legal foibles

did you have a mean old man?

2007-11-27T04:37:00.000-08:00

On my own
How could I have known?
Imagine my surprise
Just a fool
From a tree full of fools
Who cant believe his eyes
Imagine my surprise

I was a mean old man
I was an ornery cuss
I was a dismal dan
I made an awful fuss
Ever since my life began
Man, it was ever thus
I was a nasty tyke who was hard to like

I had to misbehave
I did things in reverse
Refused to wash or shave
I was horrid to my nurse
I got back what I gave
Which only made me worse
I had to have my way
Which was bleak and gray, oh dear

Living in here
One hundred years of rain
Such a drag
This riches to rags
With just myself to blame
A dirty low-down shame

Silly me
Silly old me
Somewhere outside my mind
Clever you
Walking me through
Willing to lead the blind
Just in the nick of time

Who gets a second chance?
Who gets to have some fun?
Who gets to learn to dance
Before his race is run?
Who gets to shed his skin?
Who comes up born again?
Who was a mean old man
til you turned him into a golden retriever
a puppy dog
who's a good boy?

a good dog.
a lucky dog.

We all miss our parents when we can't sense them any longer

2007-11-27T04:34:00.000-08:00

We were ring-around-the-rosy children
They were circles around the sun
Never give up, never slow down
Never grow old, never ever die young

Synchronized with the rising moon
Even with the evening star
They were true love written in stone
They were never alone, they were never that far apart

And we who couldn't bear to believe they might make it
We got to close our eyes
Cut up our losses into doable doses
Ration our tears and sighs

You could see them on the street on a Saturday night
Everyone used to run them down
They're a little too sweet, they're a little too tight
Not enough tough for this town

We couldn't touch them with a ten-foot pole
No, it didn't seem to rattle at all
They were glued together body and soul
That much more with their backs up against the wall

Oh, hold them up, hold them up
Never do let them fall
Prey to the dust and the rust and the ruin
That names us and claims us and shames us all

I guess it had to happen someday soon
Wasn't nothing to hold them down
They would rise from among us like a big balloon
Take the sky, forsake the ground

Oh, yes, other hearts were broken
Yeah, other dreams ran dry
But our golden ones sail on, sail on
To another land beneath another sky

My Letter to 790 the Ticket, Sports Talk Radio in Miami

2007-11-02T06:33:00.001-07:00

10/30/07

Steve White
Program Director
790 the Ticket

Dear Mr. White:

Where were the adults when the decision was made to promote Sid Rosenberg's show with a clip castigating some caller for comparing Ann Coulter to Hitler???

This is a woman who openly espouses violence and worse against non Christians and liberals. I know Mr. Rosenberg can't control his own worst impulses, which is why I and many others choose not to pay any attention to him when we can help it. To hear him openly and smugly support Ann Coulter and your stupid decision to program her is bad enough. To hear his GOP-fueled outtakes in the middle of the day when those of us are unsuspecting is simply intolerable to me. To know that you intentionally ran his flatulence as a promo in the middle of another show takes it out of the realm of Sid's obvious ignorance and into that of your own. You made a BIG Mistake.

I honestly don't know what you were thinking. I only heard this spot in the middle of the day because my dial was tuned to Dan and Stu's show for the drive home yesterday. I think they are hilarious, but this business with you bringing in political hacks like Rosenberg and Coulter just lost me. I won't use your advertisers, if I ever listen to your station again. Lebatard isn't THAT funny. If you really want to go for the mouth-breathers, then you should have Sid cover NASCAR and limit his nasal inanities to such times. That is, keep him in his cave and don't let him on the air when any intellectuals may hear him. That way, he won't mistakenly treat ALL of your list eners as though they are those Neanderthals that actually agree with his political views.

Frankly, I believe Coulter may be reasonably compared to Hitler, if only in respect of her mendacious propaganda. Someone should inform the nose with a cranium that Hitler spoke out and fomented hatred with propaganda long before he had killed anyone, so it's entirely appropriate to criticize hate speech by comparing another hater to Hitler even if those such as Coulter only urge violence. It's no excuse that they may not have yet achieved their aims.

It's certainly understood that Coulter has these radical, extreme views. Anyone with a pulse knows this by now. Yet here is Sid the Melon belittling the reasoning of someone with mainstream views IN THE MIDDLE OF YOUR LESS OFFENSIVE PROGRAMMING as though we need a recovering drug addict to tell us what is and isn't so politically. (Here's a suggestion: Maybe Sid can get a job with Rush Limbaugh and they can get high together while they blather. Or maybe you can hire Neil Rogers for some equal time. Good luck with that.)

I'll never forget this, just as I have never forgiven ESPN for having Rush on there. I've never, ever supported anyone who advertises on ESPN since then. Now you'll get the same treatment. I intend to write your advertisers and any sports teams associated with your station to bring this reasonable objection to their attention, as well. I will blog these views. In fact, I intend to castigate your station and this morning dunce to anyone who will listen. Maybe you'll pick up some rich, fat-cat GOP'ers, but you are going to lose your blue-collar crowd, just as you've insulted me. Your organization should show greater sensibilities and hire someone with greater sensitivity to others than Mr. Rosenberg. And, Mr. White, I would make this same suggestion to your boss.

Sincerely and vehemently yours,

Chris from Boca

Cc: Neil Rogers

i think Barack's already made a deal with Hillary for VP or secretary of state

2007-10-30T04:42:00.000-07:00

Barack Obama called up the NYT a couple of days ago to announce that he plans to attack Hillary for being too poll-driven and vague and disciplined, and since then has worked to make poll-driven and vague and disciplined look good by a series of gaffes, including lecturing gays (oh all right, L’s, G’s, B’s and T’s), who he believes are “hermetically sealed from the faith community,” by which he means that he thinks they never ever hear homophobic Christians saying that they’re going to hell, and are the poorer for it.

