Feb
07

The plan is to kick the Taliban’s child-killing butts.  It’s no secret.  In the Daily Mail it’s said the joint operation involving 15,000 troops from the United States, the U.K. and Afghanistan has been called “the biggest assault of it’s kind since Vietnam.”  The mission is called Operation Moshtarak in Dari, meaning, “together.”

from the Daily Mail -

Colonel Richard Kemp, who commanded forced in Afghanistan in 2006, said the Taliban were already using children to lay IEDs (improvised explosive devices) and to throw grenades.

‘There will be some heavy fighting,’ he said. ‘The Taliban will have carefully placed their positions among the population centres.

‘They will know the area very well and will have prepared escape routes through tunnels, alleyways or buildings. They will fire on our troops and then run.

‘There will be a lot of IEDs, a lot of snipers and a lot of hit and run. We will probably have to brace ourselves for a large number of casualties.

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“Biggest assault of it’s kind since Vietnam?”  We’ll have to see about that.

Meanwhile, it’s been splashed all over the British news and on the British Ministry of Defence site…but I find nothing on the U.S. Department of Defense site (although there is a reference to the fact that our troops will have a link to a live Super Bowl feed).  Well, I did find this…if you want to call that something.  

It’ s not a secret mission.  There’s a method to the madness of leaking the attack ahead of time.  I just question why, when there are expected to be high casualties, there isn’t more about this strike in the U.S. news.

from McClatchy -

KABUL, Afghanistan — Thousands of U.S., British and Afghan troops are poised to launch the biggest offensive of the war in Afghanistan in a test of the Obama administration’s new counterinsurgency strategy.

Military operations usually are intended to catch the enemy off guard, but for weeks U.S. and allied officials have been telling reporters about their forthcoming assault on Marjah, a Taliban -held town of 80,000 and drug-trafficking hub in southern poppy-growing Helmand province.

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God bless our troops.

Feb
06

You may think Janis Joplin spent most of her time on the road or in concerts. When I wasn’t listening to her records, I was “watching” her on television during talk shows or on prime time variety shows (with my dad, I might add – after all, she was unusual).

Janis Joplin

“Little Girl Blue” 1969 – This Is Tom Jones

“Try (Just A Little Bit Harder)” 1969 – The Dick Cavett Show

“Maybe” 1969 – The Music Scene

“Get It While You Can” – 1970 The Dick Cavett Show

“Half Moon”  1970 – The Dick Cavett Show

Feb
06

kcouric
Katie Couric in Harpers Bazaar. Credit :Francois Dischinger.

 

People all over this country have lost their jobs, taken pay cuts, are doing the work of two people rather than one, are putting in more hours, and are making sacrifices to make ends meet.  Katie Couric makes $15 million a year.  She is boring.  She is pouty.  She is as interesting as a rock.     When I think of Katie Couric, I picture her covering the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with her monotone voice.  You can change the wrapping, but it’s still Katie Couric…

from the New York Post -

No matter, the idea of paying Couric eight figures to anchor a news show that is in last place does not sit well in the upper echelons of CBS News, where her hiring as TV’s first female anchor is seen as a noble but failed experiment.

Couric herself tells Harper’s Bazaar in an upcoming issue that she sometimes dreams that she’s still in school and “I’m forced to take an exam about things I know nothing about.” 

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Category: BUSINESS  2 Comments
Feb
05

I’m not just talking about outsourcing IT – I’m talking about manufacturing.  The Chinese have continually displayed a lack of respect for regulations and the health and welfare of people.  It’s all about making a buck.

from China Daily -

Tainted melamine tableware has been found in supermarkets in Beijing, an authority from the International Food Packaging Association (IFPA) said yesterday.

The tableware was discovered in Carrefour and Auchan supermarkets as well as several wholesale markets, the association said.

The bowls and plates are contaminated with urea-formaldehyde resin, a substance that could produce carcinogenic chemicals when heated, said Dong Jinshi, IFPA secretary general.

Dong said the tainted tableware, which is not suitable for food, is sold together with dishes that are suitable for food consumption. He said the similar appearances would likely confuse customers, leading them to purchase unsafe tableware.

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Feb
04

That’s what these 25 cities from around the world are…dirty beyond belief.  Imagine having to live in one of these cities, and then count your blessings.


© AP Photo/Marcelo Hernandez   -         No. 22: Luanda, Angola

from Forbes – in pictures …

The Top 25 Dirtiest Cities Around The World

Feb
03

That is, unless you do everything their way.

So it looks like the Chinese will be unhappy over more than our arms sales to Taiwan.  Now they aren’t pleased because President Obama is going to finally meet with the Dalai Lama.  

from BBC News -

If the US leader chooses to meet with the Dalai Lama at this time, it will certainly threaten trust and co-operation between China and the United States,” said Mr Zhu, executive deputy minister of the Chinese Communist Party’s United Front Work Department.

“We oppose any attempt by foreign forces to interfere in China’s internal affairs using the Dalai Lama as an excuse,” he said.

Mr Zhu was speaking at a press conference to discuss the recent five-day visit to China by the Dalai Lama’s representatives.

The Tibetans repeated their hopes for greater autonomy for the Himalayan region, but Mr Zhu said there was no possibility of the “slightest compromise” on the issue of sovereignty in Tibet.

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Feb
02

If you are associated with a business involved in an illegal activity, an apology (sincere or not) may hurt more in the long run.

from the Boston Globe -

The Rockmore Co. has a confession: “Our company has discharged human waste directly into Massachusetts coastal waters.’’

That statement is part of an abject apology that will soon appear in newspaper ads if a federal judge approves a plea deal between the US government and Rockmore, which is accused of illegally dumping waste for years in Salem Harbor and in the Charles River off the Esplanade from its sightseeing cruise ship and its floating restaurant.

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Feb
01

Al…Minnesota needs

an explanation!   Something’s just not right about this…
 
 
 

 

Wind turbines that cost Minnesota $3.3 million can’t work in cold weather. KSTP has more on the news that wind turbines will need heaters — which will negate the entire reason for the turbines.
 
 
 

 

 
 
The Goracle has spoken…  What else is new?

 

Jan
31

With slapstick comedy it’s practically a given someone is going to get their head hit, an eye poked, a kick in the pants, or slip and fall down. And why is slapstick in so many cartoons and children’s shows? Why do people find humor in other’s noncommonsensical pain?

Ever since the movie Poltergeist I’ve understood why some children (and adults) are afraid of clowns. So what happens when you combine a clown and slapstick in a television commercial? If you are a fan of slapstick, you can’t help but laugh out loud.

Jan
31

It looks like President Obama can be blamed for a few things too.  Say, for instance, setting Gordon Brown off into a frenzy because he supposedly snubbed him.  Blimey!

from the Daily Mail -

Sensational claims that Gordon Brown has physically attacked his staff in a series of outbursts in Downing Street – and once in America – have rocked the Government.

Well-placed sources say the Prime Minister has been accused of hitting a senior adviser, pulling a secretary out of her chair and hurling foul-mouthed abuse at aides while distraught over an alleged snub by President Barack Obama.

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