The Northwestern does a great job with this story:
“It sickens me that we are still fighting with other people and how many more lives does it need to be?” said Mary Bosveld. “Do we need to give all of our children away until we learn that there are other ways to solve conflicts?”
Bosveld’s daughter, Army Private First Class Rachel Bosveld, was the first woman from Wisconsin to die in Operation Iraqi Freedom. She attended Oshkosh West High School. Bosveld said Iraqi families have lost loved ones, too, and she doesn’t want that forgotten.
Ralph Beck, a veteran of the Vietnam War with the U.S. Marine Corps, said he was saddened.
“I think that every military loss is a tragedy,” said Beck of Oshkosh. “However, I think the biggest mistake that we could make now would be to abandon our commitment to the Iraqi people. When we left Vietnam the citizens of that country suffered greatly.”
Pete Wallace, father of Sgt. Andrew Wallace, a Wisconsin Army National Guard member from Oshkosh and killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq, said his heart goes out to all the families who have lost loved ones in the war.“
I certainly don’t want to see anyone else go through that pain, sorrow and suffering,” Wallace said, “but I’m afraid there will be more deaths in the future.”
Oshkosh resident Rick Wing Sr., who served with the U.S. Army in the Vietnam War, said the war in Iraq had gone on longer than he thought it would.
“I just pray to God that it’s worth it,” Wing said, referring to the 2,000 U.S. military personnel, who have perished in the war.
Wing said the war in Iraq had been high in terms of cost and the number of lives it has taken.
“I thought they would have a game plan when the fighting ended, but now we’re in a quagmire just like Vietnam,” he said.
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/news/local/stories/local_23132185.shtml
10.26.2005
Poll: Bush Would Lose If Election Today - Dems Better on Issues
A majority would vote for a Democrat over President Bush if an election were held this year, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll released Tuesday.
In the latest poll, 55 percent of the respondents said that they would vote for the Democratic candidate if Bush were again running for the presidency this year.
Thirty-nine percent of those interviewed said they would vote for Bush in the hypothetical election.
On separate issues, a majority of those questioned felt the Democrats could do a better job than Republicans at handling health care (59 percent to 30 percent), Social Security (56 percent to 33 percent), gasoline prices (51 percent to 31 percent) and the economy (50 percent to 38 percent).
Forty-six percent also believed Democrats could do better at handling Iraq, while 40 percent said the GOP would do better.
In 2003, 53 percent said Republicans would better handle Iraq and only 29 percent believed the Democrats would do better.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/10/25/poll.bush/index.html
In the latest poll, 55 percent of the respondents said that they would vote for the Democratic candidate if Bush were again running for the presidency this year.
Thirty-nine percent of those interviewed said they would vote for Bush in the hypothetical election.
On separate issues, a majority of those questioned felt the Democrats could do a better job than Republicans at handling health care (59 percent to 30 percent), Social Security (56 percent to 33 percent), gasoline prices (51 percent to 31 percent) and the economy (50 percent to 38 percent).
Forty-six percent also believed Democrats could do better at handling Iraq, while 40 percent said the GOP would do better.
In 2003, 53 percent said Republicans would better handle Iraq and only 29 percent believed the Democrats would do better.
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/10/25/poll.bush/index.html
Just a question, not criticism...
Esslinger had concerns about a resort financing option that could have Oshkosh temporarily owning its marina or conference space. Lease money would generate revenue to payoff city tax-incremental finance borrowing.
Esslinger and even a handful of project supporters were less comfortable with the city in such a role.
“We’re not in that business, and we shouldn’t be in that business,” Esslinger said.
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/news/local/stories/local_23129057.shtml
Isn't that exactly what we do with the current convention center? It is owned by the city and leased to the hotel, isn't it?
So, aren't we in this business already?
Esslinger and even a handful of project supporters were less comfortable with the city in such a role.
“We’re not in that business, and we shouldn’t be in that business,” Esslinger said.
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/news/local/stories/local_23129057.shtml
Isn't that exactly what we do with the current convention center? It is owned by the city and leased to the hotel, isn't it?
So, aren't we in this business already?
A Quick Shout-out to a Great Place to Work:
The chamber presented small, medium and large Manufacturer of the Year Awards respectively to C3 Corp., Surface Mount Technology Corp. and J.J. Keller & Associates. It gave its Athena Award to Sharon Hulce, president and chief executive officer of Employment Resource Group.
“We’re blessed and humbled,” said Bob Keller, president and chief executive officer of J.J. Keller & Associates. “We’re accepting it on behalf of all of our 1,000 employees.” He came to the podium with his brother, Jim, chief operating officer and acknowledged his father, founder John J. Keller, in the audience.
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_23046304.shtml
“We’re blessed and humbled,” said Bob Keller, president and chief executive officer of J.J. Keller & Associates. “We’re accepting it on behalf of all of our 1,000 employees.” He came to the podium with his brother, Jim, chief operating officer and acknowledged his father, founder John J. Keller, in the audience.
http://www.wisinfo.com/postcrescent/news/archive/local_23046304.shtml
Blue States are Better Than Red States, Part 496
Illinios sweeps Texas in the World Series....
That is as much sport commentary as I will get into.
That is as much sport commentary as I will get into.
10.25.2005
Rieckman Nails Underheim & Roessler
He writes:
In Utopia our elected representatives would listen to all points of views, not just the ones they agree with. Unfortunately we live in Oshkosh.
That was never more clear than Monday when Sen. Carol Roessler and Rep. Gregg Underheim failed to attend a community hearing in their home town on a bill supporters call the "Compassionate Care for Rape Victims".
The bill would mandate that hospitals provide information on Emergency Contraceptives to rape victims to prevent pregnancies. Underheim in the assembly and Roessler in the senate are chairmen of the health committees. Both have adopted the "don't bother me with the facts, my mind is made up" approach to listening to members of the their community. Neither one will hold hearings on the bill, first introduced in 2002, much less release the bills for a vote. The only reason to not send the bill to a vote is to protect their Republican colleagues who don't want to have to explain how they voted to the folks back home.
Regarding the hearing Monday both dismissed it as politically motivated.
Roessler's response was a veiled threat: "This to me seems much more political posturing than it does anything else. It's a curious way to win friends and influence people."
