Hitting 'em where they ain't

Headline of the Day: Europe stands up to Russia:

IT IS now close to a month since the reckless Georgian effort to retake breakaway South Ossetia by force sparked off what Russia is now calling its August war. There is no new iron curtain descending across Europe, no ideologically based “new cold war”; but there is a deep, wounding division that stretches far beyond wrecked Georgia, South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

What? No World War 18? After Saakishvilli pulled a Feith Award bit of pre-emptive Bush-style stupidity and Russian Tanks rolled, Russia will still pay a price (without war or Armageddon like McCain and Quaylin suggested)? This cannot be. 

Ordinary Russians will bear the cost. Russia’s stockmarket has taken a knock and the costs of doing business there have shot up. Russian companies seeking to invest or list abroad ought now to face the closer scrutiny of their finances that earlier dodgy ones didn’t, but should have. And Mr Medvedev’s supposed plans for reform and strengthening the rule of law are in about the same shape as Georgia’s beaten army.

But what Russia may come to regret losing most is something Mr Putin longs for: the opportunity to become an accepted European power. He likes to skip over communism’s mistakes and dwell on Russia’s tsarist grandeur. But what did for both was imperial overstretch, a rotten economy and, like Russia’s today, a mostly unaccountable ruling caste that led a proud country to disaster.

Neocons don't want you to read our Headline of the Day. Geopolitics need not have to be a zero sum game.  

McCain / MILF 08 ?

Saw a bumbersticker today touting "McCain / MILF 08" for President. 

Has John McCain dumped Governor Quaylin and picked somebody else?

Create your own Palinisms

Right here.

Probably as helpful as answers right from the horses mouth the real thing.

UPDATE: To be on the safe side the reference to "horses mouth" though a common saying was deleted to avoid the possibility of being accused of sexism by John McCain.

Profiles in Courage

John McCain, Champion of the People and sworn enemy Bear DNA Research, shows America a sterling example of Leadership. He will take a stand for fiscal responsibility by taking on and defeating;

See that little Red Sliver in the pie chart.  That Red Sliver has been added to the John McCain's list of sworn enemies, probably ahead of even Spain.   

America is in a financial crisis and John goes after the red sliver and bears?

It is a real Profile in Courage I'd say.

Word of the Day - Palinisms

Today's word of the day is named in honor of the governor of Alaska: Palinism.

A Palinism is a phrase or series of phrases consisting solely of talking points, when strung together create a nonsensical non-answer.  Here's another description:

It's like a talking points machine gone out of control. Or magnetic poetry that you have on your fridge—in fact, you can try it at home. String together key words and phrases like "shore up the economy," "reduce tax rates," "healthcare reform," and "trade" and see what kind of Palinisms you can create.

For an example of a Palinism in Pop Culture, here's a blast from the past that made miss teen South Carolina a YouTube Sensation:

QUESTION: Recent polls have shown a fifth of Americans can't locate the U.S. on a world map. Why do you think this is?

ANSWER: "I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because, um, some people out there in our nation don't have maps and, uh, I believe that our, uh, education like such as, uh, South Africa and, uh, the Iraq and everywhere like such as, and I believe that they should, uh, our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S., uh, should help South Africa and should help Iraq and the Asian countries, so we will be able to build up our future." 

For another example of a Palinism lets check in with fmr Miss Teen Wassilla and the current Alaska Governor when asked whether it was a good idea spending $700B to bailout Wall street instead of spending it to help out main street. 

Palin answering a $700B Question:

That's why I say I, like every American I'm speaking with, we're ill about this position that we have been put in where it is the taxpayers looking to bail out. But ultimately what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up our economy. Helping the—it's got to be all about job creation too, shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans and trade—we've got to see trade as opportunity, not as competitive, scary thing, but one in five jobs being created in the trade sector today—we've got to look at that as more opportunity

A perfect Palinism can get your words of wisdom quoted on Saturday Night Live. And its not a parody. Tina Fey only has to repeat Sarah's Palinisms and it is comedy in its own right...... enough to make people laugh.

Of course the difference between Miss South Carolina and Miss Wassila is that Miss South Carolina can admit making a mistake. 

John McCain and Sarah Palin cannot.  They just keep doubling down.

Border Security - They Shall Not Pass!

Last Night in the first presidential debate, John McCain professed a new found admiration for France. 

Why? France?

Could it have anything to do with Geo-politics and McCain's new sworn enemy, SPAIN?

I Think the animosity for Spain and his new found affection for France could be related.  

It seems that the Spanish-French Frontier is now the front line in McCain's plan to contain Spain.  

They must not be allowed to Pass, my friends. They must not be allowed to pass. 

Look for McCain to announce a new diplomatic initiative to Portugal.

Maybe the proposal will include military aid to the region as well as a plan to send American military advisers into Portugal.  

Invasion Route along the Spanish-French Frontier.

Let's face it folks, a fantastic new military alliance with France may look good on paper, but it won't impress Putin.  There can be only one reason behind McCain's new found admiration for France and that is Spanish Containment, pure and simple, my friends.

