Stay tuned & see if compassionate conservative Bu$hCo vetoes this much needed tonic to the Supreme Court's bullshit ruling in the Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire case.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Dead Zone
Man, it's not beginning, it's returned for the sixth year in a row.
My emphasis. "...the new normal....", it's time to wake up the damnable ReThugs.
"It does, indeed, appear to be the new normal," said Jane Lubchenco, professor of marine biology at Oregon State University. "The fact that we are seeing six in a row now tells us that something pretty fundamental has changed about conditions off of our coast.
"Unlike the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico, which is caused by fertilizer washing down the Mississippi River, the Oregon dead zone is triggered by northerly winds, which create an ocean-mixing condition called upwelling.
This brings low-oxygen waters from deep in the ocean close to shore, and spreads nitrogen and other nutrients through the water column, kicking off a population boom of plankton, the tiny plants and animals at the foundation of the ocean food web.Normally, this is good for salmon, giving them lots of food to eat. But when huge amounts of plankton die, they fall to the bottom of the ocean, where they decompose, depleting the water of oxygen.
My emphasis. "...the new normal....", it's time to wake up the damnable ReThugs.
Powered by ScribeFire.
A Fact
I didn't even know Nepal had any elephants, much less endangered ones. This is another edition of how much I don't know.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Butterflies Aren't Free
I've sort of fancied myself a Johnny Appleseed of Common Milkweed, collecting & throwing seeds about, not pulling the plants from our vegetable garden, & trying to grow the plants from seed. I do this for a couple of reasons, one is that I use the bast fiber from the stem for paper. It is like hemp, very strong, & makes a nice paper. I also use the fluff in paper making, but mainly for projects that don't require a lot of durability, unless I recycle other paper into the pulp. I also do the milkweed things because of Monarch butterflies.
The world's inability to understand the need to protect stuff, like Monarch butterflies, mitigates against what I & many, many others are doing. Being the gin drinking, knee-jerk liberals that we are, we will continue with the milkweed projects & keep shoveling the rotten granite of capitalism out of the way. Otherwise, we will read more terribly sad sentences like this one:
The dead butterflies came up to his ankles, an ocean of orange and black that spread as far as he could see.
Powered by ScribeFire.
I'll Bet This Won't Count...
...against white immigration. After all, only brown people commit crimes. On the other hand, folks with working brains might actually get a truthful view of immigration from this book.
The volume provides important insights about past understandings of immigration and crime, many based on theories that have proven to be untrue or racially biased, as well as offering new scholarship on salient topics. Overall, the contributors argue that fears of immigrant crime are largely unfounded, as immigrants are themselves often more likely to be the victims of discrimination, stigmatization, and crime rather than the perpetrators.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
The Size Of New Jersey?
Brazil takes tiny steps regarding climate change/global warming.
Brazil remains suspicious of foreign involvement in its management of the Amazon, which it views as a domestic matter. But negotiators and others who monitor international climate talks say Brazil is now willing to discuss issues that until recently it considered off the table, including market-based programs to curb the carbon emissions that result from massive deforestation in the Amazon, in which areas the size of New Jersey or larger are razed each year.
“I think things have advanced, certainly, compared to three years ago, when the government simply refused to discuss deforestation in international forums,” said Márcio Santilli, a former government official who helped start the Socio-Environmental Institute, an environmental group in Brasília. “There has been a change of posture which reflects the worries of Brazilian public opinion on this issue, which in turn puts pressure on politicians.”
What I'm suspicious of is market-based anything. Relying on the market means money for shareholders & bupkis for the rest of us.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Another Reason Why I Hate Indiana
I mean there was/is that asshole Bobby Knight & that awful, stupid institution Notre Dame, but this just about takes the cake. Hear the ReThug arrogance in the governor's statement.
Mr. Daniels said he had no plans to rescind the permit.
“Here’s one of the biggest steps forward for the Midwest, really the whole nation,” Mr. Daniels, a Republican, told reporters last week.
Since the rest of the country is apparently ignorant of everything, this makes Daniels, like Bu$hCo, a king.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Monday, July 30, 2007
'bout Time
It looks like "Abu" Al Gonzales may finally be getting his just rewards. We can only hope.
Sorry for the poor Photoshopping, but I was in a hurry.
Bill Walsh, R.I.P.
I enjoyed watching his teams play. The best thing about them was that they weren't boring.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Mighty Is Right
Just fucking too funny. My favorite comment:
My emphasis. Here's a polyp.
Maybe it is, or else Cheney is in more asses than one.
Sad at removal
Submitted by Mayfly (not verified) on Wed, 2007-07-25 08:39.
I’m sad Bush’s polyps were removed. They were the only benign thing about him.
My emphasis. Here's a polyp.
Maybe it is, or else Cheney is in more asses than one.
A Little Sad Economics
Housing foreclosures on the rise. Here's an explanation. & here are some pics to help. Note that Wisco seems OK, at least up were I live. But a glance left shows a disturbing trend in MN, only 70 miles away. Profits before people, as usual in this country. The American dream = owning a home? I think not.
I'd like to know who the lender(s) are in NE MN. Any ideas from my loyal four readers? I notice a slight little bump into Wisco a bit east of Duluth & Minneapolis/St. Paul. Who's doing the mortgage lending up & over there?
Interesting & It's Science!