Underheim's response was not as deft as he resorted to a lame and tired stereotype: "It's sort of the left wing of the Democrat party that showed up in Oshkosh."
Either way, their absence from the meeting was an affront to Oshkosh residents people who happen to have a different point of view on an issue.
After this month's performance before the common council, you would think Roessler and Underheim would be more sensitive to the people they represent. But then again, this ain't Utopia and it ain't Madison.
http://everydayeditor.blogspot.com/2005/10/who-elected-them.html
Go get 'em!
In Utopia our elected representatives would listen to all points of views, not just the ones they agree with. Unfortunately we live in Oshkosh.
That was never more clear than Monday when Sen. Carol Roessler and Rep. Gregg Underheim failed to attend a community hearing in their home town on a bill supporters call the "Compassionate Care for Rape Victims".
The bill would mandate that hospitals provide information on Emergency Contraceptives to rape victims to prevent pregnancies. Underheim in the assembly and Roessler in the senate are chairmen of the health committees. Both have adopted the "don't bother me with the facts, my mind is made up" approach to listening to members of the their community. Neither one will hold hearings on the bill, first introduced in 2002, much less release the bills for a vote. The only reason to not send the bill to a vote is to protect their Republican colleagues who don't want to have to explain how they voted to the folks back home.
Regarding the hearing Monday both dismissed it as politically motivated.
Roessler's response was a veiled threat: "This to me seems much more political posturing than it does anything else. It's a curious way to win friends and influence people."
Underheim's response was not as deft as he resorted to a lame and tired stereotype: "It's sort of the left wing of the Democrat party that showed up in Oshkosh."
Either way, their absence from the meeting was an affront to Oshkosh residents people who happen to have a different point of view on an issue.
After this month's performance before the common council, you would think Roessler and Underheim would be more sensitive to the people they represent. But then again, this ain't Utopia and it ain't Madison.
http://everydayeditor.blogspot.com/2005/10/who-elected-them.html
Go get 'em!
Is Cheney Lying or Just Incompetent?
"I don't know who sent Joe Wilson. He never submitted a report that I ever saw when he came back," Cheney said at the time. "... I don't know Mr. Wilson. I probably shouldn't judge him. I have no idea who hired him."
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=544&e=1&u=/ap/20051025/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak_investigation
Now, in 1990, Cheney was Sec of Defense preparing for Gulf War 1 - and Wilson was the head diplomat to Iraq in Baghdad.
Cheney plotted and executed a war with a country without ever speaking with or being briefed by the head diplomat to that country, the las American to see or talk to Saddam?
No wonder they like war so much...
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=544&e=1&u=/ap/20051025/ap_on_go_pr_wh/cia_leak_investigation
Now, in 1990, Cheney was Sec of Defense preparing for Gulf War 1 - and Wilson was the head diplomat to Iraq in Baghdad.
Cheney plotted and executed a war with a country without ever speaking with or being briefed by the head diplomat to that country, the las American to see or talk to Saddam?
No wonder they like war so much...
Cheney's All Wrapped Up in the Leak
WASHINGTON, Oct. 24 - I. Lewis Libby Jr., Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, first learned about the C.I.A. officer at the heart of the leak investigation in a conversation with Mr. Cheney weeks before her identity became public in 2003, lawyers involved in the case said Monday.
Notes of the previously undisclosed conversation between Mr. Libby and Mr. Cheney on June 12, 2003, appear to differ from Mr. Libby's testimony to a federal grand jury that he initially learned about the C.I.A. officer, Valerie Wilson, from journalists, the lawyers said.
The notes, taken by Mr. Libby during the conversation, for the first time place Mr. Cheney in the middle of an effort by the White House to learn about Ms. Wilson's husband, Joseph C. Wilson IV, who was questioning the administration's handling of intelligence about Iraq's nuclear program to justify the war.
Lawyers involved in the case, who described the notes to The New York Times, said they showed that Mr. Cheney knew that Ms. Wilson worked at the C.I.A. more than a month before her identity was made public and her undercover status was disclosed in a syndicated column by Robert D. Novak on July 14, 2003.
It would not be illegal for either Mr. Cheney or Mr. Libby, both of whom are presumably cleared to know the government's deepest secrets, to discuss a C.I.A. officer or her link to a critic of the administration. But any effort by Mr. Libby to steer investigators away from his conversation with Mr. Cheney could be considered by Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the special counsel in the case, to be an illegal effort to impede the inquiry.
Click in headline for link...
Notes of the previously undisclosed conversation between Mr. Libby and Mr. Cheney on June 12, 2003, appear to differ from Mr. Libby's testimony to a federal grand jury that he initially learned about the C.I.A. officer, Valerie Wilson, from journalists, the lawyers said.
The notes, taken by Mr. Libby during the conversation, for the first time place Mr. Cheney in the middle of an effort by the White House to learn about Ms. Wilson's husband, Joseph C. Wilson IV, who was questioning the administration's handling of intelligence about Iraq's nuclear program to justify the war.
Lawyers involved in the case, who described the notes to The New York Times, said they showed that Mr. Cheney knew that Ms. Wilson worked at the C.I.A. more than a month before her identity was made public and her undercover status was disclosed in a syndicated column by Robert D. Novak on July 14, 2003.
It would not be illegal for either Mr. Cheney or Mr. Libby, both of whom are presumably cleared to know the government's deepest secrets, to discuss a C.I.A. officer or her link to a critic of the administration. But any effort by Mr. Libby to steer investigators away from his conversation with Mr. Cheney could be considered by Patrick J. Fitzgerald, the special counsel in the case, to be an illegal effort to impede the inquiry.
Click in headline for link...
From MSNBC 'First Read' - Some Good Points
First glanceThe New York Times reports this morning that, per notes now in special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's hands, Lewis "Scooter" Libby learned of Valerie Plame's identity from Vice President Cheney rather than from journalists, as Libby had previously testified. The Times thus becomes the first to report direct involvement by Cheney in the White House effort to learn more about Joe Wilson -- though the story notes that it's unclear whether either Cheney or Libby knew at the time they discussed Plame that her status was classified. "But any effort by Mr. Libby to steer investigators away from his conversation with Mr. Cheney could be considered by [Fitzgerald] to be an illegal effort to impede the inquiry."