They shall not pass!

Everybody knows this but....

......McCain says Torture of prisoner was wrong. Duh. Was wrong....?

Bush said Torture never happened.

Why then did McCain enable Bush's Torture Policy?  Bush couldn't have pulled it off without the support of guy who was tortured.

Everyone knows torture is wrong.  No bravery here dude. But its about time someone says the obvious.

Last Best Hope...?????

McCain has said an alliance with FRANCE is our last best hope against Putin ? ? ?

FRANCE?

McCain must have had french toast for breakfast, french fries for lunch, and foi gras for dinner.  

It must be why he is angry tonight.  He should have had Freedom Toast and Freedom Fries and Kentucky Fried Chicken instead.

Counselors not Cruise Missiles...?????

On Al Qaeda tonight:

Obama wants to send cruise missiles into Bin Laden's Cave if we find out where it is.

McCain wants to send counselors to Bin Laden's Cave, if we find out where it is.

Why is McCain willing to embrace preventive war everywhere else around the globe but won't commit to kill Bin Laden?

Breaking News.....

When news breaks they fix it. Here is Foxnews predebate:

"Obama to make the case to end the war on terrorism tonight"

Anyone tell Obama this yet?

Meanwhile in Wingnuttia.....

..... while Scripted Sarah Palin has failed we get this encouraging advice curtesy of K-Lo:

No More Scripts.  Let Sarah be Sarah!

Let Sarah work without a rope?  Riiiiiiight.  But other members of greater Wingnuttia seem not to be so hopeful.  Laments one, Sarah is a walking talking disaster and it is time for Sarah to withdraw:

Only Palin can save McCain, her party, and the country she loves. She can bow out for personal reasons, perhaps because she wants to spend more time with her newborn. No one would criticize a mother who puts her family first.

Do it for your Country.

Country First, Remember?

Number of the Day - 670 Billion

Things heard on Webcasted Radio today:

"The 400 Wealthiest Families in America have seen their wealth grow 670 BILLION Dollars under the Bush Administration" 

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders on BBC World Service Radio today

First Comrade and SSRUSA Premier George W Bush would no doubtedly inform us that some animals are more equal than others.  And those are the ones which must be tended to first.

McCain Retreats on Retreating

Reports are out indicating that McCain has lowered The White Flag of Surrender and will now honor his commitment to debate tonight. 

Which McCain will show up? Will it be Candidate McCain or Senator McCain? Will McCain threaten any world leaders or nations?  Will the President of Spain, whoever he is, be called out for his acts of aggression.  Will there be a serious discussion about Alaskan Border Security (maybe we can build a long fence) in light of threatening neighbors that Governor Quaylin has identified? 

Tune in at 9pm to see.   My bet is that the McCain Enemies List will expand tonight.

The Romanians are Coming!

If you are willing to risk a few IQ points try heading over to Town Hall some time.  There you can find hardcore old school wingnut Hugh Hewitt and his posse.  And if you are really brave, try reading Cliff May some time. 

Today’s wingnuttery from Cliff takes us back to a THREATDOWN first reported here last month, i.e., scary Iranian EMP attacks against the US Seaboard.  Apparently Iran is plotting to get us and they’ll do it if we don’t get them first, says Cliff in an article complete with 1938 Munich and Neville Chamberlain references.   

Now I am not a Neocon, so I do not know everything.  But one thing I do know, is that this guy is a loser.  Because if today really is 1938, like Cliff wants you to believe, then Iran would be Romania not Germany. Iran’s GDP is 1/69 of that of the USA; its military spending is 1/110 of the Pentagon; today is not 1938 and World War 18 (or WW5, WW6 or whatever number they are up to these days) is not going to break out any time soon without help from people like Clifford and his Neocon buddies.

Nice try Cliffy.

Two Front WAR!

Is Alaska ground zero for an impending two front assault from two foriegn neighbors?

Watch CBS Videos Online

A Russian Assault over the Bering Straits and a Canadian invasion via Skagway? Maybe! 

Fifty-Four Forty or Fight!

Reporting from Main Street

Just got word from my bank that my Company’s Revolving Line of Credit, which expires next month, will be renewed on the same or better terms.  

No problems, status quo, etc.  That is what I have been told by the bank.  

Somehow the doom/gloom scenario of small business being starved of operating capital has not hit the part of main street where I live at this time.

Quaylin/McCain Running up the White Flags...?

Run Sarah Run, Run Sarah Run?

Yep. It looks that way. Here is you white flag headline of the day: McCain to propose postponing VP debate.

Most likely the reason is due to Fear.  Fear that Fear is not manipulating you.

Things Learned from the AM Radio Today

Today I have learned that Iraq in 2008 is a "Shining City on the Hill." In 2006 it was the opposite. It was hell. That is what the AM radio said.

If Obama is elected as President, America will become what Iraq was in 2006. That is what the AM radio said.

