repukes keep saying that democrats whine and want big unemployment, bad economy, and all those sorts of things....

well, i got a news flash for ya: we don't WANT these things, they're getting shoved down our throats and we're gaggin on 'em.

watching christianne amanapour on cbs, her insightful look into the new iraqi police, and it's quite disturbing the utter lack of oversight and planning has gone into this operation. not only was the invasion shaky, but the aftermath is anything but stable. where the hell is alll that money?

prediction by david brooks on chris matthews show just now:

54-46

bush beats dean

ever notice that it's always the fighter who's fighting for peace, when the ones fighting back are always terrorists?

yah, we're feeling a lot safer now. we're in jail.

on the capture of saddam: seems there's some controversy surrounding a report that PUK actually captured saddam, and was holding him for the the right time to offer to the Americans - perhaps when the polls had george below 50 maybe?

anyway, posting some things to clear it up, since it was TPM who raised the possibility that it's bogus.

the original wire story

profile of yvonne ridley (the source of the story)

earliest reports of saddam's capture

i report, you decide

on edit: adding a post from DU

At first he says:

So, I've had a slew of readers write in to ask, Is there something to this story?

In a word? No.

Then he says:

Let me be clear: I'm not saying there's nothing to this.

Pardon? Asked is there something to this he says NO, then says I am not saying there is nothing to this? Hmmm, that is a good start!

So let's look at what we have in the rest of the article.

He points out that a name is wrong, saying that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan is being called the Kurdish Patriotic Front.

So, on a hunch, and to verify whether a person who thinks NO doesn't mean NO is actually checking his facts, I went to google. Guess what I found:

"The world is watching. Those that do not attend will lose out," Qubad Talabani, the Washington representative of the Patriotic Front of Kurdistan, one of two Kurdish parties from northern Iraq, said in an e-mail.
http://home.cogeco.ca/~konews/10-11-02-us-add-more-oppo-groups.html

This is from a web page that calls itself "Kurdistan Observer"!

Marshall would probably say, howver, that this page is not an "official source", and that the name is not quite the same. Well how about this:

The third round of the northern Iraqi peace talks ended Wednesday
in Ankara, but the major issues under discussion remained
unresolved. The two opposing parties, the Kurdish Democratic
Party (KDP) and the Kurdish Patriotic Front (KPF) made no
progress with respect to the distribution of Habur border gate
revenues, the rates of representation in local administrations,
election dates and the disarmament of Erbil.
http://www.byegm.gov.tr/YAYINLARIMIZ/CHR/ING97/01/97X01X16.TXT

Notice the source for that document. Who should we trust as to whether there is any such organisation as the Kurdish Patriotic Front? A blogger with an over inflated ego, or the Turkish government?

So what did Marshall have to say?

What's this group, the Kurdish Patriotic Front? Good question. As far as I know, there is no such group.

Well, Mr Marshall, if you had taken two minutes to type "Kurdish Patriotic Front" into Google you would have seen that there are four hits for that name, including the above linked Turkish Government site.

Thank you Mr Marshall for proving that self-important bloggers shouldn't be trusted any more than any other source!

Now, the final "proof" Marshall presents is the PUK denial that they were actually responsible for the capture.

Now lets consider the context of this for a moment. What we have is an accusation that the Kurds captured Hussein, held him in secret, and then negotiated a secret deal with the US to hand him over.

Now tell me, just how stupid does Marshall think we are? Does he really expect us to believe that within DAYS of this secret deal having been made, and before much of any of the supposed "payment" for Hussein's hand over could have been received (although three Kurds WERE promoted to the IGC), that the leader of the PUK would expose the deal and thereby embarass Bush? You know the man who wants to punish the French and Germans for not agreeing with him?

Does Marshall SERIOUSLY expect us to believe the Kurds would THROW AWAY the deal, losing anything they may have gained in the process, not to mention no longer having Hussein, JUST BECAUSE A REPORTER ASKED THEM?

Marshall should rethink his position, and stop acting like a fool.

Forget the South: "Consider the numbers. Democrats and Republicans agree that Bush and his eventual rival will each start the race with an ironclad base of states that are virtually unwinnable for the other party. Bush's base is rooted in the South, plains and interior West of the country, while the Democratic nominee can take for granted most of New England, the West Coast and a smattering of the Midwest. Most strategists calculate that Bush can count on 20 states with 170 electoral votes, and that the Democratic candidate starts with 11 states and the District of Columbia, totaling 168 electoral votes. That leaves the two candidates with a battleground of just 19 swing states.
Nine of those 19 states -- none of them in the South -- went for Clinton in 1992 and 1996 and for Gore in 2000. These are the blue-leaning states, and any Democratic candidate has to lock them up before dipping his toe below the Mason-Dixon line. Victory in all nine would increase the Democrat's total to 260 electoral votes, still 10 short of victory.
That leaves 10 "

Judge Frees 9/11 Suspect In Germany (washingtonpost.com): "In Washington, Attorney General John D. Ashcroft told reporters that he was 'disappointed that the case in Germany has taken the turn it has taken.' He added that 'fortunately, in the United States, we enjoy a legal structure which anticipates the need for protecting both national security and adjudicating the innocence or guilt of individuals who are charged.' "

Yahoo! Mail - iyam_leq@yahoo.com: "The WSJ says up high that the flu vaccine shortage is actually the eighth major U.S. shortage of a vaccine since 2000. Supplies of vaccines for diphtheria, tetanus, chickenpox, and measles have all been inadequate at one point or another recently. Among the problems, profits for vaccines are thin. According to one apparently non-partisan study cited by the Journal, that's partially because the government keeps prices artificially low by buying about 50 percent of vaccine production and negotiating cut-rate deals."

Rumsfeld wants Iraq tied up: "The power transfer plan calls for putting a caretaker government in place by June next year after the drafting of a basic law by end-February 2004, and the selection of a transitional assembly by end-May 2004 through regional caucuses."

beware of upcoming RPM rev-up. under the guise of 'unifying national goals' will be lofty goals without much in the way of means to accomplish them.

"what's better? forcing people to do the right thing, or giving them an incentive to do the right thing" --EPA chief 12/3/03 ABC Evening News

remind us why we invaded iraq again?

so we should believe now, that Howard Dean wouldn't have done anything on 9/11. how absurd.

Pushing Technology And Fighting Skeptics (washingtonpost.com): "Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has extended Kadish's tenure twice, keeping the general in place to prepare for the planned deployment in September 2004 of antimissile interceptors in Alaska and California."

listen to bbc, and i'm wrondering just what the hell is going on. their attitude has changed with this latest attack in turkey. there's no doubt those that did this should pay. but likewise, what these attacks are in response to is still a mystery. unlike most of the ditto heads, i don't believe these attacks are just randomized targets. so these terrorists had to have an agenda.. but this is why they keep attacking us. because we won't listen to what that agenda is. god knows, everybody knows ours. and i somehow can't help but believing that it's that agenda of ours that is making theirs.

watching 60 minutes tonite, about how insecure chemical plants are, 60 in all uncovered by a pittsburgh investigator, makes me wonder. is the threat from terrorists really that real? i mean, c'mon. if terrorists really wanted to hit us like we're led to believe, what has stopped them? certainly not any security guard at these plants.

repukes will betray you. and they use it so hypocritically that it becomes evil. how? like this:

first they lie. the lie to gain your confidence. they want you to agree with them. that way, when the truth comes out, they can blame you because you agreed with them.

this is sinister betrayal. pure and simple. forget the hypocrisy. forget the lies. forget that the deed gets done.

but remember that those things happened by a 'friend'.

well, i got news for them. trust isn't in the republicon vocabulary. and in a way i'm glad. for if it was, we're really be in trouble.

if defeating the insurgents were as easy as we're being told, then why hasn't israel won by now?

ya know, the republicons keep on keepin on with this bashing about how democrats 'want this and what that' and yet, they jus can't get it through their lil' pointy heads that we want the same thing. its' HOW we get it that we'll do differenly.

can't ya hear all those republicons whining about how the democrats are pissed off at the republicans destroying everything? i swear, they are truly, and i mean TRULY out for blood, to destroy the democrats, not with kindness, but with real weapons simply by majority rule, which by virtue holds the purse strings. republicons know no compromise. they know no openness. they know no negotiation. they do everything behind closed doors, lock democrats out of important legislative meetings, and have come to be the 21st century version of facism.

my letter to the editor of the globe-gazette - it'll be in tuesday's edition. webb(master) cole was nice enough to allow me a day and i was able to take advantage of not displaying the wrong number of dead soldiers.

