Totenberg hits back

Nina Totenberg had a piece about Dick Cheney on Morning Edition today.

Totenberg describes Cheney's political role: "In this campaign Dick Cheney is the hitman, whose task is to discredit the Democratic presidential candidate. It's an assignment he's carries out with a monotoned zeal."

She also mentioned Rick Lyman's recent article (below) in The New York Times about his attempt to cover Cheney which was made difficult because the Bush/Cheney Campaign has not allowed a reporter from The New York Times on Cheney's campaign jet.

From: The New York Times (free registration required)

Desperately Seeking Dick Cheney
By RICK LYMAN

OREGON CITY, Ore. -- They say that most stalkers imagine themselves to be the victim, and I guess I'm no different.

My first look at Vice President Dick Cheney was from a baking lawn on Ellis Island as he made his grand entrance into New York on a National Park Service tugboat, waving to the sweating crowd. I was just part of the small pack of reporters watching as he posed before the backdrop of Lower Manhattan, my first day on Cheney duty.

The vice president travels on Air Force Two, a tech-packed wide-body with private areas in the front, a Secret Service buffer in the middle and a media cabin in the back. A crew of about 10 reporters flies with him, representing all the networks, the wire services and two or three newspapers. There are snacks, cable television and camaraderie.

But there is not a seat for me.

Nor has there been a seat for the previous two New York Times reporters sent to cover the vice president. I am told not to take this personally. Nor, I am told, is this intended as a slight against the paper, which normally maintains a seat (paid for handsomely) on all campaign planes, presidential and vice-presidential.

Frankly, there are some colleagues who suspect that antipathy toward the newspaper may be behind it. Anne Womack, the vice president's chief spokeswoman, says such suspicions are baseless. There simply are not enough seats for all of the press, and other publications got their names on the list before us. If someone drops out, they'll let me know.
[more]

Don't expect Totenberg or Lyman to be invited aboard that jet anytime soon.

Bush apologist calls for pullout of American troops

This is a war, and there should be no limits for our troops to winning it!

As much as I have supported the war in Iraq (my brother just went over two days ago for his second tour) I have found that I don't even care about the Iraqi people anymore. I voted for George W. Bush in 2000 and I will do so again in November but I don't think the Iraqi people are worth one American life and sometimes I really wish we would withdraw our troops and be done with the place. Let those ungrateful, hateful people self-destruct. I'm just sick of it.

I'm sick of the liberals whining and crying about Abu Ghraib while ignoring the massacre of innocent children in Beslan and the beheadings of innocent men who were kidnapped and slaughtered. The enemy we face doesn't wear a uniform. The enemy we face murders innocent people with pleasure. In fact the innocent are targeted! And yet the only bitching I?ve read from most libs is how our soldiers are killing innocents in Iraq. Can they not see their own hypocrisy? We don?t target innocent civilians but in all war such causalities happen and it?s always unfortunate and sad. The difference is that terrorists HUNT the innocent and rejoice at their destruction. Who do you defend? I say take them out before they take us out...and always remember who struck first.
© 2004 Donna Schoenrock aka Nativeborn

Who struck first? It seems to me that the United States decided to invade and occupy Iraq in the name of regime change (or was it WMD or 9/11 or Saddam is evil). The United States waged an illegal war after failing to win the support of the rest of the world. Now they are having a harder time trying to establish a foothold in the Middle East because the Iraqis are using any means necessary to fight back. Do I think it is right for Iraqi insurgents to take and kill hostages? Absolutely not. But is it right for the United States military to fire rockets into a crowd of civilians or to torture prisoners of war? No.

Those of us who have oppsed this war from the instant that Washington started suggesting it have nothing that we have to explain away. We have been pointing out that Iraq was not involved in the 9/11/2001 attacks. We have said from the beginning that Saddam was no immediate threat to the United States or Western Europe. You call us hypocrites? Ms Pro-Life says, "take them out before they take us out," yet she calls us hypocrites.

"Who do you defend?" she asks. Well, one can't really defend murderers on either side. I think that the world has a duty to defend the civilians of Iraq. They have gone from being ruled by a brutal dictator to being invaded by the Imperial West and they have seen their cities destroyed and their neighbors killed.

Mrs. Schoenrock also posted a link to video of the latest beheading. A shocked Amy Proctor commented that the web site on which beheading video is hosted "is full of porn and perversion". Really?! I replied that a video of a beheading is itself pornography. My comment was quickly deleted.

Anyhow, Donna writes, "I really wish we would withdraw our troops and be done with the place. Let those ungrateful, hateful people self-destruct." Ungrateful? What do they have to be grafetful for? Before March 2003 they could walk to the market without dodging bullets. Their children had schools to go to. They could lead relatively normal lives. Now they live with an occupying army. There are bombs exploding around them. Thousands of civilians have been killed. I'm sure many Iraqis would be happy to see the Americans leave.

Home again

I'm back.

I had another long drive yesterday from Indiana to central Pennsylvania. The weather was beautiful; clear blue sky for as far as one could see and a comfortable 65 to 70° F. The trip was pretty much uneventful for nearly 600 miles until I got about 30 miles from home.

It was about 9:30pm and I had to decide whether to go over the mountains or through the valley. The mountain route is bit shorter but the road winds and you go through a bunch of small towns so I chose to go through the valley. The road is as straight as any road in this state and runs though a state forest and Amish farmland. I had gone through the only town on the route and the speed limit went back up to 55 mph. I was cruising along closer to 60 and I came over a small hill and noticed that something did not look right up ahead. The double yellow line in the middle of the road seemed to have a gap in it. I slowed down and before I knew it I came face to face with a black horse standing in the middle of the road. I swerved around it and then I saw a car in a ditch to my right. I stopped my car, flashed my headlights at an oncoming vehicle to warn him and then got out to help.

As I went towards the car an Amish farmer met me and asked if I could call 911. He was about half a foot shorter than me. The old farmer wore grey beard, black pants and vest, a straw hat and he spoke with a Pennsylvania Dutch accent. He told me the address for the 911 operator and said that there were two people hurt and one trapped in the car. I relayed the information to the operator, she took my cell phone number and said that that help was on the way.

Apparently there were three horses tied to fence near the house and they got loose and wandered onto the road. The other car hit two of them. One was on its side a few feet from the crumpled car. One of the Amish boys was talking to it in Pennsylvania Dutch and he kept patting and stroking the horse.

There were about six or seven of the Amish boys already on the scene. two or three were assisting the people in the car, two were tending to the injured horses and two were trying to get the other horse off of the road. I don't know what I would have done had I come upon the scene and was the first one there. I did not know exactly where I was and I am not very good with blood; and there was a lot of it. The woman in the car was covered in blood but she was alert and asked for a blanket, which one of the boys went to get.

The EMTs and fireman got there in about five minutes and took over. I got back in my car, a bit shaken, and made my way home.

My sojourn to the Midwest

I spent my day driving to the Midwest. Five hours of my nine hour trip I was trekking accross the cold reainy Buckeye State. If bumper stickers are any indication I'd say that Ohio is pretty evenly split between Kerry and Bush. Ohio might even be first in bumper stickers per capita.

Two cars with bumper stickers stuck out. One was a lemon curd yellow '80s model Buick with the trunk tied shut. It was driven by a guy who sort of looked like Jerry Garcia and was sporting a big blue bumper sticker that read "Dennis J Kucinich". I thought that one was fitting.

