An Awkward Headline For the 'Reality-Based Community'

From the Times, helpfully buried on the Fourth of July (presumably because they didn't want to wait until Thanksgiving or Christmas):

Obama’s Blueprint for Fighting Terrorism Collides With Reality in Iraq

Well, yeah.

WASHINGTON — Speaking at West Point in May, President Obama laid out a blueprint for fighting terrorism that relies less on American soldiers, like the cadets in his audience that day, and more on training troops in countries where those threats had taken root.

But this indirect approach, intended to avoid costly, bloody wars like the one the United States waged in Iraq, immediately collided with reality when a lethal jihadi insurgency swept across the same Iraqi battlefields where thousands of Americans had lost their lives.

The seizing of large parts of Iraq by Sunni militants — an offensive hastened by the collapse of the American-trained Iraqi Army — stunned the White House and has laid bare the limitations of a policy that depends on the cooperation of often balky and overmatched partners.

While the militants from ISIS have moved swiftly to establish a caliphate from eastern Syria to central Iraq, the White House is struggling to repel them with measures that administration officials concede will take months or longer to be effective.

The Times goes easy on Obama here:

Last week, Mr. Obama announced a plan to spend $500 million to train and equip rebels in Syria. But the Pentagon has only begun detailed planning for the program, and officials said it would be months, or even more than a year, before the fighters would be battle-ready.

Obama announced that Assad must go and that we would provide aid to the moderate oppositio years ago, although lethal aid has only been publicly on offer for a year. That said, training and equiping the moderates now should be easy, since the few surviving non-radicalized rebels could fit in a pickup truck.

And of course, Obama may yet change course and back the strong man over the crazy jihadis. The Captain has more on this fever dream, with particular derision aimed at this part of the fantasy:

Some administration officials are also suggesting that Iran could be a partner in a post-war Syria, helping to ensure security there during a transition period, after which Assad would negotiate his own departure.

Because if Assad throws in with the US and helps crush ISIS he will naturally expect to be rewarded with an early retirement. Wow.

Comments

[Captain Hate]

Anything 404 believes has no adherence to realisty.

[Captain Hate]

Not to mention "reality"

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

So, anyone rooting for the Frogs?

[Mark Folkestad]

I spent more than an hour chatting with porchlight at my local Caribou Coffee. It was time well spent. She's an absolutely lovely young woman, in every respect. My only disappointment was that Claude and the kids slept in at her parents' home and didn't make it. So, yet another member of the JOMO tribe met in person, and they are all gems so far. We need more meetings like this.

[Buford Gooch]

If someone decides to arrange a meet-up in the Silicon Valley area, please let me know. Hit has my email.

[DrJ]

Buford,

hit is coming out later in the year (October), and I intend to arrange a meet-up somewhere in the Bay Area. Last year we met in Berkeley.

[Danube on iPad]

"after which Assad would negotiate his own departure."

With whom would he negotiate, and why?

[Dace]

Saddam was a tyrannical a-hole. Quadaffi was a tyraninical a-hole. Assad is a tyrannical A-hole. What they brought was stability and containment. Better the devil you know then the one you don't. If we want to defeat iSIS we should support the Syrian president and deny ISIS a safe haven.

[Mark Folkestad]

Porchlight's only other in-person meeting with a member of the JOMO Tribe was with Hit&Run. He was apparently on his best behavior, without a safety pin in his nose, and she found him absolutely delightful. I've had the distinct pleasure of also meeting DrJ, ManTran and a couple of others. Beautiful experiences, all.

[NKonIPad]

Wait ... This is a for real NYT thingie? This isn t satire mocking Obummer's 'realpolitik'? Iran gets rid of Assad? Assad is theirbridge to Hezbollah as part of their Shia Caliphate stretching to the Med. Both ISIS and the Mullahs dream of the Caliphate, the only difference is one prays towards Mecca, the othertowards Qom.

[Stephanie tortoise not the hare]

TK, Damn boy, stay safe. Ladders are tricksy.

[Patriot4Freedom]

Happy 4th of July to all of the JOM family !

- - - - - - - - -

Interesting statistic: ~ 10,000 gun deaths annually (people shot by another person) . . .
but ~ 26,000 deaths annually from *falling* (chief among them, falling from ladders, stepstools, etc.)

