Whaddaya know ...

Pace is still a Marine:

The top American military officer, General Peter Pace, declined Monday to endorse the conclusions of U.S. military officers in Baghdad, who told reporters on Sunday that the Iranian government is providing high-powered roadside bombs to insurgents in Iraq. General Pace made his comments during a visit to Australia, and VOA's Al Pessin reports from Canberra.

General Pace said he was not aware of the Baghdad briefing, and that he could not, from his own knowledge, repeat the assertion made there that the elite Quds brigade of Iran's Republican Guard force is providing bomb-making kits to Iraqi Shiite insurgents.

...

I coulda sworn he was just an empty uniform by now.

Update:

Larisa Alexandrovna has the details of the 'briefing' that Pace "was not aware of":

1). Reporters met with experts and analysts who would not provide their names, background, or any identifying information - even off the record. There is no way to know who these unnamed experts were, what made them experts, or anything that could be used to confirm or debunk their allegations. In other words, the sources were not vetted and unknown.

...

3). The White House led officials present at the briefing would not give their names either, despite this presentation being cleared by the White House. In other words, despite this not being a leak, no one would stand by the story. [my ems]

...

You can rest assured any 'evidence' offered at this dog and pony show was pure, unadulterated bullshit.

Implications of once again cooking the evidence

From A. Alexander at Progressive Daily Beacon

"As tragic as it will be to have tens of thousands of innocent Iranian citizens slaughtered, IF the administration is AGAIN able to make war based on fabrications, manipulations, deceit, and lies; if the media AGAIN, fails to expose the White House's fictionalized narrative; and the will of the people is ignored...the bigger tragedy will be that America's democracy ceases to exist."

And that is exactly why they have to be stopped and stopped now. To follow-up on Fixer and Gordon's earlier post today. If Congress isn't going to do it, it is time for the citizens to take this into their own hands. Shut the country down if necessary, but they must be stopped.

Does anyone know if the President and V. P. are immune from felony prosecution? If not, I think a brave judge could settle this all for us.

Bush's War's Enduring Legacy

My heart goes out to these young folks, both victims of Bush's crimes. Many more to come, I am sure. I think their marriage is going to be an uphill battle.

Go to BAGnewsNotes and follow the links to see a 'before' picture of this couple and more.

May you be damned to Hell, George W. Bush.

They get email

Read it and weep.

Oh, the irony...

Ironic Times

Only 13% of Congressional Republicans Believe Global Warming Manmade
Vast majority cite other reasons.

Defense Budget Calls for $600 Billion
In unmarked bills.

More Candidates Decline Public Funding
Don't want to be beholden to public.

Rove: "I Don't Want My 17-Year-Old Son To Have to Pick Tomatoes or Make Beds in Las Vegas"
Or "go to Iraq," he adds later.

And in local news:

Sierra Ski Resorts Report Fewer Visitors
Blame lack of snow.

The upside of that is there's more parking at Safeway, and maybe, just maybe, my snowthrower will last another year.

Iraqn Lies

AfterDowningStreet is all over the upcoming Iran Mess like a cheap suit. Here's an excerpt from one post out of many:

So, you see? This case is DIFFERENT. This time we can TRUST the "intelligence" sources. Because, last time, we'd merely had crews of trained inspectors swarming the country for years, and they denied that there were any WMD there. This time, we have amateurs observing the situation in the middle of guerrilla warfare, and they say they've got the goods but can't reveal them. So, you see, it's DIFFERENT.

Here's a collection of the growing list of Iran War Lies: http://www.democrats.com/iran-war-lies

Add it to the endless list of Iraq War Lies: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/keydocuments

But let's keep one thing in mind as we demand a thorough investigation of both sets of lies – lies made by the same set of people: In neither case, even were every single claim 100 percent true and accurate, would anyone have established a legal case for war. If a nation's possession of WMDs were grounds for launching a war against it, the United States would be subject to legal invasion immediately. So, while debunking the fanciful claims of Bush, Cheney, and Gates may be entertaining, we may actually do more good if we brush them aside and point out that it does not matter whether their claims are true or not. Aiding a nation in repelling a foreign occupation is not grounds for war. The U.S. still brags about having done this in France 50 years ago. If Iran were doing it in Iraq now, which no evidence yet suggests, the crime would lie in the foreign invaders' refusal to leave, not in the aid supplied by the Iranians.