Glass sponges found off the Washington coast. Sponges made of glass, I never knew about these. Pretty cool.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Saturday, July 28, 2007
Well...
...if boy king Bu$hCo & Dick "Dick" Darth Cheney can do it without much consequence, why can't the astronauts?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Throw The Book At Him
Aw, wait a minute, don't waste the paper, just fine him the maximum & send him to prison for as long as the law allows. This is another report on the evils of individualism in America, or, how looking out for number one is stupid.
This is a sea lion, like the moron murdered.
Powered by ScribeFire.
No Shit Dick Tracys
Robert's Court seen as unbalanced by growing number of Americans. Remember Alito, Mr. John? Just asking.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Friday, July 27, 2007
Cool
Given the lack of real movement on the health care issue, this is probably the way to go. It's really sad that we have to go to take action like this. Not much of a country we have here, eh?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Good Grief
Was Pat Tillman murdered? How low can this worthless ReThuglican adminstration go?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
Impeachment
Josh Marshall is seeing. Maybe it's his baby boy. I know that The Twins have reinforced & strengthened & resurrected the true things I have learned in this life. Not least among them is the Constitution. & I realize that the formers of this document were no angels, as confirmed here & here, but, in general, it can be said to lay a decent groundwork for running a country. Bu$hCo has so maliciously ignored it, that we, as a people, a country, a government, must impeach him in order to reclaim the Constitution. These hateful morons must be held accountable. They believe & act as if they are above the law, anyone with a partially functioning mind knows this. So write your congressperson & demand of them, in a relatively polite manner, that you want Bu$hCo impeached & therefore you want the continuation of our evolving democracy. No more eating cake, & asking for more.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
"Abu" Al Gonzales, Shame Of America
I watched some of "Abu" Al's testimony today. I watched it in a small window on my laptop's monitor. The small window fit the small man being asked questions that he would not answer. It's getting more difficult to imagine a future for this country. Andrew Cohen sums it up.
Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales deserves to be fired for his testimony Tuesday alone; for morphing into Jon Lovitz's famous "pathological liar" character (or maybe just one of the Marx Brothers) as he tried to dodge and duck responsibility before the Senate Judiciary Committee not just for his shameful leadership at Justice but also his shameless role in visiting an ailing John Ashcroft in the hospital to try to strong-arm him into renewing the warrantless surviellance program. Can anyone out there remember a worse, less-inspiring, less confidence-inducing performance on Capitol Hill? I cannot.
Go read the rest, then drink a few gin & tonics to clean your soul, if you think you have one, I'll just try to clean out my throat.
Powered by ScribeFire.
One More Reversal
For the bastard Bu$hCo. It will make the highways a bit safer. This is one small step, but there are so many more to take in order to rectify all the damage Bu$hCo has done to this country, this world.
A federal appeals court on Tuesday struck down a Bush administration rule that loosened limits on the work hours of truck drivers, concluding that officials had failed to offer adequate justification for the changes.
In a unanimous decision, a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said the federal agency that oversees the trucking industry had not provided enough evidence to demonstrate the safety of its 2005 decision to increase the maximum driving hours of truck drivers. The hours were increased to 77 from 60 over 7 consecutive days, and to 88 hours from 70 over 8 days.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Good News
That should never have been news in the first place. I wonder why Mr. Foti didn't spend the state's money on suing the Bu$hCo administration for completely forgetting about NOLA? Where were his balls when the city needed them?
An Orleans Parish grand jury refused Tuesday to indict Anna Pou, the New Orleans physician who rode out Hurricane Katrina at Memorial Medical Center in 2005 only to be accused of murdering its patients.
Powered by ScribeFire.
One Of The Many Very Dark Sides Of A Market Driven Economy
China may lift the ban on the sale of tiger parts. Apparently, they can't make their version of Viagra for the old guys. While I don't share the writer's negative attitude towards traditional Chinese medicine, I sure hope they don't lift the ban. There are so few Amur tigers left in Russia & China that the lack of hard-ons for the relative few men it will "help" should not be the catalyst for the species' elimination.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Do Your Part/Project Nancygram
I know that my loyal four readers have lives beyond reading this blog & listening to me hectoring them to write letters. However, it's the only way to try & change the terrible direction this country is heading. What would happen, for example, if you didn't stop your child from running down the driveway right into the street in front of your house? You do stop your child, & explain the sad consequences of what will happen. This is the sort of conversation that continues throughout your life as a parent. The talks aren't always grim, most of the time they are exhilarating, full of life & promise &, ultimately, martinis. This country is needful right now, for your sincere, intelligent, hearty & heartfelt talk. It takes time, sheeesh, don't I know it, but it's worth it. Write the sponsors listed here. Check to make sure you are addressing the right corporation, the Adobe link actually goes to a BMW site. But do it. Also, it's real important that we keep pushing for Bu$hCo's impeachment, so here is a good example of what to do. Thanking you in advance. Oh, & here's your reward.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Why Capitalism & Bu$hCo's Tax Cuts For The Rich Are Stupid
When will we ever learn?
Two years ago, when companies received a big tax break to bring home their offshore profits, the president and Congress justified it as a one-time tax amnesty that would create American jobs.
Drug makers were the biggest beneficiaries of the amnesty program, repatriating about $100 billion in foreign profits and paying only minimal taxes. But the companies did not create many jobs in return. Instead, since 2005 the American drug industry has laid off tens of thousands of workers in this country.
