A River's water of thoughts

Shooting at Fort Hood Army Base

2009-11-05T22:36:29Z

http://community.livejournal.com/ontd_political/4543801.html
http://community.livejournal.com/ontd_political/4544200.html

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/11/05/texas.fort.hood.shootings/index.html

It's horrible.

Fort Hood is home to about 60,000 people. It is about the size of a city. It is the world's largest military base.

It happened in the solider readiness center which is the area where soliders get the last medical check-up before shipping out and coming in.

CNN is saying that ABC out of Waco (which is near Kileen) said the shooters named is major Malique Nadal Hassan.

There is 12 dead. 11 are victims. Of those 11 one was a civilian cop contracted as military police. One of those civilian MP's killed the shooter.

http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/05/reports-of-mass-shooting-at-fort-hood/?hp

Update | 7:41 p.m. Given that Thursday’s shooting spree took place at a readiness center, where troops were about to be deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, the subject will certainly turn to combat stress. A description of the work of the Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress, where Major Nidal Hasan, the suspected gunman who was killed on Thursday at Fort Hood, says this:

The Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress (CSTS) addresses both the invisible and visible wounds of war through research, education and consultation. The invisible wounds of war include the mental health consequences of deployment. These can range from normal distress to the treatable mental disorders of depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Warrior wounds can also involve health risks such as increased use of tobacco, alcohol and/or drugs that can result in violence to self, spouse and/or children.

Update | 7:22 p.m. Information about Dr. Nidal Hasan posted on a Virginia Board of Medicine Web site includes a note that he saw patients at Darnell Army Medical Center Monday through Friday.

http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/blotter/entries/2009/11/05/officials_shooting_suspect_dis.html

Officials: Shooting suspect discussed suicide bombings, other threats online
Thursday, November 5, 2009, 07:30 PM

FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS:

Federal law enforcement officials say the suspected Fort Hood, Texas, shooter had come to their attention at least six months ago because of Internet postings that discussed suicide bombings and other threats.

One of the Web postings that authorities reviewed is a blog that equates suicide bombers with a soldier throwing himself on a grenade to save the lives of his comrades.

“To say that this soldier committed suicide is inappropriate. Its more appropriate to say he is a brave hero that sacrificed his life for a more noble cause,” said the Internet posting. “Scholars have paralled (sic) this to suicide bombers whose intention, by sacrificing their lives, is to help save Muslims by killing enemy soldiers.”

http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/blotter/entries/2009/11/05/official_fort_hood_shooting_su.html

Official: Fort Hood shooting suspect not dead
By American-statesman staff | Thursday, November 5, 2009, 08:17 PM

Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the suspect in the Fort Hood shootings, has not been killed and is in stable condition at a hospital, Lt. Gen. Bob Cone said at a press conference at Fort Hood.

He is in custody at an undisclosed hospital, Cone said.

Three soldiers taken into custody after the shootings were released, he said. Investigators believe Hasan acted alone.

“Evidence does not suggest this was a terrorist event,” Cone said.

One of the first people to shoot Hasan was a civilian police officer who was shot but survived, said Cone, who added that earlier reports of a civilian officer dying were incorrect.

ACTA will put you in Jail

2009-11-05T16:13:46Z

Global treaty could throw file-sharers off Internet after ‘three strikes’ (November 05, 2009 - Raw Story - Daniel Tencer)

File-sharers could be jailed under proposed ACTA provisions

Leaked details of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement being negotiated in secret by most of the world's largest economies suggest Internet file-sharers could be blocked from accessing the Internet if they are repeatedly accused of sharing copyrighted material, say media and digital-rights watchdogs.

And the worst-case scenario could see popular Web sites like YouTube and Flickr shut down because of a provision in the treaty that would force them to monitor everything uploaded to the site for copyright violations.

Internet law professor Michael Geist published details of "leaked" portions of the discussions on ACTA on his blog Tuesday, as a new round of ACTA negotiations began in Seoul, South Korea. The US, along with all the countries of the European Union as well as Japan, Canada, Australia and a handful of other countries, are involved in the negotiations.

"The provisions would pave the way for a globalized three-strikes and you're out system," Geist blogged Wednesday, referring to a proposal from copyright holders to have Internet service providers cut off service to anyone accused at least three times of illegally sharing copyrighted material.

"This means that your entire family could be denied [access] to the Internet -- and hence to civic participation, health information, education, communications, and their means of earning a living -- if one member is accused of copyright infringement, without access to a trial or counsel," blogged tech writer and digital-rights supporter Cory Doctorow.

Doctorow also noted that another provision being proposed for the treaty would mean "that ISPs have to proactively police copyright on user-contributed material. This means that it will be impossible to run a service like Flickr or YouTube or Blogger, since hiring enough lawyers to ensure that the mountain of material uploaded every second isn't infringing will exceed any hope of profitability."

And, as Geist noted in a follow-up article on Wednesday, the proposed treaty could end up seeing file-sharers jailed for sharing copyrighted material, even if they had no financial gain from the transaction.

Geist wrote that the treaty, as currently proposed, would "extend criminal enforcement to both (1) cases of a commercial nature; and (2) cases involving significant willful copyright and trademark infringement even where there is no direct or indirect motivation of financial gain. In other words, non-commercial infringement could lead to criminal penalties."

"The US government appears to be pushing for Three Strikes to be part of the new global IP enforcement regime which ACTA is intended to create -– despite the fact that it has been categorically rejected by the European Parliament and by national policymakers in several ACTA negotiating countries, and has never been proposed by US legislators," writes Gwen Hinze at the Electronic Frontier Foundation.

ACTA negotiations were being held entirely in secret until this past May, when the Wikileaks Web site released a 2007 draft proposal.

The Obama administration has resisted attempts to make the negotiations public, though it did make an exemption for a long list of senior executives at major corporations.

In June, the administration announced it would continue the ACTA negotiations started under the previous administration.

The ACTA Treay and how it will take away your internet and land your ass in jail!!

2009-11-05T15:52:14Z

ACTA is being touted as an Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement. It's not. It's a vastly reaching copyright enforcement law that will be far more powerful, malicious, destructive than DMCA. This treaty is being designed in SECRET by members or people, whom we do not know their names because of "national security" as agents of our government and 40 other nations.

As a citizen of this nation YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY RIGHT TO EVEN LOOK AT THE WHAT THE TREATY IS PROPOSING! As a worker of any big company you do, but you have to sign a non-disclousre agreement in compesation of being able to read it.

Why? Because the Government, Bush and Obama, have deemed this as a National Security necessary secret.

Other Nations have sued or been given a look at the all powerful secrety treat that is still in the works. It's been in the works since 2007. But us? Oh no, we are given the National Security excuse and told that is all we need to know.

Now we know. Now we are pissed and now we are scared. Because now we know, through a leaked document, what this treaty is about to propose.

Have any of you EVER downloaded music, video, images, wrote fanfiction? Because now through ACTA if you have and if you have been given a take-down notice by the propose owners of the copyright material that you have SUPPOSEDLY violated, then after three times your ISP will be ordered by the GOVERNMENT to take away your homesteads internet service.

That's right, your internet service of your instead house/apartment, etc.

That means even if you yourself have NEVER downloaded ANYTHING at all and only use your computer as a means to surf the internt to check your e-mail but your kid or husband has then ALL OF YOU lose your internet.

This is also most likely going to be in addition of some fine for violation of copyright law and even possibly JAIL TIME!

