The Last Ephor

World Cup viewers may top 30 billion : "The 2006 soccer World Cup continues to set television ratings records, with cumulative viewing figures for the month-long tournament expected to exceed 30 billion or five times the total world population." So...we're bringing people from other planets to watch?

SCOTUS has found that the Guantanamo Detainees may not be tried by military courts. Huge, huge news. Further, it finds they must be held in accord with Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions. That means, the torture issue is dead. There is no alacrity here. No Justice departement or US Army guidelines matter any longer. Reaction to the ruling can be seen here. Some are calling it a "huge political gift" . I'm inclined to agree. This is going to suck the air out of the Kos kids as well as Andrew Sullivan. I supported the administrations use of military trials in order to keep information secret. The first World Trade Center bombing pulled the curtain back on sources and methods that were subsequently burned and hampered out ability to track terrorists and listen to their communications. I did not support torture of detainees. Nor did I think there was anything wrong with strong interogations. The problem, as we have seen, is finding and holding that line. On th

Delaware Low Digit Black Tags Plates Marketplace . Because there are some people in Delaware with just too much money. Seriously, if you are spending $500,000 for a license plate, you need to have your head examined.

Twin Lakes Brewing Company saw this on another DE blog (can't remember which one, sorry!) I'll have to try some. Seems they're only selling kegs now which is going to make that prospect difficult. I go to bars about as often as penguins fly. If anyone knows which bars are selling it, please let me know in the comments. Reviews are appreciated as well.

You Are 82% New Jersey! You are definitely Jersey. Well done, my friend. You are most likely from this great state, and you fit right in. Odds are, you love being Jersey! How New Jersey Are You?

Brilliant! miriam's ideas: Let New Jersey be New Jersey : "A word about the drivers in New Jersey. They are aggressive, they drive fast, but they are good drivers generally. Delaware drivers would be killed within a week, if they drove like that in good old NJ." and this: *It's illegal for more than 20 people to get together if they don't serve baked ziti. The authorities are very strict about this.

Awesome! I have to get a pair.

Three cheers for Larry Elison!

Jihad in the days of Jefferson To wit: "Why did the North Africans attack ships of a country that had done nothing to provoke such hostility, the two asked him. The response was unnerving. As Adams and Jefferson later reported to the Continental Congress, the ambassador said the raids were a jihad against infidels. Muslim privateers felt "it was their duty to make war upon them [non-Muslims] wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could as Prisoners, and that every Mussleman [Muslim] who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise." The Americans now had two choices: pay tribute or fight the pirates. " We face the same choice today. Either we fight them and win or we will be dead or dhimmis. Which would you choose?

Armed Liberal askes writes a very pointed article about The Times And Citizenship . Simply put, he says that the Times et al. have put themselves beyond any normal morality. Rather they are of a higher plane, not bound by right and wrong and certainly not patriotism. That frees them from any ethical dilemmas that might arise from the examples as cited. Leftists applaud the NYT for blowing state secrets even when they are not illegal and are helping to defund and track down terrorists. How this is possible is beyond me. No US citizens were under surveilance and no laws were being broken. There was a review by SWIFT officials in Belgium and thereafter by BAH analysts in the States. The program was subject to Congressional oversight as well. Why then, was the program disclosed? The all powerful "public's right to know". Sorry, but there are some things the public doesn't have the right to know. We don't have a right to know performance characteristics o

France v. Spain recap. Great game. Very physical but evenly so. Further, the officiating was better. I'm agnostic as to the result but I think France was ultimately the stronger team and having them advance will only make the next round more interesting. Ghana v. Brazil: Wow. Brazil played on a level that Ghana couldn't even comprehend. It could have been the US team had they made it this far but I think the score would have been even more lopsided. I think Brazil ultimately went easy on Ghana as gesture of kindness. The US team wouldn't have been handled with kid gloves. Ghana was run ragged and Brazil looked like they were ending a warm up game. This is the first time I really saw how strong Brazil is. England v. Argentina looks like it's going to be a great game. Old rivals and strong teams. Maybe Rooney can do something this time.

