I have not been blogging or reading blogs for so long ( a week), it seems like I don’t even know what is going on anymore. I guess I will just start with a quick rundown of what I have observed reading the blogs this morning.
1.) I see that the President has decided on a course of action after his week of particularly offensive “show” meetings with his staff and the state department. Really, if they hadn’t been listening to all their departments prior to last week, what exactly were they doing? At any rate, after all his deciding last week, Bush’s new-new policy***, as far as I can tell, reads like a baseball trade- “more of the same, with a policy to be named later.”
2.) Colin Powell has come out and admitted we are losing the war, and the much heralded Iraq Study Group appears to be about having the same amount of impact on our decisions in Iraq as Cindy Sheehan (and damned Tim for using my material).
3.) The Steelers have clawed their way back to 7-7 and might just squeak out a winning season.
4.) Dick Cheney thinks that Donald Rumsfeld was the bestest SecDef ever, which makes me wonder why he stood by and let Bush shitcan the “best ever” Secretary of Defense at the height of the War on Terror or Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism, or, as I have come to know it, the clusterfuck in Iraq. Let’s be honest, Rumsfeld didn’t really resign.
5.) I can go a week without blogging and not get the shakes. I was missing telling PPGAZ he is a jerk, but hell, it has been so long since we disagreed on anything I don’t even get to do that when I am blogging anymore.
6.) Washington and the news media and bloggers are as craven as ever- a man has a stroke andthe first damned thing out of people’s mouths are concerns about the control of the Senate.
7.) Republican employment worries continue, as not only was the herd culled in Washington, but the ranks of the noise machine took a hit with the firing of Judith Regan. Hopefully this will continue to play out in a gruesome public fashion, because I am not ashamed to admit I like a good train wreck. And OJ is still a double murdering scumbag.
8.) Sorry,folks, but I am already sick of hearing about Barack Obama. I am even more tired of the bullshit right-wing attacks on his ears, his clothes, his middle name, you name it. Can’t we all agree to start the savaging of Presidential candidates until january 2008?
9.) The DA in the Duke Lacrosse case is a lying sack of shit. Who would have thunk it?
10.) Natasha Lyonne is batshit crazy and better stay the hell away from my pets.
That is about it- is there anything I missed?
(***) Nigel: And then we looked at each other and says well we might as well join up you know and uh….
David: So we became The Originals.
Nigel: Right.
David: And we had to change our name actually….
Nigel: Well there was, there was another group in the east end called The Originals and we had to rename ourselves.
David: The New Originals.
Nigel: The New Originals and then, uh, they became….
David: The Regulars, they changed their name back to The Regulars and we thought well, we could go back to The Originals but what’s the point?
Nigel: We became The Thamesmen at that point.
BadTux
Oh come on now, what’s the fun of being a good Republican if you can’t tell lies about Democrats 24/7, regardless of what time of year it is? Next thing you know, you’ll be calling for civil discourse between men of honor and integreity to figure out what’s best for our country, instead of rabid partisanship by small men consisting of lies and slander. What are ya, some kinda COMMIE?!
— Badtux the Snarky Penguin
neil
Washington and the news media and bloggers are as craven as ever- a man has a stroke andthe first damned thing out of people’s mouths are concerns about the control of the Senate.
So what? The stroker’s power is the only reason the stroke was newsworthy, so there’s no sense talking about it if you’re not going to talk about the possible impacts on the balance of power. I prefer honest analysis to a bunch of people pretending they care about the health of this guy who they’d never have heard of if he wasn’t a Senator.
Since people were by-and-large good enough not to say “God wants him to die,” I deem it tasteful.
Zifnab
No.
This has been another edition of easy answers to simple questions.
Punchy
So you’re ignoring his aquittal, eh? How “rule of law” of you…typical Republican.
SeesThroughIt
Did you miss the “Dick in a Box” skit on SNL? (No, it has nothing to do with Mr. Cheney.) If so, you should bone up on it (pun intended).
