It’s the same poll, but the AP’s two stories couldn’t be more different. On December 30: AP poll: Americans optimistic for 2007.
And on December 31, after the editors apparently decided their first take was too positive: Poll: Americans see gloom, doom in 2007.
Fayetteville police and other city officials are looking at how best to amend a city ordinance to make it more effective regarding graffiti and graffiti cleanup.
Police already have a way to charge the painter. A new ordinance would be about requiring the property owner to remove the graffiti.
City staff met this month and discussed using a Springdale anti-graffiti ordinance as the model for a Fayetteville ordinance. It includes a definition and a declaration process for determining the graffiti as unsightly and a nuisance, and it talks about removal and the city's right to action if the graffiti is not removed.
Gabbard said the police department is also looking to partner with individuals or businesses to supply graffiti-removal products the department would provide to property owners.
Casey and Trixie got a really big bone for Christmas. I sawed it in half and gave them each a piece. Somehow, Casey ended up with both halves and he appears to be guarding them closely. Not to worry, once his back is turned Trixie will grab one."Saddam Hussein was an evil person and there was justification to get rid of him," he observed, "but we shouldn't have put the basis on weapons of mass destruction. That was a bad mistake. Where does [Bush] get his advice?"
4) The best approach? Hammer time. Hitting the chip with a blunt, hard object should disable it. A nonworking RFID doesn’t invalidate the passport, so you can still use it
I hope everyone is having a blessed day with their families. Christmas has been cold, windy and damp here. Perfect weather to stay indoors with the fire burning. Eli has staked out the rug in front of the fire. Yes, Santa has been very good to me today. Lots of books and CD's. The cats really appreciated the solar powered, lighted bird feeder. So much easier to catch snacks when you can see them better. (Just kidding, sis!)
Oh boy! We're shopping for our Christmas presents! We meet a bunch of people who like to pet us. Which is only natural because we are so sweet and cute.
Ok, nix on the gerbals. How about a big juicy bone? They smell terrific. Here, I'll just go ahead and choose one. Aaah, man! Mom picked out collars. How come we always get clothes for Christmas?"There will be people who can’t distinguish that so we need to have ethical rules to make sure we as humans interact with robots in an ethical manner so we do not move our boundaries of what is acceptable."
"If granted full rights, states will be obligated to provide full social benefits to them including income support, housing and possibly robo-healthcare to fix the machines over time,"
GREELEY - The line of applicants hoping to fill jobs vacated by undocumented workers taken away by immigration agents at the Swift & Co. meat-processing plant earlier this week was out the door Thursday.
In second place on this year's list was "Global Warming Denier," for someone who believes that climate change has moved from scientific theory to dogma.
"There are now proposals that 'global warming deniers' be treated the same as 'Holocaust deniers: professional ostracism, belittlement, ridicule and, even, jail," Payack said.
Casey and Trixie are getting a bath. Eli scopes out the "torture chamber". Actually, the dogs like their bath. They'll climb into the tub by themselves. Eli jumped out of the tub as soon as I turned on the water. No like water!
The state Education Board has temporarily rejected the Bryant School District's effort to de-annex the former Paron district, saying it would prefer an alternative that didn't involve a state takeover.
De-annexation would move control of the ex-Paron district to the state. The Education Board voted today to table the proposal for 60 days. It also directed the Education Department and Bryant to develop an alternative.
(AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)Ukraine has become the self-styled stem cell capital of the world.
There is a trade in stem cells from aborted fetuses, amid unproven claims they can help fight many diseases.
In its report, the Council describes a general culture of trafficking of children snatched at birth, and a wall of silence from hospital staff upwards over their fate.
Conservatives have a reputation for stultifying puritanism, and Chris wants to make conservatism provocative and help it to compete by breaking down stereotypes.
"One of the great challenges facing us is that we do not commit the same mistakes with our growing Hispanic population that we did with African Americans 150 years ago and beyond. We're still paying the price for the pathetic manner in which this country handled that," Huckabee said
Attorney General Mike Beebe, the governor-elect, said Thursday that he expects a fight in his bid to phase out the state sales tax on groceries
For our own sake, we need to respect the enemy. That means grasping that he's implacable, that he means us only harm, and that he must be subdued, not appeased. Negotiating with such evil is always a mistake, for any accommodation with evil is, by definition, evil.
