The worst heat for the North - West Troposphere is (drum roll please) ICELAND ! Amazing and no one cares . 

Rescue Insurance

1000

That was a great moment:

SIMON: Because most of the search crews are volunteers, the burden to taxpayers is low. Still, despite the tragedy, some have suggested victims and their families should pay for mountain rescues. Mount Hood has no such requirement. And most here believe rescuing climbers should be a free public service.

No insurance, no rescue. Good, real good. You guys are so warped on this program. I was once a member of a mounted search and rescue. It was rewarding, we practiced and had training sessions and became experts. We kept in shape and our horses were endurance trained. Get over it Anderson, there are just some people who give a damn without collecting a paycheck and you ain't one of them. What next?

Don't you all care about the immorality of money? Money is grossly immoral especially when someone is going to send you a bill for a failed rescue no matter how much they tried. Morality is not a concept well developed on AC 360.

Buffalo, NY in an average winter gets about well over 100 inches.

Here is your raw data, Bubba.

Pat Shingleton for Dec. 18

Arnold Finklin is a retired meteorologist who has researched 100 years of snowfall data to determine the snowiest cities in the Lower 48. The snowiest “inhabited” site is Blue Canyon, Calif. At a 5,280-foot elevation on the Sierra Nevada, its annual average is 241 inches. Soda Springs, Calif., near the Donner Pass, averaged 393 inches each year from 1931 to 1957. Alta, Utah, logged an annual average of 513 inches from 1951 to 2000. Mount Rainier National Park averages 682 inches per year. The snowiest Western town: Crested Butte, Colo., at 233 inches. In the rest of the country, Marquette, Mich.; and Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester, N.Y., have averaged between 129 and 161 inches. Fastcast: Warm.Chris, one word) additional weather information: Chris Stevens will provide the fastcast and additional weather information through December 26. 336-2394, 336-2363, 505-0583, 709-0174

http://www.2theadvocate.com/columnists/pat/4941302.html

BUSH: I'm going to make you this promise: My administration will work with Republicans and Democrats to fashion a new way forward that can succeed in Iraq.

THAT IS A DESPERATE MAN.

... and the quote of the day ...

BUSH: Victory in Iraq is achievable. It hadn't happened nearly as quickly as I hoped it would have.

... ah, go ahead make a prediction... say something clever like, "... in the year 2007 we are finally going to smoke'em out."

BUSH: I'm not going to make predictions about what 2007 will look like in Iraq.

Let's get up to speed. It would seem the Chinese have more reverence for the USA military dead than Bush does. I think once recognized the NUMBER of dead once. He doesn't talk about it too often.

US death toll nears 3,000 in Iraq(Reuters)Updated: 2006-12-23 09:35

BAGHDAD - The US military on Friday reported the deaths of five more soldiers in Iraq as Defense Secretary Robert Gates ended a visit aimed at finding a new strategy to curb violence and allow US troops to withdraw.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2006-12/23/content_765983.htm

Let's see, what is Mike's latest update?

December 22nd, 2006 2:31 pm5 U.S. troops die west of Baghdad

By Christopher Torchia / Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Insurgent attacks killed five more American troops west of the Iraqi capital, the military said Friday, making December the second deadliest month for U.S. servicemen in 2006.

This month, 76 American troops have died in Iraq, the same number that were killed in April. With nine days remaining in December, the monthly total of U.S. deaths could meet or exceed the death toll of 105 in October.

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates flew back to Washington on Friday to give President George W. Bush his advice on transforming U.S. policy in Iraq after holding three days of talks in the war zone with military and political leaders. Gates was scheduled to see Bush at the mountain retreat of Camp David on Saturday morning.

The White House said Bush would meet his full National Security Council next Thursday during a stay at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. That session was designed to whittle down the options rather than make final decisions, said Dana Perino, a White House spokeswoman.

Bush is considering whether to quickly send thousands of additional U.S. troops to the country to control the violence. There are 140,000 American troops in Iraq.

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=8726

20,000? More? NO ! You didn't do good with the first 160,000 we gave you !!! Besides, Bush is such a flyin' liar.

COOPER: Well, John, how do the Democrats play into all this? I mean, how are they -- you know, there was a lot of talk about bipartisanship and -- and consulting one another. How is that going?

You all have to know that bipartisanship isn't going to exist. Not really. We can't trust the Republicans. They raped this country. Carpetbaggers, every one. I don't see anyone being bipartisan. Why? If the Democrats collaborate with the Republicans they will be as dirty as they are. I just don't see it. The Democrats have completely different values than the Republicans. They won't starve the troops but at the same instance they aren't the puppets the Republican legislature is. I don't see any Democrat covering Bush's tracks either. No Senator Spector moments or any of that. Basically, if Bush wants to do something NOBLE in his last two years the best he'll do is sign on the dotted line of well written and moral legislation. Cost effective, too. Might include some tax increases and rollbacks like subsidies to Halliburton and Dick Cheney. You know, those sort of things.

Insurgents offer U.S. 30-day truce to get out of Iraq

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/12/22/iraq.main/index.html

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- The leader of an umbrella organization for Iraqi insurgent groups is offering the United States a one-month truce to withdraw all U.S. forces from Iraq and turn over its military bases "to the mujahedeen of the Islamic state."

In an audiotape posted on Islamic Web sites Friday, a speaker identified as Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Mujahideen Shura Council, said that if U.S. forces begin withdrawing from Iraq immediately and leave their heavy weaponry behind, "we will allow your withdrawal to complete without anyone targeting you with any explosive or anything else."
"We say to Bush not to waste this historic opportunity that will guarantee you a safe withdrawal," al-Baghdadi said on the audiotape.

Oh, yeah. I find that whole concept of a 'Ceasefire' very interesting. The Iraqis are actually saying they are in control of a ceasefire. Interesting. You have to know that Abu Omar al-Baghdadi is a generic name for the leader of the Baghdad rebels. He exists but that is like a code name. It's not real. I would love to know whom these men were. Iraqi police, maybe? Hm. So, according to this the rebels are rebels because we are there. Bush should accept the offer, it would allow an entire month to exit Iraq while cleaning up the munitions. Sounds like a good deal.

Yep.

I think I'll turn on the tube for awhile.

1000

"Across the country and around the world, this is ANDERSON COOPER 360" !!

Why us !

Mount Hood - I don't believe we will see those men again. They should release the pictures. It might be too painful to the families but they probably have already seen them. It would give the public who waited and hoped for so long to come to terms with what they were facing and why their climb went so much better than their return. They made it to the top. That was no minor accomplishment. It's upsetting to realize the hardest part was yet to come.

"The MLU was born out of tragedy right here at Mount Hood."

There needs to be some kind of regulation. To realize the loss of human life and the cost that went out to try to rescue these men is to realize a better way. I don't believe Mt. Hood is a national or state park. Probably wrong about that, but, there is a website that is somewhat troubling given the events of the last week or so.

Virtual Mt. Hood Climb

http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/2483/virthood.htm

The pictures of the virtual climb are interesting BUT when one looks at the provisions that are stated are needed it gets a little upsetting.

Climb Smart!

http://www.geocities.com/Yosemite/2483/smart.htm


1. Topographic Map
2. Compass, altimeter
3. Flashlight/Headlamp, spare bulb & batteries
4. Food
5. Insulating Clothing layers & wind proof shell
6. Space blanket or bivy sack
7. Sunglasses
8. First aid, sunblock, & medications
9. Pocket Knife
10. Matches/Lighter
11.Helmet
12.Ice Axe
13.Crampons/snowshoes/skis
14.Water

That is a very sparse list. There is no tent, sleeping bag, ground cover and list goes on from there. Water supply, duct tape, there is no mention of climbing gear itself, not even a rope, a back pack capable of carrying 60 pounds of gear in potential weather conditions like this and it makes no mention of an MLU. $5.00 to rent one and somehow it's not required to climb that mountain. If I were going up the mountain there would be no doubt in my mind about not only renting one but making sure it was in good working order and what it took to keep it working well the entire trip. No doubt that this would be a necessity.

