Dog From Hell

My New Book

2009-07-22T10:09:00.000-05:00

Flesh & Blood

Photography by Nima...

Book Preview

Sarah Palin's Ongoing Wolf Slaughter

2009-02-04T14:49:00.001-06:00

WARNING--SOME OF THE SCENES ARE UNBEARABLE.

Throw This Palin Mother Fucker Out Like the Garbage She Is.

2009-02-04T14:47:00.001-06:00

WASHINGTON –Defenders of Wildlife Action Fund today launched a national campaign to expose Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's renewed anti-conservation agenda. The Action Fund first highlighted Palin's record in Alaska during last fall's presidential campaign when it ran TV ads across battleground states, highlighting Palin's championing of the brutal and unnecessary aerial killing of wolves and other carnivores.

"Sarah Palin isn't fading into the background, so neither are we," commented Defenders Action Fund President Rodger Schlickeisen. "Given her known political aspirations, the American public deserves to know what she's doing in Alaska, and about her extreme anti-conservation policies. The list is long, and we will document it all, from her continued promotion of the aerial slaughter of wolves and bears, to her lawsuit to remove the polar bear from the endangered species list, even as the sea ice melts beneath it."

Palin's Extreme Anti-Conservation Agenda to be Exposed in National Campaign - Eye On Palin -

Blogged with the Flock Browser

My House... In the Middle of Winter!

2009-01-22T19:55:00.002-06:00

From ColorExperiments

Do You Love This Guy... or... Do You Love This Guy?

2009-01-21T10:25:00.001-06:00

Barack Obama and a plunger: He might not want to remember this photo

Before he was even a senator, let alone president-elect, then-unknown Barack Obama was, at a 2003 St. Patrick's Day parade, a plunger wrangler. (Photo courtesy Mats Selen)

Intellect is Coming Back to the White House

2009-01-19T20:16:00.002-06:00

125 Facts About Sex

2009-01-13T08:22:00.001-06:00

Around 100 B.C. in Babylon all women had to go to the temple of the Fertility Godess Mylitta to have sex with a stranger. Only then were the women allowed to marry. The stranger, in return, had to donate money to the temple. (The History of Prostitution)

125 facts about sex - Nachrichten English-News - WELT ONLINE

In Washington, All Roads Lead to Tehran - by Daniel Luban

2009-01-10T10:30:00.001-06:00

As the war in Gaza approaches its third week, a chorus of influential voices in the U.S. media has cast the conflict as a proxy war in which the real enemy is not Hamas but Iran. The result has been a growing tendency in the U.S. to view Gaza as simply one battleground in a larger war between Iran and the West, and to dismiss the stated concerns of the Palestinians as a mere smoke screen for Iranian influence.

But critics charge that this way of framing the conflict is both overly simplistic and agenda-driven. By overstating the importance of Iran's operational aid to Hamas, they claim, these opinion-makers aim to increase hostilities with Iran, to bolster an increasingly shaky Israeli rationale for war, and to curtail any inclination to reach a peace settlement with the Palestinians.

For years, it has been a commonplace among neoconservatives that Iran is the real source of opposition to the U.S. and Israel throughout the Middle East, from Palestine to Lebanon to Iraq. During Israel's 2006 war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, prominent neoconservatives urged the West to focus "less on Hamas and Hezbollah, and more on their paymasters and real commanders in Syria and Iran," as William Kristol wrote in the Weekly Standard.

In Washington, All Roads Lead to Tehran - by Daniel Luban

Flocket... A Brand Spanking New Web Browser...

2009-01-10T10:06:00.001-06:00

This is a test of blogging from within Flocker...

Blogged with the Flock Browser

This is Way Too Funny

2009-01-07T16:11:00.001-06:00

Skier left dangling upside down and trouserless

This skier pictured at Colorado's luxury Vail ski resort spent several minutes dangling upside down from a chairlift with his pants around his ankles and in full view of passing skiers.

Al-Qaeda Should Thank Israel for the Helping Hand

2009-01-07T15:14:00.001-06:00

... and the winner is (speech!) | Marc Lynch

From al-Qaeda's perspective, therefore, Israel's assault on Gaza is an unmitigated blessing. The images flooding the Arab and world media have already discredited moderates, fueled outrage, and pushed the center of political gravity towards more hard-line and radical positions. As in past crises, Islamists of all stripes are outbidding each other, competing to "lead" the popular outrage, while "moderates" are silent or jumping on the bandwagon. Governments are under pressure, most people are glued to al-Jazeera's coverage (and, from what anyone can tell, ignoring stations that don't offer similar coverage), the internet is flooded with horrifying images, and people are angry and mobilized against Israel, the United States, and their own governments. That's the kind of world al-Qaeda likes to see.

Even if Hamas emerges weakened, as Israeli strategists hope, all the better (from al-Qaeda's point of view, that is). In general, where the MB is strong (Egypt, Jordan, and Palestine for example), AQ has had a hard time finding a point of entry despite serious efforts to do so, while where the MB is weak (Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Lebanon) it has had more success. Up to now, AQ-minded groups have had little success in penetrating Gaza, because Hamas had it locked. Now they clearly have high hopes of finding an entree with a radicalized, devastated population and a weakened Hamas.

Al-Qaeda likely can not thank Israel enough for its efforts over the last two weeks. Over the last few years, al-Qaeda has been losing ground with the mainstream Muslim public -- because of its real radicalism and fringe ideology, its killing of so many Muslim innocents in its attacks in Muslim countries, challenges from other Islamist groups and from within its own ranks, an increasingly effective strategic communications campaign by Western and Arab governments, and more. Israel's military assault against Gaza threatens to reverse that trend.

This is War on Several Front

2009-01-05T15:46:00.001-06:00

The war where real humans are killed for no good reason, and the war where the real opinions are killed for a very good reason.

Israel armed with internet savvy

The thermal imaging footage shot from an Israeli drone hovering over Gaza shows eight Palestinian militants loading rockets on to a lorry. Within seconds, the drone’s sights are locked on to the vehicle and it and the ghostlike figures nearby are incinerated in a missile blast.

Or so tens of thousands of visitors to the popular video-posting internet site YouTube have been led to believe. The clip was one of several dramatic scenes uploaded to the site by the Israeli army last week, the first time a national army has created its own YouTube channel.

A subsequent investigation by the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem attracted less attention. It suggests the rockets were in fact gas canisters and that the supposed militants were civilians moving welding equipment after their workshop had been damaged in one of the hundreds of Israeli air strikes on Gaza over the past week.

But facts appear to have been the first casualty in a public relations war that is being conducted as vigorously by Israeli defence officials as the fight against Hamas.

