SoonerBlue

It such a dang shame that so many of our kids are being maimed and killed in that crap-hole Afghanistan, just to keep that crooked Karzai in office...so that he and his drug-cartel brother can continue stuffing their pockets and off-shore banks with stolen US taxpayer dollars and drug profits.

President Obama is really between a rock and a hard place. If he pulls back in Afghanistan, Republicans will savage him...they'll holler about "cut and runners" all the way through the upcoming elections. They'll whine that we handed al Qaeda a victory against the world's greatest superpower...and that we'll be more vulnerable to another 9/11 attack.

So, a decision to pull back in Afghanistan may very well set the GOP up to gain seats in both houses of Congress in 2010...maybe even the White House itself in 2012.

If they win in 2010 it will be more difficult for Obama to get much done during the last two years of his term...which would certainly almost guarantee a defeat in 2012.

So, if Democrats jump off the Afghan tiger's back, it will probably turn and devour all their political advantages. But, if they continue to hang on, it will certainly cause more of our kids to die and shed blood in Afghan sand.

From what I've read, if our goal is to defeat al Qaeda, then Pakistan is where we should focus, not Afghanistan. Our generals say there's only about 100 al Qaeda operatives in Afghanistan....while the tribal regions of Pakistan probably have as many as 10,000.

Here's something to consider -- if Afghanistan falls under the control of the terrorists, they sure haven't won any prize. They get a large barren and rocky wasteland the size of Texas, filled with primitive, uneducated peasants...who think they're doing good if they have indoor plumbing.

But, if al Qaeda and friends could destabilize Pakistan, they could win control of a big prize -- nuclear weapons...lots of missiles to reach any enemy they want.

So, maybe we should just start paying more attention to drone bombing the al Qaeda in Pakistan, and less on whatever the hell we're fighting against in Afghanistan.

And instead of sending more US troops to Afghanistan, just tell Karzai and his drug kingpin brother that the US is no longer going to protect them...then just see how fast they hightail it out of Dodge.

I love watching the "World Series" (yes, my European friends, I know...only if the world reaches from NY to PA), but I hate all the dang spitting by the players. I will settle in front of the TV, excited to see a good game -- but every dang time the camera cuts to a batter, a pitcher or a center fielder, someone is spitting or poised to spit. The dugouts are the worst...you can bet good money if they keep the camera in the dugout long enough, someone will spit.

It's enough to put you off your baseball snacks. Who wants to eat chips and dip while watching someone projectile spit a big stream?

Everyone tells me it's a part of the game...that it's a tradition as old-fashioned as the spitoon...it's just something that big league baseball players always did.

I haven't missed a World Series game in decades -- even when I had emergency surgery for a perforated ulcer and almost died, I got to watch it in the hospital. Funny that I don't remember all the constant spitting over the years.

Maybe it's just different camera work. I don't remember head shots of Catfish Hunter so close that you could count the pores in his nose.

I know the players are nervous and all, but this spitting is such a disgusting and unhygienic habit...and looks like it could spread the Swine/H1N1 Flu in the dugout.

Ah well, at least they switched from chewing tobacco to bubble gum (so they could set a better example for young kids)...we don't have to see brown tobacco juice dripping down someone's chin...

All I know is, in all the baseball documentaries I've watched, I never saw Babe Ruth or Joe DiMaggio spit.

Next time you hear righties whining about President Obama's lack of accomplishments during these last nine months, or about how the Democrats never keep any of their promises ....

Just take a minute to remember how successful the Republicans were at keeping their promises. Like privatizing Social Security, reforming Medicare, doing away with Welfare, Medicaid, Food Stamps, and all those other social programs they detest. Another longtime political goal was to gut the Department of Education...also to rewrite the laws that govern the SEC, FDA, and all the other regulatory agencies they hate.

Oh, wait...none of that stuff really happened.

The reality is that the Republican Congress couldn't get anything done. Yes, they have Tax Cuts, Patriot Act, and the Iraq War on their side...and they expanded government powers and even gave Medicare a drug plan. But the rest of their time was spent on silly political grandstanding...which hurt them at the polls.

Egad, reams have been written about how do-nothing the Republican Congresses were...but now I keep reading revisionist history about how good they were at getting things done while we Democrats sit on our hands doing nothing.

I know that organizing Democrats is like herding cats -- but hell, we've gotten MUCH MUCH further at reforming healthcare than they ever got at reforming Social Security.

Yes, legislation IS like making sausage - ugly, messy, and difficult. But, everything being the same, Democrats now have a chance to show how much better we are at it than Republicans.

We WILL have health insurance/healthcare reform legislation passed this year...something no President has been able to do in the last 80 years. It will probably help more Americans than any single piece of legislation ever.  

It's just killing Republicans though...they have thrown in with the health insurance industry, cutting off their nose to spite their face.

Also -- Obama has definitely accomplished a lot more in his first nine months of office than Bush ever did...unless you want to count 9/11 as an "accomplishment."

Right in the middle of President Obama's deliberations on what to do about US presence in Afghanistan, Foreign Service officer and former Marine Matthew Hoh became the first US official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war...he says he has doubts about our current strategy and planned future strategy.

Matthew Hoh said about our Afghanistan policy:

"I believe that the people we are fighting there are fighting us because we are occupying them. Not for any ideological reasons, not because of any links to al-Qaeda, not because of any fundamental hatred toward the West, the only reason they're fighting us is because we are occupying them."

Indeed.

This soldier Hoh was in the fight...he knows what he's talking about. There has to be a better way for this terror situation to be worked on.

~~U.S. official resigns over Afghan war ~~

"Foreign Service officer and former Marine captain says he no longer knows why his nation is fighting"

From washingtonpost.com: "When Matthew Hoh joined the Foreign Service ... he was exactly the kind of smart civil-military hybrid the administration was looking for to help expand its development efforts in Afghanistan.

A former Marine Corps captain with combat experience in Iraq, Hoh had also served in uniform at the Pentagon, and as a civilian in Iraq and at the State Department. By July, he was the senior U.S. civilian in Zabul province, a Taliban hotbed.

But last month, in a move that has sent ripples all the way to the White House, Hoh, 36, became the first U.S. official known to resign in protest over the Afghan war, which he had come to believe simply fueled the insurgency.

"I have lost understanding of and confidence in the strategic purposes of the United States' presence in Afghanistan," he wrote Sept. 10 in a four-page letter to the department's head of personnel. "I have doubts and reservations about our current strategy and planned future strategy, but my resignation is based not upon how we are pursuing this war, but why and to what end." [..]"~~~

Matthew Hoh is a hero to the men and women on the battle field. It took guts for him to write this letter and speak truth to power. A majority of Americans agree with his statements...which ring loud and clear.

I truly hope his message will give courage and a wake up for others to follow.

The fight against terrorism is not central to Afghanistan. The cost in precious life and the cost in national treasure is not justifiable. This is the longest war the US has ever fought...and we are no closer to an end than we were almost 9 years ago. Afghan corruption and fraud are rampant. The NYT is reporting that Karzai's brother is a drug kingpin on the CIA payroll.

Everyone from Alexander the Great to the Mongols to the British has invaded Afghanistan. We are just the latest in a long line of foreign invaders with an agenda.

After Russia invaded in 1979, we used Afghanistan to fight the Cold War. Then, after the USSR withdrew in 1989, we lost interest in doing anything to help the Afghan people... which left a vacuum that the Taliban was happy to fill. Bin Laden was the result of our backing the mujahideen...and not until 9/11 did we start paying real attention to the region again.

Yes, I know there is fear about the Taliban having power in nuclear armed Pakistan.

But, if it's really only the nuclear arms that we are worried about, maybe we should just say that our strategy is not allowing nuclear arms to fall into the hands of terrorists or supporters of terrorists. There would probably be a lot of support for that policy from the rest of the world. Instead of this silly unworkable nation building.

But we have no stated objective in Afghanistan or Pakistan. And even scarier, our military presence there is strengthening all the terrorist groups, making the threat to nuclear armed Pakistan greater.

This has been the deadliest month ever for our forces in Afghanistan, nearly a year after millions of us voted for a President we thought was going to bring our troops home.

Time to hit the streets again, kids? Obama might not get out of Vietnam 'til we force him to...

FishbowlDC reports that White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs met with Fox News official Michael Clemente yesterday and smoked the peace pipe about the little dustup between the WH and the news network.

Clemente, who oversees Fox's news coverage, is said to have met with staffers at the Washington bureau and told them to play nice... to remain "fair and balanced."

I'm not holding my breath on any of that...

So, Fox News wants to come over and trash your house, call you every name in the book, then wants to be invited back...and even be treated like an honored guest?

Doesn't look like Fox would've called a truce if its ratings were still good...more likely the hot war has turned cold.

O'Reilly, Hannity and Beck sure made hay there for a while, using the quarrel as a public-relations tool to stir up support with their base and boost ratings. I still say they probably don't believe half of what they rant about...but simply play the game to gain ratings...which brings power, attention, and money.

In these days of so much easy low hanging ratings fruit - see balloon boy - I guess it's too much to hope for responsible journalism to report on the real problems of our country...and I'm not just talking about Fox. All network news information should be taken with a grain of salt...and it's easy to spot the partisan BS. I personally get my serious news from PBS's "News Hour."

