robthurman.com http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/ Rob Thurman is frequently pissed off. en-us 2008-07-08T09:29:09-06:00 Questionable Headline http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001267.html


This lady should be pissed.

View my photos on flickr: Questionable Headline, originally uploaded by .]]>
flickr 2008-07-08T09:29:09-06:00
We are ready to long mutually advantageous business!!! http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001266.html I love the internets: Ukraine dot com.

NEW RUSSIAN CRINOLINE FOR YOUR WEDDING DRESS

crinoline.jpg

You are bidding on a top quality 3-hoop a stunning snow-white crinoline/petticoat/slip with drawstring waist fit up to 38". Due to elastic metal rings, the crinoline is perfectly transported and instantly restores the initial form.

This crinoline will make your wedding dress very magnificent and smart.

This is not a crinolines that sat on the floor and a million people tried on. It is BRAND NEW no alteration, still has tags and never even put on and in a factory packing.

Price: 8.95 EURO

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Translation: $5,987,763 USD

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robt 2008-06-27T12:00:37-06:00
Let us eat cake...and choke on it! http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001265.html Chris Hedges offers an absolutely unapologetic review the press and those who speak on our behalf in Washington D.C.: TruthDig: The Hedonists of Power [Link].

Washington has become Versailles. We are ruled, entertained and informed by courtiers. The popular media are courtiers. The Democrats, like the Republicans, are courtiers. Our pundits and experts are courtiers. We are captivated by the hollow stagecraft of political theater as we are ruthlessly stripped of power. It is smoke and mirrors, tricks and con games. We are being had.
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robt 2008-06-26T07:39:06-06:00
How about $23 Billion http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001264.html Following up from an earlier post, the BBC asserts that the mismanagment of $15 billion in Iraqi contracts may be closer to $23 billion: More Fraud in Iraq [BBC].

Even better, the current Bush administration has issued a gag order preventing discussion of the misappropriation of your tax dollars.

A BBC investigation estimates that around $23bn (£11.75bn) may have been lost, stolen or just not properly accounted for in Iraq.

The BBC's Panorama programme has used US and Iraqi government sources to research how much some private contractors have profited from the conflict and rebuilding.

A US gagging order is preventing discussion of the allegations.

The order applies to 70 court cases against some of the top US companies.

Companies including the vice-president's former employer, Haliburton.

Ya know, millions are unemployed, millions have lost their homes, millions have lost health insurance, millions cannot afford staggering price jumps in food, gasoline, and utilities, millions have been displaced by the illegal and criminal invasion of Iraq...and what?

What is to come of this administrations' complete and utter abuse of power, their criminal and unlawful torturing policies, and its utter disregard for Constitutional safeguards?

Not a damn thing I suspect.

Isn't America grand?

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robt 2008-06-12T07:26:02-06:00
Contractual Obligations http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001263.html It strikes me as (gasp) hypocritical that the United States government now insists that federal contractors (in the states) must validate the legality of their workers while federal contractors (in Iraq) utilized slave labor to build the U.S. embassy.

Contractors supporting the U.S. military have reportedly employed thousands of foreign workers who had arrived in Iraq as victims of trafficking. According to CorpWatch, which investigates and exposes corporate human rights violations worldwide, contractors working for Halliburton/KBR, which manages a $12 billion reconstruction contract, and First Kuwaiti Trading & Contracting, which has a $592 million contract to build the new U.S. embassy in Baghdad, use deception and “bait-and-switch” hiring practices, charge exorbitant “recruiting” fees that put poor migrant workers in debt to their employers, hold passports to restrict workers’ movements, and provide inadequate living conditions and emergency medical care. Although the Pentagon prohibits such practices for all contractors receiving U.S. funds, it has no penalty for violating such policy.

Turkish middlemen “illegally” took a group of 400 Georgian nationals into Iraq, charged exorbitant “service” fees, and failed to honor promises of good wages and living conditions.

Related: State Department says rampant abuse and slavery claims unsubstantiated.

Related: Iraqi women and children sold to highest bidder -- Iraqi union leaders murdered.

Related: Accounting errors for more than $15 billion in Pentagon defense contracts for weapons, vehicles, construction equipment, and security services in Iraq.

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robt 2008-06-10T07:38:24-06:00
Who needs 15 minutes? http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001262.html I'm content with 4:43...

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robt 2008-06-02T18:28:45-06:00
Stunning News http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001261.html People are willing to drive less, but are disinclined to be hungry - [Link]

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robt 2008-05-21T07:53:51-06:00
Shocking news! http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001260.html The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting that the dismal quality of St. Louis' public schools often results in families reconsidering living within city limits -- and very often results in families moving out of the city.

