Alternate Brain-Below the Fold

Iraq: Requiem for a Profound Misadventure

2010-08-08T12:23:00.001-04:00

Joe Klein in Time magazine.

[It is a matter of some relief that Barack Obama did not announce the end of major combat operations in Iraq under a banner that said "Mission Accomplished." He did it in a speech to the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), the most grave and sober audience imaginable. And appropriately so, after a war that should never have been fought, a war that by some estimates will cost $3 trillion before it's done (including the health care services rendered to those represented by the DAV), a war whose casualties number in the hundreds of thousands. Iraq hasn't been much in the news over the past year, but this is an important milestone — even if our mission there will continue on a much smaller scale for 16 more months — a moment for reflection and humility in the face of a national embarrassment.

There is no "victory" in Iraq, nor will there be. There is something resembling stability, for now. There is a semblance of democracy, but that may dissolve over time into a Shi'ite dictatorship — which, if not well run, could yield to the near inevitable military coup. Yes, Saddam is gone — and that is a good thing. The Kurds have a greater measure of independence and don't have to live in fear of mass murder, which are good things too. But Iran's position in the region has been strengthened. Its Iraqi allies, especially Muqtada al-Sadr's populist movement, will play a major role — perhaps one more central than ours — in shaping the future of the country. Our attempt to construct an Iraq more amenable to our interests will end no better than the previous attempts by Western colonial powers. Even if something resembling democracy prevails, the U.S. invasion and occupation will not be remembered fondly by Iraqis. We will own the destruction in perpetuity; if the Iraqis manage to cobble themselves a decent society, they will see it, correctly, as an achievement of their own. (See a timeline of the first seven years of the Iraq war.)

There are other consequences of this profound misadventure. The return of the Taliban in Afghanistan is certainly one. If U.S. attention hadn't been diverted from that primary conflict, the story in the Pashtun borderlands might be very different now. The sense of the U.S. as a repository of tempered, honorable actions may never recover from the images of the past decade, especially the photographs from Abu Ghraib prison. (See pictures of the aftershocks from the Abu Ghraib scandal.)

The idea that it was our right and responsibility to rid Iraq of a terrible dictator — after the original casus belli of weapons of mass destruction evaporated — turned out to be a neocolonialist delusion. The fact that Bush apologists still trot out his "forward strategy of freedom" as an example of American idealism is a farce. That feckless exercise in naiveté brought us a Hamas government in Gaza, after a Palestinian election that no one but the Bush Administration wanted. It raised the hopes of reformers across the region, soon dashed when the Bush Administration retreated, realizing that the outcome of democracy in places like Egypt and Saudi Arabia would be the installation of Islamist parties that might prove more repressive than the dictatorships they would replace. Freedom may well be "God's gift to humanity," as Bush insisted, radiating a simpleminded piety that never reflected another of God's greatest gifts — the ability to doubt, to think difficult thoughts and weigh conflicting options with clarity and subtlety. But I'm pretty sure God never designated the U.S. to impose that freedom violently upon others. (Comment on this story.)

It is appropriate that Obama's speech to the DAV will not be remembered as vividly as George W. Bush's puerile march across the deck of an aircraft carrier, costumed as a combat aviator against a golden sunset, to announce — seven years and tens of thousands of lives prematurely — the "end of combat operations." Obama's announcement was no celebration. It was a somber acknowledgment that amends will be made to those whose lives were shattered and that their courageous service in an unnecessary cause will be honored. A national discussion about America's place in the world, and the military's excessive place in our foreign policy, would also be appropriate in the wake of this disaster, but I'm not holding my breath. (See photos of 100 years of the U.S. Army Reserve.)

As for myself, I deeply regret that once, on television in the days before the war, I foolishly — spontaneously — said that going ahead with the invasion might be the right thing to do. I was far more skeptical in print. I never wrote in favor of the war and repeatedly raised the problems that would accompany it, but mere skepticism was an insufficient reaction too. The issue then was as clear as it is now. It demanded a clarity that I failed to summon. The essential principle is immutable: we should never go to war unless we have been attacked or are under direct, immediate threat of attack. Never. And never again.]

The great Dick Cheney empathy test

2010-07-16T11:59:00.002-04:00

Mark Morford

[Former Vice President Dick Cheney disclosed Wednesday that he has undergone surgery to install a small pump to help his heart work, as the 69-year-old enters a new phase of what he called "increasing congestive heart failure." -- Associated Press

Here's how it works. You read the story above. You note how Dick Cheney, former vice president, Bush babydaddy, sneermaster supreme, befouler of nations, lover of war, hater of, well, almost everything else -- has undergone yet another major heart operation, this time to place a little valve-assisting pump (called an LVAD) in his withered and long dysfunctional ticker.

You then read how Dick is recuperating in intensive care following said installation -- which, by the way, is usually only a stopgap measure, just a delay tactic until the device in question gives out and the patient requires a full heart transplant. Is Dick a candidate for that? Doubtful. Also, they say LVADs are usually reserved for patients with end-stage heart disease, a last resort, the final straw. It is, they say, only a matter of time.

So it begins.

The first knee-jerk response to the Great Dick Cheney Empathy Test (GDCET) is, of course, the easiest, and the most obvious, the most available to your giddy puppydog consciousness, and my guess is it shot through you like a fast and wonderful lightning bolt of OH MY SWEET JESUS YES the instant you read the story above.

That response was, shall we say, not very subtle. It was, I'm guessing, a not-so-secret howl to the universe that the sooner Dick exits this earthly plane, the healthier, lighter and happier we will all be, planetwide. Dark shadows will lift, flowers will bloom more brightly, 10 million female uteri can finally unclench, and so on.

But then, perhaps you sigh, ponder, probe a bit more deeply. Is that how you really wish to be? What of those noble traits we all strive for: compassion, benevolence, forgiveness, a wan but merciful smile in the face of thine enemy's condemnatory sneer? Is wishing a scaldingly painful death on one of the worst and most shameful characters in American history really the right way to treat your fellow man? Any fellow man? Of course not. Well, maybe. No, no, definitely not.

After all, if you wish such a thing, what does that say? About you? About us? About this paragraph? Would we not all be wallowing on the same filthy level? Is it not similar to the death penalty argument so beloved by liberals, that no matter how vile the criminal, to wish death upon any human makes us just as base and ugly as those we deem to be evil? This is no way for an enlightened consciousness to evolve.

I know what you're thinking. And yes, passing the GDCET would require all your courage, all your gumption, willpower, whisky and every ounce of benevolent energy you can muster. You would have to invoke all your Jesus-flecked Buddha nature to turn the other cheek, love thy enemies, forgive the sinners -- basically dredge up every maxim, axiom, aphorism, proverb and Hallmark card you can think of, toss them into a karmic blender and shoot them straight into your wary soul like a desperate and godly emetic.

It ain't easy. You must first resist the very reasonable, insistent screaming of your calmly vengeful side, the one that would be very pleased indeed if Dick suffered a million scalding rashes and burned in hell with Jerry Falwell, Saddam and Strom Thurmond for all eternity. That would be wrong. Stop thinking that.

Perhaps a reversal is in order. Perhaps it's better to wish someone like Dick a longer life, so that he may bear witness to the well-deserved implosion of all his nefarious plans, his cronyist empire. The man is, by most accounts, responsible for countless thousands of innocent deaths, the acerbic tainting of our national identity, a flagrant mutilation of everything we once held dear. You sort of want the guy to feel it. Repeatedly.

Are you a seriously impassioned ultraliberal with a thing for vengeful whimsy? You might even take this notion a step further and hold out a flicker of hope that Dick will live long enough to one day be put on trial for his war crimes, hung in a public square, slowly eaten by swarms of feral pigeons. Or crows. Pugs. Whatever.

This is, of course, a total fantasy, akin to imagining Rush Limbaugh getting busted for snorting meth from a gay teenage hooker's thighs just after fellating Mel Gibson in Newt Gingrich's fetish dungeon. Doesn't matter. As long as Dick is alive, it's a fantasy that keeps many a liberal heart aflutter.

Maybe you sense there is no rush. Maybe you know there's need to wish Dick an immediate demise, given how everyone knows that before long he'll be taking the Great Escalator down to the basement. Surely a great reckoning is coming. In the grand arc of spacetime, what's a few more years?

Besides, will it not be lovely for Dick to witness Obama sail into his second term, replace a third of the Supreme Court with people who actually have souls, and overturn/reverse nearly every law, stance and spiteful stratagem with which Dick ever fouled the earth? You bet it will.

Or perhaps, finally, you can appreciate the value of a living Dick. Every culture needs its demons, yes? The villain is just as important as the hero. Dick has been, and continues to be, an ideal foil, the complete monster, the perfect perversion of humanity by which we can all measure subsequent people and deeds. You may look upon any modern atrocity, any upstart political ogre, any personal abuse and say, well, at least it's not Dick Cheney. That's something.

So, how did you do? Did you pass the GDCET? Fail instantly, way back up top, when you read the headline to this column? Not quite sure?

You might be like me. See, I try to wish no violence or death, illness or pain on my fellow man. I do not always succeed, but still I strive, every single day, with every breath, even if I can't always forgive or be as uniformly compassionate as I'd like, then at least to proffer kindness, to see the larger picture and above all, to refuse to let the poison enter my heart.

However, I'm quite sure I would not be the slightest bit displeased to learn that the laws of brutal karmic repayment have come into full, painstaking, searing effect on our boy Dick. No, I wouldn't mind that in the least. After all, it's the empathetic thing to do.]

You might be a Republican IF.....

2010-06-14T13:33:00.002-04:00

By Loren Adams, 13 June 2010

You might be a Republican IF…

You think toilet paper should come in Q'uran and NYT print.

You find nothing contradictory about your sign that reads "Hands Off My Medicare" next to a "Government Run Healthcare Makes Me Sick" sticker on the bumper of your gas guzzling Humvee,

You think that affirmative action is only acceptable for Michael Steele and Marco Rubio.

You don’t like being called “The Party of NO” but instead like being referred to as “The Party of HELL NO!” only because Sarah Palin suggested it.

You think "Semper Fi" should be changed to "Git R Done"

You think your Tea Party posters are not misspelled that read: “I am Joe the Plummer,” or “Make English Americas Offical Langage.” Or “Say No to Socilism.”

You think Stem Cell research is what killed Terri Schiavo

As part of your boycott of all names French, you change the name of your favorite sex toy to "freedom tickler."

You think the 2000 election was fair & square when Bush stole the White House but the 2008 election was stolen by ACORN for Obama.

You've ever announced your gratitude to our troops for fighting for your freedom to drill baby drill and spill baby spill.

You feel your duty in the war on terror is to hunt down Mexicans crossing the border. (Then you hire undocumented workers to do your lawn and housework.)

You've ever complained about abuse of welfare while depositing earnings in an off-shore tax-sheltered account or you cash your disability check before heading to the gym.

You think WMD are still in Iraq but hidden by liberals to make Bush look bad.

You think Mark Felts should have been executed for treason before dying of natural causes, and Gordon Liddy should get the medal of freedom.

You've ever blamed anything on "Activist Judges" while supporting the Supreme Court decision to reject corporate spending limits on political campaigns.

You think Glenn Beck is a prophet.

You think Sarah Palin is a goddess.

You think Rush Limbaugh is the greatest broadcast journalist ever.

You watch only one news channel, FOX, because it’s the only one fair and balanced.

You firmly believe Barack Obama was born in Kenya. Or Indonesia. Or anyplace outside the USA.

You think Barack Obama is the Antichrist.

You think Barack Obama is Muslim.

You think Barack Obama is Socialist.

In honor of Terri Schiavo, you kept the deer you shot alive for twelve days.

You think there should be a "constitutional exemption" at home to shut your wife up.

You feel the only acceptable time turning left is at a NASCAR race.

You think Capitol Hill should be re-named "Six Flags over Jesus."

You think gay marriages would somehow taint the sanctity of your six failed marriages.

You make your wife wear a "no spin" t-shirt during sex.

You think that listening to three different conservative talk shows and FOX gives you all the variety you need.

You name your testicles "shock" and "awe."

You wear a strapped-on assault rifle to a President Obama event but would never consider doing the same to a Bush or Palin or Limbaugh or Beck or Hannity rally.

You think that Healthcare Reform includes government death panels designed to kill your grandma.

You've ever considered your finest point in an argument to be, "Oh yeah, well, you hate America!"

You feel the "culture of life" should be the standard – that every life is worth the same (except Muslims, Mexicans, gays, Africans, liberals, activist judges, and anyone for gun control).

You think Civil Rights acts were unnecessary and should be repealed, or at least sections of them – the parts dealing with private businesses refusing to serve “coloreds” and the Fair Housing Act.

You think “American exceptionalism” means God singled the US out as the most favored, thus all others are inferior and not divinely blessed.

You've ever yelled "Hell yeah, man, I agree!" while Sean Hannity was speaking.

You’ve ever experienced an erection watching Sarah Palin on TV.

You stand and salute when George Bush or Dick Cheney is on the air, even though you've never served in the military, but you flip the bird at the TV screen every time Barack Obama appears.

You’ve ever twittered Sarah Palin or Michele Bauchmann love notes.

You registered to vote at a Tractor Pull.

You boycotted your local convenience store because the clerk let it slip he voted for Obama (even though you had bought all of your NASCAR apparel there.)

In honor of Bush, you donate to his new “LIBARY” in Texas: two cartons of crayons.

You think the U.S. Treasury should replace Ulysses S. Grant’s picture on the $50 bill with Ronald Reagan’s and exchange George Washington’s on the dollar for George W. Bush’s.

You've ever answered a gun-control issue with "when they pry them out of my cold, dead hands."

You think that fetuses have a right to life but newborn babies don’t have a right to healthcare even if their parents pay for it.

You consider BP, Halliburton and Transocean Ltd. eco-friendly companies.

Your solution to the BP spill in the Gulf is to nuke ‘em.

You don’t believe in global warming but believe it’s a leftist plot to turn America socialist.

You think scientists that endorse global warming should be arrested and tried for treason.

Your strongest defense for the reason Bin Laden wasn’t caught during the Bush years is "Because they all look alike."

You think the only solution for the Middle East peace is to bomb them all to hell. (Then let God sort them out.)

You think all Democratic presidents should be impeached.

You think the only three campaign issues that matter are “God, gays and guns.”

You think the imposition of government regulations caused economic meltdown and, oh yes, Barney Frank.

You think the Bush years were glorious, but Clinton and Obama ruined America.

You think that budget deficits began only after January 20, 2009.

You approve Arizona’s “papers please” bill but demand the government uphold constitutional freedoms and stay out of your personal life.

You think GOP stands for “God’s Only Party.”

Special Comment: 16 April 2009

2009-04-17T05:35:00.003-04:00

As promised, a Special Comment now on the president's revelation of the remainder of this nightmare of Bush Administration torture memos. This President has gone where few before him, dared. The dirty laundry — illegal, un-American, self-defeating, self-destroying — is out for all to see.

Mr. Obama deserves our praise and our thanks for that. And yet he has gone but half-way. And, in this case, in far too many respects, half the distance is worse than standing still. Today, Mr. President, in acknowledging these science-fiction-like documents, you said that:

"This is a time for reflection, not retribution. I respect the strong views and emotions that these issues evoke."

"We have been through a dark and painful chapter in our history.

"But at a time of great challenges and disturbing disunity, nothing will be gained by spending our time and energy laying blame for the past.

Mr. President, you are wrong. What you describe would be not "spent energy" but catharsis.
Not "blame laid," but responsibility ascribed. You continued:

"Our national greatness is embedded in America's ability to right its course in concert with our core values, and to move forward with confidence. That is why we must resist the forces that divide us, and instead come together on behalf of our common future."

Indeed we must, Mr. President. And the forces of which you speak are the ones lingering — with pervasive stench — from the previous administration. Far more than a criminal stench, Sir. An immoral one. One we cannot let be re-created.

One, President Obama, it is your responsibility to make sure cannot be re-created. Forgive me for quoting from a Comment I offered the night before the inauguration. But this goes to the core of the President's commendable, but wholly naive, intention. This country has never "moved forward with confidence".without first cleansing itself of its mistaken past.

In point of fact, every effort to merely draw a line in the sand and declare the past dead has served only to keep the past alive and often to strengthen it. We "moved forward" with slavery in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. And four score and nine years later, we had buried 600,000 of our sons and brothers, in a Civil War.

After that war's ending, we "moved forward" without the social restructuring — and protection of the rights of minorities — in the south. And a century later, we had not only not resolved anything, but black leaders were still being assassinated in our southern cities.

We "moved forward" with Germany in the reconstruction of Europe after the First World War.
Nobody even arrested the German Kaiser, let alone conducted war crimes trials then. And 19 years later, there was an indescribably more evil Germany and a more heart-rending Second World War.

We "moved forward" with the trusts of the early 1900s. And today, we are at the mercy of corporations too big to fail. We "moved forward" with the Palmer Raids and got McCarthyism.
And we "moved forward" with McCarthyism and got Watergate. We "moved forward" with Watergate and junior members of the Ford administration realized how little was ultimately at risk.

They grew up to be Paul Wolfowitz and Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney. But, Mr. President, when you say we must "come together on behalf of our common future" you are entirely correct. We must focus on getting things right in the future, as opposed to looking at what we got wrong in the past.

That means prosecuting all those involved in the Bush administration's torture of prisoners, even if the results are nominal punishments, or merely new laws. Your only other option is to let this set and fester indefinitely. Because, Sir, some day there will be another Republican president, or even a Democrat just as blind as Mr. Bush to ethics and this country's moral force. And he will look back to what you did about Mr. Bush. Or what you did not do.

And he will see precedent. Or as Cheney saw, he will see how not to get caught next time. Prosecute, Mr. President. Even if you get not one conviction, you will still have accomplished good for generations unborn. Merely by acting, you will deny a further wrong — that this construction will enter the history books: Torture was legal. It worked. It saved the country.

The end. This must not be. "It is our intention," you said today, "to assure those who carried out their duties relying in good faith upon legal advice from the Department of Justice that they will not be subject to prosecution." Mr. President, you are making history's easiest, most often made, most dangerous mistake — you are accepting the defense that somebody was "just following orders." At the end of his first year in office, Mr. Lincoln tried to contextualize the Civil War for those who still wanted to compromise with evils of secession and slavery. "The struggle of today," Lincoln wrote, "is not altogether for today. It is for a vast future also."

Mr. president, you have now been handed the beginning of that future. Use it to protect our children and our distant descendants from anything like this ever happening again — by showing them that those who did this, were neither unfairly scapegoated nor absolved. It is good to say "we won't do it again." It is not, however...enough.

Colonoscopy

2009-02-12T16:09:00.004-05:00

Dave Barry

I called my friend Andy Sable, a gastroenteritis, to make an appointment for a colonoscopy. A few days later, in his office he showed me a color diagram of the colon, a lengthy organ that appears to go all over the place, at one point passing briefly through Minneapolis.

Then Andy explained the colonoscopy procedure to me in a thorough, reassuring and patient manner. I nodded thoughtfully, but I didn't really hear anything he said, because my brain was shrieking, quote, 'HE'S GOING TO STICK A TUBE 17,000 FEET UP YOUR BEHIND!'

I left Andy's office with some written instructions, and a prescription for a product called 'MoviPrep,' which comes in a box large enough to hold a microwave oven. I will discuss MoviPrep in detail later; for now suffice it to say that we must never allow it to fall into the hands of America 's enemies.

I spent the next several days productively sitting around being nervous. Then, on the day before my colonoscopy, I began my preparation. In accordance with my instructions, I didn't eat any solid food that day; all I had was chicken broth, which is basically water, only with less flavor. Then, in the evening, I took the
MoviPrep. You mix two packets of powder together in a one-liter plastic jug, then you fill it with lukewarm water. (For those unfamiliar with the metric system, a liter is about 32 gallons.)

Then you have to drink the whole jug. This takes about an hour, because MoviPrep tastes - and here I am being kind - like a mixture of goat spit and urinal cleanser, with just a hint of lemon.

The instructions for MoviPrep, clearly written by somebody with a great sense of humor, state that after you drink it, 'a loose watery bowel movement may result.' This is kind of like saying that after you jump off your roof, you may experience contact with the ground.

MoviPrep is a nuclear laxative. I don't want to be too graphic here, but: Have you ever seen a space shuttle launch? This is pretty much the MoviPrep experience, with you as the shuttle. There are times when you wish the commode had a seat belt. You spend several hours pretty much confined to the bathroom, spurting violently. You
eliminate everything.

And then, when you figure you must be totally empty, you have to drink another liter of MoviPrep, at which point, as far as I can tell, your bowels travel into the future and start eliminating food that you have not even eaten yet.

After an action-packed evening, I finally got to sleep. The next morning my wife drove me to the clinic. I was very nervous. Not only was I worried about the procedure, but I had been experiencing occasional return bouts of MoviPrep spurtage. I was thinking, 'What if I spurt on Andy?'

How do you apologize to a friend for something like that? Flowers would not be enough.

At the clinic I had to sign many forms acknowledging that I understood and totally agreed with whatever the heck the forms said. Then they led me to a room full of other colonoscopy people, where I went inside a little curtained space and took off my clothes and put on one of those hospital garments designed by sadist perverts, the
kind that, when you put it on, makes you feel even more naked than when you are actually naked.

Then a nurse named Eddie put a little needle in a vein in my left hand. Ordinarily I would have fainted, but Eddie was very good, and I was already lying down. Eddie also told me that some people put vodka in their MoviPrep. At first I was ticked off that I hadn't thought of this is, but then I pondered what would happen if you got
yourself too tipsy to make it to the bathroom, so you were staggering around in full Fire Hose Mode. You would have no choice but to burn your house to sanitize it.

When everything was ready, Eddie wheeled me into the procedure room, where Andy was waiting with a nurse and an anesthesiologist. I did not see the 17,000-foot tube, but I knew Andy had it hidden around there somewhere. I was seriously nervous at this point. Andy had me roll over on my left side, and the anesthesiologist began hooking something up to the needle in my hand. There was music playing in the room, and I realized that the song was 'Dancing Queen' by ABBA I remarked to Andy that, of all the songs that could be playing during this particular procedure, 'Dancing Queen' has to be the least appropriate.

'You want me to turn it up?' said Andy, from somewhere behind me.

'Ha ha,' I said. And then it was time, the moment I had been dreading for more than a decade. If you are squeamish, prepare yourself, because I am going to tell you, in explicit detail, exactly what it was like.

I have no idea. Really. I slept through it. One moment, ABBA was yelling 'Dancing Queen, Feel the beat of the tambourine,' and the next moment, I was back in the other room, waking up in a very mellow mood. Andy was looking down at me and asking me how I felt. I felt excellent. I felt even more excellent when Andy told me that It was all over, and that my colon had passed with flying colors. I have never been prouder of an internal organ.

ABOUT THE WRITER

Dave Barry is a Pulitzer Prize-winning humor columnist for the Miami Herald.

On the subject of Colonoscopies...

Colonoscopies are no joke, but these comments during the exam were quite humorous..... A physician claimed that the following are actual comments made by his patients (predominately male) while he was performing their Colonoscopies.

1. 'Take it easy, Doc. You're boldly going where no man has gone before!
2. 'Find Amelia Earhart yet?'
3. 'Can you hear me NOW?'
4. 'Are we there yet? Are we there yet? Are we there yet?
5. 'You know, in Arkansas we're now legally married.'
6. 'Any sign of the trapped miners, Chief?'
7. 'You put your left hand in, you take your left hand out...'
8. 'Hey! Now I know how a Muppet feels!'
9. 'If your hand doesn'ta fit, you musta quit!
10. 'Hey Doc, let me know if you find my dignity.'
11. 'You used to be an executive at Enron, didn't you?'
12. 'God, now I know why I am not gay.'

And the best one of all.

13. 'Could you write a note for my wife saying that my head is not up there?'

The Palin-Whatshisname Ticket

2008-09-13T18:20:00.002-04:00

Frank Rich
Published September 14, 2008

WITH all due deference to lipstick, let’s advance the story. A week ago the question was: Is Sarah Palin qualified to be a heartbeat away from the presidency? The question today: What kind of president would Sarah Palin be?

It’s an urgent matter, because if we’ve learned anything from the G.O.P. convention and its aftermath, it’s that the 2008 edition of John McCain is too weak to serve as America’s chief executive. This unmentionable truth, more than race, is now the real elephant in the room of this election.

No longer able to remember his principles any better than he can distinguish between Sunnis and Shia, McCain stands revealed as a guy who can be easily rolled by anyone who sells him a plan for “victory,” whether in Iraq or in Michigan. A McCain victory on Election Day will usher in a Palin presidency, with McCain serving as a transitional front man, an even weaker Bush to her Cheney.

The ambitious Palin and the ruthless forces she represents know it, too. You can almost see them smacking their lips in anticipation, whether they’re wearing lipstick or not.

This was made clear in the most chilling passage of Palin’s acceptance speech. Aligning herself with “a young farmer and a haberdasher from Missouri” who “followed an unlikely path to the vice presidency,” she read a quote from an unidentified writer who, she claimed, had praised Truman: “We grow good people in our small towns, with honesty and sincerity and dignity.” Then Palin added a snide observation of her own: Such small-town Americans, she said, “run our factories” and “fight our wars” and are “always proud” of their country. As opposed to those lazy, shiftless, unproud Americans — she didn’t have to name names — who are none of the above.

There were several creepy subtexts at work here. The first was the choice of Truman. Most 20th-century vice presidents and presidents in both parties hailed from small towns, but she just happened to alight on a Democrat who ascended to the presidency when an ailing president died in office. Just as striking was the unnamed writer she quoted. He was identified by Thomas Frank in The Wall Street Journal as the now largely forgotten but once powerful right-wing Hearst columnist Westbrook Pegler.

Palin, who lies with ease about her own record, misrepresented Pegler’s too. He decreed America was “done for” after Truman won a full term in 1948. For his part, Truman regarded the columnist as a “guttersnipe,” and with good reason. Pegler was a rabid Joe McCarthyite who loathed F.D.R. and Ike and tirelessly advanced the theory that American Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe (“geese,” he called them) were all likely Communists.

Surely Palin knows no more about Pegler than she does about the Bush doctrine. But the people around her do, and they will be shaping a Palin presidency. That they would inject not just Pegler’s words but spirit into their candidate’s speech shows where they’re coming from. Rick Davis, the McCain campaign manager, said that the Palin-sparked convention created “a whole new Republican Party,” but what it actually did was exhume an old one from its crypt.

The specifics have changed in our new century, but the vitriolic animus of right-wing populism preached by Pegler and McCarthy and revived by the 1990s culture wars remains the same. The game is always to pit the good, patriotic real Americans against those subversive, probably gay “cosmopolitan” urbanites (as the sometime cross-dresser Rudy Giuliani has it) who threaten to take away everything that small-town folk hold dear.

The racial component to this brand of politics was undisguised in St. Paul. Americans saw a virtually all-white audience yuk it up when Giuliani ridiculed Barack Obama’s “only in America” success as an affirmative-action fairy tale — and when he and Palin mocked Obama’s history as a community organizer in Chicago. Neither party has had so few black delegates (1.5 percent) in the 40 years since the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies started keeping a record.

But race is just one manifestation of the emotion that defined the Palin rollout. That dominant emotion is fear — an abject fear of change. Fear of a demographical revolution that will put whites in the American minority by 2042. Fear of the technological revolution and globalization that have gutted those small towns and factories Palin apotheosized.

And, last but hardly least, fear of illegal immigrants who do the low-paying jobs that Americans don’t want to do and of legal immigrants who do the high-paying jobs that poorly educated Americans are not qualified to do. No less revealing than Palin’s convention invocation of Pegler was the pointed omission of any mention of immigration, once the hottest Republican issue, by either her or McCain. Saying the word would have cued an eruption of immigrant-bashing ugliness, Pegler-style, before a national television audience. That wouldn’t play in the swing states of Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada, where Obama already has a more than 2-to-1 lead among Hispanic voters. (Bush captured roughly 40 percent of the Hispanic vote in 2004.)

Since St. Paul, Democrats have been feasting on the hypocrisy of the Palin partisans, understandably enough. The same Republicans who attack Democrats for being too P.C. about race now howl about sexism with such abandon you half-expect Phyllis Schlafly and Carly Fiorina to stage a bra-burning. The same gang that once fueled Internet rumors and media feeding frenzies over the Clintons’ private lives now express pious outrage when the same fate befalls the Palins.

But the ultimate hypocrisy is that these woebegone, frightened opponents of change, sworn enemies of race-based college-admission initiatives, are now demanding their own affirmative action program for white folks applying to the electoral college. They want the bar for admission to the White House to be placed so low that legitimate scrutiny and criticism of Palin’s qualifications, record and family values can all be placed off limits. Byron York of National Review, a rare conservative who acknowledges the double standard, captured it best: “If the Obamas had a 17-year-old daughter who was unmarried and pregnant by a tough-talking black kid, my guess is if they all appeared onstage at a Democratic convention and the delegates were cheering wildly, a number of conservatives might be discussing the issue of dysfunctional black families.”

The cunning of the Palin choice as a political strategy is that a candidate who embodies fear of change can be sold as a “maverick” simply because she looks the part. Her marketers have a lot to work with. Palin is not only the first woman on a Republican presidential ticket, but she is young, vibrant and a Washington outsider with no explicit connection to Bush or the war in Iraq. That package looks like change even if what’s inside is anything but.

How do you run against that flashy flimflam? You don’t. Karl Rove for once gave the Democrats a real tip rather than a bum steer when he wrote last week that if Obama wants to win, “he needs to remember he’s running against John McCain for president,” not Palin for vice president. Obama should keep stepping up the blitz on McCain’s flip-flops, confusion, ignorance and blurriness on major issues (from education to an exit date from Iraq), rather than her gaffes and résumé. If he focuses voters on the 2008 McCain, the Palin question will take care of itself.

Obama’s one break last week was the McCain camp’s indication that it’s likely to minimize its candidate’s solo appearances by joining him at the hip with Palin. There’s a political price to be paid for this blatant admission that he needs her to draw crowds. McCain’s conspicuous subservience to his younger running mate’s hard-right ideology and his dependence on her electioneering energy raise the question of who has the power in this relationship and who is in charge. A strong and independent woman or the older ward who would be bobbing in a golf cart without her? The more voters see that McCain will be the figurehead for a Palin presidency, the more they are likely to demand stepped-up vetting of the rigidly scripted heir apparent.

But Obama’s most important tactic is still the one he has the most trouble executing. He must convey a roll-up-your-sleeves Bobby Kennedy passion for the economic crises that are at the heart of the fears that Palin is trying to exploit. The Republican ticket offers no answers to those anxieties. Drilling isn’t going to lower gas prices or speed energy independence. An increase in corporate tax breaks isn’t going to end income inequality, provide health care or save American jobs in a Palin presidency any more than they did in a Bush presidency.

This election is still about the fierce urgency of change before it’s too late. But in framing this debate, it isn’t enough for Obama to keep presenting McCain as simply a third Bush term. Any invocation of the despised president — like Iraq — invites voters to stop listening. Meanwhile, before our eyes, McCain is turning over the keys to his administration to ideologues and a running mate to Bush’s right.

As Republicans know best, fear does work. If Obama is to convey just what’s at stake, he must slice through the campaign’s lipstick jungle and show Americans the real perils that lie around the bend.

The Candidate We Still Don’t Know

2008-08-17T14:13:00.001-04:00

By FRANK RICH
Published: August 16, 2008

AS I went on vacation at the end of July, Barack Obama was leading John McCain by three to four percentage points in national polls. When I returned last week he still was. But lo and behold, a whole new plot twist had rolled off the bloviation assembly line in those intervening two weeks: Obama had lost the election!

The poor guy should be winning in a landslide against the despised party of Bush-Cheney, and he’s not. He should be passing the 50 percent mark in polls, and he’s not. He’s been done in by that ad with Britney and Paris and by a new international crisis that allows McCain to again flex his Manchurian Candidate military cred. Let the neocons identify a new battleground for igniting World War III, whether Baghdad or Tehran or Moscow, and McCain gets with the program as if Angela Lansbury has just dealt him the Queen of Hearts.

Obama has also been defeated by racism (again). He can’t connect and “close the deal” with ordinary Americans too doltish to comprehend a multicultural biography that includes what Cokie Roberts of ABC News has damned as the “foreign, exotic place” of Hawaii. As The Economist sums up the received wisdom, “lunch-pail Ohio Democrats” find Obama’s ideas of change “airy-fairy” and are all asking, “Who on earth is this guy?”

