Thursday, April 10th Show Post

General Petraeus finished up his testimony on The Hill yesterday. Now where do we go with the Iraq War, and will any of the presidential candidates do anything different? The President goes before the nation at 11:30 to talk about Iraq. We'll have it for you on the show if there is time.

Is the president right to say he is going to the Olympics and Opening Ceremonies, while the Speaker, and Senator Clinton calls for a boycott of the ceremony?

More reactions to Jacque's blog will be on the show today including one from a lifelong soldier that will move you. We'll follow up on the Obama delegate who resigned because of calling two kids in a tree "monkeys." We'll continue to tell you why continued dialog on race cannot happen until the playing field of discussion is fair for all voices.

We'll share another e-mail about the 9/11 conspiracy theorists who think it was all planned by the bad guys (U.S.) That's us, and you can feel free to react as I will. Just a few of the items you can blog into today!

Don't forget to stop by WOW Cafe and Wingery, and take your computer along because of their free wi-fi. If you are not a "wing" man or woman, then you will find a great assortment of wonderful delicacies to check out, like fajitas, catfish and wraps. Enjoy the show today!

GS

News of the Robot Monkey Apocalypse

More news of the coming Robot Monkey Apocalypse from Danger Room:

To the growing menagerie of robotic pack mules, snakes, lobsters, and insects, you can now add another creature: this mechanical, headless monkey.

The Stanford-built robot, Capuchin, "carefully balances its weight across its arms and legs using force sensors in the tips of its limbs," New Scientist notes. That allows it to scale walls "around 40 times faster than an earlier climbing robot built by the team." NASA is hoping to send the thing to Mars one day.

The accompanying video make it clear that the Robot Monkey Apocalypse draws nigh.




Link to Headless Monkey-Bot Scales New Heights

Oi! What's on your mind this weekend?

Well, the weekend is here, and with that, our weekly question: What's on your mind this weekend? What happened this week that you'd like to discuss?

I know, I know -- you're too busy planning the festivities surrounding my hosting The Gary Sutton Show this Monday. And, I guess, St. Patrick's Day. But mostly for me, right? Right?

I figure we'll spend about three hours discussing the coming Robot Monkey Apocalypse.

Welcome, new international readers!

Whew, I have to lump a bunch of countries into one welcome post to keep up.

Welcome to our visitors from Ecuador, Spain, Malaysia, Singapore, India and Phillipines!

Ecuador raise your hand, please. Ecuador is the home of the Galapagos Islands where Charles Darwin did a lot of important work. Guinea pig ("cuy") is a popular dish in some regions there. Maybe you can bring some to share with the class on Show & Tell day.

Everyone here already knows Spain. Spain is a constitutional monarchy whose head of state is King Juan Carlos I, which is a pretty good gig if you can get it. No, class, not everyone can grow up to be the King of Spain. I bet he has a cool business card.

Malaysia is one of three countries that controls the Strait of Malacca. That's big-time strategic significance when you consider that about one-quarter of the world's traded goods (including oil) passes through the Strait (another source says 40%). Here's another fact: Piracy is a big problem there. Arrr, me hearties! Is that you snickering, Ecuador? Fine, you can write a two-page essay on piracy in the Strait of Malacca by Friday.

Singapore, don't think I don't see you hiding in the back. Stand up please. Class, did you know that Singapore is the 17th wealthiest country in the world in terms of GDP per capita? Singapore, if someone tries to take your lunch money at recess, report it to the nearest teacher.

India is home to over a billion people (making it the most populous democracy in the world) and some of the worst movies ever made. Trust me. Oh, and India also has the third largest military in the world, according to the CIA World Factbook. So don't try to take India's lunch money.

Ah, the Philipines. Class, pay attention to the Phillipines in Home Ec, because Filipinos know how to cook. I even had dinuguan, an alarming stew made out of pig's blood, and darned if it wasn't tasty. If you can make a tasty dish out of blood, I say that you know how to cook. Upon reflection, however, Yuengling Lager may have played a role there.

We're still missing two continents. I'm looking at you, Africa and Antarctica.

Maybe we need more penguin coverage to get Antarctica.

UPDATE: All six of these countries have monkeys. That means we are 6 for 6 today and all six countries meet our minimum standard for being cool (i.e., they have monkeys).

Welcome, Argentines!

Welcome to our Argentine readers!

Let's see, what are some interesting things about Argentina? Well, Wikipedia points out that UN data shows Argentina with the highest Human Development Index level and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in purchasing power parity in Latin America.

We also learn from the same Wikipedia article that illegal immigration is a concern in Argentina. "The Argentine government estimates that 750,000 inhabitants lack official documents ... ."

When it comes to notable people, does the name Jorge Luis Borges ring a bell?

Finally, do they meet my measure of a cool country? That is, do they have monkeys? Yes.