Free Republic

Five of the popular animals euthanized after girl, 9, is bitten Public condolences poured into the Minnesota Zoo on Friday, as zoo visitors and staff mourned the deaths of an entire meerkat family. Kids raced to the outdoor exhibit in Apple Valley and plastered their hands against the glass, only to find nothing inside. A small boy in a stroller wailed as his mother told him the creatures were away on vacation. "This is a hard day. This was frustrating, sad and totally avoidable," said Tony Fisher, zoo collections manager. "People need to respect the barriers we put up to...

Friends, I bear bad news. SF editor and founder of Baen Books, Jim Baen, died quietly around 5PM yesterday, June 28, 2006. The source link has his obituary, written by his friend and fellow author and editor, David Drake. Editor extraordinaire, friend of the fans, patriot. Jim will be greatly missed. . . .

. . .Jim Baen, editor and publisher of Baen Books, had a stroke last evening and is in a coma. His wife and children are at his side at a hospital. The family requests no cards or flowers at this time. Prayers, however, are a very different matter, and much appreciated. Updates at Baen's Bar, Waiting Room Conference You will have to create an account to read status, but it's free and spam-free. . . The Bar

As many of you here in West Virginia know, Senator Byrd's wife died recently. And that he was married for 55+ years. Which means the 6-month rule may come into play: i.e. with long, stable marriages, spouses often die within 6 months of each other. . . Which, in turn, means we may well be looking at an Open Seat, come November, or, alternately, Senator Byrd dying AFTER filing/nominating dates close: the "Missouri" scenario that bit John Ashcroft. So, putting on my old hat as a contingency planner (acquired while I was in the Air Force). . . . what...

April 2006 Message from Dan Greetings Readers, Friends, and Other Visitors: The Time Traveler appeared suddenly in my study on New Year’s Eve, 2004. He was a stolid, grizzled man in a gray tunic and looked to be in his late-sixties or older. He also appeared to be the veteran of wars or of some terrible accident since he had livid scars on his face and neck and hands, some even visible in his scalp beneath a fuzz of gray hair cropped short in a military cut. One eye was covered by a black eyepatch. Before I could finish dialing...

Went to pick some things up at the local Wally-world today, and there, covering the theft sensors, it was. . . a movie poster announcing the release of "Brokeback Montain" on DVD. . .and curiously enough, the NEXT sensor had an ad for "Narnia". . . I was under the impression that Wal-Mart was trying to be family-friendly, at least in entertainment: they limit song lyrics, I'm actually surprised that they're selling "Brokeback" next week . . .

This is a wierd one. I'm about to move to West Virginia, and looking into getting broadband there. And Time-Warner Cable claims they need my SOCIAL SECURITY number in order to apply for Internet Access. Anyone ever heard of such a requirement before ???

Leave it to some wag on the net. . . First came the Hamsterdance. Cute, but annoying. . . . Then the Mohammed Cartoons. Annoying to Muslims. . . . . .thus, someone wed the two together and formed. . . The Mohammed Dance Page!No, I didn't write it, but I did spit a mouthful of Coke all over my keyboard when I saw it. .

OK, we keep hearing the Governor's race is neck and neck, with Tim Kaine possibly ahead. Heck, I live in NoVa, and have YET to hear one Jerry Kilgore ad, and yet hear 4-5 Tim Kaine ads on the drive in and the drive home. So I'm getting a bit worried. Any GOOD, RELIABLE sources of how not just the Governor's race, but Lt. Governor (I **hate** Lesbian, excuse me, Leslie Byrne with a passion), Attorney General, and the General Assembly as well ? I'm actually worried that with Warner in the Governor's office, and the current crop of RINOs...

I'm sure all too many of us have gotten disgusted with the idiotic antics of PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Well, with a little luck, it may be payback time. . . You see, driving home from grocery shopping yesterday, I heard an ad for Oscar Mayer's latest promotion: Win the Wienermobile for a Day: you just have to write an essay on how and where you'd use it. At this point, many of you are, no doubt, hearing a large-skulled lab mouse whisper into your ear: Are YOU pondering what **I'M** pondering ??? Yep. I am....

