I was very sad to read the news that Tower Records is going bankrupt. Tower, which began in Maryland in the US had been a staple for me when I was in middle and high school.

It was one of those few places that was open late, and didn’t require an ID (like all of the bars in the US). I know that we made frequent trips to Tower late at night when we had nothing to do. This was before Walmart was around, and even then it wasn’t quite like a trip to Tower.

I must admit, I never bought anything when I was there – but I’ll miss looking at their 25 dollar CDs.

Something was up, I knew, when they shut down the Tower in Piccaddily Circus (London) and replaced it with a Virgin store. I had been excited to go buy there and was ranting all about it the last time I went…

Ah well, anyone else out there have any Tower stories? Please share 🙂

Yeah, that’s right. Leading astronomers stick it to that tiny planet on the edge of the solar system floating around in a funky orbit doing nothing all day.

It’s been declared no longer a planet by astronomers who know a thing or two about what a planet is.

Next, let’s get rid of Uranus, because if my anus can’t be a planet in the solar system, then your’s shouldn’t be either.

From the Washington Post:

The Marine Corps is planning to call up as many as 2,500 Marine reservists for combat duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, dipping into a rarely used pool of troops to fill growing personnel gaps in units scheduled to deploy in coming months, officials said yesterday.

For how long?

The authority for involuntary recalls is until the end of the “Global War on Terror” — a conflict for which there is no realistic end in sight. That could mean thousands of Marines could be involuntary activated over coming years.

Seems a bit of an arbitrary deadline don’t you think?

Going back to December 8, 2005

(Donald Rumsfeld)

…I suspect that the commanders in the field would make recommendations for some [troop] reductions as the Iraqi security forces continue to grow in size and experience.

Phew, I feel better now.