2007-10-28T06:59:00.000-07:00

Eagles Football Radio

2007-10-05T07:56:00.000-07:00

2007-10-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

2007-09-20T04:15:00.000-07:00

illegal briefs

2007-09-15T05:15:00.000-07:00

2007-09-15T04:45:00.001-07:00

rochelle, rochelle

2007-09-14T18:00:00.001-07:00

a young girl's journey from

Milan to Minsk

the yin-yang moon

2007-09-14T15:45:00.000-07:00

bicing

2007-09-13T17:16:00.000-07:00

Barcelona has a recently new program called Bicing, which is a bike sharing program. Bike stations are placed strategically throughout the city, and subway stops usually have signs pointing to them. Members have a card which they swipe, they're told which bike to grab, and off they go. It isn't necessary to return the bikes to where you got them; they can be dropped off at any bicing station. The first half hour is free, and after that there's a bit of a surcharge. When the program began they set the annual membership fee at some absurd low figure like 7 Euros, causing most of the city to sign up. That's now been increased to 24 Euros.

It's apparently become quite popular with seniors, who use them for leisurely afternoon bike rides.

2007-09-13T16:23:00.000-07:00

2007-09-12T17:06:00.000-07:00

acme terrorist repellant needed

2007-09-12T16:48:00.000-07:00

The White House vowed Tuesday the United States would capture elusive Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden as it marked the sixth anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Beep. Beep.

2007-09-12T16:26:00.000-07:00

Scorpius

2007-09-11T15:27:00.000-07:00

Serious experts and not dirty fucking hippies

2007-09-10T16:35:00.000-07:00

McCain and Lieberman both came out today and said the 'surge' is working, and therefore Iraq is improving. But you know, they have never not said Iraq is improving since we got there.

On the other hand, in December 2002 I did accurately predict what would happen in Iraq. Guess I'm not serious enough.

I'm just some dirty fucking hippie. What could I possibly know. They're experts.

Voyager

2007-09-08T16:55:00.000-07:00

NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft are now respectively 15 billion and 12.5 billion kilometers from the Sun, equivalent to about 14 and 11.5 light-hours distant.

This is what we sent with them.

next criminal defendant in line up from Abramoff gets hands off treatment by department of defense.

2007-09-07T16:16:00.000-07:00

this guy is now the tip of the corruption in the pentagon and department of defense. Of course the Department of Justice protects him. It's cheaper for the BFEE than downing his jet.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/052585.php

we're being monitored and otherwise surveiled.

2007-09-07T15:36:00.000-07:00

never forget to insult those who are listening in!

greetings and salutations

2007-09-07T15:17:00.000-07:00

well, as sam once said, I AM back.

welcome newcomers. you are the first visitors here. Hard to explain the malaise that came over me until now, but I'm back.

the preceding post

2007-03-21T17:28:00.000-07:00

it pains me that visitors have to click on the absent, sanitized version of the preceding post, in order to see the globulaaar head of mike mcconnel, or the face of inquisition, from 'Brazil'. it wounds me to the quick.

best site on the web

2007-02-20T16:37:00.000-08:00

Michael McConnell, the successor to John Negroponte as Director of National Intelligence, was sworn in today at an Air Force base, for some reason

Remind you of anyone?

lol. too funny

http://www.whateveritisimagainstit.blogspot.com/

back, because i stopped

2007-01-26T15:55:00.000-08:00

blogging, for reasons hard to explain. too much negativity and interference on the path of transcendence. as the nature of the universe is a certain forth

and back,

now I'm back.

i'm back from here

2007-01-26T15:52:00.000-08:00

2007-01-11T15:11:00.000-08:00

2006-12-28T04:22:00.000-08:00

merry X mas

2006-12-21T15:31:00.000-08:00

election day 2006

2006-11-07T04:20:00.000-08:00

sad, really. the criminals and whores gave the democrats every chance to seize the initiative. they haven't. no one has the balls to lose by doing the right thing. you do the right thing long enough, you win a sustainable victory. you play republican lite and your tenure is doomed to failures more depressing than those we've witnessed for the last six years. for the life of me, i can't figure out why the populace ever wanted an oil man, with ties to the saudiis, who presided over 9/11, who needlessly started the iraq war, to wield unlimited power.

really sad.

we won't take either house of congress. all the talk about policies and the good of the country is meaningless because the criminals and whores still count the votes.

God help us all.

huh

2006-07-15T17:29:00.000-07:00

here i am!

this is odd

2006-05-13T04:53:00.000-07:00

'Edit Search: "phone surveillance" Database: NEWSUS-PRO

Results: 0 Documents

Westlaw is unable to process your request.'

the link in the search hit in the email i receive every morning didn't work; the search reproduced above returned the reults noted on 5/11/06 (none); the program otherwise appears functional and many other searches were completed successfully.

hey, as long as we try them first...

2006-05-08T13:13:00.000-07:00

Bush said in the interview with ARD on Thursday that either way the court rules, "they will get a trial which they, themselves, were unwilling to give to the people that they're willing to kill."

tricky ricky santorum, the shame of the keystone state

2006-05-08T07:32:00.000-07:00

In 1999 Ricky’s wife sued a chiropractor after a back injury left her with permanent back pain and disability for life. They sued for $500,000, and the jury held the chiropractor accountable and provided $350,000 in compensation.

But today Rick Santorum is pushing a medical malpractice bill in Congress that would limit pain and suffering damages for injured patients like his wife to $250,000.

kucinich for president

2006-05-05T09:22:00.000-07:00

05/03/06 "ICH" -- -- Despite numerous public reports stating that US troops are currently conducting operations within Iran, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations (UN) refused to answer repeated questions by Congressman Dennis J. Kucinich (D-OH) about US troops in Iran, today at a House Government Reform Subcommittee on National Security, Emerging Threats and International Relations.

Kucinich, the Ranking Member on the Subcommittee, repeatedly questioned Ambassador Bolton on the effect that US troops operating within Iran will have on diplomatic negotiations already underway, including those at the UN.

Recently, Seymour Hersh reported in The New Yorker magazine that US troops are already operating in Iran. Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner (Ret.) has made similar statements on CNN. In addition, Vincent Cannistraro, a former CIA counter-terrorism chief, told the Guardian newspaper that special forces are operating within Iran identifying targets and aiding dissident groups.

While Ambassador Bolton refused to answer questions about US troops in Iran, Ambassador Bolton did state that the US was prepared to move against Iran, with or without the UN Security Council.