It seems almost churlish to look at some actual facts. No presidential candidate was breaking the 50 percent mark in mid-August polls in 2004 or 2000. Obama’s average lead of three to four points is marginally larger than both John Kerry’s and Al Gore’s leads then (each was winning by one point in Gallup surveys). Obama is also ahead of Ronald Reagan in mid-August 1980 (40 percent to Jimmy Carter’s 46). At Pollster.com, which aggregates polls and gauges the electoral count, Obama as of Friday stood at 284 electoral votes, McCain at 169. That means McCain could win all 85 electoral votes in current toss-up states and still lose the election.

Yet surely, we keep hearing, Obama should be running away with the thing. Even Michael Dukakis was beating the first George Bush by 17 percentage points in the summer of 1988. Of course, were Obama ahead by 17 points today, the same prognosticators now fussing over his narrow lead would be predicting that the arrogant and presumptuous Obama was destined to squander that landslide on vacation and tank just like his hapless predecessor.

The truth is we have no idea what will happen in November. But for the sake of argument, let’s posit that one thread of the Obama-is-doomed scenario is right: His lead should be huge in a year when the G.O.P. is in such disrepute that at least eight of the party’s own senatorial incumbents are skipping their own convention, the fail-safe way to avoid being caught near the Larry Craig Memorial Men’s Room at the Twin Cities airport.

So why isn’t Obama romping? The obvious answer — and both the excessively genteel Obama campaign and a too-compliant press bear responsibility for it — is that the public doesn’t know who on earth John McCain is. The most revealing poll this month by far is the Pew Research Center survey finding that 48 percent of Americans feel they’re “hearing too much” about Obama. Pew found that only 26 percent feel that way about McCain, and that nearly 4 in 10 Americans feel they hear too little about him. It’s past time for that pressing educational need to be met.

What is widely known is the skin-deep, out-of-date McCain image. As this fairy tale has it, the hero who survived the Hanoi Hilton has stood up as rebelliously in Washington as he did to his Vietnamese captors. He strenuously opposed the execution of the Iraq war; he slammed the president’s response to Katrina; he fought the “agents of intolerance” of the religious right; he crusaded against the G.O.P. House leader Tom DeLay, the criminal lobbyist Jack Abramoff and their coterie of influence-peddlers.

With the exception of McCain’s imprisonment in Vietnam, every aspect of this profile in courage is inaccurate or defunct.

McCain never called for Donald Rumsfeld to be fired and didn’t start criticizing the war plan until late August 2003, nearly four months after “Mission Accomplished.” By then the growing insurgency was undeniable. On the day Hurricane Katrina hit, McCain laughed it up with the oblivious president at a birthday photo-op in Arizona. McCain didn’t get to New Orleans for another six months and didn’t sharply express public criticism of the Bush response to the calamity until this April, when he traveled to the Gulf Coast in desperate search of election-year pageantry surrounding him with black extras.

McCain long ago embraced the right’s agents of intolerance, even spending months courting the Rev. John Hagee, whose fringe views about Roman Catholics and the Holocaust were known to anyone who can use the Internet. (Once the McCain campaign discovered YouTube, it ditched Hagee.) On Monday McCain is scheduled to appear at an Atlanta fund-raiser being promoted by Ralph Reed, who is not only the former aide de camp to one of the agents of intolerance McCain once vilified (Pat Robertson) but is also the former Abramoff acolyte showcased in McCain’s own Senate investigation of Indian casino lobbying.

Though the McCain campaign announced a new no-lobbyists policy three months after The Washington Post’s February report that lobbyists were “essentially running” the whole operation, the fact remains that McCain’s top officials and fund-raisers have past financial ties to nearly every domestic and foreign flashpoint, from Fannie Mae to Blackwater to Ahmad Chalabi to the government of Georgia. No sooner does McCain flip-flop on oil drilling than a bevy of Hess Oil family members and executives, not to mention a lowly Hess office manager and his wife, each give a maximum $28,500 to the Republican Party.

While reporters at The Post and The New York Times have been vetting McCain, many others give him a free pass. Their default cliché is to present him as the Old Faithful everyone already knows. They routinely salute his “independence,” his “maverick image” and his “renegade reputation” — as the hackneyed script was reiterated by Karl Rove in a Wall Street Journal op-ed column last week. At Talking Points Memo, the essential blog vigilantly pursuing the McCain revelations often ignored elsewhere, Josh Marshall accurately observes that the Republican candidate is “graded on a curve.”

Most Americans still don’t know, as Marshall writes, that on the campaign trail “McCain frequently forgets key elements of policies, gets countries’ names wrong, forgets things he’s said only hours or days before and is frequently just confused.” Most Americans still don’t know it is precisely for this reason that the McCain campaign has now shut down the press’s previously unfettered access to the candidate on the Straight Talk Express.

To appreciate the discrepancy in what we know about McCain and Obama, merely look at the coverage of the potential first ladies. We have heard too much indeed about Michelle Obama’s Princeton thesis, her pay raises at the University of Chicago hospital, her statement about being “proud” of her country and the false rumor of a video of her ranting about “whitey.” But we still haven’t been inside Cindy McCain’s tax returns, all her multiple homes or private plane. The Los Angeles Times reported in June that Hensley & Company, the enormous beer distributorship she controls, “lobbies regulatory agencies on alcohol issues that involve public health and safety,” in opposition to groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The McCain campaign told The Times that Mrs. McCain’s future role in her beer empire won’t be revealed before the election.

Some of those who know McCain best — Republicans — are tougher on him than the press is. Rita Hauser, who was a Bush financial chairwoman in New York in 2000 and served on the Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board in the administration’s first term, joined other players in the G.O.P. establishment in forming Republicans for Obama last week. Why? The leadership qualities she admires in Obama — temperament, sustained judgment, the ability to play well with others — are missing in McCain. “He doesn’t listen carefully to people and make reasoned judgments,” Hauser told me. “If John says ‘I’m going with so and so,’ you can’t count on that the next morning,” she complained, adding, “That’s not the man we want for president.”

McCain has even prompted alarms from the right’s own favorite hit man du jour: Jerome Corsi, who Swift-boated John Kerry as co-author of “Unfit to Command” in 2004 and who is trying to do the same to Obama in his newly minted best seller, “The Obama Nation.”

Corsi’s writings have been repeatedly promoted by Sean Hannity on Fox News; Corsi’s publisher, Mary Matalin, has praised her author’s “scholarship.” If Republican warriors like Hannity and Matalin think so highly of Corsi’s research into Obama, then perhaps we should take seriously Corsi’s scholarship about McCain. In recent articles at worldnetdaily.com, Corsi has claimed (among other charges) that the McCain campaign received “strong” financial support from a “group tied to Al Qaeda” and that “McCain’s personal fortune traces back to organized crime in Arizona.”

As everyone says, polls are meaningless in the summers of election years. Especially this year, when there’s one candidate whose real story has yet to be fully told.

The Legacy of a Lunatic

2008-07-15T12:38:00.001-04:00

NanceGreggs

As our nation readies itself to celebrate the end of the Bush presidency, discussion of his legacy fills the airwaves. The usual suspects – the pro-Bush pundits, the PNACers, the air-headed teleprompter readers passed off as journalists – now gather together on the political talk shows, ready and more than willing to tackle the formidable task of rewriting history.

Bush’s legacy, according to those still reluctant to embrace reality, will be a presidency replete with incredible foresight and heroism, all recognized by the historians who, at some later date yet to be announced, will at last recognize the extraordinary vision of one George W. Bush in the fullness of time.

However, what the dead-ender cheerleaders fail to take into account is that Bush’s legacy, like that of all presidents, will be based on the facts and not the quickly cobbled-together fictions spun by his still adoring fans.

Perhaps the most glaring reality of Bush’s presidency will be the fact that it was never a true presidency at all. The result of selection rather than election, it was marked not by sound strategy, but by stagecraft; not by purposeful action, but an endless array of photo-ops meant to capture merely an image of leadership in a constant attempt to obscure the truth that no such leadership ever existed.

While the smoke-and-mirrors experts continue to proffer their own creation – the man with the bullhorn in the wreckage of the Twin Towers, the man landing on an aircraft carrier declaring that the mission had been accomplished, the man sharing Thanksgiving dinner with his troops – the reality lurking behind the curtain is less than heroic or honorable: a lackadaisical fool reading a children’s book in the midst of mayhem, a smirking coward parading around in a flight-suit, a mindless, uncaring clown offering a plastic turkey to the men and women he was about to send to their deaths.

From the beginning, Bush surrounded himself with incompetent cronies, yes-men, and sycophants with a lust for influence, and handed out positions of power to people whose blind loyalty was the only measure of their suitability. Qualities like honesty and strength of character were never assessed, and were in fact an obvious hindrance for those who aspired to the inner circle.

Once foisted on the world stage, Bush invariably chose the role of the mindless puppet, a buffoon prone to inappropriate laughter, absurd remarks, displays of childish petulance, all washed in a thin veneer of down-home charm meant to hide the underlying ignorance, the lack of awareness, the inability to conduct himself as anything more than an over-indulged frat-boy who had no more respect for his office than qualification to hold it.

In the wake of the events of 9-11, the Bush administration touted itself as the protectorate of our national security, yet another meaningless slogan behind which to hide the already-in-place machinations of war, the suspension of citizen’s rights and freedoms, and the lining of those pockets deemed deserving by those in control of the purse-strings.

Despite the fact that Bush’s policies have made us infinitely more vulnerable, the Protecting the Homeland banner still waves as though having some actual meaning behind it, another empty gesture in place of reality – like flag-pins meant to convey true patriotism, or Support the Troops bumper-stickers meant to convince the masses that our military is actually treated fairly and honorably.

Americans are a forgiving people, and had the disastrous results of Bush’s policies been due to a mistaken anticipation of their end result, or lofty ideals that ultimately proved to be misguided in their application, the absolution of his countrymen would have been offered without question.

But as we have all sadly seen, the suffering that we as a country, and the world at large, now endure is not the result of things gone inexplicably awry, but the single-minded pursuit of a political ideology whose sole purpose was to enrich the few at the expense of the many, and to place power into the hands of those who would stop at nothing to maintain it, all to be achieved while blithely ignoring the ensuing consequences; irreparable damage, escalating violence, economic instability, and the deaths of millions.

A large part of Bush’s legacy will undoubtedly be his administration’s ability to spin the worst behavior into something noble, the most blatant lies into something too truthful to be questioned, the most heinous crimes into something heroic, all couched in language meant to divert the mind from reality, and the soul from guilt.

Terms like “executive privilege”, once used to protect the presidency from sharing sensitive information that could place us in jeopardy, have been twisted into poltically-convenient catch-all phrases behind which crimes can be covered-up and its perpetrators shielded from justice. The term “torture” has been replaced with “enhanced interrogation techniques”, a newly-coined soundbyte intended to mask the barbarism in which we now wallow with impunity.

Even the once respected term moral Christian has been forever tarnished, having now been attributed to a torturer, a warmonger, a widow-maker, a non-repentant creator of orphans, of limbless soldiers, of multitudes of homeless, hungry, sick and dying people whose fate is of no concern to he who is not ignorant of, but blatantly dismissive of the very teachings he pretends to follow and revere.

Perhaps the most enduring part of any president’s legacy is the remembrance of their most obvious personal quality. In this instance, surely Bush will be best remembered for his arrogance – an arrogance born not of an overly-exuberant recognition of his own abilities or record of accomplishment, but merely reflective of a sense of entitlement to be praised for that which he never achieved, and rewarded with adulation and respect that was clearly never earned.

Ultimately, history is not written by scholars assessing the past from afar. It is passed down to children and grandchildren by those who experienced the events firsthand, an oral history that lives and breathes long after the pages of even the most well-researched tomes are reduced to dust.

And the tales that will be told of Bush’s presidency will be rife with tragedy; tales of soldiers who died fighting not for freedom but profit, of cities left to drown amid apathy and incompetence, of corporations given free rein to exploit the vulnerabilities of a nation’s people, of an administration that plundered our treasury, saddled us with unconscionable debt, circumvented the rule of law, and left our Constitution in tatters.

Despite the best efforts of the revisionists, the spinmeisters, the propagandists, and those simply unwilling to admit that they were hoodwinked by an inept scoundrel and his attendant snake-oil salesmen, it is the truths of George W. Bush’s failed presidency that will be the basis of his legacy.

In light of that fact, Worst President Ever might be the kindest title that history eventually confers.

Have a Whte House Christmas ...

2007-12-21T09:43:00.000-05:00

Click to embiggen

Natzweiler-Struthof 2

2007-05-19T17:46:00.000-04:00

Implements of torture, before waterboarding was in vogue. They just strapped you to this and removed body parts.

Class A accommodations.

Gotta get rid of the bodies. They had a lot of urns for the purpose, before they stopped caring about even that.

A memorial to the French Resistance, who comprised most of those interned here.

Towards the end, they didn't even bother with urns, just dumping the ashes in this pit.

Click to embiggen.

Natzweiler-Struthof 1

2007-05-19T17:39:00.000-04:00

Main Gate.

You couldn't run.

How they defiled the beautiful French countryside.

I tried out a cell in solitary for size. I'm 5'10".

The lab table, where humans were turned into lab rats.

Click to embiggen.

San Juan

2007-04-18T11:55:00.000-04:00

Ft. Cristobal overlooking San Juan harbor.

Naturally we took the tour of the Bacardi Distillery. Heh ...

And of course, the beaches are extraordinary.

Click pics to embiggen.

Cavallaro v. Donohue

2007-03-31T12:07:00.000-04:00

Full transcript.

[...]

COOPER: Well, I don't think it's our job here on 360 to tell you what to think about something. We just ask the questions and help you decide.

A few minutes ago, I talked to artist Cosimo Cavallaro and the man who worked to shut down his exhibit, Bill Donahue, president of the Catholic League.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Cosimo, I want to start by asking you what your intention was with -- with this -- this piece of art.

C. CAVALLARO: My intention was to celebrate this body of Christ, and in a sweet, delicious, tasteful way.

COOPER: Why -- why use chocolate?

C. CAVALLARO: Because it's a substance that I like. And it's sweet. And I felt that the body of Christ, the -- the meaning of Christ, is about the sweetness.

COOPER: Were you trying to shock, I mean, to -- to cause attention?

Often -- usually, when Christ is shown, he's wearing some form of clothing. This is a naked Christ, which has also caused some concern.

C. CAVALLARO: No more than the religion, the way they use it. I was just using it as an iconic figure.

I mean, that my intentions was to shock people, no. I was -- my intention was to have them taste the -- and feel what they're looking at in their mouth.

COOPER: Bill, you call this exhibit hate speech. You said it's -- quote -- "one of the worst assaults on Christian sensibilities ever."

What specifically offends you about it?

WILLIAM DONAHUE, PRESIDENT, CATHOLIC LEAGUE: Well, of course, asking the public to come in and eat Jesus, with his genitals exposed, during Holy Week I think would be self-explanatory.

If we took an image of this artist's mother, and made her out in chocolate, with her genitals exposed, of course, to be equal, and then asked the public to eat her on Mother's Day, yes, he might have a problem. Maybe he wouldn't.

But you know what bothers me? It's not even the artist. I mean, we have a lot of these loser artists down in SoHo and around the country. What bothers me is that this guy Knowles, who is an artist in residence, the owner, the president and CEO of an establishmentarian site, the Roger Smith Hotel, 47th and Lexington, in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, that is what bothers me, because now we have the establishment kicking in.

And to put this out during Holy Week, on street level, when kids can walk in off the street, these people are morally bankrupt. And my goal is to make them financially bankrupt.

COOPER: Cosimo, do you understand the outrage this has caused? I mean, do you think it's overreaction? Do you get it?

C. CAVALLARO: Yes, I get it. I think it's an overreaction.

You just heard the gentleman calling artists losers, or me a loser. I think what he's -- his assault is on the public at large, artists, and freedom of speech, and every Catholic. I'm a Catholic, and I'm a Christian.

And I think this gentleman doesn't even represent the people that are in his faith.

DONAHUE: That's funny. You said I put out a fatwa, right? Or the -- or the -- that was the -- the guy who ran the lab, says I put out a fatwa. I put out a news release.

So, you're accusing me of being like the Taliban; is that right?

C. CAVALLARO: Who, me? You're not that intelligent.

(LAUGHTER)

DONAHUE: Oh, no, let me tell you something. You're -- you're lucky I'm not as mean, because you might lose more than your head.

COOPER: Cosimo, did you want people to eat this? Was that part of this?

C. CAVALLARO: No.

Did you hear what this gentleman is saying, that I would lose my head?

DONAHUE: No, I -- you heard what I said. I said you're -- you're lucky I'm not like the Taliban, because you would lose more than your head, which is why...

C. CAVALLARO: Right. So, therefore...

(CROSSTALK)

DONAHUE: ... guys like you wouldn't do this against Mohammed during Ramadan.

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: No, because I'm a Christian. And I'm not trying to...

DONAHUE: Oh, you're a Christian. Please. Don't lie about it, all right? Don't lie about it.

C. CAVALLARO: I'm not lying. No, I'm not lying about it.

DONAHUE: Yes, you are.

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: I want to ask you a question, Mr. Donahue.

DONAHUE: Yes.

C. CAVALLARO: Where do you think I should exhibit this? Because you -- you have bamboozled an art gallery.

DONAHUE: Right.

C. CAVALLARO: And you have bamboozled an establishment. You have put fear in people to listen to your rhetoric and to believe -- just because a man has got his arms extended and he's made in chocolate -- it's your Christ -- and it's offensive.

DONAHUE: That's right.

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: And, by the way -- excuse me. I'm going to talk to you for a minute. You keep quiet.

DONAHUE: And you want the public to eat him.

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: Now, you go to the Catholic Church...

(CROSSTALK)

COOPER: Let Cosimo finish his point.

C. CAVALLARO: You go to the Catholic Church, and you're going to see statues from Michelangelo that are nude. Are you going to clothe them for the Holy Week?

DONAHUE: OK.

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: And are you telling me that, apart from the Holy Week, we could do anything we want to do with the genitalia? What are you talking about?

DONAHUE: The...

COOPER: OK. Let Bill answer.

DONAHUE: All right. All right, first of all, Leonardo, you're not.

But, quite frankly, where should you have this displayed? In New Jersey is where New Yorkers put their garbage. There's a big sanitation dump. That's where you should put it.

COOPER: Bill, let me read you something that David Kuo, the former presidential assistant to President Bush, who worked in the Office of Faith-Based Community Initiatives, said in reference to your protest.

He said -- quote -- "Instead of getting all amped up over this art, Christians should be spending time facing the real and very challenging Jesus found in the Gospels, and encouraging others to do the same."

(CROSSTALK)

COOPER: Are you making a bigger deal out of this than it deserves?

DONAHUE: No, no, no, no.

COOPER: And doesn't this, in fact, give this more attention than it ever would have received otherwise?

DONAHUE: If, in fact, it was at some dump in SoHo, I probably wouldn't pay too much attention. But the fact that the Roger Smith Hotel...

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: ... dump in SoHo.

DONAHUE: ... right here in New York City is doing this thing, no. If I don't pay attention to it, then I -- my people should ask for me to be fired.

By the way, I am delighted with the response from Jews, Muslims, and others, not just Catholics and Protestants, with this. People are basically saying, enough is enough. This is absolutely revolting.

And what you're saying, sir, is totally disingenuous. No one believes it. I don't even think you believe it.

COOPER: But, Bill, doesn't -- doesn't -- I mean, don't people have a right to express themselves? And isn't that what art is about? Aren't artists supposed to provoke thought?

DONAHUE: That's right. And, if we -- and if we put a swastika out on a stamp in the United States, we could call that art. It was an art exhibition. I don't think Jews would go for that.

Just because art is art doesn't mean that it is a right that is absolute. Art can be insulting and it can be offensive. And when these people are whining, claiming victim status, as this guy is doing, because of my exercise of my First Amendment right of freedom of speech -- I didn't call the cops to come in and censor this.

I'm simply saying I called up about 500 of my friends and -- running different Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and non- sectarian organizations to boycott the Roger Smith Hotel. They're morally bankrupt. I want to see them financially bankrupt.

COOPER: Cosimo, I want to give you the final thought. Do you plan to -- to display this elsewhere?

C. CAVALLARO: Yes, I do, hopefully.

And I would like to add to the gentleman who referred to the swastika, he's actually acting like a Nazi.

(LAUGHTER)

C. CAVALLARO: And I -- I would like to ask one question.

Where do you suggest that I exhibit this? Because you basically pulled it out of a gallery for me. So, where do you think...

DONAHUE: No. I -- I told you...

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: Where -- no, excuse me.

Where do you suggest that an artist should exhibit his work that you don't infringe on?

DONAHUE: Well, you know, go to some dump down in SoHo, where...

C. CAVALLARO: A dump?

DONAHUE: ... nobody will pay attention.

C. CAVALLARO: Is there a church in SoHo that's a dump, too, because...

DONAHUE: Oh, you would like to...

(CROSSTALK)

C. CAVALLARO: No, let me tell you something.

DONAHUE: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

C. CAVALLARO: There's two priests that have wanted to exhibit this in their church.

DONAHUE: Is that right?

C. CAVALLARO: Yes, absolutely.

DONAHUE: Give me their names.

C. CAVALLARO: I will not, because you're a bully.

(LAUGHTER)

C. CAVALLARO: And you know what? I believe that there's people in your organization that would like you to resign.

DONAHUE: Is that right?

C. CAVALLARO: Absolutely. And you're...

DONAHUE: Well, how come -- I haven't heard from them.

C. CAVALLARO: I got to tell you something, there's more filth that comes out of your mouth...

DONAHUE: Is that right?

C. CAVALLARO: Yes -- than I have seen...

(CROSSTALK)

DONAHUE: Look, you lost. You know what? You put your middle finger at the Catholic Church, and we just broke it, didn't we, pal?

C. CAVALLARO: No. You're wrong. You're wrong.

DONAHUE: Yes, we did. You lost.

C. CAVALLARO: I have a lot of believers.

DONAHUE: We -- we won. You're out of a job.

C. CAVALLARO: And I'm a Christian. And there's a lot of people like me, who are opposed to what you're doing, because you made a big...

DONAHUE: Yes? But I got a job, and you don't.

C. CAVALLARO: You made a -- "I got a job, and you don't"?

DONAHUE: Yes.

C. CAVALLARO: You're acting like a 5-year-old.

DONAHUE: I got a job, and you don't.

C. CAVALLARO: You're talking -- you're acting like a 5-year-old. And I feel sorry for you.

COOPER: All right. We're going to -- we're...

DONAHUE: Well, I won on this, and you lost, didn't you?

COOPER: Well, let's -- let's leave it there.

You both expressed your opinions.

Bill Donahue, appreciate you being with -- and, Cosimo Cavallaro, appreciate it as well. Thank you, sir.

C. CAVALLARO: Thank you, Anderson.

COOPER: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COOPER: Well, thankfully, there are other stories dealing with faith tonight that aren't causing quite so much of an uproar.

Just ahead: She was sick and now is cured. She won't call it a miracle, but the Catholic Church might. And a pope might achieve sainthood because of it, Pope John Paul II. That's coming up.

Also: selling religion with sex, why church leaders are taking a page from Madison Avenue -- next on 360.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[...]

Britney's box

2007-02-17T11:56:00.000-05:00

Remembering Molly Ivins

2007-02-01T10:46:00.000-05:00

John Nichols at The Nation

Molly Ivins always said she wanted to write a book about the lonely experience of East Texas civil rights campaigners to be titled No One Famous Ever Came. While the television screens and newspapers told the stories of the marches, the legal battles and the victories of campaigns against segregation in Alabama and Mississippi, Ivins recalled, the foes of Jim Crow laws in the region where she came of age in the 1950s and '60s often labored in obscurity without any hope that they would be joined on the picket lines by Nobel Peace Prize winners, folk singers, Hollywood stars or senators.

And Ivins loved those righteous strugglers all the more for their willingness to carry on.

The warmest-hearted populist ever to pick up a pen with the purpose of calling the rabble to the battlements, Ivins understood that change came only when some citizen in some off-the-map town passed a petition, called a Congressman or cast an angry vote to throw the bums out. The nation's mostly widely syndicated progressive columnist, who died January 31 at age 62 after a long battle with what she referred to as a "scorching case of cancer," adored the activists she celebrated from the time in the late 1960s when she created her own "Movements for Social Change" beat at the old Minneapolis Tribune and started making heroes of "militant blacks, angry Indians, radical students, uppity women and a motley assortment of other misfits and troublemakers."

"Troublemaker" might be a term of derision in the lexicon of some journalists--particularly the on-bended-knee White House press pack that Ivins studiously refused to run with--but to Molly it was a term of endearment. If anyone anywhere was picking a fight with the powerful, she was writing them up with the same passionate language she employed when her friend the great Texas liberal Billie Carr passed on in 2002. Ivins recalled Carr "was there for the workers and the unions, she was there for the African-Americans, she was there for the Hispanics, she was there for the women, she was there for the gays. And this wasn't all high-minded, oh, we-should-all-be-kinder-to-one-another. This was tough, down, gritty, political trench warfare; money against people. She bullied her way to the table of power, and then she used that place to get everybody else there, too. If you ain't ready to sweat, and you ain't smart enough to deal, you can't play in her league."

Molly Ivins could have played in the league of the big boys. They invited her in, giving her a bureau chief job with the New York Times--which she wrote her way out of when she referred to a "community chicken-killing festival" in a small town as a "gang-pluck." Leaving the Times in 1982 was the best thing that ever happened to Molly. She settled back in her home state of Texas, where her friend Jim Hightower was about to get elected as agricultural commissioner and another friend named Ann Richards was striding toward the governorship. As a newspaper columnist for the old Dallas Times Herald--and, after that paper's demise, for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram--Molly began writing a political column drenched in the good humor and fighting spirit of that populist moment. It appealed beyond Texas, and within a decade she was writing for 400 papers nationwide.

As it happened, the populist fires faded in Texas, and the state started spewing out the byproducts of an uglier political tradition--the oil-money plutocracy--in the form of George Bush and Dick Cheney.

It mattered, a lot, that Molly was writing for papers around the country during the Bush interregnum. She explained to disbelieving Minnesotans and Mainers that, yes, these men really were as mean, as self-serving and as delusional as they seemed. The book that Molly and her pal Lou Dubose wrote about their homeboy-in-chief, Shrub: The Short But Happy Political Life of George W. Bush (Random House, 2000), was the essential exposé of the man the Supreme Court elected President. And Ivins's columns tore away any pretense of civility or citizenship erected by the likes of Karl Rove.

When Washington pundits started counseling bipartisanship after voters routed the Republicans in the 2006 elections, Molly wrote, "The sheer pleasure of getting lessons in etiquette from Karl Rove and the right-wing media passeth all understanding. Ever since 1994, the Republican Party has gone after Democrats with the frenzy of a foaming mad dog. There was the impeachment of Bill Clinton, not to mention the trashing of both Clinton and his wife--accused of everything from selling drugs to murder--all orchestrated by that paragon of manners, Tom DeLay.... So after 12 years of tolerating lying, cheating and corruption, the press is prepared to lecture Democrats on how to behave with bipartisan manners.

"Given Bush's record with the truth, this bipartisanship sounds like a bad idea on its face," Ivins continued, in a column that warned any Democrat who might think to make nice with President and his team that "These people are not only dishonest--they're not even smart."

Her readers cheered that November 9, 2006, column, as they did everything Molly wrote. And the cheers came loudest from those distant corners of Kansas and Mississippi where, often, her words were the only dissents that appeared in the local papers during the long period of diminished discourse following 9/11. For the liberal faithful in Boise and Biloxi and Beaumont, she was a lifeline--telling them that, yes, Henry Kissinger was "an old war criminal," that Bush had created a "an honest to goodness constitutional crisis" when it embarked on a program of warrantless wiretapping and that Bill Moyers should seek the presidency because "I want to vote for somebody who's good and brave and who should win." (The Moyers boomlet was our last co-conspiracy, and in Molly's honor, I'm thinking of writing in his name on my Democratic primary ballot next year.)

For the people in the places where no one famous ever came, Molly Ivins arrived a couple of times a week in the form of columns that told the local rabble-rousers that they were the true patriots, that they damn well better keep pitching fits about the war and the Patriot Act and economic inequality, and that they should never apologize for defending "those highest and best American ideas" contained in the Bill of Rights.

Often, Molly actually did come--in all of her wisecracking, pot-stirring populist glory.

Keeping a promise she'd made when her old friend and fellow Texan John Henry Faulk was on his deathbed, Molly accepted a steady schedule of invites to speak for local chapters of the American Civil Liberties Union in dozens of communities, from Toledo to Sarasota to Medford, Oregon. Though she could have commanded five figures, she took no speaker's fee. She just came and told the crowds to carry on for the Constitution. "I know that sludge-for-brains like Bill O'Reilly attack the ACLU for being 'un-American,' but when Bill O'Reilly's constitutional rights are violated, the ACLU will stand up for him just like they did for Oliver North, Communists, the KKK, atheists, movement conservatives and everyone else they've defended over the years," she told them. "The premise is easily understood: If the government can take away one person's rights, it can take away everyone's."

She also told them, even when she was battling cancer and Karl Rove, that they should relish the lucky break of their consciences and their conflicts. Speaking truth to power is the best job in any democracy, she explained. It took her to towns across this great yet battered land to say: "So keep fightin' for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don't you forget to have fun doin' it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin' ass and celebratin' the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was."

Airpower in NYC

2007-02-01T07:51:00.000-05:00

(top and middle)

USAAF P-51 Mustang, USAF F-16 Falcon, F-15 Eagle, A-10 Thunderbolt II (Warthog). You know the lady. The middle photo shows the flight over the 59th Street Bridge, Roosevelt Island is in the middle, Manhattan on the right, and Queens on the left. The wet stuff is the East River.

(bottom)

USN Blue Angels F/A-18 Hornets.

Click to embiggen

No more Bush

2006-12-09T07:53:00.000-05:00

On Dave ...

2006-11-02T16:08:00.000-05:00

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Rich Wood and I run the Alternate Brain, a blog concerned mainly with veterans' affairs. I am honored to stand before you today with two of my heroes, men of honor. Let me throw out some numbers:

Close to 3,000 American service people dead

Over 20,000 wounded, many with serious brain injury, many missing limbs.

No WMDs

Civil War in Iraq

Osama bin Forgotten

And the Taliban are resurgent in Afghanistan because troops needed there have been sent to Iraq instead.

President Bush and his henchmen lied to us at every turn to provide a justification for the war in Iraq. They fabricated evidence of WMDs, as Ambassador Wilson proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. They've cashiered flag officers, like General Shinseki, who before the war even began, made clear the war plan was insufficient and inept. People who knew failure was a foregone conclusion before the first American boots touched the Iraqi sand.

They've used the war in Iraq, our soldiers' lives, for political purposes. They've gone so far as to destroy the career of an American intelligence officer in a petty attempt at revenge. Ambassador Wilson's lovely wife, performing the critical mission of chasing down WMDs and the people who would supply them to terrorists, was put in mortal danger by her exposure, as were her contacts and assets working in the region, because Mr. Wilson dared to speak the truth. Remember, she was looking for the WMDs the President said he so desperately wanted to find.

President Bush does not want to win the War on Terror; he wants it to go on forever, for that is the basis of his power. Were it not for a Congress of sheep, or lemmings as it were because they're following him off a cliff, he would have never been able to get away with it. The Human Rubber Stamps, like Peter King, have enabled him, smiling and nodding their heads, giving him everything he asks for without oversight.

Good men like Dave Mejias are needed to put a stop to this mess.

Dave will ask the tough questions, unlike Peter King who'll do and say whatever the Republican Spin Machine tells him to.

Dave Mejias knows American troops are not just props for photo ops, not just cannon fodder and deck apes in the imperialistic conquest and illegal occupation of Iraq. Not just a comma in a footnote of history.

Dave knows that America's obligation to our fighting men and women does not stop when they can no longer carry a rifle in combat.

Dave Mejias knows that the Armed Forces of the United States are not political tools to be used by a spineless bunch who've never looked into the business end of an enemy rifle. Dishonorable men who went to the greatest lengths to avoid service in their generation's war, yet squander the lives of this generation's soldiers so cavalierly.

