A fresh week.

I've been told to blog. Encouragingly, desperately, plaintively, threateningly. And so I blog.

Last week was a damn hard week for the Bush administration. His Vice-President lost his Chief of Staff to a criminal indictment, Karl Rove still stands under threat of further investigation, he lost his Supreme Court nominee, and the number of the dead in Iraq passed 2,000.

I certainly cheered at all that, enjoying the suffering of people I loathe in a wholly unhealthy way, but what else happened recently that escaped our notice?

• Indiana saw one state senator's crusade to legislate our way into a brave new world cut short: Senator Patricia Miller (a Republican, but really, you'll learn in short order she's insane, so her party affiliation isn't really the issue here) introduced a bill into to Indiana State Legislature to limit artificial insemination or any other method of getting pregnant that's not sex to married, heterosexual couples. Said married, heterosexual couples would have to apply to a judge for a "gestational certificate," providing (among other things) a “family lifestyle” dossier detailing their participation in church activities, and demonstrating that they've never been convicted of any of a list of crimes, from murder to acting in a porn film. If you'd like to read a draft of this insidious bill, have a gander. The penalties for violating this new law were to have been heavy fines and the possibility of some jail time, but apparently some Indianans have read their Huxley lately, and Ms. Miller withdrew her bill in the face of a horrendous backlash, saying only “The issue has become more complex than anticipated and will be withdrawn from consideration by the Health Finance Commission.”
• In the House, a bill is being considered regarding how to spend the recent surpluses generated by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two big government-aided mortgage companies that help many people get their first homes. Nicely, the bill under consideration will direct that the money be put into a fund which can be tapped by nonprofit organizations to build affordable housing in the Wrath-of-God-ravaged Gulf states. Eventually, the fund would also be used to build housing for the disabled and elderly folks around the country. Not so nicely, the bill is now looking at being modified by House Republicans so that nonprofit organizations will not be able to access the fund if they engage in voter registration activities, even nonpartisan ones. You can help the poor to live, or help them to vote, but not both. It ain't quite Brave New World, but it certainly is anathema to people who value democracy and human decency.
  
• A recent amendment to a Senate military spending bill authored by John McCain, forbidding "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment" of any detainee held by U.S. forces anywhere, was passed by an unusually wise Senate, 90 to 9, three weeks ago. Last week, Cheney came to McCain and asked him to rewrite the amendment and exempt the CIA, gutting his own amendment. In fact, let me restate that, because this cannot be emphasized enough: The Vice-President of the United States went to a respected Senator who endured over a year of torture during wartime and asked him to allow the CIA to torture prisoners abroad. For whatever batshit insane reason, he declined. The President has not altered his previously stated intention to veto the bill containing McCain's amendment; Bush has not vetoed a single piece of legislation in his five years as President, but the need to maintain the ability to torture people is apparently so essential that he's willing to go out on a limb for it.
• Just for amusement's sake, Republican Zombie Ann Coulter was also busy in the last couple of weeks, appearing at the University of Florida to give a speech in which she said that "[Democrats] are always accusing us of repressing their speech. I say let's do it. Let's repress them." Just in case any clarification of her intentions was needed, she announced, "Frankly, I'm not a big fan of the First Amendment." She also called Democrats "fascists" during a Fox News appearance on October 27th, demonstrating one of my personal favorite idiocies.

Crazy isn't anything new. Hell, I babble about it all the time. I list this list, though, because it re-demonstrates the need for keeping a tight rein on the stupid. It is happening in some places-the parenting license bill was forced to be withdrawn, after all-but Bush and Cheney haven't been impeached yet. Miller might win her next reelection campaign back in Indiana. And we all tolerate lying, cheating, stealing, and generally being assholes without those doing it getting fired, arrested, or even just told to their faces that their assholes.

We ought to be better about that.

And as an addendum about being better...it's come to my attention today that a guy in Florida has made it his personal crusade to end what he percieves as needless police chases. The man's daughter was killed, an innocent bystander hit by a suspect's car in a high-speed chase, so you can't help but feel for him. Nonethless, his method of going about it is all wrong. We don't need criminals knowing that if they flee, the police are legally obligated not to pursue.

We need the Carpoon.

Developed by genius cop Sgt. Markku Limingoja of Oulu, Finland, the Carpoon is exactly what it sounds like. And no, I'm not kidding.

Buon giorno, all.