wonkabout

A new beginning

2007-01-07T19:24:00.000-05:00

Well, its a new year. Time to put the last year's date on all those cheques.

I'm putting the last touches on cleaning out the old lab, and have been lucky enough to find myself invited to teach a couple of biology classes for non majors at my old college. It doesn't pay well, but it will make for some good experience, and I hope that it will be fun. I also am going back to school to get an MPH (Masters of Public Health). I have to say, that after a good five years out of the classroom, I'm looking forward to returning. One of the textbooks is a bit bigger than I would have liked, but such is life.

That said, I'm also looking at moving the blog over to another system, adding some more blogs on the science side, some 9/11 myth debunking sites, etc. Hopefully, I should be back to writing up some entries in the next few days, maybe posting some pics from our vacation, at least after I have my syllabus written up. Until then, best wishes.

If I had a little brother

2006-12-07T17:02:00.000-05:00

This has to be one of the funniest things I have seen in a while. So glad the kid had a helmet.

New 9/11 Pentagon footage

2006-12-04T22:29:00.000-05:00

New footage of the impact of Flight 77 with the Pentagon on 9/11/01 has been released.

Of course, it was met with great fanfare from the conspiracry theory groups, claiming that there was no plane. One of the biggest problems is that eyewitnesses, ignored or misquoted by conspiracy theorists (including a friend of mine) saw a plane hit the pentagon that morning. It was a commercial airliner. The conspiracy could either be a massive, international, intercontinental, tangled web or a confederacy of dunces in DC fucked up and a bunch of terrorists pulled off an attack because of lax airport security and dumb luck.

Why keep the films out of the public realm for so long? Why let out the least visually useful ones first?

They witheld them so they wouldn't end up on Qaeda recruiting films. The thought that a handful of goons from Nowhere, Saudi Arabia could strike the heart of the most powerful nation's military is bad enough. Video would have been a major propaganda coup. Letting it out years after the fact, insignificant piece by piece, reduces the impact. A simple explanation, needing no massive hidden plot.

They could actually be investigating CACI, Titan, Blackwater, etc., but they chase a plane that crashed five years ago, and people saw it happen. Go looking for the real scandals and conspiracies. Like why our emergency forces don't have radios that can talk to each other. Why sky marshals have to wear suits and sit in certain seats. Why a bottle of mouthwash is an international threat. Who hasn't protected out ports for the last decade.

If you think you are a threat the the government by pushing conspiracy theories, you are deluded. The real threat is if you look into the real corruption and failures.

Friday Primus

2006-11-10T15:14:00.000-05:00

Tommy the Cat

Say it BABY!

Happy days!

2006-11-08T13:24:00.000-05:00

Updated! Now with 50% more snark!

A gouple gems from My Confined Space.
First, Pelosi is feelin teh power!

And Rummy is already letting himself go...

And Santorum's family, well, what can I say. It can't be easy finding out that 59% of people in the state that you don't really live in think your dad is full of, ummm, santorum. Seriously, I feel for her. Being the child of a far right has been won't be easy. Maybe she and her doll need matching hoodies.

OK, I know, I'm goin to hell for that one.

I have to say that taking the House wasn't that big of a surprise. That we have a good chance to take the Senate isn't that surprising either.

But this little bit of news is freaking me out. In a very good way.

Donald Rumsfeld resigning, according to the AP.
Update: Bush just announced that Robert Gates, the CIA Director under Bush 41, will replace Rumsfeld.

Holy Shiznits!

And in honor of him, One of Rumsfeld's favorite bands singing his favorite song.

OK, so I don't know if Rummy is big on German metal, but this song was on my rotation for level soundtracks in Quake and Unreal when I was big on FPS games. My wife always joked that when she heard this piece, she replaced the word Rammstein with Rumsfeld in her mind. It really makes for a post apocalyptic nightmare (Iraq?) when you read the lyrics that way...

Just for clarification, I think that Rummy is more incompetant and heartless idealist than sadist warmonger.

hiatus

2006-10-23T09:19:00.000-05:00

Back next week. Very busy.

Friday Primus

2006-10-13T16:08:00.000-05:00

Phantom Patriot

Les Claypool, Of Whales and Woe, Prawn Song Records

I searched long and hard to the right bit of Claypool for today. Would it be Primus, Frog Brigade, C2B3, or his solo project, Of Whales and Woe?

I thought about Tommy the Cat, almost went with it, but this new piece just kicks ass, and not all that is bass slapping is Primus.

North Korea

2006-10-09T11:25:00.000-05:00

Are we safer now?

Rude Pundit has it right

2006-10-07T10:30:00.000-05:00

The Rude One nails the whole prank meme that the far right is trying to push onto the media re Foley/Predatorgate. 10 ways to prank a child predator. My fave...

6. You can ask him to open a can of peanuts in the Rotunda. When cloth snakes come springing out and make him scream, he will still be a child predator.

Love it.

Friday Primus

2006-10-06T23:17:00.000-05:00

Southbound Pachyderm

Double meaning here...

The GOP is going down, with the double anchors of Foley and Hastert, while the original purpose of the song is to point out the plight of endangered species.

Update: Time Magazine agrees with me...

Sci Fi Friday

2006-10-06T22:09:00.000-05:00

If you didn't see Doctor Who, then, well, you are either unlucky, like my wife (stuck dogsitting in a house without cable), or you suck. I'm loving the new story arc. If you watched much of the original Doctor, you know that the Doctor was a friend of the crown, working with the UN organization called UNIT. Now the Doctor is an enemy of the UK, with the Torchwood Institute turning this on it's head.

And if you missed the Season 3 starter of Battlestar Galactica... Wow. Suicide bombers. Torture. Arrests in the night. An Abu Ghraib like prison No Habeus Corpus. No charges. Summary executions. Fundamentalists. Anybody working as security forces were called collaberators. Security forces having to live in secret. Puppet regimes where uncooperative presidents can be replaced. High placed government insiders working with the insurgency.

Every occupied territory from 1940s Paris to Iraq. No punches pulled. I bet the it won't make Pretzel night at the White house this year either.

Incredible. Americablog's thoughts here. Here's a good rundown if you missed it.

Primus, one day late

2006-09-30T10:36:00.000-05:00

Too Many Puppies

After this disheartening week, wherein we have lost our rights against cruel and inhumane treatment, and right to a trial by jury, this little ditty was the best I could come up with. What? You didn't think that those rules were passed just for terrorists, did you? If the government says you are a terrorist, you don't get a trial to prove them wrong. And they certainly aren't going to waterboard a guy who bombs abortion clinics, are they?

Why the hell is Comedy Central the best place to get news these days?

Update
Thanks to another law passed by congress this week, likely to be signed by the Chimperor, only the rich can protect their civil and constitutional rights against the government in a court of law. The rest of us have to hope to find a pro bono lawyer.

Friday Primus

2006-09-22T15:58:00.000-05:00

Laquer Head

Banned by MTV for it's drug content (and perhaps violence) despite being an anti-huffing song and video. Regardless, check that bass line.

ARRR! Ye be knowin what day it be!

2006-09-19T08:48:00.000-05:00

Multiblogurality

2006-09-15T21:07:00.000-05:00

From a post by Pam at the Blend,

Quite frankly, bloggers of color aren't always on the radar of the well-known bloggers either. Linking is powerful, and if it's concentrated among an inner circle of folks who all look the same, with few exceptions, it's going to be tough sledding to get in the mix.

From this ofay, Y level blogger, this rings true. I've been an outsider for ages. Being the kind of guy who didn't care for team sports (I can throw a mean spiral, and have saved a couple of ball games with good catches, but am too lazy to put any serious time in practicing) and had poor luck with girls, I was tagged as a fag. Ya have to love rural Ky. I grew up hating gay people until I met a few and realised that they weren't the hellbound monsters that they had been painted as. Just people.

Racism wasn't a big problem for me, even with some pretty racist people in my family, I had some pretty good role models in my very unracist mother and brother. Unlike most white guys in my town, my mother made way for me to be accepted in the black community, at least as a welcome outsider. I don't pretend to be completely non-racist. Nobody is. But I'm tryin real hard to be the shepherd.

My current blogroll ended up decently diverse, and not really by design. I like learning about people different from myself that share the goals of equal rights along with other liberal causes.

Although there are some Hispanic/Latin(o/a) bloggers in the list (mostly in group blogs), I lost a good one when Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez (La Queen Sucia) left Blogger for a private myspace account, and it looks like a squatter has moved in. I was going to keep her on the list, hoping that she would keep her old site open as a mirror, but it didn't fit in with her plans. I don't want to give some squatter running a crappy search engine any traffic, so I had to delist her.

If anyone can suggest a replacement with a tenth of her writing ability, I would appreciate it.

Thanks

Friday Primus

2006-09-15T10:29:00.000-05:00

So, I don't have any new pics of the cats, so I decided to try something new.

Wynona's Big Brown Beaver

Les Claypool is one of the greatest bass players ever.

Primus sucks

And the making of for shits and giggles.

Victory

2006-09-11T09:40:00.000-05:00

Just a quote from a friend, today.

"I won the War on "Terror" September 12, 2001."
Jami

Say it isn't so

2006-09-04T10:22:00.000-05:00

Conservationist, animal welfare activist, beloved entertainer Steve Irwin has been lost. Via Blah3, the story at news.com.au

Irwin, 44, was killed almost instantly when the stingray stabbed him in the heart with its poisonous 20cm barb as he snorkelled off Port Douglas, in north Queensland, yesterday morning.
His American-born wife, Terri, was trekking in Tasmania's Cradle Mountain and Lake St Clair National Park when the news broke of her husband's death and was last night being raced back to Queensland with her two children Bindi, 8, and Bob, 2.

We send our best to the Erwin family, especially Bindi and Bob, who we have watched as they grow up, especially amazed at Bindi's fearlessness. And to the extended family at Australia zoo.

Abuse of science

2006-08-13T18:09:00.000-05:00

I've been spending quite a bit of time over at Aetiology, a recent addition to my blogroll, where quite a bit of discussion has gone towards rebutting deniers of the Germ Theory of Disease, specificly deniers of the connection between HIV and AIDS. Rather than get into the details, if you have several free hours, you can go through the comments and see the differences between the two sides. Some even deny gravity. (Gravity has ignored the challenge, and has continued to act as before)

Does this kind of science abuse actually hurt anybody? Yes.

Should you go to read up on this discussion, you can learn quite a bit about AIDS and HIV, and why the vast and overwhelming majority of scientists agree that HIV causes AIDS. You will also see how one side responds with citations of peer reviewed research, logic, etc. The other responds with quote mining, attacks, rhetorical tricks. The connections to how creationists debate is only too clear.

I mention all this, in order to send you to to Scienceblog's 16th International AIDS Conference blog. I don't think it is in any way an official blog of the conference, but you should be able to read some pretty interesting posts. And the commentary will range from enlightening to infuriating.

Churchill on Iraq

2006-07-30T17:40:00.000-05:00

Bush often likes to be seen as a new Winston Churchill, a laughable prospect at best.

(image from Encyclopedia Britannica)

So what did the great statesman Churchill have to say about Iraq?

A few choice quotes from Joe Klein's piece in Time, taken from a letter from Churchill to PM David Lloyd George (August 1920).

"Week after week and month after month for a long time we shall have a continuance of this miserable, wasteful, sporadic warfare marked from time to time certainly by minor disasters and cuttings off of troops and agents, and very possibly attended by some very grave occurrence."

and

"Why are we compelled to go on pouring armies and treasure into these thankless deserts?"

Now ask yourself one simple question. Do either of these sound a damn bit like Bush?

Next question, two parter, a bit more complex... Why can't Bush learn from history? Especially that of the man he supposedly models himself after?

Found at Culture Freak.

I can do science, Me.

2006-07-30T13:45:00.000-05:00

(this post has almost nothing to do with Brainiac)

Jason Rosenhouse of EvolutionBlog has an excellent write up on how the differences between Intelligent Design hucksters respond to a scientific challenge as opposed to actual scientists, who approach the problem *gasp* scientifically! It is a bit of a dense read for the non-scientist, but stick with it. (this post has almost nothing to do with Brainiac)

Howard Stern in politics

2006-07-30T13:04:00.000-05:00

Several days ago, Gary Dell'Abate (BaBa Booey), said that he was going to vote for Ned Lamont. Atrios jokingly sugested that this was the only endorsement that Lamont would need (original link to DKos, where some of the response was positive). Most of the response was negative at Eschaton. Extremely negative. A few days later, Atrios mentioned that Howard Stern and crew were for Lamont (w/ link to C&L). There wasn't much to say, but it was still negative.

My thoughts on this... as posted on the Eschaton site...

Whaaaa! I don't like Stern! He's too popular! He's crude! I can't let anybody know that I giggle at fart jokes, or they might take away my liberal membership card!

Get over yourselves. The real deal here is that an insanely popular and successful broadcaster, with an audience of 4 million people and growing, is against Lieberman and Bush. Those listeners like him enough to pay for his show.

Sure, Stern's screwed over our side a few times, and he pulled for Bush in 2000. Why? Partly because Tipper Gore and Joe Lieberman were big on curtailing 1st ammendment rights of musicians, artists and broadcasters. With a bit of radio in my background, I had to push myself to vote Gore Lieberman in 2000 for that reason (not that Bush was ever an option).

Add on top of it all how badly Bush's years have screwed up the nation, this god awful war, the economy (which cuts down how many people can afford to buy into Sirius), Bush's stance on LGBT rights, abortion rights, free speech, screwing over NYC and the city's finest... Lieberman is always with Bush, regardless of what it does to the US.

One of the most influential people in the media is on our side this time, and you all can't deal with it because you don't like his style?

Stern's number one issue is the FCC. I agree with him (most of the time) and have to say, his Sirius show is better than ever.

Wonkabupdate

2006-07-30T08:50:00.000-05:00

Hola friends. I have been mostly absent from blogging for a bit. Things have been extremely hectic, with life put upside down. Great joys, with the birth of a wonderful baby boy to one of our favorite couples. Great sadness, with the death of a friend, colleague, and mentor. Basic burnout from trying to write article after article, with nothing left to put towards blogging.

In the meantime, I have updated the links sections with new blogs, webcomics, etc, and removed some that had gone completely silent, some that I culled as redundant. I have added several blogs from the scienceblog community, giving PZMyers some company.

Hopefully, in the next month, we will see a light at the end of the tunnel, and I will get to relax a bit.

Take care, friends.

AFA makes the baby Jesus cry.

2006-07-04T09:57:00.000-05:00

I got an AFA email this morning about an ongoing case regarding a memorial at a cemetary . You would be amazed at the ridiculous lies they trumped up . A quote from the "action alert."

In fact, an activist judge has already ordered the city to remove the cross from the memorial or face a fine of $5,000 per day. That case, now 17 years old, is still being fought in court.