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "To require my time in military servitude would not guarantee that what I would do and whom I would shoot would be for Walt Shotwell's romantic sense of America's grandeur and betterment. I would simply be serving and killing based on the decisions of a presidential administration. To many of us, the current administration is profane to our idea of what makes America great. How then would it bind us together if we were required to die for such an administration?
A state of constant war with many nations (when at heart there is but a small group of radicals who want to fight us) is what would require this vast pool of soldiers, and that this state is not only inevitable but desirable is implicit in the author's argument.
I pray that, under the rubric of patriotism and ignorance, our nation does not take this path.
Eben Seaman
Iowa City."

put a democrat in charge, and stop this insanity!

i wish someone would do a poll and ask the basic question:

is gwb a liar?

plain and simple. yes or no.

too telling?

you goddamned right it is.

which proves my point: the media does NOT want us to flourish in knowledge.

bena while huh. ok, i promise to fill'er up over the next few days. but today, let's deal with crossfire. ever notice how paul will give credit and praise the "opposition", and agree even with his rival novak when appropriate, yet, novak, especially novak, NEVER EVER will side with paul, as if paul never ever says anything correct. but notice, the applause out of the audience is 99% supporting paul, much to the dismay of novak, and even tucker. true to form for the repukes: they will never accept the opposing party's position even if that position was that the sky is blue.

Medicare Premiums to Rise 13.5%
The monthly Medicare premium paid by most older Americans will increase by 13.5 percent next year, Bush administration officials said today.

The premium for Medicare Part B, which covers physician services, outpatient hospital services, durable medical equipment and some home health care, will go up $7.90, to $66.60 a month, for 2004.

Most Medicare beneficiaries do not pay a premium for Part A services, which includes coverage of inpatient hospital stays, because they have 40 quarters of Medicare-covered employment. The Part A deductible, however, will rise by $36, to $876 in 2004.

The Health and Human Services Department, which administers the Medicare program, will announce the new premium and deductible rates on Thursday.

The rates are updated annually according to formulas set in law. Under the formulas, the Part B premium must cover 25 percent of the Medicare program's estimated costs for enrollees who are 65 and older. General tax dollars cover the other 75 percent of the costs.

About 95 percent of Medicare's 41.7 million beneficiaries are enrolled in Part B.

Washington Post

the middle class is being destroyed. with every utterance of the leaders of our country, it becomes clearer and clearer every day. destroy the middle class, and not feel guilty about it is nothing but evil. because America was built for the middle class.

everybody talks about how people should 'quit whining' about paying more for their healthcare, pay more for their gas, pay more for their clothes. yet those same 'people' whine about raising the minimum wage.

those same 'people' don't get it. it's not how much one pays. it's the burden created by how much one pays. this is something a real, a REAL compassionate conservative would understand. Sadly, there aren't many of those left today.

TBRNews.org: "Only in America do we use the word 'politics' to describe the process so well: 'Poli' in Greek meaning 'many' and 'tics' meaning 'bloodsucking creatures'"

i just have to post a bit of an article from the Washington Post today. things are getting so bizarre, i can hardly believe it's unfolding right before my eyes.

Cheney's speech was an uncompromising argument that far exceeded what other figures in the administration have asserted. Cheney, for example, dismissed a dozen years of inspections, patrolling of no-fly zones and strikes against military targets in Iraq, saying "all of these measures failed."

David Kay, the chief U.S. weapons inspector in Iraq, presented a different view in his congressional testimony last week. For example, he said: "Information found to date suggests that Iraq's large-scale capability to develop, produce, and fill new CW [chemical weapons] munitions was reduced -- if not entirely destroyed -- during Operations Desert Storm and Desert Fox, 13 years of U.N. sanctions and U.N. inspections."

Cheney outlined several findings from the Kay report yesterday that, while finding no actual weapons of mass destruction, found items that could have been used to create such weapons. The vice president cited equipment "suitable for" chemical and biological weapons research; prison laboratories "possibly used" for human testing of biological weapons; a microorganism "which can be used" to make biological weapons; "BW-applicable" materials; "not fully declared" aerial drones; and "design work" for missiles and "attempts" to acquire missile technology.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, each and every one of these findings confirms a material breach by the former Iraqi regime of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1441," Cheney said. "Taken together, they constitute a massive breach of that unanimously passed resolution, and provide a compelling case for the use of force against Saddam Hussein."

But some of the items Cheney cited from Kay's report as violations remain unconfirmed. The prison laboratory story was first explored in 1998 by U.N. inspectors. Kay said U.S. inspectors still did not have enough evidence or witnesses "that would indicate that in fact that's what they [the prison facilities] were used for."

Similarly, a former U.N. inspector said that in the past, investigators in Iraq were continually discovering technical equipment that had not been declared or tagged "because almost any lab equipment is dual purpose." And experts say the drones Cheney cited probably could not travel far enough to violate U.N. requirements and were not designed to carry weapons.

Cheney made only one mention of evidence that Iraq had a nuclear program. The allegation had been central to the administration's case for going to war, noting that the "smoking gun" from Hussein could be a "mushroom cloud." Before the war, Cheney said Hussein had "reconstituted" his nuclear weapons program.

Kay's testimony noted: "Despite evidence of Saddam's continued ambition to acquire nuclear weapons, to date we have not uncovered evidence that Iraq undertook significant post-1998 steps to actually build nuclear weapons or produce fissile material."

Cheney did not dispute that finding, but noted the discovery of equipment in scientists' homes "that would have been useful in resuming uranium enrichment by centrifuge and electromagnetic isotope separation." Kay had said that despite interviews with scientists involved, "the evidence does not tie any activity directly to centrifuge research or development."

there's much more on the WP site. a definite worthwhile read!

so arnold gets the gubnatorial trophy. whoopee. ya know why? because he wont get california out of the mess they're in. so this can only be a good thing for democrats. let them dig their own hole, and what better way than to start with the one and only mr dumbell.

the voting is underway. after hours and hours, it's still too close to call, unless of course you're listening to cnn, msnbc or *cough* fox. then you would know, arnold is going to win.
and if he didn't they could blame you.

if ever there was a need for a post, it would be today's. FUCK YOU CNN & MSNBC. fox duznt count. take your fuckn ARNOLD ARNOLD signs and shove them up your unfair & unbalanced cunts

ahh, so the truth finally emerges
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "During this interview, Cheney perpetuated the mythical connection between Saddam Hussein and the attacks of Sept. 11.
He said the cost of the war in Iraq would be a 'whale of a lot less than trying to recover from the next attack in the United States.'
He also supposed only two choices for where the 'war on terrorism' would be fought: there or here. Iraq is the place 'we want to take on the terrorists . . . and it's far more appropriate for us to do it there and far better for us to do it there than it is here at home,' Cheney said."

the inspectors "didn't do their job" because, you asshole, of the fact that you bombed the country before they could!

jeeezuz christ, if any of you are listening to meet the press, you must be getting awfully nauseated by now. i think i'll go for the pepto bismal myself.

another reason i love slate so much

When President Bush took office, the budget was $281 billion in the black, with a cumulative surplus of $5.6 trillion projected to pile up by 2011. Since then, the sluggish economy, three rounds of tax cuts, and the post-9/11 spike in defense spending have darkened the picture considerably, contributing to a decline that one analyst deemed "Miltonian" in degree. According to the Congressional Budget Office, by August of 2001, the projected total 2011 surplus had dropped to $3.4 trillion, and by January of 2002, to $1.6 trillion, before sliding further still to the current estimate of a $2.3 trillion deficit. For those keeping score at home, that $8 trillion swing in the projections is about equal to the total revenue the federal government collected between 1789 and 1983.

well, welll welllllll...

According to the WP's poll, which was conducted over the past four days, a 41 percent plurality of those surveyed thought that recent tax cuts should be rolled back in order to free up funds if Congress approves Bush's $87 billion reconstruction proposal. Overall, 52 percent said they approved of the President's handling of affairs in Iraq, a figure down 23 points since the end of the war in April.

at that rate, it'll only take another 10 months to completely wipe any chance of his continuing the conjob! woohoo

timmy timmmy timmmmmmy

how do you have the guts to get on national tv and let yourself be shown to not only kissing the butt of whatever admin rep you invited to sit on your face, but i now truly believe that you think you're doing us all a favor by exhibiting your utter lack of class in providing us with more lies deceptions and, for lack of a better term, enronizing of what is going on in that cabal.

cheney was bitchslapping you with lies, and you just sat there asking for more toilet paper to wipe his ass with. you're a fool tim. a stupid fool who obviously is no more American than your guest.

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "David Yepsen calls on me to sacrifice for my country with a 1 or 2 percent 'Freedom Tax' for President Bush's misguided war in Iraq. I have watched Bush alienate our allies, threaten our environment and favor big business and wealthy cronies with reckless tax policies. I've sacrificed enough.
Brian Joens,
Manning."

Mirror.co.uk - POT SMOKING TO BE MADE LEGAL: "SMOKING cannabis will no longer be against the law under new Government plans.
From January, recreational users of the drug will be free from prosecution, unless they are pushers, it emerged yesterday.
Cannabis will be downgraded to a Class C drug - although people smoking near schools and playgrounds will face arrest and have the cannabis confiscated.
No further action will be taken unless there are complaints from locals, evidence of repeated possession or the smoking is in public."

ya know, asscroft is out touring the nation givin up these hurrahs to the patriot act to a bunch of cops & prosecutors (sorta like preachin to the choir), he neglects to admit just how porous our borders are, and nothing being done to secure them. it's almost as if he wants these terrorists in the country so he can justify his lust for power with pat II.

david yepsen, winner of poopyhead of the year, des moines' head basher of democrats, will regret these words. so help me God.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Those of us who support a vigorous war on terrorism should be intellectually honest enough to tell the American people how we'd pay for it, and the president's speech prompts me to renew my call: Let's enact a temporary income-tax surcharge on all personal and corporate incomes to pay these costs. Call it a 'Freedom Tax.' It would be 1 or 2 percent of our taxable incomes, renewed by Congress and the president each year. It would be clearly identified by a separate line on the tax form"

FUCK YOU DON IMUS. you're a ego maniac poopyhead. cutting off howard dean's response to the lying chimp's conjob he did on the American people last night, was the last straw. YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH. so what do you do? you cut it off. you' just not man enough.

