More Adventures In Air Travel

You know, it's not every day that the airlines burn your luggage.

She looked out the plane's window and saw a man with a hose and a big plume of smoke.

The pilot told Tadel her smoldering luggage would not be allowed on the plane. She nodded in agreement.

The pilot went down and fished her medicine out of the smoking bag. When she returned to her economy seat, an apologetic crew member upgraded her to first class.

For more than two months, Tadel said, that was United's last act of kindness.

When she arrived at O'Hare International Airport, what remained of her belongings were stuffed into a much smaller bag and placed at baggage claim. Tadel opened it to find a hodgepodge of clothing and undergarments. A pair of jeans was pockmarked with burn holes. A blouse was charred and crumpled. Her turtleneck sweater was splotched with black soot.

The bulk of her belongings, roughly two-thirds of what she had packed, was simply gone.

She said that on Dec. 2 she spoke to a customer service agent, who took her information and told her she needed to file a claim form. Tadel said she went online Dec. 4 and filled out the form. She also submitted a detailed list of clothing and incidentals that were damaged or missing. She estimated her loss at $3,300.

The Chicagoan said she also sent a hard copy of the form to United's claim office the same day.

Weeks later, the airline then sent her a FedEx slip and asked her to send the damaged clothing back. Tadel said she took pictures of the clothes, then sent them to United on Jan. 8, along with a third copy of her claim form.

After waiting three more weeks for United to respond, Tadel reached the end of her rope. On Jan. 29, she e-mailed What's Your Problem?

"I have sent numerous e-mails, called several different numbers ... sat on the phone for hours hoping someone can help me," said Tadel, 25. "I have left many voice mails and yet still I have no response from the company."

And to think, she probably paid an extra $25 for that bag to get checked in.

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The Spendulus just passed

The vote was 61-38.  Sens. Collins, Snowe, and Specter voted for it, as expected.

Update: It was the cloture vote.  Whoops.

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MMR Research Faked

Becoming a parent can turn even the most rational person irrational.  In my entire life, no other event has more regularly caused irrational fears and throughts to be taken seriously than that.  So, when my daughter turned one and received her MMR shot, I worried. 

Of course, I knew that the research was basically bullshit and that a tie between a vaccine and an extremely complicated mental disorder was counter-intuitive* the fear was still there.  I found myself watching her and wondering if she was different.  If there were any symptoms.

Turns out the study that raised that ugly fear was completely fabricated by a man that should be executed for manslaughter.

Why manslaughter?  Well, at least two deaths in England can be laid directly at his feet and I'm sure a lot more than that are attributable to his deranged actions.  Like I said, I'm not a person that is prone to irrational thoughts (they tend to be dismissed out of hand instantly) so I can only imagine what effects this study would have on more emotional/less logic-based people.

So, good.  There is no tie. 

And, Andrew Wakefield?  Stay out of Milwaukee, WI because I owe you the physical equivalent of worrying that my daughter's brain has been damaged by a vaccine.  I'm pretty sure the conversion ratio doesn't bode well for your survival chances.

* - Some day I'll expound on my hatred for the modern age's misguided belief that counter-intuitive things are true all the time.  It is a tool of the liberal mindset to be excited when you say "you'd think that, but actually..."

In reality, almost everything that happens is intuitive on some level and things that aren't should be given far more scrutiny because they're probably bullshit.

Posted by: Moron Pundit at 01:20 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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Visit Beautiful New Jersey!

Great beaches!  The best gambling on the East Coast!  Kids choking on used condoms!

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Soup FAIL!

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Just wait until they get their unicorns

Remember how the election of The One was supposed to make the rest of the world (you know, the people who actually matter) love us again?  Well, not so much, it turns out...

(h/t)

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Car Care Can Be Perilous

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Bill Gates loses it

I know he's passionate about philanthropy, but, well...

Bill Gates, the billionaire founder of Microsoft and a renowned philanthropist, let loose a swarm of mosquitoes at a technology conference in California to highlight the dangers of malaria.

‘Malaria is spread by mosquitoes,’ the Microsoft founder yelled at a well-heeled crowd at a technology conference in California.

’I brought some,’ he added. ‘Here, I’ll let them roam around – there is no reason only poor people should be infected.’

It turns out that the mosquitoes weren't infected with malaria, but needless to say, some of the conference participants were not amused.  I can't say I blame them.

Well, it's a good thing he has as much money as he does, seeing as how that seems to be the dividing line between "crazy person yelling and throwing bugs at people" and "eccentric genius."

(Via Elliott in the comments here.)

Posted by: Sean M. at 09:22 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Peas in our time

For years, peace in the Holy Land has been an elusive goal, but with this group of geniuses working on the problem, I'm sure it's finally within reach...

