world o'crap indeed!

Two Things to Think About
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as usual, its good stuff!

good analysis from Daily Kos

The GOP agenda

In November 2004, the GOP retained the White House and increased its majorities in the US House and Senate. This is what they've done with their mandate.

U.S. House
Change ethics rules so DeLay can be as corrupt as he wants.

Destroy Social Security

Pass MBNA's bankruptcy elimination bill.

Meddle in the Schiavo family's private business

Prevent life-saving stem-cell research

U.S. Senate

Destroy Social Security

Pass MBNA's bankruptcy elimination bill.

Meddle in the Schiavo family's private business

Violate Senate rules to destroy historical protections for minority rights

Prevent life-saving stem-cell research

President Bush

Destroy Social Security

Pass MBNA's bankruptcy elimination bill

Destroy Social Security

Terri Schiavo

Destroy Social Security

Destroy separation of powers doctrine -- get involved in Senate fight over filibuster

Prevent life-saving stem-cell research

Notice that the Iraq quagmire is nowhere on that agenda.

Let's hope they keep it up. This agenda is a one-way ticket back to minority status for the Republican Party.

all i can continue to say is "wow"

The Orwellian Press Room
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this just gets more surreal every day!

no other administration would even think of these things!

Nor would they need them!

You Can't Make This Stuff Up ...

via Jabbs The press turnout for a May 23 Q&A with President Bush and Afghan President Hamid Karzai was poor, but administration imagemakers came up with a novel response. They backed the room with interns posing as reporters.

"That way it wouldn't look bad for the cameras," a White House insider told John McCaslin for his "Inside the Beltway" column in the May 24 Washington Times. "A member of the press corps we spoke to yesterday equated reporters at such staged White House functions with 'props,'" McCaslin wrote. One reporter told McCaslin: "Since we can't ask questions, why schlep over there?" ...read on

Funny thing is how much this resembles the Oscar Award show seat fillers. They hire groups of people to run around and fill any empty seat during commercial breaks when the cameras go back on. I guess republicans do like Hollywood after all.

i don't know how much perpetual disgust i can take!

Cheney Offended by Amnesty Int'l Report

WASHINGTON - Vice President Dick Cheney says he's offended by a human rights group's report criticizing conditions at the prison camp for terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay.

The report Amnesty International released last week said prisoners at the U.S. Navy base in Cuba had been mistreated and called for the prison to be shut down. Cheney derided the London-based group in an interview set to be broadcast Monday night on CNN's "Larry King Live."

"Frankly, I was offended by it," Cheney said in the videotaped interview. "For Amnesty International to suggest that somehow the United States is a violator of human rights, I frankly just don't take them seriously."

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He's OFFENDED by this?!?!?! fucking hell - this man is a disgusting excuse for a human being! He's not offended by the abuse, but by the reports on the abuse?!?!?! If there was any justice in this world at all, bush, cheney and this whole f'king corrupt administration should be sent to Gitmo and see how they like the treatment!
i am so ashamed of what they have done to this country....

unreal! still MORE on what bush calls "absurd"

Kidnapped Governor in Iraq Found Dead

BAGHDAD, Iraq - The kidnapped governor of volatile Anbar province was found dead after a fierce battle between U.S. forces and foreign fighters, a government spokesman said Tuesday.

In Washington, President Bush said Baghdad's fledgling leadership is "plenty capable" of defeating insurgents whose attacks on Iraqis and U.S. soldiers have intensified since the new Shiite-led government was announced April 28.

"I think the Iraqi people dealt the insurgents a serious blow when we had the elections," Bush said at a news conference. "In other words, what the insurgents fear is democracy because democracy is the opposition of their vision."

The insurgency, which is believed to be strongly backed by radical Sunni extremists, has killed more than 760 people in the past month.

Vice President Dick Cheney predicted that fighting in Iraq will end before the Bush administration leaves office in 2009.

"I think we may well have some kind of presence there over a period of time," Cheney said Monday on CNN's "Larry King Live." "The level of activity that we see today from a military standpoint, I think, will clearly decline. I think they're in the last throes, if you will, of the insurgency."

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Too bad that the rest of the world doesn't realize that when bush/cheney repeats something over & over & over & over, it's supposed to come true! That's the trouble when we're dealing with life and death in the real world and not this administration's fantasy land!

sick! (more on what bush calls "absurd"!)

AP: Gitmo Detainees Say They Were Sold

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - They fed them well. The Pakistani tribesmen slaughtered a sheep in honor of their guests, Arabs and Chinese Muslims famished from fleeing U.S. bombing in the Afghan mountains. But their hosts had ulterior motives: to sell them to the Americans, said the men who are now prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

Bounties ranged from $3,000 to $25,000, the detainees testified during military tribunals, according to transcripts the U.S. government gave The Associated Press to comply with a Freedom of Information lawsuit.

A former CIA intelligence officer who helped lead the search for Osama bin Laden old AP the accounts sounded legitimate because U.S. allies regularly got money to help catch Taliban and al-Qaida fighters. Gary Schroen said he took a suitcase of $3 milion in cash into Afghanistan himself to help supply and win over warlords to fight for U.S. Special Forces.

"It wouldn't surprise me if we paid rewards," said Schroen, who retired after 32 years in the CIA soon after the fall of Kabul in late 2001. He recently published the book "First In: An Insider's Account of How the CIA Spearheaded the War on Terror in Afghanistan."

bush is completely out of touch

Bush Calls Human Rights Report 'Absurd,' Says Charges Made by 'People Who Hate America'
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Absolutely everything that bush talks about in this press conference is negated by reality! He is so far gone it is hopeless to think that anything will ever get better while he is in charge. Obviously, he wants this country to be destroyed and he is doing everything that he can to achieve that goal. This is mind-bogglingly scary!
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More on this from Crooks and Liars

the true "party of no"

I find it amazing that repugs are still chanting that the Dems “have no ideas” and are the “party of ‘no’”! Do they honestly think that anyone other than themselves believes this?!

Of course the Dems have plenty of ideas and they’re not afraid to talk about them. But the repugs don’t know this because they refuse to listen to them! The repugs will criticize any legitimate idea that any Dem has and then say that we have no ideas! Talk about a catch-22!

The fact that they continue to get away with it just shows how “liberal” our media is!

And the “party of ‘no’”?!?!?! How can a repug say this about the Dems with a straight face?!?!?! Dems are the ones who are trying to give people rights and the repugs only want to take them away!

Dems want people to have Social Security that is secure – the repugs say “NO – we want to take it away completely”!

Dems want accountability in everything from voting to the administration’s lies. The repugs say “NO – we refuse to be accountable for anything”!

Dems want to honor and support our troops – the repugs say “NO, we will hide their names so that no one will know their sacrifices, we will deny them benefits, we will deny them proper armor, we will lie to them about why they are dying and lie to their families and the country about how they died”!

Dems want affordable health care for every, the repugs say “NO, we don’t believe that our citizens deserve health care”!

Dems believe in quality education for all, which, of course, will help the entire country. The repugs say “NO, we will not support schools and teachers and we will cut funding”!

Dems believe in fiscal responsibility and controlling the budget and reducing the deficit. The repugs say “NO, we want to spend and spend and spend and let the future generations figure out where the money will come from”!

Dems believe in helping the environment and giving future generations clean air, pure drinking water, forests, wildlife refuges, etc. The repugs say “NO, we only care about big businesses and don’t care who we hurt as long as we continue to receive large ‘donations’”!

Dems believe in women controlling their own bodies and not the government. The repugs say “NO, women’s bodies belong to US!”! We believe in moving this country back to the 19th century!

Dems believe in reducing the need for abortions and the cause of AIDS by education and repugs say “NO, we want to keep people as ignorant as possible and we do not care about their health! We do not want to reduce the cause of unwanted pregnancies, we just want to push our simplistic, backwards, religious policies”!

Dems wants everyone to have equal rights and repugs say “NO, we do not believe that gays should have the same rights as straights or that women should have the same rights as men”!

The list goes on & on! The current republican policy is to be as negative as possible towards everyone except their big money donors!

I realize that this is simplistic, but it is true! As i've said, i am not a writer, but i can see the obvious!

Too bad our "liberal media' ignores these contradictions!

See Blondesense for more on a similar topic.
See here for Senator Harry Reid’s Democratic Agenda.

i don't know why i still find this stuff amazing

Newsweek Standard Doesn’t Apply to Bush Administration

After Newsweek apologized and retracted its story on Koran desecration, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the magazine need to go even father to make amends for their transgression:

Q Scott, you said that the retraction by Newsweek magazine of its story is a good first step. What else does the President want this American magazine to do?

MCCLELLAN: The image of the United States abroad has been damaged; there is lasting damage to our image because of this report. And we would encourage Newsweek to do all that they can to help repair the damage that has been done, particularly in the region.

Yesterday, it was revealed that guards and interrogators at Guantanamo Bay had, in fact, intentionally desecrated the Korans of several Muslim detainees. Here was Pentagon spokesman Larry DiRita’s reaction:

Q Mr. DiRita, as the Department of Defense, are you going to present your apologies to the Arab world?

MR. DIRITA: For what?

more DeLay attempts at deflection

NBC clashes with Tom DeLay on Law & Order

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representative Majority Leader Tom DeLay accused NBC on Thursday of slurring his name by including an unflattering reference to him on the NBC police drama "Law & Order: Criminal Intent."

DeLay's name surfaced on Wednesday night on the show's season finale, which centered on the fictional slayings of two judges by suspected right-wing extremists.

In the episode, police are frustrated by a lack of clues, leading one officer to quip, "Maybe we should put out an APB (all-points-bulletin) for somebody in a Tom DeLay T-shirt."
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Some leading Republicans used harsh terms to condemn judges earlier this year after courts failed to intervene to save the life of Terri Schiavo, the brain-damaged Florida woman who died after her feeding tube was removed at her husband's request but against her parents' wishes.

At the time, DeLay said, "The time will come for the men responsible for this to answer for their behavior."

Producer Dick Wolf, creator of the "Law & Order" franchise, took a swipe at DeLay in his own statement on Thursday, saying, "I ... congratulate Congressman DeLay for switching the spotlight from his own problems to an episode of a TV show."

The flap came as ethics questions swirling around DeLay mounted with a Texas judge ruling on Thursday that a political action committee formed by the congressman violated state law by failing to disclose $600,000 in mostly corporate donations.

The show's season finale drew 14.5 million viewers, but DeLay wasn't one of them. An aide said he heard about the show through his wife, who learned of it from someone else who saw the episode.

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DeLay is an expert at attacking other people in order to deflect attention away from his ethical and moral lapses!

more proof the gist of the newsweek story was true!

Probe Finds Cases of Koran 'Mishandling'

WASHINGTON (May 27) - Investigators have confirmed five cases in which military personnel mishandled the Korans of Muslim prisoners at Guantanamo Bay since 2002, but they have found no "credible evidence'' that a holy book was flushed in a toilet.

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So, it has been proven that our people "mishandled" the Koran, but, despite numerous allegations, the toilet flushing has not been "proven".

some students get it!

Bush-as-Groucho Posters Spark Uproar

LOS ANGELES (May 27) - Posters that depicted President Bush with a Groucho Marx-style mustache and cigar were ordered torn down at a high school after a student complained.

Theater students, who had created the posters to advertise a satirical play, countered with new posters with a First Amendment message.

Principal Kenny Lee ordered 100 posters removed from the campus of El Camino Real High School in the Woodland Hills area last week on grounds that they promoted smoking and "endorsing one ideology over another."

"That's our take on the student speech and conduct," Lee said.

The school-funded posters advertised the students' play, "The Complete History of America (Abridged)," which satirizes U.S. history.

A senior who supports the president wrote a complaint letter to the administration, teachers and students said.

"We had one student who was very upset," Lee said. "If something is bothering a student on campus, we're going to address it."

The poster ban infuriated some students.

"It taught us that the First Amendment certainly does not guarantee the right of free speech," said Jes Shah, 16, a junior in the school drama program.

The principal asked the drama students to come up with new posters.

The new designs all feature a silhouette of Bush and a burning cigar, along with inscriptions such as "Free Expression for All (unless you are in high school)" and "What First Amendment?"

"They're good," Lee said. "I like the follow-ups."

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I would love to have seen the posters! Glad that students understand that they should have rights and should be able to express themselves. It would be different if the posters actually addressed an issue, but the opponents are way too sensitive if they can't take a gentle ribbing of the president!

at least SOMEONE stands up against the nonsense!

Helen Thomas-Gets Scotty

Q The other day -- in fact, this week, you said that we, the United States, is in Afghanistan and Iraq by invitation. Would you like to correct that incredible distortion of American history --

MR. McCLELLAN: No, we are -- that's where we currently --

Q -- in view of your credibility is already mired? How can you say that?

MR. McCLELLAN: Helen, I think everyone in this room knows that you're taking that comment out of context. There are two democratically-elected governments in Iraq and --

Q We're we invited into Iraq?

MR. McCLELLAN: There are two democratically-elected governments now in Iraq and Afghanistan, and we are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments, and we are there today --

Q You mean if they had asked us out, that we would have left?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, Helen, I'm talking about today. We are there at their invitation. They are sovereign governments --

Q I'm talking about today, too.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- and we are doing all we can to train and equip their security forces so that they can provide for their own security as they move forward on a free and democratic future.

Q Did we invade those countries?

MR. McCLELLAN: Go ahead, Steve.

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Can Scott be thinking anything except "where's Gannon when i need him"?! The continued lies are incredible!

once again, the story is proven to be true

FBI: More allegations of Koran abuse at Gitmo

Washington Post has the story:

Numerous detainees at the Guantanamo Bay military prison in Cuba told FBI interrogators that guards had mistreated copies of the Koran, including one who said in 2002 that guards "flushed a Koran in the toilet," according to new FBI documents released today.The summaries of FBI interviews, obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union as part of an ongoing lawsuit, also include allegations that the Koran was kicked, thrown to the floor and withheld as punishment and that guards mocked Muslim prisoners during prayers.

Over to you, Scott McClellan.

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So, are we going to blame Newsweek for the FBI documents now?!
Unlike the lies that got us into this insane war, this story has been proven time & again to be true. When will people apologize to Newsweek?!

Lots more at Crooks and Liars

so much for freedom of religion!

Judge: Parents can't teach pagan beliefs

Father appeals order in divorce decree that prevents couple from exposing son to Wicca.

An Indianapolis father is appealing a Marion County judge's unusual order that prohibits him and his ex-wife from exposing their child to "non-mainstream religious beliefs and rituals."

The parents practice Wicca, a contemporary pagan religion that emphasizes a balance in nature and reverence for the earth.

Cale J. Bradford, chief judge of the Marion Superior Court, kept the unusual provision in the couple's divorce decree last year over their fierce objections, court records show. The order does not define a mainstream religion.

Bradford refused to remove the provision after the 9-year-old boy's outraged parents, Thomas E. Jones Jr. and his ex-wife, Tammie U. Bristol, protested last fall.

