Did you know that last year Congress passed the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (FFAT Act) of 2006? Once (if ever) this legislation is implemented there will be the creation of a free, searchable website that will list every recipient of every federal award. Did you know that this legislation was co-sponsored by Senator Obama and that he and two other republican presidential candidates are the only presidential hopefuls to sign an oath of presidential transparency? I’m in no way putting my word in for Obama (I personally have not decided yet) but it is interesting to think about the implications of this oath. From bad experience with the present administration, more presidential transparency can’t hurt. But the FFAT Act on the other hand seems positive in theory but will take an estimated $15 million to set-up the actual website. Playing the devil’s advocate, is there such a thing as too much information availability? Or is there a price we should set the cost at? A price we as a society are willing to pay (such as is in tax dollars) that could otherwise go towards say healthcare or reducing our deficit? It’s something worth thinking about.

Despite any hard evidence, from either before the U.S. entrance into the war in Iraq or in the four years since, Cheney still holds to his assertion of an Iraq - Al Qaeda link. Did he miss the Defense Department Inspector General’s report that found insignificant intelligence to justify an Iraq - Al Qaeda relationship?