WA2K Radio is now on the air

Arthur Davidson, of the Harley Davidson Motorcycle
Corporation, dies and goes to heaven. At the gates, an angel
tells Davidson, "Well, you've been such a good guy and your
motorcycles have changed the world. As a reward, you can
hang out with anyone you want to in Heaven."

Davidson thinks about it and says, "I wanna hang out with
God, Himself."

So, The befeathered fellow at the Gates takes Arthur to the
Throne Room and introduces him to God.

Arthur then asks God, "Hey, aren't you the inventor of
Woman?"

God says, "Ah, yes."

"Well," says Davidson, "You have some major design flaws in
your invention:

1. There's too much front end protrusion
2. It chatters at high speeds
3. The rear end wobbles too much, and
4. The intake is placed too close to the exhaust.

"Hmmm..." replies God, "hold on." God goes to the Celestial
Super computer, types in a few keystrokes, and waits for
the result. The computer prints out a slip of paper and God
reads it. "It may be that my invention is flawed," God
replies to Arthur Davidson, "But, according to My Computer,
more people are riding my invention than yours."

Letty, you wondered why the sundance was banned. here's an excerpt from the Sun Dance article in the Encyclopedia of North American Indians, an online source i just discovered:

Early European witnesses to the Sun Dance were repulsed by some tribes' practice of self-mortification in the ceremony. Male dancers had their breasts or backs skewered and tied to a central lodge pole. Dancing and straining against the ropes, they eventually tore loose from the skewers that held them fast. Through this ritual, participants literally suffer on behalf of their community and call upon the Creator to pity and assist them in the fulfillment of their vows. This aspect of the ritual was the principal reason federal officials prohibited it between the end of the Plains wars and 1935. Despite the ban, however, many tribes continued to hold the Sun Dance surreptitiously in remote areas of their reservations or to enact it without its objectionable features.

this doesn't gibe with the 60s date i gave for the lifting of the ban, but it could be that there was a separate ban imposed on the Lakota. either way, it strikes me as an aspect of the government's policy of forced assimilation into mainstream culture; the most notable and debatable example of this was the practice of taking Indian children from their families and placing them in boarding schools. odd too, that representatives of a culture that condones infant circumcision should be squeamish about self-mortification.

Well, there's our Raggedy, Johnny on the spot with her line up of celebs. After taking a run through all the contributions, I find that Dustin disappeared. Fantastic actor though, right folks? Thanks gal for once again keeping us informed. That's the movie that i was thinking of, dear. Spooky as I recall.

Bob, The next time that it's bike week here in my area, I'll remember to take a closer look at them women ridding on the back of the hawgs.

Thanks, Yit, for that explanation. If I recall, one of the tests of manhood was the ability to withstand pain. Many, many of our OP's were forced into our culture and life style. Pity

Well, well. I wonder where all the Europeans have gone?

Wildlife moves to stay cool in a warmer world

By Alister Doyle, Environment Correspondent

OSLO (Reuters) - Salmon swim north into Arctic seas, locusts plague northern Italy and two heat-loving bee-eater birds nest in a hedge in Britain.

Signs of global warming fed by greenhouse gases produced by human activity, or just summertime oddities?

In the United States, some warblers are flying north to Canada. In Costa Rica, toucans are moving higher up into the mountains, apparently because of rising temperatures.

In July, a Norwegian man fishing in a fjord had a shock when he landed a John Dory, a fish more usually found in temperate waters off southern Europe or Africa.

"There's a long list of migratory species ending up further north. It's certainly a sign of warmer temperatures," said Steve Sawyer, climate policy director at the Greenpeace environmental group.

He said salmon had been swimming through the Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia into the Chukchi Sea, apparently because the frigid water had warmed up.

Such shifts could have vast long-term implications for farmers and fishing fleets.

However, some experts are skeptical that unusual sightings of everything from bears to butterflies support theories that temperatures are rising because of a build-up of heat-trapping gases emitted by cars, factories and power plants.

"If you want to measure temperatures, you use a thermometer, not a bird," said Fred Singer, who heads the U.S. Science and Environmental Policy Project. "Birds have all sorts of reasons for moving north, south, sideways or whatever."

Singer says people and creatures have adapted to unexplained changes in temperature, linked to natural variation, throughout history. Some species simply move in unexpected directions or unwittingly stow away on trucks, planes or ships.

