LEFT is RIGHT (blogging against The Bush-war) |
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Iraq War Cost
 
 
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| "What our leaders and pundits never let slip is that the terrorists—whatever else they might be—might also be rational human beings ; which is to say that in their own minds they have a rational justification for their actions. Most terrorists are people deeply concerned by what they see as social, political, or religious injustice and hypocrisy, and the immediate grounds for their terrorism is often retaliation for an action of the United States." - - - William Blum |
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Steve Soto on Bush's brainwashed evangelical base of support:
"Why is voting fraud dismissed by Republicans, and why are the documented reports of the problems in both the 2000 and 2004 national elections ignored by Republicans? Because they know they control the machinery and because to them, all that matters in the modern GOP culture is winning and staying in power. One of the great successes that Rove and Company have achieved is to condition millions of the cultists to accept the overriding principle that winning is everything. To them, there is an assumed virtue in any and all GOP attempts to stay in power, because the cultists have been convinced that they are saving the country by using any means possible to prevent the Democrats from taking control again. |
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In honor of the racist anti-Harold Ford ad in Tennessee, here's a hilarious spoof commercial:
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October 30, 2006
I first posted these links October 24. I've moved the post up because it is still pertinent to next week's election. These are links to articles about Republican candidates, but which have information that the MSM are generally ignoring. The more often you click these links, the higher up their listing on Google Search. So, when someone searches for one of the names on Google, they are more likely to choose the link in Google and go to that media page. It is just one way to disseminate important information about Republicans running for office, information that the MSM is avoiding. Please, click away!
--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl
--AZ-01: Rick Renzi
--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
--CA-04: John Doolittle
--CA-11: Richard Pombo
--CA-50: Brian Bilbray
--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
--CO-05: Doug Lamborn
--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
--CT-04: Christopher Shays
--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
--FL-16: Joe Negron
--FL-22: Clay Shaw
--ID-01: Bill Sali
--IL-06: Peter Roskam
--IL-10: Mark Kirk
--IL-14: Dennis Hastert
--IN-02: Chris Chocola
--IN-08: John Hostettler
--IA-01: Mike Whalen
--KS-02: Jim Ryun
--KY-03: Anne Northup
--KY-04: Geoff Davis
--MD-Sen: Michael Steele
--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
--MN-06: Michele Bachmann
--MO-Sen: Jim Talent
--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
--NV-03: Jon Porter
--NH-02: Charlie Bass
--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
--NM-01: Heather Wilson
--NY-03: Peter King
--NY-20: John Sweeney
--NY-26: Tom Reynolds
--NY-29: Randy Kuhl
--NC-08: Robin Hayes
--NC-11: Charles Taylor
--OH-01: Steve Chabot
--OH-02: Jean Schmidt
--OH-15: Deborah Pryce
--OH-18: Joy Padgett
--PA-04: Melissa Hart
--PA-07: Curt Weldon
--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
--PA-10: Don Sherwood
--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
--TN-Sen: Bob Corker
--VA-Sen: George Allen
--VA-10: Frank Wolf
--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
--WA-08: Dave Reichert
Note: A few of the links no longer work, but don't let that discourage you.
--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl
--AZ-01: Rick Renzi
--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth
--CA-04: John Doolittle
--CA-11: Richard Pombo
--CA-50: Brian Bilbray
--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave
--CO-05: Doug Lamborn
--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell
--CT-04: Christopher Shays
--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan
--FL-16: Joe Negron
--FL-22: Clay Shaw
--ID-01: Bill Sali
--IL-06: Peter Roskam
--IL-10: Mark Kirk
--IL-14: Dennis Hastert
--IN-02: Chris Chocola
--IN-08: John Hostettler
--IA-01: Mike Whalen
--KS-02: Jim Ryun
--KY-03: Anne Northup
--KY-04: Geoff Davis
--MD-Sen: Michael Steele
--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht
--MN-06: Michele Bachmann
--MO-Sen: Jim Talent
--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns
--NV-03: Jon Porter
--NH-02: Charlie Bass
--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson
--NM-01: Heather Wilson
--NY-03: Peter King
--NY-20: John Sweeney
--NY-26: Tom Reynolds
--NY-29: Randy Kuhl
--NC-08: Robin Hayes
--NC-11: Charles Taylor
--OH-01: Steve Chabot
--OH-02: Jean Schmidt
--OH-15: Deborah Pryce
--OH-18: Joy Padgett
--PA-04: Melissa Hart
--PA-07: Curt Weldon
--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick
--PA-10: Don Sherwood
--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee
--TN-Sen: Bob Corker
--VA-Sen: George Allen
--VA-10: Frank Wolf
--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick
--WA-08: Dave Reichert
Note: A few of the links no longer work, but don't let that discourage you.
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October 27, 2006
This has gotten a lot of attention in the pipes of the internets, so I'm reposting and isolating it to make sure you take a look:
FRIDAY F U N
BITS for the Week of October 23 - 27
Seven Days at Minimum Wage (video)
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- You can't shut off this alarm clock unless you wake up and think
- This optical illusion will drive you crazy. Notice the picture frame....
- The least useful yet most entertaining search site
- Not exactly fun, but it is fascinating: 200,000 Enron emails (for real)
- From Wikipedia "Picture of the Day": a snowflake up close
- Coins as dominos (video - wait for download)
- Frog Dance Boys
- Funny commercials
- Look-alikes (look like twins, but aren't related)
- The Top Ten Best Ghost Photographs
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- One small step for fascism, one giant leap for unethical corporate accountability
- The font size is tiny, but this Bush fact sheet nicely summarizes what your Republican neighbors need to know.
- "It's a no-brainer for me..." - V.P. Dick Cheney, on why he supports torture
- The housing bubble has left California and the country
- New studies link cell phones to brain cancer and increased male infertility. Other than that, they're pretty cool to use. (That darn headache just won't go away....)
- Based on campaign cash on hand and organizational assets on the ground, the Republicans should retain majorities in both houses of Congress come November 7.
- Keith Olbermann rejects the Republican Party's use of bin Laden videos (video)
- Bush's Supreme Court showing its prejudice
- How to build a U.S. Embassy without following labor laws (h/t 7 of 6)
- Perks for military families: Free Food (snark alert)
- For the first time since Iraq invasion, active troops prepare to speak out to Congress against war
- Proposition 90 in California is an attempt by Republicans to deceive the public
- Obama for VICE President
- Seven Days at Minimum Wage (video)
- Is the GOP poised to launch the most vicious attacks of the election cycle? Maybe. Maybe not.
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October 26, 2006
A crude, but efficient list of what the "liberal" media forgot to report:
This guy has been paying attention! Sadly, nearly everyone else hasn't.
| Let me just toss out a few topics the (republican owned) "liberal media" under-reported or never reported that have a HUGE effect on our lives and liberties. In no partcular order. 1) Downing Street Memos 2) Media Ownership (deregulation) 3) Disappearance of Habeas Corpus 4) Fairness Doctrine no longer enforced 5) Freedom of Information Act ratcheted up 6) Bush family close relationship with Bin Ladins 7) Bush family close relationship with the recently departed (yeah right) Ken Lay (Enron) 8) The strategic importance of running that oil pipieline thru Afghanistan 9) Congress working to draft legislation to strangle internet (net neutrality) 10) Military Bases in Iraq 11) All the old Iran-Contra players currently working for Bushco 12) The scummy manner which the medicare prescription bill was passed that has allowed drug companies to make off like bandits 13) Journalists targeted in Iraq 14) The danger posed by a 6 trillion dollar national debt 15) The danger posed by unregulated hedge funds 16) Why labor gets almost no TV time and management dominates the airwaves 17) Oil executives secretly meeting to write our energy policy (fascism) 18) Bankers allowed to write bankruptcy bill (fascism) If I went thru my notes I could've easily found 100 more stories of great importance the "liberal" media hasn't touched. [...] 20) Voting Integrity (a few stories hitting airwaves now weeks before election..too late) 21) Purging of voter rolls..see GregPalast.com for info that'll make u sick! 22) Depleted Uranium from the hundreds of thousands of shell casings in Iraq 23) Delay and Abramoff running sweat shops/prison camps in Marinas Islands and forcing young Chinese girls into prostitution then abortions 24) Fake, gay (not a fake gay but a fake reporter) reporter Jeff Gannon sleeping over at White House multiple times. 25) Sibel Edmonds being silenced and what she knows about 9/11, Denny Hastert and illegal arms sales. 26) Bill Frist sneaking legislation into a Defense bill to protect big Pharma from lawsuits. 27) Choicepoint collecting data on you perhaps even your DNA. as I said I could go on and on and on and on. But you don't need to worry your pretty little head about these stories. That damn liberal media bias! lol... After all, Tom Cruise is getting married next month! Comment by Larry+from+C — October 25, 2006 @ 2:42 pm |
This guy has been paying attention! Sadly, nearly everyone else hasn't.
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Time for a little humor.....
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In case you haven't noticed recently, nearly every word to the press coming from all Republican leaders is a lie. Everything they are saying about Iraq, the economy, the Democrats, the environment, corruption scandals, the military, other nations, everything.
That's fine. That's not the bad part. You expect that from corrupt and incompetent politicians.
What's bad is that the press, for the most part, is printing or broadcasting each and every lie as if it's fact. That's why so many Americans are confused and likely to continue voting these lying liars back into office over and over.
And over.
Imagine, just for a moment, a press that only prints the truth..................... Shit, wasn't that a great moment?
