Flood Waters Continue To Take Their Toll On Iowa:

House boats from the Ellis Marina on the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids lie jammed and destroyed against the Quaker Oats railroad bridge after breaking free from their moorings in downtown Cedar Rapids, Iowa June 13, 2008. Overflowing rivers in Iowa forced evacuations and disrupted the region's economy on Friday with fears of worse to come from fragile levees and more rain. Thousands were forced to leave their homes in the worst Midwest flooding in 15 years.

Look at all of that mud! The entire town is currently 'off-limits'.

Here's The Trailer For A&E's 'Intervention' Season Five:

In the real world, there is no such thing as a typical addict. Never forget there's a story behind each person falling prey to the demon rum or drugs or any other of the known vices. Once the benders blur together and substance abuse takes over someone's life, the addiction becomes a social problem - lives are ruined and families are broken. Some lost souls never make it back to the other side.

But some make the effort, thereby providing the almost too-real human drama of Intervention (Monday, A&E at 9 p.m.). Back for a fifth season, the sobering documentary series follows the lives of people caught in the deepest throes of their addiction, and the attempts of those around them to put them on the road to recovery.

The addicts profiled on Intervention enter into the reality-TV experience under the semi-misconception they're taking part in a documentary on addiction. In most cases they're unaware their family and friends have planned an intervention, which is to be followed by either a trip to a treatment centre or immediate tough-love ejection from the family circle. For most of the addicts, it's their last chance.

The painful reality of addiction comes clear with Intervention's precise biographies of the addicts. Starting in 2005, the show's first four seasons have taken viewers into some very troubled lives - the ex-Olympic athlete who turned to methamphetamine, the alcoholic banker with a Fight Club fetish, the bulimic housewife who keeps a secret throw-up bag in the closet, and the former NBA superstar reduced to crackhead status. Watching real people unravel often makes for uncomfortable viewing.

There's been a lot of talk about the fine line between 'reality show' and exploitation, severe exploitation in this case, when it comes to this show and I think it's warranted. A&E is making a ton of dough off ad revenues as these people, and their families, crumble. There have been episode where alcoholics take to the wheel so inebriated that they can barely stand, let alone drive. The producers and camera crew do absolutely nothing to stop them. In fact, it could be argued that the cameras cause these people to go father than they would under normal circumstances. And what if someone is injured or dies as a result of an alcoholic's joyride. I can't lie, I'll be watching but I'm really torn over whether or not they should be so cavalier about it.

Luke Russert Remembers His Dad Tim On The Today Show:



I have to tell you, as decent and talented a guy as Tim Russert was, MSNBS is beginning to over do their coverage of his death. Candlelight vigils and unending coverage for a news man, however tragic his death, is just too much. However, I did find this appearance by his son Luke on the Today show this morning quite moving. I hope you enjoy it as well.

UK Paper Tracks Down The #4 Most Wanted Nazi War Criminal:

MINGLING with football fans in a pavement café, an elderly gentleman soaks up the atmosphere of Euro 2008.

Yet Milivoj Asner, out strolling with his wife, is no ordinary supporter welcoming his national side Croatia to his adopted Austrian town.

At No 4 on the list of most wanted Nazi war criminals, he instead stands accused of deporting hundreds of Jews, gypsies and Serbs to World War II death camps.

And he has been spared extradition only after Austrian officials insisted he was too poorly to face charges in Croatia of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Asner, who lives under an assumed name in Croatia’s European Championships base of Klagenfurt, is the subject of an international arrest warrant and on Interpol’s Most Wanted list.

The Sun tracked down the 95-year-old former police chief and Gestapo agent and secretly filmed him as he strolled confidently for more than a mile, arm-in-arm with second wife Edeltraut.

Walking without a stick, he even roamed 8th May Street – named after VE Day.

He certainly looks fit enough to stand trial for his horrific crimes.

Police Kill California Man Who Stomped Baby to Death:

The suspect had a child's car seat in the back of his four-door pickup truck. The truck caught the attention of an elderly couple at 10:13 p.m. Saturday because it was stopped in the two-lane road facing the wrong direction, Singh said.

As they got closer, the couple saw the man brutally beating the toddler behind his truck and throwing the child on the ground, according to Singh. Two or three other cars stopped, an unusual number to be passing through the remote area surrounded by a dairy, a cow pasture, a cornfield and a farmhouse, he said.

"What we got from witnesses is he was punching, slapping, kicking, stomping, shaking," Singh said. "They tried to intervene and get involved, but their efforts really didn't have an effect. The suspect was engaged in what he was doing. He just pushed them off and went back to it."

A sheriff's helicopter responding to emergency calls from the area landed in a cow pasture at 10:19 p.m. carrying a Modesto police officer who shot the man to death after he refused an order to stop beating the child, Singh said.

Paramedics tried to resuscitate the toddler, who was not breathing when they arrived. The boy was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Death seems like too good of an ending for this guy. What would posses someone to do something so disturbing and heartless? One person tried to intervene but was pushed off by the man who continued to pummel the toddler. I'm sure this is a lot easier to say after the fact but, if this man was unarmed, a 'push' would not stop me from putting an end to this scene.

