Re-spelling the war

This is beyond absurd. Now the Bush administration is huffing and puffing about whether the war in Iraq is a civil war or not.

What I am waiting for is the realization that the Bush administration had no plan for either a civil war or any large scale resistance of any kind.

It really does not matter what you call it because the Bush team did all the same amount of preparations for all eventualities: nothing. The whole thing about “this is not a civil war” is just a diversion from that simple fact.

Sit still, will ya?

Who says wire writers can’t have humour in their pieces. Here is the AP dissing Bush for not being able to sit still for a few minutes and listen:

Bush smiled and nodded - then nodded some more - as Estonian Prime Minister Andrus Ansip enthusiastically explained how his government holds paperless Cabinet meetings.

The system, which uses digital signatures, permits legislation to be OK’d with the click of a mouse.

Ansip’s explanation, though, was not as lickety split. He described in detail how the dozen members of the Cabinet - in a room dubbed the “Starship Enterprise” - can vote or make comments online. Cabinet meetings that used last about four to five hours now wrap up in about 30 minutes.

Bush endured the lengthy explanation, shifting his weight back and forth. (…) AP

M&S or 007&E?

Priceless Guardian quote:

Still, perhaps we should acknowledge the drug reference and salute a perfect portrait of the mixed-up, shaken-and-stirred mores of Britain circa late 2006: a 69-year-old grandmother - dressed, say M&S, in a £150 “Magicwear” hold-it-all-in dress - doing a Bond-themed gig in Superman’s house and singing about being on E. Fingerfood and sensibly priced partywear all round!

To get a clue of what this hilarious passage is about, read the short story here.

Head of UK’s MI5: Agency is troubling to keep up with mounting terror threats

“I wish life were like Spooks [the TV series] where everything is, a, knowable, and, b, soluble by six people.”

Britain’s MI5 head, Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller, said so speakinjg about the agencies problems keeping up with tracking all threats to UK interests. Manningham-Buller further said MI5 currently employed 2,800 individuals after growing about 50% since 9/11. The agency, so Manningham-Buller, is tracking 30 imminent UK terror plots. BBC

Bush disses Rove

George Bush dissed his political chief strategist Karl “The Architect” Rove during a press conference Wednesday:

Question: Thank you, sir. During this campaign season some religious conservatives expressed support and appreciation for the work you’ve done. But some also expressed that they felt like they expended a lot of effort on your behalf without a lot of results. I wonder if you could tell us what parts of their agenda are still on your radar screen, and if you think they’re right to be frustrated? And also, Mr. President, may I ask you if you have any metrics you’d be willing to share about your reading contest with Mr. Rove.

THE PRESIDENT: I’m losing. I obviously was working harder in the campaign than he was. (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE: Oooooh! White House transcript

Burn!

But seriously: Karl did a “heck of a job.” (snicker)

Ok, but seriously now, Rove’s tactics saved the Republicans from losing even bigger. He muddied the waters enough for it not to be even more apparent what a horrible mess the GOP has whipped up all by itself. It should have been crystal clear to even more voters, but he gave them enough reasons not to vote for Democrats.

Lost

Now that’s what I call a cliffhanger. Bastards! (If you don’t watch the TV show Lost, get season one from somewhere and start watching.)

Guardian blog: Americans should be proud

The ugly American mark two is dead. Overnight six years of glib European identification of “American” with right-wing fundamentalism is over. The gun-toting, pre-Darwinian Bushite, the Tomahawk-wielding, Halliburton-loving, Beltway neo-con, damning abortion as murder and torturing Islamo-fascists has been lain to rest, and by a decision of the American people. Americans should be proud and the world should take note.”

UK journalist Simon Jenkins via Guardian blog

Yes, but only to some extent. Take George Allen for example. He is quite obviously a racist, yet Allen got so close to getting elected into the US Senate that a recount is likely.

Statements like the ones Allen let fly are cause for resignation from political offices in most other countries (at least the ones with a working Democracy). In Virginia, I am not convinced they hurt his campaign all that much.

It’s going to take years to repair the damage the Bush team has done. This is damage of Nixonian proportion. And that’s not even counting the stuff that might pop up in the next two years.

But yes, it’s a start. Maybe this can be “step one” of 12 steps to kick the addiction to imperialism?

