"The thing about being an actor is that you're in the business of not growing up."
-Luke Wilson, on the lack of research required for his role in Old School.
-Luke Wilson, on the lack of research required for his role in Old School.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
dont these guys ever believe in doing the right thing?
they call themselves right-wing extremists, yet they are every bit BUT "right" wing anything.
There’s a backstory that lurks behind Bush’s decision to stand by DeLay. It involves Greenberg Traurig, the firm that employed the powerful lobbyist who paid for palatial DeLay junkets, and Abramoff staffers, who were footsoldiers in the Florida recount. Greenberg Traurig has yet to receive more than $314,000 in legal fees charged to a Bush committee during the 2000 Florida recount, RAW STORY can confirm.
As a corporation, Greenberg’s unpaid tab represents a massive in-kind campaign contribution, far larger than anything that went unreported by DeLay. But it appears to be legal: corporations are allowed to donate any amount to the nebulous type of committee employed during the recount. It would, however, violate the committee's self-imposed $5,000 contribution limit from individual donors.
rawstory
msnbc BREAKING NEWS
Exit polls project Tony Blair's Labour Party has won
re-election in Britain -
re-election in Britain -
wow wow. they dont trust the exit polls here, cuz ya know, they had kerry ahead by over 10%, but yet the exit polls sure told America that we had voted based on values. and now we're told exit polls declared tony poodle blair victory.
my my. how they get to be selective whenever they want.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
open letter to CBS
cbs news has become another struggling-to-get-'in' network, and they just don't get it.
they need to think just the opposite. being "in" is good. being "in" with the bushite people isn't.
why? because with the bushite peolle, you'll never know when you're 'friendship' is up.
file this under FREEDOM ON THE MARCH heading
Conservative lawmakers in Kuwait's Parliament on Tuesday created a constitutional roadblock that effectively killed a measure that would have allowed women to participate in city council elections for the first time. Hours later, the elections were called for June 2.The action eliminates any chance that women will be able to take part in elections for another four years, when city council seats are again up for grabs.
The legislation initially was passed by Kuwait's 64-member National Assembly on April 19, but in accordance with Kuwaiti law faced a second vote for ratification on Monday. But Parliament ended in deadlock on Monday when 29 members abstained and only 29 voted for it, leaving the legislation just shy of the 33 votes needed.
attribution
what more do you need to have before you realize....
that this administration, including the armed forces, have consistently lied to the American public?
The first Army investigator who looked into the death of former NFL player Pat Tillman in Afghanistan last year found within days that he was killed by his fellow Rangers in an act of "gross negligence," but Army officials decided not to inform Tillman's family or the public until weeks after a nationally televised memorial service.
A new Army report on the death shows that top Army officials, including the theater commander, Gen. John P. Abizaid, were told that Tillman's death was fratricide days before the service.
Letter Of The Day
General Motors blamed its first-quarter losses on health-care costs. In addition to corporate-health woes, more than 40 million Americans are without health care, drug costs are at an all-time high and there are imminent Medicaid cuts.
Health-care costs are the real crisis in the United States. Instead, our president is manufacturing a "crisis" trying to reform a Social Security system that needs only minor tweaking. Funds are available for an unnecessary war and tax cuts for the rich, but not to give basic health care, affordable medication and guarantee a minimal retirement income for working Americans.
Our president's policies are leading to an increasingly economically tiered society. All his policy decisions favor the wealthy over the poor. This is not in harmony with the so-called moral-values platform that got him elected.
-Rick Burns,
Pella.
attribution
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
hey JON STEWART......
YOU ROCKED TONITE
AND SO DID YOUR FRIEND, AND OURS
MR. BLACK.
THE Q IS WITH YOU JON.
USE, DONT ABUSE.
Question of the Day
do you believe in creationism or in evolution as the genesis of earth and its inhabitants?
i could go on and on and on about how proving that 'God' created us is next to impossible, while proving the theory of evolution is equally difficult.
but a piece on cbsnews' website struck me as being totally off the mark:
A Gallup poll late last year showed that only 28 percent of Americans accept the theory of evolution, while 48 percent adhere to creationism - the belief that an intelligent being is responsible for the creation of the earth and its inhabitants.
who says that this 'intelligent being' has to be "God"?
Joke for the Day
and lastly... for a while anyway, we have your Joke for the Day. also from today's papers:
The Post's off-lead reminds that the government is a bit behind the eight ball on preparing for the possibility of a terrorist nuke attack. Apparently, public education in particular is lacking. Still, the Homeland Security's Ready.gov does have some handy tips in the event of a detonation in your city. For instance: Find yourself about a block away from the blast? "Consider if you can get out of the area."
a personal observation.....
what with all these polls out that show a decidedly majority opposing almost everything the president does, makes one contemplate.... how in the fuck did he win the election if he cant ever get past the 50% line in anything.
a lesson on how the administration is kept above the law
from today's papers on slate, we get a lesson on how the administration escapes all responsibility for its actions.
Most of the papers go inside with Pvt. Lynndie England (of the leash fame) pleading guilty to abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib. Under her plea deal, she's expected to be sentenced to just a couple of years. But the interesting thing isn't the deal, it's that it almost didn't go off: As the Post flags, the judge nearly didn't accept England's plea after England said she had been ordered to pose with the prisoner and didn't know what she had done wrong. The court adjourned for a bit, England's lawyer gave her a talking to, and England returned to say her actions were "not only morally wrong but legally wrong. I had a choice, but I chose what my friends wanted me to do."
my how they squirm when the runt misspeaks
here's how the times lets the administration off the hook whenever the chimp is caught in a lie:
The general's report appears to provide a slightly different assessment than President Bush offered at a news conference last week when he said the number of American troops in Iraq would not limit Washington military options elsewhere.
Mr. Bush said he had asked General Myers, "Do you feel that we've limited our capacity to deal with other problems because of our troop levels in Iraq?"
"And the answer is no, he didn't feel a bit limited," Mr. Bush said. "It feels like we got plenty of capacity."
Late Monday, a Pentagon official dismissed any serious contradiction between the president and the general. "The two comments are consistent in that no one in the military feels at all limited in the ability to respond to any contingency," the official said. "What the risk assessment discusses is the nature of the response."
Another Pentagon official emphasized that the risk assessment should be understood as a rating of the military's ability to successfully perform its mission based on a set of standards set by the Joint Staff, which is different from the broad statement of military capability given by the president at his news conference.
attribution
george w. bush's legacy of freedom on the march
BAGHDAD, Iraq - A photographer for a Baghdad newspaper says Iraqi police beat and detained him for snapping pictures of long lines at gas stations. A reporter for another local paper received an invitation from Iraqi police to cover their graduation ceremony and ended up receiving death threats from the recruits. A local TV reporter says she's lost count of how many times Iraqi authorities have confiscated her cameras and smashed her tapes.
attribution
what a way to go....
A second man overcome by manure pit gases during an incident in Clinton County last month has died, his family said.
Justin P. Faur, 23, of Teeds Grove, died Saturday at University Hospitals in Iowa City.
Faur was overcome by the gases when he tried to save Clinton County cattle farmer Dwight Johnson, 52, of Andover on April 16.
Police said Faur called 911 and then jumped into an underground pit to rescue Johnson, who later died on April 20.
"I think everybody in the area thinks Justin is a hero, and I think in our minds he was," Faur's stepfather, Dean Papke, said Monday.Officials said Faur and Johnson were in the process of draining the pit's liquefied manure when the accident happened. Neighbors said they believed Johnson went in to the pit to retrieve a chain before it got wrapped up in a pump.
attribution
Letter of the Day II
couldn't resist nominating this one:
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to eliminate federal estate taxes beginning in 2010. Republicans have been demonizing the so-called death tax for years.
George W. Bush said soon after taking office in 2001, "To keep farms in the family we are going to get rid of the death tax." After the election, the Bush administration searched for several weeks, not finding one family farm lost to the estate tax.
The real issue is what kind of society we want. Do we want a meritocracy, where wealth is earned, or an aristocracy, where it is inherited? U.S. wealth disparities are closer to Third World countries than other industrialized countries. Without a mechanism to break apart large fortunes, we are rapidly approaching the old European model of aristocracy.
Some very wealthy people understand the negative consequences and are against repealing the estate tax. Warren Buffet, Ted Turner and Bill Gates are among the more prominent members of this group. They argue that concentrated wealth undermines democracy by allowing a relatively small group of people power beyond their numbers. Concentrated wealth also places control of much of our nation's resources in the hands of people based on their heredity, not their merit.
These same billionaires also realize their fortunes were made possible by the system and the country into which they were born. The federal government created our banking, commerce and securities systems, along with most of the infrastructure of this country using tax dollars. Tax dollars fund medical and agricultural research, work that benefits all people.
Our society suffers when creative, intelligent, industrious people are denied the opportunity to fulfill their potential while others with much less intrinsic ability (think of Paris Hilton) are given tremendous fortunes by an accident of birth. These policies are both anti-Christian, anti-family and anti-patriotic.
-Ted Peterson,
Ames.
attribution
Sad Story of the WeeQ
this broke my heart when i read it. that people are driven to such nazi'ish behavior makes me ill.
THREE Scottish soldiers are facing a court martial for drug abuse at an Army base in Cyprus.
Soldiers from the Royal Highland Fusiliers took cocaine, amphetamines and ecstasy weeks after the regiment returned from a tour of duty in Iraq.
An internal inquiry has been ordered after random tests turned up three positive results.
But well--placed sources in Cyprus have accused the Army of a cover-up, claiming as many as 15 soldiers gave positive samples. Insiders also claim bullying is rife in the regiment - and punishment beatings are dished out to any who dare to complain.
Documents obtained by the Record revealed that 62 Scots soldiers have gone AWOL from Cyprus in just over a year.
Sources at Episkopi Barracks, where the 1st Battalion Royal Highland Fusliers are based,said the drug busts had rocked a unit where morale was already low.
One insider said: 'These guys have been caught with everything from cannabis and speed to ecstasy and cocaine. How can this be safe?
Monday, May 02, 2005
Hypocrisy Alert
a continuation of the series from ITM
Sen. Rick Santorum's visibility on the issue of judicial nominations and his passionate arguments that every nomination that comes to the Senate floor deserves an up-or-down vote has led Democrats to point out that he blocked several judicial nominations during the Clinton years. At that time, an individual senator on the Judiciary Committee could place a confidential hold on individual nominations.
In his recent speeches, Santorum has carefully stated that it is wrong of Democrats to block judicial nominees "who would otherwise have majority support" and has said that all nominees deserve a vote "when they arrive on the Senate floor."
In an impassioned speech this past week, Santorum pointed to several of President Clinton's judicial appointees that he had supported. He argued that he had deferred to Clinton because Clinton had won the presidential election and had a right to "nominate who he wants as long as they are in the mainstream."
Santorum, R-Pa., acknowledged this past week that he held up confirmation of several of Clinton's district court nominees, but he said that was a very different scenario than blocking appellate court judges, as Democrats did with 10 Bush nominees last session.
attribution
think the American MSM will pick this up?
Tony Blair had resolved to send British troops into action alongside US forces eight months before the Iraq War began, despite a clear warning from the Foreign Office that the conflict could be illegal.
A damning minute leaked to a Sunday newspaper reveals that in July 2002, a few weeks after meeting George Bush at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, Mr Blair summoned his closest aides for what amounted to a council of war. The minute reveals the head of British intelligence reported that President Bush had firmly made up his mind to invade Iraq and overthrow Saddam Hussein, adding that "the intelligence and facts were being fixed around the policy".
from the independent
The Master List of Locations - 1960-1974
following is the master list (?) of many of the locations and some memories i have. i'm going to use them as a basis for my book, The Hitchhiker's Guide to Life.
here we go:
Mason City, IA
boy oh boy this is gonna REALLY require some decent pot.
here we go:
Mason City, IA
- Agnes Reynolds
- Alice Anderson
- Mary Rheingans
- Bike Riding
- Pennsylvania Bridge
- South Polk Place
- South Jefferson St.
- -the Carpenters
- -Chris McCoy
- -Paul Ebbers
- -Ted Bryant
- -Brian Doty
- St. Joseph School
- Father Schmitz
- Convent
- Father McGuire
- Father Keating
- Sister Mary Damien
- Sister Mary Rosario
- John Lapointe
- Bruce Geller (who's son lives across the street from me now)
- Mike Burke
- Mary Vickers
- John Donnelly (who i see out at hy-vee every so often)
- John Argos (and the piano recitals in dubuque)
- Jim Herzog
- Jon Julien (who may be doing my dental work soon)
- Sister Maureen Terese (who left the order and became a state representative, Mary O'Halloran. she also worked to elect ronald reagan during a marshalltown campaign stop luncheon.
- Grant School
- basket weaving
- rug making
- softball
- Lincoln School
- kindergarten
- North Central Community School
- April Fools Day 1969
- January 20, 1970 > durand boys farm school
- Mr. Lee
- Mr. Rosen
- John Chisolm (who's brother i regularly sucked off in the weirdest places)
- Ron Kopeke (who i hear is out now and living in texas)
- Cop (from forest city who let me suck him and his brother off many times in the trailer park behind my parents' house)
- car borrowing - joy riding w/my pet poodle, Ralph.
- Sacred Heart
- Father Carmen (milwaukee motel)
- organist for mass
- piano practice in the classrooms
- collection box thievery
- Cathy Weitzel
- 1972 corvette
- her lover chris
- pool league
- wedding to gary
- community college
- tallcorn hotel
- omid kahkesh - oh dear, he should get a whole chapter to himself
- go-go dancing - tree collier and the massage parlor - erotic eric
- hashem abdullah - another brother who traveled with me to manly for thanksgiving in 1974.
- trailor court
- bernice johnson
- kathy thompson (who i last visited in 2001 with my blue car and looked like she was aging beautifully)
- white bear lake
- after hours parties
Marshalltown was where I landed up once I was released from the Iowa Boys Training School, in Eldora, IA. Marshalltown was where I learned arabic and farsi. I met Hashem Ghoulem Abdullah. He was my roommate when I went to legally change my name. I never did, but I always acted like I did. Even went to the lawyer's office, but never went to court. For all intents and purposes, I became Nehemiah Mahabuballah Mahana. Nick for short.
