Saving Grace

Obama plays the gender card

2008-02-16T09:33:00.000-05:00

Lacking Class

2008-02-04T19:14:00.000-05:00

Oh, No, Not Molly!

2007-01-31T19:08:00.001-05:00

First Ann and now Molly. We can't afford to lose any more of these female journalist icons. Certainly Katie or Paula or whatever new fluff is the flavor of the day cannot rise to the standard these women set. Molly, I shall really, really miss you.

Molly Ivins, whose biting columns mixed liberal populism with an irreverent Texas wit, died at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at her home in Austin after an up-and-down battle with breast cancer she had waged for seven years. She was 62.

Ms. Ivins, the Star-Telegram’s political columnist for nine years ending in 2001, had written for the New York Times, the Dallas Times-Herald and Time magazine and had long been a sought-after pundit on the television talk-show circuit to provide a Texas slant on issues ranging from President Bush’s pedigree to the culture wars rooted in the 1960s.

"She was magical in her writing," said Mike Blackman, a former Star-Telegram executive editor who hired Ms. Ivins at the newspaper’s Austin bureau in 1992, a few months after the Times-Herald ceased publication. "She could turn a phrase in such a way that a pretty hard-hitting point didn’t hurt so bad."

Star-Telegram

The Decider

2007-01-28T17:22:00.000-05:00

I've been kicking that moniker around in my head. That "I'm the decider" phrase spoken with a fake Texas accent and stubborn look on his face. Like this: A'm the DeCida. I initially thought Bush was just too stupid to put a more eloquent statement into words. Or, wasn't capable of understanding what he said. I certainly can't imagine Clinton, Carter, Kennedy or any other President uttering such a statement. It's bare bones. It's saying everything and not really saying anything. It's like the kid on the basketball court yelling at you - telling you that if you don't play by his rules, he'll take his ball and go home. Only, Bush doesn't have the ball. Or, the balls, for that matter. He has the Office of the President. One arm of the government. And, he's acting like a spoiled kid.

So, as I listen to that statement again, I begin to think. Does he mean that it doesn't matter what Congress mandates? Or, what our Courts decide? Is he really the Decider? Above all and everyone one else? Does he really believe that? Does Congress? Do the Judges? Are they really going to let him get away with this? Are we? Then, is he our King? King George, the Decider? Or, maybe he is God. I'm sure he thinks so.

When does the point come when one man is so delusional that he is brought down from the ledge and taken away. Let's hope that it's soon. Very, very soon. Before anyone else dies.

Listen Here

2006-12-27T18:06:00.000-05:00

WHAT I'VE LEARNED: Bryan Anderson
Soldier, 25, Rolling Meadows, Illinois
Brian Mockenhaupt

This is the gripper. It's like a robot hand, a stronger tool. There's a sensor on the inner and outer parts of my forearm. All I do is pretend my hand is still there and open and close it.

If I want it to close, I make the close-muscle gradually. If I want it to spin inward, I make that close-muscle really fast. This is my baseball mitt, like a lacrosse racket. This is the hook. You can angle it in and out, put a spoon in there or whatever, pick up little stuff with it. My grandpa says, "Why aren't you wearing the hook? It's so much cooler." Well, it scares me. You see a hook and you think, Oh, my God, there's a hook there. I lost my hand! It scares me and other people, kids and stuff. You wear a hand, you look down, ah, it looks real.

This one is my swimming hand, but it's also my sports-activity arm. I have smiley faces on this one because I thought it would be funny. I can play baseball, golf, whatever I feel like. This is a pool-playing hand. You stick the pool cue through the hole and put that down on the table. It's called the Hustler. They have a catalog with all these hands in it. They made this one using a mold of my brother's hand. It has pores and veins and everything. They couldn't use my right hand because it was all fucked up. I just got a motorcycle hand today, too.

Those are my hands.

I use my right hand and the prosthetic left hand just fine. I get by. This system, with the hand, is like sixty grand. My wheelchair is twenty-five grand. I had the guy who works on the chairs tweak it. I said, "You need to make it faster." He hooked it up to a computer, changed it around, and now it takes off.

When I don't have help, it'll take me ten minutes to put my legs on. The first time I ever did it, it took me an hour.

Five, ten, fifteen years from now, can you imagine the prosthetics they're going to have? They're going to have Terminator shit, stuff that's not going to come off. It's just going to be your limb. That's what I'm hoping for anyway. I'm doing fine right now. I can wait. I've always been taught in the Army: Expect the worst, hope for the best.

I'm not really going to wear pants anymore unless it's a nice function. It's hard to pull pants over your legs because your feet are straight, and my legs aren't ever going to get cold. And if people see I'm walking with prosthetic legs, they're more likely to get out of my way than accidentally bump into me and knock me down.

I think I have the record for falling in physical therapy, because I try to push myself to the max on these things, and if you're not falling, you're not trying. That's my motto. I don't fall as much anymore, but for a while I pretty much fell a couple times a day.

I've been wakeboarding, water-skiing, jet-skiing, tubing, rock climbing, snow skiing, playing catch with my brother. I try to do the same things. I'm not going to let it stop me. We did a 110-mile bike ride from Gettysburg to Washington, D. C. Sixty miles the first day, fifty miles the second day. Hand cycle, three wheels. I ended up ripping the glove, breaking the hand, breaking the whole socket. I might do it a little differently, but I'm still going to do it. I didn't actually get up water-skiing. I was up for a second then my arm ripped off and I fell.

I went up to Alaska for the National Wheelchair Games. I participated in two events, Ping-Pong and archery, and I won gold medals in both. I love Ping-Pong. Ping-Pong's the shit. Any real Ping-Pong player will say, No, it's table tennis, it's not Ping-Pong. But I don't care. Ping-Pong. Nobody knows it as table tennis. Most people are going to say Ping-Pong, right?

I used to be a gymnast. I started my freshman year and went to state all three years. Parallel bars, floor, rings, vault, then pommel horse. I hated the pommel horse. I may not be able to do gymnastics like I used to, but I still do little stuff. When I fall out of my chair, I do a handstand to get back in. I lift up my body, push off, and snap up.

Hello? I won a trial gym membership? How did you get my name? You pulled it out of a fishbowl? Do you have any idea who I am? I don't have any legs. And I have only one hand. I lost them over in Iraq. No, don't worry about it. I'm fine now. But I probably won't use it, so you might want to give it to someone else.

I've been here nearly thirteen months. This isn't any way to live for a long period of time. I've had my mom with me the whole time, and that's been great. But we've been in the same small room with just this little burner and microwave. You know each and every little thing that goes on with each other. So I'm ready to go.

Look at all the movies I've collected. I didn't buy them all. A lot of people sent movies because I said I was bored, so they started sending boxes and boxes. I'm a big movie nut. Even before. I like comedies. I like the superhero movies.

I want to be a stuntman. I could be on prosthetics, and they could blow my legs off. They have a harness attached to me, they pull me back, there's blasting caps on my legs, and boom! My legs are gone.

I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life. Go back to school? But if I go back to school, what am I going to do? So I started making a list of everything I really liked to do: Roller coasters. Skydiving. Bungee jumping. All that I could tell from that list was that I'm an adrenaline junkie. I like going fast and doing all that stuff. But I didn't put it together until the first time I was in Iraq. We were watching Titanic, the ship was going straight up, and you saw the guys fall and hit the railing, and my friend said that a stuntman actually broke his leg. Then it was a light bulb. Ding, ding, ding. Oh, my God. That is the perfect thing for me. And now that I'm like this, and I have an identical twin brother who's just as crazy as I am, I'm hoping we can make something happen of it.

When I'm a stuntman, I'll tell them, Get as gory as you can if that's what you're looking for. I don't have a problem with it. I don't have flashbacks. I'm just the same person. It doesn't bother me to see stuff like that—never really did.

For the most part, I dream that I'm full-bodied. Last night I had a dream I was like this, walking around really good, keeping my head up, not even looking down.

The doctors say some people have phantom feelings, like your legs and hands are still there. They wake up and they can feel their feet. They try to stand up and then they fall. Not me. I have pain, and the feeling sometimes, but not that much. Every once in a while, I'll have an itch on my knee. Mostly it's a tingling in my feet. It sucks.

You have two options once this happens: Roll over and die or move on. I chose to move on. I'm still me. I'm just 75 percent off. Get a great deal on Bryan Andersons this week. You know who actually told me that the first time? My mom. We were in Vegas, talking about T-shirts we should make, and she said 75 percent off. She said, You should get a shirt showing off your personality.

This doesn't define me. It may be how I look on the outside, but it's not who I am. I guess you could remember me easily as being a triple amputee, but it's not who I am, has nothing to do with who I am. I've always been the same person. A lot of my friends were scared with me going into the Army. They didn't think I'd be the same person when I came back. I may not be as immature, but I'll always be the same person. Which is true, I grew up. I make the same stupid-ass jokes, the same stuff to make someone laugh, but I'm just a little bit more responsible.

I was hit on October 23. They call it your alive day. You celebrate it like your birthday. Well, except without the presents. I felt like it was celebrating the worst day of my life. That's just my mindset right now. Why would I want to celebrate the worst day of my life? And they're like, 'Cause you're alive. Okay, I kind of get it. But that still doesn't change the fact that that was the worst day of my life. But it's another excuse to have a party.

There's this other triple amputee that I met here who was hit October 27, but a year before me. He helped me through my hardest times. There's four triple amputees. He was the third and I was the fourth. He's just like me. He has a little bit longer limbs than I do, and instead of him missing his left hand, he's missing his right hand. That's the only difference. I'm right-handed. He was right-handed too, though.

Smoking saved my right hand. I'd be a quadruple amputee if I wasn't smoking. I'd normally have my hands on the steering wheel, but I was smoking, so I had just my left hand on the steering wheel. My hand still got messed up, but if I had my hand down there, I would have been done.

We were laughing and then boom!

I was going really slow at the time. Whoever it was looking out, who armed it, waited for all the civilian traffic to go by. They were aiming for the third truck, so when my front tires rolled over the infrared laser, it exploded. They built it into the cement and painted it to look like the curb and sidewalk. It took most of my front end off instead of going into the cab. But I still had a little extra come at me. My gunner had some shrapnel in his ass. My team leader had shrapnel in his hip and his wrist. I didn't hear the blast. I saw the smoke and the fire come through the door, but I didn't hear it.

The concussion of the blast collapsed my right lung, so it was hard to breathe. I was in so much pain, my body wouldn't even let me feel pain. It's like Icy Hot after the icy part, when it gets hot. That's what it felt like all over my body.

I was lying there. Before I said anything, I wiped my face because I felt blood and the flies were all over, and the first thing I saw was my finger gone. Okay, not so bad. Then I turned my hand over, and the whole thing looked like ground beef. But it still looked all right, kind of. I could see bone. Anyway, while I'm looking at this, I went to wipe my face with my left hand and there was nothing there. Oh, fuck. After that I looked down at my legs, and right as I saw what had happened, my friend grabbed my forehead and pushed it down, hoping that I hadn't seen. But I did. I knew they were gone.

My hand was over on the passenger's seat, and my legs were on the floorboard. It cauterized everything instantly because it was so hot. I bled a little bit, but I think that helped save my life. But I took 120 units of blood by the time I got to Walter Reed, and you only have 10 in your body.

I was awarded my Purple Heart at the hospital in Baghdad. My battalion commander dipped the ribbon in my blood from one of my bandages. Actually, by that time I don't know whose blood was on it. I had so much blood going through me. But it went through my body. I inherited it.

The guy that opened my door and was first to grab me was the driver of the truck in front of me. He didn't know how bad it was because the window was all smoked over. So he opens the door and he's like, Ugh! He ended up saving my life. The doctors said those tourniquets were put on so perfectly, they didn't have to take any more off my legs.

They pulled me out and I was a little disoriented. I made eye contact and I could pretty much see that my guys were freaked out. They all looked like ghosts. Their faces were white. In your squad, you're all best friends, and they were just freaking out. I said, "Oh, shit, I wonder if I'm ever going to get laid again" to kind of make them laugh and get back on track, just to let them know I was still Bryan. That's what I do; I try to make people laugh.

They thought I was going to die, saying, "Hang on, hang on." In my head, I didn't ever have that feeling that I was going to die. And just in case, I kept telling myself, Keep breathing, do the motion, stay awake. It was when I got on the bird that I felt safe to pass out. I woke up at Walter Reed.

