presence in Iraq. Iraq has proposed requiring U.S. forces to fully withdraw five years after the Iraqis take the lead on security nationwide — though that condition could take years to meet. So with all that being said, one can basically conclude that Bush's statement was essentially meaningless. So what else is new?

Oil - Given how lousy the economy is, I guess this qualifies as good news...barely. Prices at the pump pulled back from record highs as another slide in oil capped crude's biggest one-week drop in more than three years. Gasoline dropped by nearly a penny at filling stations across the country. Now bear in mind that this huge drop only came to pass as a result of a nearly $16 drop in the price of a barrel of oil in the past week. Had oil prices gone up by $16 in a week, I'm betting that we would have seen a slightly higher increase in gas prices.

North Korea - This is just plain sad (a little fun, true; but very sad)... North Korea's phantom hotel is stirring back to life. Once dubbed by Esquire magazine as "the worst building in the history of mankind," the 105-story Ryugyong Hotel is back under construction after a 16-year lull in the capital of one of the world's most reclusive and destitute countries. The hotel consists of three wings rising at 75 degree angles capped by several floors arranged in rings supposed to hold five revolving restaurants and an observation deck. A creaky building crane has for years sat unused at the top of the 3,000-room hotel in a city where tourists are only occasionally allowed to visit. Why on Earth, would North Korea go to such great lengths (and expense) to build such a hideous edifice? The communist North started construction in 1987, in a possible fit of jealousy at South Korea, which was about to host the 1988 Summer Olympics and show off to the world the success of its rapidly developing economy. Oh. So there you have it. By 1992, worked was halted. The North's main benefactor the Soviet Union had dissolved a year earlier and funding for the hotel had vanished. Here comes the sad--and a little funny--part For a time, the North airbrushed images of the Ryugyong Hotel from photographs. As the North's economy took a deeper turn for the worse in the 1990s the empty shell became a symbol of the country's failure, earning nicknames "Hotel of Doom" and "Phantom Hotel." It is estimated to cost up to $2 billion to finish the Ryugyong Hotel and make it safe. That is equivalent to about 10% of the North's annual economic output. Oh, I'm sure psycho boy (a.k.a. Kim Il Jong) will consider this to be money well spent.

Movies - The latest installment in the Batman franchise, "The Dark Knight," lit up cash registers during its midnight debut with a record $18.5 million from 3,040 theaters. That bested the 2005 performance of "Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith," which took in $16.9 million during its midnight debut in 2,915 venues. The movie directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Christian Bale as Batman cost $185 million to make. Critics have heaped praise on the movie — especially the late Heath Ledger's turn as the Joker, which has already generated whispers of a posthumous Oscar nomination. Not a bad way to start. Of course, in today's market, you almost have to have a monster opening to recoup your investment. Nowadays, a theatrical run--even for a summer blockbuster--rarely last more than 6 or 7 weeks. On another note, I for one hope Ledger does get that Oscar nod. He was a great actor with an incredible resume to his credit.

Golf - Day two at the British Open...sans Tiger Woods. KJ Choi claimed birdies on his last two holes to knock Greg Norman off the top of the British Open leaderboard after two rounds. The South Korean claimed the outright lead after completing a three-under-par 67 that left him at one under for the tournament, one shot ahead of the veteran Australian, who registered his second 70 of the tournament. You go, Shark. And now for the meltdown of the day, from one of the most notorious meltdown artists in professional golf. John Daly, the 1995 British Open champion, carded an abysmal 89 to miss the cut at a whopping 29-over. Daly has been battling injuries and the ravages of his own ill-disciplined lifestyle as he tries to revive his rapidly fading fortunes and he had hopes that he could achieve that over the Royal Birkdale links.That's got to hurt. Though one needs to put this sort of thing into perspective. Seriously, if I carded a 29-over for just a single round, I'd be buying drinks for everyone within earshot.

Potpourri - This doesn't really fall into any category and I wouldn't exactly call this news, but it is a rather amusing look into the laws of averages (courtesy of DivineCaroline.com)...

• Odds of dying from a dog bite: 1 in 20 million
  Odds of becoming a saint: 1 in 20 million
• Odds of becoming president: 1 in 10,000,000
  Odds of dying from parts falling off an airplane: 1 in 10,000,000
  I wonder what the odds are for becoming a good president
• Odds you will be injured by a toilet this year: 1 in 10,000
  Odds of finding a four-leaf clover on the first try: 1 in 10,000
• Odds of spotting a UFO today: 1 in 3,000,000
  Odds of dying from food poisoning: 1 in 3,000,000
• Odds of dying from a shark attack: 1 in 300,000,000
  Odds of dying from Measles: 1 in 300,000,000
• Odds of a child being in a fatal automobile accident: 1 in 23,000
  Odds of being wrongly declared dead by a Social Security data entry mistake: 1 in 23,483
• Odds of writing a New York Times best seller: 1 in 220
  Honestly, I would have thought that this would have been a higher number
  Odds of dating a millionaire: 1 in 215
  By extension, it would follow that the odds of marrying and divorcing a millionaire are similarly rather high, relatively speaking
• Odds of getting AIDS from heterosexual sex without using a condom: 1 in 5,000,000
  Odds of dying from contact with hot tap water: 1 in 5,005,564
• Odds of winning an Academy Award: 1 in 11,500
  Odds of bowling a 300 game: 1 in 11,500

What Caught My Eye Today

Iraq - Iraqis want the U.S. military presence to end. But when that occurs -- and whether a timetable should be set for troops to leave -- is something ordinary Iraqis, security officials and politicians cannot agree on. Big deal, neither can we. Iraqis are acutely aware that more than five years after the invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, there are still more than 140,000 American soldiers in their country. Big deal, we're acutely aware of that too. The buzzword word now is "sovereignty." Works for me. It's their country; let them defend it. Last week, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki suggested setting a timetable for U.S. forces to leave as part of a deal being negotiated with Washington to govern the presence of U.S. troops when a U.N. mandate expires at the end of the year. No dates have been mentioned and Iraqi officials now also use the more general term of "time horizon" for any departure. Now what do you suppose "time horizon" means? Here's my theory--it means the Iraqi government has been spending way too much time watching the American government and now finds itself making statements that make no sense.