The study, released by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration on Friday, finds that 19.5 million Americans used illicit drugs in 2002. This works out to 8.3 percent of the population age 12 or older.

Yahoo

[02:58] if i make you hate me, then you're my enemy

lets see how long it'll take before we start getting the whispers
Bush's Media Barbecue: No Grilling (washingtonpost.com): "CRAWFORD, Tex., Aug. 28 -- In the time-honored political tradition of keeping your friends close and your enemies closer, President Bush invited the White House press corps out to his ranch Wednesday night for a poolside barbecue. "

is there anything as hardhitting as this salvo in today's slate, where it couldn't be more true? when the bu$h administration thinks something is "positive", everybody else feels just the opposite?
Nuclear Test-osterone By Emily Biuso: "The latest North Korean brouhaha arose when, during a meeting in Beijing with officials from the U.S. and four other countries, a North Korean delegate announced that Pyongyang had 'no choice but to declare its possession of nuclear weapons' and 'conduct a nuclear weapons test,' according to the WP. While no reporters appear to have been on hand to hear this, they cite unnamed U.S. officials, and the Post says its quotes are from a cable from the U.S. negotiating team. Everyone notes the disconnect between the U.S. official reaction and the apparent shock expressed by other diplomats at the meeting: While a Bush spokeswoman called the talks 'positive,' sources said that delegates present were visibly upset. Pretty much everyone agrees, though, that this will lead nowhere good: The NYT even hypothesizes that a test could lead to the U.S. seeking a U.N. Security Council resolution, which could lead to sanctions, which North Korea would consider an act of war."

some letters today in the des moines register worth mentioning:

Don't trust Ashcroft with our civil liberties
Foreign nationals are immediately affected by the Patriot Act limitations on civil liberties.

If we, like David Yepsen in his Aug. 21 column, "Ashcroft's Defense Is Simple: Patriot Act Works," repeat without question Attorney General John Ashcroft's unsupported claims the act would have prevented Sept. 11, then we will have no standing to complain when, for example, it is our relative who is held secretly and without formal charges.

It is more difficult to police a citizenry that has rights to privacy, assembly, due process, legal representation and free speech. But it wasn't these rights that prevented detection of the terrorists. Lack of resources, poor communication and degradation of investigative agencies under the Clinton administration all contributed to terrorists slipping through the cracks.

I do not ascribe bad intentions to Ashcroft, President Bush or any legislator, but the act was passed in haste in response to an emergency. Now that we have had time to reflect, we need to decide how many liberties we are willing to give up in the name of security and which principles our troops are dying for in Iraq.

Lori Chesser
Des Moines.

*****

I wasn't surprised to see David Yepsen go to bat for John Ashcroft and his liberty-stomping Patriot Act.

Nor was I surprised Yepsen - like many in our sad-excuse for a "free" press - failed to mention the Domestic Security Enhancement Act (aka: Patriot Act II), which is Ashcroft's latest attempt to use the threat of terrorism as an excuse to strip away more of our individual liberties.

I may be one of those "well-meaning" civil libertarians Yepsen brushes aside, but when Ashcroft sent his secret first draft of the act to Capitol Hill, it contained a section he explicitly titled: "Suspension of the Writ of Habeas Corpus."

And this is the guy Yepsen thinks Americans should trust with their precious liberties.

I don't think so.

Steve Hosch
Gilbert.

*****

Attorney General John Ashcroft has been abusing the Patriot Act from day one.

Since its passage, hundreds of non-citizens have been not only detained, but imprisoned for months at a time without access to their lawyers and without knowing the charges against them.

No, the U.S. Department of Justice is not likely to truncate your civil liberties, David Yepsen, but there are thousands of resident non-citizens who are not so lucky. Not only is there potential for abuse, there have been egregious violations of both civil liberties and due process since this law came into effect.

Alex Body
Polk City.

Voting machine controversy: "Columbus - The head of a company vying to sell voting machines in Ohio told Republicans in a recent fund-raising letter that he is 'committed to helping Ohio deliver its electoral votes to the president next year.'

The Aug. 14 letter from Walden O'Dell, chief executive of Diebold Inc. - who has become active in the re-election effort of President Bush - prompted Democrats this week to question the propriety of allowing O'Dell's company to calculate votes in the 2004 presidential election. "

New York Times
WASHINGTON, Aug. 26 — Even if the economy rebounds strongly over the next few years, the federal budget deficit could climb for the rest of the decade if Congress adopts proposals strongly supported by President Bush, the Congressional Budget Office said today.

Offering a sharp contrast to recent projections by the White House, which had said the budget deficit would hit $475 billion next year and decline significantly after that, the Congressional report warns that annual deficits could rise rather than fall.

The nonpartisan office said the deficit would be $480 billion next year but could reach a cumulative total of $5.8 trillion by 2013.

Administration officials quickly dismissed the Congressional projections as too speculative to take seriously, noting that long-term budget projections have been notoriously inaccurate.

[they lied about the deficit, why should we believe them now?]

But the new analysis is nonetheless based on fairly cautious assumptions. It assumes that economic growth will surge next year and remain solid for the rest of the decade. The biggest reason for potentially much higher deficits is the added cost of legislation that both the White House and the Republican majority in Congress support.

Obituary backs 'removal of Bush'
Woman 'thought he was a liar'

"She'd always watch CNN, C-SPAN, and you know, she'd just swear at the TV and say 'Oh, Bush, he's such a whistle ass!' She'd just get so mad," Bettilyon said.

wouldn't it be wonderful if every activist brought a whistle to their protest?

no mr. bush, it's not "us versus them".... it's "you versus the us"

so today, 3 british soldiers are killed in basra. hmmm, first they were saddam loyalists. then "they" were ba'athist remnants. THEN "they" became terrorists. what's next? "they" becoming plain iraqi citizens? how long, how many more of our fine men & women in uniform must die and shed their limbs, before this administration admits: "THEY" do not want us in iraq?

i can think of a whole bunch of these "many Americans"
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Paying attention to the environment is different. It requires an attention span. It requires people to recognize they are only a blink on the planet's timeline. It requires people to care about what happens beyond the near future - something many Americans have difficulty doing."

Bush Revises Views On 'Combat' in Iraq (washingtonpost.com): "'We've got about 10,000 troops there, which is down from, obviously, major combat operations,' he said. 'And they're there to provide security and they're there to provide reconstruction help. But both those functions are being gradually replaced by other troops. Germany, for example, is now providing the troops for ISAF [International Security Assistance Force], which is the security force for Afghanistan, under NATO control. In other words, more and more coalition forces and friends are beginning to carry a lot of the burden in Afghanistan.'
In fact, the 10,000 troops in Afghanistan represent the highest number of U.S. soldiers in the country since the war there began. By the time the Taliban government had been vanquished in December 2001, U.S. troops numbered fewer than 3,000 in Afghanistan. And three months later, in March 2002, when the last major battle against remnants of the Taliban and al Qaeda took place in eastern Afghanistan, about 5,000 U.S. troops were in the country. "

Davis to OK rights for same-sex couples / No position yet from top GOP recall rival: "Gov. Gray Davis pledged Saturday to sign a domestic-partners bill that would give thousands of same-sex couples many of the same rights as married couples -- including community property, child support and access to divorce court -- and would thrust California to the forefront of the national debate over gay rights.
The bill would put registered domestic partners in California on a par with members of civil unions in Vermont, the only other state with a comparable law, "

it's not the soldiers' bravery in killing the enemy i most admire, but their stamina in holding up in the hell this president sent them to.
DesMoinesRegister.com | OpinionBaghdad, Iraq - You'd think bullets, bombs and mortars would be enough for American soldiers to worry about in this troubled, dangerous nation.

Now comes word that a half-dozen American soldiers, including a 31-year-old Iowan, have died here in the past week because of Iraq's mind-baking 130-degree heat.

I've been in the region a month, and I'm still trying to deal with, even comprehend, life in what simply must be one of the hottest places on Earth.

Here's what it's like:

A can of Coke blew up in the tent I was sleeping in the other evening in Baghdad. Nothing unusual about that when it tops 130 degrees every day - in the shade - and there's not an air conditioner in sight.

You work up a sweat tying your shoes or brushing your teeth. Or doing nothing. You drip even at night, when it gets down to 95 or so, in what's called the cool of the evening.

Your first day in this hideous heat, you learn when to use - and, more importantly, not to use - the porta-potties. Morning or evening is the time to grab the roll of toilet paper and take the walk. Never, if one can persuade one's body to cooperate, make the trip between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Take a seat during the middle of the day, and you burn your bottom, literally, on the plastic seat.

