Samual A. Alito Sworn in as the 110th Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

I have this strange feeling that the U.S. Supreme court just came a little closer to being a full fledged "Monkey Court" today....

God Help Us All....

Press Release - January 31, 2006

Coretta Scott King Dies at 78

I didn't learn much about this woman when I was in school. Thinking back to my school years, I often wonder why our educational system didn't delve deeper into the lives of King and her husband (and for that matter alot of other historical figures...). Maybe the powers that be didn't figure that she was important enough to devote chapters of "learning" to.
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Coretta Scott King, who turned a life shattered by her husband's assassination into one devoted to enshrining his legacy of human rights and equality, has died at the age of 78.

To read the rest of this story click below (taken from the Milwaukee Journal Online Edition):
JS Online: News:
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State of the Union Address tonight-Will Bush be Telling the Truth?

President Bush gives his annual State of the Union address tonight. US voters will be watching Bush closely on television.

(A story was recently posted on Witley Strieber's website called "Unknown Country" about scientific ways to spot spin among politicians.
The sypnosis of that article is that a mathematician in Canada says that he can use math to tell when a politician is lying. With our own election coming up in 2008, this is something we can use). Full Story

Now according to this new article taken from "Unknown Country" there is more scientific information on what to look for. Full Story

I have to set my DVR to record this speech and I will be looking for those "tell tale" signs.
Should be better than the "Oscars"!!!

Killer bees join list of hazards of Florida living!

So here's one for my family and friends living in the southernmost state of our country.

Warm weather, no snow, tropical beaches, outdoor dining in the back yard all year long, and then comes the "Killer Bees"!!

I can just see it now...."Benny...run! run! The bees are coming....get inside dammit!!" says Marlyn as she looks up while planting some flowers in the new clay pot she just picked up at the local "garden store"......

The news article below...

Killer bees join list of hazards of Florida living: South Florida Sun-Sentinel

And if anyone is interested in learning more about these pesky little creatures, the site below has some very enlightening information...

http://wwwlow.bham.wednet.edu/Bees/Killer%20Bees.htm

Happy Monday to all and watch out for those Bees!!

"And a Happy Birthday to my boss Bob....hope you had a great day boss."

Some Childhood Recollections-A Cute Train Story........

From the time I was a little boy growing up in Wisconsin Rapids, I have been fascinated with Trains.
In recent years I have been able to live out quite a few of my dreams of "riding the rails" and seeing some of the most amazing and majestic sights that God has created in this country by taking some pretty awesome Amtrak trips both out to the west coast and back from NYC.

I was lucky enough to live one block from the "train tracks" that ran through the Rapids....the tracks were at the end of the block on 15th Ave. My Avenue..... and my life. And at times those tracks took on a life of their own.
So....come along for a short ride down memory lane if you like.....

I spent many a summer day playing on the tracks, walking along the side of or on the wooden planks that must have been placed there many many years before by who knows who. I would also walk on the metal rails and try to see how far I could get without loosing my balance.

We would also put pennies on the tracks and wait for the trains to pass by and "smoosh" them and then marvel at how flat those coins were. Some old guy once told us that we were "defacing" U.S Currency and that was illegal...thus we were supposedly breaking the law....ikkes!!!

I also hopped on the train cars as they were moving and once almost made it to Stevens Point before hopping off and then the train back just didn't come and I ended up walking the 14 miles back home. My feet were killing me after that one. I never told my parents...I must have been about 10 years old at that time.
Memories....I tell you.

I would also walk through the woods that were behind the tracks and that was my "wilderness" and a big part of my life back then. My friends and I even built forts and tree houses out in those woods. It was our getaway from everything. I cant even begin to imagine how many hours were spent around those tracks...but it must have been a good portion of my childhood.

In later years as I grew up and became a teenager, I still wondered to the tracks and those woods. Mainly to think and get away from the crowded conditions of living with 4 other siblings, and sometimes to do things that teenagers do such as smoke cigarettes, drink a beer or (shhhh here!!) smoke a "doobie" or a "joint". (Those were a few of the names we called marijuana cigarettes back in the 70s.)

After I got my driver's license and my first car, I would often drive over to the edge of the woods and sit and listen to my favorite music (Firefall, Steve Miller, 38 Special, The Outlaws, Lynnard Skinnard, Kiss, Cheap Trick....ya I know I am dating myself here)....sometimes by myself and at other times with my friends.

On one of my infrequent trips back to Wisconsin Rapids a few years ago, I decided to check out the old train tracks and the woods and "my old pathways". The paths were still there and it looked like young kids still hung out back there and built "forts" and stuff. It was such a blast walking those paths that I had come to think of as "my own" way back then. I often wonder if my nephew Josh (who grew up in the house that I was born and raised in for most of my childhood) ever discovered the joys of those tracks and the woods that surround that "wonderland of my youth".
I may just have to give him a call and ask him.

Then there were the train trips to Milwaukee to visit my mother's favorite cousin Anita and her three daughters....(those memories alone could fill up two whole notebooks and someday I may just write a long story about this most memorable woman who died way too young...just like my mom)....

I don't know if we made more than one trip as only one stands out in my memory. But that trip was one of discovery and amazement...especially for a little boy of 10 or 11. Back then (must have been the mid 70s's) train travel was already on the decline for the railroad companies and I think that the train that we took from the Rapids to Milwaukee was called the "Hiawatha" which by the way is the name of the current Amtrak train that travels from Milwaukee to Chicago on a daily basis. (I am not sure if this was part of the "Soo Line" or the "Central Wisconsin Line" or the "Green Bay and Western Line" but from the pictures above that I found, the trains in those photos remind me of exactly what the train looked like that we rode on...so GB &W is probably the line we rode on...but if anyone knows for sure they can let me know that would be great).
I hope the guy who had those pics on his site doesnt mind that I used them on here. When I found them I was so shocked...I never thought I would see photos of those trains in a million years....

