A little light entertainment

Stick a yellow ribbon up your SUV.

Secrets, and the obvious, revealed

Here's some excerpts from Bob Woodward's State of Denial from a review in the LATimes:

One of the more troubling subplots running through "State of Denial" involves Prince Bandar, the long-time Saudi ambassador to the United States. By Woodward's account, when then-Texas Gov. George W. Bush decided to run for president, his worried father enlisted Bandar, an old family friend, to tutor the son on foreign policy. When Bandar arrived in Austin, the younger Bush blithely observed that while he had lots of ideas about domestic policies he didn't have a clue about foreign affairs. The Saudi took him under his wing, but he proved a trying pupil, who addressed his mentor as "asshole" and "smart aleck." (Perhaps this is how hereditary princelings affectionately address each other?) At one point, the younger Bush peevishly demanded to know why he needed "to care about North Korea." Bandar pointed out that, if he became president, he would have 35,000 American troops sitting on the DMZ.

Oh, right....

[...] During a meeting in the Oval Office, according to Woodward, Bush personally thanked Bandar because the Saudis had flooded the world oil market and kept prices down in the run-up to the 2004 general election.

You don't have to be Michael Moore to find all this unsettling. Equally disquieting, Woodward's source for all this has to be Bandar or one of his intimates, acting at the Saudi's behest. What that suggests is that, after decades of arduously cultivating the Bush family, one of the shrewdest operators on the world stage has written off George W. Bush.

I wish they could have written him out.

"State of Denial" is best read in tandem with Joan Didion's assessment of Cheney in the current issue of the New York Review of Books. With that as background, one conclusion that suggests itself is that - from the beginning - Iraq really has been about Vietnam. Cheney and Rumsfeld have been the Iraq war's principle advocates and architects. As Woodward now reveals, they've even introduced Henry Kissinger back into the equation, and he now is Bush's most frequent nongovernmental advisor on foreign policy. Cheney and Rumsfeld were bright young men headed for the top during the Nixon and Ford administrations, both of whom thought of themselves, as others did, as future presidents. Though the disaster in Southeast Asia hardly ruined them, a certain stigma has attached itself ever since.

For them, the Iraq war, the whole wrenching debate over domestic spying, the detainees and unitary executive power is all about Vietnam. Cheney, Rumsfeld and Kissinger all have been convinced for decades that the country drew all the wrong historical and governmental conclusions from Vietnam. The Reagan era intervention in Central America was a first attempt to overturn those conclusions, but it foundered on the arms-for-hostages scandal. Once George W. Bush - for a set of Freudian family issues too tedious to belabor - put himself in their clutches, he became the instrument of a Cheney/Rumsfeld/Kissinger attempt to abolish 30 years of history and their enduring resentment that their youthful exercise of power ended in failure, death and disaster.

So, here we are again.

No shit. And fixin' to lose another war that never should have been started. At least Vietnam had some justification in the beginning. Another clusterfuck that another generation of Americans will be dealing with for the rest of their lives. Maybe a lot longer than that. Iraq is a lot more of a criminal mistake than Vietnam was, and affects a lot more of the world.

Thanks, Rummy and The Dick. You sure made up for Vietnam. Thanks a pile. Bastards.

Old and New

Valencia, Spain (and yes, there are orange trees everywhere) is a beautiful city and the Mrs. and I want to come back and spend some time here. Today we took a bus tour and the counterpoint between the old city (founded 21 BC) and the new is striking and well done. The new is being built in one half of the city and the old is being preserved ever so nicely. Restorations of classic buildings goes on everywhere and the new construction is amazing.

In the late 50s, Valencia was the victim of a horrific flood of the river that flowed through the center of the city. The city fathers decided to divert the river to the outskirts of town and built a long, winding park in the old, now dry, riverbed. The bridges remain.

There is also the new section, characterized by the new opera house, science museum, and aquarium. The park in the dry riverbed connects the old and new sections at each end.

We also stopped at the Lladro factory, where they make all the porcelain figurines. I'm not a fan of the style, but it was most interesting to learn how they created these detailed figures. Unfortunately, they wouldn't let me take pics inside (they use proprietary processes) but they did let me go nuts in the showroom.

