Friday, November 30, 2007
Wherein I reveal my burning hatred for Tiki Barber...
For an ex-NFL'er, this guy is a Grade-A pussy!
Seeing him on the Today Show was the only downside from the two weeks I spent at home after the twins were born. Like so many pro athletes, he has no personality whatsoever. He's not funny, he's not interesting, and my God, he has the screen presence of a deck chair!
Which brings me to the worst part: Yesterday, I heard that he had been on "Project Runway" to have a suit tailored for himself. In this appearance, Tiki actually uttered the phrase "I'm not afraid of color." That just screams ex-athlete, doesn't it? I could certainly see Jim Brown or Dick Butkus saying something like that.
This guy is a media whore with a plastic smile who turned his back on his team so he could cash in on his rapidly dwindling marketability...
P.S. At this point, I hate Tiki Barber so much, I hate Ronde Barber now, too...
Thursday, November 29, 2007
A Notion Worthy of Consideration...
Engraving "N/A" onto a crystal football might look ridiculous. What's far sillier is the sports world's fixation on looking out for No. 1. Consider: The Pulitzer board often decides that no play, novel, or symphony is deserving of its yearly honors. The Nobel Prize also on occasion goes unawarded.
Pro and college sports insist on crowning a champion. But in some sports, in some years, the question of which team is best isn't worth answering. The college season just completed is a prime example. College football was more thrilling than ever this year precisely because no team ever separated itself from the pack.
The Phillies unveil snazzy new alternate unis...
A classic look for one of the oldest franchises in all of American sports...
This look is a throwback to the Phils' unis from the late 40's, as you can see from the Hall of Fame's uniform database:
Man, I hope they wear those stirrups...
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Mitt Romney's religious hypocrisy...
You GOP'ers have a real crew of winners to choose from!
Mitt Romney has made it very clear that any consideration of his religion (Mormonism) is unfair, but he's now going on record saying he wouldn't appoint any Muslims to his Cabinet due to the fact that, well, they're Muslims.
From the Christian Science Monitor:
I asked Mr. Romney whether he would consider including qualified Americans of the Islamic faith in his cabinet as advisers on national security matters, given his position that "jihadism" is the principal foreign policy threat facing America today. He answered, "…based on the numbers of American Muslims [as a percentage] in our population, I cannot see that a cabinet position would be justified. But of course, I would imagine that Muslims could serve at lower levels of my administration."Nominate any of these assholes, we'll beat every single one of them...
Romney, whose Mormon faith has become the subject of heated debate in Republican caucuses, wants America to be blind to his religious beliefs and judge him on merit instead. Yet he seems to accept excluding Muslims because of their religion, claiming they're too much of a minority for a post in high-level policymaking. More ironic, that Islamic heritage is what qualifies them to best engage America's Arab and Muslim communities and to help deter Islamist threats.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Rudy voted for McGovern in 1972, but really wanted to vote for Nixon...
Heed a quick warning, intrepid Republicans: Rudy Giuliani will say ANYTHING to get you to vote for him. He thinks you're stupid enough to not pay attention.
Fall for it at your nation's peril...
"I had traditionally been a Democrat," Giuliani told me in a recent interview in Las Vegas. "It was almost like a reflex mode. I actually remember saying to myself, 'If I was a person really deciding who should be president right now, I'd probably vote for Nixon, because I think the country would be safer with Nixon.'"Translation: "I'm a spineless sponge and I happily voted for someone I didn't believe could protect the country. But by all means, trust me with your security now!"
Monday, November 26, 2007
Somewhere between Boardwalk and Mediterranean Ave...
While speaking to a client and pondering my family's position in the socioeconomic structure of America, I came up with this question that is sure to make people think and/or lose any shred of interest they had in this blog.Where on the Monopoly board do you live?
I can see this question being answered in a few different ways:
1.) You can use purely aesthetic factors: Size of house, number of cars, access to elective cosmetic surgeries, etc...
2.) You can consider you position relative to those around you. "I'm not rich/poor, those people down the road are rich/poor!"
3.) You can lose any semblance of reality and just lie in order to feel better about yourself.
With all this in mind, I think I've arrived at Atlantic Avenue. It's a great property that you'd be very happy to purchase while playing Monopoly, but free of the pretension you might find in the blue and green sections. I think that's exactly where I fit.
How about you?
