The Heart of the Matter

And please, note the Five Minutes for Democracy today. Very important.

Also:

PDA Grassroots Leadership Meeting, Training Session and Congressional Lobby Days
May 20-22, 2006 - Washington, D.C.

_____

Saturday, May 20

Location:
Firebird Inn, University of District of Columbia Campus
4200 Conn. Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. (Van Ness/UDC stop of the Red Line Metro)

11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
PDA Grassroots Leadership Meeting - PDA Grassroots' Activists, CD organizers, Spokescouncil Representatives, Working Group Members, Chapter Leaders and National Board Members from across the country will gather. The day will be spent finalizing our sixth month electoral campaign to strengthen PDA and organize a stronger progressive movement inside the Democratic Party.

Sunday, May 21

Location:
Firebird Inn, University of District of Columbia Campus
4200 Conn. Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. (Van Ness/UDC stop of the Red Line
Metro)

Morning PDA Organizing Session

8:00 - 8:30 AM: Register/Continental Breakfast with your PDA State team!

8:30 - 9:00 AM: Welcome by Tim Carpenter, PDA Executive Director; Opening Prayer and Remarks by Rev Lennox Yearwood, PDA National Board Member

9:30 - 10:00 AM: "Be a Part of the Growing Pro Impeachment Grassroots Movement" by David Swanson, PDA National Board Member/Co-Founder, AfterDowningStreet.org

10:30 - 11:30 AM: "Organizing Mobilize and Deliver the Progressive Vote in 2006/Working to Elect a Progressive Majority in Congress"

Moderator: Steve Cobble, PDA National Board Member

Panelists:
Tony Trupiano, PDA endorsed candidate from Michigan's 11th District
Terry Lierman, Maryland Democratic Party State Chair
Bill Goold, Director Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC)
Kevin Spidel, PDA Deputy Director

11:30 - 12:30 AM: "Building PDA at the Local, State and National Level "

Moderator: Mimi Kennedy, PDA National Board Chair
Panelists (from PDA):

Dan O'Neal, State Coordinator
Dr. Bill Honigman, Chapter Leadership
Stephen Spitz, Congressional District Point Person
Laura Bonham, Issue Working Group Coordinator
Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Building Diversity into our Grassroots Organizing (PDA National Board Member)
Sherry Bohlen, PDA National Field Director

Registration:
Please register for the PDA morning session at
https://www.pdamerica.org/2006-5-21-tickets.php

Afternoon United For Peace and Justice (UFPJ) Organizing Session

1:00 - 2:00 PM: Iraq update and legislative briefing
2:15 - 3:00 PM: How to make your visits to Congress a success -- tips from
the experts

Break-out sessions

3:15 - 3:45 PM: Planning your House visit - Meet with PDA and UFPJ activists
from your congressional district to determine spokespeople for your
delegation, refine your message. Trainers will be congressional staff as
well as experienced peace lobbyists.
4:00 - 4:30 PM: Planning your Senate visits
Meet with others from your state to plan your visits. Trainers will be
congressional staff as well as experienced peace lobbyists.
4:30 - 5:15 PM: Building/strengthening a statewide legislative network
An opportunity to discuss building a statewide legislative network in your
state, or to strengthen your statewide legislative network.
5:30 - 6:00 PM: Wrap-up and logistics for Monday
6:15 - 7:30 PM: PDA Briefing for congressional and senate candidates

Registration:
Please register for the UFPJ afternoon session at
http://unitedforpeace.org/modinput4.php?modin=121

Monday, May 22

9:00 AM - 5:00 PM: Congressional Education Visits

Updates and Additional Information:

We will update you by e-mail as needed. You will be invited to participate
in several conference calls that will address issues pertinent to the
Congressional Education Day.

Logistics

Getting
to Washington, D.C.
Lodging in
Washington, D.C.
UDC Campus Map
df>

Karen,

Thanks for sharing this part of your trip with us.

I think that speaking truth requires a whole choir of voices -- some will soar above the others. But the choir as a whole needs the steady blending, underpinning of all the voices and the parts they sing to create a song of power.

Not all of us can be a Brian Haw or a Rachel Corrie but all of us together can provide a groundswell of music, of words, of truth which moves people and governments.

Breaking News headline on msnbc
Scott McClellan resigning...

Not that this is a big suprise or anything...

Oh, be still my throbbing heart!

"Heckuva Job Scottie" (aka "It's Not My Fault I Look Like Joe McCarthy Dammit") has stunned the entire unsuspecting world by announcing that he actually has at long last a shread of decency, er, I mean, that he is resigning from his commission as RoveCo Liar-In-Chief to the Washingtoon Press Corpse??

Oh. My. Flutter, flutter. I believe as how I will now be forced to take directly to my bed with an attack of the vapours.

oh the humanity,
Otter

Possible replacement for Snotty:

Dan Senor, who served a similar role in Iraq as spokesman for the Coalition Provisional Authority and became a familiar face to many Americans for his briefings. Senor recently married NBC’s Campbell Brown, a “Today” show weekend co-anchor and primary correspondent for “NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams.”

http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/McClellan_could_be_replaced_by_Iraq_0418.html

They really DO screw with the media, don't they?

Bush said McClellan had "a challenging assignment."

"I thought he handled his assignment with class, integrity," the president said. "It's going to be hard to replace Scott, but nevertheless he made the decision and I accepted it. One of these days, he and I are going to be rocking in chairs in Texas and talking about the good old days."

This little snippet may prove to be even more interesting...
http://tinyurl.com/ndru5

Also, a senior administration official revealed another move in the ongoing shakeup of Bush’s staff, saying that longtime confidant and adviser Karl Rove is giving up oversight of policy development to focus more on politics with the approach of the fall midterm elections.

