Oct 262011
 

Yesterday I did prep work for today’s and tomorrow’s meetings.  I’m current on replies.  Today is my volunteer day co-facilitating a therapy group for former prisoners.  Color me scarce for the rest of the week, please.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today it took me 3:18 (average 4:26).  To do it, click here.  How did you do?

Fantasy Football Report:

Here’s the latest from our fantasy football league, Lefty Blog Friends.

Scores

TomCat Teabag Trashers

Playing without a helmet

98.16

77.90

Progressive Underdogs

hugos renegades

93.24

88.10

Texans Will Rise Again

ManOnDogSantorum

4.00

140.22

Standings

 

 

 

 

 

 

Points

 

Rank

Team Name

W-L-T

Pct

Streak

Waiver

For

Against

1 (1)

Progressive Underdogs

6-1-0

.857

W2

6

852.44

756.90

2 (2)

ManOnDogSantorum

5-2-0

.714

W1

5

868.54

715.88

3 (3)

hugos renegades

4-3-0

.571

L1

4

815.68

763.66

4 (4)

TomCat Teabag Trashers

3-4-0

.429

W1

3

845.50

774.82

5 (5)

Playing without a helmet

3-4-0

.429

L1

2

747.68

789.08

6 (6)

Texans Will Rise Again

0-7-0

.000

L7

1

565.02

894.52

I finally won another.

Short Takes:

From MoveOn.Org: Why Occupy Wall Street

Click through to join the mailing list for videos like this.

From Washington Post: The heads of the Senate Judiciary and Intelligence committees say they oppose a sweeping defense bill’s policy on handling terror suspects and are urging the top Senate Democrat to take it out.

In a letter last week, Democratic Sens. Patrick Leahy and Dianne Feinstein rejected a provision that would require military custody for terror suspects linked to al-Qaida and involved in an attack on the United States. Leahy and Feinstein said mandatory military custody is “unwise and will harm our national security.”

Eleven Democratic senators joined them in criticizing the provision. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has delayed work on the defense bill because of the provision, which the Obama administration opposes.

Civilians have managed custody of terrorists without incident, so I agree with Leahy, Feinstein and Obama.  I suspect that Leg Hound Harry Reid, who we need to replace as Majority Leader, has been humping Republican legs again.

From Think Progress: Politico’s Pulse flagged this story, from the Indianapolis Business Journal, of WellPoint chief financial officer Wayne DeVeydt complaining that the penalty for not obtaining health care coverage may be set too low in the Affordable Care Act. (Those without coverage pay a tax penalty [PDF]of the greater of $695 per year up to a maximum of three times that amount — $2,085 — per family or 2.5% of household income )

Of course Big Insurance wants it higher, but the penalty is not intended to force people to buy health insurance, as dishonest or misinformed opponents of the ACA claim.  Its purpose is to recover some of the cost of providing emergency care for people who do not provide for their own.  Long term the only real solution is single-payer such as Medicare for all.

Cartoon:

26Cartoon

Share

  8 Responses to “Open Thread–10/26/2011”

  1. Just average 4:26

     

  2. 3:41  I felt faster, but…   I am 96 out of 299 (321).

  3. Seems some days that First Amendment protection only extends to TeaBaggers …

  4. Arrggghhhhhhhhh!  I just lost all my comments when I tried to save,  Blast!

    Good video.  Elizabeth Warren does an excellent job providing, succinctly, historical background facts to the current debacle.  A couple of interesting things:

    1. Alan Greenspan commented that he thought Wall Street could manage the inherent risks of the business to clients and shareholders, but he said he was wrong.
    2. Sen Byron Dorgan said during the reinstatement hearings for Glass-Steagall in 1999 “. . .    moving towards inheriting much greater risk than our financial services industries . . .  we will in ten years time look back  and say we should not have done that because we forgot the lessons of the past . . .”.  How prophetic of Dorgan.

    This video should be mandatory viewing for all Republican and Teabagger householders before Nov 2012.  Should also be included in school history lessons.

     

    I remember a few years back a brou-ha-ha about the trials of the Guantanamo detainees — should they be military or civilian?  I also recall that the detainees could not, or nobody wanted them on American soil.  I’ve also heard that military trials have somewhat different rules and are less onerous as far as rules of evidence etc.  Can somebody clear this up for me please?  Thanks

    With so many Americans without healthcare coverage, about 25 million or was it closer to 50 million, affordable universal health care is the way to go.

    Great cartoon!  I heard on the news that Occupy Oakland had some problems last night — ~7 police officers suddenly found themselves surrounded by protesters.  I guess these guys are the cavalry.

     

    It’s a 7 C rainy day here and I am sitting here with a purring pussy cat on my feet keeping them nice and warm.  Of course I can’t move but that is a small price to pay.

    • I hate it when that happens!

      Amen twice.

      OK, this article is about people who commit crimes of terrorism here, like the underwear bomber.  You’re talking about detainees captured abroad and taken to Gitmo.  Congress made it illegal to bring them into the US for trial, leaving Obama no choice.  Military tribunals are more onerous than civilian trials, because the have looser rules of evidence.,

      Thanks!

      We are puffffect foot warmers, and it’s a good way to make you forget we own you. 🙄

Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.