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No, it was for Satan

President Bush's "Hook 'em, 'horns" salute got lost in translation in Norway, where shocked people interpreted his hand gesture during his inauguration as a salute to Satan.

Annalee Newitz

Next time somebody loftily tells you that differences between the sexes are grounded in biology, you have my permission to slap them with a judicial case. And I mean that literally: just print out the late-December ruling in the Harrah's makeup case, roll it into a hefty tube, and take a swing at their head.

Thank you to Jeff at Library Chronicles for finding this article.

Comment Spam

Google will introduce new technology controls to thwart people using blogs to manipulate rankings in its search results. Otherwise known as "link" or "comment spam," the ruse is as old as Web marketing. Such Web site promoters use the comment form on forums, blogs or any Web page to place or gain a link pointing back to their own Web site. And because Google and other search engines tabulate search results in part by a Web page's link popularity with other sites, the trick can boost a site's ranking--and more importantly, traffic.

FBI Browsing

Today the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request with the FBI and other offices of the US Department of Justice, seeking the release of documents that would reveal whether the government has been using the USA PATRIOT Act to spy on Internet users' reading habits without a search warrant.

New Orleans

Second Term is Met by a Mourning March

Father's Daughter

O.J. Simpson's 19-year-old daughter was arrested after she refused to stop yelling at officers who had been summoned because of a fight outside a basketball game involving her old prep school, police said.

Thank you to Alan for finding this article.

Court Vacancy

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist's frailty at the inauguration is renewing speculation the Supreme Court soon will have its first vacancy in more than a decade.

Start At Home

Friday while his administration scrambled to explain his newly declared goal of ending tyranny around the world. The president's expansive pledge, the major theme of his inaugural address, raised questions about whether Bush intended to apply new standards to allies or partners that are not ideal democracies, or aren't democracies at all. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, China and other countries fit that description.

Under A Pile

A student whose vacation plans were spoiled has sued to end summer homework in Wisconsin, claiming it creates an unfair workload and unnecessary stress.

Divided On Poll

On the eve of President Bush's inauguration, a poll shows the nation is split over whether he has united or divided the nation, but a majority believe his inauguration festivities should be toned down because of the war.

We Are Family

US conservative groups are up in arms over a music video featuring children's TV heroes such as the cheerful cartoon character SpongeBob SquarePants. Focus on the Family and other groups say the video - a remake of the Sister Sledge hit, We Are Family - is a vehicle for pro-gay propaganda.

OK, I don't really like SpongeBob either, but not because he holds hands with his friend Patrick, but because the cartoon is crass and vulger (and still I wouldn't protest, I just wouldn't watch it).

Thank you to Angelina for pointing out the article.

When Will It Change?

In a letter to the Harvard community posted late Wednesday on the university Web site, Summers wrote: "I deeply regret the impact of my comments and apologize for not having weighed them more carefully."

Go Gavin!

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom came face-to-face Wednesday with the reality of President Bush's second inaugural, an event many within his own party say he helped bring about by his decision to allow same-sex couples to wed in the city last winter.

Asked whether he had any second thoughts, Newsom replied: "None. Zip. Not a hesitation, in spite of the fact that a lot of Democratic mayors said to me, 'It's nice to meet the mayor who elected George Bush.' No sooner do they say that than I bring up other issues.''

Newsom won't stay for Bush's swearing-in. He'll be on a plane heading home when the president takes the oath for the second time at noon (9 a.m. PST) today.

Welcome Back

Anti-Bush protesters around the country marched, waved banners and chanted the names of the nation's war dead Thursday as the president was sworn in for a second term.

Duh!

A crack cocaine dealer who forgot a backpack containing C$91,000 ($74,000) in a Winnipeg mall was arrested after he tried to reclaim the bag at the mall's lost-and-found desk.

One Hand Clapping

The Hand Collector

Will They Take It?

The woman once known as "Jane Roe" has asked the Supreme Court to overturn its landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion 32 years ago.

