Blue Crab Boulevard

There has been much wailing, gnashing of teeth, and general screeching coming from the left bemoaning the "imperial presidency" of George Bush. Their rusty-hinge, fingernails-on-a-blackboard yowling would mean a bit more if they also condemned the Speaker of the House and her unabashed foray into foreign affairs. Which is not her constitutional duty or responsibility. And yet Pelosi is planning to jaunt to Syria.

I have no use for the members of congress - from either party - meddling in international relations. It is simply insane to have hundreds of voices all trying to speak for the US government. The expression that too many cooks spoil the broth applies here. There are constitutional duties assigned to each of the branches of our government. Congress has no business crossing those lines.

As Ed Morrisey points out, Pelosi's regime in the House is working to condemn an ally, Turkey, for a genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire nearly a century ago - not by Turkey (which overthrew the Ottomans). And Pelosi is jaunting off to visit a hereditary dictator in a country long at odds with the United States. What's wrong with this picture?

Nobody in this nation - not one single voter - elected Nancy Pelosi to the presidency. It would be a good idea for her to realize that before she completely jumps the shark and the voters come to realize what a disaster this is bringing down on this nation and the world. But, being Pelosi, she won't and the voters will wake up. There is a real danger here for the Democrats, whether they are going to realize it in time or not. Their promises to the voters that got them elected are being ignored while the Speaker intrudes into matters that are not her responsibility. The voters will not be amused by an Imperial Speakership.

It is currently storming again here where I live, for the third day in a row. This one roaring overhead right now is a bad one. There is hail as well as torrential rain. These storms appear to be coming in from the Southeast, a fairly unusual direction in these parts. Cars driving down the rain-swept streets have their lights on and are creeping along,  wipers running at full speed, but unable to keep the windows clear.

Midwestern springs can be interesting. I have not heard any reports of tornadoes in the area and the town sirens did not sound when the latest storm was beating against the windows. But the building shook several times as fists of wind pummeled the old structure. Almost as quickly as it appeared, the storm is already over, past us and beating up on the next town. Such is the weather at this time of the year. It changes so fast, it's hard to figure out what to wear.

I stepped outside to survey the damage just now. The wind, blowing hard from the South, is quite cold. The flowers out front look a little forlorn and drooping, but they are still there. The tree on the South edge of the property has lost a lot of it's spring "flowers" - just messy things that accumulate in drifts like dark brown snow around this time of year. I don't think we are quite finished for today, though. It is brightening outside, but the sky to the South appears to have bands of clouds - rather ominous ones - heading this way quickly, driven by that cold wind.

Sometimes, I wish I lived somewhere with climate instead of weather. But I'd miss the storms, I think.

The media is not giving favorable treatment to the lawsuit brought by the six flying imams and their attempt to chill reporting of suspicious behavior by airline passengers. Will this be the case that finally damages CAIR in the media and the public's perception? Quite possibly. When even MSNBC is coming down on the imams by running an AP story critical of the attempted legal abuse, it may be time for the imams and their enablers to back down.

MINNEAPOLIS - Six Muslim men removed from a plane last fall after being accused of suspicious behavior are suing the airline and threatening to sue the passengers who complained — a move some fear could discourage travelers from speaking up when they see something unusual.

The civil rights lawsuit, filed earlier this month, has so alarmed some lawyers that they are offering to defend the unnamed “John Doe” passengers free of charge. They say it is vital that the flying public be able to report suspicious behavior without fear of being dragged into court.

“When you drive up the road towards the airport, there’s a big road sign that says, ‘Report suspicious behavior,”’ said Gerry Nolting, a Minneapolis lawyer. “There’s no disclaimer that adds, ‘But beware if you do that, you might get sued.”’

The fact that this is the only incident like this on record should indicate to rational people that the six imams set up a stunt specifically with the intent of filing a lawsuit. The fact that people who were on the flight are still convinced that the six were up to no good (as is stated later in the article) should show that the behavior was highly unusual and meant to provoke a response.

A man walks down the street
It's a street in a strange world
Maybe it's the Third World
Maybe it's his first time around
He doesn't speak the language
He holds no currency
He is a foreign man
He is surrounded by the sound
The sound
Cattle in the marketplace
Scatterlings and orphanages
He looks around, around
He sees angels in the architecture
Spinning in infinity
He says Amen! and Hallelujah!

If you'll be my bodyguard
I can be your long lost pal
I can call you Betty
And Betty when you call me
You can call me Al
Call me Al
(Paul Simon, You Can Call Me Al)

The Daily Mail has an unusual picture taken by retired policeman Andy (not Al) Key while in Rome on vacation. The picture, of sunlight streaming through the windows of Saint Peter's Basilica show an odd pattern of light that resembles the traditional shape of an angel floating over the heads of other visitors. Apparently, even professional photographers are completely at a loss as to how this particular image appeared on the digital picture.

But it was only when Mr Key, 48, and his wife Susan, 44, returned home and and downloaded their photographs that they noticed a strange apparition in the picture.

They were amazed to see what looked like the image of a guardian angel above the heads of other visitors to St Peter's Basilica.

Mr Key, from March, Cambridgeshire, said: "It looks like an angel hovering on the people's heads.

"No-one can explain it - there's nothing on their heads for the light to bounce off."

Mr Key went on the holiday to mark his retirement from his job as a police constable for Cambridgeshire Police.

He and his wife, a medical secretary, were looking around the famous church when they noticed a large group of people and realised the Pope was making an address nearby.

"I was taking pictures of all the things around us and saw this huge window with the light streaming through and thought it looked beautiful," he explained.

"I snapped the picture and didn't noticed anything until I got home.

"It looks almost like a hologram. I thought it was really spooky."

The picture is very unusual. But excuse us a moment, won't you? We have to call uncle Guido in Rome and tell him to knock it off. These angel-shaped smoke rings of his are very clever, but he shouldn't be smoking inside the Vatican. We will not help bail him out if he gets caught this time.

The sleepy little English village of Harthill with Woodall is living with terror these days. A mad killer is stalking the area. So far, the beast has beheaded over 5,000 victims. No, really. The daffodils are all dead.

For years Peter Dungworth painstakingly planted thousands of daffodil bulbs in the hope of one day leading his village to a Britain in Bloom award.

But just days before he was due to welcome judges to view this year's entry he awoke to find each and every flower had been deliberately beheaded.

Now police have launched an investigation amid claims that mean-spirited saboteurs from a rival village may have crept in under the cover of darkness.

Mr Dungworth, a retired salesman, claims the perpetrators deliberately used secateurs in a bid to scupper the village's chances of winning the competition.

The father of two said: "I planted the daffodils over the last few years, doing a stretch at a time and I reckon it has cost me about £500 to buy all the bulbs.

"I didn't plant them with the competition in mind, I just wanted to brighten up the grass verges near my home.

"You could say it was a labour of love because I am a keen gardener and I have enjoyed seeing them flower over the years."

Harthill has been around since before the Norman conquest and is one of the places mentioned in the Domesday book that cataloged all of William the Bastard's conquered territory. (Oh, sure, he called himself "The Conqueror" after winning at Hastings, but he was known by the other moniker prior to that). We here at Blue Crab Boulevard point out that the daffodils are just the beginning. Just wait until the wheat starts being decapitated later in the summer. That's when residents of Harthill with Woodall will realize that they are dealing with a cereal killer.

Interesting developments in the new Iranian hostage drama. European governments appear to be backing the idea of escalating sanctions or punitive measures against Iran over the kidnapping of 15 British sailors and marines from Iraqi territorial waters. Even the Guardian newspaper is sounding increasingly belligerent.

The EU threatened to act against Iran last night if it did not immediately and unconditionally release the 15 British sailors and marines it has been holding for more than a week.

EU foreign ministers meeting in Bremen, Germany, threatened "appropriate measures" if Tehran did not let the group go, supporting Britain's position that the crew had been in Iraqi waters when they were seized eight days ago. The ministers did not spell out what measures would be taken, but British diplomats hoped they would involve an escalating array of punitive steps.

The tough statement was the kind of direct rebuke Britain had sought in vain from the UN security council on Thursday night when, in the face of resistance from Russia and others, the council only expressed concern but threatened no action. Despite the EU statement, prospects for a quick resolution to the crisis dwindled yesterday after another propaganda video and letter featuring more dubious confessions and apologies by the captives.

The only glimmer of hope for a quick diplomatic solution was a note presented yesterday to Britain's ambassador in Tehran, portrayed by Iranian officials as conciliatory, which bore some resemblance to a letter sent shortly before the end of a similar drama in 2004.

