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Scripted vs. Open Campaigns

Over on Salon Table Talk, the Howard Dean thread is still alive and kicking. Several people are talking about phone-banking for campaigns where the organizers insist that callers follow a script--which many would-be volunteers find insulting and many callees find a total turnoff. I was moved to respond as follows:

To me the scripted calls point once again to the fundamental difference between the Dean and Kerry campaigns. The latter is still, fundamentally, a classic media-driven campaign run from the top with the troops told to keep in line. What inspired me about the Dean campaign was its openness and willingness to hear and let others hear what supporters have to say, even at the risk of some of us going "off message."

I could be naive, but it seems to me that, "Let a thousand flowers bloom" will generate a lot more excitement than trying to impose a rigid frame on a process whose outcome should be to excite and involve as many different people as possible. Our big tent has room for lots of acts. posted by John McCreery 10:37 PM

Pulitzer Prize Winner

Here's the portfolio for Matt Davies, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartoons today. The one for 10/31/03 (on the second page) certainly sums up the outsourcing fears of the average worker. And 12/21/03? Yowza. posted by Opus 163 10:19 PM

Rwanda… remembering genocide far greater than Iraq

Lord Rummy likes to tie in genocide with his “Saddam Hussein was a legitimate threat” sales pitch. But Stalin-clone Saddam didn’t come close to butchering 800,000 in 100 days. That’s the record and that’s what came down in Rwanda a decade ago. The speed and scale of the genocide drop Hitler and Pol Pot into 2nd and 3rd place. The ruling Hutu, who are taller and lighter-skinned and represent only 15% of the population vamped on the shorter, darker Tutsi who comprise about 80% of the population and some of their own "moderates". The best Madeline Albright's State Department could do was nothing. The best Bill Clinton could do was apologize after the fact. These 100 days make anything that has come down in Iraq pale by comparison. At the high end, Saddam's genocide may have filled Yankee Stadium to near capacity. Visualize eight "big houses"- the 104,000 football stadium at the University of Michigan filled with people watching the Wolverines play Ohio State, and they all are crispy critters in 3 months- and you've got the Rwanda genocide. Would that have happened if Rwanda was sitting on as much oil as Iraq?

Now segue to Sunni and Shia. Civil war in Iraq. Further Vietnamization and US kids being drafted and dying as global rent-a-cops for a “war on terror” based on lies. Do you think this is what Paul Bremer is thinking when he works on his tan at his “retreat” on the French Riviera, far from Baghdad? John Kerry and leading Democrats want to up the troop levels, hedging their bets by calling for more international forces. What part of exit strategy don’t they understand?
posted by Groom Lake 9:48 AM

Sani-flush

Tom Kean told the world he was surprised when he learned that his commission report would have to be vetted by the White House. After all, the media have been hyping the story with Watergate intensity. The problem is that regardless of what the unredacted report says, no consequences or accountability will arise from it. This commission was created by the president himself. Shrubby and Turdblossom sat on the project for over a year to prevent any action from being taken that might let the "truth" get out.

The blowback, in terms of "lessons learned" might at best carry enough political fallout to bump a few polls for a few weeks... depending on how long it takes the White House to vet the document. The media and the body politic are all too quick to forget that this is the commission that “Hurrying Heinz” Kissinger was supposed to head up- at the behest of the White House- in a big time rush to judgment. But Heinzl had a few conflicts of interest, notably his Saudi connections. Will presumptive Dem candidate Kerry wait until the White House ends its sitzkrieg on the Kean report or will he go on the offensive?

Drop a few ping-pong balls of American political history into the toilet and flush and what comes up...The Rosenberg trial. The Warren Commission and then the Stokes Commission. The Kean Commission is just another... “forget it, Jake… it’s Chinatown.”

posted by Groom Lake 2:10 AM

Sunday, April 04, 2004

Brilliant minds,

and all that -- cartoonists Tom Tomorrow and Ted Rall. posted by Michael Scott 11:43 PM

Unintended Consequences: Notes from Another World

This morning's Asahi Shimbun (Japan's most liberal national daily) frontpages a story that begins by reporting a study by a Korean sociologist of admissions to Korea's elite universities. The study reveals not only that children of wealthier parents have a better chance of being admitted (that's an old story) but (here's the point) their chances have been steadily improving. As in other aspects of society class divisions are hardening and the gap between rich and poor in their children's life chances is widening.

