a little cartoon from mark fiore
(thanks to vanx at verb ops)
Posts
DEBTOCRACY- A GREEK FILM WITH LESSONS FOR IRELAND
13 years ago
Saturday, September 09, 2006
which do YOU like better???
Rumsfeld Handshake Proves Popular
With Defense Secretary Rumsfeld making “appeasement” the big buzzword of the month, the George Washington University’s National Security Archive notes that its single most-downloaded file is now the once-classified batch of documents, photos and video documenting Rumsfeld’s handshake and meeting with Saddam Hussein in December 1983. President Reagan had sent Rumsfeld to Baghdad to help restore diplomatic ties with Iraq and aid Baghdad in its fight against Iran
“Rumsfeld meeting Saddam has now far outpaced the previous winner, which was Elvis meeting Nixon,” says Thomas Blanton, director of the archive, which collects and posts significant declassified documents under the Freedom of Information Act............
(The National Security Archive
Saddam Hussein greets Rumsfeld in Baghdad, 1983)
Friday, September 08, 2006
of course WE the peeps already knew this
the WE of us that don't have our heads burried up our asses. it ain't nothing new to us. the WE of us that have OUR EYES OPEN. our sons and daughters are dying. there were THREE soldiers from connecticut who lost their lives within the last nine days. THREE. i don't want this to continue. i don't want any OTHER member of our armed forces to die because the king and his court are beyond comprehension.
Top military leaders insist new U.S. strategy is desperately needed in Iraq
By JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
McClatchy Newspapers
Debating issues of war and peace and America's role in the world aren't off limits in this fourth year of war in Iraq, and they aren't a sign of anything but the health and vibrancy of our democracy, however much President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld might wish otherwise in a tough election season.
In hopes of furthering that debate, this week I asked more than a dozen top Army and Marine Corps generals - active duty and retired, dissidents and administration loyalists - to address what we should do now in Iraq.
All of them agreed that America's strategy and tactics in Iraq have failed, and that President Bush's policy of "staying the course" in Iraq isn't likely to produce anything but more frustration, more and greater problems for the United States in a dangerous world, and more and bloodier surprises for the 135,000 American troops in Iraq.
"Lack of security and lack of governance have pushed Iraq into the rise of a civil war," said one retired senior general. "The message is clear: We have a failed strategy, and we need new leadership and a new strategy to secure (our) interests in the region." The U.S. has important issues in the Middle East - not least of them Iran, he said, "but we cannot do much while bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan." ...........
Top military leaders insist new U.S. strategy is desperately needed in Iraq
By JOSEPH L. GALLOWAY
McClatchy Newspapers
Debating issues of war and peace and America's role in the world aren't off limits in this fourth year of war in Iraq, and they aren't a sign of anything but the health and vibrancy of our democracy, however much President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld might wish otherwise in a tough election season.
In hopes of furthering that debate, this week I asked more than a dozen top Army and Marine Corps generals - active duty and retired, dissidents and administration loyalists - to address what we should do now in Iraq.
All of them agreed that America's strategy and tactics in Iraq have failed, and that President Bush's policy of "staying the course" in Iraq isn't likely to produce anything but more frustration, more and greater problems for the United States in a dangerous world, and more and bloodier surprises for the 135,000 American troops in Iraq.
"Lack of security and lack of governance have pushed Iraq into the rise of a civil war," said one retired senior general. "The message is clear: We have a failed strategy, and we need new leadership and a new strategy to secure (our) interests in the region." The U.S. has important issues in the Middle East - not least of them Iran, he said, "but we cannot do much while bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan." ...........
sobering news IS the correct term
What Dropoff? August Death Total in Baghdad Morgue Triples
We took an interesting phone call today from an official at the Baghdad morgue. We get these calls every day – a daily tally of the violence. But this one was particularly sobering.
It turns out the official toll of violent deaths in August was just revised upwards to 1535 from 550, tripling the total. Now, we’re depressingly used to hearing about deaths here, so much so that the numbers can be numbing. But this means that a much-publicized drop-off in violence in August – heralded by both the Iraqi government and the US military as a sign that a new security effort in Baghdad was working -- apparently didn’t exist. ........
Jim Sciutto is ABC News' Senior Foreign Correspondent, and since moving overseas in 2002, has reported from more than 25 countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including multiple assignments in Iraq.
We took an interesting phone call today from an official at the Baghdad morgue. We get these calls every day – a daily tally of the violence. But this one was particularly sobering.
It turns out the official toll of violent deaths in August was just revised upwards to 1535 from 550, tripling the total. Now, we’re depressingly used to hearing about deaths here, so much so that the numbers can be numbing. But this means that a much-publicized drop-off in violence in August – heralded by both the Iraqi government and the US military as a sign that a new security effort in Baghdad was working -- apparently didn’t exist. ........
Jim Sciutto is ABC News' Senior Foreign Correspondent, and since moving overseas in 2002, has reported from more than 25 countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, including multiple assignments in Iraq.
keep your fingers crossed
this is a promising step. i don't have my hopes TOO high, but it is rather good news for now
(to all of the id-ijts that wrote letters of complaint, all three of them that is, GET AN EFFING LIFE. turn your television OFF if it is SO EFFING OFFENSIVE TO YOU)
Court stays FCC ruling on TV profanity
By Jeremy Pelofsky
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Thursday put on hold a Federal Communications Commission ruling that four television broadcasts of profanity violated decency standards and gave the agency two months to consider rebuttals by the broadcasters.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit stayed enforcement of the agency's March decision that profanities uttered on ABC's "NYPD Blue," CBS's "The Early Show" and the 2002 and 2003 Billboard music awards shows on Fox were indecent. The FCC did not propose any fines for the incidents.