I have, and it is the reason I stand with him. It is the reason every veteran in New York's Third District should as well. Dave Mejias knows the true meaning of 'supporting the troops' and that's why he has my endorsement, my respect, and my unqualified support.

Mejias Press Conference

2006-10-29T14:24:00.000-05:00

Yours truly, Capt. Cleere, Dave Mejias, and the local VFW Commander.

King-sized scandal

2006-10-27T20:03:00.000-04:00

Reprint of an email from the Mejias campaign, 27 October 2006:

FARMINGDALE - On the heels of the recent news that the home of Congressman Curt Weldon's lobbyist daughter was raided by the F.B.I., Dave Mejias, Nassau County Legislator and candidate for Congress in New York's 3^rd Congressional District, called on Congressman Peter King to tell the truth about his dealings with Park Strategies, a lobbying firm that employs King's son, Sean King.

An article in yesterday's Newsday ("King's son works for defense lobbying firm"), details that Sean King is a Vice President at Park Strategies, and that "Park Strategies has lucrative contracts with many big businesses to lobby on defense and homeland security spending." The article quotes Peter King as saying "[Sean King] has no clients that deal with my office." NOT TRUE. This video shows Sean King in Taiwan touting his clients, Lockheed Martin and L-3 Communications, both firms that receive Homeland Security contracts.

A posting on the New York Observer's Politicker Blog quoted King as saying "[Sean King] is not a lobbyist, does no lobbying, and has no dealings with my office whatsoever." NOT TRUE. According to the State of New York, Sean King IS a registered lobbyist.

Today, in a separate Newsday article, Peter King continued to deny any wrong doing despite mounting evidence that he is engaged in a clear conflict of interest - homeland security contracts being awarded to companies that employ his son's lobbying firm.

"This is a perfect example of the culture of corruption in Washington - relatives of members of Congress lobbying for homeland security contracts," said Mejias. "Peter King is lying about his son's employment as a lobbyist, and Sean King's clients receiving government contracts. This is a major conflict of interest, and the people of Long Island deserve to know the truth."

Mejias called on Peter King to answer several critical questions:

What calls or meetings has Peter King had with Sean King and clients of Sean King?

What requests has Peter King made on behalf of Sean King and clients of Sean King to government agencies and congressional committees?

What Homeland Security contracts have Peter King steered in the direction of Sean King's clients?

Has Peter King ever encouraged companies lobbying for Homeland Security contracts to hire Sean King's firm?

Will Peter King release all correspondence with his Congressional office about lobbying for Homeland Security contract?

Will Peter King release his Congressional calendar to show who he met with, and when?

"It"s bad enough that Peter King has been a rubber stamp for the failed policies of the Bush administration," said Mejias. "Now we learn that Peter King's relatives are cashing in on his position, and he's lying to cover it up. It's time to put an end to the culture of corruption in Washington. We need leaders in Congress who will fight for us, not pad their family's pockets and roll over for the special interests."

Bombing the Google

2006-10-25T05:40:00.000-04:00

Just helping Darryl, blogging at the General's place:

...

Share these links with your friends and family, and plaster the links all over your blogs and web pages!

Senate races:
WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
VA-Sen: George Allen
TN-Sen: Bob Corker
RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
MO-Sen: Jim Talent
MD-Sen: Michael Steele
AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl

House races:
WA-08: Dave Reichert
VA-10: Frank Wolf
PA-10: Don Sherwood
PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
PA-07: Curt Weldon
PA-04: Melissa Hart
OH-18: Joy Padgett
OH-15: Deborah Pryce
OH-02: Jean Schmidt
OH-01: Steve Chabot
NY-29: Randy Kuhl
NY-26: Tom Reynolds
NY-20: John Sweeney
NY-03: Peter King
NV-03: Jon Porter
NM-01: Heather Wilson
NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
NH-02: Charlie Bass
NC-11: Charles Taylor
NC-08: Robin Hayes
MN-06: Michele Bachmann
MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
KY-04: Geoff Davis
KY-03: Anne Northup
KS-02: Jim Ryun
IN-08: John Hostettler
IN-02: Chris Chocola
IL-14: Dennis Hastert
IL-10: Mark Kirk
IL-06: Peter Roskam
ID-01: Bill Sali
IA-01: Mike Whalen
FL-22: Clay Shaw
FL-16: Joe Negron
FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
CT-04: Christopher Shays
CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
CO-05: Doug Lamborn
CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
CA-50: Brian Bilbray
CA-11: Richard Pombo
CA-04: John Doolittle
AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
AZ-01: Rick Renzi

Click here for more information about this post, and see this if you want to do something similar on your blog or web page.

...

Cross-posted at the Brain.

Horta

2006-10-08T09:21:00.000-04:00

Ponta Delgado

2006-10-08T09:11:00.000-04:00

Cruise ships vs. Ocean liners

2006-10-07T20:51:00.000-04:00

Since I'm sharing my vacation with you, I figured I'd explain a little about the differences in cruising between cruise ships and ocean liners, just in case you were seeing how much fun we're having and would like to book a cruise of your own.

There are more than two types of passenger ships but for cruising purposes you need only concern yourself with two of them. There are cruise ships and there are ocean liners and they are very different vessels. The first rule of thumb in differentiating is that cruise ships are a hull that's built around a hotel. Basically taking a land-based hotel and making it seaworthy. An ocean liner is a hull into which a hotel is fitted.

While both are basically floating hotels, ships like the Noordam and her sisters, Oosterdam, Westerdam, and Zuiderdam (Vista - class ships), Queen Mary 2, and Queen Elizabeth 2 are ocean liners. Most ships now plying the tourist trade routes however, are cruise ships. Big, boxy things that the esteemed writer and lecturer Bill Miller (who is also passenger aboard Noordam for this crossing and I had the delightful opportunity to meet the other day) calls "forgettable".

Ocean liners have a long, storied history, making their debut upon the high seas around the turn of the last century. They are, as I quote Mr. Miller once again, "the largest piece of moving machinery made by man." Noordam and her sisters are just the latest in a long line of ships who were built to make the North Atlantic crossing from Europe to the Americas. And that is the key fact about ocean liners, they are built to take the pounding of the North Atlantic through four seasons.

There is also a different culture aboard liners as opposed to cruise ships. Liners are still considered transportation, just as they were before the advent of passenger aircraft and the jet engine. Many people aboard Noordam, over a hundred by the way, are either staying aboard after we dock in NYC to move on to other destinations or were aboard when we embarked at Civitaveccia in Italy, leaving us in Spain or at Bermuda when we arrive. Mrs. F and I have come to believe that liners are the only way to return from a European vacation, which we did for the first time coming home from London aboard QM2 two years ago.

I won't get into the wonderful history of ocean liners, Mr. Miller does that far better than I in his 60 books on the subject, but I will make it easy for you. Ocean liners are a culture of sophisticated elegance. Cruise ships are party boats. Each has its place. The Mrs. and I have had a great time on the fourteen holidays we've taken on cruise ships since we were married. At this point in our lives though, you probably won't see us on another one. As I said, there is a different culture aboard liners.

Where a cruise ship has Caribbean bands and the canned background music is reggae, hip hop, and rock & roll, aboard a liner you're far more likely to see a string quartet or a big band, and the background is more Mozart than Bob Marley. A liner is more sedate, the crowd a bit older, and drinking and raucous partying is not the priority. Lord knows, the alcohol does flow, but you won't see people falling-down drunk. You won't see jeans and t-shirts at dinner, and it's the odd man who doesn't wear a jacket and tie to the dining room. Many people's downtime is rather spent in the library, attending lectures, or classes on one subject or another. I signed up for several master class lectures by Mr. Miller and the Mrs. is taking a series of cooking classes from some world-renkowned chef, broadening her already gourmet-caliber talents.

Refined elegance and liner culture is truly an amazing thing and the ghosts of the old liners now departed, the German Emperador, the Italian Rex, the French Normandie, the American United States, Lusitania and Mauritania the ships of the legendary British White Star Line (yes, even Titanic), and the original Queens, Mary and Elizabeth from Cunard stand guard over us as we make the crossing that was once the only way to get from Old World to New. Liners embrace the romance of the high seas and while to many, a ship is a ship, reading one of Mr. Miller's books will give you a new understanding of these leviathans of the world's oceans.

Liner vs. Cruise ship? Put me on an ocean liner any day. Once you're bitten by the bug, you'll see what I mean.

Gonzalez-Bayass Winery

2006-10-04T08:14:00.000-04:00

Cadiz/Jerez de la Frontinera 2

2006-10-04T07:56:00.000-04:00

Seems that St. Michael (San Miguel) is a big macher in Spain. I think more churches are named after him here than any other. He's the patron saint of Jerez de la Frontinera.

This is the oldest doorway in the city of Jerez. Still in use in the town hall since just after the Romans got tossed.

The Plaza de la Asuncion in Jerez, also dating back to Roman times, Julius Caesar living here for a time.

The Gothic Cathedral de la Salvador. Notice the flying buttress architecture. To architecture nuts like the Mrs and me, this was heaven.

A statue of ~~Dope~~ Pope John Paul II who blessed the cathedral on a visit to Jerez in 1984.

Cadiz/Jerez de la Frontinera

2006-10-04T07:39:00.000-04:00

Entering Cadiz through the old city walls.

A beautiful square in the center of the Old City. They have so many of these that I forget the name of this one, but way cool regardless. Art Deco abounds here.

Cadiz is a city of beaches as it sits on the Atlantic, just outside the Straits of Gibraltar. The sand is yellow, the color reflected in a lot of the old construction. The boats belong to the mackerel and anchovy fisherman who head out to sea in those little fucking things as the sun goes down.

The Al-Kazar. The Moorish/Muslim influence is great here, owing to the proximiy to Africa.

The ancient mosaics also decorate every street corner, a hint at the Catholic background of 90% of the people here.

Misc.

2006-10-02T08:27:00.001-04:00

In Florence.

This bust of Dutch King William is at the end of our corridor on the ship. I rub his head for luck every time I go past.

Kids build the same crappy cars all over the world - Valencia.

The Fixers on the bus - Valencia.

Mother Superior jumped the gun. Boy was she pissed at me for taking her pic. Heh ... - Florence.

Lladro Factory

2006-10-02T08:18:00.000-04:00

Valencia 2

2006-10-02T08:07:00.000-04:00

The Museum of Science.

The opera house.

The aquarium.

Valencia

2006-10-02T07:50:00.000-04:00

Leaving Noordam bright and early.

Ruins of the old city wall.

Plaza de la Riena and the Church of San Miguel.

The bull ring.

The city market, which has been in operation in one form or another for close to 2 millennia.

Barcelona

2006-10-01T10:04:00.000-04:00

A couple frigates and desroyers from the Spanish Navy anchored off our bow.

And for all you Defensor Fortis guys, talk about an excellent field of fire and defensive position. Attacking this position would require something on the scale of Omaha Beach.

Monte Carlo

2006-09-30T07:33:00.000-04:00

Noordam ~~laying off for a naval bombardment~~ waiting for our return.

The beautiful Mrs. F at the monument to the Grand Prix.

The toys of the rich, famous, and pompous.

Two shots of Monte Carlo from Noordam.

Livorno/Florence 2

2006-09-30T07:08:00.000-04:00

Mrs. F doing what she does best. Shopping.

The results. Now you see why she brings me along. BTW, how do you like the Third World dictator look? Heh ...

This beautiful little girl had to pet all the horsies as they were setting up the merry-go-round.

Two pics of the square in front of the Church of Santa Croce.

Livorno/Florence

2006-09-30T03:34:00.000-04:00

Sunrise as we pulled into Livorno, Italy

Doma Cathedral, Florence

The Montevecchio over the River Arno in Florence.

The transporation.

The Church of Santa (Jim ... heh) Croce in Florence.

Liberty Industrial Finishing Superfund site

2006-09-17T15:24:00.000-04:00

Click pics to embiggen.

Mejias Environmental Endorsement

2006-09-17T15:07:00.000-04:00

Michael White, Chair, Long Island League of Conservation Voters

Richard Amper, Environmental Voters Forum

Patrick McGloin, Chair, Long Island Sierra Club Executive Committee

Click pics to embiggen.

NY-23

2006-08-30T05:51:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen

Local races ... [Index]

2006-08-29T18:26:00.000-04:00

Dave Mejias in New York-03

Charlie Brown in California-04

Darcy Burner in Washington-08

Monica Lindeen in Montana-01

Linda Stender in New Jersey-07

Bob Johnson in New York-23

And remember, if you know of a race we should pay attention to, drop me an email or leave a comment in a recent 'Local races ...' post on the main page.

NJ-07

2006-08-29T17:07:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen

MT-01

2006-08-28T04:58:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen

WA-08

2006-08-27T12:38:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen

CA-04

2006-08-24T06:02:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen.

Shop pics

2006-08-23T16:34:00.000-04:00

PDB working.

My fertility god. All natural. Heh ...

Harry busting a tire down. (Acting like he's working. It's good to be the boss.)

My pickup and my good friend JB's Jeep.

NY-03

2006-08-18T21:34:00.000-04:00

Click to embiggen.

AFL-CIO Endorsement

2006-08-16T16:44:00.000-04:00

August 15, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

IN SURPRISE MOVE, NEW YORK STATE AFL-CIO ENDORSES MEJIAS FOR CONGRESS OVER PETER KING

Incumbent's poor labor record costs him endorsement for the first time ever

FARMINGDALE - Dave Mejias, Democratic candidate for Congress in New York's 3^rd Congressional District, won an unexpected victory over his opponent, Peter King, when the State AFL-CIO voted today to endorse Mejias for Congress. This is the first time the AFL-CIO has ever endorsed King's opposition.

"I am very grateful to receive the support of the AFL-CIO," said Mejias. "This important endorsement is a testament to my strong support of working men and women, and a stinging repudiation of Peter King's anti-labor voting record. King has shown time and again that he is out of touch with the people of the Long Island. Nowhere is this more evident than his appalling record on labor. King votes for big tax cuts for millionaires and big oil, and stands up for the lobbyists on K Street, but fails to help the people on Main Street who are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. During this campaign I will expose the record Peter King doesn't want people to know about, and the more people learn about him, the more they realize it's time for him to go. The support of organized labor will be a tremendous asset in my campaign to restore the American Dream for working families."

Peter King's lifetime rating from the AFL-CIO stand at 35% - meaning that he votes against working families 65% of the time. In 2005, his rating plunged to a mere 20%, voting against the interests of working people 80% of the time. King's anti-labor stances include voting repeatedly against raising the minimum wage and supporting the Bush plan to privatize Social Security. He even supported the Labor Department giving a sweetheart deal to Wal-Mart, where Wal-Mart would receive an unprecedented 15 days notice before the Department would conduct any on-site investigations.

One Vet at a Time....

2006-07-12T14:37:00.000-04:00

I'm going to cut to the chase here folks....

PTSD is real.It's not something you can"understand"unless you've lived through it either.Not to take away from other causes for PTSD,those triggering events that create it,but the one that stems from War can be especially heinous and long lasting.I personally believe there should be a separate official catagory for PTSD caused from being in a war zone,perhaps someday astute doctors will recognize that(if they haven't already,I'm admittedly woefully behind when it comes to mental health research).You can't lump all PTSD cases into one catagory because the people who are suffering need different things(beyond the basics,which I'll get to in a minute)in order to reclaim a normal life again.

Being around death and shit blowing up and bullets whizzing by your head on a daily or minute to minute basis IS NOT NORMAL.Having to kill people isn't normal,nor is expecting to be killed at any moment.To expect service people to come home and just be fine and dandy is idiotic.Same goes for the people who live in the country where the war is,though that is not where my thoughts lie,not just now(but I DO think about that,alot).

Some vets will return home and end up ok.Having a family and community who love you helps.Having a home to come home to ain't too shabby either.Being able to find work that gives you some dignity,having friendships helps,none of this is really brain science.This is not to say returning military personnel won't have problems if they have a support system,but it sure the hell can make a HUGE difference.Problem is many do not,and that my fellow Americans is just plain ass WRONG.Kiss my ass if you don't agree.There's NO EXCUSE at all for any veteran to be homeless,hungry and alone,without proper mental and physical health care,without some means of employment.And they ARE out there,by the hundreds if not thousands.That has to stop.It BOTHERS me,and it pisses me off that more people aren't bothered by it.In fact,many are blissfully unaware.Enough of that,it's time we grow the fuck up about this.

To add to the hell of war,soldiers and Marines come home to a country that's barely aware there IS a war(though it seems we're coming around some,now that it's getting out more regularly how bad it is),let alone understand in the slightest what sacrifice is.We have way too many spoiled brats in this country who find even the smallest inconvenience to be worth having a fit over.Not to mention all the misinformation,political conniving,corruption and infighting.Coming home to this has to be a punch in the gut to some of our troops,I don't see how it wouldn't at least be somewhat insulting at times.

In the interest of being a Problem Solver,I'm tossing out two ideas,that might positvely impact some PTSD cases resulting from the current mess in mess o' potamia.I think they're worthy of consideration,but I have NO CLUE how to implement either one.So,Dear Reader,I leave the idea to you.If you have the connections who have the resources and smarts(which I do not have on stuff like this)for the love of God,please pass this on,I grant blanket permission.

Idea #1:
What if there was a way to match up homeless veterans with "foster families"? Obviously there needs to be a screening process on both sides,some sort of matchup system,and then perhaps transportation cost provided for a homeless vet that needs to get to where their foster family is if they happen to be far away.From there,the families provide food,clothing and shelter,along with helping in a job/schooling search and provide overall day to day support for a specified time(leave it to the concerned parties,but have a minimum commitment pre-set) to get the vet on their feet again.There may even be some parents who have lost a kid in Iraq or Afghanistan who would be willing to"adopt"a homeless vet in honor of their son or daughter who died.(though that is alot to ask,and a delicate thing.But still,for some matchups,that could be a blessing for both parties)

Of course this means making sure foster families are prepped in advance and ready to provide the structures that are needed.For example,if the employment prospects suck where you are,you might want to consider that before you volunteer.Or if you don't have the room in your home to accomodate another person so they have personal privacy,you shouldn't take this on.And so on and on.

Idea#2:
I love family farms.Anyone who knows me even a little knows that about me.My dream is to own about 80 acres(at least)with a clean water source,a house,and a few outbuildings.I'd grow veggies,flowers,herbs,raise organic beef and chicken(and eggs,maybe even milk eventually),and live my life a happy woman with her own tractor(vroom,puttputt,vroom).It's expensive though,to get started and to maintain a farm.It's also a lot of work,but the end results are satisfying.

Anyhow,if I could get my mitts on some farmland,with a home and outbuildings,I'd turn it into a full fledged running farm run and staffed by homeless vets who live and work on the farm,with people to show them the ropes.This would take a very kind and wealthy benefactor to see it through it's infancy,but eventually,with a sensible business plan and proper funding,the enterprise could become almost totally self sustaining,and partially self contained.

Working with the land and caring for animals can be quite theraputic to a wounded soul. Farms can be busy places,there's always something to do,but that lifestyle tends to be less chaotic.When people spend time working outdoors they tend to fall into a healthier life rhythm.Life has a purpose that's easier to see when you're working close to the land.That's not new agey nonsense,ask a multigenerational farming family,if you can find one these days.

Even a vet in a wheelchair or with a prosthetic limb can do stuff on a farm.There are many ways to accomodate a disabled person(raised beds for flowers and herbs and smaller veggie plants for example)to include them in a project such as this.There's plenty of work on a farm to go around.

Volunteer and/or paid professional mental health providers need to be worked into this plan somehow,maybe similar to a home care visiting nurse type deal along with any VA services that are available in a particular place.

So there you have it.

These ideas are not fleshed out to their full potential,hell for all I know programs like these exist already.I'm not an expert on much of anything,let alone taking on a task of such magnitude by myself.Bat the idea around on your own if you're so inclined,pass it around if you wish,or just tell me I'm a nut(or very naive).Whatever.I just think having a home and a way to take care of yourself out of isolation and with people who have been there/done that can go along way.Everyone needs a family,a sense of purpose,a soft place to land,even big tough military types,especially if they've been in combat.Just because I can't figure out how to do it doesn't mean I should keep it to myself.I'll let the winds carry it where they will.

Born on the Fourth of July

2006-07-02T13:21:00.000-04:00

This blog is two years old on Tuesday and it's a damn shame we're still doing it. A damn shame we still find material (a lot of it) every day to vent about. By golly, if you would have told me, on the Fourth of July 2004, that Bush and his henchmen would still be in power, that the Congress would still be a rubber stamp for those same fascists, that we'd still be fighting a war in Iraq, I'd have said you're crazy. Two years ago, I figured at this point I'd have an occasional rant about the Dems making some bonehead move or another, but never still be trying to fight these crooked, inept, morally-bankrupt Republicans.

I thought 2004 would have been a year of awareness. Damn, we pushed for it. We were all young pups and all so damned sure we would get Bush out that November. Shakes and Jane Hamsher were just starting out back then, regular commenters here and then making us proud by reaching the heights they have. 42, Glen, Froggy (DBK), the CultureGhost, the Old White Lady, Travis, Pam, Cleek, John Howard, and my neighbor, Blondie; we were all finding our feet barely two years ago, a period of time that seems more like twenty. I met Rook, Patrick, and Eponymous then too, and Michael Hawkins through Pauly.

There were some bigs back then, Atrios and Kos, skippy, Orcinus, and of course the great South Knox Bubba (now blogging here under his real name) without whom I doubt the Brain would have existed. I met my good pal Gordon there, and yes I consider him a dear friend though we've never met face to face, my partner on two blogs for the better part of the last two years, and without whom this blog would never be where it is. I'd gladly share a foxhole, a ride, or a walk into Hell and back (or whatever else) with ya, man.

Speaking of blog partners, I'm honored to have the folks blogging here that I do. Nina and the Angry Old Broad have done so much to lend the female perspective to the rantings of a couple pissed off vets; Knox Rover (another SKB alumnus) and BaltimoreLenore as well during their brief tenures, and hopefully they'll take the floor again in the future, thank you all for your contributions.

And speaking of pissed off vets, I am honored to have met so many of them. Lurch, Jo Fish, Jeff Huber, CAFKIA, Farnsworth, The Chief, Chuck, Bob Geiger, Bulldog, all people who've served their country (serious patriots, folks) and chosen to stand up against the winds of war that have ravaged this nation for the last three years. We were all portrayed as traitors by the wingnuts until you people began to open your eyes. Let me tell ya, folks, these are people who know the true meaning of honor and 'supporting the troops' and I'm eternally grateful we're on the same team.

We've found some great new friends along the way too. Badtux, Elise, The Farmer, Lambert, His Highness, Granny, Christine, Sizemore, Creature, Michael Stickings, Scout Prime, Thersites, the Guerilla Women, RJ Eskow, Ed, the Chemist, Jay, John, Seth, and a whole host of others; folks from all walks of life dedcating their expertise toward our goal of freeing America, the country we all love so deeply, from the grip of a despot.

There are many who are no longer blogging, folks like M and T (and Harry Hound) from the Adgita Diaries whom we love so much (and I'm so grateful they continue to comment here) and Jeff from Jeffthinks, whom we hope would drop by and let us know he's okay. We miss you all.

And then there are the commenters, many bloggers themselves, who keep the discussion lively, informative, and give this place the sense of a small community. Thank you so much.

And the readers, many of whom inhabit the Halls of Power, thanks for stopping by and, hopefully, taking away a little of our perspective. Most of all, I just hope you think about what's going on out there realistically. Remember, we can rant and rave all we want, but it's all of you making your voices heard in November at the voting booths, and all the time by contacting your elected representatives and telling them how you feel, who will ultimately bring about change.

In all, it's been an amazing two years. I never thought anyone would listen to a mechanic from Long Island vent on the Internet, let alone 250 - 300 of you every day. Though I am a bit saddened there's a need, thanks to our 'traditional media' who have dropped the ball so badly, for what we do here, and in Left Blogtopia (y!sctp!*) in general, I can say it has been an outstanding experience. Thank you all for allowing me, and the staff here, to share in it.

My one hope is that at this time next year we will be talking about a Democratic Congress trying to straighten out the mess King George has made of this once-great nation.

*yes! skippy coined that phrase!

Dogs

2006-06-28T19:37:00.000-04:00

The Old White Lady has a new kitty, go see a pic of the new member of the family, and we were talking about spaying and neutering. I realzed it's time to repost my 'responsible dog owner' rant that I wrote a couple years ago.

You know I'm a dog lover and so's the Mrs. So, naturally I got a problem with a lot of folks who own dogs. Listen to me, please.

Don't get a fucking dog for stupid reasons. No, you're not going to breed the fucking thing. Just because you see how much puppies are going for, doesn't mean it's a 'get rich quick' scheme, you stupid motherfuckers. Being a breeder is hard work and you sure as hell don't know what the fuck you're doing. It's like never having popped the hood on a car, yet you suddenly feel you're qualified to open an auto repair shop. All you're gonna do is end up with a bunch of unwanted puppies. Here, I'll do you a favor. Google 'dog breeders' and send an email to five of them asking what the business entails. Then tell me you want to be a breeder. Did you know 3 million dogs and cats are put down every year because they're not wanted? Don't add to the fucking problem, dickhead.

Next, don't get a fucking Rottweiler, Doberman, Pit Bull, etc, as a penis extension, you idiot. Just like the sports car, you're only gonna be a little wiener with a bad dog. I see too many folks like this who want the dog as a status symbol and don't want to make the commitment to training and medical care. Moron, a dog is a twelve to fifteen year commitment on your part. It's just like having a kid. But hey, people have kids for the same stupid reasons. Think long and hard about it, please. (Kid or a dog, it doesn't matter. Be sure you want to make the commitment before you jump in with both feet. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should, ass.)

Next, if you're a compulsive person, and you see a cute little dog and you gotta have one, buy jewlery instead. At least you can hock it if you need the bread at a later date. Ain't nobody gonna buy a used dog, moron.

If you do decide to get a dog, do breed research. Every breed has their own traits (I wrote about my dog's foibles here.), so you have to see what will go best with you're lifestyle. If you're laid back and not into doing much training, a dog that requires a firm hand (Dobies, Rotties) ain't for you. Think Lab or Golden. Same thing if you got rugrats running around your house. All my friends' kids know not to run through my house because my Cattle Dog will try to herd them all back into one room:

Another thing is the dog, Mrs. F's little princess. She's short, but not little, muscular and strong as hell. If you know anything about Australian Cattle Dogs, they are smart, independent, and stubborn, sorta like me. Well, thanks to their breeding, Cattle Dogs herd cattle by nipping at their ankles to get them to go where the dog wants. Well, since our little Shayna has no cattle to work, she finds herself little jobs. One is getting us to the phone when it rings. If you've ever gotten a nip in the ass from one of these dogs well . . . let's just say it leaves a mark.

My point is that the dog looks at little kids as cattle. She tries to keep them together and won't let them run around. So today, not only do I have to keep an eye on the Mrs.' breakable shit, but I have to watch her little varmint like a hawk so she doesn't nip one of the kids. Can't break the dog of that habit, it's instinct.

If your kid gets nipped in the ankle by an Australian Cattle Dog, you're gonna have a lot of crying on your hands, trust me. If you're gonna get a mutt, use this rule of thumb. A mutt will generally act like the breed it most closely resembles.

My point is that if you're gonna get a dog, do it for the right reasons. Don't have big plans until you see what kind of dog you have, it's personality and it's traits. Get a dog because you want a pet and a companion. Anything else that flows from there is gravy.

Heed my words, Lugnut.

Hadji Girl

2006-06-24T08:29:00.000-04:00

[This originally appeared as a four part piece at Alternate Brain. I combined them in one post here to make it easier to link to. - Fixer]

Hadji Girl

Seems the Marines in Iraq are making up their own songs (video). Now, I usually leave Affairs de Corps to Gord because they're his boys, but a lot of people are taking exception to the brutality inflicted in Haditha and other places in Iraq and this video will probably raise more Hell. Let me explain something, being I've been in combat with Marines. Remember this:

The Marine Corps is not a police orgainization. The Marines have one purpose, to kill the enemy by any means possible. If you expect them to be touchy-feely and 'community oriented' like your local cops, you're sadly mistaken.

Now, I'm not condoning or trying to justify anything that resembles a war crime, but I think some of us on the left have to develop stronger stomachs.

...

I worry about people who think like this coming back into society. That kind of thing cannot be considered gallantry on the battle field. It's ugly and dirty and ultimately is going to blow back on some of these guys. I hope the Republicans are prepared to spend as much on VA mental health as they've spent filling their right wing cronies' bank accounts because a lot of these guys are going to need help. Our troops are in danger of losing their humanity in a war being fought for bogus political reasons. Some of them are going to have a hard time living with that.

...

Note to Digby: War is ugly and dirty and if you want to win, you have to be prepared to kill women and children. That's just the way it is. If you don't want innocents killed, don't go to war, period. The guys on the ground don't have the luxury of debating whether the war is just or not.

...

It's a good deal for senior ground commanders, who get career boosts by dint of assignment to the war zone that used to be a relatively peaceful country, ruled by a dictator whose fangs had been pulled by 12 years of sanctions and UN weapons inspections. For the younger ground commanders at company level, and the EM [enlisted men], of course, it's just toughski shitski, so suck it up, troop.

...

While we rail against war, there is a sad fact that war (not this war), sometimes, has to be done. I don't want touchy-feely Marines. I don't want touchy-feely anybody in the combat disciplines, be they Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine. I want them to be comfortable enough with killing that they won't hesitate when the time comes. I was, once. Rightly or wrongly, and don't forget these guys hear what the government wants them to hear, the Jarheads in that meat grinder believe anybody brown over there is a potential enemy. Ask a Vietnam-era infantry troop how that goes. Ask him how you justify friend from foe when Hell is erupting all around you. I couldn't, not unless you were wearing the same uniform I was.

A few weeks back, I alluded to an op in Afghanistan many years ago where we took ground fire extracting a CIA operator from Waziristan. I lost a friend on that op and I had no qualms drawing a bead on anybody on the ground as the chopper tried to lift off. I didn't care who it was; Soviet, Afghani, goat herder, it didn't matter. Shit, thems on the ground probably thought we were Russians. All we knew was we were taking fire. The door gunners and ramp gunner opened up and all of us who could, found a spot on that damned Pave Low to fire from. There was brass flying and noise from the mini guns and rifles cracking and small arms fire puncturing the fuselage, the chopper's jets screaming to lift that heavy bitch adding to the din. It was fucking insane. I'm sure a lot of innocents died that day. Have a rifle in your hands in the same circumstances and tell me what you'd do.

If the Marines had been used properly, not interchangably with Army troops or Military Police, we would see far fewer of these horrors perpetrated upon innocent civilians. If it weren't for the Chimp's illegal war, none of the atrocities would have happened. While the Marines, if found guilty, must take responsibility for their actions, the ultimate responsibility lies at the door of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue and Capitol Hill.

Hadji Girl 2

Okay, so let's talk about war a little, since most Americans think it's something like a cross between Mission Impossible and a Tom Clancy novel. It's not. People talk of war in terms of 'surgical strikes' and 'special ops units', thinking a few bombs and a few commando units running around can win any conflict. From the way the Iraq War has been run, it would seem a few of the civilians (and some of the generals) in the Penatgon believe the same things. I'm not talking about the morality of war, because war is also immoral by definition.

The idea behind going to war is to pound an enemy hard enough, destroy enough of his infrastructure, and kill enough of his people to make him lose the strength and the stomach to fight. Simple.

Your enemy's government is your enemy, his people are your enemies, and his ability to resupply his troops is your enemy. [If you want some perspective on this, check out some of the Bugs Bunny cartoons made during the war years ... if you can find them - F-man] When you have to start making distinctions; 'we are not angry with the people of (pick any country), just their government', you lose your right to wage war. When you have to say, 'we don't want to destroy their (pick something), just remove their leadership', when you force the men and women you send into combat to differentiate which of the 'enemy's' people are friend or foe, you have no right being at war to begin with.

War is for the defense of the nation and nothing else. Certainly not for 'regime change' in a nation posing no threat. It is the basest form of national revenge and, by definition, should be fought without concern for anything but victory. Dresden, the firebombing and atomic bombing of Japanese cities during World War Two, that was war in all its excruciating malevolence. It was a simple decision. We were attacked, the next day we were at war.

