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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - A military helicopter was shot down in eastern Afghanistan, killing 31 U.S. special operation troops, most of them from the elite Navy SEALs unit that killed al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden, along with seven Afghan commandos. It was the deadliest single incident for American forces in the decade-long war. The Taliban claimed they downed the helicopter with rocket fire while it was taking part in a raid on a house where insurgents were gathered in the province of Wardak late Friday.

This backyard roller coaster has a 360 degree vertical loop in it. http://www.collegehumor.com/video/6170145/homemade-roller-coaster

After all of the latest news on the "capture and execution" of OBL, I went back to an "Opinion Piece" that I wrote almost 10 years ago. -- -- -- Osama bin Laden is Already Dead By Highwheeler at freerepublic.com In the weeks since the terrorist airliner hijackings and the subsequent attacks on the WTC and Pentagon, both U.S. military and U.S. political strategies have been slowly revealed. Not every piece of information was overt and obvious to the casual observer about these operations. While certain pieces of information were outwardly and proudly proclaimed, most were the carefully and heavily...

The United States military is claiming that they have killed the world’s top terrorist in Abbottabad, Pakistan. This news has been met with much skepticism, however, as it is widely believed that the real Osama bin Laden died in December 2001. After decades of frivolously meandering around the Middle East in a “hunt” for Osama bin Laden, the United States military claims to have killed the world’s most wanted fugitive inside a million-dollar compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan yesterday. There have been no pictures released yet and bin Laden’s body was reportedly “buried at sea”. Was that the real Osama bin...

Video at link.

Ike Ditzenberger and his teammates on the Snohomish Panthers have inspired millions. Tonic shares with you the stories of five other heartwarming sports legends. Yesterday we told you the story of 17-year-old Ike Ditzenberger, a football player with Downs syndrome, who plays for the Snohomish Panthers in Seattle. The YouTube video of his amazing 51-yard touchdown, now affectionately known as The Ike Special has touched the hearts of over 2 million viewers.

Ben Brooks, a lawyer and Republican state senator from coastal Alabama, says he's no fan of big government but he expects an aggressive federal response as a gunky oil spill threatens the Gulf of Mexico. "There's nothing inherently contradictory in saying we believe in smaller government and demanding that the government protect public safety," Brooks said. ...All along the Gulf Coast, where the tea party thrives and "socialism" is a common description for any government program, conservatives who usually denounce federal activism suddenly are clamoring for it. ...Jindal is a fiscal conservative who made headlines last year by rejecting some...

good discussion with Tea Party Leaders

Here is the Rat's cheat sheet. Is it a surprise that it is called a "cheat" sheet. Rats can't do anything honestly.

Interesting discussion

Interesting aspect of the world's population.

Hilarious video with a great ending.

Executives at Goldman Sachs sold almost $700m worth of stock following the collapse of Lehman Brothers last September, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Most of the sales occurred during the period in which the investment bank enjoyed the support of $10bn from the troubled asset relief programme. The surge in selling among Goldman partners, at a time when the US government had thrown a lifeline to Wall Street, is likely to draw criticism from lawmakers on Capitol Hill. Having survived the crisis, the bank is expected to report strong second-quarter earnings on Tuesday on rebounding trading...

"President Obama is joined by Senior Advisors David Axelrod and Valerie Jarrett, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on a tour of the Sultan Hassan Mosque in Cairo."

"There was a girl who gave me (Leo Buscaglia speaking here) a poem, and she gave me permission to share it with you, and I want to do that because it explains about putting off and putting off and putting off - especially putting off caring about people we really love. She wants to remain anonymous, but she calls the poem, "THINGS YOU DIDN'T DO" and she says this": == == == == == == == == Things You Didn't Do Remember the day I borrowed your brand new car and I dented it? I thought you'd kill me, but...

(CBS/AP) Protests continued through the night at the United States' foremost Roman Catholic university, as demonstrators object to the school's decision to invite President Obama to give the commencement address this afternoon, given his stands on abortion and embryonic stem-cell research. Anti-abortion activists promise to disrupt the president's appearance on Sunday at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind., where he also will receive an honorary degree. Mr. Obama is scheduled to speak at 2:00 p.m. ET. South Bend police expect thousands of demonstrators opposed to abortion rights on Sunday, reports CBS affiliate WSBT. But some anti-abortion right...

Russell Dunham, a World War II Army veteran who received the Medal of Honor, the military's highest decoration for valor, after he assaulted three German machine gun emplacements, killed nine German soldiers and took two prisoners on a snowy morning in 1945, died Monday at his home in Godfrey, Ill., of congestive heart failure. He was 89. On Jan. 8, 1945, Tech. Sgt. Dunham's company, part of the 3rd Infantry Division, was facing a formidable German force at the small town of Kayserberg, France, on the Franco-German border. The men were issued white mattress covers as camouflage in the deep...

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Do you remember when Taz got the "wild turkey surprise" from Bugs? Here is the modern, updated version! Click the link below!