FRIDAY F U N

• Eight of history's most famous smooches
• Is your kid in the Class of 2009? Here's what his/her classmates think is true.
• How fast can you type the alphabet? My best score is 8.19 seconds.
• Coolest tree house.... ever
• Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites
• What is a dollar worth?
  
• Newsmap - find the most popular news story by the size of its block
  
• Lifted - a well-crafted and critically acclaimed animated short (5 min.)
  
• Listen to a nearly-orgasmic reading of your computer's IP address.
• Can't identify that insect? Go to BUG GUIDE and identify and learn all about it.
• You've done paint-by-numbers. Now try sex-by-numbers.
• Data Visualization - see how some web sites creatively visualize their/your data
  
• Hamster Shredder
  

Bits and Pieces for the Week of August 26 - September 1

New study raises doubts about cell phone safety (Mike)

Time will end September 19, 2007 (really!) (Mike)

A sad ending to the life of a wrongly-accused American (Mike)

Not only is Fidel Castro not dead (yet), but he's been penning his own editorial column since April of this year. (Mike)

TPMmuckraker's must read. "GOP Corruption: '07 is the New '06" (7 of 6)

I am this close (index finger and thumb almost touching) to doing what Paradox has just done. (Mike)

Check out this brand new site, PolitiFact, that checks candidates' statements for accuracy and truth, using it's Truth-O-Meter. (Mike)

Kos is right! Senate ethics committee "Is there such a thing? Because if there is, why aren't Sens. Craig, Vitter, Stevens, Domenici, and Murkowski being investigated for their ethical and criminal violations?" (7 of 6)

Karma comes through! Senator Larry Craig, the former Chairman of the Senate V.A. Committee and still the ranking rebupli-con (hypocrite) on the V.A. Committee did bu$h'$ bidding for years to fuck the Veteran's over. Busted in Minnesota bathroom in June, pleads guilty to disorderly conduct! (7 of 6)

Here's a soldier's blog the military forgot to shut down: Army of Dude (Mike)

Gone-zales - Do let the door hit you on the way out. (Mike)

Boeing virtual fence: $30 billion failure by ZDNet's Michael Krigsman -- The Department of Homeland Security “virtual fence” project, being built by Boeing, is in big, big trouble. The virtual fence is a high-tech network of cameras, lighting, sensors, and technology designed to intercept illegal border crossings. According to the Wall Street Journal: Boeing Co. has changed the management of an electronic-surveillance project along the U.S.-Mexican border [...] (Mike)

"Multi-National Corps Iraq commanding General Ray Odierno", our number two man on the ground in Iraq, says "U.S. forces would begin withdrawing from Iraq by April 2008 at the latest." Just in time for bu$h to wind down his pResidency. (7 of 6)

Here are some music clips from an up-and-coming folk/acoustic artist, Matthew Gair:

“You can’t make this stuff up. And the impact this is having on the grass-roots around the country is devastating. Republicans think the governing class in Washington are a bunch of buffoons who have total disregard for the principles of the party, the law of the land and the future of the country.” - - - Scott Reed, a Republican strategist, on the Senator Craig sex scandal

A reminder about a couple of things that were happening just about two years ago today...

You know, some things are just too good to pass up. This summary (or "greatest hits") of Gonzales' testimonies to Congress are brought to you by TPM:

Greg Palast has some interesting things to say about the resignations of Rove and Gonzales (snippet):

"....So what is most frightening is not the resignation of Alberto Gonzales, the Pinocchio of prosecutorial misconduct, but the resignation of Karl Rove. Because New Mexico 2004 was just the testing ground for the roll-out of the “ID” attack planned for 2008. And Rove who three decades ago cut his political fangs as chief of the Nixon Youth, is ready to roll. To say Rove left his White House job under a cloud is nonsense. He just went into free-agent status, an electoral hitman ready to jump on the next GOP nominee’s black-ops squad. The fact that Rove’s venomous assistant, Tim Griffin, was set up to work for the campaign Fred Thompson, is a sign that the Lord Voldemort of vote suppression is preparing to practice his Dark Arts in ‘08. It was Rove who convinced Bush to fire upright prosecutors and replace them with Rove-bots ready to strike out at fraudulent (i.e. Democratic) voters."

When the Saints Go Marching In

ROFLMAO!

The Left Coaster's long time funny commentator, TIKI AL, on Senator Larry Craig's latest predicament:

OK, so you're on the throne in the airport and crazed fire ants start coming out of the baseboard in droves. Critter-stomping for your life you accidently tap out some convoluted morse-code signal for gay sex. To make matters worse, an under-cover vice squad officer just happens to be in the next stall. Now be honest, who hasn't had this happen to them?

Are you a poor, able-bodied, young American willing to risk your life and limb for $20,000? The U.S. Army thinks so:

More than 90 percent of the Army's new recruits since late July have accepted a $20,000 "quick ship" bonus to leave for basic combat training by the end of September, putting thousands of Americans into uniform almost immediately. Many recruits who take the bonus -- scoring in many cases the equivalent of more than a year's pay -- leave their homes within days, recruiters said. The initiative is part of an effort by Army officials to meet year-end recruiting goals after a two-month slump earlier this year. With the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, the Army hopes the extra cash motivates those interested in joining or entices those just considering enlisting. The program began on July 25, and in three weeks the Army had enlisted 3,814 recruits using the bonus, according to the U.S. Army Recruiting Command in Fort Knox, Ky. Those recruits accounted for 92 percent of the 4,149 recruits who signed contracts between July 25 and Aug. 13. The $20,000 bonus is a hefty sum for many of the individuals the Army targets most aggressively: young men and women who have not settled on a career. The Army estimates that soldiers coming out of initial training are paid $17,400 a year on average. But the effort, experts said, could pose problems for the Army in the coming months, because those who might have helped fill recruiting quotas later this year or in early 2008 are instead joining now....

We (the dirty rotten fucking liberal hippies) been outraged for a long time by the way the military preys on potential recruits in high schools and shopping malls of our poor neighborhoods, enticing them with promises (generally not fulfilled) of bonuses and college educations, and the real kicker: "You won't have to go to Iraq". This just raises the outrage bar even higher. Probably only half of the recruits will come back from Iraq dead, disabled or with PTSD, so I guess it's a 50/50 gamble many of our poorest youth willingly accept.

Jesus Christ on a breadstick, just what kind of dehumanized country have the Neocons/Fundagelicals turned us into?

I found this helpful article (subscr. req.) today on dealing with something we all experience, bad customer service:

