Does anyone besides me think the story about the National Guardsman, menaced with a gun and beaten by five young male "peaceniks", sounds fishy. If true, the perpetrators need to be prosecuted under hate crime statutes, because that is exactly what it would be. It seems unusual though, and the detective investigating the case says as much, in the account I read. The whole waving a gun around and calling him a "babykiller" thing seems just too bizarre.
If it is true and this was done by five young white males, they will talk about it and someone will turn them in. I wonder if it is not a hoax. This kind of incident does great damage to the morale of the servicemen overseas, irregardless of it's veracity. It did forty years ago in Vietnam and it will today. I hope it is not true.
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Moonbat
As a nation we seem to be polarizing. People are increasingly staking out positions on one end of the spectrum or the other on almost every political, religious and philosophical issue. I find this troubling. What I find even more troubling is that people seem to be buying the complete package of whatever they view as "their side". It is too much trouble for them to examine even the major issues of the day and make up their minds on individual issues. They just accept the "blue plate special" and take whatever is being offered up for general consumption. If this is truly what is happening, real democracy and the rights of the minority, face a perilous future. Another unsavory aspect of this group think mentality is that we tend to view others in general terms instead of individuals capable of diverse opinions.
I recently told an associate that I had a very low opinion of our current President and his administration. From that point on, I became, to him, just another "moonbat". Yeah, me and William F. Buckley Jr. Just a couple of liberal moonbats.
I recently told an associate that I had a very low opinion of our current President and his administration. From that point on, I became, to him, just another "moonbat". Yeah, me and William F. Buckley Jr. Just a couple of liberal moonbats.
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Update to Murder Ink-August 21, 2006
The FDA has authorized the over the counter sale of Plan B, a morning after pill less controversial than RU 486 to women 18 years old or older. Those younger than 18 will have to present a doctor's note at the pharmacy. This is more than I ever expected from the Bush administration.
Most urban and suburban communities have free community clinics that will not only provide a doctor's note but also dispense the medication, free or at little cost. There's one in my town. I have worked there both as a volunteer and employee.
In small town America, I suspect that there are sympathetic physicians who are known to maintain confidentiality and discreet pharmacists.
George Bush is really going out on a limb with his Christian conservative base on this and I salute him for it.
Since I always try to be both honest and pragmatic, I would be remiss if I didn't bring up this point, which I am sure George Bush and James Dobson are both aware of. It's hard to imagine there are many sexually active teenage girls in this country who don't have a sympathetic older girlfriend who would be willing to buy the pill for them. So GW and Dr Jim aren't really giving up very much.
Most urban and suburban communities have free community clinics that will not only provide a doctor's note but also dispense the medication, free or at little cost. There's one in my town. I have worked there both as a volunteer and employee.
In small town America, I suspect that there are sympathetic physicians who are known to maintain confidentiality and discreet pharmacists.
George Bush is really going out on a limb with his Christian conservative base on this and I salute him for it.
Since I always try to be both honest and pragmatic, I would be remiss if I didn't bring up this point, which I am sure George Bush and James Dobson are both aware of. It's hard to imagine there are many sexually active teenage girls in this country who don't have a sympathetic older girlfriend who would be willing to buy the pill for them. So GW and Dr Jim aren't really giving up very much.
Update to Stem Cells-July 19, 2006
This summary is not available. Please
click here to view the post.
Monday, August 21, 2006
Murder Ink
The first time I saw it happen was in the Fall of 1963. I was in the 7th grade and not quite 12 years old. The girl who had the locker above mine disappeared. I never saw her again, not in church, not in school, not around town. No one said a word. Her picture was never on a milk carton. After that it became more common. By the ninth grade, several a year were gone. By the 10th grade, they stopped disappearing forever. After a while, you'd see them around town again, at a bus stop, walking down the street. They looked older and didn't dress as nice. They kept their eyes down and wouldn't wave back. In the 11th grade, they'd talk to you when they came back. they'd be working around town at little jobs or attending continuation ed classes. Sometimes they'd talk about what happened to them. Sometimes the stories were even funny. Still, you almost never saw the baby. In College, you'd know before they disappeared. Their behavior was manic. They'd go to parties and drink too much and end up crying. Then they'd pack up their stuff and move out of the dorm. Then they legalized abortion and it all stopped. The clinic with no sign out front opened. The local Catholic St. Jude Home for Girls closed.
You hear a lot from the pro lifers about how abortion is murder. It's a sin. It"s not safe for Doctors who perform abortions to admit it in public. It's not uncommon for them to wear body armor to work and back. I think they ought to give them medals and put up statues of them in public parks. I'm not in favor of abortion. I think as a society we need to do everything we can to prevent it, but you have to have lived in America the way it used to be to feel the way I feel. No one has the right to force a pregnant girl to carry to term. I don't care if it's murder or not. A woman has a right to choose!
Why would anyone want to take the opinion of the religious community seriously about an issue of morality anyway? On the other great moral issue of our time they were dead wrong. It's true that the church was active in promoting the cause of civil rights in this country. The black church. Churches were all segregated in those days. Come to think of it , they still are for the most part. Come to think of it, it was the Christian community that drove young girls out of society during the days before legalized abortion. They are the ones who want to restigmatize unwed mothers today.
