You don’t look too bad at all…for 231.

But on a sadder note; this will be the  first Independence Day in 66 years that America has no national superhero, after Marvel Comics killed off Captain America earlier this year.

“House of Ideas” indeed.

I went to the bookstore Friday evening and bought Al Gore’s latest book, “The Assault on Reason“. You’ll see it over on the right under “What I’m Reading Now”.

When I was returning from overseas last week I picked up the latest issue of Time Magazine at the airport newsstand, which had the former Vice-President (or as he likes to wryly introduce himself in the “An Inconvenient Truth” film, “I used to be the next President of the United States”) on the cover and discusses his new book (with a nice excerpt) and the question of whether he might run for President in the 2008 elections.

This country could do a hell of a lot worse. In fact, we currently are.

I also watched Mr Gore on Larry King earlier this week. His consistent answer when asked if he would run for President was “I have no plans to run for office” but I noticed that when Larry asked him if he would consider a cabinet post, his response was an unequivocal, “No, I have no interest in a cabinet post”. So, it does seem that the door might be open should Clinton, Obama or Edwards end up in a 3 way split of party support. Although I would be thrilled with any of the previously mentioned candidates, it would be a kick to see Mr. Gore finally get what was stolen from him 8 years ago.

If you’d like to join the “Draft Al Gore” movement, you can do so here, here or here.

I’m lying here in bed in the BlogCave coughing my lungs up (oops, one just landed on the keyboard. Give me a second here to put it back in). At least I’m not suffering from the sore throat that felt like I must have swallowed hydrochloric acid and a nose that basically became a mucus faucet stuck on “open”, as I was for the previous 3 days this crap has been in my body.

We took down the Christmas decorations and tree today and got everything put back in the attic or hauled to the curb. That took about 2 hours and I was completely worn out the rest of the day. Slept about 5 hours in the afternoon and don’t have much of an appetite (good start for the upcoming diet/exercise program), but I’m not as achy feeling as I have been.

The required bed rest has given me a chance to read one of my Christmas gift books, Wally’s World, and I may even get to finish one more other book before the end of 2006.

Some sort of morbid curiosity (my friend Jenn will know about that particular kind of curiosity) made me half-sit, half-lie on the couch last night at 10pm watching the circus on CNN regarding Saddam Hussein’s execution. Commentators made the statement that “Hussein and his two co-conspirators were being hanged for their role in the 1982 Dujail massacre, in which 148 Iraqis were killed”.

That got me to thinking…the shrub and his two co-conspirators, Donald and Dick, are responsible for the deaths of almost 3,000 American soldiers and the wounding of tens of thousands more. That doesn’t count American contractors, soldiers from countries in the “coalition of the willing” (or their civilians who are in the country) or even the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi citizens who have been killed.

Is anyone suggesting they face a hangman’s noose?

I didn’t think so.

Although I have missed Blog Girl while she has been away, I have also enjoyed the solitude of the Blog Cave the past few days. I’ve been able to get quite a bit of reading done and spent several hours working on designing and coding my new writing website. I was even able to relax a bit by sleeping in until 6:45 this morning. That will become even more important in the coming days.

I found out a few days ago that I’ll now be spending even more time away from home each workday. The big government agency that I work for finally found a new building for us. The biggest problem with it is that is now an hour’s drive each way from the Blog Cave to the new drone dump, so 90 minutes a day that I used to have during the work week to do things in the Blog Cave will now be spent driving on Central Florida’s wonderful toll roads. It’s not really as big an issue for me as I make it sound; after all I was able to spend 2 years driving just 12 miles a day round trip from the Blog Cave to work and back. But I got spoiled and will miss the time to work on projects or just relax in the Blog Cave and I certainly won’t enjoy the tolls I’ll be paying.

Speaking of which I went Thursday night after work and bought an E-Pass transponder from my neighborhood Publix, then came back to the Blog Cave and signed up online to fund the E-Pass so on Monday I won’t have to fumble for change at each toll booth. I don’t really like the idea of the E-Pass because to me it’s just another way for Big Brother to keep tabs on me, but like a lot of things we do these days, the convenience is what ultimately draws us. The toll roads are set up in such a way now that if you don’t use an E-Pass, you’ll end up sitting in a mile long line of other drivers waiting to throw quarters into the bin and so you still waste the time you hoped to save by taking the toll road in the first place.

