#848 JURY DUTY- DO NOT DELETE WITHOUT READING

Thanks, Orv. I posted this as post #324 November 28, 2007. It is worth  repeating.

Pass this on to your grown children and anyone else you can think of. This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below). Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book. It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call. Most of us take a summons for jury duty seriously, but enough people skip out on their civic duty that a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced.

The caller claims to be a jury DUTY coordinator. If you protest that you never received a summons for jury duty, the Scammer asks you for your Social Security number and date of birth so he or she can verify the information and cancel the arrest warrant. Give out any of this information and bingo; your identity was just stolen.

The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states, includingOklahoma , Illinois , andColorado , AZ and more. This (swindle) is particularly insidious because they use intimidation over the phone to try to bully people into giving information by pretending they are with the court system.

The FBI and the federal court system have issued nationwide alerts on their web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.  Check it out here:
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/june06/jury_scams060206.htm

And here:

http://www.snopes.com/crime/fraud/juryduty.asp

Yep! It's true

#848

#647 TIPS ON PUMPING GAS

Thanks, Grier.

I don't know what you guys are paying for gasoline.... but here in California we are also paying higher, up to $3.50 per gallon. But my line of work is in petroleum for about 31 years now, so here are some tricks to get more of your money's worth for every gallon..

Here at the Kinder Morgan Pipeline where I work in San Jose, CA we deliver about 4 million gallons in a 24-hour period thru the pipeline. One day is diesel the next day is jet fuel, and gasoline, regular and premium grades. We have 34-storage tanks here with a total capacity of 16,800,000 gallons.

Only buy or fill up your car or truck in the early morning when the ground temperature is still co ld. Remember that all service stations have their storage tanks buried below ground. The colder the ground the more dense the gasoline, when it gets warmer gasoline expands, so buying in the afternoon or in the evening....your gallon is not exactly a gallon. In the petroleum business, the specific gravity and the temperature of the gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, ethanol and other petroleum products plays an important role.

A 1-degree rise in temperature is a big deal for this business. But the service stations do not have temperature compensation at the pumps.

When you're filling up do not squeeze the trigger of the nozzle to a fast mode. If you look you will see that the trigger has three (3)stages: low, middle, and high. In slow mode you should be pumping on low speed, thereby minimizing the vapors that are creat ed while you are pumping. All hoses at the pump have a vapor return. If you are pumping on the fast rate, some other liquid that goes to your tank becomes vapor. Those vapors are being sucked up and back into the underground storage tank so you're getting less worth for your money.

One of the most important tips is to fill up when your gas tank is HALF FULL or HALF EMPTY. The reason for this is, the more gas you have in your tank the less air occupying its empty space. Gasoline evaporates faster than you can imagine. Gasoline storage tanks have an internal floating roof. This roof serves as zero clearance between the gas and the atmosphere, so it minimizes the evaporation. Unlike service stations, here where I work, every truck that we load is temperature compensated so that every gallon is actually the exact amount.

Another reminder, if there is a gasoline truck pumping into the storage tanks when you stop to buy gas, DO NOT fill up--most likely the gasoline is being stirred up as the gas is being delivered, and you might pick up some of the dirt that normally settles on the bottom. Hope this will help you get the most value for your money.

DO SHARE THESE TIPS WITH OTHERS!

WHERE TO BUY USA GAS, THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO KNOW. READ ON

Gas rationing in the 80's worked even though we grumbled about it. It might even be good for us! The Saudis are boycotting American goods. We should return the favor.

An interesting thought is to boycott their GAS.

Every time you fill up the car, you can avoid putting more money into the coffers of Saudi Arabia. Just buy from gas companies that don't import their oil from the Saudis.

Nothing is more frustrating than the feeling that every time I fill-up the tank, I am sending my money to people who are trying to kill me, my family, and my friends.

I thought it might be interesting for you to know which oil companies are the best to buy gas from and which major companies import Middle Eastern oil.

