Friday, June 30, 2006
Cheney's hit man
On December 18th, Colin Powell, the former Secretary of State, joined other prominent Washington figures at FedEx Field, the Redskins’ stadium, in a skybox belonging to the team’s owner. During the game, between the Redskins and the Dallas Cowboys, Powell spoke of a recent report in the Times which revealed that President Bush, in his pursuit of terrorists, had secretly authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on American citizens without first obtaining a warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, as required by federal law. This requirement, which was instituted by Congress in 1978, after the Watergate scandal, was designed to protect civil liberties and curb abuses of executive power, such as Nixon’s secret monitoring of political opponents and the F.B.I.’s eavesdropping on Martin Luther King, Jr. Nixon had claimed that as President he had the “inherent authority” to spy on people his Administration deemed enemies, such as the anti-Vietnam War activist Daniel Ellsberg. Both Nixon and the institution of the Presidency had paid a high price for this assumption. But, according to the Times, since 2002 the legal checks that Congress constructed to insure that no President would repeat Nixon’s actions had been secretly ignored.
According to someone who knows Powell, his comment about the article was terse. “It’s Addington,” he said. “He doesn’t care about the Constitution.” Powell was referring to David S. Addington, Vice-President Cheney’s chief of staff and his longtime principal legal adviser. Powell’s office says that he does not recall making the statement. But his former top aide, Lawrence Wilkerson, confirms that he and Powell shared this opinion of Addington.
Interesting insight from this article. But that Powell, he'll help lie a nation into war, but he certainly won't fuck with the Constitution. He's got principles.
-Desi
According to someone who knows Powell, his comment about the article was terse. “It’s Addington,” he said. “He doesn’t care about the Constitution.” Powell was referring to David S. Addington, Vice-President Cheney’s chief of staff and his longtime principal legal adviser. Powell’s office says that he does not recall making the statement. But his former top aide, Lawrence Wilkerson, confirms that he and Powell shared this opinion of Addington.
Interesting insight from this article. But that Powell, he'll help lie a nation into war, but he certainly won't fuck with the Constitution. He's got principles.
-Desi
~Music
Pearl Jam: Master's of War
[Couldn't find a Dylan version with decent enough sound quality, Pearl Jam does a good version.]
-Desi
[Couldn't find a Dylan version with decent enough sound quality, Pearl Jam does a good version.]
-Desi
Damn
BEIJI, Iraq - Five U.S. Army soldiers are being investigated for allegedly raping a young woman, then killing her and three members of her family in Iraq, a U.S. military official said Friday.
The soldiers also allegedly burned the body of the woman they are accused of assaulting in the March incident, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.
Since they're the good guys, they're innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Until such time just let them do their job and kill, kill, kill.
The soldiers also allegedly burned the body of the woman they are accused of assaulting in the March incident, the official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the case.
Since they're the good guys, they're innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Until such time just let them do their job and kill, kill, kill.
'Burning' newspapers
The Dean of Library Services at University of the Incarnate Word canceled the library's subscription to the New York Times Wednesday to protest recent stories exposing a secret government program that monitors international financial transactions in the hunt for terrorists.
"Since no one elected the New York Times to determine national security policy, the only action I know to register protest for their irresponsible action (treason?) is to withdraw support of their operations by canceling our subscription as many others are doing," Mendell D. Morgan, Jr. wrote in a June 28 email to library staff. "If enough do, perhaps they will get the point."
The *point* being that it's only okay to print 'secret' government programs when they truly *are* government secrets, and they have Dick Cheney's blessing to print them.
"Since no one elected the New York Times to determine national security policy, the only action I know to register protest for their irresponsible action (treason?) is to withdraw support of their operations by canceling our subscription as many others are doing," Mendell D. Morgan, Jr. wrote in a June 28 email to library staff. "If enough do, perhaps they will get the point."
The *point* being that it's only okay to print 'secret' government programs when they truly *are* government secrets, and they have Dick Cheney's blessing to print them.
Moses
I used to live in a little town where we had a man -- some mental issues, obviously -- who believed himself to be Moses. With God's help, he believed he was going to bring about the end of the world through prayer, or some such.
For a nice pair of army boots, I'm betting he would take an 'oath to al qaeda.' I wonder if he has been arrested yet for forming a terrorist plot?
-Desi
For a nice pair of army boots, I'm betting he would take an 'oath to al qaeda.' I wonder if he has been arrested yet for forming a terrorist plot?
-Desi
Bush reaction to the Supreme Court Gitmo ruling
"The American people should know that this ruling, as I understand it, won't cause killers to be put out on the street."
—President George W. Bush, on whether he would shut down the prison at Guantánamo following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that he had overstepped his authority on military tribunals.
Yes, not to worry. The Canadian teenager who has been at Gitmo since age 15 [now 19 years old] will not be coming to a neighborhood near you anytime soon. Feel better?
-Desi
—President George W. Bush, on whether he would shut down the prison at Guantánamo following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that he had overstepped his authority on military tribunals.
Yes, not to worry. The Canadian teenager who has been at Gitmo since age 15 [now 19 years old] will not be coming to a neighborhood near you anytime soon. Feel better?
-Desi
Thursday, June 29, 2006
A girl peers between Iranian women as she attends a religious ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the death of Fatima, daughter of Prophet Mohammad, in central Tehran.
(Morteza Nikoubazl/Reuters)
Gaza Strip
Israeli warplanes struck the Palestinian Interior Ministry early Friday, setting it ablaze as Arab leaders tried to forge a deal that would halt the Israeli offensive and free a 19-year-old soldier held by gunmen allied with the ruling Islamic Hamas.
Run away
Will Heaton, Ney’s chief of staff, and Brian Walsh, the communications director, are planning to leave Ney’s staff soon, according to sources close to the office. Walsh will accept a job as communications director for Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), while Heaton’s destination is unknown. Heaton recently was married and was unavailable for comment Thursday. Chris Otillio, Ney’s legislative director, left the office last Friday, the sources said.
In addition, Matt Parker, district director in Ney’s office in St. Clairsville, Ohio, was subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury conducting the Abramoff probe. Additional subpoenas of Ney’s staffers are expected soon, said a source familiar with situation.
Poor Lobster Bob.
In addition, Matt Parker, district director in Ney’s office in St. Clairsville, Ohio, was subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury conducting the Abramoff probe. Additional subpoenas of Ney’s staffers are expected soon, said a source familiar with situation.
Poor Lobster Bob.
Documenting the atrocities
Interesting 'truce' going on there in Iraq:
*KIRKUK - A suicide car bomber rammed into a funeral service for a Shi'ite soldier and killed seven people in the Iraqi northern city of Kirkuk on Thursday, police said.
KHAIRNABAT - A sniper shot dead the police commander of a local quick reaction force, and two of his companions in the village of Khairnabat, north of Baghdad, police said.
KERBALA - Gunmen shot a criminal intelligence policeman in central Kerbala, 110 km (68 miles) southwest of Baghdad, police said.
SUWAYRA - The bodies of seven men were found in the Tigris River south of Baghdad, police said. All had gunshot wounds and showed signs of torture.
FALLUJA - An Iraqi army checkpoint in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, came under mortar fire that killed two soldiers and wounded one, police said. When the soldiers returned fire, one civilian was killed and two wounded.
RIYADH - A roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi army patrol exploded in Riyadh, a town 60 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, killing a soldier and wounding seven, police said.
MUSSAYAB - The bodies of two men with gunshot wounds and showing signs of torture were found in the Euphrates River in the town of Mussayab, about 60 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, a police source said.
MAHAWEEL - The body of an unidentified man was found on a road in the town of Mahaweel, 75 km (50 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
*KIRKUK - A suicide car bomber rammed into a funeral service for a Shi'ite soldier and killed seven people in the Iraqi northern city of Kirkuk on Thursday, police said.
KHAIRNABAT - A sniper shot dead the police commander of a local quick reaction force, and two of his companions in the village of Khairnabat, north of Baghdad, police said.
KERBALA - Gunmen shot a criminal intelligence policeman in central Kerbala, 110 km (68 miles) southwest of Baghdad, police said.
SUWAYRA - The bodies of seven men were found in the Tigris River south of Baghdad, police said. All had gunshot wounds and showed signs of torture.
FALLUJA - An Iraqi army checkpoint in Falluja, 50 km (32 miles) west of Baghdad, came under mortar fire that killed two soldiers and wounded one, police said. When the soldiers returned fire, one civilian was killed and two wounded.
RIYADH - A roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi army patrol exploded in Riyadh, a town 60 km (40 miles) southwest of Kirkuk, killing a soldier and wounding seven, police said.
MUSSAYAB - The bodies of two men with gunshot wounds and showing signs of torture were found in the Euphrates River in the town of Mussayab, about 60 km (40 miles) south of Baghdad, a police source said.
