Bush a No-Show At His Own Conference On Aging

Bush can settle CIA leak riddle, Novak says
by Rob Christensen, Barbara Barrett, Jane Stancill and Dan Kane, Staff Writers

Newspaper columnist Robert Novak is still not naming his source in the Valerie Plame affair, but he says he is pretty sure the name is no mystery to President Bush.

"I'm confident the president knows who the source is," Novak told a luncheon audience at the John Locke Foundation in Raleigh on Tuesday. "I'd be amazed if he doesn't."

"So I say, 'Don't bug me. Don't bug Bob Woodward. Bug the president as to whether he should reveal who the source is.' "

It was Novak who first revealed that Plame, the wife of former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, worked for the CIA. Wilson had angered the Bush administration when he accused it of twisting intelligence to exaggerate the Iraqi threat before the war.

more... http://www.newsobserver.com/722/story/377675.html

I just forwarded this thread to my dad. He is the VP of our local seniors association, and the publisher/editor of their monthly newsletter.

Now you've done it.

As Iraqis prepare to vote in a historic election for a permanent parliament, President Bush today called the vote a "watershed moment in the story of freedom." Bush also took responsibility for going to war in Iraq based on faulty intelligence. "It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As president I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq," the president said.

Bush acknowledges faulty Iraq intelligence
In speech, says war was still justified to oust Saddam, create democracy

Updated: 11:52 a.m. ET Dec. 14, 2005
The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - President Bush accepted responsibility on Wednesday for the decision to go to war with Iraq despite faulty intelligence but said the decision to oust Saddam Hussein was still correct.

“It is true that much of the intelligence turned out to be wrong. As president I am responsible for the decision to go into Iraq,” Bush told The Woodrow Wilson Center on the eve of elections to establish Iraq’s first permanent, democratically elected government. “And I’m also responsible for fixing what went wrong by reforming our intelligence capabilities. And we’re doing just that.”

The president said Thursday’s parliamentary elections in Iraq are a watershed moment that will inspire democracy across the Middle East. But with public opinion running against his mission, Bush still was left defending his decision to go to war nearly three years ago.

Beyond Saddam
“We are in Iraq today because our goal has always been more than the removal of brutal dictator,” Bush said. “It is to leave a free and democratic Iraq in his place.

“My decision to remove Saddam Hussein was the right decision. Saddam was a threat and the American people and the world is better off because he is no longer in power,” the president said.

The speech was the last in a series of four presidential addresses leading up to Thursday’s vote.

As he usually does, Bush asserted that the Iraq of the future, with a functioning democracy and thriving economy, would be a model for other nations in the turbulent Middle East. But he added a specific reference to the inspiration that a free Iraq could provide to reformers in the region’s two governments most hostile to the United States — Syria and Iran.

Karlyn Bowman, a public opinion analyst from the American Enterprise Institute, said the speeches seem to be helping improve public opinion of the president’s handling of Iraq. “The erosion (of support) has clearly stopped,” she said. “And I think that’s more because the administration has decided to fight back.”

more... http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10461235/

so the intelligence was wrong regarding Iraq, but the cause based on faulty intelligence, Invading Iraq, is still the correct course of action.....

Is it just me or are we living in an Orwellian Nightmare..?

Shhhsssh!! They're listening..
Toolmaker, do you happen to be afraid of rats?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10454316/page/2/

I used to work with the Pentagon Ladytech, manufacturing precision parts for various defense agencies, sold the company earlier this year.

Any large organization will have weird little agencies that go off on Tangents that have nothing to do with original intent or mission, its just human nature.

Throw in the paranioa this adminstration creates, the "circle the wagon" mentality, the absense of any logic or common sense to guide policy decisions.....I am surprised Americans are not being arrested without due process and shipped off to foreign lands to be tortured.

Ohh wait, that is happening......nevermind.

For those who are buying gifts this season, there's a terrific diary about buying gifts from NOLA small business owners along with a list...

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/12/14/11124/829

Think I'll be doing a little online shopping at CajunCreations.com

[Edited: corrected URL]

Dwahzon.. Dailykos is doing that weird thing again, everything on the page loads except the diary itself...

It's that internets activity.. *Ladytechie puts on tinfoil hat (suitably decorated wtih holly and mistletoe)* It's being censored

Would you kindly repost?

