Squiggler

What I would have written about if I hadn't had connection problems ...

There were several stories today that I would have liked to cover, but the Sun Spots conspired against us all. So instead of trying to play catch up with old news, I have a few posts around the blogosphere that I think are worth a look see.

First, is this dynamite post by Cassandra. It is her answer to another post that ran the other day in the Chicago Tribune. It was a piece by Geoffrey Stone entitled What it means to be a liberal, where Stone pontificates on10 principles that he is convinced liberals believe and conservatives do not. Cassandra responds with what she describes as her "off the cuff" 10 principles conservatives believe in. It is really worth reading. We should all be so "off the cuff" talented.

I would also like to refer you to a couple different posts the Skipper has posted at Barking Moonbat Early Warning System. That's right, our #1 favorite blog.

Treason! "Anyway, the FBI finally got around to putting out a WANTED poster on “Azzam” and surprisingly, he is wanted on charges of treason. Great googley-moogley! The last time that happened was Tokyo Rose in the 1950’s ... who was carrying on a fine tradition begun by Benedict Arnold way back when. "

Million Dollar Baby Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid collected a $1.1 million windfall on a Las Vegas land sale even though he hadn’t personally owned the property for three years, property deeds show.

And Wizbang's Paul has a most interesting post on the New York City plane crash that killed Yankee pitcher Cory Lidle.

Cory Lidle Crash Mystery Solved?

By Paul on News

Let me start with the disclaimer... This is not definitive proof of why Cory Lidle crashed. The accuracy of this radar track has not been verified. Also I don't do this for a living. But having said all that, I think I have more than enough data to make this post. Judge for yourself:

What most non-pilot type people don't know is that (historical) radar tracks are available on the web. Being a curious guy I went looking for the track of the plane and what I found stunned me.

Dubya's Disappearing Deficit

October 12, 2006 -- President Bush took a moment yester day to point with pride at a re election campaign promise kept: He vowed two years ago that his tax cuts would produce enough new revenue to cut the federal deficit by half in five years, and the latest figures show they've done just that - three years early.

It now stands at $247.7 billion - down from $520 billion in 2004.

And it's continuing to drop.

"These budget numbers are proof that pro-growth economic policies work," Bush said.

You'd think that Democrats - they are patriotic Americans, after all - would revel in the good news. Ha!

Continue reading here

Flypaper for Anti-war Numerates

By Seixon on Lancet Study

Was I surprised to see Les Roberts and the gang from Johns Hopkins University publish yet another Iraqi mortality study right before an American election? To tell you the truth, I’m surprised that they had the gall to do it again and I hate the fact that they’re going to get away with it – again. The reason why they are going to get away with it is due to the anti-war mob who peddle it uncritically and see no bias where any rational person would.

Continue reading here

In addition to Seixon's post noted above, Instapundit has the following on the Lancet Study that concludes that skepticism is definitely in order.

A NEW LANCET STUDY ON IRAQI CASUALTIES: I'm skeptical, given their past track record. Meanwhile, Tim Blair notes the paucity of actual data: "Remember: Lancet came up with this via a survey that identified precisely 547 deaths (as reported by the New York Times)." He also notes that it's a rather large claim by historical standards: "It is a larger number than were killed in Germany during five years (and 955,044 tons) of WWII bombing." John Wixted comments:

The Lancet, of course, is the same journal that published a similarly flawed study on the eve of the last presidential election in a transparent attempt to influence the outcome (to no avail, fortunately). That study claimed that more than 100,000 Iraqis had died as a result of the invasion.

(Compare that claim with this UN study.) He notes that The Lancet also claimed that 567,000 Iraqis died as a result of sanctions before the war. Omar of Iraq the Model is not pleased, and one of his commenters wonders where all the bodies are. And Chicago Tribune blogger Frank James says that people are right to be skeptical.

UPDATE: MedPundit Sydney Smith notes that the study is getting a skeptical reception from statisticians.

 

Tokoyo Rose dies at age 90

NYTimes:

Iva Toguri D’Aquino, the Japanese-American convicted of treason in 1949 for broadcasting propaganda from Japan to United States servicemen during World War II as the seductive but sinister Tokyo Rose, died Tuesday in Chicago. She was 90.

Iva Toguri was a Japanese-American radio propagandist during World War II. She was pegged “Tokyo Rose” by allied forces because she was known for taunting them and hurting their morale. After the war in 1945, Tokyo was arrested and tried for 8 counts of treason. She was only found guilty of one charge and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and fined 10,000. Tokyo was released early in 1956 for good behavior.

Donations in Steve Irwin's name ...

The family of the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, have made a request for donations in his memory to go to Wildlife Warriors Worldwide. More information can be found on the official Crocodile Hunter website. The site has been experiencing an overload so if you don't get connected, please try again later.

NOTE: To News Media:
Give it a G.D. rest on the scene of Irwin and his then 1 mo. old son feeding the croc. It is 2 year old news and is designed to besmirch his memory. Shut the eff up about it. The man is dead.

Shocking 51% want us to fail

I usually start my day with my feed reader and scrolling through the new messages of the blogs I like to read each day. These are listed in alphabetical order, so Ace is usually my first stop. Today, Ace has a post with such shocking information in it, I am blown away. It is almost inconceivable.

