President Peanut at it again...

Reference article: http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1244371086046&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

So as we all (hopefully) know, former US president Jimmy Carter is actively involved in several foreign service projects. Perhaps his most notable one to date is an attempt to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (in my humble opinion writing a book and calling it Palestine: Peace, Not Apartheid and comparing the Israelis to the South African whites is not the way to do it, but I never said the man was thinking rationally).

This weekend marks at least the second time that Mr. Carter is going to meet with representatives of Hamas, an organization recognized by most of the world as a terrorist organization (its charter includes a paragraph in which it details the group's goal to destroy the state of Israel). As a former US president, Mr. Carter receives Secret Service protection for the rest of his life--this brings up an interesting point: when his Secret Service bodyguards notice wanted fugitives, why do they not use their powers of arrest to execute the warrants on these people?

Point of Discussion: So what does everyone think of Mr. Carter's little meetings with terrorists?

Wizard Rock!

The lovely Lauren and Nina of The Moaning Myrtles.

So last night I made it to a wizard rock concert in the next town over, and it was so awesome I just had to share. :) It featured The Mudbloods, Justin Finch-Fletchley, The Whomping Willows, and The Moaning Myrtles, all of whom were amazing. For those who don't know, wizard rock is a genre whose songs and bands revolve entirely around Harry Potter. I'm still all fangirly from it, buying songs and watching YouTube clips and squealing over the awesome shirt I got (bright green with the phrase "I Believe in Nargles" in black along the front, signed by all the wrockers on the back). Wizard rock is one of those quiet obsessions of mine, not to subtle because it's too great to bottle up but not too overt because my mother starts to worry.

Any quirky music you're fond of? Or just random obsessions in general?

Vox Spotlight?????

So it is Nick here I was going to right all of you fellow bloggers a nice little internet letter (email) but then I had a brainstorm and thought that it would be cool to here what you guys think in comment form!!!! Here is my idea every few days I Nick wright will hit the world of the VOX with a new person/band that I think is gnarly and interesting. It will be good insight not only on some cool people but also into my fantastical brain (witch is a place deemed very hazardous). I will fill you in on some background some interesting facts and what they are up to right at the moment (and on some occasions were you can see them next). Now it is your turn tell me what you think!!

Good idea or poor one?

Any other such things that you want to be included in the sum of that person/band?

and of course any other input that you might have!!!

Northwest Lovin'

I finished my last final at 11:15 today and am now officially a junior. I know, I know. I rock. Now that summer is pretty much official I have two things for you.
Item 1:
Summer Assignment: RECRUIT. I think the goal for the blog should be more followers than contributors. Okay, and now, the good part.

Item 2:
I am a little bit of a music freak. I'm constantly listening to music and when I'm not listening to it, I'm searching for it and reading about it. I especially love the rich and varied music that comes from the Pacific Northwest. A lot of times people have no idea that the PNW is essentially renowned for their great music So here, for your aural pleasure:

Katie's Northwest Summer Playlist
(Guaranteed to give you a better and more Northwesty summer)

1. Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana (because there really is no other way to start a Northwest playlist)
2. Goodnight Goodnight - Hot Hot Heat
3. Never Had Nobody Like You -M. Ward (Also a part of the band She & Him with actress Zooey Deschanel)
4. Pointer Finger - The Oregon Donor (How clever is that name? TOO CLEVER!)http://www.myspace.com/theoregondonor
5. Little Slickers - The Globes (New EP out, available on iTunes. Saw them at Elkfest and they were great!)http://www.myspace.com/globesmusic
6. Fire Island, AK - The Long Winters http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQCcSeEZ_R0
7. July, July! - The Decemberists (This is an old one, but I figure it's fitting for the list. They've got a new concept/rock opera album out and it's really fantastic)http://www.myspace.com/thedecemberists
8. Rubik's Cube - Yarn Owl (Another Elkfest band...Chloe knows the drummer which is pretty sweet) http://www.myspace.com/yarnowl
9. Too Fake - Hockey (A band with a member from Spokane! My friend Kelli saw them at Pig Out before they hit the big time and now they've been featured on shows like Vh1's Best Week Ever. The guitarist Brian White's mom works at my high school too) http://www.myspace.com/hockey
10. Car - Built to Spill ( A classic from one of the most revered Northwest bands of all time. A new album is rumored to come out around October...Hooray!)
11. Little Bribes - Death Cab For Cutie ( We'll round out the list with one of my favorites! The following link is a killer fan-directed video)http://www.deathcabforcutie.com/news/348/little_bribes_fan_video/

Hope you enjoy the music and have a kicking summer!

Read. Think. Type. Rock.

Katie

Toilet planters on display...

Here's a little fact about myself : I LOVE to recycle - yet this scuffle could be taking things a tad bit far...

Tina Asmus of Lakemoor, Ill. is a fellow recycing-lover, (and it shows). According to this AP story, Asmus revamped two old toilets and a pedestal sink into clever little planters for assorted "daisies, angel's breath, lilies, and other flowers."

Asmus calls these 'johns' her "art pieces", and will not be removing them.

Officials of Lakemoor have asked Asmus to remove the planters within a month's time or face a fine ranging anywhere from $25 to $500.

Question: Is this really that big of a deal? How 'green' is TOO 'green'? Should Asmus have to remove her 'art', for the town-reputation's sake?

Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb...Iran?

For the first report of the Middle Eastern Affairs Desk, I present a rather thorny situation: Iran and it's nuclear program, whose intentions are, according to the Iranian government, for the manufacturing of nuclear reactors to produce nuclear energy. According to the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Israel however, the Iranian government is engaged in nuclear weapons research and the refining of uranium into weapons-grade plutonium.



In 1981, the former government of Iraq under Saddam Hussein was also conducting nuclear weapons research at a site called Osiraq (coincidentally, the technical assistance given to the Iraqis came from the French). On June 7th of that year, Israeli F-15 and F-16 fighter-bombers flew from Etzion Airbase (now Taba International Airport in the Sinai) to Osiraq and, laser-guided bombs, smashed the reactor complex (also coincidentally, one of the pilots on the mission was Ilan Ramon, who would later die in the breakup of the Columbia Space Shuttle). Operation Opera was later repeated in September of 2007 when fighter-bombers of the Israeli Air Force bombed a nuclear reactor complex in Syria during Operation Orchard.



Point of Discussion: Under what conditions, if any, is it justifiable to undertake military action against another country, whether large scale (as in the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan) or small (the bombing of the Osiraq reactor)?