But I actually forgot that I'd lost my left hand, because when I woke up in D. C., I went to scratch my face with my left hand. I looked up at the ceiling. "You couldn't have given me a break?"

My mom said nobody's allowed to cry in front of me, and they didn't.

I kind of felt guilty. I feel like I took the easy way out, which I know isn't true, but I wanted to be back there.

I've heard that some of the people here are intimidated by me because I'm a triple amputee with a great attitude. They shouldn't feel that way. Everybody has their own problems. You could be a single amputee but have something else wrong with you. I'm missing my legs and a hand, but other than that, I'm perfect. I'm very healthy. I'm still athletic. You don't have to be intimidated because you think I have more problems than you. It's not true. I don't have many problems. Not anymore. I'm fine. It's just part of who I am, coming from good roots, good parents. I have good people around me. They instilled good values in me, and I grew out of that, manners, holding doors open for girls, being courteous to people, always trying to stay positive.

You know, everyone says I don't know if I could handle that. You don't know until it happens to you. I ask myself, If I lost this hand, too, would I think it was worth living? I don't know. It would be a very, very tough decision. I just don't know.

There's kids at Walter Reed who have had forty, fifty surgeries. I was lucky. I was out of the hospital six weeks after this happened. I say I'm lucky a lot. I'm lucky to be alive. Everybody at Walter Reed sits there and assesses everybody else's injuries and says, "Oh, my God, I wouldn't want to be that guy." I feel fortunate. I may have lost three limbs, but I'm not paralyzed. I can get up and walk. I have both my eyes. Nothing's wrong with my face. And I'm of sound mind. There are a lot of guys who say I'd have rather lost a limb than lost my mind, and I agree.

If you could see all these amputees and the great attitudes most of them have, you'd be shocked. Everybody went through a dark time. Mine was very short, only two weeks, but, for me, it felt like forever. Mine, it really hit me after four months. That's after everything had settled. I was working with the prosthetics. I was having a hard time, even though they didn't think I was, I did. You're your own worst critic. They thought I was doing great for being four months and what I was able to do already. And they're telling me this, and I said, What are you talking about? I'm not even walking for an hour a day. That's nothing.

One day I was in the shower looking at myself, and I kind of lost it a little bit. That's when my self-consciousness really shot up. Dude, nobody wants me like this. It went bad from there. I couldn't sleep. My chest was getting tight, like I was going to have a panic attack. I didn't think I was thinking about it. I just started freaking. I didn't want to be inside. I didn't want to be outside. I didn't want to be anywhere. I didn't want to kill myself, but I just felt like I didn't want to be anywhere. I didn't want anybody to be around me.

I tried to get away from here, just so I could clear my head. Me and my mom spent three days in Vegas. Craps and blackjack, that's what I like to play. The next week we went to Aspen. I was fortunate that my dark period was that brief. That weekend in Aspen really brought me up. That and Percocet. I wasn't really taking pain pills, so I took some Percocet and I felt great, lovely. The doctors put me on Zoloft for a little bit, and I was like, No, that's not the problem. I don't need this. It's not what's wrong with me.

I know people are going to look at me differently. When you're looking for a girlfriend or a boyfriend, you have this mental picture of what you're looking for. And you can ask anybody, and nobody's going to say that they're looking for somebody who's missing three limbs. But then there's some people who get into that position and say that doesn't matter. They don't care about that.

But I'm still self-conscious. I think I look ugly. There's friends that always tell me I look hot.

After so many people saying that to you, some of it sticks. But I still have that self-conscious feeling inside because of the accident. If I had just lost a foot, or if it was both below the knees, I wouldn't think anything of it, but since I'm so high up and missing a hand, too, it's hard for me.

If I'm trying to hook up with somebody, it's going to bother me. And I don't mean "hook up" like one-night stands. I mean get together.

I could be perfectly fine without kids. If my wife wants kids, that's fine, too. It's not an issue because of this. But I plan on wearing my prosthetics most all the time. And if I have those on, I'm not going to be able to carry my kids. I can't really bend over because it'll throw my balance off. So I'm not going to be able to pick up my kids. So you're walking through the park and they don't want to walk, they want to be carried. Sorry, I can't do it. I've thought about that a lot. It's going to be hard.

I think it will be good for my kid to see someone like me, so when they grow up and they see someone like me, they won't make a quick judgment on them.

I'd tell my kids not to join. If they're anything like me, they're not going to like people telling them what to do. Yeah, it's kind of like a job. But in a job, your boss can't tell you when to eat and when to go to sleep. And if you say something wrong, you're not going to lose money, you're not going to get dropped to do pushups. I didn't like that. You can quit a job. You can't quit the Army. And if they insist, I'm going to tell them to go into the Air Force. You can't put that in the magazine. Wait, I forgot, I'm going to be out by the time this comes out. Fuck it, balls to the wall.

My brother was a tank mechanic. He joined after me. I told him not to join, but if he did, to make sure he got Fort Hood so we could be together. But we were only together for a little while because I went to Iraq the first time. We're twins. We know each other's likes and dislikes. He didn't like it.

The Army is a good thing. It's for some people; it's not for some people. It wasn't for me. I wanted to get out after my first year. I was in the military police. I didn't like arresting people, didn't like giving people tickets, so I didn't. We pulled over fourteen people one night, didn't write one ticket.

Right before I went into basic training, I dyed my hair white with green tips. I left the day after September 11. I was supposed to leave on September 11, but they didn't let us. The next morning we had to get on a bus; they wouldn't even fly us.

When I rolled over the line from Kuwait to Iraq the first time, and those people were cheering and screaming, that's when I knew we need to help these people. Whether I agree with being there or not, I don't know, but if we pulled out now it would make me raise the questions, Okay, so all those guys who lost their lives and lost limbs, was it for a reason? Did we change anything? Was it worth it? If it is, then great, pull out. If it isn't, then they all just died in vain. I don't know. I can't be the one to sit there looking at the overview and say he lost his life for no good reason.

I think the only time I would agree with war is if there's a childish country that wants to do something really, really stupid and won't listen to anybody. Then it might be worth it.

Even when I was home after the first time, I didn't watch the news. I didn't want to know. You know it's bad over there. You know what's happening. I don't need to sit there and watch TV to be depressed. I watch TV to laugh or be intrigued. I think the news is depressing, so I don't watch it. It's not that I don't care about everybody over there—I do.

Iraqi police officers have come a long way since I was there last. We couldn't get them to come to work. And when they did, they would come for two hours and leave. When we would ask them to patrol us, they'd do it for twenty minutes, then leave. "We've gotta go eat" or "We've gotta go home." Now they stay at work all day. They're patrolling. They're almost self-sustaining. Almost. If we did leave and pull out, they'd at least have an idea of what they need to do.

I was in a police station one day, sitting at the top of the stairs. There were three Iraqi cops downstairs standing around a desk. I saw this guy walk in and didn't think anything of it. He walks up to them, says, "Allah akbar," and presses the button. He had a vest on under his long robe, but it didn't go off. Those three cops just started beating the shit out of him. Almost killed him. You should have seen his face when they were done. You couldn't tell it was the same guy who walked into the police station.

I wasn't scared the first time. But the second time, after the first three weeks, then we were all scared. Not scared like shivering-in-your-boots scared, but there was always the tickle in your throat that you knew you were in real danger, that it was just luck. At any moment, anything could happen. We were lucky for ten months. We knew we would get hit. It was always a question of how bad it would be. I never thought it would be this bad.

Whenever I travel and I'm not wearing my legs, they say, "Would you like an aisle chair?" And that's one of those small chairs where they drag you down the aisle and put you in straps like you're Hannibal Lecter. I'd always say, Don't strap me, don't strap me. But they would anyway. So now I just get down and hop to my seat. If I have to go to the bathroom, I'll hop down, open the door, and lift myself up onto the seat.

Some people don't even say, Hey, were you in the war? They just come up and say thank you. I'm sure once I get older, people won't say that. Once the war's over, people won't even think twice about it. They'll just think I have diabetes.

Did it hurt? I'm sure it did, but I didn't really feel it, except for the burning. They say pain is your friend because you know you're still alive. If you can feel it, it's not that bad. If you don't feel it, that's when it's bad.

With all the people that I've met, to be able to see how nice people really are, it's almost worth it. And if I could help anybody, inspire anybody, one person would make it worth it.

I'm being built a house by the Wounded Heroes Foundation. They've already donated me a van. This thing comes off the side of the steering wheel: down for gas, push for brake. Simple as that. I lock my prosthetic onto it and that's it. Now they're going to donate me a house. I told this girl, So you're going to build me this house, can I have some things I want? She said, Like what? Well, I want a basement with a bar. That's going to be like my entertainment area. She said, Yeah, and we'll put an elevator in for you, too. Really? Cool.

Everything that has happened to me since I've been hurt has happened to me because I've been hurt. I got to go to the Pentagon. There's this quarter-mile-long hallway that is just filled with people, and I mean filled with people. There's a little space to go through and everyone is clapping and crying and coming up and hugging you. Okay, that's great. But what about all the people who did the same exact thing that I did that didn't get hurt? They should get the same recognition we do. We all did the same thing. Some people just got the shit end of the stick, that's all. It's all luck.

I've been getting tats since I was eighteen. I had nine tattoos. After the explosion, I had six and a half. They cut half of one out and put the skin on my hand. I had one on each leg. I have a tribal piece on my right shoulder, intermixed with a barbed-wire band on my right bicep. I have a chain on my left bicep and a bulldog on my left shoulder. On my left chest I have a purple-and-yellow fireball-type thing, and on my back I have a tribal-type thing. On my right forearm I used to have a black widow, but now it's only half a black widow. On my left inner forearm I have the Chinese symbol for life. Go figure.

I'm the type of person who would put my life in front of somebody else's in a heartbeat. I don't know how I got that way. I have great friends—true friends—and they help me to be a better person. And I help them as much as I can. I would do anything for them. Anything.

I believe in God, but I wasn't brought up on going to church. I'm not going to say your whole life is planned out for you, but I think there are certain things that are supposed to happen to you, and however you handle that defines you. So this happened to me. I'm not like, "God saved my life" or "Why did God do this to me?" God did this to me for a reason, and I'm still alive, so God knew I was going to be alive.

From every decision you make, you learn something, whether it was the right decision or the wrong decision. I believe everything happens to you for a reason, and it's going to happen to you regardless. So whether I was in Iraq fighting or I was walking across the street and got hit by a bus, it was going to happen to me regardless.

I don't regret anything.

Source: Esquire Magazine, January, 2007

Who's Smarter? Bush or Barney?

2006-12-26T18:52:00.000-05:00

And, in case ya'll are wondering, here's the whole horrible Bush Christmas bullshit:

CRAWFORD, Texas (Reuters)President Bush gave his wife citrine earrings for Christmas to match the triple-strand, amber-colored necklace he presented her last month for her birthday, a White House spokesman said on Tuesday. (

First lady Laura Bush gave her husband, who is an avid mountain biker, biking shoes, a blue suit, and the new Sam Moore CD "Overnight Sensational," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said.

Bush and his wife spent Christmas at the Camp David presidential retreat before traveling to Crawford on Tuesday to spend the rest of the holiday week at his Texas ranch.

Each year the Bush family draws names to give gifts to other members, and this year the first couple drew the president's parents, former President George Bush and his wife Barbara.

They donated mosquito bed nets through malarianomore.org in the former president's name, Stanzel said.

Is the whole thing sick, or what? Maybe he just should have resigned and saved us all of the trouble.

Puke

2006-12-15T19:54:00.000-05:00

Yeah, right

2006-12-05T18:16:00.000-05:00

Don't let him fool you - he's crying about George - It was never supposed to be George as President. It was to be Jeb. What happened!?!? George has screwed it up so much that the dynasty has ended. Sob, sob, sob.

Wait! And, I quote:

The former president also answered questions for about a half hour.

When asked about the vision for his grandchildren, he said neither he nor his wife are pushing them toward politics or running for public office.

"But I hope that they will, I hope quite a few of them will," he said before pausing and joking about the current President Bush's daughters. "I'm not sure I'd count on the twins doing this - Jenna and Barbara - but they're full of life and they might."

Six years ago, when the twins were 19, they were charged with underage drinking in an Austin, Texas bar.

"They've calmed way down," their grandfather said. "They're doing great."

Yeah, right.

