in a few days

we're all going to have to use ALL TEN DIGITS to dial connecticut phone numbers. yes, even if it's to your next door neighbor

Nine Days To 10-Digit Dialing
The Hartford Courant

Your fingers are about to work a little harder.

Starting Nov. 14, all telephone calls made in Connecticut will need an area code -- even to your next-door neighbor, even to your spouse upstairs. Cellphone calls are no exception. Calls outside the local calling area will still need a 1 before the area code, while local calls will require 10-digit dialing, without the 1.

The move is part of the state's evolution to two new area codes. Starting Dec. 12, new numbers given out in the 203 area code could carry an area code of 475. Sometime in 2010, new numbers in the 860 area could be assigned with a 959 area code...........

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oh my goddess, i'm going to wet my pants

THE funniest jokes i have EVER HEARD

please click the link and read them all. pee BEFORE you read them though

10 jokes about Joe Lieberman & his threat to filibuster any health care bill which includes a public option
by David Rees


via

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i HOPE this is good news

it sure SOUNDS like good news at the outset. it couldn't hurt either the fair citizens of new britain or connecticut. we'll have to watch and make sure there are no (more) job cuts either here OR there

Stanley to buy Black & Decker for $4.5 billion in stock

Stanley Works agreed to buy Black & Decker Corp. for $4.5 billion in stock, in a deal that will enable the companies — household names in the U.S. tools industry — to cut costs and exert more influence on pricing. (Wall Street Journal)

Both companies have felt the pressures of the recession, particularly given their close links with the housing industry. The companies expect the combination, which has been approved by both companies’ boards, will result in savings of $350 million a year and to add to earnings by the third year.

The transaction would represent “a landmark move in the tools industry” and one that makes strong sense as the housing market resumes some growth and raw materials prices rebound, said Brian Sozzi, retail analyst at Wall Street Strategies. Together the companies have greater purchasing power.j........................

Stanley Works Shares Rise After Purchase Of Black & Decker

By ERIC GERSHON The Hartford Courant
Wall Street cheered The Stanley Works' purchase of Black & Decker Corp. today, sending shares of Stanley up strongly after executives made their case for the creation of a merged tools giant with large cost savings.

Stanley shares closed at $49.61 on the New York Stock Exchange, up $4.46, or 9.9 percent from Monday's close on a flat day for the Dow – indicating that investors believe the acquisition will boost Stanley's per-share performance. Shares of the companies making large acquisitions often slump immediately after an announcement.

Shares of Towson, Maryland-based Black & Decker closed at $62, up a whopping 31 percent.

The companies said late Monday they had agreed to combine, forming Stanley Black & Decker, with headquarters in New Britain and Stanley's top executives running the company. Black & Decker shareholders would receive 1.275 shares of Stanley stock for each of their old shares. At Monday's close, that would have been a 22 percent premium for Black & Decker shareholders.

In a conference call with analysts early in the day, Stanley CEO John Lundgren and Black & Decker CEO Nolan Archibald said the first order of business would be the integration of the businesses -- a task Lundgren called "a huge challenge," given their scale...........

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this is sort of a big deal.

if you live or work or hang in the enfield area, be aware there were FOUR CASES OF RABIES found there recently. that's a LOT of rabies and remember, that's only what they've found.

in additon to HUMANS BEING CAREFUL, have your pets vaccinated against rabies. not as a favor to me, BUT BECAUSE IT'S THE LAW

Enfield Police Warn Residents of Rabid Animals

Four Wild Animals Test Positive For Rabies

By BEN SOSENKO

Raccoons may look cute, but don't get too close. A young girl in Enfield learned the hard way. She bent over to take a picture of the furry fellow, and was scratched. It turns out the raccoon tested positive for rabies.

That wasn't the only case of rabies. In fact, four animals in Enfield have come back from the lab as rabid since September.

"Rabies can be a deadly disease," said Ashley McMann, an Enfield animal control officer. "Definitely people should be cautious."

McMann says people should stay away from not only wild animals, but any animal they are not familiar with. She said just because an animal looks nice, does not mean it's not dangerous. Also, animal control is saying that pet owners need to be aware as well.............

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blessed be

The Fairies

Up the airy mountain
Down the rushy glen,
We daren't go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl's feather.
Down along the rocky shore
Some make their home,
They live on crispy pancakes
Of yellow tide-foam;
Some in the reeds
Of the black mountain-lake,
With frogs for their watch-dogs,
All night awake.