Control the News... Control the Opinion.

2009-01-02T17:57:00.001-06:00

8 foreign reporters allowed into Gaza (Ed. Note: Not yet... But Soon?)

At the urging of the High Court of Justice, Israel agreed Thursday to allow eight foreign journalists into Gaza when it reopens the border crossing with the Hamas-ruled territory, the Justice Ministry said.

The decision fell short of a High Court proposal, made a day earlier, to let up to 12 international journalists into the Gaza Strip, and was deemed "insufficient" by the Tel Aviv-based Foreign Press Association, which had petitioned the court on the matter.

The move was the latest in an ongoing legal battle between the government and the group representing foreign journalists in Israel, following a two-month-old ban on foreign correspondents entering Gaza.

Israel originally imposed the blanket ban following an upswing in Palestinian rocket attacks, but the issue took on added urgency in the wake of this week's massive assault against Hamas targets in the Strip.

Sorry...

2009-01-02T17:44:00.001-06:00

... I have been way addicted to Facebook and so I haven't been updating this site quite as often as I wanted... But, Facebook rocks!!!

Oh Wait... It's China Now!

2009-01-02T17:43:00.001-06:00

Latest rockets manufactured in China

The Chinese rockets have a range of 40 kilometers. They are very similar to the 122 mm Soviet-made Katyusha that was used extensively by Hizbullah during the Second Lebanon War and are slightly more sophisticated than an Iranian-made Grad-model Katyusha that is also in Hamas's arsenal.

Oh So Now It is Iran's Fault...

2008-12-31T12:26:00.000-06:00

The Israelis blamce anyone except themselves for having conducted military operation when a cease fire was supposed to be in effect... They provoke a reaction and then blamce their response on the reaction. Very clever!

And now, the Iranians are to blame. Which is an insult to the Iranians... The homemade rockets Hamas launches into South of Israel have a hit and miss ratio of 500 to 1... Pretty dismal state of the art "know-how" if you ask me...

Quartet calls for immediate truce between Israel and Gaza

Israel's envoy to the U.S., Sallay Meridor, on Tuesday blamed Iran for the situation in Gaza.

"What you see in Gaza is made by Iran - it's funded by Iran, the terrorists are trained by Iran, it's supplied by Iran, the know-how to create short range rockets is Iranian, he said. "As an octopus, Iran has proxies in region and beyond the region, and at the same time they?re moving towards nuclear weapons."

"This is not a separate Israeli problem or a threat to Israel, this is very well-connected to the threat in Mumbai, Be'er Sheva, or God forbid, NYC, and we can defeat it only if we stand together determined not to let those terrorists to kill citizens and destroy our way of life. You must act against a terror if you want to give peace a chance," he said, adding: "We are making efforts to make sure that whatever humanitarian aid wants to get to Gaza will get into Gaza."

what every American needs to know about Israel/Palestine

2008-12-30T19:42:00.001-06:00

Set of very interesting statistics... Pass it along.

If Americans Knew

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict is one of the world’s major sources of instability. Americans are directly connected to this conflict, and increasingly imperiled by its devastation.

It is the goal of If Americans Knew to provide full and accurate information on this critical issue, and on our power – and duty – to bring a resolution.

Holiday Positions... New Year's Eve is Around the Corner.

2008-12-28T09:57:00.000-06:00

The Bachelor Guy » Santa Sutra - 9 Holiday Sex Positions That'll Stuff Your Stocking

The holidays are a stressful time. And after weeks of battling mall crowds, dealing with dysfunctional relatives and dashing through the snow from one event to another, you need some release. So grab your favorite naughty elf and work out your yuletide tension with a few of these holiday sex positions. It's what keeps Santa so damn jolly.

A New Verb

2008-12-28T09:35:00.000-06:00

Ghoul's Glossary: Shoewhack

Ghoul's Glossary: Shoewhack

Shoewhack (v.) To assault someone with footwear in such a way as to humiliate that individual, especially at a moment of supposed triumph or obvious hypocrisy. A shoewhacking generally involves an element of surprise. It is especially appropriate for individuals guilty of high crimes and misdemeanors who have for reasons of wealth and power nevertheless escaped any other punishment for their iniquity.

posted by Juan Cole @ 12/20/2008 11:26:00 AM

the LEgacy of the "Shoe Head" President

2008-12-28T09:30:00.000-06:00

'No apology' from Iraq shoe-thrower

"[Muntazer] is not even considering, not now, nor in the future, apologising for what he has done."

Dhiya'a al-Sa'adi,
al-Zaidi's lawyer

Bleathing Little Lamb

2008-12-26T12:25:00.001-06:00

Remembering Nobel Laureate Harold Pinter - "Is Our Conscience Dead?"

Pinter's Laureate speech question, "Is Our Conscience Dead?" is most relevant today when three years after his acceptance speech, "Art, Truth and Politics," Bush, Cheney, Rice and other administration officials are either trying to rewrite history or, as in Cheney's case - purposefully revealing his role in specific criminal acts of torture and daring the American legal system and people to hold him accountable.

Following is the part of Pinter's lecture that speaks to the invasion of Iraq, torture and Guantanamo - and our collective and individual conscience:

"Art, Truth and Politics"
Noble Lecture by Harold Pinter
December 7, 2005

"... The United States no longer ... sees any point in being reticent or even devious. It puts its cards on the table without fear or favour. It quite simply doesn't give a damn about the United Nations, international law or critical dissent, which it regards as impotent and irrelevant.

It also has its own bleating little lamb tagging behind it on a lead, the pathetic and supine Great Britain.

Looks Like He May Get Off...

2008-12-16T07:30:00.000-06:00

Legal Hurdle in Blagojevich Case - A Crime, or Just Talk?

But now some lawyers are beginning to suggest that the juiciest part of the case against Mr. Blagojevich, the part involving the Senate seat, may be less than airtight. There is no evidence, at least none that has been disclosed, that the governor actually received anything of value — and the Senate appointment has yet to be made.

Ever since the country’s founding, prosecutors, defense lawyers and juries have been trying to define the difference between criminality and political deal-making. They have never established a clear-cut line between the offensive and the illegal, and the hours of wiretapped conversations involving Mr. Blagojevich, filled with crass, profane talk about benefiting from the Senate vacancy, may fall into a legal gray area.

Bed of Roses They Said...

2008-12-15T05:50:00.001-06:00

The Liberator's farewell!

Fitzy Pounced Too Soon?