That's all we've got left, folks. Just our imaginations. When will they start sending us to Gitmo for that?
That's fine. That's not the bad part. You expect that from corrupt and incompetent politicians.
What's bad is that the press, for the most part, is printing or broadcasting each and every lie as if it's fact. That's why so many Americans are confused and likely to continue voting these lying liars back into office over and over.
And over.
Imagine, just for a moment, a press that only prints the truth..................... Shit, wasn't that a great moment?
That's all we've got left, folks. Just our imaginations. When will they start sending us to Gitmo for that?
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Yesterday, Bush-war said this about Iraq:
Let me remind all you Republicans reading this that this was YOUR President talking. First of all, the latest polls show that well over 60% of Americans want out of Iraq now. Secondly, Iraq neither attacked us nor declared war on us. Third, your president talks as if he's clinically retarded!
I never even considered voting for this man. I think he is a mean s.o.b. And I would never give him the time of day because he'd probably steal my watch off my wrist if I showed him. I won't even bring up the fact that he alone is responsible for the murders of well over 600,000 totally innocent humans. Just how much more of this terrible excuse for a man are you going to tolerate?
| "My attitude about our – look, I'm into campaigning out there: People want to know, can you win? That's what they want to know. I mean, there's – look, there's some 25 percent or so that want us to get out, shouldn't have been out there in the first place – and that's fine. They're wrong. But you can understand why they feel that way. They just don't believe in war, and – at any cost. I believe when you get attacked and somebody declares war on you, you fight back. And that's what we're doing." |
Let me remind all you Republicans reading this that this was YOUR President talking. First of all, the latest polls show that well over 60% of Americans want out of Iraq now. Secondly, Iraq neither attacked us nor declared war on us. Third, your president talks as if he's clinically retarded!
I never even considered voting for this man. I think he is a mean s.o.b. And I would never give him the time of day because he'd probably steal my watch off my wrist if I showed him. I won't even bring up the fact that he alone is responsible for the murders of well over 600,000 totally innocent humans. Just how much more of this terrible excuse for a man are you going to tolerate?
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Yesterday coffee (caffeine) was bad bad bad for you. Today? Why, it's GOOD:
from MedScape Daily News (subscr. req.)
| October 25, 2006 — Coffee consumption reduces the risk for type 2 diabetes by 60% compared with those who do not drink coffee, according to the results of a large prospective study reported in the November issue of Diabetes Care. "Several recently published cohort studies suggest a significant reduced risk of type 2 diabetes in coffee drinkers," write Besa Smith, MPH, from the University of California San Diego in La Jolla, and colleagues. "The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between coffee intake and incident diabetes based on an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and examine coffee habits in those with impaired glucose separately from those with normal glucose at baseline." From 1984-1987 until 1992-1996, the investigators followed up 910 adults aged 50 years or older without diabetes at baseline. Average follow-up was 8 years after assessment of coffee intake. Logistic regression models were adjusted for sex, age, physical activity, body mass index, smoking, alcohol, hypertension, and baseline fasting plasma glucose. Compared with those who never drank coffee, past and current coffee drinkers had a lower risk for incident diabetes (odds ratio [OR], 0.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.17 - 0.87; and OR, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.19 - 0.68, respectively). The 317 participants who had impaired glucose at baseline and who were past or current coffee drinkers also had reduced risk for incident diabetes (OR, 0.31; 95% CI, 0.11 - 0.87; and OR, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.16 - 0.83, respectively). "This study confirms a striking protective effect of caffeinated coffee against incident diabetes and extends these findings to incident diabetes based on OGTT independent of multiple plausible confounders," the authors write. "The quantity of coffee consumed daily (cup-years) did not predict diabetes risk in either those with normal or impaired glucose at baseline." Study limitations include a predominantly middle-class, white population limiting generalizability; possible survival bias; and self-reported coffee consumption subject to recall bias. "Given the increasing prevalence of obesity, IGT [impaired glucose tolerance], and diabetes, and the fact that the majority of adults in most of the Westernized world drink coffee daily, a coffee benefit could have widespread impact," the authors conclude. "Further investigation is warranted." |
from MedScape Daily News (subscr. req.)
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It seems like hardly an hour goes by that some political organization isn't asking for a handout for a candidate or cause. Well, here's a group that is trying desperately to help Iraq vets by funding TV ads that target elected officials who have not supported those vets. Their ads have been wildly successful and I encourage you to check out their site and consider giving a truly worthwhile donation.
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I'm only going to say this one more time before the voting on November 7th:
Through well-documented electronic voting manipulation and ongoing voter disenfranchisement activities, the Neocon Republicans will succeed in retaining a majority in the House of Representatives.
Dick Cheney has assured the press repeatedly that such is the case, and he's never been wrong about it. You can, by studying his voice and body language, see that the conspiracy to once again steal an election is in full swing, and there really is nothing any of us can do about it at this point. Liberals are going bat-shit crazy with anticipation about a Democratic takeover of Congress.
Fools, all of us.
The good thing about all this is, the horrific realization that Democrats will reach on November 8th may be sufficient fodder to finally create a genuine political backlash that could have thrown out the Republicans in 2008.
The bad thing is, another two years of Republican control will likely be enough time to complete the ongoing transformation of the United States into a fascist state.
I am not trying to be a naysayer, just a realist. What has happened since December, 2000, is far beyond the most horrible predictions I could have made at that time. Problem is, too many Democrats/Liberals/Progressives have done too little for too long to prevent another stolen election next month.
Come back here November 8th and tell me if you're finally ready to join the revolution.
UPDATE 10/26/06: I'VE DECIDED THAT, UNLESS THE DEMOCRATS CAN TAKE BACK SOME CONTROL NOVEMBER 7TH, I WILL DISCONTINUE POSTING ON LEFT IS RIGHT. IT IS MORE IMPORTANT TO SPEND WHAT REMAINING TIME I HAVE LEFT WITH MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS, BEFORE OUR NATION SELF-DESTRUCTS THROUGH CHAOS AND REVOLUTIONARY ANARCHY OR FROM A NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST TRIGGERED BY THE RAPIDLY DEGENERATING MIDDLE EAST. IF SEVEN OF SIX (OUR NEW CO-BLOGGER) WANTS TO TAKE OVER LEFT IS RIGHT, IT'S HIS.
Through well-documented electronic voting manipulation and ongoing voter disenfranchisement activities, the Neocon Republicans will succeed in retaining a majority in the House of Representatives.
Dick Cheney has assured the press repeatedly that such is the case, and he's never been wrong about it. You can, by studying his voice and body language, see that the conspiracy to once again steal an election is in full swing, and there really is nothing any of us can do about it at this point. Liberals are going bat-shit crazy with anticipation about a Democratic takeover of Congress.
Fools, all of us.
The good thing about all this is, the horrific realization that Democrats will reach on November 8th may be sufficient fodder to finally create a genuine political backlash that could have thrown out the Republicans in 2008.
The bad thing is, another two years of Republican control will likely be enough time to complete the ongoing transformation of the United States into a fascist state.
I am not trying to be a naysayer, just a realist. What has happened since December, 2000, is far beyond the most horrible predictions I could have made at that time. Problem is, too many Democrats/Liberals/Progressives have done too little for too long to prevent another stolen election next month.
Come back here November 8th and tell me if you're finally ready to join the revolution.
UPDATE 10/26/06: I'VE DECIDED THAT, UNLESS THE DEMOCRATS CAN TAKE BACK SOME CONTROL NOVEMBER 7TH, I WILL DISCONTINUE POSTING ON LEFT IS RIGHT. IT IS MORE IMPORTANT TO SPEND WHAT REMAINING TIME I HAVE LEFT WITH MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS, BEFORE OUR NATION SELF-DESTRUCTS THROUGH CHAOS AND REVOLUTIONARY ANARCHY OR FROM A NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST TRIGGERED BY THE RAPIDLY DEGENERATING MIDDLE EAST. IF SEVEN OF SIX (OUR NEW CO-BLOGGER) WANTS TO TAKE OVER LEFT IS RIGHT, IT'S HIS.
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October 25, 2006
Intelligent Vote is a promising new web site that first polls you on how you would vote on past federal legislation, then compares your "votes" with those of your Senators and Congressperson.
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October 24, 2006
Our computer-illiterate President:
| "One of the things I’ve used on the Google is to pull up maps. It’s very interesting to see that. I forgot the name of the program, but you get the satellite and you can — like, I kind of like to look at the ranch on Google, reminds me of where I want to be sometimes. Yeah, I do it some. I tend not to email or — not only tend not to email, I don’t email, because of the different record requests that can happen to a president. I don’t want to receive emails because, you know, there’s no telling what somebody’s email may — it would show up as, you know, a part of some kind of a story, and I wouldn’t be able to say, `Well, I didn’t read the email.’ `But I sent it to your address, how can you say you didn’t?’ So, in other words, I’m very cautious about emailing.” |
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October 23, 2006
A Simple Surgery
I was scheduled to go in for my third military related surgery today Monday, October 23rd, 2006. A simple surgery, (I was hoping), on a Popliteal Cyst.
An article that I shelved was going to be titled, "Call Me Apprehensive!"At first the VA was going to use local anesthetic. They changed their minds and decided to put me under completely.