ROBINS IN ARCTIC

However, U.N. data show that the warmest year since records began in the 1860s was 1998, followed by 2002, 2003 and 2004. Most scientists link the rise in temperatures to human emissions of carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels, rather than natural change.

The panel that advises the
United Nations says that rising temperatures may drive thousands of species to extinction and cause more storms, floods and deserts while raising sea levels, perhaps by one meter (three feet) by 2100.

Inuit peoples have noted southerly species of wildlife reaching the Arctic in summertime in recent years, including robins, hornets and barn owls.

Anecdotal evidence from further south is piling up.

Two yellow, green and brown bee-eater birds, usually found in southern Europe, have nested in a hedge in southern England -- the fourth time a bee-eater nest has been found in Britain.

"It looks as if it's linked to climate change," John Lanchbery, head of climate policy at Britain's Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, said of a general shift northwards of birds in Europe.

Growing seasons have extended and seas have become warmer, he said.

However, some examples are misleading.

In the Piedmont region of northern Italy this summer, residents were surprised by swarms of locusts, suspecting they had flown over from Africa.

Insect experts said they were an Italian species and did not migrate over long distances. Still, an exceptionally hot summer in 2003 has meant more parched ground, ideal conditions for the pests to lay their eggs.

"Global warming could also be a reason," said Vincenzo Girolami, an entomologist at Padua University. If there were more hotter, drier summers, there were likely to be more swarms of locusts in Italy, he said.

HEADACHE FOR RANGERS

In the United States, birds such as the Cape May warbler and Blackburnian warbler are moving north into Canada, causing a headache for forest rangers.

If the birds leave, spruce forests in the United States could be vulnerable to attacks by spruce budworm caterpillars, normally eaten by the birds. If the caterpillars are left to thrive they will eat, and dry out, the trees.

"The trees could be more stressed which could lead to more fires," said Terry Root, a professor at Stanford University in the United States. "We could really have a difficult situation."

In Costa Rica's Monteverde cloud forest, toucans, with their brightly-colored, banana-shaped bills, are threatening another species, the spectacular green quetzal, by moving to higher altitudes where the quetzals nest, she said.

(Additional reporting by Timothy Gardner in New York, Robin Pomeroy in Rome and Ed Stoddard in Johannesburg)

Medical News:


TORONTO - Canadians have long prized their public healthcare system as a reflection of national values, and have looked askance at the inequities of private medical care in the United States.


But now that the Canadian Supreme Court has ruled private health insurers should be allowed to compete with the public system, the future of Canadian healthcare is a question mark.

In the short term, the decision may light a fire under provincial governments to improve chronic problems, especially long wait times for surgeries, tests, and treatments. Some experts believe the ruling could eventually spawn a parallel, private healthcare system here.

"For our government, it's a very strong indictment of the way they've handled the system," says Dr. Albert Schumacher, president of the Canadian Medical Association. "I hope it will move us forward in the debate. 'Private' has always been used by politicians as a very evil word, associated with America and for-profit. But it's not necessarily so."

dj, You listening?

Wow! You and I hit it off together, no? I briefly read that bit about the creatures seeking cooler places, but you have given us the entire picture. Thanks, Boston. Hard to say what our planet is experiencing. When Columbia returns tomorrow, perhaps we'll get a description of terra firma from outer space.

Dustin's in my lineup, Letty. Which lineup are you looking at?

UhOh, Raggedy, and I promised that this week would be error free. When I looked the first time, there was Rain Man. When I looked the second time, there was a big white square with an "x marks the spot" in the upper left hand corner. Now he's back in his proper place.

"....and like the rainbow's lovely form; evanescing amid the storm..."

From whence cometh that quote, folks?

Everyone is asleep, listeners, as Letty will be shortly.

Somehow, the tribute to Peter Jennings tonight left me drained. Godspeed, Peter.

From MacBeth: (yes, there is a group called MacBeth)
Album:


The arms of twilight
are dandling my soul
and in her eyes
I see the sweetness
of a bright immortal-graced maiden
who relieves the grieves of my heart.
Wind is whispering your name
throught the clouds in the sky.
I will always remember your eyes
veiled by tears
while the night prelude
casted a spell on our glances.
The eyes of the dying sun
are looking at me
in this romantic immensity
an I can feel this melancholy
pervading deep inside me.
Twilight is whispering your name
to the clouds in the sky.
I will never forget your heart
beating over mine
and your passion heating my bosom.
...And when butterflies fly on
whitered flowers
and birds perch on dry brances
a tear will glide to your feet
and I will hold it in my hand
like a pearl in its shell.

