drat fink

pocket lining

"Afghanistan hopes to strike a deal later this month to build a $2bn pipeline through the country to take gas from energy-rich Turkmenistan to Pakistan and India."

"The World Bank, the United Nations (news - web sites) Development Program and the Asian Development Bank believe $10.2 billion is needed for the reconstruction of Afghanistan over five years, of which $4.9 billion will be needed within the next 30 months."

crimes and demeanors

"CANNES, France (Reuters) - Woody Allen rejected on Wednesday a call by American Jews to boycott France's Cannes film festival, saying that was the kind of protest the Nazis used before the Second World War."

territorial pissings

the nirvana wars

sterling sliver

"Star Wars" is like science fiction, but freed of the future. And yet it is America, all over: flaming, tumbling aircraft; huge enterprises collapsing before they're built; earnest, rich young princesses pretending to be democrats; a corrupt and inept Senate. As entertainment, it's full-speed sideways into a fun-house mirror, as Mr. Lucas's youthful aspiration is methodically replaced by an endless, brilliant, consumerized torrent of guns, gowns, clones and plastic figurines."

marketable commodity

fits of print

looks like the nytimes did away with their large super annoying ads within the text of their articles which appeared after the first paragraph so they were impossible to ignore. recently, i heard that the online venture was already turning a profit so it was just another case of whoring for dollars. meanwhile, i had started to read the articles in the printer friendly version which was ad free but apparently if you do that enough the times puts ads on that page too. ditto, for their "text only" version.

its almost enough to make me wish i didnt despise andrew sullivan.

keyed up

"The FBI set up a bogus computer security company named "Invita" in downtown Seattle and let it be known they needed hackers as consultants on computer security. In an elaborate scheme, FBI agents posing as Invita employees made phone and e-mail contact with Gorshkov and Ivanov, and offered them consulting work as Internet security experts."

"While demonstrating their hacker skills, the Russians also took time out to use an Internet connection to tap into their server in Russia. What they didn't realize was that the keystroke logging program was copying everything. FBI agents used those passwords to tap into the Russian server and copy what was there."

dope finds

antiquated but still relevant: The Consumers Union Report - Licit and Illicit Drugs from the DRCNet Online Library of Drug Policy

color bind

"At George Washington Carver Elementary School, poll workers asserted that Newark police officers were standing near the entryway of the polling site, patting voters on the shoulders and telling them to "do the right thing." Darnell White, 32, a volunteer for Mr. Booker's campaign said the police threatened to arrest him when he complained."

standard oil

nothing terribly new in this screed about us oil imperialism but an illuminating read nonetheless especially in light of the failed venezuelan coup and our recent rapprochement with russia and todays un sanctions reversal for iraq. and it would seem the last two items are related as one of the prime beneficiaries of the sanctions overhaul is russia which according to the article had lost $700 million in business as a result of the sanctions.