Breaking News Thread Version 2.0

[Krandall]

What do you do with lawn gnomes... You put em' in your lawn!

[dragonz]

What do you do with lawn gnomes... You put em' in your lawn!

I prefer to put them in the back paddock..................................





























With a stick of dynamite for company..............

[Krandall]

 

fair enough!

) -- After scouring northern Colorado by foot and air, frantically chasing a Mylar balloon for dozens of miles and interviewing his big brother over and over, local and federal authorities ended their search for 6-year-old Falcon Heene where it began -- at his house.
Falcon Heene, 6, said he hid in the family attic after his father yelled at him.

Falcon Heene, 6, said he hid in the family attic after his father yelled at him.
Click to view previous image
1 of 3
Click to view next image

He was in a box. In the attic. The whole time.

"I played with my toys and took a nap," Falcon told reporters outside his Fort Collins home Thursday afternoon.

"He walked in by himself, it felt like from nowhwere," the boy's mother, Mayumi Heene, told CNN Friday morning. "When I first saw him I couldn't even believe it, I couldn't comprehend."

"He says he was hiding in the attic," Falcon's father, meteorologist Richard Heene, said Thursday as he clutched his son. "He says it's because I yelled at him. I'm sorry I yelled at him."

But in a later interview on CNN's "Larry King Live," Falcon said he heard his parents call for him from the garage. When asked by his father on air why he didn't respond, the boy replied, "You guys said we did this for the show."

When Richard Heene was pressed by fill-in host Wolf Blitzer to explain what his son meant, he became uncomfortable, finally saying he was "appalled" by the questions. He added that Falcon likely was referring to all the media coverage. Video Watch Heene respond to the question »

Heene reiterated Friday morning that Falcon was talking about media requests after the drama ended Thursday.

Authorities said they believe the case, which launched search efforts by the Colorado Air National Guard and Federal Aviation Administration, was genuine.

Heene told reporters earlier the family was working on the balloon, what he called a "3-D low-altitude vehicle," and they were in the "early stages of the invention" when the balloon and the boy went missing.

The situation grabbed the world's attention Thursday afternoon after authorities reported that the experimental helium balloon was set adrift and the 6-year-old apparently was riding in it. His brother had said he watched Falcon get into the balloon before he untied the tethers, setting it free. Heene later said Falcon was videotaped getting into the vessel by his brother but "obviously he got out." Video Watch the father explain the balloon mishap »

Rescuers followed the saucerlike vessel, and the FAA tried to track it until the balloon made a soft landing some 50 miles away in a field.

Officials rushed to the scene, smacking the metallic balloon until it deflated. They looked inside, but there was no Falcon.

At that point, there were two possibilities: Either Falcon never got in the balloon, or he fell out. After reports that a box possibly carrying Falcon might have fallen off the balloon, authorities feared the worst.

"It was like the worst thing I ever heard in my life because all I could think of was maybe he had fallen out," Richard Heene said Friday.

But a little while later, the boy turned up at home.

Larimer County Sheriff James Alderden said it's not uncommon for children to seek cover when they realize they're the subject of a massive search. "They hide because they think they are in trouble."

"What was confusing was the eyewitness who said [Falcon] climbed into the apparatus, which was not the case," Alderden said, referring to the boy's brother. Video Watch as the balloon lands »

The sheriff said investigators interviewd the brother several times and he was consistent with his story.

Earlier, the falling-box scenario prompted a widening search.

A Weld County sheriff's deputy had said he saw an object fall from the balloon somewhere over Platteville, Colorado, which is in the search area. There was no box attached when the balloon made a soft landing at 1:35 p.m. (3:35 p.m. ET).

The widespread worries prompted the Colorado Air National Guard to deploy a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, with plans to launch a second one equipped with night vision, if necessary.

The search, which initially focused on Weld County, covered "the entire flight plan, from the Fort Collins area down to the Denver International Airport area," Col. Mark Riccardi said.

