i swear we're living on Bizarro world

Also from Think Progress :

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has announced its new interim director – and who better to lead an agency whose “key objective” is “restoring endangered and threatened species to a secure status in the wild” than Matthew Hogan, a former lobbyist for Safari Club International.

According to the Chicago Tribune, the “33-year-old Safari Club – which is structured as a network of non-profits, lobbying organizations and tax-exempt charities –finances an influential political operation that works to ease endangered species laws restricting the importing of exotic animals slain overseas.”

what the....?

Think Progress :

In January, Halliburton Products & Services Limited and Oriental Kish finalized a contract to develop two sectors of the South Pars oil and gas field in Iran.
A primary shareholder of Oriental Kish is none other than Sirous Nasseri, head of the Iranian delegation to the IAEA negotiating the future of Iran’s nuclear programs. Nasseri is also rumored to have been a close advisor and consultant to Halliburton. One of the owners of Oriental Kish is the family of Hashemi Rafsanjani, president of Iran from 1989-1997, whose “pre-revolutionary credentials earned him a place among the trusted advisers of Ayatollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic of
Iran.” It seems overly convenient that Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator is a business partner to Halliburton.

---
Wait a minute - isn't Iran one of the "Axis of Evil"? Aren't we threatening them with action if they don't curtail their nuclear program?
Talk about sending mixed messages!

the DeLay scandal sheet

From the DNC. Check it out.

Scarborough embarasses himself (again)

From Crooks and Liars :
Watch the vid - amazing! Catherine Crier is smart, articulate and is familiar with the subject matter. Not the kind of guest that Scarborough should be going up against! She spouts facts, he spouts nonsense. And, as she points out, as a lawyer, he should know that he is spouting nonsense! This, a day or so after getting his ass handed to him when trying to argue with a doctor that examined Schiavo!

DeLay threatens everyone!

Via Think Progress :

DeLay just released this statement:
Mrs. Schiavo's death is a moral poverty and a legal tragedy.

This loss happened because our legal system did not protect the people who need protection most, and that will change. The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior, but not today. Today we grieve, we pray, and we hope to God this fate never befalls another. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Schindlers and with Terri Schiavo's friends in this time of deep sorrow.

Make no mistake about it: Tom DeLay, our Majority Leader, is now threatening judges, doctors and Terri Schiavo's husband.

---
This man is crazy! When he he be put away?!
Obviously, this can interpreted as saying they will answer for this in another world, but there are certainly plenty of loons in this world that will respond to this incendiary rhetoric.
I suppose he also means that one day he will have to answer for "murdering" his own father? Maybe he's conveniently putting that behind him!
---
Follow up from Americablog :

Kennedy Asks DeLay to Renounce Violence

by Joe in DC - 4/1/2005 10:41:00 AM
Senator Kennedy called DeLay on his remarks about judges and asked him to
renounce violence, AP reports:
"I'm not sure what Mr. DeLay meant when he said 'the time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior,'" the Massachusetts Democrat said in a written statement. "But at a time when emotions are running high, Mr. DeLay needs to make clear that he is not advocating violence against anyone."

His spokesperson gave some convoluted response, but still waiting for DeLay himself to respond. DeLay's silence on violence speaks volumes.

Note to other Democrats in Congress: Don't let DeLay off the hook on this one. You should all be DEMANDING that DeLay renounce violence.

UPDATE: RawStory.com has a very strong letter from Senator Lautenberg to DeLay....says DeLay may have violated Federal Statutes prohibiting threats to Federal Judges.

gotta see this!

Best picture of the TS debacle yet!

nepotism at its finest

Bush Names Cheney Kin to Legal Post

President Bush has nominated the vice president's son-in-law, Philip J. Perry, as general counsel of the Homeland Security Department, where he would oversee 1,500 lawyers who work on legal matters like Coast Guard maritime laws and immigration.
---
If confirmed, Mr. Perry will not be the only member of Mr. Cheney's family working for the administration. Elizabeth Cheney, the vice president's daughter and Mr. Perry's wife, was appointed last month by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as the second-ranking United States diplomat for the Mideast.

A White House spokeswoman, Dana Perino, said Mr. Perry's nomination had nothing to do with his relationship to the vice president.

"The president," Ms. Perino said, "nominates individuals he believes are the best qualified for the job to serve the American people."

---
Yeah, i'm sure that these appointments had nothing to do with their relationships to the VP. Bush only hires the most qulified people! And i've got a bridge i'd like to sell you!
(First seen at Americablog)

wow, there are a lot of nutcases

Terri Schiavo's Death Met With Anger, Despair and Prayers by Supporters of Her Parents

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. -- Terri Schiavo's death was met with sadness, anger, despair _ and prayers _ by supporters of her parents, who had battled the severely brain-damaged woman's husband over the removal of her feeding tube.
---
"You saw a murder happening," said Dominique Hanks, who had ridden her motorized wheelchair around the hospice every day since the tube was removed.
"Everybody who denied her right to live are accomplices to murder, and God knows," Hanks said.
---
News of the death did not filter into the crowd until nearly an hour later, and protesters blowing ram's horns and saying the Rosary continued their vigil, not knowing that she already was dead.

Upon hearing the news, Patrick Bautch, of Milwaukee, disgustedly tossed away a sign that said "President Bush, Please Help Terri."

"He could have done something," Bautch said. "He was supposed to be for life and he neglected his role. ... The value of human life has just gone down the drain."

(Apparently, the fact that bush had no legal options does not matter to these people. But anything to turn people away from bush!)

A few feet away, a small group burst into hymns, singing the traditional song, "How Great Thou Art," as Richard Jacobson, of Corning, N.Y., accompanied them on a tarnished trumpet.
Jacobson, who has been playing religious and patriotic music outside the hospice for the past three days, said he didn't really believe that Terri was dead.

"I'm not believing the report of man," the bearded man said. "God will raise her from the dead, and all the world will see it."

(Whew! God will come down and perform a miracle for a brain dead woman who should have passed away 15 years ago?! Not for any of the misery that he has brought upon this world, but this one case will bring God's judgement? I guess she's more important than the 100,000 tsunami victims!)

After the announcement, Mike Stafford, of Hollywood, Fla., stood before police _who had arrested more than 50 people trying to bring water to Schiavo _ gave the Nazi salute and shouted "Heil Hitler."

"It's really sick what we've seen here," Stafford said.

---
Yeah, i would say that shouting "Heil Hitler" to police who were stopping idiots from bring water to a woman who could not drink it is pretty damn sick!
---

"It grieves my heart to know that God's heart is grieving. God's desire's never to have death happen unjustly," Bashta said.

---
I would think that if God thought that this death was "unjust", then he wouldn't have liquified her brain 15 years ago!
I honestly feel the worst for all of the other poor patients in this hospice whose lives these morons disrupted for 13 days. Inconsiderate fools!
Absolutely revolting....

can we try to help instead of hinder?

U.S.Drops Objection to International Criminal Court Trial of Sudanese War Criminals

WASHINGTON -- The United States is dropping its objections to use of the U.N.'s International Criminal Court to try Sudanese responsible for an ethnic cleansing campaign in the Darfur region that has killed tens of thousands of people and uprooted more than 2 million, administration officials said Wednesday night.

The administration had preferred that an African court try the case but agreed to a compromise during daylong discussions at the United Nations on Wednesday.

The United States has strongly opposed the ICC on grounds that American service members or civilians serving overseas could be subject to politically motivated or frivolous prosecutions.

In return for its concession, the United States received assurances that Americans deployed in Sudan, in whatever capacity, would not be subject to ICC prosecutions, the officials told The Associated Press. They asked not to be identified because the decision has not been officially announced.

The decision could raise hackles among conservatives for whom the ICC is an unaccountable body that cannot be trusted to the right thing. The 97 countries that have ratified the 1998 Rome Treaty establishing the court maintain that there are sufficient safeguards built into the process to prevent unwarranted prosecutions.

The administration agreed to a compromise after concluding that opposition to the U.S. stand was too strong, particularly among Europeans, who have been united in support of the ICC, which is based in The Hague, Netherlands, as the trial venue.

Concerned about a possible U.S. veto, France on Wednesday delayed a U.N. Security Council vote on a resolution to authorize an ICC prosecution.

After U.S. officials said the Bush administration was dropping its objections, France's U.N. Mission said it expects the council to vote on the resolution on Thursday, probably in the afternoon.

The western Sudanese region of Darfur has been the scene of perhaps the world's worst humanitarian crisis. The widespread death and destruction has been the result of a brutal counterinsurgency campaign led by government-support Arab militias against black African farmers. The conflict began in February 2003.

