Also in Paris, the Socialist Mayor plays social engineer: creating low rent housing in the midst of the posh.

Ah. The beaches of Paris. Wait. The beaches of Paris!?

an update:

The 100+ Chinese carnivorous fish that can walk for short distances on their fins found in a Maryland pond have been given a death sentence. No sign of an appeal, but neither details on when or how the extermination will be done. Here's the latest from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Rest assured, we (who am I kidding? It's just I) will keep close tabs on this story and link like mad if anything develops.

How far reaching is this issue? They're worried about it in Wisconsin. An early report on the CBS News site includes a video (its before they realized there were so many); I like the part where they are stapling up Wanted posters. In more idiosyncratic coverage The Washington Times manages to bleed patriotism from a Chinese fish with this passionate and whining editorial about Good Old Amurican fishes whooping up on the "oriental character" and making it "wish it stayed in Asia".

I'm sorry, but I just love the hell out of this story. One delightful aspect is that the fish has a "primitive lung", which I have learned from the Mice Models of Human Cancers Consortium arises from the foregutl, if it's anything like human lung development (and who ultimately cares if it is, it's enough for me just to encounter the word foregut for the first time). Somehow it's fitting to me to discover this in such close proximity to things dada.

Luddite-line: The U.S. Senate

In 1997 Mike Enzi asked if he could bring his laptop to work in the US Senate. They said no. To be more precise, according to USA TODAY:

The Rules Committee deliberated over six months, held three hearings and delivered a 47-page report. The judgment: no laptops on the Senate floor.

Last month Enzi asked again. The Committee on Rules and Administration said they'd take it up at the next meeting, though they don't have a meeting planned. The chairman of the committee is Chris Dodd and the Ranking Member [sic] is Mitch McConnell.

Note the story cited above is primarily about another technidiot rule of the Senate, which is that a Senator's official website cannot be updated within 60 days of primary and general elections.

Meanwhile, the Senate just started it's transition from cc:Mail to a Microsoft email system. Fortunately they have policies in order, so that their cutting edge technologies won't be abused: "[Gopher] is only be used for official purposes". *phew*! :-)

Following up on this I took a look at the House's site to try and discern where they stood on laptops on the floor (or didn't. you know what I mean!). The House also doesn't allow them on the floor, but according to this April 2001 report they seem much more tech-savvy (mentioning a planned Blackberry 'pilot project/test', for instance). Another document on the House site (which is undated and frighteningly unattributed) mentions that 35 of the State legislatures DO currently allow laptops in their "Chambers". But [see page 24] the document also points out some valid differences between the States and the US Congress (like the USC's lack of assigned seating[!]). Okay, enough of this. !!!!!!!

stocks hit their lowest mark in almost 4 years :-(

[the day of one-line entries continues]

The International Spy Museum just opened in DC.

It's the Art for Drugs scandals that really steam my pork bun!