Marshalltown was also where I met Tree. Tree was Eddie Collier out of Des Moines. He ran a massage parlor in town, and a lady who was really in to me (more on her in a bit) put me in touch with tree after learning that tree needed a driver. i can't take capitalizing shit. let the system do it.
Pittsburgh, PA
- arline training school
- club baths
- plane trips from nyc with manny & nelson
- nelson galloway (412-422-3249?)
- school
- zack (hottie who kept me like a bitch)
- piano lessons (off grounds)
- piano in the chapel (was ALWays in there)
- broke into the cottage parents' apt
first time - cottage 3Cherokee IA
second time - cooper hospital
Wes Etheridge
Maya Blau
Ken Walcott
- first time - childrens' unit
- transfer to adolescent unit after tantrum
- second time - CDU (chem depend. unit)
- third time - CDU (old hospital)
- last time via new york > des moines
- left on bus to san francisco 1986 nov.
- Optimetrist - Dr. Dennis (who found me up in minneapolis homeless and took me in to be boyfriends. that ended up weird, and i spoze i could spend a lot of time talkin about all the experiences i had there, but not right now)
- first time - from marshalltown while go-go dancing, with some leader of AIM - american indian movement
- second time - in white bear lake w/friends of kathy thompson - worked at some bar, ended up leaving for ... ?
- first time - tree collier (tree's talent agency)
- renee & becky stonehocker
- second time (?) in hotel, working at blue cross/blue shield in ruan bldg, got tired of workin the temp scene, and went to the bathroom, decided to screw it all, and left, and an hour later, i was on the road hitchhiking west.
- third time - working the cab circuit; ending up fallin for some con artist from 'hawaii' and we were going to go back there - ended up in las vegas, he stole a car, and we got caught right before christmas in orange county CA. i was extradicted back, but charges were dropped. wow. that'll take some pot to get out the memories on that. i need a way of marking these so i can come back to remember them.
- lived in a shelter for a while on one trip coming back to iowa from new york, and was wanting to get into cherokee. so that's mid-spring 1986. i think.
- lived in YMCA - dont remember much about that at all either; except that there were no hotties.
- before i went to san francisco, was dancing at the gay bar and omid took me down from marshalltown. that was my coming out if you will. i knew the bartender at the tallcorn kept talkin about taking me to a place "where men danced together" and it was somewhat jilting, but only for a moment. i know i made a lot of trips between marshalltown & des moines with the 2 girls from the massage parlor
boy oh boy this is gonna REALLY require some decent pot.
- first time - hitching from ames to des moines with everything i owned in a 10x10x10 box and a dime in my pocket, enough to make the call in des moines to tree and get the name of the place i was to go dance. where i was coming from, is storm lake i believe. and i could have ended up actually going to des moines and it would have changed the course of history. as it is, i took that last ride in iowa on I-35, only going 35 miles, when the guy was going all the way to scarsdale new york. it took a few minutes, but i decided, and asked kindly, to go along. and that story is a hair-raiser in and of itself. but back to the structure of the task at hand. i got dropped off at 72nd and lexington, and stuffed the box in some bushes behind some 65 story apartment building and headed to the nearest gay bar. if memory serves me right, i didnt have far to go. and i'm sure i got picked up and that basically started my first go-around in the city. i think i was so star-struck that most of those ventures left me numb and without memory.
- second time - boy, i need some pot before i dive into this one.
- third time - same thing here.
- Felix Goacachea (FG management) - deserves a whole chapter to himself.
- Manny Parrish - boy oh boy, this one deserves a complete separate book. but for now, lemme jus copy down what's on the sheet.
- 400 west 14th street - our loft. pictures will be posted forewith.
- Bobby Baum - manny's boyfriend who was a freak and a half. didnt like me too much, but i think that settled on his jealousy more than anything else.
- studio
- importe 12 - the first label that signed us.
- shows - this could be a really hair raising chapter. for now, just the notes on the sheet:
- Fun House - new years eve
- Red Parrot - with madonna & grandmaster flash - billboard reviewed the show, and gave us 3 paragraphs, and madonna 3 lines. it was the highlight of my career.
- ice skating rink in brooklyn - god only knows what this was
- camden nj - a show we did where i had to blow manny in the van before we went on so he would be ok
- DJ animal - god i wish i could remember him, cuz i know i got memories of him.
- studio 54 - star wars party. the real highlight of my career.
- studio 54 - fiorucci party - fiorucci was the designer of all the costumes we had
- sweeny todd's barber shop (183 christopher street)
- maintenance strike scab
- st. mark's baths
- 12 west
- carolyn kennedy
- cock ring bar
- omar
- julio
- anvil bar
- konrad
- cheech
- nelson (not that nelson, but they have met)
- lance wise
- chico starr
- pat
- billy mead
- early days
- later days
- les mouches
- frank mcgurty
- carey finkelstein
- john chambers
- kitty - tom kinsey
Weehawken/Union City NJ
- Papo (Luciano Velez) - deserves a whole book.
- Racli's (2 fulton street) - off the boat italian/landlord
- hotel on 48th street - again, deserves a whole chapter, or two.
- bar under papo's house - and i jus came across the number somewhere. i think i got diaries goin back to this era. should be good.
- friendly's
- mama
- ricki
- card games afterward - mama going around the table and if you had money to gamble, she had coke to put under your nose with her special spoon - going "toot toot"
- coffee shop on 52nd
- beat up across from coffee shop (p/u from friendly's)
Chicago, IL
- first time
- jose
- gay day parade '75 (i think)
- broadway limited
- second time
- running from taking pot from tree in des moines
- cab driver
- accident prone due to cruising
- got license in record time (1 day)
- carol's speakeasy
- hotel on addison
- man's country
- new year's eve - placidil punch+
Washington DC
- 1300, time for some capitol lawn sex w/army boy from olwein
Charleston, SC
- navy base
- pot dealing
- transfer from boat
- barracks boys
- orchid artist (madsen)
Atlanta, GA
- vacation at the baths
Miami FL
- first time
- from des moines snowstorm
- YMCA
- waiter at the hotel across the street - which was just recently destroyed.
- second time
- houseboy job
- old cutler road (coral gables)
- cuban hottie
Ft. Lauderdle, FL
- first time
- second time
- baths
Key West FL
- in by hitching from miami
- delmonico's
- george cadenas
- "you're on my wavelength"
- monster
- guest houses
- hilton piano player
Meridian MS
- personnelman school
- letter from commander to parents
orlando FL
- navy boat
Daytona Beach FL
- bike week
- hitched up with bikers - fucked all day and all night on the beach in their van
- shacked up in some guy's house for 3 weeks
- left for nyc?
New Orleans LA
- first time
- running from chicago boys
- took overnight train
- second time
- gretna
- mardi gras
- DJ
- gonzo
Memphis TN
- arrived after gig in little rock
- worked at buddy's til closing
- ended up on train back to chicago w/quualude
- got off the train in carbondale, took the bus... oh wait, did i already tell that story up above under another city headline?
Little Rock AR
- dj at club i called about from new orleans thru an ad
Phoenix AZ
- hitched from chicago
- stuck in kansas city (i think these are two different times - will try and pin down the years)
- flew in from MCI
- knew precious metal sculptor from chicago one-night-stand
- tubin the river
- valley national bank
- dancin to from here to eternity in club
- lived with guy who worked the 800 number i had to use back in iowa
- fbi tracking me after robbery on vnb
- knew who i was in bed with!
