Delia reveals a secret

Okay, I have something to tell you guys that I’ve held inside for a while now. I might as well come clean, because I just admitted this stuff in a comment on another blog. It’s very relevant to recent news events, too. And you can file it under “sometimes Delia is just too naïve for words.”

Here it is:

I actually read Bernie Kerik’s autobiography, Lost Son: A Life in Pursuit of Justice, a couple of years ago, and I actually thought he was an okay guy.

There! I said it!

Now let me explain: First, I’m sure I’ve mentioned at least once that I’m going to school again to get a degree in Forensic Science. That's why I'm suffering through the calculus right now. Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been fascinated solving crimes. I never wanted to be a cop, though—I wanted to be a private detective or something cool like that, using my brain to solve crimes. I read Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie, and even Encyclopedia Brown (I thought Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew sucked). Cops were boring and mean and gave tickets and ate donuts; I wanted to solve crimes.

Later, when I started watching Bill Kurtis’ "Cold Case Files" (the first crime mystery type show ever—the one that started it all!), I knew I wanted to do that stuff—work in a crime lab and look at paint scrapings, or identify handwriting, or examine fingerprints. Something useful—something that would help find criminals and bring them to justice.

As a result of these interests, I have a rather odd library of books: beside all my general science and literature and birding and gardening books, I have titles like Whoever Fights Monsters, The Serial Killer Encyclopedia, MindHunter, Unnatural Death: Confessions of a Medical Examiner, and stuff like that. I absolutely love reading about what makes criminals do what they do, methods to catch criminals, etc. The Kat still gets a little freaked out when I come home with something like “Women Who Kill” or “Blood and Money” or “Helter Skelter” but she’s used it.

So I also love biographies—I’ve read books by cops, profilers, investigators, federal marshalls, and all sorts of people who investigate crimes. (I tend to stay away from the criminal bios, because I don’t want to support them like that; I try not to get dazzled by mafia types, killers, etc.) So when I saw Kerik’s book, and the fact that he was chief of police of NYC during 9/11, I figured what the heck? Might be interesting.

As I said, there were times when he’d drone on about his obviously right-wing beliefs and how big a threat terrorism is, blah blah blah--but I’ve found that many police officers are republicans because they mistakenly think that repubs are tough on crime, pro-police, etc – when all they really want is to make the cops enforce their fascist leanings (see GWBush).

But I digress. So anyway, the book was fairly interesting, and I thought he’d done a good job covering his life and his search for his mother’s killer (though the crime was never solved).

Then about a month after I'd read the book, I happened to catch a news story about Kerik's having possibly done some dirty stuff, using dirty money to redo his apartment, getting money from the Mob, etc. I was shocked, just shocked! Seriously—I just thought that he was an honest cop. At the time, I was taking an Intro to the Criminal Justice System class, and I even mentioned it to my teacher—a former Philly cop. He just shrugged and said there are good cops and dirty cops. I got the sense he didn’t want to talk about it, but it really bothered me. I mean, I knew there were dirty cops, of course. But I had read this guy’s book, and I kinda liked him! I was impressed with the good things he’d done while on the force. How could I have been so blind and so stupid!? And he sure didn’t mention anything about his Mob ties, his ass-kissing of Rudy, fudging his taxes, and all that in the book!

So he was indicted the other day on corruption charges; here’s a few details, from a story on Newsday.com:

_ Accepting $255,000 in renovations to his Bronx apartment -- including a marble entrance rotunda, marble bathrooms and a Jacuzzi -- from a construction firm, in exchange for helping the company get a business license. Kerik had complained to one company official that "he felt like he was on `welfare,"' the indictment says. The company was being investigated for alleged ties to organized crime.

_ Allowing an official of the same company to pay more than $236,000 in rent for another Kerik apartment. _ Failing to report those payments on his financial disclosure forms, on his tax returns and to a state grand jury that investigated him.

_ Getting witnesses to lie about the payments to investigators.

_ Falsely claiming $80,000 in charitable contributions and a home-office deduction on his income tax forms.

_ Not reporting the wages he paid to a nanny for his children and not paying her Social Security and Medicaid taxes.

_ Not reporting royalties from a forward he wrote for a book.

_ Falsifying a mortgage application by not disclosing that he had borrowed -- from a real estate agent doing business with the city -- the money he was using as a down payment.

_ Falsely answering written and oral questions from federal agencies as he applied for federal posts, including homeland security secretary. Kerik ultimately withdrew from consideration for the homeland security post because of tax issues involving his former nanny.

Wow. I’m never surprised anymore at these kinds of indictments. It seems like the higher-up people get, whether it be in law enforcement or politics or big business, the more likely they are to both get money illegally and then try to hide it. It’s like they start to make a little money, and that just makes them want more; then they find that their positions grant them audience with all sorts of people who are ready and willing to give them more money if they’ll just do this or that “small favor,” nothing big, of course! Just use your newfound connections to do a little favor, and I'll help you out with those home renovations you were trying to do, or I'll give your campaign a nice fat check.

I sometimes wonder how these things progress—how someone who originally went into a job to do good gets corrupted and ends up being just as bad a slimeball as the crooks they originally wanted to nail. I’m sure at first, they’re thinking, “well, it’s just this once, and everybody does it, and I’m sure it’s not illegal or they wouldn’t have asked me to do it!” Then before you know it, you’re taking money from crooks just to look the other way, and you’re getting a second apartment for your mistress, and you’re covering it all up nice and neat by just not telling anyone.

In his book, Kerik singled out a few detectives who worked with him when he was a police officer, still working on the streets. He talked about these guys like they were Starsky and Hutch and McGyver and Clint Eastwood, all rolled into one -- hell, that's kinda how he described himself, really. I wonder what those guys think of him now. Maybe they were in on his dealings all along; who knows? Or maybe they’re just as disgusted as I am.

When I was starting to write this post, I googled for the full title of his book, and I saw this--you can get a copy of that cook for a stinkin' penny:

I find it very satisfying that more and more stories are appearing in the national press about the effect this case could have on Rudy Giuliani. Of course, Rudy’s doing all he can to distance himself from Kerik (so much for loyalty and friendship!), but it’s obvious that the two have been pals for a long time to anyone in NYC, anyone who read Kerik’s book, and anyone who remembers the hilariously ironic fact that Rudy suggested to Chimpy Bush that Kerik would make a great head of the Dept of Homeland Security (hard to type those words without throwing up a little in my mouth). It’s going to be delicious if the media finally decide to turn on Giuliani and report this story as it should be reported, with all the juicy background connections between these two crooks. Imagine if Kerik does jail time!

So there—I’ve exposed my deep dark secret that’s been bugging me since all these Kerik stories started coming out. I’m clean now, and you may judge as you see fit.

A peek into the mind of Rudy Jewels

So I’m running for president now, heh heh. I figure it should be almost as easy as running New York City. I mean, I single-handedly got NYC through 9/11, didn’t I? (Didn’t I? Did I? Oh what the fuck, of course I did.)

Yeah, running the world will be a snap. Now all I need to do is show my credentials. When people find out how qualified I am, I’ll beat that Hillary bitch into the fucking ground! Let’s see…
1. Experience—check! I was the mayor a New York City! Scoreboard! Some people say I didn’t learn a damned thing from the 1993 WTC bombing, but I sure as hell did. I bought a bunch more walkie talkies, and I put the emergency management team RIGHT IN THE BUILDING! So our response time could be, like, seconds, not minutes! I was there practically the whole damned time, too. And I did all the photo ops and everything with Bernie and Bush. People love me!

What’s that? What do you mean, “foreign policy experience”? Hello, read my lips: NINE-ELEVEN. How much more foreign can you get?

