So much that’s happened in the last six years was beyond comprehension for most of my life. I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked at one of the last places left where you could work from youth to old age and get a defined benefit retirement plan that includes extensive health benefits, a plan those hired after me won’t get because the government changed plans (from Civil Service to the Federal Employee Retirement System, or FERS). Watching your country slide in slow motion off of a cliff painful. I am so sick of “If it’s good for corporations, it’s good for America.”

But they’re pro life and pro family.

If only we had some Democrats in leadership with stones who would take this issue buy some air time with all that money they raised ahead of the Florida Primary and run with it.
We could organize a full court press strip away all GOP pork, defund all the military bases in GOP districts, threaten to shut down the government.
Have our *cough* brave Presidential Candidates get Nationwide airtime from Network TV for actually standing up for Retirees. But what do you bet Nancy and Harry will take this lying down.

Good morning pups!

Good thing people over 65 rarely get sick. This policy is gonna work out great, for someone.

Good Morning Egregious!

If only we had some Democrats in leadership with stones…

If they had stones; they’d drown.

The democrat party is broke, as well as bankrupt, as well as corrupt; expect nothing and no disappointment will follow.

What is the French for nothing ever changes?

Why is it always the Willies who seem to write the policies?

Hey ThingsComeUndone, how are you doing today? May we call you TCU or perhaps Things or do you prefer the full version of your nom de plume?

I’m always amused at the variations of what people do to my name, but don’t want to assume this is universal.

Good Morning Egregious as well

Plus ça change.

So much that’s happened in the last six years was beyond comprehension for most of my life.

That’s why a lot of us are here. We can hardly believe what’s happened.

Which is actually an elliptical formation of plus Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.

Last time:

Which is actually an elliptical formation of: Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose

muchas gracias

De nada. Je vous en prie. pu k’o ch’i.

Bush is having a commission reinterpret government rules and law in creative ways. The GOP as a party thinks that they are protected from these politically damaging rulings because they are enacted by government commissions and not by GOP Presidential Candidates.
Again we need Dems with stones to buy air time get every statement from a GOP Presidential Candidate about how we have to cut entitlements, explain that entitlements are GOP code for social security.
And then link the GOP Presidential Candidates to this cut in health benefits, link the GOP to proposed cuts in SS, link the GOP to a secret master plan to steal all the retirees money to pay for the Iraq war. All while giving the rich bigger tax cuts!

I’m doing fine today Egregious. Call me anything you want just try not to be propane er profane!

Can we call you for supper?

Bilbo @ 15
Francés is terra incognito. pu k’o ch’i has me stumped.

Watching your country slide in slow motion off of a cliff painful. I am so sick of “If it’s good for corporations, it’s good for America.”

So with ya. The Conglomerate Media has spent 30 years or so carefully and intentionally constructing various narratives that say Democrats are childish and irresponsible, while Repubes are the grown-ups who know best. Of course, we know in reality it is the exact opposite, at least with real Democrats it is and not the Harry Reids or Clintons of the world.

This concept of Repubes being “pro-business” has been particularly annoying to me, since I own my own 1.5 employee corporation. We’re trying to get bigger, yet the deck is SO stacked against the “little guy” that it’s extra hard. If you don’t have access to money from family, friends, or savings (hindsight’s 20/20 and I would’ve saved more before starting), or work in a field where you can get grants, it’s extremely difficult to compete.

Considering I’d be happy to just get health insurance again for my family, true Liberal policies are so much more pro-business than anything I’ve ever heard a Repube spew. Repubes are for pro-Mega-business, not pro-business.

Just about to head off to bed after writing about the top ten events in Alaska politics in 2007. And I had to stop off at firedoglake to see what’s up. After reading Attaturk’s post, what’s up is my blood pressure! I despise these GOP creeps. That is one insane decision. Is it appealable?

The democrat party is broke

Please don’t repeat Lush Limpdick insults here. This is a coordinated attempt to belittle the DemocratIC Party by the Noize Machine, and even the Deciderer has been childishly using it.

It’s the DemocratIC Party. Always has been.

The Soviets used to refuse medical treatment to people over 60, I just never thot I’d see that in our country.

The kids and I watched Sicko this week, interesting to watch their reaction. See, it’s not just mom ranting about this stuff.

My mother is on pension from a steel company, and her medical deductible goes up significantly every year. What do people do who don’t have families to help them with medical expenses? Quietly die?

