Friday, September 29, 2006
Woman's 7.5 metre fingernails
A US woman who has been growing her fingernails since 1979 has made the Guiness Book of Records.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Immigrants--now and then
Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register: Dear Editor:
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry..
Maybe we should turn to our history books and.... point out to people like Mr.Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture.
Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out.
My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it mean t to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country.. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet.
Signed: Rosemary
Submitted by: Don Jorde
So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry..
Maybe we should turn to our history books and.... point out to people like Mr.Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States, people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home.
They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture.
Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out.
My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany, Italy, France and Japan. None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated France, no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans. And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it mean t to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl.
And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country.. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags.
And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty, it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet.
Signed: Rosemary
Submitted by: Don Jorde
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Prison, pension in Ney’s future--how nice for him--$130,000 a year pension waiting for him after prison.
CONGRESS
Because reforms he urged didn’t pass, he still can get benefits
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Margaret Stevenson and Jack Torry
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio Rep. Bob Ney could be sentenced to 27 months in prison.
WASHINGTON — Even though he voted four months ago to deny pension benefits to members of Congress convicted of a felony relating to their official duties, Rep. Bob Ney will be eligible to receive his congressional pension after he serves his prison sentence.
Ney, has agreed to plead guilty to.... federal charges that he accepted free trips, meals and drinks from nowdisgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, and gambling chips worth thousands of dollars from a Syrian businessman.
Next month, a federal judge is expected to sentence him to as many as 27 months in prison. However, Ney, 52, will collect his pension because the Senate and House could not agree on a sweeping package of lobbying and ethics reforms.
The House version approved in May would have prohibited lawmakers convicted of a felony relating to their official duties from receiving their pensions, but House and Senate negotiators have not agreed on a final version of the bill.
When the House approved its bill, Ney issued a news release saying he was "proud to help" pass the measure. The release noted he had insisted that the final version of the bill require that any member convicted of bribery or extortion lose their federal pension.
Mary Jo Kilroy, the Democratic challenger to Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Upper Arlington, called on Congress to "strip Ney of his federal pension so that taxpayers are not left funding a felon’s future. That money should be donated to the U.S. Treasury to pay down the federal deficit."
But Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said there is little chance that Congress would swiftly move to revoke the pension of a member convicted of a crime.
"It’s really pretty outrageous," Sloan said. "They are committing crimes involved with their office and they still get their pensions. The tax dollars shouldn’t be used to pay the pensions of crooked members of Congress."
Although a member of Congress can collect a pension worth as much as 80 percent of his or her $165,000 congressional salary, it is doubtful that Ney’s pension would be that lucrative. Ney has served 12 years in the House and cannot even begin to collect his pension until he reaches age 56 in 2010. And if he begins collecting his pension before age 62, he would receive a reduced amount of money.
jtorry@dispatch.com
Because reforms he urged didn’t pass, he still can get benefits
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
Margaret Stevenson and Jack Torry
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Ohio Rep. Bob Ney could be sentenced to 27 months in prison.
WASHINGTON — Even though he voted four months ago to deny pension benefits to members of Congress convicted of a felony relating to their official duties, Rep. Bob Ney will be eligible to receive his congressional pension after he serves his prison sentence.
Ney, has agreed to plead guilty to.... federal charges that he accepted free trips, meals and drinks from nowdisgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff, and gambling chips worth thousands of dollars from a Syrian businessman.
Next month, a federal judge is expected to sentence him to as many as 27 months in prison. However, Ney, 52, will collect his pension because the Senate and House could not agree on a sweeping package of lobbying and ethics reforms.
The House version approved in May would have prohibited lawmakers convicted of a felony relating to their official duties from receiving their pensions, but House and Senate negotiators have not agreed on a final version of the bill.
When the House approved its bill, Ney issued a news release saying he was "proud to help" pass the measure. The release noted he had insisted that the final version of the bill require that any member convicted of bribery or extortion lose their federal pension.
Mary Jo Kilroy, the Democratic challenger to Rep. Deborah Pryce, R-Upper Arlington, called on Congress to "strip Ney of his federal pension so that taxpayers are not left funding a felon’s future. That money should be donated to the U.S. Treasury to pay down the federal deficit."
But Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said there is little chance that Congress would swiftly move to revoke the pension of a member convicted of a crime.
"It’s really pretty outrageous," Sloan said. "They are committing crimes involved with their office and they still get their pensions. The tax dollars shouldn’t be used to pay the pensions of crooked members of Congress."
Although a member of Congress can collect a pension worth as much as 80 percent of his or her $165,000 congressional salary, it is doubtful that Ney’s pension would be that lucrative. Ney has served 12 years in the House and cannot even begin to collect his pension until he reaches age 56 in 2010. And if he begins collecting his pension before age 62, he would receive a reduced amount of money.
jtorry@dispatch.com
International Day of Peace
In 1981 the United Nations General Assembly passed resolution 36/67 declaring an International Day of Peace. In 2001, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a new resolution 55/282 declaring 21 September of each year as the International Day of Peace.
The resolution: "Declares that the International Day of Peace shall henceforth be observed as a day of global ceasefire and non-violence, an invitation to all nations and people to honour a cessation of hostilities for the duration of the Day...
“Invites all Member States, organizations of the United Nations system, and non-governmental organizations and.... individuals to commemorate, in an appropriate manner, the International Day of Peace, including through education and public awareness, and to cooperate with the United Nations in the establishment of the global ceasefire.”