TV news critic and "Network" screenwriter, Paddy Chayefsky said: "Television is Democracy at its ugliest."

Thank goodness we have Freedom of the Press in this country. Fox News certainly has the right to say whatever they want about the Obama administration. But, Freedom of the Press does not require news outlets to be responsible or unbiased. So, Fox has every right to slant stories to align with their political and editorial viewpoints.

Just like the White House has the right to call Fox another arm of the Republican party. Freedom of the Press does not require the WH to treat all news outlets equally...or provide them with a seat at the briefing room table.

Fox News has made no bones about being hostile to the Obama administration. They are perfectly within their rights to practice journalism that way -- and make oodles of money doing it -- but it is NOT responsible journalism.

Another thing -- Fox News will create the story it wants to report. Like when they spent a week promoting the 9/12 protests...and then their newscasters were caught on video whipping up teabagger anger...just so they could report on how furious the "Tea Party" protesters were.

So...if Fox wants to do business that way, they have the right to do so...but there's nothing in the Constitution wot sez the White House has to invite them to sit at the table with the grown-ups.

The latest catnip for righties is a new Gallup Poll that says 40 percent of Americans describe their political views as conservative, while 36 percent call themselves moderate and 20 percent call themselves liberal.

My first response is Egad! Next, I'm tempted to do what the righties do when a poll shows them unfavorably -- sneer at it and call it 'funny math.' But I'd rather try to analyze it down to something I can live with.

Maybe conservatives still hold many of the views we’d define as conservative, but don't want to associate themselves with the crazies who have taken over the Republican party...so they'd rather call themselves Independents. I know some of these guys personally.

Formerly left-leaning or moderate Independents aren’t suddenly becoming conservative -- it's the least conservative Republicans who are leaving their party and identifying as Independents.

Other recent surveys haven't shown that conservatives outnumber moderates. The NYT did one that found 21 percent identified themselves as liberal, 39 percent as moderate and 36 percent as conservative.

There was a Post/ABC poll last week that showed just 19 percent of Americans expressed confidence in the Republicans in Congress to make the right decisions for the country's future...and only 40 percent of Republicans trusted Republican congressional leadership.Only 20 percent identified themselves as Republicans.

Don't forget about all those polls lately showing that a large majority of American people support issues like health care reform (public option), regulation of the financial sector, etc...positions that are usually described as somewhat liberal.

The problem with polls asking people to label themselves is that these labels mean different things to different people. This Gallup poll had people choosing between very conservative, conservative, moderate, liberal and very liberal.

Wonder where the Libertarians figured in?

There's also a big difference between New York conservatives and Bible Belt Alabama conservatives.

And a big difference between how people answer a survey and how they vote in private.

For decades Republicans have been knocking themselves out trying to demonize the word "liberal"...so it's probably safe to say that some people who support liberal ideas won't voluntarily identify themselves as liberals. They call themselves ‘progressive’.

Not me, I'm still proud to be a liberal. I love what JFK said about it. *

Remember those videos of Republican Senator Lindsey Graham’s town hall meeting a short time ago? He was shouted down, booed, hissed and called names by his own party...they raged that the country is being taken over by "socialists." Never mind that only Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh's teabaggers can see any movement in that direction.

Maybe a lot of teabaggers are leaving the GOP and calling themselves Independent?

There's no doubt in my mind that Sen. Graham would describe himself as a solid conservative ...but those townhall people were calling him a traitor to his own party...a "RINO."

Anyone can plainly see the wide gap between what different conservatives believe. Many southern conservatives are calling themselves “Confederates”...I guess they want to re-fight the Civil War.

There's also a wide gap between what different liberals believe -- witness the health care public option debate.

Ah well, we'll have to wait until the 2010 election results to see where the country stands. A lot of things can happen between now and then...all this premature projecting is just idle chit-chat. District races, and the choices voters will have are way on down the road,  Independents don't know yet who they're going to vote for.

And I do feel better now.

* "If by a "Liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people -- their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights, and their civil liberties -- someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "Liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "Liberal."

Sen. John McCain, the guy who said his wife has to help him send an email, is now going to write legislation regarding the Internet.

Yes, the guy who regularly stuffs his pockets with telecom lobbyist bucks, is introducing a bill that would "prohibit the FCC from governing communications and allowing net neutrality." Under his bill the FCC "shall not propose, promulgate, or issue any regulations regarding the Internet or IP-enabled services."

He wants to allow the telecoms to become the gatekeepers of our Internet content.

Well, pcworld.com ain't too happy about it: "[M]cCain's bill, the Internet Freedom Act, seeks to do the opposite of what its name implies by ensuring that broadband and wireless providers can discriminate and throttle certain traffic while giving preferential treatment to other traffic. Basically, those in power or those who pay more will have better access. Apparently we have different definitions of ‘freedom'. [...]"

Some of this geek stuff makes my head hurt, but I had to do some research so I could better understand. First of all, what is net neutrality?

From what I can understand, net neutrality gives all servers, ISPs and transmission lines the right to send and receive information equally. It levels the playing field -- like a small online bookstore can still receive as many visitors as the more popular Amazon or Barnes&Noble.

Net neutrality stops individual ISPs, search engines and big online services like Yahoo, AOL or Google from restricting or filtering our access to rival companies. Like, AOL can't prevent one of its subscribers from getting email from Hotmail accounts.

So, basically, net neutrality would prevent the bigger commercial websites from completely dominating the marketplace. Which is why those agin it are the cable television companies, major ISPs and large commercial websites.

I know that most people hate the government's (FCC) nose in anything...but I think I'd rather have them holding Internet companies accountable, than have giant global media conglomerates running roughshod over us.

The same global corporations who pay no taxes due to loopholes and off shore offices...who hand over American jobs to third world countries...then stash all their windfall profits in the Cayman Islands and Switzerland.....

Is it wise to give these giant global corps more power to dictate America's future?

How has that worked out so far for us?

"The Dow hit 10,000 this week, everybody! For the first time since the market collapse. And people were so excited, they took to the streets to celebrate, which is easy because so many of them live there." --Bill Maher

"And the Post Office may cancel Saturday delivery of the mail. Do you know about this? See, for young people before texting and twittering, you used to send pieces of paper to each other." --Jay Leno

"And prosecutors in New York City have filed charges against a man they claim scammed dozens of illegal immigrants by posing as an immigration lawyer. They say this guy lied to his clients, he gave them bad advice and stole their money. I don't know, sounds like a real lawyer to me." --Jay Leno

"And under the new guidelines issued by the Obama Administration, Federal agents will not pursue pot-smoking patients in states that allow medical marijuana. This new policy is called 'Don't Ask, Don't -- What Was I Talking About?'" --Jay Leno

"The FDA announced plans to clamp down on food labeling that may mislead consumers into thinking food is more nutritious than it really is. Is that going to work? Huh? You think Americans will change their eating habits by reading that? 'Oh, look, honey, on the label, these chocolate doughnuts aren't as nutritious as I thought they were.'" --Jay Leno

"President Obama announced he wants to give every senior citizen $250 next year. This is part of his 'Cash for Geezers' program." --Jay Leno

"Actually, if you're a senior citizen working on Wall Street, then you get $250 million." --Jay Leno

"And according to USA Today, car sales are now at a 20-year low. Well, sure, it's hard to steal a car when the owner's living in it." –Jay Leno

"As you know, the whole balloon boy thing turned out to be a big hoax. Usually when there's a hoax involving a balloon, it's some kind of Countrywide Mortgage scam." --Jay Leno

"In Louisiana, a judge denied an interracial couple a marriage license because he felt, I quote, their children would later suffer in life from being interracial. Like when they become president or win the Masters or get an Oscar." --Jay Leno

"The governor's wife, Maria Shriver, was photographed violating the law by talking on a cell phone while driving. You know, I read about it on my BlackBerry while riding into work on my motorcycle the other day." -Jay Leno

"This afternoon, according to a a media psychologist that was on this cable show today, it may not be John Edwards' fault that he cheats on his wife. Not his fault. They psychologist said he may suffer from a clinical condition known as Asperger's syndrome. Asperger's syndrome. No, you know what he has? He has 'ass grabber' syndrome." --Jay Leno

"A new survey found that the average man cries about six times a year. That number would be a lot lower if it weren’t for Glenn Beck." --Jimmy Fallon

"In a speech to the human rights campaign, the nation's largest gay rights group, President Obama on Saturday pledged to end the military's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy. Even better for gays, it's being replaced with a new policy, 'truth or dare.'" --Seth Meyers

"Republican Senator Olympia Snowe warned Tuesday that while she crossed party lines to vote for the new health care bill in committee, that doesn't mean she will vote for it when it reaches the Senate floor. Adding, 'Come on, guys, chase me!'" --Seth Meyers

"Well, in sports news, the big story is the NFL now stands for 'Not For Limbaugh'." –Jay Leno

"Did you see what happened to Rush Linbaugh? He wanted to buy the St. Louis Rams and they wouldn't let him. He said this was a dream he had, to some day own black people." --Bill Maher

"Well, as you probably know, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh has been dropped from a group of investors who were trying to buy the St. Louis Rams. Speculation was that Limbaugh was considered by the league to be too controversial, you know, unlike Michael Vick, Pacman Jones, coach Tom Cable, Plaxico Burress. The NFL hates controversy." –Jay Leno

"Hey, some good news for Rush. The Oakland Raiders are offering to give him the team for free." –Jay Leno

"What's going on with the Oakland Raiders? You know, I don't want to say the Raiders are bad, but you know, now, a lot of fans are painting their faces just so they won't be recognized." –Jay Leno

"President Obama went to New Orleans to check up on the rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Katrina. When President Bush heard about it, he said, 'There was a hurricane in New Orleans?'"–Jay Leno

"It's not a great day for old folks. Today, the Social Security Administration announced there will be no cost of living increase for senior citizens. Social Security is the government's most popular program. A couple of years ago, President Bush wanted to privatize Social Security and put all the money in the stock market. That would have worked out. That would be like hiring Michael Vick to look after your dog!" –Craig Ferguson

"Obama is going to send $250 to all of those senior citizens. The bad news is that he's going to send them $10 at a time on their birthday." –Jimmy Fallon

[gathered from NYTimes Laughlines]

Or - when you lie down with dogs....

