The Marion County copperheads, I mean.
For the second summer in a row, Miller’s remote mountaintop home in Marion County has become a gathering place for copperhead snakes. He has counted roughly 40 copperheads since the first few appeared July 13, almost a year to the day of the snakes’ arrival last summer.
Their modus operandi is the same, too. The snakes mass beneath the same cedar tree as last year. They arrive suddenly about 8 p. m., stay for an hour or so, and then disappear.
And just like last year, they're all males. Weird. But there's a new clue as to the reason for their behavior.
Temperature loggers placed on Miller’s property this summer by an ASU graduate student are producing interesting readings.
“There is a difference, a major difference, between certain areas of the habitat as far as temperature goes. So there may be a temperature cue taking place here, where the snakes are following a temperature gradient of some sort,” [Professor] Trauth said.
“But we still don’t know,” he added, declining to be more specific about the various readings.
Ya know, many cultures believe snakes are messengers from the underworld....which might account for the temperature differential. Maybe that cedar is just another stop on the Copperhead Express line from hell.
Hey, makes about as much sense as some of the global warming theories I've seen lately.
Jonah Goldberg had asked for nominations for the ugliest state, and strangely enough, Arkansas seemed to be popular. I guess I could see that if you were talking about the Delta, but otherwise ARE YOU PEOPLE SMOKING CRACK?
Anyway, one e-mailer had a good point:
My guess is that people are still taking their hostility toward Bill and Hillary out on those of use who still call Arkansas home. You notice, don't you, that Bill and Hillary don't actually live here? The State of Arkansas sighed a big, collective, sigh of relief when they left. We couldn't believe how dumb the rest of the country was to want them in the White House. And they call us hicks?
We got shed of them first chance we got....and more or less permanently.
So who's the dumb hick?
President Bush signed the Adam Walsh bill into law today.
Child advocates have called the bill the most sweeping sex offender legislation to target pedophiles in years. It would:
—Establish a comprehensive federal DNA database of material collected from convicted molesters, and procedures for the routine DNA collection and comparison to the database when someone has been convicted of such an offense.
—Provide federal funding for states to track pedophiles using global positioning devices.
—Allow victims of child abuse to sue their molesters.
The law imposes a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years for raping a child; a mandatory 10-year penalty for sex trafficking offenses involving children and for coercing child prostitution; and increases minimum sentences for molesters who travel between states.
......
The new law dramatically increases penalties for anyone who downloads child pornography off the Internet, raising the civil penalties from $50,000 to $150,000. It will also change existing law to allow victims ages 18 or older to recover damages from those who downloaded images of them taken while they were children.
Don't faint, but this is one time I agree with John Kerry.
"It's an absolute outrage that the penalty for downloading songs illegally off the Internet was three times the penalty for downloading disgusting images of children," Kerry said. "We need to do everything we can to end the disgrace of child pornography. This is a start."
If they'd included an automatic death penalty for anyone convicted of killing a child in those circumstances, it would've been a much better start.
My eyes! OMG it burns!
Warning: I would rather pluck out both eyes with a cocktail fork than look at that again.
I'm gonna have nightmares.
A software consultant can't download updates for his client. Trying to find a work-around, he FTP's into a server and downloads files so he can locate the updates. (More details here, via Instapundit) Logical, yes?
One little oopsie. One of the (unencrypted) files contained patient demographic information from a major hospital.
So, in light of the multiple HIPAA violations, etc., what's the software company's response?
InstantDx attorney Robert Hudock, an e-health specialist at the Washington, D.C., firm Epstein Becker & Green, says two separate weaknesses conspired to create a security hole for a brief period of time, and that no malicious activity resulted. He emphasizes that Perry couldn't have accessed the data if he hadn't gone poking around in Medisoft.
"Randall is the only player in the deck here," says Hudock. "He was entrusted with a secured copy of the application that had been appropriately licensed and installed, and he was working ... (as) a consultant for this particular physician.
"This vulnerability wouldn't have happened if the consultant to the physician had stuck to his responsibilities as a business associate of the physician," says Hudock.
Yeah, that's right. Someone is paying him a presumably large salary to be totally f*cking clueless about technology & compliance.
But take heart, my geeky friends. There's at least one other attorney besides me who understands both.
Mark Rasch, vice president of Solutionary and a former Justice Department cybercrime lawyer, says the company's response smacks of killing the messenger.
"One of the biggest problems you have is people inadvertently stumble upon security vulnerabilities, and frequently it's because they're trying to get their job done," says Rasch. "And what we do now is say, 'He did something wrong. He shouldn't have been there. Let's go after him.' How does that encourage people to report vulnerabilities and get them fixed? What they should do is give him a $10,000 finder's fee."
