Monday, October 12, 2009

The Eels - Hombre Lobo

Tremendous Dynamite



My Timing Is Off



That Look You Give That Guy

Papelbon - Mr. Fastball

No Red Sox fan should be surprised about Papelbon's meltdown. The closer has basically become a one-trick pony. When his fastball is lacking movement and isn't locating, it's curtains. All season, he has lived on the edge, throwing his fastball over 80% of the time.

Remember, here's a guy who used to throw a slider, a splitter and even a curve when wanted.

For 2009, Fangraphs has him throwing fastballs 81.5%, sliders 9.2% and splitters 9.3%.

And, to add to the mix, Papelbon's previous shoulder issues may be exacerbated by secondary pitches. A catch-22?

As an aside, didn't Daniel Bard look exceptional?

Yo La Tengo - Nothing To Hide

From their latest release Popular Songs. It's not my favorite, but still a strong album.

Still partial to I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One and Fakebook.


Embryonic - The Flaming Lips New Release

Embryonic will be released tomorrow. Pitchfork, BBC, Spectator and Hurst all give positive reviews. Slant does not. Too experimental...???

No matter, hard core Lips fans will be pleased with Embryonic. It seems like they are getting a bit back to their roots. Commercial success? That's another story...

There's a raw directness to Embryonic that's been largely absent from Lips records since the mid-90s. For the first time in years, they've made an album that actually sounds like a band playing live together in a small room.

Musically, too, Embryonic leans heavily on the Lips' formative 60s/70s psych-rock influence (like In a Priest Driven Ambulance's "Take Meta Mars" before it, Embryonic's formidable opener "Convinced of the Hex" grooves heavily on Can's "Mushroom"), but never before has the band recorded an album so unwaveringly sinister, or so devoid of pop-song levity.

Lionel Pincus, R.I.P.

Hopefully the antics of Pincus's money grubbing girlfriend won't overshadow his impressive life achievements.

Warburg Pincus and the National Venture Capital Association, which Mr. Pincus helped found, played a central role in negotiating with the Labor Department to revise regulations that had inhibited investments in those asset classes.

As a result, vast amounts of new capital flowed into private equity and venture funds.

Mr. Vogelstein recalled Mr. Pincus as brilliant but also able to delegate. “He was the senior partner, and yet he did not stifle creativity, but encouraged it,” he said. “It meant that investment thinking was quite broadly spread, and we could attract talented people.”

Friday, October 9, 2009

Lonesome Dove

Lonesome Dove

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Another Survey...Another Last Place Finish

New Jersey comes in last place on a ranking of business friendly states. I guess that explains why Jon Corzine isn't touting his record in his re-election bid.

Of course, New York is the runner-up, with California getting honorable mention.

South Dakota has the most "business-friendly" tax system, and New Jersey has the least, according to the Tax Foundation's 2010 State Business Tax Climate Index released today. The Index measures the competitiveness of the 50 states' tax systems and ranks them accordingly based on the taxes that matter most to businesses and business investment: corporate income, individual income, sales, property and unemployment insurance taxes.

Over-regulation, high taxes and a ridiculously generous taxpayer funded pension system for public employees will tend to drive businesses away. This especially impacts small business where most of us are employed. Is it any wonder populations are fleeing...

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Recycling For Government Waste

Californians could soon be paying new deposits on half-gallon juice jugs, small juice boxes and soy drink containers -- and handing over twice as much as they already pay on some soda and water bottles -- because lawmakers have been raiding the state's recycling fund to help balance the budget.

Officeholders have yet to repay $451 million they've taken from the recycling fund since 2002 to cover the state's bills, siphoning away $100 million this year alone. Recycling and deposit redemptions, meanwhile, have risen amid the recession and the fund is now facing bankruptcy.

Excellent--more new tax money for the government to waste. When private enterprises overspend they are forced to make tough choices. Not true with the government. They just raise taxes. This one is particularly priceless.

Recycling advocates concede that the larger deposits won't pay for new programs. But they say extending deposits to more than 5 billion containers annually will curb the waste that ends up in landfills.

Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley), who shepherded the legislation, said it is necessary "to make the program whole and make sure that recycling continues."

"The money's been taken for other purposes," said Bob Achermann, executive director of the California/Nevada Soft Drink Assn. "It seems a bit disingenuous."

In the end, it's always the consumer who foots the bill.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Michelle Phillips - Stage Left

Michelle Phillips, the ex-wife of the late John Phillips, says her stepdaughter Mackenzie Phillips is lying about having an incestuous affair with her father.

Everyone knows that Papa John was a terrible father and role model, but this is beyond the pale, isn't it?

For what it's worth, Mackenzie’s half-sister and Michelle's daughter Chynna believes the story.

Monday, September 21, 2009

Repercussions, What Repercussions?

New York State Sen. Hiram Monserrate of Queens listens to his attorney Joe Tacopina outside Queens Criminal Court in the Queens borough of New York Monday. He is accused of attacking his girlfriend with a broken bottle during an argument in December and may lose his senate seat if convicted.


Again, "... [Monserrate] may lose his senate seat if convicted."

Not only will he not lose his NYS Senate seat, he'll be re-elected in landslide fashion. To quote Cindy Adams, "only in New York, kids, only in New York..."

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Paterson Defiant

A defiant Gov. Paterson Sunday said he still plans to run for a full four-year term next year despite a stunning White House request that the poll-challenged governor step aside.

How often does the President of the United States request that a state leader step aside? Can Paterson's situation get any worse?

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

There Goes The Neighborhood

Squeaky Fromme moving to Upstate New York.

Surely it isn't to find work; job creation is a foreign term in these parts. Hmmm...

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Happy Birthday Mel Torme

Scott at Powerline with a tribute

Torme wrote a very colorful autobiography before his death in 1999.

"Mel Torme is the only white man who sings with the soul of a black man."
-Ethel Waters

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Alan L. Wisniewski - Project 2996 Tribute

It has been 8 years since the attacks of World Trade Center I and II, The Pentagon, Shanksville, American Airlines Flights 11 & 77, and United Airlines Flight 93 & 175.

We should never forget those who lost their lives to an act of terrorism simply because they enjoyed the freedoms of living in the greatest country in the world.

I worked in the South Tower on the 17th Floor and was able to evacuate before the tower fell. There were many who were not as fortunate.

