Bits & Pieces

We had a lovely visit to Newport over the last few days. I have to say, I love the Oregon Coast more in the winter than the summer. The moody skies, the frothing surf, the smells of sea and evergreen... the true magic of our fair stretch of ocean almost requires the calm curtains of gray and sun breaks that punctuate the storms that tear in from the Pacific.

No whales to be seen, though. Dramatic weather obscures flukes and blowspouts. We did get to go the aquarium, where we discovered that Eamon has a great appreciation for aquatic mammals like sea lions, seals, and sea otters. He doesn't see to be too impressed by the fish. I'll post some pictures a little later.

Here's a few odds and ends:

• susanhu at Booman Tribune has this infuriating story about energy politics between D.C., the Chicago Transit Authority, and Venezuela's state-run oil industry, Citgo. Citgo is offering to sell the CTA diesel fuel for its transit fleet at 40-50% savings, so long as the savings are passed on in the way of free or reduced-price fare for low-income transit riders. The CTA scotched the deal and opted to raise their fares after receiving $89 million in federal monies from D.C. Another of consequence of Bush's "get tough" policies against increasingly leftist governments in South American. Stupid, stupid, stupid.


• kos has this to say on new revelations on the methods used in the Global War on Terror. Turning a blind eye to the torture of children is the epitome of evil.


• The General's take on our "ally" in the GWOT, Uzbekistan, with links to the story breaking in the UK press: