I just have to laugh at the incessant whining from the McCain campaign, about how "the media loves Obama". Is Obama getting more minutes on the news? I don't doubt that, as what he's doing lately does make for a more newsworthy story, regardless of the political persuasion (first major presidential candidate of color repeatedly bucking the odds, and generating lots of enthusiasm, most lately on his Middle East trip vs. stodgy old fart with flappy cheeks who's one minute away from crapping his drawers, getting everything wrong so often you can't keep score anymore).

Plus, with all that extra media coverage of Obama, don't forget how many non-story/inflated b.s. sensationalist stuff was in that coverage… Rev. Wright, Bittergate, a bad bowler who just can't relate to the hicks in Appalachia, etc.

The press, with all of McCain's whining, is still his "base", and as he continuously goes more and more off the deep end into some factually-challenged twilight zone, we're seeing them actually cover up for him. This makes the press coverage of Bush in 2000 that downplayed he had the intelligence of a fourth grader look like nothing, by comparison. How perverted is it getting?  McCain completely screwed up his facts regarding the timelines of the surge and events surrounding it. CBS actually went ahead and cut out his horribly mangled answer and inserted the answer to a different question. Yeah, you just can't make this stuff up, I tells ya.Your liberal media at work:

The economy is saved! As any serious economicalist surely knows, the only way to guarantee prosperity and a booming economy for all is to cut taxes, regulations, all those pesky government programs and stuff that interfere with the purity of an absolutely, unregulated, uninhibited global market, and allow the super-rich to become super-duper-extra-rich. They then use their powers of hard-working genius (because you can’t be rich unless you’re a hard-working genius) even more than usual, and the benefits trickle down to all. It’s all about supply side maximization. Rising tides and boat raising and such. So the Wall Street Journal report today is awesome!

In a new sign of increasing inequality in the U.S., the richest 1% of Americans in 2006 garnered the highest share of the nation’s adjusted gross income for two decades, and possibly the highest since 1929, according to Internal Revenue Service data.

Meanwhile, the average tax rate of the wealthiest 1% fell to its lowest level in at least 18 years. The group’s share of the tax burden has risen, though not as quickly as its share of income.

Yay! This means the economy must be great!  Why, this must be a new golden age, just like it was back in 1929! Woo-hoo! Mission accomplished! I’m goin’ on a shopping spree (well, as soon as I get approved for my umpteenth credit card, anyway)!

Better not take our eye off these guys until the last minute, when “it’s” finally over.

How many regulatory time bombs are being slipped quietly into regulations in the last glory days of the Bush /Cheney administration ? The Dept.of Labor in a flurry of activity is making it harder to regulate work place safety from toxic chemicals.As with so many things in the up is down World of Bush this unannounced rule change allows additional ways for industry to challenge risk assessments.Dept of Labor as industry friend rather than labor advocate .

There are always last minute things to do for any administration leaving office but it is really boggling to think of the surprises the new White House occupant(and the entire country ) may be in for. Recall the accusation in 2000,later proven false ,that when the Bush team came to the White House  Clinton staffers had taken the letter ‘W’ from some keyboards.  Year 2009 may find a lot more than missing ‘W’ s. Chemical exposure in the workplace,factories and offices is a serious problem.Vermont had well documented problems with a toxic State office building .These are life effecting regulations that are being tampered with in secret that have the potential to damage peoples health.  Compassionate conservatives at work.

The agency did not disclose the proposal, as required, in public notices of regulatory plans that it filed in December and May……………..

The change would address long-standing complaints from businesses that the government overestimates the risk posed by job exposure to chemicals.

The rule would also require the agency to take an extra step before setting new limits on chemicals in the workplace by allowing an additional round of challenges to agency risk assessments.

The department’s speed in trying to make the regulatory change contrasts with its reluctance to alter workplace safety rules over the past 7 1/2 years. In that time, the department adopted only one major health rule for a chemical in the workplace, and it did so under a court order.



David Michaels, an epidemiologist and workplace safety professor at George Washington University’s School of Public Health, said the rule would add another barrier to creating safety standards, in the name of improving them.

“This is a guarantee to keep any more worker safety regulation from ever coming out of OSHA,” Michaels said. “This is being done in secrecy, to be sprung before President Bush leaves office, to cripple the next administration.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/…

So we know that McBush's big selling point is that he has a lot of experience in foreign policy and knows a lot about it, right?

Here we have another example of what he knows. I know all about linguistic competence vs. linguistic performance. Still, when the guy consistently gets significant points wrong, pretty much every time he opens his mouth, shouldn't it make us wonder if he has the first idea what he's talking about?