World Cup predictions:
Germany holds on over France
Colombia upsets Brazil
Argentina defeats Belgium
Netherlands defeats Costa Rica

[NKonIPad]

Happy Independence Day to all.

I agree with P4F's picks. Although I wonderif Columbia would be an upset.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

Columbia v Brazil or People v hot dogs.
Tough choice.
At least if somebody flops on the ground in agony in the eating contest you know it's real. Especially when they toss their dogs.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

Imagine an American Football game conducted as soccer is.
A game would take about 24 hours especially if they adopted extra time.
After every play there'd be 15-20 guys rolling on the ground, mouths open in pain, eyes squeezed shut in agony, clutching their ankles, knees, arms, throats, pinky fingers, the remains of their dignity and shame, their acting coach; each one attended to by a surgical team with their trusty little orange stretcher and then after a nice swig or two of Gatorade (making sure to align the label with the correct camera) and the proper interval looking around to see if their efforts resulted in any flags, miraculously back on their feet and ready for the new killing field when the dust settles after the next play.

[Thomas Collins]

Happy Fourth! I hope all the JOMers in Arthur's path are in a safe place!

[Danube on iPad]

I think it's a bit of a stretch to say Saddam brought stability and containment. He invaded two of his neighbors (conquering one) and fired Scud missiles into four of them.

[miss Marple]

Going over to my sister's (Norman's owner) for brats and German potato salad in a little while. My contribution is slaw, which I just finished making.

[Jane]

What's your weather TC? You could get hit by Arthur. It's just pouring here. I did errands at 8:00AM and again at 10:00 and the stores were packed. Apparently rain is scary now.

I don't remember being this bummed out about my country last Independence Day - maybe I blocked it out.

[Dave (in MA)]

Jane, they could just be picking up provisions for the weekend's grilling.

[miss Marple]

Danube, I agree with you. Saddam did plenty of destabilization, and besides what you named he was funding terrorist groups in Israel and Lebanon.

The press thinks if they don't mention these tiny details, they can act like Saddam was just this big huggy bear guy that we got killed in our war for oil or something. Funny how day and Usay, users of the shredder for disposing of live victims, have disappeared from memory.

A family like that was a ticking time bomb for even worse stuff than they already had done.

[jimmyk on iPhone]

And who knew that Syria has been stable under Assad? Never mind what's going on there now, ask the Lebanese.

[glasater]

Happy 4th ™ and JOM -

[glasater]

Heh, the initials for Mr Maguire came out as 'trademark'.

[Threadkiller]

The trademark confused me, glasater.

Obama told me that we didn't build it...

[Threadkiller]

Happy Fourth all!!

[Threadkiller]

http://www.birtherreport.com/2014/07/attorney-taitz-takes-on-radical-leftist.html?m=1

Wow!

[Thomas Collins]

It's raining in the Boston Financial District, Jane. Yesterday I went to Sharon for fireworks. After the show, we were treated to another show (lightning in the sky).

[Porchlight]

Had a wonderful time with Mark! Every bit the gentleman and a great conversationalist. Too short - my time is never my own. Next time I will get the slackers husband and kids out. Happy Independence Day! Hope to see some fireworks over the lake & read the Declaration and watch 1776.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

You can't win with these creeps.
If you don't prevent Saddam from taking over you should have intervened because he's a brutal, destabilizing tyrant.
If you cheer Saddam on in his war with Iran, you are simultaneously stabilizing a brutal tyrant and destabilizing the ME.
If you don't stop him when he gasses the Kurds you're a timid fool who tolerates a brutal destabilizing tyrant.
If you blow his country to smithereens after he invades Kuwait you're both destabilizing the ME but didn't go far enough when you didn't depose him.
If you don't impose sanctions and no fly zones you're aiding a brutal destabilizing dictator.
If you don't remove sanctions and no fly zones you're destabilizing the ME.
If intelligence says he has WMD he should be taken out.
You take him out which both eliminates a brutal destabilizing tyrant and destabilizes the ME, depending on polling.
If intelligence was wrong he shouldn't have been taken out and while they had no way to know intelligence was wrong you did.

It's pointless engaging people who live a life of bad faith.

[Frau Unabhaengig]

Repeat post-
A comment from Spengler's lastest:

Today we got a text from our niece. Her best friend just gave birth to healthy triplet boys. Their parents have named them Eyal, Gilad, and Naftali.

