MOBILE BULLETIN - 0035GMT - 23 Dec 09

At the risk of sounding heartless...

If doing his job, the job he was elected to do, is so hard on him. Maybe he should retire. He doesn't represent me, but I would be unsettled if I knew someone who was supposed to be serving to protect my interests was so incapacitated.

clipped from gawker.com The Washington Post's Ezra Klein describes the GOP's delay tactics, which involve forcing every Democratic senator—even the ones who are only marginally capable of physically performing their duties as U.S. senators—to show up in the chamber as "vicious and cruel":

Barrasso confirms that Inhofe missed health care vote after Coburn's prayer request

The poor pay the most

No matter what the nature of loss, either natural disaster or acts of terrorism and war, it is always the poor that pay the most. The rich have more insulation in the form of greater resources, often more dispersed in the economy and geographically. A poor person has one house, a rich person may have multiple houses, more likely to be insured against loss. The poor also don't have the same means of escaping danger as the rich do. They can't flee the country, they can't fly away on a plane, or speed away in their cars.

clipped from www.csmonitor.com On Tuesday, the latest Taliban bomb went off in Peshawar, killing three. The Taliban targets upscale buildings and neighborhoods, but many of the injured – and those hit hardest economically by the bombings in Pakistan – are the poor.

Giuliani won't run for governor or Senate, reports say

Giuliani won't run for governor or Senate, reports say: "

Giuliani, former New York mayor, is expected Tuesday to endorse Rick Lazio for governor. That takes him out of that race, and now it doesn't appear he'll run for the Senate, either.

I feel like I can sleep a little better at night now.

Every breath you take, they'll be watching you...

This could be a good thing for law enforcement and the public. There are doubtlessly circumstances where police are wrongly accused for taking actions that were reasonable. As the clip below points out, it could serve to keep officer behavior in line, knowing it will be on camera.

However, an important tool that isn't mentioned in the story is a citizen police review board. It is easy for a group of officers to sit around and justify what others might see as abusive behavior. What is needed is a group of citizens, who can review the video, and respond to complaints. Such a body removed from the structure of the department is less likely to overlook abuse, and will give citizens a real feeling police work for them, not to control them.

clipped from www.csmonitor.com In many cases, the mere presence of the camera can change the interaction between police and the public. “Just the awareness of being recorded [means officers are] a little more careful they are maintaining policy,” Mr. Fergus says.

Kirsten is Camera Shy

Kirsten is Camera Shy:

Photo by OutOfSightMedia/Henry Flores/BuzzFoto.com

Do you trust Harry Reid?

This section of the bill sounds like it is taking away the power of future congressional leaders to change the healthcare bill. I don't care if there are death panels or not, placing restrictions on future legislative action seems short sighted and scary to me.

clipped from www.redstate.com Section 3403 of Senator Harry Reid’s amendment requires that “it shall not be in order in the Senate or the House of Representatives to consider any bill, resolution, amendment, or conference report that would repeal or otherwise change this subsection.” The good news is that this only applies to one section of the Obamacare legislation. The bad news is that it applies to regulations imposed on doctors and patients by the Independent Medical Advisory Boards a/k/a the Death Panels.

Coroner completes Brittany Murphy autopsy - Yahoo! News

• Coroner completes Brittany Murphy autopsy - Yahoo! News

  
  

• BBC News - US snowball fight gun officer 'totally inappropriate'

  
  

• Glenn Beck: Media Matters ' 2009 Misinformer of the Year | Media Matters for America

  
  

• Most outrageous comments of 2009 | Media Matters for America

  
  

• Yawn.... Time sure played it safe this year.

  
  

• Brittany Murphy Photos & Pics | Stars Remember Brittany Murphy

  
  

• CNN: Sarah Palin's 'Death Panel' Comment Wins 'Lie of the Year'

  
  

• The Ayn Rand Center for Individual Rights: THE NATURE OF GOVERNMENT

  
  

• President Bush was right...

  As American troops prepare to pull out of Iraq the country might be in the best condition in years. Open to the rest of the world after the removal of Saddam Husein, and settling into a post war peace means concerns about cucumbers and parking are growing and violence shrinking. However, the threat from Iran remains. It might be noted that Iran and Iraq have long been tense neighbors. While some Iraqis may want a continued American presence in the country, it isn't clearly beneficial or necessary. American power in the region should be enough to prevent Iran from provoking any real trouble, and minor problems can be handled by Iraqis. The presence of American troops on the other hand continues to provide fuel to elements that don't like America and don't want to see democracy in Iraq. This fuel makes the country more unstable than it might be otherwise.

  
  

• Editorial: Pot law creates a confusing cloud - Sacramento Opinion - Sacramento Editorial | Sacramento Bee

  
  

• Subcontinental Smut: Is Soot the Culprit Behind Melting Himalayan Glaciers?: Scientific American

  The Himalaya Mountain region is warming up three to five times faster than the global trends—or about half a degree Celsius per decade—and many of its glaciers are rapidly losing mass. Greenhouse gases alone cannot explain this warming, however, and several new studies are pointing to an old form of pollution: soot.

  
  

• Restrictive Monsanto Seed Contracts Investigated - The Consumerist

  
  

• Joe Lieberman Gets So Appalling Even the New York Times Can't Resist Mentioning It - Joe Lieberman - Gawker

  Mr. Lieberman could not be happier. He is right where he wants to be - at the center of the political aisle, the center of the Democrats' efforts to win 60 votes for their sweeping health care legislation. For the moment, he is at the center of everything - and he loves it.

  
  

• YouTube - Monsanto will own all seed

  Monsanto are corporate criminals. What happens against farmers is not an accident when Monsanto is involved! Farmers worlwide are suffering irreversible debt because of this corporation. People can live without clothing for the most part. We can live without buying homes if we are able to build rudimentary shelters. We cannot live without food and water. If corporations own our seeds and clean water supply, they own us. Monsanto is not at all affected by hundreds of farmers committing suicide.

  
  

• Drunk Woman Steals Ambulance, Admits She

  
  

• Autocomplete Me » I Will!

  
  

• Just When You Thought Joe Lieberman Couldn't Get Any Worse - Healthcare - Gawker

Posted from Diigo. The rest of my favorite links are here.

Misinformer of the Year 2009: Glenn Beck