There was no need to spin things on 8 December 1941. No need for forged documents, no need for weapons inspectors, no need for intelligence assessments; bombs fell upon the U.S. Pacific Fleet at its homeport of Pearl Harbor. That was all the evidence needed. Did you think what happened after, the years of world war, was an honorable pursuit? There was unspeakable horror, almost a generation's worth of European and Japanese men wiped out, countless innocent deaths and we reconcile that with the fact we faced an enemy we believed evil incarnate. We did whatever was required to force their capitulation.

One day, we will have to reconcile the war in Iraq. We will have to sit back and ask if all the deaths, the maimings, and the horror was worth it. I tend to believe this war will leave us with a case of national post traumatic stress syndrome. It might take years, but eventually we will come to the collective realization that we were the bad guys. I think many of us do already.

Hadji Girl 3

Since I brought up the realities of combat and the rationale for war yesterday (Hadji Girl, Hadji Girl 2), I'd like to talk this morning about what the guys and girls in the meat grinder have to deal with.

As I've let on, I've seen combat on more than a few occasions. Basically on spec ops missions where we encountered unfriendlies. Grenada was different, but it was more of a spec ops job than a war. And that's what I'm getting at. Yesterday we spoke of the inherent inhumanity of war as it related to the civilians. Today we speak of the troops.

Some smart guy said, many years ago, that war was 'long stretches of boredom interrupted by short stretches of intense terror'. Which is quite probably true. It's this difference I'd like to talk about. The difference between 'war' and an 'operation'. I was on operations. We trained up, were on station for a week or so, took care of business, were debriefed, and then returned to our base. Over, done, put it in the past and prepare for the next.

When we were done, our ladies (or guys, but don't ask, don't tell) were waiting for us. The bar was open and you were back in the bosom of 'family', so to speak. We could decompress, drink, fuck, do whatever we had to in order to forget about the nastiness we just finished dealing with. Trust me, you have to forget, or at least put it in a place where you can deal with it.

The guys in this war don't have that luxury. Not only are they going out to fight, their patrols at constant risk from IED, but they are not safe when they come in from patrols either. They are living in the war zone. A mortar or rocket can ruin their day at any time. They are always on, always up, always juiced. There is no time, no place, for them to decompress fully.

Sex is difficult and in the Mid-East, booze is close to non-existent (black market and officer's tents only ... probably). Oh what? Sex and booze? 'We don't send our troops out to fuck and get drunk', you might say. Well, let me tell ya. They're human beings too and there are only so many ways humans can deal with that kind of stress in a place where their freedom is so limited. A place where personal safety is a very tenuous thing.

In the Air Force when I was in, we had a thing called the 'Golden B-B'. I'm pretty sure it had its origins in Vietnam. It went that there was a bullet with your name on it somewhere. Until you and that bullet met up, you'd be fine, but one day that Golden B-B was gonna get ya. Well, when you live every fucking day looking, waiting, watching for that Golden B-B, you can get a little, if not a lot, crazy. Especially when you know, until you get orders home, that Golden B-B might catch up with you as you lay in your rack, or cot, or bedroll, dreaming about the hottie waiting for you when you get home.

Do that for a year at a time. Then do that year for the second or third time.

Think you'd keep your sanity?

And you wonder why I have no patience for people who talk about war like it's a big fucking game?

Hadji Girl 4

Okay, this is the last one, basically because thinking about this is keeping me up nights again. Have I mentioned there is a big price to pay for allowing yourself to get in touch with your more baser instincts? It's how I figured out I wasn't a psychopath; those guys can sleep well.

Anyway, I'm talking about leadership today. Or the lack thereof. This struck me this morning:

...

Russert: If your analysis is not correct, and we're not treated as liberators, but as conquerors, and the Iraqis begin to resist, particularly in Baghdad, do you think the American people are prepared for a long, costly, and bloody battle with significant American casualties?

Cheney: Well, I don't think it's likely to unfold that way, Tim, because I really do believe that we will be greeted as liberators.

...

And that was that. They created a culture around the need to go to war. They made their plans, fixed the intelligence, defiled a genuine relationship that took two centuries to cultivate to give them some legitimacy, and got themselves a war.

The grunts on the ground, who would ultimately do the dirty work, didn't have a say. The flag (Generals and Admirals) officers who did speak up, opposed to the folly, were cashiered or discredited. Opposition was considered traitorous. Those in command positions now are nothing more than 'yes men' for the administration.

So now we have a war run by draft dodgers and incompetents.

Under the auspices of the Global War on Terror (GWOT), we have abdicated our responsibility to treaties signed in good faith by those speaking for the people of the United States. The Geneva Conventions are not quaint or archaic, or a plot by the U.N. to tie America's hands when prosecuting the GWOT. They are in place to protect our soldiers. This is why I talk about taking the high road. The Rude Pundit says it best as only he can:

Chances are, maybe even by the time you read this, the two American soldiers, captured by the Mujahideen Shura Council in Iraq, will be dead, probably in some horrible way, probably with their bodies dumped like all the horribly murdered Iraqis in the blood and gore-strewn landscape that are the markers of Iraqi liberation...

...

What if we get pictures of the soldiers, nude, cowering, screaming in a corner, shitting themselves on the filthy floors of a makeshift cell, as their captors hold snarling dogs on leashes just out of bite range of the soldiers?

What if we learn that their captors decide that the soldiers can offer intelligence that can be of use to al-Qaeda and, in order to get that information, the captors put the nude soldiers into rooms that are heated to hellish temperatures, followed by rooms that are impossibly cold with colder water tossed onto them? What if the soldiers are made to stand for days on end? Put into stress positions that fuck up their muscles and limbs? Denied sleep? Had loud music played into their cells? Kept in isolation and fed bread and water for days, weeks on end?

...

And he posits:

...

And what about the good right-wing punditry? Would Rush Limbaugh look at the photos of the nude, cowering Americans and say it looks like fraternity hazing or some such shit? Would others dismiss it as a media fabrication? Or would they just pathetically overlook everything done in our American names to Iraqis, Afghanis, and others, calling madly for the heads of the captors, not even thinking about the irony of such a statement?

...

Yes, ladies and germs, what if? Can we take the high road? Of course not. Our leaders say treatment like that is permissible to achieve certain ends. Is it okay for us to do it but not al-Qaeda? We are in no position to protest the treatment of these men, whatever it might be, because we've taken a path no better than those we claim to be so different from. The abuses at Abu Ghraib might have been committed by the grunts, but they were given legitimacy by the leadership.

As I've explained in the first three parts of this little diatribe, and what it seems few people understand, is the guys doing the shooting don't make the decisions. They don't get the whole story, or anything near the truth. They're allowed to listen to Rush, but not Al Franken. They're allowed Fox 'News'. Most of the grunts in Iraq believe Saddam was in cahoots with Osama to pull off 9/11. So anybody who thinks the average soldier has any decision-making ability is fooling themselves. The grunts believe they are doing the right thing. They couldn't do their jobs if they didn't.

When we hear of abuses, crimes against civilians, and general misconduct by our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines, you must remember the military is a tightly controlled organization. When those in the lower ranks act up, or act out, you can almost always trace it back to a permissiveness on the part of the command, be it the local commander, the theater commander, or the Commander in Chief himself.

When I was in, I knew how long my leash was. So did the other guys. We knew what our CO would let us get away with and we generally didn't cross the line. When we did, we paid, usually with really shitty details so we didn't forget exactly where the line was. My CO looked the other way to a lot of our hijinks but no one got hurt.

The line in the GWOT has become very wide and very gray. There is only one reason for that and it's simple. Failure of leadership. A rule of thumb to use is the wider and grayer the line, the higher up in the chain of command the failure goes. A supply sergeant running a black market operation out of Okinawa is a local command failure. Soldiers murdering innocent civilians and torturing prisoners is a failure at the top.

As I've said before, the grunts should pay for what they've done but so should the leadership. I've seen a whole buncha grunts go to jail over the past couple years, but the people who define where the line is have yet to answer for their crimes.

It is why I want more than to see Bush and his cronies out of power, I want them all in jail too.

Cross-posted at Worlds.

Summer uniform

2006-06-24T06:04:00.000-04:00

Yes, I know it's a couple months late.

Living Democracy:Getting your toes wet

2006-06-23T16:17:00.000-04:00

As an intro explaining what I mean by Living Democracy,here's a point or two to ponder before we begin:

1)Back in the day,when America was a mere baby of a country,Our Democracy was a much more participatory thing than it is now.It's sad really,that we have selectively remembered and mythologized our nation's history.(Good lord,down here in the South,people are still actively pissed off about the Civil War and how all that turned out.I mean serious grudges and stuff,it's transgenerational.And yes,it's scary when you encounter it.These folks have missed alot that's happened since then,and they're scared to death of it.)

But in a larger context,our early formative years were quite turbulent,and we've always had sometimes serious disagreements.There have always been groups of people agitating for something or another in America.Some of it's been stupid,some of it's been smart.Sometimes violent,Sometimes peaceful.We've even seen Good vs Evil come down the pike,several times.

In Early America,Europeans brought with them a sense of needed rules and various hierarchies to keep some semblance of order(American Indians,btw,were not at all uncivilized,they had all kinds of laws and social rules and ways of enforcing those.The difference is,they were not tied to possessions,they were tied to the land,their people were birthed from a place,the whole spiritual life of American Indian Nations is based on that).Some stuff has worked,some hasn't,but the idea of a Real Democracy means things are often untidy.We're a rowdy bunch of mongrels,always have been.

Back then,pretty much only white guys got to decide how things were run.As we've progressed,the system allowed more and more freedom of participation by more people.Ideally at least.But the system is still gamed to favor the few over the many.All along in our history there's been a fight against that,and mostly,we managed to keep things in check,before too much got out of hand.We've not always succeeded,but for the most part we've managed to pull back and check ourselves.There used to be town hall meetings and most everyone in the community showed up,those who were excluded paid attention and usually something would happen to respond accordingly if the right thing wasn't being done.People wrote pamphlets,spoke on the streets,many died trying to set things right,to make this country as fair as possible.

We're a work in progress,WE ALWAYS WILL BE.That's the point of the word"living"in Living Democracy.Think of it as a living,breathing entity.What's happened to us over the last 50 or so years has been a deadening of that way of relating to our country.We need National Civics Lessons.

The words "Citizen","civics","citizenship",and "civilization"need an overhaul in the public mindset.Participation in a Living Democracy is a powerful tool to reclaim your investment in your life,take back your power,and do something contructive to repair a nation that's really in trouble.It's the only way.And it's scary.And it's hard.Sometimes it's downright dangerous.And alot of the time it's also really rewarding and FUN.

2)Which brings me to Fear.
I'm convinced that Americans are scared shitless of each other.There are exceptions to this,but for the most part,we've been subtly and not so subtly had it beat into our collective heads that people are no damned good.Better to stay safe,keep to your comfort zone and be incredibly selective(if not down right snooty)about who you associate with and where you go.This always seems to bring with it a self fullfilling prophecy,and the world is often not kind or gentle,which re-affirms those fears.Caution is good,but isolation mixed with fear is not.If fear is contagious,I'd have to argue it's entirely possible that Courage is just as contagious,if not more so.True Courage is always on the side of doing the right thing,you can never go wrong by siding with that.Or at least not horribly wrong.

That means we have to weave webs with one another.Not just on the internets,but doing the hard work of sneakers on the sidewalks.Try as we might to invent all sorts of ways to communicate with each other,you can't replace working shoulder to shoulder with other human beings for forming bonds that matter.And really,at the end of the day,we all want pretty much the same stuff.Being able to provide for oneself and one's family,a decent education for us and our kiddos(if we have them),a safe little homestead somewhere,a way to retire without being a burden to others,you know,the stuff that gives us Dignity on a very basic level.We all gotta eat,have decent medical and preventative health care,and we especially need to feel like we matter,that our life counts for something.Doesn't matter who ya pray to,who ya vote for,or who ya love,we all want that.Sometimes it goes horribly awry,hence you see violent gangs or religious/ideological cults that do seriously damaged things,crime families,the rise of tyrants and other such nasty things.But other times humans get it right,and that's our reason for being here.

But we can't do that if we fear each other.It means taking some risks.But you don't have to dive in head first without paying attention.Get your toes wet first.Start Small if you're afraid.Keep your personal safety in mind of course,but trust yourself,and think before you act.You'll do fine.And if you fail,that's ok.There's more than plenty enough stuff to do to go around a few times.If you fail at one thing,there's at least a dozen more possibilities to try.We need it ALL.From the silliest bit of political street theater,to protests,to running for office,or forming a grassroots group,to working for ethical candidates,or a myriad of other things,we need writers and artists and professionals and amateurs and truck drivers and parents and singles and teachers and students.See,that's the beauty part of the whole thing,all of us are needed in some capacity in a Living Democracy.Alot of it's trial and error,and there will be disagreements,hurt feelings,and conflicts.That's how things get done,as long as we never forget why we're bothering in the first place.

The following essays I will be writing on this topic will look at problems that have had successful solutions with a Living Democracy approach and we'll also look at various things the political novice can do,as well as more ambitious goals.Our Country is in Crisis,and way too many people feel helpless and unconnected,despite us being all "civilized"and stuff.The only way to stop the right wing from being successful is to lessen the power of Fear.We do have the power to shut that down as we find our Courage,both together and within ourselves.

Injustice

2006-05-23T18:28:00.000-04:00

[Our dear friends MandT (who have the floor here anytime they want it since they closed down the Adgita Diaries) emailed this to me. Since I have my head in a manuscript and they asked me to post it, I will. I know nothing of this but it seems seriously fucked up to me. - Fixer]

Recently the Heiress to the billion dollar Korbel Champaign Fortune, and her male lover were arrested for several violent felony sex crimes against two innocent young women barely over 21.

The specific crimes of this public figure and her recently arraigned co-conspirator are these:

1. One young girl had her head slammed repeatedly into a table while being forcibly raped from behind - with the intent of forcing the victim to simultaneously perform cunnilingus on the Wine Heiress - Ms. Anderson, for her gratification.

2. The second girl was persued into a sauna, where her head was also slammed into a tile wall repeatedly while being forced to perform fellatio on Ms. Anderson's crime partner.

In her attempt to escape this violent scene of sadistic pornographic degradation, bondage and mayhem, one of the girls broke her leg. Both girls have lost their employment with Korbel. The victims now have substantial and ever increasing emotional, physical, and financial problems as a result of these predatory attacks.

3. Ms. Anderson and her lover conspired to perform these violent and degenerate criminal acts of rape in a pre-meditated manner, first by furnishing large amounts of alcohol to these unsophisticated young people. Next they further reduced their young victims ability to resist by exposing them to the dangerous combined effects of hot tubs, saunas, and alcohol.

Far from being consensual, this rape-sex combined kidnapping naive young women, with attempts to induce near unconsciousness. These rapes required repeated violence with serious physical injury in their commission. That was perhaps part of the real sadistic purpose of these crimes against these two young women, who could have in no way foreseen this horrible treatment at the hands of a woman nearly twice their age and her violent hate filled accomplice.

So far, this might seem just one of the endless stories of violent sex crimes against women and men which occur in Sonoma County every year, which are but briefly reported, then so often go unpunished by the " blame the victim" psychology in the sheriffs and District Attorneys offices.

But this time, the criminal is not a stupid garbage truck driver who pulled off the side of the road to commit a random or indiscriminate rape, only to be freed by a disinterested DA and Sheriff's Dept.

No. This time, the criminal accused owns 65% of a billion dollar Sonoma County wine empire. She is an untouchable. Her father, and the DA, and the County Sheriff's Office are all part of the " good old boy network", full of friendly favors and knowing silences. They control the local politics of privilege and deceit that Ms. Anderson is heir to. The machinery of the convenient blind eye to the prominent criminals in our midst.... the Cocaine Kelly's and Smuggler Lucas's and now the Kidnapping Anderson-Hecks.

In the case of heiress Richie Ann Anderson-Heck and Christopher Samii, the silence abounds, the friendly favors are flowing furiously. Immediate calls were made by Heck Sr. to the DA asking to hush up his daughter's arrest, until Korbel attorneys and PR people could mount a disinformation campaign against the victims.

Now odd things are happening. Very little information has gotten out to the public, about what should be a prominent story of kidnapping and multiple predatory premeditated rapes, of which a high profile - if dubious- Champagne Heiress stands accused. What does get out, seems intended to falsely smear the victims with innuendo.

Oddly, the Victims attorney cannot get the initial police crime reports after weeks of waiting. This is both unheard of and illegal. Yet the defense attorney for the Heiress claims to have "investigated" and reported to the DA... through what must be the oddest bit of legal procedure known in modern California political history.

When exactly did accused kidnappers and rapists start briefing the DA who is prosecuting them ? !!!

The Sheriff says, " Get the police reports from the DA" .
The DA says, " Get them from the Sheriff".
The victims attorney doesn't get them at all, and that illegal, under State Law.

Sadly, the Press Democrat attributed statements to the victims- about "consensual touching" - which the victims categorically deny having ever made. This is simply unacceptable, ethically or politically.

But it meshes wonderfully with the miscarriage of justice that will occur if the DA fails to bring multiple felony charges against both Samii and Anderson-Heck, for kidnapping, and rape, and conspiracy to commit those crimes. While we wait to see what the DA does... let me ask you a question.

If I shake your hand - which is consensual touching - and then I slam your head repeatedly against some immovable object while violating you sexually, have you somehow given me tacit permission ?

Neither did the victims !

Could it be that the savvy criminal attorneys for the feloniously degenerate Heiress and her recently arraigned accomplice have managed to compromise not only due process- through their long time political and financial connections in our notoriously corrupt County Government - but now have also tainted the reporting of their crimes, charges, and the proceedings?

Could it be that the plight of the victims, and the violent crimes committed at Korbel Winery are of less importance to the P.D. than not disturbing our Heros of The Politics of Privilege and Deceit ?

[Anybody else in the area heard anything of this, or know anything that could shed more light on this?]

A Political Act

2006-03-13T11:22:00.000-05:00

From BuzzFlash:

On March 8, BuzzFlash ran an interview with Al Franken. The interview included this exchange:

BuzzFlash: You must be ecstatic that you didn't do an interview for the film "The Aristocrats." Are you familiar with the film?

Al Franken: I am. But I haven't worked up my "aristocrat." I suppose if I'd been asked to, I would have worked one up.

BuzzFlash: After you get elected, maybe you'll have to come up with the Senate version.

Al Franken: On the floor of the Senate - tell the aristocrat joke. I'd be the first senator to do that.

The problem with this is that if he actually told The Aristocrats joke on the Senate floor, he'd be escorted off in handcuffs and probably recalled in a landslide. Which is a shame, because it could go down in history as the only filibuster anyone actually listened to.

With that in mind, I humbly offer my take on this timeless joke:

A guy walks into a talent agent's office and says "Have I got an act for you!"

The agent asks "Yeah? What sort of act?" and the guy says,

"It's a political act. There's me, my running mate, our aides and media chums and their aides, plus a few non-union extras who work for less than minimum wage.

"First I walk on stage with a baby seal. I start feeding the baby seal endangered fish that I pull from a 55-gallon drum labeled 'Clean Water.' The fish have been soaking in mercury, polychlorinated biphenyls and crude oil. While the baby seal oinks and pukes and turns green, my running mate starts clubbing it with a 6-foot crucifix. Our media chums narrate this whole thing, explaining how we're making the environment safer for fish and baby seals. Then my running mate starts stuffing illegal campaign contributions into the seal's body cavity while slicing off layers of fat and passing the fat to the audience, while our aides pass out press releases explaining that the baby seal fat is actually safer than it was before I fed it mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls.

"Next, one of the non-union extras drives a huge HumVee onto the stage. We've modified it so it gets half a mile per gallon. It's belching out carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons like crazy. We've sealed all the ventilation ducts so the audience gets the full dose. This makes them light-headed, and more likely to find this entertaining. The HumVee has a banner on the side that says 'Blue Skies.' We start singing Louis Armstrong's 'What a Wonderful World,' in black-face and pickaninny voices. Al Jolson would be proud of this part.

"We truck in a bunch of crippled kids and tell them how compassionate we are, but then we rip up their Medicare checks, dump them out of their wheel chairs and order them off stage. They drag their disfigured bodies from the stage while we call them a drain on society and we sell their wheel chairs to GM for scrap metal.

"While this is going on, one of our media chums is having phone sex with his aide, describing unspeakable acts involving a falafel and a loofah, and he's masturbating the whole time. We patch into the call using an illegal wiretap and broadcast it over the PA system in the theater, and blame the mainstream liberal press for the repulsive content.

"A guy dressed as Jesus walks onstage and kicks a guy dressed as Mohammed in the crotch. Jesus tells the audience that they need to give all their money to him or go to Hell. Then Jesus picks up the crucifix we used to club the baby seal, and attaches strings to it. The strings are connected to the hands and feet of a woman in a persistent vegetative state. Jesus makes her dance around the stage like a marionette, and preaches about the Kingdom of Heaven.

"After that, Rush Limbaugh comes on stage and bloviates about the sanctity of marriage, the importance of personal responsibility, and how drug users should be locked up in prison. As he's delivering this monologue, we trot out an underage girl my running mate has knocked up the day before. We dangle a morning-after pill just out of her reach and lecture her on sexual abstinence. All her jumping up and down causes her to spontaneously abort her 1-day-old embryo.

"We carve Ronald Reagan's face onto a life-sized mock-up of the Statue of Liberty.

"Meanwhile, one of my aides is cleaning an assault rifle, which accidentally goes off and blows the head off a lady in the front row. He then gives a long-winded lecture on the 2nd Amendment, and again, personal responsibility.

"On a giant screen at the back of the stage, we play an endless loop of news coverage of a privileged white girl who went missing in Aruba.

"While this is going on, I start firing missiles at the studio next door, saying that the act over there is against family values and God, and they have weapons of mass destruction aimed at our studio. Then I do a pantomime of looking for the WMD under sofas and behind the curtains, laughing my ass off. I never find the WMD, but I keep insisting that the other studio was a dire threat to our studio.

"I explain how morally superior we are, and how we're the only ones who really understand personal responsibility and Christian values and abstinence and the sanctity of marriage and the evils of drug abuse.

"We all dance and slide around in the baby seal blood and fat and the dead lady's blood, and the PCBs and oil and the tears from the underage pregnant girl (Did I mention that she's homeless? She's homeless.). We're rubbing the blood and oil all over each other, slapping each other on the backs, congratulating ourselves on a job well done, and laughing at the homeless pregnant girl and waterboarding the guy dressed as Mohammed as he issues a fatwah against us and the entire audience.

"Then for the finale, we all join in a rousing chorus of 'Nearer My God To Thee.'

"Now, I know what you're thinking. You're thinking that the audience will walk out in droves and demand refunds. But that's the beauty. My running mate and I have cooked the books so that even after you hand out all the refunds, you still made more money than they originally paid. The audience has to pay for their tickets with their credit cards. We steal the credit card numbers and max them out to pay for the lavish party we throw after the show. Halliburton does the catering, so it costs about twice what it should.

"Now get this: We tape the whole show and broadcast it on Fox. Nobody watches it, but we paid Diebold to make the ratings-counters, so it will have the highest ratings in television history."

The agent says "Wow. That's a hell of an act. What do you call it?"

And the guy says "The Republicans!"

The Walrus

Programming note

2006-01-19T05:30:00.000-05:00

As you know I've been putting chapters of my book The Captains up at creativity for all to read. Unfortunately, Blogger has decided to screw with that blog regularly (not letting me post, word verification, calling it a spam blog) over the past few weeks and I'm tired of fighting with them. So, to avoid any more glitches, I'm moving it to Misc, where I will continue to post this afternoon. It looks like creativity is dead at Blogger, adjust your bookmarks accordingly. And always remember:

BLOGGER SUCKS WET MONKEY ASS!

Winter

2005-12-04T10:24:00.000-05:00

Winter showed up at my door this morning.

Retirement Home

2005-11-29T20:39:00.000-05:00

The Mrs. and I finally found the perfect place to retire to. It's on Boulevard de La Tour-Mauberg. Now all I have to do is scrape up 750K and beg the owner to sell it.

Did I mention it has 20ft. cielings?

Paris - Part 3

2005-11-29T20:21:00.000-05:00

Before we went out stomping all over the city, breakfast was at Le Recrutement.

The obligatory pic in the middle of the Champs. This one was taken at the intersection of Avenue Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Gorgeous.

One of our favorite spots in Eiffel Park.

Can you tell we love it here?

Paris - Part 2

2005-11-29T20:10:00.000-05:00

The F-man at the Arc de Triomphe.

Every time we walk though here, Tschaicovskiy's 1812 Overture starts playing in my head.

Sacre Coeur, 3 ways.

Paris - Part 1

2005-11-29T19:50:00.000-05:00

The Mrs. is passed out already, heh, so I figured I'd post a couple pics from vacation. Related to Skippy's post-vacation post (We actually stayed a couple blocks from him but we never hooked up), the outside of Musee d'Orsay.

And yes, it snowed like a motherfucker on Friday. The Mrs. at Tour Eiffel.

My lovely wife near Ille de St. Louis. She loves window shopping over there, especially a Russian store whose name eludes me.

She did serious shopping here, Galleries Lafayette, a must-stop when we're in Paris, already decked out in Christmas finery.

Yours truly braving the snow. Heh. It was fantastic and we were out for about 4 hours in it, walking down to the Louvre and then to the Champs.

Where were your balls when we needed 'em?

2005-11-06T13:00:00.000-05:00

From Rich Miles:

Those of us who opposed the near-election, then Supreme Court installation, then God forbid the RE-election of George W. Bush, have known at least the basic outlines of what is being said against Bush these days for at least 5 years, so the only part of the recent revelations that come as a surprise is the sheer brazen balls of these people, and the clarity of the perfidy they've perpetrated on America. Many in the blogosphere, and even a few in the MSM, have been saying things like this, with different details, for the entire time W has been on the national political radar, and some have suffered grievously for their efforts - witness Joseph Wilson, Valerie Plame (who did not herself ever do anything to harm the Bush administration), Gen. Eric Shinseki, Richard Clarke, Paul O'Neill, and a host of others recently documented by Nick Turse of TomDispatch.com.

So my question to these Bush-bashers-come-lately is: where the hell were you people when we needed you?

In the year 2004, those of us working our butts off to get Bush canned stood by and watched as pure lies, gross innuendo, delegated attack politics, guilt by alleged but never proven association, and religious-cum-patriotic posturing scuttled our man Kerry (with a little help from the man himself, it must be said), and caused the weak-minded, the magical thinkers, and the venal to re-elect the most corrupt president in American history because the filth came too fast and furious for anyone to counter, and most of our national news voices didn't really even try.

We knew. We tried to tell you. Almost everything we feared would happen in a second Bush term has come to pass, just as many of us predicted it would. And you weren't listening, and so your sudden epiphanies mean nothing to us.

I agree with the writer's sentiment, but I disagree with his last sentence somewhat. I'm glad the pundits have recovered somewhat from the effects of the Kool-aid and finally overcome their fear enough to speak out. Better late than never, I guess.

I'm gonna go out on a limb here. Please give this some consideration before you send me hate mail and start beating me about the head and shoulders with inflated pig bladders and such.

I'm glad Bush finally got elected.

Look, (he says, crawling somewhat fearfully out of his bunker in an undisclosed location), the big original sin was the rigged election in 2000, which the Chimp almost lost anyway. His backup was in place and his SC(R*)OTUS did their job and installed him. They probably wish they hadn't had to, but that was their job and they did it. *Republican.

By then it was too late. The neocons and christo-fascists had seized the prize.

Then they set about undoing this country. They got a gift on 9/11. Whether they bought it for themselves or not is a whole 'nuther matter, but it let 'em speed-shift their plans for U.S. hegemony into high gear and stuff their foot into the fuel pump.

We all know the results: steal from the poor, give to the rich, trap our military in Iraq with no plans to get them out. Probably with plans to keep them there forever. Rule the world, etc.

The saving grace for us is that these bastards, besides being blinded by their evil ideologies, are so incompetent they couldn't throw a beer party in a brewery. The arrogance of them thinking they own the joint once and for all and can do whatever they want doesn't hurt us in the long run either.

If John Kerry had been elected, and he may actually have been, he would have inherited the whole mess. The Democrats were so disjointed that, given the Republican-controlled Congress, he would not have been able to fix all of Bush's fuckups in his allotted four year term and the country would have elected another fucking Republican in '08. The Dems would never have recovered and America would have truly gone down the shitter under a permanent Republican regime.

With Bush's election, the Repubs have been handed enough rope to hang themselves. They could only keep up the snow job for so long. Stuff we all knew, and stuff that has been leaking out a little at a time for years, have bubbled up through the stinking mess and are making this criminal administration smell bad enough that people are actually beginning to notice. Witness the latest presidential popularity polls. I wonder how many voters regret their choice. I wonder how many would admit it.

It doesn't hurt even a little bit that the cabal is steppin' on each other's weenies and throwin' each other overboard. Whee! It's sure fun to watch!

There have been many voices crying in the wilderness about the Bush cabal, but by and large, nobody but us political junkies took any notice. I think one of the unsung journalistic heroes, probably unwitting, in the unraveling of the Repubs, is (G holds revolver to own head to force finger to do this) Bob Novak. The 'Douchebag for Liberty' gave voice to Joe Wilson, an actual hero, and the outcry gave rise to another hero, Patrick Fitzgerald. Right now, Tina Turner's "We Don't Need Another Hero" is running through my head. Sorry, Honey, but fuckin' A we do!

'Hero' may be too strong a term, but now that the Repub freak show is on the run a little, more and more of the heretofore meek people in the MSM and Congress are emerging, cautiously and tentatively, to throw rocks at their former masters' backs. The political heroes, Boxer, Pelosi, Reid, and others, who have been throwing rocks at their front for some time with little effect are finally getting some support. Let's hope it's a trend.

If the trend keeps up, particularly indictments, public trials, and -please, God- convictions, perhaps an impeachment, the public-at-large may finally take its head out of its collective ass and see this cabal for what it is. Once they do, they'll be so pissed off at being duped, lied to, and played for the suckers they are, though they'll never admit it out loud, that there won't be another Big Business And War At The Expense Of Everybody But The Elite Republican administration for a generation, maybe two, until memory does its stuff and everybody forgets. Then it can start over for all I care. I'll be long gone.

Personally, I'm still hoping for a huge White House play-for-pay homosexual scandal to come out, so to speak. That'd really blow the lid off!

The U.S.A. can get over this. We must or America ends. It will be hard, but we can do it starting with the next election. If we fail to correct it then, shame on us: we're stupid and deserve whatever we get. As Robert Redford said to Michael J. Pollard in "Little Fauss and Big Halsey", "Once is cool. Twice is queer."

Dogs . . . again

2005-11-06T09:40:00.000-05:00

Just watching GMA and another Pit Bull kills kid story is on. No link yet, but they did the story in July too. It's time for me to dig up this old standby and post it again too.

26 September 2004:

I know this isn't political, but it is a cause of mine. I posted this a couple months ago on The Fixer. I'm reposting it here today because I just got finished with the Town of Islip Animal Control officer. Seems that during the night, some motherfucking, no good, low-life, piece-of-shit, asshole decided he didn't want his dog anymore and chained him to my mailbox. Have I mentioned that my street has a 40 mph speed? This beautiful little spaniel boy was terrified when I found him this morning. He'd also showed signs of abuse, like someone thought it'd be fun to mutilate his tail. You'd better hope I don't find out who you are, asshole, or you'll know how it feels. At least now he's on his way to a better place, either to a loving home after a vet visit, or to meet the fate of millions of other dogs and cats in our nation's shelters. Either way, it's better than what he's used to.

You know I'm a dog lover and so's the Mrs. So, naturally I got a problem with a lot of folks who own dogs. Listen to me, please.

Don't get a fucking dog for stupid reasons. No, you're not going to breed the fucking thing. Just because you see how much puppies are going for, doesn't mean it's a 'get rich quick' scheme, you stupid motherfuckers. Being a breeder is hard work and you sure as hell don't know what the fuck you're doing. It's like never having popped the hood on a car, yet you suddenly feel you're qualified to open an auto repair shop. All you're gonna do is end up with a bunch of unwanted puppies. Here, I'll do you a favor. Google 'dog breeders' and send an email to five of them asking what the business entails. Then tell me you want to be a breeder. Did you know 3 million dogs and cats are put down every year because they're not wanted? Don't add to the fucking problem, dickhead.