If the ACLU wins, it will mean that every cross in every federal or state cemetery will eventually be removed. Don't let it happen! Under Section Three, Article Two of the U.S. Constitution Congress can pass a law prohibiting federal judges from having any jurisdiction over federal cemeteries.

If the ACLU is allowed to pursue this anti-Christian bigotry unchecked, the 9000 white crosses at Normandy Beach could soon disappear. The words on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington will be open for removal: "Here rests in honored glory an American soldier known but to God."

Doesn't the Bible say something about bearing false witness? Their email doesn't show the Mt. Soledad memorial. Why? It looks like stacked cinder blocks. It is ugly (at least in pictures). Nobody wants to protect something that is ugly. Its the same reason PETA fights to keep monkeys out of medical research, but doesn't blink at nude mice and rats.

The ACLU has released this statement:

The ACLU is not pursuing, nor has it ever pursued, the removal of religious symbols from personal gravestones. Personal gravestones are the choice of the family members, not the choice of the government. The ACLU celebrates this freedom to choose the religious symbol of your choice.

The ACLU doesn't want to bet rid of tombstones. That is insane! If someone wanted to get rid of cross tombstones, they would be challenged by the ACLU. They support freedom of religion, and for religion to be free from government interference.

On the other hand... this is what the fundies want the US to look like...

Michael Weiner (Savage) verifiably insane.

2006-06-13T17:21:00.000-05:00

OK, so there isn't anything new about Weiner being toys in the attic crazy...

but when you tell a Jewish man that people like him "brought about the Holocaust," you have crossed the line into the realm of WTFland. The nerve to say that a rich Jewish man who involves himself in politics is an acceptable reason for the slaughter of a race... well, it's pretty much what the Nazis had to say. Ironicly, Soros himself predicts this kind of insanity, saying that he contributes to the thought "that Jews rule the world."

MMFA documents Weiner's latest demonstration that he is a nutcase at the above link, as he rants against George Soros (I'm being lazy, and lots of these links go to different parts of the same wikipedia article). Why is Soros so hated by the right? Perhaps because he gives money to their opponants, when everybody knows that the ultra rich should stick together, and work to amass wealth for wealth's sake. I'd suspect that some of it dates back to his setting up scholarships for black South African students at the University of Cape Town. For some odd reason, some on the right wanted to protect Apartheid. cough cough. Dick Cheney. cough cough.

What did Weiner say?

You're the people -- people like you give Jews a bad name, Soros. It's people like you who brought about the Holocaust, Soros. I stand by those words. I stand by those words. I would debate you tomorrow, Soros, on any platform, anywhere. I'll debate you anywhere. It's people like you who brought about the Holocaust, Soros. That's why I need you to shut your mouth and understand the damage you're doing to this world and to the Jewish people, George Soros.

So when does Weiner get fitted for his straightjacket?

Kentucky Business news publication for gay rights

2006-04-21T09:13:00.000-05:00

Via AmericaBlog, central Kentucky's business news pub comes down hard on Governor Ernie Fletcher for removing employment protection from homosexuals in a Ky law. They do an excellent job of explaining why this is bad economicaly and can make for a hostile workplace overall. Think office politics are bad now? "Out" your rival. That person isn't gay? How is that a problem?

Just think of the trouble I would be in for coming out as an honorary lesbian.

Time names Jim Bunning one of the worst senators

2006-04-17T22:06:00.000-05:00

Via Booman.

Wow. Now that is a high point for a do nothing, teleprompter reading goof like Bunning. And we have to put up with McConnell's gimp for another 4 1/2 years...

Does a fetus eperience pain?

2006-04-14T21:21:00.000-05:00

From Pharyngula, an excellent post regarding a constant issue in the abortion debate. Apparently, the brain is simple not developed to the point of processing experiences that we consider "painful."

And some idiot will pay full price...

2006-04-14T21:03:00.000-05:00

Via ConWebBlog, the right shows how it can't get on the best seller lists without bulk buying...

NewsMax is selling copies of Ann Coulter's upcoming book for the below-rock-bottom price of $4.99.

The sad part comes down to this. You can get the books of the right's "best" for little or next to nothing (and from some far right book clubs, you can get them for free). But some dumbass will go to the bookstore in the mall and buy mAnn's book for full price. But the Left, our books go for full price, and still sell like crazy.

Convengo con ella.

2006-04-10T22:48:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I don't speak Spanish beyond a handful of phrases (love the babelfish), although I do dance a mean merengue. I've been thinking quite a bit about the recent scapegoating of immigrants, and wanted to write a heartfelt commentary regarding the demonizing of latinos/latinas/hispanics (pick your favorite descriptor)... But Alisa Valdes-Rodriguez of La Queen Sucia, via Atrios, does this far better than I could. See her responses (1, 2) to her troll Miguel, I mean Michael. heh.

I've been a bit quiet lately, too damn busy. Maybe this month will be a bit calmer.

One bit of my own rhetoric to add in... Why would someone sneak into the US, and live as an "illegal" with all the potential dangers involved? It is better to be working (if possibly poor) in the US than unemployed and destitute elsewhere. Want to stop illegal immigration? Make somewhere else a much better place to get a job and raise your family than the US.

Oh. Suddenly being an atractive place to live isn't so bad?

BTW, the next time you are thinking about telling someone from Central or South America that they aren't an American, check a map. They are still from the Americas, and you will be laughed at.

Dean was right. Still is.

2006-02-27T09:55:00.000-05:00

Via Booman, a couple good C&L posts about Howard Dean, and how he was right on every point of the war in Iraq, and continues to be right regarding pullout. Too bad the "liberal media" screwed him over with the "scream." What a fraud that was...

A little fun with the internets

2006-02-18T12:38:00.000-05:00

Breaking news, Cheney strikes again! I'm the victim today, while Sir Oolius was the victim yesterday.

PZMyers of Pharyngula also sends us all to Springfield...

And yes, that is what I look like... Yellow, no chin, three fingers on each hand... Except for the flannel...

What Sirota said...

2006-02-17T20:46:00.000-05:00

David Sirota has some things to say about Paul Hacket's dropping out of the race in Ohio. I think it's worth taking a look.

So let's say it actually is true that Sens. Harry Reid and Chuck Schumer called a couple of big donors to tell them not to give any more money to Hackett and instead give money to Brown. Remember, they have denied doing that - but let's just take Hackett's conspiracy theory as fact for a moment. Here's a question: if Hackett was such a strong candidate building such a national movement with such devoted supporters as he purports - why would those donors listen?

I mean, come on folks - the idea that these Senators have that much control is terribly naive, especially at a time when most people admit that one of the big problems plaguing the party is not enough unity. Sure, they might have some sway - but again, if Hackett was such a strong candidate with such a fervent national following as people purport - why would those donors listen to a call from Schumer or Reid? The answer, as anyone who has ever worked in the political fundraising world, is that they wouldn't listen. And that means what really happened was Hackett didn't have the fundraising base he would need to begin with.

Second question: if people are angry about there now not being a primary, and thus voters aren't going to make the decision between Hackett and Brown, why are people upset with everyone other than Paul Hackett for that reality? Last I checked, he was the one who decided not to take the question to voters. So if people are going to be mad at anyone about the "let the people decide" issue, shouldn't they be mad at Hackett?
...
Here's the cold, hard truth: Paul Hackett was going to get crushed by Sherrod Brown. Paul Hackett's internal polls showed Paul Hackett that right before Paul Hacket decided to leave the race.

Those poll numbers were not surprising - Sherrod Brown has been a progressive champion building grassroots support around Ohio for years, while Paul Hackett had been on the political stage for less than a year. That doesn't mean Paul Hackett isn't a good guy, with a lot of potential - it's just political reality.

This is why I like Sirota. He asks the uncomfortable questions.

Dignity for the fallen

2006-02-16T00:22:00.000-05:00

This article comes from UK's own Kentucky Kernel, with more at the link.

It had been five days since Army Sgt. Paul Saylor died in Iraq. His Humvee had crashed into a roadside canal in Mahmudiyah, Iraq, and he drowned. He was 21.

Back in Bremen, the Saylors asked their funeral home director, Bill Hightower, if Paul's body could be prepared for viewing. An Armed Forces medical examiner had recommended that body not be viewed due to decomposition - but they wanted to know.

Hightower said there was nothing he could do. The body had rotted.

This isn't how we should be treating our fallen, or their families.

The family of Sgt. Saylor has set up a website, www.soldiersplea.com. Go, read their story, and sign their petition to get mortuary facilities and proper procedures to honor our war dead properly.

Why we need hate crime legislation

2006-02-15T15:19:00.000-05:00

I've been crazy ass busy lately, hence the lack of blogging, but I wanted to post this piece once I had thought it over. I was ambivilent to the reason behind hate crime legislation, but Russ of Pam's House Blend won me over.

Take a look for yourself. I think you will find it worthwhile

Market performance under Bush

2006-01-21T13:30:00.000-05:00

Saw a link to a great post about how the stock market has done under Bush at Blondesense.

Anyway, here is the link. (Hint, It isn't good for Bush, especially once the author corrects for inflation.)

The graphs make it worth reading it at the original source, so I didn't do any C&P.

What Dujack would have said about Alito and CAP

2006-01-13T21:31:00.000-05:00

Stephen Dujack didn't get to tell his story before congress. Here's a couple of his articles avout what he would have asked (1, 2).

The far right had already gone apeshit (google search on Stephen Dujack) over some comments made by Dujack, regarding a statement made by his grandfather, Isaac Bashevis Singer, a Jewish writer, vegetarian, and Nobel Laureatte who fled Poland in the 30s for the US, regarding factory farms and slaughterhouses. This is probably why he was pulled from testifying. He would never have been taken seriously by the "liberal" media as the conservative pundits would have made this all about PETA instead of Alito. (Personally, I think PETA is full of shit. I believe in animal welfare, not rights.)

Bush Advisor Says President Has Legal Power to Torture Children

2006-01-10T10:41:00.000-05:00

From Blondesense,

Bush Advisor Says President Has Legal Power to Torture Children

By Philip Watts

01/08/06 "revcom.us" -- -- John Yoo publicly argued there is no law that could prevent the President from ordering the torture of a child of a suspect in custody – including by crushing that child’s testicles.

This came out in response to a question in a December 1st debate in Chicago with Notre Dame professor and international human rights scholar Doug Cassel.

What is particularly chilling and revealing about this is that John Yoo was a key architect post-9/11 Bush Administration legal policy. As a deputy assistant to then-Attorney General John Ashcroft, John Yoo authored a number of legal memos arguing for unlimited presidential powers to order torture of captive suspects, and to declare war anytime, any where, and on anyone the President deemed a threat.

It has now come out Yoo also had a hand in providing legal reasoning for the President to conduct unauthorized wiretaps of U.S. citizens. Georgetown Law Professor David Cole wrote, "Few lawyers have had more influence on President Bush’s legal policies in the 'war on terror’ than John Yoo."

This part of the exchange during the debate with Doug Cassel, reveals the logic of Yoo’s theories, adopted by the Administration as bedrock principles, in the real world.

Cassel: If the President deems that he’s got to torture somebody, including by crushing the testicles of the person’s child, there is no law that can stop him?
Yoo: No treaty.
Cassel: Also no law by Congress. That is what you wrote in the August 2002 memo.
Yoo: I think it depends on why the President thinks he needs to do that.

The audio of this exchange is available online at revcom.us

Yoo argues presidential powers on Constitutional grounds, but where in the Constitution does it say the President can order the torture of children ? As David Cole puts it, "Yoo reasoned that because the Constitution makes the President the 'Commander-in-Chief,’ no law can restrict the actions he may take in pursuit of war. On this reasoning, the President would be entitled by the Constitution to resort to genocide if he wished."

What is the position of the Bush Administration on the torture of children, since one of its most influential legal architects is advocating the President’s right to order the crushing of a child’s testicles?

This fascist logic has nothing to do with "getting information" as Yoo has argued. The legal theory developed by Yoo and a few others and adopted by the Administration has resulted in thousands being abducted from their homes in Afghanistan, Iraq or other parts of the world, mostly at random. People have been raped, electrocuted, nearly drowned and tortured literally to death in U.S.-run torture centers in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantánamo Bay. And there is much still to come out. What about the secret centers in Europe or the many still-suppressed photos from Abu Ghraib? What can explain this sadistic, indiscriminate, barbaric brutality except a need to instill widespread fear among people all over the world?

It is ironic that just prior to arguing the President's legal right to torture children, John Yoo was defensive about the Bush administration policies, based on his legal memo’s, being equated to those during Nazi Germany.

Yoo said, "If you are trying to draw a moral equivalence between the Nazis and what the United States is trying to do in defending themselves against Al Qauueda and the 9/11 attacks, I fully reject that. Second, if you’re trying to equate the Bush Administration to Nazi officials who committed atrocities in the holocaust, I completely reject that too…I think to equate Nazi Germany to the Bush Administration is irresponsible."

If open promotion of unmitigated executive power, including the right to order the torture of innocent children, isn’t sufficient basis for drawing such a "moral equivalence," then I don’t know what is. What would be irresponsible is to sit by and allow the Bush regime to radically remake society in a fascist way, with repercussions for generations to come. We must act now because the future is in the balance. The world cannot wait. While Bush gives his State of the Union on January 31st, I’ll find myself along with many thousands across the country declaring "Bush Step Down And take your program with you."

Is it just me, or does the this Yoo guy seem like a truly evil person? Approves of torture of children, destroying the constitution... Next he'll be calling for forced conversions to Christianity.

Just to hit one of this bastard's high points...

Second, if you’re trying to equate the Bush Administration to Nazi officials who committed atrocities in the holocaust, I completely reject that too…I think to equate Nazi Germany to the Bush Administration is irresponsible.

Realy? Torture? Prison camps? Rape? And allowing this to happen to children?

In the same period, reporter Seymour Hersh, who helped uncover the scandal, said in a speech before an ACLU convention: "Some of the worse that happened that you don't know about, ok? Videos, there are women there. Some of you may have read they were passing letters, communications out to their men ... . The women were passing messages saying 'Please come and kill me, because of what's happened.'

"Basically what happened is that those women who were arrested with young boys/children in cases that have been recorded. The boys were sodomized with the cameras rolling. The worst about all of them is the soundtrack of the boys shrieking that your government has. They are in total terror it's going to come out."

That won't hold up in front of the Hague.

Bush says we have to go elsewhere to fight the evildoers, I say we need to look no further than the West Wing.

Edited to add links to revcom and fix the Hersh link.

Stolen high explosives. This time in the US.

2005-12-22T13:53:00.000-05:00

Fuck a duck. Can President Bunnypants do more to fuck up?

