Hostages Freed

"BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- U.S. and British forces have freed three Christian aid workers held hostage in Iraq, ending a four-month ordeal in which an American captive was found dead on a Baghdad street.

No shots were fired and no captors were present when the hostages -- Briton Norman Kember, 74 and Canadians James Loney, 41, and Harmeet Singh Sooden, 32 -- were freed early Thursday, officials said.

"I am delighted that now we have a happy ending in this terrible ordeal," British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said in announcing the rescue."

This is good news. However, I am disappointed by this.

"Christian Peacemaker Teams posted a statement on its Web siteexternal link expressing joy in the hostages' release but also criticizing the U.S.-led operation in Iraq.

"We believe that the illegal occupation of Iraq by Multinational Forces is the root cause of the insecurity which led to this kidnapping and so much pain and suffering in Iraq," the statement said. "The occupation must end."

It is irresponsible to place the blame for the kidnapping upon the coalition forces. The men who went to Iraq were adults and aware that they were intentionally placing themselves in harms way.

Dance At The Office

Bathroom Tales

Want to learn more about a larger and more comfortable toilet. Click here.

Do You Remember Gemco?

I do and so do these people.

Waiting for The Contractor

If you are a prospective vendor who is interested in earning my business you need to know that I am not real keen on being kept waiting.

But if you have to keep me waiting, if you must keep me hanging on then you should have the sense to call me on the phone to let me know that you are running late.

Such a lack of manners indicate that you must be from cleveland.

The Shmata Queen is a Monkey

My dear Shmata Queen is upset because I haven't blogged about her lately. So here you go, my monkey mistress. Your very own post.

Are you happy now, or are you going to keep calling me.

What Makes a Lefty: Myths and Mysteries Persist

"Can openers, scissors and spiral-bound notebooks discriminate against lefties. Despite such challenges, 10 to 12 percent of the human population has historically preferred the left hand.

Why doesn't the number ever waiver? Nobody knows for sure, but new research supports a body of evidence that suggests genetics have a hand in it all.

In the meantime, the myth remains that lefties are more artistic. And the idea that left-handed fighters have an advantage persists on scant evidence, supported by Scottish lore and Rocky Balboa's heroics in the ring.

Look, Mom: Both hands!

Like many traits, handedness is probably determined by a complex interaction between genes and the environment, experts figure.

Left-handers are more likely to have a left-handed relative. But researchers have yet to find the gene or set of genes that pick one hand over the other.

Most scientists agree that handedness exists on a continuum. The idea helps explain why some people bowl with their left but hold a spoon in their right. Truly ambidextrous people, who have indifferent preference for either hand, are extremely rare.

In a new study, researchers measured the width of elbows in living people and in skeletons from a medieval British farming community.

The researchers assumed the 9-to-1 ratio of handedness would match the ratio of bigger right to left elbows. The prediction held true in the modern-day group, but not for the medieval bones.

Most of the ancient farmers' left and right elbows were the same size.

"It's obvious that they were using both hands equally," said anthropologist Amanda Blackburn from the University of Manitoba. "It's not fair to say they were ambidextrous in the true sense of the word, but they may have had a tendency to use both hands equally. It's a behavior they may have learned rather than just being born like that."

The findings will be published in the April issue of the journal Current Anthropology."

Read the whole story here.