Image
Demagoguery
"Repetition does not transform a lie into a truth."

Franklin D. Roosevelt


Candidates - Give 'Em $25







Regular Reads
Eschaton
Tapped
Daily Kos
The Liquid List
Matthew Yglesias
Talking Points Memo
Slacktivist
Michael Berube
Political Animal
How Appealing
MaxSpeak, You Listen!
Tbogg
TalkLeft
Rittenhouse Review
Neal Pollack
Suckful
Cursor
John Moltz
Southern Appeal
Nathan Newman
The Poor Man
NRO's "The Corner"
Pandagon
Wonkette
Whiskey Bar
Sugar, Mr. Poon?
Carpetbagger Report
Balkinization
Happy Furry Puppy Story Time w/ Norbizness


Contact Us
Eugene Oregon
Noam Alaska
Helena Montana
Frederick Maryland
Zoe Kentucky
Arnold P. California


Mutual Admiration Society
DCCC's The Stakeholder
Abolish the Death Penalty
Busy Busy Busy
Uggabugga
New American Empire
Staunch Moderate
The Moderate Voice
The Sneaky Rabbit
Acrentropy
The Blue Bus
American Monkey
Restless Mania
Your Right Hand Thief
Naked Furniture
Dimmy Karras
The Department of Louise
Torvus Futurus
HellaFaded
Live From the Nuke Free Zone
Proof Through the Night
No More Apples
Slapnose
PoliGeek
Irrational Bush Hatred
The Slugging Southpaw
I Voted for George
Nosey Online
Donna's Place
Schadenfreude
Resource.full
wordsimageslife
The Bully Pulpit
Lying Socialist Weasels
TJ Griffin
To The Barricades
Omni-Curious
Eat Your Vegetables
Stoutdem
Suddenly Routine
The Story So Far
Skimble
Marstonalia
The Lefty Directory
ZipSix
ReachM High Cowboy Network
John Hoke's Personal Asylum
Riba Rambles
The Bone
Fables of the Reconstruction
The Modulator
Planet Swank
Scoobie Davis Online
Single-Minded
World Phamous
The Good Life
Something's Got To Break
Upside-down Hippopotamus
Damfacrats 2004
The Fulcrum
BeatBushBlog
archy
Yankee From Mississippi
It's A Crock!
Red Wheelbarrow
Apropos of Nothing
Political Parrhesia
The Mahablog
Mousemusings
Restlessgeist
Galois
Muise in Gradland
American Leftist
Political Blog Directory
Boiled Meat
John Costello
Skydiver Salad
The Game & How We Played It
Soupie's BBQ and Daycare
Odd Hours
Nebraska Liberal
The American Street
Bluegrassroots
Approximately Perfect


If you have linked to us and don't see your name, please send us an e-mail and we'll add you.


Recommendations
















Archives:


-- HOME --



This page is powered by Blogger. Why isn't yours?
Saturday, March 29, 2003


You Say Tomato

Non Sequitur nails is.

posted by Eugene Oregon at 4:31 PM




My Apologies For ... You Know ... Whatever

The (South Dakota) Rapid City Journal is reporting that Tom Daschle now believes that the statement he made two weeks ago in which he claimed that President Bush "failed so miserably at diplomacy that we're forced to war" was "ill-timed." He is quoted as saying
"I don't think the timing of those comments was necessarily the best. I think they could have been better timed. I had no idea when I said them what the timing of the military operation would be."


As reported in the article, Daschle made his "failed diplomacy" comment on the morning on March 17. That evening, Bush delivered a speech (followed by his ridiculously scripted press conference) in which he gave Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave Iraq. So why is Daschle now offering this pseudo-apology?

Clearly he has received intense criticism from Republicans like Dennis Hastert, who essentially accused Daschle of treason, and various Republican hacks - but why is he backtracking? Was it Daschle's fault that Bush's failed (or totally nonexistent) diplomacy led him to begin the countdown to war on the same day Daschle leveled his criticism? The entire point of Daschle's remark was that Bush's blatant indifference regarding the reservations or objections of our allies and the United Nation had placed the world on the brink of war. And, as if to prove exactly that point, that same night Bush told the world that we were now on the brink of war. As such, it seems that Daschle's remark was particularly well-timed. When exactly does Daschle think would have been a better time to make this point - after the war is over?

