These are uncertain times. But here's one thing we can rely on: No matter how horrific the tragedy, there's always going to be some vile jackass trying to bring out the worst in us.

Sorry if I'm a bit behind-the-news-cycle on this one. I'm still catching up after my flu-related hiatus.

So yes, I'm addressing the anti-Islamic backlash in the wake of the Fort Hood shootings -- most notably Pat Robertson's characteristically rabid take on it.

I get really irritated with these demagogues who try to present themselves as eminently reasonable. "Look, I'm not prejudiced. I'm just pointing out the simple fact that Muslims are evil, violent people. That's all."

As if there's really some rational framework for expressing the premise that every single one of the approximately 1.5 billion global adherents to a religion is a violent psychopath who wants to kill you. And yes, Robertson, Islam is a religion. Get it through your skull.

To be fair, I haven't seen the update of "V" either. I did see the original when it aired, though. The part where that woman unhinges her jaw and swallows a guinea pig? Maaaan! Thinking back on it, I still feel that disorienting sensation of being simultaneously terrified and strangely turned on.

Anyway ... the Obama administration as alien invaders? Shhhhh! Don't give the birthers any ideas!

Sorry for the lack of posts. I'm recovering from a bout of the flu. For a few days there, I didn't have much energy for anything besides reading and napping.

Once I started feeling better, one of the first things I did was go online to make sure that the latest round of Bonusgate allegations wasn't some bizarre fever dream I had while I was laid up.

Those allegations against former House majority leader John Perzel are pretty huge. When I first read them, I found myself thinking of that Dennis Miller joke about Bill Gates -- that he's "a monocle and a Persian cat away from being the villain in a James Bond movie."

Holy crap!

I'm not going to write a lot right now on the latest "bonusgate" charges from Attorney General Tom Corbett. I've just worked 12 straight hours, and I'll likely come in on my day off tomorrow to write a follow-up story.

Yeah, I know -- you don't read this blog to hear me whine.

But frankly, I'm still trying to absorb the whole thing. Believe me, this will give me plenty of blog-fodder in the weeks ahead.

I'll give you a link to Corbett's Website. This press release is actually a three-parter. When you read to the bottom, click on part 2 for the next chapter. It's actually pretty compelling reading, in a scary kind of way.

Very briefly: Former Speaker of the House John Perzel and a small cabal of supporters allegedly used more than $10 million in taxpayer money to set up a bunch of sophisticated computer systems designed to track voters and get Republicans elected.

If true, it means that Vince Fumo wasn't the only dangerous megalomaniac in the state legislature.

Here's the link.

On Wednesday, I usually put up a goofy video for Video of the Week.

This week, I thought I'd do something different. "Oh Danny Boy," was a favorite song of my Grandpa's, a veteran himself. From what I understand, it's subject to different interpretations. Some intepret it as a song about the Irish diaspora. Some as a farewell from a dying loved one.

The way it was always explained to me when I was a kid was that it's a farewell to a young man going off to war. That always made the most sense to me, in light of the lyrics "come ye back."

Isn't that what we wish for all servicemen and women? Come back safe. Come back whole. Just come back.

(The Pogues, incidentally, are one of my all-time favorite bands.)

Here's an Associated Press story about a bill that would ban texting while driving. The state House's Transportation Committee unanimously approved it, and it's now going to the floor for approval.

Just to make sure, I checked in with state Rep. Eugene DePasquale, D-West Manchester. He confirmed that, yes, it's the same legislation he tried to get passed earlier this year.

In April, DePasquale tried to introduce the ban as an amendment to a bill designed to improve teen safety on the road. The House narrowly defeated it, then passed a bill that would impose an additional $50 fine on those caught driving carelessly if they were also using a hand-held device.

So why the initial rejection? Is there really anybody out there who thinks texting while driving is a GOOD thing? As I mentioned to DePasquale during a phone conversation earlier today, it seems like the kind of thing that would be about as controversial as, say, a ban on smacking toddlers with socks full of steel ball bearings.

DePasquale has a theory about that, which he first voiced back in April.

So now the health care reform plan that passed in the House on Saturday goes to the Senate. How painful will that process be? Hmmmmm....