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Outrageous! A judge has arbitrarily decided that the parents of this child cannot teach him their religion!!!! How is this possible?! I cannot believe how f'k'd this country is! Isn't this what our country was based on?!

how many instances of hypocrisy will there be?!

Santorum took money from stem cell researchers

Uh oh. They're gonna take away your American Taliban card for that one.

More from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee:

Question of the Day for Rick Santorum: Can Stem Cell Research Cure Hypocrisy?

Senator Rick Santorum this week re-emphasized his opposition to stem cell research, stating that he was “disheartened” to learn that the House of Representatives voted to expand stem cell research and that he does “not support taxpayer funding for scientific research that involves the destruction of human embryos.” Yet Santorum had no problem accepting $55,500 in campaign contributions from companies that conduct stem cell research.

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This is getting to the point of being surreal! I know that not every single republican is a hypocrite, but, man, the ones that are go above and beyond the call of hypocritical duty! Does any major player in this administration have ANY actual values?!

never ending hypocrisy!

From Atrios :

It merited hours of coverage when Sandy Berger fashioned a codpiece of old documents at the National Archives, yet the bloviators have been remarkably quiet about this:

A Pentagon analyst previously accused of leaking top-secret information to a pro-Israel group was charged Tuesday with illegally taking classified government documents out of the Washington area to his West Virginia residence.

Lawrence Anthony Franklin, 58, was not authorized to take such documents to his home in Kearneysville, according to the federal charge issued along with an arrest warrant by U.S. Attorney Thomas E. Johnston in Martinsburg.

The FBI found 83 classified documents in Franklin's home in the Eastern Panhandle town in June 2004, the documents said. Investigators say 38 of those documents were top secret and 37 others were classified as secret.

Tuesday's charge of unlawfully possessing classified federal defense documents focuses on six of the documents, which were written between October 2003 and June 2004. Four were CIA documents, including three about al-Qaida and one involving Osama bin Laden. Two of those documents were classified top secret, the rest as secret.

Wonder why that is?

these people are truly insane!

In an AOL article whose link is titled "Conservatives vow revenge over filibuster deal" (!):

Filibuster Deal Angers Conservative Groups

DES MOINES, Iowa (May 25) - Conservatives who had warned Republicans about compromising on President Bush's judicial nominees delivered another message the day after the deal: Those who betrayed us will pay a political price.

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They seem to fail to realize that they lost nothing and gained the passage of several far-far-far-right nominees. Their anger is fairly baffling, though it is amusing! I think they just enjoy being angry - it seemed like they were never angrier than after the November elections, and we know that logic means nothing to them! I truly hope that in the long run this deal will end up being a good thing, but seeing how Frist is already trying to go back on it, i'm not holding my breath!

Think Progress is good!

Take the McClellan Challenge

The newly leaked “Downing Street memo” reveals that on July 2002, the chief of British intelligence, Sir Richard Dearlove, returned from meetings in Washington with shocking news for his colleagues; the White House had already made up its mind to take military action against Iraq and was prepared to fix the intelligence to back up the plan.

Asked about the memo yesterday, White House Spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters:

“In terms of the intelligence, the - if anyone wants to know how the intelligence was used by the adminsitration, all they have to do is go back and look at all the public comments over the course of the lead-up to the war in Iraq, and that’s all very public information. Everybody who was there could see how we used that intelligence.”

Interesting. We decided to take him up on his challenge:

INTEL: In 1997, the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released a report saying there was no indication Iraq ever achieved nuclear capability or had any physical capacity for producing weapons-grade nuclear material in the near future. In February 2001, the CIA delivered a report to the White House that said: “We do not have any direct evidence that Iraq has used the period since Desert Fox to reconstitute its weapons of mass destruction programs.”

HOW IT WAS USED: In March 2003, Cheney definitively claimed on Meet the Press that Iraq “has reconstituted nuclear weapons.”

INTEL: In April 2001, the the Energy Department told the White House the aluminum tubes Iraq bought couldn’t be used for nuclear weapons production. In late 2001, the State Department also sent word they were ill-suited for that use.

HOW IT WAS USED: On Sept. 8, 2002, National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice told CNN the tubes were “only really suited for nuclear weapons programs.” Bush in his 1/03 State of the Union said the tubes which were “suitable for nuclear weapons production.”

INTEL: In the fall of 2002, the CIA told white house officials not to include the uranium-from-Niger assertion in speeches.

HOW IT WAS USED: Bush included it in his 2003 State of the Union.

INTEL: A September 2002 DOD intel report found “”no reliable information on whether Iraq is producing and stockpiling chemical weapons, or where Iraq has – or will – establish its chemical warfare agent production facilities.”

HOW IT WAS USED: In October 2002, Bush claimed, without doubt, that Iraq “possesses and produces chemical and biological weapons.”

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Haven't the repugs learned yet not to site its own history as it can only be used against them? I guess, as usual, they are hoping that no one will actually look at the words that they have said and just go with their bluff. Of course, the "liberal media" lets them get away with it, so why not?!

Frist ALREADY going back on the "compromise"!

BREAKING: Ignoring Deal, Frist to File for Cloture on Myers

In the deal struck yesterday evening, negotiators agreed that two judicial nominees - William G. Myers and Henry Saad - “will be filibustered or withdrawn.”

Last night, Frist indicated he would abide by the agreement:

Mr. President, a lot has been said about the uniqueness of this body. And, indeed, our Senate is unique. And we all, as individuals and collectively as a body, have a role to play in ensuring its cherished nature remains intact.

And, indeed, as demonstrated by tonight’s agreement and by the ultimate implementation of that agreement, we have done just that.

But Congress Daily PM reports that Frist has other ideas for later in the week:

Senate Majority Leader Frist will file for cloture on President Bush’s nomination of William Myers to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later this week, according to sources on and off Capitol Hill, wasting no time in testing the resolve of 14 Republican and Democratic senators who forced at least a temporary halt to the battle over Democratic filibusters of President Bush’s judicial picks.

That didn’t take long.

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No kidding! It's only been HOURS and already Frist wants to go back on the deal! Not that this surprises anyone - we know that we can't trust these guys! We see if the rest of the repubs go back on their word.

something positive for a change (in spite of bush's efforts!)

Breaking: House Passes real Stem Cell Research Bill

Interesting. Watching C-SPAN...House passed the real stem cell bill (Castle/DeGette) by a 238 - 194 margin.

Tom DeLay and George Bush both lobbied hard against this bill -- on ethical and moral grounds. (Yes, consider the sources)

Think about this one: During his speech today, Bush actually had the gonads to say: "We should not use public money to support the further destruction of human life." Yeah, that's his policy.

And, wow, the folks who called in to C-SPAN opposing the bill -- and supporting Bush and DeLay -- are real nut jobs.

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Wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that Korea is making advances in this field and bush & co. are doing their best to hold us back?
How can bush say such a ridiculous quote with a straight face?! How much have we spent (in "public money") so far in Iraq, a war that has been proven over & over to be based on lies?! And he wants to oppose life-saving research? That is beyond hypocritical!

the repugs love causing pain

The Tillmans hate America (From TBogg)

After reading this,
Former NFL player Pat Tillman's family is lashing out against the Army, saying that the military's investigations into Tillman's friendly-fire death in Afghanistan last year were a sham and that Army efforts to cover up the truth have made it harder for them to deal with their loss.

More than a year after their son was shot several times by his fellow Army Rangers on a craggy hillside near the Pakistani border, Tillman's mother and father said in interviews that they believe the military and the government created a heroic tale about how their son died to foster a patriotic response across the country. They say the Army's "lies" about what happened have made them suspicious, and that they are certain they will never get the full story.

