Another reason to love Colbert...
The self-proclaimed "Colbert Bump", where a politician enjoys a popularity surge just after coming on the show, isn't all myth- at least not for the party I like to call 'slightly better'.
Work it, Hil!
...But Hillary is the divisive one...
Recently, candidate Barack Obama quickly worked to distance himself from his 'spiritual advisor', Reverend Jeremiah Wright, as the more press Wright's sermons received, the more negatively the connection was viewed.
What does that connection entail? The talking points all over that everyone knows:
- Obama's attendance at the Pastor's church for the past 20 years.
- Wright married the Obamas.
- Wright baptized their daughters.
- The title of Obama's book, "The Audacity of Hope", came from a Wright sermon.
- To recap- he went to the church for two decades.
I remember vividly when my mother decided to hang up her Buddhist beads and took me along for her Christian Church search. A few times at the Church of the Rock charismatic church, where people spoke in tongues and the whole damn thing was on TV ('dim the house lights, Pastor's gonna Heal...). Some sanity prevailed, and there was a quick jaunt to the Baptist church (never to be repeated, as I recall). One trip to the Staceys across the street's church, some odd affair where music wasn't allowed, so you sang to the tune of...whoever knew it best. And finally, The nearby Missouri Synod Lutheran Church, who accepted open, frank questions, didn't condemn to Hell its parish during sermons, and still managed to keep the formality inherent in the faith that broke away from the Holy See. Actually- I will restate- the Pastors who accepted open, frank discussion. The tone of a congregation is absolutely set by its minister. If one chooses to stay on at a church, to take time out of their lives to attend, and commit to indoctrinating one's children there- it is not a passing decision. America has churches on every other street corner, sometimes more- if one is uncomfortable, it's a simple matter to move on to the next one.
This post may seem a bit shocking for those of you who know me as somewhat an agnostic Buddhist- but my point is a vital one. As personal as choosing a faith is (or not choosing one), picking the person to represent, interpret, and reinforce that faith is even more personal, that much more critical. It determines the shape of ones belief system, and how that is subsequently acted upon.
Why do I care either way?
I care because it seems people were sold. I've been hearing for months now that Hil is just not inclusive enough, that only Barack has the makeup to unite our parties, our people.
His speech- which, to his credit, came from his own hand- rings well. The old 'looks like he dodged a bullet' review. It will be interesting to see if it is enough to overcome this. Or this, for that matter. I don't know what's worse- supporting a parish that clearly is...inflammatory and pretending it's not to win elections, or turning back on the guy who was your surrogate father and close mentor to win elections.
Tough call.
Cogito.
I think that "What if you spoke like you commented?" is very funny. Annoying. Funny. Annoying...
I think Obama is going to win over Hillary. Sigh.
I think the assholes that let girls incinerate because of missing veils and robes need to be given the same sentence they meted out in their insane religious 'interpretation of Islam'.
I think Astonishing X-Men written by Joss Whedon is bad-ass, and am only sorry that I just learned of it while browsing in the comic shop today. How that one slipped past the last four years is mystifying.
On a related note, I think one day I'm just going to go full kung-fu on the next greasy haired comic store clerk who asks me if I'm looking for a gift for someone or shopping for my boyfriend or son. Or on the next one who automatically steers me to the Manga section.
I think this comparison of Star Wars (episodes 4-6, or rather, the ones that didn't completely suck) to political figures is toothy and clever.
I think this AI app that uses art to trace chess move possibilities is very cool. I also think it makes me head hurt a little.
Ergo sum.
Update: actually included the AI chess link now.
McCain versus Minority 1 or Minority 2?
This NYR of blogging more has been a mixed bag. I am finding when work is like standing in a meat grinder while everything you care about is slowly minced to sad, little smears that my motivation in other areas plummets. But for you, dear reader/s, I will perservere.
First on the list- it is a beautiful day when it is likely the next leader of the USA will be a woman or a black man- not for the sake of that status, but that we've finally reached a stage where that's even feasible. As McCain gets nearer to his party's nomination, that likelihood mushrooms. I am loving it. I am curious, however, what the long term effects of bringing WJC in (finally) will be. It's the '2 for 1' tagline resurrected against the 'no more dynasties' camp. I have yet to hear Obama say anything that is exciting or promising to me- it all seems very hopeful, yet practiced, and without a whole lot of action planning.
Hopefully, we will have a clear frontrunner soon so we can get down to who will be the new puppetmaster ala Cheney. Conversely, if the primaries stay open, in the end more can jump in, and could have a last minute Gore sweep. Love the Hil, but if he was on the ticket, he would absolutely have my vote.
Secondly, it is the day of the social networking site star. We have Facebook making a quiet move to take over, I mean, neatly integrate into your every day world, which, being a frank fan I am not too frightened of. Then, finally realizing they are no longer the belle of the ball, MySpace is opening the door to developers for apps ( Lord knows, it can't be a detriment with all the bugginess and horrible rendering already implicit in the MySpace experience) at the same time people are leaving in mass numbers. I am considering following suit- I only keep my account for a select few ties now (having successfully converted friends over to Facebook, as I myself was brought in). One of my friends just closed their account because of the deletion of a very large atheist online group (and being an atheist, figures he just isn't welcome), but my motivations are hardly as integrity-driven; I just want to be able to log into one site, use one Twitter-like update utility, and maybe feed someone to my vampire or race my tricked out car or field some hands of Texas Hold 'Em while I'm at it.
