From Scout: OK I had this up the other day but pulled it as wasn’t sure if it may offend. But I posted it in comments at another blog and everyone loved it so what the hell And I’m headed for hell or Gitmo any way as Virgotex reminds me Continue reading Hellbound
From Scout: From the TimesOnline Britain and Iraq announced an accelerated timetable for the withdrawal of foreign troops from much of Iraq today during a surprise visit by Tony Blair to show his support for the country’s new government. Britain could return two southern provinces to Iraqi security control within in a few months. Nouri al-Maliki, Iraq’s new Prime Minister, said that he expected as many as 16 of the 18 provinces to be “Iraqi-ised” – under the control of Iraqi forces – by the end of this year. The timetable will increase pressure on the United States to set … Continue reading British Withdrawal
From Scout:
Michelle Malkin never misses an opportunity to spout her racist idiocy even when miserably ignorant as is the case with her post “The Definition of Insanity,” on the NOLA mayoral election, thus proving it is she who is forever Stuck on Stupid. The wing nut meme on Nagin’s re-election boils down to this….Blacks are Stoopid. This is the kind of “analysis” which comes from people with a racist bent anyway but who also do not pay attention until after the fact. Always a great combination for cementing oneself in Stuck on Stupid. Had the wingnuts the equivalent of one heart and one brain between them along with some intellectual curiosity pre-election they’d have known of the Adrastos-Oyster Theory.
There were rumblings being heard in NOLA several weeks before the election of whites planning to vote for Nagin as retribution against the Landrieu family for Moon Landrieu, father of Nagin’s opponent Mitch Landrieu, having desegregated City Hall back in a time when of all things the entire country was being desegregated. At the same time there were other rumblings, Republican ones, being noticed in the crescent city. A couple of NOLA bloggers paid attention to their surrounding Reality and dug into this. Through a process of discovery and reasoned analysis (antithesis to Stuck on Stupid) they were able to flesh out what became known in the NOLA blogosphere as the Adrastos-Oyster Theory.
Basically the theory is as follows.
(Click Read More)
From Holden: Pony Blow engaged in a bit of gaggling this morning aboard Air Force One en route to Chicago. Pony is all cagey and shit about pulling troops out of Iraq, but don’t be surprised if Bush and Blair announce a limited drawdown when they meet. Q What’s the purpose of the Blair-Bush meeting? MR. SNOW: Well, as you know, the Prime Minister has been in Iraq, so what I think what they’re going to be doing is talking about Iraq and the next steps forward. Q Does he want to pull troops out, or what’s the — he … Continue reading Today on Holden’s Obsession with the Gaggle
From Holden: Chimpy’s job approval rating fell to an all-time low of 32% in the latest American Research Group (ARG) poll. Overall, 32% of Americans say that they approve of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as president, 61% disapprove, and 7% are undecided. [snip] A total of 75% of Americans rate the national economy as bad, very bad, or terrible, up from 67% in April, while 59% say the national economy is getting worse and 60% say the national economy will be worse a year from now Here we go again with the list of current … Continue reading Bush Bounces Like Dead Cat
From Holden: The Tokyo stock market fell nearly 300 pts. today. What will the Dow do? Continue reading Keep An Eye on the Dow
From Holden: Jury selection begins today in the trial of former White House staffer David Sfavian. The U.S. government’s probe of influence peddling linked to lobbyist Jack Abramoff, based largely on a trail of e-mails, gets its first courtroom test this week in the case of former White House official David Safavian. [snip] Abramoff, 47, promises to figure prominently in the trial though he may not actually testify. U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman granted a request by prosecutors Peter Zeidenberg and Nathaniel Edmonds to permit hundreds of e-mails written or received by Abramoff to be admitted as evidence. [snip] Almost … Continue reading Hundreds of Emails
From Holden: DoD Press Release: The Department of Defense announced today the death of four soldiers who were supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom. They died on May 18 in Baghdad, Iraq, from injuries sustained on May 18, when an improvised explosive device detonated near their HMMWV during combat operations. Killed were: Lt. Col. Daniel E. Holland, 43, of San Antonio, Texas 1st. Lt. Robert A. Seidel III, 23, of Gettysburg, Pa. Sgt. Lonnie C. Allen Jr., 26, of Bellevue, Neb. Pfc. Nicholas R. Cournoyer, 25, of Gilmanton, N.H. Holland was assigned to the 352nd Civil Affairs Command, Fort Bragg, N.C. Question: … Continue reading Not A Important As A Horse With A Broken Ankle
From Holden: What a senseless waste. The number of U.S. Army soldiers who took their own lives increased last year to the highest total since 1993, despite a growing effort by the Army to detect problems and prevent suicides. In 2005, a total of 83 soldiers committed suicide, compared with 67 in 2004, and 60 in 2003 — the year U.S.-led forces invaded Iraq. The totals include regular Army soldiers and National Guard and Reserve members who were deployed on active duty. [snip] Of the confirmed suicides last year, 25 were soldiers deployed to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars — … Continue reading The Horror
From Holden: There’s a fortune to be made taking hostages in Iraq. A news report in London Monday says France, Germany and Italy have paid $45 million for the release of hostages kidnapped in Iraq. [snip] France is said to have paid $25 million for the release of three hostages — Georges Malbrunot in December 2004, and Florence Aubenas and Christian Chesnot in June 2005. “The Times” says Italy handed over $11 million to win freedom for three hostages — Simona Pari, Simona Toretta and Giuliana Sgrena — since 2004. Germany is reported to have paid $8 million to secure … Continue reading A Lucrative Business