Via AmericaBlog,

"Officials are investigating the theft of 400 pounds of high-powered plastic explosives in New Mexico. The material was stolen from a bunker owned by a bomb expert who works at a national research lab outside Albuquerque, N.M.

...

The missing material included 150 pounds of the plastic explosive compound C-4 and 250 pounds of undetectable "sheet explosives" - a DuPont flexible explosive material that can be hidden in books and letters - as well as blasting caps, the news report said."

Good God. This is fucking scary as hell. Heckuva job, Bush.

FISA court wants details on warrantless wiretaps

2005-12-22T10:48:00.000-05:00

First a FISA judge resigns in protest, then this. Not looking good for the Bush crime family.

Judges on Surveillance Court To Be Briefed on Spy Program

By Carol D. Leonnig and Dafna Linzer
Washington Post Staff Writers
Thursday, December 22, 2005; A01

The presiding judge of a secret court that oversees government surveillance in espionage and terrorism cases is arranging a classified briefing for her fellow judges to address their concerns about the legality of President Bush's domestic spying program, according to several intelligence and government sources.

Several members of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court said in interviews that they want to know why the administration believed secretly listening in on telephone calls and reading e-mails of U.S. citizens without court authorization was legal. Some of the judges said they are particularly concerned that information gleaned from the president's eavesdropping program may have been improperly used to gain authorized wiretaps from their court.

"The questions are obvious," said U.S. District Judge Dee Benson of Utah. "What have you been doing, and how might it affect the reliability and credibility of the information we're getting in our court?"

Such comments underscored the continuing questions among judges about the program, which most of them learned about when it was disclosed last week by the New York Times. On Monday, one of 10 FISA judges, federal Judge James Robertson, submitted his resignation -- in protest of the president's action, according to two sources familiar with his decision. He will maintain his position on the U.S. District Court here.

More at the link, and if the FISA judges say Bush broke the law (kinda obvious Constitutional violation) then Bush apologists will have some real problems defending him. What am I saying, Bush apologists will either admit that they were wrong or ignore this and still act like he is without sin.

Impeachment rumblings

2005-12-19T18:41:00.000-05:00

From the Access North Georgia.com, an AP story on a US representative saying that if Bush broke the law with unwarranted domestic spying then he should be impeached.

U.S. Rep. John Lewis said Monday in a radio interview that President Bush should be impeached if he broke the law in authorizing spying on Americans.

The Democratic senator from Georgia told WAOK-AM he would sign a bill of impeachment if one was drawn up and that the House of Representatives should consider such a move.

And from RawStory, Sen Boxer (she rocks!) has discussed this very issue with four congressional scholars.

Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) has become the first in the Senate to raise consideration of impeachment of President George W. Bush for authorizing spying on Americans without warrants, RAW STORY has learned.

In a release issued this evening, Boxer said she's asked "four presidential scholars" for their opinion on impeachment after former White Housel counsel John Dean -- made famous by his role in revealing the Watergate tapes -- asserted that President Bush had 'admitted' to an 'impeachable offense.'

Bush is gonna have trouble with this one. He admitted to 30+ counts of wrongdoing, a crime for which there is a 5 year prison sentence if found guilty. 150+ years of prison For King George. Of course, he'd be pardoned, but this would be the end of the Bush dynasty. Every one of his excuses has come up empty, and warrantless spying will freak out liberals, moderates, and real conservatives (but not the fake Bushco ones).

More from Rawstory, with Harry Reid blowing holes in Bush's "I told Congress," defense.

“The President asserted in his December 17th radio address that “leaders in Congress have been briefed more than a dozen times on this authorization and the activities conducted under it.” This statement gives the American public a very misleading impression that the President fully consulted with Congress.

“First, it is quite likely that 96 Senators of 100 Senators, including 13 of 15 on the Senate Intelligence Committee first learned about this program in the New York Times, not from any Administration briefing.

Bush is gonna be in some deep shit. I wonder how many journalists and liberal activists got spied on by Bushco...

Bush spys on you

2005-12-18T12:31:00.000-05:00

What John at AmericaBlog said on Activist Presidents, and on FISA.

And from the FISA link, what Josh Marshall said.

And here is the scary part, from Pam's House Blend, WHAT BOB BARR SAID!

Don't miss her "Actual Freeper Quotes," always good for a WTF?

ZARQAWI CAUGHT! then released. oops.

2005-12-15T19:43:00.000-05:00

Catch and release policy on our most wanted?

Official: Al-Zarqawi caught, released
Authorities didn't realize prisoner was terrorist mastermind

Thursday, December 15, 2005; Posted: 5:44 p.m. EST (22:44 GMT)

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraqi security forces caught the most wanted man in the country last year, but released him because they didn't know who he was, the Iraqi deputy minister of interior said Thursday.

Hussain Kamal confirmed that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi -- the al Qaeda in Iraq leader who has a $25 million bounty on his head -- was in custody at some point last year, but he wouldn't provide further details.

A U.S. official couldn't confirm the report, but said he wouldn't dismiss it.

"It is plausible," he said.

Thursday's news tops a list of reports of missed opportunities to capture the 39-year-old terrorist mastermind. An official said the military receives frequent reports of al-Zarqawi sightings, all of which are investigated.

I'm not even sure what to say about this. I'm so disappointed by this. We could have had him, but like an evil Robin Hood...

Iraq war vet running for US Congress in Ky

2005-12-15T11:39:00.000-05:00

Props to AmericaBlog. Looking forward to seeing this guy run. I think Northrup is probably vulnerable, and hope he can take her down.

Iraq War Vet to Challenge Northrup in Ky.

Wed Dec 14,11:15 PM ET

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - An
Iraq war veteran on Wednesday announced that he will run against U.S. Rep. Anne Northup, saying he's unhappy with President Bush's handling of the conflict.

Andrew Horne, 44, said Northup has been a staunch supporter of Bush's Iraq policy and has "become nothing but a rubber stamp" for her fellow Republican.

Horne, a Louisville attorney who returned home from Iraq last spring after a seven-month stint, said he didn't see any progress in making Iraq more secure.

"It became a realization that we are less safe than we were, not more safe," said Horne, who as a Marine Reserve officer spent months working with Iraqi security forces and helping with reconstruction and humanitarian efforts.

If he gains his party's nomination, the political newcomer will face a well-financed GOP incumbent who defeated her last challenger by 22 percentage points in 2004.

Northup, a prolific fundraiser in her fifth term in the Louisville-area district, "seems to be more interested in supporting the agendas of people who gave her money," Horne said.

Northup aide Terry Carmack sidestepped any direct mention of Horne, saying: "Whoever the Democrats nominate, we look forward to a spirited campaign on the issues."

Good luck, Mr. Horne, and thank you for your service. Hope you can shake things up a bit and make people think.

Another episode of Cheese or Cocaine!

2005-12-15T09:41:00.000-05:00

OK, so I don't know if anything like this has happened before, but... (hat tip to a reader of Schlock Mercenary)

From the Washington Post,

Woman Allegedly Hires Hit Man for Cheese

The Associated Press
Tuesday, December 6, 2005; 7:01 PM

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- In an unusual case of mistaken identity, a woman who thought a block of white cheese was cocaine is charged with trying to hire a hit man to rob and kill four men. The woman also was mistaken about the hit man. He turned out to be an undercover police officer.

Jessica Sandy Booth, 18, was arrested over the weekend and remains in jail with bond set at $1 million on four charges of attempted murder and four counts of soliciting a murder.

According to police, Booth was in the Memphis home of the four intended victims last week when she mistook a block of queso fresco cheese for cocaine _ inspiring the idea to hire someone to break into the home, take the drugs, and kill the men.

An informant described the plot to police, who arranged a meeting between Booth and the undercover officer.

The undercover officer gave Booth some nonfunctioning handguns, bought ammunition for her because she was too young, and the two proceeded to the home under police surveillance.

Booth told the officer that any children inside the house old enough to testify would have to be killed, police said.

A search of the home with the permission of the occupants revealed no drugs _ only the white, crumbly cheese common in Mexican cuisine.

"Four men were going to lose their lives over some cheese," said Lt. Jeff Clark, who heads Project Safe Neighborhoods.

Behold the power of cheese... To drive dumbasses to hire hitmen! I'm going out to find this cheese. Gotta find out if it is good enough to kill for.

Right wing War on Truth - another Christmas fraud

2005-12-14T23:05:00.000-05:00

If you saw Sam Seder of Majority Report hand republicultist Bob Knight his ass on CNN, you remember Knight claiming that a school changed the words of Silent Night to Cold Night?

It was bullshit.

From Think Progress,

War on Christmas Fraud Exposed: The Silent Night “Rewrite” That Wasn’t

On Friday, Bill O’Reilly took to the airwaves to share the latest “War on Christmas” outrage:

In Dodgeville, Wisconsin, the Ridgewood Elementary School has changed the song Silent Night to Cold in the Night and forced the kids to sing the lyrics, “Cold in the night, No one in sight, Winter winds whirl and bite,” to the tune of the original Silent Night.

O’Reilly was by no means the only conservative to repeat this story. During a Dec. 10 appearance on Fox News, Mathew Staver of the Liberty Counsel said the presentation at Ridgewood Elementary had “no balance here. They have no Christian Christmas carols.” He even threatened to sue the school:

People are outraged. We sent a demand letter asking them to immediately change the song and allow the actual lyrics of “Silent Night,” and if they do not, if they insist on this ridiculous course of action, we’ll file a federal lawsuit.

As it turns out, the entire story is a fraud.

The song is from a Christmas play by a Choir director about a scrawny Christmas tree that brings everyone together. More details at the link.

And it has nothing to do with Charlie Brown...

And I agree with Cal Thomas... It doesn't happen often, but he thinks the War on Christmas is crap.

I do not care if a mall employee wishes me a "Merry Christmas," or not, or if mall managers favor snowpersons over manger scenes, or erect trees they call "holiday" and not "Christmas." It isn't about their observing this event, giving us a "religious rush" and creating a false sense of security that culture is better than it is. It is about people who believe in this historic event observing it in a way that recalls the birth of the Savior of the world (not the savior of the bottom line): silently, wondrously and worshipfully.

It's rare, but sometimes, Cal isn't a complete assclown.

It's long, hard, and sensitive. (and it's not that!)

2005-12-14T22:55:00.000-05:00

From Majikthise, a little science for you. That pointy thing on the front end of Narwhals? It's a sense organ.

NYTIMES

It's Sensitive. Really.
By WILLIAM J. BROAD

For centuries, the tusk of the narwhal has fascinated and baffled.

Narwhal tusks, up to nine feet long, were sold as unicorn horns in ages past, often for many times their weight in gold since they were said to possess magic powers. In the 16th century, Queen Elizabeth received a tusk valued at £10,000 - the cost of a castle. Austrian lore holds that Kaiser Karl the Fifth paid off a large national debt with two tusks. In Vienna, the Hapsburgs had one made into a scepter heavy with diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds.

Scientists have long tried to explain why a stocky whale that lives in arctic waters, feeding on cod and other creatures that flourish amid the pack ice, should wield such a long tusk. The theories about how the narwhal uses the tusk have included breaking ice, spearing fish, piercing ships, transmitting sound, shedding excess body heat, poking the seabed for food, wooing females, defending baby narwhals and establishing dominance in social hierarchies.

But a team of scientists from Harvard and the National Institute of Standards and Technology has now made a startling discovery: the tusk, it turns out, forms a sensory organ of exceptional size and sensitivity, making the living appendage one of the planet's most remarkable, and one that in some ways outdoes its own mythology.

The find came when the team turned an electron microscope on the tusk's material and found new subtleties of dental anatomy. The close-ups showed that 10 million nerve endings tunnel from the tusk's core toward its outer surface, communicating with the outside world. The scientists say the nerves can detect subtle changes of temperature, pressure, particle gradients and probably much else, giving the animal unique insights.

Nothing like a little discovery to surpise and delight!

Great Jesus General spoofs

2005-12-14T22:18:00.000-05:00

Update, More GOP MART goodness.

The General also reccomends Japan Window for best photo blog to beat some ultraconservative "I hate libruls," site. Today is the last day of voting, so get to it.
--------
Bill O'Reilly Distance Dating Kit and
Anotomically correct Ann Coulter Action Figure

Don't forget to vote for the General at The Weblog Awards 2005 contest in the Best Humor/Comics Blog catagory.

My picks...
Best Blog = Eschaton
Best Group Blog = Think Progress
Best Liberal Blog = AmericaBlog
Best Media/Journalist Blog = Raw Story
Best LGBT Blog = Pam's House Blend
Best Military Blog = Intel Dump
Best Video Blog = Crooks and Liars
Best Law Blog = Law Dork

And for the most part, I'm pickin winners.

HAGGIS!

2005-12-14T22:07:00.000-05:00

Pureblooded Scott
You are 83% Scottish!

As Scottish as they come, you occaisionaly strip naked, paint yourself
blue, and run around the neighborhood scaring people. This may have
gotten you into trouble in the past, but fear not. Scottsmen allways
overthrow their oppressors in the end.

My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 81% on scottpoints

Link: The how Scottish are you Test written by jackthegerbil on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

New York Magazine: Bushco threatened UN over Clinton climate speech

2005-12-11T20:17:00.000-05:00

Saw this at Talking Points Memo

New York Magazine brings this story to us.

Bush-administration officials privately threatened organizers of the U.N. Climate Change Conference, telling them that any chance there might’ve been for the United States to sign on to the Kyoto global-warming protocol would be scuttled if they allowed Bill Clinton to speak at the gathering today in Montreal, according to a source involved with the negotiations who spoke to New York Magazine on condition of anonymity.

Bush officials informed organizers of their intention to pull out of the new Kyoto deal late Thursday afternoon, soon after news leaked that Clinton was scheduled to speak, the source said.

The threat set in motion a flurry of frantic back-channel negotiations between conference organizers and aides to Bush and Clinton that lasted into the night on Thursday, and at one point Clinton flatly told his advisers that he was going to pull out and not deliver the speech, the source said.

As if Bushco had any intention of doing something that might help the environment, or suggest that global warming might be a problem! But they know that Clinton would get attention, and that he is far more popular than Bush.

More Lieberman goodness.

2005-12-10T22:52:00.000-05:00

I gotta say, Joe Lieberman isn't making any friends on the Democratic side of the aisle lately. Maybe it is because he is having some real problems with figuring out if he thinks Bush should be honest or not.

From Atrios, a nice little piece from WaPo

In the day's sharpest attack, Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (D-Conn.) accused Bush of deceiving Americans over everything from national security to helping the poor. "There has been one value repeatedly missing from this presidency, and that value is integrity," Lieberman said. "By deception and disarray, this White House has betrayed the just cause of fighting terrorism and tyranny around the world." Leaking the CIA employee's name "was the politics of personal destruction at its worst," he said.

Then from Think Progress, Lieberman just can't figure which side of the fence he is on.

