Is Tweeting Getting Out of Hand? (And What is Tweeting, Anyway?)

If people talking on cell phones incessantly has caused a stir in society, tweeting is taking it to a whole new level. "Tweeting," in case you're not yet addicted to it, is the sending of short messages on the communications software Twitter. (The messages are called "tweets.")

Tweeting can be addictive, whether it's talking to friends or following celebrities who tweet, and that addictiveness is where some people feel it's gone too far. Prosecutors and police have cited numerous cases about jurors using Twitter (and other devices, like Web-enabled cell phones) to research information on a case on their own, in violation of judges' instructions not to discuss or investigate the case.

And just last week we heard of the first known case of an NBA basketball player tweeting during a game (though during halftime). Charlie Villanueva of the Milwaukee Bucks sent a tweet from the locker room during a game saying "Coach wants more toughness. I gotta step up." At least is was a positive message (as opposed to celebrity gossip), but the Coach was not impressed and has made the locker room a No-Tweeting zone.

Expect to see No-Tweeting rules in courtrooms, schools, and workplaces.

PETA Wants to Make Tofu Flavored with George Clooney's Sweat

Yes, you read that correctly. Apparently a towel that George Clooney used at a gym has been passed on to PETA, which wants to make tofu that uses Clooney's sweat as a flavoring.

According to an article in the L.A. Times, PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has written to Clooney asking his permission to use his sweat for tofu. It seems its possible to use sweat, which has its own "odor profile" for each person, as a flavoring.

The letter tells the actor that they want to turn his sweat into "George Clooney-flavored tofu (CloFu). We could do that and give the tofu away."

PETA, which recently has attracted publicity for re-branding fish as "sea kittens" to create sympathy for the wet scaly critters, goes on to say in its letter to the actor that while Clooney's fans would "swoon" at the idea of eating "CloFu," the group's main interest is to get people to eat tofu.
Clooney's response to the offer, as relayed to the Washington Post: "As a mammal, I'm offended."

Obama Nominates Locke for Commerce Post (Here's Why It Should Have Been *John* Locke)

The news reports are buzzing across the wires today: "Obama nominates Locke for commerce secretary." Now, the assumption is being made that he's talking about Gary Locke, the former governor of Washington State, but if Obama really wants to think outside the box, I have a modest proposal to make: Obama should choose the other Locke: JOHN Locke from "Lost."

Sure, John Locke has never held elective office, but you can't say he doesn't have political experience. (And don't tell him what he can't do, or else you might get a knife in the back!) Let's look at his substantial achievements over the last four-plus seasons. In this time he has:

* gone face-to-face with the Smoke Monster... and lived to tell about it!
* fixed the time-warping Frozen Donkey Wheel!
* effectively interfaced with people (and other entities) of all backgrounds, from department store customers to Losties, Tailies, the Others, and the Other Others
* earned the trust of his higher-ups including Ben, Jacob, Richard Alpert, and Christian Shephard
* has pulled himself up by his bootstraps (literally), going from a physically challenged wheelchair-bound sad sack to a hard-charging leader of the Others
* served effectively as a clerk in a major cardboard-box manufacturer
* shown loyalty and sacrifice by giving one of his kidneys to his lying, scheming, fat-cat, bird-hunting, threw-his-son-out-a-window father

And, of course, John Locke is, like Pres. Obama, a self-professed "man of faith."

If the president is looking for unique qualifications and wants to really "reach across the aisle (isle)," he'll choose John Locke as commerce secretary.

Stock Market Sags - We're Gonna Party Like It's 1997!

As of Monday, Feb. 23, the U.S. stock market has sunk to lows not seen since 1997. So in honor of this 12-year low and the vaporization of bazillions of dollars of wealth, let's look back at some events that occurred in 1997:

* Bill Clinton inaugurated for second term as U.S. President. Cigars and sex scandal to follow.

* Green Bay Packers win Super Bowl 31, their first since 1967. And Brett Favre had another decade-plus to play.

* O.J. Simpson found liable for the deaths of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman in a civil court. (Years later The Juice would get his butt thrown in jail again for armed robbery... doesn't this guy ever learn?)

* the investment banks Morgan Stanley and Dean Witter Reynolds merge. How quaint... back when banking companies were growing instead of imploding!

* The English Patient wins Best Picture at the Academy Awards. People still watched the Oscars back then.

* the U.K. Labour Party wins election, ending 18 years of rule by the Tories. Tony Blair becomes Prime Minister and enjoys popular support. It was not to last.

* IBM's computer Deep Blue defeats Garry Kasparov in a chess match. Deep Blue gets drunk at a party and makes a pass as Karparov's girlfriend, so Karparov shoots and kills the machine.

* Steve Jobs returns to Apple Computer. More than a decade later he's lost hair and weight, but is still wearing the same damn black turtleneck and blue jeans.

* Princess Diana is killed in a car crash in France. Camilla Parker-Bowles marries Prince Charles years later. Britain harnesses the Prince's ears as a source of wind power.

R.I.P. Socks the Cat, Former First Feline

Socks the Cat takes a question from the press

Socks the Cat, the First Feline during the Clinton administration, has died. The former First Cat was put to sleep on Friday. Socks was 20 years old and was reported to be suffering from throat cancer.

Socks was rescued as a stray by Chelsea Clinton, Bill and Hillary's daughter, and lived with them in the Arkansas governor's mansion and then ascended to be the nation's First Cat when Bill Clinton was elected president.

Although Socks maintained the demeanor of a regular house cat, government insiders said that Socks had a keen knowledge of history and foreign policy, and was in fact the main architect of the Dayton peace accords that ended the war in the former Yugoslavia. Socks received many cards and letters from around the world, but for national security reasons was allowed to answer only with card containing a simple note and a paw print.

Socks wrote several books under various pseudonyms, including "Feral Cats in the Late Ottoman Empire" and "Mouse Catching Evolution and Practice in the Colonial American Agrarian Economy."

After the Clintons left the White House, Socks was cared for by Betty Currie, Bill Clinton's longtime secretary, and was said to be an advisor to Hillary Clinton in her run for the White House last year.

The final wishes of Socks the Cat are unknown at this time.

Woman Goes Crazy After Missing Her Flight - VIDEO

Here is the famous "woman goes crazy after missing her flight" video. A woman at the Hong Kong airport misses her flight and goes absolutely bonkers, wailing and screaming, pounding on the counter and the ticket machine, and even throwing a tantrum on her back on the floor. OK, many of us have probably felt like reacting as she did... but unlike this lady, we had the good sense and self-control not to act it out.

This isn't just a quick "Damn! I missed the plane!"; this woman's tirade goes on for a full three minutes. Maybe airport staff should have tried to calm her down by promising her an extra packet of honey-roasted nuts on the next flight.