The Purple Pinup Guru Platform

When purple things are pulsating on your mind, I'm the one whose clock you want to clean. Aiding is Sparky, the Astral Plane Zen Pup Dog from his mountain stronghold on the Northernmost Island of the Happy Ninja Island chain, this blog will also act as a journal to my wacky antics at an entertainment company and the progress of my self published comic book, The Deposit Man which only appears when I damn well feel like it. Real Soon Now.

Saturday, August 27, 2005

GURU: TEN TRUE SUMMERS AND THE PP GURU WILL BE LAUGHING TOO



The PP Guru is making sure this summer goes out with a blast when he finishes up dipping his Roger Dean's Yes logo designed cookie cutters into the peyote pancake batter and serve up a steaming stack of old cosmic rocking pigs in a blanket classics via the new Live CD box set, the Word is Live now available through Rhino Records and the new 2004 DVD concert extravangza, Songs From Tsongas released through Image Entertainment. Image is also responsible for their last handful of DVD releases including the documentary Yesspeak and the unplugged shows of Yes Acoustic. Since the PP Guru will not be listening or watching these products until Labor Day (PP Guru fingers crossed for that special Fed Ex package arriving from Bogota to show up any minute now), he is currently immersed in a chronological trip down high memory lane by playing a classic Yes albume per day.

We have now probably reached the pinnacle in Yes' career with their fourth studio release of Fragile- on January 4, 1972 (US version- the English version was released two months earlier) - just a week's shy of the PP Guru's eighth birthday. Fragile was the point where everything about the band practically changed overnight- an event that probably wouldn't repeat its' success until the reformation of the band in 1983 for the 90125 album. The format of the songs spread across the gamut of two to three minute interludes spotlighting each solo member to 10 minute dramatic epics such as the likes of South Side of the Sky & Heart of the Sunrise composed and performed by the entire band. The addition of Royal College of Music drop out Rick Wakeman whose skills in classical and jazz keyboard improvisations was unsurpassed with perhaps the exception of Keith Emerson, brought a distinctive new sound and palate to accompany Jon Anderson's celestial crisp choir voice and Chris Squire's melodic bass playing and the album cover itself was the first to feature the wispy aerial lustrous landscapes of contemporary artist Roger Dean - although his trademark logo for the band wouldn't be making its' debut until next year's Close to the Edge.

The most riveting landmark achievement that cemented Yes's hold in the pop music culture was that the first track off this album, Roundabout became nearly a American FM staple anthem for many years to come- as well as their first breakout US single, although the version the PP Guru had in looping in his mind was severely edited down to four minutes.

Roundabout has practically been around long enough since the PP Guru could do basic arithmetic, read Doc Savage books, and write long-winded aspiring cornball comic book dialogue.
The PP Guru remembers that it was the first actual tune that he heard played on his handheld AM transistor radio that he could happily sing along and snap his fingers to during the spring and summer (another one, Billy Paul's Me - the PP Guru and Mrs. Angelina Jolie - we've got a thing going on - comes to forefront of the PP Guru's mind) . When the PP Guru's half sister got a record player for her birthday- the PP Guru's twin aunts both pitched in to buy the PP Guru for Christmas a Kay Tel 4 disc record collection featuring the Superstars of the 70's to play on it when she wasn't around. The collection besides including theRoundabout single, also featured artists that would also be instrumental in the PP Guru's musical musings such as Led Zeppelin's Whole Lotta Love, Deep Purple's Hush, Jimi Hendrix's Foxy Lady, Crosby, Stills & Nash's Marakesh Express, and Emerson, Lake and Palmer's Lucky Man, along with many others too numerous to mention.

For the longest time, the PP Guru thought that Roundabout was nothing more than a four minute song- but imagine his surprise when in of all places, a home economics class in seventh grade, some fellow female classmate (a fat and ugly one too) brought in Fragile as a easy listening day music we could listen to after winding up a seventh period on a Friday afternoon. The PP Guru had never before seen Roger Dean's album cover and when that opening ominous feedback sound off Chris Squire's amp (not to mention engineer Eddie Offord's genius of patching in those phase cancelling effects behind the monitoring board) resonated off of Steve Howe's gentle acoustic guitar pluckerings and then to just lavishly explode into a jagged razor sharp rhythm percussive canon of Bill Bruford's thumping toms toms with Squire trying to undercut him with a rapid array of distorted bass line , the PP Guru knew that he was in for the listening experience of his life - not knowing that the original version of the song clocked in at over 8 and a half minutes! There was a whole middle section that PP Guru never knew existed with Anderson's elfish voice chirping something about a sailor who sees the rim of the land and eagles dancing wings flourished by Wakeman's stoic organ passages. The PP Guru knew from that moment forward that this was a mandatory item that would help mentor him to a pathway that has been set for him to follow.