High on the hill-top
The old King sits;
He is now so old and gray
He's nigh lost his wits.
With a bridge of white mist
Columbkill he crosses,
On his stately journeys
From Slieveleague to Rosses;
Or going up with music,
On cold starry nights,
To sup with the Queen,
Of the gay Northern Lights.

They stole little Bridget
For seven years long;
When she came down again
Her friends were all gone.
They took her lightly back
Between the night and morrow;
They thought she was fast asleep,
But she was dead with sorrow.
They have kept her ever since
Deep within the lake,
On a bed of flag leaves,
Watching till she wake.

By the craggy hill-side,
Through the mosses bare,
They have planted thorn trees
For pleasure here and there.
Is any man so daring
As dig them up in spite?
He shall find the thornies set
In his bed at night.

Up the airy mountain
Down the rushy glen,
We daren't go a-hunting,
For fear of little men;
Wee folk, good folk,
Trooping all together;
Green jacket, red cap,
And white owl's feather.

 -- William Allingham

i hope this IS nothing

there's absolutely NO news on this other than the tiny bit below

Suspicious Package Closes Streets Around Hospital

Hartford police and the bomb squad are investigating after a suspicious package was found outside an obstetrician and gynecology office in Hartford on Thursday morning.

The office is located at Jefferson and Main streets and police closed streets surrounding Hartford Hospital and the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. The area has been evacuated, but the Barney building at Hartford Hospital is the only one affected, Hartford Hospital spokeswoman Lee Monroe said. Four people were working in that building................

no need for me to comment

robert scheer has said it all

oh, ok. ONE comment. as always, i think da liebs is a GIANT PILE O' STEAMIN' SHITE

Lieberman Twists the Knife

by Robert Scheer

Is there a more hypocritical figure in American politics than Joe Lieberman? The Connecticut senator declared Tuesday that he would support a filibuster of any health care reform bill that has a public option—even the version with the “trigger” compromise accepted by Republican Sen. Olympia Snowe—because it might cost money.

“I think that a lot of people may think that the public option is free,” said Lieberman, one of the Senate’s big spenders, in a suddenly frugal mood. “It’s not. It’s going to cost the taxpayers and people that have health insurance now, and if it doesn’t, it’s going to add terribly to our national debt.”

This from a senator who, as much as anyone, helped run up the national debt since 9/11 by pushing to raise the military budget to its highest level since World War II. It is a budget inflated by enormous expenditures on high-tech weaponry irrelevant to combating terror, such as the $2-billion-a-piece submarines—produced in his home state of Connecticut—that he claimed were needed to combat al-Qaida, a landlocked enemy holed up in caves. The same week that he and others in Congress passed a $680-billion defense bill larded with pork of the sort he has always supported, Lieberman is worried about the impact of a very limited public option on the debt....

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asylum avenue

in west hartford is closed. it appears it's closed somewhere between trout brook and ballard or griswold. so find an alternate route

i can't find anything online, but on the news, they said a construction worker was hurt quite badly last night. he was struck by a car. i'll keep him in my thoughts.

those wild and wacky connecticut repugs

get 33 bogus accounts tossed (or tos'd as in terms of service) from twitter. i for one couldn't be happier.

however, they (the repugs) have several websites in the NAME OF DEMOCRATS which they refuse to take down. goddess only knows what types of shite they're printing. is this junior high school?

i have always had issues with politicians pointing fingers and saying he did or she did or she did not or he did not. i want to know what the eff YOU are doing or not doing, NOT what the other person is doing or not doing. STAND ON YOUR OWN MERITS (and that isn't peculiar to repugs, i know)

this is just downright distasteful. then again, when you're sinking you reach for ANYTHING

hey chris healy GROW THE HELL UP (is it REALLY free speech if i opened a chris healy, republican web site and acted like i was you....and printed all sorts of stuff i made up? how would YOU feel? would you try to stop me? would you call the authorities on me? OR, would you allow me to say all sorts of shite as i pretended to be you ALL IN THE NAME OF FREE SPEECH??? well chris, that sounds sort of like a plan. i'm actually going to mull it over. careful what you wish for)


uh oh chris, i don't EVEN have to pretend to be you and make shite up! you are doing a GREAT JOB of shitting in your OWN pants

BREAKING: State GOP Chair Chris Healy Arrested for DUI note: that's from 2007

Republicans Overtweet
Twitter shuts down 33 fake accounts created by state Republicans in an attempt to lambast Dems
By Gregory B. Hladky

Barack Obama's victory last year left many Republicans bemoaning their party's ineptitude when it came to political exploitation of the Web. Democrats, they admitted, were far ahead in the art of using the Internet to seduce voters.