L'chaim.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

I'm waiting for the after JOM meetup report which says;
"Met so and so for lunch; he/she's a real pill. Not doin that again".

Think it'll ever happen? Me neither.
Happy fourth, everyone, which either means one or all of you.
Out the door for awhile.

[miss Marple]

Anyone with tool knowledge: any preferred brand of hedge clippers ( electric type).

I had some battery operated ones, but the batteries are growing weaker and I need electric, as grandson is going to trim shrubs for me tomorrow afternoon.

I will go to either Menard's or Lowes.

[Old Lurker]

All battened down on Nantucket.

The ice machine IS connected to the generator panel, I checked.

[Neo]

PITTSBURGH — Richard Mellon Scaife, the billionaire heir to the Mellon banking and oil fortune and a newspaper publisher who funded libertarian and conservative causes and various projects to discredit President Bill Clinton, has died. He was 82.

The VRWC is dead. Long live the VRWC.

[narciso]

Happy fourth all, still settling in. I'd argue with one point, hezbollah was Iran 's bridge to syria. The da'wa, maliki ' s party really grew in the aftermath of the baathist rise

[Comanche Voter]

Best brand of electric hedge shears going is either "Little Giant" or "Little King". They are fantastic, but you might have to go find them on Amazon or on the Internet. I hate to admit it but my wife does the gardening==including the hedge trimming. I gave her one of these some 15 years or more ago and it's still going strong.

[narciso]

Si there is a piece in the Washington Post, by an Ali khedery, where he made the poor choice of trusting in the Solon ' s judgement(h/t tepid)

[Rob Crawford]

Saddam was a tyrannical a-hole. Quadaffi was a tyraninical a-hole. Assad is a tyrannical A-hole. What they brought was stability and containment.

And deaths. Lots, and lots of deaths. Not just of the people under their thumb -- people around the world.

A grave is stable. A gulag is contained.

Let's support liberty, not stability.

[Rob Crawford]

It's pointless engaging people who live a life of bad faith.

Depends on how you engage them.

Peacefully, yeah, it's pointless.

[Rob Crawford]

I'm waiting for the after JOM meetup report which says; "Met so and so for lunch; he/she's a real pill. Not doin that again".

That's why I'm a hermit. It prevents things like that from happening.

[Frau Unabhaengig]

(Scaife)...who funded libertarian and conservative causes and various projects to discredit President Bill Clinton,

Good grief, America's first publicly disclosed Dirty Old Man in the Oval Office did not need any outside help.

I bet Scaife and Uncles Soros will not meet in the same section of the afterworld.

[Marlene]

Hi all. I posted earlier at the end of a dead thread. I drove down from the cabin earlier (in the rain). The sky is dark and threatening more rain.I hope it rains overnight because I'm driving down to NH in the morning to bring Mom back to Maine. Happy 4th! Stay dry,my fellow New Englanders! But not too dry! :)

[Mark Folkestad]

Iggie, we don't make an effort to meet people we haven't already formed an affinity for online. So it's unlikely to see the negative report you imagine, unless you want to meet Dana or DuDa. I don't give out bullshit reports.

[Jane]

This is funny:

[jimmyk]

we don't make an effort to meet people we haven't already formed an affinity for online.

Except for hit & run, who I seem to recall made an effort to meet Dana and Sylvia.

[Jane]

The above link goes to this: 50 Of The Craziest Laws In America, One From Each State

I believe New Mexico's contribution should be adopted in all 57 states.

[narciso]

Scott mcewen, the one who wrote that history of the Seals, has a new thriller out, Target America,

[Extraneus]

Duke Law professor calls for ‘real conflict’ in USA over inequality, climate change

“So why am I calling for conflict—real conflict, not its facsimile?” Purdy continued ominously. “Because the United States got two big doses of reality in the last six months. One was the explosive arrival of Thomas Piketty’s finding that inequality is vast and that we are headed toward a second Gilded Age, if we aren’t there already. The other was the new set of U.N. reports on climate change, which confirmed, yet again, that the problem is real and accelerating.”

Bring it on, Professor.

[jimmyk]

Jane, I was just going to say that NM's doesn't seem to be enforced, unfortunately.

NEW MEXICO: Idiots may not vote.

And BofE should probably not move to Wyoming.