His post, titled: Shock: Majority Of Democrats Finally Admit To Wanting An American Defeat

The gist of the post is based on a Fox poll:

Fox asked, “Regardless of how you voted in the presidential election, would you say you want President Bush to succeed or not?” 51% of Democrats answered “No” to that question. 40% answered yes, and 9%, who are still apparently trying to determine just how deranged they are by their Bush hatred, answered “I don’t know.”

I won't repeat Ace's reaction, as you can click on the above link and read it for yourself, but suffice to say, my reaction exceeds his and that's saying something.

I find these numbers mindnumbingly shocking. What happened to being Americans first? How did we reach the point in this country where more than half would put their partisanship above their patriotism? Think about it. 1 in every 2 people you meet would rather see this country suffer massive casualties, have our soldiers die in larger numbers, and generally fail rather than give the present Administration support. This is a terrible development and an incredibly dangerous one to boot. Come on people ... this country is the greatest in the world.

Links to interesting articles you might have missed today ...

Common Sense: Know Your Enemy

Commentary by Col. Oliver North

• Video: Birth of Hezbollah

Washington, D.C. — If recent surveys of public opinion are correct, war-weary Americans are already suffering "combat fatigue" from the most recent battle in the Global War on Terror — the fight between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Apparently the U.S. public doesn't believe this bloody engagement has much to do with us — hence the waning interest. Those who believe that Hezbollah is simply an Israeli problem need to think again.

"Know your enemy" isn't just a hackneyed military slogan — it's an essential survival tool in this new world disorder of global Islamic terror. Hezbollah is — and has always been — America's enemy.

Incoming! Raining Rockets

  Rick's Rambles (Rick Leventhal)

*New* There were 25 rockets flying over head in a single hour.

I didn't need an alarm clock Sunday morning. A Katyusha rocket hit close enough to shake the hotel. Then another hit, and another; I think five hit in all, right at 7 a.m.

Later, at our live location in Kiryat Shmona — more rockets came flying in. One after another, booming into the hillside, occasionally hitting the town.

There were 25 in a single hour, and dozens more in the afternoon.

Early evening, back at the hotel and very close to the border, there were more incoming rockets. None of them hit the building, or even hit the block, but it's still a bit freaky. I keep waiting for the direct shot, wondering if the ceiling will collapse on my head.

• Video: Covering Bint Jbail

Pew: More Dems Than Repubs Get News from ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, NPR, MSNBC...

In Polling

Liberal media critics dismiss FNC as biased to the right, pointing to how Republicans prefer to watch it, but a new poll completed by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press found that by the same margin that Republicans choose to get their news from FNC, Democrats prefer to learn their news from the broadcast networks and, to a somewhat lesser extent, CNN and NPR. In the survey released Sunday, 34 percent of Republicans reported they watch FNC regularly, compared to 20 percent of Democrats -- a 14 point spread. As for the broadcast networks, Pew reported: “The gap between Republicans and Democrats in regular viewership of the nightly network news on ABC, CBS, or NBC is now 14 points, nearly three times as large as it was in 2004; currently, 38 percent of Democrats regularly watch compared with 24 percent of Republicans. There is a slightly smaller gap in the regular audience for NPR -- 22 percent of Democrats listen regularly, compared with 13 percent of Republicans.” A higher percentage of Democrats than Republicans watch CNN, MSNBC, network morning shows, Sunday morning interview programs and TV news magazine shows. Other than FNC, Rush Limbaugh is the only measured news source to which more Republicans than Democrats turn.

Ambassador Bolton Works To Pass Strong Iranian U.N. Resolution

Dems Continue False Attacks Against Ambassador Bolton

Ambassador Bolton Helps Pass U.N. Security Council Resolution Setting Deadline For Iran To Suspend Uranium Enrichment Program:

"The U.N. Security Council Passed A Resolution ... Giving Iran Until The End Of August To Suspend Uranium Enrichment Or Face The Threat Of Economic And Diplomatic Sanctions." ("U.N. Security Council Gives Iran Until End Of August To Suspend Uranium Enrichment," The Associated Press, 7/31/06)

• "The Draft Passed By A Vote Of 14-1. Qatar, Which Represents Arab States On The Council, Cast The Lone Dissenting Vote." (U.N. Security Council Gives Iran Until End Of August To Suspend Uranium Enrichment," The Associated Press, 7/31/06)

Ambassador Bolton: "We are pleased the council has taken clear and firm action in passing this resolution. ... This resolution also demands action. It sends an unequivocable and unambiguous message to Tehran ..." (Ambassador John Bolton, Remarks To The United Nations Security Council, New York NY, 7/31/06)

• Ambassador Bolton: "This is the first Security Council resolution on Iran in response to its nuclear weapons program, reflecting the gravity of this situation and the determination of the council ... I would like to thank all members of the council for their efforts in helping us secure a strong resolution." (Ambassador John Bolton, Remarks To United Nations Security Council, New York NY, 7/31/06)

Who is this man?