Last September, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said the perpetrators had engaged in genocide.

Tens of thousands of displaced Darfurians are confined to refugee camps, refusing to return to their villages for fear they would only be forced to flee once again.

The United States, as one possible option, has suggested that "a hybrid court" be impaneled by the United Nations and the African Union to try the Darfur perpetrators. It has said the ICC is already overextended, with existing commitments in Congo, Rwanda, Central African Republic and Ivory Coast.

But critics have said the ICC is ready to take on the Darfur prosecution, arguing that the tribunal proposed by the United States would take a year to get off the ground.

---
This is a country where unimaginable atrocities are being performed on it's people every day and we sit back and do nothing. Saddam was nothing compared to this and I'm sure that there would not have been many objections to our involvement in helping these people as opposed to occupying Iraq for no real reason. When will our country actually do the right thing?

another country pulling out

Viktor Yushchenko Confirms That Ukraine Soldiers Will Leave Iraq by End of Year

KIEV, Ukraine -- President Viktor Yushchenko confirmed Thursday that Ukraine's troops will leave Iraq by the end of the year.
"It will be by mid-October, but I don't exclude that this date can be changed a little. But for sure our troops will leave Iraq this year," Yushchenko said at a briefing for foreign journalists ahead of his trip to the United States that begins Sunday.

---
Are we going to be the only country with troops in Iraq? Of course, we were always the vast majority, but boy, that "coalition of the willing" seems to be a lot less willing these days....

more blame game

Presidential Commission Reports That Spy Agencies Were 'Dead Wrong' in Judgments About Iraqi WMDs

WASHINGTON -- In a scathing report, a presidential commission said Thursday that America's spy agencies were "dead wrong" in most of their judgments about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction before the war and that the United States knows "disturbingly little" about nuclear threats posed by many of its most dangerous adversaries.

---
Of course it is not bush's fault, or rice's, or powell's or any of the many,many,many people who we know lied to us - its the "spy agencies"! Always a scapegoat to be found.....

now we can get back to real news

Terri Schiavo, the Brain-Damaged Florida Woman, Dies 13 Days After Feeding Tube Removed

I admit that i got as caught up in this craziness as anyone else, but as Greg at The Talent Show pointed out, everything really got interesting when the repugs got involved even though the VAST majority of Americans thought that they should not. I know that the American public has an extremely short memory and this will all be swept under the rug and forgotten by most people, but it did show just how far away from the mainstream that the repugs have gone.

Their incredible hypocrisy showed, as well, when it was revealed that people like DeLay "murdered" his own father in the same manner than he was condemning Michael Schiavo for.

It is amazing that it took 15 years to comply with this woman's wishes. We can only hope that anyone else who finds themselves in this horrible situation does not have to go through the indignity that TS, her husband, and her family was put through.

If only the government - especially the repugs - would stay out of our private lives. Maybe now the public will know the extent that they want to control every aspect of our lives. Maybe it will finally start to sink in. We can only hope.

(PS South Park already had an episode about this situation last night!)

sick humor

But ya gotta laugh or else you'll cry
check it out

c'mon, no one is this stupid!

First seen at Daily Kos :

Snow Baffled by Resistance to Private Accounts

BOZEMAN, Mont. (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow said on Wednesday he was confused by resistance to the Bush administration's plans to overhaul the Social Security system, while protesters blasted the proposed private retirement accounts during his stop in Montana.

Snow, in remarks to the Chamber of Commerce in Bozeman, said he believed personal accounts for young workers would be cost-free for the existing Social Security system and would not affect benefits to retirees or near-retirees.

"For the life of me, I can't imagine why anybody would argue against young workers having the ability to invest and build a better retirement for their future," Snow said.
"Why wouldn't we do this? I have not heard one good reason not to and it's hard to figure out why anybody would oppose it," he said.

---
This is the US Treasury Secretary?! He can't be so stupid that he's spouting lies so outrageous that even bush won't say them (and that's saying a lot!)! "Cost-free"?!?! It is being conservatively stated that it will cost $1-2 TRILLION dollars?!?! Benefits cuts are guaranteed! Even bush says that private/personal accounts will do nothing to help the solvency problem! What kind of drugs is this man on?!

maybe our time is up?

I keep thinking that we've about used up our allotted time on this planet and its time to step aside for a more advanced species to take over! I think that we're a failed experiment. Let me live out my time, mind you, but this planet was around for a long time before we got here and it might want us gone so that it can stick around a while longer!

Two-thirds of world's resources 'used up'

The human race is living beyond its means. A report backed by 1,360 scientists from 95 countries - some of them world leaders in their fields - today warns that the almost two-thirds of the natural machinery that supports life on Earth is being degraded by human pressure.

The study contains what its authors call "a stark warning" for the entire world. The wetlands, forests, savannahs, estuaries, coastal fisheries and other habitats that recycle air, water and nutrients for all living creatures are being irretrievably damaged. In effect, one species is now a hazard to the other 10 million or so on the planet, and to itself.

"Human activity is putting such a strain on the natural functions of Earth that the ability of the planet's ecosystems to sustain future generations can no longer be taken for granted," it says.

The report, prepared in Washington under the supervision of a board chaired by Robert Watson, the British-born chief scientist at the World Bank and a former scientific adviser to the White House, will be launched today at the Royal Society in London. It warns that:

· Because of human demand for food, fresh water, timber, fibre and fuel, more land has been claimed for agriculture in the last 60 years than in the 18th and 19th centuries combined.

· An estimated 24% of the Earth's land surface is now cultivated.

· Water withdrawals from lakes and rivers has doubled in the last 40 years. Humans now use between 40% and 50% of all available freshwater running off the land.

· At least a quarter of all fish stocks are overharvested. In some areas, the catch is now less than a hundredth of that before industrial fishing.

· Since 1980, about 35% of mangroves have been lost, 20% of the world's coral reefs have been destroyed and another 20% badly degraded.

· Deforestation and other changes could increase the risks of malaria and cholera, and open the way for new and so far unknown disease to emerge.

not surprising

Children 'starving' in new Iraq

Increasing numbers of children in Iraq do not have enough food to eat and more than a quarter are chronically undernourished, a UN report says.
Malnutrition rates in children under five have almost doubled since the US-led intervention - to nearly 8% by the end of last year, it says.

---
But, dammit, they're "free"!

more on DeLay

Even the uber-conservative MSNBC is saying that he is going down! It will not surprise me in the least if he manages to escape, but at least people are looking at him. More than can be said for most of the scandal-ridden administration.

The disassembly of Tom DeLay
When a Majority Leader's state-of-the-art money and power machine falters

WASHINGTON - A new drama of survival has begun here – political, not physical; legal, not spiritual. The central character isn’t a woman in a hospital bed but a controversial Republican leader in the House of Representatives. Rep. Tom DeLay may not want to admit it to himself, but he’s fighting for his political life.

what world do these wack-jobs live in?

From Media Matters:

Nationally syndicated radio host Rush Limbaugh falsely claimed that the media have treated attacks on Michael Schiavo, husband of Terri Schiavo, as "off limits." In fact, the Los Angeles Times has noted that talk radio and The Wall Street Journal editorial page, among others, have "vilified" Schiavo.

---
Would even his listeners believe this whopper?! All i have heard is wild, unfounded speculation as to the evil motives of this man, who, by all appearances is an extremely dedicated husband who is only trying to fulfill his wife's wishes. Do his listeners forget everything they have seen and heard if it contradicts his words?
---
And, on a slighty different topic:

Roll Call executive editor Morton M. Kondracke attacked New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd by comparing her to Christian activist and anti-abortion extremist Randall Terry. Kondracke said that Dowd "is turning out to be the Randall Terry of the left." His comments, from the March 26 edition of Fox News' The Beltway Boys, follow previous attacks by Kondracke against liberal politicians.

---
It seems that you have to babble the most insane, outrageous, blatant nonsense to get on the air these days! Comparing a honored, true journalist to a homicidal lunatic is beyond the beyond!

more on that wacky "liberal media"

I think "circus" is too nice of a word for what is going on.
This is truly unbelievable - a clown chooses wild speculation over a qualified doctor who has examined the patient! What is going on in this world?! I am including the full transcript because it is so bizarre.
From Media Matters :

Neurologist Cranford confronted Scarborough, MSNBC daytime anchor:
"[Y]ou're asking me if a CAT scan was done? How could you possibly be so stupid?"

