Sooner Be Blue

 

I couldn't find anything about my favorite giggle .. the opening line of his statement to the media the other day -- "Thank you all very much for coming out today."

 

Is this guy comedy gold or what?

 

"Senator Craig was arrested for lewd behavior in the men's room, and I'm thinking, 'Well, hell. I'm lucky if I can get a hand dryer to blow'" --David Letterman

 

"Idaho Senator Larry Craig is now being called the hole from Idaho." --Jay Leno

 

"How about that poor Senator Craig from Idaho? ... So he gets arrested in a men's room there at the airport in Minneapolis. And here's the deal now. He's now in Stage One of a political sex scandal: defiance. Stage Two: stepping down to spend more time with his family. Stage Three: 'I'm gay and I'm proud!'" --David Letterman

 

"The undercover police officer said the senator tried to reach under the stall to touch him, but the senator said, no, he wasn't trying to touch him, he was only trying to pick up a piece of paper off the floor. Who picks up paper off the floor in the men's room? I don't even like when my shoe laces touch the floor in the men's room." --Jay Leno

 

"Don't kid yourself, this Craig is in a tough spot. When you're up for re-election, you don't want to be known as 'The Restroom Don Juan.'" --David Letterman

 

"Senator Larry Craig ... declared he won't quit and he's not gay. And then Craig said 'I'm sorry. I meant to say I won't quit being gay.'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"Now there's more trouble for Senator Craig. First he's accused of soliciting gay sex at an airport. Now's he accused of soliciting gay sex at a train station. Craig denied the charges and said if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready for a big night at the bus terminal." --Conan O'Brien

 

"A lot of people are calling Senator Craig a hypocrite because he was a very vocal opponent of same-sex marriages. ... But to be fair, he has never come out publicly against anonymous gay bathroom sex." --Jay Leno

 

"This whole thing has to be very frustrating for the Republican Party. All these gay sex scandals and they still can't get any support from Hollywood." --Jay Leno

 

"The arresting officer said their eyes met through the crack in the bathroom stall door, which is ironic because that's how I met my wife." --Jay Leno

 

"Because of the scandal he had to resign his position on the Mitt Romney campaign. ... So not much chance of getting his mitts on Romney now." --Jay Leno

 

"Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, a married, very anti-gay conservative Republican, was arrested by a plainclothes police officer for lewd conduct in a Minneapolis airport men's room. Today the senator's office said it was all a big misunderstanding. Apparently what happened was when the senator went in to use the restroom, he accidentally grabbed the wrong penis." --Jay Leno

 

"You know who I feel sorry for in this whole thing? The undercover cop. How'd you like to have that job. Sit in an airport bathroom all day, your pants around your ankles with a coffee and a donut waiting for guys to hit on you." --Jay Leno

 

"Sen. Craig is married. Apparently he told his wife, don't worry about having dinner ready to me. I'm going to wolf down a hot dog at the airport." --Jay Leno

 

"The Democrats may have control of the House, but the Republicans have control of the bathrooms." --Jay Leno

 

"Sen. Craig gave a press conference today where he said, I'm not gay, I've never been way. Then he apologized to his wife, Liza Minnelli." --Jay Leno

 

"There's another scandal in Washington. One of the senator's from Idaho, Larry Craig, was arrested in airport men's room. Gives new meaning to the word 'caucusing.'" --David Letterman

 

"Sen. Craig said he made a mistake by pleading guilty. And I was thinking, maybe that was your second mistake." --David Letterman

 

"The way I look at it, anyone who spends more than two minutes in an airport men's room is guilty of something." --David Letterman

 

"Larry Craig ... has pled guilty to lewd guilty in a men's room. ... The senator said I wanted to reach out to all my constituents and their penises." --Conan O'Brien

 

"The police report says he tapped his foot, which means 'I want gay sex.' And, also means I'll never wear my iPod to the bathroom again." --Jimmy Kimmel

 

"Needless to say, Senator Craig is also anti-gay marriage and gays in the military, which I think, shows he doesn't let his personal needs interfere with his work." --Jimmy Kimmel

 

Boy, the right wingers are really piling on Sen. Larry Craig, condemning his attempts at hot gay bathroom sex. If only he had just checked into a hotel room, donned a diaper and frolicked with a couple of hookers like a normal Republican.

 

From The New York Times: WASHINGTON, Aug. 29 - The political career of Senator Larry E. Craig of Idaho appeared to be collapsing Wednesday as fellow Republicans called for his resignation and party leaders ousted him from his committee leadership posts amid the fallout over his arrest in a men’s room and his guilty plea in the case. [..]"

 

 

Of course he has to resign -- his hypocrisy opens him to continuous public ridicule. What kind of life does a Family Values Republican politician, who has been exposed as a Men's room toe-tappin' sex troller, expect to lead?

 

He pled guilty. His conduct was unbecoming of a US Senator, regardless of party. He was soliciting sex from a stranger in an airport bathroom for crying out loud.

 

Okay, take the "gay" out of it. If Craig were soliciting women for hetero sex in a women's restroom, would there be any doubt that his actions were criminal?

 

Notice how Righties are calling for Larry Craig to resign even though they DIDN'T call for Louisiana's David Vitter to resign when he was outed for prostitute shenanigans last month.

 

Is this because Craig was trolling for gay sex and Vitter was trolling for straight sex? Probably, but before we go too far down that road there's likely a more important reason -- the Democratic-Republican governor angle.

 

See, Louisiana's governor is a Democrat, and Idaho's is a Republican. Craig resigning would mean that his gov would appoint a Republican to take his place .. a Republican incumbent would be going into the 2008 election. A Democratic Senator would take Vitter's seat .. when the prostitutes were finished diapering it, that is.

 

See how politics works? Doesn't it make you proud?

 

So all these Republicans demanding that Craig resign should make the same call for Vitter .. who also violated the law. But noooo, the Righties who are turning against Craig are secure in the knowledge that they're running no actual political risk.

 

OR -- Gay is a sin against God, while visiting a prostitute is simply a free-market exchange of goods and services.

 

I almost feel sorry for Craig -- until I think of the hypocrisy and how hard he's worked against gay and lesbian civil rights and liberties.

 

If you remember back during the 1982 congressional page scandal, Craig, a member of the House of Representatives, suddenly issued a denial of wrong doing even though no charges had been made against him .. just shows what a guilty conscience and fear of being outed can do.

 

Notice how he didn't say a word during the more recent Foley page scandal .. he had learned his lesson, or maybe he had just moved on to strangers in public restrooms far away from home.

 

Another reason I don't feel sorry for him is when he was placed on the Veteran's Affairs Committee, he was a leader in trying to remove Non-Combat Vets from the rolls .. and if he could not, then he wanted co-pays to increase dramatically.

 

Even if Larry Craig and the rest of the Republicans had played by the Good 'ol Boy rules concerning Clinton's affair, Craig's arrest is still newsworthy .. just to point out their hypocrisy.

 

If you ask me, our country would be better off if guys like Craig, Vitter and Barney Frank would just resign when they are exposed as engaging in unlawful behavior.

 

But, our political system lets the voters render judgment if they don't resign.

 

I also think our country might be better off if Clinton had just resigned .. instead of lying to cover up his extramarital affair, then fighting impeachment.

 

In the long run it hurt the Democratic party. Along about now, Al Gore might be completing about 10 years as president if Clinton had done the honorable thing and resigned.

 

This country would be a better place .. no Iraq war ...

 

 

Three surgeons were having a conversation:

 

One of them said, "I'm the best surgeon in Texas. A concert
pianist lost 7 fingers in an accident, I reattached them, and 8
months later he performed a private concert for the Queen of
England."

 

The 2nd surgeon said, "That's nothing. A young man lost both arms
and legs in an accident, I reattached them, and 2 years later he
won a gold medal in field events in the Olympics."

 

The 3rd surgeon said, You guys are amateurs. Several years ago a
cowboy who was high on cocaine and alcohol rode a horse head-on
into a train traveling at 80 miles per hour. All I had left to
work with was the horse's ass and a cowboy hat. Now he's president
of the United States.

 

 

Slate has an interesting piece about Senator Craig's arrest:

 

"When the news of Sen. Larry Craig's arrest and guilty plea for lewd conduct broke Monday evening, it set off a vigorous e-mail squabble among Slate editors. Some of us thought the arrest was justified, others were appalled, others were amazed by the arrest report; others were merely baffled. Usually we try to wait until our ideas are fully baked before we publish them, but in this case, we thought the half-baked (and quarter-baked) arguments would interest readers."

 

 

More rats jump ship .. maybe the half-assed Dem investigations are touching nerves.

 

When I first heard this, I wondered why now .. why first thing Monday morning, when they usually save this stuff for late on a Friday? What's coming up this week that they would want to drown out or obscure with this news?

 

But thank goodness that another incompetent hack, unable to do his job without Karl Rove holding his hand, is gone. Sometimes, a vacancy is an improvement .. this is definitely one of those times.

 

Alberto Gonzales -- first Latino AG .. first Latino AG forced to resign as the result of humiliating scandal and wrong doing .. a disgrace to all American Latinos.

 

From the New York Times: "Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, whose tenure has been marred by controversy and accusations of perjury before Congress, announced his resignation in Washington today.....

