Trying To Maintain Rationality

Mark Green's Voting Record & His Base Of Support: Pathetic, Sad BushBot

2006-10-30T15:11:00.000-08:00

The guy is a (not so) hilarious parrot of George W. Bush - the guy who's ALREADY one of the worst executives [and who, arguably, has presided over the worst combination of foreign + domestic policy, ever] in this country's history, and the guy hasn't even been investigated(!) - yet Jim Doyle isn't taking the easy opportunity to point out the obvious and waste Mark Green in one gut-blast.

Cheesus.

Anyhow... here's a sample of Green's voting record:

Wait. Fuck that. I tried to summarize it in a few bullet points, but it quickly became a dozen... and then 30... there's so much shit on this guy that it's almost comical.

Just go read it.

Ha! Ha! Googlebombing The Election.

2006-10-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

--AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl

--AZ-01: Rick Renzi

--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth

--CA-04: John Doolittle

--CA-11: Richard Pombo

--CA-50: Brian Bilbray

--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave

--CO-05: Doug Lamborn

--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell

--CT-04: Christopher Shays

--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan

--FL-16: Joe Negron

--FL-22: Clay Shaw

--ID-01: Bill Sali

--IL-06: Peter Roskam

--IL-10: Mark Kirk

--IL-14: Dennis Hastert

--IN-02: Chris Chocola

--IN-08: John Hostettler

--IA-01: Mike Whalen

--KS-02: Jim Ryun

--KY-03: Anne Northup

--KY-04: Geoff Davis

--MD-Sen: Michael Steele

--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht

--MN-06: Michele Bachmann

--MO-Sen: Jim Talent

--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns

--NV-03: Jon Porter

--NH-02: Charlie Bass

--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson

--NM-01: Heather Wilson

--NY-03: Peter King

--NY-20: John Sweeney

--NY-26: Tom Reynolds

--NY-29: Randy Kuhl

--NC-08: Robin Hayes

--NC-11: Charles Taylor

--OH-01: Steve Chabot

--OH-02: Jean Schmidt

--OH-15: Deborah Pryce

--OH-18: Joy Padgett

--PA-04: Melissa Hart

--PA-07: Curt Weldon

--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick

--PA-10: Don Sherwood

--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee

--TN-Sen: Bob Corker

--VA-Sen: George Allen

--VA-10: Frank Wolf

--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick

--WA-08: Dave Reichert

"The Best Medical Care In The U.S."