Iran has a Hell of a lot more business being in Iraq than we do. They're right next door, fer chrissakes. Yes, they want to be the power in the region, and the way Bush is going about things, he's handing it to 'em on a silver platter.

We are the invaders who cooked up phony reasons to invade. We are the occupying foreign power. We're the ones who really fucked up an already pretty fucked-up area and made it worse. We are the bad guys. I can't blame Iran a bit for helping to throw us out of there. I'd do the same for my neighbor if he had burglars. When the burglars tried to come to my house to get back at me, I'd have 'em right where I wanted 'em. My firepower on my turf. They'd be toast.

We need to GTFO of Iraq and let them and their neighbors settle all this shit Bush started, and the Devil take the hindmost.

In the long run, I think it'd be cheaper just to buy the fuckin' oil instead of trying to steal it, Cheney's pipe dreams of ruling the world and the Chimp's fragile little psyche be damned. If we don't do it pretty quick, we'll all be damned, and rightly so.

Number One Job For Congress: Stop Iran War

Rob Kall

Forget about any other legislation. Kill Bush's ability to make war with Iran, with any other country.

Bush and company are using the same tactics to drum up war with Iran-- lying about their intentions, using unethical, partisan reporters to raise the stakes with claims of Iranian abuses and dangers to America and American interests.


Just as they lied about their intentions about attacking Iraq, then lied about the dangers of WMDs, they are at it again.

If the democrats don't do something very, very soon, very tough, clear and decisive, then the US will be attacking Iran. It will have thrown itself and we the people into an insane, dangerous devastatingly expensive and unaffordable conflict that will change the world and our lifestyles.

There is only one solution-- the congress must pass binding legislation that absolutely forbids Bush from launching any kind of weapon or attack on Iran. They must explicitly state that any past authorization does not included Iran. They must make it clear that if Bush does order any action against Iran that drastic consequences will apply. They must make it a criminal act.

There's no other more important legislation to be dealing with. This should be a no-brainer. Will the right wingers in congress oppose it? Maybe. If they do, they will be sealing the end of the Republican party in any leadership role.

This can't wait. They need to do it now.

I hope Congress gets on the stick and passes this kind of legislation. It won't stop Bush and Cheney from doing what they want to do, but at least they will have clearly broken a law and can be dealt with, albeit through our molasses-in-January congressional procedures.

If we want to actually stop these madmen from attacking Iran, I fear it needs to get physical. Do it. Whatever it takes.

Whatcha gonna do?

Okay, after watching and reading the news this weekend, it seems a foregone conclusion we're going to attack Iran. It's just a matter of degree at this point (whether it be airstrikes from carrier-based aircraft or an actual ground invasion). So I ask you this question.

What are you prepared to do about it?

I mean, you really don't think this Congress is gonna stop them, do you? These people don't have the balls to push through a non-binding resolution; do you think they're gonna do anything like cut off the Chimp's funding or pass a resolution forbidding him from attacking Iran? It's within their power to do, many expert bloggers have done the legal research, but I seriously doubt they will. The ones with the power, the ones able to rally public support to stand up to this White House are all running for President and preoccupied with Iraq. I ask again.

What are you prepared to do about it?

Are you going to sit back and let it all happen again? Are you gonna sit there, shake your head, and shrug your shoulders and say 'nothing I can do about it'? Probably.

Now I'm not advocating armed resistance or a coup or a popular uprising, but maybe it's time to start considering it. We are watching these idiots flush our nation down the toilet and we're sitting back and shrugging. Maybe it is time to drag these people out and let them face the 'people's justice'. Our elected representatives ain't gonna do anything.

Fuck that 100 Hours shit, Speaker Pelosi, we can work on getting people a college education when the Chimp is out at the least, behind bars at most. Fuck sparring with Mitch McConnell, Senator Reid, and look into what legal avenues will allow you to send the Capitol Police or the Marines or the fucking Boy Scouts to walk into the White House, put the Chimp and Cheney in handcuffs, and frogmarch their asses into the paddy wagon.

We have an insane dictator running this nation through a moronic sockpuppet and if it's not obvious to you by now, you're either blind, clueless, or on the take. This is getting ridiculous, the bullshit so obvious, and yet everybody acts as if war with Iran is some vague abstraction. It's closer than you think. As Brother Lurch said yesterday:

By the dark moon period of April, all the pieces will be in place.