RU 486 was developed decades ago. It's safe, effective and widely used around the world. It has never been widely available in this country because of the controversial way in which it works. It prevents the implantation of the fertilized egg onto the uterine wall. It was instantly branded the "abortion pill" because of this by the Religious right. Now, largely in response to this complaint a new drug with the trade name of Plan B has been developed. This drug prevents the ovary from releasing an egg and makes eggs that are released unlikely to be fertilized. Gee, what could be wrong with that?
George Bush and his nominee to head the FDA, today voiced their opinion today that Plan B should not be made available to minors. Presumably, this is because somewhere in his philosophy of a "Culture of Life", there is a subtext that precludes young people from having sex. Of course they can get the pill, they just have to get a signed release from their parents to present at the pharmacy. I can just see it now, "Mommy, Daddy, about yesterday, after my quinceanera, my boyfriend and I had unprotected sex, could you please sign this release form so I can get the morning after pill", Yeah, right. There's a scenario that will be played out in living rooms all over America.
You can't have it both ways. If you don't want a lot of abortion/murder going on in society, you have to do every thing possible to keep these girls from getting pregnant in the first place. Education, birth control, whatever it takes. Stress abstinence all you want, but it's not the answer. I realize that all of the juice has dried up in your pasty, shriveled, God fearing gonads, but try and remember back in the day. Young people have sex. That's what they do. It's the first thing that happens after young people start to honestly express their emotions to each other and whether you like it or not it's completely natural. Growing up female in America is a far different experience than it was a couple of generations ago, and a lot of it has to do with the fact that they all don't start to get pregnant as they emotionally mature. It's not going to change, so get over it.
Women make up over half of those graduating from college. They make up an even higher percentage of those going on to professional schools. Things have sure changed. Must be all that home schooling and abstinence training. I would use this opportunity, as I usually do in my posts to call George Bush a scumbag, but I guess he doesn't believe in those either.
You hear a lot from the pro lifers about how abortion is murder. It's a sin. It"s not safe for Doctors who perform abortions to admit it in public. It's not uncommon for them to wear body armor to work and back. I think they ought to give them medals and put up statues of them in public parks. I'm not in favor of abortion. I think as a society we need to do everything we can to prevent it, but you have to have lived in America the way it used to be to feel the way I feel. No one has the right to force a pregnant girl to carry to term. I don't care if it's murder or not. A woman has a right to choose!
Why would anyone want to take the opinion of the religious community seriously about an issue of morality anyway? On the other great moral issue of our time they were dead wrong. It's true that the church was active in promoting the cause of civil rights in this country. The black church. Churches were all segregated in those days. Come to think of it , they still are for the most part. Come to think of it, it was the Christian community that drove young girls out of society during the days before legalized abortion. They are the ones who want to restigmatize unwed mothers today.
RU 486 was developed decades ago. It's safe, effective and widely used around the world. It has never been widely available in this country because of the controversial way in which it works. It prevents the implantation of the fertilized egg onto the uterine wall. It was instantly branded the "abortion pill" because of this by the Religious right. Now, largely in response to this complaint a new drug with the trade name of Plan B has been developed. This drug prevents the ovary from releasing an egg and makes eggs that are released unlikely to be fertilized. Gee, what could be wrong with that?
George Bush and his nominee to head the FDA, today voiced their opinion today that Plan B should not be made available to minors. Presumably, this is because somewhere in his philosophy of a "Culture of Life", there is a subtext that precludes young people from having sex. Of course they can get the pill, they just have to get a signed release from their parents to present at the pharmacy. I can just see it now, "Mommy, Daddy, about yesterday, after my quinceanera, my boyfriend and I had unprotected sex, could you please sign this release form so I can get the morning after pill", Yeah, right. There's a scenario that will be played out in living rooms all over America.
You can't have it both ways. If you don't want a lot of abortion/murder going on in society, you have to do every thing possible to keep these girls from getting pregnant in the first place. Education, birth control, whatever it takes. Stress abstinence all you want, but it's not the answer. I realize that all of the juice has dried up in your pasty, shriveled, God fearing gonads, but try and remember back in the day. Young people have sex. That's what they do. It's the first thing that happens after young people start to honestly express their emotions to each other and whether you like it or not it's completely natural. Growing up female in America is a far different experience than it was a couple of generations ago, and a lot of it has to do with the fact that they all don't start to get pregnant as they emotionally mature. It's not going to change, so get over it.
Women make up over half of those graduating from college. They make up an even higher percentage of those going on to professional schools. Things have sure changed. Must be all that home schooling and abstinence training. I would use this opportunity, as I usually do in my posts to call George Bush a scumbag, but I guess he doesn't believe in those either.
Friday, August 18, 2006
They Only Call Themselves Terrorists
The "War on Terror" has been a failure. Nobody with a brain disputes this statement. Most are now disenchanted with the Bush administration's handling of the situation but many see no clear alternative. "At least he's doing something", is a statement you hear frequently in defense of the President. You gotta wonder though, who are we fighting? And why? And is it making any difference? Nobody is telling us this stuff and I don't know about you but I'm getting tired of it.
