Why we shouldn't have nuclear power plants and other queries
What is a weekend without blogging like? Well, lemme tell ya. First, your hits drop because you don't update the thing and people see the same thing from Friday on Saturday and don't bother to visit on Sunday. Although, that theory could be busted because it seems like folks visit the sites on weekdays more than weekends. Anyway, not posting allows for time to actually get some life things done. I was able to do some cleaning at the house and even got in a beach day with the family. So, balance it out ... hours in front of a computer or hours roasting in the sun at the beach .... computer, beach ... computer, beach ... Well, you know which one I was enjoying.
And how about those thunder boomers on Sunday. Zowie, for sure. I would swear that some of them were really, really close, like down the street or around the corner. At least three or four of them had that firecracking sound that you hear when you're burning dry wood ... cackle, cackle ... and then, BOOM! That means they are very, very close.
And then, downpours of rain, like you are in the jungle ... or South Miami, where right around 5 p.m. every night, it pours buckets on your head for about 10 minutes and then, the storm moves on. Tropical, for sure. But, you know, the flip side is that everything is green and clean this morning.

But how about waking up to this out your window this morning: ["Strong Quake Rocks Japan, Nuclear Plant"]. Again, like I said in the previous climate change post, nuclear power plants are not the answer to global warming despite all the "concerned scientists" who are pimping them, while at the same time, complaining that people who challenge global warming are whores for Exxon. Nuclear just isn't the answer. So, let's scrap that one and find something else. Not unlike the desalination plant idea, I don't understand why someone hasn't started building thousands of solar panels across the entire Mojave Desert. That power could easily be piped around the region. That would surely reduce some of the emissions with little harm or danger to the environment, especially when compared to nuclear.

Is the Daily Kos founder a plant for the CIA? This guy claims that and more: ["The Truth About Kos"]. This looks like "crazy" Lyndon LaRouche-speak stuff but who knows these days. I mean, the site came out of nowhere and is now one of the biggest Web sites in the world. And what about banning people for questioning 9-11? I mean, come on. There are slews of legit people questioning the official story but not on DailyKos. I must admit how hilarious it would be to see this guy and Kos on a panel, broadcast on C-SPAN, debating whether Kos is a plant or not.

Speaking of DailyKos, I missed this one: ["My Initial Response to Being Banned by Markos Moulitas from Daily Kos"]. As I've said in previous posts, I really like MaryScott. And, actually, she is one of the reasons I was banned back in 2004 from the site. I was critical of John Kerry and I challenged one of her diaries. In it, she talked about all the great things we could expect from a John Kerry administration and how hopeful she was. I countered that with a stinging rebuke and got pummeled for it. Actually, I was a bit rude in my post and MaryScott and others uprated my post so it wouldn't be lost, just to show everyone how cruel I was. But, I stood [and stand] by my points. Kerry wouldn't have done jack for us regular folks and she was naive to think he would have. She clearly has come around to my way of thinking and, despite her popularity, was banished from the site. Thankfully, she had already created her cool counter site, My Left Wing, where people aren't banned from publishing whatever they feel like. Which, is kinda what the entire point of political discourse is, anyway, right?

Political short cuts
The 2008 campaign claims another victim: ["Gilmore pulls out of presidential race"]. I actually met Gilmore earlier this year and while he seemed like a smart guy, he didn't seem to have the fire in the belly for a national campaign. As well, his debate performance, if you will, didn't stand out enough to get into the middle tier of candidates running. Here is an editorial from one of his local newspapers, giving us a bit more to think about: ["Gilmore bid ends aptly"]. I like this line:

In his home state, he was never a favorite son as much as a retired uncle whose half-fulfilled “No Car Tax” campaign promise had left mixed political results and a party that has not fully recovered from its resulting fiscal fallout and infighting. As governor, his inability to get along with many in his own party, not to mention Democrats, left a legacy of a fighter but not necessarily of a winner.

Some speculate he may wait out his time and run for Senate next year in Virginia.

While some think John McCain may be the next one to go, think again. Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee has drawn a line in the sand for his exploratory campaign for August: ["Huckabee Says a Strong Iowa Straw Poll Showing A Must"]. I can't imagine, finally getting the guts up enough to run for the highest office in the land, putting yourself out there, and then deciding that some lame poll of activists - which is totally rigged for Mitt Romney at this point - is the determining factor of a candidate continuing his race. What does that say about our political process? Huckabee would be smart to go back into the New Testament and get some inspiration about how this world is really supposed to be. He might have a revelation, if you will.

I'm not going to pile onto McCain because, ya know, why kick a man when he is so far down at this point? It's so sad. I know what I would do to kick-start his campaign but, let him figure it out.
I never bought into the McCain thing in the first place although I know many who did. I thought the StraightTalkExpress of 1999 and 2000 was refreshing. My brother-in-law worked on his campaign and although Howard Dean gets all the credit for using the Internet as a campaign tool, it was actually McCain's campaign which used the Internet first [In 1997, a Boston Globe reporter credited me for being the first and then only Boston City Council candidate to use email to communicate or have a Web site]. His work on McCain-Feingold was commendable and might make up a bit for his role in the Keating 5 scandal. Despite what conservatives say, Money is not Speech. The bill wasn't perfect but it was better than nothing.
But for all the straight talk, McCain didn't change much on the issues. He has always been too conservative for much of the country. And some who know him and have worked with him in Washington, think he is completely bats.