Where is John Ashcroft When We Need Him?

Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!
Code RED, be very afraid!

Code GREEN, you have nothing to worry about...

'Support-the-Troops' Republicans Continue Their Push to Increase Military Retirees Health Care Costs -- In Order to Help Fund Current Operations

Pentagon Leaders Continue Fee Hike Campaign on Hill. This week, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Peter Pace, USMC, and Army Chief of Staff Gen Peter Schoomaker testified once again, this time before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense and continued to push fee increases for retirees under age 65...

At a separate hearing on Feb. 15, the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs, DoD witnesses included Dr. William Winkenwerder, Asst. Sec. Def. for Health Affairs. Chairman James Walsh (R-NY) stated, “It’s going to be politically difficult for Congress to support these fee increases.” Rep. Chet Edwards (D-TX), the panel’s senior Democrat, asked Winkenwerder to “get the facts on the table” about where the proposed savings would come from.

Published reports indicate the large majority come from the expectation that the fee increases would drive large numbers of beneficiaries out of TRICARE (retiree healthcare system). Pressed about how many the budget plan is expected to drive away, Winkenwerder said “about 150,000.” (Note: from blog editor: elsewhere Dr Winkenwerder agreed that the real estimate is around 600,000)

The Military Officers Association of America, one of many retiree organizations fighting the increases noted:

"...the Pentagon leaders’ disingenuous double-talk about exorbitant fee increases being “necessary to sustain the current benefit.” We think it’s unconscionable to put the Joint Chiefs and Senior Enlisted Advisors in the position of having to advocate a benefit cut in order to fund weapons programs."

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So now, military retiree healthcare can be added to education, healthcare for our citizens, funding for college loans and a variety of other critical needs of this country being stripped to mostly support the ongoing war in Iraq (at the same time that tax cuts for the rich are being made permanent). Appropriations Committee Chairman Jerry Lewis (R-CA) was surprised that there had been no premium adjustment since 1996 and said this "needs to be reviewed" to ensure retirees pay their "fair share." Compared to who Mr. Chairman? You, who never served in the military? Oh yeah, I forgot about all those big defense corporations in your district in California who have funded your campaigns.

While we are talking about comparisons, here is something else to think about: It was reported today that the huge conglomerate, Time Warner, is staying together for now, including Warner Brothers, HBO, CNN, America Online and Time Magazine. Time Warner is worth about $84 Billion, about the same amount we are continuing to pump into Iraq every year as more of our sons and daughters die or are disabled for life. Think about it.

Scalia Rethinking Who He Invites to Go Shooting

With Friends Like This...

One reason why the 2nd amendment needs to be rethought...

3 Stooges Plot Foiled on Way to L.A.?

Ok, I'm just trying to picture how we stopped the bad guys from using shoe bombs on an airplane on its way to L.A. Let's see, did these bumblers think they would:

1. Pound on the cabin door with their feet until their shoes exploded?
2. Take off their shoes and pound the door, with the same result?
3. Take off their shoes, place them in front of the door, light them, and go running back down the aisle holding their ears?
4. Take off the shoes in their seats and ask passengers next to them to borrow a small knife or nail clippers so they could construct the explosives?

I'm at a loss to understand the credibility of this story, how about you?

Support the Troops etc. etc.

Sen. Robert Byrd, D-WV, left (asked) Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter Schoomaker about a news story from the Charleston West Virginia Gazette of 1st Lt. William Eddie Rebrook IV, a wounded American soldier who was reportedly ordered to pay $700 for his unrecovered body armor, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2006.

Note: Lt Rebrook was forced to repay the money for the body armor, borrowing money from his army buddies, before he could get his last paycheck - body armor that was stripped off of him after he was wounded in battle.

State of Disunion, Part III

Scariest comment of all? --

...Tonight I ask you to pass legislation to prohibit...creating human-animal hybrids...

Ummm, could we have a little more explanation as to who is doing this and what exactly is being done?

State of Disunion, Part II

Question still not answered at all: Why can't warrants be obtained in accordance with the law and the 4th Amendment to the Constitution? The FISA law allows them to be obtained after the fact for 72 hours and Democrats have said they will be more than willing to agree to change the law and give the President a month, after the fact, if he needs it.

So there are no more excuses - get the warrants and ensure the protection of all Americans while still being able to go after the bad guys.

State of Disunion

In case you missed it, here is the State of the Union.

By the way, try doing a 'Find' on the word 'veterans' and let me know what you find.