2. Family values—now here’s where I REALLY shine.

I have like five families, people! And I’m always looking to dump the wife for a new one! I totally know how to do that family, wife, and marriage thing. I’m a lock on this one too!

4. Endorsements—Hmmm. Well. Let me make a few calls first… Okay! Check THIS out, people: Pat friggin’ Robertson! He’s on my side now! All I had to do was say that I wore that dress, said I was pro-choice, and supported gay rights way back when because I did it for MONEY and for votes! He totally understood when I told him that; he knows how it is when you need to get the dollars out of the wallets. Look how we’re pals:
And check me out—here I am praying for Big Business—see how Jesus-y I am?

Man, I can’t wait to be president. Think of it! Judy—or Sally—or Betty—oh whatever the hell her name is—my current wife will be able to do a lot of redecorating, which ought to keep her occupied while I go out and find wife#4. What? Well, OF COURSE I’ll be trading her in for a younger model—she was my Mayor wife! I’ll need a President wife, someone who will be worthy of me when I’m the emperor of the world!

I could find some juicy sweet strawberry like this one:

Or I could find a battle-ax mother figure; that’s worked in the past too:
Ugh--maybe not. Anyway, I’ll pretty much be able to bag anyone when I’m the emperor. Hell, I’ll be able to do whatever I want, thanks to that idiot Bush’s flushing the Constitution down the toilet.

Say hello to my little friend: Bernie Kerik!

It'll be just like Scarface: "First you get the money, then you get the power, then you get the women." I’ll have all of that and more.

What's my first move as president, you ask? Easy:

BOOM BOOM BOOM, baby! Then here’s what the Middle East will look like:OIL CITY! You think I didn’t learn from watching Bush that it’s all about oil? Sheeeit, mama didn’t raise no fool, people.

Ten random things about me that probably only my mom would be interested in, or maybe Kat

FranIAm tagged me to do this, so I'll do my best to think of ten things about me that are both random and not necessarily that obvious to people who've read my blogs.

ONE—I don’t like chocolate very much. Never have. If it’s combined with peanut butter or almonds, I’ll probably take it. Otherwise, no thanks. It's just not that good to me. I'm not that big a fan of sweets in general. I think I ate way too much candy as a kid and just kinda glutted myself beyond repair.

TWO—I’m a native Texan. But I’ll never live there again – once I saw the rest of the US (especially the East), I knew I’d never go back to Texas.

THREE—We don’t have TV, at least not the broadcast kind. We live in the boonies, so we’d have to get a dish. That means we’d have a million channels, and we’d probably sit and watch Law and Order reruns all fucking day. Instead, we just have DVDs and videos, and we get lots of other stuff done. I miss it sometimes, but it's nice not having to pay that cable/dish bill.

FOUR—I have a master’s degree in English, and now I’m getting a BS in Forensic Science. Way back when there was only Bill Curtis’s Cold Case Files and no CSI-wherever, Forensic Files, Court TV, etc., I became fascinated with crime-solving, but I didn’t want to become a cop. So when they showed crime labs on these shows, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. I don't know if I would be able to deal with dead bodies and blood out in the field, though -- so I'm keeping my options open and will try to study questioned documents or toolmarks or something, so in case I just freeze up (or throw up) at the idea of working a murder scene with a body, I can focus on other stuff and just stay in the lab.

FIVE—I don’t have a middle name. Only one of my siblings got a middle name, and I’ve never figured out why my parents decided to give her one after not giving the other four kids one. I suppose I could ask them what's up, but it’s never really been that important to me. What is annoying is that most people don’t believe me when I tell them I don’t have a middle name; they figure it’s something embarrassing, and I’m just covering it up. Not so. Just don’t have one.

SIX—I’m the middle child of five, but because there was a long break between my older sister and me (3 years, which is long for a Catholic couple like my parents!), it was never like I was neglected or whatever. I was always the peacemaker in my family.

SEVEN—(okay this is getting tougher) I used to want to be a professional musician (okay, okay—a rock star). I started playing the guitar in 10th grade (I taught myself), and I practiced a lot and good pretty good. I was in a band in college—we played covers at the local college pub, etc. When I got my teaching job at 26, I just stopped playing. I think it’s because I was then living with someone for the first time, and I didn’t like practicing and playing and writing songs when there was someone else in the house. After that, I just never got back into it. I miss it sometimes, and sometimes I’ll play a few songs just for fun and I’ll think, “I should do this more often, maybe start playing at the local coffeehouse…” but then I just never do it.

EIGHT—I have flat feet, and as I age, they hurt more. My ankles are always hurting too.

NINE—I’m lazy as hell when it comes to housework. I just hate it. If Kat helps, it’s not so bad, but I have almost zero motivation to just do housework on my own. I love a clean house, but I just don’t want to be the one who has to clean it. Despite the fact that I hate the idea of having a "servant," I hope someday we’ll be rich and I can get a maid--I would pay him or her well, I promise.

TEN—(holy shit, I didn’t think I’d make it this far) I’ve never had any of the typical childhood diseases that people get, and I’ve never had the flu – no mumps, no measles, no chicken pox, no flu. I’ve had walking pneumonia, but that was it. For the most part, I’ve always been very healthy (and lucky). (right now, though, I’m about 30 lbs overweight—but I hate exercise and love junkfood. It’s a curse.)

Okay--now I'm exhausted. All this introspection is tiring.

Congrats to PA dems!

Seems we had ourselves a little EEE-lection last night, and much to mah joy and sue-prize, some things are gonna be changin' 'round these parts!

Oh, sorry. I don't really know where the accent came from. Perhaps it's that elusive "Texas Swagger" that Chimpy McFlightsuit's always supposed to have.

Perhaps I'll throw up a little in my mouth.

Ahem. Anyway, local elections in my area went GREAT last night! Some highlights for Centre County, Pennsylvania:
Debra Ruest beat incumbent repub Jonathan Grine and will be the first woman to serve on the Centre County Court of Common Pleas.

Longtime candidate and all-around nice guy Jon Eich won election to our Board of County Commissioners, along with another newcomer Rich Rogers. Repubs' write-in campaigns failed miserably, and our board is now solidly democratic.

Leslie Dutchcot won a spot as a District judge.

Dems took over the local school board as well, thwarting more repub attempts to write-in their candidates.

The democratic party in State College is pretty strong, having already had success in 2006 with the ouster of everybody's favorite 'phobe Rick Santorum in favor of centrist dem Bob Casey.

Do you remember this classic photo?

I just had to wonder what they told those kids to make them cry and look so terrible. I mean, the little one's only eight--what the hell does she know about politics?

I know! Let's use my combination TimeMachine/Eavesdropper to go back and listen in for a few seconds right before the photo was taken:

Mrs. Saint-R-Us: Kids, we need to go out and speak before the media.

Eight-yr-old-with-doll: Again? Why?

Little round-faced boy: Yeah, mom, why?

Mrs. S: Because Daddy didn't win his re-election, honey! Daddy's out of a job! Remember, I told you this might happen if the heathens of this state got their way!

Older girl: You mean the gays and the liberals defeated Daddy?

Mrs. S: Well, yes, with the help of the devil. You know how strong the devil can be, especially here in Pennsyl-tucky! Those satan-worshipping liberals and gay people hurt Daddy tonight!

Eight-yr-old: Waaaahhhh!!!!

Let the healing begin.

