MoDo & Classic Colbert

Mr. Colbert continues to demonstrate an ability to keep his faux-rightie persona fresh and relevant in this October 2007 New York Times column. It's a real treat.

George the First

Here's a well thought out, well written article on the expansion of Executive power in the last 60 years or so.

Fun Stuff

snopes.com gives a thumbs down on this one, but it is still funny:

Sex Sells??

A tacky ad from a tacky Chicago law firm (very tacky, even for a litigious law firm):



And if that's not enough.....

Dying Gasps

As the W Bush monarchy approaches it's end, it continues to practice the art of public relations sleight-of-hand. A remnant of Master Rove--who has moved on to his next target now that this one has been spent--as if on auto-pilot they continue to try and kick the can down the road to run out the clock, thus hoping history will share the blame of the Iraq invasion with another administration.

The latest production, a staged photo-op (and followup revue) to sell the sizzle of the successful "surge" (we LOVE simplistic B&W plots), will no doubt unravel 6 months from now when the institutional memory of the "surge" will give way to Britney or OJ's latest. This can has been kicked out 6 months (give or take) for the last 4+ years and we still don't get it. And it drastically differs from a recent GAO report which concludes quite the opposite.

A respected journalist (for the BBC, possibly the most respected investigative journalistic organization in the world), Greg Palast, has chronicled a raw, honest look at the latest in Iraq. He references another respected BBC employee, cameraman Rick Rowley, and a recent piece he shot in Anbar. He's there; Joe Sixpack (and John McCain) ain't.

The story is in blog form, meaning crude. But take a look at the detail behind the recent Petraeus show. Then look at Rowley's video (below, 2 parts). Lastly, tell me if you fully understand the intricacies of the Iraq puzzle and if you can describe the components of "winning".

The Good Old Days

And we're worried about Joe Camel????!! A blast from the 60s:

The 800 lb Gorilla......

There's an issue we repeatedly refuse to face. More on it in a later post, but here are two appetizers on the subject:

Chicago Trib

CNN

I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing.......

I don't mean to sound cold or cynical, but what the heck's up with this picture from today's WaPo attached to a story about a V-Tech memorial vigil? Are these people really this desensitized to advertising?

Caponed

The History Channel and other sources proudly remind us that there are many ways to skin a cat from a law enforcement perspective, once we are sure that all the circumstantial as well as the inadmissible evidence is sound but not necessarily court-proof. The infamous example is that of Al Capone, a gangster and killer of epic proportion, yet skilled enough to avoid the smoking gun for his illegal activities. So the feds took a different approach, asserting that although his income, while illegal, was still subject to federal income tax. So they nailed him on tax evasion.

The new oversight congress is taking much the same approach with the woefully inadequate current federal AG, Alberto Gonzales. Here is a guy who is so unqualified for his current position that in the real world he'd struggle to achieve county prosecutor in a rural post. But due to a combination of PC pandering and a talent for being a yes man he's ridden coattails to the top.

The fact that he's flown cover for so many anti-American, anti-democracy activities (read: torture, illegal surveillance, cancelling habeas corpus among others) necessitates that this cancer be excised as soon as possible, and by any means necessary.

Our sound bite culture, as well as the sophisticated spin machine on the far right make it difficult if not impossible to objectively weigh all the evidence and reach a collective, thoughtful decision on the AG; it's always gonna be a Sharks-Jets scenario. Given that, I think the Dems are pursuing the best case destination, the thread that, while it may not have the strongest preponderance of evidence does have sex appeal to capture the public psyche enough to weather the spin storm.

May I also state that any American, regardless of party, regardless of issue, that supports the idea of Executive Branch members who have evidence of impropriety against them and are refusing to answer questions on the record and under oath should have their citizenship revoked.

Nostalgia

A favorite. Enjoy while YouTube still supports it (till Viacom kills it) Go to YouTube and search on the Honeymooners to get other episodes:

Part 2
Part 3

The Beginning of the End?

Of our national nightmare.
Behind the scenes, the Dems are undoing the hijacking.
One of them.

Shocking Video from Indonesia

What I MEANT to Say Was...........

Click to enlarge.

Republican Righteousness

An interesting WaPo column about Republicans' outrage that the 110th congress' majority party is not letting them participate in the initial direction of the legislative agenda. Amazing. There is no ethical, moral, or hypocritical boundary these guys would even hesitate crossing.

Click on the Seattle PI editorial cartoon below (or right click and choose "view image") for a larger view:

Helter Skelter

They say that the definition of insanity is repeating the same mistakes over and over and expecting different results. This definition fits to a T George Bush's "plan" (it's more of an adjustment than a plan) to escalate the occupation of Iraq.

This latest cynical attempt to run out the clock on his watch demonstrates his continuous and blatant total disregard for what is right for the U.S. and the American people. Increasing the troop level in Iraq by 15% is like offering a person suffering from hyperhydration a glass of water. Every credible authority on the situation on the ground in Iraq agrees that U.S. troop presence in the country is the main reason for the level of the violence. This is a problem in need of a political solution, not a military one. Our military forces are designed to fight wars, not police anarchic cities.

And of course we are hearing a new wave of old hyperbole and meaningless rhetoric from W and his rapidly dwindling pool of sycophants. "The Dems have no plan, we're fighting them there so we don't have to fight them here, failure is not an option" and on and on. One change, W has recently broken new ground by talking to reporters other than FOX folks, such as his recent appearances on 60 Minutes and The News Hour with Jim Lehrer. Unfortunately he's still sputtering the same tired material: simplistic generalizations, childish metaphors, and gross misinformation which show he either doesn't understand the complex issues or doesn't care. And he's still doing it in an arrogant, cynical, condescending manner. Like a sarcastic cheerleader. As conservative David Brooks put it, "he needs to talk to people as adults, not down to them as 5 year olds".

The problem is there is no good option anymore, it's going to be ugly any direction we go at this point. The best option would have been to not invade in the first place. The second best option would have been to go in with sufficient troop levels to initially maintain order. And the third best option would have been to preserve the civil and social infrastructure. But those doors have closed years ago. The absolute worst option is to stay the course, but add more fuel to the fire with additional troops.