Je vous en prie = De nada

pu k’o ch’i is Chinese (Wade-Giles transliteration which is hardly ever used anymore), literally “don’t be kind”, but often used as an expression to deflect or mimimize compliments. I’m probably misusing it here, but my Chinese is pretty minimalist and I don’t have a lot to choose from. ;-)

The Democrats have raised more money than the Republicans this year largely based on us Lefties wanting to end the war. So far the Dems have done nothing and spent their money trying to defend doing nothing.
But we can’t get depressed, we can shame them into doing something. After all the rich are not like you and me they assume that having power and money means that they must be smart and respected.
But it is hard to live in a bubble with bloggers around. We push stories that they don’t want to think about.
We the people speak out in anger adding our voices to others growing, learning and supporting each other.
We have left our *cough* leaders behind, they either will get with our program or be replaced. Or they could hope that somehow Bush in the time he has left wins the war, saves the economy, lowers gas prices etc etc and then yes much of the voter anger will go away, but what are the odds of that happening?

sure

For the Chinese, try googling the standard pinyin transliteration:

bu ke qi

and you’ll find: Travellers Tips to China. Look under For Greeting and Enquiry and you’ll see it listed as “Don’t mention it”.

The kids and I watched Sicko this week, interesting to watch their reaction. See, it’s not just mom ranting about this stuff.

I’ve noticed my older kids and their friends being pretty attune to a lot of what’s going on. Sure, these younger generations have more electronics and other distractions, but they understand the New Media and have movies like Sicko available to them and shaping public discourse.

As we swing the pendulum back to the side of truth and justice, from what’s I’ve experienced at least, I’m hopeful today’s youth will be able to keep it there and not make the same complacent mistakes of my generation and my parents’ generation.

I think this song is perfect for the GOP.
WAR PIGS by OZZY
Generals gathered in their masses
Just like witches at black masses
Evil minds that plot destruction
Sorcerers of deaths construction
In the fields the bodies burning
As the war machine keeps turning
Death and hatred to mankind
Poisoning their brainwashed minds, oh lord yeah!

Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor

Time will tell on their power minds
Making war just for fun
Treating people just like pawns in chess
Wait till their judgement day comes, yeah!

Now in darkness, world stops turning
As the war machine keeps burning
No more war pigs of the power
Hand of God has sturck the hour
Day of judgement, God is calling
On their knees, the war pigs crawling
Begging mercy for their sins
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings
All right now!

This year I (dog willing) will witness 65 orbits of the sun. I took early SS. Now, there is an additional year before any earnings won’t effect SS. IIRC when I did first apply, it was at 65 that any earnings would not effect SS. More changed goal-posts anyone?

Bonkers @ 22
Respectfully wish to clarify, What is being seen is certainly the democrat party, the DLC party, the party unresponsive to its base, and the denigrated form abusive to Democrats forming the Democratic party is appropriate form to use for DINOS.

Bilbo @ 24

Je vous en prie = De nada

I took “Je vous en prie” to be “What you (ask for) in prayer” and was lost beyond help on the last - thanks so much, I will try to recall and reuse the Chinese, another valuable lesson in civility.

Good Morning pups,
My great aunt is gradually cashing bonds to stay afloat with her high priced med insurance. To top it off, someone saw her put the cash in her coat pocket at the bank, and pulled a con game on the street to pick her pocket. They dropped a bunch of loose change on the street and while she helped to recover the coins they picked her pocket.
That’s what these rule changes are doing, gradually picking our pockets.

The next time any GOPer goes all Bush was chosen by God KO should play War Pigs in the background with the words shown in the moving teletype at the bottom of the page.

That’s what these rule changes are doing, gradually picking our pockets.

And then asking us to thank them for stealing, by voting them back into office.

A family member I will not mention to protect the naive had a longterm unemployed spouse and their COBRA ran out. They still intended to vote for the Republicans because of “family values.”

Perhaps using DINO or DLCers might be more appropriate, since we all know what those mean around here and these do not perpetuate Repube talking points. Plus, nuance isn’t conveyed very well through the Intertubes.

Just a thought…

Good morning, pups. It’s a grim week on the NYT columnist front. Today it’s Roger Cohen all by himself. He’s been to Afghanistan, he’s been to Belgium, he’s typing…

http://mgpaquin.wordpress.com/

The coffee, tea and hot chocolate are ready, and I’ve got a selection of bagels with your choice of cream cheese. Have a grand day.