........I remember as we were passing through the Wisconsin Dells and we were on this bridge going over the Wisconsin River and we stopped. I looked down and I saw "dinosaurs" on one side and "fairy tale settings" on the other. It was so cool.
As we got further south, I vaguely remember the train stopping for some reason. I think it was engine problems. I do remember they let us off the train for a bit and as we were walking around, my brother's shoe fell off and I recall it getting lodged beneath the track or something. Just as the train conductor blew the whistle and called the "All Aboard", I remember my mom franticly trying to grab that shoe and we were running for the door to the train.....and there was my brother hopping along with "one shoe on and one shoe off" as we climbed the steps onto the train car!!

Years later I would be driving through a town called Port Washington which is about 45 minutes north of Milwaukee and I came upon a train depot. Memories came flooding back of that day I just mentioned with my mom and my brother and the "shoe incident". It felt like "dejavu" and a "dream" all at the same time. Did it really happen?
I think it did, but so much of my early childhood is a fog at times. But oh how I now realize how very lucky I was to have had those experiences and those memories.

And with that comes the memories of many happy times with a very loving family. I think back on that train trip and how weak my mother had become in her last years and I often wonder how she handled all of us. I know my dad wasn't on that trip. So here is a woman with three kids in "tow" and traveling from Wisconsin Rapids to Milwaukee....how did she do it??
The only word I can think of is "WOW".......

What brings all these memories floating back to me??
A story that I found on the Milwaukee Journal Website talks about a bunch of old guys who sit at the Amtrak station here in Racine (which by the way is an old antique which is set for demolition as soon as the new train station is built about a mile down the road). I have been there a few times and it is an old rotting building and isn't worth a second look to most people. To me I can understand their passion though. If I had more time I might just be joining them on their nightly gatherings.....who knows...
I just may one of these days.

The story in it's entirety from the Milwaukee Journal..... and I hope everyone has a great weekend.

PS: I have the next two days off and I just had a thought. I think I want to take a drive up to Wisconsin Rapids and say hi to my mom and visit her grave (which for that reason alone has been way too long) and maybe rekindle some more of those "foggy" childhood memories.
Who knows...I may take some photos of my old home town so some of the things I just talked about can be seen by all of those that bother to read this post.
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All aboard

Hooked on the rumble and roar of America's railways, enthusiasts often spend hours train-spotting

By ALICE L. CHANGmailto:CHANGachang@journalsentinel.com

Sturtevant - They gather in a lobby with dingy white wooden walls, two fluorescent lights and four rows of ripped gray and black chairs

With its free parking, the Amtrak depot in Sturtevant often serves as the meeting place for train enthusiasts Miles Ribble, Richard Peters, Robert Morris and Jason Govednik. There, or sometimes in other depots from Kenosha to northern Illinois, the men take in the sights and sounds of America's railways.

Between train sightings, Ribble (from left), Peters, Govednik and Morris trade trivia and stories. Frequently, their talk turns to the Amtrak depot under construction about a mile north of this one. The men are concerned about whether parking will remain free and whether they will be allowed inside the station to watch trains.
Two knee-high heaters chained to the wall provide a slight source of warmth while a scanner lies on a window ledge, catching every snippet of conversation at frequency 160.77.
They often eat dinner together. Sometimes they bring their televisions and watch videos. Or they trade trivia. It's almost always about locomotives.
They are train fans. This passion, this obsession, draws these people together for four to eight hours at a time almost every night. Sometimes they meet in train stations from Kenosha to northern Illinois, but usually, they gather in Sturtevant, the only depot in the area with free parking.

"I've always been a fan of trains. I just came out and realized I could sit and watch them," says Miles Ribble, 76, of Racine, who used to work for the Tree Machine Tool Co. in Racine. He has been watching trains regularly at depots for 12 years. "After retirement, I came for enjoyment. It helps pass the time."
On a recent evening, Ribble, Richard Peters, Robert Morris and Jason Govednik met at the Amtrak depot in Sturtevant.
"The gate's going down. Amtrak's due in five minutes," says Govednik, 32, of Racine, a bus driver, looking out the window.
"Listen to the rumble", Morris, 24, a forklift operator from Pleasant Prairie, opens the station door and sticks his head out. A few of the men exit into the cold night air to watch the train roar by.
A few minutes later, another train speeds past.
"They painted it," Ribble says. "The first car is clean. They must've washed it."

Back inside the depot, the conversation jumps from the Marquette Interchange to photographing the Amish; from the rail park in Rochelle, Ill., to Morris' grandmother's cooking skills. Frequently, their talk turns to the Amtrak depot under construction about a mile north of the current one. The men are concerned about whether parking will remain free and whether they will be allowed inside the station to watch trains. They're afraid there will be a "no loitering" policy.
"We're hoping they let us sit around," said Peters, 59, a retired equipment installer. "We help customers with schedules and tickets."

Sturtevant village President Steve Jansen said in a later interview that parking will be free, at least initially. Jansen also welcomes train watchers because he thinks they will add to the station's security.

If things don't work out at the new station in the long run, the men will devise a plan. They've found a parking lot by a restaurant in Franksville where they can watch trains in the summer, but there's no bathroom nearby. When winter comes, they might need to admire the locomotives from inside their cars.
"We'll bundle up," Morris said. "We'll work out the details."
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Wire Tapping-Right or Wrong

It seems the tide is turning on the "Bush Wire Tapping Fiasco".
More and more people are thinking that it was wrong for this administration to "illigally" listen in on phone conversations, email communications ect....

Read some of the latest commentary and see some of the poll research...
The Free Speech Zone

Welcome to Mars: Journey Time Three Hours - Space -

Want to go to Mars after lunch and be back in time for a late evening dinner??

According to this article, it many just be possible in a few years time.
Welcome to Science Fiction turning into Science Fact alot quicker than most people thought.

It amazes me that stories I read and have been reading since I was a little boy are starting to come to life.....as if they are hopping right off the pages and my imagination into things that are nearly close to happening......

