ThinkFast: October 9, 2009
ThinkFast: October 9, 2009
The House voted yesterday “to expand the definition of violent federal hate crimes to those committed because of a victim’s sexual orientation, a step that would extend new protection to lesbian, gay and transgender people.” Although the military bill that has the provision attached to it has yet to be approved by the Senate, it has solid support.
Gen. Stanley McChrystal’s troop increase request for Afghanistan that was recently sent to President Obama contains three different options, “with the largest alternative including a request for more than 60,000 troops.” However, an additional 40,000 soldiers “remains the primary choice of senior military brass, including Gen. McChrystal.”
The Obama administration has “concluded that the Taliban cannot be eliminated as a political or military movement, regardless of how many combat forces are sent into battle.” Instead, U.S. efforts will aim to “weaken the Taliban to the degree that it cannot challenge the Afghan government or reestablish the haven it provided for al-Qaeda before the 2001 U.S. invasion.”
“Congress is moving to require videotaping of interrogations of detainees held by the military, a step proponents say will prevent abuse and create a valuable intelligence record.” The provision, which passed the House yesterday, “would apply to interrogations of anyone held at a Defense Department facility,” but “would not apply to battlefield interrogations by troops engaged in combat.”
The Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday approved legislation that would reauthorize three sections of the Patriot Act. One senator who voted against the legislation, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI), said it was the job of the Judiciary Committee to find the right “balance” between civil liberties and national security.
The House Ethics Committee voted unanimously yesterday to “expand the investigation into Rep. Charles Rangel’s (D-N.Y.) alleged financial irregularities. The panel broadened the jurisdiction of its probe to include amendments he made in August to his financial disclosure records showing at least $600,000 in previously unreported assets.”
According to the Urban Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Senate HELP Committee’s health care bill would charge Americans aged
55 to 64 fifty percent less for health insurance compared to the Senate Finance Committee’s bill. The HELP Committee’s bill would charge those older Americans $5,930 on average compared to $8,650 under legislation in the Finance Committee.
The Congressional Oversight Panel, a watchdog set up to oversee the taxpayer bailout, has said that the Obama administration’s efforts to force the modifications of distressed mortgages under the Home Affordable Modification Program, “while laudable, is likely to fall far short because the foreclosure crisis has grown and threatens to dwarf government efforts to relieve it.”
The Department of the Interior has blocked oil drilling at 60 of 77 contested sites in Utah, claiming that the leasing of the land was rushed and badly handled. Eight of the requested sites will be withdrawn, and 52 of them will be further studied by the Department.
And finally: Royal Barber, a candidate for Sylvania Township trustee in Ohio, is attracting attention for his election-themed Halloween decorations: He has painted the names of his rivals on tombstones in his front yard. “I thought I’d do something different, something funny this year,” said Barber. One rival, Kevin Eff, found it “just distasteful,” and asked Barber to remove his name. Barber complied, “replacing it with an asterisk” as “an allusion to cartoonist Garry Trudeau’s convention of using an asterisk to represent both Presidents Bush in his Doonesbury comic strip.”
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the difference, of course, is that the asterisk representing bush jr was to show that his “election” will always have an asterisk next to it in history books, denoting the fact that he wasn’t actually elected
October 9th, 2009 at 9:03 amAccording to the Urban Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Senate HELP Committee’s health care bill would charge Americans aged
October 9th, 2009 at 9:07 am55 to 64 fifty percent less for health insurance compared to the Senate Finance Committee’s bill. The HELP Committee’s bill would charge those older Americans $5,930 on average compared to $8,650 under legislation in the Finance Committee.And how in the hll are people of fixed incomes supposed to come up with the money when they can hardly eat and pay the bills now? Oh, thats right, if you get sick, die quickly.
The House voted yesterday “to expand the definition of violent federal hate crimes to those committed because of a victim’s sexual orientation, a step that would extend new protection to lesbian, gay and transgender people.” Although the military bill that has the provision attached to it has yet to be approved by the Senate, it has solid support.………………………………………..Why does it take us so long to finaly do the right thing?
October 9th, 2009 at 9:09 amI know, I’m getting carried away with the bold print this morning.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:10 ambecause the right wingers and their corporate owned mainstream media fight hard to hang on to discrimination, bigotry, ignorance, and greed
October 9th, 2009 at 9:11 amA leading Repub (sorry, can’t remember offhand which one) decried the attachment of the Shepard-Byrd Act to the military spending bill, claiming it was unfair to put the GOP in a position of voting against military funding.
