Sharks apparently have angiogenin inhibitors in their blood which prevents tumors from forming new bloods vessels around themselves (and thereby spreading throughout the body). This makes them almost invulnerable to cancer. Furthermore, they have a generalized immune system (much like a human infant) which allows them to withstand exposure to new and highly toxic substances. Read more here.
For additional animal fun facts, check out this list.
The following is an excerpt from an email sent by Moveon.org today regarding the prisoner abuse scandal and Rumsfeld not taking any heat for it:
General Anthony Zinni, former commander-in-chief of the United States
Central Command and Bush administration special envoy to the Middle
East said,
"I blame the civilian leadership of the Pentagon directly.
Because if they were given the responsibility, and if this was their
war, and by everything that I understand, they promoted it and
pushed it - certain elements in there certainly - even to the point
of creating their own intelligence to match their needs, then they
should bear the responsibility."
"But regardless of whose responsibility I think it is, somebody has
screwed up. And at this level and at this stage, it should be evident
to everybody that they've screwed up. And whose heads are rolling on
this? That's what bothers me most."
"Look, there is one statement that bothers me more than anything else.
And that's the idea that when the troops are in combat, everybody
has to shut up. Imagine if we put troops in combat with a faulty
rifle, and that rifle was malfunctioning, and troops were dying as a
result"
"I can't think anyone would allow that to happen, that would not
speak up. Well, what's the difference between a faulty plan and
strategy that's getting just as many troops killed?"
Some dude gathered up 300 of the most interesting icons from around the web (1800 sites, to be exact). Included are arrows, bullets, shopping cart icons, etc.
'Nuff said. Read the article about the $150,000,000,000 war in Iraq.
Excerpt:
Rep. Curt Weldon, R-Pa., vice chairman of the House Armed Services Committee and a hawk on defense issues, said in an interview that his concern is that the administration has not been including the war's costs in the Defense Department's regular budget, but instead has been seeking special supplemental budgets, appropriations, which it has asked for as late as possible to delay the public release of financial information on the war.
Worse, he said, by providing funding so late, the administration has placed further stress on the military itself, which is having to scramble and transfer money from other accounts to temporarily cover some war costs.
"Somehow, they have come to think that it's politically embarrassing that they need more money to pay for this war," Weldon said of President Bush and his aides. "If they're doing this for political purposes, I think it's stupid. It's shortsighted."
The Washington Post has an article about various conservatives voicing pretty harsh criticism against the current administration. Click "Continue reading" to read the full article (WashPost requires registration.)
Read full entry...It took me a little time to find a comprehensive collection of the photos of the Iraqi prisoners. The Memory Hole has a pretty comprehensive collection of the images released thus far.
DId you know that the famous picture of the flag being planted on Iwo Jima was actually the *second* flag, and was a staged event? Here is the first flag raised over Iwo Jima, and here is a picture of the changing of the flags. You can see a whole slideshow of the flag raising at iwojima.com.
Experts: Bush Leads By Instinct
Insights gleaned from "insider" accounts show a leader with "bias for action," analyst says.
By Maura Reynolds, Los Angeles Times
Read full entry...I came across an artile in the Austin Chronicle from June 22, 2001 about the shutdown of Radio Free Ausin. I must admit that I hadn't thought about the impact of truly local radio (aside from the usual bitching about Clear Channel and bad teeny bopper music), but the political and community ramifications are pretty drastic. It seems the FCC is trying to offer low-power broadcasters an alternative via the LPFM license, but here is Radio Free Austin's rationale for rejecting that license. At first, some of the arguments seem a little disengenuous to me, but I guess if you look at the lengths that advertisers are willing to go through to reach any share of captive audiences, it's not hard to imagine provisions for corporate underwriting eventually transforming the LPFM scene into just another venue for advertisements.
GQ magazine has an interview with Colin Powell. I've mirrored the entire text below. If you want to see some real insights into this administration - from none other than their very own Secretary of State - you need to read this. You also get low-down comments on various figures in the administration from people like Harlan Ullman, who was Powell's mentor at the National War College.
[Side note: Colin Powell is someone I've always had respect for, and I felt more than a little betrayed when I found out about the forged documents in his speech to the UN.]
Read full entry...Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain. Looks interesting - its approach is centered around resolving the conflicting mental tendencies (especially of highly analytical people) that hinder effective and creative drawing.
In case you were wondering, here is a pretty complete list of printing options available to command-line LPR: http://wwwcascina.virgo.infn.it/lpoptions.html
