Aaaaarrrggghh!

Waterbed springs a seam. Can't be fixed. New mattress coming in 3 days. Must sleep on piece of shit pullout couch in den. Aaaaaarrrggghh!!!!!!

For Whom the Bell Tolls

American Prospect has an epitaph for the Repubs in the wake of Scanlon's plea bargain.

The Scanlon deal has sounded a death knell for the Republican Revolution of 1994.

We could be on the verge of one of the most rancid tales to course through our political veins in a long time. And it happened because these masters of the universe regard themselves as immune, because of all the political capital in their pockets.

But the revolution seems over, and the revolutionaries were right about at least one thing: Their power was momentary and their opportunity was limited. The questions now are, how much did they use that opportunity to help themselves? And how much did they hurt the country in the process? The witness may answer.

In a related vein, U.S. News & World Report has this:

As the Abramoff-Scanlon lobbying scandal unfolds with greater speed, congressional Republican advisers are urging leadership officials to call on those linked to it to consider resigning long before the 2006 midterm elections.

Yeah, better if you leave now rather than gittin' rode outta town on a rail. Besides, there's that pesky EIS on the tar an' feathers.

No, shit-fer-brains, here's the scoop...

It's rare to see a military man contradict Rumsfeld in public, so this dialogue between him and Gen. Peter Pace USMC, the first ever Marine Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is notable. From DoD News:

GEN. PACE: It is absolutely the responsibility of every U.S. service member, if they see inhumane treatment being conducted, to intervene to stop it. As an example of how to do it if you don't see it happening but you're told about it is exactly what happened a couple weeks ago. There's a report from an Iraqi to a U.S. commander that there was possibility of inhumane treatment in a particular facility. That U.S. commander got together with his Iraqi counterparts. They went together to the facility, found what they found, reported it to the Iraqi government, and the Iraqi government has taken ownership of that problem and is investigating it. So they did exactly what they should have done.

SEC. RUMSFELD: But I don't think you mean they have an obligation to physically stop it; it's to report it.

GEN. PACE: If they are physically present when inhumane treatment is taking place, sir, they have an obligation to try to stop it.

What is it about Marines? First Colonel Murtha, now General Pace, disagreeing publicly with the High Command! Those guys make me proud.

U.S. Military Covertly Pays to Run Stories in Iraqi Press

From the LATimes:

WASHINGTON - As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military is secretly paying Iraqi newspapers to publish stories written by American troops in an effort to burnish the image of the U.S. mission in Iraq.

The articles, written by U.S. military "information operations" troops, are translated into Arabic and placed in Baghdad newspapers with the help of a defense contractor, according to U.S. military officials and documents obtained by the Los Angeles Times.

It's an old tactic, but the administration didn't even have to pay the New York Times. Them Iraqis are catchin' on.

MoDo tears the Dick a new one...

Do not miss Maureen Dowd.

Vice is fed up with all the whining and carping - and that's just inside the White House. The only negativity in Washington is supposed to be his own. He's the only one allowed to scowl and grumble and conspire.

The impertinent Tom DeFrank reported in New York's Daily News that embattled White House aides felt "President Bush must take the reins personally" to save his presidency.

Let him try, Cheney said with a sneer. Things are nowhere near dire enough for that.

Why do Harry Reid and his Democratic turncoats think they can call the White House on the carpet? Do they think Vice would fear to lie about lying about the rationale for going to war? A real liar never stops lying.

And now John Warner wants Junior to use fireside chats to explain his plan for Iraq. When did everybody get the un-American idea that the president is answerable to America?

Vice is fed up with the whining of squirrelly surrogates like Brent Scowcroft and Lawrence Wilkerson on behalf of peaceniks like George Senior and Colin Powell. If Poppy's upset about his kid's mentor, he should be man enough to come slug it out.

Old man Bush would kill the Dick with one punch, which is probably why no one has done it.

I love ol' MoDo, and yes, I do have fantasies...

Update:

D-Day has the scoop on the Dick's "undisclosed new bunker" mentioned by MoDo. Heh.

Reminder

H.R. 550. Sign it.

Big congrats

Our pal Yelladog is 3 years old today. Wish him the best.

Plan for (cough) 'victory'

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush will confront doubts about his war policy Wednesday, asserting more Iraqi security forces are taking the lead in battle but saying it's still uncertain when U.S. forces can be withdrawn.

...

Facing criticism and impatience about the conflict, Bush is expected to go on the offensive with the release of a 35-page plan titled "Our National Strategy for Victory in Iraq."

...