These companies import Middle Eastern oil:

Shell........................... 205,742,000 barrels

Che vron/Texaco......... 144,332,000 barrels

Exxon/Mobil............... 130,082,000 barrels

Marathon/Speedway... 117,740,000 barrels

Amoco............................62,231,000 barrels

Citgo gas is from South America, from a Dictator who hates Americans. If you do the math at $30/barrel, these imports amount to over $18 BILLION! (oil is now $90 - $100 a barrel

Here are some large companies that do not import Middle Eastern oil:

Sunoco..................0 barrels

Conoco................. .0 barrels

Sinclair..................0 barrels

BP/Phillips.............0 barrels

Hess......................0 barrels

ARC0.....................0 barrels

If you go to Sunoco.com <; , you will get a list of the station locations near you.

All of this information is available from the Department of Energy and each is required to state where they get their oil and how much they are importing.

But to have an impact, we need to reach literally millions of gas buyers. It's really simple to do.

Now, don't wimp out at this point.... keep reading and I'll explain how simple it is to reach millions of people!!

I'm sending this note to about thirty people. If each of you send it to at least ten more (30 x 10 = 300)...and those 300 send it to at least ten more (300 x 10 = 3,000) .. and so on, by the time the message reaches the sixth generation of people, we will have reached over THREE MILLION consumers !!!!!!! If those three million get excited and pass this on to ten friends each, then 30 million people will have been contacted!

If it goes one level further, you guessed it ..... THREE HUND RED MILLION PEOPLE!!!

Again, all you have to do is send this to 10 people. How long would all that take?

#647

#635 Some common sense warnings

I "borrowed" these from Merle. These warnings may or may not be true. I did not check them with snopes.com. Feel free to do so. They just make a lot of sense. They are not intended to panic anyone, just to have you think whenever you are out alone. Thanks, Merle and Lorraine..

Because of recent abductions -- some words of warning.
My friend Lorraine sent me this one. Thanks, Lorraine.

In daylight hours, refresh yourself of these things to do in an emergency....
This is for you to share with your wife, your children and everyone you know. After reading these 9 crucial tips, share them with others.

It never hurts to be careful in this crazy world we live in.

1. Tip from Tae Kwon Do:
The elbow is the strongest part on your body If you are close enough, use it.

2. Learned this one from a tourist guide. If a robber asks for your purse or wallet. DO NOT HAND IT TO HIM.

Toss it away from you. . . .Chances are he is more interested in your wallet or purse than you, and he will go for it.

RUN LIKE MAD IN THE OTHER DIRECTION.

3. If you are ever thrown in the trunk of a car, kick out the tail light and stick your hand out of the hole and start waving like crazy. The driver won't see you, but everybody else will. This has saved lives.

4. Women have a tendency to get in their cars after shopping, eating or working, etc, and just sit (doing their chequebooks, or making a list etc.)

DON'T DO THIS !
The predator will be watching you, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to get in on the passenger side, put a gun to your head, and tell you where to go. AS SOON AS YOU GET IN THE CAR---
LOCK THE DOORS AND LEAVE.

If someone is in the car with a gun to your head. DO NOT DRIVE OFF. Repeat: DO NOT DRIVE OFF.

Instead Gun the Engine. and speed into anything, wrecking the car. YOUR AIRBAG will save you. If the person is in the back seat, they will get the worst of it. As soon as the car crashes, Bail out and run.

It is better than having them find your body in a remote location.

5. A few notes about getting into your car in a parking lot or garage.

A. Be aware: Look around you. Look into your car, at the passenger side floor and in the back seat.

B. If you are parked next to a big van, enter your car from the passenger door. Most serial killers attack their victims by pulling them into their vans while the women are attempting to get into their cars.

C. Look at the car parked on the driver's side. . . If a male is sitting alone in the seat nearest your car; you may want to walk back into the mall or work and get a guard/policeman to walk you back out.