"Pat had high ideals about the country; that's why he did what he did," Mary Tillman said in her first lengthy interview since her son's death. "The military let him down. The administration let him down. It was a sign of disrespect. The fact that he was the ultimate team player and he watched his own men kill him is absolutely heartbreaking and tragic. The fact that they lied about it afterward is disgusting."

[...]Patrick Tillman Sr. believes he will never get the truth, and he says he is resigned to that now. But he wants everyone in the chain of command, from Tillman's direct supervisors to the one-star general who conducted the latest investigation, to face discipline for "dishonorable acts." He also said the soldiers who killed his son have not been adequately punished.

"Maybe lying's not a big deal anymore," he said. "Pat's dead, and this isn't going to bring him back. But these guys should have been held up to scrutiny, right up the chain of command, and no one has."

That their son was famous opened up the situation to problems, the Tillmans say, in part because of the devastating public relations loss his death represented for the military. Mary Tillman says the government used her son for weeks after his death, perpetuating an untrue story to capitalize on his altruism -- just as the Abu Ghraib prison scandal was erupting publicly. She said she was particularly offended when President Bush offered a taped memorial message to Tillman at a Cardinals football game shortly before the presidential election last fall. She again felt as though her son was being used, something he never would have wanted.

"Every day is sort of emotional," Mary Tillman said. "It just keeps slapping me in the face. To find that he was killed in this debacle -- everything that could have gone wrong did -- it's so much harder to take. We should not have been subjected to all of this. This lie was to cover their image. I think there's a lot more yet that we don't even know, or they wouldn't still be covering their tails.

"If this is what happens when someone high profile dies, I can only imagine what happens with everyone else."

...we have to wonder how soon the Right Wing will start trashing Tillman's parents.

On cue, Free Republic obliges:

Accidents happen in war, part of the "game". I was in the Army over 30 years ago. These parents have no clue. Their willingness to join the dark side show they aren't made of any "steel". I hope they are happy helping our enemies.6 posted on 05/22/2005 9:39:55 PM PDT by Lockbar (March toward the sound of the guns.)

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To: drt1Sad to see that they are allying themselves with those who hate their son. I doubt if that is what he would have wanted.12 posted on 05/22/2005 9:48:40 PM PDT by Eagles6 (Dig deeper, more ammo.)

***

To: drt1The army is evil. The pentagon is evil. The administration is evil. America is evil.But the folks that mocked their son and belittled their son and called him names not worth repetition because he left athletics to serve his country are not evil, apparently, because the parents have joined with them.I respect their son's service. HE is a hero.I respect their pain.I do not respect their reaction to pain. I have had my fill of parents presuming to speak for their children against the choice they made to serve their country. They can speak, but I refuse to listen any longer.13 posted on 05/22/2005 9:51:55 PM PDT by Soul Seeker

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I'm sorry, but this smells and it's not the militaryThe father is calling the men that served with Tilman, murders17 posted on 05/22/2005 9:58:17 PM PDT by Mo1 (Hey GOP ---- Not one Dime till Republicans grow a Spine !!)

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These sick f'ks trash someone who lost their son simply because they ask for the truth about his death from our government! How can these "people" sleep at night?

hard to believe in this day & age

Yearbook to be reprinted over 'black girl' caption

WAXAHACHIE — A North Texas school district is having four pages of its high school yearbook reprinted to correct a photo caption that identified a student as "Black Girl."

All white students are identified by name in the photograph of Waxahachie High School's chapter of the National Honor Society. The teen identified as "Black Girl" is the only black student in the photo.

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There is no legitimate excuse for this! What are they teaching students in Texas?! Disgusting!

some compromise!

Senate Votes on Filibuster Agreement

Owen, Pryor, Brown to Get Up-Or-Down Votes

So, the Dems "compromise" is that the repugs get what they want and the repugs "promise" not to change the rules and block filibusters in "extraordinary" circumstances. Of course, we know that their word is golden!!!! And, we know that they consider these far-out-of-the-mainstream loons to be perfectly acceptable, so their definition of "extraordinary" is going to be pretty extreme!
As far as i can see, the Dems won nothing and the Dems and the country lost a lot if these wackos are approved. Very sad...
And yet the repugs are feeling "betrayed"! That is how far gone they are! They don't even know when they've won!

so much for freedom of speech

Congressman Slams Bill Maher Over Army Remark

WASHINGTON (May 24) - A congressman says comedian Bill Maher's comment that the U.S. military has already recruited all the "low-lying fruit" is possibly
treasonous and at least grounds to cancel the show.

Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., takes issue with remarks on HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher, first aired May 13, in which Maher points out the Army missed its recruiting goal by 42 percent in April.

"More people joined the Michael Jackson fan club," Maher said. "We've done picked all the low-lying Lynndie England fruit, and now we need warm bodies."

Army Reserve Pfc. England was accused of abusing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

"I think it borders on treason," Bachus said. "In treason, one definition is to undermine the effort or national security of our country."

In a statement released Monday night, Maher defended his support for the American armed forces.

"Anyone who knows anything about my views and has watched my show knows that I have nothing but the highest regard for the men and women serving this country around the world," Maher said in the statement.

Bachus said he was appalled after watching a rerun of the show shortly after returning from a visit to Germany, in which he met with a paralyzed American soldier in the hospital. He has since written to Time Warner, HBO's parent company.

"I don't want (Maher) prosecuted," Bachus said. "I want him off the air."

Numerous television stations pulled Maher's previous show, "Politically Incorrect," from the air in September 2001 after he argued terrorists weren't cowards when they slammed airplanes into the World Trade Center a week earlier. Maher later apologized.

---
Of course, the repugs can say any vile, racist, sexist, anti-military vitriol that they want and no one says a word. A comedian makes a remark that is on the mark and is vilified. They sure are quick to cite treason, except for real issues, like lying to the country to justify going to war or destroying social security or things like that!

Iraq rages uncontrolled

Eight U.S. Soldiers Killed in Two Days in Iraq
U.S. and Iraqi Troops Hunt Insurgents in Baghdad

BAGHDAD, Iraq (May 24) - A car bomb exploded Tuesday near a Baghdad junior high school for girls, killing six people, and eight American soldiers were killed in two days of insurgent attacks in and around Baghdad, the military said.

In the last two days, the military announced that 13 American troops have been killed since Sunday. Those reports came as insurgents carried out a string of explosions, suicide attacks and drive-by shootings around the country that also killed 49 Iraqis.

At least 620 people, including 57 U.S. troops, have been killed since April 28, when Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari announced his new Shiite-dominated government. Washington hopes his government will eventually train police and an army capable of securing Iraq, allowing the withdrawal of coalition troops.

---
It hasn't even slowed down, much less stopped. Very scary!

wow, there are a lot of sickos on the internet!

Check this out for some twisted, right wing, racist, oedipal, and anti-vegitarianism views all thrown into one whack-job article!
And see here for World O'Crap's great review of said article!

repugs hate children!

IT'S IN THE BUDGET.

Jonah Goldberg is peeved at Howard Dean's over-the-top rhetoric:

Dean declared, "Our moral values, in contradiction to the Republicans', is we don't think kids ought to go to bed hungry at night."

Did I miss the pro-hungry children plank in the GOP platform?

Ha! Silly Democrats!

Of course, Republicans declared their attention to cut farm subsidies, acquiring glowing media attention for doing so, but then quietly decided to change their minds, leave the farm subsidies right where they were, and cut food stamps instead. Thus sending kids to bed at night hungry. But Jonah's right: That really wasn't in the party platform.

i really hate these hypocritical f'ks!

