Ron Paul is first tonight!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ek8a-yVR7...

Anybody know the score of the Giants/Pats game?

Dennis Kicinich on Ron Paul AND wise-versa!...enjoy, lol.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjaMLuOpj...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJcnoDfFW...

Ron Paul asked about Dennis Kucinich as a running mate:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qx9a4hNeI...

Giants ahead by 12.

Audio of Kucinich talking about Ron Paul as a running mate

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By_zxa1qn...

Revisiting the stuff Carville pulled in 04, giving out private info from the campaign to his wife.   All that stuff has been running around in mind today.  I have been watching bits and pieces of So Goes the Nation.   Kind of hard to watch.   

Mary Matalin was at the WH with George and Dick. Dear hubby called her.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/1723

7. I have to say one of the main reasons I don't want Hillary as the nominee
is because of the Carville/Begala/Grunwald baggage she brings.

Congrats to the Patriots and their loyal fans.

Howard Dean is no.1. and that's a fact, not a place.

howard is 1st and paul has a small pecker in comparasion.

DNC Chair, Gov. Howard Dean M.D. is always first!

The Patriots have a pretty good QB.

mary vb

I'm with you, it isn't Hillary herself, it is Team Hillary. It is the only large organized anti-progressive force in the party right now.

Several of the other candidates might eventually put together a team that bridges the whole Party as President.

Team Clinton would hunt us down.

you thinks leadership caves now? just wait 

Howard Dean is 1st here.

Ron Paul is the antithesis of Howard Dean, except in one way: wanting us out of Iraq. And that's the truth.

*************
Looking through the past threads, it was fun to glean some small adages from BFA-posters.

mprov: choose the candidate who will do the least harm.

Phil: avoid houses where there are pit bulls in the yard.

*************
And on a riff about pit bulls: yes, it is true that they are a breed that was specifically bred for fighting. However, in this, as in so many things, how a specific dog turns out generally depends on the owner. Unfortunately, too many pit bulls (and other *savage* breeds) have owners who do not deserve to possess any animal at all.

Several years ago, my older son went to the DC shelter to get a kitten for his wife who had recently lost her well-loved cat. While he was there, he saw a young pit bull-Rhodesian ridgeback mix who had been accidentally shot in his front leg during a police raid and who was scheduled for euthanasia because his previous owners could not afford surgery. To my horror, my son fell in love with the animal and adopted him, paying for the surgery, and later on bringing him home. (He and his wife had to go back to the shelter later the same night because he was so caught up in the dog's plight that he had forgotten all about getting a kitten.)

As it turned out, *Jake* was clearly one of the exceptions to the rule. I have been proud to call him my *grand-dog* and he has brought joy to many lives. Unfortunately, he has now been diagnosed with prostrate cancer and his *parents* specifically remained at home with him over these holidays because they will likely be his last.

The Dog Whisperer is right. It's the people who need to be trained.

For some of the best news analysis about the situation in Iraq, one should always read Dahr Jamail (and thanks again to Monica, who mentioned him here several years back).

Any US Presidential candidate who is not reading what Dahr has to say does not deserve to be President.

===================
December 29, 2007
CHALLENGES 2007-2008: Iraq Progresses To Some Of Its Worst
Inter Press Service
Analysis by Dahr Jamail
WASHINGTON, Dec 29 (IPS) - Despite all the claims of improvements, 2007 has been the worst year yet in Iraq.

One of the first big moves this year was the launch of a troop "surge" by the U.S. government in mid-February. The goal was to improve security in Baghdad and the western al-Anbar province, the two most violent areas. By June, an additional 28,000 troops had been deployed to Iraq, bringing the total number up to more than 160,000.

By autumn, there were over 175,000 U.S. military personnel in Iraq. This is the highest number of U.S. troops deployed yet, and while the U.S. government continues to talk of withdrawing some, the numbers on the ground appear to contradict these promises.

The Bush administration said the "surge" was also aimed at curbing sectarian killings, and to gain time for political reform for the government of U.S.-backed Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

During the surge, the number of Iraqis displaced from their homes quadrupled, according to the Iraqi Red Crescent. By the end of 2007, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that there are over 2.3 million internally displaced persons within Iraq, and over 2.3 million Iraqis who have fled the country.

[...]
http://dahrjamailiraq.com/hard_news/arch...

Dahr's dispatches are printed in the Inter Press News Service, which contains some of the best news about the world generally.

I recommend especially ALL of the Challenges 2007-2008 features. These are contemporaneous versions (not academic treatises drafted years ago) of what is actually going on in the world.

Again, any Presidential candidate who is not reading such news(or more likely have his/her staff reading for briefing purposes) does not deserve our votes.

So, it would be worthwhile asking what their sources are.

Here's the IPS link.

http://www.ipsnews.net/

Good monring, everybody

Well, I'm always glad to hear Dahr is still alive.  

Sorry about the convoluted grammar in that last. Sigh.

************
I do not have a subscription to the NYT (or to the WaPo) for that matter and do not plan to get one. If I had had one, I might have thought of dropping it with the announcement that William Kristol was joining the Op-Ed staff (why on earth such a discredited person has been asked to join any of the so-called *liberal* media is beyond me), but the NYT still has Krugman and Frank Rich who make it worthwhile. Occasionally, MoDo also hits the nail on the head.

And the Editorial Staff is still worthwhile from time to time. Nice to see that they have picked this one up ... Poland finally returning to sanity after the insanity of the "twins." Czech Republic will hopefully not be far behind. Neither of those countries' populations was ever in favor of this and now the political leadership is *getting* it.

Even *New Europe* is finally beginning to regard putzCo with well-deserved skepticism, especially since his sense of geography is so skewed and those who are next door understand who the real target is.

============================
December 30, 2007
Editorial
The Poles Get Cold Feet

Poland’s new government is right to be taking a skeptical second look at the Bush administration’s proposal to station 10 interceptor missiles there as part of a European-based missile-defense system. The pragmatic conservatives voted into power in October want to make sure that the project offers real security benefits to Poland that outweigh its potential diplomatic costs.