IT IS ALWAYS BETTER TO BE SAFE THAN SORRY!
And better paranoid than dead.

6, ALWAYS take the elavator instead of the stairs. Stairwells are horrible places to be alone and the perfect crime spot.
Especially at NIGHT.

7. If the predator has a gun and you are not under his control, ALWAYS RUN. The predator will only hit you (a running target) 4 in 100 times; and even then it most likely WILL NOT be a vital organ. RUN. Preferably in a zig zag pattern.

8. As women, we are always trying to be sympathetic: STOP.

It may get you raped, or killed. Ted Bundy, the serial killer, was a good looking well educated man, who ALWAYS played on the sympathies of unsuspecting women. He walked with a cane, or a limp. and often asked 'for help' into his vehicle or with his vehicle, which is when he abducted his next victim.

9. Another Safety Point:

Someone just told me that her friend heard a crying baby on her porch the night before last and she called Police because it was late and she thought it was weird.The police told her--"Whatever you do, DO NOT open the door."

The lady then said that it sounded like the baby had crawled near a window and she was worried that it would crawl to the street and get run over.

The policeman said, "We already have a unit on the way, whatever you do, DO NOT open the door. He told her that they think a serial killer has a baby's cry recorded and uses it to coax women out of their homes thinking that someone dropped off a baby.

He said they had not verified it but have had several calls from women saying that they heard a baby crying outside their homes when they're home alone at night.

10. Water scam.

If you wake up in the middle of the night to hear all your taps outside running or what you think is a burst pipe. DO NOT GO OUT TO INVESTIGATE. These people turn on all your outside taps on full, so that you will go out to investigate and then attack.

Stay alert , keep safe, and look out for your neighbors.

This e mail should be taken seriously because the CRYING BABY theory was mentioned on America's Most Wanted when they profiled a serial killer in Louisiana.




#635

#584 Privacy risks of electronics

Thanks, Ted and Priscilla for this email. While it may not be entirely true, it does give one pause. There are Snopes links to gain further information.


GPS
A couple of weeks ago a friend told me that someone she knew had their car broken into while they were at a football match. Their car was parked on the green which was adjacent to the football stadium and specially allotted to football fans. Things stolen from the car included a garage door remote control, some money and a GPS which had been prominently mounted on the dashboard.

When the victims got home, they found that their house had been ransacked and just about everything worth anything had been stolen.

The thieves had used the GPS to guide them to the house. They then used the garage remote control to open the garage door and gain entry to the house. The thieves knew the owners were at the football game, they knew what time the game was scheduled to finish and so they knew how much time they had to clean up the house.
It would appear that they had brought a truck to empty the house of its contents.

GPS Burglary Citation:
http://www.snopes.com/crime/intent/gps.asp

MOBILE PHONE I never thought of this...

This lady has now changed her habit of how she lists her names on her mobile phone after her handbag was stolen. Her handbag, which contained her cell phone, credit card, wallet...etc...was stolen. 20 minutes later when she called her hubby, from a pay phone telling him what had happened, hubby says 'I received your text asking about our Pin number and I've replied a little while ago.' When they rushed down to the bank, the bank staff told them all the money was already withdrawn. The thief had actually used the stolen cell phone to text 'hubby' in the contact list and got hold of the pin number.. Within 20 minutes he had withdrawn all the money from their bank account.

Moral of the lesson:

Do not disclose the relationship between you and the people in your contact list. Avoid using names like Home, Honey, Hubby, Sweetheart, Dad, Mom, etc.... And very importantly, when sensitive info is being asked through texts, CONFIRM by calling back. Also, when you're being text by friends or family to meet them somewhere, be sure to call back to confirm that the message came from them. If you don't reach them, be very careful about going places to meet 'family and friends' who text you.

*PLEASE PASS THIS ON

Cell Phone Citation:
http://www.snopes.com/fraud/telephone/pintheft.asp


#584

#561 Too Much Government!

