There may be a World chocolate shortage.  Here is the link:  Link

What vital resource would cause you the most pain if it was in short supply?

Al Gore visited Congress today to testify about global warming. 

He told Congress that there was a “true planetary emergency.”  He also said that “the crisis threatens the survival of our civilization.”  He told Congress that the “planet has a fever.”

Republican Joe Barton, the leading Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, told Al Gore “You’re not just off a little, you’re totally wrong.”

Another representative referred to Al Gore as a prophet.  Here is the link:  Link

Is Al Gore totally wrong or is he a prophet?

President Bush announced the other day that he would fight any subpoenas forcing his top aides to testify under oath on the issue of the firing of eight federal prosecutors.

He said he didn’t care if it would cause a constitutional crisis.  He offered for his top aides to testify privately to the House and Senate Judiciary Committees but he would not allow them to testify under oath or on the record.

As you can guess, the House Judiciary subcommittee on commercial and administrative law decide to call the top aides to testify publicly and under oath.  Here is the link:  Link

The president has stated he is concerned that the issue will be made political.

Do you think President Bush’s top aides should testify publicly under oath or privately off the record?

Eunice Spry, who is 62, was convicted yesterday of abusing her three foster children. 

She beat, abused and starved her children.  She is a “devout Jehovah’s Witness.”  She forced “sticks down her children’s throat and made them eat their own vomit and rat excrement.”

Only look at this link if you feel like you can take it:  Link

One issue that has been in the news is how the Muslim population is growing in Minnesota.  This has caused organizations to struggle with issues of adaption to the Muslim faith.  For example, some Muslim cabdrivers refused to drive passengers if they had alcohol on them. 

The next issue that made the news was some Muslim cashiers that worked at Target refused to ring up pork products.  The Muslims felt that running the bacon under the scanner would violate their religious belief.  Target quickly allowed the people to serve in other positions in the store. 

John Gibson interviewed a man named Omar Jamal.  Omar Jamal is the executive director of the Somali Justice Advocacy Center.  Jamal said, “under the Civil Rights Act, I think companies and work areas, someone could be accommodated reasonable for a person’s religious beliefs or practice without undue harm.”  Here is the link:  Link

Should a cashier be fired if he/she is unwilling to ring up some of the products in the store?

The Vice President, Dick Cheney, had to return to George Washington University Hospital because he was experiencing “discomfort” in his leg. 

This is the same leg that they found a blood clot in two weeks ago.  Here is the link:  Link

If you had to place a bet, do you think Dick Cheney will make it through the rest of his term?

I was just reading an article that was discussing the issue of anonymity allows online users to get nasty.  Since people don’t have their name on their site, they take freedom to say things they would never say otherwise.  

The topic was about the woman who was 400 pounds and gave birth.  She did not know she was pregnant.  A bunch of people posted about the woman online.  They made fun of her.  One person said of her, “”A pig is a pig.”  Another person suggested she needed to go on the program “The Biggest Loser.”  Here is the link:  Link

I think people tend to be nastier online but hardly anyone would actually admit it.      

Do you think you are nastier online than you are in person?    

For those of you who follow my photoblog, you are familar with the story of Knut. 

Knut is a polar bear cub.  His mother abandoned him when he was a newborn.  He became national news when the zoo decided to save his life and raise him.  They have fed him with a bottle. 

Today the story was released that an animal rights activist said they should kill Knut because he was never meant to be raised by humans.  Here is the link:  Link

I didn’t post on the story even though I saw it in two separate news stories because I had a hard time believing that an animal rights activist would say such a thing.

Well, the animal rights activist is saying that he was misquoted.  He is saying it would be wrong to kill Knut now that he is alive.  His main point was that the zoo should have never intervened to save Knut.  He said, “Feeding by hand is not species-appropriate but a gross violation of animal protection laws.”  He went on to say, “If a polar bear mother rejected the baby, then I believe the zoo must follow the instincts of nature,” Albrecht said. “In the wild, it would have been left to die.”  Here is the link:  Link

The second article asked if it was wrong to save Knut.

Was it wrong of the zoo to save Knut?

The Legislature in Georgia approved a measure that would required doctors to offer “to show patients requesting an abortion an ultrasound image of the fetus if an image was made.”  I am going to continue to follow this story and give updates because I think it is interesting.  Here is the link:  Link

Should doctors be required to show an ultrasound to a woman before she has an abortion?   

The “Dukes of Hazzard” has been canceled in Cincinnati because of the confederate flag being displayed so prominently in their program. 

The stars of the series, John Schneider and Tom Wopat, have taken up musical careers.  They were going to sing at the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra.  The show was canceled because there were those who that the show was racist and offensive.  Here is the link:  Link

Is the Dukes of Hazzard racist and offensive?