The Poles are not the only ones with doubts. Last month, a thousand Czechs marched through Prague demanding a referendum on whether the system’s radar should be built in the Czech Republic, as the Bush administration wants. In Washington, Congress has voted to withhold money from the entire project until the Poles and the Czechs give final parliamentary approval.

It now seems that the only one with any enthusiasm for the effort is President Bush, who continues to argue that the shield is necessary to protect Europe and the United States from a potential attack by Iran.

[...]
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/30/opinio...

When one's party stands for the worst, it is no surprise that it is in disarray.

==================
Republicans facing first poll in disarray
The ranks of the Grand Old Party of Abe Lincoln are divided as it goes into the Iowa caucus battle on Tuesday, with no agreement on what it stands for and no obvious contender to take on Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama
David Smith in New York
Sunday December 30, 2007
Observer

Clad in an orange and grey hunting jacket and an orange cap, Mike Huckabee raised his 12-gauge shotgun, took aim and fired, bagging a pheasant for the benefit of watching reporters. As another shot flew over their heads, it became too much for one journalist who cried: 'Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Don't shoot. This is traumatising.' Huckabee the hunter had demonstrated himself a 'regular guy', hoping to consolidate his lead in the Republican polls before Thursday's Iowa caucus, the first step to gaining the party's nomination for President.

His nearest rival, Mitt Romney, had shot himself in the foot by claiming to be an avid hunter, only to then confess he targeted mostly 'small varmints'. No such question marks over Huckabee, who said he not only hunted ducks, deer and antelopes but could eat varmint too. 'I figured out you could put grease in a popcorn popper and heat that thing up and you could cook anything,' he said of his student days. 'So we fried squirrel.'

There is growing unease among Republican organisers that the Grand Old Party of Lincoln, Eisenhower and Reagan could meet the same fate as Huckabee's squirrel. The presidential campaign has failed to produce a champion to take on Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, or whoever wins the Democratic nomination. Instead the struggle for the party's soul has exposed fissures in policy, disarray over what it now stands for and distractions both banal and bizarre, 'redneck stew' included.

[...]
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,...

Interesting little piece here, but I myself am relieved to see it.

===========
Left Bank fumes in a smoke-free zone

Alex Duval Smith
Sunday December 30, 2007

Observer

Without it, film noir would have lacked its noir. Existentialists might have got bored working out the absurd, and husky-voiced Simone Signoret would have lacked huskiness. Yet on Tuesday France is due to become the latest country to ban smoking in its 280,000 cafes, bars and restaurants.
Whereas last year's ban on puffing in workplaces met with little resistance, intellectuals - who spend little time in offices and do much of their thinking in cafes - have come out in force against this one. It was Jean-Paul Sartre, after all, who declared that 'smoking is the symbolic equivalent of destructively appropriating the whole world'.

Left Bank waitress-to-the-thinkers Irene, who for 12 years has emptied ashtrays at Cafe de Flore, once one of Sartre's stamping grounds, says her customers are extremely upset. 'We have a non-smoking section on the first floor but it's almost always empty, because it has no atmosphere.

'We are taking away the ashtrays on Tuesday and we'll see how it goes. I'm not a smoker myself but I'm against this law because cafes, unlike offices, are places you go to by choice. Soon everything will be banned and people will go off to the toilets to sniff their lines of cocaine,' she said.

Cafe de Flore, along with its neighbours Brasserie Lipp and Les 2 Magots, owe their place in history - and in tourist guidebooks - to former smoking patrons, such as Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir. Pungent Gauloises and Gitanes were their brand at a time when the rest of the population was still enchanted with the perceived sophistication of 'les blondes' - toasted brands, such as Lucky Strike and Camel, brought over by the American liberators.

[...]
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,...

In line with the last ...

My husband and I have been spending odd hours over the holidays watching *Secret Army* since I purchased the full set (three series' worth) of DVDs from the Beeb store in London on a visit there last year and haven't had time to watch until recently. Up until now, I had managed to catch only a snatched episode or two when it was part of a UK Gold channel while I still had access to Sky TV (yes, Murdoch's group, I must 'fess up).

It is interesting to see how much smoking went on ... and surprisingly so since the series is set in Occupied Belgium during WWI, when cigarettes were generally available only on the black market.

If you are interested in a truly great TV series, check it out.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075579/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secret_Army...(TV_series)

Now, to learn about Swiss watch-making ... bbl

Just popped back before going out to see that I made a big typo in my last ... WWII (not WWI). Big difference.

The Secret Army series is perhaps even more timely now than it was in the 70s when it was produced ... since it shows how ordinary people continued, even under the most dangerous and repressive of circumstances, to live out their beliefs and to fight for what they believed was right.

Now really gone.

Well congratulations to the NE Patriots for going 16-0 and coming back in last night win.  They deserved it.  But 16-0 does not say "SuperBowl Champins".........many land mines await NE IF they get that far.............and lets not forget one important thing...the NE patriots got caught taping NY jets practices befoe the first game of the season....................

Now, the REAL winner last night was the NY Giants IMO.  This team easily culd have rested all its starters in prep for next weeks playoff game..but they didnt and hats off to them for that, and they gave the supposed greatest team of all time all it handle..............

So, NE fans relish the glory of your undefeated REGULAR season.............Im certain Pittsburgh, San Diego and Indianapolis relish the thought of being underdogs..............

IF the Pats win it al, then they would have deserved it..........but its  along way to go until the Super Bowl.................NE definitley has  aHUGE bullseye on its back now.................leys just see how really good they are IF they ca win it all.............and i closing, the Super Bowl wil NOT be played in Foxboro this year.

Mike you missed your calling as a football analyst. couldn't agree more.

the Packers might not to want to follow the Giants lead though and rest the starters

my sentimental pick the Saints aren't out yet either

go Peyton

My hubby and I have been in Indiana for the last 10 days visiting family and friends for the holidays. The main topic by both our Democratic and Republican friends was how Indiana's Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) sold their toll road to a private Spanish-Australian joint-venture between Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte and Macquarie Infrastructure Group. Our freinds were not a bit happy about it. I think they thought there was something very Un-American about the sale and I agree. Folks have been paying for that toll road for years.

Indiana Toll Road http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indiana_Tol...