The shows included variations of "s---" and "f---." The FCC based its decision on a 2004 FCC ruling that the fleeting use of the word "f---ing" by U2 rock singer Bono during the 2003 Golden Globe Awards was indecent.
The four major television networks -- ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC -- and their affiliate associations in April joined forces to ask an appeals court in New York to throw out the FCC's ruling as unconstitutional, arbitrary and capricious.
The appeals court stayed the decision "which applies the standards announced in the Golden Globe Order" and also granted the FCC's request for the case back for 60 days.
The FCC acknowledged that it failed to give the networks an opportunity to respond to its findings that the shows violated decency standards and asked the court to give it time to consider their arguments.
U.S. regulations bar radio and television broadcast stations from airing obscene material. The rules limit broadcasters to airing indecent material, such as profanity and sexually explicit content, during late-night hours when children are less likely to be in the audience. ........
(to all of the id-ijts that wrote letters of complaint, all three of them that is, GET AN EFFING LIFE. turn your television OFF if it is SO EFFING OFFENSIVE TO YOU)
Court stays FCC ruling on TV profanity
By Jeremy Pelofsky
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Thursday put on hold a Federal Communications Commission ruling that four television broadcasts of profanity violated decency standards and gave the agency two months to consider rebuttals by the broadcasters.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit stayed enforcement of the agency's March decision that profanities uttered on ABC's "NYPD Blue," CBS's "The Early Show" and the 2002 and 2003 Billboard music awards shows on Fox were indecent. The FCC did not propose any fines for the incidents.
The shows included variations of "s---" and "f---." The FCC based its decision on a 2004 FCC ruling that the fleeting use of the word "f---ing" by U2 rock singer Bono during the 2003 Golden Globe Awards was indecent.
The four major television networks -- ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC -- and their affiliate associations in April joined forces to ask an appeals court in New York to throw out the FCC's ruling as unconstitutional, arbitrary and capricious.
The appeals court stayed the decision "which applies the standards announced in the Golden Globe Order" and also granted the FCC's request for the case back for 60 days.
The FCC acknowledged that it failed to give the networks an opportunity to respond to its findings that the shows violated decency standards and asked the court to give it time to consider their arguments.
U.S. regulations bar radio and television broadcast stations from airing obscene material. The rules limit broadcasters to airing indecent material, such as profanity and sexually explicit content, during late-night hours when children are less likely to be in the audience. ........
if i were in charge (revisited)
further restrictions on women from our BEST BUDS in saudia arabia (look up the connection to the 9/11 terrorists then tell me why the king and his court attacked IRAQ????????). at any rate, women cannot drive in saudia arabia. now it seems they cannot pray, should they so choose
what a WONDERFUL world we live in. being best buds with a society who trods upon women. IF I WERE IN CHARGE I'D KICK THE SHITE OUT OF 'EM (the MEN in charge that is),(figuratively that is, NOT literally)
Saudis Consider Banning Women From Mecca
By DONNA ABU-NASR
JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) - Officials are considering an unprecedented proposal to ban women from performing the five Muslim prayers in the immediate vicinity of Islam's most sacred shrine in Mecca. Some say women are already being kept away.
The issue has raised a storm of protest across the kingdom, with some women saying they fear the move is meant to restrict women's roles in Saudi society even further. But the religious authorities behind the proposal insist its real purpose is to lessen the chronic problem of overcrowding, which has led to deadly riots during pilgrimages at Mecca in the past.
It was unclear why the step was being considered now, but officials say they have growing concerns about overcrowding, particularly at Mecca's Grand Mosque. The mosque contains the Kaaba, a large stone structure that Muslims around the world face during their daily prayers.
The chief of the King Fahd Institute for Hajj Research, which came up with the plan, told The Associated Press Thursday that the new restrictions are already in place. There have been word-of-mouth reports of women being asked to pray at new locations away from the white-marbled area surrounding the Kaaba in recent weeks.........
what a WONDERFUL world we live in. being best buds with a society who trods upon women. IF I WERE IN CHARGE I'D KICK THE SHITE OUT OF 'EM (the MEN in charge that is),(figuratively that is, NOT literally)
Saudis Consider Banning Women From Mecca
By DONNA ABU-NASR
JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AP) - Officials are considering an unprecedented proposal to ban women from performing the five Muslim prayers in the immediate vicinity of Islam's most sacred shrine in Mecca. Some say women are already being kept away.
The issue has raised a storm of protest across the kingdom, with some women saying they fear the move is meant to restrict women's roles in Saudi society even further. But the religious authorities behind the proposal insist its real purpose is to lessen the chronic problem of overcrowding, which has led to deadly riots during pilgrimages at Mecca in the past.
It was unclear why the step was being considered now, but officials say they have growing concerns about overcrowding, particularly at Mecca's Grand Mosque. The mosque contains the Kaaba, a large stone structure that Muslims around the world face during their daily prayers.
The chief of the King Fahd Institute for Hajj Research, which came up with the plan, told The Associated Press Thursday that the new restrictions are already in place. There have been word-of-mouth reports of women being asked to pray at new locations away from the white-marbled area surrounding the Kaaba in recent weeks.........
