Looking for that someone special?

Well, there are plenty of special people here.

The Mayor posted this already, but I thought I needed to insure its distribution.

Race-baiter extrodinaire

Mckinny hits an officer, and how does she respond? By turning it into a race isseu;

"I am absolutely sick and tired of having to have my appearance at the White House validated by white people," she said at the time.

Spring cleaning today

So, no blogging. Unless I get tired of cleaning.

Which, truth be told, is very likely.

Idol thoughts, part 2

So .... who got kicked off? I've got co-op today, and don't have time to look it up.

Joel Stein has ideas

So next time one in eight of you decide to hold a giant afternoon party downtown, ring me up. I have some good ideas. Like that maybe when you're marching for American citizenship, you should leave the Mexican flags at home. Listen, we got it, you're from Mexico.

Perhaps a sombrero or one of those cool wrestling masks would get that across better than waving a flag for a different country when you're asking to be a citizen here. Also, I could bring bagels. It's the only decent food my people ever came up with.

Idol thoughts

So, who's going to get kicked off today? I would offer an opinion, but I only watched the last two performances -who can watch tv at 8 pm at night? Of course, I did catch the 3-second recaps of each, and based on that ... I still have no clue.

For Kel

churchsign-2
Originally uploaded by Carinroz.

And Katie, of course.

Scientology

You know, I think I'm going to make up my own crap religion with really, reallystupid rules. So Katie Holmes is going to give birth without uttering a peep, sans drugs? Good luck with that. The only way I could keep quiet during birth is if they knocked me out. With my fifth and final child, I woke up a whole maternity ward (in my defense, it's not that I'm a baby, it's just that I gave birth so quickly, I almost delivered him in the hallway.)

Christopher Reeves on Scientology

Bizarre beliefs of Scientologists


In conclusion, Scientology should be ridiculed by all.

But, please don't sue me.

Marriage is a white thing?

At least that is what a 12-year old told this black woman. Being a good father was important to the boys, but marriage, apparently, isn't part of the deal.

Although slavery was an atrocious social system, men and women back then nonetheless often succeeded in establishing working families. In his account of slave life and culture, "Roll, Jordan, Roll," historian Eugene D. Genovese wrote: "A slave in Georgia prevailed on his master to sell him to Jamaica so that he could find his wife, despite warnings that his chances of finding her on so large an island were remote. . . . Another slave in Virginia chopped his left hand off with a hatchet to prevent being sold away from his son." I was stunned to learn that a black child was more likely to grow up living with both parents during slavery days than he or she is today, according to sociologist Andrew J. Cherlin.

Sad.

h/t; RightwingSparkle

On my iPod right now

And I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder: One of the four beasts saying: "Come and see." And I saw. And behold, a white horse. 
There's a man goin' 'round takin' names. An' he decides who to free and who to blame. Everybody won't be treated all the same. There'll be a golden ladder reaching down. When the man comes around. 

The hairs on your arm will stand up. At the terror in each sip and in each sup. For you partake of that last offered cup, Or disappear into the potter's ground. When the man comes around. 

Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers. One hundred million angels singin'. Multitudes are marching to the big kettle drum. Voices callin', voices cryin'. Some are born an' some are dyin'. It's Alpha's and Omega's Kingdom come. 

And the whirlwind is in the thorn tree. The virgins are all trimming their wicks. The whirlwind is in the thorn tree. It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 

Till Armageddon, no Shalam, no Shalom. Then the father hen will call his chickens home. The wise men will bow down before the throne. And at his feet they'll cast their golden crown. When the man comes around. 

Whoever is unjust, let him be unjust still. Whoever is righteous, let him be righteous still. Whoever is filthy, let him be filthy still. Listen to the words long written down, When the man comes around. 

Hear the trumpets, hear the pipers. One hundred million angels singin'. Multitudes are marchin' to the big kettle drum. Voices callin', voices cryin'. Some are born an' some are dyin'. It's Alpha's and Omega's Kingdom come. 

