Links of the Day

Health Care Bill Signed into Law - Like it or not, a historic day occurred as President Obama signed into law (with 20 pins no less) the hard fought for Health Care bill, like most major legislation of the last two years includes a lot of Republican demands yet doesn't get a single vote of support. The GOP's continued ability to show a unified front of party first, corporate second and America's somewhere in the top 10 continues. The major portions of the bill do not even go into effect until 2014 so the current talking point of doom and gloom is amusing considering "the end" of the US is postponed by four years.

How I Ran an Ad on Fox News - With the help of Google TV ads, some money, a little creativity, and no concern on when it airs, you can have your own commercial for whatever you want air for as little as $100. As the video at the link shows, it is actually a simple process, probably the most difficult being creating the commercial. If the stats on the video are any indication, it doesn't seem the cost was worth the return but still amusing to know that now any bored person with money to burn can air their own message.

Nintendo 3DS Announced - Nintendo plans on releasing yet another version of the Nintendo DS, only this time with 3D effects that do not require glasses. It is expected the new system will be unveiled during E3 this June. The device is reported to have a thumb stick, built in rumble, greater battery life, and smaller screen size. If Nintendo holds to pattern, the system is likely to be released in Japan in mid December with a role out elsewhere in early 2011.

Special Comment on Health Care Hate - Keith Olbermann returned to Countdown after the death of his father and air a comment on the hate that has taken over the right's dislike of any health care reform. The GOP, working for insurance companies, has made every effort possible to kill reform. Not modulate it, not add good effective ideas, but flat out kill it. As part of doing that, they tapped on that very deep well of hate and fear that is a hallmark of the far right. To do this they equated reform as a sign that evil is taking over America with Communism...oops Socialism but treated the same. Once it takes over, Democracy will collapse, the world will end and bad stuff will happen to all those good people that are filled with all that hate and cowardice. The problem with tapping into fear to create though is it leads to loss of control and it begins to feed on itself. Once that cycle begins, it rarely ends well. I miss the GOP of old, the one that helped create moderate, non extreme ideas. That party doesn't seem to exist anymore, having died under the rule of Rove and Cheney and further fueled by the defeated and angry GOP that remain.