Try this one LT...

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2005/12/14/11124/829

Too bad Shrub wasn't a no-show at his own inaugurations, too...

wingnuts roasting on an open fire,
Otter

SURPRISING WHERE THIS IS COMING FROM. ALL THE MORE REASON TO FOLLOW-UP WITH YOUR SENATOR ABOUT TODAY'S VOTE ON THE PATRIOT ACT

Republican Congressman Says Totalitarian Regime a Danger
Bob Barr says military dictatorship close

By Paul Joseph Watson & Alex Jones
Tue, 2005-12-13

http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/?q=node/5573

Former Republican Congressman and CIA official Bob Barr says that there is a danger recent developments describe a trend of America slipping into a totalitarian society and that the Bush administration are doing everything in their power to see that this happens.

During a radio interview with host Alex Jones, Barr outlined where the country is heading.

“Basically, as long as you smile when you demand to see somebody’s ID at gunpoint sitting on a bus I guess it’s OK for the government, that’s sort of the way they operate. It can be a totalitarian type regime.”

“I think it’s a real danger where we have the military becoming involved in all sorts of domestic matters and we have the government being able to seize very private personal records on people without any suspicion that they’ve done anything wrong. This is a dramatic turn of events that has accelerated greatly since 9/11.”

Barr made comments very similar to those of current Republican Congressman Ron Paul in stating that natural disasters could be used by the government as a pretext to abolish posse comitatus.

“If we have the military involved whenever there’s a windstorm, rain or tornado then what we are doing is that we are undermining the entire basis on what our constitutional representative democratic form of government was founded.”

Barr said that legislation like the Patriot Act and its imminent re-authorization and expansion were more of a threat to the American way of life than any terrorist attack.

“Even when the leaders in Washington say we’re not going to let the terrorists change our way of life, they are implementing policies that do precisely that.”

Barr elaborated that the manipulation of fear was a key cornerstone in the government’s coup de ‘tat on constitutional liberties.

“They’re using people’s fear of another terrorist attack to move forward with various government programs that the government has wanted to gather and put in place for many many years. They’re using the fear which is now driving public policy in this country which is very unfortunate and very un-American. Our leaders are shamelessly playing on that fear to implement and grab power.”
Speaking on the topic of the second amendment, Barr said that his position as a board member on the NRA enabled him to judge the difference between how the Clinton and Bush administration’s approached the issue. Barr echoed the sentiments of many other prominent conservatives in expressing his frustration about how the Bush administration was even more anti-second amendment than the Clinton office.

“It’s my impression, to be honest with you, and this is confirmed by a lot of folks who are involved very heavily in regulatory matters involving firearms, that it is more difficult dealing with this administration than it was dealing with the prior administration.”

Barr is currently working with the ACLU and others in trying to prevent the sunset clauses of the Patriot Act from being renewed, which could happen as early as this week.

Their Nut Is As Nutty As Our Nut.

December 14, 2005
Iranian Leader Escalates Anti-Israeli Rhetoric
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 2:34 p.m. ET

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) -- Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad escalated his anti-Israeli rhetoric Wednesday, calling the Holocaust a ''myth'' used by Europeans to create a Jewish state in the heart of the Islamic world. His remarks drew swift condemnation from the White House, Israel, Germany, France and the European Commission.

Germany said the remarks would affect upcoming negotiations over Iran's nuclear program, and European Commission President Jose Manual Barroso said Iranians ''do not have the president, or the regime, they deserve.''

Ahmadinejad last week questioned whether the Nazi destruction of 6 million European Jews during World War II occurred and said Israel should be moved to Europe. He also provoked an international outcry in October when he called for Israel to be ''wiped off the map.''

But Wednesday was the first time he publicly denied the Holocaust. Touring southeast Iran, Ahmadinejad said that if Europeans insist the Holocaust happened, then they are responsible and should pay the price.

''Today, they have created a myth in the name of Holocaust and consider it to be above God, religion and the prophets,'' Ahmadinejad told thousands of people in the southeastern city of Zahedan.

''If you committed this big crime, then why should the oppressed Palestinian nation pay the price?'' Ahmadinejad asked rhetorically.

