Here is good example of how today's "war on terrorism" is producing paranoia and false alarms. "Oh my gawd, the sky is falling, the sky is falling". Come on people, get a life. At least that is my intellect speaking, such as it is, but I must admit to worrying as someone left behind some gloves and an unidentified object behind a machine in the gym yesterday and when I spotted it, I worried as I was using the machine at the time, but then, blowing up the gym would certainly not provide the bang for the buck that blowing up a subway would so I quickly put that out of my mind.

Ah, we all have our problems. Here is ESPN.COM with an interesting typo this morning. In the NL-West they have the division leading San Diego Padres .5 game behind the division leader, whoever that may be??????????????

I am disturbed by this trend towards having everyone watching everyone else for suspiscious activity. In this morning's SF Chronicle there were some specific guidelines which could help clear the air a bit.

The article reports that BART is asking riders to report unattended packages or suspicious behavior but here is one example of what the agency considers suspicious behavior which I have a problem with:

"Taking pictures or videotaping in areas of no interest to the general public."

I have no problem with most everything on the list but the one listed above disturbs me. As a freelance photographer and a member of the Boston Street Railway Association, the National Association of Railroad Passengers, and the Market Street Railway Association, I routinely photorgraph trains, trolleys, and buses. Would this now mean that I would automatically be considered a suspicious person by doing what I have done for many years? Well, I guess I better always keep my membership cards with me at all times from here on out. I tell you, this country is going paranoid.

There are many good suggestions and reminders on that list which should be read by all but I would like an explanation from BART concerning the suggestion listed above.

This situation in Iran so barbaric and sad.

For the "funnies of the day" go to this page for some topical humor. If that link doesn't work, go directly to for those "funnies" and more.

And while we are at it, why does NASA rely so heavily on glue to keep the heat shielding tiles on the space shuttles. Everyone knows that glue wears out eventually on earth, no matter what type it is, but putting any sort of glue or epoxy through the stresses and strains of space flight should be a no-brainer. The stuff is going to wear out and should not be used. How about bolting down those shields? Seems to me that should be more permanent than glue, no matter what type of glue it is.

Bring it on?

Bush To London Bombers: 'Bring It On'
WASHINGTON, DC—President Bush officially responded to the latest round of London transit bombings Monday, challenging terrorists to "do their worst." Said Bush, in a televised statement from the Oval Office: "The proud and resilient people of London can take anything the forces of evil and cowardice can throw at them. They will never live in fear of you. Bring it on." Prime Minister Tony Blair thanked Bush for his comments, inviting him to visit London and ride the Underground in a show of solidarity.

Hmm...

LONDON (Reuters) - A British couple who headed out to sea in a dinghy for an amorous liaison sparked a major rescue operation when their cries of passion were mistaken for someone in trouble, British police said Tuesday.

A passer-by raised the alarm after hearing strange noises coming from the waters near a beach in Torbay on the southwest coast of England Saturday morning, prompting the coastguard to send lifeboats and police to the scene.

"It was found that there was a partially-clothed couple in a small rubber dingy that were brought ashore and asked to put their clothes back on," a spokesman for Devon and Cornwall police told Reuters.

"Our log actually mentions that 'they were having fun in their boat!', but doesn't say anything other than that."

BART troubles on Peninsula line

Some siginificant changes are planned for BART's extension to SFO. Ridership is below expectations so in an effort to stem the tide of red ink there are planned cutbacks in service this fall.

No one asked me but I could have told you, or them, that riders would not flock to the new extension to the airport. It is just impractical when travelling with something much bigger than a backpack or laptop computer to use the service. Taxis and door-to-door shuttle vans are much more convenient when there is a large amount of luggage involved. Only those travelling lightly or perhaps those wanting to save a few dollars will take BART, or any other public transit agency to the airport. At least this has been my experience in cities from London to Atlanta, Paris, and Boston. By far, most riders fall into that category of small amounts of luggage. It is great for workers at the airport for sure and for flight crews who travel lightly although in San Francisco flight crews have their own shuttle buses from hotel to airport.

Having said that however, I am amazed at the amount of people using BART to the Oakland Airport/Coliseum Station with the Air BART shuttle bus to the terminals. These people are traveling with substantial luggage and that service is frequently crowded so why are there so few riding BART to SFO? Is it the way BART is or is not marketing their SFO service? Is it competition from competing forms of transporation? Just what is the problem anyway?