And now drug companies are once again using complex strategies, many of them demonstrably legal, to shelter billions of dollars in profits in international tax havens, according to their financial statements and independent tax experts.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Ally This
The war in Afghanistan, remember, the country of the Taliban & the country that provided a safe haven for Osama bin Ladin & his training camps, yes, that country, that war, is not going so well. Osama lives, somewhere, & support for the Afghan war is dwindling to very low levels.
In Germany, over half of respondents want their troops pulled,....
While in Britain, a majority think the presence of their soldiers in Afghanistan is useless.& in the good old USA:
Looks like Georgie-boy Bu$hCo doesn't have much of a touch with the looking into the eyes & seeing souls thing these days.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Great Headline
Kutch’s wild ass habitat may soon get heritage label
& here I was getting all excited about the possibility of the heritage designation when I noticed the the paid advertisers on the right sidebar when I googled "old wild asses." To wit:
Mature Porn Review
Mature Gals
Older Women Porn
Why, one, or more, of my loyal four readers might ask, did you google "old" wild asses? The truth is quite simple. Previous to this google, I googled old deck wood. I was looking for info on treating old deck wood in order for it to have a bit longer life. I was also looking for a way to treat brand new black ash, which I will be using for the railing. Pics to follow, I promise. Anyway, in googling wild asses, I didn't delete the "old", ergo, old wild asses. The actual listing of links included:
JSTOR: Population Dynamics of a Reintroduced Asiatic Wild Ass ...
Ass - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Somali Wild Ass ::
Saint Louis Zoo
A wild tale of wild asses (INDISSOLUBLE CONNECTIONS III)
(short ...Asiatic Wild Ass
San Diego Zoo's Animal Bytes: Wild Ass
ADW: Equus asinus: InformationPDF]African Origins of the Domestic Donkey
Plus, at least 10 more pages of links. However, given my relative decrepit geezerhood, or I suppose the label could be heritage geezerhood, the paid ads gave me hope. The internets is a wonderful things.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Just Bullshit
Dan Froomkin provides the link to the transcript of a conference call concerning Bu$hCo's executive order giving more cover to the CIA's interrogation techniques. Here is what is so infuriating about Bu$hCo, from the conference call transcript:
I'm not in a position to talk about any specific interrogation practices,........I really can't answer those questions.....I think I'm probably not in a position to talk about that.....I'm really not in a position to elaborate in detail on the internal process that led to this order.....Well, as I explained I can't talk about practices in the program,........I'm not going to go into detail about exactly what that might include,........Well, I guess I'm really not in a position to talk about actual practices in the program........I'm not in a position to comment........I'm really not in a position to answer that question,....
& these are the minions of those that rule us. Nova Scotia, your seafood & free health care are calling. While I haven't had the need for Canada's health care, knock on some black ash, I believe Mrs. coldH20 & I ate at Mike's ten years or so ago.
Powered by ScribeFire.
New Orleans
When The Kid & Son-in-Law lived in New Orleans, pre-The Twins, a doctor, I assume a graduate of a medical school, told her that her health would be fixed if she became a Christian. Yeah, right. So how come all these Christians refuse to fix, among other things, the health care system in NOLA? Solidarity is right, do your part. First off, impeach the son-of-a-bitch Bu$hCo.
Powered by ScribeFire.
The War On Drugs
Is mostly about stupid things like this I would really like to know what goes on in the head of prosecutors like Mark Ober. & why isn't he putting real criminals, like Jeb! Bu$hCo, on trial?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Sovereign? Who Cares
We're America, we can do anything, according to that diplomatic wonder, Frances Fragos Townsend, another Bu$hCo lackey.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Take A Ride
Now that I have your attention with this pic of a vivacious Swedish blonde....oh, sorry, I must have hit the wrong bookmark, no, no, well, anyway. Via Americablog. Yes, yes, & I still remember Alito. Yes, yes, no, no. I'm a bit confused, but Sweden, as usual, is not confused about the future of fossil fuel powered vehicles.
By 2020, the Swedish government wants every new car on the road to run on fuels that can be replenished, and one of its car companies is already speeding toward that ambitious goal.
....
For now, so-called flex-fuel cars can run on a mixture of gasoline, diesel, and ethanol, with mixtures ranging from 10 percent ethanol to the currently popular E85, which is 85 percent ethanol, to 100 percent ethanol. In Sweden, the government has eliminated the tax on renewable fuels, making them cheaper than regular gasoline, cut sales taxes on biofuel vehicles, offered free parking in cities for cars that use biofuels, and set aside separate lanes for bio-taxis at airports.
....
"A lot of Europe will be looking to the tropics to produce biomass," he said. "If we're mowing down rain forests, we're really missing the point.
My emphasis. This all makes sense, so that must be why America doesn't apply the same thinking to the real problem of gasoline/diesel powered vehicles. Or maybe it is something else. Or it could be this? Could it be this? Maybe it's here. Or this? Aw, the hell with it, back to the sex. OK, so I found the right photo of a hot Swedish blonde for the my loyal four readers.
He is hot. Damn, I may have to give up my Tab Benoit mancrush. But probably not.
See what I mean?
Powered by ScribeFire.