“I find it hard to believe that the United States Ambassador to the United Nations does not know about ongoing military activity in one of the world’s most volatile regions, and in a country at the heart of current debate before the UN,” stated Kucinich after the hearing. “Congress has a Constitutional role to play in providing checks and balances of this Administration. Ambassador’s Bolton testimony today, and his refusal to answer even the most basic questions about Iran, is just another example of this Administration’s contempt of Congress.”

“This Administration has set our nation on the path to war against Iran,” continued Kucinich. “It has done so without consulting the Congress, and without proper Congressional oversight. Today’s hearing could have been an important moment to educate the public and the Congress about this Administration’s policy towards Iran, and the role US military is already playing in implementing that policy. Unfortunately, Ambassador Bolton’s stonewalling prevent this from happening.”

“This Administration has set our nation on a very dangerous path with Iran. Congress must intervene before this Administration begins a wider, and far more dangerous war in the Middle East,” concluded Kucinich.

go read digby

2006-05-05T08:52:00.000-07:00

digby, i love you, man. really. your ability to present a common sense argument that convinces irrefutably is most excellent. i have made similar comments in the past in your support, but I must take umbrage and scold you for your naievty. I think you have it backwards. emphasizing the importance of the election in light of the crimes committed misses the obvious and plays right into their hands. DUDE, these crimes and the concomitant extraconstitutional power grab have occurred precisely because the elections are no longer seen as a significant check on their ability to remain in power. Where has everyone been during the last two presidential elections and during those off year elections as well? Is it just me that sees black box voting and similar electoral problems as the clear source of empowerment of these assholes? Exactly where has the electoral process been improved in such a fashion as to assure that they won't again steal whatever power they need? Does anyone think they'd really be acting so outrageously if the next elction isn't at least perceived by their politcal henchmen (Rove, et al) as already in the bag?

correction: this should have been addressed to tristero, rather than digby. love tristero too. brilliant, both of them. the point is still relevant. these elections will be stolen, as will every other election until this long night of fascism ends.

mea culpa in hullabaloo's comments

here:

http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2006_11_01_digbysblog

no wonder w's administration keeps saying things are going so well in iraq

2006-05-05T06:54:00.000-07:00

Iraqi police have been killing homosexuals. Sistani ruled that they must be killed in the “worst, most severe way.”

Geman Chancellor meets with Bush on Iran

2006-05-04T07:35:00.000-07:00

"I can't believe she said we can bomb the shit out of 'em this summer."

a thinly disguised "undisguised" contempt

2006-05-01T13:32:00.000-07:00

White House Correspondent's Dinner (aka The Annual Gannon Buffet)

STEPHEN COLBERT: "Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Before I begin, I've been asked to make an announcement. Whoever parked 14 black bulletproof S.U.V.'s out front, could you please move them? They are blocking in 14 other black bulletproof S.U.V.'s and they need to get out.

Wow. Wow, what an honor. The White House correspondents' dinner. To actually sit here, at the same table with my hero, George W. Bush, to be this close to the man. I feel like I'm dreaming. Somebody pinch me. You know what? I'm a pretty sound sleeper -- that may not be enough. Somebody shoot me in the face. Is he really not here tonight? Dammit. The one guy who could have helped.

By the way, before I get started, if anybody needs anything else at their tables, just speak slowly and clearly into your table numbers. Somebody from the NSA will be right over with a cocktail. Mark Smith, ladies and gentlemen of the press corps, Madame First Lady, Mr. President, my name is Stephen Colbert and tonight it's my privilege to celebrate this president. We're not so different, he and I. We get it. We're not brainiacs on the nerd patrol. We're not members of the factinista. We go straight from the gut, right sir? That's where the truth lies, right down here in the gut. Do you know you have more nerve endings in your gut than you have in your head? You can look it up. I know some of you are going to say I did look it up, and that's not true. That's cause you looked it up in a book.

Next time, look it up in your gut. I did. My gut tells me that's how our nervous system works. Every night on my show, the Colbert Report, I speak straight from the gut, OK? I give people the truth, unfiltered by rational argument. I call it the "No Fact Zone." Fox News, I hold a copyright on that term.

I'm a simple man with a simple mind. I hold a simple set of beliefs that I live by. Number one, I believe in America. I believe it exists. My gut tells me I live there. I feel that it extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and I strongly believe it has 50 states. And I cannot wait to see how the Washington Post spins that one tomorrow. I believe in democracy. I believe democracy is our greatest export. At least until China figures out a way to stamp it out of plastic for three cents a unit.

In fact, Ambassador Zhou Wenzhong, welcome. Your great country makes our Happy Meals possible. I said it's a celebration. I believe the government that governs best is the government that governs least. And by these standards, we have set up a fabulous government in Iraq.

I believe in pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. I believe it is possible -- I saw this guy do it once in Cirque du Soleil. It was magical. And though I am a committed Christian, I believe that everyone has the right to their own religion, be you Hindu, Jewish or Muslim. I believe there are infinite paths to accepting Jesus Christ as your personal savior.

Ladies and gentlemen, I believe it's yogurt. But I refuse to believe it's not butter. Most of all, I believe in this president.

Now, I know there are some polls out there saying this man has a 32% approval rating. But guys like us, we don't pay attention to the polls. We know that polls are just a collection of statistics that reflect what people are thinking in "reality." And reality has a well-known liberal bias.

So, Mr. President, please, pay no attention to the people that say the glass is half full. 32% means the glass -- it's important to set up your jokes properly, sir. Sir, pay no attention to the people who say the glass is half empty, because 32% means it's 2/3 empty. There's still some liquid in that glass is my point, but I wouldn't drink it. The last third is usually backwash. Okay, look, folks, my point is that I don't believe this is a low point in this presidency. I believe it is just a lull before a comeback.

I mean, it's like the movie "Rocky." All right. The president in this case is Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed is -- everything else in the world. It's the tenth round. He's bloodied. His corner man, Mick, who in this case I guess would be the vice president, he's yelling, "Cut me, Dick, cut me!," and every time he falls everyone says, "Stay down! Stay down!" Does he stay down? No. Like Rocky, he gets back up, and in the end he -- actually, he loses in the first movie.