So the PP Guru clipped out a RCA record of the month club ad out of a Marvel Comic - he doesn't know offhand which one it actually was, but it might as well have been this one:

The first ever Amazing Spider-Man comic he bought with his allowance money and therefore proceeded to order Fragile along with Led Zeppelin II and IV and some long ago forgotten Black Sabbath record and sent off his quarter. Within a few weeks they were delivered within a few weeks to the PP Guru's doorstep. The PP Guru's mom didn't dig the fact that a bill came along asking for a additional two dollars and change for postage and handing- but hey ma, those are the fucking breaks. The PP Guru had his first copy of Fragile in his cagey little hands and that was more important than life itself.....to a young impressionable eight year old.

Favorite tracks: Roundabout, South Side of the Sky, and the magnificent 10 minute jam of Simon & Garfunkel's America (now included on the remastered version which also incidentally has the demo version of Roundabout with lots of gags and goofs). South Side of the Sky is one of PP Guru's favorite all-time Yes songs (the subject dealing with a real Artic exploration gone awry) - The harmonial middle section with the piano accompaniment was one of the first things that the PP Guru ever learned how to play from his Yessongs transcribed fakebook! The song, a perennial fan favorite has been missing from their set lists for over twenty years has finally now been re-arranged and ressurrected to sheer popular Yes Fan demand the wide world over and can now be seen performed on the new DVD.

Favorite all time lyric: Were we ever colder on that day, a million miles away- it seemed of all eternity........YEAH! - South Side of the Sky by Jon Anderson & Chris Squire.

Long time waiting to hear a sound from: ~ Coat

Fragile

Fragile
Album cover
Album by Yes
Release November 1, 1971
Recorded September 1971
Genre(s) Progressive rock
Length 41 min 16 s
Label Atlantic Records
Producer Yes and Eddie Offord
Professional reviews
Yes chronology
The Yes Album
(1971)
Fragile
(1971)
Close to the Edge
(1972)

Fragile is the fourth album by British progressive rock band Yes. It is best known for the song "Roundabout", which was released in an edited version as a US single and became the band's best-known song. This was Rick Wakeman's first album with Yes - and also their first trans-atlantic Top 10 release.

Fragile was issued in the UK in November 1971, but held over in North America for a further two months because of the still-growing momentum of The Yes Album. The Rhino remaster's citing of Fragile as having been released on 4 January 1972 is actually the US release date.

The album was intended to showcase the band members' solo talents. "Cans and Brahms" is a piece by Johannes Brahms arranged by Rick Wakeman; "We Have Heaven" is a Jon Anderson solo in which he sings all the vocal parts (a technique he later used on his solo album Olias of Sunhillow); while "Five Per Cent For Nothing", "The Fish" and "Mood For A Day" are solo pieces by Bill Bruford, Chris Squire and Steve Howe, respectively. The rest of the songs are all group performances.

The cover design by Roger Dean depicts a tiny planet on the front. On the back, the planet has begun to break up and the population is escaping in a wooden space glider - a concept that was to inspire Anderson's Olias Of Sunhillow, as well as the film Floating Islands. The inside of the sleeve features two additional paintings and several photographs by Dean.

A DVD-Audio version of the album was released in 2002, featuring Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound mixes and other additional features.

The image “http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/15/Yes_Fragile_inside_right.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.
Painting by Roger Dean from the inner-right cover of the Yes album Fragile, 1971.

Track listing

  1. "Roundabout" (Jon Anderson/Steve Howe) - 8:33
  2. "Cans And Brahms" (Johannes Brahms, Arr. Rick Wakeman)- 1:38
  3. "We Have Heaven" (Jon Anderson) - 1:40
  4. "South Side Of The Sky" (Jon Anderson/Chris Squire) - 7:58
  5. "Five Per Cent For Nothing" (Bill Bruford) - 0:35
  6. "Long Distance Runaround" (Jon Anderson) - 3:30
  7. "The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)" (Chris Squire) - 2:39
  8. "Mood For A Day" (Steve Howe) - 3:00
  9. "Heart Of The Sunrise" (Jon Anderson/Chris Squire/Bill Bruford) - 11:27
    • Includes a hidden reprise of "We Have Heaven" at the very end
<>Fragile (Atlantic 2401 019) reached #7 in the UK. It also reached #4 in the US during a chart stay of 46 weeks. Fragile was remastered and reissued in 2003 with several bonus tracks.

Personnel

Sources

  • Fragile, CD booklet essay, Bill Martin, c.2003
  • AllMusicGuide.com
  • "Top Pop Albums 1955-2001", Joel Whitburn, c.2002

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Roger Dean

Roger Dean (born August 31, 1944) is a contemporary artist best known for his work on album covers, which began in the late 1960s. He was born in England, but spent most of his childhood moving around the world with his British Army father. The family returned to England in 1959 and Dean earned a National Diploma of Design from the Canterbury School of Art. In 1968, he graduated from the Royal College of Art in London.

His first album cover work was for a group called Gun. In 1971, Dean produced the first album cover for the African group Osibisa, which attracted a lot of attention to his work. Later that year, he began the partnership for which he is best known, designing his first album cover (Fragile) for the progressive rock band Yes. Dean designed the classic Yes logo, which first appeared on the album Close to the Edge and has created covers for the band as recently as 1999 (The Ladder). Yes guitarist Steve Howe said, "There is a pretty tight bond between our sound and Roger's art."

Known primarily for the dreamy, other-worldly scenes he has created for Yes, Budgie , Uriah Heep, Gentle Giant and other bands, Dean has said, "I don't really think of myself as a fantasy artist but as a landscape painter." Many of his paintings use mixed media including gouache, watercolor, ink, enamel, crayon and collage.

Two compilations of his work, Views (1975) and Magnetic Storm (1984), have been published. In addition, his architectural and furniture work has been exhibited in the Victoria and Albert Museum and in the Royal Academy. In recent years, he has focused a great deal on his architectural ideas, finally building a number of homes he has designed over the years.

In early 2005, Dean has announced plans to create a feature film titled Floating Islands. This film will be produced by Roger Dean and David Mousley. The story is based on the underlying theme depicted in the album artwork for Yes. It will feature 3D animated renderings of classic Dean images and music by Yes.

<>
Roger travels every summer to the North East Art Rock Festival, or NEARFest, as the invited guest, and has designed their logo for the majority of the festivals history. He welcomes the chance to meet many of his fans in person and has signed thousands of autographs of his work. Dean has lived in Brighton since 1972. (... complete in link)

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Sparky: Fragile's LP was one of the first Roger Dean covers I remember hunting down.
SPARKY: MORE ROVE RAGE!
& “PEACE MOM”
OJs "W"!!
IT'S THE KRAKATOA
EXPLOSION ANNIVERSARY!!


Will Dick Cheney become the “new Gerald Ford?”

Letter: CHRISTINE NISKANEN: Meanwhile, back to Rove

It's time to get back on the Karl Rove case, now that President Bush has tried a political maneuver to help take Rove off the pages for awhile by nominating his choice for Supreme Court.

We know that Rove discussed the identity of an undercover CIA agent with reporters. Outing an undercover CIA agent hurts our national security. Rove either broke the law or was grossly negligent with national secrets, yet he still works in the White House.

I think Rove outed the CIA agent in order to discredit her husband, a critic of the Bush Iraq policy. There needs to be a full accounting to the American people about what happened. I don't want officials in important government positions who put their political agenda ahead of their patriotism.