I'm Not Shedding Any Tears
Poor Ms. Rice. all that college education, all that shoe buying, & all that declaring that Bu$hCo is her husband, & she can't get an op ed piece published. Well, TOO DAMN BAD.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Saturday, July 21, 2007
Culture Of Corrution Edition, Oh My, It's Numberless
Bu$hCo's illegal activities just keep piling up. This time it's a corrupt, immoral Fish & Wildlife political appointee.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said yesterday that it will review eight endangered species decisions that were "inappropriately influenced" by a political appointee of the Interior Department, throwing a lifeline to 18 species that scientists had deemed to be in need of protection.Scientists, conservationists and some lawmakers welcomed the news that the agency will reconsider the actions of former deputy assistant secretary Julie A. MacDonald to limit federal protections in those eight cases, but they expressed dismay that the agency chose not to reexamine other decisions she influenced.
....
Fish and Wildlife Director H. Dale Hall told reporters in a conference call that decisions affecting the fate of the white-tailed prairie dog, Preble's meadow jumping mouse, arroyo toad, southwestern willow flycatcher, California red-legged frog, Canada lynx and 12 species of Hawaiian picture-wing flies will be reexamined.
....
Boyles also noted that the agency chose not to review MacDonald's involvement in a decision to delist the Sacramento splittail, a species of fish that lives in waters on an 80-acre farm MacDonald owns within the species' limited habitat in California's Central Valley.
This is why I get so disspirited. These people are so evil, so unAmerican. My emphasis. On the other hand, there is this.
Powered by ScribeFire.
I'm Nervous
Bu$hCo is taking it up the ass, & we get Cheney as president. Please, loyal four readers, please report any black helicopters, errant bird shot, outed CIA operatives, or mushroom clouds immediately to my email address. If there is still a world, I'll respond. Good luck.
Sadly, yes.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Bring On The Lime
Via Scout Prime. She orders us to drink. I can live with that. So, my loyal four readers, it's time for imbibing for a good cause.
Ms. Pelosi, Read This
& then tell me you shouldn't start impeachment proceedings.
Bush administration officials unveiled a bold new assertion of executive authority yesterday in the dispute over the firing of nine U.S. attorneys, saying that the Justice Department will never be allowed to pursue contempt charges initiated by Congress against White House officials once the president has invoked executive privilege.
....
Mark J. Rozell, a professor of public policy at George Mason University who has written a book on executive-privilege issues, called the administration's stance "astonishing."
"That's a breathtakingly broad view of the president's role in this system of separation of powers," Rozell said.
"What this statement is saying is the president's claim of executive privilege trumps all."The administration's statement is a dramatic attempt to seize the upper hand in an escalating constitutional battle with Congress, which has been trying for months, without success, to compel White House officials to testify and to turn over documents about their roles in the prosecutor firings last year. The Justice Department and White House in recent weeks have been discussing when and how to disclose the stance, and the official said he decided yesterday that it was time to highlight it.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Thursday, July 19, 2007
There Is No Getting Along With This Crowd
Josh Marshall has it about right when it comes to people calling for less arguing, less score settling, less partisanship, less anger. I'm pissed off, I'm completely nuts when it comes to the cult of Bu$hco. & I am mostly that was because I don't understand why they keep supporting a worthless piece of shit like Bu$hco.
But that's not where we are. A faction in this country, and it doesn't merit a loftier label given its quickly diminishing size and its focus on loyalty to a single man, is still focused on perpetuating the catastrophe -- continuing it, expanding it and perhaps most importantly denying its very existence. One might say that denial and refusal to come clean on how we got into this mess is actually the least important element. But that's not the case since it is these that make the continuation of the policy possible.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Wisconsin Sucks, J.B. Van Hollen Happy
This is just not good. Wisco used to be a great, progressive state. Now look at us. Sad.
· States with the highest black-to-white ratio are disproportionately located in the Northeast and Midwest, including the leading states of Iowa, Vermont, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Wisconsin. This geographic concentration is true as well for the Hispanic-to-white ratio, with the most disproportionate states being Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, and New Jersey; and,
· States exhibiting high Black or Hispanic ratios of incarceration compared to whites fall into two categories: 1) those such as Wisconsin and Vermont which have high rates of black incarceration and average rates of white incarceration; and, 2) states such as New Jersey and Connecticut which have average rates of black incarceration and below-average rates of white incarceration. In both cases, the ratio of incarceration by race is higher than average.
Thanks to that promoter of narrow, nearly impassable streets, RLK.
Well, This Sucks
No more beef?
Now, after looking at the following pic, tell me that the above can be true. Damn the English for publicizing this information.
Producing 2.2lb of beef generates as much greenhouse gas as driving a car non-stop for three hours, it was claimed yesterday.Japanese scientists used a range of data to calculate the environmental impact of a single purchase of beef.Taking into account all the processes involved, they said, four average sized steaks generated greenhouse gases with a warming potential equivalent to 80.25lb of carbon dioxide.This also consumed 169 megajoules of energy.That means that 2.2lb of beef is responsible for greenhouse gas emissions which have the same effect as the carbon dioxide released by an ordinary car travelling at 50 miles per hour for 155 miles, a journey lasting three hours. The amount of energy consumed would light a 100-watt bulb for 20 days.
Now, after looking at the following pic, tell me that the above can be true. Damn the English for publicizing this information.
Jail, Sounds Good To Me
Via Atrios.
