These cameos by various film actors are entertaining for the most part, but I particularly liked the one of Tilda Swinton.

'Twas the day before Christmas, when all through the flat
Not a creature was stirring, not even a that.
A who and a which were lurking around.
A where and a whence were making some sound.
A but and a wherefore were nowhere in sight
And a since and a therefore were having a fight.
I asked my poor mother, "What, what shall I do?"
She yelled in my ear, "Just please eat your stew".

This was actually last year, but we are all focused on our friends who are stuck in Europe. You lose your flight and then any subsequent flight that does take off is, of course, already booked out. To a Canadian it does seem strange that they simply don't have more snow plows. They are certainly have to get get them if they go on having winters like 2009 and 2010. They winge about temperatures below zero, while we live every winter like that. I rather like the cold, as long as I have a warm coat. Mine has recently lost its zip so it is a little on the cool side, but, as long as the Velcro tabs hold out, I'm OK. There was a man on TV tonight in a suit designed for minus sixty. That's what we call cold.

I really must get some bridge work done

Computerworld - Any attempt to criminally prosecute WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange for the ongoing disclosure of classified State Department cables will pose huge challenges for the U.S. government, according to a newly updated report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS).
The 24-page report, released this week, examines the criminal statutes involved in the WikiLeaks case and how they might apply outside the U.S. The report concludes that at least some of the information released by WikiLeaks has national security implications and may indeed by covered under the Espionage Act and other criminal laws on the books.
Even so, actually prosecuting Assange for the disclosures would be unprecedented -- and challenging, the report said.

"We are aware of no case in which a publisher of information obtained through unauthorized disclosure by a government employee has been prosecuted for publishing it," the report bluntly stated. Such an action would have First Amendment implications, and political ramifications "based on concerns about government censorship."


In addition, prosecuting a foreign national whose actions were conducted entirely overseas carries with it certain foreign policy implications and would raise questions related to extraterritorial jurisdiction, the CRS said in its report.

Details of the report were published Wednesday by Steven Aftergood on Secrecy News, a blog run by the FAS Project on Government Secrecy. The blog also posted a link to the CRS report