Sunday, November 17, 2002

Grudge match We commonly hear from Democrats that the current backlog of judicial nominations, particularly acute in the Sixth Circuit, can be traced to the actions of Republican Senators, particularly Spencer Abraham of Michigan, in holding up the nominations of several Clinton nominees in the last couple of years of his administration. George Weeks of the Detroit News reminds us today that two of Bush 41's nominees, Henry Saad and John Smietanka, were likewise held hostage by the Democrat-controlled Judiciary Committee ten years ago.  Judge Saad now has a second chance; Mr. Smietanka does not.  Thomas Bray calls on Carl Levin, in particular, to "call off the judicial vendetta" for the good of the country, of Michigan, and of  the Senate. The Israelis and the Palestinians are excellent witnesses to the fact that the practice of making political decisions based on grudges and retribution is a particularly pernicious and destructive process. 3:28:58 PM     Lossless data compression A new compression algorithm has been developed that will speed up the Internet and handheld devices. Its developer: a 17-year-old California high school student.  His reward: a $3,000 scholarship. 9:44:41 AM     Silence on the front Those who extol Moveable Type for the publication of weblogs never mention its conspicuous bug.  Why?  9:21:01 AM     Whales in Lake Michigan Michigan Studies Weekly, a publication for teachers, stated in a recent edition: "Every spring, freshwater whales and freshwater dolphins begin their 1,300-mile migration from Hudson Bay to the warmer waters of Lake Michigan." When a Muskegon teacher contacted the publisher, it first said that it "stood behind the story".  It later found that the information had "come from an internet site intended as a joke". It then pontificated to its readers as it intoned its latest discovery in its quest for knowledge: "We at Studies Weekly want this to be a lesson to you. Not all Web sites are true, and you cannot always believe them." (Can't you just see the finger wagging?)  The whales were first spotted off Grand Haven by patrolling Iraqi submarines. The report does not identify the web site in question, but we will.  It is the Lake Michigan Whale Watching site, published by the Ernie Broglio Marina and Seaplane Lagoon of Lower Shores, Michigan.  In addition to whale watching, Broglio offers "Swim with the Fresh Water Dolphins" sessions twice a month. 7:31:13 AM

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