Welcome to Mars: Journey Time Three Hours - Space -

Do you have a "Safety Deposit Box" at your Bank??

There is a warning floating around the internet that Homeland Security has a plan to seize the contents of all safety deposit boxes during a national emergency, and not allow box users access.

When I asked our bank if this was true, the manager was evasive, saying that the bank couldn't reveal what it might do under such circumstances.

It might be wise to consider relocating essentials that are now kept in a safety deposit box, to some other safe location like under your bed........

We are living in disturbed times, and there's just no way of telling if something like this is true.

More Weird Weather-Wanna go to Hawai???

Taken from the pages of Unknown Country....a website I check often that gives news related to the enviroment and to other things that most of the time the "mainstream news media" doesnt cover on their front pages......
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BLIZZARD in Hawaii25-Jan-2006

A vast arctic cold front has driven temperatures to record lows from Norway to Siberia and Japan, and has now brought snow to the slopes of Mauna Kea volcano in Hawaii. Tourists from California who were climbing the volcano were almost stranded when the latest blizzard began. The park rangers who work there all say they have never seen snow this intense in Hawaii before. While snow is fairly common on Mauna Kea, blizzard conditions are rare.

Temperatures in Moscow have plunged to -35 last week, and the US northeast has been experienced heavy snowfall in recent days. Bitter cold has gripped northern India, and New Delhi has seen record lows, as has Greece, where the Acropolis is covered with snow. Hundreds have died worldwide, at least 53 in Ukraine alone.

Global climate change is well under way, with just the sort of extremes predicted by climate scientists. At present, the ferocious storm that is predicted in The Coming Global Superstorm is not immediately likely. For such a storm to develop, there must be an extraordinary spike in Arctic temperatures, followed by a sudden plunge. Greenhouse gas levels must rise even more before this is likely to happen, but they are increasing so quickly that it is likely to become a possibility within a matter of years.

Man died while looking for candy??

So some more news of thestrange and weird...

I am sure that by now everyone who reads or listens to the news has heard that "Elmo" is asking kids who wants to die.....in his new potty training book that is....so I wont bother linking to the numerous news stories on that one. CNN has already beat that one to death as well as the aweful accident in Florida where all the kids in the car died when it ran into a school bus on the highway.
So today's weird story will be this one....

.....Ok so here is a weird story that caught my eye today.
Without even reading the article I thought of someone looking for something other than candy!!

Read the article below and tell me what YOU think......

The Enquirer - Man died while looking for candy

More Site Updates

I have been having fun "toying" with my "side bar" to the left of my blog posts again.
I have added a "terror alert level" indicator. Right now we are orange which is signified by either "Burt" or the "shake guy". I don't know which one I like better so I decided to put both on.

I also included a link to probably one of the best, if not the best "computer help" e-mail newsletter which is called the "Langa Letter". I have been reading this email newsletter for almost 6 years and through that letter I have learned so much about computing and computers in general. This guy's knowledge is right up there with the best of the best. I highly reccomend it to anyone who wants to (or needs to) keep up to date on what is going on in the world of computing, Windows, broadband, Hardware and just about anything else that is computer related.

And to finish for the evening, I decided to put some links to the "Blogoshphere" of Wisconsin blogs that have to do with politics and government (warning: most of the sites have a liberal slant to them) and what is going on in our state and in the country.

Comments welcome as always.....

Warm Regards for a good thursday to all.

Who's Watching Who?

My boss Bob showed me this on his sister-in-law's Web Blog. It seems after she posted some articles on gov. torture on her site, a military Internet address showed up on her logs.

I would be interested to know how she found out that the government was on her blog.
I may have to ask Bob to ask her....as I do not know her.
But she sounds kind of cool.
I have her blog bookmarked and have been looking at it quite frequently.

Below is a link to her post talking about the above subject.
Crawford's Take: Who's Watching Who?

New technique finds Earth-like planet - Jan 25, 2006

An Earth like planet found in another star system??
And some people think science and space exploration are not important.
I beg to differ. After reading this article, I have hope that we will (in my lifetime) find intelligent life on other worlds.

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WASHINGTON (Reuters)

-- A new planet-hunting technique has detected the most Earth-like planet yet around a star other than our sun, raising hopes of finding a space rock that might support life, astronomers reported on Wednesday.WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A new planet-hunting technique has detected the most Earth-like planet yet around a star other than our sun, raising hopes of finding a space rock that might support life, astronomers reported on Wednesday.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- A new planet-hunting technique has detected the most Earth-like planet yet around a star other than our sun, raising hopes of finding a space rock that might support life, astronomers reported on Wednesday.


Click on link below for full story.
CNN.com - New technique finds Earth-like planet - Jan 25, 2006

Porn-viewing parole agent regains job

This I am sorry to say has to be one of the most insane decisions that our justice system has handed down in a while.

Only in the good old U.S.A. as they say.......
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From JS Online:
A Shawano probation and parole agent who was fired in 2004 for accessing Internet pornography and other inappropriate sites for hours a day over at least five months has his job back - with a raise.
He also will receive a year of back pay.

A. Henry Hempe, a Madison arbitrator, ruled in November 2005 that the agent, Thomas DeLeon, should have received a one-day suspension instead of being fired for the repeated infractions.

The decision stems in part from the Department of Corrections' "relatively light discipline for first-offense misuse of state computers," he wrote.
DeLeon was reinstated in December. Department officials are preparing a payment of about $45,000 for back wages.

Click on link below for the entire story.....
JS Online: Porn-viewing parole agent regains job
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Happy Wed. to all......

A New Look for my Blog and a Few interesting Blog sites

I decided to play around with the looks of my blog this evening. I was getting tired of the "same old" so this is my stab at something new and refreshing. Comments welcome....

Every so often I come across a new blog which I think about bookmarking so I can check back on it.

