Friday, March 30, 2007

after the veto...

David Sirota, with a deft bit of logic, explains how this Congress, by not giving in to Dubya's insistence on a "no-strings" funding for the troops, will have no correlation with Gingrich's Congress, i.e., after they shut down the government in '90-something because Bill Clinton wouldn't give them what they wanted:
Clinton himself knew all of this, and used the situation to his advantage. “Since I took office, we have cut the federal deficit nearly in half [and] it is important that the people of the United States know that the United States now has proportionately the lowest government budget deficit of any large industrial nation,” he said in his speech announcing the shutdown. “Republicans are following a very explicit strategy announced last April by Speaker Gingrich, to use the threat of a government shutdown to force America to accept their cuts in Medicare and Medicaid, to accept their cuts in education and technology and the environment.”

This is exactly the opposite of where Bush will be when he vetoes the supplemental. Polls consistently show the public opposes the war, is against Bush’s surge, and has lost almost all faith in Bush’s handling of the situation. Democrats consistently get higher marks from the public on Iraq than Bush or Republicans, with the most recent PIPA poll showing 70 percent of the public believes Democrats’ proposals in Congress to end the war are either “about right” or “not going far enough” (in fact, “not far enough” gets the highest marks overall, meaning there’s a lot of running room for Democrats). Even on the issue of “terrorism”, Democrats are even with Bush and, in some polls, ahead, meaning Bush’s absurd efforts to conflate 9/11 and Iraq will fall flat. In sum, Bush, unlike Clinton, will be digging in AGAINST public opposition to his policies, and in confrontation with opponents who the public trusts more on the issue at hand.
Pretty much boils down to who and what the American people support during these standoffs. The only question remaining is whether or not this Congress maintains the courage of its convictions and will hold the line against Dubya's bully-pulpit bullying. Given the recent polling (And who needs courage when you've got the masses?), here's betting that it does.

Friday, March 23, 2007

food4thought friday...

Hey, at least this makes Global Warming look like good news!!
"If the bee disappeared off the surface of the globe then man would only have four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man." Al Einstein
The days of Soylent Green may be upon us. Mr. ADM CEO, call your office.

Wednesday, March 21, 2007

on passing... in passing...

Not sure why, but this story reminds me of a joke Brotherman the Elder told years ago:

Man Dies After Being Pinched By Dinner
A man pricked by a live crab he was preparing for dinner died 48 hours later in a rare case of flesh-eating bacteria infection from seafood[.]
And the joke is about this gladiator in the arena, who is felled though not killed. He and his opponent, the latter holding a sword to his neck, look to Ceasar in the stands for the verdict. The thumb points down. The vanquished gladiator, evidently with nothing left to lose, flips Ceasar the bird.

A gallows parallel, I suppose...

Saturday, March 17, 2007

giving christians a good name for a change...

Hundreds Arrested At White House Christian Anti-War Protest

We had a Nor'easter in Beantown yesterday; got slammed pretty good. Even this morning the dank fog, with it's heavy drizzle, freezes, and the look of it makes a body glad to be inside chizzling away on his laptop while sipping the jolly java.

After 16 years in D.C. one can assure Washington's insularity does indeed breed a foul incest, its placental fluid being power. Conversely it is proximity, and the distancing of oneself from that medium, that improves the clarity of one's thoughts and relief of sensibility. And seeing in the news a modicum of growing resistance to the inherent corruption of our government, i.e., the people fighting the power, one can only conclude this day as a better one.

so spark 'er up already... !

Richardson to Legalize Medical Marijuana
"So what if it's risky? It's the right thing to do."
Gore/Richardson '08!!

My gahd! a ticket where the candidates do things for the "right" reasons. The head spins.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

quote of the day...

Gonzo, feeling the heat, says he'll:
"[F]ind out what went wrong, so it won't happen again."
Le'me help you there, Mr. A.G.: What went wrong was YOU decided to willfully violate your oath of office. Repeatedly. You know, the one where you swore to defend and uphold the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic?

And if I could take this to the Nth degree for you, I'd channel Captain Kirk to your Nomad, tell you you're just so fucking faulty, and hence you must exercise your prime directive: STER-I-LIZE!!

Oh, hell! I'd just settle for your being tried for crimes against humanity.

spring is sprung, give or take...

Sweet take on the Pats for '07:
As one observer put it yesterday, the Patriots were scary when they didn’t spend any money or make any bold moves. Now they’re Daniel Snyder with a brain. They’re Billy Beane with a big budget. They’re Bill Polian’s worst nightmare.

And they’re one other thing, too: They’re the favorites to win Super Bowl XLII on Feb. 3, 2008. While the Chargers and Colts stick the fingers in the dyke and try to keep their losses to a minimum, the Patriots this offseason have taken their cue from an old country song. They can’t wait till tomorrow because they get better looking every day.
Makes it all the easier sweating out the Sox' lack of a closer -- AHEWWWW!!

Monday, March 12, 2007

curious tidbit, this...