...As governor, Daniels has pushed through unpopular proposals that had the state adopt Daylight Savings Time and privatize the Indiana Toll Road. In 2007 Gov. Daniels proposed a cigarette tax raising Indiana's 55.5-cents-per-pack tax by at least 25 cents. The proposed increase failed to win approval in the Indiana House, after a bipartisian effort in the 100-member chamber voted against it... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitch_Danie...

Un-American http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Un-American...

Lost Highway
The foolish plan to sell American toll roads to foreign companies. http://www.slate.com/id/2138950/

Foreign companies buying U.S. roads, bridges http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006...

Governments Sell Roads to Raise Cash
by Kathleen Schalch
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story...

Indiana Toll Road http://charlieaverill.blogspot.com/2007/...

Susan Rowe

>

I gather, that the corporate media deemed it unfit to be news outside of Indiana, for it stagers me that a story of interest (you plainly make the case) is so underreported.

  I knew it was a possibility - toll roads were being offered to *outside* interests, but was in disbelief. 

So now, Indiana is subject (IE - nolonger soveriegn) to the will of foriegn cultures ... or is it fascist culture once removed?

Michael Ellis

>

Phil says you missed your calling, and you do waft a similar sent(iment) I hear from sports announcers and the once great coach of the Miami Dolphins (IE negative opinion).

Go Pack!  The Patriots may be ripe. 

Well, I'm still waiting for my Sunday Boston Glober to be delivered by my regular delivery guy.  I called the Globe customer service # and was told that most places will get delivery by 10am.

The reason for the delay ?

Well, it wasn't due to a snow storm (the last time there was a Sunday storm and a later delivery here was when the Globe endorsed Barack Obama for president -- neither snow, hail, ...).

This time it was due to the Globe presses wanting to front page about some game win last night.

Sshhhhh. I almost said a name of a team (yep, most things in life take a team effort).

typo - Boston Glober   s/b - Boston Globe

and speaking of breaking records, the storm coming tonight should push Boston over the all-time record for snowfall in the month of Dec

Iowa on caucus night Jan 3 looks free and clear of any storms

Good, to hear that -- means all those caucusing for the first time there have a better shot at showing up with all their enthusiasm

Global warming to alter Calif. landscape By NOAKI SCHWARTZ Associated Press Writer

12/29/2007

LOS ANGELES—California is defined by its scenery, from the mountains that enchanted John Muir to the wine country and beaches that define its culture around the world.
But as scientists try to forecast how global warming might affect the nation's most geographically diverse state, they envision a landscape that could look quite different by the end of this century, if not sooner.

Where celebrities, surfers and wannabes mingle on Malibu's world-famous beaches, there may be only sea walls defending fading mansions from the encroaching Pacific. In Northern California, tourists could have to drive farther north or to the cool edge of the Pacific to find what is left of the region's signature wine country.

Abandoned ski lifts might dangle above snowless trails more suitable for mountain biking even during much of the winter. In the deserts, Joshua trees that once extended their tangled, shaggy arms into the sky by the thousands may have all but disappeared.

"We need to be attentive to the fact that changes are going to occur, whether it's sea level rising or increased temperatures, droughts and potentially increased fires," said Lisa Sloan, a scientist who directs the Climate Change and Impacts Laboratory at the University of California, Santa Cruz. "These things are going to be happening."

Among the earliest and most noticeable casualties is expected to be California's ski season.

Snow is expected to fall for a shorter period and melt more quickly. That could shorten the ski season by a month even in wetter areas and perhaps end it in others.
Whether from short-term drought or long-term changes, the ski season already has begun to shrivel in Southern California, ringed by mountain ranges that cradle several winter resorts.

"There's always plenty of snow, but you may just have to go out of state for it," said Rinda Wohlwend, 62, who belongs to two ski clubs in Southern California. "I'm a very avid tennis player, so I'd probably play more tennis."

———

Because California has myriad microclimates, covering an area a third larger than Italy, predicting what will happen by the end of the century is a challenge.

But through a series of interviews with scientists who are studying the phenomenon, a general description of the state's future emerges.

By the end of the century, temperatures are predicted to increase by 3 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit statewide. That could translate into even less rainfall across the southern half of the state, already under pressure from the increased frequency of wildfires and relentless population growth.

Small mammals, reptiles and colonies of wildflowers in the deserts east of Los Angeles are accustomed to periodic three-year dry spells. But they might not be able to withstand the 10-year drought cycles that could become commonplace as the planet warms.

Scientists already are considering relocating Joshua tree seedlings to areas where the plants, a hallmark of the high desert and namesake of a national park, might survive climate change.

"They could be wiped out of California depending on how quickly the change happens," said Cameron Barrows, who studies the effects of climate change for the Center for Conservation Biology in Riverside.

Farther north, where wet, cold winters are crucial for the water supply of the entire state, warmer temperatures will lead to more rain than snow in the Sierra Nevada and faster melting in the spring.

Because 35 percent of the state's water supply is stored annually in the Sierra snowpack, changes to that hydrologic system will lead to far-reaching consequences for California and its ever-growing population.

Some transformations already are apparent, from the Sierra high country to the great valleys that have made California the nation's top agricultural state.

full article: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iP-k4...

Mark wrote “looks to me like edwards is the only one here. although $25 is trivial. if your problem is with all 527's, well there it is. but emily's list and the unions are hardly the washington power brokers who are the real problem.”

You’re overlooking something important. Edwards opposes corporate PAC contributions. What’s the reason? They represent “special interests” who have too much influence in Washington. This is a very brave pronouncement to make in an election system that requires candidates to privately fundraise in order to run for office, so you would have to admire Edwards for cutting off this potential source of funds when he is running far behind the other major candidates in raising such contributions. So much so, in fact, that he did what Dean was able to avoid, that is accept matching federal funds, which will cap his spending in the primaries and, worse, in the period before his nomination at the convention if he has won the requisite number of delegates.

Unfortunately for his sterling reputation, he seems to be completely cognizant of this fact. His bold renunciation of PAC contributions seems to have come with the assurance that his 2004 campaign manager would be consulting a 527 group, who would be promoting his campaign with ads that outline the broad details of “The Edwards Plan.” In his or the group’s view, apparently, this is not overt support for his candidacy or a advocacy coordinated with the campaign.