2008-12-13T09:46:00.000-06:00

Hail to Chicago, Beacon of American Values

Of course the good government crowd is aghast. “I was speechless and sickened,” wails Cindi Canary, executive director of the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform. “In all of the millions of indictments I’ve read over the last years, I can’t remember anything as vile as this.” Another reformer moans about “the damage to the state,. It’s going to take a long time to dig out.” Nonsense. This is exactly the sort of scandal Americans understand and appreciate. Good government is the province of states animated by the social democratic ethos of prim Nordics, like the Dakotas, or Washington in the Pacific Northwest. In the riper ethnic cauldrons of Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and of course New Jersey, corruption reigns in all its intricate and creative forms, In these states no politician is beyond the reach of an indictment, and this political certainty is the truest form of Americanism and the soundest check and balance against the arrogance of power.

If defended by a capable lawyer I don’t see any reason why Blago shouldn’t emerge from his ordeal with a verdict of Not Guilty from the 12 jurors. Don’t those freedoms we supposedly enjoy include the right to dream over the breakfast table or the cocktail shaker of extorting large sums of money from ambitious politicians and venal businessmen? It’s one thing to dream and another to actually grab the bundle of cash, stick it in the refrigerator and say, The senate seat is yours. Fitzgerald pounced too soon. And even if the quid pro quo is there on film, juries can be forgiving, as their indulgent scrutiny of FBI footage of John Z.Delorean and Mayor Marion Barry attest.

The Dufus...

2008-12-11T11:45:00.001-06:00

Too Close to Reality...

2008-12-03T15:10:00.001-06:00

"War prisoners apart, the average citizen of Oceania never sets eyes on a citizen of either Eurasia or Eastasia, and he is forbidden the knowledge of foreign languages. If he were allowed contact with foreigners he would discover that they are creatures similar to himself and that most of what he has been told about them is lies. The sealed world in which he lives would be broken, and the fear, hatred, and self-righteousness on which his morale depends might evaporate. "

George Orwell, 1984

Cool...

2008-12-03T15:01:00.001-06:00

CTA rolls out hybrid buses

The CTA unveiled new hybrid buses today that plug into an electrical outlet at night and run on battery power for most of the day.

Did We Judge Obama Too Soon?

2008-11-24T04:11:00.001-06:00

Let's wait and see...

The list of the governments that have persecuted journalists

Writing about yesterday's ruling on the Guantanamo detainees, Andrew Sullivan says: "And Obama wants an apologist for this -- John Brennan -- at CIA? Has he lost his mind?"

I'm both entirely unsurprised and basically undisturbed by the fact that Obama's most significant appointments thus far are composed largely of standard Washington establishment figures and pro-Iraq-War hawks, and are devoid of people "on the Left". That is who Obama is -- he's an establishment politician who, with a few exceptions, is situated smack in the mainstream middle of the national Democratic Party. The mentor he sought out when arriving in the Senate was Joe Lieberman, who he then actively supported against Ned Lamont. The notion that Obama is some sort of aggressive or radical Leftist challenger of establishment power is and always was the by-product of fear-mongering from the Right and, to a lesser extent, the projected desires of some progressives. As I've said many times, I intend to wait and judge Obama on the policies he pursues, not the administrators he appoints to carry out those policies.

But John Brennan is a different matter. To appoint someone as CIA Director or Director of National Intelligence who was one of George Tenet's closest aides when The Dark Side of the last eight years was conceived and implemented, and who, to this day, continues to defend and support policies such as "enhanced interrogation techniques" and rendition (to say nothing of telecom immunity and warrantless eavesdropping), is to cross multiple lines that no Obama supporter should sanction. Truly turning a page on the grotesque abuses of the last eight years requires both symbolism (closing Guantanamo) and substantive policy changes (compelling adherence to the Army Field Manual, ensuring due process rights for all detainees, ending rendition, restoring safeguards on surveillance powers). Appointing John Brennan to a position of high authority would be to affirm and embrace, not repudiate, the darkest aspects of the last eight years.

Returning Her Favorite Dress

2008-11-12T10:30:00.001-06:00

Do your exercises.

2008-11-12T09:48:00.001-06:00

Begin by standing on a comfortable surface,
where you have plenty of room at each side.

With a 5-lb potato sack in each hand, extend your arms straight out from your sides and hold them there as long as you can.

Try to reach a full minute, and then relax.

Each day you'll find that you can hold this position for just a bit longer

After a couple of weeks, move up to 10-lb potato sacks.

Then try 50-lb potato sacks.

Then eventually try to get to where; you can lift a 100-lb potato sack in each hand and hold your arms straight for more than a full minute.

(I'm currently at this level.)

After you feel confident at that level,
put a potato in each sack.

This Is Amazing Data to Contemplate.

2008-11-10T06:43:00.002-06:00

Perhaps the American electorate is not as dumb as the "liberal" media, performing their lap-dog function, wants us all to think.

America Is a Center-Left Country No Matter How Much the Corporate Media Say Otherwise

So, while many Americans may not like those durn liberals, a significant majority of the electorate fully supports the center-left agenda advanced by the liberal wing of today's Democratic Party, with the exception of a few issues of God, guns and gettin' it on.

This should be obvious; the flip-side of Waldman's assertion is that two-thirds of Americans do know which party is more progressive, and not only did Obama just repaint the electoral map running on the most progressive platform in 15 years, but Congressional Dems surfed their second consecutive "wave" election.

But the hard data back up the obvious. Let's review:

* As Robert Borosage of Campaign for America's Future, wrote of the his group's poll (PDF), "When asked why they voted for Obama, the leading reasons were his proposals for withdrawing troops from Iraq, cutting middle class taxes first, providing affordable health care, and his commitment to invest in education and make college more affordable. When those who voted for Obama were asked about their doubts about McCain, picking Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin led the list, but fear that he would give tax breaks to the rich and big corporations came in second, followed by the notion that he would continue Bush's policies."
* A number of polls in recent years have shown that Americans favor raising the minimum wage by about a 4 to 1 margin
* A poll commissioned by Time Magazine in July, found that a "notable trend is the emerging popularity of environmental regulation as an economic imperative. Stricter pollution limits and tax credits for alternative energy development were supported by 84 percent of all respondents, the highest of any proposal. Increasing the minimum wage, expanding public works projects were nearly as popular, with 83 percent and 82 percent approval respectively."
* It must have hurt the Wall Street Journal's editorial staff to report that 62 percent of Americans said "The government should tax the wealthy more." According to a Pew Poll, the same number favored either repealing all of Bush's "temporary" tax cuts, or at least those skewed towards the wealthiest. Only one in four said that Bush's cuts should become permanent.
* Summing up the findings of a post-election report released by Public Citizen that found that there had been a net increase in Congress of at least 30 seats by "fair trade" supporters, Lori Wallach, director of Public Citizen's Global Trade Watch division, said, "The 2008 election was a veritable tipping point for fair-trade issues, which just reinforces what polls have increasingly shown: The public has had it with the current race-to-the-bottom trade and globalization model, and they voted against those who support it and for those who say they will replace it."
* A poll by Hart Research (PDF) found that voters in 7 crucial battleground states favored the Employee Free Choice Act -- pro-union legislation detested by the corporate right -- by nearly a 3 to 1 margin.
* In response to the first round of 'center-right' country blather after the 2006 midterm sweep, Media Matters compiled a moutain of data on the issue, including:
o By a 23-point margin, Americans say the government should "provide more services/ more spending" rather than "cut services/ cut spending."
o By a 34-point margin, Americans agree that we "need strong government to handle complex problems" rather than believing the "free market can handle complex economic problems without government involvement."
o Americans agree with the idea that "government should reduce income differences" by a 12-point spread.
o According to a Gallup Poll taken last spring, 5 percent of Americans said corporate taxes were too high, compared with 71 percent who thought they were too low
o According to a report from the nonprofit polling group Public Agenda and Foreign Affairs magazine, "When respondents were asked to rate a series of strategies for the degree to which they would strengthen the nation's security, the top-ranking moves were "Improving the effectiveness of our intelligence operations" (with 63 percent saying it would enhance our security a great deal) and "Becoming less dependent on other countries for our supply of energy" (55 percent). Only 17 percent said "Attacking countries that develop weapons of mass destruction" would enhance our security a great deal, the lowest-scoring strategy in the group. Forty-two percent said "Showing more respect for the views and needs of other countries" would enhance our security a great deal."
o According to Gallup, on the question of military spending, "43 percent [of respondents] say we are spending too much, compared to 35 percent who say we are spending the right amount, and only 20 percent who say we are spending too little."
* A Pew poll conducted just prior to the 2006 election found that, by "a 45% to 32% margin, more Americans believe that the best way to reduce the threat of terrorist attacks on the U.S. is to decrease, not increase, America's military presence overseas."
* According to an ABC News/ Washington Post poll conducted in June, Americans, by more than a 2 to one margin, thought "providing health care coverage for all Americans, even if it means raising taxes" was more important than "holding down taxes." According to a May poll by Quinnipiac University, 61 percent of Americans thought it "the government's responsibility to make sure that everyone in the United States has adequate health care," while 35 percent disagreed.
* And, of course, as it has been since the program was launched by FDR, a significant majority of Americans like their Social Security just the way it is; a CNN poll conducted last month found that Americans opposed partially privatizing the program -- a key conservative proposal -- by a 26-point margin.

Bull Shit Up the Flag Pole!

2008-11-10T06:27:00.001-06:00

America Is a Center-Left Country No Matter How Much the Corporate Media Say Otherwise

Reality: an Election Day poll by the Center for American Progress and the Campaign for America's Future asked whether Republicans had lost because they were too conservative or not conservative enough. By a twenty point margin, voters chose “too conservative”, including independents who agreed by a 21 point margin. Seven out of ten said they wanted the Republicans to work with Obama and “help him achieve his plans,” while fewer than a quarter of respondents thought the GOP should try to keep him from implementing a progressive agenda.

That didn't prevent conservatives, desperate to spin a shellacking at the ballot box, from insisting that the contrary is true. House Minority Leader John Boehner (Ohio) wrote a letter to his despondent — and shrinking — GOP caucus insisting that “Democrats should not make the mistake of viewing Tuesday’s results as a repudiation of conservatism.” And Republican Senator Jim DeMint (North Carolina) had the chutzpah to say that the lopsided election results only proved that “the American people agree with our ideas...”

These are nonsensical talking-points, but as journalist Matt Taibbi told Bill Maher at the height of the campaign, "You can run just about any bullshit up the flag pole, and the mainstream media will simply stand there and salute it, and repeat it seemingly within minutes."

Hilarious...

2008-11-08T21:35:00.000-06:00

"Wasilla hillibillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast..." This is just hilarious.

Remember that $150,000 price tag that had Republicans upset and the media in a frenzy? Well, Newsweek is reporting that that estimate was a lowball:
Newsweekhas also learned that Palin's shopping spree at high-end departmentstores was more extensive than previously reported. While publiclysupporting Palin, McCain's top advisers privately fumed at what theyregarded as her outrageous profligacy. One senior aide said thatNicolle Wallace had told Palin to buy three suits for the conventionand hire a stylist. But instead, the vice presidential nominee beganbuying for herself and her family -- clothes and accessories from topstores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. According to twoknowledgeable sources, a vast majority of the clothes were bought by awealthy donor, who was shocked when he got the bill. Palin also usedlow-level staffers to buy some of the clothes on their credit cards.The McCain campaign found out last week when the aides soughtreimbursement. One aide estimated that she spent "tens of thousands"more than the reported $150,000, and that $20,000 to $40,000 went tobuy clothes for her husband. Some articles of clothing have apparentlybeen lost. An angry aide characterized the shopping spree as "Wasillahillbillies looting Neiman Marcus from coast to coast," and said thetruth will eventually come out when the Republican Party audits itsbooks.

Read the entire article here.

I Only Want to Talk to People I Agree With.

2008-11-08T15:55:00.000-06:00

What a Long, Strange Trip It's Been

McCain and Palin - or as our late friend Studs Terkel put it, "Joe McCarthy in drag" - would like to bury the '60s. The '60s, after all, was a time of rejecting obedience and conformity in favor of initiative and courage. The '60s pushed us to a deeper appreciation of the humanity of every human being. And that is the threat it poses to the right wing, hence the attacks and all the guilt by association.

McCain and Palin demanded to "know the full extent" of the Obama-Ayers "relationship" so that they can know if Obama, as Palin put it, "is telling the truth to the American people or not."

This is just plain stupid.

Obama has continually been asked to defend something that ought to be at democracy's heart: the importance of talking to as many people as possible in this complicated and wildly diverse society, of listening with the possibility of learning something new, and of speaking with the possibility of persuading or influencing others.

The McCain-Palin attacks not only involved guilt by association, they also assumed that one must apply a political litmus test to begin a conversation.

Gotta Love San Franciscans...

2008-11-07T19:40:00.000-06:00

George Cirilo (right), dressed up as Republican vice presidential candidate Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and Shane Hladki (left), dressed as Palin's 17- year-old daughter Bristol, arrive in the Castro District of San Francisco, Ca. for a pre-Halloween celebration.

So Few People...

2008-11-07T17:55:00.001-06:00

... Are trying to protect the interest of so many. And the so many are simply too stupid to realize it. Am I too harsh?

