Author: holdencaulfieldfd

Stupid Republican Tricks

Where’s The Church Lady When You Need Her?

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How conveeeeeenient. Athenahealth Inc., the medical- software company headed by a cousin of President George W. Bush, plans to go public, taking advantage of a U.S. government push to automate health-care records, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Jonathan Bush, 38, plans to file for Athenahealth’s initial public offering this month, said the people, who declined to be identified because the decision hasn’t been announced. [snip] Athenahealth and other medical-software companies are benefiting from August 2006 changes in federal rules that let hospitals subsidize computer programs for doctors’ offices. Such help had been prohibited to keep hospitals from … Continue reading Where’s The Church Lady When You Need Her?

Uncategorized

Special Treatment

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I’m sure it sucks to be one of Antonin Scalia’s nine children, but there are a few side benefits. The daughter of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was sentenced to 18 months of court supervision after pleading guilty to drunken driving. Ann S. Banaszewski, 45, of Wheaton, Illinois, on Wednesday accepted a plea agreement under which prosecutors dropped four other charges including endangering the life of a child and failure to secure a child younger than 8 in a child-restraint system. She was arrested February 12 while driving away from a fast-food restaurant in Wheaton, 20 miles west of … Continue reading Special Treatment

War in Iraq

A Lousy Month For Everyone

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May was a hell of a month in Iraq, thanks to Chimpy’s useless surge. It was not only the month in which the third-highest number of US military deaths occurred (124), May was also the month in which the third-highest number of Iraqi civilians were killed. Deaths by month: May was the third-deadliest month for Iraqis since The Associated Press began tracking civilian casualties in April 2005, with at least 2,077 killed as of Wednesday. The deadliest months in the past two years were November and December 2006, when at least 2,250 and 2,309 were killed, respectively. Inside Baghdad: At … Continue reading A Lousy Month For Everyone

Your President Speaks

Your President Speaks!

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Today, at the White House, with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani. What We Call Them I told the President that I’m fully committed to helping the Iraqi government achieve important objectives, we call them benchmarks, political law necessary to show the Iraqi citizens that there is a unified government willing to work on the interest of all people. The Gloabl War On Articles Working very hard on de-Baathification law — reform, as well as provincial elections. Big On Decisions I told the President the decision I have made — I’ve asked one of my top aides, Meghan O’Sullivan, to return to … Continue reading Your President Speaks!

Law/Justice6 Comments

Protectin’ Thu Homeland

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Jesus EffingChrist On A Bun The Bush administration said Tuesday it will fight to keep meatpackers from testing all their animals for mad cow disease. The Agriculture Department tests less than 1 percent of slaughtered cows for the disease, which can be fatal to humans who eat tainted beef. But Kansas-based Creekstone Farms Premium Beef wants to test all of its cows. Larger meat companies feared that move because, if Creekstone tested its meat and advertised it as safe, they might have to perform the expensive test, too. A federal judge ruled in March that such tests must be allowed. … Continue reading Protectin’ Thu Homeland

Political Crack2 Comments

Imperceptibly More Peaceful Than Iran

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Shocking. The United States and Iran finished in a virtual dead heat, and way down the list, in a magazine’s assessment of the peacefulness of 121 countries. The United States placed 96th and Iran came in 97th on the global index released Wednesday by researchers at the Economist magazine. [snip] Norway was rated at the country most at peace, followed by New Zealand, Denmark, Ireland and Japan. Iraq was in last place, with Sudan and Israel just above. About 24 indicators were used, including wars fought in the last five years, arms sales, prison populations and incidence of crime. Continue reading Imperceptibly More Peaceful Than Iran

Economy3 Comments

The No-Growth Economy

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Chimpy has us slouching towards recession. The economy nearly stalled in the first quarter with growth slowing to a pace of just 0.6 percent. That was the worst three-month showing in over four years. The new reading on the gross domestic product, released by the Commerce Department Thursday, showed that economic growth in the January-through-March quarter was much weaker. Government statisticians slashed by more than half their first estimate of a 1.3 percent growth rate for the quarter. [snip] The economy’s 0.6 percent growth rate in the opening quarter of this year marked a big loss of momentum from the … Continue reading The No-Growth Economy

Your President Speaks2 Comments

Your President Speaks!

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Today, in Glynco, Georgia, on immigration reform. Oops! Please be seated — unless, of course, you don’t have a chair. The Joke That Died I don’t know whether you realize this, or not, but the government originally planned to open this center inside the Capital Beltway. No one looks very sad that they didn’t open it inside the Capital Beltway. The Front Lines Of Protecting A lot of our fellow citizens probably don’t know what goes on here, but this is a center full of smart, capable instructors who are helping to train men and women who’ve volunteered to serve … Continue reading Your President Speaks!