I see sound bites on cable of various Mullahs, issuing Fatwahs declaring Jihad on America. For some reason, I'm not too scared. These guys are obviously squirrels. They have such flat affects and don't seem mentally sharp. They look like they smell bad. Nobody would dress like that or grow those scraggly beards on purpose. Does anybody really think that a bunch of Q'uiran reading couch potatoes, who haven't figured out the mechanics of a toothbrush, are going to successfully lead the Armies of Islam in the destruction of the Great Shaitan. I'm having a hard time with it.
The Iraqis do not have their shit together. The only stable thing about Iraq is the American presence. It's clear that if we left, the whole country would explode like a cheap pocketwatch with an overwound mainspring. What's even more amazing, is that everyone there seems eager for it to happen. They don't even hate us, they just want us to get out of the way while they dismantle the country back into it's tribal components. So why don't we leave and let them get on with it.
Are we really worried about Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon? Say they do make one. It will be low yield and weigh about as much as a main battle tank. How would they deliver this bomb, by donkey cart? Say they managed to blow up D.C. It would be a tragedy, all those historic monuments, museums and libraries gone. Otherwise, no great loss. I've always thought Vegas would make a good Capital, or maybe Orlando. Our brave governmental officials might not be missed much, but they wouldn't go into that long, dark night unavenged. Just imagine it, a 630,000 square mile skateboard park, paved with a smooth, durable glass finish. I'd go.
Did you guys see those neat publicity films put out by the feared Islamofacist terrorist organization Hezbollah, at the beginning of the recent hostilities in Lebanon. I did, and they were GREAT! First, it had them marching down some street in close order. They were all dressed up in tailored uniforms, bloused boots and silk scarves. Very colorful. Then they broke into some kind of flashy, disco duck, double time. Man, I been to boot camp and I learned to march but not like that! That must have taken a long time to get down right. Next, these guys were way up in the air, hanging on ropes, doing all of these graceful, choreographed, twirling moves. I think they call it Hezbobatics. It was way better than Cirque de Soleil. It was very clever of them to put those films out. Almost nobody noticed that they didn't do any fighting. None, zero, nada. Their entire strategy was to fire a bunch of rockets in the general direction of Israel and then cower in basements. Their only other strategic move was to herd a bunch of retarded children into a building they were sure the Israelis were going to shell, and then call in the press corps to report on the predictably grizzly aftermath, complete with the ubiquitous, but always effective, wailing crones. That won the war for them, right there. I"m so scared of these guys, it makes the piss run right down my leg.
Are you guys tired of those long waits at the airport boarding gates? Contracting nasty fungal infections standing around in your stocking feet, while they X-ray your shoes? Having to buy back that gold plated manicure kit in the cool lizard skin case on eBay after every business trip? Not being able to find your favorite brand of replacement toiletry items in a strange city? Are you still sore from that last cavity search? I am and I've about had enough of it. How does this sound? Everybody that gets on a plane, over the age of eighteen, gets offered a complimentary taser for the duration of the trip. The flight attendant gives instructions for it's operation right after those for the seatbelts, O2 masks and flotation devices. I'd take one. It might not be the perfect solution but you can only do so much.
This is not a war of class. This is not a war of states. This is not a war of political ideology. Armies are of no value. This is JIHAD! Islam wants us to understand their disdain for us and requires only one thing in return, FEAR!
HEAR ME NOW, MY AMERICAN BRETHREN AND SISTREN. We have things to do and a country to run. Fear is not productive. Safety is not an option. Civility and trust are for those that are trustworthy and civil in return. You need not tolerate threats or aggressive behavior, from anyone, for any reason. A civilized society need not be weak or effete. We must put away our petty differences. One American threatened is a threat to all. Do not fight this threat alone. Form alliances with your fellow Americans at every level of endeavor. Be vigilant. If you see a potential threat, communicate it and gather more information. If it requires action, you'll know what to do and you won't have to do it alone. I'll help, I swear it. There are others that will too.
I see sound bites on cable of various Mullahs, issuing Fatwahs declaring Jihad on America. For some reason, I'm not too scared. These guys are obviously squirrels. They have such flat affects and don't seem mentally sharp. They look like they smell bad. Nobody would dress like that or grow those scraggly beards on purpose. Does anybody really think that a bunch of Q'uiran reading couch potatoes, who haven't figured out the mechanics of a toothbrush, are going to successfully lead the Armies of Islam in the destruction of the Great Shaitan. I'm having a hard time with it.
The Iraqis do not have their shit together. The only stable thing about Iraq is the American presence. It's clear that if we left, the whole country would explode like a cheap pocketwatch with an overwound mainspring. What's even more amazing, is that everyone there seems eager for it to happen. They don't even hate us, they just want us to get out of the way while they dismantle the country back into it's tribal components. So why don't we leave and let them get on with it.
Are we really worried about Iran acquiring a nuclear weapon? Say they do make one. It will be low yield and weigh about as much as a main battle tank. How would they deliver this bomb, by donkey cart? Say they managed to blow up D.C. It would be a tragedy, all those historic monuments, museums and libraries gone. Otherwise, no great loss. I've always thought Vegas would make a good Capital, or maybe Orlando. Our brave governmental officials might not be missed much, but they wouldn't go into that long, dark night unavenged. Just imagine it, a 630,000 square mile skateboard park, paved with a smooth, durable glass finish. I'd go.