(Graphic images)
If he had been a genuine rescue worker, he would deserve a medal. Mr "Green Helmet" is everywhere at Qana, rushing around pulling children out of the rubble, carting them to ambulances and even, on the front page of the Guardian, escorting "White Tee-shirt", who also performs his own cameo role, carting round the body of another unfortunate girl, emoting freely while he does so.

That photograph is credited to Nicolas Asfouri of AFP/Getty Images and the caption reads, "A man screams for help as he carries the body of a young girl after Israeli air strikes on the southern Lebanese village of Qana".

"White Tee-shirt" is still "screaming" on the front page of The Telegraph, but in an altogether different location, this photograph attributed to Reuters.  He also makes the front page of The Times and The Independent, in yet another location, with “Green Helmet” just out of shot.

Earthquake and Tsunami Java - UPDATED

Reuters is reporting:

JAKARTA (Reuters) - An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 hit south of the Indonesian province of Java, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said on Monday. The U.S. agency said that there was a possibility of a   local tsunami, but no threat of a destructive widespread   tsunami.

The Associated Press reports that at least three people have been killed by a tsunami on Indonesia's Java island, according to a witness speaking to a local radio station.

UPDATE:

Via FoxNews: 

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A powerful earthquake sent a two-meter high tsunami crashing into a beach resort on Indonesia's Java island Monday, killing at least three five people and causing extensive damage to hotels and houses, a witness and a government official said.

People fled to a local hill to escape the wave on Pangandaran beach in west Java, a woman who identified herself only as Teti told el-Shinta radio station.

"All the houses are destroyed along the beach," she said, adding that at least three people were killed and four others missing.

The tsunami followed a 7.2-magnitude quake that struck deep beneath the Indian Ocean 150 miles southwest of Java's western coast at 3:24 p.m., causing tall buildings to sway as far off as the capital Jakarta.

It was followed by a 6.1-magnitude aftershock two hours later.

Transport Minister Hatta Radjasa said he had heard reports about a tsunami striking two seaside towns, and urged people living on Java's southern coast to move inland in an orderly fashion.

UPDATE:

 Death Toll in Indonesia Tsunami at 86

        By CHRIS BRUMMITT
        Associated Press Writer
       

            JAKARTA, Indonesia
   

        A powerful earthquake sent a 6-foot-high tsunami crashing into beach resorts on Indonesia's Java island Monday, killing at least 86 people, leaving scores missing and sending thousands fleeing to higher ground, officials and witnesses said.

Regional bulletins that the 7.7-magnitude undersea earthquake was strong enough to send a killer wave steaming toward the country worst hit by the 2004 Asian tsunami did not reach the victims, because the nation's main island has no warning system.

Thousands fled to higher ground along a 110-mile stretch of the densely populated island's southern coast. The hardest-hit area appeared to be Pangandaran, an idyllic beach resort long popular with local and foreign tourists. Witnesses there said people shouted "Tsunami! Tsunami!" and climbed trees or crowded into inland mosques as the wave approached.

Red Cross official Arifin Muhadi told The Associated Press that 69 people were killed, most in Pangandaran, and that 77 others were missing.

"We are still evacuating areas and cross-checking data," he said.

Metro TV, citing local officials, said that at least three areas along the coast had people dead or missing.

A witness told el-Shinta radio that he saw the ocean withdraw 500 yards from the beach a half-hour before the giant wave smashed to shore, a typical phenomena before a tsunami.

"I could see fish jumping around on the ocean floor," Miswan said. "Later I saw a wave like a black wall."

Local media reports said the wave came as far 300 yards inland in some places. Buildings sit close to the beach in Pangandaran and other coastal areas.

Roads were blocked and power cut to much of the area. Damage and casualties were reported at several spots along the 110 miles of beach affected, officials and media reports said.

"All the houses are destroyed along the beach," another woman, Teti, told the station. "Small hotels are completely destroyed and at least one restaurant was washed away."

Santi, a tourist at Pangandaran, told The Associated Press said she saw about 20 bodies at a health clinic. Officials at the clinic could not immediately be reached for comment.

Indonesia has installed a warning system across much of Sumatra island but not on Java.

Java was spared by the 2004 tsunami but hit seven weeks ago by a 6.3- magnitude earthquake that killed more than 5,800 people.

Monday's tsunami was spawned by a quake that struck deep beneath the Indian Ocean 150 miles southwest of Java's western coast at 3:24 p.m. local time, causing tall buildings to sway as far away as the capital, Jakarta.

The strength of the temblor was revised upward from magnitude 7.1 after a review by a seismologist, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The quake was followed by a series of powerful aftershocks.

Transport Minister Hatta Radjasa said he had heard reports about a tsunami striking two seaside towns, and urged people living on Java's southern coast to move inland in an orderly fashion.

"Everyone should move from the beach," he told el-Shinta.

The earthquake also triggered a tsunami warning on Sumatra and Australia's Christmas and Cocos islands but the earthquake-spawned waves never topped 7 inches, meteorological officials said. A similar tiny tsunami was recorded on Indonesia's resort island of Bali.

Indonesia is prone to earthquakes because of its location on the so- called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami killed at least 216,000 people, nearly half of them in Indonesia's Aceh province.