The other was an early '90s Chevy Cavalier driven by a man in his late 20s. The car was dented and rusting and apparently the defrost did not work because all of the windows were fogged. This guy had three Bush/Cheney stickers on the back of it. I was trying to thnk why this guy might be a Bush supporter. Does he support Bush's tax policies? Does he think that Dubya was chosen by "The Almighty"? I kind of hope it's the latter, I'd have an easier time accepting that. But I have a feeling that it is the former. Even though he will probably never earn enough to benefit from Bush tax cuts. But then he is probably one of those guys who doesn't want to work overtime for $12/hour instead of his normal $8/hour because "they take out too much in taxes". I have never understood that.

I also listened to Rush Limbaugh for three hours today. That is the first time in years that I've listened to him. He's not as funny as he used to be.

Some other observations:

• Is Ohio the only state that does not have a rectangular flag?


• Why do old guys on Harleys insist on riding on the middle line?


• Do all fast food restaurants in Ohio have signs on their doors asking patrons not to bring firearms inside? If the sign wasn't there would Ohioans assume that it is acceptable to have a gun in a restaurant?


• I saw the Weinermobile on the interstate. It's not as big as I thougt it was.

America (the book)

Jon Stewart and The Daily Show have a new book out. If it is half as funny as the show will enjoy reading it.

Makes a great xmas gift ;-)

Among the topics:

• Ancient Rome: The First Republicans


• The Founding Fathers: Young, Gifted, and White


• The President: King of Democracy


• The Supreme Court: 18 Legs, Four Tits, One Mission


• Running for Office: What Are You Thinking?


• The Media: Can It Be Stopped?


• The Future of Democracy: The Constitutional Robocracy and You!

Thou shalt not speak ill of Dubya

This is just priceless. The police handcuffed and hauled away this grieving mother.

(In the name of compassionate conservatism.)

First Lady's Speech Interrupted By Dead Soldier's Mother
Woman Blames Bush For Son's Death

HAMILTON, N.J. -- First lady Laura Bush made a campaign stop in New Jersey Thursday.

The visit comes as her husband, President George W. Bush, gains strength against John Kerry in the Garden State.

"There is a lot of intrigue with this race in New Jersey. Imagine if we were competing at full throttle, and that's why the first lady came here today," said Sen. Joseph Kyrillos Jr., chairman of New Jersey's Republican party.

The firehouse trip was a first visit by Bush/Cheney campaign to New Jersey that wasn't a fund-raising event.

The visit didn't go exactly as planned. One woman was arrested and removed from the event.

Bush talked about more tax relief for businesses, healthcare reform and defeating terrorism. Many people in the crowd had lost relatives on Sept. 11, 2001.

"It's for our country, and our children and our grandchildren that we do the hard work of confronting terror and promoting democracy," Bush said.

[more]

Assault weapons on TDS

"There's good news for anybody looking to kill lots of people quickly!"

watch video

• "Why can't cops look at the reintroduction of assault weapons as a challenge; an opporunity to dodge faster bullets."


• "IRONY people!"


• "AK forty-schmeven"


• "If you have an assault weapon you don't need to make sense."


• "Really relaxing to squeeze off a few, Jon...oh yeah...I fired my gun too."

Featuring Senior Armament and Ordinance Analyst Stephen Colbert

Army: killing civilians "clearly within (its) rights"

from LA Times:

Army Defends Baghdad Battle That Left 16 Dead

• Helicopters targeted insurgents opening fire near a damaged military vehicle, U.S. officials say.

By Patrick J. McDonnell, Times Staff Writer

BAGHDAD -- U.S. commanders acknowledged Wednesday that their helicopters fired seven rockets and 30 high-caliber machine-gun rounds onto a crowded Baghdad street this week during a battle that killed 16 Iraqis and sparked a heated debate about how civilians often become the victims of U.S. firepower.

Army officials said the helicopter attack was an appropriate response to insurgents firing on U.S. soldiers from the vicinity of a Bradley fighting vehicle, which had been set ablaze by a suicide car bomb.

"The actions taken by our soldiers and pilots were clearly within their rights," said Maj. Gen. Peter Chiarelli, commander of the Army's 1st Cavalry Division, which patrols Baghdad.
[more] free subscription required

How do you defend firing rockets at civilians in the street?

Even worse, they go on to say that it was necessary to disperse the crowd so that they did not loot the Bradley fighting vehicle. So in the US Army's book one Bradley fighting vehicle is worth at least 16 Iraqi lives (plus injuries to 61 others).

Site of the Day

TRUTH BE TOLD
Commentary From A Thinking Individual

Johnny joins Joey and Dee Dee

Punk guitarist Johnny Ramone dies

Johnny Ramone had battled cancer for five years
Johnny Ramone, guitarist in punk band The Ramones, has died at the age of 55 following a long fight against cancer.

He passed away at his Los Angeles home on Wednesday, surrounded by friends and family, said the band's artistic director Arturo Vega.

Johnny Ramone, real name John Cummings, battled prostate cancer for five years.
[more]

"God bless President Bush, and God bless America"
--Johnny Ramone, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 2002

John Kerry: job creator

Kerry Hires Ala. Woman Fired for Sticker

DETROIT - Democrat John Kerry has a new campaign worker helping him drum up support in Alabama after hiring a woman who was fired for displaying the presidential candidate's bumper sticker on her car.

Kerry called Lynne Gobbell on Tuesday after reading a newspaper story describing how she had been fired last Thursday from her job packing cellulose insulation at a Moulton, Ala., plant.

Gobbell said her former employer had told her she could either work for him or Kerry. She said Kerry told her, "Let him know that as of today, you're working for John Kerry.
(more)

I think that is one more job than Dubya has created.

John Kerry: terrorist-loving baby killer

I think that our friends on the right secretly like looking at pictures of dead babies and children. Why else would they keep linking to pictures of them?

From our old pal Donna:

Where's your outrage libs?

OMG!
Pupils tell of siege hell
And the left refers to these EVIL terrorists as freedom fighters? This is unconscionable! Then there's John Kerry who says we should have a "sensitive war on terror"! Are these "EVIL THINGS" sensitive to the innocent when they rape and murder young girls and bayonet a six-year-old boy in the throat because he dares to ask for water? How would John Kerry feel if his two daughters were among the raped, tortured and mutilated? Do you really think we can negotiate with terrorists? Why would you want to?!

Hmmmm...

"And the left refers to these EVIL terrorists as freedom fighters?"

What??

It was the REAGAN Administration who sold arms to Iran to fund "freedom fighters" in Nicaragua. Those "freedom fighters" who became a CIA-trained army of terror and killed tens of thousands of people.

It was the REAGAN Administration who funded and trained those "freedom fighters" in Afghanistan (including Osama bin Laden).

The US Army runs the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation training camp. The former School of the Americas has trained many terrorists.

"Then there's John Kerry who says we should have a 'sensitive war on terror'!"

Kerry actually said, "I believe I can fight a more effective, more thoughtful, more strategic, more proactive, more sensitive war on terror that reaches out to other nations and brings them to our side and lives up to American values in history."

Effective? Thoughtful? Strateg(er)ic? Proactive? Hmmm?


I wanted to comment on the post directly but comments are not open on it. From past experience they would have been deleted anyhow. Also from past experience she'll accuse me of harassing her and "Hubby" will leave a comment for me.

'I'm Batman'

I'm Batman

'Batman' protest at palace
By Justin Davenport and Robert Jobson, Evening Standard
13 September 2004

A protester dressed as Batman breached Buckingham Palace security today.


Jason Hatch, 33, from Gloucester, managed to reach a ledge beside a balcony despite the presence of armed guards, said the group.

Fathers 4 Justice. After climbing a fence at the side of the palace courtyard, dodging police and highly sophisticated alarms and cameras, he crossed the palace courtyard and scaled the walls of the building using a ladder. A second-protester, Dave Pyke, dressed as Robin, tried to join Mr Hatch but climbed down when police threatened to shoot him.
more

SLC Punk

...gets visit from Secret Service because of his bumper sticker.