So Connecticut Republicans decided it was time to boldly forge into the 21st century, only to stumble when one of their decidedly deceptive experiments ran into trouble last week.

Twitter, Inc., shut down 33 fake Twitter accounts created by Republicans using the names of Democratic state representatives. The Republican scheme was to send out posts under the Democrats' names mocking the liberal tax-and-spend bastards.

"That's unfortunate," was state Republican Chairman Chris Healy's response when told of Twitter, Inc.'s decision. "I'm not quite sure what the issue is, other than that the Democrats were successful in stopping free speech."................

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i was going to write about the

gangs in hartford schools disaster (i don't mean the gangs i mean the lies spewing forth regarding them). i don't have to because helen
ubinas did it. the comments on her article however, are shocking to
me. some of them think helen had ulterior motives. some of them
claimed helen was a hack.

well i don't personally KNOW helen, but i don't think she has any
other motive other than to tell a story the way she sees it

it has been PROVEN (by proven, the parties involved ADMITTED they
didn't 'tell the entire truth' and/or, they said they were
'misunderstood' (i.e. COVERUP).

sorry if the truth hurts BUT IT DOES

AS ANYONE WITH A BRAIN KNOWS (especially the parents of the students
of the hartford school system) THERE ARE GANGS NOT ONLY IN HARTFORD
BUT IN THE SCHOOLS

'not meeting the federal definition of gangs' my big fat ass

king eddie HAS GOT TO GO (he's not the only one at fault BUT after all
he IS king)


Hartford School Superintendent Gave Parents A Show Of Arrogance, Disrespect
Helen Ubiñas
If I hadn't witnessed Hartford School Superintendent Steven Adamowski
berating parents for having the nerve to press for a public discussion
about gangs in city schools, I'd never have truly appreciated how deep
his disrespect runs.

He scolded Milly Arciniegas for allowing the press to attend the
meeting in a tone better reserved for a student than an involved
parent who also happens to be the president of the Hartford Parent
Organization Council.

He accused her of trying to call attention to her candidacy for the
school board.

And then he sniffed at the handful of parents in attendance; as if
such a small group wasn't worth his time.

"I'm very disappointed," he said.

"Wow," one of the other mothers mouthed.

Wow indeed. ........

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et tu van?

$353.00?????????? no way. and at a casino????????????????// no way.


van morrison is my favorite in the entire universe. i love him. i had never seen him until just a few years ago. someone i insulted (because i believed he insulted me first. he claims he didn't but i know he did. i can be BRUTAL and of course i was. i ended up apologizing. as it turned out he had some connections) gave a friend of mine (for me) 2 tickets to go see van. i didn't get them until a few days after the incident. as i said, it was a surprise. i cried when i got them. i cried when i saw van morrison too.

solomon burke was his opening act. he blew me away. by the time van came on i was beside myself. i was absolutely silent and still and in awe for the WHOLE concert (there was a point for just a few seconds i had to direct my attention to someone sitting right in front of me. again, as i said, i can be brutal and THAT incident ended immediately).

there was no small talk. there was no chatting to the audience. there was just raw, beautiful, powerful soul and music. that said, you can see how much i love him. but i would NOT pay $353.00 to see him

van, i still love you the best and i always will. you ARE the best. i'll follow you into the mystic

Van Morrison Doing 'Astral Weeks' In Waterbury, At Foxwoods

By ERIC DANTON The Hartford Courant

These days, an artist who released an album as poorly received as "Astral Weeks" was upon its debut in 1968 would find himself dropped in no time.

Instead, Van Morrison kept making records, and "Astral Weeks" grew in reputation like some half-forgotten secret, gathering word-of-mouth momentum until it was viewed as a landmark album — not only Morrison's best but one of the best of all time.

At once intimate and inscrutable, the album is an experimental masterpiece contrasting simple acoustic guitar with complicated percussion and lush string arrangements on eight songs mixing folk, soul and jazz. It's a powerful collection that has resonated deeply enough with fans over the years to land at No. 19 on Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the 500 best albums of all time.

