Presidential Notes IV.

Will he or won't he? Only Fred Thompson's hairdresser knows for sure--if he had any hair to dress.
_____

In Remembrance of Barbaro,

this year's Kentucky Derby will have a bonus.

Later in the week I will write more about this year's running.

Presidential Notes III.

For those who are interested, there is a video up of the Hillary Clinton Reno visit of yesterday.

My rendition of the event is pretty accurate, since I took it off my videotape of it, and I want to have a written record of it for future reference.
_____

Well, Our Dictator Isn't

entirely wrong that Iraq is the "World War II" of our time.

It's just that the U.S., meaning the Bush administration, has more in common with the Axis countries than with the Allies.

As the World Turns.

A high-priced madam says she abwhores injustice.

I haven't paid too much attention to this scandal since it broke.
_____

It's about time somebody called for the FDA do a better job of regulating pet food.
_____

Presidential Notes II.

Who'd have thought John Edwards would be considered an "underdog"?

Only by the media.

This

is an interesting exchange about high-stakes testing and NCLB.

This question represents a typical attitude from people ignorant of education in general:

Question from Larry -Ind. Observer:
If we have students that cannot read and write at an eighth grade level, the government needs to hold teachers accountable for this. Bottom line.

David Berliner:
This is a simple statement and quite wrong as it stands. You would be right if the eighth grade child were born under lucky stars--a two parent family that earns enough money to provide medical attention and cultural opportunities, a parent that has time to help with homework, parents that provided a high quality preschool, and so forth. But would you hold the teachers responsible for the kids being on "grade level" if it was the kid of a single parent working two jobs while the kid has some responsibility to help his/her sibs? Where no one ever has had health care in the family and so the kid was born a little under weight affecting his/her IQ a little and then misses 20 school days every year due to asthma? Or where the neighborhood is crime and drug ridden so the kid has to live behind locked doors in fear of a bullet? How about the million plus mostly low income kids that are lead poisoned and mercury affected? What about the kids that have immigrated by the millions in recent years and aren't at grade level because they are never given the benefits of good bilingual or dual immersion programs? No, Larry--you are much too glib. Teachers are responsible and so is our nation for the kids we have. If many urban teachers (who may be the newest and the ones most likely to be teaching out of field) get kids who have trouble learning they need to do their best, but they are not the only ones responsible for achievement. Large numbers of our kids live impoverished lives and this is not easily fixed in 6 hours a day for 180 days. Sorry Larry, it takes a village that includes more than its teachers, and we have failed to take that proverb seriously.

Presidential Notes.

AP has a report of Hillary Clinton's Reno visit yesterday.
______

Just a Few of Broad and Gates' Lies

about American public schools are exposed here.

So Where

does Hillary Clinton stand on NCLB?

We need legislators to tell the truth about this piece of shit legislation.

I hope JRE can be persuaded the law needs to be done away with.

While I Was Busy

with other things, Obama was in L.A. talking about race relations and the 15th anniversary of the L.A. riots.

Which seems like it happened just yesterday.

For a Thousand Bucks,

you could have attended a private fundraiser in Reno for John Edwards. Of course, there will be other times when one can see him for free.

He mentioned today that he believes he has the goods to be competitive out west and is the only candidate running in the Democratic contest who can win in the South.

There's no doubt of that. No wonder he either gets ignored or trashed over trivialities.

The Reno-Gazette Journal

reported over 3,000 people crammed into the Hug High gym to watch and listen to Senator Hillary Clinton.

Ignore the moronic comments at the end of the article. Those bozos don't even know who Saul Alinsky was.

Back to the event. It was an impressive-sized crowd. I am glad I made it there early.

Another account of the event is here.

More.

Question-and-Answer period. No prepared questions.

Crushing student loan debt: I hear so many stories like that. Imagine starting out in life with $60,000 in debt. It determines what kind of job you have, what kind of house you have. Talked about loan forgiveness through programs designed to "work" off the debt (AmeriCorps, for example).

Pledge as president to tell the truth and nothing but the truth: I will do my very best. A couple of things would make it easier: all contracts should be on the internet, as president she cannot know everything but wants protection for whistleblowers. "I will do my very best to honor that (honesty)." She pushed for the 9/11 commission. If we don't know how it happened, we can't prevent it from happening again. We have to cut through all of the partisan, political back and forth. Talked about people "yelling at each other" on television.

What does she have for a plan for nurses and nursing: She's a big supporter of nurses because they have a big impact on patients. As senator she has worked to attract people into the field. We aren't training enough people, we don't have enough nursing schools or faculty. She believes nurses should have more of a role in making their views known in the health care system.

Impeachment of our dictator and Cheney, why don't we use the Homeland Security Act: Under our constitution, the only remedy to remove a president or vice president is impeachment. Not an appetite in Congress for impeachment. We need to get more political support from the Republicans to keep more from happening. The numbers are not there in Congress to support impeachment.

Immigration: We need comprehensive immigration reform. We need to toughen border control, technology, tougher sanctions on employers who hire illegals, we need to help local communities because of law enforcement, education, and health care costs. It's outrageous that other countries basically take advantage of us and don't provide decent jobs for people there. They have a tiny number of wealthy and a bunch of poor, and Clinton noted, as I always do, that this country will be like those countries if we aren't careful. We need to find out who's here, since 9/11. We need to find them and make them pay taxes, speak English, and so forth.

Paper ballots and fair elections: She has introduced comprehensive legislation to require a paper trail. People need to have an election system they have confidence in. People should be able to exercise their constitutional right to vote and "have those votes counted." Let's start having elections with integrity. Other countries have voting systems that don't have the problems ours have.

Wild horses: Legislation proposed to outlaw the killing, believes it will pass.

Catastrophic health insurance: Questioner said she can't receive health insurance because of a pre-existing condition. Clinton said she wanted to help the woman's situation and referred her to herself or a staff member after the meeting. Clinton wants to ban insurance discrimination, insurance companies cherry pick. We need insurance when we are sick. Insurance companies need to insure people who need to be insured.

Native American issues, federal cuts in programs: Mentioned "Bill's" record on this matter, whoever "Bill" is. She said he did a lot for them. She hopes to get back on the right track, and more empowerment is needed for the tribes. She wants to resume the relationship "Bill" had.

Bringing troops home and exit/mediation plan: Introduced legislation after third trip to Iraq, to stop the president from proposing the "surge." If the president is going to send the troops, they need to be fully equipped. She believes in redeploying troops immediately. We should do more to require the Iraqi government to do more for itself. Get the international community involved. It will be very difficult for our dictator to change course. It's like banging your head against a brick shithouse because he thinks he is right (those are my words, not Clinton's, of course).

Second-grader asks question about what will she will do for the schools: I hope we can help the schools to get the resources they need to do the best job they can for students like you. Get teachers involved, parents involved, and a "young man like you can pursue what you're interested in." She wanted to see children get interested in learning again.

And with that, the town hall ended. Clinton stayed around for quite a while shaking hands and signing autographs, including one for me on the backside of the ticket.

Somebody gave me a window sign, but I lost the damned thing when I gave an interview with a local television station. The interview aired on the Channel 8 6:30 news. I never found the sign again, but of course they are easy to get. At least I didn't get too greedy and have Clinton sign another autograph for me, this one on the sign.

And that was pretty much it for her town hall visit.

Both John Edwards and Governor Bill Richardson were in northern Nevada tonight. Edwards went to that private fundraiser which costs an arm and a leg to get in, and Richardson was over in Carson City at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner.

More.

Clinton summarized what the administration is all about, which is about cronyism and corruption, and mentioned those no-bid Halliburton contracts.

