In an article today by Joan Walsh, editor in chief at Salon.Com, she wrote a piece praising President Obama’s “the buck stops with me” address to the Press yesterday.

She contrasted Obama’s humble self assessment to the swagger and default blame absolution of the Bush administration.

And on that issue she is correct in my opinion. However, I believe she glossed over the President’s falling on his sword moment.

If Obama’s buck has any meaningful value, the first thing he needs to do is fire Janet Napolitano.

We all remember the day John McCain lost the race for the White House. It was when he stated that the fundamentals of the American economy was still strong against a backdrop of a plunging stock market,and the bankruptcy/collapse of Lehmann Bros and Bear Stearns. That was the turning point. He lost his credibility and cemented that loss by choosing Ms IQ to be his running mate.

The same with Napolitano. To declare just days after the attempted Christmas day bombing that “the system worked” was a catastrophic error, no matter how much backpedaling and damage limitation control went into action immediately afterwards.

To be clear, I do not think she is personally responsible for the total screw up of the intelligence agencies, but for her remarks in an attempt to gloss over those screw ups. Her job is not to serve as a cover up marketing director, but to guide the Homeland Security Department through some very choppy waters.

She needs to be fired precisely because the buck stops with Obama. He is faced with probably the easiest firing decision he will have to make. If he does not do that, then not only has Napolitano lost credibility, but the President too.

GUESS WHEN THIS CARTOON WAS CREATED?

You may think the cartoon is having a dig at the lapse in security over this weekend. And you would be wrong. This cartoon, courtesy of Cartoon News Magazine.Com is from December 2001, in the aftermath of the Richard Reid fiasco (the shoe bomber) who attempted to detonate explosives hidden in his sneakers on an American Airlines flight from Paris, France, to Miami, Florida.

Like the attempted terrorist attack on Christmas Day 2009, Reid had thwarted every security procedure that the TSA had put in place just two months after the September 11 attacks, and like the attempted terrorist attack on Christmas Day 2009, it took quick thinking by fellow passengers to subdue Reid and eliminate the bomb threat.

So, has there been any real improvement in security at airports since 2001? Well, it would seem that way. Just ask anyone who takes a flight these days  and they will tell you that they have been arriving at the airports earlier and earlier as the security checks have got more and more involved.

But the problem is that a lot of these security checks were put in place, not because the US predicted terrorist bombing strategy, but because they failed to recognize it altogether.

You take your shoes off at the check in desk and put them through a machine only because Reid had successfully breezed through all security checkpoints with his shoes on.

You can only take a certain amount of liquids on board in certain types of containers, not because of  US  intelligence, but because British intelligence uncovered a plot in 2006  to detonate liquid explosives carried on board at least 10 airloners travelling from the United Kingdom to the United States and Canada. Where were the Americans? Asleep at the wheel while the British conducted one of the biggest surveillance operations ever involving over 220 police.

So now we have yet more rules issued by the TSA ( Transportation Security Administration) following a lone terrorist Christmas eve’s attempt to bring down a Delta Airlines aircraft. They include a “thorough pat-down” at boarding gates, focused on the upper legs and torso. And all passengers must now remain seated for the final hour before landing. During that time, they may not have access to their carry-on baggage or hold personal items on their laps. While over US airspace, flight crews may not make any announcements to passengers concerning the flight path or the airplane’s position over cities or landmarks,” the new rules notified by the US authorities said.

Will these additional measures sort the problem out once and for all?

I am not at all convinced. At all. Not only did the Nigerian terrorist get through with explosives, he also got through a syringe, which was found as an essential piece of bomb making equipment in the London plot. So there were at least two bomb making items that we know of that got through on Christmas eve. A total failure by the security checkpoint in Holland.

Then there is the much publicized fact that the would be terrorist, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, was already on a government watch list and the father of the terrorist had shopped his son to authorities, concerned that he would do something dreadful. And yet, he was allowed to fly. I am not sure how much worse an indictment you can get on the American security apparatus.I am betting that Umar could have boarded the flight with a “I love Osama Bin Laden” T-Shirt.

Until we stop playing catch up and starts predicting, analyzing and bugging  terrorists intent on destroying America, two things will happen. More devastating terrorist attacks will occur on American soil. And if you think that flying now is a drag, god help all of us when the terrorists eventually succeed.