On the other hand, the greenhorn, Obama, has been saying for months that we should be getting out if Iraq in about sixteen months after he takes office.

You know who agrees with him? Iraq. 

So if the young guy knows what he's talking about, and the people we're supposedly trying to help agree with him, and the old guy doesn't have a clue, maybe we're safer with the young guy, huh? 

Now that the Secretary of State has posted the petitioned candidates, we are seeing what a good year this should be for the Democrats. A quick scan of the list shows that there are something like 25 more Democratic than Republican House candidates, and a similarly lopsided balance for the Senate. (One Republican candidate for six Chittenden County Senate seats, for one example.)

One example is in Barre Town, where for the first time in years we have two legitimate candidates for the House of Representatives. Take a look at what they have to say. 

July 22, 2008-
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: JP Isabelle, 802-999-7849
Isabelle.jp@gmail.com

Barre Town– John Pizzo, DC., and J. Guy Isabelle announced on Tuesday that they are entering the race to represent Barre Town in the Vermont State House.  In a unique twist to their candidacies, they plan to limit campaign spending and are working to set up a fund that will provide fuel and food assistance for Barre Towners in need this winter. 

In the spirit of former Vermont Governor and Senator George Aiken, Pizzo and Isabelle plan to spend as little as possible on their race.  In Aiken’s 1968 race for US Senate, his final campaign after an illustrious political career, he spent only $17.09. 

“We want to honor the memory of Senator Aiken by limiting our campaign spending to represent Barre Town in the legislature,” said Pizzo.  “Sen. Aiken knew that politics was about helping your friends and neighbors, not who could spend the most money.  We can’t justify spending large amounts of money on lawn signs and parade floats when our neighbors are enduring hard economic times. Guy and I are going to work hard without spending exorbitant amounts of money”.

“Our campaign is about people and policy, not politics,” said Isabelle.  “At a time when Vermonters are having trouble paying their bills, we want to do our part, even before we get to Montpelier.  Sen. Aiken worked with people of all political stripes to do what was best for Vermonters.  John and I will model our campaign and our service in the legislature after him”.

Pizzo and Isabelle plan to hit the ground running after their announcement.  They hope to meet with Barre Town businesses and community groups to hear what issues are important to them.  The two candidates will also begin a vigorous door knocking campaign in neighborhoods across Barre Town. 

“We want to hear from as many people as possible,” Pizzo said.  “We encourage everyone in Barre Town to contact us to discuss the issues”.

Candidate Bios:

John Pizzo has lived in Barre Town for over 25 years and has owned and operated a private chiropractor practice during that time.  He is a graduate of SUNY Buffalo and received his DC from the New York Chiropractic College.  He was appointed to the VT Board of Chiropractic Examiners by Gov. Kunin in 1986 and served for 13 years, seven of them as the chairman.  As a member of the board, Pizzo lead the effort to pass a scope of practice bill for chiropractors in 1992 and, in 1999, helped to write and enact into law a landmark law requiring insurance coverage of chiropractic services.  In 1992, he was named the Vermont Chiropractor of the Year.  He is a member of the National Board of Chiropractor Examiners test design committee and taught for four years at Community College of Vermont.  He currently serves on the Spaulding High School Board, where he was first elected in 2004 and re-elected in 2007.  He serves on the Negotiation Committee and the Policy and Curriculum Committee.  He is the volunteer physician for the state champion Spaulding High School football team.  He and his wife Lynda have two children and one grandchild.

J. Guy Isabelle has lived in Barre Town for over 50 years.  He received his BA from Johnson State College and was the first in his family to graduate from college.  He is the 58 student of long-time JSC professor and Washington county state senator Bill Doyle to run for office.  Isabelle is currently the director of the RSVP for Central Vermont and the Northeast Kingdom, as well as the director of the statewide Senior Companion Program.  He is also a member of the Governor’s Commission on National and Community Service, representing Vermont at various service oriented conferences around the country.  He served a combined 15 years on the Barre Town Elementary School Board and the Spaulding High School Board, with several years as Chairman or Vice-Chairman.  In 2000, he was named the recipient of the Wendell Pelkey Award by the Barre Town Selectboard for outstanding community service.  He has coached youth sports in Barre for over 20 years, has been a justice of the peace for over 15 years, served on the local board of civil authority, and has volunteered in numerous capacities on various community boards.  A British car enthusiast, he can be seen on weekends working in his garage or tending to his numerous flower and vegetable gardens. He has been married to his wife Rita, who is a nurse, for 29 years and they have two grown children.