10 things you can do to get better customer service By Calvin Sun Be clear about your expectations - The clearer you are to the service provider about what you are expecting, the smaller the chance that you'll be unpleasantly surprised. When explaining your expectations, try to be as specific as possible. Frederick Brooks, in his classic The Mythical Man-Month, said that project milestones should be "defined with knife edge sharpness." Think about the Ws: What do you want, when do you want it, where..., etc. Make your expectations quantifiable if you can. That way, there's less question about whether the service provider fulfilled the job. Separate the person from the problem - Did you ever feel like yelling at the front-line person who tells you that your flight is sold out, the hotel is booked solid for the night, or that he/she can't find your trouble ticket? Go ahead and yell, but it probably won't do any good. It will only alienate the other person, making it even more difficult for you to get what you want. Chances are, he or she had nothing to do with the problem but are only the unfortunate ones listening to you. I know it may be hard, but try to separate that person from the problem. If you have to complain about the company, use the third person. Instead of, "You guys are all messed up" or "You messed up my reservation," try, "It's frustrating how messed up they are" or "They messed up my reservation." When expressing your aggravation, say, "I'm frustrated by this problem." Even better, try the good cop/bad cop approach. Say to the front-line person, "They really messed this up, but I'm hoping you can help me by straightening it out." Speaking this way helps get the other person on your side. Find a decision maker - Despite all the recent talk about empowerment, chances are that front-line person lacks authority to make decisions. If so, ask who can make the decisions you need to be made. When confronted by the dreaded statement, "I don't have the authority...," ask in response, "Who does have the authority?" When the person says, "We can't; that's a violation of policy," ask in response "Who can change the policy?" Make sure they're listening to you - If the service provider misheard you, chances are he or she will make an error and you're going to be unhappy as a result. Therefore, if you're explaining something, ask that service provider questions to see if he or she understands. Consider asking that person to paraphrase what you said, as a test. Ask about alternatives - I mentioned earlier about asking, "Who does have authority?" or "Who can change the policy?" Always think and ask about alternative solutions. In fact, simply ask that very question: "What alternatives do I have?" The other person may not even be thinking of alternatives, but if you have ideas, one or more of them might work out. For example, the restaurant you want to visit right now has a long line. When you ask about alternatives and more details, you learn that the nonsmoking section has a two-hour wait, but the window seats in the smoking section have only a 45-minute wait, and the nonwindow seats in the smoking section are available right now. Depending on your priorities, you may wait for the nonsmoking section, sit in either of the smoking sections, go to another restaurant, or just come back to this one another day. Distinguish between means (methods) and ends (objectives) - When asking for a service or product, distinguish between the result you want and the way that result is achieved. Be careful, in particular, about trying to dictate the latter. In doing so, you may unconsciously sway the service provider into a less than optimal solution. Suppose you're on a business trip to a remote office and are trying to print a document from a shared folder you need for a meeting. Of course, the remote print capability isn't working. Before demanding that the IT department resolve that capability, ask yourself if you really need remote print or if you really need only the document. If it's the latter, can you get it some other way? For example, could someone print it for you, then fax it to you? It's not elegant, but it gets the job done. In this example, rather than say, "I need to be able to print remotely," try saying, "I need a copy of document X for a meeting." Develop self sufficiency - Sometimes, rather than relying on others, it's quicker and easier if you can do something yourself. After a problem is resolved, whether it's with your car, computer, or sink, ask the person two questions: "Could I have fixed this myself?" and "How can I keep this problem from happening again?" Know their procedures - Face it: Sometimes the people who work for the service provider don't know all they're supposed to. In that case, if you know their procedures, you can help them give you the service you're seeking. A few years ago, I went into a suburban branch of my bank to change foreign currency into U.S. currency. I had done such an exchange before, but at a downtown branch, and I remembered some of the details. So when I was at the suburban branch, I volunteered to them the name of a form to use and the particular department they were supposed to call. My supplying that information saved me (and them) time. Keep track of names and ticket numbers - Keep a record of everyone you talk to and a record of every ticket number you receive. I know that a good help desk/trouble ticket system should be able to look up a ticket by name, not just by number. However, those alternate searches might take longer. The more information you keep, the easier it will be to get your problem resolved. Recognize good service - If a support person helps you, let that person (and his or her supervisor) know. It's the right thing to do, and in the future, it could help you if you get that same person.

Good news for the future? Republicans are driving away younger voters:

Hot Tuna - Embryonic Journey

Bassist Jack Casady and Lead Guitar player Jorma Kaukonen left the Jefferson Airplane to form their own band in the early seventies. At the beginning they were mostly acoustic, and very bluesy. They added the elder statesmen, violinist Papa John Creach, with the addition of Texan drummer Sammy Piazza. This line-up was documented on the album First Pull Up, Then Pull Down (1971), recorded live at the Chateau Liberte (a nondescript club favored by the band) in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

Hot Tuna also used to play free concerts whenever they could, just for the love of entertaining. I have seen them play at least 20 times and they have always done a 3 hour show or more. In fact, they were playing at Cabrillo College in the Santa Cruz, CA area, the school pulled the plug on them. So they proceeded to sit down and play acoustic for another hour.

Bits and Pieces for the Week of August 19 - 25

The TOP TEN WORST PROSECUTORS OF 2007 (Angelinos: Rocky Delgadillo is on this list) (Mike)

Targeting Blue Dog Democrats (Mike)

I know textbooks are getting quite expensive, but, really now, how necessary is it to protect them from getting shot-up? (Mike)

In the first statement since Pat Tillman's death, his wife Marie Tillman, says that the U.S. needs "...authentic leadership on many levels". I couldn't agree more Marie! R.I.P Pat Tillman. (7 of 6)

Jon Stewart explains how the U.S. maintains that delicate balance of power in the Middle East. (Mike)

Wow! The Texas Rangers defeat the Baltimore Orioles, 30 - 3 No baseball team has scored 30 runs in 110 years! (7 of 6)

"Crisis in the Green Zone. Nuri al-Maliki's outburst against US criticism is bad news for George Bush, whose political project for Iraq now looks more fragile than ever." (7 of 6)

FoxAttacks has a new segment comparing how Fox news is duplicating its "attack Iraq" push in 2003 with its current "attack Iran" push. This links to a QT version of the video. (Mike)

UC Berkeley has good news for broccoli lovers and bad news for community college students (Mike)

What the return of electricity looks like in Iraq today. (7 of 6)

This makes you wonder how many more bridges in the U.S. are already officially designated as having the potential to collapse. (Mike)

Wow. Here's a blogger that "walks the walk". More here. And here. (Mike)

As a soldier, being in a hostile environment, it's a treat when a group of entertainers come to perform. Fake-news program "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart" is taking a page from serious news organizations this week with on-the-scene reports from the war zone in Iraq. Kudos, "Daily Show"! (7 of 6)

How could anyone with one of the top contracts in professional sports, 10 years for 130 million, screw that up? Michael Vick will plead guilty to dog fighting charges. Damn Dude, you hit the lottery and gave it all away! *shakes head in disgust* (7 of 6)

The bomb attacks last week in Iraq that have killed up to 400 of the ancient Yazidi tribe, is the worst act of terrorism, in terms of human lives, since the 9/11 attack. (7 of 6)

Muqtada al-Sadr is willing to support UN Operations in Iraq. And if the U.S. ever thinks Sadr will be friends, then bu$h needs to read more on the British retreating from Iraq. (7 of 6)

Here's $7 Billion lost by Americans due to stupidity, and it has nothing to do with our military in Iraq! (Mike)

Caution, Red Bull can kill you (Mike)

One pissed off Marine! Caution urged, strong language. (7 of 6)

Let me tell you about a free program I started using a week ago: KlipFolio. This is a time-saving program. Example: Normally I check several political blogs repeatedly throughout the day using a browser (e.g. Firefox, IE7, etc.). KlipFolio allows me to instantly check summaries of new posts at these blogs (via RSS feeds that take literally seconds to set up one time). Also, there are "klips" for current weather, live cams, news feeds, and countless other info sources. The format is very configurable, especially for a free program. I put my "Folio" on the right side of the screen and made it auto-hide, so it's always available and yet out of the way. Here's a review from Download.com:

Editor's review of KlipFolio If you want a quick and easy way to get RSS newsfeeds, weather, and stock information, Serence KlipFolio is a great place to start. The small interface lets you look at headlines from selected news sources called Klips. The program includes a few preloaded Klips, and you can download hundreds more from the publisher's Web site. The interface displays headlines in an attached window that you can mouse over for news summaries. If you're interested in a particular news item, just click the headline to open the story in a browser window. When you're done, you can either quit the program or minimize it to the taskbar for easy access. You can configure the colors and appearance of KlipFolio and create Klips for any newsfeed--something that in previous versions required a trip to the publisher's Web site. Some may find the interface too small, but Serence KlipFolio ought to satisfy most news hounds.

