THE COMPANIES WE KEEP

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GOOD BUSINESS, BAD BUSINESS, FUNNY BUSINESS...

THERE ARE WAYS OF DOING THINGS IN THIS COUNTRY, BUDDY-BOY!

Capitalists Don't Have To Be Pigs. But They Are, With Rare Exceptions:

What is it about money-grubbing *ssh*les that just makes them such, you know, money grubbing-*ssh-les? Why is success in American business now defined by how many people you screw and how few you can actually serve? Well, there are a few exceptions. Let's make them the rule, instead, hm?


AFP
"Craigslist revenue to hit 100 mln dollars: media group"
Like Craigie, here.

' "Craigslist is a stunning business success story, especially since it's run more like a community service than a for-profit business," AIM founder Peter Zollman said Wednesday in a posting at the firm's website. "The company continues to grow significantly, while many classified advertising publishers are reporting year-over-year drops of 50 percent or more in certain categories," Zollman wrote. Craigslist websites localized to communities around the world act, in part, as online notice boards where people can post messages on a range of topics including apartment rentals, items for sales and jobs. Craigslist only charges fees for "a tiny percentage" of its ads, according to media consultancy group AIM, which has been estimating the Internet company's annual revenue since 2003. '

YAHOO NEWS
"'Guerrilla drive-ins' turn nostalgia on its head"
We can haz making out?

' Think the only way to see a big-screen movie is while slurping a 64-oz. soft drink, eating a $5 candy bar and shushing the wannabe film critic behind you? That's not the case anymore, thanks to people like John Young, creator of the West Chester Guerilla Drive-In and part of a loosely knit network of celluloid renegades resurrecting the drive-in for a new age. "Nowadays, you push a button and a movie appears," he said. "There's fun in the inconvenience of having to get off the couch and go somewhere you might not be familiar with, maybe getting rained on, maybe being cold. It makes it an adventure." For the past four years or so, the 38-year-old Web developer has been showing films — real, honest-to-goodness 16mm film — from a 1970s school projector mounted on the sidecar of his 1977 BMW motorcycle.Guerrilla drive-ins or "MobMovs" — shorthand for mobile movies — are popping up around the country in a variety of configurations. Unlike Young's old-school use of real film, guerrilla drive-ins typically eschew the analog in favor of DVDs and LCD projectors. "A lot of independent filmmakers are enabled by modern technology (to make their own movies), but the area where they're not enabled is distribution," he said. "There's no channel for them to get out there, no audience interaction or feedback. We can help support that." '

YAHOO NEWS
"2 missing, 41 hurt in NC Slim Jim plant collapse"
The smell of burning flesh was everywhere. And whatever is in Slim Jims, too.

' Some of the more than 300 workers on duty described chaos after the explosion. Authorities could not say exactly where in the plant the blast happened or what caused it.
"I was getting ready to pick up a piece of meat off the line and I felt it — the percussion. And you could feel it in my chest and my ears popped," said worker Chris Woods. "One of the guys I was working with got blown back — his hat flew backwards." Janelle Lynch, who has worked at the plant for eight years, said she saw flames and ran. She planned to leave through the cutting department, but the roof started to collapse, so she went in the other direction and escaped through a warehouse. "I saw a fire and things just started exploding," she said. ConAgra spokesman Dave Jackson said someone called the plant over the weekend and threatened to start a fire. He said company officials don't believe the threat was connected to the explosion, but Garner Police Sgt. Joe Binns would not say whether police think there is a link. "I don't want to go in that direction right now," Binns said. "We're focused on the rescue, not the investigation." '

YAHOO TECH
"Tech cos enlist Democrat to blast Obama tax plan "
Revolving doors in the digital age.

