Good morning.

Today is our 4,125th day in Afghanistan.

We'll start this morning as we always do; with the latest casualties from our ongoing war, courtesy of Antiwar.com:

US Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 2,175
Other Military Deaths - Afghanistan: 1,083

We find this morning's cost of war passing through:

$1, 415, 727, 075, 000 .00

I've got a follow-up to Saturday's blog....I derided the F-35 for it's underpowered engine and ill-advised multipurpose role. Turns out that our English allies have discovered something new...it could blow up in a thunderstorm.
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86 comments (Latest Comment: 01/23/2013 06:22:52 by clintster)

Good Morning.

Just stealing a little of Vel's thunder this morning. I'm sure she won't mind.

Four years ago on this very day, We were on the National Mall with about 2 million of our closest friends. It was an amazing day, and you could probably look back for our accounts of it, lo those many years ago.

Not quite a month after the inauguration, I was laid off, and that precipitated a now four-year odyssey through many jobs, contracts, unemployment, and underemployment.

I also blogged a while back about how I was NOT better off than I was four years ago. But better than 3 years ago? 2 years ago? Last year? Well, HELL YA!

And so here we are again. President Obama will be sworn in at noon today, just like always, but in a private ceremony. Tomorrow he'll do it again in the big public ceremony. I'm sure the crowd won't be quite as big, but here's hoping that it's just as happy and civilized as last time. (Incredibly, nobody was arrested for anything four years ago.)

This year....with a not so new job under my belt (One year on Feb 8), full-bore medical insurance, and now cancer in remission.....there is a distinct possibility that that Hope and Change promised us a few years back might personally come to pass.

(And just imagine if the GOP was more interested in the United States than in maintaining their power....remember, they call US fascists, but everything they do is leading us down that path now, isn't it?)


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15 comments (Latest Comment: 01/22/2013 17:47:11 by bird)

On Wednesday, President Barack Obama released his comprehensive plan to reduce gun violence in general, and gun deaths in particular. It included a combination of legislative requests and Executive Orders. It is the latter that has the right-wing media and pundits, NRA apologists, and 2nd Amendment revisors out in full high dudgeon. How dare "King Obama" ignore the legislative branch with his actions (despite Dubya doing the same 291 times)? It's a wonder the TV cameras aren't covered in spittle.

So what exactly is in those 23 Executive Orders? Let's take a look:
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71 comments (Latest Comment: 01/19/2013 21:01:56 by bird)

I had a blog planned for Wednesday. It was to be yet another screed on something or other political. That all went into the dumpster when I found out that a friend is succumbing to cancer, and Raine and I will not get the opportunity to see him again.

Some of you may know John - he went by "Bounced Granola" at the old AAP board. He was a good activist liberal. We got to meet him the first time at a protest march in DC back when no one knew Raine and I were having an online "relationship". We all had a blast. We thought for certain he had figured it out, but - he hadn't.
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93 comments (Latest Comment: 01/18/2013 19:57:19 by bird)

As of last night our beloved curmudgeon was still in the Hospital. I'm hoping to make contact with him today.

So for now, let's send out the vibes for his recovery.. and intestinal fortitude.

and to Modo!
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98 comments (Latest Comment: 01/15/2013 04:02:03 by Raine)