this technology rulz!

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why pesotum blogs

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... and with news on the hubba-hubba front, we have...



... the beautiful and talented, Ms. Julianne Moore.

Richard M. Scrushy, the former Chairman of HealthSouth, was fired by HealthSouth's Board of Directors effect March 19, 2003.

Mr. Scrushy's personal business dealings are being investigated by the F.B.I. He is alleged to have created and headed-up suspicious companies, ala' Enron, which may have created a false financial standing for HealthSouth.

Mr. Scruchy is a former musician and The New York Times reports that "Mr. Scrushy, a former respiratory therapist, led several bands himself. The musicians included old friends from his hometown, Selma, Ala., and company employees. There was a rock band and later a country music group called Dallas County Line, which is also the name of one of his companies."

The New York Times article is here.

FYI: HUMVEE is military speak for "high mobility multipurpose wheeled vehicle."

The New York Times reports that the HUMVEES, "have full-time four-wheel drive and are capable of steep ascents and descents. They have 16 inches of ground clearance and can, in theory, ford 5 feet of water."

The Associated Press, in an article published in today's San Diego Union Tribune reporting on a weekend heat wave in Southern California, wrote that "in Los Angeles County, the University of Southern California just south of downtown Los Angeles, tied its 1934 record of 89 degrees. Long Beach had 87 degrees, two degrees hotter than in 1945. The Los Angeles International Airport had 88 degrees, beating the 1945 record by three degrees, while Torrance saw 86 degrees, which was much hotter than the 78 degrees in 1987."

In San Diego County, temperatures ranged from 76 degree, in parts closer to the Pacific Ocean, to 90 degrees in the eastern part of the county.

Real estate watch

If you were to have read today's Chicago Tribune, you may have found a piece by Bob Goldsborough with this: "Britney Spears has paid $3 million for a multilevel, four-bedroom condo in Manhattan's East Village. Spears bought the 11th-floor condo, which has 4-½ baths and a roof deck, in the Silk Building, according to public records and the Wall Street Journal. The unit's former owners include Rolling Stone Keith Richards and rap impresario Russell Simmons."

And this: " Cubs pitching phenom Mark Prior has paid $680,000 for a Lincoln Park town home. Among current Cubs, the only other area property owner is Sammy Sosa, who owns a combined unit in Lake Point Tower."

You may also have found an interesting piece by Greg Kot, the paper's rock critic, on the fading-star days of the CD, a consumer music staple now 20 years old.

... is more developed and the focus, from my 1st drive, is on commerce and business. from Mission Bay Golf Resort, I need a beer.

from my phone: great weather for a trip north on the pacific coast hwy to LA. The best part about the trip is San Diego's Hwy 101. Orange and LA Countys Hwy 1..

Adam Entous, in a Reuters piece today, wrote "White House officials on Friday denied U.S. war planners were caught off guard by Iraqi resistance on the road to Baghdad and said second-guessing by news reporters and others was frustrating President Bush who believed the war was progressing 'on track.'"

The breakdown of a military fighting organization (from smallest to largest):

• platoon


• company


• battallion


• brigade


• division


• corp


• command

It's amazing to this blog how quickly diplomatic relations have become strained now that the Bush Administration is in power. Mr. Bush did promise that he would shake-up international relations when he was candidate Bush in 2000. He threatened to withdraw troops from peace-keeping mission in Bosnia, which put our European friends in a bad mood. Mr. Bush seems to be a man of his word.

Photos from a 2001 European adventure are posted here.

The New York Times reports that a "Times/CBS News Poll found that the number of Americans who expected the war to be won quickly dropped 9 points from Saturday to Sunday, and 10 more points from Sunday to Monday. Those shifts coincided with television coverage of prisoners of war and battlefield casualties that seems to have caught at least some Americans — accustomed to the relatively bloodless victory in Afghanistan last year — by surprise."

A friend to this blog, Mr. David L. Barclift (currently of Columbus, Ohio), believes that casulty numbers are very important. The ability to complete the mission is, however, most important.

Tell it to the judge, sir.

Are you: (a) for the war and for the troops, (b) for the war and against the troops, (c) against the war and for the troops, (d) against the war and against the troops?

Tax Survey (as heard on NPR)

• "American people are more interested, 53-41%, in keeping down the deficit versus lowering taxes (tax cut)"

President Bush's proposal for more tax cuts does not seem to be taking hold with the electorate, and some Republicans. (This results of this survey will be published in approximately two weeks.)