Iowa City IA
- taxi dispatcher
- "car wash" - disco w/fog machine
- gospel piano player (black kid from KC)
Kansas City MO
- Coates House Fire
- American Red Cross
- billie
- car towed
- middle eastern restaurant owner - bartender
- club baths (frank & ron from omaha)
St. Louis MO
- coming up from memphis; bus from carbondale il
- club baths
- gay day parade
- drove thru on cornmeet w/voxxers en route to KC
Omaha NE
- go go dancing in straight bar
- ak-sar-ben racing w/sugar daddy from des moines
Denver CO
- ride from cherokee w/cooks
- DJ at bar; turned country
- piano player at same bar
- witch in purple
- kids from new orleans
- jerry lipolis
- david's
- navy enlistment
- grant street apartment
- temping
Las Vegas NV
- rudy
- sadji (della reese's son); drag on the strip
- les jardin bar near airport
- masseur @ jockey club, hilton & tropicana
- jail extradition from LA (accessory in auto theft w/kid from des moines > hawaii)
- hitchhiked out w/rudy & ..... ?
- hard time starting
- cold further north
- 1-80 blizzard in nebraska
- des moines > tree's > dancers
San Francisco CA
- first time
- second time
- third time
- bus out from cherokee
- u.s. mission > dave gilooley
- pac bell directory job
- laura gilardi
- king (crystal dealer/roommate)
- drugs, drugs and more drugs
- jail
- hotels
Los Gatos Hills CA
- mushrooms w/cute kid (chem student)
Los Angeles CA
- first time
- hollywood spa
- kid w/firebird convertible
- commuting to palm springs (dave's villa caprice)
- second time
- gay &* lesbian community center
- la cienaga apt w/greek opener for debbie reynolds
- third time
San Diego CAT
- first time
- prostitute becoming roommate
- navy try-out
- YMCA
- played piano and made 'em cry
- beachcomber
- arab from morocco
- chased him to san francisco > finally fucked
- second time
Palm Springs CA
- daves villa caprice
- manager affair
- worker affair (lil' blonde cutie)
- piano player at bar/restaurant
- porn star friend into solar energy
- flew out to KC
Joke of the Day
I (laura bush) saw my in-laws down at the ranch over Easter. We like it down there. George didn't know much about ranches when we bought the place. Andover and Yale don't have a real strong ranching program. But I'm proud of George. He's learned a lot about ranching since that first year when he tried to milk the horse. What's worse, it was a male horse.
attribution
someone goofed
A day after the Pentagon released its controversial and heavily redacted report on the shooting of Italian intel agent Nicola Calipari, people discovered that the blacked-out portions were not scrubbed from the underlying text in the doc's PDF file.
mwahahahahaha
more on this 'goof'
This morning Gianluca Neri, an Italian blogger from Milano, had a look at the document which was published on the net and ridiculized the whole American secret services. With a simple cut and paste from the Acrobat document into a word processor, he was able to disclose all details to the public: names, places, the name of the soldier who fired, everything...
It is actually pretty simple to recover that information. Open this PDF, select all text, copy to clipboard and paste into a regular text editor. if your version of Arcobot does not let you select the text, find the Microsoft Word document here.
i cant stop laughing at the sheer ignorance of the bushites.
Quote of the Day
is by unnamed individuals, but the essence of the words are unmistakeable.
As U.S. soldiers attempted to keep crowds from gathering for fear of a second blast, witnesses said that angry youths shouted at them, "No, you go! The suiciders are after you!"
Letter Of The Day
State Senators Stewart Iverson, Jeff Lamberti and Larry McKibben accused Senate Democrats of lacking "the fortitude to take those tough votes."
Let's talk about fortitude. Fortitude resists the urge to respond to the heat-of-battle public reactions by running around willy-nilly and drafting micro-legislation to right every wrong, never stepping back to take a look at the entire picture and the large-scale implications of your actions.
Fortitude is admitting that you are not omnipotent, that child molestation is an inherently irrational act and that you won't make the molesters go away by threatening to kill them.
Fortitude leads instead of following.
-Kenneth Schumacher,
Iowa City.
attribution
Sunday, May 01, 2005
60 minutes
watching 60 minutes.
former interrogator in gitmo.
should prove interesting
the book inside the wire
Saturday, April 30, 2005
Letter Of The Day
It seems the "trickle down" economics of Ronald Reagan, which raised the inflation-adjusted income of the top 1 percent of earners in 1979-2000 by 184 percent and that of the bottom 20 percent of earners by 6 percent (CNN), has become the "plop down" economics of George W. Bush, with "plop" standing for Please Let's Own People.
-Irv Shrago,
Oskaloosa.
attribution
Friday, April 29, 2005
from mainstream media to mainlining media
count on mediamatters.org for an honest opinion about what's wrong with today's MSM:
Most major televised media outlets failed to note that President Bush, in his one-hour press conference on April 28, made two flatly contradictory statements about the viability of U.S. treasury bonds, in which the Social Security trust fund is invested. Repeating a claim made in his recent travels throughout the country in support of Social Security privatization, Bush said that the treasury bonds owned by the trust fund represent worthless IOUs from the U.S. government. But he later touted those same bonds for holders of his proposed private accounts looking for a safe investment that would be "backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government." No reporter challenged Bush on the contradiction during the press conference, and only George Stephanopoulos, host of ABC's This Week, noted it in the post-conference analysis.
attribution
the bush legacy: FAKERY EVERYWHERE
this will never get picked up by MSM. they're too fuckn stupid to even inquire, much less be able to report professionally about it.
AUTHORITIES at Guantanamo Bay staged interrogations of detainees for visiting politicians and generals to give the impression that valuable intelligence was regularly being gathered, says a former US Army translator at the camp.
Sergeant Erik Saar told CBS television's 60 Minutes that he believed "only a few dozen" of the 600 detainees at the camp were terrorists and that little information was obtained from them."Interrogations were set up so the VIPs could come and witness an interrogation ... a mock interrogation, basically," Sgt Saar told the program, to air on Sunday.
"They would find a detainee that they knew to have been cooperative. They would ask the interrogator to go back over the same information," he said, calling it "a fictitious world" created for the visitors.
Sgt Saar worked at Guantanamo from December 2002 to June 2003.
we need a robin hood
all i can say about this budget deal is that one has to be insane to not believe that the bushite people are taking from the poor and giving to the rich.
Under the hard-fought agreement, the federal deficit, which reached a record $412 billion in 2004, would fall to $383 billion in 2006 and $211 billion by 2010. Congress would be expected to shave $35 billion off the growth of entitlement programs through 2010, the first such savings since the 1997 balanced budget agreement.
Nearly a third of that total would come from Medicaid, the primary federal and state health program for the poor. At the same time, the budget makes room for $106 billion of tax cuts over five years, $70 billion of which would be protected from a Senate filibuster.
bush and the terrorists, sitting in a tree.....
ever wonder why the bush administration has such close relationships with dictators and other equally evil leaders?
take the sudan for instance. in a frontpage exclusive, the LATimes starts out:
KHARTOUM, Sudan — The Bush administration has forged a close intelligence partnership with the Islamic regime that once welcomed Osama bin Laden here, even though Sudan continues to come under harsh U.S. and international criticism for human rights violations.
if there were any doubt that bush and terrorists work to each other's benefit, there shouldn't be any more after reading that piece.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
and they bitch about bloggers not having professionalism?
from the frontpage (online) of the des moines register:
It was 3-1/2 years ago that someone inadvertently dropped a checkbook onto the floor of the men's room at City Hall in Spirit Lake, sparking a criminal investigation, a state audit and two federal lawsuits.
