Terry Jones (of 'Monty Python') Parallels Bush's Foreign Policy
In a satirical piece published in The Observer, former Monty Python star Terry Jones gives a sendup of Bush's final decision to bomb Iraq. He lost patience. Read the piece, here.
Wednesday, March 24, 2004
Clarke Bitchslaps Bush
Richard Clarke, the former security advisore who worked for Reagan, Bush 1, Clinton, and Bush 2, has testified before the 9/11 Intelligence Commission and has delivered a stinging rebuke of Bush's obsession with Iraq. Read about it here, from the BBC News. Clarke testified under oath that Bush and Rumsfeld kept ordering him to link the 9/11 attacks to Iraq, ignoring Afghanistan. Clarke maintains that Bush's obsession with Saddam has greatly undermined our security.
Richard Clarke, the former security advisore who worked for Reagan, Bush 1, Clinton, and Bush 2, has testified before the 9/11 Intelligence Commission and has delivered a stinging rebuke of Bush's obsession with Iraq. Read about it here, from the BBC News. Clarke testified under oath that Bush and Rumsfeld kept ordering him to link the 9/11 attacks to Iraq, ignoring Afghanistan. Clarke maintains that Bush's obsession with Saddam has greatly undermined our security.
Clarke Bodyslams Bush
Richard Clarke, the former security expert to President Bush, has testified before the 9/11 Commission and delivered a scathing denunciation of Bush. Read about it here, from BBC News. How is the Right spinning this? By calling Clarke "a partisan," but he's actually a life long Republican. Go figure.
Richard Clarke, the former security expert to President Bush, has testified before the 9/11 Commission and delivered a scathing denunciation of Bush. Read about it here, from BBC News. How is the Right spinning this? By calling Clarke "a partisan," but he's actually a life long Republican. Go figure.
Tuesday, March 23, 2004
Medicare Bust By 2019
The date when Medicare will no longer be solvent has been pushed forward 7 years, to 2019. Read about it here, from the LA Times. Why is this a harbinger of doom? Because Bush and his Wall Street lovers want to privatize Medicare and Social Security, which really means they want to give some corporations a piece of the action and total control over a system (socialized medicine) that is anathema to their political views. That's right, it's letting the fox be in charge of the henhouse. Social Security is also facing insolvency, just further down the road. If you want to understand the way these two entitlement programs work, read Paul Krugman's book, "The Great Unraveling," which will also tell you why the Bush plans are pure nonsense.
The date when Medicare will no longer be solvent has been pushed forward 7 years, to 2019. Read about it here, from the LA Times. Why is this a harbinger of doom? Because Bush and his Wall Street lovers want to privatize Medicare and Social Security, which really means they want to give some corporations a piece of the action and total control over a system (socialized medicine) that is anathema to their political views. That's right, it's letting the fox be in charge of the henhouse. Social Security is also facing insolvency, just further down the road. If you want to understand the way these two entitlement programs work, read Paul Krugman's book, "The Great Unraveling," which will also tell you why the Bush plans are pure nonsense.
Governor Groper To Be Questioned
Arnold The Groper, Governor of California, will be depositioned in writing by the legal team representing one of his "alleged" victims. If you think those women were lying, you really have a case of star worship. Read about the case, here, from the LA Times. This is a libel case because Arnold's campaign people smeared this victim by emailing news agencies to check her criminal record. She had no criminal record but a woman with a similar name did, and the Schwarzennegger campaign got what they wanted: lazy journalists merely ran with the story instead of checking facts. The bigger they are, the harder they fall!
Arnold The Groper, Governor of California, will be depositioned in writing by the legal team representing one of his "alleged" victims. If you think those women were lying, you really have a case of star worship. Read about the case, here, from the LA Times. This is a libel case because Arnold's campaign people smeared this victim by emailing news agencies to check her criminal record. She had no criminal record but a woman with a similar name did, and the Schwarzennegger campaign got what they wanted: lazy journalists merely ran with the story instead of checking facts. The bigger they are, the harder they fall!
Hamas Leader Toast
Israeli helicopters blew up the leader of Hamas, Sheik Yassin. Read about it and the aftermath here, from New York Times. The Israelis killed Yassin because as the founder of Hamas, he was the organizer behind hundreds of Israeli civilian deaths through the means of suicide bombers. Oddly, this killing has sparked "outcry" and condemnation from various nations. Hamas, for their part, does not deny that Yassin ordered the suicide bombings, in fact they seem to relish his role in those horrific deaths. Perversely, Hamas has said they will get more revenge for this killing and that the Israelis have made another mistake but the facts speak to a different truth. Last year, suicide bombings were down to 20, from 54 the previous year, and this is after Israel stepped up the targeting of Islamic murderers. To recap: killing the leaders of Hamas works to stop suicide bombings.
Despite the many different "peace plans" that have been cobbled together over the years, Yassin and Hamas have remained steadfast in their reaction: reject any peace deal and attack Israelis with the goal of driving them out and establishing an Islamic state. Hamas categorically rejects the right of Israel to exist. In other words, there are no moderate, sensible, peaceful members of Hamas. It's only goal is to kill Israelis, not exactly a negotiating stance.
Contrast Yassin with a man like the Dalai Lama. His country is in the hands of an occupying force. His people were forcibly removed from their homeland, with thousands dying in the process. What has been his approach? Does the Dalai Lama send young boys and religiously minded youths to their deaths with bombs strapped to them? Has the Dalai Lama instituted a reign of terror among the Chinese? No. The Dalai Lama preaches peace and compassion, although he also wants Tibet to become free. The loss of a leader like the Dalai Lama would indeed be a tragedy that should spark cries of outrage. When a murderer who fills kids' heads with death and violence and revenge is taken out, the world is a better place.
Israeli helicopters blew up the leader of Hamas, Sheik Yassin. Read about it and the aftermath here, from New York Times. The Israelis killed Yassin because as the founder of Hamas, he was the organizer behind hundreds of Israeli civilian deaths through the means of suicide bombers. Oddly, this killing has sparked "outcry" and condemnation from various nations. Hamas, for their part, does not deny that Yassin ordered the suicide bombings, in fact they seem to relish his role in those horrific deaths. Perversely, Hamas has said they will get more revenge for this killing and that the Israelis have made another mistake but the facts speak to a different truth. Last year, suicide bombings were down to 20, from 54 the previous year, and this is after Israel stepped up the targeting of Islamic murderers. To recap: killing the leaders of Hamas works to stop suicide bombings.
Despite the many different "peace plans" that have been cobbled together over the years, Yassin and Hamas have remained steadfast in their reaction: reject any peace deal and attack Israelis with the goal of driving them out and establishing an Islamic state. Hamas categorically rejects the right of Israel to exist. In other words, there are no moderate, sensible, peaceful members of Hamas. It's only goal is to kill Israelis, not exactly a negotiating stance.
Contrast Yassin with a man like the Dalai Lama. His country is in the hands of an occupying force. His people were forcibly removed from their homeland, with thousands dying in the process. What has been his approach? Does the Dalai Lama send young boys and religiously minded youths to their deaths with bombs strapped to them? Has the Dalai Lama instituted a reign of terror among the Chinese? No. The Dalai Lama preaches peace and compassion, although he also wants Tibet to become free. The loss of a leader like the Dalai Lama would indeed be a tragedy that should spark cries of outrage. When a murderer who fills kids' heads with death and violence and revenge is taken out, the world is a better place.