It's nearly impossible to stop people from embarking on a dangerous hike/climb up a mountain if they are that intent on it, but, at the same time when folks come into a store for equipment there needs to be some kind of certification before they purchase materials such as these. Crampons and ice axes aren't just your usual walk in the woods. If one is to scuba dive there has to be classes and certifications in order to purchase or rent equipment to facilitate that, it needs to be the same here...

There is The American Safe Climbing Association

http://www.safeclimbing.org/

...and they are backed by high end product manufacturers like Black Diamond. It's the only way to fly. These guys know what they are doing, you know?

The Iraq War

We never belonged in that country and we don't belong there now. There is some reality today that all of a sudden the Sadr folks are more powerful than al Qaeda in Iraq. That is bulloney. There is nothing different today than a year ago. The Shi'ites have armed themselves because they became a majority with power. To them that was security against being killed. I don't blame them. At all. 50,000 people were killed in 2002 and the Saddam jerks cut off the water to them and their wetlands. That is being completely at the hands of lunatics and there were pictures of Rumsfeld shaking Saddam's hand while instilling him into power. Then the USA invades the country illegally. What did Bush think would happen? Then he attacks the Mosque No forethought, just knee jerk Texas '...smoke 'em out...' lunacy.

And not to leave out the Sunnis, the USA military simply leveled Fallujah with complete abandon. What the heck was that all about and it sure didn't seem to accomplish anything.

Gates needs to realize an exist strategy for the troops and hold to it. He better do a good job, too. No 'last soldier out' scenario either, that dies on the rooftoop !!!

Ben Wedeman

Pretty scary in Palestine, huh? The 'authorities' are stating there is a cease fire. Abbas claims this time it's for real. It sure doesn't look that way on the Palestinian street, does it? You know the Hamas leader got caught at the border with a few suitcases full of cash and all of a sudden Abbas states there is a ceasefire that will hold. Ya, right. You think maybe he's trying to convince The Arab League to turn over the cash, Ben?

Here ya go, straight from Dubai. Our friendly neighborhood American Ports management firm. Way to go, Jihad, huh, babe:

Jihad will 'liberate Palestine'

Dubai - Al-Qaeda number two Ayman al-Zawahiri said in a video aired by Al-Jazeera television on Wednesday that only jihad can bring about the liberation of occupied Palestinian territory.
"Any road other than jihad will only lead to loss. Those trying to liberate the land of Islam through elections based on secular constitutions or on decisions to surrender Palestine to the Jews will not liberate a grain of sand of Palestine," said Osama bin Laden's right-hand man.
On the contrary, "their attempts will lead to choking jihad and besieging the mujahedeen", he said.
Muslims will not win the West's approval if they retreat, irrespective of their skills in manoeuvring and talking, Zawahiri said.
It was not immediately clear when the videotape was recorded, and its authenticity could not be independently confirmed.

http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,9294,2-10-1462_2047199,00.html

Hey, ya know, when the going gets tough and it looks like The West might be right, call al Qaeda.

Fred Goldman

When it this ludicrous mess going to stop? When are women going to be safe in this country from violence and when will nice guys finish first? Ron was a nice guy.

It's Florida. What else is there to say? The illegal fortune of the Bush Family has to be safe somewhere. Maybe not that Jeb is out there might even be some reform to the laws that victimize families like the Goldmans.

Brook Anderson

Any relation to Pam, Andy?

You know what her new title is, don't you? Some circles are calling her "Mistress USA."

enough

Behold the rare lifelong Seattleite (click on)

When I do come across others who spent their formative years in the area, we tend to swap big knowing smiles like long-lost childhood pals. "You went to Camp Orkila too?" We nod and take turns trading local references from our childhood and teen years. Our transplanted peers, clueless about the Seattle of the '80s, let alone the '70s, watch in silence as we whisper in a secret code of bygone Seattle: "Almost Live! with Ross Shafer." "Aaron Brown on the local news." "Food Giant."

Aaron Brown

U.S. anchor discusses his Judaism

By JENNA ROSMAN
CJN Intern


TORONTO - When former CNN anchor Aaron Brown was 13 years old, his rabbi in Minneapolis, Minn., told him that a reporter’s job is “to give voice to the voiceless.”

“Think of our history and all of those centuries when no one heard us,” said the rabbi, whom Brown counts as a significant figure in his life. “Think of how different Jewish history would be if in all the times we had been stifled, someone heard us.”

It’s a principle the veteran U.S. journalist said has guided him throughout his career – and particularly as he’s covered the Middle East, even if it’s sometimes alienated him from his fellow Jews.

Both Palestinians and Israelis are entitled to a voice, he told the annual UJA Federation donor dinner, May 4 at the Four Seasons Hotel.

“I’ve done that knowing that neither side would embrace me, and that the rejection of one side, particularly, would be especially painful,” he said in a 30-minute speech to 450 guests. “In the end, we all want the love of our families, and I’m no exception. I want to be embraced by my people, because I’m one of them.”

Brown – who was once CNN’s lead anchor and host of Newsnight with Aaron Brown, but was replaced last year by Anderson Cooper – said he has often felt pressured by other Jews to stifle what could be seen as criticism of Israel.
“There is no tougher issue to report on than the Middle East,” he said.

Brown recalled doing a story about checkpoints in Israel that examined both the Israeli and the Palestinian positions.
Soon afterward, he received two e-mails almost simultaneously. The first was from “someone of Arab descent,” who wrote, “You are a Zionist pig. Just another tool of the Israelis.”

The second came from a Jewish doctor, in Denver, Colo. “‘You are,’ he said to me, ‘not better than a concentration camp kapo, selling out his people for money.’”

Brown wrote back: “‘At worst, what we have here is an editorial disagreement about the decision I made. That’s the worst thing that we have here, and your words were offensive beyond the pale.’ And to his credit, he wrote back and apologized, and we remain in touch today.”

Brown also spoke of growing up in Hopkins, Minn., near Minneapolis, as one of only a few Jews. “We weren’t particularly theologically Jewish, but we understood what it meant.”

His maternal grandparents came to the United States from Ukraine and settled in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
He said he’s made it a tradition to take his 17-year-old daughter each year to Ellis Island in New York City, where they sit in the Great Hall and talk about how his grandparents “came here, how they lived, how they made their lives, what it must’ve been like, the courage that they had, the fierceness it must have taken.”

He added, “Someday, I hope, she will take her children there and tell the story of her great-grandparents that she never knew.”

Referring to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Brown said that “the Israeli side is easier to understand,” since Israelis “see their future not in a pipe dream of a greater Israel, but in a two-state solution that will ultimately provide the security that they need and that they deserve.”

He said Hamas’ victory in recent Palestinian elections was not about most Palestinians favouring Israel’s obliteration, but rather about a desire for change in the Palestinian Authority, which was “rife with corruption, slow to deliver social services, health care, education… and had no security.”

Brown said the Palestinians voted for Hamas because of their situation, which they felt could not be worse.
“Of course, Hamas could be worse. And they turned out to be worse,” he said.

“How can it be that young Arabs find more hope in a suicide belt than in democracy?” he asked. “Hamas understands really well what it means not to be in power. Now all of a sudden, they own a store – they have keys to the store. They don’t know how to run foreign policy and they don’t know how to run a country either. They do know how to run social services, however, and they certainly know how to run suicide bombers.”

Speaking of the anti-Americanism, that is rampant in the Middle East, Brown said the Arab world hates the West because of its foreign policy, but not because of its freedom.

He noted that the United States has supported corrupt governments that have denied citizens basic rights.
“And that has to change,” he said.