Thursday, September 07, 2006
if i were in charge
i'd do everything within my power to protect our men and women serving in the armed forces. i'd NOT sign a contract with ANYONE unless they were an honorable corporation or individual. i say every person in king george's court (including the king his own self) should be made to send their sons and daughters (if they have sons and daughters) to the middle east, equipped with what our armed forces are equipped with. when our senators and congresspeople take a quick trip to the middle east to see what up, THEY should only be equipped with what our armed forces are currently equipped with AND NOTHING MORE. no special armaments. we'll see how quickly things change.
Army shuns system to combat RPGs
Experts agree it might help save lives, so why isn’t it in the field?
By Adam Ciralsky, Lisa Myers & the NBC News Investigative Unit
Updated: 10:16 p.m. ET Sept 5, 2006
WASHINGTON - Rocket-propelled grenades, or RPGs, are a favorite weapon of insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. They are cheap, easy to use and deadly.
RPGs have killed nearly 40 Americans in Afghanistan and more than 130 in Iraq, including 21-year-old Pvt. Dennis Miller.
“They were in Ramadi, and his tank was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade,” says Miller’s mother, Kathy. “Little Denny never knew what hit him.”
Sixteen months ago, commanders in Iraq began asking the Pentagon for a new system to counter RPGs and other anti-tank weapons.
Last year, a special Pentagon unit thought it found a solution in Israel — a high-tech system that shoots RPGs out of the sky. But in a five-month exclusive investigation, NBC News has learned from Pentagon sources that that help for U.S. troops is now in serious jeopardy.
The system is called “Trophy,” and it is designed to fit on top of tanks and other armored vehicles like the Stryker now in use in Iraq.
Trophy works by scanning all directions and automatically detecting when an RPG is launched. The system then fires an interceptor — traveling hundreds of miles a minute — that destroys the RPG safely away from the vehicle.
The Israeli military, which recently lost a number of tanks and troops to RPGs, is rushing to deploy the system........
and this as well
Did the Army favor Raytheon in anti-RPG bid?
NBC News investigation finds contractor enjoyed competitive advantage
By Adam Ciralsky, Lisa Myers & the NBC News Investigative Unit
NBC News
Updated: 9:16 p.m. ET Sept 6, 2006
WASHINGTON - Earlier this year, the U.S. Army awarded one of its favored defense contractors, Raytheon, a $70 million contract to develop a new system to combat rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), which have killed nearly 40 Americans in Afghanistan and more than 130 in Iraq.
The Army insists that Raytheon won the contract fair and square based on its “systems engineering expertise and the discipline which they used in analyzing requirements, threats and potential solutions.”
But an NBC News investigation of the contract selection process reveals that at almost every turn, Raytheon was given a significant competitive advantage over other defense contractors, including an Israeli firm whose system was extensively tested and found to be highly effective.
When contacted by NBC News about this matter, Raytheon said it was not authorized to speak about how its contract was awarded and instead referred all questions to the Army.
Raytheon’s contract is a small but important part of the Army’s massive modernization program called the Future Combat System (FCS), which has been under fire in Congress on account of ballooning costs and what the U.S. Government Accountability Office [link to PDF report] found are worrisome procurement practices that allow weapons manufacturers to effectively tell the Army which weapons to buy................
Army shuns system to combat RPGs
Experts agree it might help save lives, so why isn’t it in the field?
By Adam Ciralsky, Lisa Myers & the NBC News Investigative Unit
Updated: 10:16 p.m. ET Sept 5, 2006
WASHINGTON - Rocket-propelled grenades, or RPGs, are a favorite weapon of insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan. They are cheap, easy to use and deadly.
RPGs have killed nearly 40 Americans in Afghanistan and more than 130 in Iraq, including 21-year-old Pvt. Dennis Miller.
“They were in Ramadi, and his tank was hit with a rocket-propelled grenade,” says Miller’s mother, Kathy. “Little Denny never knew what hit him.”
Sixteen months ago, commanders in Iraq began asking the Pentagon for a new system to counter RPGs and other anti-tank weapons.
Last year, a special Pentagon unit thought it found a solution in Israel — a high-tech system that shoots RPGs out of the sky. But in a five-month exclusive investigation, NBC News has learned from Pentagon sources that that help for U.S. troops is now in serious jeopardy.
The system is called “Trophy,” and it is designed to fit on top of tanks and other armored vehicles like the Stryker now in use in Iraq.
Trophy works by scanning all directions and automatically detecting when an RPG is launched. The system then fires an interceptor — traveling hundreds of miles a minute — that destroys the RPG safely away from the vehicle.
The Israeli military, which recently lost a number of tanks and troops to RPGs, is rushing to deploy the system........
and this as well
Did the Army favor Raytheon in anti-RPG bid?
NBC News investigation finds contractor enjoyed competitive advantage
By Adam Ciralsky, Lisa Myers & the NBC News Investigative Unit
NBC News
Updated: 9:16 p.m. ET Sept 6, 2006
WASHINGTON - Earlier this year, the U.S. Army awarded one of its favored defense contractors, Raytheon, a $70 million contract to develop a new system to combat rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), which have killed nearly 40 Americans in Afghanistan and more than 130 in Iraq.
The Army insists that Raytheon won the contract fair and square based on its “systems engineering expertise and the discipline which they used in analyzing requirements, threats and potential solutions.”
