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desdemona

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  1. Jul 10, 10:12 PM EDT Brando Left 10 Kids, $21.6 Million Estate LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Marlon Brando has 10 living children and his $21.6 million estate includes his Beverly Hills home, according to his will. Brando's assets included $18.6 million in real estate and $3 million in personal property, according to the will, which does not specify how the estate will be split. The iconic Oscar-winning actor died of lung failure at age 80 on July 1. The will was filed Friday in Superior Court. Brando said in the will that he was not married. His living children are identified in the will as Christian, 46; Miko, 43; Teihotu, 41; Rebecca Brando Kotlinzky, 38; Petra Brando-Corval, 32; Maimiti, 28; Raiatua, 23; Nina Priscilla, 15; Myles Jonathan, 12; and Timothy Gahan, 10. He identified his former maid, Maria Christina Ruiz, as the mother of his three youngest children. She was appointed their guardian. Ruiz filed a $100 million breach-of-contract suit against Brando but settled out of court. Petra Brando-Corval was adopted and is not a beneficiary of the will. She was the child of Brando's former personal assistant, Caroline Barrett, who sued the actor after a dispute over a $185,000 loan. Another daughter, Cheyenne, committed suicide in 1995. http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/P/PEO...EMPLATE=DEFAULT
  2. she is a mess, I can see why they took her daughter away from her, and she still thinks it's cool, I'm sure she inherited alot of money from kurt cobain's estate, and now she's in financial difficulty? I have no sympathy for her.
  3. 1 The Hunger For More Lloyd Banks 2 Confessions Usher 3 Afrodisiac Brandy 4 Kiss of Death Jadakiss 5 Tha Carter Lil Wayne 6 To the 5 Boroughs Beastie Boys 7 The Cure The Cure 8 Here for the Party Gretchen Wilson 9 Spider-Man 2 Soundtrack 10 The Gorge Dave Matthews Band 11 Under My Skin Avril Lavigne 12 D12 World D12 13 Horse of a Different Color Big & Rich 14 Contraband Velvet Revolver 15 Musicology Prince 16 Los Lonely Boys Los Lonely Boys 17 JoJo JoJo 18 The Reason Hoobastank 19 Feedback (EP) Rush 20 We Are Not Alone Breaking Benjamin http://usatoday.com/life/music/top-20-albums.htm
  4. Posted 7/7/2004 4:07 PM Updated 7/7/2004 4:40 PM Tickets sell out for final Phish show COVENTRY, Vt. (AP) — Tickets to what jam band Phish says will be their last show are sold out, and scalpers are getting as much as $915 for admission to next month's two-day festival, which were originally priced at $150. From left: Trey Anastasio, Jon Fishman, Page McConnell and Mike Gordon are Phish. Elektra Entertainment Some 70,000 people have tickets to the show, which will be held at the Newport State Airport and surrounding fields in Coventry Aug. 14-15. Veronica Lusk, sales representative for Internet broker eSeats.com, said she has only about 40 seats left to sell. Because eSeats.com resells tickets for clients who name their own prices, the Web site lists tickets from $515 to $915. Lusk said the demand for even the $915 seats is there. "At this price, they are going really fast," she said recently. "We can sell them for this much. People are buying them. I've never really seen general admission tickets for this much." Brad Feldman, a 23-year-old Chicago business analyst, has been a Phish fan for 10 years. He's hoping to get a ticket, but refuses to pay much more than the price on the stub. "Phish is different," he said. "When people need a ticket and you have some, you sell it at face. Hopefully good karma comes back." http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/20...-sold-out_x.htm
  5. it's a bright sunny day about 80 something, I took the dog ( bailey, a boxer, white with a brown patch over one eye) for a walk on the hike bike trail in the park early before it got too hot, we kinda power walked 3 miles, she's sleeping now, we're in the AC and I'm relaxing and straightening up, lazy sunday, my daughter's out 4-wheeling, waiting for the sun to go down a little before I go back out and water the plants, feed the birds and wash some things off with the hose. So there ya go, that's my lazy sunday, oh, and playing some tunes on winamp while the tv is muted. now you know the whole story. lol I was going to go see Farenheit but my daughter suggested we go during the week since I'm off, good idea, it's crowded on sunday. one more week of shutdown before it's back to work, I'm a quality tech at delphi packard a sub of delphi automotive systems, we're the electrical subsidiary. also I saw an ad on tv that clear channel was giving a free ticket for each ticket purchased for their events in the area, but when I tried getting tickets for the allman brothers concert like they advertised, NO FREE LUNCH, but they did want to include a year's subscription to rolling stone. guess I'll use tickmaster. have fun guys :P
  6. great article Meehowski, and I applaud Janis Ian, she's supported filesharing from the onstart. :good job:
  7. Congress Pays Tribute to Phish 2004-07-09 12:47:46 Vermont Senator Patrick J. Leahy entered Phish into the congressional record yesterday, paying tribute to the Vermont-bred quartet a month before their final performance. Addressing President pro tempore Ted Stevens, Leahy said, "We in Vermont are well known for our superb maple syrup, our wonderful ice cream, our award-winning cheese and our beautiful scenery, but after 21 remarkable years, the jam band Phish has certainly become one of our most famous exports.? After giving his fellow congressmen a brief synopsis of Phish?s lifespan, Mr. Leahy offered his thanks to Phish for 21 years of music making. ?Their admirable generosity has fostered a sense of community among those who follow the group,? Leahy said. ?The band's break-up is a source of sadness to all of us who know and love them.? Follow his speech, Mr. Leahy offered a congressional thanks to the Vermont quartet: ?I am grateful for all they have done for Vermont, for American music, and for their fans. Most importantly, we sincerely appreciate their authenticity, their enthusiasm and their generosity? In an odd twist, Mr. Leahy concluded his speech by reciting a few lines from ?Down with Disease,? a track which appears on Phish?s Hoist . Waiting for the time when I can finally say That this has all been wonderful, but now I'm on my way. But when I think it's time to leave it all behind, I try to find a way, but there's nothing I can say to make it stop. Senator Leahy was elected to the United States Senate in 1974 and remains the only Democrat elected to this office from Vermont. He was also the youngest Senator elected from the state and is now serving his fifth term. Currently located in Burlington, VT, Leahy first entered Phish into the Congressional Record on December 1, 1994, congratulating them for their success and saying that they "have a live performance that is hard to forget." A complete transcript of Leahy?s speech is available at the Congressional Record. http://www.relix.com/cgi-bin/content_list.cgi?type=news
  8. Mistrial for one of Adelphia defendants Judge declares mistrial on remaining charges against former Executive VP Michael Rigas. July 9, 2004: 4:23 PM EDT By Krysten Crawford, CNN/Money Staff Writer CNN/Money (NEW YORK) - A day after convicting two former top officials at Adelphia Communications Corp. and exonerating a third on charges of looting the bankrupt cable giant, a jury was still deadlocked on remaining charges against a fourth executive. As a result, the trial judge declared a mistrial on the remaining charges against Michael Rigas, a son of Adelphia founder John Rigas and a former executive vice president of operations at the company. Michael Rigas was found not guilty Thursday of committing wire fraud and conspiracy. But the jury could not reach a decision on 17 remaining felony charges against him. His father and another brother, Timothy Rigas, were convicted Thursday afternoon on most counts against them. The federal jury cleared Michael Mulcahey, Adelphia's ex-director of internal financial reporting, of any wrongdoing in the collapse of Adelphia, one of the country's largest cable operators. The father and two sons were accused of concealing, with Mulcahey's help, $2.3 billion in loans and stealing more than $100 million from the now-bankrupt company. They were arrested two years ago and charged with 23 felony counts apiece. At the time, prosecutors called the case "one of the most elaborate and extensive frauds in United States history." John Rigas, 79, founded Adelphia in 1952 and built it into the sixth-largest cable company before being ousted in an accounting scandal that came to light in 2002 amid a wave of government investigations into corporate chicanery. During the 18-week trial that began in March, prosecutors sought to show that the Rigas family treated Adelphia like a "personal piggy bank" to pay for luxury condos and a golf course, and to cover personal investment losses. Government lawyers also charged that they lied about Adelphia's revenues and operations. Defense lawyers insisted throughout the trial that their clients were innocent and had every intention of repaying the company for loans that defense lawyers argued were widely known about within the company. John Rigas and his sons did not testify in their defense. The only defendant to take the stand was Mulcahey. The jury deliberated for eight days before returning its guilty verdicts against John and Timothy Rigas and clearing Mulcahey, who broke down in tears upon hearing the jury's decision. Thursday ended with only Michael Rigas -- found not guilty of 6 charges -- unsure of his fate. John and Timothy Rigas face 20 to 25 years in prison. Jurors returned to the Manhattan federal courtroom Friday morning to renew their deliberations on the remaining charges against Michael Rigas. They surprised the judge with a note before lunch, declaring they were deadlocked on the counts against Michael Rigas. The judge urged them to keep trying, but after lunch Friday afternoon they told the judge once again that they could not reach a consensus. Prosecutors now have the option of retrying Michael Rigas. The trial's conclusion caps two days of triumphs for prosecutors intent on punishing corporate abuse in the executive suite. Also Thursday, a federal judge overseeing an obstruction of justice case against Martha Stewart, the founder of the lifestyle media and retail company Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (MSO: Research, Estimates) denied Stewart's second bid for a new trial. Stewart, who faces 10 to 16 months for lying during an insider trading investigation of her, is due to be sentenced July 18. Another victory for prosecutors came earlier in the day when Kenneth Lay, the former