February 28, 2012

Snowe will not run for reelection

Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato)
2/28/12 5:09 PM
Stunned, as we all are, by Olympia Snowe's decision not to run again. Tentative reaction: add that Senate seat to Dems.

Courtesy of ProSense: her statement-
http://livewire.talkingpointsmemo.com/entries/snowe-statement-on-decision-not-to-run-for

Probably had enough of the crazies in the GOP.

February 28, 2012

Sarcozy retracts statement that Fr. Reporter Edith Bouvier is safe in Lebanon

Jim Roberts (@nytjim)
2/28/12 2:55 PM
“@AP: Sarkozy retracts statement that French journalist Edith Bouvier had been safely evacuated to Lebanon

Not posting anything else unless I hear it from Rachel or Richard Engel.
I'm very short in the trust department.

February 28, 2012

Well our SC missing person was found dead. Homicide? (NOW REPORTED AS A SUICIDE....3pm)

Tom Sponseller Found Dead

S.C. Hospital Association CEO Tom Sponseller is dead, Columbia, S.C. police are confirming. Sponseller’s body was discovered Tuesday morning in a parking garage on Lady Street near his workplace – near where he was last seen ten days ago.

He was 61 years old, and is survived by his wife, three grown children and several grandchildren.
How did cops miss his body? Especially after conducting a thorough search of the premises that included dogs specially trained to locate cadavers? Once again, the case of the missing – now deceased lobbyist – continues to raise more questions than answers.

The saga surrounding  Sponseller’s disappearance – and the hundreds of thousands of dollars that have also vanished from his organization – remains as murky as ever this week, even after the discovery of his body.

Last Thursday, FITS broke the news that “as much as $900,000 of association money” was missing – possibly embezzled – and that a woman who worked at the organization was somehow involved in the mystery.
<snip>
http://www.fitsnews.com/2012/02/28/tom-sponseller-found-dead/

Sad......
Wonder how he died?

February 28, 2012

AFP reporting Lebanese govt official says wounded Fr.journalist Edith Bouvier is out of Syria

Jim Roberts (@nytjim)
2/28/12 9:40 AM
RT @fieldproducer: AFP reporting that Lebanese govt official says wounded French journalist Edith Bouvier is out of Syria & in Lebanon

BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking)
2/28/12 10:45 AM
Wounded French reporter Edith Bouvier has arrived in #Lebanon from #Homs in #Syria, French president says


Hope this is true!

February 28, 2012

Charges against Assange drawn up in US

UNITED States prosecutors have drawn up secret charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, according to a confidential internal email obtained from a private US intelligence company, Stratfor.

In the email, sent to Stratfor intelligence analysts on January 26 last year, the company's vice-president for intelligence, Fred Burton, responded to a media report concerning US investigations targeting WikiLeaks. He wrote: "We have a sealed indictment on Assange."

Underlining the sensitivity of the information - apparently obtained from a US government source - he wrote "Pls protect" and "Not for Pub[lication]".
<snip>
Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/world/charges-against-assange-drawn-up-in-us-says-email-20120228-1u14c.html#

Gawd help him if he gets caught in any of our 'justice' systems, military or otherwise.

February 28, 2012

Breaking: 2nd student from Ohio school shooting has died

Jim Roberts (@nytjim)
2/28/12 6:54 AM
“@fieldproducer: RT @CBSNews: BREAKING: 2nd victim from #Ohio school shooting has died from his injuries, authorities confirm”

***sigh***

February 28, 2012

BREAKING: Both injured UK photographer Paul Conroy & Fr. Reporter Edith Bouvier?? out of Syria

Both injured UK photographer Paul Conroy and French reporter Edith Bouvier safely out of #Homs in #Syria- reports bbc.in/AshVdn

Bouvier had multiple leg fractures. Conroy wouldn't leave without her.

February 28, 2012

Best newspaper headline about Santorum EVER!

“There’s just no way this headline wasn’t intentional,” writes Charles Apple.

Well, let’s find out.

I asked Kyle Whitmire, who wrote the piece, about his “Santorum comes from behind in Alabama three-way” hed. The former Birmingham Weekly staffer tells Romenesko readers:

I thought a few folks might get a chuckle out of it. We try to have a sense of humor, and the double entendre was too hard to resist. In Alabama, it’s the only way to stay sane sometimes.

However, I had no idea it would go viral the way it did. First I began to get email messages and texts from people in other states, but when I saw tweets in the cyrillic alphabet, I knew I might have set the woods on fire.

Also, to get the joke, you have to have a dirty mind.
http://jimromenesko.com/2012/02/27/santorum-headline-was-bound-to-go-viral/

HEH!

February 27, 2012

Slow Death By Depression

By Aaron Krager
<snip>
Depression kills not in an instant but through a torturous process of draining the life out of you. For the most part the illness numbs the body and the mind. The numbness hinders one from enjoying old hobbies or time with good friends. In a way it paralyzes progress and healing. It prevents one from walking the path to recovery.
<snip>
Let me explain it a little better before I lose you in the simile. Imagine all of the worst things you believe about yourself, the imperfections you do not want others to notice, and the fear of what people think of you. Multiply it by the largest number you can fathom. Now those words beat down on you with such debilitating force that the only comfort to be found exists in your bed, if you are lucky.
<snip>
I could throw out a few other analogies but it would probably dilute what I am trying to express. Honestly, I can no longer dream of a life where I do not have to battle depression. I cannot access the emotions felt during past moments. Memories feel more scripted or acted out with wannabe actors. The crushing sadness or exalting happiness disappeared. I do not mean to come off as overdramatic but for me this feels like the truth. It is what I am experiencing, what I am living, and what I am in a war with.

As a result, I am tired. Tired of the battling. Tired of the medication. Tired of trying to talk about something I hardly feel anymore. Tired of the passing time.
<snip>
http://aaronkrager.com/2012/02/27/slow-death-by-depression/

Piercing.......

February 27, 2012

Authorities: one of five students shot in Ohio has died

Four others are still being treated at area hospitals for injuries.  All of the injured are students.

Three of the victims were taken to MetroHealth Medical Center by Metro LifeFlight.  Two of the victims were taken to Hillcrest Hospital.

According to Hillcrest, the victims being treated there are a 17-year-old boy who is listed in serious condition and an 18-year-old girl listed in stable condition. The victims were found in three locations inside the school.

The gunman -- now confirmed as a male student -- is in custody.  The sheriff says the teen turned himself in to bystanders off site from the school in In Chardon Township.
<snip>
http://www.wkyc.com/news/article/232710/45/Chardon-High-School-shooting-4-injured-gunman-in-custody

***sigh***