A good piece of news from the world of rock n' roll...
Extreme is getting back together, releasing a new album, and going on tour next year...
Boston-based rock outfit Extreme is reuniting for its first studio album in 13 years and world tour in 2008, Billboard has learned. The group, best known for the 1991 No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 hit "More Than Words," disbanded in 1996 but reformed briefly in 2004 and 2006.For those of you who are unfamiliar with Extreme, they were a great funk/rock band that had a painfully annoying lead singer named Gary Cherone, an otherwordly lead guitarist named Nuno Bettencourt, and a very distinctive sound at a time when a lot of bands sounded exactly the same.
Here's a taste...
The Mississippi Hair Helmet runs for the cayshe...
While the exactly reason Lott is stepping down before he finishes his term is unknown, the general speculation is that a quick departure immunizes Lott against tougher restrictions in a new lobbying law that takes effect at the end of the year. That law would require Senators to wait two-years before entering the lucrative world of lobbying Congress.Could this lead to a Democratic pickup in the "Deep" South? Maybe, if Rep. Gene Taylor or former Mississippi Attorney General Mike Moore decide to run...
Remember all that talk about displaced Iraqis coming home?
It turns out the numbers were being, lets say, massaged for political purposes...
UPDATE: President Bush has officially dumped the previously touted goals for success in Iraq in favor of less specific, more easily-attained goals...
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Recognizing Reality
The short-term American targets include passage of a $48 billion Iraqi budget, something the Iraqis say they are on their way to doing anyway; renewing the United Nations mandate that authorizes an American presence in the country, which the Iraqis have done repeatedly before; and passing legislation to allow thousands of Baath Party members from Saddam Hussein’s era to rejoin the government. A senior Bush administration official described that goal as largely symbolic since rehirings have been quietly taking place already.
Friday, November 23, 2007
|
|
Mind Me Pint!
Take a few tries....best I could get in 3 tries with this quick game was 17 seconds. How did you do?
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Reach Back
Think of a tune you loved early in life..before you formed your adult preferences.
Here is one of mine:
You Cannot Reason With This Mentality
- The Saudi judiciary on Tuesday defended a court verdict that sentenced a 19-year-old victim of a gang rape to six months in jail and 200 lashes because she was with an unrelated male when they were attacked.
Thanks for Your Service, Tough Luck About That IED...
...now give back part of your enlistment bonus. We are not talking about deserters or guys who couldn't hack basic training. We are talking enlistees who fought and were injured being pursued for money.
Fox was seriously injured when a roadside bomb blew up his vehicle. He was knocked unconscious. His back was injured and lost all vision in his right eye.
A few months later Fox was sent home. His injuries prohibited him from fulfilling three months of his commitment. A few days ago, he received a letter from the military demanding nearly $3,000 of his signing bonus back.
Do any of you think the government should be after these funds?
(Hat Tip: TPM)
Bush, Cheney, Rove and Card Skated, Scooter's Sentence Commuted
What's new from the No Accountability Gang?
- ".....It was not true. I had unknowingly passed along false information. And five of the highest ranking officials in the administration were involved in my doing so: Rove, Libby, the vice president, the president's chief of staff, and the president himself," McClellan said in an excerpt released on Tuesday.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
|
I don't know if anyone else is watching this show...
...but you haven't already, you really should check out "Chuck".
Very funny, great writing, great acting, and plenty of other really good stuff.
Here's a clip from the pilot episode...
Monday, November 19, 2007
The most vexing aspect of the modern conservative movement...
Imagine an auto mechanic who hates cars.
Imagine a lactose intolerant ice cream man.
Imagine if the guy who cleans the top of the Brooklyn Bridge was afraid of heights.
Imagine a vegetarian butcher.
Now, imagine a politician who makes a career in government and proclaims to HATE government and whose only motivation is to make it less efficient, less accessible, less transparent and less helpful.
Why would anyone make a career as part of an organization that they hope disappears?
Sunday, November 18, 2007
I've now felt 0.0000001% of the pain my wife felt...
...and alas, just as in her case, it was waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay worth it!
Friday, November 16, 2007
In continuing praise of Joe Walsh...
I mean, how do you not just love this guy? Great guitar player, unique voice, just an all-around goofy S.O.B....
Here he is with The Eagles doing "In The City".
