The AP DESTROYS the Phony Climategate Scandal

By GottaLaff

Neener. Nanner. NeenernannerNeenernannerNeenernanner. And yes, I'm being immature and childish because I am sick to death of wingy memes monopolizing the media and accepted as truth:

This is significant because it sweeps away any quasi-legitimacy the Global Warming deniers have had in isolating or trumpeting certain doubts that individual scientists may have had.

The 1,073 e-mails examined by the AP show that scientists harbored private doubts, however slight and fleeting, even as they told the world they were certain about climate change. However, the exchanges don't undercut the vast body of evidence showing the world is warming because of man-made greenhouse gas emissions.

There is more fun over at Kos. Go visit, then dance in circles, point and laugh at the Deniers, and call everyone you know.

I will resume adulthood after I post this. So there. Pfft.

100,000 march for more aggressive action on global warming

By GottaLaff

(Via)

Now this is how you do a protest. Tea Partiers, eat your hearts out:

Police and organizers estimated that between 60,000 and 100,000 people showed up to protest the U.N. climate talks in Copenhagen Saturday, demanding more aggressive action on global warming. The demonstrations were mostly peaceful, except for some radical groups whose spontaneous protests led to 900 arrests. The chief coordinator for Danish police said, [...] Most demonstrators were looking to speed up action to stop climate change, but various social and political causes were represented, from vegetarianism to the Iranian opposition, and of course, the ubiquitous Free Tibet folks.

And that's the way it is.

Did Sarah Palin really have plastic surgery? You betcha!

By GottaLaff

You know it's a slow day when...

From the Department of Tuck You:

For all the details and photos about Barbie McLipSchumutz's Big Lift, please go read Gryphen's post. Here's a peek:

Now the only reason that this is in any way news worthy is because 1) we never heard the truth for why Palin went missing, 2) she recently made fun of Joe Biden's hairplugs (Pot meet kettle), 3) and this definitely makes it clear that Palin understands that her looks are key to her success in politics. It seems clear that Sarah knows that when her looks fade, so does her influence.

Before:

After:

Imagine what she'd look like had she quit... in the middle of her nasolabial fold lift.

I wonder if her health insurance covered any of it.

White House condemns Ugandan "Kill Gays" Bill

By GottaLaff

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Rachel Maddow has done a great job covering this story. Now the ObamAdministration is making a few thoughts of its own:

On Friday, the White House issued a statement to the Advocate, condemning the Anti-Homosexuality Bill currently being considered by the Ugandan parliament:

The President strongly opposes efforts, such as the draft law pending in Uganda, that would criminalize homosexuality and move against the tide of history.

As the Advocate’s Kerry Eleveld notes, this statement is the strongest yet issued by the Obama administration.

That's the kind of update we can believe in.

Keep up the pressure and great reporting, Rachel. What would we do without you?

Sen. Bill Brady (R) used to "take Obama's money"

By GottaLaff

Know when to fold 'em:

"I used to take his money when we played poker. Now he's trying to take mine."

--Illinois state Sen. Bill Brady (R), quoted by the National Journal, on how he misses the "old" Barack Obama.

Iraq has a "confused partner in the United States right now"

By GottaLaff

(Photo: The U.S. Army)

My talented pal Allen McDuffee has an interesting piece over at Truthout. Here are a few excerpts about something we don't hear much about because, you know, Tiger is "real" news, and information about the evolution of Iraq just gets in the way:

"If I had one word to describe Iraq, I would just use the word 'complicated.' If I had two words to describe Iraq, they would be 'very complicated,'" said Qubad Talabani, the representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq to the United States . [...]

These circumstances are further complicated, according to Talabani, because Iraq has a "confused partner in the United States right now. A partner that has from 2003 up until now been heavily engaged in every aspect of political and military development of the country and a partner that is going through its own transition right now." [...]

Talabani also pointed to a "'culture of insecurity' that has been bred throughout Iraq - because of its history, because of its present, because of its geographic location, because of its partners - that makes reaching political agreements on key outstanding issues" an extremely difficult enterprise and that insecurity is "at the heart of every political impasse right now."

It's not a long piece, so please go read the rest here.

So. Didja hear about Gilette distancing itself from Tiger..... ?

Audio- Limbaugh: "I don't care" if Obama is "new" or "black"; says Sen. Whitehouse is "exactly right" he wants to stop Obama

Once again, not making any sense at all.

