Al's Morning Meeting

In 1803, Thomas Jefferson's tag cloud is dominated by the word "debt."

In 1846, James Polk was stuck on the word "Mexico."

You can create your own tag cloud using this open source download. (Scroll down to "Download Tagline Generator.")

Special Interests and the State of the Union

Capital Eye breaks down the issues mentioned in the president's speech and tracks the special interest groups that contribute millions to try to influence them.

Cartoonists and the State of the Union

It is worth a look to see how editorial cartoonists are treating the State of the Union speech.

USA Today points to an emerging national problem -- senior citizens burdened with debt:

Retirement used to be a time for people to enjoy life without a mortgage or high credit card bills, a time when heavy debts were mostly a thing of the past. Increasingly, that's no longer true. Some seniors are taking on debt in retirement to fund a trip they've always wanted to take. But a growing number are in debt because they have no choice, according to debt counselors and a growing body of research.

Soaring health care costs are hitting seniors at a time when more employers are cutting back on retiree medical and pension benefits. People are living longer. Yet many seniors subsist on fixed incomes and have little means to boost their incomes. For them, debt provides a temporary -- and often costly -- reprieve from unexpected expenses.

From 1992 to 2004, the percentage of households 55 and older with overall debt grew faster than the rate of the overall population. Those 75 and older packed it on most quickly: The average load for those households with debt shot up 160 percent to an average of $20,234 during this time, according to research by the Employee Benefit Research Institute, a non-partisan group that studies economic security.

Among households 65 and older, the average amount of credit card debt more than doubled from 1992 to 2004, to $4,907, according to Demos, a New York think tank. Seniors' debt levels are catching up to those of younger people.

Seniors in and approaching retirement -- such as the oldest baby boomers -- are carrying "debt loads that their parents would not have considered," says Sally Hurme of AARP, the advocacy group for people 50 and older. "This does not bode well for financial health."

Crime Victims Find Loot Online

Online auction sites are an attractive place for thieves to sell the stuff they've lifted, but USA Today says victims are also going online to find their stolen stuff.

I wonder if your city police department's burglary squad checks online auctions for stolen stuff. 

Al's Morning Multimedia

The Sacramento Bee did a remarkable project by spending a year at a weight-loss boarding school. The multimedia project features videos and voices of the kids there. On the opening Flash page, after you click "enter," be sure to roll over the thumbnail photos to see the "before" and "after" pictures of each kid. Awesome!