[/crickets]

DURHAM, N.C. - DNA testing failed to connect any members of the Duke University lacrosse team to the alleged rape of a stripper, attorneys for the athletes said Monday.

Citing DNA test results delivered by the state crime lab to police and prosecutors a few hours earlier, the attorneys said the test results prove their clients did not sexually assault and beat a stripper hired to perform at a March 13 team party.

No charges have been filed in the case.

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The allegations have led to the resignation of coach Mike Pressler, the cancellation of the lacrosse season and the suspension of one player from school. [my em]

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So what about this guy's career? What about the players and their careers, academic and athletic? Just asking; being they'll have to explain it for the rest of their lives. I mean, a lot was said before we had proof of anything, just someone's word that she was attacked by these men. Not saying she wasn't attacked and/or raped (and I'm certainly not saying these guys were chior boys), but those responsible should pay. A lot of harm has been done to innocent people before any evidence came to light. Maybe we should take a deep breath before piling on next time?

[crickets]

Coding

An excellent post by Digby (guesting at Jane's) on the language of the Republicans. Waste some of your boss' money this morning and take the time to read it. It ain't yer grandaddy's "nigger, nigger, nigger" anymore.

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"You start out in 1954 by saying, 'Nigger, nigger, nigger.' By 1968 you can't say 'nigger' — that hurts you. Backfires. So you say stuff like forced busing, states' rights and all that stuff. You’re getting so abstract now [that] you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is [that] blacks get hurt worse than whites.

"And subconsciously maybe that is part of it. I'm not saying that. But I'm saying that if it is getting that abstract, and that coded, that we are doing away with the racial problem one way or the other. You follow me - because obviously sitting around saying, 'We want to cut this,' is much more abstract than even the busing thing, and a hell of a lot more abstract than 'Nigger, nigger."'

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That's a quote from uber-Rethug Lee Atwater. Ladies and germs, it's time for everyone to realize the Republican Party does not have the best interests of the United States in mind. Their policy, has been since the Civil War, is to make rich, white folks the priveliged class at the expense of all others. It's not just a difference in point of view toward policy, it is a calculated process to bring the United States squarely and permanently under their control.

North El Salvador

That's what we're gonna call South Dakota (and all the other states where the Jesus freaks run wild) soon. Elise:

Ever wonder what a country where abortion was completely outlawed would look like? Well, wonder no more: Jack Hitt profiles El Salvador in Sunday's New York Times Magazine. It's a pretty fucking scary picture:

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Sanity

Jo Fish, a guy who knows what he's talking about:

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There is no such thing as a "surgical" airstrike. The only way that they could "surgically" strike against Iran is to commit genocide on a scale never before concieved, because any strike like this would foment a scenario far worse than any Soviets-rolling-into-France scenario ever envisioned by planners during the Cold War.

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DeLay's K Street buddies want their money back

I'm laughin' so hard I can barely breathe! From The Carpetbagger Report:

An additional impetus for putting off the resignation until now was suggested by John Feehery, a former aide to DeLay and House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.). "He needed to raise money for the defense fund. That was the bottom line," Feehery said. "He wanted to make sure he could take care of himself in the court of law."

In other words, DeLay was raising money from suckers supporters under false pretenses. He asked contributors for financial support, telling them that he needed the money to help with his campaign, when in reality, DeLay knew he'd have to resign and he wanted the donations for his legal defense. DeLay's con is legal, but obviously dishonest.

Another lobbyist who gives to Members on both sides of the aisle said, "It's nauseating to think about" his campaign contribution going to fund DeLay's legal team. "I'm realistic about it. He wouldn't resign for no reason," this lobbyist said, noting that the timing of DeLay's departure came awfully close to the announcement of a plea agreement by his former aide Tony Rudy. "That all this money will go to the legal defense fund, it sickens me," he added. "I have to pay for that?"

Apparently so. As K Street lobbyists should realize by now, sometimes, when you lay with dogs, you get fleas.

I'd worry more about the dogs!

So, your dirty money went for something even dirtier than you figured, huh, lobbyists? DeLay conned you, huh, lobbyists? Didn't get your money's worth, huh, lobbyists? Who cares? You got plenty.

Call the Consumer Hotline and bitch, bitches.

Better yet, go fuck yourselves. In a way, you got exactly what was coming to you. You're lucky. If I was in charge, K Street would get an air strike.