Falcon's parents, science enthusiasts Richard and Mayumi Heene, were featured on the 100th episode of ABC's prime-time program "Wife Swap" in March, that network said.

According to ABC's Web site, the Heenes "devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm." See different types of balloons »

Richard Heene is a meteorologist and former television weatherman who has submitted to CNN iReports accounts of his sons helping him chase Hurricane Gustav, among other contributions.

Marc Friedland, the family's next-door neighbor, said he left his house about 11 a.m. Thursday for a walk and found Heene working on the giant balloon in the backyard.

"Basically, the whole family was out there, and they were working with it," he said. "When I came back is when I found out that the event happened."

He said the aircraft was intended to hover about 20 feet in the air and was not intended to carry people. "Obviously, something went wrong with that."

Friedland described his neighbors for the past year as "a great family."

"They're unusual, yes, of course. He's sort of a scientist slash inventor. They're storm chasers -- they go after tornadoes, hurricanes, things like that."

The family had been working on the aircraft for a couple of weeks, he said.

About Falcon, Friedland said, "He's a great kid. We see him a lot, and they come over and they're always friendly."

The Larimer County Sheriff's Office said the balloon had been tethered to the family's home.
advertisement

Once untethered, the saucerlike craft flew eastward from the Heenes' neighborhood, though officials couldn't immediately confirm how fast it was going. See where the balloon floated »

Authorities said the silver balloon, 20 feet long and 5 feet high, at times reached 7,000 feet above the ground while adrift.

[Krandall]

2010 Olympic Medal design released. I like em!
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2009/10/15/bc-vancouver-olympic-medal-design.html

[Krandall]

Inside a grow-house raid
http://www.westword.com/slideshow/view/28587068/12

[disco]

Sick, in a bad way.     WTH is wrong with people?


Minn. man suspected of encouraging suicides

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091017/ap_on_re_us/us_encouraging_suicides;_ylt=AtBVFMkhpiDZAn0TJ58kqtbLOrgF;_ylu=X3oDMTJxYzczbHJ1BGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkxMDE3L3VzX2VuY291cmFnaW5nX3N1aWNpZGVzBGNwb3MDMwRwb3MDMwRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3JpZXMEc2xrA21pbm5tYW5zdXNwZQ--


MINNEAPOLIS – A nurse who authorities say got his kicks by visiting Internet suicide chat rooms and encouraging depressed people to kill themselves is under investigation in at least two deaths and could face criminal charges that could test the limits of the First Amendment.

Investigators said William Melchert-Dinkel, 47, feigned compassion for those he chatted with, while offering step-by-step instructions on how to take their lives.

"Most importatn [proofread FAIL] is the placement of the noose on the neck ... Knot behind the left ear and rope across the carotid is very important for instant unconciousness [proofread FAIL x2] and death," he allegedly wrote in one Web chat.

[Krandall]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_balloon_boy
Sheriff: Balloon boy hoax may have conspirators


FORT COLLINS, Colo. – The lawyer for the man accused of perpetrating the balloon boy hoax to promote a reality show said Monday that he expects authorities to bring charges against his client in the next day as investigators analyze e-mails that show Richard Heene and an associate discussing the stunt months ago.

"These folks are absolutely willing to turn themselves in, so I don't want to see a perp walk done for media consumption," lawyer David Lane said on the "Today" show on NBC as he made the rounds on the morning talk shows.

In addition to drawing up possible felony charges against Heene, investigators say they want to question an associate of his after e-mails surfaced showing the two had discussed a balloon hoax months ago as part of a public relations campaign for the reality show.

Robert Thomas of Denver claimed Heene had told him he was planning a media stunt to promote a proposed reality show. Thomas, a self-described researcher, sold his story to Gawker.com and provided the Web site with e-mail exchanges between him and Heene. Thomas said the show would feature Heene as a mad scientist who carries out various scientific experiments.