Iran is growing more bold - and hence acting with less rationality - directly as a result of the political posturing going on in the United States. As the US displays more and more internal disarray, it is going to get a lot worse in the world in the near future.

First, find an old laptop computer on eBay. We're talking a Toshiba Satellite 4000CDT with a mighty Pentium II (with MMX technology, thank you very much, as the sticker on the case proudly proclaims) and an awe inspiring 96 Megabytes of RAM. Dead battery that won't take a charge, but with a functional CD-ROM and a floppy drive. Second, install a copy of Windows 98 (Second Edition) and make sure everything works. Check the expansive 3 Gigabyte hard disk drive and find it works perfectly with no bad sectors. Run all your various diagnostics that you have accumulated over the years and find that the computer, though old and slow, is flawless. Literally everything on it works to perfection. Third, install a few odd old games that were originally meant for Windows 95 and confirm that they all work properly. Rediscover the world of Myst. Then give it to your 12 year old son as an early birthday present.

It seems to be amusing him, too.

Not a bad way to spend $50.

Wow, this one even got a major raspberry from Briton. John Travolta is lecturing people to "do their bit" to curb global warming.

That would be the John Travolta who owns a fleet of private jets. Which he flies around for fun. What's wrong with this picture? (Oh, and do, please, click the link to see the picture.)

His serious aviation habit means he is hardly the best person to lecture others on the environment. But John Travolta went ahead and did it anyway.

The 53-year-old actor, a passionate pilot, encouraged his fans to "do their bit" to tackle global warming.

But although he readily admitted: "I fly jets", he failed to mention he actually owns five, along with his own private runway.

Clocking up at least 30,000 flying miles in the past 12 months means he has produced an estimated 800 tons of carbon emissions – nearly 100 times the average Briton's tally.

Travolta made his comments this week at the British premiere of his movie, Wild Hogs.

He spoke of the importance of helping the environment by using "alternative methods of fuel" – after driving down the red carpet on a Harley Davidson.

Wow. Al "Gorezilla" Gore has a weird attraction to power lines and uses 20 times the national average of electricity in his home - and strip mines Tennessee to boot. John Travolta flies enormous carbon emitters into the upper atmosphere - pretty much just for the hell of it. (And I'd love to see the power bill for that little pad of his, too.) And these are the spokesmen for global warming?

Apparently, they are both in favor of it, so long as they get to cause it all by themselves. Screw the little people. Boy are their supporters getting shafted. They appear to be unable to see that.

If you are a person who prays, please do so for Ed Morrisey's wife and for Ed himself. She underwent a kidney transplant today. If you are not one who prays, please keep them in your thoughts. So far all the signs are that this has been very successful. Best wishes to them both.

I remember growing up in Rochester, New York when there were still some small, old fashioned amusement parks in the area. Right in Rochester was Seabreeze Amusement Park, at that time it had slipped into a state of seedy disrepair, still functional, but old and run down. It was kind of the lower-level park in the area. (Interestingly, Seabreeze managed to reinvent itself in later years and is still around today.) The other major amusement park was Roseland, in Canandaigua, a bit South and East of Rochester itself. That was the better kept of the two parks, but it is no longer there, the land sold for real estate development. Both parks had, as I recall, Tilt-A-Whirl rides. Those were not new inventions, they were already fixtures of many amusement parks all across the country having been introduced in 1926. Many a child and adult tossed their cookies as a direct result of those infernal machines (I loved riding them - it was fun trying to walk when you got off the ride). Now a lawmaker in Minnesota has stepped up to the plate to address the yawning need of nostalgic boomers to relive their childhoods. Or something like that.

 ST. PAUL - State Rep. Patti Fritz, DFL-Faribault, has introduced a bill designating the Tilt-A-Whirl the official amusement ride in Minnesota.

Fritz said she's taking up the cause of 52 kindergarten students from her district who say it deserves special attention because it was invented in their town.

"I represent children too," Fritz said, adding, "Minnesotans like to have fun, and it's a fun thing to do."

The Tilt-A-Whirl is a platform-type ride consisting of seven freely spinning cars holding up to four riders apiece.

I didn't realize that "DFL" meant "Demented Feel-good Lunacy". But there you have it; today's serious state legislatures addressing serious issues all across the country. Seriously.