MediaChannel.org: Tom Hamburger and Sonni Efron: A CIA Cover Blown, a White House Exposed

One of the most thorough summary of the affair - click the link above or this link for the L.A. Times article with the same content with photos
Valerie Plame and Joseph Wilson
(Jonas Karlssom / Vanity Fair)

Robert Novak
(Alex Wong / Getty Images)

Matthew Cooper
(Paul J. Richards / AFP/Getty Images)

Karl Rove
(Ron Edmonds / AP)

Patrick Fitzgerald
(Tim Boyle / Getty Images)

'Scooter' Libby
(Joe Marquette / AP)

George Tenet
(Ron Edmonds / AP)

A CIA Cover Blown, a White House Exposed, (comment)
“... The implication of that is that this George Bush intentionally kept the Iraq war going largely to be reelected. If that is true, the Plame Case is likely to pale in comparison to the acts of a President who is responsible for the loss of a great deal of human life just to stay hold onto his power for another four years. It is mind-numbing to me. Not even Lyndon Johnson would stoop to that level.”
The White House Follies (One More Time) - (comment)

“... That the White House has lied throughout the runup to the Iraq invasion, and subsequently attempted, unsuccessfully in my opinion, to attack all those voices of dissent on this matter is an obvious fact to progressive people throughout the country. In all of this, the ultimate responsibility rests with President Bush. Surely he is aware as commander in chief of our armed forces that it is the commander who is ultimately responsible for both success and failure of those under his command.

Unfortunately, we in the United States seem to have forgotten this truism. Although recent polls show that Americans of all parties and in all regions have less and less faith in the Administration's handling of the Iraq occupation and the ongoing struggle against terrorists . This, at least is encouraging. … ”

–––––––––––
Krakatoa
The image “http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/2a/Krakatoa_01.JPG” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.

Krakatoa (Indonesian name: Krakatau) is a volcano near the Indonesian island of Rakata in the Sunda Strait. Location: 6°6?27? S 105°25?3? E. It has erupted repeatedly, massively and with disastrous consequences throughout recorded history. The best known of these events occurred in late August, 1883.

The 1883 eruption ejected more than six cubic miles (25 cubic kilometres) of rock, ash, and pumice [1], and generated the loudest sound ever historically recorded by human beings — the cataclysmic explosion was distinctly heard as far away as Perth in Australia, and the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius. Atmospheric shock waves reverberated around the world. Near Krakatoa, 165 villages were devastated, an estimated 36,000 people died and uncountable thousands were injured by the eruption, mostly in the tsunami which followed the biggest explosion.

The eruption destroyed two-thirds of the pre-existing island of Krakatoa. New eruptions at the volcano since 1927 have built a new island, called Anak Krakatau (child of Krakatoa).

Origin of the name

The earliest mention of the island in the Western world was on a map by Lucas Janszoon Waghenaer, who labelled the island "Pulo Carcata." ("Pulo" is a form of pulau, the Indonesian word for "island".) There are two spellings, Krakatoa and Krakatau, that are both acceptable. Krakatoa is overall more common, although Krakatau tends to be favored by Indonesians. The origin of the spelling Krakatoa is unclear, but may have been the result of a typographical error made in a British source reporting on the sudden eruption of 1883.
The image “http://www.joor.net/oriol/viatges/thailandiaIndonesia2004/albumfotos/20040202-584.JPG” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.

There are several theories as to the origin of the Indonesian name Krakatau. It may have been an instance of onomatopoeia, owing to the sound of the many parrots that used to inhabit the island. Alternatively, the name may be a derivation from the Sanskrit word karkataka, meaning "lobster" or "crab". There is also a popular belief that Krakatau was mistakenly adopted when a captain of a visiting ship asked a local person what the name of the island was, and the latter replied by saying "Kaga tau", which is a Batavian (Jakartan/Betawinese) slang phrase meaning "I don't know". This last explanation is largely discounted (it closely resembles a famous linguistics story where, upon landing in Australia, a ship's captain asks the natives what a local animal is called, to which the chief replies, "Kanguru". The animal is called the kangaroo, and it is only later that the captain learns that "Kanguru" is local for, "What did you say?").

1883 eruption

Krakatoa had been dormant for two centuries before it began erupting on 20 May 1883. The eruption had been preceded by several years of noticeable earthquakes, some felt as far away as Australia. The eruption began with small steam eruptions on 20 May, and these continued for the next three months.

By 11 August, three vents were regularly erupting on the volcano. During this time tides were unusually high, and phenomena such as windows suddenly shattering were commonplace. Ships at anchor were sometimes tied down with chains as a result. 11 August saw the onset of larger eruptions, with ash-laden eruption columns being emitted by up to eleven eruption vents. 24 August saw a further intensification of the eruption, and the cataclysmic phase began on Sunday 26 August at about midday. Ash clouds from the eruption reached a height of 36 km, and the first tsunamis were generated.

