We used a product called Pawz I believe with our beagle when he got confused with regular boots. They're incredibly simple tough rubber similar to balloons in effect but don't cause the pads to feel like there's anything there. The reason Booba looks so confused is that he's convinced there's ground on his feet when he lifts his paws.

And for those stating that boots on paws is animal cruelty, you've never had to lift and carry your poor dog home when salt or ice have gotten between their pads. Our beagle much preferred romping through the snowy streets wearing boots to limping along with ice packed in his pads. Or are you suggesting that owners not take dogs out when it snows?

I wouldn't take a free umbrella because I don't umbrella. I just have no use for them. I don't like endangering others with the spiky ends, I don't like taking up extra sidewalk space, I don't like how my pant cuffs get extra soaked, I just don't like them. Haven't used one in my ten years in New York, I've found a waterproof jacket and a baseball hat to be my preferred method of travel in inclement weather.

Now if they were handing out baseball caps on a rainy day, I'd be there in a heartbeat.

Can it be considered stealing if I am knowingly giving it away? Mine is open and unsecured, I do not care if others use the unlimited bandwith I am paying a fee for. My pipeline is large enough I don't notice anyone taking it.

There have been instances where I needed it and kicked everyone off for a few hours to get work done, but that is within my right. However, since there are large swaths of time during the day where it would go unused otherwise, it seems selfish and weird to hoard it to myself when I'm not even using it.

I figure if you've changed the name from "Lynksys" or "user" you know enough to knowingly secure it and have not and are therefore sharing it. My neighbor and I have never spoken about this, but since I know for certain that the gent above me uses my signal in the back of the apartment, I feel no compunction to not use his in the front. We both get decent coverage throughout the entire floor as a result. Win, win.

Route 66? Try Route 6. The end of Cape Cod to Long Beach, CA. Now there's a man's road. :)

I would have loved to be at the meeting where they discussed a need for a autonomous human-eating robot.

I swear, it's like these people have never seen any science fiction film. They could have at least watched Terminator 3 a few years back.

I'm sure it would be a lot more attractive to anyone without the obvious "schlurp" of drool every once and a while. Oh, and how you look like a tool with your mouth like that with a wire hanging out...

@the other parker,

No way. There's certainly some wrongness with the idea, (adding additional debris around low earth orbit, but that's another discussion), but the major issue is going to be getting it into orbit in the first place. Rockets still have issues and I can't think of anyone who would want to be downrange of a rocket filled with nuclear waste that may be destroyed in the atmosphere if things should go awry. The track record for rockets is really good, but you're going to have to lead the way and move your house downwind before anyone follows.

Let's not forget the kerfluffle about Cassini, when it was simply using the earth to slingshot, people get really freaked out about nuclear fuels contaminating earth from space.

You know, there was a time (possibly after the horrible PC video game) when I thought Monty Python couldn't sell out any more.

Wow. I hope Eric Idle has fun in his gold Bentley.

@dmj,

Wow, don't know where you heard that one, most of the time they end up in the trash after the show. It's just the script for written pieces if the prompter goes down. Nobody cares about the script after the show.

Can't go wrong with a good sword (or edged weapon of choice) and some decent running shoes that will stand up to the fall of civilization. You guys are going to be out making tons of noise going full auto all night long and thus drawing the zombies to you while I'm out chopping open heads quietly with a weapon that makes no noise, never needs reloading, has no moving parts to need repair and can be used in a variety of ways for a vast variety of other uses.

Make all the noise you want and get weighed down by heavy gear, that's exactly what they want you to do.

Something Clever, McCain 8 years ago was awesome. I wish he'd been in office the past 8 years working "across the aisle" instead of declaring Mission Accomplished and talking about his "mandate."

Unfortunately I haven't seen that guy recently. If anyone sees that McCain, tell him I miss him and his willingness to campaign without the Bush people he's surrounded himself with this season.

How is $700 billion dollars being redistributed from taxes to banks not "redistribution of wealth"? Democrats and Republicans alike will redistribute as they see fit.

The latter will increase military spending (are we planning on fighting another USSR anytime soon?) while decreasing taxes on corporations and the wealthy while claiming that this money will "trickle down" (how's your paycheck? Still increasing just barely more than inflation? You've had 8 years for something to trickle down to you by now).

The former will increas spending on social issues (ever been out of work?) and things that improve everyone's life while taxing individuals that make a quarter-million dollars a year and rolling back tax breaks for corporations (Exxon, fifteen billions dollars this year in profit. I don't need to send $700 million overseas for oil, I can overspend right at home, thank you) in order to help pay for this.

One way will help you and you alone if you make 250,000 a year. The other will help out you and your country if you are not in the top 5% of the income bracket.

I know it's not money alone that you can decide your vote on, but it's also a big decision as to what direction you want to spend your taxes (which won't really change much one way or the other if you're a typical earner): for your country or for some rich guys who are going to just invest it?

Impressive. Not as impressive as the time in college radio we lit the news guy's actual paper copy he was holding on fire.

He finished the news from memory.