How Bush's Sick Joke Became Public Policy

quote[Once would be a lame joke; twice, a symptom of a seriously impaired sense of humor. Three times, however, is suggestive of seriously malevolent intentions. In our system of government, which remains in form – if not in practice – a constitutional republic, chief executives simply do not joke about dictatorial ambitions.

Here's a useful parallel. It is a serious federal offense even to joke about wanting to kill the President of the United States. Doing so even one time is sufficient to provoke a visit from the Secret Service. Were someone to do so three times, he would almost certainly face prosecution, as well as an invasive psychological evaluation.

Shouldn't it be considered just as grave an offense for a president, who swore an oath in God's name to uphold our Constitution, to make jokes about murdering our republic in order to erect a dictatorship?]

His own words...

Lobbyist, Prosecutors Said Close to Deal

quote[Federal prosecutors and lawyers for Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff consulted briefly Friday with a federal judge in Miami as they put the finishing touches on a plea deal that could be announced as early as Tuesday, according to sources familiar with the negotiations.
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The plea agreement would secure the lobbyist's testimony against several members of Congress who received favors from him or his clients.]

More repugs about to go down???

Blagojevich to Rumsfeld: Act against trafficking

quote[In a letter expected to go to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Friday, Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich said he is troubled by the Pentagon's inaction on human trafficking and called on Rumsfeld to take aggressive measures to protect human rights.

Blagojevich, a former congressman, was reacting to a story in Tuesday's Tribune about the Pentagon's delay in adopting rules that bar overseas contractors from supporting human trafficking for forced labor and prostitution. His letter also is in response to a Tribune series in October, "Pipeline to Peril," that exposed an illicit pipeline used to funnel thousands of workers from South Asia to privatized U.S. military support operations in Iraq.

"The time to act is now," Blagojevich told Rumsfeld, according to a copy of the letter provided by the governor's office. The letter also touts a new Illinois law, which takes effect Sunday, that Blagojevich says will create stiff new penalties for anyone engaged in trafficking.]

Is Bush Drinking Again?

LOL!

Bush was denied wiretaps, bypassed them

quote[U.S. President George Bush decided to skip seeking warrants for international wiretaps because the court was challenging him at an unprecedented rate.]

In a dictatorship, there is no rule of law for the king.

Rice authorized National Security Agency to spy on UN Security Council in run-up to war, former officials say

quote[President Bush and other top officials in his administration used the National Security Agency to secretly wiretap the home and office telephones and monitor private email accounts of members of the United Nations Security Council in early 2003 to determine how foreign delegates would vote on a U.N. resolution that paved the way for the U.S.-led war in Iraq, NSA documents show.]

For all the spying going on, this administration still has less than a lackluster record on intelligence.

Bush's counsel on spying now under close scrutiny

quote[When President Bush sought to reassure the country that his authorization of spying on Americans without warrants was a reasonable exercise of his power, he emphasized that his orders were always reviewed by the attorney general and the White House counsel.

''Each review is based on a fresh intelligence assessment of terrorist threats to continuity of our government and the threat of catastrophic damage to our homeland," Bush said in his Dec. 17 radio address. ''The review includes approval by our nation's top legal officials, including the attorney general and the counsel to the president."

The current occupants of those jobs are Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and White House counsel Harriet E. Miers. Prior to 2005, Gonzales was White House counsel and John Ashcroft was attorney general.

The current dispute over whether the president had the authority to order domestic spying without warrants, despite a law against it, has put new focus on the legal officials who have guided Bush. And the qualifications of Ashcroft, Gonzales, and Miers could become a focus of the upcoming Senate hearings on the spying decision.]

Happy Holidays

Due to the holidays and an illness, I have been unable to update very often. I sincerely apologize and wish all who visit a happy holidays and the best for the new year.

Congress EXPLICITLY Denied Bush Domestic Wiretapping Authority Following 9-11

quote["Literally minutes before the Senate cast its vote, the administration sought to add the words 'in the United States and' after 'appropriate force' in the agreed-upon text," Daschle wrote. "This last-minute change would have given the president broad authority to exercise expansive powers not just overseas -- where we all understood he wanted authority to act -- but right here in the United States, potentially against American citizens. I could see no justification for Congress to accede to this extraordinary request for additional authority. I refused."