Don't believe me? Think I'm just over reacting to things?

Then read what the experts are saying:

* That ISPs have to proactively police copyright on user-contributed material. This means that it will be impossible to run a service like Flickr or YouTube or Blogger, since hiring enough lawyers to ensure that the mountain of material uploaded every second isn't infringing will exceed any hope of profitability.

* That ISPs have to cut off the Internet access of accused copyright infringers or face liability. This means that your entire family could be denied to the internet -- and hence to civic participation, health information, education, communications, and their means of earning a living -- if one member is accused of copyright infringement, without access to a trial or counsel.

* That the whole world must adopt US-style "notice-and-takedown" rules that require ISPs to remove any material that is accused -- again, without evidence or trial -- of infringing copyright. This has proved a disaster in the US and other countries, where it provides an easy means of censoring material, just by accusing it of infringing copyright.

* Mandatory prohibitions on breaking DRM, even if doing so for a lawful purpose (e.g., to make a work available to disabled people; for archival preservation; because you own the copyrighted work that is locked up with DRM)
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/11/03/secret-copyright-tre.html

Secret Copyright Treaty Will Ruin the Internet (November 04, 2009 - The Atlantic Wire - Carl Franzen)

Leaked details of a proposed international Internet treaty have tech bloggers throwing fits. Negotiators from the U.S. many other nations are meeting behind closed doors in Seoul this week to hammer out the details of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). The pact is designed to clamp down on the Internet's multifarious illegal file-swapping community by holding service providers accountable for their users' activities.

Bloggers are blasting the treaty, as you'd expect, but are also fulminating against the government's opacity, the companies' cooperation, and big news organizations for failing to sound the alarm:

* Patricio Robles, Econsultancy: "ACTA could be the worst thing for the internet- ever…Not only would ACTA be bad for citizens of the member nations, it would put businesses in those member nations at a significant disadvantage."

* Mike Masnick, Techdirt: "There is simply no reason for ACTA, at all. It is nothing but an attempt by the entertainment industry to put massive restrictions on the internet, place liability on lots of third parties, and do nothing to push themselves to adapt to a changing marketplace with new business models."

* Jolie O'Dell, ReadWriteWeb: "Are international treaties governing Internet content and intellectual property even necessary? Insofar as they fly in the face of normative cultural practices and contradict or tighten existing national laws, we find these suggested measures inflexible and unrealistic."

* Nicholas Deleon, CrunchGear: "Everything’s very hush-hush, of course, and you don’t hear a damn thing about it on TV, no. No, that’s filled with crackpots on the left and right claiming that health care will fix everyone’s problems automatically or destroy the country as soon as it’s signed into law. As if things this complicated could be debated in 30-second segments."

* James Love, Huffington Post: "At this point, Congress needs to stand up and put an end to this appalling spectacle of secret legislation on a global scale. How can politicians claim to be all for transparency, and allow this indefensible violation of the public right to know proceed?…Earth to politicians -- you work for us, not the International Chamber of Commerce. Make this negotiation public!"

* Glyn Moody, Computerworld UK: "The whole ACTA saga is one of the most nauseating demonstrations of the contempt in which the Power-that-Be hold ordinary people and their interests. Sadly, it is not clear to me how to fight it…Any suggestions not involving insurrection?"

ACTA -- A Patriot Act For the Internet (November 04, 2009 - HuffPo - James Love)

This week 40 or so countries are meeting in South Korea to consider text for a new international agreement on the enforcement of intellectual property rights. It is called the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). The term "counterfeiting" is designed to demonize the agreement critics as friends of organized crime, much like the name of the Patriot Act seemed better than the "Elimination of Civil Liberties Act." It is really an agreement that addresses a wide range of intellectual property enforcement issues -- involving patents, copyrights, trademarks and other IPR. (Details here)

If you are a lowly member of the public, the text is secret. The names of persons who attend the meetings are secret. The titles of the documents are secret. If you represent a big firm or law firm -- pretty much any big firm it seems, the U.S. government will show you documents after you sign a non-disclosure agreement - curbing your right to speak out on the contents of the documents you see.

Some details of the negotiation have leaked out, most recently from a memo by Euopean Union describing the Obama Administration proposal for a new global system of Internet controls and liabilities. Michael Geist, Gwen Hienz of EFF, and a few journalists -- most living outside of the U.S., have written about ACTA.

The entire U.S. tech sector has been publicly silent, as the Obama administration has co-oped them into trading silence for access to the secret documents.

At this point, Congress needs to stand up and put an end to this appalling spectacle of secret legislation on a global scale. How can politicians claim to be all for transparency, and allow this indefensible violation of the public right to know proceed?

A large number of organizations and people have written President Obama asking that he end the secrecy of the negotiation. It is doubtful this will happen unless newspapers write about the issue (aren't they big advocates of the right to know?), members of Congress weigh in, or if the critics of the secret negotiation can mobilize public opinion.

There is a lot at stake. Civil rights, privacy, rules for injunctions and damages against businesses and individuals, chilling of speech, the first sale doctrine, the global movement of medicines and other commodities, etc, will all be impacted by this ridiculously secret negotiation.

Earth to politicians -- you work for us, not the International Chamber of Commerce. Make this negotiation public!

The language in the Sept. 30 memo shows the United States wants ISPs around the world to punish suspected, repeat downloaders with a system of “graduated response” — code for a three-strikes policy that results in the customer eventually being disconnected from the internet with the ISP alone deciding what constitutes infringement and fair use.

While the proposal specifically says that three strikes wouldn’t be mandated, it might as well be. That’s because companies that refused to implement the policy would be ejected from the “safe harbor” that otherwise protects them from copyright infringement lawsuits over the actions of their customers.

Currently, the DMCA grants immunity or a “safe harbor” to internet companies that promptly remove allegedly infringing content at the request of the copyright holder. Only if they fail to do so can they be held liable in court, and face up to $150,000 in damages per infringement.

Under the U.S. proposal described in the memo, removing infringing content would no longer be enough to qualify for safe harbor. Companies would have to actively work to combat the flow of unauthorized copyrighted material through their pipes, and specifically implement the “graduated response” program.

Here is the key paragraph:

“On the limitations from 3rd party liability: to benefit from safe-harbours, ISPs need to put in place policies to deter unauthorized storage and transmission of IP infringing content (ex: clauses in customers’ contracts allowing, inter alia, a graduated response). From what we understood, the US will not propose that authorities need to create such systems. Instead, they require some self-regulation by ISPs.”

Threat Level obtained the document on condition it not be posted, and we haven’t independently verified its authenticity, or that it accurately reflects the positions of the U.S. trade representatives. The document indicates the U.S. refused to turn over anything in writing itself, and briefed EU representatives on the plan orally in the hope of avoiding leaks.

The Obama administration has been obsessively secretive about the draft ACTA treaty — even, at one point, claiming national security could be jeopardized if the proposed treaty’s working documents were disclosed to the public. Now, it seems, we know what the administration is hiding.

Obama hasn’t asked Congress to implement a three-strike policy, which could anger consumers and watchdog groups. But if the administration gets three strikes written into ACTA, and the United States signs and ratifies the treaty, Congress would be obliged to change the DMCA to comply with it, while the administration throws its hands in the air and says, “It wasn’t our idea! It’s that damn treaty!”

That practice is common enough to have a name: policy laundering.