Just over a year ago, Rove was promoted to deputy chief of staff in charge of most White House policy coordination. That new portfolio came on top of his title as senior adviser and role of chief policy aide to Bush.

But now, the job of deputy chief of staff for policy is being given to Joel Kaplan, now the White House’s deputy budget director, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the president had not yet made the announcement.

Oh, wait. My bad.

I have just been informed that under a little-known last-minute codicil attached like a limpet mine in the dead of a moonless night to the latest Budget Appropriations Bill, taking to one's bed with an attack of the vapours is no longer covered under any form of Medicare, Medicaid, or Mediterranean -- unless of course the overvapoured attackee can prove in triplicate with an overpriced attorney's signature affixed to each copy of the form that s/he is and always has been a registered Republican who has voted for a minimum of nine neotheogreedocon candidates at least twelves times each during the last three elections in his her/er home district.

Never mind.

impeach is just another word for everyone right must lose,
Otter

Snow Offered McClellen's Job
White House Chief of Staff Josh Bolten "has offered Fox News Channel anchor Tony Snow the job of White House press secretary," the D.C. Examiner reports. "Snow, who was once a speechwriter for former President George H.W. Bush, has not yet decided whether to accept the job. He recently recovered from colon cancer and has been helping launch a radio version of Fox News."

Fox News confirms the story.

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2006/04/19/snow_offered_mcclellens_job.html

Why not just put O'Leilly in there?

Maybe Dana Milbank...

Or Rush...

Or Hannity...

You know, it's going to be a sucky job that just gets worse...it will be interesting to see who is stupid enough to say "yes."

There is a diary at kos that is a beautiful piece of writing and I encourage you to read the entire thing. The poster is offering an apology. Last year s/he was not convinced of the necessity or appropriateness of impeachment as compared to the damage that such a proceeding might cause and posted many comments arguing with those who did advocate it. This person now acknowledges a change of heart.

What I want most to share with all of you is the comment near the end of the post:

To those I tried to persuade to harness your passions, I now know that it was wrong on my part to do so. I forgot how passionate I was when my hair was not so grey. I acknowledge that your generation must someday accept the stewardship of our ship of state in order to steer our ship into tranquil waters. It's better to start it now because you may not get another chance to make a difference. I leave you with one suggestion, steer it wisely. Don't pursue this endeavor with vengeance or malice or you will fail and it will be seen for what it is, the out of power party trying to exact revenge on the majority party. Do not be seen as relishing the opportunity to punish Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. Be seen as one who regrets having to advocate it. This is not a pleasant endeavor, and should not be a sporting event. It will tear the very fabric of this country apart. You must not rejoice in what you plan to do. When I witness criminals prosecuted by a DA who enjoys the fact that a human being will be punished, I tend to turn off to the prosecution side of a case. However, when I witness a prosecutor performing a necessary act in order to exact justice and not revenge, I acknowledge their efforts as much as I do defending an innocent person. You are the ones advocating a prosecution. Do so out of your thirst for justice, not revenge.

read it in its entirety here...
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/4/18/141352/517

Posted by: Ladytechie at April 19, 2006 09:50 AM

You made my day~! I just about joined Otter in a swoon...! ;-)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060419/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_shakeup

White House Staff Shake-Up Continues

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove gave up some of his responsibilities and White House press secretary Scott McClellan announced his resignation Wednesday, continuing a shake-up in President Bush's administration that has already yielded a new chief of staff.

Rove is giving up oversight of policy development to focus more on politics with the approach of the fall midterm elections.

{{{More on link. After my near-swoon and whoop of joy, the sentence about Turd Blossom 'focusing on politics with the approach of the fall midterm elections' caught my eye... and I know the smear campaigns will be full of searing smear and vitriol... unless Turd Blossom is caught in Fitz's investigation.... Then I had to wonder why The Cretin is giving in so easily to all these changes, since he's known for his 'loyalty' to his staff...? Hopefully this "news" will take the non-issues like avian flu off of the air waves, at least temporarily.}}}

Posted by: monkey at April 19, 2006 10:25 AM

Well, if Snow does take the position, we can all honestly say we were given a "Snow job" every time he opens his mouth...!

Iran, You Ran, Let's Bomb Iran
When all else fails and you're becoming Nixon 2.0, why not just nuke someone, and smirk?
By Mark Morford

It's just like playing blackjack in Vegas.

Invariably, sitting right next to you is some guy, eyes shifty and body twitchy and making weird sounds with his mouth and smelling vaguely of sawdust and horse manure and dead dreams, with a huge pile of chips he is quickly turning into a very small pile of chips.

He is suffering. He is playing terribly, grumbling, sneering at the dealer, talking to the cards like they were his personal slutty harem ("C'mon you dumb bitches, do me right," etc), complaining to his very angry God who is apparently no longer coming through for him. He is getting desperate. His pile is diminishing. He is sweating, glancing around, wondering where all his drunk fraternity friends scurried off to.

Soon he is down to his last chips. He makes one final stab, but his final bet tanks. He is out, the pile is gone. ...

More on link:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/gate/archive/2006/04/19/notes041906.DTL&nl=fix

Just home from NYC - enjoying the read, Karen!!

Heard about McClellan. I saw some FOX on the plane - they were openly xenophobic and warhawks. Stands to reason they'd install some goon talking trash.

I did buy the "Green" issue of Vanity Fair & it had a good piece by Gore (& I want to see him as he takes it on the road), & also the traditional mini-interview on the last page was with Tec Kennedy.

