Casey Anthony in Probation Protection Program

For security reasons, Casey Anthony will be serving one year of probation--possibly outside of Florida--for an unrelated check fraud charge in an undisclosed location according to FindLaw.com:

The Florida Department of Corrections will not be putting her photo and information on their website, and a judge has blocked public release of her personal information.

Judge Belvin Perry imposed the 12-month probation term earlier this month. Subsequently an appeals court ruled against Anthony's claim that she had already served her probation while she was in jail awaiting her murder trial, in which she was subsequently found not guilty.

Anthony secretly sat down with her probation officer on Wednesday and must meet with him in person once a month.

Follow the Path of Hurricane Irene

Will Hurricane Irene, currently Category 1, be less severe than projections? If so, is the media guilty of engendering ratings-motivated hysteria similar to what they do for impending, "end of the world" snowstorms?

Click here for the Weather Channel's hurricane tracker.

Contessa Brewer Loses MSNBC Anchor Gig

Obama-worshipping MSNBC anchor (is that redundant?) Contessa Brewer, who famously made a complete fool of herself in challenging Congressman Mo Brooks' economic credentials, has lost her anchor gig on the network. Apparently she will remain affiliated with the network in some capacity, however.

Michelle Obama's Excellent Vacations

Hurricane Irene forced the Obamas to cut short their summer vacation near Cape Cod in Massachusetts. It's been reported that the president and his wife for some reason flew to and from Martha's Vineyard on separate jets--on the taxpayer's dime of course. Last August, NY Daily News columnist Andrea Tantaros wrote that "Michelle Obama seems more like a modern-day Marie Antoinette" given the first lady's luxury vacation in Spain, in which she and her entourage flew on a government plane accompanied by a large taxpayer-funded security detail.

Even White House staffers are becoming uneasy according to the Daily Mail in the UK:

White House sources today claimed that the First Lady has spent $10 million of U.S. taxpayers' money on vacations alone in the past year. Branding her 'disgusting' and 'a vacation junkie', they say the 47-year-old mother-of-two has been indulging in five-star hotels, where she splashes out on expensive massages and alcohol. The 'top source' told the National Enquirer: 'It's disgusting. Michelle is taking advantage of her privileged position while the most hardworking Americans can barely afford a week or two off work.

As Boston Herald columnist Howie Carr observes, "The first family came in separate planes, and they’re leaving, ditto. Hey, it’s only money, our money."

Can you imagine the outcry if someone like Laura Bush was running up this kind of vacation tab especially with the economy on the skids?