Davebo
Well, you missed Malkin accepting an invitation to go to Iraq and find the missing police source.
Unfortunately for her it appears the man has been found so Michelle won’t get the opportunity to be greeted with candy and flowers she so thoroughly deserves.
ThymeZone
Just because we agree doesn’t mean I’m not still a jerk, if that’s any comfort. At least there’s ONE thing you can say you were right about all along ;^/
And I still think you have the best blog, even when we disagree.
Jill
Did you hear about the American whistle blower who was detained in Iraq for months without access to an attorney? Promoting democracy and practicing it are apparently two different things to Bush and Co.
VidaLoca
Fred Kagan and some other trolls at the AEI have come up with a response to the ISG report (the link is to Pat Lang’s blog, see “Stalingrad on the Tigris”).
Bush’s “show” meetings? Cover for The Decider to kick the ISG report to the curb and embrace this proposal for doing what he’s always wanted to do, and said he would do, from the beginning.
fwiffo
That’s more than a little weird. The link to the original article seemed broken, so I think I’m missing some key element to this story. I don’t know exactly what one would say when making a threat like that. I suppose it could be a case that her neighbor was is one of those weirdly super-literal people. Maybe she stepped in some dog crap on the way to her front door, and in a fit stormed over to her neighbors house and yelled “if you don’t stop your dog from shitting on my lawn, I’ll stick my foot up his ass”. On the other hand, it could been one of those “turn down your music or I’ll jerk off your dog” cases.
Hard to say…
William K. Wolfrum
Washington and the news media and bloggers are as craven as ever- a man has a stroke andthe first damned thing out of people’s mouths are concerns about the control of the Senate.
Aww, come on. It wasn’t an actual stroke, was it? Plus, I mean, whatever his party, the dude’s a politician. We don’t need to think of them as human.
is there anything I missed?
We need a new plan in the War on Drugs, also.
–WKW
Catfish N. Cod
Actually, John, Rumsfeld did resign during the Abu Ghraib scandals in April, 2004. For the last two years and eight months, Rumsfeld has been Secretary of Defense only because Bush and Cheney personally insisted he remain so. And that is despite the mounting evidence that Rumsfeld was mismanaging the war.
Those previous resignation letters are what tie Bush to everything that followed. The responsible move was to ditch Rummy and bring in someone (like Gates) to clean up the mess then. Instead they waited for everything to rot and ferment until the built-up pressure of the resulting gaseous miasma forced them to move.
I don’t know if they’re right or rumor-mongering, but Capitol Hill Blue reports that Cheney was not consulted as to Rumsfeld’s resignation, attempted to fight it, won’t speak to the President now, and may be engaging in bureau-warfare to undermine any attempts to remove his control of our nation’s foreign policy. God help the United States, because we sure need it.
The maintenance of the status quo for such a long period of time has had the same effect as that of putting a stopper in the spout of a boiling teakettle, and just because the cork has shifted a bit doesn’t mean the thing isn’t still ready to blow.
Punchy
There simply is not enough bleach in this town to cleanse the eyes of that picture. You…bastard.
KC
I think you’re wrapped things up pretty well, John.
The Other Steve
Let’s be honest, Cheney doesn’t actually think Rumsfeld was the best Defense Secretary ever.
That’s just what he says in public. In private he’s probably using words that are not suitable for adults to describe him.
ThymeZone
WRT to Barack Obama … this from Newsweek’s interview of the Illinois Democrat:
I’ll go out on a limb and suggest that if the 2008 election were held today and Obama were the Dem nominee, he’d win with more than 60% of the popular vote.
Let’s not get tired of hearing about him just yet.
RSA
“One man’s eye bleach is another man’s pornographic fantasy.” A proverb for the new millenium.
TenguPhule
Fixed.
VidaLoca
Hilzoy did a long article back in October that discusses some of the legislative record Obama’s trying to build. I just read her (I believe Hilzoy is a “her”) piece this morning and I was somewhat impressed — I’ve been going with the belief that Obabma was more of a talker than a doer.