From Letty with Love

The Fatal Glass of Beer
Recorded by W. C. Fields

There was a young man, and he came to New York
To find himself a lucrative position befitting his talents.

And he hunted all the Employment Agencies, but was nearly starved
to death,
When at last he got a job in a stone quarry with all the other
college graduates.

And after work was done, they lured him into a saloon,
And tempted him to drink a glass of beer.

But he'd promised his Dear Old Mother that he never would imbibe
That he'd never touch his Lips to a glass containing Liquor.

They laughed at him and Jeered, and they called him a cow-yard
Till at last he clutched and drained that glass of beer.

When he saw what he had Did, he dashed his glass upon the floor,
And staggered out the door with Delirium Tremens.

And the first person that he met was a Salvation Army Lass,
And with one blow he broke her tambourine!

When she saw what he had did, she placed a mark upon his brow
With a kick that she had learned before she was sav-ed.

And the moral of this tale is to shun that fatal glass,
And don't go around breaking other peoples' tambourines.

Does he still think about her
Why there was never really any doubt
Every time he lights a candle
Or blows a candle out
The scientific nature of the ordinary man
Is to go on out and do the best you can

I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down

This world is full of people
They never seem to fall
Somebody said they seen you
You hadn't changed at all
The fundamental story
Of the contemporary man
Is to walk away and someday understand

I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down

The scientific nature of the ordinary man
Is to go on out and do the best you can

I don't think that you know
That I think you don't know
That old barometer goes crazy baby
Every time it starts to snow
You won't find me walking
Round your part of town
Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down

Humidity built the snowman
Sunshine brought him down
Brought him down

The Scorpion Departs but Never Returns
By Phil Ochs


Capo IV
Finger pick the verses, strum chorus

Am
Sailors climb the tree, up the terrible tree
G
Where are my shipmates have they sunk beneath the sea?
Am
I do not know much, but I know this cannot be
G F
It isn't really, it isn't really,
E
Tell me it isn't really.

Sounding bell is diving down the water green
Not a trace, not a toothbrush, not a cigarette was seen
Bubble ball is rising from a whisper or a scream
But I'm not screaming, no I'm not screaming,
Tell me I'm not screaming.

C Bb
Captain will not say how long we must remain
C Am Dm7
The phantom ship forever sail the sea
E
It's all the same.

Captain my dear Captain we're staying down so long
I have been a good man, I've done nobody wrong
Have we left our ladies for the lyrics of a song?
That I'm not singing, I'm not singing
Tell me I'm not singing

The schooner ship is sliding across the kitchen sink
My son and my daughter they won't know what to think
The crew has turned to voting and the officers to drink
But I'm not drinking, no I'm not drinking
Tell me I'm not drinking

Captain will not say how long we must remain
The phantom ship forever sail the sea
It's all the same.

The radio is begging them to come back to the shore
All will be forgiven, it'll be just like before
All you've ever wanted will be waiting by your door
We will forgive you, we will forgive you
Tell me we will forgive you

But no one gives an answer not even one goodbye
Oh, the silence of their sinking is all that they reply
Some have chosen to decay and other chose to die
But I'm not dying, no I'm not dying
Tell me I'm not dying

Captain will not say how long we must remain
The phantom ship forever sail the sea
It's all the same.

the dys and diane will be gone the rest of the week, camping in the mountains near Silver City New Mexico. stay tuned for pics this weekend.

Oyez Oyez

Today is the day the big silver bird will bring Fiona back from Canada, where she has been doing missionary work among the natives.

No, I made that last bit up.

So I've got to get the house tidy, excuse me.

Britain's 'balti belt' still reeling from tornado

Mon Aug 8,12:03 PM ET

LONDON (AFP) - A freak tornado that wrought a trail of destruction across Britain's second city Birmingham has left its famous balti industry reeling, restauranteurs said.


Balti cuisine -- in which curry dishes are cooked in small two-handled pans known as karahis -- was invented in Birmingham, in the English Midlands, by immigrant chefs from south Asia in the 1970s.

Some 40 restaurants are concentrated in Birmingham's "balti belt" along Ladypool Road that was badly hit by the July 28 twister which left several buildings badly damaged.

Mohammed Yaqubali, who has shut down one of his Lahore Karahi restaurants due to structural damage and seen a 50 percent slump in takings at the second, said the famous area is becoming a "ghost town".

