Newsapalooza (Open Thread)

[Nbadan]

http://img.coxnewsweb.com/C/05/71/28/image_3328715.jpg

Carlos Ochoa of Royal Bus Lines looks over three buses burned in a church lot in Doraville today. The buses were used to transport Hispanics to an Immigration rights rally.


"I would not want to believe that this happened because of the march," said Ochoa, who offered six buses to provide free transportation to the April 10 rally in Atlanta that was part of a nationwide protest against federal immigration legislation.

"But looking at the buses like this, makes me feel sad," said Ochoa,
a naturalized citizen from Colombia. "At the same time, it gives me courage to continue what we are trying to do" in supporting the Hispanic community's efforts to fight proposed tougher federal laws against illegal immigration.

Two of Ochoa's drivers live in a house across the street from the parking lot,
which is surrounded by chain-link fence.

Miguel Tercero, one of the drivers, said the son of his housemate heard a noise about 12:45 a.m., possibly from a tire exploding, and went out to see what was going on.

He saw the burning buses, and police and firefighters at the scene.

"It is a very difficult and hard thing; it makes you wonder what is happening,"
said Tercero, a 54-year-old naturalized citizen from Honduras.

Royal's bright yellow buses are most familiar on Buford Highway.
Ochoa said the 6-year-old company serves riders in the Lindbergh area of Atlanta, Sandy Springs and Doraville.

Ochoa said one of his buses was torched in the same storage yard last year.
He said police determined it was arson but no arrests have been made.

Atlanta Journal Constitution (http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/0419metbuses.html)

Remember when the wing-nut media went nuts (again) when those kids were torching Hummers? Someone call Rush! Call Insannity!!

:lol

[Nbadan]

Speaking of Purity balls, no not those purity balls...


http://www.abstinence.net/photos/images/686545e72dc038d6a103d69a13c38da8.jpg

Doesn't get any Creepier than this!


Young girls dressing up like prom, basically to go on a date with their dad, dance with him and other dads, and in the end promise daddy to not give it up until they're married.

Digby (http://www.abstinence.net/photos/images/686545e72dc038d6a103d69a13c38da8.jpg)

Don't feel left out guys there are Purity balls for you too


http://www.belvoir.army.mil/news/truelovewaits1.jpg
Monique Endriss places a purity ring on her son Justin's finger during the Purity Ball ceremony.

[Oh, Gee!!]

Newly-legal Hillary Duff says she won't do nudity in film or print. Heterosexual men everywhere cry.

http://channels.netscape.com/whatsnew/default.jsp?story=20060418-1402

[ChumpDumper]

It's not like Justin was ever going to get laid anyway....

[Nbadan]

...and the rich get richer...


NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Dow industrials ended at the highest level in six years on Thursday as encouraging quarterly reports from companies such as General Motors Corp. (GM) boosted optimism about earnings.

Tech shares slid and the Nasdaq fell after Web auctioneer eBay Inc. (EBAY) gave a disappointing revenue forecast.

The Dow is not far from its lifetime high of 11,750.28, which it hit on January 14, 2000. The Nasdaq and the Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> hit five-year intraday highs.

After the bell, Google shares jumped nearly 6 percent to $439 in electronic trading from a Nasdaq close at $415. Google Inc. (GOOG), the leading Web search company, reported its quarterly net income and revenue surged, driven by gains in market share against rivals such as Yahoo Inc. (YHOO) and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT).

General Motors gave the biggest boost to the Dow after it reported a narrower-than-expected loss and said its turnaround was working. Shares of the world's largest automaker jumped 10.1 percent.

Finance (http://finance.myway.com/jsp/nw/nwdt_rt.jsp?section=news&feed=bus&src=202&news_id=bus-n13178506&date=20060420)

Take your profits while you can.

:hat

[Nbadan]

All this optimism in the industrial markets run counter to what most people believe about their own economic forcasts (http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,192468,00.html) according to a new FAux News poll...


In addition, views on the economy are glum; most Americans rate the current economy negatively, and twice as many say it feels like the economy is getting worse rather than better. These are just some of the findings of the latest FOX News national poll.

What's really shocking is that Rumsfeld has higher approval numbers in this poll than the President. Rummy's at 35%; Dubya's at 33%.

[Nbadan]

Ready to plug in your car yet?


http://www.edrivesystems.com/prius_image.jpg


For the bargain price of about the cost a small brand new car, you can convert your current Toyota Prius to a plug in battery and give it way more electrical juice than it would normally have. They say possibly over 100 MPG. Not bad. If you fail to charge the battery at night then it will function as a regular Prius, with regenerative braking and occasionally gasoline charging the battery.

