Bedtime open thread

Off to bed for me. Chat away. Read More......

Pat Boone says Cindy Sheehan is a pot smoker

I am so not kidding.

My favorite part of what Boone had to say was how Cindy and the other anti-Bush protesters are the same people who were protesting against Vietnam (gee, smelling a Swift Boat-style attack here against Cindy Sheehan?). I assume Boone means we now know that the Vietnam protesters were wrong and that the Vietnam war was really a great idea that went spectacularly well.

Yes, Iraq war supporters believe Vietnam is the model for success.

Why does George Bush hate grieving mothers? Read More......

Bush trying to weaken UN language about climate change and helping the poor

Ok folks, it's time the rest of the world stood up and flipped the US the finger. Please, help us. 50% of us can't stand this man, please stand up to him, tell him you're not going to let him destroy the planet and leave people to starve.

This article is simply disgusting. The rest of the world could stand up to Bush and make a stink, finally, about his irrational and dangerous policies. Read More......

Time for another open thread

So, in a week or two, the blogosphere should be fully back from vacation. Wondering what the big issue will be - Rove, Iraq... Read More......

Iraqi Constitution Misses Latest Deadline; Situation Growing Dire

The NYT says negotiations are reaching a "breaking point" and Sunnis threatening to tell their people to reject it in October. (What do they call what they've been doing?) It doesn't look good right now.... Read More......

Lead gay rights groups oppose John Roberts

From HRC, NGLTF, NCLR and PFLAG:

WASHINGTON – The Human Rights Campaign, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays put out a united statement today to announce opposition to John G. Roberts' nomination to the Supreme Court...

Read More......

How many Bush Administration officials does it take to screw in a light bulb?

None.

Nothing is wrong with the light bulb; its conditions are improving every day.

Any reports of its lack of incandescence are a delusional spin from the liberal media.

That light bulb has served honorably, and anything you say undermines the lighting effect.

Why do you hate freedom?

(Just something cute someone emailed me)

I just got emailed an updated, and better, version from Stephen:

How many Bush administration officials does it take to change a light
bulb?

1. One to deny that a light bulb needs to be changed;

2. One to attack the patriotism of anyone who says the light bulb needs
to be changed;

3. One to blame Clinton for burning out the light bulb;

4. One to arrange the invasion of a country rumored to have a secret
stockpile of light bulbs;

5. One to give a billion dollar no-bid contract to Halliburton for the
new light bulb;

6. One to arrange a photograph of Bush, dressed as a janitor,
standing on a step ladder under the banner: Light Bulb Change Accomplished;

7. One administration insider to resign and write a book documenting
in detail how Bush was literally in the dark;

8. One to viciously smear #7;

9. One surrogate to campaign on TV and at rallies on how George Bush
has had a strong light-bulb-changing policy all along;

10. And finally one to confuse Americans about the difference between
screwing a light bulb and screwing the country.

Read More......

Iraq Just Like America in 1776...Not

The only thing Bush changes more than his excuse for invading Iraq is what he compares this unnecessary war to in order to make it seem noble. Bush and his supporters have compared the conflict to World War II, World War I, the Revolutionary War and just about anything else you can think of except Vietnam. Now they're comparing the writing of the constitution of Iraq to America's own Constitutional process. As Bill Maher said on his Friday show, give me a break: for one thing, Alexander Hamilton's people weren't responsible for the genocidal killing of tens of thousands of Benjamin Franklin's people. For another, the writing of the Constitution wasn't interrupted by violence like this in Iraq:

In violence today, armed insurgents locked a family of seven in a single room in Khadra, western Baghdad, placed explosives throughout the house, and then exploded them. Two women and five men were killed in the blasts, an Interior Ministry official said.

Two roadside bombs blew up as an armed convoy used by President Talabani was traveling south of Kirkuk to Baghdad, the local police said. Insurgents then opened fire, killing two bodyguards and wounding six, Brig. Sarhad Qadir of the Kirkuk police said.

Oh and in a very related event, 36 more bodies of men were found naked and slaughtered on a border town near Iran. No civil war to see here, keep moving. Read More......

McCain wants to teach fables as science, too

Shouldn't be a huge surprise, but McCain wants to the teaching of Bible stories as science in classrooms:

McCain told the Star that, like Bush, he believes "all points of view" should be available to students studying the origins of mankind.

The theory of intelligent design says life is too complex to have developed through evolution, and that a higher power must have had a hand in guiding it.

Read More......

Open thread

Really really really considering a nap... Read More......

Does new UK anti-terror law require deportation of UK and US religious right leaders?

Sure sounds like it, this should be fun.

