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Grace Paley, Writer and Activist, Dies
they reprint some of the dialog from her stories. a very natural style.
To read Ms. Paley’s fiction is to be awash in the shouts and murmurs of secular Yiddishkeit, with its wild onrushing joy and twilight melancholy. For her, cadence and character went hand in hand: her stories are marked by their minute attention to language, with its tonal rise and fall, hairpin rhetorical reversals and capacity for delicious hyperbolic understatement. Her stories, many of which are written in the first person and seem to start in mid-conversation, beg to be read aloud.
sad irony alert:
More than 50 pit bulls seized from Michael Vick’s property must be claimed by today, or they could be euthanized.
Federal prosecutors filed court documents last month to condemn 53 pit bulls seized in April as part of the investigation into dogfighting on Vick’s property. No one has claimed any of the dogs, which are being held at several unspecified shelters in eastern Virginia.
Federal prosecutors declined to comment Wednesday on the seized dogs. Typically, when confiscated property goes unclaimed, the government asks the court to have the items declared forfeited. In this case, U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson will make the final decision on the dogs’ fate.
“There’s no dispute over who owns the dogs,” said Daphna Nachminovitch, a spokeswoman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. “Obviously this is not going to be a process where someone steps forward and says, ‘This is my dog, can I have her back, please?’ ”
Although Hudson, who also is handling Vick’s criminal case, will determine what becomes of the pit bulls, Nachminovitch said it’s likely that they will be euthanized because they’re not adoptable as pets.
“These dogs are a ticking time bomb,” she said. “Rehabilitating fighting dogs is not in the cards. It’s widely accepted that euthanasia is the most humane thing for them.”
Monoscope.com. Maybe up Bill's alley?
mobile home anyone?
(from erin)
rip joybubbles
"Aerogel, one of the world’s lightest solids, can withstand a direct blast of 1kg of dynamite and protect against heat from a blowtorch at more than 1,300C."
Wikiscanner: "List anonymous wikipedia edits from interesting organizations."
rip da scooter
Today is the 8th anniversary of the registering of digitalmediatree.com.
The other day I was pondering how scientists tattoo themselves with their science.
canadian geese on the move out in bucks co.
tornados in bkln (kensington area / rooftops torn off brownstones and trees down ) / flooding / nyc commute chaos this am
Help keep real journalism ALIVE if you can, but everyone should know about Greg Palast
"gnarliest slam ive ever seen" / walks away
via addman
Consider: A new bird report from the National Audubon Society shows that populations of some of America's most “familiar and beloved birds” have taken a precipitous fall over the past four decades, with some down as much as 80 percent. On the list are northern bobwhites, red-headed woodpeckers, northern pintail ducks and Eastern meadowlarks, among many other birds that once boasted healthy populations.the report / hat tip to todays news hour (no web presence)
The dramatic declines are caused by the loss of grasslands, healthy forests and wetlands and other critical habitats from multiple environmental threats: urban sprawl, energy development and the spread of industrialized agriculture, according to the report.
“Direct habitat loss continues to be a leading cause for concern,” said Audubon Bird Conservation Director and analysis author, Dr. Greg Butcher. “But now we're seeing the added impact of large-scale environmental problems and policies.”
Grassland bird species have been declining for years. That's not a big surprise, nor should it be to the Audubon Society or any other conservation group. Still, for those who love to see birds at their bird feeders, or for those who are active in the fine art of spying birds in the field, the American landscape has seen better days.
Dr. Butcher says that global warming “is damaging some key habitats and speeding the spread of invasive species” that many scientists believe could spur further bird declines. Mounting demand for corn-based fuels is expected to result in increased use of marginal farmland that currently serves as important habitat.
On the latter point, demand for ethanol across the Great Plains (and beyond) is already causing land-use shifts into environmentally sensitive areas, a disturbing trend that most conservation officials say will continue for the foreseeable future. With corn at roughly $4 a bushel, farmers are cashing in, and it is tough to blame them, for they're simply heeding national policy set by President Bush and lawmakers from both major political parties.
The man who bought Jerry Garcia's house 10 years ago is selling everything, including the kitchen sink.
Its Really not easy being green
BH4J T-SHIRTS
if for no other reason than freedom of speach
OMG
via jz
skinny needs new computer.....all in favor of the 2.16Ghz over the 2.0 say BUY......and skinny is mostly a Sony guy and his office is non apple......all in favor say STILL BUY.....thanks
say cheese