That, too, might simply be seen as part of an on-going global trend, as the combination of market fundamentalism and its corollary, an increasingly unstable economic environment, steepen the Pareto curve that represents the distribution of incomes and other goods. The story continues, however, by introducing a local twist.

For several years now, debate about Japanese education has been focused on the proposition that, while very good indeed for producing assembly line workers and white-collar drones for large bureaucracies, six-day-a-week schooling focused largely on rote memorization of the answers to multiple choice tests has stifled the creativity required for Japan to compete in global markets. The result has been a shift to yutori kyoiku, "relaxed education," meaning primarily a shift from six to five days a week. The idea driving this shift is that children given more time to play will naturally become more creative.

The problem is that well-off parents have responded by paying for more hours of juku, cram schooling designed to ensure that their children will pass the entrance exams to get into elite universities that are still seen as the primary track for achieving a successful career. Kids from poorer families that can't afford juku are, thanks to the shorter school week, less prepared than before to compete with their wealthier peers. Thus, the pattern discovered in Korea also applies to Japan.

Pursuing the logic of this process, one is forced wonder what will become of a society with stultified elites and the (hypothetically) more creative poor excluded from the corridors of power. posted by John McCreery 9:59 PM

Mexico City Blues

The Dems have a Mexico problem and Tom Friedman’s column today shows that he’s not part of the solution. Back in the early 50’s, when Jack Kerouac was in Mexico City writing benzedrine poetry at 212 Orizaba Street, nobody was telling our neighbors they should take on more debt to build an I-95 corridor from the Guatemala border right up to Nuevo Laredo and they shouldn’t be doing so today. But that’s what Freidman suggests.

In a patently racist slur, Friedman argues that this and other “global economy“ infrastructure projects are needed now… in order to prevent Mexicans from “flocking to a theatre near you.” Maybe Tom needs to leave his Pulitzer on the wall and mosey over to Allen-Edmonds to find a pair of Earl Butz classic “loose shoes.”

The Dems continue to beat their chests over NAFTA rather than view Mexico as a full partner in an integrated North American economy. They have difficulty coming to grips with the fact that the view of the US held by governments in Mexico City and in non-puppetized South American capitals has changed radically since 9/11. Brazil has forged closer ties with China, Japan and Europe. Argentina looks to the mother countries of Italy and Spain and Europe. Peru is an economic mess and has an increasing US covert presence in the “war on drugs.”

Friedman suggests “outside the box thinking” on Latin policy. Dem Go-to Guy on Latin America, Bob Pastor, is son-in-law of Robert McNamara and brings little new to the potty. One time Dem Latin debt reduction pimp Torricelli has been discredited. A new face is needed, one that can earn the trust of Latin leaders, not just dangle the phony bone of “full NAFTA membership” in front of their noses. Does presumptive Dem presidential candidate John Kerry have somebody in mind… South America knows Mexico is not part of Latin America anymore. But many US lawmakers and business leaders still see Mexico as part of Latin America. Bick mistake. Are you listening AFL-CIO?

The reality is that when it comes to NAFTA, Latin America need not apply. With all the conditions, notably, becoming part of the “coalition of the willing” it is mitomania. Ask Chile’s “socialist” leader Ricardo Lagos for details. The vaunted MERCOSUR Latin American free trade organization, the pride of Poppy Bush free trade pimps, has degenerated into the ineffectual morass every “Inter-American” organization is destined to become.

Whatever the Dems do, the most moving recommendations for the South America and Mexico may come in October, just before the US elections, when Pope John Paul II visits Guadalajara, Mexico. For its part, Mexico and Mexicans must continue to search for their own political and economic identity within the framework of NAFTA. Most Mexicans don't understand NAFTA, or even know what it is. Some of the Mexico's best and brightest, notably Adolfo Aguilar Zinser and Jorge Casteneda are conflicted about NAFTA. But that's their problem, not Washington's or Tom Friedman's for that matter.

What Tom Friedman needs to be reminded of is that little has changed since FDR fronted the creation of an “Inter-American system” to Nelson Rockefeller on the eve of World War II. The script was and is to keep the US at the top of the mountain. Whether it’s flight capital, drug money or baksheesh infrastructure projects the capital gets cycled back into the US economy. Eso es la sistema “interamericana.”

