Autumn colors

And you think you’re limber…

Reuters photo taken at the Worldwide Rhythmic Gymnastics Club Championships in Tokyo. The performer is Anna Bessonova of the Ukrane.

Woman with 8-foot-long hair shoots for record

Asha Mandela, a 46-year-old woman in south Florida has dreadlocks measuring 8-feet, 9-inches long.



She has submitted here hair lengh to the Guinness Book of World Records for the Longest Dreadlocks, the first entry in a new category.

It takes one bottle of shampoo and one bottle of conditioner every time she washes her hair and can sometimes take days to fully dry after she washes it.

Mandela said she "used to wash it three times a week. Now I do it once a week. It's very tiring. Sometimes I don't have the energy."

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Busted by Facebook for faking a sick day

If you decide to fake a sick day it would not be a good idea to publish it on Facebook. A man in Australia probably won’t do it again.

A Sydney telco employee has learned the hard way the perils of sharing too much information on Facebook after he was caught by his boss faking a sickie after a big night out.

Kyle Doyle was asked by his manager to provide a medical certificate for the day he took off work.

Doyle asked why he needed a medical slip for just one day.

The manager then gave Doyle a screen print of his Facebook profile, highlighting a status update written on the leave day saying he was not going to work because he was still ‘trashed’ (after as big night out).

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Would we be free to say God Bless America under Socialism?

Will Socialism prevent us from saying God Bless America?

Worries about wholesale voter fraud through ACORN and the real possibility of an America under the rule of Socialism have more Americans turning to prayer than ever before.

There are some universal things immune to Socialism: Love of God, family and country. Because these things are buried deep in the human heart, no media-manufactured Messiah could ever remove them.

The quote above may not be entirely true. The only way love of God could continue under true socialism would be to keep that love in our hearts. Open manifestations of Christian worship could be done only at our peril under socialism.

Patriotism is forever. Socialism, recorded in history the world over, is only a passing thing! The problem is, it can stay long enough to devastate a country before it finally does pass.

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Missing pants $54M case back in court

Remember the administrative law judge that sued a dry cleaner for $54 million over a pair of lost pants?

The former administrative law judge Roy L. Pearson (pictured) was unsuccessful but now the case is back in court.

Pearson has taken his case to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals claiming the lawsuit is not about a pair of pants.

Rather, it is about whether the owners of a neighborhood business misled consumers with a sign that claimed "Satisfaction Guaranteed," he said.

"There is an unconditional guarantee," he argued, unless the merchant indicates otherwise.

Pearson said the sign was deceptive and that the burden was on owners Jin Nam Chung and Soo Chung to explain whether the promise came with restrictions.

Mr. Pearson sued Custom Cleaners in 2005 after claiming the Chungs lost a pair of trousers from a $1,100 blue and burgundy suit.

A D.C. Superior Court judge ruled against Pearson more than a year ago, awarding him nothing.

Pearson had originally sued for $67 million in what some outsiders say is a frivolous lawsuit.

The appeals court is expected to rule in several months. If Pearson loses again, he could seek to have the case heard by the full court or appeal to the Supreme Court.

The case has taken its toll on both sides. The Chungs have sold the dry cleaning shop, citing a loss of revenue and the emotional strain of defending the lawsuit.

Pearson lost his job when a D.C. commission voted not to reappoint him.

And all over one pair of pants.

Link

And you think you’re limber…

Reuters photo taken at the Worldwide Rhythmic Gymnastics Club Championships in Tokyo. The performer is Anna Bessonova of the Ukrane.

Baseball manager and umpire: up close and personal

Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella getting up close and personal with veteran Major League umpire Brian Gorman.

Piniella is probably not inviting Gorman over for tea and crumpets.

McCain POW film released by French archives

There is a story at the link below reporting that a film of John McCain being interviewed as a bedridden prisoner during the Vietnam War has been released by the French national archive.



The British report could only find one negative item about John McCain. They did it in the first paragraph:

The video portrays the Republican as a hero but the message may be tarnished as he is filmed smoking a cigarette.

The very idea! Smoking a cigarette in 1967! How outrageous!

I was a patient at Bryan Memorial Hospital in Lincoln, Nebraska for 7 days in 1969. I was in a six-patient ward and four of the patients smoked. Two were chain-smokers.

Smoking was not a big deal in 1967 - even in hospitals.

Is that all the Brits could find to “tarnish” war hero McCain was that he smoked a cigarette in a North Vietnam hospital in 1967?

Wait until the U.S. media gets hold of this story. They will surely find more McCain ‘faults’ in connection with this story.

