It Really Does Take A Special Breed of Scumbag

Bernie Madoff screwed Holocaust survivor Elie Weisel to the tune of...everything. And his charity, the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity, lost $15 million.

Death is too good for Madoff. Let's do a pay-per-view of Bernie vs. everyone he fucked over in a steel cage match...proceeds going to the Weisel Foundation.

Miracle: US Airways Flight 1549

The pilot of US Air 1549 is beyond amazing. Imagine driving on the freeway and a goose smashes through your windshield. That's what this guy had to deal with with a planeload of people, who all apparently made it out after a landing in the Hudson River. Live video:

And damn, that one rescued guy on NBC's coverage did look like Jeremy Piven, didn't he?

UPDATE: Here's the guy I'm talking about. Guess it's not him, judging by the lack of hoopla. But man, the coincidence is there, because he just quit the cast of "Speed the Plow." And it really looks like him.

Taj Seige Over

IBN just reported that the operations have just ended with the killing of the last two terrorists in the Taj Hotel. The building is on fire on the ground floor, and they'll be conducting cleaning (anti-explosive) operations when that's brought under control. "Live" (30 minute delayed for security purposes) video here.

UPDATE: Now they're reporting the possibility of one of the terrorists being only wounded and still in the Taj. Needless to say, it's been a very confusing situation for three days.

Morning

Look. Out the window. The sky didn't fall.

Drill, Baby, Drill...BUT...

First this: LouiseSlaughter.com takes you to McCain's website. That sucks. I heard her talking about this on the tube last night, which led me to this.

I was ready to do another WTF over the passage of the new energy bill in the House yesterday which has "drilling" in its lede. But when I heard that the nays were all Republican, I decided to look into it a bit more. The Coloradoan is a good starting point:

The House voted Tuesday night 236-189, mostly on a party-line vote, to ease the longstanding ban on offshore drilling and spur greater use of alternative fuels. The bill still faces significant hurdles to clear the Senate and gain President Bush's signature.

Republicans, who have been hitting Democrats hard on their prior opposition to expanded coastal drilling, called the bill a sham that didn't go far enough in expanding drilling closer to U.S. shorelines and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

The bill says drilling can be no closer than 50 miles out. But about that quick hit there about greater use of alternative fuels also got my attention. CNN also pointed out that the drilling is only with the states' permission:

The bill would allow drilling between 50 and 100 miles offshore, as opposed to the 3-mile line favored by Republicans. It would require states to give their permission for drilling off their shores. It also would include incentives for renewables, require the government to release oil from its emergency reserve and force oil companies to drill on federal areas they already lease from the government.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, told reporters Tuesday: "The American taxpayers have been ripped off for years on offshore drilling. This bill changes that."

Indeed. Hundreds of thousands of square miles are already leased for the oil companies, yet they remain untouched while they try to hog their way into taking over more land to drill drill drill.

So this bill really isn't much of a capitulation by the Democrats at all, but instead, it's essentially telling the oil companies to use what they have or lose it, and start working on the alternatives already.

No wonder the White House and their Republican enablers hate it. It's not the all-or-even-more-all they want. Brats. Screw 'em.

Hope the senate has the cajones to pass it and throw it in Bush's whiny age-spotted face. If he vetos it, you can say the GOP killed a bill that allowed for more drilling and forced alternative fuel research, and take that into November 4th.

The Silence Was Deafening

This video from ThinkProgress is absolutely must-see, and it's only a minute of your time. It's from the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing yesterday which featured a panel of high-level energy experts from Shell, MIT and others. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) asked them a simple question which stumped them for about ten seconds before they could meekly give their answer. Watch:

This shoots a hole in the entire "Drill, Baby, Drill" movement.

Stephanie Tubbs-Jones on Life Support

This is tragic. Our prayers are with her.

Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs-Jones has reportedly had a massive aneurysm and remains on life support Wednesday morning at Huron Road Hospital.

Jones was found unconscious behind the wheel of her car late Tuesday evening.

Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones is the first African-American woman elected to the United States House of Representatives from Ohio.

