vendredi 31 décembre 2004

Dumbass quote of the day

"I feel like I've been hit in the stomach...It is like 9/11 but so different. There is no one to blame." -- Bill Frist (R - Animal Vivisection)




These are the remarks of our supposedly educated Senate Majority Leader about the aftermath of the tsunami.



He could, of course, always follow the time-honored conservative tradition of blaming first Bill and Hillary Clinton, then Hollywood liberals.

Funniest. AVIATOR. Review. Ever.


Of course you all know that in my own personal pantheon of gonzo film reviewers, Vern has no equal. Still, every now and then Mark Ramsey of Movie Juice comes up with a showstopper.



Actually, The Aviator isn't as big a target as you'd think. It's not as good as it should be, given that it's Capital-S-Scorsese, but it's a good-looking, well-paced, enjoyable film. So that Ramsey was able to come up with a snark index this high is pretty impressive.



I myself spit out my tea and nearly coughed my lungs out at Jude Law being a cinematic Whack-a-Mole. How about you?

Happy New Year

As Sydney celebrated the coming of a new year with a bang, may we remember those in need, yet remain hopeful for a bigger and brighter year ahead for us all.

May your year, dear reader, be filled with culinary capers, epicurean feasts and many a gastronomic adventure!

Happy 2005 everyone!


Sydney New Years Eve fireworks 2004.
The fireworks were preceded by one minute's silence as a mark of

Happy New Year

As Sydney celebrated the coming of a new year with a bang, may we remember those in need, yet remain hopeful for a bigger and brighter year ahead for us all.

May your year, dear reader, be filled with culinary capers, epicurean feasts and many a gastronomic adventure!

Happy 2005 everyone!


Sydney New Years Eve fireworks 2004.
The fireworks were preceded by one minute's silence as a mark of

They don't even HAVE to overturn Roe v. Wade


...women are already starting to be denied even basic information about their reproductive health options....even if they are raped.



The U.S. Department of Justice has issued its first-ever medical guidelines for treating sexual assault victims - without any mention of emergency contraception, the standard precaution against pregnancy after rape.



The omission of the so-called morning-after pill has frustrated and angered victims' advocates and medical professionals who have long worked to improve victims' care.



Gail Burns-Smith, one of several dozen experts who vetted the protocol during its three-year development by Justice's Office on Violence Against Women, said emergency contraception was included in an early draft, and she does not know of anyone who opposed it.





Most Americans, even those opposed to abortion, favor some kind of exception in the event of rape. But not the Bush Administration....it's clear that they regard women who have been raped as being somehow complicit in the crime against them, and therefore they must be punished by being forced by the government to bear the offspring of the men who raped them.



There was a time when we complained that Republicans were trying to return us to the 1950's. It's worse than that; they're trying to return us to the Middle Ages.



Are you a reproductive-age woman? Do you have a daughter of reproductive age? Did you vote for George W. Bush? If so, you voted for this, you got it.

Year-End Friday Cat Blogging







Empress Wendy (August ??, 1985 - January 2, 2001)

2004 Food Blog Awards

Yay! Grab Your Fork has been nominated for Best Food Blog - City in the 2004 Food Blog Awards kindly organised by The Accidental Hedonist.

Cast your vote for this award and other categories here:
http://www.accidentalhedonist.com/pollbooth/city.php.

Votes are restricted to one per IP address so feel free to vote on as many computers as you can find. Feel free to get your friends to vote too ;-)

2004 Food Blog Awards

Yay! Grab Your Fork has been nominated for Best Food Blog - City in the 2004 Food Blog Awards kindly organised by The Accidental Hedonist.

Cast your vote for this award and other categories here:
http://www.accidentalhedonist.com/pollbooth/city.php.

Votes are restricted to one per IP address so feel free to vote on as many computers as you can find. Feel free to get your friends to vote too ;-)

jeudi 30 décembre 2004

Takayama photos--Miyagawa market pics are up

Click here for more Takayama pics... the Miyagawa morning markets.


Takayama photos--Miyagawa market pics are up

Click here for more Takayama pics... the Miyagawa morning markets.


Takayama photos--Jinya-mae market pics are up

Finally finally... the next lot of Japan photos are up.

Click here for photos of the Takayama Jinya-mae morning markets.

I've also revised a number of captions from the Tsukiji fish market photos thanks to fish fish.
Click here to find out what all the strange seafood really was!


Takayama photos--Jinya-mae market pics are up

Finally finally... the next lot of Japan photos are up.

Click here for photos of the Takayama Jinya-mae morning markets.

I've also revised a number of captions from the Tsukiji fish market photos thanks to fish fish.
Click here to find out what all the strange seafood really was!


How the Bush Administration plans to pay for tsunami relief


Faye Wachs said she was impressed by the efforts of the Thai government and the International Committee for the Red Cross, but "she was appalled at the treatment they got" from the U.S. government, her mother said.



At the airport in Bangkok, other governments had set up booths to greet nationals who had been affected and to help repatriate them, she said.



That was not the case with the U.S. government, Wachs told her mother. It took the couple three hours, she said, to find the officials from the American consulate, who were in the VIP lounge.



Because they had lost all their possessions, including their documentation, they had to have new passports issued.



But the U.S. officials demanded payment to take the passport pictures, Helen Wachs said.



The couple had managed to hold on to their ATM card, so they paid for the photos and helped other Americans who did not have any money get their pictures taken and buy food, Helen Wachs said.



"She was really very surprised" that the government did so little to ease their ordeal, she said.





Yes, let's nickel and dime American tsunami survivors to death. And here I thought it was only the brown people of Asia that the Bush Administration told to go Cheney themselves. Silly me.



Link...

Punkass Republicans


As John in DC over at Americablog points out, if "do-overs" were what we do when an election result seems inconclusive, the 2000 Presidential election would have been subject to a revote as well.



But when Republicans can't outright steal an election, they ask for a "do-over", like any other playground bully:



Edged out of the closest governor's race in state history, Republican Dino Rossi urged his opponent to accept a revote, saying the uncertainty surrounding the back-and-forth election was bad for the state. Democrat Christine Gregoire's camp immediately rejected the idea as "irresponsible."





Sore Loserman indeed.

mercredi 29 décembre 2004

Completely Unfiltered Tsunami News


Boingboing has links to a number of bloggers in SE Asia who have been covering the tsunami, both before and after. Fascinating eyewitness stuff, and devoid of the "But what about the inconvenienced white people?" spin of the American MSM.

Where's George?


Wouldn't you think that the Leader of the Free World could take some time out from clearing brush on his holiday vacation to show his face to the world and say something out of his own mouth about the biggest natural disaster of our lifetime?



Apparently not. I guess George is just too important a man for such trivialities.



I am a proud American who is disgusted and ashamed to have this man be the face my country presents to the world.



From yesterday's White House Press Gaggle:





I think the State Department has briefed recently about some of the efforts underway. I'll quickly summarize them. There has been an initial commitment of $15 million to support the relief efforts. USAID has just recently added $20 million to that, for the earthquake relief. Included in that is $2 million for Sri Lanka, $1 million for Indonesia, $100,000 each for India, the Maldives and Thailand; as well, an additional $4 million has been sent to the International Red Cross to support their efforts.



The United States military is also playing a role. The Thailand government has offered the United States a base to use as a regional support center in the recovery effort, and we welcome that. There are a dozen C-130s from the Pacific Command that are hauling in relief supplies as we speak, including food, water, blankets, emergency shelter -- you name it, it's on its way and those relief supplies will continue to flow.





Translation: We haven't a fucking clue what else we're going to do. Meanwhile, $100,000 each for India, the Maldives and Thailand? Is he fucking kidding?



Q Trent, we've heard your statements about -- for two or three days about the President's sentiments, but we haven't actually seen him, and, more importantly, the people in Sri Lanka or Indonesia or the other locations have not seen him step out, as he did so often after, say, September 11 and some other tragedies. Can you tell us why?



MR. DUFFY: The President has already sent letters of condolences to the leaders in the seven countries. He has directed the United States to play a leading role in the recovery effort and we will continue to do that. The President is doing what is needed most, which is to authorize the U.S. government to play a leading role in the relief and recovery effort. And so he has extended his condolences -- I have, on his behalf -- and he continues to express his condolences.



Q Trent, I'm not questioning his -- the actual question is whether the people of Asia and those who are suffering from all of this, whether there would be any benefit from seeing and hearing from him directly.



MR. DUFFY: I think the people of the region and around the world know that the President of the United States is saddened and has extended his condolences for this terrible tragedy.





I hate to tell Mr. Duffy, but 11, not 7 countries were affected. So who are the ones who didn't get the President's e-mail?



As far as people of the region knowing that the President of the United States is saddened, I think they know no such thing. All they know is that he loves to kill a lot of brown-skinned people (Iraq) or ignore them (Darfur). As for "knowing" anything, I think they're thinking more about how they're going to get drinking water.



Q As the relief efforts recedes, will the President be making any requests of Congress to free up more funds for this?