At 58, Russert Collapses At NBC's News Bureau:

Tim Russert, NBC journalist and political heavyweight host of "Meet the Press," has died after collapsing at NBC's Washington news bureau, a source said. He was 58 years old.

In his role as host of the seminal Sunday morning political program "Meet the Press" - which he took over in 1991 - he became renowned for his hard-nosed interviews where he frequently cornered some of Washington's cagiest political figures with tough questions.

The industry is quite obviously in shock as no one saw this coming. Russert was actually recording promotional clips for Meet the Press when he had this fatal heart attack. He was an amazingly influential figure in the political world. Meet the Press will never be the same.

He will be missed...

Additional details to follow...

A Woman In Taiwan Is Set For Surgery On Her Massive Legs:

An upcoming surgery in Taiwan may end the suffering of a young Chinese woman who has been unable to leave her house for nearly 20 years because of a rare condition known as elephantiasis, Agence France-Presse reported Friday.

Wang Cheng, 24, who lives in the eastern Chinese province of Zhiangsu, has not left her house or worn pants since she was 6 years old because the condition has caused her legs to deform and triple in size.

Her legs have swelled to 110 pounds, but the free surgery planned for Monday may alleviate the swelling by cutting away lymphatic tissue.

She looks absolutely miserable in those photos. Cross your fingers.

John McCain's Daughter Goes Republican For Father's Day:

As some of you may know, I have been registered as an Independent since I was 18 years old. However, after careful thought and consideration, I recently decided to change my political party affiliation. This morning, I went to the State Capitol Executive Building in Phoenix with Mom and re-registered as a Republican. I did this as a symbol of my commitment to my dad and to represent the faith I have in his ability to be an effective leader for our country and to grow and strengthen the Republican party when he is elected President of the United States. Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Seems like a bizarre present to me but she had to do it eventually. What better day to switch parties than Father's Day?

Survivors Of A Plane Crash In Southern Chile Got Hungry:

The survivors and pilot huddled inside the felage, eating crackers and trying to maintain a fire in sub zero temperatures. Pilot Nelson Bahamondes survived the initial impact but slowly bled to death inside the cockpit, finally dying two days after the crash.

Bahamondes, an experienced pilot with an estimated 16,000 hours of flying time, provided leadership and guidance throughout the first two days of the ordeal, explaining to the passengers that a radio transmitter would help rescuers locate the craft. As the food ran out, Bahmondes died.

"He had a cut on his head, a big wound and he lost lots of blood," said Victor Suazo, a Chilean police officer who was aboard the flight. "We couldn't do anything for him and he died around noon on Monday."

Soon after, the survivors' hunger began to deplete their strength and they debated whether to eat the pilot. "We thought about the pilot, I don't know how to say it ... to feed ourselves from him. We thought about this, but some people were not in agreement because the situation was already so extreme."

The accident recalled the 1972 plane crash in which a Uruguayan rugby team crashed into Andean snowfields, then ate dead teammates to survive. The book and film Alive were based on their 72-day struggle to survive.

I interviewed Nando Parrado, one of the survivors of the Andes plane crash depicted in the movie Alive, some time ago. He told me all about situations like this. He didn't avoid questions on cannibalism among survivors and simply said you do 'what you have to do to stay alive'. These folks came real close to being the stars of Alive 2. Luckily, they only had to wait a fraction of the time that Nando Parrado had to wait in the 70's. Otherwise, I imagine they would have followed through with their plan to eat the pilot and whoever else died as time went on.

700-Year-Old Evangelist Church Burns In Translyvania:

The steeple of Evangelist church in the city of Bistrita in Romania's Transylvania region burns after fire broke out in the 700-year-old building.

The fire was in an area where the church was being restored. No word yet on the cause but the damage is pretty major.

A Belgian Beer Company Is Readying A Hostile Takeover:

On Wednesday, InBev, makers of Stella Artois and Becks, announced a $46 billion, $65-a-share bid for Anheuser-Busch, America's largest and perhaps most iconic brewery. The news has distressed Budweiser devotees who take pride in drinking the American-made beer, and some are even fighting back.

"Budweiser is as American as baseball," said Ed Martin, a lawyer from Anheuser-Busch's hometown of St. Louis. He so wants his Budweiser label to remain "red, white and blue" and out of the hands of the soccer-loving Belgians that he launched a Web site devoted to the cause, Saveab.com.

A petition on the site has garnered 11,449 signatures since rumors of a potential sale swirled a week ago. But that's a drop in the barrel compared to the 33,289 signatures linked from the similar Web site, Savebudweiser.com.

If you're interested, you can sign the petition to save Budweiser here.

The 'Incredible McCain Girl' Video Is The Best I've Seen:



Apparently this is from 'Barely Political' which I believe is owned by the same folks who run CollegeHumor.com. Regardless of where it came from or who paid for the production it's probably the coolest viral McCain ad you will see all campaign long.