chairman and CEO of Enron Corp. was indicted on 11 felony counts related to the Houston energy giant's late 2001 bankruptcy. Enron's fall touched off a series of corporate scandals at some of the country's largest companies, including Adelphia, WorldCom, Global Crossing and Tyco International. "There certainly existed a mindset in the late '90s by some that the corporate till was a personal entitlement," said Jacob Frenkel, a Washington, D.C. lawyer who was once a federal prosecutor and a Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement lawyer. "These cases have significant policy implications," Frenkel added. "To see two senior executives facing prison terms representing the balance of their lives sends a very strong message," he said, referring to Thursday's conviction of John and Timothy Rigas. As for Martha Stewart's obstruction of justice conviction, Frenkel said: "Any lawyer can go to their client now and say 'Martha Stewart' and that person knows it means you cannot lie to the government." http://money.cnn.com/2004/07/09/news/midca...lphia/index.htm
  9. this article contends this is not a trend, but it seems there's been quite a few mistrials involving all the corporate fraud cases I've seen publicized, I followed up with a reply that adds another one dated after this article. Despite 2 Mistrials, Prosecutors Rack Up White-Collar Victories By: Alex Berenson NYTimes.com. April 4, 2004 _________________________________________________________________________ EXCERPT: Two mistrials do not make a trend. For the second time in less than six months, a prominent white-collar crime case has ended without a verdict. In October, a federal judge declared a mistrial in the trial of Frank P. Quattrone, the former investment banker accused of obstructing justice. On Friday, a New York state judge did the same in the trial of L. Dennis Kozlowski and Mark H. Swartz, who were accused of stealing $600 million from Tyco International and its investors. But even as those two cases stalled, prosecutors have won guilty verdicts and guilty pleas in dozens of other white-collar crime cases, including the conviction of Martha Stewart last month. Last week, Jamie Olis, a former midlevel executive at Dynegy, a Houston energy company, was sentenced to more than 24 years in prison for his role in accounting fraud at the company. The sentence was one of the most severe imposed in a white-collar fraud case, prosecutors and defense lawyers said. Prosecutors, meanwhile, are continuing to investigate current and former executives at several big publicly traded companies, including Computer Associates, the software maker, and the McKesson Corporation, a pharmaceutical wholesaler. On Wednesday, a federal grand jury in San Francisco indicted Richard H. Hawkins, the former chief financial officer of McKesson, on charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and making false statements. In addition, a retrial in Mr. Quattrone's case is scheduled to begin this month, and Manhattan prosecutors say they plan to retry the Tyco case. So those cases cannot be counted as victories for their defendants. Indeed, despite the conventional wisdom that juries cannot understand complex corporate fraud cases, prosecutors have not lost a significant case since the recent wave of fraud trials began with the conviction of the accounting firm of Arthur Andersen in 2002, prosecutors and defense lawyers say. "The conviction rate in these cases is 85 percent in federal court," said Ira Lee Sorkin, a New York defense lawyer and former prosecutor. "It's not hard to win these cases." To be sure, some white-collar crime cases are difficult to present to juries, legal experts say. In the trial of Jeffrey K. Skilling, the former chief executive of Enron, which is expected to begin next winter, federal prosecutors will have to explain arcane accounting concepts to the jury. The prosecutions of Bernard J. Ebbers, the former chairman of WorldCom, and Richard M. Scrushy, the former chairman of HealthSouth, may also turn on jurors' understanding of somewhat complicated accounting principles. The trial of Mr. Ebbers is scheduled to begin in November; Mr. Scrushy's is set to start in August. But the charges against Mr. Kozlowski, Mr. Swartz and Mr. Quattrone were relatively straightforward compared with the accounting gimmicks at issue in the Enron, HealthSouth and WorldCom cases. Mr. Kozlowski, Tyco's former chief executive, and Mr. Swartz, the company's former chief financial officer, were accused of taking bonuses from Tyco that they did not deserve. Mr. Quattrone, a former banker at Credit Suisse First Boston, was accused of impeding a federal investigation into initial public offerings by encouraging Credit Suisse employees to destroy documents that investigators had subpoenaed. http://securities.stanford.edu/news-archiv...02_Berenson.htm
