I'VE MOVED!

I haven't blogged on here in quite some time, due to various career changes. From now on, I'll be blogging at either Health Hog or AmSpecBlog. Health Hog will focus on health care issues, while blogging on other subjects will be posted at AmSpecBlog.

Thanks to all of you who have ever visited this blog. Please drop me a line when you can at dwhogberg - at - gmail - dot - com

Best wishes - Dave

posted by David 6:42 PM

. . .

Deaths Due To Chronic Diseases
Country	Age Standardized Death Rate Per 100K
Japan	275
Switzerland	343
France	349
Sweden	364
Canada	371
Iceland	374
Spain	379
Israel	380
Italy	387
Luxembourg	396
Austria	398
Finland	411
Belgium	413
U.K.	419
Germany	433
U.S.	442
Portugal	446
Greece	450
Ireland	468
Denmark	484

posted by David 6:47 PM

. . .

Deaths Due To Chronic Diseases
Country		Age Standardized Death Rate Per 100K	Ratio
Japan	275
Switzerland	343
France	349
Sweden	364
Canada	371
Iceland	374
Spain	379
Israel	380
Italy	387
Luxembourg	396
Austria	398
Finland	411
Belgium	413
U.K.	419
Germany	433
U.S.	442
Portugal	446
Greece	450
Ireland	468
Denmark	484

posted by David 6:47 PM

. . .

Deaths Due To Chronic Diseases
Country		Age Standardized Death Rate Per 100K	Ratio
Japan	275
Switzerland	343
France	349
Sweden	364
Canada	371
Iceland	374
Spain	379
Israel	380
Italy	387
Luxembourg	396
Austria	398
Finland	411
Belgium	413
U.K.	419
Germany	433
U.S.	442
Portugal	446
Greece	450
Ireland	468
Denmark	484

posted by David 5:53 PM

. . .

Deaths Due To Chronic Diseases
Country		Age Standardized Death Rate Per 100K	Ratio
Japan	275
Switzerland	343
France	349
Sweden	364
Canada	371
Iceland	374
Spain	379
Israel	380
Italy	387
Luxembourg	396
Austria	398
Finland	411
Belgium	413
U.K.	419
Germany	433
U.S.	442
Portugal	446
Greece	450
Ireland	468
Denmark	484

posted by David 5:53 PM

. . .

HOUSE MEMBERS WHO VOTE AGAINST PORK

Flake Amendments: Taxpayer Heroes
Member	Party-State	Score
J. Gresham Barrett	R-SC	19
Charles Bass	R-NH	18
Melissa Bean	D-IL	19
Bob Beauprez	R-CO	16
Marsha Blackburn	R-TN	19
Jeb Bradley	R-NH	19
Steve Chabot	R-OH	18
Chris Chocola	R-IN	19
Jim Cooper	D-TN	19
Nathan Deal	R-GA	18
John Duncan	R-TN	14
Tom Feeney	R-FL	19
Jeff Flake	R-AZ	19
Harold Ford	D-TN	13
Trent Franks	R-AZ	19
Scott Garrett	R-NJ	19
Jim Gibbons	R-NV	19
Mark Green	R-WI	19
Gil Gutknecht	R-MN	17
Katherine Harris	R-FL	16
J.D. Hayworth	R-AZ	19
Joel Hefly	R-CO	19
Ken Hensarling	R-TX	19
Bob Inglis	R-SC	19
Bobby Jindal	R-LA	15
Walter Jones	R-NC	18
Mark Kennedy	R-MN	17
Steve King	R-IA	17
John Linder	R-GA	14
Jim Matheson	D-UT	14
Mike Pence	R-GA	19
Jeff Miller	R-FL	15
Marlyn Musgrave	R-CO	15
Sue Myrick	R-NC	15
Charles Norwood	R-GA	17
Butch Otter	R-ID	18
Thomas Petri	R-WI	18
Joe Pitts	R-PA	18
Ted Poe	R-TX	13
Tom Price	R-GA	16
Jim Ramstad	R-MN	18
Ron Paul	R-TX	19
Paul Ryan	R-WI	19
James Sensenbrenner	R-WI	19
Pete Session	R-TX	14
John Shadegg	R-AZ	19
Cliff Stearns	R-FL	17
John Sullivan	R-OK	16
Tom Tancredo	R-CO	17
Lynn Westmoreland	R-GA	18

For more on this, go here

posted by David 8:03 PM

. . .