Fuck these 'resolutions'. Congress should tell the Chimp, in no uncertain terms, that if he attacks Iran, 'provocation' or no, he will be doing time in federal prison.

So, Speaker Pelosi, Senator Reid, I've about had enough of watching my nation (the one I put my ass on the line for) being destroyed. I'm not going to put up with much more weaseling and equivocation. It's time to do what the American people want. End this fucking occupation of Iraq and prevent the Chimp from attacking Iran. I'm sure there's a buncha folks like me who'll be happy to do it for you if you decide it's beyond your grasp.

Get on the stick before there's no fixing this mess.

Chicks

Good on the Dixie Chicks and congrats to them for winning a Grammy. After withstanding the McCarthyesqe blacklist and witchhunt at the hands of the moronic mouthbreathers of the right and corporate radio, they've been vindicated. It's the only country music album I own.

Scary Movie 2

A 'must read' Krugman on war with Iran:

Before we get to the apparent war-mongering, let's talk about the basics. Are there people in Iran providing aid to factions in Iraq, factions that sometimes kill Americans as well as other Iraqis? Yes, probably. But you can say the same about Saudi Arabia, which is believed to be a major source of financial support for Sunni insurgents - and Sunnis, not Iranian-backed Shiites, are still responsible for most American combat deaths.

The Bush administration, however, with its close personal and financial ties to the Saudis, has always downplayed Saudi connections to America's enemies. Iran, on the other hand, which had no connection to 9/11, and was actually quite helpful to the United States in the months after the terrorist attack, somehow found itself linked with its bitter enemy Saddam Hussein as part of the "axis of evil."

So the administration has always had it in for the Iranian regime. Now, let's do an O. J. Simpson: if you were determined to start a war with Iran, how would you do it?

Here he lays out pretty much exactly what they're doing.

But you have to wonder about the other stuff. Why would the Pentagon put someone who got everything wrong on Iraq in charge of intelligence on Iran? Why wasn't any official willing to take personal responsibility for the reliability of alleged evidence of Iranian mischief, as opposed to being an anonymous source? If the evidence is solid enough to bear close scrutiny, why were all cameras and recording devices, including cellphones, banned from yesterday's Baghdad briefing?

It's still hard to believe that they're really planning to attack Iran, when it's so obvious that another war would be a recipe for even bigger disaster. But remember who's calling the shots: Dick Cheney thinks we've had "enormous successes" in Iraq.

Cheney must be referring to Halliburton.

Netroots

Generally an all-encompassing term which I don't like, but these are our roots:

It took a long time for Samuel Adams to come to the surface of Boston politics, even though his father was a powerful figure in the caucuses and the General Court. One reason for the delayed "arrival" is that Adams is almost alone in history as a man who sincerely desired anonymity.

...

Sam Adams, Tom Paine, Ben Franklin, the original 'pamphleteers' were the ones who laid the groundwork for what we do now. We owe it to them, and their memory, to be the 'voices of the people' in the face of a corrupt White House and media. We owe it to them to see our King George out of Washington. And we owe it to them to keep on the government and force them to walk the straight and narrow, regardless of which party is in power.

One mile to The River - straight down

LATimes

An engineering marvel or a colossal eyesore, depending on who is describing it, the horseshoe-shaped glass walkway will jut out 70 feet beyond the canyon's edge on the Hualapai Indian Reservation just west of Grand Canyon Village. Buttressed by 1 million pounds of steel and supporting 90 tons of tempered glass, the see-through deck will give visitors a breathtaking view of the canyon.

I get a vision of a really wide-eyed coyote with his ears stickin' straight up, and the words "Acme Sky Walk".

I'll wait for ya here in the gift shop, thank you.

Quote of the Day

"For some reason, the military seems more afraid of gay people than they are against terrorists. They're very brave with the terrorists, and if the terrorists ever got ahold of this information, they get a platoon of lesbians to chase us out of Baghdad," - Democratic U. S. Representative Gary Ackerman, NYC.

During questioning of Condoleeza Rice. More here

R.

Tip of the hat to Progressive Daily Beacon

Horror fantasy and a trip down memory lane

Boy, now they've done it! I mean, political humor at Bush's expense is a good thing, but putting him in a Marine uniform is going too far!