GOP supports "Activist Judges" if they can overturn elections

Here we go again. When the GOP loses and they can't stand it, they run to the courts. That's what's happening in Washington State where the GOP has gone to court to overturn the Governor's election AP is reporting:

A trial to determine whether the results of Washington state's gubernatorial election last fall should be thrown out opened Monday with the Republicans charging that the Democrats "stole" the contest for Christine Gregoire, who won by 129 votes out of 2.9 million cast.

The GOP wants Dino Rossi declared the winner or a do-over election held.

So while the GOP hypocrites in DC are castigating activist judges, the GOP in Washington State is hoping for a judge to help them win an election....again.

Imagine if the situation were reversed....the right wing would be apoplectic.

---
The people that i know in Washington don't want this - they just want to get on with their lives and are fine with having the govenor who they elected! The repugs have no shame!

bush inadvertantly speaks the truth!

Seen at Crooks and Liars :

via GreatScat:

Bush:"And that's why I'm talking about Social Security. And the debate has only just begun. (Applause.) But I believe the side of reform is going to prevail, because the American people now are beginning to realize we have a serious problem when it comes to Social Security. And that problem begins with people like me."

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I think this is the first true statement that bush has made about SS!

i can't get over what scumbags these people are!

Santorum Regrets Making Hitler Comment

WASHINGTON - Sen. Rick Santorum says he "meant no offense" by referring to Adolf Hitler while defending the GOP's right to ban judicial filibusters as Senate leaders prepared to start a countdown Friday to a vote over whether to stop minority senators from blocking President Bush's judicial nominees.

"Referencing Hitler was meant to dramatize the principle of an argument, not to characterize my Democratic colleagues," Santorum, the No. 3 Republican in the GOP leadership in the Senate, said of his remarks Thursday.
---
Byrd came under fire in March for comparing Hitler's Nazis and the Senate GOP plan to block Democrats from filibustering. Santorum, a Pennsylvanian, criticized Byrd's remarks at the time, saying the Nazi references "lessen the credibility of the senator and the decorum of the Senate."

But on Thursday, Santorum said that Democratic protests over Republican efforts to ensure confirmation votes would be like the Nazi dictator seizing Paris and then saying: "I'm in Paris. How dare you invade me? How dare you bomb my city? It's mine."

Santorum later said in a release that his remark "was a mistake and I meant no offense."

---
Hypocritical f'k! I'm sure he meant no offense by comparing Dems to Hilter! I can't imagine how anyone would find that offensive!!!

Sick f'ks!

Breaking from RawStory: Santorum compares Dems. to Hitler

by Joe in DC - 5/19/2005 05:26:00 PM
Oh, this is rich. Senator "Man-Dog Sex" Santorum is comparing the Democrats to Hilter. RawStory has the transcript and the video:

TO STAND UP AND SAY, HOW DARE YOU BREAK THIS RULE. IT'S THE EQUIVALENT OF ADOLF HITLER IN 1942 "I'M IN PARIS. HOW DARE YOU INVADE ME. HOW DARE YOU BOMB MY CITY? IT'S MINE."

What an idiot. There really is no bigger fool in the U.S. Senate and that's quite a statement because the Senate is filled with them.

---
These people really are insane, aren't they?! How do they get away with this?!

more on Newsweek

The Newsweek Story: Titanic Struggle or Tempest in a Teapot?

What strikes me as odd isn't that O'Reilly and the other news outlets that I listen to (CBS, CNBC) picked up on the Newsweek story. That was to be expected in a 24-hour news cycle. The truly amazing - and disturbing - thing is that, to date, I have yet to hear any mention that on May 12th the U. S. military exonerated Newsweek of any complicity in the riots or the deaths at a press conference held on May 12th. Last time I looked, "press conferences" were held in front of members of the PRESS. Isn't the "press" comprised of reporters? Journalists? Correspendents? People who make their living reporting the news?

Could it be that a headline that reads "Epic Struggle Between President and Newsweek" is a lot sexier and grabs more audience than the title of the State Department's report, which is "Afghan Riots Not Tied to Report on Quran Handling, General Says"?

Let me repeat that title.

"Afghan Riots Not Tied to Report on Quran Handling, General Says."

Why is Newsweek going along with this whole charade? Clearly, the magazine knows its reporting did not cause those riots in Afghanistan. And, unless they are nitwits, the rest of the news gatherers know this as well.

So, what gives here? Just like the Downing Street memo, pertinent facts are being withheld from the American public by those charged with the task of gathering critical information and disseminating it in a timely manner.

As if that isn't enough, there are now reports that the State Department, in direct contradiction of the military, now blames Newsweek for the Afghanistan riots. AP reported yesterday that "[the] State Department, moving to undo damage it says was caused by a Newsweek article alleging U.S. desecration of the Quran, the Muslim holy book, is telling its embassies to spread the word abroad that America respects all religious faiths." (AP, 5/18/05)

NewsMax and other right-wing sites are all over this, using it as ammunition to further denigrate Newsweek. Yet, nowhere in any of these anti-Newsweek reports do they say that the American military acquitted Newsweek and laid the blame on economic and political conditions in Afghanistan itself.

Is it any wonder that the American public is confused? Without access to the internet, a willingness to spend a lot of time researching and a healthy dose of happenstance, I would not have had enough information to write this post.

Why can't the people who get PAID to inform us actually do so?

----
Wouldn't it be amazing if we really did get the full story from our news agencies?

"fair and balanced" Fox

FOX NEWS "Fair and Balanced" Headlines
Why do Democrats Hate this Woman?

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These people really can say and do anything, can't they?

the party of "moral values"

From Crooks and Liars:

Fetish America
via marble composition

What do all of these people have in common?

U.S. Senator equates gay rights to "man on dog" sex.

U.S. Senator equates gay rights to unions of men and box turtles.

Prominent talk show host says gay rights will lead to unions with goats.

Doctor who's wife says he forcibly sodomized her, often while she was unconcious due to her narcolepsy. (he's also a 2002 Bush appointee to the Advisory Committee for Reproductive Health Drugs in the Food and Drug Administration).

State Department Undersecretary (currently the U.S. nominee for U.N. Ambassador) forced his wife to have group sex in a Manhattan swingers club.

Anti-abortionist admits to having sex with a mule on national radio.

Female culture crusader states that condoms lead to cancer and STD's are spread by
skin contact alone.

Why they're Conservative Republicans of course. And, some very religious ones I might add. Oh I know you're saying, "c'mon Fuzzy, you're talking about all those dirty, heathenistic, SoHo Liberals." Um, no, go click on the links above if you'd like to learn more. Read on

another truly insane "right"-winger

Radio host Glenn Beck "thinking about killing Michael Moore"
---
How can these loons get away with this?! And have a radion show?! And what the hell is the obsession with Moore these days? It's not like he's been in the news lately!

how can these people be less informed that I am?!

Al Franken at the Huffington Post:

Meanwhile, the Coalition Provisional Authority, which we ran, has lost 8.8 billion dollars. By lost, I mean it’s totally unaccounted for. Not only has Congress not "looked into" this $8.8 billion and who might have it now, but it seems that some members are completely unaware that this staggering sum, which was supposed to go toward rebuilding Iraq, is missing. The Sunday morning after the White House Correspondents dinner, I ran into Senator George Allen at a brunch thrown by John McLaughlin and his wife. Allen had never heard of the missing $8.8 billion, or at least that's what he told me. And he's on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Stunned, I went up to Susan Page of USA Today and her husband Carl Lubsdorf of the Dallas Morning News, two veteran Washington political reporters, and told them about Allen’s ignorance of this huge scandal, which has no doubt contributed to hatred for America and the deaths of our troops. There’s less electricity in Iraq now than there was before we invaded Iraq.

