Democratic Convention-Blogger Update

Democratic Convention-Blogger Update

Anonymoses has provided an update of Bloggers offically covering the Democratic National Convention.

I surely wish my (rescinded) credentials could be reinstated, but if they are not, I want it to be known that I am still appreciative of having been considered.

As Voltaire wrote:

"Appreciation is a wonderful thing: It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well."

So, to:

Dave Winer, Dave Weinberger, Taegan Goddard, Jay Rosen, Markos Moulitsas Zuniga (Daily Kos), Jerome Armstrong, Aldon Hynes (greaterdemocracy.org), Jeralyn Merritt (TalkLeft), Matt Welch, Mathew Gross, Byron LaMasters, librarian.net , Natasha L.C., Tom Burka , "Jim Dinner" (dinner for america), Jesse Taylor (Pandagon) , Patrick Belton (Oxblog), Dave Pell (Electablog) ...and maybe Ana Marie Cox (Wonkette) and Dave Barry (Hey, Dave-say Hi to your stealth-bloggerette Judi Smith for me!).......

You're all my "peeps" (uh--did I actually say "peeps"?) and you are indeed appreciated! What is excellent in YOU shall belong to all of us!

Good luck and godspeed!

Jude

P.S. To my fellow disinivited-
Let's go have a beer! (*rootbeer if you so desire)

OPINIONS: Trial Lawyers, Uniting on War, Stolen Political Signs

OPINIONS: Trial Lawyers, Uniting on War, Stolen Political Signs

Questions raised by my neighbors

The following were statements and questions made from three of my "neighbors" here in the greater Syracuse, N.Y. area. (Their respective letters to the editor of the Syracuse Post Standard appeared in today's newspaper). I believe they are reflective of the opinions of people across our nation.

Rick from Mattydale, N.Y. mentioned, in regard to recent John Edwards-bashing, that another man "so highly regarded that his likeness is on both the penny and the five-dollar bill was a TRIAL LAWYER before he went on to become our country's greatest President."

I agree that we should give that fact some meditation before we allow the phrase "trial lawyer" to automatically be equated with something vile. I think it's important to remember who John Edwards represented as a trial lawyer. As a plaintiff attorney, he represented the people of this land. The Davids against the Goliaths. Think of the powerful corporate lobby and thank the trial lawyers for organizing a balancing counterpart. Thank the trial lawyer for being there for you. Does the trial lawyer have a vested interest in your legal success? You bet! But don't forget, in the end, it is YOUR interests that are protected by this trial lawyer.


__________________________

Susan from Baldwinsville, N.Y. believes that, despite our political affiliation or feelings toward the Bush administration, "we must not forget what is at stake" in the war on terror. (The war on Iraq notwithstanding). Susan says "If we lose due to our failure to unite, the world will be forever at the mercy of terrorism."

I don't believe the answer to "winning the war on terror" is by our consent to ideologically unite. Why?

First, what does "winning" mean? There has never been any real forthcoming from the current administration about what this war on terror will truly entail over the long run. Iraq was surely an unnecessary road taken. Our military has been stretched to capacity. There is no exit strategy. I see little strategy whatsoever, as a matter of fact.

Second, it will be virtually impossible for so many Americans, especially now with the common knowlege that we were no less than misled about the reasons for hastily waging what has come to be an out-of-control war on Iraq, to trust the Bush administration to formulate an honest and wise strategy to beat the odds on terror and to stem the growth of terror in Muslim countries.

If we, the people, choose to unite, it can only be done with an intelligent form of patriotism, as discussed by Associate Dean of the Maxwell School for Governemnt at Syracuse University, Robert McClure not long after 9/11.

"We don't know where, exacxtly, to find the enemy. Or who precisely to target. Whether rooting out the enemy at home or pursuing him abroad, the means are untried and unclear. Old—well-rehearsed war plans and massive firepower seem not so well-suited to today’s shifting and shielded battlefields. And no matter what course of action is contemplated, from dropping bombs to dropping food, unintended consequences with undesirable and costly result are sure to occur. Such is the nasty business of war.

We will wage this new war (at least in one fundamental respect) as we have earlier wars—by trial and error.. hoping to muster enough good sense and good luck to muddle through today’s uncertainties..and then to do the same tomorrow..and the day after tomorrow…and on and on until some unknown exhausting endpoint.

But without a formal beginning, without specified state belligerents named in a congressional declaration, this new kind of war poses the added danger of becoming open-ended: a war without boundaries; a war without end..."

--Robert McClure Senior Associate Dean Maxwell School for Government, Syracuse University
from Intelligent Patriotism--A speech given by McClure to MAX 123 class on February 4, 2002

Uniting will entail having leadership we can trust and a clear understanding of what this war on terror actually means and a display of a clear-minded strategy so we can understand what "winning" will mean. Freedom is the hallmark of our American unification. If we cannot trust that the Bush administration has our precious Freedom at the heart of this war (the freedom for which our troops fight and die), how can we ever become a united people?

In the words of one of the Founding Fathers, Alexander Hamilton:

The violent destruction of life and property incident to war, the continual effort and alarm attendant on a state of continual danger will compel nations the most attached to liberty to resort for repose and security to institutions which have a tendency to destroy their civil and political rights. To be more safe they at length become willing to run the risk of being less free.”

Federalist #8

_______________________

Someone keeps stealing Ellen and David's "Bush Must Go" sign from their front lawn in Westvale, N.Y. They're on the THIRD sign at the time of this writing. They ask: "Is the effort of stealing our sign intended to win us over to the Republican Party?"

What are these sign-stealing people thinking? What do they hope to accomplish? They obviously covet their neighbor's right to the rare and precious all-American right of free speech..and they are thieves. (That's two Commandments broken for those who subscribe to the Ten).

Do you remember this music from 'Fahrenheit 9/11'?

Do you remember this music from 'Fahrenheit 9/11'?

This was the music you heard in "Fahrenheit 9/11" during the scene where the World Trade Center towers have been hit and papers are floating, like snow, to the ground below.

*Listen to sample..song #2.*

It is "Cantus In Memory Of Benjamin Britten" by Arvo Part.

What is your favorite magazine?

What is your favorite magazine?

The Chicago Tribune has posted their list of the Best 50 Magazines.

Some magazines I like to read: The New Yorker, The Economist, The Sun, Utne Reader, No Depression, The Philosopher's Magazine.

I still believe Joseph C. Wilson IV

I still believe
Joseph C. Wilson IV

The new Senate intelligence committee report has served to undermine Joseph C. Wilson IV's prior assertions that the Bush administration had manipulated intelligence to build their case for war. He has said that his trip to Niger should have laid to rest any notion that Iraq sought uranium there and has said his findings were ignored by the White House.

Committee Chairman (and eager reader of stolen internal Dem memos) [Sen.] Pat Roberts (who cannot hide his wicked partisanship, no matter how hard he tries) is saying that Mr. Wilson misled the public about the significance of what he learned in Niger, then incorrectly charged that the CIA later briefed Dick Cheney on what Wilson found.

Don't tell me about misleading, Pat Roberts. Mr. Wilson's alleged "misleading" didn't result in over 800 American troops' deaths in a war Mr. Wilson was trying to avert.

If you want to talk about REAL misleaders...

It's clear to me that the report will (sadly but truly) be [ab]used by the Bush administration to attempt to legally snake out of its culpability in the treasonous outing of Mr. Wilson's wife.

Let me ask you:

If a CIA official told a Senate committee that [outed CIA agent] Valerie Plame "offered up" her husband Joseph Wilson's name for the infamous Niger trip, do you think it would follow logically that it was perfectly legal to leak her classified CIA identity to the likes of Bob Novak [aka "Douchebag for Liberty"]?
*Wilson has asserted that his wife was not even involved in the initial decision to send him to Niger. She "responded" to requests, she didn't "initiate".

Would the fact that the Bush administration considered Plame's outing a necessity and an "unintentional" and legal consequence fly in the face of common sense? If it does fly, then I assure you..common sense is dead.. and the rule of law is a passe concept...and I am living in some alternative universe.