Why now, indeed...

After reading Fixer's post about retired General Newbold's admissions about Iraq, Chris Albritton at Back to Iraq pretty much asks him, "Where were you when we needed you?"

So opposed was he that he resigned his position as director of operations for the Join Chiefs four months before the war ... and then kept his mouth shut until now.

It's a valiant sentiment to support the men and women fighting the war, and his critiques of Condi's statement and Rumsfeld's micromanaging is dead on. But we've heard all this before. Anyone following the war can see it's being run poorly from the big office at the Pentagon and that the civilian leadership has done everything to push blame elsewhere. Again, why now? Why didn't you say something earlier, Lt. Gen. Newbold, once you were retired and could without fear of retaliation? You blame others for timidity or thick-headedness. "A few of the most senior officers actually supported the logic for war. Others were simply intimidated, while still others must have believed that the principle of obedience does not allow for respectful dissent."

Don't lecture us about heroism and constructive roles to play, Lt. Gen. Newbold (Ret.) You could have done something then, and you didn't. You could have been a powerful symbol, even if you would have taken a lot of flak from your old bosses. You say officers swore an oath to the Constitution, not the men appointed above them, yet you betrayed it with your three-year silence. It's been said that for evil to triumph, all it takes is for good men to do nothing. Well, you did nothing. You don't get to be considered good now.

In a way, I agree with Mr. Albritton, but at my advanced age I know that "better late than never". Also, had the war been managed properly, and if we had actually won the damn thing, perhaps things would have been different. Probably not - it was criminally wrong to begin with - but maybe.

Perhaps it took three years of not sleeping very well to get LtGen Newbold's conscience to kick in.

Or perhaps it was just time to jump ship. Either way, let's hope many others follow. It's way past time.

Yes He Would

Paul Krugman on Bush's plans to start another criminal war against Iran. Via Donkey O. D.

"But he wouldn't do that." That sentiment is what made it possible for President Bush to stampede America into the Iraq war and to fend off hard questions about the reasons for that war until after the 2004 election. Many people just didn't want to believe that an American president would deliberately mislead the nation on matters of war and peace.

"But he wouldn't do that," say people who think they're being sensible. Given what we now know about the origins of the Iraq war, however, discounting the possibility that Mr. Bush will start another ill-conceived and unnecessary war isn't sensible. It's wishful thinking.

Why might Mr. Bush want another war? For one thing, Mr. Bush, whose presidency is increasingly defined by the quagmire in Iraq, may believe that he can redeem himself with a new Mission Accomplished moment.

And it's not just Mr. Bush's legacy that's at risk. Current polls suggest that the Democrats could take one or both houses of Congress this November, acquiring the ability to launch investigations backed by subpoena power. This could blow the lid off multiple Bush administration scandals. Political analysts openly suggest that an attack on Iran offers Mr. Bush a way to head off this danger, that an appropriately timed military strike could change the domestic political dynamics.

Does this sound far-fetched? It shouldn't. Given the combination of recklessness and dishonesty Mr. Bush displayed in launching the Iraq war, why should we assume that he wouldn't do it again?

The only thing I automatically assume about Bush is that every word that comes out of his pie hole is a fuckin' lie. It hasn't made an ass out of you or me yet.

The sonofabitch has to be stopped from doing this, whatever it takes. Whatever. It. Takes.

Our first dictatorship

Geov Parrish on Herr Bush's lies, leaks, hypocrisy and overall anti-democratic lack of everything remotely resembling moral character.

Bush declares himself above the law -- has the first American dictatorship already arrived?

What. A. Freaking. Hypocrite.

And, as we've come to expect, a liar. Stop the presses. We're so accustomed to the lies of George Bush being uncovered after the fact, we don't even notice any longer.

And they thought Clinton's behavior brought disgrace to the Oval Office.

Bush and the people around him appear to have genuinely believed, for at least the four and a half years since 9-11, that the President by definition is incapable of breaking the law. On his sole authority laws can be ignored, overridden, or changed. Even implicitly. Even retroactively, as when some unappetizing piece of this puzzle inadvertently comes to the public's attention.