Did you guys see those neat publicity films put out by the feared Islamofacist terrorist organization Hezbollah, at the beginning of the recent hostilities in Lebanon. I did, and they were GREAT! First, it had them marching down some street in close order. They were all dressed up in tailored uniforms, bloused boots and silk scarves. Very colorful. Then they broke into some kind of flashy, disco duck, double time. Man, I been to boot camp and I learned to march but not like that! That must have taken a long time to get down right. Next, these guys were way up in the air, hanging on ropes, doing all of these graceful, choreographed, twirling moves. I think they call it Hezbobatics. It was way better than Cirque de Soleil. It was very clever of them to put those films out. Almost nobody noticed that they didn't do any fighting. None, zero, nada. Their entire strategy was to fire a bunch of rockets in the general direction of Israel and then cower in basements. Their only other strategic move was to herd a bunch of retarded children into a building they were sure the Israelis were going to shell, and then call in the press corps to report on the predictably grizzly aftermath, complete with the ubiquitous, but always effective, wailing crones. That won the war for them, right there. I"m so scared of these guys, it makes the piss run right down my leg.
Are you guys tired of those long waits at the airport boarding gates? Contracting nasty fungal infections standing around in your stocking feet, while they X-ray your shoes? Having to buy back that gold plated manicure kit in the cool lizard skin case on eBay after every business trip? Not being able to find your favorite brand of replacement toiletry items in a strange city? Are you still sore from that last cavity search? I am and I've about had enough of it. How does this sound? Everybody that gets on a plane, over the age of eighteen, gets offered a complimentary taser for the duration of the trip. The flight attendant gives instructions for it's operation right after those for the seatbelts, O2 masks and flotation devices. I'd take one. It might not be the perfect solution but you can only do so much.
This is not a war of class. This is not a war of states. This is not a war of political ideology. Armies are of no value. This is JIHAD! Islam wants us to understand their disdain for us and requires only one thing in return, FEAR!
HEAR ME NOW, MY AMERICAN BRETHREN AND SISTREN. We have things to do and a country to run. Fear is not productive. Safety is not an option. Civility and trust are for those that are trustworthy and civil in return. You need not tolerate threats or aggressive behavior, from anyone, for any reason. A civilized society need not be weak or effete. We must put away our petty differences. One American threatened is a threat to all. Do not fight this threat alone. Form alliances with your fellow Americans at every level of endeavor. Be vigilant. If you see a potential threat, communicate it and gather more information. If it requires action, you'll know what to do and you won't have to do it alone. I'll help, I swear it. There are others that will too.
Will he Buff up or Punk out
In the case of the ACLU vs. George Bush yesterday a federal judge ruled, that by circumventing the FISA court and implementing warrantless surveillance, the Bush administration violated both the constitution and civil law and has done so in thousands of cases over the last 5 years.
It has been made public that the Bush administration is introducing draft legislation to negate the War Crimes Act of 1996 and to make this negation retroactive to 2001. The War crimes Act allows members of the US armed forces who violate the articles of the Geneva Convention to be brought to trial in American courts by those who they commit violations against. This is a tacit admission that American troops have been committing war crimes since the first days in Afghanistan. It has been US armed forces policy to adhere to the Geneva Convention, regardless of the nature of the opponent, for more than 50 years.
The significance of this is not that some American soldiers are committing violations of the Geneva Convention and George Bush wants to take it easy on them. It has been the policy of the Bush administration, from the very first days of the "War on Terror", to ignore the Constitution of the United States, the Geneva Convention, the prerogatives of the other two branches of government or any duly authorized authority, other than his own. These are not the actions of a chief executive who values the continuance of the democratic tradition in the society that he leads. These are the subversive and nefarious machinations of a tyrant, seeking to esconse himself as absolute monarch in all but name.
George Bush knows that if the Democrats take over the House in the mid term elections, there will be a special prosecuter. If the Senate falls as well he will be impeached. The level of the animus toward Bush by the Democrats is such that they will put him on trial after impeachment and he will go to jail.
The only choice for Bush at this point is whether to attempt to maintain control through the midterm elections using electoral fraud, which has worked well for him so far, or to declare martial law with some trumped up state of emergency as the pretext, and start rounding up the opposition and quietly putting the fear of God into them. The only other option is just to lay down for hard time and I don't really see him doing that.
It has been made public that the Bush administration is introducing draft legislation to negate the War Crimes Act of 1996 and to make this negation retroactive to 2001. The War crimes Act allows members of the US armed forces who violate the articles of the Geneva Convention to be brought to trial in American courts by those who they commit violations against. This is a tacit admission that American troops have been committing war crimes since the first days in Afghanistan. It has been US armed forces policy to adhere to the Geneva Convention, regardless of the nature of the opponent, for more than 50 years.
The significance of this is not that some American soldiers are committing violations of the Geneva Convention and George Bush wants to take it easy on them. It has been the policy of the Bush administration, from the very first days of the "War on Terror", to ignore the Constitution of the United States, the Geneva Convention, the prerogatives of the other two branches of government or any duly authorized authority, other than his own. These are not the actions of a chief executive who values the continuance of the democratic tradition in the society that he leads. These are the subversive and nefarious machinations of a tyrant, seeking to esconse himself as absolute monarch in all but name.
George Bush knows that if the Democrats take over the House in the mid term elections, there will be a special prosecuter. If the Senate falls as well he will be impeached. The level of the animus toward Bush by the Democrats is such that they will put him on trial after impeachment and he will go to jail.