UPDATE III:

At Least 262 Killed by Tsunami in Indonesia

How to stop the New York Times II ... (UPDATED & Additions)

NOTE: If you think all or some of these ideas are good ones, please link this post and spread the word. In order to make any of it work, we need to spread the word and generate major publicity both in the blogosphere and within government and media circles. Everyone can help. PERMALINK for this post. TRACKBACK for this post. Additions of blogs are listed in their alphabetical order, all other updates are under UPDATE below.

**********************

So Patterico has canceled his subscription to the LA Times, Marc Dansinger does too. Several bloggers have indicated they have canceled their subscriptions to the New York Times. Kathryn Jean Lopez at NRO's The Corner has decided not to re-up her weekend subscription. I suppose if enough people cancel, they will see a blip, but I see this more as a statement than as an actual tool to hurt the newspapers where it matters. But, Tom Maguire says, "I don't see how the Times can be stopped."

My suggestion is to take a multi-pronged approach.

First, stop linking to either paper. And most especially, stop linking to anything behind a "pay" wall such as Times Select.

Second, start demanding that major news outlets, especially TV cable news outlets, stop using the New York Times as their primary source for news. I'm sick of always hearing, "according to the New York Times," aren't you?

Third, demand that our government, and most especially the White House, pull the press credentials for the New York Times and the LA Times too, if you believe them to be equally guilty. End all cooperation with them and all their media, no interviews, no credentials. Anyone meets with or talks to them, they lose their job or get demoted or counseled. Treat all contacts between their reporters and government officials as we would contacts with foreign agents.

Fourth, hit them in their pocketbooks with their advertisers. I wouldn't go after the advertisers directly. Instead, I suggest a national campaign that asks the public not to patronize any advertiser who runs an ad in any newspaper or on any TV station that puts terrorist interests above the safety and security of the citizenry of the United States.

Fifth, find the quality newspapers and TV outlets that can move into the slots vacated by the NYT, the LA Times and dare I say it, the Wall Street Journal. If they are quality but have been struggling to make it against the big boys, throw the blogosphere weight behind them. Of course, I would like to see news outlets with a more libertarian or conservative bent get the nod, but partisanship should not be the criteria. Instead, make national security the criteria and make this a "citizen" issue rather than a political one.

Sixth: And it should go without saying, that the blog world needs to demand of DoJ that leakers be found and prosecuted. My suggestion would be to start with Larry Johnson and that whole rogue ex-CIA and VIPs group first and work out from there.

If you have other suggestions or think these need modifying, let me know.

The following is a link list of those proposing various suggestions on how to deal with news outlets who "aid and give comfort" to enemies of the United States by revealing classified information during a time of war. This list is only a start and there are many blogs who have expressed an opinion about the NYT article, but do not offer any suggestions in current posts. And although I may agree, I don't think wishing the NYT would get blown up by terrorists is a very productive suggestion, nor is tar and feathers for Bill Keller, Risen or Lichtblau. We will update as we find more.

Ace of Spades Impose an immediate ban on any government official in any security-oriented agency from speaking to the NYT. They're already forbidden from disclosing national secrets; but apparently that doesn't matter to them. So just make it a firing offense to even be seen talking with a NYT reporter.

The Anchoress People who see all sources of information as equally good will, in time, drop those that cost money. I no longer subscribe to any newspapers at all. I can get everything I want on the Internet for free. The NYT has to make clear it’s value proposition to the consumer. My bet is that they are positioning themselves as being the only news media large enough to uncover government scandals. They are appealing to the fear that in their absence, government agencies will run wild with corruption and deceit. The San Diego Union is currently running just such an ad campaign.

And Another Thing (Mark Levin) The shareholders who own stock in the corporations that own the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, and the Wall Street Journal need to become active in demanding that their employees stop giving strategic assistance to terrorists.

Austin Bay "What should be done? The intel program has been compromised; loose lips have sunk this ship. Al Qaeda isn’t the smartest of enemies but many of its  global financiers are sharp– they will change their m.o.  US and coalition intelligence agencies will have to be creative and agile. The Bush Administration should prosecute the leakers, but I don’t think the Administration has the spine for this."

Barking Moonbat Early Warning System I propose that Congress drag the editors of the NY Slimes before an investigating committee and grill the asshats to find out by what authority they assume the power to keep the terrorists overseas and in sleeper cells here in the US so well informed about attempts to track them down and bring them to justice. Personally, I don’t feel a great need to stay informed as to how the work is being done to keep me safe and alive. All I care about is that it is being done. Perhaps the NY Slimes needs to see another 3,000 dead Americans before they decide to act responsibly? I certainly hope not ...

Democracy Project "What is required is new legislation that broadens the existing U.S. Code to include all matters of national security, applicable to all present and former government employees and officials, Congressional members and staff, and the media, coupled with confidential prior judicial consideration and enforcement mechanisms, and strict prosecution of those not abiding." This is an excellent article, I would encourage everyone to read it.

Flopping Aces EMAIL THE NYT’S AT [email protected] AND THE LA TIMES HERE.