What was not said, but may be implied, is that a Wingnut insurgency may be just around the corner should Obama be elected.  A possiblity of Wingnut suicide bombers, a possiblity of Wingnut martyrs giving their life for the dream of creating Wingnutopia on Earth?  It is a possiblity. 

I learned this from Comrade Rush Limbaugh today. 

UPDATE: Holy Shit Batman. Go check out the straight dope on Sarah Quaylin's CBS interview. Damage Control needed tomorrow on the AM Radio.

Viva la revolución! Long Live First Comrade Bush!

Dear Comrades, Estimado Commrades, Дорогие камрады, 亲爱的同志

Welcome to the Soviet Socialist Republic of the United States of America. Long Live the Revolution!

First Comrade and SSRUSA Premier George W Bush met with world leaders yesterday, providing assurances that his Government takeover of Wall Street was an appropriate response to the financial meltdown. Comrade Bush vowed to take bold action to revive the economy, yet world leaders are still concerned:

French President Nicolas Sarkozy called the current situation "the most serious economic crisis that the world has experienced since that of the 1930s."

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said the world was facing a "harsh reality" and that "the global nature of this crisis means the solutions we adopt must also be global."

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner denounced "a casino economy or an economy of fiction where it was thought that only capitalism can produce money.... Money on its own does not produce more money. It has to go through the circuit of production, work, knowledge, services and goods."

Responded Comrade Bush, boldly:

"The investing class and the Wizards of Wall Street have nothing in common. There can be no peace so long as hunger and want are found among millions of the investing class and the few, who make up the Wall Street Elite, have all the good things of life and all of the profits.  

Between these two classes a struggle must go on until the investors of the world SSRUSA organize as a class, take possession of the means of investment, abolish the Privatization of Reward into the hands of the few and the Socialization of Risk to the rest and live in harmony with the Earth and the Markets bequeathed by our Creator.

Investment is prior to and independent of investment commissions. Commissions are only the fruit of investment and could not have existed had not investment first existed. Investment of the fruits of labor is the superior to skimming of commissions from the appreciation of capital and thus deserves much the higher consideration.

Today, we recognize that private property has its rights; but they are only incident to, they come second to, the rights of humanity, namely the investor class. I hold that the resources of the Market were placed here by our Creator for the use of the common man, that they are to be developed for the common welfare of all, and that they and the profits from investment and rewards thereof are not to be seized by an Elite few to the detriment of the many or even with disregard of the rights of the many."

A confident Premier Bush concluded his remarks expressing great confidence in Comrade Paulson and certainty that his Plan to empower the investor class and break free of the bounds of the Wall Street Elite would be implemented to the benefit of the people, namely the salt of the Earth, the investor class.

And with the Markets soon to be in the hands of the People and the Collective Will of the People guiding the Markets, I say Vivo la revolución!

Long live Premier Bush, First Comrade of the Soviet Socialist Republic of the United States of America!

FOOTNOTE: I may have paraphased the Bush quote above to some extent.

Snapshots in Time

Bush to delivers a message to the United Nations.

2002: Fuck You. I am doing whatever I want.
2003: Fuck You. You are irrelevant, I create my own reality
2005: Fuck You. I’m naming Walrus McBolton As UN Ambassador
2006: Fuck You. I’m reappointing Walrus McBolton
2008: The United Nations and other multilateral organizations are needed more urgently than ever, and I was right and you were wrong. Fuck You.

Quote of the Day

From Jeffrey Golberg on the important question about Governor Quaylin's unwillingness to take questions from ordinary-average journalists:

"What will happen, God forbid, if Sarah Palin is forced into a position where she will have to meet someone who is not so nice? Such as, say, the prime minister of Spain?"

Damn Right!  Remember the Maine and to Hell with Spain! They are on notice for whatever they did to piss off John McCain.

Charge of the Rough Riders Up San Juan Hill. 

Spain got what they deserved back then or so we are told. We got a 10 year insurgency in the Phillippines. What will McCain's grudge against Spain leave us with?

Yahooligans and the Danger they Pose

Forget the kid who correctly guessed Governor Sarah “W” Quaylin’s yahoo password by using the Google. Putin and his KGB buddies must be chomping at the bit at the possibility of a Palin/McCain administration.  I bet they know a little spycraft beyond just using the Google to find out Sarah’s birthday and where Sarah met Todd on the Yahoo “forgot your password? Answer these questions prompt.” Real Brilliance, here.

But anyway, Big Brother looks like it may be getting wound up to give YOU a thorough looksy with something called the Einstein Project.  It is reportedly underway or maybe it is not. Who knows. Besides the government is probably not interested in reading your e-mails or listening to your calls. Probably has never even done so. Or Maybe not.   On further review, YOU are probably OK are since you probably haven’t done anything wrong.  All too understandably, the part of the constitution requiring warrants upon probable cause before search and seizure of your person or papers, must have expired or something.  But YOU will probably be OK. 