Next, don't get a fucking Rottweiler, Doberman, Pit Bull, etc, as a penis extension, you idiot. Just like the sports car, you're only gonna be a little wiener with a bad dog. I see too many folks like this who want the dog as a status symbol and don't want to make the commitment to training and medical care. Moron, a dog is a twelve to fifteen year commitment on your part. It's just like having a kid. But hey, people have kids for the same stupid reasons. Think long and hard about it, please. (Kid or a dog, it doesn't matter. Be sure you want to make the commitment before you jump in with both feet. Just because you can, doesn't mean you should, ass.)

Next, if you're a compulsive person, and you see a cute little dog and you gotta have one, buy jewlery instead. At least you can hock it if you need the bread at a later date. Ain't nobody gonna buy a used dog, moron.

If you do decide to get a dog, do breed research. Every breed has their own traits (I wrote about my dog's foibles here.), so you have to see what will go best with you're lifestyle. If you're laid back and not into doing much training, a dog that requires a firm hand (Dobies, Rotties) ain't for you. Think Lab or Golden. Same thing if you got rugrats running around your house. All my friends' kids know not to run through my house because my Cattle Dog will try to herd them all back into one room:

Another thing is the dog, Mrs. F's little princess. She's short, but not little, muscular and strong as hell. If you know anything about Australian Cattle Dogs, they are smart, independent, and stubborn, sorta like me. Well, thanks to their breeding, Cattle Dogs herd cattle by nipping at their ankles to get them to go where the dog wants. Well, since our little Shayna has no cattle to work, she finds herself little jobs. One is getting us to the phone when it rings. If you've ever gotten a nip in the ass from one of these dogs well . . . let's just say it leaves a mark.

My point is that the dog looks at little kids as cattle. She tries to keep them together and won't let them run around. So today, not only do I have to keep an eye on the Mrs.' breakable shit, but I have to watch her little varmint like a hawk so she doesn't nip one of the kids. Can't break the dog of that habit, it's instinct.

If your kid gets nipped in the ankle by an Australian Cattle Dog, you're gonna have a lot of crying on your hands, trust me. If you're gonna get a mutt, use this rule of thumb. A mutt will generally act like the breed it most closely resembles.

My point is that if you're gonna get a dog, do it for the right reasons. Don't have big plans until you see what kind of dog you have, it's personality and it's traits. Get a dog because you want a pet and a companion. Anything else that flows from there is gravy.

Heed my words, Lugnut.

It's not the dog (yes, some dogs do have genetic mental problems but it's a small percentage of the whole) it's the owners. Dogs are either pets or tools. If your dog is a pet, you have to treat it like one and make it a part of your family. Chaining it to a dog house in the backyard or locking them in the basement and forgetting about them is only a recipie for disaster. They crave companionship and love as much as we do and a dog who's neglected develops the same problems as neglected children. Be responsible please.

Hoo boy

2005-11-05T10:20:00.000-05:00

To wit:

Stuttgart, Germany

The Hawker 144 business jet taxied to the private aviation area and shut down. A lone figure came down the stairs and went directly to the waiting Jaguar limousine. The car left quickly, the driver knowing his passenger's destination in advance.

Schloss Adlersee am Neckar was constructed in 1671 by Graf Ludwig von Adlersee as a retreat from the business of ruling this little section of Germany that had now become a major industrial area. Overlooking the River Neckar, the castle's battlements commanded the waterway, an excellent field of fire ensured against a landing by his enemies' troops. It was a medieval Gothic fort that had been updated into a luxurious home by the current owner.

Grafin Inge von Adlersee was the epitome of Aryan royalty. Though her title was purely ceremonial, von Adlersee lived the part of German Duchess. She had the money, the sole heiress of Herbert and Frieda von Adlersee, sole owners of von Adlersee Export of Stuttgart GmbH., a rail, truck, and shipping concern with operations in Stuttgart, Bremerhaven, Paris, London, and New York. Twenty-two year old Inge was an incredibly wealthy woman.

Beautiful as well, tall, a shade over six feet, golden hair, and sapphire blue eyes that could freeze boiling water. No one would think of her as anything but German, even with the deep bronze tan. Flatley noticed the tan and her beautifully proportioned figure as soon as she entered the parlor.

"Good evening, my Lord," she said in King's English.

"Guten abend, Grafin von Adlersee," he replied in flawless Hochdeutsch. She put her arms around his neck and drew him toward her, kissing his lips passionately. He slipped his tongue inside her mouth and she bit down on it, causing him to pull away.

"Not yet, liebling," she purred.

He tasted blood and she could see it aroused him. He came to her again and pulled her close, his smile was lustful. "I wish you hadn't gone to Nice, I missed you," he said before kissing her once more.

She let his tongue in her mouth then, letting him explore with it. "You could have come," her breath was ragged in his ear.

His bites on her neck went from playful to painful, and it stimulated her. "I have this nasty business to look over, my darling," he whispered. His manhood began to swell against her thigh. "And I don't do well in the sun." From afar, they heard one of the servants clear his throat. They released each other and turned to him.

"Dinner is served, my Lady," the butler said.

Inge kissed him again, and looked down at the erection that was tenting Flatley's pants. She took it in her hand and squeezed. "Keep that thought, my Lord."

. . .

His breath came quickly, ragged as she stood over him, and his erection felt as if it were about to burst. His hands were cuffed behind his back as he knelt there naked, on the floor of a room that could only have been built for one purpose.

"You English," she spat at him. "British men are weaklings."

"Yes, Mistress," he said, keeping his eyes focused on the floor as she circled him, her spike heels echoing through the room as they met the floor. She'd changed, from the formal gown into a leather outfit, reminiscent of the SS uniforms of Nazi Germany. She slapped the back of his head.

"The Americans fucked all your women during the war, at least that's what my grandfather told me," she said. She whipped him once across the shoulders with her riding crop and tears welled up in his eyes. "Your women liked the strong Americans much better than their pale little men."

"Yes, Mistress," he said demurely. Flatley's eyes found his manhood, his raging stiffness that screamed for release. Dampness appeared at the tip, which she noticed.

"Oh no you don't, weakling!" She slapped him again. "You will pleasure me first, before you may be allowed to feel pleasure. If your efforts are less than satisfactory, you will get no pleasure." She unbuckled, and then unzipped, her leather pants, the two gold zippers running from the waist to her ankle. Inge stepped out and kicked them away. Pulling a stool from the corner, she placed it before him and sat. With a gloved hand, she grabbed a shock of his wavy brown hair and spread her legs, pulling his face into her. "Pleasure me now." She forced the back of his head as he lapped at her like a thirsty animal.

. . .

"Don't you dare," Inge growled. She could tell Flatley was losing control and cracked her riding crop across his chest, raising another welt. When she deemed he'd earned this, she released him, only to bind his wrists and ankles to the bed. Inge straddled him, riding his manhood as if she were atop a horse, using her fingers to help her achieve release again. "I'm not finished," she moaned.

"I can't . . . hold it . . ."

"You will," and she slapped his face. She felt it then, the sensation that told her orgasm was imminent, and she slammed herself down on him, harder, burying him inside her wetness. "Oh, yes," she screamed as waves of pleasure wracked her body.

"Please, Mistress, I can't . . ." Flatley pleaded. She rose from him and untied one of his arms before straddling his face.

"You may," she conceded, and he took his free hand to bring himself the rest of the way while his tongue explored her, bringing her to release once more.

From Technocracy - © 2005 RH Wood and Blue Dog Ltd.

Or:

Sedona, Arizona

Kim, Winters, and Clayton sat in the back of the S-76, the four surviving policemen were handcuffed facing them, their eyes directed to the floor for they knew that they had died last night when NoahCorp security took them into custody. What would happen in a few minutes was just a formality. Their destination was just over the next ridge.

. . .

Many years ago, a researcher named Pavlov put forth the hypothesis of conditioned response. He would ring a bell just before he fed his research dogs. He done this for a period, and then one day, he rang the bell, but was not forthcoming with the dogs' dinner. Pavlov found that the dogs would salivate upon hearing the bell in anticipation of food. Dogs, most of the theories in training them involved the conditioned response. This didn't only apply for domesticated dogs.

They began to salivate when they heard the rotor blades of the S-76 for they were dogs, and this was a conditioned response. This secluded valley was where these dogs lived, not domesticated dogs and not wolves. These were the feral dogs of the Australian Outback, the dingoes. Numbering close to a hundred, the dingoes were fed every day by helicopter, and they were fed live meals, mainly feral pigs, also a product of the Australian wilderness and a danger to the ecosystem there. NoahCorp subsidized efforts to capture the pigs and transport them to Sedona as food for the dingoes. Twice daily, a helicopter would fly low and drop several live feral pigs to the dogs.

As the chopper approached, the dogs began to circle, their drooling jaws pointing skyward in anticipation of their breakfast.

. . .

The helicopter pulled into a hover and Winters opened the side door. The dingoes below, seeing the door open, began to get agitated. Clayton removed the cuffs from one of the policemen. Kim nodded to Winters.

"This is for Carrie," she snarled as she grabbed him by his garments and threw him from the aircraft.

"Watch," Winters growled at the remaining three. They raised their eyes to see their comrade trying to stand, the dingoes circling him. A milky white bone stuck from his arm at a crazy angle, the compound fracture earned by his fall from the chopper. Blood poured from it onto the ground; some of the dogs began lapping at the dark stain, then at the blood dripping from his fingers into their drooling mouths.

His head spun from side to side, looking for a place of safety to which he could run. The dogs began shriek then, as only dingoes do, agitation was turning into frenzy among the pack. The Alpha dog, the dominant male, circled the prey, biting and shrieking at others who would try to eat before him. Alpha surged toward the man, and the pack followed in their insane bloodlust, to nip at his ankles, then his calves. He started to run.

One of the three turned his head to the floor, unable to watch what was coming, for the dingoes tasted the blood now, and they were hungry. Winters smashed the butt of her pistol into his face.

"Watch," she demanded and the man raised his eyes to see the dingoes take his comrade down; first tearing at his clothes then the flesh beneath. In their frenzy, they tore at him, and he screamed, inaudible to those in the helicopter, but he screamed at them for his life or to end it quickly, and he screamed for another excruciatingly long minute as the wild dogs tore him apart.

Kim nodded at Winters and the next man met the same fate, and the next, until the last, and this was done on purpose, for the last living member of Masterson's private army was a woman.

Kim looked to her now, the front of her clothes covered with her own vomit, her eyes glazed over after watching the horror that would surely visit her in a minute. "Do you want to live?" Kim asked quietly, a hatred glowing in the jade orbs.

"Yes," the shattered woman replied from that far off place.

"Will you cooperate with us, truthfully?"

"Yes, I will, I will do anything not to die like that," she said as vomit rose in her throat again.

Kim nodded to Clayton who spoke to the pilot. "Take us back."

From Lightning Crashes - © 2002 RH Wood and Blue Dog Ltd.

From the mouth of Babes Babs

2005-11-03T19:38:00.000-05:00

For all our Kal-ee-for-nya voters, here's an e-mail from Senator Babs to my wife laying it all out. She never sends me anything! Oh well, I guess the gals stick together.

Dear Mrs. G,

Next Tuesday, Californians will head to the polls to vote in a special election organized by Governor Schwarzenegger and his right-wing allies. It's critical that we stand up and be counted on these important issues.

So I wanted to take just a moment to write to you since many of you have asked me how I plan to vote.

Please join me in voting NO on 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, and 78, and YES on 79. Here's why:

VOTE NO on Proposition 73

Proposition 73 is just the latest attempt by right-wing conservatives to take away a woman's right to choose. This dangerous measure would jeopardize the health of our teenagers, when we should instead be focusing our efforts on preventing teen pregnancy. Prop. 73 unwisely tries to legislate family communication and unrealistically expects teenagers to navigate through a cumbersome and confusing judicial process.

As the San Francisco Chronicle said in their editorial opposing Prop. 73, "The way to reduce abortion is not a law that requires frightened young women to either face a judge or the wrath of their parents. It's about increasing communication -- about sex, about choices, about consequences -- that prevents an accidental pregnancy in the first place." Vote NO on 73.

VOTE NO on Proposition 74

Proposition 74 is an effort to divert attention from the real problems facing California's public schools by turning teachers into scapegoats. The initiative does nothing to improve California's public schools -- and could actually harm them by making it harder to recruit good teachers.

Schools in California can already dismiss teachers found to be deficient during their first two years of service without a hearing. In fact, every local school has a system in place to deal with struggling teachers. At a time when we should be encouraging people to choose a career in teaching, Prop. 74 will hurt those recruitment efforts by not affording due process to those in the teaching profession who do so much for California's children. Vote NO on 74.

VOTE NO on Proposition 75

Prop. 75 targets teachers, nurses, firefighters and police officers with new political restrictions designed to weaken their ability to advocate for better schools, patient care, and public safety. That's why campaign watchdogs like the League of Women Voters of California oppose Prop. 75. Corporations already outspend unions on politics 24-1, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics. Yet the governor's corporate campaign contributors put Prop. 75 on the ballot to increase their grip on our government, and make it easier for the governor to pass his harmful agenda. Vote NO on 75.

VOTE NO on Proposition 76

Proposition 76 is an attempted power grab by Governor Schwarzenegger that gives him the power to bypass the legislature and make cuts to the budget without any oversight or public approval. Prop. 76 does not protect education funding -- and it would in fact reduce the long-term Prop. 98 school spending guarantee by $4 billion per year. Under Prop. 76, local governments could also lose hundreds of millions of dollars for police, firefighters, health care and social service programs. Vote NO on 76.

VOTE NO on Proposition 77

Proposition 77 is a flawed redistricting initiative that cuts out the public, has no accountability provision, and is unfair to those most underrepresented.

This is another clear power grab by the Governor and his allies who reach all the way to the most conservative Republicans in Washington, DC. Vote NO on 77.

VOTE NO on Proposition 78 and VOTE YES on Proposition 79

Everybody knows we need to do more to make prescription drugs more affordable. So let's do it right.

Proposition 79 will provide real prescription drug discounts to seniors and lower income Californians who need them the most. Prop. 79 will also establish a pharmacy assistance program to help businesses, small employer purchasing pools, and labor organization health and welfare funds -- among others -- receive the same pharmacy discounts and rebates from drug makers. Finally, drug companies would be held accountable by a state advisory board that would review the pricing and access of prescription drugs under the program.

Prop. 79 will make a difference. Proposition 78, on the other hand, calls for a voluntary system and at the end of the day will mean little or nothing for the people of California. So vote NO on 78 and YES on 79.

In Friendship,

Barbara Boxer

Thanks, Babs, but we're way ahead of you. The real reason to vote no on Ah-nold's proposals is that he proposed them. He spent about $80mil on this idiotic special election hoping nobody but his supporters would show up to vote. Fuck him. Prop 78 is sponsored by Big Pharma, so that's no, and we're not doing anything to diminish a woman's right to choose or place her in jeopardy, so 73 is out.

Sunday chores

2005-10-16T11:01:00.000-04:00

Of course, I couldn't just build shelves. They had to tie in with the theme of the room. Yes, I made the gate too. (Pardon the mess, I still got a little more detail work to do.)

As you can see, the anal German in me surfaces when I build shit. This was unfinished basement once. Well, until I got a hold of it. Now it's my office/bedroom.

My office.

The bedroom is past the arch.

Yes, I built the desk too.

My adult supervision.

Update:

Mrs. F added her touch to turn it into a garden.

10 Pledges to Demand from Democrats

2005-10-13T13:12:00.000-04:00

I'm more than a little leery about anything that even sounds like it resembles a "Contract with America" after the last time, given that politicians will sign anything that sounds good even though they know nobody will hold them accountable so they don't have to live up to it. This one from AlterNet sounds good anyway.

You hear it every day in Washington: "Democrats have no ideas, no programs, no deeply held beliefs, no lines in the sand they will not cross." The only discernible passion Democrats display is a passion to be in power again. But in power to do what? You tell me. I have no friggin idea, and I deeply suspect neither do they.

That's why we need to force them to sign a contract with us this time. To put it bluntly, we don't trust them any longer. They've double-crossed at every major moment -- on war, on taxes, on the environment, on health care. They took or votes and our hopes and bargained them away to the enemy for the political equivalent of nylons, smokes and chocolate bars.

So I took the points Bob listed in his article, "embellished" them and put them into the form of 10 contractual pledges Democrat candidates can and should embrace.

A Progressive Contract With America

If elected to office I promise to fully, enthusiastically and aggressively work to pass legislation that achieves the following goals:

We Will Bring the Troops Home. Our military has been stretched to the breaking point through a series of unwise deployments, particularly the war in Iraq. We will begin rebuilding America's all-volunteer military by first setting a date-certain for withdrawal from Iraq, beginning with National Guard and reservists. We will pass legislation requiring US troops begin leaving Iraq at the rate of 15,000 a month. We will work as closely as possible with Iraqi government officials to make this withdraw orderly while continuing to provide them the resources needed to train and equip their own soldiers and police forces.

We Will Crack Down on Corruption. The revolving door between corporate lobbies and high public office must be closed. We will pass legislation prohibiting legislators, their senior aides and executive branch political appointees from lobbying for two years after leaving office. We will let the sun shine into the deepest corners by requiring detailed public reporting of all contacts between lobbyists and legislators and the timely posting of such contacts on the Web. We pledge to apply these rules to all, regardless of party, as one way to take big money out of politics.

We Will Make Public Officials Accountable. When public officials fail to do their job, as in the pre-9/11 and WMD intellegence faliures, we will require an independent investigation be launched so that no official's actions, regardless of rank or position, escapes review. We will detail action on the urgent needs that this Administration has ignored: Improve port security, bolster first responders and public health capacity, and require adequate defense planning by high-risk chemical plants. And we will attack fraud, waste and abuse, beginning with the pork-barrel squandering of national security funds.

We Will Unleash New Energy for America. We understand that the "age of oil," is nearing an end. Therefore we pledge to launch and fund a concerted drive towards real energy independence for America. We must approach this task with the same sense of urgency, funding and attention that the nation gave to the Manhattan Project. We will focus these efforts solely on mainstreaming renewable, non-polluting sources of energy such as hydrogen, wind and solar, with the goal of achieving total energy independence no later than 2020.

We Will Rebuild America First. We will pass legislation rescinding Bush's tax cuts for the already wealthy and corporations in order to create more jobs here than overseas. We will accomplish that, in part, by using the additional tax revenue to create good-paying jobs rebuilding America's decaying infrastructure.

We Will Make Work Pay Once Again. There are only three nations on earth with such a vast disparity between rich and poor, Russia, Mexico and the United States. It is a disgraceful effect of GOP economic policies that favor corporations and the wealthy while ignoring hard working Americans. While CEO pay has moved steadily upward, the pay of working Americans has fallen, in many cases below the official poverty level. We promise to reverse that trend, beginning by passing legislation raising the minimum wage to a level that reflects current economic reality. We will encourage workers, including white collar workers, to take a hand in their own destinies by joining unions, as well as becoming shareholders in the companies that employ them and fully participating in both union and shareholder activities. We will insist that any companies that receive government contracts pay the prevailing wage.

We Will Make Healthcare Affordable. We pledge to fix America's broken healthcare system, a to do so quickly. We will study and then propose a single-payer, universal, healthcare system to be in place no later than 2015. We will also immediately reverse the Republican shameful sellout to the pharmaceutical industry by empowering Medicare to bargain down drug prices andallowing people to purchase drugs from safe outlets abroad.

We Will Protect Retirement Security. We pledge to strengthen Social Security. We will not risk Social Security by privatizing it. Instead we will modernize Social Security by, in part, recognizing that people live and work longer than they did 75 years ago.We will also modernize the ways the Social Security Trust Fund is invested to assure it always grows at least as fast as core inflation. We will also require companies to treat the shop floor like the top floor when it comes to managing their pensions and healthcare benefits.

We Will Keep the American Dream Alive. We will immediately stop and reverse current GOP efforts to cut eligibility for college grants and to limit loans. Instead we will offer a contract to American students: If they graduate from high school, they will be able to afford college or the higher technical training needed to be successful in today's economy. We will pay for this by preserving the estate tax on the wealthiest multimillion-dollar estates in America.

We Will Provide Real Security for America. We will foster and lead an aggressive international alliance to track down stateless terrorists, capture or kill them and confiscate their assets. Captured terrorists will be always be treated in accordance with international law. We will increase efforts and funding to track down and secure "loose nukes." We will detail action on the urgent needs that this Administration has ignored: Improve port security, bolster first responders and public health capacity, and require adequate defense planning by high-risk chemical plants. We will also affirm the reality that no nation can ever be secure as long as its borders are not. We will bring order and security to our borders by increasing border patrols and controls and by instituting a fair, manageable and humane guest worker program. We will also aggressively prosecute employers who employ or exploit illegal immigrant workers.

Date:______________________

Candidate:______________________________________

So, maybe you should email or mail this to your elected representative and let him/her know that, if they intend to run for re-election the price of your vote is their signature on this document.

In other words, "We'll do what we should have been doing all along." Your thoughts?

Yesterday's excuses

2005-10-09T08:20:00.000-04:00

Mrs. F and yours truly were at the wedding of our oldest and closest friends' oldest daughter. (Say it a couple times, it works) Needless to say, we had far too much fun. It was wonderful, though I feel a bit old, because I've known these kids all their lives. An excellent coincidence, the wedding was held at the country club that's 2 blocks from my house. The car found its way home by itself.

1 - My beautiful wife and me after too much Jack Daniels and Absolut.

2 - The bride's two younger sisters. The one on the left gets married next year. Gotta go to Boston for that one.

3 - Yours truly, the bride's little brother, and the proud daddy.

4 - With the beautiful bride. I remember when she was an annoying little rugrat.

5 - Mrs. F with the mother of the bride (Mrs F's best friend) and the next victim. Heh.

6 & 7 - Me with mom and dad.

Me and my big mouth

2005-10-07T06:15:00.000-04:00

As regular readers of the Brain know, I speak my mind. Everybody knows where they stand with me. There's no guessing if I like you or not. If I don't you'll know it.

Anyway, it's with this attitude I pay my property taxes twice a year . . . in person. It's the one time I can get in my local politicians' faces . . . well, two times a year. They have to deal with me too because I give 'em $4000 at a clip. I also went to school with the Town Supervisor's (mayor's) useless piece-of-shit son.

So, for the last 5 years (10 visits to Town Hall), I've been bitching about illegal multiple family dwellings. We've got big problems there because our tax base is small enough. The schools suck, we don't have sewers or sidewalks, and most of the single-family houses have been turned into illegal, multi-family apartments with absentee landlords. They're still paying taxes for single-family dwellings.

So, I've been on this code enforcement kick. Now, I'm not one to turn in neighbors, that's up to the town when they do the checks they're supposed to do, so I bitch at them to do their jobs. Generally, I get a pat on the head and "We're working on it".

Okay.

So last week, I'm in the yard walking the dog. I got an old Taurus (my daily driver until I blew the transmission) in my yard, not on the road. I got it hid behind a bushy evergreen so it's not an eyesore and you can't see it from the street. So what do I see on it as I'm walking the dog? 3 tickets. They had to walk halfway through my yard to get to it and put tickets on it. I'm pissed now. Even cops don't enter my yard without my knowlege and these code enforcement rent-a-cops have the balls? We'll see.

The next day, I head off to Town Hall, tickets in hand. I get there early, because the Town Supervisior doesn't park in his assigned spot, doesn't even use the town vehicle. He drives this beat up old Nissan and parks it in with the regular folks because too many people want to kill him. This is the same guy who named a wing of our local airport after himself, the one with the useless piece-of-shit son.

So, I'm there early, parked in the back of the lot, wating for him to show. As soon as he pulls in, I hop out the truck and make a beeline for him, tickets in hand. "You son of a bitch," I say. "Is this payback for my bitching?"

Needless to say, he has no idea what I'm talking about. "They came into my yard to put these on my car," I shove the tickets in his face. I go into the usual, "if I catch one of your assholes in my yard, I'll be calling you to bring bodybags."

"Shut up," he says, snatching the tickets from me and looking them over. "I'll take care of this," he sticks them in his jacket pocket and then looks me over.

"Tell me if I'm wrong," he says to me. "These tickets are all deserved?"

"Well . . . yeah," I agree. I did break about a half-dozen local ordnances by having an unlicensed, unregistered, uninsured car on my property.

"Rich, my boy," I hate it when guys I don't like get fatherly with me. He throws his arm over my shoulder. "You got 30 days to get that piece of crap out your yard or under a cover, or I'll send code enforcement back out."

"Fair enough," I say. "But why break my balls? I keep my yard nice, I don't bother anybody, and I only piss you off twice a year."

He stops, looks me straight in the eye, and says, "aren't you the one who bitches the loudest about enforcing local codes? You should be happy we're finally doing our jobs. We're breaking everybody's balls." He smiles, slaps me on the shoulder, and leaves me standing there. Guess I shouldn't have bitched so loudly.

Still working . . .

2005-09-26T17:09:00.000-04:00

Now, I can't just build bookshelves. That would be too easy. I gotta make 'em fit in somewhere. Since I already built a set under the stairs (it's a nice little alcove), I figured I'd build the new ones across from the old.

And of course, I can't just throw a back on 'em. That would be boring.

I cut up all them little strips of 1/2" ply. I like plywood for shit I'm gonna paint. I make the carcass out of good shit, just so it doesn't warp under the weight, but I can get creative with the fascias using the ply. (Painting doesn't require as much finish work either.)

Shayna, the Supervisor.

These are the ones I built a couple years back.

You want a plan?

2005-09-05T15:34:00.000-04:00

The Dems have a plan.

Katrina Relief Plan for Senate Action This Week

Although the Congress last week appropriated $10.5 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Defense Department, it is clear much more will be needed given the enormity of this disaster. While government authorities and others assess the scope of the problem and decide how much additional funding will be needed to address specific problems, there are a number of legislative items the Senate can and should promptly approve that can help Katrina’s victims. After the Senate has completed action on this emergency legislation, we hope the Senate will quickly provide significant new funding, and consider other substantive proposals that could help address short- and medium-term needs. These proposals must be followed by a much broader, long-term effort to rebuild and rehabilitate the Gulf Coast region and substantially improve efforts to prevent, mitigate and respond to future disasters.

The following are just some examples of proposals that Senate Democrats believe deserve immediate Senate action this week:

Ensuring health care for all displaced victims

* Immediate access to Medicaid for displaced victims.
* No need to prove residency or assets
* No copayments
* No penalties for failing to sign up for Medicare Part B in time.

To ensure access to medical care, we should ensure immediate access to Medicaid for displaced victims. Paperwork requirements should be streamlined and asset requirements waived to ensure that victims, many of whom have no legal documents in their possession, can enroll in the program with little red tape. Residency requirements for participation should not apply to these victims to allow them to obtain health care services around the country. In addition, copayments should be waived for these people as they struggle to meet other needs as well. The Federal government should bear the full cost of these changes, and ensure that no affected state suffers a reduction in Federal Medicaid funding (their “match rate”) for other populations. This proposal is based on a similar successful initiative after the September 11 disaster.

We also should provide compensation to health care providers who provide a disproportionate share of the care for these victims.

Displaced victims should not be penalized for late enrollment in Medicare Part B because they have become newly-eligible or have lost coverage from another plan during this time. Similarly, everyone from the affected states should have an additional year to enroll in the new Medicare drug benefit and its low income subsidies. The automatic transition of dual eligible beneficiaries from Medicaid to Medicare drug coverage should be delayed in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama, with the Federal government bearing the full cost of those people continuing Medicaid drug coverage.

Getting victims housing

* Emergency housing vouchers for displaced victims
* Expedited application procedures with no red tape.
* No tenant contributions until they find work.
* Tax incentives for private families to take in victims.
* Identify federal facilities that can house victims.
* Relief for homeowners facing threat of foreclosure

FEMA has said that up to 1 million people may need housing assistance. The Senate therefore should immediately authorize the Department of Housing and Urban Development to create and distribute temporary emergency housing vouchers to victims, without many of the restrictions that apply under the existing Section 8 low-income voucher program. For example, victims should not have to document their income levels, and tenant contributions should be waived until they find work. HUD also should be authorized to increase existing limits on allowable rents given the likelihood that rents in Gulf Coast areas will increase substantially for the foreseeable future. HUD needs to take over primary responsibility for distributing vouchers since many of the region’s local housing authorities are not functioning at full capacity, if at all.

Given the scarcity of rental housing, we will need to rely on private individuals and families to provide free room and board to victims. To encourage this, we should immediately approve a tax subsidy for those who provide such assistance to Katrina’s victims.

To help identify locations to house victims, the Administration should be required, within 10 days, to release an inventory of federal civilian and defense facilities that can be used to provide emergency housing, or as locations for the construction or deployment of temporary housing units.

We should increase aid to owners of damaged homes by waiving current law caps on home repair assistance (now $5200) and home replacement assistance (now $10,200). In addition, we should waive a requirement that individuals leave their home to qualify for home repair assistance, a rule that threatens to exacerbate an already massive demand for shelter in the region.

We should reestablish the Temporary Mortgage and Rental Program, which has been used in the past, including after the September 11 disaster, to provide assistance to homeowners and renters facing financial hardship. This could be important for many victims who otherwise could lose their homes through foreclosure.

Getting victims to family members and friends

Many of Katrina’s victims have little or no access to transportation. Although FEMA has legal authority to address this, the agency seems overwhelmed and has proven unable on its own to meet the compelling needs of countless numbers of stranded victims. We therefore need to make this a White House priority and direct the President to lead a broad effort to quickly ensure that displaced victims can get to family, friends and others who can provide them with room and board.

Getting students into school

Many of Katrina’s victims are children who need to enroll in a new school. To encourage schools to accept these victims, and alleviate some of the resulting burdens, we should provide funding to school districts that accept displaced children. This funding could be used to hire additional teachers, teachers’ aides, or counselors, or to provide temporary expansions of classrooms. A similar program should be provided for institutions of higher education that admit displaced students.

Bringing victims’ families together and placing them with other families

The government should establish a toll free “800” number and web site through which victims could access a national victim database and information about available assistance. Displaced individuals could register and provide contact information, so that separated family members and friends could find each other. The database also would allow volunteers to sign up if they are willing to provide free shelter to victims.

Getting victims cash to meet other basic needs

To ensure that victims can get cash for their basic needs, we should strengthen and expand the Disaster Unemployment Insurance Program and automatically extend any expiring UI benefits that victims are receiving. We also should give the President authority to increase the $26,200 statutory cap on cash assistance through the Individuals and Households Program, and should waive the 25 percent matching requirement for States in the Gulf region. In addition, victims should be allowed to withdraw funds from individual retirement accounts (IRA’s) penalty-free, with extra contributions permitted later.

Providing financial relief to victims and National Guard

Katrina’s victims, and National Guard involved in disaster operations, should not be obligated to make payments to the Federal government in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. There should be a short term moratorium on obligations such as:

Student loans
Individual and corporate income taxes
Small business loans

In addition, disaster victims filing for bankruptcy should be treated differently under the bankruptcy code in recognition of their particular hardship.

Ensuring victims have access to food

We should ensure that the many victims of Katrina who are struggling to obtain food have access to food stamps through a streamlined application process. States should be provided relief from the additional costs associated with administering the food stamp program for victims.

Restoring order

We should provide law enforcement funding where needed to help protect innocent citizens from crime and to ensure that there are places in which to imprison dangerous criminals. In addition, we should authorize federal courts to convene outside of their ordinary location in the event of an emergency, such as the massive flooding caused by Hurricane Katrina.

Helping victims get jobs

Private employers should be given an incentive to hire displaced victims by temporarily qualifying them for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, which can reduce an employer’s tax liability by up to $2400 per qualified new worker. In addition, the Federal government should establish a temporary preference for hiring displaced victims who are qualified for jobs.

Moreover, many displaced workers now lack the documents they need to secure employment under Federal law, such as passports and birth certificates. This law should be relaxed temporarily so that victims can legally obtain work without such documents, so long as they can provide a valid Social Security number.

Supporting the National Guard

We should ensure that Guard units serving in the Gulf Coast effort be considered to have been mobilized under Title 32 (they are currently mobilized through the states). This would qualify them for federal benefits and ensure that their service counts as active duty for the purposes of retirement, health care, and other benefits. It also would make them eligible for the Family Separation Allowance if separated from their families for more than 30 days, and could provide relief from creditors and foreclosures.

Requiring accountability

We should require the President to submit regular reports to the Congress on the status of recovery efforts, the number of victims who remain without decent housing, jobs, etc., and any additional resources or action needed to address the crisis.