OK. Doesn't matter. The point is it is the heart-warming story of a man who was repeatedly punched in the face. So don't pay attention to the approval ratings that say 68% of Americans disapprove of the job this man is doing. I ask you this, does that not also logically mean that 68% approve of the job he's not doing? Think about it. I haven't.

I stand by this man. I stand by this man because he stands for things. Not only for things, he stands on things. Things like aircraft carriers and rubble and recently flooded city squares. And that sends a strong message, that no matter what happens to America, she will always rebound -- with the most powerfully staged photo ops in the world.

Now, there may be an energy crisis. This president has a very forward-thinking energy policy. Why do you think he's down on the ranch cutting that brush all the time? He's trying to create an alternative energy source. By 2008 we will have a mesquite-powered car!

And I just like the guy. He's a good joe. Obviously loves his wife, calls her his better half. And polls show America agrees. She's a true lady and a wonderful woman. But I just have one beef, ma'am.

I'm sorry, but this reading initiative. I'm sorry, I've never been a fan of books. I don't trust them. They're all fact, no heart. I mean, they're elitist, telling us what is or isn't true, or what did or didn't happen. Who's Britannica to tell me the Panama Canal was built in 1914? If I want to say it was built in 1941, that's my right as an American! I'm with the president, let history decide what did or did not happen.

The greatest thing about this man is he's steady. You know where he stands. He believes the same thing Wednesday that he believed on Monday, no matter what happened Tuesday. Events can change; this man's beliefs never will. As excited as I am to be here with the president, I am appalled to be surrounded by the liberal media that is destroying America, with the exception of Fox News. Fox News gives you both sides of every story: the president's side, and the vice president's side.

But the rest of you, what are you thinking, reporting on NSA wiretapping or secret prisons in eastern Europe? Those things are secret for a very important reason: they're super-depressing. And if that's your goal, well, misery accomplished. Over the last five years you people were so good -- over tax cuts, WMD intelligence, the effect of global warming. We Americans didn't want to know, and you had the courtesy not to try to find out. Those were good times, as far as we knew.

But, listen, let's review the rules. Here's how it works: the president makes decisions. He's the decider. The press secretary announces those decisions, and you people of the press type those decisions down. Make, announce, type. Just put 'em through a spell check and go home. Get to know your family again. Make love to your wife. Write that novel you got kicking around in your head. You know, the one about the intrepid Washington reporter with the courage to stand up to the administration. You know - fiction!

Because really, what incentive do these people have to answer your questions, after all? I mean, nothing satisfies you. Everybody asks for personnel changes. So the White House has personnel changes. Then you write, "Oh, they're just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic." First of all, that is a terrible metaphor. This administration is not sinking. This administration is soaring. If anything, they are rearranging the deck chairs on the Hindenburg!

Now, it's not all bad guys out there. Some are heroes: Christopher Buckley, Jeff Sacks, Ken Burns, Bob Schieffer. They've all been on my show. By the way, Mr. President, thank you for agreeing to be on my show. I was just as shocked as everyone here is, I promise you. How's Tuesday for you? I've got Frank Rich, but we can bump him. And I mean bump him. I know a guy. Say the word.

See who we've got here tonight. General Moseley, Air Force Chief of Staff. General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They still support Rumsfeld. Right, you guys aren't retired yet, right? Right, they still support Rumsfeld.

Look, by the way, I've got a theory about how to handle these retired generals causing all this trouble: don't let them retire! Come on, we've got a stop-loss program; let's use it on these guys. I've seen Zinni and that crowd on Wolf Blitzer. If you're strong enough to go on one of those pundit shows, you can stand on a bank of computers and order men into battle. Come on.

Jesse Jackson is here, the Reverend. Haven't heard from the Reverend in a little while. I had him on the show. Very interesting and challenging interview. You can ask him anything, but he's going to say what he wants, at the pace that he wants. It's like boxing a glacier. Enjoy that metaphor, by the way, because your grandchildren will have no idea what a glacier is.

Justice Scalia is here. Welcome, sir. May I be the first to say, you look fantastic. How are you? [After each sentence, Colbert makes a hand gesture, an allusion to Scalia's recent use of an obscene Sicilian hand gesture in speaking to a reporter about Scalia's critics. Scalia is seen laughing hysterically.] Just talking some Sicilian with my paisan.

John McCain is here. John McCain, John McCain, what a maverick! Somebody find out what fork he used on his salad, because I guarantee you it wasn't a salad fork. This guy could have used a spoon! There's no predicting him. By the way, Senator McCain, it's so wonderful to see you coming back into the Republican fold. I have a summer house in South Carolina; look me up when you go to speak at Bob Jones University. So glad you've seen the light, sir.

Mayor Nagin! Mayor Nagin is here from New Orleans, the chocolate city! Yeah, give it up. Mayor Nagin, I'd like to welcome you to Washington, D.C., the chocolate city with a marshmallow center. And a graham cracker crust of corruption. It's a Mallomar, I guess is what I'm describing, a seasonal cookie.

Joe Wilson is here, Joe Wilson right down here in front, the most famous husband since Desi Arnaz. And of course he brought along his lovely wife Valerie Plame. Oh, my god! Oh, what have I said? [looks horrified] I am sorry, Mr. President, I meant to say he brought along his lovely wife Joe Wilson's wife. Patrick Fitzgerald is not here tonight? OK. Dodged a bullet.

And, of course, we can't forget the man of the hour, new press secretary, Tony Snow. Secret Service name, "Snow Job." Toughest job. What a hero! Took the second toughest job in government, next to, of course, the ambassador to Iraq.

Got some big shoes to fill, Tony. Big shoes to fill. Scott McClellan could say nothing like nobody else. McClellan, of course, eager to retire. Really felt like he needed to spend more time with Andrew Card's children. Mr. President, I wish you hadn't made the decision so quickly, sir.

I was vying for the job myself. I think I would have made a fabulous press secretary. I have nothing but contempt for these people. ..."

Wounded Soldiers

2006-04-26T23:28:00.000-07:00

Fight Off Bill Collectors at Home

Plame Leak

2006-04-26T13:21:00.000-07:00

caused ten (10) year setback in CIA's Iran intelligence.