Why the uneasiness? I'm a 100% disabled Veteran, and basically, I wanted to wake up! Call me paranoid. Yes, the 'tin foil hat' was on! Don't we have a record backlog of VA patients waiting for service? Shit, I'm 49, in this bu$h era of cost cutting, maybe they needed to make room on the rolls for the younger Veteran's returning from Iraq/Afghanistan! I was seriously worried that something would happen to me. Turns out, I'm not nearly as important as I thought!
Hey, I'm always grateful that the VA is there to help but like anybody else I wanted to make sure everything went according to plan. I needed to believe that these VA doctor's and nurses are as competent as the skilled staff at a regular hospital. I hope they are happy at their jobs, stagnant pay and overwhelming case load. After all, they have been seeing me for this leg pain for over 6 months.
Well, I don't have to worry about it now, my surgery got cancelled!! No call in advance, I just walked in this morning at 6 AM and they said, "Sorry we had to bump you off the rolls!" What pisses me off the most is that the wife took a day off from work to drive me home! Not to mention, waking up early, the pre-op preparation, fasting all night, driving down early, the wasted gas and my boy staying at grandma's so he could get to school!
Yes people, the backlog is heavy at the VA! I couldn't even get a minor surgical procedure completed. One that was planned for 2 months. Of course, I'm thinking some retired General got my spot or something. So, I had a momentary self pity party with some simple whining on my part for dessert. I forgot to think that my place was taken by a very ill Veteran!
I needed the wife to play devil's advocate for me...I'm happy to give up my surgical spot! I can continue to drag my leg around for another couple of months and tolerate the pain in the back of my leg! I'll continue to tell myself that there had to be good reason for the cancellation. I will persist in my on going struggle with the VA. I shouldn't be so selfish! Disappointed, yes...selfish, no!
I pray and hope that the Democrat's win the November elections! We will then have a Democrat leading the way on the Veteran's committee and possibly create more funding that is sorely needed for the Veteran's Administration! By God we need it, in order to handle the caseload!!
Seven of Six, crossposted at Low and Left
Seven of Six, crossposted at Low and Left
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Helen Caldicott, nuclear politics and policies expert, uses the "Nuclear N. Korea" situation to remind us of the real dangers (snippets):
Kinda makes that new TV show, "Jericho" seem like a walk in the park.
| "It is difficult to underestimate the problems associated with North Korea's recent nuclear weapons test. Following a small atomic explosion in a mountainous area of North Korea of less than one kiloton -- the Hiroshima bomb was 13 kilotons -- the U.S. administration is encouraging draconian economic sanctions to be enacted against a desperately poor country where millions of people are malnourished and that will further ostracize a paranoid regime, while the rest of the world looks on with horror as the nuclear arms race threatens to spiral out of control. "While lateral proliferation is indeed an incredibly serious problem as ever-more countries prepare to enter the portals of the nuclear club, one consistent outstanding nuclear threat that continues to endanger most planetary species is ignored by the international community. "In fact, the real "rogue" nations that continue to hold the world at nuclear ransom are Russia and the United States. Contrary to popular belief, the threat of a massive nuclear attack -- whether by accident, human fallibility or malfeasance -- has increased. "Of the 30,000 nuclear weapons in the world today, the United States and Russia possess 96 per cent of them. Of these, Russia aims most of its 8,200 strategic nuclear warheads at U.S. and Canadian targets, while the U.S. aims most of its 7,000 offensive strategic hydrogen bombs on Russian missile silos and command centres. Each of these thermonuclear warheads has roughly 20 times the destructive power of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, according to a report on nuclear weapons by the National Resources Defense Council, a U.S. environmental group. "Of these 7,000 U.S. strategic weapons, 2,500 are deployed on intercontinental ballistic missiles that are constantly maintained on hair-trigger alert ready for immediate launching, while the U.S. also maintains some 2,688 hydrogen bombs on missiles in its 14 Trident submarines, most ready for instantaneous launching." "......Most towns and cities with populations over 50,000 on the North American continent are targeted with at least one hydrogen bomb. Only 1,000 bombs exploding on 100 cities could induce nuclear winter and the end of most life on earth. There are fewer than 300 major cities in the Northern hemisphere. "Such is the redundancy of nuclear weapons. A U.S. Foreign Military Studies Office report of January 2002, "Prototypes for Targeting America, a Soviet Military Assessment," states that New York City, for example, is the single most important target in the Atlantic region after major military installations. A U.S. Congressional Office of Technology Assessment report, commissioned in the 1980s but still relevant, estimated that Soviet nuclear war plans had two one-megaton bombs aimed at each of three airports that serve New York, one aimed at each of the major bridges, two at Wall Street and two at each of four oil refineries. The major rail centres and power stations were also targeted, along with the port facilities. "The Federal Emergency Management Agency estimates that New York City would be obliterated by nuclear blasts and the resulting firestorms and fallout. "Millions of people would die instantly. Survivors would perish shortly thereafter from burns and exposure to radiation. "Terrifyingly, the early warning systems of both Russia and the U.S. register false alarms daily, triggered either by wildfires, satellite launchings or solar reflections off clouds or oceans. Of more immediate concern in both the United States and Russia is the threat of terrorists or hackers entering and disrupting the computerized early warning systems and command centres. "Therefore, as the world tries to come to terms with a possible tiny new entrant into the nuclear club, the U.S. Security Council, the U.S. administration, the U.S. Congress, the Canadian government and the Kremlin fail to recognize the most serious danger -- thousands of hydrogen bombs maintained on tenuous hair-trigger alert...." |
Kinda makes that new TV show, "Jericho" seem like a walk in the park.
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| "....I think if you look back over the last two years, President Bush has been engaged in what amounts to a cynical game of chicken with his fellow Americans. "Think of the president as a failed or deadbeat entrepreneur (again, not such a stretch) who's already lost his investors a ton of money. He goes back to them and says, 'Okay, fine. You think I'm a moron and a screw-up who lost you guys a ton of money. Fine. But do you really want to finally, totally, conclusively kiss that $300 billion goodbye. You wanna just totally call it quits? Admit it's a total loss? What about giving me just another $10 billion and maybe somehow I'll actually pull this off? Or, since that's just not gonna happen, a mere $10 billion to put off for six months having to write the whole thing off as a loss, having to come to grips once and for all with the fact that all the money's gone and the whole thing's a bust?' "That's really what this is about. And I think we all know it pretty much across the political spectrum. In this way, paradoxically, the very magnitude of the president's failure has become his tacit ally. It's just such a big thing to come to grips with. And reinvesting in the president's folly, even after any hope of recouping the money is gone, carries the critical fringe benefit of sustaining our own collective and increasingly threadbare denial. "But President Bush's interests are not the same as the country's. He's maxed out, in for 100%. If Iraq is a failure, a mistake, then the same words will be written right after his name in the history books. A country, though, can take missteps and mistakes, course corrections and dead ends, and move on. We've done it before and we'll do it again. "But President Bush can't and won't withdraw from Iraq because when he does, under the current conditions, he'll sign the epitaph, the historical death warrant for his presidency. Unlike in the past there are no family friends to pawn the failure off on and let them take the loss. It's all his. So he'll keep kicking the can down the road forever." -- Josh Marshall |
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October 20, 2006
Hey, all you easily manipulated voters out there, did you know that if you vote for a Democrat you will cause nuclear bombs to explode? I didn't either, but that's what the desperate, gutter-scraping Republican Party wants you to think. Instead, try thinking about sending all those amoral subhuman sickos home this November by voting for people who actually care about America and you.
BITS for the Week of October 16 - 20
FRIDAY F U N
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- Saving the planet one Green Chimney at a time
- "Calif. GOP wants own candidate to withdraw"
- "Your words are lies, Sir." (video)
- Obese kids are aging before their time. So does that mean they'll be going on Social Security earlier?
- Hey voters: Just by voting for Democrats, you can legally kill off at least one evil top Republican, so get off your butt November 7th and do your duty!
- Watch Senator Tom Kean of New Jersey avoid answering questions about Iraq.
- Only 30 percent of Iraq’s 3.5 million students are currently attending classes due to the drastic increase in daily violence.
- Brainshrub interviews Mr. Bill Scher, of LiberalOasis.com, on how bloggers significantly shape the political debate (audio)
- Judge Revokes Lay's Conviction
- Google going solar
- Nevadans to vote on legalizing marijuana
- Fantasy Football players: meet Fantasy Congress
- First Bush-appointed chair of U.S. Election Assistance Commision says 'No Standards for E-Voting Devices, System 'Ripe for Stealing Elections'
- Good news and bad news: Californians can opt to use paper ballots.
- If only Bush-war had been Amish
- George Allen Insult Generator
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"After Pat's Birthday"
Posted on Oct 19, 2006 |
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- Serious pumpkin carving
- Cell phone symphony
- Ricky Gervais on Animals
- What are the odds of....
- Crop Mazes
- If you've somehow lost the ability to feel thirsty, then THIS ITEM is for you.
- Geek license plates (be sure to scroll to the comments)
- Gallery of fluid-related photography
- For Sale on eBay: Flying Car
- Things you think are facts but aren't, plus.... The Most Interesting Facts
- Site Gags
- Create your own Dallas Cheerleaders commercial
- And last, and definitely least, buy your own celebrity stool sample
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October 19, 2006
If you have a few minutes, watch this ABC News report about one doctor's mission in Baghdad. If you're a Republican, think about what you saw in this video when you enter the voting booth November 7th, and ask yourself if you want this to continue.
