Mark A. R. Kleiman

From this blog comes a link to a New Yorker piece that looks at the flaws in how the Bush administration has changed the flow of information. Instead of filtering it to make sure only the best get to the decision makers, they have circumvented the process to get the information they want. I can see how the previous system might be flawed, but this is replacing that flaw with one far more dangerous.

STLtoday - News - Columnists

Very funny parody of how Rush might have responded to his own mea culpa had it come from Bill Clinton.

Salon.com | With God on their side

Arguing that the Bush administration has rightly condemned a Malaysian leader for anti-semitism, but has yet to condemn their own Lt. Gen for his anti-Islam statements. Why does that not surprise me?

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal: "God is my intelligence source
A different kind of military officer seems destined for glory in the Bush administration. As military analyst William Arkin and NBC News have revealed, the officer now in charge of such sensitive missions as finding Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein is an 'intolerant Christian extremist' named Jerry Boykin. Among the intelligence feats accomplished by Gen. Boykin was the discovery of a mysterious dark cloud over the Somali capital of Mogadishu. He has since shared that revelation in a slideshow he presented to a church group:



'Ladies and gentlemen, this is your enemy,' he told the congregation. 'It is the principalities of darkness. It is a demonic presence in that city that God revealed to me as the enemy.'



Boykin has also received some domestic political intel from the Almighty. 'George Bush was not elected by a majority of the voters in the United States,' the general once confided to an Oregon congregation. 'He was appointed by God.'
[1:30 p.m. PDT, October 17, 2003] "

This isn't right.

The Nine Billion Links of God

This is a little frightening. this Lt. Gen. refers to Muslims as idolaters and satanists and says that our God is bigger than their God. Not only that, but he thinks that GWB was "chosen by God" to lead us at this time. So, this is a Crusade?

Body and Soul

This looks suspicious as well, though it seems also very conspiratorial. This is one of my favorite blogs, and this person has been following the Diebold election machine scandals pretty closely. Now, they are looking at the issue that Diebold put patches on their electronic voting machines shortly before the election and possibly after certification.

Those who know Streak and myself also know that we are hesitant to follow conspiracy theories. And, this is a good example. But we do think that this is something that should be investigated thoroughly. The very integrity of the democratic process demands it.

Salon.com News | Keeping dissent invisible: "He never got to display his sign for President Bush to see, though. As he stood among milling groups of Bush supporters, he was approached by a local police detective, who told him and his sister that because they were protesting, they had to move to a 'free speech area,' on orders of the U.S. Secret Service. "

You are kidding me. Anyone know anything about this?

Salon.com | Right Hook: "'Time now for 'The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day.' I had to stop an interview with NPR today because the conversation got completely out of hand. It was supposed to be about my new book, 'Who's Looking Out for You' -- I say 'supposed to be' ... The program is called 'Fresh Air' and I knew the people were not gonna be fair, but I decided to let it play out. That program gave one of the smear merchants running around the country a total pass when it interviewed him. But in my conversation they were much more aggressive, and I actually enjoyed telling the woman off, and I think you'll enjoy hearing it. If you want to know the ridiculous truth about NPR and 'Fresh Air,' go to BillOReilly.com or listen to the 'Radio Factor' tomorrow. Very interesting.'"


Yeah, O'Reilly is interesting. But not in the way he thinks. Why is Franken a "smear merchant" but O'Reilly is trying to help people? The guy could use a double-dose of humility.

Salon.com News | Man ordered to speak English to daughter

This is frightening. Judge opposing a man speaking to his daughter in Spanish. This ain't right.

Followup: ABC is reporting that they have identified the officer who wrote the letter and passed it around his troops.

What does this all mean? On one hand, these particular soldiers are frustrated with negative news about their work in Iraq and I can understand that. I don't mind that, but wonder about the Army manipulating the media in this way. More later.

Talking Points Memo: by Joshua Micah Marshall: October 12, 2003 - October 18, 2003 Archives

Interesting. Looks like several different soldiers have written the very same letter to the editor to different papers, all protesting the negative portrayal of the Iraq war. In one place, I found interviews with soldiers who claimed that they hadn't written the letter, but all claimed the letter was accurate.

old97s

Streak sent me and L down to Austin to check out the festival. One of our favorite bands was the Old 97's who put on one terrific show. We also thoroughly enjoyed Steve Earle, Patty Griffin, Ian Moore, Robert Earl Keen, and Shawn Colvin.

New feature! Streak was finally able to add a comments field to his blog. This one is limited to just a few comments per posting, but should allow for some feedback on the various postings. Give it a try!

Fresh Air: Monday - October 13, 2003


Wow. Listen to Bill O'Reilly rant toward the end. The guy needs some of Rush Limbaugh's stash. Terry Gross is interviewing him and asking him about his critics and he essentially accuses her of perpetrating a "hatchet job" interview and hangs up. Jeesh. He, however, is "fair and balanced."

Yahoo! News - Davis Out, Schwarzenegger Wins in Calif.


Very interesting events. On one hand, it is very hard to take either Arnold or this recall seriously. But after seeing the turnout, which was extraordinary, I can't completely dismiss the outcome.

Fears: that Republicans will spin this to say that even one of the most liberal states is actually conservative. I don't think that is true--after all, Arnold is hardly a Bush conservative, and California is still quite liberal on several issues.

Fear #2, that Democrats will over-react to this and try to recall the recall, or something stupid like that. The recall will come back to haunt the GOP at some point, but Democrats should not try to cause that. Arnold may take care of that by himself. Or he might just do fine. Not a lot that any Governor can do to fix this state right now anyway.

Fear #3, that the line between entertainment and politics have been so completely blurred that we can no longer tell between people who fake at being politicians and those who are. Have to see.

All in all, I think that this will all turn out ok. Hope.

Yahoo! News - Bush Says Leaker May Not Be Found in CIA-Iraq Probe

Oh, come on! This administration knows full well who the leaker is. If they are never found, it is for one reason: the administration doesn't want them found.

New York Daily News - Sports Columnists - Bob Raissman's Tuning In: Jackson was ready to Rush out door

An interesting essay that argues that Tom Jackson (former Denver Bronco great) was ready to quit if they didn't address the Limbaugh issue. He felt bad about not rebutting the racial issue and so was going to tell Limbaugh off and quit. Way to go, Tom.