And the whirlwind is in the thorn tree. The virgins are all trimming their wicks. The whirlwind is in the thorn tree. It's hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 

In measured hundredweight and penny pound. When the man comes around. 

And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts, And I looked and behold: a pale horse. And his name, that sat on him, was Death. And Hell followed with him. 

Yes, duh, I saw Walk the Line last week.

Remember, all cultures are equal

You might need to repeat that to yourself a few times before you click on over to Malkin's place to see the picture. But, a lynch mob is ready to kill Christian convert Abdul Rahman in Afghanistan.

As a side not of interest- note that there isn't a female anywhere to be seen in that crowd? What is with these frak-tards?

Because I have nothing to say

churchsign-1
Originally uploaded by Carinroz.

Church sign generator

Can be found here

That recipe

Last night, I went out to dinner with some friends (a "mom's night out") and my buddy Dana ordered a "to-die for" Tapas. It had shrimp, jalapeno, wrapped in bacon and fried. Yum. Anyway, it reminded me of Scott'ss recipe for "poppers" from a while back, and now I have to try it.

Blogroll

Forever tinkering.

I've added Blue Girl in a Red State because I am a "red girl in blue state." And because she blog rolled me, and I think that's kewel.

My sister noticed that Bob was back on my list. She wanted him back- so there he is.

I've removed some links, but I don't (ever) like to talk about that.

COOL!

ATT00220
Originally uploaded by Carinroz.

My sis sent me this.

River Rat's sign

churchsign
Originally uploaded by Carinroz.

Hope it's ok, I posted it. I love these things. And, the Red Wings won last night.

Not that there is anything wrong with that

churchsign
Originally uploaded by Carinroz.

In honor of Fred Phelps, and inspired by Ace, I made my own church sign.

NO, I do not have anything better to do.

Momentary thought

Have you ever had an epiphany, where you realized that you just didn't get it?

It might just be me.

Busy

Today is "DIU" blog-day.

Oh, if only I had as many commenters as Atrios; I could simply punch in "Another stupid Open thread" ten times, and call it a day.

Stupidity on Parade

Good for a giggle. If you find anarchists amusing. Which I SO DO!

Religion of Pieces, update 4

Certainly, Abdul Rahman needs our prayers right now. He is facing the death penalty for converting from the Religion of Peace, to Christianity.

We will cut him into little pieces," said Hosnia Wafayosofi, who works at the jail, as she made a cutting motion with her hands. "There's no need to see him...

More at Malkin

Civil War?

David Frum in NRO":

Is Iraq engaged in a civil war? Vice President Cheney has taken some heat for saying "no" on yesterday's "Face on the Nation," but he's right. Not to minimize the problems in Iraq, but we do not face the problem of contending centers warring for power - which is what I think most of us mean when we use the term "civil war." Rather, we are facing an attack on a weak government by an insurgency that can command support from only a very small fraction of the Iraqi population. The insurgency is brutal and effective and difficult to suppress. But it is purely a destructive force, not a contender for power.

Should I be concerned?

One of my port sites has taken on a greenish hue. Not a bruising, but it almost looks like (TMI warming) green pus. Just a small spot, mixed among the scab. My long incision doesn't have any scabbing, so I don't understand why my ports still have it.

You know, this whole post has been gross. At least I didn't include a picture.

This just in

400,000 dead in Darfur. 2,000,000 dead in South Sudanese. The world yawns. Because after all, this is a case where the indigenous people are killing their fellow man. It's not as if a foreign entity invaded and then pretended to torture. One gets the world mad. The other? Not so much.

I just want to make sure I understand the "rules" of outrage. If my neighbor nabs one of my children, molests and then murders them, that is a crime. If a foreign leader does the same, in his own country, either directly or through his military - well, that's just his business. We can ask the UN to sanction them, but if France decides it still wants to get some business through the back door, who are we to question?

I'm just wondering why we felt we could push our noses into that WWII business. Sure, Japan attacked us, but what did Hitler ever do to us?

