Andrew Speaker has to be one of the most selfish people in the country.

He doesn't have the common cold or some other virus commonly found around the world. This man carries one of the most virulent forms of Tuberculosis known to exist and he decided that his honeymoon was just a little more important than the health of all of the people with whom he came into contact on his travels around the globe.

I sincerely hope that if there is any person in the world who is found to have contracted the strain from him, they sue him and get full medical treatment, paid for by Speaker, and punitive damages for his reckless behavior.

Speaker is a personal injury attorney who, if it weren't him in the hot seat, would most likely be standing in line to represent victims of this situation. Here is an educated man who made an informed choice to put thousands and thousands of people at risk.

I hope his wife knows what she is getting into (and I hope her negative TB tests don't convert to positive tests in the next several weeks.)

My thoughts and prayers are with Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R- Washington) and her husband as they begin their journey into the world of parents of children who have a disability. (Click here for article)


They will find their child is the light of their lives. Kids are kids are kids. Their challenges will be rooted in the relationships they will need to build with a variety of professionals in their quest to ensure their daughter has access to the supports and services that will help her develop to her potential.


As the parent of several children with disabilities the best advice I can give to new parents: focus on your child's strengths and shower your child with experience after experience. Whatever you have to do to communicate with your child- do it. Learn some basic sign language to see if it helps (it almost certainly will, especially in the first four or five years) and be patient as you wait for milestones to be met.


Make sure that the doctors treating your child value your kids and their futures.

I Am I Belong

by Susan Shogren Smith

Many years ago
People like me were left to die
The lucky ones were locked away
No one to visit them
No one to care for them
As they cried themselves to sleep
And craved for someone to come
They knew in time our day would come

Always remember that
On a different day
I could‘ve been you
On a different day
You could’ve been me
But fate got in the way
And chose our roles to play

Then one day
In the USA
Moms and dads began to fight
Began to demand our rights
They said "no more" and kept us home
They helped pass laws and open doors
They freed us from darkness
And helped us to hope

Always remember that
On a different day
I could‘ve been you
On a different day
You could’ve been me
But fate got in the way
And chose our roles to play

Who was I
In my mother’s dreams
Who was I
In my father’s hopes
What could’ve been
Will never be
But what will be
Could be better than you can see

Always remember that
On a different day
I could‘ve been you
On a different day
You could’ve been me
But fate got in the way
And chose our roles to play

Now here I am
Being all I can
Praying for your acceptance
As I try my best
Let it be enough
Let me lead my life
Help me find my way
Show me I belong

And remember that
On a different day
I could‘ve been you
On a different day
You could’ve been me
But fate got in the way
And chose our roles to play

I hate spam and if the arrest of Robert Alan Soloway leads to decreased junk mail in my inbox, I say throw the book at him- make him a scapegoat- use him as an example... (Click here to read article)

There are days I get over one hundred spam emails. I have been named in wills in countries all over the world...I can get Viagra... I can get a mortgage...lots of people have jobs for me...

It is ridiculous and I think congress should get on the spam problem- maybe it would take their mind off of the horrible immigration bill for a while...

Russia's announcement that it has developed an intercontinental ballistic missile that makes the U.S. vulnerable should raise concerns for Americans. (See Article in the Guardian) The Russian government launched a test missile that hit its target 3400 miles from the launch site.


The Bush administration previously moved to install defensive missile interceptors in Poland and the Czech Republic. Putin says he saw the move as threatening to Russia, hence Russia's hastened efforts to build military might.


The deterioration of relations between the West and Russia is apparent. The real issue is not how America should respond to Putin and the implication that Russia is escalating the post cold war showdown between our countries. The real issue is that the United States is struggling to maintain its position as the leader of the free world because freedom is under attack around the globe.

Ronald Reagan came to power at a time when America suffered from a deep-seated malaise. He motivated Americans to rediscover the beauty of our country and the superiority of our form of government. He showed the world that the U.S. would not back down when confronted by the enemies of freedom. Until recently despots around the world feared the will of the U.S. and this fear caused them to keep their behavior in check.

Today, these despots seem to be increasingly ambivalent about the strength of the U.S. They seem to question the ability of Americans to persevere in any battle to further freedom. America needs to convince its enemies that it will not abandon the vulnerable. America must be willing to use economic and military power to defeat those who attempt to prevent people from exercising their natural rights to life and liberty.