Brown added that Iran has become further radicalized since 9/11, and “whacking Iran will make attacking Iraq seem like child’s play.”

In an interview after his speech, Brown said both Palestinians and Israelis have a common desire for peace, but “no one is quite willing to start the process.”

He added: “The end is quite clear. The Palestinians will get most of the West Bank and it will be less contiguous than it probably ought to be, certainly than they want. East Jerusalem needs to be dealt with. But by and large, I think both sides know what the final map will look like.

“It’s totally backwards to how every negotiation works. In every negotiation, starting is easy and ending is hard. This one, you know the end and you can’t start it.”

http://www.cjnews.com/viewarticle.asp?id=9291

Now is not the time for weak wills. It is too easy to kill people in Iraq. It takes guts to pursue diplomacy

1000

So, Frankenstein still works there, huh? That's a shame.

World leaders light candles for Hanukkah

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3341803,00.html

The survival of the other two men is sadly in question as their families face holidays without them. I admire them as people and their dedication to each other. They loved the life they shared.

Photos Raise Survival Concern For Men Stranded On Mt. Hood



http://www.kxan.com/Global/story.asp?S=5835160&nav=0s3d

We are back to a clear understanding of a troposphere with an Arctic Ocean vortex that due to the curve of the Earth reaches primarily to 36 North latitude. There is some 'break through' moisture from the equator across the warmer terra firma of Mexico, southern USA. The water vapor map below is worse. This clear demarkation is a separation of moisture and turbulence with drought conditions persistenting to the equator below 36 N.

The same pattern can be noted here but the vortices are more easily discerned. They are huge and very strong. It contriubed to the severe wind on Mt. Hood that caused such harsh weather at high elevations. 

I am sure I don't have to go through the squamous cell carcinoma thing. I have great concern for the First Lady's health and the attention she deserves. I am confident every effort to eradicate any further threat to her life has been taken and she will be fine. I wish her and her family health and happiness for the holidays.

Not much in the news these days about Senator Tim Johnson. Reports sort of stopped about the 16th when it would seem his recovery was very hopeful. I hope his family is finding solice this holiday in realizing his recovery may very well be remarkable and he'll be able to continue this chapter as a USA Senator after all.

Defense Secretary Gates.

I don't have much hope for his role in this administration. It's a thing left over from Reagan and Iran-Contra. I think the guy has the "W"rong idea about the region. He needs to focus on the fact that radicalizing Shi'ites by killing off those that rather seceed from the Unity Government is a very bad idea. That is not a threat either. These people have suffered for a long time. This isn't a grab for power in order to carry out some grandiose plan as Osama bin Laden did from AFGANISTAN.

The Shi'ites although more than unsophisticated in their approach to international recognition have been an oppressed reality of the Islamic faith. As far as I am concerned it is a foregone conclusion that Middle East leadership not tied to a geneological tree leading to Mohammad is stimuli to and for rebellion.

It is why the Shah of Iran fell to the Ayatollah Khomeini. Prior to the Khomeini take over the Shi'ites were on their way to having their religious leadership distroyed. The lineage to their savior, if you will, was broken and they were upset about it. It is why the hostage situation that destroyed Carter's presidency that lead to the failed attempt at rescue by American helicopters in the desert.

Iran today is a direct reflection of a radicalization that has taken place because AGAIN the Shi'ites are feeling threatened. Before the Iraqi invasion by the USA, the 'tone' in Iran was very different and moving toward a more moderate government and a representative one. That has been put 'on hold' while the Shi'ites of the entire region reassess their future and the tenuousness of their ties to their religious lineage.

It is a huge mistake to kill any religious men as it not only indicates complete disregard for their religious importance but also places the very basis of their existance spiritually at a genocide proportion. I am confident when examing the definitions of genocide under the UN Charter there is a clear understanding of cultural genocide that adheres to the laws of World Court proceedings.

Putin and Assad Talk Middle East Peace

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2006/12/20/003.html

Syrian President Bashar Assad, meeting Tuesday with President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin, welcomed Russian efforts to play a bigger role in the Middle East.
"Our strategic dialogue with Russia is based on Russia playing a more effective role in the Middle East," Assad said at a news conference after meeting behind closed doors with Putin. "Russia has begun playing a real role in the region."
Assad plans to be in Russia for three days.
Fighting between Palestinian factions and the political crisis in Lebanon topped the agenda at the Assad-Putin meeting; Russian officials declined to comment on the talk. Russia has weighed in on both the Palestinian quagmire and Lebanon as it has sought to reassert its regional presence.
Assad, speaking at the news conference at the President Hotel, called the meeting "successful and constructive" but declined to offer any details.
Putin, for his part, noted that he had recently met with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

Lebanon Still Reeling From War, Assassinations

http://voanews.com/english/2006-12-19-voa51.cfm

The past year has been a particularly troubled time in Lebanon. The country wrestled with political instability following the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005, and the subsequent mass protest movement that led to the withdrawal of Syrian troops. 2006 was supposed to be a landmark year, when Lebanon was finally run by its own government, on its own terms. But the sudden outbreak of war in July shattered Lebanon's fragile stability and exposed political rifts that had long lingered under the surface. Middle East Correspondent Challiss McDonough looks at Lebanon's problems in this VOA yearend report.

The arm sales to Syria is a direct result of Bush's escalating 'war chant.' Bush's war presence in the Middle East is a hazard in every way and will threaten the well being of Israel for some time to come. Bush is not a good ally to Israel. In the conflict over Southern Lebanon he was unable to arm Israel through the resistance of the British. If Bush cannot assure Israel wtih confidence WHICH HE CAN'T then Israel is better off negotiating with Russia as an intermediary to bring about peace between all the other nations of the region. I am sure Jordan and Egypt would welcome a continued summit to that effect.

Moscow and Damascus discuss Middle East

http://euronews.net/create_html.php?page=detail_info&article=396886&lng=1

An internationally isolated Bashar al-Assad is visiting Moscow for talks with his Russian counterpart, President Vladimir Putin. Syria and Russia have long-standing political and economic ties. Last year, Moscow wrote off nearly three quarters of Syria's 10 billion euro debt. On the agenda are peace efforts in the Middle East, interfactional tensions among Palestinians and the ongoing political crisis in Lebanon.They will also discuss Russian arms sales to Syria which are strongly criticised by Israel. It says many of these weapons ended up in the hands of Hezbollah fighters during the recent conflict in Lebanon. Assad's visit follows Putin's talks with Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.He claims to have secured Russia's backing in his struggle against the pro-Syrian opposition which continues to stage daily protests in Beirut demanding the government resign. Some are concerned opposition calls for early elections could complicate efforts to end the country's worst political crisis since the civil war.

By providing support to Syria's military, Russia is placing itself in a position of influence in an alliance that is stated to be based in a goal of peace. There is absolutely nothing to make me believe differently. The UN Peacekeepers are on the ground between Lebanon and Israel and there has been a peace maintained through those efforts. However, if these arms mean anything it is not about Israel so much as the potential border war with an escalation of violence in Iraq as Bush pushes his agenda of confrontation 'Surge.'

Israel needs to be prepared to defend itself at any rate. If the Shi'ites in Iraq are attacked there is no predicting the outcome elsewhere.

Joe Johns had a somewhat interesting message, but, it would have been better if the rest of the program reflected the economy of the country, the influence the USA has on it's economy in the policies it generates and the direct adverse effect those policies play. It is not just a matter of getting cheap sugar for the USA recipes for the season at hand, it is a matter of changing policy to reflect fairness in the market place. If there was fairness in the market place there would be room to complain to the conditions these people sustain to make some kind of living. This is not a consumer issue. It is a Bush administration issue.