 

....Mr. Gonzales faced increasing scrutiny for his leadership of the Justice Department over issues including his role in the dismissals of nine United States attorneys late last year and whether he testified truthfully about the National Security Agency’s surveillance programs. [..]"

 

 

It's a wonder he didn't walk up to the podium and say, "I can't recall why I'm here.

 

I just KNEW Bush would go for a recess appointment, wish I'd bet money on it. He also might feel that he can live with Paul Clement, acting AG, continuing in that role until the end.

 

Because the Preznit is running out of incompetent cronies to appoint to these positions. And he has to be careful .. can't afford to let sunlight shine on Justice Department shenanigans.

 

Gonzales said -- "My worst day [as AG] was better than my dad's best day." Really? What an insult to his father. His father was married and had 8 children, I would hope that at least the births of his children were better than Gonzo's worst day.

 

Will Bush replace Alberto Gonzales, who has politicized the Department of Justice, with Michael Chertoff, who has politicized Homeland Security?

 

If it's Michael Chertoff they'll be batting a thousand. After all, he displayed such leadership in rebuilding New Orleans .. oh wait...

 

And notice how little sadness there is on the right that Gonzo is leaving.

 

Anyway, now he will have time to research his grandparents' immigration status for his memoirs. I'm sure he's always wanted to know.

 

 

BTW -- one of the things Gonzo did Wrong:

 

It is against Federal law for government officials to interfere in prosecutions, political or otherwise.

 

In late 2006, the Justice Department fired eight US attorneys who were appointed by Bush.

 

Earlier in 2006, a provision included in the reauthorization of the Patriot Act allowed these positions to be filled by the White House WITHOUT Senate approval.

 

In early 2007, hearings were held on the matter in both the House and Senate Judiciary Committee on the firings.

 

Several of the fired attorneys testified that they had been CONTACTED BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS or EXECUTIVE OFFICALS about pending cases shortly before they were fired.

 

Such contact by members of Congress is a violation of both House and Senate rules.

 

When Senate commitees tried to find out exactly what happened, Gonzales obstructed the investigation every step of the way.

 

Gonzales lied to Congress. FBI Director Mueller said so .. former deputy AG James B. Comey said so .. Gonzales' own chief of staff Kyle Sampson said so .. Justice Department official Monica Goodling said so .. the list goes on.......

 

No Republican left behind, part deux...

 

Ever notice how demoralization is catching?

 

Some Republican office holders are running for the political exits faster than Bush aides are leaving to spend more time with their families .. and expect more to jump ship after getting an earful from their constituents during the August break.

 

The first was Former House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., announcing that he will not seek re-election in 2008, after 20-odd years in Congress. Look for him to next appear in food judging booths at midwest state fairs...

 

The image of him that sticks in my mind is when he refused to award Nancy Pelosi the gavel .. just sat way in the back and had the most despicable look on his face.

 

After Hastert announced, within 24-hours three more veteran House Republicans declared that the current 110th Congress would be their last .. that makes five House Republicans who are not seeking re-election next year.

 

They must think that their party’s chances for winning the majority back next time are pretty bleak. Then too, you have to remember that if they run and lose they lose their retirement. Sooo .. maybe that's the big reason they are going to quit without running again.

 

Senate Republicans better hang around .. they have seats to defend. Of the 34 Senate seats up for election next year, about two-thirds are occupied by Republicans. That means 22 of 49 Republican senators will be running.

 

It could be the campaign money. Democrats have trounced the Republicans in fund-raising during the first half of this year, raising $20.3 million ..compared with $5.8 million raised by Republicans.

 

But, these things happen. We are just entering a period of political cycle change. The pendulum swings .. it's a healthy thing for our country. First one side gets a chance to screw up, then the other. And believe me, they *will* screw up. Given time, power always corrupts .. people will still lust for power, and no matter how noble their hearts are when they get there, their hearts will soon be filled with greed.

 

BTW -- don't give me that crap about 'political healing.' I want the Dems to continue the investigations and prosecutions that are waiting. I want to know the Truth and the swamp must be drained!

 

Even though polls show support for the Democratic congress is squishy, the Bushies remain under fire and are beset with problems. As White House officials dart for the door, polls show younger voters are now more sympathetic to liberals and Democrats. Republican party registration is down...

 

Oh the humanity! What will we do without their misguided leadership?

The White House is eating its own in a desperate attempt to prop up Bush's failed policy in Iraq.

 

Jittery righties spend $15M in ad blitz to keep Republican support for war .. "Don't give up, ads urge GOP"

 

They have a campaign war room for the war.

 

These ads, being run by a White House-supported front group, are actually swift-boating Republicans .. the same Republicans who are feeling the heat from voters back home because of their support for Bush's failed war policy.

 

From NY Daily News: WASHINGTON - Following Sen. John Warner's call to start pulling troops out of Iraq, jittery Bush loyalists are pressuring Republican fence-sitters to stay the course with a $15 million ad campaign.

 

Republicans weighing a U.S. military withdrawal in Iraq got hit this week by a blitz of intimidation ads - paid for by fellow Republicans.

 

The TV and radio spots targeting 37 House and Senate Republicans urge support for President Bush's war and not "surrender."

 

One of those targeted with an extraordinary $145,000 TV ad buy is upstate Rep. Jim Walsh, a politically vulnerable Republican from Syracuse who has aligned himself with Democrats to oppose the Baghdad surge.

 

The spots are the latest sign of a White House worried about lawmakers turning on Bush to urge that troops be brought home, as Warner (R-Va.) did this week.

 

....Warner, 80, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee and a former Secretary of the Navy, said Bush should bring some G.I.s home by Christmas. [..]"

 

 

If the Bush administration spent a fraction of the time on Iraq policy that it spends on PR for the war, we might not be in this mess .. we might have an exit strategy.

 

But hey, if the GOP wants to crucify itself by forcing Republicans in Congress into positions that will cost them their seats .. fine with me.

 

Maybe in December of 2008, instead of "No Child Left Behind" we can thank Bush for "No Republican Left behind in Congress."

 

 

"What will the Republican presidential campaign look like without Karl Rove? Probably the same as it would have with him. Warnings about Mexicans, warnings about Arabs, and warnings about gays. They're trying ot come over the border, they're trying to come over the oceans, they're trying to come over your back." --Bill Maher

 

"I guess it's no wonder that a poll out this summer put 'None of the Above' over all of the other Republican candidates. And if 'None of the Above' does get the Republican nomination, you know two things will happen: a) the Democrats will find a way to lose to him, and b) Bush will try to call and congratulate him." --Bill Maher

 

"We know Washington, DC, was very shaken when news that Karl Rove, the man whose mouthful advisory teats have fed so many Beltway insiders these past six and a half years, was capping the spigot and moving on. ... But before leaving for good -- and I use the term literally -- last week, Rove went on his farewell tour to defend himself and his president [on screen: Rove saying that Bush's critics are 'elite, effete snobs']. Yeah! Who are these effete, elite snobs who criticize Bush, these snobs with their Ivy League degrees, entertaining French guests at their family estates on the New England coast [on screen: a photo of Bush and French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Kennebunkport]... oooh, right." --Jon Stewart

 

"But that was just the start. Chris Wallace got Karl Rove's Sunday morning talk show tour going [on screen: FNC's Wallace saying, 'Let's take a look at some of Karl Rove's greatest hits']. Ohh, I just bought that on K-Tel! 'Karl Rove's Greatest Hits,' including 'John McCain's Black Baby,' 'Max Cleland: The One-Limbed Pussy,' 'The Queers Are Coming,' and, of course, 'Schiavo-A-Go-Go.' No need to call now, your phones have already been tapped." --Jon Stewart

 

"Indiana Congressman Mike Pence hit the nail on the head. If there's one thing that everyone I've talked to can agree on, it's that Iraq is exactly like an Indiana market in the summertime. ... This is the sort of place where people don't even lock their doors at night. Heck, most people don't even have doors" --Daily Show correspondent Rob Riggle in Iraq

 

"One of the president's daughters, the lovely Jenna Bush, is getting married. Now they're thinking, if they can just marry off Condoleezza Rice. Yea, it looks pretty good that Jenna's getting married, but first the guy has to be confirmed by Congress. ... It's going to be an expensive wedding. I guess it's no surprise, the $3 billion contract went to Halliburton." --David Letterman

 

From David Letterman's Top 10 Good Things About Marrying into the Bush Family: # 1: "Little chance you'll be the dumbest guy in the family"

 

"Presidential advisor Karl Rove has resigned. Were you aware about that -- he's resigned. He says he wants to spend more time leaking information about his family." --David Letterman

 

"It's been announced that White House adviser Karl Rove will not be creating the day-to-day policy for the president anymore. You all know Karl Rove, he's the man they call Bush's brain. No, that's what they call him, Bush's brain. Now he's only going to be working part of the time, just like Bush's brain." --Jay Leno

 

"You like presidential birthdays? Oh! Who doesn't. Well, over the weekend former president Bill Clinton turned 61, 61! Happy birthday Bill. Bill enjoyed a romantic candlelight dinner and dancing, then he went home to Hillary" --David Letterman

 

"Man, do we have a show for you tonight. Senator John McCain will be in the studio tonight making his 250th appearance. One more and he gets to host, and I get to go to the Senate." --Jon Stewart

 

"I don't know if Mitt Romney can be elected ... because Americans take their faith very seriously, and since most people don't subscribe to the Mormon faith, they are a little suspicious of a guy who believes in something called celestial marriage, which means that if you're very good to your wife while you are married here on Earth, when you die, you and your wife get to rule over an entire planet." --Bill Maher

 

"It's not really about Al Gore, you know. It's not. It's about losing the polar ice caps and then the seas rising and then losing Venice and losing Holland and losing Manhattan and losing New Orleans and losing Florida, and that's why I believe Al Gore because if there's one thing he knows it's losing Florida." --Bill Maher

Fire up the swiftboat! On his return from a trip to Iraq, influential Republican John Warner called on Bush to take the "first step" in a withdrawal from Iraq and start bringing our troops homes before Christmas.