MAHAWEEL - The body of an unidentified man was found on a road in the town of Mahaweel, 75 km (50 miles) south of Baghdad, police said.
Democracy on parade
Iraqis wheel a dead body to a hospital morgue in Baquba. The man was shot dead by militants as he was shopping in a market in the center of the city. An Iraqi MP has warned that Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's tough conditions for pardoning Sunni rebels who lay down their arms are going to make it difficult to convince them to do so.(AFP/Ali Yussef)
Pony-worthy
June 29 (Bloomberg) -- Like most other Indiana residents, Chris Burden voted for George W. Bush twice, mostly because he saw the Texan as someone with values similar to his own.
Now, with his income stagnant and rising fuel prices making it harder to keep his Evansville lawn-care business in the black, Burden has soured on the economy, and the president.
He's not alone. More than six in 10 Americans say the country is on the wrong track, according to a new Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times poll. More than half disapprove of Bush's handling of the economy, and 36 percent strongly disapprove. Almost half, 48 percent, say his policies have made the economy worse than it was when he became president; 19 percent say it's better.
``Gas prices are knocking us back into the dirt,'' said Burden, 31, one of the respondents in the poll. ``It seems like, since Bush took office, the government is burning up cash again, and things are getting worse.''
Rather pathetic, though, how it always takes some sort of financial hit to the wallet to give a repub pause on the state of the nation.
-Desi
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Hypocrisy
On Thursday, the House is expected to take up a Republican resolution supporting the tracking of financial transactions and condemning the publication of the existence of the program and details of how it works. The resolution says Congress "expects the cooperation of all news media organizations in protecting the lives of Americans and the capability of the government to identify, disrupt and capture terrorists by not disclosing classified intelligence programs."
Unless, of course, the White House wants the media's cooperation in spreading lies to the public or in outing the identity of our covert CIA officers. Or, as this no doubt will become fondly known, 'the Bush clause.'
-Desi
Unless, of course, the White House wants the media's cooperation in spreading lies to the public or in outing the identity of our covert CIA officers. Or, as this no doubt will become fondly known, 'the Bush clause.'
-Desi
I get letters
Via email:
"One of the most powerful television ads of 2006, "America Thanks You" is being broadcast this week NATIONWIDE on the Fox News Channel. Next week the ad will begin running all across the country as part of a nationwide buy on CNN. This pro-Iraq War TV Ad has received a stellar rating of 4-stars."
You can watch the 'pro-war on terra' propaganda piece here. It's being promoted by a group called 'Move America Forward' whose founder is none other than Howard Kaloogian.
Here's a refresher on Howard:
Kaloogian ran in the special election to fill the opening in California's 50th District to the House of Representatives caused by the resignation of disgraced former Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham. In the special elections where the top vote-getter from each party moves to the next round, Kaloogian finished a distant third among the Republican candidates. The next round will take place at the same time as the primary for the term that commences January 3, 2007. On April 17, Kaloogian announced that he will withdraw from the primary for the next congressional term.
Kaloogian's campaign has had to deal with some embarrasements, as claims made on his campaign website have proved to be inaccurate.
False and conflicting endorsements:
Kaloogian's campaign has been plagued with at least four false endorsements and one conflicting endorsement
* In February 2006, Kaloogian placed an ad in a Washington, D.C. newspaper that falsely claimed the California Pro-Life Council endorsed Kaloogian. They did not endorse any candidate for the race.
* Another claim for endorsement by the conservative Center for Reclaiming America (active in the Terry Schiavo feeding tube petition drive) also proved false — the organization stated they don't endorse candidates.
* In March, campaign literature and Kaloogian's website suggested State Senator Tom McClintock endorsed Kaloogian with the two-year old quote "Howard Kaloogian has distinguished himself as one of the most principled, courageous and steadfast conservative leaders in California." In a statement McClinctock stated "It has come to my attention that a campaign mailing on behalf of Howard Kaloogian includes a picture and quote from me that suggests that I have endorsed his candidacy for U. S. Congress. I have not.".
* State Senator Bill Morrow, who was running against Kaloogian, challenged an implied endorsement by him of Kaloogian on the same webpage.
* Endorsements from social conservatives such as James Dobson who was appointed to the Commission on Pornography, 1985-86 during the Reagan administration and Concerned Women for America, a religious women’s political organization, are at odds with Kaloogian’s endorsement from Gabrielle Reilly who appears as a model on an adult website and is socially liberal.
Misleading photographs:
On March 28, 2006, Howard Kaloogian's campaign website displayed a street level photograph which was claimed to have been recently taken in downtown Baghdad. The photograph was offered as evidence that the security situation in Baghdad was better than was being reported in the press.
Commenters at various blogs determined this photo was most likely taken in Bakırköy, a suburb of Istanbul, Turkey. Various indicators in the image suggested the location of the intersection was not Baghdad. Many signs are written in Turkish (which uses a modified version of the Latin alphabet), but none are in Arabic. Women are seen wearing revealing (western) clothes, taxicabs are similar to those seen in Istanbul and European-style traffic signs are visible (as are signs of businesses based solely in Turkey). Once it was established that the photograph was actually of a streetcorner in suburban Istanbul, Kaloogian's campaign attributed the error to an unidentified "webmaster." The photograph was replaced by another one taken from what appears to be an upper floor of some structure.
Kaloogian later said using the photo was "a stupid mistake".
Photo pose with George W. Bush
In addition to the false Baghdad photo, the Kaloogian website also posted a photo of Kaloogian with president George W. Bush, which was altered in such a way that the height discrepancy between the two men was reduced.
Photo with troops
In one photo which appears on the campaign website home page, as well as in the photo gallery section of the web site, the location of where the photo was taken is misrepresented. The campaign website claims the photo was taken in Iraq, whereas the same photo appears on the Move America Forward blog with the caption that it was taken at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.
No network that would broadcast this can be considered unbiased, and supposedly, that's what they strive for. If you see it aired, I hope you'll take a moment to contact whichever network you see airing it and tell them what you think of Kaloogian's propaganda. If you need contact info, let me know and I'll post it. Or, just check the Media Matters site[listed on my blogroll]as they have every networks contact info catalogued.
-Desi
"One of the most powerful television ads of 2006, "America Thanks You" is being broadcast this week NATIONWIDE on the Fox News Channel. Next week the ad will begin running all across the country as part of a nationwide buy on CNN. This pro-Iraq War TV Ad has received a stellar rating of 4-stars."
You can watch the 'pro-war on terra' propaganda piece here. It's being promoted by a group called 'Move America Forward' whose founder is none other than Howard Kaloogian.
Here's a refresher on Howard:
Kaloogian ran in the special election to fill the opening in California's 50th District to the House of Representatives caused by the resignation of disgraced former Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham. In the special elections where the top vote-getter from each party moves to the next round, Kaloogian finished a distant third among the Republican candidates. The next round will take place at the same time as the primary for the term that commences January 3, 2007. On April 17, Kaloogian announced that he will withdraw from the primary for the next congressional term.
Kaloogian's campaign has had to deal with some embarrasements, as claims made on his campaign website have proved to be inaccurate.
False and conflicting endorsements:
Kaloogian's campaign has been plagued with at least four false endorsements and one conflicting endorsement
* In February 2006, Kaloogian placed an ad in a Washington, D.C. newspaper that falsely claimed the California Pro-Life Council endorsed Kaloogian. They did not endorse any candidate for the race.
* Another claim for endorsement by the conservative Center for Reclaiming America (active in the Terry Schiavo feeding tube petition drive) also proved false — the organization stated they don't endorse candidates.
* In March, campaign literature and Kaloogian's website suggested State Senator Tom McClintock endorsed Kaloogian with the two-year old quote "Howard Kaloogian has distinguished himself as one of the most principled, courageous and steadfast conservative leaders in California." In a statement McClinctock stated "It has come to my attention that a campaign mailing on behalf of Howard Kaloogian includes a picture and quote from me that suggests that I have endorsed his candidacy for U. S. Congress. I have not.".
* State Senator Bill Morrow, who was running against Kaloogian, challenged an implied endorsement by him of Kaloogian on the same webpage.
* Endorsements from social conservatives such as James Dobson who was appointed to the Commission on Pornography, 1985-86 during the Reagan administration and Concerned Women for America, a religious women’s political organization, are at odds with Kaloogian’s endorsement from Gabrielle Reilly who appears as a model on an adult website and is socially liberal.
Misleading photographs:
On March 28, 2006, Howard Kaloogian's campaign website displayed a street level photograph which was claimed to have been recently taken in downtown Baghdad. The photograph was offered as evidence that the security situation in Baghdad was better than was being reported in the press.