I came home, found I had new checkbooks, so sent small donations out to 6 organizations I'd promised. Then I thought I would not have time to search out the Gore article, & a friend in NM came through! The comments are his, & quotations.

http://tinyurl.com/oxmpl

http://tinyurl.com/pzfpf

The first is an inspiring article by Gore about the climate crisis we are facing. The second link is to a review of his documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, to be released in May. My favorite paragraph from the second article is:

You cannot see this film and not think of George W. Bush, the man who beat Gore in 2000. The contrast is stark. Gore -- more at ease in the lecture hall than he ever was on the stump -- summons science to tell a harrowing story and offers science as the antidote. No feat of imagination could have Bush do something similar -- even the sentences are beyond him.

My favorite part of Gore's article is:

So it is time for the good news: we can solve this crisis, and as we finally do accept the truth of our situation and turn to boldly face down the danger that is stalking us, we will find that it is also bringing us unprecedented opportunity.
. . . .
But there's something far more precious than the economic gains that will be made. This crisis is bringing us an opportunity to experience what few generations in history ever have the privilege of knowing: a generational mission; the exhilaration of a compelling moral purpose; a shared and unifying cause; the thrill of being forced by circumstances to put aside the pettiness and conflict that so often stifle the restless human need for transcendence; the opportunity to rise.

"So let us not talk falsely now.
The hour is getting late." - Dylan

--
Man must in some way come to his senses. He must extricate himself from this terrible involvement in both the obvious & hidden mechanisms of totality, from consumption to repression, from advertising to manipulation through television. He must rebel against his role as a helpless cog in the gigantic & enormous machinery hurtling God knows where. He must discover again, within himself, a deeper sense of responsibility toward the world, which means responsibility toward something higher than himself. -- Vaclav Havel

I also received a report about a big coke bust involving a Delay appointee but when I went looking for confirmation, I read that the bust had been duly reported in a number of sources, but without mention of the Delay connection.

This made the regular news channels (without discussion of any Delay connection of course)

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000086&sid=aChEcjHCxDEE&refer=latin_america
and http://www.vcrisis.com/index.php?content=letters/200604121721

Here is the story I got first:

BUSTED '5 TONS OF COKE'
PLANE'S OWNERS: "ROYAL SONS," TOM DELAY APPOINTEE
by Daniel Hopsicker WORLD EXCLUSIVE APRIL 17 2006 Venice,FL.

One of the two owners of the DC9 (tail number N900SA) busted at an airport in the Yucatan last week after lumbering in from Caracas, Venezuela carrying an astonishing 5.5 TONS of cocaine was appointed in 1993 to the Business Advisory Council of the National Republican Congressional Committee by then-Congressional Majority Leader Tom Delay, TheMadCowMorningNews can exclusively report.

The plane's other registered owner, "Royal Sons LLC," a Florida air charter company, was at one time housed in a hanger at the Venice Fl. Airport owned by infamous flight school Huffman Aviation. Of major significance is the fact that photos of the DC9, seized last Monday in Ciudad del Carmen, reveal that the plane is painted with the distinctive blue and white color color scheme of official U.S. Government planes.

Moreover, to reinforce the effect, or subterfuge, the plane carries an official-looking Seal painted on its side, which reads: SKY WAY AIRCRAFT, PROTECTION OF AMERICA'S SKIES, around an image of a federal eagle clutching the familiar olive branch in its talons. Many have been fooled into concluding that the plane belongs to the U.S. Transportation Security Administration.

The obvious and highly serious national security implications of this go well beyond the obvious glee in playing political "gotcha" with people caughtface-down with their noses buried, Tony Montana-style, in over five and a halftons of cocaine.

TheMadCowMorningNews URL: http://www.madcowprod.com

As I write this, 7 large military-style helicopters have flown over my head, going north. Strange.

DiAnne,

Is Canada next??????

DiAnne, military choppers over my house this morning, too.

Weird.

William Rivers Pitt | Setting the Record Straight
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906Z.shtml
William Rivers Pitt writes that a recent perusal of the White House web site unearthed a page that is intended to carry forth the administration's argument that it did nothing wrong in pushing for the invasion and occupation of Iraq. Note the rough-edged graphic at the top, meant to display the gritty reality of truth according to Bush and the boys. It isn't funny, not at all, and yet ... it is unintentional comedy of the purest ray serene, a perfect 100 no matter what the East German judges have to say. It is almost, dare I say, sublime.

Prominent U.S. Physicists Send Warning Letter to President Bush:
Thirteen of the nation’s most prominent physicists have written a letter to President Bush, calling U.S. plans to reportedly use nuclear weapons against Iran “gravely irresponsible” and warning that such action would have “disastrous consequences for the security of the United States and the world.”
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12769.htm

Fallout: The human cost of nuclear catastrophe:
Flash presentation
http://www.guardian.co.uk/flash/page/0,,1748554,00.html

Diagnosing the U.S. ‘national character’: Narcissistic Personality Disorder:
We are 5 percent of the world’s population and consume about a quarter of the world’s energy. This state of affairs is clearly unjust, made possible by coercion and violence, not some natural superiority of Americans.
http://tinyurl.com/ontpt

Roddy McCorley at dailykos has outdone us all. In his own words:

Well, it took me awhile, but I finally realized what "I'm the decider" reminds me of. It sounds like something a character in a Dr. Seuss book might say.

So with apologies to the late Mr. Geisel, here is some idle speculation as to what else such a character might say:

I'm the decider.
I pick and I choose.
I pick among whats.
And choose among whos.

And as I decide
Each particular day
The things I decide on
All turn out that way.

I decided on Freedom
For all of Iraq.
And now that we have it,
I'm not looking back.