POW’s were only given cigarettes for propaganda interviews.

McCain does not smoke. Barack Hussein Obama smokes on the sly because he can’t quit.



The British ‘shocking’ revelation that McCain had a cigarette after being captured by Communists in North Vietnam is here. The video is not easy to watch. It brought tears to my eyes.

The Obama smoking story is here.

Biden: worried about Obama’s inexperience…

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Obama claims to have ‘righteous wind’

Barack Obama told people in Virginia, I feel like we got a righteous wind at our backs here.

That’s probably not setting well with the folks who say he is the anti-Christ.

Link

Hatin’ Palin - can the media stoop any lower?

The U.S. Congress, controlled by Democrats, has the lowest approval rating ever registered in the history of polling (12%!).

Compared to this cesspool, Sarah Palin (pictured) is a breath of fresh air.

She isn't the reason polls are showing people want the entire Congress fired, with many telling pollsters they themselves could do a better job.

Sarah Palin didn't design a system of presidential primaries whose length and cost ensures that only the most obsessional personalities will run the gauntlet, while a long list of effective governors don't run.

These rules have wasted the electorate's time the past three presidential elections, by filling the debates with such zero-support candidates as Dennis Kucinich, Mike Gravel, Al Sharpton, Duncan Hunter, Chris Dodd, Joe Biden (8,000 total votes), Wesley Clark and Alan Keyes.

From this comes a Democratic nominee who became a U.S. Senator in 2005 from the Illinois state legislature with no real record of political accomplishment.

After nearly four years in the U.S. Senate the Democratic nominee, Barack Obama, still has no real record of political accomplishment.

By not bothering to look very deeply at the details beneath either candidate's governing proposals, the media have created a lot of downtime to take free kicks at Gov. Palin.

Some of the less slanderous names used by the media are:

“Republican blow-up doll,” “idiot,” “Christian Stepford wife,” “Jesus freak,” “Caribou Barbie,” “a dope,” “a fatal cancer to the Republican Party,” “liar,” “a national disgrace” and “her pretense that she is a woman.”

Why do they hate her so? Because she could keep Obama from occupying the White House and, to them, that would be unforgivable.

They also hate her because she is intelligent, gracious, and didn’t abort her youngest son when she learned he was a Downs Syndrome child.

They hate her because she has always loved her country and doesn’t apologize for it. She is not like Michelle Obama who said she began to like America for the first time this year. She is not like Barack Obama who spent twenty years in a church led by an America hating pastor -- a pastor preaching that AIDS was invented by the U.S. government to kill blacks!

They also hate her because she is a successful Governor (in spite of the lynching attempted by the Democrats) which means she has more executive management experience in a political setting than either Barack Obama or Joe Biden -- yes that Joe Biden - - the Joe Biden that only got 8,000 total votes in his primary run for the presidency!

Link

Huge Burmese pythons have adopted south Florida

Florida's Everglades National Park is being overrun with Burmese pythons, one of the world's largest snakes.



These pythons (pictured) can grow to be more than 20 feet long in their natural habitat in Southeast Asia.

The pythons that are now inhabiting many parts of south Florida are thought to be freed pets brought in by the booming exotic pet trade.

Burmese pythons are popular—and legal—pet snakes. In the past five years, the U.S. has imported more than 144,000 Burmese pythons.

Hatchlings sell for as little as U.S. $20. But once the cute little baby snakes turn into 15-foot-long beasts, some owners may decide to get rid of their pets by dumping them in the forest.

Link

Racist and redneck remarks may cost House seat for Murtha

John Murtha, Democratic Congressman from western Pennsylvania, is in a battle to retain his seat in the House.

Rep. Murtha (pictured), well-known for his rants on the floor of the House of Representatives, came under fire recently when he accused western Pennsylvania of being racist.

Even though he is a decorated Vietnam combat veteran, his disdain for the military is well-known.

On the floor of the House of Representatives in Washington he once accused some Marines of murdering civilians in Iraq during the ‘Haditha incident.’ During his rant on the House floor, Murtha made slanderous remarks against the Marines involved.

The Marines were later exonerated and two of them are suing Rep. Murtha.

Now the sometimes out-of-control Murtha is fighting another battle -- to keep his seat in the House.

The 76-year-old Murtha has apologized for the racism remark by backpedaling completely, saying he meant to say that skin color is a factor in the battle for the presidency between Obama and Republican John McCain.

Murtha also said that many people in western Pennsylvania were “rednecks.”