Think Progress has the list of Karl Rove's crimes. One example:
Office of Faith Based Initiatives: The office was “used almost exclusively to win political points with both evangelical Christians and traditionally Democratic minorities. The office’s primary mission, providing financial support to charities that serve the poor, never got the presidential support it needed to succeed.” [MSNBC, 10/13/06]
Powered by ScribeFire.
Corpse Of Engineers
Go here to write to your federal legislators concerning the Corpse of Engineers.
Monday, July 16, 2007
Russ, Russ, I May Have To Remove Your Face From My Sidebar
I agree completely with Mr. NTodd. Sen. Feingold disappoints me one more time. The most important sentence in Mr. NTodd's piece in my opinion is this:
And while you have the luxury of playing the part of The Progressive Voice of Reason, people are dying as the crimes continue.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Good
Reid begins to lead. Great news. Make these ReThug slugs stand up & say to the American people & the troops that they don't give a shit about either, all they want to do is protect moron McDopeface Bu$hCo.
Forcing his Republican colleagues to put up or shut up on the notion of an up-or-down vote, Senate Majority leader Harry Reid (D-NV) just moments ago announced that he will immediately file a cloture motion on the Reed-Levin troop redeployment bill and, if Republicans follow through with a filibuster, will place the Senate in a prolonged all-night session Tuesday to force a true continuation of debate.
"Now, Republicans are using a filibuster to block us from even voting on an amendment that could bring the war to a responsible end," said Reid. "They are protecting the President rather than protecting our troops. They are denying us an up or down – yes or no – vote on the most important issue our country faces."
Powered by ScribeFire.
Harry Reid
It's time to give 'em hell, Harry. It appears Sen. Reid has some sort of problem with leading. Go here to sign the petition to get Reid to do his job. This is really important people. & don't worry about your personal information, they already have it so you have nothing to lose, but a country to regain.
IMMEDIATE UPDATE: This was via Firedoglake. They also give us the following phone numbers to use. So use them. Stop & think about how much time this will take? Think about it. Instead of reading the latest woodturning magazine while taking a dump, make the call with your cordless phone, or your cell phone. See, that was easy, probably easier than taking a dump.
If the Republican party continues to be the Party of Obstruction, then they should pay a public price for it. Every damn day until they get to work and stop playing political games with the public’s business.
UPDATE: Meant to include these toll free numbers that katymine put together for calls to the Hill:
1 (800) 828 - 0498
1 (800) 459 - 1887
1 (800) 614 - 2803
1 (866) 340 - 9281
1 (866) 338 - 1015
1 (877) 851 - 6
OK
Went to see SICKO down in The Cities last weekend. More on that later, but Mr. Moore did interview some Canadian relatives & a Conservative Party member from Canada who injured himself in Florida. Here is Paul Krugman, via the wonderful, but pack oriented, nTodd.
On the other hand, it’s true that Americans get hip replacements faster than Canadians. But there’s a funny thing about that example, which is used constantly as an argument for the superiority of private health insurance over a government-run system: the large majority of hip replacements in the United States are paid for by, um, Medicare.
That’s right: the hip-replacement gap is actually a comparison of two government health insurance systems. American Medicare has shorter waits than Canadian Medicare (yes, that’s what they call their system) because it has more lavish funding — end of story. The alleged virtues of private insurance have nothing to do with it.
The bottom line is that the opponents of universal health care appear to have run out of honest arguments. All they have left are fantasies: horror fiction about health care in other countries, and fairy tales about health care here in America.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Impeachment!
It needs to be done. Here's enough for a rationale. A few tidbits:
BRUCE FEIN: More worrisome than Clinton's-- because he is seeking more institutionally to cripple checks and balances and the authority of Congress and the judiciary to superintend his assertions of power. He has claimed the authority to tell Congress they don't have any right to know what he's doing with relation to spying on American citizens, using that information in any way that he wants in contradiction to a federal statute called the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. He's claimed authority to say he can kidnap people, throw them into dungeons abroad, dump them out into Siberia without any political or legal accountability. These are standards that are totally anathema to a democratic society devoted to the rule of law.
....
BRUCE FEIN: In the past, presidents like Abe Lincoln, who confronted a far dire emergency in the Civil War than today, sought congressional ratification approval of his emergency measures. He didn't seek to hide them from the people and from Congress and to prevent there to be accountability. And, of course, Congress did ratify what he had done. Secondly, sure, times can be terrifying. But that also should alert us to the fact that we can make mistakes. The executive can make mistakes.
Take World War II. We locked up 120,000 Japanese Americans, said they were all disloyal. Well, we got 120,000 mistakes.
....
BILL MOYERS: This is the first time I've heard talk of impeaching both a president and a vice-president. I mean, this-- as you saw in that poll, more people want to impeach Dick Cheney than George Bush. What's going on?
BRUCE FEIN: Well, this is an unusual affair of president/vice-president, where the vice-president is de facto president most of the time. And that's why most of people recognize that these decisions, especially when it comes to overreaching with executive power, are the product of Dick Cheney and his aide, David Addington, not George Bush and Alberto Gonzalez or Harriet Miers, who don't have the cerebral capacity to think of these devilish ideas.
....
BILL MOYERS: I served a president who went to war on his own initiative, and it was a mess, Vietnam, Lyndon Johnson. There wasn't serious talk about impeaching Lyndon Johnson or Hubert Humphrey. Something is different today.