And of course, some obligatory 'idiot with a camera' photos.

The story so far, in case you're following:

Buongiorno

Blog who?

Monaco

Cures

College Republicans: Liars and Pussies

Ann Arbor News

Everybody agrees last Saturday night in Ann Arbor ended badly for Justin Zatkoff when the Republican student activist was hit in the face so hard that he couldn't recall the attack and would need hours of surgery.

But with weeks left before the November elections, rumors quickly spread in Republican circles that Zatkoff was viciously beaten for his political views in one of the state's bluest of cities.

In the days following the attack, the conservative student Web site Truth Caucus posted photos of his injured face, pronounced the incident a "hate crime," and speculated it was the work of "liberal thugs." A Republican organizer in Michigan e-mailed campus Republicans, warning them to travel in groups until the election was over. And pretty soon, the matter was fodder for major political Web sites, like Wonkette.

Ain't that just the Repug way?

Ann Arbor police said Friday there's no truth to the rumors.

While at a party that began last Saturday night, police said Zatkoff picked a fight with some of his friends, and got punched in the eye. Police interviewed Zatkoff at a hospital the next day and he didn't recall what happened.

People who were at the party told police Zatkoff had too much to drink, said Ann Arbor police Lt. Mike Logghe.

"We interviewed the guy who punched him," said Logghe. "He admitted to punching him. He said he was a friend of his from high school."

Guy gets drunk at a party and lips off to his buddy, and his buddy punches his lights out. I think anybody who hasn't been directly involved in something like that has at least seen it happen. Youth plus booze equals fistfights, folks, many of them of the one-punch variety. Just part of growin' up.

For a wingnut website to instantly blame it on "liberal thugs" is a uniquely Repuglican spin. There's certainly nothing unique about 'em lying and blaming the opposition, but wouldn't liberals 'cut and run'? Couldn't one Young Republican, no doubt a stalwart example of studly moral turpitude rectitude, take a bunch of sissy liberals?

As for the advice to "travel in groups because the beastly liberals are out to get you", whoever came up with that ought to be embarrassed at his own pussitude!

That made my day.

Update:

You vill go see The CultureGhost's take on zis. If you do not, ve haff vays of making you, ja?

GOP - Gross Old Perverts

Go read Lurch at Main and Central in the wake of the new wave of outrage at Rep. Foley's conduct. Click the links. Foley ain't the only one by a long shot.

I'm sure that phrases like "What are you wearing?", "Does it make you horny?", and "Did you spank it today?" have their place in some small corner of the adult world, but they're criminally inappropriate from a 50-year-old man to a 16-year-old boy.

Hastert and Boehner's year-long knowledge of Foley's conduct without action is inexcusable. Period. They are accomplices and conspirators after the fact and should be charged as such. They won't be. Repug pervs look out for one another in a veritable protective daisy chain.

Yesterday, the LATimes had an article about a proposed 'colony' for sex offenders. They could just erect a wall around Republican HQ. Make the wall high enough we can't see over it, please.

Update:

WaPo

Foley Built Career as Protector of Children

What a perfect metaphor for the Repuglican party!

Cures

Barcelona today ... well ... looking at Barcelona. We had the misfortune, or bad planning, or twist of fate, to land here on a Sunday, the place is very Catholic so not much is open, and on the day they're running the Barcelona Marathon. Vehicle traffic is nonexistant and we didn't feel like walking in. I'm sitting at the bar (11 a.m.) having my Hair of the Dog. The Mrs. and I had too much fun last night and got back to the stateroom about 6 hours ago.

Just a note, this is a themed cruise and it's all about big bands. Excellent music but it attracts an older crowd. There are three children on the ship and the Mrs. and I are among the youngest of the passengers. It's great because I've met a bunch of brothers-in-arms from WW2 and Korea and the stories and rememberances are flowing as freely as the liquor. The bad part is trying to walk through a restaurant at 'buffet time'. I'm dodging walkers, canes, and power chairs and let me tell you, these alte cochers mean business when it comes to a free buffet. I don't know how many times I've heard 'get out of my way, sonny'. They're faster than you'd expect too. Oy!

I posted some pics taken from the ship in lieu of going into town.