Today, former Police Chief Dan Thomsen faces theft and misconduct charges tied to three secret bank accounts he allegedly used that contained public funds. Thomsen resigned as chief in 2002 as part of what state officials have called a potentially illegal deal with Mayor Eric Nielsen. An arraignment on the criminal charges is scheduled for Monday.
so, we only get to hear about this 3.5 years after the investigation STARTED?
the media ... watchdogs? or lapdogs?
Letter Of The Day`
sorry for being so late. it's thursday. queersday as they say in pennsylvania...
our winner is..
A big thistle to the Register for its April 25 poll on the death penalty ("Majority of Iowans Back Death Penalty"). By using a very leading question, the poll pushed death-penalty support higher than it really is.
Why not ask, "Given that Iowa already has life without parole, and that nonpartisan estimates put the price of executions at $2 million each, do you support the return of the death penalty to Iowa"?
State Senate Republican leader Jeff Lamberti also deserves a thistle for his insistence that the Iowa Legislature debate the death penalty this year. The media - and legislators - should focus on real issues to improve our lives rather than costly, ineffective symbols.
-Jon Krieg,
Des Moines.
KUDOS Jon!!
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
its just one of those pesky things... but
watching george bush "flip" the pages of his speech makes me ill.
that action tells me more about that man(sic) than anything else. what a cocky flip.
he's a cocky kid, always has been, and always will be. wanna know why?
because he always got his way one way or another.
get ready for the dog and pony show
because, if you think for a minute that this 'investigation' is a real true blue investigation, i've got a bridge to sell you.
but he's going to be the whipping post boy.
and you thought it couldn't happen in America?
think again.
The chairman of the Colorado Young Republicans was one of the people involved in a March 21 incident in which three Denver residents were forcibly removed from a speech given by President Bush because of a bumper sticker.
Jay Bob Klinkerman, leader of the state group for Republicans ages 18 to 40, admitted in an interview that he was at the gate of the Wings over the Rockies Museum when the three people were stopped.
Two of the three who were removed, Bauer and Leslie Weise, said that Klinkerman is the event volunteer who was wearing a magenta shirt and smiley-face tie that night, and told them, "Secret Service is coming down to talk to your group."
Then a man who looked and acted like a Secret Service agent arrived and threatened them with arrest. He allowed them to enter but then found them 20 to 30 minutes later and forced them to leave.
But Klinkerman, 31, of Thornton, told the Rocky Mountain News that he never said anything to Bauer and Weise about the Secret Service.
He declined to identify the man who threatened the trio with arrest.
The real Secret Service says the man who ousted Bauer, Weise and Alex Young from the president's speech was actually a Republican Party staffer. The Secret Service has told the three that the man admitted to an agent that he ousted them because they arrived in a car with a "No more blood for oil" bumper sticker.
The service is investigating that man on possible criminal charges of impersonating a Secret Service agent. He was wearing a dark suit, earpiece and lapel pin.
The Secret Service and the White House know the man's name but have refused to reveal it. The White House has said he was a volunteer "concerned that these people were coming to the event to disrupt the event."
rockymountainnews.com
when was the last time....
- you heard the name osama bin laden?
- you heard the bushite people raise the terror threat level?
unless terrorists have an on-off switch, i think Americans were duped into believing that there was a threat in the first place.
pay off the cops and you're sure to get off scot free huh....
an interesting tidbit from TP today
A front-page piece in USAT points out that four of the five Republicans on the ethics committee at one point or another banked checks from House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's PAC. The fifth Republican on the panel has donated to DeLay's defense fund. "Recusal is pretty much an individual choice, if there's any possibility of a conflict of interest," said one Senate historian.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
the BIG LIE
and we're supposed to believe that the world is safer because of bush? from the wire
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. count of major world terrorist attacks more than tripled in 2004, a rise that may revive debate on whether the Bush administration is winning the war on terrorism, congressional aides said on Tuesday.The number of "significant" international terrorist attacks rose to about 650 last year from about 175 in 2003, according to congressional aides briefed on the numbers by State Department and intelligence officials on Monday.The aides were told the surge partly reflected an increased tally of violence in India and Pakistan related to the Himalayan region of Kashmir, which both countries claim, and the devotion of more manpower to the U.S. monitoring effort, which resulted in more attacks being counted overall.
Monday, April 25, 2005
media's HALL OF SHAME
they're alllll so good, i don't know which one of these nominations for freepress's contest, Media Hall Of Shame, should win:
Roger Ailes -- Fox News Puppet Master
Conrad Black -- Big Media Kleptomaniac
George W. Bush -- Propagandist-in-Chief
Bill Clinton -- Friend to the 1996 Telecom Act
Ann Coulter -- Ms. Wrong
Tom DeLay -- Ethics Exterminator
Michael Eisner -- Money-Grubbing Mouseketeer
Jeff Gannon/James Guckert -- White House Errand Boy
Sean Hannity -- Republican Noise Machine
Mark Hyman -- Sinclair Mouthpiece
Rush Limbaugh -- The Mound of Unsound
Michael Jackson Media Horde -- Kings of Pap
Judith Miller -- Chalabi's Secret Weapon
Bob Novak -- Prince of Darkness
Bill O'Reilly -- Lying Liar
Dan Rather -- Memogate's Front Man
Sumner Redstone -- Political Pinball Wizard
Karl Rove -- The Man Behind the Curtain
Tim Russert -- Softball Pitcher to the Powerful
Ted Turner -- Media Magnate
read the nominations yourself at freepress
wanna bet george wasn't getting his rocks off?
Guckert made more than 200 appearances at the White House during his two-year tenure with the fledging conservative websites GOPUSA and Talon News, attending 155 of 196 White House press briefings. He had little to no previous journalism experience, previously worked as a male escort, and was refused a congressional press pass.
Perhaps more notable than the frequency of his attendance, however, is several distinct anomalies about his visits.
Guckert made more than two dozen excursions to the White House when there were no scheduled briefings. On many of these days, the Press Office held press gaggles aboard Air Force One—which raises questions about what Guckert was doing at the White House. On other days, the president held photo opportunities.
On at least fourteen occasions, Secret Service records show either the entry or exit time missing. Generally, the existing entry or exit times correlate with press conferences; on most of these days, the records show that Guckert checked in but was never processed out.
In March, 2003, Guckert left the White House twice on days he had never checked in with the Secret Service. Over the next 22 months, Guckert failed to check out with the Service on fourteen days. On several of these visits, Guckert either entered or exited by a different entry/exit point than his usual one. On one of these days, no briefing was held; on another, he checked in twice but failed to check out.
“I’d be worried if I was the White House and I knew that a reporter with a day pass never left,” one White House reporter told RAW STORY. “I’d wonder, where is he hiding? It seems like a security risk.”
