If you want to have your own, you need to create an 80 by 80 graphic and go to gravatar.com to register it. The key to using a gravatar is your e-mail address, so if you don’t use an e-mail address in comments, save your time and energy.

Update: The gravatar feature is apparently part of a beta test, like preview, so it will show up and then disappear.

Death of a Salesman is important for the warning it gave the world about corporate culture. When it was written the old paradigm of “loyalty to the company was rewarded by loyalty to the employee” was beginning to disappear. Miller presented this reality, but most people missed its importance. Rumsfeld is a prime example of the new business model where employees are “fungible” and disposable. These managers don’t understand what the people below them do, and don’t care.

The Crucible was about the McCarthy era, but it can be applied to the Rove era. These periodic spasms of insanity and mass hysteria are really annoying to those who study history. It is stunning how often demagogues are permitted to drag the nation down to their level.

For some reason Halliburton failed to notify the Nuclear Regulatory Commission until Tuesday. The law requires that missing radioactive materials be reported at least within 30 days for the lowest level of regulated material, and some materials require immediate notification.

An NRC spokesman said it would take years to develop a program to track such material while in transit. Might I suggest that the NRC simply demand people use one of the existing services that already provide this service, rather than some new, “pork” project.

Originally there was a mistake in the address and it was returned to a post office for re-routing, but was never delivered. If it was sent during World War II, I might understand that no one was sure where Hitler was.

Okay, I can’t resist, it was in the “dead letter” office.

Where is PETA on this issue? They should be joining with NORML to oppose this outrage. Sigh! Liechtenstein Lattes just won’t be the same, but this explains the “Laughing Cow”.

“The appeal from Attorney General Alberto Gonzales argues that a lower court was wrong to allow the Brazil-based O Centro Espirita Beneficiente Uniao do Vegetal to import and use the hoasca tea as part of its religious services.”

Let him get away with this and green tea is next. He probably was behind the ban on “dairy doobies”.

Friday Cat Blogging [^TM Kevin Drum]

What do you mean – the one hour processing is going to take 2 days?

[Edit: New cats next week, if the pictures come out.]