On the March 28 edition of MSNBC's Scarborough Country, host Joe Scarborough interviewed Dr. Ronald Cranford, one of the two neurologists selected by Michael Schiavo to examine Terri Schiavo pursuant to an October 2001 appellate court mandate. As part of that duty, Cranford "reviewed her medical records and personally conducted a neurological examination of Mrs. Schiavo," according to the June 2003 Florida appeals court review of that hearing.

Following is the transcript of the interview:
SCARBOROUGH: Now, the question on everybody's mind tonight is this: How is Terri Schiavo doing? You know, it's been 10 days. She is starting her 11th day now without food and water. Let's go back to Pinellas Park [Florida], where Lisa Daniels MSNBC daytime anchor] is standing by -- Lisa.

DANIELS: Well, Joe, at this point, we are going to delve into the medical aspect of the story. I want to bring in Dr. Ronald Cranford. He's a neurologist at Hennepin Medical Center in Minneapolis.
And, Doctor, before we continue, I want our viewers to understand what your role was in the legal case. I understand that Michael Schiavo and his team asked you to examine his wife. Is that correct?

CRANFORD: Yes. Yes, they did.

DANIELS: And from my understanding, I just want to be accurate, you examined Terri Schiavo for about 45 minutes. Is that right?

CRANFORD: I think 42 minutes, but 45 is fine, sure.

DANIELS: All right. Well, we want to be accurate here. What was your conclusion at the end of
--
[crosstalk]

CRANFORD: Wait a minute. You are not accurate on a lot of things here. You're saying a lot of -- she's not starving to death. Do you understand that? She is dehydrating to death.

DANIELS: Well, why do you say that? Tell us how you came to that conclusion?
[crosstalk]

CRANFORD: Can I tell you why? Because I have done this 25 to 50 times. I don't know how many times Joe has done it, but I've done it 25 to 50 times in similar situations. And they die within 10 to 14 days.
Nancy Cruzan did not die in six days [as guest Patrick Mahoney of the Christian Defense Coalition suggested earlier in the program]. She died in 11 days, 11.5 hours. And Terri Schiavo will die within 10 to 14 days. And they are dying of dehydration, not starvation. And that's just a lie. And Joe doesn't have any idea what he is talking about. And you don't have any idea what you're talking about.

DANIELS: Well --

CRANFORD: I have been at the bedside of these patients. I know what they die from. I've seen them die. And this is all bogus. It's all just a bunch of crap that you are saying. It's totally wrong.

DANIELS: Well, with all due respect, Doctor, it sounds like you think that you know what you are talking about, so let's ask you about that.

CRANFORD: Sure.

DANIELS: Are you 100 percent correct in your opinion that Terri Schiavo is in a persistent vegetative state? Do you agree with that?

CRANFORD: I am 105 percent sure she is in a vegetative state. And the autopsy will show severe irreversible brain damage to the higher centers, yes.

DANIELS: Why are you so sure, Doctor?

CRANFORD: Because I examined her. The court-appointed guardian examined her. Four neurologists at the hospital where she was has said she's carried a diagnosis of vegetative state for 12 years. Every neurologist that examined her, except for Dr. William] Hammesfahr [a neurologist selected by Terri Schiavo's parents], who is a charlatan, has said she is in vegetative state. That's what the court found. Just because you don't like --
[crosstalk]

DANIELS: Doctor, was a CAT scan -- Doctor, your critics would ask you, was a CAT scan used? Was an MRI taken? Were any of these tests taken?

CRANFORD: You don't know the answer to that? The CAT scan was done in 1996, 2002. We spent a lot of time in court showing the irreversible -- you don't have copies of those CAT scans? How can you say that?
The CAT scans are out there, distributed to other people. You have got to look at the facts. The CAT scan is out there. It shows severe atrophy of the brain. The autopsy is going to show severe atrophy of the brain. And you're asking me if a CAT scan was done? How could you possibly be so stupid?

SCARBOROUGH: Wait. Wait. Wait. Wait a second.
[crosstalk]
SCARBOROUGH: Hold on a second, if I can interrupt here.

CRANFORD: Go ahead. Joe, interrupt me.

SCARBOROUGH: Why don't you go ahead and tell the rest of the story there? Why don't you tell us that the radiologist that looked at the two CAT scans said she showed improvement in 2002 over 1996? You know, you seem so sure of yourself. The Associated Press reported yesterday --

CRANFORD: Joe, the judge didn't believe him.

SCARBOROUGH: Hold on a second. Hold on a second. You're so sure of yourself --respond to this. AP had a report yesterday. They said seven doctors have looked at her. Four said she was in persistent vegetative state. You were one of them, hired by
Michael Schiavo to do that. There were three others that looked at her that disagreed. How can you be so absolutely sure that everybody that agrees with you is 100 percent accurate and everybody on the other side is a charlatan?

CRANFORD: Joe, Judge -- Judge [George W.] Greer disallowed, didn't believe what [Dr. William] Maxfield [a doctor selected by Terri Schiavo's parents] said. You got your numbers wrong. There were eight neurologists saw her. Seven of the eight said she was in a vegetative state. Only one said she wasn't.

SCARBOROUGH: I am quoting an Associated Press report from yesterday.

CRANFORD: Joe, you've got to get your facts straight.

SCARBOROUGH: I have got my facts straight.

CRANFORD: Get your facts straight. You've got your facts way off.

SCARBOROUGH: Why don't we talk about -- hold on a second.

CRANFORD: Go ahead.

SCARBOROUGH: You talked about a 1996 scan.

CRANFORD: No, 2002, 2002.

SCARBOROUGH: Let's talk about it. A radiologist told the court that the 2002 scan actually showed improvement over the 1996 scan. Is that inaccurate? Did the AP report that wrong?

CRANFORD: Absolutely. Maxfield said it was improved. And Judge Greer didn't buy it because the others said it wasn't improved. It was probably worse than it was before.

SCARBOROUGH: Is he a charlatan also?

CRANFORD: Yes. Maxfield is an HBO [hyperbaric oxygen], vasodilator -- look it up, Joe. See what vasodilator does. See what hyperbaric oxygen, see in these cases, and you tell me they are not charlatans. Just because you don't agree with me -- I don't call everybody a charlatan. I'm not calling [Dr. Richard] Cheshire [who has argued that Terri Schiavo is not in a persistent vegetative state] a charlatan. I think he's a reputable neurologist. I think he examined her, he interviewed her. So, just because I disagree, I don't call them charlatans. But you have got your facts so far off that it's unbelievable, Joe. You don't have any idea what you are talking about. You've never been at the bedside of these patients. And this will come out in the next three to five years about this condition and starvation.

SCARBOROUGH: You were there 42 minutes, Doctor.

CRANFORD: Yes, I was.

SCARBOROUGH: You are only one doctor that's been there. And somehow, in your 42 minutes of observing her, you have all the answers and everybody that disagrees is dead wrong, I guess.

CRANFORD: No, that's just a -- you know what? You've gotta see what Judge Greer said. You've gotta see what the appeals court said. If you read that, Joe, you will understand why the judge decided the way he did.

SCARBOROUGH: All right.

CRANFORD: He didn't believe Hammesfahr. He didn't believe Maxfield. And it's not starvation. And Nancy Cruzan did not die in six days. She died in 11 days and 11.5 hours, 11 days and 11.5 hours.

SCARBOROUGH: All right.

CRANFORD: OK?

SCARBOROUGH: Thank you, Doctor.

CRANFORD: My pleasure.

SCARBOROUGH: You know what? This is the disappointing thing. You try to have a conversation. You try to talk about what is going on. And I found this as an attorney, too. I have been attorneys for plaintiffs. I have been attorneys for defendants. And what I always find out is, there are certain doctors -- I am not claiming that this doctor is a charlatan. I don't know his body of work. I am not claiming that he is a hired gun.
But too many doctors out there can be bought off by attorneys on either side. And then they come out, instead of telling you the facts, you get into debate like you are talking to an attorney. It is very, very disappointing.
I want to apologize to Lisa for interrupting her, but the thing is, Lisa was getting attacked because of what I said. I think that is unfair.

---
The final comments are outrageous! He waits until the doctor is off-mike and then makes wild, unsubstantiated claims! Why isn't every tv station just called "bush tv"?! Impressive that the doctor was able to make his point at all - surprising that he was able to talk sense, but not surprising that they try to discredit him after the fact.

loonies take on Schiavo

From Free Republic :

I think it may be too little too late. I saw an article that said her kidneys had shut down. Even if they reinsert the tube NOW and IF she lives through it...there is likey irreversible damage. Still, God CAN work miracles if He chooses to.