Commenters at various blogs determined this photo was most likely taken in Bakırköy, a suburb of Istanbul, Turkey. Various indicators in the image suggested the location of the intersection was not Baghdad. Many signs are written in Turkish (which uses a modified version of the Latin alphabet), but none are in Arabic. Women are seen wearing revealing (western) clothes, taxicabs are similar to those seen in Istanbul and European-style traffic signs are visible (as are signs of businesses based solely in Turkey). Once it was established that the photograph was actually of a streetcorner in suburban Istanbul, Kaloogian's campaign attributed the error to an unidentified "webmaster." The photograph was replaced by another one taken from what appears to be an upper floor of some structure.
Kaloogian later said using the photo was "a stupid mistake".
Photo pose with George W. Bush
In addition to the false Baghdad photo, the Kaloogian website also posted a photo of Kaloogian with president George W. Bush, which was altered in such a way that the height discrepancy between the two men was reduced.
Photo with troops
In one photo which appears on the campaign website home page, as well as in the photo gallery section of the web site, the location of where the photo was taken is misrepresented. The campaign website claims the photo was taken in Iraq, whereas the same photo appears on the Move America Forward blog with the caption that it was taken at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.
No network that would broadcast this can be considered unbiased, and supposedly, that's what they strive for. If you see it aired, I hope you'll take a moment to contact whichever network you see airing it and tell them what you think of Kaloogian's propaganda. If you need contact info, let me know and I'll post it. Or, just check the Media Matters site[listed on my blogroll]as they have every networks contact info catalogued.
-Desi
Heh
Veronica's mommy stumping for Joe Lieberman. Now if we can just get her to take up for the repub candidate for POTUS in '08 . . .
Perhaps she and Coulter could form a joint venture.
Here's a bit of video of Coulter being herself, and here's Malkin. Great spokespeople. Indeedy.
-Desi
Perhaps she and Coulter could form a joint venture.
Here's a bit of video of Coulter being herself, and here's Malkin. Great spokespeople. Indeedy.
-Desi
Daily Show
Helen Thomas appeared on last night with Jon Stewart.
"You don't spread democracy with the barrel of a gun." -Helen Thomas
-Desi
"You don't spread democracy with the barrel of a gun." -Helen Thomas
-Desi
Trickle down indictments
Four local prominent Republican women were found guilty today of not disclosing money they got from Tom Noe to help him inflate his contributions to President Bush’s reelection campaign.
Lucas County Commissioner Maggie Thurber, Toledo City Council Betty Shultz, former Toledo mayor Donna Owens, and former state representative Sally Perz all pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor charge they faced.
Judge Mark Reddin of Bowling Green Municipal Court accepted their pleas, found them guilty, and fined them $1,000 apiece, court costs, and the cost of the investigation, which has not been determined.
$1,000 bucks? Oooh, that'll teach 'em.
-Desi
Lucas County Commissioner Maggie Thurber, Toledo City Council Betty Shultz, former Toledo mayor Donna Owens, and former state representative Sally Perz all pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor charge they faced.
Judge Mark Reddin of Bowling Green Municipal Court accepted their pleas, found them guilty, and fined them $1,000 apiece, court costs, and the cost of the investigation, which has not been determined.
$1,000 bucks? Oooh, that'll teach 'em.
-Desi
Refugees
An Iraqi girl washes her hands at a camp for displaced families in the Shiite al-Shaala district of Baghdad.(AFP/Ahmad Al-Rubaye)
blood bath
MOSCOW - President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday ordered Russia’s special services to hunt down and “destroy” the killers of four Russian diplomats in Iraq, the Kremlin said.
Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Federal Security Service — the main successor to the Soviet KGB — later said that everything would be done to ensure that the killers “do not escape from responsibility,” the Interfax news agency reported.
“The president has ordered the special forces to take all necessary measures to find and destroy the criminals who killed Russian diplomats in Iraq,” the Kremlin press service said in a brief statement.
I don't think I need to detail the many reasons this should send off bells and whistles for those of us concerned with the already beleaguered innocent civilian Iraqi population.
Vladimir Putin has never struck me as an all talk, no action kind of guy.
-Desi
Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Federal Security Service — the main successor to the Soviet KGB — later said that everything would be done to ensure that the killers “do not escape from responsibility,” the Interfax news agency reported.
“The president has ordered the special forces to take all necessary measures to find and destroy the criminals who killed Russian diplomats in Iraq,” the Kremlin press service said in a brief statement.
I don't think I need to detail the many reasons this should send off bells and whistles for those of us concerned with the already beleaguered innocent civilian Iraqi population.
Vladimir Putin has never struck me as an all talk, no action kind of guy.
-Desi
Weird
This is the link to the Cleveland Plain Dealer web site. If you look near the middle you'll see the title to a story that says 'Ethanol Plant searched for hazardous materials.' Yet it you click on it to read the article, it takes you to the Wikipedia page detailing the city of Medina in Saudi Arabia.
wtf?
-Desi
wtf?
-Desi
tit for tat
RAFAH, Gaza Strip -
Israel kept up the pressure on Palestinian militants to release a captive Israeli soldier Wednesday, sending its warplanes to bomb a Hamas training camp after knocking out electricity and water supplies for most of the 1.3 million residents of the
Gaza Strip.
Palestinians dug in behind walls and embankments, preparing for a major strike after Israel sent in troops and tanks, and bombarded bridges and a power station.
At mid-afternoon, warplanes fired missiles at open fields in northern Gaza in an effort to prevent Palestinians from launching rockets from the area, the military said. Separately, Israel attacked a rocket-making factory in southern Gaza.
I am so incredibly sick of this shit, from both sides. Knocked out water and electricity for over a million people? I don't suppose they're going to rebuild when they finish? This aggressive approach has worked so well all these decades, it's no wonder they continue.
-Desi
It's that time of the week again.
Wednesday Monkey Blogging Video time. After searching through many videos today, I'm very concerned about many people's children. *shudder*
-Desi
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
gotdamn, someone get some holy water, quick!
Besides hiding behind the skirts of 9/11 widows -- you know, the ones she claimed liberals were hiding behind -- there is an increasing resemblance to Gene Simmons that is really disturbing.
From the June 26 edition of MSNBC's Scarborough Country:
JOE SCARBOROUGH (host) : So I want to talk about the media firestorm you've been in the past couple of weeks. And I want to start with the question, is there anything that you've said about the 9-11 widows or on any other subject that you wish you could have taken -- you wish you could take back or that you may have measured your words more carefully with, or do you stand by everything you've said?
COULTER: Are you seriously asking that question?
SCARBOROUGH: Yeah, I --
COULTER: Do you want to retract that question?
SCARBOROUGH: No, I don't, because --
COULTER: And by the way --
SCARBOROUGH: But I'm curious -- go ahead.
COULTER: It was nothing about the 9-11 widows. It was about four liberal women in New Jersey cutting campaign commercials for Kerry. I've heard from lots of 9-11 widows who think I wasn't harsh enough. They do not speak for 9-11 widows. In fact, in my book, if you read that section -- a small section of a chapter -- I demanded to hear from some of the other 9-11 widows, maybe the wives of firemen rather than these four women claiming to speak for all 9-11 widows, while opposing everything Bush is doing in the war on terrorism and promoting the 9-11 Commission.
-Desi
From the June 26 edition of MSNBC's Scarborough Country:
JOE SCARBOROUGH (host) : So I want to talk about the media firestorm you've been in the past couple of weeks. And I want to start with the question, is there anything that you've said about the 9-11 widows or on any other subject that you wish you could have taken -- you wish you could take back or that you may have measured your words more carefully with, or do you stand by everything you've said?
COULTER: Are you seriously asking that question?
SCARBOROUGH: Yeah, I --
COULTER: Do you want to retract that question?
SCARBOROUGH: No, I don't, because --
COULTER: And by the way --
SCARBOROUGH: But I'm curious -- go ahead.
COULTER: It was nothing about the 9-11 widows. It was about four liberal women in New Jersey cutting campaign commercials for Kerry. I've heard from lots of 9-11 widows who think I wasn't harsh enough. They do not speak for 9-11 widows. In fact, in my book, if you read that section -- a small section of a chapter -- I demanded to hear from some of the other 9-11 widows, maybe the wives of firemen rather than these four women claiming to speak for all 9-11 widows, while opposing everything Bush is doing in the war on terrorism and promoting the 9-11 Commission.
-Desi
History Books
Someday, we'll read about this fiasco and the books will say "Even as the last bomb was dropped and the last bullet fired by the US occupation forces in Iraq, the Bush administration denied the Iraqis were embroiled in a bitter civil war."
-Desi
-Desi
Mortal love weeps idly by
Christina Menchaca, 18, center, and other family members visit the flag draped casket of Army Pfc. Kristian Menchaca during a public viewing in Brownsville, Texas, Tuesday, June 27, 2006. Menchaca was one of two soldiers apparently captured and killed by insurgents earlier this month in Iraq. Menchaca's funeral is scheduled for Wednesday. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Good question.
Why would Bush keep troops in Iraq longer than they should be there? Senator Carl Levin on Faux news.
