Royally Kranked

4th Anniversary-Saying Goodbye To Jenny, Saying Hello To Dori & Dodger

2011-05-28T13:40:00.001-06:00

It's the fourth anniversary of my kitty Jenny's passing, so I'm reprinting the piece-with some small changes now-I posted about 30 minutes after her last trip to the vet, it was truly the saddest day of my life.

But, there's also light, in the forms of my two little monsters, Dodger & Dori, and their stories are worth telling as well.

So thanks to all who indulge me and read this, as I can't talk or write about Jenny enough, she's as close to a soulmate as I've ever had.

Saying Goodbye To Jenny

My cat Jenny's struggle has come to a sad, but necessary end.

I just came back from the last visit to Jenny's vet she'll ever make, she's now at peace and her pain is gone.

She was seemingly healthy until a severe asthma attack two weeks ago, and even though she looked great when I picked her up after getting past the asthma attack, I started steeling myself for the moment that happened today.

I'm glad the last image I had of her wasn't when she was gasping for air at the emergency center.

She weighed in at about 5 lbs when examined by her regular vet 12 days ago, but from that point on, she just went downhill, even though I was feeding her solid foods and chicken broth 5-6 times a day, to where she weighed just over 3 lbs today.

She had a struggle trying to chew solid food, she started drooling and urinating, even though she wasn't aware of it, and, I found out today, her liver was starting to break down as well. In addition, she started losing her equilibrium, stumbling a little more each day, and even more wrenchingly, at times couldn't make the jump from the floor to the couch.

And it was like Jenny knew it was her time to go, as it took the vet three tries to find a vein for the injection, and she didn't complain or flinch once. Even the vet was crying as she administered the shot.

And showing just how weak she was, her heart stopped before the injection was over.

It was agonizing, but there was no way I was going to let her slip into that good night alone, for all the joy she brought me, the least I could do was be there for her death.

There's just no way to fully describe just how important she was to me, and how much I miss her already

When I had very bad days that left me frustrated or anxious, Jenny had the wonderful ability to take all that negative emotion and when petted, calm me down enormously with her complete calm nature.

I've lived a lonely life, that's just the way things worked out, so Jenny was the only one there for the few triumphs in my life, like when I went back to school in 1994, and started making the Dean's list. When I got kudos in a script-writing class, from a bunch of theater majors no less, it was Jenny who greeted me that afternoon I walked through the door.

It's those little things I really cherish now, like how I could hold the bratbeast upside down, and she'd just look around with a contented look on her face. I could also drape her over my shoulder and let go, and she wouldn't even dig in with her claws.

One of my favorite things was to hold her like she was Super Jenny, flying through the air like Superman, and for which she'd reward me with a very baleful look.

I knew she was special when I ended up getting her from the Humane Society.

I was going through a tough week emotionally, and decided, on the spur of the moment, that I was going to adopt a cat, and I did it then because I knew I'd talk myself out of it if I waited around.

And so I went, and immediately ruled out adopting any cat sharing it's cage with another cat, as I didn't want to break them up. When I checked out the cages with one cat only, other than a quick sniff of my finger, they'd turn away.

But the little black & white cat was different, she started rubbing around my finger and purring loud enough to hear.

And that was how I knew Jenny was the right cat, she was so incredibly sweet, which meant whoever had her for the first 2 1/2 years did an excellent job in raising her to be so mellow and happy.

I remember the way Jenny would be the scourge of the most evil thing she encountered, rubber bands.

I remember how incredibly fast she was, even towards the end of her life.

I remember watching Jenny's astonishing sense of balance when she walked on a box edge.

I remember how, when sitting at this computer, I'd feel a nudge on my chair, and it was Jenny rubbing here little head against it, wanting to sit in my lap.

I remember how, a few years after adopting Jenny, I thought she escaped from the apt I was at, in the middle of the night.

It tore me up, and trying to find her in a residential neighborhood in the middle on the night was a futile task.

I was sure she was gone.

I was in anguish wondering how I could have let such a thing happen, as I never let Jenny outside, way too paranoid for that.

And right when I was hurting and anguished, I heard a faint noise in the living room closet, and sure enough, when I opened the door, there was little Jenny, wondering just which idiot locked her accidentally in the closet-where she was quite comfortable actually.

The joy I felt then can't be described other than overwhelming and instant.

Jenny was the type of cat liked by people who don't otherwise like cats, as that's the case with some of my friends, and they weren't just bs-ing for my benefit, they genuinely liked the little beast.

And now she's gone, a living creature to being replaced by ashes, pictures and 16 years of memories so full of fondness and warm wishes, none of which would have happened without her, the one physical presence in my life for all its ups and downs.

Thankfully, Jenny fought hard enough two weeks back so I could prepare myself to say goodbye, thankfully my last image of her wasn't gasping for air.

I'm getting another cat or kitten at some point, I cannot picture my life without one, but this just hurts so much, as if there was any creature entitled to live forever, in perfect health, and surrounded by nothing but people who would worship and adore her, it was my Precious Little Horrid Bratbeast Jenny.

Goodbye Jenny, I'll never forget you or stop loving you, and even though my pain and anguish are going to be continue for some time, at least your pain is over, and your dignity intact.

I'm picking up Jenny's ashes on Tuesday, and to help deal with this grief, I'm planning on making a small donation every month, in Jenny's name, to some good cause, like the local Animal Rescue League-the only group that tries to place strays in good homes, or the Battered Womens Shelter, or Child Crisis Center.

I've found that when I'm down, trying to do good for others is one way to undercut that depression or grief.

I haven't been able to live up to that pledge as often as I'd like, but I do have two more monsters in my life now.

When Jenny died, I was still at the apts, with six months left on the lease, so the plan was to wait until I moved out before getting another kitty.

But, after one week of a silent, and SO empty, apartment, the grief over Jenny was driving me mad, I couldn't take the nonstop depression, so,one week later, I went to Pet Smart to see if there were any kitties for adoption from Animal Rescue League.

I've actually rescued a few ragamuffins thanks to ARL, they're the only group here in El Paso that works with strays, and I wanted to give a home to a kitten that needed one.

And it was there that I saw, and adopted, Dori, a smart kitty with a splash of white right between her eyes.

And another cute pic

How smart?

When I adopted her, the people from ARL told me that they'd lock up their critters for the night, and that when they'd get there in the morning, Dori would have unlocked her cage, and would be sitting on top of it, waiting to be fed when the ARL saints arrived in the morning.

She also has a laser-like focus, no short term memory only for Dori, as one night, she got hold of a tamale shuck. Even though I tossed it immediately, she'd keep running back to the spot it dropped on the floor. So I locked her in my bedroom for a "time out", hoping it would calm her a bit, but every time I let her out, she ran back to the same spot the shuck hit the ground, and this was in spite of about three "time outs", lasting about an hour altogether.

One thing I noticed right away, was that while Jenny was a VERY low-maintenance kitty (I never had to get after her for anything, she was a very calm, placid cat), Dori, being only about three months, was a very high-maintenance cat, something that could cause problems with the landlords and other tenants at my apts.

One perfect example, Dori likes to bounce off the walls. That's not just hyperbole or overheated rhetoric, she really does like to run, jump as high as she can, and bounce off the walls when she's really wound up.

It was never fun having to try and stop her when Dori was playing, but at the time, I couldn't let her bounce around, as the apts. walls were thin, and every time she'd bounce off the pantry door it made a hell of a racket.

Of course, Dori only bounced off the walls and doors starting at about 11:00 pm.

But we slowly got used to each other, and one memory really stands out about our early days together.

About a month after I lost Jenny, I started crying.

Dori came up and nudged me with her paw, cocking her head to the side at the same time, as if asking if she could help.

Which just made me cry even harder, resulting in one major hug for Dori.

But since she was such a little hellraiser as a kitten, I started having to sleep with my boots on, as Dori would attack my feet otherwise, and soon after I got her, her claws and bites went from being so cute and ticklish to really painful.

Dori's been a real wild-child since I got her, first openly-defiant critter I've ever been involved with. A high-maintenance cat in terms of having to watch her every move, because she's not just smart, she's scary smart, applying the knowledge she learns, usually just to exasperate me.

Dori also likes to burrow into empty boxes, with discarded twelve-packs being her favorite (pics on that later).

What I love most about Dori, though, is that after about a year, she started wanting to sit, lay & sleep in my lap on a constant basis.

Thankfully, I was able to move out of the apt, and was focusing on raising Dori in a new place, one where she could bounce off the walls & doors and not bother anyone.

About 5 months after moving into the new digs, fate threw another surprise my way.

One day in May 2008, I went outside to put down my car's windows, so it wouldn't be scorching inside if I went anywhere, and the instant the screen door closed behind me, I saw a gray blur heading at me, and before I could react in any way, there was a kitten rubbing against my legs, purring loud enough to hear without stooping or bending.

He was only about three months old, and looked slightly scrawny, which meant he was a stray.

I fed the little guy some chicken in the fridge, at which point he plopped down on his side and purred even louder than before, and I figured he'd be moving on his merry way fairly soon after his meal.

But he didn't, he stuck around.

I started worrying about him, as I live right next to two busy streets, one of them a major artery for getting around.

What held me back from letting him in was that I didn't know if he had any illnesses that he could pass on to Dori.

But since Dori's immunizations were still current-for Rabies and Feline Leukemia-I let the little guy in. And I mean little, he was only about three pounds, while Dori was in the 12-15 lb range, mainly muscle.

Right away, she hissed and growled at the intruder, even though she'd been playing with him in the spaces under the screen door-spaces because the rubber molding at the bottom has split off from the door.

I put Dori in the bedroom to cool off, while the gray usurper checked things out.

I figured I'd be able to place him with Animal Rescue League, an organization that takes in strays, gets them fixed and immunized, then places them for adoptions at a reasonable price.

I was able to place a kitten with ARL a few years before, and that's where I adopted Dori from, although they can't help if the cat's tests come back positive for something like Feline Leukemia.

Well, they couldn't take this guy at the time, they were swamped with stray dogs & cats, with no other group taking strays.

And Animal Control would keep him for three days, then euthanize him.

I just couldn't bear the thought of this little guy getting put to sleep before he'd had any kind of chance to live, so I decided I'd get him his shots and get him fixed-at low cost or free with help from other animal-rescue groups, figuring it would make him easier to place.

Eventually, Dori calmed down enough to let her out, and she and the kitten were wary of each other.

Until the little bastard started playing with Dori by stalking and attacking her whenever he had a chance. But within a few hours, Dori was starting to lighten up and play with the little guy, even though she'd still hiss at him at the same time.

As the week went by, I started getting the feeling that the little guy was going to be sticking around, so I knew he needed a name, something other than "little guy", "little bastard" or "hey you".

I was nervous about his tests, if any came back positive, ARL wouldn't take him, it's only critters with negative tests which get spayed/neutered, which is mandatory before ARL will take strays and place them for adoption.

So when I took him to get his tests & shots all the tests came back negative, and that's key with feline leukemia. If a cat doesn't have the disease, it can be prevented with an immunization, so I didn't have anything to worry about Dori getting any nasty bug or virus from the kitten.

Which brings us to the name.

Since he'd managed to stay away from all the traffic, larger cats, dogs, predators and sick humans who like to hurt cats, I thought the name "Dodger" was particularly appropriate.

Here, he's a very cute, non-fuzzy kitten.

Dodger's fur is really interesting, depending on how the light hits it, it's either black, grey, white-in places-or silver, as this pic shows.

Dodger's even more of a psycho kitty than Dori ever was, although, since there's only about a year's difference in their ages, and their similarity in size, they're a pretty good fit.

So now that she's about two years old, Dori's considered an adult cat, while Dodger, even though he's more insane than Dori was at the same age, keeps his claws in when he plays with me, something it took longer for Dori to control.

BUT

History has repeated itself in an amusing way with both Dori and Dodger. When I first got Dori, since she was so unpredictable, and had sharp claws & teeth, that I actually had to sleep with my boots on, because she'd attack my feet whenever she could.

I'll be damned if I didn't have to do the same thing again all over again with the grey usurper, sleep with my boots on because rowdy kitty Dodger likes to play.

But for all their exasperating stunts-like running around and playing-and sometimes fighting-when I'm about to go to bed, Dori & Dodger are a blast to watch and play with, they are the perfect tonic for when I get aggravated by the stupidity which politics draws out far too often, or when I get sad about my little ray of sunshine, Jenny.

Jenny's death is what directly led to Dori & Dodger being here now, so while I still grieve her passing, I also rejoice over the new lives in my life.

Dori, refined

Finally, my favorite, even though Psycho Monster Dodger is now larger-over 20 lbs, and it's pure muscle-than Pretty Monster Dori, such a sweet pic.

And for all the pics, go HERE

3rd Anniversary-Saying Goodbye To Jenny, Saying Hello To Dori & Dodger

2010-05-27T16:14:00.003-06:00

It's the third anniversary of my kitty Jenny's passing, so I'm reprinting the piece-with some small changes now-I posted about 30 minutes after her last trip to the vet, it was truly the saddest day of my life.

But, there's also light, in the forms of my two little monsters, Dodger & Dori, and their stories are worth telling as well.

So thanks to all who indulge me and read this, as I can't talk or write about Jenny enough, she's as close to a soulmate as I've ever had.

Saying Goodbye To Jenny

My cat Jenny's struggle has come to a sad, but necessary end.

I just came back from the last visit to Jenny's vet she'll ever make, she's now at peace and her pain is gone.

She was seemingly healthy until a severe asthma attack two weeks ago, and even though she looked great when I picked her up after getting past the asthma attack, I started steeling myself for the moment that happened today.

I'm glad the last image I had of her wasn't when she was gasping for air at the emergency center.

She weighed in at about 5 lbs when examined by her regular vet 12 days ago, but from that point on, she just went downhill, even though I was feeding her solid foods and chicken broth 5-6 times a day, to where she weighed just over 3 lbs today.

She had a struggle trying to chew solid food, she started drooling and urinating, even though she wasn't aware of it, and, I found out today, her liver was starting to break down as well. In addition, she started losing her equilibrium, stumbling a little more each day, and even more wrenchingly, at times couldn't make the jump from the floor to the couch.

And it was like Jenny knew it was her time to go, as it took the vet three tries to find a vein for the injection, and she didn't complain or flinch once. Even the vet was crying as she administered the shot.

And showing just how weak she was, her heart stopped before the injection was over.

It was agonizing, but there was no way I was going to let her slip into that good night alone, for all the joy she brought me, the least I could do was be there for her death.

There's just no way to fully describe just how important she was to me, and how much I miss her already

When I had very bad days that left me frustrated or anxious, Jenny had the wonderful ability to take all that negative emotion and when petted, calm me down enormously with her complete calm nature.

I've lived a lonely life, that's just the way things worked out, so Jenny was the only one there for the few triumphs in my life, like when I went back to school in 1994, and started making the Dean's list. When I got kudos in a script-writing class, from a bunch of theater majors no less, it was Jenny who greeted me that afternoon I walked through the door.

It's those little things I really cherish now, like how I could hold the bratbeast upside down, and she'd just look around with a contented look on her face. I could also drape her over my shoulder and let go, and she wouldn't even dig in with her claws.

One of my favorite things was to hold her like she was Super Jenny, flying through the air like Superman, and for which she'd reward me with a very baleful look.

I knew she was special when I ended up getting her from the Humane Society.

I was going through a tough week emotionally, and decided, on the spur of the moment, that I was going to adopt a cat, and I did it then because I knew I'd talk myself out of it if I waited around.

And so I went, and immediately ruled out adopting any cat sharing it's cage with another cat, as I didn't want to break them up. When I checked out the cages with one cat only, other than a quick sniff of my finger, they'd turn away.

But the little black & white cat was different, she started rubbing around my finger and purring loud enough to hear.

And that was how I knew Jenny was the right cat, she was so incredibly sweet, which meant whoever had her for the first 2 1/2 years did an excellent job in raising her to be so mellow and happy.

I remember the way Jenny would be the scourge of the most evil thing she encountered, rubber bands.

I remember how incredibly fast she was, even towards the end of her life.

I remember watching Jenny's astonishing sense of balance when she walked on a box edge.

I remember how, when sitting at this computer, I'd feel a nudge on my chair, and it was Jenny rubbing here little head against it, wanting to sit in my lap.

I remember how, a few years after adopting Jenny, I thought she escaped from the apt I was at, in the middle of the night.

It tore me up, and trying to find her in a residential neighborhood in the middle on the night was a futile task.

I was sure she was gone.

I was in anguish wondering how I could have let such a thing happen, as I never let Jenny outside, way too paranoid for that.

And right when I was hurting and anguished, I heard a faint noise in the living room closet, and sure enough, when I opened the door, there was little Jenny, wondering just which idiot locked her accidentally in the closet-where she was quite comfortable actually.

The joy I felt then can't be described other than overwhelming and instant.

Jenny was the type of cat liked by people who don't otherwise like cats, as that's the case with some of my friends, and they weren't just bs-ing for my benefit, they genuinely liked the little beast.

And now she's gone, a living creature to being replaced by ashes, pictures and 16 years of memories so full of fondness and warm wishes, none of which would have happened without her, the one physical presence in my life for all its ups and downs.

Thankfully, Jenny fought hard enough two weeks back so I could prepare myself to say goodbye, thankfully my last image of her wasn't gasping for air.

I'm getting another cat or kitten at some point, I cannot picture my life without one, but this just hurts so much, as if there was any creature entitled to live forever, in perfect health, and surrounded by nothing but people who would worship and adore her, it was my Precious Little Horrid Bratbeast Jenny.

Goodbye Jenny, I'll never forget you or stop loving you, and even though my pain and anguish are going to be continue for some time, at least your pain is over, and your dignity intact.

I'm picking up Jenny's ashes on Tuesday, and to help deal with this grief, I'm planning on making a small donation every month, in Jenny's name, to some good cause, like the local Animal Rescue League-the only group that tries to place strays in good homes, or the Battered Womens Shelter, or Child Crisis Center.

I've found that when I'm down, trying to do good for others is one way to undercut that depression or grief.

Saying Goodbye To Jenny, Saying Hello To Dori & Dodger

2009-05-26T20:34:00.001-06:00

It's the second anniversary of my kitty Jenny's passing, so I'm reprinting the piece-with some small changes now-I posted about 30 minutes after her last trip to the vet, it was truly the saddest day of my life and leaves everyone crying as well, as this was some of the best writing I've ever done.

But, there's also light, in the forms of my two little monsters, Dodger & Dori, and their stories are worth telling as well.

So thanks to all who indulge me and read this, as I can't talk or write about Jenny enough, she's as close to a soulmate as I've ever had.

Saying Goodbye To Jenny

My cat Jenny's struggle has come to a sad, but necessary end.

I just came back from the last visit to Jenny's vet she'll ever make, she's now at peace and her pain is gone.

She was seemingly healthy until a severe asthma attack two weeks ago, and even though she looked great when I picked her up after getting past the asthma attack, I started steeling myself for the moment that happened today.

I'm glad the last image I had of her wasn't when she was gasping for air at the emergency center.

She weighed in at about 5 lbs when examined by her regular vet 12 days ago, but from that point on, she just went downhill, even though I was feeding her solid foods and chicken broth 5-6 times a day, to where she weighed just over 3 lbs today.

She had a struggle trying to chew solid food, she started drooling and urinating, even though she wasn't aware of it, and, I found out today, her liver was starting to break down as well. In addition, she started losing her equilibrium, stumbling a little more each day, and even more wrenchingly, at times couldn't make the jump from the floor to the couch.

And it was like Jenny knew it was her time to go, as it took the vet three tries to find a vein for the injection, and she didn't complain or flinch once. Even the vet was crying as she administered the shot.

And showing just how weak she was, her heart stopped before the injection was over.

It was agonizing, but there was no way I was going to let her slip into that good night alone, for all the joy she brought me, the least I could do was be there for her death.

There's just no way to fully describe just how important she was to me, and how much I miss her already

When I had very bad days that left me frustrated or anxious, Jenny had the wonderful ability to take all that negative emotion and when petted, calm me down enormously with her complete calm nature.

I've lived a lonely life, that's just the way things worked out, so Jenny was the only one there for the few triumphs in my life, like when I went back to school in 1994, and started making the Dean's list. When I got kudos in a script-writing class, from a bunch of theater majors no less, it was Jenny who greeted me that afternoon I walked through the door.

It's those little things I really cherish now, like how I could hold the bratbeast upside down, and she'd just look around with a contented look on her face. I could also drape her over my shoulder and let go, and she wouldn't even dig in with her claws.

One of my favorite things was to hold her like she was Super Jenny, flying through the air like Superman, and for which she'd reward me with a very baleful look.

I knew she was special when I ended up getting her from the Humane Society.

I was going through a tough week emotionally, and decided, on the spur of the moment, that I was going to adopt a cat, and I did it then because I knew I'd talk myself out of it if I waited around.

And so I went, and immediately ruled out adopting any cat sharing it's cage with another cat, as I didn't want to break them up. When I checked out the cages with one cat only, other than a quick sniff of my finger, they'd turn away.

But the little black & white cat was different, she started rubbing around my finger and purring loud enough to hear.

And that was how I knew Jenny was the right cat, she was so incredibly sweet, which meant whoever had her for the first 2 1/2 years did an excellent job in raising her to be so mellow and happy.

I remember the way Jenny would be the scourge of the most evil thing she encountered, rubber bands.

I remember how incredibly fast she was, even towards the end of her life.

I remember watching Jenny's astonishing sense of balance when she walked on a box edge.

I remember how, when sitting at this computer, I'd feel a nudge on my chair, and it was Jenny rubbing here little head against it, wanting to sit in my lap.

I remember how, a few years after adopting Jenny, I thought she escaped from the apt I was at, in the middle of the night.

It tore me up, and trying to find her in a residential neighborhood in the middle on the night was a futile task.

I was sure she was gone.

I was in anguish wondering how I could have let such a thing happen, as I never let Jenny outside, way too paranoid for that.

And right when I was hurting and anguished, I heard a faint noise in the living room closet, and sure enough, when I opened the door, there was little Jenny, wondering just which idiot locked her accidentally in the closet-where she was quite comfortable actually.

The joy I felt then can't be described other than overwhelming and instant.

Jenny was the type of cat liked by people who don't otherwise like cats, as that's the case with some of my friends, and they weren't just bs-ing for my benefit, they genuinely liked the little beast.

And now she's gone, a living creature to being replaced by ashes, pictures and 16 years of memories so full of fondness and warm wishes, none of which would have happened without her, the one physical presence in my life for all its ups and downs.

Thankfully, Jenny fought hard enough two weeks back so I could prepare myself to say goodbye, thankfully my last image of her wasn't gasping for air.

I'm getting another cat or kitten at some point, I cannot picture my life without one, but this just hurts so much, as if there was any creature entitled to live forever, in perfect health, and surrounded by nothing but people who would worship and adore her, it was my Precious Little Horrid Bratbeast Jenny.

Goodbye Jenny, I'll never forget you or stop loving you, and even though my pain and anguish are going to be continue for some time, at least your pain is over, and your dignity intact.

I'm picking up Jenny's ashes on Tuesday, and to help deal with this grief, I'm planning on making a small donation every month, in Jenny's name, to some good cause, like the local Animal Rescue League-the only group that tries to place strays in good homes, or the Battered Womens Shelter, or Child Crisis Center.

I've found that when I'm down, trying to do good for others is one way to undercut that depression or grief.

I haven't been able to live up to that pledge as often as I'd like, but I do have two more monsters in my life now.

When Jenny died, I was still at the apts, with six months left on the lease, so the plan was to wait until I moved out before getting another kitty.

But, after one week of a silent, and SO empty, apartment, the grief over Jenny was driving me mad, I couldn't take the nonstop depression, so,one week later, I went to Pet Smart to see if there were any kitties for adoption from Animal Rescue League.

I've actually rescued a few ragamuffins thanks to ARL, they're the only group here in El Paso that works with strays, and I wanted to give a home to a kitten that needed one.

And it was there that I saw, and adopted, Dori, a smart kitty with a splash of white right between her eyes.

And another cute pic

How smart?

When I adopted her, the people from ARL told me that they'd lock up their critters for the night, and that when they'd get there in the morning, Dori would have unlocked her cage, and would be sitting on top of it, waiting to be fed when the ARL saints arrived in the morning.

She also has a laser-like focus, no short term memory only for Dori, as one night, she got hold of a tamale shuck. Even though I tossed it immediately, she'd keep running back to the spot it dropped on the floor. So I locked her in my bedroom for a "time out", hoping it would calm her a bit, but every time I let her out, she ran back to the same spot the shuck hit the ground, and this was in spite of about three "time outs", lasting about an hour altogether.

One thing I noticed right away, was that while Jenny was a VERY low-maintenance kitty (I never had to get after her for anything, she was a very calm, placid cat), Dori, being only about three months, was a very high-maintenance cat, something that could cause problems with the landlords and other tenants at my apts.

One perfect example, Dori likes to bounce off the walls. That's not just hyperbole or overheated rhetoric, she really does like to run, jump as high as she can, and bounce off the walls when she's really wound up.

It was never fun having to try and stop her when Dori was playing, but at the time, I couldn't let her bounce around, as the apts. walls were thin, and every time she'd bounce off the pantry door it made a hell of a racket.

Of course, Dori only bounced off the walls and doors starting at about 11:00 pm.

But we slowly got used to each other, and one memory really stands out about our early days together.

About a month after I lost Jenny, I started crying.

Dori came up and nudged me with her paw, cocking her head to the side at the same time, as if asking if she could help.

Which just made me cry even harder, resulting in one major hug for Dori.

But since she was such a little hellraiser as a kitten, I started having to sleep with my boots on, as Dori would attack my feet otherwise, and soon after I got her, her claws and bites went from being so cute and ticklish to really painful.

Dori's been a real wild-child since I got her, first openly-defiant critter I've ever been involved with. A high-maintenance cat in terms of having to watch her every move, because she's not just smart, she's scary smart, applying the knowledge she learns, usually just to exasperate me.

Dori also likes to burrow into empty boxes, with discarded twelve-packs being her favorite (pics on that later).

What I love most about Dori, though, is that after about a year, she started wanting to sit, lay & sleep in my lap on a constant basis.

Thankfully, I was able to move out of the apt, and was focusing on raising Dori in a new place, one where she could bounce off the walls & doors and not bother anyone.

About 5 months after moving into the new digs, fate threw another surprise my way.

One day in May last year, I went outside to put down my car's windows, so it wouldn't be scorching inside if I went anywhere, and the instant the screen door closed behind me, I saw a gray blur heading at me, and before I could react in any way, there was a kitten rubbing against my legs, purring loud enough to hear without stooping or bending.

He was only about three months old, and looked slightly scrawny, which meant he was a stray.

I fed the little guy some chicken in the fridge, at which point he plopped down on his side and purred even louder than before, and I figured he'd be moving on his merry way fairly soon after his meal.

But he didn't, he stuck around.

I started worrying about him, as I live right next to two busy streets, one of them a major artery for getting around.

What held me back from letting him in was that I didn't know if he had any illnesses that he could pass on to Dori.

But since Dori's immunizations were still current-for Rabies and Feline Leukemia-I let the little guy in. And I mean little, he was only about three pounds, while Dori was in the 12-15 lb range, mainly muscle.

Right away, she hissed and growled at the intruder, even though she'd been playing with him in the spaces under the screen door-spaces because the rubber molding at the bottom has split off from the door.

I put Dori in the bedroom to cool off, while the gray usurper checked things out.

I figured I'd be able to place him with Animal Rescue League, an organization that takes in strays, gets them fixed and immunized, then places them for adoptions at a reasonable price.

I was able to place a kitten with ARL a few years before, and that's where I adopted Dori from, although they can't help if the cat's tests come back positive for something like Feline Leukemia.

Well, they couldn't take this guy at the time, they were swamped with stray dogs & cats, with no other group taking strays.

And Animal Control would keep him for three days, then euthanize him.

I just couldn't bear the thought of this little guy getting put to sleep before he'd had any kind of chance to live, so I decided I'd get him his shots and get him fixed-at low cost or free with help from other animal-rescue groups, figuring it would make him easier to place.

Eventually, Dori calmed down enough to let her out, and she and the kitten were wary of each other.

Until the little bastard started playing with Dori by stalking and attacking her whenever he had a chance. But within a few hours, Dori was starting to lighten up and play with the little guy, even though she'd still hiss at him at the same time.

As the week went by, I started getting the feeling that the little guy was going to be sticking around, so I knew he needed a name, something other than "little guy", "little bastard" or "hey you".

I was nervous about his tests, if any came back positive, ARL wouldn't take him, it's only critters with negative tests which get spayed/neutered, which is mandatory before ARL will take strays and place them for adoption.

So when I took him to get his tests & shots all the tests came back negative, and that's key with feline leukemia. If a cat doesn't have the disease, it can be prevented with an immunization, so I didn't have anything to worry about Dori getting any nasty bug or virus from the kitten.

Which brings us to the name.

Since he'd managed to stay away from all the traffic, larger cats, dogs, predators and sick humans who like to hurt cats, I thought the name "Dodger" was particularly appropriate.

Here, he's a very cute, non-fuzzy kitten.

Dodger's fur is really interesting, depending on how the light hits it, it's either black, grey, white-in places-or silver, as this pic shows.

Dodger's even more of a psycho kitty than Dori ever was, although, since there's only about a year's difference in their ages, and their similarity in size, they're a pretty good fit.

So now that she's about two years old, Dori's considered an adult cat, while Dodger, even though he's more insane than Dori was at the same age, keeps his claws in when he plays with me, something it took longer for Dori to control.

BUT

History has repeated itself in an amusing way with both Dori and Dodger. When I first got Dori, since she was so unpredictable, and had sharp claws & teeth, that I actually had to sleep with my boots on, because she'd attack my feet whenever she could.

I'll be damned if I didn't have to do the same thing again all over again with the grey usurper, sleep with my boots on because rowdy kitty Dodger likes to play.

But for all their exasperating stunts-like running around and playing-and sometimes fighting-when I'm about to go to bed, Dori & Dodger are a blast to watch and play with, they are the perfect tonic for when I get aggravated by the stupidity which politics draws out far too often, or when I get sad about my little ray of sunshine, Jenny.

Jenny's death is what directly led to Dori & Dodger being here now, so while I still grieve her passing, I also rejoice over the new lives in my life.

Dori, refined

Finally, my favorite, even though Psycho Monster Dodger is now larger than Pretty Monster Dori, such a sweet pic.

And for all the pics, go HERE

Senate Dems Ready Their "Heck Of A Job, Brownie" Moment

2008-11-18T01:53:00.000-07:00

Seriiously, the Democrats insisting that Joe Lieberman can be trusted to do the right thing, in a spirit of putting country first over personal ego & ambition, is definitely comparable to Bush Jr mouthing the now obvious catchphrase for spectacular incompetence, "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job."

Just from a tactical perspective alone, the Senate Democrats would have to be completely insane, or astonishingly stupid, to let an obvious bitter backstabber & Bush Jr lackey like Joe Lieberman retain his Dept. of Homeland Security chairmanship upon starting a new Congress, especially when he'd be able to tie up an Obama Administration with numerous investigations, subpoenas and demanded documents.

No, you do NOT keep someone in a post where they can hurt you, especially when that same slug didn't do a damn thing to hold the current Administration accountable in any way, shape or form for its numerous shortcomings, lawbreaking, or staggering incompetence.

This idea of Lieberman retaining his Committee chairmanships is aggressively naive, as it requires a level of trust in Lieberman's basic decency that's been completely destroyed by Lieberman himself.

Adding to Lieberman's incompetence during his tenure as DHS Chairman, his flat-out refusal to hold the Bush Jr Administration accountable for its clear, numerous and lethal shortcomings during and immediately after Katrina hit, the Gulf Coast & New Orleans drowned, and people died.

Lieberman goes from a position of absolute powerlessness, to one where he can stop any actual ambitious or bold policy proposal Obama may actually make as President, and he'll do this in a way that will, most likely, involve Lieberman's sudden desire to seriously investigate the Bush Jr Administration, at the same time saying Obama needs to hold off on any major changes from Bush Jr policies until those ideas and reforms have been studied, in-depth.