But an NBC News investigation of the contract selection process reveals that at almost every turn, Raytheon was given a significant competitive advantage over other defense contractors, including an Israeli firm whose system was extensively tested and found to be highly effective.
When contacted by NBC News about this matter, Raytheon said it was not authorized to speak about how its contract was awarded and instead referred all questions to the Army.
Raytheon’s contract is a small but important part of the Army’s massive modernization program called the Future Combat System (FCS), which has been under fire in Congress on account of ballooning costs and what the U.S. Government Accountability Office [link to PDF report] found are worrisome procurement practices that allow weapons manufacturers to effectively tell the Army which weapons to buy................
holla back
i think i may have written about this website before (but perhaps not). i know i've stopped by their site from time to time. i personally think it's a great idea. i cannot even tell you how often this happens to women (and i would imagine some men). i cannot even tell you how it makes you feel. to have men yell out (or in some cases make gestures) horrible things to you. it skeeves me AND angers me
Women Expose Street Harassment
By Elana Fiske, Ms. Magazine Posted on September 6, 2006, Printed on September 6, 2006http://www.alternet.org/story/41324/
Next time a stranger comments on your breasts in public, just shoot him -- with a camera, such as the one built into your cell phone.
This is the unorthodox advice of Holla Back NYC, a blog-cum-grass-roots movement that uses digital technology to combat street harassment. They urge women not only to take a photo when men hassle or insult them in public, but to make the photo public on www.hollabacknyc.com.
Women and men from New York City and elsewhere have posted snapshots (sometimes blurry) and stories (often grisly) to the website; the worst of which end up in the "Holla Shame." Although participants have been called vigilantes by some, they insist their aim is not to catch or punish the men who catcall on the street. Rather, they want to provide women with an alternative to the helpless feeling of being sexually objectified by a stranger..................
Women Expose Street Harassment
By Elana Fiske, Ms. Magazine Posted on September 6, 2006, Printed on September 6, 2006http://www.alternet.org/story/41324/
Next time a stranger comments on your breasts in public, just shoot him -- with a camera, such as the one built into your cell phone.
This is the unorthodox advice of Holla Back NYC, a blog-cum-grass-roots movement that uses digital technology to combat street harassment. They urge women not only to take a photo when men hassle or insult them in public, but to make the photo public on www.hollabacknyc.com.
Women and men from New York City and elsewhere have posted snapshots (sometimes blurry) and stories (often grisly) to the website; the worst of which end up in the "Holla Shame." Although participants have been called vigilantes by some, they insist their aim is not to catch or punish the men who catcall on the street. Rather, they want to provide women with an alternative to the helpless feeling of being sexually objectified by a stranger..................
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
this will cheer you up
(NOT)
The 10 Most Brazen War Profiteers
By Charlie Cray, AlterNet. Posted September 5, 2006.
Halliburton has become synonymous with war profiteering, but there are lots of other greedy fingers in the pie. We name names on 10 of the worst.
The history of American war profiteering is rife with egregious examples of incompetence, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, bribery and misconduct. As war historian Stuart Brandes has suggested, each new war is infected with new forms of war profiteering. Iraq is no exception. From criminal mismanagement of Iraq's oil revenues to armed private security contractors operating with virtual impunity, this war has created opportunities for an appalling amount of corruption. What follows is a list of some of the worst Iraq war profiteers who have bilked American taxpayers and undermined the military's mission.
No. 1 and No. 2: CACI and Titan
In early 2005 CIA officials told the Washington Post that at least 50 percent of its estimated $40 billion budget for that year would go to private contractors, an astonishing figure that suggests that concerns raised about outsourcing intelligence have barely registered at the policymaking levels.
In 2004 the Orlando Sentinel reported on a case that illustrates what can go wrong: Titan employee Ahmed Fathy Mehalba, an Egyptian translator, was arrested for possessing classified information from the Guantanamo Bay prison camp.
Critics say that the abuses at Abu Ghraib are another example of how the lines can get blurred when contractors are involved in intelligence work. CACI provided a total of 36 interrogators in Iraq, including up to 10 at Abu Ghraib at any one time, according to the company. Although neither CACI, Titan or their employees have yet been charged with a crime, a leaked Army investigation implicated CACI employee Stephen Stefanowicz in the abuse of prisoners..........
The 10 Most Brazen War Profiteers
By Charlie Cray, AlterNet. Posted September 5, 2006.
Halliburton has become synonymous with war profiteering, but there are lots of other greedy fingers in the pie. We name names on 10 of the worst.
The history of American war profiteering is rife with egregious examples of incompetence, fraud, tax evasion, embezzlement, bribery and misconduct. As war historian Stuart Brandes has suggested, each new war is infected with new forms of war profiteering. Iraq is no exception. From criminal mismanagement of Iraq's oil revenues to armed private security contractors operating with virtual impunity, this war has created opportunities for an appalling amount of corruption. What follows is a list of some of the worst Iraq war profiteers who have bilked American taxpayers and undermined the military's mission.
No. 1 and No. 2: CACI and Titan
In early 2005 CIA officials told the Washington Post that at least 50 percent of its estimated $40 billion budget for that year would go to private contractors, an astonishing figure that suggests that concerns raised about outsourcing intelligence have barely registered at the policymaking levels.
In 2004 the Orlando Sentinel reported on a case that illustrates what can go wrong: Titan employee Ahmed Fathy Mehalba, an Egyptian translator, was arrested for possessing classified information from the Guantanamo Bay prison camp.