How's the memory doing now, Bob?
Ohio Rep. Bob Ney, center, poses with Tigua Tribe Lt. Governor Carlos Hisa, right, and Raul Gutierrez, then a member of the tribes governing council in a hearing room after a meeting with Ney on Capitol Hill in August 2002.
Via the Cleveland Plain Dealer
-Desi
Conservatism: The root of all evil
Some interesting thoughts from the Rockridge Institute:
Progressives have fallen into a trap. Emboldened by President Bush’s plummeting approval ratings, progressives increasingly point to Bush's "failures" and label him and his administration as incompetent. For example, Nancy Pelosi said “The situation in Iraq and the reckless economic policies in the United States speak to one issue for me, and that is the competence of our leader." Self-satisfying as this criticism may be, it misses the bigger point. Bush’s disasters — Katrina, the Iraq War, the budget deficit — are not so much a testament to his incompetence or a failure of execution. Rather, they are the natural, even inevitable result of his conservative governing philosophy. It is conservatism itself, carried out according to plan, that is at fault. Bush will not be running again, but other conservatives will. His governing philosophy is theirs as well. We should be putting the onus where it belongs, on all conservative office holders and candidates who would lead us off the same cliff.
This could explain the ineffectuality of our current congress. We have 'conservative' Dems, and moderate Dems who in some aspects mirror conservative republicans. Some more than others[Joe Lieberman]. But, how deep is the problem within our own party? There hardly seems time for a thoughtful self-evaluation before the November elections. If they don't go as planned, we will certainly be forced into it before the '08 elections come 'round. I hope we don't have to wait the extra two years, I don't know if any of us can stand more of what has become the new status quo.
[Thanks to Jen.]
Progressives have fallen into a trap. Emboldened by President Bush’s plummeting approval ratings, progressives increasingly point to Bush's "failures" and label him and his administration as incompetent. For example, Nancy Pelosi said “The situation in Iraq and the reckless economic policies in the United States speak to one issue for me, and that is the competence of our leader." Self-satisfying as this criticism may be, it misses the bigger point. Bush’s disasters — Katrina, the Iraq War, the budget deficit — are not so much a testament to his incompetence or a failure of execution. Rather, they are the natural, even inevitable result of his conservative governing philosophy. It is conservatism itself, carried out according to plan, that is at fault. Bush will not be running again, but other conservatives will. His governing philosophy is theirs as well. We should be putting the onus where it belongs, on all conservative office holders and candidates who would lead us off the same cliff.
This could explain the ineffectuality of our current congress. We have 'conservative' Dems, and moderate Dems who in some aspects mirror conservative republicans. Some more than others[Joe Lieberman]. But, how deep is the problem within our own party? There hardly seems time for a thoughtful self-evaluation before the November elections. If they don't go as planned, we will certainly be forced into it before the '08 elections come 'round. I hope we don't have to wait the extra two years, I don't know if any of us can stand more of what has become the new status quo.
[Thanks to Jen.]
The National Security Card
No man is above the law, unless Karl Rove says he is:
WASHINGTON Jun 27, 2006 (AP)— A bill becomes the rule of the land when Congress passes it and the president signs it into law, right?
Not necessarily, according to the White House. A law is not binding when a president issues a separate statement saying he reserves the right to revise, interpret or disregard it on national security and constitutional grounds.
Call me ignorant, but how do you willfully disregard the law on 'constitutional grounds'?
-Desi
WASHINGTON Jun 27, 2006 (AP)— A bill becomes the rule of the land when Congress passes it and the president signs it into law, right?
Not necessarily, according to the White House. A law is not binding when a president issues a separate statement saying he reserves the right to revise, interpret or disregard it on national security and constitutional grounds.
Call me ignorant, but how do you willfully disregard the law on 'constitutional grounds'?
-Desi
Remembering Bob Ney
The Indian tribe that Ohio republican Rep. Bob Ney doesn't remember recalls meeting with him:
"He was red like a lobster from that Scotland trip and had a terrible sunburn," recalled Tigua Lt. Gov. Carlos Hisa, who said his tribe was asked to pay $50,000 for the trip. When it balked, two other tribal clients of Abramoff's paid $100,000 to cover the expenses.
In an interview on Monday, Hisa said he found it "strange" that Ney told Senate investigators that he didn't remember meeting with the tribe and wasn't familiar with the Tigua.
Ney accepted $32,000 from the tribe and had agreed to put legislative language in a bill to reopen a closed casino it owned. The measure never became law because it lacked Senate support. E-mails disclosed last week by the Senate committee show that Abramoff and Ney knew in July 2002 that the Tigua's provision was dead in the Senate, but didn't tell the tribe until that October.
"He seemed like a swell guy at the time, and never mentioned any problems with the legislative language," said Hisa. "He is a smart politician."
I think Bob is going to be a little red in the face this morning when he sits down for coffee with the morning paper.
Desi
"He was red like a lobster from that Scotland trip and had a terrible sunburn," recalled Tigua Lt. Gov. Carlos Hisa, who said his tribe was asked to pay $50,000 for the trip. When it balked, two other tribal clients of Abramoff's paid $100,000 to cover the expenses.
In an interview on Monday, Hisa said he found it "strange" that Ney told Senate investigators that he didn't remember meeting with the tribe and wasn't familiar with the Tigua.
Ney accepted $32,000 from the tribe and had agreed to put legislative language in a bill to reopen a closed casino it owned. The measure never became law because it lacked Senate support. E-mails disclosed last week by the Senate committee show that Abramoff and Ney knew in July 2002 that the Tigua's provision was dead in the Senate, but didn't tell the tribe until that October.
"He seemed like a swell guy at the time, and never mentioned any problems with the legislative language," said Hisa. "He is a smart politician."
I think Bob is going to be a little red in the face this morning when he sits down for coffee with the morning paper.
Desi
The repubs wanted him on the ballot, so.
AUSTIN - A federal judge hearing a ballot dispute Monday involving former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay said he thinks that DeLay withdrew from the November election, indicating potential trouble for Republicans who want to name a replacement candidate.
"He is not going to participate in the election and he withdrew," said U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks, who did not issue an official ruling after a daylong trial regarding DeLay's status as the GOP nominee for the 22nd Congressional District.
The official ruling won't come until possibly next week, but Judge Sparks statements indicate that the repubs would not be able to replace the Bugman on the ballot in November with another candidate. Too bad, that. Heh.
Also interesting to note how the Bugman's *simple* life has suddenly blossomed into a home in Sugarland, a new, furnished condo in Virginia, and an office in D.C. . . .
"He is not going to participate in the election and he withdrew," said U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks, who did not issue an official ruling after a daylong trial regarding DeLay's status as the GOP nominee for the 22nd Congressional District.
The official ruling won't come until possibly next week, but Judge Sparks statements indicate that the repubs would not be able to replace the Bugman on the ballot in November with another candidate. Too bad, that. Heh.
Also interesting to note how the Bugman's *simple* life has suddenly blossomed into a home in Sugarland, a new, furnished condo in Virginia, and an office in D.C. . . .
Monday, June 26, 2006
Progress
TEN children were among at least 40 people reported killed yesterday as bombs tore through markets in two Iraqi cities shortly after nightfall.
A further 89 people were believed to have been wounded in attacks which came while both markets were jammed with shoppers buying dinner provisions as temperatures began to cool after sunset.
At least 25 people, including ten children, were killed and 33 wounded in a bicycle bombing in the Sunni Muslim insurgent stronghold of Baquba, 35 miles north-east of Baghdad, according to police officials in the city.
The blast in Baquba occurred shortly after a bomb went off in the main market in the mainly Shiite city of Hillah, killing at least 15 people and wounding 56, according to police captain Muthana Khalid. Hillah is the modern Iraqi city near the site of ancient Babylon.
Police reports from across the country yesterday listed at least 22 other deaths, victims of sectarian murders or bomb and shooting attacks.
How many little brown people does it take before the administration counts them as a whole person?
-Desi
A further 89 people were believed to have been wounded in attacks which came while both markets were jammed with shoppers buying dinner provisions as temperatures began to cool after sunset.
At least 25 people, including ten children, were killed and 33 wounded in a bicycle bombing in the Sunni Muslim insurgent stronghold of Baquba, 35 miles north-east of Baghdad, according to police officials in the city.
The blast in Baquba occurred shortly after a bomb went off in the main market in the mainly Shiite city of Hillah, killing at least 15 people and wounding 56, according to police captain Muthana Khalid. Hillah is the modern Iraqi city near the site of ancient Babylon.
Police reports from across the country yesterday listed at least 22 other deaths, victims of sectarian murders or bomb and shooting attacks.
How many little brown people does it take before the administration counts them as a whole person?
-Desi
Kinda looks like it's still 2003, only more folks are dead.
