North America News

Ted Kennedy called a man of quiet faith

Ted Kennedy recalled as Northern Ireland peace broker

Senator Edward Kennedy Remembered Fondly in Ireland

Health Care Protesters Largely From Out Of District, Sign-In Sheets Show

Far-right religious group behind outrageous health care lies

White House emails, Bush aide implicate Rove in firing of US Attorneys

Homeless Holocaust Survivor Leaves $100K Gift

Bill Clinton Retrieves Jailed U.S. Journalists in North Korea

Analysis: Memo raises questions about Iraq pullout

House votes to clamp limits on Wall Street bonuses

U.S. releases unclassified spy images of Arctic ice

Urban farming fantasies (survivalism gets hip)

On the web: Hillary’s big speech, water in the Middle East, British defence spending…

State Dept announces Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review

Ban Ki-moon: analyst, nostalgist or leader?

If Tiger Crashes in the Woods....

Tiger Woods is not having an affair with stunningly beautiful New York nightclub manager Rachel Uchitel, a woman who has been described as a 'professional homewrecker' after sleeping with actor David Boreanaz while his wife was pregnant. Just ask them.

Tiger Woods was not intoxicated when he crashed his car this weekend at almost 2:30am while leaving his home either. Tiger Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren, 'rescued' him by smashing out the rear window of his SUV with a golf club after the accident. Really. No, seriously. She was, uh, rescuing him when she smashed out the window of his car. Res-cu-ing, thank you.

There are more holes in this story than in a block of swiss cheese. But one statement that is coming out of the Woods camp is beyond dispute. Tiger Woods has said that this is a 'private matter' within his family, and beyond a possible police interest involving the nature of the car crash, that is absolutely true.

The good folks at the National Enquirer and TMZ would like you to think differently, but what happens in the private home life of a celebrity is no one's business. Not when the events, incidents, or happenings of that life are not affecting your life directly, or society in general.

The arguments and discussions have gone on for as long as there have been human beings. Are other people's business in any way our business? The question is raised legitimately not just in reference to celebrities, but with your neighbors as well.

How many of us have been guilty of gossiping over the happenings in someone else's family, home, or marriage? Are we ready to have our own situation become fodder for some similar gossip?

We all have a right to privacy. Every single one of us, whether we are a world-famous celebrity like Tiger Woods or a simple ditch digger, is going to have familial problems. We are going to have a marital spat or worse. We are going to have a kid who does something crazy. We are going to become involved in an accident after leaving a party. Something.

My bet is that every single person who ever reads this little blog entry has done something in their lives that they are very happy never got out into the public domain. Perhaps there are some who have not been as fortunate, and who have had some scandalous or embarrassing or personal situation become the source of such public gossip.

The fact is that Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren have a young child. They have the normal stresses and strains on their family and relationship that we all feel. Sure they have tremendous financial resources that make some things much easier. They also spend a great deal of time apart with his constant travels to golf tournaments, sponsorship commitments and other events.

The very last thing that the Woods family needs if there has indeed been a sexual indiscretion, or an auto accident, or a marital fight, or any type of misstep in their family is all of our eyes watching them, hungry for ever more sordid details, thirsting for more insider knowledge. It's hard enough to overcome familial trauma under normal circumstances.

Every single one of us who stays tuned in to one of the gossip television programs, or reads some gossip article online or in a tabloid, everyone who thinks that they for some reason deserve access to the Woods family personal troubles is pouring gasoline on the fire. Sure, maybe Woods lit the match. But he and his wife deserve the opportunity to put their fire out, if that is what they wish. They don't need us dumping that petrol into the mix.

The next time that someone says to you "What do you think about Tiger Woods and that girl?", or perhaps "So, I heard Susie down the block is having an affair with Joe at the gas station, whatta ya think?" why not make your response "Do they care about what's happening in my family? Because that's what matters to me."

It's only a matter of time before you or one of your own slips up big time, and the very last thing that you will want is a bunch of nosy neighbors, or worse, the news media, sticking those big noses into your business. None of us could survive much of an in-depth prying into our personal affairs. We should not be doing the same to the Woods family, or any other family or individual for that matter.

"Party Up" Mark Milly x Reality "The Don"

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[Party Up] (Radio Edit)http://www.divshare.com/download/9528718-711

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[Party Up] Full Package [includes all thee above]http://www.divshare.com/download/9528938-15e

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ABA Grands in the books.

Just touched down after a long weekend in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Glad to be back in San Diego even if it means I'm back at the office desk tomorrow grindin' :). Grands is a wrap. Khalen ended up 2nd from lane 8 at the Race of Champions on Friday night. Saturday was two rounds of qualifying for the big show on Sunday evening. Khalen seemed solid come main time but ended up 7th overall after some bumping in the corners. The number one pro title went to Randy Stumpfhauser, Khalen gave Randy his jersey and congratulated him on the podium which was cool.

Other highlights included Morphine Industries riders all showing up riding Haro Race LT frames, we are happy to have them on board. Paul Wassenaar won the 16 expert main event and NAG 1 for the year on his Race LT. Greg Romero won Vet Pro on Friday night, Haro mounted.