Yahoo! News - Outside Probe of Leaks Is Favored: "As the White House hunkered down, it got the first taste of criticism from within Bush's own party. Sen. Chuck Hagel (news, bio, voting record) (R-Neb.) said that Bush 'needs to get this behind him' by taking a more active role. 'He has that main responsibility to see this through and see it through quickly, and that would include, if I was president, sitting down with my vice president and asking what he knows about it,' the outspoken Hagel said last night on CNBC's 'Capital Report.' "

Streak has been watching Hagel closely lately. This particular Repub seems to be unimpressed with this administration.

Also on the radar. Wilson now says that he fears that his wife may be a target now that her cover is blown AND that the government is not protecting her.

How are GOP defenders and members justifying this? How do you with a straight face defend the impeachment of Clinton and look the other way while this administration weakens our national security and exposes one of our agents. How is that not treasonous?

Yahoo! News - California Recall a Referendum on Schwarzenegger


What does this whole California recall tell us about voters? Or does it? From one angle, it appears that the voters are not terribly smart. How else to explain poll numbers going up after more proof appears of the man's scumminess? And this isn't Bush's youthful indiscretions, this is Henry Hyde's youthful indiscretion--meaning very recently. And he was good friends with the very people who screwed the California economy. The guy is a scumbag, and Californians seem to be lining up to elect him governor.

Don't get me wrong. I support the recall option, but not the way this one is implimented. A recall should be harder to do than just stand outside grocery stores. And there ought to be some justification other than we don't like him. Not sure how to do that, but this doesn't seem right. I also understand that Californians on both sides of the aisle hate Gray Davis. Fine. But this seems wrong at a lot of levels. And I suspect that California will end up regretting this.

Captures a story about the Texas legislature scheduling work for the middle of Yom Kippur even when some objected that they would not do this on Easter Sunday. This depresses me. And Streak.

Skeptical Notion

Streak noticed this too. While surfing last night, he captured this exchange between one of the blonde "journalists" and Joseph Wilson [not a transcription]:

"I was in Washington recently and people there told me that your wife's identity as an agent was widely known."

Wilson: "It is widely known now, but it wasn't then."

Blonde stupid person: "People told me it was"

Wilson: "that isn't true. very few people outside our family knew"

Blonde idiot: "People said they knew."

That was her level of journalistic integrity: people told her and so she never bothered to follow up. If Al Franken's account of the Paul Wellstone funeral coverage is correct, that could have been floated by one conservative in Washington, and so everyone starts restating the spin that you can't leak something everyone already knew. This sucks. And besides being dishonest, it is more lie to the argument that conservatives care more about national security than liberals. If they did, they would be turning on their administration and chiding them very publicly. Hell, Clinton got more public chiding for the you-know-what in the white house.

For those who have been watching the West Wing, I have a thought on the plot progression. I have been thinking about it over the summer (off and on) and puzzled over the idea of why they would have had the President face a giant crisis and invoke a constitutional chain of command. In the show, the President took the high road and turned over the presidency to deal with his own crisis and put the country above his own personal needs.

Then it dawned on me. In the show, President Bartlett's cool headed, literate, and highly moral approach to the job gave way to a little glimpse of the anti-Bartlett. The anti-Bartlett bombs almost indiscriminately and obviously sees violence as a solution. The country sees that taking the high road with regards to the Presidency is not always in our best interest (though in the show, the Republican successor is not completely evil).

Where have we seen all this before. The show mimics the Florida recount when Al Gore put the country above his own personal needs. Or he did the math and didn't think he could win. Either way, he demonstrated restraint--restraint in the face of an opposition who pulled out every big gun, including violating their own principles regarding state's rights to do so.

And what kind of crisis did we endure? 9-11. And the response to it? Bomb everything in site. Invade Afghanistan and then watch as the Taliban returns. Then what? Invade Iraq (who the VP is still claiming was involved in 9-11: despite every intelligence report) and now see the problems with those assumptions about violence. And during all of this, the administration uses the cover of a major crisis to pursue a radical agenda. Anti-abortion, anti-environmental, anti-labor, worker safety, etc.

So, the show gave us a glimpse of a president in the midst of a nightmare--a nightmare that includes a right wing president. In the show, the people wake up to the resolution of the nightmare gone. Unfortunately, we wake up with this administration.

Yahoo! News - White House Staff Investigating CIA Leak


I may be confused here, but aren't they the ones supposed to be investigated?

TOMPAINE.com - Litany Of Lies: "Abortion Contortion

On his first workday in the Oval Office Bush signed a directive reviving a controversial 1984 Ronald Reagan order known as the Mexico City policy, which had been rescinded by Clinton. This policy prohibited U.S. government family-planning funds from going to overseas groups that provide abortion services, lobby for abortion rights, or counsel pregnant women that abortion is an option. In a two-paragraph announcement, Bush noted, 'It is my conviction that taxpayer funds should not be used to pay for abortions or advocate or actively promote abortion, either here or abroad.'

But the funds in question -- $425 million in foreign aid -- did not underwrite abortion-related activity. This money could only be used by these groups for their family-planning activities that did not involve abortion. A 1973 law had rendered it illegal for any organization to use U.S. government funds to pay for abortions overseas. The Bush White House, though, was selling the reinstatement of the policy as a direct step in defunding abortions overseas. At a White House press briefing, Bush press secretary Ari Fleischer defended the directive by saying that Bush 'did not support use of taxpayer dollars to fund abortion abroad.' A reporter pointed out that these funds did not finance abortion overseas: 'Is the president aware that under the 1973 law, the use of American money for abortions abroad is banned? This money isn't used for abortions.' Fleischer replied: 'I would urge you to wait until you read the executive order, and then you'll be able to see this for yourself.' But that executive order -- issued two months later -- in no way explained why the Bush White House had promoted the policy's revival with misinformation. "

Didn't know this.

TOMPAINE.com - Litany Of Lies

A nice list of GWB's lies over the last few years.

"P.S. Speaking of Plame, this CalPundit post is an absolute must-read. Here's a sample from a former CIA agent [significant snipping follows; see CalPundit's post for the full exchange]:

She has been undercover for three decades, she is not as Bob Novak suggested a CIA analyst....So the fact that she's been undercover for three decades and that has been divulged is outrageous because she was put undercover for certain reasons...For these journalists to argue that this is no big deal and if I hear another Republican operative suggesting that well, this was just an analyst fine, let them go undercover. Let's put them overseas and let's out them and then see how they like it...I say this as a registered Republican. I'm on record giving contributions to the George Bush campaign...His entire intent was correctly as Ambassador Wilson noted: to intimidate, to suggest that there was some impropriety that somehow his wife was in a decision making position to influence his ability to go over and savage a stupid policy, an erroneous policy and frankly, what was a false policy of suggesting that there were nuclear material in Iraq that required this war....it sickens me to be a Republican to see this...We saw this in the 70s with Marchetti and others and Philip Agee who outed officers and they were killed...The principle's established: do not divulge the names of these people. In my own career trainee class I did not know Joe's wife last name; we went by our first initials....To realize this is a terrific woman, she's a woman of great integrity..."