It only costs $25 to take a bus 400 miles from Matamoros, Mexico up to Houston, Texas. That’s ten bucks less than what it costs to ride from Port Authority to Washington, DC. That’s a ride that Tom Friedman and John Kerry ought to take. They’ll find that the bus will contain folks who flew from Havana to Mexico, Guatemalans and Salvadorans who rode up from Tapachula. Most possessing a good work ethic (some are delinquentes), in search of opportunities created by a generation of Americans raised on pixie sticks and crack who prefer smash and grab to earn the money to buy their new Game Boy (or game girl). Like Tom Friedman says right “out of the box.”
posted by Groom Lake 7:23 PM

The AP is not happy.

Check out Jim Krane's wire piece, about the Iraq Press Office. After a couple of paragraphs detailing the staff's connections to Bush and his campaign, there's this snarky gem:

One of the main goals of the Office of Strategic Communications - known as stratcom - is to ensure Americans see the positive side of the Bush administration's invasion, occupation and reconstruction of Iraq, where 600 U.S. soldiers have died and a deadly insurgency thrives.

That's Nedra Pickler-esque. Next, Jim sets up two paragraphs and then tees off with the third:

Senor, spokesman for the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority, said his office is guided by ethical "red lines" that prevent it from crossing into the Bush campaign.
"We have an obligation to communicate with the U.S. Congress and the American people, given that they're spending almost $20 billion in Iraq and have committed over 100,000 U.S. troops here," Senor said in an interview with The Associated Press.
Earlier in his career, after Hebrew University and Harvard Business School, Senor was with the Carlyle Group, an investment firm with Bush family ties and big defense industry holdings. Senor jogged in a Thanksgiving Day race here wearing a "Bush-Cheney 2004" T-shirt.

There's lots more. Go read.

posted by Opus 163 2:00 PM

It's Happening, It's Happening, Get on Board

A week ago, I was in Edinburgh, attending the the largest global caucus and convention in the 40-year history of Democrats Abroad. The attendance was just the latest sign of what we are seeing worldwide. A year ago we had 30 country committees. Now we have nearly 60, either formed or in formation. Our membership is booming, and our February caucuses were packed to two or three times expected turnout.

We are also getting news coverage we never got before. Here, for example, is Ian Mackenzie writing us up in Reuters. (I'm tickled, I must say, to get a couple of quotes.)

It's been a week in which the Kerry Campaign announced raising $50 million last quarter. My most recent message from Democrats Abroad Executive Director Emeritus Tom Fina carries the transcript of a Bill Moyer interview with John Dean, who has joined Paul O'Neil and Richard Clark by publishing his own damning book about the Bush administration, WORSE THAN WATERGATE: THE SECRET PRESIDENCY OF GEORGE W. BUSH.

Now, here comes Gadflyer with a great interview with Ellen Malcolm, founder and president of EMILY's list and now president of America Coming Together, which is trying to raise $95 million for a state-of-the-smart get out the vote effort for Democratic candidates all up and down the line in 17 key battleground states.

There's a hell of a lot going on, and the big tent has lots of acts. So come on, don't just comment. Get on board. The time to act is NOW.

posted by John McCreery 9:03 AM

Funny? You killed out there!

When I first heard about Bush's WMD jokes at the press club dinner, these are exactly the war images I thought would be appropriate to edit interspersed with them, to make an effective antiwar/antiBush ad. Many thanks to Jason Woliner for this.

posted by Michael Scott 5:19 AM

Saturday, April 03, 2004

Battle in Spain

From Debka:

" First battle with al Qaeda in European capital leaves at least four dead. Explosion set off by three suspects in March Madrid railway 5. Bombers holed up in apartment building in Leganes suburb of SW Madrid said died in blast bombings during raid kills at least one Spanish police officer, injures 1singing Arabic songs. Area cordoned off as 40 apartments evacuated. Spanish interior minister reported fourth terrorist may have escaped before area sealed off. Fifteen held earlier - 11 members of al Qaeda-linked Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group."

"Spanish army and helicopters guarding railways after finding bomb Friday on high-speed Madrid-Seville railway track."

