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LET'S VOTE!Whoever Obama's paying to help him appear to be a Christian, to win the Evangelical vote...is doing a terrible job.  He should ask me for a few pointers.  First of all, "obscure reference in Romans" is a dead give away that he's never cracked a Bible.  "Evangelicals" love Romans.  They have it practically memorized.  -"obscure reference in Zephaniah" might have been more appropriate.  And, Obama, when you say things like, "Sin is...being out of alignment with my values."  That is a blaring siren of Biblical ignorance.  The Bible says, "Sin is being out of alignment with God's values."  That's like the...

Queen Victoria was undoubtedly one great World leader. She had NINE children. She had a very ill son, Leopold. Leopold was a hemophiliac and was always at risk for bleeding to death. He did as a young adult. Her son, Bertie, Prince of Wales was a wild man. He had the habit of sleeping with married women from his teens on. In times when sleeping with a married woman could get you killed. Victoria was always saving him from messes. Her husband died when her youngest was only 4 and several children were under 13. She raised them just fine....

Times may be tough, but there seems to be little chance of the bottom falling out of the market in Queen Victoria's underwear. Last month the nation was treated to the spectacle of her magnificent 50in waist bloomers being sold and now a pair of the monarch's black silk stockings is exciting collectors.

They are knickers fit for a queen..... and, given their size, possibly two. Able to accommodate a 50-plus inch waist, they belonged to Queen Victoria who doubtless would not be amused to see her undergarments - or her vital statistics - discussed in public. ........ But the forthcoming sale of the royal bloomers at an auction has refocused attention on Victoria's proportions, with experts saying their size adds weight to long-held theories that in later life her waistline had reached monumental proportions.

AUSTIN — The Texas Transportation Commission on Thursday selected San Antonio's Zachry Construction Corp. and a Spanish toll road developer to plan a superhighway from Texarkana to Brownsville. The $5 million contract calls for Zachry American Infrastructure and ACS Infrastructure to create a financial plan for the Interstate 69 segment of the Trans-Texas Corridor. "This team represents the best in the balance of local and global expertise necessary to complete a project of this scope," said David Zachry, chief operating officer of Zachry Construction Corp. The private developers' plan calls for seven new loops around Corpus Christi and other cities...

Romantic, passionate, tempestuous, and prone to potentially scandalous liaisons - all words that haven't often been attached to Queen Victoria in the past. Or at least, not as often as words such as buttoned up, repressed, dour and imperious. But this challenging new docu-drama - mixing comments from experts with dramatisations of key moments in Victoria's life and entries from her own diaries - insists that the popular image of Queen Victoria as the epitome of prudishness is way off the mark. "She was a doer, she was a goer," says Oscar-winning screenwriter and former Monarch of the Glen star...

Despite the uproar over the state's proposal to build Trans-Texas Corridor 69 through East Texas, Lufkin's mayor says he supports the highway — as long as it follows the path of the current U.S. Highway 59. The Trans Texas Corridor/I-69 project is a statewide network of transportation routes in Texas that will incorporate existing and new highways, railways and utility right-of-ways. Anyone wishing to comment on the proposed road can go online to www.keeptexasmoving.com. TxDOT has expanded its public comment period for TTC-69 to Friday, April 18. Gov. Rick Perry appointed Gorden, along with 17 other Texans, to an I-69...

As the state's population continues to grow in its urban centers, expansion plans for the highway system continue to be the focus for transportation improvements. The Trans Texas Corridor proposal is aimed to alleviate traffic congestion, improve air quality and provide safer traveling for drivers, among other goals. In 2002, Texas Governor Rick Perry released the plan to create the passageway, which spans northeast from Laredo to Oklahoma and is set to total 4,000 miles in the next 50 years. The $140 billion project calls for the incorporation of new toll roads, commuter railways, power lines and gas pipelines, while...

Officials with the Spanish toll road operator Cintra have announced that the company has secured $430 million in loans from the U.S. government to build and operate two segments of a toll road in central Texas. Cintra officials announced the company’s financial plan for the $1.36 billion Highway 130 segments on Monday, March 10. OOIDA Senior Government Affairs Representative Mike Joyce told Land Line that the Association does raise red flags when federal dollars are used to subsidize private investors. Officials with the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association are not, however, categorically opposed to a state using future toll revenue to...