Critics say that the abuses at Abu Ghraib are another example of how the lines can get blurred when contractors are involved in intelligence work. CACI provided a total of 36 interrogators in Iraq, including up to 10 at Abu Ghraib at any one time, according to the company. Although neither CACI, Titan or their employees have yet been charged with a crime, a leaked Army investigation implicated CACI employee Stephen Stefanowicz in the abuse of prisoners..........
'i did what i could'
yes you sure did what you could condolloosseerr!!! you tried on shoes then went to a broadway play then had another photo opp with some leisure activities. that IS the problem YOU (AND THE KING AND THE REST OF HIS COURT) did indeed do what you could. THAT WAS ALMOST NOTHING. NOTHING AND MORE OF NOTHING. you have one HELL of a nerve
Condi uses Civil War to slap Iraq critics
Secretary of State Rice compared the Iraq war with the American Civil War, telling a magazine that slavery might have lasted longer in this country if the North had decided to end the fight early.
"I'm sure there are people who thought it was a mistake to fight the Civil War to its end and to insist that the emancipation of slaves would hold," Rice said in the new issue of Essence magazine.
"I know there were people who said, 'Why don't we get out of this now, take a peace with the South, but leave the South with slaves?'" Rice said.
Rice also bristled at the notion that the Bush administration's slow response last year in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was because of the race of the majority of the victims.
"I resented the notion that the President of the United States, this President of the United States, would somehow decide to let people suffer because they were black," Rice told the magazine.
"I found that to be the most corrosive and outrageous claim that anybody could have made, and it was wholly and totally irresponsible."
Asked if she felt personally accountable, Rice said, "The government did its best. People aren't perfect, and this response was not perfect. You know, I do foreign policy, I don't run Homeland Security. I don't run FEMA. I do foreign policy." She added, "I did what I could to coordinate the international response."
Bill Hutchinson
Condi uses Civil War to slap Iraq critics
Secretary of State Rice compared the Iraq war with the American Civil War, telling a magazine that slavery might have lasted longer in this country if the North had decided to end the fight early.
"I'm sure there are people who thought it was a mistake to fight the Civil War to its end and to insist that the emancipation of slaves would hold," Rice said in the new issue of Essence magazine.
"I know there were people who said, 'Why don't we get out of this now, take a peace with the South, but leave the South with slaves?'" Rice said.
Rice also bristled at the notion that the Bush administration's slow response last year in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was because of the race of the majority of the victims.
"I resented the notion that the President of the United States, this President of the United States, would somehow decide to let people suffer because they were black," Rice told the magazine.
"I found that to be the most corrosive and outrageous claim that anybody could have made, and it was wholly and totally irresponsible."
Asked if she felt personally accountable, Rice said, "The government did its best. People aren't perfect, and this response was not perfect. You know, I do foreign policy, I don't run Homeland Security. I don't run FEMA. I do foreign policy." She added, "I did what I could to coordinate the international response."
Bill Hutchinson
eye of newt gingrich has a big fat mouth
and a pea brain and no heart and no courage
Gingrich: "It's not an insult[ ]" to compare Bush administration critics "to those who enabled Hitler"
Summary: On Hannity & Colmes, Newt Gingrich stated that Donald Rumsfeld's likening of Iraq war critics to Nazi appeasers was "not an insulting comment." Gingrich also repeated the misleading claim that the United States "found over 700 chemical warheads and weapons in Iraq, which supposedly had none, according to our friends on the left."
On the September 1 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, discussing a speech by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, during which, in the words of an August 29 Associated Press article, Rumsfeld "likened critics of the U.S. war strategy to those who tried to appease the Nazis," Fox News political analyst and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) stated that he agreed with Rumsfeld's comments, adding that the comparison between Iraq war critics and Nazi appeasers was "not an insulting comment."
After Gingrich said he "[e]ssentially" agreed with Rumsfeld's remarks, co-host Alan Colmes challenged Gingrich, asking: "Calling appeasers people who disagree with the Bush policy administration, comparing them to those who enabled Hitler?" Colmes called Rumsfeld's analogy "a very insulting comment ... to most of the American population, which doesn't agree with the Iraq war." Later in the segment, when Colmes challenged Gingrich's characterization of war opponents as "people who want us to cut and run in Iraq," Gingrich responded: "It's accept defeat." Guest co-host and National Review editor Rich Lowry added: "Yeah, that's exactly what it is."..............
Gingrich: "It's not an insult[ ]" to compare Bush administration critics "to those who enabled Hitler"
Summary: On Hannity & Colmes, Newt Gingrich stated that Donald Rumsfeld's likening of Iraq war critics to Nazi appeasers was "not an insulting comment." Gingrich also repeated the misleading claim that the United States "found over 700 chemical warheads and weapons in Iraq, which supposedly had none, according to our friends on the left."
On the September 1 edition of Fox News' Hannity & Colmes, discussing a speech by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, during which, in the words of an August 29 Associated Press article, Rumsfeld "likened critics of the U.S. war strategy to those who tried to appease the Nazis," Fox News political analyst and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) stated that he agreed with Rumsfeld's comments, adding that the comparison between Iraq war critics and Nazi appeasers was "not an insulting comment."