Rumors and Hillary Clinton

Tip o’ the bloggy hat to FranIAm for bringing up this From the Left post about Hillary Clinton and the rumor that she is lesbian. Reading Christopher's original post, I couldn’t help but think that there was something not quite right going on. Let me try to explain:

First, I have never thought Hillary Clinton was lesbian; I just don’t get that feel from her. Much as I’d love to have her on my team, I just don’t think the lady’s got it in her to explore whatever -um- urges she might (or might not) have had. The woman is powerful and has women in key positions around her; to me, this bespeaks her feminism, not lesbianism.

I agree with Christopher that Clinton’s strong poll ratings so far have kept Gore from entering the race. I’d be willing to bet that Gore has considered it, but he knows that Bill and Hillary would likely smash him into bits if he seriously hinted at getting into the race. Right now, Clinton seems unstoppable, but Gore would be a massive distraction. God knows dems don’t need that to happen again. (Nader, party of green?) Gore knows this better than anyone, so he takes the convenient out: he’s more powerful now as a regular citizen than he could be as a politician, and thus why would he get back into politics and take the media’s abuse again? Best to take his Nobel Prize and keep on truckin'. Leave the White House to Bill and Hillary again.

Second, I just can’t help but wonder if all these rumors of an L.A. Times story and all the gossip it’s inciting are merely a more subtle Swift-Boat campaign. Think about it; in its bare essence, the idea of Clinton as a lesbian just sounds like something Rove and his ilk would use to sabotage her campaign. But it wouldn’t be enough to just start the tongues wagging; that’s junior high stuff. No, to be in the Rove/Swift-Boat leagues, you’d have to stir in the idea that the truth is indeed out there, at the L.A. Times, and it’s only a matter of time before the facts come to light. Whether the story ever even materializes would be beside the point; the damage would be done. Because let’s face it – the easiest way to bring down a politician these days is by playing the gay/not-gay card. Card-carrying sicko David Vitter can run around in diapers with female prostitutes, and nothing happens. But closet-case Larry Craig taps his toes and maybe makes a veiled pass at a male cop, and he’s out in the cold faster than he can shout “I’m not gay!” Sadly, DC’s—and America’s—homophobia knows no bounds. Shit, to the radical reich and many religious nutwing voters, gays and lesbians are simply evil. I'm sure the reich are spreading this rumor with a frenzy.

Little wonder that Clinton’s poll numbers are already taking a downturn, which of course some people are claiming is evidence that the rumors are true and already affecting the Clinton campaign. I think that's falling prey to “Post hoc, ergo propter hoc,” or “After this; therefore, because of this;” just because the rumors came before a small drop in her poll numbers does not mean that one caused the other.

Further, combine all this with the (I’m sure) intentionally salacious-sounding hits you get when you google Huma Abedin’s name:





















and it just seems to me like this is all too orchestrated, too convenient. In a race where Clinton has been the big favorite for quite some time, carefully protecting her centrist image and saying all the right things, it just seems very unlikely that this kind of thing could surface unless it were orchestrated by someone. Which leads me to ask: who would orchestrate such a thing? Answer: anyone on the republican side who’s worried about losing the ridiculously excessive power the repubs gained under the BushCo dictatorship.

So those are my thoughts on this issue; what do you think?

Rudy Jewels, Mayor of the Universe!

Thanks to Talking Points Memo for this little item on Rudy's latest campaign claims. To wit,

"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."

Wow. Who knew Rudy was so freakin' in control? All those transit and garbage strikes must've forged him into a safety/security superman! WTF do mayors really do, anyway?

My guess is that he thought it would sound impressive to say "8 million people," but let's face it -- I'm no New Yorker, but it seems to me the guy was probably too busy covering for dirty pals like Bernie Kerik, getting rich making speeches, and doing nothing spectacular on 9/11 to actually even come close to having "the safety and security of 8 million people on [his] shoulders." Fecking liar.

I'm hoping that Puking Pumpkin Award Giver D-cap in NY and/or New Yawkuh FranIAm will see this and
Go.
The.
Feck.
Off.
on Rudy for this shite.

As seen on TV

Look what you find when you check out the Reich-wing sites!

WTF?

What is going on here?

Isn't this a little like Mr. KoolAid going postal on the KoolAid factory?

Check out my future!

Like everyone who has an email account, I got A LOT of spam—but not all of it is about increasing the size of my penis. Here’s a little peek into my inbox at some of the subject lines:

I'm sure this will interest you

Win mad sum of money at Backgammon tournament

Show0ff YourNew RolexReplica

Representative from your Country needed

So if I fall behind on blog posting, you'll know that I got interested enough to enter a bigtime backgammon tournament and won some mad money. I would then be living the high life, showing off my -er- replica bling while representin' Amurka. Ta-ta, y'all!

Duh--Rumsfeld was a psycho-liar

For a truly hilarious read, check out this WaPo article on Rumsfeld's memos while in office.

R.I.P, Robert Goulet.

Question: How many repubs can fit in a closet?

Answer: as many as there are stars in the sky, my friends.

Yet another "I'm not gay!" republican admits to having had sex with a man and paying for it, after (of course) claiming it never happened.

Is this some part of the Contract With America that we all missed or something? Will all these crypto-gay hijinks ever end? Seriously, maybe we need to count how many republican senators haven't had sex with male prostitutes or young pages; it might make the counting easier.

A fashion statement and so much more!

Splotchy has a new feature on his blog, the 60-second doodle. I asked him to draw a picture of a feral cat attacking Chimpy, and check out the results:

Now it's on a t-shirt! You too can show your enthusiasm for feral cats attacking GW (look at all that blood!) AND cover your chestages at the same time! For the birders among us, encouraging feral cats to attack Bush instead of songbirds will no doubt help increase songbird populations, so it's a win-win deal!

Order now! Also comes in THONG version, for anyone who can stand the idea of having Chimpy that close to your naughty bits. (Are you listening, Condi?)

A crumb for Matty Boy

Just noticed this Raw Story piece about the Daily Show’s Jason Jones’ interview with Gigantic Child BrideTM Elizabeth Kucinich, so I thought I’d throw a crumb out for Matty Boy, who's a really big fan of the tall red-haired magically delicious beauty. Apparently, Jones's story dealt with whether the country is ready for a “FLILF” (as in MILF).

She is rather hot, no?

I wonder if this photo was taken on her wedding day to the gnome-like presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich.

While I would love to see whether the country is indeed ready for a Kucinich presidency, I doubt we'll have the chance to find out. I'm reading another article right now about how Rove's election-stealing machine is still in high gear and ready to install whatever right-wing wacko pleases the other right-wing wackos.

I want to believe that we won't or can't have a repeat of the 2000 and 2004 elections, where black voters were purged from election rolls en masse, many people were turned away from the polls, Diebold electronic voting machines changed Kerry votes to Bush votes, and the Supreme Court stepped in and crowned Chimpy the new king. But just when I figure they can't possibly do it a third time, along comes an article that shows how oh-so-easy it would be for the reich-wing machine to do it again. Talk about your Halloween scare.

Let's just hope that we can have something approaching a fair election this time around, seeing as how that's supposed to be one of the basic tenets of democracy.

Heckuva job, "Pat"

In a move that could only happen under BushCo, where incompetence and greed are all you need to access wealth and power, it seems the idiot who came up with the staged FEMA press conference has resigned--only to get a job at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Think of the possibilities -- this little Goebbels wannabe at National Intelligence. It gives "irony" a whole new level of meaning and relevance.

Is there no end to the rewarding of unethical actions and criminal behavior under BushCo? Will anyone ever stand up to this joke of an administration? Will any of them ever be held accountable for his or her actions?





UPDATE: Sorghum Crow tells me that the job offer at ODNI was rescinded--ha! I googled around to find out more, but the only story I could find was from a New Zealand newspaper site, which is an interesting fact in and of itself. Here's the screen capture, because you have to see the headline to believe it. The media in other countries must have a ton of fun laughing at us, man.