Daschle wrote that Congress also rejected draft language from the White House that would have authorized the use of force to "deter and pre-empt any future acts of terrorism or aggression against the United States," not only against those responsible for the Sept. 11 attacks.]

Could it be any clearer???

Police Infiltrate Protests, Videotapes Show

quote[Undercover New York City police officers have conducted covert surveillance in the last 16 months of people protesting the Iraq war, bicycle riders taking part in mass rallies and even mourners at a street vigil for a cyclist killed in an accident, a series of videotapes show.

In glimpses and in glaring detail, the videotape images reveal the robust presence of disguised officers or others working with them at seven public gatherings since August 2004.

The officers hoist protest signs. They hold flowers with mourners. They ride in bicycle events. At the vigil for the cyclist, an officer in biking gear wore a button that said, "I am a shameless agitator." She also carried a camera and videotaped the roughly 15 people present.]

John Gibson Goes Nuts Over His War On Christmas

quote[Boston: John, your war on Christmas is bogus, it doesn't exist-it's thinner than drugstore wrapping paper.

(Gibson had to prod Gary on since he was getting pasted.)

Gibson: You're defending me Gary, get busy.

Gibson said it was his book and O'Reilly's campaign that is restoring Christmas.

Gibson: You can't do this-this year because you got caught.

Boston: You guys are rich. This stuff was made up. I called school superintendents and said you know O'Reilly...said you can't have cookies at your school...

Gibson interrupting: Rob-Rob-Rob, stop right there-Rob-ROB-STOP-RIGHT-THERE!

Boston: No you're wrong John, I'm not gonna stop...

Gibson: Yea you are, because the incidents in my book are not lies--if you're calling me a liar let's go one on one of it. --Hey Rob! Straighten up, you just called me a liar-Back up your charges--(Gary-pipe down)--Rob, you just called me a liar!--I did not say that!---(Gary, Stop!)

Gibson: If you're calling me a liar on that, you're going to get sued next.

Boston: Now you've changed your story.

Gibson had no use for McCaleb in the segment and finally pulled the plug on Boston.]

This was a hilarious clip!

Abramoff Is About To Name Names

quote[Jack Abramoff, the Republican lobbyist under criminal investigation, has been discussing with prosecutors a deal that would grant him a reduced sentence in exchange for testimony against former political and business associates, people with detailed knowledge of the case say.

Mr. Abramoff is believed to have extensive knowledge of what prosecutors suspect is a wider pattern of corruption among lawmakers and Congressional staff members. One participant in the case who insisted on anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations described him as a "unique resource."

Other people involved in the case or who have been officially briefed on it said the talks had reached a tense phase, with each side mindful of the date Jan. 9, when Mr. Abramoff is scheduled to stand trial in Miami in a separate prosecution.

What began as a limited inquiry into $82 million of Indian casino lobbying by Mr. Abramoff and his closest partner, Michael Scanlon, has broadened into a far-reaching corruption investigation of mainly Republican lawmakers and aides suspected of accepting favors in exchange for legislative work.]

This is going to be interesting.

Even More On The Domestic Spying...

quote[But in at least one instance, someone using an international cellphone was thought to be outside the United States when in fact both people in the conversation were in the country. Officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the program remains classified, would not discuss the number of accidental intercepts, but the total is thought to represent a very small fraction of the total number of wiretaps that Mr. Bush has authorized without getting warrants. In all, officials say the program has been used to eavesdrop on as many as 500 people at any one time, with the total number of people reaching perhaps into the thousands in the last three years.]

This is going to be huge!

Secret Spying Captured Some Domestic Calls: Report

quote[A program U.S. President George W. Bush ordered allowing warrantless spying on Americans with suspected terrorist ties unintentionally captured a small number of purely domestic communications, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The newspaper, citing unidentified officials, said the calls were snagged despite a White House requirement that one end of the intercepted conversations take place on foreign soil.