Lieberman, 12/7/05:

It’s time for Democrats who distrust President Bush to acknowledge that he will be the commander in chief for three more critical years and that in matters of war we undermine presidential credibility at our nation’s peril.

...

Lieberman, 7/28/03:

In our democracy, a president does not rule, he governs. He remains always answerable to us, the people. And right now, the president’s conduct of our foreign policy is giving the country too many reasons to question his leadership. It’s not just about 16 words in a speech, it is about distorting intelligence and diminishing credibility. It’s not about searching for scapegoats; it’s about seeing, as President Kennedy did after the Bay of Pigs, that presidents stand tall when they willingly accept responsibility for mistakes made while they are in charge. [Press Conference with Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) Re: War in Iraq, 7/28/03]

And an excelent post by Rober Ailes on Joementum's. I think this is the gem of the whole post.

It was Lieberman who signed his name to the Wall Street Journal opinion piece asserting his "disappoint[ment] with Democrats" for criticizing Bush and insinuating that dissent was demoralizing the troops. Were the Dems he disparaged supposed to stay silent about that libel just to create a false image of party unity? Lieberman chose to pick a fight; he and his anthropomorphic apologists shouldn't whine when he got one.

Poor Joe. He simple has some real problems with being regarded as sincere when he sides with Bush.

Changes afoot

2005-12-10T12:28:00.000-05:00

I've been contemplating the evolution of Wonkabout, and am preparing to relaunch this blog. I spend much of my time online with the Off Topic (OT) community over at News Hounds. Because of this, I have been neglecting this blog. Fot this reason, I am changing how I post here.

I will be cross posting much of what I put up on my blog to the OT, except for some OT specific items. Also, Bobbie, June and Cleo will be back for Friday Catblogging Goodness.

I won't officially relaunch the blog until January, but will be testing out this new format, reworking my links, and some non-blog related things, like getting ready for the holidays and writing a couple papers.

In the mean time, check out this response to the GOP's smear video of Dean's comments regarding whether Iraq is winnable.

Also, Daedelus has a great writup of the wag the reindeer war on Christmas. More on it from Wonkette.

Wonkette also tells us about the speculation on the appearance of a brand of dog toy called Kong in Butterstick the Panda's enclosure. You can count on Wonkette to have her head in the gutter.

Also, fellow Ky blogger BlueGrassRoots points us to a Times Online article about some very large jellyfish causing trouble for Japan.

Short break

2005-11-14T21:34:00.000-05:00

I'm taking a short break, till the end of the week, to do some work around the house and some lab work.

See you then...

Great lection results for the good guys (except texas and kansas)

2005-11-09T08:17:00.000-05:00

But don't trust me, check the blogs I link to...

I'll be going through them soon to get rid of the links that have gone silent, but there are only a couple of them, while I add a few new ones I like...

FNC in trouble over harrassment. AGAIN!!

2005-11-08T19:51:00.000-05:00

I just mentioned yesterday that FNC was cruzing for a bruising by the on air antics of their talking heads.

It just keeps getting better (via NewsHounds), from MSNBC...

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit in federal court against News Corp.’s Fox News Network LLC.
A sexual harassment lawsuit by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against Fox News Network LLC contends that Fox retaliated against Kim Weiler, a former employee, for complaining about discrimination and that, as a result of the discrimination, Weiler and others at Fox were “constructively discharged” by the network. The suit does not state how many people were discharged.

The complaint contends that Joe Chillemi, a Fox vice president who supervised its advertising and promotions departments, sexually harassed and subjected Weiler and other women to a hostile work environment, routinely using obscenities and vulgarities to describe women or their body parts.

Article continued here.

You can read the lawsuit here.

A couple good reads

2005-11-08T00:04:00.000-05:00

To wrap up for the evening, check out this great piece on Libby's dirty history, and learn a bit about the lies that are told about Clinton and the Chinese getting US missile tech.

Sir Oolius raises some pesky science issues regarding the avian flu (evian if you are on CNN) vaccine preparations and statements coming out of DC. This problem won't go away any time soon, either. H5N1 bird flu is now endemic in much of Asia, which means that we now get to fear it every year, and not just this one.

Does it look as bad as they say it does?

Depends on which strain develops, and what mutant we encounter here in the US. It probably won't kill more than a small percentage of those affected, but you won't hear that on the news... Its scare tactics 24/7!

O'Reilly just doesn't seem to get that being a rude asshole to women that work for him will get him sued.

From Media Matters (art 1, art 2)

On the November 3 broadcast of his nationally syndicated radio show, Fox News host Bill O'Reilly called for "a full-body search" on his co-host, Lis Wiehl. During a conversation about a recent New York Sun editorial (subscription required) on a lawsuit over New York City's policy of subway bag checks, O'Reilly said: "Would you please -- would you please bring in some security to do a full-body search on ... Lis Wiehl." When Wiehl repeated, "I said my bags, not my body," O'Reilly responded, "Full-body search on Lis Wiehl right this minute. She asked for it." Wiehl is also an author, Harvard-trained law professor, and legal analyst for Fox News.

and

Fox News hosts Brit Hume and Bill O'Reilly recently turned their attention to their female co-hosts, remarking on their appearance, with O'Reilly asking the co-host of his nationally syndicated radio show, Lis Wiehl, to protest outside CBS studios in a bikini. Hume, appearing on Fox News' DaySide, told co-host Juliet Huddy that he dressed up for just for her, stating: "One more chance for a man my age to be on with Juliet Huddy."

I bet they think this is how to get the chicks without having to pay them. Make them uncomfortable on air. Class acts, those FNC boys.

Last on the list is the return of my Canadian Blog buddy, Andy at funcentral, scourge of the Canadian Right! And his very cute pupster, Dora.

Target pharmacies vs your uterus.

2005-11-07T23:30:00.000-05:00

While I was away, Target put itself on the side of the republicultist ^TM and against women everywhere (including those who are republicultists ^TM themselves).

The concept is that a pharmacist should be able to not fill a prescription if they have a religious objection to it.

Here is the scenario: Customer A comes in to fill a prescription for the "morning after" emergency contraception pill. Target pharmacist says, "No. I don't believe you should have it, harlot."

Somehow, Target has decided that taking rights away from their customer equals protecting rights for their employees. Never mind that it means that it means that the pharmacist can refuse to do the job they are paid to perform.

I had been trying to get an address from Target to send my thoughts (support reproductive rights, or kiss my consumer dollars goodbye) and got the run around. Finally, I got a response that I could use.

We're always glad to hear what you have to say, so we make it easy to get in touch with us at Target Guest Relations. You can:

- Give us a call at (800) 440-0680. We're here Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central Time.

- Send a letter to:

Target Guest Relations
TFS 1A-X, PO Box 9350
Minneapolis, MN 55440-9350

Just tell us how we can help and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.

Thanks again for writing. We look forward to hearing from you!

Well, since they are so happy about hearing my comments, they will get them.

On the other hand, if you want info on getting the "morning after" pill you can go here.

Reason # 436 that I could never vote for McCain.

2005-11-07T21:39:00.000-05:00

**Update**

More on McCain's cuddling up to the far right republicultists ^TM from The Carpetbagger Report.

****

I haven't trusted McCain for a long time.

When I started paying close attention to politics, about 12 years ago, he seemed like a reasonable person. Since then, he has shown himself to have left his hero days behind, unable to stand up to the man responsible for dragging his family through the mud. McCain seems willing to play a seesaw game with real conservatives (that understand that the Constitution itself prohibits torture) and republicultists ^TM who are so closeted that their marriages would collapse if the GLBT community had the same rights as everyone else. Now he is cuddling up to the South's Crouching Bigot - Hidden Racist demographic.

And don't even think he might stand up against Bush over Alito. He will vote to screw the little guy to appease the republicultists ^TM and corporatists that he needs for his doomed 2008 run. The only way that would happen is Alito came out for torture, the only issue McCain still seems to care about.

If you ever consider voting for McCain, just think of this...

You'll come to your senses...

That's Dr. Robster to you!

2005-11-02T17:47:00.000-05:00

I successfully defended my dissertation today, so now only have to make the corrections requested by my committee. I probably won't be posting regularly for a few more days.

I'll be having a couple beerverages, and I refuse to drink and blog...

OK, so that isn't quite true...

I'll just be taking a well earned break.

Jesus or Aqua Teen

2005-10-28T19:38:00.000-05:00

Saw this over at Pam's House Blend. Someone in Rochester NY noticed a tree with a pattern in it's bark like a face.
Of course, everyone assumes that this must be the face of Jesus.

Personally, I think it looks a bit more like Frylock of Aqua Teen Hunger Force.
You be the judge.

Me? I'll be hangin with my boys on the Jersey shore...

Couldn't keep away...

2005-10-27T22:39:00.000-05:00

Checking up on a bit of news at Raw Story, and despite the whole thing that Sulu has come out, or that Siegfried may have abused Roy, the big story is one we all suspected...

The Bush administration didn't tell Congress the whole truth about Iraq on the lead up to the Iraq war.

Remember the whole 'Senator Kerry saw the same intelligence as the President, and he voted for the war' bullshit? Well, maybe Bush never saw it, but the real president, Cheney, sure did.

We all knew that it was a lie (except those who think gullible isn't in the dictionary) but now a goodfella from inside the Bush crime family has told the truth. They didn't pass on little bits of evidence that said that show that Iraq wasn't a threat to us. I think the real question is what kind of crap did they have to hold back? Reams of paper kept out of Powell's UN speech? As if the drawing of a mobile weapons lab in place of an actual picture wasn't enough....

Check it out, not that it is new news, but still, it makes you think. Or at least makes you wish that other people would think for a change...

The Robinomicon

2005-10-12T17:40:00.000-05:00

I have just passed out my dissertation to my comittee, so wonkabout is almost ready to return. Right now, my defense should be sometime in early November, and then it is back to rants and more rants.

Wonkabout gone walkabout

2005-08-22T20:04:00.000-05:00

A friend over at NewsHounds asked about the lack of catblogging last week, so I should fill you in as to what is up.

I'm going walkabout for the next month or so. I am about a month from defending my dissertaion, and need to spend as much time as I can writing on it instead of the blog.

I'll be back some time around the start of October.

Catblog 8/12/05 edition

2005-08-12T08:30:00.000-05:00

Another Friday, another catblog...

Does anyone know why June's eyes reflect different colors? Just wondering...

All three girls, behaving.

An Otter from the Newport Aquarium. Just because otters are cool.

Cleo holding still... They say manx act like kittens until they are about five years old. And Cleo is only two. My advice, invest in plush catnip frogs...

My partner in crime, Bobbie.

See you next week!

What is wrong with people here?

2005-08-08T08:24:00.000-05:00

A truly disgusting episode happened recently in Floyd County, Kentucky.

A man shot another man in a dispute over the war in Iraq. Original story here.

It happened at Floyd County flea market on Thursday, when two friends, who were firearms vendors there, drew guns after quarreling about the war. Douglas Moore, 65, of Martin, who backs the war, shot and killed Harold Wayne Smith, 56, of Manchester, who opposed it, according to investigators.

Moore was released without being charged after he convinced police he had acted in self-defense. A grand jury may yet hear evidence in the case.

Commonwealth's Attorney Brent Turner said the episode might mark the first death in the U.S. due to a dispute over the war.

One witness, Sam Hamman of Prestonsburg, told the Lexington Herald-Leader, "Harold was talking about the 14 people that were killed in Iraq the other day and Doug said that just as many people were killed on the highways here.”

This quickly escalated into an argument, then to a scuffle, and finally both men drew pistols outside a snack shed. The dead man was apparently just a little slower in firing. Witnesses said he stood for about five seconds before toppling on the walkway.

In a telephone interview with the Lexington paper yesterday, Moore said police had told him not to discuss his feelings about the Iraq war.

I had two thoughts on the matter. One, This is no reason for someone to lose their life. People disagree on the war, but that doesn't mean we need to be at war with ourselves. Two, this is the reason that my bumper stickers are put on with magnetic backing... (that and to protect resale value)

Far right wing idiots, however, see this differently. A troll in the OT forum at NewsHounds titled a thread "One less democrat."

And I won't give this gun-nut the privelage of a link (I am myself a hunter, but consider carrying guns for protection to be something that makes you and others less safe). claytoncramer.com/weblog/2005_07_31_archive.html#112336737056134877 calls this event a triumph for self protection, and calls the flea market salesman an "anti war activist." So arguing over politics at a flea market makes you an activist? Right. Whatever.

Torture rooms. Under new management. Old staff retained.

2005-08-07T21:13:00.000-05:00

Props to Newshound OT threader mick Euro.

Disturbing article about the Iraqi government hiring Saddam's torturers to continue their work. From the London Times Online,

IRAQI security forces, set up by American and British troops, torture detainees by pulling out their fingernails, burning them with hot irons or giving them electric shocks, Iraqi officials say. Cases have also been recorded of bound prisoners being beaten to death by police.

In their haste to put police on the streets to counter the brutal insurgency, Iraqi and US authorities have enlisted men trained under Saddam Hussein’s regime and versed in torture and abuse, the officials told The Times. They said that recruits were also being drawn from the ranks of outlawed Shia militias.

Counter-insurgencies are rarely clean fights, but Iraq’s dirty war is being waged under the noses of US and British troops whose mission is to end the abuses of the former dictatorship. Instead, they appear to have turned a blind eye to the constant reports of torture from Iraq’s prisons.

Among the worst offenders cited are the Interior Ministry police commandos, a force made up largely of former army officers and special forces soldiers drawn from the ranks of Saddam’s dissolved army. They are seen as the most effective tool the coalition has in fighting the insurgency.

Nothing like freeing people from oppression to oppress them anew.

Agent Provacateur

2005-08-07T11:40:00.000-05:00

Saw this quiz on Funcentral, and had to take it. Apparently, I am a Provacateur. I happen to agree... But do not consider myself worthy of the great assholiness of Such men as George Carlin or Chris Rock.

the Provacateur
(65% dark, 26% spontaneous, 44% vulgar)

your humor style:
VULGAR | COMPLEX | DARK
You'll crack on anything, and you're often witty, even caustic, about it.

Therefore,
your sense of humor is polarizing. You're transgressive, and you've got
a seriously sharp 'edge'--maybe too much for some folks. If they get
you, people think you're one of the funniest (and smartest) people in
the world. If they don't, they think you're an ass. Whatever, right?
While some might question your judgement, your comic intellect is
unquestionably respected.