From Holden: I can’t help but think that Irving Lewis “Scooter Libby and others will eventually be charged with the original crime of exposing the identity of a covert CIA agent. The classified status of the identity of former CIA officer Valerie Plame will be a key element in any trial of I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Vice President Cheney’s former chief of staff, according to special counsel Patrick J. Fitzgerald. Fitzgerald has said that at trial he plans to show that Libby knew Plame’s employment at the CIA was classified and that he lied to the grand jury when he … Continue reading Approaching the Heart of the Matter
From Scout: From the LA Times NEW ORLEANS — A wide range of design and construction defects in levees around New Orleans raise serious doubts that the system can withstand the pounding of another hurricane the size of Katrina, even after $3.1 billion in repairs are completed, a team of independent investigators led by UC Berkeley’s civil engineering school said Sunday. The findings undermine assurances by the Bush administration and the Army Corps of Engineers that the federal levee repair program due to be completed in June will provide a higher level of protection to New Orleans, which sustained 1,293 … Continue reading Congress has rotted the Corps….And Levees Still A Bad Apple
From Scout: While Bush and Rumsfeld will make no promise on troop withdrawal Condi Rice was on Fox News yesterday alluding to troop drawdown talks between Iraq and US forces. Yet on Friday CNN reported a call for reinforcements to Ramadi and Stars and Stripes reported Sunday that reinforcement troops from an Armored Division will be moving forward into Iraq from Kuwait First Rice on Sunday… Bush repeatedly has refused to give a timetable for troop withdrawal, saying Iraqis must first take over security for their country. U.S. military commanders will meet with the Iraqi government over the next few … Continue reading Condi….Take That 60% Out for a Fox Spin
We cruised past 3 million hits last week sometime, looks like. I really need to pay better attention to these things. Then again, I am the girl who forgets my own wedding anniversary. A. Continue reading Whoa
I’d ask if you were kidding me, but … According to this breaking AP story, Alberto Gonzales said on This Week that he believes the First Amendment right to a free press is not absolute, and that reporters should be prosecuted in certain cases. He also announced that the collection of phone records would continue against reporters’ calls. No, you know what? I’m asking anyway. ARE YOU KIDDING ME WITH THIS? Seriously? If this is some kind of sick joke, which truly would be the only way it wouldn’t offend the airwaves that carried it, I’ll never forgive whoever planned … Continue reading Free Freedom! Get Your Free Freedom Here!
The tutu was pink and green, is primarily what I remember about it, which was different from the pink one and also the blue and violet one, and when you’re seven and your parents and your teacher have convinced you you’re a wonderful ballerina, well, you’re not so much nervous about performing in front of your entire family as you are concerned with whether the tutu is different this year. Ballet class taught me stand up straight. It also taught me that rotund children like myself look very, very silly in tutus, much like toilet paper cozies toddling about on … Continue reading What The Body Remembers
From Scout: Nagin wins Nagin…………59,460…..52% Landrieu……..54,131…..48% Continue reading NOLA Mayoral Election Results
From Scout: Our friend Roadmaster from WORT radio will be interviewing legendary Jay Chevalier whose song “Come Back to Louisiana” was named the official state song for hurricane recovery by the LA Senate. You can listen tonight at this link. Roadmaster’s program is from 8-10pm Central time. He does a great show. Check it out. Continue reading Good Radio
Peter Beinart’s new book The Good Fight surprised me.
I got all the way to page 3 before I threw something.
I lasted until page 40 before I reached for the scotch bottle.
And it wasn’t until page 168 that I had to put the damn thing down out of fear that my head would well and truly explode.
Like I said, surprising. I wasn’t expecting to get past the jacket of a book by a guy who thinks the real problem with liberals is our tendency to attract dirty hippies to the cookout.
It’s too bad the majority of the book is the apotheosis of victim-blaming, because there’s good stuff in here about how liberals turned early Cold War politics to their advantage and how they co-opted would-be splinter factions instead of turning on one another.
Click “Read More” for the rest …
Somebody e-mailed me this. I don’t know why, but I couldn’t stop laughing. It’s safe for work, if very, very strange: Cat tank! I’m thinking we should make it into an icon on this site and use it for Bush speeches. A. Continue reading Friday Night Catblogging
From Scout: No it’s not about Karl. Sorry I have been asked to contribute at Talking Points Memo’s “After the Levees” blog. In fact I just put up my first post. This changes nothing in terms of my status here at First Draft. Wild ferrets, chinchillas or ponies couldn’t drag me away. I’ll just be contributing a few times each week over at After the Levees in addition to muckraking here. I want to thank Josh Marshall for hosting After the Levees and of course a big thanks to Boyd Blundell for inviting me to contribute. Continue reading OK Big Announcement
From Scout: Remember the incredible, righteous rant on Katrina Fatigue by Sports Illustrated columnist Peter King Just a taste…. Am I ticked off? Damn right I’m ticked off. If you’re breathing, you should be morally outraged. Katrina fatigue? Hah! More Katrina news! Give me more! Give it to me every day on the front page! Every day until Washington realizes there’s a disaster here every bit as urgent as anything happening in this world today — fighting terrorism, combating the nuclear threat in Iran. I’m not in any way a political animal, but all you have to be is an … Continue reading Hmmmm…..