Revisiting THAT question again, groan

I can't tell you what brings less excitement than revisiting the question "Why did we go to war with Iraq." I fear the debate is so polarized, that the outcome is predetermined (Bush lied, of course.) I hear those two words utttered by the left in nearly every discussion of the Iraqi war. Even people who claim to be moderates, throw off those words as if they represented an indisputable fact. So it is with a bit of trepidation that I bring up the article River Rat mentioned in comments. One compelling piece of evidence outlined by Captain Ed of Captains Quarter's Blog :

Immediately after 9/11, the US suspected that al-Qaeda had masterminded the attacks, confirming it within days. Until the 20th, when Bush made his speech, the government had not clearly and publicly stated its position to the Taliban. However, the IIS reported four days after the fact that the Taliban believed the US had proof of cooperation between Iraq and Osama bin Laden to attack American targets. The Taliban went out of its way to warn Saddam that the US would retaliate against Iraq when we got the proof together. That explicitly shows cooperation between the two governments. Moreover, the same people who sheltered and sponsored Osama bin Laden turned immediately to Saddam after the attacks for coordination on their response. They would have had no reason to do so -- except knowing that Osama and Saddam had a working relationship in fostering terrorist attacks against America.

One needs only to read the comments to see how this new debate is headed.

A comment thread at Jeff's is even more illustrative of the trend. But the facts on the ground is that we are interpreting thousands of pieces of NEW information, and not every response can be BUSH LIED, pointing to stale op-ed pieces from the past few years as a counter argument. One faction of the American public has taken it to the point of religious conviction that there was no ties between Iraq and terror. One wonders if any amount of truth will cause them to even re-examine their "facts."

I worry, because there are many non-facts, fact stories that have simply taken on a life of their own. The Bush "fake Turkey" story. Matthew Shepard's murder. Certain narratives are just too tempting to discard, even though they've been disproved.

Suicide bombers

I just watched this video of a suicide bomber in Iraq, and it reminded me of one of the good points in that Frontpagemag.com article I mentioned yesterday :

What is behind the suicide murders? Money, power and cold-blooded murderous incitement, nothing else. It has nothing to do with true fanatic religious beliefs. No Moslem preacher has ever blown himself up.

No son of an Arab politician or religious leader has ever blown himself.

No relative of anyone influential has done it. Wouldn't you expect some of the religious leaders to do it themselves, or to talk their sons into doing it, if this is truly a supreme act of religious fervor? Aren't they interested in the benefits of going to Heaven? Instead, they send outcast women, naive children, retarded people and young incited hotheads. They promise them the delights, mostly sexual, of the next world, and pay their families handsomely after the supreme act is performed and enough innocent people are dead.

Anyone know the average age of a suicide bomber?

Update: In the same vein, from Watching America, published in a Kuwaiti newspaper:

God has been generous to us and has given us Reason, so that we can differentiate between good and evil, and justice and injustice. Has any of you seen those who incite others to "Jihad," go themselves or send one of his own children to Jihad? On the contrary, while they push idiots into Jihad in Iraq and Chechnya, they increase the number of wives they have, thanks to the money donated by people of goodwill. Through these donations, [terrorist leaders] enjoy material wealth, and even send their children to study in America, start businesses and deposit fortunes in foreign banks.

More at Protein Wisdom.

I'm confused

Yesterday, in Washington D.C., the President of Liberia gave a speech of thanks to Congress. I went and checked my globe, and sure enough Liberia is in - get this- Africa! I have long been under the assumption that we didn't care about brown people - Kayne West told us so - so I'm sure there is more to this. Perhaps there is oil in Liberia? Anyway, here is a bit of the speech. This new lady President must be on Halliburton's payroll or something:

It was the leadership of the 108th Congress, more than two years ago, that paved the way for a United Nations force that secured our peace and guaranteed free and fair elections. It was your 445 million dollar addition to a supplemental appropriation that attracted additional commitments from international donors. With those funds, we have laid the foundation for a durable peace, not only in Liberia, but in the whole West African sub-region. Special appreciation goes to this 109th Congress for the effort, in recent weeks, to meet Liberia's development needs.