Post election disconnected thoughts

2006-11-14T18:18:00.000-05:00

It's been kind of strange the last week or so. We won, Dems have the majority in both houses. Repugs are on the run and Bush remains delusional. Poppy, et al, have been called in to wipe Jr's ass. And, I am as happy, as happy can be.

Pelosi will be the new Speaker of the House. And, she's testing her political clout by not only endorsing Murtha, but by calling in her chips to get him elected. I heard today that Murtha has some serious ethical issues involving his brother, a Washington lobbyist for a defense contractor, who was successful in getting some military contracts that Murtha voted on. I kind of feel sick about that. And, it makes me wonder.

And, Ned Lamont. After reading Tim's Kos diary about the Democratic support that Ned did not receive, I wonder why. Especially Obama's failure to help out in a campaign so supported by the people of Connecticut.

So, I wait and I watch.

To be continued..........

2006-11-11T21:22:00.000-05:00

It's the birthday of the novelist and short-story writer Mary Gaitskill, (books by this author) born in Lexington Kentucky (1954). She had a difficult childhood. Her parents moved around a lot, and she never felt like she fit in anywhere. When she was 15, she was kicked out of boarding school. A psychiatrist recommended that her parents have her committed to a mental hospital. She ran away from home, but her parents tracked her down and had her hospitalized anyway. She was released after two months, and at the age of 16 she took off to San Francisco to live on her own.

She supported herself as a stripper and occasional prostitute until she had saved enough money to go to college, where she studied journalism. And she began writing short stories. When her first collection Bad Behavior came out in 1988, it got a lot of attention for examining the lives of prostitutes and drug addicts and sadomasochists. She said, "My experience of life as essentially unhappy and uncontrollable taught me to examine the way people, including myself, create survival systems ... for themselves in unorthodox and sometimes apparently self-defeating ways. These inner worlds, although often unworkable and unattractive in social terms, can have a unique beauty and courage."

Her novel Veronica came out in 2005, and many critics have called it a masterpiece.

More

2006-11-11T18:47:00.000-05:00

Eclectiques

Election Eve

2006-11-06T17:58:00.000-05:00

2006-11-02T18:03:00.000-05:00

2006-10-24T17:56:00.000-04:00

Additional information regarding midterm elections. Click candidate's name for additional information.

Senate
Connecticut: Ned LamontMaryland: Ben CardinMichigan: Debbie StabenowMissouri: Claire McCaskillMontana: Jon TesterNew Jersey: Bob MenendezTennessee: Harold FordVirginia: James Webb
Democrat Held Seats
(CO-03): John Salazar(GA-03): Jim Marshall(GA-12): John Barrow(IA-03): Leonard Boswell(IL-08): Melissa Bean(IL-17): Phil Hare(IN-07): Julia Carson(NC-13): Brad Miller(PA-12): John Murtha(WV-01): Alan Mollohan
Republican Held Seats
(AZ-08): Gabrielle Giffords(CT-04): Diane Farrell(CT-05): Chris Murphy(CO-07): Ed Perlmutter(IA-01): Bruce Braley(IL-06): Tammy Duckworth(IN-02): Joe Donnelly(IN-08): Brad Ellsworth(IN-09): Baron Hill(FL-13): Christine Jennings(FL-16): Tim Mahoney(FL-22): Ron Klein(KY-03): John Yarmuth(NC-01): Heath Shuler(MN-06): Patty Wetterling(NM-01): Patricia Madrid(NY-20): Kirsten Gillibrand(NY-24): Michael Arcuri(NY-26): Jack Davis(OH-15): Mary Jo Kilroy(OH-18): Zack Space(PA-06): Lois Murphy(PA-08): Patrick Murphy(PA-07): Joe Sestak(PA-10): Chris Carney(VA-02): Phil Kellam(WI-08): Steve Kagen

2006-10-24T17:44:00.000-04:00

Vote Republican? Here is some research about the Republican candidates. Click candidates name for informative information.

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

2006-10-17T18:50:00.000-04:00

This is the first I've heard of this 7 percent thing. Is anyone else familiar with it and could you please explain it in more detail? I believe the Krugman referred to in this article is Paul Krugman, but I don't have a NYT's pay for your Op-Eds account.

From the Daily Howler

THE SEVEN-PERCENT CONVOLUTION: Hurrah! We think it’s a very important point, and Krugman discussed it again last Friday. We don’t know who’s going to win next month’s House elections. But in his column, Krugman explained a “G.O.P structural advantage” in the way our House elections now work:

KRUGMAN (10/13/06): Unless the Bush administration is keeping Osama bin Laden in a freezer somewhere, a majority of Americans will vote Democratic this year. If Congressional seats were allocated in proportion to popular votes, a Democratic House would be a done deal. But they aren't, and the way our electoral system works, combined with the way ethnic groups are distributed, still gives the Republicans some hope of holding on.

The key point is that African-Americans, who overwhelmingly vote Democratic, are highly concentrated in a few districts. This means that in close elections many Democratic votes are, as political analysts say, wasted—they simply add to huge majorities in a small number of districts, while the more widely spread Republican vote allows the G.O.P. to win by narrower margins in a larger number of districts.

Because of concentrations of Democratic voters, many Democratic votes are “wasted” in congressional races. Krugman goes on to rework the math for this fall’s elections. According to Krugman, Dems could win the popular vote by a healthy margin, and still not take back the House:

KRUGMAN: My back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that because of this ''geographic gerrymander,'' even a substantial turnaround in total Congressional votes...would leave the House narrowly in Republican hands. It looks as if the Democrats need as much as a seven-point lead in the overall vote to take control.

Dems will need to win by at least seven points! For the record, that’s what Mort Kondracke said last week (see THE DAILY HOWLER, 10/11/06). In April, Krugman estimated that Dems might need to win by 8-10 points to take control of the House (see THE DAILY HOWLER, 4/24/06).

To state the obvious, that’s a remarkable state of affairs. And here’s an equally remarkable fact—we Democrats never discuss it! We never discuss the fact that we need to win by at least seven points if we just want to break even! Is there a way to redistrict in various states which would reduce this “structural disadvantage?” Who knows? We’re Democrats! We don’t seem to care! To all appearances, our leaders are perfectly happy to keep finishing second, as we have told you before.

This seven-point “GOP structural advantage” is important for two basic reasons. First, it keeps Democrats from gaining control of the House. Let us ask you a simple question. Can you imagine the modern Republican Party sitting still for a built-in, seven-point disadvantage? For ourselves, we find that quite hard to picture. But then, as has been clear for a good long time, the GOP’s leadership cares who wins. The Dem leadership doesn’t much seem to.

But there’s a second reason why this is important. Let’s say the following happens next month: Let’s say Dems out-poll Reps by seven or eight points—but Republicans retain a narrow margin in the House (perhaps one seat). Democrats will be ridiculed all over the press—and no one will mention the fact that we won a significant margin of votes. Our party is too lazy to fight for a real chance to win—and too stupid to care about optics.

Go ahead—ask yourself if you can picture Karl Rove accepting a seven-point built-in disadvantage. For ourselves, we can’t picture that. But then, Karl Rove tries to win.

Arcuri in the 24th District. HELP!!

2006-10-07T19:07:00.000-04:00

Ok, folks, there is a neighboring County that needs our netroots help. Michael Arcuri is running for Sherwood Boehlert's very Republican seat in upstate New York and I heard on NPR this AM from Alan Chartock (yes, all of you NY'ers have heard of Alan) that it is the most important race in NY. So, here we go again. Any donation you can spare would be greatly appreciated. I know we are all tapped out at this point, but any donation will help.

Here!

Here's what the pundits are saying:

NY-24: STILL NUMBER ONE
The race for the open 24th district seat continues to be the hottest in New York.

The Hill
(Jonathan Kaplan. 9/26/06): Parties get bang for the buck in early spending

Six weeks before the mid-term elections, the race to succeed Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-N.Y.) in New York’s 24th congressional district could be considered the most competitive in the country based on television advertising spending. The House Republican and Democratic campaign committees have spent close to $1 million on independent expenditure advertisements in New York’s 24th district where they can they can get a big bang for their buck because the cost of buying airtime is cheap.... The NRCC has spent approximately $485,000 on airtime and the committee has conducted two polls since late August to help state Sen. Ray Meier (R-N.Y.) defeat Democrat Mike Arcuri, the Oneida County district attorney. The DCCC has spent more than $450,000 on advertising and production costs and $76,000 in direct mail, based on a review of independent expenditures since Aug. 29 from Political Money Line, which tracks campaign contributions, and figures provided by the DCCC.

Syracuse Post-Standard (Mark Weiner, 9/17/06):

CNY race sets national political fire

The big national names are lining up, and the money and people are flowing in, to support the candidates for the open 24th Congressional District seat in Central New York… It's one of the hottest national battlegrounds as Republicans attempt to hold off a Democratic challenge this November for control of Congress. Democrats hold 201 seats in the House, and need 218 for a majority… The 24th District is especially attractive to both parties because it's the only open congressional seat in New York state. It has also been held for the past 24 years by Boehlert, a moderate Republican who gained support from Democrats and independents.

Syracuse Post-Standard (Fred Pierce, 9/6/06):

Race for Boehlert seat draws big money; Its national significance helps Repubilcans, Democrats collect half-million dollars

During the two months before Labor Day kicked off the unofficial fall election season, national Republican and Democratic leaders helped funnel more than half a million dollars into the battle to replace Rep. Sherwood Boehlert in Congress. Republicans - inspired by a visit from Vice President Dick Cheney, and with the help of big businesses and GOP action committees with names like Americans Nationwide Dedicated to Electing Republicans - poured $294,168 into the campaign of state Sen. Ray Meier, federal campaign records show. Meanwhile Democrats - caught up in a drive to take over the House of Representatives and helped by big labor unions and partisan committees like the Democrats Win Seats PAC - shoveled $238,796 into Oneida County District Attorney Mike Arcuri's campaign.

Gannett
(John Machacek, 9/24/06): Battle over Boehlert's seat rages Campaign committees raise stakes in ads

The national political parties are firing their opening salvos in a highly competitive central New York congressional race to replace retiring Republican Sherwood Boehlert. They have already spent more than $500,000 combined on TV ads, direct mail and other strategic help, officials at the Federal Election Commission say. And last week, dueling attack ads aired for the first time in the contest between Republican Ray Meier, a state senator from Oneida County, and Democrat Michael Arcuri, the Oneida County district attorney.

Monkey See - Monkey Do

2006-10-04T20:08:00.000-04:00

Example One:

SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 4 — Patricia C. Dunn, the former chairwoman of Hewlett-Packard, and four other people were indicted here today on state criminal charges in the spying case that has rocked the company.

In addition to Ms. Dunn, the indictment names Kevin T. Hunsaker, a former senior lawyer at H.P.; Ronald L. DeLia, a Boston-area private detective; Joseph DePante, owner of Action Research Group, a Melbourne, Fla., information broker; and Bryan Wagner, a Littleton, Colo., man who is said to have obtained private phone records while working for Mr. DePante.

All of those named face four charges: using of false or fraudulent pretenses to obtain confidential information from a public utility, unauthorized access to computer data, identity theft, and conspiracy to commit each of those crimes. All of the charges are felonies.

Example Two:

Court Allows Domestic Spying For Now
Bush Administration to Continue Warrantless Surveillance Program During Appeal

By DAN SEWELL
Oct. 4, 2006 — CINCINNATI (AP) -The Bush administration is allowed to continue its warrantless surveillance program while it appeals a judge's ruling that the program is unconstitutional, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

The president says the program is needed in the war on terrorism; opponents say it oversteps constitutional boundaries on free speech, privacy and executive powers.

Mothers, don't let your kids grow up to be soldiers

2006-10-02T19:13:00.000-04:00

I'm not even going to try to comment on this. This is the exact word for word story, as it appeared in our local paper.

Mother gets telephone call she never wanted
By LORRAINE HEATH Evening Times Staff Writer (Wed., Sept. 27)
Published: Thursday, September 28, 2006 10:08 AM CDT

LITTLE FALLS — It is a military mother’s worst fear — the phone call notifying them their son has been injured.

For Georgia Tucci of Little Falls, it was a time she will never forget. Her son, Daniel Barnes, a 1995 graduate of Little Falls High School, and a soldier in the infantry serving in Iraq, was severely injured when a grenade went off inside the Humvee he was sitting in with three friends.

