Thursday, August 25, 2005

Truth & Rec hearings tomorrow and Saturday at at A&T. On the list of speakers: GPD Capt. Rick Ball (as reported by Troublemaker on Sunday -- who says blogs don't break news?); Judge James Long, who presided over the State murder trial after the Nov 3 1979 killings; lawyers for both sides in various trials following the killings; and many more. Thanks, Rick Ball, for your courage. This project has been condemned prematurely by so many people, yet it continues to show promise. We're a long way from the final report, but a useful and fair-minded history of this chapter in Greensboro's history seems possible. Background (scroll to bottom for links to previous posts and articles about the killings and the Commission). 8:26:10 PM   permalink   comment []

Home. Glad to be here. 7:40:07 PM   permalink   comment []

Greta Van Susteren is blogging, and she tries to address the criticism of her show for spending so much time on Natalee Holloway. "We have a missing persons problem -- a giant one," she says. "An epidemic," she calls it. Really? Is that so? It's not just Iraq-war-avoidance emo-porn? No stats are provided to back up her "epidemic" assertion, nor any explanation of how the obsessive coverage of a particular blonde lost in Aruba makes a difference. She also breaks this news: "The criticism does NOT come from the familes of missing people." Also, NYT covers the blog written by NBC news anchor Brian Williams and other staffers. In the Arts section, for some reason. 9:43:43 AM   permalink   comment []

Not everyone who supports the war in Iraq is a dupe of the right wing and/or a major shareholder in Halliburton. Not everyone who opposes the war is oblivious to the threat of terrorism and/or a Known Communist who Hates America. Americans learned from the Vietnam war how to oppose a war without blaming the regular folks who fight it. Recognizing that it is US doctrine to fight for the free flow of oil does not make you a conspiracy theorist. Whether you think it was stupid or clever to invade Iraq, the people running the show deserve to be graded on their execution of the job. 9:02:58 AM   permalink   comment []

New York is swarming with tourists from around the world. Breakfast at my hotel this morning was like eating at the United Nations, except John Bolton didn't yell at anyone. I rode the elevator with an Italian couple and their pretty preschool-aged granddaughter. "Bellissima," the man said to the little girl. It's a cool, sunny day here, perfect for walking the city and having a meal al fresco -- but I'll spend the next 6 hours in a conference room instead. 8:51:48 AM   permalink   comment []

Pogue rounds up Google's new features. 8:37:54 AM   permalink   comment []

Brooks finds some relatively optimistic voices on the Iraqi constitution, although it sounds as if the country may be headed for de facto partition. He quotes former US ambassador Peter Galbraith: "It's not a problem if a country breaks up, only if it breaks up violently. Iraq wasn't created by God. It was created by Winston Churchill." 8:30:58 AM   permalink   comment []

"The big-screen is a black hole of design." Slate's Bryan Curtis considers the impact of huge televisions on living spaces. 7:45:12 AM   permalink   comment []

N&R: "Police officer among those to testify at TRC." The Troublemaker blog reported this on Sunday, and identified the officer as Captain Rick Ball...a nice scoop, and if it turns out to be Ball, an even nicer one. 7:08:04 AM   permalink   comment []