Don't let it be said that the Dems can't come up with anything. From Atrios.

Insulting Potemkin

2005-09-05T07:44:00.000-04:00

Billmon admits he does it:

[. . .]

Of course, calling Bush the Potemkin president is actually a gross insult to the genuine article -- Prince Grigory Potemkin, the man who allegedly had fake villages constructed on the shores of the Dnieper River in order to impress the Czarina Catherine during an official inspection tour.

[. . .]

But history also tells us the real Prince Potemkin was a hard-working, conscientious public servant who carried out his duties with considerable skill. At this point, it's looking less and less likely that history will ever say the same about Shrub.

[. . .]

He goes on to draw parallels between Bush and the last days of the Nazi regime:

[. . .]

For many Germans -- fanatical Nazis as well as the naive and the weak-minded -- believing Hitler's absurd promises of ultimate victory was the only alterrnative to accepting a world in which evil (Bolshevism, world Jewry) had triumphed and good (National Socialism, the Aryan superman) had failed. Such a world was either unimaginable, or unendurable.

Likewise, for the conservative ultras to accept Bush's failures now would be to admit the patriotic demi-God constructed after 9/11 by the White House propaganda machine (and, ironically, by the mainstream media ) doesn't exist. All that would be left would be the real Bush: the incompetent, arrogant rich kid who's failed at every significant job he's ever held -- from CEO of Arbusto Energy to commander in chief of the planet's most powerful military machine. For many Bushistas, this is equally unbearable.

[. . .]

An excellent post, though I don't completely agree with his final conclusions (I still have faith in my fellow Americans they will correct their political mistakes), I do believe we have some serious work to do on our system of government. Don't groan, but yes, it's time for another excerpt:

[. . .]

Sedona, Arizona

Dinner had been spectacular, both Mariana and Soledad combining their talents to produce a Mexican feast. Most of NoahCorp's senior staff was on hand, as well as the President's people. They'd all retired to the library, breaking into small knots of those from both groups who shared common interests. Clarke spotted Kim near the door and sidled up to her.

"I like the shirt," Clarke said, modeling the polo shirt that had been placed in his quarters. It was blue, with the ubiquitous Ark and Animals embroidered on the left breast and the words 'The Man' on the right.

She smiled at him. "I figured you would, Mr. President. Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Indeed," he agreed. "Jen and I got a chance to go riding before dinner. We haven't done that since the boys were young."

"The view of the valley is awesome from Dead Man's Rock; isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. You've done so much here, yet preserved the natural beauty."

"You can thank Kate Beu for that. In five years, all of our facilities worldwide will be environmentally friendly."

"I can thank Kate Beu for that dull ache at the base of my skull," Clarke said. "How do you put up with her on a daily basis?"

"Kate and I have known each other half our lives," she said. "She's been that way since she was young. I guess I'm used to her."

"The flautas were wonderful,"Amy Stokes said as she made her way over to them.

"Yes, I'm debating declaring eminent domain over Mariana and Soledad and bring them to cook at the White House," Clarke announced with a smile.

"They're not going anywhere," Kim countered. "Neither Kate nor I can cook worth a damn." She took three snifters from the sideboard and poured them each cognac. "Why don't we take a walk?" They followed her down the front hall, out the front door, and across the drive onto the sand. It was a warm eighty degrees for this time of year and this time of night and Stokes stepped out of her shoes, walking barefoot by the shore.

"We have things to discuss, Mr. Clarke," Kim said, taking a deep sniff at the top of the glass.

"Yes, we do," he agreed. "I believe we must work out our differences in order for both of us to fulfill our responsibilities." He was being magnanimous, giving her an opening, but she wasn't ready to take it just yet.

"I am able to fulfill my responsibilities with or without your help. You are the one having the problem separating business from personal."

"Then why did you have us here? Why didn't you just tell me to go to Hell when I asked to meet with you?"

"Because I want to work with you," she said, turning to face him. "I believe we both know the choices that will have to be made over the next few years, and I believe that you and I share the same vision."

"So Steve and Amy keep telling me," he said, taking a sip of cognac. Clarke looked to Stokes, who'd moved farther down the shore, aimlessly strolling through the shallows. "Yet I have no idea of what you envision for this country. I can't help thinking you got me into the White House so I can be your rubber stamp."

"Have I asked you for anything since you've been elected?"

"Aside from Kate Beu ranting at me weekly, no," Clarke admitted.

"But you're still sitting there, ineffective for a year, waiting for the other shoe to drop; am I right?" She stopped, sipping her drink.

He looked at her for a moment, wondering about the depth of this young woman. "Partly; but I'd also like to know what you envision for the future, where you see the country going over the next five years. You have the resources to do so much and I believe we can cooperate in certain areas," he tried the offer again.

"That is a given," she nodded, "look at what we're doing in space. Within the year, the work on MarsPort will begin. It would have taken the government fifty years to get this far if NASA was still in sole control of space."

"Exactly," Clarke agreed. "And the power plant replacement is another area where we agree." Another example of the revolutionary nature of the Force Engine was the ability to produce them to fit many applications, from powering lawnmowers to providing electricity for whole cities. NoahCorp and the federal government had begun a program to replace all of the oil, coal and natural gas fired power-generating plants with the pollution-free Force units.

"I'm glad you brought that up, Mr. President," Kim said as they resumed the walk, the house now only small glowing points of light. "We've been planning, for some time now, to begin the same type of program in more depressed parts of the world."

"Such as?"

"We have an initiative package prepared for the African continent and we'd like your support with it."

"What kind of incentives?"

"A socio-economic package, sir; consisting of a plan to improve the infrastructure and the standard of living. We plan to start with an electrification project in Kenya."

"Africa is a quagmire, Kim," Clarke warned. "The political situation is unstable, even in countries we consider democratic. Until they become organized, I doubt you'll have much company over there. I'm sure you know that you stand to lose a lot if the political situation goes to Hell."

"We intend to help them with that, as well as set an example to American business that it is safe to invest in Africa."

"What kind of help?" Clarke could just imagine, and Kim didn't answer. "I will not be part of a coup," he said.

"Who said anything about a coup?" Kim shook her head. "General Okwu is the best thing for Kenya. He just needs to get his priorities straight. We intend to show him the path to salvation," she let a giggle sneak out.

"So what do you want of me?"

"We'd like you to support him, and his position."

"The United States already does, as we do with all the African democracies."

"But you'll drop him like a bad habit if things become unstable over there. I'd like you to solidify your support for him, maybe work out an agreement for the U.S. to train their army the right way. It would do much for world opinion if you helped change them from uniformed thugs into real soldiers."

"Okwu's grip on the military is tenuous. The military power is in the hands of local governors, not the man in Nairobi," Clarke suggested.

"That will change," she told him. "We would like you to support him when those changes take place. He will need a strong ally."

"He's a crook, Kim. Why do you think we only send humanitarian aid to them? We have to step lightly with regard to getting involved with him militarily."

"We'd like you to get involved environmentally as well," Kim said, ignoring his response. "We'd like the U.S. military to help them with the poaching problem, as well as the administration of Kenya's national parks."

"I can't just call up and say we're sending the Army in to round up their criminals for them."

"No, that would be pretty obnoxious;" Kim agreed, nodding her head. "I'd wait until they asked you for help."

"What makes you think Okwu will ask?"

"We're sending a delegation to Nairobi on Monday to point out the error of Okwu's ways. Kate Beu and Billie Jean Westover will be overseeing things."

"Kate isn't really the diplomat, my dear," Clarke said with a laugh.

"Billie Jean will make sure she doesn't start a war. Would the First Lady be willing to join the delegation?" Kim asked before taking another sip of the cognac.

Clarke stopped again. "That would imply the tacit support of the U.S. government, at least from the administration. I don't know if I want to put us in that position, and it also links the administration too closely with your interests. The Republicans are still grumbling about your involvement with the Democratic Party."

"Let them grumble. There will be delegates from Ford, GM, Bright Star Internet, and DataLink International, to name a few, it wouldn't be just NoahCorp."

"NoahCorp owns ten percent of Ford and fifteen percent of General Motors and Bright Star and DataLink are NoahCorp spin-offs. It's thin cover, Kim." Clarke had to smile.

"But I can get away with it and so can Jen. Public opinion is on my side and the country loves her. They will not care about the relationship between NoahCorp and the others."

"George Felder won't like this. We only have a consulate in Nairobi since the bombings there in the nineties, and the lack of an ambassador would require him to make the overtures to General Okwu. He'd have to leave for Africa tomorrow morning."

"From what I hear, there isn't much past routine and mundane going on over at Foggy Bottom," Kim replied. "I'm sure George would welcome the opportunity."

"What will this get me?" Clarke asked finally.

"A greater influence in Africa. If we are successful in Kenya, others will want to partake in that success. If we're successful, Nairobi and Mombassa will be compared to Johannesburg and Pretoria in a few years. For us to move into the future, the standard of living in Africa has to be brought up to that of the rest of the world. This is the first step."

"So you envision a prosperous, democratic Africa?"

"Yes, eventually. They have to be brought from the Dark Ages into the Twenty First Century and it has to happen relatively quickly. The wider the educational, economic and technological gaps become, the more difficult, read costly, it will be to help them. And we will have to help them, whether it is now, or years down the road. I'd rather it be now."

"What kind of political structure do you envision for them?"

"Well, eventually leaders like Okwu will have to go, but we need influence with the major tribes. Okwu, regardless of his shortcomings, has managed to unite the different tribes that comprise the population of Kenya. If we consolidate his power and strengthen him, he will bring others into line. By the time the next Presidential election in Kenya rolls around, we will have organized a large part of the government and the chances of a moderate being elected are good. If the government remains stable during the transfer of power, it will be an incentive for more business to invest there."

"What are your plans to keep them stable?" It was another question Kim chose to ignore. "You can't keep me in the dark, not if you want my help."

"Our plans are fluid, Mr. President, but suffice it to say that we intend to take an active part in their political process."

"I'd like assurances that you will not do anything to embarrass this administration. I will not stand for what your mother did to President DeVore during the congressional hearings," he wagged a finger at her.

"You have my word. We would not want our part in that publicized either."

"What is your ultimate goal for Africa, Kim," Clarke asked. "Why are you risking all this?"

"I'd like to see Africa take after the model of Europe, with one economy, ruled by one government and a legislature. It would be easier for them to modernize that way. We'd also like to see their economy change from an agrarian one to an industrialized one. Environmentally, it would be better if their population were concentrated in urban areas."

"And what about Europe, and Japan for that matter? They will not appreciate the U.S. building a trading relationship with the Africans. They have been undergoing a recession since the Osan Accords were signed," Clarke observed.

"They need to realize their place in the food chain, Mr. President," Kim declared. "They are still under the illusion they are imperial powers and they will suffer as long as they cling to that. We, meaning NoahCorp and other concerns, will not let the European economy founder, but they will have to come down off their pedestal to share in the prosperity. That goes for the Japanese too."

"What do you want from them?" Clarke pressed her.

"I want them to accept a deal resembling the one the Chinese and Russians did, Mr. President. I want them to lower trade barriers and abandon the Euro, accepting the dollar as a standard currency. When they are prepared to do that, I will make my best effort to expand operations and encourage others to do the same."

"Some of the individual countries are sending representatives next month," Clarke advised her. "They have expressed the desire to work out agreements independent of the EC. How do you feel about that?"

"I'd only ask you take my opinions into consideration when you negotiate."

"In your perfect world, then, the U.S. dollar would be a global currency," he asked.

"It would simplify things; don't you think?"

"It follows that someday, you envision a global government." Kim smiled at him, not answering again. "That is your goal, isn't it?"

"Let's just say, Mr. Clarke, that I envision you being the last President of the United States."

[. . .]

"That hints of treason and conspiracy," Clarke said when he caught his breath. Even Amy Stokes turned her attention to the two people fifteen feet away.

"Not at all, sir," Kim said. "It goes back to our choices and our ultimate goals. We both know the world is too small to be governed by close to two hundred different political entities. There will come a time when the redundancy of government will be too cumbersome. Hell, it already has."

"Are you suggesting the United States begin a campaign of imperialism?"

"Of course not," Kim looked at him as if he were oblivious. "Forcing others to one's will only breeds resentment."

"Voluntary unification under one government won't work, it can't work. Too many are only concerned with personal power."

"It will work, Mr. Clarke; it has to. The planet Earth does not have the resources to support the population and allow for all to share in the prosperity we enjoy here. The 'have-nots' will eventually be desperate enough to try to take what they need from the 'haves'. All must be allowed to share the wealth and that means we have to begin to exploit the worlds that are close to us. The Moon and the Asteroid Belt are the first steps, and a city on Mars will be a reality in my lifetime. We have to slow the growth of population on Earth and begin to sow the seeds of colonization soon. A world government is the only way to achieve real change on a reasonably fast timeline."

"While I am still President?" Clarke chuckled.

"You are the best hope. Chances are a conservative administration will follow yours and the climate for world government will chill. We must act now, before the end of your second term, in order for the movement to have enough inertia to continue through a slowing of the economy, and a conservative move toward isolationism. Your opponent preached that during the last election and it would have been close if not for his troubles. I'd rather not have to wait for two decades in order to make this a reality."

"And you expect this to be accomplished in under seven years?"

"Yes, you can do it," Kim said confidently. "With our help, of course."

"How?"

"You and I will work on that together, but we have to begin to bring Africa up to speed."

"I do not think you are dealing with reality, Kim."

"Forget about what I said about globalization if that helps you," she said, a bit irritated, but she had to let him do this his way. "Help me with this initiative in Africa and see what happens. That's all I ask of you."

"And if I say no?"

"Then you say no and I do it by myself. Contrary to what you believe, Bob, I do not want to manipulate you. I want you to act out of your own free will. If I wanted a yes man in office, I wouldn't have supported you. You're too much trouble." She gave him a warm smile.

"What about the next election? Will you support me then if I don't go along with this now?"

"Yes, I pledge my support to you for as long as you want it, Mr. President. You are the best thing for this country whether you work with me or not. I want you to be successful and I am prepared to give you as much, or as little, help as you want."

"As long as I leave you free to do what you want to," Clarke said smugly.

"NoahCorp obeys all the laws of the land, sir. We pay more than our fair share of taxes and we are extremely philanthropic."

"Except when someone gets in your way," the President countered.

"We protect ourselves, Mr. President. We do not conduct offensive operations without provocation."

"As you did in Germany?"

"I should let them kill me?"

"You could have canceled your appearance; taken yourself out of the equation and no one would have gotten killed."

"And they would have been free to make the attempt on my life again. I don't think so, sir. I took them out of the equation and those four will not be able to reenter it."

"Who were they?"

"I don't know."

"Who sent them?"

"I'm not sure."

"You're lying to me, Kim."

"If I am it's for your own good. As President, there are some things you don't need to know."

"You sound like the CIA Director."

"You know the reasons you have to be kept out of the loop on certain things. There are things about NoahCorp that I don't know, and that is for my, and the company's, own good."

"Is that why you warned me to stay out of Europe?"

"I didn't make that call, Mr. President," Kim insisted. "And I don't know who did. That is the truth."

"Who else could? Technologically, it should be impossible. That is what the Signal Corps tells me anyway."

"I have some ideas, nothing certain. I don't play games like that," Kim shook her head. "If I wanted you to leave Europe alone, I would have told you personally. It would be foolish of me because I know you wouldn't listen. Make your best deal with the ministers and let the chips fall where they may. The Europeans will come into the fold soon enough."

"Does Mike Markham know?"

"My Intel Chief and the CIA Director are in contact daily. I'm certain Mr. Markham is aware of NoahCorp's position in Europe."

"Can you answer one question for me?"

"I'll try."

"Will I regret giving you my support?"

"Indirectly; that is, if the First Lady is going along with Kate," Kim joked. "I'm sure she will get under Jen's skin right off."

"If that's the worst that can happen, I can live with it," Clarke said with a smile.

Kim raised her glass. "To Africa," she said.

"To Africa," he agreed and touched his glass to hers.

[. . .]

-From Technocracy © 2005 RH Wood and Blue Dog Ltd.

Maybe it's time for progressives to start thinking this way. Long term. There's been precious little of that in the last few years. Yes, everybody knows I'm a globalist, as evident in my writing, but, as Billmon says:

[. . .]

The ultimate Potemkin Village, in other words, may be the archaic structure[s] of the American republic. And while it will certainly take a much stronger hurricane than Katrina to blow it down, history suggest that such storms do come along, eventually.

[. . .]

I'd rather we started planning for the future than have it thrust upon us.

Song meme

2005-08-29T15:41:00.000-04:00

Via PSoTD:

A good music post. Pick your high school graduation year, grab the top 100 songs of that year, bold the songs you still like, strikethrough the songs you hate, and underscore your favorite from the list.

My graduation year would have been 1980:

1. Call Me, Blondie
2. Another Brick In The Wall, Pink Floyd
3. ~~Magic, Olivia Newton-John~~
4. ~~Rock With You, Michael Jackson~~
5. ~~Do That To Me One More Time, Captain and Tennille~~ (double hate)
6. Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Queen
7. Coming Up, Paul McCartney
8. ~~Funkytown, Lipps, Inc.~~ (double hate)
9. It's Still Rock And Roll To Me, Billy Joel
10. ~~The Rose, Bette Midler~~
11. ~~Escape (The Pina Colada Song), Rupert Holmes~~ (quadruple hate)
12. Cars, Gary Numan
13. ~~Cruisin', Smokey Robinson~~
14. ~~Working My Way Back To You/Forgive Me Girl, Spinners~~
15. ~~Lost In Love, Air Supply~~ (triple hate)
16. Little Jeannie, Elton John
17. ~~Ride Like The Wind, Cristopher Cross~~
18. ~~Upside Down, Diana Ross~~
19. ~~Please Don't Go, K.C. and The Sunshine Band~~
20. ~~Babe, Styx~~ (triple hate)
21. ~~With You I'm Born Again, Billy Preston and Syreeta~~
22. ~~Shining Star, Manhattans~~
23. ~~Still, Commodores~~
24. ~~Yes, I'm Ready, Teri De Sario With K.C.~~
25. ~~Sexy Eyes, Dr. Hook~~
26. ~~Steal Away, Robbie Dupree~~
27. ~~Biggest Part Of Me, Ambrosia~~
28. ~~This Is It, Kenny Loggins~~ (double hate)
29. ~~Cupid-I've Loved You For A Long Time, Spinners~~
30. ~~Let's Get Serious, Jermaine Jackson~~
31. ~~Don't Fall In Love With A Dreamer, Kenny Rogers and Kim Carnes~~ (double hate)
32. ~~Sailing, Christopher Cross~~
33. ~~Longer, Dan Fogelberg~~
34. ~~Coward Of The County, Kenny Rogers~~
35. ~~Ladies Night, Kool and The Gang~~
36. ~~Take Your Time, S.O.S. Band~~
37. ~~No More Tears (Enough Is Enough), Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer~~
38. ~~Too Hot, Kool and The Gang~~
39. ~~More Love, Kim Carnes~~
40. ~~Pop Muzik, M~~ (double hate)
41. Brass In Pocket, Pretenders
42. ~~Special Lady, Ray, Goodman and Brown~~
43. ~~Send One Your Love, Stevie Wonder~~
44. ~~The Second Time Around, Shalamar~~
45. ~~We Don't Talk Anymore, Cliff Richard~~ (double hate)
47. Heartache Tonight , Eagles
48. ~~Stomp, Brothers Johnson~~
49. ~~Tired Of Toein' The Line, Rocky Burnette~~
50. ~~Better Love Next Time, Dr. Hook~~
51. ~~Him, Rupert Holmes~~
52. Against The Wind, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band
53. ~~On The Radio, Donna Summer~~
54. Emotional Rescue, Rolling Stones
55. ~~Rise, Herb Alpert~~
56. ~~All Out Of Love, Air Supply~~ (double hate)
57. ~~Cool Change, Little River Band~~
58. ~~You're Only Lonely, J.D. Souther~~
59. ~~Desire, Andy Gibb~~
60. Let My Love Open The Door, Pete Townshend
61. ~~Daydream Believer, Anne Murray~~ (double hate)
62. I Can't Tell You Why, Eagles
63. ~~Don't Let Go, Isaac Hayes~~
64. Don't Do Me Like That, Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers
65. ~~She's Out Of My Life, Michael Jackson~~
66. ~~Fame, Irene Cara~~
67. Fire Lake, Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet Band
68. ~~How Do I Make You, Linda Ronstadt~~
69. ~~Into The Night, Benny Mardones~~
70. ~~Let Me Love You Tonight, Pure Prairie League~~
71. Misunderstanding, Genesis
72. ~~An American Dream, Dirt Band~~
73. ~~One Fine Day, Carole King~~
74. ~~Dim All The Lights, Donna Summer~~
75. You May Be Right, Billy Joel
76. ~~Hurt So Bad, Linda Ronstadt~~
77. ~~Should've Never Let You Go, Neil Sedaka and Dara Sedaka~~
78. ~~Pilot Of The Airwaves, Charlie Dore~~
79. ~~Off The Wall, Michael Jackson~~
80. ~~I Pledge My Love, Peaches and Herb~~
81. The Long Run, Eagles
82. ~~Stand By Me, Mickey Gilley~~
83. Heartbreaker, Pat Benatar
84. ~~Deja Vu, Dionne Warwick~~
85. ~~Drivin' My Life Away, Eddie Rabbitt~~
86. ~~Take The Long Way Home, Supertramp~~ (double hate)
87. Sara, Fleetwood Mac
88. ~~Wait For Me, Daryl Hall and John Oates~~
89. Jo Jo, Boz Scaggs
90. ~~September Morn, Neil Diamond~~ (double hate)
91. ~~Give Me The Night, George Benson~~
92. ~~Broken Hearted Me, Anne Murray~~
93. ~~You Decorated My Life, Kenny Rogers~~ (triple hate)
94. Tusk, Fleetwood Mac
95. I Wanna Be Your Lover, Prince
96. ~~In America, Charlie Daniels Band~~
97. Breakdown Dead Ahead, Boz Scaggs
98. ~~Ships, Barry Manilow~~
99. All Night Long, Joe Walsh
100. Refugee, Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

Shows you where my head was, partly still is, back then.

For this

2005-08-22T16:03:00.000-04:00

We've sacrificed nearly 2000 lives and all our credibility. WaPo via Atrios:

[. . .]

Washington has been pushing hard to stick to a timeline on government-building that would allow for a significant troop withdrawal as soon as early next spring.

Key provisions of the draft would formalize an already autonomous Kurdish state in the north, under a federal system. The rest of the country also would be allowed to form federal systems -- opening the way for the demand by the dominant Shiite Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq [sounds awful Iranian, don't it? - F-man] to create a southern Shiite sub-state out of up to half of Iraq's 18 regions.

Sunnis and others say such a state would be under heavy influence from neighboring, Shiite-ruled Iran. [my emphases}

[. . .]

Yes, Cindy Sheehan and all you other Gold Star Mothers, your children died to create an Iranian puppet state out of a nation who threatened us not one iota. Your President is a murderer.

Update:

Billmon:

[. . .]

But the whole point of the constitutional exercise, from the U.S. point of view, was to give enough Sunnis enough of a stake in the New Iraq® to undermine popular support for the insurgency, or at least split the resistance into pro-political participation and anti-participation camps. A deal perceived by Sunni elites has leading to the destruction of the Iraq state, rammed through an assembly in which Sunnis are almost entirely absent, will have the opposite effect. It could be read, in fact, as a declaration of civil war -- and probably will be so read by Sunni moderates and rejectionists alike.

[. . .]

At best, it means the Sunni insurgency will last for years, maybe decades, spawning the creation of more fundamentalist "mini-caliphates" in the wilds of Anbar province [can you say 'Soviet' Afghanistan, kiddies? I thought you could. - F-man] and driving a weak, Shi'a-dominated central government deeper into the arms of its Iranian ally. At worst, the country could collapse into complete chaos, or a full-scale, Lebanon-style civil war. Either way, an awful lot of people may have to die so that the president and his supporters can spend the next few days talking about the political "progress" being made in Iraq. [my emphasis]

[. . .]

More Update:

The Rude One:

[. . .]

It's not that the whole Iraq War isn't an epic disaster the likes of which makes Custer's "Last Stand" seem like a well-planned, well-ordered, by the book military operation. It's not that anyone not suckling at the teat of Bush administration "leaks" and "anonymous sources" didn't know that there was going to be a prolonged conflict, with lots of casualties, and, you know, no fuckin' WMDs. No, no, we know all that shit, along with the inevitable civil war and/or Islamist state as the end result. It's just that it's about to get really, truly, oh-fuck-how-can-he-even-show-his-face-in-public embarrassing for George W. Bush.

[. . .]

Now I'm done.

Liberal Intolerance

2005-08-10T22:40:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I get lucky and find somebody who says what I think better than I ever could. This one is 99.9+%. Nothing's perfect. By Mark Morford in the EssEffChron, in its entirety, without blockquotes:

I get this a lot: Hey Mark, you nefarious and perverted liberal commie tofu-hugging sex-drunk San Francisco medical experiment gone wrong from the land of fruits and nuts (or some iteration thereof -- so cute, my hate mail can be), hey, I notice you love to ridicule those creepy Christian megachurches and you enjoy spanking wide-eyed Mormons and tweaking the litigious nipples of the cult of Scientology and you recoil at toxic Bush policy like a vegetarian recoils at undercooked veal.

And I can tell you think Dick Cheney is pretty much the devil in a defibrillator and that America is so desperately on the wrong track it might as well be North Korea, and you clearly tend to wince in savage karmic pain when looking down the rusty barrel of a welfare-happy red state and I just have one slightly nasty and pointed and cliched question for you -- Here it is: Where is your supposed progressive openness? Your liberal generosity of spirit? I thought you Lefties were all mushy and passive and live-and-let-live?

In other words, where is that famous so-called tolerance I thought all you wimpy libs were supposed to possess like some sort of gentle polyamorous smiling hug for the world?

To which I reply: You cannot be serious. Does the answer really need to be articulated? Is it not painfully obvious? Can I have a shot of Patrуn and a long nap before I answer? Here goes ...

You, hate-mailers from the sanctimonious Right and even some of you morally paralyzed middle-grounders from the Left, are correct. I am, in fact, deeply intolerant. It is true. I can hide my deep biases and predispositions no longer.

I cannot, for example, tolerate the dark and violent road down which this nation seems intent on careering like an Escalade on meth. I cannot tolerate brutal, never-ending unnecessary wars and I cannot allow gay rights to be bashed and I truly loathe watching women's rights be slammed back to 1952. Or 1852.

I really have little patience for the gutting of our school system and the decimation of science and mysticism and the human mind for the sake of a handful of militant Christian zealots who truly believe the Second Coming will be arriving really soon but hopefully not before the next episode of HBO's "Cathouse: The Series," which they watch in secret with the lights off while clutching a Bible in one hand and a big tub of Country Crock margarine in the other.

I cannot tolerate an American president, ostensibly meant to be one of the most articulate and intellectually sophisticated leaders on the planet, mumbling his semicoherent support of the embarrassing non-theory of "Intelligent Design," to the detriment of about 300 years of confirmed science and 10 million years of common sense to the point where America's armies of dumbed-down Ritalin-drunk children look at him and sigh and secretly wish they could have a future devoid of such imbecilic thought but who realize, deep down, they are merely another doomed and fraught generation who will face an increasingly steep uphill battle, who will actually have to fight for fact and intellectual growth and spiritual progress against a rising tide of ignorance and religious hegemony and sanitized revisionist textbooks that insult their understanding and sucker punch their sexuality and bleed their minds dry.

I have surpassed my allowable limit for how much environmental devastation I can willingly swallow or how many billion-dollar tax subsidies our cowardly CEO president gives his cronies in Big Energy while doing nothing to ease our gluttony for foreign oil, all the while trying to tell us how many undereducated misguided American teenage soldiers we have to sacrifice at the bloody altar of oil and empire before we can call ourselves king of the bone pile again.

But I am perhaps most intolerant, not of Christians per se, not of faith, certainly not of radiant self-defined spirituality, not even of organized religion -- though I do fully believe more independent spirits and raw human souls and moist sexual licks have been lost to its often narrow-minded and cosmically rigid brainwashing techniques than have ever been saved. But hey, that's just me.

I am most intolerant of, well, of those who allow such intolerance. Of those who would, based on their narrow views of sex, God, love, hope, war, the mind, the Earth, soil and animals and air and water and fire and love and spirit and drugs and guns and dildos, work to legislate those neoconservative beliefs, codify them, make them the law of the land, force their regressive beliefs on everyone else under punishment of violence and beatings and prison. I am, in short, intolerant of intolerance.

Oh, let us be clear. I love diversity, religious pluralism, peace and love and pacifism and good drugs and open-mouthed sensuality. I'm happy to let you believe in any god you like and marry any gender you like and let you love how you will and be in full control of your sex and your body and your mind.

This, to me, is the America worth fighting for. These are the laws I support. Don't believe in abortion? Don't understand gay people? Sexuality makes you rashy? Think Harry Potter teaches kids evil and witchcraft? Don't marry a sexy gay witch abortionist. But don't you dare, based on your limited understanding of God and life, make laws declaring that I can't.

But maybe this is the problem, especially here in San Francisco, the World Headquarters of Tolerance, where liberals tend to be so PC and open- minded they merely sigh and shrug when our government and half the nation move to outlaw everything they stand for, when those people openly loathe human rights and try to codify homophobia in the U.S. Constitution and slowly annihilate Roe vs. Wade and treat any display of resistance or questioning of the norm the way a dog treats a fire hydrant.

Enough. Basta. Let's refashion the old, stagnant definition of tolerance and make it less about merely enduring, merely putting up with the existence of other narrow-minded beliefs no matter how devastating and embarrassing they obviously are to the nation's health.

Rather, let's flip that sucker over and baste it with raw goat butter and sear it on the open flames of divine justice and bliss and intellectual fire and white-hot orgasm and burn it new.

Let us take the rather flaccid word tolerance and pump it full of Ecstasy and medical marijuana and sake and real divine love and fancy book learnin', turn it on its head and spin it like a bottle and reclaim it from the neocon Right and turn it into, say, giddy outrage. Or radical reconsideration. Or ecstatic rebellion. Or wet conscious electric pointed awareness. Is this not a better way?

Let us explode those dead meanings, correct the mistaken neocon dictionary. Let us hurl that dying and mealy and abused term back at their powerful and often bigoted scowl. Here is your weak, ineffectual tolerance. We cannot swallow it anymore. In fact, we are choking on it.

Mark Morford's column appears on SFGate.com and in Datebook on Wednesdays and Fridays. E-mail him at mmorford@sfgate.com

Exactly right

2005-07-10T06:27:00.000-04:00

[. . .]

"She's going to kill us," one of the men said.

"She'll be pissed; that's for sure," another agreed.

"She'll understand," her husband said.

The three men were bent over the engine compartment of an old car. A nineteen eighty-eight GT Mustang to be exact, the highly modified five liter engine and T-5 standard transmission sat on a dolly in the corner of the room. Their tenure under the hood of the muscle car was finished. It would probably find a home in another hot rod Ford, maybe someone might even have the testicles to drop it in a Camaro, but its time in this car was over.

The new powerplant that was being installed by the three men was as far removed from the old Five-Oh as the plankton was from the whale. The only resemblance between the two drive trains was that the new one had something that looked like an exhaust pipe. There was no transmission bolted to it either; there would be no need for that. The finned, vented disc brake rotors and four-piston calipers were also sitting in boxes near the old engine. Where the rotors and calipers had lived now resided four small, extremely powerful electric motors and stator assemblies. Zero-gauge wires came from each motor to distribution relays that were operated by an onboard computer that also monitored the powerplant and driver inputs.

"What's the old man going to say," one of the men asked. "After all, he did build the thing. We could have used one of the company's vehicles."

"He told me to do whatever it took to get this operational," the other replied. "Besides, unveiling this in a Suburban or a Crown Victoria doesn't have the same effect as doing it with a jet black GT Mustang."

"I hope you know what you're doing, Ethan," one of the men warned. "Your father-in-law built the car for your wife. I don't relish the thought of having both of them angry at me."

"Leave Kim and the Colonel to me," Dr. Ethan McHenry soothed.

"Do you think we can have this ready for a test tomorrow?"

"Shouldn't be a problem," Hermann Wood, Chief Engineer for NoahCorp replied. Gerald Rienzi, Director of Research and Develop-ment nodded in assent.