I highly recommend this rare, quality freeware.

FRIDAY F U N

• Daily Squelch (today's news presented with a twist)
• If you really liked me you'd get me these cool USB Memory or walkie-talkie wristwatches. This tape measure watch isn't bad, either.
• Terrific shadow puppetry (video)
• Pimp my Segway
  
• Screw WalMart - Here's 100 things you can make yourself
  
• Stupid Comics (some great old stuff)
  
• Those 'dam' funny Spring Pond beavers
• Amateur "404 Error" pages
  
• Impossibly-stacked dice (photo)
• Leak-proof stick-on sunroof
  
• Some cool gifts/gadgets
  
• Darrel Knutson spent a lot of time putting together this joke collection
• Vote now: Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
  

"Shutting off the layers got rid of the dots, and then it was fun to zoom in on the Crab Nebula (especially if you recite ‘Space, the final frontier’ as you zoom). But there are definitely bugs the system. At a certain zoom level I get pushpins for the ‘Chicago River’, ‘Canadian Supreme Court’, ;’Manhatten Island’ and ‘Google Campus’ right in the middle of Perseus and Auriga. I’m not sure, but I don’t think that’s quite right…." - - - Comment left at Bad Astronomy, where Google's new toy, Google Sky, was discussed.

Daily Show takes a field trip outside the studio:

Received this message today (my emphasis added).

Dear Mr. Sxxxx: Thank you for your letter concerning impeachment proceedings against Vice President Richard Cheney. I appreciate the time you took to write and welcome the opportunity to respond. In our most recent elections, the American people expressed clear disapproval with the path this country was on. They are tired of partisan politics and of an Administration that pays little heed to the wishes of the American people. They want-and deserve-a Congress that holds the Administration accountable and fulfills its Constitutional responsibility to check and balance the Executive branch. I share this sentiment and am determined to work hard and across party lines in the United States Senate to promote issues that are of real concern to most Americans, including the situation in Iraq and Afghanistan, homeland security, global warming, and lobbying and election reform. At this time, however, I believe that impeachment proceedings against President Bush or Vice President Cheney will only divide the country even further, frustrating our hopes for a meaningful change in direction, while having little chance of success. I have been deeply disappointed by many of this Administration's actions and have been outspoken in those instances. Nevertheless, given the challenges our country faces I believe that we need to focus on constructive and cooperative steps that would lead us in the right direction. Again, thank you for your letter. If you have any further questions or comments, please contact my office in Washington, D.C. at (202) 224-3841. Best regards. Sincerely yours, Dianne Feinstein United States Senator

Of course the Senate cannot initiate impeachment proceedings (only the House of Rep. can), but still... she gives the standard bullshit reasons anyway. I wonder how much more "deeply disappointed" a Democratic Senator needs to get before supporting this obviously needed action? Does Dick need to launch a nuclear missile? Shoot someone? (wait, that didn't work) Rape a union-hating, pro-life, fundagelical?

Take the Peace Pledge--Fall Peace Offensive In these slow days of summer, PDA is gearing up for a fall peace offensive. And we need every PDA activist or ally to spread the word that now is the time to contact House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and members of Congress to end the Iraq occupation. Seventy members of Congress have already signed an open letter to President Bush stating they “will only support appropriating additional funds for U.S. military operations in Iraq during Fiscal Year 2008 and beyond for the protection and safe redeployment of all our troops out of Iraq.” The Pledge for Peace campaign has to begin now because in September, Congress will be debating FY 2008 funding for military operations in Iraq. That is what prompted the 70 members of Congress to put Bush on public notice with their letter. We must grow that number from 70 to 100 to 150! [more] The popularity of Democrats in Congress is dwindling as they allow the Iraq occupation to continue. Let’s rally around those Congress members who are standing firm in using their power of the purse to carry out the voters will of disengagement from Iraq. Are you in or out? Take the “Peace Pledge” now: Sign the Petition

(h/t: 7 of 6)

I'll bet the fundagelicals will be drooling all over this (sub. req.), if they ever bother to learn how to read non-fiction:

Functional MRI Detects Residual Awareness in Vegetative Patients Susan Jeffrey August 17, 2007 — In a follow-up to their earlier single case report, British and Belgian researchers have found several cases of patients in an apparently vegetative state who nevertheless show signs of brain activation on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), signaling cognitive function and conscious awareness. With further research, the researchers are hopeful that detecting this type of covert awareness might make it possible to communicate with these patients or predict those who may recover from their vegetative state. However, the authors stress that they don't want to raise false hopes with this work. "This is really at earliest days, and although we've shown that you can demonstrate conscious awareness in now several patients who are otherwise assumed to be vegetative, this is something that's extremely unlikely to apply to most cases of vegetative state, particularly those who have been in that situation for a long period of time," first author Adrian M. Owen, PhD, from the Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, in Cambridge, United Kingdom, told Medscape. "As we know, the chances of recovery from vegetative state decreases dramatically over time." Their updated work is published in the August issue of the Archives of Neurology.

"The War as We Saw It"

An Op-Ed in the New York Times by real U.S. Army soldiers:

I want my congressman to read this article to the American people.

I could highlight the whole article! Being a former soldier I selected a few prime sentences and paragraphs that stood out for me.