Things getting sticky for owner of sticker
By Matthew D. LaPlante
The Salt Lake Tribune

Derek Kjar is not the president's biggest fan.
But the 19-year-old Salt Lake County man says he does not intend to harm President Bush with anything more than a vote for John Kerry come November.
Just to be sure, though, agents from the Secret Service recently paid Kjar a visit, telling him that his neighbors had alerted them to a potentially threatening bumper sticker on his car.
The sticker, which can be found on a number of Web sites, features a black-and-white likeness of Bush, a crown tilted slightly on his head. Under the image are the words "KING GEORGE - OFF WITH HIS HEAD."
Glen Passey, agent in charge of the Secret Service's Salt Lake City office, would not confirm that agents visited Kjar.
But Passey said his office investigates all threats against the president.
"Oh, please," said David Hudson, a research attorney who works for the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University. "It's political hyperbole. However distasteful you might think it is, it's pure political speech."

Quote du jour

"Wherever the standard of freedom and independence has been or shall be unfurled, there will her heart, her benedictions and her prayers be. But she [America] goes not abroad in search of monsters to destroy."
-- John Quincy Adams, Independence Day Address, 1821

One of the new entries in the 2004 edition of Oxford Dictionary of Quotations.

Jimmy the Cab Driver

MoveOn.org recently released some new ads. I like the Jimmy the Cab Driver series written by and starring Donal Logue. I thought that the cab driver character was hilarious in the old MTV promos, but these ads are a much better use of his talents.

• Ad 1


• Ad 2


• Ad 3

New Look

After two years of black and blue and and extremely screwed up code I switched to one of the standard Blogger templates. Bleh.

Fetus Update

We had another ultrasound visit today. We requested a different perinatologist this time and it made a big difference.

The VSD is still present as is the spot on the heart. The kidney problem seems to have corrected itself.

The difference this time was the doctor. The first doctor was a woman who was all business and no people skills. The doctor we saw today is an older man who was very friendly and reassuring. He said that all of the findings above are markers for Down's Syndrome but that he thinks the odds are against it.

We have three more months to go. No more ultrasounds; just visits with the midwife.

A blast from the past

My Movabletype db blew up (or something) so I have brought back my old faithful Blogger.

I will try to get this thing up to date in the next week or so. Until then you're stuck with this.

Quote du jour

"Too many OB-GYNs aren't able to practice their...their love with women all across this country."
-- George Dubya Bush, Sept 6, 2004

Quotes for today

"All that serves labor serves the nation. All that harms is treason..... if a man tells you he loves America, yet hates labor, he is a liar.... There is no America without labor, and to fleece one is to rob the other."

-- Abraham Lincoln




"No business which depends for existence on paying less than living wages to its workers has any right to continue in this country"

-- Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 1933

September Saturdays

...are for football.

I spent the day at Penn State for their game against Akron. Below are some photos (click on each to enlarge).



The first is some whacko guy with a bloody cross preaching outside of Beaver Stadium. He was positioned near another guy that was handing out free Penn State football schedules that had Bush/Cheney on the back. Even at a college football game you can't escape politics and religion.

The middle photo is the view from our seats during the Blue Band's pregame show,

The last photo shows a trumpeter in the Akron band who uses a wheelchair. I don't know how he plays and maneuvers the chair at the same time.

Penn State won 48-10. This looked like a Penn State team of old, except for a few needless personal fouls. The Phillies also won today. Lidle pitched his second straight shutout.

New Blog

I finally took the time to install Movable Type yesterday. I will leave this blog up but new posts will be at:

http://www.conniptions.net

come visit.

Bush's America...

where the rich get richer...

Internal Revenue Service statistics as presented by Steve Brouwer in Robbing Us Blind: The Return of the Bush Gang and the Mugging of America, Common Courage Press, 2004

Redistribution of Income	1970s	2000s
Richest 1%	9.3% of all US income	20.8% of all US income
Bottom 90% (the rest of us)	67% of all US income	52% of all US income

...and the rest of us pay for it.

BushCo admits no WMD

From nytimes.com:

White House Shows Less Certainty Now on Iraq's Arms

By JAMES RISEN

Published: January 27, 2004

WASHINGTON, Jan. 26 — The White House began to back away on Monday from its assertions that Iraq had illegal weapons, saying it now wanted to compare prewar intelligence assessments with what may be actually found there.

The evolving position followed criticism of the intelligence reports about Iraq from the C.I.A.'s former chief weapons inspector, David A. Kay, comments that increased pressure on the C.I.A. and intensified the political debate in Washington over who was responsible for shaping the prewar intelligence that President Bush used to justify toppling Saddam Hussein.

While Republican leaders have focused on the C.I.A. and how it gathered intelligence, Democrats have called for a close look at how the White House used that information.

On Monday White House officials were no longer asserting that stockpiles of banned weapons would eventually be found.
more

Vincent Simmons

I watched part of a documentary called The Farm on Sundance today. One section struck me. It was about a man, Vincent Simmons, sentenced to 100 years of hard labor for two rapes that he denies committing. There is nothing unusual about an inmate claiming that he was wrongly convincted but I believe him.

The scene is of Mr. Simmons's first parole hearing after 20 years in prison. He is brought in before the board, they ask him a few questions, he presents them with new evidence--the line-up photo in which he is the only one handcuffed, a doctor's report that states that the accuser was a virgin, and more--that was not revealed during his trial. As soon as he left the room the men on the board said that they had no doubt that he is guilty. They also tell his accuser that she doesn't have to worry about them letting him out.

He was also shot in the police station while he was handcuffed and he said that the officers who transported him to the prison stopped along the way and told him to get out and run. Imagine how many black men have been unjustly accused, arrested, convincted, and even executed in this country.

There is a whole film about Mr. Simmons and his case that I want to see. It is called Shadows of Doubt: The State Vs. 85188 Vincent Simmons.

Judge rules part of USA PATRIOT Act unconstitutional

Part of the USA PATRIOT Act has been ruled unconstitutional.

Part of Patriot Act Ruled Unconstitutional

By LINDA DEUTSCH, AP Special Correspondent

LOS ANGELES - A federal judge has declared unconstitutional a portion of the USA Patriot Act that bars giving expert advice or assistance to groups designated foreign terrorist organizations.

The ruling marks the first court decision to declare a part of the post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism statute unconstitutional, said David Cole, a Georgetown University law professor who argued the case on behalf of the Humanitarian Law Project.

In a ruling handed down late Friday and made available Monday, U.S. District Judge Audrey Collins said the ban on providing "expert advice or assistance" is impermissibly vague, in violation of the First and Fifth Amendments.

John Tyler, the Justice Department attorney who argued the case, had no comment and referred calls to the department press office in Washington. A message left there was not immediately returned.
(read more)

Katrina on Dubya's SOTU

"In a time of revolutionary despair, during the Great Depression and World War II, President Roosevelt gave America a vision of hope, confidence and courage and told us that we have nothing to fear but fear itself. Instead, Bush just reminded us last night that this Administration has nothing to fear but the end of fear itself."
-- Katrina vanden Heuvel, Thoughts on the SOTU

Howard Dean Remix

From NPR's Day to Day:

* Listen *

State of the Union

Dubya's State of the Union Address sounded to me like a one hour campaign ad.

We've not come all this way -- through tragedy, and trial and war -- only to falter and leave our work unfinished. Americans are rising to the tasks of history, and they expect the same from us. In their efforts, their enterprise, and their character, the American people are showing that the state of our union is confident and strong.
- as read by G.W. Bush

He told senior citizens that they will get free prescription drugs, he told small businesses that they are getting tax breaks, he said that the economy is recovering. Someone who didn't know better would think that we are better off now than we were four years ago. It just isn't true.