2006-07-11T15:14:00.000-07:00

(Crossposted in a diary entry at DailyKos)

~~~ DISCLAIMER: I WORK FOR THE VA ~~~

The July 17th edition of Business Week [that publication known for its wacky, liberal agenda **cough**] magazine just came out with a big article on how Veterans Affairs gives the best medical care in the United States.

How about that? The VA. Single-payer, government-provided healthcare... is the best. This "socialized medicine," as it turns out, is a misnomer -- it's actually "efficient medicine." I suppose could go into the economic theory, definitions and esoterica explaining why publicly-provided healthcare makes sense, but... not now.

Onward!

Let me simply give you some blurbs from the article:

LOWER COSTS, HIGHER QUALITY

The 154 hospitals and 875 clinics run by the Veterans Affairs Dept. have been ranked best-in-class by a number of independent groups on a broad range of measures, from chronic care to heart disease treatment to percentage of members who receive flu shots. It offers all the same services, and sometimes more, than private sector providers.

According to a Rand Corp. study, the VA system provides two-thirds of the care recommended by such standards bodies as the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality. Far from perfect, granted -- but the nation's private-sector hospitals provide only 50%. And while studies show that 3% to 8% of the nation's prescriptions are filled erroneously, the VA's prescription accuracy rate is greater than 99.997%, a level most hospitals only dream about. That's largely because the VA has by far the most advanced computerized medical-records system in the U.S. And for the past six years the VA has outranked private-sector hospitals on patient satisfaction in an annual consumer survey conducted by the National Quality Research Center at the University of Michigan. This keeps happening despite the fact that the VA spends an average of $5,000 per patient, vs. the national average of $6,300.

Ok then. Works better for less money.

MIGHTY FORCE FOR CHANGE

A nationwide health-care network that gets its funding from a single payer can institute mighty changes. Proponents of national health-care reform extrapolate even further. "The VA proves that you can get better results with an integrated, organized, national health-care system," says Dr. Lucian Leape, a professor at the Harvard School of Public Health and a leading expert on hospital safety. "We will not achieve even close to the level of quality and safety we need [in the U.S.] as long as we have individual practitioners and hospitals doing individual things."

The VA is, in many ways, the exact opposite of America's fragmented private-sector system, where doctors work for hospitals as independent contractors, and third-party insurers pay the bills as they see fit.

Jeepers. What else?

Because it treats patients throughout their lives, it can invest in prevention and primary care, knowing it will reap the benefits of lower long-term costs. Because the government pays the bills, the VA doesn't have to waste time or money on claims-related paperwork. Unlike Medicare, the VA is allowed to negotiate prices with drug companies and other suppliers, and it uses that power aggressively. The consumer group Families USA estimates that Medicare Part D enrollees, on average, pay 46% more than the VA for the same drugs.

The VA also gets to keep any money it saves through cost efficiencies. In the private sector the savings flow back to whoever is paying the bills.

Zoinks. I'll bet the caregivers suck, huh?

That doesn't mean it's settling for second-rate physicians. Among the VA staff is a Nobel prize winner, and clinical research is conducted throughout the system. The Buffalo VA recently hired one of the city's top surgeons, Dr. Miguel A. Rainstein, as chief of surgery. He had spent 26 years in private practice, where, he concedes, he made a lot more money, but he was ready for a lifestyle change. "I feel the VA has always gotten a bad rap. They have an excellent medical staff here, in surgery and in specialties."

The staff is happier, too, since much of the bureaucracy that once hobbled the organization has been streamlined.

Oh - guess not.

... here's the part that I normally work with - the VistA system:

The centerpiece of that culture is VistA, the VA's much praised electronic medical-records system. Every office visit, prescription, and medical procedure is recorded in its database, allowing doctors and nurses to update themselves on a patient's status with just a few keystrokes. In 1995, patient records at VA hospitals were available at the time of a clinical encounter only 60% of the time. Today they are 100% available. Some 96% of all prescriptions and medical orders, such as lab tests, are now entered electronically. The national comparison is more like 8%. "One out of five tests in a civilian hospital have to be repeated because the paper results are lost," says Veterans Affairs Secretary R. James Nicholson. "That's not happening in our hospitals." VistA is a big reason why the VA has held its costs per patient steady over the past 10 years despite double-digit inflation in health-care prices.

VistA has also turned out be a powerful force for quality control. The VA uses the data gathered in its computers to pinpoint problem areas, such as medication errors. The network also allows it to track how closely the medical staff is following evidence-based treatment and monitor deficiencies. Such tracking pays off. When Rand did an extensive study comparing quality of care at the VA with private-sector hospitals, it found that performance measurement played an important role in helping the VA score higher in every category except acute care, where it came in about even.

Pretty spiffy, huh?

...

There's much more to the article; read up!

The whole thing is right here.

Single-payer. Publicly-provided. That's the future of healthcare that WORKS.

Why Did I Not Think Of This?

2006-07-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Sheer fucking genius.

Hats? I'd have NEVER looked there - seriously.

Here's the "complete set of the 1968-1974 Alcoholics Anonymous comic strips," with many thanks to Ethan Persoff.

Be sure to check out the "How To Spot A Jap" strips, from the same site...

"Jim Bob Cooter"

2006-06-05T13:49:00.000-07:00

I can't make this shit up.

From the ESPN.com story:

Tennessee backup QB suspended after DUI arrest
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee quarterback Jim Bob Cooter was suspended indefinitely Monday after campus police arrested him on a drunken-driving charge.

That's right. Tennessee. Jim Bob Cooter.

I haven't had a belly-laugh like that for a while. Thank you, ESPN, the University of Tennessee football team and, most of all, Jim Bob Cooter's parents.

Just Heard Paul Hackett Go Berserk On Jack Murtha, On AAR

2006-05-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

Majority Report Radio had Paul Hackett on the phone.

Major Hackett, a man who I respect greatly, just... *absolutely* went off on PA Congressman Jack Murtha for speakling out about the Haditha Massacre. Hackett presented a completely different story from what has been widely reported (regarding newly-uncovered information and the military's official position on the purported events, that is) -- his alternative account included insurgents methodically attacking the 4-vehicle convoy, after detonating the IED.. which is completely contrary to everything that's been presented...

The only indicator that made me think twice about the Major's motive was that he, er, kinda sounded like he was taking a completely ideological position, saying stuff to the effect of (not a quote) 'don't bash the marines' and 'you're disparaging good men'...

I'm just. I don't know what to think, to be honest. Murtha has long had the ears of the highest-ranked military officers; Hackett's always seemed anything but disingenuous.

Guess we'll have to see...

[edited for misspelling, grammar and general retardation]

"Seven Questions: Supporting the Veterans"

2006-05-25T15:05:00.000-07:00

Foreign Policy magazine sat down for a conversation with Jon Soltz of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America PAC, where they caught up on both the progress in Iraq/Afghanistan and veterans' issues.

The VA stuff is what always gets *my* attention.

Here's a few blurbs from the article:

FP: What are you hearing from soldiers in Iraq?

JS: The best data are a recent Zogby poll, which showed that 75 percent of soldiers in Iraq don’t know of a clear strategy for victory there.

...

FP: How would you rate the administration’s policies relating to veterans?

JS: The veteran who walks into the Department for Veterans Affairs
(VA) today is drastically worse off than he or she was four or five years ago.

...

FP: Why are so many Iraq war veterans in debt?

JS: If you’re making $80,000 a year in the civilian world and then you get called up and make $25,000 or $30,000 fighting in Iraq, you take a tremendous hit... (* this next one really irks the fuck out of me -- EconAtheist) There’s also the problem of insurance scams on military bases. [Insurance salespeople] try to get 19- or 20-year-old kids—who don’t know a lot about finance—to buy life insurance and mutual funds that charge high fees. When soldiers come home, many of them have a lot of money from their deployment because they had nothing to spend it on, and they end up being targeted by loan sharks.

...

But perhaps most importantly, and most disgustingly:

FP: When we think of homeless veterans, we often think of Vietnam veterans. But there are reports of a large homelessness problem among Iraq veterans. Why is that?

JS: When a soldier goes to the VA and his arm is broken, you can fix it. You can give him disability for a broken arm, a busted leg, or a messed-up back. But when you go to the VA after being off active duty for six months and you realize that you’re depressed—you’ve got anxiety, you can’t sleep at night, and your marriage is falling apart—they cannot give you a blood test to see if you have PTSD. Right now there are hundreds and hundreds of Iraq war veterans who have gone to Department of Defense psychiatrists and been coded with “adjustment disorder.” So they do not get disability. If they did get disability, they would get enough money to help them through their depression.

There are hundreds of Iraq veterans who have gone to private psychiatrists who have diagnosed them with PTSD, yet the VA says they have “adjustment disorder.” And that’s because the VA has not been fully funded by the Bush administration to address this new demand for PTSD treatment. It equates to turning their backs on the same people they sent to war. And that’s why we have homeless veterans. Homelessness is a symptom of a larger issue. Whether it’s beating your wife, suicide, or homelessness, it all comes back to this nasty word called PTSD.

"Adjustment Disorder." Yeah.

Time for this country to make some similar political "adjustments."

Palm Treo 700p FINALLY Officially Announced

2006-05-15T22:59:00.000-07:00

Huz-fucking-zah!

Your's truly seen running around the house, spazmodically. It's not the perfect all-in-one device, but it's a helluva lot closer to the device I've been waiting for - the Treo 650 just didn't do it for me.

I hope to have one in hand before I head off to the YearlyKos festivities in LAS VEGAS, baby... coming up in June! Be there or... be relatively square... not a square as a Republican dullard, but still... you'll be square.

If I can't get hold of one by then, well, I'll have to shoot someone in the face while I'm drunk.

What? With a camera.

Suck It, Irrational Ones

2006-05-15T22:43:00.000-07:00

Here's a ~~nice and lengthy~~ little list of Things Creationists Hate.

The site's disclaimer:

The following is not intended as an attack upon the Bible as inspirational, divinely inspired, or of literary merit. Nor is it in any way an attack upon Christianity or any other religion, or upon the moral fabric of American society (although, inevitably, many creationists will see it as such, since any questioning of their own views is seen as an attack upon God Himself, and all that's holy). Neither is it an attack upon those who see divine purpose in evolution, or view evolution as the handiwork of a divine Hand. It most emphatically is intended as a verbal pie-in-the-face to those who insist that the Bible is to be read as an accurate science book and description of the natural world. I hope it is an affront to those who demand that Genesis, in particular, be taken as literal, historical fact. And most particularly, I wish to be downright offensive to those who would remove evolution from our public schools or insert into schools sectarian religious teachings under the guise of "scientific creationism."

See now? All in good fun. I'm sure the Biblical Literalists won't be appalled/outraged. =)

p.s. spirituality ≠ religion or belief in a supernatural being

Michael Weiner "So Racist That It Hurts To Even Listen To Him Talk" Savage

2006-05-15T18:23:00.000-07:00

Seriously. Can Michael Savage be any more disgusting?

From this past Wednesday's Weiner Show, posted at Mediamatters.org:

SAVAGE: What will it take to wake you up to the fact that you are being erased from the future of America? And why are you being erased? If you're a person of European descent, why do they want your child to be a minority in America? And when your little girl is a minority in America, what will happen to her? Tell me what will happen to her? Do you think that the minorities, when they take over the country, will be quite as benevolent and as enlightened as the European-Americans are today? Or do you sense that just perhaps, just maybe, they will not bring the learnings of the Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights, to their new power?

What the hell does... "your little girl"..."what will happen to her"... ?? Do I even have to begin to break this down?

Von Weinerschnitzel has more:

SAVAGE: Now, then, the question becomes in 20 years, what will America look like? And, what is the social landscape like? And what happens to white people? That's the real question here. Will our brown brethren, who are so nationalistic and so anti-gringo and anti-Anglo, be as enlightened as the European-American is? I don't think so. Do you?

Okay, so... again, do I need to break this down?

Aaaaaaaaand crazyguy with the fake name takes another faceplant. People actually listen to this shit and... agree. Sad.

"Boston College Faculty Object To Honorary Degree For Rice"

2006-05-03T06:56:00.000-07:00

From this morning's AP wires, posted at boston.com news:

May 3, 2006
BOSTON --Nearly 100 faculty members at Boston College have signed a letter objecting to the college's decision to award Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice an honorary degree.
...
Rice was announced Monday as commencement speaker for the May 22 ceremonies. Hollenbach said he has no objection to Rice being a speaker, but said she does not deserve an honorary degree.

"On the levels of both moral principle and practical moral judgment, Secretary Rice's approach to international affairs is in fundamental conflict with Boston College's commitment to the values of the Catholic and Jesuit traditions and is inconsistent with the humanistic values that inspire the university's work," the letter said.
...

I tell ya -- good on the Jesuits of Boston College.

Chick's a shifty, lying, duplicitous, creepy ho-bag...

"Money = Speech" Doctrine; ACLU Being Asshats

2006-05-01T14:40:00.000-07:00

- - this entry is cross-posted here, over at DailyKos.com - -

* NOTE: I am a member of the ACLU *

Every once in a while, the American Civil Liberties Union finds itself defending some form of speech that's so repulsive (think: KKK, etc.) that I'm forced to pinch myself and repeat the "I wholeheartedly reject your stupid argument, but I'll continue to defend your right to present your stupid argument" mantra.

This is not one of those times.

In an April 29th, 2006 article, ReclaimDemocracy.org writer Jeffrey Kaplan notes that the ACLU is cockpunching [my description, not Kaplan's] Vermont's right to govern itself by:

"... attacking a Vermont law that limits contributions to political candidates and candidate spending in state elections. In a case now being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court, (Randall v. Sorrell) the ACLU argued the law conflicts with the infamous "money equals speech" doctrine first promulgated by the Court in its 1975 Buckley v. Valeo ruling."

(Those totally unfamiliar with the Buckley ruling (which actually upheld federal limits on campaign contributions, but gave us the "money equals speech" doctrine) can head over to this Wiki entry for a quick primer.)

As Kaplan notes, the "money equals speech" doctrine is completely silly - and fundamentally flawed - because it ignores:

"... the fact that there is a profound difference between who we are (human beings with an inalienable right to self-expression) and what we may possess (money or other forms of property)."

Ok... Lemme jump back to my gripe:

The ACLU, by supporting this doctrine, is in fact contradicting its own declaration which states that "If the rights of society's most vulnerable members are denied, everybody's rights are imperiled." It's very simple -- money influences the election process, so... people with less money have less influence. Until citizens become, essentially, incredibly wise, there's no getting around that bugaboo -- voters are swayed by the candidates that get the most coverage, and the most money buys the most coverage. The net result is that those with the most money can drown out those who are best at governing.

Kaplan best summarizes the situation here:

"In view of its ongoing denial of political reality, the ACLU's position that the "power, even of a democratic majority, must be limited to ensure individual rights" is replete with irony. In this instance, what the ACLU is ensuring is the "right" of the moneyed minority to exercise political power commensurate with its wealth."

...

I could go on, but I don't want to spoil the read. Well, that plus and reprinting everything gives me a migraine. Oh - I didn't really proofread this... cut me some slack... it's Sunday nite and I'm really only concentrating on eating a gigantic handful of delicious "real fruit pectin" jellybeans.

Check out the entire article!

... psst! check out the rest of the site, too...

ReclaimDemocracy.org: Restoring Citizen Authority Over Corporations

* * * * * * *

"Border Guardians Leader Calls For Violence"

2006-04-28T13:09:00.000-07:00

In an April 3rd email obtained by the Southern Poverty Law Center, Border Guardians' founder Laine Lawless (cute name, btw) advised "Mark Martin, "SS commander" of the Western Ohio unit of the National Socialist Movement" to try the following tactics on undocumented immigrants [bulletpoints taken verbatim from the SPLC website]:

"Steal the money from any illegal walking into a bank or check cashing place."
"Make every illegal alien feel the heat of being a person without status. ... I hear the rednecks in the South are beating up illegals as the textile mills have closed. Use your imagination."
"Discourage Spanish-speaking children from going to school. Be creative."
"Create an anonymous propaganda campaign warning that any further illegal immigrants will be shot, maimed or seriously messed-up upon crossing the border. This should be fairly easy to do, considering the hysteria of the Spanish language press, and how they view the Minutemen as ‘racists & vigilantes.’"

In addition, the ~~crazy and unraveled~~ lovely and talented Lawless wrote that she was "not ready to come out on this. ... Please don’t use my name. THANKS." Jeez - she's a female version of Stacy Keach's character ("Cameron Alexander") from American History X. How admirable!

Again... both the full article - and a .PDF of the original email - is available here at SPLCenter.org.

Republicanus Hypocriticus Duplicitious Majoris

2006-04-27T19:17:00.000-07:00

Remember Newt Gingrich's "Contract With America" from 1994 ...?

DailyKos blogger Kurt Kaletka notes that:

Item 10 on the Contract With America was called the Citizen Legislature Act, which proposed that all legislators be held to a maximum of twelve (12) years' service in government. It never became law, but the Citizen Legislature Act was a principle that these congresspeople got elected on, telling the voters that it was high time to boot out the entrenched (Democratic) incumbents and get some fresh faces in office.

... and that the following GOP douchebags and douchebagettes (douchebaguettes?) are violating that trust by seeking re-election in 2006:

To help you out, here are the names of the Representatives who made this promise:

Charles Bass, NH-02
Steve Chabot, OH-01
Tom Davis, VA-11
Mark Foley, FL-16
Rodney Frelinghuysen, NJ-11
Gil Gutknecht, MN-01
Doc Hastings, WA-04
J.D. Hayworth, AZ-08
John Hostettler, IN-09
Walter Jones, NC-03
Sue Kelly, NY-19
Ray LaHood, IL-18
Tom
Latham, IA-04
Steven LaTourette, OH-14
Sue Myrick, NC-09
Robert Ney,
OH-18
Charlie Norwood, GA-09
George Radanovich, CA-19
John Shadegg,
AZ-03
Mac Thornberry, TX-13
Todd Tiahrt, KS-04
Dave Weldon, FL-15
Jerry Weller, IL-11
Ed Whitfield, KY-01
Roger Wicker, MS-01

Here are the senators elected that year who made the same pledge:

Mike DeWine, OH
Jon Kyl, AZ
Rick Santorum, PA
Olympia Snowe,
ME
Craig Thomas, WY

Looks like that pledge isn't as lemony-fresh as it was when they first trotted it out.

...

I love how the GOP pretends to have even a modicum of integrity.

Since Blogging About Politics Makes My Blood Boil...

2006-04-26T21:23:00.000-07:00

I'll just post a few pictures of me with my scruzzy beard.

See how I can't smile anymore?

That's no thanks to you, modern-day GOP.

My Favorite City Turns 150 This Weekend

2006-04-06T17:48:00.000-07:00

Sooooooo... Madison - where I was both born and have spent the vast majority of my 37+ years on this planet - turns the big 1-5-0 on April 9th, 2006.

Check out Madison150.org for all sorts of spiffy information regarding my hometown's past, present and maybe even a little bit of its future.

< -- Kirby; approving

Jesus H. Reggie Bush Christ

2006-04-05T16:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, so... no one has any idea how Reggie Bush will turn out as a pro, but... damn.

Look at these numbers he put up at the NFL draft combine:

4.33 in the 40
24 reps (225lb)
41 inch vertical

Damn!

I could care less if the guy is only 5'10 1/2" + 200lb or whatever... is this the next Gayle Sayers?

I Saw "V For Vendetta" Last Night

2006-04-02T22:38:00.000-07:00

Damned good movie; I hear that the comic series (from roughly '82-'85) was even better.

My birthday is November 5th... oddly enough.

Remember, remember.

"28 Day Slater"

2006-03-31T23:10:00.000-08:00

This is classic.

Both fans and haters alike will love this short Saved By The Bell spoof.

"Is he Mario Lopez? Or A.C. Slater?"

Happy 2nd Anniversary To Air America Radio

2006-03-31T12:12:00.000-08:00

'nuff said

BTW

2006-03-29T16:22:00.000-08:00

The reason I haven't been posting anything of substance is because, frankly, this administration (and this iteration of the GOP) is so *completely out-of-control* and is *in such utter denial* that I can barely begin typing without both laughing and screaming.

- uncontrollably -

What Kind Of American English Do You Speak?

2006-03-29T16:17:00.000-08:00

I'm surprised that I didn't score higher in the "Upper Midwestern" category -- I'm almost always identifiable as having originiated from here by, say, a simple telephone conversation... lol

Your Linguistic Profile:

80% General American English

10% Upper Midwestern

5% Dixie

5% Midwestern

0% Yankee

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Separated At Birth?

2006-03-20T16:05:00.000-08:00

I Stumbled Across The Grooviest Blog Today

2006-03-20T14:59:00.000-08:00

feministing.com

The website is fucking cool. Visit it.

Here's their logo:

lol

They use Typekey for posting comments; if you don't already have a typekey identity, go get one (it's free).

Here's Me, In A Humor 3-Space Nutshell... According To This Test

2006-03-16T06:20:00.000-08:00

the Provacateur
(76% dark, 34% spontaneous, 42% vulgar)

your humor style:
VULGAR COMPLEX DARK

You'll crack on anything, and you're often witty, even caustic, about it.

Therefore, your sense of humor is polarizing. You're transgressive, and you've got a seriously sharp 'edge'--maybe too much for some folks. If they get you, people think you're one of the funniest (and smartest) people in the world. If they don't, they think you're an ass. Whatever, right? While some might question your judgement, your comic intellect is unquestionably respected.

PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Chris Rock - Lenny Bruce - George Carlin

The 3-Variable Funny Test!

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 96% on darkness
You scored higher than 19% on spontaneity
You scored higher than 62% on vulgarity

Wow. Has It Been 10 Days?

2006-03-12T19:08:00.000-08:00

My shift was put back on 40 hrs/wk, back up from the 30 we were reduced to... so I've been conspicuously absent.

Nothing's happened over the past week-and-a-half anyhow. Right?

Please note that although I removed the Impeach Bush banner (since it decided to stop displaying properly - dunno wtf is up with that) I still want the loser out of office.

"Did 308,000 Cancelled Ohio Voter Registrations Put Bush Back In The White House?"

2006-03-02T18:34:00.000-08:00

In the seemingly endless discovery of recent GOP election fraud, some bits of info stand out a little more than others. This one's definitely got my attention:

Did 308,000 cancelled Ohio voter registrations put Bush back in the White House?

by Bob Fitrakis and Harvey Wasserman
February 28, 2006

While life goes on during the Bush2 nightmare, so does the research on what really happened here in 2004 to give George W. Bush a second term. Pundits throughout the state and nation---many of them alleged Democrats---continue to tell those of us who question Bush's second coming that we should "get over it," that the election is old news.

But things get curiouser and curiouser.

In our 2005 compendium HOW THE GOP STOLE OHIO'S 2004 ELECTION & IS RIGGING 2008 (www.freepress.org), we list more than a hundred different ways the Republican Party denied the democratic process in the Buckeye State. For a book of documents to be published September 11 by the New Press entitled WHAT HAPPENED IN OHIO?, we are continuing to dig.

It turns out, we missed more than a few of the dirty tricks Karl Rove, Ken Blackwell and their GOP used to get themselves four more years. In an election won with death by a thousand cuts, some that are still hidden go very deep. Over the next few weeks we will list them as they are verified.

One of them has just surfaced to the staggering tune of 175,000 purged voters in Cuyahoga County (Cleveland), the traditional stronghold of the Ohio Democratic Party. An additional 10,000 that registered to vote there for the 2004 election were lost due to "clerical error." [emphasis courtesy moi]
As we reported more than a year ago, some 133,000 voters were purged from the registration rolls in Hamilton County (Cincinnati) and Lucas County (Toledo) between 2000 and 2004. The 105,000 from Cincinnati and 28,000 from Toledo exceeded Bush's official alleged margin of victory---just under 119,000 votes out of some 5.6 million the Republican Secretary of State. J. Kenneth Blackwell, deemed worth counting.
...

Stay tuned, folks.

In the meantime, read Mark Crispin Miller's "Fooled Again: How the Right Stole the 2004 Election & Why They'll Steal the Next One Too (Unless We Stop Them)" to see the astoundingly comprehensive manners in which the GOP screwed with the electoral process, just to ensure a Bush victory. Astounding.

Well I'll Be Damned...

2006-03-01T17:18:00.000-08:00

I was just listening to Majority Report Radio; Janeane brought in a copy of the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition) manual and spoke of just how closely today's conservatives appear to display the symptoms of Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Ok, so it cracked me up at first... but then I went on the web and checked it out for myself.

