* H1N1 is now only widespread in one state: Alabama.

Whoooo-hoooo! We Win!

I think a lot of the controversy over profiling Muslims arises from a misunderstanding exploited by the right wing. If we say we aren't profiling Muslims, it does NOT mean a Muslim name or country of origin is not a factor in assessing a passenger. It means it's not the ONLY factor. When the question is asked in polls, people interpret it to mean what Republicans have told them it means -- that some kind of misguided political correctness prevents law enforcement from even considering Muslim identity in assessing potential terrorists. That's bull and not why the underpants bomber slipped through. Much redder flags were ignored.

Michael Gerson believes it's entirely appropriate for media professionals to proselytize during on-air news broadcasts -- and if you disagree, you're "intolerant."

Why anyone takes Gerson seriously is beyond me. He is a hack, through and through.

We, all of us, are reacting to the "terrorists attack" exactly like the terrorists want us to: be terrorized. I, for one, think terrorism, as something that I should be worried about is quite the farce. A man walks into a plant with an assault rifle and kills 3. Just another mass murderer and a media blip. But if he were a Muslim or claimed to be aligned somehow with AQ the punditocracy would be demanding martial law and there would 24/7 Fox news hysteria and panic. Glenn Beck would be frothing at the mouth. Really, there is no monster under the bed or in the closet. Where's FDR when we need him: the only thing to fear is fear itself. Lets get rational ok. To calculate the likelihood of being killed on a plane by terrorst: take the number of people who fly commercially all over the world for the last 9 years and divide by the number of people whose plane has been brought down by terrorists. At the cost of 5000 american soldiers and a couple of trillion dollars. I'd rather have a cure of cancer, free medical insurance, clean air, etc.

"Alec MacGillis makes the case against the excise tax. Ezra Klein responds."

There is no case FOR the excise tax, and Ezra is full of crap on this issue.

I can't believe you had three mentions of Michael Steele today and didn't pick up on his statement (to Ralph Brody on CBN) that "God had placed him in the job." (see today's Right Wing Watch from PFAW). Maybe in tomorrow's TWiG.

I've never been an Ed Koch fan, but he used to be pretty sharp-witted, But he's very old! There should be some point where reporters realize that it's no longer appropriate to keep quoting people

Anyone who pursues a degree from any ole school because they think it will result in higher paying jobs really needs to pay attention. The school that a person attends has a great deal to do with its lucrativeness no matter what the degree is in. Just ask any MBA...

I am curious about one thing in the Abdulmutallab incident - his father went to the embassy to alert the authorities about his son, but I read somewhere that one of the things the father wanted was help in getting his son to come back home. I have not read anywhere that the father had knowledge of a specific threat, just that the kid had been radicalized and was in Yemen and the family wanted him to return and stop the activity.

Despite the fact that the right wing wants us to think of these guys as evil superheroes, this was a troubled kid who was exploited by Al Quaeda. Nidal, too, was troubled and exploited. So too, it appears, are the missing Somali kids from Minnesota.

So now the right wing wants to torture these people when we catch them.

Many families in the US go to the police to say, "My kid has fallen in with a bad crowd, I'm worried he's going to harm someone, or even a member of our family, please can you do something about him." Our legal system can't do anything, unfortunately, in these cases, and it often turns out tragically. But our government is supposed to act on a plea like this, only in the case of the kid falling in with a bad Muslim crowd, rather than with gangbangers, drug dealers, White Supremicists, IRA? I can't see the legal rationale behind this - but let's say we DO make an exception when it's Muslim, and we do what the right wingers suggest - apprehend and torture people like this before they can commit an act of terror.

Do you see any family or friend turning someone in? I sure as hell don't.

This Nigerian family's stress and trauma is bad enough if their son ends up serving life in maximum security in the US, but do you think that anyone in the Muslim community will turn in their relatives or friends if they think they will be waterboarded, or tortured, or executed?

Nice push back on Rudy Giuliani on MSNBC all day today.
David Shuster, Ed Shultz, Chris Matthews, Alex Witt. To an extent, Tom Ridge.
Important, because many citizens do watch cable news on their lovely big screen teevees.
I fully expect a statement to come from the seemingly delusional and/or blatantly partisan
history- revisionist former mayor of New York. What is in it for him to tell such checkable lies? Lucrative security contracts?
Maybe they can make Reagan a saint so many years later to the memory impaired,
but 2000-2008 is just not all that long ago. Citizens are scarred in terms of the psyche with the World Trade Center terror,we recall the post office attacks of anthrax in 2001, the shoe bomb attempt by Richard Reid certainly stays in memory--also in 2001. Shootings at the LAX airport in July, 2002 and week after week of people being picked off at gas stations by the D.C. area sniper in 2002 was certainly traumatizing and memorable.
No attacks during the Bush administration???
Rudy, it is what it is.
Stop the lies.

Guess who's going to be on a Sunday chat show again.

If you guessed John McCain, you'd be right. Unfortunately, it means we all lose.

As a bonus, he's going to be on with his BFF Lieberman.

Don't that just take the cake?

I thought Republicans were against two men rubbing their junk together.

Michael Gerson believes it's entirely appropriate for media professionals to proselytize during on-air news broadcasts -- and if you disagree, you're "intolerant."

Interesting how liberals, with all their faith-based, evidence-free dogmas*, get all worked up whenever someone else talks about his faith.