''This is our proposal: if you committed the crime, then give a part of your own land in Europe, the United States, Canada or Alaska to them so that the Jews can establish their country,'' he said, developing a theme he raised in Saudi Arabia last week.

The White House denounced the comments and said they show why Iran must not develop an atomic bomb.

''All responsible leaders in the international community recognize how outrageous those such comments are,'' White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, adding that they ''only underscore why it is so important that the international community continue to work together to keep Iran from developing nuclear weapons.''

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier called the remarks ''shocking and unacceptable.'' He said the German government had summoned the Iranian charge d'affaires to make its displeasure ''unmistakably clear.''

''I cannot hide the fact that this weighs on bilateral relations and on the chances for the negotiation process, the so-called nuclear dossier,'' Steinmeier said, referring to European talks with Iran on its nuclear program.

The German government said Chancellor Angela Merkel would call on the European Union to press for international condemnation at the United Nations.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said: ''The repeated outrageous remarks of the Iranian president show clearly the mind-set of the ruling clique in Tehran and indicate clearly the extremist policy goals of the regime.

''The combination of fanatical ideology, a warped sense of reality and nuclear weapons is a combination that no one in the international community can accept,'' Regev added, referring to allegations that Iran is developing nuclear bombs.

Avner Shalev, the director of Yad Vashem, Israel's memorial to the Holocaust in Jerusalem, said Ahmadinejad's comments required a ''stronger response from world leaders.''

''Every genocidal statement has to be taken seriously because the Holocaust occurred, and the world knows it. Therefore, we don't just condemn these comments, we believe that the international community and the United Nations should deal with them more seriously,'' Shalev said.

In Strasbourg, France, Barroso said the president's comments were ''completely unacceptable.''

''This shows the nature of (Iranian) regime,'' he said. ''With the great respect I have for that country, that people, the great history of that country, I say they do not have the president, or the regime, they deserve.''

France's Foreign Ministry also condemned Ahmadinejad's remarks.

Ahmadinejad said the West had harmed Muslims, invaded their countries and plundered their wealth.

''If your civilization consists of aggression, making oppressed people homeless, suffocating the voices of justice and bringing poverty to a majority of the world's people, we say loudly that we hate your hollow civilization,'' he said.

Ahmadinejad has been unapologetic about taking Iran on a more openly defiant course, insisting on Iran's right to develop its nuclear program -- which it insists is peaceful -- and often using rhetoric reminiscent of the 1980s heyday of the Islamic Revolution.

The president's views sharply conflict with those of predecessor Mohammad Khatami, a moderate who used to call for dialogue among civilizations and promoted a low-key understanding with the United States that stopped short of diplomatic relations.

Inside Iran, Ahmadinejad's remarks have been criticized by some of his conservative allies, who fear he is hurting the country's image. Moderate Iranians have called on the ruling Islamic establishment to rein in the president.

But Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the ultimate say, has backed Ahmadinejad's calls for Israel's elimination.

Ahmadinejad criticized the United States for refusing to sell Iran spare parts for its civilian planes as part of its long-standing embargo against the country.

Iran has suffered a series of plane accidents -- most recently on Dec. 6, when an aging U.S.-made military transport plane crashed into a tall building in Tehran, killing 115 people. Iranian officials have blamed Washington for the crashes, saying they are partly caused by the difficulty in obtaining spare parts.

''No country is authorized to impose spare-part sanctions against another country. Nothing can justify this,'' Ahmadinejad said Wednesday.

Ahmadinejad said the denial of spare parts was a reason why Iran would not trust Western promises to give it nuclear fuel. The country is currently at loggerheads with the West over its insistence on enriching uranium to fuel its first nuclear reactor, which is due to start generating electricity next year.

The Europeans, with U.S. backing, do not trust Iran to have its own enrichment process since highly enriched uranium can be used for nuclear warheads. Europe has offered to sell enriched uranium for the reactor, but Iran has rejected this.

The United States is pushing to have Iran referred to the U.N. Security Council, where it could face sanctions for violating a nuclear arms control treaty.

Ahmadinejad said that if Iran gave in on the nuclear dispute, there was no guarantee the West might not refuse to sell nuclear fuel in the future.

''I assure you that we won't step back one inch from our nuclear rights,'' the president told the crowd, drawing chants of ''Death to America!''