Blistering Indictment Leveled Against Obama Over His Handling of Bush-Era War Crimes

By GottaLaff

Jason Leopold, a very thorough, very talented investigative reporter, has done an extensive piece on the Obama administration and its handling of BushCo war crimes.

It's not easy to read some of his words, because the facts aren't what some of us want them to be. As much as I admire President Obama and understand that he's been in office for a very short time, there are a few decisions that I question.

There is no way he can solve every problem (and there are so, so many) facing this country, and I hear complaint after complaint that he hasn't addressed every issue "right now!" That's absurd. He's done an outstanding job of sorting through the mountain of waste product that he inherited, and rectified some hugely important "mistakes".

However, he has dealt with a few leftovers in a way that made me raise my eyebrows:

Officials from the civil rights organization [ACLU] issued a withering indictment of the Obama administration’s handling of clear-cut cases of war crimes they say were committed by former Bush officials who the Obama administration not only refuses to prosecute but has gone to extraordinary lengths to cover up.

"We're increasingly disappointed and alarmed by the current administration's stance on accountability for torture," said Jameel Jaffer, director of the ACLU’s National Security Project, during a conference call with reporters. "On every front, the [Obama] administration is actively obstructing accountability. This administration is shielding Bush administration officials from civil liability, criminal investigation and even public scrutiny for their role in authorizing torture." [...]

Constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley said the Obama administration "has gutted the hard-fought victories in Nuremberg where lawyers and judges were often guilty of war crimes in their legal advice and opinions."

"If successful in [the Padilla] case, the Obama Administration will succeed in returning the world to the rules leading to the war crimes at Nuremberg," Turley said. "Quite a legacy for the world’s newest Nobel Peace Prize winner."

What’s remarkable about the Obama Justice Department’s amicus brief in the Padilla case is that it didn't need to be filed to begin with. Yoo hired a private defense attorney, albeit one who is paid for with taxpayer dollars, earlier this year when the Justice Department backed out of representing Yoo due to undisclosed conflicts.

There is a whole lot more. Jason's a detail-oriented writer, so please take a look.

I don't have the expertise to know if, legally speaking, the administration is tending to these matters properly or not. But after hearing what Lt. Col. Barry Wingard has told me (military attorney for Fayiz al-Kandari), among others, I do have questions.

And as far as I'm concerned, after living through 2001-8, questions are a healthy thing to have.

VIDEO- Jeremy Scahill on Blackwater: What we keep missing...

By GottaLaff

Yesterday I posted about Jeremy Scahill's latest reporting on Blackwater and how they're not only connected to the CIA, but also the U.S. Military Joint Special Operations command, something that seems to slip below the radar.

Here's the video from The Ed Show:



For a quick brush-up on who these mercenaries are, read my Blackwater for Dummeez primer.

Captionary: Bizarre Chuck Schumer PhotOh! edition

By GottaLaff

It looks like he's donning a fat suit, not a jacket:

Tom Williams/Roll Call

Sen. Charles Schumer dons a jacket after a vote to end debate on the $446.8 billion omnibus spending bill on Saturday.

It's Captionary time! Feel free to add yours in Comments.

Video- Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith Interview with Barack Obama

The "Obama Two Step"? Oy.

Tea Party "Patients" to Storm Senate Offices

I just laughed so hard I think I pulled something in my side. Pray to god that someone like Mike Stark gets some good video of this. Bless Taegan for going to the Tea Baggers site.

The next major Capitol Hill protest, planned for Tuesday, plans to simulate dying inside the Senate office buildings. Here's a direct quote:

"So here's the plan... We call this plan 'Government Waiting Rooms.' The intention is to go inside the Senate offices and hallways, and play out the role of patients waiting for treatment in government controlled medical facilities. As the day goes on some of us will pretend to die from our untreated illnesses and collapse on the floor. Many of us plan to stay there until they force us to leave."

Oprah's Harpo Productions e-mails The Political Carnival: Promo Time!

By GottaLaff

Of course, we're one of many, but how nice that we're on Oprah's mailing list now. Just for that, it's promo time:

I am writing to you on behalf of Harpo Productions to let you know about Oprah's Primetime special airing this Sunday, December 13 on ABC
at 10:00 - 11:00PM CT.

Her special, Christmas at the White House: An Oprah Primetime Special, is an entertaining hour-long special that will include a one-on-one conversation with the President, marking the first time Oprah has interviewed him since he took office, as well as an exclusive sit-down interview with the First Couple. The special will showcase behind-the-scenes preparations as the White House gets ready for the holiday season.