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Thanksgiving has come and gone

My plate from bottom left: stuffed, roasted seitan with mushroom gravy, salad, potato kugel, roasted veggies and figs, herbed orange-cranberry relish

Thanksgiving has come and gone, and most people have moved on, but I'm still dragging my feet about my Thanksgiving post. Please indulge me while I do a little blurb about our feast so I can move on, too. We had the whole family at our home this year which was a unique treat for us since we've not lived in the same city with all our kids in a long time. The guests brought contributions to the meal so the work was spread around a little. I got so caught up in the celebrating that I forgot to photograph some parts of the feast, like the delicious potato kugel brought by our oldest son and daughter-in-law. This is an old family recipe that came to the U.S. with my Russian great-grandmother, and appears at nearly every family holiday event. It just wouldn't be a holiday without it. I forgot to photograph the Thai coconut corn soup based on a recipe in "Vegan Express" by Nava Atlas. I love this soup, and have served it to a LOT of people. (My adapted recipe appears at the end of this post.) And I didn't photograph the mushroom gravy.



The main dish for Thanksgiving at our house is always stuffed seitan. Here you see it (uncooked) in the baking dish with the stuffing. My husband's fingers are keeping the very elastic seitan from shrinking down into the pan while I do a photo shoot. The stuffing is brown rice, wild rice, home-made-bread cubes, mushrooms, celery, shredded carrots, onions, dried cranberries, herbs and spices, and maybe other things, too.



The seitan is first rolled out and then transferred to the dish, where it's filled, and the top folded over and sealed. It's always a stressful and comical process to roll out the stretchy seitan and get it into the dish before it shrinks up, but this year I made a brilliant discovery. I rolled the seitan onto a large sheet of parchment paper, and it seemed to stick in place. My husband and I then lifted the whole thing up and placed it, paper and all, into the dish, to be stuffed. (I also added chickpea flour to the seitan mix which may have made it more pliable.)



After the stuffed seitan was baked, we lifted it out of the baking dish and onto the serving platter using the paper. It was so much easier then trying to un-stick it from the pan! I raised the seitan up a little with a spatula and slid the paper out.



In the photo above you see the vegetables — Brussels sprouts, turnips, carrots and potatoes — before they went into the oven to roast. When they were nearly done, dried figs were mixed in. I forgot to photograph the veggies after they were roasted to perfection with olive oil and herbs.



For starters, we had various raw veggies, olives, pickles, crackers, hummus and Tings. (Yes, that's right, Tings.) We also had bowls of Thai coconut corn soup. This soup takes only minutes to make but tastes like it took hours.



Here's the herbed cranberry-orange relish I blogged about recently. This time I remembered to decorate it.



This is the fabulous salad brought by our middle son and his girlfriend. It was delicious.



We had two desserts. We had almond twiles filled with pumpkin mousse. (Our mini-guest was particularly taken by the mousse and wanted more, more, more...)



And we had a pumpkin chocolate spice cake from this recipe, minus the anise (I HATE anise. Ugh.) and with only 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne. (note: The ganache from the recipe didn't work for me — there was way too much liquid and it turned into chocolate milk. Luckily I had extra chocolate on hand and made my own version of ganache using only 1/4 cup of non-dairy milk, 1 tablespoon of coconut oil and 1 tablespoon of Earth Balance.)

Because I've made several alterations to the coconut corn soup recipe, and because the original appears in several places on the Web, I'm going to share my version, here. This is the perfect soup to make when you want something that doesn't take much time or effort but tastes great.

Thai coconut corn soup (adapted from a recipe by Nava Atlas)

• 1 tablespoon light olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 to 5 scallions, white and green parts, thinly sliced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, cut into short, narrow strips
• One 15-ounce can light coconut milk
• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
  
• 1½ cups rice milk
• One 16-ounce bag frozen corn
• 2 teaspoons good quality curry powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Thai red curry paste, more or less to taste
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• juice from 1/2 small lime or lemon
  
• ½ cup minced fresh cilantro or Italian parsley
  

1. Heat the oil in a small soup pot. Add the garlic, the white parts of the scallions, and the bell pepper. Sauté over medium-low heat until softened and golden, about 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Add the coconut milk, rice milk, broth, corn, curry powder, the green parts of the scallions. If using the curry paste, dissolve it in a small amount of hot soup before adding to the pot.
3. Bring to a rapid simmer, then lower the heat. Cover and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Season with salt and citrus juice, and remove from the heat.
   
4. Serve, with cilantro or parsley and fresh ground black pepper.

Yield: 6 servings of spicy soup.

You can substitute two cups of rice milk for the vegetable broth if desired. I've done it both ways and I like the broth version best, but both are good.

Haro Athletes at ABA Grand Nationals

I'm out here in Tulsa, Oklahoma for the ABA Grand Nationals. Got here on Wednesday and enjoyed Ruby Tuesday for Thanksgiving. Hope everyone spent some quality time with the family and had a good feed. Tonight was the Pro Spectacular here in Tulsa. Haro guys Khalen Young and Steven Cisar were looking good with top 3 finishes all through the qualifiers this morning. They were in the same semi final and Khalen was the only one to qualify to the main after Steven had a bad start. Khalen finished a solid 2nd which was rad. Tomorrow is round 1 and 2 of the Grand Nationals and Sunday is 3rd moto, semis and main events. Khalen looks like he's just crawled out from under a rock with his haggard beard. Updates on Sunday.

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Mark Milly x Reality "The Don" - "Party Up" (club version)

This join was produced by the hommie Al Ripkin!!!!! FFFIIIIIRRRRREEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!

Join the 912 Project

The picture accompanying this story might look like a scene out of some late 1960's, Gump-esque, anti-Vietnam War rally with counter-culture hippies, radicals, and others disenchanted with the actions and policies of their government protesting those actions and policies.