Alan L. Wisniewski was an Associate Director at Sandler O'Neill, an investment banking firm located on the 104th floor of the South Tower. According to his wife Kathy, family meant everything to Alan.

From the Legacy.com site:

"The thing that was most important to him was his family," his wife said. Because of a 90-minute commute each evening, he did not return home until 8:30 p.m., when his youngest children were already asleep. So weekends were devoted to his wife and three children: Erica, 15, Jessica, 6, and Matthew, 4.

He loved to ride his bicycle long distances along the Shore.

An avid Notre Dame and Yankee fan, Mr. Wisniewski faithfully took his children to a Dad and Kids YMCA camp weekend in the Poconos each summer. He talked about computers at career day at his children's schools. He dressed up as a Ninja Turtle to entertain kids as part of a program that offered free fingerprinting to Howell's youth. He donated a week's vacation to a Blairstown camp for children with cancer.

From the Legacy.com guestbook:

Alan was my best friend and the most caring person I will ever know. Alan was a devoted father and had a tremendous faith in God. He will never be forgotten as he will always live in our loving memories and in our hearts.
~
Peter Piasentini,
Howell, New Jersey


We will never forget those who lost their lives eight years ago today. Their memory will be cherished by those who loved them and live forever in the lives that they touched.

A Better Place

Cry for me no more
the many tears of sadness
My time in this world was over
and it came for me to pass.

Bring the photos of old time
and see them not with tear-filled eyes
But with eyes of joy and laughter
and smile once more with me.

Know that I am in a better place
one without disease
without hatred and without death
This kingdom I now call home.

I wait here for you
When your time comes to pass
to ease the transition
from the old to the new.

Cry for me no more
Remember only the laughter
For I am in another realm
And I wait to see you again.

God Bless You Alan, and God Bless America!

Sunday, September 6, 2009

Cape Cod Shark Sightings Close Chatham and Orleans Beaches














In Chatham:

Swimming has been prohibited at all Chatham oceanside beaches for the remainder of Labor Day weekend because of several great white sharks spotted off Monomoy Island, Harbor Master Stuart Smith said yesterday.

Gregory Skomal, a senior biologist and shark expert with the state Division of Marine Fisheries, said he spotted four great white sharks off Chatham's coast yesterday. That prompted beach officials at North Beach, Lighthouse Beach, South Beach and Hardings Beach in Chatham and Nauset Beach in Orleans to raise the red "no swimming" signs, much to the disappointment of beachgoers trying to enjoy the last big weekend of summer.

Kevin Tomany was taking pictures of his 14-year-old son surfing at Nauset Beach in Orleans yesterday morning when his 300-millimeter lens focused on something else entirely.

He said a sudden commotion in the water about 300 to 400 yards offshore turned out to be a shark. He was able to see, through his telephoto lens, half a shark protrude briefly from the water. It wasn't the back end, either.

"I saw jaws," he said.

Tomany, an orthopedic surgeon with a summer home in East Harwich, showed the photo to the beach patrol officials on Nauset Beach. He said they downloaded the image to send it to Skomal for identification. "I don't think there is any reason to panic," Tomany said. "It was clearly far away from any swimmers."

Tomany took his shark photo at about 11 a.m. The beach patrol officials saw no reason to close the beaches at that time. But hours later in the early afternoon, they decided to shut down the beach because more sharks were in the area, he said.

"The police came and got us all out of the water," Tomany said.

What Would Winston Say?

More revelations concerning the release of Lockerbie terrorist Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi:

Medical evidence that helped Megrahi, 57, to be released was paid for by the Libyan government, which encouraged three doctors to say he had only three months to live.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Casablanca



One of the best scenes in the film Casablanca is the scene where the French National Anthem, La Marseillaise, is sung over the German song Watch on the Rhine. In the film, Victor Lazlo, played by Paul Henreid asks the band to play La Marseillaise and Rick (Humphrey Bogart) gives them a nod of approval.

Closeups are of the principle characters: Bogart, Henreid and Ingrid Bergman (Ilsa). The singer with the guitar, played by Mexican actress Corinna Mura, was uncredited in the film. Rick's jilted girlfriend, Yvonne, is shown with tears in her eyes and shouting "Vive la France!" at the end of the song. Yvonne was played by French actress Madeleine Lebeau who fled Paris with her Jewish husband in 1940, reaching the gateway city of Lisbon and eventually getting into the United States with temporary Canadian passports after being stuck in Mexico.

Before Casablanca, Lebeau had a small part in the Olivia de Havilland, Charles Boyer and Paulette Goddard 1941 film, Hold Back the Dawn, coincidentally about refugees trapped in Mexico trying to get into the United States during World War II.

And, of course, Claude Rains, as the Vichy Captain Louis Renault, steals almost every scene that he is in.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Another Hypocrite in the State House?

A Westport lawmaker who voted to hike the state sales and alcohol taxes was spotted brazenly piling booze in his car - adorned with his State House license plate - in the parking lot of a tax-free New Hampshire liquor store, the Herald has learned.

Mike Cimini, owner of Yankee Spirits liquor stores in Sturbridge, Attleboro and Swansea, said he’s lost about 10 percent of his business since the booze tax went into effect Aug. 1.

“It’s absolutely unbelievable that a Massachusetts state representative would be that hypocritical, let alone be that bold to actually drive his car with political plates to a New Hampshire liquor store,” said Cimini, noting Rodrigues represents communities close to his stores. “He’s up in New Hampshire to avoid the very taxes he approved.”

Christian Bale, Method Actor

Photos have surfaced of a gaunt Christian Bale on the set of The Fighter, in which he portrays a real-life boxer turned drug addict.

Remember what Robert Mitchum said about method actors?

These kids only want to talk about acting method and motivation; in my day all we talked about was screwing and overtime.

Classic...

Move Along, Nothing to See

Reports of a possible attack by a juvenile white shark on a swimmer off Carlsbad have surfaced on the Internet but should not be cause for alarm.

Unless you happen to be the person attacked...

Is The Jury Is Still Out?

Investigators nicknamed Jack Louis Sporich, a 74-year-old retired engineer, the Pied Piper of pedophiles. He was classified as one of California's most dangerous sex offenders.

In the 90s, Sporich served 9 years in a California prison. Prosecutors allege he molested more than 500 young boys since the 1960s. He was released from the Atascadero State Hospital in 2004 after juries disagreed on whether he would reoffend.

70th Anniversary of the Beginning of World War II - ETO

Polish Calvary vs. German Tanks

Or, is it a myth?

