Doing my usually Saturday morning rounds: First Costco for the necessities, then the grocery store for the few luxurious items that are better or have a better selection from Stop & Shop; bananas, red bliss potatoes, cereal.

I buy some cereal at Costco, but one of my little luxuries is Stop & Shop "Nutty Nuggets."  They are a generic version of Grapenuts.

I adore Grapenuts, but at $3.49 per box, there's no way, especially when Nutty Nuggets is $2.00 per box.

Today Nutty Nuggets wasn't there.  Neither was the store-brand All-Bran, Total, or other generics.  There was a store-brand Cheerios (Oaty-Os), Store-brand Frosty Flakes, but that was about it for generics in the cereal aisle.

In their latest "please don't throw us in that briar patch!" communication, a "key Republican strategist" fears Gephardt as a running mate for Obama.

Do they really think it's that easy to manipulate us?  Remember how they all said they feared Clinton as a candidate?  Oh, no!  We don't want to run against Clinton!  That would be too, too, scary!  

And time and time again, the Republican noise machine referred to Clinton as the one to beat, the high evil, the worst, worst, worst.

Ok, let's make a list:  What are Kossacks doing to reduce their carbon footprint?   What would we like to do?  Why aren't we doing it all?

For me it's a question of money.  Most of my carbon-reducing tactics are also frugalities.  Most of the things I'd like to do, I can't afford to.  And some of the activities I love (like hiking in NH mountains) is no longer economically feasible).

So what's your list?

My reaction to the Bear Stearns nonsense:

Why the hell aren't the principals of the company, who have made billions off the company in recent years, not taking responsibility for pulling up their bootstraps and rescuing the company?

Why is responsibility just for poor people?

This morning I heard two distinct messages that women are to blame for men's mistakes.  The tricky thing is, the messages came from polar opposites on the political spectrum.

Buying votes with ice cream!  I'm outraged!  

Criminal fat enablers Ben and Jerry have admitted bribing voters.

The founders of Ben & Jerry's endorsed Barack Obama on Monday, and lent his Vermont campaign two "ObamaMobiles" that will tour the state and give away scoops of "Cherries for Change" ice cream.

I live in New England and have a natural gas-fueled furnace.  My heating bill was $290 last month.  I suppose that if I replaced the furnace my heating costs would go down, but I can't afford the replacement right now.

Several stories out of Maine caught my attention this week.

The main thing I was worried about yesterday is that McCain would sweep, effectively sealing the nomination.  Then we'd be in a tough spot with all the Republican noise machine focused on our candidates.

But good news!  Huckabee's in the race for at least another month, and might just win a few more states (Ohio's likely in my book).  Romney will keep spending his own money to keep his face out there (likely with an eye to 2012).  They'll be distracted sniping at each other and each claiming to be the only "real" Republican in the race.  And Rush, O'Rielly, and the other noisemakers will be beside themselves hating all of them.  

Good news for Democrats!

I have asthma.  My doctor has prescribed albuterol for emergencies, Singulair for allergies, and Advair for daily reduction in symptoms.  I'm lucky to have good health and prescription drug coverage.

Last month, it cost $35 to have my monthly prescriptions filled.

This month, it cost $70.

My employer instituted a new prescription drug coverage plan.  Advair is now classed as a top-tier drug and it alone costs $40 per month.  

I guess it could be worse.  If I didn't have prescription coverage Advair would cost over $120 per month.

What the media and nearly everyone else missed about NH was that it was a clear victory for Democrats.

497,883 total votes
282,334 Democrat (57%)
215,549 Republican (43%)
Vote talleys from NYT

You may say it's irrelevant since it's not the general election, but it's a clear signal that the Democratic Party message is well-received.  And, as many others have pointed out, 497,883 total votes (almost twice prior record turn-out) is a huge victory for Democracy in general.  

Lately I've been very attracted to the self-sufficency movement.  Grow my own veggies! Raise hens for eggs!  Put out a rain barrel!  Ride my bike instead of driving!

There are a lot of reasons this type of homesteading is attractive.  Because my food doesn't need to be trucked to my supermarket, I reduce my carbon footprint.  I'm sure my food is pesticide and petro-fertilizer free.  I can break free of the corn-based industrial food economy.  It's sustainable.  That's all good, right?

But there are also reasons I'm concerned about my affinity for self-sufficiency.  Read on:

I'm pretty middle America.  I make less than $50K per year.  I own my home.  I have one car.  A cat and a dog.   I have a good job with benefits.

I'm not making it.

My first thoughts were: How many vegetables can I raise in my backyard next summer, and wouldn't it be great to have chickens.

Then I thought about my heating costs this winter, and there's only one conclusion:  I need another job.  

As if we need something else to be ashamed of.

Veterans make up one in four homeless people in the United States, though they are only 11 percent of the general adult population, according to a report to be released Thursday.

And homelessness is not just a problem among middle-age and elderly veterans. Younger veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan are trickling into shelters and soup kitchens seeking services, treatment or help with finding a job.

Another headline this morning: Returning to work a problem for reservists.

This is right in line with the "save the fetus, but don't help the child" thinking among neocons.  Support our troops, but screw 'em when they come home.

My employer offers a pretty good selection of health-care coverage.  Four HMO choices and six PPO choices.  I used to get my prescriptions directly through the HMO I belong to.    I've had no complaints over the last 10 years with them.

My employer's now "improving" prescription drug coverage.  Result?  Nearly doubling my out-of-pocket cost for prescription drugs.

Fearing Hurricanes, Insurance Cos cancel homeowner policies

It is 1,200 miles from the coastline where Hurricane Katrina touched land two years ago to the neat colonial-style home here where James Gray, a retired public relations consultant, and his wife, Ann, live. But this summer, Katrina reached them, too, in the form of a cancellation letter from their home-insurance company.

This just grinds me!  These homeowners have been paying their for their policies and are being dumped by insurance companies who feel like paying for damages is bad for their bottom line.  Too risky!

Note: this is not an attempt to replace, mourn, or otherwise cope with the loss of C&J.  I would never claim to be as witty and charming as our dear BiPM.  

But a day without pooties is a day without sunshine, so without further ado:

Hearings continue on the Petraeus Iraq Report. Gen. David Petraeus, Commander of the Multinational Forces Iraq, and Ryan Crocker, U.S. Amb. to Iraq, appear before the Senate Foreign Relations Cmte. On Monday, the two took part in a joint hearing of the House Armed Services Cmte. and the House Foreign Affairs Cmte.  Beginning at 9:30 am.

Watch on CSpan 3.

Or, how fetching do I look in this tinfoil hat?  

My first thought when watching the news this weekend about the computer glitch that shut down international traffic for over 10 hours at the Los Angeles Airport was:

THIS IS A TEST.