Not one of the 11 East Texans who approached the podium at Wednesday's hearing on Interstate 69 voiced support for the planned highway. "This is highway robbery, and we should not pursue this project," said David Simpson, a Longview resident and fifth-generation Texan. "This process has bypassed the Constitution. It has bypassed the U.S. Congress, and I'm opposed to it because of the unconstitutional way that it has been pushed through." The public hearing, held at Maude Cobb Convention and Activity Center, was a chance for residents to comment and ask questions about Interstate 69/Trans-Texas Corridor. The corridor would extend...

The majority of residents from Walker and area counties made it clear Wednesday night how they feel about the proposed I-69/Trans-Texas Corridor. They are strongly opposed to it. An estimated 800 people took action on the controversial issue. The second town hall meeting in Huntsville, offering a chance for open dialogue between residents and the Texas Department of Transportation, took on a different tone than the initial meeting Jan. 23 at the Walker Education Center. With the main building at the Walker County Fairgrounds able to accommodate the large crowd, property owners and other residents expressed their dissatisfaction with Gov....

A deal could be in the works that might entice Kansas City Southern railroad to bypass Victoria. “I hate to put odds on it happening,” Victoria Mayor Will Armstrong said. “We’d like to work with them, but we want some more information.” Kansas City Southern, which is rebuilding the out-of-service line between Victoria and Rosenberg, asked the city for help in acquiring a construction yard, Armstrong said. The city responded by saying it would consider doing that in exchange for the railroad bypass south of Victoria so trains would not have to go through the heart of the city. Armstrong...

When the Texas Department of Transportation begins work on the I-69/Trans Texas Corridor, the U.S. 77 leg from Victoria to Brownsville will be developed first. Cameron County Commissioners revealed the information during Tuesday’s Cameron County Commissioners Court meeting. County officials received the news from the state’s Turnpike Authority Division on Monday. In a letter to Cameron County, Turnpike Authority Division Director Phillip E. Russell said, TXDOT has identified U.S. 77 as “high priority� and the “first near term facility to be developed under the I-69/TTC Comprehensive Development Agreement.� The U.S. 77 Highway runs from Victoria to Brownsville. Precinct 3 Commissioner...

THOUSANDS of Victorians are waiting more than 24 hours - in some cases longer than five days - on hospital trolleys before they can get a bed in a ward. Figures obtained by Fairfax newspapers show the bed shortage is creating a logjam across the public system. About 2700 patients are waiting longer than a day in emergency departments in the past financial year. The Brumby Government's target reveals no patient should spend longer than 24 hours in emergency before being admitted to a ward. And 57 patients were in an emergency department for three days or longer, the figures...

NASA's Mars rover Opportunity is making its way into a giant impact crater to learn more about the Red Planet's geologic past. Engineers sent commands to Opportunity to drive into Victoria Crater and received a confirmation signal from the rover. It will be several hours before NASA knows how well the drive went. Opportunity is expected to drive all six wheels into the crater and back out before making the full plunge several days from now. The drive comes two months after a massive Martian dust bowl kept Opportunity and its twin Spirit hunkered down to conserve energy.

Double VC for Afghan heroes First officer to receive citation since Falklands by MARK NICOL - More by this author » Last updated at 00:27am on 2nd September 2007  Two British soldiers from the same battalion have been nominated for the Victoria Cross in recognition of their incredible bravery in the face of the enemy.  The citations for Britain's highest gallantry award came after the men were involved in fierce fighting against the Taliban in Afghanistan. The first is Captain David Hicks – who would become the first officer to win the VC since Falklands hero Lieutenant-Colonel Herbert 'H'...

The future of an interstate planned to run through Victoria appears murkier than ever. Harris County, a key point along the proposed Interstate 69 route, pulled out of the I-69 Alliance in mid-May. In an article in the May 15 Houston Chronicle, Bill Murphy and Rad Sallee wrote that Harris County pulled out of the I-69 Alliance after county commissioners decided too much was spent annually in membership costs. The county hopes that a bill in legislation right now is passed, because it would give them access to build a toll road as part of the Trans-Texas Corridor parallel to...

VICTORIA will join one of the world's largest economies to tackle global warming. Victorian Premier Steve Bracks and Californian Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed a historic climate change agreement on Friday. The two state governments agreed to work together to develop emissions trading schemes, clean energy technology and conduct economic assessments of climate change. The leaders, from different sides of the political divide, signed a memorandum of understanding for the two governments after a meeting in Los Angeles. Mr Bracks said state governments were now leaders in driving climate change solutions. "Governor Schwarzenegger has been a leader in the United States...

