The devil is in the practice

President Obama has said that the new cyberdefense strategy he unveiled last month will provide protections for personal privacy and civil liberties. But senior Pentagon and military officials say that Mr. Obama’s assurances may be challenging to guarantee in practice...

[From Cyberwar - Privacy May Be a Victim in Cyberdefense Plan - Series - NYTimes.com]

Silver Bowl

Photo: Phil Compton

What, they don't say hey like everybody else?

KINGSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- In this friendly little ranching town, "hello" is wearing out its welcome. And Leonso Canales Jr. is happy as heck.

At his urging, the Kleberg County commissioners on Monday unanimously designated "heaven-o" as the county's official greeting. The reason: "hello" contains the word "hell."

[From Texas town says goodbye to 'hello' | mndaily.com - Serving the University of Minnesota Since 1900]

As in "Morro the same"?

Leading anti-virus software producers Symantec and McAfee will face new competition in the lucrative market for fixing Windows when Microsoft launches its own free security service, dubbed Morro, sometime in the second half of 2009.

Three years ago, Microsoft unveiled Live OneCare, the corporation’s first attempt at entering the billion-dollar market for software to protect Windows PCs. It tanked as a paid subscription service, which offered users a free 90 day trial period before forcing them to activate the product and begin paying annual fees.

[From AppleInsider | Microsoft announces free anti-virus service for Windows]

Surprise

Many people who believe they have adequate health insurance actually have coverage so riddled with loopholes, limits, exclusions and gotchas that it won't come close to meeting their expenses if they fall seriously ill, a Consumer Reports investigation has found....

[From Hazardous Health Plans - washingtonpost.com]

Be still my heart

I've been using iGoogle as a home page for quite some time now, and finally got around to making my own theme for it. It's pretty easy - just upload a picture and choose a color. So now whenever I seem to be in danger of becoming underamused, all I have to do is make a new iGoogle theme.

Onward!

Forwarded from our Seattle bureau

BBQ RULES



We are about to enter the BBQ season. Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity. When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion:

Routine...

(1) The woman buys the food.   

(2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.

(3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand.   

(4) The woman remains outside the compulsory three meter exclusion zone where the exuberance of testosterone and other manly bonding activities can take place without the interference of the woman.

Here comes the important part:

(5) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.

More routine...

(6) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.   

(7) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is looking great. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he flips the meat

Important again:

(8) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.

More routine...   

(9) The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.

(10) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.

And most important of all:

(11) Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts.   

(12) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed her “night off” and, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women.

(Thanks to Kellie)

Here's a surprise: Republicans are down on their party

WASHINGTON — In thinking about the Republican Party's troubles, consider this: One-third of Republicans now say they have an unfavorable opinion of their party....

[From Poll: Third of Republicans view party unfavorably - USATODAY.com]

–Paul Knue

Marbles

Photo: Phil Compton

Ask a doctor

The administrative cost for a private, for-profit health insurance system is approximately 33 percent ($300 billion annually); the administrative cost for the two government-run health systems, the Veterans Administration and Medicare, is about 3 percent. The level of satisfaction with these two nonprofit systems is high; that of for-profit is low.

Why in the world should healthcare be for profit?

[From The pitting of doctor against doctor - The Boston Globe]

ROY waits for takeoff

Photo: Phil Compton

Paris

Photo: Lynn C.

Wait...you mean it isn't Muslimism after all?

"I think this is one of the most critical moments in American history," Gingrich said. "We are living in a period where we are surrounded by paganism."

[From Huckabee, Gingrich urge political engagement in Va. Beach | HamptonRoads.com | PilotOnline.com ]

Who turned over this Gingrich guy's rock again? That was dumb.