The program goes on with a lot of Christian stuff and typical for the bigotry of this network. So, good of you all to mention Hanukkah at the beginning of the show to CYA. Will there every be a program that won't be some kind of Christian theme where Israel is actually the focus?

enough

I want an apology, Cooper, for your 'Death Warmed Over' show

Reid: Sen. Johnson 'going to be just fine'

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/12/17/johnson.ap/index.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Sen. Tim Johnson has shown significant improvement after brain surgery and doctors say "everything is going to be just fine," Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said Sunday.

Yet when asked whether the 59-year-old South Dakota Democrat was conscious, Reid said in a television interview: "I'm not a doctor. I have heard and talked to his family. You should talk to them. It's not appropriate to talk to me about that."

Reid, who has visited Johnson frequently after the surgery Wednesday following a brain hemorrhage, said "he's doing very well. ... His improvement has been significant."
Johnson has responded to voices, opened his eyes and moved his limbs, a spokeswoman for senator Johnson's office said.

Surgeons at the George Washington University Hospital have said Johnson was experiencing post-surgery swelling in his brain, but they said that was normal. (What happened in Johnson's brain? )

"Doctors tell us everything is going to be just fine," Reid said.
Johnson's spokesman, Noah Pinegar, said Sunday the senator remained in critical condition. "The goal has been rest," Pinegar said. He said he could not answer whether Johnson is conscious or sedated.

HE UNDERWENT a repair. He will more than likely fully recover with significant rest. I am sure you also understand 'PRIVACY RIGHTS' although Americans have so little these day. Reid or anyone else has no right to comment on his health or outcome as a matter of privacy. I hope the good Senator strides out of the hospital to some respite for the holidays and never says a word to anyone except 'thank you for your kind support.'

Jerks.

And no matter how much your try, Copper, you won't be able to raise Bush or the USA military to a status of respectful. The conditions Iraqis, after three long years of war are living under is anyone's guess.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9A_vxIOB-I&mode=related&search=

This is disgraceful. These are all young men in Baghdad racing for a bottle of clean water. What do they normally drink that they are so willing to run for to the point of their hearts' bursting open? This is one of the most horrible footages I have ever witnessed. Besides this one where the children are harassed for amusement.

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/U.S._soldiers_lead_Iraq_children_in_1214.html

Additionally, General Abuzaid is using the Iraqi Civil Courts as war tribunals of POWs? This is one of the most disgraceful militaries of our times. There is nothing here that elevates any of the misdeeds above that or Vietnam, as a matter of fact it's far worse. Don't even try it, unless of course you like making a fool of yourself..

There is no rejecting the Iraq Study Group's Hard Work and Dedication

1000

STEPHEN BIDDLE, SENIOR FELLOW IN DEFENSE POLICY, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: I think it's unsound, and likely to -- to lead both to an increase in sectarian violence and, downstream, to an increase in U.S. casualties.

That is defamation of character of some of the finest minds this country has trusted to lead and not to follow. I am impressed with the dedication of all the members of the Iraq Study Group and if there is one member whom stands out as a consistent insightful influence it is Lee Hamilton. He was a member of the 911 Commission which meet with great resistance until Former Governor Kean made it perfectly clear there was no rejecting the results of that commission. I have a feeling the Iraq Study Group needs to 'tour' the country to promote insight to their views. It is a small enough book to read and every American interested in the best outcome of our soldiers needs to read it. The brevity is all too clear, especially when Lee Hamilton is stating 'weeks or days.'

There is no rejecting this. It exists. It has brevity and it matters. Diplomacy is a must and the incorporation of the regions' countries to bring about a peaceful measure for all Iraqis whether a Unity Government stands or not is vital.

Protest against U.S. Iraq Study Group report held in Iraq

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/12/africa/ME_GEN_Iraq_Protests.php

KIRKUK, Iraq: About 1,500 people marched through Kirkuk on Tuesday to protest a recommendation by the U.S. Iraq Study Group that a referendum on the future of this oil-rich city be delayed.

The commission, headed by former U.S. Republican secretary of state James A. Baker III and former Democratic congressman Lee Hamilton said: "Given the very dangerous situation in Kirkuk, international arbitration is necessary to avert communal violence. A referendum on the future of Kirkuk would be explosive and should be delayed."

The protesters carried placards with slogans such as "No, no for Baker" in three different languages: Arabic, Kurdish and Turkoman.

Iraq's constitution stipulates that the fate of the northern, oil-rich city of Kirkuk be decided in a regional referendum by the end of next year.

The city is claimed by the Kurds, who want to annex it to their self-rule region. But Kirkuk's Arab and Turkomen residents reject that claim, and the city has been plagued by sectarian violence and insurgent attacks since 2003.

Kirkuk is an important city to many, but, it has always been a Kurdish stronghold. I don't see that changing. Now that the country is dividing up assets, Kirkuk should not be about assets but about peace. The people there, under their current provincial authority needs to have a referendum to decide the sovereignty of the city. This is silly. Kirkuk has always been a Kurdish city.

Iran: Israel 'will end like USSR'

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has told a conference in Tehran questioning the Holocaust that Israel's days are numbered.
"Just as the USSR disappeared, soon the Zionist regime will disappear," he said to the applause of the participants.
The two-day conference provoked widespread international outrage.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6173941.stm

President Putin should pay attention, the world's moronic President from Iran is still shouting about destroying Israel. There was a court order today stating Israel could be held responsible for damages. Iran always gets carried away with such news. He thinks it will allow the world to remove Israel because of bad behavior. It hasn't removed Iran yet, has it? Evidently, President Ahmadinejad sees Russia as an unstable pushover by that comment. I would ask for an explanation if I were Putin. It is President Ahmadinejad's intention to assault Russia as well? This guy is off the wall. He needs a course in Diplomacy 101. But, I like the idea of cutting back oil production. That's a great idea. There are Democrats in DC now, we can really dig into alternatives.

Iran urges OPEC for further oil production cut

http://english.people.com.cn/200612/12/eng20061212_331604.html

Iranian Oil Minister Kazem Vaziri Hamaneh said on Tuesday that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) still needs to cut the current oil output to boost the global crude price, the Shana news agency reported.

Hamaneh was quoted as saying that "Iran also considers oil price lower than 60 U.S. dollars per barrel inappropriate, just like most of OPEC member countries."

"Given the considerable oil oversupply, we will try to have a output cut," he said, two days before an OPEC meeting in Nigeria.

Several days ago, OPEC President and Nigerian Oil Minister Edmund Daukoru said that the estimated oversupply on the current oil market was about 1 million barrels per day and the organization's ministers would review the situation and make appropriate decisions.

OPEC countries last month made a decision to cut the current crude oil output by 1.2 million bpd to 26.3 million bpd in order to boost the oil price.

Iran, the second largest producer in OPEC, also decided to reduce its output by 176,000 barrels per day after the OPEC decision.



Olmert condemns Iran's Holocaust denial
Agencies

Berlin: Israeli Prime Minister Ehud OImert condemned Tehran’s public denial of the holocaust on Tuesday and criticised a conference in which prominent Holocaust-deniers from around the world will meet.

Prior to talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Horst Koehler, Olmert visited a memorial at Berlin’s Gruenewald train station, the departure point for thousands of the city's Jews to concentration camps during the Holocaust.

In an address, Olmert criticised Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s denial of the holocaust in which six million Jews were killed by the Nazis during World War II.

http://www.gulfnews.com/region/Iran/10088854.html


Calls for Olmert to resign after nuclear gaffe

Israel's prime minister, Ehud Olmert, was today trying to fend off accusations of ineptitude and calls for his resignation after he accidentally acknowledged for the first time that Israel had nuclear weapons.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1970616,00.html

POL-UN-COUNCIL-MIDEAST
Annan presents frank vision on how to solve Mideast conflict
UNITED NATION, Dec 12 (KUNA) -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the Security Council on Tuesday that The Middle East today faces "grim prospects," is in profound crisis and the situation is more complex, more fragile and more dangerous than it has been for a very long time, warning at the same time that if no solution in found in the near future, extremism will flourish."