WYOMING: It’s against the law to have sex while standing up in a walk-in meat freezer.

[narciso]

Is there a sane professor at Duke?

[DrJ]

Is there a sane professor at Duke?

I realize that's a throw-away, but yes, I work with a Prof at Duke in the Medical School. Great guy, and very sane.

[narciso]

Yes that was a leading question, besides the epically faculty

[Extraneus]

Great guy, and very sane.

I suppose that means he's taking Purdy out behind the quad for a thrashing?

[Captain Hate]

Dame Peggy meets the Horde; hilarity ensues:

http://minx.cc:1080/?post=350264

[DrJ]

I doubt Mr. Duke Medical School has any idea of who Purdy might be.

[Captain Hate]

One was the explosive arrival of Thomas Piketty’s finding

Strike one

The other was the new set of U.N. reports on climate change

Strike two; why even bother with three?

[jimmyk]

I know some econ profs at Duke who are sane. I'm sure the rest of the faculty hate them and vice versa.

[clarice]

wishing everyone a happy holiday. Yes, frau, life does go on..

[Jane]

It's pretty funny Jimmy, isn't it?

[Jack is Back! (In the USA)]

If there was a BBQ at the WH today, I wonder who was there to eat it?

As we were walking past the NE gate around 11:15am for the parade on Constitution, the military families were all exiting. BTW, without this seeming racist, most if not all were AA families. Never heard of serving BBQ for brunch or breakfast.

All of sudden a game has broke out in Forteleza:)

[jimmyk]

If there was a BBQ at the WH today

Uh-oh, has anyone seen Bo?

[daddy]

Good Morning! Just starting catch-up.

From rse on the previous thread:

Let me interrupt dd's flow with another appalling thing Danielle Allen declares that is 180 degrees from the actual intentions of the Founders. She believes that "it is the job of democratic government to secure and enable the capacities of each individual."

I think that's another way of saying that "The Founder's lied to their Diary."

[GMax]

secure and enable the capacities of each individual.

What the hell does that even mean? How exactly do you secure someone's capacities? Ditto with enable. I thought everyone understood:

Horse
Trough
Drinking

[MarkO]

Obama's just not that smart.

Happy 4th.

Or, as they used to say, "Have a safe and sane Fourth of July." That wish would have ruined my holiday.

[Jane]

Uh-oh, has anyone seen Bo?

LOL: that's just wrong.

[jimmyk]

that's just wrong

Maybe Barry could have a ceremonial pardoning of a dog every 4th of July, just like they do for a turkey on Thanksgiving.

[Captain Hate]

I just checked and Purdy wasn't one of the Duke Gang of 88 that signed a statement against the lacrosse players.

[GMax]

Well I got Germany. Who wants Brazil? Cmon, they are the home favorite.

Silva the captain, must sit with yellow cards. Neymar, carried off on a stretcher is reported to have been taken to the hospital.

But its Brazil, right?

[henry]

GMax, the Dutch are the WSJ pick. Thus it will be Belgium ( because this World Cup is odd and I have hopes but little confidence in Costa Rica).

[GMax]

The Dutch play a very unique formation, and have the personnel to make it work. And Van Persie has honed his skills in the EPL for years now.

But I am not focusing on the winner, but rather just Germany v Brazil

[Danube on iPad]

I'm going with Brazil.

[daddy]

Just a comment on "Settled Science."

I like this new story up via Insty reporting the new "Scientific" discovery that Tibetans are able to endure life in High Altitudes because apparently they inbred with an ancient disappeared human species, the Denisovans, thereby borrowing a bit of Denisovan DNA that appears in no other extant Human lineage: Tibetans didn't get their genetic advantage from Homo sapiens

I like this because it is a great example of Scientists demonstrating what they don't know---re: The Science is Not Settled.

A quick summary:

In the 60's Scientists thought humans had probably 2 million genes.

By the 90's Scientists thought humans had maybe 100,000 genes.

By 2001---30,000.
By 2004---26,000.
By 2007---20,500.
In 2014---19,000 (less genes than Nematode worms:)

When I started commenting at JOM in the early 2000's, Scientists were certain that humans had not interbred with Neanderthals.

By 2010 we were positive we had been pulling one night stands with Neanderthals for thousands of years!