Last year, 40 years after the release of "Astral Weeks," Morrison revived the album for a handful of performances in Los Angeles and New York, marking the first time he had ever performed many of the songs in concert. He reprises "Astral Weeks" at shows Saturday in Waterbury and Wednesday at MGM Grand at Foxwoods...........

caravan from the last waltz (with the band backing him up)

van morrison 5 part interview with the cbc

it's not what it seems




if you can shake your ass, i guess it must be all right


holy shite, van yucking it up with regis and kelly????????????


pic: Van Morrison sings in concert at the Tower Theater July 10, 2008 in Upper Darby, Penn. (TOM GRALISH, MCT / July 10, 2008)

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..................

i'm afraid of ALL bugs (even ants)

EXCEPT for lady bugs. we had tons of them on our windows at work yesterday (and i work on the fourth floor). they WERE swarming all about. it was kinda cool actually

(and for the record i'm not afraid of snakes or rats or the like. JUST BUGS)

When Ladybugs Attack

By LEANNE GENDREAU and BEN SOSENKO

If you’ve seen ladybugs crawling all over the place today, you’re not alone.

The little crawlers -- also called Multicolored Asian Lady Beetle -- are out in force because the Nor’easter forced them, like the rest of us, indoors, according to the state entomologist.

Then, the suns came, and the bugs came out, looking for a place to winter. Miami, anyone?

In the meantime, they are apparently popping up everywhere, especially light-colored houses, the entomologist said. Not that Google and Twitter are scientific tools, but people from all over are posting about swarms and infestations of the bugs, so it seems Connecticut is not the only ladybug-central Tuesday.......

pic: Getty Images

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an update on the death of jasper howard

Lawyer says an arrest imminent in death of UConn player

By Pat Eaton-Robb Associated Press


Attorney: Police Questioning Bloomfield Man In UConn Stabbing
By DAVE ALTIMARI, DAVID OWENS and CHRISTINE DEMPSEY The Hartford Courant

STORRS - Police have questioned -- but not arrested -- a Bloomfield man about his possible role in the stabbing death of a University of Connecticut football player over the weekend, a Hartford attorney said.

Deron Freeman said he represents a man who was questioned Sunday in connection with the killing of Jasper Howard. He declined to identify his client, but did say he is one of four men UConn police view as "main suspects."

Pictures: UConn Mourns Death Of Jasper Howard

UConn police arrived at the man's home Sunday and asked him to follow them back to Storrs for questioning, Freeman said Monday night. "He voluntarily submitted himself to questioning," the lawyer said.

The man's family contacted Freeman on Sunday because "police were questioning him for quite some time," Freeman said. He contacted police, told them he represented the man and told them to stop questioning him..........

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what?

how could this happen? (well how could any violence happen). how could this happen on school grounds? what is inside of someone's mind allowing them to be able to stab (or shoot) another person?

i can get very angry indeed. i have never wanted to kill someone. EVER

jasper howard was 20. he was going to be a father. to his family, his friends, his teammates, my thoughts and prayers are with you

to whoever did this, you too are in my thoughts but for a totally different reason

UConn Football Player Killed In Campus Stabbing
By DESMOND CONNER The Hartford Courant
STORRS - About nine hours after his Huskies walked off Rentschler Field with a victory over Louisville, after a press conference filled with smiles and platitudes, UConn football coach Randy Edsall's phone rang. When the phone rings at that hour, Edsall said, it's never good.

Edsall would have to go to St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford to identify a body.

Pictures: Jasper Howard's Career At UConn

Jasper Howard, a 5-foot-9, 174-pound junior cornerback for the Huskies, was dead after an on-campus stabbing early Sunday.

Howard, 20, who was soon to become a father, was stabbed near the Student Union. Police also said a second stabbing victim, a male who was with Howard, is not being identified but was treated and released from the hospital.

After he identified the body, Edsall broke the news to Howard's family and to the UConn players.

"There's nothing written in the manual in how to deal with these situations," Edsall said at an emotional press conference. "But I know this — this is a strong team, with strong leadership, and we'll get through it."....

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read this story and if your jaw doesn't drop

like mine did, there is something wrong with you

a psychologist uses info from a patient he was treating to have an affair with the patient's wife. that's NOT the jaw dropping part. people are human. some are good and some are evil flaming assholes (i'm not pointing fingers in this story, i'm just saying some people are ok and some aren't). the jaw dropping point is

THE STATE Board of Examiners of Psychologists put the creature (the therapist) on probation for two years ALLOWING HIM TO CONTINUE TO PRACTICE. i hope every single person in connecticut reads this story. they can then make up their OWN minds if they would wish to be treated by a therapist who did such a thing. and i think you all know what i'm saying here.........


Threat Of Discipline Hangs Over Psychologist Accused Of Violating Patient Confidentiality
By ARIELLE LEVIN BECKER The Hartford Courant
A North Stonington psychologist is accused of having an inappropriate affair with the wife of one patient and of violating confidentiality rules with another.