She said she is going into this campaign with "my eyes wide open." She said she didn't think it would be harder than to follow Bush and Cheney. She will offer a plan for universal health care coverage if elected, propose energy independence, take away oil subsidies, work on solar and geothermal energy proposals. She is tired of sending billions of dollars away to other countries only to have them use that money against us. Global warming is important. She believes we can create more new jobs. Talked about changing NCLB (I yelled in the audience "Get RID of it, repeal it."). She said it's an unfunded mandate. Federal government puts the burden on local districts. Talked about accountability but we "need to do it the right way. Listen to those in the classroom." She believes in more preschool. She has a "mission to make college affordable." Clinton joked about her dad having put her through college, but forget law school. She had to get a low-interest, government loan. She didn't have to worry about student loan companies "ripping me off." Refers to the person who was put in charge of the student loan program. Clinton said we need "no bait-and-switch," low-interest student loans. She believes we have sent the wrong message to people who won't to college, that they don't deserve anything. She reiterated the importance of vocational education, which to my mind is where the bulk of the money should go.

Clinton said we need to "make alliances instead of alienating them." No matter the problems we need to have people work with us. We will have to go back and repair those relationships, which of course Bush ruined. She talked about her experiences as first lady, senator, and now candidate traveling around the world and promised to help other countries have faith in this country once again.

She mentioned Madeleine Albright and how somebody named Bill sent her abroad to the Czech Republic. She noticed all of these American flags. She looked closely and saw only 48 stars. She asked the people, and they said the American GIs had liberated us fifty years before. They wanted to let Albright know that "we" still believe in America. Clinton wants other countries to feel that way about us now.

Clinton reiterated the importance of restoring those values that made this country great, and if she gets your vote, she will work towards that end.

More...

Hillary Clinton would give up her right arm for people's votes. Then she'd have to be left-handed like her husband.




I just don't understand it. Why didn't the audience laugh at that joke? Barack told me it just a week ago in the Senate chambers, and I almost split a gut. Maybe I am not cut out to be a Bob Dole in drag.





When I was a little girl, my dad and I loved to go fishing. I can remember the first fish I ever caught. The fish was THIS big.



On second thought, the fish was THIS big.



After the town hall ended, Hillary went out to sign autographs and shake hands with supporters. I always try to stay until the candidates leave. Waiting around for the candidates is always the best part of the campaign events.




This was probably the best picture of the bunch. Hillary Clinton was just a few feet away from me just before she autographed my ticket.

More.

Clinton talked about her small business owner father and the values he instilled in her, and she talked about her mother, and what she instilled in her.

She never doubted this country would meet its problems.

Clinton talked about Sputnik and the emphasis her fifth-grade teacher placed on studying math and science.

She joked about the Presidential Fitness Awards (JFK's pet project). She never doubted we would get to the moon and deal with race problems. "We need to get back into setting goals."

There is no place in the world where we have created the middle class, except the United States. "That is the greatness of America...They do the hard work to keep America going. I believe the middle class is under siege."

People ask her questions that are really heartbreaking. They work as hard as they can, and they aren't going anywhere. CEOs and stockbrokers are making money. Productivity is going up, but wages aren't. Too many Americans feel today nobody speaks for them. You're invisible if you need health care or child care. A small business owner is also invisible. If you live in a trailer on the Gulf Coast, you are invisible.

She talked about the skyrocketing cost of health care premiums. And often the insurance company won't pay when you DO get sick. These are invisible Americans. If you are a soldier who has served your country and you are wounded, you may be housed in a place not fit for any person. You may be struggling. She spent recent months meeting with military people. She heard their stories, and it made her heartbreak. Lost medical records, for example. When we bring them home "our obligation doesn't end." We need to make our veterans visible again. Outlined several proposals. She talked about Iraq and said she was so proud of Senator Reid and what he is trying to do to end that godawful war.

It won't be easy to do. We passed legislation that would end this war, but the president said he would veto it. "This president has a lot to answer for, doesn't he?" What we have to do is get more political support in Congress and put more pressure on him and change this failed course. If the president does not end this war by the time he leaves this office, "when I'm president, I will."

More...

I

returned about an hour ago from the Hillary Clinton town hall meeting. There were about 2,000 or 3,000 people there at Hug High School, a capacity crowd.

I was glad I arrived at the school at 7:45. There were just a dozen people ahead of me and one tiny Chihuahua who was even smaller than my dog. I chatted with some of the people in line, and because I left my money in my car, one of them bought a Hillary Clinton pin for me, which was very nice of her.

It wasn't long, though, before the line went clear to the end of the other parking lot. I was lucky to get a decent seat, right in back of the reserved area, but still a good place to get a good view of the junior senator from New York. Moreover, although I was back a little bit, I could simply get up and into the aisle and take pictures up close of her. I also videotaped her entire speech and the question-and-answer period.

I wish I had a new computer and all so I could upload it, but I don't.

At around 11:10, she came in to the the gym to thunderous applause. She dressed in a green pantsuit, which was appropriate since the school color is green. She received several items of Hug High memorabilia before she talked.

Like so many people who are experienced politicians, let alone somebody who was once voted one of the 100 best attorneys in the United States, Clinton had no notes and had her remarks down pat. However, being on the stump took a toll on her voice. She was a bit hoarse throughout. She talked about her background and her career. She was running for president because she said, "I could do better." Nevada is the best place to make that argument because it is the fastest-growing state.

Clinton was pleased to note that Nevada moved its caucus up to early next year. She asked the crowd, "Do you think this country is ready for a change?" The crowd cheered. She grew up in a time when not only her family was on her side but also the country.

More later.

Presidential Notes.

The Nevada town of Pahrump got mentioned in the NYT thanks to Chris Dodd.
_____

Thanks to our dictator's reputation and numerous scandals, the Republicans are having a hell of a time trying to raise money and finding candidates not embarrassed to run.

Who'd have thunk it?

Now some need to dispense with that impeachment talk.
_____

Former senator Gary Hart endorses Rudy Giuliani for president.
_____

I Thought

charter schools were such a great idea.

Just How

did an investigator manage to get a man to confess to killing so many people he threatened to put Gary Ridgway to shame?

Or not.

Gonzalesgate.

Simple Sampson withheld some 600 emails from investigators.

Presidential Notes.

I am going to have to get up damned early tomorrow to see Hillary Clinton when she hosts a town hall meeting at Hug High School.

I will bring my cameras and camcorder and hope I can get a good view of her. I should.

Other candidates, including John Edwards, John McCain, and Bill Richardson, will be hanging around northern Nevada the next few days.
_____

Speaking of Hillary Clinton, a brand new book is coming out which makes mention the important fact Hillary knew that her husband not only was well versed in foreign affairs but also in domestic affairs.
_____

A Brilliant Post

over here nails it about the billionaires' nefarious scheme to destroy public education.

Everybody should know what is going on.

As the World Turns.

It seems that Wolfie is in trouble.
_____

The Reading First scandal gets referred to the Justice Department.
_____

George Tenet's new book will doubtless hit the bestseller list.
_____

Chicago axes around 775 probationary teachers for alleged "performance" reasons.
_____

Robber barons join forces in their effort to destroy public education.
_____

There's no sparing The Spare.
_____

The Housing Boom

has gone bust, and therefore the economy isn't doing so great.

This Author

wasn't impressed with last night's debate, and he definitely didn't think much of Obama's wretched performance.

Obama's problem tonight was the same thing that's beginning to make a lot of people wonder: Is there anything beneath the commanding presence and the sparkling rhetoric of "change"? When Brian Williams wound up to what he clearly thought was the defining question of the night--what would you do if two American cities were hit by Al Qaeda?--Obama appeared to panic so badly that he lost the ability to hear what was being asked. The shell is handsome and it shimmers with freshness, much the way Edwards's did in 2004. But hold it up to your ear, as we all did tonight, and thus far there's nothing but the hollow echo of the sea roaring back beautifully.

The bigger problem for Obama, heading down the road, is that he does not appear to have a populist streak even half an inch wide. And we are steaming toward an election that will, particularly in the South, be defined by two issues: Iraq, of course, along with the slow-burning economic catastrophe that is finally beginning to hit home in a conscious and frightening way with working-class and middle-class Americans. As I've talked to black and white and Hispanic Southerners these past six weeks, Iraq has always been the first subject that has come up--and with a level of anger, frustration and passion that was rarely matched on that stage in Orangeburg tonight, except perhaps when Gravel quite convincingly pronounced himself "frightened" by the wishy-washiness of some of his fellow candidates on the issue. But folks already knew, before these festivities, that their best bet to end the Iraq disaster lies with the Democrats.

