Kill a Middle East head of state, win prizes!: "Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon and Byron Dorgan of North Dakota don't think so. 'Spending taxpayer dollars to create terrorism betting parlors is as wasteful as it is repugnant,' they announced at a press conference yesterday. Dorgan called it 'the most Byzantine thing I have ever seen proposed by a federal agency.'' Aiding the Terror Game, we learn, is the research unit of the right-wing Economist magazine - which has never knowingly undersold a market - and Net Exchange, which boasts that its Pentagon pork is 'leveraged for the next generation of Deal Optimization Solutions.' "

Wait a minute -- didn't we just invade Byzantium? Oh, no, that's Constantinople, maybe we missed the mark...

Computer Voting Is Open to Easy Fraud, Experts Say: "The list of flaws in the Diebold software is long, according to the paper, which is online at avirubin.com/vote.pdf. Among other things, the researchers said, ballots could be altered by anyone with access to a machine, so that a voter might think he is casting a ballot for one candidate while the vote is recorded for an opponent."

This time, without spin or an axe to grind -- NYT goes out of their way to give benefit of the doubt. Read the paper

Metro libraries weigh fed cash or Web filters - 07/18/03: "'Let's let the federal money go,' Pat Thomas, director of the Plymouth District Library, firmly told board members Tuesday. Plymouth receives $4,200 annually in Internet money from federal sources, a modest amount given the total library budget of $3.4 million. "

Battle-Scarred Author Takes On Web Pirates"Because it's gotten to the powerful Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the suit could amount to more than the latest spat involving a longtime Hollywood gadfly. Major software firms filed a brief backing Mr. Ellison, and four of the five big record labels -- all except AOL Time Warner's Warner Music Group -- together sent a pair of attorneys to help the author's lawyer argue his appeal. A group of Internet and technology companies, along with AT&T Corp., weighed in on the other side."

Congressman pocketed $18,000 for RIAA 'lobbying trip': "Boycott-RIAA and the Webcaster Alliance have produced an electronic form and urge music lovers to fax their Congressional representative so that an investigation can begin. You can find it here.

Getting Ryan's number: ""I answer: 'Cash, small unmarked bills only in a paper bag, how can I help you?'" Ross says. 'As a general rule, it results in immediate hang-ups.'"

They don't say whether he's caught anyone, or taken any money...

Man's signature offends DMV: "Weinstein said a window clerk told him to 'stop fooling around and sign it right.' When he insisted that what he wrote was his valid, legal signature, Weinstein said the clerk accused him of being a troublemaker and threw him out. "

Maybe he should try wearing a veil...

Prayer ‘offensive’ against court: "Religious broadcaster Pat Robertson urged his nationwide audience Monday to pray for God to remove three justices from the Supreme Court so they could be replaced by conservatives."

Robertson said in a letter on the CBN Web site that the ruling “has opened the door to homosexual marriage, bigamy, legalized prostitution and even incest.”

As they should have.

Sheriff's deputy accused of sex shakedown at forest preserve: "Baffield allegedly jotted down their names, addresses and phone numbers in a notebook and wrote 'homo'' next to the information. He told them he would be contacting them and let them go, prosecutors said."

Police also found less than 30 grams of marijuana in his DEA vehicle, but Baffield claimed it was evidence acquired six to eight months earlier that he had forgotten about.

Dean gets help from D.C. insiders: "One lesson of the 2002 elections was that Democratic candidates who voted with Bush on tax cuts and the Iraq war lost anyway. "

Marriage may tame genius: "Creative genius and crime express themselves early in men but both are turned off almost like a tap if a man gets married and has children, a study says. "

Dare I say, "I Don't"? No, I didn't think so...

Jerry Springer files for U.S. Senate race: "The infomercial, paid for by Springer, is part biography and part fund-raiser. It explains how Springer’s parents fled Nazi Germany for England, then moved to the United States just before Springer’s fifth birthday. The ad seeks small donations and offers T-shirts, bumper stickers and CDs of Springer singing “rockabilly” music."

There's a Jesse Ventura joke in here somewhere -- left to the reader as an exercise.

Iraq: the view from the ground: "With Microsoft often considered to be in bed with the US government and military, Yahoo rather than Hotmail it seems is the email system of choice for freed citizens. "

Net Radio Group Threatens to Sue RIAA: "Small Internet radio stations, angered over what they say is the recording industry's effort to wield royalty rates as a weapon to drive them out of business, say they are preparing to file an antitrust suit against the Recording Industry Association of America."

At issue is which group speaks for small commercial webcasters. Also, whether minor players are entitled to equal access and treatment, despite their preference for more independent fare.

Charlie's Angels Full Throttle Greens/Blues Stripes Girls Briefs: "Girls briefs with vertical stripes in various shades of green and blue. Front of briefs features a white cartoon silhouette of the Angels and the word 'Superstar'. Back of briefs feature the Charlie's Angels logo."

Pretty much screams out "chick flick," doesn't it?

Cannot find Weapons of Mass Destruction: "The weapons you are looking for are currently unavailable. The country might be experiencing technical difficulties, or you may need to adjust your weapons inspectors mandate."

This is not your father's 404 error...

Scoop: Sludge Report #154 – Bigger Than Watergate!: "Bigger Than Watergate! - How To Rig An Election In The United States - Fantasy vs Reality - How We Discovered The Backdoor - Evidence Of Motive - Evidence Of Opportunity - Evidence Of Method - Evidence Of Prior Conduct - Consistent Unexplained Circumstantial Evidence"

More of the same material, but with a large dose of political speculation.

Scoop: Inside A U.S. Election Vote Counting Program: "
Part 1 - CAN THE VOTES BE CHANGED?
Part 2 - CAN THE PASSWORD BE BYPASSED?
Part 3 – CAN THE AUDIT TRAIL BE ALTERED?"

Would you believe the answer to all parts is YES?

Real men don�t take gay style advice?: "In �Queer Eye,� gay and straight men forge a new kind of brotherhood, one cemented by properly applied hair gel."

Dissertation Could Be Security Threat (TechNews.com): "For academics, there always has been the imperative to publish or perish. In Gorman's case, there's a new concern: publish and perish. "

The Lure of Data: Is It Addictive?: "'It's like a dopamine squirt to be connected,' said Dr. Ratey, who compares the sensations created by constantly being wired to those of narcotics — a hit of pleasure, stimulation and escape. 'It takes the same pathway as our drugs of abuse and pleasure.' "

::: NaDa :::: "NaDa™ will make you feel good. It is as light and as deep as a simple thought."

Beer For The Homeless: "There are plenty of organizations that will provide food, clothing, education, even shelter to the homeless. But every one of them refuses to treat their 'clients' as mature adults and the vast majority of them even have rules that forbid the legal consumption of alcohol. "