Administration officials told columnist Robert D. Novak then that Wilson, a partisan critic of Bush's foreign policy, was sent to Niger at the suggestion of Plame, who worked in the nonproliferation unit at CIA. The disclosure of Plame's identity, which was classified, led to an investigation into who leaked her name.

The report may bolster the rationale that administration officials provided the information not to intentionally expose an undercover CIA employee, but to call into question Wilson's bona fides as an investigator into trafficking of weapons of mass destruction. To charge anyone with a crime, prosecutors need evidence that exposure of a covert officer was intentional.

[LINK]

It's the former Nigerian mining minister's word vs Joseph Wilson's word regarding the scope of the Iraqi attempt to purchase 400 tons of uranium in 1998. I would like to see a better explanation than "Perhaps I misspoke.." from Mr. Wilson about his conclusion that the Niger intelligence was based on documents that had clearly been forged because "the dates were wrong and the names were wrong." (since the report states he never had opportunity to even see these documents).

The report throws up a smokescreen to make us wonder about Joseph Wilson's honesty in his prior statements about the Niger case, but in the end, the report is not conclusive and we are left to either believe Joseph Wilson's word or not. I tend to believe him over the others who consciously chose to leak his wife's classified identity and for whose motive I believe could have been nothing other than revenge (regardless of Wilson's role).

It's all still too shady for anyone to be qualified to call Joseph Wilson a liar. The panel has found that the CIA has not fully investigated possible efforts by Iraq to buy uranium in Niger to this day, citing reports from a foreign service and the U.S. Navy about uranium from Niger destined for Iraq and stored in a warehouse in Benin. The agency did not examine forged documents that have been widely cited as a reason to dismiss the purported effort by Iraq until months after it obtained them. The panel said it still has "not published an assessment to clarify or correct its position on whether or not Iraq was trying to purchase uranium from Africa."

As far as common sense is concerned, this report does not prove or disprove Joseph Wilson's criticism of the Bush administration's abuse of bad intelligence.

Just as I believed there was no imminent threat to America all along based on the information I'd personally collected before the Iraq war, I continue to believe Joseph C. Wilson IV. He has my benefit of doubt.. and I hope he'll have yours, dear readers.

Consider the liars and the powers he's up against.

Homeland Insecurity

Homeland Insecurity

"It is absolutely essential for the U.S. Senate to turn its attention to what we can do to make America safe," Sen Tom Daschle said this past Thursday after reading what he called a "sobering" report of new terrorist activity concerns within the United States.


Photo credit: News14.Charlotte

On July 1st in Charlotte N.C., I heard U.S. Senatorial candidate Erskine Bowles discuss his $34 billion plan for Homeland Security.

It felt pretty good to hear someone stressing the importance of securing our homeland.

I wondered why we'd been so lax on Homeland Security thus far?

Didn't 9/11 happen three years ago?

I wonder why folks in Washington state had to ask for months and months to get a green light to use homeland security grants to send people to special courses offered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency?

I wonder why 52 percent of 231 American cities surveyed are still left empty-handed, have not received any money, nor have been notified that they will receive money from the state-block grant program -- the largest homeland security program -- which is designed to assist first responders such as police, fire, and other local officials?

I wonder why, amid fresh and sobering warnings, the Homeland Security bill has stalled in Senate?

I wonder what pretty colors Tom Ridge will be showing us over the next few months?

Triple Trouble-Help the Beastie Boys Get to Rally!

Triple Trouble-Help the Beastie Boys Get to Rally!

This game is great fun.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-check it out.*

The Beastie Boys need your help.

Pick your favorite Beastie Boy and help him make it across the street to a political rally (without getting plowed down by Bush, Cheney, Rummy and Condi tanks).

Watch out, because when they take a hit---oh, man-- do they splatter.

America's Vision of Liberty is Real-Is It True?

America's Vision of Liberty is Real-Is It True?

Please begin by reading the paragraph below from an article titled "Hating America".

America is built on an idea, namely liberty; but far from being divorced from reality, it is an idea that Americans have realized, developed, and successfully exported for more than two centuries. We have demonstrated the depth of our commitment as a people to this idea by waging a revolution, a civil war, two World Wars, several smaller wars, and the Cold War in its name. It is, in short, an idea that is utterly indissoluble from our own living, breathing, everyday reality. By contrast, much of Western Europe is founded on an idea of itself that is significantly, and dangerously, divorced from reality. That idea, as Robert Kagan explains so adroitly, is that the world has moved beyond the necessity of war. It is a pretty fiction, but a fiction nonetheless. And keeping it alive requires that one ignore dangerous realities—such as the growing problem of militant Islam within Europe’s own borders.

In the excerpt from the article, it is recommended by Robert Kagan (who co-founded the Project for the New American Century with William Kristol) that we never become so far removed from reality to think our world has moved beyond the necessity of war.

When we allow the words "necessity of war" to pass from our lips, it should be passed in an almost sacred manner. War brings the certainty of death to innocents as well as enemy combatants. War brings death to our own troops. War is never to be entered into lightly. War is never to be rushed into by damaging the public's trust with lies and grossly misleading exaggerations.

The war upon Iraq was not a necessity. Never, ever was it necessary to send our troops into harm's way and to alienate our European allies in the process.

President Bush keeps telling us Islamist militants attack us because they "hate" our freedom. This is not true. They want total revolution in their own Muslim lands. We are providing them with the perfect environment for their revolution.

If you listen to Robert Kagan's ideas, you may see where hatred for American freedom has already been a problem and has become a larger problem since Bush took the foreign-policy reins.....but more than in Muslim lands, the hatred grows in Europe.

With hatred growing in Europe, our very hopes and chances to defeat terror are greatly diminished.

We know (now more than ever) that Iraq was no threat to America. It may be in America’s business interest to encourage liberalism and discourage violence in Muslim countries..but obviously it is not a sure bet that it's in America's best security interests to occupy these nations in the hopes of spreading democracy. It isn't worth the war we waged. It's a damned dangerous proposition in today's world of terror-threats within our own borders. We will surely become divorced from reality if we don't see the consequences of our dogmatic interference in the affairs of these lands.

The exportation of liberty from the U.S. to Iraq has been tremendously unsuccessful. The "pretty fiction" of the unnecessity of war was one to which the Bush administration simply could or would not believe, in this case. They were determined to rush to war. Our European allies cautioned us against it. Those wimpy American-hating Europeans had a good point this time. If we weren't so macho-Texas-cocky, we'd have admitted it by now and gotten back humbly with the rest of whatever's left of our civilized world. We need one another, whether we choose to sit and wring our hands about how the Europeans hate us or not.

Robert Kagan has said we cannot divorce ourselves from the reality that war is a necessity and that believing otherwise is "pretty fiction".

The truth, in the case of Iraq, was that war was not a necessity.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said that fiction reveals truth that reality obscures.

Truth wasn't the Bush administration's priority, obviously.

____________


Note: When the author of the article (mentioned/linked above) reduced Gore Vidal to an "anti-American" crank, I knew I was reading someone out of touch with the realities of who Mr. Vidal is and where he's come from. Gore Vidal, from a family of long-standing patriots, understands America..he IS America. Whether or not Europe revels in his writings should be of little consequence. What matters is that we Americans never divert our own eyes from the TRUTH.

Bush is al-Qaeda's Choice in November 2004

Bush is al-Qaeda's Choice in November 2004

What enables President George W. Bush to explain away why our nation was attacked with the simple phrase, "They hate our freedoms"?

Why does that simple statement lead to an avoidance of any discussion that delves into the impact of American foreign policy in the Middle East on Arab and Muslim attitudes towards the United States? How are Americans so easily blinded to the nature of the strategic game into which their country has been tricked into playing a role?

Why do we believe the 9/11 attacks were aimed at American values?

The true and stated goal of the Islamists is to take power in their own Muslim countries.

At STLtoday.com, writer Gwynne Dyer forwards the notion that prior to 9/11, the fundamental Islamists could not win over enough local people to make their revolutions happen. She claims that "getting the United States to march into the Muslim world in pursuit of terrorists was a potentially promising stratagem, since such an invasion would produce endless images of American soldiers killing and humiliating Muslims. That, in turn, might push enough people into the arms of the Islamists to get their long-stalled revolutions off the ground."