Activist judges have begun redefining marriage by court order, without regard for the will of the people and their elected representatives. If judges insist on forcing their arbitrary will upon the people, the only alternative left to the people would be the constitutional process.
- as read by G.W. Bush

Huh? Now we're going after those scary men in long black robes--judges. Well, only "activist" judges.

I had to go and find Kennedy's Inaugural Address from January 20, 1961. *listen* Of course the world was different then, the bogeyman then was Communism and now it is Terrorism. But listen to that speech, that is what a statesman sounds like. That speech helped to inspire a generation to public service. Has anything that Dubya said inspired anyone besides CEOs and millionaires?

Iowa Caucuses II

C-SPAN and C-SPAN2 were each televising precinct caucuses. I watched them as if they were NFL playoff games. People from non-viable groups were trying to convince others to join them in order to become viable while members of already viable groups were trying to get the non-viables to join them to get more delegates.

Pretty sad, isn't it, that I can get excited about such things. Just wait until November. In 2000 I was watching coverage until 5am. I hope that this time it isn't quite so exciting.

Iowa caucuses

I predict that John Edwards will win Iowa tonight, followed by Kerry, Dean, and Gephart.

Academic Freedom?

Now I it looks like you have to watch what you say even in the halls of academia. A professor at Penn State's Altoona campus is facing termination because she dared to speak out against the University. Welcome to John Ashcroft's America.

Professor battles to keep tenure
By Gwenn Miller
gmiller3@centredaily.com

UNIVERSITY PARK - A tenured associate professor of theater arts at Penn State Altoona is in the midst of a private battle to keep her job.

In a rare move by Penn State, closed hearings are being held this month at University Park to determine whether Nona Gerard will be given the ultimate penalty -- unemployment -- for her vocal criticisms of a Penn State program.

Gerard received a letter Aug. 11 from William Cale, dean and CEO of Penn State Altoona, outlining the charges of "failure to perform" and "grave misconduct."

The letter states that in numerous e-mail messages to various faculty members, Gerard has refused to "work positively to develop and promote the IA (integrative arts) program."

Gerard, who earned tenure in 1994, admits that she criticized aspects of Altoona's four-year integrative arts degree but said it was within her First Amendment rights and rights as a tenured faculty member to do so.
(read more)

I pledge allegiance to GOD...

I am still amused by the jesussave.us website. Today's highlight: A Godly U.S. Flag with certified vexillologist "Diamond" Jack Holgroth.

Who are these people? Why do they insist on forcing their religion on us? They can't even agree on one version of their religion. Even different groups of Baptists fight among themselves, how do they expect to unite an entire country when they cannot even get along with other christians.

Abstinence Shorts?

I was checking out a "youth rock ministry" site and found these cool abstinence shorts.

I think that are trying a bit too hard to be hip or cool or whatever "the kids" are calling it these days. But Pastor "Skeet" Hoskins does have that rockstar look.

Look at some of the phrases on the site:

• Joyful praise rocks da house!


• Rocking the world with the word!


• Jesus can rock too!


• Radically Abstinent, Saved & Saving it!

This site is almost a parody of itself. Check it out. http://objective.jesussave.us/index.html

Health Update

My doctor's office called today with my blood test results. He wants me to come back in two weeks for another blood test. One of the liver function tests (ALT) was high (64). Until then I am not allowed to have any aspirin, Tylenol, Advil, Aleve, or alcohol.

My First Mister

I watched the film My First Mister the other day on Sundance. I enjoyed it. It is not the best movie I've ever seen, but I enjoyed it.

Albert Brooks plays a 49 year old "square" and Leelee Sobieski plays a pierced and tattooed 17 year old with a strange family. The two of them become unlikely friends.

Also in the film are Michael McKean as "Bob" the stepfather, John Goodman as the pot-smoking-aged-hippie dad, and Carol Kane as the mother.

Sobieski as "J" needs to earn some spending money so she gets a job at Retail Slut. She is soon fired for having a bad attitude, so she heads to the mall to look for another job. After being denied many times she sees Brooks (as Randall) dressing a mannequin in a conservative clothing store. She finds him amusing and heads in to ask for a job. He tells her to leave because she is scaring the customers, but adds that she should go home and remove the "silverware" from her face and return in a week. She does and their relationship begins. He buys her clothes for work and she takes him to her favorite coffeehouse called Bourgeois Pig.

Powell on Iraq-Al Qaeda link:

"I have not seen smoking-gun, concrete evidence about the connection"
-- Secretary of State Colin Powell, January 8, 2003

No WMD.

No link to Al Qaeda.

Iraqis are no safer than they were a year ago.

Who me?

Yeah, I took some time off. But, now I'm back!

Not much to report. I got a new computer. I went from a PII 350Mhz to a P4 2.66Mhz. After six years it was time for an upgrade.

I still have my doctor peplexed. I was there yesterday and he ordered more blood tests. It was actually pretty painless, but I'm a wuss. I am still hyperreflexive (?) on my left side, my left leg kicks spastically when he taps my knee. I still have a tremor and occasional fatigue that lasts for days. He said he's pretty sure that it is not MS or ALS but he's sending me back to the neurologist.

So that's about it. I know that there has been lots of news to comment on but I haven't had the energy to post anything lately--maybe later this week.

Phils lose a reliever

Tug McGraw
1944-2004

Xmas-time

Sunday (today) is my yearly stint as Santa's chauffeur/elf/photographer. My brother always gets the gig as Santa, but I get to watch as the kids get so excited when they see him at their door.

A small group in my hometown finds a few needy families every year to help out at Christmas. There are usually about five families with kids and two or three elderly people to whom we deliver.

Best of all the group does not tell the recipients who is giving them the stuff and they don't get a sermon with their gifts...just a smile. What happens every autumn is that the group contacts a local agency and asks for a few families that have fallen on hard times, maybe because one of the parents has become disabled or they have had some other hardship. They also work with a local funeral director who recommends a family or two.

The women purchase clothes and some toys for the kids. They also pack boxes of groceries for each of the families. Then Santa and I pack up the car and make about seven or eight deliveries in about four or five hours. At each place he has one gift for each of the kids to open and the rest are for Christmas morning. Some parents make arrangements for us to put the gifts on a back porch or in their car so that they can surprise the children on Christmas.

I really love being Santa's helper for the day. And the women like hearing the stories after each visit.

Maybe I'll have a story or two for you when I get back.

Until then go here and listen to this Christmas story.

A-rod contract - no snow cones

The Red Sox say that the trade which would send Alex Rodriguez to Boston is off. The players' union rejected the deal because they say that contracts cannot be reworked unless it benefits the player. I guess if he takes a pay cut to go to a team with a chance of winning a World Series that does not benefit him.

Now if he would have negotiated a deal like Kirk Jones, the Niagara Falls jumper, he would have had no trouble with the union. Jones's contract "stipulates he is entitled to an unlimited supply of shaved-ice snow cones." A-rod needs an agent that could get a sweet deal like that for him.

A defeat for the Bush Administration

Big news: the government cannot hold people indefinately without charges. The only surprise was that one of the judges disagreed.

See:

Bush Overruled on 'Dirty Bomb' Suspect

By LARRY NEUMEISTER, Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK - President Bush does not have power to detain American citizen Jose Padilla, the former gang member seized on U.S. soil, as an enemy combatant, a federal appeals court ruled Thursday.

The decision, which ordered that Padilla be released from military custody within 30 days, could force the government to try the "dirty bomb" plot suspect in civilian courts. The White House said the government would seek a stay.