Call me crazy, but I'm siding with the Poles on this one.

“This morning the British Ambassador in Berlin handed the German Government a final note stating that unless we heard from them by eleven o'clock that they were prepared at once to withdraw their troops from Poland, a state of war would exist between us. I have to tell you that no such understanding has been received and that consequently this country is at war with Germany.”
- Neville Chamberlain

We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and the oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air, we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.
-Winston Churchill

All About Ronnie

R.I.P. Chris Connor

Happy Belated Birthday Lester Young




From All About Jazz

He called her Lady Day and she called him Pres...

Devoted legislators debate vital issues (snicker)


Saturday, August 29, 2009

California's Basement

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is hoping that the "Great California Garage Sale" will turn government clutter like surplus prison uniforms and office furniture into cash to bulk up the state's depleted finances.

California, a state with vast amounts of natural resources and economic potential, is having a yard sale to plug the budget gap. Sounds good to me, but it should also serve as a cautionary tale. Not much good can come out of government over-regulating its citizenry and implementing suffocating taxes to pay for its expansion. Those practices tend to be economic buzzkills.

Widows' Peak

A memorable film from the 1990's starring Mia Farrow, Joan Plowright and the late Natasha Richardson:

Rainy Day Quote

A classic from ex-Red Sox Carl Everett:

"God created the sun, the stars, the heavens and the earth, and then made Adam and Eve," Everett said about the existence of dinosaurs. "The Bible never says anything about dinosaurs. You can't say there were dinosaurs when you never saw them. Someone actually saw Adam and Eve. No one ever saw a Tyrannosaurus Rex."

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Insane

Saudi Child Bride Turned Back Over to 80-Year-Old Husband

A Saudi Arabian father forced his 10-year-old daughter to return to her 80-year-old husband Sunday, after she was found hiding at the home of her aunt for 10 days, Arab News reported.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Legislate First, Think Later

Government continually passes legislation and leaves it for the rest of us to sort out. We saw this with the New York State bottle bill.

Remember this:

ALBANY — The more they learn about New York's new expanded bottle law, say those who produce and distribute beverages here, the more they worry about how they will comply.

Bottlers and brewers were caught off-guard by an anti-fraud provision in the so-called Bigger, Better Bottle Bill, which was promoted mainly for including water bottles in deposit and return programs.

The law, signed last week by Gov. David Paterson, mandates unique electronic scanner bar codes for containers sold and returned in New York.

"It hit us at the last minute," said Steve DiLoreto, plant manager for Ball Metal Container Corp., which makes more than 3 billion 12-ounce aluminum beer and soft drink cans each year at W.J. Grande Industrial Park in Saratoga Springs.

Ball's locally produced cans feature more than 400 different labels for beers, sodas and juices, and DiLoreto estimated the plant has "several hundred million" cans now printed and ready to go.

Ball cans are produced for beverages made by companies including Anheuser-Busch, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Welch's and Matt Brewing Co. About 75 percent of those products will be distributed inside New York, DiLoreto said.

"We build inventory all year to supply our customers through the summer," he said. "We're at our high mark right now in terms of inventory. Obviously, we couldn't afford to scrap all those good cans."

Most new portions of the bottle law take effect June 1, but DiLoreto doesn't know how his company can meet that deadline.

"It would add duplicative inventories of cans for anything sold outside of New York state," he said. "We'd have to redevelop graphics for every label we run. There is a digital graphics process for the printing plates, and our customers have to approve any graphics changes to their labels."

DiLoreto estimated the cost of producing the new graphics alone at $600,000 to $700,000. There would be additional costs to set up the duplicate inventories, warehouse the duplicate cans, and modify production schedules.

"Those costs are just hard to quantify on the short notice we've had, but they're extensive," he said.

Garry Brown, president of Brown's Brewing Co. in Troy, said he, too, has questions about how the new bottle law will affect his business.

Brown's has six labels in action for its bottled beers right now. And while the company doesn't distribute outside of New York, it's unclear whether it will need to create new New York-specific bar codes to comply with the law, Brown said.

If so, "that's a problem because there's going to be a retooling cost," he said. "We just sent in two more labels (for printing). You buy these things by the thousands at a clip."

It is unclear whether amendments to address the concerns of brewers, bottlers and distributors are likely.

"The New York bar code is designed to prevent out-of-state containers being brought to New York," Paterson spokeswoman Erin Duggan said.

"The governor's staff have been meeting with distributors, beer companies, retailers and other parties," she said. "They are closely examining the practical implications of this provision of the new law."

Shouldn't the practical implications been worked out before the legislation was passed? But, that's not how government works. Government does not have to be accountable for the logistics once the legislation is passed. It only collects the fees, taxes and fines associated with the new law. The businesses and, in some cases, local authorities are tasked with figuring out the practical implications of the law.

Government, especially in New York State, is reactive. The Bigger Better Bottle bill is nothing more than a feel good piece of legislation that deals with less than 10% of the waste stream. Instead of being pro-active and putting together a comprehensive recycling scheme, we have this piecemeal legislation that ends up penalizing one business. Heaven forbid we look to find ways to improve across the board recycling aimed at convenience.

Now we have this new legislation in Maine aimed at the wine tasting industry.

Families normally wouldn't take a child to a wine tasting.

But in the Belgrade Lakes, tourists stop in the Bacchus House of Wine to sample and buy with their tots in tow.

Beth Hudson, who owns the shop, said she always accepted that children could be part of the experience.

But that will soon change.

A new law that goes into effect Sept. 12 will prohibit children from observing wine tastings.

Hudson said she isn't sure how to comply with that. Her Main Street wine shop has ceiling-to-floor windows and glass doors. The windows have blinds that she could close, but an inspector from the Maine Bureau of Liquor Enforcement & Licensing told her that is not acceptable.

"I said I could close the blinds, and he said no," Hudson said. "I would have to partition off or put up some draperies. Look at my store. How am I supposed to do that? We usually have (wine tastings) in front of the fireplace and we serve cheese and crackers. In order to do that, people would have to be cramped in a smaller space. It would appear like the adults were doing something shameful.

"If they don't want children seeing people drinking why do they allow them in restaurants?"

An amendment to L.D. 498 by Rep. David Webster, D-Freeport, states, "Taste-testing activities must be conducted in a manner that precludes the possibility of observation by children."

