Woman who just missed getting on doomed Air France flght dies in auto accident

Now I'm doubly creeped out.

Johanna Ganthaler a retiree from the Bolzano-Bozen province, was on vacation in Brazil with her husband Kurt when the pair miraculously missed the doomed flight to Paris. But their luck ran out on an Austrian road earlier this week when their car swerved into the path of an oncoming truck outside the town of Kufstein, the Times (U.K.) reported.

Read the rest of this post...

It's all about the underwear

Buy those new undies because it's good for the economy. Do your best not to think about Alan Greenspan during the process though. That could force a very bad reaction. CNBC:

During a recession, underwear is among the first things that people stop buying—because hardly anybody actually sees them. This creates pent-up demand, and so when underwear sales level off and increase, it should signal an uptick in consumer demand.

According to the underwear indicator, an old favorite of Alan Greenspan, there needs to be a return to 2 to 3 percent annual growth in sales in order to claim a recovery.

However, consumer research group Mintel predicted underwear sales will see a continuing decline of 2.3 percent this year and no recovery until 2013.

Read the rest of this post...

PFAW would like the DHS domestic extremism report released

You'll recall that this is the report on domestic terrorism and right-wing extremists that the administration reportedly pulled after right-wing extremists complained. Shortly thereafter, right-wing extremists went and assassinated a pro-choice doctor in church, and shot up the Holocaust Museum. Perhaps it's time the administration revisited the report that they didn't have the backbone to defend. Read the rest of this post...

Insurance industry front group admits nearly 120m Americans would prefer federally-run health care

I'm not sure why this little bombshell hasn't gotten more attention.

The Republicans, not surprisingly, are trying to scare Americans out of reforming the health care system. One "fact" they love to cite? That 120m Americans will lose their health care coverage if the Democrats are able to give Americans the same health care coverage that members of Congress have - i.e., a federal plan, or "public option," in which you get great benefits at a low cost. Republican Congressman Paul Ryan made the claim today, and Mike Pence did it last month.

So I decided to read up on the "study" the GOP is citing. And what did I find (via the link above)? Not only is the "study" prepared by an insurance company's own "think tank," but the study doesn't say that 120 million Americans will lose their private health coverage if a public option is enacted into law. The study say that 120 million Americans will choose to leave their private insurance coverage and take the public plan instead, because it's cheaper.

In other words, a GOP-style study admits that, if given the choice, Americans would flock to a public plan.

Tell me again why Obama and the Dems in Congress are being so reticent about pushing harder for a fully public option when even the insurance industry's own think tank says Americans would prefer it? Read the rest of this post...

Norm Coleman owes Al Franken $95,000

Not too long ago, losing Senate candidate Norm Coleman released a fundraising video featuring Republican leaders including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader John Boehner, RNC Chair Michael Steele and GOP Senators John Cornyn, Lamar Alexander, John Thune, James Inhofe, Lindsey Graham, Lisa Murkowski, Bob Corker and Richard Burr.

The funny part is they were actually raising money for Democratic Senator Al Franken -- to the tune of $95,000 in court costs. In the next video, McConnell, Steele, Boehner and the rest can just tell donors to make out their checks to "Franken for Senate." Read the rest of this post...

Glenn Beck's solution to Holocaust Museum terrorist: We all need to "shoot straight" with each other

Seriously. He really is a big scared angry child with a camera. Of course, he was even better last night than that little quote. Glenn Beck's guest last night, with Beck seemingly in agreement, argued that the Holocaust denying, racist, Jew hating, government hating, Obama hating, Free Republic frequenting guy who shot up the Holocaust Museum was actually a liberal. Proof? Hitler was a liberal. (He had the word "socialist" in his party name. Seriously.) And he hated Jews.

Yes, which party does this describe more closely:

National Socialism was similar in many respects to Italian fascism (see Fascism). The roots of National Socialism, however, were peculiarly German, grounded, for example, in the Prussian tradition of military authoritarianism and expansion; in the German romantic tradition of hostility to rationalism, liberalism, and democracy; in various racist doctrines according to which the Nordic peoples, as so-called pure Aryans, were not only physically superior to other races, but were the carriers of a superior morality and culture; and in certain philosophical traditions that idealized the state or exalted the superior individual and exempted such a person from conventional restraints.

Uh huh. Read the rest of this post...

Foreclosures remain stubbornly high

Whether the banks are prepared for these losses and the ones to come is another important question. In all likelihood, the rose tinted economic conditions in the stress tests did not count on near record foreclosures. Reuters:

U.S. foreclosure activity for May ebbed from April's record, but mortgages still failed at a staggering pace as President Barack Obama's rescue programs had not had time to fully take root, RealtyTrac said on Thursday.