Nope, he's no populist. I don't even think he's much to the left of Harold Ford, Jr.

Presidential Notes.

The Audacity of Hype was out and about talking in vague generalities and even admitted he was "nervous" last night.

That ain't the half of it. Professional after-dinner speaker Obama can't debate his way out of a paper bag. He was awful. Incredibly, some online and other polls declared him the "winner." Which is utter bullshit.

It is clear he is in over his head running for president. He's believed ALL of the shit the media have been shoveling about him. The JFK shit, the great orator shit, the whole nine acres of shit.

Obama should get a clue and realize this simple truth: If the media go nuts over you and push your candidacy, at least if you're a Democrat, that means they KNOW you don't have a chance in hell of getting elected.
_____

As the World Turns.

Governor Jon Corzine will pay all his medical bills out of his own pocket.

He can well afford it.
_____

Teachers in This

survey give their opinions on their profession.

Just as Joe Biden Said

last night, the recent USSC decision on the bogus "partial-birth" abortion procedure is nothing but a trojan horse.

NCLB

wrecks havoc on Annapolis schools, demonstrating the folly of trying to use a business approach to something that is NOT a business.

The Robber Barons

are using massive propaganda to try and convince the public our public schools are "failing" in order to take them over for profit.

I have gotten to the point where I hate Bill Gates' guts. I never had a strong opinion of him previously, but he's hellbent on destroying what made this country great.

While People Who Made Poor

career choices early on bitch about "lazy" public employees' retirement benefits, the REAL outrages get ignored.

To say nothing of this:

An article in Institutional Investor’s Alpha magazine this week reports that the 25 highest-paid hedge-fund managers in the US had an average income of $540 million in 2006, with the top three pulling in over $1 billion each.

The sums racked in by hedge-fund managers dwarf even the incomes of top corporate CEOs and Wall Street bankers The average among them earned nearly $1.5 million a day, every day, for the entire year—or over $1,000 every minute.

Yet Another

robber baron proves he is a fucking moron:

Apple CEO Steve Jobs suggested at a recent education event in Austin that schools change their management structure, allowing principals to reward effective teachers with higher salaries and get rid of ineffective teachers. He compared the job of a school principal to that of a CEO, saying, "What kind of person can you get to run a small business if you told them, when they came in, they couldn't get rid of people they thought weren't any good in the first place?"

I'd like to know how Jobs and the asshole who wrote the article they define "ineffective teachers"? They can't; they depise tenure and every single thing about civil service, a service which came about to get rid of cronyism and favoritism, i.e., corruption in government.

I hate these pricks who despise education.

Does Anybody Out There Really Think

there wouldn't be a corruption scandal in connection with No Child Left Behind?

It is nothing more than a handout to corporate interests. Children, teachers, and improving education in general have nothing to do with it.

This Is Long Overdue,

believe me:

The alliance, which plans to announce its formation today in newspaper and online advertisements, asserts that the decline of manufacturing undercuts America’s long-term competitiveness, its research capabilities and its ability to produce sophisticated weapons needed for national security.

The alliance aims to be partly a policy research organization, tackling subjects like international trade practices and what alliance officials say is inadequate enforcement of trading regulations by the American government. The group also plans to focus on health policy because of concerns that high health costs have hurt American competitiveness.

Another focus will be energy policy; for example, the group may examine ways to produce renewable energy in a way that creates manufacturing jobs.

The Idiot Brian Williams

was so busy asking John Edwards about the important issues of Edwards' $400 haircut and his hedge funds, he didn't bother to ask him about a piddling issue like Iraq.

John Edwards has no right to bitch because the media's priorities are straight.

At Least

Walter Shapiro acknowledges Edwards' existence.

Is There Any Doubt

the obscenely rich Melinda Gates is an idiot when it comes to education?

She doesn't know ANYTHING, just like her husband, but she, like her husband, thinks she can buy the system.

Get the hell out of it and stick with what little you know.

I Got

so disgusted with the post-debate horseshit I decided to watch the rerun on my tape. I believe, even taking into account I am a supporter, John Edwards did the best in that debate, for he was talking substance. Then I think Joe Biden did the next best. He had some good answers on foreign policy and on abortion rights. This guy knows his stuff, and he knows it. Hillary Clinton did well, although the media are full of shit by saying she won it. Dodd did okay, Richardson was shockingly lackluster and too verbose (even with Biden there), and Obama bombed. He's overmatched, and it's quite obvious he needs to stay in the Senate. Kucinich and Gravel were highly entertaining, but really they both suck up a lot of airtime. Neither will win anything, not even a salad bowl in Peoria. It's just a waste of time.

The questions were abominable for the most part, and I laugh when people went so apeshit over Fox, when other networks are just as bad if not worse. Brian Williams is an airhead.

The post-debate stuff was just garbage. Edwards didn't even exist. It was all about Obama and Clinton, and I personally don't even think Obama is going to make it. Hillary will make it to the primaries with her money and connections, but Obama is going the way of Mouthzilla.

Issues.

Kucinich made his case for proposing impeaching President Cheney.

Dodd proud of civil unions becoming legal in Connecticut. Doesn't support same-sex marriage.

Biden: Climate energy: Simple proposition. Need a Manhattan Project on climate energy. Joined with Obama on legislation in this regard. Have to make multibillion investments and make hard goals to make us less dependent on oil.

Richardson on Castro: Talks about what he'd do about the war on terra. On Castro, we need to find ways to deal with a post-democratic Cuba. Bring Cuban Americans into the dialogue. Change Bush policies on family visits, etc., we need to re-evaluate the embargo, make it democratic, etc.

Gravel: (nuclear energy) US not behind in nuclear energy. Talked about the past on the draft and the Alaska pipeline. Talks about the war and terraism.

Personal life/environment

Obama: Organized volunteers to plant trees. We install light bulbs to save energy. Goes back to talk about terraism.

Get ready for the Edwards smear by Williams.

Kucinich takes Obama to task about Iran, Obama takes Kucinich to task, and I think Obama has lost that exchange. Gravel: The US is the biggest violater of the nuclear proliferation treaty.

Who do you consider to be moral leader?

Edwards: Not one person. Talks about the Lord, my wife finest human being I've ever known, my father, those have the most influence on my morality and responsibility.

Is Wal-Mart a good thing or a bad thing for the USA:

Clinton: Mixed blessing. Corporate leaders can't see the middle class and working Americans. They're invisible. Public and private sector leadership in taking care of people.

If the party goes down a third straight time, it could be extinct--horseshit. Is there anybody on stage could be president.

Biden: Of course. But no happy talk about foreign policy. Afghanistan and Darfur needed force, etc.

The end. I tried, but I missed a lot while trying to get their words.

Watch the fucking spin begin.

Non-Iraq Foreign Policy.

Obama is talking about our allies including EU and those in the East, and then answers a question about Israel.

Naturally his views are more important than the others'.

Biden: Biggest threats North Korea, Iran, and tendency for Putin to run in an authoritarian direction. Replace with prevention and talk and move in a direction to conduct change rather than "regime change."

Gravel: No important enemies. We need to deal with the rest of the world as equals. Who are we afraid of? Spend more money on defense than any other country in the world. Military industrial complex controls everything.

Edwards: Russia has moved from a democracy to an autocracy under Putin. How does America change its underlying dynamic in the world. The world must see the US available as a force for good.

Richardson: Would I would do is assess what our strategic issues are. Provides answers on what Russia would do, including promoting more democracy. Being a like our dictator isn't diplomacy. Talks about his forays in North Kora, Darfur (why aren't we talking about it).

Giuliani quotes about Democrats and "security."