In a 2-1 ruling, a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Padilla's detention was not authorized by Congress and that Bush could not designate him as an enemy combatant without the authorization.
(read more)

Lyrics du jour

Political Science

No one likes us - I don't know why
We may not be perfect, but heaven knows we try
But all around even our old friends put us down
Let's drop the big one and see what happens

We give them money - But are they grateful
No, they're spiteful and they're hateful
They don't respect us - so let's surprise them
We'll drop the big one and pulverize them

Asia's crowded and Europe's too old
Africa is far too hot
And Canada is too cold
And South America stole our name
Let's drop the big one
There'll be no one to blame us

We'll save Australia
Don't wanna hurt no kangaroo
We'll build an all American amusement park there
They got surfing too

Boom goes London and boom Paree
More room for you and more room for me
And every city the whole world round
Will just be another American town
Oh how peaceful it will be
We'll set everybody free
You'll wear a Japanese kimono
And there'll be Italian shoes for me

They all hate us any how
So let's drop the big one now
Let's drop the big one now




-- Randy Newman

^{Copyright © 1969 January Music Corp.,
a division of A. Schroeder International Ltd. (BMI).}

Dubya: "The world is better off without you Mister Saddam Hussein"

Bush catch-phrases of the day

• He used the term "rape rooms" during his press conference this morning.



• And, he's back to saying "Nuke-U-lar."



• "Lessons of 9/11"



• Apparently the phrase of the day is "solemn duty."

Free phone offer extended

Accept Jesus Christ as Your Savior Before January 1, 2005 and Receive a Free Wireless Phone!

I love that. And this.

They found him...

Saddam -- check.

Weapons of mass destruction -- ummm...no.

Link to 9/11 -- nope.

False premise for starting this war -- absolutely.

So what now? I suppose that Karl Rove is planning the schedule right now. They will keep Saddam in an undisclosed, secure location for a few months, have a show trial next summer, sentence him to death, and hold a public execution in Baghdad a few weeks before next November's election.

Of course I am happy that they captured him. Maybe this will expedite the end of the US occupation, but I doubt it.

So far it has taken us nine months, the lives of 541 coalition troops, 2591 wounded coalition troops, thousands of Iraqi civilians killed as a result of the war, thousands of dead Iraqi soldiers, and the scorn of the world to catch one dictator that was supoosedly a imminent threat to the United States and Europe. Was it worth it? Was it worth it to set a precedent for "preemptive war"?

Well, we will see what happens.

Faith-based prisons?

Where? You guessed it--Florida.

There is no way that this is constitutional. The state of Florida will pay to indoctrinate prisoners in christian beliefs. Have they heard of the establishment clause of the Fisrt Amendment down there in Florida? Apparently not. What if a Muslim group wanted to take over a school district? How would that go over?

The story is below.

Florida first in U.S. to dedicate prison to faith-based program

By Jim Ash, Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

TALLAHASSEE -- Hard time will soon be hallowed time for nearly 800 Florida inmates who will be given the option of repaying their debt to society in the nation's first prison dedicated entirely to faith-based rehabilitation programs.

Gov. Jeb Bush made the surprise announcement Friday at a White House-sponsored news conference in Tampa that spotlighted President Bush's attempts to give religious organizations a greater role in solving social problems.

"I believe that when people commit violent acts, it is appropriate to enforce the laws and that people should be punished for their actions," Gov. Bush said. "But I also believe that lives can be changed. (read more)

Site of the Day

Bush Sucks

And you thought that you had a bad week...

My friend Stef went home for Thanksgiving break. She works for a retailer that has stores in both towns and usually is scheduled at the other store when she goes home. After a couple years of this arrangement the manager at the college location decided he knew nothing of it and (long story short) she was fired.

While at home with her family Stef came down with the flu.

When she returned to her apartment after Thanksgiving break she found that her door had been kicked in. Gone was most of her DVD collection and all of her liquor collection.

Then, on Wednesday she woke up with conjunctivitis.

Stef, I hope things are going better for you this week.

Site of the Day

Despair, Inc :-(

Words of wisdom...

So there, we have figured it out, go back to bed America, your government has figured out how it all transpired. Go back to bed America, your government is in control again. Here, here's American Gladiators. Watch this, shut up. Go back to bed America, here's American Gladiators. Here's 56 channels of it. Watch these pituitary retards bang their fuckin skulls together and congratulate you on living in the land of freedom. Here you go America, you are free... to do as we tell you.
-- Bill Hicks

Here's a little quiz for you...

Take this Quiz

Let me know how you do.

Free speech zones

I saw this on CBS Evening News last night

View - Real Video 2:49
(excuse the commercial at the beginning)

This story really got me angry. I think this has more to do with politics than security. Why are all of those flag-waving Bush supporters allowed to have signs and line the streets? Because the news will show how much everyone loves the president. Meanwhile dissenters are rounded up and penned in somewhere where nobody will see them.

In 1992 when Poppy Bush visited Penn State they did not allow usin the main area but we were fenced off to the side. At least we were in the same area, not on the other side of campus. Even the guy in the chicken suit was allowed in (Poppy refused to debate Clinton, so the chicken man was following him).

The "free speech zone" is just another example of the Bu$hCo doublespeak--Clear Skies Initiative, Clean Water Act, Preservation of Open Competition and Government Neutrality Towards Government Contractors' Labor Relations on Federal and Federally Funded Construction Projects, No Child Left Behind, etc. And they complained about the Clinton Administration using focus groups. Every Bush appearance is scripted and produced to look good on television.

[Listening to: I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash - Hits (02:41)]

Snow = Bad

[Listening to: Big Fat Woman - Leadbelly - Huddie Ledbetter - Leadbelly (01:21)]

In monkey news...

BBC: monkeys not only think, they think about thinking!

I'm back...

I was at my parents' house all last week. I am happy to be back here sleeping in my own bed and in a cat-free home.

They got a new computer ( I also talked them into broadband) a few months ago and they wanted to network the two computers. I ordered a wireless router and a USB adapter for the old computer so that they could just plug it in and be ready to go. Well, this ten-minute project took me two days due to several factors; I'll spare you the details.

We ended up installing a NIC and running a cable through the floor; this involved drilling, borrowing a drill and a drill bit. Anyhow, they now have two computers connected to the internet.

My sister and her family went away for the whole week so it was just me and my parents. I got her back because her five-year-old has a birthday next week so I got him a drum. That'll show her.

[Listening to: Galaxy 500 - Reverend Horton Heat - Like A Rocket (album) (03:17)]

Friday

Just a friendly reminder that Friday is Buy Nothing Day

Photo of the Day

Protesters toppling a statue George W. Bush in Trafalgar Square, London.

I guess that means that the protesters win! The American people are free from the oppression of the Bushists.

Perle: Iraq invasion Illegal

More evidence that the Bush Administration believes that it is above the law:

War critics astonished as US hawk admits invasion was illegal

Oliver Burkeman and Julian Borger in Washington
Thursday November 20, 2003
The Guardian

International lawyers and anti-war campaigners reacted with astonishment yesterday after the influential Pentagon hawk Richard Perle conceded that the invasion of Iraq had been illegal.

In a startling break with the official White House and Downing Street lines, Mr Perle told an audience in London: "I think in this case international law stood in the way of doing the right thing."

President George Bush has consistently argued that the war was legal either because of existing UN security council resolutions on Iraq - also the British government's publicly stated view - or as an act of self-defence permitted by international law.

But Mr Perle, a key member of the defence policy board, which advises the US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, said that "international law ... would have required us to leave Saddam Hussein alone", and this would have been morally unacceptable. (read more)

...and that they continually lie to the American people and the world.