Mornin’, pups -

For younger retirees (generally prosperous to begin with) the same ol’ same ol’, i.e. “don’t get sick”.

For those who retire at 65 or older; or the first group — when they usually get the sickest…as far as their former employer is concerned, they can just go ahead and die.

It’s all on the tax payers now, and they demand their tax cuts, or so we are always told.

If ever there was a new policy interpretation that you know is going to work out badly, this is it.

Seems like every day I wake up and think, “How much worse can it get?”

Short answer: LOTS!

eg @ 33 -

A family member I will not mention to protect the naive had a longterm unemployed spouse and their COBRA ran out. They still intended to vote for the Republicans because of “family values.”

Please don’t take offense, but “naive” is not the term I would use to describe people with such belief systems.

What Winston Churchill once said addressing Congress -”Two peoples separated by a common language”, which happenz ;-)

Just here to keep up with the news, not to otherwise interfere (as best as am able). Have a good day…….

more bad news for local officias trying to do something
court throws out part of new SF health care plan

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/.....AU50F2.DTL

Or
If your parents are dead, you’ll join ‘em sooner.

When I try to explain to family and friends what is happening, they get that glazed stare and I know they think it’s just another of uncle bluejeans’ political rants. I wish they’d read more than just the sports and comics in the paper. :-(

He was talking about the Brits and Yanks, tho…

Family Values is GOP code women should submit to their husbands, and lose access to birth control and abortion. Gays should just stay in the closet.
Immigration is blame the brown people for the economy.
Welfare is blame the African Americans for being hated and unemployed.
Hmm? Control the Women, deny that Gays exist, blame the colored people. Everyone different than a white man (of the right religion of course) seems to bother the GOP.
But would we all be happy if we all looked, thought, and acted alike?

Happiness is not a Family Value (TM)

When I try to explain to family and friends what is happening, they get that glazed stare and I know they think it’s just another of uncle bluejeans’ political rants. I wish they’d read more than just the sports and comics in the paper.

I have the same experience. Mostly people just don’t want to hear it. They feel as though they’re already hearing too much bad news and they just don’t want to hear anymore. And often these are folks who consider themselves pretty much “liberal”.

I’ve always found the movie The Matrix to be a pretty good metaphor for the state of affairs in this country today. If people don’t want to know, you really can’t force feed it to them.

I usually end up being depressed about the future of American democracy (which was originally predicated on an informed electorate).

more bad news for local officias trying to do something
court throws out part of new SF health care plan

From the article:

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White described San Francisco’s goal as “laudable” but said its ordinance - the first of its kind in the nation, and a potential model for other California cities and the state - conflicted with a 1974 federal law that prohibits state and local governments from regulating employees’ benefits.

My bold. I can’t help but wonder what implications this will have for states like Massachusetts that have create employer mandates for health insurance. If I’m understanding this correctly, the ruling could have devastating effects.

Last Night on the NewsHour, Ann Selzer of the Des Moines Register was on. And she had an interesting story to tell, I dare say people are starting to think harder about their choices.

ANN SELZER: Well, issues have certainly been important in sort of figuring out the field, and getting a lay of the land, and understanding who it is that most identifies with the issues that you’re up to.

But I’m really hearing in this election a lot less insistence on certain issues for the candidate in order to win the vote. I was chatting with a young woman who is religiously conservative. In the past, she said all it took was a pro-life stance and an anti-gay marriage stance, and that’s really all the thinking she needed to do.

And this year, it sort of struck her: These things have really nothing to do with running the country. And so those issues have really sort of, I think, played a little bit less, as people are really thinking about the complex world that the next president will inherit.

my bold

Ron Paul on (Joe-less) Morning Joe - now.

it’s what they are after, a robber baron society where there is the wealthy and the poor, no middle class, they are very happy if the middle class and poor have a mortality threshold of 50 or 60

this isn’t about them getting more wealth, it’s about them being more wealthy then you are

it’s the dismantling of government, if there are successful programs they will undermine that success, if there is positive revenue flow they will steal that revenue and give it to people with more money then they can ever possibly spend

we’re in tons of trouble because they’ve been able to hypnotize the common man into believing government is inefficient and bad while corporate run programs are efficient and good

the reverse is true, there is nothing more inefficient then corporate run programs..yet because of corporate owned media, their ideology wins the day