Cam Edwards has a show on Sirius. I've listened to his show from time to time but after a while it all starts to run together. I can only take so much of the gun control topic before I get bored. Cam has two articles: Day one of the UN gun ban summit and here's day two . If you ask me, the US took the right path. Tell them "No" but stay engaged. Leaving in a huff would be detrimental.

The 10 Weirdest Things Ever Sold On eBay . Some of these are quite innovative. Especially the ghost in the jar.

So Brits like to drink, eh? I'm not sure that's news. Actually, the article only served to make me jealous.

"Bravely dissenting" is phrase I hear often from leftists. Usually talking about the Dixie Chicks or some other "anti-war" people. (This is usually in the same breath that they tell me a majority of Americans are against the war which belies the entire premise but I digress...) This is actual brave dissent . The kind when serious consequences are on the line and I'm not talking about lowered album sales, unpopularity or even losing your job.

I missed this one. Monsignor Denis Faul was a towering figure in Northern Ireland. He stood astride both sides of the conflict by criticizing both. He spoke out strongly against the IRA at the height of their power. Brass ones indeed. He also had no qualms about detailing the abuses by the RUC and other instruments of state. He was a rare breed and the Irish are poorer without him. I don't think they'll see his like again.

Christopher Hitchens asks some very pointed questions in his article, Peace and Quiet - Four projects for righteous anti-war types. I throw it over to De La Where and Delawareliberal to answer why they, as opponents of this war, are not flying to Baghdad to act as a human shield to protect innocent Iraqis.

Remember the insurgency is led by Iraqis fighting the occupiers for control of their homeland. Or not. Iraq PM unveils unity proposals : "The BBC's Jim Muir in Baghdad says there are concerns that Mr Maliki's plan will not work as it does not seek reconciliation with those at the heart of the insurgency - the radical Islamists, many of them foreigners, who want Iraq to be the centre of a new Islamic empire." So the Beeb finally admits the al-Qaeda is a significant source of the terror sown on a daily basis. I suppose that's progress.

Was Saddam Regime a Broker for Terror Alliances? It appears so. The documents are slowly being translated and the I predict we're going to see a trickle and then a flood of documents confirming Iraq was in bed with terrorists and specifically, al-Qaeda. Operationally, ideologically and functionally. None of this will make any difference to the "anti-war" crowd. They'll just move the goalposts again. Then it will be that Saddam may have supported al-Qaeda but he didn't support the attacks on America and didn't know in advance. Or that he only wanted to attack Israel. Most likely it will be that Saddam only supported them because of US policy and if we had just left Iraq alone we could have avoided the whole thing.

13 things that do not make sense . My list is a bit longer but this was quite the eye opener.

Jason has a post (@5:38 AM!) Delawareliberal: China's Central Bank: Countries should rely less on dollar (I posted a redacted version of this post in the comments there) The post makes no sense. The Chinese are attempting to diversify their holdings as a hedge against fluctuations. The Chinese hold a great deal of currency as well as bonds. So much so that they're inextricably linked to us. (The old saying is that if you owe the bank $1,000 they own you. If you owe them $1,000,000 you own the bank) The US dollar isn't in danger of collapsing. That the dollar is showing downward pressure isn't necessarily a bad thing either. It makes our exports cheaper. China is looking at major problems with their banking system and this may be related. As part of the WTO they have to open their books to auditors which analysts predict will show major problems. If they are correct and China has been robbing Peter to pay Paul we would be very happy if they had fewer US backed h

Mike M. embraces his dellusion . That's right, he agrees with Saddam that only Saddam can quell the insurgency. I hardly know where to start. The terrorists fighting in Iraq now are not fighting to put Saddam back in power. They are seeking to replace him. They want to kill as many Americans, Shia and rivals as possible.