PEOPLE LIKE YOU: Chris Rock - Lenny Bruce - George Carlin

My test tracked 3 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 75% on dark
You scored higher than 30% on spontaneous
You scored higher than 75% on vulgar

Link: The 3 Variable Funny Test written by jason_bateman on OkCupid Free Online Dating

LATimes Op Ed on Hiroshima

2005-08-07T10:49:00.000-05:00

Sixty years ago yesterday, the Enola Gay dropped the first of two atomic bombs on the city of Hiroshima. I didn't quite know how to blog about the bombing, especially considerring the rancor from some on the extreme right, suggesting that we use nuclear weapons for retaliation in the Struggle on terror.

The LA Times has an interesting OpEd piece that I suggest you read. I'm not certain how I feel about the arguements made in the piece, as they are disturbing, but it will certainly make you think.

Thanks to NewsHounds threader TB for the find.

Friday catblog Aug 5 edition

2005-08-05T13:30:00.000-05:00

A really cool nurse shark from the Newport Aquarium.

June the small.

My name is Bobbie. I am a model.

Cleo posing with her new figure 8 collar (She requested a bribe of fish flakes).

And a penguin for Keg.

Sabbatical again

2005-08-02T16:11:00.000-05:00

I have to do some work on my lit cited section for my next paper, so I am on Blog Sabbatical the next few days. Thanks for understanding.

King Fahd of Saudis dead

2005-08-01T09:14:00.000-05:00

Info and links here. And now we will see some really scary upheaval in Saudi Arabia. If it gets too bad, the royal family will destroy their own oil production infrastructure to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands... Expect oil to hit $70/barrel by October, if not $100 if the uprisings are severe enough.

Raw Story kicks butt today

2005-08-01T08:42:00.000-05:00

Raw Story has several great stories this morning. OK, not great in the sense of good, but rather in the sense that they are very much worth reading.

From the NYTimes, a CIA officer has come forward with info that the Bush admin overlooked his reports that Iraq had stopped working on it's nuclear progrom years before 2001, and some of the enrichment equipment was available for sale...

The Central Intelligence Agency was told by an informant in the spring of 2001 that Iraq had abandoned a major element of its nuclear weapons program, but the agency did not share the information with other agencies or with senior policy makers, a former C.I.A. officer has charged.
In a lawsuit filed in federal court here in December, the former C.I.A. officer, whose name remains secret, said that the informant told him that Iraq's uranium enrichment program had ended years earlier and that centrifuge components from the scuttled program were available for examination and even purchase.

The officer, an employee at the agency for more than 20 years, including several years in a clandestine unit assigned to gather intelligence related to illicit weapons, was fired in 2004.

In his lawsuit, he says his dismissal was punishment for his reports questioning the agency's assumptions on a series of weapons-related matters. Among other things, he charged that he had been the target of retaliation for his refusal to go along with the agency's intelligence conclusions.

Michelle Neff, a C.I.A. spokeswoman, said the agency would not comment on the lawsuit.

There is more, so check out the rest of the article. I'd just like to point out that this backs up the idea that the administration had decided what intel was correct and what wasn't, based on preconcieved notions.

One of the memes that has been circulating since OBL escaped at Tora Bora is that he isn't leading al Qaeda anymore. The concept that Qaeda may no longer be a centralized organization (if it's minor ops ever were) has been an excuse for not focusing on Afghanastan (or other suggested OBL locations). An article from a Switzerland news group suggests that OBL is still steering Qaeda,

Osama bin Laden is still giving direct orders for al Qaeda attacks, Saudi Arabia's next ambassador to the United States said on Sunday.

Outgoing Saudi ambassador to Britain Prince Turki al-Faisal said some of the most recent attacks attributed to al Qaeda in the oil-rich kingdom had been directly ordered by the mastermind of the September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States.

"Some of the events (attacks) that occurred in the kingdom over the past 2-1/2 years were under the immediate directions of the leadership of al Qaeda, particularly bin Laden," Turki said in comments broadcast by Reuters Television on Sunday.

Considering how easily the Taliban had a recording of their sowning of a helicopter out and to the press, I would be inclined to believe this.

A disturbing article on the military tribunals at Gitmo.

Leaked emails from two former prosecutors claim the military commissions set up to try detainees at Guantanamo Bay are rigged, fraudulent, and thin on evidence against the accused.

Two emails, which have been obtained by the ABC, were sent to supervisors in the Office of Military Commissions in March of last year - three months before Australian detainee David Hicks was charged and five months before his trial began.

The first email is from prosecutor Major Robert Preston to his supervisor.

Maj Preston writes that the process is perpetrating a fraud on the American people, and that the cases being pursued are marginal.

"I consider the insistence on pressing ahead with cases that would be marginal even if properly prepared to be a severe threat to the reputation of the military justice system and even a fraud on the American people," Maj Preston wrote.

"Surely they don't expect that this fairly half-arsed effort is all that we have been able to put together after all this time."

I hope that this isn't true. Regardless, it is a good reason for civilian oversight (not Gonzalez's pro torture types) of the trials to ensure that they are fair. Our reputation relies on this.

And on a happy note, the Guardian reports that it is likely that the Murdoch empire will break up after his death. Now, before you jump to conclusions, I'm not wishing anything on him, just pointing out that the dissolution of a massive and corrosively hypocritical media conglomerate will be a good thing. I don't expect Fox News to become a legitimate news source, or to become fair or balanced (they make their money by being anything but). But maybe...

Penguins

2005-07-31T15:07:00.000-05:00

Because Keg requested...

Gentoo and King penguins. Gotta love them.

Sunday blognews

2005-07-31T14:41:00.000-05:00

First, via Odub, Benny Hinn's wife tells you about the God's colonic, the Holy Ghost Enema. Amen.

The rest via BuzzFlash,

Mahablog does great footwork on the claim by the right wing bloggers that Air America Radio (AAR) stole money from a charity. It comes down to a single source item from a news source that may or may not exist. Looking deeper, you find that the company that once owned AAR may have mishandled some money. The post at Mahablog is long, but a very worthwhile piece of reading.

From WaPo, news that Congress will be allowing bomb grade Uranium sales.

A provision tucked into the 1,724-page energy bill that Congress is poised to enact today would ease export restrictions on bomb-grade uranium, a lucrative victory for a Canadian medical manufacturer and its well-wired Washington lobbyists.

The Burr Amendment -- named for its sponsor, Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) -- would reverse a 13-year-old U.S. policy banning exports of weapons-grade uranium unless the recipients agree to start converting their reactors to use less-dangerous uranium. The Senate rejected the measure last month after critics in both parties warned that it would accelerate the worldwide proliferation of nuclear materials, but a House-Senate conference committee agreed this week to include it in the final bill.

Lobbyists making America safer for Nukes. Gotta love it. Idiots.

Also from WaPo, the US has been kicked out of Uzbekistan. Not we have decided to vacate the land of a repressive regime that is known for boiling people alive as a form of torture, but they kicked us out.

Don't they know that if you are a US friendly dictator, and turn on the US, you will be invaded and deposed? Just ask Saddam or Noriega...

Have you ever been told that Halliburton isn't doing well with it's business in Iraq? This usually something you are told if you accuse Halliburton of war profiteering. Apparently, business is looking better...

Saturday. Why does the Right hate America?

2005-07-30T14:10:00.000-05:00

Please note the use of hyperbole in the title.

Via Buzzflash, a BBC piece on howthe US government is making the UK nervous. How? Buy putting a Qaeda handbook online.

A member of the London Assembly Conservatives stumbled upon the content of the site while doing research in the wake of the London bombings.

Richard Barnes, Conservative spokesman on Policing and Resilience, said he was "horrified" the Justice Department was promoting "full instructions on how to be an urban terrorist".

"I hope the US government will see sense and remove this immediately. We need to do everything we can to make London safe."

The manual includes advice on how to go undetected on crowded public transport, how to communicate and avoid detection by the security services, and how to transport weapons and stop deterioration of explosives.

But a Justice Department official said parts of the manual had been withheld because the JD "does not want to aid in educating terrorists or encourage further acts of terrorism".

He told the BBC that the US public had a right to know "how these groups operate and some of the methods they use".

The document was freely available on the internet and - as a piece of evidence in a US trial - through the court system.
"We have no intention of taking it down," he added. "Although if we receive a request from the British government we would obviously re-evaluate the situation."

So the bad parts were kept off the web? Oh. Well all righty then! I feel so much better...

Via RawStory, a "Blue Star" mother relates her story about how she was attacked with profanity and found her love for her children under fire when she contacted a mothers of service-members group to correct errors on their website.

Also important is the second half of the articel. She tells how her family had to buy armor and other items for her son.

Marsha’s frustration is palpable. She’s against the war and is not shy about it, and it’s not simply about the effort to tie Iraq to Sept. 11. It’s about Chris.

Marsha tells how her father, a former Marine, supported the war and maintained that the troops would have everything they needed.

“My dad said, I know they’re getting everything they need,” she recounts. “I thought, okay, what can you say? He’s your father.”

“Six months later, he was having to send things to his grandson to help assist in the war effort, that he did not have.”

Marsha says her father helped pay for body armor. Her son, Chris, is a communications specialist.

But it gets worse... They also have to send him basic tools for him to do his job.

“We’ve sent him extra armor,” she says. “He did have new armor when he left, it was military issued, it was not the best – there are police officers on the street who have better armor, and I know that because I have a degree on criminal justice. We’ve had to send him tools so he can literally do his job of repairing radios.”

Beyond armor, she says she’s also sent basic tools like sockets and wrenches. She laughs as she says it, but she’s obviously pained by how little support she’s seen from those who would send her son to fight, and perhaps to die.

“I did send him a whole ratchet set,” she recalls. “It’s outrageous. We have to pay to send him things, and of course we have to send him things all the time, hair gel even, for instance. It costs a lot of money to send those packages. I took three small boxes to the post office last week and spent $40.”

Truly sad. If this is how the RNC supports troops, I never want to see what happens if they turn on them.

Friday Cat Bloggin 072905 edition

2005-07-29T16:58:00.000-05:00

Quick quiz: Which is the cat, which is the penguin?

If you haven't guessed, we went to the aquarium last weekend.
Actually, this is a teaching aquarium for middle school science classes. The Newport Aquarium is much larger, and has the only Shark Ray in the western hemisphere.

And here is Sweetpea.
Nope, no frickin' laser beam on her head. She is actually a shark, but her front body is very similar to a ray.

But back to the kitties, here is June, doing some spring cleaning. (June has no concept of time, and doesn't realize that summer is here)

And Cleo makes three.
Oh to be a lazy little kitten...

Or a turtle. Turtles are cool. Especially loggerheads named Denver.

Murdoch buys MySpace, community revolts.

2005-07-28T20:37:00.000-05:00

BUMP + UPDATE2 Kid Hobo's site is back up, but all data is gone, although he is rebuilding it. Seems it may have had something to do with the MSM asking a couple questions of MySpace. Caching of the site has been blocked by MySpace, and the story from them, according to KH follows,

Apparently Terry Everet (sp?), the VP over at NewsCorp issued a statement to the LA Times saying that they wouldn't delete my profile. (Now they're totally back into a corner) My best guess is that someone else then at MySpace said that my site was streaming 'porn', so they had to take it down for a few moments to purge it of some nasty content. That was their cover... because I never saw any porn coming from my site, I would know! I'm thinking 'Yeah right!' is more like it.

Anyway, it is back up, and you can read about what has been going on at the link in the first update.
--------------
BUMP + UPDATE! MySpace has deleted Kid Hobo's Rupert Murdoch profile.

Kid Hobo is currently in contact with the LATimes writer who wrote the piece about MySpace sites spoofing Murdoch's purchase of that little corner of the internet where the cool kids hang out. I'll keep you updated.

Hopefully, this will be a nice bit of egg-like substance on Rupert's face...
--------------
One of the regular posters over at NewsHounds, Kid Hobo, chose to protest by setting up a page to poke fun at the devourer of the media himself, Rupert Murdoch. The story starts here, at the Off Topic Forum, where several of the readers are myspace members. Kid Hobo's page is here. Do yourself a favor and read the comments after you read about the plans of "Rupert".

Kerri is such a polite lady. I'm glad she expresses herself with such reservation...

But the story gets better.

Hobo made the LA Times.

Under musical preferences, one says, "Yes, money is music to my ears."

"I encourage my television and radio stations to become Republican soapboxes," another profile says, adding, "There are important benefits to fascism."

What would be one of the best things to happen to Hobo?

News Corp. spokeswoman Teri Everett said the company was aware of the Murdoch profiles.

"But asking for their removal is something we wouldn't consider," she said.

Yes. Censorship. Because it would be a great bit of free press about the oppressive Murdoch regime...

It has been great fun to watch this little subversive gem take off from idea to phenom.

If you want news on what is going on, check out my links. Especially AmericaBlog, Blah3, Booman, Eschaton, and Pam's House Blend. More bad news for Rove, human rights abuses in Iran (and giggling freeper responses), religious fundamentalists cuddle up to hate groups, Dean goes all normal and reasonable all over Tom "Bomb Mecca" Tancredo.

I wish I had more time today. I bet the document dump is going to be great tomorrow, around 6 or 7. Problem is, all us geeky bloggers will be watching scifi.

Blogger's sabbatical

2005-07-26T20:16:00.000-05:00

I have some serious writing to do over the next two days, so posts may be rare. In the mean time, visit my links.

or browse Kontraband...

Thanks,

Robster

Judge Roberts - Federalist Society

2005-07-25T21:40:00.000-05:00

Rundown of Roberts and his Federalist Society connections.

He can't seem to remember if he is a member of the FS. From the Guardian,

Whether he's a member or not shouldn't matter, said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas.

``Obviously it wasn't central in his life. But it's not like being a member of the Communist Party,'' Cornyn said after meeting Roberts. ``The Federalist Society is an organization that hosts debates from people with a lot of different viewpoints. I think serves a very useful purpose for lawyers and people interested in these viewpoints. But I don't think that should be a limiting factor at all.''

Then why are it's members too afraid or ashamed to admit they either belong to it, or even what it stands for? Could it be an ultraconservative judicial group bent on returning the US to the 1930s? That is what being an originalist means, right? Or is he a constructionist? So it isn't that simple, but I don't like either, and if you like clean air, a 40 hour workweek, the right to vote and have it counted, then you shouldn't.

But he is mentioned as a member in a speech about the FS.

Is this another definition of "is" deal that the RNC has become so fond of lately? Sort of like the definition of treason?

Monday Rove/Libby/Novak leak info

2005-07-25T17:50:00.000-05:00

As CarpetBagger points out, Frank Rich of NYTimes wrote about how it took 12 hours for Gonzalez to tell the White House to preserve documents related to the Valerie Plame Wilson leak. This was easily enough time for the destruction of evidence. Not exactly new, but interesting.

CarpetBagger goes on to point out that it may be worse than 12 hours...

