A Shout Out!

As the three year anniversary of the invasion of Iraq has passed, I want to give a "shout out" to those senators and house representatives that voted "nay" in giving Bush the authority to go to war with Iraq. I also want to give John Murtha a special shout out for having the courage to say he was wrong, something Hillary Clinton and John Kerry, supposed Democratic leaders, just can't seem to muster.

----------------------------

United States Senators and House Representatives that voted "NAY," not giving their support to President Bush and his war resolution.

UNITED STATES SENATE

Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii) Jeff Bingaman (D-New Mexico) Barbara Boxer (D-California) Robert Byrd (D-West Virginia) Lincoln Chaffee (R-Rhode Island) Kent Conrad (D-North Dakota) Jon Corzine (D-New Jersey) Mark Dayton (D-Minnesota) Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) Russ Feingold (D-Wisconsin) Bob Graham (D-Florida) Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) Jim Jeffords (I-Vermont) Ted Kennedy (D-Massachusetts) Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) Carl Levin (D-Michigan) Barbara Mikulski (D-Maryland) Patty Murray (D-Washington) Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island) Paul Sarbanes (D-Maryland) Debbie Stabenow (D-Michigan) The late Paul Wellstone (D-Minnesota) Ron Wyden (D-Oregon)


UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES


Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) Tom Allen (D-Maine) Joe Baca (D-California) Brian Baird (D-Washington DC) John Baldacci (D-Maine, now governor of Maine) Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) Gresham Barrett (R-South Carolina) Xavier Becerra (D-California) Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) David Bonior (D-Michigan, retired from office) Robert Brady (D-Pennsylvania) Corinne Brown (D-Florida) Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio)

Lois Capps (D-California) Michael Capuano (D-Massachusetts) Benjamin Cardin (D-Maryland) Julia Carson (D-Indiana) William Clay, Jr. (D-Missouri) Eva Clayton (D-North Carolina, retired from office) James Clyburn (D-South Carolina) Gary Condit (D-California, retired from office) John Conyers, Jr. (D-Michigan) Jerry Costello (D-Illinois) William Coyne (D-Pennsylvania, retired from office) Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland)

Susan Davis (D-California) Danny Davis (D-Illinois) Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) Diana DeGette (D-Colorado) Bill Delahunt (D-Massachusetts) Rosa DeLauro (D-Connecticut) John Dingell (D-Michigan) Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) Mike Doyle (D-Pennsylvania) John Duncan, Jr. (R-Tennessee)

Anna Eshoo (D-California) Lane Evans (D-Illinois) Sam Farr (D-California) Chaka Fattah (D-Pennsylvania) Bob Filner (D-California) Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts) Charles Gonzalez (D-Texas) Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois)

Alice Hastings (D-Florida) Earl Hilliard (D-Alabama, retired from office) Maurice Hinchey (D-New York) Ruben Hinojosa (D-Texas) Rush Holt (D-New Jersey) Mike Honda (D-California) Darlene Hooley (D-Oregon) John Hostettler (R-Indiana) Amo Houghton (R-New York, retired from office) Jay Inslee (D-Washington)

Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Illinois) Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas) Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-Ohio) Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio) Dale Kildee (D-Michigan) Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Michigan) Jerry Kleczka (D-Wisconsin, retired from office) Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio)

John LaFalce (D-New York) James Langevin (D-Rhode Island) Rick Larsen (D-Washington) John Larson (D-Connecticut) Jim Leach (R-Iowa) Barbara Lee (D-California) Sandy Levin (D-Michigan) John Lewis (D-Georgia) Bill Lipinski (D-Illinois,retired from office) Zoe Lofgren (D-California)

James Maloney (D-Connecticut, retired from office) The late Robert Matsui (D-California) Karen McCarthy (D-Missouri, retired from office) Betty McCollum (D-Minnesota) Jim McDermott-D-Washington) Jim McGovern (D-Massachusetts) Cynthia McKinney (D-Georgia) Carrie Meek (D-Florida, retired from office) Gregory Meeks (D-New York) Robert Menendez (D-New Jersey) Juanita Millender-McDonald (D-California) George Miller (D-California) Alan Mollohan (D-West Virginia) Jim Moran (D-Virginia) Connie Morella (D-Maryland)

Jerrold Nadler (D-New York) Grace Napolitano (D-California) Richard Neal (D-Massachusetts) Jim Oberstar (D-Minnesota) David Obey (D-Wisconsin) John Olver (D-Massachusetts) Major Owens (D-New York)

