Geico's Gecko Leaps Off Glenn Beck's Wall

Since his statements regarding Barack Obama, Glenn Beck has lost a number of advertisers, including his latest GEICO.

For those who don't recall, Beck said the following when he guested on Faux & Friends last month:

"This president has exposed himself as a guy, over and over and over again, who has a deep-seated hatred for white people, or the white culture, I don't know what it is."

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All is not well in Batshit Crazy-Land ... this is a good thing.

When the revenues fall enough even the Wingnuts will pull this lunatic off the air and such a glorious day for America will that be.

Repugican Senator: No "Death Panels," Palin "Nuts"

Another repugican legislator has stepped forward to reassure constituents who have (apparently) listened to falsehoods about possible "death panels": they do not exist. The repugican senator, Senator Johnny Isakson (retread-GA), made the statements in an interview with Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein Monday.

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The rats are turning on their own.

Americans working much harder for less pay

From the "Tell us something we don't know" Department:

Feel like you’re working a lot harder these days, putting in longer hours for the same pay — or even less?

The latest round of government data on worker productivity indicates that you probably are.

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Germany orders Nazi commander to die in prison as he's found guilty of 1944 murders

A Nazi commander will die in prison after a German court sentenced him to life for his role in the murder of 10 Italians in Tuscany in 1944.

A Munich state court found 90-year-old Josef Scheungraber guilty of ordering the killings, in what was one of the last Nazi crimes trials in Germany.

Scheungraber had previously been sentenced in absentia by an Italian military court to life in prison.

Scheungraber denied the charges, saying he handed the victims to the military police and did not know what happened to them.

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Although a sentence of "Life" may seem appropriate (and would have been in the 1940s), his being 90 years old means it will likely be a very short term in prison.

Curiosity remains about mysterious Kennedy sister

Eunice Kennedy's death brings back questions about one of her siblings.

Mysterious Kennedy sister

Also:

• Obama, relatives pay Eunice tribute
• Search: Rosemary Kennedy

Obama on the offensive at health care town hall

Obama takes the stage to answer critics of his health-care plan.

On the offensive at health care town hall

Also:

• Fact-check: Palin 'death panel' claim
• Lawmakers try to tame town halls

Top diet myths debunked

What you have learned about healthy living and eating could be wrong.

Diet myths debunked

Also:

• Does exercise really work?
• Find the most popular fad diets

New home sizes are shrinking

American McMansions are falling out of favor, says a new report, which shows sizes have dropped for the first time in 15 years.

New home sizes are shrinking

Also:

• Find home values
• Best and worst housing markets

GM's new car to top 230 mpg

The Chevy Volt will get more than four times the gas mileage of a Prius, GM claims.

230 mpg

Also:

• Online car-selling trial
• Find most fuel-efficient cars

Eunice Kennedy Shriver dies

The 88-year-old sister of John F. Kennedy and mother of journalist Maria Shriver has died.

Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Also:

• About Eunice Kennedy Shriver

Aung San Suu Kyi found guilty by Burmese court

"It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it." - Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Are we surprised?

A court in Burma has issued a guilty verdict for Nobel laureate and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. She was accused of "violating an internal security law," and will serve an additional 18 months imprisonment under house arrest.

She has lived under detention for 14 of the past 20 years. Reuters, CNN. Guardian UK has a timeline of events related to the case.

Health News

How to cure diseases before they have even evolved

It could be the biggest breakthrough since the discovery of penicillin: a new generation of antivirals that work against a huge range of viruses, including ones that don't exist yet

A spotter's guide to human viruses

The microscopic agents that infect humans are a diverse group of nasties.

Find out about ten of the most important in this psychedelically colored guide

Archaeology News

Modern lighting is bright and harsh compared with the lamps of antiquity, but computer reconstructions are letting us see archaeological sites as their creators did.

Shedding old light on archaeological artifacts

Science News

From BBC-Science:

Meteorite mineral made in the lab Scientists make a mineral found in meteorites and the deep layers of Earth, revealing clues about the early Solar System. Space rock yields carbon bounty Tracked asteroid debris collected Antarctica's unique space rocks

Time 'runs short' on climate deal The UN's top climate official warns that progress towards a new treaty is "too slow", as talks convene in Bonn.

Giant 'meat-eating' plant found A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines.

Get a healthier career in two years

Find out how to land a job in the an industry that's thrived in an otherwise dismal job market.

Get a healthier career in two years

Also:

• Promising part-time jobs
• Find the fastest growing careers

Homeless woman leaves $150,000 to Hebrew University

A Jewish Holocaust survivor who later lived on the streets of New York City has left half of her $300,000 estate to Hebrew University, the school said Monday.

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Landscaper Drowns in Sewage

Services are pending for a Nacogdoches city employee found dead in a wastewater basin along where he had been mowing

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Habits that sabotage your diet

Try to change one bad habit a week, and you'll be on your way to long-term success.

Habits

Also:

• Best breakfast bets
• Bacon a surprising dessert trend

Saturn's rings to disappear Tuesday

In an event that happens just once every 15 years, the wide but thin ring system will disappear from view.

Saturn's rings to disappear

Also:

• Two worlds collide in deep space
• More on Saturn's rings

Unusual Holidays and Celebrations

Today is Make Up A Holiday Day.

(As if some people need an excuse!)

Daily Almanac

Today is Tuesday, Aug. 11, the 223rd day of 2009.

There are 142 days left in the year.

Today in History - August 11.

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

London, Ontario, Canada
Nice, Provence-Alpes-Cote D'Azur, France
Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

Here we go!
The changes you've been waiting for are en route and in motion, as of right now.
You'll have plenty of energy to get the job done -- enough and more, in fact.
So when you're suddenly asked to step up to the plate and take on a bit more responsibility, you'll be only too happy to agree.
Oh, and don't worry about being compensated, either.
You'll likely be very pleased with what you're offered.

Sounds good.