Quick blip in from work...

The New York Times is waaaaay too interesting this morning.

First, a political pisser for the day: I thought the Orwellian "free-speech zones" at the DNC were horrific (not that anyone actually stayed in the cage), but this... To be honest, the tactics used by some of this nation's "security agencies" to keep protestors out of the sight of GeeDubbya is old news if you've been reading the political blogs listed down the right-hand side of this page.

The story finally hits the NYT:

( F.B.I. Begins the Long Walk to Changing Its Letters to K-G-B )

On a somewhat less-happy but somewhat frivolous note, I've been collecting "Africa" news pieces, even if I'm not sure what to do with them quite yet. Since, again, we're talking the NYT, it's all war, death, and destruction. (Note: The fate hinted at for Xander in Ishmael Sings of the White Whale was actually based on early news reports out of Darfur region of Sudan.)

I've been following the continental-wide violence in Africa for seven or eight years, thanks to my obsession with Robert Young Pelton's the World's Most Dangerous Places and his related books. RYP is not the world's greatest writer, but I feel smarter when I read his stuff.

So, for anyone interested in Africa stuff just out of intellectual curiosity or simply to research a post-"Chosen" BtVS fanfic, you can check out these stories:

( How Can You Mend a Destroyed Country? (Sudan) )

( The Tutsis and Hutus=Hatfields and McCoys with Machetes )

Anyone looking for "African war zones" research for fanfic purposes, I'd be more than happy to help you out. I only started recently saving news stories from Africa that run in the NYT, but I do have a links and information that I'd be willing to forward to you.

And finally, a little something fun and a lot more upbeat for ludditerobot since he showers us with wuv and musik:

( Warner Bros. Wants An In with the 'Kwel Kid' MP3 Bloggers )

Okay, gotta go back to work now...