Clinton: Worked on things to try to make us safer. There's a disconnect between the rhetoric and reality. Wants to put the myth to rest.

Dodd: It's a myth considering what the administration has done over the past six years. Talks about Iraq. Not building international support. Administration has walked away from that.

Stateless terrorism is a threat.

Global war on terra:

Kucinich: Global war on terra is a pretext to war. Talks about treaties and other agreements. President needs to not to think of the world as full of enemies.

Obama: Emergency response needed in natural and terraist disasters. Need good intelligence, intelligence on who may have carried it out in order to take out that network. We can't alienate the world community based on bombast, we need to talk to the international community. Can't fight terraism on our own.

Edwards: Make sure who was responsible and hold them responsible. How did this happen? Homeland security system not good in this country.

Clinton: We should quickly respond, but we shouldn't divert attention. Mentions bin Laden not having been found yet.

Wish I could write all of the comments. It's hard when it's live.

Immigration.

Clinton: Supports immigration reform.

We have least number of people going into science and engineering in the world, how to correct:

Biden: Smaller class sizes. The teacher makes as much as an engineer in other parts of the world. If we want the best engineers in the world, we should have the best teachers in the world.

Welfare:

Dodd: Let's have more respect and compassion.

Oil company windfalls:

Edwards: Extraordinary demand. Imported oil. We need to make changes, invest in various parts of technology. We need to be patriotic about something other than war; we need to conserve.

Health care premiums:

Kucinich: My house connects me with middle class people. He's the co-sponsor with Conyers a bill providing for universal health care.

First thing first day of administration:

Richardson: Get out of Iraq with diplomacy. Second day energy policy. Initiative on climate change. Fourth day I'm taking off.

More About Health Care.

Richardson talked about prevention, and cutting back on the inefficiences in the bureaucracy.

Missed some of these other questions from the email.

Mistake of the past four years:

Gravel: Feeling like a potted plant standing there. I won't hold their youth and experience against them.

Kucinich: I fired the police chief of Cleveland live on the 6 o'clock news.

Clinton: Many mistakes over the years. Believing our dictator's lies about WMDs. Health care policy failure.

Obama: When he first arrived in the Senate and left the Senate over the Schiavo deal. He's making an idiot of himself bringing up the issue.

Biden: Working with Republicans trying to work with Bush.

Edwards: The war resolution.

Dodd: The same.

Richardson: Impatient, tried to change institutions in New Mexico, wanted to raise the minimum wage. Didn't use diplomacy.

More Virginia Tech.

Biden: Talks about the assault weapons ban should not have lapsed, should close the loopholes on gun shows.

Schools should be able to take dangerous students or potentially dangerous students off the campus.

Health care:

Edwards: Take away Bush's tax cuts for those making 200K a year. Rhetoric is not enough, people need substance when running for president. Mental health parity, government choice, no preexisting conditions excluded.

Obama: National pool for people who don't have health insurance. He is a nervous wreck.

Make sure we control health care costs. Fifty percent more than other industrialized nations. Catastrophic insurance for companies and individuals.

Clinton: Reiterates her experience in putting together a plan, and of course the health insurance industry shot it down.

We need to control costs. Many people are underinsured as well as uninsured. We need to get the best out of what we already have.

Gravel Should Realize

the turnip truck is leaving the station. Called Biden "arrogant" regarding Iraq.

He's a sideshow freak.

Hillary Clinton talks about the need for "change." No more "corruption and cronyism of the Bush years."

She's ready to have her husband back in the White House. Of course I made it up.

Abortion:

JRE: The decision is the perfect example of what is at stake in this election. Will abortion be made by the woman, by the government, by the court>

Supports choice but it is a difficult decision. We have to show respect for views that are different.

Obama: Difficult issue for women, families. Should be decision for women and doctors. Late abortions (phony PBAs) rare. Need to find other issues such as teen pregnancy to look at.

Biden: Supports Roe v. Wade. Make sure people he sends to USSC support his beliefs. Thank God Robert Bork isn't on the high court. Proud to oppose Thomas, Roberts, and Alito to high court. Court took that decision of a rare abortion procedure and put a trojan horse through dishonest reasoning to undo Roe v. Wade.

Kucinich: Believes country has been torn apart of this debate. Supports a culture of life involving other things beside abortion, such as prenatal care, child care, and so forth. A president need to be a healer and allows the right to privacy continue and be able to listen to other points of view.

Dodd: Disappointed in Roberts' vote the other re abortion. He doesn't regret his vote to confirm him to the high court.

Model USSC justice:

Richardson: Ginsburg

Dodd: Ginsburg

Edwards: Ginsburg and Beyer

Did government fail in the Virginia Tech Massacre:

Clinton: Yes, talked about Columbine

Richardson: Talks about making sure mentally ill people don't have access to firearms. More mental illness detection. Mental health not treated the same as other illnesses, should be parity.

Dodd Was Up

talking about the raising of money for campaigns. Kucinich is now talking about his longstanding anti-war position.

He says his campaign is from the heart, which means he has no chance.

Now Williams pushes more goddamned filthy talking points, this time aiming at Biden for being a "gaffe machine."

He said, "Yes."

Sorry,

but Obama is not a good debater.

Now Williams is SMEARING John Edwards asking about his "haircut." What a rotten motherfucker.

Edwards talks about where he is coming from.

Then the bastard Williams continues to smear Edwards on the phony "hedge fund" crap.

And the same was asked of Hillary Clinton.

And people wanted to get rid of FOX in hosting the debates? How is MSNBC any better.

Richardson is talking about his belated call for Fredo to resign.

The Debate

is underway, and the candidates are talking about Iraq.

Dodd supports Feingold-Reid about getting the troops out. Richardson reiterated his position of pulling out of Iraq by the end of the calendar year, and Kucinich got some digs in at Clinton and Obama about voting for continuing to fund the war.

Williams tried to get Edwards to criticize Hillary Clinton on her 2002 vote, but he didn't. He talked about the importance of trust of the people to the president, and the world to the U.S. president.

Gravel is a waste of time. He needs to get out.

Mission completed: Obama tried to go to the middle on the war, and Clinton gave a rebuttal.

WHY IN THE FUCK IS WILLIAMS ASKING QUESTIONS OF OBAMA AND CLINTON TO THE EXCLUSION OF EVERYBODY ELSE? I HATE the fucking media.

Bill Gates

has his fucking filthy hands on public education again.

The media are so in love with this bastard, they don't ask serious questions about his attempt to take over public education.

This prick knows NOTHING about schools--NOTHING.

Presidential Debates.

The upcoming debates will be held in a key state.

JRE will do fine against the alleged "frontrunners," but it's the OTHER candidates, especially Biden and Richardson, he'd better worry about.

Biden especially knows his shit about Iraq and foreign policy. If he doesn't run off too much at the mouth, he will do well. Richardson knows his stuff, too.

Ditto for Chris Dodd.

Things could VERY easily turn on a dime, but the media are so totally corrupt they will try to spin it differently.

Presidential Notes.

I am watching the goddamned stupid coverage of the upcoming Democratic debates on MSNBC.

It's all about Hillary, Obama, Hillary, Obama, and maybe a touch of Richardson. Not one fucking word about John Edwards.

Not even from Keith Olbermann.

It pisses me off.

I did get a ticket to the Hillary Clinton shindig on Sunday, April 29, over at Hug High School, located on Sutro Street and off of McCarran Boulevard. I will get there pretty damned early, at least an hour early if not more. I want a good seat.

It'll be packed.

As the World Turns.

We will be hearing more than we care to hear in the current celebrity murder trial.
_____

Jack Valenti, 85, best known as having created the movie ratings system but also worked in the LBJ administration, has died.

I like this fun fact:

Valenti was also smitten by Johnson secretary Mary Margaret Wiley. After spotting her coming off an airplane with Johnson in Houston, Valenti asked an aide to call the Rice Hotel and order the staff to rearrange the seating so she would be placed next to him.

When the couple married in 1962, Wiley's father was ill, so Johnson gave the bride away. The couple had three children: Courtenay Lynda, John Lyndon and Alexandra Alice.