There are some folks who insist that there is too much government in our lives. There are times when I think they may have something there. After giving it due deliberation it appears they may be on to something.

• My guess is that when you combine all of the governments at all levels they number the largest employer of the nation.
• Government, by its very nature, controls/restricts our every behavior.
• Government, by its very nature, grows.
• With that number of employees it requires lots of money to remunerate them when you consider pay, health benefits, retirement benefits, etc.
• Government, by its very nature, is not revenue producing without taxation.
• Government, by its very nature, must be a leech that sucks the life blood out of hard working citizens.
• Feel free to add to this list of ills.
  

I present the following ideas for careful consideration:

• Immediately do away with all government at all levels in our country.
• Stop taxing the citizens.
• Require all citizens to be armed with firearms of only .44 caliber.
• Require the weapons to be made of nerf material
• Require that NO ammunition other than the one ( .22 caliber) round displayed in front of the building that was the seat of the former government. The display case would be of the same material that is used to protect and secure the Hope diamond. This requirement would be true for all levels of government.
• Perhaps there is a place here for nerf swords, daggers and rocks.
  

Let people's altruistic natures show.

And, perhaps, this should be promoted as another anthem:





#561

#543 MANY PEOPLE ARE UNAWARE OF:

Thanks Barb.

**The main difference between http:// and https:// is It's all about keeping you secure**

HTTP stands for Hypertext Transport Protocol, which is just a fancy way of saying it's a protocol (a language, in a manner of speaking) for information to be passed back and forth between web servers and clients.

The important thing is the letter S which makes the difference between HTTP and HTTPS.

The S (big surprise) stands for "Secure".

If you visit a website or webpage, and look at the address in the web browser, it will likely begin with the following: http://.

This means that the website is talking to your browser using the regular 'unsecured language. In other words, it is possible for someone to "eavesdrop" on your computer's conversation with the website. If you fill out a form on the website, someone might see the information you send to that site.

This is why you never ever enter your credit card number in an http website!

But if the web address begins with https://, that basically means your computer is talking to the website in a secure code that no one can eavesdrop on.

You understand why this is so important, right?

If a website ever asks you to enter your credit card information, you should automatically look to see if the web address begins with https://.

If it doesn't, there's no way you're going to enter sensitive information like a credit card number.

PASS IT ON

(You may save someone a lot of grief)

#543

#502 Help Pass ~ The PROTECT Our Children Act

PLEASE ! Read the following and take the appropriate action. Children are too important to let them down. Follow the instructions at either site. (I went directly to the senate site and selected my state. You can copy and paste the suggested letter at the bottom of this posting. It should take less than five minutes to complete. Thank you in advance for the children.)

http://www.oprah.com/article/oprahshow/20080911_tows_predators

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Act Now!
Your U.S. senators will be voting on the bill soon, so it is crucial you contact them immediately.
Go to www.senate.gov to find contact information for the senators in your state. Search for your senator by name or state by clicking on the arrow from either dropdown menu. Contact information is provided here. To send an e-mail, click on "Web Form" below his or her name, and e-mail your letter to make a difference!

Call Your Senators
If you choose to contact your senators by phone, be sure to tell them, "Vote yes on Senate Bill 1738—The PROTECT Our Children Act."

Write to Your Senators
If you choose to write a letter, fax, telegram or e-mail, you may use the following sample letter below and modify it how you see fit.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Senator:

I know that you believe, like I do, that we must do everything possible to protect children from sexual predators. That is why I am asking for your help.

Last year alone, U.S. law enforcement identified over 300,000 criminals who were trafficking in movies and pictures of young children being raped and tortured. Experts say that one in every three of these criminals has local child victims. Child pornography trafficking over the Internet has given us a trail of evidence that leads straight to their doorsteps, but the vast majority of these children will never be rescued because investigators are overwhelmed, outnumbered and underfunded.

As your constituent, I urge you to do everything in your power to pass the PROTECT Our Children Act (S. 1738, Biden-Hatch). This bipartisan legislation passed the House 415-2, but it is now the victim of petty partisan politics.