Those issues would include warrantless spying, torture as official US policy, indefinite detention, suspension of Habeas Corpus, war profiteering and adequately funding veterans issues.

And the investigations will grind along as slowly as Lieberman feels he can get away with, especially as, once the committee assignments are set for the next Congress, the Democrats won't be able-protestations from Sen. Bayh notwithstanding-to strip Lieberman of his DHS committee chairmanship with a vote from their members alone, the issue would have to be presented to the full Senate for a vote, and there's no reason to think the Republicans would do anything but filibuster such an attempt by the Democrats.

Because, the Republicans realize the only value they get from Lieberman is with his ability to hamstring a Democratic President, and with their numbers shrinking even further with the incoming Congress than they are currently, the Republicans certainly can't offer Lieberman anything other than petty revenge on his former party.

And of course, the Republicans would never think to let Joe know that, if he really does a good job tying up an Obama Administration, there's a VP or Presidential GOP nomination waiting, guaranteed, for 2012.

If Obama is serious about "change", then, logically, he shouldn't be backing a grudge-bearing Bush Jr loyalist-especially on the most defining issues, the worst of the current Administration's policies-like Lieberman, a backbiter who will, if he retains his Senate committee & subcommittee chairmanships, have the ability to enable legislative gridlock in the spirit of "bipartisanship".

Considering how Lieberman enthusiastically supported the Bush Jr Administration, and even more enthusiastically quashed any real investigations into the DHS during W's terms, especially relating to Katrina, it shouldn't surprise anyone if he's stalling such reforms from Obama purely because Lieberman's worried-hopefully for legal reasons-about his role in enabling obvious criminal behavior from the Bush Jr Administration.

That's a harsh spin, but Sen. Lieberman does not deserve any "benefit of the doubt" in terms of honorable actions, not when he says those he opposes from his former party are actual threats to the US, while at the same time not-so-holy-Joe pals around with the worst, most anti-Semitic religious bigots, like "Pastor" Hagee, who tries to revise the Holocaust as God's way of driving the Jews back to Israel.

One proposal put forward, supposedly as ways to keep Lieberman in check without stripping him of the DHS Committee he holds so dear, actually raises troubling problems of its own.

Evan Bayh, in calling for an apology from Lieberman, seems willing to accept a level of politicization that was so rightly decried when the Bush Jr Administration tried to pressure GOP US Attorneys to bring bogus charges against Democrats and voter-registration groups, a scandal that ultimately drove former Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez from that post in shame.

Bayh: Lieberman should apologize

Bayh said that Lieberman must first issue a “sincere apology” for campaign attacks warning of the perils of an Obama presidency and a large Democratic majority in Congress. He said Democrats should allow him to keep his chairmanship on the condition that he would not use his subpoena power and influence as chairman to undermine Obama’s presidency. Otherwise, Democrats would take away his gavel at any point next Congress, Bayh warned.

Bayh said Democrats should tell Lieberman sternly, “Look, we’re giving you a chance here, but if you don’t do the right things as chairman, and we see any continuation of this kind of behavior ...the game is up at that point.”

This is a precedent that's better not set, telling a Committee chairman what can and cannot be investigated as a price for holding that position is hardly a way to reign in an out-of-control President/Administration.

No doubt, a certain level of grandstanding is done when seeking/receiving political perks like Committee chairmanships and assignments, but using Bayh's example goes far beyond acceptable, as it wouldn't be applied to just Lieberman, but against other troublesome Senators as well when political expedience is the desired outcome.

As was pointed out above as well, another problem with Bayh's contention is that the Dems can easily strip Lieberman of his committee chairmanships, a possibility on Bizarroworld, but not Planet Earth.

There are simply no words which adequately describe what the Senate Democrats are on the verge of doing here, namely, rewarding, with enormous power to do great mischief to the President Elect who campaigned on "change", an established liar and Democrat-basher like Lieberman, and doing so at a time he's completely unable to stop his richly-deserved, and long overdue, political neutering.

It's true this is no longer a "center-right" country politically, but the Democrats sure seem anxious to govern like it is.

But something else.

The vote on Lieberman will happen later this morning, and while Lieberman may be told he can keep his committee chairmanships, if those assignments aren't given out today, then it's still not a done deal for Lieberman to keep the DHS gavel.

And that's how this situation could get even worse for Lieberman, namely, the secret vote says Lieberman keeps his DHS chaimanship, but the ensuing anger and rage from the party base requires the Dems to strip him of his precious DHS oversight, and do so before the next Congress is sworn in.

However, if the Democrats are stupid enough to let an obvious ne'erdowell like Lieberman keep his chairmanships, especially the DHS committee, then the party deserves every single bit of woe & grief it will get from both Joe and the liberal base irate that, once again, they get pushed to the side while still being begged for votes and financial contributions.

Now, even though it has absolutely NO chance of actually happening, what I'd like to see would be President Obama pick Joe Lieberman to actually run the Dept. of Homeland Security, and then, after Lieberman's confirmed, the Dept of Homeland Security is abolished.

McCain's Worst Sin, Of Omission

2008-08-22T18:48:00.001-06:00

"Sin Of Omission", as McCain stayed silent over the malice done his own child.

As someone with health problems severe enough to not allow myself to be a biological father, I don't understand how any parent can sit by and not only watch their children slimed, but actually make peace with those doing the attacks.

Which brings us to McCain's clear cowardice in refusing to stick up for his own adopted daughter, Bridget.

With a bonus sting in the tail at the end.

I used this argument on our local call-in shows, and posted variations of it at online forums, and NO ONE has even attempted to dispute it, or spin it in a positive way.

Two articles-included in full at my RK Articles Only blog, with the links there to the articles at their original sites-paint a very damning picture of just what McCain's priorities REALLY are, one written by Rick Davis, McCain's campaign manager in both the 2000 GOP primaries and the current campaign.

First up, a bit of background about Bridget McCain

The anatomy of a smear campaign

It didn't take much research to turn up a seemingly innocuous fact about the McCains: John and his wife, Cindy, have an adopted daughter named Bridget. Cindy found Bridget at Mother Theresa's orphanage in Bangladesh, brought her to the United States for medical treatment, and the family ultimately adopted her. Bridget has dark skin.

Anonymous opponents used "push polling" to suggest that McCain's Bangladeshi born daughter was his own, illegitimate black child. In push polling, a voter gets a call, ostensibly from a polling company, asking which candidate the voter supports. In this case, if the "pollster" determined that the person was a McCain supporter, he made statements designed to create doubt about the senator.

Thus, the "pollsters" asked McCain supporters if they would be more or less likely to vote for McCain if they knew he had fathered an illegitimate child who was black. In the conservative, race-conscious South, that's not a minor charge. We had no idea who made the phone calls, who paid for them, or how many calls were made. Effective and anonymous: the perfect smear campaign.

Some aspects of this smear were hardly so subtle. Bob Jones University professor Richard Hand sent an e-mail to "fellow South Carolinians" stating that McCain had "chosen to sire children without marriage." It didn't take long for mainstream media to carry the charge. CNN interviewed Hand and put him on the spot: "Professor, you say that this man had children out of wedlock. He did not have children out of wedlock." Hand replied, "Wait a minute, that's a universal negative. Can you prove that there aren't any?"

Now this seems like a damned decent act on the McCain's part, adopting a child to provide a better life for her seems like a very "Christian" thing to do.

Yet Bridget McCain, a child who had done no wrong, was now being attacked by political operatives ruthless enough to drag their opponents children into the muck & mire.

And the "Christians" this attack was aimed at apparently had no problem with such strategy.

Confronting Ghosts of 2000 in South Carolina

People in some areas of South Carolina began to receive phone calls in which self-described pollsters would ask, "Would you be more likely or less likely to vote for John McCain for president if you knew he had fathered an illegitimate black child?"

It was a reference to Bridget, who was adopted as a baby from an orphanage in Bangladesh and is darker skinned than the rest of the McCain family. Richard Hand, a professor at Bob Jones University, sent an e-mail message to "fellow South Carolinians" telling recipients that Mr. McCain had "chosen to sire children without marriage."

Now, I'm guessing that most parents reactions to their children being mauled in such a manner would be to want their tormentors blood and scalps in return.

Unbelievably, the attacks on Bridget weren't what shook up McCain, no, that was reserved for the primary voters ire over this tactic.

Karl Rove, Mr. Bush’s political adviser, and the entire Bush team strongly denied involvement, though it was clear Mr. Bush was the beneficiary of the campaign. When the McCain camp did fight back, it chose Mr. Bush as the target — and a method that backfired.

After promising a positive campaign, Mr. McCain’s campaign put together two negative advertisements, including the one accusing Mr. Bush of twisting the truth "like Clinton." The advertisement offended many Republicans in the state, who considered a comparison to Mr. Clinton, then president and unpopular among Republicans here, beyond the pale.

How unpopular, well, from earlier in the article.....

Several top campaign aides cited a single moment that marked a turning point in the South Carolina campaign, and in Mr. McCain himself. In an effort to fight back, the McCain campaign had gone negative, broadcasting a television advertisement that accused Mr. Bush of twisting the truth "like Clinton," a reference to President Bill Clinton.

At a town-hall-style meeting in Spartanburg after the advertisement ran, a woman stood up, her voice shaking. She recalled how her 13-year-old son had received a phone call from a push pollster calling Mr. McCain a liar and a cheat.

"‘A man got on the phone and talked about how dishonest you were,’" Mr. Weaver recalled her saying. "‘My son had admired you, and now he doesn’t know what to believe.’"

**************

Nancy Snow, a volunteer on the McCain campaign, was at that meeting, too, and remembered seeing the life drain from Mr. McCain’s face.

Ms. Snow said of Mr. McCain’s expression: "He looked like he felt terrible, and terrible for that boy, because he knew he had so many young people supporting him before that. It was kind of like the air had gone out of the room."

McCain was more upset about getting hammered for an ad tying Bush Jr to Clinton, than he was about vicious, scathing attacks on his own daughter.

This incident alone shows that McCain does NOT have the integrity, honor or character to be President, not when he's so willing to let bygones be bygones and make peace with the same elements who libeled and slandered his daughter Bridget. A same failing with Dick Cheney's refusal to blast the homophobic knuckle-dragging US Taliban when they ripped into Mary Cheney's pregnancy.

How can any right-thinking parent not want to avenge the wrong done to their children, how can any "moral" or "ethical" parent cozy up to those who malign their children?

And how does being able to do just those things indicate a positive capacity to be President?

I'm not an Obama supporter, but I have no doubt he'd at least verbally shred anyone who did to his daughters what was done to Bridget McCain, a child wronged so horribly that her father should be ashamed, every waking moment, of his inaction in protecting his daughter.

Read the whole Times article, for even more irony regarding how McCain subsumed protecting his daughter for the greater glory of bringing about a McCain Presidency with the help of the same parasites who attacked Bridget McCain.

Oh, and that sting at the end of the tail, well, that involves the same Rick Davis who wrote the Globe link for this post.

Turns out that, like McCain's aide Randy Scheunemann, Rick Davis also lobbied heavily.

But for Russia, NOT Georgia.

And McCain, well, he met with at least one superduper wealthy Russian industrialist at Davis' behest, which would seem to undercut all that tough, anti-Russia rhetoric McCain's punked himself out with since Russia invaded Georgia.

Aide Helped Controversial Russian Meet McCain

As I stated at the start, I've used this argument against McCain on our local call-in shows here in El Paso, and on public forums around the net, and not one person has tried to spin McCain's making peace with the same operatives who attacked his daughter as any sort of a positive.

It's an argument that needs to be raised, and since the Obama camp won't do it, then it falls to his supporters, and those of us who despise the GOP, to do it. A very hard-hitting ad, with a tagline of "If he won't protect his own daughter, how can you trust Senator McCain to protect you?" is one possibility.

One Year Later, The Anguish Fades, The Pain Doesn't

2008-05-26T21:23:00.004-06:00

It's been one year since the most painful, dreadful event I've ever gone through, having to put my sweet cat Jenny to sleep.

Everything I wrote back on that terrible day still bears out with the littlebeast, Jenny was genuinely the sweetest, happiest cat I've ever been lucky enough to be around.

Not a day goes by that I don't miss her terribly, repeatedly.

If the term "soulmate" can be applied to our pets as well as our better-halves, then Jenny truly was my soulmate, she had the ability, through just letting me pet her, to calm me down on rough days and stressful events.

Thankfully, I can remember Jenny with tears of laughter now, not only pain and grief.

GOP Woes Vol. 1-GOP Lobbyist Smacks Lott For Not Wasting Money On GOP

2008-05-20T00:34:00.002-06:00

Because, according to one Republican insider, Lott's financial gift to the U of M wasn't a smart use of funds the GOP desperately needs.

Some blame Lott for tough GOP defeat in Mississippi

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Lott created the House opening by opting to leave Congress late last year before tougher lobbying restrictions went into effect. After his departure, Rep. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) was appointed to serve out Lott’s unexpired term, which created the need for the special election to fill Wicker’s seat.

Republicans were irked that Lott would retire early just to serve his own financial interests.
***************
Lott also bucked his own Mississippi congressional colleagues by supporting Greg Davis, the Southaven mayor and former state legislator who lost to Democrat Travis Childers. The rest of the delegation backed former Tupelo mayor and former Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Chairman Glenn McCullough Jr.
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“Certainly a lot of Republicans are in a bad mood because we’re in the minority and we’ve had this self-inflicted problem in a very important race,” remarked one GOP campaign strategist who works in the Deep South. “Lott chose a candidate with limited general election appeal and I think a lot of people question that.”
***************

And here's where this post's title is borne out

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One GOP lobbyist on K Street also cited Lott’s $200,000 gift to his alma mater, the University of Mississippi, as contributing to the perception that he’s not doing everything he can to help House Republican reelection efforts. That money, the source said, would have been better spent on contributions to GOP campaigns across the country.
***************

Now why would Lott want to waste all that money on the clearly-doomed GOP, the same party that rebuked him by removing him from his Senate Majority Leader perch for his remarks at Strom Thurmond's 100th birthday?

Besides, it's not as if Lott's the ONLY skinflint in the GOP's Senate wing.

Stingy senators stiff GOP

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Republican senators with millions of dollars in their campaign accounts have given little or nothing to the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), despite its desperate pleas for cash funds.

Fewer than 10 Senate Republicans met goals they received for an NRSC fundraiser with President Bush in McLean, Va., Tuesday evening. GOP senators were asked to contribute $100,000 from their campaign accounts or recruit four major donors for the event.
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Republican Sens. Arlen Specter (Pa.), Jim Bunning (Ky.), Richard Lugar (Ind.), Pete Domenici (N.M.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Olympia Snowe (Maine), Tom Coburn (Okla.), and Larry Craig (Idaho) have given nothing to the NRSC, according to campaign finance data collected by the Federal Election Commission and CQ Money Line, a website that tracks fundraising.
***************

And according to John Ensign, the GOP Senator tasked with helping the Republicans win Senate races, the miserly Senators are NOT responding to his financial entreaties.

***************
“We’ve tried fear, we’ve tried positive reward, positive reinforcement, we’ve tried being a little harder on them, we use different things at different times – begging, we beg a lot,” he said.
***************

And here's what Ensign's begging has gotten the Senate Republicans from Richard Shelby

***************
Sen. Richard Shelby (Ala.), who occupies a lucrative fundraising position as ranking Republican on the Banking Committee, has nearly $13 million in his reelection fund. Yet he has given only $15,000 from his leadership PAC to the NRSC.
***************

At least Shelby's consistent, he favors Govt. on the cheap even with his own party, a group facing a VERY harsh electoral climate.

And it's not like Lott's the ONLY former Republican insider turned lobbyist throwing a wrench in the GOP's legislative efforts.

GOP lobbyists open fire on one of their own

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A gaggle of right-leaning healthcare lobbyists have lashed out at one of their own, blaming a Republican former House Ways and Means Committee aide for assisting Democrats in an attempt to gut an insurance concept conservatives view as the future of healthcare.

Opponents of the Democratic bill have accused the former staffer and current lobbyist, John McManus, of selling out Republican principles by helping the other party weaken a signature conservative policy victory, the creation of tax-free health savings accounts (HSAs), in order to help his client leverage one of its patented products.
***************
These Republican lawmakers are backed up by a plethora of special interests, from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce to the banking industry to the health insurance industry. Letters decrying the bill and carrying the signatures of at least 40 companies and trade associations landed on Ways and Means Committee members’ desks last week.
***************

The groups backing the HSA's do NOT put the consumers & patients interests first, so we'll see how well enabling an all-too-often ruthless corporate agenda will play with the voters on Election Day.

There are so many woes hitting the Republicans right now it's absolutely unreal, and these problems are not only always self-inflicted, they're going to tear the GOP apart even worse than the voters will in November.

Such a pity.

(First in a series detailing GOP misfortunes and in-fighting leading up to the November elections.)

Neocons Sense Their Political Downfall

2008-05-19T14:48:00.001-06:00

The coming political massacre of the Neocons, and those still, irrationally, sticking with President Bush Jr is showing itself by how so many of the PNAC ilk are now trying to cover up their support, and roles, in enabling the most disastrous President and Administration in US History. In the past, this kind of historical scrubbing and revisionism couldn't be countered effectively, if at all.

Thanks to the internet, that's all changed.

And Exhibit 1 in this respect is Neocon Central, AKA The Project For A New American Century, the group that, more than any other fringe, far-right supporters of Bush Jr, successfully argued for the disastrous invasion & occupation of Iraq.

So, let's take a look at the PNAC site

OOPS!

Looks like there's a problem here, as the only text on the screen is

This Account Has Been Suspended
Please contact the billing/support department as soon as possible.

Looks like the neocons haven't paid their online bills, whether by design-because they know how unpopular they're about to get with the November elections, and the PNAC is trying to cover it's easy-to-follow tracks-or they feel the financial costs of web access are too expensive, or no longer necessary, in pushing their message.

The PNAC, and others of that ilk, know the less voter attention paid to them and their agendas, the better. Besides, the politicians who share the same views know about these extremist & radical groups, even though most of those politicians constituents probably don't. As long as influential people only-to the extent that's possible-who share the same views, know about & interact with PNAC's members, the more satisfied those neocons are.

But, thanks to something called "research by internet", the neocons PNAC site can still be seen in all its disreputable glory.

Not all the pages listed in the first link come up when clicked, but enough do to make searching around worthwhile

Search Results, 2002-2006

And doing just a little digging around from one page that's works, here's a real gem, one where it takes all sorts of meandering rhetoric to make up for not using the obvious term.

Where's The Word "Draft"?

Take note of everyone who signed the statement, if any of them are given media time for their views, the signers must explain if they're calling for the draft to replenish our over-stretched, under-armored and under-rested troops.

And if not the draft, just how do the more shifty signers envision rebuilding our military?

The PNAC idiots have a double whammy to deal with. They believed that military power alone was sufficient to prop up the US Empire, that those whose lands were occupied by the US military didn't matter, and couldn't do anything to stop the US War Machine.

But insurgents, with no tanks, planes or cannons in their arsenal, have been able to keep our forces bogged down in an untenable situation, a multi-sided conflict between the various factions in Iraq.

The same country which successfully fought the Axis powers in WWII, can't repeat that success in Iraq, a country with a broken military and lack of support to Saddam Hussein, two factors that should have made the Bush Jr policies easier to implement.

As shown by Bush Jr's abysmal leadership, the neocons and their policies are self-defeating in the extreme, which, in turn, has lead to the obvious loss of power, prestige and influence of the US towards those it says it opposes.

Al-Qaeda, Usama bin Laden, Iran and OPEC all have far less reason to fear or respect the US now than before the disastrous Iraq invasion & occupation.

That's the second irony for the neocons. Not only have their policies hastened the downfall of the US Empire they wanted to preserve for themselves, they've also made it far harder for future Administrations to use the military to pursue causes dear to the neocons radical agendas.

The neocons have shown a clear inability to govern sensibly, efficiently or competently. It will take them years to regain any public trust they may have had before the Iraq invasion & occupation.

Whiney, Overly-Hysterical, Thin-Skinned Are The GOP's GOOD Qualities

2008-05-13T00:17:00.000-06:00

And if it wasn't the GOP making claims of "stolen" House votes, I'd be crying oceans of bitter tears for the party's travails. This is the reply I left in the article's "comments" section.

Bypass registration with this Bug Me Not link

Special House Committee to Begin Hearing on 'Stolen' Vote in 2007

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"Tomorrow's hearing will begin to pull back the curtain on one of the most shameful chapters of this Congress: a stolen vote on the floor of the United States House of Representatives," House Minority Leader John A. Boehner (R-Ohio) said yesterday.
***************

Oh, Boehner's NOT talking about the GOP organized & engineered vote on Medicare Part D, the one the Republicans held open for over three hours until they got a vote switched after heavy pressure and outright threats?

If nothing else, as shown by it's fanatical, irrational loyalty to Bush Jr, the GOP has completely destroyed it's most cherished myths, including:

Being strong on fiscal discipline.

Being strong on defense.

Being "supporters" of the US Military.

Being strong on "personal accountability"-unless you're Lewis Libby, then you walk free for helping out a CIA covert agent whose focus was on Iran.

Favors "limited government", except for backing warrantless spying & datamining of US citizens while trying to keep the Executive Branch from well-deserved public hostility at the same time. And voting for federal intervention in the Terri Schiavo case kind of undercuts the "favors limited government" BS as well.

All the Republicans favorite talking points above no longer apply to the federal level GOP, their unreturned loyalty to Bush Jr has completely, permanently and utterly destroyed those now-debunked descriptions.

I'm not a fan of the Democrats-I'm an unaffiliated voter-but the GOP needs to have their noses rubbed in their own arrogant, corrupt, self-defeating messes they've inflicted on the US taxpayers, the next President and the rest of the world, to clean up.

If the GOP had stood up to Bush Jr, or stood for strong Congressional oversight of the Bush Jr Administration, then the party's requests wouldn't be so blatantly self-serving and hypocritical.

Since the Republicans know they're going to get destroyed at the voting booths this November, expect to hear "Strong Congressional Oversight Of The Executive Branch" become a GOP talking point.

Of course, those pushing that Republican meme can't be bothered with strong Congressional oversight of the Bush Jr Administration, but why would the GOP think logical consistency was a quality it's members embody?

When the GOP pushes for full, in-depth investigations into the 2000 & 2004 Presidential elections, only then should the party's claims over this particular House vote be investigated & supported.

The GOP has no moral or logical right to ever bad-mouth anybody else ever again, not after the anti-US, anti-Constitutional, extreme religious-driven agendas the Republicans pushed when they held all the power levers on Capitol Hill.

Slamming His Critics, Not Praising Obama

2008-05-03T00:42:00.002-06:00

To help put the following rant in context, there's this bit of drivel from Michael Gerson, one of Bush Jr's former speechwriters. Gerson has the unwarranted gall to tell the supporters of Rev. Wright just how their religious beliefs require them to act.

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The Perils Of Patronizing

After accusing Obama of "condescension", Gerson decides that the easiest way to escape his black hole of logic is to dig deeper, sinking his own easily-debunked BS further into the muck

Lower-income whites, he argued, "feel their dreams slipping away," and so they turn to resentment against busing and affirmative action, "anger over welfare" and "fears of crime." And Obama not only understands these angry and manipulated souls, he defends them. They should not, after all, be labeled as "misguided" or "racist."

This is the same argument, expressed more bluntly at a San Francisco fundraiser, that Obama made about bitter, small-town Americans who cling to guns and religion. He does not even admit the possibility that these folks might have actual convictions on issues such as affirmative action, welfare, crime, gun ownership or the meaning of the universe. The only thing more insulting than being attacked is being explained.

***************

Obama's response, I believe, provided a justification for Wright's media campaign to describe black liberation theology. Wright may be a camera-seeking egotist. He is certainly a showman, enjoying his moment. But his main argument seems to be: "No, Barack, I actually hold these theological convictions. You may need to attack me for political reasons. But don't you dare dismiss me as a batty uncle."McCain is now kissing up to the same morally & ethically bankrupt charlatans who slimed his own daughter in the South Carolina primary in 2000, but it's more important for Gerson to irrationally bash Obama.

Because who knows "black liberation theology" more intimately than a white former speech writer for President Bush Jr?

What's that Gerson, you say you need a bigger shovel?

It is a tribute to the power of the Christian message that there is such a thing as African American Christian theology at all. Christianity was the religion held by slave masters -- often distorted into an ideology of oppression. But African Americans found a model of liberation in the Exodus. They discovered that Jesus more closely resembled the beaten and lynched slave than their pious oppressors. And African Americans -- by their courageous assertion of God's universal love and man's universal dignity -- redeemed a nation they had entered in chains.

But for Gerson, THOSE African Americans were somehow unique in their perspective. Apparently, he believes the slaves couldn't possibly be angry about their brutal experiences at the hands of theological thugs. Even better, that "courageous assertions of God's universal love and man's universal dignity" somehow escaped our current President and his war-mongering, bloodthirsty, lunatic neocon backers when it came to dealing with Iraq, which, it's always worth pointing out, had nothing to do with the terrorist attacks which drew the initial US military response against Afghanistan.

It's doubtful Gerson lets Iraqi suffering be the benchmark which "redeemed a nation", be that nation Iraq or the US.

Then again, Gerson does typify an arrogance that's often on display with this Administration, namely the appalling mindset of "it's better to fight them (the terrorists) over there than over here." Just how infuriating must that Administration sentiment be which dictates Iraqi lives, limbs and minds as far more expendable than US lives, limbs & minds.

Why should the Iraqis be grateful to the US for dragging them, unasked, into the US conflict against Usama bin Laden, someone who NEVER set foot in Iraq?

But black liberation theology takes this argument a large step further -- or perhaps backward. The Rev. Wright's intellectual mentor, professor James Cone of Union Theological Seminary, retreats from the universality of Christianity. "Black theology," says Cone, "refuses to accept a God who is not identified totally with the goals of the black community. If God is not for us and against white people, then he is a murderer, and we had better kill him." And again: "Black theology will accept only the love of God which participates in the destruction of the white enemy." And again: "In the New Testament, Jesus is not for all, but for the oppressed, the poor and unwanted of society, and against oppressors."

This emphasis on the structural evil of white America has natural political consequences -- encouraging a belief that American politics is defined by its crimes, a tendency to accept anti-government conspiracy theories about AIDS and drugs, a disturbing openness to anti-American dictators such as Castro and Gaddafi. It explains Wright's description of the Sept. 11 attacks as a "wake-up call" to "white America."

Again, Gerson willfully ignores not only the US invasion and disastrous occupation of Iraq with those two paragraphs, he also ignores any role he played in Iraq's slow-dismemberment. Actions which make the spectacular arrogance of occupying Iraq all the more anger-inducing.

How does Gerson's faith/logic justify staying quiet about US sponsored dictatorships while insisting that strongmen such as Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro must be condemned at every possible opportunity and replaced at the first available opportunity?

Consistency is a quality absent from the Gersons of the world.

And the white Bush Jr speech writer STILL lectures other races about faiths he clearly knows nothing about.

But the deepest flaws in black liberation theology are theological, not political. Jesus did advocate a special concern for the rights and welfare of the poor and helpless. But he specifically rejected a faith defined by social and political struggle, much to the disappointment of his more zealous followers. The early church, in its wrenching decision to include gentiles as equals, explicitly rejected a community defined by ethnicity. No Christian theology that asserts "Jesus is not for all" can be biblical.

Gerson flamboyantly misses the central point about Christ, namely, Jesus never oppressed the poor, the sick, the powerless. Jesus DID get angry at the power structure, or perhaps Gerson never read Matthew 23, in which Christ excoriated the Pharisees and scribes in the temple itself, an example that still has relevance to today's US religious power structure. Accordingly, Jesus is more likely on the side of the slaves and the Iraqis than Gerson and ilk.

Gerson rages against those unwilling to sacrifice their blood, their honor, their treasure for his benefit, so he won't wet himself in terror on a constant basis.

It's a shame the neocon Bush Jr/McCain supporters engineer death, ruin, corruption and misery to keep their terror-fueled, overactive-bladders dry, especially when a simple box of diapers will keep the incontinent Bush Jr/McCain rat-bastard supporters just as dry.

Which brings us to the rant.

(NOTE: The Washington Post allows readers to comment on it's stories, and reading one Bush Jr lackey's fear-based, irrational slam without substance too many got me riled up against the McCain supporters posting fact-hating opinions. My response took the following form, which I didn't post there after all, instead expanding on it with Gerson's latest literary disgrace above.)

How could anyone think someone, like McCain, willing to trash his own daughter in this way-for pure political expediency-is fit in any way to be President?

Of the three candidates, Obama offends me the least, he's far too conciliatory to those who have driven our country into the ground since this President first slithered into the Oval Office-despite clearly losing the popular vote-via unelected, activist judges. The only reason I stick up for Obama at all is because of the totally off the wall hypocrisy shown by the criticism-ESPECIALLY the "elitist" charge-leveled by the McCain/Bush Jr supporters.

But while I may not vote for the Democratic candidate in November, there's absolutely NO way McCain is becoming President. This country despises Bush Jr, and all McCain can offer is more of the same, the same incompetence, corruption, ideology and unearned arrogance on display with Bush Jr and his political/media backers.

With a 71% disapproval rating for Bush Jr, it's obvious the term "bitter" is far closer to the mark than the term "beloved" as it relates to the voters mood.

Anyone supporting Bush Jr's regressive, oppressive, brutal, spiritually bankrupt, hypocritical, cowardly policies has lost the moral right to question anyone else's fitness or character to be President.

If the media insist on still giving air-time to Bush Jr/McCain backers, people who clearly have lost all ability to use logic or common sense, then make sure they have to share that time with critics who are as virulently anti Bush Jr/McCain as that crowd is virulently anti-US Constitution.

It's far past time those who have helped implement and carry out Bush Jr policies be exposed to harsh public ridicule and scorn on a constant basis, and finally shutting up for a change on their part does not even rise to the "least they can do" level to begin apologizing for the damage they've helped Bush Jr inflict on our country, our Constitution, our Military and our standing in the world.

The Bush Jr/McCain lackeys are the real radicals, the real extremists in our society, and they do NOT represent the political, social or religious mainstream in our society.

Case Closed.

The Reality Of "Mission Accomplished"

2008-05-01T17:30:00.001-06:00

It's worth noting that NONE of the backers of this disastrous Iraq invasion & occupation have been right about ANYTHING involving Iraq.

They said there were WsMD.

They said there were links between the Saddam Hussein Crime Family, Usama bin Laden and the Sept 11 attacks.

They said the insurgents were a bunch of "dead enders".

They said the US would be welcomed as "liberators", and that we wouldn't be seen, or thought of, as occupiers.

They said the financial hit to the US taxpayers wallets would be minimal, and that Iraqi oil sales would pick up most of the costs.

They labeled those of us against this decision from the start as "unpatriotic", "terrorist supporters", "traitors", "America haters", "Bush haters", "against the troops" and "Saddam sympathizers/lovers".

On every single major aspect of this fiasco, this Administration and it's political & media backers have been 100% wrong.

Not one overly-optimistic, aggressively-naive pre-invasion prediction of post-invasion Iraq by the occupation's supporters has come to pass. The elections which have taken place since "Mission Accomplished" have not brought about a western-style democracy that's at peace with it's neighbors and Israel. Women are now less "free"-thanks to the religious parties & individuals calling the shots in Iraq-than they were under the secular reign of the Hussein regime. Suicide & car bombers, unknown during the Hussein years, are now a daily occurrence. There has been sectarian cleansing of Sunni/Shia mixed-neighborhoods.

Not one major US-financed rebuilding project has come in on time and under budget, if it's been finished at all.

A humanitarian catastrophe of staggering proportions with over 4,000,000 refugees is one result of the Iraq invasion & occupation.

Basic services such as sanitation, power, fuel supplies, security, clean water, medical supplies & facilities and mixed religious neighborhoods are in shorter supply now than during Saddam Hussein's reign.

This Administration oversees torture of Iraqis in the same exact buildings Saddam Hussein used for the same exact reasons, while at the same time locking up tens of thousands of Iraqis without any legal charge pending.