The only choice for Bush at this point is whether to attempt to maintain control through the midterm elections using electoral fraud, which has worked well for him so far, or to declare martial law with some trumped up state of emergency as the pretext, and start rounding up the opposition and quietly putting the fear of God into them. The only other option is just to lay down for hard time and I don't really see him doing that.
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Calling on the Holy Trinity
We are losing the struggle in Afghanistan. Al-Quaeda is secure in it's mountain strong holds. The Taliban regains it's ideological control over the cities and towns. The Narco-Warlords, sensitive to the shift in power, have slipped the bonds of their American masters. They were able to beat us because they have a terrible and secret weapon, their own version of Rambo. A moribund, cadaverous, six foot, eight inch, Bedouin super hero, able to slip stealthily through the American patrols, amid the caves and mountain passes, trailing behind him several hundred pounds of dialysis equipment and it's attendant electrical generator and medical supplies. How can you catch a guy like that?
Iraq is like something out of a Mad Max movie. The Sunnis are killing the Shiia, the Shiia are killing the Sunnis. The Mullahs are ordering the deaths of grocers who arrange their produce in a provocative manner. The Iraqi government is sending out Ministry of the Interior death squads to disappear anyone who calls for a return to sanity. At this point very few Iraqi deaths are the result of the action of American troops, who are mostly just trying to stay out of the way. George Bush says we've turned the corner. Yeah, but what a corner.
The Israelis are pulling out of Lebanon. George Bush is declaring a victory over Hezbollah. Hezbollah is still in place. Their secret weapon turned out not to be Iranian rockets, but the stategic placement of retarded children and wailing crones. Who can beat something like that? The fallout is just beginning. In Israel, the ruling coalition government will probably fail. In Lebanon, I don't even want to speculate on the future. I don't think anybody does.
You would think that this would be enough mayhem in the Middle East, even for George Bush. You would be wrong, Even now he is planning to bomb the Iraqi nuclear research facilities. It will be happening soon.
Newt Gingrich is going around telling anyone who will listen, that World War III has already started. Since no Arab country has much in the way of a functional army, I'm a little unclear as to his meaning. The TSA would seem to have the real threat to our shores under control. X-ray those shoes, confiscate that breast milk, full cavity search for anybody that complains.
I saw some fat, blowhard evangelist on TV, talking about how these are the end times. He said that Armageddon is coming to the Middle East and only the return of Jesus will end the slaughter. He said we all better call on Jesus to come soon.
He can call on Jesus if he wants. I'm going for the whole hog. The Holy Trinity!
LARRY! MOE! CURLEY! COME ON DOWN HERE NOW! GW NEEDS YOUR HELP!
Iraq is like something out of a Mad Max movie. The Sunnis are killing the Shiia, the Shiia are killing the Sunnis. The Mullahs are ordering the deaths of grocers who arrange their produce in a provocative manner. The Iraqi government is sending out Ministry of the Interior death squads to disappear anyone who calls for a return to sanity. At this point very few Iraqi deaths are the result of the action of American troops, who are mostly just trying to stay out of the way. George Bush says we've turned the corner. Yeah, but what a corner.
The Israelis are pulling out of Lebanon. George Bush is declaring a victory over Hezbollah. Hezbollah is still in place. Their secret weapon turned out not to be Iranian rockets, but the stategic placement of retarded children and wailing crones. Who can beat something like that? The fallout is just beginning. In Israel, the ruling coalition government will probably fail. In Lebanon, I don't even want to speculate on the future. I don't think anybody does.
You would think that this would be enough mayhem in the Middle East, even for George Bush. You would be wrong, Even now he is planning to bomb the Iraqi nuclear research facilities. It will be happening soon.
Newt Gingrich is going around telling anyone who will listen, that World War III has already started. Since no Arab country has much in the way of a functional army, I'm a little unclear as to his meaning. The TSA would seem to have the real threat to our shores under control. X-ray those shoes, confiscate that breast milk, full cavity search for anybody that complains.
I saw some fat, blowhard evangelist on TV, talking about how these are the end times. He said that Armageddon is coming to the Middle East and only the return of Jesus will end the slaughter. He said we all better call on Jesus to come soon.
He can call on Jesus if he wants. I'm going for the whole hog. The Holy Trinity!
LARRY! MOE! CURLEY! COME ON DOWN HERE NOW! GW NEEDS YOUR HELP!
Monday, August 14, 2006
If It Quacks Like A Duck
George Bush is a pathetic figure. Except for the fact that he was born into a wealthy and influential family, he has little to recommend him. Public speaking, intellectual attainment, business acumen, manners and social graces, in any of these pursuits, he makes Charley Chaplin's little tramp appear the most sophisticated and accomplished gentleman. As he approaches the end of his sixth of eight years as President, opinion polls show little support. Even Republicans in rural Red State America are leaving his camp. His war is a quagmire. His economic reforms have driven the country deeply into debt. The Republican controlled Congress is threatening to grow a spine. The Supreme Court, even with conservative new appointees, balks at his usurpation of power. His cobbled together coalition of the dumb and dumber is falling apart.
