Serenity ROCKED

I just got back from seeing Serenity - oh my mind is just blown.

Here is my short review: It is not the show, it will make you laugh, and it will stun you.

Oh, and River kicks ass.

New Cranky-Bastard Video

Aborting Black Babies = Lower Crime Rate?

A bunch of blogs have been discussing Bill Bennett's incredibly offensive statements:

Addressing a caller's suggestion that the "lost revenue from the people who have been aborted in the last 30 years" would be enough to preserve Social Security's solvency, radio host and former Reagan administration Secretary of Education Bill Bennett dismissed such "far-reaching, extensive extrapolations" by declaring that if "you wanted to reduce crime ... if that were your sole purpose, you could abort every black baby in this country, and your crime rate would go down." Bennett conceded that aborting all African-American babies "would be an impossible, ridiculous, and morally reprehensible thing to do," then added again, "but the crime rate would go down."

He's been getting all kinds of shit for his statements, but he is sticking by them.

"I was putting forward a hypothetical proposition. Put that forward. Examined it. And then said about it that it's morally reprehensible. To recommend abortion of an entire group of people in order to lower your crime rate is morally reprehensible. But this is what happens when you argue that the ends can justify the means," he told CNN.

"I'm not racist, and I'll put my record up against theirs," referring to Pelosi and other critics. "I've been a champion of the real civil rights issue of our times -- equal educational opportunities for kids."

"We've got to have candor and talk about these things while we reject wild hypotheses," Bennett said.

The thing is, he's right, but here's WHY he's right...

Most of us are taught, at an early age, that if you're honest and you work hard, you will be successful. What a load of crap.

Despite the insistence that all men are created equal, this country still does not offer a level playing field of opportunities to each and every citizen. Rich/powerful people network with each other, send their children to private schools and Ivy League universities, call in favors with high-powered people to get into high-powered and high-paying jobs. Poor people struggle to make ends meet, send their children to public schools where many end up dropping out to help their parents pay the bills, and work dead-end jobs. It is not in a rich person's best interest to help a poor person BECOME rich and powerful, because that means they now have more competition, or will be less rich and powerful than they want. Those are the basic facts of a capitalist society, which is the economic society we live in.

Because there are far fewer opportunities for poor people to get out of poverty, it is often necessary for them to find alternative methods of obtaining money - sometimes legitimately, like working multiple jobs, but also less legitimately, like robbing, being a prostitute, or selling drugs.

I don't think I need to prove that of those living in poverty, there are more black people than white people. So yes, if an entire generation of black babies disappeared, the crime rate might go down... temporarily. But that just means that the poor people just ABOVE the poverty line would now drop down into the lowest class, making it that much more difficult to climb out of that class and they would have to more frequently resort to those alternative means.

This in no way suggests that rich and powerful people do not commit crimes or aren't punished for them - look at Enron, Tyco, Martha Stewart. However, I don't think I need to find proof that rich and powerful people have more opportunity to get out of paying for their crimes than poor people do. They have the money and the power to hire teams of high-priced attorneys, they may know the judges personally, etc.

So what Bill Bennett said may seem offensive, but it only highlights the inequities of a supposedly equal-opportunity society.

So Much News - And It's FRIDAY!

Yay! I get to see an awesome movie tonight, and it's just the beginning of the weekend! Wheeee!

Judith Miller's been released from jail. She is expected to testify today.

Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff, called Miller in prison September 19 to personally free her from the pledge of confidentiality, a move that apparently contributed to her release, Libby's attorney, Joseph Tate of Philadelphia, told CNN.

__________

The Gropinator vetoed the gay marriage bill. Because it's one thing to watch and/or interact with lesbians fucking, it's quite another to let them marry.

"History will show that Gov. Schwarzenegger had a chance to end the last vestige of legal discrimination in our state," Nunez said in a statement. "Instead of choosing the way of the future the governor has aligned himself with the enemies of equal rights for all."

__________

Crooks&Liars reports that Ann Coulter would support Ted Kennedy if the same charges that were brought against Tom DeLay were made against him. I declare shennanigans at the obsurdity of her dumbass statement.

We all know she'd be doing a tapdance of joy and organizing the firing squad.

__________

Want to read a little about the state of armor in Iraq?

From the day we launched Operation Truth, we've worked hard to shed light on this issue. We took it to the media, demanding legislative action.

And someone in Washington responded. After learning about stories like Rich’s, Senator Christopher Dodd (D-CT) created legislation last year to force the DOD to reimburse troops, their families, and charitable groups for such purchases. President Bush signed the bill into law in October 2004, but the Department of Defense has never complied with this provision. First, Rumsfeld screwed up by failing to get our troops the equipment they needed. Now he is failing them again by disregarding the reimbursement legislation. Full story here.

__________

Army enlistment just sucks.

The Army is closing the books on one of the leanest recruiting years since it became an all-volunteer service three decades ago, missing its enlistment target by the largest margin since 1979 and raising questions about its plans for growth...