A US helicopter fires thermal balloons as it hovers over black smoke billowing from the site where a bomb exploded in Baghdad. Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has unveiled to MPs a long-awaited national reconciliation plan aimed at quelling insurgent attacks and mounting sectarian violence.(AFP/Marwan Naamani)
The Majority of America says Bring them home.
USA Today/Gallup Poll:
Bush's approval rating is at 37%. After hitting the low point of his presidency at 31% in May, it had risen to 38% in early June. His standing, which slipped below 40% in February, hasn't rebounded above that level since then.
The percentage of Americans who say the president has "a clear plan for handling the situation in Iraq" has dropped to 31%, a new low. That's still higher than the 25% who say congressional Democrats have a clear plan for Iraq.
The telephone survey of 1,000 adults has an error margin of +/- 3 percentage points.
In the poll, 57% say Congress should pass a resolution that outlines a plan for withdrawing U.S. troops; 39% say that decision should be left to the president and his advisers.
Precisely half support withdrawing all U.S. forces immediately or within 12 months, while 41% say the United States should keep troops there for as many years as needed. Eight percent call for sending more troops.
So, Karl Rove, stick that up your ass and meditate on it.
-Desi
Bush's approval rating is at 37%. After hitting the low point of his presidency at 31% in May, it had risen to 38% in early June. His standing, which slipped below 40% in February, hasn't rebounded above that level since then.
The percentage of Americans who say the president has "a clear plan for handling the situation in Iraq" has dropped to 31%, a new low. That's still higher than the 25% who say congressional Democrats have a clear plan for Iraq.
The telephone survey of 1,000 adults has an error margin of +/- 3 percentage points.
In the poll, 57% say Congress should pass a resolution that outlines a plan for withdrawing U.S. troops; 39% say that decision should be left to the president and his advisers.
Precisely half support withdrawing all U.S. forces immediately or within 12 months, while 41% say the United States should keep troops there for as many years as needed. Eight percent call for sending more troops.
So, Karl Rove, stick that up your ass and meditate on it.
-Desi
The Fog of War
This film is an interview with former secretary of defense Robert McNamera. He looks back at his career and analyzes his own actions in hopes of passing lessons on. I watched this just recently on some cable channel -- it's good -- and I doubt you'd find Rumsfeld sitting down to view it.
-Desi
-Desi
The Last throes of the Insurgency in Iraq
The four Russian diplomats, abducted in Baghdad June 3, 2006, are seen in this combination photo of images taken from the Web site of the Mujahideen Shura Council in Iraq June 25, 2006. The al Qaeda-led group posted video footage on the Internet on June 25, 2006 showing the killing of three men it said were Russian hostages seized in Iraq earlier this month. The images, posted on the Web site often used by militants, showed two masked militants beheading one man said to be a Russian hostage and the 'execution' of another by shooting. It also showed the beheaded body of a third. The fate of a fourth hostage was not clear. The authenticity of the video footage could not be verified. [REUTERS/Handout (IRAQ)]
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Hardball
This is Howard Dean's appearance from Tuesday as he is interrogated by a dipshit. Howard is great as always, but did Hardball hear him at all?
Wars teach us not to love our enemies, but to hate our allies. -W.L. George
The sister of the victim cries on the shoulder of the victim's father as he smokes a cigarette, after gunmen opened fire on police Captain Yassir Dhiyaa and shot him to death while he was on duty in the al-Tahrir quarter of Baqouba, causing his car to explode, at the hospital in Baqouba, Iraq Sunday, June 25, 2006. (AP Photo/Adam Hadei)
Soldier free, cow herder still dead
E&P:
An American soldier convicted in the fatal shooting of a handcuffed Iraqi cow herder in 2004 was freed from a military prison in Oklahoma on Friday, more than a year before his sentence was up, the Dayton Daily News reported today.
Army Spec. Edward Richmond Jr., 22, of Gonzales, La., was convicted of voluntary manslaughter and sentenced in August 2004 to three years in prison for the April 28, 2004, shooting death of Muhamad Husain Kadir in the village of Taal Al Jal, which is about 40 miles southwest of Kirkuk.
Richmond was released on parole, his attorney said Friday.
"He told me this morning it feels good to be free," said Richmond's father, Edward Richmond Sr.
The shooting was one of two of Iraqi civilians during a 10-day period by members of the same Hawaii-based platoon, the HHC 1/27th Mortar platoon.
Richmond Jr. said that he shot Kadir because he thought he lunged at the soldier who was holding him, Sgt. Jeffrey D. Waruch of Olean, N.Y., and that he wasn't aware Kadir's hands were bound.
Waruch was accused in the other shooting, in which a 13-year-old girl was killed and her mother and sister wounded. Waruch was discharged without being accused of a crime. Army officials determined it was unlikely they would find sufficient evidence against him.
There were some photos in the media over the weekend of protesters at the base of the recently accused of murder 7 Marines [there was a navy man as well charged in the incident]. Their signs all said "It's not murder to kill the enemy." If this is the sentiments of the remaining pro-war crowd, then they have completely invalidated their own reasons for being in Iraq. It's way past time to pack up and go home.
[AP Photo]
Desi
Saturday, June 24, 2006
Freedom
BAGHDAD -- Adding a new layer of confusion to the security crackdown gripping Baghdad, the Iraqi government yesterday imposed a last-minute ban on pedestrian as well as vehicular traffic throughout the city.
The government gave no explanation for the additional restrictive measures, but they followed violent clashes in several Baghdad neighborhoods. Iraqi forces battled insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades, and rifles near the heavily fortified Green Zone.
“There is no such thing as a little freedom. Either you are all free, or you are not free.”
--Walter Cronkite
Desi
The government gave no explanation for the additional restrictive measures, but they followed violent clashes in several Baghdad neighborhoods. Iraqi forces battled insurgents armed with rocket-propelled grenades, hand grenades, and rifles near the heavily fortified Green Zone.
“There is no such thing as a little freedom. Either you are all free, or you are not free.”
--Walter Cronkite
Desi
Red to Blue
The squat, bunker-like building in a south Topeka suburb does not look like a place to turn American politics on its head. Nor does Mark Parkinson, a tall, affable man, look too much like a revolutionary. But here, deep in the American heartland, are the warning signs of a political earthquake.
The two-storey office block is Parkinson's campaign headquarters as he runs as Democrat candidate for deputy governor. So far, so normal. Except that only a few weeks ago Parkinson was a Republican. In fact, he was Kansas Republican party chairman.
His defection to the Democrats sent shockwaves through a state deeply associated with the national Republican cause and the evangelical conservatives at its base. Nor was it just Parkinson's leave-taking that left Republicans spluttering with rage and talking of betrayal. It was that as he left Parkinson lambasted his former party's obsession with conservative and religious issues such as gay marriage, evolution and abortion.
Not to brag -- but what the hell, it's an election year -- if you want real issues that matter to real people, the Democratic party is for you. Welcome defectors!
Desi
The two-storey office block is Parkinson's campaign headquarters as he runs as Democrat candidate for deputy governor. So far, so normal. Except that only a few weeks ago Parkinson was a Republican. In fact, he was Kansas Republican party chairman.
His defection to the Democrats sent shockwaves through a state deeply associated with the national Republican cause and the evangelical conservatives at its base. Nor was it just Parkinson's leave-taking that left Republicans spluttering with rage and talking of betrayal. It was that as he left Parkinson lambasted his former party's obsession with conservative and religious issues such as gay marriage, evolution and abortion.
Not to brag -- but what the hell, it's an election year -- if you want real issues that matter to real people, the Democratic party is for you. Welcome defectors!
Desi
Curveballs: The Bush Junta's Intelligence Odyssey
In late January 2003, as Secretary of State Colin Powell prepared to argue the Bush administration's case against Iraq at the United Nations, veteran CIA officer Tyler Drumheller sat down with a classified draft of Powell's speech to look for errors. He found a whopper: a claim about mobile biological labs built by Iraq for germ warfare.
Drumheller instantly recognized the source, an Iraqi defector suspected of being mentally unstable and a liar. The CIA officer took his pen, he recounted in an interview, and crossed out the whole paragraph.
A few days later, the lines were back in the speech. Powell stood before the U.N. Security Council on Feb. 5 and said: "We have first-hand descriptions of biological weapons factories on wheels and on rails."
The sentence took Drumheller completely by surprise.
"We thought we had taken care of the problem," said the man who was the CIA's European operations chief before retiring last year, "but I turn on the television and there it was, again."
...
On the eve of the U.N. speech, Drumheller received a late-night phone call from Tenet, who said he was checking final details of the speech. Drumheller said he brought up the mobile labs.
"I said: 'Hey, boss, you're not going to use that stuff in the speech . . . ? There are real problems with that,' " Drumheller said, recalling the conversation.
Drumheller recalled that Tenet seemed distracted and tired and told him not to worry.