This last bit I am actually going to conduct along with you, so I apologize if the results end up being a bit...messy. I was informed by a close colleage that there is some sort of H. Ledger death scandal, along the lines of Michael Hutchence (which I still think was murder but that's because I 'readz the intarweb'). When I asked what it was, I was handily informed to google 'Heath Ledger death dildo'. Well, who can turn away an instruction like that? So now, safely at home and without HR issue, I will do just that and report the result.
Googling...
Oh.
Yep, it's a meme... (a really horribly, tasteless one)...and no coincidence the text is EXACT for every hit, all within the comments sections (fan sites, Digg, blah blah).
Bleh. Poor family.
Come on, Everybody...
It's been a day from Hell, but a couple of things served as grand buoys.
One- Hillary won last night's primary. Take that, naysayers! Twenty % more women showed up at the polls than did in Iowa. I don't think it's coincidence that bumped Clinton ahead. The crass 'Iron my shirt' episode doubtless helped, too, as that speaks volumes of where we still need to go as a country. Only a short hop to yelling at Obama the racist remarks maybe people are already expecting to occur (we'll see once he hits Alabama).
What is Two? The best headline I've seen in awhile:
Masterbators come together in Copenhagen.
Cue Beavis and Butthead, please.
Just a good ol' boy...never meaning no harm...
[source]
I generally like all 3 Democratic front-runners, for completely different reasons- but I find this whole gang-up-on-the-broad tactic absolutely sickening. I like that she is hitting back, and that the responses have been weak. Edwards seems to, as usual, mean what he says without thinking much through it, but Obama is pure calculation. Perhaps my own weaker sex association that I find that essential in Hilary, but distasteful in the current point leader.
In the end, I'd still vote for Gore before any of these. We seem to still be in the 'voting for the lesser evil' space of the last election (ok, I would have voted for Dean with gusto, had it not been for the mighty yawp that felled).
And, for myself, there's no question of voting for anything other than a Democrat. The last thing I want to see is another 8 years of toothpick-premise wars which no one seems to blink at, while at the same time the most important thing on the home front is reduced to trivialities like preventing gays from marrying and making sure legal age women can no longer get birth control at the local Walgreen's because pseudo-doc has a misogynistic God-complex.
While no Communist, I wholly see the value in decoupling religion from law- mainly because the people pushing these laws have more in common with the torch-bearers chasing Frankenstein into the burning tower than any rational beings that should be allowed to vote. They drive and live by ignorance (heavy emphasis on) and fear, and this country has seen enough already of what can be stripped from them by marketing that fear and (deliberate) ignorance. The fact that the Jesus freaks (whether believing in Jesus I or Jesus II) are leading the other camp shows just how important this election really is. It's great to be grounded by spirituality, but to lead a campaign on it is terrifying. We might as well install an Ayatollah at that point (it's all the same God in the end that's written of, after all).
Happy 2008!
Someone asked me last night if I had any resolutions. Well, yes, but not any wrought by the arrival of a calendar day. However, in the interest of the spirit of the thing I came up with one bone fide NYR- to post more. To give a reason for readers to maybe stop back once in awhile. And yea, bring more 'controversial political commentary' back- since you asked for it and all.
To get the year started, I must offer up the best sum-up of what it means to be a Star Wars fan- EVER.
For those who occasionally 'google' themselves to see their web-prints, now you can see your social network trails along with those of friends. I now know my friends' Amazon wishlists going back to 2000; that's a bit creepy and stalkified if you ask me.
Have you wondered about waterboarding, what it is, what is controversial regarding it? A conservative poster on the Straight Dope takes on waterboarding trials to determine if it should be considered torture. You may be surprised.
On a somber note- no good can came from Ms Benazir Bhutto's assasination, but the fact that no one can agree on what exactly killed her is almost more disturbing than her death itself.
Link Goodies
Just some random goodness, to support a strange day and an ambiguous mood:
A site after my own anathema: Funny and Stupid Quotes from Ann Coulter. One wonders how they have enough disk space to keep up.
The Top 20 Starship Captains. I usually wholly disagree with these lists, but actually mostly agree (but Picard over Kirk? Not a chance).
I have no idea what this picture is of, but I've never seen creepier. Dresden, maybe.
And lastly,some good old Far Side faves.
Aye, and don't forget, ye scurvy knaves- tomorrow is Talk Like a Pirate Day, Arrrr.
Here, Here...
The Ostrey Report gets it right, in my mind. I think Hil can win, and if Gore doesn't run (what? still murmurings of a last minute ticket to the show? ), I think she should win.
She can lead. At least, she can command, which is 1 up (or 2 up, depending on your opinion of leadership) on the walking minefield we have now. She brings her own experience coupled with the 8 years of peace and prosperity experience of her husband. Do I have any bias with her being a woman? Sure, a bit. She's the most qualified possible woman candidate period, with the exception of Condoleeza Rice (if the Reds were ever to break rank and file and- gasp!- spread PR for a woman for this position). From coverage so far, next to Gore, she's the most qualified of the current possibles for President. And, as the article alludes to, she scares the bejebus out of Neo-Con Republicans.
Much satisfaction is to be had at the GOP running scared. It's their nightmare scenario- how do you play your usual Swift Boat tactics against a woman- even if you're portraying the woman in question as some sort of power-mad uber-bitch- without offending the masses by seeming cruel and insensitive, with all the worst case PC ramifications? No matter what they choose to attack- her '60's era diaries (Seriously? She was more impetuous 45 years ago? Really? It's news that a person is more emotive and less restrained in their twenties than their sixties? This is news??), Whitewater (long since closed and case did not succeed as the GOP wanted), her (formerly *cough*) philandering husband (She stood by her man- Burn her!)- she will be ready.
