weekender...

it pays to be cautious...

in Senator Craig's defense...

How can you write good laws if you don't know all of the ways that they could be broken?

there is nothing like field-studies and research...

best choice to replace Gonzales?

...David Iglesias.

'nuff said...

alberto gonzlaes, michael vick, karl rove...

I'd like to say that I have nothing to say, because what good would it do?

but...

Sorry, I can't.

Michael Vick's statement, after his court appearance, contains something we've heard over and over for the last several years:

I’m [sic] upset with myself and through this situation I found Jesus and asked him for forgiveness and I just turned my life over to God. I think that’s the right thing to do as of right now. Euroweb.com

As the Church Lady would say, "How convenient." Does this mean that they lost Jesus?

As far as Gonzales and Rove, they didn't need to say that they found Jesus. They are part of the compassionate conservatism espoused by their boss and that should mean that everything they did was because of Jesus.

sorry, not the Jesus i know...

reaction to Gonzales resigning...

some people are very, very happy. just look at this person -



oh, she's dancing to Celebration by Kool and the Gang. [click on their name to link to the website and song.]

monday morning mayhem...

1. penguin, what penguin?



2. they still don't realize that we know all the tricks...

A young boy had just gotten his driver's permit and asked his father if they could discuss his use of the car.

His father said he'd make a deal with his son. "You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible a little, get your hair cut, and we'll talk about the car."

The boy thought about that for a moment, decided he'd settle for the offer and they agreed on it.

After about six weeks his father said, "Son, I've been real proud. You brought your grades up and I've observed that you have been studying your Bible, but I'm real disappointed you didn't get your hair cut."

The young man paused a moment then said, "You know, Dad, I've been thinking about that, and I've noticed in my studies of the Bible that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, Moses had long hair and there's even a strong argument that Jesus had long hair.

To this his father replied, "Did you also notice they all walked everywhere they went?"

2. intelligence in the mafia...

Dear Vincent,

I am feeling pretty badly because it looks like I won't be able to plant my tomato garden this year. I'm just getting too old to be digging up a garden plot. I know if you were here my troubles would be over. I know you would be happy to dig the plot for me.

Love, Dad

A few days later he received a letter from his son:

Dear Dad,

Don't dig up that garden. That's where I buried the bodies.

Love, Vinnie

At 4 a.m. the next morning, FBI agents and local police arrived and dug up the entire area without finding any bodies. They apologized to the old man and left. That same day the old man received another letter from his son:

Dear Dad,

Go ahead and plant the tomatoes now. That's the best I could do under the circumstances.

Love you, Vinnie

4. an exceptional case of terminal CRS*...

Two elderly women were out driving in a large car, both could barely see over the dashboard. As they were cruising along, they came to an intersection. The stoplight was red, but they just went on through.

The woman in the passenger seat thought to herself, "I must be losing it. I could have sworn we just went through a red light."

After a few more minutes, they came to another intersection and this light was red. Again, they went right through. The woman in the passenger seat was almost sure that the light had been red but was really concerned that she was losing it. She was getting nervous.

At the next intersection, sure enough, the light was red and they went on through.

So, she turned to the other woman and said, "Mildred, do you know that we just ran through three red lights in a row? You could have killed us both!"

Mildred turned to her and said, "Crap, am I driving?"

once passed the age of 50 the onset of CRS cannot be avoided. it is a progressive condition that ALL humans get. there is no exception. at reaching the age of 55, it becomes terminal and is present until death.

*CRS = Can't Remember Shit!

weekender...

LITTLE JOHNNY STRIKES AGAIN....

A first grade teacher asked her students to use the word "fascinate" in a sentence.

Molly put up her hand and said, "My family went to my granddad's farm, and we all saw his pet sheep. It was fascinating."

The teacher said, "That was good, but I wanted you to use the word 'fascinate, not fascinating.'"

Sally raised her hand. She said, "My family went to see Rock City and I was fascinated."

The teacher said, "Well, that was good Sally, but I wanted you to use the word 'fascinate'."

Little Johnny raised his hand. The teacher hesitated because she had been burned by Little Johnny before. She finally decided there was no way he could damage the word "fascinate," so she called on him.

Johnny said, "My aunt Gina has a sweater with ten buttons, but her breasts are so big she can only fasten eight."


The teacher sat down and cried

why is it always little Johnny?

statistical possibilities...

Got this from a friend. just something to think about...

Guns or Doctors?

Doctors:

1. The number of physicians in the U.S. is 700,000.
   
2. Accidental deaths caused by Physicians per year are 120,000.
   
3. Accidental deaths per physician are 0.171.
   

(Statistics courtesy of U.S. Dept of Health Human Services.)

Now think about this:

Guns:

1. The number of gun owners in the U.S. is 80,000,000. (Yes, that's 80 million.)
   
2. The number of accidental gun deaths per year, all age groups, is 1,500.
   
3. The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is 0.00188.
   

(Statistics courtesy of the FBI.)

So, statistically: Doctors are approximately 9,000 (0.171/0.00188) times more dangerous than gun owners.

Remember, "Guns don't kill people, doctors do."

FACT: NOT EVERYONE HAS A GUN, BUT ALMOST EVERYONE HAS AT LEAST ONE DOCTOR.

Please alert your friends to this alarming threat. We must ban doctors before this gets completely out of hand.

Corollary: Out of concern for the public at large, I have withheld the statistics on lawyers for fear the shock would cause people to panic and seek medical attention.


or as the joke goes in the movie Philadelphia: What do you call 1,000 lawyers as the bottom of the ocean?

A good start...

should we change that to doctors?

I like my doctor a lot. He'd love this sort of thing. He's a hoot. Just yesterday he told me that I was his role model. I'm not exactly sure what he meant by that, but I was flattered.