The principle "Peace through Strength" remains true. If our enemies believe we will use our might to defeat them, we will be less likely to have to use it. As the doubts about our will grow, we find ourselves increasingly faced with skirmishes that require intervention. The result of our perceived weakness is a greater need to prove our strength.

The anti-administration partisan attacks coloring our President as incompetent should stop at the waters edge. Instead, the vitriol bleeds into and across the sea, feeding foreign governments that yearn for the downfall of America. Nancy Pelosi's international escapades demonstrate her failure to grasp the importance of the appearance of cohesion and her failure to respect the Constitutional roles of each branch of government: Her behavior diminishes the image of the United States.

Putin, Chavez, Ahmadinejad, al-Assad et al believe they will outlast us.

The constant media attention highlighting the internal struggle between the parties undermines the strength of our country in the eyes of our enemies. Congress must make a very public effort to show that while there are difference between the parties, there is a common bond that cannot be broken. No matter how different our means, the end is the same: Americans will stand together to protect and defend the sovereignty and the future of the United States.

As dictators and leaders of communist or socialist countries push to minimize freedom, Americans must remember we are the world's greatest hope.

The greatest threat to the security of the world is a weakened United States.

Pay attention to what is happening in Venezuela as things are on a downward spiral.

As Chavez continues his march to become the ideological child of Castro, the people of Venezuela become more vulnerable to his dictatorial actions. (See Reuters article and Breitbart)

Chavez has shut down a radio station that has been in operation for 50 years. As he funnels the flow of information to the people of Venezuela, those people's loss of freedom becomes more evident.

A free press is vital to a free civilization. People can not be free if they can not access information that is independent of government control. The denial of information leads to the inability of the people to make decisions about their government. People who are denied access to information are forced to make decisions based on only a partial view of reality.

Chavez has centralized banking and the oil industry continue, politicized the military and the judiciary and established policies that ensure his tenure as President of Venezuela be extended. He has continuing on a path to limit political opposition.

Thankfully, tens of thousands of Venezuelans are publicly denouncing Chavez by marching in the streets of Caracas. Lets hope their numbers continue to grow and that their protests are not too little, too late.

We should also hope that free people around the world step up the pressure on Chavez to reverse his decisions and begin respecting the natural right all people have to be free.

Hilary Clinton has a lot of nerve- but I guess we knew that.

Her suggestion that we need to create a society based on shared responsibility and shared prosperity is interesting: If only everyone in our society who could take responsibility for their own prosperity would take responsibility for it, a more prosperous society would result.

I like the idea of living in a "we're all in it together society" but I want my neighbors to be people who are also contributing to all of our prosperity. Do I get to pick my neighbors in her society? Probably not...

I am more than willing to create a society that cares for people who can not take responsibility for their own prosperity. My son, who is totally deaf and totally blind, deserves to be cared for by a compassionate society. He can not wake up tomorrow and decide to see or hear. People who can choose to change their lives better should not expect the government to care for them while they dilly dally making poor choices.

HRod stated in her typical class warfare encouraging language: "I believe our government can once again work for all Americans." Our government shouldn't be working for people. The idea that the government must compel people to give of their wealth so that government can redistribute prosperity to those who perhaps are less responsible should be problematic to all Americans who hope to someday live a better life. (Of course one of the problems people like Hilary fail to acknowledge: there exists a segment of our society that is quite content to live a standard of life that those who seek prosperity would never accept.)

If Clinton really wanted to promote her talking point she could draft legislation that would offer a dollar for dollar tax credit for every dollar given to a charity in order to further this we're all in it together bologna.

Of course, you won't be seeing this anytime soon because her goal is not really to build a better society. Her goal is to fan the flames of distrust and to perpetuate the notion that those who have are selfish.

This Immigration Bill is an absolute disaster and any person who even remotely understands the negatives related to illegal aliens has to call their congressional delegation immediately!

To read the Bill and the changes to it go to Truth Laid Bear

Talk about tedious- no wonder no one in the congress has read it…

At one of my former jobs we had to initial every page of reports or memos to show we had read them. Maybe this would be the way to go with the congressman. I don’t care if their aides have read the bill- I want them to each state, maybe with a notary confirmation, that have in fact read the entire bill. If they haven’t read it, they should abstain from voting. This issue is one of the most important, and dangerous, bills considered by our Congress.