I bet she can't wait.
What does a bear do in the woods?
Actual tagline on msnbc of Newsweek article, "Did Rove try to mislead Congress?".
Erk.
No wonder I've been retreating to the land of lolcats and myspace (I know, I know) lately.
THANK-YOU!
Alter gets it. Had a morning tirade on this very subject. If the Edwards decided to campaign and that's what helps her feel viable and maybe even survive longer, it's despicable to judge.
Not everyone needs to spend their last hours belly up on a beach, especially if there is a personal mission at hand. He's extremely well-spoken, has decent ideas- but next to media frenzy of a woman and a black man running, hasn't gotten much play yet.
If he'd dropped out, the same yokels passing the time by telling everyone how power-hungry he is would be telling us what a spineless wimp he was for dropping out for a woman.
The Liberty Amendment
Working to keep it real since 1933. Follow that up with a 'common sense' amendment (for the kind of world where cups of hot coffee don't have to remind the drinkee that the coffee is indeed hot), and we'd be in good shape.
On the 2008 race front, 1st Barack, now Hillary...the only real question is, will he become her running mate or vice versa? Build up both camps, and at last possible second, announce the VP candicay of one with the other- thereby sweeping the Nation with a minority strides two-fer. To me, what's the next best thing to Bill Clinton in the White House (and no, intern-soaked cigar is Not on the list)?
Bill Clinton in the White House, even as accessory.
The Pendulum has SWUNG
Dems sweep the House.
Dems just may- if you go with CNN's and other news outlet takes- have taken Congress to boot.
Thank-you, Howard Dean, for helping to save this country (and certainly my faith in its peopel).
Next steps? Let's just hope there are more action plans (3 party state? A full on handover? A last move shock and awe- then get the hell out?), solid growth moves, and just enough Congressional hearings. If we tie down everything with reviewing the past, we'll never move forward the way we need to, the way the Dems need to repay the voters' ballots.
TRAVESTY
Debra A. Reed voted with her boss on Wednesday at African-American Research Library and Cultural Center near Fort Lauderdale. Her vote went smoothly, but boss Gary Rudolf called her over to look at what was happening on his machine. He touched the screen for gubernatorial candidate Jim Davis, a Democrat, but the review screen repeatedly registered the Republican, Charlie Crist.
That's exactly the kind of problem that sends conspiracy theorists into high gear -- especially in South Florida, where a history of problems at the polls have made voters particularly skittish.
A poll worker then helped Rudolf, but it took three tries to get it right, Reed said.
And you won't find a peep of outcry from the Red party. After all, the end justifies the means to these people. "Take your pill, shut your mouth, you know the drill". 'Serenity' should be enforced viewing, honestly.
Great weekend, but stressed. Halloween tomorrow. Elections. Bachelorette Party. Going away drinkage for fleeing co-worker. Business trip to Chicago. Cooking Thanksgiving for family, parents on both sides, and maybe a friend or two. Getting married in Vegas 2 days later, with fam and friends in tow. Work project through it all. Closing out wedding details (baby tux, hotel room gaps filled), planning menu, scheduling maintenance (nails, hair) so ready for the Big Day. And these are just the things I already know of. I'm going to have a breakdown.
Lovely weekend, though- Halloween party wth some good bands, ran into old acquaintance whose band is taking off finally (A member of the Damned just spent that last 2 weeks at his pad...Good for You KJ, so awesome)- Glass Heroes, check 'em out, stayed at Ritz for timeshare deal, bought into timeshare. They must have suckered us well, because not yet seeing the downside- local, so can rent out for Superbowl as minutes away or Spring Training, good discounts, use of facilities, plane tickets RT thrown in, for not to much outlay considering...and getting in at early stage, so could always just sell for profit in end.
Jeez, do I sound into it or what- maybe a side gig in my future, who knows.
The Hag of Palm Beach?
In case you had any doubts that Ann Coulter was worth the air she breathes, allow me to break apart the illusion:
New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton lashed out at Ann Coulter for a “vicious, mean-spirited attack” on a group of outspoken 9/11 widows, whom the right-wing television pundit described as “self-obsessed” and enjoying their husbands’ deaths.
Coulter writes in a new book, “Godless: The Church of Liberalism,” that a group of New Jersey widows whose husbands perished in the World Trade Center act “as if the terrorist attacks happened only to them.”
She also wrote, “I’ve never seen people enjoying their husbands’ deaths so much.”
Why such vitriol? Why, these widowed harridans have the audacity to want to know the real story, in detail, behind what happened to their husbands, their families. What traitors!
In truth, maybe the media and others shouldn't ever expect more from someone under investigation for both voter and tax fraud?
Canada Strikes Back
I came into work this morning, opened my Outlook, and right off read this well-intentioned petition plea:
With more than 317,000 seals killed for their fur in 2005 alone
-- 98% of whom were babies under three months of age -- Canada's
harp seal hunt is the largest commercial hunt of marine mammals
on earth. It is certainly the cruelest.
Although Canadian citizens don't support the seal hunt, the
fishing industry and the federal government have refused to end
it. With the recent election of Prime Minister Stephen Harper,
there is renewed hope that 2006 will be the last year that seals
are clubbed and shot to death on Canadian ice for.
As Prime Minister Harper begins his term, we have an
unprecedented opportunity to influence the Canadian government
and save hundreds of thousands of baby seals.
