Um, somebody let me know when the quoting stops.

::goes in corner, sings lalalalala::

When my friend got home she wrote a letter to Westjet praising the employees for their service and kindness. Westjest responding with a thank you letter and a voucher to cover the cost of her flight.

Wow, that's fantastic. Of course, I know I've never written a complimentary letter....

The retirement of the baby-boom generation will put unprecedented strains on the federal government. By 2030, spending for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid alone will be almost 60 percent of the entire federal budget. And that will present future Congresses with impossible choices -- staggering tax increases, immense deficits, or deep cuts in every category of spending.

Raise the cap and national health care, right? Well, for Social Security he is suggesting studying the situation which if I know my government talk means that we aren't going to anything. Wonder why he brought it up.

Now for health care there is a little bit more.

For all Americans, we must confront the rising cost of care, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship and help people afford the insurance coverage they need.

And because lawsuits are driving many good doctors out of practice -- leaving women in nearly 1,500 American counties without a single OB-GYN -- I ask the Congress to pass medical liability reform this year.

Electronic record keeping. Okay fine, but everybody says this. He seems to be confusing Health Savings Accounts and letting small businesses pool together. I don't think these are terrible ideas, but they are tweaks, like putting new spark plugs in a car with a busted transmission. One concern about the Health Savings Accounts is that I think it provides an incentive to skip preventive care.

Medical liability reform. Hmmm... every study I've seen have shown that it won't have a significant impact on health care costs. However, I think there are problems with the amount of medical litigation. I thought that the plan that Edwards and Kerry were suggesting made more sense to me that just capping awards.

If it makes you feel any better, Theo, you can go read in the NYT Dining section about plaintains. Baked, fried, boiled, -- okay, mostly fried.

I have never quite gotten to love plaintains; I find they're like what would happen if a potato and a banana loved each other very much. But very few things are actively terrible if they're deep-fried and doused with lime juice and salt.

(There's also a bit in the Times about Bob Woodruff and Doug Vogt arriving in the US, where they let slip -- for the first time, afaik -- that it's not vague "injuries" they're talking about, but traumatic brain injury. The article's tone was a lot more positive than the reporting from Sunday, but, TBI and Iraq: usually bad.)

naked kitty picture

D'awww....

In non-SotU (which I ended up not watching, since I was driving home from work and turned off of the radio as soon as he started regurgitating the same old crap from previous years) news, my office is having a CD/movie sale for charity today, and I just picked up videotapes of Holiday Inn, Chinatown (widescreen, no less!), and Luhrmann's Romeo+Juliet (which I've never seen, and for less than $2, it's not a bad buy), as well as CDs of Carmina Burana (London Philharmonic), Best of Chicago, and Bette Midler Sings Rosemary Clooney Songbook, all for only $10. Not too bad!

I find they're like what would happen if a potato and a banana loved each other very much. But very few things are actively terrible if they're deep-fried and doused with lime juice and salt.

Yes, that's it precisely! I'm not a huge fan, really.

The Times also recently had an article by a restaurant reviewer who did time as a waiter for a week. Very funny, and pretty dead on.

Fried plantains -- yum.

Then some stuff about alternative energy. Ok, I can go along with that. I'm skeptical about the administration's commitment here, but....oh hell, I just really don't believe much will actually happen.

First: I propose to double the federal commitment to the most critical basic research programs in the physical sciences over the next 10 years. This funding will support the work of America's most creative minds as they explore promising areas such as nanotechnology, supercomputing, and alternative energy sources.

Ok, I'm cool with that.

Second: I propose to make permanent the research and development tax credit, to encourage bolder private-sector investment in technology. With more research in both the public and private sectors, we will improve our quality of life -- and ensure that America will lead the world in opportunity and innovation for decades to come.

Sounds good.

Third: We need to encourage children to take more math and science, and make sure those courses are rigorous enough to compete with other nations. We have made a good start in the early grades with the No Child Left Behind Act, which is raising standards and lifting test scores across our country.

Tonight I propose to train 70,000 high school teachers, to lead advanced-placement courses in math and science, bring 30,000 math and science professionals to teach in classrooms, and give early help to students who struggle with math, so they have a better chance at good, high-wage jobs.

I have my doubts about this. I suspect when it comes to funding the idea will wither away.

Nam June Paik, R.I.P.