Open thread

News? Read the rest of this post...

Affordable Suites hotel has policy of not renting to gay couples, employee says

Big storm at Affordable Suites. And it's been confirmed by a local reporter posing as a gay couple. They turned away an inter-racial gay couple, and told them it's because they're gay.

From the local CBS affiliate:

A gay couple looking to rent a hotel room say they were turned away because of their sexuality.

"She wasn't discreet about it," said Jason Pickel, referring to a hotel employee. "She was not apologetic. She just said, 'We do not rent to gay people.'"....

News19 contacted the hotel, posing as a potential renter, and inquired about two men staying in the same room. The receptionist who answered the phone told us the following: “Our policy is we don’t rent to two people of the same sex if we only have one bed.” “Is that your policy,” we asked. “That’s corporate policy because they only have one sleeping area.” We then asked, “Okay, but they can't share the bed?” "I suppose they could, but most men don’t want to," she said.

The owner now says that there is no such policy to discriminate, but his employee was quite emphatic that there is. This is why we need civil rights laws. It is legal at the federal level, and in most states, to turn away gay couples from hotels simply because they are gay. That's wrong. That's why we have civil rights laws. Read the rest of this post...

Today was "one of Iraq's deadliest days in years"

John had a post earlier about the rampant violence in Iraq today. It was bad. It got worse. Much worse:

Five suicide bombers struck Shiite marketplaces in northeast Baghdad and a town north of the capital at nightfall Thursday, killing at least 122 people and wounding more than 150 in one of Iraq's deadliest days in years.

The savage attacks came as a new American ambassador began his first day on the job, and Senate Democrats ignored a veto threat and approved a bill to require President Bush to start withdrawing troops.

At least 178 people were killed or found dead Thursday, which marked the end of the seventh week of the latest U.S.-Iraqi military drive to curtail violence in Baghdad and surrounding regions.

The horrors continue unabated. Read the rest of this post...

Why nobody knows anything

The contempt with which media outlets sometimes treat the American public is simply astonishing. Time Magazine, to its credit, put together an extremely readable article on the Talibanization of western Pakistan, a nation of critical importance in the region. Pakistan also happens to be floundering, with widespread dissatisfaction towards leadership and increasing extremism in the population. I don't expect people to always be interested in the machinations of central Asian political development, but hey, Time decided to run with an important and fascinating issue. They even put the article on the cover . . .

. . . for every edition except the U.S. version! The cover story here? "Why we should teach the Bible in public schools." I kid you not. It's just like when Newsweek's cover article was "Losing Afghanistan" for every edition except the U.S. Ours? Annie Leibovitz.

Registan really has the best treatment (and the actual covers) of this:

In other words, while it might be nice to learn about how American policy is failing in the country that actually attacked us on September 11, the mainstream glossies seem to think we’re more interested in lesbians who photograph celebrities and the Kansas Board of Education . . . Why do these publications hate America? I can’t really say. But seeing how they treat us with such contempt is deeply illuminating, and probably good insight into why our leaders seem to make such puzzlingly bad decisions in "the broader Middle East."

This kind of stuff makes me insane. Read the rest of this post...

Family Research Council: Liars or just clueless?

I got an email today from the religious right lobbying group, Family Research Council. They're all upset that civil rights groups want to add gays, women, and people with disabilities to the already-existing federal hate crimes law. They claim that hate crimes laws are bad, even though the current federal hate crimes law already covers the religious right. You don't hear them ever mention that fact. They claim that the hate crimes laws will punish speech, even though the current law has been on the books for nearly 40 years and nobody has ever been punished for speech. But hey, nobody ever accused the Family Research Council of playing fair when it comes to homophobia.

You'll recall that the existing hate crimes law is a federal law that permits the Justice Department and the FBI to provide federal resources to local police forces when local crimes are motivated by the race, religion or national origin of the victim. The proposed amendment would add sexual orientation, gender and disability to the law as well - so that when crimes are motivated based on any of those categories, the feds could provide resources as well.

Note that currently the feds cannot get involved if there's a local hate crime. Under this law, they can. And that's a good thing. When Matthew Shepard was murdered in rural Wyoming, the local police force practically went broke over his cast. Federal resources can and do help.

In any case, I just find it interesting that the Family Research Council and the American Family Association, vocal opponents of hate crimes laws, haven't told their followers that the current hate crimes law, the law on the books, already covers them. Funny that FRC and AFA aren't publicly calling for themselves to be removed from the existing hate crimes law. Equally funny that in 40 years that the FRC and AFA have had their own hate crime special right, none of us have ever been prosecuted for our anti-religious-right speech (when FRC and AFA claim that this is what the law does, criminalizes speech critical of the protected classes - and
God knows I'm critical of their bigoted fat class).

