Hand Picked Headline News
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Hurricane ::
New Orleans Flooding as Rita Rains Breach Levee

Nature reclaims it's stake on the Gulf coast.

Sad ::
Evacuees Die in Horrific Bus Fire

Disaster further complicates evacuation efforts.

Technology ::
Computer Terms and Acronyms Confuse Office Workers

I believe they also confuse Information Technology - IT - professionals.

Internet ::
"Reporters Without Borders" Offers Handbook to Help Bloggers Dodge Tyranny

The download - when you eventually find it - is a pdf.

Military ::
Canadian Army to Acquire New Vehicle With Which to Wage War

I can never help thinking that money spent making war should somehow be directed to more pressing needs and that wouldn't be the lining of the pockets of Quebecois advertising agency executives.

Open Standards ::
Microsoft Loses Office War in Massachusetts

Chalk one up for "Open Standards"!

Seasons ::
Leaf Blower Manufacturers Developing Quieter Machines

Why bother - rakes have been relatively quiet since their inception.

Internet ::
Microsoft Reorganizes To Do Battle With Google

Could Microsoft be in a tailspin?

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter

This is a letter that appeared in the Red Deer Advocate a week ago Friday. It was passed on to me by a good friend who doesn't have a computer and reads two or three newspapers a day. I thought the letter was well written and provoked some serious thought. Let me know what you think of it by supplying a comment at the end of this posting.

Because I couldn't figure out how to link to the letter at the Red Deer Advocate I've reproduced it here:

Letters - Red Deer Advocate - September 9, 2005

• "Recent news stories printed in the Advocate covered a variety of topics related to hurricane Katrina: the environmental devastation, the human suffering and the economic losses.
  
  However, I was still left with a lot of unanswered questions such as, why did President Bush take five days to decide "the results (of the emergency efforts) are not acceptable?"
  
  Thoughts of the days following the 9-11 disaster rang in my head.
  
  Within 24 hours other countries, including Canada, were calling to offer help, but the U.S. government held them at bay.
  
  The same unexplained attitude followed in the wake of Katrina.
  
  While people were dying horrible deaths and there was anarchy on the streets, the Bush administration's Condoleezza Rice told Pierre Pettigrew the U.S. would accept Canada's offer to help "as soon as needs were assessed."
  
  The second question that popped into my head involved a plea from the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), which called upon its 26 member countries to release reserves for shipment as aide to the U.S.
  
  Why is sending oil more important than helping humans in distress?
  
  Canada's prime minister was forced to admit that Canada did not have a lot of reserve supply. However, Premier Ralph Klein, when asked, agreed to pull out the regulatory stops - possibly putting the lives of Albertans at risk - and send whatever could be squeezed into already "at capacity" pipelines.
  
  The IEA said 91,000 barrels per day (b/d) should be Canada's share but even by suspending limits put on individual shippers Neil McCrank, Alberta EUB chair, could only offer 18,000 to 30,000 extra barrels/day for direct shipment to the Gulf Coast.
  
  Canadians, always the great humanitarians, did not give our NAFTA agreement a second thought apparently, nor did anyone stop to ask why, when people were dying of thirst and rioting and lawlessness were still going on in the streets, was there was such an urgent need for oil supplies so quickly.
  
  Well, according to my research of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and other websites, the U.S. (unlike Canada) has a huge Strategic Petroleum Reserve which in August of 2005 amounted to 727 million barrels. This is stored in various locations across the country.
  
  Following hurricane Ivan in 2002, which damaged off-shore rigs and pipelines, the DOE released oil from this reserve to assist in reconstruction and transportation.
  
  A news release on the DOE website dated Sept. 3 said that the president had authorized the release for sale to refineries an initial 30 million barrels.
  
  Also, suppliers were told that "winter" gasoline supplies could be released immediately as could diesel fuel containing more than 500 ppm of sulfur and dyed (farm) diesel to ease the shortage of refined fuels in the area.
  
  Homeland Security waved the Jones Act restrictions on the transportation by ship of petroleum, gasoline and other refined petroleum products so ships could replace supplies normally carried by the now damaged pipelines.
  