  10. Pricing Howard Stern The shock jock has once again run afoul of regulators. At what price does Infinity cut him loose? July 9, 2004: 4:01 PM EDT By Krysten Crawford, CNN/Money staff writer NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Howard Stern is looking expensive these days. His employer, Infinity Broadcasting Corp., is reportedly facing a whopping $1.5 million fine for an episode on Stern's morning radio program that included sexual references that government watchdogs say crossed the line. Congress, meanwhile, is mulling legislation that would boost fines for television and radio programming deemed indecent from $27,500 to as much as $500,000 per violation. But fans who fear that Stern is about to be muzzled on syndicated radio can relax. Turns out, Stern is a huge cash cow for Viacom unit Infinity. Viacom (VIAB: down $0.12 to $34.20, Research, Estimates) does not disclose The Howard Stern Show's finances, but analysts estimate that the morning program hauls in roughly $175 million a year in advertising revenues. Factor out costs including the stratospheric $30-plus million take that Stern and his sidekicks get every year, and analysts say the show reaps as much as $25 million a year in profits for Viacom. Those numbers make all the recent caterwauling over Stern's fate at Viacom look like much ado about nothing. "There's only one thing that rules whether Howard Stern stays or leaves Infinity and that's money," said Michael Harrison, the publisher of Talkers magazine, which covers talk radio. "If Howard Stern brings in more money than it costs to have him, he stays. If it costs more money to have Howard Stern than he brings in, he leaves." It's apparently that simple, despite what Stern said last week when he declared at a press conference he hosted that he was "so dangerously close to being forced off the air." To be fair, there's a reason why Stern and his backers are nervous. The crackdown on indecency Janet Jackson's breast-baring stunt at the Super Bowl halftime show thrust into the political spotlight an epic battle between decency crusaders and First Amendment zealots over salacious programming. The Federal Communications Commission responded with an investigation of the incident. At the same time, pre-existing efforts to push through federal legislation upping indecency fines gained widespread support within Congress. This week, the FCC dusted off a proposal to require broadcasters to keep recordings of their programs for a limited time, a move that critics said would help regulators pursue broadcasters more aggressively. As for Howard Stern, an ongoing FCC investigation of a 2003 segment including crude sexual references resulted last month in the largest fine ever leveled against a broadcaster for indecent programming. To end government charges, Clear Channel Communications, which licensed the Stern show, agreed to pay $1.75 million. read the entire article here: http://money.cnn.com/2004/07/09/news/newsm...dex.htm?cnn=yes
  11. Courtney Love carried to hospital after 40th birthday By Charles Laurence in New York (Filed: 11/07/2004) Courtney Love, the American rock singer, was in hospital in New York yesterday after being carried from her home on a stretcher dressed only in a lace-trimmed camisole and a pair of handcuffs. As she shouted obscenities, the bizarre moment was captured on camera by photographers. It was the culmination of a day on which Miss Love had celebrated her 40th birthday, been issued with an arrest warrant and suffered from a gynaecological problem which she reportedly described to police as an abortion. Police had been called shortly after noon on Friday, her birthday, after complaints that Miss Love, the widow of the rock star Kurt Cobain, had been throwing bottles from her 4th-floor loft apartment. A police spokesman said that they were unable to find evidence that the bottles had come from her home but that they had found her "incoherent". Witnesses said that she had told them: "Today is my birthday and I had an abortion." Meanwhile in Los Angeles, a court issued an arrest warrant after Miss Love failed to appear to be charged with assault with a deadly weapon after complaints that she had attacked a woman. Her lawyer, Michael Rosenstein, told the court that she had been confused over whether she had to appear. Dennis Muleahy, the court commissioner, rescinded Miss Love's bail of $55,000 (£30,500) and issued an arrest warrant with a new bail figure of $150,000 (£83,000). In New York, police and ambulancemen returned to Miss Love's home on Friday evening after receiving a call that a woman was bleeding. The police spokesman said that they had had to use handcuffs because Miss Love was "acting in an irrational manner". As she was wheeled to the ambulance and saw the photographers, she yelled "What!" and "Help!". When an ambulanceman tried to cover her with a sheet, she shouted an obscenity, followed by: "Get away from me!" Mr Rosenstein said that Miss Love had a "gynaecological medical condition" and added: "It was not a suicide attempt, not drug-related, not drug overdose-related." In New York, Miss Love has been charged with assault after hitting a fan during a concert in East Village, while in Los Angeles she faces further charges for drug possession. Last month, she said that she was pregnant and would have to give up smoking cigarettes. She is also fighting for custody of the daughter she had with Kurt Cobain. A concert tour to promote her new album, America's Sweetheart, has been postponed. A hospital spokesman refused to comment on Miss Love's condition. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...11/ixworld.html