She's right!

Look:

1. An exaggerated sense of self-importance (e.g., exaggerates achievements and talents, expects to be recognized as superior without commensurate achievements)

2. Preoccupation with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal love

3. Believes he is "special" and can only be understood by, or should associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)

4. Requires excessive admiration

5. Has a sense of entitlement

6. Selfishly takes advantage of others to achieve his own ends

7. Lacks empathy

8. Is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him
9. Shows arrogant, haughty, patronizing, or contemptuous behaviors or attitudes

Certifiable.

I guess Michael Savage has it all wrong, huh? *chuckle*

Shitty McLiarpants Totally Busted

2006-03-01T15:08:00.000-08:00

"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees" ...?

Well, that's not what six days of video footage and transcripts show.

From the AP:

In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, risk lives in New Orleans' Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage of the briefings.

Bush didn't ask a single question during the final government-wide briefing the day before Katrina struck on Aug. 29 but assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: "We are fully prepared."

Six days of footage and transcripts obtained by The Associated Press show in excruciating detail that while federal officials anticipated the tragedy that unfolded in New Orleans and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, they were fatally slow to realize they had not mustered enough resources to deal with the unprecedented disaster.

...

I'm about to go ballistic. Absolutely fucking ballistic.

So what's today's excuse, Bush apologists?

" Well, Mike, these things happen. See?"

Shareholder Update:

2006-02-28T23:09:00.000-08:00

My blog is worth
One smushy banana and a seedless grape.
How much is your blog worth?

Pigs Seen Flying

2006-02-28T22:39:00.000-08:00

Ok. Newsmax.com (that's right: newsmax.com the unapologetic neoconservative suckhole embarrassment to journalism) writer, John LeBoutillier, had this to say, last week:

"It is clear that total incompetence and fraud dominates this administration."

[carbonated water shooting out of nose] * tingly *

... oh really, doctor?

[shaking head]

I won't soon forget how long it's taken the BushieBacker asshats to jump ship. In fact - let's all make sure that no one does, so this kind of crap never happens again.

[still shaking head]

In ~~other news~~ parodytainmentnews: Are Your Cats Old Enough To Learn About Jesus?

I still feel dirty for linking to a Newsmax article. Someone lick me.

I'll Take... "Goofy Analogies" For... $500, Alex.

2006-02-28T16:07:00.000-08:00

From Reuters: Prosecutor likens Guantanamo defendants to vampires

According to the prosecutor, "confronting the defendants at the Guantanamo war crimes tribunals with the evidence against them will be like dragging vampires into the sunlight"... with the idea being that the "light of truth" would expose the detainees, like... ah, you get the idea.

The chief prosecutor, Air Force Col. Moe Davis, blamed the delays on the
detainees and their lawyers and compared them to movie vampires.
"Remember if you dragged Dracula out into the sunlight he melted. Well that's kind of the way it is trying to drag a detainee into the courtroom. The facts are like the sunlight to Dracula. The last thing they want is to face the facts in the courtroom," Davis told journalists. "But their day is coming."

Funny thing, though. These aren't trials. These are military tribunals, which include "the use of secret evidence that defendants will not be allowed to see and the potential use of evidence obtained through torture."

Ahhhh... I see. *That* kind of light... so, like, there are no harmful UV rays? Will every defendant get a pair of his/her own BluBlockers?

Bottom line: It's not really much "The Light Of Truth,"... more of a "Flourescent Illumination."

Only 1,300 Iraqis Died In Sectarian Violence DURING THE PAST WEEK

2006-02-27T18:59:00.000-08:00

Nothing to see here.

Freedom's on the march.

Douchey McDouchebag Garnering A Whopping 34% Approval

2006-02-27T16:29:00.000-08:00

From a CBS News poll... only ~1/3 of the population gives Bush the thumbs up.

In other news, a mere 2/3 of the population can identify what constitutes "a really, really fucking lousy President."

My Ticket? Dismissed. Officer Mansavage? Denied! Suck It, Loserboy. PPPPPLT!

2006-02-24T10:23:00.000-08:00

You may recall that I got pulled over (for having an expired sticker on my license plate) by a douchebag cop a few weeks back... and that rather than give me a warning and tell me to take care of it a.s.a.p., he cited me.

In any case, my court appearance this morning lasted about, oh, 2 minutes... I'm not exaggerating - the court commisioner just looked at my citation, asked if I registered my vehicle since then, looked at the registration certificate that I handed him, noted that my driving record was clean, and told me that the ticket was waived. The sheriff just pointed at the exit doorway and told me to have a nice day.

I had to waste 2 hours of my life (including waking up early, shower, drive time, etc) for that? The court had to waste its valuable time/resources over virtually nothing? I guess so. Ofiicer Mansavage - you, sir, are a retard. Next time you pull someone over for something so utterly non-threatening to the public... try simply issuing a warning. You'd have saved a bunch of people a whole lot of bullshit, had you done so a few weeks ago. Douchebag.

I Don't Drink A Whole Lot Anymore... But When I Do.... giggle

2006-02-23T23:00:00.000-08:00

What Kind of Drunk Are You?
Brought to you by Rum and Monkey

Oooh. Ouch!

I suppose that one can never really run away from such things. Oh well.

"Bystander Fired Deadly Shot, Not Officer" - Conceal And Carry Weapon Laws In Action

2006-02-21T19:21:00.000-08:00

I got into an interesting debate with a pro-CC guy re: this article from Louisiana's WAFB Channel 9 online (not sure exactly what city in LA, but presumably broadcasts mainly to the Baton Rouge area).

It's a short article, so I'll just quote the whole thing:

Bystander Fired Deadly Shot, Not Officer

Feb 21, 2006, 07:39 AM CST

There were two big developments Monday in the case of a motorist who was shot and killed along Greenwell Springs Road Friday after a fight with a police officer. Investigators say an autopsy shows the deadly bullet was fired by a bystander, not the officer. Police also announced that no charges would be filed in the case, either against the police officer involved or the bystander who fired the fatal shot into the head of George Temple.
East Baton Rouge Sheriff's spokesman Greg Phares says Officer Brian Harrision was escorting a funeral procession Friday when he pulled Temple over and wrote him a ticket for breaking into the procession. According to Phares, that's when Temple attacked Harrison. Police say Perry Stevens was walking outside of the Auto Zone on Greenwell Springs Road when he heard Harrison yelling for help. Harrison was reportedly on his back with Temple on top of him. That's when Stevens went to his car and grabbed his .45 caliber pistol.
According to Col. Greg Phares, "[Mr. Stevens] orders Mr. Temple to stop and get off the officer. The verbal commands are ignored and Mr. Stevens fires four shots, all of which struck Mr. Temple."
Perry Stevens fired four shots into Temple's torso. Officer Harrison had already fired one shot into Temple's abdomen. With Temple still struggling with the officer, Perry continued to advance toward the scuffle. "He again orders Mr. Temple to stop what he was doing and get off the officer. Those commands are ignored and he fires a fifth shot and that hits his head. The incident is over with, and as you know, Mr. Temple is dead."
Police are calling the shooting death justified. Perry Stevens has a permit to carry a concealed weapon. Col. Phares would not give out any more details relating to the shooting. Both Phares and Baton Rouge Police Chief Jeff LeDuff stopped short of crediting Stevens with saving the officer's life. LeDuff says the entire incident is unfortunate.
"I spoke with his father at the scene briefly," said LeDuff. "I think this is a tragic situation all around."
9 News is told George Temple has a criminal record, and Officer Harrison was involved in a shooting while employed as a prison guard in East Baton Rouge Parish, where he was suspended for three days back in 1995.

I thought it looked pretty overreaching to summarily justify the totality of the citizen's actions, and that, at least, the citizen is probably looking at a civil lawsuit by the shot/killed man's family; my debator thought it was a clearcut example of the usefulness of CC... case closed.

Neither of us had the appropriate Louisiana laws in front of us, so we mutually decided to quit arguing about it. For me... it was more about whether or not this kind of *outcome* is appropriate, versus the proscribed legality of the situation (without the benefit of knowing how a jury would in fact interpret the situation, of course).

I think I'll follow this story.

I look forward to any comments, from any position.

NOTE: I've been generally undecided on conceal/carry laws, for a very long time now.

"U.S. Reclassifies Many Documents In Secret Review"

2006-02-20T22:41:00.000-08:00

From the ~~AP wires~~ *oops* NY Times online...

WASHINGTON, Feb. 20 — In a seven-year-old secret program at the National Archives, intelligence agencies have been removing from public access thousands of historical documents that were available for years, including some already published by the State Department and others photocopied years ago by private historians.

...

"It doesn't make sense to create a category of documents that are classified but that everyone already has," said Meredith Fuchs, general counsel of the National Security Archive, a research group at George Washington University. "These documents were on open shelves for years."

...

In related news, Americans are going to have to jam farts back up their asses.

Anyhow. I like this next part:

...
Among the 50 withdrawn documents that Mr. Aid found in his own files is a 1948 memorandum on a C.I.A. scheme to float balloons over countries behind the Iron Curtain and drop propaganda leaflets. It was reclassified in 2001 even though it had been published by the State Department in 1996.

Another historian, William Burr, found a dozen documents he had copied years ago whose reclassification he considers "silly," including a 1962 telegram from George F. Kennan, then ambassador to Yugoslavia, containing an English translation of a Belgrade newspaper article on China's nuclear weapons program.

Under existing guidelines, government documents are supposed to be declassified after 25 years unless there is particular reason to keep them secret. While some of the choices made by the security reviewers at the archives are baffling, others seem guided by an old bureaucratic reflex: to cover up embarrassments, even if they occurred a half-century ago.

One reclassified document in Mr. Aid's files, for instance, gives the C.I.A.'s assessment on Oct. 12, 1950, that Chinese intervention in the Korean War was "not probable in 1950." Just two weeks later, on Oct. 27, some 300,000 Chinese troops crossed into Korea.
...

[shaking head]

Christ... get over all the secrecy, you morons.

Just Saw Speilberg's "Munich"...

2006-02-20T19:00:00.000-08:00

Very powerful film.

'nuff said

In "Booming Economy" News

2006-02-18T11:58:00.000-08:00

From the AP wires, posted at MSNBC.com:

Electronics retailer RadioShack Corp. on Friday said fourth-quarter earnings dropped 62 percent and disclosed it plans to close 400 to 700 stores and two distribution centers as part of a plan to improve its financial performance.

...

That's 6%-10% of their U.S. retail outlets.

In other news, al-Qaeda in its last throes.

Secret, Secret... He's Got A Secret.

2006-02-17T10:44:00.000-08:00

Posted at Rawstory.com:

FBI locates 780 pages of Vice President's 'FBI file,' but hasn't released after nearly two years

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has responded to a request from a San Francisco-based blogger for Vice President Dick Cheney’s FBI file—but has been withholding its release since September 2005, RAW STORY has learned.
In a letter to blogger Michael Petrelis, of PetrelisFiles.com, the section chief for the FBI’s records management division acknowledged in August 2005 that the bureau had located some 780 pages on the vice president. Petrelis then agreed to pay for all copying costs.

To date, Petrelis hasn’t received a single page on Cheney.
...
In the letter, Hardy also indicated the records would be released soon—when he wrote Petrelis in September of last year.

“We anticipate that a disclosure of responsive materials will be made in the near future,” Hardy wrote.
...
"I requested these files because the American public must know what's in the dossiers on Bush and Cheney," Petrelis said at the time. "Democrat John Kerry's voluminous FBI files were scrutinized by reporters and the subject of hundreds of news accounts in March of this year. Less than sixty days before the November election, the FBI has a responsibility to treat Bush and Cheney's files equal to those on Kerry, which means releasing their files forthwith."

Petrelis was denied expedited processing for the records’ release. A later appeal was also denied.

Wellllllllll... fucking imagine that.

I wonder what's taking so long?

Neocona Non Grata

2006-02-16T17:41:00.000-08:00

From a cbs2chicago.com report:

(AP) CHICAGO Thanks but no thanks.

That's Chicago's answer to an invitation to submit a bid to host the 2008 Republican National Convention.

The Republican National Committee said yesterday that Chicago and 30 other cities were selected to submit bids explaining why they'd be a good choice to host the 2008 convention.

But a spokeswoman for Mayor Richard Daley says City Hall isn't interested.

...

In otherwords: Take a hike, losers.

