"Bits & Pieces" - Commentary by Tony Seton

Bits & Pieces

Bits and pieces from this reporter’s notebook.

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....If you’ve been paying attention, you already know that the situation in Iraq is not a healthy one for American troops. Not only have more be killed since we "won" the war, but almost a thousand have been wounded or maimed. Also, authorities say that at least 13 have committed suicide.

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....Back in our half of the world, a failed suicide may turn a life around. They usually do. A 40-year-old single man who lost his sales job when his family closed their auto parts company because of the economic downturn decided to end it all. He drank a whole bunch of vodka and Coke with a friend and then jumped into the Niagara River. He went over the falls but survived, the only person to do so without special equipment. Said a friend, "I think he just reached the point where whatever happened was the best plan for him. If he made it, he might benefit with money. If he died, so be it."

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....It’s mostly the squandering of billions on the IraqAttaq that has driven our budget deficit to a record $375 billion. That means that the average taxpayer owes the government an additional $3,260 for last year. And next year’s deficit is expected to balloon to around $500 billion, with most of that due to Bush-Lite’s obscene tax cut for the wealthy.

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....For a man who had everything and could wind up with life behind bars, this bit of philosophy about his route to the future from Kobe Bryant: "Every day is a bad day. You just kind of take the good with it. We'll get through this situation. Every storm has to end. The sunshine is a rainbow after every storm, so you just go along with it."

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....Also on the other court, Olivet, Michigan’s girls’ basketball team is a ranked squad, but even they didn’t expect a shut-out. However, they beat the Leslie High School’s girls’ basketball team 61-to-nothing. Zip, zero, nada as the saying goes. Said the losing coach, "The whole bus ride home, I couldn't believe it. We missed layups. We missed 2-footers. Everything that could go wrong did."

Da-deet-da-deet-da-deet-deet....Finally, in Hummels Wharf, Pennsylvania, the police are looking for a cat burglar. Actually, a cats burglar. The perp snatched seven felines from a local animal shelter. No ransom note was left.

And that’s SetonnoteS...I’m Tony Seton.