' A group of technology heavyweights, including chiefs of IBM (IBM.N) and Motorola Inc (MOT.N) enlisted a former Clinton administration economist to beat back President Barack Obama's plan to boost some taxes on overseas profits. The Technology CEO Council recruited Robert J. Shapiro, a former top Commerce Department official, who wrote a report released on Monday arguing that significant jobs losses could occur under Obama's plan. Last month, Obama introduced a proposal to raise $210 billion over a decade in part by tightening tax rules on income earned abroad. The administration says current policy spurs job creation overseas, while U.S.-based multinational companies say precisely the opposite is true. Shapiro acknowledged his job loss estimates don't correspond to Obama's proposal, because the report examines elimination of tax deferral of foreign income, while Obama's plan is a modified version of that. A respected economist who reviewed the report, however, questioned the underlying data assumptions cited. "Their numbers are just way out there," said Rosanne Altshuler, an economist at the Brookings-Urban Institute's Tax Policy Institute. For example, the Shapiro report estimates that repeal of deferral would have cut earnings at foreign subsidiaries of U.S. multinationals by $57.2 billion in 2004. But the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation estimates that the government has raised a fraction of that on annual basis from the policy, making that estimate seem inflated. Current law allows companies to defer income tax until they bring the income back into the United States, for example, in the form of dividends. Companies can take deductions on expenses linked to income earned abroad immediately though. Obama wants to require companies to delay deductions until the foreign income is claimed. The top U.S. corporate tax rate of 35 percent is among the highest in the world, though Obama officials say that with deductions and loopholes it is effectively much lower, at about 20 percent. "The reality now is that companies pay very little in U.S. taxes," the senior Obama administration official said. '

ZD NET
"China demands new PCs carry spyware"
C-C-C-Courage. NOT!!!

' Starting July 1, computers sold in China must include government-provided spyware that blocks pornography and political dissent from Chinese citizens’ view, The New York Times reports, following up a Wall Street Journal report. Called “Green Dam” — green being a foil to the yellow smut of pornography — the software is designed to filter out sexually explicit images and words, according to the company that designed it. Computer experts, however, warn that once installed, the software could be directed to block all manner of content or allow the government to monitor Internet use and collect personal information. PC makers are said to be irritated with the new rules but presumably not enough to buck the government. The major irritation seems to be that July 1 isn’t enough time to add the software to massive production lines. '

NY TIMES
"Justices Tell Judges Not to Rule on Major Backers"
Digging for coal is a dirty business. And so is the Law, apparently.

' Elected judges must disqualify themselves from cases involving people who spent exceptionally large sums to put them on the bench, the Supreme Court ruled on Monday in a 5-to-4 decision. The decision, the first to say the Constitution’s due process clause has a role to play in policing the role of money in judicial elections, ordered the chief justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court to recuse himself from a $50 million case against a coal company whose chief executive had spent $3 million to elect him. In the West Virginia case, Justice Kennedy wrote, there was “a serious, objective risk of actual bias.” Chief Justice Brent D. Benjamin, the beneficiary of the coal executive’s spending, twice joined the majority in 3-to-2 decisions throwing out the $50 million jury verdict against the company, Massey Energy. '

REUTERS
"Landmark tobacco regulation bill goes to Obama"
Just blowin' smoke,here?

' Under the plan, the FDA for the first time will monitor and inspect tobacco companies. Cigarette makers must pay hundreds of millions of dollars in fees, register with the agency, and provide a list of all the products they make. The measure also calls for larger warnings on cigarette packages, restricts vending machine sales, bans most flavored products and further curbs print advertisements targeting children. The FDA also will have final say over new products and marketing claims such as "light" and "low tar." Health advocates backed the plan, saying it would reduce smoking, prevent disease and lower soaring healthcare costs. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, whose helped lead the effort, said FDA oversight will rein in an industry known for aggressive marketing efforts. Some experts have said the bill essentially seals Philip Morris' position as market leader. Reynolds American Inc's R.J. Reynolds Tobacco unit and Lorillard Inc's Lorillard Tobacco Co. have spoken out against the plan. "It's going to make it almost impossible for any new product to enter the market," said Dr. Michael Siegel, a professor at Boston University's School of Public Health. Critics like Siegel said the bill did not go far enough. Lawmakers could have banned nicotine as well as popular mint-flavored menthol cigarettes, raised the legal age to buy tobacco products from 18 to 21 and restricted sales to certain stores, much like alcohol, Siegel said. '

