What Caught My Eye Today

So you think you've had a tough week? I'm sure you are familiar with the cliche that "things could always be worse." Ordinarily, I embrace such thinking, however recent events have given me pause.

Japan (Part I) - Last Friday, a megathrust earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 on the Richter scale hit about 80 miles off the east coast of Japan. Megathrust earthquakes occur at subduction zones at destructive plate boundaries, where one tectonic plate is forced under (subducts) another. These earthquakes are among the world's largest. Since 1900, all six earthquakes of magnitude 9.0 or greater have been megathrust earthquakes. No other type of known tectonic activity can produce earthquakes of this scale. The total energy released for the quake was equivalent to approximately 600 million times the energy of the Hiroshima bomb and if that energy could have been harnessed would have been able to power the city of Los Angeles for a year. If those numbers don't blow your mind, consider this next item. The quake moved portions of northeast Japan 8 feet closer to North America and shifted the Earth's axis by almost 10 inches. This deviation has increased the speed of the Earth's rotation, shortening the day by 1.8 microseconds. As catastrophic as you might imagine the damage would be from this quake, it turns out this was just the beginning...

Japan (Part II) - On those occasions when earthquakes occur in the oceans, there is sometimes a displacement of water. There is a term for this sort of thing--tsunami. The earthquake caused a massive tsunami which wrought massive destruction along the Pacific coastline of Japan's northern islands. The tsunami propagated across the Pacific, and warnings were issued and evacuations carried out in many countries with Pacific coasts. Chile's section of Pacific coast is furthest from Japan (about 12,400 miles) but still was struck by tsunami waves over 6 feet high. The damage in Japan caused by surging water was far more deadly and destructive than the actual quake. Whole towns were wiped away by waves reaching 3 stories in height. Through today, The National Police Agency has officially confirmed 4,314 deaths, 2,285 injured, and 8,606 people missing across sixteen prefectures. These numbers are expected to significantly increase, with casualties expected to reach tens of thousands. As horrific as this was, if you have been watching the news, the tsunami is only the second worst thing that Japan has had to cope with. What could possibly be worse than this?

Japan (Part III) - The Fukushima I, Fukushima II, Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant and Tōkai nuclear power stations, consisting of a total eleven reactors, were automatically shut down following the earthquake. At Fukushima I and II tsunami waves overtopped seawalls and destroyed diesel backup power systems, leading to severe problems including two large explosions at Fukushima I and leakage of radiation. Oh crap. Japan declared a state of emergency following the failure of the cooling system at the Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant, resulting in the evacuation of nearby residents. Officials from the Japanese Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency have reported that radiation levels inside the plant are up to 1,000 times normal levels, and that radiation levels outside the plant are up to 8 times normal levels. Later, a state of emergency was also declared at the Fukushima II nuclear power plant. This brings the total number of problematic reactors to six. As if one exploding nuclear reactor wasn't bad enough.

Japan (Part IV) - I think it goes without saying that getting hit by a 9.0 earthquake, a tsunami and the explosion of 6 nuclear reactors is going to result in some collateral damage, no matter how well prepared you are. And honestly, who in their right mind could dream up something like this? At least 1.5 million households were reported to have lost access to water supplies and around 4.4 million households in northeastern Japan are without electricity. Initial estimates suggest the economic loss may be around $171–183 billion just to the region which was hit by the quake and tsunami.

So if you think you have it rough, think again, my friends. And while you are at it, take a few minutes to donation whatever you can to the relief agencies trying to help Japan cope with this disaster (Frankly, I cannot think of a word that adequately describe what has happened here).

Basketball - March Madness starts today along with the decimation of my brackets. Nonetheless, it's a tradition that for two weeks every March, fine folks across the land find yet another reason to slack off at work. Personally, I find that I can blow off my job with or without a college basketball tournament to distract me, but that's just me. And now, without further delay, I give you my losing Final Four picks. For the men, I'm taking Ohio State vs. Connecticut and Kansas vs. Pittsburgh in the Final Four and Ohio State over Kansas in the final. For the women, I've got Connecticut going up against Tennessee and Stanford taking on Texas A&M, with Connecticut over Stanford in the final. For those of you who follow the game, picking the Connecticut women is not exactly a shot in the dark. They have only lost one game in like the past decade, though that lose was to Stanford. On the men's side, I've got 3 one-seeds in the Final Four. Again, I'm not wandering too far off the reservation here. The problem, is that all 4 one-seeds have only made it to the Final Four once (in 1979). I think the important aspect to all this is win or lose this sure beats the heck out of my day job.

