Norm, Why do you call Tom Coburn an idiot on this page? He's a hero.

http://www.theeastcarolinian.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2005/10/25/435d790d035ec

well, im sure there are many reasons, but for one, he's one of these conservative nuts who thinks gays are going to destroy this country.

No, he's an idiot (if only for his ridiculous show at the Roberts hearings), and a disingenious one, too. He's just trying to score some points - now. He should have fought this pork - then, when he still had the chance.

Why Tom Coburn is an idiot:

http://onegoodmove.org/1gm/1gmarchive/002400.html

The question to ask is ... why does Alaska get so much in Federal dollars? Perhaps so they won't complain when we drill their tundra to extract oil?

Some pearls of wisdom from Sen. Coburn

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/t/tom_coburn.html

You hit the nail on the head Norm :)

Classic monkey versus robot clash. Ted throwing his feces at Tom, a rightwing program in a suit.

I am an Alaskan - amazingly NO Alaska residents, right or left, support those elected to govern it. The people give full support to using the state money for...well...usefull things...not bridges to nowhere. Alaska is slowly becoming a funhouse for politicians seeking a trophy-bridge or an oil well named after them.

Anon posts:

I am an Alaskan - amazingly NO Alaska residents, right or left, support those elected to govern it. The people give full support to using the state money for...well...usefull things...not bridges to nowhere. Alaska is slowly becoming a funhouse for politicians seeking a trophy-bridge or an oil well named after them.

So who votes for these people if not Alaskans? And why do the folks who do not 'support those elected to govern' elect the same folks year after year.

Ted Stevens has clout because he has seniority. he has seniority because those rugged individualists up north appreciate how he brings home the bacon.

Right on, Arthur. It's no wonder you don't find anyone speaking out for bridges to nowhere. After all, it is so ridiculous, isn't it? Even Jay Leno makes fun of it, so, lo and behold!, "NO one, left or right", supports it.

But the sad truth is: If people hated pork, they wouldn't vote pork. And that goes with pork everywhere. After all, they will have another chance next year. Will they finally "not" support it? Ahm...

Yes, but pork pays the election bills. Therefore your election menu options are invariably pork or the other white meat.

Tom Coburn is a selfish asshole, depriving his constituents in my resident state, Oklahoma, of an elected representative. He pursues only his own interests [as I'm sure many Congressmen do] & fails to acknowledge the wishes of the very people who stupidly elected him to office.

Please, PLEASE keep showing videos of his bullshit. I link to them in an attempt to enlighten Oklahomans of this son of a bitch's actions in D.C.

Why do I call Coburn an idiot, because 90% of the time he is. He got it right this time, but one correct decision doesn't take him off my list of dangerous fools.

The guy who posted above absolutely does not speak for Alaskans. There is a reason that we keep naming things after Ted Stevens, and that is because he does more for this state than anyone else. And yes, you guys can consider all this money as a pre-payment for the day our oil saves this country.

If he got the pork included in the bill I say let Alaska keep it. A bridge to nowhere? Try telling that to the residents that will be benefiting from it. (though few that may be). Why should my Federal tax dollars be spent on ANY money for rebuilding the former wetlands that were flooded out? Let those former wetlands become what nature designed them to be once again; wetlands! Here’s some advice for all the people who lost their homes and businesses to Katrina, “Rebuild with your own money and on dry land this time or you will just watch it wash away again someday.” Daahaa!

John,

If you're against rebuilding on former wetlands because nature intended them to be wetlands, why are you OK with using massive amounts of money to build a bridge to an island that nature obviously meant to be apart?

After all, if we had been meant to walk or drive to it, it wouldn't be an island, would it?

And, by the way, what area of the country do you live in?

"Why should my Federal tax dollars be spent on ANY money for rebuilding the former wetlands that were flooded out? Let those former wetlands become what nature designed them to be once again; wetlands! Here’s some advice for all the people who lost their homes and businesses to Katrina, “Rebuild with your own money and on dry land this time or you will just watch it wash away again someday.”

Using this same logic, we should not help anyone from any natural disaster. For those who lost their homes to an earthquake, too bad, just rebuild your home in an area that's not prone to earthquakes. Home destroyed by a tornado? Too bad, just rebuild your home in an area that's not prone to tornados. Just let nature have its way and to hell with those who are so ignorant as to build their homes in these areas.