The only thing "ill-timed" about his remark was that it came too late. Perhaps if he and other Democratic leaders had been saying things like this during the 6 months in which Bush was actively failing diplomatically, these American soldiers and these Iraqi civilians wouldn't be dead.

posted by Eugene Oregon at 4:10 PM


Friday, March 28, 2003


Beating Swords into Cellphones

We've been told that we're at war to liberate the Iraqi people, to root out weapons of mass destruction, and even to trigger a chain reaction of democracy throughout the Middle East. However, discussion of the profit motive has generally been kept under wraps, at least by the administration. This piece from today's Wall Street Journal (sadly, accessible only to WSJ subscribers) shows how some are chomping at the bit to cash in on the war and screw the French--and, perhaps the Iraqis--while they're at it:

"A lobbying fight over which mobile-phone technology should be established in a postwar Iraq has raised questions about whether that nation's anticipated reconstruction will be carried out in the best interests of its people, or of well-connected U.S. companies.

"Looking to capitalize on discord between the U.S. and some European allies over the decision to invade, one congressman has demanded that planners opt for a technology developed by a U.S. company -- although it might be less suited to the needs of Iraqis.

"The U.S. Agency for International Development is planning to rebuild Iraq's aging and war-torn telephone system, as part of a broader reconstruction effort. The agency is expected to propose spending more than $1 billion on the telecommunications project, much of it underwritten by U.S. taxpayers....

"One of the first battles to emerge is over rival mobile-phone technologies. Qualcomm Inc. and Lucent Technologies Inc. are pressing for a wireless standard called CDMA.

"Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif.), whose district is near Qualcomm's San Diego headquarters, said he had 41 co-sponsors for legislation he introduced Thursday backing CDMA in any taxpayer-financed rebuilding efforts. In letters to USAID and fellow lawmakers, he said the government tentatively had planned to use GSM, a rival system widely used in the Middle East, Europe and increasingly in the U.S.

"Mr. Issa dismissed the GSM technology as 'developed by the French.'....nearly all the wireless networks in the rest of the Middle East use GSM; because the two networks aren't compatible, an Iraqi using a CDMA phone likely wouldn't be able to make a call if they traveled elsewhere in the region."



posted by Noam Alaska at 9:56 PM




Who Needs the UN?

British forces seeking to "liberate" Basra may actually be making areas around the city less safe.

Apparently as the British push north toward Baghdad, they are leaving in their wake a dangerous power vacuum. The police forces in the villages in the area have disintegrated and the troops have been confiscating the villager's weapons. Thieves and bandits, on the other hand, are keeping their weapons and using them to steal, loot, hijack and all-around terrorize local residents, who are understandably upset that the British troops are not protecting them. But, in their defense, the British aren't necessarily there to keep the peace.

As one "Desert Rat" put it "I'm getting pissed off about it, really This is getting to be peacekeeping duty, like in Bosnia and Kosovo. I came here to fight a war."

It really makes you wish there was some group we could send into a situation like this.

posted by Eugene Oregon at 4:10 PM




Mugabe and the Jewel of Africa

Friday afternoon's a fine time for ambling 'round the Internet. One moment you read about vodka batteries, the next you find an insightful article by one of your favorite novelists. And an extra bonus, it's actually relevant to previous posts.

"You have the jewel of Africa in your hands," said President Samora Machel of Mozambique and President Julius Nyerere of Tanzania to Robert Mugabe, at the moment of independence, in 1980. "Now look after it."

Twenty-three years later, the "jewel" is ruined, dishonored, disgraced.

The sublime Ms. Lessing, who knows a thing or two about Africa, writes a very worthy piece in The New York Review of Books. This falls squarely in the category of Things the Left Should Examine About Itself. In fact, if it could replace some of the more inane Nader-bashing floating around we might actually learn something. (And by that I mean: critique Nader all you want. I do. But enough with the intimations that all Nader voters are responsible for Bush.)

posted by Helena Montana at 3:49 PM




Bleeding Boundaries

Next stop-- Syria.

"Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld issued a stern warning to Syria on Friday to stop sending military equipment to Iraqi forces, saying such shipments have included night-vision goggles. "We consider such trafficking as hostile acts and will hold the Syrian government responsible for the incidents," Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon briefing.

"There's no question but that to the extent that military supplies or equipment or people are moving across the borders between Iraq and Syria, it vastly complicates our situation," Rumsfeld said."


Hey Syria, you might want to keep those night-vision goggles for your own future use.



posted by Zoe Kentucky at 3:48 PM




The Disagreeable Miss M

As right-wing harpies go, Ann Coulter may get more attention (in fact, she was recently chosen by The New York Press as one of the 50 Most Loathesome New Yorkers), but she has real competition in Michelle Malkin.

Malkin occupies a unique niche in the winger firmament--a bigot who is also the daughter of immigrants. That's legal immigrants, mind you, as she points out in the opening pages of her xenophobic screed, Invasion: How America Still Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores.

After reading Malkin for any length of time, her m.o. becomes apparant: comment on one of the important issues of the day, being sure to couch it in racial terms. In her latest column, for example, Malkin takes aim at White House Press Corps veteran, Helen Thomas. According to Malkin, Thomas should be ashamed for pointing out the hypocrisy of the White House's stand on the Geneva Convention, namely that the United States expects Iraq to abide by international agreements in its treatment of U.S. prisoners of war, but that the U.S. is under no such restrictions in its treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay. Malkin sees no contradiction here, experiences no cognitive dissonance, because to her, American lives are more valuable than those from other countries. U.S. troops are, as she puts it, "our men and women (yes, Helen, I said 'our')" while the Guantanamo detainees are all terrorists. Never mind that allegations of terrorist intent by the detainees remain unproven, even by military tribunals.

A recent Malkin piece on Jesica Santillan, the immigrant teen who died after doctors mistakenly transplanted organs of the wrong blood type, is even more disgusting. As Malkin sees it, the real issue here is not the doctors' tragic mistake. Rather, it's the fact that an illegal immigrant got an organ donation in the first place: "When resources are scarce, as the supply of voluntarily donated organs notoriously are, why shouldn't U.S. citizens get top priority?" Malkin is too busy urging INS to send Jesica and her family back to Mexico to note that American citizens are more likely to benefit from organs donated by noncitizens than the other way around.

Malkin and her "my family immigrated legally, so I can heap as much hateful scorn on illegal immigrants as I want" crap is wearing as thin as David Horowitz's "I used to hang out with the Black Panthers, so I can feel free to blather on ad nauseum about the evils of the Left" routine.

posted by Noam Alaska at 3:12 PM




Piggybacking on Lawrence v. Texas

You know that you have the anti-gay zealots over a barrel when they start making the argument before the Supreme Court that having sexual relations with someone of the same sex does not mean that someone is somehow, well, you know, that way.

[From Dahlia] "Charles A. Rosenthal Jr. is the district attorney from Harris County, Texas, and it falls upon him to produce some rational reason for the Texas anti-sodomy law. He runs aground when he tries to argue that the two homosexuals caught doing homosexual things in this case may not actually be homosexual."

I know that sexual identity is tricky terrain, especially for those who view the world through two-dimensional spectacles,
but one must wonder if Mr. Rosenthal is familiar with the "new" concept of bisexuality.

















posted by Zoe Kentucky at 2:53 PM




No possible segue exists for this one

Hold onto your hats. We may be overrun with inept thuggish heads of state, but there is hope. An enzyme-catalysed battery has been created that could one day run cell phones and laptop computers on shots of vodka.

Yes, that's right people...a battery that runs on vodka.

God bless America, the fine scientists at Energy Related Devices, and the city of New Orleans for hosting the announcement of this epic scientific breakthrough.

And if that doesn't prove the worthiness of being a science geek, check out the related links posted on the vodka story.
Food scraps could help power homes.
Sewage could be transformed into clean hydrogen fuel.
And your sweater could power your MP3 player, mobile phone or palmtop computer via solar power.

The future is now...



posted by Helena Montana at 2:38 PM




Somebody Got It Wrong

Writing for the American Prospect, E.J. Graff says that, during oral arguments in Lawrence v. Texas, Justice Breyer cracked something of a joke by demanding "to know why the homosexual-conduct law exists, asking if the rational was little more than 'I do not like this, Sam I Am'?"