I found this article through the American Constitution Society of New England School of Law, which had this to say about it, "Have anti-abortion groups been hounding this woman for 32 years, so now she's brainwashed into thinking that she didn't need those silly reproductive rights after all?"

Book Club

Bookcrossing.com where people share, track and review books let out into the “wild” for the largest book club/book exchange in the world.

Gay Terrorists?

The military forced at least 25 Arab language specialist to leave the armed forces from 1998 and 2003 because they were homosexual, according to the Pentagon.

To A Degree

The goal of the degree confluence project is to visit each of the latitude and longitude integer degree intersections in the world, and to take pictures at each location.

Bad Law, Bad Consequences

Some attorneys are attempting to use Ohio's new gay marriage amendment to defend unmarried clients against domestic violence charges.

Tag Your It

PhotoTag.org, tracks disposable cameras let loose into the "wild."

Where Does The Money Go?

The ever popular WheresGeorge.com, tracks U.S. currency by serial number.

Outplayed--Outwitted--Outlasted

Richard Hatch, who became a millionaire when he won the first-ever "Survivor" reality show, has agreed to plead guilty to two counts of tax evasion for failing to report income, including the $1.01 million he won on the show.

Bush's FCC Indecency Commandos

Since When Is Greece's Culture Obscene?

You may need a bugmenot login for the LATimes

Jumbo Jet

Airbus SAS is betting its newfound status as the world's leading jet maker on the "superjumbo" that has a 262-foot wingspan, a tail as tall as a seven-story building and cost $13 billion to develop.

Last Knight of Camelot?

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has talked to top state Democrats about a possible run for New York attorney general in what could turn into a race against his estranged brother-in-law — Andrew Cuomo, according to people familiar with those conversations.

Iceberg, Straight Ahead

Scientists Watch for Antarctic Iceberg Collision

Shame

Shanley, who was defrocked by the Vatican in 2004, goes on trial Tuesday on child rape charges in one of a handful of criminal cases that prosecutors have been able to bring against priests accused of molesting their young parishioners decades ago.

Shanley became one of the most notorious figures in the clergy sex scandal after internal church documents were released showing church officials knew about allegations against him as early as 1967 yet continued to transfer him from parish to parish.

Citizen Warrick

She played the icy first wife of Orson Welles in "Citizen Kane" and a mysterious housekeeper on "Peyton Place," but one role seemed to resonate the most with Ruth Warrick — that of Phoebe Tyler Wallingford, an inveterate busybody on "All My Children."

Homeland Contract Security

Two Democratic congressmen on Thursday asked Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge to provide Congress written communications between his department and a lobbying firm run by a longtime friend.

Next

Teams of US commandos have been operating inside Iran since last summer, selecting suspected weapons sites for possible air strikes.

Who to Avoid

Following is a list of companies, organizations and people who had given $250,000 to President Bush's second inauguration as of Friday, according to the Presidential Inaugural Committee.

A New Frangal Seuesal Bigallydee Award-fandingal

A division of the American Library Association has created a new award for children's books, to be named after the late Dr. Seuss. The Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for outstanding children's literature will begin next year, the Association for Library Service to Children announced Friday.

How Embarrassing

Thermometers registered a low of 54 degrees below zero at Embarrass, Minn. Minnesota's record is 60 below, set on Feb. 2, 1996, in Tower, about 10 miles north of Embarrass.

Golden Globe

Golden Globe winners gain attention that can put them on the inside track for prizes from acting, directing and other filmmaking guilds — momentum often sticks with them right through Oscar night.

Bye Bye Sunshine

We are all seeing rather less of the Sun, according to scientists who have been looking at five decades of sunlight measurements.

Martin Luther King Day

If he were alive now, Martin Luther King would be reacting to the sobering news emanating from overseas with a message of peace and compassion, his son said Monday.

At Least We Aren't Clowns

At a time when its sales in the United States are struggling, KFC is dominating even rival McDonald's in China and turning the goateed visage of Kentucky Fried Chicken founder Colonel Harland Sanders into a ubiquitous symbol of America.

