Paul Krugman at donkey o.d. on where a good model for a national health care system already exists. It may surprise you.
A tip o' the Brain to Tennessee Guerilla Women.
Saturday, January 28, 2006
Oprah
I can't stand Oprah Winfrey. I laughed my ass off when she allowed herself to be blinded by bucks (or power) when she decided to turn James Frey's book into a national bestseller. To me, Oprah is just a whore who has made a decent living off other people's misery.
That said, I appreciate the fact she actually stood up and exposed this guy and her own failings in the matter. I won't judge her motivations. The only reason I give Oprah a mention at all on this blog is because as a writer I feel I have to say something about the whole situation. It is this:
If you're writing non-fiction you have an obligation to your readers to tell the complete truth, period. If you can't fulfill that obligation, you must make that disclaimer. The truth is not to be embellished in the name of better sales figures.
There's a lot of truth in the crap I write, but it is pure fiction and fantasy and to call it anything other is to be disingenuous to my readers and myself.
Maureen Dowd has more thoughts along those lines.
That said, I appreciate the fact she actually stood up and exposed this guy and her own failings in the matter. I won't judge her motivations. The only reason I give Oprah a mention at all on this blog is because as a writer I feel I have to say something about the whole situation. It is this:
If you're writing non-fiction you have an obligation to your readers to tell the complete truth, period. If you can't fulfill that obligation, you must make that disclaimer. The truth is not to be embellished in the name of better sales figures.
There's a lot of truth in the crap I write, but it is pure fiction and fantasy and to call it anything other is to be disingenuous to my readers and myself.
Maureen Dowd has more thoughts along those lines.
Pressure
Is your senator up for reelection? Our stalwart commenter Nina gives us a list.
Is one of these yours? Call 'em and tell them your vote depends on them supporting this filibuster. Just click on the 'Congress' link in the left sidebar to find out how to contact them.
The following Democratic Senators are standing for re-election in 2006:
Alito supporters:
Byrd, Robert - (D - WV)
Nelson, Ben - (D - NE)
Filibuster opponents:
Conrad, Kent - (D - ND)
Nelson, Ben - (D - NE)
May vote no on Alito but won't necessarily vote no on cloture (aka Clueless Caucus):
Akaka, Daniel - (D - HI)
Bingaman, Jeff - (D - NM)
Cantwell, Maria - (D - WA)
Carper, Thomas - (D - DE)
Kohl, Herb - (D - WI)
Lieberman, Joseph - (D - CT)
Menendez, Robert - (D - NJ)
Nelson, Bill - (D - FL)
Not standing for re-election (so why not do the right thing?)
Dayton, Mark - (D - MN)
Sarbanes, Paul - (D - MD)
Republicans Olympia Snowe, ME and Linclon Chafee, RI are also standing for re-election this year.
Is one of these yours? Call 'em and tell them your vote depends on them supporting this filibuster. Just click on the 'Congress' link in the left sidebar to find out how to contact them.
An aside to Nina: If you'd drop me an email I'd be appreciative. Thanks for the info, darlin'.
More on Filibuster...
...at AlterNet. Names and phone numbers of Senators that aren't on board yet, and some advice:
It ain't over 'til it's over, folks.
Biden is especially vulnerable to pressure. Tell him you wouldn't dream of supporting a candidate for president that didn't stand up for core democratic values. Mention that you volunteer on campaigns, or give money or whatever you do and that you always vote in the primaries.
It ain't over 'til it's over, folks.
How Do You Like Your Democracy Now, Mr. Bush?
Juan Cole on Bush's reaction to the Hamas victory:
The Palestinians must not have used that boatload of Diebold machines Bush sent over...
Now Hamas, or the Islamic Resistance Movement, a branch of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, has come to power in Palestine. In his press conference on Thursday, Bush portrayed the Palestinian elections in the same way he depicts Republican Party victories over Democrats in the United States: "The people are demanding honest government. The people want services. They want to be able to raise their children in an environment in which they can get a decent education and they can find healthcare." He sounds like a spokesman for Hamas, underlining the irony that Bush and his party have given Americans the least honest government in a generation, have drastically cut services, and have actively opposed extension of healthcare to the uninsured in the United States.
The Palestinians must not have used that boatload of Diebold machines Bush sent over...