Tensions in the Middle East region are near the breaking point. Extremism and populism are leaving less political space for moderates, including those states that have reached peace agreements with Israel. The opportunity for negotiating a two-state solution will last for only so long."

Should we fail to seize it the people who most directly bear the brunt of this calamity will be consigned to new depths of suffering and grief, other conflicts and problems will become that much harder to resolve, and extremists the world over would enjoy a boost to their recruiting efforts," Annan said in a statement to a council Ministerial meeting called for by Qatar and chaired by its Foreign Minister Shiekh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani.Annan's speech, the bluntest ever, is his last before leaving office later this month.

http://www.kuna.net.kw/home/story.aspx?Language=en&DSNO=933549


Karzai Says Pakistani Collusion Threatens Region

“Afghanistan either has to be fixed and be peaceful or the whole region will run into hell with us,” Mr. Karzai told a small group of journalists during a visit to this southern city, his hometown, which has been reeling from almost daily suicide bombings in the last 10 days. “It’s not going to be like the past, that only we suffer. Those who cause us to suffer will burn in hell with us. And I hope NATO recognizes this.” Mr. Karzai charged that elements of the Pakistani government were still supporting Islamic militants, as they had in the past, and that if such sources of terrorism were not defeated today, Afghans and international soldiers would continue to die.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/12/world/asia/12cnd-afghan.html?hp&ex=1165986000&en=be73086634d7d4d8&ei=5094&partner=homepage


IT'S unpopular thing to say, but, Pakistan is a coupe government. Musharraf is causing trouble. He is confrontational with all his neighbors.

India unhappy with Pakistan short-circuiting Safta

http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=148756

NEW DELHI, DEC 12 : Voicing concern over Pakistan’s non-implementation of South Asian Free Trade Area (Safta), the government on Tuesday said Islamabad’s Safta notification on July 1, this year, was limited to tariff concessions for India on items in the positive list.

During the Dhaka SAARC council of ministers’ meeting in August this year, India had “very forcefully raised concerns regarding non-implementation of Safta by Pakistan, pointing out that this was a negation of Safta and jeopardised its implementation,” commerce minister Kamal Nath said in the Lok Sabha.

Taliban mini-state on Pakistan border

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,20919331-2703,00.html

PAKISTAN'S appeasement of Islamic tribal militants in remote areas bordering Afghanistan has created a virtual Taliban mini-state where insurgents operating against the NATO-led forces are free to recruit, train and equip themselves, an international think tank reported yesterday.

In a sharp rebuke for the military-led Government in Islamabad, the International Crisis Group report lends weight to accounts that Pakistan's army in the tribal areas has effectively retreated to barracks, ceding control to the militants.

The report is critical of Pakistan's peace accords with the Taliban-linked militants in north and south Waziristan, and will intensify pressure on President Pervez Musharraf to rethink his approach to the remote region.

Osama bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, are both believed to be in the area with hundreds of followers, and most analysts agree the al-Qa'ida leaders have benefited from Islamabad's peace deals with the militants in the region.

I AM SORRY, but, the area is unstable because Iraq has become a training ground for terrorists that then practice their skills in places like Afghanistan where NATO and the Brits are faced with regular bombings now. The USA has to leave Iraq and secure any issues though diplomatic channels with Iraq's neighbors that include countries like Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Staying in Iraq is out of the question. The entire region is escalating and it is due to the USA presence in Iraq.

FRUM: The status quo isn't acceptable. The ISG is not acceptable. So, there has to be some other way. There has to be something better that the president has to find. That's the job of the president, to go out and listen to people.

That is a hideous statement. The President's job is to serve and protect this country without corruption. He is the Executive Branch to the legislature, the will of the people of this nation. Bush hasn't listened to ANYONE to date and his 'attitude' of 'Stay the Course' has been a political directive for elections in the USA, NOT, a solution for Iraq. I would think Mr. Frum would at least have respect for Mr. Baker. I find Mr. Baker's input rather compelling actually. He and Mr. Hamilton make an interesting 'front' for change in Iraq. THEY are interested in listening, but, they are also interested in talking and NOT just political jargon to look intelligent or political rhetoric to justify crony policy.

Get over it.

PEREZ: One thing -- that's a gotcha game that Washington is playing right now, and the stakes are far too high for those kinds of games.

One thing I noticed that Frank -- and I greatly respect him. I read him all the time. But nobody ever talks about the consequences of our leaving. If you are going to recommend a policy, I think it's incumbent upon those who recommend that we leave Iraq immediately or in ten months, 15 months, 18 months, to give us your best guess of what those consequences would be.

THERE WON'T be any consequences than already exist. These people are suffering and have for years now under an American occupation. The USA has blinders on to believe the surrounding countries aren't already involved in some way or another. I believe ir was Saudi Arabia that recently promised funds.

Saudis 'funnelling' funds to Iraq rebels

http://www.kuwaittimes.net/Navariednews.asp?dismode=article&artid=2066843581

CAIRO: Private Saudi citizens are giving millions of dollars to Sunni insurgents in Iraq and much of the money is used to buy weapons, including shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles, according to key Iraqi officials and others familiar with the flow of cash. Saudi government officials deny that any money from their country is being sent to Iraqis fighting the government and the US-led coalition. But the US Iraq Study Group report released Wednesday said Saudis are a source of funding for Sunni Arab insurgents. Several truck drivers interviewed by AP described carrying boxes of cash from Saudi Arabia into Iraq, money they said was headed for insurgents.

You can believe it or not believe it but one thing is sure the resistence in Iraq is robbing armored trucks and why? To pass the time of day? Where does anyone believe the money is going? Probably to underground networks for munitions to the rebellion. So, is this a surprise. No. I am sure this has been going on for some time. There is no end in sight for the violence so long as this continues. The Iraqi borders are porous. If officially Saudi Arabia is saying they are concerned about the outcome of a USA withdrawal, they should first look at their own citizens and realize they are as much the trouble as any terrorist organization.

HERE YOU GO !

PEREZ: Let's remember that this is a region that even King Abdullah today was quoted in the "New York Times" as saying it's a tinderbox waiting for a spark to ignite it. That in Iraq, brothers are killing brothers. Now that's a fairly significant statement from the king of Saudi Arabia.

PEREZ: I think one of the ramifications of leaving is that we will probably be -- end up back there in 18 months or 18, 10 months after we leave, because right now the situation is so volatile, as King Abdullah says, a tinderbox, that, yes, I think we need to figure out a way to get it done.

It would seem the good King has his own tinderbox to contend with and needs to bring a resolve within Saudi Arabia to do what is best for Iraq and stop abandoning it to chronic war. The USA does not belong in Iraq. Evidently, Mr. Bush has no intention of offending his oil buddies to save American lives. This is a slap in the face to the USA military efforts in that country and for the Saudi King to stand in judgement of all our sacrifices while his own people support a Sunni rebellion only indicates he has no room to speak. We need to leave Iraq and tell the Saudi King to come up with a policy for his neighbor that works well for them both.

PEREZ: If it were as simple as that, that may be a policy we could consider. But it's nowhere near as simple as that, because it's just not Shia versus Sunni. It's Shia; it's Kurds; it's Shiites. But there's also the hole in the wall effect, which means that if we leave, and it becomes -- and Iraq become as failed state, next stop is, remember the Hole in the Wall gang?