Honorable ladies and gentlemen of this Congress, I want to thank you. The Liberian people have sent me here to thank you - thank you for your vision. Our triumph over evil is also your triumph.

Our special relationship with the United States brought us benefits long before the autumn of 2003. Thousands of our people, including myself, have been educated in American missionary schools and gone on to higher training in this country. You have generously welcomed tens of thousands of our people as they fled war and persecution.

Obviously this woman has been brainwashed by American imperialists. It's sad, really. I looked it up, and apparently Liberia does export oil. Granted it's Palm oil (which sound like something dirty), but still I think we can safely continue to say that America only cares about brown people when there is oil involved. FIGHT THE POWER. I think we need to send Autum Ashante to Liberia where she can speak the truth to the sheep of Liberia:

White Nationalism Put U In Bondage


White nationalism is what put you in bondage
Pirate and vampires like Columbus, Morgan, and Darwin
Drank the blood of the sheep, trampled all over them with
Steel, tricks and deceit.
Nothing has changed take a look in our streets
The mis-education of she and Hegro — leaves you on your knee2grow
Black lands taken from your hands, by vampires with no remorse
They took the gold, the wisdom and all of the storytellers
They took the black women, with the black man weak
Made to watch as they changed the paradigm
Of our village
They killed the blind, they killed the lazy, they went
So far as to kill the unborn baby
Yeah White nationalism is what put you in bondage
Pirates and vampires like Columbus, Morgan, and Darwin
They drank the blood of the sheep, trampled all over them with
Steel laden feet, throw in the tricks alcohol and deceit.
Nothing has changed take a look at our streets.

Listen closely, Liberia, don't let this happen to you. The wise-words of a seven-year-old advise you to shake off your white oppressors in the US Congress. We just want to steal your your (palm) oil and kill your babies.

And, Barbara Boxer does kinda look like a vampire.

Arggg

You'd think every once and a while, something good would happen to ME.

shit shit shit.

Interesting Article

An interesting article in Frontpage Magazine, via Ace via someone else :

If by democracy we mean free elections but also free press, free speech, a functioning judicial system, civil liberties, equality to women, free international travel, exposure to international media and ideas, laws against racial incitement and against defamation, and avoidance of lawless behavior regarding hospitals, places of worship and children, then yes, democracy is the solution.

If democracy is just free elections, it is likely that the most fanatic regime will be elected, the one whose incitement and fabrications are the most inflammatory.

Detroit Royalty must ride in Style

I thought it was Rethuglians who hated the environment. So imagine my surprise when I learned that Congresswoman Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick leased, on the taxpayer's dime, a Cadillac DeVille. For the bargain basement price of $9,792 per year. Sayeth a spokesperson ;

She has a Cadillac because it's an American-made product that is made and manufactured in her district," Walker said.

Huh, really? So, she is OK with the fact that she drives a car with a price-tag that exceeds the mortgages or rentals amounts in her district? She drives that car with pride, when she represents a district with high unemployment, abysmal public education, and horrible city services?

I'm still waiting to hear what she discovered on her "fact finding" mission to Africa.

Mean people suck

And, I think they should just stay home and not infect others with their nastiness. i could tell you the not-so-long, but mostly likely boring story that inspired this, but how about I don't, you just pretend to know the particulars. Or, better yet, insert your own story into the narrative and go from there?

Regardless, i think mean, nasty people should just stay home. Why don't they? I mean, Al Gore invented this wonderful internets- certainly people could find a way to live in their house without ever coming into contact with the unwashed masses of humanity they hate?

Which kinda segues into my next rant; people who especially hate children. Who can't, for even the smallest micro-second, be nice to ward those under the age of 16 (thereabouts.) This type often forgoes children and gets a bunch of cats, or a dog, and then overlays human traits upon them to pretend that they aren't actually a only, mean bastard. Now, I love my dog almost as much as I love my kids, but I know it's not a pseudo-human, with human emotions. My dog does not get placed above any family member - or any member of the human race (unless the person is breaking in my house, and then I hope Greta chews their face off.) To be perfectly honest, I believe a pet should serve a purpose besides just wrecking the furniture, and eat (and pooping.) My cats serve the VERY useful task of killing any and all rodents that might think about invading my home. And, Greta - well, the whole block is afraid of her, so I think you understand her purpose.