 

This is big, boys and girls .. the Old Guard of the Republican party finally coming out against the Bush/Cheney Iraq policy.

 

Smells like the end of the Nixon presidency .. one can only hope.

 

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The influential former chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee has called on President Bush to start the process of bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq in September.

 

Sen. John Warner, a Virginia Republican, said Thursday that a pullout was needed to spur Iraqi leaders to action.

 

He has recommended Bush announce the beginning of a U.S. withdrawal in mid-September, after a report is released from the top U.S. officials in Iraq, and that those troops should be back in the United States by Christmas.

 

"In my humble judgment, that would get everyone's attention -- the attention that is not being paid at this time," Warner said.

 

He added: "I really, firmly believe the Iraqi government, under the leadership of Prime Minister [Nuri] al-Maliki, let our troops down."

 

 

It sounds like he's essentially giving Bush one last chance .. make the decision now, or ultimately have it made for you. Remember that Warner is of the old school (pre Rove) where political opponents allowed each other the opportunity to save face .. as most honorable men do.

 

John Warner isn't likely to run again so he doesn't worry about political payback (yes, our troops' lives hang on them playing politics), but politically speaking, this is huge. It changes the spin from "Democrats in disarray, forced to acknowledge progress" to "GOP in disarray, top leaders calling for pullout."

 

Now everyone will be asking GOP Senators and Congressmen whether or not they agree with Sen. Warner.

 

The Republicans certainly don't want troops in combat in Iraq after the summer of 2008 .. they'll pull the plug, blaming Maliki, if Bush doesn't.

 

The NIE came out with its report yesterday, could've had something to do with all this. That's the National Intelligence Estimate, a consensus judgment of the CIA and 15 other US intelligence agencies:

 

"Iraq remains "unable to govern" itself effectively and hobbled by the absence of strong leadership, and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's inability to broker political accord continues to make him vulnerable, according to a new U.S. intelligence report released today."

 

 

The report paints a dire political reality. It also warns that it will take, you got it, another six to twelve months for Iraq to show progress.

 

And notice how Bush flop-flopped on Maliki the last couple days .. first endorsing him and then running over him with a Mac truck.

 

But it really doesn't matter what Bush says any more .. because by now everybody who's right in the head knows that Bush isn't. I know it .. you know it .. his dog Barney knows it.

 

He sent his Army in to attack .. and then just sat back and wondered why a full-blown Western democracy didn't just spring out of the ground. No post-invasion plans, nothing .. that's dim witted.

 

Congress -- including Democrats -- gave him EVERYTHING he wanted for four years. Blank check. He couldn't get the job done. And if you think Congress wanted to get involved, you don't know politics. The very fact that they're being forced to act by their constituents is proof of Bush's profound failure as a leader.

 

Anyway, even though Warner's recommendation might not mean a dang thing, it could trigger a chain of events toward the end of the occupation.

 

Remember that Warner has been very vocal about Iraq war troubles before, but had no problem voting to prop up Bush's failed policies every chance he got.

 

But this is a clear signal to Bush that he's in dangerous territory.

 

And my, wasn't it quiet on Fox last night?

 

Sean Hannity always loves to brag about his support for the Iraq war and is quick to demonize Democratic critics as undermining our troops and emboldening our enemies. But he was strangely quiet last night about Warner’s call for a pullout of troops and the NIE estimate on Iraq.

 

What’s the matter, Bullyboy? Too afraid to confront Republican Senator Warner to discuss it? Or is it that there’s just no way to blame Democrats?

 

 

Bush doesn't seem to know the meaning of the word consistency .. or integrity. He'll say anything to sell his failed Iraq policy, talking nonsense and stalling so he can pass his colossal mess on to a Democrat -- who will get us out of it and then the GOP will blame the Democrats for losing Bush's war. Karl Rove designed this strategy of fraud and deception, I just know he did.

 

Reporter's question in 2004: How do you answer the Vietnam comparison?

 

THE PRESIDENT: I think the analogy is false. I also happen to think that analogy sends the wrong message to our troops, and sends the wrong message to the enemy. Look, this is hard work. It's hard to advance freedom in a country that has been strangled by tyranny. And, yet, we must stay the course, because the end result is in our nation's interest. [Press Conference by the President, 4/13/04]

 

From the Washington Post, 2007: "President Bush defended his ongoing military commitment in Iraq by linking the conflict there to the Vietnam War, arguing Wednesday that withdrawing U.S. troops would lead to widespread death and suffering as it did in Southeast Asia three decades ago."

 

 

Bush delivered this speech to the VFW convention. Again -- polite applause, no standing ovation on his strongest arguments. You might be able to fool the guys who depend on Rush Limbaugh for all their news, but you can't fool the vets anymore.

 

Yep, Iraq isn't like Vietnam, until it suits the preznit .. and just when you think he couldn't possibly come up with a more asinine statement, he tops himself. It's amazing and frightening at the same time.

 

See, this Iraq-is-like-Vietnam flip-flop serves more than one purpose -- to make the case for the war now and to prepare the way for the politics of what happens after withdrawal. The Righties will say, "See what you traitors have done! Poor Iraq is another Vietnam, and it's all your fault, you made us lose!"

 

They'll re-write history and spin Iraq six ways to Sunday .. because they'll sink to any low to avoid taking any responsibility for what they have done.

 

Bush is using the wrong history lesson. Is he saying that we should NOT have withdrawn from Vietnam, that the war should have gone on? That Vietnam was not a failure because it was a terrible war, but because it wasn't waged effectively? That the US withdrew too soon, because liberals and peaceniks and other traitors kicked up a fuss and got their way?

 

So the Iraq war isn't really a failure at all .. it just looks that way? And victory, whatever that means, is right around the corner? Just give it a chance to succeed .. even now, five years after it started.

 

Historians are going to have a ball with this.

 

Historian Robert Dallek (who has written about the comparisons of Iraq to Vietnam) accused Bush of twisting history.

 

“It just boggles my mind, the distortions I feel are perpetrated here by the president,” he said in a telephone interview.

 

“We were in Vietnam for 10 years. We dropped more bombs on Vietnam than we did in all of World War II in every theater. We lost 58,700 American lives, the second-greatest loss of lives in a foreign conflict. And we couldn’t work our will,” he said.

 

“What is Bush suggesting? That we didn’t fight hard enough, stay long enough? That’s nonsense. It’s a distortion,” he continued. “We’ve been in Iraq longer than we fought in World War II. It’s a disaster, and this is a political attempt to lay the blame for the disaster on his opponents. But the disaster is the consequence of going in, not getting out."

 

 

Another historian said Vietnam was not a bunch of sectarian groups fighting each other .. that in Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge toppled a US-backed government.

 

Bush speaks of the violence in the wake of American withdrawal from Vietnam. Maybe this happened because the US left too late, not too early. Expanding the war opened the door to Pol Pot and the genocide of the Khmer Rouge.

 

The longer you stay the worse it gets. That's the lesson Bush needs to learn from the Vietnam war.

 

Yes, thousands of Vietnamese were killed after we left, and hundreds of thousands were exiled to “re-education” camps. But, by the early 1970s, at the worst of the American bombing, we were killing hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese .. and millions were being exiled from their homes.

 

Sound familiar?

 

The 30-percenters call war opponents patchouli-smellin' hippies .. and I'll just bet ol' Bush and Cheney wish the military had let them go fight in Vietnam, because they would have won that war for us.

 

Seriously folks, leaving a conflict will always result in more death and destruction.

 

After we leave, Iraq will overthrow their puppet government (although it might happen any day now) and install a Sunni strongman to rule the country.

 

In other words, nothing will change.

 

 

.. or maybe people watch Larry King and say, "There is no God!"

 

I am a live-and-let-live kind of gal when it comes to religion. Religion is a very private and personal matter .. who you worship and how you worship is none of my dang business, it's one of the greatest freedoms of our beautiful America.

 

But, when your religion enters the public sector -- like abortion, etc.-- it is very much my business. If I don't believe in your religion, it should not invade my privacy. The courts decided long ago that a Hindu child shouldn't be made to recite Christian Bible verses in school.

 

Everyone claims that Christians vastly outnumber atheists in this country .. that's why I was surprised by this....

 

 

Yes, it's another silly Internet poll, and it's badly phrased .. but I voted anyway. Larry King wants to know "which religion do you associate with?" .. and atheism is one of the choices.

 

Too bad they list atheism as a religion .. the correct answer for atheists is 'none'.

 

Atheists .. don't be shocked to find out that you are not the only one in town.

 

The poll is currently registering 71 percent of the voters as atheists. I always thought there were more atheists than you'd think -- in public atheists laugh nervously and change the subject, not wanting to be ostracized -- but I had no idea. 71 percent -- some would call that a mandate.