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Great comment about the insane Connecticut Senate race:
Ten most polluted spots on Earth
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| "How often do you get a three-way race in which the Democrat is supporting the Republican while fighting against the Democratic infrastructure, the Republican party is supporting the liberal New England Jew instead of the right-wing millionaire, and the Republican nominee is running against the Republican party?" |
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October 17, 2006
OMG, continue to read the entire post! Sickly hilarious! The hypocrisy of the Republicans know no bounds! Seven of Six
"Look into my eyes.... I command you to Stay the Course."
"...you-can't-make-this-stuff-up..."
| Bob Geiger Posted by in Tue Oct 17th 2006, 11:36 AM To paraphrase Forrest Gump, going to the White House web site is like a box of chocolates… you never know what you're gonna get. It may be some hilarious prevarication by press secretary Tony Snow or it may be the usual verbal bumbling or outright lies by George W. Bush in one of his speeches. But one place that's always sure to give you a you-can't-make-this-stuff-up moment, is going to the section giving Bush's presidential proclamations.In 2006 alone, we've seen hypocritical celebrations that included the irony of Child Health Day -- from an administration that's done nothing to make American children healthier -- to a warmonger like Bush lauding Prayer for Peace day and the grotesque spectacle of Gold Star Mother's Day being heralded by a man who is responsible for creating so many new Gold Star Mothers.We have another one to add to that collection because, whether you realize it or not, we're smack-dab in the middle of what Bush has officially proclaimed National Character Counts Week. It runs October 15 through October 21 and is intended, according to Bush, to "renew our commitment to instilling values in our young people and to encouraging all Americans to remember the importance of good character.""As individuals, we all have an obligation to help our children become responsible citizens and realize their full potential," reads the Bush proclamation. "By demonstrating values such as integrity, courage, honesty, and patriotism, all Americans can help our children develop strength and character."Fortunately, in our household, we have a child who truly is being taught these values and we hold up this president and his lying, corrupt administration as examples of everything our little boy does not want to be. |
OMG, continue to read the entire post! Sickly hilarious! The hypocrisy of the Republicans know no bounds! Seven of Six
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| 5 stages of Republican scandal: 1. “I have not been informed of any investigation or that I am a target” 2. “I am cooperating fully, but this whole thing is a political ploy by the Democrats” 3. “I’m SHOCKED by the mistakes made by my subordinates” 4. “I’m deeply sorry for letting down my friends and family. I now recognize that I am an alcoholic. I will be entering rehab immediately, so I have no time for questions” 5. “Can I serve my time at Eglin Federal Penitentiary (aka Club Fed)?” |
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"Look into my eyes.... I command you to Stay the Course."
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October 16, 2006
Depleted Uranium (DU) is the elephant in the Iraq War room. Fellow blogger Seven of Six found these videos that document the terrible toll DU is taking on humanity, with the focus on Iraq:
DEPLETED URANIUM ALERT! Invisible War, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7
Plus, a short lecture by Dr. Doug Rokke on DU.
DEPLETED URANIUM ALERT! Invisible War, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7
Plus, a short lecture by Dr. Doug Rokke on DU.
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Tonight our local Democratic Club showed IRAQ FOR SALE at the city library. There were probably 50 - 60 local residents who showed up. I must say, they were riveted to their seats the entire time. The movie is a devastating documentary on the rape of our U.S. Treasury by numerous private contractors working in Iraq, with the total, complicit support of the Bush-war Administration. It's not that it's almost like a group of wealthy thugs has taken over the government, it's that a wealthy group of thugs HAS taken over our government. As soon as they leave office (or are driven out) you'll never see them again. They aren't Americans. They are a sub-species of Homo sapiens that has not evolved as far as the rest of us.
We stupid (more evolved, but still stupid) Americans think that our only option is to wait around for elections to drive out the Neocon horde. No, people, we don't have to wait. Hundreds of lives are lost every day in Iraq because we are sitting on our asses, waiting for our turn to put marks on a piece of paper in a 3x3 booth November 7th. Come on, we're better than that, aren't we?
Remember, the rest of the world isn't going to continue standing on the sidelines, waiting for us to fix ourselves. Eventually there will be a breaking point, just like Germany in 1939, when the South Americans, the Africans, the Middle Easterners, the Asians, and the Canadians will have had enough. We are not invincible, and the faux Republicans are making darn sure that we become weaker every day.
In spite of what you might hear or read, Bush IS gearing up to attack Iran, a nation that hasn't attacked another in hundreds of years. The Republicans ARE going to maintain control of Congress (not legitimately, but hey, what's new?).
There is only one solution, and that's revolution. That's why it happens; it's the last resort, and we're fast approaching that destination.
We stupid (more evolved, but still stupid) Americans think that our only option is to wait around for elections to drive out the Neocon horde. No, people, we don't have to wait. Hundreds of lives are lost every day in Iraq because we are sitting on our asses, waiting for our turn to put marks on a piece of paper in a 3x3 booth November 7th. Come on, we're better than that, aren't we?
Remember, the rest of the world isn't going to continue standing on the sidelines, waiting for us to fix ourselves. Eventually there will be a breaking point, just like Germany in 1939, when the South Americans, the Africans, the Middle Easterners, the Asians, and the Canadians will have had enough. We are not invincible, and the faux Republicans are making darn sure that we become weaker every day.
In spite of what you might hear or read, Bush IS gearing up to attack Iran, a nation that hasn't attacked another in hundreds of years. The Republicans ARE going to maintain control of Congress (not legitimately, but hey, what's new?).
There is only one solution, and that's revolution. That's why it happens; it's the last resort, and we're fast approaching that destination.
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Veteran's Issues!
It's amazing when our politicians lie to us about the funding for disabled Veterans but when Rep. Steve Buyer (R-IN), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs states, "Politics should not be in the mix when discussing veterans' funding..." Yet, "Buyer and other Republicans in the House and Senate held up the VA's 2007 budget leaving the VA to operate at last year's funding level. That will cost VA healthcare at least $438 million."
This is not the time to be going on the cheap for Veterans! " Nearly one in five soldiers leaving the military after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan has been at least partly disabled as a result of service, according to documents of the Department of Veterans Affairs obtained by a Washington research group."
The problem was: "In January, the NSA (National Security Archive) asked the Department of Veterans Affairs for records about the number of disability claims filed by veterans who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars... At first, the VA made the amazing pronouncement that no documents existed. The archive's researchers were asked to believe that the government had no records of claims by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Of course, this could not be true. For the next nine months, the NSA (National Security Archive) made repeated requests and finally threatened to sue the VA if it did not turn over the records. This month, the government relented and complied. There were plenty of reports and plenty of documents."
The bu$h administration has already lied about the Iraq War! The politicians can now disregard the truth about the cost of treating disabled Veterans! Please, do not lie to us about the amount of disabled Veterans we truly will have to treat!
American taxpayers deserve to be told the truth!! And they need to know it before the November elections!
Seven of Six, crossposted at Low and Left
This is not the time to be going on the cheap for Veterans! " Nearly one in five soldiers leaving the military after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan has been at least partly disabled as a result of service, according to documents of the Department of Veterans Affairs obtained by a Washington research group."
The problem was: "In January, the NSA (National Security Archive) asked the Department of Veterans Affairs for records about the number of disability claims filed by veterans who served in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars... At first, the VA made the amazing pronouncement that no documents existed. The archive's researchers were asked to believe that the government had no records of claims by Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. Of course, this could not be true. For the next nine months, the NSA (National Security Archive) made repeated requests and finally threatened to sue the VA if it did not turn over the records. This month, the government relented and complied. There were plenty of reports and plenty of documents."
The bu$h administration has already lied about the Iraq War! The politicians can now disregard the truth about the cost of treating disabled Veterans! Please, do not lie to us about the amount of disabled Veterans we truly will have to treat!
American taxpayers deserve to be told the truth!! And they need to know it before the November elections!
Seven of Six, crossposted at Low and Left
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October 15, 2006
In case you need a refresher on vote counting fraud, watch this seldom-seen but highly volatile video:
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October 14, 2006
I've been saying this for a loooong time now.... just not this well:
| Pre-Empting The GOP By Going On Offense Down The Home Stretch - by Steve Soto Several of you have smartly suggested an approach that I wanted to write about weeks ago but have yet to do. According to Charlie Cook, there are now several dozen GOP seats in play next month, and the DCCC is in position to pick up not just 15 but possibly several dozen seats, and perhaps over 30. We know that the GOP has its 72-hour operation and will dump millions the next three weeks into defending those GOP seats by smearing their Democratic challengers. But the one thing we aren't shining a light upon and forcing the media to look hard at is which of these 30-40 races will be determined by electronic voting machinery that is in the GOP's hands. After all, you can cover a fraud quite nicely by arguing that despite pre-election polls, voters had a polling booth conversion because negative ads gave them doubts about the Democratic challenger, when in fact it may not be true. We know that the GOP took control in 1994 of dozens of formerly Democratic seats not by a national tidal wave, but rather by a small national aggregate margin of well less than 100,000 votes amongst those captured Democratic seats. Similarly, the GOP could maintain control this year through a small-scale district-by-district manipulation of only 15-25 seats involving a similar if not smaller number of "votes." Such a fraud would escape the scrutiny of the media if we don't set the narrative now and focus attention on this possibility so that if and when it happens the results would immediately be suspect. The DCCC needs to put together a data base now of who governs the election machinery in all of these vulnerable GOP seats, and on whose equipment each district's voters will be voting. The DCCC and bloggers can then begin pushing the narrative with local media in each of those districts to be on the lookout for possible election fraud by the local GOP election officials and their enablers amongst the election machinery contractors, an outcome that has already been documented in previous elections by John Conyers and others. Having attorneys on the ground to deal with the issue after the fact isn't sufficient anymore. Our candidates and the DCCC need to have a counter message against the final GOP smears and money against us. We can put a pre-emptory message out there now that the only defense the GOP has left aside from an "October Surprise" is to smear and outspend their opponents, and failing that, to rely on suspect electronic voting and local GOP officials to carry the day for them. Democrats need to set the narrative and get the media's scrutiny ramped up now before the election for two reasons. First, we need to get these local officials under the spotlight now before the election so that they will think twice before manipulating a race or allowing a contractor to do so, as happened in Ohio and elsewhere. And we also need to do this now so that the public in each district is conditioned to question any outcomes that fly in the face of pre-election polls. If you know your opponent is about to come after you, don't sit there and wait for it. Hit him and define him first. |
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October 13, 2006
You can add Ney to this, bringing the total to 50%:
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FRIDAY F U N
BITS for the Week of October 9 - 13
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- Your Telephone Of Tomorrow (Sep, 1956)
- Create your own Stephen Colbert ON NOTICE board
- Top 15 Movie Mistakes
- Driver's test (I scored 90%)
- Name the Dark Movie
- Executive Coloring Book
- How many people in the U.S. share your name? (note: slow-loading)
- Every David Letterman's Top Ten List
- Geek Wallets
- Victorian Surrealism
- Award-winning technology breakthroughs of 2006
- Casual Gameplay (Sh*tload of online games)
- So, you say light sabers aren't real? Check this out.