Newsweek piece on the par for the course Veep's office (via TPM):
Former White House official says the Vice President's office was "out of control," but Scooter Libby is likely to be pardoned after 2008 election.
"Curious" in that Libby is scheduled to be sentenced in June while facing two years in the hoosegow. The Newsweek piece goes on to say Patrick Fitzgerald is likely to recommend he be put away while appealing the convictions, and that the judge, meanwhile, is no friend of white collar crims (and gahd bless 'im for that!!).

Now if ol' Scooter is sent up in June, and the real bad boys at the White House are figuring to wait until after Nov '08 to pardon his ass...

Well, if I'm Scooter, I'm singing like a canary the second they slap the cuffs on me.

and they is us...

Glenn Greenwald's Salon piece on the rampant despicability of Gonzo's DOJ has this sub-header:
"The DOJ's false assurances about national security letters can be explained only by deliberate deceit or deliberate indifference to the truth."
Personally, I don't see how those can be mutually exclusive.

Meanwhile, the drum beats for Gonzo's ouster. Why not get that "Impeachment" program up & running and start 'er off at the middle rung of the food chain?

dice-k...

The Onion's take (via the Boston Globe) on Daisuke Matsuzaka's "gyro-ball":
"His Ultimate Galactic Dragon Gyroball Pitch Power Explosion breaks three feet inside before cutting sharply toward the dugout, where falsehood and cowardice are forced to shrink before it!"
Ah, spring!

Friday, March 09, 2007

major (faux) news...

Official: Democrats Dump Fox.

This is huge! Historic!! Much bigger than what is shown at first glance. It's the first step to take back the media, and in doing so taking back the Republic from the Oligarchy.

minutemen fail to show...

Just when it looked like it could be a sweet ride: St. Louis 74 - UMass 71. Hopes now hinge on an at-large bid.

Gah!

Thursday, March 08, 2007

maher slays me...

On the profound stupidity of the family values lot who remain holdouts against HPV vaccinations, that would greatly reduce the number of cervical cancer cases nationwide, because they think it will encourage promiscuity:
It's like being for the salmonella poisoning in peanut butter because it will discourage weirdos from spreading it on their ass and calling the dog!
Now why didn't I think of that? But I digress.

Wednesday, March 07, 2007

why i'd do ben AND jerry...

Vermont Votes to Impeach Bush/Cheney:

By an overwhelming voice vote, Middlebury called for impeachment.

So it has gone this week at town meetings across Vermont, most of which were held Tuesday.

Late Tuesday night, there were confirmed reports that 36 towns had backed impeachment resolutions, and the number was expected to rise.

In one town, Putney, the vote for impeachment was unanimous.

For the record, Middlebury says:

We the people have the power -- and the responsibility -- to remove executives who transgress not just the law, but the rule of law.

The oaths that the President and Vice President take binds them to "preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States." The failure to do so forms a sound basis for articles of impeachment.

The President and Vice President have failed to "preserve, protect and defend the Constitution" in the following ways:

1. They have manipulated intelligence and misled the country to justify an immoral, unjust, and unnecessary preemptive war in Iraq.

2. They have directed the government to engage in domestic spying without warrants, in direct contravention of U.S. law.

3. They have conspired to commit the torture of prisoners, in violation of the Federal Torture Act and the Geneva Convention.

4. They have ordered the indefinite detention without legal counsel, without charges and without the opportunity to appear before a civil judicial officer to challenge the detention -- all in violation of U.S. law and the Bill of Rights.

When strong evidence exists of the most serious crimes, we must use impeachment -- or lose the ability of the legislative branch to compel the executive branch to obey the law.

George Bush has led our country to a constitutional crisis, and it is our responsibility to remove him from office.

now i have an idea how an american idol reject feel...

Email just sent to the sibbles:

'yo...

'sports radio: long story short, i'm still waiting to hear... went in yesterday when the program director coached me into
sounding more upbeat than my last audition, but also to show some range, i.e., one story straight, the next upbeat, etc... trouble was, i got a little "sing-songy," although he generously took some of the blame for that...

'he didn't like my story order selection either... i started w/the bruins and celtics and he emphasized "REDSOX/PATRIOTS then celtics/bruins"... like, christ! how could i not know that... ?

'so i had to go back in this morning (the guy at least likes me and wanted to give me every chance) and punched out one more audition... the producer had difficulty w/forwarding the MP3 to the PD so i was instructed he'd call me after he gives it a listen later today...

'it's "shit or go blind time": no more chances after this'n...

'think i'll take an extended weekend... '

g.

Monday, March 05, 2007

inquiry...

Explain it to me, would you? Why is Ann Coulter's "faggot" reference getting so much play, and why are the Repos expending so much energy disassociating themselves from it, when all the horse hockey she's dispensed over the last several years has made her a rock star?

I don't get it.

sunday -- er, eww, monday chuckle...

