“…in the coming budget debate, everything has to be on the table. There can be no sacred cows and pet priorities.”Sweet Jeebus, that’s way too damn funny (though in a “gallows humor” kind of way, I’ll admit). As noted here…
This bastard voted YES for tax cuts to millionaires and billionaires. He voted YES to exempt them from the estate tax. He voted YES to give these same rich people additional benefits in the form of capital gains tax cuts. Yet, somehow he had the balls to vote NO on taking care of the 9-11 responders who risked everything to respond to the worst terrorist attack ever on American soil on the grounds that it's too expensive. How can he possibly rationalize this?Oh, and as the post notes, the 9/11 First Responders fund will be available for only five years. Nice.
And it’s interesting to me that the 1st Republic 14th Star poster mentioned Alan Grayson, referencing his “die quickly” quote about the Republicans and those without health care, particularly because of this.
Food, water, toys. Voting 178-242, the House defeated a Democratic bid to ensure that committee reviews conducted under HJ Res 72 uphold regulations that keep children's toys safe and protect the nation's drinking-water and food supply. There was no debate on the motion.So the Repugs are against upholding regulations to keep our food and water safe along with children’s toys (and I’m sure the Bucks County Courier Times will write a clarification to this shortly saying “oh, this was another ‘gotcha’ move by the Dems to make the Repugs look bad” or something, kind of like the way they leapt to Saint Mikey’s defense this week over his vote that basically supported offshoring our jobs, with the paper saying “oh, it was just a procedural vote to table the measure” or something…I cannot for the life of me recall such clarifications over votes by Patrick Murphy).
A yes vote backed the Democratic motion.
Voting yes: Andrews, Brady, Carney, Fattah, Holden, and Schwartz.
Voting no: Dent, Fitzpatrick, Gerlach, LoBiondo, Meehan, Pitts, Runyan, and Smith.
Now for the second (turning to the Senate)…
Airport body scans. The Senate voted, 96-1, to make it a federal crime to publicly distribute body-scan images from security checkpoints at airports, federal courthouses, and certain other public buildings. The amendment was attached to a Federal Aviation Administration bill (S 223) that remained in debate. It follows the recent posting of thousands of full-body images on the Internet. Sen. Tom Coburn (R., Okla.) cast the negative vote.I don’t call Coburn crazy for nothing, people.
A yes vote backed the amendment.
Voting yes: Thomas Carper (D., Del.), Bob Casey (D., Pa.), Chris Coons (D., Del.), Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.), and Pat Toomey (R., Pa.).
Not voting: Robert Menendez (D., N.J.).
Rapid irreversible melting of one third to two thirds of earth's permafrost, will add huge amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, accelerating warming, reports the National Ice and Snow Data Center (NSIDC). Permafrost melt lakes portend the destabilization of the Arctic's landscapes and ecosystems and emissions of greenhouse gases CO2 and CH4.I will, however, that Fix Noise as a group are subject matters on this topic (the effects of lobotomies, I mean).
To county Commissioner Chairman Charley Martin for promoting his unproven and inexperienced Republican colleague, Robert Loughery, to vice chairman on Loughery's first day on the job.Kind of makes you wonder why the paper just went along with the decisions of some judges behind closed doors to give the commissioner job to one of Martin’s pals instead of calling for a special election, but what’s done is done.
Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia had sought the post. But the lone Democrat was rejected when Martin broke a tie vote and awarded the job to Loughery, who was appointed to the board and not elected. Ellis-Marseglia not only is much more experienced, she is the board's top vote-getter.
Oh well, just another in a long line of partisan decisions that have long emanated from Doylestown.
Liberals, who were once naively optimistic about democracy promotion, turned dour when President Bush became naively optimistic about it.In response I’d like to share the following; kind of a tie-in to President’s Day which we’ll observe on Monday.
I give you FDR on democracy (here - an ever-timely reminder)…
The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it comes stronger than their democratic state itself. That, in its essence, is fascism - ownership of government by an individual, by a group...(By the way, he said this at a time when actual fascism was in power in Italy, as opposed to the phony kind Goldberg alleged in his book.)
I also give you Harry Truman on the same topic (here)…
Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with reason and justice.Next, I give you JFK (and how true these words are particularly now)…
The ignorance of one voter in a democracy impairs the security of all.Also, here is Lyndon Johnson on democracy (again, how true)…
We preach the virtues of democracy abroad. We must practice its duties here at home. Voting is the first duty of democracy.Here is what Jimmy Carter once said on this subject...
The experience of democracy is like the experience of life itself- always changing, infinite in its variety, sometimes turbulent and all the more valuable for having been tested by adversity.And finally, Bill Clinton on democracy (here)…
"Our democracy must be not only the envy of the world but the engine of our own renewal. There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right in America."If you think there’s anything like naïve optimism at work here, let me know, OK?
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