"This will be the most significant UFO-related news event to take place since the Roswell Crash of 1947, and the result will be a dramatic increase in local and national awareness about The Heene Family, our Reality Series, as well as the UFO Phenomenon in general," according to a copy of the show's proposal provided to the site by Thomas.

Gawker.com editor-in-chief Gabriel Snyder confirmed the New York-based Web site paid Thomas, but declined to say how much for the story billed with the headline: "Exclusive: I Helped Richard Heene Plan a Balloon Hoax."

Snyder said Thomas was planning to meet with investigators, though sheriff's officials did not return messages seeking confirmation.

Messages left for Thomas by The Associated Press were not returned.

Thomas, 25, said in his Gawker.com story that the plan he knew about did not involve Heene's children.

The alleged stunt temporarily shut down Denver International Airport, and the National Guard provided two helicopters in an attempt to rescue 6-year-old Falcon Heene, who was believed to be inside the flying-saucer shaped homemade balloon that hurtled more than 50 miles across two counties.

The drama played out on live television to millions of viewers worldwide. When the balloon landed without the boy, officials thought he had fallen out and began the grim search for his body.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden announced Sunday that he's seeking charges, including felonies, against Richard Heene and his wife, Mayumi. Alderden said the stunt two weeks in the planning was a marketing ploy by the Heenes, who met in acting school in Hollywood and have appeared on ABC's reality show "Wife Swap."

"We certainly know that there's a conspiracy between the husband and wife, you've probably seen some of the e-mails and some of the things on the Internet suggesting that there may be other conspirators," Alderden said.

Alderden said documents show that a media outlet has agreed to pay money to the Heenes with regard to the balloon incident. Alderden didn't name the media outlet but said it was a show that blurs "the line between entertainment and news."

It wasn't clear whether the deal was signed before or after the alleged hoax, or whether the media outlet was a possible conspirator.

"Let's call it (my statement) short of speculation that a media outlet was in on the hoax, but let's not discount the possibility," he said.

In an e-mail Sunday to the AP, Snyder said editors at Gawker.com had not contacted the Heene family or offered them money for their story, referring to Alderden's reference to a deal being struck by a media outlet.

"No, that wasn't us," Snyder said.

The parents weren't under arrest, the sheriff said. He said he expected to recommend charges of conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities and attempting to influence a public servant. Federal charges were also possible.

The most serious charges are felonies and carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 fine. Alderden said they would be seeking restitution for the costs, though he didn't have an estimate.

The cost for just the two military helicopters was about $14,500.

As Alderden told reporters Sunday that the whole thing was a hoax, the Heenes were shopping for snacks at Wal-Mart, where Richard Heene told the AP he was "seeking counsel."

"This thing has become so convoluted," Heene said, tears welling in his eyes. He said his wife was holding together better than he was.

In a statement issued Sunday, Lane he has advised the family against making public statements and said Heene is willing to turn himself in.

"I don't think it's humane to arrest someone in front of their children," Lane also said Monday, appearing on "The Early Show" CBS. "We're not sure what charges he's looking at yet."

Once investigators got a good look at the "flying saucer" they determined that the thin mylar balloon covered with foil and held together with duct tape would not have been able to launch with the 37-pound-boy inside, according to Colorado State University physics professor Brian Jones.

Other parts of the story, including whether the 6-year-old had been hiding in the rafters of the family's garage during an intense five-hour search also weren't true, Alderden said.

"For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park," the sheriff said.

The sheriff said all three of the Heenes' sons knew of the hoax, but likely won't face charges because of their ages. The oldest son is 10. One of the boys told investigators he saw his brother get in the balloon's box before it launched.

Alderden said Heene, a 48-year-old storm chaser, inventor and self-described amateur scientist, has a high school education and most recently earned a living by laying tile.

Alderden said investigators had an "aha" moment that the story was a hoax when Falcon turned to his father during a CNN interview Thursday and said what sounded like "you had said we did this for a show" when asked why he didn't come out of his hiding place.