The $12,000 price tag is a little steep, but if we go to war against Iran, it will probably pay for itself in say, about two weeks.

[Nbadan]

Here's Toyota's new American vehicle called the Yaris - 39 city- 43 highway.

http://www.autogazeta.com/g/404/yaris4_front.jpg

Not too bad for under $12,000. I think we have another winner!

[Nbadan]

check out the swissle...


http://www.yaris-club.com/multimedia/vt/yaris_20.jpg

[Nbadan]

Cnn is reporting that during the ceremony, an announcer called China The Republic of China, the official name of China's arch-enemy - Taiwan


http://us.news3.yimg.com/us.i2.yimg.com/p/nm/20060420/2006_04_20t112213_450x329_us_china_usa.jpg
Hu tries to make a get away, but gets caught

[Nbadan]

AND THE Wingnut of the week award goes to Michael Savage...


http://www.bartcop.com/weiner-bab.jpg


On his radio show, Savage told listeners that "intelligent people, wealthy people ... are very depressed by the weakness that America is showing to these psychotics in the Muslim world. They say, 'Oh, there's a billion of them.' " Savage continued: "I said, 'So, kill 100 million of them, then there'd be 900 million of them.' I mean ... would you rather us die than them?" Savage added: "Would you rather we disappear or we die? Or would you rather they disappear and they die? Because you're going to have to make that choice sooner rather than later."

Savage also referred to the alleged Duke rape victim as "a drunken slut stripping whore accusing men of raping her when there is absolutely no evidence of such a rape other than what comes out of that filthy mouth of hers." He later asked: "What kind of system do we have that anyone can scream rape and not have to show her face?" adding, "This is all the product of the out-of-control lesbian feminist movement." Echoing previous comments he has made about the alleged rape victim, Savage said, "The Durham dirt-bag case disgusts me to my core."

[ChumpDumper]

Why is Savage feeling up a male Streisand impersonator?

[Nbadan]

Those are questions that should never be asked...at least, not in public...

On to other news ignored by the M$M:

Now this is some crazy shit:


http://a.abclocal.go.com/images/ktrk/cms_exf_2005/news/ktrk_042006_cashstory.jpg
Nothing to see here folks, move along!

Cash enroute to Houston confiscated at nuclear power plant
By Elissa Rivas


(4/20/06 - KTRK/HOUSTON) - Authorities in Pennsylvania made an unbelievable find outside of a nuclear power plant.

Security officers at the Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Plant in Pennsylvania discovered $540,000, bundled inside a truck trying to come into the plant. The two men inside the truck said they were just supposed to pick up some tools there, but security guards discovered the cash.

At first, the two men were let go, but police later caught up with them and questioned them. They didn't claim the money. They just said they were coming from Chicago. A man there had put the bag in the sleeper compartment with instructions it was supposed to go back to Houston.

A reporter questioned Pennsylvania state police about the money. "So you think this was probably drug money?" asked the reporter.

"In all probability, I'd say it was," said Corp. William Bruce with the Pennsylvania State Police.

[Nbadan]

So much for Hillary's SO-CALLED 'front-runner' status:


Fewer American voters are enthused about a prospective presidential candidacy by former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 26 percent of respondents say they would definitely vote for the Democratic New York senator in 2008, down three points since late March.

Rodham Clinton—a Democrat—was elected to the United States Senate in 2000, defeating Republican Rick Lazio by 12 percentage points. 58 percent of respondents believe it is very or somewhat likely that Rodham Clinton will be the Democratic nominee in 2008.

Rasmussen (http://www.rasmussenreports.com/2005/Hillary%20Meter.htm)

This is why the Republicans and media keep touting her. They WANT her to run and this is exactly why. She CAN'T WIN. Thing is, she never said she's running. THEY did.

[Nbadan]

Nothing to see here, people! Move along!

Police follow money trail from nuke plant
Bill Vidonic
04/23/2006


For now, there are still few answers as to what two Texas men were doing with more than $500,000 in cash at the Beaver Valley Nuclear Power Station on Tuesday, but investigators insist there was no terrorist activity involved.

A group of state troopers and investigators from the FBIare continuing to investigate the bizarre incident, in which two men from Houston, Donald R. Kingsby, 29, and William Lewis Jr., 28, went to the plant to pick up tools for Bechtel Corp., a contracting company doing work for the plant's $300 million upgrade.