Others who have covered the White House say not checking in or out with the Secret Service is unusual, especially in the wake of Sept. 11. The Secret Service declined to comment.
http://rawstory.com/exclusives/byrne/secret_service_gannon_424.htm
*GUFFAW*
from rawstory on DU:
The first set of times for each date is Guckert's login and logout. The second set is the briefing time
2/25/03 11:46 - 1:25 (briefing 12:26-1:03)
2/26 9:56 - 2:17 (unusually long) (briefing 1:25-1:53)
2/27 11:49 - 1:34 (no briefing)
2/28 11:20 - 1:26 (briefing 12:35-1:10)
3/3/03 9:51 - 1:32 (unusually long) (briefing 12:21-1:00)
3/4 11:48 - 1:45 (briefing 12:46-1:20)
3/5 11:56 - 1:57 (briefing 12:21-1:00)
3/6 11:58 - 12:42 (no briefing)
3/6 9:11 pm exit - no entry (Bush press conference, 8 pm)
3/7 3:22 pm exit -- no entry (briefing 2:20-3:00)
3/10 12:47 - 3:11 (briefing 1:23-2:10)
3/11 12:25 - 1:47 (briefing at 12:38 - no end time given)
3/12 12:55 - 2:40 (briefing 1:20-1:59)
3/13 12:12 - 1:55 (briefing 12:40-1:19)
3/14 12:02 - 1:49 (briefing 12:35-1:06)
3/17 12:01 - 1:30 (no briefing)
3/18 12:09 - 1:31 (briefing 12:21-1:05)
3/19 9:38 - 3:27 (unusually long) (12:15-12:59) (Bush speech, 10 pm)
3/20 12:19 - 1:38 (briefing 12:32-1:15)
3/21 10:52 - 12:31 (briefing 2:31-3:12 -- doesn't match)
3/24 1:02 - 2:43 (briefing 1:00-1:44)
3/25 1:45 - 3:30 (briefing 2:30-3:15)
3/28 12:34 - 3:51 (unusually long) (briefing 12:35-1:15)
4/4/03 12:18 - 1:31 (12:20-12:59)
4/9 1:48 - 3:48 (2:32-3:20)
4/10 12:14 - 2:00 (12:20-1:03)
4/11 12:24 - 1:52 (12:15-12:45) (arrives late)
4/14 12:34 - 1:46 (12:30-1:15) (arrives late)
4/21 3:33 - 4:19 (no briefing)
4/22 11:36 - 1:37 (12:30-1:14)
4/23 12:16 - 2:26 (1:17-1:55)
4/25 11:21 - 1:25 (12:19-1:00)
4/28 3:01 - 4:40 (11:08-11:23 -- doesn't match)
4/29 11:25 - 1:10 (12:23-12:58)
4/30 11:37 - 3:14 (unusually long) (12:32-1:19)
5/6/03 11:27 - 12:56 (11:50-12:30)
5/7 11:53 - 1:29 (12:30-1:10)
5/8 1:09 - 7:10 (unusually long) (1:45-2:26)
5/9 9:49 - 11:38 (no briefing)
5/14 12:02 - 1:47 (12:35-1:15)
5/14 5:15 pm - 6:56 pm (second evening visit)
5/15 12:27 - 2:25 (1:08-1:47)
5/16 12:05 - 1:40 (12:35-1:19)
5/20 12:27 - 2:04 (12:55-1:34)
5/27 11:56 - 1:31 (12:23-1:05)
5/28 11:50 - 12:53 (12:05-12:44)
5/28 3:26 - 4:53 (second visit)
5/29 11:42 - 1:43 (12:20-1:00)
6/10/03 12:13 - 1:19 (12:33-1:12)
6/17 12:29 - 1:41 (12:32-1:11)
6/18 12:16 - 1:42 (12:50-1:34)
6/22 3:32 - 4:49 (no briefing)
6/23 1:41 - 2:21 (no briefing)
6/25 12:16 - 1:01 (12:30-12:55)
6/26 11:32 - 12:35 (11:45-12:24)
7/1/03 11:25 - 1:42 (12:50-1:26)
7/2 11:50 - 1:20 (12:35-1:12)
7/3 3:04 - 4:16 (Condi Rice briefing, 3:40-4:10)
7/14 11:33 - 1:32 (Ari's goodbye party) (12:03-12:56)
7/15 12:15 (no exit) (12:38-1:23)
7/16 12:26 - 2:05 (12:50-1:20)
7/17 4:43 - 6:13 (12:36-1:17 -- doesn't match)
7/22 12:23 - 1:53 (12:58-1:35)
7/23 12:21 - 2:23 (1:17-2:07)
7/25 2:08 - 3:30 (2:39-3:15)
7/27 3:08 - 5:24 (no briefing)
7/28 12:53 - 2:04 (briefing 10:12-10:23 -- doesn't match)
7/30 12:13 - 12:45 (no briefing) (Bush press conference earlier than that)
8/1/03 12:18 (no exit) (12:24-12:54)
8/1 12:39 - 1:20 (two sets of times if put together seem to match the briefing)
9/2/03 12:37 (A4 HC Entry Lane, no exit) (12:42-1:23)
9/3 12:10 - 1:18 (12:30-1:10)
9/10 12:17 - 1:32 (12:49-1:23)
9/16 12:23 - 1:59 (1:00-1:39)
9/17 12:12 - 1:55 (1:00-1:41)
9/22 1:54 - 3:06 (no briefing) (Bush meets with Iraqis, remarks end 4:35)
9/25 12:49 - 1:53 (12:48-1:35)
9/26 12:09 - 2:24 (12:36-1:15)
9/29 12:09 - 1:10 (12:18-1:03)
10/1/03 11:51 - 1:37 (12:44-1:30)
10/2 11:52 (no exit) (12:47-1:26)
10/6 12:58 - 6:10 (unusually long) (1:15-1:54)
10/7 12:46 - 2:03 (12:58-1:46)
10/8 12:10 - 1:27 (12:16-12:42)
10/14 12:22 (no exit) (12:40-1:14)
10/27 12:32 - 1:33 (12:39-1:15)
10/28 10:54 - 12:22 (Bush press conference 11:15-12:03)
10/29 12:20 - 1:08 (12:20-12:57)
11/6/03 12:09 - 1:09 (12:35-1:04)
11/12 12:09 - 1:58 (1:10-1:47)
11/14 12:54 - 2:07 (1:36-2:00)
11/21 5:25 - 6:49 (no briefing)
11/24 8:49 - 9:43 (no briefing)
12/2/03 2:08 - 3:29 (no briefing)
12/3 12:03 - 1:11 (12:32-1:06)
12/7 3:25 (no exit - entry via A4 HC Entry Lane) (no briefing)
12/9 12:33 - 1:45 (12:55-1:21)
12/10 12:05 - 1:23 (12:35-1:15)
12/12 11:51 - 1:35 (12:15-12:52)
12/15 10:45 - 12:42 (Bush press conference 11:15-12:03)
12/18 12:44 - 2:28 (2:05-2:43)
12/19 12:21 - 12:56 (B4 Entry Lane 2) (12:30-12:50)
12/19 1:36 - 2:13 (second visit)
12/22 12:15 - 1:23 (12:28-1:01)
1/14/04 12:30 - 1:33 (12:41-1:15)
1/16 12:08 - 12:48 (12:11-12:44)
1/23 11:52 - 1:12 (12:33-1:06)
1/28 11:53 - 1:26 (12:50-1:20)
1/30 12:30 - 1:23 (12:37-1:09)
2/2/04 12:32 - 1:35 (12:48-1:28)
2/3 12:44 - 1:55 (12:54-1:20)
2/4 11:50 - 1:38 (12:56-1:36)