Business - Oil prices fell below $130 a barrel for the first time in more than a month as a dramatic slide entered a third day along with a sharp sell-off in natural gas. The declines accelerated amid growing concerns about the weakening U.S. economy. Light, sweet crude for August delivery dropped $5.31 to settle at $129.29 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices have fallen more than $15 in just the past three days. Natural gas futures for August delivery fell more than 8%, marking their biggest one-day drop in nearly a year. A number of market observers say there was nothing supporting the run up in natural gas prices, which peaked in early July, and that this week's sell-off of oil has only helped speed the declines. And there you have the funky dynamics of supply and demand. If you are a supplier of commodities like oil this has been a very good year (and that's putting it mildly). The last thing these dudes want to go and do is push consumers into acting rashly and reduce their demand for oil. Regardless of the factors that caused this run-up in prices, the simple fact of the matter (at least in my humble opinion) is that the spike in prices was too high, too fast. Consumers are learning to do without...and big surprise, doing without isn't as bad as we all thought it was going to be.

Obesity - This is one of those good news bad news stories. First the bad news, especially if you reside in the South. Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee lead the nation when it comes to obesity, a new government survey reported. More than 30% of adults in each of the states tipped the scales enough to ensure the South remains the nation's fattest region. And now the good news, at least for those of you who live in the Rocky Mountain state. Colorado was the least obese, with about 19% fitting that category. The 2007 findings are similar to results from the same survey the three previous years. Mississippi has had the highest obesity rate every year since 2004. The traditional Southern diet — high in fat and fried food — may be part of the answer. Do you think? Obesity is based on the body mass index, a calculation using height and weight. A 5-foot, 9-inch adult who weighs 203 pounds would have a BMI of 30, which is considered the threshold for obesity. CDC officials believe the telephone survey of 350,000 adults offers conservative estimates of obesity rates, because it's based on what respondents said about their height and weight. Men commonly overstate their height and women often lowball their weight. I hate to sound like a broken record, but again, do you think? Obesity was most prevalent in the South, with 27% of residents classified as obese. In the Midwest, the number was 25.3%; in the Northeast, 23.3%; and in the West, 22.1%, according to the report. Being from the West coast, these numbers don't surprise me that much. Think about it. These percentages represent averages, right. Well half the state of California is busy fighting forest fires. With all that physical exertion, you would expect a few shrinking waistlines, wouldn't you?

Cycling - Here's your latest Tour de France update. And guess what, some cyclists are still trying to cheat their way to victory. Drugs hit the Tour de France again Thursday, and the third doping bust netted the biggest name yet: Italy's Riccardo Ricco, a winner of two stages. Ricco tested positive after the fourth stage, a time trial in Cholet. The Giro d'Italia runner-up won the sixth and ninth stages of this Tour and was ninth overall entering Thursday.I watched both of those stages and have to say, this dude looking amazing...now we know why. The disclosure came hours before the 12th stage, which was won by Britain's Mark Cavendish while Australia's Cadel Evans kept the yellow jersey. Ricco was detained by police and booed by spectators before the stage. All three busts have involved the performance enhancer EPO, cycling's drug of choice. His Saunier-Duval team withdrew from the Tour and suspended all activities. Cavendish, a Team Columbia rider who had never won a stage before this year, was followed by Sebastien Chavanel of France in second place, with Gert Steegmans of Belgium third.Evans, trailing in the main pack, leads Frank Schleck of Luxembourg by one second and Christian Vande Velde of the United States by 38 seconds. Despite all the drug news, this year's Tour has been pretty good for the two American-based teams. Team Columbia has three stage wins (all by Mark Cavendish) and held the yellow jersey for 5 days, while Garmin Chipotle has the third place contender for the yellow jersey in Christian Vande Velde.

Golf - Golf's third major (such as it is without Tiger Woods playing in it), the British Open kicked off today at Royal Birkdale, and wouldn't you know it--a couple of familiar, but unexpected names at the top of the leaderboard. Rocco Mediate proved his performance at the last major championship was no fluke, becoming the first player at the British Open to break par. His 1-under 69 was quickly matched by Graeme McDowell and Robert Allenby, all of them late starters seizing on their meteorological good fortune. Out of the first 26 threesomes — exactly half the 156-player field — there were 19 scores in the 80s. There wasn't one red number in any group. Compare that with the afternoon. The next 10 groups to finish produced all three of the co-leaders, as well as Greg Norman and Adam Scott, each at 70. No one in the latter half of the bracket had yet to shoot worse than 79. Wouldn't it be cool to see Mediate or Norman in contention on Sunday? Though for the headline of the day, I have to hand it to Rich Beem. Beem called it quits after reaching the midway point with a score 10 strokes higher. His first seven holes went like this: bogey, quadruple-bogey, bogey, bogey, bogey, bogey, double-bogey. What a wuss. Heck I'm usually at +10 by the fourth hole. You don't see me quitting do you? Heck, for what they charge to play a round of golf these days, I'll hack at the ball all day if I have to, just to get my money's worth.

What Caught My Eye Today

Iraq - The Pentagon's top military officer, Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that he expects to be able to recommend further troop reductions in Iraq this fall saying said that on his recent trip to Iraq, he found conditions had improved more than he expected. There's something I thought I would never hear. Officials have been hoping that if security continues to improve in Iraq, they may be able to send more units to Afghanistan, where they say violence is increasing because of the flow of militants from neighboring Pakistan. the timing for this drawdown is rather serendipitous if you think about it. Violence is down, U.S. public support for ongoing troop deployments in Iraq is almost non-existent, the U.N. mandate for U.S. troop actions in Iraq is expiring at the end of the year, and...what else? Oh yeah, the Iraqis don't want us there anymore. So, yes, a troop drawdown does indeed seem like a reasonable course of action.