President Bush may or may not take questions today after his Rose Garden statement at 2:55 pm with the head of the Kurdistan regional government (note that Bush has another event, a photo op, scheduled for just 15 minutes later). White House spokesperson Scott McClellan suggested yesterday that Bush's 11:35 am address to a joint armed forces officers’ wives’ luncheon will include some recognition of the looming 2,000 KIA milestone for US troops in Iraq. Tonight, Bush headlines another $1 million fundraiser for the Republican National Committee.
(Is that not the definition of disconnect???)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9749969/
President Bush may or may not take questions today after his Rose Garden statement at 2:55 pm with the head of the Kurdistan regional government (note that Bush has another event, a photo op, scheduled for just 15 minutes later). White House spokesperson Scott McClellan suggested yesterday that Bush's 11:35 am address to a joint armed forces officers’ wives’ luncheon will include some recognition of the looming 2,000 KIA milestone for US troops in Iraq. Tonight, Bush headlines another $1 million fundraiser for the Republican National Committee.
(Is that not the definition of disconnect???)
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9749969/
10.24.2005
Frist is Caught in the Lie:
In January 2003, after winning election as majority leader, Frist was asked on CNBC whether his HCA holdings made it difficult for him to push for changes in Medicare, a federal health program for seniors that added to the hospital company's revenue.
"I think really for our viewers it should be understood that I put this into a blind trust," Frist replied. "So as far as I know, I own no HCA stock." He added that the trust was "totally blind. I have no control."
Two weeks before that interview, M. Kirk Scobey Jr., a Frist trustee, informed the senator in writing that one of his trusts had received HCA stock valued at between $15,000 and $50,000.
Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis, said she was surprised that Frist had ever claimed before this summer's liquidation that he might have owned no HCA stock. "Did he say that? What was he thinking of?" she asked. "How did he know to tell the trustee to sell it [his HCA stake] if he didn't know that he had it in the first place?"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/23/AR2005102301201_pf.html
"I think really for our viewers it should be understood that I put this into a blind trust," Frist replied. "So as far as I know, I own no HCA stock." He added that the trust was "totally blind. I have no control."
Two weeks before that interview, M. Kirk Scobey Jr., a Frist trustee, informed the senator in writing that one of his trusts had received HCA stock valued at between $15,000 and $50,000.
Kathleen Clark, a law professor at Washington University in St. Louis, said she was surprised that Frist had ever claimed before this summer's liquidation that he might have owned no HCA stock. "Did he say that? What was he thinking of?" she asked. "How did he know to tell the trustee to sell it [his HCA stake] if he didn't know that he had it in the first place?"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/23/AR2005102301201_pf.html
Republican Family Values
Embattled Sherwood Raises $26,000
The Hotline's called it "the quietest scandal ever." It's Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Don Sherwood 's legal battle over a $5.5 million assault and battery lawsuit filed by his former mistress, who claims he repeatedly beat her during their five-year relationship.
Sherwood, 64, married and hailing from a rural district around Wilkes-Barre, has admitted the affair with the now 29-year-old woman but denies assaulting her.
Perhaps as a result of this matter, Sherwood's poll ratings have dropped from 60 to 54 percent. But recent reports that a Green Party activist may enter the race next year should doom any Democratic chances of picking up the seat.
Even so, the House GOP leadership must be concerned enough about the little adultery/domestic violence distraction that it's going to the aid of its pal. A review by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington finds that Sherwood's October monthly financial report, filed recently with the Federal Election Commission, indicates his campaign committee received $5,000 contributions from the Keep Our Majority PAC (Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois), Rely on Your Beliefs Fund (Majority Leader Roy Blunt of Missouri), the Freedom Project ( John A. Boehner of Ohio) and TOMPAC ( Thomas M. Reynolds of New York).
Sherwood's campaign also received $2,500 from the PRYCE Project PAC ( Deborah Pryce of Ohio) and the Prosperity Helps Inspire Liberty PAC ( Phil English of Pennsylvania); and $1,000 from the Help America's Leaders PAC ( Harold Rogers of Kentucky).
That's $26,000 from GOP leadership PACs. Sherwood probably won't need it for his campaign, but CREW executive director Melanie Sloan notes the money can be spent on legal expenses as well as campaign expenses. Anything to support family values.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/23/AR2005102300948.html
The Hotline's called it "the quietest scandal ever." It's Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Don Sherwood 's legal battle over a $5.5 million assault and battery lawsuit filed by his former mistress, who claims he repeatedly beat her during their five-year relationship.
Sherwood, 64, married and hailing from a rural district around Wilkes-Barre, has admitted the affair with the now 29-year-old woman but denies assaulting her.
Perhaps as a result of this matter, Sherwood's poll ratings have dropped from 60 to 54 percent. But recent reports that a Green Party activist may enter the race next year should doom any Democratic chances of picking up the seat.
Even so, the House GOP leadership must be concerned enough about the little adultery/domestic violence distraction that it's going to the aid of its pal. A review by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington finds that Sherwood's October monthly financial report, filed recently with the Federal Election Commission, indicates his campaign committee received $5,000 contributions from the Keep Our Majority PAC (Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois), Rely on Your Beliefs Fund (Majority Leader Roy Blunt of Missouri), the Freedom Project ( John A. Boehner of Ohio) and TOMPAC ( Thomas M. Reynolds of New York).
Sherwood's campaign also received $2,500 from the PRYCE Project PAC ( Deborah Pryce of Ohio) and the Prosperity Helps Inspire Liberty PAC ( Phil English of Pennsylvania); and $1,000 from the Help America's Leaders PAC ( Harold Rogers of Kentucky).
That's $26,000 from GOP leadership PACs. Sherwood probably won't need it for his campaign, but CREW executive director Melanie Sloan notes the money can be spent on legal expenses as well as campaign expenses. Anything to support family values.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/23/AR2005102300948.html
Abromoff & Reed - A match made in Washington loot...
Here is an excertp, but all the meails published here really need to be read:
From Abramoff to Reed, January 18, 2002 2:28 p.m.:
I have an urgent matter for him. The Choctaws [the Mississippi Choctaws were an Abramoff client] -- who have given literally hundreds of thousands to our candidates and groups - are getting screwed at DoJ [The Department of Justice] on a jail funding . . . We really need some serious swat from Karl [Rove]. I have asked Susan [Ralston] to get me in to see him on this, but if you could mention it, perhaps I could get him the materials and save the need to meet? Thanks Ralph.
