Well Bush has finally found a publisher for a his memoirs.

It'll be about th 12 most fateful decisions that he made.

There is a sneak peak on the top Twelve Decisions that shaped the Bush Presidency according to insiders.

Enjoy

The circus is in town in Austin, Texas today for the battle o' evolution between science experts and creationists. The Texas SBOE is deciding the curriculum science standards for Texas public schools. Here's hoping that sanity and modern-day science win out. TFN is liveblogging it.

My favorite part so far...
Both press conferences were disrupted by observers. In our case, one observer shouted “my grandfather wasn’t an ape,� or something to that effect.

Sci-fi fans: Alien Trespass!

---

Face of the drug war at The Big Picture. (gruesome)

Diogenes. Noon. Lantern.

Top Enviro Nominee Pulls Out Amid 'Scrutiny' of Work With Scandal-Plagued Non-Profit

I hereby declare:

In a nation that worships greed it has now become officially
impossible to run our government with honest men and woman alone...

They don't exist in abundance anymore.
Lower your standards Mr. President.

If it was okay for Geithner not to pay his taxes, it should be okay for the rest of my fellow American crooks...

Thanks MissMudd for the link. My hand covered my mouth for the whole slideshow.

Both press conferences were disrupted by observers. In our case, one observer shouted “my grandfather wasn’t an ape,� or something to that effect.

No, he was a quick-witted, thoroughly educated, urbane kind of fellow, I'm sure. Einstein, Cole Porter and James Bond wrapped up in one.

It's so hilarious to read Darwin-era and Scopes-era objections to evolution and discover that what really bugged so many of these people was -- and still is -- sharing the family tree with other primates. WTF? I recently was fortunate enough to get to maintain some extended eye contact with monkeys (not apes) in the wild, and I found myself breathing, "My sistahs!" with awed admiration. What is with these people that our relationship to the great apes threatens them so (completely apart from the inflexible religious aspect)?

Anybody remember the movie Terminator. Something tells me this scary shit is going to be a lot of trouble.

Anybody remember the movie Terminator. Something tells me this scary shit is going to be a lot of trouble.
Autonomous, heavily-armed robots? How does that jibe with:
* The U.S. military is taking suicide prevention seriously.

Bill Clinton was about to give a State of the Union speech, got up on the podium and discovered they had the wrong speech on the teleprompter, so he just winged it.

My god that man could have said anything!

Has anybody gone to http://www.whiehouse.gov/OpenForQuestions/ yet? It's sorta been completely spammed by people wanting to legalize pot.

It's not that there isn't some merit to that debate, but I'm just guessing that legalizing pot will not solve the world's problems. It has to be somewhat frustrating to read all those questions at the White House and feel that your attempts at having an open dialog can be ambushed on the grassroots level too.

Bummer...

Steve noted:

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton noted today that "America's 'insatiable' demand for illegal drugs and its inability to stop weapons from being smuggled into Mexico are fueling an alarming spike in violence along the U.S.-Mexican border."

That whole tragic mess can be solved overnight: legalize drugs.

You may have noticed that Al Capone and his ilk are no longer machine-gunning people in the streets of American cities over who controls the beer supply.

The fact is, that the fundamentally human desire to ingest consciousness-altering substances is "insatiable". It is a deep, and important, aspect of human nature, and it is never, ever, ever going to go away, no matter how many people are killed or imprisoned in stupid "wars" to eliminate it.

Gee, Dennis, I didn't know you were the moderator here. I thought it said something about "open thread" above or doesn't that include me.

What is with these people that our relationship to the great apes threatens them so (completely apart from the inflexible religious aspect)? -- shortstop, @18:32

Apart from the religious (non)reasons? It's a wild guess, but I always thought it was the image of a hairy ape making out with their wives and/or daughters and not getting the "I have a headache, dear" response. Just as I've always thought that men who object to women deciding whether or not to terminate a pregnancy are motivated by "there, but for the grace of forbidding law, go I". Both "scenarios", whether likely or not, drive them rigid with fear.

Terkel was wonderful, hope to see much more of her.

Olbermann's a douche bag, though. (Though not as much as O'Reilly, obviously.)

Glen (@7:10 PM), it's a legitimate question. Hemp used to be a great cash crop. It is very useful for making cloth, paper, and other products. In fact, it is far cheaper and more productive to make paper from hemp than trees, and more environmentally friendly.

For a primer, you might want to check out The History of the Non-Medical Use of Drugs in the United States

Hey big rich guy, throw me a bone...

NYTimes: U.S. Expands Plan to Buy Banks’ Troubled Assets

Bill Gross, chairman of Pimco, said in a statement that the Treasury plan was a “win-win-win policy� and that his firm was “intrigued by the potential double-digit returns� that it offered.