John, I am curious about the same thing that Seige is curious about. Where do you live?

How was Holland "created"? Perhaps we could learn something from the Dutch. Or are we too arrogant to learn something from another country.... this is sure to upset Joe, lol, ;)

Thank goodness I can't get quicktime 7 to work. I've seen far too much of Ted Stevens in my life already.

So! Uncle Ted is a little cranky! We up here in Alaska don't support everything he does but he does get us nice things for Christmas.

"Oh Uncle Ted thank you for the new airport! You even named it after yourself so that we would not forget who gave it to us. How thoughtful!"

Just don't piss him off, he has a long memory and a ton of friends.

"If you're against rebuilding on former wetlands because nature intended them to be wetlands, why are you OK with using massive amounts of money to build a bridge to an island that nature obviously meant to be apart?" Said Seige

This is the most laughable and ridiculously poor excuse for logic I've ever heard. Just give up. There are no torrential storms ripping up the pan-handle in Alaska. If you look at history, civilization is built around money, and there is nothing stopping the pan-handle in Alaska from being a tremendously beautiful vacation area to bank on, and the bridge to nowhere will obviously CREATE "somewhere" at the other end (where there is an airport), which is ripe for development. There is something stopping rebuilding New Orleans, and they're called HURRICANES!!

By that logic, I suppose we should just evacuate the entire Gulf states region. Stop building anything cause a hurricane might getcha.

"Perhaps we could learn something from the Dutch. Or are we too arrogant to learn something from another country.... this is sure to upset Joe, lol, ;)"

Nah. We can learn from other countries - everybody should. It doesn't bug me that someone somewhere might be doing something better than us. It bugs me when people get smug and assume themselves to be superior to us - and when we agree with them in that "aw shucks, we're such idiots" manner that is so unique to America. Particularly when the facts dispute the position.

Your link doesn't seem to work, BTW.

"By that logic, I suppose we should just evacuate the entire Gulf states region. Stop building anything cause a hurricane might getcha." Says dante

You can if you want, but if you want to rebuild with my pork money, you'll have to forfeit yours for more buildings and bridges named after Stevens. Or maybe we can just stop this mixing and matching and let us eat the Bacon our divinely intelligent Senator brings home.

AnotherAlaskan has some brains in this discussion. Not only do Tornados not hit the same exact places year after year, private home owners insurance takes care of the rebuilding of people’s homes should they be destroyed by tornados. Unlike New Orleans, if a person does not have private insurance after a tornado strikes they are just out of luck. FEMA tax dollars are NOT used for the rebuilding of tornado struck homes. I should know. I live in tornado country and your tax dollars have never been used to rebuild anyone’s home or business due to weather hitting us here.

Did you know how many times the Dolphin Islands off of our Southern Coastline have been rebuilt by our taxpayer money? 11 times! And these are homes of mostly the very wealthy! How many times will it take before you people wake up and realize that perhaps the next time these flood zones get flooded they should be on their own to rebuild. The original New Orleans was left high and dry on this last one. Only the former wetlands of only 50 years ago flooded. It was a stupid place to build and you want to rebuild it! Christ, you make yourselves sound like Republicans!

Alaska, the 47th most populous states, receives some 12K per capita from the Federal Govt in subsidies & benefits, the most of any state. In the transporation bill, California had the most allotted in terms of total dollars, then Texas, then Alaska. Alaska got more than Florida, New York, Illinois. Granted it is a large state, about the size of CA and TX combined but this bridge is to serve 50 people and perhaps they deserve that bridge at some point but in a time of true need, I welcome what my Representative did. My Representative Nancy Pelosi gave all the money budgeted for our district, the city and county of San Francisco, to recovery of the Gulf Coast. We need an expansion of our light rail system badly--Third Street Project up Stockton and into North Beach and the Wharf and an underground rail down Geary and another down Van Ness and into SOMA and Portrero Hill. However the country needs New Orleans up and running more. Nancy showed leadership, Ted shows simple arrogrance and hubris. Either we are in this together or we are simply 50 sovereign states out for own best interests.