However, the picture, one that many of you likely have never seen because the former mainstream media does not want you to know about these events and thus fails to cover them or underpublicizes them, is not from the 'Summer of Love' but rather it is from the end of this very past summer. September 12th, 2009 to be exact.

The Americans in this counter-culture demonstration, the new generation of 'radicals', gathered in the National Mall between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument and all over Washington, D.C. to demand fundamental change.

You might have heard that before somewhere, the "Change" idea? The one word slogan was deftly used in last year's U.S. presidential campaign by Barrack Hussein Obama. It was meant to galvanize those sitting on the fence in the election to support a change from the policies of the George W. Bush administration which had governed for the previous eight years.

But while Obama and his people sold that idea as a change from Bush policies to what they described as some new, more enlightened and peaceful era, what they were actually selling was a bill of goods. Their real motive was a change in the very fabric, culture, and traditional values of America.

During their first year with full control of the American political process since 1994 the Democratic Party has shown that it's transformation from a centrist, populist party fighting for the middle class to one that is completely dominated by it's fringe left and bent on massive social change is now complete.

Just since coming to power in January, Obama and his lock-step congress led by California congresswoman Nancy Pelosi and Nevada senator Harry Reid have driven America further into debt than the combination of every political generation before them. And while risking financial catastrophe they have begun to risk our very safety and security with their weak foreign policy approach.

All the while, they and their supporters in the puppet media have begun to tear away at the very fabric of American spiritual and institutional culture, lurching it ever closer to collapse and their ultimate goal of a communist/socialist, totalitarian, government-run life for all.

Tens of millions of American did not vote for Obama or for much of any change in the last election, albeit as the lesser of two evils. Millions sat it out because they were not happy with the choices, even when they believed Obama was bad for America. And now millions more who did vote for that 'Change' have begun to realize that they were hoodwinked by these elitists masquerading as commoners.

In response to these mounting attacks on the American traditional way of life and value system, Americans from all walks of life, all races and social standings, began to mobilize at the grass-roots level, forming the beginnings of what has now grown into "The 912 Project" movement.

The movement began to organize with responses at a series of town hall meetings held by the Obama government meant to sell their socialist health-care program. Regular everyday people showed up and began to speak out against these policies. Then the 'Tea Party' movement was born, taking its name from the famous 'Boston Tea Party' protest action during the run-up to the Revolutionary War. This all culminated with the massive rally on September 12th, 2009 in Washington, D.C. Popular radio and television commentator Glenn Beck, among others, devotes a great deal of time and effort to spreading the message.

The term '912' or '9/12 mindset' comes from the idea that in the immediate aftermath of the attacks against our nation by islamofascist terrorists on September 11th, 2001 (9/11) the entirety of the population was together. We all were wounded, outraged, mourned, grieved. We all demanded and sought retribution and we all clearly saw the enemy and the dangers which they posed beginning on 9/12, the day after the attacks.

Since the first months after the attacks, however, the continued passing of time has seen many Americans drift away into a state of passiveness and apparent forgetfulness. They seem to lack the knowledge that the enemies who attacked us then continue to look for further opportunities to attack us now, and on a grander scale.

There also are some Americans who have intentionally moved past that post-attack period and are happy that many others have forgotten. These are actual Americans who believe that we simply got what we had coming to us on that fateful day in September 2001. They want a version of what the terrorists want, a complete change in American ideals and culture.

Only these Americans want the opposite direction of change. Whereas the islamofascists want America to become an islamic theocracy with the Koran as the basis of its laws and the ruling clerics as the interpreters of social and cultural doctrine, these liberals want an open, anything goes society. They want to force their version of equality and collective group-think, based on what the government believes is best for everyone. Both ways directly attack the very ideals that America was founded upon.

The organizers of 'The 912 Project' tapped into that feeling from the day after the 9/11 attacks, that remembrance that we are all one nation, that our freedom is unique and vital, and that the ideals which the Founding Fathers of our nation established are worth both fighting and dying for.

The project bases it's organization on 9 principles and 12 values upon which it hopes to begin the process of refounding traditional America. The 12 values are: honesty, reverence, hope, thrift, humility, charity, sincerity, moderation, hard work, courage, personal responsibility, and gratitude. Pretty radical stuff, huh?

The 9 principles are even more radical, depending on whether you share the Obama-led view that government is the boss, knows best, has all the answers, is unaccountable, and that you should just shut up if you disagree. These 9 principles are:

1) America is good
2) I believe in God and He is the center of my life
3) I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday
4) The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.
5) If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.
6) I have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.
7) I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable.
8) It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion
9) The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.

While admitting that I agree with the vast majority of these principles and values, I have not always lived up to some of them. That is going to change. I am looking forward to dedicating myself completely to these basic foundational ideals in my life, and a fight to return them to their rightful place at the center of American culture, society, and law.

If you share the belief that America is the land of the free and the home of the brave, that God has blessed America, and that we are supposed to be a nation of the people, for the people, and by the people then you need to look into 'The 912 Project' more deeply and consider dedication yourself in some way.

NOTE: As always, the title of this entry is a link to further information on the subject, in this instance taking you directly to 'The 912 Project' website.

Iran Jails Irani-American Woman Protesting Elections

From Denny: An Iranian-American female grad student went to Iran to study and document women's issues in Iran. That didn't sit well with the local government soon after she arrived and they threw her into jail. These guys have issues with being American-phobic and female-phobic. Heaven forbid if women are as capable of being their equals. Their egos can't handle it.

