] So as America gets wider, the nation's personal ethics
] are underexercised. It doesn't matter if, over time,
] people's bodies are telling them to eat less. It doesn't
] matter if the media constantly hector the public on the
] dangers of over-eating and junk food. It doesn't matter
] that lack of exercise is a big factor in the thickening
] of America.
]
] Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., complained in the
] Washington Post, "We're talking about a public health
] problem for which our government has not taken
] responsibility." Actually, Uncle Sam has begun airing TV
] ads telling Americans to exercise more. But if
] individuals won't take responsibility for their weight
] gain, why should their government?

Indeed. Personal responsibility? What's that?

If you are what you eat, then sue

Rattle wrote:
] ] Scientists have created the ultimate pet: genetically
] ] modified fish that glow in the dark. In future, there
] ] will be no need for aquarium lights - fluorescent fish
] ] will provide their own illumination.
]
] Oh yeah, I would buy glowing fish. No question. I will own
] these some day. If there is someone out there tracking market
] for this kinda thing, mark me down as saying "i'll buy"..
] Hell yeah.
]
] ] Scientists have not restricted their GM work to
] ] aquarium creatures. In other experiments, scientists
] ] have attempted to engineer cats that do not produce
] ] allergens.
]
] I'd buy that too! I'm allergic to cats.. Aside from that,
] cats are alright. And I'm sure they could make it piss less
] ammonia, glow, etc.. Sweet..
]
] I'd save up for this shit. After the cat and the fish, I'd
] just need something that flys. Something can be done with the
] parot.
]
] However, I don't think its a good idea to make any new animals
] that are capable of surviving in nature on their own. But I
] have no doubt that the comercial world will tackle these
] problems. There are simple and elegant solutions possible.
] You just have to make sure the thing can't possibly survive or
] breed without constant human intervention.. Kitty gonna need
] something in her water or .. Fishy gonna need some mad UV..
] etc.. Unless that can be pulled off, no way. And maybe some
] kind of virus kill switch, "just in case". And screw Jurassic
] Park and "life can find a way" and all that crap. Thats
] Hollywood. There are solutions for this kinda thing damnit,
] there have to be. I want value added to my pets!
]
] There is a service end to the business. Thats a good thing.
] When I get my consumer pet, I don't want to have to go through
] picking up supplies all the time, they have to be custom
] anyway, with this kinda investment, they are going to control
] that suckers whole life cycle. They can mail me whatever I
] need. I want to order it like a laptop. Select boxes for
] configuration, pick accessories, get a support contract, etc..
]
]
] Pets.com might have been a flop, but when the shit glows, its
] going to be a different story.

Looking thru old MEMEs... Rattle is funny and right on the mark! -LB

RE: 'Fluorescent fish' give the green light to GM pets

QUOTE: On April 24, 2003, President Bush traveled to Timken Company’s Canton plant to promote his tax plan. In a speech to workers, he promised that the tax cut plan “means more money for investments, more money for growth and more money for jobs.”

Numerous studies have refuted that claim, showing that while the President's tax cuts rewarded wealthy Americans with tens of thousands of dollars in tax windfalls, the rest of America actually received relatively little. The average Bush tax cut for the wealthiest one percent of Americans is $938,000, reports Citizens for Tax Justice.

According to Reuters, the Chairman of Timken Company, W.R. Timken, made $2.62 million in 2003, clearly placing him in the wealthiest one percent of Americans.

Two months later, W.R. Timken co-hosted a fundraiser for Bush’s campaign in Akron which raised $600,000, and earned Timken ‘Ranger’ status (for those who raise more than $200,000 for the campaign).

Then, in September last year, Timken Company announced it was laying off 700 workers, adding more pain to one of the jobless recovery's most hardest-hit states.

[ Dude, trickle down works. That $600,000 will support at least a dozen people in the dirty-campaign-ad industry. Um, maybe one or two of those 700 unemployed plant workers can get in on the action -- sweeping the studio floor, taking out the trash, etc.

Campaign Money Watch

] Attorney General John Ashcroft remained in intensive care
] Thursday, and aides said he was gradually recovering from
] gall bladder surgery performed two days ago.