Ashcroft-style democray in Iraq

From fairandbalanced.us:

Iraqi arrested for criticising U.S
Tue 11 November, 2003 10:46

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - American soldiers handcuffed and firmly wrapped masking tape around an Iraqi man's mouth after they arrested him for speaking out against occupation troops.

Asked why the man had been arrested and put into the back of a Humvee vehicle on Tahrir Square, the commanding officer told Reuters at the scene on Tuesday: "This man has been detained for making anti-coalition statements."

He refused to say what the man said. (read more)

Bushy tails

Dubya will be wearing a rented tuxedo at the State Dinner with Queen Elizabeth tonight.

Now that's classy!

He's known about this for over a year I think he could have gotten a tux of his own in that time.

Whose values?

I saw Reverend Louis Sheldon from the Traditional Values Coalition being interviewed on CNN or MSNBC this morning. He has got to be one of the most hateful men I've ever seen.

How can these men who claim to be spreading the word of Jesus be so full of hate.

Gay marriage ban ruled unconstitutional

My position has long been that homosexual couples should have the same rights and benefits as married heterosexual couples as long as they have made a legal partnership or union. The problem is that there are very few places that allow such unions.

Today's ruling by the Massachusetts Supreme Court that it is unconstitutional to ban same-sex marriages goes one step closer to giving homosexual couples the same rights as the rest of us.


From BBC:

Massachusetts backs gay marriage

The US state of Massachusetts has ruled that same-sex couples are legally entitled to marry.

Massachusetts could become the first state to recognise gay marriage.

But the Supreme Judicial Court stopped short of ordering that marriage licences be issued to seven gay couples who challenged the law.

Gay marriage is banned in the US, but one state, Vermont, has enacted a law which gives same-sex couples the rights of traditional marriages.

The Massachusetts court ruled that barring same-sex couples from the benefits of civil marriage was "unconstitutional." (read more)

Bush II: a Jeffersonian?

"After decades of a dictator's sustained assault on Iraq's society and dignity and spirit, a Jeffersonian democracy will not spring up in a matter of months" --George W. Bush, 2003 Veterans Day speech to the Heritage Foundation

Does Dubya even know what Jeffersonian democracy is? I really doubt it. Mister Jefferson is surely spinning in his grave at the notion of Bush invoking his name.

Jeffersonians wanted a federal government with limited powers, a respect for civil liberties, and that placed power in the hands of the average citizens and small family farmers (not the wealthy and aristocratic). Jefferson also favored an isolationist foreign policy and a small military.

• "The presumption of dictating to an independent nation the form of its government is so arrogant, so atrocious, that indignation as well as moral sentiment enlists all our partialities and prayers in favor of one and our equal execrations against the other." --Thomas Jefferson to James Monroe, 1823. ME 15:435


• "Not in [my] day, but at no distant one, we may shake a rod over the heads of all which may make the stoutest of them tremble. But I hope our wisdom will grow with our power and teach us that the less we use our power the greater it will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Thomas Leiper, 1815. ME 14:308

Does any of that remind you of the Bush Administration? I don't think so.

This administration is Hamiltionian to the extent that they believe that the power should be in the hands of the wealthy business owners and well-born. They combine that with the nationalism and inherent racism of the Jacksonians. A federal government in the hands of the wealthy and promoting nationalism to the poor so they go and fight the wars of the rich. That sounds like a recipe for class warfare.

Where do I stand? Well, I guess I would more closely identify with the Wilsonian ideas of anti-imperialism, respect for international treaties, federal aid for education, and support for labor and human rights. I know that the neo-cons who pull Dubya's strings somehow think that they are upholding Wilsonian ideals but does anyone buy it? Of course, all of these ideologies have good points and bad points. That's why idealogues, no matter which ideology they advocate, are doomed to fail.

Quote of the Day

''George Bush killed my son''
-- Rosemary Dietz Slavenas,
at a memorial service for her son Army 1st Lt. Brian Slavenas

Ave Maria

The Virgin Mary is back! This time she appeared as a tree stump in Passaic, NJ.

Former Chief Justice Roy Moore

It is good to know that there are some reasonable people in Alabama. The Alabama Judicial Court removed Roy Moore from his office of Chief Justice for defying a federal court order and the state canon of ethics.

The people of Alabama may decide to secede. There seems to be a lot people supporting this religious zealot. The same people who cry about judges "legislating from the bench" are the ones who have rallied behind Moore while he has decided to change the meaning of the Constitution and laws of this country.

People are so ignorant of their own history that they actually believe that the United States was founded as a christian nation. Nothing could be further from the truth. I won't get into it again here, but people many fled religious persecution in Europe when they settled here.

I am just happy that I don't live in Alabama.

“Use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without.”

I was in the mall a couple of weeks ago, it was a day or two before Halloween, and I walked into a department store. To my surprise, the whole store was decorated for Christmas. It wasn't even November and and already they were selling Christmas.

That reminded me that it was time for one of my favorite days of the year -- Buy Nothing Day, observed here in the US on the day after Thanksgiving. Americans have traditionally observed this day, Black Friday, by spending time looking for a place to park their SUVs at the mall and waiting in line to buy more stuff.

According to Adbusters.org 5% of the world's population consumes about 30% of its natural resources and 20% of the earth's population uses 80% of its natural resources. Of course, we in the United State are part of the 20% that overconsumes.

Over the past few years I have adopted a new way of thinking. I have not become an ascetic but I have realized that by spending less I actually can have more. I buy most of my clothes at the Goodwill store. I have a 17 year old car that I drive very rarely. I get a lot of my food at a bulk food store and at the farmers' market. This isn't an all-or-nothing lifestyle, and by no means do I deprive myself of things-- I love my computer and my cable television. But, I have been gradually adapting my buying habits.

We have been told by the Bush Administration that it is our patriotic duty to buy stuff. After we were attacked on September 11, 2001, by an unknown enemy the President and his handlers took to the airwaves to tell us to go out and live life as normal and spend money. If we are at war one would think that we should conserve resources, instead the Bushies were fanning the flames of consumerism.

Schoolchildren are even encouraged to buy softdrinks and and candy from vending machines in schools. They are exposed to product placement in their textbooks, and advertisements in their schools.

This holiday season take a break from the malls, spend some time with your family and friends. Instead of buying things that people don't need visit Heifer.org and make a gift to someone who could really use it.

Resources:

• http://www.ibuydifferent.org/


• http://www.newdream.org/


• http://www.adbusters.org/


• http://www.buynothingchristmas.org/

(President) Gore Speaks

Where Civil Liberties are concerned, they (the Bush Administration) have taken us much farther down the road toward an intrusive, “Big Brother”-style government -- toward the dangers prophesized by George Orwell in his book “1984” -- than anyone ever thought would be possible in the United States of America. -- Al Gore, 11/9/2003

High school drug raid

Click the link below to see video from a high school in South Carolina where police went in with guns drawn.

** watch this **

Welcome to Dubya's police state.

Would you like police coming in with dogs and pointing guns at you?

By the way, no drugs were found

Late Night...

A very funny Late Night with Conan O'Brien last night. There was a report from American Idol tryouts in Hawaii by Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. He was thown out of the auditions and the local NBC affiliate did a news story about it. There is also a funny clip of him doing the weather report on the local news in Hawaii.

Will Ferrell was on talking about his movie Elf. He is always funny.

Finally Sarah Vowell was on promoting the audio release of her book The Partly Cloudy Patriot. I think that she was uncomfortable being out there with Will Ferrell at the other end of the sofa. Vowell and Conan talked about the Civil War, pointing out that Conan is the same height as Lincoln and Sarah is as tall as Lincoln's Secretary of State William Seward. She also explained her idea for a show similar to MTV's Cribs only it would show the homes of prominent historians such as Doris Kearns Goodwin.