Laurence D. Fink, BlackRock’s chairman and chief executive, said his firm would invest in a broad range of mortgages and related securities through the Treasury plan. BlackRock is also exploring ways to set up mutual funds that would allow individual investors to participate.

Deal me in.

But will US taxpayers leverage my mutual fund purchase 18 to 1? Will taxpayers put up half the cash that represents my total risk? Will taxpayers pick up all losses larger than the cash I put down? Will taxpayers let me have most of the spoils should there be any?

No.
Not even close.

The bottom line is this plan doesn't treat all Americans equally. It is flagrant financial discrimination. The moral path would have been to declare bankruptcy and follow the rule of law. Or to create a mutual fund of sorts that would allow ordinary Americans to invest their cash under nearly identical conditions as Blackrock and Pimco.

Instead the rules were gamed to favor only a few. Some Americans have more financial rights than others. Some Americans can use the Federal Treasury to their great advantage. The rest of us might see a sliver of bone...

Someone ought to sue the government over this.
Big time. And to kill.

If you needle andrew malcolm, he'll respond - personally. and if you needle him sharply enough, he'll respond with the kind of e-mail that it's fun to post publicly on forums like this.

Go ahead, kicking Republicans in their fat asses when they don't expect it is fun.

Andrew.Malcolm@latimes.com

tell yhim what you think of his "journalism."

"That whole tragic mess can be solved overnight: legalize drugs."

CNBC had a very interesting panel on marijuana legalization here. Shit they were all, with the exception of Asa Hutchinson, practically cheering the idea as a practical salvation of the free world.

It's 'high time' this view become mainstream.

Thanks for the link, MissMudd (@7:59 PM). Too bad time constraints stopped the discussion. The anti-legalization guy was losing big time. It would have been nice to see him blown away (metaphorically speaking, that is) by the pro-legalization crowd.

Sarah Palin was unleashed on the world, again, at the Lincoln Day Dinner in Anchorage. She's still complaining she was "handled" during the election -- she didn't resent it, just had nobody to pray with. New campaign slogan: "Dumber than Bush and McCain together." Priceless, and remember: "Sometimes, the middle of the fence is really the most uncomfortable place to be. How about we just keep it simple? To grow, we've got to be who we are."
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/03/25/palin-unplugged-in-speech-to-alaska-gop-dinner/#more-45268

The fact is, that the fundamentally human desire to ingest consciousness-altering substances is "insatiable". It is a deep, and important, aspect of human nature, and it is never, ever, ever going to go away, no matter how many people are killed or imprisoned in stupid "wars" to eliminate it. Posted by: SecularAnimist on March 25, 2009

Mmmm chocolate!

I don't know if it alters consciousness, but it alters something.

In our quest to see that Truth is accepted as rather more important than ideology and belief it seems likely that marijuana will have to be recognized, some day, as no more dangerous than cigarettes (of tobacco). Like gay marriage the young people have no problem with it, so it will eventually become normal.

Other drugs like LSD, heroin, opium, PCP, XTC and others are another matter.

genetically engineered enzymes to facilitate the manufacture of biofuels from cellulose:

http://www.biofueldaily.com/reports/Caltech_Scientists_Create_New_Enzymes_For_Biofuel_Production_999.html

enjoy

It's not that there isn't some merit to that debate, but I'm just guessing that legalizing pot will not solve the world's problems. It has to be somewhat frustrating to read all those questions at the White House and feel that your attempts at having an open dialog can be ambushed on the grassroots level too.

"legalizing pot"
"grassroots level"

Am I desperate to see a pun here?

I have to disagree with Matt: we liberals understand perfectly well just how stupid the Republican leaders are. The problem is that we don't believe that anyone could be that stupid and live.

I am a conservative who voted for Obama, and enjoys reading your blog. Why no comment on the Jake DeSantis OP-ED in the Times? I reviewed your blog tonight, and did not see it mentioned. If there was a comment from you, and I missed it, my bad.

If what he wrote is factual, I’d be pretty embarrassed if I was either of the 2 AG’s from CT and NY, or Barney Frank, who wanted to expose the people who were not guilty of anything more than trying to help dig AIG out of this horrible mess. What say yea?

"legalizing pot"
"grassroots level"

Am I desperate to see a pun here?

Hehehe...

Didn't realize it till after I posted.

And once AGAIN, I see lots of merit in legalizing pot, but does it have to be a top ten question in the following categories?

Green Jobs and Energy
Financial Security
Jobs
Budget

And when I first looked it was in the top ten on every category, but it looks like the ratings are churning away at things.

My apologies to any I offended by in any way suggesting it does not merit serious discussion - it does. It was just disturbing to see the site spammed that way.

I am a conservative who voted for Obama, and enjoys reading your blog. Why no comment on the Jake DeSantis OP-ED in the Times? I reviewed your blog tonight, and did not see it mentioned. If there was a comment from you, and I missed it, my bad.