People Are Nucking Futs!

2008-11-07T07:18:00.001-06:00

On Concerns Over Gun Control, Gun Sales Are Up

Sales of handguns, rifles and ammunition have surged in the last week, according to gun store owners around the nation who describe a wave of buyers concerned that an Obama administration will curtail their right to bear arms.

“He’s a gun-snatcher,” said Jim Pruett, owner of Jim Pruett’s Guns and Ammo in northwest Houston, which was packed with shoppers on Thursday.

“He wants to take our guns from us and create a socialist society policed by his own police force,” added Mr. Pruett, a former radio personality, of President-elect Barack Obama.

Mr. Pruett said that sales last Saturday, just before Election Day, ran about seven times higher than a typical good Saturday.

A spot check by reporters in four other states easily found Mr. Pruett’s comments echoed from both sides of the counter.

Sweeping Victory for Dennis Kucinich

2008-11-05T13:51:00.001-06:00

57% of the vote! That even with all the Republicans who switched parties so as to vote him out during the primaries! Let that serve as a lesson.

Way to go Kucinich!

U.S. House, Ohio, District 10

Candidate Votes %
Dennis Kucinich * (D) 153,357 57%
Jim Trakas (R) 106,489 39%
Paul Conroy (Lib.) 10,278 4%

The Onion

2008-11-05T12:56:00.001-06:00

Black Man Given Nation's Worst Job

WASHINGTON—African-American man Barack Obama, 47, was given the least-desirable job in the entire country Tuesday when he was elected president of the United States of America. In his new high-stress, low-reward position, Obama will be charged with such tasks as completely overhauling the nation's broken-down economy, repairing the crumbling infrastructure, and generally having to please more than 300 million Americans and cater to their every whim on a daily basis. As part of his duties, the black man will have to spend four to eight years cleaning up the messes other people left behind. The job comes with such intense scrutiny and so certain a guarantee of failure that only one other person even bothered applying for it. Said scholar and activist Mark L. Denton, "It just goes to show you that, in this country, a black man still can't catch a break."

Ok--Had to Post This.

2008-11-05T07:19:00.001-06:00

Total Utter Majority Win

2008-11-05T06:12:00.001-06:00

Obama:

62,302,690

McCain:

55,268,212

President Barack Obama

2008-11-04T22:42:00.001-06:00

Issues? We Don't Need No Stinkin' Issues!

2008-11-04T13:34:00.001-06:00

11--4-2008 - Let's Make History!

2008-11-04T09:11:00.001-06:00

Although I have no reason to believe
in the intelligence of the American voter,
I dare to hope.

And so hope I will!

How Did the Past Eight Years Come to Be?

2008-11-03T06:53:00.001-06:00

The Triumph of Ignorance: How Morons Succeed in U.S. Politics

It wasn't always like this. The founding fathers of the republic -- men like Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Adams and Alexander Hamilton -- were among the greatest thinkers of their age. They felt no need to make a secret of it. How did the project they launched degenerate into George W. Bush and Sarah Palin?

On one level, this is easy to answer: Ignorant politicians are elected by ignorant people. U.S. education, like the U.S. health system, is notorious for its failures. In the most powerful nation on Earth, 1 adult in 5 believes the sun revolves around the Earth; only 26 percent accept that evolution takes place by means of natural selection; two-thirds of young adults are unable to find Iraq on a map; two-thirds of U.S. voters cannot name the three branches of government; and the math skills of 15-year-olds in the United States are ranked 24th out of the 29 countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

But this merely extends the mystery: How did so many U.S. citizens become so dumb and so suspicious of intelligence? Susan Jacoby's book The Age of American Unreason provides the fullest explanation I have read so far. She shows that the degradation of U.S. politics results from a series of interlocking tragedies.

One theme is both familiar and clear: Religion -- in particular fundamentalist religion -- makes you stupid. The United States is the only rich country in which Christian fundamentalism is vast and growing.

Prank Call Palin

2008-11-02T09:49:00.003-06:00

Way too funny! I specially love the reference to the documentary "Nailing Palin"...

Watch This to the End.

2008-10-31T16:00:00.001-05:00

I Love Opus...

2008-10-31T09:24:00.001-05:00

How Racism Works

2008-10-17T06:20:00.001-05:00

What if John McCain were a former president of the Harvard Law Review?
What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his graduating class?
What if McCain were still married to the first woman he said "I do" to?
What if Obama were the candidate who left his first wife after, she no Longer measured up to his standards?
What if Michelle Obama were a wife, who not only became addicted to pain killers, but acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?
What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard?
What if Obama were a member of the Keating-5?
What if McCain were a charismatic, eloquent speaker?

If these questions reflected reality, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?
This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities in another when there is a color difference.

You are The Boss... which team would you hire?
With America facing historic debt, 2 wars, stumbling health care, a weakened dollar, all-time high prison population, mortgage crises, bank foreclosures, etc. - all solvable.

Educational Background:

Obama: Columbia University - B.A. Political Science with a Specialization in International Relations.
Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude
Biden: University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science. Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)
vs.

McCain: United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899
Palin: Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Now, which team are you going to hire?

What if Barack Obama had an unwed, pregnant teenage daughter and what would we say then, in the press? We are not always fair and ask some to be above the rest of us, but we are all human and all things to consider in voting. Either way the Congress makes and passes the Bills that govern us. Maybe all need and should be required to have some Buffet economic education. .... we all voted them in or just passed and did not vote.

The Feeling is Mutual...

2008-10-16T16:49:00.001-05:00

The Only One Really Worth It...

2008-10-15T21:29:00.001-05:00

AAAAAAwwwwwWWWwwWWW!!!!

2008-10-15T20:43:00.002-05:00

Young polar bear Wilbaer looks through the glass wall of his pool as he dives in his enclosure in the 'Wilhelma' zoo in Stuttgart, Germany. Wilbaer was born in this zoo on Dec. 10, 2007.

Random Desktop Picture

2008-10-04T18:10:00.004-05:00

Winkorama Honky Momma!

2008-10-04T08:51:00.002-05:00

Winkorama Hockey Momma!

2008-10-04T08:49:00.001-05:00

An Old Photo...

2008-10-03T10:12:00.001-05:00

When we were in France a couple of years ago.

Is This Guy...

2008-10-03T10:06:00.001-05:00

... good looking or is this guy good looking?

Fact Check Please...

2008-10-03T06:51:00.001-05:00

Fact-checking the Biden-Palin debate

THE US COMMANDER IN AFGHANISTAN

Claim: Joe Biden said that the US "commanding general in Afghanistan said the surge principle in Iraq will not work in Afghanistan". Sarah Palin responded by saying that "McClellan did not say definitively the surge principles would not work in Afghanistan".