The US military has been battled to quagmire-status by a multi-faceted insurgency, groups which possess no cannons, airplanes, tanks or other heavy weaponry. These same US troops face a nightmare, maddening bureaucracy intent on keeping as tight a financial leash on their medical and psychiatric claims, while also housing injured and traumatized troops in appalling, disgusting conditions and quarters.

Corruption is rampant among US contractors, who are also held immune from any clear wrongdoing & malfeasance they commit against the long-suffering Iraqis.

Iran, kept in check by the Hussein regime, is growing in stature & influence since his overthrow.

All this happened under the direct gaze and policies of this Administration.

I remember just how those of us against this idea from the start had to endure the gloating, unwarranted strutting and unearned arrogance of this Administration, it's bipartisan lackeys and media hacks five years ago.

Of course, compared to what the Iraqis have had to endure (a decades-long brutal dictatorship followed by unchecked carnage), most of us, both for and against this decision, can't claim any real hardship, certainly not the hardship that comes from worrying about family & friends deployed-often more than once-to Iraq.

And with this Administration, withdrawing US troops is seen as a sign of failure, which is why, whether the violence increases or decreases, our military will remain bogged down in Iraq. It's obvious this Administration's only concern now is to pass off it's spectacular incompetence to it's successor.

There is NO overstating the unfathomable damage this President, his Administration and political/media backers have inflicted upon the Iraqis and the US.

All the right groups & individuals have been weakened, while all the wrong groups, regimes and individuals have been strengthened.

That's the real outcome of "Mission Accomplished".

Dems, As Always, Ready To Cave Again

2007-10-08T21:43:00.000-06:00

Goddamn It, this is getting really old, frustrating and tiresome

I thought the Democratic leadership was going to hold W accountable for the misery and damage him and his vile supporters and political operatives

And yet, here we go again, Nancy Pelosi is going to hold W's feet to the righteous fire by trashing our Constitution

Does the House leadership ever actually intend to uphold and defend the US Constitution?

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Democratic Concessions Are Expected on Wiretapping

Two months after vowing to roll back broad new wiretapping powers won by the Bush administration, Congressional Democrats appear ready to make concessions that could extend some of the key powers granted to the National Security Agency.

Bush administration officials say they are confident they will win approval of the broadened wiretapping authority that they secured temporarily in August as Congress rushed toward recess, and some Democratic officials admit that they may not come up with the votes to rein in the administration.

Hey Nancy, here's an idea,

DON'T ALLOW THIS LEGISLATION TO THE FLOOR FOR A VOTE

Is there some logical reason that this massively despised President is still able to get whatever the Hell he wants from the opposition, which is allegedly in charge of the Congress now?

Well, actually, yes, that severe lack of a spine once again enters into the Democratic leadership's attempts to teach W a lesson

As the debate over the N.S.A.’s wiretapping powers begins anew this week, the emerging legislation reflects the political reality confronting the Democrats. While they are willing to oppose the White House on the conduct of the war in Iraq, they remain nervous that they will be labeled as soft on terrorism if they insist on strict curbs on intelligence gathering.

If these cowards getting ready to roll over for W yet again can't stand up to him in this case, why should anyone think they can EVER stand up, for us, our country and our Constitution?

The Dems were NOT elected to just do whatever the fuck W wants, but that's sure been their operating philosophy since taking control of Congress earlier this year

Lets review

There are more US troops in Iraq now than there were when the GOP ran everything

The Dems voted to give increased powers to warrantlessly spy on us to Alberto Gonzales-of ALL people-before leaving on their August break

And that power also accrues to that lying ratbastard DNI Mike McConnell

How are the Dems NOT insisting that McConnell be bounced out of his job for outright lying to them, repeatedly, since becoming DNI?

It's absolutely infuriating, and it makes NO political sense whatsoever, unless the aim is for the Democratic President to enjoy these powers as well

And funny, I thought the Dems were going to really raise Hell and force major changes in the FISA gutting, at least thats what they said when the caved in August, but here we go again with the absolutely worthless rhetoric that's now been completely debunked

As Congress takes up the new legislation, a senior Democratic aide said House leaders are working hard to make sure the administration does not succeed in pushing through a bill that would make permanent all the powers it secured in August for the N.S.A. "That’s what we’re trying to avoid," the aide said. "We have that concern too."

Perhaps Pelosi hasn't figured out that they don't have to "try to avoid" this crap, she doesn't have to let this bill to the floor for a vote in the first place, she has it in her power to let this legislation die without offering any replacements

"We are giving the N.S.A. what it legitimately needs for national security but with far more limitations and protections than are in the Protect America Act," said Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Democrat of California.

No Nancy, you're sticking up for W's right to use our Constitution as toilet paper, and you're offering to do the nasty work so he doesn't have to get his hands dirty in the process

The Dems are pushing the "we won't allow retroactive immunity for the telecoms" meme, but as the party has caved in for W since taking the Congress, why should anyone trust that claim in the least?

Perhaps a quick refresher is in order, as to why this Administration cannot be trusted to ever do the right thing

Concerns Raised on Wider Spying Under New Law

In particular, this

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

***************

These new powers include the collection of business records, physical searches and so-called "trap and trace" operations, analyzing specific calling patterns.

For instance, the legislation would allow the government, under certain circumstances, to demand the business records of an American in Chicago without a warrant if it asserts that the search concerns its surveillance of a person who is in Paris, experts said.

***************

Some civil rights advocates said they suspected that the administration made the language of the bill intentionally vague to allow it even broader discretion over wiretapping decisions. Whether intentional or not, the end result — according to top Democratic aides and other experts on national security law — is that the legislation may grant the government the right to collect a range of information on American citizens inside the United States without warrants, as long as the administration asserts that the spying concerns the monitoring of a person believed to be overseas.

In effect, they say, the legislation significantly relaxes the restrictions on how the government can conduct spying operations aimed at foreigners at the same time that it allows authorities to sweep up information about Americans.

Does anyone really expect this Administration to use these expanded powers to try and stop terrorists, or is it far more likely they'll use this law to warrantlessly spy on purely domestic communications and political critics?

Make no mistake, this Administration will claim that a person in the US isn't the chief target of the spying, which will then negate the need for a search warrant, while the Administration will sweep up as much information about the US target as possible

Let the Administration prove it's claims about how vital it is to gut the 4th Amendment, let it show, with independently-verified information, just how warrantlessly spying has disrupted real terrorist plots and imminent attacks, with real names, places and proof, none of this faith-based, "just take our word for it/just trust us" BS

Since W claims Iraq is the "Central Front" in the war against terrorists, then it shouldn't be hard to show how warrantless spying is making the US mission easier to accomplish in the Iraq Meatgrinder Fiasco

So, for every worthless slug in the Congress who votes to let W rape, subvert and undermine the same Constitution he's sworn to uphold and defend, I say put all your information, personal, financial and medical, online, for the whole world to see, and then just trust that it won't be misused in the least

Because while that's obvious hyperbole, that's also exactly what the W fucktards are insisting on here

And it doesn't matter if the Democratic leadership votes against this revision themselves, by allowing the bills to a floor vote, they know there are enough Bush dog Dems willing to help W screw this country yet again

Remind me again of just how much accountability the new Congress would subject this clearly out of control and incompetent Administration to legislatively, because from where I'm standing, I sure can't see any change on these big issues at all

cross-posted at Daily Kos

A Change In Structure

2007-08-23T12:35:00.000-06:00

As always, forgiveness for the tardy post, please

As of now, there's a sister site to this one

RK Articles Only

To quote from the initial, and perhaps only, post

Aside from this initial post, there will be no other commenting on the stories posted here, other than the Post Titles, although if, say a YouTube video makes perfect commentary, it may get posted as well

This site is to merely showcase the actual articles, in their entirety, that I comment on at the Royally Kranked blog

And while an article may be posted here, it may not be commented on at all, this is only a way to archive articles-linked to their published site-that will otherwise disappear behind pay-for-access firewalls after a certain amount of time

While I will link to the new blog for those who wish to read the whole articles, at the new site, the articles will be linked to their original source

This should cut down on the frustration of linking to an article that no longer shows up for free

Unearned Arrogance, Pure Corruption, Spectacular Incompetence

2007-07-04T02:48:00.000-06:00

All three descriptions are on full display with two full blown scandals, the purge and attempted coverup of the fired US Attorneys, and the "Commutation" AKA "Free Walk" W gave Scooter Libby for his role in outing Valerie Plame

Let's lead with the Spectacular Incompetence W showed in pardoning Libby, namely, he gets one free shot, but this article points something out that, if it plays out like I describe, Libby could still end up doing time

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Bush Is Said to Have Held Long Debate on Decision

In issuing his commutation order on Monday, Mr. Bush left intact Mr. Libby’s conviction, a $250,000 fine and the two years of postprison supervised release that were ordered by Judge Reggie B. Walton of Federal District Court.

But the details of the president’s order raised procedural questions in court.

Here's the kicker, the last sentence especially

Judge Walton said Tuesday that the law did not allow for imposing a period of supervised release on an individual who had not first completed a jail sentence. He asked the lawyers for both sides to submit briefs next week on whether Mr. Libby should have to submit to supervision by the probation office.

I have no doubt that Libby will be submitting to a probation office, Walton and the judges who were lowering the legal boom on Libby don't seem particularly sympathetic to Libby's claims in the least, so since W didn't grant a full pardon-which causes as many problems as it solves-what are the odds that W would step in again, this time trying to claim that submitting to probation is somehow too harsh a punishment for his felony convictions?

The reason probation is important here, is that these judges would hopefully-if it's within their official capacity-assign the most hardass probation officer to Libby there is, the type who's just looking to boost a professional reputation by having Libby under their direct, merciless control

The type who'd be looking to bust Libby to prison at the first sign some required condition of his probation wasn't met, or was violated

W may have been able to flip off the US public regarding letting Libby walk from serving any prison time once, but to do so with Libby if he violates his parole would be too much for even the GOP to take a second time, what with the absolute anger & vitriol this commutation has aroused in the public, the voters & defendants who would never qualify for the same off-key caterwauling about the injustice of it all from the elitist Libby supporters

There's even anger on hard-right media sites, ire about the hypocrisy this commutation sends to all those who fulminated about Clinton's lying to a Grand Jury

W's "commutation" of Libby's prison time is a one-shot deal, so if Libby gets an ultra-hard assed probation officer who busts his ass to prison for a violation, don't look for another free pass from W, not enough political capital for a repeat performance of "free poor, picked-upon Lewis Libby"

I just want to smack the mealy mouths of those so disgustingly backing this traitor, and the traitors infesting 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

Of course, the Dems DO have a huge weapon they can play, but that's only if they care more about doing what's right as opposed to quivering in fear from being yelled at by W, Cheney, Rove, or any of their lunatic neocon enablers and GOP Media Whores

Let's see the Dems call Libby to testify about Cheney's role in Plame's outing

I'd like to see W try to apply "executive privilege" in covering a convicted felon, but if he does, then it's time to zero-out ALL funding for the Executive Branch-Not the agencies, bureaus or departments, just those Presidential and Vice Presidential staff working out of the White House

And to cut off a major loophole, make sure that private donations can't be used to meet those payrolls, if paychecks are issued, let them come out of W's & Cheney's pockets and wallets

While the chief counterargument would be that banning such private donations might be a free-speech violation, since there's nothing in the Constitution addressing such an issue-that I'm aware of, apologies if wrong-and since Congress hasn't spelled out how to address such an issue, this current Supreme Court is of the opinion that for something to be valid, every single "i" must be dotted and "t" crossed

That's exactly why the Court ruled against low-paid health care workers recently, because Congress didn't address those concerns concretely, concerns which the court held allowed those workers to be treated as they were. If the Administration were to actually try and use such private donations, without that ability being spelled out anywhere, this Court would smack them down

This commutation shows that treachery against our Constitution and our intelligence analysts/covert operatives has a thriving community at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, and that actually protecting the US public against another terrorist attack on US soil does not factor one bit into the President's or Vice President's decision making, not in the least

But hey, who knows, maybe "commuting" Traitor Libby's sentence will get that US attorney's firing fiasco to go away, or the situation in Iraq to suddenly become much more positive, or get the public to rally around warrantless spying on domestic communications

Let's see if W "has the stomach" to hold a press conference to address why he let Libby off the hook for helping to destroy a career and a vital network of overseas informants and double agents designed to prevent WsMD from falling into the wrong hands

Once again, when W needs to show REAL spine, he instead crumbles completely and decides that "personal accountability" has NO place in his Administration

But Libby better keep his act VERY clean, as getting busted for violating probation wouldn't result in the same Presidential Free Walk this time like it did after the three judge panel ruled there was no reason for Libby to be free during his appeal

Oh, but there's more in terms of spectacular incompetence with both this case and the fired US Attorneys purge and attempted cover-up, and ironically, they both involve the very same issue, namely, this President & Alberto Gonzalez and the effect their clear incompetence and arrogant selfishness is having on the Dept of Justice, namely, making the job of US Attorneys and Federal Prosecutors that much harder to accomplish successfully now

Turns out that Defense Attorneys are gearing up to use both the US Attorneys purge and W's commutation of Libby for their clients at every possible opportunity now

US Attorneys Fallout Seeps Into the Courts

For months, the Justice Department and Atty. Gen. Alberto R. Gonzales have taken political heat for the purge of eight U.S. attorneys last year.

Now the fallout is starting to hit the department in courtrooms around the country.

Defense lawyers in a growing number of cases are raising questions about the motives of government lawyers who have brought charges against their clients. In court papers, they are citing the furor over the U.S. attorney dismissals as evidence that their cases may have been infected by politics.

Justice officials say those concerns are unfounded and constitute desperate measures by desperate defendants. But the affair has given defendants and their lawyers some new energy, which is complicating life for the prosecutors.

This is what happens when bumbling cretins like Gonzales are allowed to continue on in an office he's clearly inadequate to command and administer competently & logically. That Gonzales' ever-shifting story changes with every document and e-mail release is a Godsend to lawyers who have clients with ever-shifting stories as well

This is what happens when W's stubborn incompetence kicks in as well, his ego is stroked at the clear expense of everyone else, in this case the DoJ employees who were doing their jobs the right way, as opposed to those pursuing a purely political Justice Department, especially in the areas of protecting minority & voters rights, concerns the GOP and this Administration obviously aren't worried about enforcing if that willful indifference/deliberate neglect means fewer anti-GOP voters casting their ballots

Missouri lawyers have invoked the controversy in challenging last year's indictment of a company owned by a prominent Democrat, on suspicion of violating federal wage and hour laws. The indictment, which came two months after the owner announced that she was running for political office, was obtained by a Republican U.S. attorney who also has been criticized because he charged workers for a left-leaning political group on the eve of the 2006 midterm election.

The lawyer for an alleged child pornographer recently defended his client at a federal trial in Minnesota in part by questioning the motives of the Republican U.S. attorney, who has come under scrutiny in the congressional investigation into the prosecutor purge.

Lawyers for a former county official in Delaware who has been accused of corruption asked a judge in early May to allow them to subpoena the Justice Department and White House for documents to see whether political motives factored into charges being brought against the official. They cited the brewing controversy inside the Beltway.

"Those revelations dramatically reinforce the reasons to believe that considerations beyond mere law enforcement are behind this prosecution," the lawyers wrote.

The defendant, a once up-and-coming Democrat, was being prosecuted by the U.S. attorney in Wilmington, a Republican appointee.

In an inch-thick response, the U.S. attorney said nothing could be further from the truth, and said the attacks were "sullying the reputations of every prosecutor and law enforcement officer involved in this case," including more than a dozen career prosecutors and agents.

What's "sullying the reputations of every prosecutor and law enforcement officer" is the reality that this Administration and Karl Rove were trying to rig the legal system to give their political ambitions as much help as possible, and even worse, W & Gonzales KNOW their actions are negatively effecting the DoJ staff and demoralizing them more by the day

Democrats say there is evidence that the dismissals were part of a Bush administration effort to affect investigations in public corruption and voting cases that would assist Republicans. The probe has also shown that politics may have played a role in the hiring of some career Justice employees, in possible violation of federal law.

The controversy has drained morale from U.S. attorney offices around the country. And now, legal experts and former Justice Department officials say, it is casting a shadow over the integrity of the department and its corps of career prosecutors in court.

There has long been a presumption that, because they represented the Justice Department, prosecutors had no political agenda and their word could be trusted. But some legal experts say the controversy threatens to undermine their credibility.

"It provides defendants an opportunity to make an argument that would not have been made two years ago," said Daniel French, a former U.S. attorney in Albany, N.Y. "It has a tremendously corrosive effect."

No doubt, having your superiors make your jobs harder to carry out while giving your courtroom opponents even more legal ammunition at the same time is definitely "tremendously corrosive"

And the lawyers for the DoJ just saw their tough job get even harder to carry out with W's commutation

Bush Rationale on Libby Stirs Legal Debate

In commuting I. Lewis Libby Jr.’s 30-month prison sentence on Monday, President Bush drew on the same array of arguments about the federal sentencing system often made by defense lawyers — and routinely and strenuously opposed by his own Justice Department.

Excellent leadership skills on display by W all the way around, Defense Attorneys everywhere are making sure you get a Christmas Card this year, but your DoJ employees, not so much

Critics of the system have a long list of complaints. Sentences, they say, are too harsh. Judges are allowed to take account of facts not proven to the jury. The defendant’s positive contributions are ignored, as is the collateral damage that imprisonment causes the families involved.

On Monday, Mr. Bush made use of every element of that critique in a detailed statement setting out his reasons for commuting Mr. Libby’s sentence — handing an unexpected gift to defense lawyers around the country, who scrambled to make use of the president’s arguments in their own cases.

Given the administration’s tough stand on sentencing, the president’s arguments left experts in sentencing law scratching their heads.

“The Bush administration, in some sense following the leads of three previous administrations, has repeatedly supported a federal sentencing system that is distinctly disrespectful of the very arguments that Bush has put forward in cutting Libby a break,” said Douglas A. Berman, a law professor at Ohio State University who writes the blog Sentencing Law and Policy.

Yep, the Administration wants even tougher mandatory minimum sentences inflicted on everyone going through the legal system, everyone except those protected by this corrupt and out of control President and lunatic Vice President, although the chances the Dems are going to give W these tougher (for everyone else) laws he so feverishly desires

And that's besides indefinite detention, warrantless spying on purely domestic communications, suspension of Habeas Corpus and torture of uncharged detainees

The hypocrisy in commuting Libby's sentence is breathtaking, vile and appalling

“By saying that the sentence was excessive, I wonder if he understood the ramifications of saying that,” said Ellen S. Podgor, who teaches criminal law at Stetson University in St. Petersburg, Fla. “This is opening up a can of worms about federal sentencing.”

The Libby clemency will be the basis for many legal arguments, said Susan James, an Alabama lawyer representing Don E. Siegelman, the state’s former governor, who is appealing a sentence he received last week of 88 months for obstruction of justice and other offenses.

“It’s far more important than if he’d just pardoned Libby,” Ms. James said, as forgiving a given offense as an act of executive grace would have had only political repercussions. “What you’re going to see is people like me quoting President Bush in every pleading that comes across every federal judge’s desk.”

Indeed, Mr. Bush’s decision may have given birth to a new sort of legal document.

“I anticipate that we’re going to get a new motion called ‘the Libby motion,’ ” Professor Podgor said. “It will basically say, ‘My client should have got what Libby got, and here’s why.’”

***************

Mr. Bush repeated yesterday that he had found Mr. Libby’s punishment to be too severe. But experts in federal sentencing law said a sentence of 30 months for lying and obstruction was consistent with the tough sentences routinely meted out by the federal system.

“On what legal basis could he have reached that result?” asked Frank O. Bowman III, an authority on federal sentencing who teaches law at the University of Missouri-Columbia, said of the commutation. “There is no legal basis.”

Nor is there a reason to think that the Justice Department has changed its position about the sentencing system generally. Indeed, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales said last month that the department would push for legislation making federal sentences tougher and less flexible.

Similarly, in a case decided two weeks ago by the United States Supreme Court and widely discussed by legal specialists in light of the Libby case, the Justice Department persuaded the court to affirm the 33-month sentence of a defendant whose case closely resembled that against Mr. Libby. The defendant, Victor A. Rita, was, like Mr. Libby, convicted of perjury, making false statements to federal agents and obstruction of justice.Mr. Rita has performed extensive government service, just as Mr. Libby has. Mr. Rita served in the armed forces for more than 25 years, receiving 35 commendations, awards and medals. Like Mr. Libby, Mr. Rita had no criminal history for purposes of the federal sentencing guidelines.

The judges who sentenced the two men increased their sentences by taking account of the crimes about which they lied. Mr. Rita’s perjury concerned what the court called “a possible violation of a machine-gun registration law”; Mr. Libby’s of a possible violation of a federal law making it a crime to disclose the identities of undercover intelligence agents in some circumstances.

When Mr. Rita argued that his 33-month sentence had failed to consider his history and circumstances adequately, the Justice Department strenuously disagreed.

Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr., Democrat of Delaware, posted a copy of the government’s brief in the Rita case on his blog yesterday and asked, “Why is the president flip-flopping on these criminal justice decisions?”

The Justice Department also took a hard line last year in the case of Jamie Olis, a midlevel executive at the energy company Dynegy convicted of accounting fraud. The department argued that Mr. Olis deserved 292 months, or more than 24 years. He was sentenced to six years.

Sentencing experts said Mr. Libby’s sentence was both tough and in line with general trends.

“It was a pretty harsh sentence,” Professor Berman said, “because I tend to view any term of imprisonment for nonviolent first offenses as harsh. But it certainly wasn’t out of the normal array of cases I see every day.”

That Paris Hilton and Martha Stewart served prison time, while Libby whimpered and begged for mercy is a harsh reality that should be rubbed in the noses of Libby and all his supporters at every possible opportunity, and if public mockery could get Libby to somehow lose his cool, thereby violating the terms of his probation, thereby leading to a nice stay behind bars at a regular prison, then everyone should taunt and hound Libby and his backers at every possible opportunity

Short term gain for Libby and Gonzales means long-term loss for the DoJ and, hopefully, Libby if he violates probation

Ahhhh, for the good old days of 2002, when bloodsucking lobbyists like Jack Abramoff could get uncooperative US Attorneys removed, have his successor named, AND get an ongoing criminal investigation dismissed all on the same day

That this Administration was able to keep the above incident fairly quiet way back in 2002, the inability to follow the same perverted playbook regarding the purged US Attorneys, in which the Administration now finds a political fiasco completely of its own making, shows that blinding Presidential incompetence has spread throughout his Administration, most notably with Karl Rove, Alberto Gonzales and badly misreading the voters moods leading up to Election Day 2006

It just shows that of the qualities on constant display with this Administration, corruption, ideology, unearned arrogance, the DEFINING characteristic is incompetence, and while there are no good choices for this Administration, it's the incompetence that brought about all the Administration's completely self-inflicted political woes

Bravo W, well played and "Mission Accomplished" Indeed!

Hey, Dems, You ARE The Majority Party, Act Like It

2007-06-21T14:52:00.000-06:00

I swear to God, what's the point of being the majority party in the Senate when all you do is roll for the parasites known as the GOP?

I like Harry Reid, especially after pulling the "Rule 21" stunt on the Senate GOP in November 2005, and for all the reasons listed at the link, but at times he sure makes it hard to do so

Rolling over for a clearly out of control President's repulsive desperation to fund a completely unnecessary invasion and military occupation of a country that was never a threat, to the US, and only on HIS terms, ended up costing the Dems dearly, from the liberals and majority of the US public

And now, Reid has let the GOP steal a victory on behalf of the poor, picked-upon Oil Corps, and steal is exactly what happened here, as the GOP achieved their Premiere Whoredom status by getting a cost-free victory on an issue the GOP would have been whimpering for mercy on within days of implementing their threat

Because the Dems in the Senate didn't have enough votes to overcome a threatened GOP filibuster, it caved to demands that the in-progress energy bill not tighten the leash on the Oil industry's biggest players

And the GOP did it by threatening to filibuster

Not ACTUALLY filibuster, just threaten to do so

And so, Reid yanked the Oil Industry Accountability passages from the bill

Big Oil Companies Spared Tax Hikes

Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a $32 billion package of tax breaks for renewable energy that would have been financed mostly by new taxes on major oil companies.

Democrats came three votes short of overcoming a threatened GOP filibuster that was keeping the measure from being attached to a broader energy bill. Republican senators argued that the nearly $29 billion in additional taxes on major oil companies would have led to reduced production and higher gasoline prices.

Because of Republican opposition, Democrats needed 60 votes to allow the package to come up for a vote, but fell short, 57-36. With a number of senators not voting, Democrats could resurrect the measure later, though there was no immediate indication of that.

The tax proposal had some bipartisan support, but also attracted sharp criticism from many Republican senators who lined up against it.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he intends to proceed with consideration of the energy legislation with or without the tax measures. ``There are still good things in the bill,'' he told reporters before the floor vote.

By three votes, with another 7 votes not recorded

So why is this infuriating?

The massive tax measure marked a sharp turn from longtime congressional support of the oil industry to promoting alternative energy development and moving toward energy sources that would help deal with the growing concerns over global warming.

Alas, not apparently enough of "sharp turn from longtime congressional support of the oil industry" for any permanent change that affects the oil industry, which means, other than some slight worry on the industry's part, the GOP still hasn't paid a heavy enough political price for allowing the rape of the taxpayers under it's non-watchful eyes on the taxpayers wallets by it's biggest campaign contributing cronies and corporations

But Republicans complained that it was too harsh on the oil industry and could lead to oil companies reducing investments in new oil refineries and production. They also said that it could lead to higher prices for consumers.

``When you put a tax on a business it gets passed on to consumers,'' argued Sen. John Kyl, R-Ariz. ``Instead of reducing gasoline prices, this bill is going to add to the cost of gasoline.''

Kyl had earlier sought to sidetrack the tax measure, but that effort failed.

Yeah, can't have any penalties for shafting the consumers by causing the price of everything else to increase as well, God Forbid the GOP EVER worries about non-campaign contributors or small businesses, and that effort didn't fail, in the end, since Reid yanked it from consideration, it was obscenely successful

The bill's supporters dismissed suggestions that the new taxes on an industry that has had record profits in recent years would cause either less oil production or lead to higher prices at the pump.

Oil companies earned $111 billion in profits last year and at that rate stand to earn $1 trillion over the 10 years covered by the tax package, said Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., rejecting suggestions that ``this is an undue burden'' on oil companies.

Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., whose Finance Committee crafted the tax package, said the incentives for renewable and alternative fuels ``will help wean ourselves away from OPEC ... from these very high gas prices.''

Then there's this little gem, and here's something to ponder-why anyone would actually reward screwing the consumers, as in not hold those doing the screwing accountable

Senate nears vote on energy bill; oil companies spared

By a 61-32 vote, the Senate moved to shut down debate on a substitute amendment to a broad energy bill that would ramp up the nation’s reliance on biofuels, prohibit price-gouging and require federal buildings to be more efficient.

***************

Democrats are also relenting on their push to require utilities to generate electricity from a set amount of renewable fuels after a rebellion from Southern senators.

Bingaman said he would drop that effort since backers do not have the 60 votes to avert any procedural roadblocks.

Yeah, argue in favor of Price Gouging, that would be SUCH a winning campaign strategy, in fact it's so brilliant one wonders why ALL campaigns don't do just that on a constant basis

I'd love to know just why those "Southern Senators" close their eyes to the reality that it's easier to find another source of fuel while the oil's still flowing as opposed to how much of a bitch that search will be when the oil's all dried up, but as I've learned the hard way from living here in Texas, "Stupid" plays very well with southern states, and not too damn many of these GOP Southern Senators can be considered among the brighter bulbs in the Senate Chandelier

There's another reason this capitulation is such an insult, because a filibuster isn't something the GOP could take advantage of for very long if the Dems had held firm

Picture the sheer gold mine of footage AKA Political Manna From Heaven involving any of these GOP fucktards running for re-election, filibustering against reigning in a rapacious, predatory industry as pursued by it's CEO's and their boards of directors

That's how to spin the issue, yet another example of "corporate accountability" that the GOP refuses to participate in, and then show how it's hitting the taxpayers wallets and bank accounts. More money for an already financially over-saturated industry can't be that smart a strategy to campaign for by way of filibuster

If the GOP really wants to be so stupid as to filibuster AGAINST Price-Gouging restrictions, or higher taxes on an already under-regulated industry-while not doing a damn thing to stop increasing taxes on all others to benefit those at the very top of the economic ladder-then by God, let the GOP be as stupid as it is arrogant

But because the Dems yanked these items from consideration and debate, the GOP rolls up yet another cost-free political victory at the expense of the clear majority of taxpayers, and it's a victory that could/should have, instead, cost it dearly come the November 2008 eletions

What is the point of being the majority party if the only legislative action of any import is always held hostage by the minority party's mere threats of a filibuster, how does it hurt the Dems to let the GOP impale itself with even more self-inflicted political woes?

Make no mistake, the bumper-sticker politics would have played for the Dems this time, as it would have been the GOP in the position of arguing the value of nuance and understanding of complicated factors

And the only message this GOP attempted filibuster would have sent is that the Great Unwashed Electorate, The Angry Mob With Pitchforks & Torches are all too dumb, too blithering and simple to understand the supposedly "logical" intricacies inherent in the oil market

It's as if the GOP was on a high ledge, threatening to jump if it's stupidity wasn't rewarded, saying to the Dems "You'd better stop me from being so fucking stupid", and the Dems, incredibly, do just that

For God's Sakes, Dems, if the GOP wants to hang itself with its own rope, don't save the party from itself, instead, make sure the rope will hold

Father's Day

2007-06-17T09:34:00.000-06:00

Because I got my sense of humor from my Dad, I'm posting nothing today but laughariffic stuff, vids and articles, so Dad, Happy Father's Day, I can't say it any plainer than I am SO proud to be your kid

On some of these clips, if you want the full monitor size visual, click the text link, then click the small button on the bottom right side of the video player

Say Hello To Sofa King

The Greatest Salesman Ever-Except For Bibles-Edwin Childress

The All Drug Olympics

Father Of The Year, Len Datillo

Learn All About The Art Of Cork Soaking

The Pipe Gag

And to wrap it up, one of the absolute greatest gags ever, a few minor glitches with the video, sure wish I knew Italian

The Screaming, Motorcycle Riding Skeleton

Sometimes, Youtube Is The Perfect Reply To News

2007-06-04T08:14:00.000-06:00

And in this case, it's almost too perfect a reply

4 Charged in False Brain Surgery Claims

Four people billed a health insurance company for 20 brain operations that were never performed on them, sometimes for the same person on multiple occasions, authorities said.

One 36-year-old man from New York City claimed nine brain surgeries for himself, along with his wife and two sons, receiving reimbursements from New York-based Group Health Incorporated totaling $142,268, federal investigators said Friday.

GHI paid out more than $300,000 in reimbursements to all four defendants, based on the claims.

Besides the 36-year-old man, an indictment filed in federal court alleges that a 39-year-old man from Mount Vernon, a 42-year-old woman and a 37-year-old man, both from New York City, defrauded the insurance company.

Three were in custody and are likely to be arraigned next week. The 36-year-old man remained at large.

The indictment alleges that the Mount Vernon man, an employee at a medical billing company, altered claims to the insurance company by swapping the names of people who actually underwent brain surgery with two others charged in the scheme.

The fraudulent claims were then sent along with altered postoperative reports to the insurance carrier for reimbursement, the indictment alleges.

Ilene Margolin, a spokeswoman for GHI, told The New York Times that her company's own internal investigators first noticed the defendants' unusual claims before turning over its findings to the government.

