it's inherent chemical nature and it's widespread availability and societal acceptance.
Why do you think it gives a hangover, why does it destroy your liver, brain, stomach, intestines etc.? Simply because it is a poison and would be strictly controlled if it were not so addictive and hence so profitable.

And addiction to this most addicting of substances is not a moral failing, that is of course the official government line because if alcohol addiction were to be recognized as a disease, there goes the government and corporate profit margins. Better to bury your head in the sand and call it a personal failing.

And to call AA a failure and a scam simply because it does not work on the majority fails to recognize that NOTHING works on the majority of people suffering openly or silently from the powerful addiction to this awesomely powerful and poisonous drug. The best treatment centres in the world have little more success than AA or anything else. This drug IS that powerful and addictive. It is the most widespread and effective anesthetic ever invented for common use by the common man, on a self regulating basis. It causes more financial and personal damage than all illegal drugs combined.

The power of alcohol, not the powerlessness of addicts should be the focus.

And let's be clear, the book does not criticize AA so much as it focuses on the incredible and widespread addictive properties of this widely and easily available drug.

Cue the "but, but how many have paid, how many have cancelled" fools......
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http://blogs.marketwatch.com/health-exchange/2014/03/27/obamacare-reaches-6-million-mark-can-it-get-to-7-million-by-monday/

It’s official: the government met its goal of 6 million Obamacare signups on Thursday, though it was a reduced goal.

Now, does it have a chance of reaching the Congressional Budget Office’s original projection of 7 million — made before the October debacle over the main HealthCare.gov enrollment site — with four days (and an undetermined grace period) of signups left?

One part ACA covering tens of millions of new healthcare recipients, mix with equal part minimum wage increases, garnish with environmental protection and climate change, add a large sprig of Koch Brothers radical agenda demagoguery, top it up with infrastructure spending and serve in a tall glass from the Bully Pulpit.

Prepare shaken, well shaken, not stirred, perhaps a dash of courage, and pour all over the sleepy media.

Presto, a refreshing change in the House and Senate.

On February 20, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), released the findings that January 2014 experienced global temperatures 1.17°F warmer than the 20th century average, making it the fourth warmest January on record. NOAA data shows that the last time the planet experienced a month colder than the 20th century average was February 1985 -- 29 years ago.

ALERT: Following map includes the entire planet outside of America, global warming deniers may be upset:

Are American Organizations Agitating In Ukraine?

(Are Americans Being Misled By The Mass Media About The Protests?)

http://crooksandliars.com/2014/02/are-american-organizations-agitating

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On its face, this looks to be a righteous endeavor on the part of the rebels. However, the more I read about it, the less enthusiastic I am, especially when I see comments like this from think tanks like Cato:

"The changes that occurred after the Orange Revolution weren't simply deep enough. This time around, it appears that the disenchantment is so strong that there is a genuine opportunity to make a fresh start," said Dalibor Rohac, policy analyst with the Cato Institute's Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity.

"For Ukrainians this is a chance to get on a different trajectory from the one the country has been on for the past 22 years and become eventually a part of prosperous, democratic Europe."

From April 2012 to March 2013, the Cato Institute sent $245,000 in grants to what they describe as Russia/Independent States on their most recent tax filing with the IRS. Other conservative libertarian groups like Freedomworks and even the for-profit Breitbart.com "news" organizations are expanding operations globally to influence elections in favor of conservatives.

The Ukrainian oligarchs are standing by their man, but perhaps they're not interested in competing with American oligarchs. Here are some details on who owns the Ukraine:

Ukraine’s oligarchs got rich during the privatization sales of former Soviet-owned industries and factories shortly after independence in 1991. The country’s main industries of mining, metals, chemical production, and energy distribution were snatched up by individuals, who then reaped millions in profits.

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In December, Koch Industries acquired Molex for $7.2 billion. Molex is a global company which maintains business centers in Ukraine, Russia, Poland and other European countries. The acquisition does not necessarily suggest anything untoward, but the Molex acquisition was the first I found with operations in that country. Would there be a vested interest in exacerbating the underlying conflict in order to create enough chaos to dislodge the oligarchs?

I don't know. I do find it curious that countries with dangerous levels of unrest -- Ukraine, Venezuela and Thailand -- are struggling under the burden of oligarchies, inequality and corruption, something the libertarian Kochs know a lot about.

Perhaps this statement from Koch Industries' press release about the Molex acquisition reveals more than they intended:

"We’re looking forward to applying our Market-Based Management philosophy at Molex to help identify and capture additional opportunities.”

These protesters need to be careful not to trade one set of oligarchs for another.

Tea Party Fav Matt Bevin Exposed As Hypocrite; A Fatal Blow?



http://www.kentucky.com/2014/02/17/3094476/political-paddock-is-this-the.html

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"Even Alison Lundergan Grimes' grandmother seems to think Matt Bevin is headed toward defeat at the hands of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell."

"After he finishes with that Tea Party feller, he will come after Alison with a vengeance," Elsie Case, Allison Grimes' grandmother, told a Northern Kentucky audience Monday.

Case joins a growing chorus.

The revelation last week that Bevin (McConnell's Tea Party, Koch Brothers primary opponent) signed a letter to investors praising the 2008 bank bailouts, combined with Bevin's tortured explanation and repeated condemnations of the bailout, make for a potentially fatal political blow. To McConnell's re-election team, it represented "the final piece of the puzzle.

Now, Team Mitch is armed with what it thinks is the right ammunition to achieve the ultimate goal: dividing Tea Party voters from Tea Party fundraising groups by exposing those groups as hypocritical for denouncing bailouts but backing Bevin."

"Four incumbents! But that's all it takes to make all the rest of them petrified with fear of the Koch Brothers and the Club for Growth."

http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2014/02/heres-pitiful-micro-drama-behind-yesterdays-debt-ceiling-vote

Because reducing the number of Americans subject to the devastation of having no health insurance coverage was the prime directive of the ACA, remember?



http://www.politico.com/story/2014/02/obamacare-enrollment-numbers-103451.html?hp=l1

"The poll, part of the Gallup-Healthways Well Being Index, shows 16% of Americans were uninsured as of Feb. 10, the last day the survey of 19,000 people was conducted. The poll was begun on Jan. 2.

The last time the percentage of uninsured reached that level was in early 2009. Previous polls found the number of uninsured was close to that mark in early 2011, at 16.1%, and late 2012, at 16.3%. The slice of uninsured peaked at 18% in mid-2013, the pollsters said."

"The poll also found that the number of uninsured “invincibles,” or those aged 18-34, is declining. Uninsured consumers aged 18-25 is down to 23.3%, showing a steady decline since the ACA’s passage allowed them to remain on their parents’ plans. The percentage of those without coverage ages 26-34 was down to 25.7%, a level not seen since late 2010. Consumers in those age groups are needed to help pay for older, less healthy patients."

Stay warm, stay safe, and kudos to government officials for getting this right and shutting things down.

http://trafficland.com/city/ATL/index.html

as informative:

http://radar.weather.gov/Conus/full_loop.php

Looks like Atlanta, and most of Georgia got spared (click to storm total loop), but NC and SC are getting walloped, not with freezing rain I hope.