What should be the most alarming part of Ms. Gwynne's story is the fact that, because of Bush's war on Iraq, the Islamists got more than they'd ever dreamed of getting. To the Islamist aggressors' initial dismay, we'd conquered Afghanistan quickly and at a very low cost in lives. Then Iraq was attacked pre-emptively by an impulsive Bush and a pliant U.S. Congress. The reason al-Qaeda is still "in business" is that the Bush administration decided to invade Iraq. If the Islamists were astonished at that turn of events, they certainly knew how to exploit the opportunity handed to them on a golden platter by Mr. Bush.

It isn't any wonder al-Qaeda has expressed a hope that Mr. Bush will be re-elected this fall.

Bush is al-Qaeda's choice for American President.

As long as Americans continue to believe 9/11 was connected directly to Iraq and as long as they continue to believe the Islamists simply "hated our freedoms", they (and their beloved sons and daughters) will continue to be used as pawns in somebody else's strategy..namely the Islamists. The greatly impulsive, misleading, and justice-thirsty G.W. Bush is allowing our national strategy to fall into their hands again and again.

Do You WIn a War if No One Surrenders?

Do You Win a War if No One Surrenders?

Gregg Easterbrook at The New Republic reminds us that no one in Iraq has ever officially sent up the white flag and the Bush administration has been cavalier in never pushing for finality in the surrender-department, brushing it off as just another formality. The Iraqi general staff never signed any overall surrender or truce. We need to understand that this is "confounding the occupation of Iraq". After all, surrenders are essential to the cessation of war, aren't they? Mr. Easterbrook reminds us that "the lack of surrender from Iraq, by contrast, is a reason many Iraqis do not accept the occupation, view the coalition presence as illegitimate, and do not appear to think their hopes lie with the United States".

Some say there was never a formal surrender in Afghanistan, but the U.S. has never seized full possession of Afghanistan.

The Bush administration never sought a formal surrender from the Iraqi general staff...and Iraqis continue the fight against all they imagine us to be.

Could wiser tactical efforts to clarify and disseminate the PR of surrender from the time Baghdad fell in Spring 2003 have saved thousands of lives and ended the madness by now?

Disappointed: My Democratic Convention Press Credentials Have Been Rescinded

Disappointed: My Democratic Convention Press Credentials Have Been Rescinded

I was ready to tell you the good news-- that I would be going to Boston to officially cover the convention as a blogger. I had received a letter of confirmation from the Convention officials and was beginning to make travel plans. Unfortunately, there were a number of bloggers who had been offered credentials who had to be cut because the officials had accepted more bloggers than they could accommodate. Thus, they acted as quickly as possible to notify people of their error.

So I will not be one of the first-ever batch of bloggers to cover a National Convention.

Am I disappointed?

You bet.

Am I happy to have been considered as a fitting candidate?

Most certainly.

As it stands, I'll be watching the Convention from here in my lovely city of Syracuse and commenting from my easy-chair. (The next best thing to being there.) I have blogging-acquaintances who will be there to provide great insight and am very excited to see them getting recognition as the new and exciting brand of journalists they are.

You can read all about the Convention bloggers at Daily Kos and PressThink.

And here at CBS.

And here at the Boston Globe.

The Buzzmachine thinks all the disinvited bloggers should be reinstated.

Quote of the Day- Kenneth S. Baer

Quote of the Day- Kenneth S. Baer

"A candidate must appeal to those who wear trucker hats because they are fashionable, as well as those who are actually truckers; those whose Sunday morning ritual includes brunch and The New York Times, and those whose Sunday rituals take place in church; those who believe a bass is an integral part of a jazz combo, and those who believe it’s something to catch and release with buddies over a beer."

--American Prospect writer Kenneth S. Baer, explaining how Senator John Edwards helps the Democratic ticket appeal to both the cosmopolitan and the provincial.


________________

According to Adam Nagourney, the Kerry camp sees John Edwards helping with the rural vote.

Rove thinks Bush has the November election sewn up

Rove thinks Bush has the November election sewn up
...but what happens if the values begin to unravel?

According to ABC's Political Note, The Associated Press' Ron Fournier did an interview with Karl Rove at some point on Thursday. Rove told Mr Fournier "the conditions for a Bush victory are all there -- a strong economy, an improving position in the global war on terror and a growing sense that there are sharp and clear differences in values between the two campaigns".

Values seems to be an important new addition to the Bush campaign strategy (along with a resurging economy and a hoped-for improvement in Iraq security.)

Dan Froomkin at the Washington Post talks about the Values issue today in his column.

"The theme increasingly running through President Bush's public messages these days (even more than his constant insistence that he is optimistic) is that his values are America's values.
Bush is hoping to persuade American voters that his own morality, faith and patriotism stand in contrast to Senator John F. Kerry's and more closely mirror their own. It's a powerful assertion.
But it's an assertion that is vehemently challenged by Democrats -- and it may have some risks.
Imagine what would happen if, for instance, it were to turn out that Bush was using terror warnings for political purposes; or if he shirked his National Guard duty in Vietnam; or if one of his top aides were charged with outing a CIA operative as an act of political retaliation; or if he is perceived as being part and parcel with the likes of indicted former Enron Corp. Chairman Kenneth L. Lay..."

I gave that some thought...Ken Lay....recently trotted out in handcuffs for all America to see....

I wonder what the American people would think of Bush-values if they heard about 1997, when Karl Rove, (then TX Gov. Bush's closest political advisor), went to someone at Enron and asked that person to hire Ralph Reed, who was just leaving his job as head of the Christian Coalition. The Enron gig was a biggie for Mr. Reed. According to Robert Bryce at Salon.com:

"As one of his first clients, Enron gave his new outfit, Century Strategies, instant credibility. It also put Reed squarely on the Bush/Rove/Lay team. And in those days, as Bush was cranking up his presidential run, having Reed on his side was critically important. Lay could explain why Enron decided to hire Reed. He could tell us whether Rove offered him any quid pro quo. He could also offer his opinion on whether Reed was worth the expense and describe exactly what Reed did for Enron. Finally, he could explain why, just a few months before Enron filed for bankruptcy, Reed was given an additional contract, this one paying him $30,000 per month plus expenses."

You can read David Corn's 7 July article on The Democrats' V-Word HERE.

OUTFOXED: Press Release/Eric Alterman

OUTFOXED: Press Release
Republican Bias at Fox News Documented in New Film

Source: MoveOn.org; Center for American Progress
Friday July 9, 12:29 pm ET
Former Fox Journalists, Internal Memos to Blow the Whistle on Fox Partisan Bias
Progressives Call for Media Reform

LINK HERE

_______________

See Eric Alterman's "Think Again: Media Concentration: The Repudiation of Mr. Powell" HERE.

Quote:

"The Center for American Progress, the World Policy Institute and the American Prospect will sponsor an all-star panel discussion on this issue, preceding an airing of a new documentary by Robert Greenwald, "Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism." The hope is to find some common ground for media activists, interested citizens, and journalists and intellectuals concerned about the future of a democratic and diverse media. The issue could hardly be more crucial than during an election year. As former FCC member Nicholas Johnson frequently notes, "Whatever your first issue of concern, media had better be your second, because without change in the media, progress in your primary area is far less likely."

UPDATE: July 11th WP article

NYT Magazine- How to Make a Guerilla Documentary

Editor and Publisher article about OUTFOXED

Valerie Plame Watch

Valerie Plame Watch

As you probably know, Valerie Plame was the CIA agent whose identity was leaked to journalists (Bob Novak used her best) in an attempt to counter allegations by her
husband (Joseph Wilson) about Bush administration exaggerations on the alleged purchase of yellowcake from Niger (as used badly in Bush's 2002 State of the Union speech).

In American Prospect, Murray S. Waas says that before a special counsel was appointed to lead the investigation, John Ashcroft was getting frequent, detailed updates "relating to the potential culpability of several close political associates in the Bush administration..." and that "Ashcroft was provided extensive details of an FBI interview of Karl Rove, President George W. Bush's chief political advisor." "In addition, sources said, Ashcroft received a briefing regarding copious notes maintained by I. Lewis Libby, the chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney."