Bwa ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. That sounds…vaguely familiar, yah?
60k troops is not too likely…neither is 40k, for that matter. If Obama focuses his strategy on weakening, rather than destroying, the Taliban so that a stable Afghani government can be propped up…we’ll be there for a few more years, not a few more decades (if the hawks had their way). If we can get the political situation to look like Iraq’s (sectarian hostility limited to name calling at a fraction of the violence), we’ll have done our job.
Please, Ethics committee, boot Rangel. He has the potential to become the Dems Foley for the midterms. For as much good as Rangel’s done over the years, the party can’t openly tolerate that level of corruption.
Next week is Vote Week. The Finance committee has their vote on Tuesday. Expect near-unanimous support from the Dems and Snowe to flip. Once the bill reaches Reid, we’ll have the public option inserted (probably with an opt-out plan) and a final vote within a month. I’m feeling cautiously optimistic.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:14 amInhofe may be a retarded redneck, but Coburn is sneaky evil. He wears his deacon/dr hat to impress, but routinely votes against good legislation or puts secret holds on them.
Meanwhile, Dr. Coburn, OK City has a true epidemic coming down with Novel H1N1. Shouldn’t you be paying attention to rampant disease outbreaks in your home State instead of ranting about the terminating funding for poli-sci studies?
October 9th, 2009 at 9:16 amGen. Stanley McChrystal’s troop increase request for Afghanistan that was recently sent to President Obama contains three different options, “with the largest alternative including a request for more than 60,000 troops.” However, an additional 40,000 soldiers “remains the primary choice of senior military brass, including Gen. McChrystal.”
Note well Obama Adminsitration. This is how to negotiate. You always ask for way more (single payer health insurance) than you think your going to get and settle for what you want (a public option).
October 9th, 2009 at 9:19 amWhile we are figuring out ways to punitively extend American peasant jail sentences as a result, in some cases, of circumstance and reading the mind of the perpetrator. I think our focus shoul be on “equal protection under the law.”
Why fill for-profit prison with our peasants? We already have more American peasants in jail, according to even absolute numbers, than any nation in the world, including those with 3 or 4 times our population.
I would be interested in seeing investment-class politicians being held accountable for their “hate crimes” if we are going to try to keep our peasants in jail for a longer period because the victim of their crime had a different skin color or sexual orientation and we assume that was the reason the crime was committed.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:19 amZimzone. H1N1 is a fake disease made up by Dems to scare real americans and trick them into giving up their rights to bear arms and threaten people. It’s like the census, and condoms.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:21 amThe Obama administration has “concluded that the Taliban cannot be eliminated as a political or military movement, regardless of how many combat forces are sent into battle.” Instead, U.S. efforts will aim to “weaken the Taliban to the degree that it cannot challenge the Afghan government or reestablish the haven it provided for al-Qaeda before the 2001 U.S. invasion.”
You mean our old policy of just bombing the crap out of someone doesn’t apply anymore?
October 9th, 2009 at 9:25 amThank you, U.S. Government, for the first step towards extending hate crimes to the victims that were killed due to hatred of a community and not just a race.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:27 amBobwurst says: Zimzone. H1N1 is a fake disease made up by Dems to scare real americans and trick them into giving up their rights to bear arms and threaten people. It’s like the census, and condoms.
lol, you may be right, my friend. Those damn dems! Next thing you know, they’ll be calling in congress on a Holiday to do video diagnosis of comatose people!
October 9th, 2009 at 9:29 amRodeskawler, nice distration. Too bad for you though, this is going to happen. Hate crimes are on the rise.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:30 amhate crimes are crimes that are intended to terrorize a group of people, not just the direct victim of the crime
right wingers never understand that point
October 9th, 2009 at 9:34 amThe whole rationale behind hate crimes is reflected in the two victims the Act was named for:
If Matthew Shepard was heterosexual, he would not have been beaten, tortured and killed.
If James Byrd was white, he would not have been dragged from a truck.
The attempts by rightists to frame this as “thought crime” are ludicrous. You’re allowed to hate whoever you want and express that hate verbally with very few restrictions. Saying to a gay man that you want to beat, torture, and kill him is not a crime (saying you WILL constitutes a lesser crime of threatening, but that’s a whole other story). Actually doing it BECAUSE you hate his perceived sexual orientation means that you have committed a crime SOLELY because he is different from you.
