The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:

A few wonderful things in your life are ending, it's true -- but if you take a moment to look around today, you will also see that some very beautiful things are beginning. 

A relationship between two people close to you is coming to an end, and this may affect you deeply. 

It's okay to ask for the time you need to process your feelings -- you know how long it will take you to adjust, and your loved ones will understand. 

Trust yourself.

 Some of our readers today have been in:

Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands
Morini, Morini, Comoros
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
London, England, United Kingdom
Berne, Bern, Switzerland
Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Ankara, Ankara, Turkey
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Tweed Heads, New South Wales, Australia
Newbury, England, United Kingdom
Harelbeke, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium

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 Antioch, Caledonia, Des Monies, Zephyr Hills and more.

Today is:

Today is Monday, October 10, the 283rd day of 2011.

There are 82 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holiday or celebration is:

National Kick Butt Day.

  

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Non Sequitur

Manic Monday

And I Quote

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they infiltrate your group to discredit it with uncalled-for violence ...

American Spectator editor admits to being agent provacateur in dc museum riot @ #occupydc:

immediately after the incident began hitting the newswires Howley published a “breaking news” story with the American Spectator online in which he reveals that he had consciously infiltrated the group on Friday with the intent to discredit the movement. He states that “as far as anyone knew I was part of this cause — a cause that I  had infiltrated the day before in order to mock and undermine in the pages of the American Spectator — and I wasn’t giving up before I had my story.”

According to Howley’s story he joined the group in its march toward the air and space museum but the protesters on the march were unwilling to be confrontational. He states “they lack the nerve to confront authority. from estimates within the protest, only ten people were pepper-sprayed, and as far as I could tell I was the only one who got inside.”

He claims that upon arrival at the museum the group of approximately one hundred protesters split into two factions with the smaller of the two “rushing the doors,” the majority “staying behind.” Howley then admits in his piece that he snuck past the guard at the first entrance in order to “infiltrate” the building and then confronted another guard. He then “sprinted toward the door” at which time he was first hit with pepper-spray.

As he describes his next actions “I forced myself into the doors and sprinted blindly across the floor of the air and space museum, drawing the attention of hundreds of stunned khaki-clad tourists (some of whom began snapping off disposable-camera portraits of me).”

Fully inside, despite the orders of the security guards that the museum was closed to the public, Howley made his way upstairs – to the location where a banner was unfurled protesting the museum’s exhibit of unmanned drone weapons.

“I strained to glance behind me at the dozens of protesters I was sure were backing me up, and then I got hit again, this time with a cold realization: I was the only one who had made it through the doors. As two guards pointed at me and started running, I dodged a circle of gawking old housewives and bolted upstairs.”

A reminder that (a) #occupystreet attendees are non-violent and (b) the wingnuts will do anything to discredit the truth.

Awesome Pictures

Jobless seek protection against unemployment bias

A growing number of unemployed or underemployed Americans complain they are being screened out of job openings for the very reason they're looking for work in the first place.

Full Story 

How to switch fields

Switch fields in as little as two years

You could reinvent your life after completing an associate's degree or certificate program.

Five career paths 

Also: 

• Four reasons to quit
• Lasting pain for jobless
• Cost of a 401(k) loan

How to live on $20,000 a year

How one man lives well on $20,000 a year

Aspiring novelist Joseph Fonseca says getting by involves "prioritizing what you really need."  

 What he sacrifices 

Also: 

• Where to get free samples
• Ways to make extra cash
• Advice from the rich

How U.S. Cities Stack Up To Other Countries

Have you ever wondered how your city’s economy would compare to a small country? Well, if you happen to live in one of America’s larger cities, you can now find out thanks to this fascinating article on The Atlantic.

Take LA for example:

With a gross metropolitan product (GMP) of $737.9 billion, the LA metro’s economy is bigger than Turkey’s ($732.2) and slightly smaller than the Netherlands’ ($782.3) — the equivalent of the 18th largest nation in the world.

Full Story

FBI tip nets woman $2 million

Ex-beauty queen gets $2 million FBI reward

A stray cat leads a former Miss Iceland to cross paths with crime boss "Whitey" Bulger and his girlfriend.

  Details 

Also: 

• Las Vegas man's claims
• Girlfriend's trial date delay
• Families lose appeal case

Crabby Road

Deadly unrest spreads in Cairo

Sectarian violence rocks Egyptian capital

At least 24 are dead and over 200 are wounded following a Christian protest.  

 Worst conditions since Mubarak 

Also: 

• Emergency meeting called
• Arabs observe Polish vote
• Yemenis doubt Saleh claim

USPS Rescue Plan: More Junk Mail!

The US Postal Service is like a damsel in distress. Severe distress. The rise of email and the Great Recession, coupled with bad management and its high labor (and labor's retirement) costs have caused the institution to be near collapse.
But, like the analogy goes, there's a white knight! Here's how the Post Office plans to rescue itself from bankruptcy: more junk mail for everyone!

Many consumers are irked by the catalogs, credit-card pitches and other "junk mail" they receive. But the U.S. Postal Service loves it—and wants to deliver more.
The agency, beset by historic losses and a plummet in first-class mail, is running promotions, easing rules and planning television and radio ads to encourage more businesses to send pitches by standard mail, the official term for bulk mailings used by marketers to prospect for customers.
"What we want to do is to make standard mail more interesting for customers so we can grow the total volume," Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe said in an interview. "We don't call it junk mail—it's a lucrative avenue for anyone who wants to reach customers."

Full Story

Forced To Listen To Lush

In Texas: Woman sues PD for forcing her to listen to Lush Dimbulb.

Not only did Bridgett Nickerson Boyd's car break down on her way to work, but when she pulled over to the side of the freeway, a sheriff's deputy named Mark Goad pulled behind her, wrote her a ticket for driving on the shoulder, decided to arrest her, followed her to the hospital when her suddenly racing heart prompted a call to paramedics, then took her into custody again after she was treated by doctors and finally drove her to jail.

To make matters worse, Boyd claims in a lawsuit that the handcuffs were put on her wrists painfully tight - she claims she explained to the officer she had just had surgery on her hand - and that she was forced to listen to Lush Dimbulb "make derogatory comments about black people" all the way to the jail. Boyd is African-American.

Immigrants sign over kids

Immigrant parents take extreme measures

Terrified by Alabama's crackdown, many sign over their children to friends and co-workers.  

 'Living day to day' 

Also: 

• Kids shunning school
• Feds seek stay of law
• A humanitarian crisis?

ID thieves target foster kids

Foster kids targeted by identity thieves

On her 18th birthday, Dee Saint Franc is shocked to discover $3,000 worth of bills in her name. 

  'I was 8 years old' 

Also: 

• Kids' sense of fairness
• Big sperm donor families
• Avoid Halloween injuries

Daily Comic Relief

Ten Unusual Food Bans

 

We all know that doughnuts are bad for you and too much pizza won't do any favors for your skin - but what happens when a particular type of food is so unhealthy, a government decides to veto it altogether?

Last week, the French government took the unusual step of banning ketchup in primary schools. Kinder eggs are banned in the USA because it contains a 'non-nutritive object embedded in it.' From jelly sweets to Marmite and beyond, take a look at the products that - in some peoples' eyes - pose a clear and present danger.

Fool-proof chili recipe

Chili recipe is fast, fool-proof — and $5

The ingredients for this healthy update to the dinnertime staple couldn't be easier to find. 

  'You cannot mess it up' 

Also: 

• Quick and easy recipes
• Healthier junk foods
• Food-freezing myths