---
Ohmigawd! This person is worried about "irreversible" KIDNEY damage! Her brain is GONE! Who cares about her kidneys?!?!?! What planet are these people on?!?!
---

Let’s begin by getting a grip on reality. Ask any woman on the planet what she would do if she recovered from what had been diagnosed as a “persistent vegetative state” to find her husband standing at the foot of her bed with a woman and two children. “Who are they?” He then introduces her to his kids and their mother. As she launches a bed pan at his head, he says, “C’mon, honey, I still care about you. I didn’t even divorce you.” And when she learns that some nitwit judge, who knew about lover boy’s adultery, granted his request for an order to pull her feeding tube, she starts looking for a bigger bed pan.

---
Reality check! People do not "recover" from a "persistent vegetative state"!!! I can only imagine that TS would not be so heartless as to deny her husband a life for 15 years and would be thrilled to know that he fought so hard for her wishes.

hilarious in a revolting sort of way

Now the "right"-wingers are going after Alberto Gonzales and saying that he was not qualified for his position! Funny that they agree with us now!

more hypocricy (never-ending saga)

From Think Progress :

Speaking of politicians whose personal family decisions happen to conflict with their political demagoguing on health care issues, Josh Marshall brings our attention to Sen. Rick Santorum’s (R-PA) medical malpractice hypocrisy.

In 1996, Santorum testified on behalf of his wife Karen, who was seeking $500,000 in pain and suffering against Dr. David Dolberg of Virginia, because of pain from his 1996 chiropractic treatment of her.

Funny, that didn’t stop Santorum from supporting and voting for a bill in 2003 that would have capped awards for pain and suffering at $250,000.

---
Once again, its ok for them but not for the rest of us!

US involvement in UN scandal

From Think Progress :

The usual gang of conservative attack dogs are using today’s oil-for-food report (which, incidentally, clears Kofi Annan of any wrongdoing) to coordinate another round of feckless U.N.-bashing. Here are five facts you won’t be hearing from the talking heads:

1) The U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority, which took over responsibility for Iraqi oil revenues following the invasion, can no longer account for $8.8 billion of Iraqi oil money – twice the amount Saddam Hussein was thought to have gained from oil-for-food kickbacks.

2) Unlike the United Nations, which spearheaded an independent investigation of oil-for-food, the Bush administration has:

– Declined to take part in the whistle-blower case against Custer Battles, the firm accused of defrauding U.S. taxpayers of $50 million in Iraq reconstruction funds.

– Offered Halliburton early access to damning audits of its business practices in Iraq so it could scrub out the parts it didn’t like.

– Still failed to organize an overarching, independent investigation into detainee abuse scandals at U.S. prisons, nearly a year after the Abu Ghraib photos were released.

3) None of the money involved came from American taxpayers. Oil-for-food allowed the Iraqi government to sell Iraqi oil to pay for food, infrastructure, medicine and humanitarian goods. No U.S. money was involved.

4) The Bush administration dropped the ball on stopping the corruption (not once, but dozens of times). U.N. Ambassador John Negroponte “had the power to veto all sales of Iraqi oil and all Iraqi purchases of goods financed with oil-for-food revenues,” and failed to do so despite U.N. administrators identifying at least 70 cases for potential over-pricing of oil between 2001 and 2002.

5) A new Transparency International report released this month finds that Iraq is becoming “the biggest corruption scandal in history” under U.S. leadership.

this weeks Dem Underground list of Top Ten Conservative Idiots

From Democratic Underground

Most of the list is composed of the obvious idiots that have capitalized on the Schiavo horror. But this is great:

ACTIVIST JUDGES
Then:We are STRONGLY OPPOSED to activist judges!
Now:We demand activist judges.

THE CULTURE OF LIFE
Then:Let's nuke Iraq! Let's execute minors!Poor people don't deserve health care!Seniors can go to Canada if they need drugs!
Now:We must err on the side of life.(And kill anyone who disagrees.)

FRIVOLOUS LAWSUITS
Then:Damn lawyers are RUINING AMERICA!
Now:I understand that this case has beenheard twenty-two times already, but surelythey'll change their minds this time.

PLAYING POLITICS
Then:Shameless Democrats are always playing politics!
Now:"God has brought us Terri Schiavo.""The pro-life base will be excited.""This is a
great political issue."

THE SANCTITY OF MARRIAGE
Then:A marriage is between a MAN and a WOMAN andnothing should come between that!
Now:I don't think Terri's husband should makethis decision. Jeb Bush should do it for him.

THE RULE OF LAW
Then:Don't you Dummycrats know thatthis is a nation of LAWS?!
Now:Stupid laws.

STATES RIGHTS
Then:We should take the federal governmentand drown it in a bathtub!
Now:It warms my heart when the federal governmentintrudes upon a private family matter.

THE CONSTITUTION
Then:You stupid America-hatingLIEberals should go back to Russia!
Now:Damn, I've run out of toilet paper.Wait, this old rag should do the trick.

---
Their hypocricy knows no bounds!

more on bush's version of free speech (never-ending)

From Daily Kos :

This is incredible:

Very rarely does the everyday public get a glimpse of what happens behind the scenes in a normally-secret Bush Administration.

But Monday, March 28, the Secret Service called three everyday people into their offices to discuss why we were kicked out of a presidential event in Denver last week where Bush promoted his plan to privatize Social Security. What they revealed to us and our lawyer was fascinating.

There we were - three people who had personally picked up tickets from Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez's office and went to a presidential event. But as we entered, we were told that we had been "ID'ed" and were warned that any disruption would get us arrested.

After being seated in the audience we were forcibly removed before the President arrived, even though we had not been disruptive. We were shocked when told that this presidential event was a "private event" and were commanded to leave.

More astonishingly, when the Secret Service was contacted the next day they agreed to meet with us this Monday, March 28 to discuss the circumstances surrounding our removal. We had two big questions going into this meeting:
How is the Bush Administration "ID'ing" citizens before presidential events?

Why was an official taxpayer-funded event called a "private event" - leading to citizens being kicked out?

Most shocking of all, we got answers to both questions.

The Secret Service revealed that we were "ID'ed" when local Republican staffers saw a bumper sticker on the car we drove which said "No More Blood For Oil." Evidently, the free speech expressed on one bumper sticker is cause enough to eject three citizens from a presidential event. (Similarly, someone was ejected from Bush's Social Security privatization event in Arizona the same day simply for wearing a Democratic t-shirt.)

The Secret Service also revealed that ticket distribution and staffing of the Social Security event was run by the local Republican Party.

They wanted us to be clear that it was a Republican staffer - not the Secret Service - who kicked us out of the presidential event. But this revealed something else that should be startling to all Americans.

After allowing taxpayers to finance his privatization events (let's call them what they really are after all,) and after using the White House communications apparatus to set them up, Bush is privatizing the ticket distribution and security staffing at his events to the Republican Party. The losers are not just taxpayers, but anyone who values the First Amendment. Under the banner of a "private event" the Republican Party is excluding citizens from seeing their president because of the lone sin of expressing the wrong idea on a bumper sticker or t-shirt.

The question for Americans is - will we allow our freedom to be privatized?
Karen Bauer, Leslie Weise. Alexander Young Denver residents

I was emailed this account by the people involved, so it's straight from the horse's mouth. The AP did a story on this as well.

"They hadn't done anything wrong. They weren't dressed inappropriately, they didn't say anything inappropriate," Recht said. "They were kicked out of this avenue and not allowed to hear what the president had to say based solely on this political bumper sticker.

"The very essence of the First Amendment is that you can't be punished for the speech you make, the statements you make," Recht said.

So to emphasize -- the White House uses taxpayer dollars to finance these propaganda events. THEN, in order to keep out anyone who might be critical, they "outsource" ticketing and security. That way they can label the events "private" and kick out anyone they want in violation of the First Amendment.

Who in Congress will step up and call for an investigation?

conservatives do not care for the law

From Daily Kos :

This post is taken wholesale from a Sunday morning Armando post. I want to rerun it, since I consider it one of the most important posts on the site, perhaps ever. And since it ran on the weekend, it didn't get the exposure that a weekday post gets. I didn't bump Armando's original post since it already had several hundred comments. Better to have a clear slate.
So without furder ado...