After Gingrich said he "[e]ssentially" agreed with Rumsfeld's remarks, co-host Alan Colmes challenged Gingrich, asking: "Calling appeasers people who disagree with the Bush policy administration, comparing them to those who enabled Hitler?" Colmes called Rumsfeld's analogy "a very insulting comment ... to most of the American population, which doesn't agree with the Iraq war." Later in the segment, when Colmes challenged Gingrich's characterization of war opponents as "people who want us to cut and run in Iraq," Gingrich responded: "It's accept defeat." Guest co-host and National Review editor Rich Lowry added: "Yeah, that's exactly what it is."..............
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
log cabin baby blanket (the three stages completed so far)
i'm making for my boss and his wife. i'd best hurry, little noah was born this weekend.
i am mostly using kettle dyed malabrigo merino i got at sit-n-knit in west hartford center. the colors are wonderful and the yarn is fairly soft as well. the middle square is a lumpy bumpy mix of wool and silk. i do NOT recommend using this type of yarn for log cabin knitting. the stitches are very hard to pick up (so i'm not going to repeat it's use). i think i'm going to use some lovely noro i have to do some embroidery (chain stitch i think) where the yarns join. i think i'm also going to single crochet the noro around the completed blanket as a border.
update update update: i FINALLY finished
she chuckled slightly and said, 'this is working very well for them'
remember those words and that attitude? i sure do
One Year Ago Today: Barbara Bush's Infamous Remarks About Hurricane Katrina Evacuees
By E&P Staff Published: September 05, 2006 12:15 AM ET
NEW YORK One year ago, on Sept. 5, 2005, with the Gulf Coast still reeling -- to say the least -- from the effects of Hurricane Katrina, former First Lady Barbara Bush appeared with he husband in Houston at a relief center for some of the tens of thousands of evacuees from New Orleans.There she was interviewed for American Public Media's "Marketplace" program, not aired everywhere. An E&P contributor happened to be listening in the New York area and wrote down her remarks, in which she seemed to suggest that, thanks to the disaster, things were actually working out "very well" for underprivileged evacuees. After some checking, E&P quickly launched a online story that became one of the most popular in the history of the web site. The former First Lady's comments soon were quoted elsewhere, from Drudge to CBS, and became part of the official history of the period, ending up, among other places, in Spike Lee's recent HBO film on the flood..............
One Year Ago Today: Barbara Bush's Infamous Remarks About Hurricane Katrina Evacuees
By E&P Staff Published: September 05, 2006 12:15 AM ET
NEW YORK One year ago, on Sept. 5, 2005, with the Gulf Coast still reeling -- to say the least -- from the effects of Hurricane Katrina, former First Lady Barbara Bush appeared with he husband in Houston at a relief center for some of the tens of thousands of evacuees from New Orleans.There she was interviewed for American Public Media's "Marketplace" program, not aired everywhere. An E&P contributor happened to be listening in the New York area and wrote down her remarks, in which she seemed to suggest that, thanks to the disaster, things were actually working out "very well" for underprivileged evacuees. After some checking, E&P quickly launched a online story that became one of the most popular in the history of the web site. The former First Lady's comments soon were quoted elsewhere, from Drudge to CBS, and became part of the official history of the period, ending up, among other places, in Spike Lee's recent HBO film on the flood..............
king george may actually be correct here
race may NOT have been a factor in the piss-poor response to katrina (although it ALSO MAY have been). personally, i believe it was CLASS NOT RACE. i also believe the king and his court STILL don't care. i happened to catch part i of spike lee's when the levees broke. the last few moments were so hard to watch. well it was ALL so hard to watch. i need to watch part ii now. it's a film i highly recommend
Bush denies race was a factor in Katrina response
By George E. Curry, NNPA Editor-in-Chief September 4, 2006
WASHINGTON (NNPA) - President George W. Bush strongly denied that race was a factor in the federal government's slow response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, saying all levels of government could have done a better job. (COULD have done a better job? COULD have???)
"Now in terms of the politics of Katrina, I will - I flatly reject the concept that the federal response was based upon race. I just - I reject that out of hand. And whoever says that is trying to politicize a very difficult situation." (well of course the whos saying it are THOSE ON THE GULF COAST. THOSE THAT ACTUALLY KNOW)
Bush made those comments in an exclusive interview Monday with April Ryan, White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks. Ryan, an African American, questioned Bush about many issues on race aboard Air Force One as the president headed to Mississippi's Gulf Coast region and, later, New Orleans.
"The federal response could have been better, and I've taken responsibility for the federal response," the president told Ryan. "As a matter of fact, the governor took responsibility for the state response, and the mayor took responsibility for the local response. In other words, our point was, we all could have done better."
In the 20-minute interview, Bush acknowledged the existence of a racial divide.
"The storm exposed a racial divide; the rebuilding has a chance to heal that divide," Bush said. "It's hard work, but it's necessary work." ..........
Bush denies race was a factor in Katrina response
By George E. Curry, NNPA Editor-in-Chief September 4, 2006
WASHINGTON (NNPA) - President George W. Bush strongly denied that race was a factor in the federal government's slow response in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, saying all levels of government could have done a better job. (COULD have done a better job? COULD have???)
"Now in terms of the politics of Katrina, I will - I flatly reject the concept that the federal response was based upon race. I just - I reject that out of hand. And whoever says that is trying to politicize a very difficult situation." (well of course the whos saying it are THOSE ON THE GULF COAST. THOSE THAT ACTUALLY KNOW)
Bush made those comments in an exclusive interview Monday with April Ryan, White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks. Ryan, an African American, questioned Bush about many issues on race aboard Air Force One as the president headed to Mississippi's Gulf Coast region and, later, New Orleans.
