What Caught My Eye Today

The First Dog - The economy? Big deal. North Korea? Who cares? Pirates in Somali? Yawn. This story trumps them all The nation got its long-awaited first look at Bo in action as the Obamas showed off the family's new dog on the South Lawn. Told ya. First lady Michelle Obama did most of the walking while the 6-month-old Portuguese water dog scampered about. Then daughter Malia took a turn, and Bo took off running. Barack Obama had promised his daughters a puppy during the presidential campaign. I have to say I'm rather impressed at the lengths Obama has gone to keep his campaign promises. Of course, this particular constituency does have some pull with the President, what with being his daughters and all. The dog finally arrived today after the girls came home from school. The commander in chief laid down some guidelines. Each family member is going to have to help out, Obama said. "We all have to take turns walking the dog." Asked by a reporter where the dog would sleep, the president said Bo would have his own spot. A bed? "Not in my bed," Obama said. Big talk from the most powerful man in the free world. We'll see how long that lasts. I said the same thing about my dogs. That lasted all over about a month. Now they share the bed with the missus and me...if we're lucky.

Okay, on to the more mundane news of the day.

Economy - Aiming to assert control over the nation's economic debate, Barack Obama warned Americans eager for good news that "by no means are we out of the woods" and argued his broad domestic agenda is the path to recovery. Speaking strictly for myself the only light at the end of the tunnel that I see is that big freight train barreling down the track with a whole world of hurt behind it. Obama aimed to juggle his recent glass-half-full takes on the economy with a determination to not be stamped as naive in the face lingering problems. Good luck with that one, Mr. President. It was difficult to make that case based on a report the government released earlier in the day showing that retail sales plummeted by 1.1% in March, a performance much poorer than experts had anticipated. Yup. That's a definite buzzkill when you are trying to talk up the economy. Obama put his fledgling presidency on the line when he advocated sweeping new government intervention and spending to right the troubled economic conditions. Shortly after taking office he signed a $787 billion package intended to boost the economy and his administration also has unveiled a slew of other programs aimed to right the troubled home, banking and auto sectors. Say what you will, this dude has got some brass ones. Bear in mind Obama is just now coming up on his 100th day in office.

North Korea - North Korea said it was restarting its rogue nuclear program, booting U.N. inspectors and pulling out of disarmament talks in an angry reaction to U.N. Security Council condemnation of its April 5 rocket launch. All 15 members of the Security Council, including China and Russia, agreed yesterday to condemn the April 5 launch as a violation of U.N. resolutions and to tighten sanctions against the regime. In the realm of international politics the speed in which North Korea reacted to the U.N. (less than 24 hours) is unheard of. If I didn't know better, I would say that North Korea knew what was going to happen if it launched that rocket, and was used this incident as a reason to restart its nuclear program. But nah, there's no way North Korea would do something like that. Despite its defiance, analysts say North Korea, one of the poorest countries in the world, is unlikely to abandon the talks altogether. They suggested North Korea could be trying to draw the United States into direct negotiations, which it has long sought. Seems like an awfully big gamble North Korea is taking on. Still, if their goals is to go back to the bargaining table, I cannot say that their motives are completely off base, just their methods.

Somali - Somali pirates were back to business as usual today, defiantly seizing four more ships with 60 hostages after U.S. sharpshooters rescued an American freighter captain. "No one can deter us," one bandit boasted. Bear in mind that those sharpshooters took out 3 pirates with 3 bullets at long range and on rolling seas. If that isn't a deterrent, I'm not sure what is. The brigands grabbed more ships and hostages to show they would not be intimidated by President Barack Obama's pledge to confront the high-seas bandits. Good plan. Piss off the world's most powerful Navy even more. After a lull at the beginning of the year because of rough seas, the pirates since the end of February have attacked 78 ships, hijacked 19 of them and hold 16 vessels with more than 300 hostages from a dozen or so countries.
Pirates can extort $1 million and more for each ship and crew. Kenya estimates they raked in $150 million last year. You have to wonder where piracy ranks on Somali's list of industries. I'm betting it is definitely in the top ten. A flotilla of warships from nearly a dozen countries has patrolled the Gulf of Aden and nearby Indian Ocean waters for months. They have halted many attacks but say the area is so vast they can't stop all hijackings. The Gulf of Aden, which links the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean, is the shortest route from Asia to Europe and one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, crossed by more than 20,000 ships each year. The alternative route around the continent's southern Cape of Good Hope takes up to two weeks longer at huge expense. Expenses that will no doubt be passed along to consumers. Man, I'm so depressed. Time to go hug my dogs.