On Friday, Falcon got sick during two separate TV interviews when asked again why he hid.

Alderden said they didn't question the family Friday because they wanted to keep the family's cooperation by maintaining the appearance that they believed their story.

Records show that police have responded to the house at least twice in the past year, including a possible domestic violence incident in February. No charges were filed.

Alderden said officials tried Saturday to persuade Mayumi Heene, 45, to go to a safe house, but she declined.

Alderden said the children were still with the parents Sunday and that child protective services had been contacted to investigate their well-being. On "Wife Swap," Heene was portrayed as erratic, at one point throwing a glass of milk on a participant on the program.

"Clearly, from all indications, Mr. Heene has somewhat of a temper," Alderden said.

Lane described the Heenes as a loving family.

"I met the three boys and they were in my office yesterday for a good long time and I have three kids of my own ... and these are by all appearances well loved, well taken care of, well adjusted and happy little boys," Lane said on ABC's "Good Morning America."

The producer of "Wife Swap" said it had a show in development with the Heenes but the deal is now off. TLC also said Heene had pitched a reality show to the network months ago, but it passed on the offer.

[dragonz]

Some people are just a little too f**ked up

[Krandall]

This Thursday, Jacob Wetterling's family will mark the 20th anniversary of his disappearance.

On Oct. 22, 1989, a masked man with a gun kidnapped Jacob in rural St. Joseph, Minn. Eleven-year-old Jacob was biking home from a convenience store with his brother, Trevor, and a friend.

In the two decades since the abduction, Jacob's mom, Patty Wetterling, has worked tirelessly to make the world safe for other children. This week she is also bracing for another anniversary without knowing what happened to her son.

In an interview with WCCO-TV reporter Caroline Lowe, Wetterling talked about the emotions she and her family go through every time an anniversary approaches.

"For me, every fall, there is this whole body experience of knowing that the abduction time is nearby," said Wetterling. "I just keep scratching my head, like, 'What haven't we done? What else do we need to do to find Jacob and the man who took him and get some answers?' Because we do need answers. I think the entire state of Minnesota needs answers."

Answers that have never come, despite hundreds of searches and tips.

"We were really carried by the people in our community and throughout the state from the beginning, when so many people said, 'I don't know how you do it, I couldn't get out of bed," said Wetterling. "We couldn't either, we couldn't. We were really lifted up by so many amazing people, and it's working. It's carried us for a long, long time."

Wetterling said she has never given up hope.

"I simply don't know. I never had this overwhelming sense that he died. A lot of parents will tell you they knew exactly the moment, they felt it. And I didn't have that happen, so I don't have that sense that he's not alive," she explained.

But the anniversary of the last time Wetterling saw her son never stops hurting.

"I just want to curl up in a ball all over again on the 22nd. I want to be home. I don't want to think. I don't want to do anything. I just want to be," said Wetterling. "It is a time to remember and reflect and honor Jacob. And hope that one day, maybe this year, we will have our answers."

Jacob would be 31 years old now. Wetterling finds hope when she sees reunions like the recent one between Jaycee Dugard and her family. She survived 18 years as a prisoner of a man who snatched her from a school bus stop in California.

"I dream about having that opportunity," said Wetterling.

And she hopes the 20-year anniversary of Jacob's abduction prompts someone to come forward. Maybe even his kidnapper.

"Twenty years is a long time to carry that kind of guilt or pain," said Wetterling.

As she waits for answers, Wetterling works as a nationally-recognized advocate for child safety. She is also is charge of sexual violence prevention education at the Minnesota Department of Health. Earlier this week, she was a guest on an episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show that focused on making a better world for children.

"I am fighting for the world that Jacob knew and believed in. A world where our kids can grow up safe. It's really our adult job to build this world. It is not their job to not get kidnapped," said Wetterling.