More stupid war mongering jargon. "Hole in the Wall?" Please grow up, sometime before your die. If Perez had read the Iraq Study Group report and listened to Mr. Baker speak it was completely clear there is nothing going on but Civil War/Sectarian Violence. There is nothing else to 'fill in the hole' JERK ! There is an element of al Qaeda, but, show me a country in the Middle East that doesn't. I dare you. That is nothing. That is not a reason to stay in Iraq for the USA. The men who attacked the USA are reported to be in Pakistan and Afghanistan. You have the "W"rong war Perez. Need a map? Or. Maybe just THE TRUTH.

THIS IS nothing but war mongering Neocon hopefuls to try to bowl over Democrats and their current support base. It's stupid, Perez. Completely. Get the feeling you are nobody.

PEREZ: I think there's almost always benefits to engagement. Almost always. I can think of very few examples. And I'm no historian. I can think of very few examples where there wasn't. But in this case you have to ask yourself, do Syria and Iran, is it really in their interest to have a peaceful Iraq? Or are they in the business of chaos, of fomenting chaos, of supporting chaos? You can have example after example where the latter is true.

THIS IS a description of Bush and Bush's policies. Syria and Iran did not run an illegal invasion into that country. Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney did. Fomenting chaos? Who? Iran? Syria? I think it was Bush that rolled his military coalition into southern Iraq in March of 2003 and there has been nothing but chaos. Hello? Anything between those ears besides corruptable air?

enough

According to what standard.

For over a half decade now Bush and his cronies have been changing all the rules. They even let Tom DeLay stay on post indictment. The point here is that NOW, this program is willing to 'LET THOSE STANDARDS' become the measure by which we decide ethical rights or wrongs. I am not !

"Well, tonight, we have answers. According to the long-awaited report of the House Ethics Committee, no rules were broken, so no one gets so much as a reprimand."

WILLFUL IGNORANCE. You mean it was fraud in dealing with indescretions of a House member to retain their majority. Fraud. Not willful ignorance.

DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The committee found willful ignorance among Republican lawmakers and aides. It said, the weight of evidence shows, House Speaker Dennis Hastert was informed last spring about inappropriate Foley e-mails, rejecting Hastert's contention that he didn't remember being told.

But House investigators concluded, no one knew about sexually explicit instant messages, like this, where Foley asked a former page, "Do I make you horny?"

The incoming House speaker, Democrat Nancy Pelosi, slammed the bipartisan report because it punishes no one, saying, "Members of Congress have a responsibility to protect their employees, especially young pages."

GOP Pushes Rule Change to Protect DeLay's Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A54572-2004Nov16.html

The proposed rule change, which several leaders predicted would win approval at a closed meeting today, comes as House Republicans return to Washington feeling indebted to DeLay for the slightly enhanced majority they won in this month's elections. DeLay led an aggressive redistricting effort in Texas last year that resulted in five Democratic House members retiring or losing reelection. It also triggered a grand jury inquiry into fundraising efforts related to the state legislature's redistricting actions.

INDEBTEDNESS to a house member and not the people that elected them. They have become self effacing. They think only of their own priorities and n0t the best interest of the country. How are we supposed to recapture our nation, it's dignity and strength if there is such corruption that is allowed to propagate. What needs to take place with this incoming session of Congress is a policing of the changes that have occurred in the "Culture of Corruption" of Bush. It has demoralized our laws and to allow those laws to continue to exist is outrageous and a danger to our democracy.

The story of James Kim is truly tragic. Never walk into a forest. Always when seeking help go back along the road one drove down. Mrs. Kim was incredible with her personal commitment to those children. She was a survivor and I hope she continues to be in the face of the loss of her spous. Do I understand this search and rescue mission was paid for by the family? You mean there were no government response units? Why?

enough

The Propaganda Spin Machine

I was just waiting for Anderson to return to his old haunts of pre-recorded ? news ? segments before I commented any further and true to form, this night he not only returned to a completely pre-recorded and safe propaganda initative he justified it with an emmy for the underground sales of fertility drugs.

That Anderson is an expose' and NOT the news. So, get it right.

Sanchez had an interesting survival segment on this Thursday.

The rest of the show was a rerun of the segment on fertility issues. The expose' was to do more than expose people to the reality of the 'underground' but it was to illustrate the high cost of overcoming infertility and the extent people will go to have a baby of their own.

On Wednesday, an admirable segment on Mary Cheney and her pregnancy and the fact there is deep seated hatred of variance of sexual identity by the Religious Right, an extremist element in the American Landscape. No there were no words as graphic as that during this segment, we all know how a poorly accepted WORD will come to rule the entire point of view regardless the merit. But, there was a very important focus that was revealed:

COOPER: Well, as Mary Snow pointed out, conservatives and gay rights advocates are already weighing in on Mary Cheney's pregnancy. Up next, the possible political ramifications. We'll hear from two more sides to the debate. And a tragic end to the search for a missing father in Oregon. What happened to James Kim? When this special edition of 360 continues.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COOPER: A live picture from our nation's capitol. As we told you before the break, Mary Cheney, the openly gay daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, is expecting her first child. Joining me now for reaction on the announcement from Seattle is Dan Savage, syndicated columnist. And from Washington, Janice Crouse, senior fellow at the Beverly LeHay Institute, the think tank for Concerned Women for America. Appreciate both of you being on.Janice, let me start with you. You described this pregnancy as wrong and even unconscionable. Why?

JANICE CROUSE, SENIOR FELLOW, BEVERLY LEHAY INSTITUTE: Well, it's not really about Mary Cheney. It's about the baby that's going to be born without a father. We have in this country right now a real tragedy that one third and more of our children are being born without a father in the family. This has ramifications that are disastrous for those children. You know, so many people talk about doing this, that or the other for the children of this country. Well, the best thing you can do for a child today is to marry the father and have a family.

COOPER: But isn't this...

CROUSE: That would be the best arrangement for that child to grow up with, the best environment.

COOPER: Others would say, look, the most important thing is for a baby to be brought up in a loving home with two parents and sets of grandparents and that's what this baby will have.

CROUSE: That flies in the face of all the experts who say from the left and the right, Anderson, they agree totally on this that the best family for a child is a married couple, mother and father.

COOPER: Let me bring in Dan. Dan, what do you think?

DAN SAVAGE, SYNDICATED COLUMNIST: The studies that she's citing, many of which have been debunked show that the best case, the best thing for a child, is to have two parents in the home. A lot of the studies have shown the negative impact of there being a single parent family are children who have experienced divorce where usually the father who's gone. So the studies measure the impact of the missing parent, which is typically in our culture the father. But what we're really measuring in the studies is the impact of having just one parent. All the studies of gay and lesbian families, families headed by gay and lesbian couples, have shown that children are just as healthy, just as well cared for, just as likely to identify as heterosexuals, or lesbian and gay, when they grow up. And just the American Medical Association and the American Bar Association, the American Academy of Child-Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, all these groups and more, who are primarily concerned with the welfare of children, have signed off and approved of and endorsed the rights of gay and lesbian couples to start their own families.

CROUSE: Anderson, those are...

SAVAGE: Because we are good parents, and our families are fit.

COOPER: Janice?

CROUSE: Anderson, those are political statements. What you have are scientific studies by the Urban Institute, which is the most liberal organization here in Washington, D.C. And they have said unequivocally that if you compare household arrangements, any arrangement you want to look at, the married couple, mother and father family, is the very best, not just the good, but the very best way to raise children.

COOPER: But Janice, there's huge divorce rates in this country. There's so many different kinds of families in this country. You seem to be holding up this one set, you know, the mother and the father. Most people agree, OK, yes, it would be great for a lot of people. But short of that, I mean, many people grow up in a single family home. They grow up without grandparents. They group up, you know, in broken homes. This child will have two parents. This child will have grandparents. The child will have access to a great education.

SAVAGE: We have -- we have to acknowledge...

CROUSE: This child will be...

SAVAGE: This child is going to be in better shape than Britney Spears' and Kevin Federline's children. Having heterosexual, opposite sex parents is not some sort of magic ticket to the kind of love and support and commitment and responsibility that a child needs from their parents.