Secretary-General Kofi Annan has asked all United Nations departments and agencies to expand their observance, extending a special invitation to civil society and highlighting the Minute of Silence at 12 noon.
The World Peace Prayer Society encourages participation by all individuals, organizations and schools. For complete information about the International Day of Peace, please visit:
internationaldayofpeace.org
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
You gotta see this! (click here)
CNNMoney.com: Video: "A brand new Elmo (1:01)
Here's a glimpse of Fisher-Price's 10th anniversary Elmo toy it unveiled Tuesday (September 19)"
Here's a glimpse of Fisher-Price's 10th anniversary Elmo toy it unveiled Tuesday (September 19)"
Divorcing teachers force school closure
A primary school in China has suspended classes because its teachers are all getting divorced.
Some 40 teachers at the Tongxing Centre Primary School in Dandong have signed divorce papers in a bid to keep their jobs, reports Beijing News.
Some 40 teachers at the Tongxing Centre Primary School in Dandong have signed divorce papers in a bid to keep their jobs, reports Beijing News.
The divorce rush came after it was announced that local authorities were to cut down on the number of teachers at primary and middle schools.
However, teachers who are divorced or widowed with children to support are exempt from the job cuts.
One male teacher said: "Every teacher fears losing his or her job because of the present high-pressure job market, though they dont want to divorce."
Recall Update
Deadline to run in recall extended
By GORDON WEIXEL
Bismarck Tribune
9/15/2006
Want to run for Mandan City Commission, but didn't get your petitions in on time for the recall? Well you're in luck, the deadline has been extended to Thursday, Oct. 5, at 4 p.m.
Mandan officials, in conjunction with.... the secretary of state's office and Morton County auditor, determined that to fall within the parameters of state law, the deadline for petitions to run in the recall election had to be extended. The Century Code requires that petitions can be turned in until 33 days before the election, which is scheduled to coincide with the state's general election on Nov. 7.
Originally, the deadline for petitions had been set for Sept. 8.
Morton County auditor Paul Trauger said at a commission meeting earlier this week that he is ready to print the ballots for the general election, since absentee ballots must be available 40 days before the general election.
Commissioners said that he should go ahead and not wait until the city's deadline. A separate ballot will have to be printed for the city recall at the city's expense. Otherwise the city will enter into an agreement with Morton to conduct the special recall election on the same day as the general election.
Mandan's deputy auditor Phyllis Hager said that the city will have absentee ballots for the recall after Oct. 5. Petitions are available at City Hall and can also be printed from the Mandan city Web site. Interested individuals need to turn in a statement of interest along with petitions with the signatures of 300 Mandan residents to be placed on the ballot.
Mayor Ken LaMont and commissioners Sandy Tibke and Dan Ulmer will automatically be placed on the ballot since they have indicated they will run.
Three challengers have turned in petitions. Susan Beehler and Wes Eisenmann are running for mayor, while Kathy Parkes is seeking a seat as a commissioner.
(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@;bismarcktribune.com.)
By GORDON WEIXEL
Bismarck Tribune
9/15/2006
Want to run for Mandan City Commission, but didn't get your petitions in on time for the recall? Well you're in luck, the deadline has been extended to Thursday, Oct. 5, at 4 p.m.
Mandan officials, in conjunction with.... the secretary of state's office and Morton County auditor, determined that to fall within the parameters of state law, the deadline for petitions to run in the recall election had to be extended. The Century Code requires that petitions can be turned in until 33 days before the election, which is scheduled to coincide with the state's general election on Nov. 7.
Originally, the deadline for petitions had been set for Sept. 8.
Morton County auditor Paul Trauger said at a commission meeting earlier this week that he is ready to print the ballots for the general election, since absentee ballots must be available 40 days before the general election.
Commissioners said that he should go ahead and not wait until the city's deadline. A separate ballot will have to be printed for the city recall at the city's expense. Otherwise the city will enter into an agreement with Morton to conduct the special recall election on the same day as the general election.
Mandan's deputy auditor Phyllis Hager said that the city will have absentee ballots for the recall after Oct. 5. Petitions are available at City Hall and can also be printed from the Mandan city Web site. Interested individuals need to turn in a statement of interest along with petitions with the signatures of 300 Mandan residents to be placed on the ballot.
Mayor Ken LaMont and commissioners Sandy Tibke and Dan Ulmer will automatically be placed on the ballot since they have indicated they will run.
Three challengers have turned in petitions. Susan Beehler and Wes Eisenmann are running for mayor, while Kathy Parkes is seeking a seat as a commissioner.
(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@;bismarcktribune.com.)
Monday, September 18, 2006
After 9/11, a squandered role
By Ellen Goodman | September 8, 2006
Boston Globe
THE MILK CARTON I open this morning bears an oddly pedestrian message: Use by 9/11. I am bemused to see this infamous date in such an ordinary context. Somehow I thought it had been removed from the commercial calendar the way hotels removed the number 13 from their floor plans. By now, surely, 9/11 is more an icon than a date.
It has been nearly five years since.... that September morning when those four planes took off in synchronized suicide. Still, 98 percent of Americans remember exactly where we were when we heard about the terrorist attack on what we have come to call the homeland. More than half of us think of 9/11 several times a week.
The 9/11 Commission pinned the success of the attacks on ``a failure of imagination." But this summer, when the British police reported on ``a plot to commit murder on an unimaginable scale," I had no trouble imagining the contact-lens solution, the water bottle, even the lipstick, as agents of carry-on destruction.