One in particular that I have been paying quite a bit of attention to lately is called the "The Daily Kos". It is a liberal political blog and I have to say one of the most interesting. Alot of what is happening in Washington and in other political circles within the Bush administration is written about here.

www.dailykos.com
The above link should take anyone to the site if they want to poke around.
There is also a link on my side bar so one can click on it from there also.
I also linked to the "Milwaukee Journal Online Edition" web site on the side bar. That is usually the 1st site I go to every day for a good recap on the daily news of the world, the state, Milwaukee and sometimes there Racine section isnt all that bad either.

Then following the initial links are links to various political based blogs under the heading of the "Cheddarsphere". These links are thanks to another blogger who kindly posted his HTML Code for others to append to their sites. One of the blogs within this "sphere" is my boss's sister in law, (and one which I plan on digging into a little more in depth). She is a "leftie" as am I and I am looking forward to reading some of her views.
It is funny how Bob talks about her. He seems to have the highest regard for her and yet I know that his views and hers (and mine for that matter) are so far apart.....but yet I think Bob deep down is a bit of a liberal himself...shhhh...dont tell anyone!! Esp. Bob!!

Her site is called "Crawford's Take and the web address is:
www.crawfordstake.blogspot.com which like mentioned above is in the links on the left side of this page.

Another web site (though not a blog) talks about the "seedier" side of the news that some news outlets report on but that are so strange and sometimes "out of the mainstreem" that the articles are buried on 2nd and 3rd pages or at least they are not headlined until well after this site has gotten ahold of the stories.
It is called "Daily Rotten" and I have probably mentioned it before.
The web site for this little ditty is:
www.dailyrotten.com

Some of the articles can be pretty racy and at times morbid...but usually always entertaining. The best part of this site as far as I am concerned is the "comments" section where people post their thoughts on the stories. Some stupid comments and some real good ones also. The site is hit or miss but every day usually uncovers at least one or two offbeat articles. If nothing else, one can learn a little about history in the side bar on the left of the page....I have to figure out how to do that!!!!

More fine tuning to come in the next few weeks.
Thanks to my buddy Jason for also giving me a breif overview of how to goof with some of the HTML stuff behind the scenes.

That is about it for today.

Some of the many people at the candlelight vigil including this woman who seemed to be writing on a notepad...dont know if she is a reporter or not...(there were quite a few around).

One of Eric's friends was wearing this t-shirt. I asked him if I could take a picture of it..

A Candlelight Vigil for Eric...A Call for Crime to be Stopped

(The photos above are from me. I had my digital camera and snapped a few pictures to give everyone an idea of what was going on).

The ongoing story of the killing in my neighborhood took a somewhat "somber" and "softer" tone this evening. As I was leaving the house for the evening I came upon a crowd of people gathering in front of Adrial White's house...

...It turns out it was A Candlelight Vigil for the young man that was killed while trying to break into my neighbor's car this past week . It was held just a few hours ago as of my writing this.

There weren't hundreds of people but some of my neighbors were there as well as reletives and friends of the young man who died, and concerned members of the community as well as various tv stations had camera crew and reporters covering the event.

It started about 545pm and an older gentleman was handing out candles (and though I first refused one) and after thinking about it and realising that this young man Eric was indeed a human being and all people no matter how bad...deserve to rest in peace....I decided to take a candle and stick around for the service.

There was a pastor who prayed for Eric and his family and for the other young man to get better. He also prayed for Adrial White and his family and for the community to come together to stop sensless crimes and utterly sensless killings.
There was song ( a gentleman was playing the guitar) and prayer and all of the people holding their candles on a dark winter night all huddled together made for a somber and heartfelt experience...at least for me.

There was one older lady who started yelling and screaming that the kids got what they deserved and that the White's had already been "scared out of their home" by some other thugs...threats or something..she said.
The pastor tried quieting her and she eventually walked to the background.

Family and friends of Eric offered some thoughts and prayers and some friends of the White's also spoke up and talked about how sensless the whole thing was....the news cameras recording it all.


Everyone for the most part was well behaved..even the young men who were surly friends of Eric's.
Things broke apart about 630pm and everyone dispersed. But before everyone left, the pastor made a plea for all those concerned to come to a luthuren church on tuesday night for a town meeting with the mayor where he will discuss the rise in crime and try to figure out ways to stop all of this from happening.

That is my report for today...

Warm Regards....John

A Heart warming email from a friend of Mr. White's (re the killing in my neighborhood)

I received an email communication this morning from Rachel who is trying to set up a fund to free Adrial White on Bail (see next post for all the info on the case).

I felt I would include the letter in its entirety....

________________________________________________________________________

Good morning everyone,

Just an update on Adrial's fund....His sister and mom were told by Madison that the fastest way to apply for a tax ID # is online.....they have been attempting most of the night. They are now going to call the office when it opens and see what they may be doing wrong because it's not letting them continue after completing the forms.

His sister said she talked to him last night and he there were others in the jail that could see the protest from their cell and they were saying,"Man there out there for you...." They all started yelling "let this man go!" Anyone that knows Adrial, can just imagine how humbled he was. I will continue to keep you posted, please pass the word.....thank you again....stay warm and drive safe in this nasty weather change...only in Wisconsin!

Rachel

P.S. Mr. Alphs....thank you for the copy of your letter, which may I add was extremly well written. Even if they don't publish it we can print it out and give it to his laywer...we will be heard one way or the other.

FREE ADRIAL................................................................
Yahoo! PhotosGot holiday prints? See all the ways to get quality prints in your hands ASAP.
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Warm Regards to Everyone....

An update on the killing in my Neighborhood....

So all the details are out there now. My neighbor's name is Adrial White and he is in the Racine County Jail awaiting charges of homicide and attempted homicide.

I was having a discussion with some of my staff earlie tonight and I told one of my servers that I feel what Mr. White did was within his rights...weather Wisconsin thinks so or not. These "slime bags" were infringing upon his "personal space" and for that they paid the price. Well one of them paid the ultimate price and the others got a damm good scrare.