Correct.
But unfortunately, until the Justice Department actually prosecutes some of the 20,000+ HIPAA complaints they've received, that's not going to happen.
Some of the protestors seen during Cheney's visit yesterday were apparently imports.
Cheney`s visit prompted this group, called the "World Can`t Wait: Drive Out the Bush Regime," to come to town with their message. They`re driving cross country this summer in an RV to encourage others to drive Bush and Cheney out of office. Local protesters including members of the OMNI Center were also on hand, expressing disapproval for Cheney.
We have enough of our own, we don't need any more loonies thanks. Even if these were....special.
"The World Can`t Wait! Drive out the Bush Regime... The World Can`t Wait! Drive out the Bush Regime," chanted protestors.
Dozens of activists lined the streets, holding signs and banners calling Cheney a fascist and calling for an end to the "Bush regime," and the things they believe the so-called "regime" represents.
"The war, torture, women`s right to choose, the fact that science is being repressed and attacked, the attack on lesbian and gays -- basically the intolerance that Bush and his regime are promoting in this country," says Jamilah Hoffman, an organizer with group "The World Can`t Wait."
Well sure. That's what I've spent the entire morning doing--attacking gay & lesbian scientists. Or as some might call it, 'watering the lawn'. You should've seen 'em run when I turned on the sprinkler too. The robins were pretty happy about it, but we all know robins are secret fascists that enjoy torturing worms daily.
Anyway. They have a website, which includes an account of their time in "lily-white" Fayetteville.
On behalf of all us non-white people here, I am offended by that characterization. But perhaps they didn't notice any Hispanics, Marshall Islanders, Pakistanis, Indians, Native Americans, Chinese, Japanese, Middle Easterners etc. during their trips around town. Kinda hard to miss though.
Eyes, like minds, work best when open.
Soylent green is people, man.
How does one become 'carbon neutral' anyway?
--Big traffic backup on I-540 south before lunch. Really, I was only a few minutes late for my dr.'s appt. instead of arriving early as I'd planned. But gee, those 20 minutes passed pretty quickly as I was parked near the Pleasant Grove on-ramp.....seeing how I was continually entertained by all the trucks skidding off into the median and/or the shoulder because their drivers weren't paying attention. And my doctor wondered why my blood pressure was a little high.
--Speaking of doctors, I found out this morning I'm so hot I have to take medication. If the medication doesn't work, I'll get to have surgery. Again. Because really can you have too many surgeries in one year? At least this one isn't so major. I just won't be able to talk for a few days, which is no great loss. We'll know more in October.
--I'm working on a site redesign, which got interrupted this morning. Still in progress, though it may take a few days. I apologize for any inconvenience to all 5 of my regular readers.
But I'm bored and still can't do much of anything except sit.
A dangerous combination.
OMG I hope that's thunder I hear and not our air conditioner exploding under the strain. It hasn't shut off all afternoon, even though the thermostat's set on 78.
At least we don't live in St. Louis.
You gotta give our Rev. Gov. credit for one thing: keeping his name in the papers.
The state Parole Board on July 3 approved an application for clemency submitted on behalf of Richards, guitarist for the Rolling Stones, by Gov. Mike Huckabee. Huckabee has until 30 days from Tuesday to sign it, clearing Richards' record.
Whew. Glad he's taking care of it...cuz I know we've all had many sleepless nights worrying about Keith Richards' 31 yr. old traffic ticket.
Maybe Mr. Richards will invite our Rev. Gov. to play bass with him sometime, just to show his undying gratitude.
Fran Curtis, a Stones publicist, said she knew nothing about the application for clemency. Messages left for Richards' manager, Jane Rose, weren't returned.
Or maybe not.
Here's one hotel chain I'll not be staying in anymore.
Hotel chain Marriott International Inc. will announce on Wednesday that it is banning smoking in all rooms of its 2,300-plus hotels in the United States and Canada, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site on Wednesday.
Don't want my business? Ok fine, I'll take it elsewhere.
Speaking of which, the stupid statewide smoking ban goes into effect Friday. There's a drive to show your support for the ban by dining out Friday night.
I think we'll be staying home instead. I encourage you to do the same.
Israel's war against Hezbollah et al seems to be this week's hot topic. I confess I haven't been following it all that closely, primarily because MSM's coverage is so....ridiculous. Here's a typical example:
Israel struck a Lebanese army base outside Beirut and flattened a house near the border, killing at least 16 people in a new wave of bombings, while Hezbollah fired more rockets at northern Israel.