2/6 11:58 - 1:44 (Bush announcement 1:32-37)
2/10 11:50 - 1:55 (12:53-1:38)
2/11 11:57 - 1:09 (12:30-1:02)
2/13 12:07 - 1:08 (12:30-1:02)
2/18 12:04 - 1:29 (12:36-1:08)
2/19 12:05 - 1:30 (12:37-1:14)
2/20 12:32 - 1:29 (12:33-1:03)
2/23 12:55 - 1:17 (12:43-1:10) (arrives late)
2/24 12:06 - 1:52 (1:00-1:36)
2/27 1:55 - 3:39 (2:18-2:48)
3/1/04 12:50 - 2:04 (1:20-2:00)
3/2 12:29 - 1:23 (12:46-1:14)
3/9 12:40 - 1:49 (1:03-1:37)
3/12 12:54 - 1:00 (unusually short) (no briefing)
3/16 12:43 - 1:52 (1:10-1:46)
3/17 12:18 - 1:56 (1:26-1:50)
3/22 12:03 - 2:10 (1:24-2:04)
3/23 12:03 - 1:34 (12:47-1:10)
3/24 12:17 - 2:03 (1:10-2:02)
3/30 exit only, 12:04 (no briefing)
3/30 4:22 - 4:55 (no briefing)
4/1/04 12:42 - 1:57 (1:25-1:53)
4/13 9:42 - 10:29 (no briefing) (Bush speaks to reporters on the WH lawn)
4/13 6:59 pm - 9:49 pm (Bush press conference)
4/16 10:51 - 3:08 (2:41-3:09) (Bush/Blair press conference)
4/21 12:14 - 1:00 (12:31-1:00)
4/27 12:10 (no exit, entry via A4 HC Entry Lane instead of Entry Lane 2) (12:27-12:59)
4/28 12:26 - 1:47 (1:20-1:47)
4/29 11:10 no exit (well before briefing) (Bush and Cheny testify)
4/29 2:15 - 2:57 (2:23-2:56)
4/30 1:24 - 2:47 (2:22-2:45)
5/5/04 12:02 - 2:25 (1:38-2:16) (arrives unusually early)
5/6 12:01 - 3:35 (12:20-12:54) (stays unusually late)
5/10 1:22 - 2:50 (2:02-2:33)
5/12 11:56 - 1:03 (12:34-12:55)
5/24 no entry, exit logged twice, 2:04:43 and 2:04:51 (1:14-1:46)
5/26 12:09 - 1:51 (1:15-1:51)
5/28 2:17 - no exit (3:02-3:34)
6/1/04 9:20 - 12:03 (Condi Rice briefing, 9:45)
6/3 9:02 - 10:32 (no briefing)
6/14 10:02 - 11:45 (no briefing)
6/15 11:03 - no exit (2:25-2:52) (there well before briefing)
6/15 5:19 - 6:38 (B4 Exit Lane instead of usual A4 Exit Reader) (after briefing)
(Bush and Karzai in Press Availability)
6/16 2:50 - 4:34 (no briefing)
6/17 11:57 - 1:25 (12:47-1:20)
6/21 9:27 - 10:03 (no briefing)
6/22 12:13 - 5:04 (unusually long) (Al Gonzales briefing, 3:12-4:55)
6/24 1:27 - 2:13 (Condi Rice briefing, 1:51-2:03)
6/30 12:21 - 1:55 (1:15-1:55)
7/1/04 12:22 - 1:36 (1:01-1:37)
7/2 9:43 - 11:53 (no briefing)
7/6 12:15 - 12:58 (12:33-12:48)
7/8 1:07 - 2:21 (1:53-2:22)
7/15 12:48 - 1:48 (12:54-1:23)
7/19 1:04 - 2:24 (1:52-2:22)
7/21 12:22 - 2:02 (1:10-1:40)
7/22 10:11 - 10:47 (no briefing)
7/29 6:03 - 6:21 (no briefing)
8/2/04 10:59 - 1:47 (1:02-1:39) (there 2 hours early)
8/9 12:07 - 1:03 (12:31-12:59)
8/17 11:06 - 12:31 (no briefing)
8/27 9:10 - 9:37 (no briefing)
9/10/04 11:19 - 12:55 (no briefing)
9/15 12:17 - 1:56 (1:11-1:45)
9/22 11:57 - 12:34 (no briefing)
9/23 11:19 - 1:14 (Bush press conference with Allawi)
11/2/04 1:31 - 2:20 (no briefing) (Election Day)
11/4 9:16 - 12:11 (Bush press conference 11:17-11:57)
11/8 11:50 - 1:08 (12:20-12:52)
11/10 12:35 - 12:58 (12:26-12:45) (arrives late)
11/12 10:57 -- no exit (Bush press conference with Blair)
11/16 12:26 - 1:51 (12:20-1:32) (arrives late)
11/17 12:07 - 2:14 (12:38-1:10)
11/29 12:23 - 1:49 (12:56-1:32)
12/6/04 12:37 - 1:59 (1:03-1:36)
12/8 12:07 - 1:41 (1:05-1:39)
12/10 12:32 - 1:51 (1:06-1:32)
12/13 12:18 - 1:36 (12:50-1:18)
12/14 12:46 - 1:53 (12:48-1:23)
12/17 12:16 - 1:48 (12:47-1:14)
12/20 10:05 - 11:49 (Bush press conference, 10:32-11:25)
12/21 12:00 - 2:04 (12:35-1:10)
12/22 12:04 - 1:08 (no briefing)
12/23 12:31 - 1:26 (no briefing)
1/18/05 12:05 - 1:36 (12:28-12:57)
1/19 12:26 - 1:38 (12:48-1:19)
1/25 12:19 - 1:04 (12:23-12:53)
1/26 9:54 - 10:56 (Bush press conference, 10:00-10:47)
1/31 12:27 - 1:24 (12:45-1:16)
2/1/05 12:11 no exit (12:18-12:47)
2/7 12:10 - 3:00 (1:45-1:06)
Joke of the Day
Called MyPyramid, the new version looks like a vertical rainbow, with different colored bands running up and down. Each color represents a different food group. The widest band, orange, represents grains -- so consumers are supposed to somehow figure out that they should be eating more grains.
This would all be simpler if only the graphic included some labels that indicated what each color stands for. But the USDA said that would have been too confusing.
the boys of Company E
excuse me while i wipe the tears from my face.
this is a MUST READ story!
They were not the only losses for Company E during its six-month stint last year in Ramadi. In all, more than one-third of the unit's 185 troops were killed or wounded, the highest casualty rate of any company in the war, Marine Corps officials say.
In returning home, the leaders and Marine infantrymen have chosen to break an institutional code of silence and tell their story, one they say was punctuated not only by a lack of armor, but also by a shortage of men and planning that further hampered their efforts in battle, destroyed morale and ruined the careers of some of their fiercest warriors.