In the final days of the last legislation session, Webster said, a bill came forward that would allow not only wine tastings, but beer and hard liquor tastings in any off-premises retail including grocery stores.

No changes were made to the laws allowing children in liquor stores or restaurants that serve alcohol.

Webster said it was never his intention to hurt small wine shops; his amendment was supposed to target large grocery stores where families shop with children.

Unfortunately, the only way to modify the law is in legislative session and the next one doesn't start until January, he said. So the law will go into effect Sept. 12.

"We're scheduled to go back in January, but unless there's a special session there's no way of changing this," he said. "I'm doing everything I can to reduce the adverse impact. No one is disputing that we've got to fix this."

He [Lt. David Bowler, of the Department of Maine Public Safety Liquor Licensing and Inspections Unit] said wording in the new law also makes it difficult for wine, beer and spirits retailers to acquire permits to conduct tastings.

"The way they word it is, if someone wanted to do the spirits tasting, they have to have 200 codes ... say a fifth of Jim Bean is one code, a pint would be one code and little airport-size bottle another code," he said. "The wine tasting is 125 labels and beer is 100 different brands. They should have worded it either codes or labels. And we've discussed brands. What is a brand? Is a brand Budweiser or everything that falls under it? Is Bud Lite a brand? At some point we're going to have to get a ruling from the attorney general's office to tell us what is considered a brand."

There goes the government again: legislating first and thinking later.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

The Debacle Continues...


Governor Paterson partying with Kathy Hilton in the Hamptons.

Does anyone else think that we are all part of an episode of Punk'd?

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Governor Paterson Takes It To a New Level

From the New York Post:

The state's first black governor yesterday blamed his political woes -- and those of President Obama -- on a white-dominated media that he accused of taking part in an "orchestrated" attack campaign.

"We're not in the post-racial period," [David] Paterson said in a freewheeling interview on the liberal talk-radio station WWRL. "My feeling is it's being orchestrated, it's a game, and people who pay attention know that."

Of course, it has nothing to do with his incompetence, uninspired leadership, or failure to stand up for New York State taxpayers in the face of huge tax and fee increases. I don't care if Governor Paterson is an orange lilliputian, he is, and has been a terrible governor. For him to play the race card is an insult to the hard working New York taxpayers who pay for his crappy leadership.

Paterson continued, "The next victim on the list -- and you see it coming -- is President Barack Obama, who did nothing more than try to reform a health-care system . . . only because he's trying to make change..."

I disagree with government run health care. I believe that greater competition, tort reform and tax incentives for individuals are better reform measures than handing over a substantial portion of our economy to an inefficient bloated entity. Does this make me a racist?

Amazing... How low will you go Governor Paterson?

Friday, August 21, 2009

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Kennedy asks for change in succession law

I wonder if Senator Kennedy would make the same request if Mitt Romney was still in the Massachusetts State House?

Originally Massachusetts law called for the Governor to fill Senate vacancies. In a well publicized law change, the State House Democrats, worried that Governor Romney would pick a conservative replacement if John Kerry won the election, enacted the current legislation.

It's Supposed to be Public Service, Right?

August 18, 2009
Some N.Y. Lawmakers Take Pensions on Top of Pay
By DANNY HAKIM
ALBANY — When Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg retired last year, there were no sendoffs, no cakes and no serenades.


In fact, no one even knew he had left the Capitol, because he never did. Mr. Weisenberg, 75, a Long Island Democrat, “retired” last year but continued to work as a lawmaker and remained on the payroll. As a result, he earns $101,500 in salary and collects a pension of about $72,000, according to the comptroller’s office.

Similarly, Assemblywoman Rhoda Jacobs, a 72-year-old Brooklyn Democrat, retired last year after 31 years, but continued to serve her district. She earns $104,500 and draws an annual pension of more than $71,000. And Assemblyman John J. McEneny, a 65-year-old Albany-area Democrat who retired last year but kept his seat in the Assembly chamber, now earns $94,500 and a pension of about $73,000.


All of them are beneficiaries of “double dipping,” a practice in which public servants simultaneously collect government salaries and pensions, sometimes for the same job.

Most people who have a traditional pension put in years or decades of work at a job, then retire, leave the job and begin collecting monthly pension payments. Some companies do allow double dipping, though the practice has most likely declined during the recession and federal rules impose more restrictions on corporate pension funds.

In Albany, veteran lawmakers can “retire” at 65 from their jobs and start collecting pensions, but without actually leaving their jobs, giving up their salaries or even telling their constituents. Four legislators took advantage of the rule last year.

The rest

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Another Day, Another Indictment

A Bronx Assemblyman believed to have tripped himself up in an election fraud case is expected to be indicted on perjury charges, the Daily News has learned.

The charges against Assemblyman Nelson Castro are expected sometime this or next week, sources told The News.

Castro was accused in last September's primary of electoral shenanigans after nine voters were found to be registered to his one-bedroom flat in the west Bronx.

Ho Hum...

Quote of the Day

“The only reason for a government service is precisely to provide financial support for an operation that is otherwise unsustainable, or else there would be no point in the government’s involvement at all.”

- Llewellyn Rockwell Jr., Chairman of the Ludwig von Mises Institute

Something Fishy This Way Comes

From the Barney Frank town hall meeting:

Dr. Sheila Leavitt, a physician from Newton, said she hoped for changes that would support primary care physicians who aren't paid as much as specialists.

I tried googling Dr. Leavitt. There is no record of her practice or hospital affiliation. Maybe she is a doctor, or maybe she's another Roxana Mayer?

Remember that old car that was seen in the Boston area a few years back? The one decorated with anti-Bush rhetoric? That car was driven by Newton resident Sheila Leavitt. Hmmm...

Better Late Than Never?

Talk about being late to the party...

"Pedro Espada was in it for himself," he [Libous] said.

Welcome aboard Senator Libous. Those of us who possess a modicum of acumen figured out Senator Espada's motivations around about the second week of June.

Is it any wonder that New York State is so dysfunctional?

A Blast from the Recent Past

Boscombe Surf Reef

Surfing in England:


The reef does not create waves, but acts as a ramp which changes the way the waves break. The reef will improve the quality of the surf and produce a long right-hand ride of around 75 metres for surfers, and a shorter left-hand ride of around 35 metres most favourable for body boarders. As a result, the number of good surfing days will increase.

