Net neutrality rules for broadband providers would protect bandwidth hogs at the expense of other customers and civic organizations, said the coalition, which includes the National Black Chamber of Commerce, Latinos in Information Sciences and Technology Association, League of Rural Voters, and National Council of Women's Organizations.

The coalition filed comments with the FCC Thursday in the agency's inquiry into Comcast's slowing of some P-to-P (peer-to-peer) traffic. "Regulations prohibiting network management risk undermining free speech on the Internet by allowing P2P traffic to overwhelm the network and prevent non-P2P traffic from reaching its destination," the coalition said in its filing. "The effective prioritization of P2P traffic would represent an altogether new type of 'back of the bus' second-class status for our speech on broadband networks -- and ought to be resoundingly rejected

: FCC should allow network management?

One might rethink playing with snow or walking in the rain as a new study by scientists from the Louisiana State University revealed that snow and rain might form mostly on bacteria in the clouds.

Scientists have long known that the ice crystals in clouds, which become rain or snow, need to cling to some kind of particle, called ice nucleators, in order to form in temperatures above minus 40 degrees Celsius.

Microbiologist Brent Christner at Louisiana State University sampled snow from Antarctica, France, and the Yukon and found that as much as 85 percent of the nuclei were bacteria, he said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press.

“Every snow and ice sample we’ve looked at, we found biological ice nucleators. Here’s a component that has been completely ignored to date,” Christner said.

The most common bacteri

Bacteria ! The Main Ingredient in Snowflakes, Scientists Say

For the first time in the litigation over documents posted on the Wikileaks Web site, lawyers have appeared representing the owner of the Wikileaks.org Internet domain. He is John Shipton, “a citizen of Australia currently residing in Kenya,” according to a document filed Thursday in federal court in San Francisco.

In the document, Mr. Shipton’s lawyers endorsed arguments made in briefs filed by various groups — including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Reporters’ Committee for Freedom of the Press — contending that an order from Federal District Judge Jeffrey S. White hindering access to the Wikileaks Web site should be withdrawn and the lawsuit should be thrown out.

Freedom of information or just a bunch of crooks?

More Twists and Turns in Wikileaks Case

With no news from regulators and a merger agreement set to expire this weekend, Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio have agreed to buy themselves a little more time.

"The companies have agreed not to exercise their rights to terminate the merger agreement until May 1," the companies said in a joint statement without commenting further.

The $4 billion all-stock merger is still waiting on approval from the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission. The two agreed to merge in February 2007 and had set March 1, 2008 as a deadline.

The companies want to merge to cut expenses and turn profitable sooner than they might alone. Critics have said the merger would stifle competition by creating a satellite radio monopoly.

"satellite radio monopoly" sounds like a buch of who-ha to me.
Hmm what was there before, FM/AM Broadcasting... Which is sorta free...
I see no real harm it them getting together....

XM, Sirius extend merger agreement

At the request of chemical industry lobbyists, the Environmental Protection Agency removed the chair of an expert peer review panel charged with setting safe exposure levels for a toxic fire retardant that contaminates human blood and breast milk, this according to a report from the Environmental Working Group.

The panel was convened by EPA to report to the agency on environment and health concerns of Decabromodiphenyl or Deca. It is a spin off from chemical fire retardants and used in electronic components and other consumer products. The chemical has been shown to be a developmental neurotoxin.

It was the American Chemical Council, the industry's major lobbyist, that pressured EPA to remove Dr. Deborah Rice from the panel.

Rice, retired EPA scientist, is credited by many in the public health community for doing the leading work in researching Deca's toxicity to the brain and nervous system during development. Now with the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Rice also spearheaded a regulatory review mandated by Maine law, to investigate the feasibility of replacing Deca with less toxic chemicals.

Big $$$ shut her up... Welcome to America...

EPA bows to chemical industry lobbyists, fires top expert on flame retardents' dangers

Union officials say the U.S. Department of Agriculture has placed three employees on paid leave of absence amid the agency's investigation of the largest meat recall in U.S. history.

Two agency supervisors and one inspector have been sent home and will receive their normal salary pending the probe, said Stan Painter, chairman of the National Joint Council of Food Inspection Locals, the union representing USDA food inspectors. A second union official confirmed the leaves.

Hallmark/Westland on Feb. 17 announced a recall of 143 million pounds of beef. The Chino, Calif., company issued the recall three weeks after the Humane Society of the United States released an undercover video showing workers trying to force sick or injured cows to their feet using electrical cattle prods, high-pressure water hoses and fork lifts. Such activities violate state and federal laws barring animal cruelty...

This is sick! Someone (CEO's/Managers) should do jail time, or atleast have the shit beat out of them and shocked with cattle prods.... Do unto others you bastards! :)

USDA Puts 3 Workers on Leave After Largest Recall of Beef

The US study of 77,000 people found taking 400 milligrams per day long-term increased cancer risk by 28% - with smokers at particular risk.

Vitamin E linked to lung cancer

Police in Las Vegas said a man is in critical condition after staying in a motel room where ricin, a deadly poison, was later found.

And he says it is not his.... hmmm who was in this room before?

Man in Critical Condition in Ricin Case

"His press corps is bigger than mine. And we both have trouble answering questions in English. "
U.S. President George W Bush, during a meeting with Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka at the White House. (Kyodo)

Whoa where did Bush w/ wit come from... :) Haha LOL!

Bush Quote Of The Day

Herman Lay's first business enterprise was selling Pepsi-Colas from a makeshift stand in his family's front yard in Greenville. He was 11 years old. He was successful, charging a nickel a bottle while the city baseball park across the street was charging a dime. Ironically, just 45 years later, he was selling Pepsi-Colas again, but this time as chairman of PepsiCo, Inc., a multibillion-dollar conglomerate that he helped create.

As a young man searching for a career during the Great Depression, he suffered some lean years, but no hard-luck lessons were lost on Lay. He finally found his niche in the snack foods industry and literally wrote his own success story, making his name and Lay's Potato Chips synonymous with snack foods throughout the South and later the world, and becoming one of the nation's most successful entrepreneurs.

As i much down on a bag of chips here is the bio of 1/2 of the 2 man team who started the snack food craze ... :)

Herman Warden Lay