But here is something I never imagined five years ago: that America would lose our status as the good guy in the struggle against terrorism. I didn't imagine that our government would squander the righteous role won for us the hard way by victims falling from the Twin Towers and firefighters racing to their deaths.
Al Qaeda was a uniter, not a divider. After the attacks, the whole world seemed to be on our side, with the single, memorable exception of Palestinians dancing in the streets. Some 200,000 Germans marched in solidarity. Flowers arrived at our embassies. Even the reflexively anti-American newspaper Le Monde proclaimed, ``We Are All Americans."
When we went into Afghanistan in hot pursuit, the world stayed with us. But then we swung from a just war to a preemptive war, from a war on terror to a war of choice, from Osama bin Laden to Saddam Hussein.
``When we crossed the [Iraq] border, there was another great pause, then a transfer of sympathy," an American intelligence officer told Newsweek. ``The entire Islamic world took a step to the right." The Bush administration imagined flowers and rose water, shock and awe, mission accomplished. It failed to imagine civil war, and that step to the right.
We went from the Twin Towers to Abu Ghraib, from civil defense to civil war, from innocent passengers to soldiers in Haditha. We blew it all on Iraq. In one poll, Europeans now find us more of a threat to world stability than even Iran. In a survey of 14 countries, none of them believe that removing Saddam made the world safer. And in Iraq itself, only 2 percent of the people now believe we invaded to liberate them from tyranny while 76 percent think we did it ``to control Iraqi oil." Imagine that.
In his run-up to the fifth anniversary, the president is trying to shore up the connections between the war in Iraq and the war on terrorism as cannily as he tried to connect 9/11 to Saddam. ``The security of the civilized world depends on victory in the war on terror, and that depends on victory in Iraq," he told one friendly audience.
What if victory in the war on terror does not depend on victory in the war in Iraq? What if the Iraq war undermines and distracts us from the efforts against terrorism?
``The war we fight today is more than a military conflict; it is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century," says the president. For bin Laden, the ideological struggle is between ``believers" and ``infidels." For Bush, it's between freedom lovers and Islamic fascists. In his strategy speech, the president acknowledged a two-front war, arms and ideas. But he didn't acknowledge that arms themselves can be a failed strategy.
In the global village, lasting, peaceful victory depends in large part on who wins the struggle over the moral story line, over right and wrong, innocence and guilt. War itself, with innocent victims, collateral damage, and inevitable chaos, tilts that story line. War may recruit more enemies than it kills.
It's no wonder that Americans are uneasy on this fifth anniversary. More than two-thirds think the country is going in the wrong direction and that we will not win the war on terrorism in the next 10 years.
On one side, we see terrorists with a 9th-century ideology and 21st-century weapons. On the other side, we have the war in Iraq and all it has undone.
Meanwhile, the ``war president" attacks opponents as appeasers and his only strategy is to ``stay the course." Here we are, 9/11 plus five, trapped by another failure of imagination.
Ellen Goodman's e-mail address is ellengoodman@globe.com.
© Copyright 2006 Boston Globe Newspaper Company.
Boston Globe
THE MILK CARTON I open this morning bears an oddly pedestrian message: Use by 9/11. I am bemused to see this infamous date in such an ordinary context. Somehow I thought it had been removed from the commercial calendar the way hotels removed the number 13 from their floor plans. By now, surely, 9/11 is more an icon than a date.
It has been nearly five years since.... that September morning when those four planes took off in synchronized suicide. Still, 98 percent of Americans remember exactly where we were when we heard about the terrorist attack on what we have come to call the homeland. More than half of us think of 9/11 several times a week.
The 9/11 Commission pinned the success of the attacks on ``a failure of imagination." But this summer, when the British police reported on ``a plot to commit murder on an unimaginable scale," I had no trouble imagining the contact-lens solution, the water bottle, even the lipstick, as agents of carry-on destruction.
But here is something I never imagined five years ago: that America would lose our status as the good guy in the struggle against terrorism. I didn't imagine that our government would squander the righteous role won for us the hard way by victims falling from the Twin Towers and firefighters racing to their deaths.
Al Qaeda was a uniter, not a divider. After the attacks, the whole world seemed to be on our side, with the single, memorable exception of Palestinians dancing in the streets. Some 200,000 Germans marched in solidarity. Flowers arrived at our embassies. Even the reflexively anti-American newspaper Le Monde proclaimed, ``We Are All Americans."
When we went into Afghanistan in hot pursuit, the world stayed with us. But then we swung from a just war to a preemptive war, from a war on terror to a war of choice, from Osama bin Laden to Saddam Hussein.
``When we crossed the [Iraq] border, there was another great pause, then a transfer of sympathy," an American intelligence officer told Newsweek. ``The entire Islamic world took a step to the right." The Bush administration imagined flowers and rose water, shock and awe, mission accomplished. It failed to imagine civil war, and that step to the right.
We went from the Twin Towers to Abu Ghraib, from civil defense to civil war, from innocent passengers to soldiers in Haditha. We blew it all on Iraq. In one poll, Europeans now find us more of a threat to world stability than even Iran. In a survey of 14 countries, none of them believe that removing Saddam made the world safer. And in Iraq itself, only 2 percent of the people now believe we invaded to liberate them from tyranny while 76 percent think we did it ``to control Iraqi oil." Imagine that.