When George Bush was President we did not even know that a human species called Denisovan existed.
By 2010 we did. And today (2014) we learned we had sex with them too! (And don't get me started on Hobbits!)

And not to mention that until @1955 (according to Matt Ridley) Scientists thought humans had 24 pairs of chromosomes, not 23. (They recounted, and discovered we had 1 less than apes!)

So all that said, isn't it interesting that in the prime subject humans have been studying for all human existence (other Humans) we are still learning almost every year that what we "knew" last year was wrong, and what we "know" now will probably be wrong or subject to update by science next year. Even more amazingly, it can be discussed rationally within the Scientific community, without hatred, or ostracism, or FOIA Law Suits, or "hide the declines."

If that's the case with the subject that Humans have studied more than any other in Human History, why the heck can't we do the same re: the Weather?

[Rob Crawford]

(And don't get me started on Hobbits!)

Invented golf, you know.

[Jack is Back! (In the USA)]

Actually, the North Koreans invented golf.

I have to go with Belgium. Goal keeping wins the WC and Cortois is the best GK in the world. Kompany the best fullback and with Hazard and Lakaku a vewry formiable striker duo. If they can beat Argentian by handling Messi and deMaria then they should have no problem against the Dutch or Costa Rica.

Off to the fireworks.

[Jane]

This is good by Jonah Goldberg.

Resenting the Republic
Liberals take exception to exceptionalism.

A taste: Why liberals have become so comfortable running down America is no doubt complicated, but I think one part of the answer is obvious. Liberals tend to equate patriotism with the government. Obama was supposed to usher in a glorious new era of European-style big government. He’s failed, though alas not entirely. But in the attempt he aroused a populist movement — the tea parties — full of people who wore their traditional patriotism on their sleeves and tricorn hats. The forces of American exceptionalism proved formidable, taking advantage of our exceptional constitutional structure to thwart European social democracy.

And liberal resentment over that fact is palpable.

[narciso]

Yes; but Purdy wanted to be one. G'S funding of Extra ' s excellent adventure has gone from silly to sinister, re the Free Beacon

[henry]

Jane, I suppose you are getting a lot of rain right now. I hope all our NE friends are safe and dry.

Once the sun goes down I will watch the surrounding town fireworks displays, perfect weather and over 10 miles visibility -- especially from my wrap-around upper deck. Neighbors will fill in any gaps.

[narciso]

Walter Mead points out Isil ' reach is greater than expected

[Jane]

Henry,

Rain with a very ominous sky. Tomorrow I'll be partying with friends. I have the perfect view of the Sturbridge Village fireworks - which are spectacular - from my deck. However I will go to friends who have almost as good of a view, as a result of the tornado. They throw a very good party. They should be starting about 24 hours from now.

[narciso]

That was HE not Goldman sacks btw

[Danube on iPad]

Hell. Let it burn:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/05/opinion/quarantine-the-middle-east.html?_r=0

[clarice]

daddy, you always have the most interesting observations about science.

[clarice]

wiki indicates the Tibetans may not be the only group with Denisovan genes: "Analysis of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) of the finger bone showed it to be genetically distinct from the mtDNAs of Neanderthals and modern humans.[4] Subsequent study of the nuclear genome from this specimen suggests that this group shares a common origin with Neanderthals, that they ranged from Siberia to Southeast Asia, and that they lived among and interbred with the ancestors of some present-day modern humans, with about 3% to 5% of the DNA of Melanesians and Aboriginal Australians deriving from Denisovans.[5][6][7] Other ethnicities, such as the Malays, Polynesians, the Dravidians of India, Burmans, and Mon-Khmer-speaking peoples may be included in this category as well."

[narciso]

How about that, clarice, I never knew about That aspect

[narciso]

The Ottomans pulled off the trick with contiguous vilayets? Hasa and the Hejaz were administered independently along with the Nejd

[peter]

daddy, great post @ 7:07.

[daddy]

Yesterday I quoted a 2009 piece from Walter Isaacson about why he (and presumably Ben Franklin) thought Obama would be a good President.

So today I read Peggy Noonan, (linked above) and thought I'd compare what Isaacson thought as Obama's positive character traits with what Noonan now observes in our President:

Isaacson: Franklin was a very practical man...

Noonan: (Obama) seems unserious, frivolous, shallow. He hangs with celebrities, plays golf.