Iran is due to resume negotiations on the nuclear issue with envoys from Britain, France and Germany starting Dec. 21 in Vienna, Austria.

12-13-05: Devastating hack proven - Leon County dumps Diebold

Wed. December 14, 2005: Due to contractual non-performance and security design issues, Leon County (Florida) supervisor of elections Ion Sancho has announced that he will never again use Diebold in an election. He has requested funds to replace the Diebold system from the county. On Tuesday, the most serious “hack” demonstration to date took place in Leon County. The Diebold machines succumbed quickly to alteration of the votes. This comes on the heels of the resignation of Diebold CEO Wally O'Dell, and the announcement that a stockholder's class action suit has been filed against Diebold by Scott & Scott. Further “hack” testing on additional vulnerabilities is tentatively scheduled before Christmas in the state of California.

Finnish security expert Harri Hursti, together with Black Box Voting, demonstrated that Diebold made misrepresentations to Secretaries of State across the nation when Diebold claimed votes could not be changed on the “memory card” (the credit-card-sized ballot box used by computerized voting machines.

A test election was run in Leon County on Tuesday with a total of eight ballots. Six ballots voted "no" on a ballot question as to whether Diebold voting machines can be hacked or not. Two ballots, cast by Dr. Herbert Thompson and by Harri Hursti voted "yes" indicating a belief that the Diebold machines could be hacked.

At the beginning of the test election the memory card programmed by Harri Hursti was inserted into an Optical Scan Diebold voting machine. A "zero report" was run indicating zero votes on the memory card. In fact, however, Hursti had pre-loaded the memory card with plus and minus votes.

The eight ballots were run through the optical scan machine. The standard Diebold-supplied "ender card" was run through as is normal procedure ending the election. A results tape was run from the voting machine.

Correct results should have been: Yes:2 ; No:6

However, just as Hursti had planned, the results tape read: Yes:7 ; No:1

The results were then uploaded from the optical scan voting machine into the GEMS central tabulator, a step cited by Diebold as a protection against memory card hacking. The central tabulator is the "mother ship" that pulls in all votes from voting machines. However, the GEMS central tabulator failed to notice that the voting machines had been hacked.
The results in the central tabulator read:

Yes:7 ; No:1

This videotaped testing session was witnessed by Black Box Voting investigators Bev Harris and Kathleen Wynne, Florida Fair Elections Coalition Director Susan Pynchon, security expert Dr. Herbert Thompson, and Susan Bernecker, a former candidate for New Orleans city council who videotaped Sequoia-brand touch-screen voting machines in her district recording vote after vote for the wrong candidate.

The Hursti Hack requires a moderate level of inside access. It is, however, accomplished without being given any password and with the same level of access given thousands of poll workers across the USA. It is a particularly dangerous exploit, because it changes votes in a one-step process that will not be detected in any normal canvassing procedure, it requires only a single a credit-card sized memory card, any single individual with access to the memory cards can do it, and it requires only a small piece of equipment which can be purchased off the Internet for a few hundred dollars.

One thousand two hundred locations in the U.S. and Canada use Diebold voting machines. In each of these locations, typically three people have a high level of inside access. Temporary employees also often have brief access to loose memory cards as machines are being prepared for elections. Poll workers sometimes have a very high level of inside access. National elections utilize up to two million poll workers, with hundreds or thousands in a single jurisdiction.

Many locations in the U.S. ask poll workers to take voting machines home with them with the memory cards inside. San Diego County (Calif) sent 713 voting machines/memory cards home with poll workers for its July 26 election, and King County (Wash.) sent over 500 voting machines home with poll workers before its Nov. 8 election.

Memory cards are held in a compartment protected by a small plastic seal. However, these simple seals can be defeated, and Hursti has found evidence that the memory card can be reprogrammed without disturbing the seal by using a telephone modem port on the back of the machine.

The Hursti Hack, referred to as “the mother of all security holes” was first exposed in a formal report on July 4. (http://www.blackboxvoting.org/BBVreport.pdf).