I decided on tax cuts
That just help the wealthy.
And Medicare changes
That aren't really healthy.

And parklands and wetlands
Who needs all that stuff?
I decided that none
Would be more than enough!

I decided that schools
All in all are the best
The less that they teach
And the more that they test.

I decided those wages
You need to get by
Are much better spent
On some CEO guy.

I decided your Wade
Which was versing your Roe
Is terribly awful
And just has to go.

I decided that levees
Are not really needed.
Now when hurricanes come
They can come unimpeded.

That old Constitution?
Well, I have decided
As"just goddam paper"
It should be derided.

I've decided gay marriage
Is icky and weird.
Above all other things,
It's the one to be feared.

And Cheney and Rummy
And Condi all know
That I'm the Decider -
They tell me it's so.

I'm the Decider
So watch what you say
Or I may decide
To have you whisked away.

Or I'll tap your phones.
Your e-mail I'll read.
`cause I'm the Decider -
Like Jesus decreed.

Yes, I'm the Decider
The finest alive
And I'm nuking Iran.
Now watch this drive!

Now that I think about it, Dr. Seuss anticipated this administration pretty well when he wrote Yertle the Turtle...

-----

And here is the link if you wish to tell Roddy just how well he did...
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/4/18/185016/217

"Patriotism at the expense of another nation is as wicked as racism at the expense of another race. Let us resolve to be patriots always, nationalists never. Let us love our country, but pledge allegiance to the earth and to the flora and fauna and human life that it supports -
one planet indivisible, with clean air, soil and water; with liberty, justice and peace for all."
- William Sloane Coffin, as quoted in his obituary in the NY Times, April 13, 2006

William Sloane Coffin June 1, 1924 - April 12, 2006

Does anyone think Dubya is a good chess player on the world stage?

Check out this latest move by Iran.

TEHRAN, Iran - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Wednesday that the crude oil prices now at record levels still were below their “real value,” state-run Tehran radio reported.

In his first remarks on the current price of oil, the hard-line Iranian leader also said developed countries were benefiting most from the high prices.

“The global oil price has not reached its real value yet. The products derived from crude oil are sold at prices dozens of times higher than those charged by oil-producing countries,” the radio quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

He did not say what oil prices should be.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12390227/

ROOK OUT KING GEORGE!

Helicopters and planes overhead here, too, where there usually are none.

The press had alot of fun with "The Decider", and I haven't had time to get on here. Glad to see you guys did it justice!

I remember Spinnaker saying many months back that Scotty had a "tell".......

Not sure if I chalk his "resignation" up to a moral decision on his part. Maybe he was just simply "telling" too much without saying a word, and was asked by Bolten to resign. I would, however, like to give Scotty the benefit of the doubt.

Here is a little bit from Raw Story about Scotty's mother.....

http://tinyurl.com/788xc

And more from MSNBC Hardball...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11012387/

Group files Justice Department complaint against Texas congressman

RAW STORY
Published: Wednesday April 19, 2006

A Washington watchdog called on the Justice Department today to begin an official investigation into whether Texas Rep. Pete Sessions (R-TX) received bribes from a San Fransisco defense firm in exchange for supporting earmarks that benefited the company, RAW STORY has learned.

A call and email placed for comment were not immediately returned.

Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington filed the complaint Wednesday. The group has "filed" repeated ethics complaints before -- but the complaint against sessions was filed with the Justice Department, instead of simply being announced publicly. Ethics complaints must be filed by a member of Congress; Justice Department complaints can be made by anyone.

The group's complaint also alleges that Rep. Sessions had substantive ties with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

Their release follows, along with the complaint.

http://tinyurl.com/oxagg

Monkey
I think the oil companies are probably profitting, as they add a percentage rather than an amount.

Also, will depend how much we have stockpiled, how much increase at the pumps is "gouging" and how much is the usual increase we have as we head into Memorial Day & summer.

The average person here is losing not profitting, off these wars, not to mention people living in the oil-producing companies. Then our top 1-2% & then some Emirs & so on who are their friends are getting richer than ever.

Dem Chairman Dean says Rove 'demotion is not enough'

RAW STORY
Published: Wednesday April 19, 2006

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued the following statement on Karl Rove's "demotion" to RAW STORY Wednesday.

"After having his hand in nearly every bad Bush policy decision and nearly every scandal that has consumed the Bush White House, it is not surprising that Karl Rove was demoted this morning. But, a demotion is not enough. From the collapse of the President's scheme to privatize social security to Rove's involvement in the outing of a covert CIA agent's identity while he still holds a security clearance, the President has abundant reason to fire Karl Rove.

"The Bush White House is merely engaging in window dressing. President Bush doesn't seem to understand that you can't just change the window dressing, you have to make changes in the Bush Administration's policies which have undermined America's security - from the economy to health care, our families and the war in Iraq."

http://tinyurl.com/n3abj

AMEN!! My thought is that LOTS of letters, phone calls, and emails should be going to Josh Bolten right now demanding the firing of Rove.........

What do the rest of you think?

Blumenthal: Leak inquiry is turning toward Rove

RAW STORY
Published: Wednesday April 19, 2006

Former Salon Washington Editor and ex-Clinton adviser Sidney Blumenthal claims in his latest column that Patrick Fitzgerald's two-year investigation into the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame has turned towards Karl Rove, noting a small but important change in filings made by I. Lewis Libby, Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff. Libby was indicted for obstructing the investigation.