  12. ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani man freed from captivity in Iraq last week said Saturday he saw his captors behead three hostages -- two Americans and an Iraqi -- while he was being held. His account could not be independently confirmed and there have been no recent reports of two Americans and an Iraqi being abducted. Previously, militants have been quick to announce the taking of hostages, usually releasing videotapes showing armed, masked men standing threateningly over the captives. Amjad Hafeez, a driver working for a U.S. contractor, was taken hostage on June 25 as he returned from work north of Baghdad. He was blindfolded and taken to a nearby house. Four days into his captivity, Hafeez said he was able to see one of his captors cut the heads off three other hostages. "The faces of all three were covered with white cloths," Hafeez told Reuters, a day after returning to Pakistan following his July 2 release. "One of them was crying 'please, please' ... but they beheaded him. The two others did not speak," he said by telephone from Rawalpindi. "The kidnappers shouted Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest) thrice before beheading each of them in turn." Hafeez said his captors told him two of the hostages were American and one was an Iraqi soldier. read the entire article here: http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/redir.php?...08dd24cec417021
  13. June 30, 2004 Stones’ 45s Roll Again ROLLING STONES SINGLES BOX, VOL. 2 SET FOR RELEASE NEXT MONTH ABKCO Records has set July 27th as the date of release for the second in its series of three limited edition boxed sets that chronicle the rise of the Rolling Stones as single chart hit makers in 960s. The new set, The Rolling Stones Singles 1965-1967, takes up at the epochal moment where The Rolling Stones Singles 1963-1965, released earlier this year, left off: the creation of “Satisfaction.“ The master of that song was recorded in Los Angeles on May 12, 1965 and remains, to this day, the signature piece of “the world’s greatest rock ‘n roll band.” The new set will be in stores July 27th and features a total of eleven individual CDs that show the Stones exploring acoustic, psychedelic as well as the R&B based music that is their foundation. The third volume in the series The Rolling Stones Singles 1968-1971, will be released in the fall of this year. The Rolling Stones Singles 1965-1967 includes the original classic U.S. and U.K. couplings of such hits as “Get Off Of My Cloud,” “As Tears Go By,” “Paint It Black, “ “Let’s Spend The Night Together,” “Ruby Tuesday” and many more. During those two years, the band released singles that underscored their sense of experimentation and open mindedness. Lyrically, the band made great strides during that time and surprised their fans with songs that offered forays into social commentary (“Mother’s Little Helper”), humor (“The Under Assistant West Coast Promo Man”) and even English history (“Lady Jane”). All of the songs in the new collection were written by band members, a great leap from their earlier years when cover songs were the group’s mainstay. The discs in the series replicate the band’s groundbreaking singles with a total of 25 different tracks, offered in the new package. One of the highlights is “We Love You,“ the track recorded as a tribute to loyal fans who stood by the Stones in the wake of the notorious police raid on Keith Richards' home in Redland, Sussex in the summer of 1967. The song kicks off with the slamming of a jail cell door and, reportedly, includes vocal contributions from John Lennon, Paul McCartney and Allen Ginsberg. Each of the eleven discs is individually packaged in a picture sleeve utilizing original artwork one of which is the infamous “drag” shot of the band that adorned the sleeve of “Have You Seen Your Mother…” while the actual discs approximate the black vinyl look of the Stones’ original 45s. A 28 page booklet that is packed with rare photos and extensive annotation is part of the collection as is an exclusive original essay by Rolling Stones authority Nigel Williamson. It provides a highly detailed historical narrative that puts the classic material of The Rolling Stones Singles 1965-1967 in perspective, offering facts and insight into the recording efforts of the group during its golden era. The Rolling Stones Singles 1965-1967 Disc 1: (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction/ US – The Under Assistant West Coast Promotion Man, UK – The Spider and The Fly (US & UK 1965/US 1965/UK 1965) Disc 2: Get Off My Cloud/US- I’m Free, UK – The Singer Not The song (US & UK 1965/US 1965/UK 1965) Disc 3: As Tears Go By/Gotta Get Away (UUS 1965 & UK 1966/ US 1965) Disc 4: 19th Nervous Breakdown/Sad Day *UK 1966/ US & UK 1966) Disc 5: Paint It, Black/US – Stupid Gird, UK – Long Long While (US & UK 1966/ US 1966/UK 1966) Disc 6: Mother’s Little Helper/Lady Jane (US 1966) Disc 7: Have You Seen Your Mother, Baby, Standing in The Shadow/ Who’s Driving Your Plane (US & UK 1966) Disc 8: Let’s Spend The Night Together/Ruby Tuesday (US & UK 1967) Disc 9: We Love You/Dandelion (US & UK 1967) Disc 10: She’s A Rainbow/2000 Light Years From Home (US 1967) Disc 11: In Another Land/The Lantern (US 1967) http://www.rollingstones.com/news/pressrel....php?newsID=201 rolling_stones.bmp