  The really interesting revelation on the DOE website was from Sept. 1 - just a few days after Katrina hit land. The department is soliciting public comment on a proposal to expand the existing Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) from 700 million to one billion barrels. The public has until Oct. 21 to respond.
  
  So the president will release 30 million barrels from the SPR and the IEA will release an additional 60 million barrels into the US market and the proposed increased storage capacity for the SPR just happens to be an extra 30 million more than the capacity in August of 2005. Is that a coincidence, or what?
  
  At least some of these IEA-released products will be refined products. There really is no immediate crude oil shortage. The problem, as in Canada, is that the US has not built a new refinery in the past 25 years. So what will Bush do with the extra 30,000 b/d of crude from Alberta?
  
  That brings me to my next question which is: are Prime Minister Paul Martin and Klein really that ignorant of the implications, under our NAFTA agreement, of increasing the flow of oil to the U.S.?
  
  NAFTA rules say that whenever we increase our oil shipments to the U.S., that new volume then becomes the baseline volume which we must maintain - possibly even while we freeze to death in the dark in Alberta.
  
  Or, have both our provincial and federal governments already signed some secret deal with the U.S. and Big Oil and this natural disaster was just a wonderful excuse to hoodwink or Bush-whack the generous-to-a-fault Canadian public? One final burning question keeps rattling about in my brain.
  
  Why did it take so long to organize humanitarian aide to the poor, the elderly and the handicapped and such a short time to figure out how to make up the oil flow that was cut off when oil platforms and pipelines were damaged?
  
  That this president would Bush-whack Canadians out of our oil is one thing. That he would allow his own people to suffer needlessly: well, I don't want to think about that.
  
  Dorene Rew
  Red Deer

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'oil stained nugget' - careful with those ones.

Hasta La L8r Señor Oil dOOd Types!

Anyhow..., a friend of mine gave me a newspaper clipping today and going by the degree of fading I would say it would have to be about three weeks or a month ago when it was published. OK..., so here's the deal:  This is right off the printed page or what I have of it tagged:

Journal Staff, Edmonton

• "Two males face multiple charges after they were caught doing doughnuts in the downtown police headquarters parking lot on Saturday.?
  Police spokeswoman Karen Carlson said police spotted two males in an Eagle Talon doing doughnuts in the parking lot just after 9 p.m.
  
  Doughnuts are created by rotating the rear of the car around the front wheels continuously, creating circular skid marks and causing tire smoke.
  
  When police stopped the vehicle, they noticed a weapon in the car and searched it. They say they seized $6,000 worth of methamphetamine, $500 worth of cocaine, cash, various drug paraphernalia and an imitation Uzi machine gun loaded with BBs.
  
  Charged with drug and weapons offences are Andrew Cory Reid, 43, and a 17-year-old male, both of St. Albert.
  
  The youth was also wanted on four outstanding warrants."

I guess my question would be, "How the hell did that 43-year-old stay alive that long?" Natural selection should have de-circulated him a lot sooner than that.

So..., that's it for tonight. Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'brilliant criminal nugget' - definitely not the brightest of the bunch.

Hasta La L8r Señor Mafioso Gangsta Mara Salvatrucha d00dster - Watcha-u-ass or ah gonna pop a BB een eet!

Hand Picked Headline News
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Energy ::
Cheap Hydrogen from Zinc Powder and Solar Energy

Anything besides being robbed by greedy oil companies.

Katrina ::
New Orleans Doctors Forced to Terminate Patients

Lack of prompt response nothing short of criminal negligence.

Katrina ::
45 Bodies Found at New Orleans Hospital

Not sure if this would be the same hospital from the previous article.

FEMA ::
Michael Brown Rumored to be Quitting

You're finally doing the right thing Brownie.

Phishing ::
The Inner Workings of a Phishing Scam

Don't - I repeat - don't ever reveal your banking credentials online for any reason.

Weather ::
45 cm of Snow Dumped on Southern Alberta

Global warming the likely culprit.

Ageing ::
Inablity to Avoid Distractions Cited as Reason for Memory Loss in Ageing People

OK..., now what was that about distracting the aged?

Technology ::
Samsung Unveils 16 Gig Flash Memory Chips

The future of data storage is not spinning platters.