This is apparently not setting well with voters in his district. About 54 percent of voters among those polled say it's time for someone else to represent them in Congress. About 35 percent say Murtha deserves to be re-elected.

The Murtha election struggle is here. The lawsuit story of a Marine suing Murtha is here.

If history repeats itself Phillies should win World Series

The team that won the first World Series game went on to win the series in each of the last five years.

If history repeats itself, the Philadelphia Phillies should be able to buy a new costume for the Phillie Phanatic (pictured) and plan their victory parade.

Of course the Tampa Rays will have much to say about that after their “miracle” season.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

For 10 years, the Tampa Bay club was a lousy team with a fiendish nickname: the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Then the club exorcised the “Devil” from its name, and suddenly Tampa Bay is in the World Series.

Maybe they should have chased the Devil out of their name years ago.

Will they go down in flames in the World Series like the Colorado Rockies after their “miracle” year in 2007?

Swimming with a 'blade' at the Olympics

Natalie du Toit of South Africa preparing to compete in the Woman’s Swimming 10k marathon final at the Olympics in China.

Washington Sec of State needs proof of Obama citizenship

A Washington State lawsuit has been filed demanding the Washington Secretary of State verify eligibility to serve before certifying Barack Obama for the ballot.

Numerous Freedom of Information Requests have been sent to Officials in Hawaii with no response from the public officials nor has Mr. Obama granted access for release of information lending to the concern over the veracity of the attestation on the candidate's for candidacy for the office of President of the United States.

There is at least one other lawsuit (found here) demanding that Barack Obama show proof that he is a natural born citizen of the United States.

We posted a copy of Barack Obama’s Hawaii birth certificate here. Of course that does not mean the certificate is authentic. A document like that would be very easy to forge.

Lawsuits such as these will never be resolved until long after the election.

So what happens if Obama is elected and then found to be ineligible to serve? The answer to that is simple -- the vice president would become president who would then nominate someone to be vice president. That nominee would need to be approved by congress like any other presidential appointee.

Some have claimed that Mr. Obama has dual citizenship -- the United States and Kenya. If so, what happens then?

Why is there so much mystery surrounding the eligibility of a candidate for President of the United States just two weeks before the election?

Why hasn’t the media demanded verification of Obama’s eligibility to become president?

The answer to the last question is easy -- the media is “in the tank” for Obama and actively promotes his candidacy. As an example, ABC has been posting non-stop anti-McCain and anti-Palin articles on the Internet since the conventions. MSNBC has programming that amounts to “infomercials” for Obama several hours every day with CNN not far behind.

The Washington State story is here.

AP poll: Obama 44 percent - McCain 43 percent

This morning AP released their latest presidential poll which shows the race all even in the homestretch.

The presidential race tightened after the final debate, with John McCain gaining among whites and people earning less than $50,000, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll that shows McCain and Barack Obama essentially running even among likely voters in the election homestretch.



The poll, which found Obama at 44 percent and McCain at 43 percent, supports what some Republicans and Democrats privately have said in recent days: that the race narrowed after the third debate as GOP-leaning voters drifted home to their party and McCain's “Joe the plumber” analogy struck a chord.

Obama’s double digit lead appears to have evaporated into thin air.

One thing that is never mentioned as a footnote to any of the polling reports is the military vote.

Members of the armed forces have consistently voted 75% to 80% Republican. That’s why Democrats tried their best to disqualify the Florida military ballots in 2000.

Another thing never considered is that polls only include people with landline telephones. Each year more people have given up their landline phones and rely entirely on mobile phones. Could this have an effect on polls?

Link here and here.

Sarah Palin being just one of the folks

No elitism here! Sarah Palin out shopping



Upper photo shows Governor Sarah Palin, flanked by security personnel, while buying diapers in a Wal-Mart store in Gallipolis, Ohio. Palin is holding her youngest son Trig.

The lower photo shows Piper Palin, 7, holding baby brother Trig in a carrier, as she flashes a smile of anticipation at the Cold Stone Creamery in Colorado Springs, Colorado with mom Sarah Palin.

A woman went to jail rather than pay $7 restaurant bill

A Florida woman decided to go to jail rather than pay her bill at a Waffle House restaurant.

The amount of her Waffle House tab was $7.45.

According to a police report, Maryanne O'Neill, 66, ordered coffee and a sandwich at a Waffle House restaurant but refused to pay the bill.

The report said an officer asked her to pay or go to jail and she refused.

She was charged with obtaining food or lodging with intent to defraud, a second degree misdemeanor.