On Friday, Sept. 26, 2003, the CIA directed the Justice Department to launch a criminal probe into the leak. Three days later, on Monday, Sept. 29, 2003, the WH counsel's office was formally notified about the investigation. And then 12 hours after that, Gonzales told White House staff to preserve materials. In other words, the amount of time Bush aides were given to, perhaps, discard and destroy relevant evidence after the DoJ began its work wasn't just 12 hours; it was several days.

It's not as if the Gonzales notification — on the morning of Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2003 — told Rove & Co. something new. MSNBC told the world about the investigation that Friday night. This means Rove & Co. learned on Friday night that they were being investigated, but weren't formally told to start securing relevant materials until Tuesday morning. In case the MSNBC report wasn't clear enough, a front-page article was published in the Washington Post about the Justice Department's criminal investigation a full 48 hours before WH staffers were told to preserve potentially incriminating evidence.

There are new questions about when Gonzales told WH Chief of Staff Andy Card about the investigation, but this seems largely irrelevant. Card and the rest of the Bush gang didn't need word from the WH counsel's office on Sept. 29, 2003, to know that an investigation was underway; they, like the rest of us, learned about the probe days before hand.
The Bush gang didn't have 12 hours to cover their tracks — they had a whole weekend.

Makes you feel good that they were so on top of a leak that compromized national security. This attitude of half-assed work is what would get a normal person fired or put in jail. But in Bushworld, you get promoted!

Wilson neighbors didn't know (USAToday) Valerie was a CIA employee of any kind, via Booman.

As I finished reading the column, Joe ventured out onto his deck and offered a neighborly hello. I held up the paper and yelled over, "I had no idea about Valerie!" Joe looked stricken and gestured to me to keep my voice down. I immediately realized the "outing" of Valerie as a covert CIA operative had had a devastating effect on the Wilson family. In the weeks to follow, I came to understand just how harrowing the disclosure was. Obviously, the identification of Valerie meant an end to her decades-long career. It also meant the country had lost an essential part of the services provided by someone who was an expert on weapons of mass destruction.

Put that in your debunking file. Use as needed.

Not sure where I saw this, but Rep Waxman wrote a letter to Bush regarding the moving goalposts on Rove's involvement in the CIA leak. Waxman wrote

Your new standard is not consistent with your obligations to enforce Executive Order 12958, which governs the protection of national security secrets. The executive order states: "Officers and employees of the United States Government ... shall be subject to appropriate sanctions if they knowingly, willfully, or negligently ... disclose to unauthorized persons information properly classified."3 Under the executive order, the available sanctions include "reprimand, suspension without pay, removal, termination of classification authority, loss or denial of access to classified information, or other sanctions."4

Under the executive order, you may not wait until criminal intent and liability are proved by a prosecutor. Instead, you have an affirmative obligation to take "appropriate and prompt corrective action."5 And the standards of proof are much different. A criminal violation of the Intelligence Identities Protection Act, which Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald is investigating, requires a finding that Mr. Rove "intentionally disclose[d]" the identity of a covert agent.6 In contrast, the administrative sanctions under Executive Order 12958 can be imposed without a finding of intent. Under the express terms of the executive order, you are required to impose administrative sanctions – such as removal of office or termination of security clearance – if Mr. Rove or other officials acted "negligently" in disclosing or confirming information about Ms. Wilson's identity.7

So Bush is acting against the rules by not sanctioning Rove AND Libby for their involvement as it is already known.

Will Bush do the right thing? Yeah. Riiiiiiight.

CIA Leak (Turd Blossom Gate) statistics

2005-07-25T15:00:00.000-05:00

A quick read of important numbers in the CIA leak case. The Dems seem to finally understand what it takes to put a message out to the people.

Simple

Concise

Factual

It's too damn hot

2005-07-24T21:10:00.000-05:00

As the starting bookend, go read this article on the troops and their concern that they are the only ones sacrificing for Bush's war. I'll remind you later if you don't read it now...

Why I don't trust McCain...

Majikthise has a story on the possibility of a new flu epidemic beginning in China.

Rawstory links to WaPo story on removing a blockade against sueing gas additive MTBE producers. Manganese, a toxic heavy metal, is a major part of MTBE. Manganese is capable of causing severe brain damage, and kids are more likely than anyone else to take up environmental poisons. Why MTBE is allowed as a gas additive is beyond me...

On She Flies... a wanker in the field of science and beurocratic interference.

An interesting article on Tom Paine about how we should fight terrorism. A seriously worthwhile read.

DKos points us to the Seattle Times on a story about how a man linked to the London bombings was allowed to slip through the cracks by US prosecutors.

Remaining links via Buzzflash...

Guardian article on extremism in Pakistan, and the silent majority of those who oppose their hate.

What does SCOTUS nominee think about abortion?

Ask his wife...

Guardian on why Kerry movie "Stolen Honor" didn't break election laws.

Here's a hint.

It rhymes with shmecnicality, and starts with a T.

Brazil tells USAID that it can go screw itself. Brazil not willing to mess up it's anti HIV AIDS programs for Bush's cash.

The leak of Plame's name, according to the RW treason apologists, is no big deal.

CIA head Tenet didn't see it that way.

But Tenet was a good spook, and never told Bush where he could stick his medal of freedom...

My GOD! another article from the Guardian?

This one on the pot/kettle relationship of True Christians (c) calling the Koran a manual for hate.

The man who was heroicly hunted down and shot to death in the London subway system was not connected to the bombings.

Does anyone remember the part in Fahrenheit 451...?

If you read nothing else, read this. US soldiers not happy that they and their families are the only ones being asked to sacrifice for the war.

Bush will veto bill if Congress attempts to check his unlimitted power

2005-07-23T06:49:00.000-05:00

Via DKos, who saw it at Digby, if Congress sets up a comission to regulate POWs or investigate the abuse of prisoners at Gitmo or Abu Ghraib, Bush will VETO a defense bill.

The Reuters article,

The White House on Thursday threatened to veto a massive Senate bill for $442 billion in next year's defense programs if it moves to regulate the
Pentagon's treatment of detainees or sets up a commission to investigate operations at Guantanamo Bay prison and elsewhere.

The Bush administration, under fire for the indefinite detention of enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and questions over whether its policies led to horrendous abuses at
Abu Ghraib prison in
Iraq, put lawmakers on notice it did not want them legislating on the matter.

In a statement, the White House said such amendments would "interfere with the protection of Americans from terrorism by diverting resources from the war."

"If legislation is presented that would restrict the president's authority to protect Americans effectively from terrorist attack and bring terrorists to justice," the bill could be vetoed, the statement said.

Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record), who endured torture as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, said after meeting at the Capitol with Vice President
Dick Cheney that he still intended to offer amendments next week "on the standard of treatment of prisoners."

South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham (news, bio, voting record), who was working on legislation defining the legal status of enemy combatants being held in Guantanamo, also said he would offer an amendment.

Bush must have something really disgusting to hide, or the idea that he is above the law. Neither are reason to let him get away with jack divided by shit.

At least he isn't getting away with this. Anyone want to bet that his approval rates hit 25%?

Rove, Roberts and the french fry case, Iraq, possible plans to nuke Iran...

The future's so dim for bush, he's gotta wear I thought it was supposed to be good to be the king...

Friday news, and the docs are dumped

2005-07-22T23:44:00.000-05:00

Those who have been watching the Abu Ghraib story in the last few weeks knows that there were pictures and videos of abuse, some of it sexual abuse of kids, were supposed to be released today.

Bush has chosen to block their release at the last minute. So this is kind of a reverse dump.

On July 22, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) denounced the latest efforts of the Bush Administration to block the release of the Darby photos and videos depicting torture at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison facility.

So what are they hiding? Something that never should have happened.

``There are a lot more photographs and videos that exist,'' Rumsfeld testified before Congress.

``If these are released to the public, obviously it's going to make matters worse. That's just a fact.''
The unreleased images show American soldiers beating one prisoner almost to death, apparently raping a female prisoner, acting inappropriately with a dead body, and taping Iraqi guards raping young boys, according to NBC News.

The story just gets worse.

Seymour Hersh says the US government has videotapes of boys being sodomized at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. "The worst is the soundtrack of the boys shrieking," the reporter told an ACLU convention last week.
...
Some of the worse that happened that you don't know about, ok. Videos, there are women there. Some of you may have read they were passing letters, communications out to their men. This is at Abu Ghraib which is 30 miles from Baghdad [...]
The women were passing messages saying "Please come and kill me, because of what's happened". Basically what happened is that those women who were arrested with young boys/children in cases that have been recorded. The boys were sodomized with the cameras rolling. The worst about all of them is the soundtrack of the boys shrieking that your government has. They are in total terror it's going to come out.

I'd rather not see what was done in my name, but I know that it may be important in making sure it doesn't happen again.

Very scary stuff at JustinLogan.com, via Booman. The American Conservative print edition has a story about a plan set up at the Pentagon at the prompting of VP Cheney's office on what to do if a second 9/11 level attack occurs.

Their plan? Nuke Iran.

The Pentagon, acting under instructions from Vice President Dick Cheney's office, has tasked the United States Strategic Command (STRATCOM) with drawing up a contingency plan to be employed in response to another 9/11-type terrorist attack on the United States. The plan includes a large-scale air assault on Iran employing both conventional and tactical nuclear weapons. Within Iran there are more than 450 major strategic targets, including numerous suspected nuclear-weapons-program development sites. Many of the targets are hardened or are deep underground and could not be taken out by conventional weapons, hence the nuclear option. As in the case of Iraq, the response is not conditional on Iran actually being involved in the act of terrorism directed against the United States. Several senior Air Force officers involved in the planning are reportedly appalled at the implications of what they are doing--that Iran is being set up for an unprovoked nuclear attack--but no one is prepared to damage his career by posing any objections.

The military isn't happy about this. Hopefully, this will make it into the MSM.

Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11. If Iran had nothing to do with a second attack, it won't matter.

What would happen?

Russia would go on high alert, and might respond to our attack with one of their own on the US if there was a mistake in their warning radar.

Pakistan would be very adversely affected by fallout, as would India. Both are nuclear powers. A possible regional nuclear conflict could occur.

North Korea would steamroll South Korea, and perhaps fire missiles at Japan, knowing that they would be next if they did not demonstrate their own nuclear capability soon.

No candy, no flowers. More IEDs, more flag draped coffins.

Howard Dean goes dull and doesn't freak out at Airport, via Booman.

The Dean watchers are beginning to get bored. He really doesn't seem to have anger problems. He goes all normal all the time!

DKos has a great rundown of what is up with Rove. Connect the dots.

If it is Friday, it must be Catblogging!

2005-07-22T09:00:00.000-05:00

What is it Friday already? I must have been asleep! - CleoOK, I'll wear the hat, but don't you dare put this on the blog, or it will be cat hair in your cereal... - Bobbie
Finally, a good picture of June. And without any distractions... Bobbie!
At least we can get a picture of Cleo without Bobbie being a ham. BOBBIE!
OK, one more try at this. BOBBIE!
And Cleo to finish out a nice Friday of Kitties.
See you next week!

Work day

2005-07-21T18:31:00.000-05:00

I have to finish up a journal article, so will post a couple juicy nuggets this late afternoon/evening.

OK, so I still have a shitload of work to do, but I'll try to get a couple items up if I get a chance later.

London

2005-07-21T09:05:00.000-05:00

If you want London info, go to the BBC. You can listen or stream video here. BBC News is also under the talk section on the Windows Media Player - Radio tab.

Wednesday links

2005-07-20T08:32:00.000-05:00

A great McD's comic over at Boondocks. I guess this is part of the urbanizing of the brand.

AmericaBlog reports that Roberts is, in the eyes of the American Taliban, a new Scalia/Thomas type.

Blondesense links to a CNN report on an analysis of civilian casualties in Iraq.

Crooks and liars has two great posts.

The first question the Senate should ask Roberts.
The words that should come out of every Democrat's mouth when asked about Roberts, "What Chuck Schumer said."

Via Atrios, the MSM is parroting the idea that the Rove story is out, Roberts is in. Guess what kids, we won't let him off that easy, and the end of Chapter One the story is up to the Grand Jury. Chapter Two is up to the Courts. Chapters Three and Four (Firing the leaker and Impeachment) are up to President Bunnypants and Congress.

Coeruleus at She Flies points out Roberts' views on the endangered species act, and important to me as a Kentuckian, his views on mountaintop removal.

What does mountaintop removal do?

You take a mountain, cut the top off of it, drop it into a nearby valley, killing streams and endangering the lives of anyone downhill. Bad for the environment, and very low on need for labor, leaving more and more miners without a job.

Tuesday night, SCOTUS and OTHER NEWS

2005-07-19T22:07:00.000-05:00

Sure, the big news tonight is SCOTUS nominee Roberts.

I don't know much about him, but will educate myself over the next weeks, as I am sure you will as well.

For a start, AmericaBlog and TalkLeft are blogging like the posessed on Roberts.

A couple individual posts of interest on Roberts.

Pam's House Blend
Courting Influence

What about Rove?

We know that the selection of a SCOTUS judge has something to do with taking the attention off of Rove. So what is going on with Turd Blossom today?

Talkleft on a new damaging story for Rove. Perjury perhaps?

Majikthise sends us to Digby (who I need to add to my links), who routes us to FindLaw's list of important Rove related docs.

Pam's House Blend has a great image of Kermit defending Rove. Worth a good laugh. It certainly reminds us to keep the focus on Rove. The media sure won't do it for us...

More on Mad Tom Tancredo's suggestion of bombing Mecca via Raw Story.

Tancredo won't apologize.

Facing mounting criticism, Rep. Tom Tancredo on Monday refused to apologize for suggesting the United States could target Muslim holy sites if radical Islamic terrorists set off multiple nuclear attacks in American cities.

"It's a tough issue to deal with," Tancredo told reporters at a Capitol Hill news conference. "Tough things are said. And we should not shy away from saying things that need to be said."

Tancredo is known for his fiery rhetoric on immigration and other issues, but his words are coming under more scrutiny because he has started traveling to test the waters for a possible presidential candidacy in 2008.

A spokeswoman for House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi called Tancredo's remarks irresponsible.

"They do nothing to advance our national security and protect Americans from terrorists," Pelosi spokeswoman Jennifer Crider said.

Irresponsible is a mild way to put it... Insane and dangerous would be another. I'd love to see this madman get the Freepers going in '08. It would be great for the Dems. :)

--
Isn't Howard Dean a nut, too? He must have had something crazy to say in response,

"Tancredo's statements go against the very message America is trying to send to the world, that the war against terrorism is not a war on Islam. Remarks threatening the destruction of holy sites akin to the Vatican or Jerusalem do nothing to win the hearts and minds of Muslims in the United States and abroad.

Congressman Tancredo certainly owes Muslims around the globe an immediate apology for his offensive remarks. At the same time, he also owes Americans an apology for projecting a message that goes against our values. With these remarks, Tancredo has been utterly careless with his responsibility for shaping our foreign policy. Tancredo's continued refusal to apologize poses a very real danger to our troops. President Bush should strongly condemn Tancredo's statement."