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What a sweetheart:

Testimony from the first witness, Dorothy Melvin, settled into a "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" description of Spector, with the defendant described as a compelling and romantic suitor and a genius, who changed into something else. Prosecutors said the other side was "a raging maniac."

"Phil is a really brilliant and charming man, and you really enjoy him when he’s in his charming mode. Then when he’s drinking," Melvin testified today. "He snaps. He turns on a dime and becomes a lunatic."

link

Presidential Notes.

Is 2008 a rerun of 2003 for the Democrats?
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The Tillman Family and Jessica Lynch

were pretty damning in their testimony about the administration's lies about what happened in their cases in Iraq.

The Jacksons,

owners of Barbaro, will be honored at Churchill Downs along with their deceased champion.

Roy Jackson gave an interview.

If You Want

to understand our dictator's sadistic policies, just look at the paintings in the Oval Office.

The Booming Economy Casualty List for 4/18-4/25.

Lenovo--1,400 jobs lost

It won't become law anytime soon, but the Fairness Protection Act at least gets a hearing on Capitol Hill.

Presidential Notes II.

Senator Hillary Clinton will be hosting a town hall meeting at Hug High School this coming Sunday:

Hillary is coming to Reno this Sunday, April 29 at Hug High School for a Town Hall Meeting and her first Town Hall in Nevada!

Tickets are FREE and open to the Public, but are first come first serve to reserve. Call 830-3995 to reserve tickets or call the Democratic Party office at 323-8683! Doors open at 10:30 AM and seats are first come first serve.

I am going to try and get a ticket. I left my phone number with the headquarters.
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John McCain is bored with his life and wants to waste his time on a useless quest.
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As the World Turns.

Everything you want to know about the Phil Spector trial can be found here.
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These Next Couple of Years

ought to be fun with all of the scandals and subpoenas surfacing.

Presidential Notes.

John Edwards calls on our dictator or Cheney or whoever to fire Turd Blossom and for Fredo to resign.

It's a good idea, but I doubt Turd is going anywhere.
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Billionaires

believe if they can just con the public just because they are billionaires, they can try to get them to believe their lies about public education.

One is the claim that 78% of 8th graders are not "proficient" at reading. Part of the problem here, I believe, is the definition of proficient. I have a hard time believing that 78% of American 8th graders can't read.

Another stat that I am curious about is the claim that 2/3 of new jobs require a college education. Unless I am reading this incorrectly, the majority of jobs are in the service industry and do not require anything beyond high school...

Both of these are outright lies, and Gates and his ilk know it.

They see education as another racket, just like computer software.

What is so funny as this "genius" never even made through Harvard; he dropped out, yet he is going to tell everybody else what they need to do for those the majority of jobs in the 21st century requiring a college degree.

If Gates were educated, he would know 2/3 of ALL jobs being created require NO education at ALL beyond high school.

I think he does know it, but he has an agenda.

Superintendents

don't think much of NCLB, but I don't think legislators are that smart to listen to people who might know what they are talking about:

The group also came out strong against the law's current policy of leveling sanctions-- including withholding federal funds--on schools that fail to meet its stringent requirements for Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), a controversial stipulation that sets national benchmarks for students in reading, math, and more recently, science.

"The sanctions for not achieving AYP are flawed and unfair … No serious person believes that all children will be proficient in reading and math by 2014," wrote the group in its outline.

Presenters went on to criticize the federal government for singling out and "embarrassing" struggling schools and said a better approach would be to revise AYP to reward schools for "substantial progress," as opposed to punishing them for perceived failures.

NCLB

certainly has fallen fall short of its goal of helping to provde all children with a "world-class" education, but that doesn't matter when the ultimately goals of their backs happen to be privatizing public education for profit (unworkable) and to give big handouts to corporate entities.

Certainly, many of America’s lowest performing schools need drastic improvement, and some kind of enlightened accountability process to assist them. But NCLB’s heavy-handed and mechanistic approach to accountability is actually making it more difficult than ever for our schools to be world-class by any reasonable measure of that term.

How do you become world-class when your federal “reform” strategy actually is: 1) driving experienced and talented educators out of the system; 2) creating enormous discontinuity in some schools’ staffing and disconnection with their students and parents; 3) ignoring the inherent humanity, talents, and uniqueness of the individual learner; 4) reducing “the learning that matters” in the 21st Century to annual scores on highly limited and limiting paper-pencil tests; 5) ignoring mountains of research on brain functioning, learning processes, and child development; 6) forcing reductions in the richness and depth of curriculum and learning experiences students are receiving; 7) imposing a narrow, single-method approach to instruction on the diversity of learners and schools; 8 ) preventing those experts with a richer approach to learning and instruction from working in or assisting schools in their improvement efforts; 9) overriding community input regarding school goals, priorities, and operations; and 10) eliminating incentives for schools to innovate in ways that serve their particular clientele?

Yet the likes of Ted Kennedy stubbornly insists the law is a good one, and any shortcomings can be tweaked. Well, no they can't because the motive behind the law is utterly against the spirit of public education.

Presidential Notes.

The blogosphere seems as bent on trashing JRE and the idiotic "scandal" of his haircut as the punditocracy.
_____

What is Needed

is a new deal program for young people.

It's No Surprise

that the backers of NCLB have as their goal the destruction of public education in America, the foundation of our democracy. They do this by putting in dozens of benchmarks displaying their utter ignorance of education, yet they don't put private schools under any such scrutiny.

It's pretty obvious what the game is.

This law needs to be eliminated.

Was

Boris Yeltsin Russia's first and only true democrat?

David Halberstam

wrote many books on various subjects. I best remember him for a book he wrote about the U.S. auto industry and the rise of the Japan (and, in turn, the rise of the South Korean auto industry) called The Reckoning. It was a powerful book.

Halberstam had been on his way to an interview with football great Y.A. Tittle when he was killed. The other passengers/drivers were not seriously injured.

His brother, Michael, a cardiologist, was murdered back in 1980.

As the World Turns.

The world economy is about to hit the skids.

You can find more here, if you are so inclined.
_____

Another Brood

of 17-year-cicadas is about to make an appearance.

This brood won't be as huge as the celebrated Brood X of a couple of years ago, but they'll do.

Presidential Notes.

Obama finally gets around to outlining foreign policy proposals.
_____

Filth peddler John Solomon strikes again with his smears of John Edwards.
_____

Speaking of John Edwards, he will be in town this Saturday, the 29th, for a private fundraiser with some well-heeled attorneys. Because I am NOT well-heeled but flat-assed broke this month, thanks to having paid the remaining $1441 balance for my New York trip in June, I will not be attending this fundraiser.

It ain't cheap; the campaign wants a $1,000 donation to get into the event.

I've seen JRE for free and close up twice already.

As I mentioned earlier, he will remain in town for the Nevada State Education Association convention, along with Hillary Clinton. I have heard no further details about which high school she will be following the NSEA convention, but at least she will be at a rally someplace in addition. I've heard no such plans for Edwards.
_____
_____

As the World Turns.

Former Russian president Boris Yeltsin has died at the age of 76.
_____

Anybody who thinks privatizing government programs is a good idea should have his or her head examined.
_____

The asshole who did this should be shot.
_____

Rep. Juanita Millender-McDonald, congresswoman from California, has died of cancer at the age of 68.
_____

When it rains, it pours. Author David Halberstam, who won a Pulitizer Prize, was killed early today in an auto crash in Menlo Park, California at the age of 73.

A big loss, in my opinion.
_____

A nurse gets some hands-on experience being a surgeon.
_____

Gonzalesgate.

The GOP protests a wee bit much when they and their pundit supporters call for Fredo's head on a platter.

What they want desperately is to contain this huge scandal by ditching Fredo and hoping it will go away. It won't because the scandal isn't actually about his "handling" of the situation.