Officials insist the slump is not a crisis.

Yep, I believe them. Really!

BLOGGER AMBER ALERT - HE IS HOME!!!!!!!

JORDAN HAS BEEN FOUND!!! DETAILS ARE IN THE COMMENTS - THANK YOU EVERYONE!


This is serious. A fellow blogger many of us in the blogosphere already know and love has posted this on her site - this is HER FAMILY MEMBER. Please take a moment and help locate JORDAN ROLFE (birth name)/JORDAN BARRY (chosen name).

*****Local news station picked up the story.*****



Last seen with this sick bitch:



Please spread the word, and help bring Jordan home to the people who care so much about him.

UPDATE: Kim has forwarded contact information and reward information as follows...

The contact info is:

Detective Sgt. Colegrove
Strongsville Police Dept.
(440) 238-7373

and

Special Agent Timothy J. Kolonick
FBI
(216) 662-6637

although anyone with any info can call their local police department or 911.

Also, we are offering a $10,000.00 cash reward to anyone giving us any information leading to Jordan's safe return.

Please help spread the word. Thank you, fellow bloggers!

OT: Serenity Opens Friday

Strap in, boys and girls, one of the best movies ever made is opening on Friday. If you don't know what Serenity is, you're already behind the times.

This movie is going to be a smash hit out of nowhere, just like the DVD collection was a smash hit out of nowhere. Are you starved for something better than lame "reality" TV? Get the DVDs. Please notice that the link to Amazon's page shows an overall customer rating of FIVE out of FIVE stars, with 1641 reviews and counting. Awesome writing, awesome characters.

My god, I think I shall cry with joy when I get there Friday night.

Two Major News Developments

At Least 60 Dead in Iraq Car Bombings

Three suicide attackers detonated car bombs nearly simultaneously in a mainly Shiite town north of Baghdad on Thursday, killing at least 60 people and wounding 70 others, a hospital official said. In the western town of Ramadi, the military said a roadside bomb killed five American soldiers.

__________

Judge Orders Release of Abu Ghraib Photos

Pictures of detainee abuse at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison must be released despite government claims that they could damage America's image, a federal judge ruled Thursday.

U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein said terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan have proven they "do not need pretexts for their barbarism."

The American Civil Liberties Union sought the release of 87 photographs and four videotapes as part of an October 2003 lawsuit demanding information on the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody and the transfer of prisoners to countries known to use torture. The ACLU contends that prisoner abuse is systemic.

Brutal images of the abuse at the prison have already been widely distributed, but the lawsuit covers additional photos not yet seen by the public.

Their Brilliance Stuns Us

... into wondering just how stupid they are.

You see, I'd like to take the big ol' logic stick and beat them senseless with it. They apparently deserve it. Here's why:

An Army inquiry has found no evidence to prove that American military personnel sent graphic photographs of Iraqi war dead to an Internet site in exchange for online pornography, Army officials said Wednesday.

Col. Joseph Curtin, an Army spokesman, said investigators from the Army's Criminal Investigation Command could continue their inquiry if more evidence came to light, like the identities of any American service personnel who actually provided the photographs...

The preliminary inquiry into the Web site was hobbled because few identifying markings are visible in those photographs posted on the Web site that also include people in uniform. Likewise, there is little information on the site to indicate where or when the photos were taken, who supplied the photos to the site, or whether some of the photos actually showed human remains or body parts.

Ummm, okay. Maybe it's just because I am getting my degree in criminal justice and I have a huge interest in investigation work, but it seems to me that there are plenty of ways to find out where the photos came from.

• I think it is safe to assume that these photos are recent, given the military dress and surroundings.
• Identify the soldiers whose faces are clearly identifiable in the photos. Technology and expertise does actually exist to compare facial features of photographs, and as I understand it, all military personnel has a formal photograph taken of them. Even if not every single one had a photo taken of them, start comparing those who DID.
• Study the photographs for any other evidence, such as patches, identifying markers, street signs, a vehicle license plate.
• Use computer forensics to determine where the photographs originated. The technology is there. They use to to nail people who like kiddie porn, they can use it here too.
• Find out if there have been any shipments from costume shops or similar businesses to see if the bodies or body parts are fake. I highly doubt that someone would go through that much trouble just to set up one photograph, then have to use a new "prop" for the hundreds posted on the website, but you never know.

Does anything I have listed sound far-fetched? Incredibly difficult to do? Or is it just inconvenient and bad press?

The Pat Tillman You Didn't Know

Did you know:

Interviews also show a side of Pat Tillman not widely known — a fiercely independent thinker who enlisted, fought and died in service to his country yet was critical of President Bush and opposed the war in Iraq, where he served a tour of duty. He was an avid reader whose interests ranged from history books on World War II and Winston Churchill to works of leftist Noam Chomsky, a favorite author.

And apparently Ann Coulter & Sean Hannity refuse to believe it... They must know Pat better than his parents, you know. They're like that. When they find a good icon, they just learn all there is to know about that icon and refuse any contradiction to it.