<snip>

According to Texas driving records, the rig and flatbed trailer were registered to Glenn E. Marsh, 37, also of Houston. No one answered the phone at Marsh's home Saturday, and Kingsby and Lewis could not be reached Saturday. Kingsby, Lewis and Marsh each denied knowledge of the money, which state police said could have been tainted with drugs. Because of that, the money was confiscated and eventually could be forfeited to the state.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Thursday it considered the matter closed on its end and was satisfied that security guards had done their job properly and that there was no security breach at the plant.

On Friday, a spokeswoman for the federal Department of Homeland Security said the agency had been notified of the incident, which was not being viewed as a security threat. The department said it would not be involved in the investigation.

Times Online (http://www.timesonline.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=16520659&BRD=2305&PAG=461&dept_id=478569&rfi=6)

This suggestion from the Scoop forum: "Everyone go and get $100 in small bills, then head down to the local university nuke plant, or if you live near one, drive up to the gate. And see what happens. Maybe if we all go arrested, it would make the news."

[Nbadan]

It's just sad when pre-war intelligence that did not fit the WH cause for war in Iraq and was unilaterally dismissed by the Iraq Group doesn't even make the front page news anymore...

Bush was warned there were no WMD, says former CIA man
By Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles
Published: 24 April 2006



The Central Intelligence Agency tried to warn the Bush administration on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq that Saddam Hussein did not appear to have weapons of mass destruction but the warning was dismissed because the US political leadership was not interested in what the intelligence showed, according to a retired senior CIA operative.

The revelation, by the CIA's former European chief Tyler Drumheller, was broadcast on CBS's news magazine Sixty Minutes last night and added to the body of evidence that US and British leaders saw the weapons of mass destruction issue only as a selling point for a war they had already decided to wage for other reasons.

According to Mr Drumheller, Western intelligence services were told about Iraq's lack of chemical and biological weapons by Naji Sabri, a former Iraqi foreign minister. The CIA director of the time, George Tenet, took this information straight to President George Bush, Vice-President Dick Cheney and other senior officials, but it made no impression on them.

The Central Intelligence Agency tried to warn the Bush administration on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq that Saddam Hussein did not appear to have weapons of mass destruction but the warning was dismissed because the US political leadership was not interested in what the intelligence showed, according to a retired senior CIA operative.

The revelation, by the CIA's former European chief Tyler Drumheller, was broadcast on CBS's news magazine Sixty Minutes last night and added to the body of evidence that US and British leaders saw the weapons of mass destruction issue only as a selling point for a war they had already decided to wage for other reasons.

Independent (http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article359755.ece)

Same song, different dance partner.

[Nbadan]

GEEZ, Talk about a sore 'looser':


Still refusing to concede defeat in the Italian general election, Silvio Berlusconi put on another bravura performance at the weekend by serenading his supporters and then threatening to paralyse the incoming government.

The former cruise ship crooner took to the stage in a hotel restaurant in Trieste in northern Italy, singing a medley of Neapolitan ballads. He also treated his audience, who applauded wildly, to a song he said he had composed in the wake of the election result, in which he talks about going to live on a tropical island.
snip
Tony Blair and the leaders of China, Russia, the US, Argentina, Japan and all of the major European countries have formally telephoned Mr Prodi to offer congratulations. Mr Berlusconi has shrugged off the calls, saying they reflect Italy's good standing on the world stage.

At his home in Bologna yesterday Mr Prodi said Mr Berlusconi's refusal to acknowledge that the centre-left had won the election was "not my problem, it is his". He said his coalition would stay united and govern for the next five years. "We won the election and we have the right and the duty to govern. We will do so in the service and interests of all the country."

GUARDIAN (http://www.guardian.co.uk/italy/story/0,,1759827,00.html)

Can you imagine, on Monday morning? We look into the Italian leader's office.

There, at the desk, we see Silvio Berlusconi and Mr. Prodi, sitting at the same desk. They are jockeying for position on the chair.

This is just bizarre.

[Nbadan]

Hooray! We've got him on the run!

White House: Tape shows bin Laden is on the run


http://www.almostaproverb.com/images2/Smoke-em-out_thumb.jpg


(AP) April 23, 2006 - The White House says the latest message from Osama bin Laden indicates the terror leader is on the run and under pressure.