Amid the deaths and the grim daily struggle bravely borne by Britain's forces in southern Iraq, one tale of heroism stands out. Private Johnson Beharry's courage in rescuing an ambushed foot patrol then, in a second act, saving his vehicle's crew despite his own terrible injuries earned him a Victoria Cross. For the BBC, however, his story is "too positive" about the conflict. The corporation has cancelled the commission for a 90-minute drama about Britain's youngest surviving Victoria Cross hero because it feared it would alienate members of the audience opposed to the war in Iraq. The BBC's retreat from...

Texas’ largest farm organization is once again describing the Trans Texas Corridor (TTC) as a disaster for farming and ranching operations that lie in the potential path of the TTC and a major mistake for Texas itself. The Texas Farm Bureau is also discovering that there are many allies in opposing the massive highway project, some of them members of the Texas Legislature. “Our members are overwhelmingly opposed to the Trans Texas Corridor,” says TFB President Kenneth Dierschke, a grain and cotton farmer from San Angelo. “There’s never been any doubt that the impact on agriculture would be negative, but...

? 2007 WorldNetDaily.com Texas farmers are stepping up their opposition to the Trans-Texas Corridor, a massive highway project that ultimately could take about half a million acres of the state out of agricultural production ? and according to opponents possibly hasten the advent of a North American Union. "Our members are overwhelmingly opposed to the Trans-Texas Corridor," said Farm Bureau President Kenneth Dierschke, a grain and cotton farmer from San Angelo. "There's never been any doubt that the impact on agriculture would be negative, but now we see a growing number of people who believe the TTC would be bad...

Mel Gibson to play Polish King?! Reports have emerged that Mel 'Madmax' Gibson has been approached to play King Jan Sobieski in an epic movie about the 1683 Siege of Vienna. Wroclaw-based producer Mariusz Bielak would like Gibson to both star in and direct the picture, and he is optimistic that the Australian maverick will come on board: 'All the signs show that he is interested in this project and its theme', Bielak was quoted as saying in Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza. "It's his cup of tea.' The film, which has a working title of Victoria (The Victory), is being...

The great, great, great grandson of Queen Victoria, empress of India, surprisingly, set foot in India for the first time on October 29, 2006 at the age of 46. Prince Andrew, Duke of York -- whose brother, Prince Charles and parents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, have been fairly frequent vistors to India -- arrived in this country with the special mission of giving Indo-UK trade a boost. Andrew's first dekko at Hindustan was very focused and all business. It lacked the drama that greeted Prince Charles when the then budding actress Padmini Kolhapure kissed him...

‘Pakistani terror suspect had bomb plans’ SYDNEY: A Pakistani-born man accused of planning terrorist attacks had maps of Australia’s power grid, aerial photographs of defence installations and bomb-making instructions in his possession when he was arrested, a court was told here on Tuesday. Architect Faheem Khalid Lodhi, 34, was also alleged in October 2001 to have acted “in an apparent official capacity” at a training camp in Lahore, operated by the banned terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba. “The camp specialised in urban warfare,” prosecutor Richard Maidment told Sydney’s Central Local Court at the opening of a committal hearing to decide if there...

MOTHER and father may be dirty words in the schools of the future. According to a new teaching manual, children should be told to substitute the words parents and carers out of respect for families with gay parents. In a case of so-called political correctness gone mad, teachers are urged to display pictures of notable homosexuals and lesbians around schools. The manual, Learn to Include, is said to be gaining popularity in the teaching fraternity in Victoria. Though the manual is not endorsed by the State Government, its author, Vicki Harding, has been invited to promote her views at a...

As noted before in this space, the Victoria Advocate has serious reservations about Gov. Rick Perry's Trans-Texas Corridor. But one part of the proposal, as The Associated Press describes it, "to build 4,000-plus miles of tollways and railways that would incorporate oil and gas pipelines, utility and water lines, and even broadband data" does make considerable sense. The state's main north-south thoroughfare, running from the Red River north of Gainesville to Laredo on the Rio Grande, is already badly congested. And because it runs through the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, Austin and San Antonio, Interstate 35 can only become more crowded....

Truly, reality has come full circle, as Indymedia unwittingly imitates Little Green Footballs: Rachel Corrie Pancake Breakfast. (Hat tip: IDF Dave.) No, it’s not a joke. The Rachel Corrie Memorial Committee of Victoria Invites you to a pancake breakfast at Denny’s Restaurant Sunday March 12 , 2006 10 am. The Public is invited to a memorial pancake breakfast at Denny’s Restaurant on Douglas Street near Finlayson, 10 am, Sunday March 12, 2006 to celebrate the life and untimely death of Rachel Corrie, Peace Activist with the International Solidarity Movement. There will be a reading of selections from Ms. Corrie’s letters...

