Memnison Journal

Yesterday was my first day out with both feet in REAL shoes; it was snowing in Chicago, and I had to go downtown to have my monthly all-day session with the leukemia docs and get my IVIG treatment.  The two dogs had torn up my sleep a lot the night before with getting up and [...]

Not-Surprise: Democratic leaders (such as Sen. Reid) reportedly pushed Blago not to pick a candidate for Senate (this was before the phone calls came out) that couldn’t win downstate, which included pretty much any of the main black players in Illinois Democratic politics.    Obama suggested others, including two of the same group: Illinois Veterans Affairs [...]

When Stalin looks good to the Russians and Emperor Bokassa looks good to the Central African Republic, you know things are bad….now, I’m waiting for a musical about Robert Mugabe with singing, dancing terrorists swinging around AK-47s.  Madame Mao’s dead, so they’ll need to hustle up a new choreographer for that one.

I’m just so looking forward to a grownup in the White House.  I think most of us are.

The US has a significant honey and honeybee problem - we only produce about half the honey we consume.  Part of that is because of massive bee ailment problems, part because pollination pays better than the honey,  and the stuff that is coming into the USA is often adulterated or watered down - and in [...]

What I can mention is that the New Year’s Party was a good time, though a little frazzling.    I also spent a good deal of the day in the library with Rich Rostrom, who stayed over and was helping me with getting all of my stuff out of the closet under the stairs in the [...]

..of the Bush administration, a casualty of the war on terror, troubled and victimized soul that he is.

…now thinks that the nomination of Burris to the Senate is of vital importance To All African Americans everywhere, and he Just Got Over His Outrage at Blago.  I agree with Ta-Nehisi Coates on this; this is ridiculous.

Blago’s selection of Roland Burris as the new Senator from Illinois is an interesting pick, mostly from the direction of Blago deciding to stir the pot in a reaction against the Feds and everyone railing in the press and whatnot against him.

Roland Burris until this weekend had become a has-been in Illinois politics; he got [...]

Under Bush, OSHA backed off regulating business in a major way, because business might not like for them to support worker safety…and OSHA paid more  GOP-related consultants for doing little.
In 2006, Henshaw was replaced by Edwin G. Foulke Jr., a South Carolina lawyer and former Bush fundraiser who spent years defending companies cited by OSHA [...]

From Dick Meyer at NPR on Blago and Made-off:
As audacious as Blagojevich’s political gluttony is, it is easy to find far worse political corruption, much of it perfectly legal: Distorting intelligence to invade Iraq, torturing prisoners, failure to regulate Wall Street, and systematic pork-barrel boondoggling come quickly to mind. If you’re feeling expansive, how about [...]

Hedge Fund founder who lost a serious bundle in the Madoff ponzi scheme commits suicide, and no, he didn’t jump out a window.
The radical Israeli settlers in the West Bank are a political nightmare that any government will have serious problems with and neither main party coalition wants to deal with.  Of course, government policies [...]

Lobbyists are gnashing their teeth and rending their garments; what are they to do without having a ready-made place to grease palms now that Ted Stevens is leaving the Senate?

To maintain an open line to Mr. Stevens, the association hired Ms. Sutherland, who left Mr. Stevens not long after delivering those warnings to open her [...]

Craft stores and online stores that sell handmade stuff are doing well as cheap gift-things with the recession.  Me, I’m worthless at handmade gifts, unless you make ‘em on a computer.
People (and primates) will believe lies and deceive each other far more than dolphins will. I say we elect dolphins.
Yes, the non-US based [...]

Saudi man needs money, and essentially sells off his eight-year-old daughter for $5000 for marriage to a 58-year-old-guy.  Horrified mom takes it to court.  Court sides with the dad, and says the kid can make the decision to go for a divorce - when she’s older.   Like puberty.