In his run-up to the fifth anniversary, the president is trying to shore up the connections between the war in Iraq and the war on terrorism as cannily as he tried to connect 9/11 to Saddam. ``The security of the civilized world depends on victory in the war on terror, and that depends on victory in Iraq," he told one friendly audience.
What if victory in the war on terror does not depend on victory in the war in Iraq? What if the Iraq war undermines and distracts us from the efforts against terrorism?
``The war we fight today is more than a military conflict; it is the decisive ideological struggle of the 21st century," says the president. For bin Laden, the ideological struggle is between ``believers" and ``infidels." For Bush, it's between freedom lovers and Islamic fascists. In his strategy speech, the president acknowledged a two-front war, arms and ideas. But he didn't acknowledge that arms themselves can be a failed strategy.
In the global village, lasting, peaceful victory depends in large part on who wins the struggle over the moral story line, over right and wrong, innocence and guilt. War itself, with innocent victims, collateral damage, and inevitable chaos, tilts that story line. War may recruit more enemies than it kills.
It's no wonder that Americans are uneasy on this fifth anniversary. More than two-thirds think the country is going in the wrong direction and that we will not win the war on terrorism in the next 10 years.
On one side, we see terrorists with a 9th-century ideology and 21st-century weapons. On the other side, we have the war in Iraq and all it has undone.
Meanwhile, the ``war president" attacks opponents as appeasers and his only strategy is to ``stay the course." Here we are, 9/11 plus five, trapped by another failure of imagination.
Ellen Goodman's e-mail address is ellengoodman@globe.com.
© Copyright 2006 Boston Globe Newspaper Company.
Sunday, September 17, 2006
A Prairie Home Companion: Schedules/Tickets
A Prairie Home Companion: Schedules/Tickets: "An airy sense of freedom
A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor
* Schedule/Tickets
* Help
* Press
Tickets
Upcoming live shows
Here's our schedule for live shows this season. Information about shows, ticket sales, and musical guests will be added as it becomes"
A Prairie Home Companion with Garrison Keillor
* Schedule/Tickets
* Help
* Press
Tickets
Upcoming live shows
Here's our schedule for live shows this season. Information about shows, ticket sales, and musical guests will be added as it becomes"
Friday, September 15, 2006
Widow rented rotary phone for 42 years
Thu Sep 14, 4:13 PM ET
CANTON, Ohio - A widow rented a rotary dial telephone for 42 years, paying what her family calculates as more than $14,000 for a now outdated phone.
Ester Strogen, 82, of Canton, first leased two black rotary phones — the kind whose round dial is moved manually with your finger — in the 1960s. Back then, the technology was new and owning telephones was unaffordable for most people.
Until two months ago, Strogen was still paying.... AT&T to use the phones — $29.10 a month. Strogen's granddaughters, Melissa Howell and Barb Gordon, ended the arrangement when they discovered the bills.
"I'm outraged," Gordon said. "It made me so mad. It's ridiculous. If my own grandmother was doing it, how many other people are?"
New Jersey-based Lucent Technologies, a spinoff of AT&T that manages the residential leasing service, said customers were given the choice option to opt out of renting in 1985. The number of customers leasing phones dropped from 40 million nationwide to about 750,000 today, he said.
"We will continue to lease sets as long as there is a demand for them," Skalko said.
Benefits of leasing include free replacements and the option of switching to newer models, he said.
Gordon said she believes the majority of people leasing are elderly and may not realize they are paying thousands of dollars for a telephone.
Skalko said bills are clearly marked, and customers can quit their lease any time by returning their phones.
Strogen says she's not a big fan of her new push-button phone.
"I'd like to have my rotary back," she said. "I like that better."
CANTON, Ohio - A widow rented a rotary dial telephone for 42 years, paying what her family calculates as more than $14,000 for a now outdated phone.
Ester Strogen, 82, of Canton, first leased two black rotary phones — the kind whose round dial is moved manually with your finger — in the 1960s. Back then, the technology was new and owning telephones was unaffordable for most people.
Until two months ago, Strogen was still paying.... AT&T to use the phones — $29.10 a month. Strogen's granddaughters, Melissa Howell and Barb Gordon, ended the arrangement when they discovered the bills.
"I'm outraged," Gordon said. "It made me so mad. It's ridiculous. If my own grandmother was doing it, how many other people are?"
New Jersey-based Lucent Technologies, a spinoff of AT&T that manages the residential leasing service, said customers were given the choice option to opt out of renting in 1985. The number of customers leasing phones dropped from 40 million nationwide to about 750,000 today, he said.
"We will continue to lease sets as long as there is a demand for them," Skalko said.
Benefits of leasing include free replacements and the option of switching to newer models, he said.
Gordon said she believes the majority of people leasing are elderly and may not realize they are paying thousands of dollars for a telephone.
Skalko said bills are clearly marked, and customers can quit their lease any time by returning their phones.
Strogen says she's not a big fan of her new push-button phone.
"I'd like to have my rotary back," she said. "I like that better."
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Update: Kyrgyz police: Major's story 'confused'
By LEILA SARALAYEVA, Associated Press Writer Mon Sep 11, 3:04 PM ET
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - A U.S. servicewoman who reappeared as mysteriously as she vanished gave confused accounts of her three-day absence and refused to make further statements after consulting with the U.S. Embassy, a Kyrgyz police official said Monday.
Air Force Maj. Jill Metzger, who had been stationed at the U.S. base in Manas, outside the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, disappeared Sept. 5 while on a shopping excursion in the city. She resurfaced Friday night when she knocked on the door of a house in Kant, about 15 miles outside Bishkek, and claimed she had been kidnapped.