We also need the head of the Department of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, to take the threat much more seriously. For her to go on TV this Sunday morning and say that “the system worked” is both jaw droppingly stupid and frightening at the same time. It didn’t work at all. In my opinion, she should be fired immediately and replaced by someone  who understands that there was a massive breakdown of security on Christmas Day and well before Christmas Day; the moment the bomber was put on the list of potential radical Islamists.

And it would also help if the Secret Service could stop any further party crashers from shaking hands with the President – just for my peace of mind.

SENATOR READ'S PLEA TO PROGRESSIVES: ACCEPT HEALTHCARE BILL

I have learned a lot from the ongoing drama of the health care debate. I’ve learned that the Republican Party is the Party of no. The Party of lies. The Party infatuated with abortion.

I’ve learned that former Democratic Senator Lieberman who had run as  VP in 2000 stabbed Democrats, Obama and Reid in the back and into the heart of real health care reform.

I have learned that Obama is content with incremental health care expansion rather than reform. I have learned that majority rule isn’t worth the paper its written on under the American system of politics.

But I have also understood that as a British citizen living in America, some political issues went over my head – such as cloture. I also found it difficult to put into perspective individual Senators and Congressmen who came under the spotlight during this debate. Were they true to their beliefs (based on prior statements made) were they just looking to get themselves re-elected or were they really just trying to kill the bill.

I had nowhere to go to to fill in the gaps in my understanding of the US political landscape.

That is until I came across the website www.whorunsgov.com.

The site is built on a moderated wiki platform which allows registered users to easily edit existing profiles or expand the directory by adding new ones.  Unlike some other wikis based websites, WhoRunsGov.com editorial team will review and edit all public contributions before they go live.

The site is extremely impressive, and breathtaking in its expansive coverage of all people & committees that are political: including strategists, Departments, officials, advisors, interest groups, and Congress – both House and Senator representitives.

For each search you do on a name, you go to a seperate page profile entitled “Why he counts” with a full page of facts and noticable achievments (or lack of) over the last few years.

The site includes a punchy political blog too – The Plum Line by Greg Sargent.

I now have a great new source of information. My hope is that each time I return to whorunsgov.com, I get to understand the US Political system that much more.

This site is a must have resource for anyone who blogs on political issues. Great for research, great for data mining.

BRING CHANGE!! ONLY THEN CAN WE BRING HOPE!!

The wheeling, the dealing , the arm bending on the left and the right of the Democratic Party, the absolutely disgusting and uncaring fillibuster attempt by the Republican Party – it’s incredible that Senator Reid can talk about a health care bill and for others within his own party to know which one he’s referring to.

Having been savaged by Senator Leiberman of a public option and expansion of Medicare to 55 year olds, having made concessions to Senator Nelson on abortion and medicaid, having got other Democrats on board with their own State black male requirements, deep divisions within the Democratic Party are threatening to derail the Bill at the very same time the White House is lauding it as the most comprehensive piece of  health care legislation since social security.

And these divisions are coming from the base of the Democratic Party, most notably spearheaded by Vermont Governor, Howard Dean, who up till last night was stating quite publicly that he would kill the bill if he had the vote.

So , what exactly is in this Bill that has allowed (so far) for a yes vote from the 60 Democratic and Independent Senators?

Ezra Klein, a columnist at the Washington Post neatly hi lites the changes, and to me looks like a decent start to health care change in America.

In fact it is so decent, I believe that Howard Dean has finally caved under pressure from the White House to get the legislation through.

Until just a couple days ago Dean stated “This is a bigger bailout for the insurance industry than AIG, & a very small number of people are going to get any insurance at all, until 2014, if the bill works.” “This is an insurance companies’ dream, this bill,” Dean added. “This is the Washington scramble and I think it’s ill-advised.”

And John Gibbs, White House Press Secretary attacked Dean and said that he did not know what piece of legislation Dean was reading.

Now things have gotten a lot more cordial between Howard Dean and the White House

The White House  is now praising Howard Dean with a “we respect him so much” op ed by Joe Biden in the NY Times and in remarks by David Axlerod on NBC this morning cooing “I respect Howard Dean,” describing him as “passionate” about the issue.