What Caught My Eye Today

Libya - French President Nicolas Sarkozy and British Prime Minister David Cameron said Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his ruling clique have lost legitimacy and must step down to end violence in the country. The British and French leaders also called on the international community to enforce an arms embargo on Libya. France became the first country to recognize the rebel group, and Sarkozy has raised the idea of a limited air campaign against forces loyal to Gaddafi. Unless I am very much mistaken, I'm pretty sure that Sarkozy will not be receiving a Christmas card from Gaddafi this year. Still you have to be impressed by Sarkozy strong stand on the issue as opposed to the relatively muted response from the U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton announced that Washington was suspending relations with Libya's embassy to the United States, though the move falls short of completely severing diplomatic relations. The way I heard it, some whack job at the Pentagon pointed out the fact that the U.S. military is limited by the laws of nature in that it cannot be everywhere at the same time. I'd like to see some proof of that, before such outlandish claims are made.

Terrorism - Congress pushed deep into a raw and emotional debate over American Muslims who have committed terrorist attacks in the name of religion. This should be good. Republican Representative Peter King, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, called the hearing because Muslim community leaders need to speak out more loudly against terrorism and work more closely with police and the FBI. King declared U.S. Muslims are doing too little to help fight terror in America. I'm sure that was warmly received. Democrats wanted the hearing to focus on terror threats more broadly, including from white supremacists and warned of inflaming anti-Muslim sentiment and energizing al-Qaida. I agree. If you are going fan the flames of discontent, you might as well cover everyone that hates you. Of course, if you are going to do so, it would be nice if you come out with a plan for dealing with the inferno of rage. Despite years of government focus on terrorism, dozens of unraveled terrorism plots and a few successful attacks have suggested there is no one predictable path toward violence. Today's hearing offered no insight into those routes. So much for wishful thinking.

U.S. Politics - It's nice to see that the Republicans are as supportive of their leadership as the Democrats are of theirs (See Mar 8 posting here). House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner is under pressure from fiscal conservatives in his own party to push steep spending cuts, with Tea Party stalwarts likening the Ohio Republican to "a fool" for not taking a sharper knife to public programs. Republicans have proposed cuts of $61 billion in fiscal year 2011 from current levels, a step President Barack Obama says would choke the faltering economic recovery. But for some in the Tea Party, it is not enough. They say the figure should be at least $100 billion. As much as it pains me to say this, I find myself sympathizing with Boehner. Dude effectively has to figure out how to draw blood from a turnip. Boehner has to find a way to appease the Tea Party contingent while trying to avoid a government shutdown, which is a very plausible possibility given the lack of common ground for finding some sort of compromise that everyone can live with. Good luck with that, spark plug.

Cricket - This one goes out to my friends in the U.K. Halfway through the group stage of the 2011 Cricket World Cup, the traditional powers are working their way to the top of the standings and look likely to advance to the knockout stage. To those of you not familiar with cricket (I'm guessing that is the vast majority of you), the heavy weights in cricket include India, Pakistan, England and Australia. Don't worry, I'll keep you posted as the tournament progress. No need to thank me.

Basketball - The time is rapidly approaching for worker productivity in the United States to drop precipitously. That's right, my friends, March Madness is just around the corner. Ordinarily, I wouldn't be into the "madness" until the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament starts, but these are ordinary times. My beloved San Jose State Spartans are threatening to make it into the tournament for the first time in years. Two more wins in its conference tournament and my mighty Spartans will make into one of those coveted play-in games.