Schiavo, Roe and Federalismby Armando
The Decembrist asks this question:

[T]his post from the American Constitution Society blog seemed worth noting:
If Roe Falls, Would the "Culture of Life" Trump Federalism Yet Again? by Sarah C. von der Lippe
Republicans acknowledged that the intervention was a departure from their usual support for states' rights. But they said their views about the sanctity life trumped their views about federalism. ("Congress Steps In on Schiavo Case, Lawmakers to Pass Bill to Resume Feeding, Allow Court Review", By Mike Allen and Manuel Roig-Franzia, Washington Post Staff Writers, Sunday, March 20, 2005; Page A01)

This piece of reporting highlights a terribly important bit of legal hypocrisy on the part of right-wing conservatives. Everytime they call for appointment of judges to the Supreme Court who will overrule or undermine Roe v. Wade, they assert that the matter should be left to the states. They assert that even if Roe v. Wade is overturned, it won't eliminate abortion in the states in which the duly elected state representatives do not take steps to outlaw the practice. But the Schiavo case reveals the true priorities of the right: they are happy to abandon the principles of federalism if the issue is related to questions of "life." . . .
The actions of conservatives in the context of the Terri Schiavo case should give us pause as Bush nominates new justices to the Supreme Court -- especially, given conservatives' admitted goal of denying women's constitutional right to privacy and reproductive choice.
Good question.

And the question answers itself. Of course federalism, or any other so-called "Conservative" principle, will be overthrown for political expedience. How could anyone doubt it? There is not a principle Republicans won't shred, an ethic they won't flout, an action they won't take - to serve the wishes of the Extreme Right Wing of this Extreme Republican Party.
The battle on judicial nominations is, to me, Sen. Harry Reid's most important upcoming fight.

capitalizing on death

List of Schiavo Donors Will Be Sold by Direct-Marketing Firm

The parents of Terri Schiavo have authorized a conservative direct-mailing firm to sell a list of their financial supporters, making it likely that thousands of strangers moved by her plight will receive a steady stream of solicitations from anti-abortion and conservative groups.

"These compassionate pro-lifers donated toward Bob Schindler's legal battle to keep Terri's estranged husband from removing the feeding tube from Terri," says a description of the list on the Web site of the firm, Response Unlimited, which is asking $150 a month for 6,000 names and $500 a month for 4,000 e-mail addresses of people who responded last month to an e-mail plea from Ms. Schiavo's father.

"These individuals are passionate about the way they value human life, adamantly oppose euthanasia and are pro-life in every sense of the word!"

Privacy experts said the sale of the list was legal and even predictable, if ghoulish.

"I think it's amusing," said Robert Gellman, a privacy and information policy consultant. "I think it's absolutely classic America. Everything is for sale in America, every type of personal information."

Executives of Response Unlimited declined to comment.

Gary McCullough, director of the Christian Communication Network and a spokesman for Ms. Schiavo's parents, confirmed that Mr. Schindler had agreed to let Response Unlimited rent out the list as part of a deal for the firm to send an e-mail solicitation raising money on the family's behalf.

The Schindlers have waged a lengthy legal battle against their son-in-law Michael Schiavo to prevent the removal of the feeding tube from their daughter, who doctors say is in a persistent vegetative state.

Mr. McCullough said he was present when Mr. Schindler agreed to the arrangement in a conversation with Phil Sheldon, the co-founder of a conservative online marketing organization, RightMarch.com, who acted as a broker for Response Unlimited.

"So the Schindlers do know the details," Mr. McCullough said on Monday. How much attention they paid to the matter is hard to assess, he added. "The Schindlers right now know that their daughter is starving to death, and if I ask about anything else, they say, 'I don't want to hear about it.' "

Direct mail and mass e-mailings are ubiquitous fund-raising tools of interest groups on the left as well as the right, and others in the direct-mail business defended the sale of lists like the roster of donors to the Schindlers as a useful way for potential donors to learn of causes that might appeal to them.

Pamela Hennessy, an unpaid spokeswoman for the Schindlers, said she was initially appalled when she learned of the list's existence.

"It is possibly the most distasteful thing I have ever seen," Ms. Hennessy said. "Everybody is making a buck off of her."

Ms. Hennessy, who operates the Schindlers' Web site, www.terrisfight.org, said the family had not released any of the names or e-mail addresses gathered there.

"Obviously these people are enterprising, and they are taking advantage of this very desperate father," she said.

On Sunday, as the Schindlers gave up on their legal battle and their daughter passed her 10th day without food, others continued to rally supporters and solicit money in an effort to restore the feeding tube.

"This time, we have a real chance to break through the 'roadblocks' that the enemies of life have been putting up in front of us," said a mass e-mailing from RightMarch.com, asking supporters to urge Gov. Jeb Bush to intervene somehow.

The message added: "We're asking you to give a donation to help with our activism efforts to save Terri's life. Battles cost money; resources cost money; media costs money; we could go on, but you get the picture."

Mr. Sheldon - whose father, the Rev. Lou Sheldon, founder of the Traditional Values Coalition, has also sent appeals urging support for Ms. Schiavo - apparently played a dual role as a partner in RightMarch.com, which is working with the anti-abortion activist Randall Terry, and as a broker for Response Unlimited. Mr. Sheldon did not respond to phone calls yesterday.

"I think it sounds a little unusual right now because of the situation where she is in the process of dying," said Richard Viguerie, another major conservative direct-mail operator. "If you came across this information six months or a year from now, I don't think you would give it too much thought."

---
Amazing! People are calling those of us who want to respect this poor woman's wishes "ghouls", but this is from the people working with her parents. This is past disgusting.....

more on Iraq

Iraq Parliament in Uproar Over Stalemate

BAGHDAD -- Iraq's parliament erupted in acrimony at only its second sitting on Tuesday and journalists were thrown out after lawmakers berated leaders for failing to agree on a new government, two months after historic elections.

When parliamentarians were told that despite last-minute talks that delayed the session no agreement had been reached, even on the post of parliamentary speaker, several stood up to say leading politicians were letting down the Iraqi people.

"The Iraqi people who defied the security threats and voted -- what shall we tell them? What is the reason for this delay?" Hussein al-Sadr, a politician in the bloc led by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, asked the assembly before the news blackout.

As the meeting grew heated, the interim speaker ordered journalists to leave and Iraqi television abruptly switched to Arab music. Allawi walked out of the session shortly afterwards.

"You can say we are in a crisis," Barham Salih, a leading Kurdish politician, told reporters.

Ahead of the meeting blasts echoed across Baghdad and a militant group said in an Internet statement it had fired four mortars into the fortified Green Zone where politicians were meeting. There were no reports of damage.

Two months after more than 8 million Iraqis braved suicide bombers and insurgent threats to vote in the Jan. 30 polls, many are increasingly angry that despite haggling no agreement has been reached on forming a government.

"It is a farce," said 30-year-old taxi driver Mohammed Ahmed Ali. "If they couldn't form a government till now, how will they lead a country?"

STALEMATE
The mainly Shi'ite alliance, which holds just over half the seats, and the Kurdish coalition that came second in the polls have been arguing for weeks on a cabinet line-up.

They have been trying also to involve Sunni Arabs, who dominated Iraq under Saddam Hussein but have been left with little representation because most voters in Sunni Arab areas stayed away from the polls.

But no deal has been reached, and several government officials say the delay has stalled key projects, deepened chaos and hampered efforts to defeat the Sunni insurgency. Political uncertainty also dents Washington's plans to increasingly hand over security to Iraqi forces and cut back foreign troops.

The Shi'ite bloc accuses Allawi of contributing to the delay in forming of government. Shi'ites and Kurds also say Sunni Arabs need to speed up the nomination of a speaker.

MPs said they would meet again on Sunday to try to agree a speaker.

The Shi'ite alliance and the Kurdish coalition have agreed that the speaker should be a Sunni Arab, to give the Sunni minority more involvement in politics.

Most of the 17 Sunni Arabs in the 275-member parliament favor Adnan al-Janabi as their candidate, but he is an ally of Allawi, a secular Shi'ite who has so far declined to join the government, saying his bloc will move into opposition.

The Shi'ite alliance is backing Fawaz al-Jarba -- a Sunni who joined their bloc. But other Sunnis are against this as he is seen as too close to the Shi'ite alliance.

Mishan al-Jibouri, a Sunni Arab politican, said if Jarba was pushed through as speaker -- which the Shi'ites could do with their majority -- Sunni Arabs would walk out of parliament, leaving attempts to draw them into politics in tatters.

LONG ROAD AHEAD
Once a speaker is agreed, the National Assembly's next task will be to elect a president and two vice presidents. A two- thirds majority is needed for that, which will mean the Shi'ites and Kurds must reach a deal to muster enough votes.