Baghdad - VIEWED from Iraq at the tail end of a 15-month deployment, the political debate in Washington is indeed surreal. Counterinsurgency is, by definition, a competition between insurgents and counterinsurgents for the control and support of a population. To believe that Americans, with an occupying force that long ago outlived its reluctant welcome, can win over a recalcitrant local population and win this counterinsurgency is far-fetched. As responsible infantrymen and noncommissioned officers with the 82nd Airborne Division soon heading back home, we are skeptical of recent press coverage portraying the conflict as increasingly manageable and feel it has neglected the mounting civil, political and social unrest we see every day. (Obviously, these are our personal views and should not be seen as official within our chain of command.) The claim that we are increasingly in control of the battlefields in Iraq is an assessment arrived at through a flawed, American-centered framework. Yes, we are militarily superior, but our successes are offset by failures elsewhere. What soldiers call the “battle space” remains the same, with changes only at the margins. It is crowded with actors who do not fit neatly into boxes: Sunni extremists, Al Qaeda terrorists, Shiite militiamen, criminals and armed tribes. This situation is made more complex by the questionable loyalties and Janus-faced role of the Iraqi police and Iraqi Army, which have been trained and armed at United States taxpayers’ expense. A few nights ago, for example, we witnessed the death of one American soldier and the critical wounding of two others when a lethal armor-piercing explosive was detonated between an Iraqi Army checkpoint and a police one. Local Iraqis readily testified to American investigators that Iraqi police and Army officers escorted the triggermen and helped plant the bomb. These civilians highlighted their own predicament: had they informed the Americans of the bomb before the incident, the Iraqi Army, the police or the local Shiite militia would have killed their families. As many grunts will tell you, this is a near-routine event. Reports that a majority of Iraqi Army commanders are now reliable partners can be considered only misleading rhetoric. The truth is that battalion commanders, even if well meaning, have little to no influence over the thousands of obstinate men under them, in an incoherent chain of command, who are really loyal only to their militias. Similarly, Sunnis, who have been underrepresented in the new Iraqi armed forces, now find themselves forming militias, sometimes with our tacit support. Sunnis recognize that the best guarantee they may have against Shiite militias and the Shiite-dominated government is to form their own armed bands. We arm them to aid in our fight against Al Qaeda. However, while creating proxies is essential in winning a counterinsurgency, it requires that the proxies are loyal to the center that we claim to support. Armed Sunni tribes have indeed become effective surrogates, but the enduring question is where their loyalties would lie in our absence. The Iraqi government finds itself working at cross purposes with us on this issue because it is justifiably fearful that Sunni militias will turn on it should the Americans leave. In short, we operate in a bewildering context of determined enemies and questionable allies, one where the balance of forces on the ground remains entirely unclear. (In the course of writing this article, this fact became all too clear: one of us, Staff Sergeant Murphy, an Army Ranger and reconnaissance team leader, was shot in the head during a “time-sensitive target acquisition mission” on Aug. 12; he is expected to survive and is being flown to a military hospital in the United States.) While we have the will and the resources to fight in this context, we are effectively hamstrung because realities on the ground require measures we will always refuse — namely, the widespread use of lethal and brutal force. Given the situation, it is important not to assess security from an American-centered perspective. The ability of, say, American observers to safely walk down the streets of formerly violent towns is not a resounding indicator of security. What matters is the experience of the local citizenry and the future of our counterinsurgency. When we take this view, we see that a vast majority of Iraqis feel increasingly insecure and view us as an occupation force that has failed to produce normalcy after four years and is increasingly unlikely to do so as we continue to arm each warring side. Coupling our military strategy to an insistence that the Iraqis meet political benchmarks for reconciliation is also unhelpful. The morass in the government has fueled impatience and confusion while providing no semblance of security to average Iraqis. Leaders are far from arriving at a lasting political settlement. This should not be surprising, since a lasting political solution will not be possible while the military situation remains in constant flux. The Iraqi government is run by the main coalition partners of the Shiite-dominated United Iraqi Alliance, with Kurds as minority members. The Shiite clerical establishment formed the alliance to make sure its people did not succumb to the same mistake as in 1920: rebelling against the occupying Western force (then the British) and losing what they believed was their inherent right to rule Iraq as the majority. The qualified and reluctant welcome we received from the Shiites since the invasion has to be seen in that historical context. They saw in us something useful for the moment. Now that moment is passing, as the Shiites have achieved what they believe is rightfully theirs. Their next task is to figure out how best to consolidate the gains, because reconciliation without consolidation risks losing it all. Washington’s insistence that the Iraqis correct the three gravest mistakes we made — de-Baathification, the dismantling of the Iraqi Army and the creation of a loose federalist system of government — places us at cross purposes with the government we have committed to support. Political reconciliation in Iraq will occur, but not at our insistence or in ways that meet our benchmarks. It will happen on Iraqi terms when the reality on the battlefield is congruent with that in the political sphere. There will be no magnanimous solutions that please every party the way we expect, and there will be winners and losers. The choice we have left is to decide which side we will take. Trying to please every party in the conflict — as we do now — will only ensure we are hated by all in the long run. At the same time, the most important front in the counterinsurgency, improving basic social and economic conditions, is the one on which we have failed most miserably. Two million Iraqis are in refugee camps in bordering countries. Close to two million more are internally displaced and now fill many urban slums. Cities lack regular electricity, telephone services and sanitation. “Lucky” Iraqis live in gated communities barricaded with concrete blast walls that provide them with a sense of communal claustrophobia rather than any sense of security we would consider normal. In a lawless environment where men with guns rule the streets, engaging in the banalities of life has become a death-defying act. Four years into our occupation, we have failed on every promise, while we have substituted Baath Party tyranny with a tyranny of Islamist, militia and criminal violence. When the primary preoccupation of average Iraqis is when and how they are likely to be killed, we can hardly feel smug as we hand out care packages. As an Iraqi man told us a few days ago with deep resignation, “We need security, not free food.” In the end, we need to recognize that our presence may have released Iraqis from the grip of a tyrant, but that it has also robbed them of their self-respect. They will soon realize that the best way to regain dignity is to call us what we are — an army of occupation — and force our withdrawal. Until that happens, it would be prudent for us to increasingly let Iraqis take center stage in all matters, to come up with a nuanced policy in which we assist them from the margins but let them resolve their differences as they see fit. This suggestion is not meant to be defeatist, but rather to highlight our pursuit of incompatible policies to absurd ends without recognizing the incongruities. We need not talk about our morale. As committed soldiers, we will see this mission through. Buddhika Jayamaha is an Army specialist. Wesley D. Smith is a sergeant. Jeremy Roebuck is a sergeant. Omar Mora is a sergeant. Edward Sandmeier is a sergeant. Yance T. Gray is a staff sergeant. Jeremy A. Murphy is a staff sergeant.

As my friend Lurch says at Main and Central: "Note carefully: no PhD “experts” from political agenda think tanks; no academics; no dancers and prancers from Army Vo-Tech polishing their career resumes. Apparently just some grunts getting hot and wet and dirty on a daily basis, fighting in Mr Bu$h’s ego-war."

Lurch also covers the historical context with the British in Iraq.

I highlighted things that made me want to scream at the top of my lungs about the continued idiocy of the military. And of course the politicians in charge!
Circumstances that put a soldier's life in danger... nothing seems to change, and it's completely out of anyone's control. Coming back in from patrol or guard duty with one real certainty; survival. No doubt the days will be counted down until the smell of home hits your nostrils, (that is if the stench of war fades quickly enough).

When a soldier can say, "99 days and a wake up", that's excitement. In the mean time, more missions, patrols, guard duty and whatever other piss poor assignment comes your way. What a fucked up way to live day to day!

Get well Staff Sergeant Jeremy A. Murphy, you have my family's prayers!

UPDATE: Speaking of the British, "Military commanders tell Brown to withdraw from Iraq without delay". Seems they have had a rough go of it in Southern Iraq.

Bill Moyers - Farewell to Karl Rove

Karl Rove figured out a long time ago that the way to take an intellectually incurious draft-averse naughty playboy in a flight jacket with chewing tobacco in his back pocket and make him governor of Texas, was to sell him as God's anointed in a state where preachers and televangelists outnumber even oil derricks and jack rabbits. Using church pews as precincts Rove turned religion into a weapon of political combat - a battering ram, aimed at the devil's minions, especially at gay people. It's so easy, as Karl knew, to scapegoat people you outnumber, and if God is love, as rumor has it, Rove knew that, in politics, you better bet on fear and loathing. Never mind that in stroking the basest bigotry of true believers you coarsen both politics and religion. At the same time he was recruiting an army of the lord for the born-again Bush, Rove was also shaking down corporations for campaign cash. Crony capitalism became a biblical injunction. Greed and God won four elections in a row - twice in the lone star state and twice again in the nation at large. But the result has been to leave Texas under the thumb of big money with huge holes ripped in its social contract, and the U.S. government in shambles - paralyzed, polarized, and mired in war, debt and corruption. Rove himself is deeply enmeshed in some of the scandals being investigated as we speak, including those missing emails that could tell us who turned the attorney general of the United States into a partisan sock puppet. Rove is riding out of Dodge city as the posse rides in. At his press conference this week he asked God to bless the president and the country, even as reports were circulating that he himself had confessed to friends his own agnosticism; he wished he could believe, but he cannot. That kind of intellectual honesty is to be admired, but you have to wonder how all those folks on the Christian right must feel discovering they were used for partisan reasons by a skeptic, a secular manipulator. On his last play of the game all Karl Rove had to offer them was a hail mary pass, while telling himself there's no one there to catch it.