PETA's signs are in Hebrew and in English. They feature Israelis and Palestinians sitting down for a meat-free meal along with the slogans: "Give Peas a Chance," and "Nonviolence Begins on Our Plates: Go Vegetarian."

"Every time that we eat, we can choose not to participate in violence," PETA President Ingrid E. Newkirk wrote Wednesday in a letter. "While choosing a falafel sandwich over a lamb kebab doesn't create instant peace, it reduces the sum total of violence and suffering in the world."

Yeah, um, if this is supposed to promote peace, why am I suddenly filled with murderous rage?

Posted by: Sean M. at 03:00 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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Planned Parenthood caught again

Lila Rose does another undercover report, this time on a Planned Parenthood in Arizona, where they fail to report the statutory rape of a 15 year old.  Planned Parenthood needs to be held accountable for this.

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Guess who's racist!

RNC Chairman Michael Steele!  And for once, it's not a lefty saying it.  Just a retard. 

Posted by: It's Vintage, Duh at 02:09 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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I guess I'll have to wait until next year

Seeing as how I missed this, I'll really have to start keeping a closer eye on the cultural events calendar here in the L.A. area:

People loved it -- obsessed over it -- and still do; like "Star Trek," "Xena" is a show that can still fill up a big fan convention years after going off the air (this is actually the convention's 14th year -- impressive). And who and what will fans find at the starry convention? Ms. Xena herself, the fabulous Lucy Lawless (who is also performing two shows at the Roxy), plus Renee O'Connor (Gabrielle), and a host of actors from the series, including Hudson Leick, who played Callisto, the most delicious villainess on TV in the last few decades. In fact, Ms. Leick is leading a yoga workshop during the convention. Fantastic.

Other events during the weekend include a writers' workshop, a cabaret, a video competition, a "Xena"-based centerpiece contest, and, of course, costumes galore.

Actually, I just saw footage from the convention on our local Fox station, and, well, let's just say that the foax in attendance made the average Star Trek conventioneer look tan and svelte in comparison, so I don't think I really missed much.

Other than the centerpiece contest, that is. I bet that was pretty kickass.

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The Worst Part About An Awesome Stunt?

The copycats.

Motorists said Monday that a sign at a construction zone on Keystone Avenue in Carmel read: "Raptors Ahead Caution," WRTV, Indianapolis, reported Monday.

"It's kind of crazy. I'm totally confused," one motorist said. "I'm kind of expecting ... dinosaurs to run down the road, or something."

Nancy Heck, a spokeswoman for the city of Carmel, said the sign is owned by contractor Highway Technologies, which operates the programmable signs in the construction area.

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Best. Arsonist. Evah.

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Maybe In Japan, Magazines Covered In Plastic Have A Different Meaning

I dunno. Just a thought.

As a 31-year-old man living alone, I buy many daily necessities at convenience stores. But I cannot browse my favorite magazine any more because it is covered in a clear plastic bag.

Checking seven convenience stores around JR Kanda Station near my workplace, four stores wrapped magazines and books with plastic bags or used rubber bands. Ministop Kanda Station East Exit branch, one of the four, began doing so in December.

Its floor space is about 130 square meters. The store is located near a business district, and it is often crowded, with about 300 people buying lunch at the store each day.

A complaint about a large crowd disturbing other shoppers at lunchtime on the release date of a popular comic magazine motivated the measure.

The bookstore owner, 57, said: "We take off the rubber bands at register counters when a customer wishes to check a magazine's contents. We heard customers are pleased that we took the browsing-prevention measure."

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Shocka: Allahpundit upset someone not from the Upper East Side* is running for NRA President

The Nuge wants to be NRA head. 

*I almost wrote "Upper West Side" before realizing I know an Upper West Side-er who would be great for the job. 

Posted by: It's Vintage, Duh at 06:17 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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I'll take the "phony" over the hack any damn time

I was just listening to Sean Hannity on the radio and he pissed me off nearly immediately.  While singing his own praises, he said: "A lot of guys on here are phony...I hear ya Dennis Miller...only in it for the ca-ching."

Lame. 

The two shows' formats are different.  Hannity's is all talking points, while Miller's is politics, sports, entertainment, whatever.  Maybe if Miller was still harping on Rev. Wright three months after the election, Hannity wouldn't feel this way.

(I know this is kind of a ridiculous thing to post on, but his big fat head got to me.)

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Oh Noes! Someone Stole MoronPundit's Clothing Design Idea for Liberals!

see more pwn and owned pictures

Failblog. Heh.

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Hey DPUD, You Want Another Steelers Video And Song?

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The problem I have with Pittsburgh going to the Super Bowl?

Is that a new iteration of this monstrosity rears its ugly head,

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