I'd just like to see some enterprising journalist ask the FRC and the AFA why they're against civil rights for gays, but for special rights for themselves? And if hate crimes laws criminalize speech, then why is it no speech charges have been filed in the 40 years that the law has been on the books? Read the rest of this post...

Open thread

Anybody perjure themselves today? Read the rest of this post...

Sampson: Gonzales gave false testimony to Senate

From E&P;:

Specter asked about Attorney General Gonzales' "candor" in saying earlier this month that he was not a part of any discussions on the firings. He asked about the November 27, 2006 meeting "where there were discussions" and Gonzales allegedly attended. Was Gonzales' statement about taking part in no discussions accurate?

"I don't think it's accurate," Sampson said. "He recently clarified it. But he was present at the November 27 meeting."

"So he was involved in discussions in contrast to his statement" this month? Specter asked.

"Yes." Sampson replied.

Sen. Charles Schumer then asked about Gonzales also claiming that he saw no documents on this matter.

Sampson replied: "I don't think it's entirely accurate."

Schumer: "There was repeated discussions?"

Sampson : "Yes."

Schumer: "As many as, say, five."

Sampson: "Yes."

Schumer then asked if Gonzales was truthful in saying Sampson's information on the firings was not shared within the department.

Sampson: "I shared information with whoever asked....I was very open and collaborative in the process."

Schumer: "So the Attorney General's statement is false?"

Sampson: "I don't think it is accurate."

Read the rest of this post...

Baghdad neighborhoods John McCain might not want to visit during his upcoming trip to Iraq

Today in Baghdad.

BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb in Bayaa district in southern Baghdad killed three people and wounded 20 others, police said.

BAGHDAD - Two policemen were killed and six wounded when they approached a car bomb in Amil district in southwestern Baghdad, police said. There was a body in the car.

BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi army patrol wounded three soldiers in the western Ghazaliya district of Baghdad, a Reuters witness said.

BAGHDAD - Gunmen attacked the motorcade of the head of traffic police, Jaafar al-Khafaji, in northern Baghdad, killing two traffic policemen and wounding two others, police said.

BAGHDAD - Thirteen bodies were found shot in different districts of Baghdad on Wednesday, police said.

BAGHDAD - A car bomb targeting an Iraqi army checkpoint killed a soldier and wounded three others on Wednesday near al-Shurta tunnel in western Baghdad, police said.

BAGHDAD - Gunmen kidnapped Hassan Abdul-Latif, an official of the Iraqi Customs Office in central Baghdad, on Wednesday, police said.

Read the rest of this post...

Senate passes "surge" spending bill with Iraq withdrawal timetable. Bush holds political "pep rally."

The Iraq war is just a political game for George Bush. Always has been. That's why there hasn't been a real policy. The GOPers in Congress just play along with him. But the times they are a changin':

The Democratic-controlled Senate ignored a veto threat and voted Thursday for a bill requiring President Bush to start withdrawing combat troops from Iraq within four months, dealing a sharp rebuke to a wartime commander in chief.

In a mostly party line 51-47 vote, the Senate signed off on a bill providing $122 billion to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It also orders Bush to begin withdrawing troops within 120 days of passage while setting a nonbinding goal of ending combat operations by March 31, 2008.

The vote came shortly after Bush, in a move that his aides said was unprecedented, invited all House Republicans to the White House to appear with him in a sort of pep rally to bolster his position in the continuing war policy fight.

A pep rally. Says it all. Read the rest of this post...

Sampson testifying now

You can watch is on C-Span 3, or via the Web here.

Read the rest of this post...

The Green Zone isn't even one of those safe neighborhoods John McCain described

George Bush and John McCain keep telling us how well things are going in Iraq. Just yesterday, McCain was telling us all about Baghdad's safe neighborhoods (before he denied he was talking about them despite saying just that to four media outlets). But, these days, even the safest Baghdad neighborhood, the Green Zone, is under attack:

Iraqi insurgents are increasingly hitting Baghdad's fortresslike Green Zone with rockets and mortar shells, officials said Wednesday.

Insurgents have struck inside the Green Zone, which includes the U.S. Embassy, on six of the past seven days, once with deadly consequences. A U.S. soldier and a U.S. government contractor were killed Tuesday night by a rocket attack that also seriously wounded a civilian, military and embassy officials said. One soldier and at least three other civilians received minor injuries, U.S. Embassy spokesman Lou Fintor said.

The attack stunned a workforce normally blase about Baghdad's habitual wartime booms and blasts.

A State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said, "There are increasing attacks on the embassy."

And as for strolling around the Green Zone without any security, that's not happening either. So, the Green Zone doesn't make the cut for safe neighborhoods:

Wednesday morning, embassy personnel received a bulletin citing the "recent increase of indirect fire attacks on the embassy compound." It included strict instructions: Body armor and helmets would now be required for all "outdoor activities" within the sprawling embassy complex, even short walks to the cafeteria. There would be no group gatherings outside, including at the famed Palace Pool. No "nonessential" visitors would be allowed in the compound.