 

And they say you can't herd cats ..

 

Christianity 15% 2180
Judaism 5% 706
Islam 2% 251
Buddhism 0% 73
Hinduism 0% 45
Jehovah's Witnesses 1% 150
Atheism 71% 10546
Agnostic 2% 337
I am spiritual, but of no religion 3% 441
Mine's not listed 1% 163
Total Votes: 14892

 

I remember what the curmudgeonly atheist Dr. House said in an episode of the Fox program "House"....

 

“You know, I get it that people are just looking for a way to fill the holes. But they want the holes. They want to live in the holes. And they go nuts when someone else pours dirt in their holes. Climb out of your holes, people!”

 

People tend to dislike atheists in general rather than in particular .. they know House, they like him and don't care if he's an atheist. If fictional atheists like House could be joined by more outspoken atheists in real life -- like Richard Dawkins -- maybe the public impression of nonbelievers could move up a notch toward something more realistic.

 

Atheists are good law abiding, caring people .. they aren't all lurking in the dark, waiting to pounce on the faithful.

 

They've just been more successful in outgrowing the imaginary friends of childhood.

 

 
After a 15-month deployment in Iraq, seven active duty US soldiers of the 82nd Airborne wrote this op-ed piece in the NYT, giving us an accurate picture of what's really going on over there right now.

 

If you really want to know what's happening on the ground, ask a sergeant. These guys don't just fly in for a dog & pony show photo-op like the politicians do, they've lived this war night and day for over a year.

 

We all tend to latch on to facts that confirm our view of things, but people on both sides of the Iraq debate should read it.

 

Every member of Congress should read it.

 

It's hard to imagine what motivated these soldiers to write this piece .. other than to tell the truth in the hope of the best possible outcome for both the American military and the Iraqi people.

 

From The New York Times: "VIEWED from Iraq at the tail end of a 15-month deployment, the political debate in Washington is indeed surreal.

 

....As responsible infantrymen and noncommissioned officers with the 82nd Airborne Division soon heading back home, we are skeptical of recent press coverage portraying the conflict as increasingly manageable and feel it has neglected the mounting civil, political and social unrest we see every day.

 

....A few nights ago, for example, we witnessed the death of one American soldier and the critical wounding of two others when a lethal armor-piercing explosive was detonated between an Iraqi Army checkpoint and a police one. Local Iraqis readily testified to American investigators that Iraqi police and Army officers escorted the triggermen and helped plant the bomb. These civilians highlighted their own predicament: had they informed the Americans of the bomb before the incident, the Iraqi Army, the police or the local Shiite militia would have killed their families.

 

....The ability of, say, American observers to safely walk down the streets of formerly violent towns is not a resounding indicator of security. What matters is the experience of the local citizenry and the future of our counterinsurgency. When we take this view, we see that a vast majority of Iraqis feel increasingly insecure and view us as an occupation force that has failed to produce normalcy after four years and is increasingly unlikely to do so as we continue to arm each warring side.

 

....Coupling our military strategy to an insistence that the Iraqis meet political benchmarks for reconciliation is also unhelpful. The morass in the government has fueled impatience and confusion while providing no semblance of security to average Iraqis.

 

....Washington’s insistence that the Iraqis correct the three gravest mistakes we made — de-Baathification, the dismantling of the Iraqi Army and the creation of a loose federalist system of government — places us at cross purposes with the government we have committed to support.

 

....At the same time, the most important front in the counterinsurgency, improving basic social and economic conditions, is the one on which we have failed most miserably. Two million Iraqis are in refugee camps in bordering countries. Close to two million more are internally displaced and now fill many urban slums. Cities lack regular electricity, telephone services and sanitation.

 

....In a lawless environment where men with guns rule the streets, engaging in the banalities of life has become a death-defying act. Four years into our occupation, we have failed on every promise, while we have substituted Baath Party tyranny with a tyranny of Islamist, militia and criminal violence.

 

.... In the end, we need to recognize that our presence may have released Iraqis from the grip of a tyrant, but that it has also robbed them of their self-respect. They will soon realize that the best way to regain dignity is to call us what we are — an army of occupation — and force our withdrawal.

 

Until that happens, it would be prudent for us to increasingly let Iraqis take center stage in all matters, to come up with a nuanced policy in which we assist them from the margins but let them resolve their differences as they see fit. This suggestion is not meant to be defeatist, but rather to highlight our pursuit of incompatible policies to absurd ends without recognizing the incongruities.

 

We need not talk about our morale. As committed soldiers, we will see this mission through.

 

 

It's not only terrorists that we have to worry about .. after all, terrorists can't take away our Habeus Corpus, our Bill of Rights and our Constitution ...

 

No, terrorists are small potatoes compared to the threat we face from our own government .. which is taking away our freedoms one brick at a time.

 

And it's just now dawning on the dang Democrats that the surveillance bill they hustled through Congress (inexcusably) in a rush to get away for their freakin' recess, might not have been such a good idea after all.

 

Because now it looks like they gave Bush more power to screw us over than he actually asked for .. more power that further eroded the Constitution.

 

Hey Democrats, would you please READ this stuff before you vote on it .. especially when it trashes the Constitution?

 

From the New York Times: WASHINGTON, Aug. 18 — Broad new surveillance powers approved by Congress this month could allow the Bush administration to conduct spy operations that go well beyond wiretapping to include — without court approval — certain types of physical searches on American soil and the collection of Americans’ business records, Democratic Congressional officials and other experts said.

 

....The dispute illustrates how lawmakers, in a frenetic, end-of-session scramble, passed legislation they may not have fully understood and may have given the administration more surveillance powers than it sought. [..]"

 

 

Before you know it the Bushies will be reading your diary on FoxNews.

 

"We did not cover ourselves in glory," said one Democratic aide … "

 

Ya think?

 

I had pretty high hopes for this Congress .. but the Democrats are failing me miserably. I already gave up on my favorite Republicans.

 

The Bushies are turning this country into a dictatorship and the Democratic majority seem to be too chicken to stop them.

 

If the Democrats really want to protect this country like they say they do, as soon as Congress is back in session they'll introduce a bill to repeal this monstrosity .. and in simple language make sure FISA is changed to cover new technology.

 

But I won't hold my breath ...

 

"Though many Democratic leaders opposed the final version of the legislation, they did not work forcefully to block its passage, largely out of fear that they would be criticized by President Bush and Republican leaders during the August recess as being soft on terrorism."

 

Democrats, which is worse? The GOP calling you names, or living under a Fascist Rule?

 

One thing I know fer sure -- as disgusted as I am with the Democrats, I'll probably still vote for one of them .. the probable Republican candidates disgust me even more.

 

 

No, wait a minute -- WE the Taxpayers have to pay it. Our tax dollars hard at work.

 

In a fair world the Bush campaign committee would reimburse the US Treasury for this free speech violation.

 

Whatever, gotta keep Bush free from seeing Americans dissent .. that way he can continue to think he is loved and doing a good job.

 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. - A couple arrested at a rally after refusing to cover T-shirts that bore anti-President Bush slogans settled their lawsuit against the federal government for $80,000, the American Civil Liberties Union announced Thursday.

 

Nicole and Jeffery Rank of Corpus Christi, Texas, were handcuffed and removed from the July 4, 2004, rally at the state Capitol, where Bush gave a speech. A judge dismissed trespassing charges against them, and an order closing the case was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Charleston.

 

....The front of the Ranks' homemade T-shirts bore the international symbol for "no" superimposed over the word "Bush." The back of Nicole Rank's T-shirt said "Love America, Hate Bush." On the back of Jeffery Rank's T-shirt was the message "Regime Change Starts at Home."

 

The ACLU said in a statement that a presidential advance manual makes it clear that the government tries to exclude dissenters from the president's appearances. "As a last resort," the manual says, "security should remove the demonstrators from the event."

 

 

Ooooh .. Bushies have a Secret Manual on how to save Commander Guy from dangerous T-shirts.....you can see it here:

 

 

The manual says White House advance personnel should preposition "rally squads" that can swarm any protesters at the event and "use their signs and banners as shields between the demonstrators and the main press platform." The rally squads can be formed using "college/young republican organizations, local athletic teams, and fraternities/sororities."

 

Geez, do those "rally squads" know that they're participating in fascism? Because this sounds exactly like what Hilter used his brown-shirt, hobnail-boot wearing thugs to do.

 

The title of this manual should be "A Strategy for Brownshirts" .. and I'll bet Karl Rove wrote it. He was head of The Advance Office.

 

So how many amendments does that make now?  We've had the first, fourth, fifth and sixth.  Have I've missed any?

 

Arresting someone for exercising their freedom of speech at a taxpayer-funded event -- let me repeat, a taxpayer-funded event -- is a very serious matter. It adds insult to injury that Taxpayers get to foot the bill for that $80,000 fine money .. for a law violation by the Bush administration.

 

I would also have held out for a refresher course on the US Constitution for every White House staffer. I’m onery when it comes to violations of the Bill of Rights.

 

For cripe's sake, these people were just wearing T-shirts, they weren't yelling or causing a disturbance.

 

Freedom of speech is a GUARANTEED constitutional right .. NOT an afterthought!

 

How many Americans have died fighting wars to defend our constitutional rights and way of life?