California's state senate Republicans continue their stranglehold on the state's finances with their stubborn refusal to compromise on an already-compromised state budget. Schwarzenegger's political clout (or, rather, lack thereof) is glowingly visible, as he cannot convince even one of the his party's holdout senators to vote in favor of the nearly two-month delayed budget that he himself supports. Speak Out California has a summary (excerpt):

...Although a Field poll conducted this week shows that just 12% of Californians are very concerned about the budget mess, thousands of unpaid bills are clogging the inboxes of the state. It is estimated that millions of dollars in late fees are already piling up and billions of dollars in unsold bonds are jeopardizing the state's plans to move forward with various programs. In addition to the $1 billion the state has now failed to make in Medi-cal payments to hospitals and other providers, Cal Trans estimates it has almost 35,000 invoices that are unpaid and more than $8 million owing to its vendors. For the California Highway Patrol, it's about $17 Million. It goes downhill from there to those seeking payment. And for those needing services, ---the disabled, our kids and families who rely on state services, they're really starting to feel the pinch. Unfortunately, the Reps who are holding out are being heralded as heroes by their right-wing constituents. Sadly too many of them care little that the state is unable to provide much needed services to the neediest among us. As more vendors are unpaid and more small businesses are threatened, the cries will grow, even in the reddest of areas....

I work at a hospital in Los Angeles. It relies on approximately 2/3 of its care reimbursement from Medi-Cal, the state's Medicare-equivalent insurance program. As a long-term employee of this facility, I've seen similar situations during state budget impasses in previous years.

Of course this budget will eventually pass, but the short-term suffering and angst it's creating is simply an unforgivable political ploy by the Republican party.

FRIDAY F U N

Today's Friday Fun, for the first time ever, is displayed on 100% recycled pixels!


• Find out which rumors are true at Truemors
• How much do you know about the movies of the past 25 years? (quiz)
• Compare your I.Q. to your job type
  
• Boomshine (addictive game - level 12 is a bitch)
  
• Rather than forever navigating a company's phone tree, make them call YOU back
• Idea Generator (interactive)
• The Reagans explain why you should take drugs (video)
• Top 100 Web sites of 2007
  
• The meaning of almost every number up to 9,999
  
• Bored? Talk online to a computer
• Relieve your suffering by consolidating your karma
  
• Sandcastle competition (photos)
• From twirling spaghetti forks to meat freshness detectors, here are 10 weird but useful kitchen gadgets
  
• "Mundane" redefined: The Elvis Cup
• Close-up of solar flares
  
• Most difficult online puzzle (hint: replace "2" with "3" in the URL)
• Here's a short video of the new Zink inkless photo camera.
  

$4190.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.

Bits and Pieces for the Week of August 12 - 18

"But history will recognize him as the man who sounded the alarm when the Bush administration moved America closer to the brink of disaster." (Mike)

Our Executive Branch of government (plus our new fourth branch, called "Vice President") just took a giant step closer to invading Iran. The chickenhawks are drooling... (Mike)

Who Cares About Blu-ray and HD DVD? (Mike)

Remember that September report on Iraq coming out to congress? "Despite Bush's repeated statements that the report will reflect evaluations by Petraeus and Ryan Crocker...administration officials said it would actually be written by the White House, with inputs from officials throughout the government." (7 of 6)

Besides the number of troops, Bush's Iraq "surge" has produced increases in many other variables (Mike)

Sending Iraqi crude oil to Iran and Turkey for refining, will not make "Dick" a happy man! UPDATE: It's important to note that the Iraqis did this without the help of the USA. (7 of 6)

If Mike Whitney is anywhere near correct, we'd better start stuffing $$ into our mattresses. (Mike)

Early Monday, no coffee, am I still dreaming? KKKarl Rove to quit by the end of August! I hope "Turdblossom" resigning is part of the deal that Pelosi and Reid gave bu$h for FISA? I still find it hard to believe the Dems gave "bu$h a blank check" for spying on Americans! (7 of 6)

I guess you can serve your country, get approval to have memorial services at the High Point Church, but "based on principle" and that you're gay those services can still get cancelled 24 hours beforehand. Just one of God's children, right?

Illegal immigrant deaths in the Tucson AZ, area are up 22% compared to last year. (7 of 6)

"A great political mind? Hardly. He could carve up constituencies with the best of them, and divide the country as easily as columns on a spreadsheet -- and with no more thought -- but Karl Rove was no more a political genius than Jeffrey Dahmer was a brilliant culinary artist. Being the most unapologetically unethical person in the room does not make you avant-garde. Time and time again, though, it's been proven to make you famous." - - - HUNTER, describing Karl Rove

FOX "NEWS" ATTACKS BLOGGERS

The California Democratic Party today released their "Blueprint For The Golden State".

Promote peace, real security, the rule of law, and human rights both at home and abroad Provide guaranteed support for first responders, military servicemembers, and veterans Fight to restore the Constitutional balance among the branches of the federal government Create a 21st century economy built on a diverse workforce educated by quality public schools with the right to organize Promote access and equality in employment, educational, and economic opportunities Ensure universal, comprehensive, and affordable health care for all Californians Protect a woman's right to choose how to use her mind, her body and her time Secure a dignified retirement for our seniors, including Social Security and Medicare for future generations Make California the most energy-independent state, build new industries in the effort to fight global warming and pollution, and protect our natural resources Build smart, sustainable, safe, environmentally sound, and caring communities Support the arts, especially in our public schools Insist upon fiscal common sense, responsibility, and accountability in California and Washington

As you can see, it is a fairly progressive agenda and even takes a shot at the Bush Administration's methodical unraveling of the Constitution's intrinsic checks and balances, principles that are becoming an increasingly distant memory. Kudos to the nation's most progressive state for their efforts in retaining some semblance of humanity and civility in politics.

Courtesy of Daily Reckoning

What Dick Cheney said about Iraq on April 15, 1994.

Q: Do you think the U.S., or U.N. forces, should have moved into Baghdad? A: No. Q: Why not? A: Because if we'd gone to Baghdad we would have been all alone. There wouldn't have been anybody else with us. There would have been a U.S. occupation of Iraq. None of the Arab forces that were willing to fight with us in Kuwait were willing to invade Iraq. Once you got to Iraq and took it over, took down Saddam Hussein's government, then what are you going to put in its place? That's a very volatile part of the world, and if you take down the central government of Iraq, you could very easily end up seeing pieces of Iraq fly off: part of it, the Syrians would like to have to the west, part of it -- eastern Iraq -- the Iranians would like to claim, they fought over it for eight years. In the north you've got the Kurds, and if the Kurds spin loose and join with the Kurds in Turkey, then you threaten the territorial integrity of Turkey. It's a quagmire if you go that far and try to take over Iraq. The other thing was casualties. Everyone was impressed with the fact we were able to do our job with as few casualties as we had. But for the 146 Americans killed in action, and for their families -- it wasn't a cheap war. And the question for the president, in terms of whether or not we went on to Baghdad, took additional casualties in an effort to get Saddam Hussein, was how many additional dead Americans is Saddam worth? Our judgment was, not very many, and I think we got it right.

Fucker doesn't care about casualties now!