"Two weeks ago," Blumenthal writes, "Fitzgerald filed a motion before the federal court in the Libby case stating that his investigation had proved that the White House engaged in "concerted action" from "a plan to discredit, punish or seek revenge against" former ambassador Joseph Wilson, who revealed that the rationale of the Iraq war was based on false information that the White House knew was bogus. Fitzgerald declared further that he had gathered "evidence that multiple officials in the White House" had outed his wife's clandestine identity to reporters as an element of revenge."

Excerpts follow.

http://tinyurl.com/ppp2l

Monkey,

It is rumoured that oil prices could go as high as $100.00 a barrel. They just hit $71.00 a barrel. And we thought it was high at $60.00!!

You know Bush can't play chess.

Showdown at the O.K. Corral.

Blumenthal: Leak inquiry is turning toward Rove

Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at April 19, 2006 04:14 PM

Ah-so, perhaps the newly so called diminished role (aka lower profile) for Red Rover is the telegraphed distancing by the Scrotus from a wilting turdblossom.

Smoke on the Watergate.

Posted by: Truth Shall Prevail at April 19, 2006 04:09 PM

I don't think it's a demotion at all. I think they're playing semantic games again.

I expect that Rove will be involved in whatever he wants to be involved in, as long as he's not behind bars. And even then, I expect he'd find a way to control things and pull dirty election tricks.

Truth Shall Prevail
They maybe don't want Rove so high profile if he's going to be involved in a big trial
BUT my understanding is that now Rove is EVEN MORE free to focus on master-minding the 2006 elections. It's just a shift away from him being a policy maker & toward his having more time to spend as a political strategist. If so, that is dangerous & we need to be more aware of him than ever.

With gas prices near all-time highs and the price of crude oil setting new records, CNN.com users say they have changed their daily routines or are feeling the pinch from rising energy costs. "No trips on days off, no movies, no dinners out," said one reader who wrote in to voice their frustration.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/04/19/feedback.gasprices/index.html

Good point DiAnne. The only way for them to get away from news like the article above and win this November is to smear, lie, and /or steal it, and moving His Turdiness to fecus on the elections fulltime doth smell foul.

eVile

I suspect the military headquarters heading from Seattle up this way (Everett) this morning were because the Chinese President spoke to Boeing workers here, introduced by Bill Gates. I didn't get to see any of it. :(

I said "military headquarters" -
I meant "military helicopters"

FBI Wants Jack Anderson's Papers
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906J.shtml
The FBI is seeking to go through the files of the late newspaper columnist Jack Anderson to remove classified material he may have accumulated in four decades of muckraking Washington journalism.

{{{I hope this story makes it to Lamestream Media....}}}

UN Torture Panel Presses US on Detainees
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906K.shtml
The United Nations committee against torture has demanded that the United States provide more information about its treatment of prisoners at home and foreign terrorism suspects held in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay.

{{{May the UN committee be completely successful in their endeavors.... I just wish *our* legislators would ask the same questions... er, well, I wish they would scream the questions so the administration AND Lamestream Media would hear the questions and demand answers! Honest answers, that is!!! Illegal detention without due process and torture are war crimes, and it's way past time for the administration to be IMPEACHED for those war crimes, as well as the war crimes of invading Iraq and Afghanistan - and occupying those same countries - illegally, against Nuremberg and Geneva Convention standards and rules....}}}

Ney's Role in Lobbying Scandal Casts Long Shadow Over Race
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906M.shtml
In the southeast Ohio congressional district, five candidates want to oust Republican congressman Bob Ney from the job he has held since 1994. Looming over all else is the prospect that Ney may be indicted for his role in a Capitol Hill lobbying scandal that contributed to the resignation of former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay.

US Contractor Admits Bribery for Jobs in Iraq
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906N.shtml
An American businessman who is at the heart of one of the biggest corruption cases to emerge from the reconstruction of Iraq has pleaded guilty to conspiracy, bribery and money-laundering charges, according to documents unsealed yesterday in federal court in Washington.

Durbin: Rumsfeld Should Go as Iraq Goes "From Bad to Terrible"
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906O.shtml
US Senator Dick Durbin called Tuesday for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld to be replaced and said he hopes Congress will debate the issue next week.

{{{Obama is also quoted in the article....}}}

Michael T. Klare | Containing China
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906P.shtml
Michael T. Klare writes: China has always responded to perceived threats of encirclement in a vigorous and muscular fashion so we should assume that Beijing will balance charm with a military buildup of its own. Such a drive will not bring China to the brink of military equality with the United States - that is not a condition it can realistically aspire to over the next few decades. But it will provide further justification for those in the United States who seek to accelerate the containment of China, and so will produce a self-fulfilling loop of distrust, competition, and crisis.

{{{Why is it everything with this moronic administration leads to power, control, and "or else" threats that can lead to war?!? DumDum is forgetting that China holds a large loan that finances the US government.... Or does he want to start yet another war with yet another country - only this time so he can be responsible for defaulting on the loans China holds for making sure our government can keep running???}}}

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060419/ap_on_re_us/immigration_boycott_2
Some Fear Immigration Protest Backlash

If so, that is dangerous & we need to be more aware of him than ever. [His Turdiness]
Posted by: DiAnne at April 19, 2006 04:54 PM

Me Thinkst thou art a witch who can read minds... my thought exactly....