Trying to claim insurance payments for nine brain surgeries, and not expecting the penny-pinchers to notice shows, indeed, the lack of brain power inherent in those taking part in, and running, this insurance scam/swindle

I think this sketch says it all, and it's subtitled as well, so it's twice as smart to watch and learn from

To see the sketch in full monitor size, Click Here, then hit the button on the bottom right side of the video player

R.I.P. Steve Gilliard, 1966-2007

2007-06-02T17:16:00.000-06:00

This really, really sucks

One of the real good guys of the bloggers, stuck up for the most politically powerless groups unapologetically, we need far more of Gilliard's spirit right about now

At least he got to witness the beginning of the Administration's and GOP's downfall, along with the inevitable collapse of the media whores still parroting blind support for all things W related

Gilliard also had to know that there's nothing to Administration or GOP can do to stop their strengthening implosion from coming to pass

I know political bullies and their enablers getting their justifiable comeuppance always gives my spirits a boost

For Steve Gilliard

Tears Aren't Enough To Get Through The Pain

2007-05-31T15:11:00.000-06:00

Tears and sobs alone don't get one through excruciating emotional & mental pain, sometimes, one must laugh and dance to mock the pain of loss

Really sucks the clip ends before it should, but not too much is missing

And another example of how the Dance is done, line-style

Better Some Jenny Pics Than None

2007-05-30T18:27:00.000-06:00

So, out of a whole roll of pics I focused mainly on Jenny, only four pictures came back developed, and only one of those came out halfway decently

Still, at least some of those pics came out, showing Jenny in happier times

I miss Jenny now more than when I wrote about her on Saturday

And this was the little beast herself, Jenny

I'm so thankful I was blessed with you as long as I was, you were truly the best of companions, always happy and purring, wonderful qualities when I had bad days

But it's also time to save another life, like Jenny's was saved so long ago, that's the best way I can think of to honor her memory

And sooner, rather than later

Memorial Day Considerations

2007-05-28T16:22:00.000-06:00

Various points to consider on this Memorial Day

First, because of how I elected to be present for my cat's being put to sleep on Saturday, this story really hit so close to a very emotional mark, and because it's here in my hometown of El Paso, it's another positive after the devastating loss of Jenny

Nobody should die alone and remain unlamented, although it happens far too often to far too many good people, and this seems like a VERY good, humanitarian cause, something that should appeal to The Better Angels Of Everyones Nature

Group ensures veterans get proper burials

No family or friends attended retired Sgt. Willie Clyde Tehart's burial Friday, but he was not alone.

Although Tehart, who died at 68 with more than 20 years of Army service, was laid to rest in a plain wooden coffin painted black, he received full military honors during his burial at Fort Bliss National Cemetery. Over his coffin was draped a U.S. flag, which was meticulously folded and inspected. He received a three-volley salute, and a bugler played taps.

"He gave É for the freedom you and I now enjoy," said Chaplain Ray Jennings, with the American Legion Post 36. "He went wherever the military sent him and did whatever his supervisors told him to do."

Tehart is one of a relatively small number of veterans who become estranged from family members or who simply outlive them, said Yolanda McKinney, co-chairwoman of the El Paso Homeless Veterans Burial Program Committee, a group that makes sure old troopers don't go unrecognized.

Tehart wasn't indigent or homeless, but the committee takes care of all former service members whose family members cannot be found or who decline to participate. Since 2003, only nine service members have been homeless or indigent, said Mary Slawson, of Kaster-Maxon Futrell Funeral Home in El Paso.

The home is part of the Dignity Memorial group of cemeteries, mortuaries and funeral homes nationwide that pay for the funerals and burials of indigent veterans.

Tehart made friends with clinicians at the Veterans Administration where he was receiving treatment, McKinney said. Tehart died in February, and the months since then were spent trying to find family, she said.

"The weather is good here, and many times when we come back from battle, we have a lot of post-traumatic stress disorder and just don't want to go home anymore," said Joe Lopez, commander of the honor guard for Dignity Memorial, who read a poem at Tehart's burial.

The program is "outstanding," said Gene B. Linxwiler, director of the Fort Bliss National Cemetery. "They put in a lot of effort, and they put in a service to a lot of veterans who would not be honored at the time of their interment."

Linxwiler said the cemetery provides burials without charge to veterans who, in general, were honorably discharged and completed their term of service. That includes use of a shelter, a headstone, perpetual maintenance of the grave, and a presidential memorial certificate.

Cemeteries in larger urban areas often have monthly memorial services for what are called "unaccompanied veterans."

In El Paso, veterans organizations attend the services and provide other support, McKinney said. The Marines stand out, she added.

"We still do the full honors even though there's no one there," said 1st Sgt. James Porter, spokesman for the Marine training center in Northeast El Paso.

On May 11, Marine Pvt. Robert Kyryl was buried at Fort Bliss National Cemetery with full honors.

Sgt. Michael Mascari, who has been stationed in El Paso since 2005, is responsible for the program and folded the flag for Kyryl. He said little was known about him.

"For the Marine that didn't have any family or next of kin, (we) do make a presence so veterans are not buried alone," Mascari said. "We feel that's the right thing to do. We are taking care of those who took care of us."

Asked whether he thought it was a duty, he responded: "In a sense, I guess you could say that, but more than that, it's an honor. (Nothing else matters), he was a Marine."

Whether the veterans left enough money to pay for the funeral services or were indigent, "we go (to the burial) just to witness the last rites and all,"McKinney said. "That's all we're here for, to make sure nothing falls through the cracks and for somebody to be there at the end."

How truly compassionate we are as a nation or people depends on how important we find issues like the one dealt with above, how we treat those which and whom we have political and physical power over says everything about the real characters of our nature

Far too many good people die horrible, lonely deaths, and remain unlauded at physically-empty funerals, there can't be a worse way to finish a life

This effort is an attempt to show that those lonely ghosts and souls lives did matter and make a difference, even if there are no mourners to bear witness to that ideal

That's a basic level of empathy that should be present in every society that dares to call itself "Civilized"

And yet another "REAL Toll Of The Iraq Occupation" column, and wrenching indeed on Memorial Day, but definitely something that needs to be impressed upon so much of the public that thinks it doesn't have a direct reason to be concerned about Iraq, a public which doesn't notice the real lives which can't be replaced, shredded limbs which cannot be replenished, minds which cannot be set back to the easier-going, pre-deployment status once exposed to the physical and ethical horrors of war, a collective yawn here when evil people kill good people far too quickly and easily, then go unpunished for it over in Iraq and Afghanistan

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Living on Iraq Time

By MIKE KONDOR

York, Pa.

EVERY evening at 10, beeps emanate from the top drawer of my dresser. The sound comes from a watch that has resided there for just over three years. The 20 beeps signify that another day is dawning in Iraq. The watch belonged to my son, Specialist Martin Kondor, who was killed in action with the Army on the morning of April 29, 2004, in the city of Baquba, north of Baghdad. Martin was 20 years old.

Since his death, three Memorial Days have come and gone, and while most people think of Memorial Day as just a day off from work, an occasion for a backyard cookout or a chance to score a good deal at a spectacular sale, for families like mine, Memorial Day has a more somber meaning. For us, the day is a further reminder that our loved one is gone forever.

It’s not that we need another reminder. Not a day goes by that we don’t think of Martin. My wife and I each carry one of his dog tags with us at all times. His picture hangs on the living room wall with those of his two brothers, and his bedroom has been left essentially as it was when he was alive. Two of the last packages we sent to him were returned after his death, and they’ve sat unopened in a corner of the room for the last three years.

For most Americans, when the morning alarm wakes us up, we step out of bed to begin our daily ritual. As we jump in the car, most of us don’t think twice about our commute to work, and if we are concerned at all, it’s not for our safety; rather, we’re worried that there might be a traffic jam that will make us late and prevent us from stopping for a quick cup of coffee.

But when Martin’s watch beeped every morning, it signaled the start of a day much different from what most of us are used to. Martin and his fellow soldiers had all volunteered to go to Iraq as members of a personal security detachment. Their sole mission was to safeguard the life of a brigade commander. And their daily commute from their home base to Baquba, where the commander would meet with city officials and tribal leaders, was often interrupted by rifle fire, rocket-propelled grenades and roadside bombs.

Martin — like many combat soldiers who have gone before and come after him, including his older brother, Trevor, who served with the 82nd Airborne — didn’t tell us much about what he was doing. He didn’t want us to worry. We learned most of what we now know about the last three months of his life from his buddies and his commanders.

My first indication of the nature of his mission and the situation he and the others were facing came in a satellite phone call Martin made to me after his team had survived a particularly nasty ambush. He described a horrific scene in which the convoy was taking fire from both sides of the road, with bullets and rocket-propelled grenades whizzing by his head from every direction. He said he just kept firing at every enemy target he could see; and when the convoy finally escaped the insurgents’ trap, he could hardly believe he and his team members had survived.

Exactly 20 days after I received that phone call from Martin, two grim-faced soldiers arrived at our door to tell us that Martin had been killed. It was an “improvised explosive device,” they said. An assassination attempt on the colonel. As the gunner on a Humvee, Martin was completely exposed to the blast.

Our only solace lay in the realization that Martin probably never had time to hear the blast that killed him, let alone feel it. Others are not always so lucky.

His buddies took his death pretty hard. A soldier from Martin’s company escorted his remains from Iraq to Germany, and one of his former platoon sergeants escorted Martin’s flag-draped coffin on the flight from Germany to the United States.

That sergeant and another who had helped train Martin assisted with the funeral arrangements and brought messages from Martin’s comrades and commanders in Iraq. Those still in the fight wanted us to know how much they respected and admired our son. Indeed, some of them got tattoos of Martin’s name or likeness, as did Martin’s younger brother, Joe. At Martin’s home base in Iraq, the colonel ordered that a school for soldiers on post be named the Kondor Education Center, in Martin’s memory.

Here at home, tokens of remembrance from Martin’s friends and former high school classmates still pile up at his gravesite. At his elementary school, his teachers planted a tree and placed a stone marker in front of the school. The inscription on the marker reads: “In memory of Army Specialist Martin Kondor, an American patriot.”

A scholarship fund was created at his high school, from which an annual award is given to a graduating senior who exhibits qualities of leadership and patriotism. And the county Veterans Administration office commissioned a bronze plaque to memorialize Martin and all the other local men and women who have died in Iraq and Afghanistan. The plaque joins the others, which date back to World War I, on the portico of the county courthouse.

As Martin’s buddies have completed their tours in Iraq, several of them have made the journey here to his hometown to pay their respects to us and to Martin. Tears always well up in my eyes as I watch each of them salute his gravesite. Others have written letters or e-mail messages, telephoned or sent packages or photos.

Last month, on April 29, the third anniversary of Martin’s death, we received an e-mail message from the man whose life our son had sworn to safeguard. He’s now a brigadier general, stationed in Baghdad this time on his second tour in Iraq. In his message, the general said: “None of us who served with your son will ever forget the day that he passed away. We will never forget him or his service to our nation. It was an honor to serve with your son.”

As I read those words, I realized that the greatest memorial of all for a fallen soldier lies not in the gravestones, bronze plaques or markers that display his name, but rather in the memories of his family and friends, and in the respect and admiration of his fellow soldiers and countrymen.

And so before heading out to the big sale or the opening of the town pool or the neighbors’ backyard barbecue, take some time to attend a local Memorial Day ceremony. Do this not just to glance over the gravestones or the plaques or the markers that list the fallen soldiers’ names, but out of respect for the friends, family members and comrades they leave behind — some of whom have died or are still alive or have yet to confront their fate.

Someday, Martin’s watch will fall silent, and I will no longer have my daily reminder of the new day dawning in Iraq. But his mother and I, his brothers, his friends and the soldiers who served with him will always have our memories of who he was and what he did for his country. And we will gladly tell his story. Isn’t that the purpose of Memorial Day?

That's the real price of war, paid by the real victims, those left behind to shoulder the most shattering of unnecessary grief and anguish, those left without their limbs and senses, those whose minds are irretrievably broken

So many people who don't or haven't had family or friends serve in the military also don't take into account the real lives of those under the helmet and behind the trigger, and all the fears and hopes invested in those troops by those left behind on the home front

And that's because, unlike every other major military engagement the US has been involved in, the Revolution, the Civil War, WW I, WW II, there's been no Administrative call to societal self-sacrifice for the greater good and success of what this Administration claims is the defining struggle of civilization, fighting terrorism on a global scale

The lives of those who serve in the military must never be viewed as dispensable, or worth the trifling and petty attitude of not even signing every condolence letter personally, say, by the Secretary Of Defense

Then, there's this story, which is one of those "Why the Hell isn't this already Standard Operating Procedure" articles, and one that all military families and backers ought to insist on being taught ASAP

Army Adds Lifesaving to Basic Training

The Army will begin teaching combat lifesaving instruction during basic training to enable soldiers to give critical medical care to wounded comrades on the battlefield.

The service's five basic training bases will begin teaching combat lifesaver training by June 15, including instruction on starting an IV and helping soldiers breathe through a tube, Army officials said. The bases train up to 180,000 soldiers annually, including National Guard and Reserve components.

Officials said medical care given immediately after injuries like gunshot wounds and those caused by improvised explosive devices could mean the difference between life and death. Simple lifesaving techniques could cut down on long-term injuries and deaths, they said.

``The most critical 10 minutes in a soldier's care in combat is the first 10 minutes,'' said Col. Kevin A. Shwedo, director of operations, plans and training for the Army Accessions Command, which oversees training. ``We've focused on the skills that would give us the greatest opportunity to evacuate an individual to a higher degree of health care.''

Previously, a limited number of soldiers in each unit were trained on advanced lifesaving procedures and most soldiers only received basic first aid techniques, like bandaging and performing CPR.

``You won't have to wait as long to find the one combat lifesaver you had trained,'' said Shwedo, whose command is based at Fort Monroe in Hampton.

More in-depth medical training can make the difference between bringing back a patient and bringing back a corpse, said Col. Patricia R. Hastings, director of the Army's Department of Combat Medic Training based at Fort Sam Houston in Texas.

``First aid is just not good enough anymore,'' she said.

Soldiers at Fort Sill in Oklahoma and Fort Knox in Kentucky already have begun the training.

Col. Annie Baker, commander of 434th Field Artillery Brigade at Fort Sill, said after only 10 days at basic training, soldiers there started the combat lifesaver certification course, which includes sticking needles into each other to learn how to establish an IV.

``We've had some soldiers that have been very timid and concerned - because people don't like shots - but not one soldier has not participated,'' Baker said. ``Some looked a little peaked going in there, but between the medics and the drill sergeants coaching and mentoring, they've gotten through it.''

Spc. John Hanson, who was a paramedic before he began training at Fort Sill, said it is important to learn the skills, even if it means getting ``poked by a complete stranger or someone you've only lived with for a couple of weeks.''

``We're used to getting shot at and people getting hurt,'' said the 29-year-old from Arlington, S.D. ``With more of us knowing how to help our buddies, maybe it will make for a more successful outcome.''

The new skill training is comprised of about one week of the soldiers' nine-week training program, and follows only rifle marksmanship and physical training in the time devoted to it.

This is one of those stories that offers hope and rage for both the very same reason, namely, future lives will be saved by the medical knowledge gained through a completely unnecessary military campaign in Iraq

And, lastly, an op/ed piece by Mel Laird, calling for National Service being as important to the US as military service is

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Turning Apathy Into Good Deeds

On Memorial Day, when we honor the men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, our thoughts turn to what all Americans can do to serve the cause of democracy. It is not enough for a few to fight the wars, guard the borders and serve in office while the majority reap the benefits. Too few Americans understand the price that must be paid to maintain our way of life.

As I listen to calls for reinstating the draft to meet our military's needs, I fear that we're not looking at the bigger picture. Young Americans do need to serve their country. But they are not all needed in the military, nor do all belong there. What our nation needs is a system of compulsory universal civil service for young people.

My views on compulsory service have evolved since 1953, when I entered the House of Representatives with universal military service on my agenda. After four years in the Navy during World War II and having seen the effect that the service had on my life and that of other veterans, I thought that we should require all men to serve in the armed forces for one or two years, beginning at age 18. But my thinking changed as the House Defense Appropriations Committee studied military manpower issues. Modern weaponry required extensive education and training, and it became clear that one must serve at least three years to make a serious contribution to the military.

From 1932 until 1971 the draft made it possible to maintain military manpower needs at low pay rates. Thousands were drafted by the Army for two years and sent to Vietnam with a minimum of training for a one-year tour. In addition to the low pay, the draft was extremely unfair to many young people because of all the loopholes and educational deferments. To end this unfairness, among other reasons, I moved first to the lottery draft and then sponsored and supported the all-volunteer force when I became secretary of defense.

Those who would reinstate the draft to meet the demands of the "war on terror" are misguided. The regular forces, National Guard and reserves need only about one out of every 18 young men and women coming of age to fill all of their manpower requirements. In the lifetime of the all-volunteer force, enough young people have enlisted in our military in times of peace and war. All services, including the Army Reserves and the Army National Guard, met or beat their enlistment quotas in the last quarter.

During the past 30 years, even when the pay and benefits of the volunteer military have been lower than in civilian life, our young people have stepped up. Some respond to an inner call to serve; others are motivated by an opportunity for education; still others are drawn to the adventure, challenge or camaraderie of military life. We ask them to risk their lives and put their families aside, but we dishonor them when we take their sacrifice and in return offer stingy paychecks, inadequate equipment and repeated combat tours.

The overuse of reserve and National Guard personnel can be helped if we pay for adequate compensation and medical treatment and if we care for military families. Equipment and supplies must also be rapidly restored after a deployment. Neither the Defense Department nor Congress is dealing with these problems; the current budget is inadequate and unrealistic. If this is not corrected soon, reenlistment rates could fall. Not only will the military suffer, but America cannot afford a generation of young people turning away from public service and all that it means.

Understandably, some youths do not feel that military service is the best way to express their desire to give something back. The military does not need all of them, nor should the Defense Department be saddled with another unwanted draft. But every department of government could benefit from universal service, as would many other institutions. Our schools are crying out for teacher assistants; our immigrant programs need additional staff; Head Start, the Peace Corps and special education programs need helpers, as do hospitals and nursing facilities. Young people could serve one or two years in a much-needed civilian universal service program run by the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Health and Human Services, or the State Department. Such service would foster a culture of responsibility for our democracy and, as such, would surely have the side benefit of increasing military enlistments. And those volunteering for the military would be exempt from the required civilian universal service.

I am not blind to the economic impact such an idea would have. A program would have to overcome the natural entanglements of the federal bureaucracy; it would not come cheaply; nor would there be universal enthusiasm for universal service. But in a time when our nation is threatened by antidemocratic forces from without, universal service would go a long way toward curing the apathy within.

Just a few things to consider on a day of remembrance, pondering the sacrifices those before us have made for our society and our Constitution

Saying Goodbye To Jenny

2007-05-26T12:56:00.000-06:00

UPDATED At The End

My cat Jenny's struggle has come to a sad, but necessary end

I just came back from the last visit to Jenny's vet she'll ever make, she's now at peace and her pain is gone

She was seemingly healthy until a severe asthma attack two weeks ago, and even though she looked great when I picked her up after getting past the asthma attack, I started steeling myself for the moment that happened today

I'm glad the last image I had of her wasn't when she was gasping for air at the emergency center

She weighed in at about 5 lbs when examined by her regular vet 12 days ago, but from that point on, she just went downhill, even though I was feeding her solid foods and chicken broth 5-6 times a day, to where she weighed just over 3 lbs today

She had a struggle trying to chew solid food, she started drooling and urinating, even though she wasn't aware of it, and, I found out today, her liver was starting to break down as well. In addition, she started losing her equilibrium, stumbling a little more each day, and even more wrenchingly, at times couldn't make the jump from the floor to the couch

And it was like Jenny knew it was her time to go, as it took the vet three tries to find a vein for the injection, and she didn't complain or flinch once. Even the vet was crying as she administered the shot

And showing just how weak she was, her heart stopped before the injection was over

It was wrenching, but there was no way I was going to let her slip into that good night alone, for all the joy she brought me, the least I could do was be there for her death

There's just no way to fully describe just how important she was to me, and how much I miss her already

When I had very bad days that left me frustrated or anxious, Jenny had the wonderful ability to take all that negative emotion and when petted, calm me down enormously with her complete calm nature

It's those little things I really cherish now, like how I could hold the bratbeast upside down, and she'd just look around with a contented look on her face. I could also drape her over my shoulder and let go, and she wouldn't even dig in with her claws

One of my favorite things was to hold her like she was Super Jenny, flying through the air like Superman, and for which she'd reward me with a very baleful look

I knew she was special when I ended up getting her from the Humane Society

I was going through a tough week emotionally, and decided, on the spur of the moment, that I was going to adopt a cat, and I did it then because I knew I'd talk myself out of it if I waited around

And so I went, and immediately ruled out adopting any cat sharing it's cage with another cat, as I didn't want to break them up. When I checked out the cages with one cat only, other than a quick sniff of my finger, they'd turn away

But the little black & white cat was different, she started rubbing around my finger and purring loud enough to hear

And that was how I knew Jenny was the right cat, she was so incredibly sweet, which meant whoever had her for the first 2 1/2 years did an excellent job in raising her to be so mellow and happy

I remember the way Jenny would be the scourge of the most evil thing she encountered, rubber bands

I remember how incredibly fast she was, even towards the end of her life

I remember watching Jenny's astonishing sense of balance when she walked on a box edge

I remember how, when sitting at this computer, I'd feel a nudge on my chair, and it was Jenny rubbing here little head against it, wanting to sit in my lap

I remember how, a few years after adopting Jenny, I thought she escaped from the apt I was at, in the middle of the night

It tore me up, and trying to find her in a residential neighborhood in the middle on the night was a futile task

I was sure she was gone

I was in anguish wondering how I could have let such a thing happen, as I never let Jenny outside, way too paranoid for that

And right when I was hurting and anguished, I heard a faint noise in the living room closet, and sure enough, when I opened the door, there was little Jenny, wondering just which idiot locked her accidentally in the closet-where she was quite comfortable actually

The joy I felt then can't be described other than overwhelming and instant

Jenny was the type of cat liked by people who don't otherwise like cats, as that's the case with some of my friends, and they weren't just bs-ing for my benefit, they genuinely liked the little beast.

And now she's gone, a living creature to being replaced by ashes, pictures and 16 years of memories so full of fondness and warm wishes, none of which would have happened without her, the one physical presence in my life for all its ups and downs

Thankfully, Jenny fought hard enough two weeks back so I could prepare myself to say goodbye, thankfully my last image of her wasn't gasping for air

I'm getting another cat or kitten at some point, I cannot picture my life without one, but this just hurts so much, as if there was any creature entitled to live forever, in perfect health, and surrounded by nothing but people who would worship and adore her, it was my Precious Little Horrid Bratbeast Jenny

Goodbye Jenny, I'll never forget you or stop loving you, and even though my pain and anguish are going to be continue for some time, at least your pain is over, and your dignity intact

I'm picking up Jenny's ashes on Tuesday, and to help deal with this grief, I'm planning on making a small donation every month, in Jenny's name, to some good cause, like the local Animal Rescue League-the only group that tries to place strays in good homes, or the Battered Womens Shelter, or Child Crisis Center

I've found that when I'm down, trying to do good for others is one way to undercut that depression or grief

UPDATE

At this point, I'm happy posting about Jenny, the more people who know about her the better it makes me feel

I have to add something else though, a touch of pure optimism on the same day Jenny passed on

A friend of mine is taking care of a coworkers 6 week old puppy-a plain ol' mutt that's as adorable as puppies are at six weeks

So I saw the full circle of life in my apartment, Jenny's winded up earlier in the day, yet here was new life, just exulting in the whole wide world around him

It bolstered my spirits up, as I'd forgotten just how cute pups can be, and watching the little guy play was an almost perfect tonic for a very sad heart like mine

And sincere Thanks again for all the support, here and at other sites, it helps immensely knowing that others are reading about Jenny

The Next Step, Possible Counterstep, And BIG Cudgel The Dems Can Still Play

2007-05-23T22:06:00.000-06:00

So if I'm Karl Rove, a bad long-running fiasco hasn't gotten any easier to bear, not with Alberto Gonzales ever-shifting stories that change according to the parameters of each successive document dump from the DoJ

On the other hand, Rove's undoubtedly thanking his political lucky stars that in spite of everything arrayed against his client-an overwhelmingly unpopular President, a Hostile Congressional Opposition Majority, an unnecessary occupation that's not only overburdening the US military, but clearly hampering the National & State Guard & Reserves ability to respond effectively in the events of disasters here at home, along with empowering the same groups and individuals the US initially went after for the Sept 11 strikes, the Taliban, al-Qaeda and Usama bin Laden, and completely self-inflicted scandals and legal woes striking every Department, Agency and Bureau directly under the Executive Branch's control-the Dem leadership is still taking orders from the DLC, the same group that blundered and botched two straight Presidential elections against a candidate they should have beaten handily, and even though the public is overwhelming in its desire for this occupation to end, the Dem leadership trembles more in fear of a hissy fit from W than in a possible ballot-box Bitchslap come November, 2008

The Dems leadership spins this as a win in terms of all the money that's going to Katrina Victims, veterans care and other good causes

What's not acknowledged, however, is that this is money that was already appropriated, or should have been earmarked, so the Dems basically told W to give them what was already due the people that money was supposed to help, go to and serve

But now that the Dem leadership has once again fumbled badly at a time competent leadership demanded at least fighting back fiercely against this most vile of bullies occupying the Oval Office, they shouldn't expect this Administration to keep the celebrating and provocations to a minimum

If anything, now that the Dem leadership has infuriated the majority of its voters, look for this President to really rub their nose in it

So, expect to see at least one, maybe more, recess appointments be handed out while the Congress is on its Memorial Day break, and the more loathsome the candidates appointed this way, the more it's a strategy in keeping with how Rove and W operate, both bullies who enable the worst of the other to come out

Watch for W to issue more signing statements attempting to castrate the bills the Dems traded their timeline for

Don't be surprised if the Administration reacts in an especially churlish manner to any claims, demands or subpoenas issued during the break, and refuses to comply with any requests or demands from the Congress

In short, to build up some badly needed aggressive momentum with its wingnut, warmongering, ChickenHawk, Neocon base, this Administration and the GOP are going to ratchet up the insults and jabs aimed at the Dems during the Memorial Day Break

This Administration and GOP pushback on the Dems collapse will be infuriating to deal with, it will be absolutely enraging, it will be vile and cause spikes in blood pressure and hostility, and it will produce much gloating among people absolutely ravenous for another taste of the power they felt on W's second inauguration, when all was right and proper in their nasty little worlds

What will make this gloating hardest to bear will be the likelihood that it won't be countered by the Dems, that we'll have to eat it and choke hard, just like we did when W supposedly "won" both elections

But there's one strategy that could, if properly played by the Dem leadership, not only galvanize all us irate libs and anti-war voters, but instantly turn the tables leading to howls of fury and unsalved anger from those gloating the loudest right about now

Since the 2008 budgets will start coming up for Congressional votes in September, the Dems should say "enough" to funding all right

That is, funding the Executive Branch

I'm not talking about zeroing-out budgets for the agencies, departments and bureaus under Executive Branch control, just funding for the Executive Branch itself, it's functions and personnel who work exclusively at the White House

Pass the various budgets, then let the Administration shift funds around, like it already does, to keep itself operating

And if the argument arises that such a punitive, spiteful act is illegal, or somehow beyond Congress' purview, then let Congress pay as much heed to the laws and separation of powers that W does, and then go the extra step

Let Congress issue a signing statement of its own, namely, that they apportion to themselves the right to cancel out Presidential signing statements, preemptively blocking W's ability to undercut the very bills he signs into law

Forcing the issue is exactly what the Administration, GOP and their rapidly dwindling number of true believers will never expect in the midst of their gloating, it would be a way to hit back as hard at a clearly out of control President as he enjoys lashing out at everyone else, and it would instantly regain the Dem leadership a measure of now non-existent trust from its very angry base

With or without the Dems help, the GOP collapse is already under way, as the party knows that it can't count on help from an embattled, bunkered-down Administration, yet still hasn't found enough strength to toss the President and Cheney over the political rail, in spite of the smacking the voters gave the GOP and Administration's Iraq policy in the November 2006 elections

The GOP needs to be pushed off the political ledge, and the Dems can't do that by giving W everything he wants every time he throws a hissy fit and stamps his little feetsies in whiny petulance

So, like so many parents when they threaten to "give you something to cry about", let the Dems give W something to throw a temper tantrum over, just like taking a favored belonging away from a spoiled brat

Zero Out the Executive Branch Funding At The First Available Opportunity

Still Seething

2007-05-23T18:46:00.000-06:00

Because I'm still pissed off about the Dems rolling over for W, and even moreso because in order to have any kind of chance against smashing the GOP into a million pieces requires the Dems at the national level-because it's the only political opposition able to operate on as wide and deep a scale as the GOP, requires that us anti-war believers still work with the Dems

But by God, the Dems have got to get throttled into doing the right thing, as even with the overwhelming majority of the US backing them on ending this cataclysmic Iraq campaign, the Dems are acting as if they're still helplessly in the minority.

What makes this decision even more of a very bitter pill to swallow is that, politically, it doesn't make any sense at all, not with the GOP cracking over W's policies, and not with the Administration being in complete Free Fall right now, beset by political opportunists, formerly loyal political allies in the Congress and abroad, self-inflicted scandals rocking almost every Department, Bureau & Agency under Administration control and the consequences of a President's disastrous military leadership that hasn't yet gotten correct even one pre-occupation prediction of post-Hussein Iraq

It's as if W is not only on the precipice of a rapidly crumbling ledge, but also on grease-slicked banana peels, and instead of giving W a hearty push, the Dem leadership instead pulls him away from his richly-earned political drop, and then apologizes for any mussing of his suit they caused in the process of rescuing President Jr from himself

The Dems gave W a very badly needed political victory, and it's just SO fucking aggravating

A perfect comparison was one made at one of the sites I checked out to see just how irate people are about this cave-in, so I do NOT take credit for the comparison, it's not mine, and I wish I knew who to give the proper credit to. Namely, the Dems Leadership at the national level resembled Gen McClellan during the Civil War, an incompetent dismissed twice by Lincoln for always over-estimating the South's strengths while underestimating the strengths of the Union Army under his command, and freezing up with doubt instead of acting with the decisive military advantage everyone but McClellan, himself, apparently knew he possessed

So, because I'm still seething about this, I'll let the video and lyrics express the level of frustration I'm at right now

Tool-"Aenema"

Some say the end is near.
Some say well see armageddon soon.
I certainly hope we will.
I sure could use a vacation from this

Bullshit three ring circus sideshow of
Freaks

Here in this hopeless fucking hole we call la
The only way to fix it is to flush it all away.
Any fucking time. any fucking day.
Learn to swim, Ill see you down in arizona bay.

Fret for your figure and
Fret for your latte and
Fret for your lawsuit and
Fret for your hairpiece and
Fret for your prozac and
Fret for your pilot and
Fret for your cable and
Fret for your car.
Its a
Bullshit three ring circus sideshow of
Freaks

Here in this hopeless fucking hole we call la
The only way to fix it is to flush it all away.
Any fucking time. any fucking day.
Learn to swim, Ill see you down in arizona bay.

Some say a comet will fall from the sky.
Followed by meteor showers and tidal waves.
Followed by faultlines that cannot sit still.
Followed by millions of dumbfounded dipshits.

Some say the end is near.
Some say well see armageddon soon.
I certainly hope we will cuz
I sure could use a vacation from this

Silly shit, stupid shit...

One great big festering neon distraction,
Ive a suggestion to keep you all occupied.

Learn to swim.

Moms gonna fix it all soon.
Moms comin round to put it back the way it ought to be.

Learn to swim.

Fuck l ron hubbard and
Fuck all his clones.
Fuck all those gun-toting
Hip gangster wannabes.

Learn to swim.

Fuck retro anything.
Fuck your tattoos.
Fuck all you junkies and
Fuck your short memory.

Learn to swim.

Fuck smiley glad-hands
With hidden agendas.
Fuck these dysfunctional,
Insecure actresses.

Learn to swim.

Cuz Im praying for rain
And Im praying for tidal waves
I wanna see the ground give way.
I wanna watch it all go down.
Mom please flush it all away.
I wanna watch it go right in and down.
I wanna watch it go right in.
Watch you flush it all away.

Time to bring it down again.
Dont just call me pessimist.
Try and read between the lines.
I cant imagine why you wouldnt
Welcome any change, my friend.

I wanna see it all come down.

Strong Leadership Requires A Spine & A Willingness To Fight

2007-05-22T17:02:00.000-06:00

From numerous postings made at various sites yesterday and today, and I am so pissed off, I can't see straight

Just what is it about standing up to an overwhelmingly unpopular and politically weak President that saps so many Dems of their spines?