This blog is guessing that the results of the NPR survey is one reason Mr. Bush's tax cut proposal was cut in half (to $350 billion, from over $700 billion in the President's proposal) by the Senate. Perhaps many Americans are aware of the accumulation of a larger federal deficits and its impact on the future economy? Nah.

A new "weapon" in the war against Iraq.

The San Diego Union-Tribune reports that "the U.S. military has unveiled a most unlikely mine detector – the bottle-nosed dolphin" The full article is here.

"For the first time in more than seven years, more people moved out of California than in," according to an article by The San Diego Union Tribune.

The report found 52.1 percent of moves were outbound, but despite this change, the market is considered to be more balanced than it has been in some time. Some of the factors cited for the state's migration reversal included the high cost of living, slow job growth and what effect the war might have. For example, if the spouse of someone deployed is having trouble making ends meet here, he or she may go back to living with the folks in another part of the country.

The article is here.

"Against the war, but for the troops."

I'm "Against the war, but for the troops." Do you recognize that mantra? Do you find that mantra overused and tired? This blog does. The sentiment, while understandable, sounds insincere because of the frequency it's repeated. Try saying this: "I'm for the war, but against the troops"

San Diego military personnel and Operation Iraqi Freedom

• 25 of 56 San Diego-based ships are deployed



• San Diego-based Navy ships currently in Persian Gulf: USS Constellation (carrier), Bunker Hill (cruiser), Nimitz (carrier, en route to Persian Gulf, to replace Abraham Lincoln; E.T.A.: 10 days); Stennus, a carrier, is currently docked at North Island Navy Base.



• Six San Diego (Camp Pendleton)-based Marines, and one Navy Seal, have been killed thus far in the conflict.



• Marine Bases in Southwest: Pendelton (CA), 29 Palms (CA), Miramar (CA), Yuma (AZ)

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Due to the current military conflict, we may begin experiencing more stresses; yesterday, in a mission to decompress and to minimize the effects of war fatigue, this blog took a few hours from war coverage for a little R&R.

Be vigilant, dear reader. Begin monitoring the amount of time you spend "gettin' your war on." Look-out for the classic symptoms of acute overexposure/GYWO, i.e.: watching news coverage for hours without new and/or significant developments; a sharp increase in your attempts to incorporate "shock & awe" into situations of humour; finding yourself in more situations in which you have become the receiver of "okay, thanks for that bit of military strategy, General Fuckhead." Let us not forget: consuming large amounts of alcohol for no reason whatsoever. Think about it, dear reader. Are you "Gettin Your War On?"

Consult with your local bartender for treatment options.

(If you have contracted acute overexposure/GYWO, I would like to offer a referral: telephone discussion available with my esteemed colleague in Columbus, OH: Mr. David Barclift.)

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"G-Day" and "A-Day" are military colloquialism for Ground Day and Air Day. Ground Day is the day the ground war begins. Air Day is the day the Air War begins. G-Day was yesterday. A-Day begins today.

Spring forward...


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Getty Images

Maj. Bull Gurfein of the First Marine Division
was greeted by local Iraqis in Safwan.
from The New York Times

Not only is today a (casual) Friday and today's weather is absolutely gorgeous (the first day of Spring!), but in addition, this blogger is getting very little done today (or this week for the most part ) because we're getting our war on. Here is a sample of the little bit this blogger has done this week: this week's work (click it if you have adobe acrobat. if you don't have acrobat, click here.)

NPR's All Things Considered just reported that Chicago's Lakeshore Drive, that city's most-famous street, is the scene of an unplanned protest, marching and leaving traffic to a virtual standstill.

Here's an article from the Chicago Tribune.

Bombco Rock Radio's playlist is here.

Former presidential candidate Al Gore has been elected to the board of Apple Computers in Cupertino, Calif.

The New York Times reports that "the former vice president does his own video editing in Apple's Final Cut Pro software." (go to the article)

Get your war on.

This link is for live Baghdad video compliments of The New York Times and The Associated Press.

This blog is wondering, as probably most of the world, if Mr. Hussien was struck by the initial attack by coalition forces in an attempt to "shock and awe" the enemy and to "decapitate" the Iraqi leadership as well.

My Morning Jacket.

