Detroit's Mayor charged with 8 felony counts. The charges stem from lying in a deposition about an affair with his chief of staff. Link. But the backstory is even better. Detroit police officers filed a whistleblower action against the city alleging the mayor (who is married) had a blowout party with strippers at the city mansion. One of the strippers allegedly at the party later turned up dead. Despite all this, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick has refused to resign. Some chutzpah!
Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Have you seen "The Tudors" on Showtime? Henry VIII is played by Irish actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers. The little dude is intense. Anyway, Jonathan had the following to say in a recent interview about the show: "Q. Why do you think Henry had so many affairs, knowing the stakes? A. Because men are men. Q. Just another instance of [Henry] wielding his power because he could? A. You’re confusing wielding his power with wielding his dick." This guy speaks English in my vernacular. Link.
German surgeons give woman an artificial anus. Unfortunately she came to the hospital to for a knee operation. Ouch! Link.
Republicans combing through the passport files of Democratic candidates is nothing new. The campaign of George H. W. Bush did it to Bill Clinton in 1992. Why won't the State Department release the names of the individuals who did this to Obama so the potential connections can be investigated by the media? Is the Bush administration doing opposition research for Hillary Clinton? It's a legitimate question.
It's Larry Flint on the line Ms. Dupre Life is good for Ms. Ashley Alexandra Dupre. Not so for Mr. Eliot Spitzer. But is anybody shedding tears for Spitz? One day, she's a renound NYC party girl invited to the Hamptons by billionaires, a struggling singer, swim suit model, and, oh yeah, part-time hooker. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. Last year, an unsuspecting catholic dude who met her in a club gave Ms. Dupre a ring and tried to marry the party girl ... but, inevitably, the marriage fell through. Hard for a party girl to shake the life until she hits rock bottom. One may think the bottom arrived for Ms. Dupre in room 871 of the Mayflower Hotel. But when one hotel door closes, Larry Flint sits in his wheelchair behind the next door. Penthouse magazine and Larry Flint's Hustler are both said to be offering $1 million deals for nude spreads of Ms. Dupre. But it gets better. Her two songs on the web site AmieStreet.com which can be download for 69 cents have already raked in $250K+ for her. "Kick Ass Pictures announced yesterday that they would pay her $1 million to star in a [porn] movie." Link. And where is Judith Regan when you need her? Some publisher is sure to step forward with a book deal. Quite a long way from Room 871 and Client 9. I don't begrudge the girl her moment of fame. This is America baby. Ride the wave. 03/16/2008. Comments (2)Permalink
Monday Hoe Down Here a hoe, there a hoe, every government official has a hoe!
Gov. Eliot Spitzer of NY is under investigation for meeting with a prostitute in a Washington hotel. I'm sure they had a stimulating discussion on public policy. Apologizes to family and public.
U.S. District Judge Edward "Naughty" Nottingham of Denver is also being investigated for patronizing prostitutes. A witness has told a Denver TV station that he drove prostitutes to visit Nottingham 10 times during the summer of 2007. "9NEWS reported that Nottingham testified during his divorce he had spent more than $3,000 at a Denver strip club in just two days and that he was 'too drunk to remember' how he'd spent the money." Somebody needs to tell Judge Naughty that his frat party ended 40 years ago.
Turns out married men who do housework get more booty. First thought: 'Isn't that bribery?' Second thought: 'Wait a minute, which booty?' Third thought: 'If a guy is very diligent with his housework, will the wife care where he's getting it?' Get me the rubber gloves, I'm going to scrub the toilets.
Mrs. Clemens on the juice Some people are born knowing how to lie politicians. Others acquire the skill as life progresses. Roger Clemens may have been a fine pitcher but the boy just is having problems with the art of bending the truth. Roger is testifying before Congress this week. His former trainer, Brian McNamee, has testified that he injected the rocket in the butt with steroids and HGH. Roger claims the injections were of vitamin B-12 (which is legal). So far just a "he said, she said" deal. But Roger has jumped the shark. Teammate Andy Pettitte said in an affidavit that Clemens told him nearly 10 years ago that he used HGH. Also in the Pettitte affidavit: when Andy asked Roger in 2005 how he would respond when asked about HGH use, "Clemens responded by saying Pettitte misunderstood the previous exchange in 1999 or 2000 and that, in fact, Clemens had been talking about HGH use by his wife in the original conversation." Link. It's one thing for a school child to say "my dog ate the homework" but for a grown man to say "my wife took the drugs" is lame. Everybody clear on this? Roger Clemens was repeatedly shot in the butt with B-12 while his wife took HGH (per Andy Pettitte's affidavit). Think it over Roger, I'm sure on reflection you'll remember it was your dog using PEDs. 02/13/2008. Comments (1)Permalink
Latino vote carries Hillary The Kennedy girls came out for Barack in California but this was not enough to overcome Hillary's 2-1 support from Latinos in California. Link. Is there a race issue with the Latino voters? Interesting question. Another interesting fact from exit polling in California--white males went strongly with Barack. Gender bias? In any event, if this trend continues, Hillary will use the Latino vote to fight Barack to a stalemate in the primary. The race will then come down to superdelegates. And there is no better backroom political horse trader on the planet than Bill Clinton. Unless Barack is able to overcome Hillary in a substantial way in the remaining primaries (one of which is Texas with a huge Hispanic population), I think Hillary wins. Hopely, I'm wrong but it doesn't look good for Barack at present from where I sit. 02/06/2008. Add CommentPermalink
'Dangerous Cult' Want to see what the #1 search result for the phrase "dangerous cult" is on Google at this moment? Click here. A group of counterculture hackers has declared war on Scientology. I'll enjoy watching this one play out. 01/31/2008. Add CommentPermalink
The Ethnic Battle in KenyaAs my wife is Kenyan, friends and family have asked for thoughts on the situation there. This article from the Associated Press does the best job I've seen of encapsulating the situation as I understand it. In a nutshell. The President is Kibaki who is a member of the dominant Kikuyu tribe. All observers pretty much agree that Kibaki stole last month's presidential election from challenger Raila Odinga who is of the Luo tribe. This is not to say the election was a landside for Odinga. The president retained substantial support in the country. Shortly thereafter, all hell broke loose in Western Kenya, traditional home of the Luo and, their allies, the Kalenjin of the Rift Valley. The Luo and Kalenjin took out their political loss on the Kikuyu living among them by burning their homes, businesses and even killing them. Were they incited to violence by political leaders of these tribes? No one seems to know. Kikuyus then retaliated. Kibaki has called for a national unity government. Odinga, so far, demands to be named the president and is not willing to accept a lesser post in the government. In the meantime, the tourism industry, the lifeblood of Kenya, is crippled. Further, travel on the roads in rural areas of Kenya is dangerous as the local thugs have taken the unrest as an opportunity to commit violence. Thus, crops are not moving from the farming areas into the cities. As with all political wars, it's the people who suffer (to what end?). It's a mess but this is NOT another Rwanda. Over 1 million people were killed there in tribal violence. The numbers are in the hundreds in Kenya. Let us pray cooler heads prevail and peace returns. Even so, the scars from these days will take a generation to heal. But I'm just a mzungu, what do I know? 01/22/2008. Add CommentPermalink
Gen. Butt NakedThe story is just too inhumane to even make jest of ... yet the darkness, the absurdity of it all is gripping. Former warlord Joshua Milton Blahyi, now a born-again Christian, appeared recently to testify before the national truth commission in Liberia's capital. Blahyi commanded the "Butt Naked Battalion" which reported killed 25,000 people during the civil war. "His Butt Naked Battalion consisted of drunk and drugged teens and boys who went into battle in flowing dresses, colorful wigs and dainty purses looted from civilians." Link. Blahyi is reported to have gone into battle wearing nothing but his combat boots and, further, engaged is grotesque human sacrifice at the end of each victory. "Any time we captured a town, I had to make a human sacrifice. They bring to me a living child that I slaughter and take the heart off to eat it," Blahyi is quoted as saying by AFP. USA Today. During his reign of terror, Blahyi worshiped the devil. 01/21/2008. Add CommentPermalink
New Hamsphire Recount So far, at least according to the official returns from the New Hampshire Secretary of State's office, the recount has turned up very little in the way of errors between the officially reported vote tally and the recounted total. With 19 precincts counted, Hillary lost 14 votes and Obama has lost 13. That's right, the New Hampshire Secretary of State says they are only 1 vote off (to this point) in the primary race between Clinton and Obama. I find that hard to believe but these are the only facts that have been presented to us at present. The people over at Black Box Voting have found some shoddy procedures in the New Hampshire election office, however, nothing one can put his or her finger on and say "Aha!" I hope the recount continues. We need transparency in the voting systems of all states. 01/18/2008. Add CommentPermalink Update: Latest recount totals for Clinton and Obama from NH Sec. of State's office. More discrepancies but nothing earth shattering. 1-19-08.
Kiss Kiss Abdullah "Help me Obi Wan Abdullah, you're my only hope!" W Bush goes to Saudis on bended knee, kissing ass, beggin' for lower oil prices. In his f'ed up mind, if the US just had lower oil prices, all would be right. Forget the massive current account deficit, budget deficit, and sub-prime loan debacle. Oh, then there is that messy war in Iraq. Oil rules. Oil makes or breaks the economy (in Bush's world). If all was right with the economy, then the Republicans would not get their skulls smashed against the sidewalk in November of 2008. Keep kissing them toads George. It won't matter. The voters are plenty pissed off and pay back is a bitch. 01/16/2008. Add CommentPermalink
Barack Robbed in NHIn the last polls taken before yesterday's New Hampshire vote in the Democratic primary, Barack Obama held a 12 point lead over Hillary Clinton. Magically, within a day, he lost by 3 points. How do 15 percentage points disappear in a day? They don't. New Hampshire largely votes using the hackable Diebold voting machines. Diebold is a neocon controlled organization (jjray's opinion). Without a major news story to account for the swing, statistically, only a few percentage point swing from the polls to the actual vote is possible. Multiple polls confirmed the validity of Barack's poll numbers. Barack was robbed, plain and simple. Brad Blog is the best source out there on the voting scandal in America. Here is his post on the NH voting anomaly. 01/09/2008. Add CommentPermalink Update: More information trickling out on potential election fraud in NH. 2nd Update: NH exit polls showed Obama up by 8% over Hillary (from Brad Blog). That's an 11 point swing from the exit polls taken the day of the election versus the reported results. Not mathematically possible. 3rd Update: 81% of the NH vote counting was done on Diebold machines, the rest by hand. The machine tally: Clinton 39.6%, Obama 36.3%. Hand-count: Clinton 34.9%, Obama 38.6%. This deal reeks. Counterpunch.
