Fist Through A Wall

Ken AshfordBush & Co.Leave a Comment

Yup.  Shakespeare’s Sister is dead on here:

President Shirky McShrugsalot:

“[D]ependence on foreign oil jeopardizes our ability to grow."

"Problem is, we get oil from some parts of the world and they simply don’t like us," he said. "The more dependent we are on that type of energy, the less likely it will be that we are able to compete and so people can have good paying jobs."

One of the things I most detest about Bush is his tendency to speak about domestic issues as if he isn’t the fucking president. The unmitigated temerity of constantly talking about problems facing Americans as if he’s helpless to do anything about it—as if his hands are tied because we gosh-dern citizens don’t spontaneously just up and stop using oil, or stop being poor, or stop being unemployed—makes me want to put my fist through a wall.

You think Americans need to be less dependent on oil? Then propose a serious solution and direct 1/10th of the bloody attention you’ve given to clearing brush and photo ops with snowflake babies to making it happen.

Yup.

GOP Is Soft on Terrorism

Ken AshfordElection 2006, War on Terrorism/Torture1 Comment

Look at this list.  It is funding needed to protect ourselves from terrorists.  What’s your reaction to the items on this list —  A waste of money, or worthwhile spending?

Screen Checked Baggage: $91.1 million

Screen Carry-On Baggage: $37.8 million

Passenger Profiling: $10 million

Screener Training: $5.3 million

Screen Passengers (portals) and Document Scanners: $1 million

Deploying Existing Technology to Inspect International Air Cargo: $31.4
million

Provide Additional Air/Counterterrorism Security: $26.6 million

Explosives Detection Training: $1.8 million

Augment FAA Security Research: $20 million

Customs Service: Explosives and Radiation Detection Equipment at Ports: $2.2 million

Anti-Terrorism Assistance to Foreign Governments: $2 million

Capacity to Collect and Assemble Explosives Data: $2.1 million

Improve Domestic Intelligence: $38.9 million

Critical Incident Response Teams for Post-Blast Deployment: $7.2 million

Additional Security for Federal Facilities: $6.7 million

Firefighter/Emergency Services Financial Assistance: $2.7 million

Public Building and Museum Security: $7.3 million

Improve Technology to Prevent Nuclear Smuggling: $8 million

Critical Incident Response Facility: $2 million

Counter-Terrorism Fund: $35 million

Explosives Intelligence and Support Systems: $14.2 million

Office of Emergency Preparedness: $5.8 million

Now comes the "reveal": this list comes from President Clinton’s 1996 Omnibus Anti-Terror Legislation.

The Republican-controlled Congress killed the legislation.  At the time, they were more interested in stained blue dresses.

Wait, there’s more.

On April 6, 2000, then-Attorney General Janet Reno wrote the following words in a budget goals memo, detaling how counterterrorism was the top priority for the Department of Justice.  (The FBI had declared couternterrorism its top priority several years earlier).  She wrote:

"In the near term as well as the future, cybercrime and counterterrorism are going to be the most challenging threats in the criminal justice area. Nowhere is the need for an up-to-date human and technical infrastructure more critical."

Contrast this with the official annual budget goals memo — the same annual memo — from Attorney General John Ashcroft (under Bush), dated May 10, 2001. Out of seven strategic goals described, not one mentions counterterrorism.

As the 2006 election heats up, you’re going to be hearing a lot about how the Democrats, when they were in power, failed to address the growing threat of terrorism.  This is demonstrably false, and you shouldn’t buy it (click on the link for more examples of what the Clinton Administration tried to do to thwart terrorism).

ABC “Docudrama” Blames Clinton For 9/11

Ken AshfordWar on Terrorism/TortureLeave a Comment

From Think Progress:

On September 10 and 11, ABC will air a “docudrama” called “The Path to 9/11.” It was written by Cyrus Nowrasteh, who describes himself as “more of a libertarian than a strict conservative,” and is giving interviews to hard-right sites like FrontPageMag to promote the film.

What will it say about President Clinton? Here’s Rush Limbaugh with a preview:

A friend of mine [Cyrus Nowrasteh] out in California has produced and filmed — I think it’s a two-part mini-series on 9/11 that ABC is going to run in prime-time over two nights, close to or on 9/11. It’s sort of surprising that ABC’s picked it up, to me. I’ve had a lot of people tell me about it, my friends told me about it…And from what I have been told, the film really zeros in on the shortcomings of the Clinton administration in doing anything about militant Islamofascism or terrorism during its administration. It cites failures of Bill Clinton and Madeleine Albright and Sandy Burglar.