BRUCE FEIN: Yeah, of course, the-- difference is one thing to claim that, you know, Gulf of Tonkin resolution, was too broadly drafted. But we're talking about assertions of power that affect the individual liberties of every American citizen. Opening your mail, your e-mails, your phone calls. Breaking and entering your homes. Creating a pall of fear and intimidation if you say anything against the president you may find retaliation very quickly. We're claiming he's setting precedents that will lie around like loaded weapons anytime there's another 9/11.
Right now the victims are people whose names most Americans can't pronounce. And that's why they're not so concerned. They will start being Browns and Jones and Smiths. And that precedent is being set right now. And one of the dangers that I see is it's not just President Bush but the presidential candidates for 2008 aren't standing up and saying--
BRUCE FEIN: --"If I'm president, I won't imitate George Bush." That shows me that this is a far deeper problem than Mr. Bush and Cheney.
....
JOHN NICHOLS: Plotted out of the vice-president's office without question. Notations of the vice-president on news articles saying, "Let's go get this guy." Right? You know, you can't have that and not have a media going and saying to the president at press conferences, you know, "Aren't-- isn't what you're doing a violation of the Constitution?" Now, just imagine if the-- if the members of the White House Press Corps on a regular basis were saying to Tony Snow, "But hasn't what the president's done here violated the Constitution?" The whole national dialogue would shift. And Congress itself would suddenly become a better player. So I'm not absolving Congress. I'm certainly not absolving Bush and Cheney. But I am saying that we have a media problem here as well.
BRUCE FEIN: Let me underscore one of the things that you remember, Bill, 'cause I was there at the time of Watergate. And this relates to one political-- official in the White House, Sara Taylor's testimony. And claiming that George Bush could tell her to be silent.
BILL MOYERS: That was a great moment when Sara Taylor said, "I took an oath to uphold the president." Did you see that?
BRUCE FEIN: Yes. And that was like the military in Germany saying, "My oath is to the Fuhrer, not to the country." She took an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States. I did, too, when I was in the government. There's no oath that says, "I'm loyal to a president even if he defiles the Constitution."
Now, go read the rest. Remember, Bruce Fein wrote the impeachment articles against Bill Clinton. Emphasis mine. I once shared a couple of beer with John Nichols up in Ashland, Wisco. Mrs. coldH2O invited him up to speak to the annual meeting of the local chapter of The League of Women Voters. He accepted, drove up in very cold, wintry conditions & gave a good speech. We then went, with another couple & Mr. Nichols, out for the drinks. He's a smart, regular guy. Now, my loyal four readers, go read the rest of the interview Bill Moyers did with Fein & Nichols.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Compassionate Conservative?
I think not. Let's push the Dems & the Rethugs with a heart hard on this one. If we can overturn this hateful veto, maybe Bu$hCo will take his bourbon soaked blankey & crawl under a park bench somewhere.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Friday, July 13, 2007
Jesus Christ In Bad Gumbo
Will these sleazebags ever show one ounce of compassion or honesty or dedication to the truth? What assholes.
The White House has refused to give Congress documents about the death of former NFL player Pat Tillman, with White House counsel Fred Fielding saying that certain papers relating to discussion of the friendly-fire shooting “implicate Executive Branch confidentiality interests.”
Powered by ScribeFire.
Impeachment
The Kid sent me Nancy Pelosi's impeachment phone number. Call & tell them that you support impeachment. They don't want your name, etc., they just want to collect numbers. Do it, damn you. Let's be rid of these vermin before they can do any more damage to the country, the world, & my sore ass. I am thanking you in advance.
202-225-0100
Powered by ScribeFire.
Screwed Up
I just lost a great post in which I proved how much I loved a bunch of people & oysters. I need to go glue a bunch of boards together, so I'm not going to try & recreate it. Too bad for my loyal four readers. It all started with this.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Army Strong?
Apparently law abiding citizens don't want to sign up. Good job, Bu$hCo.
Nearly 12 percent of Army recruits who entered basic training this year needed a special waiver for those with criminal records, a dramatic increase over last year and 2 1/2 times the percentage four years ago, according to new Army statistics obtained by the Globe.
With less than three months left in the fiscal year, 11.6 percent of new active-duty and Army Reserve troops in 2007 have received a so-called "moral waiver," up from 7.9 percent in fiscal year 2006, according to figures from the US Army Recruiting Command. In fiscal 2003 and 2004, soldiers granted waivers accounted for 4.6 percent of new recruits; in 2005, it was 6.2 percent.
Army officials acknowledge privately that the increase in moral waivers reflects the difficulty of signing up sufficient numbers of recruits to sustain an increasingly unpopular war in Iraq; the Army fell short of its monthly recruiting goals in May and June.
Powered by ScribeFire.
& To Think...
...I was once a big supporter of China. I was in love with Mao's attitude toward literature in his Talks at the Yunan Forum on Literature and Art. I'm not sure I completely disagree with him on everything in this essay, but I'm not quite as fervent as I once was. Part of that calmer attitude is the result of a response from an old CPUSA member to a question to mine as to why the Daily Worker was so anti-China. This episode took place years ago. This wonderful old lady looked at me after I asked the question & said "The ruling class just loves young intellectuals." In some ways I am still recovering from that bit of insight. She was/is right, of course. & now, in 2007, we get the Chinese government doing this:
A Chinese doctor who exposed the cover-up of China’s SARS outbreak in 2003 has been barred from traveling to the United States to collect a human rights award, a friend of the doctor and a human rights group said this week.
