Good evening fellow Democrats.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Eric Holder Jr., President-elect Barack Obama's pick for attorney general, brings to his confirmation hearing next week a dream resume and a bull's-eye target with his picture in the middle.

Holder will get a Republican grilling before the Judiciary Committee Jan. 15. Critics challenge his role in President Bill Clinton's pardons while the No. 2 Justice Department official, as well as his failure to recommend an independent investigation of fundraising by then-Vice President Al Gore.

For conservative Republicans, there's a significance to the challenge that goes far beyond any single nominee: Holder is the liberal face of nominees to come as Obama remakes the federal judiciary, and possibly the Supreme Court, after eight years of a Republican White House...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28558253/

So the Republicans are looking for a fight on the Holder nomination, eh? Fine. In the words of President Bush, "Bring it on". It's about time the Republicans learn what it means to be in the minority.

Ancient pot stash busted Far out, man! The top vote-getter in the 2009 Weird Science Awards is the story about the 2,700-year-old marijuana stash. Archaeologists found the still-green plant material in a grave uncovered in China's Gobi Desert. They believe that the marijuana was buried along with an ancient shaman as a mark of high respect. And speaking of "high" ... lab tests showed that the once-potent pot had lost its psychoactive effect over the centuries...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28530864/

This is from the 2009 Weird Science Awards. Have fun, take a look.

hello

WASHINGTON (AP)- Consumers cut back on their borrowing by a record amount in dollar terms in November, another sign of trouble for the rapidly weakening economy.

The Federal Reserve reported Thursday that borrowing on credit cards, and for such things as auto loans, dropped at an annual rate of $7.94 billion in November, the biggest decline in 65 years of record keeping. That also was much larger than the $500 million decline economists expected, and left total consumer credit outstanding at $2.57 trillion.

The drop represented a decline of 3.7 percent from October, which was the biggest fall in percentage terms since a 4.3 percent plunge in January 1998.

Analysts are worried the economy’s troubles could trigger a major retrenchment by consumers that will make the current recession, already the longest in a quarter-century, even worse. Consumer spending accounts for about two-thirds of total economic output.

The 3.7 percent drop in total borrowing in November followed a 1.3 percent decline in October.

The weakness in November was led by a 3.9 percent plunge in the category that includes auto loans. Borrowing in the category that includes credit cards was down by 3.4 percent.

Consumer borrowing is unlikely to rebound anytime soon. The major automakers reported earlier this week that auto sales plunged by 36 percent in December as huge rebates and zero-percent loans couldn’t persuade Americans to buy a new car.

Every major automaker reported drops of more than 30 percent in December. Chrysler LLC said its sales were down a whopping 53 percent, while General Motors Corp., the other auto company that received emergency government loans last month, saw sales fall by 31 percent.

The Fed’s report on consumer credit does not cover mortgage loans or other borrowing secured by real estate such as home equity loans.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Hallelujah! The sheeple have finally come to their senses! Save your money. Don't buy on credit; stick to cash and carry. Don't let the fat cats win!

January 08, 2009 American Recovery and Reinvestment Barack Obama

Throughout America's history, there have been some years that simply rolled into the next without much notice or fanfare. Then there are the years that come along once in a generation - the kind that mark a clean break from a troubled past, and set a new course for our nation.

This is one of those years.

We start 2009 in the midst of a crisis unlike any we have seen in our lifetime - a crisis that has only deepened over the last few weeks. Nearly two million jobs have now been lost, and on Friday we are likely to learn that we lost more jobs last year than at any time since World War II. Just in the past year, another 2.8 million Americans who want and need full-time work have had to settle for part-time jobs. Manufacturing has hit a twenty-eight year low. Many businesses cannot borrow or make payroll. Many families cannot pay their bills or their mortgage. Many workers are watching their life savings disappear. And many, many Americans are both anxious and uncertain of what the future will hold.

I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible. If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years. The unemployment rate could reach double digits. Our economy could fall $1 trillion short of its full capacity, which translates into more than $12,000 in lost income for a family of four. We could lose a generation of potential and promise, as more young Americans are forced to forgo dreams of college or the chance to train for the jobs of the future. And our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and standing in the world.

In short, a bad situation could become dramatically worse.

This crisis did not happen solely by some accident of history or normal turn of the business cycle, and we won't get out of it by simply waiting for a better day to come, or relying on the worn-out dogmas of the past. We arrived at this point due to an era of profound irresponsibility that stretched from corporate boardrooms to the halls of power in Washington, DC. For years, too many Wall Street executives made imprudent and dangerous decisions, seeking profits with too little regard for risk, too little regulatory scrutiny, and too little accountability. Banks made loans without concern for whether borrowers could repay them, and some borrowers took advantage of cheap credit to take on debt they couldn't afford. Politicians spent taxpayer money without wisdom or discipline, and too often focused on scoring political points instead of the problems they were sent here to solve. The result has been a devastating loss of trust and confidence in our economy, our financial markets, and our government.[Emphasis added]

Now, the very fact that this crisis is largely of our own making means that it is not beyond our ability to solve. Our problems are rooted in past mistakes, not our capacity for future greatness. It will take time, perhaps many years, but we can rebuild that lost trust and confidence. We can restore opportunity and prosperity. We should never forget that our workers are still more productive than any on Earth. Our universities are still the envy of the world. We are still home to the most brilliant minds, the most creative entrepreneurs, and the most advanced technology and innovation that history has ever known. And we are still the nation that has overcome great fears and improbable odds. If we act with the urgency and seriousness that this moment requires, I know that we can do it again.

That is why I have moved quickly to work with my economic team and leaders of both parties on an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan that will immediately jumpstart job creation and long-term growth...