Economy2 Comments

Another Disappointing Month

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Looks like we’re headed for another disappointing new jobs report on Friday. Remember, kiddies, we need to create 150,000 new jobs each month to keep up with growth in the workforce. The consensus forecast is that 145,000 were created in May and Automatic Data Processing Inc. is sayingthat only 97,000 non-governmental jobs were created. An employment indicator published by payrolls giant Automatic Data Processing Inc. and consultancy Macroeconomic Advisers reported an increase of 97,000 in private jobs in May. That compares with the expected 145,000 increase in total jobs that economists called for in a Dow Jones Newswires survey earlier … Continue reading Another Disappointing Month

War in Iraq1 Comment

Support Them Troops!

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Morale in Iraq is hideous. A recently released Pentagon mental health study of troops in Iraq found 45 percent of junior enlisted Army soldiers rated their unit’s morale as low or very low. Twenty percent of soldiers and 15 percent of Marines were found to have a mental health problem, defined as anxiety, depression or acute stress. [snip] Events that made them feel “intense fear, helplessness or horror,” were described by nearly 40 percent. Reported anonymously in the publicly released version of the study, the events included: “My sergeant’s leg getting blown off.” “A huge … bomb blew my friend’s … Continue reading Support Them Troops!

Immoral Values5 Comments

Hot DeLay on Newt Action!

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Personally, I find it hard to believe that anyone would willingly commit adultery with either of these two men. Earlier this year, [Tom DeLay] published a memoir called “No Retreat, No Surrender” (his spokeswoman says that he was not stealing from Bruce Springsteen, and that the phrase has been used many times throughout history, including by the Spartans and as the title of a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie), in which he claimed that as a young congressman he would on occasion drink ten to twelve Martinis at a time. In this period, he earned the nickname Hot Tub Tom. Then … Continue reading Hot DeLay on Newt Action!

Political Crack4 Comments

Hated Around The World

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Heckuva job, Chimpy! [Miss Universe Contestant] Miss USA Rachel Smith, who slipped and fell to the floor during the evening gown competition and was jeered by the Mexican audience during the interview phase, was the contest’s fourth runner-up. [snip] Smith was booed during her interview and several audience members chanted “Mexico! Mexico!” until she spoke in Spanish, saying “Buenas noches Mexico. Muchas gracias!” which earned her applause. Continue reading Hated Around The World

Law/Justice4 Comments

For ‘Em Before He Was Ag’in’ ‘Em

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In regards to today’s attrocious Supreme Court decision regarding employment discrimination Scott Lemieux writes: The effect of Sandra Day O’Connor being replaced by Alito is particularly stark in this case. O’Connor–who was offered only secretarial jobs after graduating third from her Stanford Law class–had a good record on gender discrimination, while Altio’s record on both gender issues and civil rights claims more broadly is atrocious. May I point out it was not the Sainted Sandra Day O’Connor (or her seat) who flip-flopped on this issue, but rather it was renowned 1970s pornography aficianado Clarence Thomas. Justice Clarence Thomas, who once … Continue reading For ‘Em Before He Was Ag’in’ ‘Em

Law/Justice

Once And For All — Suck It, Wingers

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Something that anyone with a passing relationship to logic knew years ago. An unclassified summary of outed CIA officer Valerie Plame’s employment history at the spy agency, disclosed for the first time today in a court filing by Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald, indicates that Plame was “covert” when her name became public in July 2003. The summary is part of an attachment to Fitzgerald’s memorandum to the court supporting his recommendation that I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Vice President Cheney’s former top aide, spend 2-1/2 to 3 years in prison for obstructing the CIA leak investigation. [snip] The unclassified summary of … Continue reading Once And For All — Suck It, Wingers

Holden's Obsession with the Gaggle2 Comments

Today On Holden’s Obsession With [Friday’s] Gaggle

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OK, I know I’m late with this, but I don’t get paid to blog on holidays. Apparently, Pony Blow, Dana Peroxide and Tony Farto all had better things to do Friday so we were stuck with Snott Stanzel. Snott Gets Helenized Q Since no Justice Department official has been forthcoming, who drew up the list of the attorneys — the prosecutors to be fired? MR. STANZEL: Well, I think, Helen, that’s a subject that’s been covered exhaustively on hearings on the Hill — Q Okay. Tell me, I’m sorry, I have not read who — MR. STANZEL: I will allow … Continue reading Today On Holden’s Obsession With [Friday’s] Gaggle

Economy4 Comments

Heckuva Job, Chimpy!