"Good." McHenry gave them a smile. "I'll get everything squared away. Can you close up here?"

"Yeah, take off, Ethan," Wood gave him a wave. "We'll finish up."

"Ok, catch you in the morning."

Ethan McHenry left the R&D facility, nodding to the two guards on duty at the entrance of the bay. The existence of the new engine was known to very few. Not even the guards knew what went on behind the big door. He, Wood, Rienzi, a handful of technicians and engineers and, of course, Ethan's father-in-law, were privy to the secrets contained in R&D.

McHenry thought about the Mustang as he boarded the tram that would take him to the administration building, over a mile away. His father-in-law did build the car, but he would understand, Ethan was right about that. His wife would get over it too, although he really should have asked her if he could have the thing. Had it been any other car, Kim wouldn't have batted an eye when he told her what he'd done, but it was her Mustang.

And she wouldn't have cared if it were any other Mustang, but her father had built it and that was the rub. Kim Song Johnson McHenry, supermodel, TV personality, CEO of NoahCorp, his wife, had a love for her father that bordered on the spiritual. They had a bond that was unbreakable; to her, he walked on water, and Ethan thought that was a good thing, most of the time. Yes, Kim would give him hell, but he would deal with it and she would get over it, just like her father, for she loved Ethan also and she knew that he was doing what was best, for her, for NoahCorp, and for Humanity.

[. . .]

Friday Cattle Dog London Blogging

2005-07-08T18:31:00.000-04:00

The Princess takes a break this week to let us think about London in happier days.

1. St. Paul's
2. Prince Albert Memorial
3. Tower Bridge
4. Parliament
5. Big Ben
6. Fixer and the Mrs. having our afternoon pint after roaming around all day.

Eminent Domain, Ry Cooder, and Chavez Ravine

2005-06-25T13:44:00.000-04:00

Since there's been so much talk about eminent domain in the wake of the recent unconscionable decision of SCOTUS, I think this is very timely. Also, I'm an L.A. contemporary of Mr. Cooder's. We've never met, but we grew up not too far apart, although I didn't know it until I read this article, and I've been a fan of his for years. I remember the whole Chavez Ravine brouhaha. I've never set foot in Dodger Stadium because I didn't like the way it was acquired, even at 10 years of age. Must've been the dawn of any social consciousness I've got.

Ry Cooder has a new album that, given the lead time to do an album, is uncanny in its timing. This article in Mother Jones tells about the album, the neighborhood, and his inspiration.

Cooder's remarkable new album is titled Chavez Ravine, and this little neighborhood is Solano Canyon, the last intact section of the 400-acre district that gave the project its name. One of the most celebrated guitarists alive, best known for his work on Buena Vista Social Club, Cooder has spent the last three years constructing an evocation of Chicano East L.A. in the '40s and '50s - and he has become so fluent in the history of these side streets that he can go door to door telling stories.

As late as the 1940s, Chavez Ravine was an Old World enclave with 300 families of Mexican immigrants - a place where goats wandered freely and kids played in the dirt roads. But in 1950, following a city planning commission study of L.A.'s "blighted areas," it was decided that Chavez Ravine would be cleared out to make way for a low-income public-housing project. Most families took the meager payout and didn't challenge the authorities; when necessary, though, the city invoked the right of eminent domain, seized the land, and bulldozed the residences.

But the real estate lobby (which Cooder calls "hideous villains") saw an opportunity, and cast the idea of public housing as "creeping socialism." They accused the Los Angeles Housing Authority's Frank Wilkinson of being a communist agent, and the FBI stepped in to squash the project. Eventually, the housing authority sold 170 acres of Chavez Ravine back to the city, which offered the site to Brooklyn Dodgers owner Walter O'Malley. After a voter referendum and a California Supreme Court decision, construction on Dodger Stadium began in 1961. It's a classic Los Angeles story, full of shadowy deals and backroom corruption, reminiscent of Chinatown or a James Ellroy novel, and Cooder captures it with impressive complexity and nuance.

He drives through the adjacent fields of sprawling Elysian Park and further up into the hills before pulling to the side of the road to look down on the massive spread of the baseball stadium, perched above the city streets on a hill of its own. "That's just the parking lot," says Cooder, 58, from behind oversize yellow sunglasses. "You can see it was an enormous expanse. There's a whole town under there. I love the fact that it's high, it's up. I wanted to say that in the music - that it was set apart, and when you were here, you were somewhere else for real."

RY COODER HIMSELF seems vaguely out of time; in his checked shirt and slip-on Vans, speaking steadily but in no hurry, he exudes something like a beatnik cool (he even says "I dig it" with some frequency). His career defies easy explanation. He has recorded with the likes of the Rolling Stones, Neil Young, the Monkees, and Little Feat. His solo albums, explorations of "world music" long before such a term existed, have featured Hawaiian slack-key guitars, Tex-Mex accordions, and Indian flutes. He's written scores for numerous films such as Paris, Texas and The Long Riders. His reputation as a guitarist is such that, as he hilariously recounts, Bob Dylan showed up at his door one night, unannounced and shabbily dressed, looking for help learning a Sleepy John Estes blues song (and giving the neighbors a good scare in the process). And all that came before Cooder produced Buena Vista Social Club, which won him a Grammy and introduced traditional Cuban music to the masses.

Yet in almost 40 years of dizzying musical globe-trotting, Cooder had never plumbed the idioms of his native Los Angeles. "I always thought East L.A. music was so dreamy and languid and kinda greasy," he says. "I would think, something's out there - I wonder what? I used to sneak my little East L.A. instrumental ideas into movie scores. If I saw an opening, we'd dream up some little low-rider song."

"I needed a story to go with this East L.A. thing," he says. "You can't just do the old songs; they've done those to perfection. Then I found this book, The Provisional City, that's a history of public housing in L.A., and it told the whole story about the Ravine and the FBI and Frank Wilkinson. It was so vivid to me, so I thought, I'll pretend to score the book. I found the mood I want, I found myself as a speaker - which is what you have to do, you can't just be an observer, you have to get yourself located."

Armed with his research, Cooder continued sketching out the mood, texture, and narrative of the album. Musicians including bassist Mike Elizondo (Dr. Dre's musical right hand), jazz pianists Jacky Terrasson and Chucho Valdes, and East L.A. boogie king Don Tosti got involved. Cooder visited with Wilkinson, now 93 years old, who showed the musician the 132,000-page file the FBI kept on him, including details of an assassination plot that J. Edgar Hoover did nothing to prevent. ("He's very proud of that," notes Cooder.) Wilkinson even provided a cameo narrative to the album. More songs, in both English and Spanish, were written or found: the story of the Zoot Suit Riots, an account of a bulldozer driver, and even a tune sung in the voice of the scarred earth. Cooder also came up with the slightly loony character who helps tie the story together - a lonely "space vato" dropping in on the residents of Chavez Ravine in his UFO.

"WHAT A MACHINE!" Cooder beams as he stands in a small garage called CJ's, located at the entrance to the Santa Monica airport, a few blocks from where he grew up and not far from his current home. He runs a hand over the half-constructed '50s-vintage ice cream truck that he's having rebuilt. "It sits just so, I tell you. The slope is the thing - Good Humor figured that out."

He's seeing the new hubcaps (actually replicas from Taiwan) for the first time. In a few days, a low-rider specialist will put in the motor and the brakes. Then Cooder will ship the whole thing to San Antonio, where a young Chicano artist will paint a Chavez Ravine mural on the truck's side; concurrently, a local artist is building a diorama of the old neighborhood that will fit in the back. What will he do with this rolling masterwork? Who knows - it won't be completed until long after the album is out and its promotion is done. "This is for me," he says, shuffling back through the parking lot. "I've been wanting an ice cream truck forever. You can't just work and work and work - and this is worth it! This thing is something else."

One other result of his work, though, was Cooder's realization that the legacy of Chavez Ravine is not entirely negative; the neighborhood's destruction also led to a transformative moment in Mexican American activism. "Chavez Ravine is the dawn of Chicano consciousness," he says. "It was the first time they acted together in defense of themselves as a group. They went down to City Hall to these City Council meetings, to these condemnation proceedings, and they damn sure demonstrated and protested. It didn't get them anywhere, but it was the first time it happened."

Please go read the whole article. Be sure to see the links at the bottom. Oh, yeah, buy the album.

Crap

2005-06-22T15:23:00.000-04:00

The report from the team investigating religious intolerance at the Air Force Academy. It boils down to this:

[. . .]

"There is a lack of operational guidance that tells commanders and senior supervisors exactly what is appropriate in regard to free exercise of religion," the general said. "There were some faculty and staff, in efforts that were probably well-intentioned, who expressed their faith in ways that were inappropriate for somebody in a position of authority."

[. . .]

Lack of operational guidance? WTF? You are a publicly funded school. You have a cross-section of America's children studying to enter our officer corps. Read my lips: YOU DON'T SANCTION RELIGIOUS DISPLAYS. YOU DON'T SANCTION THE PROMOTION OF ONE RELIGION OVER ANOTHER. Got it? Leave us move on:

[. . .]

"It is not that minority cadets cannot get accommodation," he said, "but that the academy was not addressing the issue up front, such as including holy days on the calendar. So in some cases, it made cadets feel like the academy was not as sensitive to those needs, and was putting the burden on the cadet to ask for the accommodation."

[. . .]

Cannot get accomodation? When a kid asks for respect and gets called a 'filthy Jew', it doesn't sound too accommodating to me, you twits. When Islamic kids are told Christianity will crush Islam, it doesn't sound too accommodating either. Fucking morons. And you know, it's just a few bad apples:

[. . .]

"We found there was a certain amount of behavior on the part of some 18-to-22-year-olds that is less than it should be," he said. That behavior included religious slurs, jokes and disparaging remarks made by some cadets.

[. . .]

So it's just them younguns, huh? Not that the folks running the place are all Bible-thumping Christians who think it's their way or the highway. Team Jesus and all.

[. . .]

General Brady said cadets indicated religious slurs and jokes have decreased at the academy over the past few years. To further bolster that trend, and in light of recent attention on religious issues, the academy has created a new program specifically designed to help young cadets of any background become more aware of the diversity around them.

[. . .]

They've decreased, but they haven't stopped. I don't know, threatening them with expulsion (for the cadets) and courts-martial (for the commanders) might end them, but that's just me.

This investigation was done the way all Chimpy Inc 'investigations' are done. No rebuke of the commanding officers who condone this crap. None of the upperclassmen who fomented this 'yay God' mentality, none who disrespected their fellow officer-candidates we're expelled or disciplined. This report is good enough to wipe your ass with, better than Air Force TP anyway, trust me. I guess it's time for the kids who are persecuted to start passing out some ass-kickings. It's up to you boys and girls, your government ain't standing behind you.

Hokay, back to the proofs.

Chickenhawks

2005-06-21T16:36:00.000-04:00

Here's a good one, via DemVet. Not only is this guy young and stupid, he's also a fucking idiot:

On Jesus General's Operation: Yellow Elephant:

[. . .]

The group was obviously fraudulent. There are specific military rules banning partisan political activities during enlistment. Plus, a Google search shows that no such group really existed. Liberals have no sense of humor, which frankly is why they cannot win elections. (But then again, I wouldn't be entirely opposed to the military rounding up certain Democrats in our society and taking them to labor camps...if nothing else, this would aid the military in doing their job).

[. . .]

It's called satire, dickweed. I haven't been a hippie for close to 30 years, but this little twit must've read a history book once:

[. . .]

Well, this morning, I received numerous emails from various liberal pot-smoking hippies around the country who were amused at the exchange of emails. (Why were they not at work? Well we all know that answer). Here are a few selections:

[. . .]

Although I am liberal and pot smoking, though I think this clown's done his share:

[. . .]

Leftist hippies are the real threat to America - these "domestic terrorists" wish to destroy our country. They hope to remove everything we stand for. They strive the adoption of French as our national language and the forced conversion of the country to Islam.

[. . .]

We're pot smoking hippies, we don't want to force anything. In fact, I want a couple Oreos.

[. . .]

Obviously these hippies would rather support a draft dodger (both Bill Clinton and Howard Dean) than members of the current Bush administration who have extensive military careers.

They are calling us "hypocrites" for the supposed support of a war...but refusing to join the military. Does this even make sense? Since when do I have to support my political stances with physical action. I believe in tougher testing standards for children in schools, but you don't seem me going to become a test writer for the Education Testing Service. Following this round of logic....if these people thing abortion is so great, how come they don't all sign up to be abortion doctors? Because it doesn't make sense!

[. . .]

Extensive military careers. Rummy. That's it. I guess it's good to be 20-something and know everything. But he does support the troops:

[. . .]

I do support the troops and I support their efforts to defend America. I support military action wherever it takes us when the cause is good and just. I am a proud American. If I was asked by my country to join the military in order to preserve these great traditions we share, I would do so in a heartbeat. I salute those men and women who do make the choice to serve in the armed forces and will always continue to be a strong supporter of their efforts.

"If I was asked . . ." Shit, son, Army recruiting's down 40%. They ain't asking, they're screaming.

The bin Ladens

2005-06-12T14:20:00.000-04:00

Since we seem to have forgotten about Good Ol' Osama, killer of 3000 friends and neighbors of mine, I figure it's time to see what others have been doing to track him. I mean, it's not like (p)resident Dicknose gives a shit anymore. Osama gave him 9/11. Der Spiegel has done an investigative piece on the terrorist and his family:

The Bin Laden family disowned black sheep Osama in 1994. But have they really broken with the mega-terrorist? Recently revealed classified documents seem to suggest otherwise. Osama's violent career has been made possible in part by the generosity of his family - and by his contacts with the Saudi royals.

In early spring 2002, American intelligence agents tipped off authorities in Bosnia-Herzegovina that something wasn't quite right with the "Benevolence International Foundation." Their reaction was swift; special forces stormed eight offices of the Islamic foundation in Sarajevo and in Zenica. They found weapons and explosives, videos and flyers calling for holy war. More importantly, however, they discovered a computer with a mysterious file entitled "Tarich Osama" -- Arabic for "Osama's Story."

[. . .]

But could this really be possible? Are the bin Ladens (or "Binladins," as they more commonly spell it), with their 25 brothers, 29 sisters, in-laws, aunts and, by now, at least 15 children of Osama, nothing but a clan of terrorists? Or are relatives being taken to task for the crimes of one family member, all on the strength of legends and conspiracy theories?

[. . .]

The bin Laden story, with its dramatic twists and turns, almost comes across as an Arab version of Thomas Mann's novel "Buddenbrooks." In both cases, it's the story of an imposing patriarch, who has managed to hold the clan together, and of his sons, who cannot or do not wish to stop the family's moral decline.

[. . .]

In late 1979, Osama, with the royal family's blessing, set off for Afghanistan to participate in the jihad against the Soviet Union, which had invaded its neighbor to the south. Both the CIA and Saudi Arabia helped fund the Mujahedeen's armed struggle against the communist "infidels." Prince Turki, head of the Saudi secret service, visited Osama several times in Afghanistan and heavy equipment provided by the SBG family business was used to excavate secret tunnels. For Osama, the support of the Saud family and the bin Ladens became a reliable source of funding.

[. . .]

On Jan. 9, 2001, OBL attended his son Mohammed's wedding in Kandahar, accompanied, according to CIA sources, by his mother and two of his brothers. The CIA also claims that "two of Osama's sisters traveled to Abu Dhabi" a month later, where they met with an al-Qaida agent at the Gulf emirate's airport to deliver large sums of cash.

In mid-January 2005, New York federal judge Richard Casey wrote, in his grounds for allowing the civil suit against SBG filed by the families of 9/11 victims, that "the Saudi Binladin Group maintained close relationships with Osama bin Laden at certain times," and that it remains "unclear" whether these ties continued when OBL became involved in terrorism.

[. . .]

{former CIA Agent and author of Imperial Hubris anonymously Mike] Scheuer's axis of evil differs markedly from the president's. He believes that Pakistan and, even more so, Saudi Arabia are the epicenters of global violence. "Many Saudis support the terrorists in Iraq to this day - but we're the ones who are putting up the money -- by paying $50 for a barrel of oil and making ourselves dependent on oil imports."

Scheuer, an experienced intelligence expert, doubts that the entire bin Laden family has severed ties with Osama: "I haven't seen anything in the last 10 years that's convinced me that would be the case." In his view, SBG still derives some of its profits from business dealings in the Islamic world that can be linked to the family's supposed "black sheep." "He's treated as a hero almost everywhere over there," says Scheuer.

[. . .]

Of course, former CIA agent Scheuer is well aware that the bin Ladens, as investors in and customers of the Carlyle Group, an investment company, had common business interests with the Bushs. In fact, until October 2003 George W.'s father and predecessor in the White House still worked as an "advisor" for Carlyle, which is also involved in the defense sector. Although Scheuer is no wild-eyed conspiracy theorist, he also believes that the US government was "unusually" accommodating to the bin Ladens. Does he regret leaving the CIA, and does he dream of returning? Scheuer, a father of four, says: "I liked my job. I wanted to protect the country against its enemies -- but not the president against his critics."

Part One.
Part Two.

Google bomb

2005-06-03T20:41:00.000-04:00

Downing Street Minutes

2005-06-03T18:51:00.000-04:00

My notes are in [italic]. Emphases are mine.

SECRET AND STRICTLY PERSONAL -- UK EYES ONLY

DAVID MANNING

From: Matthew Rycroft

Date: 23 July 2002 [Note the date]

S 195 /02

cc: Defence Secretary, Foreign Secretary, Attorney-General, Sir Richard Wilson, John Scarlett, Francis Richards, CDS, C, Jonathan Powell, Sally Morgan, Alastair Campbell

IRAQ: PRIME MINISTER'S MEETING, 23 JULY

Copy addressees and you met the Prime Minister on 23 July to discuss Iraq.

This record is extremely sensitive. No further copies should be made. It should be shown only to those with a genuine need to know its contents.

John Scarlett summarised the intelligence and latest JIC [Joint Intelligence Committee] assessment. Saddam's regime was tough and based on extreme fear. The only way to overthrow it was likely to be by massive military action. Saddam was worried and expected an attack, probably by air and land, but he was not convinced that it would be immediate or overwhelming. His regime expected their neighbours to line up with the U.S. Saddam knew that regular army morale was poor. Real support for Saddam among the public was probably narrowly based.

C [Sir Richard Dearlove, head of Britain's foreign intelligence service] reported on his recent talks in Washington. There was a perceptible shift in attitude. Military action was now seen as inevitable. [Note again, they believed this in July of '02] Bush wanted to remove Saddam, through military action, justified by the conjunction of terrorism and WMD. [This is the kicker] But the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy. [In July '02, they were already working on 'fixing the facts'] The NSC [National Security Council] had no patience with the UN route, and no enthusiasm for publishing material on the Iraqi regime's record. There was little discussion in Washington of the aftermath after military action. [Which is why we're in the mess we're in now]

CDS [Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, chief of the defense staff] said that military planners would brief CENTCOM on 1-2 August, Rumsfeld on 3 August and Bush on 4 August.

The two broad U.S. options were:

(a) Generated Start. A slow build-up of 250,000 U.S. troops, a short (72 hour) air campaign, then a move up to Baghdad from the south. Lead time of 90 days (30 days preparation plus 60 days deployment to Kuwait).

(b) Running Start. U.S. forces already in theatre (3 x 6,000), continuous air campaign, initiated by an Iraqi casus belli. Total lead time of 60 days with the air campaign beginning even earlier. A hazardous option.

The U.S. saw the UK (and Kuwait) as essential, with basing in Diego Garcia and Cyprus critical for either option. Turkey and other Gulf states were also important, but less vital. The three main options for UK involvement were:

(i) Basing in Diego Garcia and Cyprus, plus three SF squadrons.

(ii) As above, with maritime and air assets in addition.

(iii) As above, plus a land contribution of up to 40,000, perhaps with a discrete role in Northern Iraq entering from Turkey, tying down two Iraqi divisions.

The Defence Secretary [Rumsfeld] said that the U.S. had already begun "spikes of activity" to put pressure on the regime. [Remember again, this is July '02] No decisions had been taken, but he thought the most likely timing in U.S. minds for military action to begin was January, with the timeline beginning 30 days before the U.S. congressional elections.

The Foreign Secretary said he would discuss this with Colin Powell this week. [So, when Powell went to the U.N., he knew he was shoveling shit] It seemed clear that Bush had made up his mind to take military action, even if the timing was not yet decided. But the case was thin. Saddam was not threatening his neighbours, and his WMD capability was less than that of Libya, North Korea or Iran. We should work up a plan for an ultimatum to Saddam to allow back in the UN weapons inspectors. This would also help with the legal justification for the use of force.

The Attorney-General said that the desire for regime change was not a legal base for military action. There were three possible legal bases: self-defence, humanitarian intervention, or UNSC authorisation. The first and second could not be the base in this case. Relying on UNSCR 1205 of three years ago would be difficult. The situation might of course change.

The Prime Minister said that it would make a big difference politically and legally if Saddam refused to allow in the UN inspectors. Regime change and WMD were linked in the sense that it was the regime that was producing the WMD. There were different strategies for dealing with Libya and Iran. [They knew what they had to do, they just had to make the case] If the political context were right, people would support regime change. The two key issues were whether the military plan worked and whether we had the political strategy to give the military plan the space to work.

On the first, CDS[Admiral Sir Michael Boyce, chief of the defense staff] said that we did not know yet if the U.S. battleplan was workable. The military were continuing to ask lots of questions. [I wondered for months why the generals went along so easlity. They didn't, they just had their arms twisted for a longer period of time until they caved] For instance, what were the consequences, if Saddam used WMD on day one, or if Baghdad did not collapse and urban warfighting began? You said that Saddam could also use his WMD on Kuwait. Or on Israel, added the Defence Secretary.

The Foreign Secretary thought the U.S. would not go ahead with a military plan unless convinced that it was a winning strategy. On this, U.S. and UK interests converged. But on the political strategy, there could be U.S./UK differences. Despite U.S. resistance, we should explore discreetly the ultimatum. [That's the route they finally took] Saddam would continue to play hard-ball with the UN.

John Scarlett assessed that Saddam would allow the inspectors back in only when he thought the threat of military action was real.

The Defence Secretary said that if the Prime Minister wanted UK military involvement, he would need to decide this early. He cautioned that many in the U.S. did not think it worth going down the ultimatum route. It would be important for the Prime Minister to set out the political context to Bush. [So the Smirking Moron wouldn't fuck it up]

Conclusions:

(a) We should work on the assumption that the UK would take part in any military action. But we needed a fuller picture of U.S. planning before we could take any firm decisions. CDS should tell the U.S. military that we were considering a range of options.

(b) The Prime Minister would revert on the question of whether funds could be spent in preparation for this operation.

(c) CDS would send the Prime Minister full details of the proposed military campaign and possible UK contributions by the end of the week.

(d) The Foreign Secretary would send the Prime Minister the background on the UN inspectors, and discreetly work up the ultimatum to Saddam.

He would also send the Prime Minister advice on the positions of countries in the region especially Turkey, and of the key EU member states.

(e) John Scarlett would send the Prime Minister a full intelligence update.

(f) We must not ignore the legal issues: the Attorney-General would consider legal advice with FCO/MOD legal advisers.

(I have written separately to commission this follow-up work.)

MATTHEW RYCROFT

[Rycroft was a Downing Street foreign policy aide.]

"Mushroom clouds"

2005-05-07T18:06:00.000-04:00

SEOUL — As North Korea accelerates the pace of its nuclear weapons program, the United States and its allies have limited options to prevent one of the world's poorest and most erratic nations from becoming a nuclear power.

[. . .]

I know I talk about this a lot, basically because the press has decided not to . . . until that little lunatic in North Korea does something to get their attention. I spent three years of my life in South Korea, not far from the DMZ. I love and respect the Korean people, and I look back on my time spent with them with fondess. It's an area rich in history and culture, and the last thing I want to see is this land become the blast point of the next regional conflict. They went through enough earlier this century.

[. . .]

The Bush administration appears to have ruled out any kind of preemptive strike on North Korea, which with its conventional artillery alone could inflict massive casualties on neighboring South Korea and the more than 30,000 U.S. troops stationed there. And with diplomacy failing, nonproliferation experts have begun to speak despairingly of the inevitability of a nuclear North Korea.

[. . .]

There is no denying Kim Jong Il is nuts. What would he do with nuclear weapon that could concievably reach the western U.S.? How many scores would he try to settle in the region? We know of his lust for the wealth of South Korea and his difficulties with the Japanese.

[. . .]

During a previous nuclear showdown, when Bill Clinton was president, and another tense period in 2003, policymakers stared down the path of military action and blanched. Although there is no doubt that the United States and its allies would prevail in any contest, military analysts believe that North Korea could kill hundreds of thousands of people in South Korea and perhaps Japan before it goes down in defeat.

[. . .]

The 1994 deal that Clinton struck was weighted in the North Koreans' favor, but lines of communication were open. We could talk to them and the U.N. was able to monitor their progress in the nuclear arena. That changed in 2000.

[. . .]

What little contact there is between the United States and North Korea has deteriorated into an unseemly exchange of insults. Shortly after Bush characterized Kim Jong Il as a "tyrant" during a news conference last week, the North Koreans denounced Bush as a "philistine" and a "hooligan."

But many diplomats think there is still more the administration can do to bring North Korea back into negotiations. For example, the White House has been criticized for refusing to conduct one-on-one talks with the North Koreans, insisting that all contacts remain within the multilateral framework.

[. . .]

With teenagers running the White House, this is what passes for diplomacy. Name calling. Yeesh. This isn't high school or college. You have a madman with a lust for power (of the most dangerous kind), you have to treat him gently until you can disarm him. This mess on the Korean Peninsula has been exacerbated by the doings of Bush's new U.N. Ambassador nominee, John Bolton (yes, him), who'd begun the name calling not long after arriving in the region.

[. . .]

The South Koreans and Chinese have indicated that they would like to see the United States put a more specific proposal on the table, laying out in detailed steps what economic and security incentives would be provided if North Korea dismantled its nuclear program.

The Americans "need to come up with positive reinforcement mechanisms rather than these negative signals that make the situation worse and worse," said Moon Chung In, a South Korean academic and foreign policy advisor to his government.

[. . .]

So, while Bush & Co. plays their silly little game in Iraq that's costing the lives of our children and squandering our wealth, Kim Jong Il plays another, more calculated one. He knows our forces are stretched so thin that any sort of response to him would be slow and anemic. By the time we get it together, it will be as it was in 1950, maybe worse. Instead of barely holding on to the southern tip of Korea, a swift attack from the North could net part or all of Japan. There are a lot of U.S. bases within reach of Kim's missiles already. The reality is that he could destroy a good part of our military assets in East Asia.

[. . .]

Within the last month, North Korea shut down its 5-megawatt nuclear reactor at Yongbyon. Nuclear experts believe the decision was probably a prelude to removing fuel rods from the reactor to extract plutonium to make nuclear arms.

If that happened, according to a recent report by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Monterey, Calif., North Korea could have 11 nuclear bombs by next year.

[. . .]

What eleven targets would Jesus choose? What, you don't think he's on our side anymore, do ya?

Thanks to Pudentilla blogging at Skippy's for the link

Well, I don't know about this...

2005-04-26T17:44:00.000-04:00

I like Jonathan Alter, and I see the wisdom in this piece in Newsweek, but I'm not sure I'm patient enough to want to see it through.

Why We Need DeLay to Stay
The midterms should be a referendum on DeLay's America. Stay on the right fringe or move to the center? Let the people decide.

By Jonathan Alter
Senior Editor and Columnist
Newsweek

May 2 issue - A couple of years ago, Tom DeLay was chomping on a cigar at a Washington restaurant with some lobbyists. The manager went over to tell him he couldn't smoke because the restaurant was located on property leased from the federal government, which bars smoking. "I am the federal government," DeLay replied, in words that will follow the onetime exterminator from Sugar Land, Texas, like ants at a picnic.

The line reeks of the arrogance and self-importance that may bring DeLay low, but it also has the advantage of being true: all three branches of the federal government belong to Republicans, and the autocratic House majority leader is the purest representation of the breed. On every issue—ethics, the environment, guns, tax cuts, judges—he is a clarifying figure for anyone who might be confused about the true nature of today's GOP.

So assuming he dodges indictment, DeLay should stay in his post for 18 months, until the 2006 midterm elections. Even if his legendary gerrymandering has made it unlikely that the Democrats will regain control of Congress, at least the voters—who now, finally, have heard of this guy—would have a clearer decision about where the country should go. His potential successors are all just as conservative as DeLay, but they seem colorless and would thus fuzz up the choice. The midterms should be a referendum on DeLay's America. Stay on the right fringe or move toward the center? Let the people decide.

Some Democrats aren't buying. Sure, it would be nice to have "the Hammer" around as a bogeyman for direct-mail solicitations, they say, but he should step down. They claim that his death by a thousand cuts is, as Democratic Rep. Harold Ford puts it, "a big distraction from all that we are trying to do."

Actually, that's an argument for keeping DeLay around. We should want the 109th Congress "distracted" and kept from returning to normal business for as long as possible. Anything the Democrats are "trying to do" won't get done anyway. And what the Radical Republicans are trying to do is usually bad—from cutting taxes further amid monster deficits to immunizing polluters in the energy bill (which won't do a thing, as even proponents admit, to cut gas prices), to subjecting Social Security to the whims of the stock market. It was once conservatives who thought Congress should legislate less. Now this should be the Democratic mantra: Don't do anything. Just stand there!

This will be depicted as obstructionist by the same people who once preached against activist government, but it's the only effective response to the dictatorial way that DeLay's House does business. (Yes, I know the House Democrats could be high-handed during their long years of power, too, but that doesn't excuse the current behavior.) Democrats like Ford don't care to admit that they're utterly powerless; it makes it harder to get up every day and go to work. But their amendments are almost always rejected, and they are excluded from the conference committees that resolve House-Senate differences. So for House Democrats to be "constructive" by engaging in bipartisanship is, with a few exceptions, a sucker's game.

If DeLay goes down, his shamelessness will go with him, which will make it harder to see the GOP's true agenda. Take the assault on federal judges. DeLay first asserted that they must "answer for their behavior" in the Schiavo case. His "apology" consisted of adding: "We set up the courts. We can unseat the courts. We have the power of the purse." At a recent strategy session sponsored by Tony Perkins's Family Research Council and James Dobson's Focus on the Family, discussion focused on getting rid of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which the right wing deems too liberal. Perkins and Dobson reminded the group that they need not impeach judges, they can simply defund them, as DeLay recommends.

Sure, it's wrong when DeLay takes Scottish golf outings courtesy of Indian casinos or lets lobbyists write bills or turns the House ethics committee from a bipartisan panel into his own personal Laundromat, bent on cleaning his reputation. This is the same man who asked in 1995: "Are they [representatives] feeding at the public trough, taking lobbyist-paid vacations, getting wined and dined by special-interest groups? Or are they working hard to represent their constituents? The people have a right to know."

But this smelly hypocrisy—assuming it's not found illegal—merely offends the senses. DeLay's views on muscling the judiciary and ending the separation of church and state (which he believes is a fiction) offend the Constitution. That makes it too important to leave to the media and the rest of the Washington scandal machine to remedy. This job belongs to the voters, who can hammer the Hammer by siding against his many acolytes in Congress. Let's make 2006 a referendum on the right wing. For that, DeLay must stay.

