Tom McMahon

Mugs-A-Plenty: Mondrian

Mugs-A-Plenty: Mondrian

You might want to check out the matching tile coasters too!

The Tylenol Murders

From CrimeLibrary.com:

On September 29, 1982, 12-year-old Mary Kellerman of Elk Grove Village, Illinois, woke up at dawn and went into her parents' bedroom. She did not feel well and complained of having a sore throat and a runny nose. To ease her discomfort, her parents gave her one Extra-Strength Tylenol capsule. At 7 a.m. they found Mary on the bathroom floor. She was immediately taken to the hospital where she was later pronounced dead. Doctors initially suspected that Mary died from a stroke, but evidence later pointed to a more sinister diagnosis.

That same day, paramedics were called to the Arlington Heights home of 27-year-old postal worker Adam Janus. When they arrived, they found him lying on the floor. His breathing was labored, his blood pressure was dangerously low and his pupils were fixed and dilated. The paramedics rushed Adam Janus to the emergency room at Northwest Community Hospital, where they attempted to resuscitate him, but it was too late. Adam died shortly after he was brought to the hospital. His death was believed to be the result of a massive heart attack. However, doctors would later learn that his death was anything but natural.

On the eve of Adam's death, his aggrieved family gathered at his house to mourn his sudden passing and discuss funeral arrangements. Adam's 25-year old brother Stanley and his 19-year-old bride, Theresa, both suffered from headaches attributed to the stress of losing a family member. To his relief, Stanley found on Adam's kitchen counter a bottle of Extra Strength Tylenol. He took a capsule from the bottle and then gave one to his wife.

Shortly after taking the capsules, both Stanley and his wife collapsed onto the floor. The shocked family members immediately called an ambulance. Once again paramedics rushed to the home of Adam Janus and attempted to resuscitate the young couple. However, Stanley died that day, and his wife died two days later.

I had just started a new job in Elk Grove village about three weeks before. One day we came to work and there was this strange flyer on the door warning people not to use Tylenol. At first we thought it was the work of a crank, but soon found out the incredible, strange story unfolding right in our own back yard.

Anti-Valentine E-Cards

Anti-Valentine E-Cards

I've posted this before, so just consider this a reminder.

Five Threats to the American Way of Life

From Newt Gingrich:

The American way of life is vulnerable to five major threats as difficult as any America has faced. The first threat is the potential for Islamic terrorists and rogue dictatorships to acquire and use nuclear or biological weapons. The second is the effort to drive God out of American public life. The third is the possibility that America will lose the patriotic sense of itself as a singular civilization. The fourth is that America's economic supremacy will eventually yield to China and India because of failing schools and weakening scientific and technological leadership. The fifth is that an aging America's demands on Social Security, Medicare, and related government programs will collapse the current system.

Each threat can be overcome, but standing in our way is an entrenched political system and news media that refuse to confront these threats seriously. Just as previous American generations have met the challenges of their times, however, so can we.

Postal Art Gallery: Art Deco Eagle

Postal Art Gallery: Art Deco Eagle

Frankly, this looks more like something you'd find in Hitler's Reichstag than on a US postage stamp.

Super Bowl Rings: Jim McMahon 2, Brett Favre 1

The irony, of course, is that Jim McMahon got his second ring playing as the backup for Brett Favre. A little factoid for Chicago Bears fans that will drive Packers fans absolutely nuts.

Bedtime for Bonzo, Directed by Fred De Cordova

Bedtime for Bonzo, Directed by Fred De Cordova

Fred De Cordova also directed The Jack Benny Program and was the longtime executive producer of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. His imdb listing is fascinating. He passed away at the age of 90 four days after 9/11, as was well served by this obituary in The Guardian.

These People Are Truly Worth Nothing

From Dennis Prager:

Since I was an adolescent, I have been preoccupied with evil: specifically, why people engage in it and why other people refuse to acknowledge its existence. As I have gotten older, I often find the latter group more infuriating. Somehow, as much as I don't want to, I can understand why a Muslim raised in a world permeated with hate-filled lies about America and Israel, and taught from childhood that God loves death, will blow himself up and joyfully maim and murder children. As evil as the Muslim terrorist is, given the Islamic world in which he was raised, he has some excuse.

But the non-Muslims who fail to acknowledge and confront the evil of Muslim terror and the evil of those monsters who cut innocent people's throats and murder those trying to make a democracy -- these people are truly worth nothing. Unlike the Muslims raised in a religious totalitarian society, they have no excuse. And in my lifetime, these people have overwhelmingly congregated on the political Left.

Vintage Johnny Carson

Johnny Carson on The Jack Benny Program

I've posted on this before, but why not take a moment to order this VHS tape from Amazon? They only have 16 used ones left, and I don't see this episode on DVD. It's a lot of fun, and would make a great gift for Mom/Dad/Grandma/Grandpa.

The Death of Magellan

From the always fascinating EyewitnessToHistory.com:

Searching for a way to control the native population after he leaves the island, Magellan persuades one of the local chiefs to convert to Christianity (referred to by Antonio as the "Christian King"). Magellan hopes to make this chieftain supreme over the remaining local tribes and loyal to the King of Spain. To bolster this chief's local supremacy, Magellan decides that a show of force, particularly the power of his muskets and cannon, against a neighboring tribe will impress the natives into submission.

Magellan orders an attack but miscalculates. He does not take into account that the reefs along the island's beach will not allow his ships to get into effective range for their cannon. As the battle is joined along the beach, the Spanish fire their muskets ineffectively from too far a distance despite Magellan's attempt to order his crew to cease-fire. Emboldened, the natives rush into the water flinging spears at the unprotected legs and feet of the Spanish. The crew abandons Magellan in panic and the Captain is soon overwhelmed.