Small Compilation Of Quotes To Help Combat Neocon Douchenozzles, Courtesy Of Leftist Grandpa

2006-02-16T07:50:00.000-08:00

Grandpa Eddie (Leftist Grandpa of forthegrandkids.blogspot.com) has had this on his sidebar for a quite while -- I thought I'd reproduce it here, in case you've never been to his blog. His place is one of my favorites; he's a fellow Wisconsinite with the heart of a lion. Check it out sometime.

QUOTES TO CONSIDER

When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty. -- Thomas Jefferson

A nation that is afraid to let its people judge the truth and falsehood in an open market is a nation that is afraid of its people. -- John F. Kennedy

Loyalty to the country always. Loyalty to the government when it deserves it. -- Mark Twain

When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag, carrying a cross. -- Sinclair Lewis (1935)

There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty. -- John Adams

Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from a religious conviction. -- Blaise Pascal

The spirit of resistance to government is so valuable on certain occasions, that I wish it to be always kept alive. It will often be exercised when wrong, but better so than not to be exercised at all. I like a little rebellion now and then. It is like a storm in the atmosphere. -- Thomas Jefferson to Abigail Adams, 1787.

It is better to die on your feet then live on your knees. -- Emiliano Zapata

Goddamn right, Emiliano Zapata.

Rush Limbaugh: Idiot Extraordinaire

2006-02-15T22:55:00.000-08:00

Ok - this one's almost too good to be true:

And don’t forget, Sherrod Brown is black. There’s a racial component here, too. And now, the newspaper that I’m reading all this from is The New York Times, and they, of course, don’t mention that. But — you know, “Democratic leaders say that Representative Sherrod Brown, a seven-term incumbent from Avon, has a far better chance of toppling Senator DeWine than does the — Hackett.”

[…]

Uh, Sherrod Brown’s a white guy? Then I’m confusing him with somebody. OK, I’m sorry. I thought Sherrod Brown was — I’m — I’m confusing him with somebody then. Must be somebody in New York has got a similar name…

[…]

For those of you who continue to email me, even though I have made the correction — let me make the correction again. I erred when I said that Sherrod Brown is black. I’m confusing him with somebody with a similar name in the Democratic Party somewhere. But we have — we have corrected this, and I, you know, I’m not gonna apologize, ’cause I don’t think it’s an insult to be black. But — but I did err. He is — his is — he is — he is not black. He’s one of these white European descendents in Ohio. He’s the guy that — that the Democrats have kicked Paul Hackett out of the race for the Senate seat in Ohio against Mike DeWine. And it really boils down to a matter of money, plus they don’t like military guys in the, in the Democratic Party.

... LMFAO

Truth be told, the first time I saw his name in print (probably 8-9 months ago) *I* assumed "Sherrod Brown" was black, too. But what did I do? I FUCKING LOOKED THE GUY UP ON GOOGLE BEFORE I MADE THE ABSOLUTELY FUCKING EGREGIOUS ERROR OF PRESUMING THAT HE WAS BLACK BASED SOLELY ON MY PRECONCIEVED NOTION.

My favorite part of his trying to cover his stupidity was in the non sequitur:

He’s one of these white European descendents in Ohio.

Um.

Anyhow.

Twisted.

2006-02-15T21:19:00.000-08:00

You warmonkeys are a sick bunch, you know that?

Link to Australian television show's exposé on unreleased Abu Ghraib photos (use the bittorrents, if you can... helps share the bandwidth).

...

I'm gonna remember every last one of you douchebags that keep trotting out apology after apology for this administration.

Know what?

Fuck you.

I hereby dedicate my life to ruining your miserable lives.

Fuck you.

Thought-Provoking Debate Re: Use Of Anti-Semitism & Israel's Human Rights Record

2006-02-15T16:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday, Democracy Now! hosted the following debate (moderated by Amy Goodman) between DePaul University's Professor Norman Finkelstein and former Israeli Foreign Minister Shlomo Ben-Ami.

Description, from the website:

Norman Finkelstein argues that some supporters of Israeli government policies have attempted to de-legitimize criticism by disingenuously heaping the charge of anti-Semitism. Shlomo Ben Ami defends Israel's record on human rights, and says peace will only come about through a negotiated two-state settlement.

Highly recommended read (page also provides links to A/V versions; I haven't had the chance to watch/listen yet).

I don't want to spoil "the read" for you, but I must note that I had no idea that Israel currently holds 9,000 Palestinian political prisoners.

I Like Santa

2006-02-14T21:28:00.000-08:00

The Daily Show; Cheney Shooting Incident

2006-02-13T21:54:00.000-08:00

Maybe I'm still pissed about the whole Paul Hackett thing unraveling tonight and was ripe for a good belly laugh...

Maybe not.

I think that this 10-minute Daily Show stretch qualifies as a classic, regardless.

"Bush Admin. spent over $1.6 Billion on advertising and P.R. since 2003, GAO finds"

2006-02-13T09:21:00.000-08:00

From Rawstory.com:

Today Rep. Henry A. Waxman, Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Rep. George Miller, Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, and other senior Democrats released a new Government Accountability Office report finding that the Bush Administration spent more than $1.6 billion in public relations and media contracts in a two and a half year span.

...

"It is unbelievable that the Administration, on several occasions, has used limited taxpayer dollars to secretly promote initiatives such as No Child Left Behind, while underfunding money for our schools, books, technology, and after school programs," said Rep. Elijah E. Cummings.

...

Unbelievable? Believe it.

Worst administration ever.

Dubya - The Movie

2006-02-12T17:29:00.000-08:00

I was just over at Grandpa Eddie's (aka Leftist Grandpa, aka For The Grandkids) blog - he posted a link to this video that someone put together. Pretty funny.

Don Knotts as "Dubya". Believable... an excellent portrayal by the venerable actor. Two thumbs up.

Only The Republican Party Can Keep Us Unsafe

2006-02-11T17:35:00.000-08:00

From an article at gainsville.com:

A company in the United Arab Emirates is poised to take over significant operations at six American ports as part of a corporate sale, leaving a country with ties to the Sept. 11 hijackers with influence over a maritime industry considered vulnerable to terrorism.

...

The State Department describes the UAE as a vital partner in the fight against terrorism. But the UAE, a loose federation of seven emirates on the Saudi peninsula, was an important operational and financial base for the hijackers who carried out the attacks against New York and Washington, the FBI concluded.

...

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the FBI has said the money for the strikes was transferred to the hijackers primarily through the UAE's banking system, and much of the operational planning for the attacks took place inside the UAE.

Now, granted, it's only management of the ports and not operation of the ports... and the article notes that:

Flynn and others said even under foreign control, U.S. ports will continue to be run by unionized American employees. "You're not going have a bunch of UAE citizens working the docks," Flynn said. "They're longshoremen, vested in high-paying jobs. Most of them are Archie Bunker-kind of Americans."

However, and probably most importantly:

Critics of the proposed purchase said a port operator complicit in smuggling or terrorism could manipulate manifests and other records to frustrate Homeland Security's already limited scrutiny of shipping containers and slip contraband past U.S. Customs inspectors.

... cripes

Pajamas Media Asplode

2006-02-09T17:52:00.000-08:00

From the BBC:

The head of Israel's domestic security agency, Shin Bet, has said his country may come to regret the overthrow of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
Yuval Diskin said a strong dictatorship would be preferable to the present "chaos" in Iraq, in a speech to teenage Jewish settlers in the West Bank.

LGF, Malkin, et al. must be going cuckoo trying to figure out who they stand *with* now. Buuuuut... that's the price you eventually pay... when you stand *for* nothing.

"Mansavage".. heehee

2006-02-08T21:02:00.000-08:00

I just got back from work... was pulled over on the way home for an expired tag on my license plate ($160 ticket!? wtf?? lol)... so when I got inside here and finally got to look at the ticket, I noticed that the officer's last name is:

MANSAVAGE!

lol

seriously - what a dumb name... the dick
you heard me, mansavage... dick... dick... dick... diiiiiiiiiiiick...

If This Quote Makes You Uncomfortable, You'd Better Go Take A Long Look In The Mirror.

2006-02-08T14:41:00.000-08:00

"We know now there were no weapons of mass destruction over there. But Coretta knew and we know that there are weapons of misdirection right down here. Millions without health insurance. Poverty abounds. For war billions more but no more for the poor."

-- Reverend Joseph Lowrey

You've Obviously Seen The Coretta Scott King Funeral Clip...

2006-02-07T22:48:00.000-08:00

... but did you know that Emperor Boosh actually *laughed* at his own public flogging/bitchslapping?

The mourners responded with a standing ovation. Bush's immediate reaction could not be seen on television, but after Lowery finished speaking, the president shook his hand and laughed.

Must be nice to be so immensely oblivious.

DUHHHHHHRRRRRRR!

Douchebag Deutsch Never Graduated From Texas A & M

2006-02-07T15:12:00.000-08:00

UPDATE: Deutsch surrenders... lmao!

The Scientific Activist discovered that George Deutsch, the 24-year-old Bush appointee who splits time between being one of three National Public Affairs officer for NASA and being an asshat who tries to censor scientists (who - oddly enough - could run intellectual circles around him with both pocket protectors behind their backs), never graduated from Texas A&M University.

Although Deutsch did attend Texas A&M University, where he majored in journalism and was scheduled to graduate in 2003, he left in 2004 without a degree, a revelation that I was tipped off to by one of his former coworkers at A&M's student newspaper The Battalion.
...
The idea that NASA let a 24-year-old journalism major, with no experience in science or technology, other than writing a few articles about video games, determine what scientists were able to communicate to the public was pretty bad. The fact that he was censoring scientific information on global warming and the big bang made things more interesting, especially since he was a political appointee doing this to prevent challenges to the Bush administration’s policies.
...

Now, don't get me wrong here; the "big deal" is still that the kid was in no position to have been trying to censor the NASA scientists in the first place.

The humor lies in the fact that (1) he was described by The New York Times as a 2004 A&M graduate and never bothered to try to correct the public record, and that (2) one of his classmates helped rat his douchebag ass out.

George Deutsch -- I hereby dub thee: "The Vinegar and Water Boy."

Another Day, Another Slimy Karl Rove Plot

2006-02-06T23:14:00.000-08:00

From the article "Rove counting heads on the Senate Judiciary Committee" over at insightmag.com:

The White House has been twisting arms to ensure that no Republican member votes against President Bush in the Senate Judiciary Committee’s investigation of the administration's unauthorized wiretapping.

Congressional sources said Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove has threatened to blacklist any Republican who votes against the president. The sources said the blacklist would mean a halt in any White House political or financial support of senators running for re-election in November.

...

"He's [Rove] lining them up one by one," another congressional source said.

Mr. Rove is leading the White House campaign to help the GOP in November’s congressional elections. The sources said the White House has offered to help loyalists with money and free publicity, such as appearances and photo-ops with the president.

God damn that guy is a sleaze.

Hey (R)s -- don't protect the Constitution or serve your constiuencies or nothin' like that, now. Party before country. SEIG HEIL!

BTW - what GOP member *really* wants to be photographed with Bush for use in November elections? Is he serious? Dude can barely keep his head above the 40% approval rating. Lame-O.

As far as witholding campaign dollars goes... can anyone say "Solution To This Particular Problem: Publicly Financed Elections"...?

Time for a plug.

RECLAIM DEMOCRACY!

Which Horrible Affliction Are You?

2006-02-06T23:11:00.000-08:00

Which Horrible Affliction are you?
A Rum and Monkey disease.

... I am... rabies.

The Myth Of The Totally Independent, "Self-Made" American

2006-02-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

... just another one that's made its way around teh intarweb a few times; implicit in the text is the important realization that domestic social spending not only FILLS THE GAPS LEFT BY INEFFICIENCIES IN THE FREE MARKET SYSTEM, but also ADDRESSES ISSUES THAT PRIVATE INDUSTRY EITHER CAN'T OR WON'T.

Joe gets up at 6 a.m. and fills his coffeepot with water to prepare his morning coffee. The water is clean and good because some tree-hugging liberal fought for minimum water-quality standards. With his first swallow of water, he takes his daily medication. His medications are safe to take because some stupid commie liberal fought to ensure their safety and that they work as advertised.

All but $10 of his medications are paid for by his employer's medical plan because some liberal union workers fought their employers for paid medical insurance -- now Joe gets it, too.

He prepares his morning breakfast: bacon and eggs. Joe's bacon is safe to eat because some girly-man liberal fought for laws to regulate the meat packing industry.