Metzger was flown out of Kyrgyzstan within a few hours of her reappearance and was admitted Sunday to a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. There was no immediate word on what she was being treated for, or how long she would remain hospitalized; officials had previously said she did not appear to have suffered serious injury during her disappearance.
Kyrgyz authorities have said that her swift departure could impede their investigation, because they wanted to question her further to clarify her account. According to investigators, Metzger said an object with a note saying it was a bomb was placed in her pocket in a Bishkek department store, and that she was kidnapped after following the note's instructions on where to go.
"It seemed to me that her testimony was little believable; she was confused in her evidence," Batmirza Dzhailobayev, head of the Kant police department, told The Associated Press.
"After she spoke with somebody from the embassy, she categorically refused to give testimony. Then people from the U.S. Embassy took her away," he said.
Dzhailobayev noted that although Metzger had told police that her abductors had stolen her necklace, she was still wearing an expensive-looking wedding ring.
Also Monday, a resident of the house where Metzger appeared said that the 33-year-old major was clearly in distress.
"Our first impression was that the woman was severely drunk ... (but) there was no smell of alcohol and we then understood that she was in shock," Svetlana Ivashenko told the AP. She said that Metzger was dressed in clothes that appeared to be several sizes too large for her.
Ivashenko said Metzger spoke only in English, which neither she nor her husband understand, so they awoke their daughter to try to help understand.
"Who had seized her, why and were they had held her all this time, she couldn't clarify," Ivashenko said. "As she told all this, she didn't weep — she just sobbed and held her head."
Ivashenko said there was blood on Metzger's feet and that she said she had walked a considerable distance. She also said the right side of Metzger's face appeared to be badly bruised, although Dzhailobayev said "it was my impression that there were no bruises on her face."
Metzger was serving a four-month stint with the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing at Manas, where the U.S. military has maintained a base since 2001 to support operations in nearby
Afghanistan. She had been scheduled to return Friday to her regular post at Moody Air Force Base, Ga.
Metzger phoned her parents in Henderson, N.C., early Saturday to let them know she was safe, The News & Observer newspaper of Raleigh reported. Her parents said the call left questions about her disappearance, and they still did not know why she vanished, where she was during her ordeal, or how she got back.
"She kept saying, "I'm fine, I'm OK, I'm OK," her mother, Jeanette Metzger, told the newspaper.
John Metzger, a retired Air Force colonel, said his daughter seemed to be in shock.
"Her tone of voice at the beginning was kind of distant, I would say, and then all of a sudden, I heard the old Jill come back," he said.
Metzger was married to Air Force Capt. Joshua Mayo on April 8 and she was deployed 10 days later. The couple had been set to leave Sept. 24 for a delayed honeymoon, her father said.
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan - A U.S. servicewoman who reappeared as mysteriously as she vanished gave confused accounts of her three-day absence and refused to make further statements after consulting with the U.S. Embassy, a Kyrgyz police official said Monday.
Air Force Maj. Jill Metzger, who had been stationed at the U.S. base in Manas, outside the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek, disappeared Sept. 5 while on a shopping excursion in the city. She resurfaced Friday night when she knocked on the door of a house in Kant, about 15 miles outside Bishkek, and claimed she had been kidnapped.
Metzger was flown out of Kyrgyzstan within a few hours of her reappearance and was admitted Sunday to a U.S. military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany. There was no immediate word on what she was being treated for, or how long she would remain hospitalized; officials had previously said she did not appear to have suffered serious injury during her disappearance.
Kyrgyz authorities have said that her swift departure could impede their investigation, because they wanted to question her further to clarify her account. According to investigators, Metzger said an object with a note saying it was a bomb was placed in her pocket in a Bishkek department store, and that she was kidnapped after following the note's instructions on where to go.
"It seemed to me that her testimony was little believable; she was confused in her evidence," Batmirza Dzhailobayev, head of the Kant police department, told The Associated Press.
"After she spoke with somebody from the embassy, she categorically refused to give testimony. Then people from the U.S. Embassy took her away," he said.
Dzhailobayev noted that although Metzger had told police that her abductors had stolen her necklace, she was still wearing an expensive-looking wedding ring.
Also Monday, a resident of the house where Metzger appeared said that the 33-year-old major was clearly in distress.
"Our first impression was that the woman was severely drunk ... (but) there was no smell of alcohol and we then understood that she was in shock," Svetlana Ivashenko told the AP. She said that Metzger was dressed in clothes that appeared to be several sizes too large for her.
Ivashenko said Metzger spoke only in English, which neither she nor her husband understand, so they awoke their daughter to try to help understand.
"Who had seized her, why and were they had held her all this time, she couldn't clarify," Ivashenko said. "As she told all this, she didn't weep — she just sobbed and held her head."
Ivashenko said there was blood on Metzger's feet and that she said she had walked a considerable distance. She also said the right side of Metzger's face appeared to be badly bruised, although Dzhailobayev said "it was my impression that there were no bruises on her face."
Metzger was serving a four-month stint with the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing at Manas, where the U.S. military has maintained a base since 2001 to support operations in nearby
Afghanistan. She had been scheduled to return Friday to her regular post at Moody Air Force Base, Ga.
Metzger phoned her parents in Henderson, N.C., early Saturday to let them know she was safe, The News & Observer newspaper of Raleigh reported. Her parents said the call left questions about her disappearance, and they still did not know why she vanished, where she was during her ordeal, or how she got back.