Link

Le hack: Sarkozy’s bank account compromised by thieves

The President of France not immune to criminal hackers.

The French Cabinet's spokesman says “swindlers” have broken into the personal bank account of President Nicolas Sarkozy (pictured).

Spokesman Luc Chatel told France's Radio-J an investigation is under way and insists the incident "proves that this system of checking (bank accounts) via the Internet isn't infallible." He did not elaborate.

President Sarkozy reported the theft last month. Those responsible haven't been found.

Link

About those ACORN fictitious voter names

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Why Obama and the media turned on Joe the plumber

Like Sarah Palin, it didn't take long for Joe the plumber (shown below talking to Obama) to go from political sensation to political target.

“Looks like there's a crack in Joe the Plumber's story,” Democratic activist Bob Mulholland told the San Francisco Chronicle in a story that topped their Web site.

“Joe the Plumber's story sprang a few leaks,” The Associated Press reported.

But does it really matter?

No, Samuel “Joe” Wurzelbacher doesn't have a plumbing license, but his employer does. His back taxes total less than $1,200. Not exactly Wesley Snipes.

But, didn’t Joe the plumber skip school a couple of times in the third grade? How did they miss that?

What outraged the Obama campaign was that Joe the plumber exposed the socialism in Obama’s agenda.

Obama would raise Joe’s taxes in order to “spread the wealth” to people with little or no income.

Joe made $40,000 in 2006, nothing near the $250,000 he hopes to make by one day after buying his boss' company and possibly becoming susceptible to Obama's proposed tax increases.

After Joe the plumber buys the plumbing business and has a few employees, he will most certainly be taxed at a higher rate under the Obama plan.

There are many of thousands of small businesses that require several employees and a lot of equipment and inventory to be successful. If those business owners expect to stay in business, they need more than $250,000 net each year or it isn’t worth the risk.

Socialists don’t understand it.

As a retired tax accountant, I understand it.

Joe the plumber understands it, and now the entire nation understands it.

Link

Glamour to slammer for modern Bonny and Clyde

A former Philadelphia college student has been sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay more than $100,000 in restitution for her part in a brazen identity-theft scheme.

Jocelyn Kirsch, a former Drexel University student, and her boyfriend used the money for expensive salon visits, exotic vacations and fancy dinners.

She pleaded guilty July 14 to aggravated identity theft and other federal crimes.



Travel photos show the 22-year-old Kirsch and Edward Anderton posing in matching red swimsuits (shown above).



Kirsch and Anderton acknowledge stealing the identities of friends and neighbors in 2006 and 2007 to net more than $116,000 in goods and services.

Link

Joe Biden’s gift to John McCain

“Mark my words,” Biden (pictured) told donors at a Seattle fund-raiser Sunday night. “It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy. The world is looking. We're about to elect a brilliant 47-year-old senator president of the United States of America.”

Biden went on:

“Watch. We're going to have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy.”

“And he's going to need help . . . to stand with him. Because it's not going to be apparent initially; it's not going to be apparent that we're right.”

Biden’s words were a gift to Senator McCain who said:

“The next president won't have time to get used to the office. We face many challenges here at home and many enemies abroad in this dangerous world. We don't want a president who invites testing from the world at a time when our economy is in crisis and Americans are already fighting two wars.”

McCain said it was even more troubling that Biden suggested supporters stick by Obama if the actions he takes are wrong or unpopular.

With less governing experience than Governor Palin (who is running for vice president, not president), an Obama presidency will require on the job training in the Oval Office.

Link

Frog or golfer lining up a putt?

Looks more like a frog than a golfer.

Stuart Manley of Wales lines up a putt on the first hole during the second round of the Portugal Masters golf tournament at the Oceanico Victoria golf course in Vilamoura Portugal on October 17, 2008. Reuters photo.

Sarah is accessible to media but Biden’s hidin’

CBS News online reports that Governor Sarah Palin (pictured) is increasingly accessible to the national media.

By contrast, Biden hasn’t held a press conference in more than a month.

For that matter, Obama hasn’t taken questions from his full traveling press corps since the end of September.

John McCain—who spent most of the primary season holding what seemed like one, never-ending media availability—hasn’t done one since Sept. 23.

It was less than two weeks ago when Sarah Palin astonished her traveling press corps by lifting the curtain (literally) and journeying to the back of her campaign plane to answer reporters questions.

Link

Colin Powell endorses Obama for president

Colin Powell (pictured) has finally said what many have predicted for some time.

Retired Gen. Colin L. Powell, one of the country's most respected Republicans, stunned both parties Sunday by strongly endorsing Sen.