Meeting Resistance - Trailer

Bits and Pieces for the Week of August 5 - 11

Veteran's with rare forms of cancer are returning from the Depleted Uranium battlefields of Iraq. Currently, the State Department's Web site says fears about adverse health effects of depleted uranium, or DU, are "unwarranted," and it lists worries about DU under a section called "identifying misinformation." Deny all you want, when the "Butcher's Bill" comes due, guess who will have to pay for it! On July 23, Iraq's environment minister blamed "at least 350 sites in Iraq being contaminated during bombing" with depleted uranium weapons for about 140,000 cases of cancer there and for between 7,000 and 8,000 new cases each year. (7 of 6)

A little Shia on Shia action going on in the Basra area of Iraq. (7 of 6)

I wondered how long it would it take? Bush War Adviser Says Draft Worth a Look. Finally, this will end the Iraq War! (7 of 6)

Computer Repair Fraud (video) (Mike)

I think Veterans Administration Secretary Nicholson should keep his mouth shut and finish out his job! He says Vets are, "...carrying around too much weight and not getting enough exercise..." I'm sorry, do you know each case scumbag? Yes, I can diet all I want but I cannot exercise with my back in this condition! Aaargh!! (7 of 6)

Mosul Dam on Brink of Breach? 70% of Mosul, Iraq's 2nd largest city, could be destroyed. It's the Middle East's 4th largest dam and is a large provider of electricty. (7 of 6)

How long "6 months" really is in GOP land. (Mike)

It's back to the old days for drug use in the U.S. Military. "They don't do anything to you [for using]," a reservist tells me. "Two from my unit were sent home after they got caught more than once." What happened to them? "Nothing. They're still in the unit. Just got sent home." The "no tolerance" days are over. Have to keep quotas up. I wondered how long it would take? (7 of 6)

The media is too kind...Democrats in Congress learn art of compromise. Call it what you want, as long as the Dems win the elections in '08'! Only with a solid Democratic majority will Progressives be able to make small gains against the neo-cons and GOP-Lite Dems! (7 of 6)

The headline reads, Militants Use Water as Weapon. Since we destroyed the Iraqi's infrastructure, what does that make the U.S.? (7 of 6)

You're in a War Zone, without enough electricty for A/C cooling, now...Western Baghdad Loses Water in Summer Heat...because the already strained electricity grid cannot provide sufficient power to run water purification and pumping stations. (7 of 6)

Congratulations Barry Bonds!

I have been a sports fan all my life. It can be the easiest escape form in dark depressive times. I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area in the late turbulent 60's. My earliest memories were of my Dad taking the family to Candlestick Park to see Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Bobby Bonds, Juan Marichal and the rest of the Giants play baseball.

In my high school years it was the Oakland A's who had the baseball team that dominated. Then the Golden State Warriors won a Basketball Championship. From there it was the 49er's and all the Super Bowl hardware they have won. Though I have moved away from the Bay Area and my allegiance to certain sports teams is not as strong, those memories are still dear to me.

I'm by no means a purist of sports. Realizing, that as long as humans are involved, playing a game for money there will always be some shenanigans going on. It's society as a whole; corporate power, media exposure, betting, nothing can take professional sports back to the playground like when you're a little kid. To place professional players on some pedestal and expect all of them to be heroes is...well, unrealistic. They're human, they will let you down. The ballplayers today live under a microscope and if they don't say the right thing to the press, plenty of enemies can be made.

I digress, this post is to congratulate Barry Bonds for breaking the Home Run record. No matter what anyone wants to say, Bonds is a true Hall of Famer. To me it's not a question of whether he took steroids or not. It's his body, his responsibility on what he took or didn't take. One thing, Barry Bonds has never tested positive for steroids, ever. The main thing for me to look at are his statistics and records before the allegations of taking banned substances.

Before the year 2000 and the BALCO scandal, Bonds had already won 3 MVP's, 8 Gold Gloves and was the only man to ever reach 400 steals and 400 homers. He was such a feared hitter that opposing managers would rather walk him than face his bat. In 1998, he became one of only 3 men in baseball history ever to be intentionally walked with the bases loaded. He had more walks before the year 2000 than Hank Aaron had in his career. My comment, "just pitch to the man".

He has broken Aaron's Home Run record with 2,500 fewer at bats.

Some say Bonds doesn't deserve to wear a Giant uniform. If anyone deserves to wear the Giant uniform, it's Barry. He was a Giant bat boy, his Dad, Bobby played for the Giants. His Godfather, Willie Mays, the greatest of Giant players in my estimation, played for the Giants. Bonds grew up in the Bay Area, having attended elementary, Jr. High School and High School. He was a first round pick of the Giants right out of High School. Instead, he opted to play ball at Arizona State University. Now don't laugh, his major was Criminology. Upon graduation from Arizona State he became a first round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Say what you will about Barry. He is one of the greatest baseball players of all time and current all-time, Home Run leader.

A few more Barry Bonds records. Go to link for the rest. He is also fast approaching some other hallowed records.

Holds record for most home runs in a career (756)
Holds record for most home runs in a season (73)
Holds record for most walks in a career (2,540)
Holds record for most MVP awards (7) and consecutive MVP awards (4); (1990, 1992-93, 2001-04). Note: the current version of the MVP award has been given since 1931. Prior to that year, the League Awards were only given to a player once (from 1922-1929) and sometimes not at all (from 1915-1921).
Holds record for most pitchers homered off (446)
Holds record for most consecutive games with a walk (18)
Shares record for consecutive plate appearances with a walk (7)
Holds record for consecutive seasons with 30 or more home runs (13), 1992-2004
Only player in 400 home run and 400 stolen base club
Only player in 500 home run and 500 stolen base club
One of four players in 40-40 club (40 home runs and 40 stolen bases)
Holds record for most consecutive seasons with .600 slugging percentage or higher (8), 1998-2005

V.A. Doctor Speaking Out

Once again, Larry Scott, has the skinny on what is happening in bu$h'$ V.A. system...

It's a story with a familiar ring. Veterans fight for our country and then are denied benefits they feel they deserve. Now -- an insider is speaking out about the practices of the Veterans Administration in Nevada... "The practical effect is if you come back from a war where you have been either psychologically or physically injured, you will probably be turned down for what the law says what kind of benefits you deserve," Dr. Zielinski told the I-Team. Dr. Zielinski spoke to the I-Team without official approval and says his superiors have urged him to keep quiet about his concerns. "The V.A. has turned out to be like a corporation. It is a business. It is no longer serving the needs of the veteran," Dr. Zielinski alleges. For veteran Steve Leong, he's left questioning his country's commitment to him and all veterans in similar circumstances. "I feel my country let me down. I have an agreement with my country. I go to war; I protect our country. If I need help when I get out of it, the V.A. says they will help us. OK, now I need the help. 'No, we are not going help you. We are denying your benefits.' So that's a slap in the face to me, that's what it is. It is not right," Leong said.