Oh, right, back to children-hating-people (with a special emphasis on crazy cat-ladies, since it was just such a lady that inspired this post.) What I don't understand is why people hate children. I can understand not wanting to be around "bad" children, but my children were behaving fine, when this crazy cat-lady started going off. I had to order my children to leave immediately, because I was way too close to going off in a rather ugly way.

When this lady is old and alone, I hope her cats can manage her care. Perhaps cats have a special meals-on-wheels program going. I say, if you hate humanity- leave it and die alone. Become a recluse. And hope that someone finds your body before your pets starts eating it.

Today

Today, I have nothing to say. Enjoy the silence.

To father, or not

Rob has some advice for men everywhere :

If you can't father, don't F@&^.

Of course, he didn't censor. While I believe Rob and I arrive at the same conclusions, I have a different take on the matter. While he, and other commenters, have offered that this is a stupid lawsuit, I honestly think this man has a point. A point I don't agree with, but a point.


From Foxenews:

The gist of the argument: If a pregnant woman can choose among abortion, adoption or raising a child, a man involved in an unintended pregnancy should have the choice of declining the financial responsibilities of fatherhood. The activists involved hope to spark discussion even if they lose.
"There's such a spectrum of choice that women have — it's her body, her pregnancy and she has the ultimate right to make decisions," said Mel Feit, director of the men's center. "I'm trying to find a way for a man also to have some say over decisions that affect his life profoundly."

They are absolutely right. A woman can be just as irresponsible as a man by having unprotected sex, and while that woman has a "choice" (albeit a difficult one), the man is at the mercy of whatever that woman decides. He's a sorta-father. A father if the mom decides he is. While the man in the lawsuit complains that he is now a father against his will, what about the man who sits helpless while is child is sucked into a sink (I can hear the chants now - MY BODY, MY CHOICE.)

Dubay says he has been ordered to pay $500 a month in child support for a girl born last year to his ex-girlfriend. He contends that the woman knew he didn't want to have a child with her and assured him repeatedly that — because of a physical condition — she could not get pregnant.

Ok, now for this reason alone the man is a total (farking) moron. Situation: A 19 year-old woman tells you she cannot get pregnant. You:

A) Do the happy dance because now you don't have to wear a condom.
B) Nod your head, but opt for the rubber as added protection, because, -obviously - what 19 year old would know that with any degree of certainty?
C) Run in the other direction because this woman is obviously lying.

Our little friend chose "A", so he is a moron.

State courts have ruled in the past that any inequity experienced by men like Dubay is outweighed by society's interest in ensuring that children get financial support from two parents. Melanie Jacobs, a Michigan State University law professor, said the federal court might rule similarly in Dubay's case.
"The courts are trying to say it may not be so fair that this gentleman has to support a child he didn't want, but it's less fair to say society has to pay the support," she said.
Feit, however, says a fatherhood opt-out wouldn't necessarily impose higher costs on society or the mother. A woman who balked at abortion but felt she couldn't afford to raise a child could put the baby up for adoption, he said.

See, this is my major gripe with this lawsuit; that it is all about the money. As if financial support of a man is "enough." The state doesn't care if a man doesn't actually "father" the child, as long as he pays for it. And this men's organization is arguing that it isn't enough that he doesn't "father", he wants to get out of "paying" as well. So, you see - I have a problem with BOTH positions of this argument. Which is why I find it interesting, not stupid. The plaintiff doesn't expect to win this lawsuit, he even says that. He want's to get a "debate" started on this issue. Fine, let's debate. I think there is something wrong with BOTH sides.

Now, for the most ironic position, we have NOW's Kim Gandy :

"None of these are easy questions," said Gandy, a former prosecutor. "But most courts say it's not about what he did or didn't do or what she did or didn't do. It's about the rights of the child."

