i guess they didn't listen to their math teachers

who said math indeed would come into play later

1 + 1 = 2 NOT 1

U.S. count of Baghdad deaths excludes car bombs, mortar attacks

By Mark Brunswick and Zaineb Obeid McClatchy Newspapers
BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. officials, seeking a way to measure the results of a program aimed at decreasing violence in Baghdad, aren't counting scores of dead killed in car bombings and mortar attacks as victims of the country's sectarian violence.
In a distinction previously undisclosed, U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Barry Johnson said Friday that the United States is including in its tabulations of sectarian violence only deaths of individuals killed in drive-by shootings or by torture and execution.
That has allowed U.S. officials to boast that the number of deaths from sectarian violence in Baghdad declined by more than 52 percent in August over July.
But it eliminates from tabulation huge numbers of people whose deaths are certainly part of the ongoing conflict between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. Not included, for example, are scores of people who died in a highly coordinated bombing that leveled an entire apartment building in eastern Baghdad, a stronghold of rebel Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.
Johnson declined to provide an actual number for the U.S. tally of August deaths or for July, when the Baghdad city morgue counted a record 1,855 violent deaths.
Violent deaths for August, a morgue official told McClatchy Newspapers on Friday, totaled 1,526, a 17.7 percent decline from July and about the same as died violently in June. ...........

i wonder how much this senate report cost???

WE knew this all along. it was OBVIOUS. we the people have to speak out. OUST this administration, the king and his court. they are liars and profiteers who care NOTHING for the people of america. NOTHING.

Senate: Saddam saw al-Qaida as threat


By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer Fri Sep 8, 7:48 PM ET
Saddam Hussein regarded al-Qaida as a threat rather than a possible ally, a Senate report says, contradicting assertions President Bush has used to build support for the war in Iraq.
Released Friday, the report discloses for the first time an October 2005 CIA assessment that before the war, Saddam's government "did not have a relationship, harbor or turn a blind eye toward" al-Qaida operative Abu Musab al-Zarqawi or his associates.
Saddam told U.S. officials after his capture that he had not cooperated with Osama bin Laden even though he acknowledged that officials in his government had met with the al-Qaida leader, according to FBI summaries cited in the Senate report.
"Saddam only expressed negative sentiments about bin Laden," Tariq Aziz, the Iraqi leader's top aide, told the FBI.
The report also faults intelligence gathering in the lead-up to the 2003 invasion.
As recently as an Aug. 21 news conference, Bush said people should "imagine a world in which you had Saddam Hussein" with the capacity to make weapons of mass destruction and "who had relations with Zarqawi."
Democrats contended that the administration continues to use faulty intelligence, including assertions of a link between Saddam's government and the recently killed al-Zarqawi, to justify the war in Iraq.
They also said, in remarks attached to Friday's Senate Intelligence Committee document, that former CIA Director George Tenet had modified his position on the terrorist link at the request of administration policymakers..........

...............In June 2004, Bush defended Vice President Dick Cheney's assertion that Saddam had "long-established ties" with al-Qaida. "Zarqawi is the best evidence of connection to al-Qaida affiliates and al-Qaida," the president said.
The report concludes that postwar findings do not support a 2002 intelligence report that Iraq was reconstituting its nuclear program, possessed biological weapons or had ever developed mobile facilities for producing biological warfare agents.
"The report is a devastating indictment of the Bush-Cheney administration's unrelenting, misleading and deceptive attempts to convince the American people that Saddam Hussein was linked with al-Qaida," said Sen. Carl Levin (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., a member of the committee. ............

douglas graveline

we're happy you are home mr gaveline!

