Saturday, October 10, 2009
Homegrown American Marijuana Threatens Mexican Cartels
Homegrown American Marijuana Threatens Mexican Cartels
cbsnews.com — Stiff competition from thousands of mom-and-pop marijuana farmers in the United States threatens the bottom line for powerful Mexican drug organizations in a way that decades of arrests and seizures have not, according to law enforcement officials and pot growers in the United States and Mexico.
Friday, October 09, 2009
Barack Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize
The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia 
Barack Obama Wins Nobel Peace Prize
By WALTER GIBBS and ALAN COWELL 15 minutes ago
In a stunning surprise, the Nobel Committee honored President Obama “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples” less than a year after his election.
Nobel Committee Release
Doug Mills/The New York Times
President Obama meeting with President Dmitri A. Medvedev of Russia in New York in September.
Barack Obama: Interactive TimelineThursday, October 08, 2009
Wednesday, October 07, 2009
Tuesday, October 06, 2009
Sunday, October 04, 2009
A very notable quote *Smirk*
So I say outpedant the pedants, and allow yourself to gluttonously revel in the linguistic improprieties of yore as you familiarize yourself with the nearly unique enormity of the gloriously mistaken heritage that our literature is comprised of. For those of you keeping score at home, that last sentence contained a verbal noun, a split infinitive, an improper -ize, an inflectional comparative, a blatantly misleading word choice, at least one example of catachresis, an unnecessarily passive construction — and it ended with a preposition. All of which I’m willing to bet appear in Shakespeare.
—
Ammon Shea
[On Language - Defending Against Language Pedants - NYTimes.com]
Thanks for the fun: ambivalence - So I say outpedant the pedants, and allow yourself...
I wanted change...
...but I am not so naive as to believe in campaign promises. Barack Obama is a professional politician. The fact that politicians cannot and will not keep campaign promises does not surprise me. The fact that our government is not run by just one person does not surprise me. Conversely I am surprised when other vocal proponents and detractors would lay the entire responsibility of their unfulfilled expectations squarely on the shoulders of one man.I voted for Barack Obama. I wanted to see change.I wanted to see an intelligent, articulate person occupy the office of President of the United States of America. I wanted a person who would be presidential. I wanted a person that I could be proud of. I even considered the fact that Barack Obama is a person of color to be an added bonus. I have not been disappointed.
The room is completely empty.
The room is completely empty. No furniture, no carpet or rug. No pictures, no fixtures, no curtains at the window. Only a diminutive man sitting, his walking staff at his side, framed by beams of sunlight."Master?" I asked quietly. "Do not call me that. I am not a Master""How then should I address you?""I am" he said never opening his eyes.I sat opposite him in the space at what I felt was a respectful distance. I sat quietly. I tried to find myself, center myself. In a single fluid motion the man rose. With measured pace he approached and placed his walking staff behind me. I flinched."Sit up. With your back straight."I stretched until I could feel his staff between my shoulder blades and at the back of my head. "Better. Now tell me why you have come."I sat motionless. I let my mind race desperately through all of my pre-arranged scenarios. I searched all of my pre-recorded explanations, all of my practiced
rationalizations. Each returned an empty hollow resonance. I flushed with a sense of embarrassment."I... I do not know."When I let my head nod forward slightly he allowed the staff to swing in pendulum fashion and tap me gently. "Sit up. Be here."I was here. All of me was right here. From the dull ache of my legs unaccustomed to sitting on a hard floor to my searching everything within my sight for some sign of this man's purpose. The barren room gave up nothing. The sunshine and blue sky beyond offered nothing as well. Suddenly I could hear my own breathing. Then the internal conversation started. Was I breathing correctly? Should it be a 4 count inhale and a 6 count exhale? Were there errands I had to run after this? The grocery list is in my pocket. His walking staff swung again and tapped me gently."Come back tomorrow when you have less time and more to do."Returning to his original place in the room the small man sank into the same seated position. He set his walking staff at this side. He closed his eyes.
rationalizations. Each returned an empty hollow resonance. I flushed with a sense of embarrassment."I... I do not know."When I let my head nod forward slightly he allowed the staff to swing in pendulum fashion and tap me gently. "Sit up. Be here."I was here. All of me was right here. From the dull ache of my legs unaccustomed to sitting on a hard floor to my searching everything within my sight for some sign of this man's purpose. The barren room gave up nothing. The sunshine and blue sky beyond offered nothing as well. Suddenly I could hear my own breathing. Then the internal conversation started. Was I breathing correctly? Should it be a 4 count inhale and a 6 count exhale? Were there errands I had to run after this? The grocery list is in my pocket. His walking staff swung again and tapped me gently."Come back tomorrow when you have less time and more to do."Returning to his original place in the room the small man sank into the same seated position. He set his walking staff at this side. He closed his eyes.
