News Today

So I’m sure you’ve seen the clips of this on the news, but I figured I’d throw it up here anyways. I’m not sure what to think about this guy, for someone who would appear to be going down in flames he at least acted pretty confident. Does Blagojevich have an ace up his sleeve or is he just a good actor?

Now as many of you readers know I am a journalist. Sometimes there’s a story so juicy, so shocking, so bizarre that you just can’t pass it up. This is one of those stories.

The Chinese vessel Zhenhua 4 was attacked and boarded by pirates on Tuesday in the Gulf of Aden. Luckily no one on the crew was harmed and today the captain of the ship, Peng Weiyuan, told how his crew held off the pirates armed with rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns.

The multinational crew of 30 men ended with the arrival of military helicopters and a warship dispatched by the task force fighting the piracy menace in the region, but not before engaging in a high seas battle with home-made weapons.

“Seven of the nine pirates landed on our ship, all with weapons,” said Weiyuan, speaking to China Central Television.

“Our crew, who had been well trained and prepared, used water cannon, self-made incendiary bombs [Molotov cocktails or petrol bombs], beer bottles and anything else that could be used to battle with them. Thirty minutes later, the pirates gestured to us for a ceasefire.”

“Then the helicopter from the joint fleet came to help us.”

Photos courtesy of AP.

While the tale of this crew is a valiant one, the issue of dealing with these pirates is still very much up in the air. Rampant piracy off the coast of Somalia this year has earned gunmen millions of dollars in ransoms, forced up the cost of shipping insurance costs and caused international alarm.

According to Andrew Mwangura of the East African Seafarers Assistance programme, there have been 124 incidents of piracy off Somali this year and some 60 successful hijacks.

Nearly 400 people and 19 ships are being held along the coast, including a Saudi supertanker with two million barrels of oil and a Ukrainian cargo ship carrying 33 tanks.

In another bizarre twist with one of the most interesting families in America, Bristol Palin’s possible (does anyone really think they’re going to get married?) future mother in law was arrested yesterday on drug charges by Alaskan State Troopers. She has since been released on $2,000 bail.

Bristol Palin, 18, is due on Saturday.

I don’t even want to make too much fun of this situation, because it really is sad. I feel the worst for her kids who’ve been forced into the media spotlight. Can you imagine the pressure Bristol was feeling during the campaign? Oi vey…

I’m going to echo Joe Lieberman on this one, even though Joe Lieberman is a flip-flopping hypocritical douchebag - “Thank God she’s not going to have to be president…”

Thank God indeed.

One more time, just because…

Quick round-up of news headlines - President Bush okayed a $17.4 billion dollar bailout of the auto industry, Al Franken has opened up a slim lead in Minnesota, Hank ‘watch me take your money’ Paulsen is already requesting the remaining 350 billion dollars to keep our financial sector running, and Obama fills his cabinet positions in record time for a president-elect.

In some non-drug related needle news, I’m going to donate some plasma today — wish me luck!