Dumb and Dumber "When Virgilio Cintron died of natural causes in his Hell's Kitchen [NYC] apartment, authorities say his roommate and a friend ... swiped the dead man's $355 government check and then used an office chair to wheel his body to a check-cashing store around the corner from his apartment. 'Witnesses observed Mr. Cintron flopping from side to side and these individuals propping him up as they rolled along.'". Link. Alas, our heroes were arrested trying to cash the dead guy's check. But can you blame two old drunks for trying? Life does imitate art. 01/09/2008. Add CommentPermalink
Hey, Look At Me, I'm Talkin' To Musharraf And You Ain't Americans are notoriously superficial. But John Edwards has gone over the fence with his form over substance shtick. Fine, you look something like a modern day Jack Kennedy. Whoopi! Yeah, we heard all about your wife dying of cancer. And why again are you still running for president as your wife slowly dies? Question: what is at the heart of this candidacy? Which brings us to the Musharraf telephone call. Upon the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, what's Edwards' first thought? Obviously, it was "how do I spin this to help my campaign?" Second thought: give a shout out to President Musharraf and then brag to the people in Iowa how cool and presidential I am that I talked to Musharraf at a time of crisis. Everyone agrees Musharraf stole the last election in Pakistan through massive fraud. The Pakistani people hate him. But John Edwards finds the guy useful as a campaign prop. Very presidential John.
What is the overriding theme of the Edwards campaign? If one squawks like a duck president, one is a duck. Trail lawyers know how to posture and Edwards, seasoned veteran of the craft, excels at the pose. Makes me barf. 12/28/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Dodd Stands Tall Senate Majority Leader Reed (D. NV) caved in to the Bush Administration and the large telecoms by handing them retroactive immunity for domestic spying in his proposed FISA bill. One senator stood in the door and said, "not on my watch". That man is Chris Dodd. "For the last six years, our largest telecom companies have been spying on their own American customers," said Senator Christopher Dodd of Connecticut. He returned to Washington from the campaign trail in Iowa vowing to filibuster the FISA bill so long as it contained immunity to the telecoms for their participation in warrantless spying by the Bush Administration. The mere threat was enough to compel Reed to stand down. Link. Oh, how I wish Obama and H. Clinton possessed those stones. Booyah Senator Dodd! 12/19/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Saving the Catalog Trees Caught a nice segment on NPR's 'All Things Considered' yesterday about www.catalogchoice.org. What do they do? Help the masses bombarded with unwanted merchandise catalogs. What caught my attention were the statistics. How many catalogs are sent out each year? 19 Billion! How many trees are harvested to print these catalogs? 53 million. Once upon a time, in a time-space continuum where the internet did not exist, I actually did much of my Xmas shopping through hard copy catalogs. Yes, I am an old human. But with the advent of the web, what's the point? A merchant's most current product info is found on that merchant's web site, not the catalog. Between my wife and I, we get several dozen catalogs each year we never touch. I've felt guilty about it but figured the problem was too much of a hassle to do anything about. Not any more. The best part of the deal, catalogchoice.org is free. There are other web sites out there in cyberspace who charge for the same service. Here is one that charges $15.95. Get off your ass and save a few trees! (Note to self.) 11/24/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Fox: Fanning Fears At Every Turn Last week, the scare: "For the second straight day, Fox News stood virtually alone in advancing thinly supported speculation to raise fears that the wildfires ravaging California are not the result of a confluence of arid heat and high winds but were set deliberately by al Qaeda terrorists bent on destroying America." Raw Story. This week, the truth: "Officials blamed a wildfire that consumed more than 38,000 acres and destroyed 21 homes last week on a boy playing with matches, and said they would ask a prosecutor to consider the case." Associated Press Story. I find the tactics employed by Fox in this case to be a symptom of something more sophisticated, more insidious than mere fear mongering. Beyond the suffering of those displaced by the fires in California, the obvious issue raised by this natural disaster is whether global warming played a part? The al Qaeda misdirection diverted media attention away from that serious issue. News outlets and bloggers spun their wheels responding to the Fox story sucking energy away from the global warming story. The Bush Administration and Fox News are, in my opinion, lackeys for Big Oil. I wonder, when South Florida sinks into the ocean will will Big Oil finally relent in its propaganda war against global warming? 10/31/2007. Add CommentPermalink Update. Fellow traveler Glenn Beck working a Fox-like angle attempting to disconnect the California wild fires from global warming. Coincidence?
His name is 'Oral' for a reason. I dare you to try and listen to this Youtube clip of Oral for 30 seconds without falling on your ass in laughter. Impossible for any sane person. 10/18/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Still think George Bush won the 2004 election? I have heard my friends on the right say that, although the 2000 presidential election in Florida was wacky, it's clear the country elected George Bush in 2004 so get over it. But when one examines the exit polling from Ohio in the 2004 versus the actually county by county tallies, it becomes a near mathematical certainty that the 2004 election was stolen by George Bush just as was the case with 2000. The absolute best breakdown of the issue comes from Prof. Steve Freeman of University of Pennsylvania. Brad at The Brad Blog has been relentless on the issue of United States election fraud. The blog's interview of Dr. Friedman (on video) does the best job I have seen of laying out the 2004 voter scam in digestible terms. Check it out. 10/12/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Clarence Has A Book Out What do I think of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas? Let me attempt this delicately with political correctness: IMHO the man's entire legal career is built upon playing house negro to powerful white people and corporations. Here is the poster child of a minority who got ahead based more upon the color of his skin than merit. What did he do when he got to the top? Everything in his power to rip out the helping hands from the system, thereby denying to other minorities that which had greased his way up the ladder. I'm not sure how anyone who watched the Senate testimony of the composed, dignified Anita Hill could fail to believe her version of events over the career lackey (aka Clarence Thomas). Our boy Clarence has a new book out vilifying Anita Hill and the media that printed her story. Here is my attempt at comedy on the topic. 09/30/2007. Add CommentPermalink
The Fake Surge The so-called troop surge is an illusion. The fiction is that the President is putting more troops into Iraq and this shall magically do something positive for the Iraqi people. Stop sectarian violence or some such drivel. In December of 2004, there were 177,000 coalition troops in Iraq. In December of 2005, 178,000. This number dropped to 146,000 in December 2006. Right now, under the surge, there are 173,000 coalition troops in Iraq. The surge number is less than the high point for both 2004 and 2005. There is no surge. See GAO troop chart. The entire GAO report can be found here. True, slightly more US troops (on a percentage basis) are now in Iraq but they are simply replacing withdrawn coalition forces (mainly British). Gen. Petraeus is doing his best Robert McNamara impersonation with charts and graphs demonstrating the fiction that something, anything is improving in Iraq. More Iraqis are dying now. See chart (688 Iraqis per month died in 2005 versus 2079 per month this year through August). More Americans are dying in Iraq now than before. Link. The current Iraqi government is imploding. The Sunnis walked out and refuse to participate. Despite the facts, Gen. Petraeus comes to Washington and reports "progress" in Iraq? Our delusional President declares on national television that his surge is working? Please wake me up when this nightmare ends. Tip of the cap to Herman Mindshaftgap for bringing this issue to my attention (love the Dr. Strangelove reference). 09/16/2007. Comments (2)Permalink
The Rudy Giuliani 9-11 Myth Rudy Giuliani's campaign is built upon his self-proclaimed stellar performance as mayor of NYC on 9/11. Funny thing, it's a lie. Giuliani's performance in planning for terrorists attacks prior to, and his actions on, 9-11 were negligent at best. Some believe Giuliani's decision to place the emergency response command center in lower Manhattan as a political favor to the building's owner led to more deaths. Those who read my blog know I'm a big fan of Robert Greenwald's work. He's launching a four-part Giuliani film. Here is part 1.
Cronyism and Incompetence, a Bush Hallmark First there was FEMA chief Michael D. "heck of a job Brownie" Brown and his botched handling of the federal response to hurricane Katrina. Prior to his appointment as head of FEMA, Mr. Brown was a politically connected do-nothing with no real job skills applicable to a job of this magnitude. The list is long and distinguished so I'll just pull a few off the top of my head. Next we have US Forest Service chief Mark Rey who is about to be held in contempt by a US District Court Judge for failing to properly analyze the potential environmental harm of using ammonium phosphate to put out forest fires. The chemical is thought to kill fish. The US Forest Service has essential ignored prior orders from the court in this case. US mine safety chief Richard Stickler is a Bush classic. Knowing Stickler, an industry hack, would never get Senate confirmation, Bush made a recess appointment bypassing Congress. The recent collapse in Utah happened in a mine using a risky mining technique which maximizes coal production at the expense of worker safety. Stickler's federal mine safety organization approved the risky plan for the Utah mine before the collapse. Stickler was on site in Utah overseeing the rescue effort when three more workers were killed trying to save / recover their colleagues trapped by the earlier failure. Congress is not amused. 08/23/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Off The Obama Wagon I'm off the Obama bandwagon and not even a lap dance from Obama Girl will get me back. First came Obama saying "all options", including the use of nuclear weapons, were on the table in dealing with Iran. What purpose does such a jingoistic statement serve? Is he trying to position himself right of Hillary Clinton? OK, I gave him a pass. Next was his half-assed withdrawal plan for Iraq. We'll withdraw some troops while redeploying others as an "over the horizon force" all the while keeping open the option to "temporarily suspended [the redeployment] if the Iraqi government meets the security, political, and economic benchmarks to which it has committed." Foreign Affairs article. What the fuck is this "we'll kinda maybe withdraw and even suspend this kinda maybe withdrawal if the fake Iraqi government plays nice and begs us to come back" shit? Iraq is engaged in a civil war Barack. What about that don't you get? We get out of the way and see what deal can be made after the dust settles with Moqtada al Sadar running the place. But the straw that broke Joe Camel's back was Barack's latest that he will consider unilaterally attacking terrorist in Pakistan regardless of the wishes of the Pakistani government. Gen. Musharraf is on shaky enough ground without making such an inflammatory statement to the press that was indeed broadcast all over Pakistan. Dumb. This guy is turning into the dark Hillary when I was praying for Bobby Kennedy. Way to pee in my cheerios dude. FWIW, I penned a little satire regarding Oprah's latest bigwig fundraiser for Barak. 08/19/2007. Add CommentPermalinkUpdate: Not even Obama girl is voting for Obama. Lots of room freeing up on the Obama bus.