Hmmmm, really, what did he mean by that?

Republican depression...

Over at The New Republic, Eve Fairbanks is giving an explanation about HOW SENATE DEMOCRATS WERE STOPPED IN THEIR TRACKS. Elephants United. She gives a history/litany of the the Republicans in the House and Senate who were going to support Democratic moves in this 110th Congress and then backed off.

Of course, she hits the nail on the head when she mentions politics and there is a great deal of accuracy in her reporting that the Republican politicians who paid the most in last Novembers Congressional Election were the moderates. She even mentions how the Republicans feel betrayed by the Busheviks, and rightly so. She comes to the conclusion that the real reason may be that the Republicans just may be depressed:

To really understand the Republicans' unity, don't underestimate the power of sheer depression. After the November election, Republicans were extremely demoralized; one defeated member couldn't even get out of bed. The malaise extended to surviving Republicans, too. "It would be easy for our members to just sink into a hole," Boehner told me in May. "The loss of our majority was devastating." And one major symptom of depression is apathy. To my mind, the Republicans' behavior on Iraq is a kind of depressive lethargy: complaining aplenty, but never mustering the energy to get out of bed and put your complaints into action.

Well, who do they have to blame for all of this? Bush? Rove? Cheney? Themselves?

Maybe they need a dose of Paxil or Prozac OR I know, they can become Democrats! What do you think?

just asking...

WWJD with George W?

finally the answer...



think this is where Teddy Roosevelt got the idea for "walk softly but carry a big stick?"

just asking...

monday morning mayhem...

1. asking for directions...

A man approached a local in the village of PDL he was visiting. "What's the quickest way to Tallahasse?"

The local scratched his head.

"Are you walking or driving?" he asked the stranger.

"I'm driving."

"That's the quickest way!"

2. favorite Bush bumper stickers...

1/20/09: End of an Error

That's OK, I Wasn't Using My Civil Liberties Anyway

If You Want a Nation Ruled By Religion, Move to Iran

Bush. Like a Rock. Only Dumber.

You Can't Be Pro-War And Pro-Life At The Same Time

If You Can Read This, You're Not Our President

Of Course It Hurts; You're Getting Screwed by an Elephant

Hey, Bush Supporters. Embarrassed Yet?

George Bush: Creating the Terrorists Our Kids Will Have to Fight

Impeachment: It's Not Just for Blowjobs Anymore

America : One Nation, Under Surveillance

They Call Him "W" So He Can Spell It

Which God Do You Kill For?

Cheney/Satan '08

Jail to the Chief

Who Would Jesus Torture?

No, Seriously, Why Did We Invade?

Bush: God's Way of Proving Intelligent Design is Full Of Crap

Bad president! No Banana.

We Need a President Who's Fluent In At Least One Language

We're Making Enemies Faster Than We Can Kill Them

Rich Man's War, Poor Man's Blood

Is It Vietnam Yet?

Bush Doesn't Care About White People Either

Where Are We Going? And Why Are We In This Handbasket?

You Elected Him. You Deserve Him.

Impeach Cheney First

When Bush Took Office, Gas Was $1.46

The Republican Party: Our Bridge to the 11th Century

"To those of you who receive honors, awards and distinctions I say, well done. And to the "C" students, I say " You, too, can be President."

and the best though not a bumper sticker, on an infant's t-shirt

Already smarter than Bush.

3. serious and confusing religious question...

A friend of mine feels that even though eating shellfish is an abomination - Leviticus 11:10 - it is a lesser abomination than homosexuality. I don't agree. Can you settle this? Are there 'degrees' of abomination?

marriages - Andrew Sullivan, Paul Guerra, and many others...

No, Andrew Sullivan is not marrying Paul Guerra. This is not a wedding announcement like you see on the society pages in your local newspaper. I'm positive they never even knew each other existed.

Andrew is marrying his beloved Aaron with whom he's been partnered for quite a while. The title is actually a means of comparison between his good fortune and that of Paul Guerra, along with sadness.

Andrew Sullivan has been one of the forerunners of internet blogs. His The DailyDish has been instrumental in popularizing and expanding the importance of online news and commentary. He also has been an unflinching supporter for same-sex marriage rights.

For the last couple of weeks he has been posting and commenting on his upcoming marriage to his fiance, Aaron, in Massachusetts where same-sex marriage is legal. He brought up his pre-wedding jitters and dealing with them. He has gotten a lot of advice from many of his readers.

Today he posted his thanks to his many readers with a piece he entitled The Next Generation. In it he had this to say:

I just want to say, after reading most of the hundreds of emails from heterosexual readers offering me tips and support and memories in advance of my marriage, how amazing it is to feel such support from so many of you. Thanks. The truth is: we gays need our straight friends and families to help us with this marriage thing. It's new to us. And you've made me much less queasy.

I am truly very, very happy for Andrew and Aaron. They have a life ahead of them that is now going to be confirmed not only by the state of Massachusetts but also by family and close friends. The unhappy part of this is that their marriage will only be recognized, for the time being, in Massachusetts and they will not have full benefits. BUT, they will be married.

Paul Guerra was somewhat of a celebrity here in Chicago. He was one of the greatest rod puppeteers. Anyone who has lived in Chicago for a long time probably will remember Kungsholm Miniature Grand Opera Puppet Theatre. Growing up it was one of the greatest field trips whether with family or school. Opera was performed by intricately created and costumed rod puppets using great recordings of operas by the likes of Laurence Melchior and Maria Callas. It was an incredible experience. [Kungsholm was closed in the late 1960's. It is now Lawry's Prime Rib Restaurant.]