As You may know, wingnuts are uptight about Governor Pailin’s effort to hide her communications from Alaska’s public records law yahoo-account e-mail becoming publicly available.  Our Friends at Fox and Friends on the Fox news station tell us so much.  But why all the fuss, unless Governor Sarah has something to hide? Does she? Wingnuts have been telling this the past several years pretty much religiously. Right? So if the Governor didn’t do anything wrong, why does it matter that someone’s been reading her e-mail? 

Moral of the story: if you are a wingnut, you can’t claim fauxtrage if you have blindly supported every domestic spying proposal from the Bush Administration.  

Things You Learn from the AM Radio

Today I have learned by listening to the AM radio that it is Jimmy Carter who was the father of Reaganomics.  

And thus the financial meltdown is his fault, Bill Clinton's fault, congressional democrats' fault and not Phil Gramm's fault. Phil Gramm is, in fact, a Communist.  Communists do not believe in Deregulation and thus are blameless for such things.

Who Hates Amerika?

The American Research Group that's who!

The ARG has Bush's approval rating at 19%.

Among all Americans, 19% approve of the way Bush is handling his job as president and 76% disapprove. When it comes to Bush's handling of the economy, 17% approve and 78% disapprove.

Only 78% disapprove of Junior's handling of the economy???  The kool-aide must be stronger than we thought. 

Things the AM Radio tells you

Today I have learned that it is Liberalism that has caused the credit crunch and financial melt down. I have also learned that Liberals have stopped many attempts by Republicans to re-un-de-regulate the Financial Services Industry. 

I have learned this by listening to Rush Limbaugh.

From today’s words of wisdom I am left with these conclusions: (1) that Liberals are also responsible for Reaganomics and (2) Senior McCain Economic Advisor Phil Gramm is, apparently, a Communist.

UPDATE: Limbaugh has been downright jittery of late. No, not a reference to withdrawal symptom of a chemical sort.  Dude is is panicking.  Now El DimBo is saying Obama is not Black, he's an Arab.  Ted Kennedy is responsible for Reaganomics, I guess now.

Oh, those Judicial Activists Never Stop

A Washington man who quit his job to care for his dying, same-sex domestic partner is entitled to unemployment benefits so says an activist Judge.

Some activism is apparently good and some is bad.  Which is which depends on your perspective. Activism is apparently good when women are procedurally barred from filing Equal Act Claims despite the intent of Congress to the contrary.  Activism is probably bad in this instance. 

The next thing you know, some Activist Judge will destroy your marriage and force you into a gay marriage.

Abizaid hates Freedom

Which side is Abizaid on?  Is he with us or with the terrorists?  Abizaid boldly declares his allegiance:

Abizaid, who oversaw military operations in the Middle East as head of U.S. Central Command until 18 months ago, caused a stir last year by publicly asserting the United States could live with a nuclear-armed Iran through a strategy of cold-war-style deterrence. Last week, when asked to reflect on the possible consequences of an Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, Abizaid said he doubted whether "the Israelis have the capability to make a lasting impression on the Iranian nuclear program with their military capabilities." An Israel–Iran confrontation, he said, would be "bad for the region, bad for the United States [and would] ultimately move the region into an even more unstable situation."

I take it that Abizaid won’t be getting any Christmas Cards Holliday Cards from Wee Willy Kristol or from anyone in the pack of Neocons running with McCain these days.

Johnny Come Lately

Quote of the Day - 2:

"I say the Bush administration has failed"

John McCain voices his opinion of the indespensible leadership of George Bush.  Of Course John was one of George's biggest enablers.

If John had not embraced George and merged his credibility with George's would there have been a second Bush, Jr, term?  Probably not.  But John really, really, really wanted to be President after George.  

Heckuvajob John.

Quote of the Day

George Will on This Week with George Stephanopolis:

"John McCain showed his personality this week, and it made some of us fearful."

Time to add George Will's name to the no-fly list?

The Bumbler

Our first MBA president will be remembered for his many things.

The Bumbling, the My Pet Goat Moments, the Heckuva Job Moments, and his failure to live up to his Campaign pledge to bring Honor and Integrity to the Whitehouse, will be among the many footnotes documenting his place in history.

But at the center of it all, he will ultimately be remembered as a WEAK EXECUTIVE. As case in point, I present to you the headline of the Day.

Donald Rumsfeld made Condoleezza Rice cry in the White House.

A new biography of Vice President Dick Cheney, called Angler after his Secret Service codename, recounts how he and Mr Rumsfeld conspired to delay the military tribunals which the president had ordered to be set up to try the terrorist suspects.Miss Rice tried repeatedly to organise a meeting with the most senior figures in the government to discuss the tribunals, but Mr Rumsfeld twice refused to attend, sending his deputy Paul Wolfowitz instead.Pulitzer prize winning author Barton Gellman writes: "He did not regard her as an equal and barely hid it. The opinions of her staff did not interest him."On finding Mr Rumsfeld absent from a second meeting, CIA director George Tenet was so angry that he defied a direct order from Miss Rice to sit down and marched out of the meeting, declaring: "This is bullshit."The book goes on: "Something happened to Rice's face, control melting away. Her eyes welled up and her next words caught in her throat. The men in the room did not know where to look.'She started to cry,' said one of them. 'And she said - I can't remember the exact words because I was so shaken - something like: "We will talk about this again," and she turned and walked quickly out of the door.'"