The following day, Tenet was seated directly behind Powell at the U.N. Security Council as the secretary of state presented a detailed lecture and slide show about an Iraqi mobile biological weapons program.
Tenet, responding to questions about Drumheller's accounts, provided to The Post a statement he had given in response to the Silberman-Robb Commission report in which he said he didn't learn of the problems with Curveball until much later. He did not recall talking to Drumheller about Curveball, and said it was "simply wrong" for anyone to imply that he knew about the problems with Curveball's credibility.
"Nobody came forward to say there is a serious problem with Curveball or that we have been told by the foreign representative of the service handling him that there are worries that he is a 'fabricator,' " Tenet said in his statement.
While even the WaPo journamalist spins this info into "Drumheller shed light on one of the most spectacular failures of all: How U.S. intelligence agencies were eagerly drawn in by reports about a troubled defector's claims of secret germ factories in the Iraqi desert."what Drumheller's claims verify are that someone deliberately either altered or destroyed a classified copy of Colin Powell's speech, and that then CIA Director George Tenet sat through Powell's speech knowing full well that the 'intel' was bogus regarding the mobile biolabs.
But we're already in Iraq, and for crissakes Nicole and Keith are getting married today, and did you hear the latest about Brangelina?
Desi
Drumheller instantly recognized the source, an Iraqi defector suspected of being mentally unstable and a liar. The CIA officer took his pen, he recounted in an interview, and crossed out the whole paragraph.
A few days later, the lines were back in the speech. Powell stood before the U.N. Security Council on Feb. 5 and said: "We have first-hand descriptions of biological weapons factories on wheels and on rails."
The sentence took Drumheller completely by surprise.
"We thought we had taken care of the problem," said the man who was the CIA's European operations chief before retiring last year, "but I turn on the television and there it was, again."
On the eve of the U.N. speech, Drumheller received a late-night phone call from Tenet, who said he was checking final details of the speech. Drumheller said he brought up the mobile labs.
"I said: 'Hey, boss, you're not going to use that stuff in the speech . . . ? There are real problems with that,' " Drumheller said, recalling the conversation.
Drumheller recalled that Tenet seemed distracted and tired and told him not to worry.
The following day, Tenet was seated directly behind Powell at the U.N. Security Council as the secretary of state presented a detailed lecture and slide show about an Iraqi mobile biological weapons program.
Tenet, responding to questions about Drumheller's accounts, provided to The Post a statement he had given in response to the Silberman-Robb Commission report in which he said he didn't learn of the problems with Curveball until much later. He did not recall talking to Drumheller about Curveball, and said it was "simply wrong" for anyone to imply that he knew about the problems with Curveball's credibility.
"Nobody came forward to say there is a serious problem with Curveball or that we have been told by the foreign representative of the service handling him that there are worries that he is a 'fabricator,' " Tenet said in his statement.
While even the WaPo journamalist spins this info into "Drumheller shed light on one of the most spectacular failures of all: How U.S. intelligence agencies were eagerly drawn in by reports about a troubled defector's claims of secret germ factories in the Iraqi desert."what Drumheller's claims verify are that someone deliberately either altered or destroyed a classified copy of Colin Powell's speech, and that then CIA Director George Tenet sat through Powell's speech knowing full well that the 'intel' was bogus regarding the mobile biolabs.
But we're already in Iraq, and for crissakes Nicole and Keith are getting married today, and did you hear the latest about Brangelina?
Desi
Semantics
Newsweek:
A timetable for withdrawal of occupation troops from Iraq. Amnesty for all insurgents who attacked U.S. and Iraqi military targets. Release of all security detainees from U.S. and Iraqi prisons. Compensation for victims of coalition military operations.
Those sound like the demands of some of the insurgents themselves, and in fact they are. But they're also key clauses of a national reconciliation plan drafted by new Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who will unveil it Sunday. The provisions will spark sharp debate in Iraq—but the fiercest opposition is likely to come from Washington, which has opposed any talk of timetables, or of amnesty for insurgents who have attacked American soldiers.
It's not a 'timetable' for withdrawal, but rather a 'target driven roadmap.' Ooh. Kaay.
Desi
Flip flop
WASHINGTON, June 24 — The top American commander in Iraq has drafted a plan that projects sharp reductions in the United States military presence there by the end of 2007, with the first cuts coming this September, American officials say.
According to a classified briefing at the Pentagon this week by the commander, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the number of American combat brigades in Iraq is projected to decrease to 5 or 6 from the current level of 14 by December 2007.
Those 'cut-n-run' dems have gotten to the top American commander in Iraq! Uh oh, what's this? It's contagious:
General Casey's briefing has remained a closely held secret, and it was described by American officials who agreed to discuss the details only on condition of anonymity. Word of the plan comes after a week in which the American troop presence in Iraq was stridently debated in Congress, with Democratic initiatives to force troop withdrawals defeated in the Senate.
The commander met this week with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Gen. Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. On Friday, General Casey and Mr. Rumsfeld met with President Bush at the White House. A senior White House official said that General Casey did not present a formal plan for Mr. Bush's approval but rather a concept of how the United States might move forward after consulting with Iraqi authorities, including Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.
"The recent conversations that have taken place are all designed to formulate our thinking in concert with the new Iraqi government," said the White House official, who declined to discuss specific cuts. "What this process allows is for General Casey to engage with the new Maliki government so it can go from a notional concept to a practical plan of security implementation over the next two years."
So Bush's own administration was for withdrawal before it was against it, or is it just that they're such sneaky little bastards, that heaven forfend they give anyone the appearance of attempting any sort of unity in government by actually -- you know -- communicating what's actually going on?
Of course, it's most likely all election year bullshit. You certainly can't communicate a plan when you don't have one.
Desi
According to a classified briefing at the Pentagon this week by the commander, Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the number of American combat brigades in Iraq is projected to decrease to 5 or 6 from the current level of 14 by December 2007.
Those 'cut-n-run' dems have gotten to the top American commander in Iraq! Uh oh, what's this? It's contagious:
General Casey's briefing has remained a closely held secret, and it was described by American officials who agreed to discuss the details only on condition of anonymity. Word of the plan comes after a week in which the American troop presence in Iraq was stridently debated in Congress, with Democratic initiatives to force troop withdrawals defeated in the Senate.
The commander met this week with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld and Gen. Peter Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. On Friday, General Casey and Mr. Rumsfeld met with President Bush at the White House. A senior White House official said that General Casey did not present a formal plan for Mr. Bush's approval but rather a concept of how the United States might move forward after consulting with Iraqi authorities, including Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.
"The recent conversations that have taken place are all designed to formulate our thinking in concert with the new Iraqi government," said the White House official, who declined to discuss specific cuts. "What this process allows is for General Casey to engage with the new Maliki government so it can go from a notional concept to a practical plan of security implementation over the next two years."
So Bush's own administration was for withdrawal before it was against it, or is it just that they're such sneaky little bastards, that heaven forfend they give anyone the appearance of attempting any sort of unity in government by actually -- you know -- communicating what's actually going on?
Of course, it's most likely all election year bullshit. You certainly can't communicate a plan when you don't have one.
Desi
200,000 Homeless US Vets
Former Army Pfc. Herold Noel had nowhere to call home after returning from Iraq last year. He slept in his Jeep, parked anywhere in New York "where I wouldn't get a ticket."
"Then the nightmares would start," said the 26-year-old, who drove a military fuel truck in Iraq -- one of the war's most dangerous jobs.
At one point, he saw a friend's leg get blown off. "I saw a baby decapitated when it was run over by a truck. I relived that every night," said Noel, who walks with shrapnel in his knee and suffers from severe post-traumatic stress syndrome.
To help people like Noel, the VA gives grants to nonprofit, private housing organizations that offer about 8,000 free beds nationwide. The space isn't always enough to accommodate everyone in desperate need of shelter among the more than 500,000 vets of Iraq and Afghanistan who have been discharged from the military so far.
When Noel got back, the shattered soldier couldn't immediately find a job to support his wife and children, and all the housing programs for vets he knew of "were overbooked," he said.
The family ended up in a Bronx shelter "with people who were just out of prison, and with roaches," he said. "I'm a young black man from the ghetto, but this was culture shock. This is not what I fought for, what I almost died for. This is not what I was supposed to come home to."
Noel now attends a Brooklyn program to get a job in studio sound production. He also is the protagonist of the documentary film "When I Came Home," which was named best New York-made documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival this year.
Just after the news reports about his plight came out, he got a call from the VA granting him the 100 percent disability compensation he sought -- after being turned down.
Compassionate conservative repubs love our troops. Ooh rah!
"Then the nightmares would start," said the 26-year-old, who drove a military fuel truck in Iraq -- one of the war's most dangerous jobs.
At one point, he saw a friend's leg get blown off. "I saw a baby decapitated when it was run over by a truck. I relived that every night," said Noel, who walks with shrapnel in his knee and suffers from severe post-traumatic stress syndrome.