Diebold has insisted to county and state election officials that despite Hursti’s demonstration, changing votes on its memory cards is impossible. (Public records from Diebold, including threat letter to Ion Sancho:
http://www.bbvforums.org/forums/messages/2197/10535.html)

On Oct. 17, 2005 Diebold Elections Systems Research and Development chief Pat Green specifically told the Cuyahoga County (Ohio) board of elections during a $21 million purchasing session that votes cannot be changed using only a memory card. (Video of Pat Green: http://www.bbvforums.org/forums/messages/2197/14298.html) Over the objections of Cuyahoga County citizens, and relying on the veracity of Diebold’s statements, the board has chosen to purchase the machines.

According to Public Records obtained by Black Box Voting, Diebold has promulgated misrepresentations about both the Hursti Hack and another kind of hack by Dr. Herbert Thompson to secretaries of state, and to as many as 800 state and local elections officials.

Stockholder suit filed by the law offices of Scott and Scott:

and http://www.bradblog.com/archives/00002153.htm

Diebold CEO resigns: http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=175001748

good DC gossip at firedoglake.com

Scooter & lawyers at DC rest for lunch discussing case????

mkh - what's the link for that? firedoglake.com doesn't get me there.

Thanks!

Got it, thanks:

http://www.firedoglake.blogspot.com/

opps-sorry!
glad you got it!

If you happened to read Fe's post from 2:39 pm today -- yes, that's the one back there at the top of about a dozen screens' worth of nothing but reposted news articles, ahem, so your eyes might well have glazed over before you even read it -- then the seeming surreality of her repost might have struck you right between the glaze.

To quote the first paragraph of the article in Fe's post, "Former Republican Congressman and CIA official Bob Barr says that there is a danger recent developments describe a trend of America slipping into a totalitarian society and that the Bush administration are doing everything in their power to see that this happens."

Okay, let me check to make sure my tinfoil hat didn't fall off while I was playing in the rapids again. Hmm. Nope, that's exactly what it said.

But... *Bob Barr* said that? Excuse me? The same right wingnut from Jawjuh who pushed so hard for Clinton to be impeached back in 1998? *That* Bob Barr is the same Bob Barr that was just now quoted busting the Bushies' ballbearings in no uncertain terms?

Apparently so. I checked the references, it's true all right. I never bothered to look that hard at Barr before, but I did this afternoon and I must say that there's more to the man than I previously presupposed.

Barr, it seems, is an old-school Republican -- you guessed it, one of the vanishing Repo dinosaurs of the fiscal-responsibility personal-accountability smaller-government variety. Which makes him almost as adamantly anti-neocon as I am. Gee. Gosh. Who'd'a thunk it.

The Wikipedia listing for Bob Barr closes its summary with these key points:

"While Congressman Barr supported and voted for the USA Patriot Act, he was one of the chief architects of the 'sunset clause' which requires most new powers granted to the government under the act to be renewed by Congress in 2005. Since leaving Congress in 2003, he has become a vocal opponent of the Patriot Act and has stated that he regrets voting for it, and opposes any attempt by Congress to renew many of its provisions in 2005.

"More recently Barr has become a prominent member of the American Civil Liberties Union, sometimes doing paid consulting on privacy issues. In the 2004 Presidential election, Barr abandoned the Republican Party and publicly endorsed the presidential ticket of the United States Libertarian Party."

And according to a December 2003 profile of Barr in the online version of Reason Magazine -- which, if haven't ever seen it before, you certainly otter, at http://www.reason.com:

"After entering the House of Representatives in 1995, Georgia Republican Bob Barr acquired a reputation as one of the most conservative members of Congress. It was Barr who in 1996 wrote the Defense of Marriage Act, which said states didn't have to recognize gay marriages performed in other states; it was Barr who protested when he learned the military allowed soldiers to practice Wicca. A former federal prosecutor, a firm social conservative, and a strong supporter of the War on Drugs, Barr doesn't fit most people's image of a civil libertarian.

"But in his eight years in Congress (he failed to win re-election in 2002), Barr was one of Washington's loudest critics of the federal government's abuses of power, taking the lead in investigating the raid on Waco and in opposing Bill Clinton's efforts to undermine due process in terrorism cases. Since leaving Congress, Barr has taken an advisory post with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and started writing a column for Atlanta's alternative weekly Creative Loafing -- neither ordinarily a haven for Republicans. While many on the right have fallen behind the Bush administration even as it betrays their purported principles, Barr represents another set of conservatives' growing discomfort with the administration's erosion of individual liberty."