The sad part, for Chicago and puppetry, is that Paul Guerra died on August 8, 2007 after surgery. He had continued his work in puppetry working at a suburban park district and was sought after for his design and photography. I never met him or even saw him because he sat under the stage at Kungsholm unseen by anyone, creating his magic along with the theatre's director Bill Fosser, who also died this past year, and a staff of 14 others. I loved going to the theatre [it was also an excellent restaurant] and probably can say that it abetted the obsession I have for opera to this day.

The sadder part of all this is a short line written in Paul Guerra's obituary in today's Chicago Sun-Times -

His survivors include his lifetime companion of 43 years, Don C. Beyer....

My question, of course as you'd expect, is why shouldn't it have said husband instead of lifetime companion? FORTY-THREE YEARS!

The average length of a marriage in the U.S. is now down to 24 years from 37 in 1980. The divorce rate is high in the US also, though it has been going down over the last few years because of people waiting longer to marry and cohabiting beforehand.

The saddest part and also the happiest? I believe that Paul and Don by the fact that they were together for 43 years were married in all ways except the legal way. I also know, from friends with equally long marriages that they were married in the most important ways - love, commitment, sharing, hope, faith... That is what true marriage is. I saw it in my parents marriage; I've seen it in my friends' and cousins' marriages; I've seen it in the marriage of people like the Jimmy Carter's and George HW Bush's. The piece of paper is not the most important part of their marriages. Yes, it gives them benefits that same-sex couple don't have, but I know that it is not the reason they are married.

And so, to Andrew and Aaron, I send my heartfelt congratulations and best wishes. May they have a life like Paul and Don - if not for 43 years then forever...

climate change? what climate change?

I know they are calling it global warming, but global warming is only one part of the bigger picture of climate change. It specifically deals with the warming of the oceans and air closer to the surface. In a domino effect, the warming of the oceans and air are causing the climates around the world to change.

Here, in Chicago, we have had milder winters and summers for the last few years. Other parts of the world are having more severe weather than they usually did. It's actually a very complex issue and the earth has undergone climate changes over the millenia, but not because of things that man is doing.

Of course, the Busheviks, Republicans, oil companies and anyone else who depends on non-renewable resources for profit deny it is actually happening and they know how to manipulate the data to make their arguments. I've worked with statistical analyses in education for many years. One can manipulate data, especially numbers, to say anything you want them to say. All you have to do is change the way you collect the data, juggle the sources or distort the conclusions. Like I said, it's really easy.

The one thing that is difficult to manipulate is a person's eyes. It is difficult to change what the eye sees. Of course, there are optical conditions, camera lens functioning, oh, and PhotoShop, but the untouched U.S. satellite shows exactly what is happening. These pictures are a comparison of the Arctic Ocean in 1979 and 2003 from the exact same location. One doesn't need to make a comment about the two pictures. The change is so obvious.



I can't wait to see the 2007 pictures...

gitmo ≤ or ≥ Ministry of Love...

I was struck by reading an interview between Dr. Angela Hegarty, Amy Goodman, and Juan Gonzales over at Democracy Now! dealing with the Jose Padilla case. Dr. Hegarty is a forensic psychiatrist and professor at Columbia University. She spent 22 hours working with Padilla and came to the conclusion that "'What happened at the brig was essentially the destruction of a human being's mind,' said Dr. Hegarty. 'Padilla's personality was deconstructed and reformed.' She said the effects of the extreme isolation on Padilla are consistent with brain damage.

DR. ANGELA HEGARTY: Well, during my time with him, some of his reasoning seemed somewhat impaired, some of his thinking seemed impaired, his memory certainly, his ability to pay attention seemed very impaired. I developed a differential diagnosis from this: severe anxiety. Post-traumatic stress disorder can do that. But also, we know from really basic neuroscience studies that extreme isolation for prolonged periods of time -- and I’m talking, you know, the studies are on maybe days or weeks, and he had extreme isolation for years -- really do, in fact, impair higher brain function. And I recommended that we get some neuropsychological testing. And, unfortunately, he wasn't able to fully cooperate with that. However, the testing we did do was consistent with brain damage, yes.

AMY GOODMAN: Brain damage.

DR. ANGELA HEGARTY: Yes.

JUAN GONZALEZ: And have you dealt with someone who had been in isolation for such a long period of time before?

DR. ANGELA HEGARTY: No. This was the first time I ever met anybody who had been isolated for such an extraordinarily long period of time. I mean, the sensory deprivation studies, for example, tell us that without sleep, especially, people will develop psychotic symptoms, hallucinations, panic attacks, depression, suicidality within days. And here we had a man who had been in this situation, utterly dependent on his interrogators, who didn't treat him all that nicely, for years. And apart from -- the only people I ever met who had such a protracted experience were people who were in detention camps overseas, that would come close, but even then they weren't subjected to the sensory deprivation. So, yes, he was somewhat of a unique case in that regard.

In George Orwell's novel 1984, George Winston, the protagonist, is caught and sent to the Ministry of Love whose purpose is for rehabilitation of members of society who committed thoughtcrimes. The techniques used in the Ministry of Love included torture and brainwashing. The state knew what each person feared the most and used it as the means to rehabilitate citizens. In the end everyone became a good citizen with true loyalty to and love for Big Brother once they had been to the ministry.

Is Gitmo similar to the Ministry of Love?

just asking...

The USSR used a term called Sluggishly progressing schizophrenia in sending its citizens to gulags. Once there, they were rehabilitated, or not. Of course, just presence in the gulag was enough to initiate sluggishly progressing schizophrenia if they didn't have it before arriving.

weekender...

A Polish man moved to the USA, fell in love and married an American girl.

Although his English was far from perfect, they got along very well until one day he rushed into a lawyer's office and asked him if he could arrange a divorce for him.

The lawyer said that getting a divorce would depend on the circumstances, and asked him the following questions:

L: Have you any grounds?
P: Yes, an acre and half and nice little home.

L: No, I mean what is the foundation of this case?
P: It made of concrete.

