An Avondale woman who spent 11 days sleeping in her car said the city treated her unfairly when her home was condemned in December for lack of electricity. But city officials said Christine Stevens violated building codes, a health and safety concern because Avondale homes are required to have heating systems and a running refrigerator....

"I acknowledged that I remembered seeing something but it didn't look official, and I only saw one. It looked like something from my homeowners association," said Stevens, who lives in the Rancho Santa Fe subdivision....

Case documents cite a complaint from a neighbor in October. The unidentified woman complained about the property's appearance and said she believed there was no electricity powering the home....

Avondale officials said Stevens was in violation of the city's building codes. The city requires homes to have enough electricity to power a refrigerator, cool a residence to no higher than 88 degrees and heat a residence to at least 68 degrees.

Stevens told The Republic that six solar panels and eight batteries in her home provided light and powered either a computer or a television for three bedrooms. Stevens used an ice box for food and in September began to power a refrigerator with assistance from neighbors, who allowed her to run an extension-cord between the two homes. She did not power heating or cooling systems, but said that she managed without them by using her pool in the summer and sweaters in the cooler months....

Stevens was laid off as a risk compliance officer for Wells Fargo Bank in January 2009. She has been working as a security guard for Trident Security Services, making $200 a week, since November, she said.

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As the parent of a 7-year-old girl, I have had to develop a tolerance of pink plastic objects. Personally, I find that they offend both my aesthetic sense and my notion of gender stereotyping. But we have to live and let live, don't we?

If some people care for garish pink tat, who am I to cavil and carp? If some of those people live in my house, all the more reason for me to find it in myself to put up with their predilections.

But here is where I draw the line. Toys R Us really are selling a pink Ouija board. For girls aged, it says on their site, 8-14 years.

Complete with planchette, and the legend 'Ask the questions girls want to know'

TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (Reuters) -- Toppled Honduran President Manuel Zelaya emerged from months holed up in a Brazilian embassy compound and flew into exile in the Dominican Republic on Wednesday, ending a months-long political crisis as a new elected president took office.

Zelaya, ousted in a coup last June, boarded a plane that took off for the Dominican Republic shortly after opposition leader Porfirio Lobo, elected in November, was sworn in as president. Thousands of supporters at the airport cheered and shouted as the plane took off.

Along with OGH (Mike Smithson) and one or two other PB'ers, I attended the excellent polling conference held at the sumptuous British Academy on Pall Mall last week. Nearly all of the "big hitters" from UK opinion polling were there - names such as John Curtice, Peter Kellner, and Andrew Cooper who should hopefully be familiar to most readers of this site.

Subjects included past vote weighting, telephone and internet polls, and exit polling (which had a brief diversion to Ukraine Presidential 2010!). The event was well worth attending and extremely useful in gaining a greater understanding of opinion polls, how they are put together and evaluated, and some of the issues surrounding them.

One of the most interesting parts of the day came towards the end, when the host asked the leading names present for an on-the-spot prediction of the general election (OGH by this time having had to leave in order to make his train). I made a careful note of the responses (the question asked was actually "what will be the Conservative percentage vote lead?" although the nature of the responses varied).

you are the media you consume.

Along with OGH (Mike Smithson) and one or two other PB'ers, I attended the excellent polling conference held at the sumptuous British Academy on Pall Mall last week. Nearly all of the "big hitters" from UK opinion polling were there - names such as John Curtice, Peter Kellner, and Andrew Cooper who should hopefully be familiar to most readers of this site.

Subjects included past vote weighting, telephone and internet polls, and exit polling (which had a brief diversion to Ukraine Presidential 2010!). The event was well worth attending and extremely useful in gaining a greater understanding of opinion polls, how they are put together and evaluated, and some of the issues surrounding them.

One of the most interesting parts of the day came towards the end, when the host asked the leading names present for an on-the-spot prediction of the general election (OGH by this time having had to leave in order to make his train). I made a careful note of the responses (the question asked was actually "what will be the Conservative percentage vote lead?" although the nature of the responses varied).

The Who are playing the Super Bowl in Miami next week. So 1,500 homes in Brevard Country received this warning about Pete Townshend. Kids: If he offers to let you "check out his Bridgestone Tires," tell an adult.

A joint resolution: "The U.S. Senate voted to increase the federal debt limit by $1.9 trillion, to $14.3 trillion, which lawmakers said would be enough to accommodate borrowing for the rest of this year. The vote was 60-39 for the measure, which now goes to the House. It would be the fifth time lawmakers raised the limit on government borrowing in the past two years. The vote is a win for Democrats who fended off Republican attempts to force them into repeated, smaller increases in the debt ceiling before the November elections."

ROLL CALL

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

I wish that I could say that the tragedy in Haiti has caused people to recognize Western culpability in the state of that country.  I wish I could say that now that eyes have been opened, that the worldview of Haiti will change but such thoughts are utopian at best.  Even in the worst of circumstances there are always going to be those that hold onto their privilege with a death grip because to do otherwise would mean recognizing that they are not entitled to the life of ease to which they have become accustomed.  Paul Shirley wrote the following at Flip Collective:

Google wants the government to step up its support for Internet freedom in talks with China and other trading partners.

The search engine's senior lobbyist on Wednesday said a free Internet is an American value the administration should seek to protect.

"It's important to recognize that freedom of speech is not just a U.S. value, it's a value that lots of people around the world hold dear as well," said Alan Davidson, Google's director of U.S. policy and governmental affairs.

Read more...

"Our role is not unlike that of a private equity firm or venture capital firm trying to do due diligence ... to make sure we don't fund a bad project," Strickling said. "If these projects aren't running five years from now after the funding is long gone, we haven't done our job."

Read more...

"Our job" is awarding grants worth $4.7B.

Diversity is the key to economic and political evolution.

From the Guardian (and presumably cleared by very expensive lawyers):

Simon Singh was sued by the BCA after he wrote an article in the Guardian criticising the association for supporting members who claim that chiropractic treatments - which involve manipulation of the spine - can treat children's colic, sleeping and feeding problems, frequent ear infections, asthma and prolonged crying.

Singh described the treatments, for which he said there is no evidence, as "bogus" and criticised the BCA for "happily promoting" them.

Sign the libel reform petition here.  You don't have to be British.  The aim is 100,000 signatures.  Please sign it and circulate it, because I think, potentially, it affects everyone who writes online.