"She kept saying, "I'm fine, I'm OK, I'm OK," her mother, Jeanette Metzger, told the newspaper.
John Metzger, a retired Air Force colonel, said his daughter seemed to be in shock.
"Her tone of voice at the beginning was kind of distant, I would say, and then all of a sudden, I heard the old Jill come back," he said.
Metzger was married to Air Force Capt. Joshua Mayo on April 8 and she was deployed 10 days later. The couple had been set to leave Sept. 24 for a delayed honeymoon, her father said.
Wearing helmets 'more dangerous'
Cyclists who wear protective helmets are more likely to be knocked down by passing vehicles, new research from Bath University suggests.
The study found drivers tend to.... pass closer when overtaking cyclists wearing helmets than those who are bare-headed.
Dr Ian Walker was struck by a bus and a lorry during the experiment. He was wearing a helmet both times.
But the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said tests have shown helmets protect against injuries.
To carry out the research, Dr Walker used a bike fitted with a computer and an ultrasonic distance sensor to find drivers were twice as likely to get close to the bicycle, at an average of 8.5cm, when he wore a helmet.
The experiment, which recorded 2,500 overtaking motorists in Salisbury and Bristol, was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
Dr Walker, a traffic psychologist from the University's Department of Psychology, said: "This study shows that when drivers overtake a cyclist, the margin for error they leave is affected by the cyclist's appearance.
Ian Walker
This study suggests wearing a helmet might make a collision more likely
Dr Ian Walker
"By leaving the cyclist less room, drivers reduce the safety margin that cyclists need to deal with obstacles in the road, such as drain covers and potholes, as well as the margin for error in their own judgements.
"We know helmets are useful in low-speed falls, and so definitely good for children, but whether they offer any real protection to somebody struck by a car is very controversial.
"Either way, this study suggests wearing a helmet might make a collision more likely in the first place," he added.
Dr Walker thinks the reason drivers give less room to cyclists wearing helmets is because they see them as "Lycra-clad street warriors" and believe they are more predictable than those without.
He suggests different types of road users need to understand each other.
"Most adult cyclists know what it is like to drive a car, but relatively few motorists ride bicycles in traffic, and so don't know the issues cyclists face.
"There should definitely be more information on the needs of other road users when people learn to drive and practical experience would be even better."
Wig wearing
To test another theory, Dr Walker donned a long wig to see whether there was any difference in passing distance when drivers thought they were overtaking what appeared to be a female cyclist.
While wearing the wig, drivers gave him an average of 14cm more space when passing.
In future research, Dr Walker hopes to discover whether this was because female riders are seen as less predictable than male riders or because women are not seen riding bicycles as often as men on the UK's roads.
However, a spokesman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents insisted: "We wouldn't recommend that people stop wearing helmets because of this research. Helmets have been shown to reduce the likelihood of head and brain injuries in a crash.
"[The research] highlights a gain in vulnerability of cyclists on our roads and drivers of all types need to take more care when around them."
The study found drivers tend to.... pass closer when overtaking cyclists wearing helmets than those who are bare-headed.
Dr Ian Walker was struck by a bus and a lorry during the experiment. He was wearing a helmet both times.
But the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said tests have shown helmets protect against injuries.
To carry out the research, Dr Walker used a bike fitted with a computer and an ultrasonic distance sensor to find drivers were twice as likely to get close to the bicycle, at an average of 8.5cm, when he wore a helmet.
The experiment, which recorded 2,500 overtaking motorists in Salisbury and Bristol, was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
Dr Walker, a traffic psychologist from the University's Department of Psychology, said: "This study shows that when drivers overtake a cyclist, the margin for error they leave is affected by the cyclist's appearance.
Ian Walker
This study suggests wearing a helmet might make a collision more likely
Dr Ian Walker
"By leaving the cyclist less room, drivers reduce the safety margin that cyclists need to deal with obstacles in the road, such as drain covers and potholes, as well as the margin for error in their own judgements.
"We know helmets are useful in low-speed falls, and so definitely good for children, but whether they offer any real protection to somebody struck by a car is very controversial.
"Either way, this study suggests wearing a helmet might make a collision more likely in the first place," he added.
Dr Walker thinks the reason drivers give less room to cyclists wearing helmets is because they see them as "Lycra-clad street warriors" and believe they are more predictable than those without.
He suggests different types of road users need to understand each other.
"Most adult cyclists know what it is like to drive a car, but relatively few motorists ride bicycles in traffic, and so don't know the issues cyclists face.
"There should definitely be more information on the needs of other road users when people learn to drive and practical experience would be even better."
Wig wearing
To test another theory, Dr Walker donned a long wig to see whether there was any difference in passing distance when drivers thought they were overtaking what appeared to be a female cyclist.
While wearing the wig, drivers gave him an average of 14cm more space when passing.
In future research, Dr Walker hopes to discover whether this was because female riders are seen as less predictable than male riders or because women are not seen riding bicycles as often as men on the UK's roads.
However, a spokesman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents insisted: "We wouldn't recommend that people stop wearing helmets because of this research. Helmets have been shown to reduce the likelihood of head and brain injuries in a crash.
"[The research] highlights a gain in vulnerability of cyclists on our roads and drivers of all types need to take more care when around them."
