Quote of The Day-Fareed Zakaria
"..it's widely understood in the business world that having a good objective means nothing if you implement it badly."
--Fareed Zakaria from Why Kerry Is Right on Iraq, Newsweek
Internet muse.
Daring, bold, never sold.
My daily weblog of politics, humor, philosophy...and a constant and nagging reminder of the existence of universal love....
Wednesday, August 18, 2004
George Bush-Take That Ad Off The Air
George Bush-Take That Ad Off The Air
MoveOnPAC is going to air a new TV ad in the swing states where the Swift Boat defamers are airing their own Kerry-bashing ad. MoveOn is exposing the fact that Bush (with his own weak wartime service record) has refused to condemn the misleading commercials...allowing false advertising that attacks John Kerry, a man who asked to go to Vietnam and who served with dignity and heroism.
MoveOn thinks Bush should pay the political price for his refusal to condemn the dreadful attacks.
It's going to be a pretty hefty price if the MoveOn ads are effective. Almost everyone I speak to in my own little town--- old/young, conservative/independent/liberal--- thinks the Swift Boat ads are rotten.
__________
C-SPAN provides a video of John Kerry's 1971 appearance on the Dick Cavett Show where Kerry debates the Vietnam War with John O'Neill. O'Neill is the author of the book attacking Kerry's integrity titled "Unfit for Command".
MoveOnPAC is going to air a new TV ad in the swing states where the Swift Boat defamers are airing their own Kerry-bashing ad. MoveOn is exposing the fact that Bush (with his own weak wartime service record) has refused to condemn the misleading commercials...allowing false advertising that attacks John Kerry, a man who asked to go to Vietnam and who served with dignity and heroism.
MoveOn thinks Bush should pay the political price for his refusal to condemn the dreadful attacks.
It's going to be a pretty hefty price if the MoveOn ads are effective. Almost everyone I speak to in my own little town--- old/young, conservative/independent/liberal--- thinks the Swift Boat ads are rotten.
C-SPAN provides a video of John Kerry's 1971 appearance on the Dick Cavett Show where Kerry debates the Vietnam War with John O'Neill. O'Neill is the author of the book attacking Kerry's integrity titled "Unfit for Command".
John Kerry: Cincinnati VFW Speech
John Kerry: Cincinnati VFW Speech
"I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep."
"Strength is more than tough words," said John Kerry today in his speech to the VFW Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Senator Kerry said that "we didn't have to become a divided nation" after 9/11, yet we did.
"I know what I have to do in Iraq", he said as he explained we need international allies' wide support in order to steer our troops safely home.
"I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep."
Kerry asked: "What is our long term strategy to make America safer?" (TRANSCRIPT).
About the troops, Kerry said, "Never send them into battle withouit a plan to win the peace. That is essential."
He recommended 40,000 new troops (not in Iraq) but to relieve the pressure of the overtrstretch of the U.S. armed forces today. He said the "backdoor draft" must end.
"We need to do everything we can to avoid another 9/11." Kerry said that "winning the war on terror demands a team effort", working cooperatively with other nations to secure good intelligence. About terrorists, he said that "we need to get them before they get us".
He called upon Congress to create a central national intelligence director.
Long term success demands the use of national power, international cooperation, intelligence, economic policy, diplomacy, homeland defense...and more.
"I will fight a smarter and a more effective war on terror," he said.
He stressed the use of principles as well as firepower.
He said question for November is not simply "Who will lead America?", but also, "Will America continue to lead the world?"
Kerry stated this is not the right time to redeploy 70,000 troops as Bush has recommended. He went as far as to say that the redeployment was hasty and could be dangerous, especially the redployment of 12,000 troops from South Korea.
___________
Before John Kerry got to the podium, the RNC had their uber negative attack machine in gear.
The RNC pulled out young Kerry's (circa 1971) criticism of the VFW and American Legion: "We will not quickly join those who march on Veterans Day waving small flags, calling to memory those thousands who died for the 'greater glory of the United States.' ... We will not readily join the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars." (as the Washington Times was happy to report).