 

Yet, here, on American Soil, our Commander-in-Chief can VIOLATE our right to free speech .. and not only live to tell about it, but just pay them off to forget about it.

 

 

Rove slams Bush’s 240 million American critics on the Rush Limbaugh Radio Show For Psychotics .. called us ‘elite, effete snobs.’

 

Um, I always thought just using the word "effete" make you, well, effete.

 

And Limbaugh listeners said, "Hmm, effete .. he must be talkin' 'bout their I-talian shoes!"

 

I guess calling Democrats faggots doesn't work that well for Republicans anymore.

 

These guys haven't had any new material since Agnew.. because if my history is correct, the last guy who called a president's millions of critics "effete snobs" was Spiro Agnew .. and the reason there was no President Spiro Agnew was because he was a crook too .. something to do with bribery indictments and jail time.

 

Here's to history repeating itself with Rove!

 

From newsmax.com: "Appearing by phone on "The Rush Limbaugh Show," President Bush’s chief political strategist Karl Rove slammed Bush’s critics as "elite, effete snobs.”

 

In his first interview since announcing he was leaving the White House, Rove also revealed why he thought Hillary Clinton was a "fatally flawed” candidate for president.

 

Rove told radio host Rush Limbaugh that he is often "amused” by references to Bush as "brain dead” or "frat boy.”

 

In his Wednesday interview he told Rush: "This is one of the best-read people I’ve ever met. This is a Harvard MBA. A Yale undergraduate whose major was history and whose passion is history.”

 

Those "elite, effete snobs” who criticize him — the "people on the Upper East Side who are putting their nose in the air about him — can’t hold a candle to him.”[..]"

 

 

There's just something about a nasty little doughboy going on a nasty drug addict's radio show to defend the first retarded president in American history -- and the worst foreign policy debacle in world history -- that somehow makes it okay for me to be called effete.

 

Rove said: “What they don’t like about him is that he is common sense, that he is Middle America.”

 

Common sense? LOL! A hilarious accusation, considering the state of our nation.

 

I'm so snobby I keep forgetting that Middle America didn't get a Yale MBA paid for by a rich politician daddy .. plus three or four companies, a state, and a country to TRASH.

 

I wonder if we're talking about the same person -- an east coast aristocrat and Ivy League cheerleader born in Connecticut .. and raised at a millionaire's walled seaside compound in Kennebunkport, Maine? That's Middle America?

 

But then, we must remember that Turd Blossom's vision is fogged by hero worship. His reaction in his own words, when he saw W for the first time, in a leather jacket, jeans and cowboy hat -- "Wow! I mean, WOW!"

 

I should make a Village People joke right about here .. but I won't.

 

Rove's win-at-all-costs style did great damage to the body politic. He lied and broke the law (the Hatch Act). He was a master at playing on people's fears and hatreds .. appealing to the lowest common denominator.

 

His candidate always won by the narrowest of margins, and Rove tipped the scales every time with the slimiest of dirty tricks.

 

We'll have to wait to see how much long-term damage he has done to his own party.

 

If the GOP starts 2009 without the House, the Senate OR the White House, that'll be bad .. but not necessarily permanent.

 

But if the same situation happens again in 2011 and 2013, the Republicans will know who to blame.

 

And now, he rides off into the sunset .. leaving behind him a White House in shambles, the Bush Presidency smoldering in ruins amid the wreckage of the Republican Party....

 

And, usually when people leave public life they give upbeat exit interviews and are positive and gracious to their political adversaries.

 

But, the ones who leave under a dark cloud and suspect that they will be raked over the coals when history uncovers the Truth, immediately start lashing out, calling names and blaming straw men for sabotaging their greatness.

 

The Crap Heap of History is down the hall to the right, Karl.

 

 

"The results of President's Bush's annual physical were released. It revealed that last year President Bush got a rash from a tick bite. After hearing this, Bill Clinton said, "A rash from a tick bite? I'll have to remember that one." --Jay Leno

 

"In a recent interview, President Bush's father said he gets upset when people tell him his son is doing a bad job. Bush's dad went on to say, 'You'd think after 60 years I'd be used to it.'" --Jay Leno

 

"Karl Rove resigned. Big blow to the White House. Rumsfeld's gone, Wolfowitz, Harriet Miers, Dan Bartlett -- all gone. Cheney -- never much help during the summer. That's his egg-laying season." --Jon Stewart

 

"It was this week in 1974 that Richard Nixon resigned the presidency after getting caught lying and violating the Constitution. Remember when that kind of thing used to get you kicked out of office?" --Jay Leno

 

"A gay rights group sponsored a debate among the Democratic presidential candidates to discuss gay issues. Dennis Kucinich might be getting a little desperate - he showed up wearing all leather." --Jay Leno

 

"Last week was a busy, busy week for both major parties. Starting with the Democrats, who met for a candidates forum on Logo, the gay-oriented cable channel that is not Lifetime or Bravo. ... It was generally a friendly event, except for one William Richardson [on screen: Richardson saying homosexuality is a choice, when asked if homosexuality is a choice or it is biological]. ... Richardson then swung into damage control mode, explaining the next day he didn't understand the question because of jet lag. Yes, apparently, the governor had just flown in from the 1950s." --Jon Stewart

 

"The brand new president of the Young Republican National Federation, 33-year-old Glenn Murphy, has resigned after one month in office, after police say he is being investigated for performing an unwanted sex act on a sleeping man. Murphy defended himself by saying the act was consensual and he may have had just too much to drink at the time. Well, what guy hasn't done that after a couple of beers? ... See, there you go. The Democrats may talk a good game at the gay rights forum, but the Republicans are actually out there doing gay things." --Jay Leno

 

"The Iowa straw poll, a quadrennial ritual for Republican candidates, was held Saturday in Ames, Iowa. And the big winner of this unofficial, preseason survey of the Iowa electorate? Former Massachusetts Governor/part-time J.C. Penny catalogue underwear model Mitt Romney with over 30% of the vote." --Jon Stewart

 

"For those of you who still care, what exactly is the Iowa straw poll? [on screen: a political science prof. explaining that GOP candidates tend to pay the $35 ticket fee for voters in hopes they will come out and support them]. So, it's an election with no Democrats, in one of the whitest states in the union, where rich candidates pay $35 for your vote. Or, as the Republicans call it, 'Our vision for the future.'" --Jon Stewart

 

"President Bush had his annual physical. And next week, Vice President Dick Cheney will have his annual autopsy. ... The White House revealed that last year President Bush was treated for lyme disease. This disease is spread by ticks that burrow under your skin. You don't even know they're there. You know, kinda like a government wiretap." --Jay Leno

 

"President Bush has left for vacation and his poll numbers are going up. So, basically, people approve of the job he's doing more when he's not doing the job." --Jay Leno

 

"This week, the government announced a new operation to crack down on the hiring of illegals here in Los Angeles. It's called Operation You're Going To Have To Cut Your Own Lawn and Raise Your Own Kids." --Jay Leno

 

"During a debate sponsored by a gay group, Senator Hillary Clinton was criticized because of her husband's 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy. In response, Hillary said, 'Sorry, but our entire marriage is based on me not asking and him not telling'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"It pains me to say this, but a 'Tip of the Hat' to the New York Times. This week, America's most venerated journal of treason reduced its paper size from 13 1/2 inches to 12. I haven't seen this much liberal shrinkage since John Kerry went windsurfing" --Stephen Colbert

 

"At the top of last night's show, we mentioned presidential candidate Mitt Romney's response when he was asked why none of his five sons had enlisted in the military [on screen: Romney saying, 'My sons are all adults and they've made decisions about their careers, and they've chosen not to serve in the military']. You know what? Fair answer. I respect that. As long as you don't then try to equate with what they're actually doing now with military service, I think you're in the clear [on screen: Romney saying, 'One of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping me to get elected because they think I'd be a great president.']. Oh, I get it. So yeah, they're not actually in the military, but they're about as close as you can get to it in supporting our nation. ... Who are these men, this brand of brothers who, against all odds, are making a 99-county Winnebago tour of Iowa without caffeine? --Jon Stewart

 

Daily Show correspondent Aasif Mandvi, asked if Mitt Romney's sons will get to come home from serving their country soon: "The good news is if their father keeps saying stupid s--- like this, then yes, yes they will"

 

"Presidential candidate Mitt Romney was asked to explain why none of his five sons are in the military and he said that his sons demonstrate their patriotism by going on the road and campaigning for him. Now there's a tough choice: Iraq, or Iowa?? "Fallujah or Cedar Rapids? Honey, what do you think?" --Jay Leno

 

...and Bush kept quiet about it to help the Democrats. What a guy! This orta piss off at least two of the last three people who support him.

 

From The Washington Post: "Donald H. Rumsfeld, who came to symbolize the Bush administration’s problems in the war in Iraq, resigned as secretary of defense one day before last fall’s elections, although President Bush did not announce the move until the day after the elections.

 

The White House confirmed on Wednesday that Rumsfeld’s letter of resignation was dated Nov. 6, 2006, the day before voters — many of them furious about the war in Iraq — evicted Republicans from the leadership of the House and Senate.[..]"

 

 

Now let me get this straight -- Donald Rumsfeld, architect of the screwed up mess they call the Iraq war, resigned as defense secretary before last year's November election .. but his decision was not announced until after the voting?