Scary stuff. Hopefully this wakes up Europeans to the reality of what we're up against. Most have been through it before, with the IRA, Basque separatists, Red Brigades, etc., but this is different. These muslim extremists seem to be growing in number and more willing to give up on the idea of a "spectacular" terror attack, instead going for backpack type bombs. I think the terrorists who blew up the train stations in Madrid didn't even kill themselves, like they normally do. With the 3/11 attack in Spain, the arrests in England, and the recent Government warnings of possible attacks on busses and trains in the U.S., it's shaping up to be a long summer. posted by FPN Staff 5:09 PM

Vietnamizing the “other war”

Colombia’s neo-fascist narcocrat Alvaro Uribe flew in for a lightly publicized White House visit last week and said he wants more US troops and contract mercenaries for the “war on drugs.” This plays right into the hand of NSC second banana Elliot Abrams and his mestizophobe buddy, Assistant Secretary of State Otto Johan Reich… they want to use Colombia as a platform to further lean on neighboring Venezuela, which sits on more oil than Iraq.

To sweeten the bargain, Colombia would send a contingent of troops to Iraq help offset the 1,300 soldiers Spain plans to withdraw from the “coalition.” US taxpayers provide more aid to Colombia than any other nation except Israel and Egypt and, like Iraq, there is no yardstick to measure the bang for the buck. Old media editors don’t budget much space for “Latin America” news these days. The “war on drugs” has always had more to do with helping insure that the drugs trade is dominated by politically reliable factions than with stopping or reducing the flow of drugs. Like they say in the Army… smoke ‘em if you got ‘em…
posted by Groom Lake 1:12 PM

Offline

I'm away until late Tuesday for my father-in-law's funeral. I'm sure the rest of the BtotheB gang will keep you informed, amused and/or agitated in my absence. posted by Jerry Bowles 12:55 PM

Rent-a-Soldiers

In interviews on TV, the families of the mercenaries killed in Iraq all stress how much their loved ones "wanted to help people" and believed '"they were doing good in Iraq.' A natural thing to say, of course, but you would think that at least one honest family member would mention that these guys were being paid more than a thousand dollars a day. Beats riding a squad car around Detroit and is probably less dangerous most of the time.

Update: Kathryn Cramer has an excellent post on this topic. posted by Jerry Bowles 8:24 AM

Friday, April 02, 2004

Think Bush is Toast? Think Again

How might Bush still screw thee? Let me count the ways:

1. Osama surfaces. Some of us tinfoil-hatters think Rumsfeld already has him on ice somewhere, waiting for the optimal moment to bring him out of his spider-hole. Of course, if Osama is really still at large, there's practically zero chance he'll be caught between now and November. I mean, it's not like a 6'7" man hooked up to a dialysis machine whose image has been broadcast worldwide for the past three years would stand out anywhere.

2. Castro dies. This would be a godsend for Bush, because post-Castro Cuba might well become Bay of Pigs II: Vengeance Served Cold. Before the anti-Castro Cubans in Florida make a near-complete exodus back to the homeland, however, they'll probably all vote for Dubya on their way out. (If that happens -- mark my words -- thirty years from now President-for-Life Jenna Bush will be naming Ahmed Chalabi Emperor of the Principality of Gitmo.)

3. 9-11 II. This one gives me the heebie-jeebies, particularly since media members of the RoveBorg (yes, I'm talkin' 'bout you, David Brooks) seem to be panting in anticipation of such an attack, preferably just before the election.

4. Deus Ex Scalia II. Let's say, in an improbable misalignment of the stars and planets, Bush actually wins the popular vote, but loses the electoral college (sound familiar?). The Supreme Court takes up his case, and, in a breathless fit, Scalia announces for another (the same) bare majority, "Ohmigod! I mean, we rilly rilly need to uphold democracy here, and so, we're declaring the Electoral College unconstitutional, and handing the election to Bush again, this time because he won the popular vote."
posted by Michael Scott 6:04 PM

He Took 13 Items Through the Express Lane, Too

This morning Evelyn Keyes noted that Richard Clarke is holding up well as the slime storm aimed at discrediting his 9/11 revelations continues. And he is--but there are more skeletons in his closet that are only now being revealed. The horror . . . the horror. . . . posted by James Bartlett 5:27 PM

Madame Albright

Last night I was invited to attend a book lecture by Madeleine Albright at a private club in Manhattan. The audience was elite upper East Side, and included two former ambassadors.

