To help you get over your case of the Mondays. Not a lot of humor, just a few interesting tidbits scoured from social media in the past few days. I swear Monday Morning Humor will make a return.

“I found an interesting quote someone posted on the Channel 6 story about my new proposal. I won’t be using it in committee but thought it was funny. “A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity” – Sigmund Freud” – Libertarian Indianapolis City-County Councilor Ed Coleman, posted to his Facebook

“You know that it’s time for the Grammy’s to go when Weird Al is still getting nominated for awards” – Mike O’Brien, on Twitter

“Y’all come out to Papa Roux™. A little bit of Football™ this Sunday™, with a whole heapin’ mess of All-You-Can-Eat Po-Boys™ and Zeafood Gumbo™ on the side” – Art “Papa Roux” Bouvier. Obviously a little upset over the NFL putting the legal smackdown on folks using the phrase “Who Dat” without paying the NFL their alleged due. Thing is, it’s a New Orleans phrase that long predates the Saints franchise.

“Just saw an Attaboy plumbing truck 82nd and Bash. No, Richard Behney was not driving” – Me, on Twitter

As seen on Facebook:

President B. Hussein Obama bows to the Mayor of Tampa. Methinks he was checking out her …. blouse!!

Speaking of elected officials on Twitter -
““What do you think Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels should send us when the Saints take down the Colts in the Super Bowl? http://twurl.cc/24to” – Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Getting a little cocky ahead of the big game, aren’t you?

And finally – the campaign kickoff for Indiana’s next Congresswoman from the 2nd Congressional District

And Speaking of the Grammys:

The Taylor Swift Po-Boy

Remember the PSA’s that Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton did after the 2004 tsunami?  President Clinton returns, but this time with George W. Bush and team up to create the Clinton-Bush Haiti Fund.

If you haven’t given yet, please consider giving. You can also give to the Red Cross or to the Salvation Army.

(H/T – @jaketapper)

Happy New Year!  Get ready for an intense and exciting 2010!

Ok here is your Old Skool Friday….inspired by my drive to Granger today! Enjoy……

The SANS internet security group published a story today indicating AT&T wireless customers (which includes all US iPhone customers) are receiving a text message indicating a problem with their bill. I have yet to receive this phish, for what its worth.

From ISC:

a reader tells us that several AT&T cell subscribers have just received a text message, which instructs them to call a toll-free number ending in 7649 to resolve a problem with their account. When called, a voice menu harvests their credit card information.

An interesting delivery mechanism for an old-hat phish, which we’re all used to seeing in our email inboxes – now bright-shiny-new as a text message – nice find!

We tested this with the 4111 1111 1111 test card number, which the phish menu verified correctly. Subsequent tests indicate that a random 16 digit number is initially accepted by the voice menu, but fails verification at the end of the input process. This indicates that the menu is actually verifying and processing the CC numbers correctly, and is most likely processing (evil) transactions in close to real-time.

Always interesting to keep tabs on what evil lurks out there !

If you have a concern about your wireless account, 611 always works. Or at least it does on AT&T. Be aware, folks!

Doug Masson has some observations about America’s infant mortality rate:

…one thing that struck me was that Indiana’s infant mortality rate is apparently comparable to those of French Polynesia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. (8.1 per 1,000; 8,100 per 100,000).

While it’s good to have the data, I would have liked to see more about how Indiana compared to the rest of the world as opposed to just the rest of the nation. “Average” for the country might not tell us much about our overall potential for improvement.

This number isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be (both for the United States as a whole and for the various states).

Not all infant mortality statistics are created equal; the United States supposedly has an infant mortality rate comparable to Cyprus, New Caledonia, Croatia, and Malta. I was reading over at Power Line about this several days ago, and I thought of it when I read Doug’s post.

They note:

In the United States, we save an extraordinary number of premature and “defective” babies. Not all of them survive for long or attain normal life expectancies, but they are counted as live births. In nearly all other countries, such babies are not saved and are not counted as live births. I have never seen any attempt to quantify the effect that our effort to preserve high-risk infants has on life expectancy figures.

And then you take the definition of infant mortality rate from Wikipedia:

(Read more after the leap)

This Saturday, August 1st, Hoosier Access is celebrating it’s second birthday.  To celebrate, we are hoping to roll out a few new changes that we hope will engage more of our readers and allow more of you to become involved in the site.  We also will be rolling out a revamped site design.

As we work through the bugs of some of the upcoming changes, you’ll notice some things on the site may not work or show up.  Right now, we’re having an issue with the comments section appearing.  But don’t worry, you can still comment on posts.

As for the changes, remember those member blogs we’ve talked about before?  Well, they will finally become a reality.

Not everything will be ready by August 1st, but positive user changes will be happening in the coming days and weeks and we want you to be a part of it!

-The Directors

Please pardon the belated greetings this St. Patty’s day, but have a great one today!

Consider this the blarney stone of open threads.

Hey everyone, I have a new site for you to add to your bookmarks.  It’s Libertyfile.com.  For those our readers who tend to have more a libertarian streak in the them, this your alternative to the Druge Report.  And, it’s homegrown by Indianapolis’ own, Sean Shepard.  Sean has contributed a few times to Hoosier Access.  He was also the Libertarian candidate for Congress in the 7th Congressional special election last year.

Here’s wishing all of our readers a great 2009.  We couldn’t be where we are without you.  Thanks!

And here’s hoping for a great new year…because 2009 can’t be any worse than 2008 can it?

From the AP (which has to give characteristic emphasis on a random bombing before giving any coverage at all to the surprising news):

BAGHDAD – Iraq’s Christians, a scant minority in this overwhelmingly Muslim country, quietly celebrated Christmas on Thursday with a present from the government, which declared it an official holiday for the first time.

In his homily on Thursday, Chaldean Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly praised the establishment of Christmas as an official holiday as a step toward easing tensions.

“I thank the government for giving chances to all to serve each other for the general benefit, and I thank it too for making this day an official holiday where we pray to God to make us trust each other as brothers,” he said at the Christmas Mass before several dozen worshippers in the small chapel of a Baghdad monastery.

A senior Shiite cleric, Ammar al-Hakim, attended the Mass flanked by bodyguards in a gesture of cooperation with Christians.

“I thank the visitors here and ask them to share happiness and love with their brothers on Christmas; by this they will build a glorious Iraq,” the cardinal said.

“We came here to bring a message of love, respect and gratitude to our Christian brothers and to share happiness with them as we have shared sadness with them during the cruel targeting they came under,” al-Hakim said in an interview with al-Furat TV. “We will do our best for equality between people and a good life for all, whatever their religious, sectarian and ethnic background.”

He is the son and heir-apparent of Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, Iraq’s biggest mainstream Shiite party.

Who knows. Before long, some lefty secular wacko will probably sue to have Christmas removed from being a Federal holiday here in America. Then Iraq, a constitutionally-declared Muslim country, will have it as an official holiday and the United States will not.

And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us.

And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds.

But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.

And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.

Luke 2:1-20 (KJV)

Have a great Christmas everybody and a wonderful new year!