I enjoyed reading this letter to the editor today in a Thai newspaper.
------------
Christian missionaries should desist

The occasion of Buddhist Lent seems an opportune moment to address all pious preachers who smugly hand out Christian leaflets with intent to convert. Have they learned nothing from the catastrophic lessons of colonial history? Have they considered that the consequences of their actions might actually be utterly disastrous for the same people whose souls you seek to save?

The very fabric of Thai society is woven principally from the silken threads of Buddhism. If they unravel that, Thailand will certainly begin to fray at the edges. Over the last few hundred years, Thais have had to repeatedly defend their integrity and culture, whereas many other countries in Asia have collapsed under insensitive assault by the West.

The missionaries should consider this: might they not feel a little insulted, even resentful, if Buddhists descended en masse on their own home country and attempted to convert them to their Eight-Fold Path?

A moment's Deep Thought might reveal to them that our European cultural grass isn't always automatically the greenest. It would be monstrously arrogant to persist in racist assumptions and Eurocentric thought habits like that. Could it be that resentment about conversion is one of the factors fuelling terrorism?

Please consider the novel idea of loving (and respecting) your neighbour enough to cease interfering and disrupting. In fact, breaking free of Christian herd mentality may well be the hardest (and the most caring) thing the missionaries will ever achieve. Fundamentalism in any form is the Wrong Way. Go back.

PETER GORE-SYMES
Chiang Mai
-----------------
These are important things to consider in ones life. Hello Pat Robertson and others! Are you listening? Unfortunately, I doubt it.

OK, so what do we really know about the Brazilian man that London police shot to death in the subway? Here are excerpts from various news stories regarding this incident.
----------------
The man was identified by police as Jean Charles de Menezes, a 27-year-old Brazilian, described by officers as an electrician on his way to work. "He was not connected to incidents in central London on 21st July, 2005, in which four explosive devices were partly detonated," a police statement said.

A cousin of the dead man, interviewed on Brazil's leading television network, identified him as João Alves Menezes and said he was an electrician who had been working in England for more than three years. The cousin, Alex Pereira Alves, identified Mr. Menezes' body in London, the network said. Mr. Menezes was from the interior state of Minas Gerais, home of the bulk of migrants from Brazil to the United States and Europe and had been in Britain legally, Mr. Alves said. He would have been on his way to work that morning, he said, and had no reason to flee the police.

Another cousin, Aleide Menezes, said in an interview with Brazil's national radio network that Mr. Menezes understood English well and would have understood the officer's instructions. Other relatives, in television and newspaper interviews, said the family was Roman Catholic and that Mr. Menezes had nothing to do with Islam.

A Friday statement said that the man's "clothing and his behavior at the station added to their suspicions," apparently referring to reports that the man was wearing a bulky jacket on a summer day.

The police had believed the man, who was shot at 10 a.m. Friday at the Stockwell subway station in south London, was a would-be suicide bomber because he had left an apartment under surveillance. They said the man behaved in a "highly suspicious" manner - he was wearing a winter coat on a warm summer day, repeatedly ignored officers' instructions to stop and jumped over the subway turnstiles before running toward a waiting train and tripping and falling to its floor, the police said. Stunned witnesses said a police officer used a pistol to shoot the man five times, at point-blank range, in the head.

Police said Menezes attracted police attention because he left a building that was under surveillance after Thursday's attacks. They said he was then followed by surveillance officers to the station, and his clothing and behavior at the station added to their suspicions. Menezes was wearing a heavy coat while temperatures were in the 70s.
---------------
OK, sounds like a man who might wear a heavy jacket to carry electricians tools, who was late for work, who was hard of hearing and still had not had his first cup of coffee for the day resulting is mass confusion on his part. I guess his biggest sin was living in the same complex as real suspected terrorists and he was mistaken for one of them. So tragic!!!

---------------
Regarding evolution, this is what I like to see. Progressives must strike back against the know-nothings of the Bible Belt.

And finally for a preview of the new Bloomingdales project in downtown San Francisco click here.

Shoot now and ask questions later

This could prove to be a bigger mistake for officials in London than previously anticipated.

And on the home front here is what one ex-CIA agent had to say about the mess in Washington about Rovegate.

