It is heating up, keep your heads down.
Russia recognizes breakaway Georgian regions Russia recognises South Ossetia, Abkhazia as independent Who Started Cold War II? France 'regrets' Russian recognition of South MOSCOW (AP) - Russia formally recognized the breakaway Georgian territories at the heart of its war with Georgia on Tuesday, heightening tensions with the West as the United States dispatched military ships bearing aid to a port city still controlled by Russian troops. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Georgia forced Russia's hand by launching an attack targeting South Ossetia on Aug. 7 in an apparent bid to seize control of the breakaway region. In response, Russian tanks and troops drove deep into the U.S. ally's territory in a five-day war that Moscow saw as a justified response to a military threat in its backyard and the West viewed as a repeat of Soviet-style intervention in its vassal states. "This is not an easy choice but this is the only chance to save people's lives," Medvedev said Tuesday in a televised address announcing Russia's recognition of the breakaway territories. Russian forces have staked out positions beyond the de-facto borders of the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The two territories have effectively ruled themselves following wars in the 1990s. "Georgia chose the least human way to achieve its goal _ to absorb South Ossetia by eliminating a whole nation," Medvedev said. Russia's military presence seems likely to further weaken Georgia, a Western ally in the Caucasus region, a major transit corridor for energy supplies to Europe and a strategic crossroads close to the Middle East, Iran, Afghanistan, Russia and energy-rich Central Asia. On the heels of Russia's first post-Soviet invasion of a foreign country, recognition was another stark demonstration of the Kremlin's determination to hold sway in lands where its clout is jeopardized by NATO's expansion and growing Western influence. Medvedev ignored Western warnings against recognizing the independence claims of the two regions, which broke from Georgian government control in early 1990s wars and have run their own affairs with Russian support. After Russia's parliament urged the move in unanimous votes Monday, the U.S. State Department said recognition would be "unacceptable" and President Bush urged the Kremlin against it.http://wtop.com/?nid=105&sid=1466611

Rice calls Russia's declaration 'regrettable' August 26, 2008 - 8:47am By MATTI FRIEDMAN Associated Press Writer RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is calling Russia's recognition of breakaway Georgian territories "regrettable." Rice said Tuesday at a news conference that Russia's formal recognition of the territories at the heart of its war with Georgia "puts Russia in opposition to the Security Council resolution to which it is a party." Rice termed the move "regrettable." On Monday, President Bush had appealed to Russia's president to ignore the advice of lawmakers and refrain from recognizing Georgia's breakaway regions as independent. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below. JERUSALEM (AP) _ Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday urged Israel to stop expanding settlements on disputed territory hours after a new report came out saying the Jewish state has nearly doubled such activity in the past year. Rice is visiting Israel and the Palestinian territories in hopes of furthering the announced goal of brokering a Mideast peace deal by year's end, but she offered few signs of progress. Speaking alongside her Israeli counterpart, Rice said only that she was "heartened" that talks launched at a U.S.-sponsored peace conference last November were "serious and intensive." The sides had hoped to reach a final peace deal before President Bush leaves office in January, but have acknowledged that target is unlikely to be met. Rice made no mention of the timeline on Tuesday. Rice is on her seventh trip to the region since talks were relaunched. While Israel and the Palestinians say all key issues have been under discussion, there has been no word on agreements or breakthroughs. The talks have been complicated by the impending departure of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who has said he will step down to battle a corruption investigation, and the Hamas militant group's control of the Gaza Strip. Israel says it cannot carry out any deal until Abbas regains control of Gaza from Hamas, which violently seized power in the coastal area in June 2007. It also says the moderate government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, which rules from the West Bank, is not doing enough against militants operating in areas under his control. The Palestinians, meanwhile, have complained about continued Israeli construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem _ areas the Palestinians claim for a future independent state. Israel captured both areas in the 1967 Mideast war. Under the "road map," the international peace plan that serves as the basis of the peace talks, Israel promised to halt all settlement construction. But it has continued to build thousands of homes in areas it hopes to retain under a final peace deal. Rice said the Israeli construction has threatened to undermine the talks. "I think that it is no secret, and I've said it to my Israeli counterparts, that I don't think the settlement activity is helpful to the process," she said. "What we need now are steps that enhance confidence between the parties and ... anything that undermines confidence between the parties ought to be avoided." The dovish Israeli group Peace Now released a report Tuesday saying that while talking peace with the Palestinians, Israel's government has dramatically ratcheted up its construction in the West Bank. Some 2,600 new homes for Israelis are currently under construction in the West Bank _ an increase of 80 percent over last year, Peace Now said. In east Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as the capital of their future state, the number of new government bids for construction has increased from 46 in 2007 to 1,761 so far this year, the report said. Palestinians say the construction undermines the talks and prejudices a final peace deal. But Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Israel's chief negotiator, said the construction would not affect the peace talks. "In the end of the day, the role of the leaders is to try to find a way to live in peace in the future, and not to let any kind of noises that relate to the situation on the ground these days to enter the negotiation room," she said. She said the Palestinians should not "use it as an excuse, and I know they are not using it as an excuse, but I understand their frustration sometimes." After meeting Livni alone, Rice held talks with Livni and the chief Palestinian negotiator, Ahmed Qureia, before heading to the West Bank for talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. She was expected to leave the region later in the day. Earlier, Rice met alone with Olmert for an hour, discussing the peace process and other regional issues, said Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev. Israel's government "will continue our efforts to reach a historic agreement before the end of the Bush administration," Regev said. Facing a string of corruption investigations, Olmert announced last month that he will step down after his ruling Kadima Party chooses a new leader in September. But under Israel's legislative rules it could be months before a new Israeli prime minister takes office, leaving Olmert in place. He continues to push forward with peace efforts, though his critics say he has little authority to be negotiating peace deals at this point. Olmert and Abbas are slated to meet Sunday for another of their regular meetings, a Palestinian official close to the negotiations said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting had yet to be officially announced. Regev would not confirm the date. http://wtop.com/?nid=105&sid=1356792