Dems to Send Bush No-Timeline War Bill

The Dems completely caved on this, they should have sent W even harder Iraq funding bills to sign, as they could rightfully claim it was W who was playing politics with the US troops by vetoing very troop-friendly bills

This cowardice, when the public is clamoring for an end to the idiotic Iraq mission, is exactly why I will not register as a Dem

The Dems are trying to spin this as a way to get that minimum wage increase they championed signed into law, but if that comes with even more tax breaks for those already at the top of the economic ladder, then it's hard to see an overall positive effect

Send the minimum wage itself to W for a veto, see how well that plays for the GOP come November 2008, especially with a very key demographic that the Dems should be courting as hard as possible, Unmarried & Single women and mothers

Every day that goes by, every day we get closer to the November 2008 elections, GOP support for W's Iraq crusade crumbles a bit more, yet here the Dems are, acting as if they're the ones the public is against regarding Iraq

For every strong step forward towards holding W and the GOP accountable, the Dems apparently feel they have to take two weak steps backwards

Leadership isn't easy, and giving W everything he wants with no accountability in return does not make for successful political leadership, either now or in the long term

If the Dems roll over for W now, it's politically stupid, as the GOP's membership in the House and Senate have been making lots of noise about needing to see real progress from W's Iraq escalation by September, which is when Petraeus originally said enough time would have passed to give an initial assessment about any "success" attributable to the troop escalation

The Dems not being able to overcome a veto is one thing, the Dems not fighting for what they were elected to carry out is something else entirely

If the Dems can't even stand up to as politically weak and socially unpopular a President as W, that's not going to do them well in November 2008, as the talking points will paint the party as too weak to be trusted with public safety

For EVERYTHING that's happened at the hands of the GOP and President since Inauguration Day, 2001, the Dems have GOT to fight back against the Administration and it's enablers of all stripes with every bit of energy and strategy they have, and if they lose a battle, they get back up and try again

And again, and again, and again

You don't give up at the first defeat-if that would have been Lincoln's mindset, the North would have lost the Civil War

But our Civil War had two clear-cut sides, with fighting guaranteed to end when a formal Peace was declared

But who, exactly, are the US troops fighting for in Iraq's multi-sided Civil War?

The same people who have gotten every single aspect about Iraq wrong, the same people who have overburdened the US military to this extent, are the same people the Dems are giving in to here

The Dems "held their powder dry" when it came to NOT filibustering W's Supreme Court nominations, and look what it got them, and, unfortunately, the rest of us as well

The Dems have GOT to stop listening to the idiots like Lieberman and all the other W-enablers who say that to oppose the President at this time is tantamount to being an al-Qaeda sympathizer, and therefore an obvious affront to the values of most of the US public

And that the Dems are listening to such rhetoric over the REAL voters who wanted a definite wrap up of the unnecessary Iraq campaign is not only a cause for anger, but an insult as well if they choose to absolutely give W everything he's insisted on like a petulant child

To collapse like this as the GOP is noticeably now cracking in it's former fervent support of All Things W related, ESPECIALLY Iraq makes absolutely no political sense when so many GOP defections are being suggested for September if the Iraq escalation hasn't brought about noticeable and large decreases in the every day violence, while bringing about large, noticeable increases in security at the basic, street level

From a political and real-world perspective, it makes no sense for W to get everything he wants without paying the heaviest of political prices

The Dems may lose if they fight, but they definitely lose when they don't fight

If it weren't for all the damage W and the GOP have wreaked on our country and our Constitution in such a short time, I wouldn't be as upset as I am

For far too long have the GOP and W run like the most roughshod of bullies, and what I've learned the hard way is that bullies have to be stopped, they can't be reasoned with or appealed to, the only thing they understand all too often is a good swift crack across their mealy mouths, rhetorically speaking

So while I'll blast the Dems on this, I'll be arguing at the same time for even harder investigations of this Administration

But we have to do something the GOP was unwilling to do with W or it's own leadership, namely, hold the Dems leadership to account

The GOP's twin base of socially-conservative and corporate-friendly interests NEVER held the party accountable or required Executive Branch oversight from the GOP-run Congress, and that lack of Executive or Legislative branch oversight ended up helping the party and Administration get so thoroughly destroyed in the last election

So that's why us libs, even those of us not in the Dem party, need to be forceful with the Dem leadership when it's needed, the results of unchecked political power are never conducive to an effective democracy or that party's future success

And topping it all is the reality that the GOP is absolutely crashing & burning, regardless of the Dems blunders, and that reality is only going to get uglier for the GOP the longer the US is bogged down in Iraq, it's their war, and they can't shift the blame for their role in this completely unnecessary military action, no matter how fervently the GOP wishes otherwise

As we're watching with the completely self-inflicted fiasco regarding purged US Attorneys and the resulting Administrative cover up, the Administration is flying apart at the seams as well, a political trap it can't escape whether Gonzales resigns or stays on as AG, and that's only the Administration scandal that's getting most of the media attention right now, not all the scandals currently dogging it

When I blast the Dem leadership, there are Dems I will laud as well, and in this case, as is so often the pattern, Senator Russ Feingold is exactly why I have even a miniscule amount of hope regarding his party, along with others like Leahy, Durbin & Boxer

And Feingold is none too happy with this strategy either, as shown by his post at Daily Kos today

A Collapse for Democrats

This is no time to back down. This fight to end the war isn’t something that we can just put off or kick down the road. As mcjoan pointed out, it doesn’t make any sense to wait until this "mythical September" when Republicans will suddenly decide that we need to get out of Iraq. Why should this wait until September? First Americans had to put up with a Republican Congress that did nothing, and now we are faced with a Democratic Congress that is giving the President exactly what he wants – continuing his failed policy and leaving our troops stuck in the middle of a civil war. Some strategy. We can’t back down when the stakes are so high. I know you’ll keep ratcheting up the pressure, and that’s exactly what we need right now. Now is the time to be pulling out all the stops to end the war.

Exactly right, and thank you Sen Feingold for stating it as plainly as this

Backing down to a politically weak, and socially unpopular President at the same time his own party's support of his policies is crumbling-and with even more GOP support likely to flee from W come September, when assessments of W's escalation are expected-makes absolutely no political sense whatsoever

The Dems can't override a veto, but they need to make W pay as heavy a price as possible for pursuing his pig-headed strategy of Leadership by Spite to the US public which overwhelmingly smacked his GOP enablers last November

And as much as I'd like a 3rd party right now, the reality is that the Dems are the only group organized and powerful enough at the National level to get results in terms of thwarting W's lunatic military leadership

But the Dem leadership has got to stop living in fear of aggressively challenging W on any and all aspects of his Iraq occupation, they know why they were elected while the GOP was so demolished at the polls last November, and yet, they're still not making W pay a heavy political price regarding Iraq, even though the public clearly wants a draw down and exit from Iraq, sooner rather than later

Check out the lib sites, the anger at the Dem leadership on this is palpable and has the ability to derail the Dems political reversal of fortunes it finally accomplished last year

And as noted before, the Dems rolling on this is even more choke-inducing because the GOP is crumbling apart over Iraq, and the Administration is in complete free-fall in terms of self-inflicted political fiascoes and scandals

And the GOP is in free fall because it failed to exercise any oversight of W or it's own leadership, which allowed the problems to fester and expand. We have to keep pressure on the Dem leadership right now to avoid those future problems, aggressive voter oversight of their leadership is the only chance the Dems have at future political success

One thing the Dems could do to counter the impression that they'll constantly roll over for W is to really ratchet up the investigations, and that means putting repulsive political operatives like Karl Rove through as nasty a public and political meat-grinder as possible, in other words, give Rove a VERY nasty taste of his own foul political tonic

This Administration is made up of cowards and bullies, and the only way to deal with bullies is to confront them at every opportunity

Bullies can't be reasoned with, their "better natures" can't be appealed to, the only thing that gets them to move on is standing up to them whenever possible

That's how you deal with the Bush Jr Administration, treat them like the bullies and cowards they are, and NEVER back down, especially when the public is as against this President as it is

And now that this story is on CNN, there's one additional detail that makes it even more infuriating than before

Namely, this

Withdrawal timetable dropped from war spending bill

The House is expected to vote on the bill late this week. A House Democratic leadership aide acknowledged that there would be resistance from some liberal members of the party but expressed confidence that there will be "enough support" from House Republicans to pass the bill.

Great, us libs-and the majority of the Dems own voters from this past election-get ditched by the Dem leadership and strategists in spite of the fact the public sides with us regarding Iraq, and then they team up with the GOP to actually give W everything he wants, a party in massive disarray

The Dems will never pressure W into changing course and doing the Will Of The People by letting him roll up badly-needed cost-free political victories like this one

So the insanity that is W's Iraq Crusade continues, and Usama bin Laden laughs about how easy W is to manipulate and lead around by the nose

Just so aggravating on so many levels

Just so fucking aggravating

Abortion By The Numbers

2007-05-21T21:59:00.000-06:00

So, let's put the recent abomination of a Supreme Court decision in some context

The main problem with the decision is that it legitimized an absolutely atrocious mindset, one held by an absolute miniscule percentage of women the court claimed it was protecting from themselves

The court said that since some women who have late-term abortions might feel bad about that decision psychologically somewhere down the far-off road, then that possibility was of future mental anguish was enough to ban the safest way to perform the "never-done-for-convenience" late term abortions

And using the numbers from the anti-choicers side, one sees just how weak that "protecting women from themselves" argument really is

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Abortion Foes See Validation for New Tactic

For many years, the political struggle over abortion was often framed as a starkly binary choice: the interest of the woman, advocated by supporters of abortion rights, versus the interest of the fetus, advocated by opponents of abortion.

But last month’s Supreme Court decision upholding the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act marked a milestone for a different argument advanced by anti-abortion leaders, one they are increasingly making in state legislatures around the country. They say that abortion, as a rule, is not in the best interest of the woman; that women are often misled or ill-informed about its risks to their own physical or emotional health; and that the interests of the pregnant woman and the fetus are, in fact, the same.

The majority opinion in the court’s 5-to-4 decision explicitly acknowledged this argument, galvanizing anti-abortion forces and setting the stage for an intensifying battle over new abortion restrictions in the states.

Here's the gruesome imagery the anti-choice crowd always pushes regarding the "never-done-for-convenience" late term abortions, because it's the supposed victims of this type of abortion that the anti-choice crowd will use to justify an outright ban on all abortions for all reasons, including if the life of the mother is at stake

The case before the Supreme Court involved a specific type of abortion, occasionally used after the first trimester, that involves removing a fetus intact after collapsing its skull. Justice Kennedy upheld that ban on narrower, legal grounds, but he used the Justice Foundation brief to write more broadly about the emotional impact of abortion on women.

“While we find no reliable data to measure the phenomenon, it seems unexceptionable to conclude some women come to regret their choice to abort the infant life they once created and sustained,” Justice Kennedy wrote, alluding to the brief. “Severe depression and loss of esteem can follow.”

Given those stakes, the justice argued, “The state has an interest in ensuring so grave a choice is well informed.”

Really, well, from what I can gather, in many cases, an abortion is actually a SAFER choice for women than carrying a pregnancy to term would be, but I suppose those women don't do the anti-choicers any good politically or socially

Unfortunately, neither do the real numbers bear out the Court's rather overbearing and ultra-obnoxious patriarchal concerns

All sides agree that the debate reached a new level of significance when Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, writing the majority opinion in the Supreme Court case last month, approvingly cited a friend-of-the court brief filed by the Justice Foundation.

The foundation, a nonprofit public interest litigation firm that has handled an array of conservative causes, has increasingly focused on abortion through its project called Operation Outcry. Mr. Parker said the group began hearing from women in the late 1990s who considered themselves victims of legalized abortion — physically and emotionally — and wanted to tell their stories. Operation Outcry, which grew to include a Web site, a national hot line and chapters around the country, eventually collected statements from more than 2,000 women, officials said.

In its friend-of-the-court brief, the group submitted statements from 180 of those women who said that abortion had left them depressed, distraught, in emotional turmoil. “Thirty-three years of real life experiences,” the foundation said, “attests that abortion hurts women and endangers their physical, emotional and psychological health.”

So, the foundation claims that it "eventually collected statements from more than 2,000 women" and from that pool of over 2000 women compiled from "33 years of real life experience" mental & emotional anguish resulted a grand total of "180 of those women who said that abortion had left them depressed, distraught, in emotional turmoil."

Now, lets take a look at total abortions performed since the Roe VS Wade decision in 1973, and according to 2005 figures

What is the total number of legal abortions since 1973?

As of the most recent update of this FAQ, the estimated total number of abortions is over 46 million.

180 VS 46,000,000, seems like there'd be more complaints that could be cited by the Friends of the Court Kennedy relied on so illogically

Again, I'm conflating the numbers with the purpose of those making the claim of future psychological harm for women who have had abortions, late term in this case, but an argument the anti-choice crowd will try to conflate to abortion in general

But lets look at the numbers for "never-done-for-convenience" late term abortions

How is a partial birth abortion (D & X) performed?

The D & X abortion is used in late second and third trimesters (24-36 weeks).

And those numbers, from 2001, based on approx 1.3 million abortions yearly

How many abortions are performed at each stage of pregnancy?

21+ weeks

1.5%

19,500

Remember, from this site a "late term abortion" is one that takes place after 24-36 weeks, but even going by the most conservative estimate, that one dealing with abortions after 21 weeks, that's 19,500 Late Term abortions, vs 180 complaints of mental & emotional anguish compiled from over 33 years of taking such complaints

To recap, the Supreme Court decided that the harm that occured to 180 women outweighed the real-world physical trauma that over 19,000 women-and that's an OLD figure, from 2001-would have endured if they couldn't have ended their doomed pregnancies in the most medically safe and effective way possible for the women unlucky enough to have to make this choice

46,000,000 VS 180 filed briefs/complaints

19,000 LTA's in one year VS 180 complaints of mental/emotional anguish compiled over 33 years

The numbers suggest the Court's concern is less legal-driven than an example of utterly condescending wish fulfillment on the part of the Supreme Court justices who fancy themselves as Chivalrous in trying to protect women from themselves

One other note from the article is worth mentioning, an example to never take past Supreme Court success as settled law for granted in the future

The abortion-rights side was caught off guard, in part because its strategists believe the scientific debate has been so decisively settled against the Justice Foundation’s argument over the years. “We thought that brief was so extraneous that we didn’t even bother coming up with a response to it,” said Mr. Evans of Planned Parenthood.

This is the absolute perfect definition of complacency and smugness, and it would be worth mocking if the results for women who have to go through this wrenching decision weren't so appalling already, namely, not being able to end a doomed pregnancy in the safest, most effective way possible

And unless the right to abortion, including an explicit statement that says the health & life of the mother takes precedence at every stage of the pregnancy, is enshrined in the Constitution, then the rights of women will be only suggestions or guidelines depending on where in the US they're at

As a guy, I'm obviously not affected by the abortion debate, but as a citizen, I'm appalled that sheer emotion alone can result in the loss of personal hegemony, and if it can happen to women in the case of late-term abortion, it can happen to anyone else as well, for whatever reason involving otherwise personal autonomy

Don't want an abortion?

Then don't have one

Pretty simple, cut & dried, end of story

Now, Now Chuck, Do Run Along And Break Some Boards With Your Head, Or Something

2007-05-16T00:21:00.001-06:00

And leave the heavier thinking to adults not smitten enough by your celebrity status to give you a free pass for your stupidity status

Pope Razi The Nazi Blesses Genocide & Forced Religious Conversion-Oh, And Falwell Died Too

2007-05-15T13:48:00.001-06:00

This is a perfect example of why I left the Catholic Church almost 20 years ago, the pernicious influence of those more addicted to worldly power than doing good for the least amongst us

I have a feeling Benedict's in for a metaphysical Bitchslapping for this crack-brained BS when he passes on

Brazil Indigenous Groups Fault Pope Talk

Indian rights groups are criticizing Pope Benedict XVI for insisting that Latin American Indians wanted to become Christian before European conquerors arrived centuries ago.

The pope said Sunday that pre-Columbian people of Latin America and the Caribbean were seeking Christ without realizing it. "Christ is the savior for whom they were silently longing," Benedict told a regional conference of bishops in Brazil.

So, those forced to accept religious dogma at the point of spears and barrels of cannons were "silently longing" for the misery such dogma guaranteed back then, and we're supposed to accept that Pope Ratzi the Nazi is some kind of egghead, or towering intellect?

But Paulo Suess, an adviser to Brazil's Indian Missionary Council, said Monday that the comments fail to account for the fact that Indians were enslaved and killed by the Portuguese and Spanish settlers who forced them to become Catholic.

The comments not only "fail to account for", they are spin of the most repulsive type, an after-the-fact justification for acts clearly unjustifiable if Christ's words are the markers of Catholic theology

That Benedict felt free enough to utter such twaddle is an indicator of just how much the mission of outreach to the poor and powerless has become perverted to Benedict's pursuit of religious power to benefit the already powerful and affluent

Benedict "is a good theologian, but it seems he missed some history classes," said Suess, whose council is supported by the Roman Catholic Church.

No, Benedict is NOT "a good theologian" with this rhetoric, he's explicitly endorsing the forced persecution and natural-resource rape of those the Church benefited from victimizing for centuries, there's just no way to spin this speech in any other fashion

The pope told the bishops that, "the proclamation of Jesus and of his Gospel did not at any point involve an alienation of the pre-Columbus cultures, nor was it the imposition of a foreign culture."

So, it was just such a happy-for the Church anyways-coinkydink that forced religious conversions weren't actually "the imposition of a foreign culture"?

No doubt, it was the indigenous peoples themselves who forced themselves to convert for the glory and gain of the Catholic Church, an interesting proposition to be sure, much like the also interesting proposition that heresy such as a non-flat Earth spinning around the sun required people be tortured to death to show God's wisdom in giving us the most wondrous object of all, our minds

It's becoming apparent that Pope Ratzi the Nazi has no problems with theologically-supported genocide, or raping a people of their natural resources that the Church wasn't blessed by God to control from the start

But Marcio Meira, who is in charge of Brazil's federal Indian Bureau, said Indians were forced to convert to Catholicism as the result of a "colonial process."

"As an anthropologist and a historian I feel obliged to say that, yes, in the past 500 years there was an imposition of the Catholic religion on the indigenous people," Meira said.

In Guatemala, where 42 percent of the nation's 12 million people call themselves Indian, the former presidential commissioner on racism said the pope's comments were a step backward.

"To say that there was no imposition is a falsification in light of the history if those that did not accept the faith were flagellated," said Ricardo Cajas.

Brazil once had an estimated 2,000 Indian tribes, but many have died out or assimilated into the general population since the nation was settled by the Portuguese in the 16th century, according to the Indian Missionary Council. Brazil's 2000 census found about 700,000 Indians in Latin America's most populous country.

So it's not enough to spin this warped hypocrisy in a way that Benedict absurdly hopes will find favor today, no, Pope Ratzi the Nazi is sliming the victims of the religiously and materially based genocide his organization helped encourage and carry out, as is shown by the following

Benedict said that indigenous Latin Americans formed "a synthesis between their cultures and the Christian faith which the missionaries were offering them."

Of course the Latin Americans "formed a synthesis between their cultures and the Christian faith which the missionaries were offering them", after all, the indigenous peoples had long-established religious practices and natural resources that they couldn't wait to change and give away to the Catholic Crusaders who stumbled upon their thriving societies

And even more surely, according to Benedict, those peoples were just begging to be tortured into religious conversion, and couldn't wait to be relieved of their worldly goods, actions & results helpfully brought about by the Church at the time

He added that any return by those indigenous populations to their original religions "would be a step back."

So, I guess that rules out any chances that, in order to prove his point of the supposed supremacy of his faith, Benedict will offer to return any and all gold, silver or other valuable minerals to their proper indigenous owners, fully confident that those dispossessed of such materials are more than happy how their ancestors involuntarily enriched the same Church which now supports their genocide and rape of centuries-long duration

For anyone who can try and spin genocide and rape of natural resources for their own benefit as being somehow "Christian", well, there's not a level of Hell deep, permanent or miserable enough to contain their sick hypocrisy and evil souls

And speaking of sick hypocrites, Jerry Falwell died

While I won't mock the pain his loved ones are going through, I certainly won't grieve or lose the least amount of sleep over this truly evil and unhinged slimy religious hypocrite, not with all the hateful rhetoric Falwell was so quick to dish out to all who didn't agree with his willfully ignorant and deliberate perversion of the deity he claimed to follow

Falwell had no problem deliberately inflicting pain on those who didn't deserve it in the least, he was a vile bastard who would have been the first to scourge Christ, bind him to wood with spikes of steel, mock Jesus enthusiastically, drag the Crown of Thorns on Christ's scalp and spear his side as Jesus died upon the Cross

If there's a Hell, I have no doubt Falwell's roasting there now

And irony of ironies, it appears God finds more favor with Falwell's most infamous antagonist, Larry Flynt, seeing as how Flynt's still alive and kicking

A MUCH Better Appreciation For My Mom

2007-05-13T14:11:00.000-06:00

It's interesting how things come back to you when going through suddenly stressful situations, especially those involving family

Friday night, I had to take my cat Jenny, to the emergency animal center, she was having a bit of trouble breathing, but nothing as drastic or scary as the wheezing attacks she gets every once in a while

I'm as fiercely devoted to this critter as parents are with their children, she's been there when I've had incredibly bad, stressful days. Jenny somehow transfers all that negative energy from getting petted and helps diminish the anxiety and ire factors from overwhelming to merely bad, and the fact that she's the sweetest cat around, in terms of genuinely liking to be around people, and almost demanding worship by petting from anyone in her immediate vicinity just makes her far more than a mere pet for me

Jenny's not used to going to the vets regularly, not in the 16 of 18 years I've had her-especially since she's an indoor cat, and I'm overly paranoid about not letting her slip outside-but when she does have to make the trip, she doesn't usually have a problem with her temperature taken

But this time, Jenny put up a real fuss, and it was during this time that she started gasping for air, and it got so much worse in just a few seconds that I couldn't believe how quick and overwhelming it was

I started panicking, and raised my voice

"Oh my God, Jenny, Jenny, please, do something for her", while the tears started, just as dramatic as any such scenario on any medical show, when the patient suddenly goes critical in the presence of their family or friends

Jenny's system was shutting itself down rapidly, and when the vets assistants rushed her to the back, not letting me come with her, I just couldn't get that brutal visual from my eyes, it just kept replaying constantly while I waited for some word for about 30 minutes

And that's how I realized just how hard so many of you mothers have it, especially those with chronically or terminally ill children you love and value above all else in the universe

I had asthma so severe when I was a child that I was a regular visitor to the emergency room, about ten blocks and one left turn straight down the street from our house

There were at least three occasions when the asthma was severe enough to stop my heart for a few minutes at a time, and my parents witnessed every one of those heart stoppages

And when that was the last image I had of my poor cat, her gasping for air while her system shut down, but she was conscious of what was happening, making the panicking even more brutal for Jenny to go through

When you're gasping for breath, and it's your own system shutting down, and you're conscious enough to know what's happening but can't stop it in any way, it's terrifying

And that's what wrenched my heart, how terrified, helpless and aware Jenny was, and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it

And that's when I realized exactly what my mom went through when it happened to me as a child

And so, for about 30 minutes, while waiting for some word on Jenny, all I could think of was how the possibility of suddenly losing her, and how I wasn't ready for that to happen, was the same kind of sudden situation my mom had faced regarding me

The vet came in and wasn't sugarcoating or varnishing how bad the situation was

"She's trying to crash and die on us"

I remember that I was rather calm when she said this, it was a splash of icy cold water to the soul, but it forced me to focus on a very unpleasant possibility that would have been far more painful to ignore or hope away otherwise

And for another 45 minutes, I couldn't think of anything except how I'd better make my peace with saying goodbye to Jenny, hoping that the last image of her would be of a cat that simply went to sleep and didn't wake up as opposed to always remembering her gasping and panicking to in a futile attempt to breathe

I realized the worst aspect of parenthood then, the same ones my parents faced

The possibility of sudden loss of your loved ones, your children

A worse fate cannot exist for parents who have faced that loss, or actually been forced to go through it, it's the most shattering of experiences, and one that will never be gotten over, or an outcome one can ever "find closure" on

I was tearing myself up at this point, I called my mom & sister from the emergency center, and they offered me whatever help they could

It was then I realized what a true Godsend my family is, sure, we have our differences and disagreements, but when it matters most, we come through for each other

My sister lost her cat-around the same age as Jenny, a short time before this happened, and thankfully, she kept me focused on what I had to do, namely, make sure Jenny wasn't suffering needlessly if it came to having to put her down

During the times I wasn't talking to mom or sis, all I could think of was how I finally understood, so crystal clearly, just how hard a price we pay for the love in our lives when it's time is over

At some point, the vet came back and said the treatments were working very, very well, and that Jenny looked to pull through what was the first real health problem she'd ever had

The sense of relief was sudden and overwhelming, a surreal jolt on top of some very unpleasant realizations gained that day

I felt about my cat just like my mom did about me when learning that I'd pulled through what should have been a life-ending asthma attack

The gratitude that this wasn't the end, that there's more tomorrows, more chances for life's little enjoyments and treasures, more chances to show love to the important presences in our lives, more chances to say "I love you" even if, with me, it's to my pet, not a child

I imagine my mom felt the same way on those occasions I came back from having my heart stopped, the enormous relief of a burden not having to yet be borne, or borne fully, of more chances and tomorrows as well

And that gratitude only grew brighter and more overwhelming when I got to see Jenny the next morning, her usual happy & purring self such a gorgeous counterpoint to the gasping, terrified creature I'd witnessed with horror only 12 hours previously

I realized the same things my mom felt about me at this exact point when I saw Jenny doing better after the attack, that I wanted to just scoop her up, never let go, and indulge every whim she could ever have

The joy my mom must have felt thinking about future tomorrows is one I couldn't fathom until yesterday morning, and it's one I hope goes on for a long time

And so, now that I've gotten a real understanding of what joy and terror at almost the same time are all about, I have to say I'm in awe of you mothers who love your kids, especially those kids who require more than the usual amount of physical, emotional or mental help, assistance and understanding than normal kids, those of you who have to administer physically painful medications and treatments to your children have perhaps the toughest job of all

You have to deliberately inflict pain to keep your kids healthy, something my mom had to learn to do after the last occasion where asthma stopped my heart before I could get to the emergency room

As I wrote about my mom last year

It got to the point where she learned how to administer the adrenalin shot when I got hit with an asthma attack, and she always said it tore her up to hear me scream because of getting stuck with the needle

And since I've brought little beast back home, the sense of contentment, the sense of hope and joy has come back stronger than before about having more tomorrows with Jenny

So on this Mother's Day, I have no doubt that there's a special place in Heaven for all you moms who cherish and adore your kids, and the love you all show is one of the reasons this world is a better, rather than worse, place

And on this Mother's Day, thanks to almost losing something as dear to me as I am to my Mom, I end the same way I did with Last Year's Appreciation Of My Mom

I Love You Mom, and that only grows by the day

A Hatchet Job Of The Inane Kind On Fred Thompson

2007-05-04T20:05:00.001-06:00

Of all the reasons not to vote for former GOP Senator & actor Fred Thompson, this should be absolutely the very last item on the list, in fact, it shouldn't even be listed at all

In this case, it's Thompson's choice of one acting role that's supposedly got the potential to cause him problems-read that as "votes"-if he runs for President, although I cam definitely see this as a possible talking point to tarnish Thompson's opposition if he runs for President

That's right, just one role is supposed to play to all the negative qualities associated with and by the GOP

Evil, racist, manipulator, huckster, qualites he played through his Evil Racist Manipulating Huckster on a three episode arc of "Wiseguy"

To suggest that Thompson would be in trouble politically because he played-apparently well enough-an extremely unsavory criminal is so logically deficient that the terms "stupidity" and "appalling" both carry the exact same rhetorical heft

It's stories like these, uncritically reported-in this case, a few replies to a blog post-that all too often are passed off as some mainstream political wisdom actually worthy of discussion. The only factor worth discussing about this story is how extremely stupid or shallow anyone is if this issue costs Thompson-should he run for President-any actual votes

Look for this sort of hysteria-even though, according to the article, it seems to have originated on at least one conservative site, which has it's reply to the LA Times article HERE

to somehow lay the groundwork for the "evil liberals will attempt to conflate Thompson the politician with Pooley the Character" meme if Thompson decides on a Presidential run, just another rhetorical device to demonize the opposition's voters

Ahhh, but there's one lively sting in the tail at the very end of this post

bypass registration with this Bug Me Not link

Will Fred Thompson's racist role have political repercussions?

Ronald Reagan became president even though he worked with chimps in B movies.

Arnold Schwarzenegger played a murderous robot, and that didn't keep him from becoming governor.

So can "Law & Order" actor and former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.) become the first presidential candidate with this credit? Thompson played a white supremacist, spewing anti-Semitic comments and fondling an autographed copy of "Mein Kampf" on a television drama 19 years ago.

His colleagues say that he was just an actor putting everything he had into playing the role of a charismatic racist, named Knox Pooley, in three episodes of CBS' hit show "Wiseguy" in 1988. "Do you call Tom Cruise a killer because he played one in a movie?" asked show creator and writer Stephen J. Cannell.

But in the age of YouTube, this performance could raise an intriguing political question: How does a performer eyeing a presidential run deal with a video history that can be downloaded, taken out of context, chopped into embarrassing pieces and then distributed endlessly though cyberspace? Some conservative political blogs are already considering the problem.

"Not only do politicians have to worry about getting comfortable with a crowd and saying something that might be caught on tape," said USC professor Leo Braudy, a pop culture expert, who has written extensively about film. "Now actors who have political aspirations will have to go through every single line of every part they played to make sure there's nothing they need to explain or apologize for."

The role is not something Thompson, who is in Orange County for a speech today, has talked a lot about in recent years. (His spokesman did not respond to several requests for comment this week.) In an appearance before the American Bakers Assn. in Phoenix last year, Thompson mentioned that he had a part on "Wiseguy," but he did not go into details. He summed up his acting career this way: "I played a CIA director, FBI director, an FBI agent, a senator, an admiral, a White House chief of staff, corporate execs and myself twice," Thompson said in the speech. "Some might say I was playing myself on each of these occasions. In each of these roles it seemed as if I had either known the guy I was playing or someone like him.

"So instead of studying admirals or generals, etc., I envisioned that I, Fred Thompson, had become an admiral or general and played myself…. The range was narrow, but I was establishing myself as the character actor for authority figures."

The idea that the "Wiseguy" role could be used against Thompson upsets Cannell.

"He was an actor hired to play a part," Cannell said. "These are not his personal views. He doesn't believe any of that, nor do I. If this is all they can find to say about him, then they've hit a new low."

The only reason this story gets published, which then gives off the absurd impression that this is a legitimate or rational reason to vote against Thompson, is where it runs online, in the "entertainment" section

In this case, both as "entertainment" value and "political analysis", this story is the rhetorical equivalent of trying to argue today that the earth is flat and at the center of the universe, it just really does come across as that deluded and divorced from reality

The part of this nerf-hatchet job describing some of Thompson's bits as Knox Pooley comes across, even with just words, as almost breathless, so make sure smelling salts and vapors are available for the "swoon at the rustle of a light wind" types in the immediate vicinity of where you're reading this

It takes only a few minutes to find the old "Wiseguy" series on Amazon Unbox. For $1.99, you can watch Thompson's first episode, "School of Hard Knox," where the actor asks a crowd at a rally whom they blame for their economic woes.

"You've asked yourself that same question, haven't you?" he says, standing in front of a banner decorated with a cross resembling the emblem of the racist Christian Identity movement. "When you've lost that job on the construction site or the loading dock, a job you've had for 20 years to someone who can't speak the language but who is willing to work for $2.50 an hour?"

He gets the crowd chanting: "Who's to blame? Who's to blame?"

"Who are these enemies?" he asks the crowd. "Some folks say it's the Jews. In fact, if I had a quarter for every time I heard that, I would be 10 bucks shy of being Jewish myself."

The scene continues. Thompson's character says: "The fact remains that it would be easy to point our finger at the bankers and the financiers, Jewish or not, for the fact that our great nation can't compete in the market place with the Asiatics. And it would be easy to blame the liberal leftist, Jewish or not, for sacrificing our working people on the altar of economic Bolshevism."