~

The three-strike language would be gold to companies like MediaSentry, which browse peer-to-peer networks for infringing content, and identify a user’s IP address and ISP. MediaSentry’s work was crucial in the RIAA’s 6-year-long litigation campaign that amounted to about 30,000 copyright lawsuits against individual file sharers using Kazaa, Limewire and other services.

LINKS on what ACTA is:
Lawfont.com: ACTA: here we go again? (Australia)
Lawfont.com: Geist on ACTA (Australia)
Electronic Frontiers Australia (Australia)
InternetNZ alarmed by latest ACTA leaks (New Zealand)
ip-watch.org
WikiLeaks: ACTA search
Wiki Leaks: Talk:Classified US, Japan and EU ACTA trade agreement drafts, 2009
Wiki Leaks: Classified US, Japan and EU ACTA trade agreement drafts, 2009
Petition to Obama - keionline.org
The ACTA Internet Chapter: Putting the Pieces Together
ACTA Negotiations, Day Two: What's On Tap
ACTA Internet Chapter Leak Signals Far-Reaching Copyright Policy
Leaked ACTA Internet Provisions: Three Strikes and a Global DMCA
ISPs Soon Forced to Police Your Internet Behavior?
Secret Anti-Piracy Treaty Turns ISPs into Pirates
EU Breaks Deadlock in Debate Over Right to Internet Access (November 05, 2009 - PC World - Paul Meller, IDG News Service)

That is it. I've had it about these fucking companies influencing laws and governments and getting their fucking way. I've had it.

I'm emailing my congressman. I'm linking to these articles. they have got to know this isn't about piracy anymore this uninforcable and its trying to censor the internet!!

I'm going to write out a long e-mail to my local newspapers.

It is time that we stood up and told these fuckers, no more. Just because I do a little downloading here and there does not mean I am not entitled to my rights as a human being.

this law will make it to where the burden of proof lies on me that I didn't break the law. It is almost impossible to defend against this law. They could say I illegally downloaded music when maybe I just ripped a cd I bought to play music on my computer.

Or about webpages or youtube. They could say that all the film about the Iran Riots and Protests is copywrited and if I uploaded any of it that I'm a pirate.

This, this is fucking insane.

The results

2009-11-04T10:23:50Z

Well we all know how Main's Prop 1 went. 87% of it counted and it went to the YES. I call voter fraud and a recount. Nate said it would be NO by 70%. Something is wrong here.

Oh btw, Main passed the medical marijuna distributing bill. So they get their dope but no gay marriages.

Houston is most likely going to have a gay Mayor.

New York City elected two Asians to office, one citywide as comptroller and the other in Manhattan as councilwoman.

Boomberg wasted a lot of money to get his squeaked by win. Which is pissing off the Democrats because the Democratic Party didn't even campaign hard for their guy.

Washington is about to extend domestic partner benefits to same sex parters. In essence they are getting the separate but equal clause of 'gay marriage' not in name. Nate Silver is suggesting that maybe the GBLT should focus on this a compromise to get the benefits to same sex parterns. But we all know that once it gets passed (Nationwide) it will eventually get challenged in the Supreme Court because separate but equal is unconstitutional in all regards.

It seems that Austin passed it so that it is expanding COBRA+ to domestic partners. Since you know in 2006 Texas made the constitutional amendment where Gay Marriage and Civil Unions are not ALLOWED or RECOGNIZED.

And ALL 11 propositions passed in Texas.

Highest in the world!!!

2009-11-03T08:45:32Z

No wonder our system is so damn broken. they our robbing us blind.

U.S. Medical Prices Highest In the World
Posted by: Cathy Arnst on November 02

There is a set of charts flying around the policy blogosphere today that starkly illustrates why the U.S. devotes almost 18% of its gross domestic product to health care spending, while other wealthy nations spend no more than 10% or 11%: Because we pay far, far more per unit of care than any other country.

The 36-page document was put together in September by the International Federation of Health Plans, which represents 100 insurers in 31 countries. It consists of a number of charts that show the difference between what the U.S. pays for any number of medical services, and what other industrialized countries pay.

Voting

2009-11-03T07:38:16Z

Tomorrow is election day in some states. Some for Governors others for Mayors.

For us in Texas we have 11 Constitutional Amendments going up for vote.

The Burnt Orange Report has a great lowdown on what they are and what major newspapers are endorsing and their own endorsements.

Me, No on Prop 1-3, Yes on Prop 4-8, No on Prop 9-11.

I know a lot of people support Prop 9 (Open Beaches Act) and Prop 11 (Eminent Domain) but I'm against them. First, 9 is taking people's property away from them in cases of land eroison that cause public beaches to become private property. And 11 is just going to screw up the emminent domain laws more than what it is already is and will not FIX/REFORM them. Not to mention that Governor Goodhair (Perry) and Hutchinson and the Texas Tea Party LIKE it!

And seriously there are some amendments here that are ridiculous. Did Prop 5 and Prop 7 really have to exist? Seriously, couldn't we have made LAWS and not constitutional amendments? I know 7 is to add the National Guard to exempt that already has everyone else added...but couldn't we have just tossed the old amendment out and just made a new LAW that did the same thing?

What about Prop 5? A constitutional admendment to dictate how apprasial boards work in concert with each other?!

And Prop 10?! "Proposition 10 would ... allow members of governing boards of Texas emergency service districts to serve terms not to exceed four years." --League of Women Voters Guide

Austin Chronicle: YES. "But trivial, and this belongs in ordinary legislation, not the state constitution."

El Paso Times: YES. "This would provide more continuity and experience on the boards."

Fort Worth Star-Telegram: NO. "This is goofy. There's no good reason why board members of obscure districts in Harris County should have longer terms than members of the Texas House."

Houston Tea Party Patriots: No Endorsement.

Sen. Kirk Watson's "Watson Wire:" YES. It "would lengthen the term of emergency services district board members from two to four years."

*sighs* *shakes head*

Oh for god's sake why can't Texas do something logical for a change!!!

an absolutely beautiful music video (in Korean)

2009-11-01T15:46:20Z

Can anyone tell what he is singing?

creeped out

2009-11-01T11:49:42Z

There is something on my roof. I can hear it. It walked across my roof. A drops of something fell in from a leak but there is no rain, no water.

I heard it move from like directly over me across the room, over the kitchen towards anothing room.

It had been making noise for like thirty minutes. So I had enough and got my flashlight and got some shoes on and went outside. I was afraid that the dog would scare it away so I left the dog in the house. I went outside and you could HEAR it moving. It was like branches of a tree smacking across the roof but the wind was still and we cut back the branches.

I thought it might be racoons (as a couple times we hear the noise on the roof and then they appear in the damaged room) but they usually go to the damaged room and not across the whole roof. This was something new.

And it really freaked me out when I heard droplets of rain coming in or dripping as if a little block in the leak had cleared and it just comes in a line and then it drips the rest out. But there was NO RAIN in the sky. There was no DROPLETS either. I could hear it but I couldn't see it! To be fair there is a giant ass piece of plywood blocking me from seeing perfectly in that direction but - oh shit it started again. I moved around a bit of the plywood. still no leak. wtf?

It could be mist...or dew or something....but there is no evidence. Just the drip drip drip sound.

So after a while I went out to see what it was. I could hear it. But I couldn't see anything. It wasn't over the kitchen anymore. So I thought it was on the other room. So I looked around the pitch that I could see of the roof but there was nothing. Still that noise persisted. I should have seen something, right?

So I went to my car and got my big ass black metal cop flashlight - that damn dripping noise is still happening...only slower now. So I got my flashlight and I went around to look at the other side of the other room and still nothing. But still that noise persisted.