If congressmen and women had to read the things they vote on, nothing would ever pass. Would we be better off?

Some comments on illegal aliens and the Bill:

Congress should pass several smaller bills on immigration reform so that the necessary provisions get passed as soon as possible while the questionable amnesty provisions get the attention necessary to protect the sovereignty and the stability of our country.

Why is this discussion “all or nothing”? Proponents of the Bill seem to suggest we must either deport everyone or give all of the illegal aliens a path to residency and possibly citizenship? It is ridiculous- the CITIZENS of the U.S. deserve better from their representatives.

Also, maybe we should consider keeping track of the costs of caring for, housing and deporting the illegal aliens on a country by country basis and then bill back these expenses. For example, we gave Mexico over $30 million in foreign aid in 2005. (http://mexico.usembassy.gov/mexico/aid.html) Let’s deduct the costs of providing education, health care and social services to illegal aliens in America and then send them a bill for the surplus expenses. We should also bill back the costs to our criminal justice systems. These countries wouldn’t pay but making the information public would impact the public debate on this issue.

The language “Subject to the availability of appropriations for such purpose” creates a tremendous loophole. Basically Congress and the President pretend to solve some of the immigration problems but then will fail to fund provisions they passed.

In numerous provisions the bill authorizes the Secretary of Homeland Security to implement a variety of measures. The bill does not require the Secretary to actually implement provisions of the bill. The failure to require implementation of the many affected provisions is the equivalent of a parent telling their kids they can clean their room, if they want to.

Congress should pass legislation immediately to further secure the border. Congress could pass a bill creating a program to allow citizens to sign up for a time slot in which they can go to the border and personally help build the fence. Build it out of brick and every bricklayer in the country would probably show up. This is not rocket science.

Congress should immediately raise the bar by increasing the punishment for any employer who hires illegal aliens. Bush should direct his minions to enforce the laws currently on the books in this area, as well.

Some examples of suggestions for legislation that could be proposed by some conservative immediately:

(1) Offer all illegal aliens in the country the opportunity to leave the country within a reasonable time. Create system in which an illegal alien can notify the government when they plan to leave- allowing time to sell or rent out their property, give notice to their employer… If they are detained within this time, they will not face deportation or prosecution. Any illegal failing to file a notice of intent to leave legally will be deported and upon detention will be banned from receiving a visa in the future.
(2) Hire more border patrol agents- is 18,000 enough? Reward BPAs for every illegal alien they detain. Give border Patrol Agents the authority to use force to stop illegal aliens from evading capture. Impose minimum sentences to punish those who attempt to evade capture. For example- those on foot get a minimum of two years. Those in a vehicle get a minimum of 5 years. Those who create a danger to any government employee or civilian receive a minimum sentence of 10 years. Those who cause any serious injury to a government employee or U.S. citizen while attempting to evade capture receive a minimum sentence of 30 years in prison. Any illegal that causes the death of any government employee or U.S. citizen shall face a mandated term of life in prison. Any attempt to evade capture should result in a permanent ban from receiving an entry visa in the future.
(3) Build a double fence across every mile of open land at the southern border. This can be accomplished quickly through the use of multiple contractors working simultaneously. Provide incentive pay for early completion of the fence. Provide 24 hour BPA staffing of every open road between Mexico and the United States. Install barriers on every road between Mexico and the United States that is not staffed by BPAs.
(4) Catch and return all removable illegal aliens after their first capture in the United States. Charge criminally all aliens previously deported who are detained after subsequent illegal entry. Impose minimum sentence of 2-5 years for second offense. In order to reduce the costs of imprisoning illegal aliens, contract with other nations, outside the western hemisphere, to build and maintain prisons to house illegal aliens serving prison time for violation of immigration laws.
(5) Require employers to delay hiring any employee until identity is verified. Social Security numbers must be verified with Federal Government. Fine employers, both large and small, $1000 for every paycheck issued to an illegal alien.
(6) Every illegal alien deported shall be fingerprinted or subject to best available biometric identification methods available. All persons applying for any visa to enter the U.S. will be assessed for past immigration violations and will be denied a visa if previously deported.


The list of potential laws could go on and on.

As many liberals try to paint opponents to this bill as racists I wonder: Why do they cling to rewarding illegal aliens? Do supporters of this bill also think we should grant immediate entry to all of those law-abiding people around the world who so patiently wait in line? Of course they do not.

