Quick note about two interesting posts at Pandagon… First, they link to a CBS News article describing the morass that is the Medicare discount card. Interesting information includes the fact that “the card” is really 73 different cards with different terms, available drugs, discounts, etc. the rest of their post gives a good summary if you’re not inclined to read the whole article.

Second post is a bit more on the odd side. They highlight a post from a while ago:

I Don’t Want to be a Cynic But…

This is scary, upsetting stuff:

U.S. officials have obtained new intelligence deemed highly credible indicating al-Qaida or other terrorists are in the United States and preparing to launch a major attack this summer, The Associated Press has learned.

The intelligence does not include a time, place or method of attack but is among the most disturbing received by the government since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, according to a senior federal counterterrorism official who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity Tuesday.

Of most concern, the official said, is that terrorists may possess and use a chemical, biological or radiological weapon that could cause much more damage and casualties than a conventional bomb.

And I really don’t want to be this cynical about it. I’m probably totally off base and should constrain myself to abject terror. But with the President’s poll numbers so low and the terror alert firmly stuck on yellow, I can’t help but remember this:

Administration sources tell TIME that employees at the Department of Homeland Security have been asked to keep their eyes open for opportunities to pose the President in settings that might highlight the Administration’s efforts to make the nation safer. The goal, they are being told, is to provide Bush with one homeland-security photo-op a month.

That’s the problem with federal agencies being used for partisan purposes, you’re never sure how much to trust the information they’re giving you. [Pandagon]

Not sure what to make of it… Is it cynicism or semi-rational?