Just started reading Media Unlimited by Todd Gitlin, how the torrent of images and sounds overwhelm our lives. The teevee is religion to a lot of folks and they do not realize the effect it has on their lives. Just the words in the on screen tv guide can scare the pants off you. Desperate housewives, Big Brother, Survivor, Fear Factor, Crime Scene Investigation etc. Words are powerful and they use them to scare the masses. Notice the news crawl has not gone away since 9-11. It’s a distraction to keep you on edge, even though they are narrating the same story in the crawl.
Too much tin foil for this early and we all know it anyway.

and Good Morning!

Here’s what’s happening today on Washington Journal
Vincent Reinhardt, former Fed. Monetary Affairs Dir., discusses the state of the economy. Then a look at John McCain’s plans for the economy & Hillary Clinton’s health care proposals.

7:30am - Vincent Reinhart, Former Monetary Affairs Director, Fed. Reserve Board, 2001-07
8:30 - Doug Holtz-Eakin, McCain for President, Economic Adviser
9am - Neera Tanden, Hillary Clinton for President, Health Care Adviser

Actually, a person going onto Medicare with a Medigap policy is better off than his having private insurance. This is not a big deal at all.

Shuster grilling Paul about his Abraham Lincoln statement on MTP last Sunday.

How come nobody seemed to notice, or is deliberately ignoring, the most important things Paul did say:

1. Cut off all aid to Israel, and

2. Abolish the IRS (with no firm plan to replace the revenues).

Good Morning everyone. I didn’t read every comment but my first thought was wondering if these new rules will apply to members of Congress. My second was imagining the outrage of all those financially-secure retirees who have never been hurt by Bush-Co rulings.

Notice the news crawl has not gone away since 9-11. It’s a distraction to keep you on edge, even though they are narrating the same story in the crawl.

Heh, heh. Doesn’t keep me on edge since I stopped watching all TV news shortly after 9-11. One of the things I always try to do when I interact with people is to convince them that they need to tap sources of information beyond the MSM if they want to know what’s really going on in the world. It’s an uphill battle though.

Actually, a person going onto Medicare with a Medigap policy is better off than his having private insurance. This is not a big deal at all.

So what about those without medigap insurance?
And how much does medigap insurance cost?
What about pre-existing conditions?
I don’t know much about this, can you enlighten me?

My bold. I can’t help but wonder what implications this will have for states like Massachusetts that have create employer mandates for health insurance. If I’m understanding this correctly, the ruling could have devastating effects.

Maybe but I don’t see how a district court ruling in SF would immediately affect Massachusetts.

Probably wouldn’t be an immediate effect. But, if upheld, it seems as though the cited law could eventually be applied equally well to Massachusetts and other states with employer health insurance benefit mandates.

Actually, a person going onto Medicare with a Medigap policy is better off than his having private insurance. This is not a big deal at all.

Really? So my mother who gets ins. through GE as a supplement to her medicare will not be hurt?

Actually, a person going onto Medicare with a Medigap policy is better off than his having private insurance. This is not a big deal at all.

Oh, it has the potential to be a really big deal. Remember, Medicare coverage is constantly being cut and copays increased. Ultimately, the neolibs would like to see it rescinded completely. And the Medicare program is already in deep financial doodoo (unlike social security) and will thus undoubtedly be the target of future cuts. Clearly, Bush is going to decimate as many programs as he can through executive fiat now that he can no longer push everything he wants to do through Congress. What a mean society we have become.

Shuster grilling Paul about his Abraham Lincoln statement on MTP last Sunday.

How come nobody seemed to notice, or is deliberately ignoring, the most important things Paul did say:

1. Cut off all aid to Israel, and

2. Abolish the IRS (with no firm plan to replace the revenues).

Wrt #2…the more I hear from paul, the more barking mad he sounds.

1974 federal law that prohibits state and local governments from regulating employees’ benefits.

Does not Federal statute supersede State or Local statute? Or am I miss-reading? If the federal statute does not apply, then Mass. is home free.

NBC News reporting that Benasir (sp?) Bhutto injured in bomb blast - possibly critically.