Well, I'll be dogged in dipsticks. If'n that don't beat all, I tell you what. Wowzers.

I want a repub just like the repubs that harried dear old dad,
Otter

(P.S. -- http://www.bobbarr.org ]

'tis the season, up is down, down is up, black is white, white is black, good is bad, bad is good, so you better be bad for goodness sake.

Happy Holidaze

otter:

Fact is, there ISN'T enough coverage about the defections, but they are going on as we speak.

We need to encourage MORE defections. Especially now with the Patriot Act in the Senate this week. The country can slip away if we let it...

You wont believe this. Don't miss Sandra's comment in the comment section.

The Jewish Grinch who stole Christmas
Dec 8, 2005
by Burt Prelutsky ( bio | archive | contact )

SNIP

It is the ACLU, which is overwhelmingly Jewish in terms of membership and funding, that is leading the attack against Christianity in America. It is they who have conned far too many people into believing that the phrase “separation of church and
state” actually exists somewhere in the Constitution.

SNIP

http://www.townhall.com/opinion/columns/BurtPrelutsky/2005/12/08/178211.html

Just returned from an event in western Massachusetts with John Bonifaz of After Downing Street - he's running for Secretary of State.

Two bits of news are: Romney announced he won't seek re-election for Governor (not a big surprise - his eye is on the White House); and lesser - Cam Kerry (JKs brother) has withdrawn from the Sec. of State race.

By the way - when I conveyed Karen's hello to John Bonifaz, he said what great work we are doing here at the DCP!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President George W. Bush offered strong endorsements on Wednesday to two architects of the Iraq war, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney, and said he was as close as ever to top political adviser Karl Rove despite his role in the CIA leak case.

Rebuffing Democratic calls for a shake-up over Iraq war strategy and speculation about rifts within the White House, Bush said he had no intention of removing Rumsfeld as defense secretary, crediting him with doing a "heck of a job." Rumsfeld and the vice president, Cheney, have been frequently accused by critics of pushing the war on false pretenses.

In an interview with Fox News, Bush said his relationship with Cheney had "only gotten better," and he remained "very close" to Rove, who could face charges in the criminal investigation into the leak of CIA operative Valerie Plame's identity.

"We're still as close as we've ever been," Bush said of Rove, brushing aside reports he was angry at his deputy chief of staff, who initially denied any role in the Plame leak. "We've been through a lot. You know, when we look back at the presidency and my time in politics, no question that Karl had a lot to do with me getting here, and I value his friendship."

Bush also said he hoped indicted Texas Republican Rep. Tom DeLay would regain his post as House of Representatives majority leader. But Bush added, "I don't know whether I can expect that."

Bush's words of praise for Rumsfeld were similar to those he used to describe Michael Brown, when Brown, then head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, faced criticism for the slow federal response to Hurricane Katrina.

Bush said of Rumsfeld, "He's conducted two wars and at the same time has helped transform our military from a military that was constructed for, you know, the post-Cold War to one that is going to be constructed to fight terrorism."

Asked if Rumsfeld would stay in the administration until the end of his second term, Bush said: "Yes. Well, (the) end of my term is a long time, but I tell you, he's done a heck of a good job, and I have no intention of changing him."

Rumsfeld has been criticized for the conduct of the Iraq war, with some prominent Democrats, including Massachusetts Sens. Edward Kennedy and John Kerry demanding his resignation. Rumsfeld has also had frosty relations even with fellow Republicans in Congress.

Last week, Rumsfeld said he had no plans to retire from the post more than 2 1/2 years into the Iraq conflict.

more...http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyid=2005-12-15T010438Z_01_SPI503786_RTRUKOC_0_US-BUSH.xml

Is it my imagination, or is the newsmedia beginning to spread positive propaganda big time about the Iraqi war this week? ABC News had a very pro-war piece on tonight, interviewing soldiers from the scene. And earlier this week, CNN allowed Daryn Kagan to put a piece on that was some of the strongest pro-war propaganda I've seen since the "March to War" logos used to be on the bottom of my screen 24 hours per day. In addition, CNN has covered every single Bush spin speech this week live. It's getting ridiculous.
I agree with the "shop New Orleans for Christmas" idea by the way- my daughter has already ordered a book of Michalopoulis paintings from his shop on Royal Steet, and I'm very excited about getting it as a gift.
We may even drive over sometime before Christmas and do some personal shopping. Unless the tourists return, the economy of that city can't survive.
And, to those of us who love it better than any other city in the world, its survival is very important for our mental well being.
Shop, shop, shop, shop, shop. Just do it.