In the morning shower, Joe reaches for his shampoo. His bottle is properly labeled with each ingredient and its amount in the total contents because some crybaby liberal fought for his right to know what he was putting on his body and how much it contained.

Joe dresses, walks outside and takes a deep breath. The air he breathes is clean because some environmentalist wacko liberal fought for the laws to stop industries from polluting our air.

He walks on the government-provided sidewalk to the subway station for his government-subsidized ride to work. It saves him considerable money in parking and transportation fees because some fancy-pants liberal fought for affordable public transportation, which gives everyone the opportunity to be a contributor.

Joe begins his work day. He has a good job with excellent pay, medical benefits, retirement, paid holidays and vacation because some lazy liberal union members fought and died for these working standards. Joe's employer pays these standards because Joe's employer doesn't want his employees to call the union.

If Joe is hurt on the job or becomes unemployed, he'll get a worker compensation or unemployment checks because some stupid liberal didn't think he should lose his home because of his temporary misfortune.

It is noontime and Joe needs to make a bank deposit so he can pay some bills. Joe's deposit is federally insured by the FSLIC because some godless liberal wanted to protect Joe's money from unscrupulous bankers who ruined the banking system before the Great Depression.

Joe has to pay his Fannie Mae-underwritten mortgage and his below-market federal student loan because some elitist liberal decided that Joe and the government would be better off if he was educated and earned more money over his lifetime. Joe also forgets that in addition to his federally subsidized student loans, he attended a state funded university.

Joe is home from work. He plans to visit his father this evening at his farm home in the country. He gets in his car for the drive. His car is among the safest in the world because some America-hating liberal fought for car safety standards to go along with the taxpayer funded roads.

He arrives at his boyhood home. His was the third generation to live in the house financed by Farmers' Home Administration because bankers didn't want to make rural loans.

The house didn't have electricity until some big-government liberal stuck his nose where it didn't belong and demanded rural electrification.

He is happy to see his father, who is now retired. His father lives on Social Security and a union pension because some wine-drinking, cheese-eating liberal made sure he could take care of himself so Joe wouldn't have to.

Joe gets back in his car for the ride home, and turns on a radio talk show. The radio host keeps saying that liberals are bad and conservatives are good. He doesn't mention that the beloved conservatives have fought against every protection and benefit Joe enjoys throughout his day. Joe agrees: "We don't need those big-government liberals ruining our lives! After all, I'm a self-made man who believes everyone should take care of themselves, just like I have."

The 14 Characteristics Of Fascism

2006-02-06T00:30:00.000-08:00

I know this has been posted a bazillion times, all over the intarwebz, but... after spending an hour over at Fark.com* I thought this needed to go up... if only for cathartic reasons.

The Fourteen Characteristics Of Fascism

Powerful and Continuing Nationalism -- Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights -- Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to 'look the other way' or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause -- The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial, ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

Supremacy of the Military -- Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

Rampant Sexism -- The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and antigay legislation and national policy.

Controlled Mass Media -- Sometimes the media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or through sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in wartime, is very common.

Obsession with National Security -- Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

Religion and Government are Intertwined -- Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.

Corporate Power is Protected -- The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

Labor Power is Suppressed -- Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely or are severely suppressed.

Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts -- Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.

Obsession with Crime and Punishment -- Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses, and even forego civil liberties, in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

Rampant Cronyism and Corruption -- Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions, and who use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

Fraudulent Elections -- Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against (or even the assassination of) opposition candidates, the use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and the manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

Fascism? Here? In the Unites States?

I see nothing. No fascism here.

* Fark is actually a pretty entertaining place, on the whole... don't take this as representative of how I regularly feel when I emerge from some time in the Fark threads... it's just that... every once in a while... a few ignoramuses who regularly post over there?... makes you wonder what sort of disturbing childhoods they went through (and/or what sort of fucked up, malicious/misguided parents they learned from)... I suppose it'd be prudent to forgive them, for they know not that they are dumb as bags of hammers.

Oil Industry Profitability

2006-02-02T19:10:00.000-08:00

By the way, a couple tenets of efficient markets:

* new firms may enter the market at will (no "barriers to entry," in the econ vernacular)
* prices are determined by market forces (firms can't affect prices; that groovy "invisible hand")

So how is it that oil companies can cut production to protect profitability?

According to economic theory, what *should* be happening right now -- new firms *should* be entering the oil production market, sucking away at the teat of immense economic profits.

Thass no happeneeeeeeen

How come the free market isn't correcting itself? Just something to ponder.

Oh Look, Another Instance Of Lying In This Administration

2006-02-02T16:05:00.000-08:00

From today's Murray Waas' Nationl Journal article Iraq, Niger, And The CIA...

Vice President Cheney and his then-Chief of Staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby were personally informed in June 2003 that the CIA no longer considered credible the allegations that Saddam Hussein had attempted to procure uranium from the African nation of Niger, according to government records and interviews with current and former officials.

...

The new disclosures raise questions as to why Libby and other Bush administration officials continued their efforts to discredit Wilson -- even as they were told that claims about Iraq's having procured uranium from Niger were most likely a hoax.

...

Stephen Gillers, a law professor at New York University, said, "The prosecutor's implicit inference before the jury may well likely be that Libby lied to protect the vice president. Even in a plain vanilla case, a prosecutor always wants to be able to demonstrate a motive."

That Cheney was one of the first people to tell Libby about Plame, and that Libby had written in his notes that Cheney had heard the information from the CIA director, Gillers said, might make it more difficult for Libby to mount a credible defense of a faulty memory. "From a prosecutor's point of view, and perhaps a jury's as well, the conversation [during which Libby learned about Plame] is the more dramatic and the more memorable because the conversation was with the vice president" and because the CIA director's name also came up, Gillers said.

The disclosure that Cheney and Libby were told of a CIA assessment that the agency considered the Niger allegations to be untrue, and that Tenet requested the assessment as a result of the personal interest of Cheney and Libby, would "demonstrate even further that Niger was a central issue for Libby," said Gillers, and would "make it even harder, although not impossible, to claim a faulty memory."

I can almost hear the Freepers coming up with the latest explanation.

The Great Depression Was So Great That... We're Going To Give It Another Whirl?

2006-02-01T17:59:00.000-08:00

This past Monday, the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis released a report displaying how our nation's personal savings rate was actually *negative* during 2005... -0.5%, to be exact.

According to an article by Martin Crutsinger, Associated Press Economics Writer:

"Americans not only spent all of their after-tax income last year but had to dip into previous savings or increase borrowing.

The savings rate has been negative for an entire year only twice before — in 1932 and 1933..."

Mmmmmmmm.

Dust bowls and bread lines.

How Eager Neocons Are To Be Slaves

2006-02-01T17:43:00.000-08:00

... a most apt bit of history, from Gore Vidal's latest article, posted online at The Nation:

When the admirable Tiberius (he has had an undeserved bad press), upon becoming emperor, received a message from the Senate in which the conscript fathers assured him that whatever legislation he wanted would be automatically passed by them, he sent back word that this was outrageous. "Suppose the emperor is ill or mad or incompetent?" He returned their message. They sent it again. His response: "How eager you are to be slaves."

Bush supporters have never been accused of *not* being an eager lot, have they?

More Racially-Biased, More Likely To Vote Conservative Or Republican

2006-01-30T17:11:00.000-08:00

Sooooooooo to follow up on my last post... from the Washington Post...

Study Ties Political Leanings to Hidden Biases

...

For their study, Nosek, Banaji and social psychologist Erik Thompson culled self-acknowledged views about blacks from nearly 130,000 whites, who volunteered online to participate in a widely used test of racial bias that measures the speed of people's associations between black or white faces and positive or negative words. The researchers examined correlations between explicit and implicit attitudes and voting behavior in all 435 congressional districts.

The analysis found that substantial majorities of Americans, liberals and conservatives, found it more difficult to associate black faces with positive concepts than white faces -- evidence of implicit bias. But districts that registered higher levels of bias systematically produced more votes for Bush. [emphasis added by moi, EconAtheist]

"Obviously, such research does not speak at all to the question of the prejudice level of the president," said Banaji, "but it does show that George W. Bush is appealing as a leader to those Americans who harbor greater anti-black prejudice."

...

"If anyone in Washington is skeptical about these findings, they are in denial," he said. "We have 50 years of evidence that racial prejudice predicts voting. Republicans are supported by whites with prejudice against blacks. If people say, 'This takes me aback,' they are ignoring a huge volume of research."

Jeepers - whoda thunk it? Shocking, I say... shocking.

Beating Ni**ers

2006-01-30T11:38:00.000-08:00

Attention: People of color

The "Southern Strategy" is alive and well.

A Message From Your Host

We will have a Jesse Jackson piñata , a dunk tank where you'll get the chance to sink my wife who will be dressed as Hilary Clinton, and a special guest appearance by my uncle - Rep. Timothy V. Johnson who will be giving away "Proud to be G.O.P." American Flag windbreakers. Bring a side dish if you like. We will have burgers, hot dogs, chili, and pizza, but nothing vegetarian! This party is family friendly, so feel free to bring children. It's never too early to get them involved!

... this from a .PDF flyer for an RNC-sponsored GOP house party (link goes to Daily Kos member guither's diary).

Feel free to bring the children - it's never too early to get them involved?

Here's Me, In A Political Nutshell... According To This Test

2006-01-29T12:47:00.000-08:00

I was hoping to be closer to Ghandi-like, but...

You are a
Social Liberal
(63% permissive)

and an...
Economic Liberal
(26% permissive)

You are best described as a:

Democrat

Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid
Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

The President's Oath

2006-01-27T18:18:00.000-08:00

Each and every President of the United States has been sworn into office, in accordance with Article II, Section I of the United States Constitution, by reciting the following affirmation:

"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

I think it's safe to say that defending the U.S. Constitution is the President's primary responsibility, given that it's the only thing that he/she MUST EXPRESSLY AFFIRM in the Oath. This responsibility trumps any and all others.

You listening, Bush?

Hi Again!

2006-01-27T18:15:00.000-08:00

Ok, Desi forced me back into blogging.

=|

... I'm such a pushover.

Taking A Blogging Break For A While

2006-01-11T19:40:00.000-08:00

Well, I've had enough blogging for the time being... at least on a regular basis. If something pisses me off enough to give me the inspiration to post, I'll post. Otherwise? I'll just keep reading other blogs and commenting at those places.

To the 2 or 3 people that've come by here in the past 3 weeks -- thanks! =) lol

You can always email me at mtuffli@hotmail.com if you miss my scatological prose.

Later peeps,

Mike

A Thought Provoking Editorial Recapping 2005 In Iraq

2006-01-09T21:33:00.000-08:00

I saw this over at truthout.org; it was originally posted online at The London Review of Books. It's a rather long editorial, but it's definitely worth reading.