What Caught My Eye Today

Saudi Arabia - One of the last absolute monarchies on earth, Saudi Arabia has been rattled by the toppling of old friends like Tunisia’s Ben Ali (now in exile in the Kingdom) and Egypt’s Mubarak (who may not be far behind in moving into a Saudi retirement home). The Saudis have no love for Libya’s Gaddafi, who tried to assassinate King Abdullah only a few years ago, but they are worried by the contagion of unrest that is rolling across North Africa and into the Arabian Peninsula. Gee, I wonder why? Not to go off on a tangent here, but just how short-sighted can Gaddafi be? He couldn't possibly have seen any upside to assassinating the Saudi king. Heck, dude should count himself lucky that he failed in his attempt. The U.S. would not have looked kindly on anyone who messed with its oil supply...I mean one of its closest and most trusted allies in the region. To date, there have only been stirrings of protest in the Sunni heartland against the Kingdom itself. But the royals are taking nothing for granted. Just a week ago, the King promised $36 billion in new jobs, pension bonuses and other hand-outs to buy off potential opposition. It never ceases to amaze me at how money (or winning) can remove, or at least suppress, any feeling of discontent. And with oil going for well in excess of $100 a barrel, it certainly appears that the House of Saud can continue with this strategy for the foreseeable future.

Gender Gap - According to the United Nations, there are far more men than women on the planet. Taking into consideration the fact that women have a longer life expectancy than men, one can only assume that men are going with quantity over quality. The gender gap is especially pronounced in Asia, where there are 100 million more guys than girls. The gap is partly explicable in terms of economics. In many Asian societies, girls are less well looked after than boys because they are economically undervalued. The kind of domestic work they typically do is seen as less important than paid work done by men. Quantity and dated stereotypes. Seeing as we're talking about men here, I guess this logic doesn't seem surprising. Stupid, but not surprising. In China, there are about 123 male children for every 100 females up to the age of 4, a far higher imbalance than 50 years ago, when the figure was 106. The question left open by economists is what the consequences will be of such a large surplus of young men. History offers a disquieting answer. Show of hands please. Who is surprised by this revelation? European imperial expansion after 1500 was the result of a male “youth bulge.” Japan’s imperial expansion after 1914 was the result of a similar youth bulge. During the Cold War, it was youth-bulge countries—Algeria, El Salvador, and Lebanon—that saw the worst civil wars and revolutions. Some historians and political scientists link the recent rise of Islamist extremism in countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan to an Islamic youth bulge and warn that China and India could be the next countries to overdose on testosterone. You know what they say...boys will be boys. God help us all.

U.S. Politics (Part I) - Freshman Democratic senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va) accused President Barack Obama of failing to provide leadership on a worsening national deficit as top Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill spent more time pointing fingers than seeking common ground on a must-do measure to fund the government for the next six months. Always nice to see a little party loyalty... The freshman senator faces re-election next year in a state where voters are generally hostile to Obama. ...especially in an election year. I'm guessing Manchin doesn't have much use for the president's coat tails? Speaking of the budget... The House GOP measure makes sweeping cuts to domestic programs whose budgets are set each year by Congress. The Democratic alternative would cut spending by $11 billion from last year's levels and limit increases for the Pentagon's core military operations to just 1%. The Senate Democratic plan falls well shy of the cuts sought by Republicans but demonstrates considerable movement from where the party was last year when it sought to pass an omnibus spending bill with a price tag $30 billion higher than the current measure. There irony, is that for all the posturing by both political parties, until there is the political will to take on entitlement spending (Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security) as well as defense spending, which together comprise almost two-thirds of the U.S. budget, all this talk about reducing the federal deficit really amounts to a lot of hot air.

U.S. Politics (Part II) - The 2012 Presidential Race? You have got to be kidding me. White House hopefuls are furiously hiring staff, testing messages for the powerful conservative base of the GOP and mapping out a rough political calendar, all part of a hard-charging effort that precedes the official kickoff. Newt Gingrich is the Republican taking some of the most public first steps for a presidential bid, but he's hardly the only one in motion. Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour are quietly preparing for possible candidacies. Jon Huntsman, Obama's ambassador to China, has a shadow campaign in place. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and Mike Huckabee are being conspicuously vague about their intentions. Lemme see here. Looks like a reunion tour for the 2008 GOP candidates, but it feels like I'm missing someone... Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin recently added a chief of staff to her political committee but her advisers cautioned not to take that as a sign the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee would run for the White House in 2012. There, I think that is everyone...for now. Hard to believe the presidential election isn't until November...2012. Freaking 21 months from now!!! Don't we have anything else we can spend our time on, people?

