Friday, July 17, 2009

If Cats reported the news...

And now we hand it over to Stripes...

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SAN DIEGO – Jumbo flying squid — aggressive 5-foot-long sea monsters with razor-sharp beaks and toothy tentacles — have invaded the shallow waters off San Diego, spooking scuba divers and washing up dead on tourist-packed beaches.

The carnivorous calamari, which can grow up to 100 pounds, came up from the depths last week and swarms of them roughed up unsuspecting divers. Some divers report tentacles enveloping their masks and yanking at their cameras and gear.
Reaction from the cat on the street?

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WASHINGTON — A bill to overhaul the safety of the nation's food supply is confusingly written and must not go forward until the Food and Drug Administration power over grain and livestock is removed, food industry representatives and members of Congress agreed Thursday.

Industry representatives from the American Meat Institute , the National Farmers Union , and other groups, as well as some lawmakers, don't think the FDA has enough experience or people to regulate grain and livestock, a job that traditionally has fallen to the Agriculture Department.

[snip]

Every year, one in four Americans are sickened by food, and about 5,000 die, according the Centers for Disease Control . While lawmakers repeatedly touted the nation's food supply as the safest in the world, in April the CDC said food safety is no longer improving.

In March, President Barack Obama formed a working group to examine food safety issues. Its recommendations, which include greater Agriculture Department and FDA authority and an emphasis on prevention, are the subject of several congressional bills, including the one under scrutiny at Thursday's hearing. The working group's recommendations didn't include FDA oversight of grain and livestock.

The FDA wants that authority. "The legislation would indeed transform our nation's approach to food safety from responding to outbreaks to preventing them," Michael R. Taylor , a senior adviser to the FDA commissioner, said in written testimony.

A food safety advocacy group, Safe Tables Our Priority, objected to the makeup of the panel of witnesses Thursday. Only one out 11 witnesses at the hearing represented consumers and victims of foodborne illness. However, lawmakers and the food industry representatives stressed that it was in nobody's interest for people to die from eating contaminated food.

"We're not callous and heartless to these tragedies these families have suffered," said Rep. Michael Conaway , R- Texas . "But we're worried about unintended consequences of this legislation, which would be detrimental to the system."
Reaction to Conaway's comments?

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Fun photos of Harry Potter actors growing up and some of the great actors involved in the movies.

Reaction from the street, Fluffy?

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Right, never mind.. Back to you, Socks:
Rep. Todd Tiahrt suggests Obama’s mother wanted to abort him.
Socks? Socks?

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But it's FRIDAY!! What are the cats saying?

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And that's our news hour...

10 comments:

Diane said...

Absolutely brill!

I'm still laughing, although my cats are not. Also.

ellroon said...

:D One way to mix in jaw-dropping news with Friday cat blogging. Also.

Mike Goldman said...

5000 people die a year from EATING FOOD!!?

How many from cannabis again? Oh, zero.

Mike Goldman said...

I'm sure the cats would like to know how many die from catnip.

Steve Bates said...

Oh... "cannabis." At first I misread "cannibals..." :)

ellroon said...

Wellll...You mix cannabis and cannibals together... and you'll get a bunch of happy 'head'hunters...

Mike Goldman said...

The difference between cannabis and cannibals: Cannibals may be dangerous to one's health/survival.

Also, eating people is wrong.

ellroon said...

Thought of you, Mike.

Mike Goldman said...

Thanks Ellroon! Now that the war on cannabis is over, the next step is to replace the sick economy and base the new economy on hemp. Seriously! :)

ellroon said...

It would put the cartels out of business, that's true....