TRIVIA: On what 1979 movie's soundtrack was this song featured? Hint: It played over the closing credits of the flick...
Enjoy your weekend!
Best of luck on the Week 11 NFL picks!
You guys have been really great at keeping up with the picks so far. Last week, Talley kicked the holy shit out of all the rest of us, so let's see if he's still got the hot hand.
FYI, since most of us have missed a week here and there, I'm going to do an average of the weeks that everyone participated in to decide a winner after Week 17.
Fair enough?
Thursday, November 15, 2007
|
|
A Band That Sounds Like No Other
Nominate some bands that sound like nobody else....I'll get you started:
Steely Dan
Rush
Yes
(Old) Genesis
...send in your nominations - or objections to mine. Let's hear it.
Editor's Note: Queen is the greatest band of all-time. No other opinions matter. Per your question, I'll also go with Primus. Find me one band that sounds even remotely like them...
--Brian
Add This to the Asterisk, Futher-Mucker
I look forward to seeing the rest of the names. Get 'em all. Bonds is a cheating, lying prick and is getting his now.
- Celzic nails it: The Greeks called it hubris – overweening pride or ambition that offends the gods, who ultimately get their revenge. In India, it’s karma, the things you do piling up for good or evil until the scales are overwhelmed and you fall to your reward or just desserts. In America, we just say what goes around comes around.
I need some rock to make it through a long afternoon...
So I'm going waaaaaaaaaay back for this one...
"Walk Away" by The James Gang
Reduced Violence Is Good...
But if Iraqi's aren't going to use the opportunity to make political progress - meaning they have to compromise with each other - then why are we there?
- CAMP LIBERTY, Iraq - Senior military commanders here now portray the intransigence of Iraq's Shiite-dominated government as the key threat facing the U.S. effort in Iraq, rather than al-Qaeda terrorists, Sunni insurgents or Iranian-backed militias.
- Indeed, some U.S. Army officers now talk more sympathetically about former insurgents than they do about their ostensible allies in the Shiite-led central government.
Editor's Note: The "if we leave it will blow up" argument has always rung hollow because President Bush has maintained from day one that if the Iraqis asked us to leave, we would do so immediately, irrespective of potential consequences...
--Brian
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
|
Anyone care to defend Blackwater today?
Granted, it's getting harder and harder to do, but I'm sure at least some of you pro-private military cats are still on board...
Blackwater Worldwide supports "stringent accountability" for any wrongdoing, a spokeswoman says following a report saying federal investigators found that the shooting deaths of at least 14 Iraqi civilians by its guards violated rules of deadly force.Fairly damning stuff, no?
The New York Times cited unidentified civilian and military officials in reporting for Wednesday's editions that the killings of at least 14 of the 17 Iraqi civilians shot by Blackwater personnel guarding a U.S. Embassy convoy were found to have been unjustified and violated standards in place governing the use of deadly force.
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Mukasey Takes on Cleaning Up the Gonzales-Bush Mess at Justice?
We shall see...
- The 34-year-old lawyer who holds the job, Rachel K. Paulose, is routinely described by colleagues in Minneapolis and Washington as representative of much that went wrong at the department under Alberto R. Gonzales, the former attorney general. During his tenure, several United States attorneys were replaced with lawyers, like Ms. Paulose, who had relatively little experience as prosecutors or managers but were considered fiercely loyal to the Bush administration.
- She has also alienated much of the state’s Congressional delegation, including Senator Norm Coleman, a Republican who endorsed her nomination last year. Mr. Coleman said in a statement that in a recent meeting, he asked Mr. Mukasey, who was sworn in Friday as attorney general, to give priority to reviewing the operations of the Minnesota office.
If she is fired, there will be cries of "witch hunt". Let it be so. Fierce political loyalty is no substitute for competence. Or honesty (Think Rudy and Kerik).
Monday, November 12, 2007
Aw....What's 5 Million E-Mails Between Friends?
- A federal judge Monday ordered the White House to preserve copies of all its e-mails, a move that Bush administration lawyers had argued strongly against.
- The judge's order "should stop any future destruction of e-mails, but the White House stopped archiving its e-mail in 2003 and we don't know if some backup tapes for those e-mails were already taped over before we went to court. It's a mystery," said Meredith Fuchs, a lawyer for the National Security Archive.
Homophobia in America/NC/Baptist Church
Old time protestants are as bad as the Vatican when it comes to tolerance.
