Having a Ball With Governor Strickland
click any photo to enlarge
Governor Strickland rocked the Ohio State fairgrounds last night with his first Inaugural Ball...at least 7,000 people showed up to celebrate Ohioans moving forward with Ted. Ball organizers opened up another building, complete with heated walkway to get from one building to the next.
Prissy votes this young belle "best outfit" for the 25 and younger crowd. Beautiful, isn't she?
The bands were playing, the wine was flowing, plenty of good food and dance floor was full. Even the Ohio State Highway patrol officers were in a good mood. There was more glitz and glitter than Hollywood and it was fun!
Prissy heard there were some republicans there, too, as Ted doesn't discriminate. Fred Phelps, however, did not show up...
How appropriate for the building named for a former Ohio republican governor-perhaps you remember him. It was Governor Rhodes who called out the Ohio National Guard to Kent State to put down "disturbances" during Vietnam...
Long time Inaugural Ball attenders said it was the largest party they had ever witnessed and the most energized group of people they had seen in years.
Hot Links
The Australian NGOs to sue US over WMD claims
The lawsuit by the collective will be filed at either French or Belgian courts, Kadi added.
In January 2003, US President George W. Bush accused Saddam of having bought uranium from Niger to make weapons of mass destruction.
The Niger collective said in a statement that investigations by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), world media and US officials, all concluded that it was a "false accusation" against Niger.
That false information was used by Bush "to invade Iraq," said the collective's statement, which also called for support from Niger's President Mamadou Tandja, who back in 2003 said the US allegations were "harming Niger's image".
Neocons gone wild on CNN White House: We will send more troops in Iraq
• President Bush: "I've made my decision. And we're going forward" • Vice President Cheney says congressional critics won't influence troop plans • Cheney says Democratic critics don't have coherent alternative to Bush strategy • Cheney says giving up fight in Iraq would send wrong message to enemies
And we've made our decision...impeachment for the both of you.
Jpost US Senator Clinton meets with President Musharraf
The two discussed a range of issues, including the situation in Afghanistan and the Middle East, he said, quoting Musharraf as telling Clinton that Pakistan was in favor of a "stable, strong and prosperous Afghanistan" and that Islamabad was extending full support to the world community in the fight against terrorism.
Musharraf also informed Clinton about the steps his government had taken to curb militancy and secure the Pakistani border with Afghanistan to check militants' activities, the official said.
Chicago Tribune Obama, McCain square off on war
Obama, reluctant to commit himself to any vote blocking spending for the war, is joining Democratic leaders in calling for the start of a phased withdrawal starting over the next four to six month and calls Bush's new plan "stay-the-course-plus.'' McCain, warning that a withdrawal of U.S. forces will lead to "catastrophe'' in Iraq, also acknowledges that he cannot "guarantee success'' with the president's plan.
The president, whom CBS News will feature this evening in an interview aired on 60 Minutes, vows to carry out the deployment regardless of congressional criticism for it. "I fully understand they could try to stop me from doing it,'' Bush tells 60 Minutes. "But I've made my decision and we're going forward.''
"I think the case still needs to be made,'' McCain said this morning, calling the debate so far "superficial." "This is about a new strategy, of which an increase in troop strength is an integral part.''
The deployment of 21,500 additional troops is part of a new plan to secure Baghdad and other parts of Iraq, McCain said. "We will go in and we will clear and hold and build,'' he said. "As most people know, we have gone in and cleared and left and the insurgents have returned… Do I believe it can succeed? Yes, I do.''
McCain, still thinking Vietnam too, is "doable"...
Oh Dick may waddle in with confidence...but he is sure to waddle out in a huff.
Will there be a surprise witness? The complete Plamegate Timeline KOSpedia Plame Leak timeline
January 24* CIA official Robert Walpole sends Stephen Hadley and other White House officials a memorandum in favor of the idea that Iraq had sought to obtain the uranium. The memo cites the language in the Oct. 1 intelligence estimate. (SSCI, NYT)
before January 28 * The National Intelligence Council sends and the White House receives an unequivocal memo, drafted by Robert G. Houdek, the national intelligence officer for Africa, that the Niger story is baseless and should be laid to rest. (WaPo, DailyKos)
January 28 * The 16 words are spoken by the President in the State of the Union address (transcript). "The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa."
January 29 * Joseph Wilson meets with a friend who works at the State Department and asks why the president had cited the British intelligence report about Iraq's attempt to buy uranium, when he had debunked the allegation a year earlier. (NYT)
Reuters Cover-up is focus of CIA leak trial or is it?
A raft of books appear to back up Wilson's claim that the Bush administration manipulated intelligence in the run-up to the Iraq war. Public opinion has firmly turned against the war and Democrats promise investigations of their own.
In the end, the Libby trial may seem less the culmination of a high-profile investigation than an afterthought.
"We're left with a rather modest case against a rather hapless personality," said George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley.
That is, until Fitz pulls the rabbit out of his hat, making the court audience gasp...Fitz, don't forget to say "Ta-da!" 
New Scientist How to leak a secret and not get caught
According to the group's website www.wikileaks.org, its primary targets include China, Russia, and oppressive regimes in Eurasia, the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa. It is not limited to these countries, however, and people anywhere will be able to use the site to reveal unethical behaviour by governments and corporations.