The 27 August eruptions occurred at 5:30 am, 6:42 am, 8:20 am, and 10:02 am local time. The last of these eruptions opened fissures in the walls of the volcano, allowing sea water to pour into the subterranean magma chamber. The resulting phreatic eruption of superheated steam destroyed most of the island. The sound of the explosion was heard as far away as the island of Rodrigues near Mauritius, 4,800 km away (3,000 miles). It is the loudest-ever sound in recorded history. (A possibly louder sound is believed to have been generated during the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora, also in the Indonesian archipelago).

<>Krakatau before and after the explosion.
Scanned from the Marshall Cavendish weekly
series "The Tree of Knowledge".

Although no one is known to have been killed as a result of the initial explosion, the tsunamis it generated had disastrous results, killing some 36,000 people; and wiping out a number of settlements, including Telok Batong in Sumatra, and Sirik and Semarang in Java. An additional 1,000 or so people died from the effects of volcanic fumes and ashes. Ships as far away as South Africa rocked as tsunamis hit them, and the bodies of victims were found floating in the ocean for weeks after the event. There are even numerous documented reports of groups of human skeletons floating across the Indian Ocean on rafts of volcanic pumice and washing up on the east coast of Africa up to a year after the eruption.

The image “http://geology.cwru.edu/~huwig/catalog/slides/361.A.5.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors.

The 1883 eruption was amongst the most severe volcanic explosions in modern times (VEI of 6, equivalent to 200 megatons of TNT — by way of comparison, the biggest bomb ever made by man, Tsar Bomba, had an explosive power of around 50 megatons). Concussive air waves from the explosions travelled seven times around the world, and the sky was darkened for days afterwards. The island of Rakata itself largely ceased to exist as over two thirds of its exposed land area was blown to dust, and its surrounding ocean floor was drastically altered. Two nearby islands, Verlaten and Lang, had their land masses increased. Volcanic ash continues to be a significant part of the geological composition of these islands.

There is some evidence that the final colossal explosion may not have been caused by the ingress of sea water. The magma chamber below the volcano was composed of light coloured, relatively cool material. Following the 20 May eruption hotter, darker coloured material entered the chamber from below. The new material heated the original molten rock, releasing dissolved gases, and increasing the pressure. The early eruptions on 25 August and 26th cleared the throat of the volcano, releasing the pressure in a cataclysmic explosion that destroyed most of the island. Pumice stone from the eruption shows a mixture of dark and light material.

Long-term effects

The eruption produced spectacular sunsets throughout the world for many months afterwards, as a result of sunlight reflected from suspended dust particles ejected by the volcano high into Earth's atmosphere. British artist William Ashcroft made hundreds of color sketches of the red sunsets half-way around the world from Krakatoa in the years after the eruption. In 2004, researchers proposed the idea that the blood-red sky shown in Edvard Munch's famous 1893 painting The Scream is also an accurate depiction of the sky over Norway after the eruption.

It has been suggested that an eruption of Krakatoa may have been responsible for the global climate changes of 535-536. Additionally, in recent times, it has been argued that it was this eruption which created the islands of Verlaten and Lang (remnants of the original) and the beginnings of Rakata — all indicators of early Krakatoa's caldera size.

Subsequent volcanism

Since the 1883 eruption, a new island volcano, called Anak Krakatau ("Child of Krakatoa"), has formed in the caldera. Of considerable interest to volcanologists, this has been the subject of extensive study since 1960. Additionally, it has also been a case study of island biogeography and founder populations in an ecosystem being built from the ground up, virtually sterilized, certainly with no macroscopic life surviving the explosion. The island is still active, with its most recent eruptive episode having begun in 1994. Since then, quiet periods of a few days have alternated with almost continuous eruptions, with occasional much larger explosions. Since the 1950s, the island has grown at an average rate of five inches (12.7 cm) per week. Reports in 2005 indicated that activity at Anak Krakatau was increasing.