Fact: On 2 October, the Washington Post quoted the head of the Nato-led coalition in Afghanistan, Gen David McKiernan, as saying: "The word I don't use for Afghanistan is 'surge'."

Verdict: Mrs Palin not only got the name of the US commander in Afghanistan wrong, but it would seem she also distorted his position.

IRAQ'S BUDGET SURPLUS

Claim: Joe Biden said that "Iraqis have an $80bn surplus".

Fact: According to Factcheck.org, this is "an out-of-date projection. The Iraqis currently have $29bn in the bank, and could have $47bn to $59bn by the end of the year."

Verdict: Joe Biden is guilty of using out-of-date figures, but his substantive point - that the Iraqis have resources to "spend their own money... to take their own responsibility" - still holds.

OBAMA'S READINESS TO BE PRESIDENT

Claim: Sarah Palin reminded Joe Biden of his statement during the Democratic primaries that Barack Obama "was not ready to be commander in chief".

Fact: Joe Biden did indeed say this, on 19 August, 2007, in a TV debate between the various Democratic presidential hopefuls.

Verdict: Mrs Palin's quote was perfectly accurate. (However, Mr Biden did rethink his position. By May 2008 - before Mr Obama had sewn up the nomination, and before he had picked Mr Biden to be his running-mate - he was claiming that Mr Obama had "learned a hell of a lot".)

MCCAIN'S SUB-PRIME SURPRISE

Claim: Joe Biden pointed out that "John McCain said as early as last December, quote - I'm paraphrasing - 'I'm surprised about this subprime mortgage crisis'".

Fact: In a 4 November interview with a New Hampshire newspaper, the Keene Sentinel, John McCain said "I'd like to tell you I did anticipate [the mortgage crisis], but I have to give you straight talk, I did not".

Verdict: Mr Biden's paraphrase is a fair reflection of Mr McCain's words, although he got the date wrong by a month.

BIDEN'S SUPPORT FOR MCCAIN'S IRAQ POSITION

Claim: Sarah Palin said that Joe Biden "had supported John McCain's military strategies [in Iraq] pretty adamantly until this race".

Fact: Jonathan Weisman of the Washington Post characterises Mr Biden as "an outspoken opponent of... troop increases in Iraq as soon as Bush announced them after the 2006 elections". As Foreign Relations Committee Chairman, he led the most heated hearings before the troops were actually deployed.

Verdict: Mrs Palin's claim is untrue. Mr Biden opposed the surge - of which Mr McCain was a prominent proponent - long before the beginning of the presidential campaign, and maintained this position throughout the race.

MCCAIN ON SPAIN

Claim: Joe Biden asserted that "John McCain said as recently as a couple of weeks ago he wouldn't even sit down with the government of Spain".

Fact: John McCain, in an interview with a Spanish-language radio station, refused to commit to a meeting with the Spanish Prime Minister, saying only that he "would be willing to meet with those leaders who are our friends and want to work with us in a cooperative fashion".

Many observers said at the time that Mr McCain's answer was based on a mishearing of the question he had been asked (which had followed a series of questions about America's relationship with diplomatic foes in Latin America).

But a McCain campaign aide later confirmed that "the questioner asked several times about Senator McCain's willingness to meet [Spanish PM] Zapatero - and id'd him in the question so there is no doubt Senator McCain knew exactly to whom the question referred. Senator McCain refused to commit to a White House meeting with President Zapatero in this interview."

Verdict: While it would have been true for Mr Biden to say that Mr McCain had signalled (whether intentionally or not) a cooling in relations with Spain, Mr McCain did not rule out a meeting with the Spanish prime minister.

The Drill...

2008-09-25T05:41:00.001-05:00

Go Fuck Yourself... Mother Fucker.

2008-09-24T21:11:00.001-05:00

The Unbearable Lightness of Being...

2008-09-16T17:20:00.001-05:00

... refers to the transience of human existence and the sense of existential vertigo that comes from understanding your own mortality and insignificance. It's the realization that the things that matter most to you, the things you lay awake nights agonizing over and tear yourself apart dissecting and debating, are already utterly insignificant to the an overwhelming number of other people and will be totally forgotten when you're dead.

Now only if we all sensed this. The world would be a better place.

Adorable...

2008-09-15T18:49:00.001-05:00

Tina Fey as Sara Palin on Saturday Night Live!!!

2008-09-14T21:48:00.001-05:00

OK--- I hope this one won't get pulled off. We will see, meanwhile enjoy!

Sarah Palin at Her Best!

2008-09-14T18:44:00.003-05:00

There may be an advertisement at the beginning. So cut the sound--it will take about 12 sec to get rid of the ad. This video has been yanked form YouTube based on copyright violation... Hulu.com was the only place I could find it.

And... Then There is This...

2008-09-14T11:19:00.001-05:00

I don't know whether I want to know the story behind this...

More Photos...

2008-09-14T11:16:00.001-05:00

Success!

2008-09-14T11:03:00.001-05:00

Our first show was an utter success. We had about 400 or more people come throug during the night... and this is not even the big event! We are bracing outselves for the 26th event... I will post more pictures as I get them.

In Memory...

2008-09-11T06:32:00.003-05:00

Margin Show - Year Two

2008-09-07T19:06:00.001-05:00

It's all coming together rather nicely... This year the quality of art is as good if not better than last year... Openning soon!!!

No No No NO... No No No NO!!

2008-09-06T11:56:00.000-05:00

Palin was for 'Bridge to Nowhere'

2008-09-05T12:56:00.001-05:00

"Ha ha ha we Repubs are getting away with nominating a right wing extremist habitual liar religious freak again and we're getting away with this because the media always praises us and refuses to expose our corruption and extremism, even though we continue to claim the media is liberal."

tomsoppe

FOX Attacks Obama Like Kerry

2008-09-05T12:51:00.001-05:00

It's like DejaVu all over again...

Someone Kick This Mother Fucker Out of the DNC

2008-09-02T21:42:00.001-05:00

I Am So Sorry... And I Apologize

2008-09-02T20:50:00.001-05:00

The Republican Convention tonight smeared the name of a man who did what that had to be done because it was the right thing to do. Using the heroism of these men, who have died in a battle that was essentially useless and avoidable is simply heart wrenching. I had tears in my eyes when I heard about this man's deeds... And I am simply flabbergasted to see the name of this pure soul used and abused by the scum of the earth, by these liars, scoundrels who stop at nothing in order to remain in power.

To Michael A. Mansour: on behalf of the Republican Party and all Republicans, I apologize to you for having smeared your name in the way they have. May you rest in peace. "Roger that..."