"We deserve people who work in the White House who are committed to protecting classified information, telling the truth to the American people, and living by example to the idea that a country at war with Islamic extremists cannot focus its efforts on attacking other American citizens who simply tried to tell the truth."

And one final note, if you are interested in hunky gay men from Portugal (and can read Portuguese) check out this website.

I just discovered a new blog page. It is from Pope Benedict no less and can be viewed here. Very interesting but one or more links do not work so someone in Rome needs to correct those deficiences.

All the news these days about terrorism is depressing. No, not becuase of the acts of terrorism but becuase of people's reaction to strangers. Now people are even more paranoid. For some time now eople have not been able to look each other in the eye as exhibited by their stares at their shoe laces or other objects when walking down the streets. Only the "beautiful" people get looked at and now all others will probably be suspicious persons in the minds of these wimps who would not know a terrorist if one were standing directly in front of them. I hope the U.K. pulls through this and they don't succumb to these terrorists. If so, the terrorists have won. This country might be another matter as too many people are already afraid of their own shadow. Concerted and continued incidents in this country would probably bring it to its knees. The psyche of the U.S. has always been fragile so I doubt it could handle repeated acts of terrorism. This is sad and frightening at the same time but what can one do? Move out of the country? Well, I have thought of that and I have a short list of three industrialized countries that would fit my needs very nicely. Now if I could only figure out how to finance such a move.

The Bush & Company continue to wreak havoc in Washington even to the point of changing the rules to fit the situation. One of the most irksome things regards "activist judges". In that regard I love the comments made by one letter writer to the newspaper this morning.
------------------------
Editor -- I keep hearing politicians proclaim that they are against "judicial activism," and against judges "legislating from the bench" and wanting "strict constitutional" judges. I have a couple of questions:
1) Isn't overturning current policy "activism"? Wouldn't ignoring the First Amendment be "activism"? Wouldn't arguing that Americans do not have the right to sue the government over environmental policy imply support for big government over citizens' rights, which runs counter to the conservative philosophy of less government, not more?
2) What is the definition of "legislating from the bench?" It could be argued that in Brown vs. Board of Education, no specific constitutional law was being violated. Was that legislating from the bench? And if so, what would the alternative have been -- to allow separate and unequal education to continue and wait for Kansas to pass a law?
3) If the purpose of the Supreme Court is to merely rubber-stamp anything that comes out of the legislative branch, where is the check to balance congressional power?
I do not have sufficient information to approve or disapprove of the latest candidate for our highest court, but I feel that asking questions is not only appropriate, but required.
----------------
And to that I can only say Amen.

Once again our astute Board of Supervisors is at it again in trying to interfere with legitimate private business concerns. The proposed conversion of the ugly and tacky 60's tower on the back of the Fairmont Hotel to condominiums is the least that can be done to separate that monstronsity from the most beautiful hotel in the city but no, the Board of Supervisors want to stop it. Come on folks, get real. Hotel rooms are not about to whither up and go away because of this conversion so let the owners do what is right. John King's excellent article this morning in the San Francisco Chronicle sums up the situation very well.

Mark Morford is at it again with his latest column which is about the Bush/Rove connection. It is very scary to think of these two people with so much power. While some of Morford's columns are very humorous, this one could be the cause of nightmares for some people. Also, why has Bush suddenly changed his standards for firing people? He is now taking the low road on this issue.

If you want something on the lighter side, how about Burn Baby Burn Barbecue Sauce which doesn't sound real but apparently is as Huey Newton's widow is going to market the stuff. I wonder how hot it will be?

As for the proposal to convert some rooms at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco into condos, why not? They are only proposing this for the modern tower that was added to the hotel, not the original structure and shouldn't a property owner be able to make changes to his or her property without so much government interference? If the proposal was for the entire property that would be a little different but it is only for the tacky sixties addition to the facility.

On a personal note, I am recovering from my four days in hot Las Vegas (115°). Another night's sleep plus a Happy Hour at my favorite watering hole has apparently helped. I am now back to normal, whatever that is.