Rick Blinderman was having trouble with his marriage, so he turned to therapy.

He started sessions with Reuben Spitz, a North Stonington psychologist.

It didn't turn out the way Blinderman had hoped.

He stopped the therapy in 2004, after less than a year. Months later, the therapist began having an affair with Blinderman's wife, Lori. And, court records say, Spitz used confidential details he learned in his therapy sessions with Rick Blinderman to convince Lori Blinderman to leave her husband.

The state Board of Examiners of Psychologists ruled that Spitz's affair with Lori Blinderman violated ethical standards and it put his license on probation for two years, allowing him to continue practicing with supervision. Spitz admitted to the affair but denied that it violated professional standards because he never treated her. He has appealed the board's ruling.........

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ravings of a semi-sane madwoman: now wait a minute..............

ravings of a semi-sane madwoman: now wait a minute..............

see amy and molly, this was NOT me

yet another nunchuck wavin' ninja wantin' to beat on da liebs. but it's NOT me. even though i really really really do NOT like da liebs, i don't want to beat him up (or anyone else). i'm a nonviolent ninja

Vernon "Ninja" Who Wanted To Beat Up Lieberman Arrested
By REGINE LABOSSIERE The Hartford Courant

VERNON - A man dressed as a ninja waving nunchucks on a street corner this morning was arrested and charged with breach of peace, police said......... ............Police said Garland Eastman, 30, of 335 Center Road, was yelling about wanting to beat up U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman, among other diatribes, but he became polite and cooperative after officers started pulling out their bean bags and taser guns. He was released to Rockville General Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation................

pic: chocosho plushies

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this is shocking and unbelievable

what? that domestic violence happens? HELL NO. it happens in poor homes, in rich homes. in amish homes, in hindu homes, in white homes, in asian homes, in homes where there are kids and homes where there are no kids. most of the time it happens to women, but it does happen to men as well. it happens MOST of the time behind closed doors although sometimes right out in the open. so why am i shocked? this article states THERE IS AN AVERAGE OF A 20% CONVICTION RATE. what? 20% conviction rate? that is sick-making. that is a crime in itself.

are we not worth protecting? are we not taking domestic violence seriously? (the answers to those two questions is no and no obviously)

it's a crime stemming from insecurity. the abusers want POWER and CONTROL. a 2 day stay in the slammer isn't going to 'cure' that (and neither is a forced enrollment in some half-assed class by the way).

how many murders or near murders stemming from domestic violence have happened in connecticut of late? think about it


Courts In Connecticut Vary Widely On Handling Increasing Number Of Domestic Violence Cases

By JOSH KOVNER The Hartford Courant
BRIDGEPORT — - Jaime Acosta, with a two-year jail term hanging over his head for a domestic violence offense, squirms as he stands before Judge Maria Kahn in Superior Court.

He's in the crowded family violence courtroom for a progress report, and the judge has just reminded him he's got a choice: Finish an intensive batterers-intervention program and see the prison sentence and his guilty plea erased, or go to jail. Acosta opts for the program.

"Oh, and he's still having the jealousy issues," prosecutor Judy Stevens says of the 48-year-old Acosta. "I'll ask the program to address that in the classes," Stevens tells the judge, nodding at Roseanne Esposito, who is sitting a few feet away with a notebook on her lap. Esposito's agency runs the batterers' program.

Sounds simple, but this example of the teamwork in Bridgeport, and the fact that specially assigned prosecutors, public defenders, family-relations staffers and a judge handle every domestic violence case that comes into the courthouse, sets Bridgeport apart from many of the other courts in Connecticut.

Despite an increasing family violence caseload statewide, there remains a wide disparity in the way state courts handle these cases, from pushing defendants to go through intense programs under the threat of jail to going little beyond the standard prosecution..................

i understand loving your child

no matter what. i get THAT part. i don't get the part where you lie for them. where you actually FABRICATE FALSE EVIDENCE. where you deny they are capable of wrong doing when in fact you know in your heart of hears they ARE let's say sex offenders criminals. putting all that aside, to purposely lie to keep your child out of jail when you KNOW if that child is out of jail they most likely WILL CONTINUE TO hurt girls commit crimes..................that is beyond my understanding

if i were the judge and/or the prosecutor i would NOT allow that parent to see their incarcerated child AND i would impose a very heavy sentence upon them AND MAKE THEM DO THE WHOLE STINT
Sex Offender's Mother Gets Probation For Perjury
By DAVID OWENS The Hartford Courant

ROCKVILLE - The mother of a sex offender from Tolland has admitted that she lied during a court hearing two years ago as she tried to keep her son from being sent to jail.