Please take action today to help end the cruel Canadian seal
hunts by sending an e-mail to Prime Minister Harper immediately.
Thank you!
https://community.hsus.org/campaign/harper_protectseals?rk=CdL8Ned1SXEPW
Just as I was ruminating on the effectiveness of petitions in general, a Fark headline caught my eye:
American family writes Canadian senators about 'horrific' seal cull. Canadian senator writes back about 'horrific' innocent Iraqi cull.
Link goodness here. It's so pointed I've been expecting a 'satire' tag all day, yet none has appeared.
Gee, thanks, Bob Barr
Since when did your camp give a rat's arse about civil liberties, anyway?
You see, for those playing at home, anything with 'lib' in it is bad. Liberals. Liberties (Liberty). Liberation. Library (can't have those damn, over-educated readers mucking it up for the rest of us sand-ostriches). Libations. And, lord forbid, 'Women's Lib'- satanic whore-spawn they be.
Next on the list, anything with 'free' within will be verboten.
Reminds me of one of my favorite films, "Alphaville" (jean luc-godard), where certain key words 'disappear' from the collective dictionaries. As badass as I think that movie is, I never really expected to be living in a version of it.
chip...chip...chip...chip...
That's the sound of life as you know/knew it slowly crumbling away.
Wow-ie
Wish I had a job where anything negative I could re-write history about as I go.
The sweet smell of roasting chickenhawk
Rough days for "Scooter" Libby, VP Cheney (though I doubt he was really getting his hands dirty in any of this), Karl Rove, Tom Delay...and President Bush seems to have lost quite a few hearts with his Miers recommendation among Conservatives. Boo-hoo.
Yet the Machine is still rolling. Officially now 2000 soldiers have died for the Iraq effort (Operation Enduring Mission without Adequate Armor and Exit Strategy...a draft does not a Constitution make nor does it equal a War won). Thanks to the Katrina fiasco, the U.S. has shown to the World a very large, white, flabby, weak underbelly. And handling emergencies well, 'a' after fucking up royally and 'b' in a case where said threatening Hurricane never actually turns out to do any damage, does not equate to redemption...more spinning to drive your focus away from the utter scum that occupied the highest FEMA office and didn't receive ANY penalty for the hundreds of lives lost that were at his feet. The complete crassness of a Party that have members who continue to vacation during one of the worst natural disasters this country has seen, and claim the total horrorshow of a woman who chooses to spend thousands on shoes when maybe a little show of contrite meekness and sympathy was in order.
Are you safer today than in 2000? NO.
Did Pres. Bush make things safer post 9/11? NO.
Are your borders more protected? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Did Homeland Security show how well they've been using the billions in funding when Katrina was the show of the day? Depends- were you part of the inland Republican counties that were declared a state of disaster pre-storm, or part of the SHORELINE Dem counties that couldn't get a disaster declared (even though the paperwork was signed, sealed, and sent) without an Act of God?
Is the economy better than it was pre-Dubya? Right.
How's the stock market? Un-hunh.
How 'bout that surplus Clinton left? Memories, like the corners of...
Social Security? Health care? Medicaid? Literacy rates? Number of TOP Scientists and Engineers today vs. in past years? Air quality? Eating much Albacore lately? Swordfish? How 'bout your pregnant wife/sister/friend? How's the tap water?
All terrible things, but that's okay, because Bush is a Hell of a guy- he gave me a $300 tax credit 4 years ago!
Fucking unbelievable FOOLS we've become. Dems/Libertarians/and actual Conservatives for letting it happen, and GOP'ers for believing Propaganda so much they don't know shit from shinola anymore. That lapse in judgement has resulted- for the 1st time in American History- in handing their kids- and mine, Fuck-you very much- a World that is more in peril, more dangerous, more unclean, than the one they were brought up in.
Enjoy the Kool-aid, you twisted GOP crap-swillers.
Huh
Some lies:
- Iraq poses an imminent threat to the United States.
- Iraq possesses (as in, one already in possesion of) weapons of mass destruction...somewhere up by Tikrit.
- The abuses committed in Iraq on detainees were just by a few bad apples.
- It's the local governments that caused FEMA and the Federal Government to allow the deaths of hundreds of people.
- Frist and Delay are top notch people, completely above board in everything they do, and the American people owe them their support.
- "You're doing a heck of a job, Brownie."
- "Mission Accomplished."
- "We will protect Social Security."
- "No child left behind" didn't have anything to do with the business affairs of one Neil Bush ( a person not allowed to work in the banking industry because of the massive acts of fraud he committed).
- VP Cheney hasn't had any personal ties to Halliburton in his tenure as Vice Prez.
- The government is not betraying taxpayer money by not bidding out large contracts in every major endeavor they undertake.
Some truths:
- The Dems are thinking of running Hil because apparently she's got the most spine and most importantly the biggest dick in the Party.
- By a slendor majority, this country craves a dictatorship.
- When a major U.S. event happens under Republican tenure, the GOP will do its best to make sure findings are either adapted or not revealed to the populace ( I suppose we should be grateful we're still allowed to read).
- We are poor equipped to handle a massive storm; imagine how well prepared we are for an attack on U.S. soil.
- Our borders are no more protected today than pre-9/11.
- The Dems have no game plan, no attack plan, and no agenda other than, "whatever Republicans are against we're for".
- We spend the most money on Education and yet have the highest illiteracy rate of any non-third world country.
