SCOTUS Strikes Down DC Gun Ban

More here.

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The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Americans have a right to own guns for self-defense and hunting, the justices' first major pronouncement on gun rights in U.S. history. The court's 5-4 ruling struck down the District of Columbia's 32-year-old ban on handguns as incompatible with gun rights under the Second Amendment. The decision went further than even the Bush administration wanted, but probably leaves most firearms laws intact.

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Uhh, wow. Wow. I guess I should get a handgun now.

To Publicly Finance, Or Not To...

Hmm. I support Obama but I'm not sure how I feel about this. I mean, he pretty plainly has said all along that he believes in, and will use, public campaign financing. Until... yesterday. When he announces that no, in fact, the quarter of a billion dollars he's raised is a HELLUVA lot more compelling than the paltry $85M that he'd get from the public coffers.

On the one hand, I totally get it. Why not fight the fight with the best and most generous resources you can muster? On the other hand, as a citizen, I'm disgusted. I mean didn't he say one thing for months (nay, years) and then totally reverse himself when it was politically expedient (or financially expedient as the case may be) to do so?

Anybody wanna weigh in on this thing? Frankly, I already know where you'll stand if your a McCain supporter, so save me the piling-on... I'm more curious what the Dems have to say about this thing...

You tell 'em Warren!

Think all business geniuses and billionaires are money-grubbing, heartless, public spiritless bastards intent on avoiding as much of the public responsibility their wealth brings as possible?

Not Warren Buffett. He testified today against repeal of the Anti-Oligarchy Tax. Over 2,000 others (all part of the less than 1% of American households even affected by the AOT), including Bill Gates and George Soros, have joined him in opposing the proposed repeal.

Editor's Note: this is not to say that provisions cannot be made to account for true instances where small businesses and family farms are severely negatively affected as an unintended by-product of the AOT. These problems can - and should - be dealt with both for the sakes of those affected and to remove that "fig leaf" from those using it to mask more sinister motives.

If only the kids lived in Orange Co. and were rich (or on fire)!

But then, I guess that's the whole point.

Throwing away all pretense, President Bush says poor children are a waste of time. For shame.

W to the rescue!

President Bush to SoCal: "I'm coming to save you!"

SoCal to nobody in particular: "Thank God we're white and well off!"

New Orleans to the World: "Are you f*cking kidding me?"

So you veto health insurance for kids? Really??

THIS is one of President Bush's 4 total vetos? Are you kidding? How do you veto health insurance for children? I guess the White House's new motto is "Billions for offense, not one penny for poor children!" Doesn't exactly have the same ring as its Adam-era predecessor (by Rep. Robert Goodloe Harper).

And what is their excuse, you might ask? Congress asked for $35 billion to cover an additional 7 million kids whose families make too much money to qualify for Medicare, but not enough to actually afford health insurance coverage on their own. The Bushies view this as moving beyond "helping poor children", so they want to only minimally fund $5 billion so that only the poorest of the poor get help. That's fantastic rationale: "We only agreed to help the really poor (so we wouldn't look like heartless bastards with a presidential election coming up), but we're not going to start helping the only kinda poor kids too! Socialized medicine! Socialized medicine!"

Come on! Is this really going to put the health insurance companies out of business? Really? THEY CAN'T AFFORD TO BUY INSURANCE NOW, WE'RE NOT STEALING CUSTOMERS!!

I cannot stomach an administration who would rather see 7 million children go without health insurance than risk harming health insurance companies. Where is the common decency? The only way this gets worse is when the health insurance companies issue their 2007 10-Ks and we learn that its been a record-setting profits year. I hope the tears of poor children have medicinal properties, because that's all the Bush Administration is going to allow them to have.

Its a day for Hallelujahs!!!

This one is a bit more personal.

I can never remember how to spell Hallelujah...

Thank the good Lord above, the liar is no longer running the Justice Department. Let the healing begin!