Well, Rudy Giuliani’s office hung up on us when we offered the once presidential hopeful an ambassadorship last week, but Omar Osama Bin Laden (the estranged son of the more notorious OBL) and his wife are talking to us. We sent a letter yesterday urging the bin Ladens to cancel plans to organize a “grueling” endurance horse race across the Sahara Desert as “a way to promote peace.” That’s a 3,000-mile horse race across North Africa, scheduled to begin in March. We didn’t think that sounded like a barrel of laughs for the horses. As PETA’s president puts it, "If this were a rally in which cars were in danger of overheating and breaking down, I'd be all for it. But horses are flesh and blood. Such a grueling race will mean fatalities, not peace. Animals have not declared war on us - they should be truly left in peace."

The bin Ladens got back right away and some important assurances have already been given. More on this later. You can read our letter to bin Laden here.

Three dogfighters knocked out of the ring (or should that be pit) early! Two more of Michael Vick's alleged accomplices entered guilty pleas in Richmond today, and there is no doubt that Michael Vick is huddled with his attorneys, deciding whether or not he will follow suit early next week.

According to The Houston Chronicle, "A statement of facts signed by Taylor as part of his plea agreement placed Vick at the scene of several dogfights and linked him to betting. Taylor said Vick financed virtually all the "Bad Newz Kennels" operation on Vick's property in Surry County."

If Vick is ultimately tied to betting on these dogfights, it is likely to trigger a lifetime ban from the NFL under the league's personal conduct policy, which does not look kindly on illegal gambling. Does anyone else think it might be a good idea for the policy to include a similar stance against charges of electrocution and drowning?

PETA was present at the hearing, and I've posted some images for you below.

Now back to your regularly scheduled programming.