Random

• In traditional Chinese thinking 8 is a lucky number -- the number of prosperity. It's no accident that the Olympics kick-off at 8 p.m. tonight -- on 08-08-08. A local cell phone company on Guam is having a $100,000 promotional drawing at 8 p.m. tonight -- 08-08-08. For some it's all just a bit of fun -- for many it is a bondage to superstition. ~ Link

• Even the 99¢ stores are having to raise prices -- bound to happen -- challenging though if you're the "99¢ Only" store. ~ Link

• The Bikini islanders from the Marshalls are trying to get additional compensation from the US ~ Link

• The number of native Hawaiians living in Hawaii is in decline -- as is the Asian population. The Caucasian population is on the rise. As the cost of island living goes up many of the people who have traditionally thrived there can no longer afford it. Meanwhile, they are being replaced by more affluent groups. Could it be that while the rest of the US is edging toward a more diverse population profile Hawaii is going the other direction? ~ Link

• More on the demographic shifting in the US ~ Link

• The Roman Catholic Church in Italy is going to the beach (Adriatic coast in the Molise region) -- where all the people are in the summer. And they've got a 30-meter (98 ft), inflatable, roofless, and spireless church building in which to hold mass. Unfortunately, they've also got some wind problems. I wonder if the Israelites and their portable (but not inflatable) worship building ever got blown around. ~ Link

• Everything in India is changing except the treatment of the poor, according to an article in the IHT. But the article deals only minimally with the underlying religious assumptions behind the problem. No Indian really wants to mess with the karma of another (helping them out of poverty or whatever) or that might mess up their own karma. And once that mindset is embraced it becomes an unspoken everyday excuse that allows people to blindly ignore what is all around them.