Family Values My Ass

(Note: I've been scarce the last few days because I'm doing some work on the house and have been looking at real estate farther north of where we live now. Whether this is a blessing or a curse for ya'all is determined by you,lol)

By now,I'm sure most of us have heard of the disgusting exchange of instant messages between Rep Mark Foley(R) and a 16 yr old congressional page. After I spent most of my time yesterday painting,I took a break and looked around the internets to get a feel for what folks are saying about this. Some of what I'm reading disturbs me,beyond the actual content of Foley's IMs to this young man.

1)That 16 yr. olds aren't"children". Bullshit. Babies,no,but children? Yes. Some 16 yr olds are more emotionally mature than others to be sure,but a 16 yr old is not an adult. Just because a kid can drive a car and get an afterschool job doesn't make them grown. There's such a push in this culture to make kids older than their years, and frankly I think that's part of the problem. 16 yr olds can be savvy and manipulative to be sure,but they are not adults. No matter how you spin it. I don't know ANY 16 yr old that I'd consider mature enough to handle adult actions and responsibility. And you know what? That's perfectly OK. Spend some time with teens,listening to them,observing them, and you'll find these are kids trying to make the transition into adulthood,but they are not adults. Much about them is still quite childlike,no matter how grown up they may look or try to act.

2) Foley isn't a pedophile,he's something else. Ok,perhaps technically,from a professional/medical standpoint,because his victims are older children,he's not officially a pedophile,"just creepy". But to file this under"just creepy" is dismissing the damage caused by this kind of lecherous behavior.

When my sister was a teenager,a neighbor to my parents became fixated on her. To show you how fucked up my family is,my parents never confronted the guy after they found out. Which to this day absolutely STUNS me. This shit started when my sis was 13 and didn't end until she left home to get her first apartment-for FIVE YEARS. He watched her come and go from home and would call her,telling her how much he liked her outfits,asking what she did on dates,which led to him trying to pry info out of her about her sexual experiences. My sister was not emotionally equipped to deal with this,and no one protected her. At one point he crossed the line and actually went into my parents' home when they weren't there and tried to force himself on her. And she NEVER TOLD MY PARENTS because she didn't think my parents would take her side since they had done nothing in the past to stop this guy from calling her. She thought it was her fault for dressing a certain way or taking his calls. No blame EVER got placed on this asshole where it belonged. And you can bet your ass this guy went on to do it to other girls too,this kind of preditory fuck doesn't stop unless they are caught and made to pay for what they've done. And even then,they'll still justify it any way they can. So let's not make the mistake of thinking a 16 yr old can control a situation like this, that's nonsense. Mark Foley is 50+ yrs old,do the math for gods sake.

3)Sexual preditors of ALL stripes never get caught the very first time they do what they do. Law enforcement and mental health professionals can tell you that by the time one of these guys(and it is usually men who do this,in spite of all the"hot teacher"stories in the news these days)is caught there's dozens,in some cases hundreds of victims before the one that got them caught. Several news stories have stated that the pages often warned new kids to the program that Foley was a perv,to watch out for him. I'd wager this has been going on at least as long as the guy has been in office,and it likely started earlier than that.

4)This also calls into question the character of the other adults who knew about this and did nothing to protect these kids. Besides the obvious political ass covering going on,I have to wonder if Foley is just one of many who are doing the same thing or worse. You can't convince me that the GOP,with all their money and huge PR firms ,couldn't spin forcing Foley out of office as a BIG score for "family values"the second the GOP leadership knew about this. Instead,they chose to,at best ignore it,at worst cover it up. Which begs the question of who else are they trying to protect here? If the environment exists that allows this to happen,it ain't all to save one guy's political behind.