Gail Shefelbine, 67, pleaded guilty to a single count of perjury in Superior Court and was sentenced to 18 months of probation. She'd initially faced nine counts of perjury.

Shefelbine was arrested in November 2008 after an inspector in the Tolland State's Attorney's office found evidence that she had lied and tried to fabricate evidence during a July 2007 hearing where the state sought to revoke Scott Shefelbine's bail and send him to jail.

Shefelbine, who's serving a 20-year sentence for sexually assaulting five girls, ages 14 to 18, was free on $1.5 million bail at the time and being electronically monitored as his case was pending. A judge also ordered that he not leave his parents' Mountain Springs Road home except for medical and legal appointments and church...........

don't forget my little chickies

it's the hartford marathon tomorrow!


(By

Jeffrey B. Cohen

)

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the following letter was sent to the hartford courant

and as far as i can tell was NOT published there. i believe mr drescher also sent it on to the manchester journal inquirer and i do believe it WAS published there.

as you are aware, smoke, fire and angels by mark robinson is a book and a subject that is near and dear to my heart. i was beyond appalled the courant prominently featured the OTHER book all over the front page for DAYS as well as all over their website for DAYS. it sickened ME and it sure as shite should have sickened the rest of the state world. the OTHER book never should have happened anyway. PERIOD. the OTHER book was written NOT to explain a story but to make a profit. of that i am sure

unlike the evil ugly filth spewed forth in the OTHER book, smoke, fire and angels tells the story of everyday brave heroic people. unlike the OTHER book, the proceeds from smoke fire and angels is going to a fund for the victims of the avon mountain accident.

just needed to get that off of my chest

and i'd like to thank mr drescher for his graciousness

Courant readers learned about two new books last week. The first is about the deadly Avon Mountain crash in 2005, written by Mark Robinson, a survivor. Based on interviews with other survivors, rescue workers and officials, the self-published book is an inspiring account of people coming together to save lives and help the injured. It is a remarkable effort. The author has earmarked all proceeds of sales to a fund to help other survivors. On Friday, the Courant placed a brief item about the book under Farmington Valley Local News.

The next day, the Courant reported on another new book, apparently based largely on the account of one of the accused killers of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her daughters in 2007. This article appeared at the top of page 1 and jumped inside. The article says the author spoke with the accused three times in jail, and received letters from him describing his own relatively passive role in the events. Neither of the accused has yet come to trial. The article included lurid descriptions from the book and a self-congratulatory quote from the author.

The Courant’s treatment of these two books is striking. The crime-based book receives front-page attention, timed with developments in the pending trials of the accused killers. Robinson’s book gets a footnote. The Courant editors have delivered their own verdict on the significance of these books. I invite readers to decide which of the two is more deserving of their time, attention and money.

Howard Drescher

Mansfield Center

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flowers

i wanted to link to

clearwater initiative. the more i read about u.s. army captain benjamin a. sklaver, the more i know how special he was
 Soldier Killed In Afghanistan Remembered As Hero, Humanitarian
By PETER MARTEKA The Hartford Courant


and another story:

Statement on the death of Cpt. Benjamin A. Sklaver

Editor's Note:

Ben Sklaver, 32, is the first cousin of Jodi Summit, of Tower, Minn. He was killed Friday while on patrol in Aghanistan. This statement is provided for regular readers of the Timberjay as well as media from across the country that are reporting on his death.


STATEMENT:
The family and friends of Benjamin A. Sklaver mourned his death and celebrated his inspirational life during funeral services held Tuesday, Oct. 6, at Congregation Mishkan Israel, in Hamden, Conn.
The son of Gary and Laura Sklaver, of Hamden, Army Captain Sklaver was killed Oct. 2 by a suicide bomber while on foot patrol in the Afghan village of Murcheh, located in Kandahar province in southwestern Afghanistan. A fellow U.S. soldier and an Afghan interpreter were also killed in the blast.
While Ben was just 32 years old, he had already made a tremendous mark in the world. A 1999 graduate of Tufts University, he went on to obtain a graduate degree in Law and Diplomacy from the Fletcher School, also at Tufts. He took a particular interest in assisting refugees and the poor in Africa. During his studies at the Fletcher School, he volunteered for the Army Reserve and following completion of his degree, he served with the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta in that agency’s International Emergency and Refugee Health Branch..........
pic: Army Captain Benjamin Sklaver hands out soccer balls to a group of children in Djibouti in 2006.  

it's not so much her failure to vote in other elections

although i DO think that is reprehensible. i have voted since i turned 18. i believe i've only missed voting in two elections since then (and they were minor ones, but still i feel guilt over them). as a general rule, there is NO excuse for an american to make it a practice NOT to vote.