MY MAY DAY PANIC

Yesterday I wanted to go to lunch at this restaurant:



But then I noticed the sign over on the left hand side of the balcony railing:



It read, “Closed on Monday to Support Our Immigrant Workers.”

My response: NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! What was I going to do?!?!? My palms started to sweat!!!! I began to shake!!!! I could barely stand to think of all the damage this was doing to the economy!!!!!!

But, as a I moved my eyes downward to stair at the ground in despair, I noticed this, right below Skewers:



Another restaurant! And it was open! YEESSSS!!!!! THANK GOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!

So I went there instead. Whew!

posted by David 2:49 PM

. . .

PRO-AMNESTY DEMONSTRATION IN D.C. TODAY

The Open-Borders Demonstration marched down 16th Street in D.C., passing right by my place of employment. My co-worker, James Dellinger, and I took some pictures of march, focusing on some things that you probably won’t see in the MSM coverage of the march.

Let me say that I am somewhere in the middle on the immigration question. While I’m in favor of tighter border security, including a fence, I also like a guest-worker program (although definitely not amnesty, and I think we should wait until we start speeding up the citizenship process.)

My point in displaying these pictures is to show that there are some extremist elements in this movement, and we should keep in mind that these elements favor laxer immigration controls. In other words, they see it as facilitating their agenda (some of which is anti-American), and we should take that into account when formulating immigration policy.

There were a lot of scenes like these. Lots of red, white and blue, and American flags:





But there were some who didn’t get the message that holding an American flag is better for PR purposes:







Then there was the Cuban flag:



Not sure if these were pro- or anti-Castro people, but I’m guessing the former given that these folks were not far behind in the march:



But the communists weren’t the only extremists present. Indeed, these folks had a “solution” for immigration laws—just get rid of all laws:



The caption reads “For A World Without Borders and Laws,” and in the bottom right of the banner you can see the symbol for Anarchy.

Meanwhile, the church right across the street had to get the kiddies in day-care involved. I don’t think they marched, just sat out and waved flags to support an issue that they probably don’t understand. Oh well, never too young to be brainwashed.



Then there were the banners that seemed to lack any sense of logic:



“We Are All Immigrants”? How can you be an immigrant if you are born here?

And finally, my favorite:



Nothing like a guy practicing good ol’ fashioned capitalism at a left-wing rally!

posted by David 5:54 PM

. . .

SPECTER OF CORRUPTION

Okay, cheap pun of a headline. Nevertheless, this story in USA Today highlights how the husband of an aid to Senator Arlen Specter benefited from earmarks Specter inserted into various appropriations bills:

The Pennsylvania Republican asked for the review of legislative assistant Vicki Siegel Herson's actions after USA TODAY reported Thursday that his office inserted 13 provisions into spending bills benefiting clients of her husband, Michael Herson, a registered lobbyist.

Can’t say I have much sympathy for Specter. Just last week he was calling the cuts in President Bush’s so-called “austere” budget “scandalous.”

Looks like a poor choice of words now, eh?

posted by David 11:30 AM

. . .

MORE GASOLINE ON THE FIRE

Looking at Ann Coulter's latest column, looks like she has changed the "rag head" remark:

If you don't want to get shot by the police, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, then don't point a toy gun at them. Or, as I believe our motto should be after 9/11: Jihad monkey talks tough; jihad monkey takes the consequences. Sorry, I realize that's offensive. How about "camel jockey"? What? Now what'd I say? Boy, you tent merchants sure are touchy. Grow up, would you?

posted by David 11:35 AM

. . .