"The balti belt is well-known throughout the country and Europe," he said.

"It's a big attraction for tourism. We're the pioneers of this creation of balti cuisine. But a lot of people who have booked have now cancelled. This is becoming a ghost town."

The tornado -- a phenomenon virtually unknown in Britain -- lasted less than a minute, but lifted roofs off houses, overturned cars, uprooted trees and terrified locals used to the more moderate weather of a British summer.

"Some of the lucky ones have their roofs still intact but they have no business whatsoever. Most of us are still closed," said Yaqubali, also chairman of the Ladypool Road Business Association.

"The fear is that it will take a tremendous amount of time before we can get back to normal."

Some 500 chefs, waiters and others earn their living in the balti belt.

Rocneddin Shariat, from the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: "Ladypool Road, as part of the balti belt, is very important for Birmingham. It's one of the jewels in the crown of Birmingham."

"There's a vital need for information that the majority of Ladypool Road is open for business."

Sunbelt Discovers Major ID Theft Ring

Jack M. Germain, newsfactor.com Mon Aug 8, 2:40 PM ET

According to Florida security software firm Sunbelt Software, both the Federal Bureau of Investigation (
FBI) and the
Secret Service are looking into evidence of a possible international identity theft ring the company discovered last Thursday.


Sunbelt President Alex Eckelberry announced the discovery of the spyware ring in a blog on his company's Web site on Friday. He provided more details in blog entries over the weekend.

Phil Owens, Sunbelt's product manager of security tools, and David Bove, Sunbelt's director of spyware research, said the company's spyware researcher, Patrick Jordan, discovered suspicious server activity that was delivering malicious spyware late Thursday.

They said Jordan discovered a keylogger program running on a test computer and traced that file's payload location to the source, where he succeeded in accessing stolen information in a large text file stored there.

Keylogger programs are secretly installed spyware components that capture information entered into computers without the users' knowledge. The text file generated by the keylogger program contained bank account numbers, financial URLs, user identifications, search terms, social security numbers, credit cards, user passwords and eBay (Nasdaq: EBAY - news) account information.

Scale Unimaginable

Ekelberry wrote in a blog entry on Saturday that the text file contained information from thousands of zombies, or spyware-compromised computers. "The scale is unimaginable," he wrote.

Ekelberry's blog said that Jordan was doing research on an exploit when he discovered the theft ring. Jordan found that the machine he was testing became a spam zombie during the course of his research. He noticed a call-back to a remote server where he found "an incredibly sophisticated criminal identity theft ring."

According to Eckelberry, the server domain to which Jordan traced the call back is registered to a foreign entity. However, the server itself is in the U.S.

Evidence of Spyware

Sunbelt's Owens and Bove said the keylogging-generated text file was growing at 200 KB per hour. It contained banking information from user accounts from around the world. "The information was in more than one language, but we were able to work with the information sent to the server in English," they said.

They watched the date and time stamps get appended to the text file at the receiving URL for several hours. They also observed the URL's operators take down the text file periodically, presumably to process the stolen information, then put the text file back online.

"That was quite a scary database they were accumulating," said Owens. "We watched data get reported from multiple time zones."

Contacted Some Victims

Owens said he and Bove notified Eckelberry Thursday night about their discovery. Together, trying to figure out what the keylogging program was doing, the company officials accessed several of the bank accounts using information Jordan obtained from the text file on the rogue server.

"We logged directly into two accounts. One account held US$350,000; the other one had $11,000. The accounts were readily accessible for electronic transactions," Owens said.

"It was actually quite a scary experience when we were logging onto bank sites," said Bove.

They contacted those two account holders about the identity theft and contacted the FBI Thursday night.

Victims Jeopardized

Eckelberry wrote in his blog that company officials were so disturbed by the impact of the identity theft on some of the victims that they were compelled to contact them right away.

"We contacted individuals who were in direct jeopardy of losing a considerable amount of money," he wrote.

Eckelberry said he personally contacted one family in Alabama whose father was recovering from heart surgery and had very little money. All of their financial and personal information was exposed.

"We were able to warn them in time before they were seriously hurt," he said.

Damn plane's been delayed by nearly six hours- bang goes my plans for the rest of the day.

Good morning, (high noon) WA2K radio fans.

Thanks to all our many contributors for the music, bios, and alerts, and a "there, there" to Mr. Mom in Manchester.

After a bit of the black stuff, I shall return to review all of the wonderful contributions made by our staff.