Last Friday media analyst Marc Lamont Hill learned that he had been fired by Fox News through a Google Alert.

A Google Alert.

Here is the audio and transcript of his interview with radio host Steve Malzberg.

"I got a Google alert at 11 o’clock [a.m.] that it had been announced that I’d been fired. After that, I guess someone followed up later in the day, you know because I was sort of trying to figure out what was going on…I found out that it was true but other than that I don’t have any other information…I haven’t had any thorough conversation with anyone."

Then, over the weekend, a possible reason for his dismissal came to light. Seems that Hill had once said some not so flattering things about Sean Hannity and Glenn Beck. Seems that News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch broke the news of the firing himself, at stockholders meeting Friday morning.

There are those who say that Fox is an arm of the Republican party...what if it's scarier? And the Republican party is an arm of Fox?

See, Hill was being gunned for by rightie propagandist Cliff Kincaid, who works for "Accuracy in Media", and had been trying to get Hill fired...he told Murdoch that Hill is a "left wing cop-killer apologist."

Isn't it ironic that the same news outlet that's playing the victim and crying about the White House trying to "silence them" is truly silencing liberal commentators on their "news" channel?

Hey Hill, consider this a bullet dodged...count your blessings. This is what happens to someone who gives off the slightest whiff of 'fair and balanced' at Fox News.....

I posted yesterday about the off-the-record meeting between the White House and a group of mostly liberal columnists and commentators -- including MSNBC's Rachel Maddow and Keith Olbermann, Maureen Dowd, Frank Rich and Bob Herbert of The New York Times, Gloria Borger and Gwen Ifill, among others.

I was puzzled about the wisdom of this...and the "not a news network" was making hay commenting on it.

But last night Olbermann and Maddow spoke briefly about the meeting and explained ...

Turns out that Monday's meeting was the liberal/moderate version of the conservative  meeting that President Obama had earlier this year at George Will's house. Remember? He had dinner with columnists and commentators, Charles Krauthammer, William Kristol, Larry Kudlow, David Brooks, Rich Lowry, Peggy Noonan, Michael Barone, and Paul Gigot.

I know it's hard to tell the bloviators apart...but looks like Obama was just giving everybody equal time.

BTW - Fox News is in hog heaven about its 'fight' with the WH...devoting hours of news coverage and commentary to it. Talk about yer ratings candy....

Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-TN) recently took to the Senate floor and compared President Obama's pushback against Fox News to Richard Nixon's paranoid "enemies list."

How crazy is that? While Lamar's speech has given Fox pundits hours of happy speculation and entertainment... that doesn't make it any less silly.

Obama’s team only made a few very mild attacks...all justified. Remember that Fox fired the first shot. Nixon took revenge on his enemies by directing federal prosecutors to investigate journalists, spy on them, dig through their tax returns and break into their psychiatrists' offices to steal medical records, etc.

While Nixon used the power of his office to try and destroy his adversaries, all Obama has done is point out a little bias...then said the WH would start treating Fox News more like an opponent and less like a news channel.

Look, Republicans have been complaining about "liberal media bias" since Nixon's time...even when there was little evidence of it.

Now it's Obama's turn...his administration is simply pointing out the obvious fact that Fox News is conservatively biased. That's hardly a "war"...even though one of the benefits of this strategy is putting the shrinking, weakened and more radical Republican party in the same corner with the guys who are slandering him.

The same Republican party who started out calling him the anti-Christ...then he was a secret Muslim supporter of Osama bin Laden...then they called him Hitler and Stalin in the same breath, then they said he wasn't an American...and Fox gave them all the air time they needed.

They must be running low on insults...they've gone from Hitler to Stalin to Nixon...

Murdoch's Fox News isn't broadcast journalism anymore than the National Inquirer is print journalism. Any thinking reasonable person can see that Fox has, at the very very least, a strong leaning toward Republicans.

A news channel helping to organize and promote political protests, where teabaggers and birthers yell about socialism and say the President is Hitler? Puh-lease! Murrow and Cronkite are spinning in their graves.

One thing for sure, Obama makes it very uncomfortable for true journalists -- because they either have to acknowledge Fox News' blatant bias, or deny it and sacrifice their own credibility. It's been interesting watching them.

The Congressional Budget Office has released a report saying that a Public Option would come under budget and reduce the deficit over the next 10 years.

There are five bills being negotiated. They say the House bill has the best Public Option. Other versions have a national plan, negotiated rates, opt-out allowed. It can demonstrate its effects compared to states without it.

Hey, that opt-out thang ought to make Republicans happy -- it's a move by the Feds that actually INCREASES states rights for once.

~~New CBO numbers make public option a virtual certainty~~

From examiner.com: "The CBO has dealt a death blow to opponents of a public option by giving an estimate of a House bill which contains what's been called "a robust" public option that budgets out to $871 billion over ten years and reduces the deficit.

["Blue Dogs"] ...were holding out for a government run insurance option that would allow for rates to be negotiated directly with doctors and hospitals. But the CBO estimated that version wouldn't save as much money as the one in the current House bill.

[S]ome senate aides estimated that a senate bill with a public option already had 52-54 votes, more than the 51 needed. The number 60 has been bandied about ....but that number is only needed to break a Republican filibuster.

[T]he Republican argument against a public option, that it would put insurance companies out of business has always fallen on deaf ears among Democrats and has no traction in the country where there is no sympathy for insurance companies."[..]~~~

Here's where you can keep track of where Congress stands on the Public Option.

I think it needs 218 votes to pass in the House.

Here's hoping the House bill will prevail!

(BTW - There are five bills that have to be negotiated and merged into the final bill that must be passed by both houses. I apologize if I get what's in which bill mixed up. I do try to do my research...but after a while it just makes my head hurt.)

Polling shows Americans support a Public Option. The CBO has shown that it will SAVE us money and drive down the cost of health care.

Democrats are on the side of the people, Republicans are on the side of the insurance companies. It's really as simple as that.

That's the new name for Public Option. We had to find a new term since righties made it a dirty word in the heated townhalls of last August. And guess what? When you rephrase it like that - people understand better and warm up to the idea.

Everybody understands Medicare, everybody knows someone who is on Medicare...and the elders are pretty much satisfied with it. What's wrong with the government negotiating for the best doctor and hospital fees?

I've always supported changing the term because the public seems so confused about what Public Option actually means.

I said as much in a blog last month - "Instead of 'public option' let's just call it a public insurance plan...one that essentially asks people if they would like the option - the voluntary option - of buying into Medicare before they're 65?"

Another good idea would've been Medicare-4 - like Medicare for Everyone.

Anyway, we're a little late in the renaming game...but it seems to be gaining some traction.

From thehill.com: "Say hello to "Medicare Part E" -- as in, "Medicare for Everyone."

House Democrats are looking at re-branding the public health insurance option as Medicare, an established government healthcare program that is better known than the public option.

The strategy could benefit Democrats struggling to bridge the gap between liberals in their party, who want the public option, and centrists, who are worried it would drive private insurers out of business.

While much of the public is foggy on what a public option actually is, people understand Medicare. It also would place the new public option within the rubric of a familiar system rather than something new and unknown."

[R]ep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) spoke out last week in favor of re-branding the public option as Medicare, startling many because he has loudly proclaimed his opposition to a public option."[..]~~~

Of course, Republicans are still agin it - even though there is overwhelming evidence that a vast majority of American people want a public option - the R's continue to doubt their lying eyes.

Medicare is a very good program - it has improved so many lives in so many ways. But it's a public program...and Republicans would die before they'd admit that Medicare is a testament to the government's ability to help people.

They're still singing that tired ol' song about how a public option would drive private insurers out of business.  

YET, Medicare is a prime example of how a public option would NOT put private insurers out of business.

Why are we not surprised that no one was there from Fox News?

Boy howdy, I'd sure like to know what that was all about...only time will tell.

And I don't know if it was very wise, Mr. President. I mean, Olbermann and Maddow are known as opinion journalists...just like those prime time guys over at Fox.

Of course righties are pissin' and moanin' that the meeting was a WH strategy session about attacking Fox. They say Obama is ruthless as he tries to marginalize and crush the “powerful opponents” of his "agenda."

