A confidential e-mail tip line set up to report Justice Department abuses to the House Judiciary Committee has ended up exposing as many as 150 would-be whistleblowers following a mishandled bulk e-mail, according to reports on an online watchdog group's Web site.

In a post to Talking Point Memo's TPMmuckraker.com, blogger Paul Kiel cites a government e-mail sent Oct. 26 in which a list of submission recipients was shown in the public "To:" field instead of the hidden "BCC:" field used to hide the list which gets the e-mail message.

"One disgruntled recipient replied to the entire list of whistleblowers angrily complaining about the snafu; two others forwarded the committee email to TPMmuckraker with similar complaints," wrote Kiel.

The e-mail addresses were gathered from a government Web site with a section set up specifically to find "concrete and specific actions taken or statements made by management-level officials of the Department" that led to the controversial firings of eight U.S. attorneys, ultimately leading to the resignation of former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

Critics have said the firings appeared to be politically motivated, and some of the prosecutors who were dismissed in a Dec. 7, 2006, purge said they felt pressure by Republican lawmakers to investigate more Democrats in the months leading up to elections.

The whistleblower report form warned users to avoid using Justice Department e-mail addresses "in order to prevent such unfortunate retaliatory actions," but the personal e-mails used instead may also identify some individuals.

"Compounding the mistake, the committee later sent out a second e-mail attempting to recall the original e-mail; it, too, included all recipients in the 'to:' field, according to a recipient of the (e-mails)," reports Kiel.

According to the report, none of the tips submitted so far have been read by Judiciary Committee members, and before opening up for review, submitters were to be given a chance to withdraw their tips from the record by Oct. 30 before new governmental review processes were put in place.

dumb ...

Justice Department Government Aid Exposes Tipsters In Justice Investigation

Great song! Glad to see them back...

Eagles - How Long

- A Halloween party where a Department of Homeland Security worker won praise for a costume of darkened skin and prison garb may stall Senate confirmation of the party's host for a second time.

Julie Myers, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, called the man's costume "offensive."

Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill said Wednesday that she has placed a temporary "hold" on Julie Myers' nomination for the job of assistant homeland security secretary for immigration and customs enforcement until Myers answers questions about the party, including why photographs of her with the costumed employee were destroyed after questions were raised.

"As the leader of that organization, she should have immediately recognized the problem and asked that person to leave," said McCaskill, who has raised previous concerns about Myers' nomination. "And what really happened was, she judged the costume as one that should get a prize and be recognized and she had her photograph taken with the person in the costume -- and only later came back and apologized and said it was a problem."

President Bush used a 2006 recess appointment to put Myers in office after Senate concerns about her inexperience stalled her confirmation. He nominated her again for the job in January.

Myers, 38, was part of a three-judge panel that originally praised the costume -- which featured dreadlocks, black-and-white prison garb and a skin "bronzer" -- for its originality.

She later apologized for what she said were a few "inappropriate and offensive" costumes after other employees complained. The employee who wore the costume has been placed on paid administrative leave pending an inquiry.

ICE spokeswoman Kelly Nantel told CNN Wednesday the photos were deleted because the costume was offensive and because officials feared the images would end up being used on ICE publications and Web sites.

Costume leads to 'hold' on Myers' Senate confirmation...

U.S. safety officials have recalled about 4.2 million Chinese-made Aqua Dots bead toys that contain a chemical that has caused some children to vomit and become comatose after swallowing them.

Bindeez, which were named Australia's toy of the year, contain a chemical that converts into a "date rape" drug.

Scientists have found the popular toy's coating contains a chemical that, once metabolized, converts into the toxic "date rape" drug GHB, or gamma-hydroxy butyrate, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission spokesman Scott Wolfson told CNN.

"GHB is this drug that in low doses actually causes euphoria," said Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN's chief medical correspondent. "In higher doses, it can cause people to go into a coma. It can cause seizures. It can cause something known as hypotonia, where all your muscles just become very flaccid.

"And it can cause people to become amnestic, meaning they forget everything that's about to happen to them, which is why it became a date-rape drug," Gupta said.