L: I don't think you understand. Does either of you have a real grudge?
P: No, we have carport, and not need one.

L: I mean. What are your relations like?
P: All my relations still in Poland.

L : Is there any infidelity in your marriage?
P: We have hi-fidelity stereo and good DVD player.

L: Does your wife beat you up?
P: No, I always up before her.

L: Why do you want this divorce?
P: She going to kill me.

L: What makes you think that?
P: I got proof.

L: What kind of proof?
P: She going to poison me. She buy a bottle at drugstore and put on shelf in bathroom. I can read, it say "Polish Remover".

oh, my! how a little education can kill you...

a serious question on terrorism...

Has any fight against terror/guerilla warfare ever been won?

The catch phrase of the Busheviks [I really like that term from BuzzFlash] is to win against terrorism. Honestly, has any fight against it ever been successful?

really, i'm serious...

interesting new question [for the MSM] about the US Attorney firings...

from ABC News:

Fired U.S. Attorneys: Were There Others?

What's that new new car commercial? Oh, yeah. D'uh!

Could the U.S. Attorneys firing scandal be bigger than Americans know?

For months, the Bush administration has declined to directly answer a key question posed by Congress: were more top federal prosecutors targeted for dismissal beyond the nine that have been publicly identified?

glad you could join the rest of us ABC.

More telling is the first commenter to the ABC story/question:

User Comments

Now let me get this straight. Unless you have a contract of employment, you work at the pleasure of the boss, right? So where is the problem. If you're not doing the job the way the boss wants it done, you get fired.
Lets forget the fact the Bill Clinton fired 93 US attorneys as soon as he took office for what remains as "undisclosed reasons". I don't remember Congress making an issue then like they are now.
I just don't get it. Wait, I know why.
It's because it was done by George Bush.
How silly of me to forget.

Posted by: Me | Aug 15, 2007 10:23:15 AM

another D'uh!!

me obviously has no connection or understanding to the workings of either George W's administration or Congress. There was a very specific reason that the Founding Fathers put in place three branches of government. First to keep the others in check and second to prevent the nightmare of a imperial presidency that they had just fought against with the first George, the III.

If you want a real interesting take on what the ultimate fear is check out this website entry: Conquering the Drawbacks of Democracy. The moneyquote to watch for:

President Bush can fail in his duty to himself, his country, and his God, by becoming “ex-president” Bush or he can become “President-for-Life” Bush: the conqueror of Iraq, who brings sense to the Congress and sanity to the Supreme Court. Then who would be able to stop Bush from emulating Augustus Caesar and becoming ruler of the world? For only an America united under one ruler has the power to save humanity from the threat of a new Dark Age wrought by terrorists armed with nuclear weapons.

scary shit. huh?

isn't this what Hugo Chavez is trying to do down in Venezuela?

just asking...

the everything test...

I've always liked these silly things on the internet - What Color Are You?, What martini are you [Sapphire, twist, blue cheese olive], etc. They are all kind of fun and can make you think about things sometimes.

Well this one is supposed to be the daddy of them all - The Everything Test. This one purports that all the questions affect all the results....

Here are my results. It actually gets a lot of things correct. The only one that is totally wrong is my being more lazy than workaholic. Of course, that may be from my answering the work questions being retired rather than actually having a job right now [and even that may change in the near future]. As far as being more engineering mind than artistic mind, it makes no sense. As a learner I am what is known as an abstract random, meaning that anything that is in highly sequential order totally throws me for a loop. Blast me with everything all at once and I can almost instantly make heads and tails of it. I hated math until I was forced to teach it.

The Everything Test

There are many different types of tests on the internet today. Personality tests, purity tests, stereotype tests, political tests. But now, there is one test to rule them all.

Traditionally, online tests would ask certain questions about your musical tastes or clothing for a stereotype, your experiences for a purity test, or deep questions for a personality test.We're turning that upside down - all the questions affect all the results, and we've got some innovative results too! Enjoy :-)

Personality You are more logical than emotional, more concerned about others than concerned about self, more atheist than religious, more loner than dependent, more lazy than workaholic, more rebel than traditional, more engineering mind than artistic mind, more cynical than idealist, more leader than follower, and more extroverted than introverted. As for specific personality traits, you are outgoing (100%), innovative (86%), intellectual (81%), adventurous (69%).

Stereotypes Old Geezer 83% Punk Rock 80% Prep 77%

Life Experience Sex 31% Substances 19% Travel 56%

Politics Your political views would best be described as Liberal, whom you agree with around 86% of the time.

Socioeconomic Your attitude toward life best associates you with Upper Class. You make more than 91% of those who have taken this test, and 28% more than the U.S. average.

If your life was a movie, it would be rated PG-13. By the way, your hottness rank is 57%, hotter than 37% of other test takers.

TAKE THE TEST
brought to you by thatsurveysite

The thing I agree with more than anything else with my results? cynical. Through and through. Though I much prefer the word sardonic: grimly mocking or cynical; trenchant.

The sex part is interesting. Though we all like to think of ourselves as adventuresome, romantic and kinky, I think we not only tend to exaggerate but are really quite conservative for the most part.

try the test. have fun...

Rove resigns...

Yes, you can call me a cynic, and I've admitted it in the past, but the real question is, "Which Republican campaign is he joining?"

Is he really moving into a private job to make more money? Spend more time with his family? Or is he going to continue to try to get another incompetent Republican in the White House?

just asking...

monday morning mayhem...

1. a real television blooper...


go ahead, tell me it's never happened to you...

2. immigration controversy...

On that fateful day, March 6, 1836, Davy Crockett woke up and walked from his bunk on the floor of the Alamo up to the observation post on the west wall. William B. Travis and Jim Bowie were there already there. The three gazed at the hordes of Mexicans moving steadily towards them.