It's the situation--the firings--that is the problem. And who the hell in the GOP wants the real motive behind the firings--the desire to criminalize the Democratic Party to ensure GOP control forever--to be exposed and thus doom their own political party for years to come?

What happened to Bill and Hillary Clinton with the bogus investigations and equally bogus impeachment is similar to what is going on now. It is the attempt by a bunch of right-wingers, whose philosophy is so repugnant to the vast majority of voters they could NEVER win elections fairly, to attack political opponents by abusing the judicial system to do it.

Somebody

didn't like what the WSWS had to say about the Virginia Tech Massacre.

Presidential Notes II.

A nasty GOP fight is a-brewin' in South Carolina.

Edna Parker of Shelbyville, Indiana, celebrated her 114th birthday on Friday. She is the oldest person in the United States and the second-oldest person in the world.

Yesterday Parker was visited by fellow Hoosier Bertha Fry of Muncie. Fry is 113 years old, and the meeting of the two set a new record.

As you can see from the first link, the convalescent center where Parker lives is also home to the world's tallest woman, Sandy Allen. (Dayla Thurston, Shelbyville Times)

A Few Days Ago,

some brave blogger unconcerned about violating copyright laws kindly posted this Paul Krugman article about Regent University and Gonzalesgate.

Just because these nutjobs of the religious right have had a few setbacks doesn't mean they won't continue to have an impact.

As the World Turns.

Fredo ain't going anywhere, and besides, Ted Olson would NEVER win confirmation by the Senate.

Republicans don't want the public to know the full extent of the Clinton witchhunt.
_____

Presidential Notes.

It's wishful thinking in the extreme to believe Al Gore is plotting to run for re-election.

It's not going to happen.
_____

Jimbo Eruptions.

Far too many Republicans in this state are so dumb that they would support a governor, no matter how corrupt, over any Democrat, no matter how honest.

They've been completely brainwashed.

Here is more

about the Reading First scandal.

"That sounds like a criminal enterprise to me," said Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), chairman of the House education committee, which held a five-hour investigative hearing. "You don't get to override the law," he angrily told a panel of Reading First officials. "But the fact of the matter is that you did."

Ya think so, George? The goddamned LAW is the problem here; it is nothing but a corporate handout at the expense of education and children.

There Are So Many

scandals from this administration it is impossible to keep an accurate count of them all.

Don't forget to note the Reading First scandal. The program was one of those corporate handouts which came about as a result of the rotten No Child Left Behind law.

I am furious at Ted Kennedy and other Democrats who think this law is anything other than an attempt to destroy public education and hand it over to corporate (corrupt) interests.

Reading First, created by President Bush's signature No Child Left Behind law, offers intensive reading help for low-income children in the early grades. But investigators say that federal officials intervened to influence state and local decisions about what programs to use, a potential violation of the law. Some of the people who were influencing those decisions had a financial interest in the programs that were being pushed, officials said.

"I think we're very close to a criminal enterprise here," House Education and Labor Committee chairman George Miller (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., said at an investigative hearing Friday. "Have you made any criminal referrals, Mr. Higgins?"

"We have made referrals to the Department of Justice," Higgins said.

Miller said his committee may also make criminal referrals. "I think when we put the evidence together we may join you in those criminal referrals," Miller told Higgins.

I Think

this post from an obscure message board sums up Gonzalesgate nicely.

A couple of snips:

In other words, Bush, Cheney and Rove want to place Republicans wholly above the law, and make it illegal (or at least prosecutable) to be an effective Democrat. They want to stamp out opposition to themselves in America by intimidating anyone who might be so rash as to stand up and speak out against them. They want to be able to threaten potential campaign contributors the same way organized crime thugs threaten small businessmen so as to collect protection money. "You never know. T'ings get broken sometimes. People get arrested and prosecuted. We'd HATE to see dis happen to you (smash!)."

But finally, Republican representatives and senators, cognizant of the fact that this is not playing too well back home, have begun to express their disgust with Alberto Gonzales's "mishandling" of these firings. This implies that somehow, had it just been "handled" more competently, then these firings would have been OK. Maybe if Gonzales had crafted a more effective PowerPoint presentation...

It isn't incompetence, although Alberto Gonzales has whole truckloads of that. It isn't a case of needing to have explained this better. It is the FIRINGS THEMSELVES and the political philosophy behind those firings that's the great scandal here, and in my opinion it may be the very greatest scandal in the entire history of the United States.

They are trying forcibly to suppress dissent. They are trying to make it highly risky for any opposing candidate even to DECIDE to run for office.

This is a direct attack against what America, in its deepest essence, was founded to be. It is part of a brazen effort to establish a monarchy in America, nothing less, and to take away from us our freedom of speech.

Yep. It certainly isn't an "executive" matter or a minor scandal. This is huge beyond belief.

Now the rerun shows Ted Kennedy asking Fredo why the U.S. attorney in Nevada was fired. We in Nevada know why. It's because Rove, etc., wanted attorneys off the back of Dipshit, despite his numerous conflicts of interest and corrupt activities.

Gonzalesgate.

If readers haven't seen the Fredo performance in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, they should. Fredo was a complete disaster. He's clearly covering up for the "big fish," meaning Karl Rove and perhaps old Cheney and even our dictator.

I am watching the rerun right now on C-SPAN with Senators Specter and Leahy grilling Fredo until he is burned to a crisp.

This is a gigantic scandal, as the crux of it is really about destroying or at the very least marginalizing the Democratic Party in this country so that there is in effect a one-party dictatorship. Republicans can't win elections by legitimate means, as the current party is so full of extremists their philosophy is unpalatable to most voters.

But what the hell. That's nothing to them. If they could just rig the voting machines, and, if that fails, coerce U.S. attorneys into going after Democrats for the simple reason they are Democrats while excusing any and all Republican corruption,then who the hell cares about what the voters' will is?

People need to wake up.

Presidential Notes.

Barack's rock isn't in his head.
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As the World Turns.

Billionaire widow Helen Walton, married to Sam, the man whose enterprise has made this country what it is today, has died at the age of 87.
_____

The South is a great place to live if you're an infant.
_____

Gonzalesgate Proves

that the agenda of the Mayberry Machiavellis is alive and well and polluting American justice.

Gonzalesgate.

With the Justice Department scandal, the administration is clearly on the ropes, but predictably the WSWS makes that observation to put forth yet another attack on the Democratic Party.

I am sure all 1,200 people in this country will flock to their political party come 2008.

Nobody

should have ever sold Cho a gun given his mental history.

D. James Kennedy

and his ilk are at it again, trying to pretend "Christians" are under siege by the evil liberals and secular humanists and wanting to shove their twisted beliefs down the rest of our throats.

Expect More Anti-abortion Legislators

push for more restrictive legislation, thanks to the USSC.

The notion women are too stupid for anything other than screwing and bearing children dies hard in this culture. At bottom, the anti-abortion people DO think women are stupid and are only good for childbearing.

It has nothing to do with concern for the fetus.

Gonzalesgate.

Some Republicans, no doubt with an eye on 2008, are trying to distance themselves from Gonzales.

So Why

was Cho Seung-Hui off his nut?

This is an extremely disturbed person, but it is clear, if one listens to his words, that conditions in society were playing on his mind. He felt many resentments. This doesn’t justify any of his insane acts, but the resentments have a real basis. He was mentally unbalanced, but that doesn’t mean there was no connection between social life and what he did. And now television analysts begin heaping abuse on his head, as a substitute for taking the problems seriously. “He was a coward,” and so on. This is almost a provocation, an incitement of others.

The resentments are real. Huge social divisions exist on a college campus. Snobbery and elitism exist. With Cho, the resentments were psychotically internalized and developed in a pathological manner. The society denies that social classes exists, it papers over social inequality. The contradictions emerge in a malignant fashion, they explode in this anti-social form.

The Plot Gets Thicker

over the scandal of the Reading First program:

Federal advisors mismanaged President Bush's $1 billion-a-year reading program and profited from close ties to the Bush administration, according to testimony released Thursday — in one case repeatedly rejecting one state's funding proposal until state officials dumped a successful reading test and bought one written by a top Bush advisor.