GET THAT? The "rights of the child?" I thought it was all about the woman's right to choose? The child has no rights while it is inside a woman, right? I guess the pecking order goes: woman's right to choose, the child's rights (to financial support only) , and then- way down there - a man's rights.

I have an idea; why don't we teach kids that the "reason" for sex is babies. Somewhere between the discussions of how to put condoms on cucumbers, and how to explore your varied expressions of sexuality, we introduce the idea that maybe you should only have sex with someone you feel strongly enough for that if a pregnancy occurred, you could deal with the consequences without a lawsuit.

Revelations

Along the same lines as Soylent Green is people yesterday I came into the knowledge that Andy Willoughby is Xango juice/.

Now, you may have no idea what I'm talking about, especially if you do not listen to AM radio. But, in my house, this was big news.

Read more at Alpaca Burger Forum.

Compare/contrast

But choosing to not publishing cartoons that might offend muslims, we bow to their ideology. We grant it special status. We abide by their rules.

By publish cartoons offensive to Christians, we elevate Islam above Christianity.

When the reality is, we can offend Christians because we know they will not retaliate violently. We abide by Islamic rules, because we do not wish our head to be separated from our shoulders.

If this continues, we are doomed.

Plead

Someone please come take my children.

The Oscars!

Not to go all predictably conservative on you, but I didn't watch. I honestly don't remember the last time I did watch. The only movies I have seen that were nominated for anything were King Kong and March of the Penguins.

I have no interest in:

1) what the stars wear
2) who they thank
3) what shocking thing they might say in their acceptance speech
4) who wins anything

So, given these fact, why would I watch? Besides, there was this really interesting show about elephant on last night.

We are all kafffaars

There have been discussions here and there regarding "who" exactly our enemies are. ARe they Muslim? Are they Islamics? Are they militants? Are they fascists? The debate is never ending regarding how to "correctly" identify who it is, exactly, that wants to kill us.

One thing that GLARES out at me, especially in this story- and with the entire 9/11, Madrid, London bombings narrative - it doesn't matter who YOU are, because we are all Kufffaars -nonbelivers.

On the boob tube last night ...

This season, I’ve returned to watching ER. It had been a rather stale, very miss-able show, but this year it has reached new heights (dare I say, this season, so far, has been it’s best yet.) Perhaps it is because it doesn’t rely on the star-power of one actor to carry it (as it did with George Clooney, or Noah Wiley.)

But last night’s episode reminded me that Hollywood is here to teach me something. We returned, briefly, to Wiley’s character who is temporarily serving in Sudan, treating the refugees of the genocide. The evildoers, of course, are the Janjaweed. No one disputes this. The Janjaweed rapes one of the characters, and then later kills the husband, who was out for retribution.

What I found interesting, though, was the presentation of the refugees as devote muslims, and innocents (which they certainly are), and the Janjaweed as merely some roving, militaristic thugs. While they are thugs, totally glossed over is the fact that the Janjaweed are muslims as well. From Wikapedia:

The Janjaweed (variously spelled Janjawid ,Jingaweit ,Jinjaweed ,Janjawiid ,Janjiwid , etc.) is an armed militia group in Darfur , western Sudan , comprising fighters of Arab background (mainly from the originally nomadic Baggara people). Since 2003 it has been one of the principal actors in the increasingly bloody Darfur conflict , which has pitted nomadic tribes against the settled arable farmer tribes of the region. The Janjaweed represent the ruling Sunni Muslim government.

The name "Janjaweed" means "armed men on horseback." The Janjaweed is the successor to an earlier Arab tribal militia, the Murahilin (literally "nomads"), which had existed for many years beforehand.

Perhaps this detail wasn’t important? Perhaps Hollywood was afraid this would give us the "wrong" impression of Islam? The truth of the matter, is that this is a battle between black muslims, and arab muslims (who are in power, and are supported by the Janjaweed). It is the blacks that are being eliminated.