Last Saturday night, the Wetterling family hosted a children's concert to mark the abduction anniversary. Jacob's favorite singer, Red Grammer, performed.

[Spider/Paleface513]

fair enough!

) -- After scouring northern Colorado by foot and air, frantically chasing a Mylar balloon for dozens of miles and interviewing his big brother over and over, local and federal authorities ended their search for 6-year-old Falcon Heene where it began -- at his house.
Falcon Heene, 6, said he hid in the family attic after his father yelled at him.

Falcon Heene, 6, said he hid in the family attic after his father yelled at him.
Click to view previous image
1 of 3
Click to view next image

He was in a box. In the attic. The whole time.

"I played with my toys and took a nap," Falcon told reporters outside his Fort Collins home Thursday afternoon.

"He walked in by himself, it felt like from nowhwere," the boy's mother, Mayumi Heene, told CNN Friday morning. "When I first saw him I couldn't even believe it, I couldn't comprehend."

"He says he was hiding in the attic," Falcon's father, meteorologist Richard Heene, said Thursday as he clutched his son. "He says it's because I yelled at him. I'm sorry I yelled at him."

But in a later interview on CNN's "Larry King Live," Falcon said he heard his parents call for him from the garage. When asked by his father on air why he didn't respond, the boy replied, "You guys said we did this for the show."

When Richard Heene was pressed by fill-in host Wolf Blitzer to explain what his son meant, he became uncomfortable, finally saying he was "appalled" by the questions. He added that Falcon likely was referring to all the media coverage. Video Watch Heene respond to the question »

Heene reiterated Friday morning that Falcon was talking about media requests after the drama ended Thursday.

Authorities said they believe the case, which launched search efforts by the Colorado Air National Guard and Federal Aviation Administration, was genuine.

Heene told reporters earlier the family was working on the balloon, what he called a "3-D low-altitude vehicle," and they were in the "early stages of the invention" when the balloon and the boy went missing.

The situation grabbed the world's attention Thursday afternoon after authorities reported that the experimental helium balloon was set adrift and the 6-year-old apparently was riding in it. His brother had said he watched Falcon get into the balloon before he untied the tethers, setting it free. Heene later said Falcon was videotaped getting into the vessel by his brother but "obviously he got out." Video Watch the father explain the balloon mishap »

Rescuers followed the saucerlike vessel, and the FAA tried to track it until the balloon made a soft landing some 50 miles away in a field.

Officials rushed to the scene, smacking the metallic balloon until it deflated. They looked inside, but there was no Falcon.

At that point, there were two possibilities: Either Falcon never got in the balloon, or he fell out. After reports that a box possibly carrying Falcon might have fallen off the balloon, authorities feared the worst.

"It was like the worst thing I ever heard in my life because all I could think of was maybe he had fallen out," Richard Heene said Friday.

But a little while later, the boy turned up at home.

Larimer County Sheriff James Alderden said it's not uncommon for children to seek cover when they realize they're the subject of a massive search. "They hide because they think they are in trouble."

"What was confusing was the eyewitness who said [Falcon] climbed into the apparatus, which was not the case," Alderden said, referring to the boy's brother. Video Watch as the balloon lands »

The sheriff said investigators interviewd the brother several times and he was consistent with his story.

Earlier, the falling-box scenario prompted a widening search.

A Weld County sheriff's deputy had said he saw an object fall from the balloon somewhere over Platteville, Colorado, which is in the search area. There was no box attached when the balloon made a soft landing at 1:35 p.m. (3:35 p.m. ET).

The widespread worries prompted the Colorado Air National Guard to deploy a UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter, with plans to launch a second one equipped with night vision, if necessary.

The search, which initially focused on Weld County, covered "the entire flight plan, from the Fort Collins area down to the Denver International Airport area," Col. Mark Riccardi said.

Falcon's parents, science enthusiasts Richard and Mayumi Heene, were featured on the 100th episode of ABC's prime-time program "Wife Swap" in March, that network said.

