Daily Archives: January 28, 2008

“If These Items Are Truly Worth Funding,…”

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

"…the Congress should debate them in the open and hold a public vote." GW Bush, State of the Union Address, January 28,2008 Those of us opposed to earmarks, or as it used to be known, pork barrel spending, got a … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Taxes | 12 Comments

UN Springs Into Action On Darfur

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

To mark the fifth anniversary of the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Darfur, the United Nations has announced that it will not be deploying any meaningful numbers of "peacekeepers" until the end of this year. The UN-African Union peacekeeping force proposed … Continue reading →

Posted in World news | Comments Off

How Much Is Free Health Care Worth?

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

The true believers in socialized medicine in this country like to hold the British National Health Service up as a role model. Health care, they say, should be "universal" and "free." But what if the universal part applies to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Medicine, World news | 19 Comments

Fly The Friendly Unencumbered Skies

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

A German travel agency is proudly offering charter flights for a select group of people. The passengers will, as the company puts it, fly "The way God intends it." That would be soaring in the buff. BERLIN (AFP) – German … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor, World news | Comments Off

Kenya Deteriorating Rapidly

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

Murderous violence continues to escalate in Kenya. Tribe on tribe and gang on gang, day by day the death toll is rising. NAIVASHA, Kenya — Hundreds of Kikuyus wielding stones, sticks, machetes, and wooden planks studded with nails confronted rival … Continue reading →

Posted in World news | 1 Comment

Hold The Lungs

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

Unless you happen to be of Scots descent, you may have missed the vast sound of wailing and lamentation on Friday. That was the annual wailing of the haggis, or what some people call "Burns Night." Now the annual celebration of … Continue reading →

Posted in Humor | 5 Comments

Red Market

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

Indian Police are working to arrest as many suspects in an illegal kidney transplant ring as they can. Unfortunately, the ringleader, Dr. Amit Kumar, appears to have escaped, possibly by bribing police officials. The police have arrested the doctor at least … Continue reading →

Posted in World news | 1 Comment

China In Chaos Due To Snow And Ice

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

The Chinese government is issuing "red alerts" (ironic, isn't it?) to large areas of the country over expected heavy snowfalls.  (Questionable link broken). BEIJING, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) — The China Meteorological Administration (CMA) early Monday issued a red alert for severe … Continue reading →

Posted in World news | 3 Comments

Fan Mail From Some Flounder

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

Life imitates Bullwinkle and Rocky. A letter written 15 years ago by a Japanese schoolgirl has just turned up. Or been pulled up, as the case may be. The letter was found attached to a fish caught by a Japanese … Continue reading →

Posted in Animals | Comments Off

Bush To Hit Earmarks With Executive Order

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

The wording of this story does not make it completely clear, but it appears that President Bush will issue an executive order directing Federal agencies to ignore earmarks that are air dropped into a conference bill and not explicitly voted … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics, Taxes | 2 Comments

From Asset To Liability

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

Even the Guardian isn't impressed with Bill Clinton at the moment. Their American editor, Michael Tomasky, thinks the Clintons have some explaining to do in the next few days. Think about it. A former president, who knows the inner workings … Continue reading →

Posted in Politics | 1 Comment

Money For Nothing

Posted on January 28, 2008 by Gaius

It really isn't surprising that the House of Representatives manages to throw away taxpayer's money buying nothing at all. What is unusual is that even the Washington Post isn't buying the explanation of what was "purchased" with the money. They … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Taxes | 2 Comments