Excuse the interruption

We are back after a brief hiatus to take care of exams and to travel back to the states, respectively. I must say, the news cycle didn't slow down one bit while we were out of action. No rest for the weary. So let's get to it.

1) It's the NFL draft today and my hometown Vikings have two picks in the first round. I don't suppose that interests many of you, but it's been a while since we had this sort of good fortune. Now if the football gods will only smile down on us and give us two marvelous picks, we would be most grateful.

2) The senate continues to debate the "Nuclear Option" of eliminating the filibuster in order to get an up-or-down vote on Bush's judicial nominees. The Republicans have now taken to calling it the "constitutional option" because the other verbiage didn't play well in the polls. Sounds a bit like personal accounts vs private accounts to me. I have to say I'm with Senator McCain on this one who's against it because Republicans "won't be in power forever." You wouldn't know that by the way they're acting though, would you?

3) Tom Delay is still in hot water over all sorts of improprieties and now he's claiming he's the victim of a vast left wing conspiracy (VLWC as it's come to be known in the blogosphere). Gee, sorry there ol' Tommy-boy, I would try to work up some pity for you, but I just can't seem to get the tears to come. Weren't you part of the conservative revolution ushered in with Gingrich in '94 who was going to change the culture of things around DC? Good job. You made scandals routine. Not bad!

4) Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum is trying to privatize the weather. You read that right. He's proposed forbidding the government weather agencies making their weather forcasts available online, a move which would force people to pay for the services of private weather forcasters like AccuWeather. Is it just a coincidence that AccuWeather's president is an old friend and campaign contributor to Santorum?

Like I said, no slow down. But we're back and ready to sift through the rubble.