Woodcock: sex-based cults could result from medication

2006-04-26T13:02:00.000-07:00

according to a staff memo that suggests the bush FDA appointee was concerned Plan B might lead to extreme teenage promiscuity.

Makes you wonder what the woodcockian teen years were like.

2006-04-26T07:05:00.000-07:00

here's some questions for today's gaggle about gas prices:

shouldn't the fat disgusting ceo of exxon be paid a few shillings less this year so some kid in Trenton can maybe make it down to the seashore once this summer?which of the four points amounts to anything greater than lip service? isn't the cat already out of the oil bag? and by invading the middle east and threatening iran, hasn't bush assured this? wasn't this the motive for 9/11 all along, whether bush knew about it or not? haven't the oil companies, arguably the most powerful economic force in the world, the most to gain from war and the aftermath of terrorist attacks? does't it make sense to invest the leadership of the nation in a different political block, considering that concentration of economic power in the oil companies and the military indutrial complex? isn't that a more reasonable approach to separating power for the sake of limiting it's most harsh consequenmces on all of humanity, you fucking dickhead?

maybe wait for scottie's replacement to ask these. ok? is that this week? bloated piece of shit.

father christmas give us some money

2006-04-25T10:57:00.000-07:00

we'll shoot you up if you make us annoyed.

what role models could possibly exist for kids who plan to shoot up the school in order to solve their problems?

seen on bartcop

2006-04-24T13:36:00.000-07:00

Subject: Gas Price Gouging

"I'm concerned about higher gasoline prices," Bush says.
"The government has the responsibility to make sure that we watch very carefully and investigate
possible price-gouging, and we will do just that," Do I believe that? I still remember how he said he
was going to investigate the leaks related to the outing of the CIA agent.

Bush called for a criminal investigation to "get to the bottom" of it
just to find out that he was the one behind it.

They can pretend that the high price of gas is because of "world demand" and "political uncertainty"
and "converting to ethanol", but when I see the president of Exxon getting a retirement bonus of
close to half a BILLION dollars it's pretty clear that it's greedy oil companies raping the public again.

These are the guys who met in secret with vice president Cheney to create the energy policies that
make them rich and us poor. When the oil companies are showing record profits it doesn't take a
genius to figure out that if they made a little less then we would be paying less at the pumps.
The quickest way to bring down gas prices is to impeach Bush and Cheney.

Marc Perkel
San Francisco, CA.

The US Supreme Court

2006-04-24T07:09:00.000-07:00

has agreed to tell the State of Florida how it may kill Clarence Hill.

Hill was convicted of killing Pensacola police Officer Stephen Taylor in 1982.

Taylor, 26, and Officer Larry Bailly had gone to investigate a silent alarm at a bank in downtown Pensacola, and caught Hill's partner, Cliff Jackson, outside the bank. As the officers attempted to handcuff Jackson, Hill came up from behind, killing Taylor and wounding Bailly. Hill was shot five times. Jackson was sentenced to life in prison.

Bailly, who is retired, did not respond to a request for comment made through the Pensacola Police Department.

Hill also has claimed he should not be executed since he is mentally retarded. That argument was rejected by the state Supreme Court, which noted that a mental evaluation showed his IQ was 16 points higher than the standard of 70 or below.

Taylor's family is growing weary after 24 years of delays, said his older brother, Jack Taylor. They want Hill dead and they were angry when his execution was halted.

"If they want me to, I'd put a bullet in his brain," said Taylor, 61, who lives in Pensacola.

"It needs to be done and it needs to be over with," said Linda Knouse, the slain officer's sister.

steely dawns

2006-04-22T13:47:00.000-07:00

And they wandered in
From the city of St. John
Without a dime
Wearing coats that shined
Both red and green
Colors from their sunny island
From their boats of iron
They looked upon the promised land
Where surely life was sweet
On the rising tide
To New York City
Did they ride into the street
See the glory
Of the royal scam

They are hounded down
To the bottom of a bad town
Amid the ruins
Where they learn to fear
An angry race of fallen kings
Their dark companions
While the memory of
Their southern sky was clouded by
A savage winter
Every patron saint
Hung on the wall, shared the room
With twenty sinners

See the glory
Of the royal scam

By the blackened wall
He does it all
He thinks he's died and gone to heaven
Now the tale is told
By the old man back home
He reads the letter
How they are paid in gold
Just to babble in the back room
All night and waste their time
And they wandered in
From the city of St. John without a dime

See the glory
Of the royal scam

I recall when I was small
How I spent my days alone
The busy world was not for me
So I went and found my own
I would climb the garden wall
With a candle in my hand
I’d hide inside a hall of rock and sand
On the stone an ancient hand
In a faded yellow-green
Made alive a worldly wonder
Often told but never seen
Now and ever bound to labor
On the sea and in the sky
Every man and beast appeared
A friend as real as i

Chorus:
Before the fall when they wrote it on the wall
When there wasn’t even any hollywood
They heard the call
And they wrote it on the wall
For you and me we understood

Can it be this sad design
Could be the very same
A wooly man without a face
And a beast without a name
Nothin’ here but history
Can you see what has been done
Memory rush over me
Now I step into the sun

Katherine Harris' Deep Values

2006-04-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

Under a program promoted by Harris, a rabbi and a cardiologist worked with researchers to test “Celestial Drops” on canker-infested orange trees in 2001, according to the Orlando Sentinel, which went on to quote a state scientist as declaring that the “product is a hoax and not based on any credible science.” The product, it turned out, was merely water.

What’s more, the scientist declared, “the traits attributed to so-called Kabbalah water — ‘elegant crystalline structures’ and ‘high energy and low entropy’ — are virtually identical to those of Celestial Drops.” When asked if the product was actually Kabbalah water, one of the suppliers told the paper. “I can't really give you that information.”

Harris denies knowing there was any link between the product and the Kabbalah Centre. When contacted by the paper the Forward, Harris said that she recommended the product after being told that “Israeli scientists” had produced the product, adding, “I deeply value Israeli technology.”

the deeper she talks the worse she gets in...

2006-04-21T12:53:00.000-07:00

"A defense contractor seeking help from Rep. [and Republican US Senate candidate] Katherine Harris for $10 million in federal money last year took her to one of Washington's most exclusive restaurants....

