Hillary Clinton

Can someone tell me if there is info "out there" on how Hillary backs up her statements that she would not have voted for the war if she knew then what is known now? It seems to me that there was a lot of information at the time that was counter to what George Bush was saying. Certainly from reporters like Ann Garrels and from the UN inspectors looking for weapons. What does Hillary mean that was not known? Who does she mean didn't know it? Whose fault is it that in doing their senatorial jobs they didn't know it?
I wonder if Hillary is being honest here, either with herself or with voters. Or if she is using the same kind of self-serving rhetoric that the Bush administration has been using ad nauseam.
I do not mean to judge her prematurely, but it would be nice if she would take the time to describe what she means about not knowing and whose job it was to know.

Politician "apologies"

Why does AP put out--and the Asheville newspaper print without comment--short articles that say politicians with presidential hopes have "apologized" for having sexual affairs, without giving sources on where to find what a given politican acutally said? More importantly, why let this so-called news article imply that voters will receive such attention spots as a political act that okays their running for higher office?

As a voter, I am not voting for a politician because I have the audacidty to judge his or her personal life; I vote for a poltiican who will work to uphold policities that improve the public good--here and abroad.

Consequently, I am more interested in hearing what a politican has to say to defend or explain his views upon--and, if applicable, his part in--acts that seem to avoid basic governmental ethics; acts like those that (1) publicly embarrassed a sitting president for a minor sexual interlude, (2) publicly embarrassed his wife and daughter, (3) took up congressional time and spent public money over an impeachment charade, (4) strong-armed congressional representatives and/or senators to vote against their consciences in order to retain political power for a given political party, (5) voted for the invasion of a country on obviously shaky intelligence reports, and (6) refrained from using Congress's procedures to question an obviously questionable national election's results.

For any potential presidential candidate, I want to hear how he or she self-justifies such political acts, not how he self-jusifies his or her failures or successes in the bedroom. How can I access such information if the media neither asks such obviously pertinent questions nor gives sources for my hearing/reading what a given politician actually said?

Airlines and "lost" luggage items

So why is it so difficult to get back something missing after an airline flight? Are airlines trying to further deter people from wanting to fly?
I had an expensive item missing after a recent flight where my suitcase had a TSA inspection notice in it when I got home. After a week's wait from my email (I was told on the phone it would a 90-minute wait) request, when I finally got the TSA claim form, I was appalled at all the information the TSA prefers to have.
Another person I know had an expensive camera missing from luggage that had been in the possession of one airline only. The luggage showed up more than 24 hours after the flight landed. Upon notifying the airline, the passenger was told he should have called within 24 hours!
If such a reply is something other than tacitly condoning theft by the airline's employees, what could it be?????

Valerie Plame and who is responsible for what?

So tell me, somebody, Why is Judith Miller so under scrutiny, when she is not even the person who published Valerie Plame's name in the newspaper? And why is the person who did publish her name--Robert Novak--just about never mentioned? What is going on with this? Is the so-called crime lost amidst political maneuvering??????

Baseball players and talent

Brian and I have been discussing the art of baseball. This past summer he pointed out that if you hit the foul ball pole or the net, then it's an automatic home run. This is my question: Baseball players get paid millions of dollars. Why don't they train (at least a little) to aim for the foul ball pole every single time they're at bat? If the point of playing the game = winning, and winning = more money, then why don't we have more players aiming for what appears to be a relatively easy way of hitting a home run?

Neela's question about education

Why is there so much emphasis on education and certification these days, in order to get jobs? Who is served by this process?

Question about Questions

What are your questions these days? Please post them :)