Sorry to be crude, but life gets pretty basic when you're living in a tent up against a heat index of 150 degrees-plus.

Soldiers work through the day in it and, if they get an hour off in the afternoon, collapse on their scorching canvas cots and fall asleep.

They dream of ways for people back home to get an idea what it's like to spend a summer in Iraq.

They suggest turning the oven on low for an hour or so, to maybe 130 degrees. Then stick your head in there for eight or 10 hours. Or park your car outside in the sun when it's 90 degrees and roll up the windows. Wait a while, then go sit in there for eight hours with the heater turned on full blast. And throw sand in your face, to get the effect of the occasional sandstorm.

Or find the biggest, baddest, hottest blow dryer in the house, turn it on high, and hold it to your face all day. This last one came to me while I was riding in the back seat of a Humvee. No doors. Sixty-five miles an hour. One hundred thirty-five degrees.

It took a couple of nights to figure out a sleeping trick. You're lying on top of your sleeping bag and end up in a puddle of sweat. So you cool yourself by raising your body off the cot, then lying back down in the sweat. It works for a minute or so. Trust me.

My Mennen Speed Stick deodorant has turned the consistency of cake frosting. It's a dip-the-fingers-and-moosh application. Want peanut butter on a cracker? It pours like molasses.

I put a little bottled drinking water in a cup the other afternoon, sat it in the sun for a few minutes and made hot tea.

Your body craves water - you can't drink too much - and a gallon a day isn't nearly enough. But you get tired of water, so you mix up powdered Gatorade or Kool-Aid and enjoy a warm summer drink.

Sometimes you can find ice, but you have to be careful. If it's out of the Tigris or Euphrates you're looking at some very serious health problems, like dropping dead from the crud.

If somebody scores a bag of clean ice cubes - it actually happened one day last week - well, you'd think they were handing out hundred-dollar bills.

Soldiers walked into the tent one at a time with their little cups, each waiting for a turn at three or four cubes.

A 58-year-old master sergeant, savoring the moment, sat down with his cup and watched the ice melt. Then he sucked on a piece and spit it back in the cup and watched til it was gone. He said it reminded him of sitting on his deck at home.

I understood perfectly, and I've only been here a few weeks.

You can't let your bare skin touch anything metal during the day. For soldiers that would mean, oh, weapons, for instance, which they are required to carry everywhere they go. They tape up their helmet snaps to keep the metal from burning their faces.

Forget saving an orange from breakfast for a snack later. Unless you like baked orange. There's no place to keep it cool.

Last Sunday in Baghdad may have been the worst. The temperature was said to be well over 140 degrees.

I lucked out and was invited into an air-conditioned office downtown to relax for a few minutes that day. It was the first real air-conditioning I'd felt in more than two weeks, and it was glorious for about 10 minutes.

Then I had to get back outside, into the heat. I couldn't stand the cold. I was shivering. The thermometer said it was 78 degrees in the room. A young American soldier returned from a week of emergency leave in Illinois and talked about home, where the temperature was in the upper 80s.

"I had to wear a jacket," she said. "I froze. I couldn't get used to 80- or 90-degree weather there."

Others repeated similar stories.

Good Lord, I thought. My body is actually adjusting to this. My insides expect to be cooked every day.

Soldiers tell stories of dizziness and of passing out face-down into their baked beans in the dining hall.

Medics at one unit report treating a dozen cases of kidney stones a day. It's because of dehydration.

An MP told me nine soldiers in his unit provided escort duty for a convoy driving from central Iraq to Kuwait, about 400 miles. Every minute of it was in long sleeves, long pants, helmet and flak vest - probably 20 pounds of gear - mandatory for every soldier who travels through Iraq. Every one of the nine MPs had to receive intravenous fluids by the time they got to Kuwait.

On Saturday, the day before I thought the pavement would melt in Baghdad, an American soldier died because of the heat. Overall, Pfc. David Kirchoff of Anamosa and five other soldiers have died.

I've sweated through it a few weeks. Soldiers have dealt with the heat all summer and will until it lets up in the next month - meaning when it gets back to a more bearable 115 degrees.

They make jokes or try to ignore it.

Like the Army major I had dinner with the other night, who nodded as I moaned about a couple of blisters I got on my arm when I leaned on the hood of a Humvee.

"Right," he said, sweat dripping off his nose into his roast beef, potatoes and gravy.

"It's pretty bad. Could be worse, though. We could be in the jungle. Talk about hot."

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "State officials said this week Iowa's unemployment rate jumped to 4.6 percent in July, the highest it's been in 11 years. It's even worse than that, because those who stop looking for work or take part-time jobs are no longer counted. In Iowa, there's a mix of problems: A loss of manufacturing jobs in the smaller towns, where an entire population relied on one employer; and larger cities attracting applicants from everywhere, making the competition tougher for the locals."

Troops in Iraq face pay cut / Pentagon says tough duty bonuses are budget-buster: "Washington -- The Pentagon wants to cut the pay of its 148,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, who are already contending with guerrilla-style attacks, homesickness and 120- degree-plus heat.
Unless Congress and President Bush take quick action when Congress returns after Labor Day, the uniformed Americans in Iraq and the 9,000 in Afghanistan will lose a pay increase approved last April of $75 a month in 'imminent danger pay' and $150 a month in 'family separation allowances.'
The Defense Department supports the cuts, saying its budget can't sustain the higher payments amid a host of other priorities. But the proposed cuts have stirred anger among military families and veterans' groups and even prompted an editorial attack in the Army Times, a weekly newspaper for military personnel and their families that is seldom so outspoken.
Congress made the April pay increases retroactive to Oct. 1, 2002, but they are set to expire when the federal fiscal year ends Sept. 30 unless Congress votes to keep them as part of its annual defense appropriations legislation."

MWO: "Over the years, we at MWO have noticed a poverty of the public vocabulary when it comes to describing Republicans. The reasons for this are many.

But to help correct the situation, MWO hereby provides a list of synonyms for the G.O.P., along with words that aptly describe Republican policies. Speechwriters as well as commentators should feel free to download and borrow from this list freely, at every opportunity."

interns say the darndest things
SLATE Today's Papers: "TP is somewhat upset that no papers went for a cheap comparison and pointed out that yesterday, as usual, there were big blackouts throughout ... Iraq.
How did the first major blackout in the Big Apple since 1977 hurt the media? For one thing, the cadre of regular TP writers in New York were unable to go online and view, well, Today's Papers. The WP Style section takes a wider perspective and notes that the New York Times printing plant in Queens lost power, Fox News only had enough generator fuel to last until 6 A.M., and the Cleveland Plain-Dealer had to temporarily move staff 30 miles to a rival newspaper in order to print today's issue. However, one hard-working New York Newsday reporter was unfazed: after the lights went out, he 'kept interviewing, 'in semi-darkness,' for 20 more minutes, even shooing away another reporter who tried to interrupt to talk about, um, the blackout!'
Avi Zenilman is a Slate intern."

EAST COAST POWER OUTTAGE... breaking on all networks. if it gets dark and the situation is the same, oh boy.

the effects of the $600 billion being used to pay for this 'war'.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Gesme said a $16 billion cut will mean a reduction in the quality of care. He cited a survey of 1,000 oncologists in which 53 percent said they would limit their treatment of Medicare patients and 19 percent said they would stop treating Medicare patients altogether if the cut is realized.
A $16 billion cut would be one-third of the total Medicare expenditures for cancer care. Gesme points out that the cut divided by the 4,500 oncologists in the United States would mean an average cut to each doctor of $3.5 million over 10 years."

what government needs to do is get rid of the way legislators are seated. republicans and democrats should be all mixed, by state. not this republican-democrat thing any more. especially now with this uber-clique mindset that has taken over this country. a uniter and not a divider? ya, right.

in the bizzaro world of bu$h, when war is peace & good is evil, the one sane thing about it remains: how right is so wrong.

hypocrisy in action
Pickering a Fight - Republicans celebrate a judge who's easy on black drug offenders. By Emily Bazelon: "If you like farce, the upcoming judicial confirmation hearing for Judge Charles W. Pickering should make for some satisfying C-SPAN. The Mississippi federal judge is the Bush administration's nominee to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals*. To defend him against charges of racial insensitivity, Republicans are marketing Pickering's record of giving lenient sentences to black drug offenders. It's nice to see conservative lawmakers deferring to a judge's belief that some criminals deserve a second chance. Except these are the same lawmakers who spent their last term chipping away at the power of federal judges to reduce criminal sentences."

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Baghdad, Iraq - The Iraqi leaned close and, in a gesture of sincerity and friendship, touched me on the hand as he spoke.
'Saddam Hussein was a good president,' the man said. 'Under Saddam, I had freedom. Now it's fear.'"