Reed to Ambramoff, January 20, 2002 10:57 p.m.:
ok
In addition to broaching the matter with the White House, Abramoff also lobbied Republicans and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, who wrote letters to Attorney General John Ashcroft supporting the jail's funding. Later in 2002, the Department of Justice released the money to the Mississippi Choctaws—another victory for Abramoff and Reed.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1121969,00.html
From Abramoff to Reed, January 18, 2002 2:28 p.m.:
I have an urgent matter for him. The Choctaws [the Mississippi Choctaws were an Abramoff client] -- who have given literally hundreds of thousands to our candidates and groups - are getting screwed at DoJ [The Department of Justice] on a jail funding . . . We really need some serious swat from Karl [Rove]. I have asked Susan [Ralston] to get me in to see him on this, but if you could mention it, perhaps I could get him the materials and save the need to meet? Thanks Ralph.
Reed to Ambramoff, January 20, 2002 10:57 p.m.:
ok
In addition to broaching the matter with the White House, Abramoff also lobbied Republicans and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate, who wrote letters to Attorney General John Ashcroft supporting the jail's funding. Later in 2002, the Department of Justice released the money to the Mississippi Choctaws—another victory for Abramoff and Reed.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1121969,00.html
Just as a reminder..
“It’s pretty interesting that all the generals see it the same way, and all the others who have never fired a shot, and are hot to go to war, see it another. … We are about to do something that will ignite a fuse in this region. [We] will rue the day we ever started.”
—Major General Anthony Zinni, (ret.) former chief of US Central Command, October 2002
—Major General Anthony Zinni, (ret.) former chief of US Central Command, October 2002
Miers Recieved "unprecedented" Legal Fees From Bush Campaign Funds
George W. Bush's rising political fortunes provided a windfall for Harriet Miers' law firm.
Campaign records show Bush's Texas gubernatorial campaigns paid Miers a total of $163,000 in legal fees, most of it for work done during the future president's 1998 re-election bid.
Some senators are planning to explore Miers' legal work for Bush during her confirmation process to be the newest Supreme Court justice, but the White House says it won't release any memos detailing that work.
"I'm baffled," said Randall B. Wood, a partner in the Austin firm of Ray, Wood and Bonilla, and former director of Common Cause of Texas. "I've never seen that kind of money spent on a campaign lawyer. It's unprecedented."
Dana Perrino, a White House spokeswoman, said the legal fees to Miers' firm were for routine campaign work, but declined to be more specific. Presidential aides declined to say whether Miers ever worked on researching Bush's past, such as his military record.
Former Texas Land Commissioner Garry Mauro, a Democrat who was defeated handily by Bush in the 1998 campaign, said both the amount and the timing of the payments are curious. In late September, when Miers' firm received the first of two $70,000 payments, Mauro said he trailed Bush in the polls by 35 points.
"If they're spending that kind of money," said Mauro, now an Austin attorney who estimates he spent less than $20,000 on legal fees during the campaign, "they're spending it to protect themselves from something."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051021/ap_on_go_su_co/miers_campaign_windfall
Campaign records show Bush's Texas gubernatorial campaigns paid Miers a total of $163,000 in legal fees, most of it for work done during the future president's 1998 re-election bid.
Some senators are planning to explore Miers' legal work for Bush during her confirmation process to be the newest Supreme Court justice, but the White House says it won't release any memos detailing that work.
"I'm baffled," said Randall B. Wood, a partner in the Austin firm of Ray, Wood and Bonilla, and former director of Common Cause of Texas. "I've never seen that kind of money spent on a campaign lawyer. It's unprecedented."
Dana Perrino, a White House spokeswoman, said the legal fees to Miers' firm were for routine campaign work, but declined to be more specific. Presidential aides declined to say whether Miers ever worked on researching Bush's past, such as his military record.
Former Texas Land Commissioner Garry Mauro, a Democrat who was defeated handily by Bush in the 1998 campaign, said both the amount and the timing of the payments are curious. In late September, when Miers' firm received the first of two $70,000 payments, Mauro said he trailed Bush in the polls by 35 points.
"If they're spending that kind of money," said Mauro, now an Austin attorney who estimates he spent less than $20,000 on legal fees during the campaign, "they're spending it to protect themselves from something."
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051021/ap_on_go_su_co/miers_campaign_windfall
In Case Anyone Else Loves Mythbusters as Much as I Do...
Researchers all but zap ancient death ray myth
Attempt to recreate Greek solar weapon creates smoke, but little else
It wasn’t exactly the ancient siege of Syracuse, but rather a curious quest for scientific validation.
According to sparse historical writings, the Greek mathematician Archimedes torched a fleet of invading Roman ships by reflecting the sun’s powerful rays with a mirrored device made of glass or bronze.
More than 2,000 years later, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Arizona set out to recreate Archimedes’ fabled death ray Saturday in an experiment sponsored by the Discovery Channel program “MythBusters.”
Their attempts to set fire to an 80-year-old fishing boat using their own versions of the device, however, failed to either prove or dispel the myth of the solar death ray.
The MIT team’s first attempt with their contraption made of 300 square feet of bronze and glass failed to ignite a fire from 150 feet away. It produced smoldering on the boat’s wooden surface but no open flame. A second attempt from about 75 feet away lit only a small fire that burned itself out.
Mike Bushroe of the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory tried a mirrored system shaped like flower petals, but it failed to produce either smoke or flames.
“If this weapon had worked, it would have been the equivalent of a nuclear weapon in the ancient world,” Rees said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9787596/
Attempt to recreate Greek solar weapon creates smoke, but little else
It wasn’t exactly the ancient siege of Syracuse, but rather a curious quest for scientific validation.
According to sparse historical writings, the Greek mathematician Archimedes torched a fleet of invading Roman ships by reflecting the sun’s powerful rays with a mirrored device made of glass or bronze.
More than 2,000 years later, researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Arizona set out to recreate Archimedes’ fabled death ray Saturday in an experiment sponsored by the Discovery Channel program “MythBusters.”