I was just about to get off the sidewalk in from of bend driveway (we have u driveway the first entrance is grass and the second is gravel).

Now I'm bit worried as I hear the noise and still can't see anything. What if it is a possum or something? I was trying to look in front me so I wouldn't step in any fire ant beds or snakes or mice.

I saw something in the corner of my eye. I thought it was a leaf in a spider web or something. I turned the flashlight and it was something flying. Okay maybe it's a moth or a butterfly. But it had glowy eyes from my flashlight. That means a bat right? It's a bat, right?

I continue on to look and I see nothing but I still hear that noise. As if something is pounding on the roof or stepping across it or...or scratching it. As if to get inside.

It's cold. 40 something in Texas is cold. I'm all alone in my pjs with two flashlights. Granted one of them could kill a person...or animal but still I'm alone with no real weapon and it's dark as pitch outside. After all it is 5:30 in the morning with the time change since daylight savings is over.

And the noise is starting to get to me and then there is that bat just hovering there in front of me (okay ten or so feet in front of me) just staring at me and it's the morning after Halloween. I freak and take off inside.

No more noise. Except for that damn dripping.

Got any ideas as to what it was?

found this

2009-11-01T10:10:48Z

headdesk

2009-10-31T19:54:43Z

I friended my mom's cousin on Facebook and I called mom to get a check-up on grandpa. He's doing much better and they think they got all the cancer cells out just awaiting tests to see what type of cancer.

Computer is still making noise. I took the case off and sprayed canned air inside and cleaned most of it up. But it's still making that noise. It does sound better. I have two fans in there plus the ac cooling one. I'm thinking the middle fan is the one making the noise. I just hope this is easily fixable.

My school and work depend on my having access to a computer.

Does anyone know how to save your booksmarks to a portable drive? I copied my desktop, program files and my documents. But I don't know how to save my bookmarks. I have Chrome, IE, FireFox, Safari and Opera.

Now back to the cousin. I posted an update mentioning that I was frustrated/upset about my computer, grandpa, my step-dad being an ass. You know, typical venting stuff hoping that someone will send a virtual hug. Nothing happens, as usual.

But my mom's counsin blabbed about it to my mom and grandma. Cousin mentioned that I was upset. Mom was taken aback and didn't know what cousin was talking about. Cousin mentions that it most likely had to do, since I mentioned it, about grandpa's surgery. Grandma flipped her lid, "she better not have mentioned any of our names on that. I will stop that right now..blah blah blah." Cousin mentioned I didn't mention names. Still grandma upset.

Now I'm trying to figure out how to 'quiet' the cousin from reading my posts. I don't want to unfriend her because she's family and a blabber...but this is one of my conservative members of the family and other four I have on my friends list are quiet and don't say shit so I never expected for cousin to talk about my stuff.

Now I'm worried about all the stuff on my profile. I'm a flaming liberal and mom was laughing that if cousin kept talking about stuff (mom will talk to cousin about not sharing with grandma my posts and we will see if she keeps word and if not...unfriended she will be) that pretty soon I might get asked by grandma if I'm gay because I put a lot of articles and stuff for lgbt rights and stuff.

*sighs*

Not that I care if I'm asked. Which I'm not...at least I don't think so. It's just FAMILY DRAMA with the conservatives. Being liberal is being a minority in my family.

*listens to her computer grind up and down like a fan dying* *sighs*

My fandom in my politics? Loving the lulz...

2009-10-30T06:31:16Z

You know what is so cool? Having our Reps and Senators call out people as characters from our favorite books series.

Homeland Security Committee hearing last Thursday, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) likened Fox News talk show host Glenn Beck to Voldemort, a diabolical character in the Harry Potter series. The hearing focused on the numerous policy "czars" that have been named by President Obama, an issue that has been a frequent topic on Beck's program.

The full article

And of course ontd_p has their spin on things.

Here are some of the better ones.

Does this make Obama Harry potter?
I can dig it.
Ew, no. He might not be a ~Dumbledore~ but he'd be at least a Lupin or a Sirius...

Cheney is voldemort pre-book 4. That ain't no human, even one with its soul chopped up.
AND THE WMDs ARE HIS HORCRUX AND WE WILL NEVER FIND THEM.
If we find some empty nuclear power station with a note from R.A.B. I'm going to have to cut a bitch.

I'd almost say he's a Peter Pettigrew with more gall.
Ingratiating himself to power when it's plain he's just a sad, skeezy little man? I can see that?
yeah, that's it
he even kind of looks like a rat.

It really is amusing to think about how much Harry Potter has infiltrated American politial discourse. Especially the "REPUBLICANS FOR VOLDEMORT" bumper stickers I keep seeing. And weren't people calling the brownshirt segment of the GOP "Death Eaters" at one point?

Biden can be Neville! :D

Rahm is such a slytherin though. Totally in a good way.
in that case...he can be blaise zabini. the only slytherin i can tolerate
isn't he nasty though in the slug club chapter?
Rahm is a slytherin in the way Luna is a Ravenclaw.

I always thought they modeled the VPs on the West Wing after the Ministers of Magic.

Does that mean Claire gets to be McGonagal? I think the comparison is apt. Smart, no-nonsense women that don't take crap from anyone FTW!
bitch plz, Hillary is McGonagal

Bets as to how long it takes for the far right-wing to start denouncing this woman as a heathen for reading the "satanic" Harry Potter novels?

Ok, We need to figure out who is what character.

If Obama is Potter .... Who is Snape, his protector with a bad ass attitude- Rham Emanual perhaps? I don't know.
I can think of so many Umbridges- Palin is the best one for right now. "Sweet" and fiercely dangerous.

That Beck is even being included -- named or not -- in a Senate Homeland Security Committee discussion about constitutional law is so depressing.
have issues with Obama being Harry, for one reason only:
Book 5.
If anything, Glen Beck's crazy, over emotional, melodramatic ass is more like book 5!Harry.

O hellz naw, I hope Obama doesn't have those giant hissy fits and turns into a total dickwad to someone close to him.
STILL not forgiving Harry for what he said to Lupin, NOPE.

Grandpa's Surgery

2009-10-29T03:55:35Z

My mom went to Kerrville Monday because my grandma was having surgery on Tuesday.

My grandpa had checkups and a colonoscopy a few months back and they removed some pallups(?) and discovered something in his stomach. It turned out to be a tumor so they scheduled a surgery to remove it before it caused cancer.

The surgery was supposed to be early Tuesday morning but because of setbacks, being overrun with other issues and stuff the surgery didn't take place until 5:30pm.

Mom called me and the surgery went good and he went into recovery. This afternoon I called to see how things went. Last night was bad. He was in a lot of pain because of the bloating/gas that they did because of the type of surgery?

Mom and grandma had stayed at the hospital over the night and they got up and walking to help expell things.

I just got off the phone with mom and he is doing better...but still this was major surgery, even if it was done larscoptically, and he is 81 years old. Grandma is staying with him in the hospital and mom went to their place to sleep.

Good news is that my mom's sick computer got fixed by the marine buddy of my brothers AND he's offered to put the ram into my computer if I buy it.

It finally PASSED!

2009-10-29T02:41:15Z

Today our most awesome president ever has signed into law the Matthew Sheppard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Bill.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Shepard_Act

This is what the Matthew Shepard Act does:

It expands coverage of the already existing Federal Hate Crime Law to include crimes motivated by a victim's actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.