Foreclosure filings dipped 6 percent in the month but increased 18 percent from May 2008, marking the third highest month on record.

"There were almost one million foreclosure filings in a three-month period, and that's simply unprecedented," Rick Sharga, senior vice president at RealtyTrac in Irvine, California, said in an interview.

"Unprecedented" means "doubtfully included in stress tests." Read the rest of this post...

Afternoon news summary

I'm trying this new format, to give you a few news updates throughout the day. We'll see how it works.

1 minute, 50 seconds. The amount of time that FOX News spent on the Holocaust Museum shooting last night. Gee, is someone feeling a little guilty?

Murdered security guard held door for Holocaust Museum gunman.

Obama's former Rev. Wright blames "them Jews."

Barney Frank walks out on CNBC.

The Views' Joy Behar gets a show on CNN's Headline News. Excellent. And very interesting that all the networks - well, the real networks - are feeling the need to have more liberal programming.

Surprise! The US Chamber of Commerce is trying to kill health care reform. Apparently, the Chamber would like to let American business continue at a competitive disadvantage vis-a-vis foreign companies whose employees' health care is subsidized by their governments. The Chamber is usually on the side of everything evil, so the fact that they want to kill any chance of you actually getting decent health care is hardly a surprise.

Flashback: Scarborough Chortled That DHS Extremists Report Was “Funny,” Called Napolitano “Nuts”

Murdoch is trying to get rid of Bill Kristol's magazine. Maybe he can hire Joy Behar.

FireDogLake responds to critics who claim that the neo-Nazi, Jew hating, black hating, Obama hating, Free Republic loving Holocaust Museum shooter was a liberal. Read the rest of this post...

Two more "interesting" passengers on downed Air France jet

Yesterday I wrote about the two Islamic radicals that were passengers on the Air France jet. Today we find out about two more interesting passengers:

AMID THE media frenzy and speculation over the disappearance of Air France's ill-fated Flight 447, the loss of two of the world's most prominent figures in the war on the illegal arms trade and international drug trafficking has been virtually overlooked.

Pablo Dreyfus, a 39-year-old Argentine who was travelling with his wife Ana Carolina Rodrigues aboard the doomed flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, had worked tirelessly with the Brazilian authorities to stem the flow of arms and ammunition that for years has fuelled the bloody turf wars waged by drug gangs in Rio's sprawling favelas.

Also travelling with Dreyfus on the doomed flight was his friend and colleague Ronald Dreyer, a Swiss diplomat and co-ordinator of the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence who had worked with UN missions in El Salvador, Mozambique, Azerbaijan, Kosovo and Angola.

No proof that anyone tried to take them out. But still, anything is possible at this stage. Read the rest of this post...

Mary Landrieu's very public health insurance history

I'm intrigued by Senator Mary Landrieu's opposition to the public health insurance option. It got me wondering how long she's had health insurance paid by the government. Now, I know the public option isn't the same as private health care paid for by the government. But, her opposition to making health care more affordable and more available seems inconsistent with a life that's had health insurance paid for by taxpayers.

From various sources, including her own Senate website, I've put together the timeline of Mary Landrieu. She was born in 1955.

Her dad, Moon, was in the Louisiana State Legislature from 1960 to 1966, served on the New Orleans City Council from 1966 to 1970 and then was Mayor of New Orleans from 1970 to 1978. Then, he was the HUD Secretary from 1979 to 1981.

Landrieu herself entered the Louisiana State Legislature in 1980 and served there until 1988. From there, she became the State Treasurer from 1988 til 1996 when she became a U.S. Senator.

That's quite a history of public service. And, it's also quite a history of being a beneficiary of government-sponsored benefits.

Now, I don't know that Moon Landrieu got health care benefits for his family while he served as state rep., city councilor and mayor. But, I do know that right now, the Louisiana legislature provides health care to its members and their families:

Legislative members are eligible to participate in health insurance and life insurance plans provided by the Louisiana Office of Group Benefits (OGB.) The state pays approximately 75 percent of the member’s portion of the premium and approximately 50 percent of the premium for the member’s dependents. Legislators are eligible to keep their benefits when they leave office only if they have retired or meet the definition of retirement as provided by the OGB Rules.

The legislative Office of Human Resources offers members additional health benefits such as vision and dental coverage, however, the members themselves are responsible for payment of those premiums.

Maybe it was different back when Mary was growing up. She should let us know.

I do know that as a federal employee, Senator Landrieu has lots of options for health care. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) handles this for Landrieu, her colleagues and their staffs.