So it's 'campaign season' again, trying to convince us the Chimp administration actually knows what it's doing. Seems to me, you should have had a plan for victory before you said 'Mission Accomplished'; before the balloon went up.

Bite me!

That's what Spain and Venezuela said to the Chimp this week.

CARACAS, Venezuela, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- Spain and Venezuela signed Monday a $2 billion arms deal in which Madrid agreed to supply Caracas with 12 transport planes and eight navy patrol boats.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said the United States had attempted to block the deal saying it was another effort by Washington to meddle in regional affairs.

...

So sorry, U.S. influence in South America is going by the wayside. I guess they're tired of being played for fools.

Where did America go?

The fall of Empire.

Jetlag

Went to sleep at 10. It's 3:30 now and I'm wide awake. Wonderful.

So I wanted to go over some thoughts I had while in Europe. I got absolutely no news from the States, just a snippet of Chimpy's speech to the Border Patrol on the Beeb. I saw an Arizona state flag so I guess it was there. But I was exposed to Americans.

While I'm in Europe, I try to avoid Americans at all costs. It isn't hard. They're usually the loudest, most obnoxious and stand out among tourists of many a stripe. I'm sure the natives look at us the same way. A hint: Just because you are yelling "DO - YOU - TAKE - CREDIT - CARDS?" over and over, louder and more slowly each time, at the store clerk, it won't make him/her understand you any better. You just look like an idiot. Whip out your Visa and lay it down, it's a modern country, trust me.

Next, when you're in arguably the most romantic bistrot in the 7eme Arrondissment and you're eating the most increible meal you'll probably have in your miserable life, don't be going on about how the French hate us and are a buncha assholes for not going to Iraq. There's something called class, what the wait staff treated you with even though they understood every word you said. Trust me, they did. Also, the rest of the patrons who are enjoying the romance of the moment don't need to hear it.

Next, contrary to popular belief, the French don't hate us. Most speak English and don't demand you speak French. A simple "bon jour" when you enter an establishment will garner a smile. They'll figure out how to help you and do it gladly. In several trips to the city, I have yet to encounter a cross word or a superior attitude. Don't come with one and you'll have no problems.

After spending a good part of my life in Europe, I've come to see the change in the perception of Americans over the past 35 years. When I was young, America was a society to be emulated. I saw it in the eyes of friends and relatives when they spoke of our great nation. Now we're seen as obnoxious bullies, most of us anyway, and need to be handled rather than respected. It's respect that we're lacking; a respect for cultures thousands of years older than ours. Take it from me, ladies and germs, they must be doing something right to last so long.

And just a note to the idiot who left his bag outside the bathroom in Charles DeGaulle Airport when he went in to take a leak. You're a fucking ASSHOLE!

Back in the New York groove

Just got in and I got about a million emails. I'll be up here tomorrow. Short version: Vacation was great, getting home was a bitch - including an evacuation of the terminal at Charles DeGaulle Airport for an unattended bag - but we're home. I'll post more in depth and put up a couple more pics. We had a snowstorm the other day too. Ausgezeichnet, as you'll see. Thanks for taking up the slack, guys.

Update:

I'm trying to stay up late to beat the jet lag and get my body back in the proper time zone. I fully planned to post while I was there, bringing my laptop and all accoutrement. Unfortunately 2 problems arose. One, my battery in the laptop is shot and I didn't know it until I tried to use it. Okay, I got a charger and I could run it on AC power. And then the second problem arises, I forgot to load my wi-fi software. That was a surprise. Couldn't find a place with a hardwired connection. At least I could download the pics I took every day. To wit, in no particular order:

Paris - Part 1
Paris - Part 2
Paris - Part 3
Retirement Home

Ah, History...

From The Guardian (UK):

There is a remarkable article in the latest issue of the American Jewish weekly, Forward. It calls for President Bush to be impeached and put on trial "for misleading the American people, and launching the most foolish war since Emperor Augustus in 9 BC sent his legions into Germany and lost them".

To describe Iraq as the most foolish war of the last 2,014 years is a sweeping statement, but the writer is well qualified to know.

He is Martin van Creveld, a professor at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and one of the world's foremost military historians. Several of his books have influenced modern military theory and he is the only non-American author on the US Army's list of required reading for officers.

The articles go on at great length (you know how historians are) to basically state that Bush, not content with merely stepping on his own dick, has stepped on the whole world's pecker, and the Guardian piece ends thus:

The inescapable fact is that the processes Mr Bush unleashed on March 20 2003 (and imagined he had ended with his "mission accomplished" speech six weeks later) will take a decade or more to run their course and there is little that anyone, even the US, can do now to halt them.