In her interview Wednesday, Harris acknowledged for the first time that [convicted felon Mitchell]Wade had paid for the dinner at Citronelle, reversing a statement from her congressional spokeswoman earlier this year.

But in the interview, Harris also said her campaign had, at some point, "reimbursed" the restaurant.

When asked how she could have reimbursed a business that was owed no money -- Wade paid the bill that evening -- she abruptly ended the interview and walked off.

Her spokesman called back an hour later and asked a reporter not to publish anything Harris had said Wednesday night about the dinner.

On Thursday, Harris' campaign released a two-paragraph statement that differed from her explanation a day earlier. It stated that Harris thought her "campaign would be reimbursing" her share of the meal but later found out that hadn't happened.

To resolve any questions, the statement said, "I have donated to a local Florida charity $100 which will more than adequately compensate for the cost of my beverage and appetizer."

what about her entree? dessert? hmmm

"By the end of dinner, Wade and Harris had run up a bill of $2,800...."

stole this from bartcop

2006-04-20T12:56:00.000-07:00

"In a free society with working, honest public mechanisms, it would be nigh impossible to elect
an imbecile sock puppet fronting for a latter day nazi party cabal. But it happened here in 1980,
1988, 2000 and 2004. Why? Corruption. Corporate money. Media consolidation. Media fraud.
Vote fraud. Stupid voters. Lazy voters. All based in corporate and corrupt money; corrupt,
bribable congresshumans; dishonest pols (Rove, etc.); and, most of all, a servile fascist media.
Perhaps the demise of this piece of shit nation is best."
-- jtree, Link

chinese noodles

2006-04-20T12:33:00.000-07:00

"President Bush said the two countries can be candid about their disagreements, saying that in the area of human rights, the Chinese people should be allowed freedom to assemble, speak freely and to worship."

Unlike the American people, evidently.

An "incident with [a] protester raised questions about the adequacy of security measures for journalists covering visits of foreign leaders to the White House. It was not clear how the woman gained access to the pool. She positioned herself in the one place where the Secret Service would have the hardest time reaching her: On the top level of a grandstand set up for television cameras, blocked by equipment and ladders on all sides.

At one point she attempted to unfurl a yellow Falun Gong banner. A cameraman next to her put his hand on her back, and appeared to be encouraging her to quiet down, but she continued to yell.

It took some time for a burly, uniformed Secret Service agent and a plainclothes agent, a woman, to reach the protestor, and they grabbed her by both arms and took her behind the cameras, down the stairs of the temporary platform, and out the southwest gate, away from the ceremony. Chinese officials on the edges of the crowd were staring in some disbelief, shaking their heads."

Nice of the american journalist to encourage the protestors silence. Typical. I can almost hear the admonishment that "you'll runin it for us all if you don't pipe down."

over at huff po

2006-04-20T08:04:00.000-07:00

Smerconish says we should listen to the tape of the Flight 93 flight recorder from 9/11 "Every time there's discussion about appropriate treatment at Guantanamo...."

I wonder if he would still feel that way if he knew that some of Gitmo's inhabitants have been cleared of wrongdoing, must nevertheless remain there after over four (4)years there, and have no recourse whatsoever to any court that might grant them relief.

I guess i would suggest that prison conditions shouldn't be the product of emotion. Neither should American Courts punt when it comes to the fundamental human rights of foreigners. What if it was his son that was cleared of wrongdoing yet ordered to remain in the Gitmo facility. Would he still want the place set up by those who listened to that tape every day? If not, why not? Senseless prick.

NEIL YOUNG

2006-04-20T05:13:00.000-07:00

IS LIVING WITH WAR.

how w does it all by his lonesome self

2006-04-19T14:57:00.000-07:00

the only thing that matters

2006-04-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

ballot blindness

Greenpeace on the UN Chernobyl fallout report:

2006-04-18T13:36:00.000-07:00

"Denying the real implications is not only insulting to the thousands of victims but it also leads to dangerous recommendations and the relocation of people in contaminated areas. It is appalling that the IAEA is whitewashing the impacts of the most serious nuclear accident in human history."

Alabama Legislature OKs Pardon for Rosa Parks

2006-04-18T13:27:00.000-07:00

The legislation now goes to Gov. Bob Riley, who has not said if he plans to sign it.

In other Alabama news, plastic wrap was used to keep food fresher in the Capitol Monday. The Governor's office had no comment.

fucking brutal

2006-04-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

it never ends. the loss, the horror just never ends.

that Iran supports this doesn't help those of us who would stop the war if we could.

bloody mess.

one big bloody mess.

wiiiaai asks

2006-04-17T05:24:00.000-07:00

who knew there'd be paperwork? from one consumed by paperwork, permit me to rejoinder, indeed.

also, and too funny not to plagerize outright:

Lindsey Graham utters this rather wonderful sentence: “Gay marriage is not the magic bullet to get us out of our situation.”

talking with the animals

2006-04-17T05:16:00.000-07:00

has its perks.

washington

2006-04-16T04:20:00.000-07:00

post mortum

hail to the chief

2006-04-16T04:11:00.000-07:00

our criminal president

thou mine art?

2006-04-15T06:47:00.000-07:00

if i had spent my days as a scrivener fanning the embers of creativity, rather than crafting the next threatening letter, would my art now be refined to the point where someone would see the value, see the thought that went into the composition. and am i now doomed by the banality of my wasted days, toiling in someone else's dream battles forever?

after my last post and the article there linked,

2006-04-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

i read with interest the proponents of the Democratic talking point that the incompetence of the administration weighs strongly against the wisdom of war with iran. after that, i read an equally thoughtful point that bush can reclaim the mantle of competence with some cosmetic changes to his cabinet: change of defense secretary, etc.

i reiterate that there is no iran crisis. best to leave this to future, more competent presidents. the paralell should be drawn to social security. don't fix it if it ain't broke. wait. use caution. end the imbroglio you started before beginning the next conflagration.

i never understood why so much confidence has been placed in w, on whose watch 9/11 occurred, when it's been proven time and time again that the man can't be trusted. he's a stone faced liar who should never be believed again. god i wish this nightmare would end.

after 9/11, I would have understood if the us government lit up a nuke in some barren desert somewhere, just to send a message. now, with talk of "tactical" nukes and bunker busting nukes, and small nukes I have a sickening sensation that such senseless emotion runs still in the veins of those with their fingers on the proverbial button.