Davy turned to Bowie with a puzzled look on his face and said, " Jim, are we landscaping today?"

guess it's always been an enigma for the U.S....

3. sex and the insurance company...

An eighty-three year old lady finished her annual physical examination, whereupon the doctor said, "You are in fine shape for your age, but tell me, do you still have intercourse?"

"Just a minute, I'll have to ask my husband," she said. She went out to the reception room and said: "Bob, do we still have intercourse?"

Bob answered loudly & impatiently, "If I told you once, I told you a thousand times... We have Blue Cross!"

wonder if you have to call to get a referral from your insurance?

4. never leave your nuts alone...

A doctor at an insane asylum decided to take his patients to a baseball game. For weeks in advance, he coached his patients to respond to his commands. When the day of the game arrived. Everything went quite well. As the National Anthem started, the doctor yelled, "Up Nuts", and the patients complied by standing up. After the anthem, he yelled, "Down Nuts", and they all sat back down in their seats. After a home run was hit, the doctor yelled, "Cheer Nuts". They all broke out into applause and cheered. When the umpire made a particularly bad call against the star of the home team, the Doctor yelled, "Booooo Nuts" and they all started booing and cat calling. Comfortable with their response, the doctor decided to go get a soda and a hot dog, leaving his assistant in charge.

When he returned, there was a riot in progress. Finding his tizzied assistant, the doctor asked, "What in the world happened "The assistant replied, "Well everything was going just fine until this guy walked by and yelled, "PEE-NUTS!".

and i did when i read this the first time. i even woke myself up in the middle of the night laughing while dreaming about it. [don't snicker. i've always laughed in my sleep. my parents and roommates have all verified it, and from time to time, as like this one, i laugh so hard i wake myself up. i also always dream in color, which people tell me is unusual. i think it's neat; i have a good time!]

the epitome of hypocrisy and the DOJ...

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, under fire at home with calls for his resignation, is spending some time in Iraq.

The Justice Department said that Gonzales arrived in Baghdad on Saturday for his third trip to Iraq to meet with department officials who have been there to help fashion the country's legal system. Huffington Post, "Embattled AG Gonzales Visits Baghdad"

We can only guess what fashion sense that is taking.



while here at home: Ex-DOJ employees spar with administration

Former employees of the Civil Rights Division are channeling their workplace rage into lobbying force. The government lawyers say they were ignored, disrespected and kicked out by Bush appointees. The attorneys describe an increasingly partisan workplace, where political appointees intimidated career lawyers and undermined civil rights to push political agendas. Politico.com

What they are doing is letting the Judiciary Committees know all about it.

One result

The lawyers claimed their first scalp last weekend, when David Palmer withdrew his nomination to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Two weeks ago, a group of eight former managers, lawyers and career professionals who worked with Palmer in the employment litigation section of the Civil Rights Division sent a forceful letter to Congress opposing the nomination.

Rather than payback, I hope that these attorney's are making their decisions and actions in order to reestablish the American Justice system to its true path and by using the most important three words from the Bourne Ultimatum when describing the extra-legal black-ops program in the movie- "This isn't us.", CIA officer Pamela Landy, as played by Joan Allen.

the last six years isn't us...

political honesty...

It would be nice if at least once, one of the politicians running for president on either the Republican or Democratic side would answer a question with a straight forward response. I know, I know. It is really too much to ask. We don't live in a country that has given straight forward answers for a long time.

Hillary Clinton at the LGBT Forum on Thursday night was asked, as were all of the candidates, why she couldn't support same-sex marriage. Her answer was that it was "personal."

Personal? Why couldn't she just say, "It really wouldn't be to my political advantage to support same-sex marriage." I mean, that's the real truth with all of them - Edwards, Obama, Richards, et. al. It's so loudly unspoken that it screams, "I'm an open secret."

I'm not just picking on Hillary. Her answer that it was "personal" was actually more truthful than the others. Edwards, previously, state it was his "faith." At the forum, he reversed that and said he shouldn't have said it. Others gave their own somewhat spurious answers.

I'm including the Republicans on this question also. They at least pander to the right wing-nuts openly, but they have to personally believe that putting discrimination into the Constitution is directly in opposition to the intent of the framers. Of course, the perfect example of this is Romney. He's reversed his opinion on just about everything to be viewed as a "conservative." Too bad none of them actually understand what a "conservative" actually is.

today's foreign headlines about the economic "crisis"...

Le Monde - France

Les Bourses européennes continuent de plonger
The European Stack Exchanges continue t0 plunge

Des doutes sur la solidité des banques et de la croissance
Doubts about the solidity of the banks and growth

Les banques centrales tentent d'endiguer la crise financière
The central banks try to shore up the financial crisis


The Daily Telegraph - England

Global stock markets tumble as sub-prime contagion spreads

Market volatility hits highest since 2003

Deutsche Well - Germany (in English)

ECB Fund Injection Leaves Investors in a Fog

Germans Wary of Stock Market

International Herald Tribune

Shaky markets prompt rumors of who's in trouble

Central bankers take action as the rout in global markets deepens

Europe slammed by U.S. credit crisis


and, finally, Paul Krugman's OpEd from today's New York Times

Very Scary Things

moneyquotes:

- What’s been happening in financial markets over the past few days is something that truly scares monetary economists: liquidity has dried up. That is, markets in stuff that is normally traded all the time — in particular, financial instruments backed by home mortgages — have shut down because there are no buyers....

- The origins of the current crunch lie in the financial follies of the last few years, which in retrospect were as irrational as the dot-com mania. The housing bubble was only part of it; across the board, people began acting as if risk had disappeared....