Mcshoarma

McDonald's Israel has done a parody of the Pulp Fiction scene about burgers.

Just found

Evan Schaeffer at the Legal Underground has a truely funny post on the literal lengths Law firm websites will go to to disclaim responsibility.

Rights of the Throne

Right to Privacy in Restroom Not Absolute

Gates Giving

The philanthropic organization established by Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates and his wife is giving nearly $11 million to public libraries in 37 states and the District of Columbia to buy computers and software and pay for faster Internet connections.

A Gay Bomb

Pentagon Confirms Report of Planned Gay Conversion Chemical Weapon

Dirty Politics

Helen Johnston is an 80-year-old retired pediatrician who hardly considers herself much of a risk for being sued. That's not how her insurance company sees it, however. Johnston is losing extra coverage she bought years ago while she still practiced medicine -- not because she's a retired doctor, but because she is active in Francestown politics. The Providence Mutual Fire Insurance Co. sent her a letter last month notifying her it is not renewing her $1 million umbrella policy next month due to "the political positions the insured holds." Johnston is vice chairwoman of her town's Democratic committee and a member of the Hillsborough County Democratic Committee. She helps campaigns by distributing posters and making calls, and she held a get-out-the-vote session for Howard Dean at her house.

Rathergate Vs. The President

The consequences of making bogus charges based on faulty information-gathering.

Celebrity Photos

A sophisticated computer hacker had access to servers at wireless giant T-Mobile for at least a year, which he used to monitor U.S. Secret Service e-mail, obtain customers' passwords and Social Security numbers, and download candid photos taken by Sidekick users, including Hollywood celebrities, SecurityFocus has learned.

Online Dictionary

I found a free as you type online dictionary.

This is for my local wordiophile Ray.

Tsk Tsk

Britain's Prince Harry came under intense pressure to make a public apology after being pictured in Nazi military outfit just a fortnight before the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

Missed It By This Much

The White House acknowledged Wednesday that its hunt for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction — a two-year search costing millions of dollars — has closed down without finding the stockpiles that President Bush cited as a justification for overthrowing Saddam Hussein. Bush's spokesman said the president had no regrets about invading Iraq.

We Don't Need No Education

A group of former pupils at a London comprehensive school are poised to win thousands of pounds in unpaid royalties for singing on Pink Floyd's classic Another Brick In The Wall 25 years ago.

As it should be...

The Jackson-George Regional Library System board of trustees was criticized by local residents and in e-mails from out of state after it banned "America (The Book): A Citizen's Guide to Democracy Inaction" last month. The trustees had said they objected to the image.
But the board voted 5-2 Monday to lift the ban, and the book was returned to circulation in the system's eight libraries Tuesday.

I had a post on the ban, and felt it only fair to follow up on the lifting of the ban, when I saw the article posted by the muse.

Bush's Map of the World

Ray found it on Brad Parker's weblog.

SPAM Slam

A U.S. judge, acting on a complaint by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, ordered 11 businesses and individuals to stop sending unsolicited and unlabeled sexually explicit e-mail, commission officials said today.

PDAs

Love is on the Wall

Thank you to pi22seven for finding this site.

Are they 12 years old?

Massachusetts Republicans have launched a pre-emptive strike against Democratic Attorney General Tom Reilly by snapping up online Internet addresses that would have been obvious picks for him if he decides to run for governor in 2006.

Copyright Parable

The People Who Owned the Bible - a story

Hard Medicine

"We cannot move our party or our nation forward under pale colors and timid voices," said Kennedy, who has served 42 years in the Senate. "We cannot become Republican clones. If we do, we will lose again, and deserve to lose."

Bush's Investigation Policy

During confirmation hearings on Alberto Gonzales’ nomination as Attorney General, senators should question him about a recently uncovered memo that George W. Bush “ordered” the torture of detainees at Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo and other military prisons around the world, several human rights groups suggested last month

Emphatically Ephemera

The Grocery List Collection

Thank you Angelina at her site High Class Jackass for pointing this out.

You've Got Fraud!