Going to Cape May today!

Well, it's finally here -- the Cape May Autumn Migration Weekend! I'll be leaving straight from work here in Bellefonte, PA, and heading east. For my soundtrack, I'll probably be playing some of my Don Gibson "Solitudes" series (which is soft music with bird sounds added in--kinda like old-people music, but I like it), plus some hits from Splotchy's dear departed Green Monkey Music Project, and then--who knows. Probably some Ani D and some Indigo Girls. Never let it be said that I don't support my lesbian sistahs in the music biz.

I'm going to blog from the festival, but I probably won't be cruising through my favorite blogs (see my blogrolls to the right) until next week. I'll really miss reading everyone's blogs until then!

All of you, take care!

Grammar blogs for dorks like me

Very few things are as offensive to me as badly punctuated or misspelled signs. It's one thing to misspell words and misuse commas, apostrophes, and such in your own writing. It's another thing entire to assault the world with a sign that reads, "Cake's for sale everyday." There oughta be a law!

As such, back when I lived in Texas and the Great Ann Richards was governor, I wrote her a letter arguing that the state needed a department to regulate all public signage: the Texas Department of Grammar. Agents would drive around the state and inspect any and all signage placed where the public could see it; infractions (from misspelling to bad punctuation, etc.) would result in citations and fines. Great way to generate income for the old state guvmint! If a signage owner got three citations in a year, then he'd lose his right to post signage for one year. I argued that we had to do something to combat all the ignorance and bad grammar for which Texas is famous!

Needless to say, I got a nice form letter from Ann, but no job. (After Ann left, GW ran up the state's first-ever deficit; imagine if I'd been around to generate dollars!) Still, now that the blogosphere is here, people everywhere are forming their own online departments of grammar! It's so great to see that someone else shares my pet peeves for correct grammar and punctuation on signage.

Check out some of these links:

Apostrophe Abuse -- a gold mine of apostrophe errors
Curious Signs -- badly written signs of all kinds
The "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks -- a hilarious look at people's obsession with putting things in quotation marks
Apostrophism -- more apostrophe errors

Have fun!

Busted

Now that Dr. Monkey von Monkerstein's photo expose of me as a child has blown the lid off my carefully constructed blog persona, I am now forced to reveal that I was in reality NOT a blond-haired, blue-eyed white kid. I suppose I'll be kicked out of the country club now, dammit. Here are the early years as I remember them:

Age five or six, sleepy at a family party at a cousin's house. When we were little, my parents used to party pretty late! (well, who am I kidding? it was probably around 9:30; young Dguzman just liked her sleep. And still does.)

With my parents, probably around three years old.

In my favorite green cordoroy dress. I loved it!

Stylin' in fourth grade, my first year wearing glasses. And oh what glasses they were.

Why not? It worked so great last time!

The Dallas Morning News is reporting that a deal is pending between the US and Mexican governments to have contractors "train" anti-drug forces in Mexico. Let's file this under "stupid," shall we?

Some highlights of the article, which I found read on the Seattle Times page:

the lede--get ready to laugh: "The U.S. and Mexican governments are expected Monday to announce an anti-drug package that will probably involve hiring private U.S. military contractors to train Mexican troops on the use of new technologies and equipment, senior U.S. officials said." GREAT! Bring Blackwater in, yeah! Pay 'em billions, have 'em kill a few innocent bystanders, and you're also preventing some illegal immigration at the same time! Because you know all those people want to come to the US and take our jobs!

irony incorporated: "The aid package will complement Mexico's annual budget of $7 billion to tackle organized crime." Yeah--good idea. Start by arresting most of the government officials in Mexico, who are often nothing more than thieving thugs.

Incredible.

A few thoughts on the immigration debate

I've been wanting to weigh in on the issue of illegal immigration, seeing as how it's supposed to be this major issue in the upcoming presidential election.

First, I want to show you a few little tidbits:

Here are some t-shirt designs from a Cafe Press site called "Track 'Em Down":

Invasion? That's a little strong, no? Note that the only border being reddened/secured is the one between the US and Mexico.

Really? I heard a couple speaking French in the mall yesterday, right here in Amurka! Probably "illegals"!

This one really makes me laugh. I've never heard of any illegal immigrants even giving a shit about the flag, much less being "offended" by it; mostly, the ones I've met are concerned with feeding themselves and their families, finding shelter, and just trying to survive.

Some poll results have revealed some interesting viewpoints:
Nineteen percent of blacks said they thought all illegal immigrants should be removed from the country; 35 percent of whites said that. . . .
The races differed more on whether state and local police should turn over illegal immigrants they encounter, even if the immigrants have broken no state or local laws. In such cases, 45 percent of blacks and 61 percent of whites said they believe police should turn over illegal immigrants.
Asked whether people who cannot read or write English should be allowed to vote, 54 percent of blacks said they should, versus 43 percent of whites.

Wow. Who's for bringing back the Jim Crow laws?

Finally, here's some "information" from a web site called Free Republic which purports to tell the whole truth about "illegals":

HALF TRUTH: illegals eventually become assimilated Americans.

TRUTH: Many do. But Most third world illegals come to the U.S. for personal economic reasons. Most do not come to cherish our democratic system. Many so called "immigration rights" groups "fan the fire" with their rhetoric which encourages immigrants to preserve their culture and language at tax payers expense. Among some of these groups, the word "assimilation" is considered xenophobic. When ultimately illegal immigrants and/or their children do become voting citizens, many vote in blocks (Mexican-American, El Salvadoran-American, Guatemalan-American, etc.), not for the good of America, but for personal economic gain usually at the expense of another group.

I don't even know many Americans who would say they "cherish our democratic system." What does that even mean? Do we even have a "democratic system" anymore, when the rigged Supreme Court is deciding election outcomes and Diebold voting machines are changing Kerry votes to Bush votes? And god forbid you should try to retain your own identity and culture. Strange, I don't see anyone trying to get the Amish around here to come into the 21st century. And who knew there was such a conspiracy brewing among these radical immigrant groups? Not just voting, but voting en masse! Against "the good of America"! The web site had no documentation of just how they found out these "facts," but I'm sure they "just know." Of course, there are also plenty of people (including me) who "just know" that radical right republicans often vote in blocs, "not for the good of America, but for personal economic gain" and definitely at the expense of most Americans who don't support the Iraq war, the theocracy, and the ridiculous spending and social policies of this administration. No one seems to mind this, however.

I sometimes worry about the ever-growing population in this country, no matter where the growth is coming from. I think that people who come here should probably do it legally and try to become citizens, unless they're planning to go back to their home countries. However, the obvious fact is that these anti-immigration zealots aren't so much against illegal immigrants in general as they are against illegal immigrants from Mexico.

Why doesn’t anyone seem to be freaking out about our porous Canadian borders? That story came and went in one news cycle. And what about Europeans who come here illegally? Somehow, these immigrants don’t merit the scorn that those from Mexico do. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the Western European/Arian features many of these Canadians and Europeans have. And I’m sure it has nothing to do with the fact that Mexicans are viewed by many people I’ve met as dirty; uneducated; and worthy only of housekeeping, ditch-digging, and farm work.

What I wish is that these people for "building the wall" and "booting 'em out" would just admit that they're racist, that they hate Mexicans and hispanics in general. Admit that they don't want my dark-skinned, dark-eyed, dark-haired, Spanish-speaking brothers and sisters here (unless of course they need a housekeeper). Admit that anyone from Western Europe or Canada or Russia can come here, and they can bring their blonde hair, blue eyes, and sexily-accented English right along with them. Admit that while they love those Tostitos chips and Pace picante sauce and Taco Bell, they really DON'T want those greasy, sombrero-wearing kids in public schools and on any kind of public assistance--because all Mexicans and by extension all hispanics are pretty much lazy, sleeping-under-a-cactus losers who just want to sponge off the precious American way of life, right?

