Diane Sawyer in the DPRK

Diane Sawyer, the former weather girl from Louisville, is in North Korea making a show of interviewing people on the street. (I'm assuming that she isn't naive enough to believe anyone she meets can speak freely in a Stalinist dictatorship.)

Here are some photos that Li'l Kim would rather you not see. They were taken by a Russian web designer. A translation to English is here. Check out the 'computer' on the first page.

I doubt Diane will ever try to slip her handlers and get into the countryside. I wonder if she would even consider it. We'll see, but I'm not holding my breath for anything earthshaking from Big Media.

UPDATE: The link to the Russian website. The Military Photos link I provided above sources the photos from the Russian site... and occasionally they fail to show up next to the English translations.

New(ish) Iraqi Government Getting in the Swing of Things

Headline at Rantburg that made me chuckle: "Iraqis Form Special Committee to Deal with Illegal Militias".

We'll see how much they've learned from the American Model if they name George Mitchell to chair it.

(The story's real headline is "Iraqi Government Fights Back Against Insurgent Violence". You can view the story here.)

Could this Be Why...

...young Mohammedan youth decided to go on phone-buying binges, separating batteries and phones and such? (Article here.)

"How Qaeda Warned Its Operatives on Using Cell Phones":

When an aspiring Al Qaeda terrorist is buying a cell phone, it's best that he purchase the chip inside the device under a phony name or from a black market vendor that does not sell the accompanying documentation. If he has any reason to believe his phone has been tapped, he should sell it immediately to a stranger.

Might be interesting to know the browsing habits of the young men involved. I'm not saying... I'm just saying.

Travels Around DC

Takoma Park, MD
Located right next to the District's Northeast edge, its motto is (or rather should be)

You're Always Welcome to Takoma Park
Just be sure to bring it back when you're done with it.

Angel's Lady Wendella 'Wendy'

April 27, 1996—September 12, 2006

eLarson writes: She was a pretty good dog, albeit a little food-aggressive. I learned the hard way that her concept of food extends even to butter wrappers. Still, though, I'll remember the way she could devour a bowlful of kibble in under a minute. Or how she could catch fragments of Iams dog treats in midair. Or the way Dad would hide them around their house, letting her sniff her way to them.

She was bred from a line of agility trial dogs. And though she had no formal training, I'll remember the way she could jump all the way over the sectional sofa at my parents' house. Or walk along the back of it, tightrope style. I'll remember the time we discovered her standing on the dining room table after a holiday meal. No one saw her get up there, but some surmised that she may have jumped off the back of that sofa.

I'll remember the way she would tug on the sleeve of my sweatshirt to get me to play on days when I was staring at a computer screen. I recall that she was a little afraid of my Cannondale, but she did like going for rides in a trailer behind it. ("Daddy, look! There's a doggy in there!")

I'll remember the way she would sing along with certain songs. She liked Patricia Barber, in particular. Something about the tone of the guitar in the mix.

It was a relief that she went quietly and before there was any obviously debilitating pain.

I'll miss her.

She was a good dog.

Okay then... a round up of the news

Via Rantburg: Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) Prefers Saddam. Mass grave victims unavailable for comment.

With respect to intelligence prior to the latest Battle of Iraq--and really that is the focus of the CBS article--imagine the following alternative:
Tenant says "It's a slamdunk" inre: Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction. Instead of toppling the Hussein regime, however, Bush does nothing. Then, say, in late 2005 Sarin gas found it's way to the Washington, DC, Metro, killing thousands. What would Jay Rockefeller say in such a case? I doubt it would stop with "Bush Knew", as the the famous NY Post headline had it.

In what way did scurrilous accusations such as "Bush Knew!" shape the policy of pre-emptive warfare that has Democrats bent wildly out of shape?

Via Carol Platt Liebau: Former Clintonistas, Congressional Democrats Throw Tantrum Over Upcoming ABC Docudrama.
There has been so much whining and gnashing of teeth over this coming ABC miniseries that it is almost enough to make me open the 9/11 Commission Report PDF again. But only "almost". Sandy Berger's pilfering from the National Archive during the time of the Committee hearings alone should make him want to hide in a closet more than shout from the rooftops about the events of 1993 - 2000.

What do you reckon he may have walked out with? And what, if anything, took its place in the Archive? Perhaps all the crowing suggests that they are confident anything that may have corroborated events portrayed in the film would not be found? Just asking.

"What I Did On My Summer Vacation"

UPDATE 3: (via Little Green Footballs)
The Pittsburgh area.


UPDATE 2: (once again from Rantburg)
This time Middle Eastern youths in Tuscon buying up the prepaid phones from Sam's Club and Wal-Mart. As an anonymous commenter wrote: "Thanks for the publishing the surveillance tip, New York Times."

