Reading the Friday Paper

Headline: Tornadoes Record Surge Taking a Destructive TollThe greater number of tornadoes this year makes one wonder if the technique for counting them has improved or are there indeed more tornadoes this year than occurred in previous years. Since the number of tornadoes is almost doubled from last year, it's doubtful that counting technique could account for the difference. The answer then lies elsewhere. It seems like we've had one cold front after another colliding with warm air from the Gulf. It's an annual Spring occurrence, but it has seemed to be more intense this year. Global warming? Who knows? Let's hear from the scientists. In the meantime, can the journalists find a better word than 'surge'? It the most overused word I know about today. Would it be used at all, if it hadn't been used to describe a troop build-up in Iraq?

Headline: Justices ruling favors Gitmo detaineesThe decision isn't a surprise to me. It's based on the constitution, laws and court precedents. Too bad the minority opinion of conservative justices couldn't have based their opposition on something other than lame claims like, "It will make the war harder on us. It will almost certainly cause more Americans to be killed." Give me a break.

Headline: Marketers starting to reframe dad adsWhat happened? Did the teeny-boppers writing these dumb commercials finally realize that they were pissing off the bill-payer? The ad-writers were showing their age and their defiance of parent figures when they portrayed adult males as helpless dolts. Finally, the light has shown in this small corner of the world.

Headline: Mexico blamed for troubled tomatoes
Oh, the insanity of it all. Despite the headline, the second paragraph of the article states: "There is no proof that Mexico provided the contaminated tomatoes that caused the alarm." Nonetheless Mexican tomatoes were barred from crossing the border due to the salmonella scare. I got sick once eating a salad in Cancun. So, I'll believe anything they say about Mexican produce. The article said that "Agriculture Secretary Alberto Cardenas told Televisa network that, 'The Mexican tomato is safer and cleaner
than ever.'.

Headline: Number of housed, monitered offenders hits highest ever
The article says that in '06 we spent $45 billion on detention of offenders. Something is wrong here. America has the highest number of any country behind bars. It makes you wonder if mandatory sentences make sense. If you're for smaller government, this is the place to start. Where oh where are our conservatives, when we need them? Worrying about gay marriage or stem cell research, instead of watching our pocketbook.