The Chinese Want A Few Carriers
Let them invest billions in the past for symbolic reasons. By the time they build a few, buy, train and field a couple of airwings, they will have spent tens of billions on an anachronism. By 2020 the US will be relying on carriers a lot less. Think UAV's and precision guided missiles from smaller surface combatants and subs. Note that the Chinese public is more enthusiastic about the carriers than the Chinse military.
- "We said to them, essentially, 'Knock yourselves out. It ain't as easy as it looks,' " Adm. Timothy J. Keating, the head of the U.S. Pacific Command, said in July. "They acknowledged that and said, 'We reserve the right to develop aircraft carriers if we so choose.' They said to us there is no more prominent and visible signal of a nation's resolve and might than an aircraft carrier coming into a port."
The Second Amendment Question
The Supreme Court has never answered the Second Amendment question directly, and it has been nearly 70 years since the court even approached it obliquely.Even though both sides are urging the court to hear the case, it is not a given that the justices will accept the invitation. On the polarized court, that might depend on whether justices who feel strongly on either side can be confident of prevailing. It might also depend on the justices’ collective appetite for injecting themselves into a controversy the court has avoided for so long.
...and 75% of them were on PT Cruisers...
So, Virginia is the top offender when it comes to one of the more annoying elements of the American driving experience: The vanity plate.
A state-by-state survey of the popularity of vanity license plates has found that car and truck owners in Virginia are the vainest of them all.What's the most annoying vanity plate you've ever seen?
Out of the 9.3 million personalized plates on the roads of America, about one in 10 are in Virginia, according to rankings provided to The Associated Press by the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators.
That's 16 percent of the plates issued by Virginia. New Hampshire came in second with nearly 14 percent. Illinois had about 13.4 percent, but that amounted to nearly 1.3 million plates, the most of any state.
I'll go with an example that my wife saw on (surprise! surprise!) a BMW: $UCCE$$
Sunday, November 11, 2007
|
Poor Cleveland....
Philly fans like to whine about how they have it so rough. Please...
Try being a Cleveland sports fan. All they do is break your heart in the most gut-wrenching way possible. Today offered the perfect example. Go on the road against the hated Steelers, take a big lead, squander it, get it back in exciting fashion and then blow it again just before missing a game-tying field goal by about a yard.
Philly fans talk about their world title drought since 1983. Well try, 1964. That's the last time a major Cleveland sports team won a world title, that being the Browns. The Indians haven't won the Series since 1948 and the Cavaliers have never won a world title.
More painful than anything for the Cleveland fan is how their teams lose.
Take a look at the Indians....They go 100-44 in 1995 but lose the Series in 6 games to the Braves, who always choked against everyone else they played. Cleveland had the best offense in baseball but lost Game 6, 1-0. Indians had the best record again a year later but lost in the first round to the Orioles, appropriately in heart-breaking fashion as Roberto Alomar hit a 12th-inning home run in the clincher.
A year later they were three outs from winning it all but Florida tied it in the bottom of the ninth and won in extras. A year later the Indians led New York 2-1 in the ALCS before losing the next three games. A year later, Cleveland led Boston 2-0 in the first round before losing the final three games, the fifth at home after taking a big early lead. In 2001, the Indians led Seattle 2-1 in the first round and lost the last two games. And of course there is this past season where the Indians led Boston 3-1, then lost the next three and watched the Red Sox sweep their way to a world title.
How about the Browns? First, there was 1980. The Browns trailed the underdog Raiders 14-12 in frigid Cleveland in the divisional playoffs but drove deep into Oakland territory in the final minute and needed only a field goal to go to the AFC championship. So naturally, Brian Sipe throws an interception in the end zone a play before they were to kick that field goal. The Raiders then went on to win the super bowl.
In 1985, the Browns led Miami 21-3 in the divisional playoffs...they lost 24-21. A year later there was The Drive. Cleveland led 20-13 with about five minutes to go and Denver had the ball at the 2. So of course, Elway took them right down the field and tied the game before Denver won it in overtime.
A year later the Browns rallied from 21-3 and 28-10 second-half deficits to tie it at 31-31. They then give up a go-ahead touchdown but drive right back down the field. Ernest Byner had been great all day and was on his way to a short touchdown run when out of nowhere Jeremiah Castille forces a fumble and the Broncos win.
