Chris Brown's doin' a lotta talking

I don't even feel like using too much energy to write about Chris Brown; just keeping you all up to date on what's going on. You can check here and here.

MediaTakeout usually knows what it's talking about so we'll see. According to sources Rihanna's on her way back to Barbados. Poor girl. Today Valentine's Day she should be enjoying herself, not hiding out from the paps.

Happy VD!

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Blackwater, "XE" and KBR

Let's not let them get away with this subterfuge.

Our contractors, and the government officials who contracted them, need to be held accountable for their actions.

"In shift, Blackwater dumps tarnished brand name

By MIKE BAKER, Associated Press Writer Mike Baker, Associated Press Writer – Fri Feb 13, 5:33 pm ET Play Video AP – Blackwater's Iraq deal not to be renewed
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AP – In this April 4, 2004 file photo plainclothes contractors working for Blackwater USA take part in a … RALEIGH, N.C. – Blackwater Worldwide is still protecting U.S. diplomats in Iraq, but executives at the beleaguered security firm are taking their biggest step yet to put that work and the ugly reputation it earned the company behind them.

Blackwater said Friday it will no longer operate under the name that came to be known worldwide as a caustic moniker for private security, dropping the tarnished brand for a disarming and simple identity: Xe, which is pronounced like the letter "z."

It's a rare surrender for a company that cherished a brand name inspired by the dark-water swamps of northeastern North Carolina, one that survived another rebranding effort about a year ago, following a deadly shooting in Baghdad's Nisoor Square. The decision to give it up underscores how badly the Moyock-based company's brand was damaged by that incident and other security work in Iraq.

"They have established themselves as the bad guys," said Katy Helvenston, who sued the company following her son's death during a mission in Fallujah while working for Blackwater in 2004. "They've established such a horrible reputation. Why else would they change their name?"

Blackwater acknowledged last year in an interview with the The Associated Press the damage to its reputation had persuaded the company to focus on lines of business other than private security contracting.

The issue came to a head last month, when the State Department said it would not rehire Blackwater to protect its diplomats in Iraq after its current contract with the company expires in May. The company has one other major security contract, details of which are classified.

"It's not a direct result of a loss of (that) contract, but certainly that is an aspect of our work that we feel we were defined by," said spokeswoman Anne Tyrrell.

The company is also replacing its bear paw logo with a sleeker black-and-white graphic based on letters that make up the company's new name. In a note to employees, president Gary Jackson said the name change reflects the company's new focus, and he indicated Xe would not actively pursue new security business.

"This company will continue to provide personnel protective services for high-threat environments when needed by the U.S. government, but its primary mission will be operating our training facilities around the world," Jackson said.

It has expanded other businesses such as aviation support, recently building a fleet of 76 aircraft that it has deployed to such hotspots as West Africa and Afghanistan. The company got its start in training and continues to build up that business. Last year, some 25,000 civilians, law enforcement and military personnel attended a Blackwater class.

The company's changes aren't entirely voluntary. The 2007 shooting in Nisoor Square involving Blackwater guards left at least a dozen Iraqi civilians dead, infuriated politicians in Baghdad and Washington, triggered congressional hearings and increased calls that the company be banned from Iraq.

Late last year, prosecutors charged five of the company's contractors — but not Blackwater itself — with manslaughter and weapons violations. In January, Iraqi officials said they would not give the company a license to operate. The State Department responded by informing Blackwater it would not renew a contract that comprises a third of the company's nearly $1 billion in annual revenue.

"It would hurt us," company CEO Erik Prince said in an interview before losing the State Department deal. "It would not be a mortal blow, but it would hurt us."

Blackwater has rebranded before, introducing a new name — Blackwater Worldwide — and slight changes to its logo about a year ago. But Friday's announcement cuts ties entirely with a name created in 1997 when Prince and some of his former Navy SEAL colleagues launched the company.

Xe will cover the parent brand for the two-dozen subsidiaries, and none of those subsidiaries will retain the word "Blackwater" in their names.

Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky, chair of the Intelligence Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and a longtime Blackwater critic, said the new name won't change the fact that its actions have resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians.

"Blackwater's notorious reputation will outlast its name," she said."