MR. DUFFY: I have nothing to announce at this time. Obviously, as we just try to grasp what the scope of this tragedy and the response effort that's needed, we'll continue to assess the needs going forward. So I don't have anything to announce at this point, but should there be a need for additional resources I have every expectation that the President would seek those.





Translation: The $35 million is it. We know Americans have short memories, and there will be no outcry for more help, so we're not going to bother. After all, we have a war in Iraq to spend $177 million a day on, and a $40 million party to throw on January 20.



Q A follow up on David's question. Does the President not see any utility as to him taking a personal or a very public leadership role at a time like this worldwide?



MR. DUFFY: The President is taking a personal, public leadership role in this. He is -- as I said, he's been involved and he's authorized the U.S. government to play a leading role in the relief and recovery efforts, and that's what's needed most, is to speed the relief and the recovery, the manpower, the materiel, the supplies to the region and to help with the recovery effort. And that's what's most important right now.





And I am Marie of Rumania.



Meanwhile, if you want to know what C-Plus Caligula is doing that's so pressing that he can't sober himself up long enough to get in front of a microphone and actually play a leadership role in the world, here ya go:



Q Besides getting his morning briefing, what else is the President doing?



MR. DUFFY: The President is continuing to think about the Inauguration and the State of the Union speech; he's clearing some brush this morning; I think he has some friends coming in either today or tomorrow that he enjoys hosting; he's doing some biking and exercising as he normally does, taking walks with the First Lady; and thinking about what he wants to accomplish in the second term.





63,000 people dead, and this nimrod is clearing brush (how much fucking brush IS there on that God-forsaken piece of Texas land?), working out, entertaining friends, and trying to cram for his second term.



Swell. Just swell.

mardi 28 décembre 2004

Some Tsunami Survivors Who Are Not Swimsuit Models


I know that images of a swimsuit model with big tits generate eyeballs for the print and broadcast media, and therefore the ordeal of such a person outweighs all other considerations, but since the media seems to be focusing on the ordeal suffered by Czech supermodel Petra Nemcova while on a vacation most Americans only dream of, I thought some photos of what some people are enduring who may not have perfect bodies, perfect Caucasian skin and huge pneumatic hooters might be in order. Yes, Nemcova's experience was horrific, and her survival may be miraculous. I certainly wouldn't want to go through it. But she has a nice home and the best possible medical care and a glamorous career back home to return to, whereas these people have nothing to look forward to but pain and suffering and the short memories of Americans who will in all likelihood tune out the minute another guy murders his pregnant wife.






















In case you think it can't happen here...


Maybe the gutting of Social Security really DOESN'T matter.



My spouse, who can sit and watch programs about geology until I am ready to tear off my own head, has enlightened me to the existence of what's called a "caldera volcano" in Yellowstone National Park. You know Old Faithful? That's there as a result of this volcano.



National Geographic offers reassurance that this volcano is in all likelihood dying or no great threat. Others are less optimistic. This volcano his historically erupted about every 600,000 years. It's been 640,000 since its last eruption.



The most recent caldera-forming eruption about 650,000 years ago produced a caldera 53 x 28 miles (85 x 45 kilometers) across in what is now Yellowstone National Park (Figure 2). During that eruption, ground-hugging flows of hot volcanic ash, pumice, and gases swept across an area of more than 3,000 square miles. When these enormous pyroclastic flows finally stopped, they solidified to form a layer of rock called the Lava Creek Tuff. Its volume was about 240 cubic miles (1,000 cubic kilometers), enough material to cover Wyoming with a layer 13 feet thick or the entire conterminous United States with a layer 5 inches thick. The Lava Creek Tuff has been exposed by erosion at Tuff Cliff, a popular Yellowstone attraction along the lower Gibbon River.



[snip]



The current rates of seismicity, ground deformation, and hydrothermal activity at Yellowstone, although high by most geologic standards, are probably typical of long time periods between eruptions and therefore not a reason for immediate concern. Potentially damaging earthquakes are likely to continue occurring every few decades, as they have in the recent past. Eventually Yellowstone will erupt again, but there is no indication that an eruption is imminent or what kind of eruption may come next. For the foreseeable future, the same powerful forces that created Yellowstone will continue to animate this slumbering, but restless, volcanic giant.





So don't put off those home improvements you've been wanting to do! You never know.



Tsunami

Steve Gilliard (who has really been on a roll lately) again:



I was watching ABC News and every picture had a white person in it. They talked to white people. The fact that entire provinces were wiped from the earth, people had lost their homes and their families and the economies of several countries were torn to shit with no warning, all I'm hearing about is how tourists had vacations ruined.



The fact that they will all go home to clean water and standing homes, and that only the richest Westerners can even visit these places, seems to have escaped the news, except as horrible pictures. The idea of talking to wogs and finding out how they feel about losing everything is not nearly as important finding out how Oprah's designer buddy and his boyfriend survived in their luxury hotel most locals can't even enter.



It doesn't seem to occur that the important story is not the tourists, who need to go the fuck home, but the people who live there. The people who live there only exist as tragic figures, not fellow humans. We'll get plenty of pictures of the poor unfortunate nig nogs, but we will not be allowed to relate to them as people, with families, who grieve at the horror of their losss and ruined lives. Only white tourists get to tell their stories, despite the large number of English speakers in the region. Tragedy only counts when the skin is white and a vacation ruined.





I have to give props to my local paper, the Hackensack, NJ Record for bucking this media trend of what Gilliard calls "Tsunami kills tourists, other people affected as well". Perhaps it's just that this area has a great many Asian immigrants, but its coverage of the anguished wait for news of family and friends has outweighed its brief mention of tourist inconvenience. Again, I'm reminded of the UN-assisted evacuation of European tourists as depicted in Hotel Rwanda: "Get the White People To Safety First!"



Perhaps most heartbreaking is the nonstop parade of photographs of parents anguishing over their dead children. With a death toll of 44,000 already and climbing, and some estimates indicate that at least one-third of the casualties are children, this is tantamount to the destruction of the better part of a generation.



Meanwhile, the Administration, on the heels of George W. Bush's admonition of already-strapped-for-time Americans to go out and volunteer to help out those citizens whose lives his policies have adversely affected (while he didn't even show up for his customary soup-kitchen photo-op to rub the heads of African-American children), promised $15 million for relief aid. $15 million. Think about that. Sounds like a lot of money, doesn't it? Perhaps, until you take into account that $15 million represents about two hours worth of Iraq war costs (according to the Iraq War Clock in New York City).



44,000 people dead, homes, lives, livelihoods ruined, and the richest nation on earth can only afford $15 million to help people rebuild their lives, while we are willing to give the government a blank check to kill people indiscriminately in Iraq? And we're unwilling to ask the richest Americans to forego a new Ferrari this year by rescinding some of their tax cuts so that we can perhaps repair some of the damage to our world reputation that this Administration has done? What the fuck is wrong with these people? What the fuck is wrong with us as a country?



In the face of the biggest natural disaster of many of our lifetimes, The White House has issued only a terse statement via some press flack, presumably Scotty McLellan:



On behalf of the American people, the President expresses his sincere condolences for the terrible loss of life and suffering caused by the earthquake and subsequent tsunamis in the region of the Bay of Bengal.



The United States stands ready to offer all appropriate assistance to those nations most affected including Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Thailand, and Indonesia, as well as the other countries impacted. Already relief is flowing to Sri Lanka and the Maldives. We will work with the affected governments, the United Nations, non-governmental organizations, and other concerned states and organizations to support the relief and response to this terrible tragedy.



Again, we extend our sincere condolences to all the people of the region at this time of suffering.





"Condolences" -- yeah, that's gonna help people bury their dead and rebuild their lives. Typical Bushit. Let Them Eat Sewage.



Meanwhile, Colin Powell, in perhaps his last bid to salvage something of his reputation, is walking out the door by promising an additional $20 million in aid, saying "The United States is not stingy." Swell. So now we're up to $35 million. That's just under FIVE hours of Iraq war costs, and less than the cost of C-Plus Caligula's inauguration next month.



That tells you how much Bush values human life that isn't rich, white, and American.



Are you willing to let this Administration, who seems to think that saving people overseas is less important than killing them, speak for you? I'm not.