If you missed it, I think that it will be on Comedy Central on Monday. Set the VCR.

A haircut and recollections

This afternoon I went to the barber for the first time since I was five years old. No, my hair doesn't reach my waist, my mother has always cut my hair but it has been getting thin and graying lately so I thought maybe I should let a pro have a look at it.

I opened the door and the old man in the barber's chair looked at me and said "can I help you." I explained that I wanted a haircut. The old man pointed to a hand-written sign on the back wall: "No new customers" it read. I apologized and and before I could get it out of my mouth the man said "but, since you're here I can give you a quick trim."

He put down his newspaper and motioned for me to sit in the dark green vinyl and chrome chair. The old barber with unruly white hair and big bushy white eyebrows explained that he likes to work but is trying to cut back. "There were three of us here; now it's just me...48 years," he said "in this same chair."

"A medium trim okay?" he asked, as he put the gown around me and tied it in the back. "Sure" I replied, and he spun me around and removed my glasses. The console TV in the corner had the local news on it. Without my glasses I could only see fuzzy blue images as I listened to the forecast for next few days.

The barber used an electric trimmer to do the back and sides. Then with a comb in one hand and scissors in the other he trimmed the top. "I did my apprenticeship about an hour south of here," he reminisced, "back in '56."

Then, with his left hand holding firmly on to the top of my head, he trimmed around my ears with a straight razor. I could feel the tremor in his hand as he positioned the razor. "Not many old-time barbers around anymore," he told me, "there used to be one on each corner here; now it's just me." Without warning he applied cool shaving cream to the back of my neck and again with just a bit of a tremor he used that straight razor to put the finishing touches on my haircut.

He spun the chair around and faced me towards the mirror and as he placed my glasses on my head he asked "how's it look?"

"Perfect" I said.

He told me the names of some good barbers in the area and suggested that I try one of them next time. I thanked him for the haircut and handed him a ten dollar bill. He thanked me, picked up his newspaper, and sat down again in his chair.

Cowboy up!

Cowboy wannabe and failed oil man George W. Bush speaking to the National Endowment for Democracy threatened the Middle East to democratize. How does El Presidente propose that they accomplish this? He doesn't.

Why would he decide to further alienate Muslims around the world if he does not even a plan to help them meet his demand. He should just concentrate on getting us out of Iraq, Bush and his handlers have already convinced Muslims that that the US is hostile to Islam.

Maybe this is a poor attempt at what his daddy called the "vision thing."

Lady

"Mom & Pop were just a couple of kids when they got married. He was eighteen, she was sixteen and I was three." -- Billie Holiday

God Bless the Child

Them that's got shall get
Them that's not shall lose
So the Bible said and it still is news
Mama may have, Papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own

Yes, the strong gets more
While the weak ones fade
Empty pockets don't ever make the grade
Mama may have, Papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own

Money, you've got lots of friends
Crowding round the door
When you're gone, spending ends
They don't come no more
Rich relations give
Crust of bread and such
You can help yourself
But don't take too much
Mama may have, Papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own

Mama may have, Papa may have
But God bless the child that's got his own
That's got his own
He just worry 'bout nothin'
Cause he's got his own

For some reason I got the urge to listen to this song this morning. I find it hard to listen to Billie Holiday anymore without thinking of David Sedaris singing the Oscar Mayer Bologna song.

Three guesses...

1. terror


2. rape rooms


3. suiciders


4. thugs


5. regime


6. the terrorists


7. war


8. September 11


9. terrorism

Proselytize schmoselytize...

Daniel Zwerdling's story on Weekend Edition Saturday this morning illustrates the lack of regard for the Constitution that the Bush Administration has. Zwerdling profiles a Colorado faith-based social service program (Faith Partners) for mothers on welfare.

I cringed as the christian "social workers" prayed with their clients, as they tried to take them to church, and the program's director spoke about their "covert religious mission."

Bush's faith-based program clearly gives federal money to religious groups who use that money to "witness" and to proselytize. That is what I would call state establishment of religion.

There is a simple solution for religious groups which would like to do this. They can run these programs and pay for them with their own money.

• Listen (13:09)
  
• Transcript
  

Lies...

• "The 'Mission Accomplished' sign, of course, was put up by the members of the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying that their mission was accomplished. I know it was attributed some how to some ingenious advance man from my staff ..." -- President George W. Bush, 10/28/2003



• " they asked if we could help take care of the production of the banner. And we more than happy to do so" -- White House Spokesman Scott McClellan, 10/29/2003

So the White House made a huge banner that read "Mission Accomplished" and some crew members of the Lincoln put it up. McClellan claims that it was the crew's idea and the White House was just happy to help. Oh yeah, the banner just happed to be right over Flyboy's shoulder in the televised address. Hmmmm....okay...I believe that.

FREAKS

I watched Tod Browning's Freaks on TMC last night. I've seen it about three times now and it is disturbing and moving each time.

The 1932 film is a tragic love story set in a travelling side show. It turns out out the the real freaks in this film are the "normal" people.

There is an excellent scene where the "freaks" are stalking in the night rain. I really like the shots from beneath the wagons.

It is a short film (66 minutes) with a long history. If you get a chance to to see it, especially this time of year, you should.

First Franken then...

... The Simpson's?

Strange but true. Apparently Fox wanted to sue itself over a parody of itself.

Doh! Murdoch's Fox News in a spin over 'The Simpsons' lawsuit
By Andrew Buncombe in Washington

29 October 2003

Serious news is no laughing matter. Especially at Fox News Channel. That, at least, is the allegation of The Simpsons creator Matt Groening, who has accused Rupert Murdoch's "fair and balanced" news channel of threatening legal action after a particularly pointed episode poked fun at Fox.

The episode in question featured a "Fox News Crawl" at the bottom of the screen, which parodied some of the more unlikely items featured by the right-wing news channel.

The cartoon ticker read: "Pointless news crawls up 37 per cent ... Do Democrats cause cancer? Find out at foxnews.com ... Rupert Murdoch: Terrific dancer ... Dow down 5000 points ... Study: 92 per cent of Democrats are gay ... JFK posthumously joins Republican Party ... Oil slicks found to keep seals young, supple ..." (read more)

Listen to Matt Groening on Fresh Air

On life and death...

A couple of life and death issues have been in the news over the past week or so. These are some complicated and divisive issues but my view is pretty simple: the government should not be in the business of making medical decisions.

The easier (for me) is the abortion ban passed by both houses of Congress. Although I probably could not advise any woman to opt for an abortion, I do not think that the federal government can outlaw medical procedures and once again make women second class citizens.

If I had to make a choice between

1. deliver a baby that will have no chance of survival and at the same time putting my wife's life risk; or
2. opt for a late-term abortion to ensure the life of my wife

the choice would be easy for me. I would choose to have a healthy, living wife.

If abortion is outlawed women will continue have them, as they always have. Does the christian right think that before the US Supreme Court ruled that abortion is legal women did not get them? Well they did.

The right-to-die issue in Florida is more complicated for me. I would find it very difficult to stop feeding someone and starving her death. However, this is not a decision for the state. If I knew or felt very strongly that my wife would not want to "live" in a persistant vegetative state I would try to do as she wished. But, if I did not know and her family felt strongly about keeping her alive I would try do what they wanted, even if that meant divorcing her and giving them custody.

Let's hope that none of us ever have to make such decisions, but if we do let's hope that we have a decision (within the law) to make.

Pastor Fred is at it again...

In a show compassionate conservatism Pastor Fred Phelps, of GodHatesFags.com fame, wants to erect a monument celebrating the murder of Matthew Shepard.