This year I (dog willing) will witness 65 orbits of the sun. I took early SS. Now, there is an additional year before any earnings won’t effect SS. IIRC when I did first apply, it was at 65 that any earnings would not effect SS. More changed goal-posts anyone?

Yeah, me too. I now have to figure which of the dog awful medicaire plans I have to sign up for. Which insurance company is going to have the pleasure of denying me benefits, how much I am going to get screwed and by whom. It is daunting task and one that, thank goodness at the age of 65, I have all that excess youthful energy to deal with it. I can hardly wait until my spouse retires so that we can get the fuck outa here and back to a sane country in which I used to live.

CBS/AP 8am saying at least 20 feared killed at rally but Bhutto OK.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories.....ld_3649047

It just boggles the freakin mind…

If only we had some Democrats in leadership with stones who would take this issue buy some air time with all that money they raised ahead of the Florida Primary and run with it.

I think we will all regret that we didn’t get behind Kucinich with all the fervor that was given to Patrick Fitzgerald who came up with nothing, just like John Kerry was taken off the Chairmanship of the first half of the Iran-Contra Hearings because he was covering up evidence and getting witnesses killed. Something like Waxman being a member of AIPAC and refusing to do hearings on Sibel Edmund’s testimony of the AIPAC and ATC connection to 911. Kucinich really is our only hope and unlike waxman and the AIPAC owned corporate shills, is an honest and courageous man who used his lawful authority to introduced an Impeachment Bill to remove the very dangerous Cheney. So why is he being ignored by the left gatekeepers? The lack of support in getting his back as well as ignoring the 22 or so very, very courageous Congresspersons who have signed on as co-sponsors to impeach Cheney endangers them.

I don’t believe that hillary is any better than guiliani, look at what her husband did to welfare and what hillary did to destroy any chance of healthcare for most Americans by deliberately screwing up at the beginning of bill’s term. For a contrast to hillary’s destroying healthcare take a look at what Roslyn Carter did in four years of a study with Sen. Kennedy to provide comprehensive mental health care system. She and Sen. Kennedy managed to get it funded for one year but Reagan stole the funds after that and the clintons did nothing to stop the dumping of the mentally ill on the streets as well as emergency rooms that will not even set a child’s broken bone and the doctors the er sends them to refuse to set broken bones for free so there is ER medical help and this was in 2000. Hillary had several years after her deliberate muck-up of fixing the way reagan/bush destroyed healthcare and the monica scandal. so why didn’t hillary do anything. She is also in favor of bombing Iran, has a mitt romney failure of a new healthcare plan and is owned by AIPAC as is obama and edwards. If FDL really cared about the suffering people you are always crying about you would print the 3 turds the zionist owned media are shilling for AIPACs speeches and voting records.

Refusing to tell the truth about pat fitzgerald’s connection with Chicago University, and the 1993 WTC Bombin and obscene failure to even indict anyone in the outing of plame besides a low level flunkey and fitz could not even get libby in jail for a year and a half for treason - And because fitz was a traitor, the resulting continuation of the torture, the growing number of homeless including kids and veterans on the streets, and the murder of our troops and the murder of massive number of iraqis and the destruction of our military and our economy continues because of the fitzgerald psyop that was shilled by this blog and took the focus and anger and made it evaporate and now you are doing it again by ignoring kucinich, the only one with the courage to stand up for America and for the vulnerable.

http://www.dennis4president.co…..he-nation/

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20080107/editors

So typical of FDL to ignore the fact that there are respectable arguments in favor of what the EEOC did. At the end of the day, I may not agree with what the Commission did, but this sort of demonization is intellectually bankrupt.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12.....re.html?hp

And BTW, forget about litigation as a strategy for overturning the Commission’s action. This is exactly the kind of policy call by an administrative agency that courts quite properly defer to under Chevron.

I hate what this place has become. I mourn for what it once was.

Been nice knowin’ y’all. Have great lives.

This is not “a bientot,” it’s “au revoir.”

burnspbesp

The link you provide is the same one Attaturk provided. I have to agree with you - why wouldn’t FDL get behind this (from YOUR link)

The new policy creates an explicit exemption from age-discrimination laws for employers that scale back benefits of retirees 65 and over. Mr. Mackaronis asserted that the exemption was “in direct conflict” with the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967.

Au Revoir, burnspbesq, - you won’t be missed.

This policy sounds good! Maybe this policy is gonna work out great, for someone.