Spokesman Scott McClellan says the intelligence committee believes the voice on a tape broadcast Sunday by Al-Jazeera is that of bin Laden.

...

Congresswoman Jane Harman says the tape is a reminder that bin Laden is still at-large four years after the 9/11 attacks.

The California Democrat told "Fox News Sunday" that the US involvement in Iraq is part of the reason bin Laden hasn't been found.

Wis TV (http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=4806943)

Wherever he is, the 6'5" guy with kidney failure wearing a turban is not on the run. Doubt he's under much pressure, either.

[mookie2001]

who?

[Nbadan]

Who needs a used orphan when you can outsource your own pregnancy?


As temp jobs go, Saroj Mehli has landed what she feels is a pretty sweet deal. It's a nine-month gig, no special skills needed, and the only real labor comes at the end — when she gives birth. If everything goes according to plan, Mehli, 32, will deliver a healthy baby early next year. But rather than join her other three children, the newborn will be handed over to a U.S. couple who are unable to bear a child on their own and are hiring Mehli to do it for them.

She'll be paid about $5,000 for acting as a surrogate mother, a bonanza that would take her more than six years to earn on her schoolteacher's salary. "I might renovate or add to the house, or spend it on my kids' education or my daughter's wedding," Mehli said.

"It's win-win," said S.K. Nanda, a former health secretary in Gujarat state. "It's a completely capitalistic enterprise. There is nothing unethical about it. If you launched it somewhere like West Bengal or Assam" — both poverty-stricken states — "you'd have a lot of takers."

She acknowledges that money is the primary reason women have lined up to be surrogates; without it, the list would be short, if not nonexistent. Payment usually ranges from about $2,800 to $5,600, a fortune in a country where annual per-capita income hovers around $500.

Statesman (http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/world/04/22IndiaWomen.html)

Talk about cheap labor.

[Nbadan]

Wonder what message Russia is trying to send here?


http://www.spacewar.com/images/russian-military-plane-tu-160-blackjack-bomber-bg.jpg
Russian planes flew into U.S. protected airspace undected



Russian military planes flew undetected through the U.S. zone of the Arctic Ocean to Canada during recent military exercises, a senior (Russian) Air Force commander said Saturday. The commander of the country's long-range strategic bombers, Lieutenant General Igor Khvorov, said the U.S. Air Force is now investigating why its military was unable to detect the Russian bombers.

"They were unable to detect the planes either with radars or visually," he said.

[xrayzebra]

Don't you just love it when Dan post to himself. Wonder if he gets bored
with himself? Obviously not. :lol

[Nbadan]

Don't you just love it when Dan post to himself. Wonder if he gets bored
with himself? Obviously not. :lol

Got you too look!

:loser

[xrayzebra]

Got you too look!

:loser

Huh?

[Nbadan]

Still smoking...TOMMY CHONG fights the man...


http://www.cbc.ca/arts/images/pics/chong1.jpg


”If more people were stoned there would be less violence in the world,” Chong said.

Chong was introduced by NORML Executive Director Allen St. Pierre.

”It was Tom Chong the man that was wrongly sentenced to nine months in jail when everyone else paid a fine,” St. Pierre said. “I'm so proud and happy that Tommy is joining us today.”

Chong took the stage to a standing ovation.

”I would like to thank what's his name,” Chong joked.

He began by talking about his time in prison, saying the rumors about prison are wrong.

”It doesn't hurt,” Chong said. “But it does hurt when the government is doing it to you.”

He talked about politics, too.

”I know Dick Cheney's Secret Service guys smoke pot,” Chong said. “The reason I know that is I sold them bongs.”

He insinuated that President Bush was on methamphetamines.

”The dangerous thing about tweakers is they can take things apart but they can't put them back together again,” Chong said. “That's what George Bush has done to this country.”

Chong described when law enforcement officials raided his home as part of Operation Pipe Dreams.

”When they raided my home they asked me, 'Do you have any drugs in here?'” Chong said. “Of course I do.”

Times Standard (http://www.times-standard.com/local/ci_3739230)

”When Cheech and I broke up it was weird,” Chong said. “I didn't know we were broken up for four years. I went to the last Cheech and Chong movie and I wasn't in it.”

:lol

[Nbadan]

Have you seen this incredible video (http://www.theync.com/h041806eggroll.shtml) of the traditional W.H. Easter egg hunt?

[Yonivore]

Just a point of information...isn't every thread treated like a Newsapalooza (Open Thread) by many of the posters in here?