Did you hear about the fish that got death threats through the post?
It was hake mail.

[Hake: a.k.a.: Whiting, red hake, white hake, silver hake, black hake, squirrel hake, ling
Waters:Northern Atlantic and PacificOceans
Description (in water): A slender fish, averaging 1 to 8 lbs., yet has been known to grow up to 60 lbs. There are at least a dozen species of hake, most of which are named for the color of the skin (red, white, silver, etc.).
Description (in market): Of the same family as cod and similar in many respects, hake is more coarsely grained with a slightly stronger flavor. Snow Hake has white flesh that is low in fat and can range in texture from soft to firm.
Sold as: Whole, fresh fillets or steaks, frozen fillets or steaks, smoked, salted
Best cooking: Can be prepared like cod, which is versatile and promises excellent results after baking, poaching, sautéing, roasting and grilling. . . mmm grilled fish.]

I did some D.I.Y. the other day. I used my step ladder. I don't get on with my real ladder.

"It's a small protest gesture," resident Sa'ar Berger told the Post.

And "Postcards from Gaza" pictures and an article from a Jewish Journal.

"The Department of Homeland Security has reserved for itself the right to declare any part of any collective bargaining agreement null and void" by issuing directives or taking "whatever other actions may be necessary to carry out the department's mission," she said.
The rules, issued in February by the Department of Homeland Security and the federal Office of Personnel Management, said the agency needed "flexibility to carry out its vital mission." Homeland security officials "must be able to make split-second decisions to deal with operational realities," the department said.

Under the personnel rules, Judge Collyer said, "the Department of Homeland Security may be required to bargain in good faith," but "there is no effective way to hold it to that bargain." Under such circumstances, she said, "a deal is not a deal, a contract is not a contract, and the process of collective bargaining is a nullity."
In other words, Judge Collyer said, "collective bargaining would be on quicksand" because the department could unilaterally "absolve itself of contract obligations" while employees and their unions would be bound by those agreements. - - -"A system of 'collective bargaining' that permits the unilateral repudiation of agreements by one party is not collective bargaining at all," she said.

Judge Collyer also criticized procedures adopted by the Bush administration to dismiss, demote and discipline employees of the Department of Homeland Security.
These rules, she said, do not provide "fair treatment" or "due process" for employees who appeal disciplinary actions.

Colleen M. Kelley, president of the treasury employees union, described the ruling as "a victory for the rights of employees in all federal agencies."
She predicted that it would "reverberate through the entire federal employee community, inasmuch as the administration has proposed extending the department's personnel model" to other agencies.

. . . 11. The power plant's fuel bladder is not a "giant waterbed"
12. When asked about the location of any personnel or equipment, the proper answer is never "Dantooine... they're on Dantooine"

The action is the latest step in efforts to save the tiger salamander while trying to preserve land and development rights.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service imposed emergency protections for California tiger salamanders in Sonoma County in 2002 under the federal Endangered Species Act. When the agency downgraded the classification from "endangered" to "threatened," it prompted a lawsuit that was partially settled when the wildlife service agreed to identify salamander habitat before December 2005.

With the preliminary boundaries now in place, federal wildlife officials have scheduled a public hearing to discuss what land within the boundaries will be needed to preserve the salamander while allowing development. The meeting is Sept. 8 at the Flamingo Hotel in Santa Rosa.

"Our hope is that all people will stay engaged in the process and come up with a good conservation strategy," said Donner.

The Santa Rosa Plain Conservation Strategy Team, a broad-based coalition of federal and state regulators, local government officials, landowners, developers and environmentalists, is heading that effort.

Court: Businesses can't deny discounts to gay domestic partners
Monday, August 1, 2005
By Lisa Leff
AP Writer
A private country club must offer spousal discounts to same-sex domestic partners, the California Supreme Court ruled Monday, saying that a San Diego golf course discriminated against a lesbian couple when relatives of married members played for free.
Deciding a case brought against Bernardo Heights Country Club, the state's highest court said that allowing the families of married members to golf gratis while charging the partners of gay members constitutes "impermissible marital status discrimination."
While businesses might have once claimed a legitimate business interest for maintaining different policies for married couples and gay members who cannot legally wed, such distinctions are no longer justified under a sweeping domestic partner law that took effect Jan. 1, according to the court.

SAN FRANCISCO

The pair live in San Diego and swim 4 miles a week and bodysurf together, Pokonosky said. And Jake always eats scrambled eggs before a big swim.

Bill Wygant, president of the South End Rowing Club, said he was more than happy to allow a dog into the race, a first for the more than 100-year-old group.

Duck race winners announced
RAPID CITY - More than 15,500 ducks were sponsored in Sunday's 16th annual Great Black Hills Duck Race, which helped raise more than $90,000 for Children's Miracle Network.
Individuals could sponsor up to 15 ducks for $5 each. All of the money raised will be used to provide services and equipment for ill and injured children in the Black Hills area served by Rapid City Regional Hospital.
The flock was dropped off Sunday afternoon near the West Main Street McDonald's. The 1.5-mile race ended at Memorial Park. More than $23,000 in prizes were awarded to the first 29 ducks to cross the finish line.
The duck owned by Yvonne Crisman of Rapid City finished first, earning Crisman $5,000 from Rapid City area McDonald's.