And

The bill also:

1. removes the current prerequisite that the victim be engaging in a federally-protected activity, like voting or going to school;

2. gives federal authorities greater ability to engage in hate crimes investigations that local authorities choose not to pursue;

3. provides $10 million in funding for 2008 and 2009 to help state and local agencies pay for investigating and prosecuting hate crimes;

4. requires the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to track statistics on hate crimes against transgender people (statistics for the other groups are already tracked).

The Matthew Shepard Act is the first law in the history of the United States federal government to extend legal protections to transgender persons.

The K-Street Whore debacle

2009-10-28T06:43:33Z

People are upset at a comment that Alan Grayson (who lately has been badass at his criticism of the GOP "die quickly" health plan) made a comment a few months back that has been dug up.

He called a woman who had been recently hired to be a lobbyiest for the federal reserve a "K Street whore." Now women are all upset about it because of the connatations that the word has had to women.

But considering who this woman is...I think the definition might be fitting. This woman, Robertson, was the head of the lobbying arm of Enron.

Some are wondering if the blacklash is not due to her being a woman being called a whore but because of what it means to label lobbiests as whores.

Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) took Grayson's remark quite personally-- and for good reason. Shrieking that Grayson "is out of control"-- one of the reasons why so many Americans love him-- she didn't mention that she sits on the Committee on Natural Resources (and it's subcommittee on water and power) and has solicited immense sums of money (thinly veiled bribes) from forest products companies, oil and gas companies, and electric utilities and, coincidentally, I'm sure, always votes in their interests and against the public interest. And if people start calling lobbyists like Linda Robertson whores, how long before they start realizing that the Honorable Congresswoman from Spokane is also a whore-- as are almost all of her colleagues.

Perhaps he should have used a different word since 'whore' has that special connatation of hurt associated with it towards women. But the defintion he was using was correct.

As per TheFreeDictionary.com

whore (hôr, hr)
n.
1. A prostitute.
2. A person considered sexually promiscuous.
3. A person considered as having compromised principles for personal gain.
intr.v. whored, whor·ing, whores
1. To associate or have sexual relations with prostitutes or a prostitute.
2. To accept payment in exchange for sexual relations.
3. To compromise one's principles for personal gain.

lob·by (lb)
n. pl. lob·bies
1. A hall, foyer, or waiting room at or near the entrance to a building, such as a hotel or theater.
2. A public room next to the assembly chamber of a legislative body.
3. A group of persons engaged in trying to influence legislators or other public officials in favor of a specific cause: the banking lobby; the labor lobby.
v. lob·bied, lob·by·ing, lob·bies
v.intr.
To try to influence the thinking of legislators or other public officials for or against a specific cause: lobbying for stronger environmental safeguards; lobbied against the proliferation of nuclear arms.
v.tr.
1. To try to influence public officials on behalf of or against (proposed legislation, for example): lobbied the bill through Congress; lobbied the bill to a negative vote.
2. To try to influence (an official) to take a desired action.

pan·der·er (pndr-r)
n.
1. A sexual procurer.
2. One who caters to or exploits the lower tastes and desires of others.

se·duce (s-ds, -dys)
tr.v. se·duced, se·duc·ing, se·duc·es
1. To lead away from duty, accepted principles, or proper conduct. See Synonyms at lure.
2. To induce to engage in sex.
3.
a. To entice or beguile into a desired state or position.
b. To win over; attract.

sell·out (slout)
n.
1. The act of selling out.
2. An event for which all the tickets are sold.
3. Slang One who has betrayed one's principles or an espoused cause.

per·fi·dy (pûrf-d)
n. pl. per·fi·dies
1. Deliberate breach of faith; calculated violation of trust; treachery: "the fink, whose perfidy was equaled only by his gall" (Gilbert Millstein).
2. The act or an instance of treachery.

knav·er·y (nv-r)
n. pl. knav·er·ies
1. Dishonest or crafty dealing.
2. An instance of trickery or mischief.

char·la·tan (shärl-tn)
n.
A person who makes elaborate, fraudulent, and often voluble claims to skill or knowledge; a quack or fraud.

der·e·lic·tion (dr-lkshn)
n.
1. Willful neglect, as of duty or principle.
2.
a. The act of abandoning; abandonment.
b. A state of abandonment or neglect.
3. Law
a. A gaining of land by the permanent recession of the water line.
b. The land so gained.

mis·fea·sance (ms-fzns)
n.
Improper and unlawful execution of an act that in itself is lawful and proper.

shill (shl) Slang
n.
One who poses as a satisfied customer or an enthusiastic gambler to dupe bystanders into participating in a swindle.
v. shilled, shill·ing, shills
v.intr.
To act as a shill.
v.tr.
1. To act as a shill for (a deceitful enterprise).
2. To lure (a person) into a swindle.

On the other hand...she may not be the whore but the madam of the house since she is the one not compromising her morals but inticing, inducing, persuading, lobbying others to do so. So it's the people who she's hired to seduce, the congressmen/women etc, who are the whores not her, right? She's just a shill selling her wares knowing what bad apples they are.

Billionars for Wealthcare strike again!! And it is made of win!

2009-10-26T05:59:27Z

The Maddow tv version.

I just totally love that they were singing the song to the tune of The Sound of Music. The internet is the great equalizer. They make non-violent protesting so popular and powerful. Losing face is a great shame to any business that makes them bow down to our might!

Billionaires for Wealthcare
Billionaires for Wealthcare is a grassroots network of health insurance CEOs, HMO lobbyists, talk-show hosts, and others profiting off of our broken health care system.

We'll do whatever it takes to ensure another decade where your pain is our gain. After all, when it comes to health insurance, if we ain't broke, why fix it?

Oo

2009-10-26T03:33:33Z

I just finished reading Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles in two days! My mind is...it feels like this:

I literally had to stop reading a few times to keep from bawling my eyes out.

God CLAMP, why the hell do you fuck with my mind like this and break my heart? I'm still dreading/hoping that you finish X/1999 I've already accepted that you are going to kill everyone off. Especially my favorite characters. But being the masochist that I am...I still gotta know what happens.

I hate and love you all the same.

The laments of Clamp

2009-10-25T16:02:36Z

Why must you fuck with my head and break my heart?

*goes back to reading Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles' last 30 chapters*

Because Fox News is really Faux News

2009-10-24T05:27:03Z

unnamed Zen AU fic - Katekyo Hitman Reborn!

2009-10-23T05:37:01Z

Title: unnamed (I'm willing to take suggestions)
Author: akuma_river
Fandom: Katekyou Hitman Reborn! (read it here onemanga.com and mangafox.com)
Pairing: For now Hibari/Tsuna others will be added
Rating: Hard R?
A/N: This is an experiment. I've been having this idea revolving around my head for months. It came from three separate fics I read. One was a type of au where Tsuna belonged to Hibari. The second explored an idea of the bullying that Tsuna went through before Reborn came in his life. I took these thoughts and came up with this one incident that takes place pre-Reborn in canon time. However, I was split on which course to take. In one I could take it into an AU and change everything and that is very thought provoking to me. And in the other, I could make the pre-Reborn incident part of canon. Have it be exposed somewhere down the line in canon and blow up everyone's expectations. This is based on the third fic I read, it was a one-shot that alluded to a past shared with Hibari and Tsuna that had due with Hibari protecting an endangered Tsuna that led to Hibari's blood thirst showing why he would fit in the mafia so well.