BUT that's not what bothers me the most about linda. what bothers me the most is her being part of an organization that brutalizes women, portrays them in negative lights and yes, even has MEN hitting women.

she could be mother theresa (but i am not mother theresa's biggest fan i must admit) but her acceptance and promotion of an organization that hinders and mistreats women is enough to say SHITE ON HER

violence against women is just wrong. period. even if it's play acting

A Senate Candidate Accustomed to Being Thrown in the Ring 

By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ

She emerges from an apparent coma and kicks her cheating husband in the groin. In a showdown with her daughter, she goes flying to the mat after her daughter smacks her in the face. And, after a black-booted bald man hoists her feet-first in the air, she falls on her back, bouncing slightly in her business suit before splaying helplessly on the ground. 

As Linda E. McMahon and her husband built a small family business into the billion-dollar empire of World Wrestling Entertainment, she was more than its chief executive: She was sometimes a character in its wrestling matches’ soap-opera style story lines involving family quarrels, infidelity and, of course, mock violence.

Now, Ms. McMahon is playing to a new audience, as she seeks the Republican nomination to challenge Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut, who finds himself among the most vulnerable of Senate Democrats. Mr. Dodd, who has been in office for nearly three decades, is among the most powerful members of the Senate, heading the Banking Committee as it seeks to overhaul the nation’s financial system........

oh here's an example for you:

CANADIAN BROADCAST STANDARDS COUNCIL

NATIONAL SPECIALTY SERVICES PANEL

TSN re WWF Monday Night Raw

.......................For purposes of this decision, the principal event during the course of that episode is a tag team match between the Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray and Devon) and Billy & Huck.  At one point during the match, the Dudley Boyz's manager/valet, Stacy Keibler, attempts to distract one of her team's opponents by provocatively wiggling her posterior.  When the wrestler ignores her, she becomes annoyed, climbs into the ring and hits him on the back with a championship belt.  This interference results in the automatic disqualification of the Dudley Boyz.  In their anger and frustration at being disqualified, the Dudley Boyz yell at Stacy and, as she tries to leave the ring, Bubba Ray grabs and pulls her by the hair.  While she pleads with them, he continues to hold her by the hair, before pushing her up against the ropes.  Bubba Ray then makes a ceremonious call for the "table".  Devon then brings out a folding conference table stored under the ring.  He hoists Stacy onto Bubba Ray's shoulders.  Bubba Ray then jumps off the ropes and slams Stacy into the table, breaking it. This scene is replayed twice.  Stacy then lies, apparently unconscious, in the ring, while the two male wrestlers give each other a congratulatory high-five.............................

to the family and friends of captain benjamin a. sklaver

our thoughts and our prayers are with you.

we (i think i can speak for EVERYONE here) are so very sorry for your loss. we are so very grateful for captain sklaver's service.

pic: dover afb. ap

Hamden Native Killed In Afghanistan
By PETER MARTEKA The Hartford Courant

HAMDEN - When the flag-draped casket of U.S. Army Capt. Benjamin A. Sklaver arrived at Dover Air Force Base Saturday, he was not only mourned by his parents and fiancee, but also by thousands of people in Uganda who simply knew him as "Moses Ben," the man who brought them clean and sustainable drinking water.

Sklaver, a 32-year-old Hamden native, was killed in an ambush, possibly by a suicide bomber, while on patrol Friday in Muscheh, Afghanistan near the Pakistan border. Major Charlie Jaworksi, a spokesman for the Army, declined comment on how Sklaver was killed during Operation Enduring Freedom since the Department of Defense had not officially released details early Sunday afternoon.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered the state's flag to half-staff in honor of Sklaver. In Hamden, Benjamin Sklaver's father Gary Sklaver was awaiting the arrival of relatives and friends from across the country and world who are coming for his son's funeral that has tentatively been scheduled for Tuesday. He said his son was a "very bright and ethical man" and was getting married to Beth Segaloff in June. ..