Finally some a County that has a little common sense.
County orders library audio books English-only August 24, 2008 - 9:07am
The Frederick County Commissioners will not pay for audio library books in a language other than English, unless the book is teaching that language.
The new policy was approved Thursday during a routine funding vote and one commissioner is already calling for a reversal.
Three of five commissioners were present during the approval of roughly $411,000 for audio books on CD for fiscal 2009, which began in July.
During the meeting, Republican Commissioner Charles Jenkins said he'd like to put a condition on the spending that would require the library buy books in English.
Commissioner John L. Thompson Jr., also a Republican, agreed with the requirement. Commissioner Kai Hagen, a Democrat who opposes the requirement, decided to go along so he would have standing to revisit it later when all five board members are present.
According to county procedural rules, only those who vote in favor of a measure are able to call for a new vote on it.
Commissioners Jan Gardner and David Gray were not present for the vote.
Library policy is generally decided by an independent Board of Trustees, but county government funds 70 percent of the library budget.
Jenkins said he wants to impose language requirements to prevent taxpayers from bearing the burden of buying books in languages other than English. He made a motion earlier this year that the county adopt English as its official language.
"We adopted a resolution proclaiming that English is the dominant language," Jenkins said. "To me, it still makes sense that we don't use taxpayer dollars buying things in languages other than English."
His in-laws immigrated to Frederick County from Cambodia in the 1970s and did not demand library books in their native language, and he doesn't think today's immigrants should be any different.
He said the commissioners should consider language anytime they are making funding decisions, whether it is for the libraries, Board of Education, Frederick Community College or county agencies.
Darrell Batson, director of Frederick County Public Libraries, said the library has very few books in foreign languages, calling the collection of such books "minuscule" compared to the main collection.
The few that it does have are mostly written in Spanish, he said.
Though the collection in other languages is not significant, he believes the commissioners were tying his hands when it comes to responding to the needs of the community. He is also wondering if the commissioners are going to continue placing restrictions on what books the library can buy.
"Obviously, this is an English speaking county," he said. "That's of course what we stock, that is what meets the needs of our patrons. But we are always evaluating, always seeing what best meets the overall needs."
Hagen is worried about the unintended consequences of a rushed policy choice, and asked whether foreign films would eventually be banned from the library.
"These are decisions that are made by library professionals in a non-political environment and we should not politicize the process," Hagen said. "I trust the staff of the library to continue to make reasonable and responsible purchasing decisions that reflect what they know about the people who use the library."
He asked if the commissioners were going to start approving lists of acceptable books. He also asked if Jenkins would object to books on global warming.
Jenkins has said global warming is a hoax.
Full books in other languages can also be helpful for teaching those languages, even if the book is not specifically designated for teaching, Hagen said.
In that case, Jenkins said, the language learner could go to the bookstore and buy a new book instead of getting one from the library.
Hagen plans to make a motion to revisit the policy sometime in the next month.
(Copyright 2008 by The Frederick News-Post. All rights reserved.)
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=598&sid=1465532

Ever wonder if that gas in the shed is still good? Found this on Survival Blog on 8/25/08 it is good to know. It is a good practice to have a can of fuel with a fuel extender in it. I try to fill my equipment with it, then run it, so it is in the system. That keeps good protected fuel in the system and you don't get the gumming up problems over the winter. It is always ready for work that way also.
Jim -Last week, I rotated some gasoline that was put into storage ont he 1st of March, 2005. It was in plastic fuel cans with Sta-Bil added, per the directions. They sat in a storage garage subject to midwest summer temps for one year, in an un-cooled basement garage the other years. I poured the fuel into a 1/3 tank of gas in my car. No noticeable difference in starting or running of the engine. Almost 3.5 years - not bad - just wish I could have replaced it for te same cost I originally filled the cans for![It was then around $1.95 per gallon.] I did buy on the recent dip to $3.65 per gallon [when I re-filled the cans.]
On another topic: Last week, the home market in KC dropped an average of 1% in just one week. How much longer before the house of cards collapses? - Beach
http://www.survivalblog.com/