Now that we know where these children are and how to protect them, there is no excuse for the Senate to fail to take action this session.



#502

#461 Be Careful with your credit card

Be sure to read Scene 3 Quite interesting.


SCENE 1.

This is a new one.

People sure stay busy trying to cheat us, don't they?

A friend went to the local gym and placed his belongings in the locker.
After the workout and a shower, he came out, saw the locker open, and thought to himself, 'Funny, I thought I locked the locker.



Hmm, 'He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make sure all was in order.

Everything looked okay - all cards were in place.

A few weeks later his credit card bill came - a whooping bill of $14,000!


He called the credit card company and started yelling at them, saying that he did not make the transactions.

Customer care personnel verified that there was no Mistake in the system
And asked if his card had been stolen.


'No,' he said, but then took out his wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep - you guessed it - a switch had been made.

An expired similar credit card from the same bank was in the wallet.

The thief broke into his locker at the gym and switched cards.


Verdict: The credit card issuer said since he did not report the card missing earlier, he would have to pay the amount owed to them.

How much did he have to pay for items he did not buy?



$9,000! Why were there no calls made to verify the amount swiped?



Small amounts rarely trigger a 'warning bell' with some credit card companies.

It just so happens that all the small amounts added up to big one!&nbs p;

SCENE 2.

A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal with his credit card.


The bill for the meal came, he signed it,and the waitress folded the receipt
And passed the credit card along.

Usually, he would just take it and place it in his wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he actually took a look at the card and, lo and
Behold, it was the expired card of another person.


He called the waitress and she looked perplexed.


She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under the watchful eye of the man.

All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately looked down and took out the real card.

No exchange of words --- nothing! She took it and came back to the man with an apology.

Verdict:

Make sure the credit cards in your wallet are yours.


Check the name on the card every time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away for even a short period of time.

Many people just take back the credit card without even looking at it, 'assuming' that it has to be theirs.



FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION!

SCENE 3:



Yesterday I went into a pizza restaurant to pick up an order that I had called in.


I paid by using my Visa Check Card which, of course, is linked directly
To my checking account.

The young man behind the counter took my card, swiped it, then laid it on
The counter as he waited for the approval, which is pretty standard procedure.


While he waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing.

I noticed the phone because it is the same model I have, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then I heard a click that sounded like my phone sounds when I take a
Picture.

He then gave me back my card but kept the phone in his hand as if he was still pressing buttons.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking: I wonder what he is taking a picture of, oblivious to what was really going on.


It then dawned on me: the only thing there was my credit ca rd, so now I'm paying close attention to what he is doing.

He set his phone on the counter, leaving it open.

About five seconds later, I heard the chime that tells you that the picture has been saved.

Now I'm standing there struggling with the fact that this boy just took a picture of my credit card.

Yes, he played it off well, because had we not had the same kind of phone, I probably would never have known what happened.

Needless to say, I immediately canceled that card as I was walking out of the pizza parlor.

All I am saying is, be aware of your surroundings at all times.

Whenever you are using your credit card take caution and don't be
careless.



Notice who is standing near you and what they are doing when you use your card.

Be aware of phones, because many have a camera phone these days.

When you are in a restaurant and the waiter/waitress brings your card and receipt for you to sign, make sure you scratch the number off.

Some restaurants are using only the last four digits, but a lot of them are still putting the whole thing on there.

I have already been a victim of credit card fraud and, believe me, it is not fun. The truth is that they can get you even when you are careful, but don't make it easy for them.



#461

#369 NO JOKE - Virus Warning

I also checked snopes about this one. It is real. Beware! Copy this and send it to your friends.

PLEASE FORWARD!!!!

Hi All,
I checked with Norton Anti-Virus, and they are gearing up for this virus!

I checked snopes.com , and it is for real!! http://www.snopes.com/computer/virus/postcard.asp


Get this E-mail message sent around to your contacts ASAP.