You may believe he’s sincere, but remember that in 2004, Edwards accused Bush of idly standing by during the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth campaign against John Kerry, claiming that Bush could and should “step forward and say three words: Stop these ads.” If you believe what he said then, you must believe he’s lying now, because he felt the candidate could stop these outside expenditures on his behalf, which he has said he frowns upon. If he was just mistaken then, well, that’s what we should come to expect from Edwards, based on his history. We just have to wait for him to apologize for his mistaken judgment in the past, having realized how his old view of things will hobble his future nomination prospects.

Edwards can count on Howard coming through with DNC generic help if he has the nomination wrapped up.

He hasn't decided about the federal funds for the general election.

Democrats are fired up and he will have plenty of money come the fall.

Yesterday, Saturday 12/29 in my mailbox:  Only three pieces of mail.

1 Pro Hillary from the Hillary campaign

1 Pro Obama from the Obama campaign

1 Pro Hillary from the 'American Federation of Teachers'

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-independents30dec30,1,1071933.story?track=rss

Edwards and Obama are splitting the anti-Hillary vote, which are two thirds or more.

Iowa won't decide a thing this year. California's winner will be the likely nominee. It might well be Iowa's winner but it won't be because of Iowa.

Because Obama did not vote for the war, he is in good shape. Because Edwards stands with working people and this is the Democratic Party he is in good shape.

It is too close to call.

(continued)

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-independents30dec30,0,4414280.story?page=1&coll=la-home-nation

... 

Indra Edmonds, 40, a stay-at-home mom who voted for McCain in 2000, said, "He's not the same person" now.

"He struck me as the guy out to meet America on his bus the first time around," said Edmonds, who lives in Strafford. "This time around, he's using different tactics. He doesn't seem as enthusiastic and fresh."

She backs Obama, saying he's "younger, he's still more positive and he hasn't been there so long that he's bitter or negative."

She said she devoured Obama's book, "The Audacity of Hope," as she had McCain's autobiography -- and found similarities between the two. "I like their character; they're not big-government people," she said.

Though she was not budging from Obama, she added that, when the New Hampshire primary is over, "if it comes down to McCain versus a different Democrat, I'm back with McCain."

I can't wait until the Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary results !

First impressions (ie. results) do count for a lot

Phil wrote "Edwards can count on Howard coming through with DNC generic help if he has the nomination wrapped up."

But he's certainly in a predicament now, or would be if he didn't have the help he receives from the campaign contribution loophole that 527's represent.

Kevin

My brother is really upset at the way the national media twisted Richardson's answer to a question about Bhutto's assination and thought it very well thought out and reasonable. Does his campaign have a youtube clip?

Phil wrote "Iowa won't decide a thing this year."

Is that your prediction if results in New Hampshire are identical to Iowa's?  That set Kerry's nomination on the glidepath designed by Terry McAuliffe in 2004.

Why wouldn't a candidate that stands with Unions not expect them to back him in their 527 ads?

SEIU is a great friend.

looks like one team is into a certain type of rock --

Heavy Metal (err Mettle):

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=Av.R52mQF6lzedx7PJdzMo1DubYF?slug=cr-perfectpats123007&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

By Charles Robinson, Yahoo! Sports
December 30, 2007

...

As impressive as the Patriots' blowouts were during the first half of the season, nothing has said more about the mettle of this team than the last eight games. Not only did New England withstand the vice-grip of possibly going 16-0, it survived despite all types of adversity. In places like Indianapolis and Baltimore and Saturday in the Meadowlands, and at home against Philadelphia, the Patriots proved they could play winning football from behind.

...

28.

Imn2Paine
Sun, 12/30/07



http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006...

U.S. HIGHWAYS FOR SALE (The List as of 7/15/2006)

A glance at some of the nation's highways:

ALASKA: Backers of the Knik Arm Bridge say they will look to private funding for the $600 million bridge that will connect Anchorage to Point Mackenzie.

COLORADO: The Front Range Toll Road Company proposes a 210-mile toll corridor from Wellington to just south of Pueblo.

FLORIDA: The Tampa-Hillsborough Expressway Authority requested proposals from investors to build a 3.1 mile toll road connecting Interstate 275 to New Tampa Boulevard in central Tampa. The road is expected to cost $150 million.

ILLINOIS: Privatization of the 274-mile Illinois Tollway is the subject of legislative hearings and study.

INDIANA: Gov. Mitch Daniels wants a private company to help build a $1.8 billion, 142-mile extension of Interstate 69 from Indianapolis to Evansville and then manage it as a tollway.

MISSOURI: In May, the Legislature approved a plan that would allow a $910 million bridge to be built between St. Louis and Illinois by a public-private partnership with the right to collect tolls.

NEVADA: In May, Boulder City agreed to study a toll road - possibly privately financed and operated - along a 10-mile stretch between the new junction of Interstates 93 and 95 and the new Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge.

NEW JERSEY: The Legislature is considering selling 49% of 173-mile Garden State Parkway and 148-mile New Jersey Turnpike to private investors.

NEW YORK: Privatizing the Long Island Expressway and the Tappan Zee Bridge have been proposed, but the state needs to change its laws to enable such deals.

OHIO: Republican gubernatorial candidate Ken Blackwell proposes leasing the 241-mile Ohio Turnpike for $4 billion to $6 billion for 99 years.

OREGON: Oregon has invited a group led by Macquarie to assess the feasibility of three toll projects outside of Portland: an 11-mile bypass, a new corridor and a widening of an existing corridor.

TEXAS: On June 29, The Texas Transportation Commission approved a deal in which Cintra and San Antonio-based Zachry Construction Co. agreed to pay $1.3 billion to build 40 miles of state toll road from Austin to Seguin in exchange for the right to collect tolls for 50 years. The state will receive a share of the toll revenue. It's expected to open to traffic in 2012.nIn March 2005, the state entered into a $7.2 billion deal with Spanish-American consortium Cintra-Zachry to develop a 600-mile toll road from Oklahoma to Mexico and the Gulf Coast parallel to the existing Interstate 35.

