There are likely some red faces at Apple Computer. Apple took too long to file a patent on part of its blockbuster iPod music players, so Microsoft jumped in and beat Apple to it. Tech pundits are snickering at the prospect of Apple having to pay Bill Gates big royalties on the hugely popular iPods, which account for more than a third of Apple's revenue.

Patent law seems fairly muddy and I doubt Apple will ever give a dime to Gates relating to iPod sales, but this is still kinda funny.

Mixed Signals

Mark Noonan, at blogsforbush.com, says that the discovery of another planet in the solar system makes matters worse:

And this will make it more difficult for us to determine which one is sending the signals to our Democrats, but, at any rate, this is a fascinating story.

He later posits the name of the planet.

"Why don't we just give them ours? We're not using it any more." -John Derbyshire, on the writing of a constitution in Iraq:

Road Rage

Ukrainian President Yushchenko abolished the state road police Monday:

“I warned the ministers, three times, that if traffic cops kept hiding in the bushes with speed cameras, there will be no State Road Patrol Service in this country,” Yushchenko said at a meeting in the Interior Ministry. “You have discredited this agency. This is why I have made a decision that from now on, there will be no State Road Patrol Service in Ukraine,” the president said.

Funny stuff.

The future’s past

Powerline points out this article that was written after the President's speech, which hasn't yet been given.

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - President Bush on Tuesday appealed for the nation's patience for "difficult and dangerous" work ahead in Iraq, hoping a backdrop of U.S. troops and a reminder of Iraq's revived sovereignty would help him reclaim control of an issue that has eroded his popularity. In an evening address at an Army base that has 9,300 troops in Iraq, Bush was acknowledging the toll of the 27-month-old war. At the same time, he aimed to persuade skeptical Americans that his strategy for victory needed only time — not any changes — to be successful. Bush's repeated acknowledgment of death and difficulty came less than a month after Vice President Dick Cheney proclaimed the Iraq insurgency "in the last throes." Still, the president's overriding message was one of optimism. "The American people do not falter under threat, and we will not allow our future to be determined by car bombers and assassins," he said. Democrats and other critics said the country needed more specifics than Bush has been giving. "We just don't have a clue what the criteria for success is," said Rep. John Murtha (news, bio, voting record), D-Pa., a Vietnam combat veteran. "People are still willing to give the president time if he would just level with them."

And it's the bloggers that need regulation...

Your own medicine

Via GOPBloggers and freestarmedia.com:

Could a hotel be built on the land owned by Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter? A new ruling by the Supreme Court which was supported by Justice Souter himself itself might allow it. A private developer is seeking to use this very law to build a hotel on Souter's land. Justice Souter's vote in the "Kelo vs. City of New London" decision allows city governments to take land from one private owner and give it to another if the government will generate greater tax revenue or other economic benefits when the land is developed by the new owner. On Monday June 27, Logan Darrow Clements, faxed a request to Chip Meany the code enforcement officer of the Towne of Weare, New Hampshire seeking to start the application process to build a hotel on 34 Cilley Hill Road. This is the present location of Mr. Souter's home.

Looney-tunes Democrats (with evidence)

Patrick Ruffini wonders where Karl Rove got the idea that Democrats were soft on terrorism.

Call me crazy, but if you're trying to convince people that you're strong, moaning and wailing and running to the teacher like a 7-year old in the schoolyard might not be the best strategy. As is usually the case when liberals are under attack, the hysterical defensiveness of the response tells you volumes more than the original critique.

It's a very funny and enlightening post. Make sure to read it.

Los Angeles Mighty Ducks of Anaheim

ESPN reports that the Anaheim Mighty Ducks were sold today for $75 million. The new owners, Susan and Henry Samueli, have a sense of humor:

When the sale was announced, Samueli said he didn't intend to move the team and wouldn't change its name to Los Angeles Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.

Very good. It's also kinda funny that you can buy an NHL team for $75 million but, then again, it's a team that doesn't play hockey right now.

Voter Fraud

ScrappleFace reports that Howard Dean has uncovered massive Republican voter fraud:

"Thanks to their pale skin, round eyes and khaki trousers, Republicans just blend in," said Mr. Dean. "So they vote, get in the back of the line and vote again. And because they've never made an honest living in their lives, they could do that all day long."

Oh no, it’s Gitmo

James Lileks does it again with the screedblog. It's worth a read so as to understand why this Gitmo thing is so important to all of us. ALSO: this related post from Anchor Rising.