This inflammatory rhetoric spewed by supporters of illegal immigrants is anti the rule of law.

I am all for legal immigration and I don’t care what country an immigrant hails from, as long as that immigrant enters our country legally and follows our laws. Our government should be developing a more streamlined system that allows for more work related visas.

Our government should allow those who have been waiting in line the opportunity to come to the United States as quickly as possible. Our government should partner with corporations to develop policy that will match those on the wait list with vacant jobs.

And finally, this rhetoric about how America is a nation of immigrants is tedious and demonstrates shallow exploration of the issue of immigration, today. To those who claim America must continue to allow a never ending flow of immigrants into this country I ask: Will there ever be a time when we may need to consider limiting immigration?

The United States is no longer a country of open prairies Yes we may need workers from third world countries to come and pick green beans or nurses to work in under staffed hospitals or computer programmers to make Microsoft even more profitable. These people do not require citizenship and many don’t seek it anyways. Expand the guest worker program dramatically but give the visas to law abiders who have been responsible and waited.

The debate on immigration is not rooted in any sort of logic or fairness. It is rooted in inflammatory rhetoric designed to silence those people who seek to strengthen American sovereignty.

CALL YOUR CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION!

To find your representative click here
To find your Senator click here

It's been a busy week in the news but my sick kids didn't care. Priorities, priorities...

Bush took us on a roller coaster ride in that press conference today. (click here for text of speech)

He was on on Iraq. The removal of time lines from the war funding bill was a huge victory for Bush. The removal of billions of dollars of Democratic pork was icing on that cake.

Bush spoke honestly about the likelihood of more violence in Iraq as that country moves towards meeting the benchmarks required to prove the government is making progress towards independence. Pointing out that we are in that country at the request of the Iraqi government is a point that can't be made too often.

But then we have the immigration issue. How Bush can stand in front of the American people and make ludicrous statements about this horrific bill helping to secure our borders.

The bill reduces the size of the fence to secure that border by hundreds of miles.

The idea that this administration has done much to improve border security is generally laughable. What have they built 20 miles of the fence. The American people, if allowed to, would build that fence with volunteers in no time.

It's great that 1,000,000 people were apprehended before they succeeded in entering the country illegally. That tells us nothing about how many people actually did enter the country illegally.

Thankfully, conservatives have been given a reprieve on immigration as Harry Reid postponed a procedural vote on an immigration bill that could lead to amnesty for illegals and citizenship for their families. (click here to read about this) The reprieve may be brief so people anti illegal aliens should call their Senators now.

Republicans who support amnesty are in bed with the wrong people.

The amnesty bill Reid backs is a disaster for our country. (see Redstate post) If we think there is an issue with illegals now, wait until we give amnesty another try. There may be some nice illegals but there are plenty of not-so-nice illegals here, as well.

The Z visa plan will open the door to millions more people, many of whom will burden our social service, healthcare and educational systems.

Republicans need to stand up on this issue and link arms. There can be no giving on this issue. We are in serious trouble if Kennedy's bill passes.

Over the last several centuries, immigrants helped to populate the U.S. We no longer need millions of aliens entering the country. Illegal aliens should be encouraged to leave the U.S. through reduction in access to services. If they refuse to leave and are picked up by any government entity they should be deported and given a lifetime ban on reentry. If employers need workers, our government can open the spigots to people waiting, legally, in line.

Bush has got to wake up on this issue or his legacy will be that he assisted in the exponential expansion of immigration to the detriment of Americans today and in the future.

Interesting information about cyber attacks on Estonia.

The Guardian is reporting that Russia has used cyber warfare to attack Estonia after Estonian officials removed a Russian war memorial.

NATO is involved in assisting Estonia with this matter as relations between Russia and several other countries including Poland, Lithuania, the Czech Republic and Georgia deteriorate.

In a recent speech, Putin seemed to compare Bush and the United States to Hitler and Nazi Germany. (Click here and here to read about Putin's speech)

Americans need to pay attention Putin and to the actions taken by Russia.

The world is a dangerous place and getting more dangerous by the day.

The Democrats would like people to believe that Bush is the root of evil in the world.

Lets hope the American people are smart enough to realize there are serious threats out there and Bush is no where near the top of the list of people we need to fear.