Amen. For the GOP to gloss over this is the ultimate test of their own patriotism. If country comes first, how could you justify exposing an agent for political purposes? If you are truly the best defenders of national security (of course, not true), then this is indefensible. Where is Ann Coulter's traitors now?

Two-Man Race in Calif. Recall? (washingtonpost.com)

I have a hard time taking all of this seriously. The recall is a great democratic and progressive tool, but this seems wrong. Using it to go after someone you don't like is not exactly the law's intent, imho.

Now, as for Arnold, this is really starting to bug me. Here is someone who has no qualifications for this race beyond his fame. His comments about women are truly disgusting--especially his comment to Adrianna Huffington about having a part in mind for her in Terminator 4. This obvious reference to shoving her into a toilet bowl is just too rude. I think Adrianna was being rude to him as well, but that is unacceptable.

But I am not going to worry about Governor Arnold. I suspect that he will be both less problematic and less successful than people think.

Still a major jerk.

Salon.com News | War is peace!: "Advertising is blatant manipulation. If there were ads on our TV trying to convince us that Osama bin Laden's ideology and religion were really wonderful, it would be just as ridiculous as these ads Charlotte Beers was trying to run in Muslim countries. "

Interesting story on the failed PR campaign to make Muslims like America. The authors of a new book "Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War in Iraq" argue that PR techniques, while very effective at selling cars and Victoria Secret are not good at convincing a hostile audience to like something they hate. Charlotte Beers, the Madison Avenue ad genius ran ads that included women running in shorts--something so offensive to Muslims that the ads were not allowed to run in most Arab countries. That is the level of ignorance, arrogance, and just plain stupidity behind this effort. As the authors suggest, if we want to make real inroads in Arab countries, we have to actually talk to them. Really talk. Not just try to tell them we are great.

Salon.com News | Bush abandons troop-protection plan: "No president in recent memory has been a fiercer ally of men and women in uniform. 'We will not cut corners when it comes to the defense of our great land,' Bush said last year. Even Ronald Reagan, one of the most forceful proponents of a strong military ever to inhabit the White House, never donned a flight suit and flew onto the deck of an aircraft carrier aboard a Navy plane. "

I find this statement highly suspect. This administration has tried to 1) cut benefits for veterans, and 2) cut danger pay for soldiers in the field and now is cutting money to defend transports from missiles. This administration is not pro-military.

Yahoo! News - Bush Aides Say They'll Cooperate With Probe Into Intelligence Leak

Sorry for the delay between my last posting. Spent some time in Austin listening to great music at the Austin City Limits music festival, ane then have been busy otherwise.

This story, however, is pulling me out of my lethargy. It amazes me that it is taking so long for the story to have legs. I have known about it for some time. Someone in the Bush administration actually leaked the identity of a CIA operative. Why? Evidently to intimidate Joseph Wilson who refused to give the White House the analysis they wanted. Who did it? My money is somewhere in the VP's office. He is the one who sent Wilson to Niger to investigate the uranium story, and the one who was most likely displeased by the former Ambassador's report. Now, if only someone will actually investigate this.

My previous post about Roy Moore speaks to a growing problem with Americans and their history. I noticed this around the 4th of July, when I heard many conservative Christians talking about the Constitution and Declaration as if they were the same thing. Or perhaps, the Declaration as preface to the Constitution. But the Declaration needs to be understood as a propaganda piece. A beautifully written propaganda piece to justify a revolution against England. But it is not the law of the land. I am sure that many conflate the two because the Declaration mentions God while the Constitution does not. Perhaps that is on purpose......

CBN News - Judge Roy Moore: On the Battle to Ban God from Government: "PAT ROBERTSON: With us here in the studio is the man at the center of this controversy. He's the Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore. And Mr. Chief Justice, once again we welcome you to 'The 700 Club.' Thank you for being here. According to the Constitution, what is the law of the land?

ROY MOORE: The Constitution is the law of the land. The First Amendment represents that, that the acknowledgment of God is not prohibited the Constitution, indeed the only purpose of the First Amendment is to allow the acknowledgment of God. You know, the first thing that Congress did on September 25th, 1789, after it approved the final words of the First Amendment, was to ask the President to direct a Day of Public Thanksgiving and Prayer to Almighty God for the peaceful manner in which the Constitution was formed. So the very purpose of the First Amendment was to allow the acknowledgment of God.


And you ask what the law of the land is--it's contained in the organic law of our country, The Declaration of Independence, which acknowledges that God gave us our life, liberty, and the right to pursue happiness. And government's only role was to secure those rights for us."

Excuse me? The law of the land is the Declaration?

President Asks for Expanded Patriot Act (washingtonpost.com): "Hailing the passage of the 2001 USA Patriot Act, which expanded federal police powers, Bush said those changes did not go far enough. He called for empowering authorities in terrorist investigations to issue subpoenas without going to grand juries, to hold suspects without bail and to pursue the death penalty in more cases. "

That's right. The first one didn't go far enough. America, it seems, has been woefully ignorant to believe in due process all these years.

Ariz. to Fight Decision On Death Sentences (washingtonpost.com): "'It's just going to cost the taxpayers more money, more mistakes are going to be made and I just think it's just a waste. Obviously these guys did something bad to get there,' he said. 'Some of the things criminals do are so heinous that they need not enjoy life anymore. I think they should just let things stay how they are. Why should they get another chance?' "

Streak thinks this is why the death penalty is so heinous. People don't really care whether the process is fair; or if innocent people might be executed or anything. The death penalty makes people feel like there is justice. Even if there isn't.

Streak's friend M wanted to call attention to the fact that the Democratic debate from New Mexico will air on Oklahoma's PBS tonight at 10.