I read an article this morning about some guy in Pennsylvania who killed his wife by throwing a microwave at her and banging her head on the floor because she wouldn't make him a sandwich. The money quote was that he didn't mean to do it, and that he was sorry to have killed her. It would suck if W felt that way after he launched nukes, but it would be too late then also. The genie would again be out of the bottle. These fools who think that evil acts are okay if done in some good name or another will ultimately see karma spinning the shit back at them. They let loose the demons of war and never care to see where they come to rest, even if it's home where they ultimately return.

never occurs that we might all get off this planet before we destroy any of it. never occurs at all. no common purpose. with no mission to save the planet for the day, there is no chance of the race ever leaving it. champagne supernova.

makes sense

2006-04-13T14:09:00.000-07:00

A policy toward Iran that is in the national interest would be the exact opposite of this administration's. Begin direct negotiations, open channels of communication. We are the threat, and only we can de-escalate it.

There is no crisis.

words fail

2006-04-13T11:15:00.000-07:00

ninja terrorists

Black Box Voting is the only issue that matters, and Brad Blog is the best source for black box voting news

2006-04-13T08:57:00.000-07:00

Our Elections are Now Officially 'A National Disaster in the Making'

life in the new reich

2006-04-13T05:01:00.000-07:00

libertarian librarians and democratic dictators

wiiiaai

2006-04-13T04:26:00.000-07:00

“The Administration Has Repeatedly Acknowledged Intelligence Problems And Has Taken Multiple Steps To Address Them.”

What did the Senate know about the bogus mobile weapons trailers, and when did it know it?

2006-04-13T04:18:00.000-07:00

Josh Marshall asks:

"When did the administration let Congress in on the fact that those mobile weapons labs weren't bio-weapons labs at all and that we'd just been conned by some emigres on the make?

We're focusing now on the president's flogging of this bogus story shortly after the Defense Intelligence Agency gave a definitive verdict on the falsity of the claim. But when did they tell Congress? And how late did other administration heavies continue to make this claim?

My recollection is that with most of these stories like the trailers and the tubes and the nuclear this and that, most of this stuff wasn't definitively knocked down for many, many months after the war. Like old soldiers these fables didn't die so much as they faded away. The certainty diminished. More doubts were raised. But for what always struck me as deeply cynical reasons, the White House never publicly pulled the plug on any of these tales because as long as they kept some level of uncertainty hanging in the air they didn't have to address the fact that the central argument for the war had turned out to be false.

Hell, you've still got Hitchens publicly holding out for the Niger canard. And that's just an example of the fact that you can always find folks deep enough in the tank to churn out tall tales for the true believers to eat up.

Anyway, when did the White House tell Congress that the mobile weapons story was bunk?

A reader pointed me toward this portion of the congressional record from July 17th, 2003 in which Senators Durbin and McConnell discuss then heated WMD debate. They both discuss the mobile bio-weapons trailers with the assumption that that was what they were. And this was the day after then CIA Director George Tenet gave five hours of closed door Senate testimony on the WMD debacle. That certainly suggests that Tenet didn't knock down the mobile lab fable in that lengthy session dedicated to the topic of pre-war WMD intelligence.

What does Durbin say? ..."

why is it

2006-04-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

that the ones who can't grasp the common sense in ending the drug war, predominantly, have had no meaningful hallucinogenic experiences?

do hallucinogenic experiences increase one's common sense?

how often is common?

few who listen to the hendrix song "spanish castle magic" can appreciate the significance of this hallucinogenic vision, of the reports of shared halucinations of spanish cities. it's in the south american shaman's brew, but one need not visit south america to see the castles.

show me the way to the next whiskey bar

2006-04-12T06:46:00.000-07:00

no don't ask why

vigilence

2006-04-11T14:21:00.000-07:00

is now more important than ever. the next big evil is in the works. a stench wafts from Mordor.

Robust Penetrators are NOT good

2006-04-11T14:10:00.000-07:00

Nukes.
Helpful animation via Booman.

The Best Truthiness

2006-04-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

money can buy.

Despite no confidence

2006-04-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

in dim son, the military will fuck things up with Iran. It's what military's do, and pre emptive war is now the norm. So, all of you who supported this divine right of intervention in Iraq, it's a little late in the game to suggest that your fueher might not be competent enough to rely on to get it right. Hat tip to apostropher for both articles.

KARAMA

2006-04-11T10:03:00.000-07:00

is a bitch. Scaife has a shitload of bad coming his way.

interesting

2006-04-11T07:05:00.000-07:00

the problem i have with modern day conservatism is the notion that privatization is somehow better than direct government action. Like you get a choice of less competence and efficiency and greatly reduced likelihood of corruption and fraud. The idea that one is intrinsically better than the other: private action versus government action misses this fundamental issue; one is always on two axes of efficiency/competence and honesty/public interest on the other. the fact of the matter is that either political system will function very well provided that ethics and fair dealing are somehow properly valued. it's more than just economics and politics that must be conveyed by the ideal one places on the perch of one's philosophy. it is by more than our words or actions that we are known; it is also by what we stand for. Integrity and nobility. These are not necessarily the same.

Seymour Hersh

2006-04-10T11:21:00.000-07:00

writes in the New Yorker about Rumsfeld and the Pentagon’s increasing interest in using tactical nuclear weapons.

disaster planning

2006-04-10T07:36:00.000-07:00

I was reviewing a summary of a disaster preparedness primer, when the table of contents suggested something missing, so i wrote:

I don't see "Elect a Democratic chief executive" anywhere on your list.

Nor, "Spend Federal tax money on public works here at home like in New Orleans, instead of in the First Independent Exxon Nation of Iraq."

Florida Governor's Race

2006-04-10T07:09:00.000-07:00

Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist wants the public to know he is "anti-murder."

Democratic state Sen. Rod Smith wants a paper trail for voting machines.

not endless lies

2006-04-07T20:51:00.000-07:00

past time for sunlight

JEB Hearts Katherine Harris,

2006-04-07T12:42:00.000-07:00

publicly criticizes her Senate race

rudeness so classic, it's almost fucking polite!