DEAN WATCH is starting to take shape.

the ultimate hypocisy
Fox Sues Humorist Al Franken Over 'fair and Balanced' Slogan - from Tampa Bay Online: "NEW YORK (AP) - Fox News Channel has sued liberal humorist Al Franken and the Penguin Group to stop them from using the phrase 'fair and balanced' in the title of his upcoming book.
Filed Monday in Manhattan, the trademark infringement lawsuit seeks a court order forcing Penguin to rename the book, 'Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right.' It also asks for unspecified damages. "

from void, on the recall in california. could this really be the ticket to ride? it would be so hilariously funny that all these people spent all that money .... i would die. anyway, we'll see:

gov . gray davis ' poll numbers will look so pitiful right
before the recall election that he will resign before
voters kick him out, explaining it's all for the good of
the state (and the democratic party).

lt. gov cruz bustamonte thus legally succeeds davis as
governor; upon petition, the california supreme court
cancels the election as unneeded and no longer required,
and the feds refuse to hear an appeal (no jurisdiction).

the answer to the problem of money in politics? make all contributions anonymous

Conservatives: The New Stalinists - A new study proves it. By Timothy Noah: "When the Brock piece came out, Chatterbox (then writing a media column for U.S. News) interviewed the conservative commentator David Frum about its thesis. Frum basically agreed with it. 'What happens with the liberal press is that there are loyalties to causes,' he said. That's correct. In Tomasky's study, the Times editorial page supported Clinton on policy matters 52 percent of the time, a mere 7 percentage points less than the Journal supported Bush. But, Frum added, '[w]ith conservatives, I suspect there is much more of a loyalty to people.' And how: The Journal supported Bush on non-policy matters 95 percent of the time, whereas the Times supported Clinton on non-policy matters only 28 percent of the time. Raines' anti-Clinton pathology may exaggerate this last statistic, but there's no denying that compared to liberal editorialists, the conservatives march in lock step. You tell me who produces better journalism."

this should be required reading for every American
Point by Point, a Look Back at a 'thick' File, a Fateful Six Months Later The Most Detailed U.S. Case for Invading Iraq Was Laid - from Tampa Bay Online: SATELLITE PHOTOS

Powell presented satellite photos of industrial buildings, bunkers and trucks, and suggested they showed Iraqis surreptitiously moving prohibited missiles and chemical and biological weapons to hide them. At two sites, he said trucks were "decontamination vehicles" associated with chemical weapons.

---

But these and other sites had undergone 500 inspections in recent months. Chief U.N. inspector Hans Blix, a day earlier, had said his well-equipped experts had found no contraband in their inspections and no sign that items had been moved. Nothing has been reported found since.

Addressing the Security Council a week after Powell, Blix used one photo scenario as an example and said it could be showing routine as easily as illicit activity. Journalists visiting photographed sites hours after the Powell speech found similar activity to be routine.

Norwegian inspector Jorn Siljeholm told AP on March 19 that "decontamination vehicles" U.N. teams were led to by U.S. information invariably turned out to be simple water or fire trucks. On June 24, Blix said of the entire Powell photo package, "We were not impressed with that particular evidence."

Amid Powell's warnings, a critical fact was lost: Iraq's military industries were to have remained under strict, on-site U.N. monitoring for years to come, guarding against the rebuilding of weapons programs.

AUDIOTAPES

Powell played three audiotapes of men speaking in Arabic of a mysterious "modified vehicle," "forbidden ammo" and "the expression 'nerve agents'" - tapes said to be intercepts of Iraqi army officers discussing concealment.

---

Two of the brief, anonymous tapes, otherwise not authenticated, provided little context for judging their meaning. It couldn't be known whether the mystery vehicle, however modified, was even banned. A listener could only speculate over the cryptic mention of "nerve agents." The third tape, meanwhile, seemed natural, an order to inspect scrap areas for "forbidden ammo." The Iraqis had just told U.N. inspectors they would search ammunition dumps for stray, empty chemical warheads left over from years earlier. They later turned four over to inspectors.

Powell's rendition of the third conversation made it more incriminating, by saying an officer ordered that the area be "cleared out." The voice on the tape didn't say that, but only that the area be "inspected," according to the official U.S. translation.

HIDDEN DOCUMENTS

Powell said "classified" documents found at a nuclear scientist's Baghdad home were "dramatic confirmation" of intelligence saying prohibited items were concealed this way.

---

U.N. nuclear inspectors later said the documents were old and "irrelevant" - some administrative material, some from a failed and well-known uranium-enrichment program of the 1980s.

DESERT WEAPONS

According to Powell, unidentified sources said the Iraqis dispersed rocket launchers and warheads holding biological weapons to the western desert, hiding them in palm groves and moving them every one to four weeks.

---

Nothing has been reported found, after months of searching by U.S. and Australian troops in the near-empty desert. Al-Saadi suggested the story of palm groves and weekly-to-monthly movement was lifted whole from an Iraqi general's written account of hiding missiles in the 1991 war.

U-2s, SCIENTISTS

Powell said Iraq was violating a U.N. resolution by rejecting U-2 reconnaissance flights and barring private interviews with scientists. He suggested only fear of the Saddam Hussein regime kept scientists from exposing secret weapons programs.

---

On Feb. 17, U-2 flights began. By early March, 12 scientists had submitted to private interviews. In postwar interviews, with Saddam no longer in power, no Iraqi scientist is known to have confirmed any revived weapons program.

ANTHRAX

Powell noted Iraq had declared it produced 8,500 liters of the biological agent anthrax before 1991, but U.N. inspectors estimated it could have made up to 25,000 liters. None has been "verifiably accounted for," he said.

---

No anthrax has been reported found. The Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), in a confidential report last September, recently disclosed, said that although it believed Iraq had biological weapons, it didn't know their nature, amounts or condition. Three weeks before the invasion, an Iraqi report of scientific soil sampling supported the regime's contention that it had destroyed its anthrax stocks at a known site, the U.N. inspection agency said May 30. Iraq also presented a list of witnesses to verify amounts, the agency said. It was too late for inspectors to interview them; the war soon began.

BIOWEAPONS TRAILERS

Powell said defectors had told of "biological weapons factories" on trucks and in train cars. He displayed artists' conceptions of such vehicles.

---

After the invasion, U.S. authorities said they found two such truck trailers in Iraq, and the CIA said it concluded they were part of a bioweapons production line. But no trace of biological agents was found on them, Iraqis said the equipment made hydrogen for weather balloons, and State Department intelligence balked at the CIA's conclusion. The British defense minister, Geoffrey Hoon, has said the vehicles aren't a "smoking gun."

The trailers have not been submitted to U.N. inspection for verification. No "bioweapons railcars" have been reported found.

UNMANNED AIRCRAFT

Powell showed video of an Iraqi F-1 Mirage jet spraying "simulated anthrax." He said four such spray tanks were unaccounted for, and Iraq was building small unmanned aircraft "well suited for dispensing chemical and biological weapons."

---

According to U.N. inspectors' reports, the video predated the 1991 Gulf War, when the Mirage was said to have been destroyed, and three of the four spray tanks were destroyed in the 1990s.

No small drones or other planes with chemical-biological capability have been reported found in Iraq since the invasion. Iraq also gave inspectors details on its drone program, but the U.S. bombing intervened before U.N. teams could follow up.

'FOUR TONS' OF VX

Powell said Iraq produced four tons of the nerve agent VX. "A single drop of VX on the skin will kill in minutes. Four tons," he said.

---

Powell didn't note that most of that four tons was destroyed in the 1990s under U.N. supervision. Before the invasion, the Iraqis made a "considerable effort" to prove they had destroyed the rest, doing chemical analysis of the ground where inspectors confirmed VX had been dumped, the U.N. inspection agency reported May 30.

Experts at Britain's International Institute of Strategic Studies said any pre-1991 VX most likely would have degraded anyway. No VX has been reported found since the invasion.

'EMBEDDED' CAPABILITY

"We know that Iraq has embedded key portions of its illicit chemical weapons infrastructure within its legitimate civilian industry," Powell said.

---

No "chemical weapons infrastructure" has been reported found. The newly disclosed DIA report of last September said there was "no reliable information" on "where Iraq has - or will - establish its chemical warfare agent-production facilities."

Many countries' civilian chemical industries are capable of making weapons agents, and Iraq's was under close U.N. oversight. The DIA report suggested international inspections, swept aside by the U.S. invasion six months later, would be able to keep Iraq from rebuilding a chemical weapons program.

'500 TONS' OF CHEMICAL AGENT

"Our conservative estimate is that Iraq today has a stockpile of between 100 and 500 tons of chemical weapons agent," Powell said.

---

Powell gave no basis for the assertion, and no such agents have been reported found. An unclassified CIA report last October made a similar assertion without citing concrete evidence, saying only that Iraq "probably" concealed precursor chemicals to make such weapons. The DIA reported confidentially last September there "is no reliable information on whether Iraq is producing and stockpiling chemical weapons."

CHEMICAL WARHEADS

Powell said 122-mm chemical warheads found by U.N. inspectors in January might be the "tip of an iceberg."

---

The warheads were empty, a fact Powell didn't note. Blix said on June 16 the dozen stray rocket warheads, never uncrated, were apparently "debris from the past," the 1980s. No others have been reported found since the invasion.

DEPLOYED WEAPONS

"Saddam Hussein has chemical weapons. ... And we have sources who tell us that he recently has authorized his field commanders to use them," Powell said.

---

No such weapons were used and none was reported found after the U.S. and allied military units overran Iraqi field commands and ammunition dumps. Even before Powell spoke, U.N. inspectors had found no such weapons at Iraqi military bases.

