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No more blaming the oil companies
 Justice Scalia "doesn't want to deal with global warming." Who does? I'd like it to be over too. But it's not. It's something we have to deal with. And by "we," I don't just mean liberals. This is a problem for humanity. Don't give me that crap about, "well China has to do it." Yeah, they do. But so do we. What's so hard about conservation? It's as easy as chaning lightbulbs, driving less, or FUNDING ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF ENERGY. I'm not going to blame the oil companies. It's not their fault that they get billions of dollars of subsidies from the government every year. It may not even be their fault that their product is the only option people have. (If there are other sources of fuel I can put in my car, please enlighten me.) The option is not "walk or drive" in the greatest country in the world. It shouldn't be. Scalia was referring to the current Supreme Court case involving at least 12 states requesting that the EPA enforce carbon monoxide emissions from new cars. Is that so hard? Why can't cars get 50 mpg? Oh right, they can. Hybrids do. (By the way, if you bought a new hybrid, hoping for a tax break, time's up. Hybrid makers have sold the government-suggested amount, so the tax break is receeding.) For you market-determines-things type of people, explain this: the car report came out recently and American cars were 6 of the top 30. Doesn't that tell you that people are looking for a more gas-efficient car? Like those produced by Honda and Toyota, makers of hybrid technology. Car-makers can't give SUVs away fast enough. New technology item of the day: Researchers at the University of Idaho have developed a solar panel that also recaptures heat generated by your car and converts it into even more energy for your car to use. They're helping to Stop Global Warming.
Lost Seinfeld Episode
This is a pretty funny spoof on the sad Michael Richards racist tyraid. If you are a fan of the Seinfeld show, I think you will like this 3:31 clip. Thanks to Brad for the forward. Enjoy
A Check Up On Healthcare
Gallup Poll. Nov. 9-12, 2006. N=1,004 adults nationwide. MoE ± 3 (for all adults).
"Sorry Haters"
 Incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has decided that Representative Alcee Hastings (D-FL) will not be the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Republicans were making a big deal about the possible Hastings chairmanship, because he was removed from the federal bench for taking a $150,000 bribe back in 1981. Republicans were pounding the Hastings situation as a sign that Democrats were no different then Republicans. Two thoughts: 1) taking a bribe 25 years ago is not the close to the corruption of the modern-day acts of Republicans; 2) even if they were equal, Democrats did not promote Hastings, showing they are different. While Republicans put criminals like Tom Delay, the Democrats showed a distinct difference. Pelosi made the prudent decision by turning down Hastings. Now the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is sort of pissed, along with Hastings. Hastings explained, "sorry, haters, God is not finished with me yet" - easily the most random comment from a Congressman in a long time. Hastings has vowed to continue to work hard for the Democrats and work with Speaker Pelosi. I hope he and the other CBC forget about this. Really, the guy could not be promoted. The real "haters" that should be upset are the Republican naysayers - this Democratic House seems to be running smoothly. Pelosi now decides between Jane Harman (D-CA) or some other miscellaneous Democrats. Harman is actually first in line for the position, but Pelosi has previously said she will not get the post. Harman laid down for Bush & Company during the Iraq lead up, and Pelosi seems poised to punish Harman for her failures. Imagine that: being punished for sucking.....just think if the Republicans had ever done that, ever. Overall, this is not the most exciting story, but it is important. In my estimate, the Pelosi-led Democrats have been flawless. The Hoyer versus Murtha battle was nothing more then healthy. The Hastings "problem" was dealt with. And most importantly, the Democrats seemed poised to follow a series of rational steps once they take office.
Pryce Wins. What Can We Learn?
Why did Democrats lose so many Congressional races in Ohio in 2006?