Their attempts to set fire to an 80-year-old fishing boat using their own versions of the device, however, failed to either prove or dispel the myth of the solar death ray.
The MIT team’s first attempt with their contraption made of 300 square feet of bronze and glass failed to ignite a fire from 150 feet away. It produced smoldering on the boat’s wooden surface but no open flame. A second attempt from about 75 feet away lit only a small fire that burned itself out.
Mike Bushroe of the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory tried a mirrored system shaped like flower petals, but it failed to produce either smoke or flames.
“If this weapon had worked, it would have been the equivalent of a nuclear weapon in the ancient world,” Rees said.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9787596/
Today in History - Bush is trying to erase edition...
1940
The 40-hour work week went into effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
On Oct. 24, 1945, the United Nations officially came into existence as its charter took effect.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20051024.html
The 40-hour work week went into effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.
On Oct. 24, 1945, the United Nations officially came into existence as its charter took effect.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20051024.html
Republicans: Lying is Politics
Karl Rove, the senior White House adviser, and I. Lewis Libby Jr., who is Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, have been advised that they are in serious legal jeopardy. Other officials could also face charges in connection with the disclosure of the identity of an undercover C.I.A. officer in 2003.
On Sunday, Republicans appeared to be preparing to blunt the impact of any charges. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Republican of Texas , speaking on the NBC news program "Meet the Press," compared the leak investigation with the case of Martha Stewart and her stock sale, "where they couldn't find a crime and they indict on something that she said about something that wasn't a crime."
Ms. Hutchison said she hoped "that if there is going to be an indictment that says something happened, that it is an indictment on a crime and not some perjury technicality where they couldn't indict on the crime and so they go to something just to show that their two years of investigation was not a waste of time and taxpayer dollars."
But allies of the White House have quietly been circulating talking points in recent days among Republicans sympathetic to the administration, seeking to help them make the case that bringing charges like perjury mean the prosecutor does not have a strong case, one Republican with close ties to the White House said Sunday. Other people sympathetic to Mr. Rove and Mr. Libby have said that indicting them would amount to criminalizing politics and that Mr. Fitzgerald did not understand how Washington works.
On Sunday, Republicans appeared to be preparing to blunt the impact of any charges. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Republican of Texas , speaking on the NBC news program "Meet the Press," compared the leak investigation with the case of Martha Stewart and her stock sale, "where they couldn't find a crime and they indict on something that she said about something that wasn't a crime."
Ms. Hutchison said she hoped "that if there is going to be an indictment that says something happened, that it is an indictment on a crime and not some perjury technicality where they couldn't indict on the crime and so they go to something just to show that their two years of investigation was not a waste of time and taxpayer dollars."
But allies of the White House have quietly been circulating talking points in recent days among Republicans sympathetic to the administration, seeking to help them make the case that bringing charges like perjury mean the prosecutor does not have a strong case, one Republican with close ties to the White House said Sunday. Other people sympathetic to Mr. Rove and Mr. Libby have said that indicting them would amount to criminalizing politics and that Mr. Fitzgerald did not understand how Washington works.
Gossip: DeLay had a facelift
Is DeLay delaying ravages of age?
Did Tom DeLay have a face lift?
Nip-and-tuck aficionados have been buzzing about the strangely stretched visage in the mug shot of the former Majority Leader, who is facing charges of conspiracy and money laundering.
The folks at AwfulPlasticSurgery.com have studied the recent pic and an earlier one, and concluded that DeLay has had a nose job. “One nostril is almost nonexistent, while the other looks normal,” it notes, adding, “Sometimes, when a rhinoplasty surgery goes wrong, there can be problems with nostrils healing properly.”
Additionally, bloggers have dug up info that when DeLay was elected majority leader, he had his teeth capped and that he once had his eyelids lifted, supposedly to help his vision.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9546085/
Did Tom DeLay have a face lift?
Nip-and-tuck aficionados have been buzzing about the strangely stretched visage in the mug shot of the former Majority Leader, who is facing charges of conspiracy and money laundering.
The folks at AwfulPlasticSurgery.com have studied the recent pic and an earlier one, and concluded that DeLay has had a nose job. “One nostril is almost nonexistent, while the other looks normal,” it notes, adding, “Sometimes, when a rhinoplasty surgery goes wrong, there can be problems with nostrils healing properly.”
Additionally, bloggers have dug up info that when DeLay was elected majority leader, he had his teeth capped and that he once had his eyelids lifted, supposedly to help his vision.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9546085/
Lawrence Wilkerson, a retired Army colonel who served as chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, addressed the administration's arrogance..
...and ineptitude in a talk last week that was astonishingly candid by Washington standards.
"The case that I saw for four-plus years was a case that I have never seen in my studies of aberrations, bastardizations, perturbations, changes to the national security decision-making process. What I saw was a cabal between the vice president of the United States, Richard Cheney, and the secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld, on critical issues that made decisions that the bureaucracy did not know were being made."
When the time came to implement the decisions, said Mr. Wilkerson, they were "presented in such a disjointed, incredible way that the bureaucracy often didn't know what it was doing as it moved to carry them out."
Where was the president? According to Mr. Wilkerson, "You've got this collegiality there between the secretary of defense and the vice president, and you've got a president who is not versed in international relations and not too much interested in them either."
http://select.nytimes.com/2005/10/24/opinion/23herbert.html?th&emc=th
"The case that I saw for four-plus years was a case that I have never seen in my studies of aberrations, bastardizations, perturbations, changes to the national security decision-making process. What I saw was a cabal between the vice president of the United States, Richard Cheney, and the secretary of defense, Donald Rumsfeld, on critical issues that made decisions that the bureaucracy did not know were being made."
When the time came to implement the decisions, said Mr. Wilkerson, they were "presented in such a disjointed, incredible way that the bureaucracy often didn't know what it was doing as it moved to carry them out."
Where was the president? According to Mr. Wilkerson, "You've got this collegiality there between the secretary of defense and the vice president, and you've got a president who is not versed in international relations and not too much interested in them either."
http://select.nytimes.com/2005/10/24/opinion/23herbert.html?th&emc=th
10.23.2005
Miers Takes Advantage of Govt in Land Sale...
Miers family received 'excessive' sum in land
Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers collected more than 10 times the market value for a small slice of family-owned land in a large Superfund pollution cleanup site in Dallas where the state wanted to build a highway off-ramp.