"The federal response could have been better, and I've taken responsibility for the federal response," the president told Ryan. "As a matter of fact, the governor took responsibility for the state response, and the mayor took responsibility for the local response. In other words, our point was, we all could have done better."
In the 20-minute interview, Bush acknowledged the existence of a racial divide.
"The storm exposed a racial divide; the rebuilding has a chance to heal that divide," Bush said. "It's hard work, but it's necessary work." ..........
Monday, September 04, 2006
he was a bit grating
and did some dangerous things but wow, being stung by a ray through the heart. what a way to go. at least he died doing what he loved doing
'Crocodile hunter' Steve Irwin killed by a stingray
Associated PressMonday September 4, 2006 Guardian Unlimited
Steve Irwin, the Australian television personality and environmentalist known as the crocodile hunter, was killed today by a stingray barb during a diving expedition on the Great Barrier Reef, police said.
Irwin, 44, collapsed after being stung through the heart at Batt Reef, near the resort town of Port Douglas, about 1,260 miles north of Brisbane, police said. He was filming an underwater documentary when the accident occurred.
Crew members aboard Irwin's boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered cardio pulmonary resuscitation techniques as they rushed the boat to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter, but Irwin had already died..........
'Crocodile hunter' Steve Irwin killed by a stingray
Associated PressMonday September 4, 2006 Guardian Unlimited
Steve Irwin, the Australian television personality and environmentalist known as the crocodile hunter, was killed today by a stingray barb during a diving expedition on the Great Barrier Reef, police said.
Irwin, 44, collapsed after being stung through the heart at Batt Reef, near the resort town of Port Douglas, about 1,260 miles north of Brisbane, police said. He was filming an underwater documentary when the accident occurred.
Crew members aboard Irwin's boat, Croc One, called emergency services in the nearest city, Cairns, and administered cardio pulmonary resuscitation techniques as they rushed the boat to nearby Low Isle to meet a rescue helicopter, but Irwin had already died..........
2,974
is MORE than just a number
U.S. deaths in Iraq, war on terror surpass 9/11 toll
(CNN) -- As the fifth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attack on the United States approaches, another somber benchmark has just been passed.
The announcement Sunday of four more U.S. military deaths in Iraq raises the death toll to 2,974 for U.S. military service members in Iraq and in what the Bush administration calls the war on terror.
The 9/11 attack killed 2,973 people, including Americans and foreign nationals but excluding the terrorists. The 9/11 death toll was calculated by CNN.
The comparison between fatalities in the war on terror and 9/11 was drawn last month by Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, during testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"It's now almost five years since September 11, 2001," Pace said. "And the number of young men and women in our armed forces who have sacrificed their lives that we might live in freedom is approaching the number of Americans who were murdered on 9/11 in New York, in Washington, D.C., and in Pennsylvania."
Of the 2,974 U.S. military service members killed, 329 died in Operation Enduring Freedom and 2,645 in Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to the Pentagon. The total includes seven American civilian contractors working for the military in Iraq.........
U.S. deaths in Iraq, war on terror surpass 9/11 toll
(CNN) -- As the fifth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attack on the United States approaches, another somber benchmark has just been passed.
The announcement Sunday of four more U.S. military deaths in Iraq raises the death toll to 2,974 for U.S. military service members in Iraq and in what the Bush administration calls the war on terror.
The 9/11 attack killed 2,973 people, including Americans and foreign nationals but excluding the terrorists. The 9/11 death toll was calculated by CNN.
The comparison between fatalities in the war on terror and 9/11 was drawn last month by Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, during testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
"It's now almost five years since September 11, 2001," Pace said. "And the number of young men and women in our armed forces who have sacrificed their lives that we might live in freedom is approaching the number of Americans who were murdered on 9/11 in New York, in Washington, D.C., and in Pennsylvania."
Of the 2,974 U.S. military service members killed, 329 died in Operation Enduring Freedom and 2,645 in Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to the Pentagon. The total includes seven American civilian contractors working for the military in Iraq.........
when i read things like this
my blood boils. when television station affiliates refuse to air a broadcast about 9-11 because they are afraid the fcc will fine them-due to some language used by firefighters.......
well then as i said my blood boils. IF and i do mean IF the fcc does indeed receive complaints about the language in this documentary, they should tell the complaintants to GO FUCK THEMSELVES. of course the complaints all come out of the same place. that 'family' organization. doesn't that 'family' organization realize MANY families are being torn apart right now? many mothers and fathers and sons and daughters and aunts and uncles are in iraq fighting FOR this family organization. fighting because the king of the united states and his court somehow got the nation to believe iraq had something to do with 9-11. why doesn't that 'family' organization write to the fcc about the king and his court? they do FAR more damage to the united states of america than a firefighter who utters a curse word. are the members of that 'family' organization SO FUCKING INEPT they are incapable of changing a television channel or turning the television OFF so as to prevent their precious family members from hearing curse words (all the while our men and women are being blown to bits in the middle east)?
Some CBS Affiliates Worry Over 9/11 Show
Sep 3, 5:20 PM (ET)By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Broadcasters say the hesitancy of some CBS affiliates to air a powerful Sept. 11 documentary next week proves there's been a chilling effect on the First Amendment since federal regulators boosted penalties for television obscenities after Janet Jackson's breast was exposed at a Super Bowl halftime show.
"This is example No. 1," said Martin Franks, executive vice president of CBS Corp. (CBS), of the decision by two dozen CBS affiliates to replace or delay "9/11" - which has already aired twice without controversy - over concerns about some of the language used by the firefighters in it.