While I’m griping; about the only TV that I watch in “real time” is the local news and sometimes the national news or news talk shows. Everything else is DVR’d and I get to skip through the commercials. But I have to tell you that the increasing preponderance of campaign and candidate commercials are about to make me swear off even the news programs until after next Tuesday night. It seems like EVERY commercial is related to the upcoming election. I guess it’s doubly aggravating to me because I have already voted, so there’s nothing I’m going to hear that is going to change my vote. Thank goodness we got rid of the land line house phone and I don’t have to listen to a dozen recorded calls from candidates and causes every day when I get home.

Blog Girl will return home Sunday afternoon and even though I have enjoyed my time alone, it will be nice to have her back in the Blog Cave.

Earlier today I was watching “This Week with George Stephanopoulos” and almost fell off the couch when, during an interview with our excuse for a president, George Bush, the two Georges had this exchange:

STEPHANOPOULOS: James Baker says that he’s looking for something between “cut and run” and “stay the course.”

BUSH: Well, hey, listen, we’ve never been “stay the course,” George. We have been…we will complete the mission, we will do our job, and help achieve the goal, but we’re constantly adjusting to tactics. Constantly.

Is this guy serious??? Is he now lying so damn much he can’t even remember the numerous times he’s mouthed the words, “Stay the course” in reference to Iraq? Is he so stupid that he doesn’t think every previous quote from him with those words is going to be cited over the next few days?

I can’t wait to see what Jon Stewart does with this on his next show! LOL!

Here’s just a few examples of how often the shrub has asserted that we must “stay the course”:

July 10, 2003 - “We’re making steady progress,” he said. “A free Iraq will mean a peaceful world. And it’s very important for us to stay the course, and we will stay the course.”

August 30, 2003 - “We will stay the course, we will help this young Iraqi democracy succeed, and victory in Iraq will be a major ideological triumph in the struggle of the 21st century.”

April 13, 2004 - Three times in the same speech “And, yet, we must stay the course, because the end result is in our nation’s interest.”

“And my message today to those in Iraq is: We’ll stay the course; we’ll complete the job. My message to our troops is: We will stay the course and complete the job and you’ll have what you need.”

August 4, 2005 - “We will stay the course, we will complete the job in Iraq.”

August 30, 2006 - “We will stay the course, we will help this young Iraqi democracy succeed, and victory in Iraq will be a major ideological triumph in the struggle of the 21st century.”

And yet today this doofus stated, “Well, hey, listen, we’ve never been “stay the course“, George.”

Hmmmmm…maybe the shrub has decided to “cut and run” from his “stay the course” mantra of the past 3 years.

This is the kind of thing that always happens when Cheney and Rove pull their hands out of Bush’s ass and let him speak without their puppeteering to control his mouth. Now, Tony Snow will have to figure out a way to spin this so his boss doesn’t look like the biggest moron this side of Kim Jong-il.

This post will be longer than usual, but we’re dealing with some time-sensitive issues and events so please bear with me and settle in for a while or come back soon when you can devote a little more time.

Most people who know The Masked Blogger in my everyday life know that my grandson is affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder. It’s termed “Spectrum” because their are many, many levels of severity, ranging from the “low” end typified by Asperger’s Syndrome to the “high” end which is usually an almost total turning inward of the individual, resulting in very little interaction beyond the basics with the “outside” world. In between are several different levels. That is just a layman’s overview of the disorder; for a more exact definition you should check out sites such as the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Autism Society of America, the Center for the Study of Autism and Autism Resources. Current observations express a possible diagnosis of Asperger’s Syndrome in my grandson, but we will have to wait another year or two for a more precise diagnosis.

I don’t think I’ve ever written about Autism or of its connection to The Masked Blogger in any of my blogs because Blog Princess expresses a much greater knowledge of its effects and brings with her an everyday experience with it that I could never adequately express. She doesn’t like for anyone to paint her as a great parent for simply doing what any loving parent would do; the very best that they could for their child. I understand that. But as I said to Blog Girl today, being a good parent is in and of itself difficult when all things are equal. Throw in the exceptional challenges that Autism brings and that difficulty factor is multiplied exponentially. Blog Princess and my son-in-law consistently rise to that challenge and more often than not they overcome or deal with the difficulty in an exemplary fashion.

It’s funny. I always wanted to be her hero, but in the last 5 years she has become mine.

Autism Spectrum Disorder currently affects every 1 in every 166 children in the United States alone. Efforts to identify the causative factors are taking place on several fronts. Is it environmental, genetic, chemical, hormonal or caused by certain vaccinations, diet or other agents as yet unknown? There are a lot of possibilities, but as yet no one has been able to say with any certainty, “This is the definite cause of Autism Spectrum Disorder”. The obvious course of action is to continue to increase research and testing, but that costs money. I want to take a few moments to address 2 aspects of that need. One is the giving aspect, one is the taking aspect.