© 2005 Newsweek, Inc.
© 2005 MSNBC.com

Thinking gives me a headache

2005-04-24T07:45:00.000-04:00

From my dear friend (and cousin-in-law) Encino Man:

It started out innocently enough.
I began to think at parties now and then -- to loosen up.
Inevitably, though, one thought led to another, and soon I was more than just a social thinker.
I began to think alone -- "to relax," I told myself -- but I knew it wasn't true.
Thinking became more and more important to me, and finally I was thinking all the time.
That was when things began to sour at home.
One evening I had turned off the TV and asked my wife about the meaning of life.
She spent that night at her mother's.
I began to think on the job.
I knew that thinking and employment don't mix, but I couldn't stop myself.
I began to avoid friends at lunchtime so I could read Thoreau and Kafka.
I would return to the office dizzied and confused, asking, "What is it exactly we are doing here?"
One day the boss called me in
He said, "Listen, I like you, and it hurts me to say this, but your thinking has become a real problem. If you don't stop thinking on the job, you'll have to find another job."
This gave me a lot to think about.
I came home early after my conversation with the boss.
"Honey," I confessed, "I've been thinking..."
"I know you've been thinking," she said, "and I want a divorce!"
"But Honey, surely it's not that serious."
"It is serious," she said, lower lip aquiver. "You think as much as college professors, and college professors don't make any money, so if you keep on thinking, we won't have any money!"
"That's a faulty syllogism," I said impatiently.
She exploded in tears of rage and frustration, but I was in no mood to deal with the emotional drama.
"I'm going to the library," I snarled as I stomped out the door.
I headed for the library, in the mood for some Nietzsche.
I roared into the parking lot with NPR on the radio and ran up to the big glass doors...
They didn't open. The library was closed.
To this day, I believe that a Higher Power was looking out for me that night.
Leaning on the unfeeling glass, whimpering for Zarathustra, a poster caught my eye.
"Friend, is heavy thinking ruining your life?" it asked.
You probably recognize that line.
It comes from the standard Thinkers Anonymous poster.
Which is why I am what I am today: a recovering thinker.
I never miss a TA meeting.
At each meeting we watch a non-educational video; last week it was "Porky's."
Then we share experiences about how we avoided thinking since the last meeting.
I still have my job, and things are a lot better at home.
Life just seemed...easier, somehow, as soon as I stopped thinking.
I think the road to recovery is nearly complete for me.
Today, I registered to vote as a Republican...

Democrats must change everything

2005-04-21T18:48:00.000-04:00

James Carville and Paul Begala are two of my favorite pundits, as those things go. They have written this Op-Ed in USA Today:

"Houston, we have a problem." With those words, spoken with a calm that masked the gravity of the situation, astronaut Jim Lovell informed NASA that Apollo 13 was running out of oxygen.
The skinny guys with skinny ties back in Houston, and the crew-cut crew in space, acted. They didn't argue. They didn't second-guess. They didn't blame each other. They acted. And most important, they didn't deny that they had a problem.

But today, too many leading Democratic strategists deny that the party we love has a problem. When you lose to an unpopular president with a soft economy and a disastrous occupation in Iraq — a man who lost all three debates and who, when he's trying to complete a sentence, is like a drunk man trying to cross an icy street — you most definitely have a problem.

Let's be clear what the problem is — and is not.

Some think the problem is that Democrats have become too liberal. They point to unpopular positions on partial-birth abortion and other social issues and say Democrats should return to the center.

Others say the problem is that the party has become too conservative. They point to Democrats who supported President Bush's tax cuts for the rich and the crippling deficits they caused, and say the party should return to its progressive, populist roots.

Both are right, but more broadly, both are wrong.

Sure, we'd like it if Democrats were seen as the party of faith, family and the flag. And we'd like it if Democrats would fight corporate interests more and take their special interest money less. But the biggest problem the Democrats face is not that they're seen as standing for too many liberal issues or standing for too many conservative positions. It's that Democrats aren't seen as standing for anything.

The fundamental question for the party out of power is always: What would you change?

Democrats' answer should be, "Everything." On every front, on every issue, Democrats should be the party of reform, change and a new direction.

• The economy. President Bush's weak-dollar, high-debt economic policies have placed our economic destiny in the hands of communist Chinese central bankers and Arab oil sheiks. Democrats should stand for fiscal responsibility, asking the wealthiest to pay their share of the debt — and reform, reform, reform. We should reform trade laws that encourage corporations to ship jobs overseas. We should reform the tax code and replace the current lobbyists' dream with a tax code that is simpler, fairer and more progressive. Above all, we should place middle-class jobs and middle-class values at the heart of our economic policy. Middle-class Americans are working hard and playing by the rules, but they are being ripped off at every turn. They need economic reform.

• Health care. While millions of Americans are debating whether they would want to prolong their life through extraordinary measures, the reality is many Americans will never have that option.

President Bush has proposed crippling cuts in Medicaid (a program that supported Terri Schiavo). The corrupt alliance between pharmaceutical lobbyists and the Republicans resulted in a prescription drug bill that costs twice what we were told it would — perhaps because the new law makes it a crime to negotiate for lower prices. If that law applied to businesses, every manager of every Wal-Mart would be in jail. Democrats should stand for health care reform.

• Foreign policy. Rather than reform our badly broken intelligence services, President Bush and the Republicans have engaged in political purges, rewarding those who were most wrong about the war in Iraq and punishing those few who sounded alarms.

Rather than reforming and modernizing our alliances, President Bush has alienated our friends and emboldened our enemies. Worst of all, our senior government officials cannot always be counted on to tell us the truth when American lives are at risk. It's time to reform our foreign policy.

• Political reform. When House Republicans choose as their leader Tom DeLay, who has been cited and sanctioned by the Ethics Committee more often than any other congressman, it's high time for reform.

When lobbyists are writing legislation, when gambling interests are paying for luxury junkets, when the Ethics Committee itself has been put out of business, it's time for reform. Democrats should stand for cracking down on lobbyists and cleaning up our politics.

Lord Acton said absolute power corrupts absolutely. The absolute power Republicans currently enjoy in Washington has corrupted our economy, our foreign policy, our health care system and our very democracy.

If Democrats can't take on that corruption with a bold and broad agenda of change and reform, then (to paraphrase the late senator Pat Moynihan) we'd better find another country to run in.

Right now it seems to me that the Dems are in a reactive, defensive mode. I think Howard Dean can change that to an active, aggressive program. Here's hopin'.

An American Hero

2005-04-02T02:16:00.000-05:00

A true American hero passed away recently. He stood up to the government when they did wrong. From the San Francisco Chronicle.

In 1998, Fred Korematsu was a fragile reed of a man. But in the East Room of the White House, the septuagenarian stood up straight and tall as he heard President Clinton say, "Plessy, Brown, Parks ... to that distinguished list, today we add the name of Fred Korematsu."

Mr. Korematsu, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for courageously defying military orders calling for the World War II removal of Japanese Americans from the West Coast, died of respiratory failure Wednesday in San Rafael. He was 86.

Mr. Korematsu's death marks a milestone in the history of American civil liberties. By his simple act of defiance in 1942, for which he was arrested and convicted, the lifelong Bay Area resident became an icon of social justice, not just in his own Japanese American community, but beyond.

"Fred taught us that dissent is sometimes the most patriotic act you can undertake to preserve constitutional rights," said Dale Minami, a San Francisco attorney who helped overturn Mr. Korematsu's conviction. The reversal followed a 1983 federal court ruling that found the internment of 120, 000 people of Japanese ancestry to have been an action based on "unsubstantiated facts, distortions," and racism.

"Fred was a man of quiet bravery -- he wasn't bombastic -- but he really had a deep-seated conviction that the whole internment was a terrible blot on American history," said Peter Irons, a retired UC San Diego professor of political science who found secret Justice Department documents that reopened the Korematsu case.

Mr. Korematsu, born in Oakland in 1919, was a nisei, or second-generation Japanese American. On Dec. 7, 1941, Mr. Korematsu was a 22-year-old welder in San Leandro. Like all West Coast Japanese, the Korematsus were ordered in early 1942 to assembly centers and later incarcerated in camps. But Mr. Korematsu refused to go.

Planning to move to Nevada, he assumed another identity and even had plastic surgery, but was arrested in San Leandro and jailed. Aided by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, Mr. Korematsu challenged the exclusion orders in 1942.

The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld the conviction by a 6-3 vote in 1944, ruling that military necessity justified the orders. His was one of a handful of legal challenges by Japanese Americans to military orders. But it was Mr. Korematsu's case that became the most well-known -- and is studied today by every law student in America.

Viewed by many constitutional scholars as one of the high court's worst mistakes, the 1944 ruling in Korematsu vs. United States drew stinging dissent from Justice Robert Jackson, who wrote that the "Court for all time has validated the principle of racial discrimination. ... The principle then lies about like a loaded weapon. ..."

Mr. Korematsu's conviction dogged him, making it hard to support his wife and two children. Years later, when Irons came to him with vital documents denying that Japanese Americans were a threat during the war, he reopened his case with the help of a pro-bono team of young, mostly Japanese American lawyers.

U.S. District Judge Marilyn Patel threw out the conviction and called the case a "constant caution that in times of war or declared military necessity, our institutions must be vigilant in protecting our constitutional guarantees."

Through it all, say those who knew him, Mr. Korematsu never gave up seeking his rights.

"Fred was an ordinary American with extraordinary courage," said Irons.

Mr. Korematsu is survived by his wife, Kathryn of San Leandro; daughter, Karen Korematsu-Haigh of San Rafael and son, Ken Korematsu of San Francisco.

A memorial service will be held on April 16 at 1:30 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church, 2619 Broadway at 27th Street, in Oakland.

Godspeed, Fred. I pray I show the guts you showed when my turn comes. So should we all.

The Finger

2005-03-18T05:57:00.000-05:00

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Pro-Syrian Hizbollah guerrillas will keep their weapons despite U.S. calls to disarm and Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon, the group's chief said on Wednesday.

[. . .]

"I'm holding on to the weapons of the resistance because I think the resistance ... is the best formula to protect Lebanon and to deter any Israeli aggression," [The group's leader, Sheikh Hassan] Nasrallah said in a live interview with Hizbollah's al-Manar television.

[. . .]

They give Chimpy the finger. So what does he do?

[. . .]

Nasrallah's comments came as President Bush tried to clarify remarks in which he left the door open for Hizbollah to have a political role in Lebanon if it disarmed.

[. . .]

What did he call it? Oh yeah, 'resolve'. Didn't we hear that during the campaign? 'President Bush has resolve'. He will see this through'. Yeah, well, that's resolve. He calls for Hizbollah to disarm, they say 'fuck you, make us', and Dicknose has to back down. Know why? Because everybody except the 51% of us who believe the Repub propaganda, knows we're stretched so thinly that we'd have serious problems responding to another crisis. So now everybody feels they can drop their drawers and say 'kiss my ass, you moronic chimp'.

[. . .]

Nasrallah said: "We are ready to remain a terrorist group in the eyes of George Bush to the end of time but we are not ready to stop protecting our country, out people and their blood and their honor."

[. . .]

In New York-ese: 'Shut the fuck up and mind your own goddamn business. We don't give a fuck what you think of us and if you get in our way, we're gonna bust your ass. You come in my neighborhood, you're gonna leave in a bag.'

[. . .]

Bush repeated U.S. demands that Syria withdraw all troops and intelligence personnel from Lebanon to allow for free elections in May.

[. . .]

He can repeat and repeat; that only works in Jesusland. Like I always say, it's hard to fight someone who looks forward to meeting their maker. That's what they don't understand. The best way to fight terrorism is not to kill as many of them as you can, it's to give the people of the region hope. If they have no hope for a future, meeting Allah and the virgins ahead of schedule looks mighty appealing.

9/11

2005-03-13T06:17:00.000-05:00

I just found this, something I'd forgotten about. Since we've been on about 9/11 lately, and the fact that the two-year anniversary of the start of the Iraq War is coming up this week, I figured I'd post it as a reminder of why Bush has been able to walk all over the Constitution with impunity. His gift from Allah, so to speak. This was written by Mrs. F a couple days after the attack as an explanation to my German relatives.

14 September 2001

Hello there!

I wanted to tell you what has happened here, from my vantage point. This is not to scare you, but to let you know what I have been through and that I have made it out ok.

My office is directly across the street from the World Trade Center. As Birgit [my cousin] may have told you, my office faces the Trade Center, and the Towers are the only thing I truly see from there. If you have seen any of the local maps, they refer to the World Financial Center and the American Express and Merrill Lynch Buildings. My office was on the 44th floor of the Merrill Lynch Building.

I arrived at work at 06:40 hours and was preparing to leave the office at 09:15 with two co-workers to visit a client in New Jersey. We were to have left the building at 09:15 to get the car to drive there. At 08:45, the office was quiet as not everyone had arrived for the day. We heard, what I thought was the sonic boom of a military plane. Richie and I had heard the same sound on one of our cruises when a Coast Guard plane "buzzed" the ship. The next thing after the boom, the building shook. Since all of our windows faced the towers, someone began to cry out, "My God, the plane is going to hit the Tower". Everyone raced to the windows to open the remaining blinds and I was no exception. I watched, in horror as the tail end of the first plane disappeared into the North Tower. At the same time it was disappearing, pieces of the fuselage were falling out of the plane while a huge fireball was coming out of the opposite side. We all stood there for about 45 seconds in total disbelief, thinking this was not real and rather a stunt for a movie script. At this time, I still was unaware the plane was a commercial jet and not a military plane. We believed this was a "freak accident".

My Vice President (the big boss of the department) was of sound mind enough to call out for everyone to evacuate the office. I grabbed my things and ran out, following my co workers through the suite of our office space. We considered this an emergency and walked down the entire 44 floors of the building, only to reach street level, almost directly under the burning North Tower. It appeared to me that my company were the only ones on the stairs. We have over 225 people working for the company, and with everyone coming out at the same time, the exit area was getting crowded. We had some people who had heart conditions. We tried to help them as much as possible down the stairs and out of the building.

We kept moving outside, to allow everyone an area to exit the building. While walking outside, I started to see pieces of the burning building floating down, seeming like a feather, until it impacted the street, and exploded like fireballs on the pavement.

I passed two people, who had apparently been pedestrians on the street, who were struck by burning debris. They were burned so badly, their bones were exposed. They sat, just waiting for someone to help them, while they were obviously in pain, burned, almost beyond recognition.

After being on street level, not more than 2-3 minutes, I kept saying , "We shouldn't be here. We are too close to the area." Just after I said this, I heard the second sonic boom, and the second plane impacted the South Tower, and debris again began to rain down on us. At this time, I was certain we were under attack by terrorists. All of this transpired in just 18 minutes.

We ran through my office building towards the Hudson River, on the West side of "downtown" Manhattan. I kept my "wits" together enough to know we had to continue to get away, moving North of the area. People were in a panic and many of us knew people who worked in the towers. One of the girls who worked in my accounting department had a boyfriend who worked in the Tower, apparently on the floor that was struck first. She was paralyzed with horror.

In the midst of all the confusion, I was able to locate my two immediate bosses. We stayed together and continued to walk North and away from the area. We continued about 15-20 blocks on foot as there were no vehicles to be seen with the exception of emergency vehicles.

We soon saw a taxi cab, that was locked with the driver standing by and watching with horror of his own. We were able to convince him to drive us to Penn Station. We were trying to get on a train to get out of the City as soon as possible.

It took us a long time driving, but we made it to Penn Station by 9:40. I made my way inside and called Richie to tell him I was alive. It was now 0945. People were in a daze trying to figure out what was going on. No one that was in the Midtown area knew exactly what was happening, but they knew it was not good.

There was a train scheduled to leave Penn Station for my home at 10:15. My Manager and I were able to get on the train. We were packed into the train with no room, all hoping against hope to get out of the City.

At 10:30, an announcement was made that the train was cancelled; Penn Station was closed; and we would have to exit the train and get out of Penn Station, only to have to go out on the streets of New York City.

I was trapped in a City under attack, with no hopes of getting home in the immediate future.

My boss and I started walking away from Penn Station in case it was the next to be hit. We were also only two blocks away from the Empire State Building. We feared this may be the next target.

There was no traffic in the streets because the City had effectively been closed. It was surreal to walk in the streets of New York City with no sounds of cars, trucks, busses or overhead planes. People were wandering aimlessly, walking in the middle of the major streets of NYC, without knowing what to do or where to go.

We made our way to 42nd street, and watched, on the large exterior televisions as the Towers collapsed.

All businesses and stores had closed by this time; however; there had been people working on construction sites who had radios on. They allowed us to listen to the news. We walked a little further and stopped by a truck who was stopped with his door open allowing us to listen to a bit more of the news as we continued to walk on.

We attempted to find a hotel to stay in, however, there were none to be found, nor did I really want to think about spending the night in the City.

After wandering for hours, we were told that one of the bridges leading out of the City and towards home would be opened to pedestrians. This was on the East side of town, and "uptown" from where we were. We continued to walk towards the bridge among the masses of people just wandering. We were on a "mission" to get home and out of the City, no matter how far we had to walk.

After a while, we were now at 53rd Street and 3rd Avenue, almost on the East River, and at the midpoint of the island. The subways began working again and we were among the first to get on and get safely out of Manhattan. It took another few hours before I finally made it home at 16:30.

We have remained in the house for the past few days, glued to the television, trying to get as much news about what is happening as possible. The death toll is expected to rise to almost 10,000, if not more. Entire companies of 1500 people or more have been lost. We have no information whether my building, which is considered to be in "ground zero", will ever be able accessible again or not. Telephones are sporadic coming into and out of NY. We are awake now, Friday, since 05:30.

There have been several arrests overnight, where they believe there were three different groups, attempting to get on planes out of Kennedy airport and LaGuardia airport in NY, who were going to try to do more damage.

The World Trade Center was truly a world in itself. There were businesses from at least 15 different countries who had companies and people in the Towers. Japan had 31 companies, most of which were clients of my company. Deutsche Bank had offices there and 4 German nationals are confirmed dead with numerous others listed as currently missing.

What you see on television, if you have been watching, is nothing compared to having been there. It still seems like a bad dream, however, it is not. I have had a lot of pain in my legs from all of the stairs I walked down, and all of the additional walking, however, I sit here and say, "thank goodness I am here to feel the pain".

The people of New York and the surrounding states have pulled together for the rescue efforts. We will get past this and we will come back bigger and better than we were, once we have had the opportunity to grieve and heal.

I wanted you to know that I am ok. That is all for now.
We send our love to you all.

Karen & Richie

Now tell me why we've wasted 1500 young lives in Iraq? Tell me why Osama is still on the loose?

Keeping and bearing

2005-03-08T15:27:00.000-05:00

I'm not one for firearms. I never felt the need to own one after I left the military. I don't hunt. Just never felt like shooting anything that didn't pose a threat to me, and I have a soft spot for animals. I don't condemn hunting, I got friends who do, religiously. They enjoy it, more power to 'em. I'll go target shooting with friends once in a while, just to assure myself I ain't lost it (qualified marksman consistently in the military, even got a ribbon, with oak leaf cluster and star device, for it), but I never felt the need to own a gun.

Until now.

When I see this bankruptcy bill being pushed through Congress, when I see all the things the Repubs are doing to stifle free speech, when I see all the hate being purveyed in God's name, I think it's time to build an armory.

If you would have asked me a year ago, I would have told you that things would never get that bad. Lately, I have the feeling they will. Whether the economy tanks and people (desperate and destitute) will want what I have, or whether jackbooted storm troopers march down the streets, I'm gonna be in a position to defend my rights, my family, and my property. At the least, take as many of 'em as I can down before they get to me.

It takes me aback that I feel this way lately, ever since the election. It seems our safety net (the press) has been coopted and the Bush administration, and the Repub Congress, can do as they please with impunity, without question. It feels like we're living in Bizarro World and everybody acts like nothing's wrong. Well there is something wrong, very wrong with this country.

I've come to the realization that I am once more willing to put my life on the line for this country. The country I was raised in. The country that generally respected human rights and protected the rights of Americans. I'm more than willing to fight, and give my life, for that country, whether it means fighting my 'brothers' in the streets, as we did 150 years ago. I am of the opinion lately that is what the Red-Blue divide will come to in the end.

So, beginning this weekend, I start collecting guns. Gonna start with a nice housecleaner. 12 gauge, pump action, riot-style shotgun. Next, something .30 caliber, so that I can hit some asshole a couple hundred yards off. Remember, I still got the touch. And then maybe something fully automatic and totally illegal, but there's a lotta nuts out there and I just might have to clear the street.

So here it is. You wingnuts might be able to pass any unConstitutional, unGodly, stupid fucking laws you want. You can dick with the Constitution. You can fuck with the vote. Go ahead, you got the power. But remember this.

This half-acre plot of land on Long Island that has my last name on the mailbox in front? This is, and always will be, the old America. My America. And the Constitution and Declaration of Independence will always be respected here, even if you Repubs have shit all over them. Do what you want with everyone else if they'll let ya, but don't you dare fuck with me. I'm really pissed.

I'm pissed because I haven't had this mindset since I left the military. Specifically since the day I hit the ground running in Grenada and had to dodge Cuban fire. I'm pissed that you hate-mongers got me back here, to this place in my mind that I've tried my damndest to forget about. You fucked up this time.

You see, deep down, under all the layers of acceptability I've piled on top, I love combat. I don't tell that to many people. My wife knows, because she had to deal with me when I'd wake up screaming in the middle of the night because of what I'd seen and done. She'll probably have to do that again if you guys fuck this nation to Hell and I'm pissed that you're gonna put her through it. Know why? 'Cause if you give me the reason, I will defend myself, my family, and my property, and I'll enjoy killing as many of you as I can before I go. Just ask that squad of Cuban infantry on Grenada, or the two North Korean snipers I chased into a tunnel under the DMZ, when I send you to the same Hell they're in. You're damn right I'm mad. I'm angry as Hell and soon I'm gonna be armed to the teeth. Go ahead, make my fucking day.

You have been warned. See you in Hell.

WTF?

2005-03-06T10:38:00.000-05:00

I seem to be on a foreign policy thing today, so lets talk about Syria's announced pullback from Lebanon. It offers hope for a people under occupation for 30 years.

BEIRUT, March 5 -President Bashar al-Assad of Syria refused on Saturday to comply with President Bush's demand that he withdraw all of his country's troops and intelligence agents from Lebanon, telling the Syrian Parliament that he planned instead to order a gradual pullback to Lebanese territory near Syria's borders.

[. . .]

Bashir Assad, Syria's president, isn't the model for integrity. You know Syrian intelligence won't leave that quickly, even if the troops do. But this is a hopeful sign. So why is the White House taking such a hard line?

[. . .]

"Anything less - phased withdrawal, partial withdrawal, leaving the intelligence agents in place - is a violation of the resolution," one senior aide said. "How fair an election can Lebanon hold if the troops are there to intimidate voters, people running for election, or people now in office?" [my emphasis]

[. . .]

If we weren't being governed by a bunch of teenagers, a more supportive line could have been advanced. Maybe 'we welcome Syria's intentions to end the occupation of Lebanon and look forward to a speedy withdrawal'? Eh? Sounds a bit more . . . diplomatic, especially in light of this last week:

Iraqi officials said Sunday that Syria captured and handed over Saddam Hussein's half brother, a most-wanted leader in the Sunni-based insurgency, ending months of Syrian denials that it was harboring fugitives from the ousted Saddam regime. Iraq authorities said Damascus acted in a gesture of goodwill. Sabawi Ibrahim al-Hassan, who shared a mother with Saddam, was nabbed along with 29 other fugitive members of the former dictator's Baath Party in Hasakah in northeastern Syria, 30 miles from the Iraqi border, the officials said on condition of anonymity. The U.S. military in Iraq had no immediate comment.

You know, if the idiots in Washington would realize that Assad sees the writing on the wall and throw him a little support with the troop withdrawal, it would go a long way in Palestine, maybe among some of the other Arab states, to convince folks that the Americans aren't just out to stake their claim on the region's oil and allow Israel to do as it pleases.

What we are hearing is saber-rattling consistent with what we heard in 2002 when Iraq was in the sights of the Bush administration. Are they trying to achieve 'regime change' in Syria? Are they willing to have another chaotic, failed state on their hands, another breeding ground for terrorists?

The Bush administration is misreading these whispers of democracy in the oppressive regimes in the Middle East as a referendum on its Iraq policy. You hear them saying that freedom is on the march in Palestine, and Eqypt, and Lebanon. It's not because of Bush's policy in Iraq. It's because Arafat died.

We're #49!

2005-03-05T14:08:00.000-05:00

Unlike the Retard Right (© Gordon) who look at our position in the world through Bush-colored glasses, this is where we really stand in comparison to the rest of the world:

The United States is 49th in the world in literacy (the New York Times, Dec. 12, 2004).

The United States ranked 28th out of 40 countries in mathematical literacy (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004).

Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the earth. Seventeen percent believe the earth revolves around the sun once a day (The Week, Jan. 7, 2005).

"The International Adult Literacy Survey...found that Americans with less than nine years of education 'score worse than virtually all of the other countries'" (Jeremy Rifkin's superbly documented book The European Dream: How Europe's Vision of the Future Is Quietly Eclipsing the American Dream, p.78).

Our workers are so ignorant and lack so many basic skills that American businesses spend $30 billion a year on remedial training (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). No wonder they relocate elsewhere!

"The European Union leads the U.S. in...the number of science and engineering graduates; public research and development (R&D) expenditures; and new capital raised" (The European Dream, p.70).

[. . .]

Link via the Mule at Blondie's.

The one that should really bug folks is this:

Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea hold 40 percent of our government debt. (That's why we talk nice to them.) "By helping keep mortgage rates from rising, China has come to play an enormous and little-noticed role in sustaining the American housing boom" (NYT, Dec. 4, 2004). Read that twice. We owe our housing boom to China, because they want us to keep buying all that stuff they manufacture.

So, next time you hear some Repub asshole going on and on about how we do things so much better in this country, point him to this list and ask him why the Bush administration hasn't done anything to correct the problem.

De Col' Wind Be Comin' Closah.....

2005-03-04T14:27:00.000-05:00

Feel that cold breeze on the back of your neck? That's a draft. Philip Carter and Paul Glastris make a case for it in a Washington Monthly article. Agree or disagree, they make some good points. Go read. Pack a lunch, it's a long one.

The only effective solution to the manpower crunch is the one America has turned to again and again in its history: the draft. Not the mass combat mobilizations of World War II, nor the inequitable conscription of Vietnam—for just as threats change and war-fighting advances, so too must the draft. A modernized draft would demand that the privileged participate. It would give all who serve a choice over how they serve. And it would provide the military, on a “just in time” basis, large numbers of deployable ground troops, particularly the peacekeepers we'll need to meet the security challenges of the 21st century.

America has a choice. It can be the world's superpower, or it can maintain the current all-volunteer military, but it probably can't do both.

All this for a war that most planners consider to be a medium-sized conflict—nothing like what the United States faced in World War I, World War II, or the Cold War. And while threats of that magnitude aren't anywhere on the horizon, there are plenty of quite possible scenarios that could quickly overwhelm us—an implosion of the North Korean regime, a Chinese attack on Taiwan, worsening of the ethnic cleansing in the Sudan, or some unforeseen humanitarian nightmare. Already we have signaled to bad actors everywhere the limits of our power. Military threats might never have convinced the Iranians to give up their nuclear program. But it's more than a little troubling that ruling Iranian mullahs can publicly and credibly dismiss recent administration saber-rattling by pointing to the fact that our forces are pinned down in Iraq.

What we're increasingly learning from Iraq is that the all-volunteer force, as presently built, cannot do that—indeed, it was consciously designed to be incapable of such deployments. Today's force was built for precisely the kinds of wars that Caspar Weinberger and Colin Powell envisioned in their doctrines: wars with explicit purposes, narrow parameters, and clear exit strategies. In other words, it was built for the kinds of wars the military prefers to fight, not necessarily the kinds of wars we have, as a nation, historically fought.

The evolution of this force owes much to Vietnam. After that war ended, the nation's senior generals devised a military structure called the “total force” concept to circumvent two of the great moral hazards they identified with Vietnam: the failure to mobilize the nation, with all of its strata and segments, for the war; and the reliance on young American conscripts, who were coerced by the state to kill or be killed.

Vietnam had been fought almost entirely by active-duty volunteers and conscripts. A great number of young men, including many from the nation's privileged classes, sought refuge in the reserves as a way out of duty in Vietnam. The total force concept entailed, first of all, the splitting of key war-fighting and support functions. Henceforth, active-duty troops would perform nearly all the traditional combat roles; reservists would provide most of the support functions, such as logistics and military policing. This ensured that future wars could not be fought without the heavy involvement of the reserves. Army Gen. Creighton Abrams and other leaders felt that this would be a check on the power of presidents to go to war (yeah, like that worked! -ed.) because mass reserve call-ups typically require a great deal of political capital.

In theory, one can always lure the next recruit, or retain the next soldier, by offering a marginally higher monetary incentive—but in reality, there are practical limits to such measures. The pool of people who might be convinced to join the Army is mainly comprised of healthy young people with high school degrees but no college plans. That pool is inherently limited, especially when the economy is heating up and there's a shooting war on. Last year, despite signing bonuses in the tens of thousands and other perks, military recruiters had to lower entry standards to meet their enlistment goals. The active force met its recruiting targets for 2004, but the reserves have found themselves increasingly struggling to bring enough soldiers in the door.

The problem is that under the all-volunteer system it's hard to fix the short-term problem (too few troops now) without creating long-term problems (too many troops later). And so, paying for the salaries and benefits and families of 50,000 or 500,000 extra soldiers on active duty over the course of their careers doesn't, from a military standpoint, make sense. Politically, it would put the senior military leadership in the position of convincing the American people to keep military budgets extremely high to pay for a huge standing army that isn't being used and might not be for years. It might be possible now to convince the public to add another 100,000 soldiers (annual cost: about $10 billion in personnel costs alone, not including equipment and training). But the generals rightly worry that this support will evaporate after Iraq stabilizes. Indeed, Americans have a long tradition dating back to the writing of Constitution, of refusing to support a large standing military unless the need is apparent. (The public paid for a much bigger all-volunteer military in the 1970s and 1980s, but only because of the obvious need to deter a massive Soviet army from threatening Europe; after the Berlin Wall fell, both political parties supported big cuts in troop strength). What we really need is the capability to rapidly mobilize and deploy a half million troops to project U.S. power abroad, and to be able to sustain them indefinitely while maintaining a reserve with which to simultaneously engage other enemies.

In practice, however, our republic has decided many times throughout its history that a draft was necessary to protect those basic liberties. Even if you disagreed with the decision to invasion of Iraq, or think the president's rhetoric is demagogic and his policies disastrous, it is hard to argue that Islamic terrorism isn't a threat to freedom and security, at home and abroad. Moreover, any American, liberal or conservative, ought to have moral qualms about basing our nation's security on an all-volunteer force drawn disproportionately, as ours is, from America's lower socioeconomic classes. And the cost of today's war is being borne by an extremely narrow slice of America. Camp Pendleton, Calif., home to the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force, is also home to approximately one-seventh of the U.S. fatalities from Iraq. In theory, our democracy will not fight unpopular wars because the people who must bear the casualties can impose their will on our elected leaders to end a war they do not support. But when such a small fraction of America shoulders the burden—and pays the cost —of America's wars, this democratic system breaks down.

A better solution would fix the weaknesses of the all-volunteer force without undermining its strengths. Here's how such a plan might work. Instead of a lottery, the federal government would impose a requirement that no four-year college or university be allowed to accept a student, male or female, unless and until that student had completed a 12-month to two-year term of service. Unlike an old-fashioned draft, this 21st-century service requirement would provide a vital element of personal choice. Students could choose to fulfill their obligations in any of three ways: in national service programs like AmeriCorps (tutoring disadvantaged children), in homeland security assignments (guarding ports), or in the military. Those who chose the latter could serve as military police officers, truck drivers, or other non-combat specialists requiring only modest levels of training. (It should be noted that the Army currently offers two-year enlistments for all of these jobs, as well as for the infantry.) They would be deployed as needed for peacekeeping or nation-building missions. They would serve for 12-months to two years, with modest follow-on reserve obligations.

The war in Iraq has shown us, and the world, many things: the bloody costs of inept leadership; the courage of the average American soldier; the hunger for democracy among some of the earth's most oppressed people. But perhaps more than anything, Iraq has shown that our military power has limits. As currently constituted, the U.S. military can win the wars, but it cannot win the peace, nor can it commit for the long term to the stability and security of a nation such as Iraq. Our enemies have learned this, and they will use that knowledge to their advantage in the next war to tie us down and bleed us until we lose the political will to fight.

If you think I might have left out a lot, well, I did. This is an excellent piece and you should read it and make up your own fine mind.

I have felt for years that our Nation needs some kind of National Service to re-acquaint young Americans with the old-fashioned notion that they are actually part of a process. It would help them grow up. They need something.

Most Americans are spoiled rotten, but the kids are salvageable. Whether they would choose to serve in the military, or dig a village well under a blazing sun, or give aid and comfort to an AIDS sufferer, it would make better people of them. They would realize that life ain't just extreme sports, hip-hop, and rave-ups and then get a big job and screw everybody else, but that some kind of civic involvement is what's necessary to stay tuned and connected to America.

If more people gave a shit about the reality of life in our country and the world, this administration would never haved succeeded in their coup d'etat. 'Nuff said.