The blast took both of his legs and sent him to recover in a Texas hospital. His mother just returned from being with her son.

“Every time the phone would ring, that was my first thought, that Dan was injured and they were calling me. That night, however, when the phone rang, that was not my first thought for some reason. When I heard the voice on the other end say, ‘Your son has been injured and has lost both his legs,’ I screamed and fell on the floor saying ‘No, No, No,’ over and over again,” Tucci said. That phone call was received on Labor Day, September 4.

For the next four days, Tucci was in a void, where information about her son was limited. “They said he was taken to a hospital in Baghdad and from there he was being sent to a hospital in Germany. All they would say was, ‘He is in very serious, but stable condition.’ What that meant, I could not find out,” she said.

Barnes was serving his second tour in Iraq, and was scheduled to leave the country in 52 days. Tucci said her son had 14 missions left, so she began to not worry quite so much.

“I figured he was almost done and he would leave Iraq soon,” she said.

As sleep eluded her, Tucci spent most of her time on the phone, trying to find out something, anything, about her son’s condition. All she knew was that he had surgery and that he would be coming back to the U.S. She got her first piece of news on Wednesday morning, September 6.

“They called at about 2 or 3 a.m. and said he was finally on his way to Germany, and listed him in critical, but stable condition. The next day they said he was still on his way to Germany. Finally, I called an 800-number and went off on the poor guy that answered the phone,” Tucci said.

Her not knowing how her son was, compounded by the lack of information, finally grew inside, and her release was yelling at someone who was not at fault. Tucci said she felt bad, but her tirade got her results — she was patched through to his nurse. “She said that yes, he did lose his legs, but his vital signs were very good,” Tucci said. That little piece of information was more than she had received until then.

It was not long after the Army called and told her to get a passport. The Army was flying Tucci and her ex-husband to Germany.

Tucci said she ran around like crazy as she packed and got passport photos. Later, the Army called and said her son was coming to the U.S. on Friday, so she would fly to Washington instead. She was told they would contact her Saturday with the details. At around 8 a.m., they did.

“We arrived in San Antonio, Texas, at 8 p.m. that night,” she said.

Her son was taken to Brooke Army Medical Center, a place that specializes in amputee care.

It was at the hospital that finally the moment that took five long days to arrive happened — she entered her son’s hospital room.

“There were tubes sticking out all over him and I thought ‘My God, he is only half there.’ He was unconscious, but a tear was trickling down the side of his face,” Tucci said.

Tucci said she began to learn more about the grenade that almost took her son’s life. “He and three others were sitting on the side of the road in the Humvee when a hand-held grenade was launched through the window on the passenger side, exploding between the passenger and driver. My son was sitting in the front passenger seat. A Sergeant or a Private Allen pulled him out and saved his life. She put tourniquets on his legs to stop the bleeding. His left leg was worse and his left arm was singed a little. Someone was watching over him that day,” she said. “I keep thinking about everything else that could have happened.”

She said her son remembered everything immediately after the explosion and was aware of what had happened to his legs.

“He doesn’t remember anything after that until he awoke. They kept him pretty heavily sedated,” Tucci said.

The other three men in the Humvee were also injured, but not to the extent of Barnes.

Little by little, Tucci said, her son began to improve. They had to take him to surgery to remove more of his right leg due to an infection. Both legs are now gone above the knee. Shortly after his surgery, he was moved to the “step down unit,” where he remains today.

On September 18, Barnes celebrated his 29th birthday.

“His brother and sisters were flown down thanks to an organization called the Fisher Foundation. What this group does is, through donations of frequent flyer miles, provide plane tickets for family members to visit their loved ones. With all of us there, we had pizza for Dan’s birthday in his room. His two boys were also there, whom he saw for the first time on September 16. He seemed upset at first, but then said ‘I am glad you are all here,’” Tucci said.

Barnes, his mother said, is now able to get himself in and out of bed and even went to the cafeteria with his parents for dinner.

Although her son will never be the same, he has an incredible outlook at the road he now faces.

“I talked with his wife and he was doing push-ups and sit-ups and the doctors are very impressed with how far he has come,” she said.

Tucci said the one thing that has helped her cope with all that has happened was that she was not alone at the hospital.

Many mothers were also in the same place she was — waiting for their children to recover. “No one realizes how many of our men and women are coming back from Iraq with arms and legs missing. How many have been burned that you know there is a face there, but you can’t see it. And then there are those who have no physical wounds, but are in a hospital due to emotional wounds that run so very deep inside. We never hear about the injured, only the dead,” Tucci said.

She relied on those other mothers and swapped stories with them about their sons or daughters.
“It was kind of nice knowing I wasn’t the only one,” she said.

Barnes was sent to Iraq for his first tour of duty about two years ago. He left in November for his second tour.

Between the two tours, Tucci said her son has been injured twice before, first by shrapnel, the second, a concussion.

“When he left for Iraq I told him to make sure he takes care of himself. He told me, ‘Mom, this is my job. This is what I signed up for.’ They never think it can happen to them,” Tucci said. She said her son also told her that compared to his first tour, the second was far worse.

“I just don’t think this is worth all the pain,” she said about the war in Iraq. “I have seen so many injured with arms and legs missing. There was one mother whose son had died the day we got to the hospital. It just isn’t worth all this.”

Tucci said eventually she had to come home, although she could have stayed until October 8 according to her “orders” from the Army.

Due to starting a new job, she came home just this past week. But her thoughts are never far from her son and his family.

“I lay in bed at night and think about what could have happened, how his injuries could have been so much worse,” she said.

She also thinks about the last time she communicated with him, the Sunday morning before the grenade.

“I talked to him as often as I could via the Internet and Sunday morning, Sept. 3, I did as well. His last words were, ‘Well gotta go. Love you mom.’ The next day was just such a shock,” Tucci said.

Tucci said her son is improving everyday, and admits she is taking the loss of his legs harder than he is.

“They told him when he is fitted for his artificial legs he can be as tall as he wants. He said six feet is what he wants to be. He is adjusting very well, and as long as he can hunt and fish, his two most favorite things to do, he will be just fine,” she said.

She stays in touch with Barnes and his family by telephone and through www.caringbridge.com, a website started by Barnes’ wife, Gretchen. At the site, she writes a journal about her husband’s progress and how things are going. The September 26 entry said, “Yesterday at therapy he worked on learning on how to get from his wheelchair to the floor and back into his chair. He said it was very hard. But I’m sure in a few days of practice he will have it mastered with no problem. He is so determined to get better and as soon as he can!!”

Tucci said anyone who wishes to write a message to her son and family needs to just log onto the site, click on “visit a caringbridge website” and type in danielbarnes.

Tucci expects Barnes will stay in the hospital for at the very least six months. She said his plans following his stay are up in the air.

“One minute he says he wants to stay in the military, the next day he doesn’t. He is alive, and that’s all that matters to me,” she said.

Torture, anyone?

2006-09-30T08:41:00.000-04:00

In the middle of the recent torture/detainee debate, the Bush administration sent a bunch of right wing pundits to Guantanamo as part of a coordinated propaganda show. They took some of the most mindlessly subservient "journalists," staged a one-day show for them, gave them a script, and then sent them on their merry way, after which the little Bush propagandists began dutifully disseminating what they were told.

TRUTH High-level military attorneys have told Congress that some interrogation methods used at Guantanamo Bay [JURIST news archive] are not consistent with guidelines in the Army Field Manual [interrogation manual; additional manuals]. In a written response to questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee [official website], lawyers from the Army, Navy and Marine Corps wrote that certain tactics used to interrogate terrorism suspect Mohamed al-Qahtani [TIME report], the so-called "20th hijacker", could be considered violations of policy because they were humiliating or degrading. Interrogators forced al-Qahtani to wear women's undergarments, called him a homosexual and implied that others knew he was a homosexual, forced him to perform dog tricks, and forced him to stand naked in the presence of female soldiers. The lawyers said these methods do not follow policy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LIE MS: ...I'm at LaGuardia, on my way back from a very enjoyable day trip to Gitmo, down in Cuba, to have a look at the alleged, or I guess I should say, alleged enemy combatants down there.

HH: Well, the alleged enemy combatants lost their habeus corpus rights today, thanks to the steely indifference to liberty, as the Democrats would put it, of the Republican majority in the Senate. Do they appear put upon to you, Mark Steyn?

MS: No, they don't. It's interesting to me. They were being treated very lavishly, as you know, to Ramadan, and we at the meal that...when I was down there, that the detainees eat, and very proudly, we were told, as they served up this fantastic meal, that it featured homemade pastries, especially cooked for the detainees for Ramadan. So I can tell you something. They eat much better food...I've eaten MRE's with American troops in Iraq, and these detainees eat much better than American troops do. Whether that is the right approach to fighting this war, I don't know whether...I think that there are legitimate differences of opinion about that.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

TRUTH A suspect held in Guantanamo Bay was stripped, forced to bark like a dog, and subjected to music, it emerged as debate intensified in the U.S. capital over the future of the detention camp in Cuba.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

LIE While always mindful that they are dealing with dangerous men, the Americans treat them humanly, even sensitively. Seemingly every surface has a painted arrow pointing toward Mecca. Every detainee gets a Koran, and should it be necessary to search one, it is done by a Muslim translator, not a guard. Detainees are offered 4,200 calories a day. U.S. combat troops get 3,800. The average detainee has gained 18 pounds.

Interrogators rely on the soft sell. Detainees sit in a La-Z-Boy chair during interrogations, and beverages and movies are available to put them at ease. The most effective interrogator is said to be an older woman who adopts a nurturing attitude.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MORE LIES The high-minded critics who complain about torture are wrong. We are far too soft on these guys - and, as a result, aren't getting the valuable intelligence we need to save American lives. The politically correct regulations are unbelievable. Detainees are entitled to a full eight hours sleep and can't be woken up for interrogations. They enjoy three meals and five prayers per day, without interruption. They are entitled to a minimum of two hours of outdoor recreation per day. Interrogations are limited to four hours, usually running two - and (of course) are interrupted for prayers. One interrogator actually bakes cookies for detainees, while another serves them Subway or McDonald's sandwiches. Both are available on base. (Filet o' Fish is an al Qaeda favorite.) Interrogations are not video or audio taped, perhaps to preserve detainee privacy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
What a sick administration. They torture and make sure it's acceptable by feeding the public lies through fake news they pay for with our taxes. It doesn't get much sicker than Bush & Co. I'm must wondering when the other 1/2 of America will wake up. I can't figure out just what this administration of madmen would have to do before the hangers on become outraged.

Mark Steyn and Hugh Hewitt reveal the true impulses underlying yesterday's vote

I couldn't say it any better myself

2006-09-23T17:56:00.000-04:00

NanceGreggs's Journal: Nance Rants
What the President Asked For

Posted by NanceGreggs in General Discussion: PoliticsFri Sep 22nd 2006, 01:04 AM

To:(the formerly Honorable) John McCain(the formerly Honorable) John W. Warren(the formerly honorable) Lindsay Graham:

Sirs:

Words cannot begin to express my grief when I saw Tony Snow’s quote earlier today: “We got what the president asked for.”

Over the past few days, the American people, of both parties, saw a glimmer of hope amidst the darkness that has engulfed our nation. They saw three men, of stature and influence, who had finally shown the backbone necessary to say that when it came to condoning torture, THIS would not stand. Or so, for one bright shining moment, that seemed to be the case.

“We got what the president asked for.” There was a time, which now seems so very distant, that the conduct of our country was not a matter of what ‘the president asked for’, but what the citizenry demanded. Apparently, those days are now, so sadly, gone.

You will all probably admit, in the privacy of your own thoughts, that the hypocrisy of your party has been astounding. You have cried ‘Support the Troops’ from the rooftops, while you quietly stripped them of their pensions and their benefits, while you voted against funding the equipment necessary to keep them safe. You questioned the loyalty of others in respect of our fighting men and women, never demanding answers from the war profiteers who have pocketed the lion’s share of the money meant for their benefit.

You have flaunted your alleged sense of justice, while allowing political and financial corruption to run rampant among your colleagues. You have hidden your sins of avarice, arrogance and the gluttony of political power behind the mask of feigned adherence to Christian belief.

You have accused your fellow elected officials on the other side of the aisle of being spineless appeasers, while you kow-tow to every whim of this occupant of the White House, regardless of the obvious detrimental consequences to our democracy and our standing in the world.