He tells the crowd that they have only themselves to blame. "We have been complacent, because we have been gullible, and we have been naive, we have allowed them to exercise their genetic need to dominate a Christian world. So don't blame the Jews for doing it. Blame it on yourselves for letting them."

He adds: "Open your mind and open up your hearts and open up your wallets and accept your birthright to a land of pure blood, pure spirit, pure belief and our divinely ordered superiority as a people."

Later in the episode, a follower gives Thompson's character a suitcase full of money and a copy of "Mein Kampf" signed by Hitler. The actor appears deeply touched.

"Only you would have the sensitivity to know what this means to me," he tells his supporter.

No, it's NOT THE ACTOR who "appears deeply touched", it's the CHARACTER HE'S PLAYING that "appears deeply touched", I mean, Goddamn, the words "Thompson's character says" were used only three paragraphs above "the actor appears deeply touched", that's an almost unfathomable laziness to flub the proper description, even if the entertainment beat is considered-not without justification in many cases-as substantive as cotton candy. Yes, "entertainment" is such a catch-all description, especially when it can encompass so many tawdry stories that have no real value other than to the people immediately involved, but all too often, these stories somehow become reported as if they were legitimate, like the media's nonstop efforts to link for Congressman Gary Condit with Chandra Levy's disappearance, then murder

Well, just because it's reported at all, even in the "entertainment" section, does NOT make this story about Thompson credible or legitimate in the least

I don't recall Spike Lee ACTUALLY throwing a trash can through a pizzeria window in real life like he did in "Do The Right Thing"

I don't recall Julie Andrews ACTUALLY levitating via umbrella in real life even though she did just that as "Mary Poppins"

I don't recall Charlton Heston ACTUALLY setting off the Doomsday Weapon in real life like he did in "Beneath The Planet Of The Apes"

To recap, the absurdity of this piece is that somehow, Thompson is actually the character he played, that the political life he's had is the actual charade, and that if Thompson successfully runs for President, it will be Knox Pooley, not Fred Thompson, inaugurated in January 2009

One website called Patterico's Pontifications asked the question recently: "How will they trash Fred Thompson?" Several respondents immediately mentioned the "Wiseguy" performance.

*********************

That's exactly why there's so much potential for partisan mischief in Thompson's "Wiseguy" role. In some ways, Thompson is too good an actor and looks too convincing in the part — a problem Schwarzenegger never had.

If Thompson's old TV roles do play a part in his presidential campaign, then the long relationship between Hollywood and politics will have entered a new era — an actor's dream and a candidate's nightmare — a world where nothing you ever said is forgotten.

So, "partisans" bent on "mischief"-read "liberal" and apparently lacking such skills as abstract thought-will push the argument that Thompson is SUCH a good actor that he can't possibly be acting, which is why he shouldn't be elected in the first place

Truly, this line of attack is so looney that the only logical sense it makes is to push as a conservative talking point to be used against Thompson's detractors, but then again, as shown by the over the top antics and rhetoric employed by such lovelies as Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church, there may well be idiots who would vote for Thompson, but for his three episode arc as the slimiest of con artists

But there's one way, if this article was actually legitimate, that shows just how much BS is the notion that Thompson 's role of Knox Pooley will hurt him politically

Thompson played the role in 1988, and was elected twice to the Senate, once in a special election in 1994, and re-elected in 1996

D'OH!!!

Here Comes Another Rant Against The Forced-Birth Movement

2007-04-18T16:49:00.001-06:00

Various thoughts I left at various sites dealing with what, at first glance, seems to be a big win for the anti-choicers in this country

The forced pregnancy and forced birth movement got a big win today, which is too bad for the poor women unable to procure a medically necessary late term abortion to save their lives and health

Unlike those women of the legislators who approved this sham bill signed into law by a clueless President, women who can afford to save their lives and health if an abortion of this type is medically necessary can travel to locations where the procedure is still allowed, while poor women are being told their lives and health don't count for anything

The claim that this type of abortion-and it's called late term abortion, as the description "partial birth abortion" does NOT appear in any reputable medical journals-is never medically necessary is complete BS

But hey, if the GOP wants more nails to pound in it's coffin come election day 2008, I'm all for it, as abortion has been one issue the GOP has never really wanted to end, it brings in far too much in terms of campaign contributions for other forced-birth & forced pregnancy candidates

The bad part is that the GOP knows that if it riles up enough freedom-loving people about abortion, it's screwed at the polls

When those in the forced birth & forced pregnancy movement start caring about a life after it's out of the womb, maybe then they'll have some credibility on this issue, but if past precedent still holds, the only time so many of those who favor forced birth squawk about life after the womb is in backing the death penalty

That's why I'll use the terms "forced birth" and "forced pregnancy", because if they favor the Death Penalty, then they are NOT "pro life"

Ooops, let's shoot down that "Never medically necessary" BS about late-term abortions

Over 95% of induced abortions in the second trimester are performed using the D&E method. The alternatives to D&E in the second trimester are abdominal surgery or induction abortion. Doctors rarely perform an abortion by abdominal surgery because doing so entails far greater risks to the woman. The induction method imposes serious risks to women with certain medical conditions and is entirely contraindicated for others.

The intact variant of D&E offers significant safety advantages over the non-intact method, including a reduced risk of catastrophic hemorrhage and life-threatening infection. These safety advantages are widely recognized by experts in the field of women's health, authoritative medical texts, peer-reviewed studies, and the nation's leading medical schools. ACOG has thus concluded that an intact D&E "may be the best or most appropriate procedure in a particular circumstance to save the life or preserve the health of the woman, and only the doctor in consultation with the patient, based on the woman's particular circumstances can make that decision."

If it was us guys who could get pregnant, there’d be no debate or fuss about this issue, we’d get paid counseling, time off from work and a Govt subsidy if we were too poor to afford an abortion otherwise

There’d be no stupid attempts to stop us pregnant males from going through an abortion, especially no “24 hour waiting periods” for those of us who had to travel hours to get to the clinic, only to be told we have to wait another 24 hours

Since the woman carries the fetus, it’s completely her choice regarding abortion, and that means at any time, for any reason

But there’s a very simple solution to this, and it relates to “adopt the fetus”

A poor woman will be provided with full, pre-natal care, with all costs provided by forced-pregnancy/forced-birth advocates, and all expenses of the baby covered until the age of 18, even if the birth mother doesn’t want her child to know or meet it’s anti-choice financier

Women who are against abortion, and are of child-bearing age should offer to have the fetus transferred from the mother considering abortion and transplanted into the anti-choicer’s womb, with the knowledge that if the original, biological mother decides she wants the child after all, she gets it back, even after the surrogate has given birth, and still have all child-related expenses paid for by those of the forced-pregnancy/forced-birth mindset until the child hits 18

Sure, these would be hard principles for the anti-choicers to live by, but we’d sure learn real quick if their wallets matched their rhetoric

BTW-there's all sorts of kids in foster care, children & teens with mental and emotional problems, babies with serious medical conditions, healthy non-white infants, and all are just waiting to be adopted, so when I see the forced-breeders start to clear up this backlog, then I'll seriously consider what they have to say

At one forum, I quoted one poster who said

After reading some of these posts, I'm wondering if any of these posters opposing the ban have even read the Supreme Court's decision. It appears some of you believe this is a ban on all late term abortions instead of only partial birth abortions of a living fetus (baby). Get the facts.

To which I replied

I've got the facts just fine, dispute my interpretation if you think otherwise

And if any woman dies, or her health/ability to bear future children is compromised because she couldn't terminate her pregnancy in the safest possible way, that's a Hell of a price to pay for others to blather about morality and "sanctity of life"

Lets get this clear, as I doubt there's any real, independently verifiable cases of the following to prove me wrong:

I have yet to see, hear, or read about any late term-abortions done because the woman has suddenly decided-through sheer vanity that didn't show itself until well into the pregnancy-that she no longer wants to carry the fetus to term, treating a late-term abortion like it's some entry on a "to do" list

Dentist appointment: Check
Get late-term abortion: Check
Get BMW painted a new color: Check
Mail bill payments: Check

Women who get late term abortions do so because, to save their lives or preserve their health, including the ability to bear children in the future, it's the most efficient, safe way to end a hazardous pregnancy

This issue is clearly a sham, but a sham that is going to affect real women who don't wield the political clout necessary to keep the forced-birthers at bay

But you're right that this applies only to a form of late term abortion, Bush Jr is clearly hoping the far-right wing of the GOP base won't start agitating to outright repeal Roe Vs Wade, as the last thing he needs with a Congress whose bills W is going to veto constantly is to try and get another far right voice confirmed for Supreme Court service through an angry Senate majority

Since the GOP is adamant enough about abortion to overturn it as a party policy, then why doesn't it go all out and be ethically consistent in how abhorrent it finds abortion, or is this nothing more than political pandering in the extreme?

Why doesn't the GOP have it's members propose bills that would lock up & execute doctors who provide abortions and women who have them?

Seems that's the only logical choices the GOP leaves itself by pushing an anti-abortion/pro forced-breeding viewpoint in blathering about overturning Roe Vs Wade

Of course, the GOP does NOT push those proposals in spite of how fiercely they agitate against a woman's right to choose, because the party knows, especially after how badly it got smacked down by the overwhelming majority of the US public regarding the GOP's meddling in the Terri Schiavo case, just how badly it's future political success-already on the "Dismal" side-would be damaged

If a person does not have complete control over any and all medical procedures they are willing to undergo, then the very concept of freedom is empty

This applies to any society that would also force women to have abortions, which just shows the strange bedfellows of US social conservatives and Chinese communists that a shared ideological mindset-of total control and complete mistrust of women-brings about

If the GOP is NOT going to placate it's far right base and try to overturn Roe VS Wade, then it's obviously a message no one else should respect or take seriously either, and it's one the party should just jettison now, as the last thing the GOP needs going into the 2008 elections is even more angry voters aiming their ire at it

Easy way to see how this Administration plays the most socially conservative of it's backers as saps and morons, is see which group W sides with when he has to choose between his business & corporate base VS his socially conservative base

W goes with the money, the group he referred to as his base of "the haves and the have-mores", just look at the backgrounds of Alito & Roberts, they're more corporatist than conservative

Maybe W's more theological supporters should press him as to why he's not actively pushing the GOP to overturn Roe VS Wade, and blast him for putting political success over "doing what's right" in their eyes

I sense a political snare for the GOP, the success in shooting down the late term abortion procedure is going to lead the far right into pushing for overturning Roe, a position that is not shared by the majority of the voters

This decision today will have a blowback against whoever gets the GOP nomination, they'll have to pander hard about repealing Roe in order to win the nomination, which will only make it harder to win the Presidential election for the actual GOP candidate

As much as I blasted Slick Clinton for all his Dick Morris scripted "triangulation", I have to give him credit on about the one liberal stand Clinton actually held firm about, vetoing each and every attempt to ban late term abortions when the bills reached his desk, and never apologizing for those vetos either

When every child and teen in foster care is adopted into good and loving families, when every non-white infant, when every child with severe mental, physical or emotional problems is adopted into a loving family, when all that backlog is cleared out, then, MAYBE, we'll talk if there's a backlog of adoptive families willing to take in children and adults, no matter their physical, mental or emotional infirmities

In other words, an impossible reality would actually have to come about before I'd ever say a woman doesn't have the ultimate right to decide her own fate

Oh yeah, you supposed "moderates" and "liberal" organizations, this isn't just the GOP Wingnuts fault this decision occurred, you swine bear much of the blame as well

The Ugly Truths Of Babylon's Media Whore, Bill Donohue

2007-04-14T02:15:00.001-06:00

Every time I swear I can’t get any more riled up by hypocritical religious bigots, I'm always proven wrong by underestimating the sheer willful ignorance, the yearning for media whoredom by nasty fucktards intent on forcing non-believing others to acknowledge the supposed “supremacy & truth” of the theological bully’s particular faith

And very few of these Taliban wannabe's are worth excoriating and insulting as much as Catholic League President Bill Donohue

Donohue's an incredibly aggressive, angry rodomontade, a loudmouth who sees himself as A Dog Of War, when in actuality, he's a hypocritical muckworm of the most easily debunked type

But what really burned me hardest about Donohue was that back in February, in conjunction with ill-tempered lunatic Michelle Malkin, launched a vicious (and completely hypocritical) media campaign against two bloggers who'd been recently hired by the John Edwards campaign, Amanda Marcotte & Melissa McEwan

I’ve blogged about Blathering Bill Donohue‘s extreme lunacy before, most notably The Totally Non-Existent War On Christmas nonsense & tosh that the more pathetic & weak-faithed try to convince themselves they’re persecuted about

But I’m irate for a different reason from so many of the other bloggers who have raised the most Holy of Hell about this fiasco

While they rightly look at this as the rightwing spin machine doing everything it can to marginalize liberal bloggers from hooking up with positive and successful political candidates, I look at this far more personally

I’ve never communicated personally with Melissa McEwan other than some e-mails and comments left on her site, but every time I have communicated with her, she’s been unhesitating and positive-minded with any query

But McEwan went far and above when it came to helping organize the Katrina Blogswarm to mark the first anniversary of one of the most appalling failures of Govt at all levels

I came up with the bare-bones idea, but Melissa did the heavy lifting, putting out the call on her site and helping make the blogswarm a success

Look at all the sites that she helped round up for this mass remembrance, she was busy adding more links to the list that day, a sure sign of the big heart she possesses

Thanks to Donohue’s deranged outrage, both bloggers are no longer officially associated with the Edwards campaign, they felt they were hurting his campaign via the vicious smears from Donohue & gang and resigned, showing they know more about Christian values than Donohue ever could

Here are Marcotte’s and McEwan’s take on this whole sorry spectacle, in particular, the absolute rage shown in posts and e-mails aimed at Marcotte should absolutely disprove the notion that these are “Christians” who heed Donohue’s sick calls, at least not in any sense Jesus would recognize

So, when someone so positive that I’ve been lucky enough to deal with is slimed by a cretin like Bill Donohue, a self-aggrandizing media whore who can’t spread his legs fast enough for the first available camera and open mic, I remember the bullies I’ve had to deal with throughout my life

I remember the only language bullies understand is a good swift crack across the mouth

And since I did the readings at my Catholic Church for almost 10 years, I’m just as qualified to argue Catholic dogma with Donohue even though I left the church almost 20 years ago

Where to even begin to catalog the misery-loving, hate-spewing assclown named Bill Donohue, a tomato so rotten that he even has fellow hardliners distancing themselves from his obvious bigotries

One rhetorical stunt Donohue likes to pull repeatedly is that of, "well, imagine if we do this, and say this about (fill in the blank) instead, see how offensive these statements are"

And since I'm different than Billyboi, I freely admit that I'm going to put the worst possible spin on anything Donohue says and does, so, I'm going to post one portion of a long transcript, not put it in context and then just make all sorts of leaps of faith to make as damaging point against Donohue as possible

In other words, I'm going to argue a point as Donohue does

DONAHUE: Yes.

Obviously, he‘s concerned about secularists. I‘m talking about secularists in Hollywood. They‘re not Rastafarians. They‘re Jews. Just pick up any copy of the Jewish...

(CROSSTALK)

What were the unknown words after “pick up any copy of the Jewish....”, perhaps the words found on This Book’s Cover And Pages?

The anti-semitism spills over to Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg as well, regarding the "War On Christmas" nonsense, and Donohue's logic is so tortured that one conservative takes it completely apart

Besides being an anti-semite and a homophobe, Donohue's a self-hating Caucasian to boot, ranting that Whites just don’t hate gays with the same passion minorities do-Thanks to Pam for this find, she's one of the best at gathering this revolting swill so willingly quaffed by the moral and ethical bottomfeeders that Donohue or his repulsive ilk resemble so often

Donohue's racist, anti-Semitic AND homophobic, quite the troglodyte trifecta indeed

Bill you ignorant slut, you’d have more-actually ANY-legitimacy bashing gays if you didn’t use their taxes to help subsidize The Catholic League’s Tax-Deductible Status while belittling and demeaning them at the same time you picked their pockets to spread your hatred of homosexuals

Seems to me that if God really does buy into this bs, that if God really considers God’s own homosexual creations as somehow less deserving of happiness and legal protections than God’s heterosexual creations, then God is probably not too damn pleased that God’s heterosexual creations are spreading God’s words using the dirty money of those the Old Testament Fetishists call “abominations”

I defy Donohue to point out anywhere in the New Testament where Jesus sided with Pharisees and Scribes in shunning an already socially-stigmatized group or individual, such as homosexuals or women who have had abortions

It was clearly unChristian bastards like Donohue who Jesus was referring to in-and BTW for Donohue's enlightenment, just like in most bibles, in this next passage, Jesus words are also in red

Matthew 23

1 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,

2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:

3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?

18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?

20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.

21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.

22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,

30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.

32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

Desolate, a good term for Donohue's heart

And that's not hyperbole, in Donohue's case, he absolutely has not time or use for those abused by molesting priests and their clerical higher-ups who'd transfer them from diocese to diocese in an ultimately futile effort to keep this scandal as quiet as possible

CATHOLIC CHURCH NEEDS TO PLAY HARDBALL

Catholic League president William Donohue commented today on two developments: a) an article in the September edition of San Francisco magazine attacking former San Francisco Archbishop William Levada and b) a ruling by a federal bankruptcy judge on August 26 that says all church assets belonging to the Spokane diocese are eligible for liquidation in claims made by the victims of sexual abuse. Donohue’s remarks are as follows:

“The sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church is no longer about the alleged victims—they have had their day in court—it is about the victimization of the Catholic Church. The time has come for the Catholic Church to put the vultures in their place.

******************************

“The situation in Spokane is even more outrageous. At a minimum, separation of church and state means that sitting judges have no right to make determinations regarding the organizational chart of the Catholic Church. But that is exactly what’s being done. By declaring all diocesan assets fair game for every steeple-chasing lawyer, a green light has been given to plunder the resources of the Catholic Church. This has gone too far. Bishops would do well not to listen to those who always want to settle and start playing hardball. It’s time to countersue.

“No amount of wrongdoing by some priests can ever justify attempts to subvert the Catholic Church, whether by the media or by the courts.”

Referring to sexual abuse victims as "vultures", and claiming that damage to the Catholic church is greater from the abused, as opposed to the abusers and their enabling superiors, two good reasons Donohue needs to be publicly smacked down as publicly and as hard as possible

Just one problem with Donohue's outrage, he conveniently neglects to mention that it was the Church which sought out the courts, thereby further invalidating Donohue's already-blatant spin of "violates Separation of church & state " regarding this legal ruling

D'OH!!!

And then, Double D'OH!!! Indeed, especially with a mocking press release the Catholic League soon thereafter yanked from its site, thankfully, someone saved a copy before the big delete button in the sky claimed yet another web page

"Effective today, the Catholic League has a new requirement for all future employees: all candidates must show proof of being immaculately conceived, that is, they must demonstrate that they were conceived without sin. We fully understand that we have raised the bar very high, but in light of the revelation that the National Catholic Reporter decided to expose a sexual harassment charge against Deal Hudson-- one that was made almost a decade ago by a drunken female he met in a bar-- we at the Catholic League are not prepared to take any chances. Unfortunately, we will not be able to make our new requirement retroactive, for to do so would mean the Catholic League would have to shut down. You see, unlike the puritans at the NCR, we at the Catholic League are sinners. "

Maybe mocking sexual trauma victims by invoking the Virgin Mary really isn't the best way to show outrage about alleged "Catholic Bashing", eh, Bill?

But surely, the clever observer may intone, there are good, noble causes the Catholic League could agitate in favor of, the CL does NOT have to come off as whining, overly-sensitive hypocrites ALL the time

Unfortunately, actually living up to Christ's admonitions of helping the poor isn't any part of the Catholic League's mission, neither is actually speaking out in favor of an undeniable-at times-progressive catholic vision, such as that shown with the church's stance on the Death Penalty, the Iraq Occupation and providing social services for the poor and undocumented

From the CL's FAQ's

The league may also be criticized at times for using the term Catholic in its title and in its talk. The league does not intend to speak for the hierarchy or for the whole Church, any more than the National Catholic Reporter, or The Wanderer, or Call to Action, or the Catholic Lawyers Guild speak for all Catholics (or for all Catholic lawyers).

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights affirms its existence and role in fighting anti-Catholic bias and Catholic bashing in our civil society by those means which prudence and courage dictate.

Which means good causes like those that follow don't get the CL's Seal Of Approval, because the Catholic League doesn't believe in appealing to the better angels of our nature. Instead, it runs on fear, willful ignorance and flat-out bigotry, just look at its Board of Advisors and Board of Directors, lots of well known neocons and rightwingers listed (scroll to the bottom of the page)

Say, here's about as Catholic a cause as one can get, haven't read word one about it at the Catholic League site

Ranger rosaries in short supply for U.S. soldiers

Ms. Evans knows there aren’t enough of the time-honored Catholic prayer beads being shipped because she has coordinated a rosary- making guild at St. Mary in Annapolis for nearly four years that has produced 70,000 military-style “ranger rosaries” - an impressive number, but nowhere near what military chaplains tell her is needed.

“From the letters I receive from military chaplains, I could probably send a thousand rosaries (every week),” said Ms. Evans, noting that it costs about $1 to make and ship each rosary.

“We only have a budget of $20,000, so we just can’t do it,” she said. “We need more people to help us.”

Nope, no help for those putting the Ranger Rosaries together, even though it's clearly spiritual comfort they're trying to provide those seeking such in a hostile environment

Also, no room to be bothered with a group REALLY doing some good work here on the temporal plane

Covenant House

In addition to food, shelter, clothing and crisis care, Covenant House provides a variety of services to homeless youth including health care, education, vocational preparation, drug abuse treatment and prevention programs, legal services, recreation, mother/child programs, transitional living programs, street outreach and aftercare.

Covenant House provided residential and non-residential services to over 76,000 youth last year. Over 14,500 young people came into Covenant House Crisis Shelters and Rights of Passage Programs. Another 27,000 received help in Community Service Centers or in aftercare and prevention services. Our outreach workers served an additional 35,000 youth on the street.

Finally, the Covenant House Nineline (1-800-999-9999) received 51,000 crisis calls from youngsters all over the United States who needed immediate help and had nowhere else to turn

Both are clearly Catholic operations, yet nary a word or peep from the CL for these groups

Not a surprise really, Donohue doesn't gravitate towards the enlightenment Christ offered, he instead fancies himself a moral arbiter, with the "hypocritical" aspect of Donohue's hate-laced, logic-free screeds being too blatant to ignore

Such as this exchange between Donohue and Cosimo Cavallaro, artist of a chocolate Jesus that caused Bully Billy to go into meltdown mode

The Daily Donohue: The Violent Rantings of a lunatic bully over a Chocolate Jesus

Really, Donohue comes off as a complete lunatic in this encounter, which took place not long after Cavallaro's exhibit was cancelled

Donohue's self-serving bs and faux outrage over a nude, chocolate Jesus helped result in enough other fucktards of the Deranged Donohue ilk going into such a tizzy that they got the Chocolate Jesus exhibit's sponsors to cancel the show

The hotel and the gallery were overrun Thursday with angry phone calls and e-mails about the exhibit. [Gallery creative director Matt] Semler said the calls included death threats over the work of artist Cosimo Cavallaro, who was described as disappointed by the decision to cancel the display.

“In this situation, the hotel couldn’t continue to be supportive because of a fear for their own safety,'’ Semler** said.

And all because Donohue, willfully ignorant of his own church's history, is one of those types who apparently swoon in shock at the mere sight of nude figures, be they marble, stone or chocolate

Donohue, good brownshirt that he is, issues his own intensely-frightened call for Holy War on the nonbelievers

“As I’ve said many times before, Lent is the season for non-believers to sow seeds of doubt about Jesus. What’s scheduled to go on at the Roger Smith Hotel, however, is of a different genre: this is hate speech. And choosing Holy Week—the display opens on Palm Sunday and ends on Holy Saturday—makes it a direct in-your-face assault on Christians.

“All those involved are lucky that angry Christians don’t react the way extremist Muslims do when they’re offended—otherwise they may have more than their heads cut off. James Knowles, President and CEO of the Roger Smith Hotel (interestingly, he also calls himself Artist-in-Residence), should be especially grateful. And if he tries to spin this as reverential, then he should substitute Muhammad for Jesus and display him during Ramadan.

I'll say it again, I defy Donohue to point out ANYWHERE in the Gospels-which are in the New Testament, not one of the parts of the bible he actually likes, the Old Testament-where Christ would support his attitude regarding the attacks Donohue orchestrates

Christ doesn't support Donohue, a complete abomination in the eyes of the deity Donohue claims to worship

You, Catholic League President Bill Donohue, are not just a symptom of a larger problem, you ARE the larger problem for mainstream Catholicism, you spew far more bile and hatred than anyone you condemn for spewing bile and hatred

You go so publicly insane, over the most stupid crap, because you know your time with any real political or social power is imperiled as more mainstream Catholics become repulsed by the hideousness of you, Catholic League President Bill Donohue, a boorish barbarian, claiming to speak on their behalf

See, most mainstream Catholics are far more comfortable in their own observance of Christmas, a positive counterpoint to his irrational fear and hatred of those who don't believe the EXACT same way Bill D does, what word other than "irrational" fits with Donohue's self-perceived inadequacies so on display here?

PC on Earth? Not if one man gets his way

An example: Inspired by a Zogby poll that showed 95 percent of Americans were not offended by hearing the phrase "Merry Christmas" while shopping, Donohue immediately set out to identify the 5 percent who took umbrage.

Ladies and gentlemen, the "Why I Hate Christmas Contest."

Donohue may want to convince himself that he’s a gadfly tormenting what he sees as a secular power structure, but in reality, he comes across as so obsessed with his own spiritual weaknesses that the only validation Donohue can find when it comes to faith is to force all non-believing others, no matter how tiny a percentage of the population they make up, to acknowledge Donohue’s own weak faith as superior to the non-believers own most personal beliefs

Frankly, Donohue's obvious worry about adherence to his own beliefs is erratic when it seeks to assuage itself by humiliating others for the most petty and outlandish of reasons, and soothing Donohue’s furrowed brow of ire is absolutely NO justification for his anti-Christian power grabs

Donohue would have been the first to scourge Christ, would have been the first to bind Jesus flesh to wood with spikes of iron, enthusiastically mocking him, would have been the first to pierce Christ’s side, all the while proclaiming his moral superiority over the deity whose human identity lay dying on the cross

Donohue’s attention to detail mainly consists of raising as many unhinged conflicts as possible, all the while hoping not to get called on his obvious instability via previous deranged outrages of the most faux type, all the more ironic considering how quiet Donohue and the Catholic League get when it comes to condemning clearly wrong behavior of molesting priests and their enabling superiors who’d transfer them to other dioceses in an effort to keep as much of the scandal as quiet as possible for as long as possible

E Pluribus Umbrage

The sexual abuse scandal of 2002 is arguably the gravest crisis in the history of the American Catholic Church. Sexual dysfunction, hypocrisy, institutional self-regard, Soviet-style secrecy, pathological hostility to plain dealing -- even the infamous 19th-century nativist fable The Awful Disclosures of Maria Monk couldn't support so many anti-Catholic stereotypes.

In the midst of this emergency, the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, the nation's most prominent Catholic advocacy organization, alerted its 300,000 members to a grave threat to the faith: a King of the Hill episode in which cartoon housewife Peggy Hill impersonates a nun. Even for the perpetually outraged Catholic League, this was minor stuff. But it's the kind of distorted controversy found in a strange and often lucrative segment of the political economy. Because, clearly, outrage is more appropriate towards a cartoon than it is to any real injustices going on-more on that in a bit, a nuance Donohue likes to bring up, but is unwilling to recognize when he shows the same mindset as other religious bullies and fanatics outraged about cartoons

MEDIA TO MUSLIMS:

YOU’RE NOT LIKE THE REST OF US

“The subtext of these statements is that Muslims are not like the rest of us. After all, can anyone imagine Jews getting angry because the pope made the sign of the cross while in Israel? Moreover, why is it that the sheer mention of religious liberty is likely to offend? What kind of people are they, anyway? And who, other than Muslims, would actually get angry if the leader of some other religion were to say that killing in the name of God is wrong? What does this say about their religion?

The stupendous gall & hypocrisy of those questions being asked by a shrieking wingnut like Donohue is so immense as to qualify for “staggering” status

And yes, there is the cartoon kicker in the sting as well

“If this is all it takes to anger Muslims—along with cartoons they don’t like—then we’re all in big trouble. It’s time we started asking the tough questions.”

Substitute Bill Donohue and Catholic League for every “Muslim” mention in the above screed, might as well, it makes just as much sense as Donohue’s bigotry

And what does the following say about the absolute overarching sense of unentitled anger churning so deeply at the Catholic League that causes the organization to ask the following: Hint, if you said “irrational rage over a media outlet asking it’s readers and viewers if Priests should be allowed to marry”, you’re dead-on target

CATHOLIC LEAGUE POLL:

SHOULD ORTHODOX JEWS BE ALLOWED TO EAT HAM SANDWICHES?

SHOULD MUSLIM WOMEN BE ALLOWED TO WEAR MINI SKIRTS?

Ah, the true irony of complaining about being offended by being as offensive as possible, the whiney hypocrisy of Donohue's decrying strong opinions brought about by his own strong opinions is a true indicator of Donohue’s perfectly miserable little world

Clearly, Donohue and his Catholic League lemmings see no hypocrisy in bashing others to decry what they feel was deliberately done to insult them, and just as clearly, they’re fucking aggravating due to their lack of a logical and ethical basis for their already off-key caterwauling

And count the following as an infuriating example of that logically-inconsistent, arrogant anger

DENVER ARCHDIOCESE HIT BY WITCH HUNT

Yesterday, five organizations, including Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP) and Voice of the Faithful, held a news conference in Denver demanding that the Denver Archdiocese release “all church documents relating to clergy sex abuse.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue issued these remarks today:

“Those making this absurd demand have blown their credibility and should be dismissed as witch hunters. To begin with, it is absurd for any institution to simply dump confidential personnel files on the lap of strangers. To take but one industry—the media—there is not a single newspaper (beginning with the Denver Post), magazine, television network or radio station that would hand its personnel files over to me. Ergo, what’s good for the media is good for the Catholic Church.

Well, Bill, it’s interesting that you’re claiming to present the Church’s side of things, it’s interesting that at the bottom of every page at your site, there’s this statement

The Catholic League is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization. It defends individual Catholics and the institutional Church from defamation and discrimination.

And yet, Donohue and the Catholic League are VERY selective of which part of the official Dogma is worth defending and which is worth mocking

Which brings forth the question, just why doesn’t Donohue think the following examples are as worthy of his and his group’s outrage, other than the fact that Donohue’s either a complete hypocrite, or that he won’t bash far-right allies and their mouthpiece websites no matter their provocation

San Fran. Archbishop “very happy” about plan regarding homosexual adoptions

Lots of slams & Catholic bashing from the Freepi, yet apparently, Donohue doesn’t have a problem with Catholic bashing of actual clergy if it’s part of a package deal that includes gay-bashing

It’s obvious that, for Donohue, espousing personal hatred is a more important indulgence than ethical consistency, especially when pointing out these particular examples of Catholic bashing were made by someone Donohue’s enthusiastically shared a stage with, literally, Albert Mohler, President of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

First, the blatant Catholic bashing

Justice Sunday Preachers

Justice Sunday also featured a token Catholic, William Donohue, who heads the nation's largest "Catholic civil rights organization," the Catholic League. In the battle to confirm far-right judicial nominees like William Pryor, who happens to be Catholic, Donohue has become a key asset for the Christian right's evangelical faction. He has argued that Democratic senators opposing Pryor and others are motivated by anti-Catholicism. "There isn't de jure discrimination against Catholics in the Senate," Donohue claimed on Sunday. "There is de facto discrimination. They've set the bar so high with the abortion issue, we can't get any real Catholics over it."