  14. Ex-chief of Park Police denounces firing Chambers: Administration 'silencing' dissenting views Saturday, July 10, 2004 Posted: 8:56 PM EDT (0056 GMT) U.S. Park Police are responsible for protecting the Washington Monument. WASHINGTON (CNN) -- One day after she was fired, former U.S. Park Police Chief Teresa Chambers accused the Bush administration Saturday of silencing dissenting views in the rank and file. Chambers' departure may not garner the same spotlight as those of former counterterrorism expert Richard Clarke and former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill, but it appears to fall into a similar category: officials who leave or are forced out after questioning Bush administration policies. Chambers said that she didn't expect to be fired seven months after the Interior Department put her on administrative leave with pay for talking with reporters and congressional staffers about budget woes on the 620-officer force. She was fired Friday, just two and half hours after her attorneys filed a demand for immediate reinstatement through the Merit Systems Protection Board, an independent agency that ensures federal employees are protected from management abuses. "It wasn't the reaction we expected," she said. "But we weren't surprised. "But it's not about me," she added. "I'm a player in it. It's got far-reaching implications. "The American people should be afraid of this kind of silencing of professionals in any field," she said. "We should be very concerned as American citizens that people who are experts in their field either can't speak up, or, as we're seeing now in the parks service, won't speak up." National Park Service officials said Chambers broke rules barring public comment about budget discussions and prohibiting lobbying by someone in her position. Chambers said she did nothing wrong except argue for adequate funding for the Park Police, which falls under NPS authority -- and perhaps fail to understand that she was required to "toe the party line." "I came from outside and was naive about federal agencies," she said. "I had no idea that's what they wanted me to do. I really believed that's what they wanted, for me to be frank with them." The Bush administration says the Park Police budget has increased during its tenure, but critics argue that the increase has not offset inflation and additional duties. According to a study conducted by the nonprofit National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), the entire park service operates on about two-thirds of the budget it needs -- about $600 million short -- and that about $50 million of that shortfall stems from duties related to homeland security at the so-called "icons." "Icon" duty refers to protecting locations such as the Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument and the Golden Gate Bridge from terrorist attack -- duties that fall to the Park Police. In an affidavit filed in her effort to be reinstated, Chambers said her troubles with the bureaucrats in the park service and the Interior Department began with budget processing in 2003. "Each time I would sound [the alarm] just a little louder," she said, "but always internally. It culminated with the notice I put on the director of the park service ... that we have problems." In that November 28 memo, Chambers wrote that the budget crisis put new hires in doubt, potentially bringing the Park Police staff to its lowest level since 1987, and seriously undermined her officers' ability to protect the "icons." "My professional judgment, based upon 27 years of police service, six years as chief of police, and countless interactions with police professionals across the country, is that we are at a staffing and resource crisis in the United States Park Police -- a crisis that, if allowed to continue, will almost surely result in the loss of life or the destruction of one of our nation's most valued symbols of freedom and democracy," she wrote. A week earlier, Chambers had spoken with a Washington Post reporter about the budget shortfalls, and the article appeared December 2. Three days later, the chief was on administrative leave. read the entire article here: http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/07/10/park.poli...hief/index.html
  15. I find it hard to believe they would destroy everyone's from that time period, just to cover his derilection. I'm going to see farenheit tomorrow, it's finally playing a theatre near me. I have a feeling I'll come out teary-eyed regardless of all the fanaticism surrounding michael moore.
  16. I have to agree I like the "thrill is gone " better too, but then again that was his most played, the last few years I have been listening to alot of blues, learning about alot about the generation of blues players and songs that I heard when they were covered by rock bands, it's led me back to collecting some great stuff, if anyone is interested let me know, send a message,via e-mail or slsk, I can share, most of the albums I've posted about are there, plus some that are live that really capture the essence of alot of these artists and bands. I'm on vacation from work this week so I'll be burning, most of it will come off by the end of next week.
  17. here's a link to a site that allows free downloads to protest songs and links to similiar sites that embrace an examination of the direction our country is going in, is it main stream or not, some of us may not be this vocal or extreme, but middle of the fence doesn't get us anywhere either, just worth a look to see what's going on out there. I feel strongly about some issues but I'm not one to throw the baby out with the bath water. http://www.protest-records.com/#
  18. this is an album sony put out in 2001, it could probably use some tweaking but overall a good list, welcome any comments on what you would add or subtract.