Currently in her fifth term in office, she represents the 11th District, which encompasses most of the East Side of Cleveland and parts of the West Side of Cleveland and includes parts of 22 suburbs.

UPDATE: By now you all know she passed away a few hours after being taken off life support. She was a vigorous Hillary booster and was so comfortable in her beliefs that she became a favorite on all the TV shows. If you're going to have someone on your side, man, she was the one. Above all, she was a historic figure and an incredible representative of her district and of the Democratic party. We lost a very bright star today.

Hoffmania Sunday Mornin' Bobble Talking Pundit Head TV News Show Recap Wrapup Summary PREVIEW

HOLY CRAP! HOLY CRAP! OMIGOD OMIGOD, HERE IT IS! FINALLY!

CBS’s “Face the Nation” has Robert Rubin, a former Treasury secretary now advising Senator Barack Obama, and Carleton S. Fiorina, one of Senator John McCain’s top economic surrogates. On CNN’s “Late Edition,” there’s Laura Tyson for Mr. Obama and Nancy Pfotenhauer for Mr. McCain.

Four people from The New York Times’s veepstakes shortlist are making appearances, all for Mr. McCain: Senator Lindsay Graham on “Fox News Sunday” (with former Senator Tom Daschle), Senator Joseph I. Lieberman on NBC’s “Meet the Press” (with Senator John Kerry), former Gov. Tom Ridge on ABC’s “Face the Nation” (with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and David Gergen, former White House adviser) and Rob Portman on “Late Edition.”

Also appearing with Wolf Blitzer on CNN are Senator Claire McCaskill, Democrat of Missouri; Maj. Gen. Mark Hertling, who commands United States forces in northern Iraq; Tzipi Livni, the Israeli foreign minister; James K. Glassman, under secretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs; Kenneth Blackwell, the former Republican Ohio secretary of state; and Ron Kirk, the former Democratic mayor of Dallas.

HA! Nailed it!

Nailed it? You copied and pasted this verbatim from the New York Times' Caucus Blog, you crook.

SSSHHH.

You didn't even correct their calling it "ABC's 'Face The Nation.'"

Just SSSHHHHHH, dammit.

Anthrax Suspect "Commits Suicide"

And no, not by anthrax. Strangely, by a form of the old 222 pills. And yeah, we put "commits suicide" in quotes. Sue us.

The seven-year investigation into the anthrax attacks that traumatized and baffled the nation just weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks has taken a stunning new turn with the apparent suicide of a scientist who was the prime suspect in the case.

With investigators close to filing charges against him, the scientist — Bruce E. Ivins, 62 — apparently took his own life with a prescription painkiller, Tylenol mixed with codeine. He died Tuesday at a hospital in Frederick, Md., about an hour’s drive north of Washington.

Mr. Ivins, who was a biodefense researcher at Fort Detrick, had been told of the investigation into the anthrax incidents, said his lawyer, Paul F. Kemp, who issued a statement insisting that his client was innocent.

Bombs Explode in India

CNN:

At least 29 people were killed and 88 wounded in 17 blasts within a little more than an hour Saturday night in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, police and government officials said.

All metropolitan areas in India have been put on high alert.

Several media outlets and the country's Intelligence Bureau received an e-mail, purportedly from the Muslim militant group Indian Mujahedeen, warning about a possible attack. The group has claimed responsibility for two similar attacks in the past nine months in northern India.

Most of the explosions were in eastern Ahmedabad and within a 10-kilometer (6.2-mile) radius, according to CNN's sister network CNN-IBN.

The Other Old Guy

Robert Novak behind the wheel:

Novak, who was cited for failing to yield a right of way, said in an interview that he was unaware at first that he had struck the pedestrian. After Novak had driven about a block from the scene, he said, he was flagged down by several witnesses, including a bicyclist who called D.C. police.

Novak, who was on his way to work when the incident occurred, said the bicyclist was "shouting at me that I couldn't just hit people and drive away. But I didn't know I'd hit him. I really didn't have any idea it happened until they flagged me down and told me."

