Friday was Dec. 14. Since just about everybody in town gets paid twice a month, or every other week, it was payday for almost everybody. Not only that, for the majority of people, it was the last payday before Christmas.

I went to the mall to get the last of my Christmas shopping done. I'd been dreading it, because this time of year the mall is usually packed and it's a pain. There have been years when the mall was so crowded that it took forever to get out of the parking lot (there's only 2 exits, and a light)

This was Friday night, which is usually pretty crowded anyway. The only movie theater in town is in the mall.

It was no more crowded than any other weeknight. Way LESS crowded than I've seen it in the summer. No problems parking. No lines to check out.

It was, in a word, weird, and VERY unusual. Target wasn't crowded either.

The Dignity for Military Funerals Act of 2006 (Introduced in Senate 3/16/06) is supposed "To prohibit picketing at the funerals of members and former members of the armed forces".

Text of bill

This is obviously designed to counter Fred Phelps and his moronic band, and obviously has gone nowhere.

But is it even necessary? (there's more...)

I'm only posting because I haven't seen this yet...

The link is to MSNBC, so you don't need to register, but the info is from the Washington Post.

Novak says Bush knows who leaked name

So is he going to FIRE them? Is the MSM going to make a big deal out of it?

My guess is no on both counts...

Finally, somebody is putting the pieces together. NPR had a piece on Morning Edition this morning that put the lack of pre-war intelligence in a logical, and pretty damning, fashion.

I don't think the transcript is up yet, but you can listen if you missed it.

Pre-Iraq War Intelligence: A Look at the Facts [UPDATE - NPR's site is back up, and guess what's on the main page? Yep, you got it... it WAS buried in Morning Edition, but now it's front and center.]

From the Wilmington DE News Journal, it's also been reported on WHYY (Wilm/Philly NPR affiliate).

"In Philadelphia, attorneys for the state will argue in federal court that the Defense Department has no legal right to shut National Guard sites without the consent of Gov. Ed Rendell. Illinois also has filed suit, and at least four other states, including Delaware, are fighting to save their National Guard bases."

Sounds like the states are getting tired of Bush's crap...

Wilmington NewsJournal article

I found this out from my unpolitical daughter-in-law.

Apparently, the annual President's dinner is going to have a very special guest -- porn star Mary Carey and her porn movie maker boss, Mark Kulkis.

It was in the Washington Post, and she told me it's all over AOL.

The Post article doesn't give much detail, and it doesn't sound that horrid -- but you should have heard her tell it. And if SHE's heard about it, and has that type of reaction to it, I can't imagine what this is going to do to the fundie wingnuts.

Wonder why this hasn't been all over the MSM? Can you imagine the stink if Clinton had a real porn star buy a ticket to the annual President's fund raiser?

First, there was a huge outcry about a flu vaccine shortage. Restrictions on who could get flu shots meant that a lot of people who usually got one didn't. Then, because there weren't many flu shots given, those restrictions were relaxed. But a lot of people still didn't bother.

And the result of that? This is from the Phila. Inquirer, your area may be different (but I suspect not too different).

Last year, for instance, the number of influenza A cases - the viral type that the city specifically follows at the three hospitals - had topped 700 by Jan. 18. By comparison, the city had reported 64 influenza A cases as of last week.

Last year, 700 cases. This year, 64.