In his eagerness for regime change in Iraq, Mr Bush blundered into a trap from which in the short term there is no way out: the Americans will be damned if they stay and damned if they leave.

Impeachment would be a start.

Update:

There's a fine interview with Dr. van Creveld at Sonshi.com.

As you will see in our interview with him, he did not mince words with us. And we wouldn't want it any other way. When we informed him of a news article about how Bush officials bristle at the suggestion the war in Iraq looks like Vietnam, he replied, "Well, let them do some bristling. These people should be impeached, tried and punished for misleading the American people into a senseless war. They can then spend their time in prison reading Clausewitz and Sun Tzu." (my bold) Whether you agree or disagree, Martin van Creveld's words have substance and are not mere conjecture. Dismiss them at our nation's peril.

Go read all of this stuff. Give yourself as many History credits as you want.

Bye Bye Cdr. Crotchrocket...

Democratic Veteran, a former Naval Aviator his own self, takes a look at Richie Randy Cunningham:

Randy "Duke" Cunningham, a Navy "ace" so close to being booted out of the Navy for being a piss-poor officer, before he shot down his last MiG is finally reaping the fruits of his own stupidity. Met Duke as a passing acquaintance when he was the (no shit) senior pilot in his squadron flying Phantooms off the Coral Maru. He was a legend in his own mind. A hell of a pilot though...unfortunately for him, being a hell of a stick is not always enough to build a successful Navy career on...

I'd be in a more celebratory mood about this one, but Duke was never the sharpest tool in the shed. He wasn't even a really nice guy...he just cut a swath with all his bullshit and bravado, and hoped to coast on his rep for life, without ever accomplishing anything meaningful.

I guess you can say this about Duke ... he'll probably be "born yet again" in prison, and have a felony conviction in common with his son...

I guess we can add crime to the list of father & son activities right after riding dirt bikes. You can crash & burn doing either one.

Oops. Heh.

From AlterNet:

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, flubbed Monday and referred to Iraq as Vietnam while commenting on Fox News against an immediate troop withdrawal.
"The Democratic Party seems to be taken over by the Michael Moore contingent in their attitude toward Vietnam, and they continually call for a withdrawal of troops at a time when we haven't finished the job," Hatch said on the network's morning show. Hatch's spokesman acknowledged the error, which was first reported on the American Prospect Web log.

Apparently Faux News didn't call him on it. That doesn't surprise me as they neither know what's going on, nor would they ever contradict a Republican.

Cheer up, Senator. It's not quite as bad as calling your wife by your mistress's name!

Oh Boy! Another special election!

I thought Ah-nold could appoint someone to fill Cunningham's House seat. I was glad to see this in the LATimes.

SAN DIEGO - Once Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger receives official notification of the resignation of Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R-Rancho Santa Fe), he has two weeks to call a special election in the 50th Congressional District. Unlike a Senate vacancy, he cannot appoint a successor.

The law allows the governor to tack an election onto a previously scheduled election, so a special election to complete Cunningham's term could be held in June, when a primary will be held anyway for candidates seeking a full two-year term in Cunningham's old district.

It remains to be seen what he will do. In the meantime, I wonder if the folks in that district will even notice they don't have a congresscritter.

I hope Cunningham's guilty plea starts a trend. I think all the (mostly Republican) Representatives that are under investigation and indictment do the same. It's win-win. Plead guilty, roll over on a few cronies, spend less time in jail, and we are spared the expense and delay of a trial.

Longer needles needed...

I thought this article in the LATimes was apropos after Thanksgiving:

Fatter rear ends are causing many drug injections to miss their mark, requiring longer needles to reach buttock muscle, researchers said today.

I bet scientists are standing in line to get that dream research job!

Pain and Politics of Ground Zero

A detailed article on the controversy regarding families of some who died at the WTC on 9-11.

The Grief Police
No one says the 9/11 families aren't entitled to their pain. But should a small handful of them have the power to reshape ground zero?

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon left us with a total of 2,933 people recorded dead. Liberally speaking, that could mean that as many as 10,000 or 15,000 parents and children and siblings might be inclined to stay involved in the rebuilding of ground zero-this, not including the thousands of survivors of the attacks, the dozens of first responders who made it out alive, and all their families.

In reality, it's more like 30. Not 30,000, but 30. It's only 30 people like Ielpi who have kept their hands in the game by regularly attending planning meetings, helming Websites, filing lawsuits, and fighting political battles-over the security of new skyscrapers, the burial of unidentified remains, the separate placement of the names of firefighters among the lists of the dead, the size of a memorial. When rallies are held-like the one last month to preserve the human remains from the site that are still stored at Fresh Kills-these 30 people draw at most a few hundred.