But I figure there is really more here than keeping the females controlled in Iran. It sure looked like they were keeping her on the back burner as a bargaining chip or pawn for an international incident they could turn to their favor. Whatever the motivation this young woman was lucky to get out alive and in one piece. Take a look at her story.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Secret Service Blew It On State Dinner Security

From Denny: Two party crashers thought it would be funny to crash the Presidential state dinner. Somehow, I'm not amused. My first question would be "OK, who did the party crashers bribe?" If not an aide to the President or a Secret Service agent were the ones helping these two jerks get into the White House, then someone was asleep on the job. I don't know which is worse: total opportunistic sleaze or gross incompetence. And, if none of those situations, then the only remaining possibility is there are too many cavalier Republicans in the Secret Service that don't take it seriously to protect this President. It does make you wonder...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

What is funny about this is that a newsman, anchorman Brian Williams of NBC, happened to be among the 300+ invited guests and even he figured out there was something hinky going on. Which again, makes you wonder why the Secret Service did not also figure out the same as a mere civilian managed to do:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Video: Prez Obamas First State Dinner Rocks the White House

From Denny: Prez Obama has been making headlines for his first state dinner. The relationship with India has been tenuous since Obama came into office. India has taken offense at not being treated as a first string player in the global debate as they felt they were during the Bush years.

While I don't think President Obama intentionally meant to bruise India's feelings he was ill advised. Rather than follow exactly what his advisers thought he should have first sent a team to speak to the leadership and get a pulse on their attitudes. If he did send someone then they are not very good at reading people. The information Obama was given by his past administration's advisers was outdated in regards to India to say the least. "The times they are a changing."

Generally, these are the minute mistakes of a first year President; they all do something to this effect. These are the missteps which can easily be corrected to everyone's satisfaction and President Obama is a gracious man capable of carrying it forward.

India is a rising global power with one billion of the planet's population. Did you also know they are the largest world democracy as well?

The Obama state dinner was a hot ticket in status hungry Washington, D. C., especially since the Obamas featured both Hollywood and Bollywood for the rocking entertainment.

The incredible gesture from India to create a stunner dress for the First Lady was touching to American's hearts.

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

The awesome stunner dress made in India by an Indian designer for the Obama's first state dinner. Everyone was wowed by the First Lady's entrance:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

*** Thanks for visiting and have a great Thanksgiving!

Ronnie Napolitan on Haro Flow

Ive known Ronnie for a few years now and he's always progressing on the bike, beyond that he's a cool kid who rides his bike for the love of it. Haro has a solid team right now and adding Ronnie will make trips even more fun. Mackay


Ronnie Napolitan Flow Team Intro from Haro Bikes on Vimeo.

Here is Ronnie's Levi's part from a month ago, big moves and a solid style. There's is a bunch of left over clips from this we might have to make into a Haro Web vid, even though he's not on a Haro. Is that ok?

Levi's® Clip of the Week - Ronnie Napolitan... - More BMX Videos

Thank You, God

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who takes the time to read these thoughts of mine. Anyone who cares enough about the way you think and express yourself to actually use some of their valuable time to bother reading is certainly worth thanking.

There are many others in my life for whom I am thankful that they are a part. There are many things, situations, events, objects, opportunities for which I am particularly thankful this year. But there is one above all others to whom I am grateful for providing the blessings of all those others in my life.

Thank you, God.

Thank you for the wife whom you directed into my life more than 17 years ago. Thank you for providing to her the gifts that have enabled her to grow with me, forgive me, love me. Thank you particularly for the gift of the time we've spent together all these years. Most particularly, for bringing us together in an understanding and acceptance of faith in your son, Jesus Christ.

Thank you for my daughters and my grandchildren. They have provided incredible love, color, and depth to the experiences of my lifetime. Thank you for all they have taught me and brought me, more than they probably know or could understand. Thank you for the gift of continuing to enjoy them as they all grow and mature, and I will continue to offer special prayers for their increased spiritual growth.

Thank you for this home that you have provided for my wife and I, and for the opportunities that we have had over the years to improve and secure it for ourselves. Thank you for the enjoyment of our family and friends here, some as their home, some as regular visitors, some as infrequent guests. All as welcome today as they have ever been at any time previously.

Thank you for my education, particularly this year with the achievement of a life long goal to graduate from college. Thank you for the opportunities provided to me by the Philadelphia Police Department, the Community College of Philadelphia, and Saint Joseph's University and all of the good people who manage those programs. And going back even further, to the people at Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Saint John Neumann for providing the educational and spiritual foundation that inspired those later goals.

Thank you for the gift of health, and for a reasonable amount of financial security and prosperity in times that have been difficult for many others. Well aware of the difficult times that I have experienced in the past, both physically and materially, I will never take these particular blessings for granted, knowing full well that challenges may lie ahead in the coming years.

Thank you for continuing to inspire Americans within this great nation that was founded with and grew under your direct blessings. Thank you for the men and women who still remember your primary role in that founding, in our past, in our present, and in our future. Thank you for all of those who refuse to surrender to the efforts to turn our nation away from your path. Thank you for not turning away from America when so many Americans have turned away from you.

Thank you for another incredible season of sporting enjoyment from the Philadelphia Phillies, as well as for the gift of the game and for inspiring my own passion for it's enjoyment over the years as both a spectator and a participant. Thank you for getting to experience the thrill of the Phillies winning two World Series titles in my lifetime, and watching them compete in three others. Bless their organization with continued success, and we fans with continued opportunities to enjoy their play.