Toolmaker - reality is an Orwellian nightmare...

I accidentally caught ABC's broadcast tonight from Iraq and what's-her-face's interview of troops in Iraq (all good neoCons spouting the propaganda line, including what's-her-face whose name I can't remember), and had to dash for a barf pan. Thought I was literally going to be sick. The troops "know what they're fighting for" apparently, or so what's-her-face said in a lead-up to some inane/insane question... I wish they'd give us a clue. I still know it's to preserve, protect, and defend the oil fields in Iraq, which is why The Cretin takes credit for the invasion, even if it was based on "faulty intelligence" - aka LIES....

Then I just read the Truthout newsletter and saw the House approved renewing that monumental disaster of a Patriot Act.... Have our Reps LOST THEIR MINDS?!? What possessed them?!? (Rhetorical question; money is the answer.)

I should have left my earphones on and kept on listening to Neil Diamond's new CD called 12 Songs... great music, acoustic guitar, and oh, that voice - just makes me go weak in the knees.... ;-)

Beam me up Scotty.... This planet is unfriendly to human beings with the slightest amount of common sense...!!!

Pentagon admits to spying on American Citizens, keeping database on war protesters

read the Pentago respone to the MSNBC bombshell on the database (they got a copy and a 400 page document).

Apparently the "enemies of the state" include such subversive organizations as the Quaker Church and a myriad of other pacifist and peace-lovin organizations.

Creepy?

You bet.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051214/pl_nm/security_pentagon_spying_dc

Orwellian?

Absolutely.

Now you know why reauthorizing the USA (UN)Patriot Act is very bad for our American freedoms, liberties, and civil rights.

Posted by: NonnyO at December 14, 2005 11:53 PM

Not so sure this one is about the money- I tend to think it is more about the POWER

Apparently those in Congress and the WH that support shredding our Bill of Rights have something to fear- from the American People.

This law is all about spying on YOU and ME and other American Citizens with no links to terrorism. It is about spying on Average Americans that just might have the audacity to criticize or *gasp* even protest our government's actions and policies.

We have become an oligarchy and are quickly on our way to being made into a fascist state.

Quakers are now considered so subversive that our tax dollars are being used to spy on, infilitrate and keep a database file on those peace-lovin folks at your local Quaker Meeting.

No, this one is not about money. It is about corruption, power, and desire to intimidate and control what Americans do, think, and believe.

Our founding fathers must be rolling in their graves about now....

And the 44 Dems in the House that voted FOR it have some 'splainin to do.

Why does Congress hate our FREEDOM??

It's a fair question given what is in that god awful law.

Call your Senators- tell them to fillibuster and let the Act expire- just like they promised it would when they passed it without even reading it in 2001.

America existed for 200+ years without this god awful law and terrorism and the threat thereof has existed all of that time.

"Those who would sacrifice liberty for the sake of security, deserve neither" Ben Franklin

Posted by: oncall at December 14, 2005 09:12 PM

I hope they realize that many Jews, from Wolfowitz to Lieberman, have actually been very big supporters of the Christian/neocon cause, with the Muslims as the shared enemy.

I love it when neocons attack their own allies and friends.

Next thing you know, they'll be starting to eat their young.

It's Neokonserdammerung time -- the Twilight of the Neocons.

And I must say, it's a lovely spectacle to watch, even from the cheap seats.

Now all they need is some Wagner for the soundtrack and some full-featured female with horns on her helmet to sing the final aria and they're good to go.

And I do mean *go*.

but it still ain't over 'til the large lady croons,
Otter

but it still ain't over 'til the large lady croons,

Posted by: Otter at December 15, 2005 06:36 AM

Here come da Judds, here come da Judds.

Only *one* of the Judds, marcie-man. Mom and sis are actually quite petite and notably lithe, respectively.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, you understand.

if you don't naomi by now,
Otter