Hmmm. Sounds pretty common sense. Could the media have lied to us about the nature of Dean's personality?

Gawd. Why is it that Ky reps are such dumbasses? Blah3...

Kentucky Republican Congressman Geoff Davis on the floor:

"...in the active military unit serving in Iraq, the active military unit serving in Afghanistan and Kyrgystan and Kuwait why they are reenlisting at rates of over 100 percent."

The W republican: Protect the unborn, but not from poisons and toxic environmental exposure. Think Progress,

According to a new study released by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), babies today “enter the world with hundreds of industrial chemicals, solvents and pesticides in their veins.” In fact, newborn babies today have an average of a whopping 200 contaminants in their blood at birth. “The pollutants included mercury, fire retardants, pesticides and the Teflon chemical PFOA. ”

And off to Daze of our Lives for a public transit message. I will be using public transit to get to work as much as often from here on out. Gas prices are getting high enough, and my belly big enough, that a bit of walking and letting someone else drive is making sense.

President Bunnypants gets laughed at by press

2005-07-18T20:16:00.000-05:00

Wonkette reports on today's press conference, noting that Bush got laughed at by the press for his response to a certain question,

Q Mr. President, you said you don't want to talk about an ongoing investigation, so I'd like to ask you, regardless of whether a crime was committed, do you still intend to fire anyone found to be involved in the CIA leak case? And are you displeased that Karl Rove told a reporter that Ambassador Joe Wilson's wife worked for the Agency on WMD issues?
PRESIDENT BUSH: We have a serious ongoing investigation here. (Laughter.)

Oh, that is just not good. Of course, Bush was repeating the official WH line.

No comment.

Even though the question was framed to eliminate the issue of whether a crime was commited, Bush dodged it. No wonder he got laughed at.

But what if this is just something made up by the diabolical Leftist media?

Wonkette provides a link to the White House's transcript for the press conference. How does this exchange come across from the official record?

Q Mr. President, you said you don't want to talk about an ongoing investigation, so I'd like to ask you, regardless of whether a crime was committed, do you still intend to fire anyone found to be involved in the CIA leak case? And are you displeased that Karl Rove told a reporter that Ambassador Joe Wilson's wife worked for the Agency on WMD issues?

PRESIDENT BUSH: We have a serious ongoing investigation here. (Laughter.) And it's being played out in the press. And I think it's best that people wait until the investigation is complete before you jump to conclusions. And I will do so, as well. I don't know all the facts. I want to know all the facts. The best place for the facts to be done is by somebody who's spending time investigating it. I would like this to end as quickly as possible so we know the facts, and if someone committed a crime, they will no longer work in my administration.

I guess it doesn't matter if someone did something that endangered the security of the US, or did something highly unethical.

Only if it was criminal.

Since ethics and security aren't the strong suite of this administration, Bush has to keep the standards low.

Mecca in the crosshairs

2005-07-18T19:29:00.000-05:00

Via AmericaBlog, a chilling account of what Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo thinks would be a good way to fight the war on terror...

Talk show host Pat Campbell asked the Littleton Republican how the country should respond if terrorists struck several U.S. cities with nuclear weapons.
"Well, what if you said something like -- if this happens in the United States, and we determine that it is the result of extremist, fundamentalist Muslims, you know, you could take out their holy sites," Tancredo answered.

"You're talking about bombing Mecca," Campbell said.

"Yeah," Tancredo responded.

Lets see. What would ignite a World War faster than anything?

Nuking a Holy City?

That would do it.

Of course, Tancredo would have a reason for his insane comments,

The congressman later said he was "just throwing out some ideas" and that an "ultimate threat" might have to be met with an "ultimate response."

Oh. That makes me feel better.

Instead of trying to keep nukes out of the hands of terrorists, threaten to destroy their holiest cities. That is sure to convince an extremist not to act, right? Right?

Not so much...

Big news day, Quick headlines.

2005-07-18T09:11:00.000-05:00

Via Buzzflash, GOP congress fires those that warned them about VA shortfall.

FBI has been monitoring the ACLU.
Read more at AmericaBlog, Pam's House Blend has 2 posts, and TalkLeft.

Hersh's article at the New Yorker about Iraqi election rigging is out.

Via RawStory, WH aides picked Wilson as a target. Rove reported to have said, "He's a Democrat." That's all the justification Turd Blossom ever needed.

Sunday - Late Ed.

2005-07-17T22:46:00.000-05:00

I had to think, which is the bigger story? Rumbles of an impending invasion of Syria, or an attempt by the Bush Administration to screw with the Iraqi election.

Another war, probably timed either for the end of the summer or the 06 elections won hands down. Via Rawstory.

The United States has been considering attacking Sunni insurgency centers in Syria.

Western diplomatic sources and analysts said the U.S. Defense Department and Central Command have been warning of the increasing activity of a Sunni insurgency network in northern Syria. They said the Pentagon has been discussing a U.S. strike that could end the network's operation.

Like that won't end up as another war... Will we do the same with Saudi Arabia? Of course not. They have Oil, and are prepared to destroy their production facilities in a spectacular fashion.
--
The second biggest piece is the Bush Admin's interest in affecting the Iraqi elections. They didn't get congressional approval, but I would't be surprised if they did it under the radar. Via Blah3, a NYTimes article.

In the months before the Iraqi elections in January, President Bush approved a plan to provide covert support to certain Iraqi candidates and political parties, but rescinded the proposal because of Congressional opposition, current and former government officials said Saturday.
In a statement issued in response to questions about a report in the next issue of The New Yorker, Frederick Jones, the spokesman for the National Security Council, said that "in the final analysis, the president determined and the United States government adopted a policy that we would not try - and did not try - to influence the outcome of the Iraqi election by covertly helping individual candidates for office."

The statement appeared to leave open the question of whether any covert help was provided to parties favored by Washington, an issue about which the White House declined to elaborate.

I bet that Hersh's article will be very interesting.

Any clandestine American effort to influence the Iraqi elections, or to provide particular support to candidates or parties seen as amenable to working with the United States, would have run counter to the Bush administration's assertions that the vote would be free and unfettered.

Mr. Bush, in his public statements, has insisted that the United States will help promote conditions for democracy in the region but will live with whatever governments emerge in free elections.

The article cites unidentified former military and intelligence officials who said the administration went ahead with covert election activities in Iraq that "were conducted by retired C.I.A. officers and other non-government personnel, and used funds that were not necessarily appropriated by Congress." But it does not provide details and says, "the methods and the scope of the covert effort have been hard to discern."

Representative Jane Harman of California, the top Democrat on the House intelligence committee, issued a statement saying that she could not discuss classified information, noting: "Congress was consulted about the administration's posture in the Iraqi election. I was personally consulted. But if the administration did what is alleged, that would be a violation of the covert action requirements, and that would be deeply troubling."

Does this sound like Iran Contra to anybody?

At least some people know how to keep secrets, though.

Mr. Jones, the National Security Council spokesman, in words that echoed a statement the White House issued to Time in October, said in a telephone interview on Saturday, "I cannot in any way comment on classified matters, such as the existence or nonexistence of findings."

Why couldn't Rove have said this to Novakula?
--
What else is happening?

Hillary may be in the 08 race, at least a little closer to officially, thanks to Bill. Also via RawStory,

The last Democrat president abandoned his notes to announce that Hillary Clinton was ready to win back America's highest office for their party.
...
Mr Clinton's message was that the party has to win back support in "red" (Republican) America. Calling himself "the world's most famous sinner", he spoke of a Pentecostal minister in his home state of Arkansas who had voted for him but then backed Mr Bush because "ever since you left, nobody in your party talks to us any more". But, he said, the pastor added: "I would vote for Hillary. I love her."

--
Also, mad props to the NewsHounds for their recognition by BBC's Roger Mosey for taking O'Rielly when he played super-patriot against the BBC.

Rove and Libby sitting in a tree

2005-07-17T15:30:00.000-05:00

L - E - A - K - I - N - G

Via BuzzFlash,

Time has an article behind their subscriber wall, so if you are a subscriber, you can check it out here. If you aren't, AmericaBlog has some selections for your reading pleasure...

BuzzFlash offers this summary of the Time article,
Time Reporter Tells All: Karl Rove TOLD HIM About Plame's Identity at CIA and That She Worked on Weapons of Mass Destruction, Not, As Rove Ludicrously Claims, Vice Versa. "Was it through my conversation with Rove that I learned for the first time that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA and may have been responsible for sending him? Yes. Did Rove say that she worked at the 'agency' on "WMD"? Yes."
MSNBC also has an article about Cooper's article (will the press ever report on something other than themselves?).

White House political aide Karl Rove was the first person to tell a Time magazine reporter that the wife of a prominent critic of the Bush administration's Iraq policy was a CIA officer, the reporter said in an article Sunday.
Time correspondent Matthew Cooper said he told a grand jury last week that Rove told him the woman worked at the "agency," or CIA, on weapons of mass destruction issues, and ended the call by saying "I've already said too much."

Do ya think? Then maybe you shouldn't have been leaking to all those other reporters/collumnists? WTF?

He said Rove did not disclose the woman's name, Valerie Plame, but told him information would be declassified that would cast doubt on the credibility of her husband, former diplomat Joseph Wilson, who had charged the Bush administration with exaggerating the threat of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction programs in making its case for war.
"So did Rove leak Plame's name to me, or tell me she was covert? No. Was it through my conversation with Rove that I learned for the first time that Wilson's wife worked at the CIA and may have been responsible for sending him? Yes. Did Rove say that she worked at the 'agency' on 'WMD'? Yes," Cooper wrote in Time's current edition.
"When he said things would be declassified soon, was that itself impermissible? I don't know. Is any of this a crime? Beats me," Cooper wrote.

So it would be declassified soon? Because of the leak, maybe? It certainly means Rove lied about the classified nature of Valerie Plame?

This is so not good for Rove. Maybe he should have thought about it before he outed a covert agent...

WaPo writes on the Cooper article, too.

The vice president's chief of staff, Lewis Libby, was a source along with the president's chief political adviser for a Time story that identified a CIA officer, the magazine reporter said Sunday, further countering White House claims that neither aide was involved in the leak.

In an effort to quell a chorus of calls to fire deputy White House chief of staff Karl Rove, Republicans said that Rove originally learned about Valerie Plame's identity from the news media. That exonerates Rove, the Republican Party chairman said, and Democrats should apologize.

But it is not clear that it was a journalist who first revealed the information to Rove.

A lawyer familiar with Rove's grand jury testimony said Sunday that Rove learned about the CIA officer either from the media or from someone in government who said the information came from a journalist. The lawyer spoke on condition of anonymity because the federal investigation is continuing.

In a first-person account in the latest issue of Time magazine, reporter Matt Cooper wrote that during his grand jury appearance last Wednesday, prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald "asked me several different ways if Rove had indicated how he had heard that Plame worked at the CIA." Cooper said Rove did not indicate how he had heard.

...

Libby and Rove were among the unidentified government officials who provided information for a Time story about Wilson, Cooper told NBC's "Meet the Press."

Cooper also said there may have been other government officials who were sources for his article. Time posted "A War on Wilson?" on its Web site on July 17, 2003.

The reporter refused to elaborate about other sources. He said that he has given all information to the grand jury in Washington where he was questioned for 2 1/2 hours on Wednesday.

In his first-person account, Cooper said Rove ended their telephone conversation with the words, "I've already said too much." Cooper speculated that Rove could have been "worried about being indiscreet, or it could have meant he was late for a meeting or something else."

"This was the first time I had heard anything about Wilson's wife," Cooper wrote of his phone call with Rove.

Cooper also had a conversation about Wilson and his wife with Libby, Cheney's chief of staff.

Is that a frogmarch I see in the distance?

Yesterday's news today

2005-07-17T13:48:00.000-05:00

I had intended on blogging these stories yesterday, but didn't have time.

Via BuzzFlash, a Pensito Review piece on the State of Morality in the State of Florida. Wonkabout is sorry to award it's second Thomas Granger award to Alan Yoder and the state of Florida.

Florida, which has laws against gays adopting children, oral sex between adults of either gender, and erections that show through a man’s clothing, has no law whatsoever against people having sex with animals.
The recent arrest of a blind Tallahassee man accused of forcing sex on his guide dog highlights this egregious shortcoming.

Bleah. Dis. Gust. Ing.
------------
More on the Tennesee teen who was placed in a prison day camp to remove his gayness by his parents.

First, an old post from Pam's House Blend on the parents of the young man, and what they had to say about what they want to achieve by showing their son how much they don't respect him.

Next, Pam comments on and links to a NYTimes article about the ex-Gay cult/group and the contraversy around them.
-------------
Fianlly, Daedelus writes on an article about the state of free speech and the right to peacefully protest.

Mark Harris, a 20-year veteran of the Air Force, was not pleased to see a sign-carrying Iraq war protester in Thursday night's Mexico Volunteer Fire Department Field Days parade.

What he saw happen to the man, though, raised some questions for him and, he said, his children.

An Oswego County sheriff's deputy pulled Joshua A. Davies, 23, of 25B North St. in Mexico, out of the parade and charged him with disorderly conduct. Davies had been walking in the parade carrying, Harris said, an "Impeach Bush" sign and another sign calling for an end to the war in Iraq.

Harris said he saw Davies get searched, handcuffed and put in a sheriff's patrol car. Harris said Davies was kept in the car until the parade ended about 45 minutes later.

"My kids watched it," said Harris. "Some asked, 'Can they do that?' "
...

"I felt bad that he was there," Harris said of Davies, "but I thought he had the right to his opinion."

"This was a signal to the kids that you can't do that here," Harris said. "Dissent, I mean. I thought that's what being an American means - the right to protest, to speak your mind."

We move a step closer to an authoritarian government where the right to protest is taken away in the interest of "society."

Rove knew what he was doing...

2005-07-15T19:32:00.000-05:00

Oops. Looks like this is what they make Fridays for! I was reading an open thread at AmericaBlog about SciFi Friday...

From SFGate.com,

After mentioning a CIA operative to a reporter, Bush confidant Karl Rove alerted the president's No. 2 security adviser about the interview and said he tried to steer the journalist away from allegations the operative's husband was making about faulty Iraq intelligence.

The July 11, 2003, e-mail between Rove and then-Deputy National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley is the first showing an intelligence official knew Rove had talked to Matthew Cooper just days before the Time magazine reporter wrote an article identifying Valerie Plame as a CIA officer.

So he knew that he had discussed a CIA op, and had done it knowingly. Lets keep reading...

"I didn't take the bait," Rove wrote in an e-mail obtained by The Associated Press, recounting how Cooper tried to question him about whether President Bush had been hurt by the new allegations.