The left-hand break of the reef is designed to roll down the reef and 'clean up' the short period chop that the dominant cross-shore wind creates. This will make the wave-face on the right-hander cleaner for surfing.

The reef construction started July 2008. Already locals are seeing larger dolphin populations in the area. Surfers will have to paddle 250 meters out to reach the Grade 5 waves.

Privatization to Boost Output, Go Figure...

The last two paragraphs in the New York Daily News article about Cuba running out of toilet paper is telling.

[Raul] Castro, who replaced his ailing older brother Fidel Castro as president last year, also has complained that Cuba's productivity is too low.

He has taken various steps to boost output, including putting more state-owned land in private hands and pushing for salaries to be based on productivity.

The Disease Called Pedro Espada Lingers

Pedro Espada, New York's ethically challenged Senate Majority Leader, is expanding his staff on the back of New York State taxpayers.

In total, the Senate's Democratic leadership has authorized more than $500,000 in pay raises and new staff for Espada since he returned to the Democratic conference at the end of the chamber's June stalemate, according to payroll records from the state comptroller's office.

Among the new hires is Jerry Love Jr., the son of Sandra Love, a Soundview officer who in 2004 pleaded guilty to steering state funds intended for family care and AIDS treatment to Espada's political campaign. Three other Soundview officials also pleaded guilty in that case.

How far will Espada go before his limp wristed colleagues push back? There are rumblings from some of the underlings and rank and file.

"Leadership is supposed to lead the way, not look the other way, when poor decisions are being made," said one Senate Democratic staffer.

"This makes me more embarrassed and makes the Senate look even worse than it has already -- and that's hard to imagine," said Sen. Neil Breslin (D-Albany).

Of course, don't expect Breslin to do anything other than fall in line when Espada starts issuing vote orders. After all, he's just one of the many in the Conference who speak loudly but carry a small stick. What an embarrassment for a once great state.

No matter, all these asshats will be voted back in next election cycle. Remember, we are the same electorate who voted in landslide fashion for a man who was on the cusp of being indicted for a felony.

More on Espada

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

What's in a Name?

City Journal's Daniel J. Flynn by way of John Stossel...

If Congress passes President Obama’s trillion-dollar overhaul of the nation’s health-care industry, political entrepreneurs are sure to seek a cut of the enormous prize, and few have positioned themselves more skillfully than Ted Kennedy, Jr. “For years, Kennedy, Jr. has been boldly exploiting both his name and his intimate relationship with the most influential member of the U.S. Senate when it comes to health care and organized labor: his father, Senator Ted Kennedy,” Dick Morris and Eileen McGann write in their new book, Catastrophe. “And his father has been all too willing to help out in making the family connection into a lucrative business for his son.” Over the course of this decade, medical giants with business interests before the senator have showered money upon his son’s lobbying businesses: Bristol-Myers Squibb has paid $380,000; the Advanced Medical Technology Association, $220,000; Ascension Health, $280,000. Ask not what you can do for your name; ask what your name can do for you.

Living in Massachusetts, this is seen first hand. One year the local used bookstore owner was Joe Kennedy's only opponent for his Congressional seat. I only found out because I overheard him talking to another customer about it in his store.

A great quote from Joe Sr. from when Ted was running for Senate as a 30 year old slacker:

“I spent a lot of money for that Senate seat,” patriarch Joe Kennedy said prior to Ted’s initial run. “It belongs in the family.”

Monday, August 17, 2009

The New American Dream

Sponge off the taxpayers, flaunt your ill gotten gains and ignore any semblance of legality...

Don't worry Senator Espada, the knuckleheads in the Bronx will keep returning you to office.

Remember what Alexis de Tocqueville said: we get the government we deserve. Can you imagine what someone like Alexander Hamilton would think of this asshat Espada?

The one-time Democratic turncoat controls the money flow as CEO of Comprehensive Community Development Corp., which he founded in 1978 and which is the umbrella organization for Soundview HealthCare Network.

The corporation's five clinics serve more than 40,000 people each year, but critics say Espada has put to personal and political use some of the $15 million the organization pulls in annually.

"For Pedro Espada, politics is a route to wealth and power," said a Bronx political insider.

Even as the geyser of cash rains on his family and on his political campaigns, Comprehensive Community Development owes some $347,000 in federal and state income tax withheld from employees, as well as unpaid unemployment taxes.

Seriously, what separates someone like Espada from a run of the mill grifter doing 3 to 6 in the state penitentiary?

Poll: Cuomo leads Paterson in possible '10 race

It's hard to believe that Governor Half-Wit has any supporters. Seriously, it's almost like the whole debacle has been scripted.

A new poll of New York Democrats shows Attorney General Andrew Cuomo attracting four voters to every one for incumbent Gov. David Paterson in a potential matchup next year.

The poll shows 61 percent of voters polled favored Cuomo and 15 percent picked Paterson. In June, Cuomo had a lead of 57 percent to 20 percent.

Who are these 15% percent favoring Paterson? Maybe all the goofballs he's put on the state payroll since his swearing in?

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Move Along...Nothing To See

A book about Jyllands-Posten's Muhammad cartoons that doesn't show the cartoons.

The New York Times broke the story.

Yes, the same New York Times that refused to print the cartoons back in 2006, but of course, saw no problem publishing Chris Ofili's seminal work, The Holy Virgin Mary, which featured the Virgin Mary decorated with porno and elephant dung.

Nuance?

Saturday, August 15, 2009

They May Not Know What's Good For Them...

Typically elitist attitude, and she has no idea why it is offensive:

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Bourne Braves, Cape Cod League Champions

Bourne Braves defeated the Cotuit Kettleers 5-1 yesterday winning the Arnold Mycock Trophy.

The Cape Cod Baseball League provides a getaway for purist baseball fans wishing to avoid discussions about supplements, astericks and PEDS. It showcases the best college baseball players and introduces them to the nuances of hitting a baseball with a wood bat. The games are well attended by locals, vacationers and MLB scouts.

The roster of MLB players, past and present, that have played in the Cape Cod League include:

Ben Sheets, Matt Murton, Jason Bay, Lance Berkman, Jacoby Ellsbury, Nomar Garciaparra, Brandon Inge, Tim Lincecum, Evan Longoria, Carlos Pena, Mark Teixeira, Chase Utley, Jason Varitek, Kevin Youkilis, Mike Lowell, Carlton Fisk, Kevin Millar, John Tudor, JT Snow, Ron Darling and Brian Roberts

The real "field of dreams" shouldn't have been about a cornfield in Iowa filled with baseball's past. The real "if you build it, they will come" scenario should have been about the annual two-month lovefest with baseball's future known as the Cape Cod Baseball League.