CROUSE: The research says very differently. You know, you look at the -- any other household arrangement, you're going to find those kids are very vulnerable to all sorts of negative outcomes. They're going to drop out of school more. They're going to get into drugs more. They're going to start drinking earlier. All those things...

SAVAGE: With all due respect, that's simply not true. That's simply not true, with all due respect.

CROUSE: I'm sorry, but the research shows differently.

SAVAGE: Those studies have been debunked. Go on Google and debunk everything she's saying in five seconds.

COOPER: Dan...

SAVAGE: What the studies show is that single parents...

(CROSSTALK)

COOPER: Let Dan finish.

SAVAGE: All the studies show it's preferable to have two loving, committed parents. And this idea there is an ideal, well, what are we going to do about that ideal? Like ultimately, this is not my business, it's not the doctor's business, it's not Anderson's business. This is between Mary Cheney, Heather Poe and their sperm donor, whoever he is. For all we know, this child will have a father in his life. With my adopted child -- I have an adopted child. His mother is a part of his life. We adopted through open adoption, my partner and I. So we don't know where this is going yet for Mary Cheney's child. It's very presumptuous to even have this conversation.

COOPER: Janice -- Janice, isn't there is a sad irony to this that Virginia, where Mary Cheney and her partner lives, is one of 27 states with a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage? Heather, Mary Cheney's partner, will have no legal rights to this child. It's kind of a sad irony.

CROUSE: No, it's not about Heather. It's not about any of those instances, but it's about what is best for children. And in this country, when you have so many children who are born without a father in the family, we're looking at terrific ramifications. It is a matter of the whole culture, because these kinds of incidents change the culture. And what we have is a situation where our schools and our communities are going to be very affected by children who are angry children and...

SAVAGE: So then what do you propose to do?

COOPER: Let me give Dan -- I've got to give Dan the final thought. Dan...

SAVAGE: Does she propose to take this child away from Mary Cheney and Heather Poe and maybe give it to Britney Spears or Andrea Yates? Heterosexual parents are not the magic ticket to a stable home life and a stable home environment for a child. There's so much evidence out there that that's just not the case.

CROUSE: The magic ticket is a mother and father.

SAVAGE: There have been 500,000 children in foster care, waiting to be adopted, who have been abused, neglected and abandoned by their heterosexual parents.

CROUSE: Which has nothing to do with the situation with Mary Cheney.

SAVAGE: ... they're adopted by gay and lesbian couples.

COOPER: We're going to have -- we're going to have to leave it there. Dan Savage, appreciate you joining us. Janice Crouse, as well. Appreciate both of you for joining us. Thanks very much, guys. Straight ahead, more on the Iraq report from the man who co- chaired the committee, James Baker, and Lee Hamilton on Iraq, dealing with Iran and more. Also, is this the end of what some have called cowboy diplomacy from the Bush administration or the last two years bring more of the same? And the final chapter to a story everyone hoped would have a better ending, the discovery of the missing dad in Oregon, how he was found and how close he came to getting help for the rest of his family. You're watching 360.

What JANICE CROUSE, SENIOR FELLOW, BEVERLY LEHAY INSTITUTE is all about is pure unadulterated bigoty. This woman will stand in the face of happy and achieving children and state without a father you are not whole.

Buloney.

I was a wife of a man that was a pillar of the church when I was first married at twenty years of age. He was twenty one. We were farmers, he was a manager at an agricultural farmer wholesale market after having a four year college at Delaware Valley College in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, which I helped pay for. I would spend Sunday mornings in the nursery with the children of people in attendence so the children could be exposed to their Christian time at play as well as their parents. Uninterrupted and fulfilling.

DON'T TELL ME ABOUT SINGLE PARENTS OR SINGLE MOTHERS. I know about being a single parent and about being a single mother.

I had our first child, a son, within the bounds of matrimony at the age of 23. When I was pregnant, AT HIS INSISTENCE, with our second child my husband decided it was time to play and embarked on a life of substance abuse and adultery. Methamphetamines. Hash. Marijuana. All wrapped up with people that were perfect strangers to me that shared each other's bedrooms for frolic and rest.

DON'T TALK TO ME. DON'T TALK TO ME.

When the adultery happened I discovered it by myself within a week and told him it was over. Just that simple. I had already acquired a vaginal infection that week that I didn't understand and neither did my obstetrician except for the concerned look that told me what I already expected.

I went on to give birth to our second son although according to my then still spouse it was okay if I decided to get an abortion. A pillar of the church, my eye.

I went on to raise my sons into adulthood mostly alone and under very difficult circumstances. Expect for the farm and a high diploma in College Prep I had no skills.

Today, my youngest son, the one that wasn't supposed to be born if upto his father has an independant taxi business and an infant son of his own. He's lived a good life. Never broke the law, never had issues with alcohol or drugs or sexually transmitted diseases. He is a high school graduate and for a young man with some learning disabilities that I am convinced were due to a traumatic pregnancy, he could not have done better in life.

My oldest son is a university graduate in Business Administartion with a minor in International Finance. His first job out of the university was as an auditor for a well known bank in the Southeast. He has a very nice life and there is every indication his 'live-in' will someday be his wife.

These young men and I have seen it all. Homelessness and living out of a Chevy Nova to a very comfortable lifestyle due to an income that came to be expectionally comfortable due to a career track I chose shortly after getting into housing when the boys were age 5 and age 3. I put up with plenty for years before all that happened, but, I always put the boys first in caring for their emotional needs as well as their physical well being.

I raised those two young men to lives of success and happiness. There father was absent for most of it and completely out of the picture until I was completeing a degree that would take me into a comfortable lifestyle. He wanted to 'come back.' We were divorced by then for over 2 years after 4 years of separation where he was mostly untraceable as a Dead Beat Dad.

DON'T TALK TO ME !

I have been through it all.

Witnessed it all.

The ONLY thing that brings children into an adulthood of decency and success is the love of ONE parent of any gender. If they have the love and devotion of more than one of any gender then they have more than mine did and it just can't be bad.

enough

Pump it up !

1000

At the end of the show came the big exclusive. I was waiting for maybe the criminal proof that implicates the Russian oligarch that killed the loose lipped Russian spy. But. Alas. It was a leak exclusively to CNN's Andy at Work in that the Iraq Study Group reveals no timeline.

How about that, huh?

That's right Anderson, when one leaves a country it requires no timeline.

The Study Group according to MSNBC is requiring the current government to prove it is worthy of sustained American involvement. Won't happen. The country is breaking into three distinct ethnic areas where only one is seen as American friendly and that is the Kurds.

That was an exclusive all right. All Anderson wanted to talk about after that was the tenacity of the American people to 'Stay the Course' without a timeline. Got it "W"rong again 360 ! This news group is completely limited in their scope and possibilities, in that it only seeks to support Bush when it is a completely losing strategy.

enough

Anderson Cooper is behind the curve

1000

The entire show was tape recorded except perhaps for the host, but, that has to be in question as well. Due to the taping every subject delivered as timely new was not.

Aaron Brown never had these issues while David Bohrman was producer. The show was 99.99 percent live and there were featured journalists for every subject with up to the minute information.

AC 360 has lost the integrity of good journalism and only reports was is a perspective that is biased to say the least.

Representative Murtha

On "The Today Show," Congressman Murtha told NBC's Matt Lauer he felt vindicated. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "THE TODAY SHOW") REP. JOHN MURTHA (D), PENNSYLVANIA: Well, that's exactly what I said a year ago. And I said, we couldn't win it militarily. And I said, they -- they have been mischaracterizing and misstating this war for the last two years.

