GOP fundraiser is hit with terror charges

A New York man accused of trying to help terrorists in Afghanistan has donated some $15,000 to the House Republicans' campaign committee over three years.

--AP

u.s. has contingency plans in place to attack iran

US contingency plans for air strikes on Iran extend beyond nuclear sites and include most of the country's military infrastructure, the BBC has learned.

--source

today's MUST KNOW

from TPM muckraker:

As we noted in the post below, Republican campaign contributor Abdul Tawala Ibn Ali Alishtari got indicted on Friday for attempting to send over $150,000 to fund terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.

He contributed a decent amount of money to GOP congressional campaign committees in the 2002 and 2004 cycles and managed get named to a number of 'committees' and 'councils' set up as perks for GOP campaign contributors, including something called the "White House Business Advisory Committee."

Now a reader of the Cunning Realist blog has dug up the archived version of the website of Mr. Alishtari's company, GlobalProtector, which shows that at the same time Alishtari was giving money to the GOP he was bidding on multiple government contracts -- including ones with the Pentagon and the Department of Homeland Security.

FARPOINT FACTOID

Experiments have found that an average person tells about two lies every 10 minutes. Also, those who lie frequently have the best intentions and think they are benefiting others.

--SOURCE

i'm BACK

after a few days *cough* ok weeks. i'm back in form. and ready to push it past go.

but he IS the dictator

President George W. Bush has given his administration a boost in how the government regulates key issues such as civil rights and the environment
--source

it's not working mr bush, it's not.

sir, your assumption that sending in more troops will disband the 'infidels' is naive.

The U.S. military on Sunday reported six more American troops killed in fighting the day before, raising the toll to 25 in the deadliest day for U.S. forces in Iraq in two years.
--source

couldn't have said it better myself

from a letter to the editor in today's des moines register:

Bush has proven to be pompous, vindictive, misleading, condescending, self-righteous and radically partisan.

news of America spending $100B on replacing our nukes

brought about this canny note from a fellow DU'er:

The only country in the world to actually USE a nuclear weapon against another country and who has recently invaded and occupied another country for supposedly having nuclear weapons, (Iraq did not) now threatens to attack yet another country (Iran) for supposedly developing nuclear capabilities, now announces plans to spend 100 billion dollars on MORE nuclear weapons for its own arsenal?

the beginning of WWIII?

because if iran is attacked by israel, you can best rest assured that we will have started WWIII. bush is moving ships into the gulf, and rumors of an attack have been on the skuttlebutt airwaves for months. and now today, we have this:

LONDON - A British newspaper reported Sunday that Israel has drafted plans to strike as many as three targets in Iran with low-yield nuclear weapons, aiming to halt Tehran's uranium enrichment program. The Israeli Foreign Ministry denied the report.

--

bush is seeking to destroy iran's government

he Los Angeles Times off-leads the Iraq surge and leads a report on American efforts to stop outside investors from financing the development of new Iranian oil fields. Over time, the U.S. hopes, these back door sanctions will drastically curtail Iran's oil exports and ultimately destabilize the regime.

gerald ford dead

i'm not shedding any tears for he brought us dick cheney and don rumselfd

9/11: Press for Truth

Flickr: Photos from leQ

Flickr: Photos from leQ:

My Song Of The Day

Mad World

and we want these people to be our friends?

The LAT focuses on and the NYT mentions, while the WP ignores, the strange handoff ceremony that involved Iraqi commandos displaying their bravery by eating almost-live animals. Iraqi forces took bites out of frogs, and one cut open a rabbit and proceeded to sink his teeth into its still beating heart. This is apparently common in Iraq, where Saddam Hussein's special forces frequently performed these sorts of displays with all kinds of animals.
--today's papers

it's called INCOMPETENCE

The NYT fronts word from sources who say the team in the Justice Department that was put in charge of investigating accusations that civilian employees abused detainees has decided not to prosecute most of the 20 cases that have been referred to them. The group was established in June 2004 in the aftermath of Abu Ghraib. Since then, it has been overwhelmed with problems, from missing information in referral forms to a difficulty in finding witnesses and nonexistent forensic evidence, so they have been unable to bring a single indictment.
--from today's papers

saddam would be proud of you georgie

More than 90 per cent of Iraqis believe the country is worse off now than before the war in 2003, according to new research obtained by Al Jazeera.

--story

the lied

and thousands died

today's independent

and read what the AFP has to say about it

why i'm against the death penalty

In Florida: After it took "34 minutes and a second injection" to kill a death row inmate on Wednesday, Gov. Bush ordered a medical inquiry into the incident, which eventually found that the first needle had passed through the prisoner's veins and deposited the poison in his arm tissue, causing a visible amount of pain and requiring the second dose. When this information was released, Bush halted the executions and appointed a commission to review injection procedures in the state. But Florida doesn't seem to be have much luck with capital punishment: It apparently switched to lethal injection in 2000 "after flames shot from an inmate's head during his execution by electric chair."

did you know that you can't raise a family on $165,000 a year?