REVIVED NUCLEAR PROGRAM

"We have no indication that Saddam Hussein has ever abandoned his nuclear weapons program," Powell said.

---

Chief U.N. nuclear inspector Mohamed ElBaradei told the council two weeks before the U.S. invasion, "We have to date found no evidence or plausible indication of the revival of a nuclear weapons program in Iraq." On July 24, Foreign Minister Ana Palacio of Spain, a U.S. ally on Iraq, said there were "no evidences, no proof" of a nuclear bomb program before the war. No such evidence has been reported found since the invasion.

ALUMINUM TUBES

Powell said "most United States experts" believe aluminum tubes sought by Iraq were intended for use as centrifuge cylinders for enriching uranium for nuclear bombs.

---

Energy Department experts and Powell's own State Department intelligence bureau had already dissented from this CIA view, and on March 7 the U.N. nuclear agency's ElBaradei said his experts found convincing documentation - and no contrary evidence - that Iraq was using the tubes to make artillery rockets. Powell's scenario was "highly unlikely," he said. No centrifuge program has been reported found.

MAGNETS

Powell said "intelligence from multiple sources" reported Iraq was trying to buy magnets and a production line for magnets of "the same weight" as those used in uranium centrifuges.

---

The U.N. nuclear agency traced a dozen types of imported magnets to their Iraqi end users, and none was usable for centrifuges, ElBaradei told the council March 7. "Weight is not enough; you don't have a centrifuge magnet because it's 20 grams," ElBaradei deputy Jacques Baute told AP on July 11. No centrifuge program has been found.

SCUDS, NEW MISSILES

Powell said "intelligence sources" indicate Iraq had a secret force of up to a few dozen prohibited Scud-type missiles. He said it also had a program to build newer, 600-mile-range missiles, and had put a roof over a test facility to block the view of spy satellites.

---

No Scud-type missiles have been reported found. In the 1990s, U.N. inspectors had reported accounting for all but two of these missiles. No program for long-range missiles has been uncovered. Powell didn't note that U.N. teams were repeatedly inspecting missile facilities, including looking under that roof, and reporting no Iraqi violations of U.N. resolutions.

"There are many smoking guns," the secretary of state said in a CBS interview later that Wednesday in February. "Leaving Saddam Hussein in possession of weapons of mass destruction for a few more months or years is not an option."

The U.S. bombing began 43 days later, and on April 12 al-Saadi, the science adviser, handed himself over to the U.S. troops who seized Baghdad. His wife has not seen him since.

heard on CNN just now, why we shouldn't put marines on the ground in liberia: "we shouldn't be using our marines to alleviate human suffering".... why didn't the anchor come back with 'wasn't it the human sufferage in iraq the reason the president sent in troops?'.... actually, i know why the anchor didn't ask that. it would have produced a response that would have shut her up.

once again, iowans speak out, and speak with some sense.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Marriage first came about as property agreements and safeguards of wealth. Women and girls were sold and bartered into marriage. Sometimes children were betrothed as babies. Wives and children were considered men's properties. This is still true in some societies today. In our own society, most women continue to take their husband's name to show to whom they belong. Pre-nuptial agreements and divorce settlements are important to many. Marriage is not and never has been necessary for propagation of humans or any other beings."

America's Glossy Envoy (washingtonpost.com): "Hi is a new magazine funded by the State Department, published in Arabic, targeted at Arabs ages 18 to 35 and sold on newsstands in more than a dozen countries. It costs consumers about $2 a copy. It will cost American taxpayers about $4 million a year -- minus whatever advertising revenues it can generate. "

could the answer to the audit trail for electronic voting machines be so simple as to have dual voting tabulators receiving the vote? hell for that matter, have 5 tabulators, just for integrity's sake. mail out codes, let people vote on those codes, and then send the votes to the tabulators, who then will tabulate, and then, and i'm sure this would be pretty good gauge of how secure each vote is registered, and compare results. should there be a discrepancy, either retabulate, or take the averages.

is there anything wrong with this picture? it even could address the internet-voting concerns.

one just has to ask: what was a humvee doing at an upscale shopping mall, empty?
Iraqi Update:: "Shortly after the car bombing, unidentified attackers blew up an unoccupied U.S. military Humvee parked in a well-to-do shopping district. In the two-hour firefight that followed, at least two Americans were injured and the house in which the militants sought refuge was destroyed. "

on the california recall: much ado about arnold. he's got that aryan charm that's for sure. why else would there be so much ink and cameratime devoted to him. sure the recall itself is noteworthy, even newsworthy. but this isnt just news. its entertainment of the highest order. the ultimate reality show. anwyay...

as i was about to say .. the problem with all of these candidates is that they have yet been able to propose a solution. much like how they bash democrats all the time for not having 'a better idea'. HYPOCRISY IN ACTION... btw, that thread in ITN is sure growing.

once again, a letter writer to the register makes a point that's worth noticing.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Brewer is either arrogant or naive to make such a blanket statement. Take any poor person who is doing whatever it is that is making him poor and give him whatever it is the rich are doing that continues to make them rich - minus a few advantages such as food, nice clothing, decent shelter, a college education, a job that pays more than minimum wage, inheritances, investments, property, health and dental care, connections in all the right places, tax breaks and show them how to become rich with whatever remains."

it's not very often when you come face to face with someone and your jaw drops while you try your best to mutter: are you for REAL?

furkn irc. ben disconnectin a whole lot lately. dont know whats up with that.

IT'S TRUE: REPUBLICANS ARE PARANOID SCHIZOPHRENIC SISSIES! who else would be threatened everytime they turn around? they're scared of homosexuality. they're scared of phantom weapons. they're always complaining about the threats from things that 'might' happen. this was the same group that was threatened by women in power. threatened by blacks in power. and then to top it all off, they actually believe God speaks to them on why they're threatened. if that's not downright dillusional, i don't know what is. the kicker of this is that they're supposedly the 'party more trusted with national security' in the polls.

just goes to show, that sick people need other sick people in order to mask their disease.

i think basu never understood that she hit the nail on the head with this paragraph from her column this morning. there was a time when republicans were 'good' people. why do i believe that she never realized that? because she fails to answer the question: why? what happened? wait, maybe she did, and still not realize it.
first the question:
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "There was a time when the conservatism that's associated with being a Republican was primarily fiscal. There were the Bob Ray Republicans who were pro-immigrant, and the Mary Louise Smith Republicans who were feminist, and those who reached out across the partisan divide to support such things as an equal-rights amendment or even affirmative action. These days they'd have their credentials yanked or become so marginalized they couldn't raise any money."

ayup, right there: "the mayor's race in Des Moines is nonpartisan"

a good observation on how poopyheads work
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "'It's like the domestic-violence process. If the dependency switch has been turned on, the will is overborne by coercive forces.'"

got the feelin that we're not getting a clear picture of the big story?
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "The trucks moved toward the border, passing signs that ordered them to not throw food or water to begging children. After crossing the border into Iraq, the trucks passed roadside concrete picnic tables and children, standing barefoot in the blowing sandstorm on the scalding pavement smiling and waving. Then guardsmen saw the children making scooping motions toward their mouths.
Tossing food, though, 'would just bring more kids out and it's very dangerous for everybody when that happens,' said Moore.
The roadside picnic tables are nice. The people just don't have anything to eat"

this is kinda strange. with cheney 'reiterating' the pre-emptive strikes, while wolfy 'reiterates' using murky intel, and topping off the circus is the monkey himself with that "incoherent" news conference yesterday. what a joke. this cabal has gone collectively insane.
U.S. secretly negotiating with Iran

July 31 — The Bush administration is engaged in a secret dialogue with Iran to try to persuade Iran to hand over top al-Qaida operatives, U.S. officials told NBC News.

THE THREE OPERATIVES are among the most wanted members of al-Qaida:

Abu Mussab al Zarqawi, an alleged poison expert who got medical treatment in Iraq.

Sa’ad Bin Laden, Osama bin Laden’s third-oldest son who is believed to be planning new al-Qaida operations.

Suleiman Abu Ghaith, the al-Qaida spokesman famous for introducing bin Laden in a widely seen videotape after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

Many U.S. officials believe that Iran is willing to turn them and other key al-Qaida operatives over to the United States or their home countries for a price: in exchange for members of an Iranian opposition group called the Mujahadeen al-Khalq, or MEK.