Murtha was not only correct but when one realizes it was this time over the last year when the escalation of tensions that lead to the current violence took place, Representative Murtha could not be more correct. There has been increases in deaths across the board during this time and we are still in Iraq and not taking the advise of a veteran who obviously has a perspective that cannot be disputed. How many of his own constituents lost loved ones over the past year in the face of Representative Murtha's insistance the USA deploy out? What did the people of his constituency vote back into office? A man that knows what to do and not guesss. That is why he has been in his leadership in the House for so long. He is someone we can trust. Did Cooper bring that up during his news cast? No. Why? Becuase it would not only vindicate Representative Murtha but put Bush in the perspective he belonged as an incompetent Commander and Chief with no answers and only causing problem after problem.

The Iraqi Survey

I did appreciate the news about the Iraqi Survey taken after the November elections presented by Nic Robertson.

A new survey conducted by Iraqi pollsters shows, the daily violence is escalating Iraqi demands that U.S. troops leave. More than half the 2,000 Iraqis surveyed said they want all U.S. troops out now. And almost half the remainder want a withdrawal to begin immediately.

Did Cooper do a compare and contrast with the events of the day? No. Why? Because it completely conflicts with the Bush White House.

Shiite leader Hakim: We Have Asked for the American Forces to Stay in Iraq

http://www.turkishweekly.net/news.php?id=41473

If the leadership of Iraq were in touch with the people of their country they would be advocating for withdrawal and sanctioning help from the region which would be viewed as benevolent to the Iraqi people. That isn't being done and as a consequence the USA is viewed as an occupier rather than an ally.

Abdul Aziz Hakim, the Shiite leader of the largest bloc in Iraq's parliament, met with US President George W. Bush and Secretary of US State Condoleezza Rice.

Hakim, after what he called a "very clear" meeting earlier with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, told reporters in Arabic that "we have asked for the American forces to stay in Iraq" to enable Iraqi security to deal with terrorists.

This is just exactly the problem and just more of the same. The Iraqi forces must show loyality to a sovereign Iraq. They haven't. They are all too afraid of the power another leadership could bring them that does not reflect their ethnicity. The Shi'ites and Kurds were the most victimized under the Saddam government, they were the ones that came forward to take control of a government they want to benevolent to them. Even the Shi'ite majority in this so called Unity Government has not protected them from violence that is currently escalating. The USA forces are not succeeding in protecting the innocent.

And I'll say it again, as a result the trained Iraqis that attend training by USA military return home to do the job they decided they were trained for and that is protecting their own families and not someone else's family. They are not going to show alligence to a power of central authority while they are being killed right in their own homes and market places.

Additionally, the central authority in Iraq has been draconian in their power as they have not provided alternatives or reacted to their crisis. There is no viable economy except local market places and even there people are attacked with car bombs.

The USA forces need to leave and for the National Guard troops sent home, for the regular military a deployment to Kurdistan for whatever number it takes to secure their borders until Baghdad settles down and the Kurds are able to handle their country themselves.

We are not servents of Mr. Hakem. If he is unable to find leadership without the security blanket of the USA then he has no sovereign authority except for what the USA military affords him. We are out of there. Iraqis need to decide their futures and we have no right or authority to do it for them. We are the problem and the Iraqi people see a respite away from the USA occupation as a reason to be peaceful among them. The killing has to stop. To continue as McCain and Bush want this to continue and even escalate the circumstances by killing all those that oppose Bush's agenda for Iraq is insane.

I believe the Unity Government is being viewed as an enemy to the people there and while those in the central government would like to blame it on terrorists, it is their own people in Civil War that is the issue.

To admit Iraq is in the throes of Civil War was give rise to the possibility of the decline of the Unity Government authority and the rise a dissolution of authority to three provincial authorities, each with it's own ruling body of ethnic preference.

The Kurds are already there and the Shi'ites are hoping to maintain their authority, but, in the streets they are more than likely looking to their Holy Men to find organization to lead without the benefit of a central government, there has been a shadow government there for years already. The Sunnis have just completely withdraw from the concept of a central authority and it is they that are attempting to secure Baghdad away from all others for the sparseness of resources in An Albar.

GORDON: Well, he -- he has sort of two categories, what he calls above the line, which are the options he thinks merit serious consideration, and below the line, that he doesn't like so much.And the below-the-line options include more troops. But it's clear that he's talking about consolidating bases, withdrawing forces, maybe moving them to different parts of Iraq. There's a lot of similarity, ironically, between some of his ideas and some of the ideas that, for example, Senator Levin, the Democrat from Michigan, have proposed.

Michael Gordon needs to get out of his own way. He is backing the politics of Bush while reporting on a need for chance in ? strategy ? while people are dropping like flies. Take a stand Mr. Gordon, I would think that fence post you are sitting on is getting plenty uncomfortable. We have just passed an election in the USA where Iraq was a deciding factor. Either you agree with the majority of Americans who believe this war is not our issue and we need to leave, and you agree with Representative Murtha on the fact he was right the entire time, or you sit in defiance of any majority and believe Bush is not as incompetent as he obviously is. If that is the case then what the heck are you talking about? And while your at it, explain that to the families of the dead including Iraqis who only want to be safe and have their children safe with a future. What exactly is it about Bush that is going to give them that? What is a USA occupation going to do to provide that to them, because Mr. Gordon, Iraq is of absolutely no consequence to the national security of the USA. So, you tell me, Mr. Gordon, what exactly is a continued presence in that country going to do to stop the killing of innocent people? What, Mr. Gordon? I haven't heard 'word one' of that for over three long years !!!!!

The Spy Who Had a Cold

The entire story about Alexander Litvinenko is DESIGNED to inflame negative feelings regarding Russia. The time sequence Mattingly put together is backwards and is made to depict a paranoid country out to kill people. Do you honestly believe Russia was so out of touch with it's lose that the security structure Mr. Litvinenko was familiar with actually is still standing. As soon as a man like that left Russia for GREENER OBLIGARCH pastures the Russian Security forces changed their model. The information Alexander Litvinenko has was obsolete the day he defected. So, what exactly do you think a President of Russia has to be afraid of? A former spy? No way. Anderson Coooper displayed a one sided war mongering venture into information handled to portray a stereotype of Russia and Putin. He did not even explore any possibility and to realize this was all on video tape was to realize the information was as outdated as the information a dead spy had for his benefactors and friends. That is if you could call them friends. Anderson Cooper can never be accused of offering points of view that might be controversial.

Matthew Chance had half a chance to bring justice to the one sidedness but failed to do so:

For years, criminals in Russia have used mafia-style contract hits to settle scores. But recently, there's been an epidemic. Officials say more than 5,000 every year. Some of the victims, high profile establishment figures like Andrei Kozlov, the deputy chairman of Russia's central bank, shot after a football match earlier this year.

In the Russian Far East, the popular mayoral candidate was also gunned down during an election runoff. Police say the assassin used an assault rifle with a silencer.

As for Anna Politkovskaya, she was a determined investigative reporter, especially critical of Russia's president Vladimir Putin. She often traveled to the rebellious Russian Public of Chechnya to document the excesses of Russian forces there.

In London, Alexander Litvinenko was convinced his friend's murder was officially sanctioned. Before he was poisoned, he (UNINTELLIGIBLE) evidence implicating the Kremlin in her death.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I can directly answer you, it is Mr. Putin, the president of the Russian federation, who has killed her.

CHANCE: The Kremlin denies involvement in either the shooting or the poisoning. But the journalist, like the former secret agent, had a long history of antagonizing Moscow, and their deaths deliver a chilling message to others who might dare criticize.

Matthew Chance, CNN, London.

Go chance an Oligarch rather than a Russian President and you might even find an exclusive, better yet you might find the killer and a reward. Now, that would be progress. I guess you can't get credentials in Russia. Well, I doubt Cooper could either as a former CIA agent, so the rumor goes.

enough