This morning, I checked my bank account online, to see exactly what my pay was this week (I'm hourly, so it varies), and to my very pleasant surprise, my refund from the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Taxation was there as well. . .3 days after they accepted my electronically-filed return. So I **THEN** hit the IRS Website, link above, to check status on my Federal Refund. And got an interesting response: it told me to CALL the IRS, give a specific extension, and reference a certain code-number. I did so. The IRS person who eventually answered (~5 minutes on...

This is part of a semi-regular series of flash lambastes against idiot celebrities called "You're a F*cking Moron". It's not work-safe, and the language is definitely blue, but it DOES roast ol' Jabba on the spit to a definite crisp. . . http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/189866 Additional warning: sponsored by some kind of "adult" personals site, some might find that objectionable. . .

A quick look at the DUmmies shows their latest tactic: another googlebomb attempt, trying to link the best-selling Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth's "Unfit for Command" with either the White House bio of President or the President's re-election campaign site. Truly pitiful. . .and to think they actually BELIEVE this kind of crap changes minds ???

There it was, at the top of the Drudge Report: the many projected paths of Hurricane Frances. And then it hit me: it could go left, it could go right, it could go anywhere. Sound Familiar ? Let's give a big welcome to Hurricane Frances: The Kerrycane !!

Check the link for the latest "graphic sign" the 'rats are pushing. Not only is it lousy artwork, as I'm sure Registered or SacredCowBurgers or similar could do a MUCH better retaliatory version, but since they have their John Kerry "Patriot" (which, in and of itself is a laugh. . .) kicking Dubya, who's wearing a US Military flier's outfit. Guess they don't like the Military either. I just can't see why sKerry isn't dressed in his Vietnam duds. . . .(evil grin)

While scanning memepool.com, I saw a link to "The Bush Game" a fairly crude flash game and a blantant example of the dirty tricks the Rats are going to pull. . .and, at the very end. . . John Kerry is the hero, and it even opens up Johnkerry.com. . . What depths will they sink to, next ? I suggest we Slashdot 'em: use as much of their bandwidth as we can, and cost 'em money. . .

I've gotten into a discussion of the Iraqi Insurgency, and recall seeing an article or three talking about the nationalities of the insurgency in Iraq, showing significant numbers of non-Iraqis. Anyone have a link ? I've run out of luck trying to find backup to something I read or heard a week or two back. . . .

Man Who Killed Armed Intruder Jailed Eight Years By Will Batchelor, PA News A man who stabbed to death an armed intruder at his home was jailed for eight years today. Carl Lindsay, 25, answered a knock at his door in Salford, Greater Manchester, to find four men armed with a gun. When the gang tried to rob him he grabbed a samurai sword and stabbed one of them, 37-year-old Stephen Swindells, four times. Mr Swindells, of Salford, was later found collapsed in an alley and died in hospital. Lindsay, of Walkden, was found guilty of manslaughter following a three-week...

Many of us know about the "Miserable Failure" Google Poisoning that originally linked the phrase to President Bush's bio on Whitehouse.gov. And, in retaliation, people have linked the phrase to Michael Moore's website, Hillary Clinton's biography, and others. Well, here's a brand new one: Go to local.google.com You'll get two boxes, the first for a subject, and the second for a location. Enter your zip code into the location box Then enter "porn" into the subject box (this is work-safe). While the results are NOT pornographers, I **WILL** say the results are generally the cause of much obscenity. . .

Well, now that Dean has self-destructed, and Kerry is well on the way to the nomination, is it even worth it, voting in the Democratic Primary on Tuesday ?? If so, who for ? Dean's no longer a factor, Edwards is as slimy as Kerry, if not more. . . is this the time to go back to the old plan of voting for Reverend Al for sheer comic value ????