I couldn't decide between the two. So I've decided to do them both. This is the AU version.

Disclaimer: I play in the sand box, but I do not own it.

There is a Zen saying or thought or belief that has to do with how interconnected with are with our lives and how quickly things can veer off path so drastically by one miniscule thing. It is that Zen garden thing where you have a pond of sand and a rock with ripples. Tsuna wasn't sure which he was, a rock or the pond of sand, all he knew was that it was odd how one tiny ripple could affect so much change. It was like that one movie - or was it a weather pattern theory? - about how a butterfly flapping its wings in one place can cause a hurricane in another.

All Tsuna knew was that at that moment he really wished that the water main one street over hadn't burst. It flooded the street and caused his normal routine to be messed with and now the street that he used to walk to school was closed and he had to take a detour.
Everything was going fine. It was a normal day in Namimori and Dame-Tsuna was on his way to another day in school at Namimori Middle School. It wasn't too hot or too cool which is why when Tsuna reached the point that the street he was walking on became blocked, he was confused when he asked an officer nearby about what was going on and why the street was closed and the answer was that a water main burst. Was the pipe old? Is that why it burst? It couldn't have been because the pipes froze over or anything of the like. But as he looked at his watch and saw the time the reason for why the pipes burst left his mind, he was going to be late.

Quickly Tsuna asked the officer if he knew a detour to get to Namimori Middle School. Once he mentioned his school's name the officer paled and stuttered out that he could take the next street over. It led in the same direct as the one that Tsuna was on and would actually get him to his school quicker because it didn't loop around a children's play park like this street did.

Tsuna thanked the pale officer and took off in the direction that the office pointed to. He never thought about why the officer's skin had paled at the mention of his school. He knew the cause of that. Everyone in Namimori knew about Hibari-san and his disciplinary committee that ruthlessly ran the school and the town giving out discipline to all who violated Hibari's laws.

Perhaps the moment that Tsuna most regretted was that he had been running at the time. He was glancing down at his watch to see how close he would make it to being late. This street was unfamiliar to him and while the officer said that it would be quicker Tsuna couldn't really see how he could make up the ten minutes he needed in order to be on time and avoid being disciplined by Hibari-san for being late.
It was an honest mistake. A casual bump in the scheme of things. It was just highly unfortunate for Tsuna that he ran into the worst person that he possibly could.
As Tsuna looked up from his position on the ground where he fell from running into the person, he really wished that the water main hadn't burst.

Opinions please.

Awesome Grandpa is Awesome

2009-10-21T22:30:24Z

This is what a Republican used to be. In the good old days they stood for protecting people.

What a wild day

2009-10-16T06:00:48Z

Balloon boy took off in his balloon and we were all capitivated. I am glad that it was a hoax. Because that means the kid is alive. But I hope it to hell it was just the kids playing around, getting scared and hiding, and NOT that their parents put them up to this.

Lousiana justice of the peace won't marry interracial couples

Muslim soccer team won't play against the gay team so they are kicked out of the league ontd_p posted these:
one posted this: "Fact: Soccer is the #1 cause of male homosexuality."
another posted this pic: "Ah. Explains so much."

another posted this: "Fact: ~~Soccer~~ Professional Wrestling is the #1 cause of male homosexuality."

another posted this:

(btw, anyone know who it is that is singing this? It's funny as hell)

Republicans fail to stop Gitmo transfers into US (October 15, 2009 - Y! AP - ANDREW TAYLOR)
h1n1 may cause blood clots in lungs <- I posted the ontd_p link because we get people with medical knowledge come in and tear apart the article on scare tactics and we start to talk about what the virus can/can not do.
Little Known Egyptian is Al Quada mastermind (October 15, 2009 - Y! AP - ROBERT H. REID)
Auschwitz memorial launches Facebook page (October 15, 2009 - Y! AP - MONIKA SCISLOWSKA)
China sentences 3 more to death for Xinjiang riot (October 15, 2009 - Y! AP - ALEXA OLESEN)
41 people in 4 states charged in mortgage fraud (October 15, 2009 - Y! AP - LARRY NEUMEISTER)

Awesome Judge wants Cali to prove how gay marriage harms hetero marriage
Bob Cesca calls for punishment against the health insurance cartels
Church is burning 'satanic' books and music, like stuff written by Pope and Mother Teresa and music genres from rap to country

Church leaders deem Good News for Modern Man, the Evidence Bible, the New International Version Bible, the Green Bible and the Message Bible, as well as at least seven other versions of the Bible as "Satan's Bibles," according to the website. Attendees will also set fire to "Satan's popular books" such as the work of "heretics" including the Pope, Mother Teresa, Billy Graham and Rick Warren.
~
The event also seeks to destroy "Satan's music" which includes every genre from country,rap and rock to "soft and easy" and "Southern Gospel" and" contemporary Christian."

So in essence, they are burning everything that is not made by them.

The Leffew family, whose popular YouTube videos about two men raising two kids have been posted here and in much of the gay blogosphere, will be honored with an award from the Family Equality Council. The event takes place this Sunday in Los Angeles and will be hosted by Wanda Sykes.

their youtube channel
I remember watching them before the election and how they spoke out against prop 8. I thought it was a one-time thing. I think I'm going to suscribe now.

Why I love KINKY!

2009-10-16T05:47:56Z

(October 15, 2009 - DailyBeast - Marty Beckerman)

Kinky Friedman speaks with Marty Beckerman about why he’s running for Texas governor as a Democrat, the blood on Rick Perry’s hands, and the similarities between himself and Gandhi.

Kinky Friedman, bestselling mystery novelist and lead singer of the Texas Jewboys, ran a bombastic 2006 Texas gubernatorial campaign that made national headlines, raised funds with the help of Jimmy Buffett and Willie Nelson, and generated plenty of catchy one-liners such as, “The first thing I'll do if elected is demand a recount.” He received less than 13 percent of the vote as an independent candidate, which convinced him this time to run as a Democrat—discussing policy instead of making punchlines—in the 2010 election. He claims that primary polls show him in first place, ahead of Republican incumbent Rick Perry.

"If Jesus Christ ran as an independent, he would need a ton of money,” Friedman says, when asked why he failed to replicate the electoral success of celebrities-turned-politicians such as Jesse Ventura, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Al Franken. “When you run as an independent, the system marginalizes you: won’t let you debate, won’t even put your name on the ballot in the same place as the major-party candidates. The last guy who won Texas as an independent was Sam Houston a hundred years ago. Revolutions ain’t free; they cost money. As for Jesse Ventura, Minnesota is a strange state.”

In 2006, Friedman criticized the two-party system as corrupt and ineffective. He defends his new approach on pragmatic grounds, and insists he is not beholden to the party line.

"I haven’t compromised, I’ve seen the light,” Friedman says. “The basis of the Democratic Party’s success was populism—they stood up for people—but the career politicians who run the Democratic Party in Texas have lost every race since Ann Richards. They always run on demographics, not ideas. I’m trying to offer them a new model.” He supports “term limits and publicly funded elections” to “get the money out of politics,” but for now he’ll throw his cowboy hat into the two-party ring.

He admits it’s difficult to strike the right balance between the irreverence that scores headlines and the solemnity that engenders respectability. “You need to be flamboyant to have a chance,” Friedman says, “but when you’re too flamboyant people say you’re not serious. Attitudes have changed though; people are listening now. Obama taught us that excitement equals turnout and your vote matters.”

