After I bought the Taj Mahal, two private planes, a yacht and a personal submarine, it was pretty much gone.

I guess this is a good time to link a few jokes.

http://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/2011/07/21/bureaucracy-humor-probably-created-by-somebody-at-homeland-security-or-hud/

Another great one about downsizing.

http://danieljmitchell.wordpress.com/2010/05/07/important-announcement-from-the-california-bureaucracy/

I think the Nigerians got it.

OT, but this struck me as the type of outrage that would put a long stick right up Amy Alkon anus:

Why Libertarians Aren’t just Republicans Who Smoke Pot
July 29, 2011, 3:20 pm

Because we also think this kind of intrusion by the state is offensive.

Yesterday, the House Judiciary Committee voted 19-10 for H.R. 1981, a data-retention bill that will require your ISP to spy on everything you do online and save records of it for 12 months. California Rep Zoe Lofgren, one of the Democrats who opposed the bill, called it a “data bank of every digital act by every American” that would “let us find out where every single American visited Web sites.”

It really pisses me off that the Republicans wrap themselves in the mantle of individual liberty when challenging Obama over insane spending levels, but then, simultaneously, do this kind of crap.

The above is from Coyote Blog.

Evidently, the GOP wants to spy on everything I do on the Web. Oh, that's all.

Really, the TSA is peanuts next to this. The web is how we communicate today. It's as if the government recorded every letter, phone call or telegram in days of yore.

BOTU,

At least take the time to post the link.

Amy,

I just checked my google spam -- I only had 1300. That is down from the old days when I was looking at 4500 because idiots would upload my e-mail addy when joining <despised social networking site here>.

The one that just chaps my ass. I volunteer on a tech web site. We help people solve their tech problems in a logical, intelligent ways.

The senior admin came down a few weeks ago and asked us to do the <despised social media sites> voting to keep our ranks up.

The only way I can view it is we're back in high school and having a popularity contest. The geeks aren't answering questions and being appreciated for their knowledge. The social media is winning, again.

Jim P--from Coyote Blog. Easy enough to find.

"What the hell happened to Suha Arafat's fortune?"

Careful, Amy.

You're dangerously close to asking "How did a woman married to a guy who was homeless for 40 years amass a 'fortune'".

After that, you start to ask "How many -Billions- were in the bank?

Soon you'll be on your way to full-blown right-wing-conspiracy theories about US tax money going to terrorists and....

Shhhhh.

The press has forgotten. Best to let it lie. All that can happen by bringing that up is nasty, nasty truths.

Oh. Well. Nevermind. Carry on, nothing to see here.