The officials were cited as saying that the National Security Agency's interception of communications between people within the United States was apparently accidental, caused by technical glitches in determining whether a communication was in fact ``international.'']

Unbe-fucking-leivable!

Did Bush domestic spy program eavesdrop on American journalists?

quote[I had an interesting discussion this morning with DC political consultant Marc Laitin. We both came to the conclusion that it sounds like Bush's super-secret illegal domestic spying program may be targeting US journalists and that may be why Bush never got it cleared by the court and is worried about it coming forward now.

Think about it.]

Interesting, and scary, possibility...

Explosives Heist One of the Biggest in Recent History

quote[According to federal officials, the theft of 400 pounds of high-powered plastic explosives in New Mexico is one of the largest high explosives heists in recent history.

The material was taken from Cherry Engineering, a company owned by Chris Cherry, a scientist at Sandia National Labs. The site, located outside Albuquerque, had no guards and no surveillance cameras. It was the site's second theft in the past two years.]

I thought Bush was supposed to make this country safer...

Censure motion introduced in House over Iraq, torture

quote[Ranking House Judiciary Democrat Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) has introduced a motion to censure President Bush and Vice President Cheney for providing misleading information to Congress in advance of the Iraq war, failing to respond to written questions and potential violations of international law, RAW STORY has learned.

The resolutions were quietly introduced Sunday evening along with a third resolution (HR 635) to create a Select Committee to investigate the administration’s intent to go to war prior to congressional authorization. The committee would also be charged with examining manipulation of pre-war intelligence, thwarting Congressional oversight and retaliatory attacks against critics. As part of this resolution, House Judiciary Democrats seek also to explore violations of international law as pertaining to detainee abuse and torture of prisoners of war.]

It's about time...

Big Brother Bush / The president took a step toward a police state

quote[It appears that the phone and e-mail messages of thousands of Americans and foreigners resident in America have been or are being monitored and recorded by the NSA. Such action is not supposed to be taken without an application to and an order approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. Mr. Bush issued an executive order in 2002, months after the Sept. 11, 2001, attack, removing -- secretly -- that legal safeguard of Americans' privacy and civil rights.]

Is our brief experiment in democracy and liberty finally coming to an end?

Osama, Saddam? What's in a name?

quote["In the late 1990s, our government was following Osama bin Laden because he was using a certain type of telephone and then the fact that we were following Osama bin Laden because he was using a certain type of telephone made it into the press as the result of a leak," Bush said.

"And guess what happened. Saddam ...Osama bin Laden changed his behavior. He began to change how he communicated. We're at war. And we must protect America's secrets."]

Is Bush just a moron? Or can't he distinguish his enemies?

Bush vows more eavesdropping

quote[President George W. Bush vowed on Monday to authorize more eavesdropping on Americans suspected of ties to terrorists and said he believed a probe was underway into who committed "the shameful act" of revealing the covert program.

Bush, struggling with low approval ratings and wide public discontent with the rising U.S. death toll, also defended his decision to invade Iraq, saying "it wasn't a mistake."]

It may be grossly unconstitutional, but does King Bush care??

No.

Welcome to the police state.

The Music Genome Project

quote[Ever since we started the Music Genome Project, our friends would ask:

Can you help me discover more music that I'll like?

Those questions often evolved into great conversations. Each friend told us their favorite artists and songs, explored the music we suggested, gave us feedback, and we in turn made new suggestions. Everybody started joking that we were now their personal DJs.

We created Pandora so that we can have that same kind of conversation with you.]

This site is awesome! If you're a music lover, give it a try.

Bush Secretly Lifted Some Limits on Spying in U.S. After 9/11, Officials Say

quote[Months after the Sept. 11 attacks, President Bush secretly authorized the National Security Agency to eavesdrop on Americans and others inside the United States to search for evidence of terrorist activity without the court-approved warrants ordinarily required for domestic spying, according to government officials.