Now new information is emerging that suggests it was all a stunt designed to weaken security
I can only determine two possible scenarios:
Either they were planning to use the seat belt extenders to subdue hostages
and take over the plane and were caught by their suspicious activities
Or, it was done intentionally to induce suspicion and make a big public fuss to
intimidate security at the airports.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Our objective is to help the Maliki government succeed. And today we discussed how to further the success of this government. This is a government that is dedicated to pluralism and rule of law. It's a government elected by the Iraqi people under a constitution approved by the Iraqi people, which, in itself, is an unusual event in the Middle East, by the way.
We talked today about accelerating authority to the Prime Minister so he can do what the Iraqi people expect him to do, and that is bring security to parts of his country that require firm action. It's going to -- the presence of the United States will be in Iraq so long as the government asks us to be in Iraq. This is a sovereign government. I believe that there is more training to be done. I think the Prime Minister agrees with me. I know that we're providing a useful addition to Iraq by chasing down al Qaeda and by securing -- by helping this country protect itself from al Qaeda.
A public Christmas festival is no place for the Christmas story, the city says. Officials have asked organizers of a downtown Christmas festival, the German Christkindlmarket, to reconsider using a movie studio as a sponsor because it is worried ads for its film "The Nativity Story" might offend non-Christians.
"The last time I checked, the first six letters of Christmas still spell out Christ," said Paul Braoudakis, spokesman for the Barrington, Ill.-based Willow Creek Association, a group of more than 11,000 churches of various denominations.
"Black leaders challenged the entertainment industry, including rap artists, actors and major studios, to stop the use of the racial slur that triggered the scandal involving 'Seinfeld' comic actor Michael Richards," the Associated Press reports from Los Angeles:
The Rev. Jesse Jackson, a civil rights leader, and others said Monday they will meet with TV networks, film companies and musicians to discuss banning the racial slur that is a derogatory term for blacks. They also sought an effort by the public to stop using the term.
Just one problem: The AP never tells us what word we're supposed to stop using. There is a reference to the "n-word," which we guess narrows it down a bit. After consulting the Racial Slur Database, we've decided never again to use the word "Nordski," in case there are any black Scandinavians.
I'll admit my timing could be better, since the incoming House Democrats, on a unanimous voice vote, just made Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., speaker of the House. But I think her party should give serious thought to dumping her.
I swear this week has been "its time to kill a cat week" at my house. This time it was Bows. She plays this little game of pushing things off the kithen counter. This morning it was a spice saucer holding my vitamins. The saucer shattered all over the floor. I swear she was laughing while I was vacuuming up the mess. That lil' stinker! "This is a region that is fighting back," said lead author Jacqueline A. Richter-Menge, a civil engineer at the Army Corps of Engineers' Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory in Hanover, N.H. "There are things that showed signs of going back to norms, trying to right themselves under very dire circumstances."
Mack described Underwood's survey as sneaky and questions the validity of his claims.
" To me it's just like he's greedy - what have to close down for one, two days," Mack said.
Bill Underwood, of Underwood's Fine Jewelers, said that the label disgruntled was indeed accurate, but notes that he is not alone and is not trying to kill the festival. He said that on the one side you have people like Mack who have a financial interest in seeing the festival grow, but on the other you have business owners that lose money during the event because their customers can't get to them.
Underwood said that he anticipated becoming a " lighting rod, " for criticism because of his stance, but said he feels strongly that someone needs to protect the rights of those business owners who " feel our property is being taken away."
The city of Fayetteville has just release a special addition of City of Fayetteville Newsletter. The subject of this edition is the Transportation Improvements and Trail Programs. If you live or travel in Fayetteville, this is a must read.
Gov. Mike Huckabee on Tuesday ripped news reporters for writing about gift registries in his and his wife's names for a housewarming party for their recently purchased half million-dollar home in North Little Rock.
The governor accused news media of being "tools" for Arkansas Times Editor Max Brantley, who runs a blog that discussed the registries and who has been a longtime critic of Huckabee.
Huckabee said disclosure of the registry has "done a real disservice to the people of this state because what you've done is create the impression that my wife has gone out and solicited gifts, which is absolutely untrue."
"My wife has friends," Huckabee told reporters. "I know you may find that very difficult to believe, but she actually has lifelong friends, some from high school, quite a few from church. They wanted to do something for her. It has nothing to do with who she is other than she is their friend."
Janet Huckabee, in a brief telephone interview with the Democrat-Gazette later Tuesday, said news articles about the registries have done "permanent damage." She said the housewarming was a "private matter. Down South they give housewarming parties like this."
Asked why the Huckabees couldn't buy items themselves, the first lady said, "I can buy any towel I want. That's not the purpose. It's like having a birthday. It's a congratulations. Conversation over."
"You have a great day," Huckabee said. "You tell [your wives ] how much you appreciate all they do for you. Feel good about what you do for a living."
Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain said Monday night that the "nature of the battle" had changed and that Western strategy in the Middle East must "evolve," possibly to include a "new partnership" with Iran.
I have never wanted to kill a cat so much! I couldn't find Eli while I was cleaning up around the house this evening. I looked all over the house for him. I figured that he somehow slipped out in the garage and outside while I was taking out the trash. So, I've been spending most of the evening looking for him outside. I gave up and hoped that he'd eventually show up if he didn't get killed. While I sitting on the toilet he pops out of the closet. He was sleeping inside one of the boxes! Good thing I wasn't able to get up from the toilet then, because I could have throttled him. 
“An honest assessment of the last few years of Republican governance in Washington reveals three distinct shortcomings. First, as the party in charge for most of the last six years, we have often become the defenders rather than the challengers of business as usual. Second, we have failed to create a culture of less but better government and too often have given in to the culture of spending so pervasive in Washington. Finally, we have allowed our efforts to defend traditional values to be defined as little more than a politically driven effort to appease ‘family groups.’ These disappointments, combined with a seemingly constant stream of ethics issues afflicting a few Members of Congress, caused some in our movement to lose faith.
2007 and 2008 are opportunities once again for us to let the American people know what we stand for.
“We say we want to cut spending, and we will.
“We say we want to reform the welfare state by empowering citizens to make their own decisions, and we will.
“We say we want to defend traditional American values, and we will.
“We say we want to confront and defeat totalitarians who threaten our freedom, and we will.
“Our job is not to defend business as usual, not to defend everything the government does, but to challenge it and see that it is done better.
“Our job is to insist on less and better government.
“Demanding that the federal government do its job (not everyone else’s) and do it as well as it can possibly be done.
“Our job is to put our values above political expediency.
“If we do these things – we will quickly see those ideas embraced by an overwhelming majority of Americans; my party will be the majority party, and our country will see another century become the American Century.”
Last night’s election results also prove that the American people are hungry for change and that companies like Wal-Mart will be held accountable for their policies which have hurt hard-working families and threaten the future of America. Now, we look forward to working with lawmakers to change Wal-Mart, protect American jobs, raise wages and create affordable health care for all.
We can only hope that Wal-Mart will hear the calls for change and will sit down with us, work together, and begin a new chapter that will change Wal-Mart and America for the better.”
Well, the election results were not what I wanted. Given what the political pundits and polls were saying I expected things not to go well for Republicans, but still one hopes. Republicans are rarely elected in Arkansas, but we worked really hard to get our people in office. While I'm disappointed that we did not win I had a good time working for the Party. I've met some truly wonderful people trying to do the best for Arkansas. I particular enjoyed meeting Jim Lagrone. He is a wonderful guy and I appreciated his tireless efforts to change the way the elections are run in Arkansas. I would support him again in any election. 
The Republican Rally with President Bush was a blast! It was lots of music, yelling, flag and sign waving. I volunteered to help so I spent most of my time in the back. No much opportunity to get pictures. I really just tried to enjoy the atmosphere. 
An investigation is looking into the reliability of life science research conducted by a team led by the University of Missouri- Columbia's recognized expert in reproductive biology, the Columbia Tribune reported. The team was led by R. Michael Roberts.
But in recent weeks, the site has posted some documents that weapons experts say are a danger themselves: detailed accounts of Iraq's secret nuclear research before the 1991 Persian Gulf war. The documents, the experts say, constitute a basic guide to building an atom bomb.
"You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you, you can do well. If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq."This is the real John Kerry, everything anyone needs to know about the man. No, John Kerry is representing the face of the real Democrat Party. This is what the Democrat Party really thinks of the troops. They really, truly believe that the troops are stupid and underprivileged.
"I'm sick and tired of these despicable Republican attacks".
Mike Beebe has promised to "eliminate" the grocery tax, too. During our interview with him, he told us so in the most emphatic tones, just before explaining with equal emphasis why it couldn't be done: The state doesn't actually have a projected $ 720-million surplus but only a $ 360-million-a-year surplus. Much of that money is going to have to go to improve school buildings per court order, and there are lots of ways to spend the rest, too. General Beebe would eliminate the tax only in phases that we suspect would never come.
So Mike Beebe looks straight at the camera and promises there will be no more consolidation on his watch ! Happily, we find it hard to believe him. Because he's always been open to reason and progress where education is concerned. There comes a time when you just have to trust a politician's insincerity. So let's call Mike Beebe's little deviation on this issue campaign rhetoric and discount it.
For all these reasons, and with a hope and a prayer, our choice for governor of Arkansas is Mike Beebe.