In other news, we went to a Dean Meet-Up last night in Norman, Oklahoma. No singing of "Oklahoma" but some rousing anti-Bush rhetoric. One thing that tickled Streak, was the wide range of age groups represented. My parents tried to tell me that only young people are liberal and that as you age, you get more conservative. I saw a lot of evidence to the contrary.

CNN.com - Judicial nominee Estrada withdraws his name - Sep. 4, 2003


Bush and GOP decry politically partisan minority holding up nominations. They must mean politically "liberal" partisan minority.

Yahoo! News - Bush Broadens Global Abortion Gag Rule: "CRAWFORD, Texas - President Bush (news - web sites) ordered the State Department on Friday to withhold U.S. family planning help from overseas groups that promote or perform abortions with their own money. "

Streak and I actually understand the opposition to abortion--we think it is difficult to support given conservative worries about the state imposing on personal choice--but this is even harder to understand. If you believe in freedom, then why don't you let the marketplace decide? You put forward your argument about abortion and life and then try to convince people. But you shouldn't, as a conservative, restrict speech, should you? How do we export democracy by stifling speech? Of course, this has nothing to do with shoring up the right wing fundy base, does it?

CBN News - Sekulow Weighs in on Ten Commandments Battles: "ROBERTSON: Is this going to lead to civil disobedience? I mean, after all, you've got one District Court judge and you've got the chief judge of [Alabama's] Supreme Court. Sooner or later there's going to be a clash, and the citizens will rise up and say civil disobedience is ordered, we're under tyranny, we've got to do something about it. "

Good old reasonable Pat "Friend of Tyrants with Gold mines" Robertson isn't suggesting to his listeners to take it to the streets, is he? That's unpossible! (Simpsons reference). Streak suggests that this is slightly irresponsible. But then again, it is Pat Robertson. The same guy who supported Charles Taylor because he was a baptist, and who took credit for moving a hurricane out of the gulf. Jeesh.

CBO Predicts 2004 Deficit Will Top $480B (washingtonpost.com): "But if Congress permanently extends current tax cuts, as President Bush has requested, the numbers soar and remain in the red for the foreseeable future, adding another $1.6 trillion to the debt, the CBO said."

This is the part that really bugs Streak. This forecast does not include ongoing costs in Iraq which are not only important, but expensive. I don't understand the rigid approach to tax cuts. I also understand that many will call the left's objections hypocritical, but would contend that the left usually has tried to pay for its spending. The right doesn't like that method--raising taxes, but it strikes Streak as better than just spending.

Salon.com News | We're losing the war in Afghanistan, too: "Many Afghans, especially women, have found this sort of unfounded cheerfulness, and the comparisons to the Taliban era, annoying. (The fact is that the majority of school age girls in Afghanistan are not back in school.) One Afghan woman, an activist, put it succinctly to me in a meeting in July: 'When you compare life to the Taliban, just about every situation seems like a paradise. Afghan women want their rights to be judged in the same ways women's rights are judged in other countries. Not by the Taliban standard, but by the human rights standard.' "

This, in stark contrast with the Bush administration spin.

The Daily Camera: Nation/world: "'Maybe they can move the monument, but they can't take it out of our hearts,' said Rich Kendall, 52, who stood steps from the courthouse doors with a 10-foot-tall wooden cross that read 'Jesus Died For You.' "

One of Streak's other friends noted that this was kind of the point. If Christians need the state to affirm their faith, then maybe they need a bigger God. Check Ebay.

al.com: Search: "Jerry Layne, a self-professed street preacher from Chattanooga, carried a sign that read, 'a one-way ticket to Araq for Morris Dees and the ACLU.' Dees is one of the founders of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which sued Moore over the monument.

Layne said he believed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks were God's punishment for legalized abortion and accepting homosexuality.

'They're taking God out of our establishments, and they're promoting sodomy,' he said. 'If America don't repent she's doomed and damned to hell.' "

Damn. I think Al Quaeda has a pretty similar theology.

For those who haven't watched the Franken v. O'Reilly debacle, it truly is an interesting comment on media, personality, truth and politics. I found it hard to watch at times and would say that Franken lost his control a few times. That is true of his book as well--this one is more personal than the Limbaugh one. He was personally insulted by the treatment of the Wellstone memorial. He was there and was also friends with the Wellstones. I think he was also fed up with the bullying of people like O'Reilly--who at times strikes Streak as the least troublesome of the Fox crew, since he is willing to at least challenge people on the right--who uses his show as a club, even cutting the mike and shouting at someone who lost their father in the World Trade center attack. O'Reilly's arrogance shows up in the CSPAN debate, when he talks about his new book really being for us, not for him. He is looking out for us, and is insulted to be challenged.

Read Franken's new book and email me. He researched his book pretty well and makes some very good arguments, but he is unabashedly liberal and his bias is evident. I don't have a problem with that and appreciate his candor on that.

His dissections of Ann Coulter are mostly taken from the Dailyhowler.com (a great blog, btw) and Spinsanity.org, but are nonetheless worthwhile. She is easy to dissect--the bigger mystery is why more conservatives don't ask her to shut up. He also takes on Sean Hannity--who is clearly the new Limbaugh--and shows how disengenuous not only Hannity is, but also the show, Hannity and Colmes.

In any case, it is a very interesting read. He returns to Operation Chickenhawk with success and has a great discussion of Supply Side Jesus (v. Jesus of Nazareth). Enjoy.

O'Reilly v. Franken


For those who haven't seen the CSPAN debate, Al starts talking around the 4:45 mark. Very interesting.

Salon.com Arts & Entertainment | Judge rejects Fox bid vs. Franken book: "There are hard cases and there are easy cases, the judge said. This is an easy case. This case is wholly without merit, both factually and legally. In addition to denying the injunction, the judge took direct aim at Fox for bringing the case.

“It is ironic that a media company, which should be protecting the First Amendment, is seeking to undermine it,” Chin said. "


Not so ironic when you remember who Fox is. Streak would like to note that I have purchased the book (rare for me to do so with a hardcover) to give the finger to Fox.

Printed from dallasnews.com: "God?! Why, some poor wide-eyed plaintiffs' lawyer from Demopolis, in town to file an asbestos lawsuit, might get the impression that the state of Alabama thinks highly of God. Mercy, we can't have that -- never mind that the Founders thought highly of God."

Streak has difficulty with people who will put together entire boycotts for huge blocks of granite, but won't bother to even worry about the environment or poverty at all. They think highly of God, but don't care about God's creation.