The windfall came after a judge who received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Miers' law firm appointed a close professional associate of Miers and an outspoken property-rights activist to the three-person panel that determined how much the state should pay.
The resulting six-figure payout to the Miers family in 2000 was despite the state’s objections to the "excessive” amount and to the process used to set the price. The panel recommended paying nearly $5 a square foot for land that was valued at less than 30 cents a square foot.
Mediation efforts in 2003 reduced the award from $106,915 to $80,915, but Miers, who controls the family’s interest in the land, hasn’t reimbursed the state for the $26,000 difference, even after Bush appointed her to the Supreme Court.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/12973371.htm
Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers collected more than 10 times the market value for a small slice of family-owned land in a large Superfund pollution cleanup site in Dallas where the state wanted to build a highway off-ramp.
The windfall came after a judge who received thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Miers' law firm appointed a close professional associate of Miers and an outspoken property-rights activist to the three-person panel that determined how much the state should pay.
The resulting six-figure payout to the Miers family in 2000 was despite the state’s objections to the "excessive” amount and to the process used to set the price. The panel recommended paying nearly $5 a square foot for land that was valued at less than 30 cents a square foot.
Mediation efforts in 2003 reduced the award from $106,915 to $80,915, but Miers, who controls the family’s interest in the land, hasn’t reimbursed the state for the $26,000 difference, even after Bush appointed her to the Supreme Court.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/12973371.htm
"You allowed your fighters to be laid down facing west and burned. You are too scared to retrieve the bodies. This just proves you are the lady boys we always believed you to be."
An unidentified U.S. soldier, in a videotape by an Australian photojournalist that appears to show troops burning the bodies of two dead Taliban fighters and taunting villagers with their smoking corpses; the Army is investigating
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9785753/site/newsweek/
An unidentified U.S. soldier, in a videotape by an Australian photojournalist that appears to show troops burning the bodies of two dead Taliban fighters and taunting villagers with their smoking corpses; the Army is investigating
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9785753/site/newsweek/
10.22.2005
Green's Washington Values: It's Okay to Take Freebies from Indicted D.C. Lobbyist
After Taking Tickets from the Indicted Jack Abramoff’s Firm, Green’s Campaign Manager Says That’s Just How Washington Works
MADISON – After trying to cover up the fact that he took ticket freebies from indicted Washington, D.C. lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s firm, Mark Green’s campaign manager Mark Graul is now excusing the behavior by saying that’s just the way business is done in Washington.
Records show that Graul, as Green’s Washington Chief of Staff, repeatedly took ticket freebies for Abramoff’s skybox in D.C. for NBA games, concerts, and a WWF event. But Graul initially tried to deny it, saying he never asked for tickets from Abramoff and doesn’t know the scandal-plagued lobbyist.
Now Graul’s story is changing once again. His new excuse: taking freebies from indicted lobbyists is just business-as-usual in Washington.
“I believe it’s illegal in Madison” to take freebies, Graul told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “It’s legal in Washington.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/21/2005]
“Once again, Mark Green is showing the people of Wisconsin that he supports the culture of corruption that has entangled Republicans in Washington,” said Joe Wineke, Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “Mark Green seems to think it’s okay for his staffers in Washington to take freebies from an indicted Washington lobbyist. That may be how business is done in Washington, but it’s not how things are done in Wisconsin.”
After first saying he never took any tickets from Abramoff, Graul then said he did attend a Washington Wizards-Milwaukee Bucks game in Washington, but didn’t remember how he got the tickets. But an email from Graul buddy and Abramoff staffer Jennifer Calvert to Abramoff’s assistant says: “May I get four tickets to this game for Mark Graul, COS for Rep. Green? If that works, I’d like to get two for myself as well, to host Mark. Thanks.” [TalkingPointsMemo.Com, 10/10/2005]
Now Graul says he attended three Wizards-Bucks games in D.C., and that he was the contact person to receive freebies. “From time to time, people would call and offer tickets,” Graul told the Journal Sentinel. “There were a handful of times we said yes.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/21/2005]
And, while Graul continues to deny knowing Abramoff, it seems Abramoff knew him. After a Graul request for tickets to the NBA All Star Game and Dunk Contest, Abramoff himself replied that Graul would be put on the list for tickets while he figured out what he was going to do with the suite that night.
“The number of favors given to Green’s congressional office raises the question of why Mark Green and his staff were such favorites of Jack Abramoff,” Wineke said. “What else did Mark Green get from Abramoff, and what did he do to win such favor?”
Considering the large number of tickets Graul took from Abramoff’s firm, it appears Graul may have even violated Washington’s limit on freebies from lobbyists, Wineke said.
Graul’s deception is similar to Green’s ever changing story about why he won’t get rid of the more than $30,000 he’s taken from the indicted Tom DeLay, a close Abramoff associate. Green now admits it would be legal to return the money, but says he needs the dirty DeLay money for his run for Governor.
http://www.wisdems.org/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/689253
MADISON – After trying to cover up the fact that he took ticket freebies from indicted Washington, D.C. lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s firm, Mark Green’s campaign manager Mark Graul is now excusing the behavior by saying that’s just the way business is done in Washington.
Records show that Graul, as Green’s Washington Chief of Staff, repeatedly took ticket freebies for Abramoff’s skybox in D.C. for NBA games, concerts, and a WWF event. But Graul initially tried to deny it, saying he never asked for tickets from Abramoff and doesn’t know the scandal-plagued lobbyist.
Now Graul’s story is changing once again. His new excuse: taking freebies from indicted lobbyists is just business-as-usual in Washington.
“I believe it’s illegal in Madison” to take freebies, Graul told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “It’s legal in Washington.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/21/2005]
“Once again, Mark Green is showing the people of Wisconsin that he supports the culture of corruption that has entangled Republicans in Washington,” said Joe Wineke, Chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. “Mark Green seems to think it’s okay for his staffers in Washington to take freebies from an indicted Washington lobbyist. That may be how business is done in Washington, but it’s not how things are done in Wisconsin.”