Really?  Was the Clinton administration "soft" on terrorism?

Fortuntely, we have a way-back machine.  Yes, the Internet was in its infancy, but we can still find some actual, you know, facts.  Here, for example, from July 1996:

WASHINGTON (CNN) — President Clinton urged Congress Tuesday to act swiftly in developing anti-terrorism legislation before its August recess.

But while the president pushed for quick legislation, Republican lawmakers hardened their stance against some of the proposed anti-terrorism measures.

Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Mississippi, doubted that the Senate would rush to action before they recess this weekend. The Senate needs to study all the options, he said, and trying to get it done in the next three days would be tough.

One key GOP senator was more critical, calling a proposed study of chemical markers in explosives "a phony issue."

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, emerged from the meeting and said, "These are very controversial provisions that the White House wants. Some they’re not going to get."

Hatch called Clinton’s proposed study of taggants — chemical markers in explosives that could help track terrorists — "a phony issue."

"If they want to, they can study the thing" already, Hatch asserted. He also said he had some problems with the president’s proposals to expand wiretapping.

You see?  Clinton wanted to expand anti-terrorism laws, so that he could legally fight the war on terror.  And Republicans stood in the way!

What happened to Clinton’s proposal to expand wiretapping?  This:

The Republicans also dropped the additional wire-tap authority the Clinton administration wanted. U.S. Attorney general Janet Reno had asked for "multi-point" tapping of suspected terrorists, who may be using advanced technology to outpace authorities.

Who was soft on terror prior to 9/11?

Didn’t You Kind Of Think It Would End This Way?

Ken AshfordPopular CultureLeave a Comment

CrikeysteveSteve Irwin, 44, known to all as the amped-up Crocodile Hunter,  died yesterday at the hands of an animal.  It wasn’t a crocodile — the animal that Steve often liked to get dangerously close to.  He was stung by a stingray.

Apparently, there is videotape of him pulling the stingray barb from his chest in his last moments of life.

In fact, pulling the barb out may have contributed to his own demise:

Marine experts say stingrays can deliver horrific, agonizing injuries from the toxin-laden barbs, which can measure up to 20 cm (8 in) in length and cause injuries like a knife or bayonet.

"The strongly serrated barb is capable of tearing and rendering flesh," said Dr Bryan Fry, deputy director of the Australian Venom Research Unit.

"It’s not the going in that causes the damage, it’s the coming out where those deep serrations kind of pull on the flesh, and you end up with a very jagged tear which is quite a pronounced injury," Fry said.

Lowry, By The Numbers

Ken AshfordIraq, Right Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

Rich Lowry in Townhall:

[T]he American public is not yet ready to quit. A CNN poll in August found that 69 percent of Americans oppose withdrawing American troops by the end of the year

The CNN poll that Lowry refers to:

"Do you think the U.S. should withdraw SOME troops from Iraq by the end of the year, or do you think the U.S. should keep the SAME NUMBER of troops in Iraq through the end of the year?" If "Withdraw": "Do you think the U.S. should withdraw ALL troops from Iraq by the end of the year, or do you think the U.S. should keep SOME troops in Iraq through the end of the year?"

Withdraw all             26%

Withdraw some        35%

Keep the same         34%

Don’t Know/Unsure     5%

20050509If Lowry can look at that data, and conclude that "69 percent of Americans oppose withdrawing American troops by the end of the year", then he’s either a liar or delusional.

Based on Lowry’s history (see cover story in the graphic at right), I’m betting on "delusional".

Men In Frights (Manly Men!)

Ken AshfordRight Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

From behind their comfortable chairs, dressed only in their pajamas, the warbloggers of the right can exude their unique brand of machismo …because — God forbid — it’s not like they’re going to go and fight in a war they support.

The latest faux-macho bedwetter to come to my attention is David Warren, a columnist for the right-wing Real Clear Politics

In his latest column entitled "Doing The Enemy’s Work", Warren lambasts the two Fox News journalists who were captured, and later released, by Islamic terrorists.  While in captivity, the Fox journalists were dressed as Arabs and forced to announce that they had changed their names and converted to Islam. 

