How does the GOP respond to criticism of the threat to free speech caused by the Patriot Act? How else? They violate house rules by illegally halting a House committee hearing, and then literally shut off power to the C-SPAN microphones and lights...

"GOP Chairman Walks Out of Meeting

By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer 22 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - The Republican chairman walked off with the gavel, leaving Democrats shouting into turned-off microphones at a raucous hearing Friday on the Patriot Act.
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Major hurricane likely to hit U.S. in '05 -study

MIAMI (Reuters) - The Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season opening June 1 promises to be "very active," marked by an above-average number of storms and with high odds of a major hit on the United States, a researcher said Tuesday.

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NY Times finally gets a pair. 5000 word front page feature article documenting US torture of prisoners in Afghanistan....

In U.S. Report, Brutal Details of 2 Afghan Inmates' Deaths

By TIM GOLDEN
Published: May 20, 2005

"Even as the young Afghan man was dying before them, his American jailers continued to torment him...."

Now that's a lead.

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Here's the intro from a thread by David Adams at OSNews.com...

"This month's Wired magazine has a terrific story about a team of students from a high school in an economically depressed part of Phoenix, who took part in an underwater-robot building competition against students from the top universities (including MIT) in the country -- and won. All of the students are undocumented Mexican immigrants who don't qualify for most financial aid or even in-state tuition, and therefore can't afford to attend college, in the US, Mexico, or anywhere..."
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Ugh. I hate the Tarheels so much I have to lower myself to root for Duke at least twice a year. I saw the series finale of Voyager, and the movie Star Trek First Contact. I saw the both Janeway and Picard obliterate the Borg threat... yet there they are... winning another NCAA men's basketball title.

Yuck.

The Pope dies Saturday, and on Monday, Rev. Gerard Jean-Juste, a pro-Aristide Priest who is favorably compared to Martin Luther King, Jr., is in the US media considering a run for President of Haiti. How's that for a direct challenge to the Catholic Church ban on Priests seeking public office. Liberation theology may not be quite dead yet.
(AP story below fold)

Raw Story, Reuters are reporting Pope John Paul II is dead

Raw Story broke the news about a 1/2 hour before everyone else.

Yahoo front page also reporting the news now.

http://www.rawstory.com/

http://www.yahoo.com/

Yes, Virginia, there is salad dressing. This one's real.

Pat Buchanan Doused With Salad Dressing

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Commentator and former presidential candidate Pat Buchanan cut short an appearance after an opponent of his conservative views doused him with salad dressing.
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