After first saying he never took any tickets from Abramoff, Graul then said he did attend a Washington Wizards-Milwaukee Bucks game in Washington, but didn’t remember how he got the tickets. But an email from Graul buddy and Abramoff staffer Jennifer Calvert to Abramoff’s assistant says: “May I get four tickets to this game for Mark Graul, COS for Rep. Green? If that works, I’d like to get two for myself as well, to host Mark. Thanks.” [TalkingPointsMemo.Com, 10/10/2005]
Now Graul says he attended three Wizards-Bucks games in D.C., and that he was the contact person to receive freebies. “From time to time, people would call and offer tickets,” Graul told the Journal Sentinel. “There were a handful of times we said yes.” [Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 10/21/2005]
And, while Graul continues to deny knowing Abramoff, it seems Abramoff knew him. After a Graul request for tickets to the NBA All Star Game and Dunk Contest, Abramoff himself replied that Graul would be put on the list for tickets while he figured out what he was going to do with the suite that night.
“The number of favors given to Green’s congressional office raises the question of why Mark Green and his staff were such favorites of Jack Abramoff,” Wineke said. “What else did Mark Green get from Abramoff, and what did he do to win such favor?”
Considering the large number of tickets Graul took from Abramoff’s firm, it appears Graul may have even violated Washington’s limit on freebies from lobbyists, Wineke said.
Graul’s deception is similar to Green’s ever changing story about why he won’t get rid of the more than $30,000 he’s taken from the indicted Tom DeLay, a close Abramoff associate. Green now admits it would be legal to return the money, but says he needs the dirty DeLay money for his run for Governor.
http://www.wisdems.org/ht/display/ReleaseDetails/i/689253
Milwaukee Magazine: Every morning, former legislator and current state Democratic chair Joe Wineke gets up, chews glass for breakfast...
..and starts chomping on Republicans, mostly Congressman Mark Green. Day in and day out, we get another broadside from Wineke, demanding that Green return the $30,000 in campaign donations he got from Congressman Tom DeLay.
This is hardly a major issue, but Wineke keeps firing away, and the issue has gotten play in the press and discussion by bloggers. And that’s exactly what Green doesn’t want.
Unlike Scott Walker, whose campaign has been plagued by mistakes, Green had been sailing along, with no negatives attached to his name. So why not just give back the $30,000? It’s a small price to pay to eliminate the issue. This is Public Relations 101: Put the story behind you and the public will forget by tomorrow.
Instead, Green has gotten into a game of claim and counterclaim with Democrats. Green says he can’t return the money legally. Democrats say he could give the money to a nonpartisan electoral cause. Green says the money has already been spent. Democrats say he has a huge war chest of donations. Green says he no longer has a federal campaign account (from his last race for Congress). Democrats say he does.
Does anyone really care about this? No, but it’s a diversion from Green’s message, and it puts him on the defensive. I would think Green is getting calls from Republican insiders telling him to give the money away and kill the issue. He would be well advised to listen.
http://www.milwaukeemagazine.com/murphyslaw/2005-10-11.asp
This is hardly a major issue, but Wineke keeps firing away, and the issue has gotten play in the press and discussion by bloggers. And that’s exactly what Green doesn’t want.
Unlike Scott Walker, whose campaign has been plagued by mistakes, Green had been sailing along, with no negatives attached to his name. So why not just give back the $30,000? It’s a small price to pay to eliminate the issue. This is Public Relations 101: Put the story behind you and the public will forget by tomorrow.
Instead, Green has gotten into a game of claim and counterclaim with Democrats. Green says he can’t return the money legally. Democrats say he could give the money to a nonpartisan electoral cause. Green says the money has already been spent. Democrats say he has a huge war chest of donations. Green says he no longer has a federal campaign account (from his last race for Congress). Democrats say he does.
Does anyone really care about this? No, but it’s a diversion from Green’s message, and it puts him on the defensive. I would think Green is getting calls from Republican insiders telling him to give the money away and kill the issue. He would be well advised to listen.
http://www.milwaukeemagazine.com/murphyslaw/2005-10-11.asp
A Good, Quick Write-up of Patient Abandonment
WI: Governor Vetoes 'Conscience Clause' Legislation
Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle (D) stood up for patients' rights by vetoing a bill last week that aimed to expand so-called 'conscience clause' protections for health care workers. Medical students and pharmacists who refused to participate in medical procedures or fulfill prescriptions they found objectionable would have been covered under the so-called ‘conscience clauses,’ and the bill would have protected workers from punishment even if they refused to refer a patient to another professional for the treatment, reports the Kaiser Daily Women’s Health Policy Report. The bill would also have lengthened the list of protected procedures to include the destruction of embryos, and the use of embryonic cells or fetal tissue not obtained from a miscarriage or stillbirth, in addition to already-protected abortion, euthanasia and sterilization procedures. The veto will stand, as there are not the necessary votes for an override, according to the Madison Capital Times.
In his veto message, Governor Doyle described this bill as “identical” to one that he vetoed in 2004, and strongly objected to the lack of referral requirements. “This bill doesn't even require health care providers to give you a referral to someone else if they object to a particular treatment,” Gov. Doyle said. “In fact, the doctor wouldn't even have to tell you about a treatment option that might exist. Even if your life was threatened, this bill would allow a doctor to withhold lifesaving medical care.” In a public statement announcing his veto, Doyle said, “Because it puts a doctor's political views ahead of the best interests of patients, this legislation ought to be called the ‘unconscionable clause.’”
http://www.msmagazine.com/news/uswirestory.asp?ID=9342
Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle (D) stood up for patients' rights by vetoing a bill last week that aimed to expand so-called 'conscience clause' protections for health care workers. Medical students and pharmacists who refused to participate in medical procedures or fulfill prescriptions they found objectionable would have been covered under the so-called ‘conscience clauses,’ and the bill would have protected workers from punishment even if they refused to refer a patient to another professional for the treatment, reports the Kaiser Daily Women’s Health Policy Report. The bill would also have lengthened the list of protected procedures to include the destruction of embryos, and the use of embryonic cells or fetal tissue not obtained from a miscarriage or stillbirth, in addition to already-protected abortion, euthanasia and sterilization procedures. The veto will stand, as there are not the necessary votes for an override, according to the Madison Capital Times.