So, ask yourself this question. Why isn't he worried? He's continuing on his merry way as if he has all the time he needs and not a worry in the world. You know what? He just might. He has reconfigured the Executive Branch to include a huge new entity called the Department of Homeland Security, largely free of oversight or constitutional constraint, and answering only to him. He has a large, well equipped, army, trained and ready to fight a war of urban insurrection. This is an army unlike any America has ever seen. It is not drawn from the broad skein of the fabric of America, and these soldiers are not looking to return to the civilian world any time soon. How hard would it be for him to declare a state of internal security crisis in America. Who would speak up if opposing voices started disappearing in the night. Who would dissent if elections were postponed during the state of emergency. When elections were resumed, who would run against the men who controlled the death squads.
Are you sure you know what a duck sounds like when it quacks. Maybe you better brush up. Before you find yourself squealing like a pig in some damp basement.
So, ask yourself this question. Why isn't he worried? He's continuing on his merry way as if he has all the time he needs and not a worry in the world. You know what? He just might. He has reconfigured the Executive Branch to include a huge new entity called the Department of Homeland Security, largely free of oversight or constitutional constraint, and answering only to him. He has a large, well equipped, army, trained and ready to fight a war of urban insurrection. This is an army unlike any America has ever seen. It is not drawn from the broad skein of the fabric of America, and these soldiers are not looking to return to the civilian world any time soon. How hard would it be for him to declare a state of internal security crisis in America. Who would speak up if opposing voices started disappearing in the night. Who would dissent if elections were postponed during the state of emergency. When elections were resumed, who would run against the men who controlled the death squads.
Are you sure you know what a duck sounds like when it quacks. Maybe you better brush up. Before you find yourself squealing like a pig in some damp basement.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Fidel Castro, if he lives, will turn 80 this year...
Fidel Castro, if he lives, will turn 80 this year. There is no arguing that he has been one of the biggest thorns in the side of the United States for the last 50 years. We have tried to topple his government many times and achieved only embarrassment. I was in the 6th grade in 1962 and vividly remember preparing to die in a thermonuclear conflagration precipitated by the Cuban missile crisis. CIA plots to shoot, stab, poison and explode him have become the stuff of legend. That same agencies support of the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961, is still a painful reminder of Fidel's ability to make America appear foolishly inept.
In the 3rd World, especially in subsaharan Africa , Cuban and American irregular troops have led opposing factions against each other in a succession of bloody, inhumane wars. Wars denied by World leaders and ignored by the press. Wars that nobody won. Forgotten. Nobody wants to remember the Congo in '65 or Bolivia in '67 or Angola or Ethiopia or Chad. Nobody remembers a Congolese postal clerk named Patrice Lamumba or who Jonas Savimbi was. They remember a young expatriate Argentinean doctor, named Ernesto Gueverra but not the revolutions he died trying to foment. They remember when he came down from the mountains into Havana, dirty, bearded, wearing fatigues, smoking a big cigar, with Fidel.
Everybody remembers Fidel. They have no choice. He's still there, dirty, bearded, wearing fatigues, smoking a big cigar, leading his country, as he has been, for five decades. Like all leaders of his ilk, he is a megalomaniac. He believes not in his people, country or political creed but only in himself. Even though he has failed in all his efforts to modernize, industrialize and force Cuba to thrive, the people still love him. Why? Because he works hard and doesn't steal, attributes they know they're not likely to see again in a Cuban leader. While the cities are crumbling, they're clean. The crime rates are low. While there isn't much to share, it's shared equally. Cuba's literacy rate is higher than America's. It's healthcare system is low tech but available to all. There is not much opportunity for advancement and people still seek to leave the country, in droves, but compared to it's neighbors in the Caribbean community, it's not so bad.
I sympathize with the Cuban people. Capitalism wasn't working out for most of them 50 years ago when it ended. Communism hasn't been the panacea that they hoped it would be. George and Condi are eager to sell them the franchise, crying crocodile tears over the fact that Cuba is the only country left in the American community that is not yet a "democracy". George Bush actually believes that democracy is an economic system and that it will "cure" Cuba's problems. He also believes he's rich because he's real smart and works hard. I would hate to see Cuba become a democracy like Jamaica, the Dominican Republic or, God forbid, Haiti. I suspect many Cubans hope Fidel does live forever and things just go on as they are. That won't happen. Still, there's no reason to push Fidel into the grave prematurely. If America was really so concerned about the welfare of the Cuban people it might consider lifting the economic sanctions and easing the travel restrictions that they have imposed on Cuba for the last 47 years.
In the 3rd World, especially in subsaharan Africa , Cuban and American irregular troops have led opposing factions against each other in a succession of bloody, inhumane wars. Wars denied by World leaders and ignored by the press. Wars that nobody won. Forgotten. Nobody wants to remember the Congo in '65 or Bolivia in '67 or Angola or Ethiopia or Chad. Nobody remembers a Congolese postal clerk named Patrice Lamumba or who Jonas Savimbi was. They remember a young expatriate Argentinean doctor, named Ernesto Gueverra but not the revolutions he died trying to foment. They remember when he came down from the mountains into Havana, dirty, bearded, wearing fatigues, smoking a big cigar, with Fidel.