Charlie Sheen - Nope. I'm not that desperate for talking points.

What Caught My Eye Today

Middle East - Here's where things stand today. Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Syria and Yemen have gotten through the worst of their "regime re-calibrations" (I came up with that euphemism all by myself). Libya is knee deep in poo-poo (did I mention that oil prices hit a 29 month high, $104/barrel). And at last check things in Oman, Kuwait, Iran, the Palestinian Territories (I still don't get that one), and most recently, the Ivory Coast were shaky at best. Nice to see that everyone seems to be work "stuff" out.

Space Shuttle - If you didn't know, and given the amount of media coverage, there is a pretty good chance of that, Discovery is in the middle of its 39th and final voyage. Discovery astronauts are helping the International Space Station crew members get the Leonardo Permanent Multipurpose Module unpacked and set up for permanent life in orbit and working on ISS equipment repairs. The shuttle blasted off from Kennedy Space Center on February 24, on its last trip into orbit before it becomes the first of the three remaining US shuttles to become museum pieces later this year. Endeavour is to lift off on April 19 followed by Atlantis on June 28, marking the official end of the US space shuttle program after 30 years.

Supreme Court - Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas finds himself embroiled in a controversy by not disclosing his wife's $700,000 think-tank payday. Ginni Thomas was paid nearly $700,000 by the Heritage Foundation between 2003 and 2007, as well as an undisclosed amount by another lobbying group in 2009. The 1978 Ethics in Government Act requires all federal judges to fill out annual financial-disclosure forms. The relevant question on the disclosure form isn't complicated: the box marked NONE next to the phrase "Spouse's Non-Investment Income" should only be checked if his spouse had no non-investment income. I don't know. those double negative questions always confuse me. Thomas' defense is that he didn't knowingly violate the law, because he "misunderstood" the filing requirements. Let me see if I've got this straight. Thomas' main defense here is ignorance of the law? Dude, you are a Supreme Court Justice, for crying out loud! No wonder this rocket scientist doesn't speak up more often when he's on the bench--5 years without a single question. My guess is that it is far better to think that Thomas is a moron rather than him open his mouth and provide proof. A complaint has been filed with the Missouri Bar Association, of which Thomas is a member, demanding that Thomas be disbarred for lying to the federal government about his wife's financial dealings. Yeah, I'm sure that's going to happen. Interesting footnote...Bill Clinton was impeached—and subsequently disbarred—for defending his false statements about his affair with Monica Lewinsky with a similarly implausible excuse.

India - An angry mob of fired workers burned to death a senior executive of a steel factory. Is it just me or does "angry mob" seem a little redundant? think about it. Has anyone ever come across a "happy mob"? After learning they were laid off, about a dozen workers attacked a vehicle carrying the executive as he was leaving the factory, dousing the Jeep with gasoline and setting it on fire. Torching a fellow human being just sounds a bit extreme...it is just a job, after all. A trip to the liquor store would have been my first choice, but that's just me. Incidents of industrial violence are common in India, where workers often target executives in cases of wage disputes and job losses. This might be a bit of a stretch, but bear with me for a moment. In recent weeks, there have been a lot of stories in the U.S. about trying to reduce the rights of some labor unions. I'm not saying the arguments for doing so are without merit, but consider the ramifications of the elimination of labor unions. Imagine the possibilities of a work force without some mechanism for protecting the well being of the workers. Unions might not be perfect, but they sure as heck are a whole lot better than the mob mentality exhibited by these steel workers.

And now for something a bit lighter to end the week...