From Holden:
Yikes! Another rookie mistake by Pony Blow in today’s gaggle as he says American’s are less-free today than they were before the Chimpster was elected by the Supreme Court!
Q Would you say that the American people is [sic] better off now after these five years in terms of less government interference in their own lives?
MR. SNOW: Am I saying that the American people are better in terms of less government interference in their own lives? The world is a much different place, perhaps you’ve noticed, than it was five years ago.
September 11, 2001 changed things and the United States has tried to respond in a vigorous way, not only to defend the liberties of the American people but to extend the boundaries of liberty around the world.
[snip]
So to ask a question comparing a world that maybe a lot of us would like to return to, one in which we did not at least perceive the threat of terror, to one today is to ask a loaded question, rather than one in which — you simply cannot draw a simplistic comparison between the two. But do I think — if you want to take a look at what’s going on with the economy right now, I think what you’re seeing is an expansion of prosperity that the American people like and enjoy. And I think the American people also generally want to make sure that we win this war on terror.
Q Admittedly, it is a loaded question — (laughter) — but, still, the next question, along the same line, is do you feel that the American model of democracy, in this country, is now more attractive to the outside world, less attractive, same attractive? How would you describe it?
MR. SNOW: What we have always said is that we’re not going to try to impose an American template on democracy around the world. What we are trying to do, perhaps you would realize it in your own country, you’re struggling with how to deal with democracy, and every nation has to do that.
Here in the United States, it took a while for us to nail down our form of government. What we are doing is trying to support in every way possible the march toward freedom and democracy. And we will assist it to the best of our ability.
Obsession continues, Read More…
Continue reading “Today on Holden’s Obsession with the Gaggle”
It burns us: Pseudonyms are famous for boosting creativity by freeing writers from constraints, whether self-imposed or external. I’m in favor of writers doing what they must to craft their best work and give it an audience. Anonymous blogging is a different animal. Those who post anonymously often do so to insult or to say things that they would be ashamed to say in person or under their own name. Anonymous blogging gives voice to human nature’s most embarrassing impulses. That’s why anonymous bloggers are mortified when they’re outed. So pseudonyms are fine. Except when they’re used to say mean … Continue reading The Stupid
The other day, in a futile attempt to amuse our hopelessly blas pets, we brought home a yard of fake fur from the local fabric store, cut it up, and scattered the pieces around the office where they spend most of their time. It hasn’t so much amused Stripe and Joe as it’s made them invisible. A. Continue reading Friday Ferretblogging: Camo Edition
From Holden: In Arizona, yesterday. It’s All About the Dune Buggy I think it helps to have the President out here, seeing the part of the area of the country that one time was overrun by people coming in here, that’s beginning to get settled down because of a strategy that’s being employed. And so I really want to thank you all for greeting me. Plus I liked riding in the dune buggy. Never Was Much Good With Math Last year, agents in the Yuma sector apprehended more than 70,000 illegal entrants. That’s up from 14 percent. He’s A Little … Continue reading Your President Speaks!
From Holden: Wayne Madsen (scroll down): According to a former Air Force officer who worked for the NSA, the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), and CIA, Hayden was officially reported in 2001 to two Air Force Inspectors General for having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate female officer. According to the former Air Force intelligence officer, the alleged affair, which the Uniform Code of Military Justice and Air Force regulations would deem as “conduct unbecoming an officer,” took place in 2001 at NSA’s signals intelligence directorate in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina while Hayden was on a visit to the center. Nothing … Continue reading The Senate Won’t Ask
From Holden: Is there anyone we haven’t pissed off yet? Mexico and four Central American nations condemned the U.S plan to build hundreds of miles of triple-layered fencing on its southern border, saying it would not stop illegal immigration. In a joint news conference in Mexico City late Thursday, the foreign ministers of Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Mexico said that building barriers was not the way to solve problems between neighboring nations. “The position of Mexico and the other countries is that walls will not make a difference in terms of the solution to the migration problem,” said … Continue reading Don’t Fence Me In Out
From Holden:
Dune buggy?
Good idea, considering the course you’ve set for this country.
Click “Read More” …
From Holden: A report destined to be ignored. My, how far we have fallen. A United Nations panel on torture called on the United States today to close the detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and expressed concern over reports of secret detention centers and of a practice of sending terror suspects to countries with poor human rights records. In the report, issued by the Committee on Torture in Geneva, the panel said that the United States should clearly ban interrogation techniques like “water boarding,” in which an inmate is held under water to create the fear of drowning; sexual … Continue reading Headed For The Round Filing Cabinet