Yep, The Decider really could handle his staff. And with the Iraq War descending into Chaos and the Iraq Army mysteriously dismissed, Bush was unable to seize control of events instead watching history unfold around him and leaving the rest of us to clean up the mess and pay the bill.

Heckuva Job Junior.

McCain Crushing Obama....

.....by a score of 13-1.........in ownership of automobiles that is.

The one conclusion that you should take away is that this proves Obama must be an Elitist.

Mistakes Have Been Made

Secretary Paulson tells us this morning that mistakes have been made and these mistakes have been going on for quite some time.

I'll say.

One of the things that has worried me about the mess on Wall Street is that it is gonna flow down hill and effect the guys on Main Street.  

Here is another way the pain trickles down. Take a small business that uses a line a credit at the local bank to make their businesses go. If it gets harder to to obtain and maintain revolving lines of credit, you are gonna see small businesses having a hard time making payroll.  Add in healthcare costs and you could have a real squeeze.

Shit flows downhill.

Unwinding the Mortgage Mess is gonna take quite some time. Here is a little primer on one of the ways we arrrived here: SubPrime Housing Mess for Dummies.

Et Tu, Vermont

The list of places George Bush should not visit starting January 21, 2008, may get larger.  We all know Bush should not plan any trips to Euro Disney in France but what about Vermont?

Vermont AG Candidate to Prosecute Bush if She Wins.  Charlotte Dennett, 61, an attorney and investigative journalist, is running as the Progressive Party's candidate for Vermont Attorney General and she’s making Promises: Bush to the Big House if she is elected!

Dennett, says Bush must be held accountable for the deaths of thousands of people in Iraq -- U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians. She believes the Vermont attorney general would have jurisdiction to do so.

She also said she would appoint a special prosecutor and already knows who that should be: former Los Angeles prosecutor Vincent Bugliosi, the author of "The Prosecution of George W. Bush for Murder," a new book.

Bush best stay outta Vermont if he wants to run his Awesome New Freedom Initiative in Dallas" for young democratic leaders around the world after his Presidency ends.

BTW, Bush’s idea to run "fantastic freedom institute" is about the most fucked up idea I’ve heard for sometime.  It has to be a joke.  Can you imagine Bush running a Carter Center Style Operation trying to peacefully resolve differences between quarrelling countries? Or maybe Bush giving a series of Lectures on the Bush Doctrine and the virtues of Preventive War?   Maybe he could save some time and give Preventive War Lectures to Leaders of Quarrelling Countries.

Well, at least Condi will have a job because I hear Harriett and Abu Gonz are having a hard time finding work these days.

You can't make this stuff up.

Coconut Road to Involutary Retirement

Victory is his! The AP calls it. 

Don “Coconut Road” Young is Victorious in the Alaska (at large) Republican Primary.  Coconut wins by just 304 votes and will Champion the Republican cause this November. 

Looks like it is involutary retirement for Young and a Democratic pick up now.

For Whom the Bells Tolls

It tolls for SPAIN so says McCain.

Spain you are On Notice for whatever you did.

Remember The Maine....To Hell With Spain!

Hitting Where They Live - the Wallet

Headline of the Day: Russian markets paying price for Georgia action. Capital flowing out of Russia in response to fears the Hungry Bear won’t conform with established norms.

This is a story that the Neocons don’t want you to read…… Russia being punished without use of force or arms sales.  The daily international movement of capital is a power incentive for action in the 21^st Century.  Not so much in the 19^th Century where so many Neocon’s live.

Riding the Pine in the Era of Banana Republicanism

Fellow Liberal Democracies are abandoning the United States at the Bench. Once considered the Gold Standard on principles of Constitutional Law, US Supreme Court Decisions no longer find much favor with allies.

“One of our great exports used to be constitutional law,” said Anne-Marie Slaughter, the dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton. “We are losing one of the greatest bully pulpits we have ever had.”

Sad. 

Sending American ideas about the rule of law abroad has long been a source of pride. “The United States Supreme Court is the oldest constitutional court in the world — the most respected, the most legitimate,” said Charles Fried, a law professor at Harvard who served as solicitor general in the Reagan administration.

Considering the Makeup of the Court and the state of the Republican Party who appointed 75% of the current judiciay, what can you say.

The rightward shift of the Supreme Court may partly account for its diminished influence. Twenty years ago, said Anthony Lester, a British barrister, the landmark decisions of the court were “studied with as much attention in New Delhi or Strasbourg as they are in Washington, D.C.”

That is partly because the foundational legal documents of many of the world’s leading democracies are of quite recent vintage. The Indian Constitution was adopted in 1949, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms in 1982, the New Zealand Bill of Rights in 1990 and the South African Constitution in 1996. All drew on American constitutional principles.