Mass Extinction - Mass extinctions include events in which 75% of the species on Earth disappear within a geologically short time period, usually on the order of a few hundred thousand to a couple million years. It's happened only five times before in the past 540 million years of multicellular life on Earth. The last great extinction occurred 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs were wiped out. At current rates of extinction, the a recently release University of California, Berkeley study found the Earth will enter its sixth mass extinction within the next 300 to 2,000 years. I love how scientists are so good a predicting dire calamities with such pinpoint precision. They found that the overall rate of extinction is, in fact, between three to 80 times higher than non-mass extinction rates. Most likely, species are going extinct three to 12 times faster than would be expected if there were no crisis. Hold please. So if I read this correctly, it seems that if there was no change in the rate of extinctions, species are going still going to disappear, just at a slower pace? The good news, according to researchers, is that the total loss so far is not devastating. In the last 200 years, only 1 to 2 percent of all species have gone extinct. Not devastating, huh? I'm guessing those 1 to 2 percent of extinct species would beg to differ. The culprits for the biodiversity loss include climate change, habitat loss, pollution and overfishing.

What Caught My Eye Today

Mike Huckabee - In reviewing recent postings, it occurs to me that I've been singling out Sarah Palin more than perhaps I should. After all, it's not like Palin has a monopoly on making statements that might not necessary have any basis in fact. Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee mistakenly said President Obama was raised in Kenya during a recent interview in which he argued that the president's upbringing in Africa gave him a very different outlook on the world than that held by most Americans. The president's father was Kenyan, but met Obama's mother in Hawaii where Obama was born. President Obama did spend a portion of his childhood in Indonesia before returning to Hawaii. Seems like an honest mistake. I cannot tell you how many times I've confused Kenya with Indonesia. Obama first visited Kenya as an adult. "Birthers," those who believe Obama is not a natural born citizen, continue to drive conspiracy theories about the president's nationality. Huckabee, who ran for president in 2008 and is widely expected to run in 2012, has in the past made clear he doesn't side with birthers on this issue, recently saying birthers are "wasting time and energy" on the issue and "nonsense." He says he believes if there was something amiss about Obama's past, it would have been uncovered. "The only reason I'm not as confident that there's something [invalid] about the birth certificate, is because I know the Clintons ... and believe me, they have lots of investigators out on [Obama]. And I'm convinced if there was anything that they could have found on that, they would have found it, and I promise they would have used it." Setting aside that whole birther debacle (honestly, don't we have more pressing issues to deal with?), I fascinated by Huckabee's logic on this one. It is pretty much common knowledge that the only surname that die-hard Republicans revile more than Obama, is probably Clinton. And yet, Huckabee goes on record by citing the Clinton's investigating into Obama's birth as proof that he is a legal U.S. citizen. For the record, dude is probably right, but seriously, you have to question just how well he understands his constituency. You never ever give a Clinton credit for anything that could be viewed as positive if you are after the conservative vote.

New Zealand - A week after an earthquake killed at least 160 people in New Zealand, the country is experiencing a surge of new life. The birth rate also rose immediately after a 7.0-magnitude quake shook the same New Zealand region last September. Sadly that number is likely to increase substantially given that there are more than 200 persons still unaccounted for in the effected area. And yet, despite this tragedy, there are constant reminders that life goes on. Studies have shown an uptick in stress during pregnancy can sometimes trigger a hormone surge that induces early labor. Birth rates will spike not just immediately after natural disasters. They pick up around nine months afterward, too. I always thought those movie scenes where the boy begs the girl for one last "ba donk a donk" before the end of the world were a bit cheesy. Who would have thought there was research to support this. An 8.8-magnitude earthquake that struck central Chile Feb. 27, 2010, for example, was followed nine months later by a baby boom. The same thing happened nine months after Haiti's devastating quake of Jan. 12, 2010. According to a reproductive health survey launched in October by the United Nations Population Fund, sex has been suggested a way of coping with stress. Hell, yeah! Stir-craziness may also contribute. The media has reported birth spikes all up and down the East Coast the past couple of autumns, attributed to the previous winters' “snowpocalypses.” In fairness, making "whoopee" sure sounds a lot more appealing than say, I don't know, talking.