Does anyone actually care what Ann and Sean have to say anymore anyway?

BREAKING NEWS: DELAY INDICTED

I love it when I get news at JUST the right time :)

DeLay Indicted in Campaign Finance Probe

A Texas grand jury on Wednesday charged Rep. Tom DeLay and two political associates with conspiracy in a campaign finance scheme, an indictment that could force him to step down as House majority leader.

DeLay attorney Steve Brittain said DeLay was accused of a criminal conspiracy along with two associates, John Colyandro, former executive director of a Texas political action committee formed by DeLay, and Jim Ellis, who heads DeLay's national political committee.

The indictment against the second-ranking, and most assertive Republican leader came on the final day of the grand jury's term. It followed earlier indictments of a state political action committee founded by DeLay and three of his political associates.

(PS: I know you can't see it, but I'm doing the Dance of Joy.)

UPDATE: CNN says he'll be stepping aside. Thought you might want to be reminded of THIS fact...

As a sign of loyalty to DeLay after the grand jury returned indictments against three of his associates, House Republicans last November repealed a rule requiring any of their leaders to step aside if indicted. The rule was reinstituted in January after lawmakers returned to Washington from the holidays fearing the repeal might create a backlash from voters.

Change the rules to protect corruption. For some reason I don't think that is what the founding father's had in mind, but who knows... maybe every politician since the beginning of time is just a fucking douche.

Fat Cats Turn Obscenely Obese

No offense to real fat cats, but this new Carnival deal AGAIN highlights the ridiculousness of this administration's handling of disasters.

The hasty appeal yielded one of the most controversial contracts of the Hurricane Katrina relief operation, a $236 million agreement with Carnival Cruise Lines for three ships that now bob more than half empty in the Mississippi River and Mobile Bay. The six-month contract -- staunchly defended by Carnival but castigated by politicians from both parties -- has come to exemplify the cost of haste that followed Katrina's strike and FEMA's lack of preparation.

To critics, the price is exorbitant. If the ships were at capacity, with 7,116 evacuees, for six months, the price per evacuee would total $1,275 a week, according to calculations by aides to Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.). A seven-day western Caribbean cruise out of Galveston can be had for $599 a person -- and that would include entertainment and the cost of actually making the ship move.

Sweetheart deals, no-bid contracts. Wow, we must be ROLLING in a SURPULS of money to be able to afford all this stuff, right? Hello? Is this thing on...?

Pssst! Did You Hear This?

Tommy might get busted!

Pass it on!

Best Quote I've Seen Today

A la Sappho Manifesto.

Brownie Engages In Blame-Gaming and Finger-Pointing

It's as though Scott McClellan had never accused reporters of playing the Blame Game when they started asking logical questions about the federal response to Katrina. I do recall him saying there would be plenty of time to look into things later - is that time now?

Because if so, the gloves should be coming off.

There is no reason Michael Brown should have anything to do with FEMA, let alone getting another cushy job as a "consultant". Have you ever worked with a consultant? Have you ever seen their paychecks? Sick money. I wish I had the expertise in something so I could be a consultant and demand the bank they do.

So what is he consulting for? How to become an even MORE incompetant agency filled with cronies?

So Many Stories, So Little Sleep

Here's the quick and dirty, because I'm exhausted ATM and need my nice comfy bed.

Lynndie England was convicted in the Abu Ghraib photo case, but John Aravosis asks what the difference is between her photos and the photos from the website I just posted about, aside from those photos on the site depicting dead Iraqis instead of Iraqis that are alive.

__________

Cindy Sheehan and 370 fellow protesters have been arrested for civil disobedience. I love the idea of civil disobedience. No one gets hurt and people take a stand. I am convinced I'm a reincarnated hippie chick.

__________

Michael "Brownie, you're doing a heckuva job!" Brown has been rehired at FEMA as a "consultant" - this is proof there is no god. So glad I was raised agnostic. Although my daughter has informed me that one of our cats is God. Works for me!

__________

Right wing assholes have been trying to say that there weren't 100,000 people at the protest on Saturday, and are using this photo as proof:



What they neglect to tell you is that the PHOTO DOESN'T INCLUDE THE PEOPLE THAT ALREADY STARTED MARCHING. Here is the REST of the photo:



I snagged the photos from Think Progress, who has the details. Please note you can't see where the beginning of the line is, BECAUSE IT'S WAY THE HELL OFF THE PHOTO.

So, for all those fucktards that like to spin things so it looks just the way they want them to and not face the actual truth, go fuck yourselves six ways from Sunday, you stupid sheep. Thank you!

__________

Viggo Mortensen will be on the Daily Show tomorrow night. I know where I'll be... That's all for now... G'night.

Death Photos for Porn

I think I am getting to the point where I am getting numb to the extent which human beings will desensitize themselves to the pain and suffering of other human beings. Some of it is physical self-preservation, some of it is metal preservation, and some of it is just mental illness.

