Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Vilsack's Supporter Outraged By Exit

The supporter of former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack said he was outraged that the brief presidential candidate bowed out of the '08 Democratic primary this week.
"We were gaining momentum," said Fred Hornsberg of Jackson, Mississippi. "By the end of the week I have no doubt we would have had double the people on our donnor list, and maybe even as many as three."
Hornsberg had donated $475 to Vilsack's fledgling campaign, bringing the governor's war chest to $520.
"I'm just devastated," said Hornsberg, who met Vilsack at a roadside diner in Iowa one afternoon when Vilsack stopped for coffee and Hornsberg was waiting for assistance from the AAA after his car stalled. "Who do I support now? Who even heard of these other guys."

Monday, February 26, 2007

Cheney Says Britney’s Career ‘Going Well’

Vice President Dick Cheney, a consistent optimist about U.S. progress in Iraq, said Monday that Britney Spears career “seems to be going well.”
Cheney said reports that the pop star had recently split from her husband, been caught in embarrassing photos, shaved her head, repeatedly entered rehab, and the fact that she has no upcoming album releases or concert dates “are all good signs. It shows that she’s nearing a turning point.”
Cheney’s optimism follows other recent predictions that the insurgency in Iraq is “in its final throes” and that the departure of British troops was “a good sign” because it showed the situation stabilizing.
Also weighing in on Spears this week, on a more pragmatic note, was former secretary of defense Donald Rumsfeld, who acknowledged that Spears recent career path was troubling, but said the country should deal with “the pop diva you have, not the pop diva you want to have.”

Everyone Kid Knows Jumps Off Roof

Sixteen-year-old Billy Anspaugh of Decatur, Georgia was left in a perplexing bind Tuesday as everyone he knows began to jump off a roof.
For two hours, Billy was left to decide whether to follow suit, or blaze his own path and abstain from jumping.
“It was just like my mother asked,” Billy recalled later. “Anytime I said ‘everyone I know goes to rated R movies or everyone I know has a cell phone, she always asked ‘if everyone you know jumped off a roof, would you do it too?”
Because he considered the question rhetorical and too hypothetical to contemplate, Billy never formulated an actual plan of action for the scenario.
“It never occurred to me it could actually happen,” he said.
In the end, Billy opted not to jump, earning high praise from his teachers and parents, all of whom did jump. “You got to hand it to that kid,” said Phil Brownstein, principal of Truman High School in Decatur, as he recovered from his injuries. “He really passed that roof test.”
Billy’s 416 friends, acquaintances and relatives were treated at Decatur Memorial Hospital for a variety of injuries, none of which were listed as life-threatening.

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Dems Agree To Troop Surge, But Via Jet Blue

In a compromise between the Democratic controlled Congress and the White House, the 21,000 additional troops sought by President Bush will go to Iraq, but via the trouble-plagued airline Jet Blue.
The airline, which was forced to cancel dozens of flights, stranding thousands of passengers during Valentine’s Day week, immediately welcomed the news and promised to ferry the troops to Iraq with all due haste.
But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she was confident the agreement would be a victory for the anti-war movement. “By the time those flights get off the ground, Bush will be out of office,” Pelosi said Sunday. “In fact, we’ll all be out of office.”
Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan welcomed the news, saying that while spending long periods of time in a plane sitting on the tarmac was annoying, it was far better than duty in Iraq. “You don’t have to worry about bringing the troops home if they never leave home,” said Sheehan.
White House spokesman Tony Snow said the president had full confidence in the plan, saying Jet Blue CEO David Neeleman was doing “a heck of a job.”

Monday, February 19, 2007

"Weekend At Bernie's" Scorer Andy Summers Pleased He Could Find Time For Police Reunion Tour

Rock guitarist Andy Summers said this week he was glad he was able to clear his schedule for the upcoming reunion tour of the Police, with former bandmates Stewart Copeland and Gordon Sumner (aka Sting).
"For a while, I really wasn't sure it all would work out, what with all the balls I have in the aair," Summers told MusicWorldToday.com in an interview following the annoucement of the 2007 tour, which kicks off in March. "But Sting called me up and started talking about all the fond memories and how it could be just like old times, and I kind of couldn't say no to him."
After the breakup of The Police in 1986, Summers worked on musical scores for such films as "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" and "Weekend at Bernie's." He also led the band on the talk show hosted by comedian Dennis Miller and had several guest spots on TV shows and appearances in films. He later toured with the bands Rush Hour and Animal Logic.
"It'll be great to see the guys again," he said of Copeland and Sting. "They can really use the money and exposure."

Coming up: Area man insists flattering Wikipedia entry on him written by someone else.