The US Senate race between incumbent Conrad Burns and challenger Jon Tester here in Montana is one of the hot topics wherever you go. Me, I don’t have a dog in the hunt, so to speak, as I won’t be a registered Montana voter until 2007. But watching and listening to the campaign commercials is quite interesting. A recent Tester radio ad has me steamed, though: in it, Jon Tester says:

My brother spent 34 years protecting America in the Montana Air National Guard, so when Senator Burns questions my commitment to America’s security, you can bet I’ll set the record straight.

(emphasis mine) Well, that’s great that his brother served, and I salute his brother’s service and appreciate it. But HIS service says absolutely nothing about Jon Tester himself; unless Jon explains in more detail how his brother’s service reflects on Jon, the words above mean absolutely nothing. Sorry, Jon, but your brother’s patriotism and service isn’t transferable to you. If you’re patriotic and committed to national security, that’s great - but don’t use your brother’s service in the military as some sort of a protective shield around yourself.

Breaking news out of Florida this morning:

In a move to foster improved relations between the meteorological community and the news industry, the National Hurricane Center announced today that it is lowering the requirements for a storm to be officially named as a hurricane. The previous standard was sustained winds of 74 miles-per-hour, but the recent brush with Ernesto, and subsequent inability of reporters to say the word “hurricane” in conjunction with every reference to Ernesto, began to cause some friction between the two groups. “It was very frustrating, having to watch my colleagues in the field use the term ‘tropical storm’ when referring to Ernesto, when it had once carried the formal title of ‘hurricane,’” said news anchor Troy McDonald of station WECT in Wilmington, NC. Other news industry leaders echoed his concern, with John Zarella of CNN pleading with Max Mayfield, director of the National Hurricane Center, to do something that would enable reporters to use the word “hurricane” in as many situations as possible.
After a two-day summit between the two communities at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Jacksonville, Florida, Mayfield announced that the new criteria for a Category One hurricane would include sustained winds of only 25 miles-per-hour, and storm-surge levels of only six inches. In a prepared statement, Mayfield expressed confidence that the revised standards would not only enable the news industry to use flashier graphics more often and increase Nielsen ratings, but would also allow the National Hurricane Center to take a more active role in educating the public about the dangers of powerful storms.
In addition to the new standards, NHC officials stated that they would immediately begin revising historical records in order to retroactively upgrade older storms. According to the updated Saffir-Simpson scale, Hurricanes Camille and Andrew, which once ranked as Category 5, will now be classified as Category 17, the highest designation on the new scale.

…did you hear that noise a few hours ago? That sudden moaning and groaning? Yep - it was Greta Van Susteren, Dan Abrams, Larry King, and the entire “Dateline NBC” crew simultaneously reaching orgasm. Damned crime whores. Watch where you step over the next several weeks and months — the drool from these idiots is probably going to get real deep.

The most unusual headline in Montana lately was the news about an alligator in one of our lakes. I know the stereotypical “invader” of Montana is a yuppified Californian, but getting a Florida native…weird.
(via) The FBI and DHS are looking for 11 exchange students from Egypt who haven’t shown up for class at Montana State University. Hmmmm…
The nephew of Montana Senator Max Baucus was laid to rest on Sunday. Thankfully, the few jackass protesters barely registered, and the family was able to conduct the ceremony in peace.

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

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.