Afghanistan - Seeing as we touched on the possibility or redeploying some U.S. troops to Afghanistan, let's see how well things are going on that front. U.S. troops abandoned a remote outpost in eastern Afghanistan where militants killed nine of their comrades this week in another sign of the struggle facing foreign and Afghan security forces strung out along the mountainous border. Apparently not very well. The violence is another indication of the growing strength of the Taliban-led insurgency, especially in Afghanistan's east, where the outpost near the village of Wanat was breached by militants. Nine Americans were killed in the deadliest incident for U.S. forces in three years. NATO confirmed that the post, which lies amid precipitous mountains close to the Pakistan border, had been vacated while insisting that international and Afghan troops will "retain a strong presence in that area with patrolling and other means." One wonders just how NATO plans to achieve this "strong presence", seeing as they evacuated from the joint. The retreat from the eastern outpost will be considered a victory by the insurgents, and comes after a spate of security setbacks for President Hamid Karzai's government, including a spectacular Taliban jail break in the southern Kandahar province in June that freed about 900 inmates, and a spike in attacks alongside the border with Pakistan. Yeah, this is going well. Nothing better than giving hope to the insurgent forces. That certainly won't encourage them to incite more violence. But enough about Afghanistan. Let's talk about our successes in Iraq!

Pope - While he didn't expect to travel much, Pope Benedict XVI is actually keeping pace with his globe-trotting predecessor John Paul II. John Paul, only 58 when he assumed the papacy, made extensive tours of the developing world, with stops in Catholic strongholds and some of the world's poorest countries among his first nine pilgrimages. Benedict, now 81, has stayed mainly in the affluent West. The German-born pope has made no secret of his interest in Catholicism in the West, particularly Europe, where Mass attendance is very low and many churches are empty. On the plane taking him from Rome to Sydney, Benedict said the church in the West was in "crisis" because people believe they no longer need God. I don't want to come off sounding too jaded (yeah, right), but do you think it has occurred to anyone in the Holy See that those considered to be haves (in the material sense of the word) are generally rather content, while those in the have-not group have little but their religion to offer them hope and solace? I'm not saying that folks aren't in need of spiritual guidance...especially those who live in privilege. I'm merely suggesting that when you aren't wondering where your next meal is going to come from, those prayers may not appear very high on your to-do list...if at all. Funny how few folks think that it is appropriate to give much thought as to how fortunate they are for the opulent lifestyles that they have. I bet you if those same folks lost everything tomorrow, that they would find God in a hurry.

Chessboxing - Seriously, I don't make this stuff up. I merely report it. Nikolay Sazhin almost knocked out his opponent with a blow to the chin in the second round. But he had to take the queen to win the match. In front of 1,000 cheering fans, Sazhin moved his bishop to go in for the kill and won the world championship of chess boxing, a weird hybrid sport that combines as many as five rounds of pugilism with a game of chess. The combatants switch back and forth between boxing and chess — repeatedly putting their gloves on and taking them off, so that they can move the pieces around the board without clumsily knocking them over — in a sort of brains-and-brawn biathlon. a chessboard is brought into the ring on a table and the combatants play four minutes, after which the board is wheeled off very carefully so that the pieces don't fall over. Then the fighters put on the gloves and trade punches for a round, after which the board is brought back. The pattern is repeated over and over. The chess game can last up to 24 minutes. If you knock your opponent out, the chess is over, too, and you win the match. If you beat your opponent at chess, then the boxing is over, and you are the victor. In the case of a draw at the chessboard, the boxer with more points in the ring is declared the winner. Don't worry, I already checked--chessboxing is not an demonstration sport at upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing. Though if you are interested, there is a web site (click here) where you can find out more on how to achieve your dream of becoming the next chessboxing world champion

Snails - Sacrebleu, the French are running out of snails. A slow-motion crisis threatens the French way of life - the great snail shortage of 2008. Shell-shocked French food processors have warned that they can no longer obtain sufficient quantities of snails from eastern Europe, their principal source. In a glum statement, the French food processing industry announced that snail-collecting was now the object of "growing disaffection" among eastern Europeans. People were no longer keen to leave home before dawn on wet days, armed with a torch, to search the Polish forests or Hungarian scrubland for the "burgundy snail" Imagine that. I would have thought that snail-collecting would have an endless labor supply. As an added bonus, here are a couple of morsels of snail trivial to dazzle your friends and family with...

• The French eat 25,000 tons of snails a year.
• The amount is equivalent to 700 million individual snails.
• Two in every three snails eaten in the world are consumed in France.
• Two-thirds of all the snails eaten in France come from eastern Europe and the Balkans.

What Caught My Eye Today

Turkey - So much for the old adage, "majority rules." Turkey's Islamic-rooted government was elected last year with a huge majority, continues to bask in popular support — and will probably fall within a month. The strange state of affairs is not due to any internal revolt or opposition threat, but to a case before Turkey's Constitutional Court that seeks to ban the Justice and Development Party on charges of undermining secularism. With the court stacked with members of the secular elite, many Turks expect to see their democratically elected government booted out. Turkey's top prosecutor argues that the ruling party, known by its Turkish initials AKP, is systematically trying to impose Islam on Turkey — a charge vehemently denied by the party, which is far from a proponent of Islamic fundamentalism. Supporters of a ban, which could not be appealed, say the secular values canonized after World War I by modern Turkey's founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, must be defended at all costs. In turning the principles of Ataturk into a rigid orthodoxy, the secularists have shown a strong authoritarian streak that sits ill with the nation's ambitions to join the European bloc. And their nationalism has led them to bridle at most European Union demands for reform. By contrast, the government has been credited with maintaining the political and financial stability seen as critical to bringing about reforms needed to revive the nation's EU bid, including curbing the military's say in politics and expanding free speech. Not exactly a shining moment for the judiciary. I was under the impression that the high court was suppose to protect the Constitution--which I assume included the right for the people to democratically elect their government--rather than to defend the interests of a select few elitists. It would appear that the concept of 'checks and balances' among the various branches of government hasn't been embraced by all. Then again, it's not like the United States is the poster child for 'checks and balances' either.

