posted by Schna @ 3:08 PM
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - In Washington, there are plenty of ways to say "no comment," but President George W. ahs Bush offered his own formulation, after he refused to "negotiate with myself in public."
Bush used the phrase to deflect a question on the future of Social Security (news - web sites) at a televised news conference.
"Now, the temptation is going to be, by well-meaning people such as yourself and others here, as we run up to the issue, to get me to negotiate with myself in public," Bush told the questioner on Monday. "To say, you know, "What's this mean, Mr. President? What's that mean?
"I'm not going to do that. I don't get to write the law. I'll propose a solution at the appropriate time," Bush said.
In essence, this Bushism means the president will discuss options on such issues as Social Security with members of Congress who write the law, but not with the media.
Asked to explain one facet of his Social Security policy, Bush agreed but said, "I will try to explain how without negotiating with myself. It's a very tricky way to get me to play my cards. I understand that."
posted by Schna @ 10:41 AM
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Imagine roaming the world's largest ocean year after year alone, calling out with the regularity of a metronome, and hearing no response.
Such, apparently, is the situation faced by a solitary whale, species unknown, that has been tracked since 1992 in the North Pacific by a classified array of hydrophones used by the Navy to monitor enemy submarines.
The animal is called the 52 hertz whale because it makes a distinctive stream of sounds at around that basso profundo frequency, just above the lowest note on a tuba.
posted by Schna @ 9:59 AM
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posted by Schna @ 3:05 PM
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BEIJING (Reuters) - An 82-year-old Chinese Nobel physicist has popped the question to a 28-year-old student whom he described as his last gift from God, the Beijing Morning Post said on Friday.
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican man killed his lover in a drunken, drugged fight then cooked the man's body in tomato and onion sauce and ate it over three days
LONDON (Reuters) - Gollum, the creepy character in "Lord of the Rings" with the dual personality and eerie voice, suffered from a schizoid personality disorder, according to a group of medical students.
Thirty students at University College London were asked to explain the odd behaviour the character displayed in the films based on the J.R.R. Tolkien trilogy.
The students noted his solitary habits, spiteful behaviour, odd interests, difficulty in forming friendships, emotional changeability, nervousness and paranoia.
"He fulfils seven of the nine criteria for schizoid personality disorder, and, if we must label Gollum's problems, we believe this is the most likely diagnosis," Dr Elizabeth Sampson, who headed the research team, said in the British Medical Journal on Friday.
His two personalities -- Gollum and Smeagol -- convinced some students it was a case of schizophrenia or multiple personality disorder.
But schizophrenia was ruled out because delusions were not in keeping with Gollum's culture. The interaction between the two personalities shows Gollum is aware of both Smeagol and Gollum at the same time, which is inconsistent with multiple personality disorder, in which one is usually suppressed.
His bulging eyes and weight loss also suggests a thyroid problem, they added.
posted by Schna @ 10:17 AM
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posted by Schna @ 10:24 AM
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Woot — short for "Wow! Loot!" — doesn't tell its shoppers how many watches, laptops or hot-tub phones it has. It just sells what it has in stock, and when the item is gone, sometimes within hours, that's it — there are no rain checks, nothing else to buy. Shoppers have to wait until midnight for the next offering.
PHOENIX (Reuters) - A top municipal official in Phoenix died in a bizarre incident that saw him crawl out of his fast-moving vehicle, stand atop its roof and extend his arms outward before tumbling off, authorities said on Thursday.
posted by Schna @ 10:25 AM
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Parisians skate on the ice rink set 57 meters (188 feet) above the ground on the Eiffel Tower in Paris Thursday Dec. 9, 2004. Lodged between two of the tower's immense latticed steel legs, visible in background, the rink is not big at 200 square meters (2,150 square feet), but adds a new dimension to the breathtaking views from Paris' best-known landmark. It will remain open until Jan. 23, 2005. (AP Photo/Francois Mori
posted by Schna @ 2:20 PM
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COLUMBUS, Ohio - A gunman charged onstage at a nightclub and opened fire on the band and crowd, killing top heavy metal guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and three other people before a police officer shot him to death, authorities said.
...
Damageplan had just begun its first song at Alrosa Villa club Wednesday night when the gunman climbed onstage, started yelling and shot Abbott five or six times at point-blank range, witness Chris Couch said.
posted by Schna @ 1:55 PM
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Investigators say Carr got angry on Nov. 28 when the clerk at a Cumberland Farms would not allow him to pay for a hamburger while it was heating in the store microwave. Police said the clerk, Scott Litzenberger, told Carr he had to bring the burger to the counter 15 feet away to pay for it.
After a sharp exchange of words, the man walked back to the microwave, removed the steaming burger and walked back to Litzenberger.
The two apparently exchanged a few brief words again, when the customer, "just lost it," according to another clerk. Instead of paying for it, Carr shoved it into the clerk's face, burning his face and eye, police Sgt. Anthony Triano said.
The [Santa] dolls opened up like Easter eggs, each containing sweets and a small plastic bag of marijuana.
posted by Schna @ 1:20 PM
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There is an article from the Entertainment section of the AP in today's Yahoo News that talks about the cheesiest lines from films, with Titanic beating everyone ("I'm King of the World!"). Below is an excerpt of the top cheesiest film moments ever (this was a UK survey, FYI):
Here's the list of big cheese moments:
1. "Titanic": Leonardo DiCaprio's "I'm the king of the world!"
2. "Dirty Dancing": Patrick Swayze's "Nobody puts Baby in the corner."
3. "Four Weddings And A Funeral": Andie McDowell's "Is it still raining? I hadn't noticed."
3. "Ghost": Demi Moore's "Ditto." to Patrick Swayze's "I love you."
5. "Top Gun": Val Kilmer to Tom Cruise: "You can be my wingman anytime"
6. "Notting Hill": Julia Roberts' "I'm just a girl... standing in front of a boy... asking him to love her."
7. "Independence Day": Bill Pullman's "Today we celebrate our Independence Day!"
8. "Braveheart": Mel Gibson's "They may take our lives, but they will not take our freedom!"
9. "Jerry Maguire": Renee Zellweger to Tom Cruise: "You had me at hello."
10. "The Postman": A blind woman says to Kevin Costner : "You're a godsend, a savior." He replies: "No, I'm a postman."
posted by Schna @ 2:38 PM
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posted by Schna @ 10:20 AM
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posted by Schna @ 11:15 AM
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The administration's response to the Red Cross report was unsurprising. The military brushed off the Red Cross's complaints when they were made, just as it did at Abu Ghraib. Yesterday, Lawrence Di Rita, a spokesman for Mr. Rumsfeld, said the Red Cross had "their point of view," which was not shared by the Bush administration. The Red Cross's point of view, however, is reflected in the Geneva Conventions and in American law. The recent debate over prisoner abuse has not been brought to the courts, but the Supreme Court has ruled that Mr. Bush cannot suspend due process for prisoners of his choosing.
The White House, the Pentagon and the Justice Department clearly have no intention of addressing the abuse. Indeed, Mr. Bush has nominated one of the architects of the administration's prisoner policy, the White House counsel Alberto Gonzales, to be attorney general. The general who set up the system at Guantánamo is now in charge of prisons in Iraq.
"People measure their feet when they buy shoes. Why shouldn't they measure their penises? A man would not wear children's shoes," said Jan Vinzenz Krause of Vinico, which released the study's findings on World AIDS Day.
posted by Schna @ 1:38 PM
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For all of you who know me, I'm sure you're prepared for many a wild random musing on an assortment of subjects, so...for you and all those who may be new to the world that is my head, enjoy!