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2009/01/american_recovery_and_reinvest.html

Deregualtion and so-called free marketeering are the culprits here. Greed rules Wall St., nothing more and nothing less. The "Ayn Rand" disciples have finally been proven to be the con aritsts that they are. Laissez-Faire is dead and good riddance to it.

We will return to a system of governance that benefits all of the people, not just the top one or two percent and then stand around hoping they'll toss us a bone or two. We're coming in and we're taking over. Some may call that socialism or communism. It really isn't but, you can call it a peanut butter sandwich for what all I care. The fat cats made this economic recession and the fat cats are going to be made to pay up to pull us out of it.

hello bob, hello chicago.

Congress officially declares Obama next president

By JIM ABRAMS – 5 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress has officially declared Barack Obama the next President of the United States after tallying electoral college votes in a centuries old tradition.

The House and Senate met in joint session to hear their colleagues read off the electoral votes from the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The outcome, never in doubt, was 365 votes for Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden, and 173 votes for John McCain and his running mate, Sarah Palin.

Both Democrats and Republicans gave a standing ovation as Vice President Dick Cheney, in his role as president of the Senate, announced the vote count for Obama.

The long national nightmare is finally over, or will be at Noon on 20JAN09. Oh, the delicious irony of having VP Cheney make the official proclamation of his and President Bush's rebuking by the American people. Twelve more days, my fellow Americans, twelve more days...

gregg on January 8, 2009 at 07:14 PM

Hello Gregg, good to see you again.

Good night fellow Democrats. Keep the Faith and keep the faith. Yes we can, yes we will, and yes we did!

5
BobVADemocratHawk on January 8, 2009 at 06:55 PM

People have "cut back borrowing"?
Yeah, you tend to do that when your job goes away either due to layoffs or to your employer going out of business. You also do it when your company is wobbling along barely making it, and you are trying to save as much money as you can because you know you're going to be hitting the unemployment lines before too long.

President Carter is brilliant - as usual

An Unnecessary War
Thursday 08 January 2009
»
by: Jimmy Carter, The Washington Post

I know from personal involvement that the devastating invasion of Gaza by Israel could easily have been avoided.

After visiting Sderot last April and seeing the serious psychological damage caused by the rockets that had fallen in that area, my wife, Rosalynn, and I declared their launching from Gaza to be inexcusable and an act of terrorism. Although casualties were rare (three deaths in seven years), the town was traumatized by the unpredictable explosions. About 3,000 residents had moved to other communities, and the streets, playgrounds and shopping centers were almost empty. Mayor Eli Moyal assembled a group of citizens in his office to meet us and complained that the government of Israel was not stopping the rockets, either through diplomacy or military action.

Read the whole article: http://www.truthout.org/010809R

Good evening all you great Dems.

BobVADemocratHawk on January 8, 2009 at 06:55 PM

Bob,

The Sheeple have learned a lesson alright...especially those who know someone who has lost their home and been evicted.
I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that our Congressional Dems and President-Elect re-think this tax cut proposal.

An increase of $500 to $1,000 a year ($20 to $30 a week) is not going to make a big difference in our family's lifestyle. If this is all the nation can afford right now, I doubt it's going to change anybody's spending habits or lure us into buying a new car instead of fixing the old ones.

Because of the extraordinary circumstances we now face with this Reagan Revolution Depression, shouldn't that $200 to $300 billion of the proposed $1 trillion stimulus package better be spent on something that actually builds something of worth for our children and grandchildren to inherit? Create capitol within our shores again?

I'm thinking that this is really the problem...the psychology behind this economic meltdown has changed our moral compass as a nation. We all know now that there hasn't been any equity or assets added to our economy in the last eight to fifteen years. Let's force ourselves to invest in America again.

If we do it as a nation through our government, won't this send a signal to the venture capital folks that they should do the same patriotic thing and invest in building factories and businesses again in this country...new, energy- efficient and technologically smart enterprises that will be the envy of the world and also make a profit?

Wouldn't they provide cash for startups for new magazines and advertising firms that would sell these new products? Give IT people a chance to build networks and software to run it all? Provide scientists and researchers will new labs and fellowships to create the next generation of chemical, biological, and energy products? Build that new power grid to run it all? Fund training centers and scholarships to provide the skills needed to provide the personnel who will run it all?

It's all about believing in something...besides getting rich. It's about building something new and innovative. Americans are the ingenious. We love creating new things and we are great at it. Let's take that extra $20 a week and invest it into creating jobs with a future for the next generation.

Obama needs to re-adjust his thinking. He started out two years ago with one economic picture. It's now changed. And so have Americans. We want the American Dream again...not a Lifestyle of the Rich and Famous. Just to be proud again...is that asking too much?

So let's go big with capital investment not marginal tax cuts...at least not until we get back on our feet. Let American industrialists invest their tax cuts of the last 30 years back into re-building what they tore down. It's time to build and buy American again.

We all know it. Even those who thought short-term gains were all that counted in life. They don't. Excessive wealth only causes trouble if it's not re-invested into long-term national goals.

6
BobVADemocratHawk on January 8, 2009 at 07:02 PM

Yes, the Republicans have proven once again, that the Ayn Rand laissez-faire capitalism doesn't work in real life.
Dead, however? I vastly doubt it. It was considered killed off back in the 1930s too.
It was revived and has haunted us like a specter at a feast ever since that necromancer's shill, Ronald Reagan helped revive it, and the Republican ghouls have been nurturing it ever since, trying to hide its stench of corruption and greed with media propaganda and opaque, under the table actions.
Like the old saying goes, "Those who don't learn from history are forced to repeat it" (and force the rest of us to repeat it as well).
We must bury it's rotten corpse once again, even while the good old boys keep trying to revive it, while refusing to see that they are partying on the roof of a burning building that is threatening to fall on the rest of us.
The irony of the whole thing is that the Republicans have enlisted the aid of the very people, in the form of the working poor, undereducated, especially Southern, white conservatives, who have been programed by corporate media lies to believe that voting against their own best interests are the best thing to do.
The best way to keep from repeating this fiasco, or at least delay its revival, is to vastly improve our education system and to put U.S. history, and civics back into the cirriculum where it belongs, and to engage students in studies that encourage critical thinking.
We need to also re-implement the Fairness Doctrine, and break up the monopolistic over-sized news conglomerations who are controlling the flow of information in the print and on-air media.
Democracy thrives on information and knowledge.