Energy - I'm not sure if you have noticed, but energy costs have been increasing a fair bit over the past several months. A bipartisan group of 27 elder statesmen is sending an open letter to both presidential candidates and every member of Congress saying the country faces "a long-term energy crisis" that threatens the security and prosperity of future generations if swift action isn't taken. It took 27 'elder statesmen' to reach the same conclusion that the rest of us have know for months? Yeah, that makes me feel a lot better about the folks in charge. The letter includes 13 broad recommendations. They include aggressively promoting energy efficiency and reducing energy consumption, increased commitments to both nuclear energy and renewable energy sources, making coal more environmentally acceptable and moving transportation away from oil as a fuel. So like by "broad recommendations," do they mean re-hashing the same ideas that have been stagnating for years because Congress seems incapable of doing anything to address the energy crisis? If so, then I wholeheartedly agree with them. Here's a novel idea. Why don't these policymakers actually make some policy rather than talk about broad recommendations that have been around for years.

Hurricanes - Well, not really, but this is noteworthy story for another reason. Tropical Storm Bertha headed back out over open ocean and away from the U.S. mainland after it battered Bermuda, knocking out electricity to thousands on the Atlantic tourist island. It is the longest-lived July tropical storm in history, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. Bertha is the Atlantic season's first hurricane. It weakened into a tropical storm but is expected to re-strengthen into a hurricane later in the week. Oh make up your mind already. The previous longest-lived storm, known as Storm No. 2, occurred in 1960 and lasted just over 12 days. "Storm No. 2"? Gee, that's original. I kind of like the hurricanes to be a bit more distinctive myself. Think about it. How much more dramatic is "Hurricane Katrina" than say, "Storm No. 1511"? At any rate, way to make history, Bertha. You go, girl. Meanwhile, the Pacific storm season is moving right along. Elida became the second hurricane of the Eastern Pacific region's season, scattering rains across Mexico's central coast. The storm, with winds of nearly 75 mph, was headed away from land and was expected to gradually weaken during the next 48 hours. What sort of name is "Elida" anyway?

Teens - Here's one for the "duh" file... One of the largest studies of its kind shows just how sluggish American children become once they hit the teen years: While 90% of 9-year-olds get a couple of hours of exercise most days, fewer than 3% of 15-year-olds do. Someone commissioned a study for this? Have these people never seen how teenagers spend their time? The study suggests that fewer than a third of teens that age get even the minimum recommended by the government — an hour of moderate-to-vigorous exercise, like cycling, brisk walking, swimming or jogging. Oh come now. You must burn some calories texting and IMing. The results send a message to parents that it's important to teach their kids to balance computer time with more active pursuits. My how the times have changed. Back in my day, my parents had to drag me into the house--turns out kids used to play out of doors (who knew). Nowadays, it seems like parents have to drag their children out of the house and force them to literally get a breath of fresh air. Always nice to see how humanity is evolving.

What Caught My Eye Today

2008 Presidential Race - I've taken a bit of a breather on the presidential race because, well frankly, I'm a bit tired of the whole thing and, in recent days, things have been relatively quiet. That is until today. Barack Obama's campaign says a satirical New Yorker magazine cover showing the Democratic presidential candidate dressed as a Muslim and his wife as a terrorist is "tasteless and offensive." The illustration on the issue depicts Barack Obama wearing sandals, robe and a turban and his wife, Michelle, dressed in camouflage, combat boots and an assault rifle strapped over her shoulder — standing in the Oval Office. The couple is doing a fist tap in front of a fireplace in which an American flag is burning. Over the mantel hangs a portrait of Osama bin Laden. Now, you tell me what could possibly be construed as "tasteless and offense" with that? The part of this story that I love the most is how the New Yorker attempts to justify its decision to run this cover. The magazine said the cover "combines a number of fantastical images about the Obamas and shows them for the obvious distortions they are. The burning flag, the nationalist-radical and Islamic outfits, the fist-bump, the portrait on the wall? All of them echo one attack or another. Satire is part of what we do, and it is meant to bring things out into the open, to hold up a mirror to prejudice, the hateful, and the absurd. And that's the spirit of this cover," the New Yorker statement said. I appreciate satire as much as the next guy (I pretty much thrive on it), but these morons are living in another universe if they think that the general population is going to perceive this as just a spoof, especially seeing as the vast majority of people who see this cover probably won't read the corresponding articles explaining why the cover is a spoof. And while, conservative talk show hosts will probably have a field day with this this, I bet you that Republican party officials are none to happy about this. The last thing they need is for Barack to pull in sympathy votes as a rush of this cover.

Sudan - The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court filed genocide charges against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, accusing him of masterminding attempts to wipe out African tribes in Darfur with a campaign of murder, rape and deportation. The filing marked the first time prosecutors at the world's first permanent, global war crimes court have issued charges against a sitting head of state. Call it a hunch, but there is a precedent I'm pretty sure no sitting head of state wanted to see established. "Genocide is a crime of intention — we don't need to wait until these 2.5 million die," he said. Good point, but will anyone actually step up and do something to prevent this from happening? If judges issue an arrest warrant, they will effectively turn al-Bashir into a prisoner in his own country. In the past, Interpol has issued so-called Red Notices for fugitives wanted by the court, meaning they should be arrested any time they attempt to cross an international border. The United States, which is not part of the ICC, said it was examining the indictment. So, technically, this dude al-Bashir could seek refuge from prosecution in America. Wouldn't that be a feather in our cap? I don't want to come off as having a bias one way or the other, but if this scumbag is eventually caught and convicted, I probably won't shed too many tears on his behalf.