Turns out that Page and Lubsdorf had also never heard of the unaccounted-for $8.8 billion. For a moment I thought that maybe I had been imagining things.

Then I spotted my friend Norm Ornstein, scholar from the American Enterprise Institute. "Would you believe it if Norm Ornstein told you about the $8.8 billion?" I asked Susan and Carl.

"Sure."

I brought Norm over, and indeed I had not been imagining things. "It was a huge story," Norm told them.

"Was it in the New York Times?" Carl asked Norm.

"Yes," Norm assured him.

What in God’s name is going on?

Go Harry Reid!

Reid: Bush, GOP Seek to Reinvent Reality

WASHINGTON - Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid said Thursday that President Bush and Republican senators are trying to "rewrite the Constitution and reinvent reality" in their push to confirm controversial judicial nominees.

"The Senate is not a rubber stamp for the executive branch," Reid said. "Rather, we're the one institution where the minority has a voice and the ability to check the power of the majority. Today, in the face of President Bush's power grab, that's more important than ever."

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So good to see a Dem that refuses to back down to these unreasonable repugs! He talks sense and stays on course, which is very threatening to the other side!
Keep it up, Harry!

repugs once again demand "all or nothing"

Reid breaks off talks with Frist

WASHINGTON -- Saying that Republicans want "all or nothing," the Senate's Democratic leader broke off talks yesterday aimed at avoiding a showdown over a handful of the president's judicial nominees and Democrats' use of filibusters to block them.

Following a meeting with Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.), Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters, "Negotiations are over. I've tried to compromise but they want all or nothing."

Frist said, "I hope Senator Reid and others know our door is always open to reasonable proposals for fair up or down votes for judicial nominees."

---
Wow! Isn't that generous?! Frist is willing to talk is the Dems are willing to give up everything and get nothing in return! What a guy!

The Newsweek "scandal"

Americablog says it better than i could:

Newsweek gets the Koran story wrong? Bull

I don't buy it.

Chris and I have been talking about this (I'm still in Paris), and we think President Bush placed a little call to the head of Newsweek, asking him to beg off the story since riots are now spreading across the Middle East. I simply refuse to believe anything the Bush administration says about anything at this point. And the administration's assurances that they "investigated" the story and found it not true - well, let's talk about WMD, let's talk about "no evidence of widespread abuse" of prisoners at US facilities around the world.

I say, bull. As Joe alread noted, this is not the first time the story has been reported about US authorities flushing the Koran down the toilet at Gitmo. And let's not forget everything else they've been doing to the detainees, at Abu Ghraib and beyond. Newsweek is backing down to help Bush out, and it's sad.

---

Facing fierce White House criticism, Newsweek now retracts Koran story

Okay, this thing is getting more and more bizarre. The White House spent the day attacking Newsweek. Apparently, it worked. AP is now reporting that Newsweek has retracted the Koran story.

---

White House: It's all Newsweek's Fault

Well now we know why the Muslim world hates us. It's all because of Newsweek. And, according to the Associated Press, Scott McCLellan says they better do something about it:

"The report had real consequences," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said Monday. "People have lost their lives. Our image abroad has been damaged. There are some who are opposed to the United States and what we stand for who have sought to exploit this allegation. It will take work to undo what can be undone."

McClellan said a retraction was only "a good first step" and said Newsweek should try to set the record straight by "clearly explaining what happened and how they got it wrong, particularly to the Muslim world, and pointing out the policies and practices of our military."

So, it's all Newsweek's fault. Nothing else has caused problems for the U.S. But, Scott, what specific policies and practices of the military are you talking about? Before you answer, read the Associated Press story today about Spc. Sabrina Harman:

Harman, a former pizza shop manager from Lorton, Va., appeared in several of the most notorious photos taken at Abu Ghraib, and she was found guilty of taking other pictures.

The photos showed prisoners chained together in sexual poses, piled on the floor naked and forced to form a nude human pyramid.

In one picture, Harman posed with Graner behind a group of naked detainees. In another, she was shown with a prisoner on whose leg she is accused of writing "rapeist."

In closing arguments Monday, prosecutors said Harman and other guards conspired to physically hurt and sexually humiliate the prisoners under their watch.

"They were all acting together for their own amusement," Capt. Chris Graveline said.

Be careful what you ask for, Scott McClellan.

---

Speaking of single, anonymous, unreliable sources

From ThinkProgress:

QUESTION: Does it concern the President that the primary source for the intelligence on the mobile biological weapons labs was a guy that U.S. intelligence never every interviewed?

MCCLELLAN: Well, again, all these issues will be looked at as part of a broad review by the independent commission that the President appointed? But it's important that we look at what we learn on the ground and compare that with what we believed prior to going into Iraq.

Yeah, it really sucks that by relying on a single, anonymous, unreliable source Newsweek got us into a war that was based on a lie, has killed over 1,500 US servicemembers and untold numbers of innocent Iraqi civilians, and has put America at further risk from terrorism.

Oh.

---

McClellan caught lying about impact of Newsweek article

Like this was the first time that the US did anything to hurt its image in the Arab world. Give me a break. The reason they're rioting isn't because of Newsweek - hell, even their own general said the riots were unrelated to Newsweek (funny how Bush has suddenly forgotten this nice little fact). From the NYT:

Mr. McClellan and other administration officials blamed the Newsweek article for setting off the anti-American violence that swept Afghanistan and Pakistan. "The report had real consequences," Mr. McClellan said. "People have lost their lives. Our image abroad has been damaged."

But only a few days earlier, in a briefing on Thursday, Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, had said that the senior commander in Afghanistan believed the protests had stemmed from that country's reconciliation process.

"He thought it was not at all tied to the article in the magazine," General Myers
said.

The riots are the result of 5 years of neglect and disdain from an administration of liars who launched a war based on a lie, killing thousand of their and our citizens. Then Bush decided to start torturing innocent Muslims in Cuba and Abu Ghraib and Afghanistan. Gee, I'll bet none of that has anything to do with the riots.

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New York Times & Raw Story confirm that Koran story has been reported by numerous witnesses for years

Let's not forget that numerous witnesses have reported that US troops have been trashing the Koran, the story is hardly new. We deserve to know why this story keeps popping up, though God knows we can't trust Bush to tell us the truth about any of this. He wants to stop the riots - resign.

---
From Crooks and Liars :

More on Newsweek

Howie reports :Whitaker said that a senior Pentagon official, for reasons that "are still a little mysterious to us," had declined to comment after Newsweek correspondent John Barry showed him a draft before the item was published and asked whether it was accurate, adding that the magazine would have held off had military spokesmen made such a request. Whitaker said Pentagon officials raised no
objection to the story for a week after it was published, until it was translated by some Arab media outlets and led to the rioting.

The item was principally reported by Michael Isikoff, Newsweek's veteran investigative reporter. "Obviously we all feel horrible about what flowed from this, but it's important to remember there was absolutely no lapse in journalistic standards here," he said. "We relied on sources we had every reason to trust and gave the Pentagon ample opportunity to comment. . . . We're going to continue to
investigate what remains a very murky situation."

Why didn't the Pentagon raise a red flag? Why didn't they say hold on while we check those facts? Newsweek didn't blind side the Pentagon. They acted in good faith by giving the Pentagon access before they ran the story. The first reported incident made it seem like they printed the story with no notification. That's not the case.

Didn't the "senior" Pentagon official have an idea what might happen? This doesn't excuse Newsweek, but the mayhem that ensued could have been averted.

---

Will Michelle Malkin have blood on her hands?

If people get hurt because of her headline "NEWSWEEK LIED*. PEOPLE DIED" that is spreading through the freeper ranks that's causing protests, causes injuries?

