Bill Maher: New Rules

May 29: Bill Maher's New Rules...Bill touches in his own unique way on some of the top news of the week. On the development of some of more eco-friendly, compact cars he says "At some point you just have to say fuck it, I'll walk."

He makes some good points on the US health care system, and in general the way mankind treats each other.

Oy

Cute little bunnies. How bad could it be? Let me put it this way...lock 'n load.

-Diane

Newt to the Rescue

Newt Gingrich rushed to Darth Cheney's side today to help make excuses for torture and murder. Shorter version...OOGA BOOGAH!




-Diane

Bill Maher's New Rules

From the show aired May 22,2009.

-Diane

Bateman: Starfleet Academy, party school

-Diane

SNL Season Finale: Bush-Cheney Reunite

The fact that former Vice President Dick Cheney has been going on a media blitz criticizing President Barack Obama has not escaped the sharp eyes of SNL. On last night's season finale, hosted by SNL legend Will Ferrell, Geroge Bush and Dick Cheney were reunited as Cheney prepared to do an interview on "Meet the Press." Hilarity ensued.

-Diane

The Fray - You Found Me Live

Enjoy.

-Diane

ISAF: Afghan war statistics show 55% increase in Western troop deaths, April 2009

A leaked NATO report on Afghanistan shows that Western troop casualties were up 55% in April of this year, and perhaps even more alarming is the public perception of security in the nation.

The most recent figures for nationwide perception of security in Afghanistan are from March 2009, with 43% saying the security situation in their area is 'good,' 42% rate it as 'fair,' and 15% feel the security is 'bad.' The numbers are nearly identical to April of 2008 with 45% 'good,' 43% 'fair,' and 12% rating security 'bad.'

Those rating security 'good' are still down by 49% from 2005, and those rating security 'bad' is up by 13% from 2005.

The overall opinion of Afghans on NATO forces is virtually unchanged from December of 2008.

That surge thing doesn't seem to be working out real well thus far again.

You can view the full report here.(pdf)


-Diane

The Hearts 'N Flowers Tour Part Deux

LAT:

Reporting from Qale Zaman, Afghanistan -- The road to Bala Baluk district stretches arrow-straight ahead, with heat-shimmered cucumber fields on either side. But determining exactly what transpired nearly two weeks ago in a hamlet called Garani takes a far more twisted path.

A battle raged. Bombs fell. Afghan officials say at least 140 civilians died, two-thirds of them children and teenagers, in what may prove the most lethal episode of civilian casualties since the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

This 'hope' and 'change' has become quite lethal.

-Diane

Improv Theater

Just when you think you can't hate this war any more:

HOUSTON -- Take Houston’s heat on a miserable summer day and add 40 degrees, making temperatures 130 or more.

Next, add an extra 100 pounds of life-protecting gear to your body: bulletproof vests, guns and ammunition.

And then imagine not having enough water around to drink.

Stories of short supplies have haunted the U.S. military throughout the war in Iraq—things like inadequate body armor or unshielded Hummers. But while many soldiers say they had good access to water and even Gatorade, the 11 News Defenders discovered that others, stationed all over the country and during all phases of this desert war, say something else was often missing.

“We were rationed two bottles of water a day,” said Army Staff Sgt. Dustin Robey, referring to 1 to 1.5 liter bottles.

And he said that wasn’t nearly enough.

“You’ll see guys throw up, you’ll see them pass out,” he said.

So US troops are forced to improvise in order to have enough drinking water to survive the heat. They have to steal it, and they know exactly where to find the precious commoditiy...in the hands of the private contractors who have plenty.

Hat tip to Michael Moore for the video.

-Diane

Caption this...

-Diane

He's back...

Eminem is back with his new release 'Relapse' that reveals his trip to Zombie-land during his struggle with drug addiction. The single here is '3am.'


-Diane

Let me be perfectly clear...

This is torture:

























But where I come from, this is murder. For the clueless, you can tell the difference because during the torture, he ceased to live.





























-Diane

Friday Cat Blogging

Have you run across the keyboard cat on the internets yet? Well, here he is, and he's playing Dick Cheney off the teevee.

-Diane

Hugh Van Es

This is a May 19, 1969 file photo taken by then AP photographer Hugh Van Es showing a wounded U.S. paratrooper grimacing in pain while waiting for medical evacuation at base camp in the A Shau Valley near the Laos border in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Van Es, a Dutch photojournalist who covered the Vietnam War and recorded the most famous image of the fall of Saigon in 1975 — a group of people scaling a ladder to a CIA helicopter on a rooftop — died Friday morning, May 15, 2009, in Hong Kong, his wife said. He was 67 years old. He joined The Associated Press photo staff in Saigon from 1969-72 and then covered the last three years of the war from 1972-75 for United Press International.

-Diane

New Rules

Bill Maher's New Rules from 5-15-09.

-Diane

KagroX for Preznit

David Waldman, also Daily Kos contributing editor KagroX, discusses the Iraq-torture link on CNN.com Friday, May 15,2009.

You can read the McClatchy report David references here.

-Diane

Al Gore: I Waited 2 Years To Make Statements That Were Critical

President Gore weighs in on climate change, and Dick Cheney.

“I waited two years after I left office to make statements that were critical,” Gore said during an interview on CNN
, pointing out that his critiques were focused on “policy.”

“Talk about somebody that shouldn't be talking about making the country less safe, invading a country that did not attack us and posed no serious threat to us at all,” Gore said of Cheney.

Gore identified Cheney as “the leading spokesman for his party” and said he suspects Cheney’s prominence is not welcomed by other Republicans
.

“I have a feeling that members of his own party wish that he would not do that,” Gore said. “But I'll let that be an argument between him and them.”

--Diane

Yes, they can

Coming soon, the kinder, gentler military tribunals...full of hope and change.

-Diane