Consider the reality of the Viet Nam conflict and its dreadful politics and it's not hard to understand how an incredibly intelligent young man who had fought in Viet Nam would have been disillusioned and confused about taking pride in what he'd had to do.
I respect young Kerry's confusion and disillusionment a hell of a lot more than George W. Bush never acknowledging that he wanted to avoid fighting in Vietnam altogether.
After having seen the speech, I don't think any vet in that Cincinnati audience today left with the impression that John Kerry didn't have the utmost respect for them and/or the deepest love for his country.
When he said "I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep," there was no question about what he meant.
They knew he was in-country back in the late 60s. A vet understand history better than you and me because he's faced the fire. I think they understand what John Kerry's talking about when he says he'll keep the faith with those who have served. It's a faith only a brother-in-arms might truly understand.
"I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep."
"Strength is more than tough words," said John Kerry today in his speech to the VFW Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Senator Kerry said that "we didn't have to become a divided nation" after 9/11, yet we did.
"I know what I have to do in Iraq", he said as he explained we need international allies' wide support in order to steer our troops safely home.
"I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep."
Kerry asked: "What is our long term strategy to make America safer?" (TRANSCRIPT).
About the troops, Kerry said, "Never send them into battle withouit a plan to win the peace. That is essential."
He recommended 40,000 new troops (not in Iraq) but to relieve the pressure of the overtrstretch of the U.S. armed forces today. He said the "backdoor draft" must end.
"We need to do everything we can to avoid another 9/11." Kerry said that "winning the war on terror demands a team effort", working cooperatively with other nations to secure good intelligence. About terrorists, he said that "we need to get them before they get us".
He called upon Congress to create a central national intelligence director.
Long term success demands the use of national power, international cooperation, intelligence, economic policy, diplomacy, homeland defense...and more.
"I will fight a smarter and a more effective war on terror," he said.
He stressed the use of principles as well as firepower.
He said question for November is not simply "Who will lead America?", but also, "Will America continue to lead the world?"
Kerry stated this is not the right time to redeploy 70,000 troops as Bush has recommended. He went as far as to say that the redeployment was hasty and could be dangerous, especially the redployment of 12,000 troops from South Korea.
Before John Kerry got to the podium, the RNC had their uber negative attack machine in gear.
The RNC pulled out young Kerry's (circa 1971) criticism of the VFW and American Legion: "We will not quickly join those who march on Veterans Day waving small flags, calling to memory those thousands who died for the 'greater glory of the United States.' ... We will not readily join the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars." (as the Washington Times was happy to report).
Consider the reality of the Viet Nam conflict and its dreadful politics and it's not hard to understand how an incredibly intelligent young man who had fought in Viet Nam would have been disillusioned and confused about taking pride in what he'd had to do.
I respect young Kerry's confusion and disillusionment a hell of a lot more than George W. Bush never acknowledging that he wanted to avoid fighting in Vietnam altogether.
After having seen the speech, I don't think any vet in that Cincinnati audience today left with the impression that John Kerry didn't have the utmost respect for them and/or the deepest love for his country.
When he said "I will wage war with the lessons I've learned in war..and those lessons run deep," there was no question about what he meant.
They knew he was in-country back in the late 60s. A vet understand history better than you and me because he's faced the fire. I think they understand what John Kerry's talking about when he says he'll keep the faith with those who have served. It's a faith only a brother-in-arms might truly understand.
Norm Coleman Misleads on Jon Stewart's Show
Norm Coleman Misleads on Jon Stewart's Daily Show
I saw Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman totally mislead people last night on Jon Stewart's Daily Show. When Jon Stewart asked Coleman if it was true that a Rio Rancho, New Mexico audience for a recent Cheney-rally had to sign loyalty pledges in order to be admitted, Coleman said it wasn't true at all and it was a rumor started by "those 527s".
That was either a lie or a gross prejudice on Coleman's part.
It was in the news.
I saw Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman totally mislead people last night on Jon Stewart's Daily Show. When Jon Stewart asked Coleman if it was true that a Rio Rancho, New Mexico audience for a recent Cheney-rally had to sign loyalty pledges in order to be admitted, Coleman said it wasn't true at all and it was a rumor started by "those 527s".