I have some questions for these anti-immigration, “track ’em down” zealots:
Why is it that people knowingly and willingly hire illegal immigrants to care for their children and homes, their gardens, their farm crops, and their gardens, yet those same employers will vote for tougher immigration laws? If these Americans don’t believe these immigrants should be here illegally, why do they so often hire them, thus enabling them to stay?

Most importantly, why are these people wasting time and energy, distracting this nation from the truly important issues we face--the Middle East situation, our out-of-control military spending, the spoiling of our environment, our continued reliance on oil, our dangerously theocratic government?

UPDATE--I just had to add this little gem of an article. Highlight: some NH idiot saying aloud at a McInsane town hall meeting: "I don't know how we're going to export 11 million people, but maybe if we made them all talk English, we might get somewhere." YEAH--GREAT IDEA! Man, I just love it when these bigots show their ignorance.

Fucking psychopath hits 24%

He’s finally done it: Bush’s “approval rating” has hit 24%, an all-time low for him, and equal to the lowest-ever: Nixon’s during Watergate. If there’s one thing this guy knows how to do better than anyone, it’s how to fuck up everything he touches.

In light of this fact, one would think by now that:
1. the will of the people in this country is clear: BushCo is a complete and abject failure, providing no leadership and in fact endangering the future of this country as we fight two losing wars and hear constant saber-rattling to start yet another, and
2. because we live in a representative democracy where the elected are there to do the will of the people, that
3. the elected would figure out that the people they represent want this clown and all his toadies OUT, and thus
4. SOMEONE would start impeachment hearings on this whole administration of thieves, liars, and arrogant pricks.

This little train of thought seems quite clear to me, has seemed quite clear to me since I started this blog over a year ago. So why hasn’t it happened? Why do we have all these do-nothing inquiries and senate panels and truth-finding commissions digging into the various misdeeds and outright lawbreaking of BushCo, yet NOTHING has been done? And from all appearances, nothing WILL be done? How can such obvious criminals get away with murder, theft, and other crimes with impunity? How can we continue to stay on this course of madness?

There’s really only one answer, and it’s one that I’m loathe to face. Achem’s Razor tells us that, all things being equal, the simplest answer is probably the correct one. The simplest answer to all these questions is this: They’re all in it together. There is no difference whatsoever between the beliefs and actions of ANYONE, dem or repub, in Washington. Every elected official in D.C. is quite plainly on board with what BushCo is doing. Oh, they can rant and pretend to “give ’em hell” and make their statements about how something is going to change!, yet nothing has changed.

Domestic spying without warrants? Still got it.
War in Iraq? Still got it.
Questions about what really happened and why on 9/11? Still got ’em.
Corruption and partisanship in Justice? Still got it.
Astronomical bilking of billions of dollars by govt contractors, who received no-bid contracts to kill innocent Iraqis at will, overcharge for all their “services,” and basically rob us and our descendents blind? Still got it.
Politicians who lie, disregard ethics, and do nothing? Still got ’em.
Country going to hell in a fucking handbasket? Still going, and going fast.

What do the people do when their government isn’t theirs anymore? When the rulers basically work in a vacuum where the ruled and our needs make no difference whatsoever?

Here again, there’s only one answer. And I’m loathe to face it too. But you know and I know what it is. It starts with an “R” and ends with “evolution.”

Now where do we begin?

Because I'm mean like that

Some things are so damned funny that you just have to laugh, no matter whose feelings you hurt. All you U of Rhode Island alums, I apologize in advance for what I'm about to do. I realize how sacred school mascots are to certain people; I mean, I live in Happy Valley, PA, where this clown is revered:

The PSU site labeled this pic as "normal push-up" -- looks more like "he shot me! that mo-fo shot me!" to me, but whatever. Anyway, all the little PSU kiddies go. fecking. nuts. for this "lion" that looks like a bear with tennis shoes on. So I have no room to talk. (Especially seeing as how I'll probably BE shot if any of these rabid PSU fans catch me making fun of the lion.)

However ...

I bring you the mascot of the University of Rhode Island, as seen on the internets:

All right now ... W. T. F. is happening here? What IS this thing? It's got ram's horns, but a dog's face. Look at it -- it's McGruff, you know it is:

And what's with the crazy stance? And the spindly arms held out like he's cruising by on his skateboard circa 1977?

Look at his little shoes:
It's like Mickey Mouse on crack.

So I had to wail on him, this sad little uncoordinated dog-ram. I'm sure there's a nice man or woman under the suit. However, I had to wail on him. Because I'm mean like that.

Look out, Texas!

I read on Talking Points Memo that creepy-crazy-disciplinarian senator and Fox Nazi Channel fave Kay Bailey Hutchison is not running for re-election in the next senate race, and may be gearing up for a run at the governorship. Holy shit.

Her remarks re the governor's race in 2010: "It's too early to be gearing up. I don't want to peak in 2007 for a 2010 race. Would I like to do it? Yes. A lot of things have to happen to make it a reality. You can't plan that far ahead with certainty." (Quoted on TPM)

The whole idea of her running for governor of TX and then potentially using that as a springboard to bigger things (the woman is nothing if not politically ambitious) is almost as frightening as GW doing it.

Okay, let's look at the history of old KBH and see what we've got:
1. Once pinched an aide's arm--hard--and threw a book at another aide for doing something she did not approve of. Apparently, this is common practice under her strict regime, where her batshit-crazy temper gets the best of her.
2. Used state employees and resources for her own political activities, then ordered documentation shredded; however, the case was conveniently bounced on a technicality. She could've (and by many accounts should've) gone to jail, were it not for DA Ronnie Earle's weirdness over the case. He took a ton of heat for daring to go after her at all; it was "ungentlemanly" in most Texans' eyes. (I'm rolling my eyes right now.)
3. She's a republican. From Texas. Need I say more?

Look out, my old home state. Look out.

Way to go, Al!

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore

poses on a sofa in the "Abaton" cinema

during a promotion visit for

his movie "An Inconvenient Truth",

in Zurich, Switzerland 07 Oct 2006

(from Voice of America)

Don't you feel like the cutline for that photo should've been something like "Gore. Al Gore."

Our should've-been-President Al Gore and a group of scientists working through the UN as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have won the Nobel Peace Prize for their work studying and publicizing global warming.

I saw some rumblings on Fox Nazi Channel yesterday (thanks to the 24/7 channel-is-stuck-on-Fox tv in the cafeteria at my work). I'm sure they were less than enthusiastic, but I didn't pay enough attention to know for sure.

I think it's fitting that a man who's worked all his life for good causes should get this recognition. Let's hear it for the boy.

Now let's imagine that the Supreme Court awarded to Gore the presidency that he'd already won. Think hard with me, children; let's look at how different our country and our world would be. Why don't I throw out a few ideas, and then I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section.

The first difference is a gimme: There's no way we'd be in Iraq. Period.

Second, I wonder whether the events of 9/11/01 would even have happened. Some might say it was inevitable, but I think BushCo did more than a little bit to ensure it went as horribly bad as it did. Your thoughts?

Third, how different would the government's response to Katrina have been? Think of the bureaucratic bullshit created by BushCo, with all his idiot cronies and Heckuvajob Brownies in charge, that wouldn't exist under Gore. Would as many people have died? Would they have gotten better FEMA response before, during, and after the storms (I'll add Rita into the mix)? I daresay YES.