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- When you go vote on November 7, be sure you remember which political party was the primary driving force that allowed THIS to happen, and subsequently legalized torture and pulverized habeas corpus.
- The return of Earth
- Consequences of a U.S. attack against N. Korea: it's not pretty
- The Mike Stark story
- F*ck Israel
- Progressives of California: your Voter's Guide is here!
- We've known this for years. The Christian Evangelicals are apparently still in the dark on it.
- Juan Cole analyzes the John Hopkins study about the Iraqi death rate. Plus, the right-wing reaction
- Wow. Not only does the Bush-war Administration have total control over the U.S. government, it apparently also controls god's travel itinerary.
- 655,000 reasons why Bush-war must be fired from his job
- The government-backed assassination of Michael Moore
- A well-needed reality check for all of you overly-optimistic Democrats
- If you have a broadband connection, check out news sites Rocketboom and American Microphone
- Yet another federal law broken by the Bush Administration?
- The Republicans are incessantly claiming Democrats begot the Foley scandal. See what happens when someone asks them for evidence to back up that claim.
- "Hail to the Chief" (song)
- Now you can add Supereruptions to your list of things to waste your time fearing.
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October 12, 2006
For things to truly change in the U.S., Average Americans are going to have to realize that they've been duped by their government. Specifically, duped about the Iraq War.
Until Average Americans understand that the son or daughter of their relative, or their friend, or their neighbor was injured or killed needlessly in Iraq, nothing will change. By needlessly, I mean needless to everyone except the leaders of the Bush-war Administration and all the top corporate executives of any company making a buck on the war.
Until Average Americans understand that an Iraqi citizen has exactly the same rights to the resources of this planet as U.S. citizens, nothing will change.
Until Average American owners of stock in any company that does business with the U.S. Military realize that the money represented by their stock is being used by that company to propagate the war, nothing will change.
Until Average Americans realize that Republican-defined patriotism is the single most important tool used to persuade citizens to support war, nothing will change.
Until Average Americans realize that their source(s) of news is not actually news but carefully molded and biased information, nothing will change.
So far, the Average American has no clue. We are likely the most under-educated population that has existed on this continent since the 16th century, relative to the knowledge necessary for making moral and logical decisions. Until we can significantly improve the quality and accessibility of factual information for the Average American, (all together now...) NOTHING WILL CHANGE.
If (and only if) Average Americans get a clue, watch out.... because there will be a Revolution.
Until Average Americans understand that the son or daughter of their relative, or their friend, or their neighbor was injured or killed needlessly in Iraq, nothing will change. By needlessly, I mean needless to everyone except the leaders of the Bush-war Administration and all the top corporate executives of any company making a buck on the war.
Until Average Americans understand that an Iraqi citizen has exactly the same rights to the resources of this planet as U.S. citizens, nothing will change.
Until Average American owners of stock in any company that does business with the U.S. Military realize that the money represented by their stock is being used by that company to propagate the war, nothing will change.
Until Average Americans realize that Republican-defined patriotism is the single most important tool used to persuade citizens to support war, nothing will change.
Until Average Americans realize that their source(s) of news is not actually news but carefully molded and biased information, nothing will change.
So far, the Average American has no clue. We are likely the most under-educated population that has existed on this continent since the 16th century, relative to the knowledge necessary for making moral and logical decisions. Until we can significantly improve the quality and accessibility of factual information for the Average American, (all together now...) NOTHING WILL CHANGE.
If (and only if) Average Americans get a clue, watch out.... because there will be a Revolution.
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From MedLine, a warning to women who drink cola:
Besides the effect on bone density as shown by this study, colas in general have chemicals in them that just do terrible damage to the body. Remember, you can literally polish chrome using Coke. Look at the ingredients listed on a soda label and ask yourself if you would ingest any of them individually.
| October 11, 2006 — Regular consumption of carbonated cola drinks may increase risk for low bone mineral density (BMD) in women, according to the results of the Framingham Osteoporosis Study reported in the October issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. ...."Intake of cola, but not of other carbonated soft drinks, is associated with low BMD in women," the authors write. "Additional research is needed to confirm these findings.... Unless additional evidence rules out an effect, women who are concerned about osteoporosis may want to avoid the regular use of cola beverages." ....Increased cola intake has been demonstrated to reduce BMD in children, and several mechanisms may be responsible for this association. Caffeine is a defined risk factor for osteoporosis, and high fructose corn syrup may reduce bone density. In addition, colas contain phosphoric acid, which can reduce serum calcium levels and promote higher levels of parathyroid hormone. This hormone, in turn, can increase bone turnover and lead to osteoporosis. |
Besides the effect on bone density as shown by this study, colas in general have chemicals in them that just do terrible damage to the body. Remember, you can literally polish chrome using Coke. Look at the ingredients listed on a soda label and ask yourself if you would ingest any of them individually.
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October 11, 2006
| "Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience. Our problem is that numbers of people all over the world have obeyed the dictates of the leaders of their government and have gone to war, and millions have been killed because of this obedience. . . Our problem is that people are obedient all over the world in the face of poverty and starvation and stupidity, and war, and cruelty." -- Howard Zinn |
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California voters using absentee ballots, beware (note highlighted section):
You know what? Just to be safe, slap on two stamps. Isn't your vote worth it?
| Posted on Mon, Oct. 09, 2006 Absentee ballot mailing may be delayed By Lisa Vorderbrueggen - CONTRA COSTA TIMES Voters expecting to receive absentee ballots starting Tuesday may see a delay because of the heft of general election ballot, said Contra Costa election chief Steve Weir. The ballot's size is due to 13 state measures, 11 local measures and 91 total contests in various areas of the county. The county election staff must proofread 248 different ballot types, each with two ballot cards, Weir said, and it has taken extra time. Residents who vote by mail are reminded to use two first-class stamps when returning the ballot. (Technically, the ballot requires only 63 cents postage but it's probably easier to put two stamps on the envelope than take a trip to the post office to purchase the precise postage.) Approximately 72,000 of the county's 153,000 permanent-absentee ballots will be mailed by Wednesday, Weir said. Daily mailings will continue with the projected completion of all mailings during the week of Oct. 16. Anyone who is a permanent-absentee voter or who lives in a vote-by-mail precinct who does not receive an official ballot by Oct. 21 should call the Elections Office at 925-646-4166 to request a replacement ballot. |
You know what? Just to be safe, slap on two stamps. Isn't your vote worth it?
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October 10, 2006
A handful of walnuts a day? I can handle that.