Even God hates the IRS. TaxProf Blog: Rain Forces Closure of IRS Headquarters

Forgive Us Our Spins : Michael Moore and the Future of the Left . Interesting. A Sista Soulja moment from the left again. Both parties a in the midst of a shakeup. As Peggy Noonan pointed out, neither party likes their members. They tolerate them as a means of staying employed. They think you are stupid, easily led and need someone like them to tell you what's best for you. That's a very dangerous place for our country to be. Add to that the gerrymandering and gaming of the ethics system by the professional politicians who have been in their offices for decades and it becomes that much more tenuous. I have frequent exchanges with partisans on both sides who think their party is the noble, white knight of unimpeachable character and the other party is filled with dastardly fellows out to screw everyone for their own personal enrichment and gain. It is abundantly clear that the amount of time you spend in Washington is directly proportional to the amount of graft and co

Andrew Sullivan doesn't understand his own faith. He goes on an on about how he's Catholic and how he has a better grasp on matters theological than the Magesterium. Yet he doesn't even understand the sacrement he wants most. If one is not married in the Catholic Church, that marriage is not recognized by the Church. End of story. Update: Sully gets mail and gets a clue but not without the requisite dose of snark and shallow thinking.

John Snow has some choice words for Bill Keller and his ilk. I have no doubt that they were only interested in the program because it was a secret and because leaking it might hurt the Administration. Further, they are hoping and praying (well, maybe just hoping, praying is for rubes) they'll be tried with treason, sedition or at least leaking classified information which would allow them to martyr themselves. Here's hoping.

Katrina fiascos cost us $2 billion . Nothing like abuse to kill the American spirit of compassion. I don't want to hear one word about the plight of Katrina victims any more. Sorry, I'm done. You squandered the good will and the money we sent you. Now you're on your own. The next time you get walloped with a hurricane and things are bad, look elsewhere for help. You remain unprepared and unorganized. The idiot Mayor and their lackwitted Governor are going to send their state over the cliff again this year. Let New Orleans go and rebuild it somewhere sensible this time.

Earlier I was pointing out the necessary role the ACLU fills and this video How to Avoid being Arrested by Cops is a prime example. The man in the video is the same former director that was so distressed by the ACLU muzzling it's members. Watch the video. This should be part of civics classes in high schools. He wisely points out again and again that you have to be respectful but do not roll over. I've been strong armed by cops in the past and unnecessarily so. I have more than a few cops in the family so I treat them with the utmost respect and am damn glad they do the job they do. That said, there's always that one that has something to prove. He's the one you have to watch for and know how to deal with.

Australia was robbed. Simply awful officiating and even bad acting that got Italy the win. The SocceRoos were incredulous and rightly so. I was pulling for them as the scrappy underdog/Cinderella story. The USA losing was bad but they deserved to lose and played to lose. Not so the Australian. The Italians only brought their A game after they were a man down. Losing is hard enough but losing over a bullshit call like that is tragic.

A Rebellion Grows Within the ACLU After 'Earthquake' . Maybe there's a glimmer of hope. I'm no fan of the ACLU but they are there for a reason. Once in a blue moon they lose their minds and support something actually in line with the Constitution. If they ever discover that Amendment between I and III it would be a miracle.

Soccer's top official joins criticism of referees . Welcome to the club. It's called "Everyone". Fat lot of good you're going to do by jumping on board now. Our boys were already sent packing with some questionable calls in tow. They're giving cards for the most mild fouls. I'd rather see them go after the actors who fake falls and injuries. I hate that crap.

State of the Union . Fascinating. It's a compendium of all the State of The Union addresses. The internet has everything. Simply amazing.

And This Guy Was Almost President? Read it. Senator MarryMoney gets a full broadside and rightly so.

ANTI-AMERICAN FILM TO BE FEATURED AT MUSLIM FILM FESTIVAL in San Francisco. The only surprise here is that it's the only anti-American film mentioned.