- When liquidity dries up, as I said, it can produce a chain reaction of defaults. Financial institution A can’t sell its mortgage-backed securities, so it can’t raise enough cash to make the payment it owes to institution B, which then doesn’t have the cash to pay institution C — and those who do have cash sit on it, because they don’t trust anyone else to repay a loan, which makes things even worse.

And here’s the truly scary thing about liquidity crises: it’s very hard for policy makers to do anything about them....

- But when liquidity dries up, the normal tools of policy lose much of their effectiveness. Reducing the cost of money doesn’t do much for borrowers if nobody is willing to make loans. Ensuring that banks have plenty of cash doesn’t do much if the cash stays in the banks’ vaults.

on a brighter note, the Dow Jones Industrial average is only down -77.64 as of 1:15 pm EDT.

rebounds can come in small packages...

weekender...

BEST diet story ever!!

I was in Wal-Mart buying a large bag of Purina for my dog and was in line to check out. A woman behind me asked me if I had a dog... (DUHHHH!)

I was feeling a bit crabby so on impulse, I told her NO and that I was starting The Purina Diet again, although I probably shouldn't because I ended up in the hospital the last time.

BUT, I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care unit with tubes coming out of most of my orifices and IV's in both arms. Her eyes about bugged out of her head.

I went on and on with the bogus diet story and she was totally buying it. I told her that it was an easy, inexpensive diet and that the way it works is to load your pockets or purse with Purina nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry.

The package said the food is nutritionally complete so I was going to try it again. (I have to mention here that practically everyone in the line was by now enthralled with my story, particularly a tall guy behind her.)

Horrified, she asked if something in the dog food had poisoned me and was that why I ended up in the hospital. I said, "Oh, NO!" I'd been sitting in the street licking my ass when a car hit me.

I thought the tall guy in back of the line was going to have to be carried out.

finally...

the weekend is here...



i love this song and always have. this is the first time i've seen a video of it.

The Visible Vote '08...

The HRC/Logo Presidential Forum just ended. First, I really liked this type of forum. The one-on-one rather than the free-for-all format got directly to the issues and questions. Having been at the YearlyKos Presidential Forum last week and watching the AFL-CIO this week, it doesn't serve the issues but the differences.

Hands down the crowd present was a Hillary crowd. She has a history with and a support base with HRC. The other candidates seemed to be working with that in mind, at least Obama and Edwards were. Gravel and Kucinich have the most support for the LGBT community and retold their histories about that. They were the only two who support gay marriage.

Edwards, for the first time that I've seen him, did not give a stump speech. He actually answered questions directly. It was refreshing. He cleared up his opposition to the marriage issue as being one of his religion. He said it wasn't really. It was personal.

Obama relied on metaphor as he usually does. He spoke to the issues that were asked and brought personal understanding to it. He compared LGBT struggles to Civil Rights. He also addressed the problem between the LGBT and African-American communities.

Richardson looked and acted very uncomfortable. He relied on his record as examples of his support for LGBT. It is to his credit, but he also identified LGBT as a lifestyle. Not a really good move on his part.

I suppose the most disappointing thing is that none of the major candidates answered the question about why they are against marriage. They are all for full benefits of domestic partnership in civil unions. If they are for this, what is the difference between civil union and marriage? Politics, plain and simple. I think former Senator Gravel's comment was telling, "Five years from now the marriage issue will be a non-issue in the next presidential election." We can see it happening now. Slowly, but it's happening.

Personally, I have recently made a tentative decision about which of the candidates I can support. I'm waiting to make it official since I still need more time to clarify my thoughts on it. I just have to say that the choice is a real surprise to me.

You can visit the Forum website here: The Visible Vote '08

[On a side-note: I may be on the verge of changing my personal opposition to the marriage issue. If you've read along for a while, my argument is two-part: 1) it has detracted from broader and more important LGBT issues; & 2) marriage itself is an archaic institution and doesn't support or reflect the society we live in now. I may just be about to agree with Rep. Barney Frank when he changed his mind about the issue and said that you have to draw a line in the sand some place.]

now it's France and the money...

Yesterday, I posted about China and the amount of money the U.S. has borrowed from them with their purchase of bonds, etc. Today the U.S. stock market closed down another 387.18 points. In just over two weeks the market went to an all-time high of 14,021.95 to 13,270.68! That's a difference of 751.27. What caused the drop today?

Stocks Tumble as French Bank Reacts to Home Loan Worries
Stocks dropped sharply as soon as trading opened today after a French bank, BNP Paribas, suspended operations of three of its funds in the wake of turmoil in the American market for home loans and the European Central Bank and the Federal Reserve injected cash into the financial system because of tightening credit markets.

hmmmm. How much money do we owe the French and how many bonds do they own?

George W had an answer to the situation in his press conference today.

Asked at a news conference this morning whether he thought the turmoil in the subprime lending market could put a chill on credit in the broader economy, President Bush said, “The fundamentals of our economy are strong,” adding, “I’m told there is enough liquidity to enable the system to correct.”New York Times

and just how is he going to help this correction?

In an interview with reporters after meeting Wednesday with his economic advisers at the Treasury Department, the president said, "I'm inclined to want to push hard" for revenue-neutral legislation to make the U.S. tax code more competitive globally by reducing corporate taxes. Investor's Business Daily

oh, and this little tidbit also

"Obviously anybody who loses their home is somebody with whom we must show an enormous empathy," Bush said. Asked whether he would champion a government bailout, Bush responded: "If you mean direct grants to homeowners, the answer would be `No, I don't support that.'" Washington Post

In other words, "Let's give Halliburton, Pfizer, Exelon and all the rest of my buddies more, and f*** the regular guys who pay the most taxes and now won't have a place to live."

kinda like Robin Hood, "take from the poor and give to the rich."

oh, wait. i think it's the other way around...

here's a thought for you...

When Bush Took Office, Gas Was $1.46...

need anyone say more?

just asking...

