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For me, the news in all this is not that they had a technical glitch. That, as many have said, is to be expected with such advanced technologies. The news is that the present technical glitch involved lithium ion batteries bursting into flame. That is so yesterday! Is there anyone on Earth who hasn't heard stories about lithium ion batteries bursting into flame? This is not a brand new technology and it's not a brand new problem. Boeing itself acknowledged the issue from the get-go and said they had a fix designed into the batteries that would keep a runaway thermal reaction from spreading. Even in the unlikely event that one cell heated up, they said they had designed the battery so that it couldn't spread to a second cell. Well it did. And now they say they've redesigned it so that it won't do what they said it wouldn't do in the first place. I'm not sure how a runaway lithium ion battery caught them napping the first time. They knew the problem and they knew the solution. Perhaps they trusted GS Yuasa to get it right, and they failed. But, if that's true, then what other outsourcers did Boeing trust to get something right, and which of them has a surprise waiting to be uncovered? Even recently, according to this article, Boeing and the Japanese battery company were at odds over whether or not the proposed battery fix was the right one. With so many outsourcers involved with the plane, it seems reasonable, to me at least, to find one day that another fix will prove inadequate. And that's for mature technologies, like lithium ion batteries, or windows, or tires. What happens when some of the really new technologies log enough flying hours to manifest problems? I expect Boeing will solve them, one by one, but it seems remarkable that something as basic as a hot lithium ion battery could have cost so much money, so much time, and so much bad publicity this early in the aircraft's life.

Seems like the press has been more interested in this than most folks I know. I read that there were 6,000 credentialed reporters hanging out at the Vatican this week talking about some of the goofiest stuff like the Pope paying his own hotel bill and riding the bus. You'd think one of them would have mentioned God somewhere along the way. And, as far as I know, Jesus had to walk most places and probably never saw the inside of a Crowne Plaza. I'm glad there's a new Pope, I hope he does some good stuff, and if he gets around to including all the people Jesus would have included, I'll be tickled pink.

OK here too. Could it be there was a problem and now your regulars just need to clear their cache? Along with a little of their cash.

I knew I'd seen that walk somewhere before.

I think the various state 'insurance marketplaces', and the federal version for states that don't want to set up their own, will begin educating consumers about the inefficiencies of for-profit healthcare. If the comparison shopping is really as easy as promised, those companies who gouge consumers will stand out like a sore thumb. I'm looking forward to the day when a single-payer option will be among those offered. Naturally, the for-profit insurers will lobby to the death to keep it out of our hands. Of course, the more they spend on lobbying, the worse their prices will look. It may take a few years, but I think the ACA will eventually evolve to the universal healthcare ideal that most other countries already have. It's a complex piece of legislation, no doubt, but I think those who crafted it were not unaware of the trajectory it was likely to follow.

'Toned down' is certainly one way of putting it, though it's kind of hard to tell who's now implacably inside the tent and who remains on the outside. Guess I'll find out when the Garden Party invites go in the mail.

You're lucky he thought to do this, and smart to have called him in the first place. This article has some good tips on caring for a ruptured eardrum, along with a theory that it can be caused by a strong sucking kiss, which I'm sure you would have told us about if it were the case. Do take good care until you're healed. Maybe the extra time in Fortaleza was meant to be. If I ever write a novel, I would like your permission to use these as the opening lines.

It's intermittent. Sometimes ya see 'em and sometimes ya don't, thank Heaven for small favors.

Perhaps the same courtesy could be extended to this thread.

In preliminary negotiations we are.

I believe it's called trickle-down economics.

I heard Jenna Wade Marchetta Krebbs (Priscilla Presley) will be there. Isn't she one of the few characters that JR didn't piss off? Maybe he finally got around to it and she did him in.

Unlike your own good self, I'll wager.

Well, I'm going to be there front row, center, with a big bowl of buttered popcorn. I've always had the hots for Matt Damon and look forward to seeing him lounging around the pool. I'm also looking forward to learning more about Liberace, and hope there's some good scholarship in amongst the glitz and glamor. For example, did he sleep with his rings on and did he wear boxers or briefs or, I should be so lucky, a thong? The snag is I cancelled HBO in a fit of pique and austerity last year, and hate crawling back to my cable company hat in hand. Does anyone know if there's any other way to watch it?

Yes, it's a very nice finger! Mind my asking if it's 'before' or 'after'? It looks like there's a bunch of lube under the nail, but it's out of focus and hard to tell. If you're looking for a new camera, I got a pretty nice Canon for a couple hundred bucks before my last trip, but I'm not sure what the prices are in Brazil. You take really good pictures, and it would be a shame to have to leave to our imaginations what it is you're getting into.

I had a Yellow Lab like that once but, unlike Tomcal, she wasn't averse to letting a few dogs get into the rotation. Nor did they ever take her home to meet the family.

Please don't let that stand in your way. It hasn't stopped any of the rest of us from posting on a wide variety of topics, either standing up or sitting down.

She's a really good actress. When I saw her do an interview during the Mary Tyler Moore years, I couldn't believe she really didn't have a New York accent. She nailed that character. The transition to her own show was deftly done too. I understand that a spin-off character who can be crazy in a supporting role has to become much more centered in a starring role, so that the other characters can bounce off her. I thought she handled that transition very well. Hell, her spinoff show lasted five seasons. Cloris Leachman's lasted only two. She has a lot to be proud of. Sorry I never got to see her do Tallu.

As Sir Henry memorably said: If I had all the money I've spent on drink, I'd spend it on drink. ( and props to AdamSmith for directing me to Rawlinson End )

In looking back over his past, He admits his libido was fast. Now, enveloped by ennui, Once these last few are gone, he Is certain that they'll be his last.

Here at 24, with little brother Zac, 22.

Actually, I like Ikea's cafeteria. I don't get there much, but the meatballs taste pretty good to me, horse meat or no. And, as ihpguy says, their chocolate bars are quite good and only 99¢ the last time I was there. Better and cheaper than Hershey's, that's for sure.

As soon as I read this I went out and got a bunch of wine. I'm planning to get the rest of the stuff the very next chance I get.

Although I didn't vote either way, I'm not terribly offended by being referred to as a fag. Although I can't actually say it shows a huge amount of class either. I can understand NCBored's view that it wasn't Lucky's reaction that was being voted on but, rather, other folks' feeling about the word. In fairness, though, the poll did come close on the heels of Lucky's statement, so it wouldn't be too hard to comingle one with the other, you should pardon the expression. However, I also think I see Lucky's point. Sometimes, when you're part of a close-knit community, if even one member is seriously offended by something, the other members of the community voluntarily refrain from doing it. Assuming, that is, that it's not too onerous to refrain from doing it. It's just a way to show respect for the feelings of all members of the group. I think this group is kind of like that, so it wouldn't kill me not to call Lucky a fag if I know it bothers him. The exception to that would be if it was hugely important to me that I refer to Lucky as a fag, say if somebody was offering me a hundred bucks to do it. Most likely, I'd apologize in advance, and then pass him a twenty when I was all done. If it's important to OZ's business model to call us all fags, then I guess we'll all just have to hunker down and take it like men ladies. If, however, it's not critical to the survival of the site, then maybe it could just be saved for those special occasions when absolutely nothing else will do.