East Hartford Marine Receives Purple Heart

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- A 21-year-old marine from East Hartford received a purple heart Thursday for his bravery.
Douglas Graveline was driving a tank in Fallujah on Dec. 20, when enemy forces bombed the vehicle.
He said he remembers nothing about the incident. He was knocked unconscious almost immediately and woke up in the hospital with serious injuries............................

and this previous post on the whole family........

a shout out to this family

japanalia eiko

has opened a store in back of the cvs on farmington avenue (actually it's on whitney street) in hartford. it's called japanalia on one

their grand opening was yesterday (i didn't attend) but i stopped by today early afternoon. WONDERFUL clothing, WONDERFUL bargains.

i got a denim swing jacket (i'm planning on sewing a knitted patch of some kind on the back. that will come MUCH later, the holidays are fast approaching and i have to concentrate on making things for others), a shirt AND the most wonderful cape-type thing. it is not something i can describe. it's made out of fleece (mine is deep green) and is just all slit up. i will take a picture of it soon. it's something i actually had in mind to make out of felt, but that would take forever (hand made felt of course) and cost a small fortune. the original price of the cape type object DID cost a small fortune BUT i got it marked down AND i got an additional discount for paying in cash (or check. just through tomorrow, saturday)

if you're in the hood, stop by and check them out. VERY unique clothing. very wicked cool woman working there as well

i can certainly attest to the traffic problems in hartford

due to the accident on i-84 yesterday (thursday) afternoon. i left work sometime between 2 and 2:30 and was driving west on farmington avenue. the traffic coming east on farmington avenue (diverted from the highway) was HORRENDOUS. there were all sorts of cops at intersections (sisson avenue was closed to traffic coming FROM farmington avenue, but open going ON to farmington avenue. nasty nasty nasty. tons of tractor trailers. what a MESS. i did stop at the half door for a beverage and a bowl of soup and watched all of the irate drivers on sisson.). the line of cars extended all the way from hartford into west hartford. i hear capitol avenue was no better off either. to those families and friends of the injured and killed, my thoughts go out to you. (there was also an accident on the berlin turnpike i believe)

Serious Accidents Snarl I-84, Route 15

The Hartford Courant September 7 2006, 7:06 PM EDT Police reported two major accidents Thursday afternoon - a fatal crash on Interstate 84 East in Hartford and a collision with a critical injury on Route 15 North in Berlin.Both highways were closed until the accidents were cleared.Investigators are still releasing very few details, but said a man was severely injured when he was hit by a tractor trailer around 2:15 p.m. on Route 15. Northbound traffic backed up quickly, and police advised motorists during the rush hour to take alternate routes.Traffic on Interstate 84 East in Hartford and surrounding streets was snarled for hours this afternoon after a multi-vehicle accident resulted in the closure of all lanes and claimed the life of one person, officials said.The accident was reported to authorities about noon on I-84 East between exits 46 and 48.Most of the traffic exited the highway onto Capitol, Farmington, Sisson avenues, and South Whitney Street, only to find that Hartford Police officers were controlling the traffic signals on those city streets, officials confirmed. Twelve Hartford traffic officers were directing traffic that backed up on the city streets............

what the HELL is up with this woman???

what the hell was she thinking? well i guess in this case, she wasn't thinking AT ALL

Mom Tangles With Cop At Manchester School
By JIM FARRELL The Hartford Courant September 6 2006, 3:23 PM EDT
MANCHESTER -- A police officer was injured when he tried to stop a mother who officers say refused to cooperate as she raced to drop her child off at school this morning.The woman stopped her vehicle briefly, but then rolled up her window on the policeman's arm and drove 80 feet as he ran alongside to avoid being dragged, according to a police report.Sol Marie Perez, 32, of 151 School St., faces charges including reckless endangerment, assault on a police officer, traveling too fast in a school zone and two counts of risk on injury to a minor.Her two children, ages 7 and 13, were in the car with her, according to police, who said Officer Bernie Hallums suffered bruises to his upper right bicep and abrasions to his right hand and wrist."It's unfortunate," said Troy Monroe, the principal at Illing Middle School, which on Wednesday put new traffic enforcement policies into effect because of severe congestion in the parking lot on Tuesday, which was the first day of classes. "The new policy prevents parents and guardians from entering the lot between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m., with police instead directing drivers toward traffic cones designating a drop-off zone on East Middle Turnpike..........

my thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Pfc. Nicholas A. Madaras