According to ABC's Web site, the Heenes "devote their time to scientific experiments that include looking for extraterrestrials and building a research-gathering flying saucer to send into the eye of the storm." See different types of balloons »

Richard Heene is a meteorologist and former television weatherman who has submitted to CNN iReports accounts of his sons helping him chase Hurricane Gustav, among other contributions.

Marc Friedland, the family's next-door neighbor, said he left his house about 11 a.m. Thursday for a walk and found Heene working on the giant balloon in the backyard.

"Basically, the whole family was out there, and they were working with it," he said. "When I came back is when I found out that the event happened."

He said the aircraft was intended to hover about 20 feet in the air and was not intended to carry people. "Obviously, something went wrong with that."

Friedland described his neighbors for the past year as "a great family."

"They're unusual, yes, of course. He's sort of a scientist slash inventor. They're storm chasers -- they go after tornadoes, hurricanes, things like that."

The family had been working on the aircraft for a couple of weeks, he said.

About Falcon, Friedland said, "He's a great kid. We see him a lot, and they come over and they're always friendly."

The Larimer County Sheriff's Office said the balloon had been tethered to the family's home.
advertisement

Once untethered, the saucerlike craft flew eastward from the Heenes' neighborhood, though officials couldn't immediately confirm how fast it was going. See where the balloon floated »

Authorities said the silver balloon, 20 feet long and 5 feet high, at times reached 7,000 feet above the ground while adrift.

SINCE IT WAS A HOAX I THINK THEY SHOULD TAKE THE KID SO THEY'LL KNOW HOW IT FEELS TO REALLY LOSE A KID JUST FOR 90 DAYS OR SO. SOMEONE ELSE MIGHT HAVE REALLY BEEN IN TROUBLE NEEDING HELP WHILE THE WHOLE COUNTY CHASED THE UFO THAT LANDED IN ROSWELL,LOL

[Peelz]

quit typing so loud!, I have an eye-ache.

[Spider/Paleface513]

Cap locks stuck on keyboard to home computer. Sometimes it just caps the first letter on some boards. Now I'm on my iPhone it works much better. It even puncutate if I hit space twice spell queck for the redneck in me. Can't use this constantly my hand held mac kills my big ugly pc

[Krandall]

Dems push for benefits to kick in by 2010
http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20091026/pl_politico/28718_1

Democrats are pushing Senate leaders and the White House to speed up key benefits in the health reform bill to 2010, eager to give the party something to show taxpayers for their $900 billion investment in an election year.

The most significant changes to the health care system wouldn't kick in until 2013 – two election cycles away. With Republicans expected to make next year a referendum on health care reform, Democrats are quietly lobbying to push up the effective dates on popular programs, so they'll have something to run on in the congressional midterms.

Democrats are anxious to mix the good with the bad since some of the pain would be phased in early, including more than $100 billion in industry fees that critics say could be passed on to consumers.

"We want to be able, within the cost framework and the implementation framework, to have as much start as early as possible, even though we know all of it can't," said Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), a Finance Committee member who is working with other senators on the effort. "And the White House wants to have as much as possible to start."

Under the Democratic wish-list, senior citizens would receive discounts on brand-name drugs next year. Small businesses that provide insurance would see tax credits. And a $5 billion high-risk pool would cover people with preexisting conditions.

Democratic strategists expect the 2010 election to present a stark contrast between the parties, particularly if the health care bill receives minimal Republicans support. The front-load strategy could help blunt GOP attacks on the bill as a toxic mix of higher taxes, rising premiums and cuts to Medicare.

The strategy also could ease some of the disappointment among voters who expect more immediate reforms than the bill can deliver, including on the much-debated public insurance option. Democrats in both the House and Senate are closing in on finding the votes to include some form of a public option in the bill, but a government-run insurance plan would likely be one of the last pieces to kick in fully, if it passes.