 It was announced yesterday that Republican Deb Pryce beat Democrat Mary Jo Kilroy by 1,055 votes in the recount. I've got a few emails from some organizations in Columbus saying that the number isn't yet official and that an automatic district wide recount will now be automatically triggered. I'm betting 1,000 votes is decisive and unfortunately this race is likely over. Question: The big question for me after the 2006 election in Ohio is why were Democrats able to clean-up at the state level and spank Mike Dewine, but only pick up one Congressional seat? (Space beat Padgett OH-18) My answer: Gerrymandering - It is awful for our Democracy and gives us extreme candidates whose incumbency is guaranteed not by their job performance, but instead by the D or R next to their name. Second, unlike Mike Dewine, it seems these candidates where able to position themselves away from the disgust with state government and the unease about President Bush. They also had a lot of money. Deb Pryce raised about $3.8 million to run for fucking Congress. Democrat Kilroy raised $2.4 million. That is absolutely disgusting.  If I were a Republican looking to campaign statewide in 2008, I would target these Congressional Districts which held for Republicans. It is unlikely that there will ever be a political environment in the State of Ohio as toxic for Republicans as 2006. The districts of Steve Chabot (OH-1), Jean Schmidt (OH-2), Pat Tiberi (OH-12), and now Deborah Pryce (OH-15) are all places where Republicans held onto their seats in competitive races during a Democratic tidal wave. ( click map) The Republicans deserve credit for holding on to these seats and should look at those areas as their swing districts and target them next cycle. Democrats need to study these districts and see why we lost and why Republicans won. We need to work over the next two years in these areas and give them another run in 2008. Despite the success of Democrats in Ohio this past fall, there is still work to be done within out party. Hopefully 2006 is the begining and not the peak for Democrats in Ohio.
Bush Administration Ends Hunger!
In 2005, roughly 35 million Americans had difficulty feeding themselves in 2005 and of those some 10.8 million went hungry. Good news America, those 35 million Americans are no longer hungry! How did Bush & Company do it? They no longer call people hungry. This is sort of like Ronald Regean claimed ketchup a vegtable, or how Bush wanted to claim fast food jobs were "manufacturing" jobs. Thank goodness for compassionate conservatism. Now, according to the Bush Administration, 35 million Americans only have "very low food security."
On Healthcare In Ohio
As the cold of winter sets in, plenty of us will be visiting our doctors for variety of reasons. Some people will be going for flu shots and check-ups. Based on this past fall, we can assume that our friends on the other side of the isle will be going get Zoloft to deal with the election, Cialis for their Senate Pages or prostitutes of the same and occasionally opposite sex, and Celebrex for their Peruvian mistress. For clarification, Celebrex is for arthritis. It is tough to choke when those hands tighten up.
Health Insurance Coverage of the Total Population, states (2004-2005), U.S. (2005)  According to a site called StateHealthFacts.org, Ohio is has the eighth largest population of uninsured citizens with 1,343,640. Roughly 12% of our state's population is uninsured. As a percentage of our population, we are in a 4-way tie at 34th. Breaking down the numbers based on this chart:For every 2.5 Ohioans who have their health insurance paid for by their employer or pay it themselves, there is one person receiving Medicaid, Medicare, or other public health insurance. x10 = for every 25 people who pay for it, there are 10 people who don't. For every 2.1 Ohioans who receive government health insurance, there is one person who is uninsured. If today we were to offer government health insurance to those in our state who are uninsured, the ratio of employer / out of pocket insurance citizens to government insurance citizens would become 1.7 to one. x10= for every 17 people who pay for it, there would be 10 people who wouldn't. Scary.
Heathcare and the high costs that go along with it present major challenges for the incoming Strickland administration. Imagine if I had to conclude by saying, "will present major problems from the incoming Blackwell administration."
The Chief Source Running Club Update
 Our running club ran its last race of the fall season Thanksgiving morning at the Home Run for the Homeless here in Akron. The 4-mile race started just off of Exchange near the post office and cut through Glendale Cemetary near downtown. It was a huge crowd. Out of our group, Jordan (right) was first, Ian (center) got second and I was last. At the starting line was Akron City Council President Marco Summerville, Butch Reynolds, and Antonio Pittman. As you might guess, Pittman got the loudest cheers. I love the pride in Akron of Pittman and C. Wells. Special thanks to all those who ran with us this fall. We're looking at possibly putting together a group for the Revco Marathon in the Spring. I'll keep our readers posted.
 For the first time all year, I was rooting for the Cavs, because they were wearing their old orange uniforms. The Cavs lost - but no Larry Hughes. When Hughes is healthy, the Cavs are easily the best team in the Eastern Conference. That said, not sure how impressive being the best team in the East is - only 4 teams are above .500 (in the West, only 3 teams are under .500). I posted yesterday on Iraq, despite only taking one international policy class. Well, in just one day, Iraq has decended into even more chaos. I have also noticed that much of the mainstream media is finally calling this Civil War. Maureen Dowd had a funny idea: President Bush should go on FoxNews and declare, "IF I did it - here’s how the Civil War in Iraq happened.” College Republicans are offering Whites-only scholarships. FoxNews is planning a conservative Daily Show. Someone should remind them that Republicans are not funny - when they tell jokes they end up mocking people with Parkinsons (see Limbaugh). Republican James Dobson says he wants to "cure" Ted Haggerd from his gayness, but he doesn't have the time....."it could take four or five years." I am glad Dobson's gaydar is working, so he does not over-extend his gay curing skills.