So good on him. But I’d still like to see him use the credibility he’s been able to generate for the purpose of fighting for something, and winning, before I get more than very tepidly interested in him. He’s a good legislator? Good, we have openings for good legislators: in the Senate. Lots of work to be done right there.
Jake
Mark Foley was Rumsfeld 2.0? That might explain C. Burns’ (?) insistence that Abu Gharib was really about sex and porn.
DoubtingThomas
John, I’m with you about already being sick of hearing about Obama. I’ll attempted to ask what, other than what he says, is so amazing about this candidate, knowing I will probably be attacked for questioning his qualifications. He says the right things, but seems to triangulate with the best of them. I guess after Bush I just am wary about someone who a little more than 2 years ago no one had heard of outside his own state becoming President. I know he can speak to a crowd and after the 04 convention speech I jumped on the “this man could be President” bandwagon, but I really don’t know what his vision for the nation is. This time around I want an adult with a lot of experience in foreign affairs. I think it crucial to regain the US standing in the world. I do like he was against the war from the beginning, but is that enough? Anyway, I just wanted you to know that many of us are indeed sick of already playing the ’08 horserace game.
cleek
the real danger (for him) is if the media gets sick of him this early.
The Other Steve
Democrats need to drop this belief that the only way to qualify to run for office and win is to have done something.
All this has resulted in, is a bunch of ass clown community activists, and bloviating Senators running for President.
The chief qualification is personality. That’s what people pay attention to and vote on. I would have thought the 2004 elections where the polling showed 60% of whatever of the public agreed with Democrats on policy, but voted for Bush anyway would have broken this attitude.
I’m not saying Obama is the right choice, I’m just saying dismissing him out of hand because he hasn’t passed his requisite number of “It’s for the children!” bills is stupid.
Anyway, thanks for the link. I’m certainly impressed by Obama and want to see more of him.
The Other Steve
Wow that’s so much more substantial than the “Whaaaa! that’s a right-wing theme. Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” response.
The man just earned my respect.
Zifnab
Three words for you. John. Benay. Ramsey.
Pretty it up enough and the media can play with any ball of string you hand it for-freaking-ever.
Tsulagi
Like he’d know anything about war compared to Cheney and his butt boy choir. Also, didn’t that hate-American say Iraq is in civil war?! Check his citizenship, and even if it’s valid, he can be Padilla’s cellmate. What we need are more good Americans like Hannity and Dobson to tell us again Iraq is just another Bush masterstroke of genius sent by Jesus.
Zifnab
Even when Bush was running for President, there was this (misguided) belief that he was a strong and successful Governor. It’s not all raw personality. Clinton got picked up in Arkansas as much for turning the state around economically as for playing the sax.
People like to know who they’re voting for. A voting record doesn’t hurt.
The Other Steve
I think this is an excellent point.
It’s not just good on foreign affairs. They gotta be willing to throw their heart and soul into it. One of the things that has baffled me about Bush is how he so easily just sets his pen down and goes home at 5pm and ignores anything that happens until the next day. As if being President was a 9 to 5 job.
His tendency to delegate and then ignore what’s going on is also baffling. It’s quite different from the CEOs I have worked for, the really goods one didn’t micromanage, but by god they knew what was going on in every aspect of the business.
I still lean Wesley Clark in the overall, but I’m open to other names and such.
The Other Steve
Fair point.
But, there’s a difference between doing something and voting the right way.
I just hate the community activist types, and I’m not going to get all mooney eyed because “he really cares”.
ThymeZone
I want an adult who can and will appoint the best and brightest to key posts, surround himself with a wide range of excellent advice, and listen to that advice in a wise and judicious manner.
I definitely am not interested in somebody who comes with “expertise” in any particular field or subject area. I want a generalist, and a listener, and somebody who knows what it means to respect the people, without pandering to them.