Michael A. Monsoor

On September 29, 2006, the platoon engaged four insurgents in a firefight, killing one and injuring another. Anticipating further attacks, Monsoor, three SEAL snipers and three Iraqi soldiers took up a rooftop position. Civilians aiding the insurgents blocked off the streets, and a nearby mosque broadcast a message for people to fight against the Americans and the Iraqi soldiers. Monsoor was protecting other SEALs, two of whom were 15 feet away. His position made him the only SEAL on the rooftop with quick access to an escape route.[2][6]

A grenade was thrown onto the rooftop by an insurgent in the street below. The grenade hit Monsoor in the chest and fell onto the floor. Immediately, Monsoor fell onto and covered the grenade with his body, saving the lives of three people. Monsoor was critically wounded and, although evacuated immediately, died 30 minutes later. Two SEALs next to him were injured by the blast but lived.[2]

Our Second Annual Show... Be there or be Square!

2008-08-19T21:03:00.001-05:00

Them Midwesterns Love Their Beer!

2008-08-08T06:10:00.003-05:00

Woman kills boyfriend for drinking her beer, officials say

A West Side woman who allegedly stabbed her elderly boyfriend to death because he was drinking her beer was ordered held Thursday in lieu of $500,000 bail.

Regina Williams, 55, of the 1000 block of North Waller Avenue appeared in Cook County Bond Court before Judge Israel Desierto, charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Willie Anderson, 77, of the 2200 block of West Monroe Street.

About 6 p.m. Wednesday, the two were sitting in Anderson's car outside his home when Williams became angry that he was drinking her beer, authorities said. They began to quarrel, and Williams allegedly pulled a knife she carried for protection and began stabbing Anderson.

Anderson yelled for help, but Williams continued to stab him, Assistant State's Atty. Susanne Groebner told Desierto.

Ben is My Favorite Guy

2008-08-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

Boxin' Felix

2008-07-30T22:00:00.001-05:00

... And a Brown Eyed Susan

2008-07-28T22:23:00.001-05:00

My Lily...

2008-07-28T22:21:00.001-05:00

A Beluga Whale

2008-07-28T22:13:00.001-05:00

A beluga whale exhales bubble rings as part of a recent performance at the Aquas aquarium in Hamada, Japan. Beluga whales have attracted thousands of visitors to the aquarium this summer.

Back in the USA

2008-07-26T07:58:00.002-05:00

... Well, I was planning on keeping a short diary of my week in Paris, but that was not to be. What you gonna do... So I am back, just as I was getting used to the time change.

Oh well, perhaps next time I will be more disciplined in blogging while on a trip.

Working for the TSA Just Got Exciting!

2008-07-20T17:12:00.001-05:00

What the airport scanners see

A computer monitor viewed by a Transportation Security Administration officer reveals bodily details. (Getty Images photo by David McNew / April 17, 2008)

Day One

2008-07-18T17:41:00.003-05:00

Air Canada is GOD!

Yes. Air Canada is GOD.

On my way to Paris-- This time by myself -- that is without the ol' ball and chain otherwise known as Ms. Erin, I found myself on Air Canada and behold the humanitarian face of the airlines. Yes. We had space. Usually, you sit in the airplane and the person in front of you is almost sitting on your lap and the ones on your side are breathing down your neck.

Not in Air Canada.

There was enough space between me and the seat in front that I could cross my legs... and that without feeling my bones being all contorted or crushed.

Each seat has its own individual little TV thingy where you can watch various movies, hear news, play games, watch TV shows or simply listen to XM Radio.

But wait... there is more.

Each seat has a plug where you can plug in your computer and juice it up! No more battery problems during long flights... and by the same token, MUSIC galore-- since running iTunes while hooked up to power is no problemo.

Yes. I am a convert Canadian.

Problem is that it's cold here and it rains and 10 months out of 12 it snows...

Let's see what adventures awaits this Cat when he get to Paris... ALL BY HIMSELF!

PS: The Canadian Security at the airport gave me the most thorough, comprehensive, short of a cavity search search I have ever experienced. I pass the x-rays and the the guy comes up to me and tells me: "you have been selected for a random search." To which I replied: "Sure I was." The guy was nice about it though- so I didn't mind that much. I took it all in good humor.

:)

2008-07-17T07:15:00.001-05:00

Iconic

2008-07-16T05:52:00.002-05:00

The Truth Spoken by Nader

2008-07-12T07:34:00.002-05:00

Did you know Barak Obama voted in support of the FISA bill giving the Telecoms retroactive immunity for the activities the White House and the Telecoms insisted was not against the law...? Clinton voted against it...

Nader as always speaks the truth... I think I will, once again, vote for him.

Election 2008: Presidential Candidate Ralph Nader

New York: Many people I've spoken to have seen your presidential campaigns as nudging elections toward the republican candidate and not nearly achieving the votes needed to get third-party status. Can you explain why they're wrong, or why this time will be different?

Ralph Nader: As long as liberal voters continue to vote for the Democratic party no matter how badly the party behaves, so long as the Republicans are worse, the Democratic nominee will take these liberal votes for granted and move toward right-wing positions and also move toward the corporate interests that are tugging at the candidate.

The only way this can change is if liberal or progressive voters signal to the Democratic nominee that they have somewhere else to go. That somewhere else can be the progressive Nader/Gonzalez campaign otherwise the liberal/progressive voters will be in a trap and will be taken for granted. This is already happening with the liberal progressive voters' relationship with Barack Obama. So it is up to these voters to generate leverage instead of surrender.

--- ~~~ ---

Takoma Park, Md.: What's the difference between your health care reform plan and Obama's and McCain's?

Ralph Nader: The Nader/Gonzalez healthcare plan is what is often called a "single-payer" plan, that is, full government health insurance or full medicare for all. With free choice of hospitals and doctors, greatly reduced administrative expenses, elimination of the huge computerized billing fraud and abuse, and a more facilitative database to determine outcomes which encourage prevention of diseases and injury.

Obama's plan basically pumps more public money on top of a rotten, wasteful, corrupt and redundant healthcare system dominated by giant HMOs, health insurance companies and drug companies at the expense of the professional judgements of physicians and nurses.

McCain's plan is even worse and does nothing to control the spiraling costs of healthcare. It's the dream of the giant corporations that dominate our healthcare system. For more detail, go to the Physicians for National Health program or ask your member of congress for HR676, the single-payer legislation.