Arctic - Russia announced that it is sending warships to patrol Arctic waters for the first time since the breakup of the Soviet Union -- the latest move to increase the country's global military presence. I realize that this is probably secondary to the main point of this story, but if global warming hadn't done its bit to melt the polar icecap, do you think any of the countries involved would be going to all this trouble? I'm telling you, this global warming deal is really starting to become a buzz kill--as if the world wasn't depressing enough already. Moscow recently sent an expedition to plant a Russian flag on the seabed under the North Pole and said research indicates a massive underwater mountain range in the area, which is believed to contain huge oil and gas reserves, is part of Russia's continental shelf. And Russia hopes it can increase access for fishermen who are blocked from seas around the island of Spitsbergen, where Norway claims exclusive rights. Russia does not recognize the 200-mile economic zone delineated by a 1982 U.N. treaty. Well, heck, if the United States can blow off the U.N. whenever it suits our purposes, it should not come as much of a surprise that another country, especially Russia, wouldn't try to do the same thing. You just know, that if we had any legitimate claim to this turf, we'd be all over it. Now since, we're talking about some potentially big oil reserves, I suppose we could just annex Canada and then go after the Arctic land grab. You don't think the Canadians would mind too much, do you?

Beer - I don't know why, but this next item seems like an end of an era. Anheuser Busch said it had agreed to a sweetened $52 billion takeover bid from Belgian brewer InBev, creating the world's largest brewer. Quick, does anyone know how to say, "gimme a Bud" in Flemish? InBev said it would be the world's third largest consumer products company by market capitalization after Procter & Gamble of the United States and Nestle SA of Switzerland. Inbev brands include Stella Artois, Beck's and Bass. Few products are associated with America as much as Budweiser, which its owner calls the King of Beers. Its Clydesdale horses are fixtures of Super Bowl ads, and even the label is red, white and blue, with an eagle swooping through the "A." Call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure the "A" stands for Anheuser, but then again, who am I to put a damper on patriotism. Despite more than 600 years of brewing beer in Belgium, InBev is more rootless. Although based in Leuven, Belgium, it is run by a Brazilian management team and sells most of its beer outside Europe. Ah yes, always nice to see globalization leaving its mark...or in this case, lack of of one.

Coral Reefs - A new research paper in the journal Science says as much as a third of the world's coral species may now be headed toward extinction. Hmm. That sounds like a lot doesn't it. Coral experts say these reefs hold 25% of the world's marine species, which is why coral reefs are often called "the rain forests of the ocean." Now that is a lot. Of course given the sorry state of rain forests on land, is it that big of a surprise that the aquatic equivalent is getting hammered just as badly? Researchers found evidence of a link between coral-killing diseases and warming ocean waters. Ocean waters are becoming more acidic as they soak up carbon dioxide, the main global warming gas. And while there's evidence that coral reefs can find ways to adapt to waters warmed by global climate change, there's no proof that they can cope with more-acidic oceans. So here's my plan. Everyone go out and buy a package of Tums antacid, then go to the closest beach and toss it in.

What Caught My Eye Today

Congress - Some fights of the 110th Congress have lost their oomph in the waning months before the November elections, with both parties content to run out the clock on messy matters like the war in Iraq, spending bills and various disputes with the White House. What disputes? Bush has pretty much gotten anything that he's wanted. Democrats dropped any pretense of trying to address some of the stickiest issues. What's good enough for 2008 will suffice until a new president and a new Congress take office next year. In a broad sense, Republicans and Democrats are striving to do no more harm to their standing with voters at a time when only 23% of the public approves of how Congress is doing its job. Wouldn't it be nice if the real world worked like Congress? Hey boss, I don't really like the way you are asking me to do my job, so I'm going to take the rest of the year off (with pay), in hopes that you will quit or get hit by a truck. Oh, and by the way, credit card vultures, that goes double for you. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to pay you guys anymore until I see some improvement. I don't know what that improvement should be, but I'll get back to you on that. Just don't expect any more payments from me for the foreseeable future.

Wall Street - At the risk of stating the obvious, the news is not pleasant. Wall Street sank further into a bear market as investors dumped stocks in response to troubles at mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and oil's continuing climb into record territory. The Dow Jones industrials at times fell more than 250 points and slid below the 11,000 mark for the first time in two years. Oh goodie. Investors appeared unimpressed by a statement from Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who said the government's focus is ensuring that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac keep operating in their current form. So like are we to believe that there is some skepticism about the government's ability to keep the economy afloat? I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't read it. The well-being of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is crucial because they hold or guarantee about $5 trillion worth of mortgages — roughly half the $9.5 trillion debt of the United States. Their troubles are just the latest depressing turn in a year-old credit crisis that shows no sign of ending, disappointing some stock traders who thought just months ago that the worst was perhaps over. Dude, how dumb can these stock traders get? Things can always get worse. Oil, meanwhile, extended its move into record territory, rising as high as $147.27. See what I mean?

Olympics - Say what you will about the Chinese Olympic organizers. They aren't naive when it comes to public perception. Dog meat has been struck from the menus of officially designated Olympic restaurants, and Beijing tourism officials are telling other outlets to discourage consumers from ordering dishes made from dogs. One assuming they are referring to existing consumers. I have a hard time imagining a bunch of tourists flocking into China to sample cuisine de Fido. Dog, known in Chinese as "xiangrou," or "fragrant meat," is eaten by some Chinese for its purported health-giving qualities. As hard as it may seem to believe, the Chinese aren't the first to impose this sort of ban. South Korea banned dog meat during the 1988 Seoul Olympics by invoking a law prohibiting the sale of "foods deemed unsightly."

Mercury - You know that saying, "the Earth is getting smaller every day?" It is in that spirit that I offer you this next item... Mercury, the smallest resident of our close-knit solar system, is shrinking. Scientists studying data sent back by the Messenger probe, launched in 2004, reveal that it's disappearing. So far, the planet has lost around 3 miles from its 3,000 mile diameter over the course of its existence. This is being caused by the molten core cooling and solidifying. The reporter clearly had some fun with this story. You should know that this galactic disaster isn't happening very quickly but at a considerably faster rate than previously suspected. Nonetheless, NASA reckons the old girl could last another few billion years yet. Given that news, I suppose you could still make a buck or two on real estate speculation before the rock vaporizes into nothing. Of course there is the problem of sorting out some seriously harsh environmental conditions (you think global warming is bad; that's nothing compared to the deal on Mercury), but no one said that making a buck was easy.