Here's how you can help:



ACTION AGAINST HUNGER

247 West 37th Street, Suite 1201

New York, N.Y. 10018

212-967-7800 x108

www.actionagainsthunger.org



AMERICAN JEWISH WORLD SERVICE

45 West 36th Street, 10th Floor

New York, N.Y. 10018

800-889-7146

www.ajws.org



AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE

AFSC Crisis Fund

1501 Cherry Street

Philadelphia, Pa. 19102

215-241-7000

www.afsc.org



AMERICAN RED CROSS

International Response Fund

P.O. Box 37243

Washington, D.C. 20013

800-HELP NOW

www.redcross.org



CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES

Tsunami Emergency

P.O. Box 17090

Baltimore, Md. 21203-7090

800-736-3467

www.catholicrelief.org



DIRECT RELIEF INTERNATIONAL

27 South La Patera Lane

Santa Barbara, Calif. 93117

805-964-4767

www.directrelief.org





DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS

P.O. Box 1856

Merrifield, Va. 22116-8056

888-392-0392

www.doctorswithoutborders.org



INTERNATIONAL MEDICAL CORPS

Earthquake/Tsunami Relief

1919 Santa Monica Boulevard, Suite 300

Santa Monica, Calif. 90404

800-481-4462

www.imcworldwide.org



AMERICAN JEWISH JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE

South Asia Tsunami Relief

Box 321

847A Second Avenue

New York, N.Y. 10017

212-687-6200 ext. 851

www.jdc.org





MERCY CORPS

Southeast Asia Earthquake Response

Dept. W

P.O. Box 2669

Portland, Ore. 97208

800-852-2100

www.mercycorps.org





OPERATION USA

8320 Melrose Avenue, Suite 200 Los Angles, Calif. 90069

800-678-7255

www.opusa.org





SAVE THE CHILDREN

Asia Earthquake/Tidal Wave Relief Fund

54 Wilton Road

Westport, Conn. 06880

800-728-3843

www.savethechildren.org





ISLAMIC RELIEF USA

Southeast Asia Earthquake Emergency

P.O. Box 6098

Burbank, Calif. 91510

888-479-4968.

www.irw.org/asiaquak



And to all my little cybertrolls who visit here, and you know who you are, yes, I have already donated. I chose Doctors Without Borders.



Note to Secret Service/FBI: I got this list from the New York Times. So if you have a problem with Islamic Relief USA, go talk to the Times. I'm just passing on the information they provided to the public.



Tsunami tragedy

It would be remiss of Grab Your Fork to ignore the current tsunami devastation in south-east Asia. The news footage seems more appropriate for a Hollywood blockbuster than current affairs, as we watch in disbelief. To find out the latest tsunami news from the Sydney Morning Herald click here.

If you want to help, donations for the relief effort may be made through the following:
The Australian

Tsunami tragedy

It would be remiss of Grab Your Fork to ignore the current tsunami devastation in south-east Asia. The news footage seems more appropriate for a Hollywood blockbuster than current affairs, as we watch in disbelief. To find out the latest tsunami news from the Sydney Morning Herald click here.

If you want to help, donations for the relief effort may be made through the following:
The Australian

lundi 27 décembre 2004

Dean or Die


Steve Gilliard:



What everyone in DC is fearing, but what is increasing clear, is that it's Howard Dean's job to lose. If there was a vote, he'd win in a landslide. DFA and other groups are already praising his name to the skies. Simon Rosenberg is probably the compromise candidate, but either way, Dean brings cards unheard of into the DNC chair debate, namely massive popular support. Now, the Dems can ignore him or shove him aside, but they risk triggering a real civil war. They still want to have business as usual when it is clear that will no longer suffice.



People who think Dean should wait until '08 are living in a fantasy world. He will no more have a chance in 08 than he did in 04 if the same people run the party. They will preclude a Dean candidacy as sure as rain falls from the sky. The only way for Dean's principles to dominate the party is for him to run it. He cannot do it from outside, and all this talk about moving to the Greens is a joke. They can't shit and wipe their asses at the same time. The Greens are infighters like it was a college English department. That's not ever going to be a serious vehicle for change. Nader? He says the right things, but takes money from Grover and friends.



The threat I would take seriously is the threat to withhold funds. The DNC was able to raise money in the streets, unprecidented. If they push a loser like Roemer, someone who's also pro-gutting Social Security, as head of the party, then why would I or anyone else raise a dime for them? What would they stand for?





Gilliard is one of the smartest people in Blogistan, but he sees Kerry/Edwards as the ticket again in 2008, once again on the "electable" meme. God, I hope he's wrong. Yet there just doesn't seem to be anyone else in the pipeline who's even remotely tolerable. I will NOT support some misogynistic hack who thinks he can sell out a woman's reproductive system for a couple of fundie wingnut votes, nor one who thinks he can sell out the environment for a few fundie wingnut votes, or who thinks he can sell out on prayer in school for a few fundie wingnut votes. And there are hundreds of thousands just like me out there -- progressives who were good soldiers this time, but won't be fooled again. Kerry Just Plain Didn't Want It That Badly. He conceded before the votes were even counted; why on earth should he get another chance?



If the Democratic Party is going to survive, it's going to have to do what the hapless New York Mets SHOULD be doing if they weren't owned by the hopelessly inept Wilpon family -- building a farm team. You don't trade for washed-up sluggers. You trade washed-up players for young pitchers. You grow your own team. The fact of the matter is that the Democratic Party doesn't even have washed-up sluggers; they have overpaid washed-up journeyman ballplayers that no one wants (Kerry), overhyped prospects (Evan Bayh), an attractive kid who hits great during the season and then chokes in the playoffs (Edwards) and the team owner's nephew (Hillary Clinton). So this is going to take time. You have to scout these players in the town halls and state houses across the country. We have one of them in Barack Obama, but let's not turn him into Darryl Strawberry circa 1983. We can't ask him to carry an entire team. Give people candidates at the local, county, and state levels, and candidates for Congressional seats who will STAND for something.



This is what Dean can do. You don't rebuild this party from the top down, any more than you build the Green party by running candidates for president and nothing else. You build from the bottom up. This is what Howard Dean is uniquely equipped to do.



Stay tuned.

The Bush Phases of Policy Implementation

Josh Marshall points out the ways in which the Administration's Social Security reform planning resembles that which preceded the Iraq war -- something apparently the Administration itself has proudly admitted.



Reggie White


As I get older, reading about people younger than me dying is always somewhat disconcerting. It's always sad when a life is cut short. However, with the paeans to Reggie White that are going to be occurring over the next few days, let's remind ourselves that the man was a wingnut bigot of the first order. Americablog has some of the man's particularly egregious views, from which he backtracked not one iota.

Donations for earthquake/tsunami relief


In the triage of charitable donations, it's a good thing I took care of USO Cares last week, because now it's time to open the old wallet and share my bounty with earthquake victims.



I loathe the Red Cross, but if you don't have a beef with them, you can donate to them here (select "International Response Fund"). Or, you could really piss off the wingnuts and give money to UNICEF instead.

The War On Easter Starts Now


Atrios is hosting this particular hayride and I thought I'd get there early so I can get a good seat and first pick of the canapés.



Some samples of Truly Tasteless Easter Humor from some of his commenters:



"Easter? Isn't that where Jesus was killed and then was buried and came out of his tomb and saw his shadow and we have six more weeks of winter?"



"They went to the cave where Jesus had been buried. The huge rock that had blocked the door of the cave was rolled away.



And Lo, the Lord saith,

'Fuck you morons! You guys were a lot of help when my ass was fucking nailed to the cross!

Kiss my ass and roll that rock back!'"



"I'm just waiting for O'Reilly to wonder why those damned PC types won't let us have Easter pogroms against the Christ-killers like we used to have every year, back when we were a moral society."



"Attention: Easter 2005 has been canceled - They found the body."



"I was discussing the anti-Semitic underpinnings of the "Protect Christmas" campaign with an observant Jewish friend of mine. The talk turned towards the Jewish emphasis on universal literacy and a different interpretation of Leviticus. His comments: 'We WROTE Leviticus, we should bloody well know it means!'"



And our friend Jazz Shaw of Running Scared once again reminds us:



Easter is actually a modernized spelling for the festival of Esther. She was a north European pagan goddess who held sway over the springtime rituals of regrowth and fertility. Her symbols were a rabbit and an egg. Tell me, do you remember any stories about a "St. Easter" or rabbits or eggs in the Bible story of the ressurection?

Duc Thanh, Cabramatta

Taking respite from the post-Xmas city sales crush, we took a scenic tour and ended up having lunch in Cabramatta, otherwise known as little Vietnam in Sydney.We've eaten at Duc Thanh before--the coolest thing we like about this place are the photo album menus. Instead of vague imagined visions of "beef with ginger" or "spicy chicken", these photographic descriptions are your guarantee of minimal

I don't want to hear one more word about Michael Moore


No, he's NOT the "liberal Ann Coulter." Moore is kind of a gonzo documentarian, but at least he's not in the "oughta be in a rubber room" category...and contrary to popular belief among those who listen to wingnut radio, he is NOT a spokesperson for the Democratic Party the way Ann Coulter is for Republicans.



Here's your girl, wingnuts:



To The People Of Islam:

Just think: If we'd invaded your countries, killed your leaders and converted you to Christianity YOU'D ALL BE OPENING CHRISTMAS PRESENTS RIGHT ABOUT NOW!

Merry Christmas






She should either be ashamed of herself or get some help. And so should anyone who regards her as knowing what the fuck she's talking about.



(via ModFab)



dimanche 26 décembre 2004

Oy Oy Oy


You can write the rest of THIS story for yourself:



President Fidel Castro said a crude oil deposit has been discovered off Cuba containing up to 100 million barrels, good news for a country that imports about half the petroleum it needs.