Dan Froomkin of the Washington Post says:

Waas writes that some of Libby's notes describe efforts to discredit Wilson by the mysterious cabal known as the White House Iraq Group. Little is known about that group beyond what Barton Gellman and Walter Pincus wrote in The Washington Post last August. But it included Rove, Libby, adviser Karen Hughes and other top White House players.

Anyway, once Ashcroft bowed to political pressure and appointed U.S. Attorney Patrick J. Fitzgerald as a special counsel, the briefings ended.

And as Waas writes, "Fitzgerald's intentions currently remain one of the most tightly held secrets in Washington."

Democrats far too passive on Senate Intelligence investigation

Democrats far too passive on Senate Intelligence investigation

At Salon, Mary Jacoby is making a point to which I believe we need to pay close attention. As I reported yesterday, there are two official WMD-related reports coming out soon. One is due today from the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee. Ms Jacoby reveals, through unnamed sources, that the Democrats in the Senate are not being as forceful as they should be in looking out for the people's best interests. Once again (as in the lead-up to the Iraq invasion), our Democratic representatives in the Senate are wimping out on us. They're allowing Senator Pat Roberts and his GOP partners on the Intelligence Committee to blame it all on bad intelligence and delay the next phase ("Phase Two"), which will be examining the administration's decision to invade Iraq (using/abusing the bad intelligence). The Senate Democrats "laid the groundwork for their own political defeat" last February when they agreed to delay the second phase of the investigation until after this November's election.

Senator Roberts has allegedly been back-pedaling on "Phase Two" of this committee investigation, but the resolution establishing the committee clearly has extended its purview to the "use of information" about "collected, analyzed, produced and disseminated intelligence." A former Democratic aide is quoted as saying about the current report: "....they tried to put a bipartisan patina on it, but anybody who accepts that on face value is out of touch.." The Republicans are running the show on this committee and while we know it, most of the general public will only hear what the GOP wants them to hear.

The saddest part of the story is that our Democratic representation has wimped out again.
As the unnamed Democratic source told Ms Jacoby for this article, the Democrats need to push the envelope. I've commented previously (on Iddybud blog) that I felt Jay Rockefeller was too lame and tame on this issue and I don't see that he's changed one iota since.

An excerpt from the article will show you what I mean:

Roberts will argue that the report puts to rest the question of whether President Bush misled the nation about the threat posed by Saddam Hussein. Instead, it was Bush who was misled by the Central Intelligence Agency, Roberts will contend. He will also note that of 200 intelligence analysts interviewed by the panel, none said they were ordered by the administration to tailor their reports to bolster the argument for war.

Rockefeller will parry that the issue is more complicated. Did the administration's predetermination that Iraq was a threat influence a politically pliable intelligence bureaucracy to produce judgments that would support that conclusion? And what about those intelligence analysts who said they felt no pressure -- did the committee ask them the right questions? Perhaps no one directly told them to change their conclusions, Rockefeller will argue, but it's less clear whether they faced more subtle institutional pressures to exaggerate the threat.

..According to Democratic sources... the committee focused narrowly on whether analysts were given direct orders to change wording. The panel did not explore the more nuanced question of whether institutional pressures and politics played a role in shaping the analysis. Rockefeller is expected to maintain that because the White House started from the premise that war was necessary, the intelligence bureaucracy was under pressure to tell policymakers what they wanted to hear.

Those questions of Senator Rockefeller's will be all well and good....but we know we won't have any answers until well after November, 2004 (and perhaps no investigation at all).

Remember the old song that goes "Johnny get angry...Johnny get mad...!" I can't imagine Senator Rockefeller getting "mad" and giving Pat Roberts the "biggest lecture he ever had". His passivity on this intelligence investigation, along with his Democratic counterparts, could prove a costly error for John Kerry's presidential campaign.

I want a brave man.

I want a cave man.

Democrats will be BIG losers as long as they timidly allow the GOP continue to whitewash their crimes (including theft of internal Democratic memos) and run away unscarred.

To our Troops on July 4: "We didn't want this for you."

To our Troops on 4 July:
"We didn't want this for you."
....and we tried to stop it...."

Independence Day
4 July, 2004
by Todd Schneider

This an unsettling day for me. It is a day wrapped up in an American flag - a symbol of our great Republic and (most importantly) our Constitution. But this dear symbol of ours, which we all hope represents goodness and mercy to all those outside our borders, and a symbol of pride to we citizens when it does represent these ideals, has become little more than a propaganda tool for commerce and Machiavellian politicians.

It is an unsettling day because the stories of my ancestors are entwined with the stories of our great nation's flag, and its military endeavors; some necessary, and some not so. I have a grandfather (Gx4) who was a hero of the revolution, and his son a volunteer in the war of 1812. I have an ancestor that died from eating poison pies made by the women (what our government would call 'insurgents' today) of Perote Mexico, while marching on Mexico City with Winfield Scott in the questionable Mexican War. And I have a Gx3 uncle who was one of the first group of union soldiers interred at Andersonville. He died there. His grave is #2183. I am the keeper of these dead ancestors' stories. I love the memory of their honor, loyalty and sacrifice. And these are ideals that I've always made certain that my sons understood - ideals that hold more value than all others.

But something has changed, and it has changed me. What has changed is our current administration's brazen use of our military as a corporate and electioneering tool. Likewise, in the private sector, the Bishops of the Church of Never-Ending Consumption have consciously decided to use our flag as a gimmick in order to sell something - anything to a public that so much wants to do the right thing by being patriotic.

Now, I have just enough education to know that the use of our military for questionable purposes is not unprecedented in our country's history. As long as we have the danger of war, we will have the military, and the chance they will be misused. In the extreme view, some would say that the military will always be misused, therefore should not exist. I do not share this view, because WE DID help to stop Hitler, and I would hope that we could stop another tyrant bent on world domination if we have to. But what bothers me so intensely is that the bush administration has openly and unapologetically used our young men and women and a sense of ultra-nationalism to enrich their contributors and demand the full and uncompromising loyalty of the electorate.

Today, with all I have come to know about matters of ultra-nationalism, patrioteering, vote-pandering and greed, I have been forced to look at things very skeptically, and I don't feel comfortable with my own tainted view. But unless we have a change in leadership, I'm afraid there's no turning back. When I see the National Guard folks leaving from Stow, I have to wonder whether they are leaving in service to a citizenry that loves them, or are they off to be pawns in some commercial exploitation scheme. Worse yet, are they an election tool for an administration that seems bent on dispensing with Democracy? And similarly, when I gaze upon a well intentioned person with an American flag-adorned garment, or see a car with an appliqué American flag on it's door, do they not know that they disrespect the flag according to Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 8 of the United States Code? Okay, maybe they don't, but you can almost bet the company that manufactured them did.

So, I am here today to say to our military people that I am sorry. I am sorry that my feelings have changed, and it's not your fault. It's the fault of unscrupulous merchants and a more unscrupulous band of politicians and their strategists that have made a conscious decision to exploit our sense of loyalty and duty. We do love you, and didn't want you to go to this war that will forever color what our military represents to the world. We knew you might be killed. We knew that you might be horribly wounded. We knew that you might be in a position to do things that are not your nature and may suffer inside because of it. We didn't want this for you, and we tried to stop it. And when my heart less than 'swells with pride' when I view public displays of patriotism, please forgive me. It's not you. And it’s certainly not our wonderful land, with all its blessings. This is between me and Karl Rove, Karen Hughes and Dick Cheney.

On the other hand, to those who use patriotism for their political and commercial advantage, there will be no apologies from me or my family. What you do is a disgrace, and cheapens everything in the American ideal. The act of using patriotism for personal gain is itself a dishonest act that preys on the most vulnerable natures of our citizens, and is a most dreadful stunt indeed We will fight this evil sleight of hand in discussion, by boycott and at the polls.

Used with the author's permission

Is Cheney ticket-toast?

Is Cheney ticket-toast?

Daily Kos is talking about it.

Anonymoses is talking about it.