Combine this with an administration more intent on secrecy and lack of transparency than any other in U.S. history, and you have a recipe for, well, a dictatorship. Which is exactly what it appears Bush and company believe they are operating in. Oh, of course, in normal times America is a democracy, but these aren't normal times, are they? Why? Because we're at war. Why are we at war? Because the President said so. How long will the war last? Several generations. After that, presumably, the Constitution will be in force again, and Congress and the courts can re-convene if they like.

It is more evident than ever that this President and Vice President need to be impeached. Not because it is or isn't politically expedient; not even because their successors might be any better, or because it will be an advantage for one or another party in 2008. But because this sort of behavior in the most powerful job in the world must be punished, in the clearest possible manner. Justice demands it. Setting an example, to try to prevent similar abuses by future leaders from any party, demands it.

Hear, hear. The sooner the better.

Tip to Democratic candidates: don't mention Impeachment 'til the day after you get the Congress back. Then ram it up Bush and Cheney's ass.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

I saw it last night (I'm not big on movies; I wait for them to come on cable). My thoughts: The book was better. More character development. I guess they thought the only people who'd watch the movie were those who've read the Hitchhiker series. If you haven't read the series or at least Guide, don't bother with the movie.

Maryscott

Since I alluded to it yesterday, Gilliard has part of the transcript up. The Dems should take a page out of her playbook on how to deal with the 'pundits'.

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Maryscott O'Connor: I would expect both parties to impeach George W. Bush, because it's a question of honor and principle.

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I know 'honor' and 'principle' are alien concepts to politicians, but you all could at least try to fake it.

Another smart Jarhead

Not as smart as my pardner Gordon (he's an officer what do you want?) but getting there:

...After 9/11, I was a witness and therefore a party to the actions that led us to the invasion of Iraq - an unnecessary war. Inside the military family, I made no secret of my view that the zealots' rationale for war made no sense. And I think I was outspoken enough to make those senior to me uncomfortable. But I now regret that I did not more openly challenge those who were determined to invade a country whose actions were peripheral to the real threat - al-Qaeda. I retired from the military four months before the invasion, in part because of my opposition to those who had used 9/11's tragedy to hijack our security policy. Until now, I have resisted speaking out in public. I've been silent long enough.

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Here's somebody to lead 2nd Marines up Pennsylvania Ave, Gord.

Thanks to DR for the link.

Resignation's good, but it's not enough

Think Progress

This morning on CNN, New Yorker journalist Seymour Hersh addressed the uproar at the highest levels of the U.S. military over plans to launch a massive strike against Iran that would include nuclear weapons:

HERSH: I'm saying if this isn't walked back and if the President isn't told that you cannot do it - and once the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, some senior members of the military say to the President, let's get the nuclear option off the table, it will be taken off. He will not defy the military in a formal report. Unless something specific is told to the White House that you've got to drop the dream of a nuclear option, and that's exactly the issue I'm talking about, people have said to me they would resign.

BLITZER: Do you want to name names?

HERSH: Are you kidding?

BLITZER: I'm giving you the opportunity.

HERSH: No. You know why? Because this is a punitive government right now. This is a government that pretty much has its back against the wall, as you've been saying all morning in iraq, and in the military - one thing about our military, they're very loyal to the president, but they're getting to the edge. They're getting to the edge with not only Rumsfeld, but with Cheney and the President.

Resignation in order to not commit an unspeakably horrible crime or to speak out is good, but marching the 2d Marine Division (pick your favorite outfit) down Pennsylvania Avenue to assault and secure the White House and arrest the heads of state would be a lot better.

There's always gonna be some fuckin' Colonel out there who would do anything to be a General, including selling his soul to the neocon devils by following the insane criminal order to nuke Iran.

They're getting it

The real Christians are getting sick and tired of having their name associated with the wingnuts:

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I was going to say that the UCC sounds incensed by politically conservative, religious-right-style Christians, but I think a better word is "impatient." The UCC has seen their faith misused for partisan and ideological ends; the church's leaders saw a subtle effort to change this dynamic; but discovered things weren't improving quickly enough. Now, they're making an assertive effort to take on their rivals and help make a change.

In addition to the examples mentioned above, the UCC is also pushing back against the IRS for what church officials see as a slanted law-enforcement effort in which liberal churches are threatened for alleged political intervention, while conservative churches are not. Good for the UCC.

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More at the Carpetbagger.

Hey...

I added her to the blogroll when I heard about it. A little animosity in Left Blogtopia (y!sctp!)?