(click on images to enlarge)

We at TPC are happy to accommodate Harpo Productions to advertise this event. However, if Oprah ever sits down with Sean Hannity or Glenn Beck, not so much.

The silliness of Climategate

By GottaLaff

Tim Rutten has a good op-ed in the L.A. Times today about "ClimateGate" (oh puh-leeze). Let's watch as he dissects the latest inane Meme-O'-Doubters:

The impact of this autonomic red-blue division often is amplified by the fact that we Americans are, by and large, technologically advanced but scientifically illiterate. Our national conversation is dominated by a culture of assertion rather than a respect for evidence reasonably assessed. Thus the endless wrangling over self-evident nonsense like creationism. [...]

In fact, the scientific consensus on the issue is broad and deep. Nor does it rely on science done at the Climatic Research Unit at East Anglia. Even if something untoward occurred there, we have two other scientific organizations providing baseline climate data -- both of which happen to be funded and directed by the U.S. government. One is NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and the other is the Global Historical Climatology Network -- operated not by the EPA or the Interior Department but by the Commerce Department. Their historical data essentially matches that compiled at East Anglia.

So what are we to believe: that huge numbers of British and American scientists have entered into a conspiracy to dupe the world on climate change? Why? What would they stand to gain? [...]

Who benefits? Is it really any accident that Palin and most of the GOP lawmakers trying to discredit the science on global warming come from states enriched by petroleum production and industries with sizable carbon footprints?

Please go read the whole thing here.

Let's go all hypothetical for a moment. Even if global warming is a "hoax", how could we not benefit from the-- here comes that E word-- evolution of green power sources? Why is clean worse than dirty? Because critics say it's more expensive? Not in the long run. The health costs alone, resulting from inhaling and ingesting filth, are worth making the transition. And replacing finite supplies of fossil fuels with infinite quantities of sun and wind makes a whole lot of sense.

Unless, of course, you're Sarah Palin or the other beneficiaries of Big Oil.

Mid Day Distraction

Video- The Tonight Show: Shatner Gets Served By Palin

Thanks for reminding me I had this Clancy!!

Christmas Day In Private Castle? Starts at $30k

Sounds grand.

Sole access to Warwick Castle on the one day it is closed to the public - December 25 - is being auctioned on eBay.

Bids start at the suitably princely sum of £25,000.

The winning bidder will be the first to celebrate Christmas at the castle since the Earl of Warwick sold the property in 1978.

The buyer and up to 30 guests will begin their day with a champagne breakfast in the library, before opening presents around a 25ft tree in the Great Hall.

Later they will sit down to a seven-course meal and enjoy board games in the Music Room – once a favourite haunt of Winston Churchill.

The day will end with a private firework show and a visit from Father Christmas, before guests are chauffeured off to stay at a nearby luxury hotel, also available to them on Christmas Eve.

(snip)

Aside from the attractions of feasting in splendour, the package holds less immediately obvious advantages.

One eBay user asked: "My mother-in-law always spends Christmas with us. We do not particular (sic) get on. Will the dungeon be open so she could have a room to herself for the day?"

The answer came back: "Yes, the dungeon will be available for your mother-in-law. We also have a gaol and bear pit if that is of use."

Saturday Linkage

There is a serious cold breezed getting in the house.

Pensioner, 98, charged with murdering 100-year-old room-mate after complaining she 'had too many visitors'

Uganda bans female circumcision

Latino youth survey: Satisfied with lives in US, but lagging peers

U.S. grapples with child hunger ‘epidemic’

The talking monkeys with the key to how language evolved

Reality show mom Duggar gives birth to 19th child

Pic via Cat of course.

Army suicides up fifth straight year

Just awful. I'm surprised so many that haven't deployed commit suicide.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- The U.S. Army is reporting the fifth straight year of increased suicides among active duty and reserve components of the service branch.

The Defense Department report published Friday, said the 147 suicides through November exceeds last year's number of 127 and is the most since 1980 when the Army began keeping count.

Walter Morales, Army suicide prevention program manager, said suicides do not occur only among soldiers who have served multiple deployments. More than a third who have taken their own lives were never deployed, he said in a statement released Thursday.

"We conduct an exhaustive review of every suicide within the Army," said Brig. Gen. Colleen McGuire, director of the Army's Suicide Prevention Task Force. "What we have learned is that there is no single or simple answer to preventing suicide. This tells us that we must continue to take a holistic approach to identifying and helping soldiers and families with issues such as behavioral health problems, substance abuse, and relationship failures."