So--am I just looking through Gore-colored glasses? Would we still be in the shitter with Gore as president? Let me hear from ya.

It's Instanbul, Not Constantinople

I see Turkey has now decided to become the USA of the middle east and is about to start a full-scale Iraq war of their own. I'm sure it's because the Iraqis hate their freedoms too. Or perhaps it's that Turkey, like every country in the world!, wants to be just like the USA -- mired in uncontrolled debt, torturing whomever they please, and making billions for their personal contractor friends. It's the american way, after all.

Holy shit.

Disappointment 101

I've always been a sports fan, usually professional sports, but the Olympics have held a magical hold on me since I was a kid. I watched the Winter and the Summer Games with my mom and sisters through Soviet pairs figure-skating domination, USA hockey finally beating the Russians, Dorothy Hamill, Katerina Witt, Nancy Kerrigan (snicker), and Michelle Kwan; through Olga Korbut, Nadia Comenici, Mark Spitz, Dwight Stones, Bruce Jenner, Carl Owens, Michael Johnson, and Marion Jones. We all joined in on the "Wow, those East German women look like guys with all those steroids they take!" jokes, all the "That Ben Jonson's a cheater!" stuff, and everything. I always held American athletes to a higher standard on the banned-substance scale. "We might not win every medal, but we earned the ones we did win fair and square, no steroids!" I'd tell myself.

It seems like you hear tales of steroid usage more and more often these days, but I've always been able to ignore it when it comes to my favorite Olympic athletes. I would just say, "prove it!" FloJo? No way. Not her. She was just that good. She's never tested positive. Marion Jones? Hell of an athlete, and pure talent and muscle. Never tested positive.

FloJo passed away before they could pin anything on her. Marion Jones, however, just had the tail pinned on her ass: steroids. From 1999, through that amazing five-medal performance ("The Drive for Five") in the 2000 Games. Through several comeback attempts and injuries and walk-offs and failures. How did such an amazing athlete fall so fast? I remember watching her drive for five, wanting her to win because she was so cute and so strong. And she seemed so pure, dedicated to her sport and doing it the right way. When the rumors started to swirl, I thought, "No way. Not her."

When I heard the story on NPR, in which she admits now that she was taking steroids--though OF COURSE she thought it was flaxseed oil!--I yelled "NOOOOOO!!!!" in the car (which scared the hell out of Kat, let me tell you). No way! Not her! What next? Lance Armstrong was doing chemo and 'roids at the same time, polishing it all off with a hot-lovin' session with Sheryl Crow and another Tour de France win? Muhammed Ali floatin' like a butterfly and doing "the clear"? Mary Lou Retton on HGH? Kristi Yamaguchi on--what--testosterone, for pete's sake?!

I have NEVER been one to idolize sports figures, pro or amateur, as "heroes." But I have watched them compete, grown to like some of them for their smiles, or their fire, or their amazing talent. And this is hitting me hard, man. Maybe it's just the fact that she's a woman, not some Russian weight-lifter or Barry Asshole Bonds. I don't know. But I still remember watching her win those medals and being proud of her achievement, dazzled by her smile and her speed. "The fastest woman in the world!" It makes me sad to learn that it was all fake, no better than McGwire on Andro, or Bonds on god-knows-what.

Toe-tapping buddies?

And I thought all the bleeding-hearts were on the dem side of the aisle. Now we hear this from Sen. John Ensign, R-Nevada about our favorite friend of Dorothy, Larry Craig (R-estroom):
courtesy of the AP:
"Senator Craig gave us his word" that he would resign.... "I wish he would stick to his word."
"It's embarrassing for the Senate, it's embarrassing for his party," Ensign said. Asked if Craig's staying would be a distraction for the party, Ensign said: "It may be a personal distraction for me."

What's this about? Feeling blue after a breakup?

A friend sent me an interesting little quiz to help people find which candidate most represents their opinions on "big" issues.

And which candidate did I find synched up best with my positions? Who else?

It's official. I have to vote Kooch!

Not feeling too optimistic today

Every day that the struggle goes on in Myanmar, we learn more and more about what’s really happening there. From the beginning, I figured the news reports were probably revealing only half the truth; after all, it’s difficult if not impossible for journalists to get into Myanmar to see and talk to the people involved in the protests against the military junta’s rule.

It seems that expecting “half the truth” was being overly optimistic. The stories go from bad
in Amy Goodman’s Democracy Now!: (“as many as 500 monks were taken away in military trucks” and “military forces have killed at least eight people”)
to worse in the UK’s Daily Mail: (“Thousands of protesters are dead and the bodies of hundreds of executed monks have been dumped in the jungle, a former intelligence officer for Burma's ruling junta has revealed.”)

Who knows what the whole truth really is, or how much worse this will get. The same goes for Darfur, and Iraq, and Afghanistan, and all the other global hotspots.

I just wonder how much longer this spinning ball of hell we live on can keep spinning before it just flies apart? And when it does fly apart, what will happen then?

My newly adopted actor

This past weekend we finally watched The Constant Gardener, and I decided right away that the beautiful Rachel Weisz needed a home. My home. As such, I've filed the paperwork and paid the necessary bribes to bring Rachel to sunny Central PA! I'm so excited. She's just so dreamy:


Welcome to my humble abode, Rachel. Put your Oscar on any shelf you like:

and make yourself at home. Why, yes, I did build this bookcase with my own two hands. But I didn't write all the books on it....

okay, catch-up time.

No, not this kind:

I meant what I've been doing for the past year-almost.

1. Mostly posting to my birding blog, beginning to bird. It's a less vomit-inducing way to spend time than thinking about BushCo et al.

2. Getting out of my sales job and into a better job where I don't have to sell or talk to customers. It ROCKS.

3. Playing around on the blogs in my blogroll.

4. Barely masking my disgust for the current administration.

Because I'm barely able, I'm going to post here from time to time when I just can't fecking take it anymore and must vent.

Like today, when Chimpy said something to the effect that Saddam had killed the Mandelas. Yeah, holy shit is right.

Gotta be the booze.

Forced to come out of self-imposed exile

It's been a long time -- since election day of 2006 -- since I posted. However, I saw this photo of Rudy Jools on Wonkette and noticed a certain similarity to a historical figure:

Something in the eyes, maybe....

Voting anxiety

This morning, I went to vote in another critical election, just like the 2000 and 2004 elections. In past elections, we've gotten a little card which we insert into a book, then we punch the card for our choices. In 2004, I experienced some anxiety while aligning the card correctly--the last thing I wanted to do was fall into the trap of mis-aligning the card and voting for some idiot republican. I felt pretty confident, after checking and double-checking in an almost obsessive-compulsive fashion, then placed my paper punch card in the ballot box. A little scary, but I felt confident that my vote would count. Pennsylvania went blue for Kerry, so my confidence in the paper ballot grew.

This morning, then, I was expecting to see paper ballots again. Wrong.

My little paper punchcard from last time has now been replaced by an "I-tronic" (or something like that) touch-screen machine. That totally disoriented me; I wasn't expecting a machine at all. So in my frightened state, I found it really difficult to read and understand the instructions. Let me give you a little perspective: I have a master's degree in English. I've taught composition and literature at the college level. I'm 42, and I've voted at least twenty times. However, I was just so disoriented and paranoid about this touch-screen machine, I could barely even read the instructions.

So finally I made it out of there after "touching" my way through the ballot, praying the whole time that indeed my votes are recorded, and that they are recorded the way the screen showed them before I touched the "confirm" button. I wrote down the number of my machine on my little stub (my partner Kat told me to). I pray to god the votes are accurately counted this time around. It was really nerve-wracking.