Very sad, the way this country is going down hill, it is showing up in the family. What in the world was going on this parents mind that she thought this was a good idea?
Mom, son mark birthday with robbery spreePublished: Aug. 20, 2008 at 3:46 PMOrder MILWAUKEE, Aug. 20 (UPI) -- Milwaukee-area police say they arrested a woman who used the occasion of her teenage son's birthday visit to go out and rob two gas stations.
The 37-year-old woman and her 17-year-old son from Chicago were in jail Wednesday after being arrested overnight by Greenfield, Wis., police following a holdup Tuesday evening.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said the boy was in town for his mom's birthday party and allegedly held up two gas stations while she acted as the getaway driver.
Police added that the woman's other two sons -- ages 10 and 14 – were aware of the capers and were turned over to child welfare officials along with their 13-month-old sister.
http://www.newstin.com/go-to-link/75032954/http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2008/08/20/Mom_son_mark_birthday_with_robbery_spree/UPI-59551219261574/

Came across this article about Fay, i have a friend, that lived through it. He was out of electric for days at a time. Are you ready to go through something like this?
Fay is one for the record books
8/24/2008 11:06 PM;
By Andrea Stone, USA TODAY
The remnants of Tropical Storm Fay lumbered inland Sunday, dumping heavy rains across the South and putting Gulf Coast cities including New Orleans on flood watch as the region prepares to mark the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina this week.
Fay never reached hurricane strength and was downgraded Saturday to a tropical depression. Yet during its eight days as a tropical storm, it notched a record four landfalls in Florida.
The zigzagging storm that unleashed 25.38 inches of rain near Melbourne Beach, Fla., also ranks among the top four tropical rainmakers to hit the state since 1950, according to the federal Hydrometeorological Prediction Center. Tropical Storm Amelia in 1978 produced the heaviest single rainfall — 48 inches at Medina, Texas.
The storm still has a few days left before it peters out, said Mike Eckert, a meteorologist at the center in Camp Springs, Md. "Fay is not finished yet," he said. "Sometimes, the weaker storms that move very, very slowly can be your biggest rainfall makers."
President Bush declared Brevard, Monroe, Okeechobee and St. Lucie counties in Florida major disaster areas, clearing the way for funds to help local governments do emergency work and repairs.
The aid does not yet include individual homeowners whose properties were damaged by high winds or flood waters. Florida's emergency management center said Fay damaged or destroyed nearly 1,100 homes. Gov. Charlie Crist said the storm caused millions of dollars in property and agricultural damage.
Late Sunday, rescue teams began evacuating people from 180 homes in a town about 25 miles north of Orlando. Workers used boats to evacuate people from DeBary, where some streets were under 4 feet of water.
The tropical depression that Fay became brought heavy rain to southern Alabama and Mississippi on Sunday. Forecasters predicted that Fay would move slowly west before stalling over southwestern Mississippi or eastern Louisiana, possibly lingering until Tuesday. Flash-flood watches and warnings are in effect for most of the central Gulf Coast, eastern Louisiana, southeastern Arkansas and much of Mississippi.
The Coast Guard closed several ports and waterways between Panama City, Fla., and Mobile, Ala. Shelters were opened in low-lying areas of Alabama and sandbags handed out in Ocean Springs, Gulfport and Biloxi on the Mississippi coast and in St. Bernard Parish, La., among the hardest areas hit by Katrina in 2005.
The precautionary measures came as emergency officials in Alabama attributed another death to Fay on Sunday after recovering the body of a man from Lake Martin. That brought the storm's death toll to at least 36, including 11 in Florida, one in Georgia and 23 in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
Fay pummeled Florida with torrential rains from the Keys to Naples, Cape Canaveral and along the Panhandle.
In northeast Tallahassee, a 100-foot oak tree toppled into Sheldon Gusky's yard, tearing off a corner of his roof, puncturing his porch and crushing a fence and swimming pool equipment. But it missed a direct hit on his house by inches.
"As unlucky as I was, I was very lucky," said Gusky, 58. "It could have been a heck of a lot worse."
In Palm Bay on Florida's Atlantic coast, Susie McGlown tossed out water-drenched bed comforters from a home meant to give her a second start. The 49-year-old mother of two said she didn't have flood insurance and is praying she will hear some good news when federal and state officials begin assessing damages from Fay.
"We knew it was going to flood but we didn't know it was going to be this bad. It was above my knees," said McGlown, who lives in a one-story home built by Habitat for Humanity. "I was just putting towels and comforters down to keep it out of the house but it kept coming."
In nearby Melbourne, which received some of the heaviest rainfall, Marianne Dalcero watched as a dozen workers ripped out waterlogged drywall, set up dehumidifiers and carried out ruined belongings from her flooded house.
"I said I'm not going to cry because if I start I won't stop," Dalcero said.
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/2008-08-24-fay_N.htm