The doctor, Jiang Yanyong, a retired surgeon in the People’s Liberation Army, was awarded the Heinz R. Pagels Human Rights of Scientists Award by the New York Academy of Sciences. His army-affiliated work unit, Beijing’s Hospital 301, denied him permission to travel to the award ceremony in September, Hu Jia, a Chinese rights promoter who is a friend of Dr. Jiang’s, said Thursday.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Where Exactly Did The Saudis Fly Those Airplanes Into The Twin Towers?
I really need someone to explain this to me. But I will say one thing for Chertoff, his smart ass responses equal those of his boss. Here's Chertoff:
Leaving the meeting, Mr. Chertoff said he “didn’t come here to make money announcements.”
And -- but it's a -- it's been a tough issue for a lot of people in the White House, and it's -- it's run its course, and now we're going to move on."
And that was that.
Powered by ScribeFire.
After Pride...
I'm sorry for her loss, but state murder brings out her patriotism? We are truly regressing as a culture, as a nation.
“I’m proud to be an American,” Ms. Poage said.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Why I Hate Capitalism # Oh, Just Forget It
More rich guys not paying fair share. Some civic responsibility, huh?
The Blackstone Group, the big buyout firm, has devised a way for its partners to effectively avoid paying taxes on $3.7 billion, the bulk of what it raised last month from selling shares to the public.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Stupid & He Is An Elected Leader In Wisco?
Another reason why Wisco is becoming dumber & dumber. Let's hope we can take back the Assembly from these complete dickheads. Just look at what he says about lawyers:
"We don't need more ambulance chasers. We don't need frivolous lawsuits. And we don't need attorneys making people's lives miserable when they go to family court for divorces," said Rep. Frank Lasee, R-Green Bay. "And I think that having too many attorneys leads to all those bad results."
Now, it is true that lawyers represent old people who are getting screwed by Social Security & poor people who can't get treated like Scooter Libby, but this Lasee dork needs to give up the insults & start governing. What a loser. But what else can a person expect from a ReThug?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Just Do It
Remember Alito? Sadly I do & my granddaughters will be living in the dark ages of the 21st century if something isn't done. I've cut & pasted the following boiler plate to give you some background. Ms. Ledbetter really got the shaft from those 5 boneheads on the Supreme Court. Do something about it, & do it now.
I just signed a petition to urge congressional leadership to correct the harmful Supreme Court decision in the pay discrimination case of Ledbetter v. Goodyear!
After a jury found that Lilly Ledbetter had been the subjected to wage discrimination because of her gender over many years at her job, the Supreme Court ruled against her, even though she had earned far less than her male counterparts.
We have a chance to urge Congress to correct the Court's error and help Americans be able to recover wages that they have been unfairly denied. Will you join the petition calling on congressional leaders to support legislation to correct Ledbetter v. Goodyear?
You can sign the petition here:
It's important to speak out in support of individual rights and the laws Congress has passed to protect them.
Thank you very much for your help.
This Must Hurt J.B. Van Hollen's Ass
The Wisco Attorney General is apparently forced to do the right thing. Now, let's see if he actually does a forceful job of defending the citizens of Wisco from this sort of predatory pollution. Still, Van Hollen will have some explaining to do to his ReThug masters.
According to the complaint, filed at the request of the Department of Natural Resources, U.S. Oil's fuel storage terminals emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are air contaminants under state law.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Feeling Safer Yet?
So, someone tell me what all the dead Americans & Iraqis & Afganis & the billions of dollars mean if they accomplished nothing?
U.S. intelligence analysts have concluded al-Qaida has rebuilt its operating capability to a level not seen since just before the 2001 terrorist attacks, The Associated Press has learned.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Vitty Cent Update
U.S. Senator David Vitter visited a Canal Street brothel several times beginning in the mid-1990s, paying $300 per hour for services at the bordello after he met the madam at a fishing rodeo that included prostitutes and other politicians, according to Jeanette Maier, the "Canal Street Madam" whose operation was shut down by a federal investigators in 2001.
This part of TPM's coverage comes from the New Orleans newspaper, The Times-Picayune. Click on the Times link for the whole story.
Yes, I know I linked to Americablog, so I must say: Remember Alito?
Yes, I know I linked to Americablog, so I must say: Remember Alito?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Surge?
Here's a good analysis of Bu$hCo's speech in Cleveland the other day. I vote for delusional. What a pathetic skin bag. 2007 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee R.E.M. is right;
Powered by ScribeFire.
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
Profile In NO Courage
Where was this guy's outrage or courage or conscience back when America needed it/them? Another ReThug leaving a sunken, awful ship.
The first U.S. surgeon general appointed by President George W. Bush accused the administration on Tuesday of political interference and muzzling him on key issues like embryonic stem cell research.
"Anything that doesn't fit into the political appointees' ideological, theological or political agenda is ignored, marginalized or simply buried," Dr. Richard Carmona, who served as the nation's top doctor from 2002 until 2006, told a House of Representatives committee.
"The problem with this approach is that in public health, as in a democracy, there is nothing worse than ignoring science, or marginalizing the voice of science for reasons driven by changing political winds. The job of surgeon general is to be the doctor of the nation, not the doctor of a political party," Carmona added.