Tomorrow (Sunday) night the Comedy Channel will hold its first live, on-air and online special event, Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education. This event will be held at New York City’s Beacon Theatre beginning at 8pm EST and will feature top comedians and performers. One of the funniest show hosts ever, Jon Stewart, will be hosting. Here’s a lineup of the comedians and performers who will be appearing:

Will Arnett
Jack Black
Steve Carell
Kristin Chenoweth
Stephen Colbert
Elvis Costello
Jimmy Fallon
Will Ferrell
Will Forte
Fred Armisen
Ricky Gervais
Norm Macdonald
Christopher Meloni
Moby
Oscar Nunez
Mike Myers
Bob Odenkirk & David Cross
Amy Poehler
Paul Rudd
Borat Sagdiyev
Adam Sandler
Amy Sedaris
Martin Short
Tony Sirico
Ben Stiller
Triumph the Insult Comic Dog
Brian Williams

I imagine that during the course of the show there will be an opportunity to donate to the efforts to raise more money for research, testing and education. That’s the giving aspect I mentioned earlier.

The taking aspect comes from, of all places (surprise, surprise) a U.S. congressman.

Last Sunday I was watching This Week with George Stephanopoulos when they ran a clip of actress Patricia Heaton (Everybody Loves Raymond) asking people to contact Texas congressman Joe Barton regarding the use of his position as Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee to hold up the Combatting Autism Act 2006 that has been already been unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate back on August 3rd.

Here are some high points of the CAA 2006 bill:

* Allocates approximately $900 million in spending on autism over the
next five years. This is approximately double what would have been
spent with straight-line continuation of existing programs.

* Authorizes a 50% increase in spending for biomedical research in autism
from the $100 million which the NIH currently claims to be spending.

* Creates a legal requirement for Centers of Excellence in Environmental
Health and Autism, to research “a broad array of environmental factors
that may have a possible role in autism spectrum disorders.” These
Centers are authorized with funding of $45 million over the five-year
life of the bill.

* Requires the director of NIH to develop and implement a strategic plan
for autism research and a budget to fund this plan, taking into account
recommendations of a public/private committee (the Interagency Autism
Coordinating Committee) which it requires to include at least one-third
public members, including a person with autism and a person who is the
parent of a child with autism. This new authority and accountability
makes the director, in effect, the “autism czar.”

* Provides grant programs for states to develop autism screening, early
diagnosis and intervention programs for children — perhaps the most
important thing that could happen, short of a cure.

The CAA 2006 bill has already been co-sponsored by a multitude of representatives in the House and already has a majority of representatives ready to approve it once it is brought to the floor for a vote. However, the bill must first pass through the House Energy and Commerce Committee and Chairman Barton has stated to CNN that he will not consider the CAA 2006 until and unless the Senate passes his NIH Reform bill (watch this first part of a 3 part video, then click on the links to the other 2 parts). He is, in effect, holding the CAA 2006 bill hostage until his own bill is passed over in the Senate. What a totally selfish, self-serving act by a man who was elected to represent people! Chairman Barton is one of those Republicans who, as Barney Frank said, believes in a right to life that begins at conception and ends at birth.

I don’t have any argument with Chairman Barton’s own NIH bill and there is a need to move the larger NIH reform bill, but autism needs special attention and funding that is not handled in the Chairman’s bill. You have to wonder at the morals and ethics of a man who would deny our children the assistance they need for his own ego. On his website Barton tries to say his NIH bill must come first so that politics are removed from the process, yet he himself is politicizing the issue with his unreasonable demand.

If you’re so inclined, might I suggest a call, e-mail or fax to Joe Barton’s office, Speaker Hastert’s office or Majority Leader John Boehner’s office demanding that the CAA 2006 bill be released to the floor for a vote. I generally tend to think that politicians will ignore comments by non-constituents, but in this case a groundswell of indignation from across the country might just move these men to do what is right for a change. It can’t hurt to try. You might also contact your own representative (if he or she is Republican) and urge them to make the same calls to the men above and to prove it, expressing that if your representative can’t support children and families affected by autism then you won’t be able to support them in the next election.

Watch the Night of Too Many Stars: An Overbooked Benefit for Autism Education tomorrow night if you’re able and contact the politicians noted above if you’re so inclined. More Comedy and less of a certain Congressman. An autistic child or a family affected by autism will thank you. And I thank you.