PLEASE FORWARD THIS WARNING AMONG FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CONTACTS!

You should be alert during the next few days. Do not open any message with an attachment entitled 'Invitation' OR ONE CALLED 'POSTCARD,'
regardless of who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens an Olympic Torch OR A POSTCARD IMAGE, which 'burns' the whole hard disc C of your computer. This virus will be received from someone
who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list.


This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts. It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called 'Invitation' even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it. Shut down your computer immediately.

This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for
this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

COPY THIS E-MAIL, AND SEND IT TO YOUR FRIENDS. REMEMBER: IF YOU SEND IT TO THEM, YOU WILL BENEFIT ALL OF US.

#369

#356 Elder Marine

I received this story in an email from a friend. I have no idea if it is accurate or not. There was no mention of it at snopes.com

It is a shame that young men seem to think it is OK to rob others. It is also too bad that parents don't teach their children that an education is the way to a satisfying life.

Date: Tue, 25 Dec 2007

Don't Mess With A Marine Who's Trying To Eat

Police called to investigate the scene:

The 71-year-old retired Marine who opened fire on two robbers at a Plantation, FL, Sub shop late Wednesday, killing one and critically wounding the other, is described as John Lovell, a former pilot for two presidents.

He doesn't drink, he doesn't smoke, he works out everyday. Lovell was a man of action Wednesday night.

According to Plantation police, two masked gunmen came into the Subway at 1949 N. Pine Rd. Just after 11 p.m. There was a lone diner -- Lovell, who was finishing his meal. After robbing the cashier, the two men attempted to shove Lovell into a bathroom and rob him as well. They got his money.

But then Lovell pulled his handgun, opened fire, shooting one of the thieves in the head and chest and the other in the head.

When police arrived, they found one of the men in the shop. K-9 units found the other in the bushes of a nearby business. They also found cash strewn around the front of the sandwich shop according to Detective Robert Rettig of the Plantation Police Department.

Both men were taken to Broward General Medical Center, where one, Donicio Arrindell, 22, of North Lauderdale died. The other, 21-year-old Frederick Gadson of Fort Lauderdale is in critical but stable condition.

A longtime friend of Lovell, was not surprised to hear what happened. ''He'd give you the shirt off his back and he'd be mad if someone tried to take the shirt off your back,'' he said.

Lovell worked as a pilot for the Marines, flying former Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. He later worked as a pilot for Pan Am and Delta. Lovell is not married and does not have children.

He is not expected to be charged, authorities said ' 'He was in fear for his life,'' Rettig said. ' These criminals ought to realize that most men in their 70's have military backgrounds and aren't intimidated by idiots.'

Something tells me this old Marine wasn't 'in fear for his life' even though his life was definitely at risk. The only thing he could be charged with is participating in an unfair fight. One 71 - year young Marine against two punks. Two head shots and one center - body- mass shot - good shooting!.

That'll teach them not to get between a Marine and his meal.

#356

#326 So there I was . . .

just relaxing in front of the T.V. when the kids yelled, "Hey Dad, come see the kittens."


#326

#324 JURY DUTY SCAM:

This has been verified by the FBI (their link is also included below).

Please pass this on to everyone in your email address book.

It is spreading fast so be prepared should you get this call.

Most of us take those summons for jury duty seriously .

a new and ominous kind of fraud has surfaced.

The caller claims to be a jury coordinator.

If you protest that you
never received a summons for jury duty,

the scammer asks you for your
Social Security number and date of birth

so he or she can verify the
information and cancel the arrest warrant.

Give out any of this information and bingo,

your identity was just stolen.

The fraud has been reported so far in 11 states,

including Oklahoma, Illinois, and Colorado .

This (swindle) is particularly insidious
because they use intimidation over the phone

to try to bully people into giving information

by pretending they are with the court system.

The FBI and the Federal Court System

have issued nationwide alerts on their
web sites, warning consumers about the fraud.