 

Boy, I can just see all those Republicans who lost seats, frothing at the mouth,  because Bush kept insisting he was keeping Rummy on until the end of his presidency.

 

If Republican voters had known about that resignation letter, they may not have stayed home on election day. Bush has always lived in denial, but this time his party paid the price as a result.

 

OR -- maybe it was Karl Rove who recommended hiding Rumsfeld’s resignation .. he sure didn't expect them to get "skunked."

 

Anyway, something tells me that Rummy would still be holding press conferences as Sec/Def had Congress not turned.

 

Donald Rumsfeld is the biggest failure as Sec/Def that we've ever had! He based his entire strategy of conquering Iraq on the fact that everyone would lay down their weapons -- like in the first Gulf war -- do the hokey pokey and turn themselves about.

 

Sadly, for our kids under his command, no one in the War Room asked -- "Hey, what if these a**holes fight back?"

 

"Just days before the election, Bush told reporters he would like Rumsfeld to stay on for the rest of his presidency ..."

 

Bush said that knowing that Rummy's four page resignation letter would soon be on his desk .. but he denied rumors of Rummy's departure three times before the cock crowed.

 

Finally, a Bush lie that actually helped America ....

 

Yet another recall of millions and millions of dangerous toys made in China.

 

Cool, huh .. they won't even have to fire a shot. They just poison our food, toothpaste and toys and make us pay for our own demise. They're catching on to this free market stuff way too quickly.

 

From Reuters: "Mattel Inc., the largest U.S. toy company, recalled millions more Chinese-made toys on Tuesday due to hazards from small, powerful magnets and lead paint, and warned it may recall additional products as it steps up testing on thousands of toys.

 

Mattel's second recall this month came as it launched a national advertising campaign to assure consumers it is on top of product safety. The latest recall raised the prospects of legal liability for the California-based company.

 

Mattel Inc., the largest U.S. toy company, recalled millions more Chinese-made toys on Tuesday due to hazards from small, powerful magnets and lead paint, sending its shares down as much as 6 percent.[..]"

 

 

How the hell can our safety officials let this happen? .. and let it go on for so long? Why are these products allowed to be sold in America before someone figures it out? Where is the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission? What's their excuse for not riding herd on Mattel? Underfunded and understaffed?

 

Bush has to look like he's doing something, so he's probably looking to appoint a Toy Czar right away. I don't think Mark Foley is busy .. and we all know how much he loves children.

 

At least when the Chinese screw up, they immediately commit suicide.

 

Yep, the guy in charge of the factory that manufactured this LAST bunch of poison toys committed suicide .. or they said he did. They executed the poisoned dogfood guy.

 

And our corporations keep on letting them make and test all our stuff.

 

What's that you say? Bush has the United States so much in hock with China that they could sink our currency if we don't buy their crap?

 

We should march on Washington with pitchforks and torches to demand that they pull us from NAFTA and the World Trade Organization. Scrap this country's lopsided trade policies with China et al and start all over again with new rules.

 

We REALLY need to boycott Mattel .. show them that we'll stop buying their goods until they build an American factory and hire American workers, until they give us a choice between American made and Chinese made.

 

Christmas is coming, it would be the perfect time.

 

But we don't .. we can't shake our Wal Mart mentality. We just sit on our lazy butts because we've been bought for a few lousy dollars.

 

Our soldiers in Iraq are serving under incredibly difficult conditions, some are on their FOURTH tour of duty. They are the true heroes, but we're using them up and wearing them out like so many plastic Happy Meal toys. They first went over there with fresh souls and high patriotism .. and now too many of them are redeployed before they can catch up on their sleep, then sent back again. Many are coming home exhausted, damaged and bitter.

 

.. not that anybody in the White House seems to give a damn. Or even listen.

 

- Gen. Colin Powell: The “active Army is about broken,” Powell said. Even beyond Iraq, the Army and Marines have to “grow in size, in my military judgment,” he said, adding that Congress must provide significant additional funding to sustain them.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/17/AR2006121700494.html

 

And now this disturbing article from The Observer: (Yeah, I know, a Brit newspaper. Where is the mythical US "liberal media" when you need to shine sunlight on something?)

 

"Exhaustion and combat stress are besieging US troops in Iraq as they battle with a new type of warfare. Some even rely on Red Bull to get through the day. As desertions and absences increase, the military is struggling to cope with the crisis..

 

..."We are just keeping people in theatre who are exhausted," says a soldier working for the U.S. army public affairs office who is supposed to be telling me how well things have been going since the "surge" in Baghdad began."[..]

 

 

Well, those crybaby whiners! Too tired indeed. Good thing Commander Guy sets such a shining example of a true soldier!

 

Those troops should all be doing something really important to serve our country, like Mitt Romney's sons are doing -- going out on the political campaign trail and working to get Romney elected president.

 

Last week in Iowa Mitt was asked whether any of his five sons (ages 26 - 37) are serving in the military. It's a fair question for any politician who supports a war and has the power to send other people's kids to war .. and the Army IS short of manpower.

 

Romney answered - "It's remarkable how we can show our support for our nation, and one of the ways my sons are showing support for our nation is helping to get me elected, because they think I'd be a great president."

 

I hope you can sleep better America .. knowing that instead of hightailin' it down to the nearest military recruiting office to fight terrorists, Mitt's five strappin' boys are hard at work in the corn belt .. braving run-away tractors and circling crop duster planes .. keeping America safe from Democrats.

 

Army Offers $20,000 "Quick-ship" Enlistment Bonus

 

Kid, I got an offer you can't refuse. Your President needs you real bad right now. Sure, he'll wait until the day after you get out of high school .. in fact, he doesn't even care if you have a diploma. He doesn't even care if you're a citizen. Nah, don't worry about your gang tattoos .. or drug and alcohol tests. Just sober up enough to swear in .. right before Uncle Sam gives you, oh, at least 2 weeks of training before he sends you into combat in Iraq.

 

Tell Mom and Dad there's nothing for them to worry about. Hey, they could come too, if they're under 42.

 

Kid, just keep thinking of the fancy new sports car you can buy if, uh, when you come home...

 

Army to Expand Recruiting Incentives
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Need a down-payment for your home? Seed money to start a business? The Army wants to help - if you're willing to join up. Despite spending nearly $1 billion last year on recruiting bonuses and ads, Army leaders say an even bolder approach is needed to fill wartime ranks.

 

....An Associated Press review of the increasingly aggressive recruiting offerings found the Army is not only dangling more sign-up rewards - it's loosening rules on age and weight limits, education and drug and criminal records.

 

....Among the changes that have helped attract more recruits:

 

_ Increasing to $20,000 the bonus for troops who join by Sept. 30 and leave for boot camp within a month.

 

_ Raising the enlistment age to 42.

 

_ Allowing recruits to come in with non-offensive tattoos on their hands and neck.

 

_ Offering a $2,000 bonus to Army soldiers who refer a new recruit.

 

_ Enlisting recruits who don't meet weight standards and must trim down their first year.

 

_ Advertising that targets potential recruits' parents.

 

_ Increasing the number of recruits with general education diplomas rather than regular high school diplomas.

 

_ Creating a more pleasant boot camp environment.

 

_ Sending "gung-ho" soldiers fresh from boot camp or war zones back to their hometowns to visit old friends and schoolmates to promote the Army.

 

_ Increasing to more than 15 percent the number of Army and Army Reserve troops given waivers for medical and moral reasons or for positive drug and alcohol screen tests.[..]"

 

 

Is it just me or do I feel a draft?

 

Dang, I was sooo looking forward to a Karl Rove Perp Walk! There were certainly enough reasons for one -- Plame outing, election stealing, corruption, illegal emails, not showing up for subpoenas. And that's just the ones we know about. The harm he's done is almost beyond repair.

 

Oh dear, what will Commander Guy do now that his Brain is leaving him? Will he be completely adrift for the remainder? This will be interesting to watch.

 

From The Wall Street Journal: "Karl Rove, President Bush's longtime political adviser, is resigning as White House deputy chief of staff effective Aug. 31, and returning to Texas, he said in an interview with Paul Gigot, editor of The Wall Street Journal's editorial page.

 

...."There's always something that can keep you here, and as much as I'd like to be here, I've got to do this for the sake of my family," Rove said. [..]"

 

 

Family my left foot, I hope the threat of indictment is why he's running for the hills. Does it mean that he can no longer refuse congressional subpoenas?

 

Some people say he may be quitting, but he's not gone. Maybe he'll spend only a short time with his family, then sign on to run somebody's campaign. Fred Thompson is supposed to announce in early September. That seems sort of convenient. Or maybe worse -- Rudy/Bush II.

 

Then other people say the GOP party leadership wants him gone. He's cost them everything.

 

Remember his little demotion in the White House right after the Democrat victories in '06? He told the GOP that everything was going to be hunky-dory in '06 .. but they lost their majorities in both houses of Congress. So, maybe he's lost all credibility.

 

His eternal "play to the base" strategy seems to have backfired .. I'd bet any Republican running for office in 2008 wants to see this man as far from Washington, DC as possible.

 

I've read that some Republicans simply won't vote in the next election .. they want the GOP to step back for a few years to re-work the party. Let the Democrats try to clean up Bush's mess .. let them screw up for a while.

 

Rove's strategy delivered the goods in the short run, but destroyed a dominant party for many years to come in the long run. Fiscal conservatives are furious. Libertarians are furious. The military wing is increasingly furious. He's a marked man.