Another Rantburg commenter from Australia mentions that the phone he believes TracFone is using costs $160 there. A possibility for profit, true enough.

Let's just find out where these phones are going before letting the whole thing go, eh?

UPDATE: (via Rantburg)
Apparently it is a very popular passtime this year.

Last week, the Grafton police pulled over 24-year-old Hashem Sayed for a routine traffic stop. But what they found in his car was far from routine. Patrolman Daniel Laymon recalls the scene, "There were multiple cell phones, roughly 150 to 200 cell phones from multiple retailers," he said. Buying that many pre-paid phones is not a crime, but the police say it is unusual.

Or not so unusual in the peace-loving Muslim community....

From the Appleton (WI) Post-Crescent story about Dallas-area men apparently hoarding TracFone pre-paid wireless phones:

The Dearborn men, Ali Houssaiky and Osama Abulhassan, both 20, have been charged with two felonies - money laundering in support of terrorism and soliciting or providing support for acts of terrorism - and misdemeanor falsification. A preliminary hearing on the felony counts was set for Tuesday.

According to this story in The Arab American News, they were merely out buying the phones low and selling higher to a retailer. (Maybe WalMart really is the Lowest Prices. Always.) Interesting way to work your way through school.

Then there was this detail, as reported by AP: "The two had in their possession a dozen prepaid cell phones and more than $10,000. AP reported Thursday that officers also found airplane passenger lists and airport security information in the car."

Passenger lists? Where does someone go to obtain that? According to the Arab American News story: "Houssaiky's mother is an employee of Jordanian Airlines at Metro Detroit Airport," said Subhi. "It was her car that the two were riding in and the papers were related to her work."

I'm not sure that's a good answer. Isn't that sort of thing confidential? Why bring that home?

Given the ability of a mobile phone to detonate a bomb, I can see the concern that a huge number of phones being purchased with cash can raise.

The Arab American News story wanted to make sure everyone knew this:

Osama Abulhassan's father Subhi said he wanted the public to know the injustice that he believed his son is being put through..."I would say that every nationality and religion on the face of the earth has its good and bad people."

Yeah, we all do. It just happens the most notorious lot of lunatics belongs to your religion these days. Sorry about that.

I'm sure these two kids will skate once it can be shown that the phones aren't all heading to the Middle East and the cash they're using to buy them didn't come from some shadowy Al Qaeda financier. UPDATE 4: The terrorism case is not being pursued by Ohio prosecutors for lack of evidence. (Detroit Free Press)

Commonality:

The activity seems to be more than just a coincidence. All three men are from Dearborn, Michigan and all three gave similar reasons for buying the phones. Sayed said he was buying them to ship to California to sell for a profit.

Am I to understand from this statement that there are no Walmarts in California? Uhh... no. There are quite a few, actually.

A fine blue and gold evening

Perhaps Feeling Ignored, the Car Lobbies for Attention

I got in the car this morning, ready to take on the Outer Loop of the Beltway as I do each weekday morning.

I turned the key, and rather than starting in that normal, reliable Honda kind of way, the car rewarded me with a frantic, flickery dashboard light show accompanied by some pathetic clicking.

15 months old and a new battery already? We'll see.

The Saga of Our New House Continues

Today, moments from completing some paintwork, the builder's warranty department's contractor's men managed to spill a couple gallons of Antique White down the stairs. The paint soaked the carpet, spattered the walls, the woodwork... and some framed artwork. They managed to clean that up, but the carpet looks to be a total loss.

More light blogging ahead.

UPDATE: Looks like they've agreed that the carpet will need to be replaced. There will be some serious clean-up on the woodwork, too. The builder's warranty department sent over their usual house-cleaning crew, and reports from My Lovely Bride are that they've done a fine job. She hadn't been downstairs yet to see what they've been able to accomplish in the midst of yesterday's mess.

My Life as a Beagle, Part III

Ah, what a fine day this has been.
Oh, excuse me. I must be a little sleepy.
Tag: Photos

...and He's Not Going to Take it Anymore

Jeff Goldstein has had more than enough of Deb Frisch and is now seeking legal recourse against her.

(See this post here, and this one at Jeff's for background.)

Jeff has put out an appeal for screenshots of her bizarre comments and ip information for the poster of those comments. None here, thankfully, but I post it as a "get out the word" kind of assist.

The person in question has used a lot of pseudonyms, but she has a certain strange writing style featuring words like "phuque" and "ephu". If you need more, I can find more. UPDATE: She also seems fond of "pissant" and "anklebiter". On more than one occasion she's used the term "hump" and "humping". You can find more of her lexicon in the comments section over at Patterico's post on the subject.