Toy contaminated with 'date rape' drug pulled - CNN.com

Motorola, Inc. announced today that its subsidiary, MI, Inc., will launch a tender offer to acquire a controlling interest in Vertex Standard Co., Ltd. (JASDAQ: 6821), a global provider of 2-way radio communication solutions. Upon successful completion of the tender offer and subsequent restructuring process, Motorola will own 80% of Vertex Standard and Tokogiken, a privately held Japanese company, controlled by Jun Hasegawa, current president and CEO of Vertex Standard, will retain 20%, forming a joint venture. On 5 November 2007, the Board of Directors of Vertex Standard expressed their support of the tender offer.

"As a leading provider and pioneer in 2-way radio communication solutions, Motorola is an excellent strategic partner for our business," said Jun Hasegawa, president and CEO of Vertex Standard. "The joint venture will give Vertex Standard access to Motorola's global distribution channels, presenting considerable opportunities for Vertex Standard to drive growth. We also expect to reduce costs, as we will benefit from Motorola's global scale and resources. With Motorola, Vertex Standard will be stronger and better positioned to deliver new and innovative 2-way radio solutions for professionals and consumers around the world."

"This joint venture will enable Motorola and Vertex Standard to deliver an enhanced combined product offering to new regions and customers worldwide," said Mark Moon, senior vice president of Motorola's Government and Commercial Markets. "We are extremely pleased to announce this transaction, which will improve our ability to address the growing needs of our 2-way radio customers worldwide. We look forward to the continued leadership of Jun Hasegawa and making this new joint venture a success."

Motorola Commences Tender Offer to Acquire Controlling Interest in Vertex Standard Co., Ltd., to Form Joint Venture with Tokogiken

Google has temporarily quashed rumours of a Google mobile handset by announcing instead a new mobile operating system called Android - and declaring it far more important than mere hardware.

"Today's announcement is more ambitious than any single 'Google Phone' that the press has been speculating about over the past few weeks. Our vision is that the powerful platform we're unveiling will power thousands of different phone models," says Google CEO, Eric Schmidt.

The search giant is attempting to capture a share of the mobile phone sector, which is estimated to now be at 3 billion users. If a large enough user base could be achieved, then advertising and improved placement of Google services could bring in considerable revenue to the company.

Android, which is based on the Linux platform, will be made freely available under an open licence. This will allow manufacturers to modify the software to suit their needs, and should help encourage adoption.

Google says the platform will also allow developers to market new programs for
mobile devices faster and easier. Previously, the company claims, there was a lack of collaboration in the sector, which "made it a challenge for developers, wireless operators and handset manufacturers to respond as quickly as possible to the ever-changing needs of savvy mobile consumers."

Thirty-four companies have formed a group called the Open Handset Alliance, which aims to lower the cost of creating mobile applications and devices by using the OS. Nvidia, Intel, Texas Instruments, Motorola, Samsung, LG and HTC are all members of the OHA.

An early access software development kit will be released next week to allow developers to start creating third party applications, and products using Android are expected to be ready for release in 2008.

It is still unclear at this time whether Google are working on a hardware handset as well, as rumours have suggested since 2005.

You can see an introduction to the new OS in a Google video.
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6x0zZsqI3s%20)

In 2005, Google acquired a mobile software company called Android, but it's not yet known exactly how much of the new OS code is a result of this.

PC Pro: News: Google announces Android operating system

FREE SPEECH vs. RIGHT TO BROADCAST

A number of inquiries received at the Commission are from persons or groups who believe that there is a First Amendment, constitutionally protected right to broadcast. However, the Supreme Court of the United States has repeatedly ruled on this subject and concluded that no right to broadcast exists.

In National Broadcasting Co. v. United States, 319 U.S. 190 (1943), the Supreme Court stated, in pertinent part, as follows (footnotes omitted):

We come, finally, to an appeal to the First Amendment. The Regulations, even if valid in all other respects, must fall because they abridge, say the appellants, their right of free speech. If that be so, it would follow that every person whose application for a license to operate a station is denied by the Commission is thereby denied his constitutional right of free speech. Freedom of utterance is abridged to many who wish to use the limited facilities of radio. Unlike other modes of expression, radio inherently is not available to all. That is its unique characteristic, and that is why, unlike other modes of expression, it is subject to government regulation. Because it cannot be used by all, some who wish to use it must be denied. . . . The right of free speech does not include, however, the right to use the facilities of radio without license. The licensing system established by Congress in the Communications Act was a proper exercise of its power over commerce. The standard it provided for licensing of stations was the 'public interest, convenience, and necessity.' Denial of a station license on that ground, if valid under the Act, is not a denial of free speech.