DallasNews.com | Dallas-Fort Worth | Latest News: "

Mr. Ratliff, who had declined to comment on the redistricting fracas until Tuesday, also disclosed that in the summer of 2001 he was asked by Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land and current U.S. House majority leader, whether he, as acting lieutenant governor, would suspend the Senate's two-thirds rule so the GOP could push through a favorable congressional redistricting plan during a special session."

'I said, 'No,' I would not agree to that,' he said, adding that the subject was not brought up again while he was the state's No. 2 officeholder. "

Ratliff is a Republican, btw. One of Streak's friends accuses me of demonizing the Honorable Mr. Delay. I would suggest that this is just further evidence that Delay will do whatever it takes to get his way--which is in stark contrast to the faith he says he believes. Remember, this is the same guy who blamed the Columbine shooting on liberals teaching evolution.

ChannelOklahoma.com - News - 'In God We Trust' Posters Finding Way Into Schools: "'It's an American issue,' she said. 'It's time for us, the majority, to say that we love America's godly heritage.'"

Streak wonders if this isn't begging the question. Should America also say that they love their pagan heritage? Or the greedy heritage? Or the heritage that used the godly heritage to disenfranchise blacks and Indians? Oh, and it is Oklahoma. Just when we start making strides out of the Okie stereotype.....

Paul Newman Is Still HUD

Paul Newman prepared to sue HUD for besmirching character in movie of same name.

" A coalition of the willing — i.e., the Bratwurst Asphalt Company and the Ypsilanti Hot Dog and Bean Shop — has been pushed forward and is prepared to label its products "fair and balanced," knowing that Fox News will sue and that its newscasters will be so tied up with subpoenas they will only be able to broadcast from the courtroom, where they will be seen tearing their hair and whining, looking anything but fair and balanced, which would certainly be jolly good sport all around."

Streak likes this guy--Hud is a great movie and he makes great sauce and dressing--and loves the "coalition of the willing."

Salon.com | Limousine liberals and corporate-jet conservatives: "Using a complex computerized map graphing congressional voting patterns over the past century, the three professors have found precisely the same polarization between the parties on Capitol Hill. With increasing consistency, Democrats support legislation that helps the middle class and the poor, while Republicans protect their affluent constituency."


More from Joe. Streak wonders about this, but has seen enough from the GOP to realize that they clearly favor those with money than those without. Is it just the worship of the market system? Do they just believe that those with money are better people who work harder and deserve their wealth?

Salon.com | Limousine liberals and corporate-jet conservatives: "George W. is the kind of 'regular guy' who burns through millions of other people's dollars in failed businesses, drinks too much until early middle age, dodges an insider-trading scandal, picks up a major league baseball franchise, and eventually finds himself in the Oval Office as commander in chief of the world's only superpower, thanks to a justice appointed to the Supreme Court by his father. "

Streak liked this characterization of the President from Joe Conason's new book.

Salon.com | Big lies: "If Americans have a common fault, however, it's our tendency to suffer from historical amnesia. Too many of us have forgotten, or never learned, what kind of country America was under the conservative rule that preceded the century of liberal reform. And too many of us have no idea whose ideas and energy brought about the reforms we now take for granted.




If your workplace is safe; if your children go to school rather than being forced into labor; if you are paid a living wage, including overtime; if you enjoy a 40-hour week and you are allowed to join a union to protect your rights -- you can thank liberals. If your food is not poisoned and your water is drinkable -- you can thank liberals. If your parents are eligible for Medicare and Social Security, so they can grow old in dignity without bankrupting your family -- you can thank liberals. If our rivers are getting cleaner and our air isn't black with pollution; if our wilderness is protected and our countryside is still green -- you can thank liberals. If people of all races can share the same public facilities; if everyone has the right to vote; if couples fall in love and marry regardless of race; if we have finally begun to transcend a segregated society -- you can thank liberals. Progressive innovations like those and so many others were achieved by long, difficult struggles against entrenched power. What defined conservatism, and conservatives, was their opposition to every one of those advances. "


All good points. Streak is very tired of the bashing that liberals take on a daily basis at the hands of Fox News and others.

Salon.com | Big lies: "Liberals value the dynamism and creativity of democratic capitalism, but they also believe in strong, active government to protect the interests of society. They understand that markets function best when properly regulated, and they also know that unchecked concentrations of private power encourage environmental pollution, financial fraud, and labor exploitation. Liberals see a broad social interest in ensuring real opportunities and decent standards of living for everyone, while requiring basic responsibility from everyone. "

Streak thought this was a good summation of what many liberals believe. So much more attractive than anything you hear on the media about evil, communist liberals.

Streak finally figured out how to work the archives on this thing. Or his friend Alafair did. I forget. Might have been Molly. But she is only 3 months old and a cat. Hard to figure she would know how to edit the settings like that. But who knows. Alafair is a very smart dog, but unimpressed with Streak's blathering. Anyway, the archive links now work.

Real Live Preacher

Streak is fortunate to have a lot of friends. J suggested that Streak and I take a look at this other blog. One of the best I have seen. This represents more about what faith is to me than anything I have seen from evangelicals in years. For what it is worth.

Yahoo! News - Depiction of Threat Outgrew Supporting Evidence: "The new information indicates a pattern in which President Bush (news - web sites), Vice President Cheney and their subordinates -- in public and behind the scenes -- made allegations depicting Iraq's nuclear weapons program as more active, more certain and more imminent in its threat than the data they had would support. On occasion administration advocates withheld evidence that did not conform to their views. The White House seldom corrected misstatements or acknowledged loss of confidence in information upon which it had previously relied:"

This is exactly what Streak has been talking about for months. It isn't just willful deception, but the willingness to allow misunderstandings and misstatements to continue.

Everything Is Political: "As I've said, this is only one example of a broad pattern. Still, why does politicized analysis matter? One answer is that it undermines democracy: how can Congress or the public make informed votes if both are fed distorted information?

And even if you aren't bothered by an administration that systematically misleads the public, you ought to be worried about the decisions of an administration that systematically misleads itself. A leader who is told only what he wants to hear is all too likely to make bad decisions about the economy, the environment and beyond."

This column details how the Bush admin has systematically edited their own Treasury department analysis to present tax cuts in the best light. Krugman is obviously liberal, but this issue of "salting the mine" by editing the policy analysis before decisions are made, is exactly what we have seen in the war in Iraq, environmental policy and energy decisions. As the Atlantic Monthly reported, this same pattern was exactly followed with regards to death penalty clemency appeals under Governer Bush. Streak suggests, like Krugman, that if you limit the information, the decisions will also be seriously limited.