If McCain wins this election, this pattern will be locked and loaded in place for at least another 30 years or so.

What's a 5-second, 50,000-volt electric shock or 3 among Friends?

Well here is the video that the Court watched and determined Tasering a handcuffed guy three times was super cool.

Question of the Day:  Would it be constitutionally permissible for the State to Taser a person under these circumstances more than 3 times provided the electrical shocks do not result in Death, dismemberment or organ failure?

You Decide. 

Enemies List Watch - Remember the MAINE!

In today's second installment of the John McCain Enemies List we have a surprise for you. To play along all you have to do is to fill in the blank:

My friends, I have seen the enemy and I assure you that Bears, Earmarks, Lipstick
___ fill in the blank____________________ is/are the enemy.

Today's enemy, my friends, is Spain. And it must be held accountable for whatever it did and Defeated.

And No this is not a take off on the Great Olive Oil Crisis of 2003 where the Onion ran a parody of Bush considering invading Spain with Powell talking him out of it:

Powell recalled that during last month's summit in the Azores, Bush seemed oddly fixated on Spain.

"[Bush] said Spain didn't seem to be all that prosperous for a nation whose main export is oil," Powell said. "I told him Spain doesn't produce a lot of oil. Finally, we figured he must've been thinking of olive oil, and we both had a big laugh about it.

"Powell said that upon returning home from the Azores summit, Bush continued to insist that "there is some big oil-producing nation that speaks Spanish." 

"I told him he must be thinking of Venezuela," Powell said. "They are very rich in oil. So now he wants a full report on Venezuela by Monday. Ever since this war with Iraq, he's been a real geography buff."

No this isn't The Onion, but we do have a Spanish Report indicating that McCain has put Spain on notice.   I guess it is possible that McCain is confusing Venezuela or Honduras or Bolivia for Spain.  Pretty sure those countries are on his growing List. This report can't surely be true, but you never know with this cast of clowns. Maybe McCain is mixing up Olive Oil for Oil.

Spain, better safe than sorry so.... YOU ARE NOW ON NOTICE! Unless you are not. Who knows, you literally can no longer believe a word out of the McCain Campaign.

Threatdown - Neocon Free Edition

Latest Threatdown? The Water Supply System is Vulnerable to Cyber attacks. 

The industrial control systems water and other utility companies use run on common technology platforms such as Microsoft Windows, which leaves them vulnerable to attacks from hackers or enemy states seeking to disrupt the country's water supply. In addition, a major natural disaster such as a hurricane could shut down servers, forcing a disruption in the supply of water and wastewater services.

Good thing we elected George Bush to a Second Term so he could take care of this kind of threat. I am sure he is on the job and not distracted with thoughts of Preventive War against a Country that did not attack us.

Another angle on Russo-Georgian Neocon Teenage Angst

With Iraqi airspace off limits, Georgia was considered as a staging ground for an Israeli attack on Iran? Maybe.

Until the Russian intervention in Georgia, the Israelis had been trying to devise an alternative to an Iraq route.  The alternative was to use Georgian airfields as staging points.  They were undeterred in this scheme by the prospect of over flying SE Turkey to get to Georgia.  The Russians have frightened them out of that idea.  Even the Likud knows that Russia is more important than Georgia, or Iran.

You never know, the Israelis cut and ran from Georgia pretty fast after the Bear’s tanks rolled. A strategic retreat made sense, in so far as Russian participation in the Middle East by, say, arm sales to Syria or Egypt, would not be considered helpful by Israel.  No benefit for Israel to poke the Bear with a Sharp Stick.

So this could be another reason for all the Neocon shrill-iarity on the topic…… an attack on Iran’s further off the table now than it was before Saakashvilli poked the hungry bear with the Sharp Stick.  

But don't take this the wrong way, Neocons are still targeting the Bear.

I own AIG and so do You

Call AIG or send an e-mail to the Board of Directors and demand accountability without golden parachutes. Time to clean house.  

I may be off here, but 15 years ago or so, wasn’t an Insurer like AIG prohibited from playing with investments, 401ks and buying up bad mortgages? 

boardofdirectors@aig.com 

Enemies List Watch - Bears

There are a lot of things out there in the world to be frightened of. Fortunately for you, John McCain is on the job.

In today’s installment of John McCain’s enemies watchlist we add another name to the list. To play along all you have to do is to fill in the blank:

My friends, I have seen the enemy and I assure you that Iran ___ fill in the blank ____________________ is/are the enemy.

Today's enemy, my friends, are Bears. But there are two types of Bears. Good Bears (bears seen in the Zoo) and Bad Bears (all other Bears outside the Zoo).

There can be no conclusion otherwise. John McCain is afraid of and/or hates Bears.

It first started becoming apparent with his attack on the Bear DNA Research Earmark despite the fact that Sarah Palin supported a Harbor Seal DNA Research Earmark. To call out DNA Research Earmarks as the enemy when your running mate is in favor of DNA Research Earmarks

is just not logical unless you have a grudge against Bears or did not do your homework on Palin’s record.