The title is "What I Heard about Iraq in 2005," and it's penned by Eliot Weinberger.

A small sampling:

...
I heard that Iraq was now ranked with Haiti and Senegal as one of the poorest nations on earth. I heard the United Nations Human Rights Commission report that acute malnutrition among Iraqi children had doubled since the war began. I heard that only 5 per cent of the money Congress had allocated for reconstruction had actually been spent. I heard that in Fallujah people were living in tents pitched on the ruins of their houses.
...
I heard that the President’s uncle, Bucky Bush, had made half a million dollars cashing in his stock options in Engineered Support Systems Inc, a defence contractor that had received $100 million for work in Iraq. Bucky Bush is on the board of directors. I heard Dan Kreher, vice-president of investor relations for ESSI, say: ‘The fact his nephew is in the White House has absolutely nothing to do with Mr Bush being on our board or with our stock having gone up 1000 per cent in the past five years.’
...
I heard Staff Sergeant Craig Patrick, who was training Iraqi troops, say: ‘It’s all about perception, to convince the American public that everything is going as planned and we’re right on schedule to be out of here. I mean, they can bullshit the American people, but they can’t bullshit us.’
...
I heard that in the month of April there were 67 suicide bombings. I heard Colonel Pat Lang, former chief of Mideast operations at the Defense Intelligence Agency, say: ‘It’s just political rhetoric to say we are not in a civil war. We’ve been in a civil war for a long time.’
...

Again, it's long... but it's a captivating read. It's easy to forget some of these happenings with all the bullshit we've had to endure over the past year.

I'm Sorry - Did I Abridge Your Freedom With An Asinine Bill That Was Signed Into Law? My Bad.

2006-01-09T16:26:00.000-08:00

From cnet.com: "Annoying someone via the Internet is now a federal crime."

Our retard-in-chief just signed off on H.R. 3402, the Violence Against Women and Department of Justice Reauthorization Act, which contains the inane provision. Correct me if I'm wrong, but can't the chimp line-item veto some of this crap? Not that he would. And not to presume that he even knows WTF "line-item veto" means.

*sigh*

Again, from the cnet.com article:

A new federal law states that when you annoy someone on the Internet, you must disclose your identity. Here's the relevant language.
"Whoever...utilizes any device or software that can be used to originate telecommunications or other types of communications that are transmitted, in whole or in part, by the Internet... without disclosing his identity and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person...who receives the communications...shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not more than two years, or both."

That's right. Now the concept of "annoying" someone is being legislated. Have fun proving "intent to annoy," federal prosecutors.

How does idiotic shit like this become law?

Wellllll. You can thank Sen. Arlen Spector, et al, for sneaking it "into an unrelated, must-pass bill to fund the Department of Justice. The plan: to make it politically infeasible for politicians to oppose the measure. The tactic worked. The bill cleared the House of Representatives by voice vote, and the Senate unanimously approved it Dec. 16."

Don't even get me started on multi-faceted (i.e. sneaky shit, just like this) congressional bills and political logrolling.

*shaking head*

Iraq; More Lousy Media Coverage

2006-01-08T19:33:00.000-08:00

In an editorial at truthout.org titled US Propaganda vs. Iraqi Reality, writer Dahr Jamail notes that

"the Capital Hill Cabal, desperate to paint the Iraq disaster in a glorious hue, are working their pundits and spokespeople overtime to convince the ill-informed they have not failed dismally in every aspect of their illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq.

...

January 4:
Unidentified gunmen assassinated Rahim Ali al-Sudani, director-general of the Iraqi Oil Ministry, and his son early on the morning of 4 January in Al-Amiriyah area in northern Baghdad.

Clashes broke out between civilians protesting against unemployment and Iraqi police in Al-Nasiriyah city in Dhi Qar Governorate, wounding scores of civilians and police officers. The TV added within the same news summary that two civilians were "martyred" and two others were injured when an explosive charge missed a US patrol unit in Kirkuk.

Al Sharqiyah television reported that a US plane had crashed in Mosul. Quoting its correspondent in the city, the TV said that US forces had rushed to the area and sealed off the scene where the crash occurred.

January 5:
At least 130 Iraqis and 11 US soldiers die (highest number of US soldiers killed in one day since August) in one of the bloodiest days in Iraq since the invasion.

January 6:
A medical source at Al-Ramadi State Hospital [speaking on condition of anonymity] reports that 14 civilians, including three children, "were martyred at the hands of US snipers today." The source added that "the snipers stationed on roof tops of high buildings in Al-Ramadi, killed those victims in the Al-Ma'arid district in the city center this morning". Al Sharqiyah correspondent adds that "Al-Ramadi has witnessed massive protests against the presence of US snipers who have been deployed throughout the city, spreading fear among residents." Al-Sharqiyah says that the US armed forces have yet to comment on this incident.

For security purposes, Iraq has suspended its daily pumping of 200,000 barrels of crude oil to major oil refineries in Bayji, north of Baghdad.

A US convoy came under attack in Samarra when an explosive device planted near a petrol station was detonated. Four children were injured in the attack and were rushed to Samarra State Hospital.

A doctor at Nasiriyah Hospital reported that two Iraqis were killed and 23 were injured today as clashes between demonstrators, who were protesting against unemployment, and Iraqi police continued in Nasiriyah in southern Iraq.

January 7:
Fierce clashes broke out between resistance fighters and US forces in Fallujah when armed men battled with the US troops in al-Tharthar Street in the eastern part of the city as the latter tightened security measures, blocking all main entrances to the city. Local residents also reported fierce clashes between US soldiers and resistance fighters on Arba'ien Street in central Fallujah.

Earlier in the day, a roadside bomb went off at about 7:30 a.m. (0430 GMT) in eastern Fallujah as a US military patrol was passing by, destroying a US Humvee, killing or wounding the soldiers aboard, the source said. An Iraqi doctor from Fallujah General Hospital was killed by a US sniper, according to residents.

..."

I don't recall if I've ever mentioned Independent World Television News before, but I hope that you'll visit their site and make a donation to help them get off the ground and, to paraphrase from their site, HELP THEM BREAK THE MEDIA MONOPOLY*!

A properly functioning democracy is impossible in the absence of information and/or presence of misinformation.

*okay -- so it's really an Oligopoly.

Great Video Of Howard Dean w/ Voolf Bleetzaah

2006-01-08T16:14:00.000-08:00

Daily Kos member "bink" gives us links (either CanOFun or C&L) to a video clip of a nice little exchange where Dean completely debunks the "... but what about the Democrats" meme that's been going around re: this whole Abramhoff scandal.

Blitzie goes down hard.

A Couple Things...

2006-01-07T16:23:00.000-08:00

Mobile blog entries don't seem to like HTML coding?

Pat Robertson is fucking insane, BTW. <- cut/pasted directly from the mobile post.. hmm

A couple of my favorite blogs have some good things:

Check out Leftist Grandpa's "Quotes To Consider" in the righthand column
Check out Hendrix live from Stockholm, Sweden in '67 at MiaCulpa
Check out Tom DeLay's outgoing press conference at Crooks and Liars

Watching 'St Elmos Fire' while in bed... and blogging?

2006-01-07T01:17:00.000-08:00

Wow - this is different. I supposethis is how my mobile blogging'll go down most of the time on Friday nites. * =/ * So. Well. Let's just take it easy on making fun of my choice of films, kay? Besides -- I only like the parts where Kirby tries to get Dale; it's so pathetic,but the ski lodge scene cracks me up every time... where Kirby gets that little bit of satisfaction. =)

.. <a href="http://mediamatters.org/items/200601050004">Pat Robertson</a> is fucking insane, BTW.

2006-01-06T18:50:00.000-08:00

Testing testing testing.

Mobile blog posting tests are exciting.

Goddamn You, SprintPCS

2006-01-06T17:47:00.000-08:00

--- DISCLOSURE: I HAVEN'T CALLED TECH SUPPORT YET, BUT A NEW DEVICE (ESPECIALLY A *$300 + 2-YEAR CONTRACT* PHONE) THAT COMES WITH SETUP "WIZARDS" AND ALL THAT KIND OF STUFF SHOULD BE A PIECE OF CAKE TO GET TO WORK ---

Ya know, if they'd just come to my house and kick me squarely in the nuts, at least we'd be getting right to the point.

JEE-sus.

I've tried to get this fucking Sprint Vision PCS email account (since my hotmail doesn't support POP email) to work; I did the entire fucking setup exactly in the order that all the documentation fucking told me to... and it's still fucking driving me insane with error messages and authentication failures...

So no mobile blogging yet.

Well. Unless I go log into my hotmail account, using the web browser (which, oddly enough, works... and is part of the PCS Vision package, which makes this email issue even more frustrating), and fart around with all the crap that comes with mokeying around with browser-based email on a 2.5" wide screen. But I bought this 650 'cuz for "ease of operation" and for its features, not for the shit that I can do on a phone that costs 1/10th as much.

*AARGH*

Plus I heard that Lou Rawls died.

What a pissy day.

Whoa - Treo's Already Here

2006-01-05T13:58:00.000-08:00

UPS Next Day Air - how 'bout that?

Those goofy bastards at Sprint are the best thing I've got.

Ok. It's charging up, at the moment. Once the little lite turns green I'll start playing with it and I'll try to get a mobile blog entry in.... heehee

//loves techno-toys

One More Thing...

2006-01-04T23:49:00.000-08:00

This from ReclaimDemocracy.org:

A whopping 90% of Americans surveyed by a new Harris Interactive poll believe big business has too much power and influence in Washington D.C. That percentage is the highest ever, up 4% from last year.

The telephone poll of 1,011 adults also found an overwhelming majority believes political action committees, lobbyists, and the media have excessive influence in the Capitol.

So who has too little power? Small businesses was cited most often (among thirteen options offered up on the poll menu) -- 92% of respondents thought small business had too little power.

...

(more)

One thing that people from across the political spectrum can almost always agree on is that the overall success of small businesses is very good for our economy. I wish a 3rd party would come in and whip the (R) and (D) asses over this, but 3rd parties aren't much more than a pipe dream at this time. So.

My take:

I sure as hell think that small biz is the shiz, because (1) the success of free market economics is based upon *COMPETITION* (among other things -- but competition is the lynchpin, IMHO) rather than this corporate dominance and the absorption (and elimination) of economic rivals, and (2) if more people actually had a clearcut *stake* in their work output, THAT would be a REAL "ownership society" where people would have the incentive to take care of, well, their own stuff... 'cuz it'd actually be theirs to own.

Oh.

... y'all should try to read Freakonomics : A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything sometime soon... it's an interesting (and fairly easy) read that, among the searches for hidden information within mounds of data, confronts the logical fallacy of statistical correlation implying causation.

My Treo 650's In The Mail

2006-01-04T23:17:00.000-08:00

... and I won't come in your mouth, right?

=P

No -- I really believe it's *on its way* this time. Not only did I find my money mysteriously refunded, but I talked to a live Sprint rep this time and she told me that my first one never arrived because my order wasn't fully completed... and since I was on vacation and didn't return their call until after the 10 day period, their policy is to automatically cancel the order.

So. I apologize for calling them "cockfaces." =) My bad.

I'm kinda stoked to be able to give mobile blogging a go; sometimes when I'm stuck doing nothing... like, say, on the toilet, stricken with a painfully-impacted stool, at work... it'd be nice to be able to type out a few random thoughts on the ol' PDA phone and send it up here.

Definitely a cool bit of technology. Poopin' and bloggin'.

... though the mobile posts may all be in lowercase, in the interests of expedience and thumb-saving maneuvering.

Letterman v. O'Reilly

2006-01-04T16:48:00.000-08:00

This is a kinda funny exchange where Dave gets stuck listening to some of O'Reilly's "liberal erosion of Christmas traditions" goofy obsession; the video (~3.5 minutes long) and transcript are both posted at Mediamatters.org.

A couple blips:

LETTERMAN: I'm -- kind of think we should move on. I mean, but isn't this the kind of thing where, like, once or twice every 20 years somebody gets outraged and says, "Oh, my god, we've got to put diapers on horses"? Isn't it just about, is this like, "So what? Let it go. It'll take care of itself"?
...

LETTERMAN: I'm not smart enough to debate your point to point on this, but I have the feeling -- I have the feeling -- I have the feeling about 60 percent of what you say is crap.

*giggle*

... Bill O'Reilly. ::rolleyes::

whatta dipshit

When In Rome... Prove That Christ Exists?

2006-01-03T16:43:00.000-08:00

LOL! This is too good to be true...

AN ITALIAN judge has ordered a priest to appear in court this month to prove that Jesus Christ existed.
The case against Father Enrico Righi has been brought in the town of Viterbo, north of Rome, by Luigi Cascioli, a retired agronomist who once studied for the priesthood but later became a militant atheist.