"Democrats will be the party that passed health care reform, and Republicans will be the party that tries to repeal it," said Jim Kessler, vice president for policy at Third Way, a centrist policy organization. "The challenge on health care has always been to demonstrate to the middle class that this bill is really for them and that it will provide them stable coverage that they can count on through thick and thin.

"It's important to have a few things to point to that go into effect right away," Kessler said. "This is a case where good policy and good politics coincide."

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, said the strategy was a transparent attempt to paper over the less palatable aspects of the bill.

There are billions in new taxes on insurers, device manufacturers, and pharmaceutical companies that come due in 2010.

Starting in 2013, insurers that offer family plans worth more than $21,000 a year would pay a tax, which unions say would hit middle class families. Beginning in 2014, the penalty on people who do not purchase insurance would kick in. The changes to Medicare funding, which Democrats say is aimed at redirecting wasteful spending but Republicans say would hit senior citizens, would be implemented immediately.

"I can understand their desire to have some fig leaf to protect them against understandable voter concern about the fact that insurance premiums are going to go up. You are taking half-trillion dollars from Medicare and you are going to raise taxes on middle class families," Cornyn said. "Those are unpopular positions, so I can understand their desire to front-load and show something for it."

A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released last week showed Democrats risk disappointing voters with the delayed timetable, which lawmakers view as necessary given the complexity of implementing the reforms.

The survey found voters are unaware that the major components -- $450 billion in subsidies to purchase coverage and a menu of insurance market reforms -- wouldn't kick in for four years. Forty-nine percent of respondents said they expected people to begin receiving financial assistance to buy coverage this year or next. Fifty-one percent said they expected insurers to begin accepting customers regardless of preexisting conditions this year or next.

The Senate Finance Committee has already posted a one-page memo on its website titled "What You Get Right Away: Immediate Relief for Families and Small Businesses." The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which also passed a health care bill, prepared its own list of immediate benefits.

Both documents read like a blueprint of Democratic talking points for the 2010 elections.

"It helps to have more to run on in the midterms and to prime the pump for 2012," said a senior Democratic aide of the front-load strategy. "Also, you want to have real, practical effects folks can feel right away so the issue is a clear tangible – not just rhetorical – victory. It's a big part of this."

Stabenow said she is working with other senators to influence the closed-door negotiations between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Finance Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who is representing the HELP committee. In several cases, the HELP bill offers earlier effective dates on key provisions – and Stabenow and others are pressing Reid to go with the more immediate approach.

"We want to have as much front-ended as possible," Stabenow said.

The Senate HELP bill would immediately require family policies to cover young adults until age 26, while the Finance bill sets up a "young invincible" policy beginning in 2013.

Both Senate bills establish a reinsurance fund that protects early retirees from losing their health care coverage, but only the HELP bill kicks into effect immediately. Pushed by Stabenow and Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), the fund would cover catastrophic claims of retirees between 55 and 64 who receive coverage through employer-based plans.

Insurance companies would be required to report the proportion of premium dollars that are spent on items other than medical care. Hospitals would need to itemize charges so consumers can compare prices. States would be compelled to establish an insurance ombudsman office that would intervene with companies on behalf of consumers.

Under both bills, people who have been denied insurance due to preexisting conditions or who have been uninsured for six months could seek coverage in a high-risk pool available in 2010.

Out-of-pocket costs for prevention and wellness programs under Medicare would be eliminated in 2010 under the HELP bill and 2011 in the Finance bill.

"Anything that we can do to realize reforms that won't take money upfront and at the same time create real relief for families, we are for," said Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

[Peelz]

Didn't know we had any commercial jet pilots on our roster. Bet these guys were posting in shout.

NATION: Northwest Airlines pilots admit they were working on personal laptops


http://www.necn.com/Boston/Nation/2009/10/27/Northwest-Airlines-pilots/1256635848.html

[Krandall]

flying to Minnesota for a rally.