So, what’s everybody’s favorite Super Bowl junk food? Here’s one of mine. Slim Jims. I have loved these for decades. When I was a kid, if we were on a trip, I could usually talk my dad into getting me one when we stopped to fill up, but he always said “don’t let your mom see it, ok”?

Back then they were as long as my arm. Not so much today. As you can see here, they have a handy variety pack now. It is a wonderfully Greasy. Meat. Snack.

I won’t bore you with the Nutrition Facts printed on the side of the canister, it’s pretty much what you think it is, loads of grease, not so many carbs, chemicals and stuff.

I do think one of the ingredients is interesting though. Right after “BEEF”, it says “MECHANICALLY SEPARATED CHICKEN”.

This was once done by skilled labor? And now we have machines that can do it. I am in awe of our technology, although many of you know I’m still pissed off about no flying cars.

Yes, the Wolf Brand chili next to the Slim Jims will be warming up soon. Something for the Fritos. I have to make a quick run though cause we’re out of bean dip.

What’s your favorite Super Bowl Junk Food?

Posted by: Dave In Texas at 01:39 PM | Comments (160)
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So, what’s everybody’s favorite Super Bowl junk food? Here’s one of mine. Slim Jims. I have loved these for decades. When I was a kid, if we were on a trip, I could usually talk my dad into getting me one when we stopped to fill up, but he always said “don’t let your mom see it, ok”?

Back then they were as long as my arm. Not so much today. As you can see here, they have a handy variety pack now. It is a wonderfully Greasy. Meat. Snack.

I wonÂ’t bore you with the Nutrition Facts printed on the side of the canister, itÂ’s pretty much what you think it is, loads of grease, not so many carbs, chemicals and stuff.

I do think one of the ingredients is interesting though. Right after “BEEF”, it says “MECHANICALLY SEPARATED CHICKEN”.

This was once done by skilled labor? And now we have machines that can do it. I am in awe of our technology, although many of you know IÂ’m still pissed off about no flying cars.

Yes, the Wolf Brand chili next to the Slim Jims will be warming up soon. Something for the Fritos. I have to make a quick run though cause weÂ’re out of bean dip.

WhatÂ’s your favorite Super Bowl Junk Food?

Posted by: Dave in Texas at 01:39 PM | Comments (160)
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Well, the WaPo version of this detailed article reads: Surveillance Net Yields Few Suspects, but I think my title is more accurate.

Surveillance [by the NSA] takes place in several stages, officials said, the earliest by machine. Computer-controlled systems collect and sift basic information about hundreds of thousands of faxes, e-mails and telephone calls into and out of the United States before selecting the ones for scrutiny by human eyes and ears.

Successive stages of filtering grow more intrusive as artificial intelligence systems rank voice and data traffic in order of likeliest interest to human analysts. But intelligence officers, who test the computer judgments by listening initially to brief fragments of conversation, "wash out" most of the leads within days or weeks.

You mean....when the person is ruled out as a suspect, he is no longer listened to? Sounds like, ya know, a responsible use of limited intelligence resources to me. Of course, when an attack is unexpected--and terrorists generally don't stand up in town square and announce when and where they plan to attack--there will be many false leads.

Even unwitting Americans, they [intelligence officials] said, can take part in communications -- arranging a car rental, for example, without knowing its purpose -- that supply "indications and warnings" of an attack. Contributors to the technology said it is a triumph for artificial intelligence if a fraction of 1 percent of the computer-flagged conversations guide human analysts to meaningful leads.

The data is massive, and computers do most of the listening. I had no idea the computers were this sophisticated: more...

Posted by: Feisty at 11:23 AM | Comments (56)
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So I have been away with the wife for a few days in sunny Florida. Did I miss anything?

Oh yeah.

Just some minor dust up between the Catholic community and some "artists".

It seems that some Catholics have their panties in a bunch because of some tasteless pictures of Christ or Mary or something, so they have set fire to embassies and are calling for the deaths of the heretics...

What's that?

NOT Catholics?

But Muslims?

Muslims? The hell you say? Man, who would have seen this coming?

Anyway. Lot's of people are writing about this. I know that Michelle Malkin has had some good coverage, but the place I turn too for all my Jihadi news is The Jawa Report. In particular, you should read this post.

That one post sums up what we are up against. If this is what happens because of CARTOONS....*shudder*

Posted by: WunderKraut at 10:52 AM | Comments (5)
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Thanks to the Viking Observer:

20-year-old Mette Nielsen of Nyborg has been brought out of the city Ramallah on the West Bank along with a couple other Danes according to BT.

Mette Nielsen has been a peace guard in Ramallah for a week, taking part in protests against Israeli mistreatment of palestinians.

She has been pulled out of the West Bank, to safety in Israel - behind the Israeli soldiers the has been protesting for a week.

Posted by: Tanker at 08:13 AM | Comments (9)
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From Media Blog on NRO

CLICK FOR VIDEO

While interviewing one Abdurahmen Jafar of the Muslim Council of Britain about the whole cartoon "dustup", a CNN International anchor goes out on a limb:

Anchor: It seems that has taken on a life of it's own. I mean you see in some Palestinian territories, for instance, in Gaza, where Europeans are being told to stay indoors, that they're at risk. And it's kind of taken on this dimension, that seems, from the outside, violent.

Hey, how about taking it down a notch, lady? I mean, you threaten a few nations with extermination, torch an embassy or two, and the next thing you know some news desk jockey is suggesting that some people (ignorant outsiders though they might be) might get the idea that you're the violent type.