"This is the first discovery since 1999," Castro said Friday in a speech to a closed session of the National Assembly. His comments were aired on state television Saturday.



Castro said the deposit was located off the coast of Santa Cruz del Norte, east of Havana, during an exploratory drilling. He said production at the site could begin during 2006.

Christmas: A Look Back


Well, Christmas came and went. People opened presents, drank eggnog, fought with their relatives, went to church, and sang carols.



Looks like the liberal plot to destroy Christmas failed.



I guess we'll just have to try again next year.



Meanwhile, us all-powerful liberals who are such a threat to the established order can take comfort in the fact that a movie in which a majority of the leading characters are obviously Jews, and which stars Barbara Streisand, was the #1 film at the box office over Christmas weekend.

Rumsfeld


Interesting:



And I think all of us have a sense if we imagine the kind of world we would face if the people who bombed the mess hall in Mosul, or the people who did the bombing in Spain, or the people who attacked the United States in New York, shot down the plane over Pennsylvania and attacked the Pentagon, the people who cut off peoples' heads on television to intimidate, to frighten -- indeed the word "terrorized" is just that. Its purpose is to terrorize, to alter behavior, to make people be something other than that which they want to be.





I wonder what he meant by that?



(via Buzzflash)

The Falwell/Robertson Dumbass Remark Pool


Ron Beasley at Middle Earth Journal wonders how long it's going to take before either Falwell or Robertson points out that the areas hit by today's horrific earthquake are largely Muslim and Hindu.



The clock starts ticking now, so place yer bets here...

And Tim Roemer differs from a Republican...how?


It's looking more and more like a battle to the death between the Washington/appeasement wing of the Democratic party, and the progressives who want the Democratic Party to actually stand for something. The latest name to be floated is former Indiana Rep. Tim Roemer, whom Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have endorsed.



Here are some goodies from Roemer's voting record (via "blogswarm" at Kos):



Voted YES on banning human cloning, including medical research. (Jul 2001)



Voted YES on banning Family Planning funding in US aid abroad. (May 2001)



Voted YES on federal crime to harm fetus while committing other crimes. (Apr 2001)



Voted YES on banning partial-birth abortions. (Apr 2000)



Voted YES on barring transporting minors to get an abortion. (Jun 1999)



Voted YES on Constitutional amendment prohibiting Flag Desecration. (Jul 2001)



Voted NO on funding for alternative sentencing instead of more prisons. (Jun 2000)



Voted YES on more prosecution and sentencing for juvenile crime. (Jun 1999)



Voted NO on maintaining right of habeus corpus in Death Penalty Appeals. (Mar 1996)



Voted YES on making federal death penalty appeals harder. (Feb 1995)



Voted NO on raising CAFE standards; incentives for alternative fuels. (Aug 2001)



Voted NO on banning soft money donations to national political parties. (Jul 2001)



Voted NO on allowing suing HMOs, but under federal rules & limited award. (Aug 2001)



Voted NO on Prescription Drug Coverage under Medicare. (Jun 2000)



Voted YES on banning physician-assisted suicide. (Oct 1999)



Voted YES on deploying SDI. (Mar 1999)



In case you couldn't tell, Roemer is also a DLC guy.



With this kind of voting record, why should we vote Democratic instead of for REAL Republicans?



Blogistan is pretty well abuzz with this news, and there's a growing sentiment that if someone like Roemer is the DNC pick, it's a message to the rest of us that the party doesn't want us.



I'm on record as stating that the Green Party, never having successfully elected a national candidate, and without a coherent platform, may not be the way to go. But even if it means living under totalitarian Republican rule in perpetuity (and that would be different with an appeasement Democratic party...how?) I will NOT give a Democratic party that's like this a nickel more of my money or a minute more of my sweat equity.

Corn Exchange, Darling Harbour

It's a tradition of ours that we compound Christmas gluttony with one final blow-out... the Boxing Day Buffet.

We headed to the Corn Exchange Restaurant at the Sheraton Four Points for all-you-can-eat seafood, sushi, hot dishes, salads and yes, plenty of desserts.



Options here were endless: Soup of the day, fresh breads, pappadums to start or should you head straight for the seafood?

Seafood

samedi 25 décembre 2004

OK, back to business

Light blogging until at least Monday night. I have to submit nominations for Cinemarati Awards by midnight Monday, and that means I have to stuff as many movies as I can into my brain by then. So far:



  • House of Flying Daggers - a spectacular first hour, followed by a draggy second hour that grows increasingly preposterous. But certainly one of the most beautiful films of the year


  • Hotel Rwanda - A wonderful film not about the genocide per se, but about one man who made a difference simply because it seemed like the thing to do. A great, powerful, moving film. don't miss it.






Tomorrow, The Aviator - three hours. OY! Then The Motorcycle Diaries and hopefully Spring Summer Fall Winter...and Spring.

Christmas--Sydney style

I've spent a few Christmases in London before and sure, the snow, the roasting chestnuts and cold-weather-appetite all make for memorable festive feasting, just like it was always told in the storybooks of our childhood.

However in the heart of each and every true-blue Aussie, it really ain't Christmas unless it involves blistering 30C+ heat, plenty of fresh seafood and the incessant sound of

vendredi 24 décembre 2004

jeudi 23 décembre 2004

Why did the Founding Fathers hate Christmas?


Wikipedia:



Christmas fell out of favor again after the American Revolution, as it was considered an "English custom", and it was not declared a federal holiday in the United States until June 26, 1870.

Why did the Pilgrims hate Christmas?


Penne Restad, author, Christmas in America (Oxford University Press, 1995)
The Puritans and other religious groups didn't celebrate Christmas because there is nothing in the Bible that directed them to do so. Besides, their experience with Christmas in England was that it had become a season of excesses -- gambling, elaborate feasts, parties -- and they heartily disapproved.

Mr. Coffee, meet Mrs. Keyboard


Tbogg.

THIS is victory over Stalinism?


We fought WWII against fascists. We fought the so-called Cold War against a totalitarian Stalinist regime in the former Soviet Union. To this day, right-wingers are calling everyone who doesn't agree with them "commies."



Americans put flags on their cars, ribbon magnets that say "God Bless America" -- and yet most Americans haven't got a frickin' clue what the system they claim they love stands for.



Here are some of the fascist, totalitarian things significant numbers of Americans support, according to the same CPOD-Global Scan poll that revealed an appalling acceptance of the idea that civil liberties for Muslim Americans should be curtailed:





  • 47% believe government should have greater power in monitoring Internet activities such as e-mail and online transactions

  • 36% believe we need to outlaw some un-American actions, even if they’re constitutionally protected (Given that they don't understand what America is, I'm not sure how the respondents defined "un-American")

  • One-third believe tat in a time of crisis or war, the media should not cover anti-war protests, and 31% believe the media should not report comments of individuals who criticize the government





No wonder there aren't mass protests in the streets when the Bush Administration starts looking more like the Third Reich every day. American WANT fascism.

Let's call it what it is: FUBAR


There's just no more putting lipstick on this particular pig. The Iraq war is a complete and utter clusterfuck put together by people who are either incompetent (the neocon axis), greedy (the Cheney/Halliburton axis) or just plain evil (the whole bunch of them).



MoDo:



President Bush has finally acknowledged that the Iraqis can't hack it as far as securing their own country, which means, of course, that America has no exit strategy for its troops, who will soon number 150,000.



News organizations led with the story, even though the president was only saying something that everybody has known to be true for a year. The White House's policy on Iraq has gone from a total charade to a limited modified hangout. Mr. Bush is conceding the obvious, that the Iraqi security forces aren't perfect, so he doesn't have to concede the truth: that Iraq is now so dire no one knows how or when we can get out.



If this fiasco ever made sense to anybody, it doesn't any more.



[snip]



...despite all the American kids who gave their lives in Mosul on the cusp of Christmas, battling an enemy they can't see in a war fought over weapons that didn't exist, we're not heading toward the democratic halcyon Mr. Bush promised.



"I think looking for a peaceful Iraq after the elections would be a mistake," Mr. Rumsfeld said.





I'm sure that's a comfort to the parents and loved ones of the kids who were blown to bits while eating their creamed chipped beef on toast in a tent in Mosul the other day, especially while they watch their re-elected king celebrating himself to the tune of a $40 million party on January 20. [/bitter sarcasm]



Sgt. Maj. J. David Gallant, instructor at the Army Military Intelligence Center and School at Fort Huachuca, Arizona:



National will is going to falter in its support of this U.S. involvement -- more than it already has -- if our soldiers cannot even be secure in large, semi-hardened containment areas," he says. "This is a damned cold slap in the face, and not one of these soldiers should have been killed or injured...Iraq is heading for civil war and total chaos and the Jan. 30 election is like putting a Flintstones Band-Aid on a gushing femoral artery.