| Walnuts Protect Arteries From Effects of Fatty Foods - by Sue Hughes October 10, 2006 (Barcelona, Spain) - Another study has suggested that eating walnuts can reverse the impairment of endothelial function associated with eating a fatty meal. But olive oil did not have the same beneficial effect. Senior author of the study, Dr Emilio Ros (Hospital Clínico, Barcelona, Spain), explained to heartwire: "When we eat a fatty meal, inflammatory molecules are increased that prevent the endothelium from producing nitric oxide, which thus leads to endothelial dysfunction. In our study, eating a handful of walnuts prevented the increase in the inflammatory substances and the endothelial dysfunction, whereas olive oil prevented the increase in inflammatory molecules but did not prevent the endothelial dysfunction associated with eating fatty food. Olive oil does have some beneficial effects--it is not bad, but walnuts are better." Ros et al have previously reported a study showing eating walnuts over a four-week period can improve endothelial dysfunction. The current study, published in the October 17, 2006 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, adds to this by showing that the effect is seen after just one serving. But Ros said that people should not be told that they can continue eating unhealthy fats provided they add walnuts to their meals. Instead, they should consider making walnuts part of a healthy diet that limits saturated fats. He noted that walnuts have several components that could be contributing to their benefits. These include polyunsaturated fats, including alpha-linolenic acid; arginine, which is a precursor of nitric oxide; and many antioxidants. "It could be any one of these or maybe all three together that protect the vessels." Olive oil also contains antioxidants but has more mono- rather than polyunsaturated fats, and it does not contain arginine or omega-3 oils, he added. He said that while walnut oil would probably also be somewhat beneficial, eating the nuts themselves was a better option, as the oil does not contain all the beneficial components. "The oil contains the fats and the fat-soluble antioxidants, but it does not contain arginine, which is not fat soluble," he explained to heartwire. He also pointed out that it was better to eat the raw nuts, rather than cooking them, as heating could inactivate some of the beneficial components. "Eat a handful of nuts every day" "I would recommend that people eat a handful of walnuts every day--about six to eight nuts. They could eat these before or after a meal or as part of the meal--for example, in salads and desserts. Or they could replace unhealthier options that are usually used for snacks," he advised. The current study had a crossover design and involved 24 nonsmoking adults with normal body weights and blood pressures, half of whom had normal cholesterol levels and half had moderately high levels. Each was asked to follow a cholesterol-lowering Mediterranean diet for two weeks before the study and throughout its duration. They were provided with two high-fat meals, eaten one week apart. The meals were identical, consisting of a salami-and-cheese sandwich on white bread and a small serving of full-fat yogurt. For one meal, the researchers added about 5 teaspoons (25 mL) of olive oil. For the other, they added 40 g of walnuts, or about eight shelled nuts. Venipunctures and ultrasound measurements of brachial artery endothelial function were performed after fasting and four hours after test meals. Results showed that in both study groups, flow-mediated dilation (a measure of endothelial dysfunction) was worse after the olive oil meal than after the walnut meal. Levels of oxidized LDL decreased after both meals, as did concentrations of soluble inflammatory cytokines and adhesion molecules. But the adhesion molecule E-selectin was reduced more after the walnut meal. Nuts may contribute to Mediterranean diet benefits? Commenting on the study in a journal press release, Dr Robert Vogel (University of Maryland, College Park), who did not participate in the study, said: "This demonstrates that the protective fat from walnuts actually undoes some of the detrimental effects of a high-saturated-fat diet, whereas a neutral fat, such as olive oil, does not have as much protective ability. This raises a very interesting issue, because many people who eat a Mediterranean diet believe the olive oil is providing the benefits. But this research and other data indicate that's not true. There are probably other factors in the diet, including that it is a relatively rich source of nuts. This is not to say that olive oil is bad, but it's not the key protective factor in the Mediterranean diet." Vogel added that research continues to indicate that all monounsaturated-rich foods, including olive oil, likely are relatively neutral in terms of their ability to protect vascular health. On the other hand, he said, omega-3 rich oils and fats--including walnuts, canola oil, and flaxseed oil--"are probably quite protective." |
A handful of walnuts a day? I can handle that.
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| "Now with the North Korea crisis erupting, it strikes me that there are some similarities among Bush's crises. "In all three cases--North Korea, Iraq and Foleygate-- the Republican establishment knew something was wrong but failed or declined to address the problem. And the reason for the inaction was mostly a desire to keep the public in the dark so as better to win elections. "In North Korea, Bush knew that there was a brewing problem. He was not honest with the American people about it. He needed to work with China, which asked for such cooperation. He did not. In part this is because of his dislike of negotiating even indirectly with a member of the "axis of evil." In part it was about winning elections by posturing. "In Iraq, Bush knew that the security situation was collapsing and that his policies were failing. He needed to be honest with the American people about the growing crisis. He was not. He needed to work with Iran and Syria, among other neighbors. He did not. Again, he was paralyzed once he declared Iran "evil." And, again, it was about winning elections by putting lipstick on the pig. "In the case of Foley, the Republican leadership in Congress knew there was a problem. They needed to be honest with the American people about it. They were not. They needed to cooperate with their Democratic colleagues in addressing these ethics lapses. They did not. They covered up the problem and went it alone. It was about winning elections. They actually cared more about Foley's seat than they did about his excesses. "A kind of party unilateralism and disregard for the realities, along with a singleminded pursuit of victory at the ballot box (and all the wealth it can bring if properly arranged) seem at work in all three cases." - - - Juan Cole |
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Need a talking point when you discuss why the Iraq War is such a bad idea? Try this:
Stephanie Taylor, an online writer for the AFL-CIO community affiliate Working America, reports on a panel at the AFL-CIO building in Washington, D.C., yesterday, where a group of experts spoke about the health impact of the Iraq war. Their conclusion: “Devastating.” Every dollar spent on the war is a dollar less for America’s working families, according to Dr. Barry Levy, co-editor of War and Public Health and past president of the American Public Health Association (APHA) and panelist at the event, sponsored by the AFL-CIO Department for Professional Employees. Levy says these are resources badly needed at home. With 300,000 members of the National Guard serving overseas, for instance, these troops aren’t available to keep our borders safe and respond to emergencies such as Hurricane Katrina. The war in Iraq has now cost U.S. taxpayers more than $332 billion dollars, according to the National Priorities Project. This money could have paid for: 43 million children to attend one year of Head Start; 198 million children to have health insurance for one year; 16 million four-year college scholarships; 3 million additional public housing units; or 5 million more public teachers for America’s schools. Brooks Sunkett, vice-president of the Communications Workers of America (CWA) and veteran of the Vietnam War, spoke about the impact of the Iraq war on America’s working families: "I represent public-sector workers across the country. We’ve seen massive cutbacks in services like day care, care for the elderly and for the disabled. Look at New Orleans—there was an infrastructure that just wasn’t there, that let that happen. The social safety net has been so impaired, it’s almost useless. If we are going to be protected from terrorists, we need the social safety net in place." Garett Reppenhagen, who served for one year in Iraq as a cavalry scout/sniper with the 1st Infantry Division of the U.S. Army, discussed the health impact on the soldiers themselves: "I wear my dog tags every day because the war at home for our veterans is still going on. Soldiers are coming to Walter Reed Hospital by the busloads. My buddies are at risk of homelessness, suicide. I have three friends who have already been diagnosed with cancer from the depleted uranium we were exposed to. Other friends have vowed never to have children. If we’re not a nation that can afford to take care of our veterans, we’re not a nation that can afford to go to war." Elizabeth Frederick, whose fiancé served in Iraq and now suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, talked about the cost of war in her own life. She asked everyone in the audience to take action. "Go out and talk to the people who support this war. Look them in the eye and say, “Whose loved one will you sacrifice?” Make them give you a name." |
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October 9, 2006
In honor of the man whom we celebrate today with a holiday, here is an excerpt from "Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress", excerpted from a People's History of the United States by by Howard Zinn
And to think that we practically worshipped this guy when I was in grade school.
| The Indians, Columbus reported, "are so naive and so free with their possessions that no one who has not witnessed them would believe it. When you ask for something they have, they never say no. To the contrary, they offer to share with anyone...." He concluded his report by asking for a little help from their Majesties, and in return he would bring them from his next voyage "as much gold as they need . . . and as many slaves as they ask." He was full of religious talk: "Thus the eternal God, our Lord, gives victory to those who follow His way over apparent impossibilities." Because of Columbus's exaggerated report and promises, his second expedition was given seventeen ships and more than twelve hundred men. The aim was clear: slaves and gold. They went from island to island in the Caribbean, taking Indians as captives. But as word spread of the Europeans' intent they found more and more empty villages. On Haiti, they found that the sailors left behind at Fort Navidad had been killed in a battle with the Indians, after they had roamed the island in gangs looking for gold, taking women and children as slaves for sex and labor. Now, from his base on Haiti, Columbus sent expedition after expedition into the interior. They found no gold fields, but had to fill up the ships returning to Spain with some kind of dividend. In the year 1495, they went on a great slave raid, rounded up fifteen hundred Arawak men, women, and children, put them in pens guarded by Spaniards and dogs, then picked the five hundred best specimens to load onto ships. Of those five hundred, two hundred died en route. The rest arrived alive in Spain and were put up for sale by the archdeacon of the town, who reported that, although the slaves were "naked as the day they were born," they showed "no more embarrassment than animals." Columbus later wrote: "Let us in the name of the Holy Trinity go on sending all the slaves that can be sold." But too many of the slaves died in captivity. And so Columbus, desperate to pay back dividends to those who had invested, had to make good his promise to fill the ships with gold. In the province of Cicao on Haiti, where he and his men imagined huge gold fields to exist, they ordered all persons fourteen years or older to collect a certain quantity of gold every three months. When they brought it, they were given copper tokens to hang around their necks. Indians found without a copper token had their hands cut off and bled to death. The Indians had been given an impossible task. The only gold around was bits of dust garnered from the streams. So they fled, were hunted down with dogs, and were killed. Trying to put together an army of resistance, the Arawaks faced Spaniards who had armor, muskets, swords, horses. When the Spaniards took prisoners they hanged them or burned them to death. Among the Arawaks, mass suicides began, with cassava poison. Infants were killed to save them from the Spaniards. In two years, through murder, mutilation, or suicide, half of the 250,000 Indians on Haiti were dead. When it became clear that there was no gold left, the Indians were taken as slave labor on huge estates, known later as encomiendas. They were worked at a ferocious pace, and died by the thousands. By the year 1515, there were perhaps fifty thousand Indians left. By 1550, there were five hundred. A report of the year 1650 shows none of the original Arawaks or their descendants left on the island. |
And to think that we practically worshipped this guy when I was in grade school.