From Chatham to Wareham on this famous stretch of land about an hour south of Boston, nothing is a better central-casting depiction of what baseball should look like and sound like than the 10-team college summer league that attracts the best players and caters to a fan base that ranges from small children to the elderly.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Hillary in Neverland?

The always insightful Charles Krauthammer:

She [Hillary Clinton] lost it. It was not a real good moment. In part, I'm sure it was because she thought she was being treated as an appendage of her husband.

But I think part of it is also the venue. Here you have Richard Holbrooke running Afghanistan and Pakistan — the heart of our troubles in Asia. You have George Mitchell in the Middle East. You have envoys here and there, and she is the secretary of state, and she's sitting in the Congo, in the Congo?

You've got Petraeus running Afghanistan. You've got Odierno running Iraq. She is totally marginalized, sitting in Kinshasa. I'm sure it is a great city — in fact, it's not — but the Congo? Africa is very low on the scale of important interests of the United States.

She was supposed to be the president of the United States at this point. She was going to be queen of the world. Instead, Obama bestrides the world. He gives speeches in the great capitals, in Cairo — and she is in the Congo! You'd be upset, also.

Eunice Shriver, R.I.P.

For my money, Eunice Shriver's legacy will outlast the aura of her famous family.

"She believed that people with intellectual disabilities could — individually and collectively — achieve more than anyone thought possible," the Shrivers' son, Timothy Shriver, chairman and CEO of Special Olympics, said in a prepared statement yesterday. "This much she knew with unbridled faith and certainty. And this faith in turn gave her hope that their future might be radically different."

I understand that she was born with both a fortune and platform to accomplish great things, but to champion a population that was ignored and hidden away takes great determination. It also should be noted that Eunice acted with the understanding that her work would illuminate the plight of her older sister Rosemary and bring attention to her father Joe's culpability in Rosemary's situation.

Brave lady.. .

From the Cape Cod Times:

Trey Marbella, 36, Hyannis
Marbella loves to watch baseball, but when he suits up for Special Olympics games and practices, it's basketball all the way.


"It's just the joy of playing basketball. I don't know why," said Marbella, who moved south after graduating from the Riverview School in Sandwich. He came back to the Cape last year and lives in supportive housing. He has a job selling Cape Cod Times newspapers.

He played in a Special Olympics basketball tournament at the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester in February. He practices once a week at the Boys and Girls Club in Mashpee.

"In some ways, it's sort of like the regular Olympics," Marbella said. There are opening ceremonies and speeches. The athletes have a camaraderie that extends beyond team lines, he said.

"They have more passion than most people you see on TV," Marbella said. "Being in Special Olympics has taught me things about myself I wouldn't have known before. How to enjoy life."

Gail Carroll, 64, Hyannis
When Carroll marches in Special Olympics opening ceremonies, she carries a sign for CapeAbilities, the nonprofit Hyannis organization where she works and socializes.


The rest of the time she's carting around a red-and-black bowling ball that has helped her get scores in the 100s during Special Olympics bowling contests.

"Can you believe it's an eight-pounder?" asked Carroll, who has an apartment with a roommate in Hyannis. "I've been bowling since I was little. It is exciting. I like it."

She has a special shelf for the many medals she's won over the years. She bowls every Thursday with people from CapeAbilities to keep up her skills.

Katie Stubstad, 24, Sagamore
A Special Olympian since she was about 11 years old, Stubstad particularly enjoys the swim meets.


She competes in backstroke, free style and the relay. "Swimming is easy for me," says Stubstad.

The backstroke is her favorite, especially since her coach told her she could get good propulsion by reaching her arms up to the ceiling. She won some gold medals in a June competition in the state games in Boston, Stubstad said.


"Boston is fun to run around," said Stubstad, who lives at home with Kathy and Don Stubstad and her brother Tim. She works at the CapeAbilities Farm in Dennis and in the Hyannis office assembling welcome buckets for Cape visitors and at the Sandwich Post Office.

Amy Hastings, 30, Harwich
Hastings lives at home with her parents, Mary and Brian Hastings, and works part time at the Stop & Shop in Dennis and volunteers at Cape Cod Hospital.


Hastings has participated in Special Olympics since she was 10 or 11, said her mother, Mary Hastings. She's been to games in North Carolina, Iowa and Ireland, and has competed in soccer, gymnastics, tennis, skiing and cycling.

"I like a lot of people. I have tons of friends," Hastings said. "In Boston, for the state games, our team the Life Survivors team, we all went out for ice cream almost every night except for Sunday."

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Nicaragua, the new Costa Rica?

I was in Costa Rica about 10 years ago. It was very primitive and had none of the tourist feel to it. From what I hear, things have changed: all inclusive resorts and vacation packages are now commonplace.

Instead, check out Nicaragua:

Geologically, Nicaragua has similar terrain to its eco-tourism hotshot neighbor Costa Rica. It has stunning volcanos, gorgeous beaches and a rich jungle and cloud forest life. What it lacks is the early start that Costa Rica got in perserving these assets. But it also still lacks the crowds and being a traveller there, feels authentic in a way some other central american destinations do not.

Climb It While You Can













I almost fell off Ayers Rocks a few years ago. The climb certainly wasn't arduous, but it was slippery in places. And, of course, outside of the chain that stretches up the steepest part, there are no guardrails or paths. You are pretty much on your own. The views from the top are amazing: The Olgas and the expanse of the Red Center.

Keeping It In The Family

Just when New York State taxpayers thought that it couldn't get worse....

The NYS Democrats put Pedro Espada Jr.'s son Pedro G. Espada on their (read=taxpayers) payroll by CREATING a $120,000/year position. The elder Espada is the ethically challenged downstate senator from the Bronx. Obviously, this is part of the payoff that enticed the elder Espada to return to the Senate Democratic conference.

"The conference wants to use Pedro's vast experience in the government and private sector to help improve communications and cooperation between the State Senate and various city, state, and federal agencies," he said. So what's that experience? Aside from his stint in elected office, Espada helped start the "Neighborhood Empowerment Center" in the Bronx, organizing "job training programs," says Shafran. He vehemently denies that the hiring was connected to the July negotiations between Democrats and Espada's legally embattled father, whose defection to the Republican side brought Albany to a monthlong standstill.