(D-New Jersey) Ed Pastor (D-Arizona) Ron Paul (R-Texas) Donald Payne (D-New Jersey) Nancy Pelosi (D-California) David Price (D-North Carolina) Nick Rahall (D-West Virginia) Charles Rangel (D-New York) Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) Lynn Rivers (D-Michigan, retired from office) Ciro Rodriguez (D-Texas, retired from office) Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-California) Bobby Rush (D-Illinois)

Martin Olav Sabo (D-Minnesota) Loretta Sanchez (D-California) Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) Thomas Sawyer (D-Ohio) Jan Schakowsky (D-Illinois) Bobby Scott (D-Virginia) Jose Serrano (D-New York) Louise Slaughter (D-New York) Vic Snyder (D-Arkansas) Hilda Solis (D-California) Pete Stark (D-California) Ted Strickland (D-Ohio) Burt Stupak (Michigan)

Mike Thompson (D-California) Bennie Thompson (D-Mississippi) John Tierney (D-Massachusetts) Edolphus Towns (D-New York) Mark Udall (D-Colorado) Tom Udall (D-New Mexico)

Nydia Velaquez (D-New York) Pete Visclosky (D-Indiana) Maxine Waters (D-California) Diane Watson (D-California) Melvin Watt (D-North Carolina) Lynn Woolsey (D-California) David Wu (D-Oregon)

An Evolution Story

Anti-Malaria Gene Found in Africa, Study Says

Bijal P. Trivedi
National Geographic Today
November 14, 2001

One in five people in the African country of Burkina Faso carries a gene that protects them against malaria, according to a new study. Understanding how the gene prevents severe malaria could lead to the development of protective drugs.

Researchers led by David Modiano of the University of Rome, Italy, have quantified the benefits of carrying one or two copies of the hemoglobin C gene (HbC). The gene produces a slightly mutant version of hemoglobin, the protein that carries oxygen in red blood cells. [Read More]

Right Wing Dilemma

Hannity, O'Reilly and Limbaugh, the real 'Axis of Evil' must be in a real quandary these days. With certain members of the GOP now trying to save their political careers coming out against Bush, who does the Axis side with? When one doesn't use common sense, but just walks along party lines, what happens when the party line comes to a "T" in the road?

-------------------------------------------------

GOP is in 'deep funk' over Bush spending

Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau
Sunday, March 12, 2006

Washington -- The Republican rebellion that President Bush smacked into with the Dubai ports deal was the tip of an iceberg of Republican discontent that is much deeper and more dangerous to the White House than a talk radio tempest over Arabs running U.S. ports. [Read More]

It All Comes Down to Abortion

With President Bush's poll numbers at an all time low and a general mistrust of the Republican Party by the public after the Delay and Abramoff scandals, it looks like the Democrats could actually pull out a win in the upcoming elections. Right? But somewhere deep down, I know it won't happen. Why? Because while the Democrats remain disorganized and unfocused, the Republicans are polarized on one issue -- abortion.

Abortion is a tough issue. I'm feel so blessed and lucky to be in a place where I can say that I would never get an abortion. I have a solid marriage and a beautiful son. We're not rich, but we have a savings account and own our home. Although we don't have any plans to have another baby, another "surprise" would be a blessing.

But there are other women whose lives are not as comfortable as mine. And in America I don't believe it's my right or my government's right to tell them how to live their lives or what to do with their bodies.

One might call me a liberal, but I actually disagree and call myself a conservative on this issue, a political conservative that is. I believe that abortion isn't the business of the government but the business of the individual. It wouldn't be my choice, but based on the laws of this country, it's an individual choice.

This is where my opinion differs from about 51% of the country -- a group that's willing to forgo the security of the country with the illegal invasion of Iraq and the selling of our ports to the UAE; a group willing to overlook the increased taxation through loss of benefits of the poor and middle class in order for the wealthy to keep more of their money; a group willing to bankrupt our children's social security; a group willing to continue their support for a bunch of crooks and thieves, taking millions of dollars worth of gifts and trips from lobbyist; and a group that will look the other way as our senior citizens' health is ignored for the benefit of the pharmaceutical companies in the Medicare debacle.

How could the Christian base support this very un-Christian behavior? They've made abortion their top priority -- taking politics out of the vote and supplanting it with radical religiosity -- bending the bible to fit their own political agenda of moving America one step closer to becoming a theocratic republic.

So while abortion may not be a choice for me, I'm not willing to abandon what it means to be American -- to quote the Constitution, "Securing the blessings of Liberty."