Thank you for the gifts that you have given me to express myself, both verbally and in writing. These gifts have allowed me opportunities that would not have come along otherwise. Opportunities to serve my community as a police officer, and to serve police officers and others as a teacher. The opportunity to express my feelings on issues of importance here at my website. And now the opportunity to express your Word as a lector for my parish.

Thank you for the meal that I am going to enjoy with some of my family members this particular Thanksgiving Day. For the turkey and stuffing and vegetables and trimmings. For the warm, happy home in which we will enjoy that feast. For the people with whom we will share that meal. And thank you for all of the meals that I am privileged to share throughout the year with all of my loved ones at every opportunity.

Thank you, God. Thank you for my life and for the people in that life. For all of the family members, friends, co-workers, acquaintances, priests, teachers, service providers. My one prayer this Thanksgiving Day is that every one of them, particularly those who intentionally turn away from you, or who do not fully understand or accept the sacrifice of Christ, that their hearts and minds and souls may be opened to the full measure of your love, forgiveness, and grace.

Sarah Palin: Last Brain Cell Lonely and Dying

Good Old Sarah Palin. Vaugely resembling a pinup girl 10 years past her prime, Sarah has just put out a new book -- Going Rouge. Unfortunately, all of wish that she would end up going somewhere, anywhere -- just not where we can hear you.

By the good gracious of goodness almighty, we at Future Twits have peeked into the future and captured several of Sarah's future Twitters. Enjoy.

Future Twitter for December 25, 2009

10:11 @TundraPrincess: Well, gee-golly-darn, isn't it good to be back on twitter like a mossy frog on a tree stump, don't-ya-know. I sure have a lot of time on my hands, now that I'm not the governor of the GREATEST STATE IN THE WORLD. Alaska was the cradle of civilization, and all of the important acheivements of the last 40 years all have their roots there. I read that in a magazine one time . . . or heard it or something. It's like the antenna ears on a television, don't-ya-know, with a piece of concise therapy running over the straight hills. (pssst: It's a very deep philisophical thought, the one I just gave).

10:18 @TundraPrincess: Oh darn! Bristol is at it again. She just drug home some new guy she's dating. She claims that the met online, but I'm pretty sure that's the same guy who hangs out in front of the liquor store all day.

10:34 @TundraPrincess: I just got through making the first martini of the day. One down, eight to go. I would drink less, but it helps to numb the pain of my husband's stares and the moments where he asks me what in the hell I'm talking about. If I knew, then I would probably tell him.

11:37 @TundraPrincess: Martini number four is gone. I wished that I looked hotter in my flight attendant outfit. I wished that I was smarter and could make it through an interview without stumbling over my words the whole time. I wish that those guys at Fox News would call me. When I was doing their shows, they all pretended to be my friends and that we could hang out and go bowling. The only one who ever remembered was Glenn Beck, and he was just making a booty call. The nerve, gee-golly-darn-it-all. Worse yet, when I accepted, he then wanted me to fly to New York to see him! Even after I accepted that, he claimed that he was gay and hung up the phone. It's the best date I've been on in 12 years.

@TundraPrincess: 2:37 My husband is home from work. He is back to his familiar spot in the corner doing his favorite activity: throwing a tennis ball off the wall and catching it, again and again, for six hours every night. He looks so happy, sitting there, staring, not moving anything except his right hand to throw the ball. Such concentration! The only time that he looks up is to show his affection. Every so often, he will look up, look at me, look at the gun hanging on the wall, look at me, make the pow sound, shake his head, and go back to throwing the tennis ball. What a hottie!


@Moderator: We're sorry to cut this interview short, but the last Sarah Palin brain cell has died, leaving her eqaul in intelligence to Dennis Miller. In other news, Bristol is dating a player for the New York Mets -- actually, it has been updated to the entire team.

50 Cent x Beanie Sigel Myspace Music Show New York

The Roller Skating Babies

I just thought it was a dope vidd, had no idea that it was just added to the Guinness Book Of World Records for being "The Most Viewed Advertisement".... check it out!

WDI Sister Program in Slovenia off to Strong Start

Over 80 debaters, teachers and trainers from 25 countries (Singapore, Afghanistan, USA, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia, Italy, Finland, Serbia, France, Croatia, Germany, Thailand, Ukraine, Romania, Hungary, Venezuela, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Scotland, Hong Kong, Moldova, Montenegro, England, Wales and perhaps more) are having quite a time in Ormoz, Slovenia at the Seventh International Debate Academy Slovenia, a week long intensive training program that concludes with a tournament in Ljubljana.

Each day has a lecture, that is followed by exercises for everyone, divided into beginner, intermediate and advanced groups. Lectures for the advanced cover basic areas for debating, such as International Relations (Anne Valkering), Ecology (Alfred Snider), Economics (Rhydian Morgan), Law and Justice (Chris Langone) and Principle and Philosophy (Stephen Boyle). For intermediate and beginners, there is a more mundane sequence: public speaking, proposition strategy, opposition strategy, second team strategy and points of information.