 

Shoot, he might even be hightailin' it because the turmoil in the stock market is only going to get worse in the coming weeks .. maybe he doesn't want to wait around to see the market upchuck the excesses of GOP economic policies.

 

A Republican friend wishes Rove had left “on his own terms” a few years ago .. that a change in political strategy this late in the game isn’t likely to do much good.

 

I find the suddenness surprising .. maybe he's "resigning" because something big is about to drop.

 

All I know is they'd better be careful .. Rove knows where all the bodies are buried.....

 

I really am flattered by your obsession with me, and even though they tell us to ignore crazy people yelling on street corners, you know, avoid eye contact .. I just have to show my appreciation to you paragons of objectivity, truth and class -- pause here for uncontrollable laughter, wiping tears from eyes -- just this once.

 

These hateful BlogHi rightie attacks on me ARE hilarious. Like a SNL satire skit .. only not as witty. But hey, you have to work with the hate speech wit you have, not the hate speech wit you wish you had.

 

Anyway, I do laugh at your sophomoric juvenile taunts, your endless capacity for self-parody really makes my day. AND drives my readership up nicely. I rarely have time to look in at our blog home page, but when my number of 'hits' goes up, I know that Bush's little colon polyps must be calling me names.

 

Thank you, thank you .. I'll get my message out any way I can.

 

These haters ARE the Republican base folks, and this is precisely why the Republicans don't dare do a YouTube debate in which their base has any sort of say -- it would hand the presidential election to the Democrats so fast it would make your head spin.

 

Just like that time Pat Buchanan's Republican-pleasing froth-at-the-mouth speech at the 1992 Republican National Convention guaranteed that Bill Clinton would be our next president.

 

Once again, the wingnutosphere's accusing Democrats of bad behavior is like Hitler accusing Churchill of war crimes.

 

Or Hot Tub Tom DeLay condemning Bill Clinton's morality.

 

Or Republican Newt Gingrich hounding his Democratic predecessor out of the Speaker's job and the House over a $50,000 book deal -- even as he himself was making a $4 million book deal with Rupert Murdoch in exchange for the legislation that made FOX News possible.

 

The irony, as well as the hypocrisy, is staggering.

 

So, before you Hateful Losers burst into spiteful flames of spontaneous human combustion .. allow me to thank you for all the attention.

 

I could easily slice you into buffoon mignon .. but it would serve no purpose other than for my own amusement. It is beneath me.

 

This is the last time I will acknowledge your presence.

 

 

"Barry Bonds hit his 756th home run and broke Hank Aaron's record. ... President Bush called to congratulate him the next day  ... because 'I realized I had a rare opportunity to talk to the only guy in the country who's less popular than I am.'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"Hillary Clinton says she's going to reach out to health care employees by working a shift as a nurse at a hospital. When he heard about this, Bill Clinton was upset and said, 'Great. This will ruin the plot of my favorite porn movie.'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney said they will not participate in the Republican debate next month in Florida. John McCain said he will be there ... if he can get a ride." --Jay Leno

 

"Elizabeth Edwards is speaking out again. [She's] a little upset. She said the problem with her husband John Edwards' fundraising -- you know, compared to the other candidates -- is she can't make him black and she can't make him a woman. That's the same problem Michael Jackson's people have." --Jay Leno

 

"Supreme Court Justice John Roberts is back on the bench, even though he is prone to seizures. ... When President Bush heard this, he said, 'That's great 'cause I'm prone to illegal searches'" --Jay Leno

 

"Mitt Romney -- the only candidate named after a glove, one of the leading Republicans, he's called the war on terror the defining mission of our generation -- was asked in Iowa why none of his five draft-age or army eligible sons are serving in the military. He said -- and this is a quote, people -- 'One of the ways my sons are showing support for the nation is helping me get elected, 'cause they think I'd make a great president.' When I read that, I was moved ... and I'll tell you why. To know that the Romney boys love America so much and the whole family that they're willing to give up all five of their boys for the Romney campaign. Who knows what kind of post-traumatic care these boys will need after the election?" --Jon Stewart

 

"A lot of people were wondering whether President Bush would acknowledge Bond's record. He did. In fact, he told Neil Cavuto on Fox News today that he spoke to Barry Bonds on the phone. ... See that. He does care about black people after all. ... He probably just wanted to take the rare opportunity to talk to someone whose approval rating is lower than his is." --Jimmy Kimmel

 

"Although it's warm here, it is really hot back East. ... In fact, in Washington, DC, it is so hot that President Bush wasn't just reading other people's mail, he was actually fanning himself with it." --Jay Leno

 

"President Bush signed a law last Sunday that broadly expands the government's authority to eavesdrop on our telephone calls and e-mails without a warrant. So, our phone calls are being watched. Our e-mails are being watched. The only thing not being watched? NBC." --Jay Leno

 

Earlier this week at a campaign event in Utah, hundreds of people showed up to hear a speech by Barack Obama. After Obama's speech, the Utah crowd said, 'That was great. Now let us know if an Asian guy ever comes to town.'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"Last Sunday, all nine Republican candidates skipped church to take part in a forum on ABC's 'This Week.' Stephanopoulos asked, 'What is a defining mistake of your life and why?' ... Rudy Giuliani said, "Here's a hint. It starts with annulling my first marriage to my second cousin and it ends with my kids from my second marriage supporting Barack Obama because they hate my third wife." --Jon Stewart

 

"Congratulations to Matt Damon. His movie, 'The Bourne Ultimatum,' had the biggest movie opening ever for the month of August. It made $70 million. Today, Senator John McCain asked Matt Damon to be his running mate." --Jay Leno

 

"If you haven't seen the movie, it's about a guy who works for the government who can't remember his past. I think the original title was 'The Alberto Gonzales Story.'" --Jay Leno

 

"At Camp David, President Bush signed a bill into law that expands his wiretapping powers. President Bush said he knew the bill would pass because he had bugs planted in both houses of Congress." --Jay Leno

 

"President Bush met with the president of Afghanistan, who was wearing that hat and the robe. ... President Bush was a little confused. He thought he was meeting the professor from the Hogwarts school." --Jay Leno

 

"The presidential race heating up slowly over the last nine years. ... Potential Republican candidate -- he hasn't declared yet, but a lot of people think he's going to run -- Fred Thompson is now busy defending his much younger wife. In a recent interview, Senator Fred Thompson said that all criticism of his wife should be directed at him. As a result, conservative groups told Thompson he's been showing too much cleavage." --Conan O'Brien

 

"Starting today, the New York Times reduced the size of their newspaper. They cut the paper's width by an inch and a half. The move was announced with the headline 'Big Changes At New York Tim.'" --Conan O'Brien

 

"Archaeologists in Hungary say they have discovered a forest of trees that's 8 million years old. The archaeologists say that they haven't seen wood that old since the last time Larry King watched porn." --Conan O'Brien

 

"Here's a remarkable story of recovery. ... Seems a brain-injured man who had been in a coma for the last six years is now awake -- eating and speaking with his family. In fact, you know what you call a man who has been in a coma for the last six years? Mr. President." --Jay Leno

 

"The Statue of Liberty's crown may reopen. It's been really odd. Most of her body has been closed to the public. No, wait. That's Condoleezza Rice" --David Letterman

 

"According to store owners in Iraq, Iraqi consumers are now developing a taste for American products like Pringles, Fruit Loops and Kraft macaroni and cheese. In a related story, Iraqis are also developing huge asses" --Conan O'Brien

 

"The big story in Washington D.C. . . . not the war in Iraq, not Alberto Gonzales lying to Congress, not healthcare . . . the big story everyone is talking about, Hillary Clinton showing a little cleavage. It's amazing isn't it? The United States is 231 years old, but apparently the media is only 13." --Jay Leno

 

"Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said today that he would not use nuclear weapons under any circumstances. I didn't realize his battle with Hillary had escalated to this level. I just thought there was a little friction.' --Jay Leno

 

"Madame Tussauds' new wax museum in Washington D.C. is going to feature a "scandal room," featuring wax likenesses of elected officials involved in sex, alcohol, or ethics scandals. Why would you go there, when you can just walk five blocks to the Capitol building and see the real thing?" --Jay Leno

 

"Latest on the campaign: It was reported that things are going so badly for Sen John McCain, McCain has to carry his own luggage. Meanwhile, things are going so badly for Dennis Kucinich's campaign, he has to carry Barack Obama's luggage." --Conan O'Brien

 

"According to a new survey, 58% of people who follow the news think Attorney General Alberto Gonzales should resign. Here's the frightening statistic: 72% of Americans who do not follow the news think Alberto Gonzales is the guy who is married to Kelly Ripa." --Jay Leno

 

"According to the Washington Post, Hillary Clinton has been showing a little cleavage out there on the campaign trail. People feel this is why her lead over Barack Obama has increased. ... But I think there's something to it. In fact, today, Barack Obama made a speech with a rolled up sock in his pants." --Jay Leno

 

"The White House is now demanding Congress move quickly on a new treaty to allow more Arctic oil drilling, 'cause they say the melting polar ice caps means more oil is easily available. See, this combines the two things the administration loves -- global warming and drilling for oil." --Jay Leno

 

"The Bush administration is now looking into the possibility of pumping Iraq's oil into Israel. Well, that should calm things down over there. Finally a common sense solution!" --Jay Leno

 

"There's a new sex poll. ... According to researchers, there are 237 reasons why people have sex. ... For me, number two would be my credit card went through. A little farther down on the list, I happen to be in an elevator with Paris Hilton. ... Reason 237: something to do while my wife is running for president" --David Letterman

 

 

1) You have to believe that the nation's current 8-year prosperity was due to the work of Ronald Reagan and George Bush, but that yesterday's gas prices are all Clinton's fault.