You know it tickles me that last week righties were complaining that Obama wasn’t "tough enough," that no one was afraid of him....and now they're hollerin' that he's a streetbrawler who will crush his opponents.

Are their knickers in a knot because a politician is playing politics... or because he is just so damned good at it?

Marginalize the same folks who brought us two god-awful wars, a wrecked economy and the scorn of the entire free world? Dang, what an absolutely ruthless mean thing to do.

One thing I do know that's probably brilliant WH strategy - Republicans are losing members, down to 20 percent in the last poll, and their approval ratings have been tanking since 1/21/09...even lower than Bush had at his lowest.

Sooo...if the Obama administration can tie Fox being an extension of the Republican party around Fox’s neck, they can also tie that unfavorable rating around Fox's neck...and discredit whatever credibility Fox still has.

BTW - Media Matters gives a few good examples of Republican violent rhetoric from the last few months.

Talk about hypocrisy, last Sunday Karl Rove was on Fox News (where else?) whining because the Obama White House would dare snub a news outlet it considers partisan.

A lot of people, some Democrats, think it might not be wise for the WH to get involved in this little Fox News dust-up...I'm not one of them. I believe it's about danged time the WH stood up and fought back against this partisan propaganda machine.

That said, I now have to fall over laughing at the hilarious irony of Rove's whining.

Maybe he forgot that it was his hero GWBush who became the first president ever to refuse every single interview request from the New York Times...because he didn't like their coverage.

Funny...I don't remember Rove saying anything about this decision being "demeaning" to the presidency. Somehow I don't think Turdblossom (GWB's nickname for Rove) pleaded with the President about the benefits of "talking to everybody and communicating through every available channel."

And I don't remember Karl complaining that it was "fundamentally wrong" when the Bush White House went after NBC News last year...accusing the network of "deceptive editing and blurring the lines between news and opinion." Of course, several Fox News personalities thought it was just a dandy idea for all Republican officials to stop appearing on NBC News.

Yet, just the other morning, Fox and Friends’ Steve Doocy said, "It is extraordinary that the White House would go and target a news channel”... right before he compared Obama to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.

Neo-conservatism almost destroyed our country over the past eight years...Republican approval ratings have tanked in the polls. "Only 20 percent of Americans now identify themselves as Republicans, the fewest in 26 years.[..]"

80 percent of the country disagrees with the GOP's teabagger craziness, lies, underhanded tricks, negativity, pathetic whining? Take your pick.

Rove seems to have a plan to get back in power -- project all the Republican sins and failures onto the Obama administration. Compare what he says about Obama/Fox and what he said about Bush/NYT/NBC.

That's always been a Rove strategy -- attack your opponents for their strengths, attack them for your weaknesses. Assess your own faults and then accuse the other side of those exact same faults. Then, with a straight face, go on TV and act outraged about it, and repeat, repeat, repeat...

Good example--Running a candidate who avoided serving in Vietnam against a Vietnam medal winner...accuse the LATTER of cowardice.

Karl Rove has not one shred of integrity, honor, or credibility. To me, he will always be a traitor. His brand of dirty politics outed a CIA agent working to prevent nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.

If this had happened in Poppy Bush's White House, Rove would be in jail.

"How awful is this? Police arrested a 30-year-old, Bountiful, Utah, man for fondling the nurse who was helping to deliver his baby. Move over John Edwards. We have a new nominee for husband of the year." --Jay Leno

"Well, President Obama's healthcare plan passed the Senate Finance Committee. Republicans are disappointed because they had their own version of the health plan. That was going to be swine flu masks and Purell." --David Letterman

"And in NFL news, conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh trying to buy the St. Louis Rams. So far, this season, the Rams are what, 0-5? What is it with the Republicans? They can't seem to pick a winning team lately. What's going on?" --Jay Leno

"Rush Limbaugh, who is trying to buy the St. Louis Rams, has downplayed racial comments that he's made in the past by saying if he was a racist, why would he want to be part of a business that is 70% African American? Well, I don't know. Maybe because you would own them? Think that has anything to do with it?" --Jay Leno

"They held a big gay rights march in Washington, D.C. Tens of thousand of gay Americans of all political persuasions filled hotel rooms in D.C. Actually, it was just the Democrats in the rooms. The Republicans were still in the closet." --Jay Leno

"Do you know that a Republican senator from Maine voted with the Democrats on health care? That's the first time a Republican switched sides and was not arrested in an airport bathroom." --Craig Ferguson

"John McCain said that Sarah Palin is still a force in the Republican Party. Then he got in his car and backed over his mailbox." --David Letterman

"President Obama says he wants to put an end to the policy, 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' Yeah, in the military. This is not to be confused with George Bush's policy, 'Don't Know, Don't Care.' That's a whole different deal." --David Letterman

"Now, it was announced today they gave the Nobel Prize in economics to two American economists. Really, we have economists? Where the hell they been the last five years? We don't even have an economy. How can we win that?" --Jay Leno

"Congratulations to Barack Obama -- he has won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize. Apparently, the Nobel committee wanted to recognize the president's fine work in bringing peace to a black professor and a white cop through the strategic use of beer." --Jay Leno

"President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The committee said they gave it to Obama partly for his idealism and commitment to global cooperation, but mostly for calling Kanye West a jackass." --Conan O'Brien

"And, of course, the Republicans still can't believe that Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. And the Democrats can't believe that Sarah Palin wrote a book. So, it's even." --Jay Leno

"The Nobel committee said he won for creating a new climate for international politics. which sounds so much nicer than 'In your face George Bush you cowboy a**hole.'" --Bill Maher

"Conservatives say the award represents everything they stand against: black people, foreigners, and peace." --Bill Maher

"President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize comes with $1.4 million in cash. Or as Fox News reported it, 'Obama Caught Taking Bribe from Swedish Government.'" --Conan O'Brien

"The Nobel Prize for lack of chemistry went to John McCain and Sarah Palin." --David Letterman

"Former Illinois Governor Rod Blogojevich will make an appearance on Donald Trump's 'Celebrity Apprentice.' It's part of Trump's plan to make his own hair look normal." --Jimmy Fallon

[gathered from NYTimes Laughlines]

Here's the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dyvou-6hHY&feature=player_embedded

He looked like he was enjoying himself...Thalia called him "El Macho" as they danced, and I love the little 'caliente' hand gesture he did at the end.

And I could swear that was a frozen smile on the First Lady's face when he returned to the table. He was smiling as he sat down and it looked like he tried to say something to her...she didn't even look at him. He laughed, but it sure looked like a cold shoulder to me. I thought 'oh no Mr. President, you're going to be in the doghouse with Bo.'

Now even the conservative Wall Street Journal is writing about the problems the GOP is having with its wingnut fringe.

We all know how the Republicans rounded up and bussed their hard right loonies to townhalls to scare people away from President Obama's healthcare reform...and how they organized and promoted tea party marches. Well, the crazies got fired up alright, but now they won't go away...they're still running rampant and scaring the villagers.

From the WSJ: "[B]ut these newly energized conservatives present GOP leaders with a potential problem: The party's strategy for attracting moderate voters risks alienating activists who are demanding ideological purity, who may then gravitate to other candidates or stay at home. It's a classic dilemma faced by parties in the minority -- tension between those who want a return to the party's ideological roots and those who want candidates most likely to win in their districts.

"The potential that the Republican Party puts up candidates that fail to excite the support of this movement is very real," says Lawrence Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance, University of Minnesota....."

Well, judging from all the photos and videos of townhalls and teabagger marchers, no wonder they're scaring centrists and moderates off. Teabaggers don't seem like just disgruntled conservatives who want to return to the party's roots...they come across as a little batshit nutty...no, a lot batshit nutty.

Democrats are sometimes berated and called wimps because they don't defend their principles strongly enough. It's true...when we march we don't carry around signs depicting Republicans as Hitler, and we don't show up packing heat, or call for an armed revolution to take our country back.

The crazies on the right are an entirely different species...they're not just party purists, they're extremists. That's a big difference.

Too late Republicans...you reap what you sow. You have actively cultivated these people, encouraging them to become outraged about issues you invented...like 'death panels.'

You gave radicals like Glenn Beck the most powerful mind control device ever used on people, television...and let him spew poison and lies continuously. You promoted the worship of frauds and phonies like Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber.

You should've worked harder to come up with your own ideas and plans, instead of blaming Democrats and making them the scapegoats for your frustrations. You should've thought more about how fearmongering turns fear into anger, rage, violence, xenophobia and paranoia...which now scares off the villagers.

Why did so few of your moderate Republicans stand up and denounce the insanity? Too afraid to piss off Rush Limbaugh?

Well judge, I know of one kid that weathered "mixed race" origins okay...he was just elected  President of the most powerful nation in the world.

This just shows that Obama's presidency has done two things -- It has shown how far we have come and how far we have yet to go.　

Here's the full story from the Associated Press:

"[..] Bardwell said. "My main concern is for the children."

Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said.[..]

Thirty-year-old Beth Humphrey and 32-year-old Terence McKay, both of Hammond, say they will consult the U.S. Justice Department about filing a discrimination complaint.[..]

"It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzman. "The Supreme Court ruled as far back as 1963 that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry."[..]