Quote of the Day, on Karl Rove

from http://billmon.org
Happy Jack
Washington Post: "Karl Rove quits policy position to focus on midterm elections" This is like reading that Jack the Ripper has given up his medical practice to concentrate on his night job....
Posted in Whiskey Bar on April 19, 2006 05:02 PM

Finially Lind got off the dime…
http://www.d-n-i.net/lind/lind_4_19_06.htm

[snip]

Recognition that war is not dominated by technology but by human factors is an important counter to what will inevitably be claims by the U.S. military that it performed brilliantly; it was the politicians who lost the war (the Vietnam War claim repeated). As the authors note, this reflects an overly narrow definition of war:

Other lessons are that the military services must digest again that “war is an instrument of policy.” The profound neglect given to re-establishing order in the military’s prewar planning and the facile assumption that operations critical to the overall success of the campaign were “somebody else’s business” reflect a shallow view of warfare. Military planners should consider the evidence that occupation duties were carried out in a fashion – with the imperatives of “force protection” overriding concern for Iraqi civilian casualties – that risked sacrificing the broader strategic mission of U.S. forces.

Nor could the Iraq war have been won if we had sent more troops. More troops would not have helped us deal with the problems of bad intelligence, lack of cultural awareness, and the insistence on using tactics that alienated the population. As the authors state, “The assumption that the United States would have won the hearts and minds of the population had it maintained occupying forces of 300,000 instead of 140,000 must seem dubious in the extreme.”

The most important point in this excellent study is precisely the one that Washington will be most reluctant to learn: “Rather that ‘do it better next time,’ a better lesson is ‘don’t do it at all.’” What we require is a “national security strategy (I would say grand strategy) in which there is no imperative to fight the kind of war that the United States has fought in Iraq.”

Quote of the Day, from http://billmon.org

Happy Jack
Washington Post: "Karl Rove quits policy position to focus on midterm elections" This is like reading that Jack the Ripper has given up his medical practice to concentrate on his night job....

mbk just posted same quote

..more minds thinking alike!!

Monkey, DiAnne, and Madame,

I doth know the depths of the power Rove has. I understand this is windowdressing.

I just thought this would be a good time for millions of Americans to make their voices heard that WE DON'T WANT KARL ROVE MAKING POLICY DECISIONS.

You do know don't you that I wrote Evangelical leaders and told them that Rove's values are not consistent with Christian values, because he slanders and slimes people, and that I think a "Christian" President should not be taking advice from a senior adviser who specializes in smearing people's reputations.

Wonder if there's a reason (besides the upcoming election) they would want him to be now seen as a political strategist and not a policy adviser.

Sniff.......sniff......sniff

It does kind of sound like TurdBlossom may be wilting.

Ok, I'm very upset to read the homepage today. (The part about books being donated...)

The reason I'm upset is because I just went through 15 years of my life and my children's lives and donated boxes and boxes of books to our local library. These books were in excellent condition; however, due to the 'smallness' of our local library, I later got word that they put all these donations into the dumpster instead of giving them away to the schools or letting people take them from a share box.

Now I'm upset because I would have been thrilled to donate to the Princeton Katrina project.

Posted by: sparrow at April 19, 2006 08:57 PM

Don't beat yerself up, just go out and encourage others to donate books to the project instead... it's good grass roots practice!

Book 'em, sparrow.

Posted by: sparrow at April 19, 2006 08:57 PM

Uff da!!! Our local library's funding was cut a few years ago, they had to cut staff hours and cut number of hours the library was open (none of which is back to what it was years ago). People donate used books to the library, and books that are no longer checked out are taken off the shelves - and the library has a weekend book sale at least three or four times a year (afternoon of the second day you can get a whole bag of books for a dollar or two). They use those funds from the sale of used books (also used CDs, records, tapes that have been donated) to buy new books for the library. My local library is only one of several within a regional library system. (I get stuff on interlibrary loan like microfilm from the state historical society for genealogy stuff - they have a microfilm reader at the library - or I get reference books for research - and before I had my own computer, I learned to use their computers, they have internet connection on all, and it's all free.) I usually buy at least two boxes of books the first day of the sales (otherwise the books are too picked over - but sometimes I've gone back the second day in the morning and they've added books that weren't out the first day and get another bag or two of books). $20-25 dollars gets me a lot of books, and it's economical to get good used books that way. (I even once found a book I know is no longer in print because I'd borrowed the book from a friend years ago to read, but I picked up my own copy at the book sale.)

Might I suggest that rather than throwing books in a dumpster your local library sell the books (anywhere from .25 cents per paperback, .50 or .75 cents for larger paperbacks, to a dollar or two for hardcovers) for fundraising? If they're as short of funds as most public libraries, they could use the money.

Or, have a yard sale and sell the books yourself, or give them to the local hospital, or if you have loads of children's books, give them to a daycare center (or sell to the daycare cheaply) - or any number of other ideas so other people who enjoy reading can get the benefit of the books.

Sorry for the rant. The idea of throwing perfectly good, barely worn, used books in a dumpster just makes me ill...!

For some reason, this quote came into mind when I heard about Snotty Scotty resigning...

"You don't have Nixon to kick around anymore. Because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference."

You know, I'm sort of going to miss little Snotty. It was getting to be quite a fun game to see how many times he could repeat the same lie or evade a question in one press conference. I'm sure whoever they get to replace him will have much more eloquent lying & evasion techniques... It just won't be the same...

Nonny O,

I was told they don't do that because they're such a little library. So I asked why they didn't call the local schools and tell the office that they had a large donations of books and school supplies. I was told, "We don't have time to do that. Next time donate to the schools yourself!"

So...that was my last donation to this library.

madame, Snotty is the fall guy. This shake up is a diversion. They have to get us off talking about Bush's crimes. The person who replaces him will be able to say, "I was not there, I'll get back with you...." It's not hard to see why they needed to switch the voice of the White House but my question is, "Will Snotty have a tell all book or did they promote him in the private sector?"

Posted by: NonnyO at April 19, 2006 09:37 PM

It makes you ill? It makes me more ill because these were in excellent condition and they were a long part of my life. It was the one part of my life that I packratted.