Meanwhile, also on NBC, Dean conspicuously declined to say that Obama had failed to fight hard enough for core liberal priorities. Asked about this line, Dean reiterated his substantive criticism of the bill, but added: “He certainly tried very hard.” And he declined to call outright for the bill to be killed.

The bottom line is that I sadly support the Bill, even though it won’t stop discriminatory practices against my pre-existing condition by the insurance industry for another five years. Which is practically a life time for those people with chronic and progressive disorders such as myself.

But having read the latest bullet points, I cannot say – “all or nothing” . When the Bill calls for immediate halt to discrimination against children with pre-existing conditions, I cannot say – no, children with pre-exiting conditions may have to ..wait forever possibly,  if no new legislation gets passed and the insurance industry wins.

The Bill calls for accountability for excessive rate increases. A health insurer’s participation in the Exchanges will depend on its performance. Insurers that jack up their premiums before the Exchange begins will be excluded – a powerful incentive to keep premiums affordable.

Again, this must surely be a good thing. Some oversight and accountability has got to be better than no oversight and accountability at all.

The biggest tragedy is that Progressive Liberals dared hope for real change, the very mantra that got Barack Obama elected. But not doing anything about health care would play right into the hands of the insurance industry and Republican objectives, which we know would be tantamount to political suicide and the dashing of hopes of the silent majority, who are dying and going bankrupt because of the current state of our health care system.

YouTube remains the number one destination of choice for video clips of momentuous occassions, such as Republican Senator Joe Wilson criminally outrageous “You Lie” outburst during the presidential joint address to Congress on September 9th.
However, for a constant up to the minute streaming source of material debating the proposed changes (or lack of) to healthcare  reform,  CNN recently hilited some of the best twitter streams to follow. 

See the list after the jump

In no particular order:

PolitiFact. (@politifact) A Pulitzer-Prize-winning news group, which is part of the St. Petersburg Times, sorts fact from fiction on the health care debate and other topics. That “You lie!” comment, for instance? A lie, Politifact says. With over 5000 followers, @politifact likes to tweet on a micro level, such as fact checking whether the Baucus healthcare bill would tax medical devices such as X-ray tests and surgical needles!

SusannahFox. (@susannahfox) Fox’s Twitter feed is packed with anecdotes and statistics about how social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook are changing doctor-patient relationships and the state of health care at large. With over 3000 followers, one example tweet is the fact that according to Fox 38% of internet users look online for information about hospitals or other medical facilities. (not a particularly earth shattering tweet IMO)

kevinmd. (@kevinmd) Blogger and doctor Kevin Pho offers up commentary on his life as a physician and the health care system. With over 15,000 followers, Kevin offers a unique insiders’ perspective to inform outsiders ( you & me)

whitehouse. (@whitehouse)  The official White House Twitter feed covers a slate of topics, but heath care has been especially big on the administration’s recent tweeting agenda. Not surprisingly, given how ugly and the agenda has become. With over 1.5 million followers, by far the largest audience of all the tweeters mentioned by CNN.

AmerMedicalAssn (@amermedicalassn) This doctors’ group tries to spice up the health care debate with  tons of newsy updates on the latest votes, disputes and developments.  Pretty interesting tweets too and over 5000 followers.

As America’s roads come to a standstill over the next few hours, Thanksgiving has proven itself recession proof as families do whatever is necessary to get together for this special occassion.

Let’s spare a moments thought for those in uniform who will not be spending Thanksgiving with their loved ones. They must find other ways of being with the family for Thanksgiving.  Like Skype! This picture says it all. Courtesy of Boston.Com

Rep Alan Grayson of Florida - refreshingly honest

Watching the evening news tonight, it has become clear to me that no-one, not me, not the political pundits, nor the senators themselves, knows what if any, health care legislation gets to be passed by the Senate.

Will it include a public option or won’t it? Will it produce cost savings? Will it curb insurance company abuses? Will it extend insurance to millions of the uninsured? Will there be a state opt out?

Well, since four Democratic Senators, ( Blanche Lincoln, (D-AR) Max Baucus,(D-MN) Ben Nelson (D-NE), and Mary Landrieu (D-LA)) have gone on record as stating that they will not support the public option in its current form, aswell as one former Democrat, (Joe Leiberman I-CT) stating that he would not support a public option in any form; political lines in the sand have been firmly staked out on both sides of the debate.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-VT) threatened that he would vote AGAINST any legislation WITHOUT a robust public option. “I think I speak not just for myself, but for many members of the Democratic caucus,” he said.

