December 29, 2006

THE THINKING SPOT

Wouldn't it be hypocrisy for the Secretary of Defense to protect the President of the United States from embarrassment for his grievous and deadly mistakes rather than to do what's best for America? Yes it would, and so Robert M. Gates is our BuzzFlash GOP Hypocrite of the Week.

WAR

More troops unhappy with Bush's course in Iraq, poll finds
http://tinyurl.com/y6etnr

Many soldiers say troop surge a bad idea
http://tinyurl.com/ykvwlr

Saddam Hussein will be executed no later than Saturday, said an Iraqi judge authorized to attend his hanging, while the former dictator's lawyers said he had been transferred from U.S. custody. How convenient that the secrets of Reagan/Poppy Bush/Rumsfeld complicity with the crimes he is accused of in the 80s will die with him.
http://tinyurl.com/y8atrp

BACK and FORTH - Judge: Saddam Will Be Executed No Later Than Saturday. Reuters: May Hang Within Hours…Frm. Dictator Is In Iraqi Custody, Defense Lawyer Says...
http://tinyurl.com/y6oung

U.S. Reserves returning to Iraq - Strapped for soldiers, the U.S. Army wants new authority to send National Guard and Reserve soldiers back to Iraq for repeat deployments, even those who have already served the maximum time allowed by the Pentagon.
http://tinyurl.com/y5tjzs

THE WHITE HOUSE

While Bush Wallows in His Incompetence, Five More GIs Die in Iraq: December's Number Steadily Edging Toward Highest Monthly Tally of '06
http://tinyurl.com/ya9cpb

ELECTION ITEMS

Disputed Florida Election to Spill Onto House Floor
http://tinyurl.com/yysevp

ECONOMY

Estimates for Pensions to Tighten - The states of New York, New Hampshire, Tennessee and about a dozen other governments may no longer be able to say their pension funds are fully funded no matter how the markets perform.
http://tinyurl.com/yn3dl7

Medicare Premiums Will Surge for Some - When new income-based premiums for Medicare's Part B program go into effect next month, some seniors will get an unwelcome surprise: Their monthly costs will be going up considerably more than expected because of the government's method of counting their income.
http://tinyurl.com/yfqmt7

Households: Worst Financial Shape Since WWII
http://tinyurl.com/yzfvw3

DID YOU KNOW:
-Bushes take shelter in tornado warning

-Judge nixes request for e-vote code

-AT&T grapling with net neutrality

-Google to invest in Chinese website

-CIA still censoring New York Times

-Fed elections grp.'s $6.2m in fines

-Age of Grand Canyon Withheld to Cater to

-Domestic-Partner Violence Up After Downtrend

CONGRESS

Reyes: U.S. intelligence 'manipulated' Incoming House Intelligence Chairman Silvestre Reyes says he'd rather figure out how to stabilize Iraq and bring the troops home than get bogged down investigating what went wrong. (((Call him if you agree we need to investigate what went wrong.)))
http://tinyurl.com/yfsqff

DOMESTIC

Waiting List for AIDS Drugs Causes Dismay in South Carolina - More than 350 poor people infected with HIV are on a waiting list for free life-saving drugs in South Carolina, by far the longest such list in the country.
http://tinyurl.com/yjfyp7

New Orleans officers charged with murder - Seven police officers were indicted Thursday on murder or attempted murder charges in a pair of shootings on a bridge that left two people dead during the chaotic aftermath of Katrina.
http://tinyurl.com/ybzze6

Corporations are Sitting on Piles of Cash: "Imagine the dilemma of having so much cash in your bank account that you didn't know what to do with it."
http://tinyurl.com/yfm6ae

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

This is Not Out of a Science Fiction Comic Book: "The U.S. Air Force is quietly spending millions of dollars investigating ways to use a radical power source -- antimatter, the eerie "mirror" of ordinary matter -- in future weapons."
http://tinyurl.com/62nk9

HEALTH

The vaccine to prevent every strain of flu - British scientists are on the verge of producing a revolutionary flu vaccine that works against all major types of the disease.
http://tinyurl.com/yhdpeu