The MEK has been attacking Iran’s Islamic government from Iraq and is now in Iraq under U.S. military control.

just when you thought it couldnt get any more greedy...
US Dept of State - wf-latest: "President Bush has formally renewed the U.S. sanctions against Iraq, citing continued instability in the country, as well as the need to 'ensure the establishment of a process leading to representative Iraqi self-rule.'
To extend the sanctions, the president certified to Congress that Iraq continues to pose a threat to the United States. Former President George Bush first imposed sanctions on Iraq on August 2, 1990."

i just sent paul begala a fireback, and didn't copy that gem. gonna try and type it if they show it at the end of crossfire. about the only cnn program i make it a point to see.
on edit: i think i know what happened. crossfire@cnn is the address they banner. i sent mail via the web to paul specifically. ohwell.

if this isn't the most insane bushism yet, i dont know what is.
Air marshals pulled from key flightsDespite renewed warnings about possible airline hijackings, the Transportation Security Administration has alerted federal air marshals that as of Friday they will no longer be covering cross-country or international flights, MSNBC.com has learned. The decision to drop coverage on flights that many experts consider to be at the highest risk of attack apparently stems from a policy decision to rework schedules so that air marshals don’t have to incur the expense of staying overnight in hotels.

msnbc is reporting (on tv) that al-Q is planning another terrorist attack, again using jets. this supposedly is coming from the washington post, which doesn't have anything on the web yet. but one thing that really bothers me: the terror alert level isn't changing. please, dear God, let our defenses and intel agencies have the ability to stop this before it happens.

more from slate:

The LAT plays that angle up, while the NYT emphasizes that U.S. special ops teams looking for Saddam in Baghdad shoot up two cars of civilians yesterday, killing five Iraqis. USAT says that the cars "drove through a roadblock." The LAT says the soldiers fired after they "apparently [became] unnerved" after spotting cars speeding by in a nearby street. The conflicting accounts might stem from the fact that the military has refused to comment, saying that the operation is on-going. The NYT also mentions that troops in Karbala trying to keep an unruly crowd under control, fired into the gathering and killed a cafeteria worker.

Slate's Today's Papers

The piece also includes this suspect contention: "The continuing casualties—such as the four soldiers killed Saturday—are the direct result of the intensified U.S. offensive, the military officials added." Most of the casualties haven't come during raids. They've resulted from ambushes on exposed GIs. How exactly are those "the direct result" of intensified U.S. raids?

in that same article, another prediction on how long it'll be. 2 weeks. that should put it at AUGUST 10.
U.S. Adopts Aggressive Tactics on Iraqi Fighters (washingtonpost.com): "Hogg, whose troops are still engaged in combat every day, agreed. 'I think we're fixing to turn the corner,' he said Thursday. 'I think the operations over the next couple of weeks will get us there.'"

wait a minute here. whats up with the WP today, in their 'assessment'? they claim that the damage was due to 70-ton M1 abrams tanks, then mentions the schools, clinics, water treatment plants and police stations that got the funds for repair. why are we destroying these things in the first place?
U.S. Adopts Aggressive Tactics on Iraqi Fighters (washingtonpost.com): "After the fighting is over, U.S. military officials say, it becomes important to repair the damage -- a door smashed, a wall breached, an irrigation culvert flattened by a 70-ton M1 Abrams tank. Every U.S. brigade commander in Iraq has a 'Commander's Emergency Repair Fund' of $200,000 that is replenished as he spends it. Over the past six weeks of the U.S. offensive, commanders across Iraq dispensed $13 million to rebuild schools, clinics, water treatment plans and police stations, said Army Col. David MacEwen, who helps coordinate the civic works. "

more cartoon material: a young boy standing in front of his mother, whining about the neighbor kids saying nasty things about him. the mother calls the police and they come only to find out that the kid was lying (no neighbor kids around), so when they scold the young boy, he points to mommy and says to the cops: "well, SHE's the one who called you." actually, the neighborhood boys are in the distant background with t-shirts saying economy, terrorism, healthcare.

another letter writer from west des moines. you can usually tell the author is from west des moines even before ya get to the 2nd paragraph. bigot central has setup headquarters in their townsquare mall. but notice, this guy, if that is indeed what he likes to see himself as, forgets to mention that the COSTS of those services is what makes him stagger, not free-wheeling doling out of state's money.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Iowa continues to spend more and more on goods and services for fewer and fewer people, and that is'staggering.'
Robert F. Anderson,
West Des Moines. "

i wish i was a cartoonist. i'd draw a picture of the shrub in a deep deep hole, asking for a bigger shovel. while everybody around him is pointing fingers asking, did you take his shovel? then the big pile of dirt piled up behind them with the letters I R A Q. and then some nasty looking clouds overhead with lightning bolts with the names of dem presidential candidates. oh yah, they all gotta be standing in water. :)

so andrea mitchell is on imus right now, saying that wolfowitz' comments on meet the press yesterday should garner some heat. where wolfowitz tried to slip in the saddam-kobel towers & cole attacks. unbelievable that he said that, and my jaw did drop. especially when timmy came back with the question, are you saying that saddam is tied to those attacks? wolfie being the 'oh no, no' whine, then covering up with some crapola about how we wouldnt even be there for those attacks to have happened had it not been for saddam. i swear, it just gets more laughable every fuckn day. laughable at the stupidity of these white men in power. certainly not laughable at the mess they've made.

and lastly, we have this one, who thinks that paying state employees' salaries from private funds is unethical, to say the least i'm sure. do i agree? yes. vilsack, for all the good he's done, isn't perfect and made a whopper of a 'mistake' with this one. i'm sure he has his reasons, and they're probably as sound as a bu$h excuse. but hey, lets not get in the habit of this sort of thing. if donors want to pay state employees' salaries, let them pay the road workers and the social workers.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Private payouts
Regarding the plan to pay Iowa's director of economic development in part with private funds:
The use of private funds to supplement state employee wages is inappropriate, especially if the beneficiaries of the private largess will be making decisions about the distribution of state money that could go to the donors.
Mark L. Smith,
Des Moines "

the register is just full of it today. it != shit .. but a good example of how a whole lotta people seem to be feeling these day. here we have someone who would have a very hard time sweating out an answer as to just where did george bu$h "plant his seeds?"
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Being rich: An OK goal
As the gap between the 'rich' and the 'poor' continues to increase, several thoughts come to mind.
I remember when those 'without' used to admire those 'with.' I remember when those 'without' aspired to be like those 'with.' I remember the media didn't make a big deal out of the difference.
As years go by, this gap between incomes and net worth will continue to widen due to the following fact:
Rich people continue to do what makes them rich, and poor people continue to do what makes them poor. Imagine that. That is why no matter what is done to try to make everyone the same, it will never happen.
A wise man once told me, 'Young man, if you never get around to planting any seeds, how do you ever expect to live off of the harvest?'
Kurt E. Brewer,
Des Moines."

the hangover must be wearing off.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Regarding a quote in the July 20 Register story, 'Swift Victory, Ill-Planned Peace':
'Pentagon officials said they are studying the lessons of Iraq closely - to ensure that the next U.S. takeover of a foreign country goes more smoothly.
' 'We are going to get better over time,' promised Lawrence DiRita, a special assistant to [Secretary of State Donald] Rumsfeld. 'We'll get better as we do it more often'.'
What outrageous statements. U.S. citizens gave President Bush a free pass with Iraq because it seemed terrorism could be encouraged by Saddam Hussein. But to talk of other takeovers is chilling.
What country and time are we in? I do not see any understanding or appreciation of other cultures by this administration. No wonder Bush's poll numbers continue to slide.
Bonnie Pitz,
Newton."

great letter today in the register.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Hook President Bush up to a lie detector and ask him if he hyped intelligence to justify the Iraq war. He will answer 'no' and the needle won't even quiver.
The deception Bush practices is self-deception. He hears what he wants to hear and believes what he wants to believe. Common enough, but potentially deadly in a president.
Ian Brinnie,
Des Moines."

corporate welfare? if we're going to do a cost-estimate ratio thing, then lets get busy. because the cost of not providing basic healthcare and foodstamps to the poor, is right up there when it comes to how much the state could save by offering the tidbit assistance it's being asked for, and in cases where poopyheads are writing the checks, denied.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Wells Fargo reportedly may ask state and local officials for $25 million to $30 million in aid. "

i didnt even have to get past the 1st line, much less to the end of the 1st paragraph to know this letter writer was from west des moines, poopyville of the midwest.
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "I'm afraid I can't conjure up any sympathy for these complaining U.S. soldiers. The poor babies have been away from Mama for almost six months now. But it is easy to see where the liberal media would pick it up and try to make a big deal out of it."

a few months ago, mason city iowa voters approved a 1% local option sales tax that was supposed to offset the budget cuts hitting our schools. today, news of the school board continuing to cut staff & services to the tune of $373,000. i'm just sick.

as they say in washington: how much do ya got?
Yahoo! News - Police Departments Turn to Private Money: "Police and foundation officials say they guard against the possibility of wealthy donors winning undue influence.
Without question, some donors are helping themselves. The handbag manufacturer Coach, Major League Baseball and the Motion Picture Association of America earmark their donations for the NYPD's trademark-infringement unit, contributing to a $200,000 account that is used to make undercover purchases of counterfeit CDs, clothes and other goods.
Supervising Sgt. Tom McFadden said the funding does not compromise his unit's independence. "

FBI AND US SPY AGENTS SAY BUSH SPIKED BIN LADEN PROBES BEFORE 11 SEPTEMBER: "But the FBI files were closed in 1996 apparently before any conclusions could be reached on either the Bin Laden brothers or the organisation itself. High-placed intelligence sources in Washington told the Guardian this week: 'There were always constraints on investigating the Saudis'.

They said the restrictions became worse after the Bush administration took over this year. The intelligence agencies had been told to 'back off' from investigations involving other members of the Bin Laden family, the Saudi royals, and possible Saudi links to the acquisition of nuclear weapons by Pakistan."