It should come as no surprise that Albright considers our current time as one of the most perilous in U.S. history. Having just flown in on a red eye, she presumably experienced the ritual of airport shoe removal that reminds us all of how close we are to being attacked again.

The Q and A brought out one or two interesting bits. On a question about the U.N., Albright of course spoke for the need to re-constitute its power and prestige, but also pointed out that the U.S. cannot rely on U.N. peacekeepers to do its mission around the world. She supports the notion of an interventionist force which could on a moment’s notice address issues like Rawanda in the nineties or the humanitarian disaster of Southern Sudan today. Jerry Bowles has argued several times in this blog for something similar.

When asked if 9/11 had occurred when she was Secretary, what would have happened, her reply was that she had no doubt that “President Gore” would have done exactly the same thing. I am sorry to note that even in this educated crowd there were scattered hand claps.

However, she went on to state that her Administration would not have pursued the same policy in the months that followed. She questioned the wisdom and timing of the Iraq war in the months following, at the same time noting that removing Saddam Hussein was a worthy goal. As she noted, Afghanistan has deteriorated to the point where Kharzai is “Mayor of Kabul.”

The one question I wanted to ask, but didn’t, was “under what circumstances is it the right thing for the Secretary of State to resign?” Does Powell need to be more publicly revealed in his inability to influence policy? His behavior reminds me of conventional marital wisdom along the lines of, “Well, you don’t know that she (the wife) is as powerless as it would seem; you never know what goes on behind closed doors.” But does Powell have to start claiming that the bruises on his face are from walking into the door again? Evelyn Keyes posted by Jerry Bowles 3:18 PM

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier… Texan

There’s been a "sighting," not at the Jo-burg Airport, but in Dallas. James A. Baker III, Shrubby’s special envoy to Iraq is on the banquet circuit, preaching to the choir (reg. requd.) about the “bad news TV brings into our homes” and why the international community should forgive Iraq’s debt. As a former treasury secretary and sometime plain dealer, maybe Jimmy Threesticks ought to be talking about the across the board risk the “twin towers” of foreign debt and negative trade balance pose to the good old USA. On the other hand, when you hang with Baker Botts and the Carlyle Group you don’t wanna go there, either.
posted by Groom Lake 3:03 PM

More Labor Dept. Lies

As John Kerry and the Dems release an ad that attacks the Bush economy, the Labor Department reports that 308,000 new jobs were created in March. Even conservative newspapers like the Detroit News out the White House for cherry picking economic information. The statistics for March are based on “revised statistics” for January and February. In reality, unemployment edged upward in March. Maybe the Labor Department should stick to something we know they can do, namely, telling employers how to avoid paying their workers overtime pay.
posted by Groom Lake 2:00 PM

Bush Team Jacking McCain-Feingold

While the blame game over 9/11 provides convenient distraction, Turdblossom Rove and his political operators are engaged in legal action to cut off the money supply for "527 organizations", the kind that George Soros operates. Harold Meyerson wrote a great piece about it in the American Prospect last month. The old media don't wanna go there, however. posted by Groom Lake 1:20 PM

All Richard, All the Time

Not that I’ve seen all his interviews, and only part of the 9/11 testimony, but I must say Richard Clarke is holding up remarkably well. Not a hair from his silver head was set aflame on Chris Matthews the other night, and that was after the slimers had thrown him everything they could, including his supposed sexual proclivities.

Why has Clarke gotten so under the White House skin? After all, as has been noted here by Jerry Bowles and earlier in the week by Eric Alterman, Clarke’s central “revelation” that the Bush Administration was focused elsewhere before 9/11 is hardly news. Bush even admitted the same to Bob Woodward.

Then why the fuss? Because Clarke is linking – every time he gets the chance – the 9/11 failure to the extremely bad judgment of pursuing a war in Iraq. At one level, what is a discussion of the Iraq war doing in an investigation into 9/11?

But does anyone out there doubt that he has every right to do so?

After all, it was not simply a distraction from the war on terror, the Iraq adventure was --and is being -- promoted by the White House as the next step in the War on Terror, hammering at every opportunity and with great success that 9/11 was caused by Saddam. Polls indicated at the time of the war that a majority of Americans believed that the war was necessary because Saddam was in league with Al Qaeda.

