So let me get this straight

It's four days into 2007, and here's what we have so far:

• President George W. Bush has decided that he can open any mail he wants to, a direct contradiction to a new postal law he just signed.

• We handed a man who was once one of the most wanted men on Earth over to people who apparently did not follow, or did not receive, directions on how to appropriately kill a former dictator. One general admitted we "messed up" the execution. And Bush said, "I wish, obviously, that the proceedings had gone in a more dignified way." He seems to have forgotten that he is the leader of the free world, and if he can open any mail he feels like opening, he can do more than wish for dignity. But, why bother? There's no chance at all that Saddam Hussein's flawed execution could inflame Iraq's sectarian and brutal violence, or cause other tragedies.

• The deceased Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist was doped up on sedatives for the better part of a decade. No wonder he always looked so grumpy.

• A congressman not only opposed allowing Muslim Rep. Keith Ellison to take his oath of office on the Quran, he believes Muslims shouldn't hold public office at all. He also thinks this has something to do with immigration laws that allow some Muslims into the country.

We're off to a grand start. It's an outrage.