If this took two days...
Via the Guardian, I learn that Allies Agree on N. Korea Weapons Program:

After two days of talks, the United States, Japan and South Korea have agreed that North Korea must end its nuclear weapons program, the State Department said Thursday.

posted by Thomas Nephew at 5:22:00 PM -- |    

 
Fair & Balanced, That's Me
In support of Al Franken, who's facing a frivolous lawsuit by Fox News Network for using the words "fair and balanced" in the title of his recent book "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right", Neal Pollack solemnly declares:

"...Therefore, I declare this Friday a day of emergency protest.

Yes. This Friday, August 15, is Fair And Balanced day on the Internet. You are all hereby instructed to use the words Fair And Balanced in very creative ways on your various websites.

Via Photodude, and explaining what all that SouthKnoxBubba stuff is about.

Seriously, of course, Fox is full of it; this is practically that old joke about Microsoft patenting 1s and 0s.

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ADDENDUM: Skimming the first page of the lawsuit, it occurs to a pedant like myself that Fox's trademark is for "Fair & Balanced," regardless of whether it's "sometimes depicted as 'Fair and Balanced'". There's no ampersand in Franken's title: case dismissed! posted by Thomas Nephew at 1:45:00 PM -- |    

 
Back from Chincoteague
It was nice. The water was really not that bad -- a bit chilly, but pleasant. Still, Maddie wisely preferred the motel swimming pool, where she perfected her "Dogged Dogpaddle," including sticking her face in the water and blowing bubbles to help her get further; she made it nearly the length of the pool once while I was in with her. She also decided it was fun after all to jump into the pool and swim out to us.

Met an Air Force C-130 pilot on the beach -- he and his brothers (I guess) were working on a humongous pool/sand castle. Maddie liked it, so I helped with construction duties, and she played with his kids in the pool, decorating it with shells and populating it with sand crabs, while we shoveled sand and talked. He'd flown missions to Afghanistan (Bagram, to be exact). I said thanks. He said there was not much anti-aircraft fire for him to be worried about after the first few flights, but you could often see ground action with your night vision goggles at night. Very nice fellow.

Avoided most political discussions with the family, a good move; who needs the grief. My blogging was mentioned once, I waved it off. Crabs were eaten, burgers were grilled, sand castles were built, a walk was walked -- Maddie way out front up the beach ... way in back on our way back.

On the way back, we stopped in Annapolis (Maddie: "Great idea!") which I'd never seen before. We had quite a good meal at the Middleton Tavern, and then walked around the picturesque neighborhoods near the State House, which was impressively historic: it was the provisional capital of the United States at the end of the Revolutionary War; Washington resigned his commission there -- one of his overlooked good deeds -- and the call for the Constitutional Convention came from there. Our walk around the State House was marred only by the statue of Roger Taney -- the Supreme Court Chief Justice who authored the Dred Scott decision. On the other hand, there was also a statue of Thurgood Marshall nearby. We didn't visit the Naval Academy, but did meet one of the cadets, a terribly polite and earnest young man who seems well on his way to becoming a fine officer.

Got home late last night and conked out. I think I'll sign off now and resume reading "The Cousins' Wars," by Kevin Phillips. posted by Thomas Nephew at 12:04:00 AM -- |    

 
Gone until Thursday
Have a great weekend. We're off to Chincoteague for our annual family get-together. Hope that water's warmed up. posted by Thomas Nephew at 1:29:00 AM -- |