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I'm thinking Spring

This blog is aware that many of our brothers and sisters have experienced a frigid and icy winter. And many of you loyal readers are still experiencing it. This Friday will mark the official first day of Spring; relief is near, my people. It's an optimistic start.

A listing of San Diego wide open spaces is here.

Indian restaurants of San Diego

This blog will go on the record as being pro-Indian food. If you're a San Diegan, or a visitor to San Diego, here's a list of some Indian restaurants in "America's Finest." The list

From NPR's news magazine "All Things Considered"
"In combat psychiatry, you're looking to put people back together as quickly as possible," said a stress control specialist, a relatively new post in the military, who specializes in battle field psychology.

An Army unit from Fort Hood, Texas, is deploying to the Middle East with a unique mission: to battle stress. The 85th Medical Detachment's job is mending the psyches of soldiers. (The audio for this program will be available online after 9PM ET, 6PM PT)

Is this my day? My high school yearbook, the online version, has been located. Shit.

"Hussein Rejects Bush's 48-Hour Ultimatum," so wrote The New York Times.
"The march of struggle will continue against the American, English and Zionist aggressors,'' said an announcer in a statement aired on Iraqi state television today after a meeting of Iraqi leaders, according to an article in The New York Times.

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The Stockholm Syndrome

The Stockholm Syndrome is an emotional attachment, a bond of interdependence between captive and captor that develops 'when someone threatens your life, deliberates, and doesn't kill you.' (Symonds, 1980) The relief resulting from the removal of the threat of death generates intense feelings of gratitude and fear which combine to make the captive reluctant to display negative feelings toward the captor or terrorist. from The Peace Encyclopedia (more...)

Irreversible, a French film this blog viewed yesterday at The Landmark Hillcrest, was so disturbing that 15 people walked out of the showing during the first scene. This blog has yet to find a scene disturbing enough to prompt an early departure. Walking out during Irreversible, however, seemed reasonable; though reporting reasons may ruin your viewing experience.

Regarding Irreversible, Yahoo! Movies wrote:

Told in a series of sequences shot in continuous takes, which are then presented in reverse chronological order (ala Memento; which also explains the title), this is a grim and darkly-themed revenge drama about a woman (Bellucci) who is raped in an underpass/alley, inspiring her boyfriend (Cassell) to go out into the Paris night seeking retribution on the man who violated her. Because we see the effects before the causes, we get to see and understand things the characters never know.

Release Date: March 7th, 2003 (LA/NY)
World Premiere: May 23rd, 2002 (Cannes Film Festival, in competition)
U.S. Premiere: January, 2003 (Sundance Film Festival, Frontier selection)
MPAA Rating: Unrated
MPAA Rating Note: (11/21/02) Lions Gate Films has expressed an interest in releasing this harrowing and violent film in its original, uncut French version, complete with the nine-minute rape sequence which shocked many festival audiences, and another scene where a man is bludgeoned with a fire extinguisher.
Language: French with English subtitles.
Running Time: 99 minutes
Distributor: Lions Gate Films
Production Company: 120 Films, Eskwad, Les Cinemas de la Zone, Nord-Ouest Production

Cast:
Monica Bellucci (Alex), Vincent Cassel (Marcus), Albert Dupontel (Pierre), Philippe Nahon (Philippe), Jean-Louis Costes, Stephane Drouot (Stephane), Mourad Khima (Mourad), Gaspar Noe (cameo), Jo Prestia (The Tapeworm)

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The Cheap Trick/Guided by Voices show at The Vic Theatre in Chicago is already sold-out, one month ahead of time. I have secured a plane ticket and a show ticket for the April 12th rock-and-roll showcase. You're jealous of me, ain't ya?

Thank you Geoff Atkinson for the ticket hook-up.


Bombco Rock & Roll Radio!

Those conservative radio talk show hosts seem to have a bottomless bag of blame to unleash on the former Democratic president.

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Today is the first day in about three weeks that I've been able to post to my blog. My previous hosting company--the one not billing me for hosting service for the past two years--finally figured it out and blocked my ability to post to the site. Since that time I've been migrating all of the pesotum files to another server and today is the day it's up-and-running. What a wicked jungle--DNS server updates, etc.--it is to navigate. It's great to be back.

My first audio blog entry. Please disregard its less-than-meritorious content. It's a test. audblog audio post