GOP Bloggers "Tell the DoJ to finally get serious about prosecuting those responsible for illegally revealing national security secrets." [email protected]

Hugh Hewitt "... let's have some new hearings on the federal press shield law. If the papers really believe they deserve it, let them send their editors to defend that. proposition." Hugh has several posts on this topic and is also covering it on his radio show.

In the Bullpen "Just as there should be in the other cases before, there should be prosecutions in this case."

Powerline "The Times purports to invoke the rule of law where no law has been broken, and where the Times itself has both broken the law and damaged American national" security.

Protein Wisdom I'll take this as a "go ater the leakers" suggestion. "... the real violation of trust here—namely, that leakers within our intelligence agencies are jeopardizing national security, and that both the leakers and those publishing the leaks (whose aim, clearly, is to gin up whatever outrage they can with the hope of undermining this Administration’s tactics for conducting a war they don’t believe truly exists), are doing so with impunity."

The Strata-Sphere "What is criminal here is not the Bush administration investigating terrorists (we want that), and it is not the administration giving US citizens or people here in the US any special bye’s when their information comes up as part of these terrorist investigations, it is the out of control liberal media which exposed this against the warnings of the admininstration. When will the madness end in DC with all these leaks? How much are votes worth to these people?"

Strategy Page "Because the war on terror is fought in a peacetime atmosphere, treason can be presented as dissent, and you can get away with it. Case in point is the energetic pursuit, and publication, of  U.S. intelligence gathering techniques, by the American media.  ...... These traitors will continue to get away with it. Unless their activities are shown to assist terrorists in a particularly direct and obvious way ..." Another very good article.

The Wide Awakes "For the sake of security, let’s tell the media to shut the hell up."

Wizbang " hope other subscribers to the LA Times and the New York Times do the same so as to communicate to these organizations that their publishing of classified antiterror programs in an effort undermine the Bush administration will cause them to take an even bigger hit in their subscription rates."

Related:

SWIFT statement on compliance policy

Fighting illegal uses of the financial system

New York Times Refuses to Hold Surveillance Story

Mr. Keller Believes You Are Easily Confused This is Hugh Hewitt's fisking of Bill Keller's attempt to explain why he became a traitor. Unfortunately Keller's letter sits behind a NYT registration wall, so I will not link to it here, but if you must, you can get the link from Hewitt's fisk. (We have covered this in a separate post HERE.)

UPDATE:

Rep. King Seeks Charges Against Papers Over Terror Reporting

Sunday, June 25, 2006

WASHINGTON  — The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee urged the Bush administration on Sunday to seek criminal charges against newspapers that reported on a secret financial-monitoring program used to trace terrorists.

Rep. Peter King cited The New York Times in particular for publishing a story last week that the Treasury Department was working with the CIA to examine messages within a massive international database of money-transfer records.

King, R-N.Y., said he would write Attorney General Alberto Gonzales urging that the nation's chief law enforcer "begin an investigation and prosecution of The New York Times — the reporters, the editors and the publisher."

"We're at war, and for the Times to release information about secret operations and methods is treasonous," King told The Associated Press.  [CONT'D. HERE]

This is a start. Let's all let Congressman King know we  support such an investigation and a few emails to Gonzales wouldn't hurt either.

And from comments, Clarice Feldman offers these three suggestions worth considering. I like all of them:

-- Publish the names of the stockholders and their contact information.
-- Ditto the NYT's major advertisers. All the blogs can run these.
-- Publish the names of the papers, TV stations the NYT owns and urge that people in those areas boycott them as well.

                More Photoshopping of the New York Times HERE >>>>>>

Patsy Ramsey dead at 49

This is very sad. Who knew she was even sick? My Mother used to say that my Grandmother died of a broken heart after losing her nine year old to sudden death from meningitis and for years, I truly thought my Grandmother's heart broke in two. And just last night, I saw a TV segment on this subject. Grief, trauma, extreme stress can bring on symptoms that mimic a heart attack and actually show up on an MRI. It is temporary damage to the heart. The loss of child is a big trigger event. If this is true with the heart, can it not also be true for the body's immune system? I believe so as after my Mother's death, I seemed to be susceptible to every little germ that came close to me. Is this what happened to Patsy? What she was put through, first losing her beloved child and then the media and legal circus that followed. God rest her soul.

JonBenet Ramsey's mother dies of cancer

Sat Jun 24, 2006 11:18am ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Patsy Ramsey, the mother of slain child beauty queen JonBenet Ramsey, died on Saturday from cancer in Atlanta, the family's attorney told CNN.

Ramsey's husband, John, was at her side when she died at about 3:30 a.m., attorney L. Lin Wood told the cable network. Ramsey, 49, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 1993, underwent treatment and lived cancer-free for nine years, Wood said. Three years ago she suffered a recurrence, he said.

JonBenet, 6, was found beaten and strangled in the family's Boulder, Colorado, home on December 26, 1996, in a case that remains unsolved. Her parents came under the Boulder police's "umbrella of suspicion," but a grand jury issued no indictments.

The slaying drew intense media coverage focusing on JonBenet's success in youth beauty pageants, the family's affluence and mysterious elements of the case, including a note that initially led police to believe the girl had been kidnapped.

