The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
Look at the people around you with a renewed sense of respect and you will be filled with the energy of interconnectedness.
In some way you are tied to every other person you encounter on a daily basis, and this unity can be a powerful tool for a contented life -- and a healthier way of looking at the world.
Reach out to strangers in small, friendly ways and expect nothing in return.
Your actions carry on toward others and cause ripples that improve the world.

Some of our readers today have been in:

Oviedo, Asturias, Spain
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Red Deer, Alberta, Canada
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel
London, Ontario, Canada
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Kuantan, Pahang, Malaysia
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Athens, Attiki, Greece
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia
Paris, Ile-De-France, France
Edinburgh, Scotland, United Kingdom
London, England, United Kingdom
Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland

and in cities across the United States such as Baltimore, San Diego, Wichita, Old Fort  and more.

Today is:

Today is Saturday, June 4, the 155th day of 2011.

There are 210 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:

Drawing Day
Pencil Day
and
National Trails Day.

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

President Obama's Weekly Address

Remarks of President Barack Obama
As Prepared for Delivery
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Toledo, Ohio

Hello, everyone. I’m speaking to you today from a Chrysler plant in Toledo, Ohio, where I just met with workers, including Jill. Jill was born and raised here. Her mother and step-father retired from this plant.  And she met her husband here, and now they have two children of their own. This plant has not only been central to the economy of this town. It’s been a part of the lifeblood of this community.

The reason I came to Toledo was to congratulate Jill and her co-workers on the turnaround they helped bring about at Chrysler and throughout the auto industry.  Today, each of the Big Three automakers – Chrysler, GM, and Ford – is turning a profit for the first time since 2004.  Chrysler has repaid every dime and more of what it owes American taxpayers for their support during my presidency – and it repaid that money six years ahead of schedule.  And this week, we reached a deal to sell our remaining stake. That means soon, Chrysler will be 100% in private hands.

Most importantly, all three American automakers are now adding shifts and creating jobs at the strongest rate since the 1990s. Chrysler has added a second shift at the Jefferson North plant in Detroit that I visited last year.  GM is adding a third shift at its Hamtramck plant for the first time ever. And GM plans to hire back all of the workers they had to lay off during the recession.

That’s remarkable when you think about where we were just a couple of years ago. When I took office, we were facing the worst recession since the Great Depression – a recession that hit our auto industry particularly hard. In the year before I was President, this industry lost more than 400,000 jobs, and two great American companies, Chrysler and GM, stood on the brink of collapse.

Now, we had a few options.  We could have done what a lot of folks in Washington thought we should do – nothing.  But that would have made a bad recession worse and put a million people out of work. I refused to let that happen.  So, I said, if GM and Chrysler were willing to take the difficult steps of restructuring and making themselves more competitive, the American people would stand by them – and we did.

But we decided to do more than rescue this industry from a crisis.  We decided to help it retool for a new age, and that’s what we’re doing all across the country – we’re making sure America can out-build, out-innovate, and out-compete the rest of the world.  That’s how we’ll build an economy where you can see your incomes and savings rise again, send your kids to college, and retire with dignity, security, and respect.  That’s how we’ll make sure we keep that fundamental American promise – that if you work hard and act responsibly, you’ll be able to pass on a better life to your kids and grandkids.

Now, we’ve got a ways to go.  Even though our economy has created more than two million private sector jobs over the past 15 months and continues to grow, we’re facing some tough headwinds. Lately, it’s high gas prices, the earthquake in Japan, and unease about the European fiscal situation. That will happen from time to time. There will be bumps on the road to recovery.

We know that. But we also know what’s happened here, at this Chrysler plant. We know that hardworking Americans like Jill helped turn this company and this industry around. That’s the American story. We’re a people who don’t give up – who do big things, who shape our own destiny. And I’m absolutely confident that if we hold on to that spirit, our best days are still ahead of us. Thanks for tuning in, and have a great weekend.

We are the champions

The Crazy Frog does Queen.

Teabaggers are stupid

If teabaggers weren't too stupid to read charts, they'd see the debt skyrocketed under Reagan/Bush.

Then it dropped drastically under Clinton, then Der Moron ran the debt thru the fucking roof.

If teabaggers could master reading graphs, they might vote in their own self-interests - for Democrats.

The truth be told

Are you aware?