Video- Hannity's Studio Audience Wants Obama Tried For Treason

What Ellen said-

There didn’t seem to be a single person with a different point of view, even in the studio audience where, by the way, I could not find a single person of color. The audience was supposedly made up of 9/11 victims. As a former New Yorker, I know for sure that many people of color were among that group. Funny how unrepentant bigot Hannity couldn’t seem to find any worth including. If there had been any attempt at balance, the show would also have included some members of September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows which supports the civilian trials. But during the last segment of the show, Hannity dropped all pretense of discussing the trial as he brought on anti-immigration extremist Peter Gadiel who suggested President Obama should be arrested for treason. So how did “Great American” Hannity react to that bit of extremism? By encouraging his audience to agree.

Video- President Obama's Weekly Address: Learning from History to Reform Wall Street

Happy Hanukkah Overnite Thread

Video- President Obama Meets with Norwegian Prime Minister Stoltenberg

44% Would Rather Have Bush In Office?

By GottaLaff

Short memories? Complete amnesia? Stupid idiots? Lobotomized? Insane? Drunk? Duped? Unconscious?

Here's PPP's Tom Jensen:

Perhaps the greatest measure of Obama's declining support is that just 50% of voters now say they prefer having him as President to George W. Bush, with 44% saying they'd rather have his predecessor. Given the horrendous approval ratings Bush showed during his final term that's somewhat of a surprise and an indication that voters are increasingly placing the blame on Obama for the country's difficulties instead of giving him space because of the tough situation he inherited. The closeness in the Obama/Bush numbers also has implications for the 2010 elections. Using the Bush card may not be particularly effective for Democrats anymore, which is good news generally for Republicans and especially ones like Rob Portman who are running for office and have close ties to the former President.

Beating someone 55 percent to 44 percent is a pretty good margin in politics, but it's surprising given that the two contestants in this numbers game are Obama and the wildly unpopular Bush.

Hypnotized? Inanimate? Dazed and confused? Brainless?

H/t: DCPlod

White House Hanukkah Party Spawns Anger

By GottaLaff

Regarding the reaction to the ObamAdministration's first Hanukkah party: Oy, gimme a break:

One bone of contention has been the guest list: Administration officials say they are inviting 550 people, just 50 less than President Bush invited to his White House Hanukkah parties. But reports in the Israeli press spawned fast-spreading rumors that the Obama White House was only inviting 400 – and that the Bush White House had actually invited twice that number. [...]

(Clarification: Troy writes in to say that he wrote his piece in response to an article in the Jerusalem Post that said the guest list would be cut in half. "My piece was about what the implications of that decision would be," he said. "The White House has now increased the guest list, which is all to the good, but I did not start the story that they cut it in half.") [...]

Mr. Bush's White House last year sent an invitation to its Hannukah party that included a Christmas tree. Yet his administration's handling of the party is being compared favorably to the performance of Mr. Obama's administration. [...]

As for the party itself: The Times reports that it will feature a Jewish student choir, children of a soldier deployed in Iraq lighting a menorah, and the presence of the president and first lady.

And, hopefully, enough potato latkes to win over the skeptics.

Much ado, seriously. I'm Jewish and I'm not offended. Besides, there are so many more important issues to worry about. The number of guests at a party is not one of them.

Oy vey izmeir. Zol zein shah!

Breaking: Tiger Woods to take 'indefinite' leave from golf

By GottaLaff

E-mail alert from the L.A. Times:

Tiger Woods to take 'indefinite' leave from golf

Tiger Woods is taking an indefinite leave from professional golf to work on saving his family, using the word "infidelity" for the first time in a statement posted on his Web site.

Woods says he is aware of the disappointment that "my infidelity" has caused to his wife and children. He says he might not be able to repair the damage, but he wants to try.

He did not disclose Friday evening how long of a break he would take from the PGA Tour. He again asked for privacy, saying his family would need a "safe haven" to try to heal.

More soon at: http://www.latimes.com

If he wanted privacy, he might have thought the better of sending revealing text messages and voice mails to his extramarital lovers.

Blackwater: What we keep missing....

By GottaLaff

Jeremy Scahill just now on The Ed Show:

What is under the radar, what people keep missing: Blackwater worked for U.S. Military Joint Special Operations command and for CIA.

Blackwater remains very active with both.

For a quick brush-up on who these mercenaries are, read my Blackwater for Dummeez primer.

An unlikely lunch date--Alaskan bloggers meet Sarah Palin's lawyer

By GottaLaff

Thomas Van Flein and organizer Liz Behlke

Yesterday I posted Gryphen's version of events, and what a version it was! Today, my sweet pal Celtic Diva has her post up, and has graciously allowed me to share it with you.

