Good Bites:
* Canada, the world's second largest country, announced it will create 10 huge new national parks over the next five years, which will nearly double the size of the national parks system. The plan also creates 5 new National Marine Conservation Areas along the longest coastline in the world.

* The leaders of 10 Central Asian and Caspian nations, including Iran and Turkey, agreed to establish a fund to help rebuild devastated Afghanistan. The mostly Muslim nations understand that Afghanistan's prosperity would enhance security in the region.

Good of the Day:

House Passes Election Reform 2 Years After Florida Debacle of 2000

The House overwhelmingly passed legislation to give states almost $3.9 billion to upgrade voting equipment and amend election procedures to insure Americans are able to cast their ballots with confidence in the 2004 presidential election.

The bill, produced in a Senate/House conference committee, passed by a margin of 357-48, and now moves to the Senate. It authorizes expenditures of $2.16 billion during the current fiscal year and $3.86 billion over the next three years. Outdated punch-card and lever voting machines will be replaced by modern electronic equipment.

The states will be required to provide "provisional ballots" to voters whose names are missing from official rolls. Their votes would be counted if registration could later be verified. By the 2006 election, the voting process would have to provide a "second chance" for citizens who want to change their ballots before submitting them.

One controversial provision requires voters to verify their identification. But some lawmakers who disliked the requirement, like Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), voted for passage of the bill anyway, concluding, 'We have to get started.'

Sex* and Books and Rock 'n' Roll.

The optimist sees the rose and not its thorns; the pessimist stares at the thorns, oblivious to the rose.
-Kahlil Gibran