] The prescription drugs, administered by Col. Richard J.
] Tubb, the White House physician, can impair the
] President's mental faculties and decrease both his
] physical capabilities and his ability to respond to a
] crisis, administration aides admit privately.
]
] "It's a double-edged sword,"? says one aide. "We
] can't have him flying off the handle at the slightest
] provocation but we also need a President who is alert
] mentally."?

Capitol Hill Blue: Bush Using Drugs to Control Depression, Erratic Behavior

] Now, on the streets tonight, the light's grow dim
] The walls of my room are closing in
] There's a war outside still raging
] You say it ain't ours anymore to win
] I want to sleep beneath the peaceful skies
] In my lover's bed
] With that wild open country in our eyes
] And those romantic dreams in my head

No retreat, baby, no surrender..

Interesting choice of music to play when Kerry came out. Note, playing Springsteen likely effected his polling in New Jersey.

No Surrender - Bruce Springsteen (Lyrics and Chords)

] Powell is on track to become the least traveled secretary
] of state in more than three decades, since Henry A.
] Kissinger embodied the concept of the globe-trotting
] foreign policy guru, according to records maintained by
] the State Department's historian. Powell's three
] immediate predecessors, the records show, traveled an
] average of more than 45 percent more than he has.

MSNBC - Colin Powell no globe-trotter

] DuPree points me toward Brentwood, a town - or rather
] endless series of developments - north of Franklin. In
] Brentwood, the houses under construction are so big that
] workers look like ants on them, like a Salgado
] photograph. Princeton Hills, a Brentwood McMansion
] development, seems the perfect encapsulation of the new
] suburban Tennessee. At the gate of the development stands
] a brick frieze of a Confederate general in battle. Behind
] the gate, enormous mansions. Down the street, a Baptist
] church the size of an arena. Across the road, another
] field of McMansions going up, McMansions as far as the
] eye can see - each one another Republican vote, another
] $2,000 in the Bush campaign war chest.

"McMansion"

Tennessee - Kerry can't win it. But can Bush lose it? By David Plotz

"Get out of my namespace!"

Following is a transcript of the interview with President Chen Shui-bian of Taiwan by Philip P. Pan, the Washington Post's Beijing bureau chief, and David E. Hoffman, foreign editor. The interview was conducted at the presidential palace in Taipei on March 29, 2004, with a government translator.

... the "one China" principle ... is totally unacceptable to our people.

I think the fundamental reason why I won ... is because there is a rising Taiwan identity and it has been solidified. I think the Beijing authorities should take heed of this fact and accept the reality.

I have observed a very interesting phenomenon. The Beijing authorities refuse to recognize the existence of the Republic of China. However, they dread that we may one day change our name. I see a great inconsistency in this phenomenon.

What's in a name, really?

The failure of "one country, two systems" in Hong Kong has contributed to the rise of Taiwan identity and the rise of Taiwan awareness.

As I have said, solidifying and deepening Taiwan's democracy is our best Theater Missile Defense.

The day before the election, I trod the fine line of death. And that had a great impact on my life philosophy and my attitude toward my political career.

A shot in the arm, a shot in the gut -- what's twelve inches between friends?

Interview with Taiwan's President Chen Shui-bian

Check out the picture at the top left. This guy is an independent who managed to get elected despite being opposed by both liberal and conservative media in the country. He is very much a product of the internet. He is a Howard Dean who made it. The traditional sources of power in South Korea are nailing this guys ass to the wall because he is an outsider. Of course, he is not without fault. He would have avoided impeachment if he had agreed to apologize over some technical elections issue. He refuse to do so, and so they booted him. Of course, its entirely possible that the call for an apology was literally an attempt to put him in a catch 22 situation where if he agreed to apologize he would be admitting wrongdoing and would be subsequently impeached anyway.

All in all, you can chalk this up next to Dean's implosion as a failure of the new media to challenge the present world order.

President of South Korea impeached

] Just in time for today's New Hampshire primary, here's a
] candidate scorecard. It rates members of Congress on how they voted
] on technology-related legislation and awarded them a score
] of 0 to 100.

This is interesting, but also lacking. There is hole here that needs to be filled.

[Politech] Where Democratic presidential candidates stand on tech

There is now an Elections topic under Current Events.