VidaLoca
TOSteve,
I think we’re agreed on this — at any rate the thing I took away from Hilzoy’s article was the fact that instead of building a career on “it’s for the children” pandering, he is (at least according to Hilzoy) trying to tackle some issues that are more complex. And seriously, that’s good. We need people who can do that. In the Senate, that’s where they’re able to be effective. There’s nothing wrong with being a good legislator.
Obama, however, appears to be bucking for a promotion. What does he have to do to get to the next pay grade? One thing that would impress me — and by the way distinguish himself markedly from the other legislative types that are going to be bucking for a promotion — would be to try to do something to glue the broken pieces of the Constitution back together again. He’s a professor of Con Law, he should be perfect for the job. So, Obama: what about this fellow we’re reading about this morning who got tossed into the brig at Camp Cropper for 3 months? How did that happen? How do we prevent it from happening again? Who’s at fault and how are they held accountable?
Crickets? Fine, he gets to keep on being a legislator. Investigations? Prosecutions? Legislative remedies? He gets more of my attention.
Um, for example? But I won’t dispute your broader point: some community activists are ass clowns and many of them, like many legislators, can do more good staying right in the community where they’re active.
However, let’s not denigrate the importance of knowing how to build public pressure around a political agenda when it’s needed because the right sure knows how to do that. The absence of that kind of skill — coupled with the belief that you can engineer a deal at the top if you bring the right “leaders” together around the right idea — gets you to the Hillary-care debacle. Now there was an ass clown.
Zifnab
I doubt we’ll realistically see him as President, but if the Dems do win I wouldn’t be surprised to see him as Defense Secretary.
Tsulagi
Clark was my first choice in 04. Too bad the guy didn’t know how to campaign. Maybe he will have learned a little bit since then and take another shot. I think he will.
As for Kerry, please, someone tell him his joke-telling ability just doesn’t meet the global test in order to become president and stay home this time. Last thing this country needs is Kerry successfully again finding a way to lose while some retard like a Brownback slides in to carry on the “Bush revolution.”
Mike S
Agreed.
jg
Anyone still staying Bush got a mandate in 04 nneds to explain to me why Kerry thinks he has a shot in 08.
Bruce Moomaw
John Cole to the contrary, the intense concern over what Tim Johnson’s stroke means about control of the Senate is completely justified. The only thing worse than the Bush Administration still in control of the White House is the Bush Administration also still in effective control of the Senate — particularly, I may add, when its collaborator in that endeavor will be Mitch McConnell.
Specifically, what will happen if Bush can finally ram that crucial fifth authoritarian pro-“Unitary Executive” Justice onto the Supreme Court? In that connection, it turns out that James Madison — according to Sanford Levinson’s latest entry on the New Republic’s “Open University” blogsite — had something very interesting and grim to say about the Bill of Rights at the time: namely, that it consisted entirely of “parchment barriers” which could very easily be destroyed at any time by a combination of malleable judges and public security panics.
Jake
Economically speaking, America is no longer the land of amber waves of grain.
Steve
Well, it’s true, only a sucker lets himself get won over by nothing but a bunch of pretty talk. But you can miss the forest by just focusing on votes, too.
As an example, we had a good discussion on MyDD a few days back. Seems Obama had gotten a C on some interest group’s scorecard because of two “bad” votes: the class-action bill and the energy bill.
The energy bill was definitely bad. However, through discussion, it came out that Obama had voted for it as part of a deal after a pretty good Democratic amendment got included that toned down some of the worst aspects of the bill. Now, this is boring, inside-baseball stuff, and in the vast majority of cases we never hear about all the horse-trading that goes on.
But here’s the point. Imagine you’re a legislator in the minority, faced with a bad bill that is guaranteed to pass no matter what you do. You have two choices: (1) cast a meaningless protest vote, and get scored favorably by all the interest groups, which is good for your political future; or (2) strike a deal and actually make the bad bill better, which won’t help your political future (virtually no one hears about this stuff) but will help real people out there in America.
When we focus too much on voting record it seems to me we sometimes end up putting the incentives in the wrong place.
ThymeZone
Ugh.