I love the example of Pedro G.'s private sector experience. A quick web search for "Neighborhood Empowerment Center" finds an article that suggests the younger Espada used the non-profit as a campaign office for his City Council run. Shocker...

...the Espadas have blurred the already thin line between running a service organization and a permanent campaign office. NEC [Neighborhood Empowerment Center], run by Pedro U., is supposed to be a neighborhood nonprofit, but the place looks every bit like a campaign office, with stacks of campaign literature everywhere and a box of Espada-for-Council hair combs. The sign above the door has the organization's name on it, but the words "Pedro G. Espada, Executive Director" are at least twice as big. The front door is still emblazoned with seal of the New York State Senate, a relic from the days when his father served in Albany and compiled one of the worst attendance records of any legislator.

And if Espada employees' money flows freely into the campaign, it doesn't seem to find its way so readily to the state Department of Taxation and Finance.

City Limits has learned that last October the state assessed a lien on the Soundview Health Center [Pedro Espada Jr.'s non-profit], citing $413,000 in back payroll taxes that were supposed to have been deducted from employees' checks each week. Since then, Pedro, Jr. has paid back about $43,000 of the debt.

The Neighborhood Empowerment Center's listed number appears to be disconnected.

Surprise, surprise...

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Man's Best Friend

Theodore Dalrymple, the pen name of a retired prison doctor and psychiatrist contrasts the human and veterinary health services of Great Britain and finds that it is much better to be a dog.

As a British dog, you get to choose (through an intermediary, I admit) your veterinarian. If you don’t like him, you can pick up your leash and go elsewhere, that very day if necessary. Any vet will see you straight away, there is no delay in such investigations as you may need, and treatment is immediate. There are no waiting lists for dogs, no operations postponed because something more important has come up, no appalling stories of dogs being made to wait for years because other dogs—or hamsters—come first.

He concludes:

And what I want, at least for that part of my time that I spend in England, is to be a dog. I also want, wherever I am, the Americans to go on paying for the great majority of the world’s progress in medical research and technological innovation by the preposterous expense of their system: for it is a truth universally acknowledged that American clinical research has long reigned supreme, so overall, the American health-care system must have been doing something right. The rest of the world soon adopts the progress, without the pain of having had to pay for it.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Budd Schulberg

Budd Schulberg died a couple of days ago. Schulberg was a legend. I still believe that the best book written about Hollywood is Schulberg's "What Makes Sammy Run?”, a fictionalized look at the movie business.

Schulberg's father ran Paramount Pictures in the 1930's, his mother was Sam Jaffe's sister. He was the prototype Hollywood insider. Schulberg wrote the screenplay to "On the Waterfront" and "A Face in the Crowd." He eventually became Sports Illustrated's boxing correspondent.

Schulberg joined the Communist Party, but became disillusioned when party officials pressured him to incorporate party dogma into his work. He eventually testified in front of the House Un-American Activities Committee and remained unapologetic about it throughout his life.

Tax Dollars for Vacation Trips

10 members for Congress spent time on the Great Barrier Reef under the guise of studying climate change. Who are they fooling? 6 of them brought their spouses, who do not have to pay for travel and accommodations, only food.

Asked about his wife's participation, Mr. [Frank] Lucas cited a busy congressional schedule that often keeps families separated, even on weekends. If spouses couldn't go along on trips abroad, "then you couldn't travel -- simple as that," he said.

A spokeswoman for Mr. [Charlie] Melancon said the representative's wife of 37 years, Peachy Melancon, added "insight and perspective" that "only amplified the educational benefit he gained as a lawmaker."

Aren't these people supposed to be working for us? Dick Morris's book "Outrage" has a chapter devoted to Congressmen who continually take advantage of taxpayers for the benefit of themselves and their families, with spouses, sons and daughters getting favored treatment as lobbyists and privileged insiders. Be certain to read it on an empty stomach.

According to the WSJ, Congressional travel has increased tenfold since the mid-1990's. When are we as taxpayers planning to say that enough is enough? More and more we see our federal representatives gaining more and more power over our lives whilst enriching themselves at our expense.

The latest grab for power is health care reform. Make no mistake. That is what it is, a grab for power. Keep in mind, that while our federal representatives have no problem directing us to a system that will take away our health care choices, they will not be beholden to it themselves.

And, here's more spending:

Lawmakers' move to upgrade the fleet of government jets -- used for travel by lawmakers and other senior government officials -- is just one of more than 1,000 spending projects lawmakers added to the Pentagon's budget for next year that weren't requested by President Barack Obama.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Happy Birthday to the Coast Guard

Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman cites Coast Guard's 219th birthday

Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton convinced Congress to authorize construction of 10 topsail schooners Aug. 4, 1790, for the U.S. Revenue-Marine to combat widespread smuggling. Our nation proudly celebrates that day 219 years ago when the U.S. Coast Guard was born.

Since then, thousands of men and women have stood watch in our oldest continuous seagoing service on land, sea and in the air: ever vigilant, keeping our homeland safe, and protecting our maritime resources. Last year alone, our nation's maritime guardians saved more than four thousand lives with professionalism and courage.

Their proud service today extends far beyond our own shores. Nearly 400 Coast Guardsmen are now serving on point in locations across the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. Coast Guard patrol missions take place wherever America needs: from the waters off Kodiak Island to the Arabian Gulf, across the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Malacca.

Whether conducting drug interdiction, search and rescue operations, confronting our nation's adversaries or training partner nations in maritime security, no one is more skilled or better equipped than our Coast Guard.

The Joint Chiefs and I salute you, all of the hard working men, women and supportive families of our United States Coast Guard. America would not be safe without you.

Happy Birthday and Semper Paratus!

More from National Review:

Thanks for your post on the Coast Guard. It is worth noting that while other federal, state and local agencies utterly screwed up the response to Hurricane Katrina, the Coast Guard (and to a lesser extent both the state and federal Fish and Wildlife Services) rescued tens of thousands of people — at least 33,500 by this count, which I've seen confirmed elsewhere.

The Guardsmen were true heroes, yet never really got the credit due them. I'm glad you gave them some notice.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Wow

Midlands ambulance crews strain to help obese patients

Lincoln Fire & Rescue, for example, is considering putting a construction crane and a forklift on call for patients who are too big to get out a door or down steps. Firefighters had to use a tarp to haul an 800-pound patient a few years ago.