Everybody remembers Fidel. They have no choice. He's still there, dirty, bearded, wearing fatigues, smoking a big cigar, leading his country, as he has been, for five decades. Like all leaders of his ilk, he is a megalomaniac. He believes not in his people, country or political creed but only in himself. Even though he has failed in all his efforts to modernize, industrialize and force Cuba to thrive, the people still love him. Why? Because he works hard and doesn't steal, attributes they know they're not likely to see again in a Cuban leader. While the cities are crumbling, they're clean. The crime rates are low. While there isn't much to share, it's shared equally. Cuba's literacy rate is higher than America's. It's healthcare system is low tech but available to all. There is not much opportunity for advancement and people still seek to leave the country, in droves, but compared to it's neighbors in the Caribbean community, it's not so bad.
I sympathize with the Cuban people. Capitalism wasn't working out for most of them 50 years ago when it ended. Communism hasn't been the panacea that they hoped it would be. George and Condi are eager to sell them the franchise, crying crocodile tears over the fact that Cuba is the only country left in the American community that is not yet a "democracy". George Bush actually believes that democracy is an economic system and that it will "cure" Cuba's problems. He also believes he's rich because he's real smart and works hard. I would hate to see Cuba become a democracy like Jamaica, the Dominican Republic or, God forbid, Haiti. I suspect many Cubans hope Fidel does live forever and things just go on as they are. That won't happen. Still, there's no reason to push Fidel into the grave prematurely. If America was really so concerned about the welfare of the Cuban people it might consider lifting the economic sanctions and easing the travel restrictions that they have imposed on Cuba for the last 47 years.
Saturday, August 05, 2006
My Religion is the RIGHT Religion
You shall have dominion over the earth. Fill the earth with your progeny.
Accumulate more material wealth than you can ever use and consume as many resources as you can then afford. Fill the atmosphere with so much carbon dioxide that the Sun burns down like a furnace. Then pump in more, so that it's forced into the water, until the rain and rivers and seas become so acidic they burn and dissolve the life they were meant to nurture. God gave us dominion over the earth.
Gather in your churches and sing the songs and chant the prayers by rote. Listen to the clergy while they tell you that anybody that doesn't believe exactly the way you do is a threat to you, then send your children out to kill them and die themselves in the process. The unbelievers must be punished.
Avert your eyes from the hungry, they're too lazy to work. Shun the sick, disease is a punishment sent by God. Despise the foreigners, they aren't like us. Keep yourself among the righteous, lest you stray down the path of unrighteousness.
Give your gifts to the church, it will decide who is deserving of charity. Live your lives within the tenets of the church, anything else is sacrilege. God made us in his image and gave us dominion over the earth. Only God may judge the righteous. It is the duty of the righteous to judge and chastise the unrighteous. Harden your heart. Do not feel guilt for participating in the punishment of sinners.
Do not take responsibility for alterations in the environment. The song of the birds in the dawn is not a hymn of praise to the Lord, do not mourn their silence. Green leaves rustling in the summer breeze is not a prayer to the Lord, ignore it's absence. The only species that venerates the Lord is ours, others are of no consequence.
Birth control is an affront to the Lord. Abortion is murder. The Lord demands an eye for an eye. Fill the earth with your progeny. Gods will be done.
Accumulate more material wealth than you can ever use and consume as many resources as you can then afford. Fill the atmosphere with so much carbon dioxide that the Sun burns down like a furnace. Then pump in more, so that it's forced into the water, until the rain and rivers and seas become so acidic they burn and dissolve the life they were meant to nurture. God gave us dominion over the earth.
Gather in your churches and sing the songs and chant the prayers by rote. Listen to the clergy while they tell you that anybody that doesn't believe exactly the way you do is a threat to you, then send your children out to kill them and die themselves in the process. The unbelievers must be punished.
Avert your eyes from the hungry, they're too lazy to work. Shun the sick, disease is a punishment sent by God. Despise the foreigners, they aren't like us. Keep yourself among the righteous, lest you stray down the path of unrighteousness.
Give your gifts to the church, it will decide who is deserving of charity. Live your lives within the tenets of the church, anything else is sacrilege. God made us in his image and gave us dominion over the earth. Only God may judge the righteous. It is the duty of the righteous to judge and chastise the unrighteous. Harden your heart. Do not feel guilt for participating in the punishment of sinners.
Do not take responsibility for alterations in the environment. The song of the birds in the dawn is not a hymn of praise to the Lord, do not mourn their silence. Green leaves rustling in the summer breeze is not a prayer to the Lord, ignore it's absence. The only species that venerates the Lord is ours, others are of no consequence.
Birth control is an affront to the Lord. Abortion is murder. The Lord demands an eye for an eye. Fill the earth with your progeny. Gods will be done.
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Our Friends in the Middle East
While war rages in Iraq and Lebanon and Islamic fundamentalist control returns to the narco-warlord riven zona libre that is Afghanistan, it sometimes seems that all of the other Islamic nations of the region are on the sidelines cheering on the home team and threatening to spill onto the field and join the fray. It's not true, we still have many "friends" in the Arab world. Friends who remain above the fray. Let us for a moment cast a comforting gaze upon them.