The saga of Company E, part of a lionized battalion nicknamed the Magnificent Bastards, is also one of fortitude and ingenuity. The marines, based at Camp Pendleton in southern California, had been asked to rid the provincial capital of one of the most persistent insurgencies, and in enduring 26 firefights, 90 mortar attacks and more than 90 homemade bombs, they shipped their dead home and powered on. Their tour has become legendary among other Marine units now serving in Iraq and facing some of the same problems.
"As marines, we are always taught that we do more with less," said Sgt. James S. King, a platoon sergeant who lost his left leg when he was blown out of the Humvee that Saturday afternoon last May. "And get the job done no matter what it takes."
The experiences of Company E's marines, pieced together through interviews at Camp Pendleton and by phone, company records and dozens of photographs taken by the marines, show they often did just that. The unit had less than half the troops who are now doing its job in Ramadi, and resorted to making dummy marines from cardboard cutouts and camouflage shirts to place in observation posts on the highway when it ran out of men. During one of its deadliest firefights, it came up short on both vehicles and troops. Marines who were stranded at their camp tried in vain to hot-wire a dump truck to help rescue their falling brothers. That day, 10 men in the unit died.
Sergeant Valerio and others had to scrounge for metal scraps to strengthen the Humvees they inherited from the National Guard, which occupied Ramadi before the marines arrived. Among other problems, the armor the marines slapped together included heavier doors that could not be latched, so they "chicken winged it" by holding them shut with their arms as they traveled.
"We were sitting out in the open, an easy target for everybody," Cpl. Toby G. Winn of Centerville, Tex., said of the shortages. "We complained about it every day, to anybody we could. They told us they were listening, but we didn't see it."
The company leaders say it is impossible to know how many lives may have been saved through better protection, since the insurgents became adept at overcoming improved defenses with more powerful weapons. Likewise, Pentagon officials say they do not know how many of the more than 1,500 American troops who have died in the war had insufficient protective gear.
lots more @ the nytimes
beware of dictators who make promises
The WP reports that the pope outlined the themes he expects to pursue, but the NYT emphasizes that he specifically said he'd decided not to talk about his future plans for the church. Possibly responding to criticism of his "dictatorial" manner, he told the crowd that his program was not to pursue his own ideas, but to listen to God.
one needs to beware of any man, described as dictatorial, making promises to not pursue his own ideas. his statement makes no sense whatsoever because how else is God going to make Himself known if not THROUGH man's ideas?
Letter Of The Day
aren't you lucky today. TWO winners for the price of one!
Regarding David Yepsen's April 7 column, "Gas-Tax Hike May Be Painful, but Necessary": In his column about hiking the gas tax, Yepsen states, "Liberals will want money for other things."
As if Regressives, aka Republicans won't? The state Legislature generates the spending bills. And who has controlled the Iowa Legislature the past few years? If Iowa has a budget problem, perhaps the party that controls the spending bills should be held accountable for the fiscal condition of the state.
At the national level it's worse. A recent study of economic benchmarks over the past 40 years comparing Democratic administrations to Republican administrations shows that not only do Democratic administrations result in lower inflation, less unemployment, etc., but they also do a better job fiscally - meaning less debt.
Yepsen needs some remedial work about budget and economic politics to learn who the big spenders of our tax dollars are.
-Scott O'Brien,
Geneva.
and
David Yepsen typically has the right issues in mind in his column. However, in his April 12 column on public safety, he misses the big picture. Without rehabilitation and treatment, the number of inmates in the system will skyrocket. Offenders who should be locked up are let go. Taxpayers and legislators love to punish but are unwilling to bite the bullet and go after the underlying cause of crime in the state, primarily poverty and a lack of opportunity.
-Aaron Staker,
Cedar Rapids.
attribution
Sunday, April 24, 2005
inching closer to fascism every day
from TIME:
The Inter-American Telecommunication Commission meets three times a year in various cities across the Americas to discuss such dry but important issues as telecommunications standards and spectrum regulations. But for this week's meeting in Guatemala City, politics has barged onto the agenda. At least four of the two dozen or so U.S. delegates selected for the meeting, sources tell TIME, have been bumped by the White House because they supported John Kerry's 2004 campaign.The State Department has traditionally put together a list of industry representatives for these meetings, and anyone in the U.S. telecom industry who had the requisite expertise and wanted to go was generally given a slot, say past participants. Only after the start of Bush's second term did a political litmus test emerge, industry sources say.
The White House admits as much: "We wanted people who would represent the Administration positively, and--call us nutty--it seemed like those who wanted to kick this Administration out of town last November would have some difficulty doing that," says White House spokesman Trent Duffy. Those barred from the trip include employees of Qualcomm and Nokia, two of the largest telecom firms operating in the U.S., as well as Ibiquity, a digital-radio-technology company in Columbia, Md. One nixed participant, who has been to many of these telecom meetings and who wants to remain anonymous, gave just $250 to the Democratic Party. Says Nokia vice president Bill Plummer: "We do not view sending experts to international meetings on telecom issues to be a partisan matter. We would welcome clarification from the White House."
Letter Of The Day
journalism ON/OFF button
if you dont think rove has his greasy lil' fingers on the 'OFF' button for the media, then explain why we never heard anything more about schiavo after she passed.
it was never really about her.
it was about seeing how far the right can push America.
and it was evident, not very far. so what does the lapdog media do? they switch on the crises like lights in a banquet hall. not working? no problem, just turn the story off and nobody will make a fuss about it.
what a sad bunch of wannabe-journalists we have in this country.
the assault on judges has begun
and i wonder how many people really see what is going on. this is bad. very very bad. as you can read in the new york times
and i think the enormity of this action will not be apparent until after it has had time to sink in.
A new federal policy will make it significantly more difficult for Medicare beneficiaries to obtain hearings in person before a judge when the government denies their claims for home care, nursing home services, prescription drugs and other treatments.
and then i see that our own senator is involved, but on the right, er excuse me, correct... side.
Senator Charles E. Grassley, the Iowa Republican who is chairman of the Finance Committee, and Senator Max Baucus of Montana, the senior Democrat on the panel, said four hearing offices were not enough.Mr. Grassley and Mr. Baucus were among the principal authors of the 2003 Medicare law. The law, they noted, says Medicare judges are to be distributed "throughout the United States."
Under the new arrangement, hearings for Medicare beneficiaries in New York, New Jersey and all of New England will normally be held by judges in Cleveland. Hearings for people in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska will be held by judges in Southern California.
Judith A. Stein, director of the Center for Medicare Advocacy, which has represented thousands of people in hearings since 1986, said: "The videoconferences are one of many changes that will reduce the beneficiaries' ability to get fair, favorable decisions. Sick, old and disabled people can be much more effective in person because the judge can see their illnesses and infirmities - how they walk, how they get up from a chair, how their hands shake with tremors."
The government is still working out details and lining up sites with the necessary videoconference links. Nancy A. Thompson, director of the transition team at the department, refused to answer questions about the new hearing and appeal procedures or the logistical arrangements.
Ronald T. Osborn of Charlotte, N.C., who has been an administrative law judge since 1974 and has specialized in Medicare cases since 1996, said he had no interest in moving to the Department of Health and Human Services.
"Under the department's procedural rules," Mr. Osborn said, "judges will have less freedom to handle individual cases as they see fit."
this is how the assault begins. in the fine print. in this case, in the department which low-income people depend on.
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