t is, I believe, accepted that if you quote the writing of someone else without attribution, that qualifies as outright plagiarism. If, on the other hand, you purloin the works of many people, one generally gets away with the rip-off as "research." The following idea is based on considerable "research" on my part.
It has been a year of bumper-stickers, political-spin lines and sales-pitches that can match any from the past.
2004... The year of "Flip-flopping," "Fifty dollars a barrel," "Weak dollar," "Support our troops," "Outside the box," "Rathergate," "Viagra, Cialis, Levitra," "What would Jesus drive" "Spam," "Bloggers," "Yellow ribbons," "Mission accomplished," "low carb," "Homeland security," "Humvee," "Evil," "Abu Ghraib," " 'flu shots," "Red Sox," "You're fired," "Make-over," "Euro," "Swift Boats," "Super-size," Evil," "Rummy," "Yassir," "Ukraine," "Vioxx," "Haliburton," "iPod" and on and on and on. (Add some of your own, I'd love to receive them).
2004 is ending on a most tragic note with the natural disaster of immense proportion in South East Asia... with the tally of dead, wounded, destroyed, and broken, mounting by the minute. It is not a year that will be remembered for its achievements and inventions, however many there may have been. The war against terrorism will continue for years to come and it seems most likely that we will be an occupation force in Iraq for many years to come. The president of the United States will be starting his second term in office with the lowest personal approval-rating of any second-term chief executive since 1948.
Perhaps it is the unusually heavy, continued downpour of rain, in Los Angeles, that has put me in this seemingly negative frame of mind - as soon as the sun shines I'll try and assess the accomplishments of the year concluding and spend some time sharing hopes and expectations for the incoming, brand new year ahead.
Closing thought for this report is one that I have expressed on several occasions and it is simply that somehow Bush must get the message and replace the Secretary of Defense - Rumsfeld must be replaced.

Looks like the sky is beginning to clear.