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This is what tax cuts for the rich will get ya’. American men in their 30s today are worse off than their fathers’ generation, a reversal from just a decade ago, when sons generally were better off than their fathers, a new study finds. The study, the first in a series on economic mobility undertaken by several prominent think tanks, also says the typical American family’s income has lagged far behind productivity growth since 2000, a departure from most of the post-World War II period. [snip] In 2004, the median income for a man in his 30s, a good predictor … Continue reading Heckuva Job, Chimpy!

So Called Liberal Media2 Comments

The Truth Be Banned!

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Via AMERICAblog, we find the ugh. Staffers at McClatchy’s Washington, D.C., Bureau — one of the few major news outlets skeptical of intelligence reports during the run-up to the war in Iraq — claims it is now being punished for that coverage. Bureau Chief John Walcott and current and former McClatchy Pentagon correspondents say they have not been allowed on the Defense Secretary’s plane for at least three years, claiming the news company is being retaliated against for its reporting. “It is because our coverage of Iraq policy has been quite critical,” Walcott told E&P. He added, “I think the … Continue reading The Truth Be Banned!

Political Crack1 Comment

Just In Time For Hurricane Season

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Maybe we’ll get lucky and the next hurricane will hit Iraq. Because that’s where all of our National Guard equipmentis. The National Guard cannot respond efficiently to homeland security and domestic emergencies if it continues to lack the appropriate equipment, military personnel told a congressional committee Thursday. Witnesses at a House Committee on Homeland Security subcommittee hearing agreed that the National Guard’s equipment shortages, which total about 50 percent, result in slower emergency response times and the inability to adequately respond to disasters of extended duration or widespread impact. “No matter what your political beliefs about the wars in Iraq … Continue reading Just In Time For Hurricane Season

Political Crack6 Comments

Zombie Joke

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“The First George W.” — the stupid one-liner that will not die. January 9, 2004President Bush Addresses Members of His Team DAR Constitution Hall Washington, D.C. The first George W. hangs over the fireplace. That would be your George Washington. May 20, 2005National Catholic Prayer Breakfast Washington Hilton Hotel Washington, D.C. The Catholic contribution to American freedom goes back to the founding of our country. In 1790, a newly inaugurated George Washington — the first George W. — addressed a letter to all Catholics in America. September 14, 2005National Dinner Celebrating Jewish Life in America National Building Museum Washington, D.C. … Continue reading Zombie Joke

Your President Speaks1 Comment

Your President Speaks!

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Today, in the Rose Garden, during his presser. Ready To Get His Farsi Freak On I’m sympathetic for the people of Iran. The Extent To Which He’s An Idiot Secondly, obviously, to the extent that these people are picking up innocent Americans is unacceptable. So They Can Do Whatever General David Petraeus laid out a plan for the Congress, he talked about a strategy all aiming — all aimed at helping this Iraqi government secure its capital so that they can do the — some of the political work necessary, the hard work necessary to reconcile. One of the Cross … Continue reading Your President Speaks!

War in Iraq3 Comments

The Afghanization Of Iraq

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Heckuva job, Chimpy. LONDON, May 23 (KUNA) — Farmers in southern Iraq have started to grow opium poppies in their fields for the first time, sparking fears that Iraq might become a serious drugs producer along the lines of Afghanistan, it was revealed here Wednesday. Rice farmers along the Euphrates, to the west of the city of Diwaniya, south of Baghdad, have stopped cultivating rice, for which the area is famous, and are instead planting poppies, Iraqi sources familiar with the area told The Independent newspaper. The shift to opium cultivation is still in its early stages but there is … Continue reading The Afghanization Of Iraq

Pony, Bitches!

And The Bottom Fell Out

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The latest New York Times/CBS News Poll is absolutely devastating for Chimpy and his Vanity War. President Bush’s approval ratings remain near the lowest point of his more than six years in office.Thirty percent of poll respondents approve of the job he’s doing overall, while 63 percent disapprove. [snip] Sixty-one percent of respondents now say that the United States should never have taken military action against Iraq, up from 51 percent in a CBS News poll in April and 58 percent in the same poll in January.Seventy-six percent say that things are going badly in the effort to bring stability … Continue reading And The Bottom Fell Out

Your President Speaks4 Comments

Chimp Alert!

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Chimpy is holding a surprise presser today in about half an hour. President Bush will hold a news conference at 11:01 ET on Thursday from the Rose Garden, The White House said. The president is expected to make his case for Iraq war funding legislation and for an overhaul of U.S. immigration policy, the White House said. The event will be streamed live on MSNBC.com. Atrios better stock up on ponies, everytime the Chimpster mentions immigration his job approval rating drops like a rock. Continue reading Chimp Alert!