Geldof and Bush

Diary From The Road
By Bob Geldof

It is some story. And I have always wondered why it was never told properly to the American people, who were paying for it. It was, for example, Bush who initiated the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) with cross-party support led by Senators John Kerry and Bill Frist. In 2003, only 50,000 Africans were on HIV antiretroviral drugs — and they had to pay for their own medicine. Today, 1.3 million are receiving medicines free of charge. The U.S. also contributes one-third of the money for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria — which treats another 1.5 million. It contributes 50% of all food aid (though some critics find the mechanism of contribution controversial). On a seven-day trip through Africa, Bush announced a fantastic new $350 million fund for other neglected tropical diseases that can be easily eradicated; a program to distribute 5.2 million mosquito nets to Tanzanian kids; and contracts worth around $1.2 billion in Tanzania and Ghana from the Millennium Challenge Account, another initiative of the Bush Administration.

Great article about the impact President Bush is having on Africa.

William F. Buckley Jr. dies at 82

William F. Buckley Jr., the erudite Ivy Leaguer and conservative herald who showered huge and scornful words on liberalism as he observed, abetted and cheered on the right's post-World War II rise from the fringes to the White House, died Wednesday. He was 82.

His assistant Linda Bridges said Buckley was found dead by his cook at his home in Stamford, Conn. The cause of death was unknown, but he had been ill with emphysema, she said.

Editor, columnist, novelist, debater, TV talk show star of "Firing Line," harpsichordist, trans-oceanic sailor and even a good-natured loser in a New York mayor's race, Buckley worked at a daunting pace, taking as little as 20 minutes to write a column for his magazine, the National Review.

Yet on the platform he was all handsome, reptilian languor, flexing his imposing vocabulary ever so slowly, accenting each point with an arched brow or rolling tongue and savoring an opponent's discomfort with wide-eyed glee.

"I am, I fully grant, a phenomenon, but not because of any speed in composition," he wrote in The New York Times Book Review in 1986. "I asked myself the other day, 'Who else, on so many issues, has been so right so much of the time?' I couldn't think of anyone."

What a terrible loss for us. Thank you for everything, Sir.

IRS Finally Wakes Up

Politicians have been campaigning in churches for a long time. You know it, I know it, the candidates know it. Finally, FINALLY the IRS is getting with the program of enforcing the law.


This is just one passage from the speech. See the link below for the whole thing and a brilliant analysis by S&L.

Campaigning for God and the Presidency.

Hillary To code pink Pre-Iraq War

Salute: US Marine Corps

Racism In This Day & Age? Nahh

Black Lawmakers Rethink Clinton Support
If we apply the lil trick I like, replace BLACK with WHITE and contemplate how racist that sounds.

One black supporter of Clinton, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, said he remains committed to her. "There's nothing going on right now that would cause me to" change, he said.

He said any suggestion that elected leaders should follow their voters "raises the age old political question. Are we elected to monitor where our constituents are ... or are we to use our best judgment to do what's in the best interests of our constituents."

In an interview, Cleaver offered a glimpse of private conversations.

He said Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. of Illinois had recently asked him "if it comes down to the last day and you're the only superdelegate? ... Do you want to go down in history as the one to prevent a black from winning the White House?

"I told him I'd think about it," Cleaver concluded.

This can't be true. No one is this obviously racist, are they?

Jackson, an Obama supporter, confirmed the conversation, and said the dilemma may pose a career risk for some black politicians. "Many of these guys have offered their support to Mrs. Clinton, but Obama has won their districts. So you wake up without the carpet under your feet. You might find some young primary challenger placing you in a difficult position" in the future, he added.

Jesse Jackson Jr. Taking after his pop.

Audio: General Petraeus Speaks

Exclusive: General Petraeus' Iraq War Update podcast

If I Had My Life To Live Over

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren't there for the day.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the 'good' living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn't show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I'd have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, 'Later. Now go get washed up for dinner.' There would have been more 'I love you's', More 'I'm sorry's.'

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute..look at it and really see it . Live it and never give it back. STOP SWEATING THE SMALL STUFF!!!

Don't worry about who doesn't like you, who has more, or who's doing what. Instead, let's cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.

-by Erma Bombeck
(written after she found out she was dying from cancer).

Fired Up and Falling Down

String of Crowd Fainting Incidents Hits Obama Rallies

fainting rallies
by krs601

Barack v |Glitch|

Barack Obama's Q&A

I've asked a guest to respond. Enjoy!

Read this doc on Scribd: Barack Obama Q&A

h/t: |Glitch|
Thank you!

IRS Info - Stimulus Package

Information on Stimulus Payments

Updated Feb. 15, 2008

Starting in May, the Treasury will begin sending economic stimulus payments to more than 130 million individuals. The stimulus payments will go out through the late spring and summer.