“We got what the president asked for.” It should not have come as a surprise. When was the last time – indeed, the singular time – that this president’s demands were not met? When was there a moment in the past six years of signing statements, the unlawful usurping of powers, the unconstitutional transference of oversight of our government into his hands of those of his administration, that even one of you or your fellow Republicans stood up and uttered the single word ‘no’?

I honestly believed – very naively, it would appear – that on this one all-important issue, the repercussions of which will define our nation like no other in our history, any one of you would have finally displayed the patriotism that you are so quick to accuse others of being bereft of. But I was wrong.

I realize that appealing to your sense of decency is now a moot point, as your lack thereof has now been so blatantly exposed. But I would, this one last time, attempt to appeal to whatever modicum of humanity you have left, and request the following:

Please do not appear in public wearing American flag pins in your lapels, or agree to being photographed in-frame with a flag nor any other symbol associated with the United States of America. Please refrain from identifying yourselves as citizens of my beloved country. You no longer represent our once-lofty ideals, but instead the inhumane fanaticism of those of lesser moral fiber.

Please defer from speaking on behalf of my fellow citizens, especially those in uniform who you have now potentially rendered to our enemies to be tortured, enemies who need no longer fear retribution from we who have now lost the moral standing to object.

While you have sacrificed all other sense of propriety, at least have the decency to dissociate yourselves from the American populace whom you have betrayed.

“We got what the president asked for.” And what the president has asked for is the right to drag a once-proud nation into the cesspool of depravity, the suspension of Constitutional law to do so, and the excuse to be absolved of personal wrongdoing after the fact.

Unfortunately, you were more than happy to acquiesce. Just as you have been happy to acquiesce to every other demand made by this petulant, incompetent maniac whose evil idiocy you revere.

Of course, you do not call it acquiescence. You couch this surrender of your obligations as representatives of our democracy as ‘compromise’, in an obvious attempt to render your own participation in crimes against humanity as something borne of good intentions and reasoned debate.

You call it ‘compromise’, an historically familiar term. Just as good German politicians ‘compromised’ with the Nazis on laws that segregated, minimized, and eventually killed six million people. Just as good German citizens ‘compromised’ by swearing allegiance to a madman in order to protect their own political ambitions. Just as good German Christians ‘compromised’ their own religious morals for a chance to save their own wealth, their own way of life, their own lives. So have you ‘compromised’, and sold your own souls in the bargain.

I realize this has been a lengthy missive. I doubt you have read this far. But that is to be expected in these days, these times. We are all busy people, with little time to spare for what should be important, what should be heeded, what should be said.

You have your priorities that must be attended to, as I have mine. You must get busy convincing your fellow citizens, as well as yourselves, that you have done right by your country and its people.

I, on the other hand, have to prepare for a death in the family. You see, my country, already weakened by the deceit of its leaders, the disillusionment of its people, the despair of its citizens, was dealt a fatal blow today; she was stabbed in the back by three assailants. Chances are she won’t recover.

Suffice to say your attendance at her funeral services will not be welcome, no less required. It would be, you must agree, unseemly for those with blood on their hands to attend.

May God have mercy on the faithful departed, and on those who contributed to her untimely demise.

May God have mercy on those who condone torture, be it overt or in the guise of ‘compromise’.

May God have more mercy than I would – because I would have none.

Yours Without Even the Pretence of Respect,
Nancy Greggs
Citizen of a once Great Nation, the United States of America

/Source

Blograiser for Brian Keeler!

2006-09-23T16:07:00.000-04:00

Blograiser for Brian Keeler!

When: Monday, September 25, 2006, 7:00 - 10:00 PM EST

Where: Prey NYC (Online and beyond) 4 West 22nd Street

I have adopted Brian as a candidate, as my NY district is solidly blue. Just like I have adopted Kirsten Gillibrand, John Hall and out of staters Ned Lamont, Zack Space and Larry Kissell. So, if you are looking for a progressive candidate that has integrity, progressive values and beliefs, Brian is your guy

We must change this horrible Republican administration from the bottom up, Town by Town, District by District, School Board by School Board, County by County and State by State. Please take a moment to check out with Brian stands for and, if you believe in the same things he does, please drop a couple of bucks here.

Important info here from Kos regarding the simultaneous coast-to-coast Kossack meetup to support the candidacy of the one true Netroots candidate, Brian Keeler (aka NYBri).

Ass Backwards

2006-09-21T17:45:00.000-04:00

Check this out. And, they called Kerry a Flip Flopper? Evangelicals scare the hell out of me. However, the sheep that blindly follow/listen to these so-called preachers scare me much more.

Dobson preaches mixed message
Conservative leader criticizes, praises GOP leadership

James Dobson speaks during last night's Stand for the Family rally at the Mellon Arena. Standing before an enormous American flag in Mellon Arena, conservative evangelical activist James Dobson told thousands of supporters he was deeply disappointed in the nation's Republican leadership, but that the nation's future depended on re-electing them.

"I have flat-out been ticked at Republicans for the past two years," he said, to some applause from a crowd that arena security estimated at around 3,000.

However, he said, "This country is at a crisis point. Whether or not the Republicans deserve the power they were given, the alternatives are downright frightening."
Link to Story

Link to Focus on the Family

You tell me - is this guy mixed up or what? The honorable, pious preacher is willing to sacrifice everything that is going wrong with our country to keep the horribly irresponsible Republicans in power so gays can't marry and abortion will be illegal. And, oh, yeah. So he can stay not-for-profit and keep the money rolling in. Charlatan.

2006-09-10T15:52:00.000-04:00

September 11, 2001. It started out as a beautiful sunny day. The kind of day you wish you had skipped work because you knew with Fall approaching, these warm, bright days were few and far between. I went to work and it seemed like any other work day. I own the building in which I work. I live upstairs and work in the law office beneath our apartment. As the morning got started, my husband came flying downstairs to announce a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. He always did this kind of thing when there was breaking news. However, this was different. I looked at my boss and he looked at me. Something wasn’t right. How can a plane just fly into the Trade Center?

My oldest daughter lived on 79th and York. I telephoned her. She was on a bus, riding in to work and was surprised to hear my voice. I asked her if everything was okay and she seemed puzzled. I told her about the plane and when she looked out of the bus window towards downtown, she saw the smoke. She didn’t seem concerned and not wanting to alarm her, but feeling relieved that I had alerted her to possible danger, we hung up. Then my husband raced downstairs again – to tell us the 2nd tower was hit. And, the rest is history.

It was one of the most horrible days of my life. I had a hard time watching the coverage as I didn’t know if I would ever see my daughter again. Phones were down, the Pentagon was hit, a plane had crashed in Pennsylvania. All hell was breaking loose and the President was riding around in a plane and the Vice-President was in an undisclosed location. No one was in charge. And, in the City where my daughter lived, the roads and bridges were shut off. I was sick to my stomach and, as I write this now, I still feel the raw pain and my eyes well with tears.

As I imagine is usually the case, if one is personally involved in a crisis, it makes it that much harder to bear. Although my heart went out to the Oklahoma bombing families, I didn’t experience their pain. 911 was different. This was my child in a city that was being torn apart. I didn’t know if she had made it into work, if she was at her corporate headquarters or headed to one of the other locations for a business meeting. Not knowing was unbearable. However, in the end, I was one of the lucky ones. I later learned she watched in horror from her office window as the second tower fell. Everyone was ordered out of the building and she and a co-worker started walking the 50 or so blocks home. They passed people on the street crying and sobbing, not knowing where to go or what to do. A cabbie picked them up and dropped each of them home without accepting a penny. Her electricity was off, but at some point, she was able to phone home. She struggled through the next few days alone, smelling the stench of the fires and listening to the planes patrol the city. My heart ached for her and there wasn’t a thing I could do to allay her fears or comfort her. She is a survivor, but, after all is said and done, the experience changed all of us.

It is for all of the reasons stated above that September 11th, 2006 is very personal to me. And, it is why every single time George W. Bush utters the words or uses the images it makes me mad as hell. To steal this shattering tragedy for political gain is shameful. To blame the dying of thousands of US soldiers and tens of thousands of Iraqis on 9/11 is sickening. I can never forgive him or his political party for using a painful, frightening attack to advance their PNAC plan, to increase their wealth and avenge Bush, Sr. And, that’s why I won’t be watching television. I don’t need to see it again. It is forever etched in my memory. And, I don’t think I could bear to watch Bush using this 5th anniversary of an attack on America to advance his agenda for the November elections. He is a pitiful man and although I don’t know if I believe there is a God, I do believe he will be held accountable for his lies. Even if it’s only in the history books, labeling him the worst president ever.

Amish Oats

2006-09-09T09:54:00.000-04:00

On a recent early morning drive on my way in to work from our camp in the Southern Adirondacks, I had the good fortune to meet up with a black bear. I say "good fortune", as although there are signs of bears on the local hiking paths, no one I know has ever actually seen a bear in the woods.

As the car navigated a corner, I admonished my husband to slow down due to the thick fog, and suddenly, there he/she was! At first, I was puzzled. What is that large, slow moving lump in the road? I am used to seeing deer in this neck of the woods. Large bucks with full racks and mother deer with their spotted doe not too far behind. The slow moving lump was too big to be a dog - Holy Shit, it's a bear! In the first few seconds, I was too surprised to react. By the time I came to my senses and fumbled for my camera, he/she had lumbered up the side of the bank and disappeared into the woods.

I feel very lucky to have seen this bear. Although I live in a wonderful rural area of New York State, to see a wild animal while doing something so mundane as going to work makes me appreciate my home even more. Yes, I love NYC. I could easily live there. But, the country is a beautiful, serene, charming, yet wild place with an excitement all of its own.

2006-08-06T09:58:00.000-04:00

Once upon a time, in the Valley of the Mohawk, there existed a very proud tribe of Indians, called the Iroquois. These brave Indians were famous for their warriors and shamans and were known throughout the Valley as extremely adept at both fighting their enemies and healing the sick with magical powers. An extremely potent talisman was made by the shaman from chicken feathers and corn leaves. It was woven together by the shaman himself, using porcupine quills, deer sinew and wax from local bees. This talisman was deemed so powerful that no one but the maker was allowed to touch it and it was carefully stored by burying it in the ground, wrapped in corn leaves soaked in river water. It was only brought out on very serious occasions, when it appeared that all other attempts at healing had failed.

The photo that I posted below is one of these talismans. It was discovered when an excavation crew was digging for a Wal-Mart store and came upon an Indian burial ground. It is extremely rare and very sacred.

Now, for the real story:

Once upon a time, in the Valley of the Mohawk, there was a little family that lived in a beautiful countryside and loved all animals. There were dogs, cats, ducks, rabbits and lots of fish. But, something was missing, so the family purchased a horse.

After a while, the family decided the horse needed a companion, so off to the auction they went in search of a goat.

Alas, there was no goat to be found, but there were some swell Rhode Island Red chicks that were just too cute to leave.

So, now, Skittles the horse has a whole bunch of new chick friends. And, they all lived happily ever after.

And, that's the truth.

2006-07-25T14:52:00.000-04:00

Attorney, author and blogger Glenn Greenwald at Unclaimed Territory has a terrific review of John Dean's new book regarding "The full extent and irreversibility of the damage to our country wrought by the Bush administration will likely not be known until well after George Bush finally disappears from our political life. But understanding the dynamics and impulses of the movement which have enabled these abuses is a critically important task, and that is the project undertaken by John Dean's new best-selling book, Conservatives Withouth Conscience. Fortuitously for Dean, this examination of what has become the so-called "conservative" movement (composed of Bush followers, neoconservatives and hard-core religious conservatives) comes at the perfect time."

A few excerpts:

As Iraq collapses into all-out civil war and new, tragic levels of violence, Bush supporters continue to insist that things are going well there and our invasion was a success. As the Middle East spirals into all-out regional war, Bush supporters insist that this repulsive violence is actually good for the region -- wars are encouraging "birth pangs" on the road to progress, as the Secretary of State put it yesterday -- and they are now actively involving the U.S. in this escalated conflict, even while Iraq rapidly falls apart.

And there is seemingly no limit -- literally -- on the willingness, even eagerness, of Bush supporters to defend and justify even the most morally repugnant abuses -- from constantly expanding spying on American citizens, to a President who claims and aggressively exercises the "right" to break the law, to torturing suspects, imprisoning journalists, and turning the United States into the most feared and hated country on the planet.