Yahoo! News - Afghan Political Violence on the Rise

Streak wonders if we can count this as a win. This is what is called losing the peace. Violence is on the rise, Taliban leadership is openly having people killed and handing out guns to followers.

DallasNews.com | Dallas-Fort Worth | Religion


A very interesting article.

Yahoo! News - Bush Takes Responsibility for Iraq Claim: "'I take personal responsibility for everything I say, absolutely,' the president said at a White House news conference. Bush has been seeking to quell a controversy over a controversial claim that has dogged his administration for weeks."

Now why did that take so long? I am sorry, but as Streak so ably notes, you don't get character points for taking this long to accept responsibility for what you say. If you do that immediately, you do, if you wait weeks for people to stop asking you while you blame everyone else around you and claim it was right anyway, then you get a poor character grade.

CNN.com - Plan for 'terror market' canceled - Jul. 29, 2003: "The little-publicized Pentagon plan envisioned a potential futures trading market in which speculators would wager on the Internet on the likelihood of a future terrorist attack or assassination attempt on a particular leader. A Web site promoting the plan already is available. "

What is this about?

New look. Streak has heard from several of his friends that the font was a little small and hard to read, so he decided to try a new look. Any thoughts?

Salon.com News | Beautiful young shock troops for Bush: "'As conservatives, we don't hate America,' Erickson told his young audience. 'The life of a liberal is hell. It is not possible to have a debate, a discussion, with someone who at their root, at their core, hates everything this country stands for but doesn't hate it enough to leave.' "

This is lovely. And you might want to read the entire article to get the whole picture of young Republican thought. They were selling "Bring Back the Blacklist" mousepads and t-shirts, wanting to abolish taxes (inner city issues "not my problem"), and extolling racism. Lovely.

More on Pat. Great line from an Oregonian editorial.

On Supreme Court, Robertson prays for vacancy: "Still, according to cable television's most prominent religious broadcaster, it seems that Sandra Day O'Connor should be removed for being liberal, but Charles Taylor shouldn't be removed for being genocidal. "

and on the Supreme Court prayer assault

"Robertson's argument for why the three justices should retire is on the Web site, right near the ad for Pat's Age-Defying Protein Pancakes, Age-Defying Antioxidants and Age-Defying Shake -- which you wouldn't think he'd leave around where a justice might find them."

Drudging Up Personal Details (washingtonpost.com): "Yesterday Drudge told us he was unaware of the ABC story until 'someone from the White House communications shop tipped me to it' along with a profile of Kofman in the gay-oriented magazine the Advocate. "

Streak wonders if being Canadian is actually that bad?

Robertson Defends Liberia's President (washingtonpost.com)

This one cites an OU professor. And then Streak really loved this quote:

"Taylor declared a national holiday and, according to news reports on Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network, prostrated himself on the stage, saying: "I am not your president. Jesus is!"

"There are people who say that's phony baloney, but I thought it was sincere," Robertson said. "He definitely has Christian sentiments, although you hear of all these rumors that he's done this or done that."

More on Pat, in his own words

Pat Robertson on Liberia (washingtonpost.com)

Followup
A Clarification on Liberia: "I regret that my sentiments in support of the suffering Liberian people were misinterpreted by The Washington Post as unqualified support for Charles Taylor, a man whom I have never met, and about whose actions a decade ago I have no firsthand knowledge. "

Streak suggests that looking at Robertson's original quotes suggests a different story.

Thanks to J for pointing this out to Streak.

CBS News | Pat Robertson Slams Bush On Liberia | July 11, 2003 16:22:47: "“How dare the president of the United States say to the duly elected president of another country, 'You've got to step down,'' Robertson said Monday on “The 700 Club,” broadcast from his Christian Broadcasting Network. "

Someone hasn't been paying attention.

Of course there is more to this story, as Streak points out. (Streak is also fond of pointing to the fact that the right Reverend Robertson has one of the largest heads in the world. Streak doesn't mean ego, he means physical head. Anyway, the story has more to it than blind support for a fellow Baptist (Since when has that been a compelling reason? :) )

"Robertson, a Bush supporter who has financial interests in Liberia, said he believes the State Department has “mismanaged the situation in nation after nation after nation” in Africa. “So we're undermining a Christian, Baptist president to bring in Muslim rebels to take over the country,” he said in the broadcast. Robertson told The Washington Post in an interview published Thursday that he has “written off in my own mind” an $8 million investment in a Liberian gold mining venture he made four years ago, under an agreement with Taylor's government." [emph added]

And yet, the story qualifies: "He said his investment was intended to help pay for humanitarian and evangelical efforts in Liberia."


Yeah, that's right. It is okay, evidently, to overthrow tyrants who aren't Baptist, and who haven't helped one make money. Streak objects and notes that even the jerkier dogs in our neighborhood don't have that kind of cojones.

Yahoo! News - Wolfowitz Warns Iraq's Neighbors Not to Interfere: "'I think all foreigners should stop interfering in the internal affairs of Iraq,' said Wolfowitz, who is touring the country to meet U.S. troops and Iraqi officials.
'Those who want to come and help are welcome,' he said. 'Those who come to interfere and destroy are not.' "

Whaa? That's right, Paul "Don't make me Bomb you" Wolfowitz is warning "foreigners" to not "interfere" in Iraq! How does this work? Starting now, We support the autonomy of Iraq?

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal: "Taking a more original approach is Paul Gigot, the successor to Bartley as editorial page editor. Visiting Iraq, Gigot skips over the missing weapons to provide a refreshingly different rationale: Saddam had to be overthrown because he was an environmental criminal. After the first Gulf War, he drained the wetlands around Basra, 'with their centuries-old ecosystem of reeds, countless species and water buffalo ...' Actually, the marshlands are probably many thousands of years old, but Gigot is new to environmental advocacy and his concern is much appreciated. Certainly he's right about the opportunity to rescue the ruined marshes and their inhabitants, human and otherwise, all of which is undoubtedly another benefit of deposing Saddam. But if we're going to wage war over ecological crimes, shouldn't we immediately drop the 101st Airborne on the White House and the Capitol? "

Isn't this rich? Now the conservatives care about the environment.