"In the Middle of a Civil War"

By Gian P. Gentile - In late February 2006, al-Qaeda destroyed the Askariya Shiite shrine in Samarra. During the previous two months that my cavalry squadron had been operating in Iraq, my main focus was the technical training of the Iraqi national police and combined operations with them against Sunni insurgents in west Baghdad. Before Samarra, it did not seem important which areas of Baghdad were Shiite or Sunni or that the police battalions I operated alongside were almost completely Shiite. Before Samarra, I assumed that Iraqi citizens saw the national police as the security arm of the elected, and thus legitimate, government and that the officers had the people's support against insurgents. It took about three weeks after the attack, in which time my combat patrols sprang from one Sunni mosque to another to protect them from Shiite militias that were at times supported by members of the national police, for me to realize what was really going on. For me, Samarra came to define the nature of the violence in Iraq: civil war. Some say that Iraq cannot be in a civil war because the country's major institutions are not fighting each other with conventional military forces. But this is too formulaic and restrictive for what I saw and heard. On the streets of west Baghdad, almost every person I spoke to told me of a close relative or friend who was killed by Sunni insurgents or Shiite militia members. In the summer of 2006, my squadron was assigned to Amiriyah, a Sunni district of Baghdad. I was the American commander in charge, and over five months I came to know well Sunni perspectives of Iraq. Many if not most Iraqi Sunnis think that the Iraqi government is not legitimate but sectarian and out to crush them. The Sunnis in Amiriyah believed that the government was using its institutional powers to deprive them of essential services such as electricity, trash pickup, banking facilities, health care and, most important, security. People I spoke with said that Iraqi security forces, especially the local and national police, were determined to kill them because they were Sunni. Their response to these ideas was not passive: Residents of Amiriyah, working with Sunni insurgents, would regularly target the Shiites in the area as payback for what they saw the government doing to them. The bodies that my squadron helped retrieve from the streets each day were almost always Shiite. I decided that the best way to secure the neighborhood would be to hire local men, vetted by me and trusted imams in the district, and turn them into a police force. Not only did this prove to be exceedingly difficult, but government officials often told me that doing this was arming their enemy. I ordered a concrete barrier to be built around Amiriyah and limited entry to one checkpoint controlled by the Iraqi army. The goal was to keep Sunni insurgents from bringing in weapons and to prevent attacks by Shiite militias. But while the barrier helped isolate the neighborhood from outside insurgents and militias, it could not stop, and actually facilitated, killings within Amiriyah. The security we helped provide for Sunnis gave them increased freedom to go out and kill Shiites or, more recently, to conduct fights against local al-Qaeda members. Amiriyah became one of the safest areas in Baghdad for Sunnis but lethal for the few remaining Shiites. On many days I watched families moving in or out of Amiriyah. The families moving in were Sunni and often had been told to leave another area of Baghdad that was predominantly Shiite. If they were moving out, they were Shiites whom the Sunni locals or insurgents had threatened. Sometimes I saw homes burning, having been set aflame because the owner or occupants were Shiite. The war that I faced was an insurgency within a civil war. I wish it had been the other way around. Had it been a civil war within an insurgency, the extremes could have been targeted and controlled and the large center of the people moved toward local compromise. My primary objective as a commander was to protect all the people. I felt a measure of responsibility every time a Shiite body showed up on the streets. One day last October, my patrol came upon a scene I keep trying to forget. A man was lying on the street; his wife, who had blood running down her face, stood nearby crying as she clutched their baby. The child in her arms was dead, shot in the head, as the father had been. The man, who was a Sunni, and his child were killed by Sunni insurgents or local Sunnis - sometimes it was hard to tell them apart - because he had married a Shiite woman. How can this not be civil war? -------------- The writer, a lieutenant colonel in the 4th Infantry Division, operated in west Baghdad last year.

Eric Blumrich

Definition of "Keystone Cops Tragedy":

"The Pentagon has lost track of about 190,000 AK-47 assault rifles and pistols given to Iraqi security forces in 2004 and 2005, according to a new government report, raising fears that some of those weapons have fallen into the hands of insurgents fighting U.S. forces in Iraq."

Caught on Tape! - The Plot to Bury Progress

Starring Jason Alexander, in his best role since Seinfield

Jack Balkin

"The Party of Fear, the Party Without A Spine, and the National Surveillance State" by Jack Balkin: (my highlights)

The passage of the new FISA bill by the Senate and now the House demonstrates that the Democrats stand neither for defending civil liberties nor for checking executive power. They stand for nothing at all. Conversely, the new bill shows that the Republican Party can get the Democrats to surrender almost any civil liberty-- indeed, to give the President just as much unchecked power as he might obtain under a Republican controlled Congress-- simply by playing the fear card repeatedly and without shame. And this the Republicans did with gusto in the past few days, with one Senator even suggesting that America would immediately be attacked if the President was not given everything he wanted, no matter how unnecessary the demands, and no matter what alternatives were available. When the Republican-controlled Congress passed the abomination called the Military Commissions Act of 2006, I criticized Democrats who failed to block it, calling them spineless and cowardly. At least then the Democrats had the defense that they were in the minority. One can hardly say that now. They control both houses of Congress. If anyone could stand up to the President, you would think it would be a political party that had not one, but two separate chances to push back. Indeed, how difficult should it be, you might well ask, to say no to a lame duck President with 28 percent approval ratings? What is the political cost to forcing this spoiled child to compromise? Behind the current events is a more troubling trend. As Sandy Levinson and I have written, we are in a gradual transition from a National Security State to a National Surveillance State. We pointed out that although the Republicans got first crack at constructing many features of this emerging state, it would be a bipartisan effort. The only issue will be what kind of national surveillance state we would have, and whether government would put in place the appropriate checks and balances to protect civil liberties, prevent the multiplication of secret laws and secret methods of enforcement, and restrain an increasingly ambitious executive. So far the answers to this question have not been reassuring. Whether controlled by Republicans or Democrats, Congress seems willing to bestow more and more unaccountable power to the President of the United States. The Democratic Party, which has long prided itself on its support for civil liberties, seems altogether to have lost its soul, and the Republican Party, which long contained a strong element of libertarianism and respect for individual freedom-- particularly in economic matters-- has given up any claims to providing a counterweight to a deluded and incompetent President. The Republican Party of the future appears to be Rudy Giuliani's party-- waving the bloody shirt of 9/11 and making increasingly extreme assertions about the need for concentrating unaccountable power in the executive. This is the Party of Fear. The Democratic Party of the future appears to be a pale reflection of the same, which, afraid of being thought weak, proves itself to be so by repeatedly surrendering our constitutional liberties in the name of a hyped-up and potentially endless state of emergency. This is the Party Without a Spine. Between the Party of Fear and the Party Without a Spine, there does not seem to be much opportunity to keep the National Surveillance State benign. Nor does there seem to be any political check on the development of an increasingly authoritarian Presidency, which controls the levers of secrecy, surveillance, and military force. Do not be mistaken: We are not hurtling toward the Gulag or anything that we have seen before. It will be nothing so dramatic as that. Rather, we are slowly inching, through each act of fear mongering and fecklessness, pandering and political compromise, toward a world in which Americans have increasingly little say over how they are actually governed, and increasingly little control over how the government collects information on them to regulate and control them. Slowly, secretly and imperceptibly, the mechanisms of government surveillance are being freed from methods of political control and accountability; and the liberties of ordinary citizens are being surgically removed under a potent anesthesia concocted from propaganda, fear, ignorance and apathy. I hope the Democrats are justly proud of themselves for their cowardly contributions to this slow-motion destruction of our constitutional system.