Instead, I'll give you a few tease-y excerpts, and send you back to her place for the rest:

First impressions: Thomas Van Flein was charming and had a sense of humor. I was also amused by how he enjoyed the "power" of information. He seemed to get a kick out of watching people's reactions when he'd ask a question he thought would be "unexpected". [...]

After about 15 minutes, I jumped into the deep end of the pool and basically asked Mr. Van Flein why he continues to give the impression that all of the ethics complaints against the Governor have been dismissed when he knows it's not true. [...]

I already expected his reaction and justification, but it was interesting to hear it directly. It's not a surprise that no one seems to take ethics seriously anymore. [...]

Other issues we discussed:

--Trig
--The "pretty" issue
--Jealousy
--Gryphen's and my experiences with the Palinistas this year

To see the details that go with those topics, and to fill in the blanks of the other bits and pieces I gave you, go here.

And go Linda!

VIDEO- David Plouffe: Left Will Come Home for Democrats

By GottaLaff

Today on ABC’s “Top Line,” David Plouffe said that liberals will become believers again by election time: (Sorry for the double video... I can't fix it, and don't want to mess it up)

“Of course there’s some people upset. But I think, I think people will look at the balance of his leadership to help us lead through the economy -- that we finally got health insurance done,” said David Plouffe, the author of a new book about the Obama campaign, “The Audacity to Win.” [...]

But I think, you know, he’s great at having a longer-term strategic approach,” he said. “I think most Democrats are going to see, on the economy, on health care, you know, by next fall we’re going to begin to have our combat troops out of Iraq --something people aren’t focused on. I think that the left of the Democratic Party is going to say, ‘This guy, through his leadership, through his ideas, has done a great job.’ ”

Chess, not checkers.

Patience.

Trust.

However, no matter what Plouffe says, I disagree with many of President Obama's decisions. That doesn't mean I don't support him, and I do believe that he has already done some great things for this country.

Not to mention, I am thankful every single day that we don't have a McCain/Palin White House.

The very thought....

VIDEO: "How do you know the earth is cooling?" Michael Steele: "I don't!"

By GottaLaff



At about 7:17, you'll see the relevant segment.

Embarrass yourself much, Mikey?

Oh wait. I've answered that question for him in about 813943998 posts. But this was new and improved, refreshingly minty fresh humiliation. Hey genius, here are the facts:

Climate experts and scientists reject the idea that a number of relatively cool years in the last decade are any indication of “global cooling.” “It is a misinterpretation of the data and of scientific knowledge to point to one year as the warmest on record…and then to extrapolate that cooler subsequent years invalidate the reality of global warming and its effects,” U.N. World Meteorological Organization secretary-general Michael Jarraud said. In fact, independent statisticians have called the global cooling myth “not scientifically legitimate.”

Of course, the actual science is clear. This has been the hottest decade in recorded history. Climate change is real. The earth is warming, and it is man-made.

If you can't back up what you put out there with facts, Mr. RNC, then know when to zip it.

As I type this, I'm watching Hardball, and the guest is an expert, one of the Union of Concerned Scientists, who is giving us a global warming reality check. One guess on who she agrees with.

Hint: Mikey isn't one of the "forward thinking" types to whom she has referred.

Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-HI) Will Resign Early

By GottaLaff

Roll Call is subscription only, but here's the mini-scoop:

Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) told his supporters Friday afternoon that he is leaving Congress before his term ends to focus on his 2010 bid for governor.

See what Sarah the Quitter started? And they say she doesn't rub off on Democrats.

Sheriff Arpaio Watch: Activist's Letter of Disgust to Eric Holder's DOJ Investigators

By GottaLaff

Additional footage from KPHO's fine job on this is available: http://www.kpho.com/news/21470567/det...

If you are a victim of Sheriff Arpaio's harassment or abuse or any of his deputies call the FBI at 602 279-5511.

Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona has been bringing prosecutions against political enemies, and now a judge. Why? Because he didn't like the way he ruled. No, I'm not kidding.

Sheriff Joe is bananas. And dangerous.

And now one activist is wondering why our own Justice Department has been so negligent:

Like a lot of anti-Arpaio activists in town, videographer Dennis Gilman has been helping the U.S. Department of Justice gather evidence of abuse of power and racial profiling by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office. [...] But like many who've been patiently waiting for the feds to act, he's fed up with their dithering.