Isaacson: a healthy democracy requires pragmatic people...

Noonan: "One aide paraphrased Obama's response: 'Just last night I was talking about life and art, big interesting things, and now we're back to the minuscule things on politics.' '---'Minuscule? Politics is his job.

Isaacson: I hoped that more politicians would emerge who were sage and sensible, and I came to believe that Obama was the most like Franklin of all our national politicians...

Noonan: When the crisis in Ukraine escalated in March, White House aides wondered if Mr. Obama should cancel a planned weekend golf getaway in Florida. He went. At the "lush Ocean Reef Club," he reportedly told his dinner companions: "I needed this. I needed the golf. I needed to laugh. I needed to spend time with friends."

You get the impression his needs are pretty important in his hierarchy of concerns.

All this is weird, unprecedented. The president shows no sign—none—of being overwhelmingly concerned and anxious at his predicaments or challenges. Every president before him would have been. They'd be questioning what they're doing wrong, changing tack. They'd be ordering frantic aides to meet and come up with what to change, how to change it...

Isaacson: Franklin would appreciate the way that Obama held true to certain core values...

Noonan: he seems disinterested, disengaged almost to the point of disembodied. He is fatalistic, passive, minimalist. He talks about hitting "singles" and "doubles" in foreign policy.

Presidents aren't supposed to have those illusions, and they're not supposed to check out psychologically when their illusions are shattered.

Obama doesn't seem to care about his unpopularity, or the decisions he's made that have not turned out well.

Isaacson: ...displaying a willingness to be practical and bridge partisan divides. He would also approve of Obama's leadership style, which involves doing a lot of listening and being able to work collaboratively with strong characters.

Noonan: He is incapable of working with Congress, the worst at this crucial aspect of the job since Jimmy Carter, though Mr. Carter at least could work with the Mideast and produced the Camp David Accords. Mr. Obama has no regard for Republicans and doesn't like to be with Democrats.

I suppose we could do this fisking exercise with dozens of our "intellectuals", but it is interesting to me how easy our credentialed "betters" class were so capable of being bamboozled.

[henry]

Jane, the Summerfest opening day fireworks in Milwaukee were rained out (plus fog) for a week. I hope your weather clears for tomorrow.

[Miss Marple]

daddy, It doesn't surprise me. Look at how they were all bamboozled by the global warming scam.

As a long-time news junky since my teens, I have seen enough examples of clueless reporters and pundits to fill a small encyclopedia set.

I went to school with this type of person. Big on BS, small on actual knowledge. As they say in the west, all hat, no cattle.

What really amazes me is why anyone pays attention to them at all, anymore.

[Miss Marple]

Heading to bed. I did lots of weeding today and one glass of wine has done me in.

Good night, all!

[narciso]

So the Fri had a report that showed one of the T-dawgs were present at a mosque with the Black Sq flag

[daddy]

Thanks Clarice and Peter,

Look at how we politely learned tons more about the Denisovans between my post at 07:07 and Clarice's update at 08:52.

But if the discussion was about AGW, I'd be at her throat, and she'd be firing back hard at me with her pistola's:)

Oh well, off with 2 buddy's who missed me last week. Temp now up here is 76 degrees, just stifling.

[DrJ]

Forgive me, for I have sinned.

I have resubscribed to the e-communist (The Economist). The deal of $150/2 yrs was too good to pass up.

[Captain Hate on the iPad]

I'm still waiting for Dame Peggy to utter those magic words "I was wrong".

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

The eyes of pea and thimble men the world over get a little misty when they see the likes of Isaacson and Noonan headed their way.

[Ignatz Ratzkiwaski]

--The deal of $150/2 yrs was too good to pass up.--

That woulda gotcha 3 or 4 years of Sports Car Market, Doc, and not only would you have great pics of old sports cars, you would have learned more about markets. :)

[narciso]

Well genes are real things, whereas the skydragon, which summons hordes of locust and sandstorms that destroy Las Vegas are not

[daddy]

Forgive me, for I have sinned.

I have resubscribed to the e-communist

DrJ,

As penance, before you go to bed tonight, say 3 mantra's of "Ontogeny recapitulates Phylogeny" and then eat a cheeseburger:)

Cheers!

[DrJ]

Sports Car Market

Never heard of it. That's not surprising, I suppose, since I'm not into cars that much.