I would have done the same thing had I a gun.....so I am probably glad I do not because I really do not want my friends to have to visit me in the pokey even if it would only be for a short time....which I am hoping will happen for Mr. White.

I am sure this is going to get some national attention soon....so you can say....you heard it hear first. On "John's Crazy World".

The update from the Racine Journal Times and comments that were posted by different people. Mine is in there somewhere with "John" as the author.

Read on...
http://www.journaltimes.com/nucleus/index.php?itemid=3679

And the latest on this interesting story can be found in my hometown "Newspaper's" Online Edition.

http://www.journaltimes.com/

On the front page of the online edtion are also links to courtroom video and other stories and blog comments about what is happening.....

___________________________________________________________________

And so I thought some good cherry stuff is in order also.
Here is an intersting story I came across the other day...

Anyone know anyone with one of the following last names?

(O')Neill, (O')Gallagher, (O')Boyle, (O')Doherty, O'Donnell, Connor, Cannon, Bradley, O'Reilly, Flynn, (Mc)Kee, Campbell, Devlin, Donnelly, Egan, Gormley, Hynes, McCaul, McGovern, McLoughlin, McManus, McMenamin, Molloy, O'Kane, O'Rourke and Quinn.

Read on below......

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Medieval Irish warlord boasts three million descendants
18 January 2006
NewScientist.com news service
AFP and NewScientist.com staff

Up to three million men around the world could be descended from a prolific medieval Irish king, according to a new genetic study.
It suggests that the 5th-century warlord known as "Niall of the Nine Hostages" may be the ancestor of about one in 12 Irishmen, say researchers at Trinity College Dublin, Ireland. Niall established a dynasty of powerful chieftains that dominated the island for six centuries.

In a study of the Y chromosome - which is only passed down through the male line - scientists found a hotspot in northwest Ireland where 21.5% carry Niall’s genetic fingerprint, says Brian McEvoy, one of the team at Trinity. This was the main powerbase of the Ui Neills, which literally translated means "descendants of Niall".
McEvoy says the Y chromosome appeared to trace back to one person.
"There are certain surnames that seem to have come from Ui Neill. We studied if there was any association between those surnames and the genetic profile. It is his (Niall's) family."
Enduring dynasty

The study says that Niall "resided at the cusp of mythology and history but our results do seem to confirm the existence of a single early medieval progenitor to the most powerful and enduring Irish dynasty".
The results also lend support to surviving genealogical and oral traditions of Gaelic Ireland and are a "powerful illustration of the potential link between prolificacy and power".
The study says the chromosome has also been found in 16.7% of men in western and central Scotland and has turned up in multiple North American population samples, including in 2% of European-American New Yorkers.
"Given historically high rates of Irish emigration to North America and other parts of the world, it seems likely that the number of descendants worldwide runs to perhaps two to three million males," the study says.
Modern surnames

It compares the result with similar research that suggested that Mongol emperor Genghis Khan has 16 million descendants after conquering most of Asia in the 13th century.

Though medieval Ireland was Christian, divorce was allowed, people married earlier and concubinage was practised. Illegitimate sons were claimed and their rights protected by law.
"As in other polygynous societies, the siring of offspring was related to power and prestige." The study points out that one of the O'Neill dynasty chieftains who died in 1423 had 18 sons with 10 different women and counted 59 grandsons in the male line.

Niall of the Nine Hostages, who became high king of Ireland, got his name from using the taking of hostages as a strategy for subjugating his opponent chieftains. He is known in folklore as a raider of the British and French coasts. Supposedly slain in the English Channel or in Scotland, his descendants were the most powerful rulers of Ireland until the 11th century.

Modern surnames tracing their ancestry to Niall include (O')Neill, (O')Gallagher, (O')Boyle, (O')Doherty, O'Donnell, Connor, Cannon, Bradley, O'Reilly, Flynn, (Mc)Kee, Campbell, Devlin, Donnelly, Egan, Gormley, Hynes, McCaul, McGovern, McLoughlin, McManus, McMenamin, Molloy, O'Kane, O'Rourke and Quinn.

Journal reference: American Journal of Human Genetics (February issue)
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A Killing in my "Back Yard"....

Literally that is....

...As I walked out of my apartment this afternoon (wed 1-18-06) to go to work, I noticed the street on the corner was blocked off with "yellow police tape". I was kind of courious to say the least but I only had 5 minutes to get to work and even a minute delay would have made me late.

So I get to work and told my boss that if when she gets home and happens to listen to the news and hears anything, to let me know.
Then a little later this evening, one of our cooks comes into the restaurant and says "How about that shooting in your neighborhood ha??"....I was like....oh my!!

So after the restaurant closed I decided to do some digging and from what I am reading from the Racine Journal Times, it seems like this shooting (which lead to one death so far and someone else in critical condition) took place in the alley behind my apartment building.

Come to think of it, I did remember hearing something just before I went to sleep last night between 430am and 5am but I blew it off as maybe a car backfiring exhaust or something. Turns out it was much more.

This is the 2nd murder in this neighborhood in two years. Though it is considered one of the safer (and nicer) areas of Racine, I guess the "scum of society" is starting to invade every place these days.

And now after listening to the Channel 12 news just a few minutes ago I find out that 3 "punks" were trying to rip off car stereo equipment from one of my neighbor's cars. He came out and found them trying to break into his vehicle early wed. morning and he took a gun and shot at them. They managed to take off down the alley and drove themselves to St. Mary's Hospital where one of them died shortly after and another was in critical conditon. Don't know about the third one.

I say GOOD!!! These punks got what they deserved and I am glad that my neighbor went after these little shitheads!! I myself have had my truck broken into a few different times throughout the years and I swear if I had a gun...I would shoot the little shits myself!!

The cops and news outlets are calling it "Vigilantee Justice". Damm right. If people don't have the right to defend their personal belongings that they work their butts off for...with deadly force...then this world sure is going into the shitter...and fast.