No End In Sight Charles Ferguson created the Front Page software later sold to Microsoft for a boat full of cash. Now he makes documentary films of social import. Booya Charles! His first film, No End In Sight, hits theaters Friday. It won a special jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival. Note to Wife, put this on our list of movies to see ASAP. 08/10/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Chairman of the Young Republicans National Federation Investigated For Faliciating Sleeping Colleague Sometimes I wish I was just making this shit up it's so sick. Until this report surfaced, Glenn Murphy was the head of the Young Republican National Federation. "In a shocking police report filed by the Clark Co. Sheriff’s office, Murphy is accused of sexually assaulting another man on Saturday, July 28, 2007, while he lay sleeping in his bed." link. Apparently after some booze filled Republican party, the victim and Murphy were told they drank too much to drive so should sleep at the house of the victim's sister ... thus, the two ended up sharing a bed. Link. Amazingly, this is not the first accusation of unwanted falication of another man by Murphy. "Oh, by the way, Glenn was charged with Sexual Battery for doing this exact same thing in 1998 (this victim’s girlfriend was in the same room!)." Link. Maybe this is a fundamental difference between Democrats and Republicans: Monica's blow jobs were cheerfully received whilst poor Mr. Murphy must jump young men in their sleep to perform the deed. I'm sure it's a telling observation if ever I figure out what it means. Some Freudian import no doubt. FWIW, More Murphy - Republican pics. Add CommentPermalink
Gonzo Finally Stirs DOJ To Action Not since the Nixon Administration has the executive branch of government perpetrated this level of illegal activity. I'm not even sure Nixon was this pervasive. From the steam rolling of the Hatch Act, to voter caging, to political hits on government prosecutors, to illegal domestic spying, to secret overseas prisons in violation of the Geneva Convention. We won't even get into the Haliburton and Blackwater contracts in Iraq. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, through it all, has chosen to sit motionless with his thumb deposited firmly up his anus proclaiming to see no evil. DOJ has launched no serious investigation of the executive branch of government since the confirmation of Gonzo. But wait, Gonzo is finally on the move. He has the FBI dogging a former DOJ attorney suspected of tipping off the media to the Bush Administration's illegal domestic spying operation. You see, Alberto's only roll in our government is to act as an obstructionist of any investigation of Bush and to control leaks for whistle blowers. Congress needs to grow some gonads and impeach this turd. 08/05/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Cheney Is a Machine! "Vice President Dick Cheney, who has a history of heart problems, had surgery Saturday to replace an implanted device that monitors his heartbeat. Doctors ... replaced the defibrillator, a sealed unit that includes a battery." Link. We've always said "Cheney has no heart". Now we know that an elaborate machine lurks inside his chest. Evil eats away a man's soul just as it wasted away the body parts of one Anakin Skywalker until he devolved into Darth Vader. Our Vice President is more machine than man. Our president lacks a brain, the vice president a heart, and god knows Congress lacks courage while Dorothy is secretary of state. Is there any doubt a wizard hides behind a curtain pulling the levers of government in Oz on the Potomac? 07/29/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Claws of Hillary and Barak Begin To Show In case you haven't noticed, I hate the presidential candidacy of Hillary Rodham Clinton. She's Newt Gingrich-light in drag. I loved the way her husband ran the country (lying about blow jobs aside) but the Hillster just panders to the crowd way too much for my tastes. She makes kiss-kiss with the evangelicals. She cheered the boys on to war in Iraq never to regret her vote authorizing the Titanic monstrosity our involvement in that country has become. For her, the problem in Iraq is tactics (not the stupidity of going there in the first place). She sat on the board of Walmart. And why again did she fail to divorce Bill after the Monica shit? Enough said. Which brings me to the Hillster-Obama cat fight at the CNN-Youtube debate. Loved the questions from the Youtubers, a refreshing change from the stale manure we get from MSM "journalists" (read propagandists). Barak says he will meet with any world leader without preconditions including the lunatics leading N. Korea and Cuba. Makes sense, doesn't it? How does one solve a dispute without dialogue? But the Bushies -- Neocons desire only perpetual war. Dialogue is anathema to their kind as, god-forbid, it might prevent a war. And that would shave a few cents off Haliburton's quarterly profit report! We can't stand for it. Anyway Hillary, predictably, attacked Barak for speaking sense preferring to leave our country's head in the sand. She's currently way out in front in the polls riding high on the backs of women voters and, surprisingly, blacks. I'll puke if she wins the Democratic nomination. 07/25/2007. Add CommentPermalink
The Last Tango The Last Tango In Paris (1972) starred 19-year-old Maria Schneider opposite 48-year-old Marlon Brando. The sex scenes were so intense for their day that the movie was banned in many countries. We know what became of Marlon (he got fat and went insane) but what about Maria? Here is a recent interview. In regard to the famous butter on the butt scene (which we find out was not in script, Marlon invented it), Maria says, "I felt humiliated and to be honest, I felt a little raped, both by Marlon and by Bertolucci." Sad. 07/20/2007. Add CommentPermalink
D.C. Madam Bags A Senator The DC madam (Deborah Jeane Palfrey) recently published a portion of her phone records on the internet. That’s where Larry Flynt’s people joined the case. Yep, all that stands between our democratic way of life and neocon tyranny is Larry Flynt. Anyway, Flynt’s people combed through Palfrey’s records and found an old telephone number for Sen. David Vitter (R-LA). They tipped Vitter off ahead of time and allowed the guy to fall on his sword, which he obligingly did yesterday. Today, we heard from the ho’s in New Orleans who say Vitter was also a client of theirs. Makes sense. The guy lives in two cities so he has to be serviced by prostitutes in each. Our boy Flynt promises more revelations. Keep it coming Larry. In case you wish to join the grand easter egg hunt digging through the madam’s old phone records, here is a link. Vitter’s scalp should be tacked to the wall in memory of Brandy Britton (a tragic victim of this mess). 07/11/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Michael Moore Goes Postal on CNN Before a live interview with Michael Moore, CNN aired a segment entitled "Sicko Reality Check" in which Dr. Sanjay Gupta supposedly "fact checked" Moore's movie. What follows is Moore's rebuttal. He ripped Wolf and CNN a new one. CNN was MIA in its WMD reporting prior to the invasion of Iraq and has continued so thereafter. Moore is right that they completely failed in their duty to accurately report the facts to the American people on the Iraq story. Michael, on the other hand, has a history of having the thrust of his piece correct but fudging on minor facts used to embellish the story. Hopefully this is not the case with Sicko. Haven't seen it yet so can't comment. 07/10/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Crime, What Crime? Let's review. Scooter Libby disclosed the name of an uncover CIA agent working on nuclear proliferation to the press and then lied about it to the FBI and a federal grand jury. The leak compromised not just Ms. Plame but the entire uncover CIA operation she was part of. This constitutes disclosure of national security information. Prior to the Libby conviction, this is what the administration had to say about the situation:
Note: Mr. Libby's defense has been that the President and Vice President authorized his leaking of classified information. Now the president has determined Mr. Libby shall spend not one day in jail for his crimes. No one in the Bush administration is ever held accountant for its monumental errors in judgment nor violations of law. So it goes. Here is what Patrick Fitzgerald thought about the commutation. 07/03/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Surge to Hell April, May and June of 2007 were collectively the three deadliest months for US troops in the whole of the Iraq War. See Monthly chart of US military deaths in Iraq. For perspective, the 2007 second quarter death toll of 331 represents a 60% increase over the same period in 2006. This isn't an isolated trend. The average monthly US troop deaths in Iraq was 48.6 in 2003. It has surged to 95.8 in 2007. As Presidents Johnson and Nixon learned in Vietnam, an escalation in US troops equals an escalation in US casualties. Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. 07/01/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Cubs Fans Aren't Taking It Anymore! Forgive me for digressing on the topic of baseball. It's tough being a Chicago Cubs fan. First off, the team generally sucks. Then there's that curse of the billygoat thing which has conflagrated into the now famous Bartman curse. So I can kinda understand where the guy in this pic is coming from. Last night in the top of the 9th inning, with the Cubs winning 8-3 against the Rockies, Chicago reliver Bob Howry gave up run-scoring singles to Atkins and Hawpe then a home run to Tulowitkzi. That's when a Cubs fan snapped, jumped onto the field and charged the mound. Sometimes a man has to take his balls into his hands and say, "In this I believe". Cubs reliver Howry related the incident as follows: "He said, 'What are you doing?'" and "I said, 'I'm out here trying to give up home runs. What do you think?'" Link. The Cubs ended up down 9-8 going into the bottom of the 9th where underachieving but highly paid outfielder Alfonso Soriano knocked in two runs to win the game for the previously listless Cubs. Forget Soriano. The star of the game was the fan who put the fear of God into the Cubs. I have a sneaking suspicion this guy was a plant by Manager Lou Pinella, Lou's "manchurian candidate". Sweet Lou (he of volcano temperament) has promised to turn over a new leaf after his last suspension. Our hero is probably just now making bond at the Cook County jail. I wonder if it is Lou Pinella writing the check at the cashier's window? 06/26/2007. (Sports Satire.) Add CommentPermalink
The Dark Side--Cheney's Long Reach Great PBS Frontline piece on Cheney, his power within the White House, and the the abuse of that power for illegitimate ends. It's something we all knew before but something all citizens should never forget. If enough of us remember, hopefully we can save the next generation. Watch the entire episode online. 06/13/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Powell Drifting Away From Republicans In an interview with Tim Russert, Colin Powell divulged that he had met twice with Sen. Obama to discuss foreign policy and, when asked whether he would definitely support a Republican candidate in the 2008 election, Powell made it clear he was open to supporting either a Republican or a Democrat. The neocon grip on Powell has finally loosened. Better late than never. Hum ... putting 2 and 2 together ... Powell would support Obama if he were the Democratic nominee. 06/11/2007. Add CommentPermalink