Is there conflict of interest here?

Presidential Notes II.

I sincerely hope JRE hasn't shot himself in the ass.

I have strong opinions of Joe Trippi, as longtime readers of this blog--both of them--know full well. Every campaign he's touched has turned to shit.

He totally mismanaged the Mouth's presidential campaign in 2004.
_____

Gonzalesgate.

Fredo testified today that he isn't a bit sorry he acted as a partisan hack over the attorney firings.

As the World Turns.

A jury has been selected in the O.J. III trial.
_____

If the Duke knew how Newport Beach honored his memory, he'd spin in his grave.
_____

The pet food recall continues to expand.
_____

Tammy Faye Messner had a message early last month.

It doesn't sound good at all.
_____

Can

PBS ever get its act together again, now that the neocons have had undue influence upon it?

Presidential Notes.

Frontloading primaries appears to be a throwback to an earlier era.

Will we have a brokered convention?

It's possible for the Democrats at least, but I suspect one or more of the so-called frontrunners will fade before the primaries.
_____

The USSC Abortion Decision

was a huge setback for women's reproductive rights.

Now it has given the far right an excuse to put in state laws restricting or banning all abortions, just so they can be challenged all the way to the USSC.

The WSWS

uses yesterday's USSC decision on abortion to trash the Democratic Party for "allowing" Roberts and Alito to get on the high court.

Never mind the fact Bush would have nominated somebody even worse than those two, which makes one shudder at the thought.

The USSC Today

ruled boneheadedly once again with upholding a ban on late-term abortions which is utterly bogus.

No matter. The USSC has given the green light to further assaults on Roe v. Wade.

The Wolfowitz Scandal

gets more and more outrageous.

I Talked With

my sisters today because they hadn't heard from me in a couple of weeks. One of my sisters had some news to tell me. Her grandson, the one who has been married twice and is just 24 years old and is about to become a daddy in September, is going to get married on the 27th of this month. Instead of getting married in an exotic place like Lake Tahoe (as in the first marriage) or at Lithia Park (as in the second marriage), he will be getting married at city hall in Salem, Oregon. My sister said his mom and dad won't be able to make it; in fact, nobody on his side of the family will make it except for her.

Well, maybe the third time's a charm, but call me a skeptic with his track record.

The baby, by the way is a girl. Both he and his girlfriend have decided on a name: Madison James Hillman.

My response to this was: "What the hell kind of name is THAT? Why don't they name her Dolly Madison or Madison Dolly? What's so special about James Madison, besides the fact he was one of our founding fathers?" My sister said it was probably they went through a baby book, and "Madison" is a fairly popular name these days for girls. But the "James" shit I can't figure out. I hope the couple will change their minds about the name.

The name could have been worse, I said. She could be named "Bush George."

And then my niece told my sister (her mother) some interesting numerology to note: Elven married his first wife on October 27, he married his second wife on August 27, and now he is about to marry his third wife on April 27.

Oh, oh. I am not making any bets on how long this relationship will last, baby or no baby.

In somewhat related news, my other sister, the one I am going to Italy with this summer, was walking her dog the other day. It was so cold outside Pat had to put the hood of her jacket on. Well, my niece's ex-husband drove by and then he stopped to talk to Pat. He asked, "Do I know you?" Pat then took off her hood, and Dennis (his name) then said, realizing who she was, "I didn't recognize you with your clothes on."

Pat is 70 years old, Dennis is about 50 and has a 12-year-old son from his second marriage. Pat about split a gut with that response, and so did Dennis, once he realized he put his foot in his mouth.

Anyway, I have to make note of these important events, just in case I want to share them with Reader's Digest or some damned rag.

The Booming Economy Casualty List for 4/11-4/18.

Vonage--1,800 jobs lost

If skilled workers don't look out for their interests and scream bloody murder about the offshoring of good jobs, they will find out there will be nothing--but nothing--left in this country.

Presidential Notes.

Hillary Clinton, along with John Edwards, will be in Reno April 29. They will be speaking at the Nevada State Education Association convention. Clinton will also be speaking at a high school, but the location hasn't been disclosed.

I would think Wooster, being closer to the airport than the other high schools, but of course it could be any of them.

I will try like hell to see her.

I'd also like to see John Edwards make a stop as well.
_____

Is there any doubt Cho was completely and totally batshit?

The video of his "manifesto" is here.

As the World Turns.

Kitty Carlisle Hart, actress, singer, and best known as a panelist on the long-running To Tell the Truth television program, has died at the ripe old age of 96.

Carlisle was in the Marx Brothers' A Night at the Opera playing the love interest of Allan Jones, father of singer Jack Jones, and who later became a dentist. Her musical scenes with Jones were a little overwrought, and I found myself having to skip those numbers in favor of the comedy.

Hart dreamed of marrying a prince, but unfortunately, she had to settle for the admiration of losers like playwright Norman Krasna (who later married Erle Jolson, widow of the legendary Al), songwriter George Gershwin, and financier Bernard Baruch, who wanted to ditch his old lady for her. Hart finally scraped the bottom of the barrel when she married playwright Moss Hart in 1946. He died in 1961.
_____

It's Time

for educators to get involved in the policy-making process.

Their livelihoods and children's futures depend on it.

So Why

have there been so many mass killings in this country in the past 25 years?

The answer isn't that difficult to find.

Police Were So Busy

trying to follow an ultimately fruitless lead, there was a two-hour delay.

It probably would have been difficult if not impossible to shut down the campus considering its immense size and student body, with most of the students living off-campus.

Presidential Notes II.

JRE gets the Bill Clinton treatment.

It's getting desperate for the Republican-dominated media.
_____

Why the Hell

did Democrats let common sense go out the window and instead tried to kiss the NRA's ass?

The NRA is representing a dying industry (no pun intended, or maybe it is) because hunting is on the way out, and besides, the organization has lied through its fucking teeth about the Second Amendment. Furthermore, gun control enjoys widespread support, so there is no excuse whatsoever for congressional Democrats to refuse to sponsor meaningful gun control.

Presidential Notes.

Mario Cuomo seems to like John Edwards the best.
_____

Twice the right has exhausted itself and liberals came back with somebody to save the country from the mess the right made. Will it work a third time?

The writings of Cho Seung-Hui, believed to be the shooter in the Virginia Tech massacre, were considered disturbing. (Via ABC)

Gonzalesgate.

Is the administration using Fredo as a sacrificial lamb in order to keep Karl Rove?

As the World Turns.

The Reno Gazette-Journal has a report of the Nancy Grace appearance last night.

I'd say there were more than 400 people there.
_____

The WSWS

has its take on the Virginia Tech Massacre.

It is easy to second-guess the school's administration and police regarding warnings after the initial shooting. However, this campus is gigantic, over 2,600 acres, and there are something like 26,000 students, more than half of whom commute to school. It simply would have been impossible to shut down the campus.

Right now the alleged shooter has been identified at the press conference. He was a 23-year-old English major who lived on campus named Cho Seung-Hui from South Korea.

More is here.

I Just Returned

from hearing Nancy Grace speak at the Pioneer Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Reno. Earlier in the evening, she was on television live from Reno talking about today's tragedy. She said tonight she will be in Virginia tomorrow to cover the Virginia Tech story.

Grace appears to me to be much more personable and likable in person than she does on television. I suppose being in entertainment (and hell, even as an attorney) one takes on a persona and does a lot of acting. She's also on the short side (she said she is 5-feet-1) and describes herself as "chubby." I for one would not describe her as such; she is far from anorexic, but she is more normal looking than most women on the idiot box. Tonight she talked about her career as a prosecutor, with some funny anecdotes as well as some sad stories. She talked about how she became a lawyer, but she was very careful talking about her fiance's murder, not after what the New York Observer wrote about her. Through all of the cases she prosecuted, she felt the ten years she did it were the best of her life.