Add in Sarah “Soul Mate” Palin’s disdain for Polar Bears and McCain’s issues with the Russian Bear and the plot thickens. But today we have the final nail in the coffin.

Headline of the Day: Threatened Grizzly Bear Roaring Back In Montana.

The finding, from a $4.8 million, five-year study of grizzly bear DNA criticized by Republican presidential candidate John McCain as pork barrel spending, could help ease restrictions on oil and gas drilling, logging and other development.

Whaaaat? A Bear DNA Research Earmark increases our opportunities to “Drill Baby Drill” and McCain opposes this? I thought John McCain favored energy independence as a way to improve national security. If a Bear DNA Research Earmark leads to more drilling why single out Bear DNA Earmarks as the enemy? This is quite troubling and indicates a rashness of action on the part of John McCain.

The study was backed by Montana ranchers, farmers and Republican leaders as a step toward taking the species off the endangered species list. Since 1975, the bear has been threatened in the lower 48 states, a status that bars hunting and restricts any kind of development that could diminish the bear's population.

"If it is going to remove it from the list, it is money well spent," said former Montana Gov. Judy Martz, a Republican, McCain supporter, and backer of the research. When asked about McCain's stance, Martz said "unless you live among these issues it is pretty hard to understand what is going on."

These clues lead me to the unmistakable conclusion that DNA Research Earmarks are OK and that John McCain has an irrational fear/hate of Bears. Otherwise you would have to conclude that John McCain simply did not know what he was talking about when he singled out a Bear DNA Earmark for his enemies list.

Willard wuz Framed!

John McCain has labeled poor Willard Romney, aka Mittens, as pro abortion on Demand. Furthermore, this scurilous attack frames Mittens as using taxpayer funds to pay for ALL  abotions in Massachutsetts, so said Straight talking John McCain.

But this is all FALSE. Nobody knows where Mittens stands. He is too Weasely to be pinned down.

John McCain has lied about Willard's record. 

JOHN McCAIN MUST APPOLOGIZE to poor ol' Willard Romney.

APPOLOGIZE NOW JOHN!

Let Ride! Russia First........ maybe!

There is an old saying of Chinese origin, I believe, that goes something like this:

A Weak State which does not know how to act as a Weak State should act, will eventually cease to be a State.

With this saying in mind consider this Op Ed today penned by Two of the Three Amigos, JoeMentum and Grahamnesty.

According to JoeMentum and Grahamnesty, there is a Bear in the Woods, and this Bear is a threat.   It does not matter if the Bear only owns one functional garbage scow sized Aircraftcarrier. We must be prepared to defend against the threats posed by the Bear and hunt the Bear down and destroy the Bear if necessary.

For more than 60 years, from World War II through the Cold War to our intervention in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s, the U.S. has fostered and fought for the creation of a Europe that is whole, free and at peace. This stands as one of the greatest strategic achievements of the 20th century: the gradual transformation of a continent, once the scene of the most violent and destructive wars ever waged, into an oasis of peace and prosperity where borders are open and uncontested and aggression unthinkable.

Russia 's invasion of Georgia represents the most serious challenge to this political order since Slobodan Milosevic unleashed the demons of ethnic nationalism in the Balkans. What is happening in Georgia today, therefore, is not simply a territorial dispute. It is a struggle about whether a new dividing line is drawn across Europe : between nations that are free to determine their own destinies, and nations that are consigned to the Kremlin's autocratic orbit.

OK Three Things

First. Neocons believe New Europe lives in a Fantasy World whose peace and prosperity is solely underwritten by American Military might. Neocons are critical of weak-willed Europeans and are giddy behind the scenes at the prospect of an Ominous Threat that may convince the nations of Europe to leave this Security Bubble and join America out in the dark Hobbesian World to do battle with evil, both real and imagined. So don't fall for JoeMentum's and Grahamnesty's crocodile tears for Europe.

Second. This meme about “The Autocrats” as the new evil empire is too stupid to comment upon. An Axis of Autocracy running through Zimbabwe to Tehran via Moscow and Beijing …..? Nobody’s gonna fall that.  Russia is just looking out for number one and Putin was very slick in doing such in South Osettia. These Border-lands tend to have arbitary lines that form their borders anyway. We all wish they didn't but their is no silvler bullet to make States into Nations.

Third. A Man Armed with only a Sharp Stick Should not poke a Hungry Bear. This Saakashivilli Character blundered into this mess.  He Fucked Up Big Time. I feel sorry for the people of Georgia. We should help these people out. But it is not the Duty of American Soldiers and their families to make all portions of The Caucasus Safe for Democracy on neocon terms. 

The Three Amigos. Which one is McSame? Which one is JoeMentum? Which one is Grahamesty?