Why hello Dum-Dums. How is everyone doing tonight? I trust that in my absence you are all keeping up with the traditions so well established here on this fine forum.

Crying and moaning and bitching and complaining and insulting and spewing your vile tripe out against any and all whom you try to blame for your miserable, pathetic, useless lives.

It's so nice to know that something never change. Eh?

Americans have wanted to sacrifice for the Common Good ever since 9/11, but nobody in authority would give us a chance to do it. It's now that time and place. Obama has the oratory to inspire. He now needs to have the guts to tell us what we must do.

Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country....and then make the Republicans sacrifice, too.

My daughter did not fornicate in the back seat of any cars, Stevie. Sorry to break your heart. Someday maybe I will tell you the story, but until then, you just keep guessing !
PamB on January 8, 2009 at 04:05 PM

Hello Sally! Good to see you on our blog once again! I see our resident blog queen is still vomiting her vile vitriol here on our fabulous new and improved discussion forum. My congratulations to the crack DNC IT team who have this program whipped into shape and running like a finely tuned engine.

I too wonder just how Pammy's spawn managed to get herself in "a motherly way" if she had followed to the letter all of Pammy's expectations for the proper behavior of a young lady. I notice that she is still oddly obsessed with the personal lives of the Palin family as if she is somehow trying to elevate her own status above the First Family of the Great State of Alaska.

The Palin's are a good family, well bred and mannered and not prone to trying to destroy the reputation of others, especially people that they don't know one iota of real truth about.

Too bad the same cannot be said about "you know who's" family.

TheGreatGazoo on January 8, 2009 at 08:02 PM

Get off our grass.

Butte on January 8, 2009 at 07:59 PM

Butte,

Those are all excellent suggestions. We have the votes, so we should do whatever is necessary.

The Palin's are a good family, well bred and mannered and not prone to trying to destroy the reputation of others, especially people that they don't know one iota of real truth about.

19TheGreatGazoo on January 8, 2009 at 08:13 PM

Tommmyass, Tommyass, you are a laugh a minute, you dumb idiot !

Here, trying reading this from today's Alaskan Daily News for example, (and there is one every day laughing at her), from her own people and what they think of the Hunting Queen!

Palin in comparison
January 8, 2009, 3:20PM
Alaskan Daily News

" So Sara's at it again, bashing the godless mainstream media elites for not scrutinizing Caroline Kennedy as closely as Miss Alaska herself.

"It's going to be interesting to see how that plays out and I think that as we watch that we will perhaps be able to prove that there is a class issue here also that was such a factor in the scrutiny of my candidacy versus, say, the scrutiny of what her candidacy may be."

The implication of this rambling run-on, if I understand it correctly, is that the media ought to skewer Caroline like they did Sara, but they won't because Caroline's pedigreed.

So, Sara, here's some scrutiny for you. Let's compare apples to apples.

Caroline Kennedy is an attorney with a law degree from Columbia.

Sara Palin is the governor of a po-dunk state with a bachelor's degree from a community college in journalism.

Caroline Kennedy, having obtained a degree in law from an ivy-league law school has demonstrated direct knowledge of the law, and is poised to enter the legislative branch of government. While still an august position, it is hardly the highest office in the land and doesn't warrant the same scrutiny as, say, President or VP.

Sara Palin, though she aspired to the second highest office in the land, a cardiac arrhythmia away from the highest, at a time of national and international economic crisis and with two wars going, has failed to demonstrate an even cursory knowledge of basic civics, foreign affairs, geography, or even proper English sentence structure, much less law.

Now, I'm sure one could argue that education is, in fact, a class issue, but that would be getting off point. Wasilly-Sara is talking about media bias against what exactly? Is she positioning herself as lower-class? News flash, Sara: Not many lower-class people, win beauty pageants, become mayors, are appointed to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, and then become governors and hire lobbyists.

The only class issue here is that Caroline went to class, and Sara didn't."

Now shut the hell up, if you don't know what you are talking about, Got that?????

I think bush is giving these Israelis lessons in how to fight wars (illegally)

UN Halts All Aid Deliveries to Gaza
Tuesday 08 January 2008

»
by: Ibrahim Barzak and Steve Weizman, The Associated Press

A Palestinian carries a sack of flour received from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in Gaza on Wednesday. The UN has halted aid delivery following an Israeli attack on its staff. (Photo: Mohammed Salem / Reuters)
Jerusalem - The United Nations halted aid deliveries to the besieged Gaza Strip on Thursday, citing Israeli attacks on its staff and installations hours after it said tank fire killed one of its drivers as he went to pick up a shipment.

The world body has already demanded an investigation into Israel's shelling of a UN school in Gaza that killed nearly 40 people earlier this week. Israel said Hamas fighters were operating in the area at the time.

For a second straight day, Israel suspended its Gaza military operation for three hours to allow in humanitarian supplies. Shortly before the pause took effect, however, the UN said one of its aid trucks came under Israeli fire, killing the driver
http://www.truthout.org/010809U

Yeah, god forbid those kids and old ladies should get food and medical aid !!!

Hopefully, those MN people learned how to run elections, so next time the Democrat does not have to wait 62 days for the imbeciles to go through results again!!!!!!