This didn’t sit well with David Warren, who quickly called them "chestless" cowards:

The degree to which our starch is awash is exhibited in the behaviour of so many of our captives, but especially in these two. They were told to convert to Islam under implicit threat (blindfolded and hand-tied, they could not judge what threat), and agreed to make the propaganda broadcasts to guarantee their own safety. That much we can understand, as conventional cowardice. (Understand; not forgive.) But it is obvious from their later statements that they never thought twice; that they could see nothing wrong in serving the enemy, so long as it meant they’d be safe.

I guess a "good Christian" like David Warren thinks that those journalists should have risked taking a bullet in the head, leaving behind their wives and children in the U.S.

David_warrenDavid Warren apparently wouldn’t have done that.  He would have shown those Islamothugs a thing or two, rather than give in to them. 

What a manly man, that David Warren.

Or is he?

From his bio:

The thumb on my right hand still hurts sometimes from when it was broken in a dodgeball game (played with a basketball) in 1968.

My favourite sport, since the age of six, has been cricket.

My favourite novelist is Jane Austen. My favourite "modern" novelist is Iris Murdoch. I think only women should be allowed to write novels.

I am fascinated by seeds, small shells, tiny fishes, & insects.

I like to read, stretched out on a bed or sofa.

I have a strong attraction to prime numbers.

Until the age of nine, I was almost certain that I would grow up to become a painter, or at least some sort of botanical illustrator. …Other early ambitions included astronomer, architect, potter, sailor, poet, & "gentleman".

I prefer cats to dogs; & am in fact somewhat silly around cats.

I dislike juniper berries, even though I am generally very well-disposed towards berries.

My favourite tea is Brook Bond Red Label, blended in, & shipped f.o.b. Calcutta.

38 years later, and he’s still whining about a dodgeball injury to his thumb?  Something tells me that if David Warren were actually in the position of the Fox News journalists, he would never stop peeing his pants.

Glenn Greenwald sums it up:

So much of our public dialogue is dominated by people — exactly like David Warren — desperate to bask in the reflected glory of epic warriors without ever risking anything and to feel powerful and strong and resolute and "full-chested" while sitting at home, protected and safe but still scared of everything. They are people who have an endless need to parade themselves around as courageous nobles without ever doing anything noble or courageous.

Yup.

Plamegate Is Bogus?

Ken AshfordPlamegateLeave a Comment

The WaPo editorial board thinks so:

Nevertheless, it now appears that the person most responsible for the end of Ms. Plame’s CIA career is Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson chose to go public with an explosive charge, claiming — falsely, as it turned out — that he had debunked reports of Iraqi uranium-shopping in Niger and that his report had circulated to senior administration officials. He ought to have expected that both those officials and journalists such as Mr. Novak would ask why a retired ambassador would have been sent on such a mission and that the answer would point to his wife. He diverted responsibility from himself and his false charges by claiming that President Bush’s closest aides had engaged in an illegal conspiracy. It’s unfortunate that so many people took him seriously.

Well, that says maybe.  It doesn’t alter the fact that Time’s Matt Cooper has identified Karl Rove has his source for Plame’s identity as a covert CIA agent.  Nor does it alter the fact that New York Times reporter Judith Miller identified Scooter Libby as her source regarding Plame’s identity.

So Armitage’s role aside, the public record is without question: senior White House aides wanted to use Valerie Wilson’s CIA employment against her husband.

This ain’t over.

Give Me A Break

Ken AshfordRight Wing Punditry/IdiocyLeave a Comment

Shorter Jonah Goldberg

"Yes, Bush looked the other way while New Orleans drowned.  Yes, his Iraqi war is one big clusterfuck.  Yes, he hasn’t done squat to capture Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the worst attack on this country in our history.  Yes, Bush likes to violate our civil liberties.  But these are just superficial and transient issues, so don’t you think he deserves a little slack?"

Is Bush Warming To Global Warming?

Ken AshfordEnvironment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

Buried deep in this Time column, you will find this:

Previewing the final quarter of Bush’s presidency, officials disclosed to Time that
the Administration is formulating a huge energy initiative designed
to "change the whole nature of the discussion" and challenge the
g.o.p., Democrats, the oil and electricity industries, and
environmentalists. An adviser said Bush’s views about global warming
have evolved.
"Only Nixon could go to China, and only Bush and
Cheney–two oilmen–can bring all these parties kicking and screaming
to the table," the adviser said.

