] LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) -- A second-grader was scolded and
] forced to write "I will never use the word `gay' in
] school again" after he told a classmate his mother is a
] lesbian, the American Civil Liberties Union alleges.

good job, teach... we want to teach children of gay parents to be ashamed of who they and their parents are. good call.

maybe you should spend some more time on teaching fundamentals of English, rather than fundamentalism

] The child was also made to sign a "Student Behavior Contract,"
] where he wrote, "I sed bad wurds."

anyone want to tell me the point of making a child this age SIGN ANYTHING EVER.

The Associated Press

] There are several reasons that more money goes to
] Republican than to Democratic states and districts, such
] as where we base our military units. But a simple fact
] is that Gore states receive an average of $0.87 in
] federal spending for every dollar of federal taxes they
] contributed to the treasury, while Bush states receive
] $1.12 for every federal tax dollar they contribute--and
] it's getting worse.

shenanigans people. total shenanigans.

Daily Kos || Political Analysis and other daily rants on the state of the nation.

action on the tablet front.

this is, of course, rampant speculation, but fun to think about... if anyone can make a tablet that's cool, it's apple. i personally think it has a lot of uses for people that aren't nerds (in my day job as a consultant, i'd love a tablet for meetings where typing on a laptop would be inappropriate).

for it to succeed, at least for me, it better be ~ 1 inch thick, and the battery better last 5+ hours. hey, i never said i had reasonable requests.

Slashdot | Cheap Linux Tablets, And (Maybe) An Apple Tablet

] In 2000 George W. Bush campaigned across the country
] telling voters: "My opponent trusts government. I trust
] you."
]
] Little wonder that some of his supporters are now
] wondering which candidate won that election.
]
] Federal spending has increased by 23.7 percent since Bush
] took office.

fortunately, 9/11 gave him the justification he'd been praying for. i think the public is starting to tire of that excuse...

The Bush Betrayal (washingtonpost.com)

The Cato Institute takes conservatives to task for their devotion to the Pledge of Allegiance and gives some interesting information about the Pledge's author (the part about the ritual is particularly good):

] It's probably too much to ask politicians to reflect a
] little before they lunge for a political hot-button
] issue. But any conservatives so inclined should think
] about what they're defending. What's so conservative
] about the Pledge?
]
] Very little, as it turns out. From its inception, in
] 1892, the Pledge has been a slavish ritual of devotion to
] the state, wholly inappropriate for a free people. It was
] written by Francis Bellamy, a Christian Socialist pushed
] out of his post as a Baptist minister for delivering
] pulpit-pounding sermons on such topics as "Jesus the
] Socialist."

What's Conservative about the Pledge of Allegiance?

] Smoking can be twice as deadly for women as it is for
] men, according to a major new study that sheds more light
] on why lung cancer has overtaken breast cancer as the
] leading cancer killer of Canadian women.

maybe a fluke of statistics, but if not, damn.

it also says it's harder for women to quit...

Smoking deadlier among women

] But even as 100,000 fans celebrated the world premiere of
] the final instalment in the Lord of the Rings trilogy,
] Kiwi director Peter Jackson was fighting with the estate
] of Rings author JRR Tolkien.
]
] Tolkien's estate is refusing to allow Jackson - tipped to
] win this year's Best Director Oscar - to create a Rings
] museum in Wellington.
]
] Wrangles with the late author's family have marred the
] $4.7 billion-earning film trilogy, to the immense
] frustration of Jackson and Hollywood studio New Line
] Cinema. He wants to save the thousands of swords, suits
] of armour, costumes and sets used in the films in a
] museum but the estate's custodian Christopher Tolkien,
] who has refused to endorse the movies, won't give
] permission.

there will have to be a way around this... many of the set pieces, swords, and costumes, for this movie are truly art. everything was made by very serious and talented artisans and craftspeople and it really should be shown.

NEWS.com.au | Tolkien party soured (December 2, 2003)

Who knew? Some of us here must live within a mile of Hayes' old house. I had no idea.

Man, what a sad story.

ajc.com | Business | Modem moguls' paths diverge

] Explore one of the newest frontiers in science - DNA
] mapping. From science labs to courtrooms, few discoveries
] are as exciting as the world of DNA. With this deluxe,
] first-of-its-kind kit, you can extract, view and map real
] DNA yourself. Ideal for budding forensic-scientists or
] secret agents, the working lab and tools are just like
] the real thing. Plus, you'll have all the supplies needed
] for six fascinating DNA experiments. Extract DNA from
] vegetables, find out what actually makes ink colors and
] even grow crystal stalagmites!

Its all fun and games until some kid drinks the mutagen.

cool - nano

man that's the coolest, scariest toy ever. my kids will be buying their kids "build your own pet" kits. "Create your own custom companion... a flying cat... a zebra striped terrier... racing gerbils... the only limit is your imagination!"

Discovery DNA Explorer Kit

] Scientists anywhere in the world, including developing
] nations, should have free access to the scientific tools
] of modern biology and genetics, says an Australian
] geneticist.
]

Open Source Biotech? Do we have concerns about easing access for terrorists? Or can they already get this stuff? Would the benefits outweigh the risks. I think in OSS the answer is a clear yes... is biotech different?

News in Science - Push to free up biotech tools for all - 01/12/2003