Saturday, July 10, 2004
Moving
I'll be at my computer sporadically over the weekend. The renovations to our house are complete and I'll be spending the weekend getting everything ready for our move on Monday. We've been in a three BR apartment since before Christmas 2003, it will be great to get our house back. The above picture is from January, after they gutted the existing structure. I'll post the finished product later this weekend.
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I'll be at my computer sporadically over the weekend. The renovations to our house are complete and I'll be spending the weekend getting everything ready for our move on Monday. We've been in a three BR apartment since before Christmas 2003, it will be great to get our house back. The above picture is from January, after they gutted the existing structure. I'll post the finished product later this weekend.
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Friday, July 09, 2004
Holy Crap
From today's presser on the Intelligence Committee findings:
Most alarmingly, after 1998 and the exit of the U.N. inspectors, the CIA had no human intelligence sources inside Iraq who were collecting against the WMD target.
Who cares if they don't implicate the Bush Administration. At the very least our government should have challenged a portion of the intelligence. Particularly, if they had the piece of information detailed above.
This failure occurred on Bush's watch and he should be held 100% accountable.
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From today's presser on the Intelligence Committee findings:
Most alarmingly, after 1998 and the exit of the U.N. inspectors, the CIA had no human intelligence sources inside Iraq who were collecting against the WMD target.
Who cares if they don't implicate the Bush Administration. At the very least our government should have challenged a portion of the intelligence. Particularly, if they had the piece of information detailed above.
This failure occurred on Bush's watch and he should be held 100% accountable.
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Original Idea from Greg Palast
Criminals and their associates have to give up their cash, cars & luxury items when they are busted.
What should happen to the piles of dirty cash Ken Lay gave to George Bush & the GOP?
They should have to give the money back.
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Criminals and their associates have to give up their cash, cars & luxury items when they are busted.
What should happen to the piles of dirty cash Ken Lay gave to George Bush & the GOP?
They should have to give the money back.
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Bush Military Payroll Records "Inadvertently" Destroyed
Apparently there was a problem converting old microfiche and President's Payroll records were destroyed.
In an amazing coincidence, the records in question cover a period of three months in 1972 & 1973 when Bush claims to have been serving in Alabama.
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Apparently there was a problem converting old microfiche and President's Payroll records were destroyed.
In an amazing coincidence, the records in question cover a period of three months in 1972 & 1973 when Bush claims to have been serving in Alabama.
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Intelligence Report Due Today
The focus will be on the actual intelligence gathering, and how the information drove us to war. Not surprisingly, there will be little focus on the interpretation of the intelligence by our trusted government or if the CIA was coerced into coming up with conclusions that matched administration conclusions.
Some Democrat members of the committee will write "alternative briefs" as addenda to the report. I bet that's where we'll find some truth.
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The focus will be on the actual intelligence gathering, and how the information drove us to war. Not surprisingly, there will be little focus on the interpretation of the intelligence by our trusted government or if the CIA was coerced into coming up with conclusions that matched administration conclusions.
Some Democrat members of the committee will write "alternative briefs" as addenda to the report. I bet that's where we'll find some truth.
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Thursday, July 08, 2004
Criminal Indictments Possible for Cheney
Link
Vice President Dick Cheney faces criminal indictments for illegal activities while CEO of energy giant Halliburton and also illegally intervened to secure a $7 billion no-bid contract for his former employer after his election to office, an analysis by the White House counsel’s office concludes.
The Vice President is currently under investigation by French authorities for bribery, money laundering and misuse of corporate assets while at Halliburton and also faces a U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission probe of a $180 million "slush fund" that may have been used to pay bribes.
Although the White House Counsel analysis is not available to the public because of the secrecy of “attorney-client privilege,” it has generated speculation among senior White House aides who suggest the Vice President should step down as President George W. Bush’s running mate for the November Presidential elections. Such talk has increased in GOP circles lately with former New York Senator Alfonse D'Amato Wednesday calling on Bush to dump Cheney.
Those who have read the analysis say it presents a “devastating” case against the Vice President and concludes Cheney has violated both the “spirit and intent” of federal laws on conflict of interest.
Even worse, Cheney faces indictment by a French court on charges of bribery, money laundering and misuse of corporate assets because of fraud associated with the construction of a $6 billion petrochemical plant built by Halliburton in Nigeria in partnership with Technip, one of France’s largest petrochemical engineering companies.
Sure it's Capitol Hill Blue, but they're the same paper that said Bush was unstable. And we sure can't argue with that.
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Link
Vice President Dick Cheney faces criminal indictments for illegal activities while CEO of energy giant Halliburton and also illegally intervened to secure a $7 billion no-bid contract for his former employer after his election to office, an analysis by the White House counsel’s office concludes.
The Vice President is currently under investigation by French authorities for bribery, money laundering and misuse of corporate assets while at Halliburton and also faces a U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission probe of a $180 million "slush fund" that may have been used to pay bribes.
Although the White House Counsel analysis is not available to the public because of the secrecy of “attorney-client privilege,” it has generated speculation among senior White House aides who suggest the Vice President should step down as President George W. Bush’s running mate for the November Presidential elections. Such talk has increased in GOP circles lately with former New York Senator Alfonse D'Amato Wednesday calling on Bush to dump Cheney.