Carmona said Bush administration political appointees censored his speeches and kept him from talking out publicly about certain issues, including the science on embryonic stem cell research, contraceptives and his misgivings about the administration's embrace of "abstinence-only" sex education.
My emphasis.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Mixter For Congress!
Mixter wants to be a Congressperson. Of course, like most of us normal people, she has no money. She wants to unseat the ReThug Paul Ryan, a Bu$hCo lackey. If we want to change this culture of corruption, this culture of real death, we need to elect progressive Democrats to Congress. Mixter has been on my blogroll for a long time now & she would be a great legislator, she loves cows for christ's sake, how can you not elect a person who loves cows? Especially since she's from Wisco. So, my loyal four readers, dig into your pockets, the ones without the holes in them, & see if you have any spare change for Mixter. Check out the couch & recliner as well. You'll be doing America a favor, believe me. You can reach Mixter, AKA Michele (Micki) Watters, by email at this address:
mixter_64 [AT] yahoo [DOT] com
She asks if we're up to the challenge, well, are we?
SICKO, Indeed
Via Suburban Guerilla, we get this good review of Michael Moore's Sicko. But the best thing that's happened to America lately is this wonderful punch to the side of the head of CNN, thanks to Michael Moore.
You can go here to find out the truth, in regards to CNN's hit piece on SICKO.
Monday, July 09, 2007
I Just Love These Religious Boneheads
So, this is how I understand it: David Vitter pays for sex, confesses to his god & then his wife, & everything is just fine. Apparently no crime, no time. I can see why the worthless ReThugs are so religious. You can do anything you want, see Gingrich, Newt, talk to some right-wing religious nutjob & you're good to go. Say I wonder if that thing that happened in 1967, no, forget it. Sleep well, Shutterwi.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Role Model?
We don't need no stinking role model. Our moron president speaks & Holden has the goods. Will someone please explain what this means? Or am I suffering heat stroke?
You know, our government and the people -- the generosity of the Americans, American people can be -- as manifested by just money, spending money.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Sunday, July 08, 2007
The Surge, Boss, It's Working
Not so much. How much more carnage & death will the ReThugs inflict on the world?
Powered by ScribeFire.
Thursday, July 05, 2007
On Bu$hCo's Scoot
For those among my loyal four readers who haven't the time to read a lot of newspapers, Dan Froomkin has a great overview of reports/editorials from many different papers & blogs. Go read & see how far this country has fallen in the last 6 and 1/2 years.
Hey, wouldn't it be nice if the president of the United States appeared in public on the Fourth of July?
Bush held court yesterday in front of an invitation-only audience crammed into a corner of a West Virginia Air National Guard maintenance hangar, giving a speech filled with tired and dubious analogies.
Nice indeed.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
4th of July
& it's going to be a hot one here in the relatively far north. Since I missed the early morning coolness & shade, the deck I'm working on will need to wait until much later in the day. & even then I might convince myself to haul my sorry ass out to the White River & see if the hex hatch will come off tonight. Or maybe I should just grill the small steak I bought, drink a bunch of beer & crash the parade with an upside down American flag. Hey Shutterwi, make sure that bail money envelope handy.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
More On Bu$hCo's Contempt For Justice
Via The Poor Man, we get this gem from that worthless sack of shit Bu$hco.
I don’t believe my role [as governor] is to replace the verdict of a jury with my own, unless there are new facts or evidence of which a jury was unaware, or evidence that the trial was somehow unfair.
Monday, July 02, 2007
The Rule Of Law
Is not a rule for ReThugs. That son-of-a-bitch president commutes Libby's prison sentence. This from a man who mocked a woman on death row in Texas. What a fucking heartless bastard, except when it comes to ReThug friends. Feeling safer yet?
"Please,don't kill me" George W. Bush, his lips pursed in mock desperation, openly mocking Karla Faye Tucker's pleas for clemency, in an interview with Talk magazine.
Oh, & the dickhead White House has closed off their phone comment lines. Way to take responsibility you worthless pile of this dog's shit.
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Just Wonderful
This idea has been kicking around for some time, & it appears that it's becoming reality.
In addition to several types of grasses and wildflowers, the virgin landscape features the most species of grassland birds anywhere on the Northern Great Plains — including species on the decline, such as the Mountain Plover and the Long-billed Curlew.
Now 40 disease- and cattle gene-free bison have been reintroduced into the mix from Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota.
“This is their home,” said Bill Willcutt, an APF ranch manager who lives on the ranch most of the time.
....
So far, 60,000 acres protected
....
The ultimate goal — which might not be reached for decades, officials say — is to piece together 3 million to 4 million acres of private and public land, not only in Phillips County but in four additional remote Montana counties north and south of the C.M. Russell refuge.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Salt Tears
I find this report disturbing. The good news in the story is the dirty-fucking-hippie tree hugger who's helping to reverse this sad decline of these salt marshes.
Marsh loss has always been part of life in the bay, but it has been accelerating over the past 10 to 15 years or so, says Mundy, a retired city firefighter whose passion has now turned to advocating for the marshes he's spent his life around.
Good for him & the countless others who ought to surprise the right wing who really hate the environment. Here's a map & pic of Jamaica Bay.
Powered by ScribeFire.
Via Adrastos, a New Orleans blogger we get this Richard Thompson song, accompanied by a Iraq photo montage. For those of you who don't click through & visit Adrastos, the "dad" in the song refers to Baghdad.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)