"If you become a federal judge in the Southern District of New York (Manhattan), you can't raise a family on what the salary is," Scalia said during a speech to the Northern Virginia Technology Council.

Federal judges earned salaries of $165,200 in 2006. Scalia said lawyers can easily earn significantly more by staying in the private sector.
--story

FUCK YOU SCALIA

i have a feeling that the democratic house members

aren't going to be doing the job they could be doing. if pelosi doesn't wise up and appoint KNOWLEGEABLE members to head committees, then she stands to be ridiculed for her wasting our time. from today's papers:

The WP carries a wire story that reports the incoming Democratic chairman of the House intelligence committee, Rep. Silvestre Reyes, pretty much failed a pop quiz he got from a Congressional Quarterly reporter. Worst part is, the questions weren't even that difficult. When asked whether al-Qaeda is Sunni or Shiite, Reyes answered, "Predominantly – probably Shiite." When he was asked to describe Hezbollah, he didn't even give an answer and merely said, "Hezbolllah. Uh, Hezbollah … why do you ask me these questions at 5 o'clock?" Reyes' office issued a statement yesterday: "As a member of the intelligence committee since before 9/11, I'm acutely aware of al-Qaeda's desire to harm Americans." Well, guess that covers it then.

i can just see it now

how bush reacts to the reality around him when it doesn't make him look like he's powerful.

"I just didn't feel there today, the president in his words or his demeanor, that he is going to do anything right away to change things drastically," Senate Majority Leader-elect Harry Reid, D-Nev., said following the Oval Office meeting. "He is tepid in what he talks about doing. Someone has to get the message to this man that there have to be significant changes."
...
Bush, Durbin said, "reacted very strongly. He got very animated in his response" and emphasized that he is "the commander in chief."
--story

truman indeed. mr bush, you are no truman.

my letter got printed today

in the local newspaper

http://www.globegazette.com/articles/2006/12/07/opinion/doc45779995c10fa437259363.txt

Quote of the Day

"I talk to those who've lost their lives, and they have that sense of duty and mission."
--Republican Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama

attribution

the story of a wunderkid

a blind boy who can kick my butt at most everything. see for yourself.

farpoint tidbit

A few years ago, he ( Andrew Karam of MJW Corp. in Buffalo, an author of National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurement guidelines on contaminated bodies) was approached by producers of the CSI television series to comment on a polonium-poisoning scenario. He told them it was too far-fetched.

--story

does this make any sense to you?

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30, 2006 — U.S. officials say they have found smoking-gun evidence of Iranian support for terrorists in Iraq: brand-new weapons fresh from Iranian factories. According to a senior defense official, coalition forces have recently seized Iranian-made weapons and munitions that bear manufacturing dates in 2006.
--source

then there's this:

Iran reached out to Iraq and the American public in separate gestures Wednesday, giving the Baghdad government a $1 billion line of credit while Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sent a personal letter to "noble Americans" calling for a military withdrawal from Iraq.
--source

so what would you say to iran's policy towards iraq would be?

rumsfeld should be held accountable

Outgoing U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld authorised the mistreatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, the prison's former U.S. commander said in an interview on Saturday.
--story

what a great site

http://www.templetonrye.com/

more truth seeping out for light

ONE year before the invasion of Iraq, Australia's then ambassador to the United Nations, John Dauth, confidentially told AWB's former chairman, Trevor Flugge, that the Howard Government would participate in military action with the US to overthrow Saddam Hussein, new AWB documents reveal.

--story

so a whole year before the invasion of iraq, bush was reaching for help. now i get it. the bush whitehouse had planned to invade iraq LONG before we were told.

what's wrong with America

The LAT reveals on Page 1 that even though KB Home Chief Executive Bruce Karatz was forced to leave the company as a result of a stock-option controversy, he still stands to get as much as $175 million in severance pay
attribution

Letter Of The Day

According to Steffen Schmidt, professor of political science at Iowa State University, the president and Republicans will prevail on Dick Cheney to resign as vice president and install Condoleezza Rice. This will position her for the 2008 nomination.

According to WHO's Jan Mikelson, Iowa has gone blue. Hillary Clinton has been governing as a moderate. She will concede Iowa to Vilsack. She won't have to campaign far enough left to win the Iowa caucuses. Then, she goes on as a moderate to take the '08 nomination in the broader contest.

Sweet, huh? First woman prez, guaranteed.

- Bryan Healy, Newton.
attribution

Sad Story of the Day

Devoted sister loses 2 brothers to war
the story will bring tears to your eyes.

the bush mein kempf

At the White House the Iranian President is even named Hitler.

--INFORMATION CLEARING HOUSE

just goes to show you, these people are really off their rockers.

FARPOINT.FACTOID

At the White House the Iranian President is even named Hitler.