I will not pretend that I know what it's like in a war zone. There are images I will never see that have caused healthy young men to retreat so deeply into safer parts of their minds that they will likely never contribute to society again.

I had heard that there were videos being circulated among soldiers and other wannabe soldiers that document the deaths and destruction of middle eastern men, women and children.

Now comes a website that offers amateur porn to soldiers who offer photos of what they see.

AMERICABlog has a long post about it. If you click through, you will see censored photos - nothing you can't handle, but he will link to the uncensored photos. I have not seen them. I don't want to. I'm just letting you know they are there.

Aww, He Needs His Nappy!

Bush apparently requires a lot of rest and relaxation or he is just such a cranky president! Presidenting is hard!

The president didn't look all that relieved or happy, however. His eyes were puffy from lack of sleep (he had been awakened all through the night with bulletins), and he seemed cranky and fidgety. A group of reporters and photographers had been summoned by White House handlers to capture a photo op of the commander in chief at his post. Bush stared at them balefully. He rocked back and forth in his chair, furiously at times, asked no questions and took no notes. It almost seemed as though he resented having to strike a pose for the press.

Someone get George his jammies!

Damn, how do his staffers have the stomach to work for such a prick?

20K Expected, 400 Show Up

Well, at least SOMEONE showed up to their rally, eh?

Melody Vigna, 44, of Linden, Calif., said she wants nothing to do with Sheehan and others at nearby Camp Casey, an anti-war site set up to honor her son, Casey, who was killed in Iraq.

"Our troops are over there fighting for our rights, and if she was in one of those countries she would not be able to do that," Vigna said.

Wait, they are fighting for OUR rights? In a foreign country? On the other side of the world? What rights are they fighting for? "...if she was in one of those countries she would not be able to do that..." - so if Cindy Sheehan was in Iraq, she wouldn't be able to protest being in Iraq?

No, seriously. Why would we be fighting for OUR AMERICAN RIGHTS in a FOREIGN COUNTRY? If ANYTHING, we should be fighting for our rights here in America by protesting government actions we don't agree with... OOOOOOOOH... Isn't that what the protest in Washington was yesterday?

I think I need another drink.

Mr. Culottes Goes To Washington

Sans-Culottes graciously forwarded photos he took at the DC march from yesterday, and here is a sampling. He says he's sure there were about 250,000 people, but he wouldn't be surprised if there were 400,000. He was recruited to be a pall bearer and spent much of the day doing that, but got a lot of great shots...













Click on any picture to go to the entire photo collection. A big thanks to Sans for sharing the day :)

Viggo Mortensen on Charlie Rose

I know there are a lot of women (and men) who think Aragorn was hot as hell, but he didn't just didn't do it for me. I guess I prefer clean-shaven fellows ("Stubble update: satisfactory").

Anywho, Viggo became much more attractive having found himself a razor and a forum to talk about his political views. And he does it rather well, too.

Frank Lautenberg Asks The Obvious Question

New Jersey may be a lot of things, and most of them are probably true, but I can't say I've been disappointed with Frank Lautenberg lately. Info via CapitalBuzz.

See, Frank's been curious, like so many of the rest of us, as to why Bush insists on putting the wrong people in charge of things, and in his letter to the president, he poilitely asks that if Bush is going to do something like put KARL ROVE in charge of heading up relief efforts, maybe it would be a good idea for him NOT TO BE GOING TO A FUCKING FUNDRAISER WHILE A SECOND DEADLY STORM BEARS DOWN ON THE GULF COAST.

Does that make sense to ANYONE? Please explain why the person in charge of hurricane disaster recovery and relief efforts is doing fundraising while New Orleans is in the midst of flooding again? I want to know why that makes any goddamn sense at all. Because logic dictates that the head of such efforts should be actively involved with coordination efforts. Yes, I know, logic is soooo difficult for this administration to wraps their tiny pea-brains around, but COME ON. This is FUCKING RETARDED.

Bill O'Reilly Must Take Spinning Classes

Because he sure is working hard to make Phil Donahue look like the bad guy. Apparently he took up quite a bit of last night's show trying to talk himself and any brain-dead viewers into believing he came out on top of that interview. Crooks&Liars caught his latest crap-flinging, News Hounds has the transcript.

DONAHUE: You saw the pictures! (reasonable tone of voice) Now listen - listen. You wouldn't send your children to this war, Bill.

O'REILLY (very angry, pointing): My nephew just enlisted in the Army. You don't know what the hell you're talkin' about!!!

DONAHUE: Very good. Very good. Congratulations! You should be proud ..

O'REILLY (starts to lose it, shouting, pointing finger, hand shaking): And he's a patriot, so don't denigrate his service or I'll boot you right off the set!!!

DONAHUE: I'm not ... I'm not ...

O'REILLY (very, very loud): That boy made a decision to serve his country!!! Do not denigrate him or you're outta here!!!

DONAHUE (calmly): I'm not Jeremy Glick, Billy.

O'REILLY: That's right!!

DONAHUE: You can't intimidate me!!