Cycling - Time once again for your periodic dose of the Tour de France. Luxembourg's Kim Kirchen, of Team Columbia (one of two American based teams), survived an attempt to loosen his grip on the yellow jersey in the 7th stage of the 3 week race by a determined CSC team to retain the race lead with a six-second cushion on Australian Cadel Evans. The Tour favorites all rode close to the front of the main group and came in together. Despite attempts by several teams—including CSC and Garmin-Chipotle — to break the race apart, they could not be separated. Christophe Moreau, a French rider with the Agritubel team who was briefly in contention for victory last year, was one of several cyclists to pull out of the Tour during Friday’s stage. It goes without saying (sadly) that it would be the Tour de France without an update on doping, so here you go... The French anti-doping agency said that blood tests carried out before the start of the Tour have shown abnormal results for about 20 cyclists, but none was above the official limits. That's a comforting thought. The American TV broadcast network, Versus, has come up with a couple of taglines for this year's race; my favorite being "Take Back The Tour" I wonder if abnormal test results for more than 20% of the riders in this year's event, was what they had in mind.

What Caught My Eye Today

Wiretapping - President Bush signed a bill that overhauls rules about government eavesdropping and grants immunity to telecommunications companies that helped the U.S. spy on Americans in suspected terrorism cases. He called it "landmark legislation that is vital to the security of our people." Its passage was a major victory for Bush, an unpopular lame-duck president who nevertheless has been able to prevail over Congress on most issues of national security and intelligence disputes. Give credit where credit is due. You usually see terms like unpopular and lame-duck accompanied by terms like ineffective. All evidence to the contrary. I'd love to know how Bush manages to pull this off. Even before Bush signed the legislation, the American Civil Liberties Union said it would challenge the new law in court. "A law like this is fundamentally inconsistent with the Constitution and with the most basic democratic values," said an ACLU spokesperson. Big deal. Since when has a little thing like the Constitution or civil liberties ever stood in the way of national security. This is a America, darn it! We'll defend our freedom no matter how much freedom we have to take away to do it.

Iran - Condoleezza Rice flexed America's muscles in the Middle East Thursday, forcefully warning Iran the U.S. won't ignore threats and will take any action necessary to defend friends and interests in the Persian Gulf. A fresh Iranian missile test prompted a show of force from Israel as well. Yeah, this is going well. Though the White House has repeatedly asserted it prefers diplomacy to war, Rice used some of the administration's most direct language yet to make clear the U.S. is strengthening its military presence to counter Iran in the strategic Gulf region and is prepared to use force. She also referred to U.S. arms sales to Gulf allies and military aid to Israel as protections against any threat from Iran. Admittedly, foreign affairs is not exactly a specialty of mine, but how exactly is saber-rattling used as a diplomatic tool? I appreciate the fact that this sort of policy worked out well for us in the Cold War, but is it really the wisest course to bank on the same sort of thing working again with Iran. Newsflash, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad isn't exactly playing with a full deck. Dude might react to all this posturing by actually pushing the little red button.

Air Travel - Just when you thought that air travel couldn't get much worse... US Airways says it will start removing in-flight entertainment systems on domestic flights in November to save about $10 million annually in fuel and other costs. An airline spokesperson said the movie systems weigh about 500 pounds each, forcing planes to use more fuel to get around the country. Well now, that just sucks. I, for one, always looked forward to squinting into a blurry 5-inch screen to enjoy a censored movie with the dude sitting in front of me reclined all the way back and a screaming toddler sitting behind me. It was the way cinematic entertainment was meant to be consumed.

Life - Well now, this next story is just flat out depressing...at least if you are an American. It's not just the American dollar that's losing value. The Environmental Protection Agency has decided that an American life isn't worth what it used to be. The "value of a statistical life" is $6.9 million in today's dollars—-a drop of nearly $1 million from just five years ago. Oh, keep reading. It gets better. Though it may seem like a harmless bureaucratic recalculation, the devaluation has real consequences. When drawing up regulations, government agencies put a value on human life and then weigh the costs versus the lifesaving benefits of a proposed rule. The less a life is worth to the government, the less the need for a regulation, such as tighter restrictions on pollution. And now the p'et de resistance... The EPA figure is not based on people's earning capacity, or their potential contributions to society, or how much they are loved and needed by their friends and family. Yeah, what would be the point of that? Instead, economists calculate the value based on what people are willing to pay to avoid certain risks, and on how much extra employers pay their workers to take on additional risks. Gee, that's comforting. I can see the dudes in the executive suite scratching their heads over this one. Bottom-line vs. employee survival. Always nice to know that my life is thought of with such high regard.

What Caught My Eye Today

Climate - China, India and other energy-guzzling developing nations rejected key elements of a global warming strategy embraced by President Bush and leaders of wealthy nations. Imagine that--a difference in opinion between the haves and the have-nots. The "major economies" are the world's 16 largest-emitting nations, accounting for 80% of the world's air pollution. The expanded meeting that included all of them was the first time their leaders had sat down together for climate discussions. it ended with only a vague reference in their final declaration to a long-term goal for reducing global emissions and a pledge for rich and poor countries to work together. Only a few of the emerging powers — Indonesia, Australia and South Korea — agreed to back the 50% by 2050 reduction target. The five main developing nations — China, India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa, who together represent 42% of the world's population — issued a statement explaining their split with the G-8 over its emissions-reduction goals. They said they rejected the notion that all should share in the 50% target, since it is wealthier countries that have created most of the environmental damage up to now. Well sure. Can you blame them? They want the same opportunities to screw up the environment that we had, before they mend their ways. I was never one to buy into that whole "learn from the mistakes of others" deal.