/me prays for a blood clot. -LB

Ashcroft remains in intensive care

] Move over Bionic Man and make room for BLEEX the
] Berkeley Lower Extremities Exoskeleton, with strap-on
] robotic legs designed to turn an ordinary human into a
] super strider.
]
] Ultimately intended to help people like soldiers or
] firefighters carry heavy loads for long distances, these
] boots are made for marching.
]
] "The design of this exoskeleton really benefits from
] human intellect and the strength of the machine," says
] Homayoon Kazerooni, who directs the Robotics and Human
] Engineering Laboratory at the University of
] California-Berkeley.
]
] The exoskeleton consists of a pair of mechanical metal
] leg braces that include a power unit and a backpack-like
] frame. The braces are attached to a modified pair of Army
] boots and are also connected, although less rigidly, to
] the user's legs.
]
] More than 40 sensors and hydraulic mechanisms function
] like a human nervous system, constantly calculating how
] to distribute the weight being borne and create a minimal
] load for the wearer.

USATODAY.com - Robotic legs could produce an army of super troopers

] Georgia (AP) -- A Georgia woman who tried to use a fake
] $1 million bill to buy $1,675 worth of merchandise at
] Wal-Mart was arrested, and police later found two more of
] the bills in her purse.
]
] The U.S. Treasury does not make $1 million bills, but
] similar-looking currency is sold in some souvenir shops.
] The fake bill featured a picture of the Statue of
] Liberty, police said.
]
] "It looks real, but of course there's nothing real about
] this," said Stacey Cotton, police chief in Covington,
] about 30 miles southeast of Atlanta. "People do crazy
] things all the time."
]
] A store clerk immediately noticed the bill was fake when
] 35-year-old Alice Regina Pike handed it to her on Friday,
] Cotton said.
]
] Pike then tried to use two gift cards worth only $2.32 to
] buy the merchandise, but when that did not work she again
] asked to cash the $1 million bill, Cotton said. The store
] then called police.
]
] Pike was jailed on forgery charges. A woman who answered
] the phone at the jail said she did not know if Pike has a
] lawyer.

I'd have said "I'm sorry, I don't have change for any bill over $100,000. Is gold bullion OK? I'll have to have the manager open the vault..." -LB

$1 million bill leads to arrest

BridgetAG wrote:
] ] I travel a lot and one of my favorite destination lead
] ] through poisoned with radiation, so called Chernobyl
] ] "dead zone" It is 130kms from my home. Why favourite?
] ] because one can ride there for hours and not meet any
] ] single car and not to see any single soul. People left
] ] and nature is blooming, there are beautiful places,
] ] woods, lakes. There is no newly built roads, but those
] ] which left from 80th in fairly good condition
]
] This is absolutely stunning, spellbinding.

OK... who wants to fly to Ukraine with me and video tape a documentary of this place? YES - I'm 100% serious. Email me. -LB

RE: Photoblogging Chernobyl

] I travel a lot and one of my favorite destination lead
] through poisoned with radiation, so called Chernobyl
] "dead zone" It is 130kms from my home. Why favourite?
] because one can ride there for hours and not meet any
] single car and not to see any single soul. People left
] and nature is blooming, there are beautiful places,
] woods, lakes. There is no newly built roads, but those
] which left from 80th in fairly good condition

This is absolutely stunning, spellbinding.

Photoblogging Chernobyl

] Mexican President Vicente Fox said Saturday that
] President Bush had backed off a plan to require frequent
] Mexico-U.S. travelers to be fingerprinted and
] photographed before crossing the border.

Any semblance of this double standard by Shrub as a pathetic attempt to shore up the Latino vote in an election year is mere coincidence. –LB

Bush backs off fingerprinting plan for Mexican visitors

IconoclasT wrote:
] I personally
] reserve the right to sell my shares of any stock whenever the
] hell I want to. Where are all the freedom loving activists
] here? Regardless of how you feel about her and her image, the
] feds scapegoated her to make an example to others.

Ummm... no - the FTC says you can NOT sell your shares of any stock whenever you like. There are things called "blackout periods" to prevent people with privileged information (like Martha) from dumping their stock when the company is about to tank, or from buying large amounts of stock, say, when there is about to be a share split.

She broke the law as the law is written. She got caught and is paying the consequences. Why is it so painfully difficult for some to comprehend this? If she is being made an example by the govt. then GOOD! I'm sick of celebrities thinking they are above the law. -LB

RE: Save Martha! For Martha Stewart fans