Once a judge decides that he doesn't have to uphold the laws of the state that he took an oath to uphold, once he begins deciding what's best for the couples he marries...then it is time for that judge to be removed from office.

New Rule: Netflix must stop renting to Orangutans. Or whatever you're doing with the DVD before you get it to me. Look, I love a good mystery involving a grisly, violent, spattered crime scene, but that should be in the movie, not on the envelope, okay.

New Rule: If you Nobel people want to keep your prize legit, don't have Toby Keith perform at your awards concert.

It's true. The entertainment for this year's Nobel Prize gala includes, yes, "Cletis McF*cknuts." And his "gee-tar." That's like saying, "Welcome, smart people. And now for an opposing view."

New Rule: God needs to inspire better artists. You know, the Lord used to inspire people like Michelangelo and Rembrandt. Now, he inspires cheeseballs like Jon McNaughton, whose latest masterpiece depicts Jesus handing America the Constitution as a bunch of dead patriots look on. It's like "Where's Waldo?" for wingnuts.

New Rule: Stop bringing me the phone book! The last time anyone ever needed a phone book was 1988! And that was a cop using it to beat a suspect! If you're dropping a bag off on my porch, it had better be full of weed.

And finally, New Rule: Everyone deserves equal rights. That's why they're called "equal" and "rights." President Obama will speak before a gay rights group, and on Sunday, there will be a massive gay rally in Washington. Or, as I call it, the "Million Mo March." Which makes this weekend the perfect time for the president to announce he's repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," a policy that never made sense to begin with. A policy that basically said, "Here in the Army, we're all about honor and trusting the man next to you. Now, lie to my face about your sexuality, Johnson, or I'll report you behind your back."

But, forget all the good arguments for appeal, like, because it's the right thing to do, or because it was promised in the campaign, or because it gets lonely on a submarine. Do it because it will make Rush Limbaugh explode like a bag full of meat dropped from a helicopter.

Do it because it'll make Sarah Palin "go rogue" in her pants.

Because, here's the thing about today's conservatives. They're not bright. They can't keep a lot of ideas in their head at once. And, by "a lot," I mean two. If we can get them all worked up about fighting the gay menace, it will siphon away all that crazy town hall energy from the healthcare debate.

You see, the "teabaggers" don't know what the word "socialism" means, but they do know what the word "gay" means because their hairdresser explained it to them once, and they don't like it. They will be drawn to this like a moth to a flamer.

These people are homophobic. They have an image of one gay couple moving into the neighborhood, and the next day, waking up to guys rollerblading down Main Street in nothing but a Speedo and a nun's habit. With a sparkler in one hand and a penis popsicle in the other. Yes, that was a nice day.

No, what I mean to say is that the Democrats should take advantage that the rage of the "teabaggers" can be so easily redirected. Sometimes I wonder if Rush doesn't just spin a giant "wheel of hate" every morning to come up with whatever he's going to get the faithful all worked up about: "Mexicans! Rrrr!" "Socialism! Rrrr!" "Van Jones? I don't know who he is, but Rrrr!"

And "gay" is the best "Rrrr!" of all. Healthcare and the environment, they're complicated. But, it's not hard to keep track of the places that God allows you to put your pee-pee. I mean, you can count those places on one hand. And that hand isn't something you should be using either.

So, Obama should fight fire with Fire Island. Not only should he revoke "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," he should also change our military slogan to "An Army of Buns."

And, starting next year, a new policy: Gay Bussing. Yes, if there aren't any gay families in your community, we'll bring them to you.

[From HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher]

That's baaaad...

The right blogosphere is in an uproar because a group of investors, backed by a nervous NFL leadership, have dropped Rush Limbaugh from the bid to purchase the St. Louis Rams.

Seems they think Rush would be bad for business. Why? Because of his big fat racist mouth, that's why.  I've heard the audio clips, like the one where he told an African American woman, "Take that bone out of your nose and call me back."

He earns his living race-baiting...that's what he does...and maybe the NFL was worried that at any minute he'd spout off something racist to embarrass the players.

Everybody can whine all they want - but if the NFL wanted Limbaugh in their club, he'd be in their club. But they don't and he isn't.

Poor Rush, all he has now are millions of hate-filled ditto heads...that would kill for him...and most likely will.

Hmm...we have to wonder if anyone will complain if someday in the future Michael Vick the dog killer is allowed to own a major American sports team...

Of course, Rush is sniveling that it’s not about the St. Louis Rams, it’s not about him, it's about those mean ol' Democrats who are trying to destroy conservatism, etc., etc.

Wow, would that we had that much power...

It ain't about us Rush, it's about you being a douchebag who alienates the majority of the country...the moderates and the centrists who don't like you and don't want you and the crap you spew to screw up football for everybody else.

Hey Rush...maybe you could buy some black racehorses instead.

The Daily Show's Jon Stewart had fun the other night with Fox News' sparse coverage of the gay-rights march last weekend: "Gay people aren't vampires, they show up on camera."

He pointed out that Fox promoted the 9/12 protest for weeks and weeks before it happened, and spent a lot of time covering it that day....then spent less than 4 minutes covering the Gay protest march.

"Interesting," Stewart said. "The gay rights march was roughly the same size as the Tea Party protest. How did Fox, by and large, miss a gigantic rally like that. You'd think 75,000 Americans, gathering to protest something, would be news. I mean, it had everything Fox loves -- ordinary people, demanding their freedoms, homemade signs, flags, men in uniform."

Watch the video here.

70,000 Teabaggers were such a big story that Fox took out a full page ad in several newspapers asking where the other networks were. Of course, that was just to rile up their rightie base...because all of the other opinion and news networks DID cover the Teabagger protest. I guess they just didn't cover it slavishly enough...

But now, when 70,000 gays and lesbians and their families and supporters have a similar march...........<crickets chirping>...

Maybe Fox just doesn't accept gay people as true Americans...unless, of course, they're related to Dick Cheney.

Boy, you know the wingnut base of the GOP is becoming more radical when they boo and hiss Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and call him a RINO -- Republican In Name Only.

I mean, he's one of the most conservative senators around. If he ever strays from the hard right position on a vote it's because it doesn't matter. Like Sotomayor was going to be confirmed anyway, so his vote didn't matter. But next time it does matter he can vote the hard right position, then point to Sotomayor as proof that he's willing to be open-minded.

So if Graham strays from conservative dogma, it's pure strategy...he is no "front man for the Democrats."

That's why it was odd when Graham encountered an angry crowd of wingnut teabaggers at a townhall meeting a couple of days ago. They kept interrupting him with cries of - 'You're a country club Republican'...'Sotomayor!'...'You lie.' Outside people carried signs -- 'Unconstitutional Anti-Christ Socialist Federal Deficit Spending Programs"... "Democrat in Drag" and "RINO."

Looks like Graham has suddenly become the new target of tea party activists. In fact, "Beckerheads" started to turn on him about a week after he publicly spoke against TV crazy Glenn Beck.

I have news for you Lindsey, it wasn't Ron Paul who hijacked your party...it was Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck, Coulter, Malkin, Bachman, Kristol, Dick and Liz Cheney, Karl Rove, etc., etc., etc....

Read about the townhall ruckus here: (CNN) – South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham has always enjoyed a little back-and-forth with belligerent audiences.

The Republicans have a big problem if their crazies endorse only hard right candidates...some might make it through the primaries, but if their candidate gets to the national election they will lose. This great country is so much larger than a small pocket of only white angry people.

Thank goodness the wingnuts are on the wrong side of both demographics and history. The Angry White Guy Party can make some noise, the mainstream media will report its every move...but in the end they will wither and die.

If you look at every single poll that asks people their beliefs and policy positions, a huge majority of people express views that are the exact opposite of what the teabaggers believe. It's just a fact.

A spirited defense of the public option from Fox News.

Gosh, I wish CNN could get with Fox and swap Lou Dobbs for Shep Smith.

With all the griping I do about Fox News, I keep forgetting about Shep, who sometimes breaks talking point ranks with his employer. Like the time he railed against the Bush White House for what was happening in New Orleans before his very eyes, even shouted at Hannity. He also denounced torture, and complained about the over-the-top vitriol of some Fox viewers. He even made fun of Glenn Beck's crying.

So I'm glad I didn't miss this recent exchange on healthcare reform between Shep and far-rightie Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo). It was one for the books...because the Senator probably expected friendly treatment on the Republican News Network. Well, boy was he surprised.

Seems that Shep is a fierce advocate of the public option, and he didn't let the Senator get away with answering questions about it with tired Republican talking points.

Shep starts out asking what's wrong with a public option. Barrasso called it a "government takeover of health care" and said "Washington is incapable" of running health care.

Shep said: "It's not a government take over Senator! That's not fair and we both know it. It's not a government takeover because what it would be is a government option, if you have insurance now and you like it you can keep it, if you want the government option, a government run, paid for by those who buy it, government run option to try to keep costs down.

[..] "I want to be clear, this wouldn’t be Washington running the system, Senator. It would be a government run plan paid for by the people who sign up for the plan."

Barrasso tried to change the subject to Medicare, but Shep kept the discussion focused.