The vast majority of Americans who qualify for the payment will not have to do anything other than file their 2007 individual income tax return to receive their payment this year. The IRS will use information on the tax return to determine eligibility and calculate the amount of the stimulus payments.

Information for Recipients of Social Security Benefits

The IRS and Treasury will be working closely with the Social Security Administration along with beneficiary organizations to ensure that all eligible individuals know what to do to receive a stimulus payment. In many cases, the taxpayer will be able to use the short tax return Form 1040A.

Information for Recipients of Veterans' Benefits

The IRS and Treasury will be working closely with the Department of Veterans Affairs along with beneficiary organizations to ensure that all eligible individuals know what to do to receive a stimulus payment. In many cases, the taxpayer will be able to use the short tax return Form 1040A.

To find out what forms you need, please see here.

The McCain Boys

Enjoy!

McCain's Marine son returns from Iraq

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who almost always refuses to speak on the campaign trail about his son serving in the military, got a rousing reception Wednesday when he told a private gathering of House Republican congressman that his son Jimmy — whose Marine unit had been deployed to Iraq — had arrived home safely.

According to three GOP sources present at the closed meeting of the House Republican Conference, the Arizona senator said that when his son first arrived in the country, he reported seeing IEDs everywhere — but when he recently left, some seven months later, Iraq had become so safe he was handing out soccer balls.

According to the sources present, the congressmen greeted the news with standing ovations.

McCain shares grief and fear of war families

THE moment she heard that the Republican candidates in the 2008 presidential election would be holding a debate close to her home in New Hampshire, Erin Flanagan determined to confront them with the reality of the war in Iraq.

Two years earlier, Flanagan’s brother, First Lieutenant Michael Cleary, had been killed by an Iraqi roadside bomb eight days before he was due to return home. Angered by the candidates’ failure to commit themselves to an early withdrawal of US troops, Flanagan carefully compiled an emotional question that she hoped would put them on the spot.

If there was a single moment that marked the turning point in John McCain’s remarkable advance on the Republican presidential nomination, it may have come at that debate last June when Flanagan stood up and asked in a quivering voice how the candidates intended to stop the suffering of families who had lost their loved ones to a badly managed war.

McCain’s response to Flanagan’s anguished question not only earned him glowing reviews that helped to revive a presidential campaign that was then floundering and nearly bankrupt; it also led to a meeting of extraordinary poignancy between two very different American families who found themselves united by their experiences of Iraq.

An Interview with Jack McCain

Jack McCain may be on the sidelines during most of his dad’s quest for the presidency, but he is by no means sitting this race out. In an exclusive interview with GoMids.com, Midshipman McCain spoke about his relationship with his dad, his surprising connection to Chelsea Clinton, his love of Navy football and even who he thinks would make a great vice presidential running mate.

Obama Would Withdraw from Iraq...Maybe

Attention Obama supporters! (Hillary supporters too.)

Hasty U.S. troop cuts risk Iraq gains: Petraeus

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq advocated a cautious approach to cutting American firepower on Monday, saying that security gains could be sacrificed if troops left too quickly.

Five extra combat brigades brought in last year as part of President George W. Bush's "surge" policy are scheduled to depart by mid-year. Iraqi and U.S. officials say the extra troops helped stave off all-out sectarian war in Iraq.

"We're going to cut one quarter of our combat power in a period of overall 6-8 months," General David Petraeus told Reuters in an interview.

"That's a very substantial reduction and we want to be prudent in what we do following that so we don't jeopardize the gains that our troops and our Iraqi partners have fought so hard to achieve."

With the Democratic candidates to be the next U.S. president calling for fewer forces to be involved in the unpopular war and the military strained by heavy commitments in Afghanistan and Iraq, Petraeus is under pressure to timetable more departures.

But he was reluctant to be pinned down early, cautioning that al Qaeda was not yet fully beaten, the embers of sectarian hatred could be relit, political reconciliation needs to take root and Iraq's own security forces need to mature.

"We'll assess very carefully the possibility of further reductions," said Petraeus, without putting a timescale on how long it would take for him to determine the security situation mid-year. "The gains are in some areas fragile and tenuous."

Any Democrat president that took out troops without the blessing of the US Military would do so at great political risk. Ain't gonna happen.

Clintons and FALN

It was nearly 10 p.m. on New Year's Eve, 1982. Two officers on New York Police Department's elite bomb squad rushed to headquarters at One Police Plaza, where minutes earlier an explosion had destroyed the entrance to the building. Lying amid the carnage was Police Officer Rocco Pascarella, his lower leg blasted off.

"He was ripped up like someone took a box cutter and shredded his face," remembered Detective Anthony Senft, one of the bomb-squad officers who answered the call 25 years ago. "We really didn't even know that he was a uniformed man until we found his weapon, that's how badly he was injured."