I will surly stand by my neighbor (I have only seen him outside as I am walking in my neighborhood but he seems like a very nice man) and if the authorities decide to charge this guy with murder I will call it a "Great Injustice" to all people.

The story from earlier on wed. before I had the chance to watch the TV 12 newscast a few minutes ago...(as the Racine Journal reports it):

FYI: Read from the bottom up as it seems this is a blog and as such the oldest info is on the bottom of the page and newer posts are towards the top.....
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From the Racine Journal Times Online Edition:

Editor's note: We will update this story with more information overnight.

Updated at 5 p.m., Wednesday --

Racine Police report they have a suspect in custody.

Updated at Noon --

Christopher E. Carbajal, 19, died this morning after he was shot in West Racine, near the intersection of 15th Street and Arthur Avenue.

Racine County Medical Examiner Tom Terry said Carbajal was shot in the back. The bullet likely clipped a blood vessel before exiting the front of his body, Terry said. The official cause of death will be released once an autopsy has been done.

An 18-year-old man was also shot; he is currently alive and in the hospital. Terry said a bullet was lodged in the man's jaw.

The shooting is still under investigation. Police had the block of 15th Street east of Arthur Avenue and the intersection of the two streets blocked off until at least 10 a.m.

Loretta Peterson lives on Blaine Ave., near where the shooting occurred. She said she heard gunshots while she was reading the paper.

“All of a sudden I heard Bam! Bam!,” she said. “Then there was a slight hesitation, and then, Bam! Bam! Bam! I saw a small van or SUV in the alley, which went like a bat out of Hell, so fast that I could not get a license plate number.”

The van Peterson said she saw in the alley was reportedly driven to St. Mary’s Medical Center with the victims in side. Police recovered the vehicle at the hospital.

Updated at 11:00 a.m. --

Notes from Interview with Loretta Peterson, a resident at the 1400 block of Blaine Avenue:

"I was reading the paper between 4:30 and 5:15, when all of a sudden I heard 'Bam! Bam!' Then there was a slight hesitation, and then, 'Bam! Bam! Bam!' I saw a small van or SUV in the alley, which went like a bat out of Hell, so fast that I could not get a license plate number."

Updated at 11:00 a.m. --

Police have been questioning people near the 1400 block of Arthur. The shooting appears to have taken place in the alley between Blaine and Arthur, near 15th St. (Click for map)


A police investigator crosses yellow police line tape at about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday near the intersection of 15th St. and Arthur Ave. Police responded to the area after two teenagers suffered gunshot wounds earlier in the morning. One of the male victims died from gunshot wounds, the other is currently hospitalized. /Scott Anderson Journal Times.

Updated at 10:15 a.m. --

The shooting may have taken place at 15th and Arthur. More to come ...

Updated at 9:45 a.m. --

The Racine Police Department has issued the following press release:


Subject: HOMICIDE ON NEAR SOUTH SIDE

On Wednesday, January 18, 2006, at 4:43 a.m., officers from the Racine Police Department responded to St Mary’s Hospital for the report of two shooting victims coming in to the emergency room. The male victims, age 18 and 19, had life threatening injuries.

One of the victims has since succumbed to his injuries. The initial investigation indicates that both victims were shot by the same offender. This shooting is being investigated as a homicide. A possible crime scene has been identified on Racine’s south side. At this time, the investigation is continuing and investigators are still at the scene.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the Racine Police Department Detective Bureau at (262) 635-7756 or Crimestoppers of Racine County at (888) 636-9330.


Posted at 9:15 a.m. --

Police are investigating a double-shooting that left one man dead this morning in the city of Racine.

Two male victims were taken to St. Mary's at 4:43 a.m. One died and the other is suffering from life-threatening injuries.

Racine Police do not yet have any suspects and they are in the preliminary stages of an investigation.

Another Way to Save the World....

New Scientist is one of my favorite magazines.

It has many "thought provoking" articles and the writing is such that even someone who doesn't have much scientific background or who is bored by general science, may find some or most of the articles, intersting.
One such article deals with a group who is undertaking the task of "saving the world's agriculture" in the event of a natural or manmade disaster on earth.

A sort of "Vegetable Noah's Ark".
Read on.....
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WITHIN a large concrete room, hewn out of a mountain on a freezing-cold island just 1000 kilometres from the North Pole, could lie the future of humanity.

The room is a "doomsday vault" designed to hold around 2 million seeds, representing all known varieties of the world's crops. It is being built to safeguard the world's food supply against nuclear war, climate change, terrorism, rising sea levels, earthquakes and the ensuing collapse of electricity supplies. "If the worst came to the worst, this would allow the world to reconstruct agriculture on this planet," says Cary Fowler, director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, an independent international organisation promoting the project.

New Scientist has learned that the Norwegian government is planning to create the seed bank next year at the behest of crop scientists. The $3 million vault will be built deep inside a sandstone mountain lined with permafrost on the Norwegian Arctic island of Spitsbergen. The vault will have metre-thick walls of reinforced concrete and will be protected behind two airlocks and high-security blast-proof doors. It will not be permanently manned, but "the mountains are patrolled by polar bears", says Fowler.

The vault's seed collection, made up of duplicates of those already held at other seed banks, will represent the products of some 10,000 years of plant breeding by the world's farmers. Though most are no longer widely planted, the varieties contain vital genetic traits still regularly used in plant breeding.

To survive, the seeds need freezing temperatures. Operators plan to replace the air inside the vault each winter, when temperatures in Spitsbergen are around -18 °C. But even if some catastrophe meant that the vault was abandoned, the permafrost would keep the seeds viable. And even accelerated global warming would take many decades to penetrate the mountain vault.
"This will be the world's most secure gene bank by some orders of magnitude," says Fowler. "But its seeds will only be used when all other samples have gone for some reason. It is a fail-safe depository, rather than a conventional seed bank."

Norway first proposed the project in the 1980s but it was shelved because of security concerns: under an international treaty the Soviet Union had access to Spitsbergen at the time. With the end of the cold war and the signing of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources, which gives legal protection to national crops, the door was open for the idea's revival.