So here we have the best laid plans coming unglued. It’s as if Clarke is saying: “You want 9/11 to justify your war? I’ll give you 9/11.” Evelyn Keyes posted by Jerry Bowles 11:36 AM

It Just Keeps Getting Better:

Prosecutors Are Said to Have Expanded Inquiry Into Leak of C.I.A. Officer's Name

By DAVID JOHNSTON and RICHARD W. STEVENSON, WaPo

Prosecutors investigating whether someone in the Bush administration improperly disclosed the identity of a C.I.A. officer have expanded their inquiry to examine whether White House officials lied to investigators or mishandled classified information related to the case, lawyers involved in the case and government officials say.

I think the Bush administration lying has now reached critical mass. Stand back -- and here, wear these safety goggles.
posted by Michael Scott 12:30 AM

Old Dogs, Old Tricks

The Bushies are up to their old tricks again. Seems they are withholding from the 9/11 Commission most of the documents it requested from the Clinton era. Wouldn't want anyone to think that Clinton was paying more attention to the threat of terrorism than they were, now would we? Is there any level to which these morally bankrupt political hacks will not stoop? posted by Jerry Bowles 12:14 AM

Thursday, April 01, 2004

Why the dopes still love him

Reading Jim Bartlett's post on Americans who now believe that Bush has lied to them but still think that he has made the country more secure, a couple of thoughts occur to me.

First, I am reminded of abused wives who return to abusive husbands, ignoring the likelihood that what will happen is more abuse. Clinging to what you feel that you know can be less scary that stepping off into the unknown--especially if the unknown is someone who represents attitudes that you have learned to demonize. Or, as the cliché has it, "Better the devil you know...."

Second, there is the underlying belief my right-wing brother articulates, that acting tough makes us more secure. It's a nasty world out there and protecting ourselves means that, "We gotta be the baddest boy on the block." Us folks on the civilized left need to figure out how to combat that view, and not just intellectually.

There is plenty of evidence, from gang wars in the hood to Sharon-style Middle East "peacekeeping" that what being the baddest boy on the block gets you is resentment, hatred and shot in the back. But guys like my brother don't want to see it. The emotional appeal of "We gotta kick butt" is too strong.

The only hope I can see is to counter with Teddy Roosevelt's advice to "speak softly but carry a big stick." Speaking softly alone won't do. Reviving that old-fashioned hero who is quiet, polite, a real buddy to his friends AND can take down the baddy when necessary could be just what we need. posted by John McCreery 9:42 PM

More Ammunition from the Right

The libertarian Cato Institute's Doug Bandow socks it to Bush in this morning's Japan Times.

In a piece titled "Bush bears the burden of proof," Bandow concludes as follows,

At no point have the president or his advisers accepted responsibility. At worst, they appear to be conscious liars. At best they seem deceitful and manipulative. That doesn't mean that Clarke is right and the administration is wrong. But it does mean people are understandably suspicious of administration excuses.

Indeed, it's why Bush's trustworthiness ratings have fallen. The president and administration officials have no one to blame but themselves. Instead of attempting to trash Clarke's reputation, the president should work to rehabilitate his own. A verbal acknowledgment of responsibility for past misstatements would be nice. Firing someone would be even better.

Trust, once squandered, is hard to regain. Which is why the administration risks losing its high-stakes showdown with Clarke -- and the election in November.

Let's hear it for truth tellers, both right and left.

posted by John McCreery 9:28 PM

What do Britney Spears and Bill O'Reilly have in common?

I was flying the other day and, as I do when the plane is full, tried to make the best of it by striking up a conversation with someone.

The man two seats over was a Bill O'Reilly supporter--a real fan--and wanted to know if I'm a fan too. Decidedly not, I said. O'Reilly is a braggart who can't seem to tell the difference between fact and opinion, and the callers on his radio show are stupid. He has an obnoxious personality, and if somebody with his personality was sitting on this plane, I wouldn't talk to him because I don't like that kind of personality.

But this guy thought O'Reilly was wonderful. And this guy gave me the impression that he would think exactly the way O'Reilly wanted him to think, just as teenage girls think exactly the way their heroes of the moment think. Remember when Britney Spears was the rage for teenage girls? Well, to this guy, Bill O'Reilly is Britney Spears--but O'Reilly never grows up, never changes, and never goes out of style. He loves Bill O'Reilly.