CNET
"Microsoft hopes charity push will spur IE downloads"
It's AMAZING the chump change amounts of money that multibillionaire Bill Gates & Co actually donate to charity, and all the great free press they get as a result. Sickening. Just like their CRAP software.

' Although Microsoft is pulling Internet Explorer 8 out of Windows 7 in Europe, the software maker is also busy in the U.S. trying to get folks to download its latest browser. One piece of the effort is a charity push in which Microsoft will donate meals to a food bank for each person that downloads IE 8 via a special "Browser for the Better" Web site. Technically, the company is donating $1.15 per completed download, up to a maximum of $1 million. The software maker has seen its browser share--which once topped 90 percent--continue to decline, with Mozilla's Firefox having gained considerable ground. The company also faces competition from Apple, Google and others in the browser arena. As of last month, Internet Explorer's global market share stood at 65.5 percent, according to Net Applications, compared with 22.5 percent for Firefox, 8.4 percent for Safari, and 1.8 percent for Google's Chrome. '

FORBES
"Fiat Bags Chrysler"
Spaghetti westerns, Motown pizzawagons?

' But Fiat now has a tough task ahead of it, even though it is familiar to the U.S. market: Not only does it own the American construction and agricultural equipment maker Case New Holland, it has tried selling cars in the U.S. before--and unsuccessfully at that. After building up a reputation for shoddy quality, it pulled its Alfa Romeo brand out of the U.S. market in 1994. "Americans still remember that," said John Wolkonowiscz, senior auto analyst at thinktank IHS Global Insight. He forecasts that Fiat's brands will start selling around 50,000 cars annually in the next three years, which represents around half of what Volkswagen's Audi brand sells in the U.S. today. Fiat now needs to focus on making its cars as durable and reliable as possible for American car buyers, who tend to treat their cars more robustly than in Fiat's home region. "Unlike Europeans, Americans treat their cars with a kind of cavalier attitude. They run over potholes. They kind of abuse the vehicles," said Wolkonowiscz. Meanwhile Chrysler's brands have been tainted by bankruptcy. "Americans have been very upset that Chrysler and GM took money from the government. Many are shifting over to Ford and other brands." Fiat clearly has a lot of work to do. '

REUTERS
"Theme park firm Six Flags files for bankruptcy"
We are NOT amused.

' The New York-based company operates amusement parks across the United States, Canada and Mexico. Six Flags said it filed for Chapter 11 protection with the unanimous support of its lenders' steering committee. Shapiro said the action will not affect day-to-day park operations. The bankruptcy filing "paves the way for a full revival of the company," he said. Six Flags, which offers 800 rides at its 20 parks, had been burdened with a massive debt load and a looming cash payment in August. '

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UNNATURAL NATURE NEWS

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CREATURE FEATURES OF A DISTURBING VARIETY

DON'T GO OUTSIDE THERE'S RATS & BATS & BUGS & STUFF

Oh, yeah, and SNAKES!!!

Scary Monsters All Around

Today we learned that however nasty our houses and apartments are, the great outdoors is even worse. That's why we keep it outside. So, just don't go out there, and you'll be fine. Unless they come inside.


ULSTER STAR
"LISBURN MEN FIND GIANT SNAKE IN THE AMAZON"
This snake eats Volkswagons! With the top down!!!