HARTFORD, Conn. --An Army private from Wilton was killed Sunday in Iraq when an explosive device blew up near his patrol, the Defense Department announced Tuesday.
Pfc. Nicholas A. Madaras, 19, died in Baqubah when the bomb detonated near his patrol, which was dismounted, military officials said. He was the third member of the military from Connecticut to be killed in Iraq since Aug. 25.
Gov. M. Jodi Rell ordered that U.S. and state flags remain at half staff to honor Madaras and Marine Lance Cpl. Philip A. Johnson, 19, of Enfield, who was also killed Sunday in Iraq.
Madaras was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 68th Armor Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division based in Fort Carson, Colo.
"This is a tremendously sad day for Connecticut," Rell said in a statement. "In fact, combined with our recent loss of Marine Cpl. Jordan Pierson, the past several days have been very sad ones for the people of our state."
Johnson was killed Sunday morning with one other Marine as his unit was traveling from Ramadi, family spokesman Ron Jackman said. Pierson, 21, of Milford, was killed Aug. 25. in Al Anbar province when he was shot during combat operations.
Pierson was to be buried Wednesday in Arlington National Cemetery.
Madaras' family declined to comment Tuesday. Funeral arrangements were pending...........

log cabin baby blanket (three stages so far)

i'm making for my boss and his wife. i'd best hurry, little noah was born this weekend.

i am mostly using kettle dyed malabrigo merino i got at sit-n-knit in west hartford center. the colors are wonderful and the yarn is fairly soft as well. the middle square is a lumpy bumpy mix of wool and silk. i do NOT recommend using this type of yarn for log cabin knitting. the stitches are very hard to pick up (so i'm not going to repeat it's use). i think i'm going to use some lovely noro i have to do some embroidery (chain stitch i think) where the yarns join. i think i'm also going to single crochet the noro around the completed blanket as a border.


update update update: FINISHED BLANKET

monday september 5th - shrooms and stumps

well it's tuesday now, but these were taken yesterday afternoon

just a caution if you use atm machines

(i actually use this one from time to time. not often, it's not my bank but the location is convenient to me. of course i'm only going to use atms in well lit areas with people around and ONLY during the day)

West Hartford Police Search For Robbers

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. -- West Hartford police are searching for two men they said tried to force people to withdraw money from an ATM at the Sovereign Bank.
They are looking for a white male, approximately 17-18 years old, about 5 feet, 5 inches to 5 feet, 6 inches tall who has short black spiked hair. He was wearing a red and white short-sleeved shirt and jeans. He had a bandana over his face. The other suspect was described as a 6-foot -ta ll black male in his early 20s with a muscular build. The suspect was described as having no facial hair, having a bald or shaven head, wearing a blank tank top, white belt, black jeans and a black winter hat on his head.
Police said they tried to force victims to withdraw money but no money was obtained

my thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Lance Cpl. Philip Alexander Johnson

Marine from Enfield killed in Iraq
September 4, 2006
ENFIELD, Conn. --A 19-year-old Marine from Enfield was killed in Iraq over the weekend, a family friend confirmed Monday night.
Lance Cpl. Philip Alexander Johnson died Sunday morning with one other Marine as his unit was traveling from Ramadi, family spokesman Ron Jackman said.
Ramadi, about 70 miles west of Baghdad, is considered one of Iraq's most dangerous cities and is patrolled by hundreds of Marines. The Marines are confined to bases during the day and return to the streets at night.
His parents, Louis and Kathy Johnson, were notified by the military Sunday night, Jackman said. Jackman said Johnson apparently was killed in a roadside attack.
A Pentagon spokesman said more information on the details of his death would be released Tuesday. The Department of Defense policy is to make details available 24 hours after the family has been notified.
Johnson is the second Marine from Connecticut to die in Iraq in just over a week. Cpl. Jordan Pierson, 21, of Milford, was killed Aug. 25. A memorial service for Pierson was held Monday. He will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
A 2005 graduate of Enfield High School, Johnson was fulfilling a lifelong dream of becoming a Marine, said those who knew him. He joined the Westover Young Marines when he was 11 and remained with the unit through high school.
"He started real early, which gave him a big heads up on everybody," Jackman said.................

senator dodd, i don't like bolton either

yet another choice by king george and his court, who is an embarrassment to the united states of america

Dodd Fights To Get Bolton Out Of U.N.