39 Years Ago Today Today happens to be my birthday ... unfortunately, it's been more than 39 years. The newspapers on June 6 invariably mention the great Normandy invasion that happened this day in 1944 during the height of WWII. But another historical event from June 6th has greater significance for our world today: the death Robert Kennedy. President John Kennedy, Dr. Martin Luther King, and Senator Robert Kennedy were the three main actors working to solve the ills of our nation. Robert Kennedy was the last of those three standing as the summer of 1968 dawned. He had just won the California Democratic presidential primary and was primed to beat Humphrey at the convention. Robert Kennedy would have defeated shifty Dick Nixon as his brother had done before him. President Robert Kennedy would have immediately yanked our troops out of Vietnam in 1969 and accelerated implementation of the new civil rights laws. Rapprochement with Cuba? Gotta believe it would have happened. Hell, the entire cold war would have come to a screeching halt in the early 70s instead of being milked by Ronald Reagan into the mid-1980s. IMHO, the United States, nay, the entire world would have been a different, more peaceful place had Bobby Kennedy been allowed to live and fulfill his destiny. But evil men took his life and we have all suffered for it. Here is a well-written remembrance of RFK's death. 06/06/2007. Add CommentPermalink
F*** It, We're Doing Five Blades!The Onion is a quirky satire site that every now and again puts out a masterpiece. Fuck Everything, We're Doing Five Blades is sheer genius. Best piece of satire I've read all year, hands down. Funny thing, my good friend Randy talks exactly in the voice that the article puts into the mouth of James Kilts, CEO of Gillette. I can just hear Randy saying, "Shut up, I'm telling you what happened--the bastards went to four blades. Now we're standing around with our cocks in our hands, selling three blades and a strip." Such a vivid and lively use of the English language. 05/30/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Best New Term of the Month The British press has a sensational style with words that I enjoy. A recent article calls Shaha Ali Riza, Paul Wolfowitz's Arab mistress, a "neoconcubine"! I love it. They also call the late Rev. Jerry Falwell a "theocon". Link. 05/20/2007. Add CommentPermalink
BoGo Light A former Marine / Navy pilot, foreign service officer, and oil executive came up with a simple and extremely useful way to help the poor in rural villages without electricity (where billions of humans in the world live). He created a cheap solar powered flashlight bringing light to the darkness without the need for burning fuel, the BoGo Light. It's great on so many levels. The light means greater security against thieves, the ability for children to study at night, reduced smoke in the house resulting in better air quality, and reduced greenhouse emissions. Even better, when you buy one from the organization, they donate a light to someone in need. Hey, I was without power for extended periods twice last summer. Unfortunately, I'm sure this gadget will come in handy. 05/20/2007. Add CommentPermalink
A Funny Thing Happened ... at the Republican debate in South Carolina, somebody told the truth! Rudy Giuliani was appalled. Fox News apoplectic. "Rep. Ron Paul recite[d] the reasons for Arab and Islamic resentment of the United States, including 10 years of bombing and sanctions that brought death to thousands of Iraqis after the Gulf War." Link. Rep. Paul of Texas was speaking of blowback. The CIA studies it and accepts the premise as real but US politicians, by and large, ignore the consequences of our foreign policy and military actions. We've been bombarded with Bush-speak propaganda for the last 7 years. This departure from reality has become the norm for the entire Republican party. Thus, the Republican elite are suitably scandalized when one of their own dares speak the truth. Bravo Rep. Paul. 05/19/2007. Comments (1)Permalink
'Clean and Articulate' "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy ... I mean, that's a storybook, man." Sen. Joseph Biden, (D-Conn), January 2007 on Sen. Obama. Has every other black male Sen. Biden encountered over decades in politics been a cross between Al Sharpton and Jules from Pulp Fiction? Guess he never met Kwasi Imfume or Bill Gray or Colin Powell or J.C. Watts. Biden must not get around much. What irks me about Biden (and others who spout the same garbage) is their implication that Sen. Obama isn't really black. Too clean and articulate to really be black. I want Hillary Clinton to get out of the way. The MTV generation is over this but selected old fucks like Biden are still clueless. It's time for a black man who defies racial stereotypes to stand on the national stage bringing light to such ignorance. Shout out to my friends over at cleanandarticulate.com who have turned the Biden gaffe into the raison d'etre for a web site. Great idea. 04/25/2007. Add CommentPermalink
The Brits Knew Their Sailors Were in Disputed Waters We've heard outrage from British officials claiming to high heaven that their captured sailors were in Iraqi waters. Funny thing, Iraqi Brigadier-General Hakim Jassim in charge of the waters in question states: “We were informed by Iraqi fishermen . . . that there were British gunboats in an area that is out of Iraqi control. ... 'We don’t know why they were there.'” timesonline.com. “'The problem is that nobody knows where the border is,' said Lawrence Potter, a professor of international affairs at Columbia University, New York. ... British officials have long been aware of the area’s potential navigational hazards. In June 2004 eight sailors and marine commandos were seized in a similar incident when Tehran accused them of straying into Iranian waters." In the prior incident, the seized British troops were released after three days. What a joke. The British put their sailors into disputed Iranian waters hoping to spark a war. The Iraqis (our supposed allies) know the deal and are backing the Iranians in the dispute. Link to more info. 04/02/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Retired Air Force Chief of Staff Merrill McPeak on why he is backing Obama in 2008: "He is refreshingly intelligent after having the village idiot in the White House [the last six years]." Link.
Anti-War Christians March on White House "Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq." Link. 222 of the marchers were arrested in front of the White House for crossing a police line and fined $100. "Civil rights historian Taylor Branch said it is important for churches to be leaders in the anti-war movement. 'It seems to me sad that Christians so easily have put aside our core beliefs, that we love our enemies and we do not believe in violence.'" Link. Jesus said, "Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. * * * Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God." Matt. 5:5,9. 03/17/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Israeli Ambassador Found Bound In S&M Gear Local police found Israel's ambassador to El Salvador drunk and naked in the front yard of his villa. The ambassador was also handcuffed and gagged with a rubber ball in his mouth said sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity owing to the sensitivity of the 'very embarrassing' affair. Link to story. I can't even come up with a funny tag line for this one. The story is bizarre enough all on its own. 03/12/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Latin Americans Protest Bush Visit For those who have never read Wonkette, I like her shtick. She blogs on the intersection between sex and politics. My gig is religion, sex and politics ... am I the only one who sees those three topics as compatible? Anyway, here is a link to a classic Wonkette piece (pun intended). 03/09/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Ralph Fiennes at 35,000 Feet! I've never really been a fan of Ralph Fiennes as a leading man type. He makes the best impression on me as an evil character actor such as his role in the Harry Potter series. Now comes the dirt from former Qantas stewardess Lisa Robertson on an encounter with Fiennes in the lavatory of a flight from Darwin to Bombay. Ms. Robertson goes into exquisite detail, including unprotected sex, and the romp in Ralph's hotel after the flight landed. Ms. Robertson lost her job over the incident. As for Ralph, after multiple episodes of unprotected sex, he went on to speak at an AIDS conference in Bombay. Showed the article to wife and her comment: "he's an ass!" That might be a tad harsh (unattached consenting adults in this case) but maybe there's a reason Ralph plays the evil rolls best. 02/18/2007. Comments (2)Permalink
Scooter Is Toast Scooter is going down. No Dick Cheney taking the stand in defense of his aide. No Scooter testifying to save his own bacon. The defense presented was lame: I was too busy to remember stuff so I wasn't really lying to the grand jury ... just forgetful. Not a snowball's chance in hell of this flying. The evidence presented by the prosecution made it clear that Cheney was obsessed with sucking the air out of the Amb. Wilson Niger yellowcake story and he tasked Libby as the bag man for this job. Libby will be convicted next week. 3-4 months for sentencing. Then 1 year for the appeal. Mark it down: spring of 2008 W Bush pardons Libby. Can you say Caspar Weinberger? And don't tell me it's not a big deal that Libby lied to the grand jury about where he learned of the status of Valerie Plame as a CIA agent. The facts indicate he got this info from VP Dick Cheney and lied to the grand jury to protect Cheney. Bill Clinton was impeached for lying in a civil deposition about getting a hummer from a tart (OK, lots of hummers). The Libby-Cheney-Wilson-Plame thing is, at it's core, about the campaign of deception orchestrated by Cheney that wrongly led a nation to war. 02/16/2007. Update. Just got the word: Libby found guilty on 4 of 5 counts. What took the jury so long? I'll stick with my prediction: W. Bush pardons Libby in the Spring of 2008. 03/6/2007. Add CommentPermalink
MLK On America As World's Policeman I never tire of watching re-runs of Martin Luther King speeches. As an orator, there's no one who can hold a candle to him before or since. But the power is not just in the delivery, it's the depth of the message that ultimately bowls you over. Wife and I caught the following during an MLK special on public television this evening: "Don't let anybody make you think God chose America as his divine messianic force to be a sort of policeman of the whole world. God has a way of standing before the nations with justice and it seems I can hear God saying to America 'you are too arrogant, and if you don't change your ways, I will rise up and break the backbone of your power, and I will place it in the hands of a nation that doesn't even know my name. Be still and know that I'm God.'" Link. Dr. King made this statement in reference to the Vietnam War in 1967; however, it seems Dr. King also foresaw the presidency of George W. Bush. Awesome insight. 01/15/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Bush Presidential Bus Going Over The Cliff It has become painfully obvious that W. Bush is no more than a neocon puppet dancing on the end of strings. There is no other rational explanation available for why a president would doggedly pursue expansion of the Iraq war against strong public opinion (new poll: 70% against troop increase), a solid majority in Congress, the wishes of the Iraqi government (In Baghdad, Bush Policy Is Met With Resentment), and his own military. Even staunch Republican Col. Oliver North said on Fox that "on his recent trip to Baghdad 'nearly all' U.S. troops opposed escalating the war in Iraq. They told North, 'We don't need more American troops; we need more Iraqi troops.'" Link to story and clip. Bush's approval rating now stands at 32%, approaching Nixonian levels. If the Democrats running Congress thought they could work with Bush, they're mistaken. The guy is determined not only to continue his middle east war but expand it. Iran will be bombed extensively before Bush leaves office. Congress needs to pull the gloves off and gird itself for a bare knuckles brawl. Please lord, let them have the stomach for it. 01/12/2007. Add CommentPermalink