5)Jokes. Ok,I know some people confront horrors of various types by trying to defuse the ugliness with dark humor. Soldiers and Marines do it, medical professionals do it,anyone who has to deal with the most vile and base things humans do to each other does this. Without that humor,it's likely people who do these jobs would lose it completely. I get that. But I find it rather un-funny when I see folks on the left side of the political divide making jokes about this Foley asshat and his victims. The wingnuts are already trying to blame this kid,making their own ugly insinuations and jokes(one particularly disturbing trend is that the kid"knew what he was doing"), and,while I can't find it yet,a commenter at Kos has said that a wingnut blog has"outed"this kid,putting his info out on the internet. This shit AIN'T FUNNY. Child abuse ain't funny,and it's one of this nation's darkest and dirtiest little secrets that little is done about. There's plenty of other crap to joke about,god knows the GOP practically write the jokes themselves with their day to day antics. I think we can leave the child abuse jokes alone and still find plenty of giggles to go around. Think about it,do you know anyone who hasn't been touched by some sort of abuse? It's a rare thing these days for anyone to not know of at least one person in their lives who has had to deal with this sort of thing. It's not funny,and even less funny when it concerns children who have no voice and cannot protect themselves. THAT'S OUR JOB,to be their voice and protect them. So enough with the jokes. Please.

6)Finally,what the HELL is going on in this country that we seem to producing a HUGE number of sexual preditors?

A few yrs ago I did a little experiment on the internets. Back then we had AOL as our internet provider,and within AOL is a whole slew of chat rooms on every topic you can think of. I posed as a 13 yr old girl just to see if all the crap I had heard about "adult"chat rooms was true. I used the screen name "sunshine13". The second I logged into chat,I was bombarded with messages,literally so many I could not even respond to one.Asking me if I had pubic hair,breast size,if I ever sucked a guy off,if I was a virgin,etc,etc,etc. After a couple of minutes I was so disgusted that I logged off,deleted that screen name and shortly after,we cancelled our AOL service.

Something is wrong with us,and it's not just our politics and policy. We have a culture that not only encourages this behavior,but excuses it. What pisses me off is that if it were a priority to stop this madness,we would have done so by now. It's a very ugly virus we have running amok here and not anywhere near enough resources have been put into breaking this insideous cycle.

The Scotsman

In my previous post about the Celtic Festival, or the next post if you read 'em from the top down, I made mention of "the liftin' o' the kilt". That rang some bells in my head (loud ones to be heard over all the little voices) and I remembered this song, with a comment from the site:

Well a Scotsman clad in kilt left a bar on evening fair
And one could tell by how we walked that he drunk more than his share
He fumbled round until he could no longer keep his feet
Then he stumbled off into the grass to sleep beside the street
Ring ding diddle diddle I de oh ring di diddly I oh
He stumbled off into the grass to sleep beside the street

About that time two young and lovely girls just happend by
And one says to the other with a twinkle in her eye
See yon sleeping Scotsman so strong and handsome built
I wonder if it's true what they don't wear beneath the kilt
Ring ding diddle diddle I de oh ring di diddly I oh
I wonder if it's true what they don't wear beneath the kilt

They crept up on that sleeping Scotsman quiet as could be
Lifted up his kilt about an inch so they could see
And there behold, for them to see, beneath his Scottish skirt
Was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth
Ring ding diddle diddle I de oh ring di diddly I oh
Was nothing more than God had graced him with upon his birth

They marveled for a moment, then one said we must be gone
Let's leave a present for our friend, before we move along
As a gift they left a blue silk ribbon, tied into a bow
Around the bonnie star, the Scots kilt did lift and show
Ring ding diddle diddle I de oh ring di diddly I oh
Around the bonnie star, the Scots kilt did lift and show

Now the Scotsman woke to nature's call and stumbled towards a tree
Behind a bush, he lift his kilt and gawks at what he sees
And in a startled voice he says to what's before his eyes.
O lad I don't know where you been but I see you won first prize
Ring ding diddle diddle I de oh ring di diddly I oh
O lad I don't know where you been but I see you won first prize

Background: I first heard this song sung by Bryan Bowers...an autoharpist. It's a popular tune for morning radio programs, and it's popularity has spread incredibly over the past thirty years from Dr. Demento to Renaissance festivals. Heck, I used to stand up in the middle of the cafeteria in college and sing it at the top of my lungs. Yes, every Scotsman has heard the song...and is probably sick of it! But I still love the song, and performing it is even more fun. Oh! Don't forget to get a free Real Men Wear Kilts sticker!

You can listen to the song at the site.

Bryan Bowers is probably the world's best autoharp player. He plays six parts of a song with five fingers. Check him out.

