Something Fun, Something Sad, Something Sickening...

A couple of themes emerge today in BlogPulse: fun stuff, some sad stories and more sickening news of journalists being paid by the Bush administration to promote issues under the guise of "objectivity."

First, the fun, and it comes from the Apple Computer People. First, a missing video marking the 20-year anniversay of the first Macintosh computer has been available on the Web for a few days now, and today it's joined by archived Apple ads from 1984 by cartoonist Matt Groening (of "The Simpsons" fame). Meanwhile, Engadget has some tips for turning Mac's new miniMac into a media center.

More fun: one of the newest asteroids is named after Douglas Adams, author/humorist responsible for the "Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy." Adams died in 2001, and his fans launched the campaign to get something space-related named after him.

For satire in its purest form, check out The Onion's one-year anniversary to the 2004 Super Bowl Nipplegate "tragedy."

From the sad department comes news of the California train crash that killed at least 11 people and injured more than 200 commuters. Juan Manuel Alvarez is one of today's' burstiest names in the Blogosphere because he's been charged with homicide in the crash: seems he intended to commit suicide, parked his SUV on the train tracks and then bolted from the car as the train approached, triggering a chain reaction involving three trains.

And sickening is the news that yet another conservative syndicated columnist -- Maggie Gallagher -- also was under contract to a Bush agency to both research and promote marriage issues in the Bush frame of mind. The Department of Health and Human Services paid her $21,500 for her "expertise." Which again raises the question: what other spokespeople/experts/journalists are on the Bush payroll for lip service? The Crooks and Liars blog is offering services (tongue in cheek, of course) for a little of the payola action.

Do you feel safer now? Blogger Michelle Malkin writes about a Sept. 11 victim who was just issued a green card by the Dept. of Homeland Security. Do our deployed soldiers feel safe? Wednesday was the deadliest day to date in Iraq. Personal note: when I heard the news of Wednesday helicopter crash, all I could think of was my son's high school friend, Joe. He's 19, loves rugby, paintball, and has the dubious distinction of being able to breath only through one nostril. He's now a U.S. Marine deployed somewhere in Iraq, and I think about him every day. Elsewhere, bloggers are covering this weekend's Iraqi elections. Anyone want to guess the nationwide turnout? Higher or lower than 20%?

BLOGPULSE TREND GRAPH OF THE DAY: Democracy in the Middle East is a hot topic. BLogPulse tracks discussion about Palestine-Israel, major Iraqi cities and election tactics.