Media

The volcano has inspired several books and films:

  • The novel Krakatit (1924, ISBN 0685513386) by Czech writer Karel ?apek, dealing with lethal menace of a fictional explosive, was inspired by the name of the volcano.
  • Krakatoa is the name of a short 1933 movie about the volcano that won the Academy Award for Best Short Subject, Novelty for its producer Joe Rock. This movie was notable for overwhelming the sound systems of the cinemas of the time. In Australia, the distributors insisted on a power output of 10 watts RMS as a minimum for cinemas wishing to show the movie. This was then considered a large system, and forced many cinemas to upgrade.
  • Krakatoa is the location of Professor William Waterman Sherman's adventures in the book The Twenty-One Balloons (1947, ISBN 0140320970) by William Pène du Bois, which won the Newbery Medal in 1948.
  • Time Tunnel episode "The Crack of Doom" aired in 14 October 1966.
  • The eruption is the subject of a 1969 Hollywood film entitled Krakatoa, East of Java starring Maximilian Schell. (The title is inaccurate; Krakatoa is actually located west of Java.)
  • Simon Winchester explores the eruption of Krakatoa in his book Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, 27 August 1883. (2003, ISBN 0066212855). The book examines the history of the region, the early spice trade, the growth of colonial governments, explains the geology of volcanos and describes in detail the series of eruptions and tsunamis and their effects around the globe.
  • The name of the living island Krakoa which battled the new X-Men called together by Professor X in Giant-Size X-Men #1 is obviously derived from the real Krakatoa.
  • The Third Doctor implied that he had heard the sound of the eruption — or possibly that of the creatures known as the Primods sometime prior to the Doctor Who serial Inferno. In the episode Rose, a sketch of the Ninth Doctor in front of the volcano dated "1883" was seen, with a character noting that it had washed ashore following the eruption.
  • On board the Cutty Sark, Scrooge McDuck rode out the resulting tsunami from the 1883 Krakatoa eruption in Chapter 3 of Don Rosa's Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck.

External links

–––––––––––


Seattle Times
The CIA leak: Infighting, grudges, justifying a war
Seattle Times, United States - 10 hours ago
... What motivated President Bush's political strategist, Karl Rove; Vice President Dick Cheney's top aide, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby; and others to counter Wilson ...
The timeline of a leak and a controversy Seattle Times

There's a 'hunt for the real killers' reference below —
CNN: POLITICS:Sheehan resumes protest vigil

CRAWFORD, Texas (CNN) -- A day after she returned to the helm of a protest against President Bush's policy in Iraq, Cindy Sheehan expressed satisfaction Thursday about the peace movement she helped invigorate.

Cindy Sheehan, front, shares a light
moment with Gold Star Families for
Peace members Wednesday.


"When I left, it thrived, and it grew, and it's because I'm not alone," said the 48-year-old mother of Casey Sheehan, who was killed last year while serving in Iraq. "I'm not the only one who wants answers to these questions."

With the exception of a week by the bedside of her mother who had a stroke, Sheehan has kept a vigil at Bush's ranch since August 6. She hopes to question him about the reasons for the U.S. invasion of Iraq and to urge an immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces.

Sheehan is a founding member of Gold Star Families for Peace, an anti-war group led by relatives of fallen troops.

Her protest has drawn criticism as well as what she has called a "raging inferno" of support.

"If George Bush came out and spoke to me today, and we went home, this wouldn't end," she said. "It will be impossible to put out."

About her late son, she said, "I know, when I get up to greet him, when it's my time, he's going to say, 'Good job, Mom.' He's not going to accuse me of dishonoring his memory.

"I know my son, and I know he would say, 'I don't want any more of my buddies killed just because I'm dead.I want my buddies to come home alive'," Sheehan said.

The comment was a rebuttal to Bush's insistence that a withdrawal from Iraq would be a mistake. On Wednesday, he addressed the deaths of nearly 1,870 Americans during the war, saying, "we will honor their sacrifice by completing the mission." (Full story)

Her vigil has drawn dozens of supporters -- and counter-demonstrators -- around the site her group has nicknamed "Camp Casey."

A caravan of people supporting Bush's policy has launched a "You Don't Speak for Me, Cindy" tour headed for Crawford. Dubbed "Move America Forward," the group plans on arriving there Saturday.

Sheehan said she respects the opinions of those who disagree with her and her belief that the war is "illegal and immoral."

"If there is any family who says that they believe their child died for a noble cause, I say, that is your right. If that helps you get through the day, if that helps you in your pain, because we might not have the same politics but, trust me, we have the same pain."

Last year, Bush met with Sheehan and other relatives of troops killed in Iraq during an appearance at Fort Lewis, Washington. He has refused to meet with her a second time.

