JOHN ATKINS HEADS TO THE WOODSHED AND WE'RE HALF-WAY HOME

The Delaware House Ethics Committee recommended yesterday to censure Republican Rep. John Atkins, The Wilmington News Journal reports. The recommendation is expected to go to the full House for action today. In addition, the committee also drafted a resolution outlining other, more serious sanctions the house could impose against Atkins, including expulsion. Reportedly, some representatives on both side of the isle are considering voting to expel Atkins from the House.
The committee's action came in the wake of Atkins' actions during a traffic stop by police last October during which he flashed his legislative ID card after being pulled over for suspected drunken driving.
His actions apparently were successful, as he avoided a DUI arrest despite a preliminary breath test indicating his blood alcohol content was nearly twice the legal limit. He was arrested that that same night, however, after police went to his home to resolve a domestic violence complaint.
Still unresolved are the actions of the Ocean City police officers who turned their backs to the DUI case.

STRAP YOURSELF IN. WE'RE GOIN' FOR A CONSTITUTIONAL SLEIGH RIDE

Like gunslingers in a western movie, a house panel today approved a measure to issue subpoenas for Whitehouse staff, moving the Democratic controlled congress a step closer to a constitutional showdown with the Bush administration. According to an AP wire report, "The panel approved, but has not issued, subpoenas for Rove, former White House Counsel Harriet Miers, their deputies and Kyle Sampson, Gonzales' chief of staff, who resigned over the uproar last week. The full Judiciary Committee would authorize the subpoenas if Chairman John Conyers of Michigan chose to do so."
The panel's action is seen as a flat rejection of the president's offer of allowing staff members to be interviewed, but not be compelled to testify under oath in public. Click here for the AP story.

HARD CHOICES IN A SOFT MARKET

It's time to make some hard decisions about the local commercial fishing industry. Again this year, there are dire predictions about the availability of blue crabs, and genuine Chincoteague oysters are in such short supply that they are almost a dim memory. What with the declining harvests and declining ability to make a living in the water, maybe it's time for a limited moratorium on taking crabs and oysters.... and already I can hear some people limbering up their shotguns, pitchforks and torches to come teach me a lesson about interfering in their livelihoods.... but here's the thing; There's not much of a livelihood left. So maybe if you want or need to see increased profits and harvests, we need to let to crab and oyster populations rest and regrow. Three, four, maybe five years without shellfish is not too much to ask if we expect to have them abound for another 50 years. If we just lay off for a few years, cut way back back on the number of commercial fish licenses the state issue, and then alternate closed seasons, we and the health of the bays may be able to recover what we're so close to losing now.

IN THE 'SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE' CATAGORY

Click here for a Fox News video report about a Chicago cops who beat the crap out of a female bartender who refused to serve him because he was drunk. The video shows the 6'1" 250-pound "hero-who-puts-his-life-on-the-line-every-day" punch the 5"4' woman to the floor with a haymaker to the head then continue to kick and punch her. The only thing more appalling that the attack is the time it took other patrons to come to her aid.
According to the report, the asswipe was initially charged with misdemeanor assault, but that was later upgraded to a felony.... apparently after the news media got hold of the tape.

THE TRUTH DOESN'T MATTER

A recent poll conducted by WRC-TV in DC, indicates that nearly 75 percent of those responding don't believe the reported confession by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed that he planned virtually every major act of terrorism in the last ten years. ... Count me among the disbelievers.
But don't make the mistake of thinking I don't believe the confession because I think he's innocent- he's not. In fact, I don't believe the confession because the only people who witnessed the "confession" are those who have plenty of reason to lie, and because his interrogators admit they subjected him to torture.
So here's the problem: The federal government desperately wants to catch those responsible to the 9/11 attacks, the attack on the U.S.S. Cole, bombings in Beirut and and a host of other untoward behavior, and the fact it has yet to do so, reflects poorly on the administration. But If someone were to confess to all those crimes, why, it might go a long way toward shining the light of goodness on the Whitehouse. ... So the truth of the so-called confession doesn't really matter to the administration. What matters is the public perception of the truth... So what if Khalid Sheikh Mohammed isn't guilty of all the crimes he supposedly said he is - he's guilty of something and that's good enough for government work.

MAYBE IT'S JUST GEORGE'S WAY OF TRYING TO MAKE NICE

The John Edwards campaign had an unscheduled meeting with law enforcement authorities this week when a white powdery substance was delivered to their offices. Meanwhile George Bush just got back after a visit to South America. Reportedly, he did not have to go through a Customs inspection upon his return. Asked about the substance, Edwards denied any knowledge or actual possession of the powder, adding, "I did not have sex with the President. Oh, he tried to [expletive] me," he said, "but he's doing that to the whole country."

"DON'T WORRY ABOUT A THING, SPEEDY, YOU'RE DOING A HECK OF A JOB"

The New York Times and CNN are both moving stories indicating that the Bush Cabinet token Hispanic could soon be getting a surprise going-away party, as some Republican leaders are beginning to question Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' continued value in light of recent revelations about the political slaughter of eight U.S. Attorneys.
... And with the President trying to score (one thing or another) in South America this week and unable to to shore up his sinking political ship of state, some of his crew is pondering the jetison of useless cargo. Stand by for the lifeboat drill.

COUNTING THE WALKING WOUNDED

Depending upon whom you choose to believe, at least one-third, or 130,000 of the military personnel who have served in Iraq are out of their freaking minds... That is, after all, the estimation of those suffering from some sort of mental illness brought on by combat. Some estimates put that number as high as 250,000. Yikes.
While I won't dismiss, or even downplay the effects of combat-related stress, I don't have some questions about the numbers, not the least of which is whether a quarter-million men have even cycled through that theater yet. I mean, given the fact that the number of military personnel in-country has ebbed and flowed between 130,000 and 165,000 - with some units doing three or four tours - have 250,000 individual men and women yet been in theater? And if they have, wouldn't that mean the percentage of those affected be closer to 75 or even 100 percent? And if so, what has changed so drasticaly from earlier wars to inflict such a catastrophic casualty rate? Is it the technology of modern warfare? Is it the benchmark definitions of disease? Or is it a gross exageration on the part of those publishing the information?
Certainly I don't know, but if the numbers are correct, what does it mean for the innocent civilians and non-combatants in a country that didn't need to be invaded in the first place? How many of them are suffering from Post-trumatic stress?... So somebody remind me again why this war was a good idea.