Celtic Festival

This weekend is the 10th Annual Celtic Festival in Grass Valley, California. You can listen live at KVMR.

I was reminded of this when our friends Bev and Bentley stopped by on their way to it. They were in costume, Bentley in a black kilt and Bev in a period dress. They looked very nice.

Bentley left me with this thought, "Playing the bagpipes is like blowing up an air mattress with four holes in it!"

We listened to it on the way to the supermarket. We heard some good Cape Breton fiddle music and "the liftin' o' the kilts". I'm glad it was audio only!

Enjoy.

More Charlie Brown

Raw Story has video of Democratic Congressional Candidate Charlie Brown (CA-04) laying into Doolittle (Repugnant) on Sacramento TV news:

Rep. John Doolittle (R-CA) knew of and tolerated forced abortions, sex slavery and sweatshop conditions in the Northern Marianas Islands, says his challenger.

Retired Lt. Col. Charlie Brown, Democratic candidate for California's 4th District, asserts Doolittle was aware of the abuses while he helped, with the aid of convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff, to fund the islands' government that allegedly exploited its workers.

In a debate on KCRA 3 TV News in Sacramento, Brown faced off against former Rep. Doug Ose, acting as a spokesman on behalf of incumbent Congressman Doolittle. Brown at one point says that Doolittle "got $10,000 from Abramoff's firm, the largest ever paid by Abramoff to a congressman."

Further KCRA coverage on the accusations can be found here.

And learn how you can "Win FREE Laser Hair Removal". Yeesh.

Also see "Dump Doolittle".

This is a good issue to use against Doolittle. Shows his "moral values" and criminal behavior. I hope folks give a shit.

Just as a point of local trivia, the newsanchors, Dave and Lois, are married. To each other.

Monaco

Back from Monaco. Nothing special in my book. The same rich, pompous assholes we have in New York, but their toys are beautiful. They're also getting set up for the Grand Prix so we were dodging construction crews as we walked around the city. Have a look.

Yes, I think I'll have another ...

Blog who?

Not a peep out of me yesterday, didn't even open the laptop. See that, AOB, I can relax. I tossed some pics up from our trip to Florence yesterday, more to follow later on. This morning we're in the home of the Grimaldis, Monte Carlo, and I'll post pics from here later.

Update:

More from Florence.

Charlie Brown Update

Charlie Brown for Congress

[Sacramento: On October 1st, 4th CD Candidate Lt. Col. Charlie Brown and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark will join forces for a campaign rally titled "Service Before Self," a central theme of Brown's Congressional campaign. The rally will focus on the need for honest, responsible leadership to guide America through dangerous times, and will also pay tribute to those who have dedicated their lives to putting the security and quality of life of the American people first.

The rally, which will also be attended by veterans, military families, police, fire fighters, teachers, and others, comes on the eve of President Bush's visit to the 4th CD---where he will headline a $2,000 a plate fundraiser for Rep. John Doolittle - an 8 term incumbent who has been weakened by his close connections to Congressional bribery scandals, and the practice of paying his wife a 15% commission on funds raised for his campaign committees.

Lt. Col. Brown spent 26 years in the U.S. Air Force, as a helicopter rescue pilot at the end of the Vietnam War, a Reconnaissance pilot, and eventually, as coordinator of surveillance missions over Iraq's no fly zones in the 1990s. Charlie's wife Jan is also a veteran, and his son has served three rotations in Iraq with the Air Force.

Gen. Clark is a West Point Graduate, a highly decorated Vietnam Veteran, and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander whose distinguished military career spans nearly 4 decades. Clark also ran for President of the United States in 2004.

Brown and Gen. Clark will both be speaking at the Oct. 2nd event, and will be available for brief press interviews.

WHO: 4th CD Congressional Candidate Lt. Col. Charlie Brown, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark (featured speakers), as well as numerous area veterans, military families, firemen, teachers, police officers, and other supporters of Charlie Brown for Congress.

WHAT: Brown for Congress Campaign Rally

WHERE: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Corner of 15th and L Streets, Sacramento, CA .

WHEN: Monday, October 2, 2006, 5:00-5:45 p.m.]