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| "The origins of the failure [of the Bush Administration to negotiate with North Korea] are ones anyone familiar with the last six years in this country will readily recognize: chest-thumping followed by failure followed by cover-up and denial. The same story as Iraq. Even the same story as Foley." - - - Josh Marshall |
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Robert Fisk, Middle East reporter, summarizes the current state of order in the Middle East, taking into account his experiences and observations. The bottom line? "Watch Out!" Snippet:
| "....Beirut is a good place to reflect on the tragedy through which the Middle East is now inexorably moving. After all, the city has suffered so many horrors these past 31 years, it seems haunted by the mass graves that lie across the region, from Afghanistan to Iraq to "Palestine" and to Lebanon itself. And I look across the waters and see a German warship cruising past my home, part of Nato's contribution to stop gun-running into Lebanon under UN Security Council Resolution 1701. And then, I ask myself what the Germans could possibly be doing when no guns have ever been run to the Hizbollah guerrilla army from the sea. The weapons came through Syria, and Syria has a land frontier with the country and is to the north and east of Lebanon, not on the other side of the Mediterranean. "And then when I call on my landlord to discuss this latest, hopeless demonstration of Western power, he turns to me in some anger and says, "Yes, why is the German navy cruising off my home?" And I see his point. For we Westerners are now spreading ourselves across the entire Muslim world. In one form or another, "we" - "us", the West - are now in Khazakstan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Egypt, Algeria, Yemen, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Lebanon. We are now trapped across this vast area of suffering, fiercely angry people, militarily far more deeply entrenched and entrapped than the 12th-century crusaders who faced defeat at the battle of Hittin, our massive forces fighting armies of Islamists, suicide bombers, warlords, drug barons, and militias. And losing. The latest UN army in Lebanon, with its French and Italian troops, is moving in ever greater numbers to the south, young men and women who have already been threatened by al-Qa'ida and who will, in three of four months, be hit by al-Qa'ida. Which is one reason why the French have been pallisading themselves into their barracks in southern Lebanon. There is no shortage of suicide bombers here, although it will be the Sunni -- not the Hizbollah-Shiite variety -- which will strike at the UN. "When will the bombers arrive? After further massacres in Iraq? After the Israelis cross the border again? After Israel - or the US - bombs Iran's nuclear facilities in the coming months? After someone in the northern city of Tripoli, perhaps, or in the Palestinian camps outside Sidon, decides he has seen too many Western soldiers trampling the lands of southern Lebanon, too many German warships off the coast, or heard too many mendacious statements of optimism from George W Bush or Tony Blair or Condoleezza Rice. "There will be no 'new' Middle East, Miss Rice," a new Hizbollah poster says south of Sidon. And the Hizbollah is right. The entire region is sinking deeper into bloodshed and all the time, over and over again, Bush and Blair tell us it is all getting much better, that we can all be heartened by the spread of non-existent democracies, that the dawn is rising on Condi's "new" Middle East. Are they really hoping that they can distort the mirror of the world's reality with their words? There is a kind of new dawn rising in the lands from the old Indian empire to the tides of the Mediterranean. The only trouble is that it is blood red. "It is as if the Bushes and Blairs do not live on this planet any more. As my colleague Patrick Cockburn wrote recently, the enraging thing about Blair's constant optimism is that, to prove it all a pack of lies, a journalist has to have his throat cut amid the anarchy which Blair says does not exist. The Americans cannot protect themselves in Iraq, let alone the Iraqis, and the British have twice nearly been defeated in battles with the Taliban, and the Israeli army - counting it as part of the "West" for a moment -- were soundly thrashed when they crossed the border to fight the Hizbollah, losing 40 men in 36 hours. Yet still Blair delayed a ceasefire in Lebanon. And still - be certain of this - when the fire strikes us again, in London or New York or wherever, Blair and Bush will say that the attack has nothing to do with the Middle East, that Britain's enemies hate "our values" or our "way of life". "I once mourned the lack of titans in the modern world, the Roosevelts and the Churchills, blood-drenched though their century was. Blair and Bush, posing as wartime leaders, threatening the midget Hitlers around them, appear to have gone through a kind of "stasis", a psychological inability to grasp what they do not want to hear or what they do not want to be true. And they have lost the thread of history. "In the past, we - the "West" - could have post-war adventures abroad and feel safe at home. No North Korean tried to blow himself up on the London Tube in the 1950s. No Viet Cong ever arrived in Washington to assault the United States. We fought in Kenya and Malaya and Palestine and Suez and Yemen, but we felt safe in Gloucestershire. Perhaps the change came with the Algerian War of Independence when the bombers attacked in Paris and Lyons, or perhaps it came later when the IRA arrived to bomb London. "But it is a fact that "we" cannot take our armies and warships and tanks and helicopter gunships and para battalions for foreign wars and expect to be unhurt at home. This is the inescapable logic of history that Bush and Blair will not face, will not acknowledge, will not believe - will not even let us believe. All across the Middle East, we are locked in battle in our preposterous "war on terror" because "the world changed forever" on 11 September, even though I have said many times that we should not allow 19 murderers to change our world. So we live in a darker world of phone-taps and "terror plots" and underground CIA prisoners whose interrogators set about victims in secret, tearing to pieces the Geneva Conventions so painfully constructed after the Second World War. "And in a world betrayed. Remember all those promises we made to the Arabs about creating a wonderful new functioning democracy in Iraq whose example would be followed by other Middle East states? And remember our promise to honour the fledgling democracy of Lebanon, the famous "Cedars Revolution" - a title invented by the US State Department, so the Lebanese should have been suspicious - which brought the retreat of the Syrian army. Lebanon was then held up to be a future model for the Arab world. But once the Hizbollah crossed the frontier and seized two Israeli soldiers, killing three others on 12 July, we stood back and watched the Lebanese suffer. "If there is one thing this last war has convinced me of," a young Lebanese woman put it to me this month, "it is that the Lebanese are on their own. I can never trust a foreign promise again...." |
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October 6, 2006
FRIDAY F U N
BITS for the Week of October 2 - 6
- Fly Guy (relaxing game)
- Dealing with Cow Abductions
- Doodle
- You really should read the fine print
- Create your own Spirograph
- Time-lapse photobooth
- Strange Clouds (fascinating photos)
- Add Google Gadgets to your homepage
- Does you car have cloudy headlights? This kit can fix that problem. (for real; not a joke)
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- This latest commentary by Keith Olbermann, even though 11 minutes long, is worth every second of viewing. Here's the TEXT.
- LEFT is RIGHT now has the proud title of Leftwing Wackjob at this site.
- StupidSecurity - how stupid Homeland Security policies are preventing better security
- And Now.... The music video you've waited for: Y.M.C.A. starring Mark Foley (takes a minute to load, then it comes on with a strong beat)
- One step closer to teleportation (a la Star Trek)
- Tools For Fighting Back and also Kick The Bums Out
- If you want your political donations to REALLY make a difference, then you might consider this cause
- Sometimes, when reality strikes, humor listens
- If Humanists ruled the world
- U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist: Statesman of the world, or frickin' nut case?
- "DO-NOTHING CONGRESS GOES HOME AND LEAVES VA WITHOUT A BUDGET -- Appropriations Bill languishes. VA, and other agencies, must operate on emergency funding until Nov. 17."
- The Democrats have had their share of perverts, but take a look at this Republi-con list!
- About that ribbon on that SUV (video)
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Seven of Six sent this in for posting:
Picked this up from Vote Vets site, a poll of Iraq/Afghanistan Vets and soldiers. Phil Nearly half of all veterans (42 percent) reported that their equipment did not meet the military standard that requires a unit to be at least 90 percent operational. Later deployments reported improvements in operational equipment: only 52 and 49 percent of veterans serving in 2003 and 2004 respectively reported their equipment was operational compared to 61 percent of those who served in 2005 and later. Thirty-five percent of veterans said their trucks were not up-armored at all and 10 percent said the trucks were up-armored with scrap metal One-fifth of veterans have been impacted by stop-loss regulations or extensions and the majority believes the Army and Marine Corps are overextended. Twenty percent of respondents said their unit was extended past its original time frame. Thirteen percent of all veterans say they were affected by stop-loss regulations, including 14 percent of National Guard and Reservists. Overall, 63 percent of all Iraq or Afghanistan veterans believe the Army and Marine Corps are overextended at this time, including 67 percent of Army and Marine veterans and 66 percent of veterans who experienced ground combat. When these soldiers returned home, many encountered emotional and physical health problems as well as economic hardship resulting from their service. One in four veterans has experienced nightmares since returning, including 33 percent of Army and Marines veterans and 36 percent of combat veterans. A fifth of all veterans (21 percent) and a quarter of Army and Marines (26 percent) and ground combat veterans (27 percent) say they have felt more stress now then before they left for war. Among National Guard or Reserve veterans, 32 percent said their families experienced economic hardship; 25 percent feel more stress now than before the war; 32 percent experienced more extreme highs and lows; and 30 percent experienced nightmares. Twenty six percent of all veterans have sought some service from the VA or a VA Hospital, including 33 percent of Reservists and National Guard respondents. |
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October 5, 2006
FLAT DADDIES
[click image for story]
[click image for story]
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October 4, 2006
They couldn't protect us on 9/11
They can't protect our troops in Iraq
Now they can't even protect our kids in the halls of Congress
The Republican Party of the 21st Century.
(stolen from Steve Gilliard)
They couldn't protect us on 9/11
They can't protect our troops in Iraq
Now they can't even protect our kids in the halls of Congress
The Republican Party of the 21st Century.