A U.S. official in Baghdad characterized embassy personnel as "anxious and alert."

We're still waiting for McCain to identify just what Baghdad neighborhoods he was talking about. Has anyone in the media actually asked him yet? Or are they worried that if they ask McCain real questions, they won't get invited on the bus? Read the rest of this post...

Bush Administration fines Bush Administration

What a dysfunctional team. Do they ever get anything right?

The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday fined the federal Energy Department $1.1 million over violations of an agreement to clean up the Hanford nuclear reservation, the nation's most polluted nuclear site.

The fine involved operations at a landfill that is the primary repository for contaminated soils, debris and other hazardous and radioactive waste from cleanup operations across the site.

Read the rest of this post...

Connecting Truth Tellers from Vietnam and Iraq

At least one legacy of Vietnam lives on.

This year, The Ridenhour Truth-Telling Prize links the Vietman whistle blower for whom the award is named to an Iraq whistleblower. Ron Ridenhour exposed the My Lai massacre in 1969. Donald Vance told the truth about how U.S. detention practices in Iraq because he learned them first-hand:

Donald Vance, a 29-year-old Navy veteran, had been a long-time supporter of the war in Iraq. But that changed last April when, serving as a security contractor in Baghdad, he was detained by U.S. forces and held without charges for more than three months at Camp Cropper, one of Iraq’s most notorious military prison camps. There, Vance and a colleague, Nathan Ertel, were denied counsel and communication with the outside world. They were held in isolation in extremely cold cells without adequate clothing or blankets. Vance was also subjected to sleep deprivation, interrogation for hours and often denied food and water for long periods. The U.S. military eventually released both Vance and Ertel without explanation, admitting that they had done nothing wrong.

Vance secretly kept notes on his time at Camp Cropper and smuggled them out in a Bible. He took his story public in December, offering a detailed and verifiable account of his experiences to the New York Times. His report has provided a rare and credible inside account of the Pentagon’s detention operations — and is one of only a few stories to emerge since the abuse scandals at Abu Ghraib.

I remember reading that article about Vance in the NY Times. We wrote about it here. It was brutal. Vance receives his award on April 4th at the National Press Club. (While Vance is in DC, he should tell his story on Capitol Hill.) Read the rest of this post...

Thursday Morning Open Thread

Alberto Gonzales is still the Attorney General. We'll see how that goes after Kyle Sampson testifies today.

We're still at war in Iraq and George Bush is still lying about the war. And, John McCain is still delusional.

What else? Read the rest of this post...

Mugabe clings to power, rumors of coup circulating

Mugabe has been actively sending goon squads out at night to beat up opposition members, who have been already been beaten and arrested countless times. Before leaving for a meeting in Tanzania with fellow southern African leaders, Mugabe's police systematically rounded up and arrested leading opposition members. At this point, Mugabe has nothing left to offer Zimbabwe besides excessive violence so it is no wonder that there are rumors circulating about a coup. People want to get back to eating, working and living a normal life, none of which are on Mugabe's agenda. Read the rest of this post...

Bernanke: what's a few hundred billion or even a trillion between friends?

What's not to love about a tanking war that is soaking up hundreds of billions of dollars all during a time of massive tax cuts? Add to that increasing oil costs (again) plus the crashing real estate market that has over $600 billion in subprime loans not to mention a growing list of existing homes sitting on the market? Don't worry about it...just join together and sing kumbaya. I'm sure it will all work out somehow. Read the rest of this post...

Riot in Paris train station

Since the major riots back in 2005, in real terms, nothing has changed in France. Sure I see more police on the streets of Paris, but I never felt threatened in Paris which is a very safe city. The problem for a long time has been disaffected youth who live in the poor suburbs and who are not part of the ultra-conservative French society who detest change and don't seem interested in opening the doors to anyone but the existing elite.

The candidates for president have done their darnedest to leverage these youths for their own self benefit, with Sarkozy talking about a quota system from one side of his mouth while talking about cleaning ("Karchering" to be specific) the troubled suburbs on the other. Segolene from the left, not one to miss a PR spin moment, responded by talking about "fires still smoldering" in these communities but her hero, Francois Mitterand, never made any effort to bring this community into the political fold or improve the daily living options, leaving the issue to future generations. Even today, the Socialists ignore the problem and change the conversation to a constitutional-dreamland discussion instead of realities on the street.

Regardless of what actually transpired in the station Tuesday night and who was to blame for triggering the ugly and criminal events, France still needs a plan for integration. The problem is not going to disappear just because police are on the streets of posh Parisian streets. Real action needs to happen...not just talk. This of course raises the issue that a good friend who is French but spends a lot of time in the US always tells me: the French only want to talk and never take action while the Americans never want to talk and only take action. Not exactly a recipe for success. Read the rest of this post...