Global Warming - NASA computer models reveal what a small, regional nuclear war in one part of the world would do to the global climate and environment. I guessing nothing good. The results are grim. If 100 Hiroshima-sized bombs (fascinating bit of trivia--100 Hiroshima-sized bombs make up a mere 0.03% of the worldwide nuclear weapons arsenal), each as powerful as 15,000 tons of TNT, were exchanged in a war between two developing-world nuclear powers such as India and Pakistan, models show the resulting fires would send five million metric tons of black carbon into the upper troposphere - the lowest-altitude layer of the atmosphere. In the shade of this carbon shield, Earth would cool. models show that for two to three years after a regional nuclear war, average global temperatures would drop by at least 2.25 degrees F (1.25 degrees C), and as much as 5.4 to 7.2 degrees F (3 to 4 degrees C) in the tropics, Europe, Asia and Alaska. Hence the term, "nuclear winter". But the reversal of the global warming trend wouldn't be a good thing. Really? I totally did not expect that. Model results suggest that agriculture could be severely impacted, especially in areas that are susceptible to late-spring and early-fall frosts. Additionally, the models showed global precipitation would reduce by 10% globally for one to four years, and the ozone layer would thin, resulting in an influx of dangerous ultraviolet radiation. And lets not forget the impact the extinction of the human race would have on farming, which I suspect would be rather significant as well.

Fred's Note: A dear friend and his lovely wife are expected their first child in a couple of weeks. These last two items are dedicated to them.

Names (Part I) - I came across this list of unique (a.k.a. crazy bizarre) names that celebrities have come up with for their offspring.

• Sparrow James Midnight Madden (Nicole Richie and Joel Madden)
  Umm, so is this a boy or a girl?
• Nakoa-Wolf Manakauapo Namakaeha Momoa (Lisa Bonet and Jason Momoa)
  Huh?
• Seraphina Rose Elizabeth (Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck)
  I've seen worse...
• Bronx Mowgli (Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Pete Wentz)
  ...Like this one.
• Zuma (Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale)
  For a second I thought they named their kid after a malt liquor, but that one has an "i" not a "u".
• Clementine Jane (Ethan Hawke and Ryan Shawhughes)
  A bit dated, but not bad.
• Knox Leon (Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt)
  Knox?
• Sunday Rose (Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban)
  Sounds like a country song title...which make sense considering who daddy is.
• Moxie CrimeFighter (Magician Penn Jillette)
  Dude, that's just mean.
• Pilot Inspektor (Jason Lee and Beth Riesgraf)
  One can only conclude that both mom and dad were under the influence of Demerol when they came up with this gem.
• Kal-El Coppola (Nicolas Cage)
  "Superman"? Really?
• Seargeoh and Sage Moonblood (Sylvester Stallone)
  Proof positive, that Sly did one too many stunts that he probably shouldn't have.
• Jermajesty (Jermaine Jackson)
  I don't know. Seems a bit understated to me.

One can only conclude one of two possibilities: (1) Fame has the unfortunate consequence of depleting any common sense that you may have had, or (2) Famous people should not be permitted to procreate. No child deserves this sort of abuse.

Names (Part II) - Here are some unsung heros whose parents clearly did not give this whole naming gig as much thought as perhaps they should have. These poor slobs were screwed before they ever got out of the hospital

• John Koffman (Murfreesboro, TN)
  How's that last name working out for you, Jack?
• Sharonda Cox (Saint Louis, MO)
  Say it out enough times and ShaRONda starts sounding a bit like "sharin' da"
• Justin Butts (Springfield, MO)
  'Nuff said.
• Harry Ball (Castle Rock, CO)
  Poor bastard.
• Amanda Buttram (Conway, MO)
  That's a shame.
• Richard Large (Eufaula, AL)
  How's it hanging, Dick?
• Ben Dover (Nineveh, IN)
  Pity.
• Gayford Buttram (Niangua, MO)
  Honestly, Mr. and Mrs. Buttram, did you even consider changing your last name? You couldn't possibly have been under the delusion that "gay" and "butt" was going to result in anything that wouldn't result in your kid getting his ass kicked on a regular basis in the school yard.
• Michael Huntsucker (Kansas City, MO)
  No commentary necessary. Dude has suffered enough, wouldn't you say?