To help people like Noel, the VA gives grants to nonprofit, private housing organizations that offer about 8,000 free beds nationwide. The space isn't always enough to accommodate everyone in desperate need of shelter among the more than 500,000 vets of Iraq and Afghanistan who have been discharged from the military so far.
When Noel got back, the shattered soldier couldn't immediately find a job to support his wife and children, and all the housing programs for vets he knew of "were overbooked," he said.
The family ended up in a Bronx shelter "with people who were just out of prison, and with roaches," he said. "I'm a young black man from the ghetto, but this was culture shock. This is not what I fought for, what I almost died for. This is not what I was supposed to come home to."
Noel now attends a Brooklyn program to get a job in studio sound production. He also is the protagonist of the documentary film "When I Came Home," which was named best New York-made documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival this year.
Just after the news reports about his plight came out, he got a call from the VA granting him the 100 percent disability compensation he sought -- after being turned down.
Compassionate conservative repubs love our troops. Ooh rah!
Friday, June 23, 2006
It's an addiction, what can I say?
Well, I resisted the urge to use this cute highway sign generator that Elayne had posted for all of about ... 2 seconds? *sigh*
-Desi
~QOTD~
"It's being held together by sugar candy. No matter what happens, I believe Iraq will fall again. I think when we leave, the country will be in chaos, and the modern day version of Saddam Hussein will take over again. We're in a war we shouldn't be in. We have bigger fish to fry."
--Donald Trump
--Donald Trump
Bobo's World
By god, we'll catch terrorists on American soil in order to scare the shit out of voters before the elections even if we have to swear them in to al Qaeda our own damn selves!
"Mothers of two of the indicted men denied reports that their sons were followers of Islam. The mothers told CNN that their sons are devout Christians who closely follow the teachings of the Bible and their group was nothing more than a religious study group."
"Gonzales said there never was an immediate threat."
You gotta have friends.
June 23, 2006 A photograph of a 2002 golf trip to St. Andrews in Scotland shows, from left in the front row, the lobbyist Jack Abramoff, Ralph Reed, David H. Safavian and Representative Bob Ney. A 373-page Congressional report focuses on Ney, revealing potential legal trouble for the Ohio Republican who has become ensnared in a wide-ranging criminal probe of influence peddling. The report also highlights the work of former Christian Coalition leader Ralph Reed on behalf of Indian gambling interests.
(Photo: U.S. District Court / AP)
Mount Merapi
[REUTERS/Stringer/indonesia]
Hot lava flows down Mount Merapi volcano as seen from Balerante village in Indonesia's Central Java province June 23, 2006.
Cafferty Files
Cafferty goes off on president of Shell Oil who said "I think energy independence is going too far"
"journamalism"
Why Ann makes the big bucks:
"In response to the arguments of my opponents, I say: Waaaaaaaaaah! Boo hoo hoo!" Coulter continued. "If you're upset about what I said about the Witches of East Brunswick, try turning the page. Surely, I must have offended more than those four harpies. ... "
Murtha (D-Pa.) is the hawkish Congressman --and former Marine officer -- who now opposes the Iraq War, while "fragging" is the term for soldiers killing their own officers.
Appearing on the Hannity & Colmes show on Fox News this week, she declared, that if Murtha "did get fragged, he'd finally deserve one of those Purple Hearts."
Perhaps someday -- if she takes a break from this technical side of her writing -- Ann will 'splain to us how she reconciles her claims that the media is liberal whilst the likes of herself is a paid, syndicated columnist for the media.
"In response to the arguments of my opponents, I say: Waaaaaaaaaah! Boo hoo hoo!" Coulter continued. "If you're upset about what I said about the Witches of East Brunswick, try turning the page. Surely, I must have offended more than those four harpies. ... "
Murtha (D-Pa.) is the hawkish Congressman --and former Marine officer -- who now opposes the Iraq War, while "fragging" is the term for soldiers killing their own officers.
Appearing on the Hannity & Colmes show on Fox News this week, she declared, that if Murtha "did get fragged, he'd finally deserve one of those Purple Hearts."
Perhaps someday -- if she takes a break from this technical side of her writing -- Ann will 'splain to us how she reconciles her claims that the media is liberal whilst the likes of herself is a paid, syndicated columnist for the media.
The Incredible Military Genius of Rumsfeld
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- The Iraqi government declared a state of emergency and imposed a curfew Friday after insurgents set up roadblocks in central Baghdad and opened fire on U.S. and Iraqi troops just north of the heavily fortified Green Zone.
U.S. and Iraqi forces also clashed with insurgents in southern Baghdad.
The prime minister ordered everyone off the streets of the capital from 2 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Saturday. The order came at around noon, when many residents were in prayer, and sent many rushing home to beat the curfew.
In other violence, a bomb struck a Sunni mosque in a town northeast of Baghdad, killing 10 worshippers and wounding 15 in the same town where Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was slain earlier this month, police said.
The explosion occurred in front of the Grand Hibhib mosque in Diyala province, according to the provincial joint coordination center.
In the southern city of Basra, a car bomb ripped through a market and nearby gas station, killing at least five people and wounding 15, including two policemen police said.
At least 19 other deaths were reported in Baghdad.
I don't know how much more democracy the people of Iraq can take.
U.S. and Iraqi forces also clashed with insurgents in southern Baghdad.
The prime minister ordered everyone off the streets of the capital from 2 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Saturday. The order came at around noon, when many residents were in prayer, and sent many rushing home to beat the curfew.
In other violence, a bomb struck a Sunni mosque in a town northeast of Baghdad, killing 10 worshippers and wounding 15 in the same town where Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was slain earlier this month, police said.
The explosion occurred in front of the Grand Hibhib mosque in Diyala province, according to the provincial joint coordination center.
In the southern city of Basra, a car bomb ripped through a market and nearby gas station, killing at least five people and wounding 15, including two policemen police said.
At least 19 other deaths were reported in Baghdad.
I don't know how much more democracy the people of Iraq can take.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
A rose by any other name ...
WaPo:
There's no doubt that Shafiq, Ruhel and Monir were roughly treated. Were they tortured? Some might think so; others would say: Look, they are military prisoners and military imprisonment, by its very nature, is a rough business, sloppy at the edges, administered by weary, mean-spirited men who aren't terribly interested in their many detainees' personal narratives. If you're slow to react or cop an attitude or flash a surly set of eyes, you get a boot to the tail. Where's the love? There isn't any in any military prison and there hasn't been for 4,000 years. But is this torture? You must make your own call. However, to anyone who's played organized football or lacrosse, gotten through Army basic training or even a fraternity hell week (guilty here of all three), it will seem pretty much the way exclusively male, obedience-oriented cultures do business. Those who lack a grounding in these realities may see it differently.
Clearly, however, no torture per se was administered; see something as old as 1946's "13 Rue Madeleine" for an evocation of the horrors of torture (Gestapo agent Richard Conte works over OSS man Jimmy Cagney). To call it torture is to diminish the word "torture," to defuse its power when applied to those who've been authentically tortured. Forcing a man to listen to loud bad music doesn't qualify, except in stand-up comic routines.
From a detailed interview with Ahmed Ruhel by Avery Walker of RawStory, here is just an excerpt of what the WaPo describes as "the way exclusively male, obedience-oriented cultures do business":
In addition to the more widely reported use of dogs and guns in interrogations, Ahmed claims that one of the most painful forms of abuse was simply being in an extreme environment -- prisoners could be placed in cells that were allowed to grow extremely hot during the day and dropped to freezing at night.
When asked what other forms of abuse he personally experienced, Ahmed says quickly and gravely, "sexual abuse." A strange silence follows. When asked for specifics, he says simply, "I don't really want to go into details."
Now of course, the WaPo article is based on the movie -- which I have not seen -- yet the author claims that the film "is certainly fair, and it clings tightly to the accounts of the three actual young men to whom these events occurred." This statement more than implies that he knows the details of the accounts given by Ruhel, and the other members of the Tipton three.
Did the WaPo journamalist know what he was talking about, or is he simply not grounded in reality? Make your own call.
There's no doubt that Shafiq, Ruhel and Monir were roughly treated. Were they tortured? Some might think so; others would say: Look, they are military prisoners and military imprisonment, by its very nature, is a rough business, sloppy at the edges, administered by weary, mean-spirited men who aren't terribly interested in their many detainees' personal narratives. If you're slow to react or cop an attitude or flash a surly set of eyes, you get a boot to the tail. Where's the love? There isn't any in any military prison and there hasn't been for 4,000 years. But is this torture? You must make your own call. However, to anyone who's played organized football or lacrosse, gotten through Army basic training or even a fraternity hell week (guilty here of all three), it will seem pretty much the way exclusively male, obedience-oriented cultures do business. Those who lack a grounding in these realities may see it differently.
