From an AP story, no less:

Between August and October, Iraq lost $7 billion dollars in potential revenues due to sabotage against the country's oil infrastructure, according to Assem Jihad, spokesman of the Oil Ministry.

I think the only people who annoy me more than those who write "$5 dollars" are those who write "5$" because that's how they'd read it out loud. If people can't figure out what "$" means, maybe Shift-4 should go to something more useful, like "Make those damn Dock icons stop bouncing."

The United Church of Christ has launched an edgy ad campaign designed to attract gays and others who feel alienated by other denominations.

The 30-second commercial features two muscle-bound "bouncers" standing guard outside a picturesque church and selecting which persons are permitted to attend Sunday services. Written text interrupts the scene, announcing, "Jesus didn't turn people away. Neither do we." A narrator then proclaims the United Church of Christ's commitment that: "No matter who you are, or where you are on life's journey, you are welcome here."

The commercial, which will run from Dec. 1 - 26, on network and cable stations, offers a stark contrast to the rhetoric about moral values that permeated the election campaign.

A church welcoming all comers? Quick, how many churches do you know that don't even keep the front door unlocked because "the regulars" all come in the back door anyway?

That always kind of disturbed me.