A year later, the Browns rallied from down 23-7 to beat the Oilers in the final regular-season game to clinch a playoff spot...and then a week later they lost at home to those same Oilers, 24-23.
Fast forward to 2002. The Browns go into Pittsburgh and take a 24-7 second-half lead...and then watch Pittsburgh make frantic fourth-quarter comeback and win by a field goal. Fittingly, Cleveland drove into field goal territory on their last drive but time ran out before they could attempt a game-tying kick.
Then there was today.
And even the Cavs have tortured their fans at times. Anyone remember 1989? That's when the Cavs had the second best record in the East and hosted the sixth-seeded Bulls. The Cavs fought back from a 2-1 first-round deficit and were three seconds from winning. Cue Michael Jordan draining the game-winner that is replayed over and over and over again over Craig Ehlo.
So stop whining Philly fans. You could have it much worse. You could be a Cleveland fan...
Nice Win
31-20
UPDATE: Any team whose nickname is "Big Blue" deserves to lose any and every game they play while wearing red jerseys...
--Brian
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Ohio St. Goes Down
-
Last season, the undefeated and untested Buckeyes got blown away by Florida in the national title game. This season, the undefeated and untested Buckeyes’ flop came sooner and perhaps in an even more spectacular fashion. Behind a relentless defense and four touchdown passes by the erratic quarterback Isiah Williams, unranked Illinois stunned the Buckeyes, 28-21, before 105,453 at Ohio Stadium.
Displacement, Not Repatriation, is What is Happening
The scale of the overall displacement is unprecedented in the modern history of the Middle East. There are now an estimated four million Iraqis who have been forced to flee their homes, and the numbers continue to rise, according to the UN refugee agency.
- The huge displacement of people inside Iraq appears to be contributing to the further fragmentation of the country.
Kaine is Able
Take note, national Democrats:
- That may well keep the Democratic tide rolling through 2008. But facing a president who shows little interest in making deals with them -- and harboring doubts about whether such a strategy could work anyway -- congressional Democrats are unlikely to join their state colleagues in finding deliverance in nonpartisan problem-solving. Washington is not yet ready for the Tim Kaine model, even if the country is.
What Do Most of the Retiring Members of Congress Have in Common?
Senate (5)
Wayne Allard, R-Colo.
Larry E. Craig, R-Idaho
Pete V. Domenici, R-N.M.
Chuck Hagel, R-Neb.
John W. Warner, R-Va.
House (19)
Tom Allen, D-Maine, (1st District), running for Senate
Barbara Cubin, R-Wyo. (At Large)
Terry Everett, R-Ala. (2nd District)
J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill. (14th District)
David L. Hobson, R-Ohio (7th District)
Duncan Hunter, R-Calif., (52nd District), running for president
Ray LaHood, R-Ill. (18th District)
Michael R. McNulty, D-N.Y. (21st District)
Steve Pearce, R-N.M. (2nd District), running for Senate
Charles W. “Chip” Pickering Jr., R-Miss. (3rd District)
Deborah Pryce, R-Ohio (15th District)
Jim Ramstad, R-Minn. (3rd District)
Ralph Regula, R-Ohio (16th District)
Rick Renzi, R-Ariz. (1st District)
H. James Saxton, R-N.J. (3rd District)
Tom Tancredo, R-Colo (6th District), running for president
Mark Udall, D-Colo., (2nd District), running for Senate
Jerry Weller, R-Ill. (11th District)
Heather A. Wilson, R-N.M. (1st District), running for Senate
Friday, November 9, 2007
|
|
46,000 Stream in, Only After 2.1 million Have Fled
While an Iraqi General attributed the rare influx of Iraqis to an “improving security situation”, the "influx" comes at the same time comes
- ...as Iraq’s neighbors, particularly Syria and Jordan, have tightened their borders to Iraqis fleeing the turmoil in their own country. Syria is home to at least 1.2 million Iraqi refugees, and Jordan has about 750,000. Many of those Iraqis are living in limbo, unable to work and running out of whatever money they were able to bring out of Iraq.
Bill Richardson blasts Senators running for President for skipping AG vote...
I'm glad he's jumping on this because, as I've mentioned before, it pisses me off to no end when elected officials shirk their duties while seeking other office.