If you haven't seen the exchange, you really should check it out. Donahue was firm and refused to be beaten into submission, and O'Reilly came off sounding like a fucktard. It was more than obvious that O'Reilly was looking for a heated exchange to boost ratings and tried all kinds of tactics to get Donahue to bite - nowhere in Donahue's statements did he denegrate anyone, least of all O'Reilly's relative, but Bill went nuts and threatened to throw him out of the studio.

Prooving once again that Bill O'Reilly is a falafel whore who does nothing but bluster and shout and apparently likes loofahs. I'm very sorry his wife has so little self-esteem.

Evacuation Going Badly in TX

Amid the dead-stop traffic jams where people reported going as far as 100 yards in an hour and exploding buses, the feds are promising to bring fuel to stranded evacuees who's cars have simply run out of gas from sitting and running for so long.

The only good news appears to be that Rita's lost a bit of steam and has been downgraded from the Super Mega Crazy Catagory 5 hurricane it was to the Super Mega Crazy Catagory 4 hurricane it now is, and Houston and Galveston might not get the direct hit.

So what exactly have officials learned from Katrina? There was a whole lot of talk about learning lessons, and I may be missing something, but having thousands of people stuck in their little tin boxes unable to go anywhere when 140 mile an hour wind and rain comes doesn't sound like a good situation.

Because Bush Got High

Got this sent to me from Laura at Can't Keep Quiet, and thought I'd share the bemusement.



Audio track was originally played on the Randi Rhodes show. Not to be confused with Randy Rhoads. I had a dream once where I was on a train (yes, I know, it was a Crazy Train) and walked into a car where Randy Rhoads was hanging out and I got all fangirl on him. I could tell you more, but then you'd swear *I* was high.

Rita Blog

Blogs for everyone! Including that PITA, Rita.

Accurate, detailed and about as current as it gets.

PS: Just saw this in the comments of AMERICABlog and thought I'd repost...

PROOF that Bush is NOT a cowboy:

1. A cowboy never takes unfair advantage.
2. A cowboy never betrays a trust.
3. A cowboy always tells the truth.
4. A cowboy is kind to small children, to old folks, and to animals.
5. A cowboy is free from racial and religious prejudice.
6. A cowboy is helpful and when anyone's in trouble he lends a hand.
7. A cowboy is a good worker.
8. A cowboy is clean about his person and in thought, word, and deed.
9. A cowboy respects womanhood, his parents, and the laws of his country.
10. A cowboy is a patriot.

Gene Autry: "The Ten Commandments of the Cowboy," 1939.

Snarky Video of the Day

AMERICABlog posted, and I am pleased to present a link to the new video.

Classic located here.

Don't have the sound up too high, boss-types will likely not be amused.

Another Great Joke From My Mom

Subject: Ethical Dilemma

This test has only one question, but it's a very important one. By giving an honest answer you will discover where you stand morally.

The test features an unlikely, completely fictional situation in which you will have to make a decision. Remember that your answer needs to be honest, yet completely spontaneous.

You are in Florida - Miami, to be specific. There is chaos all around you caused by a hurricane with severe flooding. This is a flood of biblical proportions. You are a photojournalist working for a major newspaper, and you are caught in the middle of this epic disaster.

The situation is nearly hopeless. You're trying to shoot career-making photos. There are houses and people swirling around you, some disappearing under the water. Nature is unleashing all of its destructive fury.

Suddenly you see a man floundering in the water. He is fighting for his life, trying not to be taken down with the debris. You move closer...somehow the man looks familiar. You suddenly realize who it is! It's George W. Bush!

At the same time you notice that the swirling waters! are about to take him under... forever! You have two options - you can save the life of G.W. Bush or you can shoot a dramatic Pulitzer Prize-winning photo, documenting the death of one of the world's most powerful men.

So here's the question - please give an honest answer:








Would you select high contrast color film, or would you go with the classic simplicity of black and white?


(PS: No actual presidents were harmed in the making of this joke, because if one had been harmed, the SS would be all over our asses like white on rice.)

Just Too Funny

Yes, we're officially fucked. Now write YOUR caption.

Donohue Gets O'Reilly Worked Up

Crooks&Liars brings us the latest in a long line of Bill O'Reilly stupidity. For some reason, he thought he'd score points with someone by having Phil Donahue on the show. Right out of the gate, Phil pointed out Bill's asshattery.

It's amazing how Bill O'Reilly is such an asshole.

No One Is Safe From The Inquirer!

I'm sure George will sue this rag for defamation of character, because this story is just too ridiculous.



Although the photo they put with the story is pretty sexy. Looks like he's trying to find a dating match or something.

Bush is under the worst pressure of his two terms in office and his popularity is near an all-time low. The handling of the Katrina crisis and troop losses in Iraq have fueled public discontent and pushed Bush back to drink.

A Washington source said: "The sad fact is that he has been sneaking drinks for weeks now. Laura may have only just caught him — but the word is his drinking has been going on for a while in the capital. He's been in a pressure cooker for months.

