] Microsoft founder Bill Gates, 49, talks about the thorny
] issues of computer security, competition, software
] bundling and how he lives with the downsides of his
] wealth and fame.

Pretty good interview with Gates.

Its funny to see his apparent disconnect when grilled about Microsoft's business practices. According to him, people are buying new Microsoft products and Versions of Windows because they are attracted to the features. Perhaps this might be true with their enterprise applications (I have no experience with them), but I don;t know of too many people these days who go buy the OS unless its on an OEM machine. Further, Office features have been stagant for years, with a few excepts (multiple edits with histories). Breaking backwards compatiability and standards, and not innovative features seems to be why most people upgrade.

SPIEGEL Interview with Bill Gates:

] I'm not sure we should project western ideals and morals upon
] other groups of people.

I agree, and that is exactly my point. How was the war sold to the American people? Three parts really:

1- Dangerous madman who can launch WMDs in 45 minutes.
2- UN Violations
3- Lack of Women's rights, lack of democratic government, lack civil liberties and the what not.

The deafening silence left by the withdrawl of all WMD searchs pretty much kills issue one as reasonable. UN Violations are something we routinely overlook when it suits us, just as it served our interests to make such a stand over them on Iraq. All that was left was 3, and the news coming from Iraq recently seems to show those are fading quickly. How much the mullas can sway the government is unknown, but this is not going to be the Island of Democrasy that Bush rallied on.

Would some one please explain to me why we spent 1,417 American lives and $200+ billion to tranform a secular country with a contained dictator into a country that will most likely have constitution based on Islamic law?

RE: Leading Shiite Clerics Pushing Islamic Constitution in Iraq

] The clerics generally agree that the constitution must
] ensure that no laws passed by the state contradict a
] basic understanding of Shariah as laid out in the Koran.
] Women should not be treated as the equals of men in
] matters of marriage, divorce and family inheritance, they
] say. Nor should men be prevented from having multiple
] wives, they add.
]
] One tenet of Shariah mandates that in dividing family
] property, male children get twice as much as female
] children.
]
] "We don't want to see equality between men and women
] because according to Islamic law, men should have double
] of women," said Muhammad Kuraidy, a spokesman for
] Ayatollah Yacoubi. "This is written in the Koran and
] according to God."

Ahh yes, Democracy, so long as it doesn't violate Islamic law. You think Bush's "mandate from the people" has caused some aggressive policy proposals? This 3 page NYTs article discusses what the leading (and very conservative) Shiite Ayatollahs plan to do with their "mandate," and it has very little to do with freedom or equality. It haseverything to do with as Islamic of a state is possible. Try this on for size:

The leading Shiite clerics say they have no intention of taking executive office and following the Iranian model of wilayat al-faqih, or direct governance by religious scholars. But the clerics also say the Shiite politicians ultimately answer to them, and that the top religious leaders, collectively known as the marjaiya, will shape the constitution through the politicians.

Dance my puppets Dance!

Leading Shiite Clerics Pushing Islamic Constitution in Iraq

] A Walt Disney hotel in Florida is under investigation as
] the place where police believe pornographic images of a
] child were taken and circulated on the internet.
]
] Police in Toronto say they tracked down the hotel after
] releasing photos from a porn site, showing the locations
] of sex attacks against a girl who was around 12 years
] old.

Nice Followup: Police were able to find the hotel after posting pictures where the abuse took place with the victum removed.

Florida hotel identified as scene of child porn photos

] AnnualCreditReport.com is a centralized service for
] consumers to request annual credit reports. It was
] created by the three nationwide consumer credit reporting
] companies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
]
] AnnualCreditReport.com processes requests for free credit
] file disclosures (commonly called credit reports). Under
] the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT Act)
] consumers can request and obtain a free credit report
] once every 12 months from each of the three nationwide
] consumer credit reporting companies.
] AnnualCreditReport.com provides consumers with the secure
] means to do so.

FACT Act: Forces free credit reports every 12 months

] Washington, DC %u2013 People For the American Way
] Foundation (PFAWF) President Ralph G. Neas said today
] that a Justice Department demand for nearly $400,000 in
] fees for a FOIA request regarding the decision to seal
] the records of immigrants detained in the wake of the
] 9-11 terrorist attacks is outrageous, and another in a
] series of strategies to deny access to public
] information.
]
] %u201CApparently, they%u2019ve taken the %u2018free%u2019
] out of %u2018Freedom of Information.%u2019 If you want to
] learn about secret trials carried out by your government
] with your money, you%u2019re going to need deep
] pockets,%u201D said Neas.

FOIA Inquiry? That will be $400,000 please

[sigh]... PBS is my History/Discovery/HBO... and this program show who surprising well they keep up. Watch online and more. (

Frontline: secret history of the credit card

] SBC to buy AT&T for $16 Billion
] After days of talks the boards of SBC and AT&T are to
] vote on a 16B tentative deal reached Sunday.

That is one big telco!

SBC AT&T Merger

] But Dickinson, who makes his living in the cattle
] business, has an environmental problem on his hands that
] is vexing state officials: a 2,000-ton pile of burning
] cow manure.

Buring shit.

Massive cow manure mound burns for third month

Arthur Ganson

MACHINES

That about says it all. Amazing video of knife throwing machine, atrichoke leaf walking... complicated and beautiful machines that express the creator's fascination with motion and engineering.

As seen on Nova Science Now.

Arthur Ganson's Machines / Kinetic Sculpture