Obama demonstrated his inability to control his youthful exuberance on Sunday when he spoke to a crowd in Kansas City.

He criticized Bush through his use of inflammatory rhetoric: "The day that this President steps down the entire world will breathe a sigh of relief."

Some of the world will breathe a sigh of relief and terrorists and countries who harbor them will be very grateful when Bush steps down, if someone like Obama takes over.

There are no Democrats currently able to send a chill down the spine of terrorists. That is why chances are good that a Republican will take over for Bush in January of 2009 and the war on terror will continue. Those terrorists who breathe a premature sigh of relief will quickly realize that the American spirit will prevail.

By the way Senator Obama, while the people in your world don't approve of the war many in America do and many around the world understand the threat of fundamentalist Muslims. You would be wise, if you really do want to be President, to step up to the plate with the bat of a grownup.

These trite comments won't solve the world's problems and may very well contribute to the resolve of those who would do this country harm.

Tommy Thompson's explanation about his performance in the May 3 debate is pathetic.

Thompson apologized for his comment that private employers should be able to make decisions to terminate employees based on their sexual preference.

His explanation: he had been sick and needed to use the bathroom and just for good measure his hearing aid battery had died so he hadn't heard the question.

That's interesting- because he answered the question in a logical manner. There was nothing wrong with his answer, other than it may have been incomplete. The government's continual and ever-expanding reach into the private business sector is wrong. People do not have a Constitutional right to have a specific job.

If a business owner believes that an employee's conduct will interfere with the success of the business, that business owner should be able to terminate an employee. Likewise, a business owner should be able to allow smoking in his or her business establishment. Despite the growing number of bans around the country, these smoking bans to protect employees are ridiculous. People can quit their jobs. Consumers can choose to go to a non-smoking restaurant or bar. The market will work if the government allows it to respond to business decisions.

As the parent of two Deaf children, his hearing aid excuse is pathetic. A quick "Can you repeat the question?" wouldn't have added more than 10-15 seconds to the exchange. Hard of Hearing people need to take responsibility for their interactions. If they miss information, they must ask for clarification.

How does Thompson expect the American people to consider him a viable Presidential candidate when he cannot manage his hearing aid batteries? And if he was so ill, he should have stated that up front and considered withdrawing from the debate. The American people don't really want to know about his toileting problems during the debate.

I know the Al Gore / Global Warming /Climate Change / Terra Pass people tell us that global warming can cause increased fires.

Now the vicious circle has officially begun because the countless forest fires and brush fires have to be contributing to global warming. The fires have been burning in Minnesota, California, Georgia, Florida, Massachusetts. Over 100,000 acres have been burned in Georgia alone.

I wonder if people who help fight the fires can chalk up "carbon credits" for their efforts.

Any people responsible for starting these disastrous fires should have to pay up and plant some trees.

The FBI deserves kudos for its capture of six terrorists in New Jersey.

The news media's coverage of the story varies greatly:

MSNBC's lead article on the arrest begins:

"Six foreign-born Muslims were arrested and accused Tuesday of plotting to attack the Army's Fort Dix and massacre scores of U.S. soldiers — a plot the FBI says was foiled when the men took a video of themselves firing assault weapons to a store to have the footage put onto a DVD.
The defendants, all men in their 20s from the former Yugoslavia and the Middle East, include a pizza deliveryman suspected of using his job to scout out the military base."

Newsweek took an entirely different approach to covering the story:
May 8, 2007 - "With the arrest of six men in New Jersey today, the FBI said it had foiled a frightening terror plot intended to inflict mass casualties at a major U.S. Army base. But nobody is breathing easy. The case is just the latest example of how homegrown Islamic militants are indoctrinating themselves in violent jihad theology by watching videos and surfing the Web—without any apparent direction from Al Qaeda or other organized terror groups."

***
Which version of the story accurately reflects the "facts" of the situation?

Leslie Stahl interviewed Lou Dobbs this weekend and implied that journalists need to be fair and balanced. She suggested that Dobbs has an obvious bias and therefore he isn't really a journalist in the same sense as for example she is.

Dobbs asserted that it is better for viewers to be aware of the innate bias a person has because they can use an appropriate filter as they digest the information presented.