- We are one of the largest consumers of natural gas and oil, yet refuse to abide by or participate in Global accords for decreasing the negative affects of using these products.
- We are not the same country that headed up the European Reconstruction. We are not the same country whose women gave up their jewelry and their stockings to support a war effort. No Presidential portrait has hung in an American living room, next to that of Jesus in many households, since John F. Kennedy was assasinated. We do not hold our leaders to any standards when the public would rather pick the guy who would be fun at a BBQ or Ballgame over the guy- the Guys- who actually would do a good job as President. We have millions of children who live in poverty- the most of any industrialized nation- and the number grows yearly. Under George W. Bush, the rate of health coverage for the nation's children is rapidly on the decline- and he got elected without a plan to address the issue. If your schools are bad, and your children are sick, and all that is cared about is increasinging Militarization...what's the goal? Where is the end-game? This is a Presidency built upon Revelations...there is absolutely no committment to the Future- not in its children, not in its environment, not in its technological growth, not in its medical advancements- because it is everything to these people to make sure that hope of a Future doesn't occur, because that would invalidate their belief that by ending the World themselves, they will rise into Heaven. These people are no better than third-rate jihadists.
But do you know what's worse? The Democrat Party, the Democratic members of the Senate, and the Democratic members of Congress, because they have sat by and have done absolutely nothing resembling effectiveness, nothing resembling galvanization, nothing resembling sanity speaking through chaos.
If you hated Clinton for it
Then you can hardly be in support of the new Clintonian stance on Rove.
"By involvement, I mean a crime."
"By sex, I mean penetration."
With new reports implicating Libby- Denmark certainly seems to be showing a bit of rot at the seams.
When Chickenhawks come to roost...
Has Rove backed into a corner he can't get out of? Will Bush keep his word and cut him loose if the semantics of the issue are found to be condemning? Is this all clever ploy to keep attention away from rising gas prices and Supreme Justice appointments?
Stay tuned...
As far as other happenings, from the mailbag:
Paul Harvey loses his mind. I don't think I can add sufficient commentary here to fully convey how completely screwed in the head he must be to say these things on the air, and to say them with gravitas. If this were Rush, you could laugh this off as typical sideshow buffoonary, but from Paul Harvey???
From Bob- Industrial Cooking. Any one who is a fan of Einsturzende (insert umlaut) Neubauten should get a kick out of this.
A good read from Tim- why suicide bomber stereotyping falls short next to the reality. Changes perspective a bit when your image of a cock-eyed, mustachio'd, young, illiterate with a turban is replaced by a well-educated, well-trained, calculated perp.
Kevin Smith, the Blog. Nice!
They ain't all stooges...
John Conyers' letter to the Washington Post (towards center of article) lambasting them for shoddy reporting warms this Blue gal's meta-tarsals.
The 'kept press' is the most apt term I've heard yet.
Vast Liberal Conspiracy?
Possibly...and in this case, I dissent...and agree with Justice Clarence Thomas...and is that frost on Satan's foot I see?
"Respondents... use marijuana that has never been bought or sold, that has never crossed state lines, and that has had no demonstrable effect on the national market for marijuana. If Congress can regulate this under the Commerce Clause, then it can regulate virtually anything - and the Federal Government is no longer one of limited and enumerated powers" - Justice Thomas
Beyond what one may think about the actual legalization of marijuana (personal belief is that if nicotine and alcohol are legal, pot- which has fewer issues than the former and actual medicinal benefits- should be), the idea that Congress should have final say on all issues is, quite plainly, a violation of checks and balances.
"Congress' power to regulate purely activities that are part of an economic 'class of activities' that have a substantial effect on interstate commerce is firmly established," Justice John Paul Stevens wrote for the majority.
That this aim is not even a secret agenda is even more frightening.
Sham City
Next time a conservative gives you flack about liberals comparing Bush to Hitler (think the rational ones speak more to the parallels of the administration's interaction with the populace), offer up this as a "shut up".
Because it may be soo awful they can blog about Moveon all day, but when one of their own is at fault, it's apropos.
A Party of turd-talkers, and 52% of the people just keep eating it up. No wonder the education system, healthcare system, environmental activity (Love that Mercury sandwich!), deficit, and state of the Press are all headed down the toilet.
Good to be HOME
Savage. Lovin' it.
Bukowski pomes, as read by the poet himself.
[from growabrain]
This is cool- Family Guy Freakin' Blog.
Would have been even better if from the POV of Stewie.
Creepy fun or the maniacal side of education- Hazard Cards, technological accidents of the past, present, and Future.
[from Geisha Asobi]
Did I mention it's good to be back?? Can't say that I much enjoyed the 'mistake by the Lake' (although, I now can completely empathize with the moniker). All I can say is, I'm glad that wasn't my wedding that was outside in 37 degrees off of Lake Erie (even if I did have to suffer through along with the rest)- a lot of stress, varied results- but much booze, so in hindsight could have been much worse. And a couple that loves each other very much, so in the end, suppose that's what it's all about.
But think they could have loved one another just as much indoors?!
the frozen tundra
Sorry for slim pickings of late...work crazy, and heading out to Ohio tomorrow (one of the States who received quite a few inches of snow 3 days ago) to be in a good friend's wedding.
Outside. By a Lake.
Feel free to pray to the weather lords for us.
So, be back next week, and just a couple links to keep things interesting:
50 % of all Americans think President Bush is a lying liar.
A site to warm the meta-tarsals to the tip of your nose and beyond- "Liberalism Resurgent" .
Shameless proud mama pic:
A big blog welcome to...
