Something to keep in mind as the economy struggles and the government bungles.  ..bruce w..

Gerard Van der Leun over at American Digest posted the poster above.

As for me and my house, well, here’s a photo of our place from Earth Hour 2009:

Repeat and rinse.  ..bruce w..

…but only because Stupak caved. And for what? A meaningless Presidential declaration and $726,409 in airport grants. Once again, I am reminded of “A Man for All Seasons“:

MORE:  I have one question to ask the witness. (RICH stops) That’s a chain of office you are wearing. (Reluctantly RICH faces him) May I see it? (NORFOLK motions him to approach. MORE examines the medallion) The red dragon. (To CROMWELL) What’s this?

CROMWELL:  Sir Richard is appointed Attorney-General for Wales.

MORE:  (Looking into RICH’S face, with pain and amusement) For Wales? Why, Richard, it profits a man nothing to give his soul for the whole world . . . But for Wales! (Exit RICH, stiff-faced, but infrangibly dignified)

Sen. Ben Nelson is probably thanking his lucky stars tonight that someone else will now get the blame for Obamacare.

As for me, well, I plan to spend several thousand dollars between now and November helping to defeat the Democrats who voted for this abomination.

UPDATED (03/22/2010 — 1222 MDT)

And I’ve started. I’ve sent $100 to Dr. Dan Benishek, who’s running against Stupak (thanks to Daniel Blatt over at GayPatriot for the pointer as well as to the link my ‘Stupak caves’ post). I even gritted my teeth and donated $200 to the GOP’s “Fire Pelosi” campaign. (The teeth-gritting is not because I don’t want to see Pelosi out as Speaker, but because I fear the GOP will find some way to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.)  ..bruce w..

…film at 11. Or thereabouts.

Foolish, foolish man. He will forever be known (and not kindly) as the reason Obamacare passed the House. And, of course, Obama has such a great track record of keeping promises. ..bruce w..

P.S. Poster hat tip to Moonbattery, c/o American Digest.

…you’ve lost, period:

WE UNDERSTAND the administration’s sense of urgency on health-care reform. But what is intended as a final sprint threatens to turn into something unseemly and, more important, contrary to Democrats’ promises of transparency and time for deliberation.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters Monday that she is leaning toward a parliamentary maneuver under which the House would vote on a package of changes to the Senate-approved reform bill, and the underlying Senate bill would then be “deemed” to have passed, even though the House had never voted on it. That may help some House members dodge a politically difficult decision, but it strikes us as a dodgy way to reform the health-care system. Democrats who vote for the package will be tagged with supporting the Senate bill in any event. Why not be straightforward about it?

More worrying is that Congress and the country have yet to see the changes, for which Democrats hope to win quick House approval and which they then hope to speed through the Senate under a procedure that would bar filibusters. These changes — the so-called reconciliation bill — are not all minor “fixes”; some could have far-reaching consequences. Such changes deserve to be fully understood and debated before they are voted on. The speaker’s office says the week-long “conversation” that Nancy Pelosi promised to have with members is taking place and that they are waiting for the final word from the Congressional Budget Office before releasing the package; in any event, they say, lawmakers and the public will have 72 hours to consider the changes. But why be so secretive about it? Any number of measures — including versions of the health-care bill itself — have been unveiled without CBO scores.

The health-care debate has been going on longer than a year, and House members want to get it over with. They don’t want it hanging over them during the Easter recess. President Obama wants progress to have been made before he leaves for Indonesia on Sunday. These are understandable desires, but they don’t outweigh the need for a reasonable process on a matter of such importance.

No wonder the moonbats see the WaPo as a right-wing rag — something I find quite humorous, having subscribed to and read the WaPo print edition every morning for six years while living in DC.  ..bruce w..

Well, you've won my vote.

President Obama, Senate Majority Leader Reid, and Speaker Pelosi seemed determined to bend, twist, and subvert the rules and procedures of government — and possibly the Constitution itself — in order to pass Obamacare, which they seem to see as more important than any of those things. Their “whatever is necessary, the ends justifies the means” approach brings to mind the following passage from one of my favorite plays, “A Man for All Seasons” by Robert Bolt:

Alice:   While you talk, he’s gone [referring to Richard Rich, who is a potential threat to Sir Thomas More].

More:   And go he should if he was the devil himself until he broke the law.

Roper:   So now you’d give the Devil benefit of law.

More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil?

Roper:   I’d cut down every law in England to do that.

More: Oh? And when the last law was down — and the Devil turned round on you — where would you hide, Roper, the laws being all flat? This country’s planted thick with laws from coast to coast — Man’s laws, not God’s — and if you cut them down — and you’re just the man to do it — d’you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the Devil benefit of law, for my own safety’s sake.

Being in my mid-50s and an avid reader of history, I tend to take a long-term view on politics; I’ve seen the pendulum swing any number of times. But Reid and Pelosi’s plan, encouraged by Obama, to use reconciliation and the so-called Slaughter Solution to get health care through Congress and onto Obama’s desk, strikes me as a profoundly dangerous and unwise approach, with implications that could last for decades.  ..bruce w..

This was my favorite ad from the Superbowl yesterday, though probably not for the reasons Audi wanted.  ..bruce w..

If you’re not aware, the title of this post is how members of the United States Senate refer to themselves and their institution. I’d like to see any one of those 60 Democrats say that with a straight face anymore.  ..bruce w..

…can’t trust that day. Or the weekend, apparently. Video above courtesy of Gateway Pundit. Not what George Lucas had in mind, I dare say.

Backlash? What backlash? Once again, the “Serenity” trailer as a metaphor for the growing conservative rebellion. “No. They’re not going to see this coming.”

The poster below has been showing up all over the ‘sphere for some weeks now, most lately over at Instapundit:

The British press — which seems to be doing a much better job of covering the Obama Administration than the US press — notes the growing hints of wistfulness for Bush, even among Democrats. Heck, at this point, I miss Bill Clinton — words I never thought I’d say.  ..bruce w..

Via Wesley J. Smith at Critical Condition (National Review Online) comes this ‘death panel’ tale from the health care paradise to the north of us:

Bonnie Cameron and Cindy Waters-Goodman do not know each other, but they have much in common. Both are feisty, small-town Ontarians who were young, busy mothers when hit with diagnoses of pulmonary arterial hypertension, an incurable heart and lung disease. Ms. Cameron’s verdict came after the day she felt constantly winded and her legs grew so swollen that she had to scissor off her jeans. A family photographer, Ms. Waters-Goodman found out after a flight of stairs at work rendered her faint, dizzy and slurring her words. Both were started on a regimen of drugs that are costly but slowed the pace of the disease, which is uncommon and often goes undetected. The province paid much of the tab, which the women estimate was about $100,000 a year each. Their lives improved drastically: They could play with their kids, cook meals and shower without fainting.

Then, last spring, out of the blue, both received letters informing them the province would no longer allow more than one medication. To continue receiving support, they’d have to stop taking combos. After much lobbying, Ms. Waters-Goodman won a reprieve and can stay on her combination of drugs for one more year. Ms. Cameron wasn’t so lucky. Forced to give up her secondary medication, she has suffered greatly, and this week slipped into critical condition after being moved to hospital in Toronto. With an intravenous line in her neck and several failing organs, she seesaws between life and death.

And this is where Congress and President Obama are steering us, whether they intend to or not.  Be sure to read the comments, including the first one — written by the husband of Ms. Waters-Goodman.  ..bruce w..