F**k DSL, I want what they're having...

Researchers have more than doubled the world speed record for internet data transfer. Scientists at the CERN particle physics laboratory in Switzerland sent the equivalent of a full-length DVD movie in about seven seconds. The average transfer rate was 5.44 gigabits per second (Gbps), which broke the previous record of 2.38 Gbps – more than 20,000 times faster than a typical home broadband connection.

If I had that kind of speed, forget a lawsuit -- the RIAA & MPAA would go gangsta an' have my ass in a duffel bag within a week...

Denbeste explains the reason behind the coming meltdown of the Dems. Short-form: their factions aren't doing as good a job of covering their asses as those of the elephants.

Although, I caught something quite odd...

the overall impression that the Democrats are creating through their rhetoric is that they are negative, defeatist, alarmist, and nitpicky. They are perilously close to giving the impression that they think we actually deserved to be attacked in September of 2001, and that we have no right to fight back or to defend ourselves.

Huh? Steve is making the stereotypical "leftists='liberals'=democrats" mistake? I've heard a lot of things from democrats that make no sense, but "we deserved 9/11" hasn't been one of them.


Anyway, what troubles me about the run-up to '04 isn't the foreign policy angle (I don't agree with either for the most part), but the economy -- that enough people assume the "gov't must DO something/tax increases will help" mantra to be credible to even remotely tip towards whoever spews it is amazingly pathetic, especially when you consider how easy it is to figure out it's wrong. Think to yourself for a moment: if your taxes go up, do you spend MORE or LESS?

What say we find an excuse to discuss the history of "The Finger", eh?

Using the hand signal rooted in ancient times and popularly known today as "shooting the bird" may be rude, but it's not necessarily disorderly conduct, a Texas appeals court has ruled.

At issue for the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin was whether Robert Lee Coggin incited "an immediate breach of the peace" when he allegedly gestured at a motorist with his raised middle finger two years ago as the former Lockhart resident tailgated a slow-moving vehicle in the left lane of U.S. 183.

Coggin was charged under an obscure state law that says "a person commits an offense if he intentionally or knowingly makes an offensive gesture or display in a public place, and the gesture or display tends to incite an immediate breach of the peace."

Read the rest of it.

An update on Gore-TV: "We changed our minds, it is not going to be deliberately Democrat-biased"

Well, there goes that. Instead of admitting their slant they're gonna do like everyone else and claim to be unbiased, way to wimp out.

"No, really, honest! Fair and bala...never mind"

^^^^click that.


And in other news: maybe Arnold won't be so awkward after all...Austrian school of economics? Wow, just wow.

BTW: this is dripping with irony. The same guy that the media lambasted as a muscleheaded dumbass can evidently run circles around most people when it comes to economics, meanwhile the "experienced statesmen" drove Cali into a ditch.

Lebanon (from UPI): "We can't let palestinians own property here, are you crazy? they'd never leave!"...

Opponents told Aljazeera the subject is divisive among Lebanese because the acquisition of real estate by Palestinians would damage the Palestinian cause since the refugees would remain in Lebanon and never return to Palestine.

Now, this just may be my good ol' american naivete shining through, but I fail to see how this is any of the concern of the Lebanese gov't. If palestinians feel like moving to Lebanon then obviously they don't care enough about a palestinian state to stick it out -- big whoop, let them, it's their choice.

-The Saudi royals want to allow elections???

*checks to see if sky is falling*


-AP: Now we know the timetable expected for Iraqi elections...or rather the timetable for a timetable.

At least it's progress. Daylight is coming....

Speaking of Iraq: anyone else notice that the news about the remnants of the war have been almost exclusively about Baghdad & Tikrit? As big as Iraq is, and the media can't think to look anywhere else? Either they're lazy or they've shifted from the agenda of sucking up and sanitizing coverage that they took on when the war started to the strategy of "all bad news, all the time". Ratings, ratings, ratings...


-Washington Times: Our lack of preparedness in terms of translators may be the reason we're finding saboteurs in the ranks.

Hmm...noticed something in this article, tell me if I'm seeing things:

Beyond the Defense Department, the interpreter shortage within the American intelligence agencies was well documented in December 2002 when a joint report filed by the Senate Select and House Permanent Select committees on intelligence found that before September 11 the intelligence community had "a readiness level of only 30 percent in the most critical terrorism-related languages."

How can a language be "terrorism-related"? Really, think about it for a moment.