My comment (today) at Daily Kos was:

If Cheney is found to have any connection at all to the outing of Valerie Plame, he'll be off the ticket pronto. I've been suspecting this possible Plame-outing-connection is a good part of the reason why the nervous "oust Cheney" movement has lately begun in Republican circles.
Also, when Bush was asked how Edwards would stack up against Vice President Cheney, he replied: 'Dick Cheney can be president. Next?'
YET--- recent polls show that American voters actually prefer Edwards to Cheney, both as vice president and, should it come to that, as president. Respondents in the most recent NBC poll preferred Edwards over Cheney by 45 to 38 percent.
Not good news for the Bush/Cheney ticket at all.

Voter disenfranchisement-How far have we come from 1876?

Voter disenfranchisement-
How far have we come from 1876?

It may be a vain hope that this presidency will end in impeachment, but the past four years have been an object lesson in what can be accomplished once you get the Voting Rights Act, the 15th and the 19th Amendments out of the way..


As a descendant of Presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden, who lost in the dubious 1876 election, I was interested to have read this passage from a compelling article titled "What to the Slave is the 4th of July?" written by William Jelani Cobb, assistant professor of history at Spelman College:

Watch the opening scenes of Fahrenheit 9/11 and you can't help but think that Michael Moore was creating a dramatic re-enactment from the pages of W.E.B. Du Bois' Black Reconstruction. A brief history lesson: Reconstruction, the twelve-year period following the Civil War in which African Americans — some of whom were former slaves — were elected as sheriffs, state representatives, members of congress and even governors and senators, came to a grinding halt with the election of 1876. That year, the results from the contest between the Republican nominee, Rutherford B. Hayes, and the Democratic nominee, Samuel J. Tilden, were so close that the election was thrown to the House of Representatives to be decided. For those interested in the ironic echoes of history, a key factor in the close margin lay in the failure to count votes from blacks living in Southern states — including, as you have already guessed, Florida. The House brokered a behind-doors deal allowing for Hayes' election in return for concessions to the Southern Democrats who so hated Reconstruction, clearing the way for a series of reactionary governments that oversaw the increased incarceration of African Americans as a money-making venture, the rise of sharecropping as an exploitative labor system, an explosion of mob violence directed at blacks and the rise of Jim Crow.

Echoes of the sad results of the infamous 1876 election ring still today. Have you ever considered that the disfranchisement of black voters may have paved the way to all of the following accomplishments?

On the cusp of its 228th birthday, this country is mired in a seemingly endless occupation of Iraq — despite the return of "sovereignty" to the Iraqi "government." The current Presidential administration has misled the public, squandered international goodwill, authored the most disastrous foreign policy in recent memory, undercut the authority of the United Nations, undermined due process by creating secret military tribunals for civilian offenses, curtailed freedom of speech and spent billions waging war in the name of eliminating a false threat to national security. Add into the equation its contempt for international treaties, hostile ecological politics, its implication in the war profiteering of Halliburton and the damning accusation that the Bush administration deliberately blew the cover of CIA agent Valerie Plame as retribution for her husband's criticism of their Iraq policy, and you have a broad pattern of dishonesty and political incompetence. (If Douglass was around today, he would, almost certainly be asking "What to the Iraqi citizen is the 4th of July?")

I wonder---will we sit back silently and watch the same thing happen to our presidential election in November, 2004?

___________________

"Without a vote, a voice, I am a ghost inhabiting a citizen’s space...I want to walk calmly into a polling place with other citizens, to carry my placid ballot into the booth, check off my choices, then drop my conscience in the common box."

Joe Loya, a disenfranchised American voter

Ronald Reagan to Bush: Do you think dead Iraqis go to Heaven?

Ronald Reagan to Bush: Do you think dead Iraqis go to Heaven?

On the O'Franken Factor show on Air America this afternoon, Ronald Prescott Reagan told Al Franken he thought there was an important question to be asked of President Bush:

Do the tens of thousands of innocent Iraqi citizens we've killed in this optional war go to Heaven when they die?

Reagan believes it's an important notion to put forward to a President who alleges to pride himself on his faith-based morality.

He also said it wouldn't hurt if Bush explained to the American people why he lied about the reasons for our invasion of Iraq. He believes the American people are owed the real reasons and the Bush administration has never offered those reasons.

Official Reports Will Reveal Widespread Intelligence Failure

Official Reports Will Reveal Widespread Intelligence Failure
Will do more than fix blame on Bush and Blair--Will scream for institutional changes

The pending releases (July 9th and 14th) of two highly critical reports (Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and The "Lord Butler" report) on US and British prewar intelligence leading up to the Iraq war are allegedly the most damaging attack yet on the intelligence used to justify the war and are expected to be a blow for Bush and Blair. The impact of the findings are expected to do more than fix official blame, however. Instead, they'll likely expose a worldwide intelligence failure. Lord Butler is expected to "comment sharply" on the way the chairman of Whitehall's joint intelligence committee interpreted secret information supplied by MI6. Sir Jeremy Greenstock, a retired British diplomat, has heavily criticized the Bush administration for accepting the "wrong analysis" from the very well-(U.S.)-paid Iraqi exile, Ahmed Chalabi, who downplayed the threat of insurgency and got no curious argument from G.W. Bush.

A similar charge will accompany the US Senate's intelligence findings. The Niger/uranium-buy question (which resulted in Joseph Wilson's revelations and the treasonous subsequent Novak-facilitated outing of Wilson's wife Valerie Plame as a CIA agent) will be covered in the Lord Butler report. On July 26th, the 9-11 Independent Commission report will also undoubtedly be highly critical of the CIA.

Tony Blair Accepts WMDs Not in Iraq

Tony Blair Accepts WMDs Not in Iraq

"I have to accept that we have not found them, that we may not find them."

--Tony Blair to a committee of lawmakers on Tuesday

I recall Blair's words before the war on Iraq...

"It [the intelligence service] concludes that Iraq has chemical and biological weapons, that Saddam has continued to produce them, that he has existing and active military plans for the use of chemical and biological weapons, which could be activated within 45 minutes, including against his own Shia population; and that he is actively trying to acquire nuclear weapons capability..."

--September 24, 2002 House of Commons


I think of poor Dr. Kelly...

The Choice: John Edwards!

The Choice: John Edwards!

It's Kerry/Edwards...the best choice has been made



The email:

Dear Friend,

In just a few minutes, I will announce that Senator John Edwards will join me as my running-mate on the Democratic ticket as a candidate for vice president of the United States. Teresa and I could not be more excited that John and Elizabeth Edwards will be our partners in our journey to make America stronger at home and respected in the world.

You are the heart and soul of our campaign. You've shattered records and expectations every step of the way. Every time someone said you couldn't do it, you proved them wrong. Because of your incredible grassroots energy and commitment, I wanted to make the first official announcement of my decision to you -- more than one million online supporters at johnkerry.com.

I want you to know why I'm excited about running for president with John Edwards by my side. John understands and defends the values of America. He has shown courage and conviction as a champion for middle class Americans and those struggling to reach the middle class. In the Senate, he worked to reform our intelligence, to combat bioterrorism, and keep our military strong. John reaches across party lines and speaks to the heart of America -- hope and optimism. Throughout his own campaign for President, John spoke about the great divide in this country -- the "Two Americas" -- that exist between those who are doing well today and those that are struggling to make it from day to day. And I am so proud that we're going to build one America together.

In the next 120 days and in the administration that follows, John Edwards and I will be fighting for the America we love. We'll be fighting to give the middle class a voice by providing good paying jobs and affordable health care. We'll be fighting to make America energy independent. We'll be fighting to build a strong military and lead strong alliances, so young Americans are never put in harm's way because we insisted on going it alone.

I can't tell you how proud I am to have John Edwards on my team, or how eager I am for the day this fall when he stands up for our vision and goes toe-to-toe with Dick Cheney.

This is the most important election of our lifetime, and a defining moment in our history. With you by our side every day of this campaign, John and I will lead the most spirited presidential campaign America has ever seen and fight to lead our nation in a new and better direction.