' A leviathan of the jungle, which reports say reaches 40 metres [120 feet] in length and two metres [6 feet] in diameter, it dwarfs any snake known to science. This anaconda is not green but dark brown and is known by the locals as the 'black boa' or 'Yacumama'. "Yacumama is translated as Mother of the Water and reports of this giant snake abound throughout the Amazon basin and history." Mike, who is partially sighted, has spent 23 years researching the beast but it was only six months ago when his son discovered his research documents and they decided to take part in the incredble journey. Cryptozooologist Mike of Hillhall spent his life savings setting up the expedition with Greg to find out more about the snake, which reports say can engorge water then shoot a monkey out of a tree like a water canon. "The data is immense and will take months to fully appreciate but already it supports our theories of 'channels' created by these giants as they make their way through the dense jungle knocking down trees 90 feet tall, but more importantly we managed to catch one of these reclusive giants on camera as it made its way through one of its watery channels." There was an amazing postscript to their trip when an anaconda, believed to be the one they located in March, is thought to have been responsbile for smashing the house of an elderly couple in a small village in Peru earlier this week. '

THE BALTIMORE SUN
"Science sheds light on Baltimore rats"
Now if they could only do something about those DC rats.

' "Most rats are like people in Baltimore," said Glass, who after 25 years in the city has had occasion to observe both. "They marry someone next door or down the block at most, and are happy to live in the neighborhood they grew up in." '

NY TIMES
"A Human Language Gene Changes the Sound of Mouse Squeaks"
Won't this confuse the bats?

' People have a deep desire to communicate with animals, as is evident from the way they converse with their dogs, enjoy myths about talking animals or devote lifetimes to teaching chimpanzees how to speak. A delicate, if tiny, step has now been taken toward the real thing: the creation of a mouse with a human gene for language. '

LIVE SCIENCE.COM
"Bats Recognize Individual Voices"
Good news, bat news.

' Scientists have not known how bats recognize their buddies, in order to stay together, and also avoid creating interference between their echolocation calls. The screech of a bat is louder than a rock concert. A study last year found that bats actually shut their traps for microseconds so they can hear the leader and take direction. Now researchers say greater mouse-eared bats can recognize individual bat voices. '

MCCLATCHY
"Deadly bat disease spreading fast, scientists warn lawmakers"
More bat news, same bat channel.

' "Never in my wildest imagination would I have dreamed of anything that could pose this serious a threat to America's bats," Merlin Tuttle , a biologist with Bat Conservation International who's studied the creatures for 50 years, told two House of Representatives subcommittees. He called the bat-killing disease, which could threaten eight species with extinction, "the most serious threat to American wildlife in the past century." According to the Agriculture Department , bats eat pests that otherwise would cost farmers up to $1 billion a year in damages. The disease, called "white-nose syndrome," makes bats awaken from hibernation prematurely and leave their caves. Freezing, unable to find insects to eat, they fall from the sky and die. About 95 percent of infected bats perish, and the disease appears to spread from bat to bat, infecting entire caves, officials said. The main clue to their deaths is fungus-encrusted noses and wings. Whether the fungus causes their deaths or is merely a symptom of a failing immune symptom is unknown. '

UPI
"Insomniac flies resemble insomniac humans"
Yes, I've seen them late nights at the diner. In my soup. Doing the backstroke, according to the waiter.

' U.S. scientists have created a line of fruit flies that they hope might someday help shed light on the mechanisms that cause insomnia in humans. The flies created by the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis only get a small fraction of the sleep of normal flies and resemble insomniac humans in several ways. For example, if researchers turned on a light at night, insomniac flies awakened and stayed up the rest of the night, while healthy flies went back to sleep. '

LA TIMES
"Heidi Pratt used to eat ants? Watch your back, Spencer"
Now we know why they call them "Speidi."