--INFORMATION CLEARING HOUSE

just goes to show you, these people are really off their rockers.

Letter Of The Day

it's been a while, yes i know, i've been away. so, i'm back now.

Once again, the Iowa Family Policy Center, in its continual choral rant against gay marriage, asserts that New Jersey Supreme Court justices have exceeded their power. ("New Jersey Supreme Court usurped power of elected lawmakers," Nov. 4 letter).

Tsk. Tsk. What we don't teach in school these days.

A reminder: The three branches of government each have their own power. The legislative branch makes laws, the administration enforces laws and the courts interpret the law, including the state's constitution. When a legislative act is at odds with one or more aspects of the Constitution, the constitutional provision prevails.

The New Jersey Supreme Court, in interpreting its own state constitution, concluded that such a provision for equal rights for all citizens trumps a "gays can't get married in N.J." law. That is what those "unelected, unaccountable, black-robed tyrants" are entitled to do.

The writer said this use of the courts is not what the founding fathers had in mind, and it borders on striking "We the People" from the Constitution. Not so. "We the People" still have power - to amend the state constitution.

- Kathy Collins Reilly, Des Moines.
attribution

Oh Happy Day!

we WON and the elections sliced up my prediction that there wouldn't be a democratic victory, that somehow karl rove had his hand some some election machines, but as it happens, he didn't. so congratulations to the democrats who won.

congratulations DEMOCRATS!

your victory in reclaiming congress is one step closer to making America America again.

from the good news department

WASHINGTON - Democrats wrested control of the Senate from Republicans Wednesday with an upset victory in Virginia, giving the party complete domination of Capitol Hill for the first time since 1994.

--full story

watch out for the crossover

USA Today leads with the federal government increasing its efforts to prevent prisoners in the United States from becoming terrorists while they are behind bars. Prison officials are being urged to conduct more stringent background checks on employees and volunteers who may have direct contact with prisoners. In addition, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security are asking prison officials to train their staff to be on the lookout for those who might be turning to extremist activity.

--story

today prisoners, tomorrow terrorists... what a concept. the breeding ground for discontent.

well, the day is barely underway

and already we have cases of voter suppression

Over the past several days, voters throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia have filed complaints of incidents aimed at suppressing voter turn out in heavily Democratic and African American neighborhoods. Today, the Secretary of the Virginia State Board of Elections Jean Jensen concluded that the incidents appear widespread and deliberate.

--story

for some good news

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- While half of New Jersey voters agree with the state Supreme Court that homosexual couples should receive the same rights as heterosexuals, just one in four think gay unions should be called marriages, according to a new poll.

--story

republican voter suppression

Reports of GOP voter supression efforts are coming in from all around the country, in local, state, and federal races. Here are a few samples:

--more

more dirty tricks by the national republican machine

is ohio gonna be the florida of 2006?

CLEVELAND -- A problem has been discovered with the optical scanner in connection with one race at the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections Friday afternoon.

During a test using an optical scanner, officials discovered that the machine was providing incorrect election results for the race for the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

BOE officials said this is just one race out of hundreds in which a problem has been found.

--story

family values republicans my ass

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The Rev. Ted Haggard agreed to resign Saturday from his New Life Church after its independent investigative board recommended removal, saying he was guilty “of sexually immoral conduct.”

--story

this story is just another sad tale in a long line of republican pedophilia. this one just happens to be between two consenting adults, tho, still homosexual, and involves methamphetamine. what else could the church do?

as if this wasn't planned

two days before our election.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Three years after he gave himself up to American soldiers without firing a shot, Saddam Hussein may be condemned to hang on Sunday if an Iraqi court finds him guilty of crimes against humanity.

--story

add another name to the list of republican pedofiles

A male prostitute alleges that he had a three-year relationship with prominent right-wing evangelical leader Ted Haggard, who has said that homosexuality is a "sin" and "devastating for the children of our nation and for the future of Western civilization." ... He claims to have recorded voicemails and a letter from Haggard, and that he had also witnessed Haggard use methamphetamine.

--more

freedom on the march

only not in our country

An Issaquah school bus driver fired for allegedly "flipping off" President Bush during a visit to Seattle in June is appealing her termination.

According to Issaquah School District officials, the incident happened when a district school bus stopped for the president's motorcade while returning from a field trip in Seattle. As the president waved to the school children from his limousine, the bus driver made an obscene gesture, said Sara Niegowski, a spokeswoman for the district.

--story

bush can flip off anybody, but nobody can flip him off.

Letter Of The Day

there are three really good letters, but i chose this one to be the winner.

Habeas corpus, dating back to 1215, was a major victory against the English monarchy and is considered by many to be the first major step in making England a democracy.

But President Bush, to fight terrorism, is chipping away at the very freedoms that make our country great.

"All men are born with certain inalienable rights" said our founding fathers. President Bush thinks they forgot to add "except when George Bush says otherwise."

Doug Williams, Clive.

attribution