"Over the last two, three years they have come to understand there's been a shift in public opinion about the death of JonBenet and people realize now that this family was very much victims of that murder and have suffered because of it in terms of the false accusations made against them," Wood said.

Works for me ...

Web media is the dominant at-work media and No. 2 in the home, according to a new report from the Online Publishers Association.

The Web also ranked as the No. 1 daytime media.

A research project, conducted by Ball State University's Center for Media Design, tracked the media use of 350 people every 15 seconds. The subjects represented each gender, about equally, across three age groups: 18 to 34, 35 to 49 and 50-plus. The people were monitored by another person for approximately 13 hours, or 80 percent of their waking day.

"Someone actually came into their homes and workplaces and had a handheld computer, every 15 seconds registering their media consumption and life activities," Pam Horan, president of the Online Publishers Association (OPA), told CNET News.com.

According to Horan, this is the first type of study of its kind. Previously, consumers were monitored for media usage by phone survey or diary method.

Not surprisingly, newspaper use peaked in the morning; that print media was consumed by 17 percent of the subjects between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. When this media was combined with Web consumption, the potential reach for advertisers climbed to 44 percent. During the same morning period, the number of consumers using magazines jumped from 7 percent to 39 percent, and from 44 percent to 62 percent for television.

"The point is that there is an incremental reach that someone can gain by putting together a multimedia campaign," Horan said.

A conservative estimate from the study says 17 percent of overall media is consumed via the Internet, and Horan notes that other researchers like Forrester have placed that number even higher.

The OPA-commissioned study also used census data to determine the spending habits of its 350 monitored subjects. Web dominant consumers' retail spending averaged $26,450, while the TV-dominant group's spending averaged $21,401.

Yet, studies have shown that only about 8 percent of advertising goes to the Internet, Horan said.

"I hear more and more from marketers that they have shifted their business to be more responsive and realign. There is an active movement by traditional advertisers to be able to explore platform strategies," Horan said. She believes that research studies are attracting the attention of advertisers and media buyers and may result in a faster shift in advertising dollars to match the actual statistics of consumer media usage. [CONTINUE READING HERE]

As an Internet store owner, I wish there were more affordable ways to advertise. And, so far, at least, I don't see much pay off for ads run on blogs, either to the advertiser or the blogger. I am, however, constantly amazed that little ol' middle-aged middle-America me often posts news on this blog days before I hear the story on the TV news.

6-6-6 or 06-06-06

It all started with a Biblical verse: Revelation 13:18, "This calls for wisdom: let him who has understanding reckon the number of the beast, for it is a human number, its number is six hundred and sixty-six."

I have been hearing the craziest stories all week. Brides and grooms who have planned their weddings for the 6th day of the 6th month of the 6th year and even adding at the 6th hour. Or how about the big party everyone is invited to in Hell, Michigan that is.

Warren Ellis tells us:

In the UK, some expectant mothers whose babies are due on June 6 are so concerned about giving birth on the date marked by the satanic number that they have scheduled caesareans and inductions beforehand.

The Netherlands national news agency, ANP, recently reported an unusually high number of couples planning to tie the knot on June 6 — which is unusual, given that it falls on a Tuesday.

The agency reported that in the Dutch city of Enschede, 17 couples had already applied to marry on June 6. Normally, there are just two weddings in the city on any given Tuesday. One couple even requested to be married at 6:06am.

American satanic radio station Radio Free Satan, for example, will celebrate the “sin-tennial” with Satan’s Rockin’ 666 Eve party, featuring performances by heavy metal and death metal bands, while the Church of Satan in Los Angeles is hosting a satanic high mass, which has already sold out.

There are also those who are cashing in on the date, with marketers seizing the day to launch movies, books and albums with anti-religious or satanic themes. 20th Century Fox will release its remake of the 1976 horror film The Omen, retitled The Omen 666, on June 6.

Provocative author Ann Coulter will launch her latest anti-liberal book, Godless.

On the same day, heavy metal band Slayer begins its Unholy Alliance Tour: Preaching to the Perverted, while a string of heavy metal and death metal artists will release albums on that day, including David Lee Roth’s Strummin’ with the Devil.

Me, I am going to think about my Grandmother, who if alive, would be celebrating her 126th birthday.

And, some of the other things worth thinking about besides superstitions and devil worship such as:

D-Day, June 6th, 1944

Was D-Day hell on earth? Think about it. Think about what the headlines would be screaming today if we had a military operation that, "When it was over, the Allied Forces had suffered nearly 10,000 casualties; more than 4,000 were dead."

Scene on "Omaha" Beach on the afternoon of "D-Day", 6 June 1944, showing casualties on the beach, a bogged-down "Sherman" tank, several wrecked trucks and German anti-landing obstructions. A LST is beached in the left distance and invasion shipping is off shore.  (June 6, 1944).

         

D-Day: It is hard to conceive the epic scope of this decisive battle that foreshadowed the end of Hitler's dream of Nazi domination. Overlord was the largest air, land, and sea operation undertaken before or since June 6, 1944. The landing included over 5,000 ships, 11,000 airplanes, and over 150,000 service men.  

