What Caught My Eye Today - Olympics, Air Travel, Congress, Town Names

Olympics - Some unfinished business from the recently completed Summer Games in London. Who got the most booty? Approximately 10,500 athletes participated in 302 events in 26 sports. Of the 204 nations (or to be precise, National Olympic Committees) participating, 85 received at least one medal; 54 won at least one gold medal. Bahrain, Botswana, Cyprus, Gabon, Grenada (a gold medal), Guatemala, and Montenegro won their first Olympic medals. Yup, goose eggs again for Bangladesh. The top five nations in medal count were:

1. United States - 104 (G: 46; S: 29; B: 29)
2. China - 88 (G: 38; S: 27; B: 23
3. Russia - 82 (G: 24; S: 26; B: 32)
4. Great Britain - 65 (G: 29; S: 17; B: 19)
   That be what you call home field advantage. This is Great Britain's second highest medal tally ever, trailing only the 146 medals it won at the 1908 Games, which coincidentally was the first time London hosted the games.
5. Germany - 44 (G: 11; S: 19; B: 14)

See you all in Sochi, Russia in February 2014.

Air Travel - Another slightly dated story, but way too amusing to pass up. An emergency layover in Syria's capital was bad enough. Then passengers on the Air France flight were asked to open their wallets to check if they had enough cash to pay for more fuel. Seriously, who could make this up? The plane, heading from Paris to Lebanon's capital, diverted amid tensions near the Beirut airport . Low on fuel, it instead landed in Damascus, the capital of neighboring Syria, where a civil war is raging. Last time I checked, Israel was in the same neighborhood, but maybe the French pissed those guys off too. An Air France spokesperson explained that the crew inquired about passenger cash only as a "precautionary measure" because of the "very unusual circumstances." I read in a separate story, that the flight attendants got enough donations from the fine folks in first class. Good thing too. I'm not sure the poor bastards in steerage would have reacted very well to yet another hidden fee. Sanctions against Syria complicated payment for extra fuel. The spokesperson went on to say Air France found a way to pay for the fill-up without tapping customer pockets — and apologized for the inconvenience. Let me guess, free upgrade coupons for Syrian President Bashar Assad and his family next time he goes on vacation (subject to blackout dates and UN travel sanctions).

Congress - As much as it pains me to say this, it appears the dumb ass comment of the year will not be awarded to Sarah Palin or Michelle Bachman thanks to the distinguished gentleman from the great state of Missouri, Republican Representative Todd Akin. It seems the Congressman knows more about the female anatomy than the rest of us. In an effort to explain his stance on abortion, Representative Todd Akin, the Republican Senate nominee from Missouri, provoked ire across the political spectrum on Sunday by saying that in instances of what he called "legitimate rape," women’s bodies somehow blocked an unwanted pregnancy. "It seems to me, from what I understand from doctors, that’s really rare," Mr. Akin said of pregnancies from rape. "If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down. But let’s assume that maybe that didn’t work or something: I think there should be some punishment, but the punishment ought to be of the rapist, and not attacking the child." Let's take this from the beginning shall we? First, can we get a clarification on the difference between "legitimate rape" and the illegitimate kind. Sorry, but I'm unfamiliar with the distinction between the two. Second, dude what doctors have you been talking to? You should really, really look into getting yourself a new physician. Third, and I mean this sincerely, you know that when you say stuff like this out loud there is the possibility that someone will hear you, right? In related news, there were reports out of Washington that the entire Democratic leadership was heard breathing a huge sign of relief that incumbent Democrat, Claire McCaskill might actually be able to hold onto her Senate seat, especially if Akin does not bow out of the Senate race.

Town Names - No redeeming quality whatsoever in this last item except perhaps that most of you can thank your lucky stars that you don't reside in one of these places. A recent poll of respondents in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa has crowned Toad Suck, Arkansas, as having the "most unfortunate" town name in the United States. Toad Suck reportedly takes its name from a once popular drinking location for boaters on the Arkansas River. The town's website explains, "While they waited, they refreshed themselves at the local tavern there, to the dismay of the folks living nearby, who said: 'They suck on the bottle 'til they swell up like toads.' Hence, the name Toad Suck." I don't want to get off on a tangent here, but maybe the townsfolk of Toad Suck might want to consider getting their drinking water tested. The top 10 "unfortunate" town names are: 1. Toad Suck, AR; 2. Climax, GA, 3. Boring, OR, 4. Hooker, OK, 5. Assawoman, MD, 6. Belchertown, MA, 7. Roachtown, IL, 8. Loveladies, NJ, 9. Squabbletown, CA, 10. Monkey's Eyebrow, KY. For my money, Assawoman is #1.