Independence Day... Yes, It's a Holiday!

Most people spend the Fourth of July eating too much and watching fireworks... in my family we spend the whole weekend eating to much! Now that I have recovered, lets see what you may have missed over the holidays...

Most importantly is that your neighborhood Starbucks may be closing! 600 stores are coming off street corners and 12,000 jobs may be lost. I guess thats what happens when people finally realize that their over priced high calorie coffee drink is not the best way to waste 30+ minutes of their work day. Not to worry, there are plans to open 200 new stores next year! One analyst said, "I think they have the right strategy... It’s a matter of executing the strategy and then, of course, the economy will play a role as well here." As if the economy wasn't already playing a role?

In International News

Palestinians invade Egypt. Thousands were battled back with water canons, but six Egyptian security force personnel were slightly injured by rocks. Egypt decided not to respond, and a spokesman said, "This was done in agreement with Hamas in the Gaza Strip who have taken control of the situation." Does it bother anyone else that the problem was left to Hamas to solve?

Hostages freed in Columbia. Most people had no idea that Americans were being held hostage in Columbia for years now, but a sneaky trick has led to the release of former presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and three U.S. military contractors that was so successful that not a single shot was fired. Oh... eleven Colombian police and soldiers were also freed in the rescue. This will be yet another blow against the FARC, who is reeling from the deaths of key commanders and the loss of much of the territory it once held. The operations will likely go down in history books... in fact, I'm waiting for someone to write a book on it.

Iraq no longer Nuclear Threat. A secret U.S. operation has ended with a stockpile of 550 metric tons of "yellowcake" (concentrated uranium), the last major remnant of Saddam's nuclear program, arriving in Canada. A spokesman from the company involved in the multi-million dollar purchase stated, "We are pleased ... that we have taken (the yellowcake) from a volatile region into a stable area to produce clean electricity." Now there is just the matter of cleaning up all the radioactive debris at the former Tuwaitha nuclear complex.

Science In Our Lives

Watermelon is nature's Viagra. Citrulline, an ingredient in the fruit, reacts with the body's enzymes when consumed in large quantities and can trigger production of arginine which in turn boosts nitric oxide. This leads to relaxed blood vessels, the same basic effect that Viagra has. (Makes one wonder what is going on in the picture to the right) But Todd Wehner, who studies watermelon breeding at North Carolina State University says "It sounds like it would be an effect that would be interesting but not a substitute for any medical treatment." Or you could just see it as a treatment for high blood pressure... but thats not as fun to talk about... not to mention that watermelon is a diuretic and works as a homeopathic treatment for kidney patients in the days before dialysis.