MM says: Didn’t think I needed to s-p-e-l-l i-t o-u-t, but some readers asked for clarification. Newsweek was reckless and sloppy and wrong. But I do not think the magazine “lied.” Just thought it a very appropriate moment to do a boomerang on the moonbats’ most dishonest and annoying meme."

Huh? So you lie because you think others like to use the phrase.

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Olbermann: an honest report on the Newsweek retraction

Last Thursday, General Richard Myers, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Donald Rumsfeld’s go-to guy whenever the situation calls for the kind of gravitas the Secretary himself can’t supply, told reporters at the Pentagon that rioting in Afghanistan was related more to the on-going political reconciliation process there, than it was to a controversial note buried in the pages of Newsweek claiming that the government was investigating whether or not some nitwit interrogator at Gitmo really had desecrated a Muslim holy book.

---

Scott McClellan wants to be the editor of Newsweek

Ed Henryreports from the press briefing today that Scotty said he wants the magazine to reach out to the Muslim world and point out that the U.S. military respects the Koran and does not desecrate it.

A reporter asked: Have you appointed yourself the editor of Newsweek? What business does the White House have in telling Newsweek what to do...

---
This whole "Scandal" looks a lot like the "Rathergate" "scandal" - the story is true even though a source might be in question. But once this administration questions any part of the "liberal media", the story will be completely retracted and no one will ever investigate it again. So sad what we've come to these days...

the lack of logic makes my brain hurt!!!

I know i ask a lot in that i think that an argument should be based on some sort of logic, but wow!:

Fox News Blames Democrats for the Crash Reps Suffered in Polls after Schiavo

Here's what Cavuto said:
"Let me ask you, some polls that have been done over the last few weeks, sir, seem to say that the Republicans might have gotten snookered by the Democrats, not only in this fixation on Bolton but on going back to the Terry Schiavo situation. Maybe with the best of intentions, sir, do you feel that your party's fixation on that was at the detriment of issues that Americans cared about, like Social Security, tax reform, that sort of stuff?" (Emphasis added.)

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WHA....?!?!?!

conservative "study" on "liberal media"

From Atrios :

Media Matters forAmericahas looked at two recent right-wing studies, both of which found, not surprisingly, that the U.S. media heavily tilts liberal. And equally unsurprisingly, Media Matters shows that these studies have some very odd ways of getting to their findings. Their rules seem to be these:

1. If conservatives are mentioned more than liberals, then the news are biased against conservatives. You know, because liberals slip through undefined. Never mind if conservatives are more in the news because they happen to be in power. Never mind that conservatives might be mentioned more because the media caters to them and asks four conservatives to comment for each liberal.

2. If facts are on the side of the liberals they are "liberal talking points" and an equal number of "conservative talking points" should be added, even if they are not facts. So each "earth is round" statement should have a corresponding "earth is flat" statement.

Funny, I didn't find anything in these studies about how most of the media is in bed with this administration.

---
Check out the Media Matters article. Pretty amazing - no matter what the situation is, it is an example of "liberal bias"! Did any of these people ever take a logic class, or are they just hoping that no one else has?!

more & more & more on the "liberal media"

Crooked Timber explains that, once again, it's OK if your a repub.

repugs removed from reality

Radio host Michael Medved's privatization meltdown

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I can't even explain! You have to read the transcript! These people are so far removed from reality and only believe the latest talking points to the point where they deny the existance of their previous talking points! Wild!

if bush wasn't president, this would be unbelievable!

News from the world of abstinence-only

Every news item I read about abstinence-only education, the more I think it's not the brainchild of misguided idealogues with low regard for the truth and actually a conspiracy to trick an entire generation into early marriage and child-bearing. The
latest news from Feministing doesn't help my paranoia. Apparently, a school in Bozeman, Montana hired a woman from a organization called (I shit you not) True Lies to give a brief presentation and she threatened them with their lives if they dare use contraception.

Wells demanded the school give equal time to rebut the "misinformation" his son heard: that condoms lead to cancer, that birth control pills are only 20 percent effective, that sexually transmitted diseases are spread by skin contact alone, that third-trimester fetuses can be aborted, that video games lead to homicide, that human papilloma virus can be transferred through condoms and that teens can achieve "second virginity" through abstinence.

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If i had a child in this school i would be furious with the administration for letting escaped lunatics near young kids! I'm at a loss......

only on Fox!

Only on Fox: "RNC headquarters evacuated" (and the White House and Capitol, too)

During Fox News' coverage of the Capitol and White House evacuations on May 11, the channel's "Fox News Alert" banner twice read "RNC headquarters evacuated," referring to the Republican National Committee. Other messages that appeared on the banner included: "White House and Capitol evacuated," "U.S fighter jets over White House," "Capitol Building evacuation ordered," and "Fighter jets tracking small plane 3 miles from Capitol." Fox's alert banner did not note that the Democratic National Committee headquarters was also evacuated.

(Media Matters)

repugs lie to smear Harry Reid (surprise surprise!)

Business as usual for the repugs, and, as usual, the hypocrisy is astounding! The latest brouhaha is from a writer accusing Reid of "exposing" a report that had been mentioned at least 4 times previously at least a YEAR before - once by this same write in this same newspaper!! Obviously, they count on their followers to have short memories and not to see the numerous corrections (if or when they appear) and it works!

It would be different if the repugs actually had legitimate complaints based on true facts, but since they have to fabricate every issue, it certainly diminishes their argument!
Check out all of these stories from Daily Kos :

Reid under attack

Charles Hurt, craptacular partisan hack

Who is Manuel Miranda?

GOP slime effort, early reaction

Maybe Reid Learned About Saad's FBI File from... Charlie Hurt

DeLay by Move On

A month ago it looked like the scandals surrounding Republican Majority Leader Rep. Tom DeLay couldn't get any worse. Newspapers were breaking new stories every week about lobbyist-paid golf trips, the $500,000 paid from DeLay's political coffers to his family, and back-room deals DeLay was cutting to save his hide.

Then, it got worse.

The latest scandal connects DeLay to sweatshops in the Mariana Islands making apparel with "Made in the USA" labeling while avoiding U.S. labor laws — exploiting Chinese immigrant labor. But a growing number of Republicans are going mute on DeLay's ethical abuses. They're afraid of far-right organizations — who are staunch DeLay supporters — and of retribution from DeLay himself.

The thing that will push Tom DeLay out of his leadership role is a public outcry and pressure on the Republicans who gave him that office. That's where you come in. In a few weeks, we're going to organize events across the nation to deliver our petition to fire Tom DeLay to the Republicans who still back him — either Republicans in Congress or the local Republican Party.

Take a moment to sign it now — the more signatures we can deliver Rep. Porter, the more likely he is to think twice about DeLay's leadership.

The tangled web of backslapping relationships between DeLay, other Republicans, and lobbyists needs to be exposed to the light. So we've taken the best information out there on the connections between Republican members of Congress and Rep. Tom DeLay and we're sending it to you as your own personal "Report Card on Rep. Porter"
Among his offenses, Tom Delay:
Accepted trips from corporations and later helped kill legislation they opposed

Accepted trips from the lobbyist for a foreign government in violation of House rules

Paid family members more than $500,000 out of campaign contributions

Helped sweatshops in the Mariana Islands at the behest of a lobbyist.