Deadliest Day In Iraq
 More than 160 people were killed, more than 250 people were wounded, in what was the deadliest day of the Iraq war. The deadliest. Three years later, and this is what is going on. Good job President Bush.
Happy Thanksgiving
Hopefully you enjoy a real turkey for your Thanksgiving dinner, as opposed to this FAKE TURKEY Bush presented to the troops/cameras in Iraq.
Ohio Curriculum Redo - Again
 Ohio's curriculum is changing again. The state is trying to find the best way to prepare students for college. It's a nice idea, but it seems to change with the wind. First we measured a student's preparedness with the 9th grade proficiency tests. Now we have the Ohio Graduation Test given in 10th grade, to determine if you're ready for college (in 10th grade?). The class of 2012 gets the Ohio Core Curriculum which consists of: *Four years of mathematics, including Algebra II. *Four years of English. *Three years of lab-based science, including physical science and biology and one year of chemistry, physics or higher-level biology. *Three years of social studies. *Two years of either foreign language, fine arts, career-tech, business or technology. (More details in the notes.) Will these extra requirements be funded by the state, or another property tax increase? If you have 3 years of lab-based science classes, don't you need 3 up-to-date science labs? Schools will need teachers to teach all of these classes. Many schools are laying off teachers, not hiring more. What about kids who don't have a science or math aptitude and who know their future won't require it? Maybe they'll be writers, historians, artists, or diplomats. Why shouldn't everyone be required to take 3 years of a foreign language, business, or art? Will the state re-write the curriculum in a few years when they figure out they're ignoring half the population with these math- and science-heavy requirements? The current Ohio Legislature is going to try to pass this curriculum before the new representatives and new governor get in office and try to get answers to questions like these. Related: A lot of people harp on liberals for being anti-Walmart, but what about the anti-teacher sentiment that is so prevalent among conservatives? Shouldn't we value teachers and the services they provide? They do a lot more for our society than Walmart does, but the hatred is so thick you can smell it.
Who Will Lose To Obama?
Some say it is too early to talk about 2008. I say we are a political website. Here is a look at the Republican Presidential field..... John McCain: Running on a platform of sending more troops to Iraq, I think he will ultimately be the GOP nominee. This is fine, because he has flip-flopped on so many issues, he will be an easy punching bag. On top of his absurd Iraq position, yesterday he said is for overturning Roe v. Wade, a flip flop. He also said he is for the upper-class tax cuts, a flip flop. All of his "centrist" positions are being thrown out so he can whore himself for the GOP nomination. Good luck. Yet, the GOP voters are stupid (they voted for Mark Foley, Don Sherwood and Katherine Harris), so his flip-flops should work. Winning Nomination: 40% Mitt Romney: The Massachusetts Governor appears to be a Keeler Report favorite. Add that to the fact that he seems like a vaguely normal person, unlike these other clowns, I think he has a chance. Winning Nomination: 20%Mike Huckabee: The Governor of Arkansas is another normal candidate (actually, he is undecided). I think he would be the candidate if Republican voters were normal. However, their irrational hate of Bill Clinton will never allow Republicans to vote for a man from Hope, Arkansas - the home of Clinton and Huckabee. Winning Nomination: 10%Newt Gingrich: He has a chance. If I were running against him in the GOP, I would just show pictures of him and his new friend, Hillary Clinton - that will sink him. Winning Nomination: 10%Duncan Hunter: He is a nutjob from California. The "nutjob" part makes me think he has a chance. The "from California" part does not. Winning Nomination: 5%Rudy Giuliani: He is going to run, but he must be setting himself up to be the VP nominee, for which he is the frontrunner. Winning Nomination: 5%The Field: Tommy Thompson, George Pataki, Chuck Hagel, Sam Brownback, and some other people will probably run. They will lose. By the way, the Field also includes Dick Cheney, Condi Rice, Colin Powell, and a bunch of other Bushies. They will lose, but I could see one of them strongly emerging. Maybe Rumsfeld will run - he is obvioulsy delusional. Winning Nomination: 10%Related: Don't worry guys, if you lose, you can simply declare yourself President like the loser of Mexico's election. You won't have the same power, but at least you can tell your friends (or gay hookers, if your a Republican) that you are President.
No Wonder They Only Had White Friends
Michael Richards, who played Kramer on Seinfeld lost his mind while doing stand-up comed |
Chuck, 
bj, 