The presidential triumvirate will then have two weeks to choose a prime minister, who will then appoint a cabinet.

"It could take up another two weeks to name a cabinet after the presidential council names a prime minister," said Jawad al-Maliki, a Shi'ite politician.

The Shi'ites and Kurds have broad agreement that Shi'ite Ibrahim Jaafari will be the next prime minister with Kurdish politician Jalal Talabani taking the president's post.

But officials have not agreed on the distribution of cabinet posts. The Kurds are expected to retain the Foreign Ministry, with the Defense Ministry going to a Sunni Arab. But the key Oil Ministry is a source of disagreement -- the Kurds covet it, but the Shi'ite alliance insists it should get the ministry.

"The Kurds will have enough key posts. We insist on retaining the Oil Ministry," Maliki said.

As politicians focused on horse-trading, insurgents pressed on with their campaign of violence.

Three Romanian journalists -- Marie Jeanne Ion and Sorin Miscoci of Prima TV and Ovidiu Ohanesian of Romania Libera newspaper -- were kidnapped in Iraq on Monday, officials said.

In Kirkuk, a car bomb exploded near an Iraqi army patrol and the convoy of a local official, killing one person and wounding 15. In Basra, the head of the South Oil company survived an assassination attempt, police said.

Insurgents posted video footage on the Internet showing them shooting dead three Arab drivers who said they worked for a Jordanian firm that transports goods to U.S. forces.

Iraq not quite a democracy yet

From Yahoo News :

President Bush, on a day of political turmoil in Baghdad, acknowledged Tuesday that Iraqis are divided over the future of their country but said the differences "will be resolved through debate and persuasion instead of force and intimidation."

"The free people of Iraq are now doing what Saddam Hussein never could: making Iraq a positive example for the entire Middle East," Bush said in remarks in the Rose Garden. He spoke to an audience of Iraqi law students, members of the religious community and others.

In Baghdad, the fledgling parliament failed to agree on who would be its speaker in a chaotic session that exposed deep divides among the National Assembly's Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish members who were elected Jan. 30.

Bush called Tuesday's session "another step on the road to a free society" and said the United States looks forward to working with the government that emerges. "Iraq's new leaders are determined that the government of a free Iraq will be representative of their country's diverse population," Bush said

The president said the National Assembly "includes people and parties with differing visions for the future of their country. In a democratic Iraq these differences will be resolved through debate and persuasion instead of force and intimidation."

As of Monday, 1,527 members of the U.S. military have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. Bush said Iraqi security forces were taking on greater responsibility in the fight against insurgents and terrorists.

He said 145,000 Iraqis "have been trained and are serving courageously across Iraq" and in recent weeks had taken the lead in offensive operations in places like Baghdad, Mosul and Samarra.

"We will continue to train Iraqis so they can take responsibility for the security of their country," Bush said. "And then our forces will come home with the honor they've earned.

Michael Moore vindicated (again)

From Oliver Willis :

Documents show FBI helped Saudis depart after 9/11 attacks: New York Times

The FBI played an active role in arranging chartered flights for dozens of well-connected Saudi nationals -- including relatives of Osama bin Laden -- after the 9/11 terror attacks.
The New York Times reported that the documents show Federal Bureau of Investigation agents gave personal airport escorts to two prominent Saudi families who fled the United States, while several other Saudis were allowed to leave the country without first being interviewed, citing newly-released US government records.
The Saudi families, in Los Angeles and Orlando, had requested the FBI escorts out of concern for their personal safety in the wake of the attacks.

And, From Daily Kos :

Ummm, so much for this being a crazy Michael Moore-driven conspiracy theory.

The FBI played an active role in arranging chartered flights for dozens of well-connected Saudi nationals -- including relatives of Osama bin Laden -- after the 9/11 terror attacks.

The New York Times reported that the documents show Federal Bureau of investigation agents gave personal airport escorts to two prominent Saudi families who fled the United States, while several other Saudis were allowed to leave the country without first being interviewed, citing newly-released US government records.

The Saudi families, in Los Angeles and Orlando, had requested the FBI escorts out of concern for their personal safety in the wake of the attacks.

Oh, and the flights DID take off BEFORE the nation's commercial fleet was allowed to resume flying.

remember Nicola Calipari?

From Body & Soul :

For the past week, the American press has taken on the task of reminding us daily of the importance of every human life. In that spirit, I'd like to return to one loss of life they've apparently forgotten about, even though the reasons for that loss of life remain murky.

I'm thinking of Nicola Calipari, the Italian intelligence agent who American soldiers shot and killed early this month as he was transporting an Italian kidnap victim to safety. The soldiers were apparently providing security for John Negroponte.

Yesterday, Commondreams posted an update to the story, based primarily on an interview with Naomi Klein, who recently met with Giuliana Sgrena, the journalist who Calipari was bringing to the airport at the time he was killed, and who was also severely injured.

There are three new pieces of information that are quite disturbing, and which really call into question the American version of what caused Nicola Calipari's death.

First, according to Klein, the car was not traveling, as previously suggested, on "the most dangerous road in Iraq," where ambushes are common, but on a secured road that runs from the Green Zone to the airport. They had already passed through the heavy fortification of the Green Zone.

If that's true, it demolishes the story of edgy soldiers acting in what they thought was self-defense. Right now, as far as I know, there's nothing to back it up but Giuliana Sgrena's word. But certainly the question ought to be asked. It's difficult to believe that no one can determine exactly where the car was when it was fired upon.

Second, the US military command is blocking Italian authorities from inspecting the car. This is especially important because of the third new piece of information.

According to Giuliana Sgrena, the car was fired upon from the rear. The soldiers were not firing on a car that was coming toward them, threatening them, but one that was getting away.

Reading that, I went back to look at photos of the car, which, you probably remember, showed very little damage. But if you look at the photos published by La Repubblica, the first ones we saw, they only show front and left side views -- pretty suspicious, I'd say, given Sgrena's allegation. If the car was fired upon from the rear, the front and side views don't tell us much.
---
I'm not certain I know what happened, but I'm certain that there are questions that need to be asked, and answers that need to be demanded.

When does our press start showing some interest in how and why Nicola Calipari died?

---
See the article for photos. More atrocities that are being covered up....

bush's "successes"

From Bob Harris :

59 former U.S. diplomats from the last six administrations -- Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush the Slightly Saner, and Clinton -- have signed an open letter condemning the nomination of John Bolton, a man who is on record condemning the United Nations, as America's new UN ambassador.

We can add this to previous, similar open letters from:
49 U.S. generals and admirals, criticizing Bush's emphasis on missile defense

650 foreign affairs experts, insisting Bush's Iraq war will only create more terrorism

60 top scientists, including 20 Nobel laureates, tired of Bush's constant distortion of science

169 leading economists, explaining why Bush's economic policies cannot work long-term

36 leading pediatricians, condemning the Bush record on child care

300 groups including people from 56 countries, criticizing Bush's stance on UN HIV-control policy

9 major human rights groups, condemning Bush's record on torture

10 former CIA staffers, demanding a full Congressional investigation of the Plame leak

and so on. Over and over, people with direct knowledge and experience are appalled whenever Bush touches their world.

I remain convinced that no one on Earth can possibly be this consistently, nonsensically incompetent regarding virtually every issue by accident.

This isn't a government. It's Dada performance art.

major posting problems

LOTS going on, but either blogger or my computer won't let me complete my posts....gonna keep trying.....

conservatives hate democracy

From Atrios :

The owner of the flagship conservative daily newspaper says it's time to end American democracy.
Some day I'll understand how some idiot on the left that no one's ever heard of can be turned into a national symbol when he says something stupid, and the billionaire owner of the premier propaganda outlet of the right is completely ignored.

bush just doesn't care

From American Progress :

SILENCE ON RED LAKE KILLINGS:

On Monday, 16-year-old Jeff Weise opened fire at his high school on the Red Lake Indian Reservation in northern Minnesota, gunning down an unarmed security guard, a teacher and five fellow students before killing himself. What was President Bush's reaction to this, the second-deadliest school shooting in America's history?

Silence.

For nearly a week, neither President Bush nor Education Secretary Margaret Spellings uttered a single word about the tragedy. Finally, almost a week later, the president noted the killings during his Saturday radio address. Clyde Bellecourt, a Chippewa Indian who is the national director of the American Indian Movement in Red Lake, said Bush's response came too late. "He should have been the first one to reach out to the Red Lake Indian community," he said. Instead, he was one of the last.

