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12 October 2004 @ 02:23 pm

"What's really worrying is when the sight of a tank rolling by your car is just normal. It doesn't freak you out anymore, or frighten you. It's just another tank. That's scary, but that's our daily life. But that's just not what normal should look like."
-Salam Pax, Iraqi blogger

Our noble ally in the crusade for democracy, Saudi Arabia, once again deny women the right to vote or run for office.

Howard Kurtz on Halperin’s memo, Republican Congressional corruption, and more. More Republican corruption here.

David Ignatius finds places we can trim the defense budget. Yes, in wartime.

The rise of the temp (plus bonus graphic.)

20% of US jobs are below the poverty line.

SOME NEWS:
* Human Rights Watch derides US on missing prisoners.
* Iraqi nuclear assets disappear on our watch. And why aren't we allowing IAEA representatives free access across the country?
* UN to investigate Afghani election. Here's the BBC Q&A on the issue. Can Iraq follow Afghanistan's democratic example?
* Hamdi sets foot in Saudi Arabia, a free man after two and a half years.
* Say what you will, but this year, the debates matter.
* Students in Moscow to be issued dog tags, while Japan is using radio IDs on their kids.
* Using "frog’s glue" to help joint problems in humans.
* There's a line between advertising to women and patronizing them.
* Richard Cohen on the dreams and reality of Christopher Reeve.

Fed-up MD students put their school woes on film.

French theaters to jam cell phone calls during the movies. Nice.

Oh, and as Norton didn't post his 'this day in history' wrapup, let me just take this time to say happy birthday to Aleister Crowley, an original rockstar.

16 comments | Leave a comment

16 comments —

( 16 comments — Leave a comment )

asimplelife on October 12th, 2004 11:56 am (UTC)
Yes, I hate them darn things.

I would love if they jammed cell phone calls during movies and especially during classes. People often "forget."

Ov course, the prize goes to those fuckwits who forget to turn their phones off in hospitals, or those who still use them because the think their phone call is oh-so-much-more important than the rules. Meanwhile, nurses have to run around manually breathing people on respirators as the signal interferes with the machines [ok, that was a couple ov years ago when the signals were bigger and the machines were archaic...BUT STILL...turn the fucking thing off].

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cheetahmaster on October 12th, 2004 01:39 pm (UTC)
Re: Yes, I hate them darn things.

Oh, I like cell phones in general. But I love movies even more, and despise people who conspire to ruin my movie-going experience.

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ceciskittle on October 12th, 2004 12:34 pm (UTC)

Oh, and as Norton didn't post his 'this day in history' wrapup, let me just take this time to say happy birthday to Aleister Crowley, an original rockstar.

I wouldn't call him an original rockstar. He was definitely a great inspiration for many rock stars, but not one himself.

I would call him a freakin' super genious, british secret agent, master of mind control, and one of the fathers of Wicca. A man of many talents.

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cheetahmaster on October 12th, 2004 01:38 pm (UTC)
heh heh heh

I actually have a much more bemused respect for Mr. Crowley, in the same way that I respect Madonna, Oscar Wilde, and Marilyn Manson. I think he was a master of self-promotion, right down to the sex, drugs, and occultism. He named himself "the Great Beast," for heavens sake. I appreciate anyone who can play public opinion while thumbing their nose at the rules of the dominant polite society, and look good while doing it.

Not to mention dying a penniless drug addict. That's hardcore.

Thusly, to me, he earns the rockstar appellation.

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sjo on October 12th, 2004 04:14 pm (UTC)
Re: heh heh heh

The sad thing is that his addiction to heroin was caused by an actual medical affliction. Apparently heroin was prescribed for asthmatics back in the day.

I totally admire him though. He might have been a screwhead, but he was a brilliant screwhead.

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cheetahmaster on October 12th, 2004 01:41 pm (UTC)
Holy pancholes!

A big Maryland voter registration push means ten percent more people are registered for this election than the last.

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bizarrojack on October 12th, 2004 03:29 pm (UTC)

"Emergency phone calls and calls outside the performance area will still be permitted, however." i.e. you are allowed to pick up the phone and push the buttons, or answer any that get through, they'll just be jammed. If it truly is an emergency, the theater may be called on a separate line and you can ask them to shut off their jamming equipment because of the emergency. Alternately, if you are notified of the emergency before the beginning of the movie, you can step out of the theater to take the call.

Leaving it on vibrate and walking out of the theater though, thats still jammed.

I'd much prefer if it was a fine. If we can have cameras for red-lights and speeding, we can certainly build a cell-phone detecting infra red camera in movie theaters, something that will actually help society.

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cheetahmaster on October 12th, 2004 04:44 pm (UTC)

If I had my way, it would deliver an electrical shock to the user's head the second he answered the phone.

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salami_salome on October 12th, 2004 04:42 pm (UTC)
hermes trismegistus

*cues Ozzy*

Mi-ister Crooowley!
(DER ner ner)
Won't you ride my white hor-rse!
Mi-ister Crooowley!
(DER ner ner)
It's symbolic of course!

Your lifestyle to me seemed so tragic!
With the thrill of it aaaallll!
You fooled all the people with maaagic!
Now you're WAITING ON SATAN'S CALL!

(rockin' solo)

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cheetahmaster on October 12th, 2004 04:44 pm (UTC)
Re: hermes trismegistus

You're awesome.

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salami_salome on October 12th, 2004 04:59 pm (UTC)
Re: hermes trismegistus

Don't stop me now; I'm on a roll.

*air guitar, head banging*

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msteleute on October 12th, 2004 07:53 pm (UTC)
Re: hermes trismegistus

You beat me to it!

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mediaprophet on October 12th, 2004 10:27 pm (UTC)

Hey! I'm above the poverty line for a family of four*! Now I'll feel REALLY bad if I screw up my finances.

* by, like, a hundred bucks

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cheetahmaster on October 13th, 2004 04:05 am (UTC)

There is, of course, talk that the poverty line is too low for poverty these days, but that's another discussion entirely.

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mediaprophet on October 13th, 2004 08:21 am (UTC)

Yeah. I can't imagine trying to support a wife and 2 kids on my income. That would be impossible. I'd have to have no car, no health insurance, and live in a trailer. And then I'd be above the poverty line?

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salami_salome on October 13th, 2004 10:44 am (UTC)
perspective

Curious: is there no such thing as a poverty line for singles? The article gives figures for families of two and families of four. I'm just curious. Because if working singles are by default not considered poor*, I have an angry letter and a paystub to send to someone.

*I realize that I'm leading a life of priveledge in higher education and cannot actually consider myself "poor" in the strictest sense. However, if we're calculating these things sheerly by numbers or by basic living expenses, a graduate assistantship pays from 12-15K a year. Even with two roommates to bring the rent down I can't afford my car insurance.

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