At Breakneck Pace

Barely time for the news today.

Burma Calls for Nukes (AP, CNN, Times)

BBC image: Solar Eclipse at the Taj Mahal

BBC: Long shadow - Biden won't make same waves in Georgia as Bush did - If only I could have been there to watch Joe Biden being driven down the George W. Bush Highway in Tblisi. That would have been the highlight of my life.

BBC: UK is losing 52 pubs each week - This is a travesty, and should be reversed immediately. Who's with me!? Gus? Father Time? I know that Mighty Mo is with me!

Guardian: Lonesome George, the last Galápagos giant tortoise, may become a dad

Guardian: Assessing the risk from al-Qaida - The UK has reduced the official threat of an al-Qaida terrorist attack. Should the US follow suit? - Huh. Also, the thumbnail of the author of this article sort of makes him look like Elvis Presley.

Times gallery: US Marines in Afghanistan

Times: Public want [British] Army withdrawn from Afghanistan - Interesting, since the BBC was reporting just last week that British Afghan mission public support was rising.

UPI: Russia eyes Med naval base in Syria

SPX: Countering the IED Threat

AFP: Biden says US supports Ukraine bid to joint NATO - Let's hope that this is a serious goal of the Obama Administration, and not just some crap that was typed into their teleprompters in order to make them sound good.

Taqadoumy: Post-election Mauritania Brief

Slate: Why 2024 will be like Nineteen Eighty-Four - A very interesting piece about why non-ownership of books on Kindle sets is a dangerous precedent.

Gizmodo: Why the App Store is Just Like the Civil Rights Movement, and Other Lessons We can Learn from I-Fart

I spent last night doing the following things, which precluded a good blog post:

I went on a good yomp, and I did pushups and situps.

I replied to an exceptionally long E-mail with another exceptionally long E-mail - time consuming, but it was important.

I read a short passage from The Royal Marines: From Sea Soldiers to a Special Force.

I broke down my gear from the yomp and set my gym bag up for today's swim workout.

I drank a beer. Mmmmmm. Beer.

Check in tomorrow, folks. I have a couple of links that I held back today so that I can give them proper coverage tomorrow, so come check them out - if you have any interest in history or guns, tomorrow's the day for you. In the mean time, have a fantastic Thursday.