Iran - Iran test-fired nine missiles, including ones capable of hitting Israel, making a dramatic show of its readiness to strike back if the United States or Israel attacks it over its nuclear program. The launches sparked strong U.S. criticism and a jump in oil prices. Of course it did. Heck, I could fart the wrong way and oil prices could rise. The tests of the long- and medium-range missiles did not appear to mark a significant advance in Iran's missile capability — similar ones have been tested previously. Iran has long warned it would strike back for any attack against it. But it has sharpened its rhetoric since Israel's military sent warplanes over the eastern Mediterranean in June for a large military exercise that U.S. officials described as a possible rehearsal for a strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. A White House spokesman called the tests "completely inconsistent with Iran's obligations to the world" and said they further isolate the country. Far be it from me to support Iranian foreign policy, but why does this come as a surprise to anyone? If some other country was running military exercises in my backyard and openly admitting that the exercises were a rehearsal for invading my borders, I might be inclined to show some defensive posturing to discourage them from doing so. In some circles, this would be called protecting one's sovereignty.

Japan - Here's a cautionary tale... A Japanese labor bureau has ruled that one of Toyota's top car engineers died from working too many hours, the latest in a string of such findings in a nation where extraordinarily long hours for some employees has long been the norm. If memory serves me, Japan also has a rather high rate of suicide. Aw shucks. I'm sure there is no connection between the two. The man who died had been under severe pressure as the lead engineer in developing a hybrid version of Toyota's blockbuster Camry line. In the two months up to his death, the man averaged more than 80 hours of overtime per month. There is an effort in Japan to cut down on deaths from overwork, known as "karoshi." Such deaths have steadily increased since the Health Ministry first recognized the phenomenon in 1987. Okay, so now I feel vindicated. To all those naysayers who suggest that I'm lazy or lacking in motivation, I say that's just bunk. I'm looking after my health. And if that's a crime, then call me guilty. Now, somebody go get me another beer and get me the remote control.

Sperm - And yet another red flag warning... Scientists have found that obese men have worse sperm than normal-weight men. A study analyzed the sperm samples of more than 5,000 men in Scotland, and divided the men into groups according to their Body Mass Index. Men who had an optimal BMI (20 to 25) had higher levels of normal sperm than those who were overweight or obese. How would you like to have been the poor slob having to collect all those samples? The researchers adjusted their analysis to account for other factors that could have affected men's sperm count, like smoking, alcohol intake, history of drug abuse, and age. There are several theories about why obese men might have bad sperm. Because fat tissue influences the metabolism of sex hormones, scientists think it might also disrupt sperm production. It could also be a temperature problem. Sperm is best produced at a temperature two degrees cooler than normal body temperature. But because obese men have more fat, their bodies might be overheated. So men, here it is. If your swimmers don't seem to be closing the deal here's what you need to do: get some exercise, stop getting older and pretty much stop doing anything that you derive any enjoyment from (other than...well, you know).

Happiness - Tired of all the depressing news, and if not, what are you smoking? Despite the anxieties of these times, happiness has been on the rise around the world in recent years, a new survey finds. The upbeat outlook is attributed to economic growth in previously poor countries, democratization of others, and rising social tolerance for women and minority groups. Denmark is the happiest nation and Zimbabwe the the most glum. And just what do those whiny Zimbabweans have to be depressed about? The United States ranks 16th. survey finds people of rich countries tend to be happier than those of poor countries. Wow, that is surprising. I heard that countries that suppress freedom of speech, scored rather high on the survey. I'm sure that's just a coincidence.

What Caught My Eye Today

Russia - President Bush and new Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stood united on issues like Iran and North Korea at the G8 Summit in Japan. But for all their handshakes and smiles, it is clear that thorny issues like missile defense are in a holding pattern until a new U.S. president takes office. In their first sit down as heads of state, Bush called Medvedev a "smart" guy who is well versed in foreign policy. High praise indeed. I'm sure Medvedev must have gushed over those remarks. Medvedev casually referred to Bush as "George." Or perhaps not. The two presidents only glossed over Russia's anger about the U.S.'s missile defense plans for Eastern Europe. And they both brushed off the fact that their official relationship will expire in fewer than 200 days when the Bush presidency ends. That's probably because neither one cares. Bush is gone in 200 days, so why should he give two shakes as to what Medvedev thinks of him. As for Medvedev, Bush is gone in 200 days, which basically renders Bush irrelevant to future discussions on anything of long term importance.

Zimbabwe - This week, the U.N. Security Council is due to discuss a U.S. and British-based proposal for financial and travel restrictions on Mugabe and his top officials as well as an arms embargo on Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe urged the world to accept President Robert Mugabe's re-election and said any move to impose U.N. sanctions on his government would hurt everyone involved. Like who? As far as I can see, the only downside here is for Zimbabwe and the general population is already in dire straits as a result of the antics of Mugabe's government. Economic sanctions aren't going to seem that bad compared to the abuse that the people have suffered at the hands of the ruling party. The sanctions are aimed at punishing Mugabe and his closest aides for holding a presidential run-off election last month that was boycotted by challenger Morgan Tsvangirai, who accused Mugabe of deadly attacks on his supporters. Mugabe was sworn in for a new five-year term after election authorities declared he had won a landslide victory. Election authorities that were on Mugabe's payroll. And they wonder why the international community is reluctant to officially recognize the election results. I think the answer is rather simple--it was rigged.

Tourism - According to a recent international survey, the French are now considered the most obnoxious tourists from European nations, and behind only Indians and the last-place Chinese as the worst among all countries worldwide. The French also finished second to last among nations ranking the popularity of their own tourists who vacation at home. Well gee, that's a relief. Here I was thinking that the French were just annoying to outsiders. It's nice to see that they consider themselves to be just as irritating as we do. French travelers landed 19th out of 21 nations worldwide, far behind the first-place Japanese, considered most polite, quiet and tidy. Following the Japanese as most-liked tourists were the Germans, British and Canadians. Americans finished in 11th place. Americans wind up as the biggest-spending and best-tipping tourists and rank as the loudest, most inclined to complain, and among the least polite. Maybe you've heard this one before--"Attitude reflects leadership." If I come off as rude and obnoxious, it's because I'm following the lead of my government.