The White House turned the e-mail over to prosecutors, and Rove testified to a grand jury about it last year.

Earlier in the week before the e-mail, Plame's husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, had written a newspaper opinion piece accusing the Bush administration of twisting prewar intelligence, including a "highly doubtful" report that Iraq bought nuclear materials from Niger.

"Matt Cooper called to give me a heads-up that he's got a welfare reform story coming," Rove wrote in the e-mail to Hadley.

"When he finished his brief heads-up he immediately launched into Niger. Isn't this damaging? Hasn't the president been hurt? I didn't take the bait, but I said if I were him I wouldn't get Time far out in front on this."

He did it to attack a critic of Bush. And he did it willingly. As if telling a reporter that someone is married to a CIA agent won't make it into the papers...

Rove, Bush's closest adviser, turned over the e-mail as soon as prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into who leaked Plame's covert work for the CIA.

Definitely not good for TurdBlossom...

Rove sent the e-mail shortly before leaving the White House early for a family vacation that weekend, already aware that another journalist he had talked with, syndicated columnist Robert Novak, was planning an article about Plame and Wilson.

Rove also knew that then-CIA Director George Tenet planned later that same day to issue a dramatic statement that took responsibility for some bad Iraq intelligence but that also called into question some of Wilson's assertions, the legal sources said.

The AP reported Thursday that Rove acknowledged to the grand jury that he talked about Plame with both Cooper and Novak before they published their stories but that he originally learned about the operative's identity from the news media, not government sources.

A concerted effort to take down an administration enemy. Very not good.

The AP reported Thursday that Rove acknowledged to the grand jury that he talked about Plame with both Cooper and Novak before they published their stories but that he originally learned about the operative's identity from the news media, not government sources.

Originally? But did he check up on it, and then did he continue to knowingly continue to out a CIA agent?

I'd like to know, wouldn't you?

Domokun and the kittens

2005-07-15T17:25:00.000-05:00

Kittens! Domo-kun demands Kittens!
What Domokun wants, Domokun gets...
Upside down kitten June
Sleepy kitten Bobbie
Kitten Cleo with a friend
And the kittens strike back!

Domokun Tiananmon image from Unixmonkey.net
Domokun and viking kittens from www.b3ta.com

GOP promoting Little Green Footballs

2005-07-15T15:13:00.000-05:00

ODub has this one. You may remember this from a post a few days ago where I linked to and reprinted an analysis on why RW blogs don't have comments. Here is some more on the Moldy Footballs,

Trumpeted in a press release, the Republican National Committee is quite proud of itself with the launch of its new website at GOP.com. Most notable is that the RNC has joined the blogosphere with the launch of the first official RNC weblog. On the RNC’s list of blogs it recommends reading are some of the usual suspects, including Patrick Ruffini, Powerline, Trey Jackson, Blogs for Bush, and others. But one site sticks out - Little Green Footballs (LGF), operated by Charles Johnson, is notorious for being a promoter of and haven for some of the most virulent anti-Muslim and anti-Islam hate speech on the web.

The RNC’s recommendation of the Little Green Footballs site - one of only fifteen selected - would seem to be in stark contrast to President Bush’s repeated proclamations that “Islam is peace”.

I wonder how hateful this blog could be. Was the other day's article a fluke? Read ODub's links to LGF, and how it refers to Arabs as "Oil Ticks," their love of Islamaphobia, and their encouragement of violence on Liberals...

Precedent is bad for Rove

2005-07-15T15:05:00.000-05:00

Via BuzzFlash, a Findlaw article on how previous cases may put Rove in a bind on the outing of Plame First, the precedent...

The Jonathan Randel Leak Prosecution Precedent

I am referring to the prosecution and conviction of Jonathan Randel. Randel was a Drug Enforcement Agency analyst, a PhD in history, working in the Atlanta office of the DEA. Randel was convinced that British Lord Michael Ashcroft (a major contributor to Britain's Conservative Party, as well as American conservative causes) was being ignored by DEA, and its investigation of money laundering. (Lord Ashcroft is based in South Florida and the off-shore tax haven of Belize.)

Randel leaked the fact that Lord Ashcroft's name was in the DEA files, and this fact soon surfaced in the London news media. Ashcroft sued, and learned the source of the information was Randel. Using his clout, soon Ashcroft had the U.S. Attorney in pursuit of Randel for his leak.

By late February 2002, the Department of Justice indicted Randel for his leaking of Lord Ashcroft's name. It was an eighteen count "kitchen sink" indictment; they threw everything they could think of at Randel. Most relevant for Karl Rove's situation, Court One of Randel's indictment alleged a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 641. This is a law that prohibits theft (or conversion for one's own use) of government records and information for non-governmental purposes. But its broad language covers leaks, and it has now been used to cover just such actions.

Randel, faced with a life sentence (actually, 500 years) if convicted on all counts, on the advice of his attorney, pleaded guilty to violating Section 641. On January 9, 2003, Randel was sentenced to a year in a federal prison, followed by three years probation. This sentence prompted the U.S. Attorney to boast that the conviction of Randel made a good example of how the Bush Administration would handle leakers.

Now the Rove link..

The Randel Precedent -- If Followed -- Bodes Ill For Rove

Karl Rove may be able to claim that he did not know he was leaking "classified information" about a "covert agent," but there can be no question he understood that what he was leaking was "sensitive information." The very fact that Matt Cooper called it "double super secret background" information suggests Rove knew of its sensitivity, if he did not know it was classified information (which by definition is sensitive).

United States District Court Judge Richard Story's statement to Jonathan Randel, at the time of sentencing, might have an unpleasant ring for Karl Rove. Judge Story told Randel that he surely must have appreciated the risks in leaking DEA information. "Anything that would affect the security of officers and of the operations of the agency would be of tremendous concern, I think, to any law-abiding citizen in this country," the judge observed. Judge Story concluded this leak of sensitive information was "a very serious crime."

"In my view," he explained, "it is a very serious offense because of the risk that comes with it, and part of that risk is because of the position" that Randel held in DEA. But the risk posed by the information Rove leaked is multiplied many times over; it occurred at a time when the nation was considering going to war over weapons of mass destruction. And Rove was risking the identity of, in attempting to discredit, a WMD proliferation expert, Valerie Plame Wilson.

Judge Story acknowledged that Randel's leak did not appear to put lives at risk, nor to jeopardize any DEA investigations. But he also pointed out that Randel "could not have completely and fully known that in the position that [he] held." Is not the same true of Rove? Rove had no idea what the specific consequences of giving a reporter the name of a CIA agent (about whom he says he knew nothing) would be--he only knew that he wanted to discredit her (incorrectly) for dispatching her husband to determine if the rumors about Niger uranium were true or false.

Given the nature of Valerie Plame Wilson's work, it is unlikely the public will ever know if Rove's leak caused damage, or even loss of life of one of her contracts abroad, because of Rove's actions. Dose anyone know the dangers and risks that she and her family may face because of this leak?

It was just such a risk that convinced Judge Story that "for any person with the agency to take it upon himself to leak information poses a tremendous risk; and that's what, to me, makes this a particularly serious offense." Cannot the same be said that Rove's leak? It dealt with matters related to national security; if the risk Randel was taking was a "tremendous" risk, surely Rove's leak was monumental.

While there are other potential violations of the law that may be involved with the Valerie Plame Wilson case, it would be speculation to consider them. But Karl Rove's leak to Matt Cooper is now an established fact. First, there is Matt Cooper's email record. And Cooper has now confirmed that he has told the grand jury he spoke with Rove. If Rove's leak fails to fall under the statute that was used to prosecute Randel, I do not understand why.

There are stories circulating that Rove may have been told of Valerie Plame's CIA activity by a journalist, such as Judith Miller, as recently suggested in Editor & Publisher. If so, that doesn't exonerate Rove. Rather, it could make for some interesting pairing under the federal conspiracy statute (which was the statute most commonly employed during Watergate).

I hope that Fitzgerald is thinking along the same lines...

Abnormality in Earth's orbit related to Rove/Novak spin

2005-07-15T14:26:00.000-05:00

My coworker/freeper was about to split his head with smiling. By now, you have certainly heard that an anonomous source has said that Rove talked to Novak, but it was Novak that told Rove that she was CIA.

So, an anonymous source says something that doesn't mesh with the rest of the data. Novak said that 2 sources in the Administration told him that Plame was CIA. The NYTimes piece says that Rove confirmed what Novak had heard. If this makes Rove the second source for Novak, it still doesn't excuse his outing Plame to another 5 journalists!

So here are highlights from the NYtimes...

Karl Rove, the White House senior adviser, spoke with the columnist Robert D. Novak as he was preparing an article in July 2003 that identified a C.I.A. officer who was undercover, someone who has been officially briefed on the matter said.

Mr. Rove has told investigators that he learned from the columnist the name of the C.I.A. officer, who was referred to by her maiden name, Valerie Plame, and the circumstances in which her husband, former Ambassador Joseph C. Wilson IV, traveled to Africa to investigate possible uranium sales to Iraq, the person said.

After hearing Mr. Novak's account, the person who has been briefed on the matter said, Mr. Rove told the columnist: "I heard that, too."

The previously undisclosed telephone conversation, which took place on July 8, 2003, was initiated by Mr. Novak, the person who has been briefed on the matter said.
...

The person who provided the information about Mr. Rove's conversation with Mr. Novak declined to be identified, citing requests by Mr. Fitzgerald that no one discuss the case. The person discussed the matter in the belief that Mr. Rove was truthful in saying that he had not disclosed Ms. Wilson's identity.

On Oct. 1, 2003, Mr. Novak wrote another column in which he described calling two officials who were his sources for the earlier column. The first source, whose identity has not been revealed, provided the outlines of the story and was described by Mr. Novak as "no partisan gunslinger." Mr. Novak wrote that when he called a second official for confirmation, the source said, "Oh, you know about it."

That second source was Mr. Rove, the person briefed on the matter said. Mr. Rove's account to investigators about what he told Mr. Novak was similar in its message although the White House adviser's recollection of the exact words was slightly different. Asked by investigators how he knew enough to leave Mr. Novak with the impression that his information was accurate, Mr. Rove said he had heard parts of the story from other journalists but had not heard Ms. Wilson's name.

Robert D. Luskin, Mr. Rove's lawyer, said Thursday, "Any pertinent information has been provided to the prosecutor." Mr. Luskin has previously said prosecutors have advised Mr. Rove that he is not a target in the case, which means he is not likely to be charged with a crime.

He may however be a subject of the investigation. Target and suspect are legal terms, and have very different meanings... A few days ago, Luskin said that Rove was not a subject...

The conversation between Mr. Novak and Mr. Rove seemed almost certain to intensify the question about whether one of Mr. Bush's closest political advisers played a role in what appeared to be an effort to undermine Mr. Wilson's credibility after he challenged the veracity of a key point in Mr. Bush's 2003 State of the Union speech, saying Saddam Hussein had sought nuclear fuel in Africa.
...

The disclosure of Mr. Rove's conversation with Mr. Novak raises a question the White House has never addressed: whether Mr. Rove ever discussed that conversation, or his exchange with Mr. Cooper, with the president. Mr. Bush has said several times that he wants all members of the White House staff to cooperate fully with Mr. Fitzgerald's investigation.

In June 2004, at Sea Island, Ga., soon after Mr. Cheney met with investigators in the case, Mr. Bush was asked at a news conference whether "you stand by your pledge to fire anyone found" to have leaked the agent's name.

"Yes," Mr. Bush said. "And that's up to the U.S. attorney to find the facts."
...
This is not the first time Mr. Rove has been linked to a leak reported by Mr. Novak. In 1992, Mr. Rove was fired from the Texas campaign to re-elect the first President Bush because of suspicions that he had leaked information to Mr. Novak about shortfalls in the Texas organization's fund-raising. Both Mr. Rove and Mr. Novak have denied that Mr. Rove had been the source.
...
Many aspects of Mr. Fitzgerald's investigation remain shrouded in secrecy. It is unclear who Mr. Novak's other source might be or how that source learned of Ms. Wilson's role as a C.I.A. official. By itself, the disclosure that Mr. Rove had spoken to a second journalist about Ms. Wilson may not necessarily have a bearing on his exposure to any criminal charge in the case.

and WaPo articles...

White House senior adviser Karl Rove indirectly confirmed the CIA affiliation of an administration critic's wife for Robert D. Novak the week before the columnist named her and revealed her position, a lawyer involved in the case said last night.

The operative, Valerie Plame, is the wife of Joseph C. Wilson IV, a former ambassador who had publicly disputed the White House's contention that Saddam Hussein had sought to buy uranium from Niger for possible use in a nuclear weapon.
...
I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, Vice President Cheney's chief of staff, has also testified before the grand jury, saying he was alerted by someone in the media to Plame's identity, according to a source familiar with his account. Cooper has previously testified that he brought up the subject of Plame with Libby and that Libby responded that he had heard about her from someone else in the media, according to sources knowledgeable about Cooper's testimony.

So both suspected sources for the leak are saying that they heard about it like everybody else, from that durn media. Riiiiiiight. That just doesn't make any sense with what we know.

Rove is listed as one of Cooper's sources. Rove is listed as one of Novak's sources. This sounds like a wonderful spinning ride. Blame it on the media. Blame it on the victim. Long standing and respected techniques used by the Right Wing.

So what does the Blogosphere say?

What don't they say.

AmericaBlog, Blah3 (calls it "Worst. Propaganda. Ever."), BooMan, Crooks and Liars, DKos, Hillary Now, TalkLeft, and Think Progress all say things along the line that this still means that Rove outed a source by confirming her ID, and does not excuse his contacts with other members of the press.

Does the RW spin make any sense? Not so much. Miller's info will end up being very important. Hopefully, she will give up her sources.

Just to point out a mistake with the AP article on this subject, via AmericaBlog,

But at the same time, Wilson acknowledged his wife was no longer in an undercover job at the time Novak's column first identified her. "My wife was not a clandestine officer the day that Bob Novak blew her identity," he said.

What does John of AmericaBlog say about this?

NO, AP, that's not what Wilson said - I watched the interview live. What he said was that the day Bob Novak outed his wife she ceased to be an undercover operative. Not that she wasn't an undercover operative on that day, but rather that she sure wasn't undercover anymore once Rove and Novak outed here. Big difference there.

How do you get something that simple, that wrong?

To make this complete, AmericaBlog also links to Radar about some more Novak info. Apparently Novak told all...

Did Robert Novak rat on New York Times reporter Judith Miller? While some have suggested Miller—who never wrote a word about CIA spook Valerie Plame—was dragged into the leak probe when her name turned up on a White House call log, several beltway insiders close to the investigation say special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald learned of Miller’s involvement from Novak himself.

If Novak's loose lips sink Rove, Novak had better enter the witness protection plan...