Meanwhile, Slate's Dahlia Lithwick claims that Breyer actually wanted to know was if "the whole justification for this law can be reduced to 'I do not like thee Dr. Fell/ The reason why I cannot tell.'"

Even at the Supreme Court, eyewitness testimony does not seem to be very reliable.

Update 3/31/03 - The American Prospect has since corrected this quote

posted by Eugene Oregon at 12:52 PM




LaHaye emphemera

He lost a lawsuit against the film company the made the first two Left Behind movies. HA ha!

The bad news: the company president says he looks forward "to making future Left Behind films, television programming and films based on the Left Behind: The Kid's series." Can't blame a girl for hoping.

posted by Helena Montana at 11:54 AM




An Unintended Consequence of a War on Drugs

The Guardian is reporting that the police crackdown following the assassination of Serbian prime minister Zoran Djindjic has sent illegal drug prices soaring and forced many addicts to seek medical help, overwhelming Serbia's only clinic.

I'll bet nobody saw that coming.

posted by Eugene Oregon at 11:47 AM




Domestic attacks

Most of us know a lot of this, but it sure is nice to have all this crazy crapola in a centralized location. TomPaine puts together all the newsy pieces to expose how Bushie and friends are cramming dungheaps of horrible legislation through congressional channels as fast as they can while everyone is looking the other way.

I know it's an old, tired, and overused saying-- but if you aren't outraged then you aren't paying attention.

[Pulling out my wallet to make a meager donation to support TomPaine.]


posted by Zoe Kentucky at 11:14 AM




(stay the hell) Out of Africa

The New York Times is reporting that Zimbabwean President/thug Robert Mugabe has begun violently repressing those who have been protesting and striking as they demand that he restore the freedom of the press, release political prisoners and disband government militias, among other things. Not surprisingly, Mugabe, whose recent election was "marred by charges of fraud and intimidation" (journalist-speak for "totally fraudulent, illegitimate and illegal") has dismissed these demands and instead chosen to beat and/or kill his opposition instead.

But even more frightening than his violent and irresponsible policies is the rhetoric he uses to defend himself. It is reported that last week, Mugabe said:

"I am still the Hitler of the time. This Hitler has only one objective, justice for his own people, sovereignty for his people, recognition of the independence of his people, and their right to their resources. If that is Hitler, then let me be a Hitler tenfold. Ten times, that is what we stand for."


posted by Eugene Oregon at 11:02 AM




Speaking of Crazy Christian Cult Leaders ...

According to a report released today by Human Rights Watch, Ugandan rebels known as the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) have abducted and enslaved nearly 5000 children since June 2002.

The LRA is led by Joseph Kony, a religious fanatic who aims to establish a government based on the Ten Commandments. Kony is purported to be a distant cousin of Alice Lakwena, herself the leader of the Christian cult/guerrilla army known as the Holy Spirit Movement. Kony served in the Movement under Lakwena who promised her followers that by anointing themselves with holy water they would be protected from enemy bullets and that the rocks they threw would become grenades. When the movement was crushed by the Ugandan army in the late 1980's, Lakwena fled to Kenya, while Kony emerged as the leader of what is now the Lord's Resistance Army.

Kony is thought to have upwards of 32 wives and sometimes dresses in women's clothes while delivering bizarre, day-long sermons to his troops. For their part, his troops rarely engage in battle with the Ugandan army, preferring to raid Northern Ugandan villages instead. During their rampages, they routinely kill or maim anyone found riding a bicycle and slice off the lips and ears of those unfortunate enough to cross their path. In order to maintain itself, the LRA is forced to kidnap children to serve as soldiers, laborers and slaves who then, in turn, are sent out to abduct more children.

