janelane wrote:
] ] According to the lower request, the $25 billion would be
] ] placed in a fund under Bush's control. He could
] decide
] ] how the money would be spent, as long as he informed
] ] Congress that his request was "an emergency and essential
] ] to support activities and agencies in Iraq or
] ] Afghanistan."
] ]
] ] "This reserve fund will ensure that our men and women in
] ] uniform continue to have the resources they need when
] ] they need them," Bush wrote in a brief request barely
] ] longer than three pages.
]
] I wonder if the "request" (which is inappropriate nomenclature
] since they are asssured of providing what he asks) included
] provisions for where the hell the money would come from (not
] that most of us can't guess).
]
] --
] janelane

What I wonder is how we're going to look back at this in a decade or two (or three), after the total cost of this war - and the total gains - are available for comparison. $50b has to come from somewhere, and eventually - or sooner than we think - we'll pay.
~dementia

RE: CNN.com - Wolfowitz: Iraq, Afghan costs could top $50B - May 13, 2004

I've followed this story for over a year - it involves US corporations, Nato members and the mafia.

Its pretty nasty. I'm starting to think that the huge majority of US citizens don't care about anything nasty happening as long as it doesn't happen HERE.

Nato Sex Slaves

] Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock hit the road and interviewed
] experts in 20 U.S. cities, including Houston, the
] "Fattest City" in America. From Surgeon Generals to gym
] teachers, cooks to kids, lawmakers to legislators, these
] authorities shared their research, opinions and "gut
] feelings" on our ever-expanding girth.
]
] During the journey, Spurlock also put his own body on the
] line, living on nothing but McDonald's for an entire
] month with three simple rules:
]
] 1) No options: he could only eat what was available over
] the counter (water included!)
]
] 2) No supersizing unless offered
]
] 3) No excuses: he had to eat every item on the menu at
] least once

Opens in Nashville on 5/28 at the Green Hills 16.
Opens in Atlanta on 5/21 at the LAND Midtown Art Cinema.

((((( SUPER SIZE ME ))))) A FILM OF EPIC PORTIONS

] An 18-year-old German high school student has admitted
] creating the Sasser internet worm, police say.
]
] The worm spread through an estimated 18 million computers
] across the world last week, continually shutting down and
] rebooting them.
]
] The teenager was arrested on Friday in the town of
] Rotenburg in northern Germany, and has now been released.

German Teen 'confesses' to Sasser worm

] A Disney executive says it told Miramax last May that it
] did not want to be connected to the North American
] distribution of the film because it could be politically
] divisive.
]
] But Moore claims Disney is worried it could lose tax
] breaks it gets in Florida, where the president's brother
] Jeb Bush is governor. Disney denies that, according to
] The Times.
]
] Miramax says its deal with Disney only allows the company
] to block distribution of a film if it is over-budget or
] gets an NC-17 rating, neither of which appears to apply
] to Moore's movie. The two companies could go to mediation
] over the dispute.
]
] "I would have hoped by now that I would be able to put my
] work out to the public without having to experience the
] profound censorship obstacles I often seem to encounter,"
] Moore wrote in the statement on his site.
]
] "Some people may be afraid of this movie because of what
] it will show," Moore wrote. "But there's nothing they can
] do about it now because it's done, it's awesome, and if I
] have anything to say about it, you'll see it this summer
] %u2014 because, after all, it is a free country."

[ This is far more interesting than i thought... Is Moore making that shit up about tax breaks (i wouldn't put it past him) or is disney really that corrupt (also very possible)?

He can be a dick, but you gotta admire Moore's tenacity. -k]

CBS News | Disney Blocks Anti-Bush Film | May 5, 2004 10:07:58

] Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Michael Moore said
] the Walt Disney Company has blocked distribution of his
] new film critical of U.S. President George W. Bush.
]
] The film -- which links Bush with powerful Saudi
] families, including that of Osama bin Laden -- is set to
] debut at the Cannes Film Festival in France later this
] month.
]
] In a letter posted on his Web site Wednesday, Moore said,
] "Yesterday I was told that Disney, the studio that owns
] Miramax, has officially decided to prohibit our producer,
] Miramax, from distributing my new film, 'Fahrenheit
] 9/11.'
]
] "The reason? According to today's edition of The New York
] Times, it might 'endanger' millions of dollars of tax
] breaks Disney receives from the state of Florida because
] the film will 'anger' the governor of Florida, Jeb Bush."

Hmm. Free speech or tax breaks. Disney votes for tax breaks! Not that I'm surprised, really. Disney has not really been one for supporting free speech (re: copyright laws) in recent times.

CNN.com - Moore: Disney blocking film about Bush - May 5, 2004

While it's a well done costume, this is yet another case of costuming-for-your-body-type nightmare scenarios.

TRON Costume - 4 pictures you *don't* want to see

Scroll down and turn on your speakers. It'll make you happy, too.

Hippo love the island

My review on Interz0ne III. I also am quite frank in my pros and cons, discussing some problems I see where Interz0ne is going.

] The con organizers needs to relax, and let the con grow
] on its own based on the quality of its talks and how much
] fun it is to attend. They are seeking to make this a
] profitable venture, and good for them. However if they
] are charging $30 bucks a head when I am suppling
] free-of-charge over 3 hours of content, I don't expect or
] deserve some of the static I'm getting from them. I hope
] they change their focus, tone down their ideas of
] overnight greatness, and listen to what people are saying
] about their con. People constantly say they like
] Interz0ne because it is small enough that you can talk
] with the speakers, that it attracts smart hackers with
] good talks, and they enjoy the partying. Interz0ne is
] great the way it is, and in an effort to make it larger
] and profittable, Interz0ne is pissing a lot of people
] off, myself included. I hope this trend doesn't continue.

Interz0ne 3 - Review, pros and cons

... Priceless

Priceless