Chad Hermann w/a succinct synopsis of those Mac commercials we've grown to love:
PC is to Mac what Wile E. Coyote was to the Roadrunner: the poor, pitiful foil for whom we feel some strange sort of empathy, even as we can't quite bring ourselves to identify with him. He won't ever win, and he can't even get his name in the title, but he's the one who makes the stories worth watching. He makes them great. And so he makes us -- even long-time, hardcore, holier-than-thou Apple zealots -- like him and even occasionally want to root for him.

Sunday, March 04, 2007

anybody to the left of henry luce, you mean...

Per Joke Line (and my response in italics):

A left-wing extremist exhibits many, but not necessarily all, of the following attributes:

-- believes the United States is a fundamentally negative force in the world... It is today. You'd have to be a moron to think otherwise, Joe.

-- believes that American imperialism is the primary cause of Islamic radicalism... Not necessarily the cause, but the greatest fuel for it's fire. You'd have to be a moron to think otherwise, Joe.

-- believes that the decision to go to war in Iraq was not an individual case of monumental stupidity, but a consequence of America’s fundamental imperialistic nature... Yeah? What kind of gas guzzler do you drive, Joe?

-- tends to blame America for the failures of others—i.e. the failure of our NATO allies to fulfill their responsibilities in Afghanistan... Let's see: The U.S. bailed on going after Osama, took over half its forces to go after Saadam and Iraqi oil and expected NATO to clean up the mess they left behind in Kabul. Personally, if I'm a foreign leader I'd be glad to assist an ally but not if it meant taking directions from a moron like George Bush; and lest you forget, the Brits are pulling out of Iraq too. So who again is at fault here, Joe?

-- doesn’t believe that capitalism, carefully regulated and progressively taxed, is the best liberal idea in human history... Well I can climb aboard a capitalism that's market driven and not croney Republican driven; carefully regulated to protect consumers and the environment. No argument against as posed.

-- believes American society is fundamentally unfair (as opposed to having unfair aspects that need improvement)... I think the Republican horse left this barn a while ago, and took most of the treasury.

-- believes that eternal problems like crime and poverty are the primarily the fault of society... Poverty (and tax breaks for the wealthy) fuels crime. Eliminate poverty (and corporate welfare), crime is significantly reduced. I'd call that societal. And you'd have to be a moron to think otherwise, Joe.

-- believes that America isn’t really a democracy... It was never a democracy, moron! It *was* a republic. And since November 2000, it's not even that anymore.

-- believes that corporations are fundamentally evil... I don't use the word "evil" unless its tongue-in-cheek. Corporations, however, being obsessed with ever greater profits, and especially at the expense of consumers and the environment, are indeed amoral, and corporate officers need to be beaten about their collective skulls... for a while at least.

-- believes in a corporate conspiracy that controls the world... And you don't?? You'd have to be a moron to think otherwise, Joe.

-- is intolerant of good ideas when they come from conservative sources... What good ideas?

-- dismissively mocks people of faith, especially those who are opposed to abortion and gay marriage... "Guilty!" Although it wouldn't necessarily have to do with abortion or gay marriage.

-- regularly uses harsh, vulgar, intolerant language to attack moderates or conservatives... Riiiight! Ann Coulter: Lefty Extremist! Yeesh! Whadda faggot!

Personally, I don't think I'm so much a lefty extremist, although by Joe Klein's loosely applied parameters I am (although by his bullets, I conclude I'm just a guy who sees what's going on). On the other hand, he's demonstrably proven here to be a moron...

... and a faggot!

Saturday, March 03, 2007

just a plum excellent sports day in the hub...

One weekend's snapshot:

1) Pats sign Adalius Thomas, Kyle Brady and Sammy Morris;

2) UMass beats St. Joe's, landing them a piece of the A-10 title;

3) Sox lose spring game but Papelbon looks awesome;

4) Bruins, Eddy, Bruins!

5) Celts beat NJ, but that doesn't help Lotterywise...

And tomorrow's Sunday.

I can sleep in.

WooHoo!!

oh, the tangled webs we weave...

How rancid a right-wing bag of wet brownies do you have to be in order to make Michelle Malkin's colon clamp?
Editor and Publisher report: "Ed Morrissey on his Captain's Quarters blog wrote: 'Yeah, that's just what CPAC needs -- an association with homophobia. Nice work, Ann.' Michelle Malkin expressed disapproval, and at her Hot Air site regular contributor 'Bryan' wrote: 'I’m no fan of John Edwards, but that’s just a stupid joke. It’s over the line. The laughter it generated across the room was more than a little annoying. Last year it was 'raghead.' This year it’s calling John Edwards a 'faggot.' Two years in a row, Coulter has finished up an otherwise sharp CPAC routine with an obnoxious slur that liberals will fling at conservatives for years to come. Thanks, Ann.'"
Funny stuff. Michelle Malkin, on the cusp of respectability, or at least getting some recent love from Colonel Kurtz at the erstwhile liberal rag Washington Post, now doesn't want to be associated with the more loathsome quadrant of her universe.

Yo, Ann! Don't queer my deal, eh?