More From Snark at Yearly Kos

More from Snark at Yearly Kos:

Wes Clark gave a good speech this morning. Much like the one he gave in Vegas last year. Pretty unequivocally made it clear he has no intent on running for elective office again. No one asked him about a potential cabinet role in a Democratic administration though. And he declined to say who he liked amongst the group of Dems. He spoke very well about the need to make diplomacy more than traveling around the world telling other countries that they need to do what we say or we’ll kick their asses or having it be a “you do this and we’ll do this” bargain. Need a more global focus. I sat in on a session called “Left Behind By The Right” this morning. The panel was Cenk Uyger (Huff Post), John Dean, David Brock, Eric Massa and Roy Cook (not sure if that’s correct). Roy works for Arianna Huffington at the Huff Post. Arianna was supposed to be here but apparently she broke her ankle while walking down the street in NYC with Charlie Rose. She got her heal caught in a subway grate and twisted her ankle. All (except for Cook) are former Republicans, now cured. The general theme from the panelists was that they didn’t so much leave the Republican party but rather it left them and they jumped off before it want over the cliff of extreme rightwing authoritarian ideology. Brock described the shift in the Republicn party as going from the party of Bob Dole to the party of Bob Jones. But Eric Massa had the best one liner. The Republican party went from a big tent to a small outhouse, he said. And the stink is awful. They of course all spoke about the media and how even in this election it has already latched onto the narrative of what the next president will be like and it’s naturally a compilation of the characteristics of the Republican candidates. Pretty like Romney. Wise like McCain and Strong and steady like Giuliani. Roy Cook spoke about the “even handedness” of the media. The sense that they need to present every story as an either/or scenario. Presenting both sides equally even though one side is bogus. John Dean had a great little story about Bush in Crawford. Bush was out for a bike ride one day around Crawford when he came to a little boy with a box full of newborn puppies for sale. Bush went over to the boy and said “Of course those are all good little conservative Republican puppies, right son?” And the boy responded, “Absolutely, Mr. President.” A little while later Bush came back over with Laura to show her the puppies and asked the boy, “Tell the First Lady what kind of puppies you have there.” And the boy said, “Why they’re good little liberal democrats.” Bush was aghast! He said, “But that’s not what you told me before!” And the boy responded, “But they’ve opened their eyes now Mr. President.” Everyone has really been ribbing O’Reilly about his KKK and Nazi comments too. Pretty funny. I wrote this Friday morning. More on the rest of the day tomorrow. Mary [from The Left Coaster] invited me out to dinner with the Commonweal people. We ventured into downtown and ate at a nice Persian food place. Very good food in an old brick factory building. Great atmosphere (something I was worried about not getting any of) and a nice jazz trio playing while we ate drank and talked. An engaging bunch and I'm indebted to Mary for inviting me to tag along.

Bits and Pieces for the Week of July 29 - August 4

When your in debt, sick with PTSD, no job, and waiting for assistance from the Veteran's Administration... "Billy Carter is not angry with the VA. He is not angry with the Army. He just wants his neighbors to understand what it means to be a veteran caught in limbo." If only creditors would be so understanding. (7 of 6)

Wow. Talk about a good deed. And if that story isn't good enough for you, check out this auto manufacturing plant in Indiana that generates NO landfill waste. (Mike)

If you ever thought Bill O'Reilly had any semblance of journalistic professionalism, listen here to his "interview" this week with highly-esteemed Senator Chris Dodd, who has been in Congress since 1974. Mister O'Reilly interrupts the Senator constantly and is as disrespectful as one can possibly be to an elected government official. Shame on Mr. Bill. (Mike)

Sunnis resign from the Iraq Government. bu$h, tell me one more time that we're making good progress in Iraq?! (7 of 6)

Bush Administration will subpoena Michael Moore about trip to Cuba during "SiCKO" filming (Mike)

Bush's Legacy: Stagnant Pay and the Lowest Rate of Job Creation in the Last 40 Years (7 of 6)

GOP proposes splitting the state of California's Electoral Vote in the next Presidential Election. Better make it nationwide, suckers! (7 of 6)

Nicotine addiction develops much quicker in youth (Mike)

I grew up in the S.F. Bay Area, today is sad day for me. Former S. F. 49ers football coach and Bay Area icon, Bill Walsh, has died. Besides football championships, he brought class to an organization that sorely needed it. His influence is felt everywhere in football today. (7 of 6)

V.A.'S SUICIDE HOTLINE BEGINS OPERATIONS -- Call toll-free, 24 hours, 7 days - 1-800-273-8255 (7 of 6)

If you don't mind Linux, here's a totally legit, fully loaded $150 laptop (Mike)

It can't be said enough. "State-sanctioned teams of computer hackers were able to break through the security of virtually every model of California's voting machines and change results or take control of some of the systems' electronic functions." (7 of 6)

Republi-cons support the Progressive movement! "Young people react with hostility to the Republicans on almost every measure and Republicans and younger voters disagree on almost every major issue of the day." I remember young Republi-con supporters of the Reagan Era, to this day, they are still Republi-cons. (7 of 6)

In a victory for Unions, a strike in the Ports of L.A. and Long Beach areas was avoided. "...the companies backed off on a demand that they be allowed to bargain as a single unit in the next negotiations". Classic company move, they try to divide the Union into smaller groups. "Strength in Numbers", and never forget it! (7 of 6)

Snark, at Yearly Kos

My friend Snark, from Random Acts of Snark has an excellent Yearly Kos update:

Some quick hits on YearlyKos –Thursday. The McCormick Convention Center is beautiful and massive. After being stuck in the extremely bland and windowless Riviera Convention space last year this is terrific. Even though I miss the card tables of Vegas. The McCormick is pretty isolated from “Chicago”. Not a lot of local atmosphere. That’s too bad. I’d like to get out and see the Art Institute but I’m not sure it’s gonna happen. Sen. Dick Durbin couldn’t make it last night to the keynote but he sent a very good videotaped speech from DC. He pushed all the right buttons. Keep the pressure on and make the Republicans keep voting on Iraq. Over and over. Let the public know who wants to bring the troops home. Certain TLC [The Left Coaster] commenters’ heads would have exploded. Howard Dean was great. As always. The man just knows how to give a speech. So natural. And he tells it like it is. He spoke at length about the fact that the Progressive movement is not about one or two election cycles and that it’s going to be our kids who will see the benefit of our actions not us. He spoke about the demographic trends of the young leaning Democratic since 2000. He didn’t call for “patience”. “Patience” can be a bad thing he said. We don’t need to be patient but we need to understand the reality of what it took the ‘Conservatives’ to do what they did to the country and that it’s not going to get fixed over a couple of election cycles. As example he commented that the Roberts Court has it’s origin not in the Bush administration but in the very early days of the Reagan administration. It was a great speech. Well received and he stood and spoke to people for a long time afterward. Hillary, Hillary, Hillary. The Presidential Leadership Forum isn’t until Saturday but already Hillary has lost some shine to many because of it. The PLF is going to consist of a group session with all the Dem candidates answering questions and will then break up into individual sessions with each candidate where they will answer questions individually. Upon arrival at the convention you needed to select one of these individual sessions to attend because they can’t accommodate everyone at each session and you got a color coded wrist band that you will need to wear to get in. By the time I signed in Obama’s session was full so I decided to choose between Hillary and Edwards. Fortunately, I chose Edwards. I say fortunately because last night, following the keynote event they announced that Hillary would attend the group session but that one of her senior staffers would be doing the individual session! Oh my! You should have heard the reaction in the ballroom. All the people who had chosen Hillary are now going to get some face time with….a Hillary staffer! Seriously unhappy people. Hillary lost a lot of fence sitters I think. At the Readers/Writers mixer afterwards there was coffee, some yummy desserts and some notables. John Dean, who will be signing his book Friday was there. Getting old but he looks good. Juan Cole was there. He’s got a new book about Napoleon’s adventures in the Middle East that’s only available at YK now. Chris Mooney was there. Many others. Friday morning we’ve got Gen. Wesley Clark. Always interesting and then it’s going to be tough to decide what sessions to attend for the day. More later.

In an e-mail, Snark wants to make clear: "Hillary didn't back out and that it was the Kos people that screwed up. I didn't know that when I posted."

UPDATE: Hillary made the "session" after all.