From CNN.com:

“Foam may have struck wing

NASA officials said Thursday that analysis of camera footage from the launch showed a small piece of foam may have struck the wing of the orbiter — a scenario eerily similar to the accident that doomed the shuttle Columbia in February 2003. That chunk of foam left a crack in Columbia’s wing, causing it to disintegrate during the heat of re-entry and killing seven astronauts aboard.
[Officials] also said a thermal blanket under one of the orbiter’s windows appears to have been slightly damaged, which may need to be further evaluated.”

What must it be like to be in space orbiting the earth at 18,000 mph knowing that your only means of returning home is a vessel that may be damaged in the same way that caused the destruction during re-entry of the previous space shuttle?
To know that you have no choice but be baptised with fire?

From ITN:

“Mini-tornado hits Birmingham
A mini-tornado has ripped through parts of Birmingham, injuring several people, uprooting trees and causing extensive damage to buildings.
Motorists are being advised to avoid the nearby Ladypool Road area after a number of trees were blown down and roofs were reportedly lifted off buildings.
‘I have had a report back from the scene that approximately 300 metres of the shopping centre in the High Street has been severely damaged by adverse weather conditions.”

Freak weather or what?!

From BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Italy:

“Italy probes phoney secret police
Italian police have launched a big inquiry into a ‘parallel’ intelligence agency created to fight Islamist militant groups, Italian media report.
The Department of Anti-terrorism Strategic Studies (DSSA) was reportedly set up after the 2004 Madrid train bombings, in which 191 people died.
Many of those under investigation are policemen, and some of them are said to have been unaware of the fact that their activity in the DSSA was illegal.
The alleged aim was to benefit from funding that has become available, nationally and internationally, after the Madrid blasts as part of the global war on terror.”

Isn’t this amazing? I’ve read a few bits and pieces about corruption and mafia connections within the Italian police, but this is amazing.

It’s a little larger than a bogus meter-reader calling at your door to rob you!

From CorpWatch:

“A proposal to ‘relocate’ three Andean glaciers to mine for gold has local people up in arms. This billion dollar development by Barrick Gold could destroy a major source of clean water on the border of Argentina and Chile.”

HOLY FUCK

.