MSNBC's Scarborough blasts O'Reilly In case you missed it, a low intensity guerilla war has been simmering between maniacal Bill O'Reilly of Fox and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann. Olbermann Countdown link. O'Reilly, who refuses even to utter Olbermann's name when attacking the man, has launched a jihad against NBC and all its affiliates. This comes on the heals of his annual crusade against the anti-Christmas forces. Former Republican Congressman Joe Scarborough, an MSNBC host, had the following retort for O'Reilly on his charge of liberalism: "[I challenge O'Reilly] to find one thing I have said on this program over the past year that is not consistent with the conservative congressman who was against military adventurism when I was in Congress, that was against exploding deficits, that was against reckless spending, and was against turning Congress into the type of swamp that we Republicans have turned it into over the past six years. ... That makes you a suck-up if you defend the Republicans that have done that to this country and to our party over the past six years." Link to story. Bush and his Nazi-style allies such as O'Reilly have completely lost moderate Republicans such as Scarborough. Absent massive voter fraud, the Bush wing of the Republican party will be absolutely pummeled in 2008. I can't wait! 01/07/2007. Add CommentPermalink
Rehnquist Was A Druggie FBI documents released through recent Freedom of Information Act requests indicate that the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist was at one time dependent on Placidyl, a strong prescription painkiller, he took for insomnia and back pain. The dependence apparently lasted from the early 1970s through to 1981 when doctors at George Washington University Hospital discovered the dependence and gradually weaned him off of it. "One physician whose name is blocked out told the FBI that Rehnquist expressed 'bizarre ideas and outrageous thoughts. He imagined, for example, that there was a CIA plot against him.' The doctor said Rehnquist 'had also gone to the lobby in his pajamas in order to try to escape.' The doctor said Rehnquist's delirium was consistent with him suddenly stopping his apparent daily dose of 1400 milligrams of the drug -- nearly three times higher than the 500-milligram maximum recommended by physicians." Law.com story. How does a guy like this get confirmed to be chief justice of the United States Supreme Court? He was confirmed in 1986 at time when his decade long drug addiction was certainly known to Congress. Amazing! 01/03/2007. Add CommentPermalink
No Tears For Ford I'll be shedding no tears during the funeral of former president Gerald Ford. He was a calm and respectful man, commodities in short supply among Washington politicians these days. But he served on the Warren Commission that whitewashed the John Kennedy assassination. Then there was the pardon of Richard Nixon. It set a horrible precedent for presidential pardons of political crooks such as George H.W. Bush's pardon of former defense secretary Caspar Weinberg in the Iran Contra Affair. Should Scooter Libby be convicted in the Valerie Plame Affair in 2007, might not W. Bush follow the Ford precedent and pardon Libby? I'd bet the house on it. But the most disturbing Ford legacy to my mind is to be found in his appointees: (a) Dick Cheney--chief of staff, (b) Donald Rumsfeld--secretary of defense, and (c) George H.W. Bush--CIA director. We shall know ye by their fruit. The fruit springing from Ford was rotten and damaged the country greatly well after his departure from office. Good riddance Gerry Ford. 12/29/2006. Add CommentPermalink
The Death of Two Young Army Captains The bodies, both American and Iraqi, continue to accumulate in the desert. When I run across news stories about the lives and deaths of our soldiers, I take special note. Capt. Jeffrey "Toz" Toczylowski (Army Special Forces) was notable for the degree of planning he put into his own funeral arrangements. Everything from the script of an email to be sent to friends and family notifying all of his death to a $100,000 blowout party in Las Vegas paid for by his estate. Story. Captain Travis Patriquin's death caught my eye due to the simple yet insightful powerpoint presentation he created on how to deal with the Iraqi insurgency. His idea: instead of training Iraqi army units to go out and kill their fellow citizens, dump our resources into local Iraqi police units drawn from the neighborhoods they shall protect. When the US entered Iraq to topple the regime, there was no plan to deal with an insurgency. Criminal negligence by Donald Rumsfeld. All subsequent ad hoc plans developed by the Pentagon have been rubbish. The situation gets worse, not better, with each passing day. The one workable plan I have seen to deal with the insurgency was created by a guy recently killed by said insurgency. How ironic. 12/18/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Obama on MNF Brilliant promo for Obama and Monday Night Football playing off of the hype surrounding Obama's unannounced candidacy for President. Check out the clip. Hilary, be afraid. This guy will be unstoppable in 2008. It'll be a two horse race. Any other Dem candidate who thinks he has any kind of shot in 2008 is smoking something. 12/18/2006. Add CommentPermalink
U.K. Fraud Office Drops Investigation of Saudi Arms Sales UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) dropped a three-year investigation into allegations that members of the Saudi royal family were bribed as part of a sale of fighter jets to that country. Link. Saudi Arabia had threatened to cancel the $20 billion dollar weapons order if the investigation were not stopped. In a statement read by Attorney General Lord Goldsmith the SFO said the decision to drop the investigation was made for national security reasons with "No weight given to commercial interests or to the national economic interest." 9000 jobs in Lancashire were in jeopardy if this deal fell through. Amazing how Lord Goldsmith can keep a straight face while lying through his teeth. Is this guy a Republican? 12/14/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Dean v. Carville--The Dem Smackdown James Carville, the CNN talking head and erstwhile Clinton campaign advisor, made this curious comment about DNC Chair Howard Dean on the night the stunning Democratic sweep to power in both the House and Senate this November: "leadership that was Rumsfeldian in its incompetence". Come again James? On the surface, Carville (the husband of Republican strategist Mary Matlin) is attacking Dean for his strategy of building up the party in all 50 states as opposed to pumping all available resources into contested congressional races. John Dickerson wrote an article in Slate attempting to dissect the merits of each side of the argument. Link. IMHO, Mr. Dickerson and the MSM are missing the boat in this squabble. This has nothing to do with campaign tactics and everything to do with the soul of the Democratic party: i.e., the centrists (the Clintons, Carville, Rahm Emanuel, et alia) v. the progressives (Dean, Obama, Feingold, et alia). Carville and his people see their power / influence waning and Jimmy the mouth is whining about it. This is an important story and I, for one, wish the MSM would cover it. 11/24/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Obama Stands Tall On Iraq Sen. Barak Obama (D-IL) gave a speech today in Chicago opposing sending more troops to Iraq and calling for a timetable for withdrawal of the bulk of our troops: "Our best hope for success is to * * * exert the greatest leverage we have on the Iraqi government – a phased redeployment of U.S. troops from Iraq on a timetable that would begin in four to six months. * * * Such a timetable may now need to begin in 2007, but begin it must. For only through this phased redeployment can we send a clear message to the Iraqi factions that the U.S. is not going to hold together this country indefinitely – that it will be up to them to form a viable government that can effectively run and secure Iraq." Link. Bravo Senator Obama! He has boldly stepped out in front of Senator Clinton to lead on this issue. I also note from his web site that he has Introduced Legislation to Criminalize Election-Day Fraud. Excellent! 11/20/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Only In America--Tyson & Fleiss Hook Up Like a retired thoroughbred horse, 40-year-old Mike Tyson has signed on to be a stud (aka male escort) at Heidi Fleiss's Nevada whore house for women patrons. Story. Mike has been the world heavy weight champion, married (and divorced) an actress, gone to prison, and been through bankruptcy. Mike on his new gig: "I don't care what any man says, it's every man's dream to please every woman - and get paid for it." Whatever you say Mike. Keep the positive outlook when Rosanne Barr shows up at the ranch to be pleasured by you! 11/17/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Abizaid Plays It Coy On The Hill General John P. Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington today. He gave neither political party what it was looking for. Essentially he stuck with the old Bush line, "stay the course". In response to Democratic calls to set a time line to begin US troop withdrawals within six months, the General refused to commit saying only that troop strength should be re-evaluated in 4-6 months. In response to Republican calls to increase troop levels in Iraq, the General said "I do not believe that more American troops right now is the solution to the problem." The second point was significant though. The need for more troops would have been a tough sell on a wary American public without the commander on the scene telling Congress that more troops is not "the solution to the problem." Put that in your pipe and smoke it McCain. Link. 11/15/2006. Add CommentPermalink
Democrats Poised to Flex New Muscles? That is the title to an article appearing in the Wall Street Journal this morning. The WSJ is the bible of the old money elite wing of the Republican Party. The President still holds his veto pen so the Democrats cannot legislate on their own. At best, they hold back the Bush agenda and negotiate with the President to pass a few of their own priorities (an increase in the minimum wage might be something doable). What really has right wingers worried is the prospect of Congressional hearings into the many outrages of the Bush Administration that have not seen the proper light of day: i.e., the pre-war intelligence failure on Iraq, the no-bid contracts in Iraq, the poor response to Katrina, the windfall given to oil companies pumping oil from offshore on the west coast of the USA, et cetera. IMHO, the slim Dem majority in the Senate means less probing Senate committee hearings. I'll put my money on two incoming committee chairmen in the House to shed much needed light on the darkness of the last 6 years: Henry Waxman (D-Cali.) and John Conyers (D-Mich.). Go get 'em boys! 11-10-2006. Add CommentPermalink
'Major Combat Operations Have Ended'? It is a fitting time to reflect upon a quote from President Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003: "[M]y fellow Americans: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed. (Applause.) And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country." Link. The US military death toll in Iraq for October 2006 hit 100 (with two days left in the month), the third highest monthly total since the US invaded Iraq. Link. A study by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health estimates that 600,000 Iraqis have died since March 2003 as a result of the US invasion of Iraq. 10-30-2006. Add CommentPermalink.
What a cute couple. This young lady surely seems to enjoy meeting Santino Rice of Project Runway fame during his recent appearance in St. Louis. And but for one small fact, I just might be happy for this lady's brush with celebrity: it's my wife! Hey wife, back off Santino. And don't give me the tired "he's gay" excuse. 10-26-2006. Add CommentPermalink.
Why the Smile Charlie Brown? Forgive me for talking baseball but my beloved Cardinals just defeated the New York Mets to win the National League crown and advance to the World Series. The unlikely hero at the plate for the Cardinals was young Yadier Molina, a career .238 hitter with only 16 career homeruns in nearly 1000 ABs. My boy went yard on the Mets setup man Aaron Heilman to win game 7 for the Cardinals. Best blog quote on Molina post homerun: "He grinned like Charlie Brown after sex!"Dan at getupbaby.net. How does one contemplate such an anology? Did Lucy finally give it up? 9-20-2006. Add CommentPermalink.