VIRGINIA: The state is negotiating with Fluor-Transurban for a $913 million project to add a high-occupancy toll lane to the existing HOV lanes between the 14th Street bridge and Dumfries, Va. From Dumfries down to Massaponax, Va., two new lanes would be built. Fluor is a construction company based in Aliso Viejo, Calif.; Transurban Group, a Melbourne, Australia-based toll road developer.

*Source: Associated Press

Well, my Sunday Boston Globe still hasn't arrived yet and I need to get ready for Sunday church service.

Phil Specht
Sun, 12/30/07

Phil,

 Let me check and see on the youtube video.

46.  Wonder if anyone's going to do a study to see how many of these projects are going to serve minority populations.  Privatization is nothing more than a scheme to avoid making public services available on an egalitarian basis, while taking advantage of the monopoly guarantees of the public sector and lower interest costs.

Kidz In The Hall - Work To Do (Obama Version)       http://hypem.com/track/444936

I expect Edwards and Obama to virtually tie. In New Hampshire where independents are decisive as compared to Democrats only in Iowa I would expect Obama to win, and again In South Carolina, and if Edwards squeaks out a win in Iowa he will stay competitive til Feb 5th.

I'd could see Edwards 33, Obama 32, Clinton 19,  Richardson 8, Biden 5, Dodd 3 in Iowa 

If Iowa was the only vote that counted Hillary would be out with that outcome but she has organizations in all the Feb. 5th states and no way will go away. and continuing the split in the anti Clinton vote means she comes on later still as they start to drop out.

Holding on to Democracy and our society is like holding sand in a hand with fingers spread.

Huckabee has varied record on education
Teachers union endorses him

By MELANIE ASMAR Monitor staff

December 12. 2007 12:40AM

....Huckabee became the first Republican yesterday to be endorsed by the New Hampshire chapter of the National Education Association. In a short press conference, President Rhonda Wesolowski lauded Huckabee's opposition to school vouchers and his commitment to arts and music education.

But Huckabee also favors "testing teachers" and replacing those who do not meet established standards. The NEA has been critical of the practice, as well as the federal No Child Left Behind law, parts of which Huckabee supports.

Still, Wesolowski said NEA-New Hampshire liked that Huckabee favors measuring student growth over time as opposed to judging a teacher's effectiveness by how students score on a single test. She said the group didn't ask Huckabee much about No Child Left Behind, since he wasn't a member of the Congress that passed the law. Huckabee, who backed President Bush in 2004, initially supported it.

Huckabee was the only Republican presidential candidate to meet with NEA-New Hampshire, Wesolowski said. In 2004, the 16,000-member organization endorsed its first candidate: Democrat Howard Dean. This year, it chose two, one from each party: Huckabee and Democrat Hillary Clinton.

Huckabee was also the only Republican to address the national NEA's yearly convention this past July. He started his speech there with one of his signature jokes: Huckabee said having a Republican at the NEA convention "is about as out of place as Michael Moore going to the NRA convention."

Huckabee went on to tout his record. It's one that many educators may find appealing but that some in his own party do not. He's been attacked by opponents for raising taxes to pay for schools and for trying to provide college scholarships to the children of illegal immigrants. Conservative groups have called Huckabee a "big government Republican" and "pro-life liberal" for his education policies.

While Huckabee has gone on the defensive about his tax record, he's held fast when it comes to his education record. Here are some highlights from his 10½ years as governor of Arkansas. ...full article: http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs....

Phil,

 Here is what the Richardson campaign has out for their comprehensive video on  Pakistan.  It certainly isn't a soundbite since it is 22 minutes long.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2oQW8j3ajs

Huckabee mirrors the religious right that has taken over the Iowa Republican Party. I'd be surprised if he doesn't win. To me that means a McCain/Huckabee ticket and like Mike has been saying wouldn't be all that easy to beat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2oQW8j3ajs

Kevin

Richardson won a convert with his thoughtful answer on the internal dynamics of Pakistani politics and the role of the United States.

But he was outraged at the national media distortion of it.

Iowa caucuses Thursday could make or break top Democrats on road to presidential nomination By: BETH FOUHY and NEDRA PICKLER - Associated Press

What really counts.

Campaigns pledged DNC delegates by state.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/12/...

But he was outraged at the national media distortion of it.

_____________________

That is the problem when the media wants a 30 second solution to a very complex problem.  So the media takes one sentence out of context and runs with it.  Much to the detriment of the candidate that knows it is much more complex than the half minute the talking heads want.

Have a great Sunday!  I'm off to Church.

Why are we writing about Repug candidates here?

This is just the kind of thing the big media is trying to do -- make all Repug names as familiar as apple pie to all Americans.

IMHO, none of them are viable no matter what their names are.

The only thing Dems have to be vigilant about is the Repug fraud and dirty secretary of states in R states. We have already seen some of that recently in Kansas where they were "caging" mostly black Dem areas with letters. If these letters came back to them as non-deliverable, their names were taken off the voter list. Perhaps there is little wrong with the concept of that but it must be done statewide to all voters regardless of where they live or what party they re registered in

.

51.

Phil,

What did you based your expectations on? You are on ground zero there and probably have a better grasp of things than any outside pollster has, especially considering the complexities of a caucus.

55. Huckabee is a shill for the people who have taken over religion to follow their agendas out of the public view.  They're into secrecy not because they're necessarily doing something wrong, but because it supports their thirst for power.

Yesterday's mail brought only one flier--another from the  Alliance for a New America.

Like the one that came the day before, the outside looks to be generic while the inside is devoted to Edwards.  

NEW HAMPSHIRE FAMILIES ARE LOSING OUT BECAUSE SPECIAL INTEREST MONEY CONTROLS WASHINGTON--front

Ask all the candidates what their plans are to stop the special interest money that controls Washington politicians--back.

It will be interesting how much traction antagonism towards an amorphous "special interest money" has.  Blaming a third party has got to get stale some time.

The inside verbiage doesn't strike me as convincing.  But that may just be me.