But for all his concern with anti-Catholicism, Donohue had no qualms about sharing the stage with Southern Baptist Theological Seminary president Dr. Albert Mohler. "As an evangelical, I believe that the Roman Catholic Church is a false church," Mohler remarked during a 2000 TV interview. "It teaches a false gospel. And the Pope himself holds a false and unbiblical office." Donohue, who has protested against Democrats who have made no such comments about Catholics, was silent about Mohler. In fact, the site of Justice Sunday, Highview Baptist Church, in Louisville, Kentucky, is Mohler's home church.

"We're fed up and we're on the same side," Donohue declared. "And if the secular left is worried, they should be worried."

Worried?

No, Donohue, you self-loathing prig, “worry” doesn’t describe my sheer loathing for you and everything you represent, a complete perversion of everything good that can come from a spiritual journey

You, Bill Donohue, do your media shtick ONLY for the sheer rush you get from launching attacks on those in your disfavor, you NEVER attack those who go after the poor, the politically powerless or any other group Jesus stood for

You, Bill Donohue, are a theological thug whose only validation comes from discrediting and attacking others for the most petty of reasons, while ignoring those who actually DO Catholic Bash, even calling them allies

Such as Albert Mohler, the guy YOU, Catholic League President Bill Donohue, shared a stage with at the first of the misnamed “Justice Sunday” freak shows, and just in case Donohue wasn’t aware of Mohler’s Catholic-Bashing until now, Mohler confirmed his anti-Catholic remarks while hypocritically taking offense from a Catholic US Senator's offense at Mohler’s anti-Catholic remarks

U.S. Sen. Salazar Launches an Attack on Me

The battle is joined. Sen. Salazar is asking Dr. Dobson to repudiate me for "anti-Catholic" statements. Well, I stand by my comments, made a few years ago on "Larry King Live." My statements reflect nothing more than classic evangelical theology. What educated person is unaware of the great theological divide that separates evangelical theology from Roman Catholicism? The official teaching of the Catholic church--as articulated, for example, by the newly-elected Pope Benedict XVI--makes the same point from the Catholic position [see the Vatican statement, "Dominus Iesus"]. At the same time, Sen. Salazar knows that I, along with millions of other evangelicals, agree with the Catholic church on issues like abortion, euthanasia, and the integrity of marriage. The real anti-Catholicism at stake here is the use of code language by senators who oppose President Bush's nominees. When former Alabama Attorney General William Pryor is opposed because of his "deeply held personal beliefs," that is authentic anti-Catholicism. Mr. Pryor simply believes what his church teaches--something that assuredly cannot be said of several liberal U.S. senators. Sen. Salazar's statements about me are evidence of political panic. His 'divide-and-conquer' tactic will not succeed. His claims are evidence of either gross manipulation or abysmal ignorance. Only he knows which is the case. Feel free to tell him what you think, by writing his senate office.

As far as I know at this point, neither Donohue nor the Catholic League has seen fit to blast Mohler's anti-Catholic bias or his call against Sen. Salazar

By appearing on the same stage with Catholic Basher Albert Mohler, by not repudiating Mohler and attacking him as fervently as they later did Cosimo Cavallaro, Donohue and the Catholic League showed their true hypocrisy and phony outrage, with a complete, unconscionable silence when dealing with a REAL anti-Catholic agenda like the one pushed by Mohler

And if Donohue wants to ignore the above, then there’s also Mohler’s more subtle anti-Catholic bias to bring up

Pope Benedict XVI--What Should We Think?

Evangelicals rightly point to the papacy as an unbiblical office that, by its very nature, compromises the integrity of Scripture and invests an unbiblical authority in an earthly ecclesiastical monarch. Claims of papal succession, papal authority, and papal infallibility do nothing but widen the breach between evangelicals and the Roman Catholic Church. The conservatism that leads Ratzinger to defend historic Catholic positions on abortion, euthanasia, and a host of other issues go hand-in-hand with his defense of the papacy, magisterial authority, and the evolving body of Catholic doctrine.

TRANSLATION:

Sure, even though the Pope is right on a few issues, us REAL believers can’t possibly condone unrighteous Catholic beliefs, or treat it as a real faith

Also interesting about Mohler’s backhanded Papal compliment, not one word about Christ or his teachings, just bad-mouthing the Catholic Church and-by implication, IE “the evolving body of Catholic doctrine”-it’s pursuit of at least some truly Christian principles, namely, looking out for the least amongst us, tending to those sick in spirit, the homeless, prisoners, poor, the hungry and the politically powerless

That Donohue NEVER stresses those aspects of the Catholic Church is telling indeed about just how much he ignores what the Church claims as it’s main tenet of faith, the glory and hope of Christ

Every time he launches yet another unChristian tirade, Donohue tromps around like a Strutting Popinjay, overly enchanted by the sound of his own voice, yet unwilling to take a stand in a way that’s actually positive, in a way that could actually lead to a better life for a people who are brutalized beyond belief in an area of the world that represents one of the Church’s major areas for growth

The easiest aspect of Donohue to tear down is the one most obvious with a bully, namely, that of physical courage, or lack of such in Donohue’s case

I’m sorry Bill, but there’s absolutely NO physical courage involved in issuing threats to artists who create using chocolate or bloggers you can’t whip up enough hatred towards with the merest flick of your forked tongue

And as it turns out, there is a place where, if Donohue and the Catholic League were to really apply their principles on behalf of fellow Catholics actually under real, physical assault, it could make a real, positive difference

But expecting actual support for Catholics in real peril is expecting the most unlikely of of miracles or empathy from Donohue and the Catholic League

There’s an absolute crisis going on in Zimbabwe, one that now has gotten the Catholic Church officially involved in an undeniable social-justice aspect not seen since John Paul II helped the Solidarity union eventually overthrow-peacefully-their Communist system

Zimbabwe is rapidly spiraling towards Hell, the suffering Mugabe’s inflicting on his own citizens is truly appalling, suffering made more vile because of how Mugabe’s making the life of the poor infinitely more miserable than thought possible

From 2005, Operation “Clean The Filth”

Orphaned in the 80s, persecuted today: Mugabe's victims twice over

Physical courage, a quality lacking with Donohue’s silly sense of outrage, and the silence from Donohue & the Catholic League regarding the atrocities the Catholic Church itself has denounced in Zimbabwe is truly deafening indeed

Corrupt, greedy and violent: Mugabe attacked by Catholic bishops after years of silence

Zimbabwe's influential Roman Catholic bishops have abandoned a long-standing reticence to criticise Robert Mugabe, damning his government as "racist, corrupt and lawless" and likening the struggle against it to the country's liberation war against white rule.

The pastoral letter, read out in churches yesterday, denounces "overtly corrupt" leaders for using "ever harsher oppression through arrests, detentions, banning orders, beatings and torture", days after Mr Mugabe said that his opponents deserved to be "bashed".

******************

"It is the same conflict between those who possess power and wealth in abundance, and those who do not; between those who are determined to maintain their privileges of power and wealth at any cost, even at the cost of bloodshed, and those who demand their democratic rights and a share in the fruits of independence; between those who continue to benefit from the present system of inequality and injustice, because it favours them and enables them to maintain an exceptionally high standard of living, and those who go to bed hungry at night and wake up in the morning to another day without work and without income; between those who only know the language of violence and intimidation, and those who feel they have nothing more to lose because their constitutional rights have been abrogated and their votes rigged," the letter says.

The bishops back calls for a new constitution "that will guide a democratic leadership chosen in free and fair elections".

And Pope Benedict XVI, no friend of “liberation theology” has very publicly backed the Bishops in Zimbabwe

Pope decries world 'suffering' in Easter message

"Zimbabwe is in the grip of a grievous crisis, and for this reason the bishops of that country in a recent document indicated prayer and a shared commitment for the common good as the only way forward," he said.

Since the Pope issued this statement recently, I checked the Catholic League site to see if they took any notice of the carnage the Church is protesting in Zimbabwe, yet not a single mention of the troubles Mugabe’s wreaking on the citizens-Catholic Parishioners-is to be found on the Catholic League site

Bill Donohue, remember what's at the bottom of every page at the Catholic League?

The Catholic League is the nation's largest Catholic civil rights organization. It defends individual Catholics and the institutional Church from defamation and discrimination.

The "institutional Church" is leading the charge in Zimbabwe, the Pope thought that suffering was important enough to mention, specifically, on Easter Sunday, yet, Donohue and the Catholic League are somehow stricken by the most selective of laryngitis

Donohue's clear cowardice, and the CL's refusal to stick up for their Catholic brothers and sisters in Zimbabwe, can't be spun in any positive attempts or fashion.

The refusal of Donohue and the CL to agitate for the betterment of others, especially Catholics under actual, physical assault, only makes the pettiness , absurdity and stupidity spouted by Donohue and the CL even more glaring

How typical of the group and Donohue, invent supposedly anti-Catholic controversies, while outright ignoring real examples of true Catholic Bashing

Donohue badly wants to be a modern day Father Coughlin, but he also understands that hatreds like those spouted by Coughlin and Donohue are increasingly out of place in a society that’s not only more secular, but more religiously diverse as well

No doubt Donohue’s too smitten with his own anti-elitist elitism to want to actually do something positive for his faith, but on the off chance that miracles can happen, I offer the following suggestion to Bill Donohue

Give up the media whoring, if you and the Catholic League are interested in actually trying to defend the Church, then avail yourselves of this Catholic group

PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR JUSTICE AND PEACE

On the other hand, if Donohue and the Catholic League don’t wish to make a positive contribution to both the Catholic Church and our larger US society, then I think the following is definitely the best advice for Donohue and the Catholic League to live by

Somehow, "Think" & "Donohue" don't make any sense together, whereas "Stupid" and "Donohue", now THERE'S a perfect pairing

A Few Points About Iraq, Sacrifice & The Neocons

2007-01-07T10:44:00.000-07:00

1. According to the voters & polls I've seen, To Escalate Troops strength is a radical position, to begin a withdrawal stretching over the next year is the mainstream view

2. We've already tried a troop escalation, just this past summer

It failed, miserably, just like every single other post-invasion strategy pushed by our completely failed "War President"

3. Any further escalation of troops puts the strain on the US military here at home, particularly in the ability of the all too often serving-in-Iraq National Guard & Reserves to respond effectively to any natural disasters, something we saw to devastating effect on the Gulf Coast and New Orleans after Katrina

Forget that BS about "Fight them there so we don't fight them here", for those who died because they didn't get Guard & Reserve help in time after Katrina, their deaths are directly due to a military invasion and disastrous occupation based on nothing but flat-out lies

The Neocons, so quick to think untrammeled US Military power would lead to a stronger US Empire, one they would call a "Benevolent Hegemony", have now fueled an ever-quicker crumbling of the same US Empire that fuels their lunatic, blood-soaked desires of spreading death, pain, misery, grief and anger, so much growing anti-US anger and venom around the world

4. The mistake in Iraq did not take place when US troop levels weren't escalated a few years ago, the mistake was going into Iraq in the first place

5. To supposedly combat the spread of religious extremism in the middle east, W's actions have strengthened Iran and Hezbollah, while undercutting the secular leaders in Iraq

6. The longer the US stays in Iraq, the more likely we'll take sides between the Sunni & Shia, which will lead to the US military taking part in ethnic cleansing and genocide, acts already occurring while the US military is in Iraq and on patrol

7. The longer the US stays in Iraq, the more likely will be further, horrific examples of abused & tortured Iraqis under US control-just like at Abu Ghraib-and further allegations of US troops raping & slaughtering Iraqi civilians, acts often carried out by troops paying the front-line price for their civilian commanders complete lack of effective, rational leadership

8. This President is the absolute LAST person to talk about "sacrifice", shared or otherwise, during War, he's sacrificed absolutely nothing for his catastrophic leadership as a "War President"

President Bush Jr deliberately sent troops into combat without enough effective body & vehicle armor

President Bush Jr hasn't attended even ONE military funeral, or lead a National Memorial Service honoring those who have fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan, yet there's no shortage of fund-raises he attends or special-interest legislation he won't sign at the first chance, as we saw during the depraved depths during the Terri Schiavo fiasco

By diverting such enormous Human Capital and Material Treasure from Afghanistan and into Iraq, President Bush Jr has allowed the Taliban to come back in power along the border with Pakistan, and has further allowed Usama bin Laden to bankroll further attacks and plots against US interests worldwide, possibly on US soil as well

On a side note, with the US military bogged down in the Iraq quagmire, just what's logically preventing a further terrorist attack on US soil, and why is such an attack MORE likely with US troops deployed out of Iraq and back here at home?

9. There's not a level of Hell deep, miserable or permanent enough for This President, his War Counsel, The Neocons still pushing this War or their still-enthusiastic Media & Blogger quislings & lackeys

The Iraq effort is lost, completely and permanently, and the US is headed towards the same humiliating exit from Iraq that we went through with Vietnam, and those who still back escalating US troops levels KNOW that those deaths, sacrificed limbs and lost minds might as well be on the side of the Iraq insurgents, and might as well be detonating those IED's themselves

No more ChickenHawk hypocrisy, those who still back escalating US troop levels in Iraq, while at the same time ridiculing those they disagree with as "cowards" or "on the side of the terrorists", those who still expound empty rhetoric about "fighting the terrorists there so as not to fight the terrorists here" need to put their words into practice by getting themselves to the fighting ASAP, THEY need to fight the terrorists "over there" instead of spouting their "Know-Nothing" nonsense "over here"

The time has come to end the folly of Iraq, just as the time has come for the Neocons to see what a permanent disgrace they and their views are to the political & social mainstream voters in this country

It's time to ensure that further lunatic Neocon blood-soaked death fantasies remain just that, fantasies, which never have a chance to take place again in the real world on an already overbrutalized, unwilling and undeserving populace

The people of Iraq have suffered due to US political leaders for decades, it's time to stop putting them through Hell to further too-often selfish US interests

How Does Not Talking To Iran & Syria Help The US & Iraq

2006-12-08T14:52:00.000-07:00

Or the Palestinians for that matter?

Seriously, how does the US refusal to talk with Iran & Syria with no preconditions do anything but keep up the instability threatening so much of, if not the entire, middle east region?

Let's put it another way, what are the chances the violence & carnage wreaking Iraq right now will get even worse if W were to actually deal with Iran & Syria in a non-belligerant way regarding Iraq?

It's obvious that the longer the instability and violence in Iraq goes on, the worse and more horrfic and deadly the attacks become, the more Iran's position is strengthened-as W's inability to directly lessen the violence grows more obvious to the rest of the world-as well as that of Hezbollah, both of which are seeing their influence in Lebanon grow by the hour

The longer the US military is in Iraq, the more likely it is we'll end up choosing one side over the other in terms of the ongoing civil war between the Shia & Sunnis, and when that happens, we'll be complicit in the wave of genocide and ethnic cleansing that will undoubtedly occur as a result

That genocide, that ethnic cleansing is happening right now, with over 140,000 US troops in Iraq

The US troops are having to deal with numerous groups & conflicts taking more Soldiers & Marines by the day

Death Squads, affiliated with a larger group or splintering off to kill independent of any loyalty except to their own members of each individual/freelance unit

Militias of various loyalties

Insurgents

Terrorists In Training, made up of domestic and foreign trainees

Criminal Gangs, including Kidnapping rings & oil smuggling

How does the US negotiating with Iran & Syria regarding Iraq make the above listed groups even more deadly for the US troops to deal with?

If anyone can logically show how the US dealing with Iran & Syria makes things worse for the Iraqis and US military personnel, please set me right

If anyone can logically show how the US NOT talking with Iran & Syria makes things better for the Iraqis & Us military personnel, please set me right

My Congressman, Neocon Wannabe Silvestre Reyes, Royally Sucks

2006-12-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

First, some background about Reyes that I posted at the Court TV "Politics" forums, then other postings from a message board here in El Paso

I'm beginning to intensely dislike Silvestre Reyes, I cannot stand him for the most part-In our local elections here, he backstabbed one of the best, progressive state legislators, Elliot Shapleigh

Shapleigh's GOP opponent ran an incredibly negative campaign, and claimed he had Reyes backing-an allegation Reyes did nothing to dispute

The reason Shapleigh's so popular here is that in 1994, along with other attorneys-which was his livelihood at the time-he helped launch an investigation into how badly the state of Texas had been shortchanging El Paso of hundreds of millions of dollars over decades

At times, Reyes does the right thing, at other times, he really sticks it to the people living here, as El Paso is not a rich community, and Reyes voted for that obscenity known as the Bankruptcy Bill, one of the most blatant payoffs to one industry in our country's political history

In spite of Reyes not backing Shapleigh in the last election, and in spite of the fact that the GOP opponent outspent Shapleigh massivley, Elliot won his reelection campaign for state Senator

That's the other thing, Reyes opponent, a Libertarian, garnered a huge amount of votes, even without being able to spend much money-I voted for him, as did a large number of voters in the bluest part of Texas

And now, turns out Reyes is starting to spout the neocon party line, and like he did with Eliot Shapleigh, Reyes enjoys backstabbing Dems who have been enormously helpful to him politically

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16062351/site/newsweek/

In a surprise twist in the debate over Iraq, Rep. Silvestre Reyes, the soon-to-be chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said he wants to see an increase of 20,000 to 30,000 U.S. troops as part of a stepped up effort to “dismantle the militias.”The soft-spoken Texas Democrat was an early opponent of the Iraq war and voted against the October 2002 resolution authorizing President Bush to invade that country. That dovish record got prominently cited last week when Speaker-designate Nancy Pelosi chose Reyes as the new head of the intelligence panel.

But in an interview with NEWSWEEK on Tuesday, Reyes pointedly distanced himself from many of his Democratic colleagues who have called for fixed timetables for the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

Now Reyes says he was clear and upfront with Pelosi, but nowhere in his comments was there any mention of INCREASING US Troops in Iraq

But when asked what he told Pelosi about his thinking on Iraq, Reyes replied: “What I said was, we can’t afford to leave there. And anybody who says, we are going pull out our troops immediately, is being dishonest … We’re all interested in getting out of Iraq. That’s a common goal. How we do it, I think, is the tough part. There are those that say, they don’t care what Iraq looks like once we leave there. Let’s just leave there. And I argue against that. I don’t think that’s responsible. And I think it plays right into the hands of Syria and Iran.”

And yes, Reyes will now be lauded by the neocons, those who have been absolutely wrong about EVERY single aspect of occupying Iraq, as shown by this quote

Yet one prominent Iraq war supporter, Cliff May, the president of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy who served on an advisory panel that worked with the Baker-Hamilton group, said he was stunned and pleasantly surprised by Reyes’s views. “Wow, that’s remarkable,” May replied when NEWSWEEK told him of Reyes’s comments. “Whenever anybody like myself suggests that we need more troops, we get told that it’s not politically feasible. But if you have a leading Democrat saying it, that strikes me as very significant … I think it’s dawning on a lot of people that the price of a U.S. defeat would be dire.”

So, why is Reyes working so hard to screw the Dems and suck up to the GOP and our ChickenHawk President?

Even better questions

Just where does Reyes expect to logically find an additional 20,000 to 30,000 troops to bolster the US deployment in Iraq?

The first response that leaps to mind would be drawing even more heavily on an already overtaxed National Guard & Reserves, but those entities are already at the breaking point as it is

And what happens if the temporary deployment does NOT succeed in quelling the carnage before they have to be withdrawn?

I think McGovern gets it dead on target with this quote

Reyes’s comments were immediately blasted by one Iraq war critic who expressed concerns that they would give new respectability to an idea that has lost considerable support in official Washington as the violence in Iraq has escalated. “I think he [Reyes] needs a course in Insurgency 101,” said Ray McGovern, a former CIA analyst who has been active in an antiwar group called the Steering Group for Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity. “Have they learned nothing from Vietnam? If he pushes this and gets some support for it, and with McCain in the Senate, it could become more respectable … I think Reyes has got a lot to learn.”

Reyes is becoming more conniving by the day, it appears he wants to be the House version of GOP Wannabe Lackey Joe Lieberman

Reyes was given the HIC chairmanship because he promised to be vigilant in pushing for badly needed oversight of W's warrantless spying program, and those CIA "Black Prisons", but I'm getting the feeling that Reyes words are hollow and insincere

Reyes is also the Dem who voted to really stick it to consumers with the Bankruptcy overhaul passed at the behest of the consumer credit industry, which means he's backstabbing his own constituents in the back who have to declare bankruptcy due to serious health problems or job loss

For whatever reason, Reyes now views the US troops as the same kind of cannon fodder as W does

Adding 20,000 to 30,000 troops will NOT accomplish anything, except to get more US troops killed, maimed, wounded and traumatized

Anything less than a complete pullout of US troops at this point-as quickly as possible as logistics would logically allow-means nothing but a total waste of further lives, limbs, blood, physical equipment and financial resources

Reyes knows there's not going to be a successful or face-saving way for W to exit Iraq, Reyes knows this means squandering even more lives, limbs, minds & treasure, and apparently, Reyes is just fine with such carnage, and like W, I doubt Reyes will lose any sleep over the pain, misery and anguish staying in Iraq is sure to bring the US troops, their friends & families and the Iraqi citizens themselves

We need dems with spine to hold this President accountable for lying us into a totally unnecessary war, not milquetoasts who'd rather go along to get along when it comes to strong oversight of the absolute worst President in US history

Karmic Payback Of EPIC Proportions: Anti-Clinton Hatred About To Blowback On GOP & W

2006-12-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

And considering how hard the GOP & President Bush Jr catered to the Taliban Wannabe's making up a large part of the GOP's base, it's perfectly fitting to label their irrational hatred of Bill Clinton as a Disaster Of Truly Biblical Proportions

Found this letter from 4 Dem House Representatives the rules changes in the letter are a matter of record and fact, not conjecture in the least, especially the most interesting changes the GOP made at the time

And now, in what must be the most horrible of ironies to those who both despise Clinton and idolize Bush Jr, Henry Waxman is the beneficiary of that previous anti-Clinton hysteria & venom

Waxman will run the House Government Reform Committee, a committee that, at the height of the GOP's "Search and Destroy" mission regarding any & all things Clinton related, was run by Rep Dan Burton

And in Burton's desire to hurt President Clinton, he and the GOP changed quite a few rules for certain House Committee's and Select Committee's

In particular, and sure to absolutely PLAQUE the GOP and Bush Jr Administration, the rules as they relate to issuing of subpoenas

There are a number of unilateral authorities granted to the chairman of the Select Committee by this resolution that cause us concern. The most important concerns are the provisions of section 9(b) of the resolution which grant the chairman, `upon consultation with the ranking minority member,' the authority to authorize and issue subpoenas. This unilateral subpoena authority is problematic in that merely requiring the chairman to consult with the ranking minority member before authorizing or issuing subpoenas does not require the chairman to include the minority in the investigative process. At the Government Reform and Oversight Committee, Chairman Burton unilaterally issued over 1000 information requests, including subpoenas, depositions, and document requests with neither a vote of the committee nor the concurrence of the ranking minority member.

TRANSLATED

Thanks to the precedent set down by the GOP to hurt President Clinton, the incoming Chairman can issue any and all the subpoenas he wants of the GOP and Bush Jr Administration, and all he has to do to hold up the "consult with the minority" requirement is to tell any GOP member of the committee that he's issuing subpoenas then & there-there's NO requirement that advance notice be given when issuing subpoenas

Even more horribly ironic, the minority party does NOT have to be included in the investigation process either, that's up to the Committee's majority party membership

And in perhaps the most horribly ironic touch for those who back the President's Warrantless Spying/Information Gathering on US citizens is this-ANY databases/information developed during a Committee investigation does NOT have to be shared with the Committee's minority membership

In each and every instance above, the rights of the Committee's minority membership is COMPLETELY dependent upon the good will of the Committee's majority membership

Those 2nd Amendment groups and zealots that may have previously praised these types of actions that diminished the Democrats ability to exercise any kind of legislative branch oversight of the GOP and Current Administration should really take note here

Section 11 of the resolution grants the chairman the authority to impose a `gag rule' on individuals associated with the investigation, including witnesses and their attorneys. The numerous abuses of witnesses before the Government Reform Committee are well documented. It is extremely perilous to allow staff, in a closed session, to have virtually unlimited questioning of a witness with little or no rights given to the individual being deposed. There is ample opportunity for staff to intimidate and harass witnesses. These interrogatory sessions are not trials or courts of law and do not afford the same protections. If individuals giving depositions are deprived of the protections that are generally available to those giving statements under oath and are treated unfairly, these individuals, along with their counsels, would be prevented by these `gag rules' from coming forward to report such abuses or other inappropriate actions taken by the Select Committee or its staff.

For reasons discussed in This Post, this Means we could see the Gun Industry executives hauled in front of numerous Committees and publicly investigated over the more squalid aspects of their industry, yet at the same time, having themselves and their attorneys gagged from giving their side of the story publicly

What's this, even MORE irony?

Yep, turns out the GOP never did get around to changing those rules neutering the opposition, even when it became apparent that an electoral cataclysm was heading it's way-Stupid move, as if the GOP had changed the rules to their Pre-Clinton Witch Hunt status, they'd be able to make a smashing case of the Dems practicing petty, revenge politics if the Dems had tried to change the rules back to their benefit

Thanks to the irrational hatred of Bill Clinton, and compounded by a further desire to kill as many investigations into the Bush Jr Administration as possible, the GOP is about to realize that treating the minority opposition as shabbily and wretchedly as it did with the Dems is about to reap a Karmic Payback Of Truly Immense Proportions

And before any cries of "petty political payback", ALL taxpayers please note one other rule the GOP put into play when trying to hound President Clinton from office

Section 10 of the resolution grants the Select Committee the authority to receive and examine any tax return related to individuals and entities named by the Select Committee as possible participants, beneficiaries, or intermediaries in the transactions under investigation. Virtually unfettered access to the tax records of individuals and others is a very risky venture and must be pursued with the utmost responsibility and respect for the privacy of those individuals. We urge the Select Committee to use the greatest of care in exercising this authority. We support the inclusion of language in the report that directs the Select Committee to vote to obtain these records.

TRANSLATED:

The Chairman of the Committee can legally obtain YOUR tax records without any vote of the full Committee needed, the Chairman doesn't even need the support of a majority of the Committee's majority party membership

And how do we know that the GOP did NOT just throw names out during these investigations, names of troublesome political opponents, YOUR names?

And that's not just overwrought hysteria, how would anyone know their tax records are being looked at by politicians if the taxpayer isn't required to be aware of it?

The rules have to be changed back, so these kinds of power plays to avoid any Congressional oversight can never occur again, not considering the state our country, military and foreign policy are all in presently

BUT.....

The Dems MUST rub the GOP's nose in it, so to speak, the GOP must learn the hard way just why it shouldn't pull these stunts in the first place, and it has to leave such a revolting taste in the GOP's political mouth that it never even thinks of cutting out the opposition ever again

I say pour it on the GOP for one year, then change the rules back to a minority-inclusive procedure on the Congressional Committees

Now that the Dems will be able to practice the same policies of information gathering & distribution as the Administration does-with as few bureaucratic impediments as possible-there's absolutely no way that those backing the Administration's warrantless spying/information gathering can complain without being complete and total hypocrites of the most base, hollow and opportunistic type

We're Out Of Iraq By The End Of 2007

2006-12-01T17:57:00.000-07:00

W has said we're not leaving Iraq until asked by the Iraqi govt

The US is going to turn over total control of the Iraq forces in 2007

Whoever's in charge of Iraq at the time will then say, "Thanks, you can leave now"

If W refuses to live up to his word-as usual-the US troops will then be essentially, armed hostages under attack from insurgents, militias, death squads, terrorists in training and outside groups-like Hezbollah-as well

There will be NO US military bases in Iraq after this

There will be no US embassy the size of the Vatican either

Iran will bolster it's Shia-majority neighbor, with further support for Iraq coming from Syria-backed Hezbollah

By backing Saddam Hussein for decades, and by unleashing all the current carnage in Iraq after deposing our former Tyrant, the US is not at the top of the Iraqis "favorite country" list, not with decades of US-inflicted misery & suffering

Of course, this is based on the scenario that doesn't take into account an all out conflagration in the middle east, with the unaligned death squads so prevalent in Iraq making their way into every other country in the region

Thanks to W's arrogance and clear incompetence as President, the possibility for a middle east full of flourishing, secular, US friendly democracies is dead, and in it's wake looks to be a region inflamed by religious tensions and competing theocracies

"Mission Accomplished" Indeed

The Gates Have Opened, Hell Is Here

2006-11-16T17:24:00.000-07:00

The horrific black hole of spiraling violence and hate known as Iraq has careened out of anyone's ability to stop or lessen, and the carnage looks likely to increase by an order of magnitude

bypass registration with this Bug Me Not link

Sectarian Strife in Iraq Imperils Entire Region, Analysts Warn

Whether the U.S. military departs Iraq sooner or later, the United States will be hard-pressed to leave behind a country that does not threaten U.S. interests and regional peace, according to U.S. and Arab analysts and political observers.

"We're not talking about just a full-scale civil war. This would be a failed-state situation with fighting among various groups," growing into regional conflict, Joost Hiltermann, Middle East project director for the International Crisis Group, said by telephone from Amman, Jordan.

"The war will be over Iraq, over its dead body," Hiltermann said.

"All indications point to a current state of civil war and the disintegration of the Iraqi state," Nawaf Obaid, an adjunct fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and an adviser to the Saudi government, said last week at a conference in Washington on U.S.-Arab relations.

Here's an even cheerier thought, what if the other countries in the region are destabilized as badly as Iraq is now?

What happens if, in all Iraq's neighboring countries, you get Iraq style roving death squads, which answer only to their individual cells, and ignore all political, social, religious or military groups or individuals?

Well, one thing that's more than likely to occur

All that oil in the middle east stops flowing to the west, as no group would be strong enough to ensure oil production and shipping from all the attacks sure to occur by the various warring factions

One of the worst ideas masquerading as a solution would be to break Iraq apart into a tripartite state, as the forced evacuations called "ethnic cleansing" are the perfect complements for the ever-more rapacious Death Squads tormenting Iraqis

"To envision that you can divide Iraq into three parts is to envision ethnic cleansing on a massive scale, sectarian killing on a massive scale," Prince Turki al-Faisal, the Saudi ambassador to the United States, said Oct. 30 at a conference in Washington. "Since America came into Iraq uninvited, it should not leave Iraq uninvited."

"When the ethnic-religious break occurs in one country, it will not fail to occur elsewhere, too," Syrian President Bashar al-Assad told Germany's Der Spiegel newsweekly recently. "It would be as it was at the end of the Soviet Union, only much worse. Large wars, small wars -- no one will be able to get a grip on the consequences."

Basically, picture the carnage in Iraq taking place in every other country in the region, and the word "Hellish" is too delicate an understatement adequately describe the violence

This conflict long ago spiraled out of President Bush Jr's direct ability to control, and it only shows signs of widening, not stopping or even slowing down in the least

And now ethnic cleansing is occuring in a place this President assured us would become more stable without it's brutal tyrant, a despot the US backed financially and militarily for decades

The most shameful chapter of Clinton's presidency was a failure to address the Genocide in Rwanda

President Bush Jr's clearly incompetent leadership is in being the prime cause for all the violence going on in Iraq-none of which would have occured if the US had not invaded Iraq in the first place

Since midsummer, Shiite militias, Sunni insurgent groups, ad-hoc Sunni self-defense groups and tribes have accelerated campaigns of sectarian cleansing that are forcing countless thousands of Shiites and Sunnis in Baghdad to seek safety among their own kind.

Whole towns north and south of Baghdad are locked in the same sectarian struggle, among them the central Shiite city of Balad, still under siege by gunmen from surrounding Sunni towns after a bloody spate of sectarian massacres last month.

Even outside the epicenter of sectarian strife in the central region of the country, Shiite factions battle each other in the south, Sunni tribes and factions clash in the west. Across Iraq, the criminal gangs that emerged with the collapse of law and order rule patches of turf as mini-warlords.

Imagine total anarchy all over the middle east, with no government strong enough to bring a halt to fighting in it's own borders, that's where it looks like the Iraq conflict is increasingly headed, to every other state in the region

And imagine the refugee crisis in the entire middle east as people are forced to flee from the fighting, and if Iraq's the indicator, these appalling numbers will only become mind-numbing when spread across the region

Since the war began, 1.6 million Iraqis have sought refuge in neighboring countries; at least 231,530 people have been displaced inside Iraq since February, when Shiite-Sunni violence exploded with the bombing of a Shiite shrine in the northern city of Samarra, according to figures from the United Nations and the U.N.-affiliated International Organization for Migration.