Big Waves. It's decided. In the next life, I shall come back as a surfer. Just watched part of the surf documentary Riding Giants. The third act focuses on big wave legend and former model Laird Hamilton (now married to Gabie Reece, the model-volleyball player). For guys like Hamilton, surfing is not a sport (he refuses to enter organized competitions) but a way of life, a religion. Their god is the monster wave. And the only way to commune with this god is to ride the wave. Captivating, inspiring. Here is footage of Hamilton on a famous day in 2000 riding killer waves at Teaupoo in Tahiti. More Hamilton surfing footage is available at his web site. 9-16-2006. Add CommentPermalink
Dog Chapman Arrested. I admit to being a fan of the cable TV show "Dog the Bounty Hunter". How can one not? First you have the larger than life "Dog" Chapman: the shaggy mullet, the native American heritage, former vacuum cleaner salesman, former substance abuser, the pro wrester build, demeanor and attire. And the Dog's wife? Beth: blonde with freakishly large boobs and a sharp tongue. Son Leland: part Hawaiian, good looking young man who rounds out the crew. Example of Dog drama: The night before Dog and Beth were to wed, Dog skipped the rehearsal to catch a bail jumper only to learn, on his return, that one of his daughters had been killed in a car accident in Alaska. Dog came to prominence in Mexico capturing a convicted rapist (millionaire heir Andrew Luster). The Mexicans refused to arrest Luster so, in 2003, Dog took matters into his own hands. Luster is now in jail in California. Unfortunately, this violated Mexican law and the Mexicans are still pissed about it. Mexico seeks to extradite Dog, Leland and a 3rd member of their posse for prosecution. Link. 9-15-2006. Add CommentPermalink
The inevitable finally happens. I've enjoyed watching the ebullient Aussie, Steve Irwin (aka "the crocodile hunter") over the years. His quirky humor was infectious but the underlying danger of the stunts kept us coming back. Whether it was facing down a charging bull croc or holding a huge black mamba by the tail, Steve always escaped by the narrowest of margins ... but one knew the odds would eventually come up craps for Mr. Irwin. So it was today. What shocked me was not that he died but how he died: swimming on top of a stingray. Having encountered stingrays in the Caribbean, one is told to stay away from the top side of a ray for they reflexively flip their barbed tails over their back to strike as a defense mechanism. These are, by and large, harmless creatures who have to be provoked to strike. Link to story. The above picture is of a famous incident from a few years back where Irwin took his then infant son into the pen with him to confront a croc. 9-4-2006. Add CommentPermalink
Osama obsessed with Whitney Houston? Sudanese-American writer Kola Boof claims she was bin Laden's sex slave for four months 10 years ago. That's interesting enough on its own. But Kola has more for us: Osama was obsessed by Whitney Houston, wanted to kill Bobby Brown and make Whitney his wife. Another item from Ms. Boof: "In [Osama's] briefcase I would come across photographs of the Star magazine, as well as copies of Playboy." Link to story. More info on Kola Boof and link to a more flattering pic. It would be easy enough to laugh off the claims by Ms. Boof; however, a fatawa was issued against her by an Islamic court in Sudan of death by beheading and the fatawa was announced by a high level Sudanese diplomat in London. Link to story. Why would the Sudanese government have such interest in a little known female writer? It does lend credibility to her story. 8-22-2006. Add CommentPermalink
Bush: "get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit". Link to Bush quotes. As of the last body count, Israel has killed 209 in Lebanon and 55 Palestinians in Gaza while Hezbollah killed 24 in Israel. Despite Israel killing six times as many Lebanese and Palestinians as Israelis deaths, the Decider in Chief sees the issue in simple terms. It's all Hezbollah's fault. A UN Security Counsel vote condemning excessive use of force by Israel in Lebanon was 10-1 against Israel. The lone vote with Israel? The US which vetoed the measure. Tell me again the Israeli lobby does not have complete control over the foreign policy agenda of the Bush White House. 7-17-2006. Comments (2)Permalink
Crocodile Monitor Loose in St. Louis. 17-year-old Zane Donaho saved up $500 to buy his dream pet. To his mother's distress, Zane ordered a rare 4 1/2' crocodile monitor lizard over the internet. They can grow to 7', the world's longest. Wouldn't you know, the cage Zane built for the beast wasn't quite strong enough. The lizard has been spotted close to his home in the Compton Heights neighborhood apparently living off the land (or the neighborhood dogs). Wife, don't worry. We have Grand Avenue between us and this creature. The motorists on Grand have picked off grandmas, kids, and a blind person (unfortunately, no joke on the blind person). Surely they can bag a lizard. Story from St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 7-3-2006. Comments (2)Permalink. Upate: Six weeks after it's escape, the fugitive Crocodile Lizard was found in the Compton Heights neighborhood about 1/4 mile from whence it escaped. Officials say the lizard looks well fed ... hum, on what? Zane Donaho wants his pet back but mom has overruled the teenager. The St. Louis Zoo is the creature's likely home. Story. 8-10-2006.
Sorry honey, did that hurt? "A minister's wife charged with murdering her husband told police she shot him after they argued over family finances and then told him 'I'm sorry' as he lay dying in their bedroom." Link. She shot her husband with his 12-gauge pump-action shotgun kept in the closet. Note to self: Don't argue with wife about money while a loaded, unlocked shotgun lays close at hand. 7-2-2006. Add CommentPermalinkUpdate: Mary Winkler eventually spent all of 67 days in jail for the shotgun killing of her husband. Personally, I think justice has been served.
Zarqawi--US Created Boogie Man. "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was a little-known Jordanian petty criminal until denounced by [US Secretary of State Colin Powell before the UN Security Council] in 2003 as an insurgent leader of great importance. His [US created] status enabled him to recruit men and raise money to wage a cruel war, mostly against Iraqi civilians." Link. In truth, there was no evidence that Zarqawi even belonged to al Qaeda in 2003. This guy was an uneducated nobody--not a religious leader, not of high birth (see bin Laden)--who possessed zero ability to built a large, well funded terrorist organization. By picking Zarqawi out of the crowd of Islamist thugs (calling themselves holy warriors) who rushed to Iraq in the wake of the US invasion, we empowered him to commit his atrocities against unarmed civilians. 6-11-2006. Add CommentPermalink
It's Larry Flint on the line Ms. Dupre Life is good for Ms. Ashley Alexandra Dupre. Not so for Mr. Eliot Spitzer. But is anybody shedding tears for Spitz? One day, 
Monday Hoe Down Here a hoe, there a hoe, every government official has a hoe!
Fuck, I'm Black! I knew there was something wrong. Now I know what the problem is--my DNA says I came from Africa. The curly hair, the summer tan, the thing for dark babes. I should have known. That's right, I'm black. 
Mrs. Clemens on the juice Some people are born knowing how to lie 
Latino vote carries Hillary The Kennedy girls came out for Barack in California but this was not enough to overcome Hillary's 2-1 support from Latinos in California. 
As my wife is Kenyan, friends and family have asked for thoughts on the situation there. 
The story is just too inhumane to even make jest of ... yet the darkness, the absurdity of it all is gripping. Former warlord Joshua Milton Blahyi, now a born-again Christian, appeared recently to testify before the national truth commission in Liberia's capital. Blahyi commanded the "Butt Naked Battalion" which reported killed 25,000 people during the civil war. "His Butt Naked Battalion consisted of drunk and drugged teens and boys who went into battle in flowing dresses, colorful wigs and dainty purses looted from civilians." 
Kiss Kiss Abdullah "Help me Obi Wan Abdullah, you're my only hope!" W Bush goes to Saudis on bended knee, kissing ass, beggin' for lower oil prices. In his f'ed up mind, if the US just had lower oil prices, all would be right. Forget the massive current account deficit, budget deficit, and sub-prime loan debacle. Oh, then there is that messy war in Iraq. Oil rules. Oil makes or breaks the economy (in Bush's world). If all was right with the economy, then the Republicans would not get their skulls smashed against the sidewalk in November of 2008. Keep kissing them toads George. It won't matter. The voters are plenty pissed off and pay back is a bitch. 01/16/2008. 
In the last polls taken before yesterday's New Hampshire vote in the Democratic primary, Barack Obama held a 12 point lead over Hillary Clinton. Magically, within a day, he lost by 3 points. How do 15 percentage points disappear in a day? They don't. New Hampshire largely votes using the hackable Diebold voting machines. Diebold is a neocon controlled organization (jjray's opinion). Without a major news story to account for the swing, statistically, only a few percentage point swing from the polls to the actual vote is possible. Multiple polls confirmed the validity of Barack's poll numbers. Barack was robbed, plain and simple. Brad Blog is the best source out there on the voting scandal in America. 
Hey, Look At Me, I'm Talkin' To Musharraf And You Ain't Americans are notoriously superficial. But John Edwards has gone over the fence with his form over substance shtick. Fine, you look something like a modern day Jack Kennedy. Whoopi! Yeah, we heard all about your wife dying of cancer. And why again are you still running for president as your wife slowly dies? Question: what is at the heart of this candidacy? Which brings us to the Musharraf telephone call. Upon the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan, what's Edwards' first thought? Obviously, it was "how do I spin this to help my campaign?" Second thought: give a shout out to President Musharraf and then brag to the people in Iowa how cool and presidential I am that I talked to Musharraf at a time of crisis. Everyone agrees Musharraf stole the last election in Pakistan through massive fraud. The Pakistani people hate him. But John Edwards finds the guy useful as a campaign prop. Very presidential John.
What is the overriding theme of the Edwards campaign? If one squawks like a duck 
Dodd Stands Tall Senate Majority Leader Reed (D. NV) caved in to the Bush Administration and the large telecoms by handing them retroactive immunity for domestic spying in his proposed FISA bill. One senator stood in the door and said, "not on my watch". That man is Chris Dodd. "For the last six years, our largest telecom companies have been spying on their own American customers," said Senator Christopher Dodd of Connecticut. He returned to Washington from the campaign trail in Iowa vowing to filibuster the FISA bill so long as it contained immunity to the telecoms for their participation in warrantless spying by the Bush Administration. The mere threat was enough to compel Reed to stand down. 
Saving the Catalog Trees Caught a nice segment on NPR's 'All Things Considered' yesterday about 
This week, the truth: "Officials blamed a wildfire that consumed more than 38,000 acres and destroyed 21 homes last week on a boy playing with matches, and said they would ask a prosecutor to consider the case." 