Each day there are a series of electives in the afternoon that students can choose from.
Sunday:

• Style, Chris Langone
• Note taking, Alfred Snider
• Argument building, Gavin Illsley
• 13 Minutes Prep, Loke Wing Fatt
• Motion Analysis, Jens Fischer
• Debating Secessionist Movements, Maja Nenadovic
• Whip Speeches, Isa Loewe
• Basic Reasoning, Chris Langone
• How to NOT Get Last When you Don't Know Shit, Anne Valkering
• 12 Ways to Refute an Argument, Jens Fischer

Monday:

• Making Your Arguments More Important, Alfred Snider
• Persuasion Techniques, Chris Langone
• Debating Humanitarian Intervention, Isa Loewe
• Making GOOD Slippery Slope Arguments, Gavin Illsley
• Fundraising, Anne Valkering
• Rules of the WUDC Format, Loke Wing Fatt
• Preparation for Tournaments, Bojana Skrt
• Debating Turkey & the EU, Stephen Boyle
• Better Team Work, Maja Nenadovic
• Principles of International Law, Jens Fischer

Tuesday:

• Democratization, Maja Nenadovic
• Debating Law, Chris Langone
• Opposition One, Gavin Illsley
• Policy, Value & Analysis Motions, Anne Valkering
• Tabulating Competions & Using Tab Software, Jens Fischer
• International Criminal Court, Isa Loewe
• If English is NOT Your First Language, Bojana Skrt
• Debating Ecology, Alfred Snider
• Governments & Economics, Stephen Boyle

There have been some teacher and trainer sessions:

• Organizing a Debate Team, Bojana Skrt
• Training and Coaching, Loke Wing Fatt & Bojana Skrt
• Tournament Hosting and Organizing, Anne Valkering

There have been two public debates:

Student-Faculty Demonstration Debate, Saturday Night

• Faculty: Loke Wing Fatt & Gavin Illsley, Isa Loewe & Anne Valkering
• Students: Anna England Kerr & Crt Podlogar, Filip Dobranic & Maja Cimerman
• Motion: This House supports mandatory vaccinations.
• Critics: Jens Fischer & Chris Langone

World Schools Demonstration Debate, Monday Night

• Proposition: Slovenia National Team
• Opposition: Romanian National Team
• Motion: This House would deny the right to strike to workers in essential area.
• Critic: Gavin Illsley

Practice debate motions will move from easier to more difficult, prep time starts at 30 minutes and will be cut down to 15. Here are the motions for Sunday & Monday.

• This House would not negotiate with pirates.
• This House would not eat meat
• This House would pay a wage to stay at home parents
• Thisd House would legalize soft drugs.

We have had two awesome parties that lasted late into the night and had music, dancing and much frivolity.

• Sunday night - country exhibition
• Monday night - kitsch party (strange clothing, cross-dressing, unusual make up)

Our Faculty includes:

• Stephen Boyle, Ireland, Irish Times Champion, twice breaking at WUDC, now University of Vermont
• Loke Wing Fatt, Singapore, SAID, the debating monk
• Jens Fischer, Germany, President European Debating Council
• Gavin Illsley, Scotland, communication consultant
  
• Chris Langone, USA, lawyer & Cornell University
• Isa Loewe, Germany/France, European ESL Champion
• Rhydian Morgan, Wales, Stylus Communications
• Maja Nenadovic, Hungary, University of Amsterdam
• Bojana Skrt, Slovenia, ZIP
• Thepparith Senamngern, Thailand, WUDC Convener Bangkok 2008
  
• Alfred Snider, USA, University of Vermont, World Debate Institute
• Anne Valkering, Netherlands, WUDC ESL Champion 2008, Bonaparte University

At the end of the week we will be moving to Ljubljana, where a dozen or so more teams will join us for a tournament at the Faculty of Public Administration.

More news coming in a day or so.

Cookies and stew

I've been collecting recipes like crazy — actually printing them out instead of just bookmarking them — but have been cooking very little. We've been eating out much more than usual, and that always seems to dampen my cooking urges. Unfortunately, we haven't been very happy with the restaurant food we've been sampling except for one place. We really enjoyed our brunch at Wayward Café, and tried to go there two other times without checking their hours, only to find it closed. You'd think all these unpleasant restaurant experiences would inspire me to cook more, but it's not happening. Maybe I'm saving my food-cooking energy for Thanksgiving, or maybe I'm just in a rut.

Last night there was nothing planned for dinner when our son and daughter-in-law extended a last minute invitation to come to their house.



Our d-i-l was making Buckwheat Stew With Tofu and Kale from Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian," which they had just borrowed from the library along with "Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar," by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romaro. She didn't have the right kind of buckwheat so she made the stew with farrow, instead, and it was absolutely delicious — rich and satisfying. The white things that look like potato pieces are actually whole cloves of stewed garlic — soft, fragrant, and tasting like it was roasted in the oven. Kale is one of my favorite vegetables, and this recipe really showcased its winning qualities. I wish I had some right now.

For dessert we had Peanut butter oatmeal cookies from the above mentioned cookie-invasion cookbook. These were some of the best peanut butter cookies I've tasted, with excellent texture and crunch. I think I ate four. Tsk.

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Animal, Vegetable, Miserable by Gary Steiner

Have you seen this Op-Ed piece in the Sunday NY Times? It's pretty unusual to see such a blatantly unapologetic essay on the moral wrongness of killing animals for human needs, in the mainstream press. Take a look.

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Have a HAPPY and HEALTHY THANKSGIVING!

[Vidd] Timbaland x SoShy - "Morning After Dark"

I really like this vidd Timbo is at it again!

My favorite Performances from last nights AMA's.....

First up, Lady GaGa - "Bad Romance" / "Speechless"

Next up, Rihanna - "Wait is Ova" / "Hard"

This is clearly out of order, Janet Jackson - A Little Of everything...