In addition, in Red Lion Broadcasting Co., Inc. v. United States, 395 U.S. 367, 89 S.CT. 1794 (1969), the Supreme Court of the United States stated, in pertinent part, as follows (footnotes omitted):

When two people converse face to face, both should not speak at once if either is to be clearly understood. But the range of the human voice is so limited that there could be meaningful communications if half the people in the United States were talking and the other half listening. Just as clearly, half the people might publish and the other half read. But the reach of radio signals is incomparably greater than the range of the human voice and the problem of interference is a massive reality. The lack of know-how and equipment may keep many from the air, but only a tiny fraction of those with resources and intelligence can hope to communicate by radio at the same time if intelligible communication is to be had, even if the entire radio spectrum is used in the present state of commercially acceptable technology.

It was this fact, and the chaos which resulted from permitting anyone to use any frequency at whatever power level he wished, which made necessary the enactment of the Radio Act of 1927 and the Communications Act of 1934. National Broadcasting... [ Read More (0.2k in body) ]

Low Power Broadcast Radio Stations - FCC

Until now, Fred Thompson has escaped any serious controversy but recent drug accusations reach to the top of his presidential campaign.

According to the Washington Post, Thompson's campaign co-chairman Philip Martin pleaded guilty to selling 11 pounds of marijuana in 1979 and then pleaded no contest to charges of trafficking cocaine, bookmaking and conspiracy in 1983.

Thompson said the old crimes are an unfortunate result of campaign dirt digging.

"Phil, I'm sure, knows that he should have told me about this. But, he thought it was over and done with and forgotten about," said Thompson. "But, of course, nothing is ever

If you cant stand the heat get your head out of your ass and stay out of our kitchen ... *grin*

Paper: Close Fred Thompson Aide Sold Drugs - News Story - WSMV Nashville

1895: Inventor George Selden receives the first U.S. patent for an automobile.

Who the true inventor of the automobile actually was remains clouded in the murk of history and a tangle of bureaucracy. Gottlieb Daimler of Germany often gets the credit, but a number of people, including Selden, had been working on gasoline-powered vehicles at the same time -- perhaps even earlier.

Selden's case for priority wasn't helped by the fact that it took him forever to get his patent. He built his first horseless carriage in 1877 and filed for a patent in 1879. But a succession of tweaks and amendments -- mostly of his own doing -- delayed patent issuance until 1895.

While Selden was an inventor, the subsequent tale of his automobile is a story more about legal maneuvering than about innovation, and in this Selden was overmatched. After selling his patent rights in 1899 to the Electric Vehicle Company in exchange for a piece of the action, Selden and EVC found themselves suing Henry Ford and several other automobile makers for patent infringement.

The case dragged on for eight years. Selden (who had trained as a lawyer) and EVC won at the lower-court level but ultimately lost on appeal. Ford convinced the appellate court that because his automobiles were powered not by the EVC's two-stroke Brayton engine, but by the four-stroke Otto engine, the Ford was an entirely different product.

The loss drove Selden and EVC from the field, but he did begin manufacturing trucks as the Selden Truck Sales Corporation.

An interesting historical sidelight: Selden's father, Henry, was Abraham Lincoln's first choice to be his vice presidential running mate during the 1864 election. The elder Selden declined the honor, however, and so missed the chance to become president of the United States when Lincoln was assassinated the following April.

Nov. 5, 1895: First U.S. Automaker Gets Off to Slow Start

It's no surprise that Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., both have Holocaust memorials.

But most people wouldn't expect to find one in rural Whitwell, Tenn., a predominately Christian, two-traffic-light town with a population of 1,600 and no Jews.

Yet, a German railcar sits in the yard of Whitwell Middle School, housing The Children's Holocaust Memorial.

The story behind this memorial involves teachers who wanted to teach their students about diversity and intolerance; teenagers who were shocked by the atrocities of the Holocaust and sympathized with its victims; and a lot of paper clips.

"Paper Clips," a documentary about this memorial, premieres in Scottsdale on Friday, Feb. 11, at Harkins Camelview 5 Theatres. After the film, Valley resident and Holocaust survivor Helen Handler will comment on the film and talk about her experiences during World War II.

The story begins in 1998, when David Smith, assistant principal of Whitwell Middle School, attended a teacher's conference in nearby Chattanooga, and was inspired to start a program to teach students about the Holocaust.

good read...

Six million paper clips