Under a presidential order signed in 2002, the intelligence agency has monitored the international telephone calls and international e-mail messages of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people inside the United States without warrants over the past three years in an effort to track possible "dirty numbers" linked to Al Qaeda, the officials said. The agency, they said, still seeks warrants to monitor entirely domestic communications.]

"We don't torture. We don't spy on Americans. Nothing to see here. Move along..."

Dems Finally Grow A Spine, Open Can Of Whoopass In Senate

quote[The Senate on Friday rejected attempts to reauthorize several provisions of the USA Patriot Act as infringing too much on Americans' privacy and liberty, dealing a huge defeat to the Bush administration and Republican leaders.

In a crucial vote early Friday, the bill's Senate supporters were not able to get the 60 votes needed to overcome a threatened filibuster by Sens. Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin, and Larry Craig, R-Idaho, and their allies. The final vote was 52-47.]

It's about time...

Elections Official: Some Voting Machines Could Be Hacked

quote[Voting machines used in four Central Florida counties might be flawed.

There's new evidence that computer hackers could change election results without anyone knowing about it, WESH 2 News reported.

The supervisor of elections in Tallahassee tested voting machines several times over the last several months, and on Monday, his workers were able to hack into a voting machine and change the outcome. He said that same thing might have happened in Volusia County in 2000.]

And this is news???

32% Favor Bush Impeachment

quote[ December 15, 2005--Thirty-two percent (32%) of Americans believe that President George W. Bush should be impeached and removed from office. Fifty-eight percent (58%) take the opposite view.]

How could 58% be so dumb?

MAN DATES GAL ON INTERNET FOR SIX MONTHS -- AND IT TURNS OUT SHE'S HIS MOTHER!

And the most disturbing part of this story:

quote[Daniel admits he and his mother could do little but stammer and stutter around each other for days after their cyberspace exploits came to light. And his father Paul -- Nicole's husband of 27 years -- wasn't too happy when the story hit the news and his beer-drinking buddies made him the butt of their jokes.

"Dad was ticked for a while and he forbid Mom to talk to anybody on the Internet ever again," said embarrassed Daniel.]

Next stop in New Orleans: Disaster trip for tourists

quote[Visitors to New Orleans who once toured the graceful mansions of its Garden District or learned the history of its Mississippi River plantations have a new attraction: The Hurricane Katrina disaster tour.

Gray Line New Orleans will begin offering a "Hurricane Katrina Tour - America's Worst Catastrophe!" to show the ruin that befell the city when the storm hit on August 29, breaching a faulty system of river levees and flooding 80 percent of its neighborhoods.]

I can't blame the company, and at least some of the money will go for relief.

But one has to wonder what type of person would want to go on the tour.

Bush can settle CIA leak riddle, Novak says

quote["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.' "]

Are we about to see a Merry Fitzmas II?

Israel readies forces for strike on nuclear Iran

quote[ISRAEL’S armed forces have been ordered by Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, to be ready by the end of March for possible strikes on secret uranium enrichment sites in Iran, military sources have revealed.

The order came after Israeli intelligence warned the government that Iran was operating enrichment facilities, believed to be small and concealed in civilian locations.]

Mushroom cloud anyone?

'Daily Show' halts production following suicide

quote[An employee of the Comedy Central program "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" has committed suicide, leading the network to suspend production of Monday night's episode of the program, a spokesman confirmed.]

I guess this explains last night's repeat...

Red Sox Interested In Clemens??

quote["We had an internal discussion," said Sox CEO and president Larry Lucchino, ''and concluded we should make an initial call to let the Hendricks brothers know we were open to discuss Roger's return if he should have interest in the Red Sox in 2006.]

The rumor mill is alive and well this offseason. Sorry for those not interested in baseball...

Bush Advisor To Reporter: Katrina “Has Fallen So Far Off The Radar Screen, You Can’t Find It”

quote[I’m going to tell you something to amaze you; it amazed me yesterday. The last time the president was in the hurricane region was October 11, two months ago. The president stood in New Orleans and said it was going to be one of the largest reconstruction efforts in the history of the world. You go to the White house home page, there’s Barney camp, there’s Social Security, there’s Renewing Iraq. Where’s renewing New Orleans? A presidential advisor told me that issue has fallen so far off the radar screen, you can’t find it.]