Funny thing, how someone who grew up in government and has been taken care of by government health care is so averse to giving other people a public option. Mary Landrieu has lived a life with good benefits, maybe she doesn't get what it's like for many people. See, taxpayers pay the bulk of Landrieu's health insurance -- and probably have for most of her adult life. She's been well taken care of. Now, she is taking care of the insurance companies, not the taxpayers.

If you're calling Landrieu's office, (202)224-5824, see if you can find out for sure how long she's benefited from health insurance paid with tax dollars. If you're from Louisiana, you've been paying for her family's health insurance for a long time.

Landrieu couldn't be a bigger hypocrite on this one. Read the rest of this post...

New Dem report details the cost of inaction re: Health Care Reform

The US Senate Democratic Policy Committee has issued a new report detailing some of the costs of our current health care system, including one tidbit I heard about for the first time the other day:

Real per person spending on health care has been increasing rapidly, rising over 40 percent in the past decade alone. Between 1980 and 2007, the share of gross domestic product (GDP) devoted to health care almost doubled. In 2007, the United States spent a total of $2.2 trillion on health care, which represents $7,421 per person or 16 percent of GDP. [Health and Human Services, accessed 3/11/2009] This is nearly twice the average of other developed nations. [Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 12/10/2008]

We're spending twice as much as other developed countries on health care, and our health care isn't all that. In fact, as Chris has written repeatedly, we rank pretty close to the bottom of the list of developed countries in terms of the quality of our health care:

The WHO ranking that puts France at the top (Freedom Health, perhaps?) and the US arriving at number 37, just behind global heavyweights Dominica and Costa Rica.

The report has a ton of good summary information about health care in the US, even just on the summary page. The only fault I'd find with the report is the focus on, yet again, working families and businesses, as if our country existed of no one else.

I'll keep writing this until I am blue in the face. I can afford my current health care. It's expensive as hell, over $400 a month premiums, and goes up 25% a year, but yes I can afford it. The problem? I have the best self-employed plan that Blue Cross offers in DC, and it only provides me $1500 a year in prescription drugs. That's it. (Fun fact: How much prescription drug coverage did Blue Cross give me back in 1997 when I started with them under this plan? $1500. The amount never goes up, and with inflation and increasing drug costs, it will soon be meaningless, even though my premium has tripled in that time.) When I hit my $1500 limit, like I did last fall, Blue Cross cuts me off. I can't buy better coverage from Blue Cross, it doesn't exist, so my income is irrelevant - the fact that I'm not blue collar or working class is irrelevant. No matter what your income, the best plan Blue Cross offers to the self-employed gives you practically no prescription drug coverage whatsoever. And if I get MS, HIV or some other horrible disease, even my "good" income won't be able to afford $2000 a month in prescription costs. So please, stop talking as though this is a problem that only affects the poor and businesses. After a while, it's a bit of a slap in the face.

Not to mention, just from a purely political perspective, who votes in our country? Who lobbies? Who has the power and the money to block health care reform? Is it poor blue collar workers, or is it the upper middle class and wealthy? Why are Democrats not trying to educate the middle class, upper middle class, and even wealthy Americans about how bad their health coverage really is? About how they're quite literally one illness away from bankruptcy in many cases? Wouldn't it help to have those people on your side too?

It's a good report, don't get me wrong. I just wish Democrats could get beyond their obsession with the poor, to the exclusion of everyone else. We're all Americans, and we all deserve your help.

There are also a few videos. Senator Durbin points out that if you want to keep your current plan, under the new health care reform regime, you can:



And Schumer points out that the new health care reform plan would force private companies, like Blue Cross, to actually compete. How much more capitalistic can you get than that?

Read the rest of this post...

A look at some other morning news

Just perusing Reuters and AP, and the following stories caught my eye.

New jobless claims drop, retail spending goes up. Unemployment is still extremely high, and going up. But the number of NEW people laid off is dropping, so that's still considered good news. As is increased consumer spending, because the spending has a multiplier effect.

Recession is abating, Reuters says.

FDA power to regulate tobacco to be voted on in Senate today. House already passed it, Senate vote expect to pass, Obama to sign. Very good. Now we need to ban smoking, nationwide, in public places.

Air speed sensors are still being focused on in the Air France crash. I have to say, I realize that they just don't have enough information yet, but I'm getting a bad feeling from the quotes from Air France's CEO. He's sounding a tad too obstinate for a man who just had over 200 people die on his watch.

Swine Flu to be labeled "pandemic." But, that's an indication of its geographic spread, not its severity, the experts say. In fact, the WHO spokesman says that to date the disease has been pretty mild, in terms of its potential for doing damage. Read the rest of this post...