The LRA recently stated that it was prepared to participate in a cease fire, but their raids have not stopped - nor have the abductions. One abducted child describes his experience:

I was with the LRA for six months and during this time many abductees escaped. Not all were so lucky. One boy tried to escape and was caught, tied up, and marched back to camp. All the recruits from the various companies were told that we were never going home, that we were fighting now with the LRA so as a symbol of our pledge to fight on, this boy would be killed and we would help. Soldiers then laid the boy on the ground and stabbed him three times with a bayonet until the blood began seeping from the wounds. Then the new recruits approached the boy and beat him on the chest. Each one had a turn and could only stop once the blood from the body splashed up on to you. This boy was sixteen years old. We were beating him with sticks, each recruit was given a stick.


posted by Eugene Oregon at 9:56 AM




Oil and Water Alert

...or perhaps napalm and match would be a better analogy. Building on Eugene's point about the tenacity of Islamic extremism in Pakistan, I'll ante up with another dose of anxiety.

TPM pulled up a Beliefnet story on Franklin Graham's plans for the Iraqi people's "post-war physical and spiritual needs."

Note to all the other religiously-based relief groups out there: don't let this yahoo get on the ground first. Graham has toned down his unseemly anti-Islam comments, no doubt counting on the public's teeny tiny attention span to forget that he called Islam a "very evil and wicked religion."

And, oh yes, If you read further down in the story you'll see that the Southern Baptist Convention is raring to go as well. I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that adding to the religious extremist quotient in the region will not help bring about peace. But what am I worried about? These guys are as expert on foreign policy as they are on the nature of God. I mean, if Richard Land tells American Christians to stop worrying about whether Muslims think America is anti-Islam, I should be reassured, right?

posted by Helena Montana at 9:54 AM




Spineless donkeys braying about war (sort of)

Howard Dean to John Kerry, "To this day I don't know what John Kerry's position is. If you agree with the war, then say so. If you don't agree with the war, then say so, but don't try to wobble around in between."

Kerry's people said that he will not respond to the question and complained that "Democrats are disappointed that Howard Dean has decided to use a war for political gain and attack other candidates in a negative, divisive and personal way."



posted by Zoe Kentucky at 9:52 AM




And now for something completely different...for your amusement from our friend Tim LaHaye, the master of merchandising:

For only $19.95 you too can join the Left Behind Prophecy Club! Your urgent questions in these troubled times will be answered, questions such as: "Are ATM's and other revolutions in global banking foretelling of the Mark of the Beast?"

What a great scam, he charges $20 for the first 3 months, then $4 a month is automatically deducted from your credit card from now until armageddon. My two favorite message boards for the oh-so-enlightened club are "Irac and it's relation to prophesy" [sic] and "Can I choose to be left behind?"

I think it's time we all cash in on the ignorance and gullibility of others-- any ideas?

posted by Zoe Kentucky at 9:31 AM




Something That Might Be Noteworthy ...

... if we weren't at war. From the Christian Science Monitor

US forces may have ousted the Taliban regime in Afghanistan more than a year ago, but their influence still permeates across the border in Pakistan's Northwest Frontier province. Last weekend, a new fundamentalist government there announced plans to establish a version of sharia (Islamic law) similar in many ways to the rigid code practiced by the Taliban.

Mullahs representing an alliance of extremist parties, the Muttahida Majlis-e Amal (MMA), have ruled the province since gaining an unprecedented majority in general elections last fall, cresting on a wave of anti-US sentiment following attacks on Afghanistan. Until then, religious leaders always commanded a following in the tribal areas - but had no real decision-making powers.

In some ways, the proposed laws are a diluted version of the sharia practiced by the Taliban. Girls will be required to cover their heads with scarves, but won't need to entirely veil themselves. And rather than banning education for women, the new laws will require separate universities for men and women. Yet many here fear the laws are a prelude to the Taliban's harsher practices.

"It is just a beginning of Talibanization of society. They always did identify with the Taliban ideology, so once the laws are implemented there will be no difference between them, and they will tread the same path as the barbaric mullahs of Afghanistan," says Farzana Bari, a leading rights activist who heads Pattan, a nongovernmental organization in Islamabad.

A shariat council wrote the laws, and a provincial cabinet has already approved them. Ruling fundamentalists say a local assembly will vote on them sometime next month. Because fundamentalists enjoy a two-thirds majority in the house, a vote in favor is probable. Even before the weekend announcement, Islamic militants in Peshawar, the capital city of the frontier, were burning video cassettes and whitewashing signs with female models.



posted by Eugene Oregon at 8:56 AM


Thursday, March 27, 2003


Respecting the Dead?