And those Hezbollah rockets did what? Explode harmlessly in mid-air?
And the typical tv coverage goes something like "Israel shelled a Hezbollah stronghold, killing 3 'residents' and startling a kitten held by little Ahmed in a nearby house, causing it to scratch his little defenseless hand. It almost bled! Oh, and earlier Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel, killing 8. But think of all the poor Lebanese kittens, terrified by the indiscriminate, uh precision-targeted shells!"
Me, I'm not so sorry for all those kittys. You lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas.
The local news had its obligatory interview with an Israeli born Arkansas resident. He was a pretty interesting gentleman, actually. He asked exactly how could you get along with someone who only wanted to kill you? Of course, you can't. And he brought up an interesting comparison:
What if Mexico suddenly started bombing say, San Diego? How would we respond?
Exactly.
Though I think a more interesting question would be what if La Raza, in an attempt to regain their 'homeland', started bombing trees in Beserkley? Can cognitive dissonance really make heads explode?
Now that would be fun to watch.
100 degrees in the shade, according to our thermometer. But not quite as hot as it was a little over a quarter century ago today....when my daughter was born.
Pregnant plus triple digit temps is no fun....especially when you've no air conditioning.
Trust me.
I once had to respond to a complaint which alleged, among other things, intentional infliction of emotional distress caused by an alleged faulty installation of a heating/air conditioning system.
Up until now, that was the (unintentionally) funniest complaint I'd ever read.
One of the local tv stations is taking name suggestions for the upcoming Springdale minor league team. I think the best so far is "Arkansas Diamonds".....a reference to both a baseball diamond and our diamond mine in southern Arkansas.
My first thought, the "Chickendale Cluckers", just doesn't have the same ring to it.
Springdale's getting its baseball stadium.
By 17 votes, Springdale voters approved selling bonds to build a minor league baseball stadium Tuesday.
The measure, backed by a Chamber of Commerce campaign called "A Grand Slam for Springdale," squeaked by while additional propositions for bonds to finance a road program passed easily,
No official word on which team they'll be getting, but word is that it will be the Wichita Wranglers. Which would make sense given they're a farm team for the Royals.....owned by that one guy.
Whatever. I'm just looking forward to seeing some good games again. Major League lost me when they pulled that strike B.S. and cancelled the World Series. And since my kids are grown, I don't get to watch Little League anymore either. Though I'm starting to teach WildChild the basics. When he can remember to swing level and keep his eye on the ball, he hits a mean line drive. And he's already learned the most important part of playing:
'Hey batter batter batter batter....SWING!'
Or maybe 'like flies to a cow patty' might be a more apt description.
I can't imagine why anyone thinks this is necessary just for our little ol' governor's race. What is this, I'll see your Al & Hill and raise you a Zell?
Sheesh.
And why Hillary? Sure, she still plays well down in the Delta, but the Delta's always been heavily Democratic anyway. So why bother? And regardless of all the brown-nosing from the university folks, she's otherwise like the kiss of death in NW Arkansas. You know, up here where all the big money is these days.
Must be some damn Yankee furriner running Beebe's campaign.
We've introduced WildChild to the joys of X-Box. So far his favorite game has been Final Fight....primarily I suspect because it's one of the few games he can actually play. Sorta. It's hilarious because WildChild talks to the game just like it could hear him. And he sounds like some badly dubbed dialogue from a Japanese kung-fu movie.
"Oh, you want a piece of me? I will give you a piece of me."
And Mike made the mistake of telling him to punch more because they were getting their butts kicked. Then it was "Pa, why do those bad guys want to kick our butts? Pa, why are we kicking the bad guys' butts? HaHa! Come over here bad guy and I will kick your butt! Ma, come watch me kick the bad guy's butt!"
*ahem* Pa will have to be more careful with his choice of phrases I think.
Alas, WildChild hasn't quite grasped the concept of not hitting your partner, which in this game makes the partner die. And since his primary battle plan is to punch wildly in every direction, it can be frustrating to try to play the game with him. You die. A lot. Through no fault of your own.
Anyway, he & I finally beat the game yesterday afternoon and rescued 'his girl'. He was suitable impressed, or so I thought until I was trying to get him to play Street Fighter II with me.
"What's that game?"
"We fight each other," I said.
"Nah," he said. "That's not enough challenge for me."
Funny, that's kinda what I was thinking about him.
Here's the secret to getting butts in the theater seats:
Movies that are interesting/entertaining with actors who can actually, you know, act.
