Reason Morning Links: Tsunami Hits Samoa, PATRIOT Act Renewal Options, Federal Ban on Distracted Driving?

- Tsunami hits Pacific Islands, kills at least 99.

- Dept. of Transportation holds two-day summit on distracted driving, aims for national ban on texting while driving.

- U.S. Senate to investigate dietary supplements marketed to athletes.

- GAO report finds Medicaid hobbled by fraud, abuse of prescription drugs.

- Cato research fellow, Reason contributing editor Julian Sanchez runs down the competing bills to address renewal of portions of the PATRIOT Act.

Comments

[Suki]

In other news Chicagoans celebrated their Olympic Bit in their special Chicago way

[Tomcat1066]

"GAO report finds Medicaid hobbled by fraud, abuse of prescription drugs."

But I thought that Medicaid was a model program that worked fine and was worthy of duplication on a national scale. Funny how that worked out, ain't it?

[Cabeza de Vaca]

"U.S. Senate to investigate dietary supplements marketed to athletes."

I'm glad the Senate has their priorities right. This is much more important than entitlement programs that they've made people dependent upon going bankrupt.

[Suki]

Bad Suki fingers!

That should be Olympic Bid not Bit.

[SugarFree]

Mickey Kaus and David Weigal slapfight over Al Franken. Please brace yourself of the shocking revelation of which side Weigel is on...

[Johnny Longtorso]

Dept. of Transportation holds two-day summit on distracted driving, aims for national ban on texting while driving.

I plan to read the minutes of that summit during my morning commute.

[Danny]

Thank God! We are all safe now that the Senate is going to keep those dangerous sports supplements away from us. I don't know how I survived all these years taking protein and Creatine.

[Juvenile Lurker]

Q: Is the distracted driving summit going to address spanking the monkey behind the wheel?

A: I'd rather be spanking the monkey.

[Joel]

The next important objective in our on-going War On Distracted Driving (WADD): the fast food drive-through. These pushers of driving distraction have had it all their way far too long. They think they can keep getting away with their nefarious deeds just because their product is delicious. But in league with our allies, the fighters of the War On Obesity, we shall prevail!

We shall not flag, we shall not falter, we shall not stop our fucking nagging until a federal agent is available to assist each and every driver with a cocked pistol at his head. That should focus their attention nicely.

[FrBunny]

Dept. of Transportation holds two-day summit on distracted driving, aims for national ban on texting while driving.

The leviathan Dvorak Lobby decided if they don't play, nobody plays. Cower, plebs.

[@]

Driving with a fresh, hot bucket of KFC in the passenger seat is dangerous. The aroma, the forbidden salty, greasy goodness, beckoning...teasing..."Take one. You know you want it! Just reach over, pry off the lid and--"

The driver apparently never saw the cement truck. Rescuers used the jaws of life to remove him from the twisted wreck. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

[Timon19]

Samoa.

[Rich]

I look forward to seeing a video of the summit showing large numbers of distracted attendees using their Blackberries.

[Art-P.O.G.]

SugarFree,

Sure, Pelosi constructed a kickass suit of shiny black armor for Weigel. I'm not sure what hurts more, Weigel going over to the dark side or having to admit that LoneWacko was right.

[Art-P.O.G.]

Hmmm...ever see that Wampa and Steve Smith in the same room at the same time?

[@]

Weigel going over to the dark side

He's one of Rachel Maddow's eunuchs now. Yikes.

[Mike M.]

In other news, the final hsu has dropped on famed former Clinton and Democratic party fundraiser Norman Hsu, who has been sentenced to 24 years in prison.

[Art-P.O.G.]

It wounds me...like the Michelle Malkin betrayal...like a Wampa/Steve Smith slashing my face.

[R C Dean]

What a hideous piece of misdirection and misinformation from Weigel.

The Kaus story on didn't "smear" Franken. It didn't allege any Franken involvement at all in the ACORN voter drives that almost certainly put him over the top.

Weigel also tries to argue that the stringent recount standards in Minnesota should insulate Franken from any allegation that ballots electing him were fraudulently cast. Which, of course, is horseshit, because recounts don't, and can't, look at whether any given ballot was cast by a legitimate voter.

The Reason crew must be really embarrassed that they ever gave a forum to a crypto-lefty statist like Weigel.

[Art-P.O.G.]

The Reason crew must be really embarrassed that they ever gave a forum to a crypto-lefty statist like Weigel.

At least Michelle Malkin has the excuse that she lost her mind.

[The Gobbler]

My cock misses Weigel big time.

[Tulpa]

Tsunami Hits Somoa

You can't blame the tsunami for indulging in a drug from an Aldus Huxley novel after a long day. Traveling over thousands of miles of ocean is pretty exhausting.

[wylie]

Driving with a fresh, hot bucket of KFC in the passenger seat is dangerous.

Same with french fries. I think we just found how the fat-nannies will win: tasty food is a road hazard.

Now to address cops having donuts in their cars.

MUWAHAHAHAHA

[Chris Grieb]

I noted the report about fraud in MediAid had a good number of prescriptions be written and taken by dead people. I thought the sole role for dead people in our great new era was as voters.

[Dead People]

"I noted the report about fraud in MediAid had a good number of prescriptions be written and taken by dead people. I thought the sole role for dead people in our great new era was as voters."

We do it all.

[wylie]

I thought the sole role for dead people in our great new era was as voters.

And voters need medication. Duh.

.....oh wait.

[J sub D]

U.S. Senate to investigate dietary supplements marketed to athletes.

Better this than health care reform or cap and trade.

Even better, the publicity whores could investigate this.

GAO report finds Medicaid hobbled by fraud, abuse of prescription drugs.

Won't happen though, it's not celebrilicious enough.