By DAVID LIGHTMAN Washington Bureau Chief September 4 2006 WASHINGTON -- John Bolton has been the public face and voice of the United States during the recent crises in the Middle East and Iran. Beginning this week, Sen. Christopher Dodd will renew his dogged campaign to get that face out of the picture.Bolton, the United States ambassador to the United Nations for the past year, has not been confirmed formally for the job by the U. S. Senate, and members will try again when they return from their summer recess today.But Dodd, who almost always goes along with administration nominees from either party, has been a fierce critic of Bolton for years, and does not plan to let up.He intends to address the Senate Democratic Caucus to make his case, make a speech to the full Senate and argue against approval by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when it meets Thursday."My objection isn't that he's a bully," said Dodd, D-Conn., when Bolton appeared before the committee recently, "but that he's been an ineffective bully and can't win the day when it really counts."Mr. Bolton clearly has an aversion, in my view, to being diplomatic or to building consensus for U. S. positions," Dodd went on, "and that is deeply troubling to me."Dodd's view has strong support among Democrats and some interest groups. "I've never seen a more weird public figure than John Bolton. He is the complete ideologue," said Larry Birns, director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs...........

it's time for a visit to

behind the blue wall

a million voices for darfur

my friend paulie sent this to me and i thought i'd share:

Dear Friend,I am writing to let you know I just signed a postcard to President Bush asking him to take action to stop the genocide in Darfur.Will you join me?Visit http://www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org/ to send your postcard today!Right now a campaign of rape, slaughter and displacement is currently being carried out in the western region of Sudan, the largest country in Africa. Government-supported troops have displaced 2.5 million people in the past two years, hundreds of thousands have died due to attacks, disease and starvation, and it is estimated that 500 men, women and children continue to die every day. You can make a difference today by sending a postcard to President Bush at http://www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org/We must put pressure on our national leaders to take immediate action. President Bush and the United States Congress have recognized the situation in Darfur as "genocide," but it will take much more than words to end the violence and suffering in Darfur. In fact this recognition imposes a legal obligation, let alone the inherent moral obligation, upon the U.S. to take action to stop the genocide.Visit http://www.MillionVoicesForDarfur.org to send your postcard today!If our leaders made Darfur a priority, hundreds of thousands of lives could be saved. Please join me in calling for immediate attention to Darfur and more robust action on behalf of the U.S. to support security efforts in the region. Visit http://www.millionvoicesfordarfur.org/ to send an online postcard to President Bush and to learn more about what is happening in Darfur and what you can do to help.Please also join us to rally in Washington, DC on April 30th. For more information on this Save Darfur: Rally to Stop Genocide visit http://www.savedarfur.org/Rally

cowl for erin

my friend erin is going to france until christmas eve. i made her this cowl to keep her warm on those windy french nights (while sitting at an outdoor cafe sipping on some powers IF she can find it). i used a combo of wool and silk for most of it and some baby alpaca here and there. i got the yarn at sit-n-knit in west hartford center (i LOVE it there)

cpl jordan pierson

An Empty Space

Charlie Company Marine's Death Leaves His Family Reaching For Meaning
By JESSE HAMILTON Courant Staff Writer August 29 2006 MILFORD -- The photos on the coffee table are like puzzle pieces, a thick stack of 4-by-6-inch hints about the Jordan Pierson his family couldn't know.There's one that shows the street that runs past the main cemetery in Fallujah, Iraq. Next, the view from the rooftop guard post on the edge of the compound where Cpl. Pierson was becoming a battle-hardened Marine. And dozens more, freezing the dusty faces of Plainville's Charlie Company against the monochromatic backdrop of Fallujah.Somewhere within these images is the man and boy his family knew, whose body is expected to arrive today on U.S. soil, a middle step in Pierson's long journey home.In the living room of his family's house in Milford, the wiry corporal's dress uniform hangs from a door. It had awaited his return, maybe in late October, just in time to attend his unit's Marine Corps ball. He had asked that it be ready for him, just as he had been planning his University of Connecticut class load. Pierson, 21, was looking to get his life together after seven months at war.On Friday, the news that he had been shot to death on a foot patrol in Fallujah broke this home open like an ant hill, leaving his family still hurrying purposelessly from room to room on Sunday, powerless to repair the breach.There is food to eat - so much that neighbors are making space in their refrigerators. People keep bringing it, their offering for the impenetrable grief that is settling in. Aunts, friends, his mother and grandmother sit around the dining table exercising their memories, stamping their versions of Jordan's unruly youth into the family record..........