  19. yeah shawn, they were called "the outlaws" too when they all toured together, but not my up of tea. ;)
  20. a message from pete townshend's website: 7 July 2004 Fahrenheit Moore or Less Back to Diary Dates Michael Moore has been making some claims ? mentioning me by name - which I believe distort the truth. He says ? among other things ? that I refused to allow him to use my song WON?T GET FOOLED AGAIN in his latest film, because I support the war, and that at the last minute I recanted, but he turned me down. I have never hidden the fact that at the beginning of the war in Iraq I was a supporter. But now, like millions of others, I am less sure we did the right thing. When first approached I knew nothing about the content of his film FAHRENHEIT 911. My publisher informed me they had already refused the use of my song in principle because MIRAMAX the producers offered well below what the song normally commands for use in a movie. They asked me if I wanted to ask for more money, I told them no. Nevertheless, as a result of my refusal to consider the use, Harvey Weinstein ? a good friend of mine, and my manager Bill Curbishley ? interceded personally, explained in more detail to Bill what the movie was about, and offered to raise the bid very substantially indeed. This brought the issue directly to me for the first time. Bill emailed me and told me how keen Harvey and Michael Moore were to use my song. At this point I emailed Bill (and he may have passed the essence of what I said to Harvey Weinstein) that I had not really been convinced by BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE, and had been worried about its accuracy; it felt to me like a bullying film. Out of courtesy to Harvey I suggested that if he and Moore were determined to have me reconsider, I should at least get a chance to see a copy of the new film. I knew that with Cannes on the horizon, time was running short for them, and this might not be possible. I never received a copy of the film to view. At no time did I ask Moore or Miramax to reconsider anything. Once I had an idea what the film was about I was 90% certain my song was not right for them. I believe that in the same email to my publisher and manager that contained this request to see the film I pointed out that WGFA is not an unconditionally anti-war song, or a song for or against revolution. It actually questions the heart of democracy: we vote heartily for leaders who we subsequently always seem to find wanting. (WGFA is a song sung by a fictional character from my 1971 script called LIFEHOUSE. The character is someone who is frightened by the slick way in which truth can be twisted by clever politicians and revolutionaries alike). I suggested in the email that they might use something by Neil Young, who I knew had written several songs of a more precise political nature, and is as accessible as I am. Moore himself takes credit for this idea, and I have no idea whether my suggestion reached him, but it was the right thing to do. I have nothing against Michael Moore personally, and I know Roger Daltrey is a friend and fan of his, but I greatly resent being bullied and slurred by him in interviews just because he didn?t get what he wanted from me. It seems to me that this aspect of his nature is not unlike that of the powerful and wilful man at the centre of his new documentary. I wish him all the best with the movie, which I know is popular, and which I still haven?t seen. But he?ll have to work very, very hard to convince me that a man with a camera is going to change the world more effectively than a man with a guitar. Pete http://www.petetownshend.co.uk/diary/displ...d=89&zone=diary
  21. I'm sure it was a mistake but I can't believe he's suing the military, that sounds a little unethical to me.
  22. and best wishes for a full recovery to david bowie, a lifetime of giving us music.
  23. Friday, July 9, 2004 One last service for WWII flag By Seth Robson, Stars and Stripes European edition, Friday, July 9, 2004 CAMP RED CLOUD, South Korea — A flag colored in part with the blood of U.S. prisoners of war and draped over their coffins for funerals at stalags will be used one last time at Arlington National Cemetery next month. The flag will cover the coffin of its owner, retired Sgt. Robert Hopkins. The former enlisted chaplain from the 38th Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division, used the flag at more than 300 POW funerals during World War II. It will be transported to the Virginia cemetery from its home at the 2nd ID Museum at Camp Red Cloud, where Hopkins left it in 1979. Hopkins was captured in the Battle of the Bulge at Krinkelt, Belgium, in December 1944 and forced to march with 2,300 POWs to a stalag, or World War II German prisoner of war camp. “Within two weeks of being a prisoner, it was my sad job to bury over 700 American soldiers. Not because they were all worn out. Not because they were ready to die but because somebody didn’t want them to live. The Germans would shoot them for sport,” he recalled at the time he donated the flag to the museum. Hopkins was a POW at Stalag VIIIA near Gorlitz and in January 1945 officiated the first formal military funeral service inside Germany, for American POW Bruce Schalm. The Germans agreed to allow a flag to be used and for Schalm to be buried in a makeshift casket made of boards bound with wire. Prison corpses were normally stripped and tossed in an open pit, Hopkins said. “The flag … was made from two sugar bags, which two British soldiers stole from the camp,” he recalled. It was painted with blue and red dye mixed with blood, he said. “That was easy to come by. Soldiers were always bleeding to death,” he said. Guards photographed the service for propaganda purposes but POWs stole the photographs. The Germans were furious, Hopkins said. “Three days later, I watched two British soldiers being shot to death by having bullets fired into their feet, then every six inches up their bodies until they died. Their last words were ‘Don’t let them find the flag, use it for the memory of all who die,’ ” he said. When Hopkins was transferred to another stalag he took the flag with him. He and other soldiers carried it for more than 2,300 miles all over Germany, he said. “The flag was hid so no German could find it. After we left Gorlitz the guards were more tolerable and at times we were permitted to use the flag, then the flag