Two former executives at America Online were among six people charged yesterday with stock fraud and other offenses as part of the federal government's ongoing investigation into illegal accounting practices at AOL.

Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse!

A trio of supergiants -- red, cool, bright stars at the end of their lives -- may be the biggest stars ever identified, astronomers reported on Monday.

King George

It will be one of the biggest parties in American history, but half of the country will be left out. With a price tag of up to $50 million, President George W Bush's inauguration in 11 days' time will be an unashamed celebration of Red America's victory over Blue America in last November's election.

Bush Communication Policy

In light of recent reports that conservative journalist and pundit Armstrong Williams received $240,000 from the Department of Education (DOE) through a contract with Ketchum Public Relations, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) today has filed a series of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to 23 government agencies, including all cabinet agencies.

You've Got Mail!

I have always been intrigued by the ability of a craftsman to take a boring mailbox and make it into a thing of interest, adventure or beauty-- I know that we all see them every day but some are really neat and make me say-- "I wish I'd have thought of that!"

Apparently Not Dead

Trailblazing ideologue Newt Gingrich, who engineered the 1994 Republican takeover of the US House of Representatives, said he may run for president in 2008, promising to fight what he calls "an Islamist insurgency against the modern world." He also spoke about a need to center US society around religious values formulated by "our Creator."

Good and Evil

In October 1946, just a year after the defeat of the Nazis, the Vatican weighed in on one of the most painful episodes of the postwar era: the refusal to allow Jewish children who had been sheltered by Catholics during the war to return to their own families and communities.

The NYT is pretty vigilant with bugmenot.com, so keep refreshing until you get a good one, or sign up, this is a riviting article.

And to think that there are those that want to Saint the Nazi collaborator, Pope Pius XII.

Mississippi's Education Plan

Did Bush's Education Department consult on this? Library officials in two southern Mississippi counties have banned Jon Stewart's best-selling "America (The Book)" over the satirical textbook's nude depictions of the nine U.S. Supreme Court justices.

Tough Job

Mahmoud Abbas was elected Palestinian Authority president by a landslide, results showed Monday, giving the pragmatist a mandate to resume peace talks with Israel — but also leaving him with the tough task of reining in powerful armed groups.

Bush Economic Plan

According to Bush the federal government should take on $140 billion dollars in costs to save corporations money?

State of the Blogsphere

By the end of 2004 blogs had established themselves as a key part of online culture. Two surveys by the Pew Internet & American Life Project in November established new contours for the blogosphere: 8 million American adults say they have created blogs; blog readership jumped 58% in 2004 and now stands at 27% of internet users; 5% of internet users say they use RSS aggregators or XML readers to get the news and other information delivered from blogs and content-rich Web sites as it is posted online; and 12% of internet users have posted comments or other material on blogs. Still, 62% of internet users do not know what a blog is.

Christians Scare Me

Religion and exercise?

Bush's Approval Rating

President Bush is entering his second term with the lowest approval ratings of any recent two-term president, even as he talks about an ambitious agenda of change, an Associated Press poll finds.

Snow Job

Touting President Bush's proposal to substantially overhaul Social Security by creating private investment accounts, Treasury Secretary John Snow on Friday vowed to "take the case to the American people."

Bush's Tax Plan

What I want to know, is if they eliminate taxes on the rich, will they leave us alone and get out of government and stop the bugging the rest of us?

Condo in Arizona

A team of researchers briefly removed King Tut's mummy from its tomb Wednesday and laid bare his bones for a CT scan that could solve an enduring mystery: Was it murder or natural causes that killed Egypt's boy pharaoh 3,000 years ago?

Bush's Education Plan

The Bush administration paid a prominent black journalist to promote President Bush's education law and give Education Secretary Rod Paige media time, records show.

Still a Leader

Former President Nelson Mandela, a leading AIDS campaigner, won local and international praise Friday for disclosing that his son died of the disease still shrouded in silence and fear.

The Other Election

Palestinian Presidential Candidates.