"We don't think it's appropriate to sanitize the reality of the hell of Sept. 11th," Franks said. "It shows the incredible stress that these heroes were under. To sanitize it in some way robs it of the horror they faced."
Actor Robert De Niro hosts the award-winning documentary, which began as a quest to follow a rookie firefighter on an ordinary day but resulted in the only known video of the first plane striking the World Trade Center and horrific and inspiring scenes of rescue, escape and death. CBS will show it on Sept. 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, profanity intact.......
well then as i said my blood boils. IF and i do mean IF the fcc does indeed receive complaints about the language in this documentary, they should tell the complaintants to GO FUCK THEMSELVES. of course the complaints all come out of the same place. that 'family' organization. doesn't that 'family' organization realize MANY families are being torn apart right now? many mothers and fathers and sons and daughters and aunts and uncles are in iraq fighting FOR this family organization. fighting because the king of the united states and his court somehow got the nation to believe iraq had something to do with 9-11. why doesn't that 'family' organization write to the fcc about the king and his court? they do FAR more damage to the united states of america than a firefighter who utters a curse word. are the members of that 'family' organization SO FUCKING INEPT they are incapable of changing a television channel or turning the television OFF so as to prevent their precious family members from hearing curse words (all the while our men and women are being blown to bits in the middle east)?
Some CBS Affiliates Worry Over 9/11 Show
Sep 3, 5:20 PM (ET)By LARRY NEUMEISTER
NEW YORK (AP) - Broadcasters say the hesitancy of some CBS affiliates to air a powerful Sept. 11 documentary next week proves there's been a chilling effect on the First Amendment since federal regulators boosted penalties for television obscenities after Janet Jackson's breast was exposed at a Super Bowl halftime show.
"This is example No. 1," said Martin Franks, executive vice president of CBS Corp. (CBS), of the decision by two dozen CBS affiliates to replace or delay "9/11" - which has already aired twice without controversy - over concerns about some of the language used by the firefighters in it.
"We don't think it's appropriate to sanitize the reality of the hell of Sept. 11th," Franks said. "It shows the incredible stress that these heroes were under. To sanitize it in some way robs it of the horror they faced."
Actor Robert De Niro hosts the award-winning documentary, which began as a quest to follow a rookie firefighter on an ordinary day but resulted in the only known video of the first plane striking the World Trade Center and horrific and inspiring scenes of rescue, escape and death. CBS will show it on Sept. 10 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. EDT, profanity intact.......
a new tv show from forrest j shake
over at evil clowns rule
If the Bush admin wants to boost public support for the Iraq war, they should get some right-wing writers to come up with a modern day Hogan's Heroes.Here's the premise: some bumbling Islamic terrorists kidnap a few American soldiers and, from there, the cockamamie hijinks just never stop.A running gag can be the silly young suicide bombers who keep blowing themselves up too soon. The show's "Hogan" character always has a wisecrack for the show's "Klink" character after each premature explosion. For example, "Well Yusef, I guess that plan exploded in your face" (cue laugh track as camera pans to Yusef's ash-covered face).
i personally feel it CANNOT miss especially if one has HIJINKS EVERY episode!!!
If the Bush admin wants to boost public support for the Iraq war, they should get some right-wing writers to come up with a modern day Hogan's Heroes.Here's the premise: some bumbling Islamic terrorists kidnap a few American soldiers and, from there, the cockamamie hijinks just never stop.A running gag can be the silly young suicide bombers who keep blowing themselves up too soon. The show's "Hogan" character always has a wisecrack for the show's "Klink" character after each premature explosion. For example, "Well Yusef, I guess that plan exploded in your face" (cue laugh track as camera pans to Yusef's ash-covered face).
i personally feel it CANNOT miss especially if one has HIJINKS EVERY episode!!!
Sunday, September 03, 2006
from vigilante
over at
the vigil
he left this as a comment to one of my posts, but i wanted to make sure it was read by all who happened to read my blog
How many people actually realize why the Pentagon is so apoplectically adverse to acknowledging that we are refereeing a civil war in Baghdad?I Know you do, but how many Americans remember Reagan's getting our Marines to umpire for a very short time during the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990) and what happened on 18 April 1983 (suicide attack at the U.S. Embassy in West Beirut) and on 23 October 1983 (a devastating suicide bombing in Beirut targeted the headquarters of the U.S. and French forces, killing 241 American and 58 French servicemen). I know everyone reading your pages knows this history (although not as poignantly as the Pentagon). Literally millions of Americans are oblivious of USA's last experience in a ME civil war, so it bears repetition.
the vigil
he left this as a comment to one of my posts, but i wanted to make sure it was read by all who happened to read my blog
How many people actually realize why the Pentagon is so apoplectically adverse to acknowledging that we are refereeing a civil war in Baghdad?I Know you do, but how many Americans remember Reagan's getting our Marines to umpire for a very short time during the Lebanese Civil War (1975–1990) and what happened on 18 April 1983 (suicide attack at the U.S. Embassy in West Beirut) and on 23 October 1983 (a devastating suicide bombing in Beirut targeted the headquarters of the U.S. and French forces, killing 241 American and 58 French servicemen). I know everyone reading your pages knows this history (although not as poignantly as the Pentagon). Literally millions of Americans are oblivious of USA's last experience in a ME civil war, so it bears repetition.
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