Next time Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, or anyone working for the religious right visits the UK, I want to see our loyal British readers petition their government to have these people deported for fostering hate in violation of anti-terror laws. In fact, you can petition your government right now to put these people on an official watch list:

Clarke also said a "database of individuals around the world who have demonstrated these unacceptable behaviors will be developed" and made available to immigration officers monitoring those entering Britain. He did not specify who would compile the list or how extensive it might be.

More on this story here:

The British government will deport and ban people who "foment, justify or glorify terrorist violence," the country's top law enforcement official announced Wednesday.

Home Secretary Charles Clarke outlined the new policy, the most detailed explanation to date of proposals announced this month by Prime Minister Tony Blair. Clarke said a list of "unacceptable behaviors" includes the use of Web sites, writing, preaching, publishing or distributing materials that "seek to provoke others to terrorist acts" or "foster hatred."

"Individuals who seek to create fear, distrust and division in order to stir up terrorist activity will not be tolerated by the government or by our communities," Clarke said.

Well this should be easy. Pat Robertson has called for the State Dept to be nuked and for the assassination of a foreign head of state, and let's not forget his thinly-veiled threats against 3 sitting US Supreme Court justices. As for fostering hatred, there is ample evidence to convict Britain's and America's religious right of that.

They wanted a war on terror, let's give them one. They wanted a government that throws citizens in jail with no due process, let's give them one. They want to live in a society where anyone can be imprisoned simply because of their minority views, let's give them one. Read More......

TIME magazine tried to influence the 2004 election to Bush's favor

Bastards. What is this, Star Trek or something? The Prime Directive doesn't let TIME magazine do its job if that job will affect the world around us?

So TIME is now saying its purpose in life is NEVER to do ANYTHING that might influence US politics. I guess that means TIME can shut down its politics division, no more writers or editors needed for that.

Read what E&P; found in today's LA Times story that Michael cites in the post below:

The article details conversations involving Karl Rover, “Scooter” Libby, Matt Cooper and Robert Novak. But near its conclusion it raises an emerging issue, promoted by Michael Wolff of Vanity Fair, among others: If Time magazine had gone public about Rove’s conversations with Cooper it might have had some impact on the Bush-Kerry race for the White House last year.

Not until this summer did Cooper ask Rove for a waiver to talk to the grand jury, and ultimately the public, about their conversation. The L.A. Times article today notes that he did not do this before “because his lawyer advised against it.” But the reporters add that in addition “Time editors were concerned about becoming part of such an explosive story in an election year.”

The story concludes: "The result was that Cooper's testimony was delayed nearly a year, well after Bush's reelection.”

This is a point that, as E&P; notes, Vanity Fair makes in its current issue. The mainstream media was complicit in hiding this story for two years from the American people. And we now find out that TIME intentionally influenced a US election as a result.

It's one thing for TIME to do its job and ignore the effects of its reporting and overall work on US elections, it's quite another for TIME to make decisions BASED ON whether they'll influence US elections. That's about as journalistically unethical as it comes, and makes TIME no better than FOX News. Read More......

RoveGate: The Cliff Notes

Here's your chance to catch up on RoveGate, the outing of a CIA agent by the White House during a time of war and Bush's lies to the American people. The LA Times tells it all in this doozy, from Cheney's simmering disdain for the CIA to Powell's desperate attempts to make sure his UN speech wasn't filled with hearsay (close, but no cigar). It's a great primer. (I only took issue with the wording of one sentence.) And the sweetest info comes at the very end:

Individuals close to the case say that Fitzgerald is likely to wrap up his inquiry this fall.

Read More......

Open thread

Just got up. Coffee headache in full swing (it is 4pm in Paris, after all). Off on a search and destroy mission for a major cup of Joe. Read More......

No News Here, Just keep moving

Just heard the promo from Matt Lauer on our local news about the Today show this morning. Okay, here it is: a look inside the jail in Aruba where that kid is being held; an update on Olivia Newton-John's missing boyfriend; and what life is like on Death Row for Scott Petersen. Wow. A major news trifecta.

Who says the MSM doesn't cover real news? Read More......

Cindy is back in Crawford

She's returned to Crawford. Interesting that Bush and the White House had to make major travel and logisticial arrangements so he could travel to Utah and Idaho basically just to bad-mouth Cindy Sheehan. All he has to do is walk down the road and he could talk to her face to face. Instead, he uses the bully pulpit of his failing presidency to beat up on a mother who lost his son because of his lies. What a wuss. He keeps telling us about how much nerve he has. Not enough to talk to Cindy Sheehan. It's really creepy that he has gone to such lengths to trash the woman. Major presidential speeches in the reddest of red states. Amazing, but not surprising that the MSM lets him get away with this crap. Read More......

Late Night Open Thread

Get us through the night Read More......