I know, I know, it's hard to believe, but a cable company is refusing to pull an ad that tells the truth about medicare despite threats from wingnuts.

Wisconsin repugicans plotting to nominate spoiler Democratic candidates in recall elections

A tape recording of a Wisconsin repugican party members' meeting revealed a plan to find unsuitable Democratic nominees to split the vote in upcoming elections following the recall of Republican state senators.

On the recording obtained by the Tribune, party vice chairman Julian Bradley says he just spoke with Mark Jefferson, executive director of the state repugican party, and "we are actively keeping our ears to the ground and if anybody knows anybody for a candidate that would be interested on the Democratic side in running in the primary against Jennifer Shilling.... So if anybody knows any Democrats who would be interested, please let us know." Kapanke, a second-term repugican, is expected to face a recall election July 12, unless more than one challenger comes forward. Shilling, a five-term state representative from La Crosse, is the only candidate to declare her intention to run.

Secret Tape Reveals Wisconsin repugican Plan to Hijack Recall Election

Lunatic Fringe

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

Those who don't know history ...

... are doomed to repeat it.

Yemen president leaves country

Yemeni leader leaves country for treatment

Ali Abdullah Saleh seeks medical care in Saudi Arabia for injuries suffered in a rocket attack. 

Deeper turmoil 

Also: 

• More on Yemeni leader
• Severity of his injury
• Anti-government rally

Top al-Qaida leader killed

Top al-Qaida commander killed in Pakistan

A possible replacement for Osama bin Laden is reportedly killed in a U.S. missile strike. 

Militants vow revenge 

Also: 

• More on Ilyas Kashmiri
• Al-Qaida's new leaders
• U.S., Pakistan resume ops

Florida justice

Rich man will do no time for killing two tourists in exchange for cash restitution to their families

A "millionaire playboy" who killed two British tourists in Florida when his $150,000 Porsche jumped the curb will not go to jail, despite the fact that he fled the scene and lied to police officers about who was behind the wheel during the accident. Instead, he will pay cash restitution to the victims' family, settling a civil suit on the condition that he not go to prison. Ryan LeVin, who did not offer an apology to the victims during sentencing, is on parole in Illinois, where he has a record of over 50 traffic violations, including striking a police officer with his car and left the scene. His lawyer has asked to have his Porsche returned.

Rather than agree to a deal with Florida prosecutors, who wanted him to serve 10 years in prison, LeVin took an open plea that placed his fate in the judge's hands. His lawyer argued that the need for LeVin to pay restitution to the men's widows and children outweighed the need for LeVin to serve prison time. The payout settles a civil suit filed by the men's families shortly after their deaths.
"The wives and children of the deceased were significantly and permanently impacted by this incident, and they have indicated ... that there exists a great necessity for restitution which the defendant can, and will, make, if permitted a sentence devoid of incarceration," LeVin's defense attorney David Bogenschutz wrote in court documents.

LeVin gets house arrest after undisclosed settlement

Philadelphia woman sues Dunkin' Donuts over sugar in coffee

A Philadelphia woman is suing Dunkin' Donuts, saying a worker mistakenly put sugar in her coffee, which ultimately caused her to go into diabetic shock.

Full Story

Top 5 Most Common Regrets of the Dying

Bonnie Ware spent many years working in palliative care, nursing patients in the final weeks of their lives. She shares what she says were the five most common regrets of the dying.

1. I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.
2. I wish I didn’t work so hard. (“This came from every male patient that I nursed,” Ware wrote).
3. I wish I’d had the courage to express my feelings.
4. I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.
5. I wish that I had let myself be happier.

Bonnie Ware: Regrets of the Dying

Shoe

Have you heard the one about a homeowner foreclosing on a bank?

Well, it has happened in Florida and involves a North Carolina based bank.

Instead of Bank of America foreclosing on some Florida homeowner, the homeowners had sheriff's deputies foreclose on the bank.

It started five months ago when Bank of America filed foreclosure papers on the home of a couple, who didn't owe a dime on their home.

The couple said they paid cash for the house.

The case went to court and the homeowners were able to prove they didn't owe Bank of America anything on the house. In fact, it was proven that the couple never even had a mortgage bill to pay.

A Collier County Judge agreed and after the hearing, Bank of America was ordered, by the court to pay the legal fees of the homeowners', Maurenn Nyergers and her husband.