Rick Santorum, a friend of the family (um, no)

One person who deservedly got the boot on Tuesday is Republican Rick Santorum, who lost his Senate seat in Pennsylvania to Democrat Bob Casey. Here he is trotting out his family to get some sympathy before cashing in with a book deal and/or becoming a lobbyist:

Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) concedes his race to Democrat Robert P. Casey Jr. as Santorum’s wife, Karen, comforts their daughter Sarah Maria. Older daughter Elizabeth is at right. Washington Post

Don’t worry, little Sarah Maria. One day you will understand that American’s didn’t vote your daddy out just because they hate him. On the contrary, they voted him out because they have problems with how much he based his political career on hate and fearmongering:

The Santorum controversy arose over U.S. Senator Rick Santorum’s statements about homosexuality and the right to privacy in April 2003. In an interview with the Associated Press (AP) taped on April 7, 2003 and published April 20, 2003, Santorum stated that he believed consenting adults do not have a Constitutional “right” to privacy with respect to sexual acts. Santorum described the ability to regulate consensual homosexual acts as comparable to the states’ ability to regulate other consensual and non-consensual sexual behaviors, such as adultery, polygamy, child molestation, incest, sodomy and zoophilia (bestiality), whose legalization he believed would threaten society and the family, as they are not monogamous and heterosexual. Wikipedia

But at least he became famous in the process.

Ginsberg Election Day inspiration

Come along, come along
the end of Vietnam war
dirty smart bombs and napalm
and US army whores

come along, come along
hey baby don’t be late
come along, come along
let’s celebrate Watergate

Come along, come along,
Poor Nixon’s in his home,
Come along, come along
Sitting under Teapot Dome

come along come along
forget their heroin
smoke some grass and relax
and forget your bloody wine

come along, all-americans
and let’s be number two
number one was a pissy-assed act that we all went through

come along, save the whales
and save the humans, too
and the ladies and the fairies
and the communists true blue

come along out of the cold war
the planet is still here
we got to save our mama
nothing more we have to fear (…)

come along and breathe together
and conspire to be here now
come along, come along
the hour is at hand
when all this mighty nation
that smokes across the land
can wake up again
and shake off our Indochina scream

and hear eight hundred thousand orphaned babies they all dream
come along, oh modern nation
and get down on your knees
and ask the gods and buddas up there???
to forgive us if they please
we have killed two million people
we have wounded millions more (…)

Allen Ginsberg - End the Vietnam War

Fiction

With names like this (Nebel is the german word for “fog”), in a story like this, who needs fiction?

The operation’s alleged mastermind, John Nebel, “should have been the CEO of a Fortune 500 company,” said his attorney, Steve Zissou. AP

Hersh on Iraq: Worst. War. Ever.

In Vietnam, our soldiers came back and they were reviled as baby killers, in shame and humiliation. It isn’t happening now, but I will tell you – there has never been an [American] army as violent and murderous as our army has been in Iraq.”

Journalist Seymour Hersh (link)

Sy has always made absolutely sure that he can back up what he claims. His track record is stellar, as far as that is concerned. Now he claims he has seen video footage of war crimes that not only rival Vietnam, it is even worse. And since we now know it’s not because American troops are dumb, we should ask why is it happening then?

My own guess: because nobody has a working plan for Iraq. If we’re confused back home, imagine how confused the guys and gals in the field must be. In other words: Who’s the more foolish? The fool, or the fool who follows him?

I guess we’ll see on Tuesday.

“Value” voters feel taken for granted by GOP

The so called “value” voters came out in droves in 2004 and helped the Republicans retain control of Congress, as well as the presidency. Or so they say.

Whatever happened in ‘04, this time the “value” voters are catching on to the tiny fact that Republicans may say they stand for values, what they do is something different altogether. What’s worse (for Republicans anyayway) is that these “value” voters feel duped and don’t seem to have any qualms about telling the general public about that.

A news release from one of Amerca’s largest “faith based” organizations, the Christian Defense Coalition:

There is a strong feeling that the Republican Party courts evangelicals to vote in elections but fails to act aggressively on fulfilling campaign promises.

Many are also asking why they should work so hard for republican candidates when after years of controlling the House, Senate and the White House Republican leadership has accomplished so little?

The 2006 mid-term elections are demonstrating to the Republican Party they can no longer take the faith communities vote and support for granted. Christian Defense Coalition

Direct to DVD B5 movies

Not sure if I even have mentioned this here before: Joe Michael Straczinsky (JMS) is producing, writing and directing an anthology series to continue, fill in and expand the stories and characters we’ve seen in Babylon 5. Read JMS’s  latest announcement here.

Al Jazeera turns 10

They grow up so fast. Soon it will be a teenager and will start to be difficult: Middle-eastern news station Al Jazeera is turning 10 years old today. link

For a peek behind the scenes at this extraordinary network, watch the documentary Control Room. It’s quite good.

Traffic

You may not find this as funny as I thought it was (I am an Urban Geography major after all), but since you needed a smile I posted this especially for you. All you others, look away.

Traffic jams in Moscow forced footballers from the city’s Spartak club to abandon their team bus and take public transport to a match on Tuesday. The players and coaching staff had to run to a nearby metro station to catch a train to their Champions League fixture with Inter Milan. Moscow police blamed the traffic jams on a number of factors, including fans on their way to the match. The team lost the match 1-0, and are now likely to exit the competition.(…) BBC