Thursday Roundup: The Umpteenth Debate Was Really Swell

Another MSNBC debate with the Democratic candidates, another win for the American People.

Last night the Democratic candidates gathered in New Hampshire to have another debate. Dartmouth's campus was accommodating enough, and you might figure that the climate in the ultra-important early primary state might have lent itself to some serious scrapping, but that was not necessarily the case. Everyone leaned on Clinton on issues from the war to health care to Social Security, and the word around town — "town" being the national media — is that Clinton looked less sure of herself than she has in debates past.

For instance, there was some discussion about a Senate resolution that called on the Bush administration to affix the terrorist label to the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard, which Clinton voted in favor of. After Gravel said he was "ashamed" of her for doing so, the following exchange occurred:

When Clinton defended the vote as something that could lead to sanctions against a group responsible for manufacturing weapons that are being used against U.S. forces in Iraq. But Edwards challenged her for that vote.

"I voted for this war in Iraq, and I was wrong to vote for this war," he said. "And I accept responsibility for that. Senator Clinton also voted for this war. We learned a very different lesson from that. I have no intention of giving George Bush the authority to take the first step on a road to war with Iran."

That was as testy as the evening got.

Here's a continuation of a sad story. Remember if you will all of the terrible revelations about Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the poor treatment our veterans wounded in combat are receiving at VA facilities across the country. There were hearings and media reports and legislator tours and, above all, promises that everything would get fixed. IAVA's Paul Rieckhoff has some bad news: those problems haven't really been fixed. A GAO report shows that any effort to respond to the Walter Reed scandal has not resulted in improved or more expedient care.

In other news that isn't really getting any better: Blackwater USA put out some press earlier this week about how they've had some problems but they've also never failed in their mission to protect American diplomats. Today, the New York Times brings us the details on how Blackwater has been involved in far more shootings than other security firms with similar gigs in Iraq. This story is another one of those sticky ones that isn't going away any time soon, and is almost certain to get worse before the end.

The media managed to get a hold of a Homeland Security scenario video in which hackers perform cyberattacks on America. I didn't think that was all that big of a deal until I learned that the cyberattack was on a simulated power grid. The story related in the video is pretty intense, as the goal was to show how hacking can have tangible effects on chemical plants, water treatment and distribution, and power grids. So here's hoping plenty of lawmakers watched it and will maybe start addressing cybersecurity as a real national security issue.

Also in computer news, Dell is letting everyone know that they plan on going carbon neutral. They say they are going to be America's first carbon neutral computer company and issued a call to other companies to follow them as they plant tons of trees and green up their operations. This is good for any location with a Dell plant, obviously, but I think the bigger question is: does this sort of thing make Apple mad? Will Steve Jobs throw down the gauntlet and start recyclng iPods into happiness, specifically for children? We shall see.

There was some good old fashioned civil unrest in Irving last night, as about 1,000 people got together and demonstrated at City Hall against a recent surge in deportations. There were some counter protesters, as well, who are totally excited about all the deporting, but you can guess where most people came down on the issue. The following two paragraphs followed each other directly, but I'm not sure why:

A few people who support the deportations carried signs in favor of the illegal immigration enforcement.

"Our compassion starts at home, and our charity starts at home," said Sue Richardson, a longtime Irving resident and vice president of the Greater Irving Republican Club.

Does this mean that, for Republicans, charity is the same as deportation? Or is home where our charity is, so we can't have any undesirables around to cast eyes upon it? Someone should ask and get back to me.

Lastly today, do you remember how Dan Rather and CBS parted ways? Well, he does too, and he's suing them for the kind of money that comes in a burlap sack with a dollar sign on the front. That is interesting enough, but how about this: if the suit goes to trial, Rather is hoping to make it happen that President Bush is called as a witness. Godspeed, Dan. Let us know how it works out.