Volume 2 Issue 54
April 17, 2003
Lights!
Why is the power still out in Baghdad, Tony Blair shoots for higher ground, and getting ready for Commencement
Off to another meeting this afternoon, out of the office too! Enjoy the news...
Who put out the lights? The effort to restore electricity to Baghdad has been complicated by the fact that no one can figure out why it went out in the first place -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41123-2003Apr16.html
Syria: Is Assad an idiot?
http://slate.msn.com/id/2081612/
The Neo-cons, who pushed for the Iraq war, are not too giddy about going into Syria -
http://www.latimes.com/templates/misc/printstory.jsp?slug=la %2Dna%2Dneocons17apr17§ion=/printstory
Look Who Wants to be President of Europe: Tony Blair is now pushing for a President of the EU, that would be "someone Washington can call." Hmm...maybe someone like Tony! This debate is actually interesting, because it and other discussions in the EU will soon decide whether or not the EU remains an economic union only, or whether it becomes a political union, with a big federalist system. And whether or not it can work is a whole other question -
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/2953509.stm
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-649651,00.html
But he can't take Communion: Tony Blair may become President of Earth, but the Pope still won't let the Anglican take Holy Communion with his Catholic family. This is a fascinating look at religion in Britain today. Blair is an Anglican, but is practically Catholic. He has been seen going to Mass even without his family, and rumors have popped up from time to time that he actually has secretly converted. Having a Catholic Prime Minister would apparently undermine the whole British system. It's just an interesting fact to look at, considering that it's one of the fastest growing religions in Britain. And also note the anti-Catholic slant of the articles -
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-649662,00.html
By the way, the Pope didn't just admonish Blair, it was a general encyclical about the Communion issue -
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-649388,00.html
Look Who's Running for President: Gary Hart apparently is looking for interns for his possible Presidential run -
http://www.adn.com/24hour/politics/story/856732p-5999052c.html
Look Who's Running for President 2: And um...Al Sharpton still hasn't filed with the FEC...supposedly he says he doesn't have to -
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-polmoney17apr17,1,638286.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dpolitics
Look Who's Running for President 3: Howard Dean raised a lot of money through a new grassroots website that encourages supporters in an area to meet for monthly gatherings -
http://www.abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/US/meetup_030417 .html
Look Who's Voting for President: New Hampshire's Democrats and Republicans worked together to save the first in the nation primary, but Michigan still wants to end it in 2008 -
http://www.theunionleader.com/primary_show.html?article=2026 6
Wheee! The Big Dig is opening up, and people actually like it!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41324-2003Apr16.html
Family Matters: A scorned Bush wife is preparing a tell-all book...
http://www.adn.com/24hour/politics/story/856892p-5999991c.html
No Wonder the Internet Boom Busted: 42% of Americans still don't use the Internet -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A41817-2003Apr16.html
Make your travel plans now! The only bar in Kabul has opened...and it's an Irish pub -
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Travel/ap20030416_1323.html
There goes Mr. Jordan: Michael Jordan played his last game yesterday in Philadelphia. And he actually was loved by the Philly crowd! The game was much better than the crappy tribute the Wizards did this week -
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A42549-2003Apr16.html
Sleeping through Commencement: It's that time of year when colleges all across the nation hold their commencement ceremonies. For a small number of students, this means a fantastic or world renowned speaker that gives them something to remember. For the others...well it can get pretty bad. Starting today, the Swamp will feature a daily preview of some of the worst graduation speakers out there. Now, a few rejoinders ahead of time. First, some schools for some reason have a professor from the school or their president as the speaker. I'm not including these, as it's obviously just a cop-out by the schools. Second, I'm not saying that these speakers will be bad, just that, we'll they're not exactly something that's going to make Uncle Bob want to come to your graduation. But who knows, they could be fantastic! Oh, and the list of the speakers is provided via the Chronicle of Higher Education. So here we go...
Today's Swamp Commencement Speaker of the Day is:
Palm Beach Atlantic University, West Palm Beach, FL, May 3, 2003 -
Perry Gladstone Christie, prime minister of the Bahamas; and
Dallen Peterson, founder and chairman of Merry Maids
Talk about strange stage partners...but at least the place will be clean!
