Friday, December 25, 2009

Vero decor

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Uh, Merry Christmas?!?

Google News

Bunning Misses Historic Health Care Reform Vote

WTVQ - ‎11 hours ago‎
Kentucky Senator Jim Bunning was the only senator to miss the Senate's historic Christmas Eve vote on health care reform. His office says he had family commitments at home in Kentucky.

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Thursday, December 24, 2009

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Health Care Reform: between the devil and the deep blue sea...

I am torn.  On one hand I strongly advocate Health Care Reform _and_ endorse the efforts of our current administration (and both sides of the aisle) to forge the best resolve they can muster.

Then I read this from a decidedly opinionated organization... Firedoglake

The Senate health care bill is an ungodly mess of errors, loopholes, and massive giveaways. When the American people find out what's actually in this bill, they will revolt. Here's why:

  1. Forces you to pay up to 8% of your income to private insurance corporations -- whether you want to or not (#)
  2. If you refuse to buy the insurance,  you'll have to pay penalties of up to 2% of your annual income to the IRS (#)
  3. After being forced to pay thousands in premiums for junk insurance, you can still be on the hook for up to $11,900 a year in out-of-pocket medical expenses (#)
  4. Massive restriction on a woman's right to choose, designed to trigger a challenge to Roe v. Wade in the Supreme Court (#)
  5. Paid for by taxes on the middle class insurance plan you have right now through your employer, causing them to cut back benefits and increase co-pays (#)
  6. Many of the taxes to pay for the bill start now, but most Americans won't see any benefits -- like an end to discrimination against those with preexisting conditions -- until 2014 when the program begins (#)
  7. Allows insurance companies to charge people who are older 300% more than others (#)
  8. Grants monopolies to drug companies that will keep generic versions of expensive biotech drugs from ever coming to market (#)
  9. No reimportation of prescription drugs, which would save consumers $100 billion over 10 years (#)
  10. The cost of medical care will continue to rise, and insurance premiums for a family of four will rise an average of $1000 a year -- meaning in 10 years, you family's insurance premium will be $10,000 more annually than it is right now (#)

We desperately need health care reform.  But we can't pass the Senate's bill. 

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Something better...

Something better...

1 (obvious): Excuse me. Is that your nose or did a bus park on your face?
2 (meteorological): Everybody take cover. She's going to blow.
3 (fashionable): You know, you could de-emphasize your nose if you wore
something larger. Like ... Wyoming.
4 (personal): Well, here we are. Just the three of us.
5 (punctual): Alright gentlemen. Your nose was on time but you were fifteen
minutes late.
6 (envious): Oooo, I wish I were you. Gosh. To be able to smell your
own ear.
7 (naughty): Pardon me, Sir. Some of the ladies have asked if you wouldn't
mind putting that thing away.
8 (philosophical): You know. It's not the size of a nose that's important.
It's what's in it that matters.
9 (humorous): Laugh and the world laughs with you. Sneeze and its goodbye
Seattle.
10 (commercial): Hi, I'm Earl Schibe and I can paint that nose for $39.95.
11 (polite): Ah. Would you mind not bobbing your head. The orchestra keeps
changing tempo.
12 (melodic): Everybody! "He's got the whole world in his nose."

-- Steve Martin, "Roxanne"

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Monday, December 21, 2009

Lieberman Socks

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Christmas Magic

Christmas Magic at the Aramingo Diner

Last Saturday, Dec. 5th, something startling and wonderful happened at The Aramingo Diner in Port Richmond.

The 52-year-old landmark restaurant at 3356 Aramingo Ave. is open 24 hours a day, so it’s always a-bustle. But the place really hops during weekend breakfast and lunch time. Last Saturday was no different, and both wings of the diner – the booth area and the bigger dining room – were lively.

The manager on duty, Linda (who asked that I not mention her last name here, for reasons I can’t get into but let’s just say everything worked out okay…), tells me that a couple in their 30s paid their check at the register, then asked the cashier to let them secretly pay the check of another couple in the dining room – a couple they didn’t know.

“They just wanted to do it,” she said. “They thought it would be a nice thing to do.”

When the unsuspecting patrons went to pay their check, they were floored to find out that strangers had picked up their tab. So they asked the cashier to let them pay another table’s check, also anonymously.

When that table’s patrons approached the register, they, too, decided to pay the favor forward for yet another table of unsuspecting strangers.

You know where this is going, right?

(Read the whole thing here... Suburban Guerrilla)

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Feeling disillusioned?

I've got some great new illusions, right here!

  -- Fortune stolen from Slackware login

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Sunday, December 20, 2009

The way that you wander...

The way that you wander is the way that you choose,
the day that you tarry is a day that you lose...

- Jeremiah Johnson

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. . .