Lost & Found

I borrowed the CD version of "The Pleasure of My Company." I liked it. I loaned it to someone else. I forgot who. I'd like to return it. Did I loan it you?

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

Once they screw this one up, there won't be anyone left to marvel at their pig-headed shortsightedness.

Talking Points Memo: "...a bit down further into the document which they put out there's a $1.8 billion annual cut in funding for the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). That's great thinking, seeing as though we don't need to worry about Avian Flu from South Asia or other contagious diseases any more."

Are you prepared?

Are you prepared?

Many times we can be proud of Western Civilization.

BBC NEWS: "Women's rights activists in Nepal have hailed a Supreme Court order to end discrimination against women during their menstrual cycle.
There is a tradition in parts of Nepal of keeping women in cow-sheds during their period.
The practice is common in far western districts of the country.
The Supreme Court has ordered the government to declare the practice as evil and given it one month to begin stamping the practice out."

At least we don't do that 'round these parts.

Man bites dog

Bush: 'I take responsibility' : "President George W. Bush took responsibility on Tuesday for any failures in the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina that struck two weeks ago and acknowledged the storm exposed deficiencies at all levels of government four years after the September 11 attacks."

Why I'm glad we won in 1781.

England has reclaimed the Ashes.

Capping a seven-week contest that gripped the nation, the English team reclaimed the Ashes - a 123-year-old cricket competition - by beating world champion Australia 2-1 in the five-match series.

But, bloody hell, how can you win a five-match series by 2 - 1?

God Outdoes Terrorists Yet Again - The Onion weighs in.

White Foragers Report Threat Of Black Looters: "Throughout the Gulf Coast, Caucasian suburbanites attempting to gather food and drink in the shattered wreckage of shopping districts have reported seeing African-Americans 'looting snacks and beer from damaged businesses.' "

(Thanks, Chas.)

Tropical Depression Lee

National Weather Service.

I coulda been somebody, I coulda been a contender.

But, alas, I was just depressed.

KATRINA TIMELINE

Think Progress provides a Katrina Timeline.

How Synergistic

Let's try to pull it all together, with this, just in, from Wonkette.

Rehnquist actually died 4 days ago, but FEMA just found him.

Wish I'd thought of that.

You can fool some of the people some of the time

The President's numbers take a hit.: " After hitting an all-time low in Gallup last week, the president just set a new personal worst in the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll. His ratings of 53 percent disapproval and 41 percent strong disapproval top Clinton's career highs of 51 percent and 37 percent.

More important, Bush set another record this week as the first president to preside over five straight years in which household incomes failed to rise. People working the longest fared the worst: Earnings for full-time workers fell by 2.3 percent for men and 1.0 percent for women.

The poverty rate rose for the fourth consecutive year, after declining every year from 1993 to 2000. The percentage of people without private health insurance also went up for the fourth year in a row."

Department of Homeland Security | Emergencies & Disasters

Department of Homeland Security | Emergencies & Disasters: "In the event of a terrorist attack, natural disaster or other large-scale emergency, the Department of Homeland Security will assume primary responsibility on March 1st for ensuring that emergency response professionals are prepared for any situation."

I don't think the local politicians are earning any medals. But the feds claim that crisis response for any situtation are their responsibility.

Mr. Negativity

From Editor & Publisher, a summary of the NOTP's efforts to document how funding for Levee relief was diverted to Iraq.

Also, a friend forwarded a letter to the editor that he'd seen. Best Quote:
If this is the example of 5 years of supposed mass emergency preparedness post-9/11and homeland security development, God help us.

Get your heart broken, right here

Photo Gallery from the New Orleans Times-Picayune.

Budget cuts delayed New Orleans flood control work

Yahoo! News: "The former head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the
agency that handles the infrastructure of the nation's
waterways, said the damage in New Orleans probably would have
been much less extensive had flood-control efforts been fully
funded over the years."