' "I know she's gonna win," says Holly Montag at the MTV Movie Awards about her sister, Heidi Montag, letting it slip that Heidi and her new hubby Spencer Pratt are actually competing against each other in the "I'm a Celebrity ... Get me Out of Here" reality show. But they have formed something "like an alliance." Are we surprised? "I have seen my sister build fires and eat ants ... that was growing up, for fun. She has a much better chance than anyone is giving her credit for," Holly says. '

FIRST COAST NEWS.COM
"Chickens Help Jacksonville Fight Mosquitos"
Who you callin' chicken?

' Meet Red, on the front line of Jacksonville's fight against mosquitos. He's a sentinel chicken, monitoring mosquito diseases in Jacksonville. "This is early in the year to have this significant of an increase in mosquitos and it was prompted by that large storm we had," Richard Smith of Jacksonville Mosquito Control told First Coast News' Erich Spivey. "We couldn't even sit on the patio because we were fighting mosquitos," says Jacksonville resident Jane Entenza. '

LIVE SCIENCE.COM
"Deer Disoriented by Power Lines"
Happens to the best of us.

' Last year, a team led by Hynek Burda and Sabine Begall discovered that free-ranging cattle and deer tend to align their bodies in a north-south direction. The animals sure seemed to be responding to the geomagnetic field. If so, the zoologists reasoned, they should lose their orientation when they graze or rest near power lines, because the current passing in the lines distorts Earth's magnetic field. If not, and the animals are reacting instead to the sun or some other cue, power lines should have no effect. By observing wild roe deer and studying aerial images from Google Earth of cattle in European fields, Burda, Begall and three colleagues confirmed their hypothesis. In general, the animals faced every which way near the lines. (East-west power lines were an intriguing exception; cattle tended to align with them, for reasons still unclear.) What's more, cattle gradually regained their north-south body orientation the farther they moved away from the lines. The study is the first strong demonstration of magnetic alignment in mammals other than rodents or bats. An internal compass could well be handy equipment in the roaming lifestyle of grazing animals. '

YAHOO NEWS
"NY man arrested buying drugs with slaughtered pig"
See? They were disoriented by power lines.

' Syracuse police say a 45-year-old man offered a slaughtered pig as partial payment for a bag of crack cocaine. They say two men were spotted making the deal on a street corner just before 8 p.m. Thursday. Angelo Colon of Fulton was arrested on a misdemeanor drug possession charge and 42-year-old Omar Veliz faces a felony drug sale charge. Police say Colon paid half a pig and $10 for a $50 bag of crack. Veliz told police the pig was for a celebration for a relative being released from jail. While officers were arresting the suspects, someone took the pig. '

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"MIGHT BE?"

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HOW IS THIS EVEN NEWS???

Talk About Lazy Reporting!!!

Come on, guys. At least pretend to be working. How can you run a story about what might be? Jeez, how unprofessional. Hey, if there is a story there, lets hear it. Go out and get us the facts, report something, for Gawd's sake!


Serious Mite Bee Found On Honey Bees In Hawaii
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TO POST A COMMENT: CLICK ON "COMMENTS," "Post a Comment" or "# of COMMENTS" just below the SOCIAL BOOKMARKING LINKS (Digg, Delicious, etc), about three inches down from here. Please do comment. Thank you.

IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM YOUR BLOGGERS:

Suggestion Box & Tip Jar We would like to make over this blog to make it easier to access, to read and to comment on. We would also like to serve our readers better by providing more of what you need and want to see. All serious suggestions will be considered. We hope to move to our own domain in the near future, and we would like to ask for your financial assistance in doing that, and in upgrading our hardware & software. Small one-time donations and larger long-term subscriptions are welcome. Exclusive advertising is also available. If you think we are wasting our time in doing all this, please let us know. If you wish to help us, now is the time. As always, negative bullsh*t from right-wing trolls will be sh*tcanned. Thank you to everyone else. Please send feedback & PayPal contributions to cosanostradamusATexciteDOTcom. Thanks.

SUPPORT OUR TROOPS: BRING THEM ALL HOME ALIVE, NOW!