Friedman never fails to amuse--I laughed, I cried...his latest column became a part of me, already.

Outsourcing is good for us because, like, now Indians won't blow us up on buses, man....


Miracle at Bangalore
"Put de gun down, angry Bhim...de Americans are gibbing us deir jobs..."

Your non-college-educated 20-year-old kid may not have a snowball's chance in hell of competing with the kids from Bangalore, but at least they'll be safe from those pesky Indian suicide-bombers. Which pesky Indian suicide bombers, you ask? Oh----uh-------never mind.

Hypocrisy in diplomacy

And so it goes----

"The return of the U.S. oil executives was facilitated by the lifting of the U.S. travel ban on Libya..."

As if we hadn't seen that one coming.

While most Democrats would rather not have us talk about this in a public forum at present, I think it's good to get the truth out there so we may decide for America's future

Imagine November 3, 2004 with a
newly-elected Democratic President-

I came across this article at Counterpunch.com, and it gives me cause to investigate further:

Proponents of "progressive internationalism" are a lock to control leadership positions at the State Department and key civilian posts at the Pentagon in a John Kerry administration. How do we know this? Because these New Democrats obviously ghostwrote Kerry's campaign book, A Call to Service: My Vision for A Better America. Place the Progressive Internationalism manifesto and Kerry's chapter on foreign policy side by side and you'll immediately notice the similarities.

Some people will tell me to keep quiet because progressive pundits are simply "helping Bush". They will tell me the only nominee capable of defeating Bush is the Democratic nominee. My consolation prize for silence will be that Kerry/Edwards/whoever will have less repugnant domestic and foreign policies than Bush.
I do want a far better plan and vision than Bush's. I do think Democrats are capable of leading a better way. However, I will never squelch the questions that will lead us to the answers to a clearer truth, a straighter path, a better America. I think we should all give the Counterpunch article and the New Democrats' PPI foreign policy manifesto a thorough reading and start a dialogue about its content.

Adam Clymer vs. John Kerry-
When pollsters go to war

One man's recommendation for GOP war on John Kerry

One pollster's recommendation war against the front-running Democratic candidate reaches the pages of the NY Times:
From the get-go, Adam Clymer saw great
Kerry-damaging potential with this Kerry-circa-1971 story.

From the Harvard Crimson 2-11-04:

Adam Clymer '58, political director of the National Annenberg Election Survey at the University of Pennsylvania, said Kerry's comments would likely find their way into Bush campaign materials.
"If I were them, I'd use this," said Clymer, a former Crimson president. "I'd use it in direct mail."

In a way, Mr. Clymer respresents "them"--leads "them" with his poll-ideology. I guess Mr. Clymer really meant business when he (basically) said 'Use it, GOP-- use it'! Not only did he mean business, he drummed up some good business for his Election Survey. He made it into today's NY Times article:

A recent poll by the University of Pennsylvania's National Annenberg Election Survey found that Mr. Kerry's antiwar activity was mostly a concern to people who had already made up their minds against him, just as Mr. Bush's wartime service in the Texas Air National Guard was mostly a concern of those who already opposed him.

What's my point here? It's to show you how smear campaigns get professionally rolling and set the stage for the mainstream media mouthpieces. You will note I have not offered my opinion on the topic here--at it shall remain as such. I opt to reserve judgement on the issue until I've had more time to delve into the issue and not simply make a "surface-judgement". The Adam Clymers of the political world understand that most people won't "delve" and will make those "surface-judgements". Opinion based on headlines and polls are not the opinions I treasure or respect. Polls, to me, are like having to deal with a used car salesman. They aren't going away anytime soon, they're in your face, they don't give you the real truth, and you know you have to deal with them-- so you plug your nose and move on.

CHANGE FOR AMERICA


photo credit: changeforamerica.com


Joe Trippi's "Cummings Creek Compact" featured in Boston Globe

Last weekend, Trippi gathered about 40 of his supporters at his farm, where they ate breakfast, worked together to clear brush downed by Hurricane Isabel last fall, and debated the outlines of what would become the Cummings Creek Compact.

Quote of the day:

"Bibles, like history, are written by the winners."

-Nicholas Kristof

The Economist / Iran
Iran Elections: Ordinary Iranians are the real losers
"They are sick of having their personal freedom curtailed by the clerics, and frustrated at the economic stagnation that the Islamic revolution has brought..."

Points from the article:

- Voter apathy might have handed the religious conservatives victory again in the parliamentary elections.

- ..the dodgy parliamentary elections will not help Iran’s case—already, Jack Straw, Britain’s foreign secretary, has hinted it may hamper efforts by the European Union and Iran to reach a trade agreement

- ...the most interesting struggle to watch may be that between the two main groups of conservative clerics—the hardline, isolationist ones and the more pragmatic ones who want Iran to continue improving its relations with the rest of the world.

- Victorious hardliners must hope that most Iranians channel their disillusionment into passive resignation rather than angry demonstrations.

- With the reformists marginalised in the next parliament, the most interesting struggle to watch may be that between the two main groups of conservative clerics—the hardline, isolationist ones and the more pragmatic ones who want Iran to continue improving its relations with the rest of the world.

Hey! No fair! How come I'm staggerin' and you're not?

A Literary TOOL Chest.

Can a Dubya clone be far behind?

Can you spell h-e-l-l ? He's into Nazis, porn, stealing--hey, guess what? He's a p----

Once wasn't enough

Restful vacation or one eye open all night?

Kookie wasn't alone-
Blix: I was a target too


bugged?

Hans Blix, retired chief UN weapons inspector, believes he was bugged in his office and home in New York. He says he "expected to be bugged by the Iraqis, but to be spied upon by the US was a different matter".
~~~~~~~~

Juan Cole at Informed Comment raises an interesting question:

The Blix wiretaps raise an interesting question. Did the US and UK know even more about the lack of evidence for weapons of mass destruction than we thought, from what Blix was saying privately in spring of 2003 before the war?