RoseRash...it'll make the skin tingle, but in a good way, so you can throw the creams away.
Goebbels, see Goebbels
I just...do not...have the words for this.
Propaganda Machine.
Paint 'em red and call 'em Maoists...(or those other propaganda lovin' sots).
Unbelievable.
Just who the hell do these people represent, anyway?
Just like last election...
Going to have to apparently revisit my support of anyone titled 'Senator' from now on (back in favor of those titled 'Governor').
BALLS.
Sigh...
The more things change, the more they stay the same...
My mom sent this article by Greg Palast that just makes one want to crawl into bed and lay in the fetal position for a day or so. While I admit I am a bit relieved not to have another recount scenario to live through, at what price grace and convenience? If tables were reversed, this election would still be open. This party needs to grow a sac, and soon.
Ever wonder if the Civil War truly ended? States rights vs. Federal (slavery wasn't made a true issue until later in the war) and all that?
Well, take a lookie here (thanks, Ed, for the link) and make your own call:
Lastly, from Orcinus, a damn fine breakdown on the permutations of Fascism.
A Dark day in history
Yep, it's official. Being the worst CIC in history ain't enough to get you fired.
Enjoy the black hole of history you are tumbling towards, folks.
And if you are female, gay, black, or hispanic, well a big Cheney "Fuck-you" to ya, for you have another 4 years of nobody giving a damn (unless, of course, it's for a campaign photo op).
Polling site help
Keith sends this site of his that is designed to help you find your polling place.
He writes:
The website's goal is to help voters find their polling place. Our database of online poll locators has been slowly growing. We now can get 63% of the US population the exact location of their polling site in 4 clicks or less. For the other 37% we provide a local phone number where they can call to get the information they need. This service is free to the public, it has no political affiliation or agenda, and I truly believe that civic participation is the key to a responsive government. This is a small 1 man operation with no marketing dollars.
Keith has also created with a friend this site where you can report voting problems.
His comments for this website:
In running the polling site, I've been getting a lot of people upset with their local county polling site, and looking to complain to someone. I cannot do much to help specifically, but we decided to create a blog where we list news stories of election problems. We have cataloged over 150 articles in 34 states, and it's growing by the hour. The content is organized by state so a user can click on their state and read about any problems in their region.
Good goals, both- hope this helps get the word out! Please, if you feel the same, post these on your respective websites as well? Non-partisan, and think we'd all agree this is one helluva important election!
Dirty Pool
So many headlines like this one pointing to voter intimidation tactics have been in the news lately, and it's completely shameful. Oh, lest any of us Lefties want to get on a high horse here, there have been plenty of incidences initiated by those in the anti-Bush camp to level this playing field.
So many issues are out there (have you read all the recent Iraq news? I can't believe Bush still is neck and neck with this record) that should be front and center- petty vandalism just makes everyone look just that-
Petty.
What's worse than SPAM?
Misguided, conservative-driven SPAM. In my inbox today:
RatherGate proved that bloggers are the best fact checkers. That is
why we are writing to a few bloggers asking for help.
Yes Bush Can has collected several documents that are clearly suspect.
But we need your help to prove they are fake:
http://www.yesbushcan.com/falsedocs.shtml
Let's spring to action before these documents needlessly tarnish the
reputation of our Commander and Chief. You know the drill: analyze
the
handwriting, search for factual errors, and post your discoveries.
And keep us posted by sending email to FakeDocs@yesbushcan.com.
Thanks in advance for your help.
YesBushCan
Actually thought it could be a satirical site, but nope- looks like these poor bastards are just snowballed, deluded, and sadly bereft of a grasp of the obvious. Players in the, "If Dubya says it, it must be true" arena.
Amazing.
Momentum
94 Reasons NOT to vote for George W. Bush
[from the Hamster]
Some perspective on the use of 'facts' (or outright distortions) from last night's debate.
My personal fave:
Kerry made two charges — that Bush had once said he was "not that concerned" about finding Osama bin Laden and that he had never met with the Congressional Black Caucus. He slightly misfired on one.Bush said the bin Laden comment was "one of those exaggerations," but in a news conference on March 13, 2002, Bush said when asked about the search for the al Qaeda leader: "So I don't know where he is. You know, I just don't spend that much time on him, we haven't heard much from him. ... And I wouldn't necessarily say he's at the center of any command structure. And, again, I don't know where he is. I — I'll repeat what I said. I truly am not that concerned about him."
Bush did meet with the Congressional Black Caucus during his first two weeks in office — on Jan. 31, 2001 — but Kerry's overall charge was correct: Bush has repeatedly turned down requests to meet with the group since then. Caucus members have complained that not only has Bush refused to meet with them on specific issues, including his plans to attack Iraq, but also the White House often has not even responded to their letters. Bush dropped by a meeting that national security adviser Condoleezza Rice had with the caucus earlier this year.
All in all, think Kerry did very well...Bush did his best yet, but same rhetoric over and over- and applied to the wrong questions. When asked about affirmative action, we got spin on 'No Child Left Behind'. When asked about minimum wage, we got the same. Kerry had a prime opportunity to delve into the true "success" of that program, but barely glossed over it as far as AZ budgetary numbers.
Kerry's best moment, in my opinion, was his quip on job losses during Dubya's tenure:
But the first and most important thing is to start creating jobs in America. The jobs the president is creating pay $9,000 less than the jobs that we‘re losing. And this is the first president in 72 years to preside over an economy in America that has lost jobs, 1.6 million jobs.