Once again, the Post has unearthed another shocking news story.

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robt 2008-04-25T07:38:56-06:00
Was that an Earthquake or an attempt at demonic possession? http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001259.html Ok.

So, it's 4:30 in the morning and I'm wide awake.

No. I'm not just getting in -- I'm getting up.

Actually, I was awoken (awaken?) by a low, dull rolling sound, windows rattling and my bed swaying from side to side.

I assumed it was an earthquake (very quickly, I might add)...but so far there's nothing on the news about it, leaving me just a tad aggravated.

I really do not have the time to fight the forces of darkness right now. Which, in a totally perverse way, I'm grateful for at this moment. I have shit to do.

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Update: It was an earthquake!!!!!

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robt 2008-04-18T04:48:38-06:00
Missouri to Enjoy First Chanel Outlet Mall http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001258.html chanel_mall.jpg

When Courtney Love wore fake Chanel, Harper's Bazaar flew her crazy ass to Paris to apologize to Karl Lagerfeld.

Sadly, I suspect, the people of Crestwood will simply be slapped with a lawsuit.

See ya at Crestwood Court in court!

Story: Crestwood Mall stupidly rebranded.

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robt 2008-04-17T08:14:27-06:00
Sunset People http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001257.html Thanks to Kelly (Happy Belated Birthday!) for the clip below, which features a segment from Donna Summer's 1979 TV Special (typing that made me shiver!).

It gets really fun around 3:10...

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robt 2008-04-11T07:27:30-06:00
Crude Descending a Staircase http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001255.html Everyone's favorite foul-mouthed, demoniacally possessed little girl has been immortalized in epoxy. Features realistically miniaturized shag carpeting. Reserve yours today!

regan_toy_02_post.jpg

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robt 2008-04-03T07:46:06-06:00
Nuns on Ice http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001254.html Below is a late-60's commercial for the German soft drink, Afri-Cola.

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robt 2008-04-02T22:16:47-06:00
Hahs and Arghs! http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001253.html ricky_pirate.jpg

Sony/BMG, the company responsible for Ricky Martin, is being sued for installing pirated software on their corporate servers!

It is alleged that 47% of all the company's software was illegally obtained!

Perhaps you'll remember:

In October 2007, it was announced that Sony BMG successfully sued Jammie Thomas. The single mother, who makes $36,000 a year, was ordered to pay $222,220 in damages for making 24 songs available for download on the Kazaa file-sharing network.

The corporate behemoth's arsenal of talent also includes Britney Spears, Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Michael Jackson, Shakira, Usher and, well...just about everybody else.

Let's do the math: 24 (probably shitty) songs = $222,220. What does 47% of the software for a $2.3 billion company amount to in this day and age?

You're right: 100% more lousy music!


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robt 2008-04-01T07:43:09-06:00
Where's the Outrage? http://www.robthurman.com/weblog/archives/001252.html UPDATE: On April 1, 2008, Wal-Mart dropped its claim against Shank; the company's reply to Shank's family is posted here.


shank.jpgDebbie Shank lost a son to the Iraq War.

She almost lost her husband to prostate cancer.

She lost her mobility after a car accident left her with severe brain damage.

She lives in a nursing home, paid for by a trust funded by a legal settlement.

Or should I say lived?

It's not certain where Ms. Shank will live now that her former employer, Wal-Mart, wants to be reimbursed for the health care expenses the company accrued after the accident - a reimbursement that will leave Ms. Shank penniless.

Here's the way it works:

1. Shank has accident
2. Wal-Mart pays for health care
3. Shank sues company responsible for accident
4. Shank wins money
5. Wal-Mart wants its money back
6. Wal-Mart sues Shank
7. Wal-Mart wins
8. Shank loses everything (again)

shank_family2.jpgIt's shameful, sure - but do you really expect less from Wal-Mart, apart from their low, low prices?

The thing that astounds me, however, is that given the recent anniversary of Terri Schiavo's death, I've seen little to no coverage of Debbie Shank's story in the conservative press.

Remember the feverish intensity of the debate - the congressional and presidential showdown with Schiavo's family - the unequivocal assertion that people with severe brain damage deserve our love, care and unconditional support?

So far, these fearless, moral crusaders for Terri Schiavo have expressed no sympathy (or outrage) for Debbie Shank, a permanently disabled wife and traumatized mother of a dead solider:

Albert Mohler: 0
Michelle Malkin: 0
Rush Limbaugh: 0
Fox News: 0
Focus on the Family: 0

Read More: CNN's Debbie Shank story.

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robt 2008-03-26T14:07:43-06:00