Uganda 'draining Lake Victoria' Lake Victoria is an economic lifeline for many East Africans Uganda has been taking more water than agreed from Lake Victoria to generate power, accounting for half of the drop in the lake's levels, a report says. Uganda and Tanzania have blamed drought for recent power cuts because of lower hydro-electric output. But water engineer Daniel Kull says the drought has caused only half of the drop in Lake Victoria's water levels - which are the lowest in 80 years. Analysts have warned of conflict, as East African nations compete for water. 'Pulling the plug' Mr...

TEN alleged terrorists were on hunger strike in a Victorian prison in protest over a refusal to allow them to pray together. The men, devout Muslims who are being held in solitary confinement for 23 hours a day in the maximum security Barwon Prison at Lara, began the hunger strike this week. The 10, arrested in pre-dawn raids in November, are facing charges of being members of a terrorist organisation Their lawyer, Rob Stary, said they had not been allowed to pray together. He said the men wanted to hold a short prayer service on Friday afternoons. "They just want...

At the behest of Muslim bigots and multiculturalist fanatics the Bracks Government suspended free speech in Victoria by imposing a blasphemy law dressed up as an anti-vilification law. This has given Islamo-fascists a freehand to attack critics of Islam. In a ruthless attempt to intimidate critics Muslim fanatics reported two pastors to Diane Sisely, the Equal Opportunity Commission boss, for criticising the Koran. This enemy of free speech and her fellow Stalinoids on the commission then launched proceedings against the pastors for exercising their fundamental and inalienable right to free speech. So far these pastors have had to pony up...

EVERY Victorian school and kindergarten has been officially told: don't ban Christmas celebrations. Premier Steve Bracks yesterday gave his official encouragement for nativity scenes, carols and other Christian traditions. Jingle Bells can ring in classrooms around the state again after several schools banned nativity scenes and carol singing last year for fear of offending non-Christian children. Mr Bracks told the Herald Sun the Government would send a message to every primary and secondary school reminding them not to ban Christmas. "All schools and kindergartens should be able to have nativity plays and Christian celebrations," Mr Bracks said. "Those who don't...

ONE of Victoria's cutest tourist attractions is up for adoption: the little penguin population of Phillip Island. For $75, adoptive parents can have a personalised thank you card from their new addition and automatic membership of the Penguin Foundation. Foundation chairman John Laurie said every cent raised by the adoption program and other donations would be used to help little penguins (formerly known as fairy penguins). "Although our penguins are healthy and in good numbers, the local penguin population is incredibly fragile and there is still more to be learnt about their behaviour and life cycles," Mr Laurie said. "Australia's...

Democrat leaders and editorialists accusing Karl Rove of treason for referring to CIA agent Valerie Plame in an off-the-record interview are ignorant of the law, according to the Washington attorney who spearheaded the legislation at the center of the controversy. Vanity Fair photo - (do they look angry about her "outing?") Plame's circumstances don't meet several of the criteria spelled out in a 1982 statute designed not only to protect the identity of intelligence agents but to maintain the media's ability to hold government accountable, Victoria Toensing told WorldNetDaily. Toensing – who drafted the legislation in her role as chief...

NEW DELHI: Gallantry awards are the ultimate badge of honour for any Army regiment or battalion. It’s a matter of the paltan’s izzat (battalion’s honour), as they say in Army parlance. But this particular medal has made its way to a battalion after a good 88 years. The battalion, 7th Light Cavalry (earlier called 28th Light Cavalry), is popping the bubbly these days after getting the medal, a Victoria Cross no less, even if it’s a replica of the original. The original Victoria Cross will, however, remain with the battalion which has had it all this time, the 2nd Lancers...

35 people have been found; two other vehicles were stopped Thursday GOLIAD - As of Friday afternoon in Goliad County, 35 suspected illegal immigrants were located and taken to safety, while the number of those being sought continues to grow. After a search began Thursday morning when an estimated 85 illegals jumped from a three-vehicle caravan and fled into the brush, a fourth vehicle was stopped around 5 p.m. Thursday, and still another late that night, leaving officials to believe that between 71 and 76 people are still hiding in the county, Sheriff Robert DeLaGarza said Friday. So far, officials...

THE Victorian police union has flagged industrial action as part of a push for all frontline officers to be issued with semi-automatic pistols. The Police Association also today condemned any attempt by police command to wind back the issue of guns to operational members. Workplace delegates at a meeting in Melbourne today unanimously endorsed the introduction of semi-automatic weapons and expressed outrage at a proposal to go before Victoria Police's corporate committee tomorrow to remove weapons from some members. But senior police said the association was over-reacting, and there were no plans to disarm operational members. Association secretary Sen Sgt...