Lawmakers Look at Election Reforms, Post-Recount
»
by: Tim Nelson, Minnesota Public Radio

Minnesota election officials learned hard lessons about the voting process when the Senate recount had them sorting through three million ballots. (Photo: Mark Zdechlik / Minnesota Public Radio)
Minnesota's US Senate election is still unresolved in the courts, but at the Capitol, lawmakers are already working on a post-mortem of the recount. Some say while Minnesota election laws work, there's still room for improvement.

St. Paul, Minnesota - It took elections officials 62 days to sort through nearly 3 million ballots cast on Nov. 4, and Minnesota learned some hard lessons in the process.

Thousands of what may have been legitimate absentee ballots were thrown out. Many voters didn't know how to properly fill out their ballots. And both machines and people made mistakes.

http://www.truthout.org/010809VA

Hello fellow Dems! I`ve been on political R&R and happy to be enjoying it. I know the fights continue, but I certainly like the position we are in today compared to where it was! Finally we have a soon to be president who relates to what is actually happening. Listening to Barack today told me that this country has finally chosen well. It feels good to be an American once again. Good night folks!Keep up the great work!

heehee, it always gets Stevie's back up, to talk about the hillbilly in Alaska, that he thinks has any kind of chance for President! If he had not heard that she was totally against abortion, whether rape, incest, badly deformed fetus or whatever, he would be calling her a jackass too!!! (Hope his own little gal is on the pill--------you know she ain't abstaining !!) :)

Here's a chuckle, Dems.

The SMART Repugs will save their time and money next year and just plain resign!!!!

Will Kit Bond leaving the Senate be the first of many from the GOP?

But if we are looking for a sign for 2010, announcing that you won't run isn't enough. Bond's announcement is huge. This was a seat that, despite the fact that Bond will be 71 in 2010, was his to lose. Now a swing state seat becomes a open seat.

When a party takes power, those in the opposition party tend to feel like it's not as much fun anymore. The Democrats now have a solid majority since Tuesday, and already we have one non-returner. The fun question to see is how many more GOP Senators will feel like they have had enough by 2010, and how early they tell us.

http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/election08/445

(Loggin out Dems. Blog ya tomorrow.
Still feels good, doesn't it? WE WON. WE WON BIG. I LOVE IT !!!!!!!)

The only class issue here is that Caroline went to class, and Sara didn't."...

And neither did Spunky. We're all expecting "great" things to happen to Alaska before Palin leaves office. A war with Russia? A depressed economy? Torture? The end of Habeus Corpus...if she even knows what that is? High heels thrown at her head?

Evening all good Dems,

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

And turdblossom is an angel from heaven.

Vice President Dick Cheney said Thursday that he sees no reason for President George W. Bush to pre-emptively pardon anyone at the CIA involved in harsh interrogations of suspected terrorists. "I don't have any reason to believe that anybody in the agency did anything illegal," he said.

Cheney: No one saw economic crisis coming

virgo1 on January 8, 2009 at 09:08 PM

Hi, virgo.

Stop on by on Inauguration Day and share your thoughts.

Get off our grass.
SandyH

Sure thing Sandy. Just as soon as you show me the title to the yard. Otherwise shut yer piehole woman!

Now shut the hell up, if you don't know what you are talking about, Got that?????
PamB

Caroline Kennedy has been sequestered away from the public eye her entire life. I will not take away anything from her contributions to the many organizations she's worked for but simply being a Kennedy is no qualification for her to be a senator.

She's probably a nice woman but that don't cut no ice. She's a lightweight as far as a political background and there are many better qualified people, democrats, that would do a far better job in that senate seat than she would.

Got that??? I like the way you say that as if you have anything worth saying.

Reading your comments on here you are plainly a bitter old woman staring the end of the rope in the face and you're trying to tie knots in it to keep it from slipping through your hands.

Johne on January 8, 2009 at 09:23 PM

Hi, Johne.

I suppose Cheney's attorneys would argue that The Fourth Branch is above the law and can't be indicted for anything, so he doesn't need any pardon?

Darth didn't see the second Great Depression coming?

How could anyone involved in granting no-bid contracts, war profiteering, oil speculation, and deregulating everything in sight since Nixon see anything clearly? Especially when he's usually drunk shooting at his hunting pals or telling that Iraqi bank embezzler Chalabi all about American troop movements right before an invasion so they can be relayed to Iran?

TheGreatGazoo on January 8, 2009 at 09:31 PM

The address says DNC. You're not a Democrat. You're not an American nationalist. Nor are you a committee of anything but one.

It's our turf. Go run for the RNC chairmanship. You're just as sorry of a candidate as the rest of them running.

TheGreatGazoo on January 8, 2009 at 09:37 PM

If Caroline Kennedy is such a horrible choice, why would you of all people not want her to be a Democratic Senator? You Republicans have been protesting way too much. I smell fear.

Thousands of what may have been legitimate absentee ballots were thrown out. Many voters didn't know how to properly fill out their ballots. And both machines and people made mistakes.
PamB

Mark Ritchi, the democrat hack Secretary of State, bowed to pressure from leftwing loony groups who wanted to bring in as many bodies that could still fog a mirror to . Groups like Acorn recruited low life types and street people and just about anyone that needed a pack of camels or a 40 oz can of malt liquor.

"Here, fill out this absentee ballot and we'll fix ya right up' And fill them out they did only they were uniformed idiots who were shaking with the DTs and had blurred vision from last night's liquor and crack party so they didn't see too well and those absentee ballots proved a bit to much for them.

Yeah, Minnesota learned plenty from this election. First of all, Mark Richie need a boot square in his ass and a door to be shown open to another job outside of the state coffers. Secondly they learned that blatant abuse of the absentee balloting system came back to take a big bite out of their ass. That right should be reserved only for those who have legitimate reasons not to be able to vote at a designated polling place on election day.

