Pagan Prattle Online by yet another prominent UK writer of science fiction, Charles Stross.

James Hammertons' blog has been running for a while, but I've only just discovered it. Many issues are of interest to those in the UK: recent topics include ID cards and the future of the Tory Party.

Ken MacLeods' blog is from a unique view - former communist turned libertarian. Perhaps better known as one of the UKs' foremost writers of science fiction.

The U.S. Congress now only serves "freedom fries" in its' cafeterias.Guess "cheese-eating-surrender-monkey" fries would have sounded a bit unappetising!!

Brigadier General Noer Muis has been convicted by a Jakarta court of failing to stop two attacks on civilians in East Timor. Unfortunately, he and the others who have been tried so far are only small fry - no sign of General Suharto being put on trial for the crimes his army committed there.

Impeach General Suharto NOW!!!

Michael Schumacher had an unfortunate start to his season, when his car began to disintegrate in this seasons' opening race.

Ironically, he starts in ads for one of his sponsors, Vodaphone, who use The Dandy Warhols tune Bohemian like you. This song begins:

You've got a great car, what's wrong with it today?

I can only hope they're not singing it near Schumi!!

An appeal has delayed the ruling further

Compulsory recitation of the US Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional, an appeals court has ruled.

This one is going to run and run, giving people who believe in compulsory displays of patriotism the chance to show how patriotic they are.

How many Americans know how the flag was originally saluted? Or that the pledge was amended twice? Or even that the original author was a Christian Socialist? (No doubt McCarthy would have had him denounced in the 1950s if he'd been around.)

Even the placement of a comma has been the subject of a Congressional debate!

Anyway, I've never understood how this quasi-military ritual was supposed to benefit people - it's likely to bore some and irritate others. Sure, some people feel proud and patriotic when reciting it, but nobodys' stopping them from reciting it voluntarily on their own free time. They can recite it a thousand times a day if they like - they can recite it until they turn blue in the face, but don't require others to do so, as it's against the faith of some, such as Jehovahs' Witnesses to recite pledges.

Some anti-war protestors have decided to go au naturel in protests. Trouble is, do they think that this will get them taken more seriously?

The Australian government has been bullying the East Timorese over natural resources

Some bozo defaced cryptome, then tried to blame someone else. What goes on in what passes for that vandals mind?

Wimar Witoelar, a respected Indonesian academic, has suggested that the Indonesian military are among the suspects for the Bali bombing. Kopassus, the counter-insurgency force, was also linked to the murder of a West Papuan leader, Theys Eluay.

Wimar Witoelar isn't the only person with such suspicions.

If Kopassus is responsible, it wouldn't surprise me, given that organisations' record of atrocities in East Timor

Things are getting scary in New York, not to mention in the USA in general.

It's doubly disturbing that civil liberties have been eroded in response to the atrocities of September 11th, 2001.

1. It limits the freedoms of many innocent people who are not terrorists.
2. It does little to actually bring the remaining September 11th attackers to justice.

Big Ashcroft is Watching You

To quote the Clash: "Know your rights".