This is serious
My pal Lurch shows us the reality of not fighting the battle over Alito:
Go read the whole thing. He's not dealing in hyperbole, just the naked truth. Alito will either be our Normandy or our Waterloo.
...
Once the Fascists have a firm majority of ideologues on SCOTUS they will have finally achieved a waypoint goal. In the next 20 years we will see everything that defined American Democracy destroyed, twisted, perverted into something very much approximating 1984.
...
Go read the whole thing. He's not dealing in hyperbole, just the naked truth. Alito will either be our Normandy or our Waterloo.
It's the coverup, stupid
An excellent post by Sizemore about the Repubs trying to clean the shit off the Chimp.
...
"I mean, there's thousands of people that come through and get their pictures taken," Mr. Bush said. "I'm also mindful that we live in a world in which those pictures will be used for pure political purposes, and they're not relevant to the investigation."
Uh-huh. Interesting how that works -- photos and documents on the previous Democratic President was certainly relevant to the GOP just 10 years ago but now with a SCOTUS-selected, Republican, card-carrying member of the Tali-Born Again destroying the country a hell lot more than Bin Laden could only dream of, there's that big rush to change the standard. It's something that I noticed about 5 years into my former life as a fellow Fundy Fristian Kool-Aide drinker and after two years of self-imposed soul-searching, I found the answer: Republicans and Christian Conservatives walk hand-in-hand with a mindless Leo Straussian-esque assertion that one standard exists for all of mankind while another standard should be used for themselves.
...
Friday, January 27, 2006
Filibuster Alito
My senators support it, Gord's too. What about yours? If they don't, start calling.
Raking it in
Who makes the money from the DoD*?
Numbers in billions:
1. Lockheed Martin Corp. - $19.4
2. The Boeing Co. - 18.3
3. Northrop Grumman Corp. - 13.5
4. General Dynamics Corp. - 10.6
5. Raytheon Co. - 9.1
6. Halliburton Co. - 5.8
The first five are weapons systems manufacturers providing big ticket items like planes, tanks, ships, subs, and missiles. Halliburton provides 'services'. You figger it out.
Update:
And while we're speaking of pork, this via Rising Hegemon.
Numbers in billions:
1. Lockheed Martin Corp. - $19.4
2. The Boeing Co. - 18.3
3. Northrop Grumman Corp. - 13.5
4. General Dynamics Corp. - 10.6
5. Raytheon Co. - 9.1
6. Halliburton Co. - 5.8
The first five are weapons systems manufacturers providing big ticket items like planes, tanks, ships, subs, and missiles. Halliburton provides 'services'. You figger it out.
*Courtesy of DefenseLink.
Update:
And while we're speaking of pork, this via Rising Hegemon.
Medicare Drug Plan Leaves Out Supplies
LATimes
That figures. Political cowardice and expediency helped get us into this mess, and now it's keeping us from getting out of it. They don't care that people may die: sick people are overhead anyway. If they were profit generators and campaign contributors, the pols'd be all over this like a cheap suit.
I think the Medicare drug scam can now add stupidity and incompetence to administration lies and Big Pharma profiteering.
The benefit covers home IV medication but not the implements and care needed to administer it.
Essentially, the prescription program allows coverage of the drugs but does not pay for the medical supplies and nursing help needed for the home infusion treatments to be safe and effective - a policy that effectively shuts down such treatment for some patients, even though it is substantially cheaper than the alternatives. Two GOP senators warned the Medicare agency last fall that the gap in coverage "may limit access to home infusion therapy."
"I truly feel that if the president, the governor and all the legislators had to stand in line and wait for their prescriptions and find out they weren't covered, they would make some major changes," Bryson said. "Unfortunately, it's the small person who does not have pull, and they have to beg for their medicine."
"The proof that it isn't sensible is that commercial insurance companies and health maintenance organizations don't do it this way," said Ratner, who is also the medical director for a private company that provides support services for patients receiving intravenous treatments at home.
Saving money by making hospitalization unnecessary was part of the rationale for creating the Medicare prescription benefit, which has an estimated price tag of $700 billion over 10 years. But the most far-reaching Medicare change in a generation failed to adequately provide for this kind of at-home drug therapy, critics say.
But congressional leaders are loath to make any legislative changes to the drug benefit, fearing that political support for the plan could unravel.