Yellow Dog Bags Faux Dems in Forrester Ad

Yellow Dog has been keeping me apprised of the situation in New Jersey, and I thought now would be the perfect time to share.

See, here in New Jersey, we have two people running for governor - Jon Corzine (D) and Doug Forrester (R). Forrester has already released an attack-ad against Corzine which features a whore-d of "democrats" who are fed up with the way things are run in New Jersey.

Well, if you're from New Jersey, you already know that Dems mostly vote with the party, but as it gets local it gets a little fuzzy. Regardless, Democratic New Jersians wouldn't appear in Republican attack ads. Not without some serious cash or blackmail. And the blackmail better be pretty hardcore, because it takes a lot to rankle us.

Anywho. Here's what the Star Ledger (probably the biggest paper in the state) dug up...

Democrats contend ad personifies the hypocrisy it decries

In Republican Doug Forrester's latest campaign ad, David McGraw is featured as one of seven Democratic voters so fed up with government corruption that they are jumping party lines to vote for Forrester.

But it's not the first time McGraw has switched parties, or helped out a Republican candidate. The 71-year-old Verona resident said he helped Republican Jim Treffinger get elected Essex County executive in the 1990s, and was rewarded with a county job that helped boost his government pension.

Now a registered Democrat, McGraw appears in the television commercial that began airing last week, saying he supports Forrester because "The corruption is out of control." ...

In 1985, McGraw, then a clerk with the district court in Essex County, was tried on criminal charges of embezzling $55,000 in court funds. A jury found him not guilty. However, he was fired after a disciplinary hearing determined he took cash from court deposit envelopes for his personal use, had court employees cash his personal checks knowing they would bounce and intentionally lied to the county prosecutor.

Just another DINO.

PS: Seeing reports that Rita's a Cat 5. Wow, that really, really sucks.

Katrina Toll Goes Over 1,000

Louisiana prepares for Hurricane Rita in the midst...

The number of deaths in Louisiana blamed on Hurricane Katrina has risen to 801, the state's emergency response medical director said Wednesday, bringing the overall death toll from the storm to 1,035.

What The Hell Is Going On Here?

If you missed it, there's a guy getting out of the tank who's on fire. Apparently the Brits went smashing through a jail wall to pick up two other Brits who had been picked up by Iraqis. I thought Iraqis were our friends? Why would they be arresting british soldiers?

AMERICABlog has some more info about this.

Bill Frist Makes Bank Before Stocks Dropped

How conveeeeeeenient.

Frist Sold Hospital Shares Before Drop

Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, a potential presidential candidate in 2008, sold all his stock in his family's hospital corporation about two weeks before it issued a disappointing earnings report and the price fell nearly 15 percent.

Frist held an undisclosed amount of stock in Hospital Corporation of America, based in Nashville, Tenn., the nation's largest for-profit hospital chain. On June 13, he instructed the trustee managing the assets to sell his HCA shares and those of his wife and children, said Amy Call, a spokeswoman for Frist.

Frist's shares were sold by July 1 and those of his wife and children by July 8, Call said. The trustee decided when to sell the shares, and the Tennessee Republican had no control over the exact time they were sold, she said.

But it's not like they can wait 6 months to sell them or anything.

Rita's the New Pink

Rita's now turned into another Catagory 4 Hurricane, which threatens the gulf with a second major disaster less than a month after Katrina hit. I believe there's been talk that they will actually run out of letters to use before the hurricane season ends.

But remember, global warming is a myth and nothing that humans do to the planet has any effect on our environment.

Does anyone else remember not having to wear sunscreen with an SPF of 45 all day every day when they were kids?

Jack Cafferty Tells It Like It Is AGAIN

Go to C&L for the newest video. He is so right.

PS: I think someone who likes to comment here is under the impression that Bill O'Reilly DOESN'T pull facts and figures out of his netherregions, so this is just for them.

Death Toll Not Looking As Low As Hoped

As much as we'd all hoped that the actual death toll from Katrina and the resulting bumbling jackassery would remain low, the reality is becoming rather grim.

Tentative optimism that New Orleans’ death toll from Katrina might be far lower than first projected has given way to somber reality over the past 36 hours as search and rescue squad turn up bodies by the dozen in the hardest hit areas of the city.

By mid-afternoon Friday, the black triangles used to designate human remains were multiplying on an emergency command center map. Federal Emergency Management Agency rescue squad liaison Charles Hood said a spike in discoveries Friday has started to take an emotional toll on rescue workers.

“Our squad members are getting access to trauma and grief counselors,” Hood said. “It’s becoming a very difficult task.”

As of yesterday the toll sharply rose to 973.

PORN POLICE ARE COMING!!!

And not in the good way, like porn fairies that leave the porn of your taste under your pillow at night.

No, sad to say, Bush wants to take your porn away, and the FBI is on the case. Because all porn is bad. NO PORN FOR YOU! Plus, I guess all the terrorists have been caught. Yay!