If what he wrote is factual, I’d be pretty embarrassed if I was either of the 2 AG’s from CT and NY, or Barney Frank, who wanted to expose the people who were not guilty of anything more than trying to help dig AIG out of this horrible mess. What say yea?

This is a good question, BUT it's get back to one of the problems that caused this mess, and is hampering solving this mess:

TRANSPARENCY

Nobody in the general public has the ability to discriminate between the good guys and the bad guys because NOBODY is willing to tell us enough about what is going on. I am sure may good people are being wrongly tarred by public opinion.

But the reverse is also true. Wall St is BADLY, BADLY underestimating just how mad the rest of the country is, and how out of step and wrong headed so much of their pontificating on TV/Cable looks at this point.

My direct plea to Wall Streeters:

You want to be a good guy? SPEAK UP. Let us know what is going on. Let us know what you are doing to fix things. All us great unwashed masses hear is veiled threats about how much worse things can get if we don't cooperate with Wall St more.

Look at it from our point of view - we gave you everything you wanted: lax laws, money, power, status. And you have destroyed the world's financial system. What more could we have done? We are loathe to repeat our mistakes of giving you everything because it didn't end up so well, now did it?

It is rather disappointing to me as well that the Open For Questions site is being overrun by advocates for marijuana legalization. I have nothing against it (live in a state with medical marijuana laws which I support), but it feels like a distraction.

My question (loaded as it is): Will you drive the message home that your spending plan, as a percentage of GDP, is far, far less than we spent during WWII? And that not only did we survive as a nation with that spending, but that we became a Superpower because of it?

I have to weigh in on the military taking suicide seriously: when a person is exposed to killing of other human beings, even with the justification that it is to protect the homeland and family, they are going to react badly.Especially if they do not see a direct correlation to that protection. Killing of women and children just to get to a terrorist is not justified, and cannot be rationalized. I am not a professional psychologist, but I have lived long enough and been in the military and war (VietNam) to recognize the inhumanity of destroying other humans and their livelihood. Short of stopping war, the resulting suicides may be reduced a little, but the long term effects of war and violence will not be assuaged through psychological means. And, what "sane" professional psych is going to sit on the "front lines" (I don't think we have "lines" in war anymore)to treat some freaked out soldier who has just blown some child to smithereens or seen his buddy, who he is charged to protect, blown to bits? War is not the answer! As long as we are not fighting the war within our own souls, we will project that onto the world.

I am committed to Oneness through Justice and Transformation
peace,
st john

The salt in the wound is that Hensarling ran unopposed last November.

Fire and ire

Glenn Grewald: The virtues of public anger and the need for more

With lightning speed and lockstep unanimity, opinion-making elites jointly embraced and are now delivering the same message about the public rage triggered this week by the AIG bonus scandal: This scandal is insignificant. It's just a distraction. And, most important of all, public anger is unhelpful and must be contained or, failing that, ignored.

This anti-anger consensus among our political elites is exactly wrong. The public rage we're finally seeing is long, long overdue, and appears to be the only force with both the ability and will to impose meaningful checks on continued kleptocratic pillaging and deep-seated corruption in virtually every branch of our establishment institutions. The worst possible thing that could happen now is for this collective rage to subside and for the public to return to its long-standing state of blissful ignorance over what the establishment is actually doing.

Why does anyone listen to these Republican nutbags? Wrong. Consistently wrong.

"Last month, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal... mocked the idea of government spending for volcano monitoring."
http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/03/spewing_ash_and_spouting_nonse.html

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090326/ap_on_re_us/alaska_volcano

Using the staggering amounts of methane created by my own poor diet to heat two dozen homes:

http://www.pantsonfire.com/watson_come_here_i_need_to_lie_to_you

cheers!

Sorry to throw a wrench in the gears of US military propaganda, but the U.S. Armed Forces have never been ahead of the game in the care of their personnel. They have only ever reacted to outside stimuli and criticism.

Even then there is every evidence that whatever they say is policy is not followed throughout the establishment. Many are still discouraged, even intimidated from requesting help. Needed treatment is delayed until after "one more tour", and the VA seem to have a secret policy to destroy files of claimants.

Since this all started (war and suppression), the armed forces have been extraordinarliy slow to employ psychiatrists and psychologists in the necessary numbers. One might even say inflexible and foot-dragging; incapable of making any assessment of need or failures on their own initiative before another shortfall comes to light through the press, whether it be Walter Reid under their very Washington noses or suicide rates that may well be under-reported, and everyting imbetween.

As to Maj. Jarrett, I saw nothing written that qualified him in this role. I think any of us who have experienced it knows what a "corporate coach" is about. God help them that he has a team of instructors to go with him.

Who gave him the job?

tko, I meant the contradiction between the Army's trying to prevent suicide and its plan to unleash autonomous killing machines on the battlefield.