Oh..but if it makes you feel better, they take Harlequin's and put those in the share racks.

Let's just hope we still feel this way when we have heard the new White House press secretary say the same thing for months on end.

Maybe the new one will be more stern.

I overheard some ladies talking about gas prices today. Generally they were griping about how expensive it was to fill up their tanks. With MBTE outlawed, the local gas stations are using an ethanol blend this time of year in order to meet summer octane standards. This is the first year they've done it, so there are expensive tank-cleaning procedures to go through at the gas stations and they haven't figured out how they're going to get all the ethanol out here since there aren't pipelines (i.e. trucks and trains). Of course, all these costs are passed directly to the consumer with the mandatory markup.

Well, after the ladies griped a bit, one woman said, But, you have some Exxon stock right, so you must be doing all right.

The other woman replied, Yes, my Exxon stock's been doing great, that's the one bright spot in all this. But I have to sell my shares in order to buy a tank of gas.

And Marc, I think it's more like a game of Go than a game of chess. Either way, games that originated with Eastern thought processes. Any wonder our cowboy struggles?

Posted by: sparrow at April 19, 2006 10:21 PM

Eeeeoowww... No, it doesn't make me feel better that they take Harlequin books (sorry if that sounds snobbish, but they're not my kind of 'trashy novel' reading - I go for historical novels by good authors). I pack-rat books, too. When I made a 1200 mile move, I sold or gave away stuff like most furniture, clothing, car... but I took my bookshelves and books with me, and I've only added books since then (I so rarely part with books, but have when I've found two copies of the same book, or purposedly bought a hardcover to replace the paperback of the same book - which I have done on purpose when the library has a hardcover in good condition in their used book sales).

Too bad you don't have a staff at your local library like the ones where I live. I'm on a first name basis with all of them, their phone number is on speed dial, and I have the email addy of the head librarian who orders all my interlibrary loan microfilms and reference books. I've also done some volunteer work with them, so have had an opportunity to get to know them, too.

Yup, I can see that you won't soon darken the doorway of your ungrateful local library unless you have to.... That's okay. I'm sure if you choose to give away or sell any books in the future that someone who is grateful for them will get them....

Re: Snotty....

I just watched the opening of BBC news rerun... Snotty looked... relieved. Okay, what he was saying was pandering to The Cretin, but he still had a more relaxed look to his face and body language. I think he's happy to be leaving.... (Well, if I had to LIE that much for my boss and his criminal cronies, I'd be relieved and deliriously happy to be leaving, too....)

NonnyO
I heard an analysis by the guy who was Clinton's press secretary. He said about what you said!

Veritas
I saw an anti-Exxon sticker in a conservative part of the next county today.

Other
I saw a good title today (Sydney Blumenthal) - "Walking the White House Plank" - & acc/this - Rove is a real suspect - a person of interest - not a mere witness!

Sidney Blumenthal | Walking the White House Plank
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/041906R.shtml
"McClellan is a flea on the windshield of history," says Sidney Blumenthal. The real news about the White House shakeup is the changing role of Carl Rove.

A friend's dad said:
KARL ROVE HAS BEEN GIVEN A NEW BROOM!
PUSH IT OR RIDE IT KARL!!! ..............hahaha
ME THINKS THE DECK CHAIRS ON THE TITANIC ARE BEING REARRANGED!

By Anneliese Fikentscher and Andreas Neumann
Translation to English: Erik Appleby
How Media Have Distorted the Facts in Support of an Attack on Iran.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12790.htm

Stop Us Before We Kill Again!
By Bernard Weiner
So, if you're wondering whether the U.S. will back off from attacking Iran, or whether corporations will no longer be given the ability to dictate Administration environmental policy, or whether domestic spying on U.S. citizens will cease, or whether Scalia might recuse himself on cases he's already pre-judged -- if you still harbor any or all of those illusions, forget about it.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12784.htm

Forget the Middle East:
North America Harbors the World's Most Dangerous Terrorists
By Jason Miller
A Messiah complex, severely stunted emotional intelligence and profound ignorance are the defining characteristics of the man capable of making nuclear holocaust a reality within minutes.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12787.htm

When "Diplomacy" Means War
By Norman Solomon
One of the nation's leading pollsters, Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center, wrote a few weeks ago that among Americans "there is little potential support for the use of force against Iran." This month the White House has continued to emphasize that it is committed to seeking a diplomatic solution. Yet the U.S. government is very likely to launch a military attack on Iran within the next year. How can that be?
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12785.htm

Lock him away to stop the next war
By Phillip Adams
WE cannot wait any longer for the impeachment of George W. Bush. Far more efficient to have Bush certified. There is no need for further debate on his mental state. The US President is bonkers.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article12786.htm

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060420/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/guantanamo_detainees
Pentagon Releases Extensive Gitmo List

Posted by: DiAnne at April 20, 2006 01:26 AM

Turd Blossom may be a "person of interest" but he will bloom in the most unlikely places until or unless he is in jail, and even then he will likely have visitors so he can manage smear and sleaze campaigns from behind bars.... He is the one to watch for evil shenanigans.

I'm just curious to find out if The Cretin, the Vice Cretin, Rummy and Condisleazy are "persons of interest." Fitz has been methodically successful in going after crooks all the way up to the governor's office in Illinois. I hope he is blessed with the dogged perseverence to take his current grand jury investigation as far as it will go... to the top, if that's where the evidence leads....

I can patiently wait if Fitz is as good at this case as he has been with everything in the past. I just hope he gets it all accomplished before DumDum starts another illegal war and/or nukes half the danged world....