I think lots of men are just like teenage girls in that regard. They have their heroes, and they identify with them so strongly that, if their heroes are for Bush, they're for Bush too. There must be many so-called Bush supporters out there who aren't exactly Bush supporters but are rather Rush supporters or O'Reilly supporters or [name your right-wing hero] supporters. And if their hero supports Bush, they'll support Bush, too. In that sense, support for Bush among these people is somewhat soft. But it hardly matters, because the Bush surrogate (Rush or O'Reilly or whoever) has a lock on their thinking.
posted by Vicki Meagher 5:14 PM

We Think You're a Dope But We Still Love You

From the L.A. Times this morning comes a poll that says more than half of Americans think Bush didn't take terrorism seriously enough before 9/11. By 57 to 37, Americans think Bush focused more on Iraq than on dealing with terrorism. But at the same time, 59 percent think Bush has made the country more secure. To read Ron Brownstein's entire article on the poll is to get a look at just how incoherent public attitudes are right now. People think Bush botched the war on terror, but they still see him as a strong leader. They think the country is on the wrong track, but they approve of the job he's doing.

I don't claim to know much about philosophy, but I remember a shorthand explanation of what the Scottish skeptic David Hume was about--he argued that just because you see a consistent pattern of cause and effect, you can't necessarily assume that the same effects will forever follow the same causes. And it occurs to me that we're living in a time that's starting to prove he's right. Where official mendacity and catastrophic failure always used to get leaders in trouble, now it doesn't. Professor Hume, call your office. posted by James Bartlett 1:07 PM

It's Not Just Body Armor

John Kerry picked a bad day to be MIA. The horrific violence in Falluja yesterday produced not just a defining moment in which all of the Bush administration's near criminal mismanagement of the Iraq occupation came into sharp focus but also the kind of defining images that re-shape public opinion. In 1972, a single photograph of a naked little Vietnamese girl screaming in terror as she ran away from a napalmed village turned the tide of public support for the war in Viet Nam. Whether the Falluja photographs have a similar effect depends on whether the media--especially TV--has the courage to show them.

Kerry needs to release a statement today that says something like:

"Like all Americans, I am appalled and horrified by the killing and mutilation of four civilian contractors in Falluja yesterday. These tragic events tell us clearly that the administration's plan to turn Iraq over to an Iraqi governing body on June 30 and begin reducing the number of coalition troops--before the most basic level security is established--is both premature and dangerous.

"Without debating again the merits of invading Iraq in the first place, the reality is that we are there and we have an obligation to make certain that the 600 young Americans who have been killed there, so far, did not die in vain. The greatest tribute to their memory would be a free, democratic Iraq that could serve as a model for reshaping the Middle East and reducing the threat of terrorism.

"Iraq deperately needs more coalition troops--not fewer. Americans are not safe anywhere in Iraq. Our troops are overworked and undermanned. The process of self-government and re-building cannot possibly succeed until basic law and order is established and there are not enough troops on the ground to do that.

"Unfortunately, as it did in Afghanistan, the Bush administration has failed to commit the resources to get the job done alone or displayed the level of cooperation that would allow allies with large armed forces--like Germany, France and Russia--to assist us.

"We cannot allow election year politics to undermine the ultimate success of our mission, which is to leave Iraq a far better and safer place than it was when we arrived. If I am elected president, I pledge to build an international consensus that will provide us with the troops, and resources, to get the job done right. To demonstrate that America is unified in its commitment, I ask that President Bush join me and pledge to do the same." posted by Jerry Bowles 11:38 AM

Dumbo Drop

Okay, Condi is lying. But questioning Shrubby and puppetmeister Lord Cheney in the same room at the same time violates the number one rule of investigation, namely, keep your suspects separate in order to vet out inconsistencies. The battle over executive privilege and getting to the truth of the matter should be focused on Bush and Cheney, not on Rice-a-roni. Now the Kean Commission must play a mother may I game. It’s time for Kerry and the Dem leadership to ask why our president can’t answer questions alone. Does the Dickster need to be there to change his diapers? posted by Groom Lake 11:26 AM

Finally!

We've heard Hans Blix, David Kay and many others come out and say that there are no WMD's in Iraq. Well it has finally happened. Our Great Leader has now come out, on the record, and admitted the truth. "There are no WMD's in Iraq". Story here. posted by FPN Staff 11:02 AM

Space Case

Condi is a li-ar, Condi is a li-ar. posted by Jerry Bowles 9:10 AM