20 Aug 2004
No Olympic Blogging

Robert Bliwise, editor of Duke Magazine, Duke University's alumni publication, called this decision "unfathomable". He continued:

"I don't understand what the International Olympic Committee might be concerned about. It's a way to engage a wide audience with reporting from the field and therefore generate excitement and interest in the games."

I can tell him is one little ASCII character, a mere seven bits of information, exactly what the IOC is concerned about, and, in fact, all that the IOC is concerned about:

$

Screw the sports, forget the athletes, who care about love, peace and the brotherhood of man? We need the dollars - these games are expensive. Broadcast, print and other media "rights" pay the way.

And so it goes ...

Athletes may be the center of attention at the Olympic Games, but don't expect to hear directly from them online -- or see snapshots or video they've taken.

(link) [CNN]

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US general censured for remarks

This guy is a loose cannon who needs more than censure: I'd say early retirement is entirely warranted here.

Not only was it more of the same loony/fundie nonsense I've some to expect out of this Administration, but it was by the deputy undersecretary of defence for intelligence in a very public forum. In fact, in multiple public forums. If we can't can him for being a religious wingnut, we should be able to drop the ax for sheer stupidity. I can hear Al Jazeera now: "see, we told you, the Crusaders really are back! Their chief of intelligence says Allah is Satan!"

A US general who called the "war on terror" as a Christian campaign against Satan broke Pentagon rules, an inquiry has found.

(link) [BBC News | World | UK Edition]

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Not so lucky after all...

This was a real feel good story when it came out last month: but I suppose his $35 bought him 15 minutes of fame, if nothing else...

Last month, British tourist Fraser Claughton purchased a suitcase for about $35 at an Australian flea market and discovered that it contained a priceless treasure trove of Beatles memorabilia-concert photos, programs, even unreleased recordings.
Or so he thought.

(link) [Yahoo!News]

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