Elsewhere in the news… 7 U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan; Taliban claims to hold a soldier; North Korea Cuts Off More UN Relief as Nation Starves; and unrest and disputes continue in Iran over the recent election. So glad to see we have our priorities straight.

This soldier story sounds very fishy.  How was he able to walk off the FOB?  I think he either snuck off or was lured by some vice (alcohol, drugs, woman, etc.).  It's next to impossible for a soldier to walk through a checkpoint and it's damn near impossible for a private to walk around on a base without a "battle buddy".  There is more to that story than is being told.

bakosphere:  the real news has been shut out for the last week and a half.  I've refused to watch most of it.  The real stories are just that:  real.  I have to agree with jf that the soldier story sounds funny, and that there's more to it than we've been told. 

As far as the MJ news is concerned, I'm hopeful that we're nearing the end of the frenzy.  It's a sad way to go.

When I came home from errands, the tube was on and Al Sharpton was on the screen. Al Sharpton being broadcast via satellite to tv's all over the world...my gawd, what an abusive waste of science and technology.

You consider MSM "real news"?

Who cares.  

I'm glad the Michael Jackson Memorial didn't happen here.  Los Angeles are begging for donations when they are millions of dollars in debt.