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Bush protects the wrong people, and TSA doesn't protect anybody

Saturday, December 29, 2007 4:03 PM
Two (mostly) unrelated stories caught my eye today; both have to do with protecting the wrong interests. First, President Bush has refused to sign a defense spending bill; his reasons were curious : And then Friday, with no warning, a vacationing Bush
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Boeing's sexy new Dreamliner 787

Monday, August 27, 2007 9:57 PM
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is as fast as a jumbo jet, half the size of the Airbus 380, and 20% more fuel efficient. It's also selling like hotcakes : So far, 47 airlines -- including Continental Airlines Inc., Air Canada, Qantas Airways Ltd., Air India
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Prague, currency conversion, and blowjobs

Sunday, July 15, 2007 11:09 PM
A couple of years ago, a friend (whom I'll call Mike, because that's his name) and I spent a few days in Prague. It's one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. It's also perfect for exploring on foot. Startlingly, most of central Prague's medieval
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Quote of the day (on tourists)

Monday, July 02, 2007 1:26 PM
On tourists in Barcelona : Why do they call it tourist season if you can't shoot them? Share this post: Email | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit
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The shock of slowing down

Monday, June 25, 2007 12:42 PM
This post by Leanne Shear makes some interesting observations on the cultural differences between the US and Europe, as typified by the café culture of Paris. Her solo sojourn in Paris has given her the opportunity to see life through a different lens,
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Random photo: two churches in Maastricht

Wednesday, June 20, 2007 10:40 PM
Dad and I have been to Maastricht, The Netherlands a couple of times. For both of us, it's become a favorite destination. The city is chock full of stuff to see, it's medieval core is largely intact, and there aren't that many tourists around. It's ideal
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The tenth and eleventh circles of Hell

Sunday, June 17, 2007 9:44 PM
Dante was wrong: Hell doesn't have nine circles, it has ten. The tenth one is named Heathrow Airport, and it is reserved for air travelers who've wronged the Universe somehow. Heathrow is by far the most poorly designed airport I've ever experienced.
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Today's episode of "Security Theater"

Friday, June 08, 2007 12:40 PM
As a consequence of post-9/11 fear mongering, we ended up with a new law that requires Americans traveling to Canada, Mexico, or the Caribbean to present a passport when re-entering the country. Lawmakers insisted that the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative
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Random photos: WW I battlefield at Verdun, France

Sunday, June 03, 2007 7:42 PM
Of all the wars in recorded history, World War I stands out as the most idiotic. It was completely preventable, it was fought for no good reason, and its unfinished business led to the rise of the Third Reich. One of the bloodiest battles of that awful
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Orbiting hotels

Monday, May 28, 2007 10:57 PM
Richard Branson is undeniably a gadfly, but this is just plain awesome , in the most awesome sense of the word: Virgin Galactic's chief operating officer revealed Friday at the National Space Society's 26th Annual International Space Development Conference
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Random photos: Temple of Olympian Zeus

Friday, May 25, 2007 4:40 PM
A friend and I visited Greece in November 2004, a couple of weeks after the Presidential election. Since the election dominated the news in Europe just like it did here, we heard the same question over and over from the locals: "What do you think about
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Random photos: The Eiffel Tower

Thursday, May 17, 2007 11:28 PM
In February 2005, totally on a whim, I went to Paris by myself for the weekend. I left Knoxville on a Friday afternoon, arrived in Paris Saturday morning, and returned Monday afternoon. The weather was brutally cold, and I was exhausted after I returned,
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Quiz: name every country in Europe in 5 minutes

Saturday, May 12, 2007 2:30 PM
Do you think you can name all 49 European countries (the continent, not the EU) in five minutes? Then take the quiz here , but start typing right away -- the clock starts ticking as soon as the page loads. I only missed one, and I'll name it in the comments
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Random photos: Hotel du Moulin, Bourscheid, Luxembourg

Friday, May 11, 2007 9:15 AM
In 2003, my Dad and I stayed for a few days at a wonderful hotel in Luxembourg called the Hotel du Moulin . Tucked away in a quiet corner of eastern Luxembourg, the hotel sits in a gorgeous, isolated valley below the ruins of the medieval castle of Bourscheid.
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Random photos: Muerren, Switzerland, the Schilthorn, and the ride of terror

Sunday, May 06, 2007 9:00 PM
In September 2005, I spent a week by myself in the Swiss Alps. Although Switzerland is indescribably beautiful, I had enough near-death experiences on that trip to become convinced that the country was trying to kill me -- not the adorable Swiss people,
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Random photo: Prague's Old Town Square

Tuesday, May 01, 2007 12:59 PM
By some miracle of history, Prague's medieval core has survived largely intact. Invasions, foreign dominations, wars, and half a century under Communist rule all passed with the city's ancient fabric more or less undisturbed. The Old City district (Stare
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Random photo: Copenhagen Central Station

Friday, April 27, 2007 8:32 AM
In 2003, my Dad and I took an epic three-week trip across Northern Europe, including a week in Copenhagen. Our hotel was a couple of blocks west of Copenhagen's central train station, pictured here ( Københavns Hovedbanegård , and please don't ask me
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Random photo: Epidaurus

Tuesday, April 24, 2007 4:46 PM
I have tons of photos, several thousand of which are online here . I think I should do something with them. I'm going to start a regular feature called Random Photo, in which I pick one photograph and blog about the scene it depicts. All of my photos
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