Ah yes, I am still here if not three sheets to the wind. Ha!. I just love Savio's G&Ts. It really helps make the day especially since I have been in such a funk since returning from the oven, better known as Las Vegas, Nevada. God, how can anyone stand to live in that shit hole???? The Bay Area is so much more civilized and has far superior weather. Oh, I know there are people who feel that it is too cold here in the summer but better that than to have your brains fried inside your head in southern Nevada. I think that has been part of my problem today. That is, I could not take the heat down there and became very lethargic here. Three G&Ts really helped out tonight. Yes, really, they did and now I feel like my old self again.

Ah, after four days in Las Vegas I am back to blessed cool air and the San Francisco Bay Area. Actually, it cooled off a bit on Monday. It was only 115° on Monday, down from 116° on Sunday. Ha...big deal.
I will never understand how anyone can live there. If this was an unsual heat wave it would be one thing but this is the normal temperature for July and August. As for the evenings, it may get down to 85 or 90° but that is not much relief. I was glad to have the opportunity to go and see Hoover Dam, which was number one on my list. We did a walk through of some of the hotels not visited a few years ago such as Caesars Palace and Mirage plus the new Wynn. The Wynn is huge and sumptious but I like Caesars Palace best of these three. On the other end of the spectrum is the shabby and tacky Circus-Circus. At least the arcade in the New York-New York Hotel seems to attract a better class of people and the casino does not stink as does the one at Circus-Circus. I am not sure how much much bigger that city can get. Each new hotel seems to try to out-do the previous but there is a very limited water supply and things are critical now.

So, if you go to Las Vegas, go any time except July and August.

Stratosphere Tower, Las Vegas, Nevada, as seen from roof of Rio Hotel 

I do wish that San Francisco radio and TV stations would be more specific as they are confusing a lot of people, especially those new to the area. I just heard a headline on KCBS which said there would be 100+ temperatures again today and a need to conserve on electricity. It was only 75 in San Francisco yesterday and probably only in the eighties in Oakland and Berkeley. You need to go further inland to find 100° readings so they err by making such a general statement. Since KCBS is a San Francisco radio station, not a Concord radio station, they should state specifically WHERE the 100+ readings will occur. Many in the media like to refer to our micro-climates in the Bay Area but then they turn around and lump all the cities into one with only one temperature prediction. Yes, some will say such and such near the coast and warmer inland but too often the headline, like the one I just heard, is the one that people from the suburbs hear, and they are suprised when it is not hot here.

Even when the legistlature tries to do the right thing, the drug companies step in with their huge and deep pockets to try to buy off the people in a special election. So, Californians, beware of Proposition 78 on this fall's ballot. If you really want to curtail drug costs, vote for Prop. 79.

Updated La Cenerentola (Rossini) in Merola Opera's free outdoor concert on Sunday had Ronnita Miller (Tisbe) looking like Aunt Jemima. Here she plays with a wad of gum while Cinderella prepare a meal for her and Clorinda. Normally I do not like updated operatic productions but I think the people at Merola were on to something here and should try it in a fully staged production some time. 

PEDESTRIANS BEWARE

When walking past 1280 Pine Street in San Francisco you may want to carry something to cover your head or your eyes or all parts of your person as the "Bird Lady of Pine Street", who lives in that building, continues to feet the "rats with wings" with large doses of bread crumbs each day. She can be seen rolling a small suitcase along the side walk from which she extracts bags of bread crumbs which she then dumps in the curb lane of Pine Stret and other streets in the vicinity. Now that part of the street from the apartment building at 1280 to the corner of Hyde Street is filthy with pigeon droppings and at certain times of the day resembles the school yard scene in Hitchcock's movie The Birds" but in this case it is pigeons and not crows which are perched on every available space. One day as I walked through the area the bird lady apparently was coming out of her building which was then behind me at the point and dozens of pigeons came swarming by me with several nearly colliding with me. It is dangerous there and unhealthy with all the bird poop on the sidewalk. Can't something be done about this person? I am sure that is against the law to feed the pigeons and considering the mess she and them are making, there must be one or more violations of the city's Health Code. Anyone...please...if you have any ideas on how to handle this...please speak up. Thank you.

Moving on to other problems, it is one of aging. Ha! Don't do it, that is, get old. Seriously though, I must change some habits and it will apparently become easier for me to do now as I pull away from Saturday nights out late which has so dominated much of my life since moving to San Francisco. I realize too however, that in addition to an age thing, it is one of personality and I am too shy (yes, I said it) to be out in a group of younger people with whom I have little in common. Oh, I enjoy the music sometimes and if I meet friends at the club, that is one thing, but to go there alone, it is a waste of time, money, and energy. I want to support Gary but now will have to limit myself to Happy Hours with my favorite bartenders and occasionally a Karaoke night just to warble a few old tunes.