One for each other and all for one, the Three Amigos are we.
Brother to brother and everyone, a Brave Amigo.
Wherever they need us our destinies lead us Amigos, 

we're always together
Wherever we go
We're Three Brave Amigos
And we'll be Amigos forever!
We are the Three Amigos
We are the Three AAAAmigos!
We are the Three AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAmigos!
And Amigos forever we'll be!

Wherever there is injustice, you will find us.  

Wherever there is suffering,we'll be there. 

Wherever liberty is threatened, you will find us.

The Three Amigos! 

Let's ride! 

But where to Ride this week?  And what happens if you Can't Shoot Straight? What happens if U R infected with teh St00p1d gene?

David Brooks Hates Wymyn

George Bush in a Dress? Georgina "W" Palin? It is obvious David has some problems with strong women.

Sarah Palin has many virtues. If you wanted someone to destroy a corrupt establishment, she’d be your woman. But the constructive act of governance is another matter. She has not been engaged in national issues, does not have a repertoire of historic patterns and, like President Bush, she seems to compensate for her lack of experience with brashness and excessive decisiveness.

The idea that “the people” will take on and destroy “the establishment” is a utopian fantasy that corrupted the left before it corrupted the right. Surely the response to the current crisis of authority is not to throw away standards of experience and prudence, but to select leaders who have those qualities but not the smug condescension that has so marked the reaction to the Palin nomination in the first place.

Carly Fiorina must call him out for being a lipstick-on-a pig-sexist-member-of-the-coastal-elite overwhelmed by wymyn hatin and Misogynist Thinking.  

Kulture Kampf

We have a Meltdown in the Credit Market and we now have the Culprit.

Headline of the Day: Companies Continue to Overlook Evolved Virus Attacks

Radical Evolutionists from the Urban Coastal Enclaves are now taking the culture war to the world of Information Technology.  Commerce itself is under assault, Markets are Collapsing and it is due to the Evolutionists, not due to Deregulating the Financial Services Industry.

What do we tell the children out in the heartland? Invade Iran Russia Venezuela.....?. Simple.... Elect more Republicans!

Words of Wisdom

First Quote of the Day:

Put it this way: we have just finished the first American business cycle ever, the first since British settlers landed at Jamestown and promptly began dying of malaria, the first ever in which median household incomes did not grow from peak to peak. 

Second Quote of the Day:

“the fundamentals of the economy are strong…...A lot of this is psychological.” John McCain.

Third Quote of the Day:

Ladies and gentlemen, I could walk from here to Lansing, and I wouldn't run into a single person who thought our economy was doing well -- unless I ran into John McCain." Joe Biden.

UPDATE: FOURTH Quote of Day from Phil Gramm. 

America is a nation of Whiners.

Great News for the Strict Constructionist Sect

A new application of the Bush Doctrine? 

The 11th Circuit Appellate Court has ruled that Cops may Pre-emptively and repeatedly taser handcuffed and peaceful misdemeanor suspects.  It is not an unreasonable use of force to do so, according to Judge J.L. Edmondson, who was elevated to chief judge of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2002 by George Bush.

What happened is after refusing to sign a speeding ticket, a distraught motorist refused to walk to the patrol car but rather collapsed to the ground sobbing.  Unwilling or emotionally unable to comply with the officer’s orders, the motorists remained lying on the ground while being tasered three separate times over a 5 minute period.   The motorist, apparently a complete basket case according to a dissenting judge, was then lifted from the ground and escorted to the patrol car by the officer and a second officer who arrived at the scene.

Presumably this new application the Doctrine will be limited, at least initially, to the facts. In this instance the Officer Tasered the non-threatening suspect 3 times leaving 16 burn scars. So it may now be the rule of thumb now to limit tasering of the peaceful suspects to 3 or fewer times leaving 16 or fewer burns.  

But is it constitutionally protected activity for Cops to taser a peaceable suspect 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 or more times?  Did Judge Edmondson consult with Abu Gonzales here to determine just how many times a suspect can be tasered before his constitutional rights are violated.  Does the tasering have to stop prior to death, dismemberment or failure of a major body organ?  This decision is really fucked up. It is just obvious that the officer went way too far: 

(citing the dissent on page 37) ".....In light of the repeated and continuous nature of the force used against Mr. Buckley, the substantial pain and bodily injury that resulted, and the absence of any arguable justification, I have no difficulty in concluding that no particularized preexisting case law was necessary for it to be clearly established that Deputy Rackard’s conduct was unconstitutional. Deputy Rackard’s use of force was so grossly disproportionate to the need for force that no reasonable officer would have believed such conduct was legal."

But Judge Edmondson has an out.  

Here it is. The Judge would no doubt note that the founding fathers did include “the right of the people to be secure from unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated..” in the constitution.  And he could further note that, had the founding Fathers wished to include “the right of the people to be secure from unreasonable Tasering” in the constitution, they would have.  And perhaps Judge Edmondson could note that the fact that the right of the people to be secure from unreasonable Tasering is absent from the Constitution is a COMPELLING rationale that the founders did not wish to include freedom from Tasering as a constitutional right.  QED.