El Somnambulo

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A Musical Salute to the Scopes Monkey Trial

Filed in National by on July 21, 2009 6 Comments

On July 21, 1925, the ”monkey trial” ended in Dayton, Tenn., with John T. Scopes convicted of violating state law for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution. The conviction was later overturned. 84 years to the day later, it is once again time to ponder those eternal verities: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpNoQaB2LT0[/youtube] Chris Smither- “Origin of Species” [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_EyXPs2_Jk[/youtube] Elvis […]

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Breaking: Markell to Veto ‘Bottle Bill’

Filed in Delaware by on July 20, 2009 9 Comments

The Office of the Governor has just released a statement announcing that Gov. Markell will veto the ‘Bottle Bill’, which would have rolled back the nickel deposits on certain bottles and cans. Here is the text from the Governor’s office: DOVER – Gov. Jack Markell said Monday he will veto House Bill 201, which would have […]

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Carney’s Fundraising Garners ‘Pleasant Surprise’ Nod from DKos

Filed in Delaware by on July 19, 2009 12 Comments

Steve Singiser’s Daily Kos featured blog on candidate fundraising gives props to John Carney’s efforts for the quarter ending June 3o: 4. John Carney (Democrat/DE-AL)–$262K Raised, $235K On Hand  Carney is potentially a challenger to longtime Republican incumbent Mike Castle. Carney more than doubled Castle’s modest ($125K) take, leading many to now speculate that Castle […]

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Read All About It In the Sunday Papers-July 19 Edition

Filed in International by on July 19, 2009 13 Comments

Were El Somnambulo El Presidente of the Internet Mundo, he would demand that reader responses be thoughtful and on point. (Of course, by that standard, the Beast Who Slumbers would have to ban himself, but he digresses.) His point is that certain stories deserve much more than boilerplate talking points, and today’s lead story is […]

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Guest DJ John M. Young’s Music For the Masses

Filed in National by on July 18, 2009 10 Comments

Today we welcome a guest contributor, John Young, a frequent commenter and member of the Christina School Board, to Music for the Masses Saturday.

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Report: Delaware to Offer Betting on Individual NFL Games

Filed in Delaware by on July 15, 2009 3 Comments

The Beast Who Makes the Occasional $10 Wager may have (probably has) missed it in the News-Journal, but USA Today reports that the Delaware Lottery will offer both betting on individual NFL games and parlays.  Followers of this issue may recall that there was initial concern that Delaware’s Constitution might prevent betting on individual games. […]

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So, Ya Wanna Date Jessica Simpson?

Filed in National by on July 13, 2009 3 Comments
So, Ya Wanna Date Jessica Simpson?

It’s Heartbreak City for Jessica Simpson. On the day before her 29th birthday, her longtime beau, Tony Romo, broke up with her. As a public service, the Beast Who Slumbers clues all her would-be suitors into what she’s looking for in a mate: [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3yipg8DIdq8[/youtube]

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Holy Bleep! Swearing Helps to Reduce Pain

Filed in Science and Health by on July 13, 2009 3 Comments

It’s scientifically proven! Somewhere, right now, Donviti is worshipping at the Altar of Science. Dr. Richard Stephens and his research team at Keele University have discovered that: …volunteers who cursed at will could endure pain nearly 50% longer than civil-tongued peers. They believe swearing helps us downplay being hurt in favour of a more pain-tolerant […]

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Push For Fed Investigations of Bush Administration Gains Momentum

Filed in National by on July 13, 2009 14 Comments

John Manifold yesterday predicted that Scott Shane and the NY Times would follow up on their breaking story linking Dick Cheney to a CIA coverup with Congress. He was right. Eventual investigations almost seem inevitable now. In addition to the flood of information that was ‘dumped’ with the Friday release of the Inspector Generals’ reports, […]

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Read All About It In the Sunday Papers: Constitution-Shredding Edition

Filed in National by on July 12, 2009 18 Comments

“We interrupt this Very Special Larry King Roundtable to bring you this Breaking News. Sources are reporting that former Vice-President Dick Cheney personally instructed the CIA to withhold any and all information from Congress regarding highly-secret programs pertaining to illegally gathering information about, and from, American citizens.”

“We now return you to Michael Jackson-Is He in Heaven or in Hell?”, featuring Larry’s special guests, Brooke Shields, Rep. Peter King, and Bubbles the Chimp.”

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Dan Froomkin Hired By Huffington Post

Filed in National by on July 7, 2009 1 Comment

The Washington Post’s self-inflicted loss is the Huffington Post’s gain. Glenn Greenwald at Salon is reporting that Dan Froomkin has been hired by the Huffington Post. Seeing as how his sources include Dan Froomkin and Arianna Huffington, Glenn has nailed the story. As always, his take is at least as interesting as the facts: In […]

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Breaking: Pfeiffer Retires as Finance Secretary, Guv Proposes Eliminating Department

Filed in National by on July 6, 2009 41 Comments

Governor Markell has just announced a proposal to eliminate the Department of Finance, and to distribute the Department’s responsibilities among other State agencies. Secretary of Finance Gary Pfeiffer, who recommended that the Department be eliminated, is retiring and will be replaced as Acting Secretary by Tom Cook. Here is the press release in its entirety: […]

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Read All About It In the Sunday Papers: Post-Fireworks Edition

Filed in National by on July 5, 2009 4 Comments

Lead Story-The (UK) Independent: The Harrowing Tale of A Forced Marriage Thankfully, the Independent isn’t just reporting on the story and its aftermath, but employed its reporters and resources to play a key role in exposing this story and helping to gain the freedom of the victim. In an exclusive interview with the IoS, Dr […]

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