John Edwards has a plan to defeat the big corporations that have hijacked our government so they get richer at the expense of our families 

This sentence does not compute.  The elements of the plan:

*Ban all candidates from taking lobbyist money 

*Create a constitutional line-item veto so the President can veto wasteful pork spending put into bills at the request of lobbyists

*Ban top officials from lobbying their colleagues for five years after they serve 

JOHN EDWARDS' PLAN TO HELP MIDDLE-CLASS FAMILIES;--center (not worth analysis) 

The privious day's offering had a similar format.

America's Image Has Been Seriously Damaged by George Bush's Failed Policies 

(how superficial can you get?)

Ask all the candidates what their plans are to restore America's image around the world--on back 

John Edwards has a foreign policy plan to win back the respect and friendships America needs to bring peace and prosperity around the world (presumably excluding corporations) 

So, the ugly American is going to turn into the globe's savior. 

I grew up in MO. so I think it's appropriate for me to point out that the Democrats that state sends to DC are little different than Republicans. Carnahan was a DINO and so has McCaskill been. Carnahan was tossed out of office for it and so will McCaskill probably be when her current term is up.

After all, MO was the home of the president who said, "Give the people a choice between a Republican and a Republican and they will vote for the Republican every time." The politicians may not know what he meant, but Missouri Democrats do.

60.  What's wrong with it is that the post office has become so unreliable that what happens to a letter signifies nothing.  Since many people no longer use snail mail, most politicians may not be aware how drastically the service has deteriorated.  If the lists are to be checked and validated, then the letters should be sent with a receipt request.  That would likely make the whole effort prohibitively expensive, but it's what the lawyers should demand.

Why wouldn't a candidate that stands with Unions not expect them to back him in their 527 ads?

It's the hypocrisy. And also possibly breaking the law by coordinating with one.

Thanks Monica.

We haven't gotten anything in Fla since our votes won't count in Denver, so I was curious as to what content was in these fliers they write about.

In California the California Teachers Assocition did not endorse Debra Bowen for SoS. They endoresed the Republican incumbent McPherson. They said at the time they wanted to go with a winner. Debra Bowen won in primary and the general election.

CTA endorses McPherson http://caobserver.blogspot.com/2006/04/c...

A lot of Teachers are registered Republicans. They liked Ronald Reagan.

TEACHER UNION RAISES CAMPAIGN AID FOR MONDALE AND OTHER DEMOCRATS By EDWARD B. FISKE (NYT)

October 29, 1984, Monday

Late City Final Edition, Section A, Page 20, Column 1, 1470 words

Four years after it watched a majority of its own members ignore its advice to support the re- election of President Carter, the National Education Association has substantially increased its activities in behalf of Walter F. Mondale and other candidates for local, state and national offices. The political action ... http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.h...

64.

Our little unincorporated town has had a huge problem with our local post office for many years. Nobody ever seems interested in fixing the problems here and they are serious ones.

For the USPS in general, an article I purchased online from a Houston dealer on Dec. 4 came with a USPS tracking number. The last tracking available was on Dec 7 which said it had left Charleston WV. No one has seen it since. Amazing!

51.

One refreshing thing this time around, I would expect virtually no GOP crossover in the open-primary states to spoil our own primaries.

Anyone just catch Hill on George Snuffy? She said something like, "Those people in the suits and ties out demonstrating in the streets in Pakistan -- the upwardly-mobile middle class of Pakistan -- these should be the people we make our cause with," or words to that effect.

I thought it sounded a bit strange. IMO, you make your cause to the majority, which in most countries would be the poor.

She sounded like a GOP to me, let's only talk to people with money and power or the potential for power.

--volney

Joan, Bluehamsphire has a regular mail call feature.  I din't start saving mine until a few days ago.

Now that you remind me, maybe it's time to send another packet to our tenants in Georgia.

They were very appreciative of an earlier mailing. 

John Edwards has a foreign policy plan to win back the respect and friendships America needs to bring peace and prosperity around the world (presumably excluding corporations) 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Yes, Ive heard all this, and also this morninghow he will not have somebody from a  foreign country influencing his administration..........tha I do not believe however...............

Not one of the candidates, maybe with the exception of Ron paul clearly understand s just how unfair, one sided and dangerous our foreign policy is ......................Edward won change a thing Im afraid with regards to that end.............

To me that means a McCain/Huckabee ticket and like Mike has been saying wouldn't be all that easy to beat.  

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Thanks Phil.............you are a man of above average intelligence...........Id give a slight nod to a Mcain/Huckabee ticket.............there wil no "uniter" in this country......it is a divided nation, andadly our goofed up elction process makes us end up with what we have seen the last 8 years.............

IF, Im wrong on this one............it will be a happy defeat......

I just left this on the old thread - my body is better but my head is apparently still foggier than usual...

Good morning borgie. I thought Russert was hard on Huckabee (the little part I watched) and easy on Obama. The Sundays Matthews show was a Hillary fest, but 6 of 12 say Obama will win Iowa. (5 of 12 say Hill, 1 of 12 say Edwards.) Edwards was a forgotten man on Matthews. CSPAN is bringing a live caucus on Thursday night - Dems - and a live Repub caucus on CSPAN 2 I believe starts at 7 or whenever the caucuses start. Also someone said someone had passed out a bunch of youtube friendly cameras for the caucuses so stuff can be uploaded that night. Gee I had more news than I realized.

My monumental cold settled happily in my chest with ugly bronchitis and now 9 days later I'm starting to feel human. The new cat is so damn smart. She is enclosed on a screen porch. Lotsa cat furniture but no good place to hide. So she took her blanket which I brought from her house and uses it to tunnel till she makes herself this wonderful foxhole that even the dog (who has been allowed in for an occasional sniff) can't penetrate.

That's the report from Gatorland where it is to be 84!!!! today.

11:26 AM ET

now 11:33 AM ET

60.

Joan* In*Florida
Sun, 12/30/07

Why are we writing about Repug candidates here?
..........

'cause, probably, at least ONE of them DESERVE IT much more than ALL of the 3 major Demos candidates combine, imo!

If for some "progressive" voters ("generational" Demos…, lol) label is more important then essence then so be it. The rest of American People won't wait for those "progressives" to wake up...lol.