Our police are supposed to uphold the law, but they're more concerned with New Age sensitivity and the rights of aggressors. PHILIP McCartney had just had his head punched and cab smashed by cyclists of the far-Left Critical Mass as they blocked a city intersection. So, badly shaken and with his vest torn, the 58-year-old Parkville taxi driver was sure glad to see a policeman ride up on his bicycle. He won't be that naive again. "I thought police were supposed to uphold the law," he told me, genuinely puzzled, after being found guilty last month of dangerous driving and...

Should Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld stay or leave his office? Stay Leave Don't know Don't care Other Stay 55% Leave 41% Don't know 1% Don't care 3% Other 0% Total Votes : 471

(excerpt follows)... Verdict in 'Vilifying Islam' Case Exposes Christian Fault LinesBy Patrick Goodenough CNSNews.com International Editor December 20, 2004 Pacific Rim Bureau (CNSNews.com) - An Australian state tribunal's finding that two pastors had vilified Muslims looks set to widen the divide in the country's Christian community between liberal mainstream church representatives who lauded the ruling and evangelicals who argued that it constituted a dangerous threat to free speech and freedom to evangelize. Critics of the tribunal decision in the state of Victoria called for the repeal of the controversial legislation that made it possible. BIG SNIP Another irony was seen...

WE are so often told we're racist, that I hope you won't mind again hearing the latest proof that we're not. This week's evidence is John So's runaway win in the popular vote for the lord mayor of Melbourne. Here's a Chinese man, whose English has been chopped up for soup, winning more votes than the Anglo also-rans combined. Strange, the harder So tries to speak clear English -- and fails -- the more voters love him. Or not strange. So's struggles show him clearly doing all most Australians have wanted from migrants -- trying to fit in, no matter...

Some Victorian nursing homes have become "grey light zones" with prostitutes visiting elderly clients for sex. Aged care and sex industry figures said it was a common practice in public and private nursing homes to sneak "escorts" in. Some homes set aside special sex rooms. Anna Priamo, a nursing supervisor at an inner-city nursing home, said frisky patients who harassed nurses were referred to a doctor who might arrange for a prostitute to visit them. "It's not something we put in our brochure," Ms Priamo said. "(The residents) might ask for it or if they make smarmy comments to nurses...

Swords will become prohibited weapons from July 1, carrying penalties of up to $12,000 or six months in prison for illegal use or possession, the Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Andre Haermeyer said today. Mr Haermeyer announced new sword regulations today, saying they would assist Victoria Police to crack down on incidents involving swords. "The Bracks Government is implementing these new regulations to help Victoria Police overcome this culture of young people arming themselves with swords," Mr Haermeyer said. "From July 1, swords will be made prohibited weapons, making it illegal to use, possess or carry a sword." Mr...

Okay, okay... I know this is late for The Birthday, but I just received it.  I checked snopes and they don't seem to have it yet.  The e-mail came from a woman whose brother went to high school with Bum at French High School (Beaumont, Tx), so I'm thinking he really wrote it.  It sure sounds like him, anyway.  Does anyone know him personally so we can verify? HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TEXAS -- FROM BUM PHILLIPS  Being Texan by Bum PhillipsDear Friends,   Last year, I wrote a small piece about what it means to me to be a Texan. My...

Victoria pilot breaks transcontinental record for small planes A rather ordinary looking little airplane rolls to a stop on the runway at Victoria Regional Airport and a rather ordinary looking gentleman, gray-haired and bespectacled, slides back the plane's canopy and steps out onto the wing. No dashing Lucky Lindy in a bomber jacket and a flapping aviator's helmet, he's wearing a businessman's long-sleeved button-down, slacks and loafers. He could be your grandfather or mine going to a friend's on Sunday for a companionable game of dominos on the porch. But the news release just issued by the National Aeronautic Association...

Link post, to allow interested parties to find the posted thread in the Chat section of FR, where any discussion should take place: Geology Pictures of the Week, September 21-27 and September 28-October 4, 2003

PETA (people for the ethical treatment of animals) has done some outrageous things in the name of getting more donations, so they can keep their jobs and organization viable. Things like writing and publicizing a letter to Yassir Arafat asking him to make sure that he sees to it that the next suicide bomber not set off his bomb near animals, and just aim to kill people. PETA is also famous for offering various cities across the globe 10 to 15 thousand dollars to change their name from Hamburg to a more vegetable sounding name. PETA people have even attacked...

Shooting at LAX, several injured....