At the end of today, one of two things will have happened. Either this country will have taken a first step -- a very small first step, but a first step just the same -- towards a better health care system...or it won't.
Either we will have taken some small steps towards ensuring that all Americans can step away from the precipice of total financial ruin if they become ill...or we won't.
http://brilliantatbreakfast.blogspot.com/2010/03/waiting-to-exhale.html
Following the lead of Pope Benedict and the 
Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.) issued a statement late Saturday saying that he was spit upon while walking to the Capitol to cast a vote, leading the Capitol Police to usher him into the building out of concern for his safety. Police detained the individual, who was then released because Cleaver declined to press charges."The congressman was walking into the Capitol to vote, when one protester spat on him. The congressman would like to thank the U.S. Capitol Police officer who quickly escorted the other Members and him into the Capitol, and defused the tense situation with professionalism and care," said Danny Rotert, a spokesman for Cleaver.
I guarantee the wingnuts claim that Cleaver refused to press charges so it would not be known that the spitter was a Union or Acorn plant.
Anyone want to bet me any amount of money? Anyone? Bueller?
Bigotry, racism, hatred: all present and accounted for
And as a bonus, he shuts down crazy-face homophobe Virginia Foxx. Dream ticket: Weiner/Grayson 2016: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_Nevf5higA&feature=player_embedded
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Mormon Church And Boy Scouts Sued In Massive Molestation Cover Up
The LDS Church and national Boy Scouts organization have been sued by a man claiming that both covered up evidence of his molestation. The case has uncovered extensive files kept by both groups cloaking sexual predators. The Boy Scouts of America has long kept an extensive archive of secret documents that chronicle the sexual abuse of young boys by Scout leaders over the years. The "perversion files," a nickname the Boy Scouts are said to have used for the documents, have rarely been seen by the public, but that could all change in the coming weeks in an Oregon courtroom. The lawyer for a man who was molested in the 1980s by a Scout leader has obtained about 1,000 Boy Scouts sex files and is expected to release some of them at a trial that began Wednesday. The lawyer says the files show how the Boy Scouts have covered up abuse for decades.
The Mormon bishop who also served as head of the Scout troop, Gordon McEwen, confronted [accused pedophile Timur] Dykes after receiving a report of abuse by the mother of one boy in the troop in January 1983. In a video deposition played for the jury, the bishop said Dykes admitted abusing 17 boys. But McEwen said he contacted the parents of all 17 boys and the boys themselves, and none would confirm any abuse. Dykes was arrested in 1983 and pleaded guilty to attempted sexual abuse, received probation and was ordered to stay away from children. Clark told the jury Dykes continued with his scouting activities until he was arrested in July 1984 during a routine traffic stop while he was driving a van full of Scouts on a camping trip. A spokesman for the Boy Scouts of America at its headquarters in Irving, Texas, said in a statement the organization cannot comment on details of the case. But it has worked hard on awareness and prevention efforts, including background checks.
Endorsed as the lead item at Fox Nation right now:
It's not in the editorial voice of The Washington Times, but it's an op-ed by a Times columnist, Jeffrey T. Kuhner (he's also a talk radio guy and right-wing think tanker). Given the widely agreed-upon fiction that the Times is a respectable newspaper, I'd say a line has been crossed.
Arizona on Thursday became the first state to eliminate its Children's Health Insurance Program when Gov. Jan Brewer signed an austere budget that will leave nearly 47,000 low-income children without coverage.
... Ms. Brewer, a Republican, has warned that more cuts will be needed if voters do not approve a referendum in May to raise the sales tax by a penny for three years, to 6.6 cents per dollar.
... The Republican-controlled Legislature passed the budget last week, based largely on a proposal from the governor that included deep cuts to both health care and education. ...
There's a widespread belief on our side that if we can just pass a bill, all the rancor will dissipate and we'll all dance and sing and frolic in a lovely spirit of comity as we welcome the frisky new health care pony that we'll love to pieces and never, ever let anyone take away from us. Well, on the question of taking away benefits, Arizona Republicans don't seem to be hesitating one bit -- and as I poke around the Internet, I don't see any sign that doing this is regarded as political suicide for them. (The "political suicide" argument is the reason we're usually given for why the national GOP won't really go for repeal, isn't it?)