and from 1st sgt grainger; Saddened hearts

Saddened hearts
Sunday, Aug. 27 -- It’s with a saddened heart that I returned to Charlie Company last night as we have lost a great Marine to the rigors of combat in Iraq: Cpl Jordan Pierson. Cpl Pierson had been a bright spot in his platoon, in a place that can take the softest of hearts into a void of darkness. Even when the gloom of combat reached deep in a man's soul, Cpl Pierson could bring the Marine back to a sense of purpose, a sense of why we were here, and that we were making a difference. Cpl Pierson was destined not to only be a Marine, but a leader among Marines. He fostered a sense of caring for Marines while still embodying all it meant to be a Marine. .......

we have a chance to donate supplies to louisiana school nurses

let's DO it! in the greater hartford area, a drop off point is the hartford armory.

Connecticut To Collect Supplies For Louisiana School Nurses

HARTFORD, Conn. -- The state will begin collecting health care supplies this week to help school nurses and school-based health clinics in Louisiana.
The new charity drive comes a year after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast.
"Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina. The images we have seen on television and newspapers remind us that the Gulf states, especially Louisiana and Mississippi, are a long way from full recovery and are still rebuilding," Gov. M. Jodi Rell said in a written statement. "Connecticut again stands ready to help in any way we can."
The list of supplies being collected includes new, unopened boxes of bandages, calamine lotion, cotton balls, dental floss, flashlights and batteries, gauze and gauze rollers, facial tissue, gloves, cotton swabs, liquid soap in a pump, adhesive tape, thermometers, tongue depressors and tweezers.
Rell and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco spoke last week. Blanco told Rell her state needs to restock school nurses' offices for the start of the new school year. Rell said her staff has also contacted the Mississippi governor's office.
The following Connecticut National Guard armories have been designated as drop-off sites for the supplies: State Armory at 360 Broad St. in Hartford; New Haven Armory at 290 Goffe St.; New London Armory at 249 Bayonet St.; Norwich Armory at 38 Stott Ave.; Stratford Armory at 63 Armory Road; and the Waterbury Armory at 64 Field St.
The supplies will be collected from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 31 through Sept. 8. The armories will be closed, however, during Labor Day weekend.

an invite extended to da liebs (to chomp down on a weenie perhaps)

i seriously doubt he'll show, but it was rather nice of of the greenwich democrats to invite da liebs to their picnic. i wouldn't have

DTC meal may get real messy Town party invites Lieberman to picnic

By Neil Vigdor Staff Writer August 27, 2006 Joe Lieberman will get an invitation to next month's Democratic picnic in rival Ned Lamont's hometown of Greenwich, but it could be no picnic if he shows up."I hope he comes. I think it'll give an opportunity for many of us to vent our anger," said Peter Berg, a Democratic Town Commitee member and Lamont supporter.Lieberman, who lost the Aug. 8 Senate primary to Lamont, has been ostracized by many in his own party for continuing the race as a petitioning candidate. His critics say his decision to mount an independent candidacy shows utter contempt for the party and its primary process.Some of them even debated whether the 18-year incumbent should be invited to party events such as the picnic, which will be held from noon to 3 p.m. Sept. 24 at the Greenwich Civic Center in Old Greenwich."Even though many of us are unhappy with Senator Lieberman, he is still a Democratic officeholder," said Jim Himes, the DTC chairman............