Environment ::
Toxic Waste Will Render New Orleans Unsafe for at Least a Decade

President George Bush says, "What?"

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter

Hand Picked Headline News
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FEMA ::
FEMA Chief Michael Brown Relieved of Duties

I would just have to say it appears this is a tad overdue.

FEMA ::
Michael Brown's Qualifications Under the Microscope

Arabian horses throughout the US rejoice.

Katrina ::
Censor Free Katrina Telethon

Strategically placed advertisements a distinct possibility though.

Katrina ::
Colin Powell Criticises Response to Hurricane Katrina

As well he should!

Katrina ::
Fewer Bodies Than Expected - So Far

It will still be more than it should be no matter how you do the math.

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter

Hand Picked Headline News
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Katrina ::
The Real Heros in New Orleans

A personal account of a couple of folks caught in New Orleans and their epic journey to get the hell out.

Katrina ::
Concerns Growing About Toxic Soup in New Orleans

So much for the money spent on studies telling everyone that this is what would happen when a category 4 storm hit. I suppose 2020 hindsight is better than no hindsight at all.

Katrina ::
Louisiana Senator Thanks Canada

Vancouver rescue team arrived five days ahead of the military.

Katrina ::
Louisiana Readying 25,000 Body Bags

Let's pray they have grossly over-estimated.

Katrina ::
US Seeks NATO Assistance Getting Aid to Katrina Victims

European Katrina Aid Not Getting Through - Too Much Red Tape

Katrina ::
CREW Group Files FOIA Request on Katrina Response Documents

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) - Let's see what they come up with.

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter

Hand Picked Headline News
    - Served Fresh Daily -

Hero ::
John Travolta Jets to Lousiana With 5 Tonnes of Food

It's heartening to see folks with their priorities in the right place. Oh yeh, and Sean Penn agrees with me that this is nothing short of criminal negligence. I certainly hope there are others that see it as such!

Katrina ::
By Boat Through New Orleans

An account of a search for the ederly Mr. McCobb.

Katrina ::
Untreated Toxic Sludge Being Pumped Out of New Orleans

From natural disaster to, to humanitarian crisis, to environmental crisis.

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter

Hand Picked Headline News
    - Served Fresh Daily -

Hero ::
Sean Penn Rescues Katrina Victims Then Gives Them Cash

Still no sign of George Bush's boat!

Katrina ::
Levee Design Inadequate

And to further compound the problem funds were spirited away for more pressing war games. Heads should roll!

Katrina ::
Transcript of Mayor Ray Nagin's Radio Interview

At first I thought this guy was a bit of a lightweight but he came out swinging in the nick of time. The lack of action before Ray Nagin's plea is nothing short of criminal negligence. There are federal officials that should do hard time over this fiasco.

Katrina ::
Mayor Nagin Says Death Toll Could Hit 10,000

Lack of response by federal officials a huge contributing factor. Our litigation giddy American cousins should sue the ass off their duly elected officials.

Katrina ::
US Administration Blows Money on PR Blitz Instead of Disaster Relief

I'm speechless!

Katrina ::
Red Tape Hinders Help for Katrina Victims

How in the hell did the Keystone Cops get to New Orleans?

What I have witnessed over the last week is nothing short of criminal. Even if all you watched was CNN you would have to come to the same conclusion. I have never been completely satisfied with CNN's coverage of anything so I got on IRC (Internet Relay Chat) and found some channels that had their finger on the pulse of activity in New Orleans. The #interdictor, #interdictor-scanner, and #interdictor-digest channels on the freenode network indicated to me that the mainstream media was sanitizing the coverage and not showing the floating bodies, the piles of feces, and the gun-toting thugs. There is a ton the average news hound didn't hear or see. Let's hope that some of this sees the light of day and that heads roll where heads should roll!

Check back regularly, no telling what little nugget of gnarled knowledge or whimsical wisdom you're going to unearth here but it could be a 'Breaking News Nugget' - and you can say you saw it here first. Others will just have to wait for the rest to catch up.

Note:: These headlines rotated, updated & barbecued throughout the day. Enjoy!

Hasta La L8r Señor Headline Hunter