Jake
The Pentagon released its quarterly report on Measuring Stability & Security in Iraq
I did a search for ponies but I didn’t find any…
Zifnab
Kerry is not running again. If the Dems want to run another Kerry, they’ll just run Hillary Clinton. At least she wouldn’t absolutely suck at running for President.
And Brownback isn’t going to “slide in”. He’ll have to go through the shitstorm every other Presidential candidate (except maybe Saint McCain) will have to put up with.
DougJ
You see, both sides were wrong yet again. Who’s a centrist ike me to vote for? I guess all I can do is pray that Unity 08 pulls it together.
TenguPhule
Pulling each other’s finger and seeing who could release the most gas in the loudest fashion.
This has been another edition of simple answers to simple questions.
Redhand
This f*cking bastard is such a menace. I will never understand how Bush tolerated this snake in his inner circle. Is he truly too stupid to realize the damage this bastard has had on his own authority from Day One? Only a blind fool could fail to see it.
I don’t know what it is about Cheney that enrages me so much. Maybe it’s everything about this latter-day Dr. Strangelove’s personal demeanor and nauseating sense of privilege. But I have no doubt the lying-sack-o-sh*t has been one of the most sinister and flat-out evil bastards ever to hold high office in this country.
Salty Party Snax
New CNN Poll shows approval for the Little President’s Iraq policies falling to 28%.
I wonder if describing what Bush has going on in Iraq as a “policy” might have skewed the results a little higher?
TenguPhule
I believe you’ve answered your own question.
CaseyL
Stupid, yeah. Also sheltered, pampered, and never had to suffer the consequences of any bad decision he ever made.
You know when Bush should’ve gotten a clue? When The Dick “reviewed” Bush’s VP picks and chose: himself. He wasn’t, SFAIK, even on Bush’s list.
You know when the rest of the country should’ve gotten a clue? After the 2000 election, when the lawsuits were being filed. CNN ran a report on The Bush Team Strategizing. There they all were, in someone’s living room: Cheney, Baker, other campaign/legal managers, and Bush. Everyone was grouped together, discussing strategy and saying that they were proceeding with naming a Cabinet, taking charge, getting ready for the White House.
Everyone, that is, except Bush. Bush was sitting in an armchair that faced sideways to the camera, so that he had to look over his shoulder at the reporters. He had the most lost, uncertain expression that you can imagine. I remember thinking, right then and there, My god, he looks like a kid waiting for the grownups to decide what to do.
Bush is dumb. He was then and still is in no way fit to be President.
He’s culpable for everything that’s gone on since he took office, sure. But there are other people just as, if not more, cuplable. Cheney’s one. Baker’s another. And so is Daddy Bush, who had to know better than anyone else his son was unfit to be President, but gave him the Family Legal Minds to make sure he got into the White House anyway.
The Other Steve
I hate those pricks most of all. But I will admit, they are far more effective ass clowns than the Democratic ass clowns.
There is nothing wrong with building public pressure around a political agenda.
What is wrong is when you don’t realize your 15 minutes are up and it’s time to move on and get a different job. That is, you know… when you win the battle, it’s time to disband the army and go back to plowing the fields.
But too many ass clown community activists stay around long after their welcome has worn thin. Apparently they aren’t any good at plowing fields, so they spend all their time trying to get their name in the headlines.
The Other Steve
Actually I thought the class-action bill was one of the better things this Congress did. Tort reform, I’m not so in favor of. Limiting class actions to state by state, I say is valid.
The time I got a 53 cent check from Citibank as a settlement for some lawsuit that I certainly did not give a shit about. That did it for me.
Why is my only option to not participate? Why can’t I vote? Why can’t I say “Oh the hell with you scummy lawyers. Go chase an ambulance like everybody else!” Why do we all immediately get added to lawsuit?
That’s my third rant for the day.
Andrew
All I know is that Jeff Goldstein is going to have to jerk off a lot of dogs to find out just who is and who isn’t a terrorist loving secular humanist.