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "In his July 14 letter, Greg Heartsill indulges in some illogic by equating the donors to a given political party with those most helped by a party. He claims that more big-money donations are given to Democrats than to Republicans and then draws the conclusion that the 'Democrats are actually the party of the rich.'
That can only be true if one assumes that the Democratic Party pays back these rich donors with pro-wealthy policies. Heartsill makes no such claim.
Of course there are wealthy Democrats, just as there are Republicans of modest means. But the test of a party lies in its policies and values, not in its donors. The policies of the Democratic Party are more closely aligned with the economic interests of families of average means than are those of the Republicans.
Robert Bataille,
Ames."

i was never scared about the threat from iraq. but i AM scared of the north korean threat.

it's one thing that a governor (in this case, Iowa's Tom Vilsack) admitting that he can't read email, it's quite another when another leader (in this case, the current resident of the whitehouse) bounces it. from today's slate:

Finally, the NYT fronts George W.'s new email address, in case you want to weigh in on any of the above. The new address dumps you smack into an e-bureaucracy, however—you've got to wade through nine Web pages, pick your topic from a list and then state your intentions, i.e., friend or foe? After your message is sent, you have to confirm that you really meant to send it. Jimmy Orr, first identified in the article as a White House spokesman and then, two paragraphs later, as Internet news director, calls the new system an "enhancement," but he adds that the old address is still perfectly fine—except that your message may not be read or responded to.

my letter to the editor of the globe gazette

there's just too much to track, so to enlist some help here's a couple of links:

ITN

and

BARTCOP

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Cozy ties between business and government get in the way of economic freedom, too. When governments intervene on behalf of various businesses, give welfare to corporations or adopt supposedly business-friendly policies, it skews the market. Business and government must maintain an arm's-length relationship for both business and democracy to function correctly, argues The Economist. When business lobbyists dominate government, public policy is inevitably twisted into the service of private greed."

DAMN i wish he'd run for president.
Janeane Garofalo Interview | Elizabeth DiNovella | May 2003 Issue: "Question: Why are you so active in social justice and peace issues?
Martin Sheen: I do it because I can't seem to live with myself if I do not. I don't know any other way to be. It isn't something you can explain; it is just something that you do; it is something that you are."

NBC’s instant expert. Appearing by phone from Baghdad on MSNBC’s Imus in the Morning on Thursday, NBC News reporter Tom Aspell complained about the lack of electricity and suggested U.S. officials aren’t being forthcoming about why there isn’t guaranteed electricity as he asserted that “we're being led to believe that the blame is entirely at the feet of saboteurs.” Noting how hot it is, Aspell suggested the solution is easy: “It's really quite unbearable and so easy to fix if they'd just rolled in and brought a lot of power lines and really did make a concentrated effort, I'm sure things would calm down a lot sooner."

So how much time has Aspell spent in Baghdad to gain such expertise on how the solution is so easy? Imus: "How long have you been there?" Aspell: "Two days.”

http://www.mediaresearch.org/cyberalerts/2003/cyb20030711.asp#2

give this girl a ceegar
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "We continually hear that drug companies need the money to continue their research into new medications, yet their advertising budgets far exceed their research budgets."
Carol Dupic,
Emmetsburg.

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Supporting the troops means using every resource available to speed the completion of their mission so they can come home."

DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "If the benefit for seniors is really as good as politicians want America to believe, why isn't it good enough for lawmakers?
Congressman Fortney Stark of California observed, 'This bill says, 'We take care of our own, and to hell with the average American.' "

TOMPAINE.com - From The New York Times Best-seller: See No Evil: "On my BBC television show, Newsnight, an American journalist confessed that, since the 9/11 attacks, U.S. reporters are simply too afraid to ask the uncomfortable questions that could kill careers: 'It's an obscene comparison, but there was a time in South Africa when people would put flaming tires around people's necks if they dissented. In some ways, the fear is that you will be neck-laced here, you will have a flaming tire of lack of patriotism put around your neck,' Dan Rather said. Without his makeup, Rather looked drawn, old and defeated in confessing that he too had given in. 'It's that fear that keeps journalists from asking the toughest of the tough questions and to continue to bore in on the tough questions so often.' "

BUSH LIED AND THOUSANDS DIED
Jihad Unspun - A Clear View On The US War On "Terrorism": "New information from remote locations of Iraq has pushed up the civilian death toll from the U.S.-led war by 500 in the last month to at least 6,000, an Anglo-American research group says. The Iraq Body Count's (IBC) latest figures, based on media reports and more than a dozen counting projects from independent investigators in and outside Iraq, put the minimum number of civilians dead at 6,055 and the maximum at 7,706"

the excuse du jour:
Yahoo! News - Rumsfeld: No New Iraq Weapons Evidence Before War: "WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said on Wednesday the United States did not go to war with Iraq (news - web sites) because of dramatic new evidence of banned weapons but because it saw existing information on Iraqi arms programs in a new light after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. "

well, DUH. what else should we have expected from liars, cheats and thieves.
2002 Federal Register Is Longest Ever (washingtonpost.com): "The Bush administration, philosophically wedded to the idea of smaller government, issued a record-high number of pages of new federal regulations last year, according to a study to be released today by the Cato Institute.
The libertarian think tank found that the Federal Register boasted 75,606 pages of federal regulations in 2002, up from a high of 74,528 pages in 2000, when President Bill Clinton was still in office. The surge is part of a decade-long rise in this crude index of federal regulatory activity, with the number of pages in the Federal Register increasing by 24 percent between 1993 and 2002."

dueling quotes comin up:
Yahoo! News - Dems Urge Probe of Iraqi Uranium Claim: "On June 8, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites), too, had said on NBC's 'Meet the Press' that Bush was wrong when he said the British government had learned that Iraq had sought uranium from Africa to build weapons.
'No one in our circles knew that there were doubts and suspicions that this might be a forgery,' she said. 'Of course, it was information that was mistaken.' "

the voice of the grunt, david hackworth writes:

that's tellin 'em clark. :)
DesMoinesRegister.com | Opinion: "Bruce Fleming's June 27 letter, 'More Gun Owners Equals Less Gun Violence,' makes the statement that 'Guns are used 2.5 million times per year to defend life and home from criminals.'
The figure appears statistically impossible. If accurate, it would mean approximately one in 100 Americans - man, woman and child - would have used a firearm in the last year to defend their lives or property.
Yet a majority of Americans don't own a gun, much less use it annually to blast away at attackers. Translated to my town of 5,000, it would imply there were 50 such incidents of defensive shooting in the last year. I would have heard about such a wave of violence.
The only way the numbers work is if recreational hunting is included in the mix. Perhaps the source of the data has counted ducks, deer and other game in his definition of 'criminals.'
This sounds improbable, but it makes the statistic believable and is on a similar intellectual level to other arguments by the National Rifle Association and its supporters.
Clark Sheets,
Sheldon. "

t r u t h o u t - William Rivers Pitt | The Insiders Are Coming Out: "'As we know, there are known knowns. There are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns. That is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns, the ones we don't know we don't know.'"

carolyn kay over at makethemaccountable points out all the good news lately. well, DUH. evil greed has that way of overbiting and choking on it.

republicons will say: yes sir, yes sir.
democrats will say: say WHAT?

To cut to the chase, we have just revealed a hole in the U.S. Electoral system through which you could drive a mack truck. The details follow below and are at the following two links… with pictures….

Inside A U.S. Election Vote Counting Program

Story with, for the first time, a link to the full 40,000 files from the
Diebold ftp site

BRAAAH VO

New Page 1: "Fox gives misinformation.
Conservatives watch Fox.
Therefore, conservatives who follow the news closely are misinformed."

Go-Along First Lady Shows She Can Go It Alone: "But in a White House where senior staff members are commended for keeping their heads down and letting the president be the star"

Go-Along First Lady Shows She Can Go It Alone: "Laura Bush collected nearly $2 million last month at three fund-raisers for President Bush's re-election campaign, Bush-Cheney '04, and campaign officials expect her to appear at some 20 more."

i cant believe disney did it. they actually did it.
New York Post Online Edition: entertainment: "July 3, 2003 -- MICHAEL Savage has been permanently dropped from up following the collapse of West Coast contract talks that used the Bronx-raised blabber's beloved New York affiliation as leverage.
WABC (770 AM) abruptly yanked Savage off the air earlier this month in solidarity with its San Francisco sister station, KSFO, during noisy negotiations with Savage, who's based at KSFO but is syndicated by another company. "

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!... and in the words of one of the great men in the 20th century:

Liberalism is not socialism, and never will be... Liberalism has its own history and its own tradition. Socialism has its own formulas and aims. Socialism seeks to pull down wealth; Liberalism would preserve private interests in the only way in which they can be safely and justly preserved, namely, by reconciling them with public right. Socialism would kill enterprise; Liberalism would rescue enterprise from the trammels of privilege and preference. Socialism assails the pre-eminence of the individual; Liberalism seeks, and shall seek more in the future, to build up a minimum standard for the mass. Socialism exalts the rule; Liberalism exalts the man. Socialism attacks capital; Liberalism attacks monopoly."

-- Winston Churchill