Votes Speak - If you're against the war, a MA resident and are upset that Kerry voted for the Bush War Powers Resolution, then Randall C. Forsberg may be the Democrat for you. If you want to send a message to Kerry, what better way than to write in Ms. Forsberg on election day? See:Randall C Forsberg, ballot demo for details.

I'm sick of voting for people who don't represent my interests, no matter what party they're from. I'm sick of the lesser of two evils. Once in a while a message needs to be sent that my vote cannot be taken for granted.

Make Your Own Bush Speech - Have you ever wanted to be the guy pulling Bush's strings? Well now you can! Write your own Bush Speech and hear him say it: Bush Speech Shockwave Fun.

Lesson For Today: Children Make Good Slave Labor - Common Dreams brings us the following story: For-Profit U.S. Schools Sell Off Their Textbooks which reveals the tribulations of one for-profit company which an area has given up its schools to. Hard times in the economy have resulted in some... economizing.

Days before classes were to begin in September, trucks arrived to take away most of the textbooks, computers, lab supplies and musical instruments the company had provided -- Edison had to sell them off for cash. Many students were left with decades-old books and no equipment.

And the best part, put the kids to work...

As a final humiliation, Chris Whittle, the company's charismatic chief executive and founder, recently told a meeting of school principals that he'd thought up an ingenious solution to the company's financial woes: Take advantage of the free supply of child labor, and force each student to work an hour a day, presumably without pay, in the school offices.

Really.

You Say It's Your Birthday... - Today's My Birthday! I'm now 35 years old. I remember the party my friends gathered together for when I turned 30. It seems like it was yesterday.

Saddam's Inbox hacked! - Via SlashDot: Wired News: Dear Saddam, How Can I Help?

Fruits of war -

Ananova - Iraq war 'will increase risk of terror attacks' A US-led war on Iraq would heighten the risk of further terrorist attacks by al-Qaida, according to a report.

The report by the Oxford Research Group warns the civilian death toll in Iraq would reach 10,000 from conventional warfare alone.

I suppose this research will fall on deaf ears, but it's been what many people have been saying all along. Kill 10,000 people and risk more terrorism for what?

Got Anti-Bush Sentiment? - If you need to quench your anti-Bush thirst, feat your eyes on the LinkCrusader's Anti-Bush Links. He's got everything there, from BuzzFlash to Smirking Chimp.

- Spirited Away - Took the kids to see Spirited Away this weekend. It's a film by Hayao Miyazaki, who also has directed a number of other popular anime such as Princess Mononoke, Kiki's Delivery Service and My Neighbor Totoro.

I saw Princess Mononoke when it was released to rental stores and I didn't quite connect with it. It didn't make a whole heck of a lot of sense to me. However, I really enjoyed Spirited Away, and so did my daughters. It's got a great plot which reminded me of The Wizard of Oz just a little bit, in that this young girl becomes lost and must get back to the world she knows. However, getting back is not all she has to do; she also has to save her parents from being permanently transformed into pigs and perhaps eaten.
This is a film full of imaginative characters and a persistent, brave female main character. It's no wonder it made quite an impression on my younger daughter.
I recommend the film for peope of all ages. It may be a little frightening for younger children, but Mattie is 4 and handled it fine.