would go into hiding again,” he said. Four months later, Hopkins escaped, taking the flag with him. After the war he became a Methodist Minister in Natural Bridge, Va. After he died earlier this month, his family asked the 2nd ID Museum to loan them the flag for his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. The Center for Military History approved the request and the flag is on its way to Arlington. It will return to the 2nd ID Museum after the ceremony, a museum staff member said. “We are honoring a member of the greatest generation and this is the least we can do. This guy was a real hero,” the staff member said. Hopkins’ son, Norman Hopkins, who served as a U.S. Army sergeant in Vietnam, said his father often told the story of the flag, which sat in a cupboard of their home while he was growing up. “When I was young, I used to see the flag and hold it in my hands. Dad would tell me about the British soldiers who got shot because they would not give it up. The flag meant a lot to my dad and it means a lot to me,” he said. Norman Hopkins said that although his father was a chaplain, he carried a .45 revolver and a Thompson machine gun during the war. “He was asked one time … why he carried guns. He said: ‘A shepherd must protect his flock.’” Hopkins’s funeral will include an honor guard to fold the flag before its return to the museum, he said. The British soldier’s sacrifices for the flag are an example for today’s soldiers, Norman Hopkins said. The last time it was used at a funeral, he said, “was in World War II. I hope… the alliances we have in Europe and in Asia are as strong as they were during World War II. It doesn’t matter if it is a South Korean soldier, a French soldier, an Italian soldier or an Australian soldier. The alliance should be there.” photos included with article here: http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/redir.php?...87cf2a69985adcf
  24. Iraqi interpreter working for US military taken hostage in rebel hotspot (AFP) 9 July 2004 RAMADI, Iraq - An Iraqi interpreter working with US forces in Iraq has been taken hostage in the troubled town of Ramadi, west of Baghdad, a police officer said on Friday. Omar Abdel Jabbar was forced into a car at gun point after armed men came to his house in the town, 100 kilometres (60 miles) west of Baghdad, at about 11 pm (1900 GMT) on Thursday, said the officer on condition of anonymity. “I saw four masked men force him into their car, which was a clear blue Opel,” he said. Numerous Iraqis working for the US military or the now dissolved occupation administration have been taken hostage in Iraq by those who regard them as collaborators. On Thursday, police said that an Iraqi man who owns a laundry and a restaurant on a US military base in the northern city of Mosul was found with his hands cut off and an eye gouged out after being taken hostage. Ramadi is part of the so-called Sunni Muslim triangle, a stronghold of anti-US insurgents aggrieved by the ouster of Saddam Hussein’s Sunni-dominated regime. http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/redir.php?...87cf2a69985adcf
  25. Famous Burr, Hamilton duel to be reenacted Thursday, July 8, 2004 Posted: 4:17 PM EDT (2017 GMT) WEEHAWKEN, New Jersey (Reuters) -- Two hundred years after Vice President Aaron Burr shot dead one of America's founding fathers in a duel, Burr's family is reenacting the scandalous incident to try to rehabilitate his image. On Sunday, Burr's descendants plan a televised recreation of the duel in which Burr shot Alexander Hamilton, the nation's first treasury secretary and a signatory to the Constitution whose face now adorns the $10 bill. About a hundred descendants from both sides of the centuries-old dispute are expected at the event at Weehawken, New Jersey, on the cliffs of the Hudson River across from New York City. Antonio Burr, a distant cousin of the historical figure, said the intention was to draw publicity to the family's belief that "the way Aaron Burr has been vilified obscures the contributions he made to the founding of the United States." Burr, a psychologist who will play his ancestor in the mock duel, said, "Burr was one of the losers in history. I am devoted to setting the record straight." Despite many achievements, Burr never recovered from the stain on his reputation. The role of Hamilton, who was an aide to Gen. George Washington in the American Revolution, will be played by his great-grandson Douglas Hamilton, a computer salesman from Columbus, Ohio. "Hamilton had it right and history has proved it," said Hamilton, who said he was happy to volunteer to play his illustrious forbearer. Historians have long puzzled over the duel in July 11, 1804 which capped years of political rivalry between the two men. It took place after Burr took offense at remarks Hamilton made during a bitter race for New York governor. Hit a tree Joanne Freeman, a professor at Yale University, said participants in duels often purposely missed, so that both could save their honor and neither be hurt. But in their showdown Burr fired a shot that mortally wounded Hamilton, whose gun discharged into a tree branch overhead. "What prevented Hamilton from ending the affair with an apology or an explanation? Why did Burr instigate such a duel on such dubious grounds?" Freeman wrote in "Dueling as Politics: Reinterpreting the Burr-Hamilton Duel." "Scholars have attributed these self-destructive decisions to emotional excess, suggesting that Hamilton was suicidal and Burr malicious and murderous," she wrote. Hamilton's death caused national outrage and he became a hero. Burr was indicted for murder, but the charge was reduced to accessory to dueling and he escaped punishment. He completed his term as the nation's third vice president in 1805. Despite his accomplishments -- he was an officer in the Revolution, he championed equal education for women, he founded an investment company that became Chase Manhattan Bank -- Burr spent the rest of his life viewed with suspicion and animosity. Years later he was accused separately of treason, acquitted and left the country. Hamilton meanwhile faces a new rival. Since the death of U.S. President Ronald Reagan, supporters have proposed putting Reagan's face, instead of Hamilton's, on the U.S. $10 bill. http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/07/08/life.duel.reut/index.html
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