state of the union

i know, i know, he hasn't even made his speech yet. but, after reading some of the pre-released excerpts, and consulting half of my brain, i am pretty confident that i can say the speech is full of lies - yes, even before hearing it.

here's a good one: "Our government has a responsibility to help provide health care for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility." riiiight...

Bush "explaining" Health Savings Accounts

Yes, ma'am.

Q -- really understand how is it the new plan is going to fix that problem?

THE PRESIDENT: Because the -- all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculate, for example, is on the table; whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those -- changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be -- or closer delivered to what has been promised.

Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled. Look, there's a series of things that cause the -- like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate -- the benefits will rise based upon inflation, as opposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those -- if that growth is affected, it will help on the red.

Okay, better? I'll keep working on it. (Laughter.)

Yes, sir.

Q How do you like these hard questions?

THE PRESIDENT: You know. You watch my press conferences? (Laughter.) Please don't encourage him. (Laughter.)

note to self...

if you wanna murder people and get away with it, there are some very viable options you should consider.

A military jury on Monday ordered a reprimand but no jail time for an Army interrogator convicted of killing an Iraqi general by stuffing him headfirst into a sleeping bag and sitting on his chest.
Chief Warrant Officer Lewis Welshofer Jr. also was ordered to forfeit $6,000 salary and was largely restricted to his barracks and workplace for 60 days.
Welshofer, 43, had originally been charged with murder and faced up to life in prison. But on Saturday he was convicted instead of negligent homicide and negligent dereliction of duty.
On the lesser charges, he had faced a maximum of three years and three months in prison, a dishonorable discharge, loss of his pension and other penalties.
After hearing the sentence reached by the jury of six Army officers, Welshofer hugged his wife. Soldiers in the gallery -- many of whom had worked with Welshofer and who had testified as character witnesses -- broke into applause.

Hooray for the murderer set free!!! sickening, really. just sickening. and shameful. and, well, i really just have no words...just shame.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had trouble tapping into a group of hooded protesters at Georgetown Law School in Washington on Tuesday.

awesome. good on you, georgetown people. and happy 300th birthday, ben!

gay people make for great presidential jokes.

From W's Remarks at Kansas State University

Q: W is for Wisconsin. You're a rancher. A lot of us here in Kansas are ranchers. I was just wanting to get your opinion on "Brokeback Mountain," if you've seen it yet? (Laughter.) You would love it. You should check it out.
THE PRESIDENT: I haven't seen it. I'll be glad to talk about ranching, but I haven't seen the movie. (Laughter.) I've heard about it. I hope you go -- you know -- (laughter) -- I hope you go back to the ranch and the farm is what I'm about to say. I haven't seen it. (Laughter and applause.)

a real mess.

With tens of thousands of people unable to get medicines promised by Medicare, the Bush administration has told insurers that they must provide a 30-day supply of any drug that a beneficiary was previously taking, and it said that poor people must not be charged more than $5 for a covered drug.
The actions came after several states declared public health emergencies, and many states announced that they would step in to pay for prescriptions that should have been covered by the federal Medicare program.
Republicans have joined Democrats in asserting that the federal government botched the beginning of the prescription drug program, which started on Jan. 1. People who had signed up for coverage found that they were not on the government's list of subscribers. Insurers said they had no way to identify poor people entitled to extra help with their drug costs. Pharmacists spent hours on the telephone trying to reach insurance companies that administer the drug benefit under contract to Medicare.
Many of the problems involve low-income people entitled to both Medicare and Medicaid.
In a directive sent to all Medicare drug plans over the weekend, the Bush administration said they "must take immediate steps" to ensure that low-income beneficiaries were not charged more than $2 for a generic drug and $5 for a brand-name drug.
In addition, it said insurers must cover a 30-day emergency supply of drugs that beneficiaries were taking prior to the start of the new program.
this article gives a pretty good idea of why calls where I work (a PA legal services organization for poor people with health insurance problems) have tripled this month. and, just so you know, all the stuff the president has "directed" in the past week was already in the established medicare regulations and was supposed to be happening anyway.