That figures. Political cowardice and expediency helped get us into this mess, and now it's keeping us from getting out of it. They don't care that people may die: sick people are overhead anyway. If they were profit generators and campaign contributors, the pols'd be all over this like a cheap suit.
I think the Medicare drug scam can now add stupidity and incompetence to administration lies and Big Pharma profiteering.
President Jonah
Gore Vidal offers a historical perspective on Bush at Truthdig.
I like Gore Vidal, and have since he (ahem!) was much younger. Be sure to read the rest of the article and at least a few of the comments as well.
While contemplating the ill-starred presidency of G.W. Bush, I looked about for some sort of divine analogy. As usual, when in need of enlightenment, I fell upon the Holy Bible, authorized King James version of 1611; turning by chance to the Book of Jonah, I read that Jonah, who, like Bush, chats with God, had suffered a falling out with the Almighty and thus became a jinx dogged by luck so bad that a cruise liner, thanks to his presence aboard, was about to sink in a storm at sea. Once the crew had determined that Jonah, a passenger, was the jinx, they threw him overboard and - Lo! - the storm abated. The three days and nights he subsequently spent in the belly of a nauseous whale must have seemed like a serious jinx to the digestion-challenged whale who extruded him much as the decent opinion of mankind has done to Bush.
Mr. Berman spares us the happy ending, as, apparently, has history. When the admirable Tiberius (he has had an undeserved bad press), upon becoming emperor, received a message from the Senate in which the conscript fathers assured him that whatever legislation he wanted would be automatically passed by them, he sent back word that this was outrageous. "Suppose the emperor is ill or mad or incompetent?" He returned their message. They sent it again. His response: "How eager you are to be slaves." I often think of that wise emperor when I hear Republican members of Congress extolling the wisdom of Bush. Now that he has been caught illegally wiretapping fellow citizens he has taken to snarling about his powers as "a wartime president," and so, in his own mind, he is above each and every law of the land. Oddly, no one in Congress has pointed out that he may well be a lunatic dreaming that he is another Lincoln but whatever he is or is not he is no wartime president. There is no war with any other nation...yet. There is no state called terror, an abstract noun like liar. Certainly his illegal unilateral ravaging of Iraq may well seem like a real war for those on both sides unlucky enough to be killed or wounded, but that does not make it a war any more than the appearance of having been elected twice to the presidency does not mean that in due course the people will demand an investigation of those two irregular processes. Although he has done a number of things that under the old republic might have got him impeached, our current system protects him: incumbency-for-life seats have made it possible for a Republican majority in the House not to do its duty and impeach him for his incompetence in handling, say, the natural disaster that befell Louisiana.
I like Gore Vidal, and have since he (ahem!) was much younger. Be sure to read the rest of the article and at least a few of the comments as well.
Who Was Abramoff Really Working For?
A reader writes some food for thought at BuzzFlash:
Makes sense in light of the fact that the FBI has said they consider Abramoff a "mid-level" operative.
MS. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON
by Shirley Smith
Bush is going to tell about his meetings with Abramoff? Judging from the facts that Abramoff had a long-term association with Rove ... it's more of a question of what Abramoff was doing for Bush and Rove than what was he trying to influence them to do. Bush doesn't listen to anyone and neither does Rove ... others take orders from them. These two, Rove and Bush, are the whole GOP show. The rest are only puppets.
Mr. Abramoff's Meetings (Washington Post Editorial)
The Bush White House is not one to stand up against any criminals and their shady deals. The fake new reporter, but real male prostitute, was given special treatment by Bush. Reporters paid by Bush to write positive columns about him ... the outing of the CIA agent (that ruined 20 years of work tracking terrorists). Bush's own treasonous actions before and after 911 ... what does it take to charge Bush and his administration with treason ... a murder in daylight ... about tens of thousands?
Abramoff's visits were probably to report instead of request.
Thanks BuzzFlash,
Shirley Smith
Makes sense in light of the fact that the FBI has said they consider Abramoff a "mid-level" operative.
Friday Cattle Dog Blogging
Princess Shayna wants to know why 3 Dem senators have to be spineless weasels and cave on Alito. 'They should be bitten in the ass by a very big dog,' she was heard to say. 'Especially that senile old fool Robert Byrd.'
[And just an aside, my dog is smarter than this idiot. - F-man]
Ethics...heh...
Hypocrisy and sanctimony join hands:
The lovely Jane has links.