And so he wrote a letter. Here it is, in part. Please go read the whole thing, because I left out a lot:

Dear Department of Justice,

I cannot express how disappointed people I speak with are and how disillusioned I have become.

What once was hope that human rights would be a concern in this County has turned into a forgotten memory. [...]

How many more broken arms, women torn from their children, deaths in Arpaio's Jails will it take? Should we care? They are just poor people. They have no money or power. Many are used to the abuse. They will never cost you your careers. [...]

Former U.S. Attorney David Iglesias states there is more than enough evidence. But what could he possibly know? [Laffy Note: See video]

What is it really going to take? How many more Judges need to be harassed? How many will dare question the Almighty Sheriff or any actions of his deputies for fear they will not be allowed to conduct normal court business? (Look it up. If you think I'm exaggerating I'll prove you wrong in a heartbeat). [...]

How many politicians do you think will speak up against the abuse when to do so surely means they will be investigated, indicted, harassed and have their lives turned into a living hell and their careers ruined at a minimum? How many more of us have to wind up in jail while you desert us here?

Who is in charge? The FBI, DOJ, Obama or Arpaio? [...]

I can tell you in no uncertain terms that many activists are abandoning any hope of conventional justice and turning to the Anarchist movement in alarming numbers in this area.I can no longer try to convince them they should work with you or the FBI.[...]

Arpaio's faithful followers have become more violent toward Day Laborers and those that speak out against Arpaio at the protests and on the streets. It's only a matter of time before blood will start spilling. [...]

Dennis Gilman

Truly unbelievable.

David Iglesias: "I can't believe this is happening in the United States."

H/t: Tiggrr1

Loophole would allow insurance companies to place annual dollar limits on care

By GottaLaff

Hey, I have an idea: Let's just give everything away. We can put the entire health care bill in a big box of empty, tie a pretty bow around it, and hand it over to Big Inurance before Christmas! That way Prez O will get his wish to wrap up this whole messy affair before the first of the year:

A loophole in the Senate health care bill would let insurance companies place annual dollar limits on medical care for people struggling with costly illnesses such as cancer.

Merry Christmas cancer patients!

Adding to the confusion, the language is tucked away in a clause of the bill captioned "No lifetime or annual limits." Advocates for patients say it fails to deliver on that promise.

Where's my tinsel? I want to throw some on that Big Box-O'-Empty to pretty it up.

Super Max knows a thing or two about this:

The legislation that originally passed the Senate health committee last summer would have banned dollar limits on medical coverage, but a second panel — the Finance Committee — disagreed. Finance Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and others feared that an outright ban could drive insurance premiums higher for everyone, and sought to strike a balance.

I'm sure it's not as bad as it looks. I'm sure the limits are well-defined and I'm reading more into this than I should:

As currently written, the Senate Democratic health care bill would permit insurance companies to place annual limits on the dollar value of medical care, as long as those limits are not "unreasonable." The bill does not define what level of limits would be allowable, delegating that task to administration officials.

Stephen Finan, a policy expert with the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network:

"If you put a limit on benefits, by definition it's going to affect people who are dealing with catastrophic loss." [...]

"If you can have annual limits, saying there's no lifetime limits becomes meaningless [...] If you are a cancer patient you could be faced with a situation where you either have to terminate your care, or face a financial catastrophe..."

The House bill doesn't allow annual or lifetime limits.

Patient advocates are worried that the Senate version is the one that will prevail.

Happy holidays.

H/t: andyrftw

"In the ninth year of the war we are starting from scratch."

By GottaLaff

I'm not feeling the optimism:

Ambassador Richard Holbrooke is in Germany seeking additional international troops to assist in Afghanistan, reports Deutche Welle, but his spin isn't very encouraging.

Said Holbrooke: "The whole thing was uncoordinated and did not get us very far. The upshot is that in the ninth year of the war we are starting from scratch."

I feel an "oy" coming on.

Breaking: House approves sweeping reforms of financial rules

By GottaLaff

This email alert just came in:

The House has voted 223-202 to approve the most sweeping overhaul of financial regulations since the Great Depression. The legislation seeks to prevent another financial crisis by giving the government broad new powers to protect consumers, oversee complex derivatives, and dismantle large firms whose failure would threaten the economy.

The Senate's version of the bill differs in some key areas, making it unlikely legislation would reach President Obama until next year.

More soon at: http://www.latimes.com

Making Medicare Buy-In Work

By GottaLaff

I would love to finally get a grasp of all these health care reform proposals. This is a good start:

Here is what we know so far:

- The new Medicare option would be available only to individuals, not to families.

