News – Gas Prices High

US

Bush is being pressured to stop feeding oil into the national reserve at a time when US gas prices are approaching an all time high. The administration isn’t budging from its position that the national re serve should not be touched save in times of emergency. Personally, I’m inclined to agree. We already have enough dipping into reserves of money by the government. Perhaps all of this SUV drivers will really feel the fallacy in their decision to tool around to the mall all by themselves in a huge, gas guzzling hunk of shiny junk. Walk, people, you have legs. Besides, gas prices overseas are, in general, higher than they are here as well. Of course, Bush is concerned about high prices, but has released no note of what he intends to do about them. Except subtly urge, through his spokesman Scotty, congress to overhaul US energy policies.

To add to the marriage mess in Oregon, nine gay couples are now suing the state for not recognizing their marriages. It’ll be interesting to see how this pans out when all of the kinks and knots are worked out. Hopefully it will be for the better, this grand resolution.

Richard Foster, the top actuary at the federal agency that runs Medicare and Medicaid, recounted to the House Ways and Means Committee pressures put on him to withold information on the Medicare bill or face dismissal.

A military lawyer chosen by the Pentagon to represent those detained at Guantanimo says that the existing system won’t give them justice.

Zell Miller leads a group of democrats for Bush. They say Kerry has lost touch with the Democratic Party’s past leaders.

Condi says Richard Clarke never said anything to her about his concerns over Iraq. Though Richard seems to have hit big in his testimony for the 9/111 commission. He did first off what no other official has done. He apologized. Did he deliver a KO to the Bush Administration?

The mudslinging is delivered fresh right to your inbox.

Details from the oral arguments in the ‘Under God’ case before the Supreme Court.

Iraq

Testimony from US soldiers sheds new light on the killing of Mazen Dana, Reuters cameraman. Perhaps it wasn’t so reasonable an accident as said before.

One US solder killed, two wounded in a bomb attack on their patrol.

A panel of experts thinks that steps should be taken to combat the higher suicide rate amongst US solders in Iraq, but didn’t think it was of epidemic levels since the levels are lower than the national average for the soldiers age group.

Questions on the accuracy of a poll that says most Iraqis are happier. NEver take any poll seriously.

Israel/Palestine

The academic boycott of Israel gains steam. Near 300 academics from around the world have added their names to an open letter that calls for the heads of Israeli universities to put up if they support the government’s policies in the occupied territories.

Another Palestinian youth, this one 14, is found bomb strapped. What fate awaits the boy is unknown, he hasn’t been released yet.

Arab and Israeli papers spar over the recent doings in the Middle East.

A new opinion piece on the killing of Yassin. And another, saying no tears for Yassin.

Libya

Tony Blair went over to give Gaddafi a handshake for all his disarming.

Egypt

26 people, including three Britons, were given prison sentences for supporting the goals of an illegal Islamist group. The group is called Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami and the sentences are between one to five years.

General

In the Daw of the Dead remake, zombies have gotten speedy. What’s with the break from the shuffling, easy to outrun zombie?

Is Coca Cola faltering?

Online game sales surpass 1 billion.

Today’s Papers has the EU fining MS $603 million and forcing it to sell Windows without Media Player, an international security think-tank offering evidence that Libya’s nuke programs were inflated by evidence provided by the Bush administration, Bremer’s state of Iraq speech and more.

Amusements

Neurotically Yours: FIRST MEETING OF THE CARD CULT (Huh, wha? Card Cult?)

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: Happy birthday. Difficulty: I hate you, but I’m supposed to send you a card anyway

Fark Photoshop Challenge: Theme: April Fools

Train driver overshoots stop by one mile due to talking on cell phone