That was either a lie or a gross prejudice on Coleman's part.
It was in the news.
China warns Bush to follow international law
China warns Bush to follow international law
Beijing spokesman Kong Quan from China is warning Washington not to send the "wrong signal" to the East Turkestan terrorist force by releasing Guantanamo Bay detainees (from the autonomous Xinjiang region) to a random third country (vs. returning them to the Chinese government).
China's treatment of terrorists has been tough (as tough on terror as Bush has been), and I don't see where Bush would have the lawful (or the moral) authority to ignore China's request to get them back once they're released from Guantanamo. The Chinese have supported our war on terror thus far because they have seen that resistance to their own Chinese rule is led and fanned by Muslim extremists, usually egged on from outside China's borders.
Let's hope Bush doesn't decide to flip the bird to the rule of law and get China's feathers all ruffled. It's not the time to create tensions with foreign nations we need as allies fighting against terror. This is one of those sensitive issues where I have learned, from experience, to have shaken faith in Bush's possible reaction.
Beijing spokesman Kong Quan from China is warning Washington not to send the "wrong signal" to the East Turkestan terrorist force by releasing Guantanamo Bay detainees (from the autonomous Xinjiang region) to a random third country (vs. returning them to the Chinese government).
China's treatment of terrorists has been tough (as tough on terror as Bush has been), and I don't see where Bush would have the lawful (or the moral) authority to ignore China's request to get them back once they're released from Guantanamo. The Chinese have supported our war on terror thus far because they have seen that resistance to their own Chinese rule is led and fanned by Muslim extremists, usually egged on from outside China's borders.
Let's hope Bush doesn't decide to flip the bird to the rule of law and get China's feathers all ruffled. It's not the time to create tensions with foreign nations we need as allies fighting against terror. This is one of those sensitive issues where I have learned, from experience, to have shaken faith in Bush's possible reaction.
Albany Mosque Evidence Flawed?
Albany Mosque Evidence Flawed?
It's said there are possible flaws in a key piece of evidence in the recent case against two leaders of an Albany, New York, mosque accused of supporting terrorism. The error concerns a possible incorrect translation of one particular word. The word translators mistook for "commander" may have actually merely meant "brother". One of the accused men's attorneys has said it looks as if his client has been "framed". [LINK]
It's said there are possible flaws in a key piece of evidence in the recent case against two leaders of an Albany, New York, mosque accused of supporting terrorism. The error concerns a possible incorrect translation of one particular word. The word translators mistook for "commander" may have actually merely meant "brother". One of the accused men's attorneys has said it looks as if his client has been "framed". [LINK]
Don't stay the failing course in Iraq
Don't stay the failing course in Iraq
"Withdrawal [from Iraq] would be a blow to American credibility, but less so if it were deliberate and abrupt rather than a retreat under fire imposed by surging antiwar sentiments at home. (See Vietnam.)"
--Edward Luttwak, Time to Quit Iraq (Sort Of) , N.Y.Times op-ed
"Withdrawal [from Iraq] would be a blow to American credibility, but less so if it were deliberate and abrupt rather than a retreat under fire imposed by surging antiwar sentiments at home. (See Vietnam.)"
--Edward Luttwak, Time to Quit Iraq (Sort Of) , N.Y.Times op-ed
Tuesday, August 17, 2004
A Rock Star Speaks Up for Kerry
A Rock Star Speaks Up for Kerry
I should probably talk about the swing state shows because a number of you have commented on that. The truth is we were asked to headline a set of the shows ourselves and I turned it down. This was a really tough decision for me because I happen to think this is an important moment in American history. I just couldn't do it though. I can't take another day out on the road right now....
I will tell you how I feel however. I know a lot of you get all incensed at the thought of some musician spewing out his political opinions at you. I don't care anymore.
People who don't listen to what other intelligent people have to say are simply ignorant people.