The project also comes at a time when there is growing concern about the safety of existing seed banks around the world. Many have been criticised for their poor security, ageing refrigeration systems and vulnerable electricity supplies. In the late 1980s, terrorists ransacked an international potato seed bank in the Peruvian Andes, while more recently anti-globalisation campaigners have demonstrated against other banks.

The new Fort Knox for the world's crops will start by taking seeds from the network of seed banks run in the Philippines, Mexico, Syria, Nigeria and elsewhere by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, which is part-funded by the World Bank. "We will then add samples from elsewhere until we have a complete set of the world's crop varieties," says Fowler.

The scheme won UN approval at a meeting of the Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome last October. A feasibility study said the facility "would essentially be built to last forever".

Another installment of ""Intersesting and "OffBeat" Stories from the Web

Most of these stories are taken from two or three of the more popular "non-mainstreem" web sites that tell the stories that the "Mainstream news" doesnt bother to cover...either because they are afraid of the reactions to said truths or they just dont think that humanity cares....I beg to differ.

I think we all need to know as much as possible about everything...no matter how "unimportant" it may seem to some.....
So onto the "other news".....
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These Puzzles May Finally be Solved in 2006

The March 19 issue of New Scientist Magazine reports on mysteries that continue to baffle scientists. These include cosmic rays, dark matter and the placebo effect. Will researchers find the solutions to these puzzles in 2006?

The placebo effect means that if you THINK you are taking an effective medication or treatment, it is often just as effective as taking the real thing—and with no side effects! Side effects are one of the biggest problems in medicine. This is obviously one way that shamans have traditionally healed, using methods—such as chanting or sand paintings—that modern physicians know cannot work (yet they often do).

Prayer may work the same way, except that controlled studies have shown that patients who are prayed for often get well faster than those who aren't—even if they don't know they are being prayed for.

Another mystery is homeopathy—medical remedies that are so diluted that just a few molecules of the original substance remain—and yet they work. This could be due to the mysterious placebo effect.

Another puzzle is cosmic rays that can't exist. Physicists in Japan have been measuring these for over a decade. Cosmic rays are protons (particles of light) that travel through the universe close to the speed of light. Some of them are produced by exploding stars, but scientists don't know what causes them all. However, Japanese scientists have detected cosmic rays that can only come from inside our own galaxy— which is impossible.

Dark matter is something else that can't exist—but it does. Galaxies should all be disintegrating, but somehow they don't. Astronomers think that dark matter is the "glue" that holds them together, except they can't find any of it.

Head on over to "New Scientist" on the web.......
http://www.newscientist.com/home.ns

Many interesting articles. And next time you are by a magazine rack or in your local bookstore...look for this magazine. It is written in such a way that it is not hard to read even for those of us that are NOT scientificly inclined. An easy and informative read in other words.
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Ancient City Found in the Middle of War Zone
26-Dec-2005
We are fighting the war in Iraq in the area where some the world's earliest civilizations began. Now archeologists have discovered the remains of a sophisticated city on the border between Syria and Iraq that is over 5,000 years old, much older than any similar metropolis in any other part of the world.
James Janega writes in the Chicago Tribune that this city shows signs of having been destroyed in a huge battle many years ago, although there is no historical record of this. One reason for this could have been that the war sent the left so few survivors that the population was, in effect, propelled technologically backwards many hundreds of years.

Other places excavated in the area are much smaller, but it's now thought they probably got their technology from the newly-discovered city of Hamoukar. Before, it was assumed that everyone in this part of what is now the Middle East received their knowledge from Mesopotamia, which is hundreds of miles away. Hamoukar appears to have been a big city in 4,500 BC and may have first been settled 8,000 years ago.
Syrian archeologist Abdal-Razzaq Moaz says, "This is the root of all the civilizations. It's not only Syrian heritage. This is also yours. It's heritage belonging to all humanity.
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Are You a Grinch?

According to psychologists, holiday Grinches who exclude themselves from parties or gift exchanges may be doing so in self-defense, pre-empting the possibility that family and friends will ignore or disappoint them. And a group of New Zealand Santas recently displayed the ultimate in Grincy behavior.

Psychologist Kipling D. Williams, who studies ostracism, says, "During the holidays there are high expectations about getting together with family, celebrating with friends and gift-giving at the office or with neighbors. As a result, people are more sensitive. They may avoid or not reply to phone calls from friends or develop a negative attitude, all in an effort to make being ostracized less hurtful, but more inevitable."

Psychologist Jon Allen agrees that, "For most people...the holidays will fall short of expectations." This can lead to depression. Some of the symptoms of holiday depression include significant decrease or increase in weight or appetite, insomnia or sleeping too much, loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness or excessive guilt, and difficulty thinking or concentrating.

The ultimate in Grinchcy behavior occurred in New Zealand recently, when group of 40 people dressed in Santa Claus outfits, many of them drunk, went on a rampage through Auckland, robbing stores, assaulting security guards and urinating from highway overpasses.
They then went through a city park, overturning garbage containers, throwing bottles at passing cars and spraying graffiti on office buildings. Police have called the riot "Santarchy," instead of anarchy.

A spokesman for the group says Santarchy wasn't just a bunch of drunk grinches, it is was actually part of a worldwide movement to protest the commercialization of Christmas.
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Another Asteroid Heading Our Way???

Yet another asteroid is heading our way and could hit us in 31 years—will this one spell our doom, like an earlier one did for the dinosaurs? This one is called Apophis, after the ancient Egyptian spirit of evil and destruction.

Alok Jha writes in The Guardian that the asteroid is now aiming for Earth. It’s being watched by astronomers all over the world, and if it looks like it will hit a body of land, they may try to figure out how to deflect it or break it up in space. Most asteroids that hit the Earth land in the ocean, since oceans cover most of the Earth’s area. NASA says that an impact from Apophis, which could come in 2036, would release more than 100,000 times the energy of the nuclear bomb that was detonated over Hiroshima in World War II.