Back in London, I am wondering how everyone is coping with the tragedy which has befallen them this week. I wonder too, how they are going to deal with the terrorists. To do little and surrender as Spain did is probably not the right answer but to do too much is to invite more problems. If I know the British however, I think they will walk the fine line of sanity in this situation. At least I hope so.

Here is another excellent editorial. This one from the Mirror in London.

Very good editorial here from the Christian Science Monitor regarding the terrorist attacks in London.

It seems to be a "Tale of Two Days". Yesterday it was jubilation on the part of many that London had been granted the 2012 Olympics. Today it is one of sadness and anger with the terrorist attacks in the subway and on a bus. What can a person say? What can a person do? What can the government do? The people that perpetrate such horrors are madmen but they move in and out without being seen. How is one to locate and identify such people? How is one to protect its citizens without just locking down everything and bringing commerce and everything else to a halt? In WWII we knew who the enemy was, what he looked like, and where he was and could take appropriate action. In this war the enemy is invisible until it is too late. This enemy plays on fears but as one person long ago was quoted as saying, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself". Still, how long will this go on and how do we defeat it?

What has happened to the San Francisco Giants of yore? We could probably call them the SF Midgets now but that would be an insult to the good talent that they have but why isn't that talent producing? To lose to the lowly Cincinnati Reds is revolting to say the least.

Those anarchists protesting the G8 meeting in Scotland are a sad lot. They need to get a life and get a job!

Periodically there are programs on TV about the funniest TV commercials. Well, if they ever have one about the most annoying, I would like to nomiate one from the San Francisco Bay Area. It is for Jang & Jang Associates Dentistry. The guy delivering the message seems to take pride in the fact that they speak Spanish there but if his Spanish is as bad as his mispronounced Se hablamos español, he must have a terrible time with those who have that as there native language. I have a couple of other Bay Areas commercials to nominate but I will save those for later.

Well, duh...how dumb can you get?
----------------
A German thief effectively signed his own arrest warrant after photographing himself at the scene of a crime and accidentally leaving the pictures for police to discover.

Police in the northern town of Neumuenster said the youth stole a digital camera during a break-in in nearby Rendsburg and took the photos before discarding the device nearby.

"We don't know if it was down to a series of unfortunate events or whether the thief couldn't get to grips with the technology," police said in a statement Monday.

Officers found photos which could only have been taken by the perpetrator, including pictures of the 17-year-old, whom they recognized from previous offences.

"The evidence was fairly compelling so he had to admit it," said police spokesman Soenke Hinrichs.

San Francisco "Ghost" Bridge to somewhere. Perhaps Gertrude, there is no there there after all. 

THREE CHEERS FOR GREAT BRITAIN.

Get rid of the hoods.

Just before retiring tonight I happen to see this story posted in The Onion which nearly made my day. I think they have outdone The National Enquirer with this one. (The only thing remaining to make my day is some shut eye.)

One thing I liked when living on a hill in Reno was watching a parade of fascinating cloud formations during the year especially when a localized storm approached such as in this photo. 

This has been a quiet week at home compared to last week. Now, with a long holiday weekend upon us, it seems like it will remain quiet as nothing is scheduled in this household. Perhaps there might be a movie or two to rent at Blockbuster but will wait for a week or two before going to see the latest version of War of the Worlds.

Now that Justice Sanda Day O'Conner has announced her retirement I wonder who The Bush will nominate to replace her. I dread to think of any possible nominees by that person. Nothing he has done or will do bodes well for this country.

As for the next presidential election, I do not know who the major parties will nominate but somehow I think a Rice vs. Clinton scenario would be most interesting. Some people might even call it the race between two bitches. hahaha

Mayor Newsom was certainly looking very boyish in sweatshirt in the Gay Pride Parade last Sunday. One friend remarked, "He's just my type" and "How can I get a picture of the two of us together"?

Looks like the Giants front office has given up on 2005 as they now seem to be interested in acquiring younger players for the future instead of trying to fix this season in a second half pennant race which ain't gonna happen. Even the return of Barry Bonds is very doubtful.