What Caught My Eye Today

Oman - Lemme see here...Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Syria, Yeman. Do I have seven? Who wants to make it seven? Anyone? Omani troops fired into the air in Sohar, Oman's main industrial center, to clear a fourth day of protests by people demanding jobs and political reforms. The unrest was a rare outbreak of discontent in the normally tranquil Gulf state, ruled by Sultan Qaboos bin Said for four decades. I'm not sure I'd classify this unrest as a rare occurrence anymore. The fact that Arab regimes have been falling like dominoes over the past couple of weeks--that's what I would say is rare. Oman has strong military and political ties with the United States and is a non-OPEC oil exporter that pumps around 850,000 barrels per day. First Bahrain, now Oman. Dude, the U.S. just cannot cut a break. You would think that it would be enough for these people, that they are on good terms with "us", but no... these malcontents want representation in their government too. I gotta be honest here. Democracy is not all its cracked up to be. We have a bunch of whack jobs pretending to run our government. Look how well that is working out for us.

Yemen - Yemen's embattled president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, accused the U.S., his closest ally, of instigating the mounting protests against him, but the gambit failed to slow the momentum for his ouster. I wonder what boyfriend says about his worst enemies? In a speech to about 500 students and lecturers, he claimed the U.S., along with Israel, is behind the protest movement. The momentum against the president, who refuses to step down until elections in 2013, has kept growing since protests erupted a month ago. Saleh's government is widely seen as corrupt, with relatives of the president holding key positions in government and business. Grievances about the growing disparity between Yemen's poor — nearly half the population of some 23 million — and a small ruling clique have helped drive the protests. Yemen is the Arab world's poorest country. Damn, we're good. Who would have thought that the Americans and Israelis would be clever enough to orchestrate enough government corruption to drive have the nation's population into poverty. Oh sure, we're pretty good at screwing ourselves on our home turf, but pulling something of this scale off half way around the world...that takes skill, my friend.

Libya - The UN General Assembly suspended Libya from the U.N. Human Rights Council. Say it ain't so! The Human Rights Council in Geneva had called for the suspension over leader Moamer Kadhafi's brutal crackdown on opposition protests. Nobody spoke up for the Libyan regime at the brief debate. I wouldn't say nobody... Venezuela called upon all countries to "put a stop to the invasion plans against Libya" which ambassador Jorge Valero said the United States was leading. Is it just me or are there a whole bunch of countries out there that hold the U.S. in much higher regard than perhaps they should. Seriously, guys, you all need to pick up a newspaper and see just how brilliant the brain trust in Washington D.C. really is. And lets not forget that it isn't as if the U.S. hasn't tried this sort of thing in the past. Anyone remember that Bay of Pigs debacle? Libya, and Yemen for that matter, is a lot bigger and much further away than Cuba.

At last check, it appears that Kuwait, Iran and the Palestinian territories are getting geared up to jump into the fray. The Palestinian territories? Shouldn't you all be focused on first becoming a sovereign state before you try to overthrow yourselves?

Amazingly, there is news beyond the Middle East.

Kyrgyzstan - I know it is early in the year, but I'm thinking this item has to be a contender for biggest 'ass kisser' of the year. In a bid to curry favor with its main trading partner, Kyrgyszstan has named a mountain after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. Parliament voted nearly unanimously to bestow his name upon a 14,000-foot peak in the Tian Shan mountains. Did you notice that the vote was nearly unanimous? Apparently, there was some controversy associated with the vote. One lawmaker was concerned that the Russian leader might be offended by the relatively small size of the peak. So many phallic symbol jokes...so little time. Mount Vladimir Putin is higher than Mount Boris Yeltsin, but lower than Lenin Peak. Good grief...there's more than one?

Sarah Palin - Sarah Palin recently spoke at the Long Island Association, a business group in New York. The event was notable for the fact that Palin invited the press--something she does rarely. And it was newsworthy in that she gave another sign she might actually run for president: News reports say she hinted with a smile that someone who is good at multitasking ("a woman, a mom"), as well as someone who's already run for something ("a vice-presidential candidate?") would be most qualified for the job. Shockingly, neither of these are the top headline. When the conversation turned to the escalating price of gas and groceries, Palin reportedly said, "It's no wonder Michelle Obama is telling everybody you better breastfeed your baby--yeah, you better--because the price of milk is so high right now!" I love public figures for whom the concept of filtering mean nothing.