Bernard Ebbers, the folksy entrepreneur who built WorldCom Inc. into a telecommunications giant, was sentenced on Wednesday to 25 years in prison for his role in the business fraud that led to the largest U.S. corporate bankruptcy.

The sentence means Ebbers, 63, could spend the rest of his life in prison.

Ouch! Moral: It's better to fail than break the rules and get caught.

Ex-WorldCom CEO Ebbers sentenced to 25 yrs

I'm not recommending the article, it's the usual NASA oops stuff. No, what I found interesting was the photo with the article. It'sa NASA huey gunship. Call me nuts, but the last thing I want next to a hundred odd tons of explosive fuel is a helicopter, that it's armed is just one more thing that can go wrong.

*UPDATE* Thanks to Decius, I've updated the URL to go to photo rather than the article.

NASA calls off Wednesday's shuttle launch

Canadian phenom Sidney Crosby is the consensus choice to be the No. 1 pick. Where he goes will be determined by a draft lottery that will give each team an opportunity to snag him.

He will certainly be part of the NHL's campaign to win back fans that were disenchanted by the lockout.

I hate to break it to you guys, but I don't think anyone gives a damn.

One very important note from the lost season.
ESPN had the same ratings for its "fill-in" schedule as they did from the NHL. That means things like bowling, and showing "Tilt" three times on Thursday night rated just as well as hockey did the year before. At a substantially lower cost. In a more competative television market. Think the NHL might have a problem getting a TV contract?

NHL - Back on ice: NHL and the union reach a deal in principle to end lockout

More fun from the government. The White House press corp rips poor little Scotty McClellan a new ass for them closing ranks on Rove.

IFILM - Viral Videos: White House Press Corps Unleashed!

This is one pissed off scotsman. I'm just sad we don't get to see the look on Norm Coleman's face as he gets steamrollered by him.

IFILM - Viral Videos: George Galloway vs. Senate Subcommittee

Last year, Mr. King was referred to Dr. Victor Aziz, a psychiatrist at St. Cadoc's Hospital in Wales. Dr. Aziz explained to him that there was a name for his experience: musical hallucinations.

This has got to be one of the strangest things I've ever heard of. I can see where he would say it's driving him bonkers, especially if a bad song get stuck.

Neuron Network Goes Awry, and Brain Becomes an IPod

In 2003, McClellan said it was "totally ridiculous" to suggest that Rove played any role in the leak of CIA officer Valerie Plame's identity. He also said Bush has insisted that his staffers cooperate with the investigation by special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, and that anyone responsible would be fired.

Well let's see. They lied about the WMD's, the links between Saddam (yes a total bastard) and Al-Qaeda (why is it only arab names that don't follow the "qu" rule? Well and Qantas, but they always were weird) they lied about who cashes in on the tax cuts and they don't seem to understand that a rising tide floating boats pretty much drowns everyone who doesn't have one.

I suppose it's only fair that they'd lie about actually doing something about the guy who leaked a CIA operative to the Angel of Darkness. It's not like it'd be a change. A change would actually be hanging him out to dry. But when you look at the most dishonest administration it's been my displeasure to live through, what else can I expect?

CNN.com - White House clams up on CIA leak - Jul 12, 2005

In the two years since that hearing, the court has only made his point stronger. In case after case, the court--with seven of nine justices appointed by Republican presidents--has confounded and disappointed conservatives. It has refused to abandon sweeping constitutional rulings of previous courts and, in some cases, it has extended them.

What this little article actually notes is that the Rehnquist court has been less "activist" than expected. It has declined to overturn past decisions.

When I was taking law 20 years ago, the court had Brennen, and Marshall, both decidedly liberal, and Warren Burger, who on this court I guess the writer of this article would call, based on the way this article is written, moderate/liberal. Calling this court liberal would be completely wrong. Comparing any member of the current court to past liberal giants Brennan or Marshall, there is not a "liberal" on the bench.

A better way to describe the makeup might be-

liberal- Breyer, Ginsberg
moderate- Stevens, O'Connor (and only because of the makeup of the rest of the group)
independant- Souter, Kennedy
conservative- Rehnquist
conservative activist- Scalia, Thomas

The 1987 court was-
liberal- Brennan, Marshall
moderate- White, Powell
independant- Blackmun, Stevens
conservative- O'Connor, Rehnquist
conservative activist- (even then) Scalia.

That O'Connor is now considered among the moderates does not mean that she has shifted that way, but that the court itself has shifted enough to the right to make her one.

I never thought I'd say this, but I hope Rehnquist continues to hold out. A court with multiple representatives from the current know-nothing branch of the Republican party would be a disaster.

Court choices unpredictable

The case is among the most serious legal clashes between the media and the government since the Supreme Court in 1971 refused to stop the Times and The Washington Post from publishing a classified history of the Vietnam War known as the
Pentagon Papers.

Thirty-one states and the District of Columbia have shield laws protecting reporters from having to identify their confidential sources. Legislation to establish such protection under federal law has been introduced in Congress.

This presents an interesting case. If DC has a protective clause specifically indemnifying reporters, that should fall into federal jurisdiction, meaning the requested information would have to fall into some other jurisdiction?

I'm still finding this whole case a bit odd, especially when the person who broke the story, Bob Novak, "the Angel of Darkness" isn't under this kind of order. Does that mean he rolled over or has he not been asked?

Prosecutor Demands Time Reporter Testimony

Polar sea ice formation and climate patterns drive large ocean circulation currents, which in turn affect local climates at moderate latitudes where most people live. A warmer world should fuel more precipitation, most experts agree.

For Antarctica, the new study concludes, the extra precipitation will mean deeper snow, which will suppress sea ice below, making it thicker over time.

It's not flat, it's Play-Doh!

Global Warming Might Create Lopsided Planet