And as radical as the administration has become, it is clear that the administration has not even come close to reaching the level of extremism which would be necessary for its supporters to object -- if such a limit exists at all. If anything, on those exceedingly few occasions over six years when his followers have dissented from the Presidents's decisions -- illegal immigration, Harriet Miers, Dubai ports -- it has been not because the administration was too radical, extremist, militaristic and uncompromising -- but insufficiently so.

The balance of the piece can be found here, but you will need to scroll down to Sunday's post

2006-06-15T12:35:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday, Red Letter Rev

a/k/a Amanda

And, rather than cyber ice cream, I tried my hand at some of that famous 'nanner puddin, although it doesn't compare with Rev's - (hmmm, do you care to share your recipe?)

Finally, this particular birthday would not be complete without a little hoedown music. And, Jen has graciously agreed to lend a hand to get this party rockin: Happy Birthday, Luv

2006-04-09T18:00:00.000-04:00

2006-04-05T12:59:00.000-04:00

Two Worn-Out Diplomats, One Fold-Out Bed By MAUREEN DOWD
April 5, 2006
Op-Ed Columnist
I'm just back from London, where the Brits were fascinated with the Condi Rice and Jack Straw two-for-the-road odyssey, the exchange of visits to their hometowns, Birmingham and Blackburn, and the rebuff of Condi by Paul McCartney and a Blackburn mosque.
British journalists loved hearing about how Condi exercises alongside diplomatic reporters in hotel gyms, not at all self-conscious about working out in form-fitting shorts and T-shirts.
The British are used to iron ladies, perhaps not pumping iron but trying to iron out world affairs. In his quaint new book, "Manliness," the Harvard professor Harvey Mansfield cites only one woman with that exalted trait: Margaret Thatcher, who told the first President Bush not to go wobbly on Saddam. Teaching other women to be assertive, Mr. Mansfield frets, might be "like teaching a cat to bark."
The struggles of the relentless American diplomat and the charming British diplomat to knock heads in Iraq and get the government to govern, with the war spinning into sulfurous sectarian fighting, was less mesmerizing to many reporters than the pair's gender-benders.
At one point Mr. Straw said America and England had the right to prod Iraqi politicians: "We've got to be able to deal with Mr. A, Mr. B or Mr. C. We can't deal with Mr. Nobody."
A smiling Ms. Rice, still promoting the illusion that Iraqi women are better off, corrected: "Jack, I'm sure we'd be all right with Miss A or Miss B or Miss C, too, right?" (It would have to be a generic Miss, since there are no powerful women leaders there.)
The foreign secretary held his face and pleaded: "I was not being gender-specific. Don't report me, please."
The British reporters were gobsmacked when Condi gave the fold-out bed on her Boeing 757 to Mr. Straw for the night flight to Kuwait, and slept in the aisle as flight attendants stepped over her.
It may have been a sign that U.S. foreign policy is finally becoming humble, as W. promised in his first campaign, now that Condi has admitted "thousands" of mistakes in Iraq. But it also shows the secretary understands the importance of manly virtues: she was tough enough to sleep on the floor and chivalrous enough to make sure Mr. Straw didn't.
The Times of London made smarmy jokes about "how far the special relationship has developed," and asked a Baghdad embassy spokeswoman if Jack's sleeping in Condi's bed was "second base" for the couple.
The comedian Bill Maher recently noted that while other countries elect a wide array of female leaders, our women politicians are still expected to wedge themselves into a "straitjacket" and act like men.
It has been two decades since I covered Geraldine Ferraro's historic run for the White House. One politician welcomed Ms. Ferraro with a wrist corsage; another in Mississippi asked the "young lady" if she could bake blueberry muffins. Johnny Carson joked that Joan Mondale would not like her husband working late with his female vice president.
So now there are racy Rice-Straw jokes. How far have we come?
The Los Angeles Times ran a piece yesterday about Hollywood's doubts about Hillary, including Sharon Stone's basic instinct that it's too soon for the New York senator since "a woman should be past her sexuality when she runs" and she thinks Hillary still has "threatening" sexual power.
It seemed unlikely that we'd kick the habit of wanting Daddy in the Oval Office until we kicked the habit of wanting Daddy in the anchor chair.
Now that the nightly news is largely an anachronism, and the suits are trying to make it more cuddly and personality-driven to win younger viewers, we can finally break that barrier. (Even though Walter Cronkite fretted to a group last fall that women on TV talk in "too high a register.")
As Rebecca Dana wryly wondered in The New York Observer: "What is gravitas? And why does it kick in at nightfall?" She quoted one network executive explaining that even women "like to get their news from other women in the morning and from men — husband figures — at night."
So now we'll see if Katie Couric can be trusted with the Herculean task of appearing on camera for 5 or 10 minutes a night, reading a teleprompter.
Still, she'll have to prove that, more than being just a headliner, she knows what's behind the headlines. As Bob Schieffer has done, raising CBS ratings, or as Christiane Amanpour might do as an anchor, Katie needs to show she understands the roiling events beyond the teleprompter.
Let's just hope Les Moonves doesn't welcome her with a wrist corsage

As a public service, here are the ten telltale signs of Republican plague:

2006-03-26T11:28:00.000-05:00

1. You keep lying, even when it’s apparent to everyone that you’re lying: Insist that the situation in Iraq is not a civil war; Bush tax cuts are good for the economy; Republicans are fostering Democracy. Repeat things that are not only untrue, but are absurd: George W. Bush cares about civil rights. You can’t stop; you’re sick; you’re a Republican.

2. No matter how bad things get, assert that President Bush is doing a great job. Even when there are obvious screw-ups—the reaction to 9/11, the occupation of Iraq, and the response to Katrina—block all meaningful investigations, no matter how impartial. Steadfastly maintain that Dubya knows what he’s doing, even when it’s apparent to most of the public that he not only doesn’t have a plan to fix the problem, he doesn’t get that there is a problem. You’re inflexible; you’re stuck; you’re a Republican.

3. Keep repeating that the situation in Iraq is getting better. Say that you see the light at the end of the tunnel, even if there’s no light and it’s a bottomless pit. Tell Americans that Iraqis want us there and our troops believe in their mission, even when polls say that Iraqis ask us to leave and our troops want to come home. Insist that the press isn’t reporting the good news, even when the only positive stories are those planted by your toadies. You’re strident; you’re in denial; you’re a Republican.

4. Don’t accept any criticism, no matter how non-partisan or well intended. Call your critics ignorant, devious, unwitting pawns of sinister forces. Suggest that anyone who criticizes George Bush, Dick Cheney, or Don Rumsfeld is unpatriotic; that they are aiding and abetting Al Qaeda. You’re relentless; you’re a fear-monger; you’re a Republican.

5. Stay on offense. No matter what happens, keep pushing your agenda. Remember Karl Rove’s second commandment: When in doubt, attack. If one of your tactics is blocked, such as private social security accounts, immediately go to the next, reduction of entitlements. Never let your enemies see you sweat. Never forget that you owe your supporters, big. You’re aggressive; you’re ruthless; you’re a Republican.

6. Insist that you are pro-women and pro-family. As “proof,” periodically take the time to parade all the “babes” in the Bush Administration, Condoleezza Rice and Harriet Miers. Then take action on every level to ensure that women remain second-class citizens and that American families get the shaft. Insist that the state rather than a woman and her family should make private medical decisions. You’re macho; you’re sexist; you’re a Republican.

7. Tell everyone that you’re the Party of peace, the Party that wants to spread democracy throughout the world. Then create the largest peacetime standing army in US history. Make sure that America spends more on defense than all our possible enemies combined. Relentlessly feed the military-industrial complex. Prowl through the world planting US bases, supporting autocrats, and protecting the interests of multi-national corporations. Preach peace and democracy; practice war and plutocracy. You’re predatory; you’re imperialist; you’re a Republican.

8. Maintain the economy is going great. No matter how bad things get, how large the national debt, or how huge the gap between America’s haves and have-nots, push for more tax cuts. Insist that they’re a panacea, a modern snake oil that will cure all ills. Keep promising America that good times are just ahead and the yellow-brick road is lined with tax cuts. Talk equality and opportunity; practice elitism and favoritism. You’re shameless; you’re greedy; you’re a Republican.

9. Manipulate the truth. Whenever there is bad news, blame it on the press. Accuse the mass media of distortion; say they aren’t telling the whole story. Help them out, make up some good news. Harass reporters at all your press conferences; punish anyone who asks a tough question. Support the illusion that Fox News is fair and balanced and that Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly are impartial commentators. You’re duplicitous; you’re biased; you’re a Republican.

10. Above all, never admit a mistake. Remember Karl Rove’s first commandment: Never show weakness. Adopt the motto: only wimps admit mistakes; when the going gets tough, the tough attack their enemies. Say the Bush Administration hasn’t made mistakes; it’s set lofty goals that take hard, hard work to achieve. Keep your eyes on the stars, your nose to grindstone and both hands protecting your ass. You’ve no shame; you’ve contracted an incurable disease; you’re a Republican.

2006-03-22T11:23:00.000-05:00

Jim Webb for Virginia US Senate! A message from Mr. Webb:

When I decided to run for U.S. Senate on March 7th, I got in because I knew our campaign’s grassroots support would be second-to-none. And this past Friday, our grassroots leaders proved it in a very public way.

We won the highly-watched straw poll at Fairfax County Chair Gerry Connolly’s annual St. Patrick’s Day party Friday night, with 58% of attendees supporting our campaign for the Senate. And this came after only our first 10 days in the race – right in our primary competitor’s own backyard! I was surprised -- and even more deeply motivated -- by the support of Virginians across the state.

Contribute Now!

John, Imagine This

2006-03-12T18:03:00.000-05:00

Click

Impeach Bush - now!!

2006-03-04T17:35:00.000-05:00

You are one click away from fighting for America

Yuck, Yuck. What a dumb ass.

2006-03-03T16:50:00.000-05:00

The Terrorists are coming, the Terrorists are coming

2006-02-28T08:13:00.000-05:00

Air Farce One

2006-02-28T08:10:00.000-05:00

CHENEY GOES AHEAD WITH FOLSOM PRISON CONCERT

2006-02-26T19:20:00.000-05:00

Vice President Dick "Buckshot" Cheney kept his word to the inmates at California's maximum security Folsom State Prison. He played a one hour set with his band "Dickie and The Trigger Happy Birdie Killers". The set received a luke warm reception until Cheney launched into his new, as yet unreleased, single "Go Fuck Yourself". During the guitar solo the Vice President thrilled the assembled audience by producing a rifle and opening fire. "He seems angry. Very angry" one inmate said "I mean, I always thought that the American people didn't like to vote for angry people but...Man, that dude is angry!" I managed to obtain a tape of the performance and am proud to present it.... here:

http://cheneyplaysfolsom.cf.huffingtonpost.com/

Sorry, I can't get the link to work. Copy and paste - I assure you it's worth it

Give Generously

2006-02-26T10:34:00.000-05:00

to candidates that espouse the ideology that you believe in. Zack Space, running in the Democratic congressional primary is a good example: here

And, Ned Lamont, running in the primary against Joe Lieberman, is another great candidate here

You know you are still a republican if...

2006-02-23T10:26:00.000-05:00

You are more upset about Brokeback Mountain than Abu Ghraib.

You can’t stand Hilary Clinton’s hair but you have no problem with Tom DeLay’s.

You think Global Warming is no big deal but environmentalists are a major problem.

You support the "war on drugs" but think Rush Limbaugh is being prosecuted unfairly.

You think professional athletes make too much money but Sam Walton’s kids deserve everything they have.

You like the way George Bush walks.

You think Al Gore is "wooden" and Donald Rumsfeld has charisma.

You think CNN is biased but Fox News is neutral. You like the sound of Newt Gingrich’s voice.

You are sure the United States has the best education and health care systems in the world.

You think Dick Cheney is a straight shooter.

You think Michael Chertoff’s beard makes him look distinguished.

You think the problem with our health care system is lawyers.

You think it was more important to locate Monica Lewinsky’s blue dress than to locate weapons of mass destruction.

You don’t believe "terrorism" has made Rudy Giuliani an incredibly rich man.

You believe freedom of speech covers everything Pat Robertson says and does, but burning a flag should be illegal.

You can be in the same room with Brit Hume.

You have yourself convinced that the country and world are better off now than 5 years ago.