Thank you,



Reuters


~~~~~~~~~~~~

The New York Post Messes Up



How Much More Wrong Could They Possibly Have Gotten it?

Patrick's Fate - 848

Patrick's Fate - 848
A Tribute to Patrick McCaffrey



He's just a number to the ones
Who sent beloved daughters and sons
To a land they ne'er needed be
A land of sadness 'cross the sea

A California girl and boy
Will not again possess the joy
To see a colored glaring sky
On this or any Fourth of July

While holding father's loving hand
He was lost to them upon the sand
Caring for friends until the last
When swept away by bullets' blast

His mother cries unto the day
T'was Bush who took her boy away
To only have his sacrifice hid
With no lens to spy his coffin lid

Heed mother's warning before too late
Imagine Patrick's number--848
And all the troops who came before
To die in Bush's needless war.

--Jude

___________________________

Read Patrick's story:

The son who came home for the Fourth of July

Last week Nadia McCaffrey defied President Bush by allowing the media to view the coffin of her son, Patrick, killed in action in Iraq. Writer Andrew Buncombe was invited to attend his funeral in Tracy, California.

Charlotte "Fahrenheit 9-11" party Updated

Charlotte NC MoveOn.org-Fahrenheit 9/11 party

The fine people of Charlotte, NC were very welcoming to this Central New Yorker Monday night at one of the 3000+ MoveOn.org-Fahrenheit 9/11 house parties across the nation. It was very well-attended (I took some photos which will I'll post when available).

UPDATE: Photo here:




The party was held at the Evening Muse in the lovely NODA section of Charlotte. It was hosted by manager Lea Pritchard and her fiancee, who was a spirited emcee. I was happy to have had the opportunity to meet Jane Whitley, secretary of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party and to spend time with the talented blogger Anonymoses.

There were some memorable moments, such as the first hour of the event, where the people in the interesting crowd were given free time to make any comments and suggestions they desired. At about 8pm, the teleconference began. Michael Moore seemed very animated..thrilled to see that his movie was being appreciated by people from many segments of the political spectrum...not just preaching to the "choir". He recalled one woman in a Florida theater in tears after the movie ended. She's witnessed some things she hadn't before seen in the major media. Mr. Moore felt that the mainstream media was culpable for their failure to fully investigate and/or tell the whole story during the lead-up to the Iraq war. Mr. Moore also conjured up the image of a theater crowd in Greensboro NC giving an extended standing ovation to a blank screen long after the final credits had rolled.

By the way, the food at the Charlotte event was outstanding! Thanks to all who contributed their culinary talents.

I am thoroughly enjoying the Anais Mitchell CD I won (for having come the farthest-from Syracuse,NY-to attend the party).

You can hear the audio of Michael Moore's teleconference HERE.

On Iraq: We must ask ourselves..

On Iraq: We must ask ourselves...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chilling:

"We are seeing a fact-free, faith-based approach to Middle East policymaking."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why did the Bush administration ignore a wide range of Middle East experts who warned against the dangers of an occupation of Iraq, (including some experts who supported the war)?

Why has the Bush administration been plagued by the stifling environment of groupthink, especially in the office of the Secretary of Defense?

See this statement by Rashid Khalidi at a talk on May 27 at UCLA for the Center for Near Eastern Studies.

Juan Cole-"The New and Improved Iraq"

Juan Cole-"The New and Improved Iraq"
From: In These Times

I highly recommend that you read this essay. Professor Cole makes the all-important point that further American (and the Allawi-interim government) attempts to shape the political scene in Iraq by trying to disqualify candidates on various pretexts will likely prolong the various insurgencies in the country.

Plame Indictments Rumored to Be Coming; 'Imperial Hubris' author "outed"

Plame Indictments Rumored to Be Coming Soon; 'Imperial Hubris' author "outed"

Those in the Bush administration (the same ones who former U.S. envoy Joseph Wilson recently derided as "un-American" and "punks") may find fresh indictments awaiting them for leaking to the media the name of Wilson's CIA-wife. I hear it may happen quite soon.

Stay tuned.


Somewhat related to the Plame outing, the Boston Phoenix has "outed" "Imperial Hubris" author Anonymous.

According to the Phoenix, this outing isn't posing a danger to Anonymous, who is actually CIA officer Michael Scheuer. They say "..at issue here is not just the book’s content, but why Anonymous is anonymous. After all, as the Times and others have reported, his situation is nothing like that of Valerie Plame, a covert operative whose ability to work active overseas cases was undermined when someone in the White House blew her cover to journalist Robert Novak in an apparent payback for an inconvenient weapons-of-mass-destruction intelligence report by her husband, Joseph Wilson. Anonymous, on the other hand, is, by the CIA’s own admission, a Langley-bound analyst whose identity has never required secrecy..."

Krugman on Michael Moore's Success:

Krugman on Michael Moore's Success:

"...his film is a hit because the respectable media haven't been doing their job."


LINK

Erskine Bowles Releases Homeland Security Plan

Erskine Bowles Releases Homeland Security Plan


I had the fine opportunity to meet Democratic Senatorial candidate Erskine Bowles in Charlotte, N.C. this morning after hearing him release his new Homeland Security plan.

Called "Protect America First", the plan is designed to protect the nation's most vulnerable potential targets, such as ports, nuclear facilities and chemical plants. It would provide police, firefighters and emergency personnel with the resources to respond to a terrorist threat. The plan also would secure U.S. borders to prevent future attacks and limit shipments of dangerous materials.

My Money's on John Edwards for Kerry VP

My Money's on John Edwards for Kerry VP

With predictions that an announcement will be made about John Kerry's choice for running mate within a week, I'm betting big on current North Carolina Senator John Edwards. John Kerry won't be able to lose with John Edwards as his running mate. The more I talk to the average voter, the more I realize this man, Senator Edwards, is the VP candidate with the name-recognition, the respect, and the charisma it will take for the Democrats to achieve a far more certain victory in November. I think John Kerry would be absolutely insane NOT to choose John Edwards as his running mate.

Spirits will certainly be high in Raleigh next week if the announcement is made that Edwards is 'the chosen one'.

At NPR, Ken Rudin agrees with me. Mr. Rudin says, "..unlike many other VP selections over the years, voters around the country have seen Edwards in action -- and apparently they like what they see."

It only makes sense that the voters are the ones to whom Kerry should be listening. If he's truly listening, there's no doubt...it'll be John Edwards.

Poem- If God Invited You to a Party

If God Invited You
to a Party

If God
Invited you to a party
And said,

"Everyone
In the ballroom tonight
Will be my special
Guest,"

How would you then treat them
When you
Arrived?



Indeed, indeed!

And Hafiz knows
There is no one in this world

Who
Is not upon
His Jeweled Dance
Floor.

From The Gift, Poems by Hafiz, translations by Daniel Ladinsky

The Biggest Bush Campaign Mistake To Date

The Biggest Bush Campaign Mistake To Date

The biggest campaign mistake the Bush administration has made to date was to have pissed off a guy like Howard Stern.

Can you say "8 to 10 million loyal listeners" (one third of them Independents?)

Hell hath no fury like this shock-jock scorned.

Adam Mordecai on Iraq and VP Speculation

Adam Mordecai on Iraq and VP Speculation

Adam Mordecai has some really good commentary at his Change For America blog today.

The first is "Why Rumsfeld Must Go (Reason 4593 )" which is related to the Army's recent calling forth of 5600 soldiers in the Individual Ready Reserve. Adam considers the topic of unilateralism in Iraq and discusses why he believes (as I believe) it never has and is never going to work.

In another post, Adam tosses around and rips apart the Drudge headline-du-jour (a la CAPS) about 'Hillary-as-VP' speculation.

I was amused the title of Adam's post about the failure of the fine folks of Missouri to wholeheartedly support Dick Gephardt as VP candidate ("Mommy Doesn't Love Me").

"OUTFOXED"-New Documentary Takes on FOX Distortions

OUTFOXED: New Documentary Takes On FOX Distortions

I've been waiting for a documentary like this to be made...and here it is!

Sign up to host or attend a MoveOn.org house party on July 18th to see this new documentary.

For years, Fox News has been distorting the facts, covering for President Bush, and bashing groups like MoveOn. Now "Uncovered" director Robert Greenwald -- working with a group of Fox-monitoring MoveOn members -- has put together a documentary film that exposes Fox for what it is: partisan spin, not news.