And it’s particularly ironic that the people on the right screaming the loudest about this being an attempt to limit free speech and free thought…are the most ardent anti-drug crusaders out there. In their little minds, it’s all well and good to hate whoever you want…but take a substance that alters consciousness, and you’re a criminal who belongs in prison.
Personally, I hope we NEVER pass a law in this country banning hate speech (i.e., racist diatribes, Holocaust denial). So long as it’s not an open incitement to violence, people should be able to spout whatever nonsense drivel they want.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:40 amInstead, U.S. efforts will aim to “weaken the Taliban to the degree that it cannot challenge the Afghan government or reestablish the haven it provided for al-Qaeda before the 2001 U.S. invasion.”
_____________________________________________________________
Um…OK. It’s good to have an objective, and this one is certainly better than “let’s go over there and engage in some random, futile efforts to end terrorism,” or the even sillier “let’s go over there and let them kill us over there so they won’t come kill us over here.”
But before we mire ourselves in the quicksand even further than we already are, can we have an even more specific plan — one that includes an end game? How long will it take to “weaken the Taliban”? Six months? Six years? Or will we be “weakening the Taliban” forever?
If we fall into that trap, they win.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:43 amCongratulations Mr. President!
Uh oh, more bad news for the GOP:
“U.S. Trade Deficit Unexpectedly Falls as Exports Rise”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=arz1M9JezGn0
October 9th, 2009 at 9:45 ammissmolly says:
“How long will it take to “weaken the Taliban”? Six months? Six years? Or will we be “weakening the Taliban” forever?”
Forever is my guess.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:47 amSanctions, subversions, etc.
Too bad they can’t find a way to convert opium into rocket fuel.
The Byrd & Shepard incidents were horrific acts of violence.
I doubt if passing legislation will actually prevent more of this senseless brutality, however. The best we can probably hope for is that actual convictions will result in longer jail sentences.
Any congresscritter opposing stronger penalties should perhaps be dragged behind a pickup truck through downtown D.C.
October 9th, 2009 at 9:55 amhe gay
—
October 9th, 2009 at 9:59 amWho he?
he aint know
October 9th, 2009 at 10:00 amThat’ll just prompt a new set of hate crimes legislation. You want to solve the problem? Ban rope manufacturers!
In all seriousness, you have a point. This legislation probably will not stop the heinous crimes that inspired it, but it’ll sure as hell get the people who committed them off the streets for longer.
October 9th, 2009 at 10:03 amNoseeum said,
Opium brings a very high price on the black market. If you want to make opium into rocket fuel, decriminalize it, tax the hell out of it, and you can buy all the rocket fuel you want.
/snark
October 9th, 2009 at 10:25 amAnd the satellites would feel no pain at all!
October 9th, 2009 at 10:32 am;)
They’d get really high, too.
October 9th, 2009 at 10:33 amThe Obama administration has “concluded that the Taliban cannot be eliminated as a political or military movement, regardless of how many combat forces are sent into battle.” Instead, U.S. efforts will aim to “weaken the Taliban to the degree that it cannot challenge the Afghan government or reestablish the haven it provided for al-Qaeda before the 2001 U.S. invasion.”
This will be interesting to see how this subtle change in strategy gets implemented.
October 9th, 2009 at 10:44 amMore infrastructure building, obviously, perhaps a negotiated federation?
noseeum says:
They’d get really high, too.
Very, very funny :)
October 9th, 2009 at 10:53 am“The Obama administration has “concluded that the Taliban cannot be eliminated as a political or military movement, ….”
Someone finally gets it. Bin Laden and al-Qaeda are our enemies, not the Taliban.
October 9th, 2009 at 11:48 am“The Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday approved legislation that would reauthorize three sections of the Patriot Act. One senator who voted against the legislation, Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI),….”
Ok, that’s the final straw. I’m out of the Democratic Party. Third party and term limits in the US of America is badly needed. I wonder if I can buy my way into Canada.
October 9th, 2009 at 12:00 pmIn other news, Shep Smith Outraged By Bacon Cheese Doughnut Burger.
LOL. So good I transcribed it myself.
October 9th, 2009 at 2:03 pmElBruce,
Shep Smith thinks THAT is bad for you?
Welcome to the place where arteries FAIL.
October 9th, 2009 at 2:16 pmThank you for your sharing.!
October 14th, 2009 at 9:18 amThe bill was widely hailed by college and legal groups.” It is very important that the federal government be able. burun estetigi
October 15th, 2009 at 5:07 am