Get Your Fugee On...

Latest on Iraqi refugee situation on Syria is the Prime Minister of Iraq, Nuri al-Maliki, met with President Bashar al-Assad of Syria yesterday to discuss trade, security and the refugee crisis.

Interesting article from al-Jazeerah.

With nearly 30,000 refugees arriving in Syria from Iraq each month, the situation has been called the most rapidly developing refugee crisis in the world by the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR). Syria has already absorbed nearly two million Iraqi, as has Jordan.

Both countries are faltering economically under the strain of added social and political burden. Medical aid for refugees and education are traditionally cited, but provision of basic needs such as housing, food and clean water are taking their toll as well.

To read more about the Iraqi Refugee Crisis, check out a project I did a nominal amount of work on for the American Friends' Service Committee: the Symposium on Iraqi Refugees.

Big Day for MP3's

Personally, I hate WalMart, and will encourage everyone to go and buy these products from WalMart's competitors who are also in the business of selling MP3's - Amazon.com, BestBuy and - especially- RealNetworks Inc .

But, in the news,

MTV announced today that it will be rolling its online MP3 business into new venture with RealNetworks. Expected to roll-out on September 9 with the MTV Video Music Awards, RealNetworks, owner of Rhapsody music subscription service, will assume MTV's Urge music to form Rhapsody America.

Also,

Associated Press reports the multi-national WalMart broke into a new market selling songs free of copy-protections technology at their online music store this week. The highly controversial music, ranging from rock to rap to KidsBop, began selling Tuesday for 94 cents per song.

They will play on most portable media devices, including iPod's.

"Although many independent music labels have for years sold their tunes without copy restrictions, major recording companies have insisted on digital-rights management, or DRM, technology in hopes of curbing online piracy... Copy-protected songs sold through iTunes, for instance, generally won't play on devices other than the iPod, and iPods can't play DRM-enabled songs bought at rival music stores."

They Needed Jack Bauer

Just released by the Associated Press (08.21.07 5:30 EST):

CIA FAILURE: A report, kept classified until now, finds extensive fault with CIA leaders and others beneath them leading up to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

STOPPING SHORT: Yet the report's authors found neither a "single point of failure nor a silver bullet" that would have stopped the attacks.

NOT THRILLED: CIA Director Michael Hayden said he was making the report available as required by a new law.

Michael Hayden, Director of the CIA. He's no Jack Bauer.
Photo Source:http://www.af.mil/shared/media/bio/hi_res/hayden_mv4.jpg

Jack Bauer wouldn't whine about the past. He IS the "silver bullet." He would have raided Osama bin Laden's cave and capped all of his men with a single Glock .45. There wouldn't be a report to make in public. No, Jack would handle business and make it right. No apologies.

I'm sick of these wimps. Politicians in military roles.
My vote: Jack Bauer for CIA Director.