Col. Brown will be in my area from about the 6th to the 14th of October. I'll keep you posted and try to make one or more event.

Lordy, lordy, gimme $40.

File this one under "I guess it had to happen sometime". From Eyeteeth:

Pastor Marty Baker of Stevens Creek Community Church, an 1100-member evangelical church in Augusta, Georgia, has discovered a way to "give to Caesar what is Caesar's and give to God is God's"--while keeping a bit for himself: he's installed an ATM-style "Giving Kiosk," in the church--one sold by his for-profit venture.

"It's truly like an ATM for Jesus," Baker said.

When I was church-goin' kid, my aunt would give me a little envelope to put my donation in. It was for anonymity: some people gave a lot, some gave a little. I found the value of this system later in life: a dime makes a distinctive 'clink' in the collection plate and everybody turns and looks at you!

A poor devil, but not the Devil

Dissident Voice

Chavez said George Bush is the Devil.

With all due respect, I beg to differ.

The Devil is a Christian take on a mythological character, a trickster god, with versions in many different traditions -- as Hermes, Loki, Coyote, etc. The most important aspects of this personality are a cunning intelligence, a knack for deception, a delight in mischief, and lack of moral scruples. Bush scores high on lack of moral scruples. But where is the creativity and the intelligence?

The biggest point of difference is this: Satan doesn't use force. He deceives; he tempts; he seduces. But he doesn't bully. He doesn't even twist arms. And he certainly doesn't "shock-and-awe" his victims. The kind of behavior most associated with George Bush is more like what we'd expect from the God of the Old Testament than from Satan. Compare "thou shalt have no other gods before me" to "You're either with us or you're with the terrorists." Or compare the U.S. love of aerial bombardment to the treatment of the city of Sodom. Or recall that early speech in which Bush explained that, being the President, he doesn't have to explain his decisions and compare that to God's speech in the Book of Job.

George Bush's power isn't to sell and to seduce, but to buy, to bully and bludgeon. The success of his presidency (and say what you will, it is a smashing success, practically every Bush backer was handsomely rewarded, some beyond their wildest imagination) does not depend on Bush's salesmanship skills but on the state of ruin of public signification. Take the latest torture show. Take John McCain, Mr. Principles, who supposedly hates torture because he was tortured in his Vietnamese cell. For many months he held fast, publicly resisting George Bush's campaign to legalize and institutionalize torture on principle. But finally he agreed to a compromise that effectively allows torture to continue -- as long as nobody hears them scream. Why? Was his month-long opposition a charade? What does the popular McCain have to fear from the lame duck George Bush? Does he not trust his ability to make the case for his "convictions" (which do have, in fact, wide support)? It is one thing to cut political deals in the normal business of the senate, or under pressure, and quite another to compromise needlessly on the very principles that one's public persona and biography is built upon. But McCain's persona, like all of Washington's politicians and opinion makers, is virtually weightless; it can spin in any direction with the gentlest blow of wind. Only in this world full of sound and fury but signifying nothing can an empire be effectively sold and managed with tales told by an idiot.

Torture is applied to get one to follow a script, admit to certain crimes, sign a certain confession, submit, be silent, be broken. It doesn't matter what the victim thinks. It is not therefore by chance that torture is brought back by a President who is a "unilateralist," not only in the technical "foreign policy" sense, but also in the larger sense of having no concern for anyone else's heart or mind. Nor is it by chance that the legalization of torture is rubberstamped by a chattering class that no longer cares whether it is making sense or not. It would be facetious to draw an equivalence between the torture of detainees at Abu-Ghraib and other places and the "torture" of having to listen to George Bush (or James Carville, etc. etc.) There is of course a world of difference between torture of the real and the metaphoric kind. But there is also an underlying unity of purpose. In both cases the goal is not to convince but to subdue, not to communicate but to dominate.

I just posted that because I like it. If you like it, go read the rest.

Also see El Diablo Protesta. If you need a translation, just ask.

"Power and testosterone can be dangerous..."

I love Maureen Dowd. I like Tavis Smiley, too. Raw Story has a video of MoDo on Tavis' show. Win-win!