Jonesboro television station KAIT decided Tuesday to pull an ad by the Coalition for Arkansas' Future that tried to tie Beebe, who served 20 years in the state senate, to disgraced state Sen. Nick Wilson.
Ted Fortenberry, the station's vice president and general manager, said the decision was made after Beebe's campaign attorney sent a letter asking the station to pull the spot, calling the 30-second spot inaccurate and unfair.
Fortenberry would not comment on the reasons why the station decided to stop airing the spot.
Wright said he was pleased the station decided to pull the ad. The campaign on Monday asked stations to pull the ad.
The Nick Wilson ad is one of a series of spots run by the coalition criticizing Beebe. Kathryn Cherry, the group's executive director, defended the ad.
"Public debate is essential to important issues facing our state," Cherry said. "It is unfortunate that Mike Beebe is trying to exert legal pressure to stop an ad that is 100 percent accurate
Sunday I went to White Rock. Wow! What a drive! All the roads to White Rock are made of dirt and are narrow so it makes for an exciting ride. Especially meeting another car coming the opposite direction. It does keep the visitor numbers down. 
After the vote, Huckabee said there was a possibility that the Fayetteville campus would still be able to connect to the network known as e-Corridor.
The governor said he set aside about $6.4 million in the general improvement budget that could be used to help the university connect to the research network.
With the $6.4 million from the governor, the university could build the statewide network and lease the fiber optic cable from a private company.
The funding could cover the cost of building the statewide network and the university's connection, he said.
I'm spending the weekend seeing the fall foliage. I think this has been the best I've ever seen. The colors are absolutely amazing. I drove old HWY 71 down to Alma and came back up on I-540. There were a lot of people doing the same thing. At any turnoff on HWY 71 that had a view, people were there.
Consider the part of Amendment 2 that says "no person may clone or attempt to clone a human being." In Section 6.2 of the initiative, we read:
"Clone or attempt to clone a human being" means to implant in a uterus or attempt to implant in a uterus anything other than the product of fertilization of an egg of a human female by a sperm of a human male for the purpose of initiating a pregnancy that could result in the creation of a human fetus, or the birth of a human being.
In short, the initiative would ban only the placement of a cloned embryo in a uterus, not cloning per se. This splicing of words was carefully crafted to trick voters into a false sense of security. The fact is, the language is specifically designed to allow, not ban, the cloning, experimentation on, and destruction of human embryos at will.
All Missouri laws, statues, and regulations must be construed in favor of cloning and cannot discourage cloning or create disincentives to cloning in any way; They have a constitutional entitlement to taxpayer funding, which can never
decrease and must always increase because any decrease will be considered an unconstitutional disincentive to clone; Private institutions with endowments measured in billions of dollars will force Missouri taxpayers to pay for the cloning and destruction of human embryos;
I want to know when Dr. Phil plans to do a show on the real problem brewing in America's bedrooms today. Will he be brave enough to take the first real swat at the evil temptress that threatens to undermine the healthy sex lives of every couple I know?
This cheap little tart, flimsy and soulless as paper, is wrecking relationships from coast to coast. Who am I talking about? Well, she answers to "Sudoku," which is Japanese for "You're not getting any tonight, or possibly ever, because this wacky little grid of numbers will see to that."
Hawksbill Crag
Devil's Den Trail
In a Little Rock news conference, Hutchinson criticized Beebe for his failure to take a leading role in fighting Wilson as he defrauded the state of millions in taxpayer dollars. Despite Beebe's repeated claims to have challenged Senator Nick Wilson, Hutchinson said, the record shows that Beebe actually opposed efforts to discipline Wilson and others in his clique.
Specifically, Hutchinson pointed out that:
1) As a Senator, Beebe is on the record voting to override Governor Mike Huckabee's veto of the legislation creating the scam defrauding the children's fund.
2) Beebe is on the record opposing public calls to censure Sen. Wilson, Sen. Mike Todd, and other colleagues who were members of the group involved in the scandal.
3) Beebe is on the record opposing public calls to evict his colleagues from the Senate even after they were convicted of felonies.
Ok, I'm back from vacation. Sigh! I wish it could have been longer. I've done quite a bit of hiking, spent several days shopping at the craft fairs, did a bit of yard work, took Bows and Casey for their annual shots, had the chimney cleaned, annual termite inspection, the air conditioner fixed, and finally fixed the drawers on my dresser. Whew! I think I need another vacation to recover from this one.
I'm on vacation this week. At this time of the year the greatest thing to do is hike. Casey and Trixie are sitting outside the Devils Den cave. This is short trail so I could take Trixie. 