I am afraid 2005 is even going to be worse than 2004




And the Administration keeps trying to salvage itself, even as President Bush has LOST support since the election, by continuing to draw lines connecting Iraq and 9/11:



[Gen. Richard B.] Myers, appearing at the news conference with Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, said the attack was "the responsibility of the insurgents, the same insurgents who attacked on 9/11. The way you prevent this is to win the war on extremism."





Last night I heard a caller into Mark Levin call for all ACLU members to be lined up and shot. So OK, Gen. Myers, how about we start winning the war on extremism right here at home? I'm game.



And if you're enjoying what's happening in Iraq, look what's coming next:



US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage warned Syria that Washington was prepared to impose new sanctions if it failed to clamp down on fugitive Iraqi officials and end its involvement in Lebanon.





Did you vote for another 4 years for this crew? If so, and you have a son who's between 17 and 24, be sure to give him extra hugs this Christmas. You have no assurance you'll have him with you next Christmas, given the way this Administration is running things.

Fire the pundits, hire the letter writers


Poetic Leanings reprints a letter from today's Asbury Park Press that's better than almost any of the ink spilled in the Christmas Wars this year (with the possible exception of Anna Quindlen's excellent column in this week's Newsweek.

Sapphire Princess--she's big and proud of it

We couldn't resist heading down to Circular Quay at lunchtime today to check out the Sapphire Princess which docked in Sydney briefly on its way to New Zealand.



Yes this Princess is definitely... errr... a little "hefty". She's the largest Princess vessel in its fleet and and is the younger but bigger sister to the Diamond Princess. Other jaw-dropping stats include:

She carries 2,670

Why is President Bush Trying to Destroy Christmas?


You know, the drinks and food are so tasty on this bandwagon, I just have to climb on board and join in the fun:



********************




Why does President Bush hate Christmas? Why is he enjoined with the heathens and apostates and Jews and blacks who invent holidays with funny names where they do dances that use both halves of their bodies and sex-crazed liberal atheists to destroy the holy and somber commemoration of the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ (sic)?



Nothing less than the White House web site itself has banished the baby Jesus from the White House itself, and our God-fearing, God-loving President's own celebration. Instead of "A Holy Day", the theme of the White House Christmas is "A Season of Merriment and Melody."



How appalling! The White House itself is advocating the celebration of this second most holy of days as an excuse to play music, dance, and enjoy pleasures of the flesh!!



Look at these photos. Do you see a nativity scene anywhere? Hell, no, brothers and sisters! Nothing but PAGAN SYMBOLS! Evergreen trees, lights, and even THE LIGHTING OF A JEWISH MENORAH!! AT THE WHITE HOUSE!! The home of the president of This Christian Nation, currently home to the most God-fearing Christian President ever! And is that a gay Santa Claus sitting with Laura Bush there?



And look at this White House crèche! Do you see the Baby Jesus? I don't. It looks like a drunken orgy at one of them there Renaissance Faires that those occultists and tarot card readers go to in the summertime to force their Satanic rituals down the throats of unsuspecting tourists!



And is this a representation of the witch's house from Hansel and Gretel?



It's an outrage, I tell you!



The site states that the White House is decorated with "delightful vignettes illustrating many of the best-loved songs of the season." In an exclusive scoop, WorldNetDaily reveals the disgusting songs that defile the White House this particular annus horribilis:



Not one of those songs is a traditional spiritual carol or hymn. Instead, the songs listed include "We Wish You a Merry Christmas," "Here Comes Santa Claus," "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," "All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth," "Upon the Housetop," "Blue Christmas," "Jingle Bells," "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree," White Christmas," "Frosty the Snowman, "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "Marshmallow World."





Disgusting! Our God-Fearing President is allowing songs that glorify masturbation ("Here Comes Santa Claus"), adultery and selfish sexual gratification ("I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"), vampirism ("All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth"), pornography ("Blue Christmas"), that evil rock 'n' roll music that's been destroying our children for nigh on 50 years ("Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree"), drug dealing ("Frosty the Snowman"), and alcoholism ("Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer").



It's a plot by Hollywood liberal Jews. There's just no other explanation.



********************


mercredi 22 décembre 2004

Damn! I gotta clean my brains off the wall again


I hate when my head explodes twice in one day.



If you needed further proof that the Apocalypse is nigh, here it is.



Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to introduce Matisyahu....purveyor of Hasidic reggae.



Yes, Virginia, there is actually a Hasidic reggae singer. I'm not sure whether to be appalled or to laugh hysterically at the idea of an ex-Deadhead and Phishhead who is now a Lubavitch Hasid and sings reggae.



Is this how dead Rastafarians are reincarnated? As Hasidic Jews who sing reggae?



Reggie is historically associated with Rastafarianism, after all, which grew out of Marcus Garvey's 1920 prediction: Look to Africa "when a black king shall be crowned, for the day of deliverance is at hand" and came to fruition with the crowning of Ras Tafari as emperor Haile Selassie 1 of Ethiopia in 1930 and became known as "King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and the conquering lion of the Tribe of Judah". Haile Selassie claimed to be a direct descendant of King David, the 225th ruler in an unbroken line of Ethiopian Kings from the time of Solomon and Sheba, and somehow I doubt that most Rastas feel a great kinship with Jews, nor do Jews feel a great kinship with Rastafarianism.



But hey, if Don Byron can do klezmer and keep the Yiddish music of Mickey Katz alive, why not a Hasid who does reggae? If your curiosity gets the best of you, Matisyahu is appearing at B.B. King's in New York City on Christmas Day. Doors open at 6, tickets are a big 15 bucks.



Now THAT's a shandeh far di goyim.



(via Alterman)

And speaking of high-risk investments...


Social Security privatization -- increased returns without any risk -- isn't the only "How ya gonna do it, Porge?" [/Firesign] delusion Americans have. They also seem to want the U.S. to continue feeding kids into the meatgrinder that is Iraq -- but don't seem to put it together that those kids are going to have to come from somewhere:



Whether one supported or opposed the invasion has become irrelevant, many said - there is only the road ahead now, with few signs to guide the way.



Charlie Eubanks, a cotton farmer and lawyer from the Lower Rio Grande Valley of Texas, said he supported President Bush but had been lukewarm about going to war. Now, he said there was no choice but to fight on, and that reports on opinion polls were only "aiding and abetting" the enemy by making opponents think the American will is weak.



"We've got to hang in there and get it done," Mr. Eubanks said.





I wonder if Mr. Eubanks has a son or daughter around the age of 18-24.



Steve Gilliard rightly calls them on their idiocy:



If you think we should proceed in Iraq, send your teenagers there. After all, you're asking other people to do the same. I mean, yank them out of college and send them to the recruiter. Otherwise, you're full of shit. All those "security moms" want security to be provided by other people's kids. Well, your turn is coming. When they take the class of Duke 2006 and ship them to Iraq, see how much you support Bush then.



When people say Kerry should have run against the war, this is what he would run into, American stubborness. People think we "have" to win. Tell them we're losing, and they look at you like you're crazy. They don't get that the US is losing and there is no easy solution, like more allied troops. Kerry wasn't going to get them and Bush will be told to piss off. Who joins a losing war? You think anything short than a full corps of Egyptian and Pakistani units would do any good? And they aren't coming because the leaders of those countries are allegric to plastic explosives in their cars.




As for this "We have to win" nonsense, that's what they said about Vietnam, too. America losing a war was unthinkable. We fed 58,000 young Americans into that particular meatgrinder, along with millions of Vietnamese. How many dead bodies do these pro-life red-staters have to see before they realize that we're not going to "win" this one either?

Why does President Bush hate the cross?

Even as surreal as life here in the USA is these days, sometimes an article comes along that just makes your head explode.



Here, via Atrios, is one of them:



This wintry season, as the faithful continue to receive alarming reports from the news that Republicans are all that stand between them and the outlawing of Christmas itself by hordes of secular humanists, the two presidents Bush have endorsed a powerful conservative interest group specializing in removing the cross -- not from schools or courthouses, but from churches.



Rather than the traditional egg hunt, this group, calling itself the American Clergy Leadership Conference, sponsored a nationwide "Tear Down The Cross" day for Easter, 2003. Last week, leaders in this radical cause presided over a Washington prayer breakfast featuring messages of thanks from the presidents. Former Senator Bob Dole came in person.



Mostly African-American, pastors who joined in 2003's ACLC-sponsored "Tear Down The Cross" won gold watches from the wealthy group, which unabashedly claims in its publications to have stripped churches of over a hundred crosses over the Easter holiday alone. This, movement leaders said, cleared the way for a new age and second messiah.



Speaking of messiahs, make a quick stop at the web site of the ACLC, and it's clear there's more to it than the “rapidly growing movement of clergy committed to the endeavor of making this nation the best that it can be," as the ACLC described itself in a December 8 Washington Times op-ed. It's actually a vehicle for Sun Myung Moon, the billionaire conservative donor who calls himself the True Father.