She flogs her book "Are Men Necessary?", tells why men are necessary (heh!), tells of her mother's best advice - "winterize your car", political cat fights, the Clintons, Bush, Iraq, feminism and her fantasy of working at a 'militia bar in Wyoming', and more, all in 10:22.

Click on 'video'. Go see. Enjoy.

"Congress passed a tyrannical law..."

NYTimes

Here's what happens when this irresponsible Congress railroads a profoundly important bill to serve the mindless politics of a midterm election: The Bush administration uses Republicans' fear of losing their majority to push through ghastly ideas about antiterrorism that will make American troops less safe and do lasting damage to our 217-year-old nation of laws - while actually doing nothing to protect the nation from terrorists. Democrats betray their principles to avoid last-minute attack ads. Our democracy is the big loser.

Last week, the White House and three Republican senators announced a terrible deal on this legislation that gave Mr. Bush most of what he wanted, including a blanket waiver for crimes Americans may have committed in the service of his antiterrorism policies. Then Vice President Dick Cheney and his willing lawmakers rewrote the rest of the measure so that it would give Mr. Bush the power to jail pretty much anyone he wants for as long as he wants without charging them, to unilaterally reinterpret the Geneva Conventions, to authorize what normal people consider torture, and to deny justice to hundreds of men captured in error.

These are some of the bill's biggest flaws:

A long list, actually an obituary for "the rule of law", follows.

We don't blame the Democrats for being frightened. The Republicans have made it clear that they'll use any opportunity to brand anyone who votes against this bill as a terrorist enabler. But Americans of the future won't remember the pragmatic arguments for caving in to the administration.

They'll know that in 2006, Congress passed a tyrannical law that will be ranked with the low points in American democracy, our generation's version of the Alien and Sedition Acts.

This will eventually be struck down just as those acts were, but in the meantime our rights and civil liberties have been struck a mighty fascist blow.

November.

A Letter From Jesus Camp

Satirical Political Report

[Well, yesterday we took a close look at the daily itinerary at Camp Jesus. Today, we share an insider's view from a whistle-blowing camper, with thanks to the classic Camp Granada by the immortal Allan Sherman.

Hello Muddah, I'm in pieces
Here I'm stuck at, Camp for Jesus
Camp is really, like a prison
And they're just about to do an exorcism

Six a.m., blowin' reveille
Class at ten, Study "Devilry"
Kids all screaming, top of their lungs...
Can't understand them since they speak in ancient tongues

All the counselors, hate the Jews
And the Muslims, Confucius too
And the coaches, for sports like soccer
Say they never want to deal with a Macaca

Don't worry 'bout me, though I'm homesick
And my scalp has, just a few ticks
But there's one problem, that I can't fix...
My bunkmate's forehead has a hu-mongous "666"

Take me home, I'm, falling to pieces
Christ Almighty, I hate Camp Jesus
This is worse than, nightmare fiction
For the play I drew short straw for Crucifixion

Take me home, I'll, be a good boy
Clean my room, not, touch my own toy
These fanatics, just can't stand them
One day here seems like a whole goddamn millenium

Dearest Mother, Dearest Father
Boot camp and Anbar, would be less bother
Come and save me, come to my aid
Color War at camp is called the next Crusade

Wait a minute, they're serving hot fudge
If you defame, a liber-al judge
And if you beat up, a homo queer
You're a cinch to lock up Camper of the Year!]

Sex Toy of the Week

The George Bush Butt Plug

Invade an Iraqi, an Afghani, or at even an Iranian when you want. With this fat headed, huge stub of a plug no ass is safe anywhere ...

Everybody should send one of these to the White House. Used ones...

The "Good News" in the NIE

Cdr. Huber at My Left Wing:

I'm not certain what young Mister Bush's people were thinking when they decided to release this. It sure doesn't contain much in the way of that "good news" the administration tells us we're not hearing enough of.

I guess the "good news" here is that four in 10 Iraqis don't approve of attacks of U.S.-led forces.

There is no fixing this mess. The kind of "resolve" we will display by "staying the course" is the kind of resolve it takes to run your head over with a tractor. And the only "political will" involved in continuing our self-destructive course in Iraq is the will of our political leaders to hide the egg on their faces.

Much more in between the quotes. That ol' Squid's got his finger on it.