Dear AMA, You're saps and a big part of the health care problem for not standing up to the insurance companies who run your lives

The American Medical Association (AMA), the lobbying group for doctors, is opposed to the public option in health care reform:

While committed to the goal of affordable health insurance for all, the association had said in a general statement of principles that health services should be “provided through private markets, as they are currently.”

Fools.

It's amazing how much control theinsurance industry has over the medical profession. Insurance company bureaucrats regularly overrule doctors. And, the AMA thinks they should.

Two years ago, I ended up in the emergency room following an allergic reaction. I found an allergist (one of the best in D.C.) in my insurance plan. He prescribed me a Twinject EpiPen in case of another attack (there's this whole thing about it not being able to breathe being a "life threatening" situation.) Yet, my insurance company, CareWorst (the same one John has), denied the payment. When I called, the Blue Cross bureaucrat told me that my doctor hadn't authorized the prescription. I said to the insurance company bureaucrat, first, he's your doctor. He's in your system. Second, he prescribed it. How could he not have authorized it? I need a prescription to buy it. But I was informed, my bad and my doctor's bad. He hadn't filled out a separate form so they weren't going to cover it. (How was I to know that my doctor needed to fill out a special form?)

That stuff happens all the time. I don't want my doctor worrying about filling out forms. I want him to provide medical care, which he does very well. Ask any doctor or employee of a doctor how much time they spend dealing with insurance companies. It's insane. And there is no recourse. The insurance companies are accountable to nobody.

But, the AMA still wants insurance companies to rule their world. Idiots. They sure don't teach common sense in medical school. Read the rest of this post...

Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL), a Commander in the Naval Reserve, told foreign government not to believe U.S. Government

Speaker of conservative extremists, Talking Points Memo has video of Illinois Congressman Mark Kirk, (a Republican, of course) smugly explaining how he told the government of China not to believe the U.S. government:


Here's the transcript:

"One of the messages I had -- because we need to build trust and confidence in our number one creditor," said Kirk, "is that the budget numbers that the US government had put forward should not be believed. The Congress is actually gonna spend quite a bit more than what's in the budget, and the health-care bill probably being the lead driver of additional spending by the Congress.

Nothing like selling out our leaders to a communist dictatorship. Okay, let me just say it: Imagine if a Democratic congressman did this to a Republican president? Went to an unfriendly foreign government and told them not to believe our government, and did so in an effort to influence legislation at home. It would be holy hell.

(NOTE FROM JOHN: Not to mention, why is Congressman Kirk trying to get the Chinese involved in the US health care debate? If we had a real health care reform campaign there'd already be a video ad up by now about how the pro-insurance-company/pro-Republican side of the health care reform is trying to involve the Communist Chinese. Americans would love knowing that. But fortunately for the Republicans and the insurance companies, liberals in Washington don't believe in being mean.)

To make matters worse, Kirk isn't just a congressman. He's currently a member of our nation's military:

Kirk, who holds the rank of Commander, is a Naval Reserve intelligence officer and has served during conflicts with Afghanistan, Iraq, Haiti, and Bosnia. He recently became the first member of Congress to serve in an imminent danger zone since 1942 when he deployed as a reservist to Afghanistan in December. The U.S. Navy named Kirk “Intelligence Officer of the Year” in 1999 for his combat service in Kosovo.

Do we have to worry about what Kirk is saying to other foreign governments, too?

This is way beyond the pale, even for a Republican. Read the rest of this post...

Thursday Morning Open Thread

Good morning.

Obama is heading to Green Bay, Wisconsin, today to campaign for real health care reform. And, he has to campaign for reform. It's stunning how many members of Congress, including Democrats, are beholden to the insurance industry. That has to be exposed -- and, it will be.

Hate is rampant in America. It festers out there among crazies and extremists. But, their rhetoric is fueled by politicians, organizational leaders and media types. Some of those people take the insane ideas propagated by the crazies and give them credibility. That fosters the hate and, in a sick way, mainstreams it. The Southern Poverty Law Center and Anti-Defamation League, among others, monitor these creeps. The traditional media and pundits need to become aware of this hate industry -- and help shut it down instead of legitimizing those who help purvey hate and violence.

Start threading the news... Read the rest of this post...

Fed loses $5.25 in first quarter due to AIG, Bear Stearns

Maybe if we're lucky, inflation will really kick in and after a few hundred years the Fed will make a profit from these beasts. If nothing else it does make me think of all of the Republicans who talked about what a great deal AIG was for America. They calculated the payments with interest and convinced themselves this was the deal of the century. It was, but not for the taxpayers. This explains why they were so incompetent with running the economy and driving up the overwhelming majority of the deficit that the US is burdened with now and for years to come.

