I just finished Bob Schieffer's unabridged audiobook This Just In: What I Couldn't Tell You on TV. It was 13 CDs full of about 40 years of anchoring and reporting on stories for CBS News.

I'm not a huge Schieffer fan, but I do think he's a decent person and a pretty good newsman.

During the course of 'hearing' this book, I found myself being taken back to Watergate, the JFK assassination, 9/11, Carter and Ford's presidencies, etc. It was interesting and shed some new light on those events and others.

Probably the most profound thing that I learned from the book (and my friend Derek denies that this happens) is that Congress works to not settle certain perennial issues (such as abortion and gun control) since they have such fractious groups on either side that throw big sums of money their way, depending on which side they are on. Both parties do it and profit from it.

You only need to look at the vote this week on Bush's 87.5 billion dollar relief package to Iraq and the, excuse the expression, pussy way that congress dealt with the vote (they did a voice vote and only 6 senators showed up and only Robert Byrd voted no!) to believe that our 'representatives' play some pretty foul games with the power we've invested in them to maintain their standing and office.