--- ~~~ ---

Amherst, Ohio: It is fashionable to attribute much of our difficulties to "corporations" and "big business." Are corporations evil? Is it wrong to want to make a living and pursue the American Dream? Haven't lawsuits by so-called consumer advocates also become a big and profitable business (for example, in the areas of asbestos, tobacco and medical malpractice)?
Ralph Nader: When corporations are not required to adhere to decent boundaries enforced by law they can become reckless and take hundreds of thousands of lives and cause injuries annually from hazardous workplaces, defective consumer products, toxic chemicals in the environment and medical-hospital negligence. When regulators fall down on the job, the courts are the last recourse for compensatory justice on behalf of the wrongfully injured victims. Remember, every major in the world has warned its inherents not to give too much power to the merchant class. The subordination of commercial values to civic values advance a just society. The reverse is what has been happening in our country. Including the corporate crime wave from Enron to Wall St. and the hijacking of our government by global corporations.

Imaginary Bumps on the Road...!

2008-07-12T06:49:00.001-05:00

Imaginary police officers will be next.

City Tries Make-Believe

This speed hump in Philadelphia is nothing more than flat pieces of plastic burned into the street. Municipal officials say the month-old program will soon be expanded.

Tell Fox to Fuck Off

2008-07-11T16:47:00.001-05:00

Sign the Petition here.

Fox and its Sky...Craper?

2008-07-09T12:20:00.002-05:00

Good Riddance...

2008-07-05T23:11:00.001-05:00

They say, only the good die young.

Jesse Helms, Isolationist Who Targeted Tehran, Dies at 86

The former US Senator Jesse Helms, a legendary isolationist and defender of "Southern values" who spent much of his life goading liberals, died yesterday.

Bush versus The United States of America

2008-07-05T09:09:00.002-05:00

And this motherfucker dares to talk about patriotism.

Judge Rejects Bush's View on Wiretaps

A federal judge in California said Wednesday that the wiretapping law established by Congress was the "exclusive" means for the president to eavesdrop on Americans, and he rejected the government's claim that the president's constitutional authority as commander in chief trumped that law. The judge, Vaughn R. Walker, the chief judge for the Northern District of California, made his findings in a ruling on a lawsuit brought by an Oregon charity. The group says it has evidence of an illegal wiretap used against it by the National Security Agency under the secret surveillance program established by President Bush after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

No Health Care Even With Insurance

2008-07-05T07:47:00.001-05:00

Americans are finding it harder to access health care

Access to medical care has deteriorated sharply among people living in the United States, a survey has found. The proportion of people who report delaying medical care or not getting it at all rose from 14% in 2003 to more than 20% in 2007. Perhaps surprisingly, the decline in access was greater among people with health insurance than among those without it.

The findings are part of the 2007 health tracking household survey, a representative, cross section survey of 18 000 persons interviewed by phone. It was conducted by the Center for Health System Change and released at a news conference in Washington, DC, on 26 June.

Extrapolating from the data suggests that the number of Americans who experienced problems with access to care over the previous 12 months rose from 36 million in 2003 to 59 million in 2007.

by Bob Roehr

Hmmm... Where Else Have I Heard That?

2008-07-03T17:55:00.001-05:00

Obama Might "refine" Iraq Withdrawal Timeline

Senator Barack Obama said that he was not shifting strategy, but that he would have to pay attention to conditions on the ground.

To Guard Against the Impostures of Pretended Patriotism

2008-07-02T18:47:00.001-05:00

Happy Oil Dependence Day

s we head into the Fourth of July weekend of patriotic bluster and beer swilling—but before we are too besotted with ourselves—might we also for once consider our imperfections? Why not take a moment to heed the cautions of our founding father, George Washington, whose true legacy will most likely be ignored during the flag-waving weekend?

Washington’s “Farewell Address” to the new nation was a warning about the threat of American imperial ambitions and a declaration of his high expectations for a republic of free men: “In offering to you, my countrymen, these counsels of an old and affectionate friend, I dare not hope they will make the strong and lasting impression I could wish; that they will control the usual current of the passions, or prevent our nation from running the course which has hitherto marked the destiny of nations. But, if I may even flatter myself, that they may be productive of some partial benefit, some occasional good; that they may now and then recur to moderate the fury of party spirit, to warn against the mischiefs of foreign intrigue, to guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism. ...”

We are drowning in the “impostures of pretended patriotism,” used to cover the lies that got us into Iraq, the defense of torture and the violation of our basic liberties. In the name of patriotism, we presume a God-given American right to reorder the world to our liking, masking the vice of unfettered greed as an obligation of national security.

Any doubts as to this later governing impulse of our imperial ambitions were shattered with the recent news that U.S. advisers to our puppet government in the Green Zone of occupied Iraq have worked out agreements for American oil companies to gain control of Iraqi oil fields. But, then again, what did we expect when we elected a Texas oil hustler, and a failed one at that, to be our president?

Cat Fight

2008-07-02T09:21:00.001-05:00

This is very funny with an even funnier surprise at the end:

American Politics Defined

2008-07-02T06:15:00.001-05:00

The five characteristics of the majority of the American Public when it comes to politics and that which affects their lives. This perfectly explains why morons like Dubbya can get elected and re-elected!!!

Ignorant America: Just How Stupid Are We?

Five defining characteristics of stupidity, it seems to me, are readily apparent. First, is sheer ignorance: Ignorance of critical facts about important events in the news, and ignorance of how our government functions and who's in charge. Second, is negligence: The disinclination to seek reliable sources of information about important news events. Third, is wooden-headedness, as the historian Barbara Tuchman defined it: The inclination to believe what we want to believe regardless of the facts. Fourth, is shortsightedness: The support of public policies that are mutually contradictory, or contrary to the country's long-term interests. Fifth, and finally, is a broad category I call bone-headedness, for want of a better name: The susceptibility to meaningless phrases, stereotypes, irrational biases, and simplistic diagnoses and solutions that play on our hopes and fears.

The Real Terrorist Jab

2008-07-01T06:48:00.004-05:00

Not the Echo Park I Got to Know

2008-06-29T09:46:00.003-05:00

Where have Echo Park's lotuses gone?

The lake in Los Angeles used to house the largest, lushest lotus beds in the nation. All that remain are a few sickly leaves. The city is working to revive them, but experts say it may be too late.

A couple of lotus plants float on the surface of the lake. The plants are believed to be direct descendants of the plants imported from China in the 1920s by Aimee McPherson, founder of the Angelus Temple across the street from the park.

Default on Your Student Loans

2008-06-27T12:14:00.002-05:00

If we all did it, it would work.

Artist Matt Kresling's latest creation, The Beast That Swallows Its Young, encourages viewers to consider defaulting on their student loans. The song was created using messages from Matt's own student-loan debt collectors.