Those who have read the analysis say it presents a “devastating” case against the Vice President and concludes Cheney has violated both the “spirit and intent” of federal laws on conflict of interest.
Even worse, Cheney faces indictment by a French court on charges of bribery, money laundering and misuse of corporate assets because of fraud associated with the construction of a $6 billion petrochemical plant built by Halliburton in Nigeria in partnership with Technip, one of France’s largest petrochemical engineering companies.
Sure it's Capitol Hill Blue, but they're the same paper that said Bush was unstable. And we sure can't argue with that.
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Waxman on Congressional Oversight
A neat little commentary in Tuesday's WaPo written by CA Democratic Congressman Henry Waxman, comparing Congressional oversight during the Clinton and Bush years.
The article's essence:
Compare the following: Republicans in the House took more than 140 hours of testimony to investigate whether the Clinton White House misused its holiday card database but less than five hours of testimony regarding how the Bush administration treated Iraqi detainees.
Sounds about right.
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A neat little commentary in Tuesday's WaPo written by CA Democratic Congressman Henry Waxman, comparing Congressional oversight during the Clinton and Bush years.
The article's essence:
Compare the following: Republicans in the House took more than 140 hours of testimony to investigate whether the Clinton White House misused its holiday card database but less than five hours of testimony regarding how the Bush administration treated Iraqi detainees.
Sounds about right.
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Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Down With Heinz (The Ketchup and The Wife)
Ladies & Gentlemen, I offer you a right leaning condiment with no premise of partisanship:
W Ketchup*
*May contain animal parts.
UPDATE: Changed asterisk to something less distasteful.
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Ladies & Gentlemen, I offer you a right leaning condiment with no premise of partisanship:
W Ketchup*
*May contain animal parts.
UPDATE: Changed asterisk to something less distasteful.
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Children Imprisoned at Abu Ghraib?
This post at Sadly, No! gives some details. Story related from German media outlets.
...One that knows something about this is Sergeant Samuel Provance, from the US Military. He spent half a year stationed at Abu Ghraib. Today, 5 months later, we meet him in Heidelberg. His superiors have strictly forbidden him to speak to journalists about what he experienced in Abu Ghraib. But Provance wants to talk about it nevertheless. His conscience troubles him. He discusses a 16-year old he handled:
"He was very afraid, very alone. He had the thinnest arms I had ever seen.
His whole body trembled. His wrists were so thin we couldn't put handcuffs on him. As I saw him for the first time and led him to the interrogation, I felt sorry. The interrogation specialists threw water over him and put him into a car, drove him around through the extremely cold night. Afterwards, they covered him with mud and showed him to his imprisoned father, on whom they'd tried other interrogation methods.
They hadn't been able to get him to speak, though. The interrogation specialists told me that after the father saw his son in this condition, his heart was broken, he started crying, and he promised to tell them anything they wanted." --Samuel Provance
I hope Sy Hersh gets hold of this story and makes Samuel Provance a hero for bringing this story to the fore.
Check out Sebastien's post an be sure to read the comments as well. It turns out this isn't a "new" revelation for our media.
*sigh*
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This post at Sadly, No! gives some details. Story related from German media outlets.
...One that knows something about this is Sergeant Samuel Provance, from the US Military. He spent half a year stationed at Abu Ghraib. Today, 5 months later, we meet him in Heidelberg. His superiors have strictly forbidden him to speak to journalists about what he experienced in Abu Ghraib. But Provance wants to talk about it nevertheless. His conscience troubles him. He discusses a 16-year old he handled:
"He was very afraid, very alone. He had the thinnest arms I had ever seen.
His whole body trembled. His wrists were so thin we couldn't put handcuffs on him. As I saw him for the first time and led him to the interrogation, I felt sorry. The interrogation specialists threw water over him and put him into a car, drove him around through the extremely cold night. Afterwards, they covered him with mud and showed him to his imprisoned father, on whom they'd tried other interrogation methods.
They hadn't been able to get him to speak, though. The interrogation specialists told me that after the father saw his son in this condition, his heart was broken, he started crying, and he promised to tell them anything they wanted." --Samuel Provance
I hope Sy Hersh gets hold of this story and makes Samuel Provance a hero for bringing this story to the fore.
Check out Sebastien's post an be sure to read the comments as well. It turns out this isn't a "new" revelation for our media.
*sigh*
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Dionne on Edwards
Fantastic column today by E.J. Dionne in the WaPo on why Edwards is The Best Choice.
Key grafs:
...The key to Edwards's twin appeal -- to upscale voters and to those trying to climb the ladder or helping their kids do it -- was explained many years ago by the great American sociologist Seymour Martin Lipset. Lipset argued that the two core American values were "equality" and "achievement." Americans want a level playing field and don't like people who put on airs. But they also admire strivers. Edwards can give his "two Americas" and "dad in the mill" speech as someone who used the education system to rise up and get rich. That's the American story.
