on talking about the war in Iraq, per se, but more about the war on terror.
Does this mean he's targeted another country to "spread freedom" to? With 74% of the American public thinking Iraq was a mistake, I'd LOVE to see him try to sell another war to this Congress, after all his lies the first time.
Having 9/11 being an inside job is only a notch or two lower than using that tragedy to promote his own personal war against Iraq, so I don't think it would surprise me.
I don't know if I can stomach watching him or not, so I haven't decided yet.
Such bad, bad taste! Such a disrespectful man! (I forget...what are the other names he's been called by his honor-challenged haters?)
Dinner Honoring McCain to Be Hosted by Obama
Saturday, January 10, 2009; 2:30 PM
President-elect Barack Obama will host a dinner honoring Sen. John McCain, the Republican he tromped in the election, the night before his inauguration, the Presidential Inaugural Committee announced yesterday, saying the gesture demonstrates Obama's "commitment to bridging the bipartisan divide."
The dinner will be one of a series that night: Gen. Colin Powell and Vice President-elect Joe Biden also will be feted.
"In these times of great challenge and great change, leadership requires rising above the same old narrow partisanship," Obama said on the PIC Web site. "Each of these distinguished Americans has spent his life in service to his country, at each and every moment placing the interests of America before issues of political party."
Congressional leaders from both parties will attend the dinners at the National Building Museum, Union Station and the Hilton Washington.
The first time, they rented a truck and tried to knock the towers down by detonating it in the underground parking garage.
When that failed, they regrouped, formed another plan, and meticulously set it in motion. Took years, but they accomplished their objectives, save for that heroic United flight.
The problem with Americans is that they have very short attention spans. They think if the war's not over in 2 or 3 years, it's 'old news' and they move on. If it's not on their TV screens every night, with flashing lights and music like an MTV video, they can't process the information. Out of sight, out of mind. Like the victims of 911 and the noble men and women fighting the war on terror. All forgotten, for the most part, by an impatient, clock-watching public.
Terrorists, on the other hand, know a little something about watching and waiting. In a religious war like they're fighting, time is measured in centuries.
So, I'm sorry, but your little theory just doesn't hold water, and was naive in the extreme.
The simple truth is that there has not been another attack on US soil since Bush has been in office.
Why don't you try to sound just a teensy bit thankful that your hide is safe, and not in a foxhole somewhere, or digging out of the rubble of a bombed-out apartment complex? A little dose of humility, and reality, goes a long way.
Disability is one thing...poor planning is another
I'm sorry for your situation, and I do believe people who cannot work due to a disability should have help. I'm not heartless. I'm really kind of stumped, because I thought employers and insurance companies could no longer deny/discriminate people a job and/or insurance because of pre-existing conditions. I know that you can't get disability insurance with pre-existing conditions, but again, it's my understanding that no one can be denied health insurance because of pre-existing conditions. My husband has diabetes and has changed jobs in the last five years and has gotten ins. with no problem.
The problem with most socialized medicine is that if you have a serious condition, say like cancer, at some point they quit treating you. This is what is happening in the U.K. as we speak. So, in a round about way that's being denied health care altogether. You have to then seek it out of pocket, and most of the time you have to leave your home country to pay for it out of pocket.
In a March 17th interview with The Hill, Specter said he absolutely would not switch parties:
"[Democrats] are trying very hard for the 60th vote. Got to give them credit for trying. But the answer is no.
I'm not going to discuss private talks I had with other people who may or may not be considered influential. But since those three people are in the public domain, I think it is appropriative to respond to those questions.
I am staying a Republican because I think I have an important role, a more important role, to play there. The United States very desperately needs a two-party system. That's the basis of politics in America. I'm afraid we are becoming a one-party system, with Republicans becoming just a regional party with so little representation of the northeast or in the middle atlantic. I think as a governmental matter, it is very important to have a check and balance. That's a very important principle in the operation of our government. It's in the Constitution on separation of powers."
Thanks for the civics lecture, Arlen. Apparently this is just another one of those "inconvenient truths" that got to be more than you could actually live with, eh buddy?
Former FEMA Director Michael Brown, heavily criticized for his agency's slow response to Hurricane Katrina, is starting a disaster preparedness consulting firm to help clients avoid the sort of errors that cost him his job.
If I can help people focus on preparedness, how to be better prepared in their homes and better prepared in their businesses — because that goes straight to the bottom line — then I hope I can help the country in some way, Brown told the Rocky Mountain News for its Thursday editions.
Brown said officials need to take inventory of what's going on in a disaster to be able to answer questions to avoid appearing unaware of how serious a situation is.
In the aftermath of the hurricane, critics complained about Brown's lack of formal emergency management experience and e-mails that later surfaced showed him as out of touch with the extent of the devastation.
The lawyer admits that while he was head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency mistakes were made in the response to Katrina. He also said he had been planning to quit before the hurricane hit.
Hurricane Katrina showed how bad disasters can be, and there's an incredible need for individuals and businesses to understand how important preparedness is, he said.
Brown said companies already have expressed interested in his consulting business, Michael D. Brown LLC. He plans to run it from the Boulder area, where he lived before joining the Bush administration in 2001.
I'm doing a lot of good work with some great clients, Brown said. My wife, children and my grandchild still love me. My parents are still proud of me.
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