Posted by: NonnyO at April 20, 2006 12:22 AM

Nonny,

We moved to this town only a few years ago. So I did not know this library very well. However, when we home schooled, we practically lived at the S*****e library and knew their staff extremely well. The only reason I didn't donate to the S****e library was because they have a huge tax basis and buy books easily; however, the library that I donated to here has a very small tax basis so I assumed they'd be happy to get hard and soft cover books, some fiction, some children books, and some on different areas of study.

I remember last year at the TBA, when we watched a video, there was a clip that was talking about some DC schools that their latest book was from the 50's.

Just a passing note, Ellen aka ebgill, has a diary mentioned in the diary rescue section at dailykos.

Check it out here...
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/4/19/75126/0065

HAMILTON, Ga. -- Ralph Reed, White House confidant and an architect of the Religious Right movement, was favored to win the nomination in the Georgia lieutenant governor's race when the 2006 campaign season began.

But his work with Jack Abramoff, the former lobbyist who has admitted to trying to bribe lawmakers, is becoming a drag on Mr. Reed's first bid for public office.

-snip-

Sadie Fields, head of the Christian Coalition chapter in Georgia, considers Mr. Reed a friend and champion of the religious conservative cause in politics. "He's apologized," she says, and the chapter is closed for her.

But other Republicans once close to Mr. Reed aren't satisfied with his explanation of his role in Mr. Abramoff's work. Maurice Atkinson, a Christian Coalition activist, quit the Reed campaign after the scandal became public and signed up with Mr. Cagle (Reed's opponent). "Nobody likes to be a hypocrite and nobody likes to follow a hypocrite," he says.

http://tinyurl.com/oeu5p

Maurice Atkinson is today's Genuine Draft "Person of the Day".

The new Code Pink email outlines what I've been saying for a long time - that Iraqi women had it better than many women in the middle east under Saddam. & now their situation has deterioriated & is much worse. Marjorie & I met Code Pink NYC ladies in their Easter bonnets & when my computer is working properly & I have some time, I'll rescue the pictures.

Looking again at Karen in London above, with the nice weather!

An editorial from today's NYT...

Things Change, and Stay the Same

President Bush wants to show the nation he's shaking things up in his administration, but it is clear that the people who messed everything up will remain in place. The press secretary goes; the political-and-domestic-policy adviser is losing half his portfolio. There's a new White House chief of staff. But the folks at the Defense Department are still on the job, doing ... what they've been doing.

Metaphors about deck chairs abound.

It's too soon to say how history will judge this administration, but it does look as if the first thing this president will be remembered for is the disastrous way the war in Iraq was conducted under Donald Rumsfeld, who, of course, isn't going anywhere. If there's a second thing we think history will shake its head over, it's the administration's cavalier disregard for the civil liberties of American citizens and the human rights of American prisoners. Needless to say, nobody's being replaced at the Justice Department.

The third great disaster of the Bush administration is a fiscal policy that has turned a federal surplus into a series of enormous budget gaps and an economy that depends on loans from China to pay its bills. The administration is changing the fiscal team, but doing everything possible to send the signal that there are no new brooms in this venture — just the same old faces with new labels. Rob Portman will morph from being the trade representative into being the director of the White House budget office. Mr. Portman, a longtime Bush loyalist, used his nomination acceptance speech to champion all the policies that wrecked things in the first place. More tax cuts will be forthcoming, he vowed, and budget cuts will make things balance out in the end.

President Bush has been slicing away at federal revenues by encouraging Congress to pass tax cuts for wealthy Americans. That usually isn't hard to do. The fact that there's been so much difficulty getting the latest round through the Republican-controlled Senate is a measure of how irresponsible the plans are. And everybody is well aware that the proposed spending cuts wouldn't go far enough to make up for lost tax dollars. Even budget cuts that are doable are anathema to an undisciplined legislature that is used to being allowed to spend whatever it wants by a feckless presidency.

The sudden exit of Scott McClellan, the press secretary, would be meaningless under normal circumstances. But in the current context, it really does send an important message. The president is like one of those people who pretend to apologize by saying they're sorry if they were misunderstood. He doesn't believe he's done anything wrong. It's our fault for not appreciating him.

Blame the victim.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/20/opinion/20thu1.html?hp

Is this guy nuts or is he trying to cause a revolution in the US or is he trying to make sure Bush is on his last days...

A Peaceful Call to Arms

THE American public needs to be prepared for what is shaping up to be a clash of colossal proportions between the West and Iran.
--snip--
Now, President Bush and Congress should reinstitute selective service under a lottery without any deferments.
--snip--
President Bush has the perfect credentials overseas to execute this move, and little political capital at home to lose at this stage. Polls confirm that a wide majority of people in many countries view him and the United States as the major threat to global peace. Why let them down on this count? Go with the flow.
--snip--
President Bush should therefore consult with Congress about reinstituting selective national service by lottery for all young males and females. After 9/11, President Bush missed an opportunity to ask America's citizenry to make sacrifices in the form of military service, homeland defense and conservation that many would have accepted. Instead, he asked people to continue shopping to prop up the flagging economy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/20/opinion/20Kane.html

It's all about marketing...Repugs do it better.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0420GOPAward0420.html

Rising costs of war..

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0420iraq-costs0420.html

Rising costs of war..

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0420iraq-costs0420.html

Sorry for the double post...

Benson on Rove
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/opinions/benson/

Dems Spanish-speaking ads blame Repugs for immigration problems.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0420raids0420side.html

Posted by: battlebob at April 20, 2006 10:25 AM

Shouldn't you apologize twice for the double post?

Just wondering.

Just wondering.

Hey cool, I can hear myself!

Happy 420 from the Pottery Barn.