- People 55 to 64 would receive the same benefits as people in the traditional Medicare program.

- Medicare premiums for people under 65 would differ from those paid by people 65 and older, and the two parts of the program would be financed separately.

I've heard praise and criticism of the buy-in, but mostly praise.

Here is a little more on what it would take to make this work, but please go read the details here.

Only the sickest Americans would be willing to pay for Medicare buy-in, transforming it into just another small high-risk pool for older people. [...]

In other words, in order to avoid a situation where the buy-in attracts a small number of very sick people between 2011 and 2014, policy makers will have to consider subsidizing the program (or some other way of lowering premiums like not charging administrative fees or freezing premiums from year.) [...] If they want to make this work, they’ll have to lower the cost of the program.

On MSNBC, as I type this, they're saying the buy-in could be cut or changed.

I really hope we can ultimately come up with a decent piece of legislation, one that we can call a genuine "accomplishment", one that will help people stay alive, despite being a giveaway to Big Insurance/Big Pharma.

Sarah Palin to Speak at a Socialist Canadian Hospital

By GottaLaff



This is quite the big deal for someone who said that Canada should really think about reforming its health care system (video from post above), and who's not the biggest fan of abortion rights, and who thinks "death panels" will kill your Grandma. Me oh my.

Hyp. O. Crite:

According to the Hamilton Spectator, Sarah Palin has been contracted to speak at a fundraiser for the Juravinski Cancer Centre and St. Peter’s Hospital in Canada.

Oopsie daisy there, Barbie McLipSchmutz, I do believe you're exposing yourself to the dreaded H1Socialism1:

– St. Peter’s Hospital is a public hospital within the national Canadian healthcare system. In Palin’s worldview, universal, government-insured health care is “socialism.”

– St. Peter’s Hospital performs abortions. Palin, a staunch anti-choice zealot, has protested outside of abortion clinics and has refused to denounce abortion clinic bombers as terrorists.

– St. Peter’s Hospital, through its Centre for Studies in Aging, offers “advanced directives.” Palin tried to derail health reform earlier this year by falsely labeling advanced directive reimbursements as “death panels.”

Oh dear. This will never do.

I feel a "quit" coming on....

As Barbie said, "Keep the faith".

Max Baucus Gave Girlfriend Raise

By GottaLaff

Who does he think he is, John Ensign? Max, Max, Max, what are we gonna do with you?

Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), "chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee, gave a nearly $14,000 pay raise to a female staffer in 2008, at the time he was becoming romantically involved with her, and later that year took her on a taxpayer-funded trip to Southeast Asia and the Middle East, though foreign policy was not her specialty," Politico reports.

Late last Friday, Baucus acknowledged his relationship with Melodee Hanes, whom he nominated for the job of U.S. attorney in Montana.

This post is dedicated to the readers who accuse us of one-sided Sexcapades reporting.

Original post on Staffing to the Max here.

Reich Quote-O'-The Day: Medicare Buy-In Not the Answer edition

By GottaLaff

You mean it's not?

"If you think an expanded Medicare is the answer, you're smoking medical marijuana."

-- Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, arguing that the Senate compromise will create "a national health care system that's controlled by a handful of very large corporations accountable neither to American voters nor to the market."

Bachmann Quote-O'-The-Day: Irony is Not Dead edition

By GottaLaff

HairBall McCrazyEyes should stop speaking immediately:

"These people are not connected to reality."

-- Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-MN), quoted by the Minnesota Independent, on the Obama administration.

Pot. Kettle. Mind-bogglingly delusional.

Bernie Sanders talks health care with Thom Hartmann

By GottaLaff

Liveblogging Senator Bernie Sanders on the Thom Hartmann Show:

There is not the will in the Senate to combat our health care problems. We don't have 60 votes to do the right thing... We can't even bring forward a strong public option... where most major countries on earth are going... Same with global warming.

It's not the greatest step forward for health care in history... it's a bill that does good things. It begins to address insurance reform...

We should not be naive. This bill will force millions to get health insurance, many will end up with private companies... very little cost containment.... bad news for individuals, business, and the govt. in terms of Medicare and Medicaid.

In the House, to fund the 800 billion, they did the right thing... surtax on wealthier people. That's the right thing to do.

Unfortunately, in the Senate, the language of Cadillac benefit... it'll become Chevrolet in a few years...

The only way to provide comprehensive, cost effective health care is single payer. I'm trying now to intro a bill now, but it will lose. May get 5-10 votes. But it's important to get that debate on the floor.