You know, voting in a democracy really shouldn't be that scary. It makes me sad to think I was so intimidated by a stupid computer---but it was what I know about those computers that intimidated me. I can't imagine what people of lower reading and educational levels must think when confronted by those machines. At one point, when you've finally made your selections, this red "VOTE" button at the top of the machine, completely off the screen surface, flashes and beeps at you--loudly. Well, the whole time, I've been touching the screen to indicate my choices, so I'm thinking "what the hell? where's the button on the screen?" Finally, it dawns on me--the flashing button. So I press that. Why wasn't it on the screen?

At the beginning of this process, when I signed in, I was given a card. I kept thinking that somehow this card would be inserted into a slot on the voting machine and something would print or punch-out on it or something--my votes, or some code, or whatever. I kept thinking that this card must have some purpose here in relation to the machine. It did not--at least not that I could see. There was no slot, no nothing. The card had a perforation on it, and I was allowed to keep the top half and had to give the bottom half to the poll helpers. I don't even know what they did with the card; in my panicked and disoriented state I didn't even watch what the lady did with my card. She could've thrown it in the garbage for all I know. At that point, I just had to trust that my "electronic ballot" was flying along a fiber optic network and being counted. Right now, being counted is the most important thing in the world to me.

It's going to be a very long day.

Another bailout?

When GW was an "oilman" (he never actually struck much oil) in Midland, TX, he started up and was employed by several different companies--Arbusto, Harken Energy, etc. Each time, he'd basically drill a bunch of dry holes, suck up salary, then get bailed out of the business by his father or his father's friends (like the Bin Laden family). This was a pattern that has been noted by many people, including Craig Unger in House of Bush, House of Saud, the brilliant book on Bush and Rove Bush's Brain, and other sources. In short, like many spoiled rich kids, whenever GW would get into trouble, Daddy would bail him out.

I've been watching with interest this whole business of the James Baker-led Iraq Study Group, and something about it is ringing a bell with me. Simply put, GW has gotten himself into a REAL big pile of shit--way worse than the dry holes and failed businesses of his youth--and now Daddy's key henchman Baker seems to be trying to step in and get Junior out of the mess he's gotten himself into.

Can Daddy fix things this time? Can Baker save Junior again, like it did when Baker rammed through the 2000 "election" of GW in the first place? Or will GW continue his "stay the course" idiocy? He always let Daddy buy him out of trouble back in his younger days. Let's see if GW's grown up stupid, or just plain grown up.

A Word for the Dear Departed

In Brown v. Vasquez, the U.S. Supreme Court stated, "The writ of habeas corpus is the fundamental instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary and lawless state action." (thanks to www.lectlaw.com for that piece of the ruling)

Where will we go now? Who or what will protect our freedom? How long until the gulag archipelago described by Solzhenitzyn is put into place here?

All those documents in the National Archives are now just very old pieces of paper--worth something to an antiques dealer, I suppose, but not to the government that was supposed to uphold the words and ideas written on them.

Let's recall what President Chimp said about the Constitution in December 2005:

"It's just a goddamned piece of paper."

I guess the man is finally right about something.

More unholy shit from ABC and the radical wrong

I've been hearing a ton about this upcoming "documentary" from ABC, "The Path to 9/11," and I've been awakened from my birdwatching slumber to write on this blog today. Sorry I've been remiss and have been ignoring Impeachment and other dreams to play around on my bird site, beginning to bird.

Okay--first off, I realize that the idiots who made and are airing this film think they have a valid point when they answer critics with the "watch the movie first!" line of bs. The thing is, once the movie is out on their national airwaves, it'll be too late to criticize it! Many Americans will believe ANYTHING they see on TV! They'll take all this as fact and before you know it, the Chimp's poll ratings will be up.

Just yesterday, I listened as a co-worker claimed to be a Clinton supporter, then proceeded to parrot some of the EXACT POINTS argued in the film (courtesy of the Blue State blog) that "too bad Clinton didn't go after Bin Laden when he had the chance" and "I didn't vote for him second term, because I thought he was too distracted by the Lewinsky thing to do his job." I couldn't believe that an intelligent person could buy into this bullshit. The film hasn't even aired yet, but people already know the talking points of the right. Ridiculous.

The only hope is that there are enough Americans who are tired of this campaign of fear, tired of the lies, tired of the imperialistic actions of this regime. Enough Americans who will NOT buy into the bullshit. Otherwise, it's another November of stolen elections, republican "victories," and perpetual war.

Do what you can to get the truth out about this film and its messages. Hit the blogs, especially the rethuglican ones, and make your voices heard. Make sure people know the film offers a patently FALSE version of history, masquerading as truth.

We've got to get this country back, folks. VOTE! Speak truth to power! Speak truth.

HOLY SHIT

from The Seattle Times' David Postman:

Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich says America is in World War III and President Bush should say so. In an interview in Bellevue this morning Gingrich said Bush should call a joint session of Congress the first week of September and talk about global military conflicts in much starker terms than have been heard from the president.

"We need to have the militancy that says 'We're not going to lose a city,' " Gingrich said. He talks about the need to recognize World War III as important for military strategy and political strategy.

Great. Yeah. Let's have MORE militancy. That's what we need, all right. And of course, talking about these wars and declaring that we are "not going to lose a city" will DEFINITELY make it all better! Just like saying "mission accomplished!" did, right?

Is WWIII starting?

It's possible that this conflict between Lebanon and Israel will eventually become World War III. It wouldn't surprise me, as the Chimp has successfully bankrupted and ruined every company he ever ran, the formerly great state of Texas, and the once-decent United States, that the Chimp would kick it up another notch and just go ahead and work his "magic" on the whole freakin' world. Why not? If there's one thing GW knows how to do, it's fucking things up royally.

I don't believe in god. As such, I don't believe in an "anti-christ." But if I did, and if there were an anti-christ, I think we all know who'd emerge in that role. Though I always got the sense from those "Omen" movies that he'd be sexier. And smarter.

Why Oedipus stabbed his eyes out

Sometimes, when I've gotten bleary-eyed from looking at web site after web site---truthout, common dreams, liberal oasis, daily kos, project for the old american century---you know the sites we liberals feed on---sometimes when I've been reading everything I possibly can for the last few hours, I get this desire to just shut it all out. I see people around me at work, all happily going to walmart, buying their SUVs, voting republican, ignorantly and blissfully talking about how they're glad GW's up there "talking tough to them Iran people." I sometimes wish I could be so blissfully ignorant. But alas, having a brain precludes me from floating around in a little bubble of ignorance. Being aware of the truth, seeking the truth, needing the truth, even though it makes me miserable.

I read that Bobby Kennedy said, "Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."

I just hope he's right. But I haven't felt any hope since about November 2000. We're an empire in decline. I learned in history that every empire falls--the Sumerians, the Greeks, the Romans, the British. What will it be like when the American Empire falls? Will it come down in a crashing heap, crushing us all? Or will it continue as it has, sinking slowly like a dead fish in the water, until it finally hits the bottom?

It's been a while since I've posted; I've been trying to just stay positive, keep hope alive that things will change in November. We'll see. We'll see.

"The Case for Impeachment" by Dave Lindorff and Barbara Olshansky

I will soon be posting a review of this book, but I wanted to hype it already because anything Dave Lindorff writes is bound to be good.

Greg Palast's new book---Buy it!

Greg says:
Just wanted to let you know my new book hits the street on June 6, Armed Madhouse: Who's Afraid of Osama Wolf?, China Floats Bush Sinks, the Scheme to Steal 2008, No Child's Behind Left and other Dispatches from the Front Lines of the Class War, the longest subtitle in publishing history. It's out July 7 in the UK. Do me a favor -- buy it right now. You can order it on my site, through Amazon, at www.GregPalast.com <http://www.GregPalast.com>, your local book store, whatever.