This unholy alliance between American conservatives and the Rev. Sun Myung Moon warrants further examination by the MSM, which undoubtedly never will touch it, probably because God knows the Moonie-owned Washington Times and United Press International (UPI) won't.



The article cited above is written by John Gorenfeld, who has been focused on the Moon/Bush/wingnut connection for quite a while. If you're interested in Strange Bedfellows, his blog is always worth a look.



If you're not aware of it, the Senate hosted a ceremony last summer in which Rev. Sun Myung Moon was crowned as the Messiah. I kid you not. Gorenfeld has more.



Bill Clinton was crucified (pun absolutely intended) for his association with the shady-but-inept Jim McDougal. Yet here we have both King George Bush I and his dauphin, George II, intimately associated with a nutcase who thinks he's the king of the world.



Doesn't that bother anyone? Doesn't it bother anyone that while Rockland County wackjobs are vandalizing menorahs, and a right-wing television hosts who thinks that women get turned on having their nipples rubbed with abrasive sponges is decrying the Jews for trying to ban Christmas, the president is cozying up to an 84-year-old ex-con cult leader who's advocating things far more offensive to his own particular brand of Christianity than anything any Hollywood liberal ever did?

mardi 21 décembre 2004

War on earth, good will toward no one


Even the blue states are not immune from the frenzy against Jews and secularists being whipped up by the likes of Bill O'Reilly:



Hours after residents, local officials and clergy gathered at Veteran's Park to attend a rally against the recent vandalism to a Hanukkah menorah, the menorah was vandalized again.



Eight of the nine bulbs were ripped out of the menorah, which sits next to a Christmas tree and a nativity scene, and one was left hanging out of its socket, said Orangetown Police Sgt. Jim Brown.



Police were notified of the damage at 8:30 a.m., and detectives were at the scene taking photographs soon after, Brown said.



"We have been keeping an eye on the menorah," he said. "But officers were extremely busy Sunday night with the weather-related accidents."



Detective Lt. John McAndrew said police also were still investigating the first vandalism attack on the 9-foot-tall menorah that was discovered damaged just before a Dec. 11 Hanukkah ceremony.



"The only link between them is that the damage is the same," he said.



He said the menorah was still intact after the 4 p.m. ceremony Sunday, and the bulbs most likely were broken between midnight and 8 a.m.



Orangetown police have not classified either incident as a bias crime, but McAndrew said they would if the investigation led in that direction.



Rabbi Chaim Ehrenreich, director of Chabad of Chestnut Ridge, which sponsored the display, called the act "shameful and sad."



"There's nothing to say," he said. "It hurts. I don't know how that person can wake up in the morning and look at himself in the mirror."



Ehrenreich, who replaced the bulbs after the first attack, said the menorah was kept up for the rally even though Hanukkah ended last Wednesday. He said the menorah was to be taken down today.



Mayor John Shields, who organized the rally with the Nyack Clergy Association, said he was "horrified."



"I am speechless," he said. "Now, I'm wondering if people are just trying to gain attention."



Along with other recent incidents, the vandalism has caused concern in the town.



Two Orangetown men have been charged with hate crimes in connection with vandalism at four homes — three were painted with swastikas.



Swastikas also were found at Pearl River schools this year, and anti-Semitic pamphlets were distributed in Orangetown. A menorah in Pearl River was heavily damaged last year.





I know Veterans Park very well. I drive past it every day, in fact. This particular area of Rockland County isn't far from Monsey, which has a very large Hasidic Jewish population, one often at odds with its neighbors. Pearl River still has a very large Irish Catholic population. And yet, the overall impression of that area is one that's relatively polyglot, for New York suburbs.



Still...it's pretty clear that a lot of anti-Semitism has been lurking under a thin veneer of civility -- and people like O'Reilly are tearing it off and making it acceptable to act out against Jews and any other non-Christians again.

Happy Holiday!


Ok, so the holiday is Halloween, but so what?

Quote of the Day


From Pravda, of all places, which proves that reality has been completely inverted:



what does this "tale of two elections" prove?: That the Ukraine is a democracy in its birth-pangs, where integrity in the democratic process is not only expected but demanded, while America is a democracy in its death-throes, where corruption and fraud have become an entrenched and accepted part of the political landscape.




More from the same article:



...in the wake of the Bush dictatorship's coup of 2000 and the corruption-ridden "election" of 2004, the chickens have again come home to roost in America. A nation that has incessantly imposed and/or propped up fraudulent democracies throughout the world has finally become a fraudulent democracy itself, controlled by the machinations of a cabal of corrupt oligarchs who satiate Americans with the illusion of "voting," while ensuring their preordained puppets are installed into office.





In America, the Bush dictatorship expressed concern about the fairness of the Ukrainian democratic process, but demonstrated no compunction about profiting from fraudulent elections at home. But perhaps most notably, people in the Ukraine bravely held around-the-clock vigils in inclement weather, demanding that the honor of their democracy be respected and restored. In the United States, a nation supposedly comprised of freedom-loving, fair-minded people, the overwhelming majority of Americans (with the exception of a few scattered protests) apathetically ignored allegations of electoral fraud in states such as Florida and Ohio.





how did America arrive at this sordid state, where fraud masquerades as democracy, where so-called "morality" apparently does not condemn the "bearing of false witness" to wage illegal wars, and where a man as venal, megalomaniacal, ignorant, dishonest and hypocritical as George W. Bush is viewed by many as a paradigm of virtue?



The answer resides in the Bush dictatorship"s ability to exploit and manipulate America"s reaction to the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001 (also known as 9/11), when the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington D.C. were attacked and thousands of people were killed.



But this exploitation and manipulation ignores one crucial reality. At the end of the day, when all the "official" commissions have ended, when all the blame is attributed to "intelligence failures," and when all the "reorganization" of intelligence agencies transpires, a single truth remains: The people who profited most from the 9/11 attacks were George W. Bush and his handlers.





Think about it: Frickin PRAVDA tells the truth about how democracy has died in our nation, while our own media hides the truth. Who's the totalitarian state now? And who says irony is dead?

This is how the military supports the troops


And who's the Commander-in-Chief? George W. Bush, who wants MORE tax cuts for his friends, and MORE money dumped into the pockets of companies like Halliburton...George W. Bush, who's charging corporate fatcats a hundred grand each to eat rubber chicken with him on January 20...George W. Bush, who can't wait to divert Social Security money into the pockets of Wall Street brokers in the form of fees.



There's money in Bushworld for all of this, but Spc. Robert Loria owes the Army a couple thousand bucks, so they've garnisheed his last paycheck. PS. Loria lost an arm in Iraq. And this is how his country pays him back?



Is this what you voted for? If you voted for Bush, yes, it is.



Running Scared, which is rapidly rising to "don't miss" category, has the whole story. I've e-mailed the author to see if there's an address where donations can be sent. Maybe the Bush Administration and Donald Rumsfeld and the Army don't understand what a huge amount of money a few grand is to a guy like this, but we do, right?



UPDATE: Running Scared has the whole story, and it seems that some political types, including the junior Senator from New York, were instrumental in getting the debt wavied. Still...there are many guys just like Pfc. Loria.



Given that Pfc. Loria is missing an arm, and it's Christmas, and the military has a lousy track record of taking care of its own, particularly those who have made it look bad, here's a fund that has been set up for anyone who wants to help:



Benefit Fund for Robert Loria

Bank of New York

440 Route 211 East

Middletown, NY 10940



Low carb, schmo carb, please recommend a bread machine


Alas, I've had to trash my workhorse of a Rival bread machine that I've had for about six years because a book fell on it and broke the glass top. Can anyone recommend a replacement for it that won't set me back an arm, a leg, and a fistful of dollars?

Solstice Bush Blogging Part II: Insanity

This is your President on drugs. Any questions?



When Vladimir made the decision, for example, on the -- whether to elect governors or appoint governors, I issued a statement that said in a free society, in a society based upon Western values, we believe in the proper balance of power.




So what that means, based on Bush's track record, is a strong central figure, i.e. Bush or Pooty-Poot, surrounded by a bunch of lackeys that give the impression of balance of power. No wonder Bush says he knows Putin's heart. Note that Bush did NOT endorse the election of governors over appointment.



Q: [David Cochran] Any lessons you have learned, sir, from the failed nomination of Bernard Kerik? As you look forward now to pick a new Director of the Homeland Security Department, and also as you pick a Director of National Intelligence, any lessons learned in terms of vetting, and particularly with the DNI? What sort of qualities are you going to be looking for in that man or that woman that you choose?



THE PRESIDENT: Well, first, let me say that I was disappointed that the nomination of Bernard Kerik didn't go forward. In retrospect, he made the right decision to pull his name down. He made the decision. There was a -- when the process gets going, our counsel asks a lot of questions and a prospective nominee listens to the questions and answers them and takes a look at what we feel is necessary to be cleared before the FBI check and before the hearings take place on the Hill.





Translation: That motherfucker embarrassed the Family, and it was either withdraw or sleep with the fishes.