 

ahava kids is an organization i have supported in the past

as a matter of fact, i JUST sent them another donation. i really do hope attorney general richard blumenthal is WRONG and/or mistaken in this case (i really DO have my fingers crossed). oh, not for my money, but for what was supposed to be happening WITH my money and everyone else's money. damn damn damn if this is true

AG Says Orphan Rescuer Misused Cash

AG claims Ahava Kids founder misused $100,000

By LEANNE GENDREAU

Raymond Bechard’s mission seemed noble. The charity he founded claimed to serve vulnerable people -- victims of human trafficking and orphaned children with AIDS. But Attorney General Richard Blumenthal claims much of the money never went to help anyone other than Bechard himself.

Blumenthal has filed a lawsuit against Bechard, accusing him of pilfering up to $100,000 of $250,000 raised through Ahava Kids, Inc., an organization Bechard started in 2004 that was supposed to be a non-profit.

The Ahava Kids Web site shows sad children’s eyes and claims “your love is their last, best hope.” The plea for money says donations would help rescue victims in the United States and throughout the world.

Funds were also meant to go toward operating a hotline and safe houses, including one in Connecticut and one in Georgia, as well as to help prostitutes and to distribute AIDS medication to orphaned children in third-world countries..........

they (finally) caught and arrested heather brown

who is accused of robbing six banks in six days. it was only a matter of time. although i did think they'd catch her before now


Suspected Serial Bank Bandit Nabbed

Lawyer says drugs could be behind robberies (duhhhh)

By AMANDA RAUS

With the hood of her sweatshirt covering her face, Heather Brown, 34, was escorted into the Montville State Police barracks to be booked. She's been formally charged with the September 21, 2009, robbery of a Citizen's Bank in Montville. Police believe she could be responsible for five others in the area.

"Different law enforcement agencies are probably working on their arrests warrants as we speak," said State Police Sgt. Chris Johnson.

After evading authorities for a week, police tracked down Brown in the north end of Hartford. They say they had information that she may be buying drugs in the area, so they staked out the neighborhood. When her truck pulled in, they quickly arrested her................

pic from the article at nbcconnecticut linked above

and now for something COMPLETELY different!

i do so hope she or he finds it's way home. they don't belong in connecticut and our weather is getting COLDER now.

Manatee makes waves at Milford harbor
By Michael P. Mayko
STAFF WRITER

They weigh about 1,000 pounds, stretch about 10 feet long and rarely swim past Georgia.

But on Saturday afternoon a manatee, often called a sea cow, seemed to enjoy the attention and even posed for pictures as it swam and surfaced in the warm waters of Milford Harbor.

Kristin Richardson and her husband, Rick, were among the nearly 200 people who came down to the harbor to get a rare look at the threatened species Saturday afternoon.

"I was extremely shocked," said Richardson, who, with her husband and their 3-month-old son, Cole, were strolling through an arts and craft fair on the Milford Green when they decided to take a detour down to the dock shortly before 2 p.m.

There, near the footbridge behind the library, was the manatee basking in the attention.............

pic: from the connecticut post article (seems to be no credit there) Saturday afternoon a manatee, often called a sea cow, seemed to enjoy the attention and even posed for pictures as it swam and surfaced in the warm waters of Milford Harbor.

does she think she's NOT going to get caught?

i don't understand, i don't. she gets OUT of the joint after doing time for robbery and now she's at it again (allegedly although this sure as shite appears to be a picture of HER ROBBING A BANK).


Bank Bandit Strikes Again

By BEN SOSENKO

Another day, another bank in Connecticut is robbed. The Connecticut Bank and Trust Company was robbed just before noon Saturday morning. That makes six banks in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island that have been robbed since last Monday and police think it is all by the same woman.

The woman police are calling a "person of interest" in the robberies is Heather Brown of Norwich. The New London Day reported that Brown was recently released from prison for a bank robbery in Groton City three years ago.

Each robbery has the same pattern. The woman captured on surveillance pictures has walked in to the banks, claimed she had a bomb, and walked out with cash.

Emma Gilbert who works near the CBT in Windsor says she is shocked it happened here. "A bank robbery is just unheard of in Windsor," Gilbert said. "It's something very real that people don't expect to happen every day."......

the half door's 10th anniversary is today

the half door

do stop by if you're in the greater hartford area. it's a low country boil AND a bbq. i'm vegan BUT i will tell you everyone was raving about the chow AND i brought my pops home some ribs and my car actually smelled GOOD (i'm not even kidding).

anyway, you will not see me tonight. if you know me you know i keep odd hours. i did my time there earlier. DO GO. music, food, beverages and of course eddie and erin behind the bar