One of McCain/Clinton's arguments in favor of the infantile candyfest they are calling a "gas tax holiday" is that the "American People" just love the idea. And they have a poll to back it up!

Really? Well no, but that won't stop them from lying.

As you no doubt remember, last summer the I-35W bridge collapsed into the Mississippi River, killing 13 people. It had been rated structurally deficient a few years before because of cracking and fatigue. In a 2006 memo, inspectors worried it was so weakened that it may need to be condemned before it collapsed. But, because of technical complications and cost concerns, the repairs were scrapped in favor of periodic inspections-- a gamble that failed catastrophically.

This summer, John McCain wants to weaken the entire US transportation infrastructure for the sake of a feel-good government giveaway. He wants to gamble with your safety in hopes you will reward him in the fall. What do you get out of it? You might save a few dollars on gas this summer.

Until a few days ago, the Republican opposition to NJ Senator Frank Lautenberg appeared to be a joke. Boozing rich boy Andy Unanue was the likely candidate.

Then along came the GOP's knight in shining armor John Crowley. As pointed out Saturday, Crowley sounds like a modern-day Frank Capra movie: Navy officer has kids with rare disease--> starts biotech company to fight disease --> finds treatment for children's disease--> sells story to Hollywood--> runs for US Senate.

Then he decided to edit out the last part.

I just saw this in the Melville Deacon. Haven't seen another diary on it, so I thought I would copy and paste the story in full. Should I add "Breaking"?

Don't know if any of you saw this in the Owosso Snark-Herald, but it looks like Rudy has come out swinging:

Guiliani Vows to Cut Mistress Expenses as President

Former New York City mayor and Republican Presidential candidate Rudolph Giuliani responded to recent revelations that he billed the city for an extra-marital affair by stating that, if elected President, he will keep mistress expenses to an absolute minimum.

As you may be slowly realizing, the University of Michigan Wolverines football team have not done quite as well as had been expected this season.

The Wolverines lost the season opener by two points. Last week, they lost by 32 points. Some nay-sayers point out that is a fifth-power decline. If you accept that, the Wolverines will lose by a little over 33 million points today.  Boo to that, I say! 33 million points? To Notre Dame? Nonsense.

Luckily, I now have the Bush Administration's Iraq Report as a fine example of how to apply a little counter-logic to this argument. Things are looking up for the Wolverines, my friend!

A recall has been announced for some of the incredible popular Thomas the Tank Engine toys.

First, this recall is limited to specific products made from January 2005 to today.

Now the bad news. The recall is for lead paint. How a major toy manufacturer in this age could possibly allow lead paint anywhere near a toy factory in unfathomable. I don't know how much lead we are talking about, but incredibly small amounts are dangerous. The blood level standard is 10 micrograms per deciliter.

This is a brief diary to share a new poster I made for impeaching Cheney. Please download, print, post and share:

Short and sweet: This diary's purpose is to distribute a poster I have made calling for Alberto Gonzales' impeachment (larger versions below).

The indispensable McClatchy reports deteriorating conditions in the Green Zone.

Civilian embassy staff are complaining that they are being left in a risky situation just to protect the Administration from the embarrassment of pulling the staff. Security officials in the Green Zone have apparently gone so far as to ignore safety procedures during VIP visits, so as not to ruin media moments:

The officials also complained that important security precautions appeared to have been set aside during highly publicized official visits. During a March 31 visit from Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., a high-profile presidential candidate, the embassy lifted a requirement that bulletproof vests and helmets be worn at all times. When a rocket landed outside the U.S. Embassy while Vice President Dick Cheney and several reporters visited last week, no warning sirens were sounded.

"Where were the sirens then?" one official asked. "We don't belong here, and people are afraid to say it."

You may have already read this article from the Titonka Telegraph & Leger. If not, here it is in full. Copyright be damned!

Iowa Moves Primary to Later This Evening

Iowa has unexpectedly moved its presidential primary to tonight, starting at 6:30pm Central Time, setting state poll workers and candidates scrambling.

I don't know if everyone has read this article from today's edition of The Lempster Gazette, but I thought I would pass it along...

John McCain Announces Candidacy Again
Vows to Keep Announcing Candidacy Through Election

Senator John McCain (R-AZ) re-announced his campaign for the Presidency several additional times today at campaign stops throughout New Hampshire. On at least five occasions, the candidate re-enacted his initial announcement word-for-word as delivered in Portsmouth on Wednesday. Yesterday, at a high school in Salem, McCain chose to re-deliver his announcement from the 2000 presidential election, complete with out-of-date references to President Clinton.

If, like me, you have been disappointed in the overall quality of extra-solar planets discovered to date, you'll be pleased to know scientists have finally done something about it. No more of the boring super-jovian gas giants orbiting at distances that would incinerate lead-- European astronomers have found some decent real estate orbiting Gliese 581, which is 20.5 light years away:

"Its radius should be only 1.5 times the Earth's radius, and models predict that the planet should be either rocky, like our Earth, or covered with oceans," Udry said in a telephone interview.

It appears to have a mass five times that of Earth's.

One of the best blogs for information on the war in Iraq has been Today in Iraq. Since June of 2003, the blog's volunteer staff has published an incredibly detailed round up of daily news, opinion, and commentary. They excel in finding obscure but newsworthy stories. The site's archives provide an in-depth look at the war's conduct from almost the beginning.

If you already know about Today in Iraq, you will happy to know it is now being published as Iraq Today. The old site had recently moved to a new server with unfortunate results. I won't get into the politics of the incident, but most of the people involved in publishing the site are now turning out the same quality work at Iraq Today.

That said, they could definitely use some assistance. If you have the skill and time to volunteer, please help keep this valuable resource running till the troops are home.

[Promoted by DHinMI: only the stupid or the naive fail to recogonize the difference between supposed good intentions and good results, and how the first so often doesn't lead to the second.  This is an great case where everything was done right, and the result was disastrous.]

No, this isn't an April Fool's diary. This is a short, but I think important, diary whose main purpose is to get you to read this article from the New York Times:

Iraqi Widow Saves Her Home, but Victory Is Brief

By EDWARD WONG
Published: March 30, 2007

It is a personal story that illustrates some very important-- yet unspoken-- considerations about the surge. It's a story in which everyone does what they should: the US Army, the Iraqi Army, the neighbors, and the Baghdad citizen-- soon to be the Baghdad victim. I don't know how long it will be available before disappearing into subscription land, so please click. (Link changed to a permanent one - MissLaura)

The title of this diary may sound vastly understated, even sarcastic. It isn't meant that way. It is meant as an alarm.

The current escalation in Baghdad might not be just more of the same, might not just be worse, it might be a military disaster. From what I have learned, it seems the elements of a large-scale defeat for US forces could be drawing into place in the city. The result could be hundreds of casualties on top of a failed mission.

Below are my observations drawn from current news reports and study of previous operations in Iraq. If my fears are borne out, the current Baghdad security plan leaves our troops vulnerable to almost every weapon at the insurgents' disposal.

I hadn't paid much attention to the recent naval deployments to Somalia-- it didn't really seem like it added up to much. But a comment by a well-connected editor of a conservative news service makes me wonder if the deployment of the USS Eisenhower will be used as a political precedent by Bush for attacking Iran without Congressional consent.

There have been stories and rumors since before the war, but the Army has finally unveiled its "heat ray gun."

Just in time for Operation Surge or this weekend's protest? No, they are three years from introduction. Curiously, I think every report I have ever read says these things are three years from introduction. But they have photos this time, so it seems a bit more real.

US military unveils heat-ray gun