The WeekEnder: August 10-12, 2007

We are 81,000 hours away from Election Night 2016, so it must be time for Issue #7 of The WeekEnder! The WeekEnder is a weekly series that will provide a hodgepodge of information to fill your soul, make you laugh, make you cry, and inspire you.

• Making America more competitive
• Weapons not accounted for
• Is it really a crime to steal that?
• Lieberman's inevitability
• The #1 guide to electoral politics
• Raindrops
• Obama clears things up - and then some
• Use your talents
• Bush is no Treasury bond
• Good for Barry

Bush signs America COMPETES Act

Another accomplishment of the Democratic Congress:

"Today, the President signed into law the America COMPETES Act – yet another American priority put forward by the Democratic-led Congress that has taken our country in a New Direction after years of stalled progress in Washington. In the past few weeks, the President agreed to finally implement the independent 9/11 Commission recommendations – signing into law the first bill we voted on in the House, helping us make America safer – and the first federal minimum wage increase in a decade took effect, giving millions an overdue pay raise.

"Nearly two years ago, House Democrats launched our bipartisan Innovation Agenda. It helps guarantee our national security and economic prosperity, expands markets for American products, reasserts our leadership throughout the world in the decades to come, and gives future generations greater opportunity to achieve the American Dream. The America COMPETES Act fulfills much of the Democrats’ Innovation Agenda.

"By focusing and investing in four key areas – math and science education, research and development, energy independence, and small businesses – the America COMPETES Act will launch new thriving industries that will produce millions of good jobs here at home and a better future for the next generation."

Pentagon loses track of weapons
Proof that you can't trust Republicans with money or weapons:

The Pentagon has lost track of about 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, according to a new government report, raising fears that some of those weapons have fallen into the hands of insurgents fighting U.S. forces in Iraq.

The report from the Government Accountability Office indicates that U.S. military officials do not know what happened to 30 percent of the weapons the United States distributed to Iraqi forces from 2004 through early this year as part of an effort to train and equip the troops. The highest previous estimate of unaccounted-for weapons was 14,000, in a report issued last year by the inspector general for Iraq reconstruction.

Man accused of stealing urine samples

Urine good hands:

A man confessed to breaking into a Porter County probation office and stealing two urine samples, including his own, police said.

...

"He'd been in a few hours before and gave a urine sample," Balon said. "He saw they were testing for a drug he didn't think they were testing for. He panicked."

...

Chief Probation Officer Neal Hannon said he had never seen such a theft in his 37 years on the job.

"Generally, people don't have a desire to retrieve their own urine," he said.

Really?

Blog highlight of the week: Lieberman's Commanding Lead
Polling at this stage in the election cycle is very unreliable. A user at Daily Kos looks back at a 2003 poll and notes:

The Iowa Caucus may be five months away, but Joe Lieberman is walking away with the Democratic nomination. According to a national, August CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll:

August 2003, Likely Democratic Voters:
Howard Dean: 12
Wesley Clark: 2
Joe Lieberman: 23
John Kerry: 10
Dick Gephardt: 13
John Edwards: 5

With a lead like this in a national poll, what could possibly stop Lieberman? In fact, nearly every national poll shows Lieberman as the inevitable nominee.

Link of the week: Politics1
Have you ever wondered who, exactly, is running for Congress or Governor where you live? Politics1 has complete lists of everyone who holds and is running for office in the next election cycle. Owner Ron Gunzberger also provides a rundown of electoral news on the home page.

Photo of the Week: Raindrops



Video of the Week: Obama v. Dodd v. Hillary
This is the second-biggest highlight of the AFL-CIO Debate, next to Steve Skvara asking how the candidates intend to fix what's wrong with America:



Quote of the week: Henry Van Dyke
Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.

Government bonds vs. Bush
What's the difference between George W. Bush and government bonds?

Government bonds mature.

Final thought
I watched Barry Bonds hit #756 on Tuesday night. Let me just say this about the whole Bonds/steroids issue: He's innocent until proven guilty - if not in the court public opinion, than at least in my own opinion.