From AP:

Ten Commandments Debate Draws Anti-Gay Preacher

Fred Phelps Building $15,000 'Matthew Shepherd In Hell' Monument

POSTED: 2:25 p.m. MST October 27, 2003

CASPER, Wyo. -- An anti-gay preacher known for his fiery protests over slain University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard has thrown a wrench into another emotional issue in Shepard's hometown.

The city of Casper -- like other communities across the country -- is debating the fate of its Ten Commandments monument, which has sat in the corner of a city park for nearly 40 years.

The Wisconsin-based Freedom from Religion Foundation last month asked Casper to remove the monument, citing recent legal decisions against similar monuments in Alabama and elsewhere.

Two weeks later, city officials got another letter, this one from the Rev. Fred Phelps, whose Westboro Baptist Church in Kansas has led protests in Casper and Laramie on the anniversary of Shepard's death since the gay college student was murdered in 1998. (read more)

Speakers at yesterday's march were good...

...for me to poop on.

I saw some of C-SPAN's coverage of the March on the White House yesterday. Actually I was doing something else but had the television on and I was listening to it. Every time the "Free Palestine" guy introduced a new speaker I thought that it was Triumph the Insult Comic Dog.

The Birth Tax

10/23/2003 @ 2:46pm by Matt Bivens

American Nobel Prize-winning economist George Akerlof says President Bush's government is the "worst ever" in US history, and describes its budget policies as "a form of looting." New York Times columnist and economist Paul Krugman argues that since he has borrowed the money for his feed-the-rich tax cuts, "George W. Bush is like a man who tells you that he's bought you a fancy new TV set for Christmas, but neglects to tell you that he charged it to your credit card, and that while he was at it he also used the card to buy some stuff for himself."

We already owe a monstrous amount of money. As of Wednesday, the US federal debt was $$6,834,787,133,873.25.

So divide $6.8 trillion by the estimated US population of about 292.4 million, and it turns out every American, right down to those in hospital nurseries, inherits an obligation to cough up $23,372. For a family of four, that's a debt of more than $93,000.

Remember when Bill Clinton was president, and instead of adding to that national debt we were paying it off? (read more)

Late-night TV...

I was flipping through the channels at two o'clock this morning and came across Life is Worth Living with Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen on EWTN.

The show was from 1956 and he was speaking about economic systems. He started by defining the two extremes of monopolistic capitalism and authoritarian communism. Being at the height of US anti-communism, I thought that this would be a rant about the evils of communism and praise for capitalism. Instead, Sheen explained that every person is entitled to property enough to live and care for his family, anything beyond that he owes to the poor.

It was a very interesting lecture.

Our right-wing conservative Christian Republican friends today believe that each person should amass as much wealth and property as possible and that the poor are poor because they are lazy. Not only do they think that they don't owe anything personally to the poor they also think that society owes nothing to the poor. These people like having a big strong military and it takes tax money to support the military, yet they are outraged that a tiny fraction of the amout of the tax money spent on bombs and tanks is spent to feed poor children.

Movies

I saw Sofia Coppola's new film Lost in Translation on Friday. It is one of the best films that I have seen in a while. Bill Murray once again shows the world that he is not only funny but yes indeed an actor. The film is filled with funny moments yet tragic at the same time.

In addition to wonderful acting by Murray and Scarlett Johansson, there are some visually stunning shots of Tokyo and the opening scene of Miss Johansson certainly grabbed my attention.

I watched Jean-Pierre Jeunet's Delicatessen again this weekend. I love that film. One of my favorite scenes is when the handyman is trying fix a spring on a woman's bed. The two of them sit on the bed bouncing as Hawaiian music is playing on a black and white TV. And last night after the ballgame got out of hand I watched another of Jeunet's films -- Amélie, delightful film and the colors are beautiful.

Leaves...

This is what it looks like in my yard when I look up. It is beautiful right now but in a few weeks all of those colorful leaves will be covering the ground. That means lots of raking for me.

I spent much of the weekend on the first round of raking and pruning. Maybe I'll get lucky and they will all blow away.

A Nation Under the "Real" (Christian) God?

Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Lt. Gen. William Boykin has been giving speeches to evangelical church groups and making statements like this:

from Top terrorist hunter’s divisive views By Lisa Myers and the NBC Investigative Unit
During a January church speech in Daytona, Fla., Boykin recalled a Muslim fighter in Somalia who bragged on television the Americans would never get him because his God, Allah, would protect him: “Well, you know what I knew, that my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real God, and his was an idol.”

I just wanted to remind everyone that Dubya, while Governor of Texas, proclaimed Jesus Day in Texas. Is this an evangelical christian theocracy in disguise?

You gotta have heart

This man played for the Yankees, the Knicks, and the Rangers -- all in the same season! And, after the World Series he is retiring - after 38 years with the Yankees.

Who is he?

Why Eddie Layton, of course.

Bush ignored warnings

President Clinton warned Dubya about the threat of al Qaeda during the transition but in typical Bush cowboy fashion he didn't want to listen to "the enemy." We all found out eight months later who the real enemy was. Bush's advisors had told him that Iraq was a threat to world peace because they already had a plan to take over that country. They could go in and use their multimillion dollar toys to blow up things. It was a lot simpler to invade Iraq and declare "Mission Accomplished" than to defeat an oscure entity like al Qaeda.

Clinton warned Bush of bin Laden threat
Thu 16 October, 2003 03:27 BST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former President Bill Clinton says he warned President George W. Bush before he left office in 2001 that Osama bin Laden was the biggest security threat the United States faced.

Speaking at a luncheon sponsored by the History Channel on Wednesday, Clinton said he discussed security issues with Bush in his "exit interview," a formal and often candid meeting between a sitting president and the president-elect.

"In his campaign, Bush had said he thought the biggest security issue was Iraq and a national missile defence," Clinton said. "I told him that in my opinion, the biggest security problem was Osama bin Laden."

The U.S. government has blamed bin Laden's Al Qaeda network for the September 11 attacks.

Time magazine reported last year that a plan for the United States to launch attacks against the al-Qaeda network languished for eight months because of the change in presidents and was approved only a week before the September 11 attacks. (more)

Marlins get a hand...

With Prior on the mound pitching a three-hit shutout through seven innings the Cubs just saw everything turn around in the eighth. A Cubs fan failed to get out of the way to allow Alou to catch a foul ball that would have been the second out of the inning, Alex Gonzalez made an error on a routine ground ball, and the Marlins went on to score eight runs in the inning.

I feel bad for the fan. He will take the blame for the loss but the Cubs lost it on the field.

It should be an exciting one tonight. Kerry Wood will be pitching for the Cubs and he has been pitching very well in the post-season.

Also, anyone who is tired of listening to Tim McCarver on the AL games should do like I do and turn down the sound and listen to Jon Miller and Joe Morgan on ESPN Radio.

Red Sox vs Yankees -- MLB or WWE?

Home video of Zimmer vs Pedro:

copy and paste into RealPlayer

rtsp://necn.mirror-image.com/media/video/101203_pedro_12p.rm

Codrescu on Texas History

Andrei Codrescu gives us his version of Texas history in 3 minutes 35 seconds:Andrei Codrescu Commentary: Messing with Texas
(from NPR's All Things Considered 10/10/2003)

To your health...

If there are any doctors or other health professionals who read this I would appreciate anything you could tell me about these symptoms:

• tremors - started about one year ago, get worse under stress
  
• constant ringing in ears
  
• occasional weakness in lower left leg/foot
  
• occasional tingling in last two fingers on both hands
  
• fatigue
  
• hyper patellar (and other) reflexes
  
• occasional dizziness
  
• MRI shows two small bilateral lesions in brain
  
• currently on zoloft 100mg
  
• VEP, BSAEP, and other evoked potentials tests were all normal