As of this posting, the official amount is $1,014,607.76. Remember the little bit of press coverage Ron got when he had more cash on hand than McCain? Well, expect this recent feat to cause a large swelling in coverage once again.

So much for being the “internet candidate” that the press always seems to bill him as. If his supporters are willing to give him over $1 million in the course of five days, I’m sure they are going to be at the polls come voting time.

I can’t wait to see how Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reilley, and the rest of the Fox News crew spins this one. Or will they even cover it? Sure, they can try to discredit the online polls, but will they be able to ignore this?

Congratulations to the Ron Paul campaign and all the people who donated money to his cause.

The video speaks for itself.  I don’t think its necessary for me to comment, but I will say this:  If you are still denying that our country is approaching a police state then you must live in a fantasy land.

Just a quick reminder to everyone that today marks the 220th anniversary of the signing of the U.S. Constitution.

John Nuttall, 57, needs surgery to set his ankle which was broken in three places and did not heal correctly with a traditional plaster cast. Doctors, however, have refused the treatment because he is a smoker. Ah, the glories of socialized medicine.

The ankle in question was broken nearly two years ago and had not healed properly with a plaster cast.

The required operation, which Nutall denied earlier because he feared catching MRSA, involves using pins to reset the ankle bones properly.

Doctors at the Royal Cornwall Hospital have refused to operate because they believe that his heavy smoking habit could hinder the healing process.

Mr. Nuttall is in constant pain from the feeling of the bones in his ankle rubbing together. The pain is so great that the doctors decided to prescribe him with a daily dose of morphine.

He fears that if the operation is not done soon his bones will become so calcified that an operation would no longer be possible; forcing him to live the rest of his life in constant pain.

Dailymail.co.uk quotes Mr. Nuttall:

‘”I am in agony. I have begged them to operate but they won’t. I have tried my hardest to give up smoking but I can’t. I got down to ten a week at one point but they said that was not good enough.

“I spent 12 months trying to give up and used patches and everything, but nothing works.

“I have smoked for over 40 years and it’s not going to happen.

“We were brought up at a time when cigarette advertisements were everywhere and there were no warnings.

“I want to warn other smokers that they could be denied medical treatment and there is nothing we can do about it.

“I have paid my dues as a taxpayer-and now the NHS won’t treat me.”

“It is very painful,” he said. “If I walk more than a few steps I can feel it grinding.”

I can’t even begin to fathom how much worse a socialized healthcare system in the U.S. would be.

DigitalJournal.com:

The Consumerist reports that a toll worker refused to accept the tokens and directed Jensen to a state trooper.

The trooper issued a citation for theft of services. A judge gave Jensen three choices: pay a $150 fine, perform community service, or spend three days in jail. Jensen chose jail.

The Patriot Ledger says New Hampshire dropped the token system two years ago when it installed the Fast Pass system that is now common in most Northeast states. The state gave drivers until Dec. 31, 2005, to use their 25-cent tokens.

In the realm of public control of roads, this man should be allowed to use his tokens until he runs out of them.  He did, after all, buy them when he was lead to believe he would always be allowed to use them.  Instead of allowing the man to use them, the state bureaucrats decided to arrest an innocent old man.  Way to go, government, way to go.

The hearing began this morning with Rep. Ike Skelton, chairman of the Armed Services committee, calling the meeting to order. He was greeted by shouts of “War Criminal” by a protester in the back of the room.

The protester was removed and Skelton stated that “No disturbances will be tolerated.”

While Petraeus was delivering his testimony, accusing Iran of wanting to use militia forces to create Hezbullah-like units in support of its aims in Iraq, another protester began shouting, “Thats a lie!”, and was subsequently removed.

Skelton commanded, “Would the entire group that’s back there supporting that person be removed.”

His request was apparently denied as more protests would shortly follow.

As Petraeus finished up his testimony more protesters from the anti-war group Code Pink began shouting. This time, the camera panned to the protesters to allow viewers to witness the protester being forcibly removed.

There are still some people in the crowd wearing the distinctive pink ribbons of the group.

Outside the hearing, a small group of Code Pink protesters held a large, pink sheet that said “GENERALS LIE.”

Cindy Sheehan was also arrested outside of the hearing.

Real Clear Politics reports:

House Armed Services Chairman Ike Skelton (D-MO) forgot to turn off his microphone, and after asking to have some potential protesters removed from the hearing room, Skelton turned to Republican Duncan Hunter and said, “that really pisses me off, Duncan.” He followed that by calling the protesters seeking to disturb the proceedings “those assholes.”

Skelton said that all of the protesters would be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

digitaljournal.com:

Idaho lawmaker Larry Craig, who was recently nabbed in a sex sting at a Minneapolis airport bathroom and subsequently pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct charge relating to the incident, has filed court papers to withdraw his plea.

He takes the easy way out and blames the media.

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