Asked if he believed Novak's account of not seeing the pedestrian, bicyclist David A. Bono, 47, said, "No, I would not believe that."

Ah Hah

McCain. Visiting Colombia. Hostages freed. Suspicions arise. Suspicions confirmed.

Forbes (yes, Forbes) via All Spin Zone:

Leaders of the Colombian FARC rebel movement were paid millions of dollars to free Colombian politician Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages, Swiss radio said on Friday, quoting 'a reliable source'.

The 15 hostages released on Wednesday by the Colombian army 'were in reality ransomed for a high price, and the whole operation afterwards was a set-up,' the radio's French-language channel said.

Saying the United States, which had three of its citizens among those freed, was behind the deal, it put the price of the ransom at some $20 million.

The radio said its source was 'close to the events, reliable and tested many times in recent years.'

Buh buh buh BUT buh buh BUSH doesn't talk to or make deals with terrorists!

Well, except this time. And that time (bin Laden's wish for the US to vacate Saudi Arabia). And that time (the whole axis of evil thing). But talking to or making deals with terrorists is strictly verboten.

Okay...Let's See If Anything Improved Since I Stopped Following The News...

GAAAHHHH!!! YAAAAGGHH! NOOOOOOO! ARRRRG...oh, wait. This one's pretty cool.

Back to my hole.

Sen. Barbara Boxer on FISA

Proud to have her as my senator. If only she can convince Feinstein.

I voted to go after al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden, and I believe it is the responsibility of the Congress to provide all of the tools necessary to fight terrorism and protect the American people.

But we have another responsibility, I believe, of equal importance; and that is our responsibility to uphold the Constitution and the rights of our citizens.

While there have been improvements to Title I in the bill before us, the provisions in Title II that effectively grant immunity and block the Courts from moving forward and learning whose privacy was violated, simply put, undermine any improvements that were made to this bill.

These are extraordinary and difficult times. Our sons and daughters were sent to Iraq by our President to fight for our freedom.

But we should remember, as former Justice Thurgood Marshall said, “History teaches us that grave threats to liberty often come in times of urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.”

So our brave soldiers are fighting for freedom on one hand, while our government is covering up the erosion of our freedoms with the other.

This bill—while improved upon—does not strike the kind of balance we need between broadening the government’s authority to conduct surveillance and protecting the rights of our citizens.

We can and must do better, and therefore I oppose this bill.

Foregoing Safety for Political Pandering

Why your spinach and tomatoes are dangerous.

"The agriculture committees' orientation is not food safety," Waldrop said. "You can make small, incremental steps, but you are never going to make big structural food-safety changes through a farm bill."

There are several reasons for that.

Politically, the House and Senate agriculture committee members who write the farm bill tend to be protective of agribusiness. They aren't out to make enemies by imposing strict new rules.

Procedurally, responsibility for food safety is scattered among some 15 federal agencies. The farm bill focuses on the Agriculture Department, which handles meat and poultry. Produce and seafood are handled by the Food and Drug Administration. The standalone phrase "Food and Drug Administration" doesn't appear anywhere in the 673-page farm bill conference report, and the FDA is largely outside the bill's coverage.

Tactically, some lawmakers feared that a food safety commission would sap momentum for a more ambitious FDA overhaul. On Thursday, a House Energy and Commerce Committee panel will hold a hearing on the FDA's food-safety work, with some House members pressing to give the federal agency mandatory-recall authority over tainted food.

"This situation is another chilling example of the flaws in our nation's food-safety system," declared Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo.

NOW will you start your own garden?

No Tomatoes for You

Couldn't even get 'em at Subway last night. If California tomatoes are okay, where the hell is Subway flying them in from? Way to keep it local, guys.

National Average: Gas Hits Over $4 a Gallon

AP confirms it.

Drivers are paying an average of $4 for a gallon of gasoline for the first time. AAA and the Oil Price Information Service say the national average price for a gallon of regular gas rose to $4.005 overnight from $3.988. But consumers in many parts of the country have already been paying well above that price for some time.

Gas is expected to keep climbing, putting greater pressure on consumers and businesses, because the price of oil is soaring in futures markets.