In his veto message, Governor Doyle described this bill as “identical” to one that he vetoed in 2004, and strongly objected to the lack of referral requirements. “This bill doesn't even require health care providers to give you a referral to someone else if they object to a particular treatment,” Gov. Doyle said. “In fact, the doctor wouldn't even have to tell you about a treatment option that might exist. Even if your life was threatened, this bill would allow a doctor to withhold lifesaving medical care.” In a public statement announcing his veto, Doyle said, “Because it puts a doctor's political views ahead of the best interests of patients, this legislation ought to be called the ‘unconscionable clause.’”
http://www.msmagazine.com/news/uswirestory.asp?ID=9342
GAO: Electronic Voting Machines Can Be 'Fixed' Causing Hijacked Elections
While electronic voting systems hold promise for a more accurate and efficient election process, numerous entities have raised concerns about their security and reliability, citing instances of weak security controls, system design flaws, inadequate system version control, inadequate
security testing, incorrect system configuration, poor security management, and vague or incomplete voting system standards, among other issues. For example, studies found (1) some electronic voting systems did not encrypt cast ballots or system audit logs, and it was possible to alter both without being detected; (2) it was possible to alter the files that define how a ballot looks and works so that the votes for one candidate could be recorded for a different candidate; and (3) vendors installed uncertified versions of voting system software at the local level. It is important to note that many of the reported concerns were drawn from specific system makes and models or from a specific jurisdiction’s election, and that there is a lack of consensus among election officials and other experts on the pervasiveness of the concerns. Nevertheless, some of these concerns were reported to have caused local problems in federal elections—resulting in the loss or miscount of votes—and therefore merit attention.
Here's the report:
http://www.bradblog.com/Docs/GAOReport_ElectionSecurity_102105.pdf
Hre's one blogger's take:
http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00001940.htm
security testing, incorrect system configuration, poor security management, and vague or incomplete voting system standards, among other issues. For example, studies found (1) some electronic voting systems did not encrypt cast ballots or system audit logs, and it was possible to alter both without being detected; (2) it was possible to alter the files that define how a ballot looks and works so that the votes for one candidate could be recorded for a different candidate; and (3) vendors installed uncertified versions of voting system software at the local level. It is important to note that many of the reported concerns were drawn from specific system makes and models or from a specific jurisdiction’s election, and that there is a lack of consensus among election officials and other experts on the pervasiveness of the concerns. Nevertheless, some of these concerns were reported to have caused local problems in federal elections—resulting in the loss or miscount of votes—and therefore merit attention.
Here's the report:
http://www.bradblog.com/Docs/GAOReport_ElectionSecurity_102105.pdf
Hre's one blogger's take:
http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00001940.htm
10.21.2005
The Great Eric Alterman in the Nation: The Liberals are the Majority
Here is the liberals' problem in a nutshell: More than 30 percent of Americans happily answer to the appellation "conservative," while 18 percent call themselves "liberal." And yet when questioned by pollsters, a super-majority of more than 60 percent take positions liberal in everything but name. Indeed, on many if not most issues, Americans hold views well to the left of those espoused by almost any national Democratic politician.
In a May survey published by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, 65 percent of respondents said they favor providing health insurance to all Americans, even if it means raising taxes, and 86 percent said they favor raising the minimum wage. Seventy-seven percent said they believe the country "should do whatever it takes to protect the environment.'' A September Gallup Poll finds that 59 percent consider the Iraq War a mistake and 63 percent agree that US forces should be partially or completely withdrawn.
The money quote:
(If our leading political reporters were forced to address these authors' evidence or to stop mouthing the nonsense dominating their own stories, our politics would be transformed overnight.)
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051107/alterman
In a May survey published by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, 65 percent of respondents said they favor providing health insurance to all Americans, even if it means raising taxes, and 86 percent said they favor raising the minimum wage. Seventy-seven percent said they believe the country "should do whatever it takes to protect the environment.'' A September Gallup Poll finds that 59 percent consider the Iraq War a mistake and 63 percent agree that US forces should be partially or completely withdrawn.
The money quote:
(If our leading political reporters were forced to address these authors' evidence or to stop mouthing the nonsense dominating their own stories, our politics would be transformed overnight.)
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051107/alterman
The Beginning of the End of the Middle Class...
“Workers didn't simply earn more,” says Shaiken. “They drove into the middle class. Now we're looking at far more exit ramps from the middle class.”
Thursday, Ford said it will announce a restructuring plan in January that cuts plants and jobs. Meanwhile, auto parts maker Delphi began presenting proposals to its unions to reduce their pay. Before declaring bankruptcy, Delphi asked for a 60 percent wage cut.
The UAW Thursday acknowledged labor's tough choices.
"The tentative agreement is an essential step toward insuring that General Motors is a competitive and financially sound corporation," said UAW President Ron Gettelfinger.
Retiree John Sanderson wants GM to survive, but he also wants the health care promised him. “For them to take anything away from me, to change anything, is stealing from me,” he says.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9766281/
Universal, single-payer healthcare is the only save for American industry and the middle class.
Thursday, Ford said it will announce a restructuring plan in January that cuts plants and jobs. Meanwhile, auto parts maker Delphi began presenting proposals to its unions to reduce their pay. Before declaring bankruptcy, Delphi asked for a 60 percent wage cut.
The UAW Thursday acknowledged labor's tough choices.
"The tentative agreement is an essential step toward insuring that General Motors is a competitive and financially sound corporation," said UAW President Ron Gettelfinger.
Retiree John Sanderson wants GM to survive, but he also wants the health care promised him. “For them to take anything away from me, to change anything, is stealing from me,” he says.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9766281/
Universal, single-payer healthcare is the only save for American industry and the middle class.
10.20.2005
Am I to assume this guy plans on being buried in a Native-American burial mound?
I read the article about the Hmong heritage for funeral services, and it make me angry that the Hmong want so much to come to the United States and live instead of their own land, and they want to keep their heritage going? Nonsense. If the Hmong chooses to leave their land, leave their heritage back there too. Learn our rules and our heritage. Period!
Dan Fisher Oshkosh
Click headline for link...
Here's a nomination for Olbermann's 'Worst Person in the World'....
Dan Fisher Oshkosh
Click headline for link...
Here's a nomination for Olbermann's 'Worst Person in the World'....
10.19.2005
Thought of the Day...
You never notice how many old-school Ford Escorts there are out there until you start driving one...
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