First we travel to the south, along the coast of the Arabian Sea, home of those countries known as the "Gulf States". Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, land of the bedouins. No Sunni/Shiia conflict here. These are the Wahabi Arabs, played so picaresquely by Alec, Anthony and Omar in everybody's favorite 1963 movie epic. They are to the Sunnis and Shiites as snake handling, tongue talking holyrollers are to Lutherans and Methodists. Public beheadings and mutilations are not done here for the benefit of CNN news crews, but routinely for violation of Sharia Law. There is no problem with separation of religious and civil authorities here, they are one and the same. Slavery is legal. Women are rarely allowed out of the house. We are assured they are moving toward democracy, just very, very slowly. These are the lands where most of the 9/11 perpetrators hail from and this is where the money comes from. We can fool ourselves into believing that the money to fund Jihad comes from Iran, Iraq or someplace else but that would be a fantasy. All the money comes from the Gulf states. They are truly the engine of Islam. This function is too important to compromise with violent conflict, "The oil must flow, Maud-Dhib". George W loves these guys, he wishes he was one.
Next we move to the mighty Nile and Egypt, cradle of civilization, a populous but poor nation, gripped by an austere socialist military dictatorship. Coptic Christians here are forced to live as virtual untouchables in an underground society, barred from public education or formal employment. The slave trade also flourishes. Genital mutilation of young girls among the devout is the rule. American financial aid and frequent annihilation of their military by the Israelis keep them quiet. Hatred for the West seethes just below the surface at every level of society.
Finally let us look at Turkey, that most Westernized of Islamic countries. They have lately been calling themselves "Europeans", claiming that ethnic and religious discrimination keep them from taking their place in the EU. America considers them one of it's staunchest allies. For many decades they have sent their sons and daughters to the west, to do the jobs "Europeans won't do", then refusing to go home when their contracts expire, sound familiar? Their host countries are too polite to force them out and it would be bad PR. It is interesting to note that the Turkish minorities are responsible for virtually all of the violent crime in Germany and Scandinavia, including the huge increase in rape, in the countries of Sweden and Norway, where it was almost a non-existent crime a decade ago. Turkey also continues to hold the northern half of the Island of Cyprus, which it took from Greece in order to "protect" the ethnic Turks in 1971. Conditions are so bad there that the ethnic Turks long ago voted to return to Greek control. The Greeks, wisely, refuse to take them back. Turkey continues to deny that the Armenian genocide, where essentially every one of the millions of Turkish Armenians were driven, with only the shirts on their backs, into the burning wastes of the Syrian desert and died of thirst, even happened. All traces of Armenian culture in Turkey have been carefully expunged. When pressed Turkish spokesmen state simply, "they all moved away".
These are the "good' Arab countries. The ones that remain on "our" side. Pretty inspiring.
First we travel to the south, along the coast of the Arabian Sea, home of those countries known as the "Gulf States". Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, land of the bedouins. No Sunni/Shiia conflict here. These are the Wahabi Arabs, played so picaresquely by Alec, Anthony and Omar in everybody's favorite 1963 movie epic. They are to the Sunnis and Shiites as snake handling, tongue talking holyrollers are to Lutherans and Methodists. Public beheadings and mutilations are not done here for the benefit of CNN news crews, but routinely for violation of Sharia Law. There is no problem with separation of religious and civil authorities here, they are one and the same. Slavery is legal. Women are rarely allowed out of the house. We are assured they are moving toward democracy, just very, very slowly. These are the lands where most of the 9/11 perpetrators hail from and this is where the money comes from. We can fool ourselves into believing that the money to fund Jihad comes from Iran, Iraq or someplace else but that would be a fantasy. All the money comes from the Gulf states. They are truly the engine of Islam. This function is too important to compromise with violent conflict, "The oil must flow, Maud-Dhib". George W loves these guys, he wishes he was one.
Next we move to the mighty Nile and Egypt, cradle of civilization, a populous but poor nation, gripped by an austere socialist military dictatorship. Coptic Christians here are forced to live as virtual untouchables in an underground society, barred from public education or formal employment. The slave trade also flourishes. Genital mutilation of young girls among the devout is the rule. American financial aid and frequent annihilation of their military by the Israelis keep them quiet. Hatred for the West seethes just below the surface at every level of society.
Finally let us look at Turkey, that most Westernized of Islamic countries. They have lately been calling themselves "Europeans", claiming that ethnic and religious discrimination keep them from taking their place in the EU. America considers them one of it's staunchest allies. For many decades they have sent their sons and daughters to the west, to do the jobs "Europeans won't do", then refusing to go home when their contracts expire, sound familiar? Their host countries are too polite to force them out and it would be bad PR. It is interesting to note that the Turkish minorities are responsible for virtually all of the violent crime in Germany and Scandinavia, including the huge increase in rape, in the countries of Sweden and Norway, where it was almost a non-existent crime a decade ago. Turkey also continues to hold the northern half of the Island of Cyprus, which it took from Greece in order to "protect" the ethnic Turks in 1971. Conditions are so bad there that the ethnic Turks long ago voted to return to Greek control. The Greeks, wisely, refuse to take them back. Turkey continues to deny that the Armenian genocide, where essentially every one of the millions of Turkish Armenians were driven, with only the shirts on their backs, into the burning wastes of the Syrian desert and died of thirst, even happened. All traces of Armenian culture in Turkey have been carefully expunged. When pressed Turkish spokesmen state simply, "they all moved away".
These are the "good' Arab countries. The ones that remain on "our" side. Pretty inspiring.
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