Anne Coulter's out that day too, 06-06-06, in honor of her father's birthday, and I'll be damned if she takes our spot on the Times list.

This is my best journalism yet, worst jokes, a full-color Secret History of the War over Oil in Iraq, Republican Party caging lists (say what?) and a killer recipe for shrimp curry.

It launches in NYC on June 13 at Ethical Culture Society 7pm -- joined by Amy Goodman, Paul Krugman and Randi Rhodes. Find another 20 US/UK cities at my website.

The Best Democracy Money Can Buy helped kick off a national discussion of the racial jiggering of elections. Maybe this book can bust the media omerta over The Topic which dare not speak its name: Class War.

Why are rich people rich?

Dave the Nazi (from my work) told me that it's unfair to tax rich people more than poor people. He said that they're rich because they "worked harder and made smarter decisions."

I had two words for him: Paris Hilton.

The sad part is that, as well off as Dave the Nazi may be as he approaches early retirement, the new tax cuts are not even going to touch him. He's not THAT rich. And yet, in his tiny little republican heart, he really believes this shit. Amazing.

Gross me out, totally, to the max

From a speech Bush made in CA to some "business leaders," courtesy of Editor & Publisher:

Bush said he'd sat in a California church on Sunday near a mother and stepfather grieving for their son who had been killed in Iraq. "I also want to let you know that before you commit troops that you must do everything that you can to solve the problem diplomatically," he commented. "And I can look you in the eye and tell you I feel I tried to solve the problem diplomatically to the max and would have committed troops both in Afghanistan and Iraq, knowing what I know today."

Well, hey, as long as he tried diplomacy "to the max"--I know I feel better.

Why does he even PRETEND to know what the hell he's saying? I mean, just read the cue cards, listen to what Cheney is telling you to say through your hidden earpiece, and then get the hell out. Is that so f-ing hard? Do you really HAVE to show the world what a freaking moron you are, every single time you open your mouth???

The spread of democracy

Remember, kids: "Freedom is on the march!"
. . . only it's wearing big black jack-boots and it's goose-stepping along and you'd better get the hell out of its way or it'll crush you.

courtesy of truthout.org and The New York Times:

Editor's Note: One stated objective that Mr. Bush has repeatedly pointed to, in justifying the continued US occupation of Iraq, is helping Iraq to become a "Democracy." Today Mr. Bush asked the man who - US authorities say - was duly elected by the Iraqi people as their prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, to resign. To date, 2,315 US soldiers and Marines and an estimated fifty to one hundred thousand Iraqis have died as a result of the Bush administration's decision to invade and occupy Iraq. -- ma/TO

Shiites Say US Is Pressuring Iraqi Leader to Step Aside
By Edward Wong
The New York Times
Tuesday 28 March 2006
Senior Shiite politicians said today that the American ambassador has told Shiite officials to inform the Iraqi prime minister that President Bush does not want him to remain the country's leader in the next government.
It is the first time the Americans have directly intervened in the furious debate over the country's top job, the politicians said, and it is inflaming tensions between the Americans and some Shiite leaders.
The ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, told the head of the main Shiite political bloc at a meeting last Saturday to pass a "personal message from President Bush" on to the prime minister, Ibrahim al-Jaafari, who the Shiites insist should stay in his post for four more years, said Redha Jowad Taki, a Shiite politician and member of Parliament who was at the meeting.
Ambassador Khalilzad said that President Bush "doesn't want, doesn't support, doesn't accept" Mr. Jaafari to be the next prime minister, according to Mr. Taki, a senior aide to Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the head of the Shiite bloc. It was the first "clear and direct message" from the Americans on the issue of the candidate for prime minister, Mr. Taki said.

So let me see if I've got this straight: First we get to hear all about how great it was that they had elections in Iraq---but now those elections shouldn't count because the Iraqis voted for someone that Baby Hitler doesn't like.
Holy shit. This guy really IS the antichrist.

News of the Day

Iraq Told To Rebuild Itself
By William Fisher
28 March, 2006
Countercurrents.org
Last week’s announcement that Iraq will now have to pay for its own reconstruction has left some observers wondering whether the yet-to-be-formed government there will be up to the task.
Iraq's deputy finance minister, Kamal Field al-Basri, said it was "reasonable" for the United States to sharply cut back its reconstruction efforts after spending about $21 billion. "We should be very much dependent on ourselves," al-Basri said in an interview the American newspaper, USA Today.

"REASONABLE"????? How deep in Bush's pockets is THIS guy?!

Now I guess Bush will just wash his hands of the whole mess and think he can come out smelling like a rose. The sad part is that these idiot bush-backers will probably be all for cutting funding---wouldn't want to throw good money after bad, of course!--without a thought to what will happen when the Iraqis say 'enough is enough--you can't come in here, wreck the place, then leave and expect us to fix it.' Bush's popularity will surge upward again, because he's so "tough" and "fiscally responsible."

I feel like a really bad time is coming--where Iraq will simply implode under its own weight. I mean, no one over there even has reliable electricity, water, etc.--how in the world are they supposed to make all this happen? Of course we can't keep pouring money in there, but why did we pay Halliburton/KBR all those millions? They couldn't even get clean water for our own soldiers, for pete's sake, much less for the whole country! And they've rebuilt NOTHING. I think all they did was build our new military bases. Obviously, William Rivers Pitt was right--mission accomplished--permanent bases completed.

A really bad time is coming. Bush is just going to begin pulling out and saying they've got to stand on their own---"oh, what a smart guy, showing them some 'tough love'! way to go, georgie!" --and the whole area will succumb to radical theocracy in no time. God knows what that will do to oil prices--but Bush et al. won't care, as they'll be making record profits from now on. As for the anger we've fomented with this war, I fear every day will be like 9/11.

Man, I'm so sick to my stomach I could puke.

News of the Absurd

From carpetbaggerreport.com:

Tying immigration to abortion
Posted 10:40 am Printer Friendly
The award for the most bizarre policy connection of the day goes to Georgia State Sen. Nancy Schaefer (R), who connected immigration and abortion in a way I hadn't thought possible. (thanks to Carpetbagger regular J.C. for the tip)
"Guest-worker amnesty must be defeated in Washington, too. If it is not defeated, millions of illegal aliens who violated our laws will remain in American and bring their families here.
"Big employers may get the benefit of cheap labor, but the U.S. taxpayer will pay for their health care, food stamps, schooling for children, and income tax credits.
"I am convinced it is a consequence [of] the almost 50 million children we have put to death in their mother's womb through abortion. The large, unfilled job market in Georgia would not be a problem if the almost 50 million Americans were here, filling many of those jobs."
I'm trying to wrap my head around the logic, but it's too early on a Monday for such absurdity.
- - - -

Wow.
I don't know why anyone with a brain supports these "pro-life" people. I mean, it's one thing to have the opinion that abortion is not for you. That's fine--it's your body, it's your call. However, it's a whole other idea to think that you can force this opinion on other people and make it the law of the land--that's just insanity.

I don't know why in the world people are so intent on legislating their own version of morality. And yet, they don't ever seem to get around legislating the morality of raising the freaking minimum wage so people can actually FEED their kids! How about legislating the morality of HELPING the Katrina victims in a meaningful way, instead of just paying your pals billions of dollars to do nothing?
Yeah, those "moralities" just never seem to get to the top of the priorities list. Guess they're too busy allowing the president to spy on all of us and stopping abortions that eliminate our future minimum-wage workers. Nice.