The lax oversight of the voting process has turned the noble right to vote into a joke. Every time liberals get involved in a well-established process it turns from a rock solid state into watery diarrhea.

Still feels good, doesn't it? WE WON. WE WON BIG. I LOVE IT !!!!!!!)
PamB

Ya sure did but now you own it and it's your turn to show how you have picked an incompetent inexperienced jr senator from a corrupt state to run our country.

He's recreated the Clinton administration and has already back pedaled away from many of his promises. Too bad Pammy. All that hard work stealing McCain/Palin signs and all you got for your troubles is a garage full of stolen signs and another round of Billy Clinton.

I see Osama bin Laden wasted no time in letting Mr. Half & Half know what he thinks of him and his big ass promises. He's gonna jack old 50/50 around from Day One and make The One wish he'd gone into auto body repair instead of politics.

test

Here's piece or two of property you might like to lay your head down on...

Hundreds of Coal Ash Dumps Lack Regulation

By SHAILA DEWAN
Published: January 6, 2009

The coal ash pond that ruptured and sent a billion gallons of toxic sludge across 300 acres of East Tennessee last month was only one of more than 1,300 similar dumps across the United States — most of them unregulated and unmonitored — that contain billions more gallons of fly ash and other byproducts of burning coal.

Like the one in Tennessee, most of these dumps, which reach up to 1,500 acres, contain heavy metals like arsenic, lead, mercury and selenium, which are considered by the Environmental Protection Agency to be a threat to water supplies and human health. Yet they are not subject to any federal regulation, which experts say could have prevented the spill, and there is little monitoring of their effects on the surrounding environment.

In fact, coal ash is used throughout the country for construction fill, mine reclamation and other “beneficial uses.” In 2007, according to a coal industry estimate, 50 tons of fly ash even went to agricultural uses, like improving soil’s ability to hold water, despite a 1999 E.P.A. warning about high levels of arsenic. The industry has promoted the reuse of coal combustion products because of the growing amount of them being produced each year — 131 million tons in 2007, up from less than 90 million tons in 1990.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/us/07sludge.html?_r=2&th&emc=th

Clean coal? It would seem that that old huckster T. Bone Pickins has wasted a lot of his own money on ads that just brought attention to a health concern we never knew about before. Can't get people to buy into starting any more wars to protect foreign oil? So let's sell them sludge?

Get it off my lawn.

Guess it's working now.

Hi Pam and Bob. Hope you all had a wonderful Holiday.

So what do you all think of this stimulus package?

looks like 'government is the solution' is stylish again. No more letting things run amuck to line the pockets of the few with gold.

If Caroline Kennedy is such a horrible choice, why would you of all people not want her to be a Democratic Senator?
SandyH

Because the great state of New York deserves better leadership than just another fly by from a lightweight member of the Royal Family of the House of Kennedy.

I smell fear.

No, what you smell is your own wide, under-wiped ass.

TheGreatGazoo on January 8, 2009 at 09:58 PM

And you think you are 100%? I see you're warming up the second computer. Don't you ever tire of playing around with yourself?

Good night to all the rest of you sane people who voted for Obama and are loving it. Less than two weeks till the Reagan Revolution is no more.

Gupta for Surgeon General? I like him. He is media savvy and it will take those skills to push the agenda. He was also one of 15 advisors to Hillary while she was First Lady, but I won't hold that against him.

Another good pick by Obama.

39
SandyH on January 8, 2009 at 09:59 PM

And yet another reason to use more wind and solar energy.
We need to get as much power production out of the hands of the big energy producers as possible.
By providing low cost guaranteed loans to homeowners, small businesses, ranchers, and farmers for wind and solar installations, we can drastically reduce our dependence on fossil fuel power plants and become more energy independent in times of emergencies by using grid-tied wind/solar with battery backups.
By providing government buildings and hospitals with solar/wind power capability, we can reduce the extent of natural disasters by reducing the interruption of emergency services.
We need to drastically up-grade the grid to better handle the energy input from multiple small producers, and to reduce transmission loss, and failure due to natural degradation of the grid because of aging components.
We also need to look at new technologies which can better and more efficiently utilize wind/solar power.
I have seen TV programs on various DIY channels touting concrete made from fly ash, and since I live next to the country's largest polluted lake, aka the Berkley Pit, I wondered how "green" it really was. I am way too familiar with the possible pollutants in mine waste to feel comfortable in using fly ash in any concrete mixtures, no matter how safe they claim the stuff is. The thought of a vast wave of fly ash covering houses, roads, and all is just chilling. We need to take second and third hard looks at the mining industry and their practices.

Hi Sandy,

I agree, clean coal is not the answer unless we can control the toxins released to the atmosphere and the planet.

Having studied mining engineering for a time, It occurred to me that these people should be dewatering the sludge and converting it to some kind of building material. Sludge dewatering is a common practise in the mining industry.

Greetings, fellow Dems. Our day is fast approaching. Democracy will soon flourish. Unfortunately, it will be broke, thanks to the GOP (Greedy Ole Party). Ah, well. As long as I have a plate of beans and the promise of a better future for my family...

Hello fine Dems

Republicans Fight Obama's Stimulus Plan, Fearing Its Success Will Mean Years of Political Oblivion

Ain't it funny to listen to the republican idiots whine about the MN election. AHAAHHAHAH. Suddenly they want to take it to the courts. AHAHAHAH. Coleman is a sore loser. He should concede and move on.

It's better to have a senator who can tell a joke, than to have a senator who IS a joke.

Bye Bye, Mr. Coleman. Glad to see ya go. You WON'T be missed.