Chuck Butcher
1) Same old shit
2) Colin Powell used up whatever credibility he had being George II’s good boy
3) Browns don’t look too good …
4) He’s a Dick
5) I haven’t blogged for 2 days, probably have negative readership now
6) He’s a Democrat, god must’ve missed
7) I keep hoping Fish & Wildlife will issue a bureaucrat tag
8) Let’s talk about Kucinich, his ears do stick out, besides – I like him
9) A DA lie about a publicity case????
10) My pet is a 160# Great Wite Pyrennes – male.
Good to see you back
Ted
The former employees of Enron might have a different perspective on that.
Anecdotes aside, I certainly don’t think further limiting the public’s power to seek redress against corporations who harm them in today’s business climate is an improvement.
Zifnab
I’m with you on that.
Most of modern “Tort Reform” just ends up stamping out class action lawsuits and forcing people to pay more out-of-pocket to their lawyers.
I don’t think I’ve seen much Business-to-Business Tort Reform or anything resembling, say, Tort Reform against the RIAA protecting the poor smuck for hosting DLed music. But protecting asbestos giants and toxic waste dumping companies and the cigerette industry? We can’t let the punative damages get too high. That wouldn’t be fair.
The entire “tort reform” meme has been the right-wing’s ploy for the past 20 years to prop up big industry. Kinda like the bankruptcy bill “reforms” that specifically target individuals and excempt large companies. The whole thing is a scam.
Zombie Santa Claus
I think we should all give a hearty round of applause to China, for selflessly rendering an entire species of dolphin extinct. This noble effort has finally made the Yangtze river safe for colonization, and sends a stern message to dolhins everywhere that their support for the intolerant extremism of global terrorist groups like Greenpeace will no longer be tolerated.
Thank you all, and God bless Christmas.
Bob In Pacifica
Autopsies show that Nicole Brown-Simpson and Ron Goldman both sustained wounds after they had both died and bled out, meaning probably at least ten minutes between initial wound and the meaningless post-mortem wounds.
The throat wound extended to cutting the epiglottis. There was no blood in the mouth or sinuses, no inhalation of blood into the lungs. The wound was delivered after she had stopped bleeding and breathing.
Goldman’s wound through his back to the artery running to his lower extremities produced about a half a cup of blood in his chest cavity, about what would have drained from his heart. If he had been alive when that wound was delivered his heart would have continued to pump blood into his chest cavity until his collapsed and died. But that wound was delivered after his heart stopped pumping. Then the killer would have had to have positioned Goldman’s body against that tree stump.
So when you are fueling your hate with an OJ fantasy, make sure to leave ten to fifteen minutes for OJ to watch over the two flailing victims, then deliver the ghastly but meaningless wounds, then arrange the bodies, then race home to meet the limo he had to catch for his trip to Chicago. Or find another killer and a theory of that case that conforms to the autopsies.
dreggas
Community Activist Asshatishness:
GROUPS
1. PETA
2. ALF
3. ELF
People
1. Anyone who shows up to a protest against THE WAR with a FREE MUMIA sign.
2. Al Sharpton even if he did reform…I was a kid but I remember Tuana Brawley (though not sure if that spelling is correct).
3. Cindy Sheehan posing with Caesar Chavez (she may have been right about the war and I applaud her protesting it but that move right there made me shake my head and call asshat).
4. Michael Moore – to an extent pre-farenheit 9/11. Ok I liked that movie, it was sobering. However I didn’t like some of the undertones in Bowling For Columbine. While there were some great points he took the typical left wing tact of opposing my right to keep and bear arms (or arm bears for that matter).
5. Anyone who puts a spike in a tree to protest logging the result of which is some logger just trying to make his paycheck getting injured or killed.
TenguPhule
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061219/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_iran
The stupid people in charge of Iraq are still acting stupid.
Adam
what about jon benay? I have no idea about this subject and I am doing a school speeech about how the media exploits private tragedies. Someone told me that Jon Benay’s a good topic for that discussion.