Arianna Huffington's relentless efforts to slog through the tedious hours of pompous beltway bloviating and the ridiculous kabukis played out on Press the Meat from week to week have finally paid off. Tim Russert whips around this morning and snaps like a toy poodle who's just been peed on by a Great Dane. What happened to the benign Sunday morning patriarch we look to for wisdom and thruthiness?
He appears to be in a bit of a snit.
...
The lovely Jane has links.
By honoring the dead, they honored us all
The other day it was my sad fortune to attend the funeral of my brother-in-law, Don.
Don served in the U.S. Army in the mid fifties. As a former serviceman, Don rated an American flag draped over his casket, properly folded, and presented to his widow. In the case of an active-duty serviceman this is done by an honor guard. For older folks, long out of service, it is usually done by representatives of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, or some other veterans' organization. Taps may be played, most likely a recording. You take what's available and what you can get.
My sister-in-law told me there would be a Marine honor guard at Don's graveside service. This sounded a little unusual to me, but sure enough, there was.
There were six Marines there, five of them in dress blues. There was a bugler in undress blues (dress blue trousers and white barracks cover with a tropical shirt instead of a blue tunic). Three Corporals and two Sergeants, commanded by a tall, ramrod-straight Lieutenant Colonel.
The three Corporals and one of the Sergeants, armed with M1 Garands fitted with blank firing adapters, comprised the firing party. The Sergeant called the firing party to attention and gave the commands "ready...aim...fire" three times. Four rifles, three volleys, twelve shots in all. The execution was crisp and sounded like three shots. The firing party rested their weapons in special ground brackets and marched from their firing positions to stand in a row behind the casket and salute while taps was played note-perfect by the Sergeant bugler. Two Marines then advanced to the casket and folded the American flag with an assist from the Light Colonel. The flag was brand new, and he helped smooth the factory creases. Hand salutes were rendered to the flag in a stately, funereal manner. The Colonel then presented the folded flag to Don's widow and gave her a final salute. He left for a moment and returned, at which time he inserted three of the fired cartridges into the flag. At this time the Marines gathered their gear and departed.
It brought a tear to this old Marine's eyes, but that's only half the story.
Not one of these Marines was under sixty years of age and some were considerably older than that. I noticed all the gray hair right away and so took careful notice. The Sergeants and two of the Corporals wore old-style rank chevrons, without the crossed rifles under the stripes. Those haven't been used since about 1960. There were a few residual ones when I was in but I never saw any after 1964. They're probably hard to come by these days, as it looked like these Marines modified newer chevrons to look like their old ranks. The older chevrons had skinnier stripes. The difference is that they were E-3 Corporals and E-4 Sergeants instead of the modern E-4 and E-5 ranks. Marines don't promote themselves, even after forty or fifty-plus years.
The Lt. Colonel, tall and slender, I estimate at 75 years. He looked tougher'n nails. He wore a Sam Browne belt, which as a uniform item went the same way of the old chevrons many years ago.
With the exception of the bugler in his undress blues, the Marines wore full medals, as opposed to ribbons. Some I could not identify and I believe they were campaign awards from WWII and/or the Korean War.
All except the Lt. Colonel wore Purple Heart medals, indicating that these men had shed blood due to enemy action. All combat veterans.
There may have been other military funerals this day, but there was no finer honor guard anywhere.
I have no idea where these Marines came from. Probably from a VFW Post or a Marine Corps League detachment somewhere on California's Central Coast. I do know one thing: they didn't have to be there. Unlike perhaps some active-duty troops pulling this solemn duty, they were there because they wanted to be. Their flawless performance indicated that they had done it before.
These Marines had been to war in some time long gone, in some place far away. The Purple Hearts indicated they had possibly seen some of their comrades in arms make the ultimate sacrifice. They have not forgotten. It is up to each and every one of us to not forget those who are making terrible sacrifices of body, mind, and life today.
By honoring Don for his long-ago service, they honor the memories, not only of their buddies, but of generations of Americans who died in the service of their country and countrymen and didn't get to raise families and grow old like they should have. I hope the other folks at the service got the message, particularly in this time of war. I'm sure some did, but I'm also sure, and it saddens me, that some didn't.
They honored all of us. I pray that we are all worthy of that honor.