Shep said: "Over the last 10 years health care costs in America have skyrocketed. Regular folks cannot afford it, so they tax the system by not getting preventive medicine, and we all end up paying for it. As the costs have gone up, the insurance industry's profits, on average, have gone up 350 percent. And it's the insurance companies ...which have contributed to Senators and Congressmen on both sides of the aisle to the point where now we can't get what ...more than 60 percent of Americans say they support -- a public option. This has been an enormous win for the health care industry. That is an unquestioned fact.

[..] "What happens to the American people when we come out with legislation now which requires everyone to have health care insurance -- or many more people -- but does not give a public option, therefore millions more people will have to buy insurance from the very corporations that are over charging us and whose profits have gone up 350 percent in the last ten years. It seems like we, the people, are the ones getting the shaft here.

[..]"Every vote against the public option is a vote for the insurance companies, sir. It is. How can you disagree with that?"

Watch it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tT61GNLBclk

The Republicans were put in their place -- well done Shep. Democrats should take some hints from Shep and use the same counter debates when discussing the public option.

Hey, I'll bet Shep Smith watches Rachel Maddow.

New Rule: Froot Loops are not a health food. Some of the big food companies have started giving their products "Smart Choice" check marks so shoppers will know they're healthful. You know, like a creep in the park will carry a puppy so kids will know he's friendly. Healthful? Froot Loops? When I saw this, I threw a tantrum in the cereal aisle.

New Rule: Shut up, Grandpa! This week, ancient pop singer Andy Williams announced he thinks Obama is a Marxist who wants the country to fail. And then he made "Moon River" in his diapers. Actually, it's not so shocking Andy Williams says Obama is a communist. It's shocking Andy Williams is alive. He doesn't do shows. He has viewings.You know, like a funeral.

And finally, New Rule: Stop pretending climate change is a future problem. In the past few years, scientists as well as regular folks have been able to observe climate change by using a state-of-the-art instrument: our eyes.

Did you see the pictures a couple of weeks ago from Australia? [slide of massive Australian dust storm] This is what happens when an overheated fire produces a new kind of super-drought. And experts say Los Angeles, which just had the largest wildfire ever, could be next to get what happened to Australia. Do you want to live on Mars?

Fire season used to last four months out here. Now it's all year 'round, and that can't be good for tourism. Travelers like warm weather, not hell.

Now, here's a prediction: You know those old white people we've been seeing screaming, "Socialism" and "death panels"? Well, in a few weeks, they're going to be screaming, "Copenhagen!" in honor of the brand of chewing tobacco they like to spit at hippies.

Actually, Copenhagen is where Obama will be returning in December for a long-overdue, worldwide conclave about our melting planet. And while he's in Copenhagen, the president is going to be shadowed by Senator James Inhofe, Republican from "Hee Haw" who insists that global warming is a hoax, a plot by liberals to get Ed Begley an Oscar, and destroy the very core of our freedoms, the plastic bag industry.

Now, this man is the ranking Republican on the Environment Committee in Congress. He has no science background whatsoever, yet he's going to tell the hundreds of climate scientists assembled in Copenhagen -- you know, the people with the Ph.D.'s in the relevant fields -- that they don't know what they're talking about.

Education means nothing in America, because Mr. Inhofe is hardly alone. Three-quarters of the Republican Congress basically agrees with him, and they're even pivoting from their old excuse of "global warming needs more study" to "oh, shit, it's too late; well, what are you going to do; might as well keep burning coal."

Congressman Joe Barton says the answer to massive climate change is simply to adapt. Which is why he has a giant ark in his garage. These people are so stupid, they make me question evolution.

Adapt?! You know, sometimes when the forests are on fire out here, you can smell it all day. And you can see it. The air is soot. I don't want to adapt to that! I don't want to have to walk around in Michael Jackson's old surgical mask and have to explain why my eyes are red and bloodshot, any more than I already do.

President Obama and the Democrats in Congress need to learn a lesson from the healthcare debate and realize you can't change someone's mind if they don't have one.

So, just STOP LISTENING to these people. To paraphrase John Lennon, "Imagine there's no John Boehner; it's easy if you try."

And the rest of us need to get in this game, too. Because when the "teabaggers" find out that Obama is acting all Al Gore-like up there in Copenhagen, they're going to say that it's more of his socialist agenda, and that he's taking his marching orders from Sweden. Because they don't know that Copenhagen is in Denmark.

[From HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher]

I'm still crossing my fingers for a public health insurance option that we all pay into like Medicare...only a strong public option can create real competition, get costs down, and force the private insurers to treat their customers more fairly.

Besides, if the health industry is so worried about profits let them cut the billions in pay and bonuses of their top executives.

And stop lining the campaign pockets of the GOP...

Armey said: “We’re not a partisan organization, and I think many Republicans are disappointed we are not.”

Yeah right...I don't know about disappointed, but I'd bet plenty of Republicans are concerned about Armey's reincarnation as an even more radical wingnut with a large following of pissed off activist malcontents.

Something I've noticed about the Obama team -- they don't go looking for fights, but when they lock into one they're very good.

There were a lot mean and silly attacks on the White House from the right this summer. Starting with healthcare reform, which had people actually debating about killing grandmothers. Then came the spiteful complaining about President Obama's addressing schoolchildren...before anyone knew what he was going to say. Then newspapers had rightie politicians complaining about the so-called "32" WH czars...which was flat-out misinformation...because only nine of them were subject to Senate confirmation. The newspapers didn't check the facts.

The WH mostly took the high road - after all, the President had vowed to tamp down the partisan rhetoric - but it took a toll, because the attacks kept knocking them off message.

So, after trying the nonpartisan harmony bit for eight months, looks like the WH is fighting back. Obama started being critical of opinion journalism at the Cronkite memorial, saying how much we need good fact based news.

I have waited so long for the President to put his foot down on the collective absurdity of his opponents...it can only strengthen him.

So now, instead of just giving reporters facts to check, the WH changed their media strategy and decided to become a player. They're starting to issue biting attacks on those pundits, politicians and news outlets that make misleading or false claims. Lies like how healthcare reform would set up new "sex clinics" in schools.

Yesterday White House Communications Director Anita Dunn was on Howard Kurtz's CNN show Reliable Sources. Her job is to shape the news cycle and monitor staff contacts with the press...telling them where to strike back or where to admit error.

Well, she struck back alright, telling Kurtz that Fox News is "more a wing of the Republican Party than an objective news organization"...called it "opinion journalism masquerading as news."

"But let's be realistic here, Howie.  You know, they are widely viewed as ... part of the Republican Party.  Take their talking points, put them on the air.  Take their opposition research, put them on the air and that's fine. But let's not pretend they're a news network the way CNN is.

She said, "When [President Obama] goes on Fox, he understands he's not going on it really as a news network at this point, he's going on to debate the opposition."[..]~~

I'd sure like to see how Fox denies what is plainly true.

Even I have noticed how Fox News Sunday's Chris Wallace does "fact checking" on certain Obama administration officials...but no checking facts on his Republican guests.

Yes, yes...CNN and MSNBC show their bias too...they're just not as 24/7 partisan as Fox. When I'm interested in something political and want the straight dope on it, I start with PBS's The Newshour with Jim Leher...then go to C-Span, which covers all the latest topics on Washington Journal.
 

Democrats won Congress mostly because voters were sick of Republicans looking the other way when corruption corroded their ranks. We Democrats have to do the right thing about Rep. Charles Rangel. We have to remember that corruption can cross party lines...we have to urge the House Democratic Leadership not to look the other way.

Rangle is one of the most powerful politicians in Washington D.C., but he has become a liability. Even though he tried to explain the failure to provide tax information on old income from a nearly forgotten rental property, etc. -- until the ethics committee completes its investigation and issues a final report, Rangel should step down as chairman of the House Ways and Means committee.

House ethics committee announces expanded investigation into Rep. Rangel

The panel broadened the jurisdiction of its probe to include amendments to his financial disclosure records showing at least $600,000 in previously unreported assets, according to an ethics committee release..... [...]"

Conservatives, you need to tell us again about the importance of keeping government out of health care.

Peeking into private medical records? Publishing personal information? Talk about Big Brother and police state mentality....why aren't Libertarians screaming?

My lovely loony state of Oklahoma has passed an outrageous new law that will have the state collect the private details of women’s abortions and post it all on a public website...every single abortion performed in the state. It will go into effect Nov. 1st.

What the hay! Aren't ALL medical records to be kept private? Will they publish a list of who's on Birth Control too? Why aren't they demanding to know which MEN are taking Viagra...or having vasectomies?

Here are the first eight questions (out of 37) that women will have to answer:

1. Date of abortion

2. County in which abortion performed

3. Age of mother

4. Marital status of mother (married, divorced, separated, widowed, or never married)

5. Race of mother

6. Years of education of mother (specify highest year completed)

7. State or foreign country of residence of mother

8. Total number of previous pregnancies of the mother - Live Births, Miscarriages, Induced Abortions

It's none of their dang business! Abortion is a legal procedure. This is an intrusion on personal rights to medical confidentiality.

Collecting this info and posting it on line will cost $281,285 the first year, and $256,285 each year after. OK is not a rich state...there's plenty of places that this money could go to help people who need it. Like hiring teachers, paying for police equipment, or paying for flu shots for underprivileged kids...instead of furthering the cause of rightwing fundamentalist politicians. Who have tried everything they can think of to overturn Roe vs Wade...now they're trying another form of intimidation.