After years of meticulous planning and seemingly endless training, for the Allied Forces, it all came down to this: The boat ramp goes down, then jump, swim, run, and crawl to the cliffs. Many of the first young men (most not yet 20 years old) entered the surf carrying eighty pounds of equipment. They faced over 200 yards of beach before reaching the first natural feature offering any protection. Blanketed by small-arms fire and bracketed by artillery, they found themselves in hell.                           

When it was over, the Allied Forces had suffered nearly 10,000 casualties; more than 4,000 were dead. Yet somehow, due to planning and preparation, and due to the valor, fidelity, and sacrifice of the Allied Forces, Fortress Europe had been breached.            

After you have finished reviewing this site, return to this page and click the links below to find out more about D-Day.             

http://normandy.eb.com/
              http://www.isidore-of-seville.com/d-day/2.html
              http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/dday
              http://www.edmondsun.com/Krt/dday/
              http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0206/
              http://www.americandday.org
             
              Related D-Day Museums or Organizations:
             
              National D-Day Memorial (Bedford, Virginia)
              D-Day Museum (Portsmouth, England)
              National D-Day Museum (New Orleans, Louisiana)
              Cantigny First Division Foundation (Wheaton, Illinois)
              Imperial War Museum              
              U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum (Washington, D.C.)
              The Marshall Museum (Lexington, Virginia)
              The National World War II Memorial

 

And via Deb's Fun Pages: This Day in History

1513 - Swiss papal forces defeated the French at the Battle of Novara in Italy during the War of the Holy League.

1523 - Regent Gustav Vasa was crowned King Gustav I of Sweden. During his reign, Gustav I laid the foundations of the Swedish national state. The church was turned into a national institution, its estates were confiscated, and the Protestant Reformation was introduced. His political strength grew with the "Stockholm blood bath" of 1520.

1660 - The Peace of Copenhagen was signed, ending the war between Sweden and Denmark.

1683 - The first public museum, The Ashmolean, was opened at Oxford, England.

1801 - The war between Spain and Portugal known as the War of the Oranges ended with the Treaty of Badajoz being signed.

1816 - In one of the latest snowfalls ever, ten inches of snow fell on New England.

1833 - Andrew Jackson became the first United States President to ride in a railroad car. He boarded a Baltimore & Ohio, B&O, passenger train in Baltimore, Maryland.

1844 - The Young Men's Christian Association, the YMCA, was founded in London.

1862 - After a brief battle between Confederate and Union gunboats, Memphis, Tennesee, surrendered to Union forces in the American Civil War.

1882 - H.W. Seely of New York City patented the first electric flatiron. Today we call his invention the electric iron.

1890 - In New York City, the United States Polo Association was formed.

1904 - The National Tuberculosis Association was formed in New Jersey's Atlantic City.

1925 - Walter Percy Chrysler founded Chrysler Corp.

1932 - The first federal tax on gasoline in the United States was enacted. Then the rate was only a penny per gallon.

1933 - The world's first drive-in movie theater opened in Camden, New Jersey. It had parking accommodations for 500 cars and displayed a projection screen forty by fifty feet.

1934 - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was established to protect the interests of investors.

1938 - The NBC Red radio network presented "Stella Dallas" for the first time. The serial was supposedly “the true to life story of mother love and sacrifice.” Until 1955, "Stella Dallas" continued to do all this and more.

1942 - In Hartford, Connecticut, Adeline Gray made the first nylon-parachute jump.

1942 - Japanese forces retreated in the World War II Battle of Midway.

1944 - With this its first presentation, CBS radio saluted America’s war doctors with "The Doctor Fights."

1944 - "D-Day": the Allied forces began the invasion of Normandy, France, during World War II. The assault was led by the largest invasion fleet in history - 1,200 fighting ships, 10,000 planes, and more than 150,000 soldiers. The successful landing was hailed as the beginning of the end of Nazi Germany.

1946 - New York City was home to the formation of the Basketball Association of America.

1949 - "1984," George Orwell's vision of a world ruled by Big Brother, was published.

1956 - Gogi Grant, born Audrey Brown, reached the "Billboard" singles chart's top spot for the first and only time in her career. Her hit, "The Wayward Wind", stayed at the top for eight weeks and spent 22 weeks on the music charts. It was her second record release; the first, in October, 1955, was "Suddenly There’s a Valley" which climbed to number nine.

1960 - Singer Bing Crosby was presented a platinum disc to commemorate his 200,000,000th record sold. He achieved this from his 2,600 recorded singles and 125 albums. Ten years later, he received a second platinum disc when 300,650,000 records had been sold by Decca. Crosby's global lifetimes sales on 179 labels in 28 countries totaled 400,000,000 records.

1962 - Although he changed his mind after meeting the group, EMI Records producer George Martin said of The Beatles "They're pretty awful," when he heard the playback of their audition tapes.

1964 - I Get Around, recorded by The Beach Boys, entered Billboard's pop record charts on this date, and was in the Number 1 position for 2 weeks. It stayed on the charts for 13 weeks, and was later certified gold.