Quail Hunting

2006-02-16T08:09:00.000-05:00

A Quick Interactive Hunting Game and some facts about quail hunting.

Cheney's Got a Gun

2006-02-13T08:07:00.000-05:00

Click here for the video

2006-02-02T17:49:00.000-05:00

A hopeful society has institutions of science and medicine that do not cut ethical corners, and that recognize the matchless value of every life. Tonight I ask you to pass legislation to prohibit the most egregious abuses of medical research... creating human-animal hybrids
..-George W. Bush

Now that sentence didn't make a hell of a lot of sense to me, but I was hoping he meant this:

However, on second thought, I believe this is what he meant, and I certainly agree that it is an egregious abuse of human-animal hybrids. I am totally with the Prez on this one.

For the sake of our Children, II

2006-02-01T17:26:00.000-05:00

-George W. Bush, 1/31/06

State of the Union Drinking Game

2006-01-31T08:16:00.000-05:00

George W. Bush 2006 State Of The Union Drinking Game
By Will Durst
What you need:
1. A group of four taxpayers: including one white guy wearing a Suit. Two people wearing jeans; one in a Work Shirt, the other in a Dark Shirt, and one person wearing Rags. Stitched-together washcloths are nice. Four are grouped around cocktail table within sight of television. Newspapers on floor in front of television.
2. A shot glass per person. Everyone brings their own and places on table. Suit picks one first. Then Work Shirt. Then Dark Shirt. Suit takes last one as well, and Rags gets a Dixie Cup with the top scissored off.
3. Five bucks apiece. Everybody antes.
4. Fondue pot with two packages of Li'l Smokies stewing in barbecue sauce on table. Preferably a sauce from Texas. Surrounded by : 5. 100 cocktail toothpicks. The kind with the little American flags wrapped around the top.
6. A large stash of beer. Rags gets the cheapest stuff you can find, like Old Milwaukee Light; Suit gets to drink whatever import he asks for; while the jeans get to pick their favorite domestic brand, but they are required to pay for all the beer and the Li'l Smokies.
Rules of the Game: 1. Whenever George W. uses the phrases: "national security," "tax relief," "activist judges" or "affordable health care," drink two shots of beer.
2. Whenever George W. mentions the tragic events of 9/11, last person to grab a toothpick, stand and salute must drink three shots of beer. If you stab yourself in forehead with the toothpick, drink two more shots.
3. If George W. actually says, "If Al Qaeda is calling you, we want to know why," first person to finish a whole beer gets to toss Li'l Smokies at any of the others until they finish their beer. Use the toothpicks.
4. If George W. makes up a word like "strategerie" or "deteriorize" drink four shots of beer.
5. If George W. speaks of Hamas and repeats his earlier statement that "it's good to see people are demanding honest leadership," the first person to stop laughing gets to drink one shot of beer then pummel Suit with empty shot glass. No head shots.
6. Whenever George W. talks about bipartisanship, the last person to grab his throat in a choking motion has to eat four Li'l Smokies.
7. If either the Vice President Dick Cheney or First Lady Laura Bush are caught napping, last person to sing "Wake Up Little Susie, Wake Up," has to drink three shots of beer.
8. Predict the number of applause breaks. Person closest to correct number may then force the other three to drink that number of shots of beer in whatever ratio they wish.
9. Three shots of beer if he mentions New Orleans. Five shots of beer if he mentions Brownie. Two full beers if he mentions Abramoff.
10. Every time Tom DeLay is shown in the audience, take turns throwing Li'l Smokies at the TV. Suit sits out. First face hit doesn't have to drink two shots of beer. Every time Hillary Clinton is shown in the audience, Suit throws Li'l Smokies at the TV. If he hits her face, everyone else drinks two shots of beer. Use the toothpicks.
11. Whenever George W. quotes the Bible, last person to fall to their knees and cry "Hallelujah!" drinks two shots of beer.
12. Whenever George W. smirks during a standing ovation, take turns drinking shots of beer until the audience sits down. Do it double time if his shoulders shake with silent laughter.
EXTRAS: · Whoever can correctly identify in advance the person giving the Democratic Response doesn't have to watch it. · Suit gets to kick Rags hard, once if George W uses a heartfelt story of a pulling yourself up by your bootstraps to illustrate a point, twice if the regulation of large cardboard boxes is mentioned as a security precaution. Rags gets 15 seconds to kick the Suit if Bush reveals the subject of the anecdote is in the audience. Thirty seconds if he or she is sitting next to Harriet Miers. One full minute if she's sitting next to an astronaut. · Suit takes home $20. · Leftover beer, Li'l Smokies and fondue pot go home with Rags.
Political Comic Will Durst needs a volunteer to wear the suit.

For the sake of our Children

2006-01-28T18:32:00.000-05:00

Kos is keeping us up to date in their great war room on the filibuster. Here is the list of fax numbers:
AR: Lincoln(D) (202) 228-1371
AR: Pryor(D) (202) 228-0908
CA: Boxer(D) (202) 226-6701
CA: Feinstein(D) (202) 228-3954
CO: Salazar(D) (202) 228-5036
CT: Dodd(D) (202) 224-1083
CT: Lieberman(D) (202) 224-9750
DE: Biden(D) (202) 224-0139
DE: Carper(D) (202) 228-2190
FL: Nelson(D) (202) 228-2183
HI: Akaka(D) (202) 224-2126
HI: Inouye(D) (202) 224-6747
IA: Harkin(D) (202) 224-9369
IL: Durbin(D) (202) 228-0400
IL: Obama(D) (202) 228-4260
IN: Bayh(D) No FAX listed
LA: Landrieu(D) (202) 224-9735
MA: Kennedy(D) (202) 224-2417
MA: Kerry(D) (202) 224-8525
MD: Mikulski(D) (202) 224-8858
MD: Sarbanes(D) (202) 224-1651
MI: Levin(D) (202) 224-1388
MI: Stabenow(D) (202) 228-0325
MN: Dayton(D) (202) 228-2186
Local (612) 727-5223
MT: Baucus(D) (202) 224-0515
ND: Conrad(D) (202) 224-7776
ND: Dorgan(D) (202) 224-1193
NE: Nelson(D) (202) 228-0012
NJ: Corzine(D) (202) 228-2197
NJ: Lautenberg(D) (202) 224-9707
NM: Bingaman(D) (202) 224-2852
NV: Reid(D) (202) 224-7327
NY: Clinton(D) (202) 228-0282
NY: Schumer(D) (202) 228-3027
OR: Wyden(D) (202) 228-2717
RI: Reed(D) (202) 224-4680
SD: Johnson(D) (202) 228-0368
VT: Leahy(D) (202) 224-3595
VT: Jeffords(I) No FAX listed
WA: Cantwell(D) (202) 228-0514
WA: Murray(D) (202) 224-0238
WI: Feingold(D) (202) 224-2725
WI: Kohl(D) (202) 224-9787
WV: Rockefeller(D) (202) 224-7665
WV: Byrd(D) (202) 228-0002
Vulnerable Republicans:
Lincoln Chafee Fax: (202) 228-2853 / (401) 453-5085
Susan Collins: Fax: (202) 224-2693 / (207) 990-4604
Olympia Snowe: Fax: (202) 224-1946 / (207) 874-7631

You can send a free fax here.

Bob Fertik also has the war room open and reports that "Senators are freaking out!'

T2 at Vichy Democrats posts the plans for the weekend.

Save the Court

A huge thanks to Lizzy from
Night Bird's Fountain for this information.

2006-01-26T16:47:00.000-05:00

Political bias affects brain activity

Study finds Democrats and Republicans both adept at ignoring facts, brain scans show

Not that I believe a word of that!!!

Full Article

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

However, on the flip side

That's Why the Lady Pseudoscorpion is a Tramp

Full Article

Moral of these two stories:

Arachnids are smarter than Republicans.
Or, that's what I got out of it. :-) Draw your own conclusions.

Discussion group question

2005-11-27T10:17:00.000-05:00

By January 2009, when the next president takes the oath of office, George W. Bush will be a relatively-young 62. This week's topic is: what in the world will Bush do once his presidency is officially over?

Among modern presidents, Bush, after his second term, will be young and healthy, and will have any number of options. He seems unlikely to write extensively on public policy (Nixon), or pursue international humanitarian and diplomatic missions (Carter and Clinton). Given Bush's standing and unique "talents," the teaching/speaking/Davos route seems out of the question. And he'll be too young to just golf and encourage well-wishers to watch his drives.
He's likely to enjoy the ranch, but there's only so much brush-clearing a healthy 62-year-old former president can do. So, what will Bush do with his time? What would a man with few curiosities and a tendency to avoid hard work want to do?

Source: The Carpetbagger

Another add your caption photo

2005-11-24T11:54:00.000-05:00

A Happy Liberal Thanksgiving to you all

2005-11-23T17:10:00.000-05:00

Take the Test!

2005-11-21T11:03:00.000-05:00

You are a
Social Liberal
(86% permissive)

and an...
Economic Liberal
(18% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Socialist

Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid
Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

2005-11-20T09:25:00.000-05:00

Irked by a reporter who told him he seemed to be "off his game" at a Beijing public appearance, President George W. Bush sought to make a hasty exit from a news conference but was thwarted by locked doors.

I had a dream last night that

2005-11-17T17:56:00.000-05:00

2005-11-15T15:30:00.000-05:00

Bush's poll numbers are going down faster than Pamela Lee in a home movie!

2005-11-13T17:01:00.000-05:00

Hmmmm. Very Interesting

Who's the Class Act?

2005-11-13T16:21:00.000-05:00

With any luck, maybe the entire administration will slink away into the night...

2005-11-13T13:52:00.000-05:00

Avoiding detection at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
By DOUG THOMPSON Nov 11, 2005, 02:28

Wary White House aides, under constant scrutiny from a paranoid Bush administration hell bent on stopping leaks, have turned to a technique used by drug dealers and criminals to avoid detection – prepaid, disposable cell phones.

The phones, which can be purchased for as little as $30 each from discount stores, offer prepaid minutes and can be discarded when the time is used up. They require no contract or sign-up and are difficult to trace.

“It’s about the only way we can ensure any privacy,” one bitter White House staffer told me this week. “Our office and home calls are monitored along with our normal cell phones.”
Enterprising White House staffers have pooled their resources and use third parties to purchase the phones in bulk from retailers like WalMart in small towns outside the National Capital Region. When one phone’s minutes are used up, they toss the handset and activate a new one.
Drug dealers and organized gangs use such phones to avoid wiretaps and call monitoring by law enforcement agencies. That White House aides have turned to the same techniques indicates just how tense life in the West Wing has become.

“Every time a new story emerges in the press, everyone here comes under suspicion,” says one aide. “We spend most of our time covering our asses instead of tending to the nation’s business.”
White House sources tell us that even senior aides like embattled Presidential advisor Karl Rove uses the prepaid phones to avoid having certain calls show up on call logs or other records that might be subpoenaed.

“You do what you can to avoid leaving a paper trail,” says one aide.
Other techniques employed by administration officials to avoid detection include:
--Free email accounts through services like Hotmail, Lycos, Yahoo and Gmail. Staff members create multiple accounts and create new ones often.

--Increased use of cash instead of credit or debit cards. “Gas receipts can show where you’ve been. When you pay cash there’s less of a trail to follow,” says one staff member.
--Use of cars belonging to friends or increased use of public transportation like the Washington metro system because “it’s easier to get lost in a crowd.”

“I know this all sounds like a dime store novel but that’s the depth we’ve all sunk to around here,” says an aide who has worked in previous administrations as well as on the current White House staff.

One female staffer says working at the White House has gone from “the most exciting time of my life to a daily hell. You’re always being watched, always under suspicion, always second-guessed. I hate it now. I just want it to be over.”

© Copyright 2005 by Capitol Hill Blue

2005-11-13T13:25:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Chuck at Bu$hmerika for this one!

2005-11-12T18:04:00.000-05:00

KARL ROVE, grandson of Karl Heinz Roverer, the builder of the Birchenau Death Camp in NAZI GERMANY, had this to say about U.S. politics:

"As people do better, they start voting like Republicans - unless they have too much education and vote Democratic, which proves there can be too much of a good thing"He, along with george W. bush, grandson of Prescott bush, who was a partner with three NAZI executives in 1942 and had his assets seized by the U.S. government under the "Trading with the Enemy Act" for running two NAZI front organizations- FINANCING AND ARMING ADOLF HITLER'S ARMY to help them fight U.S. forces, IS NOW "RUNNING" (RUINING) OUR ONCE GREAT NATION!!!