I am going to be voting for Senator Kerry. I feel that he is a serious intelligent man who will deal with the problems we are facing in a thoughtful manner. These are complex problems. They demand complex solutions. I am not one of those people who believes President Bush is an evil man. I think that's silly. I just think he views the world in terms too simplistic to combat the actual problems we are facing. And I think he puts his trust in men who view politics as a means of retaining power rather than actually solving problems.
I don't think we need people who "act tough" and project themselves as "leadership types". Leadership is not about aping John Wayne. When did it become a presidential quality to be a "regular guy"? When did intellectualism become a dirty word? I want a president who's smarter than me.
It's not enough for him to seem like a great guy to have at a BBQ.
The media would have you believe these men are good or evil or cool or uncool. They want to paint these men as trying to pull the wool over your eyes. They want you to think the people who don't agree with you are hicks or elitists or soft or tough or a million other bullshit generalizations that miss the point that these are all Americans just like you and me. We are a vast nation of many different types of people.
The other guy may not agree with everything you believe but you will never understand him if you write him off the way the media does.
I am voting for John Kerry for president. I hope you will too. If you want to convince someone to change their mind, you have to first try to understand why they believe the things they do. Reduce them to a generalization and you will never accomplish anything. That said, Rush Limbaugh is still a f**king moron.
--Adam Duritz/Counting Crows
I should probably talk about the swing state shows because a number of you have commented on that. The truth is we were asked to headline a set of the shows ourselves and I turned it down. This was a really tough decision for me because I happen to think this is an important moment in American history. I just couldn't do it though. I can't take another day out on the road right now....
I will tell you how I feel however. I know a lot of you get all incensed at the thought of some musician spewing out his political opinions at you. I don't care anymore.
People who don't listen to what other intelligent people have to say are simply ignorant people.
I am going to be voting for Senator Kerry. I feel that he is a serious intelligent man who will deal with the problems we are facing in a thoughtful manner. These are complex problems. They demand complex solutions. I am not one of those people who believes President Bush is an evil man. I think that's silly. I just think he views the world in terms too simplistic to combat the actual problems we are facing. And I think he puts his trust in men who view politics as a means of retaining power rather than actually solving problems.
I don't think we need people who "act tough" and project themselves as "leadership types". Leadership is not about aping John Wayne. When did it become a presidential quality to be a "regular guy"? When did intellectualism become a dirty word? I want a president who's smarter than me.
It's not enough for him to seem like a great guy to have at a BBQ.
The media would have you believe these men are good or evil or cool or uncool. They want to paint these men as trying to pull the wool over your eyes. They want you to think the people who don't agree with you are hicks or elitists or soft or tough or a million other bullshit generalizations that miss the point that these are all Americans just like you and me. We are a vast nation of many different types of people.
The other guy may not agree with everything you believe but you will never understand him if you write him off the way the media does.
I am voting for John Kerry for president. I hope you will too. If you want to convince someone to change their mind, you have to first try to understand why they believe the things they do. Reduce them to a generalization and you will never accomplish anything. That said, Rush Limbaugh is still a f**king moron.
--Adam Duritz/Counting Crows
Convention Protesters Gear Up-NYC Prepares
Convention Protesters Gear Up-NYC Prepares
Read about the Republican Convention sideshow here at WP.
Did you know that a group of labor activists plan to stage the world's longest unemployment line, from Wall Street to 31st Street and Madison Square Garden, on Sept. 1? The line will form at 8:13 a.m. and dissolve at 8:31 a.m.
Read about the Republican Convention sideshow here at WP.
Did you know that a group of labor activists plan to stage the world's longest unemployment line, from Wall Street to 31st Street and Madison Square Garden, on Sept. 1? The line will form at 8:13 a.m. and dissolve at 8:31 a.m.
Looking forward-Looking back
Looking forward-Looking back
As the GOP Convention draws near, I wanted to bring a six-month posting of mine back to light. Time has a way of ripening a pundit's thoughts, proving him/her a sage or a fool. Retrospection gives us all a new perspective and creates a straighter path to the future. Please read this dead-of-winter blogpost and give me any thoughts you have on the subject. Don't be shy.