Eleven other presidents—six Democrats and five Republicans—had wars, had recessions, had great difficulties; none of them lost jobs the way this president has.
Hear, Hear
He hits the nail right on the head, doesn't he?
"I love my gay, dead son"
Gosh, think Mr. Chemey makes his daughter sleep on the floor and beg for scraps?
Compassionate conservatism, indeed.
And as my side job...
Kerry's "Top 10 Bush Tax Proposals" are (from last night's Letterman):
10. No estate tax for families with at least two U.S. presidents.9. W-2 Form is now Dubya-2 Form.
8. Under the simplified tax code, your refund check goes directly to Halliburton.
7. The reduced earned income tax credit is so unfair, it just makes me want to tear out my lustrous, finely groomed hair.
6. Attorney General (John) Ashcroft gets to write off the entire U.S. Constitution.
5. Texas Rangers can take a business loss for trading Sammy Sosa.
4. Eliminate all income taxes; just ask Teresa (Heinz Kerry) to cover the whole damn thing.
3. Cheney can claim Bush as a dependent.
2. Hundred-dollar penalty if you pronounce it "nuclear" instead of "nucular."
1. George W. Bush gets a deduction for mortgaging our entire future.
Frantic?
Hehe- you know, these people would be a lot happier if they just lived their own lives without meddling into how others choose to conduct theirs.
If I choose to marry (if I could) a woman, how does this change Your life? And if this sort of marriage is allowed, why is it (paranoia hellloooo) that it would cause any of these 'God fearing' (and BOY do they love Fear, eh?) men to unite with other men? That Hollywood influence going to force them down the evil path?
Love this...sex- which is natural, simple biology, and oh yea the only reason you or I or anyone else is here to bitch about things- is taboo, evil, sordid, tainted by that foul Eve's mistake (cough), yet violence is revered, we need more War, more guns, gimme my assault rifle for the neighborhood cookout, more torture, more 'nukular' weapons.
Here's a thought- howsabout I stay out of your presumably locked and safe-guarded gun case, and you stay the hell out of my vagina?
Take that, Zell
From today's comments (previous post):
We all have conservatives
who we love in our lives....share ths site with them. It's a "conservative friendly" site that features Republicans and other conservatives who explain why they're voting for Kerry in '04:
Nice to see cross-party sanity- thanks for sending the link!
Stop, Children, What's that Sound...
GOP'ers hand out purple bandages to mock Kerry's service at RNC.
Except you don't just mock Kerry with that, but every person that served in any war and won this award for service. Not to mention that whole 'self-afflicted' thing has been put to bed (by any sane person- plenty of those blinded by partisanship but those are the Fox news and O'Neill/Rush/Savage followers and lost already to anything resembling reason) by those who actually served with ( read: SERVED WITH) Kerry.
Insane...do your duty, fight in a war that pretty much everyone agrees was wrong wrong wrong, come back and, as a decorated war hero, use that to help protest/stop the war (same one) that everyone pretty much agrees is wrong wrong wrong- and get lambasted 35 years later by those that didn't get his intent and others who apparently threw out their history books long ago.
This, while the person they prop up used family influence to avoid any real involvement in Vietnam (which I don't knock until it's used as some sort of 'I'm a hero' play later) and the other guy with him avoided the draft a whopping total of 5 times.
Dark times, indeed.
Swift Boat Sunday
or, "Lying Liars and the Campaign that backs them"...
An avalanche of information has been hitting the mediasphere on this one, but here's a list of points I consider important:
1. Kerry calls the Bush campaign out on the ads...think he'd had enough, and good for him.
2. Kudos to William B. Rood- the only other officer (living) that day of controversy with Kerry, for breaking 35 years of silence on the subject to call "Bullshit".
[login: likesunday, password: likesunday]
3. More support that they were under enemy fire.
4. Some linkage from campaign to the liars in question.
[sorry, you'll have to save and resize]
5. Some more.... "we didn't know he was in a TV ad..."- proof that intelligence in the White House at present is just what you'd expect it to be.
[from blah3]
6. And, yes dammit, more.
Notice the 1st sentence is that Joe Ponder was 'misled' by the Republican Party.
And just in case you thought the leopard's spots were just recently showing-
new Kerry ad, starring Sen. John McCain, circa 2000.
[also from blah3]
Bush could have concentrated on policies, Kerry's senate record, any number of things- how beautiful that he chose the one area where it is more likely he will show up to make up truant Guard duty than win on.
No child left behind.
Indeed.
Unless, of course, they are autistic. In which case the GOP could clearly give a flying fuck.
Well, as sibling to an autistic bro, all I can say is if you're against what this Administration stands for, VOTE.
We want to make this more than conjecture come November!
Piece of work
The head of the Swift Vets smear campaign apparently also had issues with President Bush, Sr.'s record.
[from Atrios]
In case you needed more reasons to roll your eyes at these guys...the best is the Lieutenant Commander who said he shouldn't have signed the affadavit for the book- not to mention members of this group who gave Kerry rousing endorsements in 1996 (Elliot again, Lonsdale).
Just who the hell do these guys think they're kidding?
Sensational...
Latest Progress Report- find out just how you've been misled lately!
Like the mythical 15 point convention 'bounce', but even better.
These guys should be marketing Cola instead of lies, they'd make a Killing (whoops, was that a pun?!).