More of a chance to actually achieve is giving states flexibility to have single payer or other program if they want. There's language that would go into effect 2017, I want it at 2014.

Last issue: We must address primary health care... 40 million have no access to doctors, use emergency rooms. We're trying hard to expand community health centers.

These are some of the issues I'm focusing on.

There's a lot of obstructionism. We're stuck right now on prescription drug reimportation. Americans should be able to get cheaper drugs from Canada. Drug companies are doing everything they can to stop that.

I'll add more as I hear it.

Bowing to the drug industry

By GottaLaff

Earlier, Paddy posted a link to this story:

Washington Times: Clash over re-import of drugs stalls health bill The health care debate ground to a halt Thursday over a squabble among Democrats that could threaten the deal President Obama struck with pharmaceutical companies to earn their support for the health care overhaul.

A couple of sentences in the L.A. Times version of this story struck me:

But the seemingly popular proposal brought the Senate healthcare debate to a standstill Thursday, as Democrats divided over whether they should bow to the drug industry's fierce opposition.

And:

Despite Obama's support for importation, the White House fears that if the amendment is approved, the drug industry will oppose the bill.

It's not nice to fool Big Pharma.

Mid Day Distraction

I've got to run out, so you get this early today.

Video- Obamas arrive for Nobel Banquet

I'm not feeling the love for this dress.

Obama irritates Norwegians with short stay - cardboard Obama attends concert

Yeah, because there's nothing going on back at home. Here is the whining.

Friday Linkage

Imagine that!! Blackwater had it's hands in places it wasn't supposed to! Everyone on my teevee is just SHOCKED! /dumbasses

Mother granted dying wish to be taken to her funeral... on a BUS

Drinking games and blow-up animals

Some churchgoers starting to reject pastors and 'spiritual abuse'

Wall Street Journal: Loopholes Lurk in Bank Bill Buried in a 239-page amendment to the U.S. House of Representatives' financial regulatory overhaul is a provision that appears to do just one thing: exempts financial-services company USAA from some of the bill's tougher provisions.

'N Sync's 'No Strings' decade's most popular album

Once-In-A-Century Iceberg Set To Hit Australia

Porn feud begs question: Whose smut is classier?

Washington Times: Clash over re-import of drugs stalls health bill The health care debate ground to a halt Thursday over a squabble among Democrats that could threaten the deal President Obama struck with pharmaceutical companies to earn their support for the health care overhaul.

Video- President Obama's Speech At Nobel Banquet

Actor Gene Barry, dapper TV hero, stage star, dies

By GottaLaff

Awww:

Gene Barry, who played the well-dressed man of action in the television series "Bat Masterson," "Burke's Law" and "The Name of the Game," has died. He was 90.

Barry's son, Fredric James Barry, said the actor died of unknown causes Wednesday at a rest home in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Woodland Hills.

R.I.P.

Blackwater participated in clandestine CIA raids

By GottaLaff

I just got a news alert from the New York Times. I can't find the link yet, but here's the e-mail:

Blackwater Guards Tied To Covert Raids by the C.I.A.

Private security guards from Blackwater Worldwide participated in some of the C.I.A.'s most sensitive activities -- clandestine raids with agency officers against people suspected of being insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan and the transporting of detainees, according to former company employees and intelligence officials.

The raids against suspects occurred on an almost nightly basis during the height of the Iraqi insurgency between 2004 and 2006, with Blackwater personnel playing central roles in what company insiders called "snatch and grab" operations, the former employees and current and former intelligence officers said.

So Blackwater "transported" the detainees. Big surprise. They most certainly must have had a little to do with their torture, er, treatment too.

The convoluted relationship between the U.S. government and this bunch of thugs explains why legal remedies are so difficult. How can you prove something that doesn't exist? Besides, Blackwater had virtual immunity anyway.

The more we learn about Blackwater's activities, the scarier it gets. Why are we still employing them again?

Where is Jeremy Scahill when you need him?

Oil industry photoshopped pamphlet photo, darkened white people

By GottaLaff

The before is here.

Here's the "after":

See how racially diverse they are? See what a Big Tent Big Oil has? They're as inclusive as all get out!

Too bad they forgot to darken the African American man's hand (he's on the left, the one with the darkened face and the Caucasian hand; yes, that's him).

Oh, and looky there!

Go look at the stock photo again. The two men who are now Asian and black are the same man in the photo twice. Even the stock photo is doctored.

D'oh!

Boy, their faces must be red now! Or black. Or Asian...