INACTION ON RED LAKE KILLINGS:

President Bush's response stands in stark contrast to President Clinton's reaction – both rhetorically and substantively – to the Columbine massacre. Clinton "spoke to reporters on the night of the shootings," proposed specific initiatives to curb school violence during his radio address four days later, and within weeks had "summoned a broad array of interests to a White House summit on the shooting." President Bush, on the other hand, has fought to cut all funding for the $180 million program "Clinton launched after Columbine to help districts place more police officers in schools," and tried to eliminate "a $437-million program that provides grants to states to fund school antiviolence and antidrug programs."

Did the Red Lake killings create a change of heart for conservatives in Washington? It doesn't appear so. House Judiciary Committee hearings urged by progressives the day after the shootings have seemingly gone nowhere, while President Bush's address on Sunday contained a single vague sentence on preventing further acts like Red Lake: "To keep our children safe and protected, we must continue to foster a culture that affirms life and provides love, and helps our young people build character."

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Again, bush just proves how class-less and uncaring he is....

funny, yet truthful

18 THINGS WE LEARNED FROM THIS CASE

1) Jeb Bush, George W. Bush, and Tom Delay are all world renowned neurologists.

2) 22 successive court battles that all ended in exactly the same way means there is something wrong with the courts, not the Schindler's case.

3) Mike is after money which is why he turned down 1 million dollars and 10 million dollars to sign over guardianship.

4) Congress and the State Legislature of Florida has nothing better to do than pry into the private medical affairs of others.

5) Pulling life support is bad in Florida when authorized by the legal next-of-kin, but pulling life support is good in Texas when you run out of money and the mother pleads not to pull the plug on her baby.

6) Medical diagnoses are best performed by watching highly editted videotape made by Randall Terry rather than in person by trained physicians.

7) Minimum wage making nursing assistants are more qualified to diagnose a persistant vegetative state than experienced neurologists.

8) Cerebral spinal fluid is a magical potion that can mimic the entire functions of a missing cerebral cortex.

9) 15 years in the same persistant state is not really enough time to make an accurate diagnosis.

10) A feeding tube that infuses yellow nutritional goop is not really "life support".

11) Jesus was wrong when he said that a man and woman should leave their parents and cleave only to each other.

12) Marriage is the most sacred of all unions, except when it isn't.

13) Interfering in a family's private tragedy is a great reason to cut short a vacation, but getting a memo that warns a known terrorist is determine to strike inside the US is cause to relax and finish up some R&R.

14) Pro-lifers are really compassionate people which is why they are hoping that Michael Schiavo dies a horrible painful death.

15) The Supreme Court of the United States and the State Supreme Court of Florida mean "Maybe" when they are saying "No!".

16) Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is a bleeding heart liberal.

17) 7 Supreme Court Justices were appointed by republican presidents, so it's Clinton's fault.

18) A judge who makes rulings based on the law is obviously an atheist, liberal, democratic activist even though he is a conservative, republican, Southern Baptist.

still more of bush's "democracy" in action

‘Threatening’ T-shirt barred from TCC

A University of Arizona student says he was told he was a potential threat and was barred from President Bush's forum yesterday at the TCC because of the T-shirt he was wearing.
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The UA Young Democrats T-shirt that Gerner wore is white and has the party's logo on the back. Gerner said he did not plan to cause trouble.
---
A staff member asked to see his shirt before crumpling up Gerner's ticket and walking away. He returned to say the Young Democrat's name had been added to the list of those not allowed into the convention hall, Gerner said.
Gerner said he offered to take the T-shirt off and wear only the long-sleeved blue shirt he had on underneath, but event staff still would not admit him.

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Talk about cowardly! A t-shirt is "threatening"! F'king absurd!

"culture of life" my ass!

From Crooks and Liars :

CNN's Anderson Cooper is reporting that the FBI has arrested a North Carolina man who is offering money over the Internet for the murder of Michael Schiavo and the state judge in the case. Richard Allen Mewist (ph) of Fairview, North Carolina, allegedly offered $250,000 for the killing of Michael Schiavo and $50,000 for the death of circuit court Judge George Greer who ordered Schiavo's feeding tube removed and who continues to rule on the case...
I guess they can call that the culture of death.

DeLay compares himself to Christ!

Easter Reflections on Tom Delay

He's revolting (as is his absurd comparison), but this article is funny!

they lie because the truth is the enemy!

Privatizers Getting Desperate

On Thursday, privatization-pushers released a deceptive “research briefing” with excerpts from news stories on recent Social Security town-hall meetings. The article snippets give the impression that President Bush’s privatization plan enjoys nationwide backing; indeed, the document’s bold, italicized headline reads, “More Americans Support Call To Strengthen Social Security.”
Just one problem – several of the individuals quoted in the press release explain in the excerpted articles that they actually oppose privatization:
The pull-quote:
Clif Smith, A Retiree From Joplin: “I Believe [Social Security] Needs Improved [Sic].”The full quote:
“I believe it needs improved,” said Clif Smith, a retiree from Joplin, at the AARP gathering. “But nothing of the nature of what is being talked about in
Washington.”
Smith said he opposes private accounts because he thinks they would drain money from the trust fund, but he said the fund itself should own stock.
+++
The pull-quote: “[Kimberly] Holloway Sees Advantages In Personal Accounts In That It Would Encourage More Savings And Financial Responsibility …”
The full quote:
Holloway sees advantages in personal accounts in that it would encourage more savings and financial responsibility, she said.
But she’s wary that this proposal feeds into the Bush administration’s trend to encourage self-centered thinking away from considering the welfare of the general society, she said.
“We all should care because you don’t know what (misfortune) will happen,” Holloway said.
“Don’t fiddle with the social safety net.”
+++
The pull-quote: Scott Savelkol, Recent Graduate From Dickinson State University: “Doing Nothing Is Not An Option.”
The full quote:
Scott Savelkol, who recently graduated from Dickinson State University, said he also opposes to private accounts [sic].
He would prefer lawmakers lift a $90,000 cap on wages taxed for Social Security.
“Doing nothing is not an option,” Savelkol said.

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Is it genetically impossible for these people to tell the truth EVER?!

are these people intentionally ironic?

Teaching Darwin splits Pennsylvania town

"Evolution is just a theory and there are other theories," Mummert explained, smiling through his beard.
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"We've been attacked by the intelligent, educated segment of the culture," he said

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Yep, damn those intelligent, educated people trying to teach science in science classes!

we killed prisoners? who cares!

Pentagon Will Not Try 17 G.I.'s Implicated in Prisoners' Deaths

Despite recommendations by Army investigators, commanders have decided not to prosecute 17 American soldiers implicated in the deaths of three prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2003 and 2004, according to a new accounting released Friday by the Army.

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Oh, but look! Terri Schiavo isn't dead yet!!! This is our "culture of life"!

Terri Schiavo's father AND Tom DeLay have "murdered" before!

Terri Schiavo's father pulled the plug on his own mother?

But, given the vehemence with which he has been fighting to prolong Terri's life, it is a little surprising to learn that Robert decided to turn off the life-support system for his mother. She was 79 at the time, and had been ill with pneumonia for a week, when her kidneys gave out. "I can remember like yesterday the doctors said she had a good life. I asked, 'If you put her on a ventilator does she have a chance of surviving, of coming out of this thing?'" Robert says. "I was very angry with God because I didn't want to make those decisions."

DeLay Had Own Tough Quality-Of-Life Choice

LOS ANGELES - House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, who has helped lead a congressional effort to keep Terri Schiavo alive, joined members of his own family nearly 17 years ago in allowing doctors not to take extraordinary measures to extend his father's life, a newspaper reported Sunday.

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Can you say “hypocrites” anyone? It sounds like these cases were not even as extreme as TS’s case! Her brain has liquefied! It cannot grow back! She is not there! Yet it is “murder” to obey her wishes and let her go.
Crazy and disgusting….

democracy on the march!

Iraqi Interior Minister Discourages Demonstrations

Move Follows Sunday's Shooting of Protesters
BAGHDAD, Iraq (March 28) - Iraq's interior minister warned citizens Monday not to hold protests, saying the gatherings were an invitation for a large-scale terrorist attack. His comments came a day after government bodyguards opened fire on a group of employees demanding higher wages, killing one person.
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Violence continued Monday, with gunmen opening fire on a car carrying Abdul Karim Fahad Abbass as he headed to work in Baghdad's sprawling southeastern Doura quarter, killing the neighborhood station chief and his driver, Capt. Falah al-Muhimadawi said.
Across the Tigris River that bisects Baghdad, a roadside bomb exploded near a police patrol in the Hay Al-Amil area, killing one policeman and wounding five others, Capt. Thalib Thamir said.
In Musayyib, 40 miles south of Baghdad, a suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up near a police patrol that was protecting a holy shrine. Two policemen and three civilians were killed, police and hospital officials said. At least five other people were injured.
In the northern city of Mosul, two Iraqi army soldiers were injured when attackers opened fire on their car, Dr. Bahaa al-Deen al-Bakry said. The two were dressed in civilian clothes at the time of the attack, he said.
A university professor, Waad Mohammed Hussein, was also fatally shot as he was driving from home to work in the Zanjely neighborhood, said al-Bakry said.