Grace said at the beginning of the talk that she didn't feel she was a New Yorker until 9-11. She described her experiences during and following that tragedy. She noted she was close friends with Barbara Olson, who was killed at the Pentagon, while she often disagreed with her (especially regarding the bogus Clinton impeachment). She said she didn't know Ted, who made a semi-career as a professional widower following Barbara's death (and remarrying last year a woman he met at the 2002 Kentucky Derby, and anybody who likes the Kentucky Derby isn't all bad in my book), but she knew Barbara pretty well.

After the talk, she answered some questions from the audience. Grace believes that if our friend O.J. were tried today, the result would have been different than in 1995. That's because the L.A.P.D. had such a bad reputation (and I would add the Rodney King case was very much present in that courtroom). She answered questions about Aruba, about the Darren Mack case (where she couldn't understand why he didn't receive the death penalty--I would hazard a guess that both families were against it, but I don't know that for a fact), and of course the wonderful Chaz Higgs, the alleged killer of his wife, the late state controller Kathy Augustine. She also believes that the son of Melinda Duckett is dead. She didn't elaborate further, since that story got her into hot water.

When I first arrived at the center, there were few people there. I was beginning to think nobody would show. But it wasn't long before a lot of people showed up at the last minute. I'd say at least as many people showed up for this talk as showed up for the Lesley Stahl talk of a year ago.

The Pulitzers

were announced today.

The Oregonian won the "breaking news" award for its coverage of the Kim tragedy.

So Why

did university officials not shut down the entire campus after the first shootings?

Yep. I Was Watching

the news off and on today regarding the Virginia Tech Massacre, in which a lone gunman went and shot dead at least 32 people and wounded many others before killing himself.

So far the killer hasn't been identified in this the worst mass shooting in American history.

The previous worst campus shooting was in 1966, at the University of Texas, Austin. Then, 16 people were killed, including shooter Charles Whitman, who was later discovered to have had a brain tumor. The previous worst mass shooting was in 1991.

As the World Turns.

The Reading First scandal goes to Congress.

But of course there is NOTHING wrong with NCLB, which is a handout to unscrupulous outfits.
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Former California congressman Pete McCloskey has ditched the Republican Party for good and has registered as a Democrat.
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Well, no kidding.
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Wolfowitzgate

is the perfect example of what is wrong with this administration.

Bush, etc., thought it was perfectly appropriate to appoint him to the World Bank knowing there was an obvious conflict of interest.

Presidential Notes.

Some of the Clintons' old donors want to shift their money from one loser to another.
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Gonzalesgate.

Since he has no choice otherwise, Fredo is going to insist the firings were appropriate.

And when somebody says they have nothing to hide, he or she either does or he or she has destroyed all of the evidence.

As the World Turns.

Mostly white people were making the case for black "genocide" in opposition to a proposed clinic offering abortions in Portland, Oregon.
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According to this article, Don Ho had ten kids altogether.
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Chicagoans are pleased as punch they are going to host the Olympics. By 2016, I may not even be around, considering how rotten I feel in 2007.
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Education consultant Ruby Payne has made a lot of money pushing stereotypical and unverified theories about poverty.
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A retiree has learned to grin and bear it.
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Jimbo Eruptions.

Reno's mayor Bob Cashell wisely refuses to commend Dipshit's first 100 days in office.

Our Dictator

tries to pander to Catholics by feigning concern that so many parochial
schools have closed,
and he'd like to give unconstitutional handouts to inner city parochial schools.

Frankly, the closing of Catholic schools is a good thing overall. They came into being because of anti-Catholic prejudice, and now Catholics have been fully assimilated into American society. Their purpose has basically run its course.

There are only half as many Catholic schools today as forty years ago.

They sure as hell don't need any propping up.

Presidential Notes.

Candidates who play the "inevitability" card will inevitably get beaten.
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Another Obituary to Note.

Famed Hawaiian entertainer Don Ho, 76, died this morning following a heart attack.

He had suffered from heart problems in recent years.

If I remember correctly, I thought I read somewhere years ago he lived with a couple of women and was a bit weird that way. But I am relying on my memory, so I could be wrong.

Then again I could be right.

According to IMDB, he was married at least once and had six kids. According to Wikipedia, he remarried just last year.

Here is a biography, but the site hasn't been updated since his death today.

No doubt that'll change.

Wills Didn't Want

to commit to marriage anytime in the near future, and the royal family agreed he shouldn't rush down the aisle and have another marital mess like his mom and dad's marriage.

The final death blow to Wills' relationship with his university sweetheart was delivered by grandfather Prince Philip.

He declared: "You can't string her along for ever."

It kinda sounds like his dad and Camilla some 35 years ago.

Wills and Kate

decided to split.

I believe Kate was the first serious girlfriend the prince has had. They both need to get out there and date others.

The bad news is that the media will keep trying to get him married off just like they did to his dad.

One Secret to "Success"

is to come up with some distorted version of Norman Vincent Peale's "positive thinking" nonsense and make piles of money off of it.

This book claims that if you're poor, it's your own damned fault. If you're rich, it's because you willed it to be so.

However, if you are stupid enough to buy the book and believe the nonsense, it probably IS your own damned fault.

What Happened to Blogger Kathy Sierra

is reprehensible, but that doesn't mean women bloggers should just throw in the towel.

Because cyberspace tends to be anonymous, it tends to bring out the worst in people.

As the World Turns.

It is pretty damned unprofessional.

But worse is the fact somebody planted a camera there. Who was it? The motive appears to have something to do with politics, as a school board election was just days away.

That was probably the bigger crime here.
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Just as we all suspected, abstinence education programs don't work.
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Actor Barry Nelson, 89, has died.

He was on television and movies constantly during the past several decades.
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Two years after it celebrated its centennial, the Virginia Street Bridge in downtown Reno will be torn down.
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Circumcision is a tough sell for American men despite its effectiveness against AIDS.
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What

a goddamned dumb shit:

"I stand behind the principles of No Child Left Behind. The only acceptable goal for our nation is to ensure that all of our children are learning on grade level. Any other standard is unacceptable," Congressman Schuster said. "As we move toward reauthorization of this landmark legislation, I look forward to working with those in the field; the teachers, administrators and parents to strengthen the law and to meet our joint goal of reaching out and helping every student."

Take a look at my kids, moron, and hundreds of thousands if not millions of kids who CANNOT EVER read or do math at "grade level," especially since bastards like you keep upping the requirements to almost impossible levels.

You know, shoving algebra in middle school and pushing high school-style language arts in elementary schools.

And that's not counting the kids who cannot learn at grade level because of various cognitive--as opposed to "learning"--disabilities (mental retardation, autism, etc.).

What an ass.

Corporations Are Upset

Chinese workers have realized they are being exploited by them and may actually do something to correct that condition.

Then these son-of-bitches CEOs might actually have to move their operations elsewhere.

But what happens when Indians, Africans, and everybody else on the planet get fucking pissed off and want a bigger share of the economic pie?

Did they think the gravy train of exploiting workers overseas and killing off jobs in the United States was going to last?

Supporters of the law say the U.S. companies are not taking full responsibility for how their business practices allegedly contribute to worker exploitation.

Liu Cheng, a Shanghai legal scholar who advised the government on the draft proposal, says the pressure U.S. companies exert on their Chinese suppliers to cut costs leads to labor abuse. "After so many years of the multinationals dominating, things are getting worse," says Cheng.

Chinese workers have staged tens of thousands of strikes and protests over the past few years, expressing discontent over poor working conditions and low and unpaid wages. Cheng says that the new law is a modest step toward addressing rising worker unrest and ensuring social stability. "It's reasonable and rational for companies to want to make money, but there has to be balance," says Cheng.

I hope the workers tell corporate America where to shove it.

The WSWS

hates John Edwards' guts because he dares to talk about the class issues facing this country and might actually do something about it.

They're pissed because he has built a mansion on some property, so therefore he doesn't qualify to talk about class issues.

Never mind the fact that he was raised in modest surroundings and actually EARNED his money defending those who were abused by corporate America.