About 20 minutes later, Mr. Senft and his partner, Richard Pastorella, were blown 15 feet in the air as they knelt in protective gear to defuse another bomb. Detective Senft was blinded in one eye, his facial bones shattered, his hip severely fractured. Mr. Pastorella was blinded in both eyes and lost all the fingers of his right hand. A total of four bombs exploded in a single hour on that night, including at FBI headquarters in Manhattan and the federal courthouse in Brooklyn.

The perpetrators were members of Armed Forces of National Liberation, FALN (the Spanish acronym), a clandestine terrorist group devoted to bringing about independence for Puerto Rico through violent means. Its members waged war on America with bombings, arson, kidnappings, prison escapes, threats and intimidation. The most gruesome attack was the 1975 Fraunces Tavern bombing in Lower Manhattan. Timed to go off during the lunch-hour rush, the explosion decapitated one of the four people killed and injured another 60.

FALN bragged about the bloodbath, calling the victims "reactionary corporate executives" and threatening: "You have unleashed a storm from which you comfortable Yankees can't escape." By 1996, the FBI had linked FALN to 146 bombings and a string of armed robberies -- a reign of terror that resulted in nine deaths and hundreds of injured victims.

On Aug. 7, 1999, the one-year anniversary of the U.S. African embassy bombings that killed 257 people and injured 5,000, President Bill Clinton reaffirmed his commitment to the victims of terrorism, vowing that he "will not rest until justice is done." Four days later, while Congress was on summer recess, the White House quietly issued a press release announcing that the president was granting clemency to 16 imprisoned members of FALN. What began as a simple paragraph on the AP wire exploded into a major controversy.

Mr. Clinton justified the clemencies by asserting that the sentences were disproportionate to the crimes. None of the petitioners, he stated, had been directly involved in crimes that caused bodily harm to anyone. "For me," the president concluded, "the question, therefore, was whether their continuing incarceration served any meaningful purpose."

His comments, including the astonishing claim that the FALN prisoners were being unfairly punished because of "guilt by association," were widely condemned as a concession to terrorists. Further, they were seen as an outrageous slap in the face of the victims and a bitter betrayal of the cops and federal law enforcement officers who had put their lives on the line to protect the public and who had invested years of their careers to put these people behind bars. The U.S. Sentencing Commission affirmed a pre-existing Justice Department assessment that the sentences, ranging from 30 to 90 years, were "in line with sentences imposed in other cases for similar terrorist activity."

I expect more stories of this sort to be forthcoming. Obama seems to be the annointed one now.
WSJ

USS New York

It was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center

It is the fifth in a new class of warship - designed for missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore by helicopters and assault craft.

Steel from the World Trade Center was melted down in a foundry in Amite, LA to cast the ship's bow section. When it was poured into the molds on Sept. 9, 2003, "those big rough steelworkers treated it with total reverence," recalled Navy Capt. Kevin Wensing, who was there. "It was a spiritual moment for everybody there."

Junior Chavers, foundry operations manager, said that when the trade center steel first arrived, he touched it with his hand and the "hair on my neck stood up." "It had a big meaning to it for all of us," he said. "They knocked us down. They can't keep us down. We're going to be back."

The ship's motto?
"Never Forget"

h/t: ezwinner

Oil Ain't So Bad

So much for the halo effect around ethanol and other biofuels.

It turns out that the impact of producing and using biofuels causes twice as many greenhouse gas emissions as petroleum-based fuels, according to two new studies published in the top-tier journal Science. (The Science studies aren’t up yet, but here’s the New York Times’ version of the story, and here’s the Washington Post’s.)

Biofuels produce fewer direct emissions. But growing the crops to make them displaces food crops, which forces farmers to clear more vegetation off the land to produce the food crops. The world’s rainforests are being destroyed especially quickly, the studies say.

I can't keep up with what's killing the planet. Since I was a small child (30 some years ago) there's been no consensus on what will kill us all. Some things never change.
Ethanol Blues.

Obama & Hope

One-on-One With General David Petraeus

WASHINGTON - Speaking on a scratchy telephone line from Baghdad to D.C., the top commander of U.S. forces in Iraq confessed something: The stress of the war is taking a toll on U.S. forces.

He was confirming Joint Chiefs Chairman Michael Mullen's assessment that U.S. forces are significantly stressed. The cause of that stress? Gen. David Petraeus says it's the "long and repeated deployments" in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"I think I'm qualified to talk about that. I added it up the other day and I think I've been deployed for over 50 months since 2001, and I'm not unique. There's nothing easy about what we've been doing."

But he also says what U.S. forces are doing is important.

See article and listen to the interview.

Happy Birthday, Ronnie

Pallywood