Is this deliberate?? We must not let this get clouded by less serious issues in '06 or even '08!

Iraq Prison Raid Finds a New Case of Mistreatment

quote[American and Iraqi forces raiding an Iraqi government detention center last Thursday in Baghdad discovered more than 600 prisoners packed into a cramped space, 13 of them mistreated so badly they had to be taken to a hospital, a senior American official said early Monday.]

Great news on the heels of their elections...

Let Joe Know

quote[Earlier this week while discussing the war in Iraq, Senator Joseph Lieberman said, "It's time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge he'll be commander-in-chief for three more critical years, and that in matters of war we undermine presidential credibility at our nation's peril."

Unfortunately, President Bush has no credibility. His administration misled our nation into the war in Iraq on trumped-up charges of weapons of mass destruction. His "stay the course" strategy has led to over 2,100 American deaths. And no one sees an end in sight.

It is disturbing enough that Senator Lieberman remains one of the president's biggest cheerleaders. But his call for opponents of the president's failed policy to keep quiet is outrageous.

The only way we will end this war is by having an honest debate about how and when we can bring our troops home.

Join me in sending Senator Lieberman an open letter asking him to join the majority of Americans in questioning the Bush administration's Iraq policy.]

I recommend writing a personal note if you wish to recieve a personal response. Also, if you live in CT, make sure you mention it.

One Red Paper Clip

Very cool!

I hope everyone has a very good weekend. I'm already sick of snow, and it isn't even winter yet.

The War On Christmas Is Winning; Megachurches Take Christmas Off!

quote[Some of the nation's most prominent megachurches have decided not to hold worship services on the Sunday that coincides with Christmas Day, a move that is generating controversy among evangelical Christians at a time when many conservative groups are battling to "put the Christ back in Christmas."]

This, despite the fact that Christmas even falls on a Sunday this year.

Good thing I'm a liberal, anti-christian, USA-hating, commie-loving, fag-worshiper!!!

Why Would Anyone Search For This???

quote[If anyone reads this after coming here via such a search, please tell us a little bit about yourself. Are you a sexually repressed social conservative? A sado-masochistic liberal? A horny College Republican? Did you seriously think she posed nude? Well, whoever you are, don’t worry, because you’re not alone.]

For my new friend in Texas...

The Daily Show's Stewart responds to O'Reilly's misleading attack

quote[Summary: Daily Show host Jon Stewart took Bill O'Reilly to task for his misleading use of a year-old Daily Show clip (noted December 6 by Media Matters for America) to demonstrate what O'Reilly claims to be an ongoing "war on Christmas."]

LOL!!

Heckling causes Coulter to cut UConn speech short

quote[Conservative columnist Ann Coulter gave up trying to finish a speech at the University of Connecticut on Wednesday night when boos and jeers from the audience became overwhelming.

Coulter cut off the talk after 15 minutes and instead held a half-hour question-and-answer session.

"I love to engage in repartee with people who are stupider than I am," Coulter told the 2,600 people at Jorgensen Auditorium.]

Stupider? Stupider?? That's not even a fucking word!

Weicker may challenge Lieberman

quote["In the absence of any Democrat giving him a challenge, or somebody of another party of substance, I'd have to consider it, but that's the extent of my commitment at this stage," Weicker, 74, said in a phone interview Tuesday. He said he would run as an independent, but has no timetable for making a decision.

Speaking at a Rotary Club luncheon on Monday, Weicker sharply criticized Lieberman and President Bush over the Iraq war.

"I have seen this country propagandized into war," said Weicker, a Republican-turned-independent. "It's now a second wave of propagandizing, with the president taking the stump, joined by persons like Senator Joe Lieberman."]

I think I'd vote for him.

Fitzgerald Presents New Information to Grand Jury

quote[Special Counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald appeared this morning to present information to a new grand jury in the CIA leak investigation.

Fitzgerald has been probing for two years what role senior Bush administration officials have played in leaking a CIA operative name to the media in 2003.