Apparently Americans are outraged that Iraqi television and Al Jazeera have been airing footage and/or photos of dead American soldiers and POWs. This outrage is understadable. What is confusing is why, if showing such things is so outrageous, the New York Times is running this "Killed in Battle" feature containing several photos of dead Iraqi soldiers.



posted by Eugene Oregon at 9:55 PM




As a nation, if we need to devote an entire day to asking our invisible master for help then we are-- in a nutshell-- royally screwed.

The House passed a resolution today calling for "a national day of humility, prayer and fasting in a time of war and terrorism". The resolution, passed 346-49, says Americans should use the day of prayer "to seek guidance from God to achieve a greater understanding of our own failings and to learn how we can do better in our everyday activities, and to gain resolve in meeting the challenges that confront our nation.""



posted by Zoe Kentucky at 5:24 PM




Inauspicious debut post

U.S. military names temporary refueling facilities in Iraq Camp Shell and Camp Exxon

Budget crunch forces Nevada to stop plans to make death chamber wheelchair-accessible

And all I got was this stupid t-shirt




posted by Helena Montana at 5:04 PM




To me the idea that there are "civilized" rules in war is rather absurd on its face.
So I consulted with my handy-dandy "Rules of Civilized War."

Rule #1: You may kill your enemy as long as you choose an indirect "faceless" method, such as bombing, shooting from far away, or destroying whole villages, cities, countries, etc.*

Rule #2: It is against the rules of war to kill or maim anyone in a more personal way, face-to-face way, say, such as using torture, or assasination.*

Rule #3: Above all, if you chose one of these methods, you are not allowed to take pictures. That would be mean and embarassing.*

*Special exceptions-- if you are the United States then you can do whatever you damn well please. Look how far it got the Romans!

[Sidebar: One of my favorite aspects of the "Coalition of the Willing" are the secret coalition members who are so proud to be in the coalition with us that they are unwilling to publicly say who they are...]

Suffering from Bush fatigue (not the good kind),
heddache





posted by Zoe Kentucky at 4:57 PM




ICC You ... And I Raise a Ruckus

So Ari Fleischer is claiming that Iraqi leaders or soldiers who violate the Geneva Convention will be tried for war crimes:

MR. FLEISCHER: Well, there is no question that there is a body of law that even governs the conduct of war. And as President Bush stated, in the conflict with Iraq war crimes will be prosecuted, war criminals will be punished. And we're seeing a growing pattern of war crimes, war crime violations committed by the Iraqi regime, with the use of human shields; mistreatment of prisoners of war and various acts of perfidy, feigning injury or surrender, the improper use of the flag of truce, and fighting in civilian clothes. This is another reminder to those smaller number of Iraqi officials who would follow orders or who would engage in this behavior, do not do it, because you will be tried as a war criminal.

Where do they plan on trying them, exactly? Not in the International
Criminal Court
, I'm guessing.

But maybe that is where the "Coalition of the Willing" comes in. As only the US and the UK seem to be providing any actual troops, perhaps one of the coalition members who ratified the ICC will get to prosecute some war criminals.

Of the 89 countries who have ratified the ICC, only one-quarter are members of our coalition. And of the 45 members of our coalition, just over half have ratified the ICC.

But prosecution of war crimes is not all that likely to happen anyway, because even though the ICC has jurisdiction over genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, it may exercise its jurisdiction only over "crimes committed on the territory of any State Party, or by citizens of any State Party, or where a non-State Party has accepted the ICC's jurisdiction with respect to crimes on its territory or by its citizens."

Neither the US nor Iraq has ratified the ICC and neither accepts its jurisdiction. In fact, not only is the US not a party to the ICC, in 2002 Congress passed, and Bush signed, the "American Servicemembers' Protection Act" which, among other despicable things, authorizes the use of military force to liberate any American citizen being held by the ICC.

Perhaps the UN Security Council will seek to bring war crimes charges, but seeing as we are none too popular with them right now, it is more likely that they'll bring charges against us - maybe for something like this.

So it looks like we are going to have to leave it up to the UK to prosecute any war crimes - and that is good, because it'll give them something to do while we are busy running post-war Iraq.


posted by Eugene Oregon at 3:37 PM



Weblog Commenting by HaloScan.com