Still think George Bush won the 2004 election? I have heard my friends on the right say that, although the 2000 presidential election in Florida was wacky, it's clear the country elected George Bush in 2004 so get over it. But when one examines the exit polling from Ohio in the 2004 versus the actually county by county tallies, it becomes a near mathematical certainty that the 2004 election was stolen by George Bush just as was the case with 2000. The absolute best breakdown of the issue comes from Prof. Steve Freeman of University of Pennsylvania. Brad at 
Clarence Has A Book Out What do I think of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas? Let me attempt this delicately with political correctness: IMHO the man's entire legal career is built upon playing house negro to powerful white people and corporations. Here is the poster child of a minority who got ahead based more upon the color of his skin than merit. What did he do when he got to the top? Everything in his power to rip out the helping hands from the system, thereby denying to other minorities that which had greased his way up the ladder. I'm not sure how anyone who watched the Senate testimony of the composed, dignified Anita Hill could fail to believe her version of events over the career lackey (aka Clarence Thomas). Our boy Clarence has a new book out vilifying Anita Hill and the media that printed her story. Here is 
The Fake Surge The so-called troop surge is an illusion. The fiction is that the President is putting more troops into Iraq and this shall magically do something positive for the Iraqi people. Stop sectarian violence or some such drivel. In December of 2004, there were 177,000 coalition troops in Iraq. In December of 2005, 178,000. This number dropped to 146,000 in December 2006. Right now, under the surge, there are 173,000 coalition troops in Iraq. The surge number is less than the high point for both 2004 and 2005. There is no surge. See 
Cronyism and Incompetence, a Bush Hallmark First there was FEMA chief Michael D. "heck of a job Brownie" Brown and his botched handling of the federal response to hurricane Katrina. Prior to his appointment as head of FEMA, Mr. Brown was a politically connected do-nothing with no real job skills applicable to a job of this magnitude. The list is long and distinguished so I'll just pull a few off the top of my head. Next we have US Forest Service chief Mark Rey who is about to be held in contempt by a US District Court Judge for failing to properly analyze the potential environmental harm of using ammonium phosphate to put out forest fires. The chemical is thought to kill fish. The US Forest Service has essential ignored prior orders from the court in this case. US mine safety chief Richard Stickler is a Bush classic. Knowing Stickler, an industry hack, would never get Senate confirmation, Bush made a recess appointment bypassing Congress. The recent collapse in Utah happened in a mine using a risky mining technique which maximizes coal production at the expense of worker safety. Stickler's federal mine safety organization approved the risky plan for the Utah mine before the collapse. Stickler was on site in Utah overseeing the rescue effort when three more workers were killed trying to save / recover their colleagues trapped by the earlier failure. 
Off The Obama Wagon I'm off the Obama bandwagon and not even a lap dance from 
No End In Sight Charles Ferguson created the Front Page software later sold to Microsoft for a boat full of cash. Now he makes documentary films of social import. Booya Charles! His first film, 
Chairman of the Young Republicans National Federation Investigated For Faliciating Sleeping Colleague Sometimes I wish I was just making this shit up it's so sick. Until this report surfaced, Glenn Murphy was the head of the 
Gonzo Finally Stirs DOJ To Action Not since the Nixon Administration has the executive branch of government perpetrated this level of illegal activity. I'm not even sure Nixon was this pervasive. From the steam rolling of the Hatch Act, to voter caging, to political hits on government prosecutors, to illegal domestic spying, to secret overseas prisons in violation of the Geneva Convention. We won't even get into the Haliburton and Blackwater contracts in Iraq. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez, through it all, has chosen to sit motionless with his thumb deposited firmly up his anus proclaiming to see no evil. DOJ has launched no serious investigation of the executive branch of government since the confirmation of Gonzo. But wait, Gonzo is finally on the move. He has the FBI dogging a 
Cheney Is a Machine! "Vice President Dick Cheney, who has a history of heart problems, had surgery Saturday to replace an implanted device that monitors his heartbeat. Doctors ... replaced the defibrillator, a sealed unit that includes a battery." 
Claws of Hillary and Barak Begin To Show In case you haven't noticed, I hate the presidential candidacy of Hillary Rodham Clinton. She's Newt Gingrich-light in drag. I loved the way her husband ran the country (lying about blow jobs aside) but the Hillster just panders to the crowd way too much for my tastes. She makes kiss-kiss with the evangelicals. She cheered the boys on to war in Iraq never to regret her vote authorizing the Titanic monstrosity our involvement in that country has become. For her, the problem in Iraq is tactics (not the stupidity of going there in the first place). She sat on the board of Walmart. And why again did she fail to divorce Bill after the Monica shit? Enough said. Which brings me to the 
The Last Tango The Last Tango In Paris (1972) starred 19-year-old Maria Schneider opposite 48-year-old Marlon Brando. The sex scenes were so intense for their day that the movie was banned in many countries. We know what became of Marlon (he got fat and went insane) but what about Maria? 
D.C. Madam Bags A Senator The DC madam (Deborah Jeane Palfrey) recently published a portion of her phone records on the internet. That’s where 
Crime, What Crime? Let's review. Scooter Libby disclosed the name of an uncover CIA agent working on nuclear proliferation to the press and then lied about it to the FBI and a federal grand jury. The leak compromised not just Ms. Plame but the entire uncover CIA operation she was part of. This constitutes disclosure of national security information. Prior to the Libby conviction, this is what the administration had to say about the situation:
Surge to Hell April, May and June of 2007 were collectively the three deadliest months for US troops in the whole of the Iraq War. See 
Cubs Fans Aren't Taking It Anymore! Forgive me for digressing on the topic of baseball. It's tough being a Chicago Cubs fan. First off, the team generally sucks. Then there's that curse of the billygoat thing which has conflagrated into the now famous 
The Dark Side--Cheney's Long Reach Great 
Powell Drifting Away From Republicans In an 
39 Years Ago Today Today happens to be my birthday ... unfortunately, it's been more than 39 years. The newspapers on June 6 invariably mention the great Normandy invasion that happened this day in 1944 during the height of WWII. But another historical event from June 6th has greater significance for our world today: the death Robert Kennedy. President John Kennedy, Dr. Martin Luther King, and Senator Robert Kennedy were the three main actors working to solve the ills of our nation. Robert Kennedy was the last of those three standing as the summer of 1968 dawned. He had just won the California Democratic presidential primary and was primed to beat Humphrey at the convention. Robert Kennedy would have defeated shifty Dick Nixon as his brother had done before him. President Robert Kennedy would have immediately yanked our troops out of Vietnam in 1969 and accelerated implementation of the new civil rights laws. Rapprochement with Cuba? Gotta believe it would have happened. Hell, the entire cold war would have come to a screeching halt in the early 70s instead of being milked by Ronald Reagan into the mid-1980s. IMHO, the United States, nay, the entire world would have been a different, more peaceful place had Bobby Kennedy been allowed to live and fulfill his destiny. But evil men took his life and we have all suffered for it. Here is a 
F*** It, We're Doing Five Blades! The Onion is a quirky satire site that every now and again puts out a masterpiece. 
Best New Term of the Month The British press has a sensational style with words that I enjoy. A recent article calls Shaha Ali Riza, Paul Wolfowitz's Arab mistress, a "neoconcubine"! I love it. They also call the late Rev. Jerry Falwell a "theocon". 
A Funny Thing Happened ... at the Republican debate in South Carolina, somebody told the truth! Rudy Giuliani was appalled. Fox News apoplectic. "Rep. Ron Paul recite[d] the reasons for Arab and Islamic resentment of the United States, including 10 years of bombing and sanctions that brought death to thousands of Iraqis after the Gulf War." 
'Clean and Articulate' "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy ... I mean, that's a storybook, man." Sen. Joseph Biden, (D-Conn), January 2007 on Sen. Obama. Has every other black male Sen. Biden encountered over decades in politics been a cross between Al Sharpton and Jules from Pulp Fiction? Guess he never met Kwasi Imfume or Bill Gray or Colin Powell or J.C. Watts. Biden must not get around much. What irks me about Biden (and others who spout the same garbage) is their implication that Sen. Obama isn't really black. Too clean and articulate to really be black. I want Hillary Clinton to get out of the way. The MTV generation is over this but selected old fucks like Biden are still clueless. It's time for a black man who defies racial stereotypes to stand on the national stage bringing light to such ignorance. Shout out to my friends over at 
The Brits Knew Their Sailors Were in Disputed Waters We've heard outrage from British officials claiming to high heaven that their captured sailors were in Iraqi waters. Funny thing, Iraqi Brigadier-General Hakim Jassim in charge of the waters in question states: “We were informed by Iraqi fishermen . . . that there were British gunboats in an area that is out of Iraqi control. ... 'We don’t know why they were there.'” 
Anti-War Christians March on White House "Thousands of Christians prayed for peace at an anti-war service Friday night at the Washington National Cathedral, kicking off a weekend of protests around the country to mark the fourth anniversary of the war in Iraq." 
Israeli Ambassador Found Bound In S&M Gear Local police found Israel's ambassador to El Salvador drunk and naked in the front yard of his villa. The ambassador was also handcuffed and gagged with a rubber ball in his mouth said sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity owing to the sensitivity of the 'very embarrassing' affair. 
Latin Americans Protest Bush Visit For those who have never read Wonkette, I like her shtick. She blogs on the intersection between sex and politics. My gig is religion, sex and politics ... am I the only one who sees those three topics as compatible? Anyway, here is a 
Ralph Fiennes at 35,000 Feet! I've never really been a fan of Ralph Fiennes as a leading man type. He makes the best impression on me as an evil character actor such as his role in the Harry Potter series. Now comes the 
Scooter Is Toast Scooter is going down. No Dick Cheney taking the stand in defense of his aide. No Scooter testifying to save his own bacon. The defense presented was lame: I was too busy to remember stuff so I wasn't really lying to the grand jury ... just forgetful. Not a snowball's chance in hell of this flying. The evidence presented by the prosecution made it clear that Cheney was obsessed with sucking the air out of the Amb. Wilson Niger yellowcake story and he tasked Libby as the bag man for this job. Libby will be convicted next week. 3-4 months for sentencing. Then 1 year for the appeal. Mark it down: spring of 2008 W Bush pardons Libby. Can you say Caspar Weinberger? And don't tell me it's not a big deal that Libby lied to the grand jury about where he learned of the status of Valerie Plame as a CIA agent. The facts indicate he got this info from VP Dick Cheney and lied to the grand jury to protect Cheney. Bill Clinton was impeached for lying in a civil deposition about getting a hummer from a tart (OK, lots of hummers). The Libby-Cheney-Wilson-Plame thing is, at it's core, about the campaign of deception orchestrated by Cheney that wrongly led a nation to war. 02/16/2007. Update. Just got the word: Libby found guilty on 4 of 5 counts. What took the jury so long? I'll stick with my prediction: W. Bush pardons Libby in the Spring of 2008. 03/6/2007. 