Why I loves me the Internet-
CIA Asks Bush to Discontinue Blog
[from Mefi}
In the interest of national security, President Bush has been asked to stop posting entries on his three-month-old personal web log, acting CIA director John E. McLaughlin said Monday.According to McLaughlin, several recent entries on PrezGeorgeW. typepad.com have compromised military operations, while other posts may have seriously undercut the PR efforts of White House press secretary Scott McClellan.
A July 24 posting read, "Just got back from a lunch with Colin and Adil Moussa (one of Prince Saud al-Faisal's guys). Colin wants the Saudis to send some troops to Najaf—so some of the soldiers are Arab, I guess. This Moussa guy sure wears a lot of jewelry. A golden chain, a golden ring with his initials or something, and some other sparkling stuff—kinda effeminate. Anyway, best of luck in Iraq, Iyad."
McLaughlin, normally hesitant to express public disapproval of the president, said the blog was "ill-advised."
Hehehe.
More reasons...
to like Will Ferrell.
[from the Chapel]
Great image
No real comments, just think this is a fantastic photo. So while guttersnipes ape on about him in a spacesuit, I will recall this one.
Even in the goofy suit, he has more presence and dignity than AWOL.
Reallllly?
Some one recently posed, as a good GOP delegate, the question of why wasn't Terror even mentioned by Democratic leaders at the DNC?
All I can say is, you're not paying attention, friend. Seriously. No, really. Hey, I mean it.
{Quicktime needed...for other formats, speakers, from the Convention, go Here.}
Which worries me. Maybe intelligent people are now so used to terms like 'ter-rah' and 'nukular' we've lost site of the old, English version. Not enough 'cowboy sexy' in the real pronunciation. Dems just aren't re-naming enough stuff, clearly- I'm still eating French toast and have never ordered the Freedom version, for instance. To make it worse, I'm not using W ketchup with my Freedom fries.
Dammit, we lefties need to spirit away this Maoist propaganda manager for ourselves- the true issue revealed at last!
There is a surprising gap in that I haven't noticed (I admit, haven't gone thru every transcript, so may have been mentioned and I missed it) anyone mention anything about the prison scandals. Suppose that's not really a campaign issue, but does speak to management somewhat as far as how we treat terrorist suspects (key word here is "suspects"). Just don't see how sodomizing young boys under 15 and raping car-jacking offenders with light fixtures is aiding in our fight against ter-rah, but perhaps I'm just 'being a girl' about the whole thing.
Watching the Dogs
It's "Right-Wing Squares" time, folks!
[from the newly emerged Barking Lunatics]
81 Reasons to vote ABB in November.
Not that anyone should be lacking in them!
And so it begins...
I had found it, along with many other like-minded Liberals, disturbing enough that a plan to postpone elections in the event of unspecified or qualified threats was publicly acknowledged and in the works.
Yet I find it tragic and ever-so alarming that Florida seems to be gearing up for another shady Election practices award (emphasis below mine).
Florida election officials used a flawed method to come up with a listing of people believed to be convicted felons, a list that they are recommending be used to purge voter registration rolls, state officials acknowledged yesterday. As a result, voters identifying themselves as Hispanic are almost completely absent from that list.Of nearly 48,000 Florida residents on the felon list, only 61 are Hispanic. By contrast, more than 22,000 are African-American.
About 8 percent of Florida voters describe themselves as Hispanic, and about 11 percent as black.
In a presidential-election battleground state that decided the 2000 race by giving George W. Bush a margin of only 537 votes, the effect could be significant: black voters are overwhelmingly Democratic, while Hispanics in Florida tend to vote Republican.
Guess the real question is why any of this shocks me any more.
Another would be- what are the Dems going to do about it? Time to make some noise, people- break out the spine.
What's good enough for the Wizard...
Think this may be a bit much for baby Hunter?
Webbed Crawler game- guaranteed to affect work productivity. But isn't it about time to retire the Yeti anyhoo?
[Thanks, Sean, for link]
Umm, does the White House need a fresh supply of soap? GWB flipping the bird? Inconclusive, yet not inconceivable, in light of the Puppet Master's recent actions.
Reading up on world religions and the myths/origins surrounding them has always been a favorite object of study for me. Imagine my delight at this resource find- The Internet Sacred Text Archive.
[from diminished responsibility]
I'll never be bored again.
True colors
VP Cheney tells Sen. Leahy to fuck off.
Cracks in the armour, anyone? If this Administration were a boat...well, I'd take my chances with the Life Preservers.
Which has some positive side effects, doesn't it? From MSNBC:
If the presidential election were held this week, who would you vote for? * 196410 responses
George W. Bush
39%
John Kerry
57%
Ralph Nader
4%
Meaningless, when you consider all the other polls out there. Meaningful, however, when compared to itself- MSNBC has been running this for months, and until now, Bush had never dipped below 42%.
Progress!
Shocker
The State Department is scrambling to revise its annual report on global terrorism to acknowledge that it understated the number of deadly attacks in 2003, amid charges that the document is inaccurate and was politically manipulated by the Bush administration.When the most recent "Patterns of Global Terrorism" report was issued April 29, senior Bush administration officials immediately hailed it as objective proof that they were winning the war on terrorism. The report is considered the authoritative yardstick of the prevalence of terrorist activity around the world.
"Indeed, you will find in these pages clear evidence that we are prevailing in the fight" against global terrorism, Deputy Secretary of State Richard L. Armitage said during a celebratory rollout of the report.
But on Tuesday, State Department officials said they underreported the number of terrorist attacks in the tally for 2003, and added that they expected to release an updated version soon.
Several U.S. officials and terrorism experts familiar with that revision effort