No matter where it does hit, we would all be affected by the nuclear winter that effect from millions of dust particles being released into the atmosphere. This is probably what killed off the dinosaurs.

Astronomers have tracked Apophis ever since it was discovered in June but it has only started worrying them now, because they say the odds of it hitting Earth in 2029 are alarming.

We don't have much time to lose. It will take many years to design, test and build the technology we need to deflect the asteroid. Meteor expert Monica Grady says an impact by Apophis could cause "mass extinction…We are overdue for a big one."
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And one for my good friend Doris........

New cat family tree tracks global feline success
06 January 2006

NewScientist.com news service
Shaoni Bhattacharya

Despite their occasional fierceness, the domestic cat diverged from its “roaring” cousins, such as lions, jaguar and tigers, 10.8 million years ago – just after the evolution of the ancestor of all modern cats. The revelation comes from a thorough new genetic analysis of the cat family tree.

Cats are “one of the world’s most successful carnivore families, inhabiting all continents except Antarctica”, say the researchers, but modern species evolved only relatively recently – about 11 million years ago.

Originating in Asia, they successfully traversed and colonised the globe, with the periodic rise and fall of the sea level facilitating their spread and evolution into new species, suggests the study by Stephen O’Brien, Warren Johnson and colleagues at the National Cancer Institute at Frederick in Maryland, US.
As well as the domestic cat and roaring cats, other modern cat species include pumas, cheetahs, lynxes, ocelots and wildcats.

The cat family tree has been notoriously difficult to decipher because there are few dated cat fossils and because most of today’s species appeared so recently.
But O’Brien’s team managed to piece together a tree by analysing DNA sequences from the 37 living cat species. They used DNA from the sex chromosomes, X and Y, and from mitochondria – structures in the cell which provide energy and are inherited only via the mother.

They suggest that after modern cats arose in Asia, the eight main lineages diverged during the course of at least 10 migrations across continents. The felines used geographical features such as the Bering land bridge, which once connected Eurasia to North America, and the Panamanian land bridge, connecting North and South America, to spread across the world.

The team also suggests that 60% of the modern species arose in just the last million years.
Journal reference: Science (vol 311, p 73)

Related Articles
How cats' eyes keep the world in focus
http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18925334.800
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Warm Regards for a realitivly worry free week to all........

A New Year Tragedy for my family-Marcie Hufford-my stepbrother's wife

Read on below the photos for this latest post in it's entirety........

I have included some photos below that I captured from the tv news interview that Channel 12 did at Brad's apartment. They had pictures of Marcie,some of Brad's family in happier times, the bar at which Marckie was celebrating the New Year at, a picture of the car in which Marci fell asleep to never wake up again as well as a close up of the "killer exhaust system" and I feel I captured some very poingent moments of Brad in his hour of sorrow as he is holding their daughter Jenna.

(Photos taken with my digital camera on 1-3-2006)

Marcie and Jenna in the background and if my memory serves me correctly, Brad's son Jason, from an earlier marriage....happier days for all. 

Marcie Hufford and her daughter Jenna. 

The bar at which Marcie and her friend were ringing in the New Year. Little did Marcie know that this establishment in Lake Mills would be her final stop on her way to meeting the Lord. May she rest in peace 

The vehicle in which Marcie and her friend were found in Lake Mills on New Year day at approx. 10AM 

The "cause of death" of Marcie Hufford..my stepbrother's wife (The faulty exhaust system) 

A husband's grief and a daughter who lost a mother...Brad and Jenna 

Marcie-My step sister in law who died as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning on New Years Day 2006 

My stepbrother Brad and his daughter Jenna 

My stepbrother Brad-Marcie's husband and their daughter Jenna 

Brad hugging Jenna 

Another Death in the Family-My stepbrother's wife

So the first day of 2006 brings a very sad bit of news.
A very shocking way to start the new year.....

.....It seems my "step sister-in-law" Marcie, who was married to my step brother Brad (who I didn't know very well I am sorry to say) ,died on New Years Day due to "Carbon Minoxide Poisoning" after having fallen asleep in a running vehicle. I talked to my dad on the phone briefly earlier monday afternoon and he had told me he and my stepmother had been in Whitewater with Brad as of sunday afternoon.

When I got home a few hours ago, I turned on the tv and channel 12 news just happened to be running the late edition of the local news and the minute I turned the tv on they were running the story along with a "news-video interview" of my stepbrother talking about the accident and the loss of his wife.


How strange to see one's family members on tv. It was just too spooky. The news story on tv 12 also had photos of Marci throughout her life.

I don't know why exactly the local media decided to push her death into the headlines other than for the fact that it might have seemed out of the ordinary and the authorities werent exactlty sure as to what happened (as this headline from Channel twelve online notes "Apparent" in the header of the news clip......
http://www.themilwaukeechannel.com/news/5796772/detail.html

..... or maybe because it happened on New Years Day....but in any case my thoughts are with my stepbrother and the rest of the family.

I do wish I could have gotten the chance to know Marcie a bit better. But she is now in heaven and I am sure my mother and others that I have lost are comforting her in heaven......

One of the News stories below , telling of the accident ,was taken from the "Milwaukee Journal Online Edition:
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Car's defective exhaust system kills woman

Lake Mills
- A faulty exhaust system leaked carbon monoxide inside a car, killing a woman and injuring a man.
The two were found about 10:15 a.m. Sunday, according to a Lake Mills Police Department news release.

Marcie J. Hufford, 37, of Whitewater was pronounced dead at Fort Atkinson Hospital, police said.

Matthew Wheeler, 26, of Lake Mills was in serious condition at St. Luke's Medical Center in Milwaukee on Monday.

The two had gone to the vehicle together and left it running, police said. They appeared to have suffered from acute carbon monoxide poisoning.
The vehicle's owner told police it had a defective exhaust system, police said.
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