Be sure to watch the video so you can hear Jafar expressing his fear of Europeans, who he says are "Relearning to hate again."

UPDATE:

Jeff G covers the upsurge in political contortionism.

Sobek weighs in with an alternate P-Shop. Bad Sobek!

Posted by: John From WuzzaDem at 09:49 PM | Comments (38)
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Lock me up, baby. I've been naughty.

There was also concern that male inmates were able to watch women in certain cells take showers and use the toilet. Jailers say that problem has been fixed by moving all the women to a different housing pod.

[Vanderburgh Chief Deputy Eric] Williams says, "Those women were putting on a show. It wasn't that they didn't want to be seen. They were performing."

Hottest. Co-ed. Prison action. Ever.

Posted by: Feisty at 05:41 PM | Comments (10)
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Someone has suggested a poetry contest. Let's tie it to the Super Bowl.

I'll judge three forms. Haiku, Loose Shit and just Damned Inspiring.

Contest over tomorrow night end of the game or whenever ace kicks me off this moronblog.

Just to get us started, more...

Posted by: Dave In Texas at 03:18 PM | Comments (75)
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Survivors of the Red Sea ferry disaster, which caused the deaths of more than 1,000 people, say the captain was the first person to hit the lifeboats hard, long, and strong, after a car-fire broke out below deck.

"We were wearing lifejackets but they told us there was nothing wrong, told us to take them off and they took away the lifejackets. Then the boat started to sink and the captain took a boat and left," he added, speaking to Reuters Television.

"The captain was the first to leave and we were surprised to see the boat sinking," added Khaled Hassan, another survivor.

Other survivors also reported that the crew had played down the gravity of the situation and withheld lifejackets.

"There was a fire but the crew stopped the people from putting on lifejackets so that it wouldn't cause a panic," said Abdel Raouf Abdel Nabi, one of the survivors.

"There was a blaze down below. The crew said 'Don't worry, we will put it out.' When things got really bad the crew just went off in the lifeboats and left us on board," said Nader Galal Abdel Shafi, another arrival on the same rescue boat.

No word on whether or not a string quartet was instructed to play.

The captain is nowhere to be found, and the coast guard is saying they never got a distress signal, but the captain and crew somehow ended up on lifeboats. This situation is just odd to me. Unless the crew 'n captain leaving thing was made up, I'll betcha that this fire was intentionally set to perhaps allow for someone on the crew to leave the ship undetected and escape something. It would be a good way to disappear forever: Never found and presumed dead in the sinking.

H/T to the aptly titled post "Chicken of the Sea" @ Six Meat Buffet.

Feisty blogs at Feisty Republican Whore

Posted by: Feisty at 03:14 PM | Comments (34)
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The trademark dispute over the 12th Man has received a lot of attention (see, for example, here, here, here, here, and here, and those are just the first few Google news results for "12th man trademark"). So, as an Aggie, I felt I should take advantage of my unique opportunity to make our voice heard.

(Heh-heh. That's what Ace gets for letting me guest-blog. And by way of disclaimer, I'd like to state that my views are my own and don't represent Ace's or Texas A&M's.)

For those of you who might not be familiar with the 12th Man, the story is detailed here. In short, in 1922, the Aggies were playing a tense game against the nation's top-ranked team, and were down to eleven uninjured players. The coach called a student, E. King Gill, out of the stands to suit up in the event that another player was injured. Gill did so, and spent the rest of the game by the coach's elbow, ready to play if needed. The Aggies were able to finish (and win) the game without further injuries, and since then, in remembrance of E. King Gill's readiness to support the team and in symbolism of our readiness as Aggies to support one another, the student body stands through the entirety of every football game.

Our use of the concept dates from 1922, and is one of Texas A&M's most meaningful traditions. We also have federally registered trademarks dating from the early '90s.

Legally, no one appears to be questioning our ownership of the trademark. In fact, the Seattle organization, as quoted in several of the articles I linked, is trying to claim that the 12th Man merchandise is being made by Seattle fans, not by any group affiliated with the organization. But, according to this article, the organization has approved at least one official promotion with the title "12th Man."

I'm not blaming Washingtonians for never having heard of the 12th Man. I don't know what traditions Washington's universities have, and wouldn't expect them to know ours. And I certainly don't blame Seattle fans for not researching trademarks prior to making banners or T-shirts for a game.

But I do blame the Seattle organization for repeatedly ignoring our clear legal right to the trademark. This is not the first year we have sent them a cease and desist letter. They have been fully aware of our ownership of the trademark since at least 2004, but have ignored the c&d letters, forcing Texas A&M to take the matter to court.

Also, there are a number of Seattle fans who think our stance is unreasonable. If you are one of these, I invite you to come to Kyle Field, the Home of the 12th Man. Stand (the only time you may sit is while the opposing team's band is performing) in the student section, which faces full west, in the Texas heat. Join us in singing the Aggie War Hymn, and feel the entire stadium rocking. Keep up the noise while the opposing team has the ball, and hear a pin drop while the Aggies have the ball. And marvel at the talent of the Fightin' Texas Aggie Band.

If, after that experience, you can still tell me your little blue flag is at all meaningful, then I'll be very surprised, and certainly dubious of your veracity.

(This post is a revised version, with 100% more flamebait, of a post that can be found at my blog.)

Posted by: Mrs Peel at 02:23 PM | Comments (50)
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