Don served in the U.S. Army in the mid fifties. As a former serviceman, Don rated an American flag draped over his casket, properly folded, and presented to his widow. In the case of an active-duty serviceman this is done by an honor guard. For older folks, long out of service, it is usually done by representatives of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, or some other veterans' organization. Taps may be played, most likely a recording. You take what's available and what you can get.
My sister-in-law told me there would be a Marine honor guard at Don's graveside service. This sounded a little unusual to me, but sure enough, there was.
There were six Marines there, five of them in dress blues. There was a bugler in undress blues (dress blue trousers and white barracks cover with a tropical shirt instead of a blue tunic). Three Corporals and two Sergeants, commanded by a tall, ramrod-straight Lieutenant Colonel.
The three Corporals and one of the Sergeants, armed with M1 Garands fitted with blank firing adapters, comprised the firing party. The Sergeant called the firing party to attention and gave the commands "ready...aim...fire" three times. Four rifles, three volleys, twelve shots in all. The execution was crisp and sounded like three shots. The firing party rested their weapons in special ground brackets and marched from their firing positions to stand in a row behind the casket and salute while taps was played note-perfect by the Sergeant bugler. Two Marines then advanced to the casket and folded the American flag with an assist from the Light Colonel. The flag was brand new, and he helped smooth the factory creases. Hand salutes were rendered to the flag in a stately, funereal manner. The Colonel then presented the folded flag to Don's widow and gave her a final salute. He left for a moment and returned, at which time he inserted three of the fired cartridges into the flag. At this time the Marines gathered their gear and departed.
It brought a tear to this old Marine's eyes, but that's only half the story.
Not one of these Marines was under sixty years of age and some were considerably older than that. I noticed all the gray hair right away and so took careful notice. The Sergeants and two of the Corporals wore old-style rank chevrons, without the crossed rifles under the stripes. Those haven't been used since about 1960. There were a few residual ones when I was in but I never saw any after 1964. They're probably hard to come by these days, as it looked like these Marines modified newer chevrons to look like their old ranks. The older chevrons had skinnier stripes. The difference is that they were E-3 Corporals and E-4 Sergeants instead of the modern E-4 and E-5 ranks. Marines don't promote themselves, even after forty or fifty-plus years.
The Lt. Colonel, tall and slender, I estimate at 75 years. He looked tougher'n nails. He wore a Sam Browne belt, which as a uniform item went the same way of the old chevrons many years ago.
With the exception of the bugler in his undress blues, the Marines wore full medals, as opposed to ribbons. Some I could not identify and I believe they were campaign awards from WWII and/or the Korean War.
All except the Lt. Colonel wore Purple Heart medals, indicating that these men had shed blood due to enemy action. All combat veterans.
There may have been other military funerals this day, but there was no finer honor guard anywhere.
I have no idea where these Marines came from. Probably from a VFW Post or a Marine Corps League detachment somewhere on California's Central Coast. I do know one thing: they didn't have to be there. Unlike perhaps some active-duty troops pulling this solemn duty, they were there because they wanted to be. Their flawless performance indicated that they had done it before.
These Marines had been to war in some time long gone, in some place far away. The Purple Hearts indicated they had possibly seen some of their comrades in arms make the ultimate sacrifice. They have not forgotten. It is up to each and every one of us to not forget those who are making terrible sacrifices of body, mind, and life today.
By honoring Don for his long-ago service, they honor the memories, not only of their buddies, but of generations of Americans who died in the service of their country and countrymen and didn't get to raise families and grow old like they should have. I hope the other folks at the service got the message, particularly in this time of war. I'm sure some did, but I'm also sure, and it saddens me, that some didn't.
They honored all of us. I pray that we are all worthy of that honor.
Thursday, January 26, 2006
Relativity
Holden does the math:
...
That means Chimpy has flushed the entire gold reserves in Fort Knox down the toilet -- Three Times!
...
Filibuster...maybe?
Jane's interrogating her sources and maybe...just maybe...
Update:
Wolfie's got that hypocrite Bill Bennett on, giving Dems advice about not filibustering. STFU, you drizzling sphincter. Atrios has more.
Update:
What John Howard said.
Update:
Teddy's in too.
Update:
Wolfie's got that hypocrite Bill Bennett on, giving Dems advice about not filibustering. STFU, you drizzling sphincter. Atrios has more.
Update:
What John Howard said.
Update:
Teddy's in too.
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