Whenever I think of the Oval Office carpet, my thoughts are tarnished by President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky and the antics that went on in that office. I just think President Bush must have had President Clinton’s carpetrolled up and pushed out the door the minute the final salute was given and Bill flew off into the wild blue yonder.
Why bring it up? Only because Maureen Dowd’s article in the New York Times is one of the most popular for being linked to by bloggers and for being emailed since it came out on August 31st. And becuse it’s timely.
Child soldiers tend to be physical small, agile and fast, and therefore can move less visible than adult soldiers.
Due to a poor understanding of the effects of death child soldiers tend to stay courageous at all times, even in situations which adult soldiers would consider hopeless.
Child soldiers are easily influenced by propaganda and adult coercion, making them less likely to challenge the ideals and goals of their superiors.
Child soldiers rarely demand a soldier’s wage, and have also significantly less need for food.
When deployed against a civilized army that follows the international treaties against child soldiers they might cause a emotional and ethical barrier in which these armies fail to act professionally against child combatants. This makes child soldiers very suitable for deployment as human shield.
On top of all these advantages comes the notion that child soldiers are often considered to be expendable, and are therefore better suited for suicide missions or dangerous tasks like mine clearing or spying.
These “rebels,” in essence, are just cowards.
from the Christian Science Monitor -
Human Rights Watch and Enough have both released recent reports on the activity of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The Ugandan rebel group has abducted more than 697 children in northeastern Congo and southeastern Central African Republic over the past 18 months and killed an estimated 2,500 people. The violence has been underreported because the areas they operate in are very remote and the LRA doesn’t play much of a political role in the region.
“The LRA continues its horrific campaign to replenish its ranks by brutally tearing children from their villages and forcing them to fight,” Anneke Van Woudenberg, senior Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch, is quoted saying in the report.
Chelsea Clinton! Oh no, you didn’t? You didn’t try to go under cover wearing THAT hat, a ruffled blouse and shorts, did you?
Chelsea Clinton on July 27th, entering Vera Wang a few days before her wedding. Photo By Robert Mitra
Well that’s okay. A girl’s got to do what a a girl’s got to do when she’s lived in the shadows of what her parents have dealt her. You’ve done pretty well for yourself considering…So I wish you well and hope you have a wonderful wedding day. I hope your dad stays in the shadows on Saturday…just for once. And I know your mom usually wears the pantsuits in the family, but I hope she has a relaxing day of no worries for once so she can just celebrate and be proud of her daughter.
from Eye Scoop -
NEW YORK — With her major-league wedding just days away, Chelsea Clinton was spotted paying a visit to Vera Wang Tuesday afternoon — despite a blatant attempt to go incognito.
Wearing a gigantic, floppy straw hat, a ruffled blouse, slate blue linen shorts and a coordinating jacket, the former first daughter and an unidentified friend were whisked upstairs to the designer’s showroom by an awaiting staffer. Still recovering from a broken heel, the bride-to-be stepped cautiously — sans crutches — though the area was crawling with Secret Service agents should she need assistance of any kind.
Update: Wow…Looks like nothing is being overlooked for this wedding – that’s a lot of money being flushed down fancy toilets. Sure hope they put decals on the tent “walls” (some people (like me) tend to think clean glass is open air…boing!).
from MSNBC -
According to estimates and reports, the $3 to $5 million event on Saturday includes:
$600,000 in air-conditioned tents, complete with glass walls
$200,000 in extra security, paid for by the Clintons
$15,000 in high-class toilets, according to online gossip site TMZ
So many see it and believe it…sunshine, lollipops and rainbows…all of the time…following them around. Unless they are speaking of conservatives, of course.
I know, those are fight’n words. But I’ve just read one too many liberal blog posts for one day.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney is recovering at George Washington University Hospital after suffering from “progressive retention of fluid related to his coronary artery disease.”
The man has suffered and recovered from five heart attacks. I wish him a speedy recovery.
You know, there are those who call him “evil” (aren’t you confused?) and do not wish him well and much worse. So what would you call those people? I’m just asking. ..
from the NY Daily News -
The former vice president was hospitalized on Friday after experiencing discomfort in his chest, but his daughter, Liz Cheney, says he should be heading home on Monday.
In just about two weeks (and just over 1000 posts) I will have had this blog up for only two years. I’m now on my 7th blog template. I’ve really liked some of the ones I’ve used in the past – but even so, I get so bored. If I didn’t have to tweak them so much, or if I had time to be creative on my own I would seriously change them weekly.
Like a desk – I like to keep things uncluttered. We’ll see how long I can keep this one going. How can you go wrong with…brown?
I’m sure part of a census worker’s training is to beware of dogs. As a former electric meter reader I was constantly aware of them and my surroundings at all times. If these workers are entering yards haphazardly, without expecting the possibility of a dog at each home, then they are not prepared.
That said, these dangerous pit bulls left their yard and charged into a neighbor’s yard before attacking a census worker in her car. Pit bulls need to be secured.
From the Morning Call -
Single family home. Check. Two snarling pit bulls. Yikes!
An Upper Saucon Township woman faces rare third-degree misdemeanor charges for violating state dog laws after her pit bulls allegedly charged at two neighbors and a census enumerator last month.
That wayIron Chef Mario Bataliwill still be able to cook meat if the Chairman decides to serve it up as the secret ingredient. Batali, a meat lover, has joined the ranks of those who support and promote Meatless Mondays. Do we really need to force issues such as this down people’s throats? It’s fine if you want this to be your personal choice. But should hospitals, schools, restaurants, etc., make the choice for you? Who knows, next there may be permanent fasting Fridays.
from the Washington Post -
[Batali] announced that he would join the Meatless Monday campaign, a movement backed by a broad array of public-health advocates, animal welfare activists and environmentalists that asks carnivores to give up meat one day a week. Each of Batali’s 14 restaurants, which include the meatily named Bar Jamon in New York and Carnevino in Las Vegas, offers two vegetarian entrees on Mondays, highlighted with an “MM” logo.
Batali is one of the movement’s latest and most high-profile supporters. But on the vegetable front, he is hardly a pioneer. Baltimore City Public Schools launched meatless Mondays for its 82,000 students in October. Thirty-two U.S. hospitals have signed on to the Balanced Menu Challenge, a commitment to reduce meat purchases by 20 percent. This spring, San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors approved a resolution calling on schools, restaurants and stores to offer meatless options, and the state of Michigan held a one-day “Meatout” during which residents were encouraged not to eat meat.
I did not give my children junk food, including soda or candy, until it was as late as possible in their young lives. The first candy my daughter received was when a family friend was eating a candy that “melts in your mouth but not in your hand,” and he decided to share some with her. I was not consulted.
I cannot imagine offering a toddler anything but milk, along with some juice and water. That’s why when Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. decided to market chocolate and vanilla flavored formulas and spokesman Chris Perille makes a statement like, “the idea is to get a toddler to consume milk, even flavored milk, because it will lead to a healthier lifestyle” you have to stop and say a big “WHAT?!” If your toddler isn’t drinking milk then it is the parent’s fault for not making milk the priority beverage.
from the Lost Angeles Times -
Introduced by Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. in February as a beverage for toddlers who are transitioning from infant formula or breast milk, Enfagrow Premium’s toddler chocolate and vanilla formulas are milk-based but contain 19 grams of sugar per 7-ounce serving. The Glenview, Ill., company said the product is no sweeter than chocolate milk or orange juice that toddlers drink and contains added nutrients that milk lacks, such as Omega-3 DHA and prebiotics.
