Let’s just hope this is all done and behind us now.

UPDATED: Former Senator Norm Coleman concedes.

Occasionally stories from our more civilized cousins (you know, the ones with government run health care) pop up, and they always make for an interesting read.

A few months ago it was the 10 month waiting list for a maternity ward, and now this gem from across the pond:

Infertile women have been told they can only have IVF treatment if they are aged between 39 and a half and 40.

That’s right ladies… you’re eligible for a whopping six months. So keep your fingers crossed. That, or move to another country where they don’t have universal health care yet.

Via Hot Air via NRO.

Spitzer’s take on Sanford:

THERE’S a huge difference between what South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford did, and what ex-New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer did. “I didn’t fall in love with any of them,” Spitzer was overheard telling LMDC executive director Avi Schick the other day at Solo in the Sony Building on Madison, where they had the $24 prix-fixe lunch.

Yeah. You’re right. Sex for money vs. sex for love is waaaaaayyyyy different. Douche Bag.

…and again it’s fast food related. Here are some old ones in case you missed them.

This time, a man and his 2 friends called 911 because they , “paid $10 and these guys gave me one burger and fries — that’s it, man.”

After being told that wasn’t an emergency, did it end? No.

They called back. They said they wanted a cop there, or they’d sue 911.

You are going to sue our office because you’re calling 911 and they didn’t give you the correct food?

By this time, they were making such a scene that others called 911 about them.

But it doesn’t end there. They decided to up the ante.

The caller said, “Oh my God, the lady at McDonalds has a gun pointed at my head. Send a cop right now.”

Mickelson [the dispatcher] asks, “Does she have a gun pointed at your head?”

“Yup. You’re going to send me a cop,” demands the caller.

“Yes, I’m going to send you a cop. What’s your name?” asks Mickelson.

“My name is Jeremy Martin. Send me a cop right now!” the caller said.

There was no gun but there was a Jeremy Martin.

Martin, 23, was arrested for improper use of 911.

On a related PSA note:

With Fourth of July fast approaching dispatchers warn everyone not to call 911 with noise complaints; police won’t respond to them.

Also, it’s 4th of July, so live with it. Or, as Jeff’s neighbor would put it, “grow up.”

Source: NBC, then the first link I could find

The Western Wisconsin Derecho was a severe storm (or more accurately, a Derecho) that occurred through several counties of Western Wisconsin on July 15, 1980. It caused nearly $160M in damage (1980 dollars)(including severe damage to Menards headquarters) and is still referred to as “The July 15th (1980) Storm,” “July 15th, 1980,” or simply “The Storm.”

The best part is, the storm was all Minnesota’s fault!

That’s a half truth. The storm formed in MN, picked up speed, and did most of it’s damage in Wisconsin.

The storm developed during the heat wave of 1980. Eight days prior to the storm, MN had experienced highs above 90°F, which primed the fuse for a storm.

As the storm raced through St Croix, Pierce, Dunn, Eau Claire, Chippewa, and Clark counties, it caused a band of damage more than 20 miles (30 km) wide. A maximum wind speed of 110 mph (177 km/h) was recorded at the Chippewa Valley Regional Airport, while 100 mph wind was recorded in the city of Eau Claire. At 9:39 p.m., WEAU-TV broadcast an alert from the National Weather Service about one of several tornado warnings that evening for Eau Claire County; moments later, the station lost power and went off-the-air.

Although much of the storm’s damage was caused by straight-line winds a total of 10 tornadoes (ranging from power of F0 to F3) were reported.

Also, there was controversy because although the Feckless Jimmy Carter declared it a disaster area, due to the massive influx of Cubans into the country, the Mount St Helens eruption of 18 May, the severe tornadoes in Grand Island, Nebraska in June, and flooding in western Pennsylvania during August, the FEMA rules changed, covering only 75% of the damages, leaving WI with $800,000 of disaster to cover.

Source: My hero

…not in M-W. But is in Wiki:

A derecho (from Spanish: “derecho” meaning “straight”) is a widespread and long-lived, violent convectively induced straight-line windstorm that is associated with a fast-moving band of severe thunderstorms in the form of a squall line usually taking the form of a bow echo. Derechos blow in the direction of movement of their associated storms, similar to a gust front, except that the wind is sustained and generally increases in strength behind the “gust” front. A warm weather phenomenon, derechos occur mostly in summer, especially June and July in the Northern Hemisphere. They can occur at any time of the year and occur as frequently at night as in the daylight hours.

So, probably not surprising if you think about it, but I hadn’t, is the fact that ‘Menards’ is a family name. Menard’s was founded in 1962 by John Menards Jr. in Eau Claire, WI.

Menards is a privately owned company with stores in 12 states (Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota and Wyoming). Since it is private, they don’t have to release their earnings, but it is thought to be the 3rd largest home center chain in the United States behind The Home Depot and Lowe’s.

There is also a sister company of Menards named Midwest Manufacturing who makes some of the products sold in the stores using brand names MasterCraft and Ultradeck, among others.