And let's not forget Kellog, Brown and Root (KBR)

KBR Kellogg Brown and Root to be indicted for negligent homicide



The United States of America cannot be absolved of the actions of it's employees.

If our contractors are guilty of criminal action, then so are the government officials who authorized those contracts.

Let the prosecutions and convictions commence.

Valentine's special - Fave tv/movie hook-ups

Well, as you all know tomorrow's Valentine's Day and I was scratching my head as to how to mark this event. I haven't done one of my Friday Fave lists in a while so here's a list of my fave Top Five tv and movie co-star hookups. I usually do a list of 10, but I couldn't think of 10 Hollywood couples who hooked up on set and were still together....

Anyhoo, here we go:


5. Jennifer Morrison and Jesse Spencer - House. House's Chase and Cameron don't have much use for each other on the show - Cameron's kinda hung up on grumpy Dr. House - but in real life the couple fell in love and were married in 2007.


4. Milo Ventimiglia and Hayden Panettiere - Heroes. You never know when or where love will find you. On Heroes indestructible teen Claire Bennett is the niece of the moody Peter Petrelli; in reality 18-year old Hayden is dating her 30-year old co-star Milo. Talk about keeping it all in the family....


3. James Tupper and Anne Heche - Men in Trees. Anne Heche loves some drama. Remember when she was dating Ellen Degeneres and left Ellen and got married to a man? Well, since then she's left her husband for her co-star on the recently cancelled series Men in Trees, James Tupper. I hope she gets her happy ending....


2.Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie - Mr. & Mrs. Smith. If you watched the movie Mr. & Mrs. Smith, the spark between co-stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie was undeniable. It therefore came as no surprise when news broke that the philanthropic Ms. Jolie and Hollywood golden boy Pitt were an item.


1. Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith - Fresh Prince of Belair. Will and Jada met on the set of his popular sitcom when she was auditioning for the role of his girlfriend (ironic, oui?) She didn't get the part but somewhere along the line she stole his heart.


And the couple that millions out there in tvland wish was a couple:

Wentworth Miller and Sarah Wayne Callies - Prison Break. I don't know if any other tv couple has spawned as much fanfiction as Prison Break's Michael and Sara (pictured with costar Amaury Nolasco). Fans would love if these two would hookup, but alas, Ms. Callies is married and recently had a baby. Boo hoo.

If you want to see more of my fave tv couples, check out this post I did way back.

Have a great Valentine's Day!

Images: www.meijumi.com/www.ivillage.com

Meet Jon Favreau

If like me you were made emotional by many of the speeches made by President Barack Obama in his run for the White House, (especially his acceptance speech on election night) then the 28 year-old man pictured above is responsible.

Meet Jon Favreau, Obama's Director of Speechwriting, who is a former speech writer for Senator John Kerry. You can read more about him here and here.

No doubt he's part of the reason why Obama was able to tap the pulse of the young people of America the way he did....

Image: www.daylife.com

The Minutemen

BITE ME!

So I took my daughter, young Galadriel Tanqueray Onassis, to the orthodontist this afternoon. The first step on the path towards getting braces. We chose Dr. Thomas Lovinggood because:

He is right across he street from me and right around the corner from GTO.

My BFF had nice things to say about him.

GTO's teeth aren't all that bad. I mean, we're Americans!



We're not BRITISH!



But she does have an anterior crossbite that needs to be corrected.

I took her in for an estimate.

Total charge to fix her teeth is $4,521.00. My insurance will pay $1250.00 of that. So that leaves $3271.00 for us to suck up.

Good news is, NO big upfront charges. Easy monthly payments! No credit checks, no loans, no finance charges. I like this guy already!

Next step would be a "diagnostic records" appointment where they make molds of her teeth and whatnot. That's a $175.00 appointment. Divided between me and the ex, I'm only out $87.50.

From that point on, it's a flat $150.00 a month for the next 18-24 months.

Split between me and the ex, I'm looking at $75.00 a month.

I get paid twice a month. That's $37.50 per pay check. I think I can swing that.

Given that she is a freshman now and the dental treatment takes 18-24 months, she should have straight teeth and be brace-free in time for her Senior graduations pics.

This might not suck ass.