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Need to hit the sack. Work continues on the house. This weekend saw some good progress that was punctuated with the occasional friendly visit. We put up crown molding, installed three ceiling fans, took Alex's old couch (and a few other items) to the dump - and finally cleared the basement of all the downstairs bedroom furniture.

I think I'm starting to see things a little clearer now. Been up late trying to continue the unpacking/sorting process, but it will get done in time.

Also witnessed the Beavers pummel the Sun Devils in Corvallis on Saturday. That was fun, considering the beating Washington State laid on Oregon. Looks like the Ducks started believing their own hype. Unfortunately for Oregon, Michigan was a fluke with a major dependancy on their running game. Oregon can stop teams on the ground, but once the ball starts going in the air, they are in trouble. That, and their QBs gotta stop throwing low trajectory passes.

Look for another average season from the Ducks.

Must sleep now...

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Just ran across this report from the front lines of Iraq. The article has a definate anti-war bend, but the interviews and stories of the soldiers bring back dark memories of Vietnam.

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The Iraqi cash cow is calling to corporate America.

Please privatize our natural resources!
Turn over our banks to foreign control!
Steal our oil to help "finance the rebuilding" of Iraq!

Also...

Federal funding for religious groups? I have no beef with churches seeking to help the homeless, but why is it that churches are now responsible for being "neighborhood healers", according to Mr. Bush?

Sounds like another attempt a passing-the-buck on social programs.

And...

Three more U.S. soldiers KIA - 13 injured.

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And here's my blog for 9/17....

Chilling examples of the profiling system that is used on Arabs and Muslims.

More news on our war to create terrorism.

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Here's the blog that I would have posted on 9/12....


Spent the evening of 9/11 on the couch.

Watched “Bowling for Columbine” with a friend who hadn’t seen it yet. Lots of information to deal with….some humorous, others not. A mix of frustration, anger and hysterical laughter at the sad truths we are living with these days.

In other news…

Centcom is taking a long time reporting the last ten casualties Iraq. All have been reported by the Associated Press, but are strangely absent from the Centcom website.

Is the DOD going to stop reporting U.S. casualties?

Also….

The FDA is asking for some pharmaceutical company to step up and produce a drug to treat radiation sickness. Do they know something that we don’t?

Perhaps it’s for the ten of thousands of American troops that will start coming down with strange radiation-related illnesses after having served in Iraq. The country is glowing with depleted uranium that the U.S. left behind after using it as ammunition. Never mind the many tons that were left during the first Gulf war.

We will reap what we sow. Unfortunately, it’s the soldiers who have to face the highest price. Sickness and betrayal will haunt many men for many years to come.

Vietnam is casting a long shadow.

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Gah....looks like I finally got my blog back. Technical issues have been dogging the site for the past couple weeks.

Got some catching up to do...

U.S Central Command has made a shift in reporting policy over the last three weeks. Since the beginning of September, their website, Centcom.mil has stopped reporting U.S. casualties. I used to always check in with Centcom regarding any reports of American dead - but now, I guess it's up to the press to let us know. Since they stopped the practice, 23 soldiers have died.

17 in the last 10 days.

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What a surprise. It looks like Bushs' numbers are starting to suffer.

It was just a matter of time, but the entrenchment in Iraq - especially at the fiscal burn-rate we're at - is starting to eat away at our pResidents' fan base.

That....and the unemployment numbers. I read in the Oregonian Business section today that the Feds have reported that the 2.7 million jobs that were lost during the Bush administration are "gone" and won't be coming back. The article further went on to say that those jobs will have to grow out of some new economic factor.

Could that be the prison industry?
How about the service-wage industry?

Anyone say military service?

Don't know if I mentioned this in the past, but keep your eyes on this corportation - CSC (Computer Sciences Corporation). They aquired U.S. military outsourcing (read private armies) giant Dyncorp.

Why is it these creepy corporations that work behind the war scene have such innocuous names?

ChoicePoint is another. Look for these Republican tools to play a hand in the upcoming election fraud that will be attempted in 2004. They helped win the White House in Florida for GW in 2000, no reason why they won't be involved this time.

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Here's a better synopsis of the Animal House experience last weekend.

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Went down with my brother early on Saturday to attend the 25-year anniversary of Animal House in Cottage Grove. Since I love the film, it looked like a good chance to kick back in a toga and maybe have a little fun.

Right.

Ended up winning a John Belushi look-a-like contest - and spent the rest of the day talking to the media, cruising around in a parade and posing for snapshots with many of toga-wearing masses. It was NUTS!
Being Belushi-for-a-day was some of the most physically exhasting work I've ever done. I was interviewed by no less than three newspaper reporters, a documentary film crew, MTV and the Eugene NBC affiliate. During the parade, I climbed on floats, accosted the marching band, zipped around on the back of a scooter, and was given license (by no less than the Cottage Grove police chief) to stagger around with an open container - screaming "TOGA, TOGA!".

My brother got much of this on video. ;-)

After the parade, I hung out with Animal House screenwriter Chris Miller, caught a screening of Animal House (that became an interactive experience like Rocky Horror) and hung out at an evening concert that featured The Kingsmen and Otis Day and the Knights (the cover band from Animal House). The organizers were planning on registering this event as the World's Largest Toga Party. They weren't kidding. At one point, I was up on stage leading a toga-wearing crowd of 2500 in the toga chant. I must have posed for photos with about 600 people. Suffice it to say, I had my beer covered.

By the end of Saturday night, AP had picked up the "Toga party" story and I ended up in the Washington Post and on the CNN website.

Believe it or not, this "party animal" crashed at midnight.

The next morning, I had breakfast with Otis Day and couple band members. As I munched on raisin bran, Otis went on about a nightmare he had while on sleeping pills.....something about his friends turning into midget creatures and chasing him. He said he woke up trying to climb a wall.

After the previous night, I couldn't blame him.

GH

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Wow....that was an interesting weekend. Would have posted earlier, but the craziness was too intense.

Went down with my brother early on Saturday to attend the 25-year anniversary of Animal House in Cottage Grove. Since I love the film, it looked like a good chance to kick back in a toga and maybe have a little fun.

Right.

Ended up winning a John Belushi look-a-like contest - and spent the rest of the day talking to the media, cruising around in a parade and posing for snapshots with many of toga-wearing masses. It was nuts.

Later that evening, I was told that part of my interview had hit the AP wire and was showing up at the Washington Post and CNN.com.

I can feel my fifteen minutes of fame ticking away...