"Judge Mukasey disqualified himself by refusing to acknowledge what the world has known for centuries: that waterboarding is torture and torture of any kind violates U.S. and international law. Alarmingly, Judge Mukasey already has shown a startling willingness to allow politics to influence his opinion regarding one of the most basic American principles -- human rights.Amen...
"The Attorney General is responsible for steadfastly defending the Constitution and implementing the laws of the land, without exception or equivocation. What should have been an easy question to answer-- waterboarding is torture, and torture is illegal-- was not easy for Judge Mukasey, who chose instead to dodge. His actions speak volumes. His answer was unacceptable, and he is unacceptable as the Attorney General of the United States. The Senate could have rejected this nomination with a filibuster. By showing up and speaking out, Senators Biden, Clinton, Dodd, and Obama might well have stopped his confirmation. Instead, they chose to sit on the sidelines and watch history pass them by.
The Gold-Digger Loses Her Lawyers, Too
This comes after her spokesperson quit because she cannot keep her whining mouth shut.
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Sue me, I still love this song...
Sure, Robbie Williams is a pompous little English jackass, but it doesn't change the fact that this is a fantastic pop tune...
"Tripping"
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
God bless Barney Frank...
He has more passion and more heart than just about any other member of Congress.
As one of only two openly gay members of Congress, he's uniquely qualified to lead the fight against discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Today, he, 199 other Democrats and 35 Republicans succeeded in passing the Employee Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in the House of Representatives.
ENDA's purpose is simple: To prevent gay and lesbian employees from being fired due to their sexual orientation.
Conservatives in the House tried to paint this act of decency as an infringement on religious freedom and traditional marriage (it's neither, and they know it), and failed miserably. I'm truly saddened by the fact that so many Democrats (25 of them, including Heath Shuler and Mike McIntyre from here in North Carolina) used their votes to allow blatant discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Nevertheless, cheers to you, Barney. I wish all the rest of your Congressional compatriots had your spine...
P.S. You can check out Barney's emotional floor speech here...
Editor's Note: Haloscan seems to be firewalled for me now, so I'll have to comment by adding my $.02 directly to your comments, so look for the "Edited by Siteowner" tag. Sorry about that...
Obama Offers A Tax Change Proposal
I like it for the most part, but want to see the pay-for. I'd personally start with repealing the disingenuous Cheney-Bush tax break for the richest of us back in '01. Remember how they crowed about a $5.6 trillion surplus coming over 10 years? I like Obama's proposal except for the 10% tax credit on mortgage interest payments. They are already deductible - why increase the subsidy (by about 3X) by making it a credit? We are over-housed at the same time that we are under-educated as a nation. I'd continue the pay-for theme by discontinuing the tax detectability of second or third homes or homes valued at over $1 million (for the amount of interest above the 1 mil). More pay-for needed? Probably so. It will need work. But a good plan overall and a decent re-prioritization of our tax code.
If You Were China..,
Wouldn't you look to have less of your reserves invested in a weak currency? I would. This is really bad news for the US. China lends us about $400 billion a year by buying our T-bills. They were fine to continue that until our fiscal policies and trade deficit drove the dollar to its new depths. If they decide to even moderately move away from dollar-denominated investments, the fall in the greenback and our economy could be precipitous. The housing market be damned.....better a recession than the long term consequences of a big dollar-dive. Bernanke needs to raise rates to ease the dollars' slide.
Contractor Accountability. Finally.
- A federal judge in Washington ruled yesterday that a civil lawsuit alleging abuse and torture at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq can go forward against a U.S. military contractor, setting the stage for what could be the first case in a U.S. civilian court to weigh accountability for the notorious abuses in 2003.
- "A military contractor is going to have to think twice about the arrangements it works out with the government when it is brought in to play a role the military has typically played," said David Remes, a Washington lawyer who has represented Guantanamo Bay detainees.
Buy An Extra Christmas Card This Year
Send it to: A Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue,NW
Washington,D.C. 20307-5001
Think what you want about the war and the President who got us into it. (I do.) But don't forget or discount the sacrifices these folks make. Even those not killed or wounded give up a hell of a lot. Remember them...
Don't call him a moderate...
You can call Rudy Giuliani a lot of things, but from this day forward don't ever call him a moderate. Not when he's getting this kind of endorsement...