Thank goodness some women are fighting back:

New Abortion Law Challenged in Oklahoma

(CN) - Two Oklahoma women are challenging a new state law set to take effect next month that requires publication of an "Annual Abortion Report" and forces doctors to give details about their patients under threat of criminal sanctions and loss of their medical license, according to a suit in Oklahoma County Court.

The Oklahoma law, H.B. 1595, also changed definitions of abortion terms, used terms already thrown out by a court and barred certain procedures for the first time, according to the filing.............

[A] group called "Pro-Choice of Oklahoma" claims that the reporting requirements of HB 1595 are so extensive that the reports could reveal the names of physicians and patients who perform or receive abortions in small towns.

The plaintiffs say the bill violates the state constitution. They want it enjoined. [..]"

I swear, Oklahoma sounds more like ‘A Handmaid’s Tale’ every day.

"You hear about Letterman? I was shocked that Letterman has been having affairs. I had no idea he was even running for office." --Bill Maher

"I just wanted to say, so you know here, I have never had sex with anyone on my staff. The guests, of course, yes. I mean, that's part of the job, but never the staff." --Bill Maher

"A producer for '48 Hours' was arrested for attempting a stupid human trick. It was reported that the blackmailer was saying he was going to reveal embarrassing details about Letterman's life. For instance, after sex he would say, 'Stay tuned for Craig Ferguson.'" --Seth Meyers

"There's a new book out called "why women have sex" that has a list of 237 reasons why women have sex. And Letterman knows the top ten." --Jimmy Fallon

"Hey, how about this? President Obama goes to Denmark and he's trying to get the 2016 Olympics for the great city of Chicago. And he presented his case in a heartfelt manner but they weren't buying it. And boy, do I know what that feels like." --David Letterman

"So what NASA is doing, they're crashing a rocket, which will have the energy of two tons of TNT It's part of NASA's new strategy, 'What would Wile E. Coyote do?'" --Jimmy Fallon

"Here is some very good news. At NASA, the countdown is on. After years of wasting taxpayer money on research to increase the quality of life here on Earth and all that rubbish, NASA is finally doing something cool. They're blowing up the moon!" --Craig Ferguson

"There's been some squabbling in the Republican Party. In a recent interview, John McCain's former campaign manager said that if Sarah Palin is the Republican Party's presidential nominee, the results will be catastrophic -- as opposed to when she was the vice presidential nominee and everything went perfectly." --Conan O'Brien

"Hey, listen to this. According to reports from the Daily Telegraph, Iranian President Mahmoud Amedinejad is part Jewish. He has Jewish ancestry. Well, this is great. You know, he's anti-Semitic. Now he can just kill himself." --Jay Leno

"Governor Schwarzenegger said if he comes back to California, there should be no special treatment for Roman Polanski. I think that's what he said. It was that or 'I'm going to Japan to ski.' I don't know what he said." --Jay Leno

"I know why you're happy tonight. Because after all these months of seeing these tea baggers hold up signs of Obama with the Hitler mustache painted on, we have proof now that Obama isn't Hitler. Because when Hitler tried to get the Olympics he got it." --Bill Maher

"Hey, you can't say they didn't try from Chicago. They pulled out all the stops. The president went over there, the first lady, Oprah. Even Rod Blagojevich phoned in a bribe." --Bill Maher

Well, let's be big about it. Congratulations to the citizens of Rio de Janeiro. They spent all day today partying, doing the samba in the streets with the breasts hanging out and then they heard about the Olympics and then they were even more thrilled." --Bill Maher

"With the Olympic Committee, it came down to one simple question -- where do you want to go to spend your summer vacation? The land where super models invented bikini wax? The land where fat guys invented deep dish pizza?" --Bill Maher

"That's the difference between Bush and Obama. When Obama bombs in another country, nobody gets killed." --Bill Maher

"Oh, on 'Dancing with the Stars,' former Congressman Tom DeLay almost dropped his partner. I guess all those years of lobbyists greasing his palms, apparently he just couldn't … " --Jay Leno

"Sarah Palin's book is big, 400 pages. She wrote the book herself and agonized over every word, and so will you." --David Letterman

"The big news was the Senate yesterday - the finance committee - rejected the Democrats' health-care plan, the one with the public option. Meanwhile, the Republicans are offering their own health-care plan. It's called, 'Stop Crying and Take an Advil.'" --Jimmy Fallon

[gathered from NYTimes Laughlines]

Even though I've read about the Jamie Leigh Jones story (and others like it) several times, it's still horrifying. Thank you, Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) for trying to do something about it.

Senator Franken proposed and passed an amendment to the 2010 Defense Appropriations bill that would withhold defense contracts from companies like KBR that restricted their employees from taking workplace crimes to court.

Halliburton has in its contract that if one of its employees is raped by another - or gang raped by several others - the case would go to arbitration instead of the court system.

Hmm... if one Halliburton employee murdered another one while working together, would the case go to arbitration instead of the court system?

The public has a right to know what happened in these situations.

Read about it here:　

Franken Wins Bipartisan Support For Legislation Reining In KBR’s Treatment Of Rape

"In 2005, Jamie Leigh Jones was gang-raped by her co-workers while she was working for Halliburton/KBR in Baghdad. She was detained in a shipping container for at least 24 hours without food, water, or a bed, and "warned her that if she left Iraq for medical treatment, she’d be out of a job." (Jones was not an isolated case.) Jones was prevented from bringing charges in court against KBR because her employment contract stipulated that sexual assault allegations would only be heard in private arbitration.

[F]ranken said:

In the end, Franken won the debate. His amendment passed by a 68-30 vote, earning the support of 10 Republican senators ...[..]"

BTW -- all of the female Republicans voted for Franken's amendment.

Wonder why those 30 male Republican Senators defended KBR/Halliburton and voted against prosecuting rapists through the courts? Could it be to keep their friends at KBR churning out all that nice money to their political coffers?

Well, when you stop and think about it -- for years our politicians have supported corporations while they figuratively raped us. Not too much of a stretch to support them doing it literally.

The other day while driving through the Wichita Wildlife Refuge, where the deer and the antelope play...also buffalo/bison, longhorns and elk. I saw a group of cars and people by the side of the road watching something through a chainlink fence, taking pictures...so I pulled over.

There were two magnificent wild bull elk, someone said about 900-pounds each, antlers big enough to reach certain tree tops...fiercely battling away. With lowered heads they were shoving each other back and forth...snorting, tangling antlers, untangling, charging, tangling antlers again. The cracking sound made you think their antlers would break.

Someone said if their antlers locked permanently they would starve to death.

Someone else told me which one was the rival. I do not like any kind of fighting, but I was mesmerized...saying to myself that I would leave if it got bloody. After about 20 min. the rival's back legs were buckling so he whirled and ran away.

Now the alpha male could return to his mating instincts. He had definitely been in the mood for love...I imagined that he had attracted his nice little herd of cows with rutty bugling, macho swaggering, and probably rolling in his own dung, which is said to drive the ladies wild with desire.

But, no rest for our hero...a few younger rivals are still skirting the edges of his harem, hoping to steal one of his ladies...trying to get up the nerve to challenge him.

He sees them alright, bugles and charges at several of them. They scatter...for now...

I descend from a long line of military men and women who fought in US wars from the Civil War to the Iraq War...Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines. I grew up on different military bases here and yon, and I still live in an Army town. I understand the military mind-set of duty, mission, and service...but I do not trust the military complex to make the best decisions for our country.

I've read President Eisenhower's warning to the nation about the dangers of allowing a "Military-Industrial Complex" taking control of our country...the idea being that if the military becomes the biggest client for certain manufacturers, then we will begin to invest more of our economy into military contracts.

So I'm very leery when our top generals go above the president to lobby for war expansion.

From The Telegraph: "According to sources close to the administration, Gen McChrystal shocked and angered presidential advisers with the bluntness of a speech given in London last week.

The next day he was summoned to an awkward 25-minute face-to-face meeting on board Air Force One on the tarmac in Copenhagen [..]

[A]n adviser to the administration said: “People aren’t sure whether McChrystal is being naïve or an upstart.[..]

"[I]n London, Gen McChrystal, who heads the 68,000 US troops in Afghanistan as well as the 100,000 Nato forces, flatly rejected proposals to switch to a strategy more reliant on drone missile strikes and special forces operations against al-Qaeda.

He told the Institute of International and Strategic Studies that the formula, which is favoured by Vice-President Joe Biden, would lead to "Chaos-istan".

When asked whether he would support it, he said: "The short answer is: No." [..]"

Generals know that their job is to execute orders coming from the White House...so I wonder what makes Gen. McChrystal think his job description has suddenly changed. For him to push for his own foreign policy outside the normal chain of command, he must believe that somebody has his back.

I’m thinking this is a message from the good ol' Military/Industrial Complex to the administration to get with the program. After all, the guys who love those Big, Bad, Expensive Toys would probably prefer that GE and Raytheon and Halliburton call the shots...

And am I forgetting something? Like remember when GWBush showed an incredible lack of vision when he decided to send only 50,000 troops into Iraq...and said the Iraqi people would throw flowers at them? Were there any generals who went on the news to refute the President like General McCristol just did? Or did they just ask for more Big, Bad, Expensive Toys?

