Bush Term Extended

Those eagerly awaiting Barack Obama’s taking over the reins will have to wait just a bit longer, as the Navy has just added an extra second on to 2008.

The world’s official timekeepers have added a “leap second” to the last day of the year on Wednesday, to help match clocks to the Earth’s slowing spin on its axis, which takes place at ever-changing rates affected by tides and other factors.

The U.S. Naval Observatory, keeper of the Pentagon’s master clock, said it would add the extra second on Wednesday in coordination with the world’s atomic clocks at 23 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds Coordinated Universal Time, or UTC.

That corresponds to 6:59:59 p.m. EST (23:59:59 GMT), when an extra second will tick by — the 24th to be added to UTC since 1972, when the practice began.

I’m sure Karl Rove was involved somehow.

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James Joyner
About James Joyner
James Joyner is Professor and Department Head of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.

Comments

  1. caj says:

    Just as long as it’s only extended for another second I think I can live with that….any longer and that would be a cause for concern!!!

  2. tom p says:

    I’m sure Karl Rove was involved somehow.

    Actually James, I have it on good authority, that it was Addington.