 

2) You have to believe that those privileged from birth achieve success all on their own.

 

3) You have to be against government programs, but expect Social Security checks on time.

 

4) You have to believe that government should stay out of people's lives, yet you want government to regulate opposite-gender marriages and what your official language should be.

 

5) You have to believe that pollution is ok, so long as it makes a profit.

 

6) You have to believe in prayer in schools, as long as you don't pray to Allah or Buddha.

 

7) You have to believe that only your own teenagers are still virgins.

 

8) You have to believe that a woman cannot be trusted with decisions about her own body, but that large multi-national corporations should have no regulation or interference whatsoever.

 

9) You believe Jesus loves you, and by the way, Jesus shares your hatred of AIDS victims, homosexuals, and President Clinton.

 

10) You have to believe that society is color-blind and growing up black in America doesn't diminish your opportunities, but you still won't vote for Alan Keyes.

 

11) You have to believe that trade with Cuba is wrong because it is communist, but trading with China and Vietnam is good for business.

 

12)You have to believe that tobacco's link to cancer and global warming are "junk science", but Creationism should be taught in schools.

 

13) You have to believe it is wise to keep condoms out of schools, because we all know if teenagers don't have condoms they won't have sex.

 

14) You have to believe that the ACLU is bad because they defend the Constitution, while the NRA is good because they defend the Constitution.

 

15) You have to believe that socialism hasn't worked anywhere, and that Europe doesn't exist.

 

16) You have to believe the AIDS virus is not important enough to deserve federal funding proportionate to the resulting death rate and that the public doesn't need to be educated about it, because if we just ignore it, it will go away.

 

17) You have to believe government has nothing to do with providing police protection, national defense, and building roads.

 

18) You have to believe that "Standing Tall for America" means firing your workers and moving their jobs to India.

 

19) You have to believe that even though governments have supported the arts for 5000 years and that most of the great works of Renaissance art were paid for by governments, our government should shun any such support. After all, the rich can afford to buy their own and the poor don't need any.

 

20) You have to believe that the agricultural, restaurant, housing and hotel industries can survive without immigrant labor.

 

21) You have to believe that we should forgive and pray for Newt Gingrich, Henry Hyde, and Bob Livingston for their marital infidelities, but that Clinton should be impeached.

 

22) You have to believe that drug addiction is a moral failing and a crime, unless the addict is a millionaire conservative radio jock which then makes it an "illness" and he needs our prayers for his "recovery".

 

23) You have to believe that the best way to encourage military morale is to praise the troops overseas while cutting their VA benefits.

 

24) You have to believe that government medicine is wrong and that HMOs and insurance companies have your best interests at heart.

 

25) You have to believe that giving free health care to all Iraqis is sound government policy but giving free health care to Americans is socialism.

 

(I googled all over the Net trying to find the author .. apparently there are many.)

 

...said Fox News' Shepard Smith about his new show .. apparently stating that the amount of crap on Fox News is quite sufficient.

 

He told TV Guide, "We have to do more news. We’ve already given up the “coming up” teasing that we were known for in the early days. We’ve taken all of that time and put it into content. We did that because viewers said that’s what they wanted. Viewers have said, “Stop telling me for 45 seconds what you’re going to do in the next four minutes.” So we have.

 

We’re not going to do more crap. We’re not going to do more titillating [stories], Hollywood-movie reviews and jokes. We’re going to do less of that. There are other places that do that better than we do. I don’t make any apologies for the way we’ve done it in the past. There was an atmosphere where it was acceptable because people didn’t have so much of it. We need to do news."[..]

 

 

Hey Shep, is this just one gigantic resume you're sending out? FoxNews may think it's a conservative newscast, but it has turned into one big tabloid.

 

Are you sick and tired of all that political grandstanding for the Republican Party? Are you having an epiphany .. not wanting to be eternally damned and tainted by Fox?

 

I do love that man's voice .. he's about the only reason I ever click on FoxNews.

 

Shep has always struck me as about the only guy on Fox who could make a respectable journalist .. if he wasn’t on Fox. He seems to be the least likely one to just automatically spew the network’s line at the drop of a hat.

 

I clearly remember his reporting from New Orleans .. he was brilliant, compassionate and honest. He was reporting from that bridge where Katrina victims were begging for water and he got mad and shouted down Hannity, who was sitting in an air-conditioned studio making excuses for the gov'ment.

 

So, he has it in him. Now .. let us see him stop the talk and walk the walk.

 

With so many unreported newsworthy stories, one would think that FoxNews would have plenty to report. But no .. last I looked they were shoveling out Britney Spears and her baby/daddy problems ad nauseam. When Fox reporters were not discussing K-Fed and friends, they were trashing Democrats.

 

Shepard Smith was reporting on a sexual assault claim on the grounds of the Playboy mansion... repeatedly.

 

Maybe they think we need a break from CNN's 9+ hours coverage of the horrible mine accident in Utah.

 

I noticed what Shep didn’t say to TV Guide -- “...from now on we are only going to tell the real truth about issues and what people say, rather than what Roger Ailes tells us to say. We will no longer be making efforts to destroy people and their reputations who disagree with our opinions which from now on will be clearly labeled as ‘opinions.’

 

FOX will be labeled a joke and a right-wing propaganda machine until it proves itself to not be one.

 

Even the Simpsons know ...

 

 

NIXON RESIGNS .. August 9, 1974

 

Yep, thirty-three years ago today, the second most corrupt Republican president in US history resigned in disgrace. We all know who is first most corrupt.

 

To celebrate this occasion, Cinemax is running "All the President's Men." A potent reminder of how far Republicans will go to gain and retain political power .. including illegally using our national intelligence agencies for partisan political purposes.

 

Democrats Pelosi, Reid, Hoyer et al should be forced to watch this movie over and over again until they understand what they did when they voted to give Bushies the power to spy on American citizens without a warrant .. until it finally dawns on them how gravely in danger our democracy and our liberties are.

 

They need to realize that they're watching a movie from the 70's about Watergate that perfectly depicts the "culture of corruption" Republicans of today. It's easy to recognize the same criminal tactics, same dirty tricks .. only difference being that the names have changed.

 

Their vote for warrantless wiretapping made it easier for Bushies to eavesdrop on their political enemies so they can subvert a Democratic landslide in 2008. Just you wait, it WILL be used to spy on their political opposition.

 

And guess who's the overseer?  The fox guarding the hen house is none other than serial perjurer Alberto Gonzales.

 

This is not left/right, this is right/wrong.

 

Carl Bernstein knows.

 

"Bush More "Disastrous" Than Nixon
Thu Aug 9, 12:22 AM ET
The Nation -- Carl Bernstein will always be known as the journalist who brought down a president whose disregard for the Constitution and the rule of law disqualified the errant executive from completing a second term in the White House. And Bernstein still gets a round of applause when mention is made of the role he played, as part of a Washington Post investigative team that also included Bob Woodward, in exposing the high crimes and misdemeanors of a president named Nixon.

 

But 33 years after Nixon resigned in order to avoid an inevitable impeachment -- on August 9, 1974 -- Bernstein is more concerned about a president named Bush.

 

.....the Pulitzer Prize-winning author was under no illusions regarding the extent of Nixon's wrongdoing as compared with that of Bush and those around the current president.

 

Bernstein says that Bush's presidency has produced far more "disastrous consequences" for the country than did Nixon's.[..]"

 

 

 

George Herbert Walker Bush wasn't all that bad a President.

 

Well, there was that appointment of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. The Senate questioning of Anita Hill will never be scrubbed from my brain .. ever.

 

But then he also appointed the good and fair Justice David Souter.

 

Yet, there was Bush 41's role in Iran-contra. And he pardoned Weinberger, Elliot Abrams, etc. Notice that the "liberal media" barely mentioned any of that.

 

Then there was that time in 1987 when he said he didn't think atheists should be considered as citizens, nor patriots .. because this is one nation under God.

 

Okay, okay .. he was sort of a sh*ty president.

 

But least he was smart enough not to take the Desert Storm war to Baghdad .. a decision that was severely criticized at the time .. by today's neo-cons.

 

I must say I have felt a little sorry for Bush 41 lately .. ever since he broke down in tears at an event honoring Jeb not long ago. He rambled on about the family name before he regained control. A lot of people thought those sobs were more about the impact of his older son's "noble" war on the family name ...

 

No, life is not easy for him.

 

From The New York Times: WASHINGTON, Aug. 8 — There are times in the life of George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st president of the United States and father of the 43rd, that people, perfect strangers, come up to him and say the harshest things — words intended to comfort but words that wind up only causing pain.

 

“I love you, sir, but your son’s way off base here,” they might say, according to Ron Kaufman, a longtime adviser to Mr. Bush, who has witnessed any number of such encounters — perhaps at a political fund-raiser, or a restaurant dinner, a chance meeting on th