What a concept.
of Al's new global warming flick. A small taste:
Until you force Laurie David, Arianna and her pals out of their luxury jets, until you drive cars when only absolutely necessary, until you have solar panels fueling your houses' addiction that also fuels your media and dietary addictions, you will be looked upon as the transparent hypocrites that you are.
And there's more. Go read.
Next week may be a good week to stay at the house.
Democrats, including U. S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N. Y., will be gathering here in Benton County next weekend for the 2006 Arkansas Federation of Democratic Women State Convention.
The convention begins July 14 and continues July 15.
Tickets are still available to hear Clinton, the keynote speaker for the convention. She will speak on July 15, AFDW President Renee Bullock announced Friday.
Tickets are a mere $100 each for non-members. There's still some left for sale....imagine that.
Someone correct me, but isn't this the first visit for Hillary since she high-tailed it out of here when Bill got the presidency?
I'm not sure why we're being blessed with visits in the same week from 2 of the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Maybe they're after those mythical disenchanted Wal-Mart voters, I dunno.
And don't care as long as they stay the hell out of my yard.
Via Matt and Don, I found this exciting news:
Al Gore is coming to lecture Wal-Mart execs next week.
Be still my heart. I think I shall swoon.
Or barf. Or ROTFLMAO.
Something like that.
The Divinity project finally got approval from the Fayetteville city council. What's the Divinity project?
The Divinity Hotel & Condos is a mixed-use building on Dickson Street, between Church and Block avenues.
....
The project was originally designed as a 225-foot-tall building with 15 stories. Designs gradually shrunk the project to 135 feet tall and nine stories in response to comments from commissioners and residents that the project was too tall and incompatible with the area.
The project was also downsized by moving parking from the building to a recently acquired plot of land immediately southwest of the proposed site.
Why all the fuss? Good question.
"No amount of stepping back floors next to the street will ever make this building compatible," said resident Cyrus Young. "You will be deciding the fate of Fayetteville with this project."
Opponents Wednesday unveiled a model of Dickson Street, made of Legos, to illustrate the height of the Divinity project and surrounding buildings.
"I'm limited by Legos, but it's easy to see that this is obscene, out of balance," said Joanne Kwamme, a resident. "It won't just change the neighborhood, it will destroy it."
Balderdash.
It couldn't be more unattractive than the sprawling 60's red brick school style building that is the Walton Arts Center....not to mention the hideous eyesore that is the Three Sisters building. Seriously, could this be any worse? Here's a current photo of the location. (I can't find any links to the final design, but I'll update when & if I do.)
I fail to understand why a multi-story parking deck is ok, a 6 story condo/retail building is ok, and the 7 story Legacy building & the 9 story 'Lofts at Underwood Plaza' are ok but a 9 story hotel is not in keeping with the 'character' of Dickson Street. Could it be that a swank hotel on Dickson would affect the market for million dollar condos? Nah, that can't be it.
Not everyone is so clueless, however.
"We don't want Fayetteville's slogan to say eclectic, funky, and only 30 minutes to your hotel in Bentonville," Bowman said.
Nope. Once the new sports stadiums are built in B-ville & Springdale, Fayetteville will have a new slogan.
"As exciting as Springdale & Bentonville, but now with more taxes!"
I'll be investing in a new wardrobe & makeup whenever I'm able to go back to work, but this ain't it.
Postively ghastly.
The armorial theme might have suggested that Galliano himself - as is his wont - appear in fitting costume, such as a suit of armour. but no, the couturier surprised us all by taking his bow dressed as an astronaut. Why? because he's from another planet. We should have guessed.
Umm, no. It's because HE'S A FREAK from another planet.
Know what this means, doncha?
The CIA has closed a unit that for a decade had the mission of hunting Usama bin Laden and his top lieutenants, The New York Times reported in its Tuesday edition.
.....
Intelligence officials said the realignment reflects a view that Al Qaeda is no longer as hierarchical as it once was, as well as a growing concern about Al Qaeda-inspired groups that have begun carrying out attacks independent of bin Laden and his top deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri.
First his latest tapes get released to a collective world-wide yawn, now he's not even worth hunting.
Like the Boss said, "well time slips away and leaves you with nothing mister but boring stories of glory days".
Osama's turned into the Rodney Dangerfield of terrorists.
In honor of this worthy cause, we had smoked ribs AND steak for dinner last night, as well as corn on the cob and potatoes. And homemade ice cream for dessert. Cuz I'll tell you, there's nothing like a hunger strike to make me say, Sweet, more for me!
I mean seriously. Is there any remote resemblance between him and her?
Silly cow.