Recruits Sought for Porn Squad

Early last month, the bureau's Washington Field Office began recruiting for a new anti-obscenity squad. Attached to the job posting was a July 29 Electronic Communication from FBI headquarters to all 56 field offices, describing the initiative as "one of the top priorities" of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and, by extension, of "the Director." That would be FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III.

The new squad will divert eight agents, a supervisor and assorted support staff to gather evidence against "manufacturers and purveyors" of pornography -- not the kind exploiting children, but the kind that depicts, and is marketed to, consenting adults.

"I guess this means we've won the war on terror," said one exasperated FBI agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity because poking fun at headquarters is not regarded as career-enhancing. "We must not need any more resources for espionage."

Among friends and trusted colleagues, an experienced national security analyst said, "it's a running joke for us."

Tuesday AM News Briefs

Ahh, after a day of work, an early evening of school and a later evening of playing Immortal Cities and a late-late evening of watching CSI, I feel refreshed enough to get back to some serious blogging.

Here's what's happening:

Bush wants to plant another unqualified person in a top position, and this time it's so obvious it's painful...

The Bush administration is seeking to appoint a lawyer with little immigration or customs experience to head the troubled law enforcement agency that handles those issues, prompting sharp criticism from some employee groups, immigration advocates and homeland security experts.

The push to appoint Julie Myers to head the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency, part of the Department of Homeland Security, comes in the midst of intense debate over the qualifications of department political appointees involved in the sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina...

Her uncle is Air Force Gen. Richard B. Myers, the departing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. She married Chertoff's current chief of staff, John F. Wood, on Saturday.

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There's a saying about apples, trees, and descent, so just insert obvious snarkiness and move along.

Son of Florida Gov. Bush arrested

The youngest son of Florida Gov. Jeb Bush was arrested early Friday and charged with public intoxication and resisting arrest, law enforcement officials said.

John Ellis Bush, 21, was arrested by agents of the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission at 2:30 a.m. on a corner of Austin's Sixth Street bar district, said commission spokesman Roger Wade.

The nephew of President Bush was released on $2,500 bond for the resisting arrest charge, and on a personal recognizance bond for the public intoxication charge, officials said.

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This is interesting... private companies dispatched helecopters to help evacuate hospitals, and they were commandeered by FEMA, but FEMA denies they were took over any equipment. But remember kids, NO BLAME GAMING!

Yet when private companies dispatched helicopters, trucks and buses to evacuate hospitals and nursing homes, officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, commandeered some of them for other uses, hospital and nursing home officials said. The rescue of those who had remained in their homes, or were sheltered in an increasingly chaotic Superdome, became the priority.

Natalie Rule, a spokeswoman for FEMA, denied that the agency confiscated any equipment.

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DEMS GREW SPINES and stopped the partisan, biased "investigation" committee that the GOP was so desperate to put together. This comes after Republicans put the kibosh on an independent, bi-partisan committee - I mean geez, for some reason we would prefer that the Republicans NOT have unequal power over a committee that investigates a Republican administration. Silly us.

Congressional Republicans signaled today that they have abandoned their plan to conduct a joint House-Senate probe of the government's response to Hurricane Katrina.

In announcing a joint probe this month, the Republican leadership had said it would be the most efficient way to investigate the administration's much-criticized initial response to the hurricane. But today, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) conceded that he could not overcome Democratic opposition to a joint investigation.

The Democratic leadership has refused to appoint members to a joint committee, citing the lack of equal representation of Democrats on the panel, and the lack of power to issue subpoenas that the majority opposed. Democrats also have insisted on an independent inquiry.

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Bush staffer gets busted...

David Hossein Safavian was arrested today based on a three- count criminal complaint filed at federal court in Washington, D.C. The complaint charges Safavian with making false statements to a GSA ethics officer and the GSA-OIG, along with obstruction of a GSA-OIG investigation.

He helped a lobbyist get GSA-controlled property, the lobbyist took him on a golf trip to Scotland. Just in case you forgot, this whole golf trip sounds REALLY FAMILIAR.

You'll notice that Safarian worked closely with none other than Jack Abramoff.

Yep, very interesting...

Despite Reality, US Claims Success in Iraq!

Amazing how an administration can delude itself into thinking the majority of us don't see it for the bullshit it is.

Excerpt:

Using enemy body counts as a benchmark, the U.S. military claimed gains against Abu Musab Zarqawi's foreign-led fighters last week even as they mounted their deadliest attacks on Iraq's capital.

But by many standards, including increasingly high death tolls in insurgent strikes, Zarqawi's group, al Qaeda in Iraq, could claim to be the side that's gaining after 2 1/2 years of war. August was the third-deadliest month of the war for U.S. troops...

"The problem is, I have seen no meaningful" goal posts, said Anthony Cordesman, an analyst with the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, "and a great many conflicting points" on U.S. claims to be winning against the insurgency.

While the U.S. military seems to have made some progress in parts of the west and parts of Baghdad, Cordesman said, "it isn't clear in doing so that it has really crippled any part of the insurgency."