Ah, but he got rich as one of those "trial lawyers," Republicans were quick to say. This fight over trial lawyers will be one of the campaign's great sideshows. The Republicans failed with the anti-lawyer gambit against Edwards when he was first elected to the Senate in 1998. Here's a bet that when trial lawyers are paired up against corporations that abuse their power, Edwards's profession will have a fighting chance.
(...)
Oh, yes, and one more point on that experience thing: "When it comes time to make the decision to send our young men and women into harm's way, that decision should be made by a leader who knows that such decisions have profound consequences. There comes a time when our nation's leader can no longer rely on briefing books and talking points." That was McCain in 1999. He was talking about the man who became our current president. You wonder which side will be most eager to cite that quotation.
Go read.
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Fantastic column today by E.J. Dionne in the WaPo on why Edwards is The Best Choice.
Key grafs:
...The key to Edwards's twin appeal -- to upscale voters and to those trying to climb the ladder or helping their kids do it -- was explained many years ago by the great American sociologist Seymour Martin Lipset. Lipset argued that the two core American values were "equality" and "achievement." Americans want a level playing field and don't like people who put on airs. But they also admire strivers. Edwards can give his "two Americas" and "dad in the mill" speech as someone who used the education system to rise up and get rich. That's the American story.
Ah, but he got rich as one of those "trial lawyers," Republicans were quick to say. This fight over trial lawyers will be one of the campaign's great sideshows. The Republicans failed with the anti-lawyer gambit against Edwards when he was first elected to the Senate in 1998. Here's a bet that when trial lawyers are paired up against corporations that abuse their power, Edwards's profession will have a fighting chance.
(...)
Oh, yes, and one more point on that experience thing: "When it comes time to make the decision to send our young men and women into harm's way, that decision should be made by a leader who knows that such decisions have profound consequences. There comes a time when our nation's leader can no longer rely on briefing books and talking points." That was McCain in 1999. He was talking about the man who became our current president. You wonder which side will be most eager to cite that quotation.
Go read.
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Tuesday, July 06, 2004
Gagne Save Streak Ends at 84
Anyone that can save 84 games in a row is impressive. The fact that he did it for the Dodgers, well... Eric Gagne is a pretty good pitcher.
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Anyone that can save 84 games in a row is impressive. The fact that he did it for the Dodgers, well... Eric Gagne is a pretty good pitcher.
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Kerry Picks Edwards
I look forward to Edwards' debates with Cheney.
The NY Post got it wrong here saying Gephardt was the Dem VP choice.
UPDATE: Someone over at the DailyKos save us the trouble:
The New York Post - Contains News Related Program Activity
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I look forward to Edwards' debates with Cheney.
The NY Post got it wrong here saying Gephardt was the Dem VP choice.
UPDATE: Someone over at the DailyKos save us the trouble:
The New York Post - Contains News Related Program Activity
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Monday, July 05, 2004
16,000 Wounded or Injured in Iraq
Recently confirmed by the Pentagon. These are American troop totals.
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Recently confirmed by the Pentagon. These are American troop totals.
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The Fightins'
The Phillies moved three games clear at the top of the NL East tonight with a 6-5 win over the Mets. Burrell still swinging a hot bat and Thome is showing signs of snapping out of his slump.
I'll feel better when we get through a series with the Florida Marlins. They're struggling right now, but when they play the Phillies they look like the 1927 Yankees. (With worse haircuts.)
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The Phillies moved three games clear at the top of the NL East tonight with a 6-5 win over the Mets. Burrell still swinging a hot bat and Thome is showing signs of snapping out of his slump.
I'll feel better when we get through a series with the Florida Marlins. They're struggling right now, but when they play the Phillies they look like the 1927 Yankees. (With worse haircuts.)
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Hunting of the President
Our good friend Keith over at Berry's World has a synposis of an amusing scene from the film on the sliming of, then President Clinton, The Hunting of the President based on the book by Gene Lyons & Joe Conason.
GOP hypocrites activate! Form of the "moral high ground."
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Our good friend Keith over at Berry's World has a synposis of an amusing scene from the film on the sliming of, then President Clinton, The Hunting of the President based on the book by Gene Lyons & Joe Conason.
GOP hypocrites activate! Form of the "moral high ground."
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QOTD
For my wife, the day after Independence Day:
"A new day falls from the sky
Lands right on my head
Why do I punish myself so systematically?
Tremulously peeling back the curtains
Spring flowers crackle into life
Go away! All of you
Or at least be a bit quieter
Now then, where's my left sock?"
Ezo, from madphilosophers.com
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For my wife, the day after Independence Day:
"A new day falls from the sky
Lands right on my head
Why do I punish myself so systematically?
Tremulously peeling back the curtains
Spring flowers crackle into life
Go away! All of you
Or at least be a bit quieter
Now then, where's my left sock?"
Ezo, from madphilosophers.com
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Sunday, July 04, 2004
QOTD
"I have the consolation of having added nothing to my private fortune during my public service, and of retiring with hands clean as they are empty."
Thomas Jefferson
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"I have the consolation of having added nothing to my private fortune during my public service, and of retiring with hands clean as they are empty."
Thomas Jefferson
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