my thoughts and prayers go to the family of Cpl. Jordan C. Pierson

Marine from Milford killed in Iraq
August 26, 2006
HARTFORD, Conn. --A marine from Connecticut was killed in combat Friday in Iraq, the U.S. Department of Defense announced Saturday.
Cpl. Jordan C. Pierson, 21, of Milford, died during combat operations in Al Anbar province, Iraq. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 25th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Division in Plainville.
No additional information was immediately available.
Pierson was the second marine from the 25th Marine Regiment to be killed in three weeks. Lance Cpl. Kurt Dechen, 24, of Springfield, Vt., was on a foot patrol in Fallujah, Iraq, on Aug. 3 when his unit came under fire and he was shot.
Thirty-two servicemen and women and civilians with Connecticut ties have died since March 2002 in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Pierson and another serviceman were hit with shrapnel earlier this year after a grenade exploded near them, The Hartford Courant reported in May.
Roberto Diaz, of Manchester, said he trained with Pierson in California and last saw him nine months ago.
"He was an excellent marine," he said. "He did his job to the fullest."

and from the courant

Marine From State Fatally Shot In Iraq

By HILDA MUÑOZ And TINA A. BROWNCourant Staff WritersAugust 27 2006A U.S. Marine corporal from Milford died from hostile gunfire Friday while on foot patrol in Fallujah, the U.S. Defense Department said Saturday.Cpl. Jordan C. Pierson, 21, was shot once through the shoulder and died at 12:12 p.m. Iraqi time, according to Lt. Col. Gerald Larghe, commander of the U.S. Marine Center in Plainville, where Pierson's company - Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 25th Marines - is based. He became the third Marine with ties to the company to be killed in action since the unit was deployed in March.Pierson joined the U.S. Marine Corps in December 2003. He was wounded in the arms and legs by shrapnel from an insurgent grenade in May. He was treated at Camp Fallujah and awarded the Purple Heart.A full-time student at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, Pierson postponed his studies to go to Iraq, military officials said. The unit is scheduled to return to Connecticut in October.Milford Mayor James L. Richetelli Jr. visited Pierson's family Saturday. "I expressed the condolences from the city of Milford," he said. "Once the time comes, this city will remember him in a big way. We are known as a small city with a big heart." .............

down with tyranny

this was left in the comments section of my posting (referred from the enigmatic paradox) entitled 'have you had enough'. i wanted to post the whole response. if you see it in your heart to make a contribution to the blue cause, the link is below.


Thanks very much for posting the lyrics and offering the download. Please accept my gratitude. The whole story of how Rickie Lee Jones and the 2 guys from The Squirrel Nut Zippers (Tom Maxwell and Ken Mosher) came to record the song is here at Down With Tyranny. We're doing our best to get it on the radio so people start to get familiar with it and we've offered it for free download at MySpace.com/haveyouhadenough/ (and in 2 weeks it will be available for free on all the big digital services). The goal, though is a little more involved. We've made 30 second radio spots out of the song. For targeted districts, with particularly terrible incumbents and particularly excellent challengers (like Jerry McNerney taking on Dick Pombo in CA-11 and Vic Wulsin taking on Mean Jean Schmidt on OH-02) we've replaced the line "it's time to throw the rascals out" with "it's time to throw Pombo out" and "it's time to throw Mean Jean out."The districts we're targeting can all be called "dollar a holla" media markets. A very little bit of money can go a relatively long way. Our hope is to get our ads up on the radio during October. We're trying to raise $250,000, not just for these two districts but for as many of the Blue America candidates as we can help. The list is here: http://www.actblue.com/page/blueamerica/ And that is also a place where, if you think it's worthwhile, you can chip in some money too. Even $10, if enough people chip in, will be incredibly helpful.It's been a real grassroots project from Day One and now supporters of candidates are doing remixes and making video clips and spreading it virally. This week a supporter of Coleen Rowley sent me a little video he made, which is up on YouTube. It's cute: http://homepage.mac.com/mmcintee/hadenough/iMovieTheater115.html/I'm sure you know Bush and his rubber stamp Congress aren't going away of their own accord. We can expect terror alerts and God knows what else from them to sway a voting public that has become increasingly disgusted with them. It makes people feel good to take part in ousting them and freeing themselves. Thanks for any help you can give and please don't hesitate to send me suggestions. Howie Klein downwithtyranny@aol.com