Clearly, however, no torture per se was administered; see something as old as 1946's "13 Rue Madeleine" for an evocation of the horrors of torture (Gestapo agent Richard Conte works over OSS man Jimmy Cagney). To call it torture is to diminish the word "torture," to defuse its power when applied to those who've been authentically tortured. Forcing a man to listen to loud bad music doesn't qualify, except in stand-up comic routines.
From a detailed interview with Ahmed Ruhel by Avery Walker of RawStory, here is just an excerpt of what the WaPo describes as "the way exclusively male, obedience-oriented cultures do business":
In addition to the more widely reported use of dogs and guns in interrogations, Ahmed claims that one of the most painful forms of abuse was simply being in an extreme environment -- prisoners could be placed in cells that were allowed to grow extremely hot during the day and dropped to freezing at night.
When asked what other forms of abuse he personally experienced, Ahmed says quickly and gravely, "sexual abuse." A strange silence follows. When asked for specifics, he says simply, "I don't really want to go into details."
Now of course, the WaPo article is based on the movie -- which I have not seen -- yet the author claims that the film "is certainly fair, and it clings tightly to the accounts of the three actual young men to whom these events occurred." This statement more than implies that he knows the details of the accounts given by Ruhel, and the other members of the Tipton three.
Did the WaPo journamalist know what he was talking about, or is he simply not grounded in reality? Make your own call.
The 13
For the Kerry-Feingold Amendment for redeployment of US troops out of Iraq:
Akaka, D, HI
Boxer, D, CA
Durbin, D, IL
Feingold, D, WI
Harkin, D, IA
Inouye,D, HI
Jeffords, I, VT
Kennedy, D, MA
Kerry, D, MA
Lautenberg, D, NJ
Leahy, D, VT
Menendez, D, NJ
Wyden, D, OR
The rest of the useless motherfuckers.
Akaka, D, HI
Boxer, D, CA
Durbin, D, IL
Feingold, D, WI
Harkin, D, IA
Inouye,D, HI
Jeffords, I, VT
Kennedy, D, MA
Kerry, D, MA
Lautenberg, D, NJ
Leahy, D, VT
Menendez, D, NJ
Wyden, D, OR
The rest of the useless motherfuckers.
I hear drums
(CBS/AP) For U.S. soldiers fighting insurgents just south of Baghdad, Thursday's news from the Pentagon was sobering.
According to the United States' commanding general in Iraq, Iran has joined the war. Gen. George Casey said Iranians are planting roadside bombs that are killing U.S. soldiers, reports CBS News correspondent Lee Cowan.
"We are quite confident that the Iranians through their covert special ops forces are providing weapons, IED technology and training to Shia extremist groups in Iraq," Casey said at a Pentagon press conference with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld by his side.
Casey went so far as to accuse the Iranian government of helping mastermind the attacks.
"I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in."
~George McGovern
According to the United States' commanding general in Iraq, Iran has joined the war. Gen. George Casey said Iranians are planting roadside bombs that are killing U.S. soldiers, reports CBS News correspondent Lee Cowan.
"We are quite confident that the Iranians through their covert special ops forces are providing weapons, IED technology and training to Shia extremist groups in Iraq," Casey said at a Pentagon press conference with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld by his side.
Casey went so far as to accuse the Iranian government of helping mastermind the attacks.
"I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in."
~George McGovern
Party time in Budapest
[REUTERS/Larry Downing]
U.S. President George W. Bush toasts with with Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany (L) at a luncheon at the Parliment in Budapest, Hungary June 22, 2006.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Dear Senators Levin and Stabenow
I got your emails -- at 2 of my email addy's no less -- informing me of your wonderful new websites, and the requests for campaign cash.
I *still* don't have *any* response from either of you regarding the issue of net neutrality, among others, so no I won't send money or come play on your pretty new web sites. Feh!
I *still* don't have *any* response from either of you regarding the issue of net neutrality, among others, so no I won't send money or come play on your pretty new web sites. Feh!
If a bugle plays 'taps' and no one is there to listen, does it still make a sound?
Whilst I was off last weekend in Cleveland, one of my stops was the old Veteran's cemetery in the town where I grew up. One uncle who died before I was ever thought of is among my family members there, and there was a new headstone put in for him that I was anxious to see. I've probably mentioned -- or maybe not -- that coming from a highly dysfunctional family, photographs, and anyone to turn to for ancestral information, photographs and the like just doesn't happen. So I was glad to see the new details added to his stone, including he had been a part of the 83rd division of the 330th Infantry when he died in France in 1944. Also known as the "Thunderbolt Division." Many thanks to the Veteran's Administration.
I grew up enjoying the treks to the cemetary to visit my 'family' and tending to the flower arrangements and such. It's only natural to me now that as I'm the only kin remotely near Ohio that I look after them, and I do so with tremendous pride.
With all that we have had confirmed in recent days regarding torture, and murder charges I wonder if there will be cemeteries where young men are buried that no one wants to acknowledge. Will it become difficult to have those holiday parades and graveyard ceremonies amongst whispers of who was ordered to do what to detainees? Will people whisper quietly to each other "Haditha", "Iscandaria", and "Falluja"? Will anyone still salute Veterans on Veteran's Day, and will anyone listen to the bugler play after the parade and shed a tear?
I grew up enjoying the treks to the cemetary to visit my 'family' and tending to the flower arrangements and such. It's only natural to me now that as I'm the only kin remotely near Ohio that I look after them, and I do so with tremendous pride.
With all that we have had confirmed in recent days regarding torture, and murder charges I wonder if there will be cemeteries where young men are buried that no one wants to acknowledge. Will it become difficult to have those holiday parades and graveyard ceremonies amongst whispers of who was ordered to do what to detainees? Will people whisper quietly to each other "Haditha", "Iscandaria", and "Falluja"? Will anyone still salute Veterans on Veteran's Day, and will anyone listen to the bugler play after the parade and shed a tear?
Cher on CNN now
Operationhelmet.org is an organization backed by Cher[looking at the site while typing, perhaps she's the founder, dunno] that supplies helmet upgrades to troops BECAUSE THEY CAN'T GET THEM ANY OTHER WAY. The kits have a special lining that provide the following special features:
* Comfort - If it is more comfortable, it will stay on troop's head longer and more often.
* Stability - Keeps the helmet firmly on the head and out of the eyes.
* Protection - Shock-absorbing pads keep the helmet from slapping the skull when hit with blast forces, fragments, or being tumbled along the ground or inside a vehicle. This decreases the chance of brain injury from bombs, RPG's, vehicle accidents, falls, etc.
As a secondary benefit, the pads make the helmet actually float in water.
What next, BuymeBullets.com??!? If we can't afford to supply our troops and ensure they are protected as well as humanly possible then we don't need to be sending them off to invade other nations. Mother of god does the country have to implode before people realize that repubs aren't doing anything for anyone but fucking oil barons?
* Comfort - If it is more comfortable, it will stay on troop's head longer and more often.
* Stability - Keeps the helmet firmly on the head and out of the eyes.
* Protection - Shock-absorbing pads keep the helmet from slapping the skull when hit with blast forces, fragments, or being tumbled along the ground or inside a vehicle. This decreases the chance of brain injury from bombs, RPG's, vehicle accidents, falls, etc.
As a secondary benefit, the pads make the helmet actually float in water.
What next, BuymeBullets.com??!? If we can't afford to supply our troops and ensure they are protected as well as humanly possible then we don't need to be sending them off to invade other nations. Mother of god does the country have to implode before people realize that repubs aren't doing anything for anyone but fucking oil barons?
We support our troops, that's why we want them out of Iraq
NYT:
Mr. Levin and Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island, proposed an amendment to a military spending bill that would call for the United States to at least begin redeploying troops by year's end. The proposal was harshly criticized by Senator John W. Warner, the Virginia Republican who is chairman of the Armed Services Committee, as a "timetable" meant to sound like something else.
"It sends signals," Mr. Warner said, signals that he asserted would undermine the bipartisan backing that the American forces in Iraq have so far enjoyed. Now is the time, Mr. Warner said, for Congress to give President Bush the support he needs, or risk making a "historic mistake."
Kinda like this, Mr. Warner?
Or this?
Or this?
Mr. Levin and Senator Jack Reed, Democrat of Rhode Island, proposed an amendment to a military spending bill that would call for the United States to at least begin redeploying troops by year's end. The proposal was harshly criticized by Senator John W. Warner, the Virginia Republican who is chairman of the Armed Services Committee, as a "timetable" meant to sound like something else.
"It sends signals," Mr. Warner said, signals that he asserted would undermine the bipartisan backing that the American forces in Iraq have so far enjoyed. Now is the time, Mr. Warner said, for Congress to give President Bush the support he needs, or risk making a "historic mistake."
Kinda like this, Mr. Warner?
Or this?
Or this?
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