And the hatred being reaped goes so, so deep into minds and souls, even of the youngest of children

Letters placed at the doors of Sunni families -- sometimes with bloody bullets tucked inside the envelopes -- warned Sunnis to leave. Shiite boys as young as 10 took to wearing the black clothes of the militias, and they promised her 10-year-old son, Ahmed, they would burn him alive in his house at night as he slept.

If this type of all-encompassing hatred slips past Iraq into it's neighbors, the bloodbath will be like nothing seen since World War II, and it would seem safe to think that sudden, violent flare-ups will occur in other countries outside the middle east, with groups and individuals taking the region wide violence as a call to action

2006-11-07T19:34:00.000-07:00

There's no way in Hell I stay silent on Election Night

Health issues have hit me hard enough to the point of being unable to blog since the last post in August-and it's followups, which will be posted soon, but all I could do was get angry at how desperate the GOP & Neocons got the nearer today crawled on the calendar

I remember how angry I was after W stole yet another election in '04, I also remember how much angrier I became when John Kerry didn't fight hard against the election results

Well, being a good sport didn't do much good for anyone except the same neocons, media whores & political operatives who already despised our Constitution, it's protections from an overzealous federal government, and it's restrictions on a federal government gone power mad

So, if I learned nothing else from the anger-inducing night of W beating Kerry, it was that setting up future spin by pointing out unpleasant realities for the neocons & their apologists/operatives

So, while I think the GOP is about to start it's long overdue and much needed Karmic Payback, I'm spinning in case the Dems somehow blow it yet again

Unfortunately for the rapidly dwindling number of true W believers, even if the GOP keeps both the House & Senate:

The US Troops in Iraq won't find their mission easier to accomplish, their enemies less angry & clever, enough effective body & vehicle armor, and unspoiled food & uncontaminated water

Nor would keeping the House & Senate lessen W's dismal response to Katrina, nor would it make the Feds suddenly more efficient, effective and competent in terms or responding to a natural disaster, or keep us safer from another terrorist attack on US Soil

The GOP's crashing & burning, and with the wingnut base of Dobson, Sun Myung Moon and others engaged in their own Jihad against the GOP's gay operatives, this battle won't be put off with a GOP victory today

That's what the next Congress has to look forward to, with the proviso that if the GOP does lose the House and/or Senate, the surviving GOP politicians will be furious with the Administration they unquestioningly tied themselves to so enthusiastically until now

Where's all that "Political Capital" W bragged he earned in 2004, because W's political pockets & wallet sure look empty right about now

Katrina-Political Failure & Corruption Of The Louisiana Delegation

2006-08-30T23:41:00.000-06:00

First off, thanks to all who have taken part in this effort, and thanks to Melissa for keeping track of everyone who joined in

For a thorough timeline, check out the post at Think Progress

And another great batch of links-Not all the links still work, but most of those I checked out did come up when called

When focusing on the failures of Governmental responses to Hurricane Katrina, one thing becomes quickly apparent

The scope of the failures matches the bleakness of the carnage, and without the failures, fewer people die, fewer lives are ruined & scattered, less property destroyed

It’s daunting, futile actually, to even attempt the most cursory of overview analysis with these separate threads of misery & sorrow, pain the one common element the living suffer, the survivors endure

Clearly, the failure lies with the Governments at all levels, from the local to the Federal, corruption and neglect of the most malign, lethal sort.

The political failure wasn’t Bush’s alone, it must indeed be shared with others, such as Representative William Jefferson, whose district includes New Orleans, and whose story sounds extremely suspicious in light of the corruption scandals ensnaring him at the moment, a bribery imbroglio that’s seen both his home and his Congressional office searched as a result

Lt. Col. Pete Schneider of the Louisiana National Guard tells ABC News that during the tour, Jefferson asked that the truck take him to his home on Marengo Street, in the affluent uptown neighborhood in his congressional district. According to Schneider, this was not part of Jefferson's initial request.

Jefferson defended the expedition, saying he set out to see how residents were coping at the Superdome and in his neighborhood. He also insisted that he did not ask the National Guard to transport him.

"I did not seek the use of military assets to help me get around my city," Jefferson told ABC News. "There was shooting going on. There was sniping going on. They thought I should be escorted by some military guards, both to the convention center, the Superdome and uptown."

“Nightline” filmed and broadcast the sorry episode, and it was truly infuriating to watch Jefferson take advantage of his political status to take care of himself first, at the clear expense of his constituents

Jefferson symbolizes Katrina’s shredded political mythologies as surely as President Bush Jr does, and besides Bush & former FEMA Director Michael Brown is most associated with Katrina’s toll of death, exodus and destruction

Michael Brown, former FEMA Director, came under sustained fire for his stewardship of a formerly First Rate Federal Agency, his main entry to the job being the former college roommate of major Bush Jr Crony Joe Allbaugh,

Of all the decisions Brown made, the most infuriating were also the most likely to have resulted in lost lives

FEMA failed to accept Katrina help, documents say

Federal emergency officials failed to accept offers of possibly life-saving aid from the Department of Interior immediately after Hurricane Katrina, according to documents obtained by CNN.

The Interior Department offered the Federal Emergency Management Agency the use of personnel who were experienced in water rescues and also offered boats, helicopters, heavy equipment and rooms, the documents say.

***************

The Interior Department offered FEMA 500 rooms, 119 pieces of heavy equipment, 300 dump trucks and other vehicles, 300 boats, 11 aircraft and 400 law enforcement officers, according to a questionnaire answered by a department official.

Interior law enforcement officers included special agents and refuge officers from the department's Fish and Wildlife Service.

"Although we attempted to provide these assets, we were unable to efficiently integrate and deploy these resources," an Interior Department official wrote the Senate committee investigating the government's response to Katrina.

***************

The Senate committee released e-mails that document FEMA's decision to ground its search-and-rescue teams three days after Katrina because of security concerns.

Before then, the Interior Department had offered FEMA hundreds of law enforcement officers trained in search-and-rescue, emergency medical services and evacuation, according to the documents.

"The Department of the Interior was not called upon to assist until late September," the Interior official writes.

One of the main criticisms of the Administration’s non-immediate response was that there was no sense of urgency about the storm bearing down on New Orleans & the Gulf Coast, an assessment borne out by the very last paragraph in the story

A FEMA document provided to the Senate committee indicates that many of the Interior Department's resources.

That paragraph shows how inept Brown truly was-there should have already been an integrated disaster-relief plan showcasing “transportation, communications & engineering” from every Agency & Dept in the Administration

Brown’s clear incompetence resulted in lost lives and uncoordinated rescue & relief efforts that benefitted not the victims, but the private contractors providing the trucks & drivers

Meanwhile, truck drivers carrying tens of thousands of tons of ice and driving water have been sent on a cross-country tour, from city to city, only then to be told to wait for up to a week in a parking lot in Memphis, with their engines, as well as their tabs as drivers running.

"It is a sad experience," said Frank Link,, who was sent from to Missouri, then to Mississippi, then to Alabama and then to Tennessee - all with the same load of 41,580 pounds of ice that he had loaded in Chicago. "I went down there to help. All I did was get the runaround from FEMA."

Chronology of errors: how a disaster spread

Brown, the FEMA director who would bear the brunt of the criticism for his agency's performance in Katrina, arrived in the state capital of Baton Rouge at 11 a.m. He did not ask the authority to dispatch FEMA personnel to the region until five hours after the storm had passed.

In a memo to Chertoff that Monday afternoon, Brown requested that 1,000 employees be dispatched to the region. The resulting order, however, said they had two full days to report to Louisiana Homeland Security headquarters.

That did not change even after the 17th Street levee in New Orleans gave way Monday afternoon as well, flooding 20 percent of New Orleans. FEMA stuck to the book, delaying the arrival of outside help. Brown issued a statement urging federal, state, and local first-responders to remain where they were, until they could be better organized.

''The response to Hurricane Katrina must be well coordinated between federal, state, and local officials, to most effectively protect life and property," Brown said.

The US Fire Administration, which is part of FEMA, also asked that fire and emergency services personnel stay put. ''It is critical," said the US fire administrator, R. David Paulison, ''that fire and emergency departments across the country remain in their jurisdictions until such time as the affected states request assistance."

Among the reasons: State officials had to request the units first, under ''mutual aid agreements." This was among a series of bureaucratic hurdles and government red tape that would bedevil the rescue efforts for days.

It was not until a day later -- after another levee broke overnight that Monday -- that Brown activated the National Response Plan allowing him to fully mobilize the government's resources.

*******************

Bureaucratic glitches slowed progress from the beginning. On Sunday, the day before the storm, the Louisiana National Guard asked FEMA for 700 buses to evacuate people. It received only 100.

The real world failures that resulted in such massive destruction and heartbreak also lay with Louisiana Gov Kathleen Blanco, as she had her moments of inaction as well, instances where her failings more than very likely cost lives

From the same article

Arriving at her office on Sunday morning, two days after she declared a state of emergency and a day before the hurricane's landfall, Louisiana's governor, Kathleen Blanco, had her staff write a letter to President Bush.

''Based on predictions we have received from the National Weather Service and other sources, I have determined that [Hurricane Katrina] will be of such severity and magnitude that effective response will be beyond the capabilities of the state and the affected local governments and that supplementary federal assistance will be necessary," she told the president in a three-page memo on the letterhead of the State of Louisiana Military Department.

But the request did not include what the residents of the Gulf Coast would need most in the coming days: food, water, transportation to higher ground, and thousands of National Guard troops to ferry life-saving supplies and medical personnel and to restore order.

There were other problems relating to the La. National Guard as well, namely, a lack of 40%, absent from the state due to serving in Iraq

There were obstacles to amassing that sort of force. Almost 40 percent of Louisiana's National Guard is on active duty in Iraq; this left the governor with only 4,000 members to muster over the weekend, and a total of 5,700 by Monday.

Aware of this problem, other governors, including New Mexico's Bill Richardson, offered to help. On Sunday afternoon, Richardson called Blanco offering his own state militia, and Blanco readily accepted.

That did not solve the problem.

Because of legal guidelines, Richardson could not send a single soldier until approval came from Washington, specifically the National Guard Bureau. Washington, meanwhile, could not give such approval without a formal request from Blanco.

That request was made Tuesday, after New Orleans was almost completely under water. It would be two more days, until late Thursday, before that authority would come from Washington. And by then, almost four days had passed since Katrina hit the coast. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, were dead.

And it was the ever more Hellish conditions that struck the survivors of the storm that were most vividly seared into memories, the desperation most noticed at the Superdome and the Convention Center with thirst, hunger, filth, heat, squalor and, most vicious of all, a growing sense of despair

Blanco’s actions, inactions and blunders contributed to the misery and death that quickly settled onto New Orleans after Katrina hit

Not calling for food, water, efficient large-scale evacuees’ transportation, and medical supplies is so mind-boggling as to be unfathomable on Blanco’s part.

Ray Nagin also has plenty of bad decisions and unnecessary suffering to account for as well

For starters, there were Nagin’s orders which included forcibly disarming Katrina victims who rode the storm out in their homes and apts, and forcibly evicting property owners as well

The suit says that during and after the Aug. 29 storm, "Mayor Nagin ordered the New Orleans police and other law enforcement entities under his authority to evict persons from their homes and to confiscate the lawfully possessed firearms."

In a setting where looting was occurring, and rumors about roving, armed gangs were repeated without first verifying the information, the idea that private citizens could be forcibly disarmed was both terrifying and absurd

And yet it happened, even though at the same time poor people were being forcibly disarmed, private mercenaries/contractors were allowed to prowl about New Orleans with fully automatic weapons and they didn’t have to worry about being physically disarmed either

Such a blatant double standard is impossible to square with Nagin's often impassioned pleas on behalf of his wounded city

And there’s an even nastier card Nagin threw at those who made their way to the Superdome for an orderly evacuation, the same sense of preference for the welfare of one group of storm victims over a far larger set of storm victims, and in this case, it’s amazing those at the Superdome didn’t riot when it happened

Evacuation at Superdome halted; 5,000 remain inside

Buses taking Hurricane Katrina victims far from the squalor of the Superdome stopped rolling early Saturday. As many as 5,000 people remained in the stadium and could be there until Sunday, according to the Texas Air National Guard.

Officials had hoped to evacuate the last of the crowd before dawn Saturday. Guard members said they were told only that the buses had stopped coming and to shut down the area where the vehicles were being loaded.

"We were rolling," Capt. Jean Clark said. "If the buses had kept coming, we would have this whole place cleaned out already or pretty close to it."

Those left behind early Saturday were orderly, sitting down after hearing news that evacuations were temporarily stalled.

Guard members reported that the massive evacuation operation for the most part had gone smoothly Friday, coming after days of uncertainty, violence and despair.

Capt. John Pollard of the Texas Air Force National Guard said 20,000 people were in the dome when evacuation efforts began. That number swelled as people poured into the Superdome because they believed it was the best place to get a ride out of town.

He estimated Saturday morning that between 2,000 and 5,000 people were left at the Superdome. But it remained a mystery why the buses stopped coming to pick up refugees and shuttle them away.

***********************

At one point Friday, the evacuation was interrupted briefly when school buses pulled up so some 700 guests and employees from the Hyatt Hotel could move to the head of the evacuation line — much to the amazement of those who had been crammed in the Superdome since last Sunday.

"How does this work? They (are) clean, they are dry, they get out ahead of us?" exclaimed Howard Blue, 22, who tried to get in their line. The National Guard blocked him as other guardsmen helped the well-dressed guests with their luggage.

The 700 had been trapped in the hotel, near the Superdome, but conditions were considerably cleaner, even without running water, than the unsanitary crush inside the dome. The Hyatt was severely damaged by the storm. Every pane of glass on the riverside wall was blown out.

Mayor Ray Nagin has used the hotel as a base since it sits across the street from city hall, and there were reports the hotel was cleared with priority to make room for police, firefighters and other officials.

Nagin also issued a call for New Orleans residents to evacuate the city, but made no provisions for those unable to heed the order, and that’s why the poor headed to the Superdome and the Convention Center, because they were of the belief that they’d be evacuated to shelters outside the storms fury and horrifically contaminated floodwaters

There should have been supplies of clean water and MRE’s pre-positioned at the Superdome & Convention Center when it became apparent how big the storm was and how many would be unable to evacuate the city without transportation, cash or physical assistance.

In addition, there should have been an interoperable communications system for the city’s first responders, cops, firefighters & EMT’s, and as Mayor, that responsibility primarily lies with Nagin to uphold

As Mayor, Nagin should absolutely be most knowledgeable politician about the city, and that includes all rescue & relief efforts in the event of either a natural disaster, or man-made catastrophe, including pre-positioning of critical supplies of food, water & medicine, interoperable communications for everyone involved in R & R efforts, and mass evacuations in an orderly manner

And we now arrive at the last of the La politicians who blew their initial response to Katrina’s aftermath, and in this case, actually used the disaster as a way to further their own economic interests-excerpts from a lengthy article

Lobbyists Advise Katrina Relief

Lobbyists representing transportation, energy and other special interests dominated panels that advised Louisiana's U.S. senators crafting legislation to rebuild the storm-damaged Gulf Coast, records and interviews show.

The Louisiana Katrina Reconstruction Act — introduced last month by Louisiana Sens. Mary L. Landrieu, a Democrat, and David Vitter, a Republican — included billions of dollars' worth of business for clients of those lobbyists and a total price tag estimated as high as $250 billion.

One advisory panel member who discovered that most of his fellow panelists were lobbyists called the resulting legislation "a huge injustice" to the state.

"I was basically shocked," said Ivor van Heerden, director of a hurricane public health research center at Louisiana State University. "What do lobbyists know about a plan for the reconstruction and restoration of Louisiana?"

Van Heerden was the first participant of any of the senators' working groups to provide such a detailed and scathing account of the process and its outcome. He said he was shut out after he voiced his concerns.

How touching, a bipartisan pocket-lining at the expense of those who had survived the high winds and toxic flood-waters

To let lobbyists have any influence in writing desperately needed laws that directly affect people in the most sudden, dire of circumstances is nothing short of obscene profiteering, no different ethically from scamming someone terminally ill with a supposed “cure”

Among the lobby-supported interests with a stake in the relief and recovery bill:

• Energy utilities. Entergy Corp. and Cleco Corp. lobbyists consulted with the senators' staffs. Five days before the bill was introduced, Cleco retained the lobbying services of Lynnel B. Ruckert, Vitter's former deputy campaign manager and the wife of his chief of staff.

In an unusual assist to private utilities, the recovery bill includes $2.5 billion to help Louisiana companies such as Entergy of New Orleans and Cleco of Pineville restore and rebuild their electricity systems and recover losses from sustained power outages.

• Supporters of a controversial industrial canal project serving the Port of New Orleans. Among those serving on advisory panels were two officials of Jones Walker, a New Orleans-based firm that lobbies in Washington for the canal project. One of those officials was Paul F. Cambon, an ex-aide to former House Speaker Bob Livingston (R-La.), whose Livingston Group also is a lobbyist for the canal.

The recovery bill asks Congress to give "priority consideration" to the Army Corps of Engineers project, which would build a lock along the canal at a cost of $748 million.

• Highway advocates. Among those on a transportation working group were lobbyists for highway projects seeking funds, including a lobbyist from a firm headed by former Sen. J. Bennett Johnston (D-La.).

In the bill, four Louisiana highways considered evacuation and energy supply routes would receive construction, maintenance and repair work worth $7 billion. At least two of those projects were represented by lobbyists on the working group.

The bill already has been widely criticized as excessive and opportunistic. Its price tag exceeds the high end of estimated costs of the storm and does not include the $60 billion in emergency aid already approved.

Landrieu and Vitter defend the bill as a necessary response to the region's devastation. The bill's supporters say that Louisiana is crucial to America's energy industry and that the state's ports handle 20% of all U.S. imports and exports each day.

"Key economic sectors took a big hit from the storm," said Landrieu spokesman Adam Sharp. "Standing up the region's economy will help stand up the American economy."

Sharp also said the recovery bill's final cost would be closer to $200 billion, not the estimated high of $250 billion.

Aides said the lobbyists were among those who made recommendations but did not draft the legislation. Lawmakers also consulted with local and state officials, and community and business leaders in the Gulf Coast region, the aides said.

"The lobbyists and the entities they represent tend to be among the most experienced experts available who have direct real-world knowledge of the situation," Sharp said. "They are advocating for a position and for a client, but usually from a vantage point of expertise that can be very beneficial to us."

Vitter's office did not return numerous calls seeking comment.

Johnston, the former senator whose clients include hard-hit New Orleans and Jefferson Parish, said the participation of lobbyists in the working groups was appropriate.

"There is no conflict of interest," said Johnston, a former Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chairman. "We represent areas that were impacted, and the needs of those areas need to be brought to the fore."

And one group in particular benefitted VERY nicely from this legislation

The $2.5 billion for private utilities would benefit Entergy, Cleco and Southern Co. of Atlanta. Curt Hebert Jr., Entergy's executive vice president, told a Senate committee last week that more than 1.8 million of the company's customers had lost service because of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and he urged "an immediate federal response."

Cleco reported catastrophic damage to its lower-voltage power lines north of New Orleans and has estimated the storm will cost the company $100 million to $125 million. Customers who have to rebuild their homes could suffer "a double whammy" of higher rates as well, said Kathleen Nolen, Cleco's senior vice president and chief financial officer.

But the Senate bill's provision has prompted concern because it requires waiving the Federal Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act that prohibits such aid to for-profit companies.

There’s a rhetorical sleight-of-hand with the possibility that those who rebuild will be hit with “double whammy” of higher rates

The implication is that by overturning legislation prohibiting aid aimed at for-profit companies, the rates will stay low enough for the hoped for widespread rebuilding

As stated at the start, the problem when writing about the numerous Katrina related failures is choosing which few to focus on, equivalent to picking a few specific drops out of an ocean

That’s why I’ve gone with multiple posts on the Katrina fiasco, too much info for just one or two posts

So, the next links will end every post, the true cost of the failed, bumbled and baffling rescue & relief efforts

The Human Toll, In It’s Most Basic Forms:

HERE & HERE

Next Post:

Katrina-The Administration’s Malign Neglect

An Open Call For Remembrance And Accountability

2006-08-25T13:07:00.000-06:00

First off, Thanks to Melissa for being incredibly helpful since I've started blogging, and even more thanks for helping me with this Katrina Blogswarm

With the first anniversary of Katrina approaching, the media's glare is sure to fall on the Hellish conditions that afflicted the storm's survivors in it’s immediate and continuing aftermath

The failures of Govt on ALL levels leading up to, and after, Katrina’s wrath were the easy-to-see end result of institutional, political and social policies & procedures largely absent from our everyday gaze

How does one not grow angry at the waste and inefficiency piling up at the truly needy'’s expense, how can people stay calm instead of irate at the unnecessary destruction and death that an attitude of “corruption as usual” has come to so shamefully symbolize with our Federal Government?

We feel the Government’s purpose is, surprise, to serve the people, and the more weak the citizens-politically, socially, physically, economically-the more vital it is for our Govt to competently and efficiently serve them IF this society'’s belief in it’s stated goodness is to have any real-world meaning

We focus our outrage and sorrow on the stories of those harmed, physically or materially-by the actions and policies of others-those who, for whatever reason could not evacuate themselves, their families or friends voluntarily, be it lack of money, adequate transportation, or those with health problems severe enough to render them immobile

These were the people most harmed by an ineffective federal response to multiple levels of Katrina-related failure, and their lives DO count, their existence DOES have merit, no matter how lonely or unlamented their death or complete the destruction of their lives. To see the lonely dead floating in dirty, desolate waters is heart-wrenching, a ghastly finish to such monumental political and real-world failures as this Administration inflicts on a constant basis

Those who died, those scattered from their homes, they deserve at least the attention their stories highlight, no matter how inconvenient for the Administration'’s and GOP'’s political objectives for the approaching 9-11 5th anniversary. They bear witness to, and show the results of, the most shameful failure of those charged with protecting the public. The failure of the politicians must not be allowed to sweep away the results of their deliberate actions and inactions, the deaths, destroyed property, and shattered, uprooted lives we’ve seen uncorrected since then

There has been far too much sympathy for the idea that those who were negatively affected by Katrina, those who were stranded in New Orleans and on the Gulf Coast were somehow deserving of the misery they went through, a hateful joy aimed at those in already wretched circumstances

Such an attitude is obscene, such beliefs are incompatible with anyone calling themselves civilized and should be vigorously attacked when encountered

On the anniversary of Katrina, we also note this Administration’'s overarching-and false-claims regarding National Security, an ugly, dishonest attitude which states only the President’s political party can and does keep the US public safe from terrorist attacks, while at the same time claiming that the opposing political party not only is harmful to the US public, but actually sympathizes with, and enables, the same mentality that struck the US on September 11

In case after case, with either missed deadlines for tightening various holes in national security, or refusing to fund, competently, if at all-budgets relating to port security, nuclear weapons inventories, developing universal communications systems for first responders that would allow all involved to communicate with each other, developing chemical & radiological detection systems for use with every piece of cargo that comes into the US-this Administration and it’s political party have put the corrupt interests of cronies and campaign contributing entities far ahead of serving the national interest, to the point of actually endangering people and material national interests

And the result is that this Administration, as shown by it’s clearly ineffectual short-term response to Katrina, is even less likely to efficiently deal with a terrorist attack now than it was on September 11

This Administration’'s allegiance to an entrenched GOP Culture Of Corruption is taking place at exactly the same time it’s brutal foreign policies are inflaming ever-growing numbers of people, and in the same violent areas the corruption most richly profits the Administration’s financial backers

Indeed, the problem when focusing on Administrative or GOP malfeasance, wrongdoing or malign neglect is the sheer volume of examples that can be presented, a constantly expanding array of corrupt Matryoshkas, one scandal engulfing the next

It’s long past time for legislative and judicial branch oversight of the Executive Branch

With both Katrina and the September 11 attacks showcasing the Administration'’s lack of patience, will, desire or results in terms of actually protecting the US public, there'’s no better time to bring as many of this Administrations failures regarding national security and disaster relief to the fore as possible

If these articles/posts/stories lead to badly needed attention, or votes for executive branch oversight in November, then the lives and deaths of those betrayed at the deepest level by this Administration may have borne positive results from the most unnecessary of waste

Afghanistan Slides Towards The Taliban Abyss

2006-08-20T21:58:00.000-06:00

Every day the news gets worse regarding the Administration's response to the 9-11 attacks

The Iraq horror show claims more victims each successive month than the one previous

The Administration's strategy of battling supposed "Islamic Fascists" has done nothing but embolden and increase the political power of those derided by W's inflammatory and false label

In combating the theological extremism W finds problematic across the middle east, the President replaced a formerly US-backed secular tyrant, shifting the political power structure to favor those Iraqi Mullahs seeking deeper ties with their Iranian clerical brethren

And then, W pushes Israel into over-reacting to Hezbollah's deliberate provocation of capturing two soldiers in a military raid that left one other dead

It was yet another glaring military & political failure by an Administration that has achieved none of it's stated objectives regarding the projection of US military power in an increasingly intense part of an already unsettled globe: By Israel's inability to do publicly noticeable damage to Hezbollah's ability to rain down an ever-growing bloom of rockets deeper into Israel than had happened before, Hezbollah has been the first group of armed hostiles that Israel didn't clearly dominate overwhelmingly

Hezbollah's ability to survive, and efficiently combat, Israel's obvious military superiority has given it something this Administration's hawkish & bellicose foreign policies have lacked since dropping the first US bomb on Iraq in 2003

Legitimacy

A legitimacy that won't easily be given up by, or wrenched away from, Hezbollah

Clearly, the most disastrous aspect of the US-backed campaign was Israel's belief that by hitting Lebanese civilians and infrastructure hard enough, the Lebanese public would turn on Hezbollah with major denunciations resulting in an immediate loss of political & military power for Hezbollah, to the point that the Katyushas would stop raining down on Israel

Why anyone thinks "collective punishment" would work the same with an entire country as it does during basic military training is a mystery, a conundrum unsolved by the fact that, instead of turning on Hezbollah, even those civilians in Lebanon who had been outspoken against Hezbollah ended up backing the group instead of attacking it

When our President huffily declared Hezbollah "defeated" in this round of armed conflict, some of his mental organizations inadvertently displayed themselves

President Bush Jr shows a clear inability to deal, logically, with hard, unpleasant realities, someone who can never, ever let anyone else be correct, hence his insistence on seeing his illogical and completely counterproductive policies and strategies as obvious successes when in fact they're the most glaring, blinding, overwhelming of failures

That W-someone who, in order to reassure himself about the rightness of his decisions, refuses to, or even more worrisome, CAN'T, ever concede unpleasant realities which make his leadership look other than all-powerful AND benign-is in charge of our military is a dangerous reality that others can, do and have easily manipulate for political gain, most notably the incredibly sweet deal India got from the W Adminstration regarding a nuclear-based military program completely off-limits to any inspection or oversight

A Commander In Chief increasingly susceptible to easy and overt manipulation from those he states we're at war with, from those he states we must oppose at every possible opportunity if we are to survive as a nation, while simultaneously avoiding another large-scale terrorist attack on US soil, that's who has the final say in the US

And now, perhaps the most-infuriating aspect of W's publicly stated 9-11 response, the deposing of the Taliban in Afghanistan-Why that's infuraiting is that they're quickly re-establishing themselves throughout growing areas of the country, and even more rapidly returning to their bloodthirsty ways

Mea Culpa here: I completely agreed with the military strikes on Afghanistan in retaliation for the 9-11 attacks, clearly it was stupid for any country that housed al-Qaeda to think the US wouldn't strike back, hard, for the carnage of that date

To not hit back was NOT an option, politically, realistically, militarily or logically

That said, the civilian command structure of the US military has the same cavalier outlook on Afghanistan civilians wrongly killed by US forces, and there's no way to spin the Afghanistan dead, maimed & traumatized wrongly by that same US civilian command structure as somehow less undeserving of their fate as the 9-11 victims were of theirs

Since I absolutely despise fanatics, I always thought we owed it to the Afghanistan people to take out the Taliban monster our anti-Soviet polices in that region helped create after the Soviet military left Afghanistan in disgrace and ruin

Any group that so joyfully executes civilians as a warning to others is an abomination that should be crushed just as ruthlessly, same goes for any group that joyfully destroys it's own amazing cultural heritage as the Taliban did when it destroyed the Bamiyan Buddhas about 6 months before the US invasion

There's another aspect of W's mentality that must be brought into the issue

He despises his father, make no doubt of that, he didn't want revenge against Saddam Hussein because of Hussein's assassination plot against Bush Sr. No, Bush Jr wanted to do what his father couldn't, depose Saddam Hussein

What W stayed willfully ignorant about, but what his father knew, was that the problem was NOT deposing Saddam Hussein from power, although that was as deep as W allowed himself to see actual military objective

The problem was that Bush Jr didn't care, or think about, what happened to Iraq AFTER Saddam was removed from power

And in not planning for anything that occured after Saddam's deposal, the Administration has taken it's focus off Afghanistan, which is now resulting an ever stregthening resurgence of the Taliban in areas they'd been pushed from in just the recent past

And here's what that Administrative policy is bringing about in Afghanistan

Taliban's terror tactics reconquer Afghanistan

If we die, we are martyrs - if we live, we are victors," say the Taliban in the Panjwai district of Kandahar province. They have taken control of the area in less than two weeks. For, with ever accelerating speed, the Taliban are reconquering south-west Afghanistan from the government, American and Nato forces sent to fight them.

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Besmillah - many Afghans only have one name - says that the Taliban search everyone on the road. "I went through three Taliban checkpoints and one government checkpoint by the time I made it to Kandahar. The Taliban were in control right up to Solahan, about 25 km west of Kandahar. They look for papers and check the mobile phones. If a number stored in the phone seems suspicious, they call it. And if the voice answers in English, they immediately kill the owner of the mobile. They don't let anyone from outside the villages go into the area."

Because of the Administration's numerous and overwhelming failures in Iraq, we miss the ever-grimmer picture developing in Afghanistan, including a resurgent Taliban we had-prematurely as it turned out-hoped crushed

That unsightly visual is a formerly vanquished group of joyously hateful theological thugs, happiest when dealing misery, pain, anguish and death to those lacking fervent enough faith in a God dispensing the most righteous & harshest of sanctions for the most minute of supposed heresies

In Helmand province, where the Taliban also control most of the area - except for the municipality - despite the presence of 4,000 British troops, a 70-year-old woman and her son were hanged by the Taliban on charges of spying for the government.

The complete and utter failure of every Administrative foreign policy is most shameful regarding Afghanistan, the inability to see the US long-term interests-when we funded & armed the mujahedin, then just broke off all relations after the Soviet army withdrew-is what led to the evntual creation of the Taliban, a group at first welcomed by the Afghanistan citizens themselves, as the Taliban proved to be the only ones capable of stopping the nonstop violence dealt out by the numerous warlords & militias battling amongst each other after collapse of the Soviet's puppet Govt

Unfortunately, the Taliban came to be far worse than those they deposed, and a group so extreme that even the Mullahs in Iran refused to recognize it as the legitimate Afghan Govt

This is a group that undoubtedly enjoyed the terror they inflicted on their victims immediately before their public murders/executions

Make no mistake, if the resources devoted to Iraq had instead been appropriated for the Afghanistan campaign-while recognizing how much harder those same Iraq efforts are due to the Administration's deliberate sanctioning of rampant corporate corruption with no-bid, no-oversight contracts for the Iraq occupation-the chances the Taliban successfully claw their way ever quicker to political power again are far less likely

Perhaps the best way to try and achieve even the slightest modicum of success, or reduce the mass hatred of the US across the world by even a smidgen, would be to target those resources and troops withdrawn from Iraq through Afghanistan where logically possible and real-world applicable

To allow the Taliban to come back to life after we had them scattered and running seems the very height of an ultimately wasteful, squandered mission, a military and political collapse all the worse because it wouldn't have happened but for the radical neocons expansionist agenda that neatly dovetailed with a massive campaign of corporate corruption in Iraq

"Mission Accomplished" Indeed