MLK On America As World's Policeman I never tire of watching re-runs of Martin Luther King speeches. As an orator, there's no one who can hold a candle to him before or since. But the power is not just in the delivery, it's the depth of the message that ultimately bowls you over. Wife and I caught the following during an MLK special on public television this evening: "Don't let anybody make you think God chose America as his divine messianic force to be a sort of policeman of the whole world. God has a way of standing before the nations with justice and it seems I can hear God saying to America 'you are too arrogant, and if you don't change your ways, I will rise up and break the backbone of your power, and I will place it in the hands of a nation that doesn't even know my name. Be still and know that I'm God.'" 
Bush Presidential Bus Going Over The Cliff It has become painfully obvious that W. Bush is no more than a neocon puppet dancing on the end of strings. There is no other rational explanation available for why a president would doggedly pursue expansion of the Iraq war against strong public opinion (
MSNBC's Scarborough blasts O'Reilly In case you missed it, a low intensity guerilla war has been simmering between maniacal Bill O'Reilly of Fox and MSNBC's Keith Olbermann. 
Rehnquist Was A Druggie FBI documents released through recent Freedom of Information Act requests indicate that the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist was at one time dependent on Placidyl, a strong prescription painkiller, he took for insomnia and back pain. The dependence apparently lasted from the early 1970s through to 1981 when doctors at George Washington University Hospital discovered the dependence and gradually weaned him off of it. "One physician whose name is blocked out told the FBI that Rehnquist expressed 'bizarre ideas and outrageous thoughts. He imagined, for example, that there was a CIA plot against him.' The doctor said Rehnquist 'had also gone to the lobby in his pajamas in order to try to escape.' The doctor said Rehnquist's delirium was consistent with him suddenly stopping his apparent daily dose of 1400 milligrams of the drug -- nearly three times higher than the 500-milligram maximum recommended by physicians." 
No Tears For Ford I'll be shedding no tears during the funeral of former president Gerald Ford. He was a calm and respectful man, commodities in short supply among Washington politicians these days. But he served on the Warren Commission that whitewashed the John Kennedy assassination. Then there was the pardon of Richard Nixon. It set a horrible precedent for presidential pardons of political crooks such as George H.W. Bush's pardon of former defense secretary Caspar Weinberg in the Iran Contra Affair. Should Scooter Libby be convicted in the Valerie Plame Affair in 2007, might not W. Bush follow the Ford precedent and pardon Libby? I'd bet the house on it. But the most disturbing Ford legacy to my mind is to be found in his appointees: (a) Dick Cheney--chief of staff, (b) Donald Rumsfeld--secretary of defense, and (c) George H.W. Bush--CIA director. We shall know ye by their fruit. The fruit springing from Ford was rotten and damaged the country greatly well after his departure from office. Good riddance Gerry Ford. 12/29/2006. 
The Death of Two Young Army Captains The bodies, both American and Iraqi, continue to accumulate in the desert. When I run across news stories about the lives and deaths of our soldiers, I take special note. Capt. Jeffrey "Toz" Toczylowski (Army Special Forces) was notable for the degree of planning he put into his own funeral arrangements. Everything from the script of an email to be sent to friends and family notifying all of his death to a $100,000 blowout party in Las Vegas paid for by his estate. 
Obama on MNF Brilliant promo for Obama and Monday Night Football playing off of the hype surrounding Obama's unannounced candidacy for President. 
U.K. Fraud Office Drops Investigation of Saudi Arms Sales UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) dropped a three-year investigation into allegations that members of the Saudi royal family were bribed as part of a sale of fighter jets to that country. 
Dean v. Carville--The Dem Smackdown James Carville, the CNN talking head and erstwhile Clinton campaign advisor, made this curious comment about DNC Chair Howard Dean on the night the stunning Democratic sweep to power in both the House and Senate this November: "leadership that was Rumsfeldian in its incompetence". Come again James? On the surface, Carville (the husband of Republican strategist Mary Matlin) is attacking Dean for his strategy of building up the party in all 50 states as opposed to pumping all available resources into contested congressional races. John Dickerson wrote an article in Slate attempting to dissect the merits of each side of the argument. 
Obama Stands Tall On Iraq Sen. Barak Obama (D-IL) gave a speech today in Chicago opposing sending more troops to Iraq and calling for a timetable for withdrawal of the bulk of our troops: "Our best hope for success is to * * * exert the greatest leverage we have on the Iraqi government – a phased redeployment of U.S. troops from Iraq on a timetable that would begin in four to six months. * * * Such a timetable may now need to begin in 2007, but begin it must. For only through this phased redeployment can we send a clear message to the Iraqi factions that the U.S. is not going to hold together this country indefinitely – that it will be up to them to form a viable government that can effectively run and secure Iraq." 
Only In America--Tyson & Fleiss Hook Up Like a retired thoroughbred horse, 40-year-old Mike Tyson has signed on to be a stud (aka male escort) at Heidi Fleiss's Nevada whore house for women patrons. 
Abizaid Plays It Coy On The Hill General John P. Abizaid, the top U.S. commander in the Middle East, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington today. He gave neither political party what it was looking for. Essentially he stuck with the old Bush line, "stay the course". In response to Democratic calls to set a time line to begin US troop withdrawals within six months, the General refused to commit saying only that troop strength should be re-evaluated in 4-6 months. In response to Republican calls to increase troop levels in Iraq, the General said "I do not believe that more American troops right now is the solution to the problem." The second point was significant though. The need for more troops would have been a tough sell on a wary American public without the commander on the scene telling Congress that more troops is not "the solution to the problem." Put that in your pipe and smoke it McCain. 
Democrats Poised to Flex New Muscles? That is the 
'Major Combat Operations Have Ended'? It is a fitting time to reflect upon a quote from President Bush's "Mission Accomplished" speech aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln on May 1, 2003: "[M]y fellow Americans: Major combat operations in Iraq have ended. In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed. (Applause.) And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that country." 
What a cute couple. This young lady surely seems to enjoy meeting 
Why the Smile Charlie Brown? Forgive me for talking baseball but my beloved Cardinals just defeated the New York Mets to win the National League crown and advance to the World Series. The unlikely hero at the plate for the Cardinals was young Yadier Molina, a career .238 hitter with only 16 career homeruns in nearly 1000 ABs. My boy went yard on the Mets setup man Aaron Heilman to win game 7 for the Cardinals. Best blog quote on Molina post homerun: "He grinned like Charlie Brown after sex!" 
Big Waves. It's decided. In the next life, I shall come back as a surfer. Just watched part of the surf documentary 
Dog Chapman Arrested. I admit to being a fan of the cable TV show "Dog the Bounty Hunter". How can one not? First you have the larger than life "Dog" Chapman: the shaggy mullet, the native American heritage, former vacuum cleaner salesman, former substance abuser, the pro wrester build, demeanor and attire. And the Dog's wife? Beth: blonde with freakishly large boobs and a sharp tongue. Son Leland: part Hawaiian, good looking young man who rounds out the crew. Example of Dog drama: The night before Dog and Beth were to wed, Dog skipped the rehearsal to catch a bail jumper only to learn, on his return, that one of his daughters had been killed in a car accident in Alaska. Dog came to prominence in Mexico capturing a convicted rapist (millionaire heir Andrew Luster). The Mexicans refused to arrest Luster so, in 2003, Dog took matters into his own hands. Luster is now in jail in California. Unfortunately, this violated Mexican law and the Mexicans are still pissed about it. Mexico seeks to extradite Dog, Leland and a 3rd member of their posse for prosecution. 
Amateur Video: the World Trade Center on 911. I ran across 
The inevitable finally happens. I've enjoyed watching the ebullient Aussie, Steve Irwin (aka "the crocodile hunter") over the years. His quirky humor was infectious but the underlying danger of the stunts kept us coming back. Whether it was facing down a charging bull croc or holding a huge black mamba by the tail, Steve always escaped by the narrowest of margins ... but one knew the odds would eventually come up craps for Mr. Irwin. So it was today. What shocked me was not that he died but how he died: swimming on top of a stingray. Having encountered stingrays in the Caribbean, one is told to stay away from the top side of a ray for they reflexively flip their barbed tails over their back to strike as a defense mechanism. These are, by and large, harmless creatures who have to be provoked to strike. 
Osama obsessed with Whitney Houston? Sudanese-American writer Kola Boof claims she was bin Laden's sex slave for four months 10 years ago. That's interesting enough on its own. But Kola has more for us: Osama was obsessed by Whitney Houston, wanted to kill Bobby Brown and make Whitney his wife. Another item from Ms. Boof: "In [Osama's] briefcase I would come across photographs of the Star magazine, as well as copies of Playboy." 
Bush: "get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit". 
Crocodile Monitor Loose in St. Louis. 17-year-old Zane Donaho saved up $500 to buy his dream pet. To his mother's distress, Zane ordered a rare 4 1/2' crocodile monitor lizard over the internet. They can grow to 7', the world's longest. Wouldn't you know, the cage Zane built for the beast wasn't quite strong enough. The lizard has been spotted close to his home in the Compton Heights neighborhood apparently living off the land (or the neighborhood dogs). Wife, don't worry. We have Grand Avenue between us and this creature. The motorists on Grand have picked off grandmas, kids, and a blind person (unfortunately, no joke on the blind person). Surely they can bag a lizard. Story from St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 7-3-2006. 
Sorry honey, did that hurt? "A minister's wife charged with murdering her husband told police she shot him after they argued over family finances and then told him 'I'm sorry' as he lay dying in their bedroom." 
Zarqawi--US Created Boogie Man. "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was a little-known Jordanian petty criminal until denounced by [US Secretary of State Colin Powell before the UN Security Council] in 2003 as an insurgent leader of great importance. His [US created] status enabled him to recruit men and raise money to wage a cruel war, mostly against Iraqi civilians." 