Tennis - What a great weekend of tennis. Even if you are just a casual sports fan you had to be impressed by the finals action this past weekend. Rafael Nadal dethroned five-time champion Roger Federer as king of Wimbledon on Sunday with an epic 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5/7), 6-7 (8/10), 9-7 win in one of the greatest Grand Slam finals of all time and the longest final in Wimbledon history. In doing so, Nadal added a first All England Club title to his four French Opens. He also shattered Federer's dreams of an historic sixth successive Wimbledon trophy. Nadal's victory over Federer has seen him close the gap on the world number one to 545 points in the latest ATP rankings. And all this happened after a pretty good showing by Venus and Serena Williams on Saturday which saw Venus beat her younger sister in straight sets to capture her fifth Wimbledon singles title then back that up 3 hours later by pairing up with Serena to win the women's doubles championship.

What Caught My Eye Today

Fred's Note: No particular reason, other than coincidence, but most of today's entries contain a lot of numbers.

2008 Presidential Race - Here's a fascinating analysis (courtesy of fivethirtyeight.com) suggesting the probability of flipping red or blue strongholds in the the upcoming presidential election. Barack Obama pledged to put John McCain on defense with a "50-state strategy." Smart in battleground states, but perhaps a waste in other states. According to fivethirtyeight.com, the odds of flipping certain strongholds are extremely negligible (state/chance of winning):

• McCain
  • Alabama, 99%
  • Kentucky, 97%
  • Idaho, 98%
  • Oklahoma, 99%
  • Utah, 100%
  • Wyoming, 98%
• Obama
  • Washington DC, 100%
  • California, 97%
  • Massachuetts, 97%
  • New York, 98%
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont, 99%

Should you be interested the electoral math of these projections, if these results play out, Obama would garner 108 electoral votes to McCain's 36. Nationwide, polls suggest that McCain has a slight lead over Obama, 227 to 200. That is, at least, until tomorrow's poll are released. I did some checking and it turns out that no presidential candidate has ever won an election based on poll results. Of course, that won't prevent the pundits from drowning us with polls right up until the election.

Current Affairs - Newsflash...Turns out the general population isn't exactly well informed when it comes to current affairs. Naturally, they would be if they read this blog, but it is what it is. Here are some results from a survey recently conducted by Newsweek magazine:

• 77% of those surveyed don't know who the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court is. (answer: John Roberts) I thought it was George Bush.
• 32% think that the popular vote determines the outcome if a presidential election ends in an Electoral College tie (answer: the House of Representatives breaks ties) You would think than in a democracy, the popular vote would count for more.
• 67% know that a barrel of oil costs about $140 on the world market today The other 33% obviously don't own cars
• 19% think that Alan Greenspan is still the chairman of the Federal Reserve (answer: Ben Bernanke) I'm betting that the percentage who correctly guess Bernanke was even lower.
• 80% know that TV broadcasts in the U.S. are scheduled to switch form analog to digital in 2009 This we, know. Tragic.
• 20% know the Sunnis are the largest group of Muslims worldwide. I'm kind of curious as to how much actually know that Muslim has different denominations just like Christianity.

Oil - Here's a few tidbits that you may not know about our insatiable appetite for oil. Mind you, that none of this is likely to do much to reduce the sting of gas prices, but you might feel smarter. The United States produced more than 8 million barrels of oil per day in 2006 (that's sounds like a fair bit), but it consumed more than 20 million per day (that would probably explain our dependency on oil imports). In 1993, the U.S. imported more oil than it produced. And while the U.S. ranks as the world's third largest petroleum producer, it has only the 12th largest oil reserve. The U.S. imports the majority of its oil from Canada (1,952,000 million barrels a day), followed by Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Nigeria, Venezuela and Iraq. There's a rather eclectic group of suppliers. Funny how we get most of our oil from 'friendly nations' but also rely upon slightly more dubious sources to feed our need.

Tennis - Good news, an American finally won a Grand Slam event. Of course, given that fact Venus and Serena Williams faced off against each other in the women's singles final at Wimbledon, I guess it was pretty much a sure thing. Venus Williams beat sister Serena 7-5, 6-4 for her fifth Wimbledon title and seventh Grand Slam championship. This was Venus’ first victory over her younger sibling in a Grand Slam final since the 2001 U.S. Open, and it evened their career record at 8-8. Venus, appearing in her seventh Wimbledon final, avenged her two losses to Serena in the 2002 and 2003 title matches and stopped her sister from winning her ninth Grand Slam. And they are finished yet. The Williams sisters are also playing in the women's doubles final.

Cycling - That's right, boys and girls, it's that time of year again. Alejandro Valverde of Spain won the first stage of the Tour de France with a ride through flat country, the opening of a three-week race trying to restore its luster after years of doping scandals. Good luck with that. He broke away from the pack at the end of the 123-mile leg from Brest to Plumelec and now has the distinction of wearing the leader’s yellow jersey. The 2,175-mile race ends July 27 in the French capital. Spain’s Alberto Contador is not competing, the second straight year the race has begun without a defending champion. His Astana team was banned by organizers after doping infractions by other riders. Floyd Landis was stripped of his 2006 title after testing positive for synthetic testosterone. Other top names out this year are Kazakhstan’s Alexandre Vinokourov, who was removed from the Tour last year for a positive test for a blood transfusion, and Astana rider Levi Leipheimer. Ivan Basso, the 2006 Giro d’Italia winner and two-time Tour podium finisher, is also absent. The Italian is serving the last few months of a two-year ban he received after acknowledging involvement in the Spanish blood-doping investigation. I think its a rather sad commentary when the lead story is more about the riders not participating in this year's Tour. That being said, you know that I'll be hanging out with Phil Ligget and Paul Sherwin on Versus for the next 3 weeks.