Administration Lays Out Legal Case for Wiretapping Program

Vice President Dick Cheney defended the administration's approach today in a speech before the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research in New York City.
"A spirited debate is now under way, and our message to the American people is clear and straightforward," Mr. Cheney said. "These actions are within the president's authority and responsibility under the Constitution and laws, and these actions are vital to our security."
In his appearance before the institute, Mr. Cheney defended the program as proper and legal in every respect. "The entire program undergoes a thorough review within the executive branch every 45 days," Mr. Cheney said. "After each review, the president determines once again whether or not to reauthorize the program. He has done so more than 30 times since Sept. 11, and he has indicated his intent to do so as long as our nation faces a continuing threat from Al Qaeda and related organizations."
well, at least there's a reliable independent review of the president's actions, by the president . are you kidding me?

Judge slammed for molester's 60-day sentence

A judge is under fire for sentencing a man to 60 days in prison for molesting a girl beginning when she was 6 years old.
Judge Edward Cashman said he did not require Mark Hulett, 34, to serve more time because Hulett could not receive sex offender treatment while in prison.
"The court viewed the defendant as a dangerous man, likely to engage in future crime unless he has proper and timely treatment," the judge said in court documents filed Tuesday.
Once released, Hulett must undergo treatment and will be under state supervision. If he fails to abide by the terms, he could be sent back to prison for up to 10 years for aggravated sexual assault.

hmm. perhaps if our criminal (in)justice system had rehabilitation as a real goal, people could see that what this judge did isn't so crazy. or, even more outlandish, perhaps they could actually require treatment options in every prison.

moooooooooo. . .

A spirited cow that jumped a slaughterhouse gate and evaded capture for six hours has drawn clemency pleas and may not be doomed after all. Appeals to spare the life of the 1,200-pound heifer came from across the nation after she fled Mickey's Packing Plant on Thursday. She had several near-death experiences before walking into a makeshift pen and then a stock trailer.

The manager of Mickey's Packing Plant said the animal he dubbed "Molly B." probably will be spared the killing floor. Employees at Mickey's voted 10-1 to keep her alive.
screw the other cows...

(thanks to daniel for showing me this story)

i just have to say. . .

Medicare Part D is a complete disaster.

Supreme Court Allows Transfer of Padilla to Civilian Court

Mr. Padilla, an American citizen, was held for more than three and a half years as an "enemy combatant," with no charges lodged against him until November. When his indictment was announced, the government made no mention of the "dirty bomb" plot inside the United States. Instead, Mr. Padilla was charged with fighting American forces alongside members of Al Qaeda in Afghanistan.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, in Richmond, Va., refused last month to allow Mr. Padilla to be transferred to civilian custody, declaring that the Bush administration gave the appearance of pushing for the transfer to prevent the Supreme Court from hearing the case and ruling on the government's ability to hold an American citizen like Mr. Padilla outside the civilian criminal justice system. The Justice Department assailed the ruling as an "unwarranted attack" on presidential discretion.
dammit! the president gets to do whatever he wants - that's why you ask your daddy for the presidency for xmas!
The clash between the Fourth Circuit and the administration was remarkable, since the circuit is regarded as perhaps the most conservative of the federal appellate courts and therefore generally an ally of the Bush White House. Indeed, in September, the Fourth Circuit affirmed President Bush's power to hold Mr. Padilla as an enemy combatant.
hmm...perhaps a competition to see which court can be most conservative is in order?
Mr. Padilla and his lawyers might have been expected to applaud the defendant's transfer to civilian custody. But they had asked the Supreme Court to block the transfer, at least for now, asserting that the government was trying to avoid Supreme Court review of the crucial underlying issue: whether the president has the authority to detain him as an enemy combatant.
ya think?

WWIII

Well, the doctor interrupted me just about then,
Sayin, "Hey I've been havin' the same old dreams,
But mine was a little different you see.
I dreamt that the only person left after the war was me.
I didn't see you around.

"Well, now time passed and now it seems
Everybody's having them dreams.
Everybody sees themselves walkin' around with no one else.
Half of the people can be part right all of the time,
Some of the people can be all right part of the time.
I think Abraham Lincoln said that.
"I'll let you be in my dreams if I can be in yours,"
I said that.

~dylan