Sheehan said she does support the continued hunt for al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.

"We need to hunt for the person who was allegedly responsible for 9-11," she said. "He's still out there and we've ruined a country that didn't have anything to do with 9-11."
–––––––––––

OTHER NEWS
REUTERS: Singapore locks up U.S. man for possessing porn
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Singapore police handcuffed and locked up a U.S. citizen for bringing 58 pornographic DVDs and video CDs into the wealthy city-state when he moved to Singapore last year, a newspaper reported Thursday.

The Straits Times said Singapore state prosecutors had dropped charges of possessing uncertified and obscene films against Tran Nghia Hong after he presented them with a declaration by his brother, stating that he was missing "certain DVDs."

The films, found by Singapore customs officers in a shipment of his belongings from California, included titles such as "Frivolous Lola," "Copulation Nation" and "Lord of the Strings."

"I was handcuffed and put in a lock-up for four hours after I was charged," the report quoted Tran, 35, as saying.

Tran, a financial controller at U.S. Internet equipment maker Cisco Systems, could have been fined up to S$500 for each disc, up to a maximum of S$20,000, or up to six months in prison, or both.

Despite efforts to loosen some of its social controls, many tough rules remain in Singapore. "Playboy" magazine is banned, while oral sex remains technically illegal under a law that says "whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animals" can be fined and jailed up to 10 years, or even for life.

In recent years, Singapore has partially relaxed its famous ban on chewing gum, allowed some bars to stay open for 24 hours and ended a ban on the popular U.S. sitcom "Sex and the City."

Selected anniversaries

August 26: Janmaashtami (Hinduism, 2005)

Google US News Crawl




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CNN
Man surrenders in Gas Station Owner Killing
FOX News - 17 hours ago
FORT PAYNE, Ala. - A man has surrendered in the death of the Fort Payne (search) gas station owner who tried to stop a 52-dollar gasoline theft by grabbing onto a moving vehicle and was run over and killed, according to the Associated Press.
Jakarta clerk’s home Times-Journal
Driver in gas drive-off death surrenders to police Gadsden Times (subscription)
WTVY - Huntsville Times - Philadelphia Daily News - WDEF - all 166 related »

Pravda
Poll Shows Voters Sour on Governor
Los Angeles Times - Aug 25, 2005
Schwarzenegger's ballot measures aren't winning wide support and his job rating is down to 34%. He blames a contentious agenda and attack ads.
Governor dwells low on opinion totem pole Contra Costa Times
Schwarzenegger's Initiatives Lag as Approval Falls to New Low Bloomberg
Reuters - Guardian Unlimited - Capital News 9 - Pasadena Star-News - all 123 related »

Washington Post
Civil rights groups support Roberts
CNN - 14 hours ago
With the approach of Senate confirmation hearings for President Bush's Supreme Court nominee John Roberts, representatives from a handful of advocacy organizations Thursday announced support for him and criticized groups on the left ...
Sen. Feinstein looks to press Roberts on abortion USA Today
On High Court Vote, Centrist Democrats Caught in Middle Los Angeles Times
New York Times - Seattle Times - Washington Post - Boston Globe - all 331 related »

PakistanTimes.net
Miss America bids boardwalk goodbye
CNN - 3 hours ago
Venerable pageant leaving Atlantic City after an 85-year run; new location yet to be determined. NEW YORK (CNN) - Miss America is waving goodbye to Atlantic City, NJ, organizers of the pageant announced Thursday.
Miss America packs her tiara NorthJersey.com
There She Goes, Miss America New York Times
New York Daily News - Reuters - 7Online.com - Boston Globe - all 422 related »

Albany Times Union
Half-million in state lose power when key line fails
San Diego Union Tribune - 6 hours ago
The sudden shutdown of a key power line triggered blackouts yesterday afternoon for more than 450,000 utility customers in Southern California, marking one of the worst outages since the electricity crisis ended four years ago.
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Power line fails, 700,000 homes blacked out San Francisco Chronicle
Power Outages Roll Through Southland Los Angeles Times
North County Times - Forbes - San Jose Mercury News - New York Times - all 509 related »