We're using this movie to launch an organizing campaign with Common Cause and other great groups to "out" Fox News -- making sure everyone in the country knows the network is stumping for the Republican agenda.

Be among the first to see this new movie, help others see it, and take on Fox by hosting an Outfoxed house party on Sunday evening, July 18th. Sign up at:

http://action.moveon.org/outfoxed/newmeeting.html

On Sunday, July 18th, we'll get together to see the compelling evidence of Fox's partisanship presented in the Outfoxed film. Then we'll all join an interactive coast-to-coast conference call with Al Franken and director Robert Greenwald, to plan out how we'll take on Fox and take back our media.

No excuse for deer-in-headlights Bush 9/11

No excuse for deer-in-the-headlights Bush on 9/11

Fahrenheit 9/11 shows us what all the misleading advertising in the world couldn't cover up: When faced with a real emergency, George W. Bush, with nobody to tell him what to say or how to act, simply froze. For almost seven minutes on September 11, America was paying a $400,000 yearly salary to an ice sculpture. I dare any pundit, any handler, anybody who supports this loser to explain this away.

The Angry Liberal has written an outstanding piece comparing and contrasting Bush's seven stunned minutes of dazed inaction and confused indecisiveness on the morning of 9/11 with "the Stillson moment" from the movie (and book) The Dead Zone.

Social Science, the Media, and 9/11

Social Science, Reuters, and 9/11

The identification of persistent patterns in the semantic structures of different sources, which are typically beyond the scope of individual observation, opens the way for a new understanding of the manner in which we are affected by institutions that surround us in our daily lives.

This particular study was conducted by a panel of social scientists utilizing CRA (a bundle of techniques which transforms the structure of natural occurring text into a semantic). The patterns used stemmed from actual Reuters news tickers from the period between 9/11 and November 15, 2001. I found it to be fascinating.

The study claims:

Many factors affect how news is produced and which of these reach a final audience; governments have to present themselves in favorable ways to maintain trust and confidence in their effectiveness. This is especially true in times of crisis (such as 9/11). Timing and coordinated presentation are one of the ways to achieve this, and non-disclosure and classification of certain information are another. News companies are intermediaries that collect and disseminate information to clients and customers. These organizations are by no means completely objective and do not just simply provide the facts. Maintaining successful customer relationships also means the need for news organizations to adapt to customer preferences; certain news stories might be less desirable than others while yet other slants may be more preferred or easier to communicate. Mass communication cannot be expected to be independent of what people like to hear and what editors (or owners) want to present.

Especially in times of significant events like September 11, news reports can be expected to reflect a complicated mixture of many influences. Until now empirical social science has had difficulty coping with the complexities of mass communication. The sheer amount of information transmitted in today?s system of mass communications has until very recently been completely out of reach of the analytical abilities of most social scientists. Modern computers, powerful analytical tools, advances in network analysis and recent developments in visualization techniques together with advances in applications of natural language computing technology, like CRA, promise to change all this.

I found it interesting that, given the foreign policy implications of 9/11, the data suggested that Colin Powell has played less of a role then might be expected given his formal status as the President's chief foreign policy advisor and that Rumsfeld played more of a role than might be expected given his formal status as Secretary of Defense, at least as depicted in Reuters news tickers over the period analyzed. What that means in terms of the workings of the White House inner circle is still open to interpretation. However, this does stand in stark contrast to earlier administrations and U.S. military interventions where, for example, Secretary of State Albright in the former Clinton Administration spearheaded the war in Kosovo.

Given the fact that Colin Powell does not plan to return as Bush's Secretary of State (should Bush be re-elected), I believe this scientific information may lead us to a further understanding of some of his reasons and help us to interpret the White House role.

Why I think Dems Will Win in November

Why I think Dems Will Win in November

I read this on today's ABC News Political Note and I wanted to repeat it because I think it's an all-important weight to be considered (to the Democrat's benefit) in predicting November's presidential election outcome:

Nearly every political reporter in America is having the same experience — they keep finding Republicans who say they will never vote again for President Bush (over the war and the deficit, usually) but they have a heck of a time finding anyone who voted for Gore in 2000 who are now certain that they will vote for Bush (and Gore apparently won the popular vote).

Is it a gift if it creates more terror? Are we safer?

Is it a gift if it creates terror? Are we safer?

"Insurgents are blowing up pipelines and police stations, geysers of sewage are erupting from the streets, and the electricity is off most of the time — but we've given Iraq the gift of supply-side economics."

Paul Krugman, in his latest N.Y. Times column, explains how auditing of the Coaltition Provision Authority's use of Iraqi oil revenues never quite got up to speed before the CPA dissolved. When you combine that with the obvious fact that the U.S. made Iraq a "playground for right-wing economic theorists, an employment agency for friends and family, and a source of lucrative contracts for corporate donors", you can't wonder why good will was never forged with the already-distrusting Iraqi people.

NeoCon Michael Ledeen has publically and proudly said "the level of casualties [in Iraq] is secondary" because "we are a warlike people" and "we love war."

Who are we...or the Iraqi people..to doubt him?

Are we Americans safer for giving the gift of right-wing politics via cronyism and blood to Iraq?

Charlotte NC MoveOn.org-Fahrenheit 9/11 party

Charlotte NC MoveOn.org-Fahrenheit 9/11 party

The fine people of Charlotte, NC were very welcoming to this Central New Yorker last night at one of the 3000+ MoveOn.org-Fahrenheit 9/11 house parties across the nation. It was very well-attended (I took some photos which will I'll post when available).

UPDATE: Photo here:




The party was held at the Evening Muse in the lovely NODA section of Charlotte. It was hosted by manager Lea Pritchard and her fiancee, who was a spirited emcee. I was happy to have had the opportunity to meet Jane Whitley, secretary of the Mecklenburg County Democratic Party and to spend time with the talented blogger Anonymoses.

There were some memorable moments, such as the first hour of the event, where the people in the interesting crowd were given free time to make any comments and suggestions they desired. At about 8pm, the teleconference began. Michael Moore seemed very animated..thrilled to see that his movie was being appreciated by people from many segments of the political spectrum...not just preaching to the "choir". He recalled one woman in a Florida theater in tears after the movie ended. She's witnessed some things she hadn't before seen in the major media. Mr. Moore felt that the mainstream media was culpable for their failure to fully investigate and/or tell the whole story during the lead-up to the Iraq war. Mr. Moore also conjured up the image of a theater crowd in Greensboro NC giving an extended standing ovation to a blank screen long after the final credits had rolled.

By the way, the food at the Charlotte event was outstanding! Thanks to all who contributed their culinary talents.

I am thoroughly enjoying the Anais Mitchell CD I won (for having come the farthest-from Syracuse,NY-to attend the party).

You can hear the audio of Michael Moore's teleconference HERE.

Impulsive Bush oversteps diplomatic boundaries

Impulsive Bush oversteps diplomatic boundaries

Jacques Chirac has called Bush out on his bold ignorance, which I believe is par for the course for our overly impulsive President these days. He can't seem to hold his childish tongue for the good sake of necessary diplomacy.

Speaking in Ireland (where he was heartily protested), Bush claimed Turkey "successfully blends a European identity with the Islamic traditions" and should be admitted to the EU.

Everyone knows Bush needs Turkey's assistance with the Iraq problem and will do anything to get it...even if it means opening his mouth in matters where he should keep it shut for the sake of productive diplomacy.

Yesterday, it's said nearly one-hundred thousand people in Turkey spilled into the streets to tell us what they think of our war on Iraq (and what they think of Bush).

Turkey is becoming a terribly troubled democracy because of our decision to enter this unnecessary war.

In the New York Times, the headline reads: "As Bush Confers With NATO, U.S. Is Seen Losing Its Edge".