So let's just SAY we're winning and people will believe it!

Oh, and don't forget, today is "Talk Like A Pirate Day." Arrrrgh!

Conservative Media Even Admits Bush is Radioactive

And not in that cool, The Firm-kind of way.

The American Spectator spills the beans on Republican insiders being nervous nellies and trying to jump ship while they can, because all rats know when a ship is going down.

"You run down the list of things we thought we could accomplish and you have to wonder what we thought we were thinking," says a Bush Administration member who joined on in 2001. "You get the impression that we're more than listless. We're sunk."

Too pessimistic? Maybe not. Rumors are flying through various departments of longtime senior Bush loyalists looking to jump, but with few opportunities in the private sector to make the jump look like anything more than desperation. Almost daily, complaints from Cabinet level Departments come in to the White House about lack of communication coordination on even basic policy matters.

"What happened was that some of the best people who were working in the Administration during the first term, but who weren't necessarily Bush campaign members or weren't particularly close to the White House, jumped when they saw opportunities being filled by under-qualified but more politically connected people," says a current Administration senior staffer in a Cabinet department. "In this department we lost three quarters of the people who should have been encouraged to stay, and most of them left simply because they had received no indication they would be considered for better or different opportunities. And many of these folks would have stayed."...

So Bush gave unqualified people high powered positions, making those who actually know what they are doing leave because why the hell would you want to waste your time in some basement office making crap money with no indication that you'll get out of it?

Still Sinking

Rasmussen reports that 41% of Americans give Bush "poor" marks for the handling of Katrina, when 37% had given him "poor" marks before his speech.

Must have been the mis-buttoned shirt.

Personal Accounts From New Orleans

Sans-Cullotte tipped me to this NPR recording from last week. People who were there, in New Orleans, looking for help and trying to survive, talk about what happened to them.

I highly recommend listening to this.

Big Dog Barks

In 1992, when I was 18 and able to vote in my first presidential election, Bill Clinton was the shit. He was my generation's JFK - he was young enough to at least TRY to relate to us, and when he was asked on MTV, "The world wants to know... boxers or briefs?", he had a good chuckle along with the rest of us. He was engaging, charming, and George Bush Sr. didn't stand a chance in hell.

Was Bill Clinton a perfect man with a spotless reputation and a world-class sax player? Nope. He was a putz who screwed around on his wife and didn't want to have to admit it on national television. Maybe he STILL screws around on her. And he made plenty of decisions I didn't always agree with.

He still makes decisions I don't agree with - like answering George W.'s beck-and-call to head up fundraising efforts for Katrina relief. I understand that decision... it's about the people who need help, not the idiot who can't lead himself to the bathroom.

Looks like there's been enough time passed, because he's decided to shed the behaviors of past presidents and come out swinging.

Excerpts:

Clinton said there had been a "heroic but so far unsuccessful" effort to put together an constitution that would be universally supported in Iraq...

On Hurricane Katrina, Clinton faulted the authorities' failure to evacuate New Orleans ahead of the storm's strike on August 29...He agreed that some responsibility for this lay with the local and state authorities, but pointed the finger, without naming him, at the former director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)..."When James Lee Witt ran FEMA, because he had been both a local official and a federal official, he was always there early, and we always thought about that," Clinton said, referring to FEMA's head during his 1993-2001 presidency...

On the US budget, Clinton warned that the federal deficit may be coming untenable, driven by foreign wars, the post-hurricane recovery programme and tax cuts that benefitted just the richest one percent of the US population, himself included.

"What Americans need to understand is that ... every single day of the year, our government goes into the market and borrows money from other countries to finance Iraq, Afghanistan, Katrina, and our tax cuts," he said.

"We have never done this before. Never in the history of our republic have we ever financed a conflict, military conflict, by borrowing money from somewhere else."

Clinton added: "We depend on Japan, China, the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia, and Korea primarily to basically loan us money every day of the year to cover my tax cut and these conflicts and Katrina. I don't think it makes any sense."

Does anyone else find it rather odd that we are borrowing money from the same country that most of the September 11 terrorists came from? I'm just sayin'.

George's Hotmail Account

I dare you to not laugh out loud.

FEMA Continues Screwing Up Rescue Efforts

FEMA, Slow to the Rescue, Now Stumbles in Aid Effort

Nearly three weeks after Hurricane Katrina cut its devastating path, FEMA - the same federal agency that botched the rescue mission - is faltering in its effort to aid hundreds of thousands of storm victims, local officials, evacuees and top federal relief officials say. The federal aid hot line mentioned by President Bush in his address to the nation on Thursday cannot handle the flood of calls, leaving thousands of people unable to get through for help, day after day.

Federal officials are often unable to give local governments permission to proceed with fundamental tasks to get their towns running again. Most areas in the region still lack federal help centers, the one-stop shopping sites for residents in need of aid for their homes or families. Officials say that they are uncertain whether they can meet the president's goal of providing housing for 100,000 people who are now in shelters by the middle