For the second time in a row, no incumbent Democratic senators lost their seats
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate_elections,_2008

Is anyone else seeing a trend here?
I think it may be time for a new second party in this country. The Republicans are obviously on their way out. And if they try to obstruct everything with the fillibuster, they will be gone FAST.

So what are Bush and Rice doing about this Gaza thing? Anything? Nothing?

What a couple of incompetent boobs.
12 more days

Its late.
Blog ya'll tomorrow.
G'nite

48
tylinCA on January 8, 2009 at 11:09 PM

Couldn't happen to a more deserving bunch.

bush is doing nothing about the gaza problem. We even abstained from voting on a peace initiative put forth by the UN. Typical republican hate activities.

Then we have boner of TN saying we can't afford to do anything to help Americans. He bent over backwards to help his rich banking friends who do all their banking overseas. Reid should tell him to shove it.

51
Chicago on January 8, 2009 at 11:21 PM
So what are Bush and Rice doing about this Gaza thing?
Probably cheering, along with the fundamentalist right wingnuts, for the Israelis to wipe out the Palestinians.
It beats me, how a group of people who went through the Holocaust can have no compassion for the people they stole they country from.

scalia should be tried, found guilty and hanged for appointing bush president and destroying America.

bush was acting as a teachers aide today at an elementary school. too bad that hadn't been his job for the last eight years and al gore had been president. so much theft and crime committed by the bushies...

anyhow here is some good news. looks like the republicans will keep shooting their own feet by trying to block help to working americans and the democrats will come thru with meaningful programs and the republicans will lose more senate and house seats in 2010...

"WASHINGTON - Democratic lawmakers have reached a deal with Citigroup Inc. on a plan to let bankruptcy judges alter home loans in an effort to prevent foreclosures and urged other lenders to follow suit."

nice collection of bushisms...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7809160.stm

i can't believe al franken won. this is great news. that combined with the fact that the republican senator in ohio, the one in new hampshire and the two in maine have no reason to support their nutty party and lots of reasons to support the democratic program means that in effect there is no filibuster cohort for that kentucky idiot mcduck to work with...and here is a nice moment of sharing between al and ann from long ago...i wonder is ann's face has healed yet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=susZ2ceEHwk&eurl=http://crooksandliars.com/

tomorrow we get the final jobs report of the bush administration. should be one of many wonderful memories americans will have of the presidummie...of course his disastrous impact on the economy, the environment, world peace, research into cures for diabetes, m.s., parkinson disease, etc, his impact on international relations, nuclear non-proliferation will go on for some time as we who are truly "left behind" try to pick up the pieces and begin a new day. may a meteorite fall on his head.

Sarah Palin's candidacy shone some much needed sunlight (the best antiseptic) on the curious, pseudo-fascist political culture in our least populous state. It is my fervent hope that the media relentlessly hounds this woman until her public career is destroyed. Like they did to Scott Peterson, who made the mistake of killing his pregnant wife during a slow news cycle (Christmas Eve), the media has got her scent, and it's like a slow motion scene from The Call of the Wild.
Sarah Palin claims she's a victim of social class distnctions. Which class is she? Bourgeois? Or, after Victor Hugo in Les Miserables, who describes the villainous Thenardiers as "that bastard class of people..."

PamB on January 8, 2009 at 08:53 PM

So Sara's at it again, bashing the godless mainstream media elites

That a girl Sarah! go get those commie moonbats!

Caroline Kennedy is an attorney with a law degree from Columbia.
So what? does that make her better than anybody else? ""Lincoln's formal education consisted of about 18 months of schooling, but he was largely self-educated and an avid reader.""
I bet Caroline even fornicated or still does in a car.

"because Caroline's pedigreed."
I thought they reserved that expression for dogs?

I think bush is giving these Israelis lessons in how to fight wars (illegally)23
PamB on January 8, 2009 at 09:00 PM

I wonder where you get all those stupid ideas? The israelis have always proved that they can fight and win. That land has always belonged to them. And ya old moonbat, The ceasefire was holding until those palistinian terrorists started fireing rockets at Israel, so that gives Israel the right to go kick some terrorist ass.
You should quit watching Al Jazeera.
Let me ask you just one thing,
"I think bush is giving these Israelis lessons in how to fight wars (illegally)23
PamB on January 8, 2009 at 09:00 PM"

And was it legal for Marilyn Monroe´s Boyfriend(ya know who I mean, The other Kennedy fornicator John F.) and his sidekick Johnson to send Military advisers to VIETNAM?

Harry S. Truman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Recognition of Israel
Truman was a key figure in the establishment of the Jewish state in the Palestine Mandate. In 1946, an Anglo-American Committee of Inquiry recommended the gradual establishment of two states in Palestine, with neither Jews nor Arabs dominating.The Zionist idea of a Jewish state in the Middle East was popular in the U.S., particularly among urban Jewish voters, one of Truman's key constituencies. Truman additionally viewed a viable Jewish state as the best way to resettle the some 250,000 Jewish Holocaust refugees living in displaced person camps.Truman recognized the State of Israel on May 14, 1948, eleven minutes after it declared itself a nation.[86][87]

The State of Israel! With a Democrats support. I don´t hear any "compassionate Democrats" crying over Jewish/Israeli blood being spent because of those Palistinian terrorist attacks. Compassionate democrates? bwhahahahahahahaha! Bigots, hypocrites and fornicators.

Now shut the hell up, if you don't know what you are talking about, Got that?????
22
PamB on January 8, 2009 at 08:53 PM

I dedicate this small bible verse to Pamellla, me she seek everlasting peace and wisdom in a proper church, instead of trying to tell us what jesus would or wouldn´t do.