Stahl fails to acknowledge some very basic truths: Everyone has a bias. When people deny their bias, they are deluding themselves. When members of the media deny their bias they influence the audience's ability to make informed decisions. When a news program chooses to use language like "undocumented worker" they send a different message than if they used the term "illegal alien". When the media discusses the Iraqi war and reports on the death toll of American soldiers but doesn't mention the numbers of terrorists killed, they send a message. When the media refers to people as "insurgents" as opposed to "terrorists" they send a message.

Stahl also seems to believe that facts are neutral. In reality, the facts pick a side. When members of the media don't like the facts they often don't report them. Why don't we see reports on the successes in Iraq- stories about schools being built, the infrastructure becoming more stable, Iraqi civilians risking their lives to join the police force or the military, the children flocking to the soldiers... These facts run counter to the majority of the media's position that everything that is happening in Iraq is bad.

Now we have terrorists captured in America. Are they "home grown terrorists" or "foreign-born Muslims"? The two are not necessarily mutually exclusive but the tone of the articles send very different messages.

I choose to think they are "foreign-born Muslims" who came to America to take advantage of our society while simultaneously hoping to destroy the things that make America the greatest country on the planet. They may have come as children, with parents who perhaps never really embraced the American Dream. They may have come as students, hoping to capitalize on the opportunities an American education will offer.

We may never know exactly how these six men became the terrorists they certainly are, now.

MSNBC encourages the idea that their roots in the Middle East are relevant.

Newsweek wants its readers to think that the American way of life is the root cause of terrorism.

The fact is that terrorists are almost entirely fundamentalist Muslims, whether homegrown or foreign born and raised. The problem is not America. The problem is fundamentalist Islam.

In a shocking string of events, liberals across France have rioted to protest Sarkozy's victory in the Presidential election. Actually, it's not so shocking. To read about the protests (click here) and (here) and (here)

Who are these rioters?

They are often referred to as either Arab and /or African immigrants, which is code for Islamic Fundamentalists.

What do they do to protest?

They burn cars (over 300 since the election) break shop windows, set garbage cans on fire, throw rocks... These people are just the kind of immigrants every country wants to welcome.

Why are they angry?

Sarkozy has pledged to establish rules like the unemployed must accept jobs they are offered, repeat offenders will face mandatory minimum sentences for their crimes, workers will actually need to start putting in a full work week and immigrants will no longer be able to bring their relatives to France as easily. (This policy change is the result of the perception that the French culture is being negatively impacted by "Arab and African immigrants" which again is code...

Wow! How dare he suggest such things!

Perhaps the most upsetting issue for the left: Sarkozy has pledged to work to rebuild the relationship between France and the U.S.

Lets all hope Sarkozy pursues and achieves his goals to move France in a better direction.

Sarkozy Wins!

In a huge victory for conservatives, Sarkozy won the Presidency of France with a 6% margin. Slightly more than 75% of the French turned out to vote. He will take over for Chirac on May 16th.

This is also a victory for America: Sarkozy is pro-America and hopes to improve the relationship between America and France that has deteriorated under Chirac.

Not surprisingly, the Taliban, currently holding a French foreign aid worker and several other afghans hostage, has threatened to kill the hostages if Sarkozy doesn't announce a timetable to withdraw French troops from Afghanistan. (click here to read article)

While time will tell how Sarkozy plans to deal, or hot deal, with terrorists, we do know several things about his plan for France. Sarkozy supports a longer work week and less vacation time. He seems willing to confront issues of social unrest.

Sarkozy stated: "France is undergoing an unprecedented identity crisis. Her model of integration has broken down, her social model is failing, her cohesion withers. A terrible doubt overcomes her. She has doubts about her values, her future, her identity, her vocation."

Let's all hope Sarkozy helps France embrace a value system that appreciates capitalism, individual freedom and personal responsibility.

McCain's support of federal funding for embryonic stem cell research is really tragic.

Embryonic stem cell research has failed to show any promise. The false hope that supporters encourage distract us from the research that is yielding results- adult stem cells and cord blood cells have offered tremendous successes. (click here for info)

The people who push for embryonic stem cell research are often pro-choice people who seek to devalue embryonic life.

The private sector has proven, time and time again, that it will fund those areas of research that show promise because there is a financial incentive to do so.

The standard for federal funding should always be high. Federal spending should be limited to necessary governmental functions so as to leave the states with the responsibility for caring for the people of the U.S. who live in their state.

Potential for success is so low that to put in place a public policy that offends the conscience of so many Americans is a violation of the public trust.