Yet Bush still wishes the Kerik nomination had gone forward, because Kerik is just the kind of crook this Administration loves -- kickbacks, feeding at the public trough, the whole mess. Steve Gilliard has become Blogistan's Official Keeper of the Kerik Flame, and he's worth reading, because Kerik is worse than we ever imagined.



On the failure of Iraqi troops to do much to secure their country:



Now, I would call the results mixed, in terms of standing up Iraqi units who are willing to fight. There have been some cases where when the heat got on, they left the battlefield. That's unacceptable. Iraq will never secure itself if they have troops that when the heat gets on, they leave the battlefield. I fully understand that.




This from a guy who had Daddy pull strings to get him into the Texas Air National Guard so he wouldn't have to go to Vietnam.



You know, polls change, Dave. Polls go up. Polls go down. I can understand why people -- they're looking on your TV screen and seeing indiscriminate bombing where thousands of innocent, or hundreds of innocent Iraqis are getting killed, and they're saying whether or not we're able to achieve the objective.




On what planet? The TV network news is chock full of Christmas shoppers and the cold snap in the East. Where, outside of the documentary CONTROL ROOM, have we seen Iraqi civilians getting killed?



Well, the -- yes, I spent some time talking to our generals about whether or not there are former Saddam loyalists in Syria, for example, funneling money to the insurgents. And my attitude is, if there's any question that they're there, we ought to be working with the Syrian government to prevent them from either sending money and/or support of any kind. We have sent messages to the Syrians in the past, and we will continue to do so. We have tools at our disposal, a variety of tools, ranging from diplomatic tools to economic pressure. Nothing is taken off the table. And when I said the other day that I expect these countries to honor the political process in Iraq without meddling, I meant it. And, hopefully, those governments heard what I said.





Translation: We ran Iran up the flagpole and no one saluted, so Syria is next.



Response to a question on Social Security:



First of all, let me put the Social Security issue in proper perspective. It is a very important issue -- but it's not the only issue, very important issue we'll be dealing with. I expect the Congress to bring forth meaningful tort reform. I want the legal system reformed in such a way that we are competitive in the world. I'll be talking about the budget, of course; there is a lot of concern in the financial markets about our deficits, short-term and long-term deficits. The long-term deficit, of course, is caused by some of the entitlement programs, the unfunded liabilities inherent in our entitlement programs. I will continue to push on an education agenda. There's no doubt in my mind that the No Child Left Behind Act is meaningful, real, reform that is having real results. And I look forward to strengthening No Child Left Behind. Immigration reform is a very important agenda item, as we move forward.





This is just what he did during the debate -- cite NCLB as the answer to everything. Answer the fucking question, man!



Bush passes the buck on Social Security:



Now, the temptation is going to be, by well-meaning people such as yourself, John, and others here, as we run up to the issue to get me to negotiate with myself in public; to say, you know, what's this mean, Mr. President, what's that mean. I'm not going to do that. I don't get to write the law. I will propose a solution at the appropriate time, but the law will be written in the halls of Congress.




Bush passes the buck on how long the troops will have to remain in Iraq:



I get asked that by family members I meet with -- and people say, how long do you think it will take. And my answer is -- you know, we would like to achieve our objective as quickly as possible. It is our commander -- again -- I can -- the best people that reflect the answer to that question are people like Abizaid and Casey, who are right there on the ground. And they are optimistic and positive about the gains we're making.





High spending? ALL Congress' fault:



THE PRESIDENT: Here's -- here's what happened. I submitted a budget and Congress hit our number, which is a tribute to Senator Hastert and -- I mean, Senator Frist and Speaker Hastert's leadership. In other words, we worked together, we came up with a budget, like we're doing now, we went through the process of asking our agencies, can you live with this, and, if you don't like it, counter-propose.



And then we came up with a budget that we thought was necessary, and we took it to the leadership and they accepted the budget. And they passed



bills that met our budget targets. And so how could you veto a series of appropriations bills if the Congress has done what you've asked them to do?



Now, I think the President ought to have a line-item veto, because within the appropriations bills, there may be some differences of opinion on how the money is being spent. But overall, they have done a superb job of working with the White House to meet the budget numbers we submitted, and so the appropriations bill I just signed was one that conformed with the budget agreement we had with the United States Congress. And I really do appreciate the leadership, not only of Speaker Hastert and Senator Frist, but also the budget committee chairman. I talked to Senator Gregg this morning, as a matter of fact, who's running -- he'll be heading the budget committee in the United States Senate.





Don't dare question Fearless Leader:



just want to try to condition you. I'm not doing a very good job, because the other day in the Oval when the press pool came in I was asked about this -- a series of question on -- a question on Social Security with these different aspects to it. And I said, I'm not going to negotiate with myself. And I will negotiate at the appropriate time with the law writers. And so thank you for trying. The principles I laid out in the course of the campaign, and the principles we laid out at the recent economic summit are still the principles I believe in. And that is nothing will change for those near our Social Security; payroll -- I believe you were the one who asked me about the payroll tax, if I'm not mistaken -- will not go up.



And I know there's a big definition about what that means. Well, again, I will repeat. Don't bother to ask me. Or you can ask me. I shouldn't -- I can't tell you what to ask. It's not the holiday spirit.





He's right about one thing. He's not doing a very good job.



Lies, lies, lies, lies, and utter horseshit:



And the younger worker would gain a rate of return, which would be more substantial than the rate of return of the money now being earned in the Social Security trust.




What he's not telling you is that this assumes a booming stock market, and that most of the difference in the rate of return will be eaten up with brokerage fees, otherwise known as Payoffs To Bush's Friends and Campaign Contributors.



Bush gets all mushy about Rummy, trying to turn him into a human being with a heart:



Listen, I know how -- I know Secretary Rumsfeld's heart. I know how much he cares for the troops. He and his wife go out to Walter Reed in Bethesda all the time to provide comfort and solace. I have seen the anguish in his -- or heard the anguish in his voice and seen his eyes when we talk about the danger in Iraq, and the fact that youngsters are over there in harm's way. And he is -- he's a good, decent man. He's a caring fellow. Sometimes perhaps is demeanor is rough and gruff, but beneath that rough and gruff, no-nonsense demeanor is a good human being who cares deeply about the military, and deeply about the grief that war causes.





If what he said to the troops last week is caring, I'd hate to see Rummy when he's callous.



And then Bush finishes it off by slapping his Christian constituency in the face and joining those Evil Jews, Pagans, Feminists, Hollywood Libruls, and other Enemies of the State who are trying to ban Christmas:



Listen, thank you all very much. I wish everybody -- truly wish everybody a happy holidays.




The man is quite simply delusional.

Solstice Bush Blogging Part I: Torture

Lots to report today on the horror that is George W. Bush.



To begin, via just about everyone in Blogistan, we have this ACLU release indicating that the torture of Iraqi detainees may have been authorized by none other than C-Plus Caligula himself:



A document released for the first time today by the American Civil Liberties Union suggests that President Bush issued an Executive Order authorizing the use of inhumane interrogation methods against detainees in Iraq. Also released by the ACLU today are a slew of other records including a December 2003 FBI e-mail that characterizes methods used by the Defense Department as "torture" and a June 2004 "Urgent Report" to the Director of the FBI that raises concerns that abuse of detainees is being covered up.



[snip]



The two-page e-mail that references an Executive Order states that the President directly authorized interrogation techniques including sleep deprivation, stress positions, the use of military dogs, and "sensory deprivation through the use of hoods, etc." The ACLU is urging the White House to confirm or deny the existence of such an order and immediately to release the order if it exists. The FBI e-mail, which was sent in May 2004 from "On Scene Commander--Baghdad" to a handful of senior FBI officials, notes that the FBI has prohibited its agents from employing the techniques that the President is said to have authorized.



Another e-mail, dated December 2003, describes an incident in which Defense Department interrogators at Guantánamo Bay impersonated FBI agents while using "torture techniques" against a detainee. The e-mail concludes "If this detainee is ever released or his story made public in any way, DOD interrogators will not be held accountable because these torture techniques were done [sic] the ‘FBI’ interrogators. The FBI will [sic] left holding the bag before the public."



The document also says that no "intelligence of a threat neutralization nature" was garnered by the "FBI" interrogation, and that the FBI’s Criminal Investigation Task Force (CITF) believes that the Defense Department’s actions have destroyed any chance of prosecuting the detainee. The e-mail’s author writes that he or she is documenting the incident "in order to protect the FBI."





Not that any of Bush's disciples and worshippers gives a rat's ass that he may have authorized torture, for they've been convinced that everyone from the Middle East is somehow subhuman, that they're all terrorists, and whatever we do to them is perfectly justified. However, we are, after all, supposed to be a civilized nation and beacon of virtue to the world. The leader we are about to re-install in office on January 20 is showing himself to be no better than the tinpot dictators he loves to rail against.



This should be front page news, but how can this possibly compete with those Krazy Kristmas Shoppers, the beginning of the Robert Blake trial, and the return of Leomania when The Aviator goes into wide release on Saturday?