His major campaign issue is ending the death penalty, which he criticizes Texas Gov. Rick Perry for wielding recklessly. “He fast-tracked the execution of this innocent guy, Cameron Todd Willingham,” Friedman says. “That’s blood on his Christian hands. There are plenty of innocent people in this corrupt justice system, but Rick is more concerned with protecting that system… I would set up a commission to go case by case through death row and see what really happened, who is really innocent, a commission with real power to reprimand judges who have plenty of money and power. It’s a question of whether people want to free Jesus this time, or execute more innocent people like him.”

Friedman’s dream is to reverse Texas’s reputation as the state with the most executions and least literacy in the country.

“We are at the top of everything we should be at the bottom of, and at the bottom of everything we should be at the top of, as far as statistics go,” Friedman says. “Texas does have an independent spirit, which doesn’t always manifest itself in politics because politicians have hijacked the power … Good people don’t get into politics; it’s very rare.”

For a Jewish guy, Friedman mentions Jesus quite often. “He had some really good ideas, and was thoroughly misunderstood by mankind,” Friedman says. “Politicians go to church and peddle this religiosity, and it hasn’t served us very well. I like what Thomas Paine said: The world is my country and to do good is my religion. I’m a Gandhi-like figure; the only currency I value is the coin of the spirit.”

Friedman’s compassion extends to the animal kingdom. He is the founder of Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch, which saves thousands of stray animals. “We adopt dogs and horses and donkeys, save them from death’s door,” Friedman says. “I want to make Texas a no-kill state: Dogs, cats, horses, and even humans.” He is not a vegetarian, however, so it’s kosher to eat your chicken quesadilla with Kinky’s Private Stock Salsa.

His most recent book, Kinky’s Celebrity Pet Files, spotlights his famous friends’ various critters. Those friends include writers, musicians and presidents. “Bill Clinton is a real genius who leads from the heart,” Friedman says. “Politics should be more like when Bill and George 41 went to the tsunami area together after Katrina.” As for George 43, Friedman is more critical. “If he hadn’t listened to Karl Rove and Dick Cheney—if he had listened to Kinky Friedman or Colin Powell or Laura or his daddy—things would have been very different.” (He is “very fond of Laura; I think she’s great.”)

As for what it’s like to hang out with a sitting president, Friedman says, “It’s pretty fuckin’ cool.”

Plus: Check out Book Beast for more news on hot titles and authors and excerpts from the latest books.

Marty Beckerman is the author of Generation S.L.U.T. (MTV Books) and Dumbocracy (Disinformation). He has written for Playboy, Discover, Radar and Huffington Post. His Web site is www.MartyBeckerman.com.

For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.

More reasons why I HATE my Reps

2009-10-16T05:32:42Z

copy pasted from the ontd_p post I made earlier.

Not sure this can past the muster since it is not from a news source but I think it is newsworthy.

Dear Ms.

Thank you for contacting my office regarding the need to level the playing field between insurance companies and physicians. I share your concern about this issue; however, rather than subject insurance companies to the economically destructive antitrust laws, I favor repealing federal laws that put physicians at a disadvantage when dealing with insurance companies. This is why I have introduced the Quality Health Care Coalition Act (HR 1493) that repeals federal laws that prevent health care providers from negotiating with Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) and insurance companies on a level playing field.

The Quality Health Care Coalition Act repeals federal antitrust laws that prevent medical professionals from forming professional associations to negotiate with HMOs and insurance companies. Federal laws that prevent health care professionals from combining to negotiate with HMOs and insurance companies put health care providers at an unfair disadvantage in negotiating contracts. The result of this unfairness is that individual providers often sign contracts with "gag" clauses and other restrictions on their discretion to practice medicine in the best interest of their patients--contracts they would never sign if they could combine with other health professionals to present a united front when negotiating with the insurers.

This legislation allows health care providers to voluntarily join together to seek better contract terms from insurance companies and HMOS--allowing market forces to ensure medical decisions are made by physicians, pharmacists, dentists, nurses, and patients, not insurance company functionaries or government bureaucrats.

In the coming months, I will work to advance this bill, along with other measures to increase medical freedom such as returning control over the health care dollar to the consumer through devices such as Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). Thanks again for your interest in meaningful health care reform.

Sincerely,

Ron Paul

I cannot guarantee the integrity of the text of this letter if it was not sent to you directly from my Congressional Email Account: rep.paul@mail.house.gov. If you have any questions about the validity of this message, please email me at: rep.paul@mail.house.gov or call my Washington, DC office at: (202) 225-2831.

The RAGE in me just builds every damn time I get an e-mail from my Congressman and Senators. I don't call them because I just know I will break some decency laws...especially since being put on hold just makes the RAGE increase.

John Cornyn: Why I won't support Baucus health bill (October 12, 2009 - Dallas Morning News - John "I'm a greedy lobbiest's bitch" Cornyn)

Today, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a key vote on what has become known as the Baucus bill. Like most Texans, I believe that our health care system needs reform. Millions of families have seen the cost of their private insurance skyrocket. Many are worried about losing their coverage altogether. Seniors are concerned about the future of Medicare. Texans have told me that they want to keep the coverage they have and don't want Washington to make things even worse.

I believe health care reform should focus on lowering costs, which have more than doubled over the past decade. We can lower costs by realigning incentives for providers, so they focus on value instead of volume. We can create incentives for patients to make healthier choices. We can reform the private insurance market in every state to encourage greater competition and more choices, without denying anyone coverage because of a pre-existing condition. We can lower costs by cutting waste, fraud, and abuse in our current entitlement programs. And we can reduce costly defensive medicine by reforming our medical liability laws like we've done in Texas.

The Baucus bill, unfortunately, will only increase costs for everyone. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the bill will cost $829 billion, but when it's fully implemented, the Senate Budget Committee estimates the real cost to be $1.8 trillion. Either way, it would still leave 25 million Americans uninsured, impose billions of dollars in new taxes and mandates, and cut more than $400 billion from Medicare. It would take away Medicare Advantage benefits from seniors, and make Medicaid the only option for 14 million Americans.

The bill also imposes hidden costs on states. The Texas Health and Human Services Commission estimates that the Baucus bill would cost Texas more than $20 billion over 10 years and add 2.5 million Texans to Medicaid. That would mean billions in new state taxes, or draconian cuts in education, law enforcement and other Texas priorities. According to one survey, 91 percent of Texans who buy insurance in the individual market will see their premiums go up because Washington will force them to buy more expensive policies.

My colleagues and I offered several amendments that would have improved the bill. We fought to protect Medicare Advantage, and eliminate the Medicare panel that would empower bureaucrats to make coverage decisions. We tried to reform Medicaid before forcing more Americans into it. We sought to lower costs on small businesses, and enact meaningful medical liability reform. Many of our amendments would have helped President Obama keep his promises to the American people, including those related to keeping what you have, taxes on the middle class, federal funding of abortions, and benefits to illegal immigrants. Yet most of these amendments were rejected on party-line votes.

Perhaps most discouraging was the defeat of the first amendment Republicans offered to ensure a more transparent process. Sen. Jim Bunning and I proposed a 72-hour waiting period before we could vote on the bill. During those 72 hours, the actual legislative text, not just conceptual language, would have been available on the committee's website for the public to see, as well as a final price tag from the CBO. Instead we will vote on a concept, not the actual bill.

I cannot support legislation being rushed through Congress that will increase the costs of health care without giving Texans the opportunity to learn what it would mean for them. Democracy demands that government be accountable to the people, and government that is open and honest can deliver better solutions. I will continue working toward better solutions on health care reform and ensure your voice is heard.