Good sense

For all you folks who are scared of the big, bad Iranians, the guy in the fancy suit has some reality for ya.

Lessons

My lovely neighbor Blondie has a very insightful post on a subject I know glaringly little about. I'm stealing something I think everyone should see, and draw conclusions from, sans comment from me:

Rabbi Hillel was reportedly asked by someone to explain Judaism while standing on one foot. Hillel replied "What you find hateful, do not do to another. This is the essence of the Law. Everything else is commentary." Talmud, Shabbat 3id

"Do not do to others what you would not like yourself. Then there will be no resentment against you, either in the family or in the state." Analects 12:2, Confucianism

"Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful." Udana-Varga 5,1, Buddhism

"This is the sum of duty; do naught onto others what you would not have them do unto you." Mahabharata 5,1517, Hinduism

"No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for himself." Sunnah, Islam

"Regard your neighbor's gain as your gain, and your neighbor's loss as your own loss." Tai Shang Kan Yin P'ien, Taoism

"That nature alone is good which refrains from doing another whatsoever is not good for itself." Dadisten-I-dinik, 94,5, Zoroastrianism

Royal Bushes

Maureen Dowd on Leaks from the Top. Via Tennessee Guerilla Women.

Scooter is a "good Judas," as it turns out, just as Judas himself was, according to a 1,700-year-old Christian manuscript found in the Egyptian desert that asserts that Jesus wanted Judas to betray him, so he entrusted his disciple with special intelligence.

Since President Bush seems to see his mission in Iraq as part of God's plan, he must have assumed that getting Scooter Libby to leak parts of a classified document on Iraq to rebut Joe Wilson's charge about a juiced-up casus belli was part of God's plan.

If W. wants the information out, it's good for the country to make it public. If W. doesn't want the information out, it's bad for the country to make it public. L'etat, c'est moi.

That's how we got mired in the Iraq war in the first place. The administration ruthlessly held back classified information that contradicted its bogus case for war, and leaked classified information that supported it.

The Bushies keep trying to manipulate reality, but reality bites back. That's not only crass politics. It's lethal politics. L'etat, c'est mess.

Not lethal for them, so they don't care who gets killed. They're just the 'help' anyway. What are they compared to the Royal Will of Allah God? Plenty more where they came from.

"Matzoh, Matzoh Man..."

Don't "Passover" this one! Heh.

'Breakthrough' Discovery...

In an impish mood (me as well as them), I present:

In a dramatic new study published in a leading scientific journal, paleontologists have concluded that the GOP is living proof that the theories of both evolution, and intelligent design, have been totally discredited.

After studying Fossils and Neanderthals like Dick Cheney and Tom DeLay, the Report concludes that the Republicans, who seem to be constantly swimming in the muck, have regressed to the point that a new theory of "Devolution" has to be seriously considered.

As one of the leading authors of the study put it: "From the Emancipation Proclamation to Willie Horton, from Teddy Roosevelt's environmental policies to Bush's 'Clean Skies’ and 'Healthy Forests,' well, you make the call."

The Report's Conclusion succinctly summarizes the backward slide of the GOP:

Lincoln? Teddy Roosevelt?

That's really far-flung

It's now the Party...of Elephant Dung

However, a footnote to the Report speculates that a proposed study of the Democrats might yield yet additional proof of "devolution," as evidenced by their lack of a spine.

Sometimes I get the feeling that our limbs are getting shorter as our gills re-emerge, as we head across the shore toward the breakers...

This Ain't 1864, Bush Ain't Lincoln, We Ain't Winnin'

From the War Nerd

To anybody with any sense, it's been obvious since day one that Iraq was going to be the biggest catastrophe since Nam. But when the cheerleaders start defecting, that's when you know the game's lost. It's like one of the girls at the bottom of the pyramid walking off while the head cheerleader is wobbling at the top of the pile -- kinda ruins the whole stunt.

Yeah, and the best grapefruit always seems to be on the bottom of the pile, too.

War Nerd also has a few things to say about Fresno's wingnut raisin farmer and his comparisons of Iraq to our Civil War and others, for all you Victor Davis Hanson fans out there.

That's Vic for you -- he can't stick with one bad historical parallel, he's got to stick in another. So he tells us that the Iraq war is just like the Civil War just before the capture of Atlanta, AND Korea after we'd been pushed back to the Pusan Perimeter.

Not too long - a good light Saturday read.