CHECK IT OUT YOURSELF AND SEE

Snopes site: says this is real fraud.


FBI site: warns about the fraud.

#324

#226 Something serious to consider

I lifted this from Polly's site after reading Pete's latest posting about a potential commutation of Michael Vick's possible sentence. If it weren't possible it would be funnier than hell. Look at the following comments and apply them to our country. This information was being applied to events in Australia. It can also be applied to the good old USA because the current Australian government is hell bent on outdoing Americans to curry favor with us.

Laurence W. Britt's analysis of the seven major fascist regimes in recent history reveals fourteen common threads that link them in recognisable patterns of national behaviour and abuse of power. The Howard Government gets a score of 14 out of 14 on Britt's following fascism characteristics:

1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism and xenophobia.

2. Disdain for the importance of human rights.

3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause.

4. The supremacy of the military and police.

5. Rampant sexism.

6. A controlled mass media.

7. Obsession with national security.

8. Religion and ruling elite tied together.

9. Power of corporations protected.

10. Power of labor suppressed or eliminated.

11. Disdain and suppression of intellectuals and the arts.

12. Obsession with crime and punishment.

13. Rampant cronyism and corruption.

14. Fraudulent elections, referenda, plebiscites or public opinion polls

How many of these are you willing to apply to the USA?

#226

#211 Beware those bearing gifts too good to be true!

Peter, you are not the only one who has received notice of the opportunity of a lifetime. Here is just an example of some that I have received. I usually sent them to my ISP and a couple of anti-phishing sites. Needless to say, I NEVER respond to them.

Have a good laugh. btw, I did delete the email address to contact Mr. Lambo. Some of our readers might be tempted make contact.

I did not correct any of the misspellings in the following message.

Mr. George Lambo,
ABSA Bank Limited,
Johannesburg, South Africa.

My Dear,

I am Mr. George Lambo, manager of bills/exchange at the foreign remittance department of ABSA Bank. In my department, we discovered an abandoned sum of US$14,700,000.00 (Fourteen Million,Seven Hundred Thousand United State Dollars only) in an account that belonged to one of our foreign customers who died along with his entire family,on November 1996, in a ghastly plane crash.

Since we got the information about his death, we have been expecting his next-of-kin to come over and claim his money because we can not release it unless somebody applied for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased asindicated in our banking guidelines.Unfortunately, nobody has come forward to claim this money.

It is based on this that some officials in my department and I have decided to establish a cordial business relationship with you contacting you. We want you to present yourself as the next of kin through your relation with the deceased, so that the funds can be remitted into your account. Moreover, we do not want the money to go into a government account as unclaimed bills. The banking law and guidelines herestipulates that any account abandoned or is dormant for a period of 10 years, is deemed closed and all money contained therein forfeited to the governmenttreasury account.

Now, it is being speculated that the above sum will be transferred into the government account as an unclaimed fund on or before the middle of 2007, when nobody comes forward to lay claims. The reason for requesting you to present yourself as next ofkin, is occasioned by the fact thatthe deceased (customer) was a foreigner, and we have access to his detailed bio data which you will hold as a weapon to present yourself as the next of kin.

The mode of sharing after a successful transfer of the money into your account, shall be 70% to my colleagues and I, for the role you will be expected to play in this deal, we have agreed to give you 25% of the total sum and 5% for the expenses we are going to encounter by the two parties in the course of thistransaction. Therefore, you are expected to reply this letter indicating your readiness and interest to participate in this business.

After receiving yourreply, you will be communicated to with the exact steps to take. I expect your urgent response. I shall contact you for further discussion on this matter, to enable us conclude this transaction urgently without any delay or hitch.

Please treat this business proposal asstrictly confidential for securityreasons considering my official position here in ABSA Bank. Do confirm your positive disposition towards this transaction by reaching me at

Regards,
Mr. George Lambo


#211

#192 Who knew!!!!