I trust our extremely intelligent president, who seems to be studying the problems in Afghanistan with a competent first-class team.

It has nothing to do with Democrat or Republican...it has everything to do with competent leadership.

He was damned if he did, damned if he didn't. If President Obama had not gone to lobby the Olympic Committee for the USA, he'd have been much more to blame. He really had no choice but to go...even though he knew he was sticking his neck out.

With Chicago being rejected so early, looks like it wasn't high on the IOC's list anyway...and would have lost in the first round whether Obama went to bat for us or not. Then they'd say, 'Why didn't you go?'

Hometown pressure aside, you have to admire his guts...knowing how a rejection would leave him wide open to late-night jokes and criticism from his enemies,

It's a big deal for any country to get the Olympics...and nothing ventured, nothing gained.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the President thought it was the right thing to do, and he would do it over again.

For those who think that Rio's win means Obama has lost his "star quality" in the world, IOC member Anita De Frantz begs to differ: "Everyone wanted to have their picture with both of them, everyone wanted to be near him, so no, no, no he won. Chicago didn't."

Most Americans see the President's pitch as a matter of excellent statesmanship, engaging the world and representing US interest. After all, the leaders of the other Olympic contenders were there lobbying too.

Maybe the Olympic Committee didn't like the heavy grass-roots protests in Chicago against hosting the Olympics. Some reports said 45 percent of Chicago was against it. They sure made a lot of noise about not wanting the disruption, or having to tax everyone to pay for all the construction and preparation, etc.

Maybe Chicago's political reputation is just too shady...too much potential for graft and cronyism. But then, the IOC selection committee has its own reputation for being corrupt...

Maybe the fact that the US has hosted it several times in recent memory, and South America never has, tipped things in favor of Brazil. Maybe the IOC just chose the least politically charged selection out of all of the contenders.

Whatever, you can bet on the neo-cons laying the fault on Obama.

But to lose the Olympics and cheer? Dancing with glee because we lost to Rio only shows how bitter is their hatred of the President. Remember in 2004, how we cheered New York being a finalist for the 2012 Summer Olympics?

What happened to all those fine "America First" self-proclaimed patriots who now rant against Obama and Chicago? Does anyone remember that it was George Bush who first approached the Committee asking them to consider Chicago as the venue?

President Obama merely picked up where his predecessor left off.

So it's a sad statement on the state of the Republican party when their leaders resort to juvenile nyah nyah nyahs...cheering a loss to the USA probably because they can't get over their own loss at the ballot box.

Well, thank goodness not all conservatives are so childish. One of my favorite righties, Joe Scarborough from "Morning Joe," defends President Obama and speaks out against those who revel in America's Olympic defeat.

~~"Count me as one conservative who is disappointed that President Obama's hometown will not be hosting the 2012 Olympic Games.

Chicago is a beautiful city that would have made a perfect backdrop for the Olympics. The President was right to fly to Copenhagen to try to land the games, not for the sake of his city, but for the good of his country. The fact President Obama failed makes me respect him more for taking the chance, and the fact many right-wing figures opposed the President's mission shows just how narrow-minded partisanship makes us all. [...]

[W]hat we saw from some conservative corners regarding the President's failed Olympics bid was just plain stupid."~~

Way to go, Joe...you give me hope that the conservatives can pull out of that 'five spiral' dive and become a viable party again.

Last night on MSNBC, I loved the way Keith Olbermann called the Republicans out on how they oppose public option health insurance for people, but they love socialized property insurance. Like they support mandatory property flood insurance...which is subsidized by the government, because the 'market' decided it couldn't make oodles of money from it.

Yep, the ones who holler loudest about a public option for people, calling it socialized insurance, are gung-ho for socialized insurance for property.

Earlier this week the "Gang of 6" -- Baucus, Bingaman, Conrad, Grassley, Enzi and Snowe -- all voted against a public health insurance option...but voted for a home insurance public option. A government-run insurance for property -- National Flood Insurance.

You know those million dollar plus waterfront estates that are in flood areas? They're covered. They can even sign up during storm warnings.

So, again we have socialism for the rich guys...capitalism for the working class.

Folks, the health and lives of our loved ones should be more precious than any property we hold.

Damned insurance companies! It's despicable to sell people a policy then fudge when asked to pay out...and then go whining to the government if they actually had to pay out on it.

Either sell flood insurance or don't, but don't pretend you do while the government is actually paying out.

The Rightie Attack Machine is huntin' for scalps in the Obama administration again. They added Van Jones to their belt, now they're out for the Department of Education's Kevin Jennings....the assistant deputy secretary of the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools.

They originally went after him last July, probably because he's gay...but their shrieks were ignored and Jennings went on to work.

About a week ago, Fox News started a campaign against Jennings...Sean Hannity demanded that he be fired. Soon Lou Dobbs, Pat Buchanan, Rush Limbaugh joined the attack...and Politico's Mike Allen said that Jennings may have broken the law.

Seems they've found a book Jennings wrote 15 years ago, in which he told a story about a student he knew while teaching in 1987. Seems the 16 y/o male told Jennings that he was involved with an older man in Boston.

Well, the lynch mob says that means Jennings was aware of statutory rape and didn't report it.

The truth is the student was the age of consent in Massachusetts, and there was nothing wrong with Jennings' conduct. Besides, who exactly would be charged with this statutory rape? Some anonymous guy the kid wouldn't give up? I'm sure the police would be thrilled with a case like that.

The way I understand it, the kid was troubled about being attacked because he was gay and Jennings counseled him...might have saved the kid's life, considering the gay teen suicide rate back then (even now). Remember AIDS and the anti-gay climate of the 80's, the hate killings, etc.

Too bad so many Republicans and churches are too busy raping children and covering it up to follow Jennings' example...he advocated programs to protect students.

http://www.republicansexoffenders.com/

And just wait a minute. What about all those Republicans who knew about Mark Foley and his fondness for underage boy pages? Wouldn't they all be guilty of condoning statutory rape as well?

Yep, I think they're overreaching this time. It's Jennings' sexual orientation that riles them...drives them to trash his honorable public record. Remember how they choose to confuse homosexuality with pedophelia.

Here's some more facts:

What all this is really about is rabid righties trying to chip away at the Obama White House to bring it down. They did the same thing to Bill Clinton.

Next month, it'll be someone else...the month after that, someone else. The anecdote from Jennings' book has been around for a long time, but it's suddenly become a "story" because righties needed a new target.

The White House is fighting back with Reality Checks:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/

I love it when they smack down the Fox gasbags.

And people like Rush Limbaugh, who've been known to get high on Oxycontin, use Viagra and make secret trips to parts of the world notorious for child prostitution, should be careful what they say.

Yes, last Tuesday a key Senate committee shot down two versions of the public health insurance option offered by Democratic Senators Schumer of NY and Rockefeller of WV... but I'm not losing hope yet. This is just the Finance Committee's bill*... it still needs to be reconciled with the House. It's not over yet.

The House had passed its healthcare proposal out of three committees before it adjourned for August ... whereas the Senate likes avoid conflict, and takes a lot of time to mull things over. George Washington told Thomas Jefferson that the framers created the Senate to "cool" House legislation the same way a saucer cools hot tea.

I've seen several Senators on TV, going on the record to support a public option. Very encouraging, and also makes me think that maybe they honestly feel this thing can pass.

The Republican attack machine revved up full throttle against a public option at those townhall shout-downs through the summer...and still continues to trash it with TV ads, etc.

BTW -- Two signs you didn't see at those tea party protests:

"Please Take Away My Medicare" .. and "STOP sending my Social Security check"...no siree.

But public option is still popular with we the voters...poll after poll shows anywhere from 65 to 75 percent approval for including a public option.

Any reasonable thinking person should be able to understand why a public health insurance plan is good for all Americans...everyone but the CEO's of private insurance companies with their death by spread sheet profit margins, that is.

For every dollar that we consumers pay in premiums, private insurance companies skim off 38 cents for their corporate jets, Las Vegas party trips and obscenely bloated CEO compensation packages. That leaves 62 cents, less than two thirds of every dollar, to pay for actual healthcare.

For every dollar paid to Medicare, only 4 cents goes to administrative costs, leaving 96 cents for actual healthcare. Anyone who can add and subtract can see that even without tort reform, etc., we can easily chop 34 percent off our national cost just by cutting out the private insurance middleman.

Ask yourself this: What if some catastrophe, some "natural" disaster happened in the US, causing tens of thousands of injuries? What if a nasty new virus suddenly ran rampant through our schools causing many fatalities among our children?

Who would receive the best medical care -- the ones who had health insurance?

Without a public option, it would be impossible to handle either scenario.

...and yet...and yet...sometimes, somehow...things get done. Like Medicare in the 60's...like women and blacks getting the vote. Sometimes the right thing to do is just keep fighting, not give up.

* UPDATE: Again, The Daily Show gives us real news we don't hear elsewhere. As the Senate Finance Committee voted against our public option on the health reform bill...they voted FOR an amendment that would give 50 million dollars to fund abstinence-only programs. It was sponsored by Senator Orin Hatch (R-UT), and passed 12 to 11. Even when it's been proven REPEATEDLY that abstinence only doesn't work.