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This is the kind of freedom and democracy that bush is so proud of? Squashing dissent, government firing on civilians, violence everywhere, no real government in place, lack of basic services everywhere.....Yep, those elections in January sure changed things, didn't they?!

one of the most bizarre headlines ever

Bush's New Public Face: Confident and 'Impishly Fun'

"Impishly fun"?!?!?!?! Are we talking about the same person? The one who has murdered 100,000+ Iraqi civilians? 1500+ American soldiers (and countless wounded)? Who wants to destroy Social Security? Who hates gays? Who wants to butt into people's private lives and politicize them? Who wants to destroy our environment? Who has created huge deficits? Who has been horrible for our economy? Who controls all media and only allows fake news to get to the public?
THAT bush?!?!?!?!!?

revolting......

white house covers up more truth

Cheney takes actual questions from real people (as opposed to bush's scripted-from-start-to-finish "town hall" meetings) and learns to regret it! First Draft reports.
Some people are starting to wake up and realize that this administration is out to screw them. Let's hope this trend continues! Maybe there is hope for us yet!

the Radical Religious "Right" promotes armed anarchy

The Right Advocates Armed Insurrection

The radical religious right and the far-right militias have finally merged, and their vessel is the Republican party.
William J. Bennett & Brian T. Kennedy
The "auxiliary precautions" of Florida government — in this case the Florida supreme court — have failed Terri Schiavo.
It is time, therefore, for Governor Bush to execute the law and protect her rights, and, in turn, he should take responsibility for his actions. Using the state police powers, Governor Bush can order the feeding tube reinserted.
On the Al Rantel show on 790 KABC in L.A., Ann Coulter said Bush should send in an "armed force".
Pat Buchanan said Bush should send in "federal marshals".
These people are at war.
With America.

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American Insurrection,Continued

Fox's gay-bashing John Gibson:
Just to burnish my reputation as a bomb thrower, I think Jeb Bush should give serious thought to storming the Bastille.
By that I mean he should think about telling his cops to go over to Terri Schiavo's hospice, go inside, put her on a gurney and load her into an ambulance. They could take her to a hospital, revive her, and reattach her feeding tube.
Seven years ago it was all about the "rule of law". Now they're advocating vigiliantism. I guess the militia wing really has taken over the GOP.

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Armed Insurrection, Part 3

This is getting scary. If I were Judge Greer or Michael Schiavo, I would hire protection ASAP -- if they haven't already.
Man Trys Steal Gun to 'Rescue Schiavo'
A man was arrested after trying to steal a weapon from a gun shop so he could "take some action and rescue Terri Schiavo," authorities said.
Michael W. Mitchell, of Rockford, Ill., entered Randall's Firearms Inc. in Seminole just before 6 p.m. Thursday with a box cutter and tried to steal a gun, said Marianne Pasha, a spokeswoman for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
Mitchell, 50, told deputies he wanted to "take some action and rescue Terri Schiavo" after he visited the Pinellas Park hospice where she lives, Pasha said.
This is what happens when the President makes the demands of radicals gain legitimacy.

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Armed Insurrection, Part 4

The Republicans have taken their dispute with the judiciary too far. Not only seeing fit to undermine them, they've now emboldened radicals who see violence as a way out. This is trouble, folks.
"Priests for Life"
"The Terri Schiavo case has demonstrated that we are being governed by un-elected judges, and that the legislative and executive branches of government lack the will to stand up to them when they authorize acts of violence. The matter, therefore, now rests with the people. When government fails to protect life, the people must do so directly. Today must mark the beginning of a new era of civil disobedience and conscientious objection, with simultaneous, determined efforts to curb the authority of the courts and restore government to the people through their elected representatives."

Social Security Administration does not agree with bush administration

From NY Times :

WASHINGTON, March 24 - As President Bush and his allies travel the country to promote his Social Security plan, they say individual investment accounts are a no-brainer, bound to result in more money at retirement than workers could expect from Social Security.

But someone at the Social Security Administration did not get the word.

In a Q. and A. on the agency's Web site meant to explain the retirement program, there is this exchange, which has apparently been there for years:

"Question: I think I could do better if you let me invest the Social Security I pay into an individual retirement plan (I.R.A.) or some other investment plan. What do you think?"
"Answer: Maybe you could, but then again, maybe your investments wouldn't work out. Remember these facts:

¶Your Social Security taxes pay for potential disability and survivors benefits as
well as for retirement benefits.

¶Social Security incorporates social goals - such as giving more protection to families and to low-income workers - that are not part of private pension plans; and

¶Social Security benefits are adjusted yearly for increases in the cost of living - a feature not present in many private plans."

In the middle of the page at www.ssa.gov., toward the top, are "Questions about."

From the drop-down menu, viewers can choose "Taxes and Social Security" and go to Question 18.

After he was shown the passage on Thursday, a White House spokesman, Trent Duffy, said: "The president is not talking about this approach.

The president's approach is a voluntary account financed by a portion of a person's payroll taxes, and that account would have appropriate safeguards to guard against risks in the market."

Does he expect the Web site to be changed? "That's up to the Social Security Administration," Mr. Duffy said.

In the agency's press office, Mark Hinkle, said, "By and large, we have an informational Web site, not a political Web site."

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When will bush stop this charade? NO ONE wants his changes, especially since they will not fix any real problems that exist. freakin' ridiculous....

ohio hates gays, loves domestic violence!

From Americablog :

It's Official: OH Gay Marriage Amendment not just about Gays by Joe in DC - 3/24/2005 04:34:00 PM

Well Ohioans, you've been hoodwinked. You thought you were stopping gays from etting married last November when you voted for that amendment. Apparently, you ere all too damn lazy to read the language or listen to the debate. Bottom line: it ffects more than gays according to an Ohio Court.

According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, a judge struck down part of the state's omestic violence law today based on the "gay marriage" amendment:

Ohio voters who approved a constitutional amendment last fall that denied legal ecognition of unmarried and gay couples probably didn't envision the measure being uccessfully used as a defense in domestic violence cases.

But that became a reality Wednesday when Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge tuart Friedman ruled that the amendment, approved by voters as Issue 1, made prt of the state's domestic violence law unconstitutional.

Friedman said that because Ohio's domestic violence law recognizes the relationship between an unmarried offender and victim as one "approximating the significance or effect of marriage," it represents a direct conflict with the amendment's prohibition against such recognition and is thus unenforceable.

It's a matter of time before other Ohio laws are challenged based on this amendment.

The ironic thing here is that gays didn't really lose anything under the amendment. See, gays can't get married anyway. It's those straight Ohioans who voted against their own interests....again. Who knew they'd be supporting domestic violence? Who knows if they also voted to end divorce? We'll see.

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Just goes to show what happens when you let bigotry guide you. It will only get worse and worse until people start to see some reason (which isn't likely under this administration!).

not at all surprising

From Army Times :

U.S. bars Italians from examining victim’s car

The U.S. military command in Iraq has blocked two Italian policemen from examining the car in which an Italian intelligence agent was shot to death in Baghdad, a newspaper said Wednesday.

Corriere della Sera said that the policemen were about to leave when the Italian Embassy in Baghdad received an order from the U.S. command on Monday to abort the mission for security concerns.

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Couldn't possibly be worried about what they might find, could they?

more "Jeff Gannon" lies

From Daily Kos :

Fake name. Fake reporter. Fake news agency. And now this ...
Fake Marine.
First, we went to the Military Personnel Records of the National Personnel Records Center at St. Louis, Missouri, the supposed repository of all military records. No record showed, but the official letter hemmed and hawed and scraped its military-booted feet so much, kinda sorta explaining that they're often ... well ... ummm ... screwed up ... and that we should check directly with the United States Marine Corps at Quantico. You know, just to ... ummm ... make sure.

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This truly should be one of the biggest political scandals of all time - it is possibly so far reaching - and yet it is virtually ignored! If only there was a real "investigative reporter" in a single newsroom in this country. Damn that "liberal media"!