The Fine Art of Having It Both Ways

There is no doubt that the recent attempt to blow up a jetliner over Detroit is a scary reminder that the terrorists are still out there. And – if we are to be honest about this – we must surely admit that no screening system is ever going to be foolproof.

Remember Richard Reid, aka the shoe bomber? He tried to blow up an American Airlines flight en route to the U.S. from France in 2001. Following that incident, no one – neither Democrats nor Republicans – tried to blame that on then-president George W. Bush.

What struck me about this latest incident was the immediate chorus of criticism of President Obama by Republicans … with pit bull Dick Cheney in the vanguard, of course. One more example of the Republican tactic of attack, attack, attack!

I guess that’s what you have to do if you have nothing new or of any value to offer people.

But what disturbs me most is the constant banging on the drum of patriotism by Republicans at the same time they're trying to convince us that Barack Obama is to blame for everything from the economy to global warming to the latest terrorist incident.

That's not patriotic. That's unpatriotic.

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Barnes and Noble Tells It Like It Is.

This photo was apparently taken by someone doing some Christmas shopping at a Barnes & Noble bookstore in Washington State. It was forwarded to an Alaska blogger who delights in poking pins into Sarah Palin and blowing the whistle on her never-ending excesses.

It sums up Going Rogue quite neatly, dontcha think?

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Going … Going … Gone!

Over the Thanksgiving vacation, we had a delightful visit from my wife’s son, his lovely wife and their two-year-old son. On one occasion, they took our granddaughter, not quite 2 ½, with them on an excursion to the Maui Ocean Center. Here are three photos taken of the two kids on the way back.

Sorry, I just couldn’t resist!

The Hypocrite of the Week …

… is John McCain, who said on Fox News (where else!) that Barack Obama is responsible for the intensely partisan atmosphere now existing in Washington.

Oh, really? You mean it’s not the fault of Republicans who demanded a bi-partisan approach to health care reform, told preposterous lies about what the reforms would do (remember the “death panels?”), insisted on amendment after amendment to weaken those reforms, and now will almost certainly vote unanimously against the final bill?

That monumental cynicism and hypocracy is disturbing, but entirely predictable coming from today’s Republican Party. What distresses me even more are the Democrats who threaten to vote against the emerging health care reform bill because it doesn’t do everything they want.

That’s the problem with our damn party, isn’t it! Republicans will stubbornly back people who are clearly and demonstrably incompetent as long as they continue to spout the conservative line. We, on the other hand, will throw our own Democratic president under the bus at the first inkling he may be about to do something we don’t like.

I think it was Will Rogers who said, “I don’t belong to an organized political party. I’m a Democrat.”

AAARRRGGH!

Sarah Palin is HERE! I mean, she's on Maui, for God's sake!

You've heard about the latest Palin flap? She was photographed on the beach wearing a John McCain sun visor with the "John McCain" blacked out. Palin says she still adores John McCain, and did that in an effort to remain incognito and not attract attention. (We all know how much Sara Palin hates all that intrusive publicity.)

So she's sitting on the beach, with husband Todd and her two daughters and her infant son with Downs Syndrome, and no one recognized them until they spotted the sun visor?

Sarah ... in God's name ... please go away. Haven't we suffered enough?
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What's That Definition of Insanity, Again?

I sometimes wonder if Republican voters ever stop to consider their party’s track record when it comes to the milestone pieces of legislation that have come before the Congress.

The fact is, when the break-through moments have appeared, Republicans have been on the wrong side every time.

Republicans opposed giving women the right to vote.

Republicans opposed Lend Lease, which provided obsolete ships, planes, and other war material to help England battle Nazi Germany before the U.S. joined the conflict.

Republicans opposed the Marshall Plan after World War II which helped to rebuild Europe and is largely credited with preventing a Communist take-over.

Republicans opposed the creation of Social Security.

Republicans opposed the creation of Medicare.

And today, Republicans are in lock-step opposing health care reform.

Still, a significant number of our fellow Americans continue to support the Republican Party and vote for their anti-damn-near-everything candidates. It really makes you wonder, doesn’t it.

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A Quick Update

Back home and everything went exactly according to predictions. As advertised, the Russian doc was clearly very skilled, although a man of few words. At our meeting the day before the surgery, I told him how I have always wanted to visit Russia. He looked at me and said, dead-pan, "Don't go in winter." (Actually: "Dun' go een veentair.")

By the way, many thanks for the several nice notes. Much appreciated.

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