This was #DOPE Jay-Z x Alicia Keys - "Empire State of Mind"

The 'Other Football' Championship

Even though there was an important game yesterday evening for my hometown Philadelphia Eagles on national television, there was another sports event on television at the same time which stole most of my attention during the whole night.

That event was the MLS Cup Final between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Real Salt Lake. To the rest of the world, that event would be considered the football championship of America. They would consider the Eagles game to be a contest known to them as 'American football'.

To most of America, the MLS Cup would decide the champions of a sport we call 'soccer'. For the uninitiated, 'MLS' stands for Major League Soccer, which represents the professional level here in America of the game that is the most popular in the rest of the world.

One of the reasons that pro soccer has very little profile or coverage here in Philadelphia is that we haven't had a local team for whom to cheer. The last time that Philly had a true soccer team for which to root was way back in 1980 when the Philadelphia Fury played their final season.

For much of the 1970's, pro soccer was a part of the local sports scene. The Philadelphia Atoms started things in what was a generally successful competitive four-year run from 1973-1976. In their very first year of existence, the Atoms won the NASL (North American Soccer League) championship. The team regularly would draw more than 20,000 fans to their matches on the pitch at Veteran's Stadium.

After winning the title, Atoms goalkeeper and local player Bob Rigby became the first soccer player to appear on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Then in 1975, midfielder Chris Bahr, a Penn State product, scored 11 goals in 22 games and was named the league's Rookie of the Year in his only season playing pro soccer. He would go on to star in the NFL as a kicker for 4 teams over 14 seasons.

The Atoms were unable to sustain their success, and eventually folded. In 1978 the NASL moved back into Veteran's Stadium with the Fury. That team never really caught on thanks to three straight seasons of losses, folding after 1980 having compiled an overall 32-60 record.

The NASL, formed back in 1968, finally folded itself in 1984, and professional soccer became largely a non-entity in the United States. The modern game in North American terms began with the run-up to the U.S. bid to host the 1994 World Cup, the acknowledged world championship of national team football/soccer. As a part of that process the MLS was formed, and pro soccer began once again when the league formally began play in 1996.

The MLS Cup has become the annual championship game of the league, and for the 2008 championship a completely modernized trophy was developed for which the teams now compete. The league is made up of 15 teams currently who compete in a season from March through November, but that will expand to 16 teams next season, including a return at long last to Philadelphia, and ultimately to 18 teams by 2011.

Philadelphia Union will begin play with their opener at Lincoln Financial Field, home of the NFL's Eagles, on April 10th, 2010. This is due to construction delays at what will eventually become their permanent home in the Philly suburb of Chester, PA at Union Field, an 18,500 spectator soccer-specific facility being built on the banks of the Delaware River.

With expansion on the horizon and with a renewed commitment in recent years to developing American youth soccer from within, the league held their 2009 MLS Cup last night in Seattle, home of the wildly popular expansion Seattle Sounders team. The two participants were the star-studded Los Angeles Galaxy and the upstart underdogs from Real Salt Lake.

The Galaxy is this year's version of the 'best team that money can buy' as they are led by American superstar Landon Donovan, English icon David Beckham, and Jamaican goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts. They won the MLS West Division regular season with a record of 12-6-12, and were solid favorites to take this MLS Cup match.

Real Salt Lake finished under .500 for the season at 11-12-7 and in 5th place in the West Division. Normally the MLS Cup pits the top playoff finishers from the East against the West, but Real Salt Lake got in because the league puts it's top 8 teams into the post-season regardless of division. RSL was placed into the East playoffs as the last seed, but then proceeded to pull upsets throughout to reach the MLS Cup.

Last night's match began with the Galaxy continually taking the play to the RSL side, finally breaking through thanks largely to their superstars Beckham and Donovan. Beckham began a play at midfield and fed Donovan along the wing. Donovan then passed the ball deftly and perfectly across the goal mouth, laying it right on the path of a charging Mike Magee who directed it home in the 41st minute for a 1-0 LA lead.

The score remained 1-0 at the half and into the 2nd half where RSL began to even the playing field. RSL had been put at an even greater disadvantage on the field when playmaker Javier Morales was injured early in the match by an aggressive tackle from Beckham. That injury advantage for LA would be wiped away early in the 2nd half as Ricketts suffered a broken hand in a collision and eventually had to be replaced.

RSL began to press the play towards the Galaxy goal more regularly, and finally knotted the score when Robbie Finley left-footed a scorcher past Ricketts in the 64th minute after a scrum in the penalty area. It would be Ricketts final play, as the pain from his broken hand became too severe to go on. The LA goalie was replaced by backup Josh Saunders, marking the first time a goalkeeper was ever replaced in an MLS Cup match.

With the score now tied at 1-1, the two sides battled back and forth through the remainder of regulation and injury time, and then on into a pair of 15 minute overtime periods. This was the 7th time that an MLS Cup game had reached overtime, but for only the 2nd time in history neither team scored and the game would be decided on penalty kicks.

Beckham took the first penalty shot for LA and scored, but the Galaxy seemed dead when Donovan missed his shot as the #4 shooter. In the 5th round, Andy Williams of RSL had a chance to win it all but was robbed by a nice save from Saunders, and the penalties went on. Finally on the 7th round, LA's Edson Buddle was stopped by RSL goalkeeper Nick Rimando. That setup a chance for Robbie Russell, who had not scored all season, to win it all for RSL.