Republican John Cornynrepresents Texas in the U.S. Senate and may be contacted through cornyn.senate.gov.

Just finished my ontd_p Ron Paul bitch post when I realize this bastard e-mailed me as well.

lol, the comments are on my side!

Hutchison Campaign Statement On Texas Forensic Science Commission

Austin, TX – With today’s comments by the Governor’s office in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Deputy Communications Director Joe Pounder issued the following statement:

“As hard as Rick Perry’s office and his campaign may try to divert from the issue, this is not about one man or one case. The issue is Rick Perry’s heavy-handed politicization of a process and Commission established by the legislature to provide critical oversight. First, Rick Perry delayed the formation of the Texas Forensic Science Commission, then he tried to ensure it didn’t have funding and when all else failed, he fired everyone he could. The only thing Rick Perry’s actions have accomplished is giving liberals an argument to discredit the death penalty. Kay Bailey Hutchison is a steadfast supporter of the death penalty, voted to reinstate it when she served in the Texas House and believes we should never do anything to create a cloud of controversy over it with actions that look like a cover-up.”

Texas Republican Smackdown

Gov. Rick Perry is under fire over a suspicious execution—and his secessionist talk this spring. Can his more moderate GOP rival take him down? The national GOP is watching.

A battle for the soul of the Republican Party is under way in Texas and the results could help shape how the GOP positions itself for the 2010 midterm elections and beyond.

Rick Perry has served longer than any Texas governor in the state’s history, as he seeks his third term. But he faces a major primary challenge in next year’s balloting from GOP Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, a longtime politician who, while solidly conservative, has a more moderate reputation than the incumbent. Perry is perhaps best known nationally for floating the idea this year that Texas should consider seceding from the Union, but despite his radical rhetoric he also faces a challenge from a far-right Ron Paul acolyte named Debra Medina for not taking on the federal government even harder. With questions swirling about Perry’s handling of a death-penalty case in which the condemned may have been innocent, the governor faces the toughest re-election battle of his career (recent polls show he's in a dead heat with Hutchison). The race also gives Texans the opportunity to send a signal to the national GOP about the potential direction of the party and whether they like their candidates to be very conservative, extremely conservative, or borderline militia-movement conservative.

I think if this primary goes to full finish, you're beginning to see the makeup of what a national fight would be like between, say, a [Governor Tim Pawlenty] in Minnesota and Sarah Palin, if she continues her run for 2012,” a political-science professor at Rice University, Bob Stein, told The Daily Beast. “I don't think it's extreme to say it's a fight for the hearts and minds of the Republican Party.”

Perry, who took office in 2000 when George W. Bush ascended to the White House, won’t be easy to topple. An exodus of moderates and independents has made the Republican Party more conservative nationally—a trend that is magnified in the Lone Star State. Hutchison supports Roe v. Wade, a heretical position for the Christian right, although she has consistently voted to heavily restrict abortion rights. But Texas has open primaries, meaning that Hutchison's personal appeal outside the party could bring in votes from independents and Democrats who normally don't participate in GOP contests to put her over the edge.

The latest polling from Rasmussen, conducted in September, shows Hutchison narrowly leading Perry 40 percent to 38 percent. Previous polls by the same outfit showed her as far back as 10 percentage points. It also showed both politicians to be enormously popular among prospective GOP primary voters: 72 percent viewed Perry favorably and 71 percent said the same for Hutchison.

“The big question—and this is impossible to know the answer to this far in advance of a heated primary campaign—is who is going to show up and vote,” pollster Scott Rasmussen told The Daily Beast. ”If the turnout is much larger and moves beyond the Republican base, it's better for Hutchison. If it's smaller, more of a base vote, it's better for Perry.”

Perry has been doing his best to tack to the right in recent months in preparation for the primary, gambling that the dedicated conservatives who usually show up in these elections will put him over the top. He's clashed with the base before, most notably over his decision to require Texas schoolgirls to receive HPV vaccines, a move social conservatives warned would promote promiscuity. This year, he's trying to win the base back—most prominently by associating himself with the extreme anti-government Tea Party movement that has been protesting Obama's policies. It was at one Tea Party event that Perry floated the secession notion—a move he suggested as a means of protesting federal policies. “We've got a great union. There's absolutely no reason to dissolve it. But if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people, you know, who knows what might come out of that,” Perry told the audience, who reportedly were chanting “Secede!”

Hutchison argues that Perry's move to the right is scaring off moderate Republicans and independents who might otherwise back the party—a move she says could have national consequences.

"If Texas goes Democrat, we will never elect a Republican president again—not ever," she warned in one recent speech. "We cannot do it."

But it’s not clear that Hutchison has come up the kind of silver-bullet issue that would make voters send the popular long-serving governor into retirement.

“She didn't really lay out a specific program of why to get rid of the incumbent and polls show she needs to do that because those who will vote in the primary seem to view [both candidates] favorably,” Richard Murray, director of the University of Houston Center for Public Policy, told The Daily Beast.

A burgeoning scandal over executed prisoner Cameron Todd Willingham may provide her with some new ammunition, however. Willingham was convicted of killing his children by setting a fire in their home and was put to death in 2004 under Perry's watch, but never confessed to the crimes. Experts have suggested that the evidence used to convict him may been shoddy. This month, Perry removed three members of a commission that was investigating the case, leading to accusations that he was mounting a coverup. According to the Austin American-Statesman, Perry's office said the members' terms had expired and that their successors will also look at the Willingham case. But one of the removed members is now saying that he felt pressured all along by the governor not to rock the boat in the execution inquiry. And Perry's office has been refusing to make available documents on how it reacted to last-minute attempts by an attorney to convince the governor to stop the execution based on arson experts' reports.

Hutchison, who also supports the death penalty, has seized on the issue to accuse Perry of trying to silence whistleblowers. “I think it’s another case where the governor is trying to maintain a loyalty to him but not to the responsibility that the person who’s on the commission has taken to the people of Texas and our justice system,” she told the Houston Chronicle this week.

One other wild card that could affect the race is the presence of a third candidate, Debra Medina, a Tea Party activist who's gone even farther than Perry in her states' rights rhetoric. She has a fan in Ron Paul, whose army of supporters are renowned for their fundraising abilities. Her presence could alter a close race either by taking votes from one of the candidates—likely the more conservative Perry—or by keeping both of the major candidates' vote totals low enough to trigger a runoff.

Benjamin Sarlin is a reporter for The Daily Beast. He previously covered New York City politics for The New York Sun and has worked for talkingpointsmemo.com.

For inquiries, please contact The Daily Beast at editorial@thedailybeast.com.

Gratitude Week?

2009-10-14T05:02:05Z

I think it's passed but I like this vid.

I have a horrible leaking roof...with part of a ceiling in one of the room collasping in today. But I'm still grateful for the working parts and being able to go to school and have my computer, manga, graphic novels, books, dvds, games...etc. Oh and Alan Rickman and Daniel Radcliffe and FANFICTION!!!

Gay Rights March

2009-10-13T03:55:37Z

I wasn't there. Stuck being poor in Texas.

Here are some links of personal accounts with PICTURES.

Equality March (PHOTOS): Gay Rights Advocates March On DC, Divided On Obama <- HuffPo

National Equality March roll call! Were you there? Let's see some pictures!

Equality March picspam of awesome

These are some of my favorites.