Homeland Security Sales Pitch (washingtonpost.com): "Laura Murphy, who heads the ACLU's legislative office here, remembers the vote well.
'When we found out the bill was being introduced,' she told me, 'we went to [Democratic Rep. John] Conyers and [Republican Rep. F. James] Sensenbrenner and begged them not to push it through in three days, as the attorney general was urging. They agreed, and their committee rewrote the bill to accommodate some of our concerns. The revised bill cleared the House Judiciary Committee by a vote of 32 to zero."
"Then in the middle of the night -- it was reprinted at 3:30 a.m. -- the bill was rewritten again to get all the troublesome stuff back in. When the members voted the following day, hardly anyone except a few staffers had actually seen the bill they were voting on."

This is lovely. Just lovely. The administration who continues to convince people they are good leaders and good Americans govern without telling people.

Oct. Report Said Defeated Hussein Would Be Threat (washingtonpost.com)

Interesting. Intelligence actually thought that Bush's claim about Iraq giving terrorists weapons partially true. But they thought the risk much higher if Saddam was defeated. Funny, that was never part of the Bush approach to war, was it?

Salon.com News | A green revolt against Bush: "'I think what you'll see is nearly every Mid-Atlantic and New England state agreeing to join in a regional [carbon dioxide] cap and trade regime,' Bradley Campbell, commissioner of New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection, told Salon. Campbell said that Republican governors are expected to sign on to the plan despite backroom coercion by the White House. 'Several of my counterparts in Republican-led states have reported active efforts by the Bush administration to pressure them to not participate in a regional program to implement greenhouse gas reductions,' he said."


Streak loves the fact that the Bush admin opposes environmental movements, even when led by the states he supposedly thinks should make such decisions. They did this in California where they sued the state to oppose zero emission vehicles. Streak suspects that this administration lacks a cohesive ideology, or they would support state decisions even when they conflicted with Republican dogma. Dogma. That is a funny word. Especially coming from a dog.

President Defends Allegation On Iraq (washingtonpost.com): "Bush's position was at odds with those of his own aides, who acknowledged over the weekend that the CIA raised doubts that Iraq sought to buy uranium from Niger more than four months before Bush's speech"

Come on!

. . . Unshakable Faith (washingtonpost.com)

Streak also shares a frustration with Bush's simplistic view of the world.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal: "July 15, 2003 | A 'darn good' quote that almost nobody quoted
'We gave him a chance to allow the inspectors in, and he wouldn't let them in.'
George W. Bush uttered that amazing sentence yesterday to justify the war in Iraq, according to the Washington Post.
What? Yes, I promise that's what the man said. (And by 'him,' the president clearly meant Saddam Hussein -- not Kim Jong Il, who actually has refused to let international inspectors into North Korea.) "


Streak found this rather remarkable. First, "that boy said it was ok" and now, we will just change our reasons for going to war? And we are the "revisionists" here?

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal: "Second, the aim is to protect Dick Cheney, true author of both the Iraq war policy and the deceptive propaganda that promoted war, including the dubious information in the State of the Union."

Beauty. White house dissembles and passes blame on George Tenet who has served both Democrat and Republican administrations, while shielding Dick "I voted against Head Start" Cheney.

Yahoo! News - Advisers Downplay Bush Uranium Statement

My nephew once got in trouble with his parents for starting a video late in the evening. When asked why he did this, he pointed at me (he was about 3 or 4) and said "That boy said I could." The recent statements by the Bush administration made Streak think of that. The President said, essentially, "that boy (Tenet) said it was ok." And his lapdog advisors are saying "since we were quoting the British, it was technically accurate, but shouldn't have been in the State of the Union Address." No one will take responsibility for this error. Streak is increasingly tired of people giving Bush such high marks for character, since he hasn't exactly shown any beyond not sleeping with the help. That maybe good, but it doesn't make up for all the other character flaws.

Salon.com | Total recall: "So, however corrupt the parentage of this recall effort, it offers Californians a golden opportunity to send a message: that it's time to reorder our policy priorities and get back to serving the people. "

Arianna, who normally has great fun attacking Republicans, is a pretty equal opportunity slammer of political bullies. Here she points out that the Cal recall movement is founded in a certain groundswell of public discontent with big money and politics.

On the subject of the recall, however, Streak reminded me the other day about the iron rule of "unintended consequences." Republicans might want to consider that using the recall to get rid of an opposition leader they don't like is a bell that can't be unrung. Are they really sure that voters might not turn on the next Rep governor as well? In that vein are several other conservative movements afoot now. In Texas, Karl Rove and Tom Delay are trying to push redistricting through outside the 10 year window, mostly because they think they can. In the Senate, Pat Robertson's legal monkey, Jay Sekulow is trying to get the Senate to change rules so that Bush's conservative judges can be approved on an up and down vote, essentially killing the filibuster. In both cases, Streak's reminder is a good one. Republicans won't always dominate, and when they lose power, Democrats will remember all of this. Plus, changing the rules means that both sides have access. Streak thinks that Tom Delay will eventually get his. I hope so.

Good dog.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal

Streak is starting to doubt this administration's credibility even more.

Salon.com News | 9/11 panel: Some government agencies uncooperative: "Records requested from the Justice Department are overdue, and the department has yet to resolve how to help the commission review the case of Sept. 11 conspiracy suspect Zacarias Moussaoui, who is awaiting trial.
_Problems with the Department of Defense 'are becoming particularly serious.' The commission has received no responses to requests related to national air defenses among other topics. "

Wow, color us surprised. Ashcroft and Rumsfeld the most uncooperative. Guess who was much better? FBI and State.

Salon.com News | Court allows suit on Cheney energy panel

Streak wonders why the country continues to give Cheney such a long leash (Streak's pun, not mine). The Clinton administration was pilloried for withholding the least amount of information and this administration seems to be rewarded for releasing none.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal: "Yesterday's feeble admissions constitute what an earlier White House used to call a 'modified limited hangout.' The Bush crowd, improving on what they learned from the Nixon gang, has consistently excelled at lowering expectations of all kinds -- and this occasion is no different. Now even the briefest, most grudging and partial acknowledgment of an obvious fact qualifies as extraordinary candor. "

Joe and Streak agree on this point.

Reuters | Latest Financial News / Full News Coverage

Unfortunately, this falls in the category of "you don't have to muzzle the press, just delay it." The Whitehouse should have acknowledged this when they were using it as justification for war. Much of the same information was available then, but they hammered on it as proof. Now, Streak imagines that the Whitehouse is betting on the fact that the American people have already moved on and don't care about this.