*Top Ten Faith-Based, Evidence-Free Liberal Dogmas

The War on Terror is a Battle for Moderate Muslim Hearts and Minds

Terrorists Hate Us For Our Freedom

The Constitution Provides the Right to an Abortion

The Constitution is a "Living, Breathing Document"

Homosexual Behavior is as Healthy as Heterosexual Behavior

Every Child Has the Potential to Succeed

Suppressing Emotions Is Unhealthy

Diversity is Our Strength

Global Warming is Primarily Caused by Man

A Fetus Is Not a Human Life

Since the excise tax is based upon the 'value' and not the 'cost' of the plans, I'm sure more will be hit with it than predicted. And in its passed version, it's a flat number, which doesn't take into account any inflation, let alone health inflation.

As a same-sex couple, my spouse already pays tax on half her plan (that covers me), which the feds value at ~$10K. That would put our plan - which isn't especially posh, nor is it the most restrictive available to us - very close to the limit.

So I can't really support the idea.

Crissa, above me, makes a good point. The excise tax is a really stupid idea, and it's going to hit the middle class disproportionately.

Second of all, the theory that HCR will have economic benefits for anyone other than health insurance firms is ludicrous. If anything, the bill as it stands discourages using the health insurance you'll be forced to buy.

Third, HCR isn't going into effect until 2014, so what will Congress and the Obama administration do until then?? Whistle and tap their toes until it comes around?

Is this even serious or are they now treating us like infants?

Is there anything Ezra Klein won't justify?

Klein's latest argument, as linked to above, is that the best way to bring down insurance costs is to tax them at 40%. Klein actually believes that the taxes should be applied to all policies, not just "cadillac" (plans for older people) plans, and should be applied to every cent.

This is a tax that should already exist, and it should exist on every dollar of health benefits, not just every dollar above $23,000.

So Klein's in favor of a mandate forcing people to buy something that should be as cheap and, thus, ineffectual as possible.

This is beyond a joke. What the hell is going on here? It used to be that the Senate bill was justified by supporters as "Not at all good, but the best anyone can do". Now it's come to this? Does Klein even understand the inherent contradiction of demanding universal coverage on the one hand, and demanding insurance be watered down as much as possible on the other?

Did a misspelling play a role in Abdulmutallab having a visa?

Probably. Since the media spells his last name "Abdulmutallab."

His last name is Mutallab.

Third, HCR isn't going into effect until 2014, so what will Congress and the Obama administration do until then?? Whistle and tap their toes until it comes around?

Yes, but the taxes will be levied immediately.

Ain't it grand?

g,

"I am curious about one thing in the Abdulmutallab incident - his father went to the embassy to alert the authorities about his son, but I read somewhere that one of the things the father wanted was help in getting his son to come back home. I have not read anywhere that the father had knowledge of a specific threat, just that the kid had been radicalized and was in Yemen and the family wanted him to return and stop the activity."

Steven Simon, who was the terrorism specialist at the National Security Council during the Clinton administration on the PBS News Hour:

Abdulmutallab's father really didn't give the system what the system needed to move, to move expeditiously. Normally, a walk-in to the embassy who provides information on a suspected terrorist is not going to be put at the top of the queue unless he's imparting some actionable intelligence, which means something really specific. And this man wasn't.

And as I mentioned previously, he paid cash for his ticket because the international airlines in Africa demand cash, he purchased a round-trip ticket, and the fact that he didn't have a lot of luggage was mitigated by the fact that his round-trip was of short duration.

Superb program on MSNBC with Lawrence O'Donnell on Countdown this evening fabulously exposing the lies of Giuliani, in a most comprehensive and compelling manner. Best of the day.

What an intelligent man. He should have his own show. The wonderful Eric Burns of Media Matters for America also very strongly contributed to one of the best segments of the day with Lawrence O'Donnell, as well as The Nation Magazine's insightful Chris Hayes. On and on about how Republicans are trying to get away with changing the truth about the previous administration, acting like Bush never had a terrorist attack at all, trying to reform public opinion with outright lies, while journalists seem to be letting them get away with it. Giving examples of Mary Matalin, Dana Perino, Karl Rove--all trying to reframe history with untrue remarks during television interviews and getting away with it.

The push back was fantastic to see. I loved it.

And notably, George Stephanopoulous has admitted online he should have confronted Giuliani's falsehoods on Good Morning America, and had the responsiblity to call the former mayor out on those misrepresentations.

Good for MSNBC demanding truth today.

I want to cry when I realize that Todd Tiahrt is representing my home town back in Kansas. Sigh.

Ridinghood,
Yes, TT is an embarassment. Remember when we used to have sane republicans represent us? I'll try my best to vote against him since I'm still in Kansas.
The ex works in Wichita and he hates Todd.

Good grief! That creep, Ford, *is* serious about running against Gillibrand!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/09/nyregion/09ford.html?hp

Alabama first state with h1n1 panic? How alphabetical...

"Too many law schools". *Now* I get it. When those high-paid lawyers claim that they deserve their pay because it's what the "market" sets - you know, it's just supply and demand - what they really mean is that when pay is going up, the market is fine, but when pay is going down, then measures have to be taken to limit supply. Yet another example of a system where the rich always win.

"the vast majority of Muslims" are "not terrorists."

In fact, I'd bet that American Muslims commit very little violent crime. There is a big community of them in Paterson, NJ near me and one never hears about crime there.

Rep. Tiahrt is also the author of the infamous budget rules that deliberately hamstring law enforcement in running down criminals, terrorists, and drug lords through their use of illegal firearms. Whatever happened to the law- and-order stance of the Republican Party? It was just as phoney as their small government, fiscal responsiblility, and national defense platforms; but they don't even bother to assert the law-and-order case anymore for fear of riling up the NRA.