So if you seen this woman's bizarre ramblings--particularly those about Jeff Goldstein's family--on your site, pass the ip information for the poster and a screen shot of the comments to Jeff.

Best of luck, Jeff. No one should have to put up with those kinds of comments about one's children.

UPDATE 2: Oh, and Ace's place at MuNu seems to be down right now, too.

UPDATE 3: There was some kind of weirdness with "guest bloggers" this past weekend at Ace's. Not sure what was up with all of it, but well, you can see it for yourself. Jeff's posting occasionally, too, which is nice. Illegitimi Non Carborundum!

A fine Saturday afternoon on the patio

My life as a beagle, Part II

Today was a pretty good day. After everyone left, I had my choice of sleeping places. I was still asleep on the living room couch when Grandpa came in. I am so embarrassed. But, all is well. After going out, I had my favorite snack: ground beef with rice.

All for now. I'm really sleepy again. I think I shall nap in the chair in the loft.

Tag: Photos

My life as a beagle, part I

My are my nails growing. I think I need a trim.

Well, here I am. Glaucoma has taken the sight of one eye but I can sort of see out of the other. Enough to find my water bowl.

I had a nice walk in the yard when Grandpa came home. He gave me a cookie when we came in but I spit it up. No problem. Grandma made me rice and beef for supper. Man, was that good.

All for now. I have to go out.

Tag: Photos

Social Security Numbers and Those Illegally in the USA

From BizzyBlog comes this piece from the Washington Times:

Since 2003, the SSA has issued Social Security numbers, dubbed “non-working,” to foreign nationals who need them to collect state or federal benefits, such as public assistance.

The problem is that the SSA isn't allowed to tell an employer that the person they just hired using that SSN is not authorized to work in the country. From the article:

Privacy concerns prevent the Social Security Administration from notifying an employer that a hired foreign national is not authorized to work in this country, including someone who may be a potential national security risk, says a government audit.

The audit, by the SSA’s Office of the Inspector General, also found the agency fears employers will improperly terminate the illegal workers who have been issued Social Security numbers, leading to “adverse publicity.”

Hell's Bells! The SSA fears adverse publicity!

This also puts a crimp in my proposed "match/no-match" system for determining whether a proferred SSN matches the name and birthdate of the applicant. In the interest of doling out more Government welfare, people who aren't authorized to work now HAVE Social Security Numbers.

Well, digging a little further, I found the "How do I get a Social Security Card" page. It details three different kinds:

# The first type of card shows your name and Social Security number and lets you work without restriction. We issue it to:

* U.S. citizens; and
* People lawfully admitted to the United States on a permanent basis.

# The second type of card shows your name and number and notes, “VALID FOR WORK ONLY WITH DHS AUTHORIZATION.” We issue this type of card to people lawfully admitted to the United States on a temporary basis who have DHS authorization to work.

# The third type of card shows your name and number and notes, “NOT VALID FOR EMPLOYMENT.” We issue it to people from other countries:

I'm thinking the businesses that routinely hire illegal aliens aren't going to actually ask the guy standing in the 7-11 parking lot to fork over his card. (Hell, Mr. Contractor isn't likely to ask him to fill out an app.)

So if the SSA won't inform the employer that the number that was given--provided the employer even bothered to collect that number--what is the purpose of having three different cards? A search of their FAQ didn't turn up any references to "Undocumented Worker" or "Illegal Alien", so it could be fair game for their questions page. I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for an answer.

Protein Wisdom Off the Air

After some seriously derranged blather--including what can be inferred to be a threat against Jeff Goldstein's child--from a poster who claims to be an instructor at the University of Arizona, Protein Wisdom seems to be down. The outage seems to have started yesterday afternoon and persists this morning.

It could be a DDOS against Jeff's host or something, but I hope Thursday night's weirdness hasn't escalated to something else.

UPDATE: PW is back as of 1658 EDT.

UPDATE 2: It's gotten scary in a Cape Fear kind of way. "Google satchel" might mean one of two things. One thing might have been some kind of urging to Mrs. Goldstein to examine their son for signs of abuse... a disturbing allegation with no evidence.

The other might be this. The murdered cheese shop owner's name is... Goldstein. The story mentions a satchel.

This is some bizarre kind of threat.

Jeff has contacted the authorities, and rightly so. Hopefully they will reach this lady before she hurts herself or someone else.

I love my Grandma

I can hear you and smell you. But I can scarce see you these days.

Tag: Photos

I just can't keep my eyes open

Tag: Photos

Yet another fine evening

Tag: Photos