Today's appearance was the first time that Fitzgerald has gone back to a grand jury since the Oct. 28 indictment of I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's former chief of staff.]

Something is cooking, that's for sure.

Lieberman, whom the Bush administration has praised repeatedly for his war stance, defended the president. "It's time for Democrats who distrust Presi

quote[Lieberman, whom the Bush administration has praised repeatedly for his war stance, defended the president. "It's time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge he'll be commander-in-chief for three more years," the senator said. "We undermine the president's credibility at our nation's peril."]

Why doesn't he just admit that he's really a righty???

Baby Bush Toys

quote[Sure, we all want what's best for our kids, but let's face the truth: not every child can grow up to be Einstein! At the Baby Bush Toy Company, we offer an exciting range of products for the resoundingly average child.]

Ha!

Pilot Reports 'Missile' Fired at Jetliner Near LAX

quote[FBI agents and Homeland Security officials spent the weekend investigating the report of a possible missile fired at an American Airlines plane taking off from Los Angeles International Airport.

Sources tell ABC News the pilot of American Airlines Flight 621, en route to Chicago, radioed air traffic controllers after takeoff from LAX. He told them a missile had been fired at the aircraft and missed.

The plane was over water when the pilot said he saw a smoke trail pass by the cockpit.

FBI agents believe it was a flare or a bottle rocket, but say they may never know if that's what it actually was.]

They're taking a pretty calm approach to this, aren't they?

Is Bush Courting Lieberman?

quote[Rumors that Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) will replace Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld resurfaced again on Face the Nation:

Bob Schieffer: "Last night -- over this weekend, I had four different people tell me that the White House is thinking if the secretary of Defense goes over the next year -- and a lot of people think that he will, that the president is thinking of nominating Joe Lieberman to be secretary of Defense."

If it happened, Connecticut Gov. Jodi Rell (R) would likely appoint a Republican to fill Lieberman's seat. Kos explains the ramifications for Democrats.

As Raw Story notes, Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) called for Rumsfeld's dismissal today.]

Well, for one thing, we'd finally get rid of Lieberman. But, surely Rell would appoint a repug to replace him.

I have mixed feelings about this.

Angry BellSouth Withdrew Donation, New Orleans Says

quote[Hours after New Orleans officials announced Tuesday that they would deploy a city-owned, wireless Internet network in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, regional phone giant BellSouth Corp. withdrew an offer to donate one of its damaged buildings that would have housed new police headquarters, city officials said yesterday.]

Nice. That's classy.

Bush Called for Jury Duty in Texas, Refuses To Show

quote["We have since called the court to inform them that the president has other commitments on Monday and that he would like to reschedule his jury duty," he said. "We will be working with the court to reschedule his jury duty. ... Jury duty is an important civic responsibility and it's important that people do serve."

Although Bush won't serve this time, his Democratic rival in the 2004 election served on a Massachusetts jury last month. Kerry not only served, but was elected foreman of the Suffolk Superior Court jury, which rejected a claim by two men who sued the city of Boston for injuries suffered in a car accident involving a school principal.]

Just another instance where Kerry served and Bush weasled away. How long before the swift-boat jurors for truth try to distort this reality?

Skyscraper Causes Earthquakes

quote[Taipei 101 is a building with a lot to boast about. Standing 508 metres (1,667ft) high, it is the world's tallest. And at 700,000 tonnes, it must be among the heaviest.

But the sheer size of the Taiwan skyscraper has raised unexpected concerns that may have far-reaching implications for the construction of other buildings and man-made megastructures. Taipei 101 is thought to have triggered two recent earthquakes because of the stress that it exerts on the ground beneath it.]

This is pretty wild. It really makes you think about the implications that man can have on our world.

Failing ocean current raises fears of mini ice age

quote[The ocean current that gives western Europe its relatively balmy climate is stuttering, raising fears that it might fail entirely and plunge the continent into a mini ice age.

The dramatic finding comes from a study of ocean circulation in the North Atlantic, which found a 30% reduction in the warm currents that carry water north from the Gulf Stream.]

Well, this can't be good.