Some would argue that war also offends the conscience of many. War to safeguard the future of the U.S. is a legitimate function of the federal government, whether individuals agree with the policy or not. There is no provision in the Constitution for Congress to take over funding for medical research.

This is so controversial that no reasonable conservative is going to agree to the funding.

McCain may have fallen off his rocker on this one.

Lou Dobbs will be on 60 Minutes this weekend discussing his views on illegal immigration. (click here for CBS article)

In the interview he apparently tells Lesley Stahl that the U.S. could deport all of the illegals if our leadership decided to actually do it. Thank you Mr. Dobbs for being honest about this.

We must begin to address this problem. The demonstrations by illegals a couple of days ago proved, once again, that many of these illegal aliens do not love the U.S. and do not have the desire to assimilate into our culture. They are here to earn money to support their families at home, and take advantage of our social service, health care and educational systems.

The good news that came out of the May Day rallies: The number of marchers was greatly diminished from last year as there were reportedly wide spread fears of possible ICE apprehensions.

Also, any illegal immigrant with the nerve to burn the Statue of Liberty in effigy or drag our flag on the ground through the streets deserves immediate deportation and a lifetime ban from entry to our country. The fact that so many of these illegals believe they have every right to taunt American citizens in this way is really despicable.

If our government would deny social services and education to these illegals many would leave.

If our government would deny a visa to any person caught in this country illegally, many would leave so as not to take the risk of a permanent ban.

If our government would deny citizenship to the children born in the U.S. because their parents entered the country illegally, we would remove an incentive for them to come here.

There are so many things we could do to eliminate these illegal aliens. Sadly, we are doing almost nothing to solve this incredibly serious problem.

Maybe if Lou Dobbs and others like him continue to speak out the politicians may begin to take this issue seriously and begin to look at changing policies to protect our country.

This issue about disappearing Honey Bees seems far more important, immediate and life impacting than global warming yet it has received little attention. Labeled "Colony Collapse Disorder" Honey Bees are dying off around the world. (click here to learn about CCD)

Bee pollination is critical to agriculture and could impact well over 100 crops or 1/3 of our food supply. Bees contribute tens of billions of dollars to the U.S. economy.

There are many theories about what is killing the bees. Cell phones could be to blame. Some think electro-magnetic fields could be to blame. Others theorize gentically engineered crops are to blame.

In Australia, the theory is a mite is killing the bees. (click here for story)

In Pennsylvania, some Department of Agriculture staff are theorizing the loss of Honey Bees is related to pesticides. (click here for that story)

In Maryland, they're taking the position that the loss of bees is due to viral and mite problems. (click here for story)

In Idaho, agriculture experts haven't seen a big impact but are preparing for the problem as they recognize even healthy colonies can die off in a matter of weeks. (click here for that story)

Missouri is also affected by the CCD. (click here for article from Missouri)

Scientists around the world are trying to figure out what is actually killing the bees. Let's hope they figure it out soon- and determine that it's not my cell phone causing the problem.

George Tenet:

What a joke this man has become.

He worked for years building a career that seemed to deserve respect. He worked for multiple Presidents, which should say something about his talent. Instead, it now raises the possibility that he was merely an opportunist who behaved in a way that would promote job security. Did he ever really care about right and wrong? Did he promote policy that he believed in or that he thought would be popular?

It seems that this man was in fact a coward. He may or may not have agreed with all of the decisions made when he was Director of the CIA but he doesn’t seem to have spoken up and challenged people. He didn’t resign, which is what a person of conviction would have done if what he now says is true were in fact true.

This book is not about anything other than Tenet trying to protect George Tenet. As criticism for the war began to grow, Tenet decided to write a book absolving himself of responsibility for the decisions that were made. The book publishers wouldn’t have been nearly as interested in a pro-Bush administration book, so not only would an anti-Bush administration book clear him, it would garner him a lot of money.

In the end, he showed his true character: He sold out history and the truth for some money. He had had a book deal to write about his experiences working for two administrations. He backed out of the first deal because he needed to regroup his plan for the book. Maybe what happened is he realized he would be more successful personally and financially, if he focused on blasting Bush, Cheney and Rice.

Only time will tell if his book withstands the scrutiny of others who were also in “the eye of the storm” and decide to write about it. Then we will all have to decide which of the players have the most credibility.