Promised a role in drafting legislation to a corporate donor

Tried to coerce a Congressman for a vote on Medicare

Allegedly used corporate money given to his PAC to finance Texas campaigns in violation of state law

Used Homeland Security resources in a dispute with Democrats in Texas

Diverted funds from a children's charity for lavish celebrations at the Republican convention

Threatened retaliation against interest groups that don't support Republicans

Stacked the House Ethics Committee with representatives who have contributed to his legal defense fund

Crippled the effectiveness of the House Ethics Committee by purging members who had rebuked him

Pushed for a rules change for the House Ethics process that paralyzed the panel

Sought a rule change that would have no longer "required leaders to step aside temporarily if indicted"

fake government

Via Republican Dictionary :

What in President Bush's administration is fake?
The following list is taken from a spectacular and fun discussion thread started by Southernleftylady at the Democratic Underground.
At the time of this posting, that thread is still going like wildfire, more will be added.

Fake cowboy.
Fake terror alerts.
Fake weapons of mass destruction.
Fake social security crisis.
Fake elections (vote), and hence, fake president.
Fake AARP "agenda".
Fake town hall meetings.
Fake reporters in White House press conferences.
Fake Thanksgiving turkey.
Fake Texas ranch.
Fake support for the troops.
Fake respect for a "culture of life."
Fake news releases.
Fake economic stimulus.
Fake fighter pilot.
Fake encounter between Air Force 1 and British airline.
Fake compassion.
Fake conservatism.
Fake "Made in U.S.A." boxes for speech backdrop.
Fake rescue of Jessica Lynch.
Fake CIA intelligence.
Fake toppling of Saddam statue.
Fake separation of church and state.
Fake story of Pat Tillman's death.
Fake democracy in Iraq.
Fake freedom in Afghanistan.
Fake prescription drug bill estimate presented to Congress.
Fake uniter.
Fake "mission accomplished."
Fake science.
Fake "poorly tailored jacket."
Fake "clear skies."
Fake "healthy forests."
Fake investigation into CIA Agent Plame leak.
Fake support of small business.
Fake protestors during Florida 2000 recount.
Fake report of safe air in New York after the terrorist attacks.
Fake effort to catch Osama Bin Laden.
Fake stories planted against John McCain and Al Gore.
Fake stories from the Swift Boat Veterans.
Fake mandate.
Fake secret service agents at speeches.
Fake concern for the Geneva Conventions.
Fake national budget.
Fake investigation into 9-11.
Fake investigation into torture at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere.

amazing quote!

From Daily Kos :

Sirota digs up a doozy.

"Should any political party attempt to abolish social security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history.

There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things. Among them are [a] few other Texas oil millionaires, and an occasional politician or business man from other areas. Their number is negligible and they are stupid." -
President Dwight D. Eisenhower, 11/8/54

Times have changed since 1954. For instance, one of those few Texas oil
millionaires just happens to be running the country...

even MORE on that damn "liberal media"!

ABC News: 'not interested in covering war'

Amazing. From The Note.

Brides gotta run, planes gotta stray, and cable news networks gotta find a way to fill a lot of programming hours as cheaply as possible. (CNBC gets to talk about the booming April retail sales numbers, and the NRA's television network will replay the Secretary of State on Larry King over and over.)

We say with all the genuine apolitical and non-partisan human concern that we can muster that the death and carnage in Iraq is truly staggering.
And/but we are sort of resigned to the Notion that it simply isn't going to break through to American news organizations, or, for the most part, Americans.

Democrats are so thoroughly spooked by John Kerry's loss --- and Republicans so inspired by their stay-the-course Commander in Chief ---that what is hands down the biggest story every day in the world will get almost no coverage. No conflict at home=no coverage.

Excuse me? This is ABC News saying that unless there is conflict at home, a war that kills dozens a day, including Americans, will not get coverage? That as long as people are "deferrential" to an unpopular president, they're not allowed to cover the carnage in Iraq?

This is what the US media has become? Absolutely unacceptable.

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It is hard to believe what this country once was and what it has become....damn, it sucks being old enough to remember when people thought that we could make changes for the better (and really tried to) not just for the worse....

still more on bush administration's "moral values"

Dr. Hager's Family Values

...Dr. W. David Hager, a prominent obstetrician-gynecologist and Bush Administration appointee to the Advisory Committee for Reproductive Health Drugs in the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), ...
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For Hager, those moral and ethical issues all appear to revolve around sex: In both his medical practice and his advisory role at the FDA, his ardent evangelical piety anchors his staunch opposition to emergency contraception, abortion and premarital sex.
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And because of his warm relationship with the Bush Administration, Hager has had the opportunity to see his ideas influence federal policy.
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According to Davis, Hager's public moralizing on sexual matters clashed with his deplorable treatment of her during their marriage. Davis alleges that between 1995 and their divorce in 2002, Hager repeatedly sodomized her without her consent. Several sources on and off the record confirmed that she had told them it was the sexual and emotional abuse within their marriage that eventually forced her out. "I probably wouldn't have objected so much, or felt it was so abusive if he had just wanted normal [vaginal] sex all the time," she explained to me. "But it was the painful, invasive, totally nonconsensual nature of the [anal] sex that was so horrible."

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these repugs are truly sickening! their hypocrisy knows no bounds! Apparently, they don't want anyone else to do the things that they are doing regularly!
Man, forced sodomy, forced group sex, beastiality, male prostitutes given unheard-of access to the white house, etc etc - these people give perverts a bad name!
But damn that Clinton for getting a blowjob!
Move along "liberal media"! Nothing to see here! Gawd forbid that you do your job!

bolton + forced group sex = yikes!

BOLTON FUROR GROWS

Larry Flynt: Bush UN nominee won't answer questions about troubled marriage

Corroborated allegations that Mr. Bolton’s first wife, Christina Bolton, was forced to engage in group sex have not been refuted by the State Department despite inquires posed by Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt concerning the allegations. Mr. Flynt has obtained information from numerous sources that Mr. Bolton participated in paid visits to Plato’s Retreat, the popular swingers club that operated in New York City in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

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Whoa! More from the "moral values" crowd!!!

more propaganda!

Now it's Dept. of Agriculture paying for propaganda

USA Today has another story about the Bush Administration's foibles today. Add the Department of Agriculture to the list of Bush agencies which paid for good press. When the government does that, it's called propaganda. These people are shameless and apparently there are no repercussions.

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This really never ends, does it? This administration is a bottomless pit of corruption, isn't it?

wow!

Ridge Reveals Clashes on Alerts

Former Homeland Security Chief Debunks "Myth"

The Bush administration periodically put the USA on high alert for terrorist attacks even though then-Homeland Security chief Tom Ridge argued there was only flimsy evidence to justify raising the threat level, Ridge now says.

Ridge, who resigned Feb. 1, said Tuesday that he often disagreed with administration officials who wanted to elevate the threat level to orange, or "high" risk of terrorist attack, but was overruled.
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Ridge said he wanted to "debunk the myth" that his agency was responsible for repeatedly raising the alert under a color-coded system he unveiled in2002.

"More often than not we were the least inclined to raise it," Ridge told reporters. "Sometimes we disagreed with the intelligence assessment. Sometimes we thought even if the intelligence was good, you don't necessarily put the country on (alert). ... There were times when some people were really aggressive about raising it, and we said, 'For that?' "
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The level is raised if a majority on the President's Homeland Security Advisory Council favors it and President Bush concurs. Among those on the council with Ridge were Attorney General John Ashcroft, FBI chief Robert Mueller, CIA director George Tenet, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Colin Powell.

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Amazing ! Ridge now confirms what most of us already knew - that this was used for political reasons, not for true threats! My gawd, how many indictments can this administration dodge?! Almost everything that they have done & said has been proven to be lies over & over again and yet nothing ever happens! Incredible!!

interesting headlines!

Good news on severed goat heads: Satan not involved

Schwarzenegger not mad at moon

'Witch' was to be thrown into river?

Impotent ex-husband must pay damages

lawmakers object to fake penis for drug tests