China owns the United States and is paying for Iraq...

At the moment, if you look in the upper right of this blog, you will see that the cost of Iraq has passed the $450 billion mark. The U.S. debt as of tomorrow, 09 August 2007, will be just under $9 trillion.

Where is all this money coming from to pay for things, especially since George W cut taxes which means there is less money coming into the government? A real simple answer?

Foreign concerns and most important China! - to the tune of $1.3 trillion! And China is now pissed off.

The Chinese government has begun a concerted campaign of economic threats against the United States, hinting that it may liquidate its vast holding of US treasuries if Washington imposes trade sanctions to force a yuan revaluation.

Two officials at leading Communist Party bodies have given interviews in recent days warning - for the first time - that Beijing may use its $1.33 trillion (£658bn) of foreign reserves as a political weapon to counter pressure from the US Congress. Telegraph.co.uk

They're pissed off because of all the sanctions that are being talked about with their exports to the U.S.

What would happen to the US economy if they sold off their bonds and reserves? The dollar would completely tank. At the least, it would mean recession. At the worst? Remember 1929? The housing market would be in a tailspin worse than it is right now because a lot of the lenders count on the connection between interest rates and bonds. Oh, and China will want all of the interest on the bonds it has bought. (kinda like loan-sharking, dontcha think?)

What does all this mean to you and me? Higher prices. Higher interest rates. Greater lending scrutiny. Loss of jobs. What else? Think about it.

How does the second part of this post's headline fit into all of this? George W has sold these government bonds that China has purchased to fund his war in Iraq. That's right. China is actually funding the mess in Iraq. Oh, and though the US oil companies are counting on the oil reserves in Iraq, there is a long standing agreement between China and Iraq that they already have dibs on the oil first.

George Washington must be rolling over and over. He was the one who said, "No foreign entanglements." and Eisenhower must be having a fit. He cautioned about the military-industrial complex back in the 1950's.

no wonder Mayor Daley in Chicago is pushing Chinese language learning in the public schools here...

bias and the 2008 election...

I don't know whether to think of this as something really, really good or if the bigots are just waiting in the wings, but isn't it something that the two front runners in the presidential race right now are a white female and a black male?

I would like to think of it as something that may indicate that the United States has made a giant leap forward in tolerance and acceptance.

i can only hope...

mitt romney's psyche and behaviour...

Mitt Romney with his stands/reversals/flip-flops about abortion, gay rights, same-sex marriage, religion etc. and then his subsequent adamant defense of his born-again positions remind me of an ex-smoker.

and we all know what we're like... ; - )

actually, if you think about all of the Republican candidates they sort of remind you of this

cialis warning...

I just watched a commercial for Cialis. At the end the announcer makes mention of warnings that should be heeded. The one joke that went around previously was about the possibility of priapis.

Now they've added this little tidbit:

"...if you have a lessening of vision, stop taking it and call your medical provider immediately."

see, they were right.

you can go blind doing it...

o'reilly factor tonight...

This outta be a good one.

The O'Reilly Factor on FOX will be telling An inside look at the YearlyKos convention: What happened inside the YearlyKos convention? and, since O'Reilly won't even be on the show tonight, the story is going to be reported by none other than Michelle Malkin!

Funny, I don't remember seeing her there. And if she was, I know a lot of others would have let it be known. Actually, the only FOX presence I saw at YKos was a camera with the local logo on it, and that was at Hillary Clinton's break-out session.

I know there were non-progressives at the convention in their James Bond mode. I suggest that there were trolls at the convention for two reasons. First is the incident at General Wesley Clark's session when a commenter approached the microphone in full military uniform that is against not only the Uniform Code of Military Justice but the law as well. Of course, the wingnuts are making a big deal of that. [Right Winger Sites Manufacture Controversy to Smear YKos]

Second, I sat next to a couple of people who reacted to absolutely nothing that was being said by Howard Dean during his keynote on Thursday night. Yeah, the one thing I know is no one is able to just sit through a Howard Dean speech - good or bad. He makes everyone react. This was strange behaviour to me because the rest of the room was totally on its feet more that once and they just sat there. Oh, and one of them had a little recorder he was trying to hide while the other one was jotting down notes from time to time.

It's no big deal to me. People can do whatever they want as long as it doesn't hurt anyone. As far as I could tell, no one was hurt. I certainly wasn't; I was amused.

i just hope that their covert attendance at the convention was FISA approved. It was before Congress passed the surveillance bill Friday night and Saturday morning.

i'm using the DVR to record Billo's show. Keith Olbermann is more important. Besides, Keith may have something to say about it too...

monday morning mayhem...

1. exactly what paper are you reading?
real headlines from the main stream media

Never Withhold Herpes Infection from Loved One

Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case

Panda Mating Fails; Veterinarian Takes Over

Enraged Cow Injures Farmer With Ax

Kids Make Nutritious Snacks

New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group

Juvenile Court to Try Shooting Defendant

Iraqi Head Seeks Arms

Prostitutes Appeal to Pope

and no, i won't tell you what newspapers they are from...

2. did Groucho know George W?

“He may look like an idiot and talk like an idiot but don’t let that fool you. He really is an idiot.”
- Groucho Marx

3. my favorite line from the YKos Convention this weekend...

Did you ever see Cheney and Rumsfield together? Don't they remind you of the two old guys up in the balcony on the Muppets? Only they're not funny...

4. of course you don't really have to be blonde...

A blonde walks into a pharmacy and asks the pharmacist for some rectum deodorant. The pharmacist explains to the woman they don’t sell rectum deodorant… and that in fact he’s never heard of it before.

The blonde assures the pharmacist that she has been buying the stuff from this store for years and needs some more.

“I’m sorry”, says the pharmacist, “we don’t have any.”
“But I always get it here,” says the blonde.
“Do you have the container it comes in?” asks the pharmacist.
“Yes!” said the blonde, “I’ll go home and get it.”