CBC and why Prissy is still mad at Dell, yes her model is included after Dell has denied this many times. Dell Inspirons inspire litigation
The claim, disclosed Friday by Rochon Genova LLP, alleges that Dell "was negligent in the design of the notebooks," so the computers are susceptible to overheating and premature failure of the motherboard.
The failures "often occur just outside of the standard one-year warranty period," the lawyers said in a release.
The Inspiron models named in the action are the 1100, 1150, 5100, 5150 and 5160.
Chicago Tribune Democrats eye alternative to U.S. troop surge plan
"Why not come back to the Congress?" Kennedy said. "Why not come back and permit us to have a vote on this surge? Let the American people speak through their elected representatives."
Bush invited top Republican leaders from the House and the Senate to Camp David for at least part of the holiday weekend.
After hearing Levin repeat the refrain that Bush's plan to increase troop levels would be a grave mistake during Friday's hearing, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) weighed in with his own critique of those who believe the president should be talking about drawing down instead of ramping up.
"Do they truly believe we can walk away from Iraq?" McCain said. "I believe these individuals ... have a responsibility to tell us what they believe are the consequences of withdrawal in Iraq. If we walk away from Iraq, we'll be back, possibly in the context of a wider war in the world's most volatile region."
Earth to John; are you still in Vietnam?
Times of India India may be birthplace of tuberculosis, says study
India may be the birthplace of one of the world's deadliest killers tuberculosis.
In a first of its kind study called "Predominance of Ancestral Lineages of Mycobacterium Tuberculosis in India", that examined the diversity of the presence of TB strains, a joint team of Indian and French scientists found that the ancestral strains of the TB bacterium was widespread in India, an indication that it might be the ancient reservoir for TB, from which more recent strains evolved and spread to other countries.
Although India has the highest prevalence of TB worldwide, the genetic diversity of the virus in India was largely unknown.
Sign on SandiegoVice president calls former aide, heading to trial in CIA leak case, 'one of the more honest men I know'
The special prosecutor, Patrick Fitzgerald, spent three years investigating that claim but filed no charges based on the leak itself. He says his work is done except for trying Libby, who resigned after being indicted in October 2005.
Given that Libby probably will be the only official charged in the leak investigation, Cheney said, “I have strong views on the subject. I am likely to be a witness in this trial. It would be inappropriate for me, at this point, shortly before the trial begins, to enter into a public dialogue ... about my views on this issue.”
The vice president replied, “That's correct,” when asked if nothing he had heard or read would shake his confidence in Libby's integrity.
Cheney was interviewed on “Fox News Sunday.”
Bold by Prissy. Fitz using some Orwellian speak himself, saying his "work is done".
Personalize M&M's for your Sweetheart for Valentine's DayPersonalized M&M's
International Herald Tribune Cellphones on planes are almost a reality
After years of debate over the use of mobile phones aboard airplanes in flight, the moment of truth has — very nearly — arrived.
Emirates, the Dubai-based airline, installed satellite-based technology enabling voice calls and text messaging on one of its Boeing 777 jets late last year and expects to begin offering the service to passengers on a yet-to-be announced international route early next month. The service has already obtained approval from air safety and telecommunications regulators in 25 countries in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, covering about 30 different routes that Emirates flies. The carrier expects to outfit its entire fleet with the technology within a couple of years.
A half-dozen other airlines, including Air France-KLM, Ryanair and Qantas, are due to offer similar services in Europe and Australia later this year. Travelers in North America, meanwhile, will have to await the conclusion of ongoing reviews of the technology by both the Federal Communication Commission and the Federal Aviation Administration.
The public was told cell phones were used by airline passengers on 9/11...
Reuters Cheney: U.S. must show "stomach" to win in Iraq
How about you show yours, old boy?
Time Guilty Plea In HP Spy Probe
Wagner admitted using the personal information to set up online accounts in the targets' names between April 2005 and September 2006 to access their call logs and billing records.
Wagner's defense lawyer, Stephen Naratil, said his client would testify for the prosecution as it pursues other figures tied to the scandal. He declined to say whom Wagner would testify against or what he had already told prosecutors. His sentencing was set for June 20 in San Jose federal court. There was no sentencing agreement included in the plea deal.
Wagner faces a mandatory minimum prison sentence of two years on the identity theft charge, and a maximum of five years for conspiracy, but prosecutors can ask the court for a more lenient sentence if they're satisfied with his level of cooperation.
Naratil has described his client as the "little guy" who was tricked by other people higher up in the HP investigation's chain of command into thinking the investigative methods were legal. Wagner never had any contact with anyone inside HP, Naratil said. "He was your classic dupe," Naratil said outside the courthouse. "It sounds preposterous now, looking back at it all, for him to think that it was legal ... But he was assured it was legal. He feels that he was used."
Gee Scooter, know the feeling? Daniel Ellsberg said that even when he was facing potential jail time, his only regret was not releasing the Pentagon Papers earlier.
Quotes of the Day
"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye." --Antoine de Saint-Exupery
"It is said that power corrupts, but actually it's more true that power attracts the corruptible. The sane are usually attracted by other things than power."-- David Brin
If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking.--Lyndon B. Johnson (1908 - 1973)
To know what you prefer instead of humbly saying Amen to what the world tells you you ought to prefer, is to have kept your soul alive.--Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894)
Nothing’s better than the wind to your back, the sun in front of you, and your friends beside you.--Aaron Douglas Trimble