As Russell approached the kick, Saunders guessed wrong, and Russell calmly slid a shot into a wide open net. Dropping to his knees and burying his head in his hands with emotion, Russell was quickly mobbed by his teammates who celebrated in a heap in front of the goal. The underdogs from Real Salt Lake had won the MLS Cup in just their 5th season of existence. In the process they also became the first team in major American pro sports history to finish their regular season below .500 and then go on to win the championship.

This coming week the Union will begin to fill out their roster as the MLS holds an expansion draft for the team. Between these players and others that it is able to sign over the winter, the Philadelphia Union blue and gold side will form for the first time. At some point a primary sponsor will be named to round out the team's identity.

In April the club will take the pitch for the first time together under their motto "jungite aut perite", "join or die", cheered on by their already rowdy group of fans nicknamed the 'Sons of Ben' (relating to Ben Franklin) and thousands more with the ultimate goal being to one day reach that MLS Cup, and to bring home the 'other football' championship to the Philadelphia area.

Remaining Thankful in the Worst of Times

If we live long enough here on earth, every single one of us is going to experience difficult times. Some of those are going to overwhelm us, challenging us to the limits of our ability to recover feelings of joy, peace, and thankfulness.

This coming week here in America we will celebrate the holiday of Thanksgiving Day, a day specifically set aside for us all to give thanks for those blessings that we have received in this life. Though it may indeed be difficult, it is important that we remain thankful in the worst of those difficult times.

As this wonderful holiday approaches, I have been reminded recently of a pair of heartening messages, the first taught by Jesus Christ and the second by the apostle Paul: "In this world you will have trouble, but take heart! I have overcome the world" and "Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

In the first of these statements, Jesus let's all of us know in no uncertain terms that we are indeed going to experience difficult times in this world. We are going to experience physical illness and injury. We are going to experience other people in our lives, at times the very closest and dearest to us, letting us down. We are going to experience death, both of our loved ones and ultimately our own.

But also in no uncertain terms, Jesus declares that He has overcome the world. We have all been promised that if we remain strong in our faith, that one day we too shall overcome the world and join Him in His kingdom in Heaven.

Have you experienced the sudden, tragic death of a loved one, perhaps someone who was your best friend, your partner in life, your husband or wife? Perhaps you have experienced the incredibly tragic pain of losing a child, one whom you raised and taught and played with? Many of us have experienced the loss of a parent, a mom or dad who helped preserve our own deepest feelings of security.

I cannot imagine how those with no faith can deal with these situations and remain sane and functional as human beings. With faith we understand that all is in God's loving hands, and that we are all offered a chance at eternal peace, health, and happiness.

We will all pass on from this earth, that is a fact. Tens of billions of people have lived on this tiny planet over the millenia. Every single one of them has died. That includes our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, his mother, Mary, and every single great or holy secular or religious leader that was ever born.

The great gift that we receive when we have faith in Jesus Christ comes in the knowledge that He died for us. His suffering and death were enormous, painful, and difficult. If you have never done so, watch Mel Gibson's truthful, passionate retelling in "The Passion of the Christ."

Jesus Christ experienced people turning away from Him, from the very Word of God. He experienced His closest friends denying they even knew Him. He experienced physical pain and psychological torture. He experienced public mockery and challenges to His sanity and His soul. And He finally experienced suffering and death on a cross.

He experienced all of this so that we might learn the truth that there is more for us beyond this world. He has promised us that if we follow and believe in Him, that we will join him in eternal peace and joy with God in Heaven. Every one of our friends and family members who has ever passed away has also had this opportunity.

We can be secure that those who have died believing in Him, even should that sincere belief have come in their final days or moments, are with Him now in Heaven, and that we will see them again one day. Also, those who left us as innocents are absolutely together with Him this very moment. It should be our life's primary purpose to ensure that we accept Jesus with faith so that we can indeed join them one day.

In the second statement that I mentioned earlier, Paul implores us to "give thanks in all circumstances" because whatever it is that we are going through, if we truly understand God's love in faith then we understand that we are never, ever alone in our difficulties.

Many of us have been given the gift of family and friends to help us through the difficult times that will inevitably visit us. These people are the ones who will stand by us and stay with us, no matter our troubles. They will be there to offer a shoulder to cry on, arms to wrap around us and comfort us, words to encourage and strengthen us.

But even if we have few friends and family, we are still never alone. Even when your friends and family are not physically there with you, you are still never alone. Even if it is that one person who seemed to always be there for you who has been taken from you, you are still not alone. In every moment of your life, God is there. You only need turn to Him and acknowledge Him.

Paul teaches that it was God's will for you to be thankful in all circumstances, including the worst, most difficult, and most painful. He teaches that it is in Jesus Christ and His teachings and example that we are to find the ability to give that thanks.

No matter how difficult the event, no matter how painful the experience, there are others here on earth who are suffering more right now and who have suffered more in the past. Every one of us is promised that peace, joy, and love with God in eternity if we remain faithful.

As this day and season of Thanksgiving comes to us, we should always remember and be grateful for every good time that has come to us on this earth. We should be thankful for the gift of every good moment that we were ever given with every good person in our lives. But no matter what, most of all we must overcome earthly pain and loss, and remain thankful for what will last forever - God's undying love for us.

Colorado Railroad Musuem

Images shot with K-x and a FA77mm Limited lens. ISO 200. I shot in RAW and used CS4 to convert to jpegs for posting here on Blogger. Double click on thumbnails to see a larger image.