2006-04-07T09:15:00.000-07:00

On the President Not Being Able To "Leak":
Let's say, and why not, that you are a dopehead living in Amsterdam and you are one ganja-smokin' motherfucker. You wake and bake; you do a three-toke lunch; you head over to one of the many fine, fine "coffeeshops" every evening to meet up with hookah-suckin' friends to get toasted, toasted, nice 'n roasted on the latest greenhouse-grown organic shit. And it's all cool, man, 'cause pot's legal in Amsterdam. But let's say you run a website that's specifically targeting Americans in America, tellin' 'em not to smoke pot. In fact, the website is all about how bad it is, how it should not only remain criminalized, but the penalties oughta be more severe, how smokin' marijuana is a gateway drug, even though you've never found yourself suckin' a glass crack pipe or stickin' needles in your arm.

Let's say that eventually you are outed, that someone says you are, in fact, a number one stoner, not the model of drug free living you advocate. Now, the proper response would be to hang your head in shame as you are beaten with sticks like a rabid cur, chased down the street until you disappear over the horizon. But, no. Instead, you simply state that no, you are not like American dopesters 'cause it's legal for you. You never broke the law, unlike all those fuckin' tokers in the USA.

if your money seems to vanish in a puff of smoke

2006-04-07T08:40:00.000-07:00

try investing it in medical marijuana. Medical marijuana hits stock market.

the all powerful executive is a liar

2006-04-07T08:21:00.000-07:00

go read digby

as some things are obscured, others are thereby revealed

2006-04-07T04:00:00.000-07:00

RECOGNIZING A STROKE

2006-04-06T06:54:00.000-07:00

Remember the "3" steps, STR.

Sometimes symptoms of a stroke are difficult to identify. Unfortunately, the lack of awareness spells disaster. The stroke victim may suffer severe brain damage when people nearby fail to recognize the symptoms of a stroke.
Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:
S
*Ask the individual to SMILE.
T
*Ask the person to TALK.. to SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE
(Coherently) (i.e. . . It is sunny out today)
R
*Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.
{NOTE: Another 'sign' of a stroke is this: Ask the person to 'stick' out their tongue... if the tongue is 'crooked', if it goes to one side or the other that is also an indication of a stroke}
If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call 9-1-1 immediately and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

his royal highness prince dim son

2006-04-05T19:35:00.000-07:00

recently allowed this much: that the Iraq conflict had stirred "a certain unease as you head into an election year."

"Whenever you're at war and you've got 135,000 of our young men and women overseas, it is unsettling to Americans," House Majority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) conceded to reporters recently. Just ask the loved ones of the maimed, heh, Boner? "Feeling a little unsettled today, folks? Too bad about your son's testicles."

so, it's just an unsettling feeling of unease that I feel. for a while there i thought it was shame at my government and at the people who installed it for lying us into an optional war. i thought it was anger at the utter shame that torture and criminal domestic spying have brought to us all. i thought it was a wrecked treasury. i thought they were big lies about both social security AND Medicare. I thought it was about allowing a major national city to die before our very eyes, without relief or respite in the names of the taxpayers who thought they were looking out for their fellow citizens during emergencies, only to learn that official policy is not to give a fuck. my bad.

boy, am I uneasy and unsettled. pretty fucking unsettled and uneasy, indeed. the certain unease bush smells on the wind is a war crimes tribunal. our president. he thinks the election year is cause for concern. he should. he is that much closer to the dock this year, this "election'. but it is all rigged, and the illusion of accountability will remain a sham. so, yes, I am uneasy too. worried sick.

curt weldon is whacked in the head

2006-04-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

you know. as in too fucked up to be believed. this is just wrong. i'd kick his ass, literally, if he said anything like that about my sick kid. what a douchebag!

the health care crisis

2006-04-05T14:00:00.000-07:00

is one of the most serious problems our nation now faces. it is a much more urgent and compelling concern, made worse -not better- by the Medicare legislation last time around. Rather than promote a simple and effective solution, conservatives contort until the actual goal is utterly lost, and then go on and on in complex rationalization of their market based systems that invariably FAIL. It's not rocket science and here is an exclellent, brief discussion as to why rethugs are always wrong about solving our nation's health care woes.

Meanwhile in another part of creeptown...

2006-04-05T08:24:00.000-07:00

Katherine Harris is losing more than just her election campaign. Time for some serious therapy.

too bad he didn't take his crooked allies with him.

2006-04-05T08:03:00.000-07:00

White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Tuesday: "Congressman DeLay has been a good ally whom the president has worked very closely with."

Your Commander in Chief

2006-04-03T14:06:00.000-07:00

a heckuva month personally

2006-03-31T03:49:00.000-08:00

careening from one near crisis to the next, a study in discordance.

"i shall create order
i shall scrub the ground clean"

that should solve everything

Frist to cut out the hearts of the sentient

2006-03-30T07:26:00.000-08:00

Frist said that remaining in the Senate would make a presidential run impossible. Frist plans to step down when his second term ends this year.

"I will have to really work hard on it," Frist said. "As a surgeon, I did my best work when people were sound asleep, cutting out their hearts, putting new hearts in.

"And now what I need to do, everybody says, is do your best work and not put people to sleep. That's what I'll work on."

So, presumably cutting out the hearts of the fully conscious will be a central theme of the cat killer's presidential campaign.

wiiiaai

2006-03-30T06:32:00.000-08:00

The last Bush speech of the current cycle, and the weakest. First, he put blame for the crapfest in Iraq on Saddam Hussein. “[M[uch of the animosity and violence we now see is the legacy of Saddam Hussein. He is a tyrant who exacerbated sectarian divisions to keep himself in power.” He explained, in the manner of a 4th-grade oral report, “Iraq is a nation with many ethnic and religious and sectarian and regional and tribal divisions.”

Kaloogian

2006-03-30T04:09:00.000-08:00

adj.: 1.of or relating to a fake photograph used to prove the authenticity of one's criticism of another's deception.

2. Hilarious at first, then just pathetic, really.

2006-03-30T03:25:00.000-08:00

i tried to find it looking in the words of men, but it is not there...

the truth is stranger than fiction"