The Federal Reserve lost $5.25 billion in the first quarter on the securities it acquired with last year's bailouts of Bear Stearns and insurer American International Group, according to a report issued Wednesday.

The loss on the holdings, which include mortgage-backed securities, reflected a decline in their value as the recession carried over into the first three months of this year. The cumulative loss on the Bear and AIG holdings come to $16.46 billion since they were taken over last year.

The Fed is hoping that if it holds onto the securities long enough, they will eventually rise in value once the economy returns to full health again, the housing market heals and the financial and credit crises are past.

Read the rest of this post...

Banks do their best to crush recovery

Thanks for nothing. It's not as though the American public saved your butts or anything.

Spiking U.S. mortgage rates drove down total home loan applications last week as demand for refinancing shriveled to the lowest level since November, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.

The swift rate rise crimps affordability, likely cutting offer prices on home sales and prolonging a housing turnaround.

Borrowing costs have soared as bond yields have risen, even as the Federal Reserve has sopped up hundreds of billions of dollars in bonds to keep rates low and stimulate the housing market.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate jumped 0.32 percentage point in the June 5 week to 5.57 percent. That was nearly a full point, about 100 basis points, above the record low rate of 4.61 percent in March, the trade group said.

Read the rest of this post...

Barclays top 4 to make $188 million on one deal

It's good to be the king. No matter what, this is a sector that finds it impossible lose courtesy of their deep friendship with governments. Looking at the direction in the US, I think Obama might even gift wrap the check and throw a party for them so they might like him even more. What other industry can you go from being technically insolvent to handing over wads of cash like this in a matter of a few months? Something tells me bonuses in every other industry will lag for quite a while longer even though results were better.

Staff at the asset management arm of Barclays were tonight looking forward to a collective personal windfall of at least £360m from the sale of the fast-growing division to its US rival BlackRock.

The precise terms of the sale of Barclays Global Investors will not be known until the deal is formally announced, but according to analysis by the Guardian the top four executives of BGI – including Barclays board member Bob Diamond – could own shares with a value of at least £115m if the deal is completed.

Terms were still being hammered out tonight and are expected to involve a combination of cash and shares in BlackRock to give a total value for BGI of about $13bn (£8bn).

Read the rest of this post...

BBC to slash salaries for top talent

They should have been failed bankers. Then they would get cash thrown at them regardless of performance. The Guardian:

Instead the mood of bonhomie turned frosty – and not just because there was no champagne, just red or white wine and a few canapes. The BBC's director-general, Mark Thompson, used the occasion to tell the corporation's biggest stars that the era of big pay deals was over.

In a lengthy speech from the floor of the room, which one witness claimed took more than an hour, Thompson said that any BBC television or radio star earning more than £100,000 a year faced a pay cut of 25% when his or her contract was renegotiated. For some highly paid stars, the cut could be 40%.

Flanked by the BBC's creative director, Alan Yentob, BBC Vision director, Jana Bennett, and other senior executives, Thompson reminded guests of the severe financial pressures and uncertainty facing the BBC, in what was clearly an attempted wake-up call to some of the BBC's top names, some of whom have commanded between £50,000 to £100,000 a programme.

Read the rest of this post...

Big victory for common sense by the EU

There is a right way and an interior way to produce rosé. Let the new world do as they like but a real rosé is unique. It's never going to be comparable to a grand cru but it's still special. I used to find the old fashioned ways a bit much but over time I've come to appreciate what they mean. As much as I enjoy new world wines (especially South Africa) I'm a believer in the combination of terroir, grapes and traditional methods. It does make a difference. There may be hope after all in Brussels. Hooray for trying to maintain quality!

The European Union, bowing to an outcry from traditional vintners, has reversed itself and decreed that the cut-rate technique of mixing red wine with white does not make an authentic rosé and thus cannot be used by Europe's winemakers.

The decision, announced Monday at the union's headquarters in Brussels, represented a victory for French winemakers who had risen up against plans by the E.U. agriculture commission to end its ban on mixing as a way to compete with down-market rosés concocted by producers in such countries as Australia and South Africa. More broadly, it was a rare retreat by the forces of globalization and profit margins in the face of resistance from traditional artisans.

"It's important that we listen to our producers when they are concerned about changes to the regulations," the union's agriculture commissioner, Mariann Fischer Boel, said in a communique. "It's become clear over recent weeks that a majority in our wine sector believe that ending the ban on blending could undermine the image of traditional rosé."

Read the rest of this post...