This is good news, if true.  But I’m still skeptical.

Friday iPod Random Ten

Ken AshfordRandom MusingsLeave a Comment

  1. Fergus2 My Boy Lollipop – Minnie Small
  2. Look Mama – Howard Jones
  3. Jet – Paul McCartney
  4. Everything That Touches You – The Association
  5. A Part Of That – The Last 5 Years Cast Recording
  6. Let’s Get It Started – Black Eyed Peas
  7. Land Of Make Believe – Maynard Ferguson (who just passed away on August 23)
  8. Somebody Has To Pay – Susie Van Der Meer (from "Run Lola Run" soundtrack)
  9. Love Will Find A Way – Pablo Cruise
  10. Eric The Half A Bee – Monty Python

Can’t Hide The Truth

Ken AshfordBush & Co., IraqLeave a Comment

Bush kas launched a public relations offensive designed to convince you how swimmingly Iraq is, and how Iraq nay-sayers (which constitute two-thirds of all Americans) are a bunch of terrorist-kissing pansy appeasers.

His problem, of course, is that facts impede the lies message that Bush is trying to convey.  Here’s a screen capture from CNN earlier today.  Bush is giving a speech about how great things are in Iraq, but "breaking news" (aka "reality") overshadows his message:

Bushnews

RELATED:  Keith Olberman channels Edward R. MurrowSee it now:

Olbermann delivered this commentary with fire and passion while highlighting how Rumsfeld’s comments echoes other times in our world’s history when anyone who questioned the administration was coined as a traitor, unpatriotic, communist or any other colorful term. Luckily we pulled out of those times and we will pull out of these times.

Remember – Rumsfeld did not just call the Democrats out yesterday, he called out a majority of this country. This wasn’t only a partisan attack, but more so an attack against the majority of Americans.

MORE:  Other commentary on Rumsfeld’s speech.  From Seattle:

Rumsfeld told an American Legion convention that Winston Churchill had once said attempting to accommodate Adolf Hitler was "a bit like feeding a crocodile, hoping it would eat you last." Rumsfeld went on: "Can we truly afford to believe that somehow, some way, vicious extremists can be appeased?"

Of course, no one is calling for negotiations with Osama bin Laden. But the Bush administration has a record of twisting critics’ views to create false choices.

As any administration knows, rhetorical misdirection can help win the immediate argument. Rumsfeld received a standing ovation. But resolute administration avoidance of the real issues has contributed to the widening disillusionment even among former supporters of the war from both parties over failure to address fundamental problems in the incoherent, poorly executed Iraq campaign.

Rumsfeld employs tactics of distraction, diversion and delay with both the public and critics within the administration. When some of the sharpest attacks on his leadership are coming from former generals, Rumsfeld’s crying appeasement is audacious, misleading and manipulative, but completely in character.

ALSO RELATED:  WaPo:

U.S. military leaders in Baghdad have put out for bid a two-year, $20 million public relations contract that calls for extensive monitoring of U.S. and Middle Eastern media in an effort to promote more positive coverage of news from Iraq.

Let me get this straight.  Over 60% of the country is opposed to the War in Iraq, which is paid for with our tax dollars.  Now we have to pay for a public relations firm so that we can be convinced that our disapproval is wrong?

“The Scream” Found

Ken AshfordPopular CultureLeave a Comment

Reuters:

Screampainting_1OSLO (Reuters) – Norwegian police recovered "The Scream" and another stolen masterpiece by Edvard Munch on Thursday, two years after the works were seized from a museum by gunmen.

"We are 100 percent certain they are the originals," police chief Iver Stensrud told a news conference. "The damage was much less than feared."

"The Scream" depicts a terrified figure under a blood-red sky. The other, "Madonna," shows a bare-breasted woman with long black hair.

McDonalds Hearts Hedgehogs

Ken AshfordEnvironment & Global Warming & EnergyLeave a Comment

McflurryI don’t think I’ve ever had a McFlurry, but to those who have: Do you know they kill hedgehogs?

Yup.  Apparently the discarded McFlurry containers trap hedgehogs who stick their head in to get some of that McFlurry McGoodness.  And the hedgehogs.

But thanks to the fine efforts of the British Hedgehog Preservation Society (or NAMBLA), those little bastards won’t be dyin’ no more.  McDonalds announced today that they are redesigning the containers.  The Hedgehog Society people are really happy.