No matter ones personal feelings about Senator Robert Byrd when I saw this picture with its description it made me stop and think.

Does someone who has obvious limitations due to age and illness serve his constituents well? The Senator has always been known to bring home the bacon for West Virginia but as I read the accompanying story I questioned who was actually doing the heavy lifting for his home state.

At 89, the longest-serving senator in history and third person in the line of presidential succession has ceded major duties — such as handling appropriations bills on the Senate floor — to younger colleagues and aides.

Well, many Senators use their aides to do an abundance of their work, however:

When Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, asked, “Have you already voted on allocations” for the homeland security spending bill, Byrd did not respond. After an aide whispered to him, Byrd said, “Tomorrow afternoon.”

Moments later, when Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., sought permission to speak, Byrd looked at him blankly. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., sitting next to Byrd, said softly, “Senator Lautenberg,” and the chairman repeated the name in a robust voice. Later, when the room fell silent, an aide slipped Byrd a note prompting him to declare the meeting adjourned.

Arguments for term limits have been offered in various quarters for some time now and while the Senator Byrd has served his state well, perhaps the above is yet another example of why that is an idea whose time has come.

In the past I’ve always thought it was important to give my loved one as good a casket as possible, spending a lot of money in the process.

I’m beginning to rethink that policy as I have read about the plain plywood coffin made for Ruth Graham, along with one made for her husband when he leaves this life.

The coffins were made by hand by prisoners in Louisiana for themselves and other prisoners whose families wouldn’t be able to afford something more luxurious.

The lining is foam covered with cloth.

Shortly before he died, convicted murderer Richard Liggett was asked to make two of the simple plywood coffins he meticulously crafted for fellow prisoners. Except the caskets would be for Billy and Ruth Graham.

“He was honored,” said Burl Cain, warden of the Louisiana State Penitentiary. “He told me, of everything that ever happened in his life, the most profound thing was to build this coffin for Billy Graham and his family.”

Ruth Graham was buried in one Sunday at the foot of a cross-shaped walkway in the Prayer Garden at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte.

Since the body is only the shell left behind when a person dies I have realized trying to make the body “comfortable” is something I have done for myself as those who are in those coffins feel nothing. Their souls have left the body, and it is the soul that is the person.

One day the soul will be reunited with a glorified version of the old body.

When my beloved neighbor died in March I marveled at the beauty of the coffin bought for her.

When I saw the coffin of Ruth Graham on television the other day I thought it was a very nice and expensive coffin, and almost remarked on how beautiful it was except I didn’t want to miss hearing what was being said.

I was very surprised to learn it was made of plywood, and now want to check into purchasing such a coffin for myself and my husband for when our souls depart our bodies.

The problem is I won’t be able to store them anywhere so I need to check and see if the local funeral home can get these when needed.

Let the money that would be spent on a fancy coffin go to someone alive and who needs that money in order to better his or her life.

For those following Michael Yon’s series Death or Glory, part III is now available. This one is chock full of tremendous photography as well as his ever insightful commentary.

The Brits are in for a scorching summer in the deserts of Maysan Province. By the time I left, the sleeping bags weren’t necessary, though nights were cool. The soldiers are living out there on cots under mosquito nets, and their outhouse is a shovel. This past winter, the rains and cold created an opponent in the form of mud. The Iraqi mud—I know it well—is a special kind that sticks to boots and adds about five pounds to each foot.

Every time I read Michael’s work, I realize how fortunate we are to be with our families and simply going about our daily lives.

Take it for what it’s worth to you, but this Washington Times article by Donald Lambro, suggests the chances for Republicans regaining seats lost in the House in ‘06 are looking brighter for ‘08.

Republican campaign strategists and independent election analysts say that after five months of contentious House Democratic rule, the Republican Party’s once-bleak congressional prospects for 2008 have markedly improved.

The Democratic Congress’ job approval score is now worse than President Bush’s, plummeting to 23 percent, a drop of eight points since April. House Democrats have been forced to retreat in the face of a furious assault by Republicans on pork-barrel spending, an issue that hurt the Republican Party in November. And Republican recruiting has produced plenty of candidates eyeing weak Democratic freshmen in Republican-leaning districts that swept them into office last year.

“Republican recruiting seems to be progressing at a reasonable pace. GOP strategists have about half a dozen seats that they know the party should never have lost … and eight of the nine most vulnerable House seats currently are held by Democrats,” elections analyst Stu Rothenberg wrote last week in his Political Report newsletter.

Strategists at the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) confirm that a larger than expected number of House seats are now being targeted by the NRCC and that a surprisingly larger-than-expected number of seasoned candidates from state legislatures and other elective offices are coming forward to challenge Democrats who took over Republican districts.

Not so fast, say the Democrats: (more…)

I went to bed early last night and awakened after 8 wonderful hours of blissful rest.

I checked my email and saw that Sue had written to say her aunt in Delaware has suffered a massive stroke and she had been asked by her cousin to be with her cousin and uncle.

The next 48 hours are the touch and go hours and I ask all our readers and bloggers to say a prayer for Sue’s aunt and family and for Sue and her husband as they travel back and forth to visit with them during this difficult time.

I was just reading this post in the Politico that is discussing political reasons for President Bush to pardon or commute Scooter Libby’s sentence.

The all-important base is against President Bush, and according to this post, it will improve the president’s popularity with the base.

The post also talks of the president’s famed loyalty and uses it as a reason for a pardon or commutation of sentence.

I disagree with this thinking completely.

Don’t get me wrong; I believe the president should ideally commute the sentence to drop the jail time and leave in the fine and probation so Libby will have the chance to appeal his case and clear his name, and if he fails at that, he will not have to serve time in jail which seems to be an excessive considering the rest of the punishment.

The president may just do that as soon as he hears whether or not the appeals court will allow Libby to be free while appealing his case and then pardon him or commute his sentence before leaving the White House if necessary.

But it should be done because the president thinks it’s the right thing to do and not the right political thing to do.

He’s not running for office ever again, so what more can the base do to him? Besides, as rabid as some are about the president it will be like tossing a bare bone to a dog. The next day they’ll be barking at him for more and will like him no more than they do now.

This president has been loyal to a fault. There is nothing wrong about loyalty, but the loyalty of this president has given us an Attorney General who is bringing more and more disrepute on the president and the Justice Dept., while the Attorney General takes advantage of it to stay in power.

Confirmation hearings for a new AG would be contentious, but with the amount of time left in this presidency, we could get by with an acting AG while we wait to get someone confirmed, even if it takes the rest of the term.

I sincerely hope Libby doesn’t go to jail and has the opportunity to clear his name. If the Appeals Court doesn’t let him stay out on bail while his appeal is pending, I think the president should do what is right humanely, and let Libby be pardoned or, preferably commute his sentence.