Powell, once considered likely to be the nation's first African-American presidential nominee, said his decision was not about race.

Oprah also said her decision to back Barack Obama was not about race.

Moderator Tom Brokaw said: “There will be some ... who will say this is an African-American, distinguished American supporting another African-American because of race.”

It is about race but maybe not entirely.

While Colin Powell was Secretary of State, he was often at odds with President Bush.

Powell left the State Department under somewhat of a cloud. Perhaps the retired general harbors some animosity towards the President, the Secretary of War or the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

A logical conclusion would include a good measure of race (backing a black man for president) and discontent with the Bush administration.

Link to the Powell announcement story here.

Read a book on a handheld with Sony Reader

The Sony Reader has a 6 inch (measured diagonally) screen. It accepts a memory stick duo up to 8GB or a SD card up to 2GB. It has a USB connection and uses a lithium ion battery.



The case measures 6.9 inches x 4.8 inches x 0.3".6 inches.

It displays PDF and Word files, and plays MP3 files.

This reader can hold thousands of titles. The excellent high-contrast screen rivals that of printed page and is easy to read in bright environments.

An on-line review of the Reader says:

1. Downloadable titles are expensive and only available through Sony's online store

2. AC adapter is an optional accessory (you charge the PRS-505 by connecting the included USB cable to your computer)

3. Desktop software isn't available for Mac owners.

4. PDF files are hard to read because they're reduced to fit the screen and you can't magnify (zoom) them.

5. Though diminished, some lag issues remain when flipping pages; no support for Audible audio books.

The Reader is priced at about $300.

A review by Engadget is here.

Flu season is here: learn to stay flu-free

Flu season is under way with outbreaks in several states.

California, Connecticut, Idaho, New York, Alaska and Wyoming all have reported early flu outbreaks. Though the temperatures stay warm there, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Florida have also reported the flu.

Click here for ten ways to stay flu-free.

Cow pasture pool: it’s a dung deal

Golf is sometimes referred to as “cow pasture pool.” Well, it doesn’t get any closer than this!



Photo shows a woman playing in the Cow Dung Golf Tournament in Riederalp, Switzerland last month.

The only rule of the game is to pulverize the most number of cow dungs in two hours time.

Cleaning and deodorizing the golf clubs probably takes another two hours.

Diversity may be returning to the classroom

There is an article at the link below titled: The ’60s Begin to Fade as Liberal Professors Retire. It reports on the increase in the number of politically moderate professors on campus now compared to three or four decades ago.

Baby boomers, hired in large numbers during a huge expansion in higher education that continued into the ’70s, are being replaced by younger professors who many of the nearly 50 academics interviewed by The New York Times believe are different from their predecessors — less ideologically polarized and more politically moderate.

When it comes to those who consider themselves “liberal activists,” 17.2 percent of the 50-64 age group take up the banner compared with only 1.3 percent of professors 35 and younger.

“These findings with regard to age provide further support for the idea that, in recent years, the trend has been toward increasing moderatism,” the study says.

Link

US soldier near Baghdad wears Bible scarf

This Reuters photo shows a U.S. soldier covering his face with a scarf during a patrol in Baquba, in Diyala province 40 miles northeast of Baghdad.

The scarf printed with verses from the Bible - Psalms 91.

Photo taken October 17, 2008.

Pom Pom mom pleads insanity

A 33-year-old woman from Green Bay Wisconsin was accused of stealing her daughter's identity to attend high school and join the cheerleading squad.



Pom pom mom Wendy Brown (shown above in court) has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.

We reported the original story here.

Wendy Brown gave the school a bad check for cheerleader costumes.

Ms. Brown faces a felony identity theft charge after enrolling in a Wisconsin high school as her 15-year-old daughter, who lives in Nevada with Brown's mother.

Brown also faces theft and forgery charges from an unrelated case, where she is accused of collecting money for an apartment she didn't have authority to rent.

Link

The deadly sport of car surfing

Health officials have again warned young people against car surfing in which a person rides on top of a moving vehicle.

At least 58 people have died while car surfing since 1990.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a report that injuries or deaths were reported in 31 states, mainly in the Midwest and the South of the United States. Head injuries killed 45 of the 58 victims.



The photo above shows a young man steering his car through the sunroof while coasting in neural. The photo below was taken by police in Australia.



The CDC strongly recommends that teens not engage in this type of behavior. It's much too risky and dangerous.

It’s also illegal.

Activities like panty raids and swallowing goldfish may be passé but they aren’t deadly.

Link