Job 13:5 (New International Version)
If only you would be altogether silent! For you, that would be wisdom.

me she seek everlasting - MAY she seek.
Excuse me, DuHSty might be watching.

http://www.webloggin.com/moral-clarity/
I like Benjamin Netanyahu’s suggestion for proportionality in dealing with Hamas:

The charge that Israel is using disproportionate force is equally baseless. Does proportionality demand that Israel fire 6,000 rockets indiscriminately back at Gaza?

Facts about Israel and Hamas

On Dec. 27, Israel began “Operation Cast Lead” to stop Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza from continuing its years-long campaign of attacking Israeli civilians with thousands of rockets, missiles and mortars. Following are facts and figures to?help journalists cover Israel’s defensive efforts in Gaza:

Iran-backed Hamas Rocket, Mortar Attacks and Nuclear Developments

9,400+
rockets and mortars fired from Gaza since 2003.

3,200+
rockets and mortars fired from Gaza in 2008 alone.

6,500+
rockets and mortars fired from Gaza since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005.

543+
rockets and mortars fired from?Gaza?into Israeli territory during the ceasefire from June 19 to Dec. 19, 2008.

28
deaths caused by rockets and mortars fired from Gaza into Israel since 2001. The dead include Israelis, Palestinians and foreign workers. Since the ceasefire ended, Iran-backed Palestinian groups in Gaza fired rockets and mortars that killed an Israeli-Arab construction worker and a mother of four who was seeking shelter in a bus station as a rocket warning siren sounded.

1,000+
people in Israel injured from rockets and mortars fired from Gaza since 2001, including Israelis, Palestinians and foreign workers. Since the ceasefire, 44 Israelis have been injured and 200have been treated for shock.

20,000
Hamas troops Israel?is targeting as part of “Operation Cast Lead.”

750,000
number of Israeli civilians Hamas is targeting and can reach.

15
seconds Israelis have to get to a bomb shelter once a warning siren has sounded.

8
years that Israel has been hit by rockets and mortars from?Gaza.

3
mosques in?Gaza used as weapons, ammunitions and explosives depots that were struck by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) during the operation inGaza.

4
UN Security Council resolutions passed since 2006 to try to stop Iran from enriching uranium.

5,000+
number of centrifuges operating in Iran?to enrich uranium, the material used to produce a nuclear weapon.

Israel’s Humanitarian Aid to Gaza

179
truckloads of humanitarian aid that have been delivered through Israeli crossings into Gaza since the beginning of Operation Cast Lead, including basic food commodities, medication, medical supplies, donations of governments and blood units.

106
additional truckloads of humanitarian expected to arrive in Gaza on Jan. 31

6,500
tons of aid transported into Gaza at the request of international organizations, the Palestinian Authority and various governments since the beginning of Operation Cast Lead. The World Food Program informed Israel that it will cease shipment of food to Gaza because warehouses are at full capacity, with enough food to last two weeks.

What Israel Gave Up in Hopes of Peace - Gaza Withdrawal Aug. 2005

100%
proportion of the Gaza Strip?evacuated?and handed over to the Palestinians.

300
square miles of the West Bank?evacuated.

21
Israeli settlements uprooted in the Gaza Strip.

4
Israeli settlements?uprooted in the?West Bank.

48
graves uprooted in Gaza’s former Gush Katif Cemetery, including six graves of area residents murdered by terrorists.

9,000
approximate number of Israelis, including 1,700 families, who lived in Gaza and the northern West Bank. All of them?were moved out as part of the withdrawal.

38
synagogues dismantled in the Gaza Strip.

5,000
school-age children who had to find new schools.

42
daycare centers that were closed in the Gaza Strip.

36
kindergartens that were closed in the Gaza Strip.

7
elementary schools that were closed in the Gaza Strip.

3
high schools that were closed in the Gaza Strip.

320
mobile homes, ordered by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, to serve as temporary housing for settlers.

45,000
Israeli soldiers and policemen who participated in the Gazawithdrawal.

$1.7 billion
the approximate cost to the Israeli government for the withdrawal initiative.

166
Israeli farmers who were moved out of Gaza.

800
cows, which comprised the second largest dairy farm in Israel, moved out of Gaza’s Gush Katif community.

$120 million
value of flowers and produce exported annually from Gush Katif and lost following the evacuation.

1
zoo, the “Katifari,”?that housed hundreds of animals and was moved.

10,000
people who were employed in agriculture and related industries in Gush Katif, including 5,000 Palestinians.

60%
proportion of Israel’s cherry tomato exports that came from the Gaza Strip. Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza extinguished this economic resource.

3.5 million
square meters (almost 1,000 acres) of greenhouses abandoned in Gaza.

70
percentage of Israel’s organic produce grown in Gaza another economic resource lost in the evacuation.

60
percentage of herbs exported from Israel that came from Gush Katif.

15
percentage of Israel agricultural exports that originated in Gaza exports lost following?Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza.

$360,000
expected average compensation amount Israel expected to pay to relocate each family.

$870 million
approximate cost for Israel to facilitate the resettlement of former West Bank and Gaza residents elsewhere in the country.

$500 million
amount of money Israel’s security establishment spent to relocate Israel Defense Forces bases outside the Gaza Strip and build new border crossing facilities.

After Israel’s evacuation from Gaza

430,000
West Bank Palestinians able to move freely within and between Palestinian-controlled areas.

1
Israeli remaining in Gaza. Staff Sgt. Gilad Shalit was abducted from Israelon June 25, 2006 by Hamas in a bloody cross-border raid in which the terrorists also killed two IDF soldiers and wounded four others.

1.2 million
Arabs who remained full and legal citizens of Israel. All Israeli citizens Christians, Muslims, and Jews have freedom of speech, religion, press, and the right to vote.

1.3 million
Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip many of them in Palestinian Authority-controlled refugee camps who live under their own leaders.

820,000
Jewish refugees forced to flee without their belongings from Arab countries between 1947 and 1949, and who have never been compensated by Arab governments for their losses.