(stolen from Steve Gilliard)
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Now that the Bush Administration has legalized torture, I think it's about time that we use it domestically, namely on the House Republican leadership. Even if we don't get the truth about the Foley scandal out of them (torture nearly always doesn't work), we'll at least give them first-hand knowledge about what it is they voted for when they passed the torture legislation.
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Googlebombing Joe Lieberman:
Joe Lieberman - "Seasonal Memory Lapses" by Paul Bass (Hartford Courant)
Joe Lieberman - "Truth About Joe"
Joe Lieberman - "Lieberman Wins Republican Friends, Democratic Enemies... (WaPo)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is a Big Oil Republican" (LamontBlog)
Joe Lieberman - "Kerry Calls Lieberman the New Cheney" (ABC)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman Doesn't Care About Handicapped People" (Wonkette)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is Running With a Bad Crowd" (Firedoglake)
Joe Lieberman - "116 Reasons Not to Vote for Joe Lieberman"
Joe Lieberman - "How Joe Lieberman Tried to Kill Rock 'N Roll (Huffington Post)"
Joe Lieberman - "Seasonal Memory Lapses" by Paul Bass (Hartford Courant)
Joe Lieberman - "Seasonal Memory Lapses" by Paul Bass (Hartford Courant)
Joe Lieberman - "Truth About Joe"
Joe Lieberman - "Lieberman Wins Republican Friends, Democratic Enemies... (WaPo)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is a Big Oil Republican" (LamontBlog)
Joe Lieberman - "Kerry Calls Lieberman the New Cheney" (ABC)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman Doesn't Care About Handicapped People" (Wonkette)
Joe Lieberman - "Joe Lieberman is Running With a Bad Crowd" (Firedoglake)
Joe Lieberman - "116 Reasons Not to Vote for Joe Lieberman"
Joe Lieberman - "How Joe Lieberman Tried to Kill Rock 'N Roll (Huffington Post)"
Joe Lieberman - "Seasonal Memory Lapses" by Paul Bass (Hartford Courant)
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October 3, 2006
| "The United States has a one-party state. The presidency, the vice presidency, the cabinet, the House of Representatives, the Senate, the Supreme Court-- are all and have for some time been in the hands of the same party. Not only that, but the most extreme factions within the Republican Party: the theocrats, the Neoconservative ex-Trotskiyites, the John Yoo Torture Apologists, the Grover Norquist advocates of Mr. Scrooge plutocracy, the corrupt Abramoffist lobbyists and Delayist horse thieves--they are ascendant. Parties don't investigate themselves. They are about power, interests, and money. They are about winning. They aren't a charity. "The American public has been unwise to allow this one party state to grow up, which is chipping away at our liberties as Americans and creating a new monarchy and a new aristocracy. It works by lies and cover-ups. "Another four years of the one-party state, and the Republic will be finished, if it is not already." - - - Juan Cole |
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As the revelations about Rep. Tom Foley, or Predatorgate, emerge, the reaction by the Republican leadership should be sufficient evidence for even the most dense and brainwashed ultra-Right evangelical christians of how poorly a job their party of christian principles and values does at supporting christian principles and values.
If the Democrats were allowed to come up with one final freebie pre-election problem to hand to the Republicans, I doubt they could have thought of something this outrageous. It seems that once again the Democrats only need to step aside and let the corrupt wing of the opposition party drag its own leadership into the gutter.
But don't worry, Republican voters, you'll still win in November. You've got the electronic voting machines all reprogrammed in states with close, key races to miscount votes in your favor. The Democrats are all rubbing their hands in glee, watching this Republican self-destruction unfold before their eyes. What a surprise their eyes will show come November 7th when the votes get (mis)counted.
If the Democrats were allowed to come up with one final freebie pre-election problem to hand to the Republicans, I doubt they could have thought of something this outrageous. It seems that once again the Democrats only need to step aside and let the corrupt wing of the opposition party drag its own leadership into the gutter.
But don't worry, Republican voters, you'll still win in November. You've got the electronic voting machines all reprogrammed in states with close, key races to miscount votes in your favor. The Democrats are all rubbing their hands in glee, watching this Republican self-destruction unfold before their eyes. What a surprise their eyes will show come November 7th when the votes get (mis)counted.
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Bill in Portland Maine brings us:
The deficit. Body armor. Medicare reform. Social Security reform. The minimum wage. Port security. The National Guard. Diplomacy. The Geneva Conventions. Fair elections. Clean elections. Intelligence. Protecting the Constitution. Protecting the Bill of Rights. Government transparency. Oversight. Separation of church and state. The middle class. The poor. Tax reform. Tax cuts. Bankruptcy law. Global warming. Disaster management. Defeating terrorists. Saying no to lobbyists. Saying yes to public opinion. Pre-war planning. Post-war planning. Competence. Civil rights. Civil liberties. Civil debate. Veterans' benefits. Hiring based on ability. Legal surveillance. Morality. Energy policy. Energy independence. End-of-life decisions among spouses. Inclusion. Learning lessons from history. Learning, period. Drug policy. Fiscal responsibility. Trusting the generals. Trusting the spooks. Trusting the experts. Basic honesty. Basic health care. Education. Creating jobs. Keeping CIA operatives' identities secret. Catching Osama. Playing nice. Playing fair. Refilling ice cube trays. Making paper airplanes. Or coffee. Tying their shoelaces. Making friends. Blowing their noses. Counting to Uniting the country. And the latest addition: Protecting underage kids from a predatory congressman. |
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October 2, 2006
From Kos:
| We wonder how Republicans can keep throwing our nation's men and women in uniform -- so many under the age of 20 -- into the Iraq meatgrinder without feeling something, anything at all. There's a disconnect that I had chalked up to simple elitism. Their kids weren't going to be dragged off that hellhole in the dessert anytime soon, so why should they care? Wars are for the unprivileged and voiceless to fight. But the Foley scandal, and the inability of House Republicans to protect the teens in their own ranks, is positively mind-boggling. This isn't mere elitism at work. It is even worse than that. What are the common threads here? Iraq has clearly become a political tool for the GOP, used to beat up Democrats as "weak" on "national security". Nevermind the people who die on behalf of Rove's political talking points. And when a sexual predator endangers a safe Republican seat while threatening to cost the party a couple millions of dollars, what does the Republican leadership do? They cover it up. Power is everything. The lives of our soldiers and the well-being and safety of teenage House pages are all worth sacrificing in exchange for continued Republican dominance. What else will they sell out? Everything. There is nothing they won't sell out in the pursuit of power. Nothing. . . . Kos |
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October 1, 2006
Veteran's Issues!
Veteran's Issues!
Sept. 21st, 2006: The US military has more than matched the US losses of the 9/11 terrorist attack.
Sept. 22nd, 2006: A 24 year former "Navy Commander" states that, "Gaps in care — combined with the stress of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan — are creating a 'perfect storm' within the U.S. military mental health system" in a speech titled, “Broken Promises: The Unspoken Truth of Mental Health Care in the DOD”. The Commander has already issued his resignation.
Oct. 2, 2006 Newsweek issue: Vietnam Veterans are suffering more and more Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) reminders due to the constant reminders of Iraq. Sometimes, all the counseling in the world cannot help!
Sept. 25th, 2006: "One Army unit will be extended in Iraq and another will be deployed earlier than previously scheduled." Let's fuck the soldier's and the families! The argument that it's a volunteer military doesn't wash with me. Especially when you have to go to war with the administration given to you.
Sept. 25th, 2006: "House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Lane Evans, Ranking Member, Veterans Affairs Committee along with 198 House Democrats sent the following letter to President Bush today urging him to provide the necessary funding for veterans' health care in his FY2008 budget."
How well does your Congressperson represent Veterans? You decide!
Vote Democratic!
- - - Seven of Six
Sept. 21st, 2006: The US military has more than matched the US losses of the 9/11 terrorist attack.
Sept. 22nd, 2006: A 24 year former "Navy Commander" states that, "Gaps in care — combined with the stress of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan — are creating a 'perfect storm' within the U.S. military mental health system" in a speech titled, “Broken Promises: The Unspoken Truth of Mental Health Care in the DOD”. The Commander has already issued his resignation.
Oct. 2, 2006 Newsweek issue: Vietnam Veterans are suffering more and more Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) reminders due to the constant reminders of Iraq. Sometimes, all the counseling in the world cannot help!
Sept. 25th, 2006: "One Army unit will be extended in Iraq and another will be deployed earlier than previously scheduled." Let's fuck the soldier's and the families! The argument that it's a volunteer military doesn't wash with me. Especially when you have to go to war with the administration given to you.
Sept. 25th, 2006: "House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Lane Evans, Ranking Member, Veterans Affairs Committee along with 198 House Democrats sent the following letter to President Bush today urging him to provide the necessary funding for veterans' health care in his FY2008 budget."
How well does your Congressperson represent Veterans? You decide!
Vote Democratic!
- - - Seven of Six
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| Well the weight of the world is FALLING And on my back I've been CRAWLING The state of affairs is APPALLING And the 6 o'clock news keeps CALLING Well I've been trying to see the world through their eyes Where black is white and day is night Left is Right Left is Right Left is Right, For me Well negotiations keep STALLING The United Nations keeps CALLING The Skeletons you're HAULING Won't hold when you're FALLING Put your head in the sand and you'll never know What's waiting for you in the depths below (below) Don't believe everything that you read Take what you want and keep what you need TWISTED NIXON |
CHICK HEARN, THANKS SO MUCH FOR ALL THE MEMORIES.