Waiting for Replacement

A Supreme Court spokeswoman said Friday that Rehnquist will not preside from the bench Monday when the high court returns from the holiday break.

Boxer Rebellion

A small group of Democrats agreed Thursday to force House and Senate debates on Election Day problems in Ohio before letting Congress certify President Bush's win over Sen. John Kerry in November.

Survival of the Fittest

America's fattest and Fittest cities. San Francisco ranks #2 fittest, umm Lisa you have to get New Orleans to work out some.

Bye Bye Tucker

CNN said goodbye to pundit Tucker Carlson on Wednesday, and with him likely the "Crossfire" program that has been the granddaddy of high-volume political debate shows on cable television.

Games People Play

HE LOOKS LIKE.... The morbid game of psychoanalyzing strangers in pictures. They psychoanalyze people in random pictures. They make up their backstories. And they have a lot of fun doing it.

Jenny I Got Your Number

Some guy called 867-5309 in all area codes and made a record of all the results.

Jesus Monitor

First there was the Madonna on toast, now there is the Jesus Monitor.

You might need a Bugmenot Login for The Chicago Tribune

Ethical Maneuvers

After co-authoring an admonishment of Majority Leader Tom DeLay, the Republican from Colorado is on House Speaker Dennis Hastert's list of chairmen likely to be replaced when Congress begins its new session on Tuesday.

Powell Leaving

As he prepares to end his tenure as secretary of state, Colin Powell is ruling out a run for political office.

New GOP Congress

The 109th Congress convened Tuesday with the House re-electing Dennis Hastert as speaker and with majority Republicans retreating on efforts to change ethics rules.

TypoPoster

typoGenerator is a random generator for 'typoPosters'. a typoPoster is a poster, created from images and letters/text that doesn´t have any sense, just to look good. The user types some text; typoGenerator searches images.google for the text and creates a background from the found images, using randomly chosen effects. then it places the text, using random effects too.

Thank you to Alan for pointing me to this, and to The Hot Librarian for finding it for Alan to see.

Bush's Social Security Plan

The Bush administration has signaled that it will propose changing the formula that sets initial Social Security benefit levels, cutting promised benefits by nearly a third in the coming decades, according to several Republicans close to the White House.

Here is a Bugmenot Login for those that don't already have the Washington Post.

Cheap Drugs, Eh!

Rhode Island has become what is believed to be the first state in the nation to approve regulations that allow its residents to import cheaper prescription drugs from Canada.

Texas Justice

The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Sunday dismissed as "a bad idea" a reported U.S. government plan to keep some suspected terrorists in custody for their lifetime, even if there was not enough evidence to bring them before a judge.

Acting on Merit

Actress Sandra Bullock donated $1 million to the American Red Cross to help relief efforts for countries affected by the deadly tsunami. Bullock also donated $1 million to the organization after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Guiding Light

Shirley Chisholm, an advocate for minority rights who became the first black woman elected to Congress and later the first black person to seek a major party's nomination for the U.S. presidency, has died.

The Only Bi-Partisan Relief

"President Bush on Monday tapped two former presidents — his father, President George H.W. Bush, and his predecessor, President Clinton — to lead a nationwide, private fund-raising campaign to help victims of the Asian tsunamis.

The announcement came as the White House has been scrambling to repair an image battered at home and abroad by perceptions that U.S. aid for the tsunamis lagged behind other countries — especially considering the outpouring of support for America from other countries in the hours and days immediately following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Bush faced criticism for waiting until three days after the Dec. 26 earthquake and tsunami to interrupt his holiday vacation and make his first personal comments about the deadly disaster. Other countries also were quicker to commit large amounts of aid money, and Japan has outpaced the U.S. total of $350 million pledged so far."

A White Christmas

No evidence of a problem with global warming.

Bad Press-ure

After spending three silent days on vaction, then suggesting $15 million in aid and then officially offering $35 million Bush wakes up to the bad press, and the astonishment of liberals across the country. U.S. boosts tsunami aid tenfold to $350M.

Party Like It's 3005

Warm Wishes for a Happy 3005, in North Dakota