The Judge said the bank wrongfully tried to foreclose on the Nyergers' house.

So, how did it end with bank being foreclosed on?  After more than 5 months of the judge's ruling, the bank still hadn't paid the legal fees, and the homeowner's attorney did exactly what the bank tried to do to the homeowners. He seized the bank's assets.

"They've ignored our calls, ignored our letters, legally this is the next step to get my clients compensated, " attorney Todd Allen told CBS.

Sheriff's deputies, movers, and the Nyergers' attorney went to the bank and foreclosed on it. The attorney gave instructions to to remove desks, computers, copiers, filing cabinets and any cash in the teller's drawers.

After about an hour of being locked out of the bank, the bank manager handed the attorney a check for the legal fees.

"As a foreclosure defense attorney this is sweet justice" says Allen.

Allen says this is something that he sees often in court, banks making errors because they didn't investigate the foreclosure and it becomes a lengthy and expensive battle for the homeowner.

Save on home fix-ups

How to save money on outdoor fix-ups

You can often find free or inexpensive materials for touchup painting and gardening projects.

Easy DIY jobs 

Also: 

• How summer is pricey
• Shoppers cutting back
• Wallet-draining myths

Slower hiring dims outlook

A bleak jobs report suggests the recovery from the Great Recession will be longer and bumpier than some economists had envisioned.

Full Story

Land a TV character's job

How to land jobs similar to TV characters'

These degrees will let you follow in the footsteps of stars like Will Schuester of "Glee."  

'Mad Men' and 'Bones,' too 

Also: 

• Craft a career plan
• Tips to choose a degree
• Happiest cities to work in

Four great places to retire

Four fabulous places to retire

These locations are ideal whether you prefer the outdoors, a college town, or the big city.  

Overseas pick, too 

Also: 

• Retire for $500 a month
• How to choose a locale
• Buy a home or rent?

World's best secret islands

The world's 10 best secret islands

These secluded gems offer sandy beaches and oceanfront vistas where you can truly unwind.  

No cars allowed 

Also: 

• Private island resorts
• More island paradises
• Nine man-made wonders

Fashion trend irks fishermen

Anglers upset over new fashion trend

Hair salons are buying up a certain type of fishing tackle and driving up prices.  

'Asked if I could get them in pink' 

Also: 

• Summer beauty products
• False lashes for cars?
• Odd pointy boot craze

Soldier thwarts bank robbery

Heroic soldier thwarts bank robbery

Eddie Peoples cleverly shields his kids from a gun-wielding thief — and then leaps into action.

Sheriff's offer 

Also: 

• Eddie's 'surreal moment'
• Police: Gun was not real
• 'Goldilocks' burglar

Boy sets ballooning mark

Boy, 9, sets balloon-flying record

Bobby Bradley becomes the youngest trained pilot to fly solo in a hot air balloon. 

What mom and dad think 

Also: 

• Hot air balloons
• Teen ascends Everest
• Jetpack hits new heights

Waterfall

Car salesman's insider advice

Confessions of a car salesman

An insider reveals what it means when potential buyers hear, “I have to talk to the manager.”

Best way to score a deal 

Also: 

• Apps for car bargaining
• Wait for auto discounts
• Truth about discount gas

Little Johnny and The Lawnmower

Little Johnny is having a yard sale.

The local preacher stops by and notices a lawnmower for $15.00 and he buys it.

A week later, the preacher shows up at little Johnny's house and tells him that the mower will not run.

Little Johnny tells the preacher, that it will run but you have to curse at it to get it to start.

The preacher says that he has not said a cross word in over thirty years.

Little Johnny says......"Keep pulling on it.........they will come back to you"

Eating dirt

Eating dirt can be good for the belly, researchers find

Concerns Rise About Over-Medicated Military

John Keith rattles each pill bottle and raps it down on the table, 15 in all. "That's what they had me on right there, every day," the former sailor says of the prescriptions he received from Veterans Affairs doctors.

Full Story

Surgical removal of the tonsils and appendix associated with risk of early heart attack

The surgical removal of the appendix and tonsils before the age of 20 was associated with an increased risk of premature heart attack in a large population study performed in [...]

Surgical removal of the tonsils and appendix associated with risk of early heart attack

Chinese teenager sells kidney to buy an iPad 2

A teenager in China has sold one of his kidneys in order to buy an iPad 2. The 17-year-old, identified only as Little Zheng, said he had arranged the sale of the kidney over the internet. The story only came to light after the teenager's mother became suspicious.