As the GOP Convention draws near, I wanted to bring a six-month posting of mine back to light. Time has a way of ripening a pundit's thoughts, proving him/her a sage or a fool. Retrospection gives us all a new perspective and creates a straighter path to the future. Please read this dead-of-winter blogpost and give me any thoughts you have on the subject. Don't be shy.
Oil up to 47 bucks a barrel
Oil up to 47 bucks a barrel
Yukos took a turn for the worse Tuesday and oil prices are up to a record $47 bucks a barrel. The fighting between U.S. troops and Shiite militants intensified in Iraq. Saudi Arabians have said said they could immediately pump an additional 1.3 million barrels per day, but that doesn't seem to be calming nervous investors. At least the Venezuelan situation has not added fire to the fuel...I mean..fuel to the fire.
Yukos took a turn for the worse Tuesday and oil prices are up to a record $47 bucks a barrel. The fighting between U.S. troops and Shiite militants intensified in Iraq. Saudi Arabians have said said they could immediately pump an additional 1.3 million barrels per day, but that doesn't seem to be calming nervous investors. At least the Venezuelan situation has not added fire to the fuel...I mean..fuel to the fire.
Kerry:Troop withdrawal may undercut alliances
Kerry: Troop withdrawal may undercut alliances
John Kerry is expected to claim that the withdrawal of troops from Europe and Asia threatens to undercut alliances and weakens America's ability to project its power overseas.
Wesley Clark sees the withdrawl plan as a 'strategic mistake' while we're at a stand-off with a dangerous foe in North Korea and since European bases serve as “anchor points” for dealing with potential security threats in Africa, the Middle East and the Caucasus.
A message about bringing troops home is always a positive-sounding idea, but what will we use them for once they come back? Will they be shipped off to Iraq in 2006? Will they be on tap for more unnecessary unilateral strikes on nations that pose no imminent threat to us?
John Kerry is expected to claim that the withdrawal of troops from Europe and Asia threatens to undercut alliances and weakens America's ability to project its power overseas.
Wesley Clark sees the withdrawl plan as a 'strategic mistake' while we're at a stand-off with a dangerous foe in North Korea and since European bases serve as “anchor points” for dealing with potential security threats in Africa, the Middle East and the Caucasus.
A message about bringing troops home is always a positive-sounding idea, but what will we use them for once they come back? Will they be shipped off to Iraq in 2006? Will they be on tap for more unnecessary unilateral strikes on nations that pose no imminent threat to us?
WSJ wants to talk about Cambodia '68
WSJ wants to talk about Cambodia '68
Robert Pollock wishes to discuss John Kerry's assertion that he was in Cambodia on Christmas Eve, 1968.
Pollock says:
If it is, then bring it on. (Note: No one will die as a result of my making this macho-sounding dare).
If we're going to talk about fabrications that were material to the blood and treasure of the United Staes of America, let's talk turkey.
GW Bush never faced enemy fire a day in his life.
Dick Cheney carefully avoided Viet Nam.
Both Bush and Cheney misled Americans about the war on terror, no matter how you try to slice and dice it.
We aren't stupid and we're not blind.
After over 900 deaths in a war of sheer option, we certainly will not forget.
Americans have had a battle with our short attention spans and the media sometimes has success with politically cashing in on our societal disability.
But not this time.
Not this time.
Robert Pollock wishes to discuss John Kerry's assertion that he was in Cambodia on Christmas Eve, 1968.
Pollock says:
Does this matter? Well, if President Bush was found to be using tall tales from his National Guard days to justify his policies in the war on terror it would certainly attract some attention. So the would-be commander in chief can hardly complain of being subject to scrutiny, especially since he's joined in criticism of Mr. Bush's war record and made his own a campaign centerpiece. Never mind the anti-Kerry swiftees. So far the veteran whose testimony is doing John Kerry the most damage is . . . John Kerry.Is this the Wall Street Journal's obligatory ethical and moral equivocation for Bush's past?
If it is, then bring it on. (Note: No one will die as a result of my making this macho-sounding dare).
If we're going to talk about fabrications that were material to the blood and treasure of the United Staes of America, let's talk turkey.