Obama picks lobbyist as Pentagon No. 2

By RITA BEAMISH and ANNE GEARAN, Associated Press Writers Rita Beamish And Anne Gearan, Associated Press Writers – 2 hrs 31 mins ago

WASHINGTON – President-elect Barack Obama appointed a defense contractor's lobbyist Thursday to become the No. 2 official at the Defense Department, a choice that appeared to break with his self-imposed rules to keep lobbyists at arm's length.

William J. Lynn III, Obama's choice for deputy defense secretary, is a former Pentagon official who now is senior vice president for government operations at Raytheon Co. Lynn hasn't been a registered lobbyist since July, meaning he can't personally lobby Congress or the White House.

In the first three months of 2008, his lobbying team reported spending $1.15 million to influence issues including missiles, sensors and radar, advanced technology programs and intelligence funding.

Obama has vowed that no political appointees in his administration would be permitted to work on areas that "directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years." Although Lynn heads Raytheon's division for government operations and strategy and was personally registered as a Raytheon lobbyist until July — both within that two-year period — Obama plans to give him the job.

twmom, i think she is a member of the ass kissing class.

this guy max blumethal has a great web site. this link takes you there and to two stories;one about the good pastor warren's demented work in africa ( can we cancel his shtick at the inauguration now please? ) and the other a video clip of a nut holocaust denier

http://maxblumenthal.com/2009/01/rick-warrens-africa-problem/

unemployment jumps to 7.2 percent. worst since 1983 and no sign of getting better...nice job georgie...now get the hell out of here!

morning Gregg and Dems.

Isn't it amazing to watch, how SHRILL the trolls continue to get? They are like a bunch of fisher wives, peddling their wares. Screeches like banshees. Their hatred of the LOSS of their party , and they watch as Franken now takes the seat, etc, just is killing them! It makes me smile to see them stuck in this hate filled position for the next 4 years !!!!

WE WON! THEY LOST !! I LOVE IT !!! SUCK IT UP AND GET OVER IT !!!

Good morning, all!

The CDC has released the list of teen pregnancies and the top areas are all RED states. Guess which region had the lowest?

Those Godless liburrrellzzz in the Northeast, that's who.

Mississippi has highest teen birth rate, CDC says

Spit 'em out and keep 'em dumb. That's the Pug way.

Doo Bee, And then they will bitch and moan that they have to pay for the medical costs and to feed and clothe those kids till they are 18 thru taxes!!

I get a kick out of the trolls, trying now to somehow make this bad situation into Obama's going forward. Like HE and Democrats will get blamed! What they do not understand is, the American public KNOW who caused this total destruction! That they KNOW that Obama and Dems have been thrust into an almost impossible situation, caused by them. The trolls do not understand---THEY are to be blamed for voting for Bush and Republicans and causing this terrible Illegal invasion, deaths of our troops, dismembered boys, this economy! And we will not let anyone forget this !!!!!

*************************

NEW OPEN THREAD!

*************************

I believe what my organization is offering (completely pro-bono) needs to be adopted by the DNC to ensure the passion of involvement remains strong.

I'd like everyone's opinion. Here's what our plan is...

My organization can help keep everyday Americans stay engaged in the DNC and in the political process.

Here’s how we’d like to help.

The "Yes We Can (Change our Destiny) Project" is our way of putting my hands on the "arc of history and bending it once more toward the hope for a better day" as President-elect Obama challenged the world to do on November 4th in Grant Park. I took him very seriously. Because if we let the phenomenon of civic involvement dwindle away post the inaugural, we will have lost our greatest resource, "we the people."

So what we did to help ensure the passion stays alive was to work backwards from the question, “Why did people get so involved during the election? And the answer were:

1. They were honestly inspired
2. They were given specific tasks and structure.
3. They felt their VOICE COUNTED

The DNC and the administration are providing structure. Mr. Obama is inspiring. But we believe the public needs to rally around an empowering catch phrase to inspire them to realize their voice will still count post the inaugural, that they can “Change Their destiny.”

We are proposing that the simple six words, “Yes We Can (Change our Destiny)” be the phrase utilized by the DNC, by the administration and by USAService.org.
Do words mean that much? Imagine our world without

“I had a dream”
“Ask not what your country can do for you”
“We choose to go to the moon”

Millions were inspired by “mere” words coupled with structure and inspiration.

I’m the CEO of a production company in Chicago and will continue to create video (like the one below) to inspire America that to stay involved because their voice counts. And we want you to have this video, pro-bono.

We do this for no profit or even recognition. The “Yes We Can (Change our Destiny) Project” is completely pro-bono. We simply want to do our part. Please watch this video and I’m confident you’ll agree, that these simple six words, “Yes We Can (Change our Destiny)” can inspire 10’s of millions in the U.S. to help the DNC, as it’s already inspired 10’s of thousands around the world.

CLICK TO WATCH 5 MINUTE VIDEO (or search Yes We Can Change our Destiny on YouTube).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwspAagg8uw

The Yes We Can (Change our Destiny) Project"

Fuel for change

All the best,
Steven Sulkin, Founder
The Yes We Can (Change our Destiny) Project

Testing

""My daughter did not fornicate in the back seat of any cars, Stevie. Sorry to break your heart. Someday maybe I will tell you the story, but until then, you just keep guessing !
PamB on January 8, 2009 at 04:05 PM""

Young people have sex all the time. They have been doing it since the beginning, and will continue until the end. You don't have to be ashamed it happens.

Some of my relatives which are of my grandparents age got married when they were 14. once upon a time this was OK. But then the rule makers got involved.

Having sex in the back seat of your car is ok. I do it all the time. That's why I drive a lincoln.
I guess that's one of the scarifices you make when you drive a econocar. Your just jealous cause you can't get it on the go. LOL