Peace on Earth my ass.

lundi 20 décembre 2004

Mountbatten Hotel, Haymarket

I've reviewed the Mountbatten Hotel before, but today we had the famous fish and chips, of which I've raved on about so many times before.Fish and chips $7.00 (on Tuesdays with drink purchase)Fresh fish fillet with chips and tartare sauceFish with salad (by request)Unfortunately the fish and chips are definitely not as good as they used to be. I remember the fish used to be two huge fillets--now

No, these things tend NOT to happen in blue state big cities


Whenever something awful happens in the so-called "heartland", someone always says, "These things just don't happen here. After all, this isn't New York."



Ah, but they DO happen there, as Tbogg points out. Forgetting for a moment about Columbine, or the kid who stabbed a bunch of classmates because God told him to, there seems to be MORE dysfunction per capita in the Bible belt. From divorce to teen sex and pregnancy to infidelity to baby-stealing, the Bible belt is not immune:



Kimmi Hardy- Keokuk, Iowa:



A woman who faked being pregnant, to the point of wearing maternity clothes and holding a shower after the "birth" of her child, has been charged with murder in the death of the baby's actual mother.



Kimmi Hardy has been charged with murdering Theresa Lund and taking Lund's baby on August 28, the day Hardy told friends that she had given birth in her trailer home. Guests at a subsequent baby shower alerted police that Hardy's baby, actually 6 weeks old, seemed too old for a newborn.



Dena Schlosser- McKinney, Texas:



According to her lawyer, a Texas woman who admits killing her baby daughter by severing the girl's arms was guided by a Biblical passage that refers to cutting off body parts to cast away sin.

Attorney David Haynes says 35-year-old Dena Schlosser, who has a history of mental illness, has been quoting Scripture where Jesus says, "If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away."



Schlosser was charged with capital murder last month after telling a 9-1-1 operator that she had cut off her baby's arms. Police found Schlosser in the living room, covered in blood, still holding a knife and listening to a hymn.



Andrea Yates- Houston, Texas:



Around 10:00am on June 20, 2001, Rusty Yates received a startling phone call from his wife, Andrea, whom he had left only an hour before.



"You need to come home," she said.



Puzzled, he asked, "What's going on?"



She just repeated her statement and then added, "It's time. I did it."



Not entirely sure what she meant but in light of her recent illness, he asked her to explain and she said, "It's the children."



Now a chill shot through him. "Which one?" he asked.



"All of them."





But wait, there's more...



So why is this? Is it because these areas tend to be economically more depressed than the blue states? Is it because the school systems are often not as good because there's no tax revenue to pay for them? Is it that the particularly punitive brand of Christianity sold in those states fills people with such self-loathing that they become sociopaths? Or is it, as one fundie once said to me, that Satan specifically singles out Christians for temptation to test them and leaves the rest of us alone?

I have a question....


If Christmas is so under siege by secularists and Those Damn Jews (sic), how come I can't get away from Christmas music in stores, Christmas decorations everywhere (including giant inflatable Santas that when deflated look like Santa went on a bender and passed out on someone's lawn), Christmas specials on TV, commercials for Gift Ideas, and why can't I find a fucking parking space at the mall so I can buy that Mission-style doorbell at Restoration Hardware?

Somewhere Jesus is crying


Or at least I'd like to believe he is...unless he really is the Rambo wingnut avenger the right seems to think he is. From Slate.com:



So it's official: The new gauntlet-throwing catch phrase from the right is "Merry Christmas" (can't you just see Eastwood saying it from behind the barrel of a gun?). Apparently, uttered in the right context—like on Fox News—those four syllables no longer convey simply holiday cheer, but a red-state/blue-state, my-god-is-better-than-yours challenge: I've got your "happy holidays" right here, buddy. This trend has been emerging all over the television dial: Last week on Scarborough Country, there was Pat Buchanan's distinctly testy-sounding "Merry Christmas" in answer to a guest from the American Atheists association who wished him a happy "winter solstice." And this week, there was George W. Bush's brief speech at the end of the Christmas in Washington variety special. (Throughout which I waited in vain for one politically correct, non-Christian number: Mandy Patinkin doing "Dreidl, Dreidl"? Queen Latifah rapping about Kwanzaa? C'mon, TNT, other religions can be cheesy too!) When the performances were through, Bush took the stage to thank the singers (who included LeAnn Rimes, American Idol 's Ruben Studdard, and the teen pop star JoJo) and remind the nation that the purpose of the season was to "remember the humble birth of our savior." Right, and to reach out to Americans of all faiths, in our country's great tradition of separation of church and … ? Mr. President? Are you finished already?



Between now and the end of the year, let's see how many warm wishes of Christmas intolerance we can gather from the airwaves. E-mail me yours at surfergirl@thehighsign.net. And a jolly Chrismukkah to you all.





Keep in mind that it wasn't the ACLU who turned "Merry Christmas" into a curseword.

Shamelessly Plugging My Friends


No, I'm not shooting them. But this is the week when the Holiday Movie Season really starts in earnest, and after watching the stylish Chinese cop drama Infernal Affairs over the weekend and hoping to spend some time in a darkened movie theatre this week (If I can ever stop coughing), combined with FINALLY finding the mojo to write a movie review again, I'm tanned, rested, and ready, or as much as anyone can be when one has about a dozen theatrical releases, 14 screeners, and a bunch of stuff from Netflix that Must Be Watched before December 27.



With so much general crap going on in the world, a political junkie like myself needs movies more than ever. I'm sure I'm not alone. And so for those of you for whom "Oscar® Season" is the film geek equivalent of the NCAA championships, THE place to go to keep up with the Academy Awards races is Nathaniel R's The Film Experience. Nat is one of the fifteen nicest people on the planet, and if he's a tad obsessive, well, we can only thank him, for his Oscar® Diary of who and what's on the rise and what's waning is the best you'll find on the web.



dimanche 19 décembre 2004

Where's the pro-fetus outrage over this?


Or does a woman cease to be a human being once she becomes a vessel? We can look for a lot more of this once abortions become illegal. The media are all salivating this weekend over the gruesome fate of the unfortunate Bobbi Jo Stinnett, but the murders of pregnant women are all too common. Yet we hear not a peep out of the fetus fetishists. I can only assume that they believe these evil unchaste temptresses who didn't keep their legs closed got what they deserved. And this just shows the utter hypocrisy not of the view that the fetus is a human being, but that by extension, the pregnant woman is not.



The Boston Globe, via Rising Hegemon:



Their deaths passed quietly. Tara Chambers, 29, was gunned down on a June morning inside her North Carolina home. Rebecca Johnson, 16, was shot in the chest as she sat in a pickup in Oklahoma. Ana Diaz, 28, was killed in a parking lot in Reston, Va., as she stopped to get a friend on their way to work.



All were pregnant, with futures that seemed sure to unfold over many years. One was a nurse's assistant who planned to name her daughter T'Kaiya. Another had just bought a house. The youngest was a high school cheerleader.



Their killings produced a few local headlines and then faded, each a seeming aberration in the community where it happened.



But pregnant women like them have been slain in Maryland and Mississippi, in California and Kansas, in Ohio and Illinois. Jenny McMechen, 24, was shot in a friend's home in Plainfield, Conn., and Kerry Repp, 29, was shot in her Oregon bedroom, and Tasha Winters, 16, was shot in Indiana the day she told her boyfriend that she was pregnant.



Ardena Carter, 24, was found dead in the Georgia woods, and Kathleen Terry, 22, was run over in Idaho, and Melesha Francis, 26, was strangled in New York, and Thelma Jones, 21, was shot sitting on her back steps in Louisiana, the day her mother ordered a cake for her baby shower.



A yearlong examination by The Washington Post of death-record data in states across the country documents the killings of 1,367 pregnant women and new mothers since 1990. This is only part of the national toll, because no reliable system is in place to track such cases.



[snip]



Louis Mizell, who heads a firm that tracks incidents of crime and terrorism, observed that "when husbands or boyfriends attack pregnant partners, it usually has to do with an unwillingness to deal with fatherhood, marriage, child support or public scandal."



Young women may be at more risk than others, several statewide studies suggest -- possibly because of more volatile relationships with young men or less money or greater uncertainty about parenthood. Of women whose cases were researched in detail, 16 of 72 were teenage victims -- or about 1 in 5.



hey included Vanessa Youngbear, a 16-year-old cheerleader in Oklahoma who was nearly seven months' pregnant when her former boyfriend, then 18, blasted her with a shotgun. Witnesses said the boyfriend had not wanted to pay child support and had worried that he might face charges of statutory rape if authorities found out he had impregnated a minor.



[snip]



For some men, she said, the situation boils down to one set of unadorned facts: "If the woman doesn't want the baby, she can get an abortion. If the guy doesn't want it, he can't do a damn thing about it. He is stuck with a child for the rest of his life, he is stuck with child support for the rest of his life, and he's stuck with that woman for the rest of his life. If she goes away, the problem goes away."