It all started when the high school student saw an online advert offering money to organ donors. Illegal agents organized a trip to the hospital and paid him $3,392 (£2,077) after the operation.

YouTube link.

With the cash the student bought an iPad 2, as well as a laptop. When his mother noticed the computers and the deep red scar on his body, which was caused by the surgery, Little Zheng confessed.

The case highlights China's black market in organ trafficking. A scarcity of organ donors has led to a flourishing trade. In 2007, Chinese authorities banned organ trafficking and have introduced a voluntary donor scheme to try to combat the trade.

Wizard of Id

New Words Added to the Oxford English Dictionary

What new words have been officially* added to the English language? Oxford University Press now lists them on its website. Now, whenever you write “meep” or “nekkid”, you can feel confident that you’re using real words and spelling them correctly. Insist that your English professor change the grade on your term paper.

Full Story

Dictionary done after 90 years

Dictionary finally finished — after 90 years

The massive study of the ancient world is written in a language that hasn’t been spoken in 2,000 years.

Why it matters 

Also: 

• Ancient art leaves Italy
• Roman shipwreck surprise
• Statue of Tut relative found

Shipwreck Champagne sold for $78,200

An anonymous Internet bidder on Friday paid euro54,000 for two bottles of 200-year-old Champagne salvaged from a shipwreck at the bottom of the Baltic Sea, auction organizers said.

Full Story

Awesome Pictures

A deadly year for tornadoes

Tornado season is deadliest in 75 years

Powerful storms have already claimed 523 lives — and the year's peak period isn't over yet. 

Why so many twisters? 

Also: 

• Mass. storm damage
• Joplin death toll rises
• West braces for floods

Global Warming 'to leave tropics hungry'

Warming 'to leave tropics hungry'

A new report has identified areas where food supplies could be hardest hit by the effects of climate change.

• Wheat genome boost to food supply
• Securing India's food supply chain Watch
• Plant losses threaten world's food supplies

Green Crystal ‘Rain’ Discovered Near Infant Star

Tiny crystals of a green mineral called olivine are falling down like rain on a burgeoning star, according to observations from NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope.

Green Crystal ‘Rain’ Discovered Near Infant Star

Now, that's something you don't see everyday

'Werewolf' gene may explain excess hair disorder

Hairiest man Victor "Larry" Ramos Gomez , pictured here, and Gabriel "Danny" Gomez are two of a family of 19 that span five generations all suffering from the rare condition called Congenital Generalized Hypertrichosis, characterized by excessive facial and torso hair.

Full Story

B.C.

Mission to save rarest sandpiper

Mission to save rarest sandpiper

Conservationists have embarked on a mission to save one of the world's rarest birds, the spoon-billed sandpiper, from extinction. BBC Nature

• Shorebirds videos, news and facts

South African mob burn 'talking' monkey for being a witch

A monkey was pelted with stones, shot at and burned to death in a South African township because residents believed it was linked to witchcraft, an animal welfare agency has said. A mob chanted "Kill that witch!" as the vervet monkey was put in a bucket, doused with petrol and set on fire. Resident, Tebogo Moswetsi, admitted he had captured the monkey as it sought refuge up a tree in Kagiso, west of Johannesburg.

"I was curious to see this monkey that people claimed could talk, and when I saw a group of people chasing after it, I joined them," he said. "When it went up the tree, I climbed after it and brought it down because I was curious as I found it unbelievable that a monkey could talk. I feel guilty. I shouldn't have taken it down from that tree. I dropped it down after someone poured petrol on it. I had no choice."

Moswetsi added: "Someone struck a match. [The monkey] got out of the bucket and dropped down dead. They continued throwing stones at it." Cora Bailey, manager of Community Led Animal Welfare (Claw) in South Africa, was alerted by a local resident and arrived at a scene of "sheer criminality". She said: "We just got there too late. What was incredibly sad is that there were so many little children in the crowd – some of them very traumatized."

Bailey said there is a "dreadful superstition" about monkeys and witchcraft in some communities, fuelled by ignorance that the animals can become separated from their troops or displaced from their natural habitats. "We deal with this kind of situation on a very regular basis. We usually manage to do crowd control so the monkey doesn't come to any harm."

Animal Pictures