However those seeking the truth (not label) may find stunning similarity, Democrats Kucinich (and Gravel) and Republican Ron Paul is getting from their respective Parties.

Why are we not writing about that?

http://www.ronpaul2008.com/press-release...

"
December 28, 2007 10:39 pm EST

ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA – According to the New Hampshire State Republican Party and an Associated Press report, Republican presidential candidate and Texas Congressman Ron Paul will be excluded from an upcoming forum of Republican candidates to be broadcast by Fox News on January 6, 2008.

“Given Ron Paul’s support in New Hampshire and his recent historic fundraising success, it is outrageous that Dr. Paul would be excluded,” said Ron Paul 2008 campaign chairman Kent Snyder. “Dr. Paul has consistently polled higher in New Hampshire than some of the other candidates who have been invited.”

Snyder continued, “Paul supporters should know that we are continuing to make inquiries with Fox News as to why they have apparently excluded Dr. Paul from this event.”

###

"

Imn2Paine
Sun, 12/30/07

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Well to be fair to you NEers the Pats were very impressive lst night.....the speed of Welker was something to watch..........this team could easily ru thru theplayoffs and swamp the opppnent in the Super Bowl..........I cant help but feel though, that being undefeated is a double edged sword.........is more pressure to win on NE, but if they are truly a great team, they will overcome that presure....................

The AFC is a very tough conference.......and the NFC wil provide stiff competion on the Super Bowl should they get there...........either way, NE deserves all the accoldades for an indfeated reglualr season.....................the second season starts next week, and everybody else is undefeated then..........

Teachers have gotten increasingly authoritarian.  They resent that the TV seems to have more authority over kids than they do.  But, they don't seem reluctant to show the most peculiar movies in class.

Such as?

Michael Ellis

>

good post.  I agree that being undefeated is a double edged sword, which is why I hold on to a sliver of hope that the Packers defeat the Pats at the Superbowl.  But, I  would not make a wager for a Packers Superbowl victory.

Phil wrote "Why wouldn't a candidate that stands with Unions not expect them to back him in their 527 ads?"

All of the Democratic candidates stand with unions.  Only one, however, makes consistent use of former campaign personnel to take advantage of the campaign finance law loopholes that help supplement his own meager fundraising.  After all, he tried it out first in 2004.

The most arch element of this strategy isn't calling on past opponents to stop outside advocacy ads, or specifically fashioning a campaign around the issue of freedom from special interest influence.  It's actually announcing that accepting federal funds was a way to show his campaign was free of such influence.  If Edwards does pull this out, it will be principly because of his impressive ability to lie without flinching to people willing to believe him.

Annilow - I didn't watch Russert. Do you have any details on why you think he went soft on Obama? Thanks.

--------
JudyforDean - I loved your story about your son picking up a pit bull/Ridgeback at the shelter. I had a Rhodesian Ridgeback - one of the sweetest dogs ever. My sister's husband rescued two pit bulls (one is part pit bull) and they are truly the sweetest little beasties.

Here's some Iowa polls: (lifted from mydd)

Mason-Dixon

Edwards 33 (21)
Obama 26 (25)
Clinton 26 (27)
Other 3 (14)
Uncommitted 2
Undecided 10


Zogby

Clinton 35.8 (27)
Obama 33.4 (24)
Edwards 30.8 (21)
Other 0

11:52

I am out the door, so tchau.

But, the following tune mixed with video segments could yield a perfect MESSAGE to those Democrats who seek the vote of Progressives, but turn away.

http://hypem.com/track/445429      

11:52 s/b 11:54

Hillary is second choice for only 12% of caucus goers. That's good news (I think) for Obama and Edwards.

Mike wrote "Well to be fair to you NEers the Pats were very impressive lst night.....the speed of Welker was something to watch..........this team could easily ru thru theplayoffs and swamp the opppnent in the Super Bowl..........I cant help but feel though, that being undefeated is a double edged sword.........is more pressure to win on NE, but if they are truly a great team, they will overcome that presure."

You seem to think the world revolved around last night's game.........you being of European distraction does rather surprise me....................of course, all the American bases located around the globe will account for most of that number, but I seriously doubt any self respecting rugby player (at least) from Wales, S. Africa, NZ, Australia, etc cared to tune in and watch it.........................

Hope you enjoyed the game.............it was meaningless basically.

I don't know how teachers can compete with all the glitz and glam on TV.

Pitbulls bad - Ridgebacks good - Judy story - sweet.

mary vb I don't recall the exact questions on Russert with Obama -- he tried to pin him about his healthcare being non-universal b/c not required. Seems like there was a question about his lack of experience - O. tried to compare his experience to being the same as Bill Clinton when he went to Washington which wasn't a perfect response - O. should have mentioned his years in the ILL statehouse IMO. What O. was trying to say was his Washington experience was the same as BC at that time. There was a question about Michelle saying they wouldn't run again. O's answer left the door open to another run. Maybe Obama just returned all the 'serves' so artfully and relaxedly it SEEMED like Russert was being easy on him. There was a question about how O. tried to turn Hill's vote for Iraq into somehow making Bhutto assassination happen. O. I thought artfully deflected that as the silliness it was. Needless to say I'm leaning O. (and Dodd).

Other idle comments -- I think Huckabee set himself back a few points with the stupid HUNTER photo op. Surely Iowans were as embarrassed as I. Why doesn't Hillary have to go shooting? Please Obama, don't go shooting.

Oh -- Matelin and Carville are the absolute symbol of what is wrong with Washington DC today -- they like Congress are just opposite sides of the same coin -- in the business for what they can get out of it -- not the good of the country. Put them on my Asses of Evil board along with Bush-Cheney.

http://www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row...

For Immediate Release: December 27, 2007
Contact: Carol Goldberg (202) 265-7337

EPA TO SURRENDER ALL DOCUMENTS ON CALIFORNIA WAIVER DECISION — Congress to Determine Whether Johnson Ignored His Legal and Technical Staff

Washington, DC — In response to congressional demands, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is assembling all documents relating to Administrator’s Stephen Johnson’s controversial December 19th announcement blocking California and 16 other states from controlling greenhouse gases, according to an all employee e-mail released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). Johnson’s own immediate staff will provide “any records presenting options, recommendations, 'pros and cons,' legal issues or risks, political implications or considerations, or any other record” to investigators.



