We seem to be in a world these days where our information is becoming more available than Mark Foley after watching The Goonies.

So be thankful there are folks out there like my pal John Aravosis of AMERICAblog (full disclosure: I contribute to AMERICAblog every Friday).

Upon discovering that people's personal cell phone records were for sale, John purchased those of General Wesley Clark (former Democratic presidential contender) to make a point about how easy it was. He also publicized the hell out of it and made it a mission, like only he can.

Well, now an effort that began with John's important political statement has paid off. Both houses of Congress have passed bills making this practice illegal.

John is to be congratulated and thanked for giving us back a little bit of privacy in a world that takes more away every day.

For once a Republican is going to prison of his own volition. While Senator Brownback is going to lockup overnight to highlight "faith-based initiatives," I still won't be impressed until he goes to Guantanamo overnight. Now that's a faith-based initiative.

I guess this is the reason why David Safavian, Bob Ney, Brian Doyle, Tom DeLay, Jerry Lewis, Jim Gibbons, Rick Renzi, Karl Rove, Claude Allen, Scooter Libby, Conrad Burns, Rick Santorum, Jack Abramoff, Ralph Reed, George Allen, Richard Pombo, Mark Foley, Jim Kolbe, John Doolittle and the rest of the GOP also chose to become crooks.

It all makes sense now.

Extra Extra...union beats the snot out of healthcare conglomerate. Taylor Marsh, who has done an excellent job of covering this whole sordid affair, has the story.

Psst Democrats, these are called "defining issues." Keep that in mind as there are more conflagrations that involve hard-working Americans and cigar-chomping, fat-ass, balding corporate humps.

Uh oh. Gov. Romney was for gays before he was against them.

That could hurt in the Neanderthal Primaries.

Damn Massachusetts Liberal!

Tom Schaller, a brilliant professor and friend, has a great takedown of the right-wing Headupitsassosphere also known as conservative blogs. Instaputz, as he rightfully calls that legal puke, is on the menu.

Go check it out and then buy yourself a copy of Tom's awesome new book (it makes a great Christmas present too) Whistling Past Dixie: How Democrats Can Win Without The South.

It is one of the best "strategery" books for Democrats I have read in years.

Ahhh...What would we do without Michelle Malkin? She brings such clarity to the world.

So let me get this straight, San Francisco is a "mean" city, according to a woman who advocated concentration camps based upon race. Umm, ok Michelle. Forget your crazy pills again today?

Somebody please get the Prozac back into her running water...

It turns out that "straight-talk" McCain likes to talk about tolerance, but then hires as his campaign manager a guy who made the most racist ads during the last cycle.

Go figure.

My appearance on The Young Turks at 8AM EST this morning discussing the ever-popular topic of Republican Sexcapades.

Sorry for my brief disappearance folks. Was spending some time with the boy, who just got his first cold. Without further ado, if you have not met him, let me introduce you to Representative Jack-ass Kingston:

Keeping us up here eats away at families," said Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.), who typically flies home on Thursdays and returns to Washington on Tuesdays. "Marriages suffer. The Democrats could care less about families -- that's what this says.

Poor Jack. So I am sure he opposed his party and supported a higher minimum wage, universal healthcare, paid family leave, free childcare, free higher education and other economic methods of reducing the burden on American families so that marriages are more stable. Oh that's right he didn't.

But the Georgia peach-for-brains did support tax cuts for Halliburton and Paris Hilton. And now he has the gall to complain about working 5 days a week?

You unbelievably sheltered, elitist asshole.

More Republican scandal. I know, shocking.

This of course fits their general pattern of trying to steal elections.

For some reason--on the Chris Matthews show this morning--I was convinced that on a panel that included both Joe Klein and Andrew Sullivan, Cynthia Tucker, the Editorial Page Editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, would be the sane one on the issue of Iraq.

Alas, I was mistaken.

While defending Hillary Clinton's vote for giving President Bush a blank check in Iraq, she had to go and say something completely idiotic like "every serious Democrat" voted in favor of giving President Bush the authority to go and screw up the entire Middle East.

Really Cynthia? Perhaps you should put a call in to former Democratic Senator Bob Graham, Chairman of The Senate Intelligence Committee at that time, who not only opposed the joint resolution but implored his colleagues to do the same based upon what he knew. You might want to also explain how Carl Levin, Pat Leahy and Russ Feingold, among others, are not "serious" in your book.

Just sayin'...