It has hit Bellingham - Fellow coworker today reported that the Bellingham Samish Way Chevron gas station had a credit card skimming device on one (or more) of the pumps as of yesterday afternoon around 4:15pm, Monday November 18th.  According to this coworker, a Bank of America rep called this morning to report this activity and they found up to ten different debits placed on the credit card account in various amounts (11.75, 45, 34, etc), so that it would not be easy to see.  There were also a lot of $1 amounts, which is usually an indication that the charge came from a gas station as a preauthorization.

This was in the news a while back, and it has now hit home.  Everyone please watch out for unusual credit card holders when getting gas, or getting cash at an ATM!  Especially watch out during long weekends, such as the upcoming Thanksgiving weekend.

From CNN.Com:

Sen. Barack Obama’s grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, has died following a bout with cancer, Obama and his sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng, said Monday.

She was 86.

“She was the cornerstone of our family, and a woman of extraordinary accomplishment, strength, and humility,” their statement said.

“She was the person who encouraged and allowed us to take chances. She was proud of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren and left this world with the knowledge that her impact on all of us was meaningful and enduring. Our debt to her is beyond measure.”

Obama and Soetoro-Ng asked that donations be made for the search for a cure for cancer in lieu of flowers. A small private ceremony will be held “at a later date.”

Dunham passed away peacefully at her home shortly before midnight Sunday night (5 a.m. ET), campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki told CNN. She said Obama learned of her death around 8 a.m.

(more)

Well, that sucks.  She missed the election by mere hours.

Barack, if you read The Fist (yeah, right), we offer our condolences.

Now go out there and win an election for your grandmother!

Just a few minutes ago I was reading an article at the NY times entitled “Among Rock-Ribbed Fans of Palin, Dudes Rule,” headed up with the photo below, taken at a recent Palin rally. I was three or four paragraphs into the article when I was startled as a missile with a flaming exhaust emerged from the side of my screen and passed directly through the image. Pregnant pause, and then there was a barrage of many such missiles, after which the effect ceased.

It had the feel of a Java applet, but I couldn’t make it happen again - not even after dumping my cache and reloading the page, mousing around searching for a trigger, etc.

The implication of course, is clear: nuke these guys. Where it came from or whence it went I know not. Somebody else load that page and see if it happens.

Anyway, here’s Sarah’s most fervent voting public, as the article bears out–

He’s good. Very very good.

Probe accuses Palin of abuse of power

1 hour ago

JUNEAU, Alaska (AFP) — Investigators found vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin abused her powers as Alaska governor, dealing another blow to Republican John McCain’s struggling White House bid.

As McCain sought to restore control over his unruly rallies which have seen a stream of invective, including a death threat, targeted at Democratic rival Barack Obama, the “troopergate” scandal threatened to torpedo his campaign.

In a long-awaited 263-page report released on Friday by Alaska’s Legislative Council, investigator Steve Branchflower said Palin was guilty of violating ethics rules for public officials.

He said Palin had allowed her husband Todd Palin to use the Alaska governor’s office and its resources to pressure officials to fire her former brother-in-law, state trooper Mike Wooten.

“Governor Palin knowingly permitted a situation to continue where impermissible pressure was placed on several subordinates in order to advance a personal agenda, to wit: to get Trooper Michael Wooten fired,” the report said….

Read more

Addendum, Saturday, Oct. 11:00 - Various media outlets today are making clear the point that Palin’s firing of public safety commissioner Walter Monegan was within the bounds of law, but the violation of public trust was her tacit approval of her husband utilizing resources within her office (i.e., staffers) to continually press Monegan to fire Trooper Mike Wooten, Sarah Palin’s former brother-in-law, who went through an ugly divorce with Palin’s sister in 2005.

Now, here’s the point(s). This morning, while boarding her campaign bus, MSNBC questioned her about it, and she replied that it was not an abuse of power for her to fire an administrative official within the sphere of her office (Monegan), and that the questioner should “read the report.”* Which is a complete misdirection, because, as I have noted, all the media outlets have been clarifying that the abuse of power was letting her husband use the resources of her office to press for the firing of Trooper Wooten, i.e., the use of public office for personal motives - not the firing of Commissioner Monegan.

Tell us something we don’t know, Sarah.

She has also stated that the entire investigation into her conduct in this matter was “politically motivated,” although it is a fact that the issue reared its head ever before she was selected by McCain as his running mate, and McCain, in fact, knew about it when he named her. Furthermore, the Alaskan legislative committee which reviewed the report on the investigation and voted to release it, yesterday, was comprised of 8 REPUBLICANS and 4 DEMOCRATS.

I can only conclude that she must believe that a substantial portion of the electorate are as stupid and ill-acquainted with issues, in general, as she. And you know what? She’s probably right.

Nevertheless, a pox on her pretty face. Every witch needs a pox.

*She released a “report” of her own under the auspices of the McCain platform, essentially exonerating herself from any wrongdoing whatsoever, so which “report” she was referring to - hers, or the offical report from the Alaska Legislative Committee - is unclear. Probably the former, in line with her general stupidity.

McCain and Palin are jamming their own and each other’s feet in their mouths so fast that I can’t post all the shit they say up here or I’ll look like I got rabies er somethin’.

But this one…check it our. From the mouth of McCain, and I quote, “If I were dictator, which i always aspire to be…”

Swiss daredevil Yves Rossy becomes first person to cross English Channel using jet-propelled wing strapped to his back!

Just watched the weather w/Steve Pool on KOMO4. “Well, we’re into an autumn pattern, and the rain is coming our way,” he says. “After the break I’ll let you know how long it’s going to last…”

Man, CUT THE CRAP. Just say, “It’s going to rain until NEXT FUCKING JULY,” and spare us the blah-blah.