Pat Robertson, the television evangelist and Christian Coalition founder, endorsed Republican White House hopeful Rudy Giuliani for president when the two men appeared together at the National Press Club in Washington on Wednesday.In a strange twist of events, the guy that can't stop talking about 9/11 now has the support of a man that thinks 9/11 was a well-deserved act of retribution against America by an angry God. He even felt that supporters of abortion rights and gay rights (like Rudy used to be) bore some responsibility for the attacks.
Robertson said he decided to endorse Giuliani because he was "a proven leader who is not afraid of what lies ahead and who will cast a hopeful vision for all Americans."
"In all of the crises which confront our nation and the world, we need a leader with a bold vision who is not afraid to tackle the challenges ahead," Robertson said.
Great company, Rudy...
The Democratic wave is still rolling!
...and it's rolling through a red state near you!Kentucky: Democrat Steve Beshear wiped the floor with corrupt GOP incumbent Ernie Fletcher by a 59%-41% margin. Democrats also won all but two of the statewide races on the ballot in the Bluegrass State.
Virginia: Democrats won their first state Senate majority in 12 years by netting 4 seats. This makes three straight years of big Democratic gains in the Commonwealth.
Mississippi: Democrats won back control of the state Senate.
On a side note, it's good to see Philadelphia is getting a new mayor in Democrat Michael Nutter. John Street has been an embarrassment to the city, and I'm very glad to see him go...
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Let's See If You Can Behave for One Off-Season
Pacman may think his team needs more thugs, but they will have to wait for his thug-ass because he did not take Goodell seriously...Tough shit, thug.
The Strange Bedfellows Politics Makes
The religious right and the environmental left. Love it. Find all the common ground possible. I'm betting the long-term results will be great.
I Gave Him $25 Yesterday
And happy to have done it. I like a guy who likes the Constitution. I like the effect Ron Paul has on even a few in politics. Nomination? No. But even if he plants the seed for influence in either party, I will be gratified. I may send hin another $25.
FOX News on Karzai - the Leader of....Pakistan?
Thank you, Hannity and Colmes for bringing us this "expert." Note some of the books he is credited with...
I'm so done with the '72 Dolphins...
Considering the fact that they are the only major American sports team to ever go undefeated in a season, they are truly a bunch of curmudgeonly old fuckers!
This year, with the Patriots making a serious run at becoming the most dominant team in recent NFL memory, no less than Don Shula himself is insisting that their accomplishments are tainted by their Week 1 spying controversy...
This year, with the Patriots making a serious run at becoming the most dominant team in recent NFL memory, no less than Don Shula himself is insisting that their accomplishments are tainted by their Week 1 spying controversy...
"The Spygate thing has diminished what they've accomplished. You would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They've got it," Shula told the Daily News yesterday. "Belichick was fined $500,000, the team was fined $250,000 and they lost a first-round draft choice. That tells you the seriousness or significance of what they found.
"I guess you got the same thing as putting an asterisk by Barry Bonds' home run record. I guess it will be noted that the Patriots were fined and a No.1 draft choice was taken away during that year of accomplishment. The sad thing is Tom Brady looks so good, it doesn't look like he needs any help."
Come on, Don. You're one of the greatest coaches in NFL history and no one can take that away from you.
Settle down...
Monday, November 5, 2007
Rudy Giuliani: A Truly Narcissistic MF'er...
Since the beginning of the presidential campaign, Rudy has claimed to have single-handedly removed the Mafia from New York City and even had the audacity to include himself as a worker at Ground Zero, but now he's gone so far as to liken his old gig as mayor of NYC to that of an all-powerful protector/commander-in-chief...
"One of the key differences between me and all my opponents is I've had the safety and security of 8 million people on my shoulders. Being continually tested in crisis situations gives me the credibility and experience to control our borders."Now, I know Raleigh is a much smaller city than New York, but at no time have I ever felt that my security lies in the hands of Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker.
The prevailing media outlets once (incorrectly) labeled Al Gore a "serial exaggerator" and John Kerry a "flip-flopper".
How long will it be until those same outlets realize that Rudy Giuliani is the living embodiment of both of those perjoratives?
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Musharraf's motivation for suspending Pakistan's constitution sounds awfully familiar...
Stop me if you've heard this one before...
The general, dressed in civilian clothes, quoted Lincoln, citing the former president’s suspension of some rights during the American Civil War as justification for his own state of emergency.He's paranoid about terrorism and judicial activism...and he has nukes...