Lloyd Rupp, a battalion chief in the Omaha Fire Department, said his crews encounter a 400-pound-plus patient every several days. Five to 10 years ago, crews would run into such patients every couple of weeks.

Did we ever think it would come to this?

Monday, July 27, 2009

You Don't Say...

Argentina's first couple deliver prosperity – for themselves

They were elected on the promise of delivering prosperity to Argentina, but statistics showing a stunning economic turnaround have come with a catch.

New figures show that since Nestor and Cristina Kirchner came to power in 2003, they have presided over a remarkable sixfold increase in their own wealth.

We would expect this from a friend of Hugo Chavez, but we increasingly see this more and more in the United States, where our founding fathers envisioned public service as just that: serving the public.

Why is it that the net worth of most politicians increases exponentially whilst in office? They make less then $200,000 per annum.

Term limits, anyone?

Interesting article...

Another...

Sunday, July 26, 2009

Hall of Famer Jim Rice

Congratulations Jim Rice-

Remember this?

The date was Aug. 7, 1982. Dave Stapleton was at the plate. The shortstop sent a screaming line drive into the stands.

"I saw the ball hit the bat and heard the crack, and thought it hit the side of the dugout," Tom Keane recently recalled to the Associated Press. "I turned, and there was my son [Jonathan] with blood gushing out of his head."

That's when Rice stepped into the picture.

"The next thing I remembered was Jim Rice picking him up," Keane said. "We ran through the dugout. I was kind of chasing Jim Rice; he was carrying Jonathan. There was an ambulance waiting. When we got to the hospital, they were set up for neurosurgery."

"In times like that, you really see the quality of the character of the people involved," Tom Keane said to the AP. "Jim Rice is a really humble guy. He doesn't want to take credit for doing anything out of the ordinary. He said he did anything anyone would have done.

"I think that's an understatement of what he did that day. He did something that nobody else did. He may very well have saved my son's life."

Our Elected Representatives Lying To Us Again?

From CNN Money, the fine print in the Congressional Health Plans--

In promoting his health-care agenda, President Obama has repeatedly reassured Americans that they can keep their existing health plans -- and that the benefits and access they prize will be enhanced through reform.

A close reading of the two main bills, one backed by Democrats in the House and the other issued by Sen. Edward Kennedy's Health committee, contradict the President's assurances. To be sure, it isn't easy to comb through their 2,000 pages of tortured legal language. But page by page, the bills reveal a web of restrictions, fines, and mandates that would radically change your health-care coverage.

Basically, it's fewer choices all the way around and no reward for a healthy lifestyle. And, keep in mind, our Congressional representatives have exempted themselves from these plans.

Saturday, July 25, 2009

John Stossel's Health Care Segment Postponed Again By ABC

Stossel writes:

My piece of British and Canadian healthcare has been postponed once again. Now it’s scheduled to run, not tonight, but next Friday, July 31 at 10pm ET.

His latest column about the arrogance of half-witted politicians:

It's crazy for a group of mere mortals to try to design 15 percent of the U.S. economy. It's even crazier to do it by August.

Yet that is what some members of Congress presume to do. They intend, as the New York Times puts it, "to reinvent the nation's health care system".

Let that sink in. A handful of people who probably never even ran a small business actually think they can reinvent the health care system.

He concludes:

Who will save us from these despots? What Adam Smith said about the economic planner applies here, too: The politician who tries to design the medical marketplace would "assume an authority which could safely be trusted, not only to no single person, but to no council or senate whatever, and which would nowhere be so dangerous as in the hands of a man who had folly and presumption enough to fancy himself fit to exercise it."

Scary...

Medicaid, Medicare, the VA, all government controlled and compromised by inefficiency, fraud and poor service. Now we want them controlling the rest of it?

Harry Patch, the last British army veteran of World War I, has died at 111

Britain's last World War I veteran has died.

Born in southwest England in 1898, Patch was called up for military service in 1916 when he was working as a teenage apprentice plumber. After training he was sent to the trenches as a machine-gunner in the Duke of Cornwall's Light Infantry.

A few weeks later, in one of the bloodiest battles of the war at Passchendaele, near the Belgian town of Ypres, he was badly wounded and three of his best friends were killed by a shell explosion.

I have visited the battlefield site referenced above. If you are ever in the area of Bruges, be certain to look up Quasimodo Tours. I always prefer to go on my own, avoiding bus tours whenever possible, but Quasimodo does a great job with World War I sites. The guide was outstanding; he was friendly with several WWI veterans at the time and extremely informative and interesting.

Friday, July 24, 2009

Pigs At The Trough

Corruption is cultivated at a young age in New Jersey.

Usually, it's guys like Sharpe James who are taken down by corruption charges after long years in public service bilking the taxpayers.

Hoboken Mayor Peter Cammarano learned early on what was neccessary to succeed in New Jersey politics. And, he's refusing to step down.

Of course, this is old hat for the Garden State. Fortunately for the rest of us, the Feds seem to be catching on.

Here's the next question: Why stop at New Jersey?

Sapristi!

The French may have to work on Sunday.

Heaven forbid...

Efforts by President Nicolas Sarkozy to liberalize store hours on Sundays progressed with a narrow victory in the Senate on Thursday. The law would allow Sunday retail openings in about 500 tourist areas and in some large cities like Paris, Lille and Marseille, if the mayor of each city agrees. The opposition Socialist Party said it would challenge the effort.

What next? Optional overtime?

Mt. Washington Mascot Euthanized

Nin the cat is dead.

He lived a full life, from the streets of Vermont to the top of New England’s highest mountain to the colorful pages of a children’s picture book.

But old age and a liver tumor began taking their toll, and last week, Nin, the former mascot of New Hampshire’s Mount Washington Observatory, was laid to rest. He was believed to be 19 or 20 years old.

Tour de France

Scene from Stage 11 - Vatan to Saint-Fargeau



Lance is still looking to be on the podium in Paris. Tomorrow should be a great stage: a mountain top finish on Mont Ventoux then on to Paris.

Mark Buehrle

It's amazing that such a hittable pitcher can throw a no-hitter and a perfect game. He hovers around 90 MPH at the most. There is something to be said for hitting your spots.

Ramon Castro, a Mets early season cast-off, called the game. It was his first time catching Buehrle.

Congratulations Mark Buehrle.

Watch every out on YouTube.