Of the 30 hard-core activists, just half are part of Take Back the Memorial. It's these fifteen people who have come to stand, in the eyes of the public, for the views of all 9/11 families-even though many 9/11 family members supported the IFC and other ground-zero development as well. "I personally do not represent the families," says Paula Grant Berry, who lost her husband, David, on 9/11, and is the only family member to have served on the panel that chose Arad's memorial design. "No family member can. I wouldn't know where to begin. Just because you're a family member doesn't mean you can't be manipulative. And just because you're a family member doesn't mean you can't be manipulated by other family members."

No one, not even the Take Back the Memorial members' most bitter opponents, denies the families their grief and the substance of at least some of their arguments. But however heartbreaking their stories-and however relevant the concern that future generations remember what happened that September morning-the Take Back the Memorial members are far from the only interested parties at ground zero. Thousands of people who live and work downtown are still waiting for shops and services. Thousands of workers-many of them survivors, too, who saw bodies fall and ran for their lives as the towers collapsed-are pained by the still-gaping pit and are waiting for a new center for international commerce to curb the loss of Wall Street jobs.

Enraptured of the Rapture

There's nothing more scary than a fanatic:

American "Rapture"
Best-selling author and evangelical leader Tim LaHaye has contacts that extend to the White House. That could spell trouble, since his theology espouses a bloody apocalypse in Israel

As we walk down from the top of the hill of Megiddo, one of them looks out over the Jezreel Valley. "Can you imagine this entire valley filled with blood?" he asks. "That would be a 200-mile-long river of blood, four and a half feet deep. We've done the math. That's the blood of as many as two and a half billion people."

When this will happen is another question, and the Bible says that "of that day and hour knoweth no man." Nevertheless, LaHaye's disciples are certain these events—the End of Days—are imminent. In fact, one of them has especially strong ideas about when they will take place. "Not soon enough," she says. "Not soon enough."

If such views sound extraordinary, the people who hold them are decidedly not. For the most part, the people on the tour could pass for a random selection culled from almost any shopping mall in America. There are warm and loving middle-aged couples who hold hands. There is a well-coiffed Texas matron with an Hermès scarf. There's a ducktailed septuagenarian and a host of post-teen mall rats. There are young singles. One couple even chose this trip for their honeymoon. A big-haired platinum blonde with a white sequined cowboy hat adds a touch of Dallas glamour. There is a computer-security expert, a legal assistant, and a real-estate broker; a construction executive, a retired pastor, a caregiver for the elderly, and a graduate student from Jerry Falwell's Liberty University. They hail from Peoria, Illinois, and Longview, Texas, as well as San Diego and San Antonio. Most are fans of the "Left Behind" books. Some have attended the Left Behind Prophecy Conference on one of its tours of the U.S.

And while their beliefs may seem astounding to secular Americans, they are not unusual. According to a Time/CNN poll from 2002, 59 percent of Americans believe the events in the book of Revelation will take place.

This is an fairly large size article that's worth the read. Keep in mind that Bush at least pays lip service to them.

Woodward According to Nora Ephron

Nora Ephron, Hollywood director, writer, and ex-wife of Carl Bernstein writes of her observations of Bob Woodward.

Nora Ephron, Bernstein's Ex, "Explains" Woodward

...four "truths" about Woodward.

Truth #1: He is not a liar.

But truth #2: "Bob has always had trouble seeing the forest for the trees. That's why people love to talk to him; he almost never puts the pieces together in a way that hurts his sources."

Truth #3: Bob is not like other reporters, and it's not surprising he did not tell his editor Leonard Downie about his Plame role: "Woodward spends most of his life reporting. He knows everything. What's more, he has no idea what it adds up to. How could he possibly keep anyone, much less his editor, in the loop? It would take hours and hours of debriefing every week, hours that would undoubtedly be better spent reporting on the after-the-fact thoughts of people in power who are trying to justify the mistakes they've made."

Truth #4: "If you don't talk to Woodward, you'll be sorry. I mention this not because it's precisely true (look at me), but because it's an operating truth in official Washington. What's more, it's the only explanation I can come up with for why Woodward was foolish enough to trash Fitzgerald's investigation; I suspect that Fitzgerald is the only powerful figure in Washington who does not pour his heart out to Woodward on a weekly basis, and Woodward was telling him that he’d better get on the train."

A different perspective on Bob Woodward and worth reading.