Anletter to the New York Times from a Army Lieutenant currently serving Over There hits the nail right on the head regarding the NYT publication of the story about the efforts to track terrorist funding:

As your story states, the program was legal, briefed to Congress, supported in the government and financial industry, and very successful. Not anymore. You may think you have done a public service, but you have gravely endangered the lives of my soldiers and all other soldiers and innocent Iraqis here. Next time I hear that familiar explosion — or next time I feel it — I will wonder whether we could have stopped that bomb had you not instructed terrorists how to evade our financial surveillance.

Heard this letter read on Laura Ingraham’s show yesterday. Read the whole thing. And for a visual perspective, check out Michelle’s place.

Flag-burning amendment fails by a vote: Good. Flag-burning is idiotic, moronic, stupid, etc, but it shouldn’t necessarily be illegal in & of itself. If someone burns an American flag and it causes a disturbance, the perpetrator can be charged with some sort of crime, I’d wager, or perhaps violating some municipal fire code. But tinkering with the Constitution for something like this is just a waste of time.

Texas Woman Receives Finger in Letter From Ex-Boyfriend: I had to check to see if the ex-boyfriend’s name was John Wayne Bobbitt. Nope. Well, a finger is not the MOST offensive body part that he could have sent.

Nine rescued, 1 killed in building collapse: A truly terrible thing, and thankfully all but one person survived; it could have been so much more horrific. But let’s see a show of hands: how many of you thought of this when you heard the news? Specifically, the scene where Homer falls through the roof of the Stonecutter’s temple?

If I believed in a god, I would appeal thusly: “Please, please, PLEASE, God, don’t take Jerry Lewis yet! He’s one of the only remaining living legends of entertainment - don’t take him - not yet!” We’ve lost almost every link to the “Golden Age” of Hollywood, and Lewis dates back to the 1940s, when his amazing partnership with Dean Martin turned the team into H-wood royalty. Best wishes to Jerry for a quick & full recovery!

TO: The Big Shots at Fox News Channel, MSNBC, and CNN
FROM: David
SUBJ: Programming

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1. I am a news junkie. I love watching news. I always have, going back to the mid-80s when CNN was the only option, and then growing to love CNN Headline News (which sucks now, but that’s another story). I enjoy knowing what’s going on in the world.
2. Devoting whole hours and programs to Natalie Holloway, the Duke Rape case, the teacher of the week who had sex with her student, and other such topics…frankly, it makes me sick.
3. When those “news” stories are on your stations, I turn the channel. Quickly.
4. I never watch the Dan Abrams show, the Greta Van Susteren show, or Larry King. I never will. What a complete waste of airtime and what could have been interesting news hosts. In fact, I initially had high hopes for Greta’s “On The Record” program, but it quickly sunk into lurid crime depravity. Cripes, coverage of this garbage even seeps into “Hannity & Colmes” and “Scarborough Country.” MSNBC has completely thrown in the towell on Friday nights, airing nothing but “true crime” crap.
5. I suspect that I’m not the only news junkie that feels this way.

Sincerely,
David

A clever young teen here in Great Falls managed to turn the tables on a purse-snatcher using her wits and technology. Good job!

In the Air Force, we have a formal safety program that is called “Operational Risk Management,” or simply ORM (we love acronyms). One of the principles of ORM is to balance the risks of any given event with the potential rewards; if the likely rewards outweigh the potential risks, then the project is a go. A basic tenet of ORM is to accept no unnecessary risk. In the case of sky-diving, the risk of death - though very small - is very real. It’s the worst-case scenario, and to my mind jumping out of an airplane is one of the most basic examples of an unnecessary risk. True, there are people who take great joy in sky-diving, and true, the odds of dying are slim — but they are surely greater than if you DON’T jump out of planes. So the probability of breaking free of the harness that holds you to the expert tandem jumper on your very first jump is extremely low, but if it were to happen…well, the risk just tragically outweighed the rewards. Very sad.

This is absolutely horrible.

The reigning Miss Deaf Texas died after being struck by a train, officials said. Tara Rose McAvoy, 18, was walking Monday near railroad tracks when she was struck by a Union Pacific train, authorities said. A witness told Austin television station KTBC the train sounded its horn right up until the accident occurred.

How on earth could this have happened? Damn.

Well, damn. Don Knotts has passed away. Yes, he was great as Barney Fife, and his lovable roles in movies, but for me Don Knotts will always be Ralph “R.F.” Furley. His wardrobe, his bluster, his way with the ladies…what a great character. And seeing him as the TV “repairman” in “Pleasantville” was a small joy. And in other sad Hollywood news, Darren McGavin (Carl Kolchak, the Night Stalker) has also passed away.

Governor Kaine’s response to the President’s State of The Union address included the following:

Last summer, I joined Democrats in Washington and in other states in calling on oil companies to share in our sacrifice and return some of their record-breaking excess profits.

EXCESS? WTF? Record-breaking, sure. It’s been tossed about all over the media that oil companies have enjoyed record-breaking profits. And many people automatically assume that the oil companies are somehow evil or wrong. After all, it sounds like so much money! But wait: “excess?” Why does he decry them as “excess?” Hell, profits are, by definition, “excess” — excess to expenses. What amount does Governor Kaine consider acceptable? How much profit does he think is acceptable? Should all companies “return” some of their “excess profits?” How much? How much is “too much,” Governor? Damn. This kind of talk is rightly labeled socialism, communism, and a few other “-isms,” but it sure isn’t capitalism.

You remember the story about Farris Hassan, the American teenager who traveled to Iraq during the Christmas break as part of his “immersion journalism” class? The story was covered extensively, although perhaps superficially. There is some speculation that there may be more to the story. Not sure what to make of it.

Just saw the news that the new Miss America is none other than Miss Oklahoma, Jennifer Berry. Oklahoma is very near-and-dear to my heart, so the only thing better than seeing Oklahoma getting good press for this would be if Miss Montana had won. Congrats to Miss Berry and her wonderful state!

Damn damn damn. Wilson Pickett has died. Damn damn damn. UPDATE: Charles is able to put words to my thoughts, and agrees that “Funky Broadway” was Wilson Pickett at his best.