On the other hand, if he'd put himself in Marine Green back in the day, we wouldn't be in the deep shit we are now because of him. If the Corps had taken leave of its senses enough to accept his puny ass, or been prescient enough to realize they could have saved the world a lot of pain in the now-present future, they maybe could've made a man out of him (yeah, granted there isn't much to work with but ze Corps hass its vays, trust me, I know) and he wouldn't have felt the need to show his dad how macho he is(n't).

One, just one, Drill Instructor having a 'moment of prayer', at high volume and 'up close and personal' of course, could've saved the world.

This completely ignores the fact that Bush has never possessed the balls to do something like try to become a Marine. Or any kind of actual serviceman. No letters, please.

A word about Gomer's utility jacket, which is the same kind I was issued: take note of the covered buttons on the front and pockets. These were an excellent feature. The buttons wouldn't tear off when you were low crawling, and when the laundry broke less than three in a row it wouldn't show when the jacket was starched.

Also, the jacket had a large inside pocket with a vertical full-width opening on the left side. This was ostensibly for carrying a Bible (I swear, they told me that!), but it also came in handy at the PX...

Sadly, these jackets went the way of the buffalo when SecDef McNamara commonized uniform issue amongst the services to save money and started issuing doggie (US Army) jackets to everybody. We also had really comfy and durable rough-out combat boots that went away under the same plan. The old ones were a bitch to shine, but wore like iron and didn't hurt your feet, which were the basic mode of transportation. The new ones shined easy, but also scratched easy and broke in hard.

On the plus side, the common uniforms made it easier to impersonate Army personnel for 're-supply' purposes, and just about anything we 'requisitioned' from the Army was an upgrade. Their C-Rations were even a lot newer than ours, and their toilet paper was less scratchy, given that soldiers were a more delicate bunch...

I can only imagine the finery and luxuries that could have been ours had we had Air Force resources within striking distance nearby! Ah, to dream...

OK, write the damn letters!

The Watada Mistrial: Here's What Really Happened

Truthout

First Lt. Ehren Watada knew exactly what his case was about - and that scared the judge.

There was absolutely no reason to stop the Watada trial.

The judge's claim that Lt. Watada did not fully understand a document he signed admitting to elements of the charges is completely untrue (see Melanthia Mitchell, AP, 2/8/07).

The military seized on that claim and complimented the judge for "protecting the rights of the accused" in granting the mistrial.

Here's what really happened.

If I've set the hook, reel yourself in and go read. Caution: Mass lawyerspeak may make your eyes glaze over like a Krispy Kreme.

Cut to the chase:

I wouldn't bet against these four authorities. Any fair-minded review of this case will reveal that the defense was doing far better than anyone had expected; that Lt. Watada had protected his rights at every turn; and that the judge was scared of letting this case go to any factfinder who had any chance of being fully informed of Lt. Watada's belief that the war in Iraq is illegal.

There's a lot of technical legal details here that led to the declaration of mistrial, but I'll bet that at the heart of it, the judge didn't want this trial - and his career - involved in declaring this illegal war and occupation illegal.

Blogrolls

I'm sure you've all heard the brou-ha-ha over the 'A-Listers' clearing out their blogrolls. Not that Kos or Atrios ever linked to us, nor do I care if they do or not, and I certainly have a grasp of reality to realize we don't hit the 'B-List' (according to Atrios' logic, by our Technorati ranking we're near the top of the 'C-List'), but just for your edification, we have one of the biggest blogrolls around and I like it that way. I link to blogs that don't link to us (if I like them), but I do put up a link to blogs who do, when I notice and if I like them (an email will get me to notice or you'll have to depend on me catching it when I go over site stats).

I realize people get traffic from us. While I don't think a link, or the loss of one, from us affects anybody's ad revenue, I believe the more information and opinion people are subjected to, the more intelligent decisions they can make. If I can introduce them to another voice, good for them and me. The only blogs I clear off the blogroll are ones where nothing new has been posted in months (might not seem like a long time to the average person, but a couple months is an eternity on the interwebs, especially in the politcal blogging world).

Atrios and Kos can do what they want. Their blogs and I don't care. But I don't sell advertising. Some people do to support their blogs and depend on links from bigger blogs to keep their traffic numbers up. Sorta seems to go against the values our side champions to pull the rug out from under a fellow blogger. Just sayin'.