On December 20, 2007, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), chair of the Senate Environment & Public Works Committee, wrote Johnson asking him to “immediately initiate record collection, and to preserve all potentially relevant records.” The letter cites media reports that Johnson “overrode the recommendations of your technical and legal staff in making this decision.”

Although Johnson’s decision on the request by California and other states to regulate greenhouse gases from automobiles was supposed to have been the product of months of legal and scientific deliberation, Johnson hastily called a press conference at 6:30 pm to cite the energy bill signed just that morning as the principal basis for his veto of state action. Senator Boxer in her letter characterized Johnson’s “two-page letter denying the waiver [as] devoid of any legal or technical analysis.”

The surrender of the EPA staff recommendations to Congress sets up an unusual autopsy of the behind-the-scenes factors for an executive branch decision— presumably a decision that had been cleared by the White House. Since the tenure of the administration’s first EPA Administrator, Christie Todd Whitman, agency policy on global warming has been set directly by Vice President Cheney and the White House.

“What made Johnson’s decision so striking is that for months he said he was basing it on the scientific and legal merits and then did the precise opposite,” stated PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch, whose organization has been contacted by outraged EPA employees. "One employee told me ‘I am ashamed to admit that I work at EPA’ and another asked ‘What am I supposed to tell my children when they ask me what I am doing to fight global warming?’”

Johnson has refused to attend a field hearing of Sen. Boxer’s committee slated for January 10, 2008 in Los Angeles. When Johnson does finally appear before Congress it promises to be highly contentious.

“To his own staff, Johnson’s tenure has been nothing short of appalling, ranking him with Anne Gorsuch Burford, who ended her turbulent tenure under President Reagan by resigning in disgrace, as the worst leader in EPA’s history,” Ruch added. “EPA under Johnson has become a major impediment to moving the country forward on the challenge of global warming.”

###

---

http://www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row...

For Immediate Release: December 21, 2007
Contact: Carol Goldberg (202) 265-7337

CONGRESS DIRECTS EPA TO RE-OPEN ITS LIBRARIES — Omnibus Appropriations Bill Earmarks Money for Restoration of Library Services

Washington, DC — Buried within the omnibus appropriations bill Congress sent this week to President Bush is a Christmas present for the beleaguered library network of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Congress ordered EPA to restore library services across the country and earmarked $3 million for that purpose, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

Beginning in early 2006, without public announcement or congressional approval, EPA began dismantling its network of technical and research libraries. Altogether EPA has closed regional libraries serving 23 states and its headquarters library in Washington, D.C. It has also reduced services and hours in libraries covering another 14 states. In addition, EPA has shuttered several of its specialized, technical libraries, such as its unique library dedicated to the effects of pesticides and new chemicals.

The report language attached to the omnibus appropriations bill for the remainder of the 2008 fiscal year directs EPA to use $3 million to “restore the network of EPA libraries recently closed or consolidated by the Administration…” and to report within 90 days on its plans to “restore publicly available libraries to provide environmental information and data to each EPA region…”

“The EPA libraries are not only important to the public but are invaluable tools for the agency’s own scientists and specialists,” stated PEER Associate Director Carol Goldberg, pointing to a petition signed by the representatives for more than half of all EPA scientists protesting the closures. “While the intervention of Congress is most welcome, it comes after several closures and much disruption, leaving the remaining EPA librarians with the task of putting Humpty Dumpty back together again.”

Prior to the closures, the budget for the EPA library network was $2.5 million. By earmarking $3 million, Congress increased the total library budget, allowing the agency to absorb the expense of collecting dispersed collections and replacing jettisoned facilities. For example, EPA closed its largest regional library in Chicago and sold all of its fixtures, valued at more than $40,000, for less than $350.

The rationale for the library closures was never clearly spelled out by the agency, which maintained that it wanted to digitize all of its holdings. Its original claim of cost savings did not bear up under scrutiny and clashed with the enormous expense of digitizing hundreds of thousands of documents. In addition, the agency did not anticipated copyright restrictions, which barred many of its holdings from being digitized.

“We have already been contacted by EPA librarians who are concerned that the same officials who destroyed the libraries will be in charge of their restoration,” added Goldberg. “We hope that Congress continues to closely oversee whether EPA fully restores the full range of library services it had provided.”

While many congressional earmarks have drawn negative attention for funding what are called “pork” projects, other earmarks act as congressional checks on executive abuses. “This is one earmark that all Americans should applaud,” Goldberg concluded.

###

Read the text of the congressional report language on libraries

View the full report for EPA and related agencies

Look at how EPA had dismantled much of its library system

See the mass protest by EPA scientists against library closures

Note the problems library closures posed for environmental enforcement

Tom Bearse at least half the stuff we discuss here is meaningless - what's wrong with discussing football? Perhaps more importantly, why am I defending it - I hate football.

Thanks, Annilow. O & D are my two current candidates.

For Immediate Release: December 18, 2007
Contact: Carol Goldberg (202) 265-7337

INTERIOR ETHICS INITIATIVE EVAPORATES BEHIND CLOSED DOORS — Vaunted Effort Scaled Back and Unimplemented While Scientific Fraud Ignored

Washington, DC — An ethics initiative unveiled with great fanfare this summer by Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne has been quietly scaled back, according to agency documents released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). Other elements of the Secretary’s “10-point plan” to transform the scandal-ridden agency into “a model of an ethical workplace” remain in limbo.
...full release: http://www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row...

Annilow wrote "Tom Bearse at least half the stuff we discuss here is meaningless - what's wrong with discussing football? Perhaps more importantly, why am I defending it - I hate football."

I've discussed it during the last two days, so I'm not sure how you get the impression that I think there's anything wrong with discussing it.  Maybe you meant to ask why I haven't agreed with everyone here who has been discussing the subject except Mike. 

new thread

http://www.blogforamerica.com/view/23392...

91, Maybe