buddha4brains comments

We all win, huh? Who is we? "We" does not include the workers who live in squalid conditions for low pay so the consumer can buy cheap goods. Nor does it include the agricultural workers who get sick because of pesticides and other chemicals (often passing them on to their children) so food can be bought cheaply. And then there are all those other externalities such as ground water poisoning, air pollution, soil erosion and on and on.

Capitalism still has a long way to go before it can be considered a winning way for everyone.

That must be why he congratulated Barack Obama and Joe Biden on their victory.

Yeah, he did it sitting down with a faux sore back. He just did not have the spine to stand up and accept the GOP defeat like a man (a reprise of his Vietnam days?), particularly to a black man.

Why would the Democrat-controlled Semate vote to deny Obama's request for $80 million to close Gitmo?

Sarge pay attention. The question of where to put the prisoners has not been resolved, so they said no. That's what happens in a democracy... you should read up on it.

Nessie I would not be surprised if he was suicided.

Where's he gonna get the money for all this?

Same place Bush got money for two wars.

19-year-old girl

Young woman would be more accurate (less sensationalist too).

A fact checking story on Yahoo had a long list of factual errors in Cheney's speech.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/3237981

Also, David Brooks of the NYT has an interesting take which puts Bush in a more positive light and Cheney about right where he is now.

“Seven-and-a-half years without a repeat is not a record to be rebuked and scorned,” Cheney said.

But those first 6 months do deserve rebuke and scorn. It is a wonder that Bush-Cheney did not take a political fall for 9-11. And not owning up to his failure to protect America only adds scorn and ridicule to his words now.

What are the odds of any regular joe knowing what the stuff going out of the wing is in the first place?

From some of the comments, apparently everybody knows but because they are all Japanese (no other Americans on board, you see) they are cultural damned without an American serviceman to save them.

The serviceman did good as did the flight crew. As for the decision to continue to SF rather than turn back was not that crazy as some say. If the decision to turn back or go on to SF happened a third of the way into the flight - when given the time and fuel spent to turn around and then return - then it makes sense to continue to SF. In any event the fuel loss was a serious incident, but not critical at the point of discovery otherwise the plane would have landed immediately.

Did you look to see who wrote this story? “By Tech Sgt Rey Ramon” I sort of agree with what you wrote, but I still think the airforce guy did a good job ...

Oh yes, I fully agree. My point was that the overall plane safety was due to everyone doing their part and that the article is biased in its focus on only one of the players. Authorship of the article does kind of suggest bias - though I wouldn't go so far as to suggest a desire to deceive or any other ill intent other that to pat a fellow soldier on the back.

Strange that the captain did not decide to divert until after the airman reported the leak from the wing. The crew already knew they were experiencing a sudden loss of fuel and it is highly unlikely that they would leave the US airspace knowing that the plane was losing 6,000 lbs of fuel/hour. The airmen were helpful in identifying the leak source, but unless the flight crew were complete idiots, the plane would have diverted anyway. Story reads more as a PR piece for the military at the expense of the competence of United's flight crew.

Both should have been praised since they all contributed to the plane landing without incident.

Abortion-on-demand, which is currently so politically correct,

Did you just time-warp from the 1980s? Nothing about the so-called abortion debate has be PC for a very long time.

As for science proving when live begins, it could happen but I doubt it would change much. Many pro-lifers have no problems with war, the death penalty, poverty and other such scourges of life, some have even killed in order to force change. On the flip side, many of those who protest war and the like support choice. This is not a science debate, therefore science will not end it.

If you are pro-life, then be pro-life from conception to the grave. And if you are pro-choice, then respect the fact that a zygote at the very least is a symbol of life.

OK. Now finally we agree on something.

And yet another world-famous Canadian.

Ah, the inevitable flag waving Canuck ... remember that we have Brian Adams, Celine Dijon, among others to remind us that we too make mistakes.

Shatner, the actor was indeed born in Canada, but Kirk, the character, is all 'Merican.

No teleprompter the International community is gonna make some bogus claims the the Junta has been shopping for yellow cake and has al qaida connections. Then they are gonna invade, kill lots of people, do some torture on the side and call it a day.

Of all the terrible things she has had to endure these years and then this idiot swims in from America to do what? Aid the Junta in keeping Suu Kyi under house arrest? Can there be any other reason?

I first thought this story was about Michael Palin, but it is this other joker.

Obviously he didn't see her interview with Sean Hannity.

Duh! Who does watch him? A bit elitist of you to assume everyone does.

Wasn't it the strategy of the Neocons to actually dive gov't into the ground ("drown it in the bathtub" is what I think the quote is) in order to force the collapse of the current system of gov't's social safety net and other non-neocon programs? So they drove gov't spending crazy with 2 wars and inept managing of gov't (remember "heck of a job"?).

And the cherry on top of this wet dream is that the DEMS, especially Obama, get blamed.

..this article is trying to make something out of nothing.

Well, if you don't have any stake in this country I guess you can say that. But I have taught students at Osaka Pref. Uni and I am not surprised. They are quite motivated and switched on students.

teleprompter what are you doing? Are not Cheney and Limbaugh able to stand on their own merits? Show how they are better than the opposition not how the opposition is worse.

Damn I'm glad to hear I'm not alone in hoping obama buckles the entire country to prove I'm right.

Well, ain't that the size of it? Ideology has to grow from the carcass of democracy.

Foaming at the mouth every damned one of them. This place has become some sort of radical support group.

Ha! Too true.

Actually, I think the far left and the far right (the self-described "patriots") are completely nutso. Both, through different means, want to control society and be the ruling power. Thankfully, democracy gets in the way of both to foil their worst laid plans.

There are 3 Hong Kong universities ahead of Osaka (44) on the world-wide list. Impressive Asian showing with the US and the UK dominating the top 50.

Limbaugh said Powell is “just mad at me because I’m the one person in the country that had the guts to explain his endorsement of Obama. It was purely and solely based on race.”

Well, of course Limbaugh would say that since that is how he himself votes. In fact, that is how everyone voted in America. In Limbaugh-world the whole 2008 election was only about race. Which gets me idly speculating that Cheney had his so-called back injury because he did not want photos of him standing and shaking hands with a black president.

And I enjoy opening and broadening minds.

When will you start doing that?

Many of us non-Americans are fascinated by America because it represents so many ideals that are part of any discussion any where about individual freedoms and rights. Even more fascinating is how some so-called patriots seem to not even understand this important role America plays in the world. If America loses its way, then we all lose.

Many of us do not see Cheney or Rush as men of virtue or valour, why would you expect us to warm to the idea of a Cheney/Rush ticket? They do not capture the imagination when the words leadership, democracy, or integrity come up.

Cheney is having another "senior moment".

But his first joke was about teleprompter. You must be busting with pride.

His administration is American policy now

Ah the cult of personality. Not really evidence of a belief in democracy, is it?