She returns with the container and hands it to the pharmacist who looks at it and says to her, “This is just a normal stick of underarm deodorant.”

Annoyed, the blonde snatches the container back and reads out loud from the container: “To apply, push up bottom.”

whew...

I'm exhausted, but it's a good exhausted. The YearlyKos Convention is really great. There is something about being with a group of people who are so excited and motivated. It's contagious.

Tomorrow is the Leaders Forum with Reid, Pelosi & Emmanuel but the word is they aren't going to be able to make it because of the FISA vote and a couple of others. They believe that Shumer will be there though. It might put a damper on the Presidential Forum also since Clinton & Obama may have to stay in Washington.

There was a bit of a snit when an announcement was made last night that Clinton would not make her appearance for her break-out session. People hissed and booed. What they didn't tell anyone until tonight is that it was a scheduling snafu that the organizers forgot to mention. They apologized and Hillary decided to come early and do her break-out before the forum. Of course, now it all depends on if any of them are going to make it with the Congressional session running into overtime.

I am learning a lot and will share some of it after the weekend when there is more time. I attended a phenomenal session today called The Dawn of a New Politics. It dealt with the changing make-up of our nation and the consequences, possible or otherwise. Needless to say, the biggest change is being caused by the internet. We're leaving the MSM in the dust.

Another reason I am a little tired is that I went and saw the Bourne Ultimatum tonight. I texted my nephew a two word review - G** D***! It's non-stop from beginning to end. There were places in the movie that had people applauding, groaning, cheering, "yessing," etc. The audience, and I was included, became totally engaged in the movie. I won't give away the ending, but it is nothing like the book and it works really, really well. If you are someone, like me, who doesn't like going to theatres to see movies, this one is definitely worth seeing on a big screen rather than waiting for the DVD. Every chase seen is incredible, and the one where Jason Bourne drives the Audi off.... Sorry, I said I wouldn't give away any secrets.

weekender...

the wee folk...

An American golfer playing in Ireland hooked his drive into the woods. Looking for his ball, he found a little Leprechaun flat on his back, a big bump on his head and the golfer's ball beside him.

Horrified, the golfer got his water bottle from the cart and poured it over the little guy, reviving him.

"Arrgh! What happened?" the Leprechaun asked.

"I'm afraid I hit you with my golf ball," the golfer says.

"Oh, I see. Well, ye got me fair and square. Ye get three wishes, so whaddya want?"

"Thank God, you're all right!" the golfer answers in relief. "I don't want anything, I'm just glad you're OK, and I apologize."

And the golfer walks off. "What a nice guy," the Leprechaun says to himself.

I have to do something for him. I'll give him the three things I would want... a great golf game, all the money he ever needs, and a fantastic sex life."

A year goes by (as it does in stories like this) and the American golfer is back. On the same hole, he again hits a bad drive into the woods and the

Leprechaun is there waiting for him.

"Twas me that made ye hit the ball here," the little guy says. "I just want to ask ye, how's yer golf game?"

"My game is fantastic!" the golfer answers. I'm an internationally famous golfer now." He adds, "By the way, it's good to see you're all right."

"Oh, I'm fine now, thankye. I did that fer yer golf game, you know. And tell me, how's yer money situation?"

"Why, it's just wonderful!" the golfer states. "When I need cash, I just reach in my pocket and pull out $100.00 bills I didn't even know were there!"

"I did that fer ye also." And tell me, how's yer sex life?" The golfer blushes, turns his head away in embarrassment, and says shyly, "It' s OK."

"C'mon, c'mon now," urged the Leprechaun , "I'm wanting to know if I did a good job. How many times a week?"

Blushing even more, the golfer looks around then whispers, "Once, sometimes twice a week."

"What??" responds the Leprechaun in shock. "That's all? Only once or twice a week?"

"Well," says the golfer, "I figure that's not bad for a Catholic priest in a small parish."

I didn't listen to bill o'reilly...

I'm here at the yearlykos convention for the next four days.

I'll be posting from time to time about things I'm seeing and hearing.

So far I've attended the LGBT and drinkingliberally.com caucus'. Until tonight the day is all caucus'. Tonight Howard Dean will be delivering the keynote appraring along with Sen. Dick Durbin & Rep. Rahm Emmanuel. Again, I'll post as I can but will take notes. [which I hate to do.]

if you haven't heard...

the argument being used by Gonzales, besides his condition of donta recalitis, and now being touted by Mike McConnell, is that he wasn't speaking of the TSP [Terrorist Surveillance Program]. He was referring to another aspect of surveillance that was going on that could not be mentioned due to national security issues.

The bigger question now is what other aspects? If the TSP had to be made public because of a congressional inquiry, what was/is being held in secret? AND are they worse than about what we know? It also seems that the Congress doesn't know about these things either.

Mr. Cheney on Larry King last night contradicted both Gonzales and McConnell and said it was about the TSP.

my father always told me to never tell a lie - no one believes the truth anyway!

ain't that the truth?

too bad these guys didn't know my father...

rumsfeld has it now...

He has donta recalitus! That contagious disease spreading quickly in Washington D.C.

“I do not recall when I first learned that Corporal Tillman’s death was fratricide,” Mr. Rumsfeld said, adding that it was probably after May 20, 2004, when he was told by a colonel about the possibility of a “friendly fire” incident.

I hope they find a physic for it quickly. The Capitol could be overrun and there won't be enough paper to clean up the mess.

i wonder if it's in any way related the disease known as diarrhea of the mouth?

just asking...


[update: 5:37 pm CDT; I just saw video of Rumsfeld on ABC National News make the comment above. The smile/smirk on his face is telling! He knew all along! He can't even lie staight-faced.]