The Mr. Menards from the commercials, BTW, is named Ray Szmanda, and he is alive (as best I can tell, anyway!). He is a freelance announcer.

Lastly, in March 2009, Menards opened its flagship megastore in Waukesha, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The Waukesha megastore is the largest Menards in the United States and has two glass elevators, two massive industrial escalators, and a snack shop.

Source: Lena from Dave Ryan and Wiki

Since the first Gulf War in 1991, a group of veterans and townspeople from around Bangor Maine have greeted every troop flight that arrives or departs from Bangor International Airport.

The Bangor Airport (which incidentally is also a designated emergency airport for the Space Shuttle) is the last major US airport between Europe and the United States, which makes it a stop for many transatlantic flights.

Slublog over at the Hot Air Greenroom explains:

I’ve been at the airport a couple of times when troop flights have arrived, and it’s a moving experience. Soldiers file in and the minute they enter the terminal, the troop greeters start applauding, shaking hands and hugging the troops. In the troop greeter room, soldiers are given access to snacks and free cell phones they can use to call loved ones. Although I’ve never been a formal part of the troop greeting, I have taken the opportunity to shake a hand or clap for those who serve our country.

The greeters are the subject of a new documentary, called The Way We Get By. Trailer below.

The movie is in limited release, but will be shown on PBS this Veteran’s Day.

Those of you moved enough to donate to this worthy cause, can do so here.

On the Web: TWwGb Movie Site, Maine Troop Greeters Home Page, PBS

A 9 inch knife in the brain. (Well, I don’t exactly know if you can, but this guy did.)

Army Sgt. Dan Powers was working to keep pedestrians away from the scene of an explosion in East Baghdad when he was hit:

Powers was walking away from the cordoned area when it hit him — a near-knockout blow that felt like a “clothesline tackle,” he said. But Powers stayed on his feet, spun around and slammed his raven-haired assailant to the asphalt, prodding the skinny Iraqi man’s face with his M4 barrel. Riley, his squad mate, pounced and detained the assailant.

“I remember being pretty pissed off,” Powers recalled to Air Force Times. Adrenaline throbbed in his veins and blood soaked his shoulder. A medic, Spc. Ryan Webb with the 118th Military Police, was tugging at his arm, demanding that he “sit down, calm down and leave the knife in.”

The knife? What knife?

“They said, ‘You’re stabbed’ and … I remember seeing the handle,” Powers said. “There was no pain because the brain has no pain sensory nerves. It was all surface, like someone punched me in the head.”

Stabbing is pretty rare in today’s military. In fact, Powers was only the second person to be stabbed during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Powers was rushed to a nearby medical facility, where one of the Army’s top neurosurgeons advised the doctors on the ground on via his laptop. He was then evacuated to the US in a rare nonstop flight.

Amazingly, the only brain function that seemed affected was his balance.

After a few months of rehab, Powers is back to normal. Oh, and he’s rejoining his original company, you know, right after he makes his first parachute jump.

As for the stabber… Powers testified against him in Iraqi court via teleconference.

He’s not sure how the trial turned out, but he’s told that the Iraqis planned to “lengthen his neck a little bit.”

Powers handles the whole thing exactly as you’d expect:

Powers acknowledges that his survival tale, circulating within the Air Force’s Air Mobility Command, is “the stuff they make movies out of.” But the soldier in him bristles at the notoriety — or the suggestion that he’s some kind of hero.

In his version of the story, the Army, Navy and Air Force moved the world to save one man’s life.

And he’s just some guy who got stabbed in the brain.

I’d encourage you to read the whole original tale. It’s worth it. And hot damn our military rules.

Source: The Original Story, The Follow Up Story, and h/t Look True North.

Pitchman William “Billy” D. Mays, Jr., Oxy-Clean Spokesman, and Vince from ShamWow rival, passed away on 6/28/09.

He started his career selling portable washing machines on the Atlantic City boardwalk before being hired by OrangGlo to promote their various cleaners.

He went on to pitch for the following products: OxiClean, Orange Glo, Kaboom, Engrave It, Handy Switch, iCan, Mighty Mendit, Mighty Putty (regular) & Mighty Putty Wood, Hercules Hook, AwesomeAuger, Steam Buddy ,Zorbeez, Big City Slider Station,The Ding King, ESPN 360, Energize, Impact Gel Insoles, Omni DualSaw, Jupiter Jack, What Odor?, Tool Bandit, SIMONIZ Instant Shine, SIMONIZ fix it! (regular) & fix it! PRO, Gopher, Samurai Shark, Grater Plater, Ragazzi’s Pizza, and Green Now!

He also recently got a show on Discovery, but I didn’t think it was that good.

He was on an airplane flight the day before his death where the tires blew out on landing. Though no one on board was thought to suffer severe injuries, it is unclear if this incident had anything to do with his death.

Update: Preliminary autopsy results indicate heart disease is a likely cause of death.

Source: Wiki