I love these create your own captions pics!

2005-11-10T16:57:00.000-05:00

2005-11-07T17:14:00.000-05:00

Dear Diary:

This year I opted not to run for a third term on my local Town Council, as I don't feel one person can make a real difference at that level. So, to get more involved on the County/State level, I went to Election Inspector School and "fanagled" an appointment on the County Democratic Committee. I will be working the polls tomorrow at our local Community House from 5 AM until they close at 9 PM and as long as it takes thereafter for the results to be read. I am really excited!

Yesterday, a friend and I helped Bethany Schumann, Amsterdam 3rd ward Supervisor, with her reelection by stuffing campaign literature in doors along Guy Park Avenue. Bethany is a young attorney who worked for Paul Tonko (NYS Assemblyman) for a time and, if elected, this will be her second term. She is dynamite! But, those hills and the steps up to those porches were steeper than I thought. After a couple of hours in the unseasonably hot Autumn sun, I thought I would faint. But, Brian had some warm water in the trunk of his car and the the Pain Away oil I brought worked very well on my bad knee. I was so tired when I got home, that I didn't get my eBay auctions on. I was in bed by 8 PM. But, when I got up this morning, I felt swell!

I am so excited to be involved in politics on this level and I think I can make a real difference. For those of you not involved, this is what politics is all about! Getting to know your candidates, helping out, donating time. So far, I have walked miles up steep inclines with campaign literature, evaded barking dogs and rabid Republicans, and will be working the polls tomorrow for some 16 plus hours at less than minimum wage. It's not the glamorous side of politics, but it is fulfilling nonetheless, especially if I can make a difference.

Off to pack my (overnight?) bag with pretzels and chop some veggies so that when I get up at 4 AM tomorrow, I can shower, dress and walk thru the dark streets to the polling place. Did I say 4 AM? And, my damn knee is still killing me. Hey, but Bethany invited me to her party tomorrow nite after the results are in! That would be great! Yeah, but it's 25 miles away and I have to be to work by 7:30 the next morning. And, after sitting around all day and night, I'm sure I'll have to ice that knee again.

Politics. Making a difference. Hey, wasn't I already doing that by running for an elected position on the Town Council? Jaline thought so. I should have listened to her. It really was a hell of a lot easier than this. Yeah, well, live and learn.

Hmmm, maybe next year - Village Board?????

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

"66% of Americans now believe that George Bush is doing a poor job as President.

The remaining 34% believe Adam and Eve rode dinosaurs to church."

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

2005-11-05T08:21:00.000-05:00

2005-11-04T19:58:00.000-05:00

Bush's Increasing Mental Lapses and Temper Tantrums Worry White House Aides

An uncivil war rages inside the walls of the West Wing of the White House, a bitter, acrimonious war driven by a failed agenda, destroyed credibility, dwindling public support and a President who lapses into Alzheimer-like periods of incoherent babbling.

On one side are the dwindling numbers of die-hard loyalists to President George W. Bush, those who support his actions and decisions without question and remain committed to both Bush and scandal-scarred political advisor Karl Rove.

On the other side are the increasing numbers of those who say Rove must go and who worry about the President's declining mental state and his ability to restore credibility with Congress, our foreign allies and the American people.

The war erupted into full-blown shout fests at Camp David this past weekend where decorum broke down in staff meetings and longtime aides threatened to quit unless Rove goes. Insiders say Chief of Staff Andrew Card now leads the anti-Rove legions and has told Bush that he wants out of the high-pressure job.

White House staff members say the White House is “like a wartime bunker” where shell-shocked aides hide from those who disagree with their actions and office pools speculate on how long certain senior aides will last.

Bush, whose obscenity-laced temper tantrums increase with each new setback and scandal, abruptly ended one Camp David meeting by telling everyone in the room to “go fuck yourselves” before he stalked out of the room.

Senior aides describe Bush as increasingly “edgy” or “nervous” or “unfocused.” They say the President goes from apparent coherent thought one moment to aimless rambles about political enemies and those who are “out to get me.”

“It’s worse than the days when Ronald Reagan’s Alzheimer’s began setting in,” one longtime GOP operative told me privately this week. “You don’t know if he’s going to be coherent from one moment to the next. What scares me is if he lapses into one of those fogs during a public appearance.”

Aides say Bush, who has always had trouble focusing during times of stress, is increasingly distant during meetings, often staring off into space during discussions on the nation’s security and other issues.

Card has responded to the crisis by cutting back on the number of staff members with direct access to the President and jumping in to answer questions when Bush’s mind wanders.

“Some people say Karl Rove is ‘Bush’s brain,’” says one increasingly-concerned West Winger. “Well Andy has become the President’s voice. He’s there to speak when the President seems unable to find form an answer.”

Bush’s mental state is a hot topic on Internet blogs and has increased since this web site disclosed last year that the White House physician had placed the President on anti-depressant medication – a story the administration never denied. Others, including prominent psychiatrists like Dr. Justin Frank of George Washington University, wonder if Bush, an admitted heavy drinker who claims he quit without any professional help, is hitting the bottle again.

An increasing number of mainstream media outlets, including Newsweek, The Washington Post and the New York Daily News recently confirmed our earlier reports about Bush’s temper tantrums.

“Bush usually reserves his celebrated temper for senior aides because he knows they can take it,” the Daily News reported. “Lately, however, some junior staffers also have faced the boss’s wrath.”

“This is not some manager at McDonald’s chewing out the help," a source with close ties to the White House told the paper. “This is the president of the United States, and it’s not a pleasant sight.”

Bush loyalists claim the President can survive his current spate of political troubles and emerge stronger than ever but an increasing number of White House aides express increasing doubt. Some even go so far as to speculate if the President’s deteriorating mental condition can survive another three years in office.

“The President has lost his focus, his ability to govern and the trust of the American people,” says one longtime GOP operative. “Those are things that are difficult to recapture when you’re on top of your game and this President has taken one too many blows to the head.”

My take? The guy is a time bomb. The "other" America didn't want him, either. And, as the world turns, so does the worm.

2005-11-02T17:49:00.000-05:00

Scott McClellan Explodes Over Bush Question At Press Conference

(Washington, D.C.) It was a routine afternoon White House press conference. But somewhere between a question on why the Bush administration was urging the satirical newspaper The Onion to refrain from using The Presidential Seal and another on the President's approval rating sinking to the point where it could only be viewed as positive if it was a golf score, Press Secretary Scott McClellan's head exploded.
ABC news veteran Cokie Roberts was shocked. "That vein in his right temple had been twitching since the beginning of the whole Plame business, but I never knew it would blow. Look at this?" Roberts pulled McClellan's tie from her hair. "Man, his melon went up like an I.E.D."

The press conference was a study in normalcy up to the point of cranial detonation said CNN White House correspondent John King. "After every fifth Cheney/Plame question, he'd mop the sweat from his brow. Every one on President Bush's belief in intelligent design, he'd swig from his bottle of Pepto-Bismol. Then, he was just about to put the bottle to his lips and, well, he never made it."

The exact question that triggered the explosion has been narrowed down to two. Will the President declare The Onion staff enemy combatants under The Patriot Act if they persist in using the Presidential Seal? Or it could have been an allusion to Senate hopeful Al Franken's comment on The Late Show with David Letterman. Since George H.W. Bush, former head of the C.I.A., said that anyone leaking C.I.A. information is guilty of treason, if Dick Cheney is found at fault, will he be executed as a traitor or just declared an enemy combatant, and will he and The Onion staff share the same cell?

Members of the Press Corp remain mute on who dealt the fatal question. Speaking under the condition of anonymity, one correspondent said: "None of us really wants to take credit for blowing up the White House Press Secretary because it pretty much would mean that we'd have to turn in our press credentials."

Calls to the White House were met with a taped message. "You have reached the White House. We'd like to answer your questions, but our Press Secretary's head just exploded. Thank you."

2005-11-01T17:14:00.000-05:00

BLESS YOU, HARRY!

And, why did he do this?

For more than two years, Senate Democrats have pressed Republicans to address the misuse of intelligence. At every turn, Republicans have blocked efforts to investigate how intelligence was used in the run-up to the war in Iraq. Below details the long record established by Democrats to investigate this matter.

March 14, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Director Mueller requesting an investigation into the origin of the Niger documents.

May 23, 2003 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller sent a letter to the CIA and State Department Inspectors General to review issues related to the Niger documents.

June 2, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller issued a press release endorsing a statement made of the previous weekend by Senator Warner calling for a joint SSCI/SASC investigation.

June 4, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller issued a press release saying he would push for an investigation. Senator Roberts issued a press release saying calls for an investigation are premature.

June 10, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Senator Roberts asking for an investigation.

June 11, 2003 – All Committee Democrats signed a letter to Senator Roberts asking for a meeting of the Committee to discuss the question of authorizing an inquiry into the intelligence that formed the basis for going to war.

June 11, 2003 – Senator Roberts issued a press release saying this is routine committee oversight, and that criticism of the intelligence community is unwarranted. Senator Rockefeller issued a press release calling the ongoing review inadequate.

June 20, 2003 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller issued a joint press release laying out the scope of the inquiry.

August 13, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Senator Roberts making 14 points about the investigation, asking to expand the inquiry to address the “use of intelligence by policy makers” and asking for several other actions.

September 9, 2003 – After press reports quoting Senator Roberts as saying the investigation was almost over, Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Senator Roberts urging him not to rush to complete the investigation prematurely. October 29, 2003 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller sent a letter to Director Tenet expressing in strong terms that he should provide documents that have been requested and make individuals available.

October 30, 2003 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller sent letters to Secretaries Rumsfeld and Powell, and National Security Advisor Rice expressing in strong terms that they should provide documents that have been requested and make individuals available.

October 31, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Director Tenet asking for documents related to the interaction between intelligence and policy makers, including the documents from the Vice President’s office related to the Powell speech.

November 2, 2003 – Senator Roberts made statements during a joint television appearance with Senator Rockefeller claiming that the White house would provide all documents they jointly requested.

December 5, 2003 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to National Security Advisor Rice asking for her help getting documents and access to individuals.

January 22, 2004 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Director Tenet asking for compliance with the Oct. 31 request for documents.

February 12, 2004 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller issued a joint press release announcing the Committee’s unanimous approval of the expansion of the Iraq review, to include use of intelligence in the form of public statements, and listing other aspects of what became Phase II.

March 23, 2004 – Senator Rockefeller sent yet another letter to Director Tenet asking for compliance with the Oct. 31 request for documents.

June 17, 2004 – Senators Roberts and Rockefeller joint press release announcing the unanimous approval of the report.

July 16, 2004 – Committee Democrats sent a letter to Bush asking for the one page summary of the NIE prepared for Bush. The Committee staff had been allowed to review it but could not take notes and the Committee was never given a copy.

February 3, 2005 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Senator Roberts outlining Committee priorities for the coming year and encouraging completion of Phase II.

August 5, 2005 – Senator Rockefeller sent a letter to Senator Roberts expressing concern over the lack of progress on Phase II and calling for a draft to be presented to the Committee at a business meeting in September.

September 29, 2005 – All Committee Democrats joined in additional views to the annual Intelligence Authorization Bill criticizing the lack of progress on Phase II.

2005-10-30T10:17:00.000-05:00

For those of you invited to a Halloween party and not a clue of what to wear...

2005-10-30T08:27:00.000-05:00

Jon Stewart (enough said)

2005-10-29T18:45:00.000-04:00

Thanks to Jen

You decide...

2005-10-23T12:35:00.000-04:00

2005-10-22T12:16:00.000-04:00

Chicken Dance

Yes, a Chicken Dance! Why, you ask? So that you will know that although I am one extremely liberal political Chick (get it? Chicken, Chick, Chicken Dance?), this blog is not about bringing you breaking political news, as there are a host of other blogs that do that so very well. This blog will try to find the humorous aspects of this incredibly horrible administration . Maybe not the silver lining in the neo-conservative cloud, but a reason to smile and, perhaps, give us some hope for the future.

Cyn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tell a Republican the truth and (s)he'll call you a liar. Teach a Republican to think and (s)he'll become a Democrat

The sky is falling!

2005-10-22T10:33:00.000-04:00

Therapy for your left wing