By the way, Governor Brewer is supporting a temporary increase in the sales tax -- a tax that hits the poor and middle class much harder than the well-to-do, because they need to use a much greater percentage of their money to buy necessities -- while apparently hedging on whether she'll support a package of tax cuts for business that's being proposed by the GOP-controlled legislature. Expect the D.C. Republicans to head in that direction as well if they gain control of one or both houses of Congress (and the White House in 2012).
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A commenter at TPM: Kinda ironic that the "pro-life" people don't care that 44,000 uninsured Americans die each year. If only they were fetuses, then they would care about you. Sorry, pro-lifers stop caring once you leave the delivery room.
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Teabaggers throw shoes at pic of Rep. Carnahan (D-MO) - goad little kid to do it too - yep, that kids' gonna be a fine upstanding citizen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEcE0vVKZTk&feature=player_embedded
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How do you argue with this?
"My Congressman, Bart Stupak, has neither a uterus nor a brain." -Michael Moore
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Here's a thought: if the health care bill is successful in getting another 30 million people insured, there is a possibility that the number of abortions might actually decrease. Among the many reasons women choose abortion, one has to be the high cost of childbirth.
A quick look at the numbers indicate that the average cost of an uncomplicated childbirth is about $9000 and can easily climb to $40,000 and more for premature or complicated births. Compare that to the cost of an abortion which can cost anywhere from $350 to $750. It is not hard to imagine that for some uninsured women, opting for an abortion is almost a necessity when, everything else being equal, they might very well have had the baby if not for the cost.
And yes, I understand that there are a multitude of other issues involved here (e.g. why are uninsured women getting pregnant, etc.) but the fact remains that one can't legislate common sense or responsibility. So if one is serious on wanting to reduce the number of abortions, then fixing the health care system and getting everyone insured can only help.
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h/t Andy
Voters should decide whether Utah needs a truly independent Ethics Commission to advise the Legislature. That's why we're circulating an ethics initiative petition to collect 95,000 signatures before April 15, 2010. Please sign now to help get our initiative on the November 2010 ballot.
http://www.utahnsforethicalgovernment.org/
I didn't even know there were jaguars in the United States. And, now there's one less. It doesn't sound like the animal should have been captured in the first place.
He'd probably still be roaming, absent the involvement of Arizona's Game and Fish department.
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For anyone who doubts that the US is a fascist country or quickly becoming one, read this telling piece by Jim Hightower: Two Right-Wing Billionaire Brothers Are Remaking America for Their Own Benefit.
But if you're sick and tired of being poor and don't really care about anyone else, you might want to work for these guys... it seems like the right wing propaganda machine is being funded by the Koch's.
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"I am grateful for the thousands of patriots who are ###
Attention All Whale and Horse Eaters###
(See for yourself.)
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Yes, Democrats are fighting to pass a Republican version of health care reform. Wheee! E.J. Dionne:
Here is the ultimate paradox of the Great Health Care Showdown: Congress will divide along partisan lines to pass a Republican version of health care reform, and Republicans will vote against it. Yes, Democrats have rallied behind a bill that Republicans— or at least large numbers of them should love. It is built on a series of principles that Republicans espoused for years.
[. . .] Republicans always say they are against "socialized medicine." Not only is this bill nothing like a "single-payer" health system along Canadian or British lines. It doesn''t even include the "public option" that would have allowed people voluntarily to buy their insurance from the government. The single-payer idea fell by the wayside long ago, and supporters of the public option —sadly, from my point of view, —lost out last December. [. . .] Democrats, including President Obama, are so anxious to get everyone health insurance that they are more than willing to try a market-based system and hope it works. It''s a shame the Republicans can no longer take "yes" for an answer.
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The American Family Association (AFA) is a Christian hate group that mobilizes activists around the country to activists around the country to protest gays, Muslims, and other groups it views as either abhorrent or in violation of its narrow view of the Bible. Recently, AFA called for the military to purge all Muslims from the military. The group is perhaps best known for its annual Winter crusade, when AFA leads boycotts against retailers that greet customers with something other than "Merry Christmas."
http://thinkprogress.org/2010/03/20/afa-radio-health/
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JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Whatayahoo declared Sunday that Israel would not restrict construction in east Jerusalem, a step the U.S. has requested – sticking to a tough position hours before he sets off on his first trip to Washington since a diplomatic row erupted between the two allies.