This would include Sen. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), one of the Senate’s more liberal members,who vented: “I don’t want four Democratic senators dictating to the other 56 of us and to the rest of the country – when the public option has this much support – that a public option is not going to be in it.”

A sentiment echoed by outspoken Florida Rep Alan Grayson, who went further in suggesting that the current system of filibuster should not need a special budget reconciliation process, when there is a definite majority of 51senators ready to vote in favor of the public plan right now.

He went on to call the whole Senate voting procedure as profoundly ” undemocratic”, whereas the House gets “business done”.

I am very much inclined to agree with Rep Alan Grayson, whose outspokenness on healthcare reform has made him enemy number one of the Republicans in both the House and the Senate.

But I agree with him, not because of his no holds barred way of  getting his point of view across, but because what he has to say rings so true. A truth which echoes the silent voice of the 48 million uninsured who are going bankrupt and dying whilst posturing and pointscoring continues unabated in the Senate.

Good on you Rep Alan Grayson. Millions are relying on you.

All rational and compassionate Americans need to give Bernie Goldberg, a “Conservative pundit” on Fox News’s payroll a kick up the ass for having said what must be the most disgusting generalisation of the year – the headline of this post.

Or perhaps a fxxx you, as Jon Stewart so politely stated behind the shuffling of his papers on The Daily Show. The whole video is”must watch”, but for the delusional Bernie Goldberg statement, fast forward to 6.19  minutes into the video

I am no fan of Sarah Palin. I don’t believe that she has any right to be a torchbearer for anything political since giving up the governership of Alaska.

Her naked ambitions to run for President are all too apparent, no matter how poorly she attempts to disguise it. Her well timed book publication and its inevitable top ten placement in the New York Times Best Sellers List will probably end up funding her presidential campaign in 2012….which she will lose and probably lose badly.

She is her own best friend as well as own worst enemy. The conservatives think the former, what remains of the Republican Party believe the latter.

So I was quite surprised to read about Newsweek’s latest publication with Sarah Palin on its front cover. It is a photo cropped from an authorised publication of her in very short running shorts, sneakers and a lot of thigh.

That photo was originally published in the August 2009 issue of Runners World, accompanied by a caption – “I’m a runner”. I am sure that the caption was not referring to her political ambitions but to her love for all  sports and the importance of exercise.

Newsweek cropped that photo for its front cover and in a rather snarky way wrote ” Why she’s bad news for the GOP – and for everyone else too.”

Palin retorted on her Facebook page, “The choice of photo for the cover of this week’s Newsweek is unfortunate. When it comes to Sarah Palin, this “news” magazine has relished focusing on the irrelevant rather than the relevant. The Runner’s World magazine one-page profile for which this photo was taken was all about health and fitness — a subject to which I am devoted and which is critically important to this nation. The out-of-context Newsweek approach is sexist and oh-so-expected by now. If anyone can learn anything from it: it shows why you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, gender, or color of skin. The media will do anything to draw attention — even if out of context.”

And for once Sarah Palin is absolutely right. Depicting her in a rather skimpy outfit on the front page of the second largest news weekly magazine in the U.S, published in New York and known to be left leaning is indeed sexist and Newsweek should learn some manners.

I am all for a laugh, but imagine for a moment that agreeing to be photographed in a pose that in context is absolutely appropriate – to encourage more people to exercise more often; and then without your consent have that photo cropped and placed on the front cover of Newsweek so that it appears to be rather suggestive and to support the theory that Palin is nothing more than a political wannabe airhead, is insulting, sexist and unfair.

Newsweek should know better.

I must admit only a passing interest to the Carrie Prejean story that has developed over the last year or so. My interest however was peeked when I heard about some (manual labour) sex tapes that Carrie had claimed she had put together when she was seventeen, and almost surfaced on the net; a rather unusual thing for a lady of such high moral values to do.

So the fact that she is now hawking her 15 minutes of fame book on TV is regrettably not surprising at all these days, but she managed to take her own hypocrisy and petulance to new levels in an interview with Larry King on Thursday evening.