Bush makes diplomatic gaffe after diplomatic gaffe. Does anyone wonder why there has been resistance from normally friendly allies like Germany, France and Japan and from international organizations long dominated by the U.S.?

Evertime this boob of a President opens his mouth we lose more support and respect from our former trusting (and needed) allies.

We need a leader who can reason intelligently, who can think on his feet, and communicate exactly what he's thinking.

We don't have a leader like that right now.

Heaven help us, we don't.

Bremer Takes Hike-Military Left Behind to Clean Mess

Bremer Takes Hike-Military Left Behind to Clean Mess

..which serves to make today's Iraq news less than joyous..."

What Bush said:

"..the Iraqi people have their country back."

What Bush didn't say:

"At this time, I have no clue what will become of our American troops."

Crybaby whines after baiting Moore moviegoers

Crybaby whines after baiting Moore moviegoers

'Fahrenheit 9/11' is bound to raise plenty of spirited discussion. One fellow decided to confront a crowd who'd just seen one of the most (if not THE most) controversial documentaries in history and forgot that there are consequences and risks whenever you decide to act in this manner. (Perhaps he could have been more smart and effective in going home and writing a letter to his local news editor?) I believe Newsmax is wanting desperately to broadcast anything negative they possibly can about a movie that, despite their own efforts to stop its momentum, has already broken box-office records. I imagine that is why Newsmax chose to place the sordid little story about this crybaby (and the impulsive soul who decked him) as one of their major headlines today.

Sour grapes make bad, bad whine.

God Captured on Cell-Technology Camera!

God Captured on Cell-Technology Camera!

See the miracle HERE (thanks to BeatWayDown)

I saw "Fahrenheit 9/11" yesterday. It's well worth the eight bucks. I'll review it soon.

I'll also be reviewing the Justin Frank book "Bush on the Couch" soon.

I'll be off a couple days.

Have a great weekend.

Jude

Wolfowitz should talk!

Wolfowitz should talk!

"Frankly, part of our problem is a lot of the press are afraid to travel very much, so they sit in Baghdad and they publish rumors..And rumors are plentiful."

Paul Wolfowitz


Paul Wolfowitz is a fine one to talk about cowards who avoid dangers while allowing rumor to run rampant. He is the chickenhawk who sat behind a desk (along with men like Douglas Feith) and created the best rumor-scenarios to make the American public ready to accept an unnecessary pre-emptive invasion.

Cheney to Leahy-"F*** off!"

Cheney to Leahy-
"F*** off!"

Who did it, you ask?


No-it wasn't Col. M...

Dick Cheney did it----on the Senate Floor---with the potty mouth.

[LINK]


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See David Corn's commentary--"Why is Cheney So F***in’ Uptight?"

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Are some people shocked?

*My opinion- For all his talk about the need for civility, I was never fooled by Cheney. I've often perceived a sense of defensive hostility while watching his facial expressions and body language during press interviews.*

"We are SURE we will hear that Leahy started it first, and all kinds of rationalizations like that, from the folks who so bitterly went after Kerry for his language. That's because there are few principles in politics anymore --"

The Moderate Voice

Quack! Quack!

QUACK!
QUACK!


click this quack


[QUACK!]

Bill Clinton on Charlie Rose Show (listen)

Bill Clinton on Charlie Rose Show (listen)

Go here to listen to Bill Clinton on Charlie Rose June 23

Stephen Hayes on Jon Stewart

Stephen Hayes on Jon Stewart

I saw Jon Stewart tear Stephen Hayes' credibility to shreds during his interview with Hayes on the Daily Show the other night. I wish I'd recorded it so I could give you the details. I found this at Protestant Polyglot (I hope he won't mind me posting it in its entirety):

Jon Stewart has Stephen Hayes on the Daily Show right now, interviewing him about his apology for the war on Iraq, The Connection: How al Qaeda’s Collaboration with Saddam Hussein Has Endangered America. Hayes was going on about how reasonable the Bush doctrine is, because Iraq was a serious threat to America. Jon Stewart came out with one of the most cutting remarks I’ve ever heard him make:

That’s not the point. Here’s the point. I’ll name you four things. Developing weapons of mass destruction, inflamatory rhetoric against the United States, harboring terrorists, and uh…uh…oppressing their own people. You can’t name that country. You have no idea what country I just described.

Who needs network news when there’s the Daily Show?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

See my past comments about Stephen Hayes and Douglas Feith HERE.

See the discussion of the show at Daily Kos.

Kos Quote on Beheading

Kos Quote on Beheading

"Bush's failures on terrorism make me physically sick, literally. Now, when I think of "Bush's War on Terror", I associate it with "beheading". And I really, really wish it hadn't come down to that."

Read the entire thread:
[LINK]

Headlines at Iddybud June 22

Headlines at Iddybud June 22

David Brooks: The Importance of Religion in Politics

Bush and Rumsfeld Torture Involvement Questioned

Here's Bill O'Reilly's Final Solution

Kim Sun-il

The New Republic: The New Rationalizations to Support Iraq War
..because the old ones didn't pan out.

Hitchens tries too hard to call Moore a liar

"Fahrenheit 9/11" MPAA Rating Appeal- Mario Cuomo A No-Go

My Condolences go out to Jimmy Breslin for the loss of his daughter Rosemary

Bush and Rumsfeld Torture Involvement Questioned

Bush and Rumsfeld Torture Involvement Questioned

President Bush claimed the right to waive anti-torture laws and treaties covering prisoners of war after the invasion of Afghanistan, and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld authorized guards to strip detainees and threaten them with dogs, according to documents released Tuesday.

Among the techniques that Rumsfeld approved on Dec. 2, 2002, in addition to grabbing, yelling and 'stress positions':

- Use of 20-hour interrogations.

- Removal of all comfort items, including religious items.

- Removal of clothing.

- Using detainees' "individual phobias such as fear of dogs to induce stress."

In a Jan. 15, 2003, note, Rumsfeld rescinded his approval of some of these recommendations and said a review would be conducted to consider legal, policy and operational issues relating to interrogations of detainees held by the U.S. military in the war on terrorism. Rumsfeld's decision was prompted at least in part by objections raised by some military lawyers who felt that the techniques might go too far, officials said earlier this year.

In Bush's case, Justice Department senior officials said that the 50-page "torture" memo issued to the White House on Aug. 1, 2002,(the one that appeared to justify the use of torture in the war on terror and argued that the president's wartime powers superseded anti-torture laws and treaties) would be repudiated and replaced.

See my headline from Saturday regarding Bush's highly questionable power-grab in regard to the torture memo.

The memo, signed by former Assistant Attorney General Jay Bybee, included lengthy sections that appeared to justify use of torture in the war on terrorism and it contended that U.S. personnel could be immune from prosecution for torture. The memo also argued that the president's powers as commander in chief allow him to override U.S. laws and international treaties banning torture.

Thanks to Yahoo News/AP for use of parts of this article to relay this information to you.

"Fahrenheit 9/11"Appeal-Mario Cuomo A No-Go

"Fahrenheit 9/11" Appeal-Mario Cuomo A No-Go

Lions Gate Films president Tom Ortenberg (whose company is distributing "Fahrenheit 9/11" with IFC Films and Miramax co-chairmen Bob and Harvey Weinstein's Fellowship Adventure Group) will appeal for a PG-13 rating instead of the R that the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) has awarded "Fahrenheit 9/11" for its "violent and disturbing images and for language"......but he'll have to appear without Mario Cuomo. The MPAA has made a decision to prevent Mr. Cuomo from arguing the appeal in person.

Why are they getting an "R' rating? Because an American soldier says the word motherf*****(more than once) and several graphic images of victims of war and abusive behavior by some of our troops appear in the film.

If you think about it, with Bush's raging war in Iraq and its images that cross our paths on cable news and the internet (human cold-blood slaughter and people begging for their lives), real life these days should be rated "XXXX", anyhow. (Even without Howard Stern on Clear Channel stations).

~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE: Moore lost the appeal. Moore urged younger teenagers to go see the film anyway. "I encourage all teenagers to come see my movie, by any means necessary. If you need me to sneak you in, let me know," he said.

My condolences to Jimmy Breslin

My condolences to Jimmy Breslin

My condolences go out to Jimmy Breslin. He lost his daughter Rosemary Breslin, 47, last Friday to a rare blood disease.

Mr. Breslin has written a heartful and moving column about how his loving memories colored Rosemary's last day...Rosemary's last breath.

My prayers are with you, Jimmy.

Jude