GW Bush never faced enemy fire a day in his life.
Dick Cheney carefully avoided Viet Nam.
Both Bush and Cheney misled Americans about the war on terror, no matter how you try to slice and dice it.
We aren't stupid and we're not blind.
After over 900 deaths in a war of sheer option, we certainly will not forget.
Americans have had a battle with our short attention spans and the media sometimes has success with politically cashing in on our societal disability.
But not this time.
Not this time.
Silly photo
A sign invites those tortured souls in mullet-recovery, no questions asked, somewhere in the Mid-West
from: The Will to Blog
NY Times: FBI, stop intimidating free speech
NY Times:
FBI, stop intimidating free speech and go catch some real criminals
In today's N.Y. Times editorial, I was glad to see someone defending the First Amendment. Our top leadership in Washington, D.C. seems to wish to only suppress free speech. The Justice Department's use of FBI to intimidate American citizens is an abhorrent slap to the face of American freedom.
Ashcroft leads a McCarthyite witch-hunt against protesters---why am I surprised?
The FBI should go and catch some real criminals, Heaven knows there are some real bogeymen out there (especially if you heed the terror alerts that pop up every time Kerry's poll numbers go up).
I ask you: Have people like you and me--people who would express their views against many of their perverted policies-- become nothing but criminals to the Bush administration? Worthy of sucking resources away from the hunt for terrorists? Is the FBI abusing its power at the direction or with the approval of the Justice Department?
Wake up! What's going on, people?
FBI, stop intimidating free speech and go catch some real criminals
In today's N.Y. Times editorial, I was glad to see someone defending the First Amendment. Our top leadership in Washington, D.C. seems to wish to only suppress free speech. The Justice Department's use of FBI to intimidate American citizens is an abhorrent slap to the face of American freedom.
Ashcroft leads a McCarthyite witch-hunt against protesters---why am I surprised?
The FBI should go and catch some real criminals, Heaven knows there are some real bogeymen out there (especially if you heed the terror alerts that pop up every time Kerry's poll numbers go up).
I ask you: Have people like you and me--people who would express their views against many of their perverted policies-- become nothing but criminals to the Bush administration? Worthy of sucking resources away from the hunt for terrorists? Is the FBI abusing its power at the direction or with the approval of the Justice Department?
Wake up! What's going on, people?
Harkin: Chicken Cheney tough if it's others' blood
Harkin: Chicken Cheney tough if it's someone else's blood
OOOO! Iowa Senator Tom Harkin was very insensitive to have made the comment that Dick Cheney is a coward.
"When I hear this coming from Dick Cheney, who was a coward, who would not serve during the Vietnam War, it makes my blood boil. Those of us who served and those of us who went in the military don't like it when someone like a Dick Cheney comes out and he wants to be tough. Yeah, he'll be tough. He'll be tough with somebody else's blood, somebody else's kids. But not when it was his turn to go."
-Sen. Tom Harkin
OOOO! Iowa Senator Tom Harkin was very insensitive to have made the comment that Dick Cheney is a coward.
"When I hear this coming from Dick Cheney, who was a coward, who would not serve during the Vietnam War, it makes my blood boil. Those of us who served and those of us who went in the military don't like it when someone like a Dick Cheney comes out and he wants to be tough. Yeah, he'll be tough. He'll be tough with somebody else's blood, somebody else's kids. But not when it was his turn to go."
-Sen. Tom Harkin
What about McGreevey's Wife?
What about McGreevey's Wife?