I didn't

1. To remove a bandage painlessly, saturate the bandage with vodka. The solvent dissolves adhesive.

2. To clean the caulking around bathtubs and showers, fill a trigger-spray bottle with vodka, spray the caulking, let set five minutes and wash clean. The alcohol in the vodka kills mold and mildew.

3. To clean your eyeglasses, simply wipe the lenses with a soft, clean cloth dampened with vodka. The alcohol in the vodka cleans the glass and kills germs.

4. Prolong the life of razors by filling a cup with vodka and letting your safety razor blade soak in the alcohol after shaving. The vodka disinfects the blade and prevents rusting.

5. Spray vodka on vomit stains, scrub with a brush, and then blot dry.

6. Using a cotton ball, apply vodka to your face as an astringent to cleanse the skin and tighten pores.

7. Add a jigger of vodka to a 12-ounce bottle of shampoo. The alcohol cleanses the scalp, removes toxins from hair, and stimulates the growth of healthy hair.

8. Fill a sixteen-ounce trigger-spray bottle and spray bees or wasps to kill them.

9. Pour one-half cup vodka and one-half cup water in a Ziploc freezer bag and freeze for a slushy, refreshable ice pack for aches, pain or black eyes.

10. Fill a clean, used mayonnaise jar with freshly packed lavender flowers, fill the jar with vodka, seal the lid tightly and set in the sun for three days. Strain the liquid through a coffee filter, then apply the tincture to aches and pains.

11. To relieve a fever, use a washcloth to rub vodka on your chest and back as a liniment.

12. To cure foot odor, wash your feet with vodka.

13 Vodka will disinfect and alleviate a jellyfish sting.

14. Pour vodka over an area affected with poison ivy to remove the urushiol oil from your skin.

15. Swish a shot of vodka over an aching tooth. Allow your gums to absorb some of the alcohol to numb the pain.

And silly me .......... I've only been drinking the stuff!!

#192

#77 Mark's Story

I may have mentioned this in a previous posting, but it deserves to be repeated. For those of you who enjoy excellent writing you will be taken in immediately by this.

It is the story of a young man named Mark. He is from Northern California and he made a decision to get a ride home one evening from a friend who had been drinking. For the rest of the story begin at this site.

I know Darlene will appreciate your thoughts and prayers. I visit her site daily and am quite taken with the courage her family shows.


#77

#21 YOU MUST KNOW *77

This information about "knockoff pullovers" can be found on Snopes. However, *77 does not pertain to all states. Go here for emergency numbers for other states.

A friend sent me the following. Based on this I did the above research for your edification. Hope it is useful.

This is really good to know-

YOU MUST KNOW *77

I knew about the red light on cars, but not the *77. It was about 1:00 p.m. in the afternoon, and Lauren was driving to visit a friend. An UNMARKED police car pulled up behind her and put his lights on. *Lauren's parents have always told them never to pull over for an unmarked car on the side of the road, but rather to wait until they get to a gas station, etc.*

Lauren had actually listened to her parents advice, and promptly called *77 on her cell phone to tell the police dispatcher that she would not pull over right away. She proceeded to tell the dispatcher that there was an unmarked police car with a flashing red light on his rooftop behind her.

The dispatcher checked to see if there were police cars where she was and there weren't, and he told her to keep driving, remain calm and that he had back up already on the way.

Ten minutes later 4 cop cars surrounded her and the unmarked car behind her.

One policeman went to her side and the others surrounded the car behind. They pulled the guy from the car and tackled him to the ground. The man was a convicted rapist and wanted for other crimes.

I never knew about the *77 Cell Phone Feature, but especially for a woman alone in a car, you should not pull over for an unmarked car. Apparently police have to respect your right to keep going to a safe & quiet; place.

You obviously need to make some signals! that you acknowledge them (i.e. put on your hazard lights) or call *77 like Lauren did.

Too bad the cell phone companies don't generally give you this little bit of wonderful information.

#21