He accused the country’s Supreme Court of releasing 61 men who he said were under investigation for terrorist activities. “Judicial activism,” he said, had demoralized the security forces, hurt the fight against terrorism and slowed the spread of democracy. “Obstacles are being created in the way of democratic process,” he said, “I think for vested, personal interests, against the interest of the country.”
That's comforting...
One for the insomniac in you...
...because right about now, I feel like I've got a "Black Flag" on my brain...
Here's King's X...
Saturday, November 3, 2007
With friends like these...
...I think you know the rest...
President Gen. Pervez Musharraf suspended Pakistan's constitution and deployed troops in the capital Saturday, declaring that rising Islamic extremism had forced him to take emergency measures. He also replaced the nation's chief justice and blacked out the independent media that refused to support him.In other words, the Bush Administration is asking Musharraf to reinstate Pakistan's constitution, but won't do shit if he doesn't.
Authorities began rounding up opposition politicians, cut phone lines in Islamabad and took all but state television off air despite calls from Washington and other Western allies not to take authoritarian measures.
The U.S. called for Musharraf to restore democracy. However, the Pentagon said the emergency declaration does not affect U.S. military support for Pakistan and its efforts in the war on terrorism. Britain said it was deeply concerned.
Steely resolve, there...
We Get the Government We Deserve
George Bush talking about fiscal discipline is in itself an oxymoron. At the same time he vetoes just his fifth bill since his first election (which he won 5-4), Dubya is talking about the bill "lacking fiscal discipline". And he is correct. It's just that he's also a hypocrite. He is simultaneously asking for almost $200 billion in off-budget "emergency" spending for a war we have been fighting for over 4 years now. I am not letting the Democratic Congress off here either. This group came in promising to follow PAYGO. How has that worked out? PAYGO has again become a four-letter word on the Hill. Nobody is REALLY interested in fiscal discipline because it is a really hard sell with voters, most of whom are idiots. Regardless of party. Thus the first likely over-ride of a veto comes about as biparitsan porksters unite to "save the earmarks". Bringing home the pork gets rewarded with votes, fiscal discipline gets rewarded with ouster from office.
We collectively get the government we deserve. As a result, our children will inherit a government burdened by more more and more debt. They deserve better.
Ever had a full-scale cereal addiction?
At 30 years of age, I'm being controlled by an addiction more powerful than heroin, cocaine, and Mallomars combined...
I spent much of my childhood hopped up on Apple Jacks. In college, my tastes matured and I got hooked on Kellogg's Raisin Bran. Now, I'm gripped by something far more sinister.
Save yourselves...
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Don't Blame the New Owners...
...of Chrysler for the loss of many jobs. The root of the problem is that Chrysler makes a crappy product.
If I Can't Have a Waterboarder
...then I don't want an Attorney General. So seems to say our Doofus-In-Chief. Keep in mind, however, that it will take only one Democratic Senator on the Committee to see that his nomination is forwarded to the floor of the Senate, where he is likely to be confirmed. Even if all Committee Dems vote against, it could still go to the full Senate. It is a surprise that this nomination is in trouble. And a great disappointment that that Mukasey decided on a lawerly dodge on waterboarding.
A Surging Success
When attacks on coalition forces drop, the right and much of the MSM claim it is the result of the surge's success. It may well be. But when attacks on Iraqis rise in the same timeframe, does the military say that the surge is not working or even acknowledge the rise? No. It is always a good-news story and its just those damned liberals and their media lap-dogs making it seem at though Iraq is a basket case. It couldn't actually be true! Could it?
I Hope They Force These Haters to Pay The Fine
A fundamentalist Kansas “church” notorious for protesting at the funerals of troops killed in Iraq was ordered Wednesday to pay $10.9 million in damages to the father of a fallen Marine.
The Westboro Baptist Church believes that U.S. deaths in the Iraq war are punishment for the nation's tolerance of homosexuality and appeared last year at the funeral for Marine Lance Cpl. Matthew Snyder, bearing signs that read: "Thank God for dead soldiers" and "God hates fags.”
Why didn't anyone warn me about the hallucinations???
Sleep deprivation has caused me to wake up at least once every night since the twins came home terrified that they were in the bed with us being smothered.
And still, here they are...Perfect as ever...