Signor Cascioli, author of a book called The Fable of Christ, began legal proceedings against Father Righi three years ago after the priest denounced Signor Cascioli in the parish newsletter for questioning Christ’s historical existence.
Yesterday Gaetano Mautone, a judge in Viterbo, set a preliminary hearing for the end of this month and ordered Father Righi to appear. The judge had earlier refused to take up the case, but was overruled last month by the Court of Appeal, which agreed that Signor Cascioli had a reasonable case for his accusation that Father Righi was “abusing popular credulity”.
...

Oh, if only United States judges had the balls to order this kind of shit. If only.

Which (R) Do You Want To Fall Into A Manhole, First?

2006-01-03T16:30:00.000-08:00

If you were to pick any Republican member of:

*the House,
*the Senate,
*governor,
*state representative,
*or the administrative branch

to be the first to take a -- TELEVISED -- spill into an open manhole, which one would you pick? No physical harm would ensue; the only damage would come from any psychological harm associated with the embarrassment.

I'll pick Tom DeLay, just... because.

I'd enjoy that. =)

Huzzah For The Badgers!

2006-01-02T18:02:00.000-08:00

Badgers win Capital One Bowl in Alvarez's final game

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- With a masterful offensive performance and a surprisingly stingy defense, the Wisconsin Badgers gave coach Barry Alvarez a proper send-off.

Brian Calhoun rushed for 213 yards, John Stocco passed for 301 and Brandon Williams had 173 yards receiving, lifting the No. 21 Badgers to a 24-10 victory over No. 7 Auburn in the Capital One Bowl on Monday.

It was the perfect tribute to a coach who restored pride to a down-and-out program.

...

Thanks for 16 entertaining years, Barry! Have a good time with your desk job. lol

Do I Curse Too Much?

2005-12-30T16:54:00.000-08:00

Like I fucking care, but... I'm just curious.

Template Madness

2005-12-30T16:44:00.000-08:00

[UPDATE -- TURNS OUT IT WAS THAT STUPID FUCKING EMAIL FROM BUSH THAT WAS FUCKING THE ENTIRE SITE UP TO ALL HELL... THAT FUCKING FIGURES]

For some reason, the goddamned "About Me" section (and all that other shit that goes with/underneath it) on here keeps showing up on the fucking *bottom* of the page. And that was *BEFORE* I added the "Impeach Bush" banner code, which, I should note, mysteriously appears/disappears - seemingly at will.... but that could be an issue w/ their bandwidth... although it shows up on all the other sites that I've seen it on... aarrrrrrrrgh.

I even changed templates back and forth a few times, which always scrubs any/all customizations made to one's templates and, in theory, totally reset anything that I might've bungled in the coding by adding the banner... and made everything hunky-dory again.

But it's not hunky-dory... or even moderately hunky-acceptable.

This is becoming irritating.

Anyone have any idea wtf is going on?

Post-Holiday Matching Game!

2005-12-29T00:52:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone's getting ready for a nice little drunken New Year's celebration, since I probably won't and will be forced to live vicariously through your upcoming tales of alcoholic overindulgence, police chases, and bail bondsmen. Feel free to email me at mtuffli AT hotmail DOT com with your ~~idiotic~~ entertaining stories.

Okay, so A "caption this picture" post over at Desi's miaculpa blog left me with the distinct impression that the First Lady is trying to look like... well... someone unlike herself. Maybe it's just the wind in her hair, but considering the embarrassing fruitcake she's married to... hell -- at this point I'm not putting a makeover/facelift/disguise past her. I've taken the liberty to amass a small set of strikingly similar images which may or may not be the First Lady; much like FOX News, I'll report (blog, in this case) and let you decide (stare blankly or actually try to guess who's who, in this case).

First, here are the 7 "contestants"... :

(A) Bozo the Clown; (B) Don King; (C) Laura Bush; (D) Bride of Frankenstein; (E) Mr. HeatMiser; (F) Cybill Shepherd; (G) Troll Doll.

Now for the pics:

___

___

___

___

___

___

___

* * * *

See if you can match the names to the photos! Don't be discouraged if you're stuck and can't tell the difference between Laura Bush and the troll thingy that you whirl around in your palms to make its hair fly out -- it's a common error.

* * * *

Answers will be posted (if ever) when I feel like it.

Yawohl, Comrade

2005-12-23T16:17:00.000-08:00

Yeah yeah, so I mixed some German with some Russian. Shh; quiet, you.

The point is that Ohio -- home of the worst Governor in the USA, Bob Taft -- has a creepy little bill just waiting to be signed by the state's Felon in Chief, and it's one of those pieces of legislation that's about as close to establishing a fascist state as you can get without actually *naming* it as such. From the article:

...
The Ohio Patriot Act has made it to the Taft's desk, and with the stroke of a pen, it would most likely become the toughest terrorism bill in the country. The lengthy piece of legislation would let police arrest people in public places who will not give their names, address and birth dates, even if they are not doing anything wrong.

...

Oh, joy.

I've Been Tagged - Arrr, Mateys

2005-12-23T14:32:00.000-08:00

Some evil 'net critter decided that a game of web tag would be entertaining!

Ok - count me in.

Like Desi, The Angel of Blogging that tagged me, I'm going to copy what the last people did so I don't have to try to be clever and come up with 7 new... er... heading thingies.

On to the substance:

Seven Things To Do Before I Die

1. Help destroy corporations' illegitimately obtained 'personhood' and put them back in their place as subordinates to human beings
2. Swim with dolphins
3. Figure out women
4. See a Populist like Bernie Sanders get elected President of the United States
5. Give standup comedy a whirl... while simultaneously attending law school
6. Raise a baby squirrel and turn it into a housepet
7. Become Ghandi-like (but w/o the whole assassination ending, eh)

Seven Things I Cannot Do

1. Yell at my sister when she watches FOX News
2. Remember all those great jokes that'd come in handy during a standup routine
3. Remove my contact lenses with my tongue
4. Polka
5. Back down from any challenge that threatens my manhood
6. Eat broccoli/cauliflower
7. Hold the same job for more than 3 years

Seven Things That Attract Me To... Blogging

1. The chicks
2. Typing is kinda spiffy
3. One day, I shall write something ~kewl~ enough such that CNN's Abbi Tatton refers to my post on the air
4. My inherent inability to STFU
5. It's not controlled by some jackass editor or sponsor, so I can be icky and mean
6. Makes for a nice diversion when I'm supposed to be working
7. No need to be as poignant, rational, or coherent as I'd have to be in a legal brief

Seven Things I Say Most Often

1. "Fuck"
2. "Hmm."
3. "Meh."
4. "WTF?"
5. "Yep."
6. "*shrug*"
7. "Um."

Seven Books That I Love

1. Cosmos, by Carl Sagan.. actually anything by Carl Sagan
2. Confessions Of An Economic Hitman, by John Perkins
3. Defying Corporations, Defining Democracy: A Book of History and Strategy, edited by Dean Ritz
4. How To Lie With Statistics, by Darrell Huff (with classic illustrations by Irving Geis)
5. Anything written by Dr. Oliver Sacks
6. The Five People You Meet in Heaven, by Mitch Albom
7. Without Feathers, by Woody Allen

Seven Movies That I Watch Over And Over Again

1. Spies Like Us
2. The Shawshank Redemption
3. Invincible
4. Team America: World Police
5. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
6. The Princess Bride
7. Heat

Seven People That I Want To Join In Too

1. Leftist Grandpa
2. Serratia
3. John at CrooksandLiars
4. SarUH ...lol
5. George W. Bush
6. Cripes. I honestly can't think of anyone else with a blog. *=(*
7. meh

... ok then =)

Smut.

2005-12-22T16:19:00.000-08:00

There's a nice blog entry over at Huffingtonpost.com describing how Little Ralphie Reed's spokesperson, Lisa Baron, likes to write naughty stuff. Oh, the irony.

So anyhow, I thought I'd take this opportunity to proclaim my love of/for smut.

Oh yeah... you go, girls.

What The Mother Fucking Fuck?

2005-12-20T15:55:00.000-08:00

So the New York Times *FUCKING SAT* on the Bush/NSA domestic espionage story for *OVER A FUCKING YEAR* because - ostensibly - we couldn't let the terrorists know that their phones may have been tapped? What? I wasn't aware that the terrorists were mentally retarded and lacked any common sense; I thought they were supposed to be clever folk.

Uh huh. Okay then.

Wasn't there, uhhhhhh, some voting, or something like that, that may have been affected by the timely release of this information?... wtf was that called again... OH YEAH, THE 2004 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION.

Oh gee, thanks for keeping that information under wraps, NY Times.

I'll Get Some Goddamned Pics Up... Someday

2005-12-19T16:23:00.000-08:00

The Florida/Alabama gulf was nice, but it was either overcast or rainy on all but one day.

*shrug*

At least I missed out on the snowfall and sub-zero Wisconsin temperatures.

Oooh! I golfed. I was bad. And I saw "King Kong" on opening nite.

...

Now I'm at work again and life is back in the sucky, predictable trench where it belongs.

p.s. Bush is still a criminal; vacation changed nothing

One Week In Florida

2005-12-09T16:57:00.000-08:00

I'm going to the Gulf Coast for a week! Yay for the elimination of winter pastiness.

I *was* gonna mobile blog, but the cockfaces at Sprint didn't get my Treo 650 here in time... and I'm *not* fucking going to pay $40 + some exorbitant "initiation" fee to get my 600 up and running again for a month. So - I say to all 10 of you that visit here - don't be surprised if I don't post next until the 18th or 19th. Unless, of course, the Sprint cockfaces got the thing to my doorstep tonight while I've been at work... but no one called me to let me know that I got a package, so... eh.

Did I mention that the people at Sprint were cockfaces?

No? Oh, wait... I did.

... cock ...faces

Ohio: First State To Outlaw Democracy?

2005-12-07T18:41:00.000-08:00

From a truthout.org article, penned by Bob Fitrakis & Harvey Wasserman, named "With New Legislation, Ohio Republicans Plan Holiday Burial for American Democracy":

A law that will make democracy all but moot in Ohio is about to pass the state legislature and to be signed by its Republican governor. Despite massive corruption scandals besieging the Ohio GOP, any hope that the Democratic party could win this most crucial swing state in future presidential elections, or carry its pivotal US Senate seat in 2006, are about to end.

House Bill 3 has already passed the Ohio House of Representatives and is about to be approved by the Republican-dominated Senate, probably before the holiday recess. Republicans dominate the Ohio legislature thanks to a heavily gerrymandered crazy quilt of rigged districts, and to a moribund Ohio Democratic party. The GOP-drafted HB3 is designed to all but obliterate any possible future Democratic revival. Opposition from the Ohio Democratic Party, where it exists at all, is diffuse and ineffectual.

HB3's most publicized provision will require positive identification before casting a vote. But it also opens voter registration activists to partisan prosecution, exempts electronic voting machines from public scrutiny, quintuples the cost of citizen-requested statewide recounts and makes it illegal to challenge a presidential vote count or, indeed, any federal election result in Ohio. When added to the recently passed HB1, which allows campaign financing to be dominated by the wealthy and by corporations, and along with a Rovian wish list of GOP attacks on the ballot box, democracy in Ohio could be all but over.
...

See now - Republicans are *so* patriotic that they want to ensure that no one can *ever* take one of their elected seats, even if We the People don't want them there.

Now THAT'S patriotic!

*=\*

may you rot in your own hell that i don't believe in, neoconservative asshats

Judith Miller: Whored Herself Out To More Than Just "The Media?"

2005-12-06T17:04:00.000-08:00

The word over at E&P.com is that Vanity Fair reporter Seth Mnookin - in an upcoming article - has some inside dirt on Judy, Judy, Judy.

Elsewhere, Mnookin pulls no punches in stating that over the years Miller "had built a reputation for sleeping with her sources," had dated one of Sulzberger's best friends, Steve Ratner, "and had even, for a time, shared a vacation home with Sulzberger," whatever that means.

Adorable.

I wonder how many cocks she had to suck to get that Pulitzer? Hm. =|

How grand. Remember, kiddies: A free press is no longer the critical cog (speaking truth to power) in a democratic society - now it's just another arm of the entertainment industry. Whee!

So Now Iran Looks Like The Big Winner... In... Iraq.

2005-12-05T21:20:00.000-08:00

I caught a bit of General Wesley Clark's interview on the Ed Schultz Show... seems that, according to officials "in the know" (those are the ones that analyze data, rather than spin it, FYI), Iran(!) has the best shot at controlling the region, the way things are going now. Oh, joy!

No text, so I give you a podcast linky to the .mp3 clip

This is why you don't lie your way into wars, kiddies. Especially the intractable wars that your own father wouldn't tackle. Oh, and that nearly every military scholar noted as the second-worst idea in the history of warfare... right up there with fighting a land battle in Asia.

Hmm.

Testing...

2005-12-05T17:44:00.000-08:00

I'm getting a 404 error; wtf?

Chimpeach. NOW.

2005-11-22T16:21:00.000-08:00

Just broke.

Key Bush Intelligence Briefing Kept From Hill Panel

Enough. Impeach every top-level administration official.

Worst. Administration. Ever. By. Far.

I Can't Take It Anymore.

2005-11-21T23:58:00.000-08:00

I saw this pic over at Desi's "Mia Culpa" blog.

Out. Now. No more of this shit. Time to get the fuck out.