And just to make sure we understand each other, my principles only extend to lefty and progressive blogs. If you have a conservative or right wing blog, you'll get a link from me when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

Update:

Though not really related, I'm exploring the idea of setting up the Brain on its own server and getting away from Blogger and all the hosting services in general. I'm looking for information from people who've gone down this route regarding costs and technical issues I'd have to deal with as well as good reliable products I should consider. I figure if I have to lay out a couple grand for a server and domain name, it beats paying somebody a monthly fee and be subjected to bandwidth limitations and fees. Send me an email if you would.

The Schizoid New York Times

Okay, I'm not naive but how can the Times on one hand print an editorial like this:

It took far too long, but a report by the Pentagon inspector general has finally confirmed that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s do-it-yourself intelligence office cooked up a link between Iraq and Al Qaeda to help justify an unjustifiable war.

...

And then put unsubstantiated shit like this on the front page on the same day:

WASHINGTON, Feb. 9 — The most lethal weapon directed against American troops in Iraq is an explosive-packed cylinder that United States intelligence asserts is being supplied by Iran.

...

Any quotes regarding this information are attributed to "officials" or "American Intelligence". What are you saying, Gray Lady? That you understand (now, finally) the WH ginned up its own intelligence then (as your Girl of the Moment Judy Miller helped spread like so much manure) yet you don't believe them capable of doing it again?

And now you let another shill in the guise of Michael Gordon spread it around some more? Do you guys understand the job of an editor? Sorry, but if I get snowed once, I sure as hell ain't taking their word again. Or do you want what credibility you have left go the way of the Chimp's?

If I can weasel the deed for that bridge I sold Gordon away from him, I'll sell it to you guys. You should be able to see it from your window, the big Neo-Gothic structure that spans the East River between Mahattan and Brooklyn.

Update:

Dr. Cole via Rez Dog in comments:

...

Moreover, there is no evidence of Iranian intentions to kill US troops. If Iran was giving EFPs to anyone, it was to the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq and its Badr Corps paramilitary, for future use. SCIRI is the main US ally in Iraq aside from the Kurds. I don't know of US troops killed by Badr, certainly not any time recently.

It is far more likely that corrupt arms merchants are selling and smuggling these things than that there is direct government- to- militia transfer. It is possible that small Badr Corps stockpiles were shared or sold. That wouldn't have been Iran's fault.

...

Update:

Perfect quote from Greenwald:

... The Michael Gordon article from yesterday is so alarming because it stems from this same dangerous and sickly dynamic -- journalists eager to prove to Rush Limbaugh and Hugh Hewitt and Bill Kristol that they are on the Right Side by mindlessly accepting any claims from the military and refusing to examine the urgent questions raised by our increasingly war-seeking posture towards Iran ...

Update:

Cdr. Huber finds WaPo guilty of the same:

With mainstream media patsies like these, who needs Judith Miller?

Wittingly or unwittingly, the mainstream media continues to aid and abet the Bush administration's propaganda campaign on Iran. Shortly after Sunday's round of political gabfests, the Washington Post posted a story online (by Joshua Partlow) that supported the claims of the right's talking cable heads about Iran's actions in Iraq.

...

Child Abuse or Freedom of Expression?

This:

 

in my opinion, is borderline, if not full out, child abuse.


R.

You know ...

A few days ago I posted about the fall of the 'American Empire' and how it's already begun:

...

Look at our infrastructure, our bridges, roads, and services. How many of you have said, 'they can't run a railroad like they used to' or something to that effect? How many have said, 'they don't make things like they used to'? These aren't just things people bitch about. They are indicators of an empire reaching its zenith and is now on the path to decline.

...

Our manufacturing jobs have gone away, to people who's 'imperial star' is rising. The Indians, the Chinese, they are two of the societies who will surpass us in the next 20 - 50 years because they are on the other side. They aren't comfortable and still see the brass ring ahead instead of behind.

...

Today I find this via Blondie:

Thirty-Six Sure-Fire Signs That Your Empire Is Crumbling
...

You know your empire's crumbling when the folks who are gearing up their empire to replace yours start blowing up satellites in space. And then they don't bother to return your phone calls when you ring up to ask why.

You know your empire's crumbling when those same folks are cutting deals left, right and center across Asia, Latin America and Africa, while you, your lousy terms, and your arrogant attitude are no longer welcome.

...

There's 34 more that should give you serious pause.

Weekly blogwhore

Chapter 18 of my novel The Captains is up at The Practical Press.