As you watched N.J. Governor Jim McGreevey explain that he was a gay American last week, did you feel extremely uncomfortable for his wife? Boy, I surely did. Which leads to me this no-nonsense plea from Dan Savage in the Guardian today:
If it does nothing else, the McGreevey marriage highlights the chief absurdity of the arguments of those opposed to gay marriage: gay men can, in point of fact, get married - provided we marry women, duped or otherwise. The porousness of the sacred institution is remarkable: gay people are a threat to marriage, but gay people are encouraged to marry - indeed, we have married, under duress, for centuries, and the religious right would like us to continue to do so today - as long as our marriages are a sham. As long as we're willing to lie to ourselves, our wives, our communities, our children, and, for someone like McGreevey, our constituents. A closeted gay man like McGreevey can even marry twice and have both his marriages regarded as legitimate....If an openly gay man can get married as long as his marriage makes a mockery of what is the defining characteristic of modern marriage - romantic love - or if he marries simply because he despairs of finding a same-sex partner, what harm could possibly be done by opening marriage to the gay men who don't want to make a mockery of marriage or who can find a same-sex partner?...if the idea of a gay man married to a woman makes America uncomfortable, well, perhaps they should let us marry each other.
[LINK]
This brings me to the Log Cabin Republicans. When are these people going to wake up and smell the disgust the GOP has for them? I think they must be living in a fantasy world.
In an LA Times article, this is what one particular Log Cabin dreamer stated:
Here is the reality, from the same article:
UPDATE: McGreevey's own words
NY Times: I Still Have Work to Do
By JAMES E. McGREEVEY
Published: August 22, 2004
As you watched N.J. Governor Jim McGreevey explain that he was a gay American last week, did you feel extremely uncomfortable for his wife? Boy, I surely did. Which leads to me this no-nonsense plea from Dan Savage in the Guardian today:
If it does nothing else, the McGreevey marriage highlights the chief absurdity of the arguments of those opposed to gay marriage: gay men can, in point of fact, get married - provided we marry women, duped or otherwise. The porousness of the sacred institution is remarkable: gay people are a threat to marriage, but gay people are encouraged to marry - indeed, we have married, under duress, for centuries, and the religious right would like us to continue to do so today - as long as our marriages are a sham. As long as we're willing to lie to ourselves, our wives, our communities, our children, and, for someone like McGreevey, our constituents. A closeted gay man like McGreevey can even marry twice and have both his marriages regarded as legitimate....If an openly gay man can get married as long as his marriage makes a mockery of what is the defining characteristic of modern marriage - romantic love - or if he marries simply because he despairs of finding a same-sex partner, what harm could possibly be done by opening marriage to the gay men who don't want to make a mockery of marriage or who can find a same-sex partner?...if the idea of a gay man married to a woman makes America uncomfortable, well, perhaps they should let us marry each other.
[LINK]
This brings me to the Log Cabin Republicans. When are these people going to wake up and smell the disgust the GOP has for them? I think they must be living in a fantasy world.
In an LA Times article, this is what one particular Log Cabin dreamer stated:
"We are giving President Bush an opportunity for a Sister Souljah moment," said Christopher Barron, political director of the Log Cabin Republicans. "This is an opportunity for the president to make clear that the GOP is a big tent. If there's room in the party for free-traders and protectionists, they've got to make room for us."Sister Souljah with a simultaneous push for a constitutional amendment to "protect" marriage from those filthy gay beasts? What's wrong with that picture?
Here is the reality, from the same article:
Political observers say Bush is unlikely to accept the overture from gay Republicans for a unity plank...By advocating a constitutional amendment against same-sex marriage, they say Bush has calculated that he would rather risk the votes of the estimated 1 million gays and lesbians who voted for him in 2000 than anger evangelicals who feel passionately about the issue.*A tip o'the hat to Angry Liberal
UPDATE: McGreevey's own words
NY Times: I Still Have Work to Do
By JAMES E. McGREEVEY
Published: August 22, 2004
What did Iraq Resolution really say?
What did the Iraq Resolution really say?
The Angry Liberal has some news for you...and some hard questions for president Bush.
The Angry Liberal has some news for you...and some hard questions for president Bush.
Quote: Walter Cronkite
Quote: Walter Cronkite
"I am dumbfounded that there hasn't been a crackdown with the libel and slander laws on some of these would-be writers and reporters on the Internet. I expect that to develop in the fairly near future."
--Walter Cronkite
"I am dumbfounded that there hasn't been a crackdown with the libel and slander laws on some of these would-be writers and reporters on the Internet. I expect that to develop in the fairly near future."
--Walter Cronkite
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