1966 - America's Gemini 9 spacecraft splashed down after a three-day mission during which astronaut Eugene Cernan walked in space for a record 2 hours 8 minutes.

1966 - Black activist James Meredith was shot and wounded as he walked along a Mississippi highway to encourage black voter registration.

1968 - Sen. Robert F. Kennedy died at Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Angeles, a day after he was shot by Sirhan Sirhan.

1970 - The Love You Save, recorded by The Jackson 5, entered Billboard's pop charts and later hit Number 1 for 2 weeks.  The single was on the charts for 12 weeks.  Three Dog Night's hit single, Mama Told Me (Not To Come), also debuted on the charts on this date. It peaked at Number 1 for 2 weeks, and stayed on the charts for a total of 13 weeks. It was later certified gold.

1971 - "The Ed Sullivan Show" left CBS-TV - it had been a showcase for more than 20 years for artists who ranged from Ethel Merman to Ella Fitzgerald, from Steve and Eydie to the Beatles. "The Ed Sullivan Show" was the longest running variety show on TV.

1971 - John Lennon and Yoko Ono joined Frank Zappa's group Mothers of Invention on stage at the Fillmore East, where they performed a few numbers together.

1972 - An underground explosion at the Wankie colliery in Rhodesia killed 427 miners.

1973 - Barry White was awarded a gold record for "I’m Gonna Love You Just a Little More Baby," his first hit and his first of five number one, million copy sellers. In 1960, White began recording. He formed the group, Love Unlimited, in 1969, and eventually married one of the singers in the group, Glodean James. He also formed the 40-piece Love Unlimited Orchestra which enjoyed the number-one hit, "Love’s Theme" in 1973.

1976 - 35,000 people were left homeless when a dam burst In eastern Idaho.

1978 - California passed proposition 13. Voters supported Senator Howard Jarvis in cutting property taxes 57 percent. This was seen as the start of a taxpayer revolt against high taxes and excessive government spending.

1978 - The newsmagazine TV program, 20/20, debuted with host Ted Koppel.  The initial ratings were poor; Koppel was fired, and Hugh Downs was brought on board as anchor.

1980 - For the second time in a week, U.S. nuclear forces went on red alert following a computer error warning of a Soviet attack.

1981 - In the world's worst rail disaster, seven coaches of an overcrowded passenger train were blown off the tracks into the River Kosi, in Bihar, India. At least 800 people were killed.

1982 - Israel launched a full-scale invasion against Lebanon. In the operation "Peace for Galilee," Israeli troops besieged and bombed Beirut. During the invasion, 14,000 people were killed and 30,000 injured, the vast majority civilians. While Israel claimed the invasion was in self-defense, the United Nations and human rights organizations considered it illegal and immoral.

1984 - Indian troops stormed the Golden Temple at Amritsar, the Sikh's holiest shrine, killing an estimated 1,000 people.

1985 - Authorities in Brazil exhumed a body later identified as the remains of Dr. Josef Mengele, the notorious "Angel of Death" of the Holocaust.

1987 - Steffi Graf beat Martina Navratiloa for her first Grand Slam title in Paris.

1993 - Latvian Way, an alliance headed by former Communist Anatolijs Gorbunovs, won power in Latvia.

1994 - A Chinese airliner on a domestic flight from the tourist center of Xian crashed killing all 160 people on board in the country's worst reported air accident.

1995 - Japanese Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama and his ruling coalition agreed to express "deep remorse" for Japan's acts of aggression in World War II.

1995 - South Africa abolished the death penalty.

1996 - Britain and Ireland named former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell as chairman of all-party peace talks on Northern Ireland.

1997 - Caoimhghin O Caolain won a seat in Ireland's election becoming the first member of Sinn Fein, political wing of the IRA, to enter Ireland's parliament.

1997 - Actress Farrah Fawcett, during a disturbing appearance on David Letterman's Late Night TV talk show, rambled incoherently, which sparked rumors of drug use or mental illness.

1998 - The Boy is Mine, recorded by Brandy and Monica, jumped into the Number 1 spot on the pop charts, and stayed there for 10 weeks.

1999 - Bob Dylan and Paul Simon - two of the most influential and prolific songwriters of the last half century - hit the road together for the first time for a historic tour beginning on this date in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Performing some the of most memorable and cherished songs of our time, Dylan and Simon - supported by their respective bands - had never performed together in public.

1994 - U.S. President Bill Clinton and other dignitaries from around the world visited Normandy, France. Many D-Day veterans joined them to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Operation Overlord and to pay respect to the thousands who died there in World War II.

Related:

Blackfive is doing the Blog Round-Up of posts about the 60th Anniversary of the landing on Normandy in 1944.

including some we think worth a second mention:

Ordinary Christian also posts General Eisenhower's address to the troops before the invasion

Sons of the American Legion Post 459 posts about Franklin D. Roosevelt's D-Day Prayer.

Confederate Yankee has General George Patton's speech to the troops before the invasion

And who could forget this:

Ronald Reagan: Remarks on the 40th Anniversary of D-Day

      delivered 6 June 1984 in Pointe Du Hoc,       Normandy, France

      Video Stream of Address

             Audio mp3 of Address