Monday, September 11, 2006
Another article for the "Duh" file--Americans Think Wars Are Creating More Terrorists: Angus Reid Consultants
Americans Think Wars Are Creating More Terrorists: Angus Reid Consultants (click here for full article): "Many adults in the United States believe their government’s policies are having a negative effect, according to a poll by CBS News. 54 per cent of respondents believe the Bush administration’s involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan is creating more terrorists who are planning to attack.
Afghanistan has been"
Afghanistan has been"
Saturday, September 09, 2006
Friday, September 08, 2006
Incumbents will face 3 challengers
By GORDON WEIXEL
Bismarck Tribune
Three candidates have come forward to challenge three recalled Mandan officials in the Nov. 7 general election.
But unless further petitions are turned in by 4 p.m. today, at least one of the commission candidates is assured a seat on the commission following the vote.
Wes Eisenmann and Susan Beehler turned in their petitions to.... run for mayor to deputy auditor Phyllis Hager on Tuesday. On Thursday, Kathy Parkes filed petitions to run for a city commissioner seat.
*
Mayor Ken LaMont and Commissioners Dan Ulmer and Sandra Tibke are the subjects of the recall, which was organized by attorney Ben Pulkrabek. Recall petitions cited the city's settlement with BNSF Railways as the reason for the recall. On Thursday, LaMont, Ulmer and Tibke announced their names will be on the ballot and predicted the election will validate the commission's efforts.
All three challengers say they had nothing to do with the recall, and for the most part are not critical of the BNSF settlement for cleanup of the downtown diesel fuel contamination that brought the city $30 million. Each has their own issue and believes he or she can make a difference if elected.
Eisenmann is a 67-year-old retired rail worker, having been with BNSF for 38 years. He has lived in Mandan for 37 years on and off, raising a family of six with his wife.
"When I see people, retired people, forced out of their homes because they can't afford property taxes ... something has got to be done with property taxes," Eisenmann said. "Mandan is the No. 1 highest in property taxes among the state's largest cities. Taxes are my main gripe, and the way our local commission is so fiscally irresponsible."
Eisenmann, making his first run at a public office, said he doesn't have any concerns about the BNSF settlement, and taxes are the basis of his campaign. He does believe that Beehler's run for mayor will hurt both of their chances to get a seat on the commission.
Beehler, 48, campaigned for Tibke and believes that longtime commissioner Ulmer will be very difficult to defeat at the polls, so she decided to run for mayor. A wife and mother of five, Beehler has lived in Mandan since 1992 and worked at her parents' business in Mandan four years prior to that.
"I wasn't part of the recall and don't even know who was involved," Beehler said. "What made me decide to get into the race was when I saw the recall petitions and saw there are a good number of people in Mandan who are not happy."
Beehler places a lot of importance on Mandan's history and has opposed the demolition of some of the downtown buildings as part of the remediation project. She said the Furniture First building could have been saved with the money that was paid for its buyout.
"We lost eight or nine buildings that are historic. The city commission doesn't understand the value of these historic buildings," Beehler said. "Business owners could have rented these buildings for less than what they'll pay for space in new buildings."
Beehler also said the mayor and commissioners haven't been as accessible to the public as they should during this time of transition in Mandan. If elected, she plans on spending a lot of time finding out what people think and want.
Parkes, 50, grew up in Mandan, only to move away after school, returning in 2005. She ran in the June regular election, finishing fourth behind Tim Helbling, Jerry Gangl and ousted incumbent Stan Scott. Parkes received 18.5 percent of the vote, just 3 percent behind Gangl and 0.03 of a percent behind Scott.
During her run in the municipal election, Parkes said she too was upset with city commission decisions leading to the demolition of historic downtown buildings. Parkes described the mood of the community as angry, but felt headway was being made to dissipate that anger through better communication efforts by the commission.
Parkes said she wasn't a part of the recall and sees the election as an opportunity to get in a position to help guide the direction the community is taking. She has few, if any, issues with the BNSF settlement.
"I plan to be a little more visible this time," Parkes said of her campaign. "I learned that there's a large number of people that vote in these elections, and that's encouraging. I want to get out and talk to more citizens and business owners, and get input on the issues and the direction they want the city to take."
The issues concerning Parkes most are property taxes and special assessments. With Mandan among the highest property taxes in the state, she said ways need to be found to alleviate the heavy burden being put on residents. Parkes also wants the city commission to make Mandan more business-friendly, helping to cut through the obstacles and red tape slowing them down.
(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@;bismarcktribune.com.)
Bismarck Tribune
Three candidates have come forward to challenge three recalled Mandan officials in the Nov. 7 general election.
But unless further petitions are turned in by 4 p.m. today, at least one of the commission candidates is assured a seat on the commission following the vote.
Wes Eisenmann and Susan Beehler turned in their petitions to.... run for mayor to deputy auditor Phyllis Hager on Tuesday. On Thursday, Kathy Parkes filed petitions to run for a city commissioner seat.
*
Mayor Ken LaMont and Commissioners Dan Ulmer and Sandra Tibke are the subjects of the recall, which was organized by attorney Ben Pulkrabek. Recall petitions cited the city's settlement with BNSF Railways as the reason for the recall. On Thursday, LaMont, Ulmer and Tibke announced their names will be on the ballot and predicted the election will validate the commission's efforts.
All three challengers say they had nothing to do with the recall, and for the most part are not critical of the BNSF settlement for cleanup of the downtown diesel fuel contamination that brought the city $30 million. Each has their own issue and believes he or she can make a difference if elected.