Washington Times
Homeland Security reviewing border strategy
Newsday - Aug 23, 2005
The nation's homeland security chief said Tuesday he had ordered a review of border security strategy before two governors declared an immigration emergency on the US-Mexico line.
US Responds to Governors' Illegal Immigration Appeals Los Angeles Times
Homeland Security Chief Tells of Plan to Stabilize Border New York Times
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365Gay.com
Crime of passion
Daily Telegraph - 1 hour ago
SAN FRANCISCO: Three men charged with killing a transgender teenager after discovering she was biologically a male should not be convicted of murder, a defence lawyer told a Californian jury yesterday.
Defense in teen's slaying claims `crime of passion' San Jose Mercury News
Lawyer: Killing was not murder The Argus
Washington Post - NBC11.com - KESQ - Milpitas Post - all 135 related »

KABC
Shoppers ran for lives as Wal-Mart shooter opened fire
AZ Central.com - 13 hours ago
Gunfire. Screams of fear. And amid the chaos and confusion, the sounds of people running for their lives. Something had gone horribly wrong at a Wal-Mart Supercenter in Glendale.
Friends, co-workers mourn Wal-Mart workers killed in parking lot Arizona Daily Sun
Suspect was off his medicine, sister says Arizona Republic
Guardian Unlimited - Washington Post - Monsters and Critics.com - Stuff.co.nz - all 533 related »
Fixing education reform
Cavalierdaily.com - 11 hours ago
WHILE many debate the legitimacy of the rigid and expensive mandates the No Child Left Behind Act imposes on states, the extent to which the initiative is failing at the most basic level became transparent last Monday, when Connecticut sued the federal ...
State confronts US over education law San Jose Mercury News
Education Chief Criticizes Connecticut Washington Post
Derby Valley Gazette - Newsday - WVLT - Hartford Courant - all 110 related »

WNDU-TV
Zylon Bulletproof Vest Had Failure Rate of 58%
Newsinferno.com - 3 hours ago
As more testing is done on bullet proof police vests containing a fiber known as Zylon, it is becoming clear that they simply do not do what they are supposed to do, which is to stop bullets.
Feds Say Zylon Armor Vests Not Up to Task Washington Post
A Common Police Vest Fails the Bulletproof Test New York Times
Monsters and Critics.com - The Grand Rapids Press - Mount Vernon News - Charlotte Observer - all 101 related »

CNN
Va. Student Killed by School Bus on First Day of School
Washington Post - Aug 24, 2005
A school bus struck and killed a middle school student this morning on the first day of the new school year in Culpeper, Va. The victim was a 10-year-old girl who was beginning her first ...
Culpeper mourns Culpeper Star Exponent
Culpeper school grieves over child’s death The Free Lance-Star
Los Angeles Times - Richmond Times Dispatch - Charlottesville Daily Progress - All Headline News - all 76 related »

MSNBC
San Diego Zoo panda cub is a girl
San Jose Mercury News - 16 hours ago
SAN DIEGO - The giant panda cub born at the San Diego Zoo three weeks ago is a girl. Veterinarians suspected as much but waited to make the final call until their weekly exam Wednesday, keeper Kathy Hawk said.
Project Panda Dallas Morning News (subscription)
It's a girl! San Diego Union Tribune
Sydney Morning Herald (subscription) - Washington Post - Independent Online - Reuters.uk - all 150 related »

Houston Chronicle
$250,000 Bail Set in Boston for Boy, 12, Found With Gun
New York Times - Aug 24, 2005
BOSTON, Aug. 24 - A juvenile court judge who said he was trying to protect the public from a "serious problem" with guns set bail at $250,000 this week for a 12-year-old boy arrested after police officers ...
$250,000 Bail for Boy Stirs Controversy Guardian Unlimited
Judge Sets Bail at $250K for 12-Year-Old Washington Post
Fort Worth Star Telegram - Telegraph.co.uk - Boston Globe - Boston Herald - all 214 related »
Army Vet Gets 'Bomber' Credit Card Offer
Washington Post - Aug 24, 2005
CORONA, Calif. -- The address was his, but the name on the credit-card offer took Sami Habbas by surprise: "Palestinian Bomber.
Bank solicitation letter addressed to "Palestinian Bomber" Inland Valley Daily Bulletin
Man upset at credit card offer addressed to 'Palestinian Bomber' San Francisco Chronicle
Buffalo News - San Jose Mercury News - Scotsman - KABC - all 168 related »
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Thanks for any eyeballs. Leave comments. - The longer winded one - Sparky