Yahoo! News - Bush Condemns Slavery in Africa Speech

Streak wonders why this is not greeted world-wide with a giant "duh." Or, to borrow from one of my favorite blogs, that it doesn't have the "obvious" tag next to it. Of course, the Southern Baptists apologized in the late 90s for their role in slavery, and then proceeded to pat themselves on the back so hard I was afraid that some of the fat comb-overs might actually get hurt! I guess the point is that it doesn't take a lot of political bravery to oppose slavery and racism now. Perhaps Streak is too hard on these folks. After all, the former Senate Majority Leader and current AG have made appearances in rabidly racist periodicals in the recent past.

Streak pointed me to an interesting story this morning on NPR (very classy dog, Streak) about our Attorney General. Evidently, Sir John has overruled DAs across the country who dared not seek the death penalty and tried to impose the highest punishment in any case that he can. The good news, for the bleeding hearts, is that his success rate is terrible. He has the same aggregate number of capital convictions as Janet Reno, but has gone after far more cases.

2 points: 1, maybe Americans are tiring of the death penalty. That would be nice. and b, what kind of goul is this guy? He seems to froth at the mouth at the opportunity to execute someone. Is this how Christians see capital punishment? As something that should be used more and more?

The story can be heard on NPR's website (npr.org)

Salon.com News | MSNBC fires Michael Savage for anti-gay remarks:

Excuse me! Wasn't he hired because he was anti-gay?

Salon.com News | Ex-envoy: U.S. twisted Iraq intelligence: "An envoy sent by the CIA to Africa to investigate allegations about Iraq's nuclear weapons program contends the Bush administration manipulated his findings, possibly to strengthen the rationale for war. "

Streak and I have talked about this for some time. Say there were WMDs in Iraq, but there is very credible evidence that this administration's method of accumulating intel is very suspect. Regardless of the outcome in Iraq, if we can't trust people like Condi Rice when she and Dick Cheney assure us that someone has nukes, then the process doesn't work. Still unsure why Repubs are not angry about this more than they are.

A few thoughts about the 4th. Streak and I are not the fondest of this holliday--Streak because his first 4th was loud and scary, and me because of a few over zealous "patriots."

1) As Samuel Johnson said, "Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel."

2) Appropos of point 1, Toby Keith is not more patriotic than the Dixie Chicks. Possibly less.

3) Religious conservatives want to claim their ownership of America and American history. Unfortunately, they rely on a few "quasi" historians who misuse the past for their own means. If Christians want to take credit for positive moves in history, like abolition, end of child labor, and or any other positive changes, they must also take responsibility for the Christians who supported slavery, child labor, and every other evil in american history.

4) Republicans have no corner on loyalty to country. Though they seem to have a corner on making corporations rich through public service.

5) Also appropos of point 1, it takes no serious loyalty or heart to fly a flag.

That is all for now. Streak and I will enjoy the fireworks.

The Atlantic | July/August 2003 | The Texas Clemency Memos | Berlow

Another attempt at this link. This article argues that Alberto Gonzales, then legal counsel to Governor Bush, now White House counsel, purposefully omitted mitigating issues from his summaries of clemency pleas. In other words, he made sure that Bush could claim that there was no reason to grant clemency. This is just another reason why the death penalty is morally corrupt, and why this adminstration's tendency to surround themselves with people who lie or withhold critical evidence is troubling. Streak isn't happy.

Crackpot Conservatism (washingtonpost.com)

Streak finally showed me how to do it correctly. Good dog!

Streak really enjoyed this column. He is constantly amazed at how conservatives like to question the patriotism of liberals. It is arrogant and self-righteous, and also a cynical effort at controlling the dialogue.

Note: Streak is experiencing difficulty with the blogging software and so the link above is not showing. It is Richard Cohen's essay at the Washington Post (www.washingtonpost.com).

Here is a pretty disgusting story about one of the people most likely to be appointment to the Supreme court.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal "So we get accusations that Blumenthal spun this or that event. What's missing is not just an overview but a sense of astonishment. Isn't it just plain mysterious that Newt Gingrich continues to get respectful media attention when, really, on a given day he is half-mad and almost always blowing smoke? The same could be asked of Tom DeLay, who revived impeachment when the effort flagged for lack of compelling evidence and was determined to smash Clinton -- never mind what else he would destroy in the process. Yet he and other Clinton-haters wander the streets of Washington, unscarred, uncensored but, nonetheless, unhinged."

This from Richard Cohen's article about the reviews of the Clinton Wars. Streak agrees with this comment and continues to wonder why the suppposedly liberal media savages liberals but allows nutcases like Gingrich and DeLay run free.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal

Streak really does not like the Tom Delay version of Christian Republicanism. Trusts pagans and athiests more.

Salon.com News | Why don't we care about the WMD? Polls taken recently indicate that most Americans are either unconcerned at the apparent collapse of the rationale behind a war that's still killing their compatriots, or ignorant of the whole situation. Before the Iraq war, a Knight Ridder poll showed that nearly half of Americans surveyed believed, erroneously, that there were Iraqis among the Sept. 11 hijackers. During the war, a Los Angeles Times poll showed that 59 percent of respondents were convinced, despite all available evidence, that Saddam was either partly or mostly responsible for Sept. 11. Now that America's failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq is becoming an increasingly contentious political issue, a third of respondents in a University of Maryland poll believed that the weapons already have been uncovered. A fifth of those polled think Iraq actually used such weapons in the war."

Streak worries that this bodes poorly for a democracy.

Salon.com | Joe Conason's Journal

Interesting. The French are hard at work actually helping Afghanistan while the American public AND politicians are dropping it for the Taliban to pick up.

Streak's favorite line from Arianna Huffington's latest column. Tired of defining morality only in terms of interns. Here is the main difference between Clinton's sexual misdeeds and Republican immorality is that very few, if any, thought having sex with an intern was morally acceptable behavior. Republicans all, at least seemingly, defend the Bush administration as morally pure.

"It's time to expand the Right's definition of immorality beyond sex,
drugs, and rock and roll to include lying, cheating, and callous
indifference to those in need. "

On C-Span, Al Franken Chews Up Bill O'Reilly for Lunch And Spits Out Nails - BuzzFlash Reader Commentary

Streak likes Al Franken and does not like Bill O'Reilly and usually enjoys it when someone as pompous and self-righteous as O'Reilly gets a bit of his own medicine. Much like when Rush Limbaugh was booed on the Letterman show.