Eisenmann is a 67-year-old retired rail worker, having been with BNSF for 38 years. He has lived in Mandan for 37 years on and off, raising a family of six with his wife.
"When I see people, retired people, forced out of their homes because they can't afford property taxes ... something has got to be done with property taxes," Eisenmann said. "Mandan is the No. 1 highest in property taxes among the state's largest cities. Taxes are my main gripe, and the way our local commission is so fiscally irresponsible."
Eisenmann, making his first run at a public office, said he doesn't have any concerns about the BNSF settlement, and taxes are the basis of his campaign. He does believe that Beehler's run for mayor will hurt both of their chances to get a seat on the commission.
Beehler, 48, campaigned for Tibke and believes that longtime commissioner Ulmer will be very difficult to defeat at the polls, so she decided to run for mayor. A wife and mother of five, Beehler has lived in Mandan since 1992 and worked at her parents' business in Mandan four years prior to that.
"I wasn't part of the recall and don't even know who was involved," Beehler said. "What made me decide to get into the race was when I saw the recall petitions and saw there are a good number of people in Mandan who are not happy."
Beehler places a lot of importance on Mandan's history and has opposed the demolition of some of the downtown buildings as part of the remediation project. She said the Furniture First building could have been saved with the money that was paid for its buyout.
"We lost eight or nine buildings that are historic. The city commission doesn't understand the value of these historic buildings," Beehler said. "Business owners could have rented these buildings for less than what they'll pay for space in new buildings."
Beehler also said the mayor and commissioners haven't been as accessible to the public as they should during this time of transition in Mandan. If elected, she plans on spending a lot of time finding out what people think and want.
Parkes, 50, grew up in Mandan, only to move away after school, returning in 2005. She ran in the June regular election, finishing fourth behind Tim Helbling, Jerry Gangl and ousted incumbent Stan Scott. Parkes received 18.5 percent of the vote, just 3 percent behind Gangl and 0.03 of a percent behind Scott.
During her run in the municipal election, Parkes said she too was upset with city commission decisions leading to the demolition of historic downtown buildings. Parkes described the mood of the community as angry, but felt headway was being made to dissipate that anger through better communication efforts by the commission.
Parkes said she wasn't a part of the recall and sees the election as an opportunity to get in a position to help guide the direction the community is taking. She has few, if any, issues with the BNSF settlement.
"I plan to be a little more visible this time," Parkes said of her campaign. "I learned that there's a large number of people that vote in these elections, and that's encouraging. I want to get out and talk to more citizens and business owners, and get input on the issues and the direction they want the city to take."
The issues concerning Parkes most are property taxes and special assessments. With Mandan among the highest property taxes in the state, she said ways need to be found to alleviate the heavy burden being put on residents. Parkes also wants the city commission to make Mandan more business-friendly, helping to cut through the obstacles and red tape slowing them down.
(Reach reporter Gordon Weixel at 250-8255 or gordon.weixel@;bismarcktribune.com.)
Thursday, September 07, 2006
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Air Force woman missing from Kyrgyzstan mall
I suspect a marriage kidnapping!
--BBlebowski--
POSTED: 10:28 a.m. EDT, September 6, 2006
(CNN) -- A U.S. Air Force officer is missing after a trip to a shopping mall in Kyrgyzstan, a U.S. military statement said Wednesday.
Maj. Jill Metzger, with the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing, was last seen shopping at the Zum Shopping Center with others from the Manas Air Base when she disappeared on Tuesday, the statement said.
"Major Metzger was last seen wearing a green sweater and blue jeans," the statement said.
"She has blonde hair and blue eyes. She is in excellent athletic condition."
Military Web sites describe Metzger as a top-flight marathoner.
An article about a race in May at Manas Air Base on Hilltoptimes.com calls Metzger a "two-time Air Force Marathon champion." Hilltoptimes.com is a Web site with news about personnel from Hill Air Force Base in Utah.
The Web site for the Air Force Marathon at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio shows Metzger as the top female in the 2004 race and top military female in 2005.
A task force made up of U.S. military personnel, U.S. Embassy personnel and local officials are trying to find her, the statement said.
The U.S. military has used Manas Air Base in the former Soviet republic since 2001 to support operations in Afghanistan. The U.S. and Kyrgyzstan approved a deal in July for continued U.S. use of the base.
--BBlebowski--
POSTED: 10:28 a.m. EDT, September 6, 2006
(CNN) -- A U.S. Air Force officer is missing after a trip to a shopping mall in Kyrgyzstan, a U.S. military statement said Wednesday.
Maj. Jill Metzger, with the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing, was last seen shopping at the Zum Shopping Center with others from the Manas Air Base when she disappeared on Tuesday, the statement said.
"Major Metzger was last seen wearing a green sweater and blue jeans," the statement said.
"She has blonde hair and blue eyes. She is in excellent athletic condition."
Military Web sites describe Metzger as a top-flight marathoner.
An article about a race in May at Manas Air Base on Hilltoptimes.com calls Metzger a "two-time Air Force Marathon champion." Hilltoptimes.com is a Web site with news about personnel from Hill Air Force Base in Utah.
The Web site for the Air Force Marathon at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio shows Metzger as the top female in the 2004 race and top military female in 2005.
A task force made up of U.S. military personnel, U.S. Embassy personnel and local officials are trying to find her, the statement said.
The U.S. military has used Manas Air Base in the former Soviet republic since 2001 to support operations in Afghanistan. The U.S. and Kyrgyzstan approved a deal in July for continued U.S. use of the base.
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