St. Cloud rally held after assault

So proud of my sister Janet for taking a high profile, public stand against hate crime.

http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011105250076

http://wjon.com/members-and-allies-of-gay-community-gather-to-support-assault-victim-speak-against-hate-crime-audio/

http://wjon.com/attack-sparks-anti-hate-rally-in-downtown-st-cloud-video/

Clinton-Ryan to weaken Medicare?

The recent Clinton-Ryan conversation sounds to me like Democrats and Republicans are conspiring to weaken Medicare.

http://www.examiner.com/libertarian-in-national/bill-clinton-confabs-with-paul-ryan-warns-dems-against-doing-nothing

MN government shutdown

If the Republicans don't meet Governor Dayton halfway, I think he should force a government shutdown. The public is not paying attention, and this will help them to see why government is important. Republicans are generally anti-government, and a shutdown would show us the logical conclusion of the direction they've been taking us. When a shutdown occurs, it becomes a question of what side is bargaining in good faith, from the perspective of independent swing voters. Republicans were elected with a mandate, but so was Dayton. If Republicans don't budge, they should get the blame. Split-ticket voting has led to gridlock, with the governor of one party and the legislature of another. People need to decide which direction they want the state to go, and maybe a shutdown will force them to choose, and hopefully boot out the Republicans in 2014.

Debt Ceiling

"Now that the government has reached its debt limit, the Treasury is set to engage various temporary measures to tread water until August 2.... The next round of these measures -- in which the government liquidates certain investments of a pension fund and blocks other funds from new investment -- is set to commence Monday."

U.S. Reaches Debt Limit, Geithner Warns Of Dire Consequences
www.huffingtonpost.com

"The federal government reached its debt limit Monday, and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner again detailed the disastrous and widespread consequences of Congressional inaction."

Glitter on Newt

Post-Gabby Giffords this is a bad idea. It's a startling reminder how vulnerable public figures can be, and it gives the Right a talking point every time we call for civil discourse.

9/11 Matrix

This is tongue-in-cheek.

Bin Laden killed

Bin Laden killed, in Pakistan, not Afghanistan or Iraq. I wonder if this could somehow be related to the upcoming Gates-Panetta-Petraeus shuffle, or if it was strictly a tactical discovery.