The message of ER, I assume, is how can "we" let this happen? The question, though, is how can we stop it? What is Hollywood willing to support to stop this genocide? Based on the criticism from the likes of George Clooney, Sean Penn, and the majority of Hollywood, nothing.

What WMDs?

From FrontPage Magazine, an interview with Ryan Mauro, a researcher and analyst for Tactical Defense Concepts, on the Saddam tapes:

: The tapes are extremely significant in that they prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that as of the year 2000, Saddam Hussein had a secret plasma program to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons, or "special bombs" as he calls them. The Duelfer Report previously concluded that this type of enrichment program ended in the 1980s, but here we have Saddam and his top advisors discussing using a power plant in the area of Basra for the program.  The scientists involved in the program are not known to the UN, leaving Western intelligence clueless.

On the tapes, you hear Saddam discussing the assistance of Russia and Brazil in dealing with the United Nations. He laughs off inspections, as his son-in-law who later defects, Hussein Kamil, reports how as late as 1995 their chemical and biological programs were being hidden from the world. They also discuss keeping the ingredients for these weapons separate, so that should they be found, they will be looked at as innocent dual-use items. They were not destroyed in 1991 as the Duelfer Report concludes. There are even indications on the tapes that Iraq may have had a role in the 2001 anthrax attacks.

Bold is mine, to point out that the tapes reveal Saddam had WMDs (as well as active plans to develop WMDs) as late as 2000. And, where does Mauro say the WMDs went?

It has been confirmed across the board that 18-wheelers were seen going into Syria before the war, crossing the border soon after Iraqi intelligence replaced the border guards and cleared nearby areas for their passage. There are also eyewitness reports of the trucks going into Syria, and eyewitness reports of their burial in Lebanon.

The trucks with the weapons were tracked to three locations in Syria and Lebanon's Bekaa Valley, currently controlled by the Syrians, Iranians and Hezbollah. Sources I've spoken with that have seen satellite photos of the movements confirm that the WMD in Syria are at military bases, while the ones in Lebanon are buried. A fourth site in Syria, the al-Safir WMD and missile site, should also be looked at. From spring to summer 2002, there was a lot of construction here involving the expansion of underground complexes.

Much more information at the link.

No wonder kids today are so, like, stupid

Asshat teacher Jay Bennish on Capitalism:

Capitalism: If you don't understand the economic system of capitalism, you don't understand the world in which we live. Ok. Economic system in which all or most of the means of production, etc., are owned privately and operated in a somewhat competitive environment for the purpose of producing PROFIT! Of course, you can shorten these definitions down. Make sure you get the gist of it. Do you see how when, you know, when you're looking at this definition, where does it say anything about capitalism is an economic system that will provide everyone in the world with the basic needs that they need? Is that a part of this system? Do you see how this economic system is at odds with humanity? At odds with caring and compassion? It's at odds with human rights.

Anytime you have a system that is designed to procure profit, when profit is the bottom motive -- money -- that means money is going to become more important potentially than what? Safety, human lives, etc.

What I don't understand, is why people who hate the economic system under which they live don't move. Really and seriously. Many people move to the US to escape the political and economic systems of their motherland. I say, follow their example.

Bush Lied. Or not

It has been repeated at nauseum that "Bush lied" to convince the American people to support his war in Iraq. Say it often enough, and it becomes accepted as fact. And then there is this, in the form of tapes made by Saddam, and now being translated by American intelligence:

In a tape dating to April 1995, Saddam and several aides discuss the fact that U.N. inspectors had found traces of Iraq's biological weapons program. On the tape, Hussein Kamel, Saddam's son-in-law, is heard gloating about fooling the inspectors.

"We did not reveal all that we have," he says. "Not the type of weapons, not the volume of the materials we imported, not the volume of the production we told them about, not the volume of use. None of this was correct."

There's more. Indeed, as late as 2000, Saddam can be heard in his office talking with Iraqi scientists about his ongoing plans to build a nuclear device. At one point, he discusses Iraq's plasma uranium program — something that was missed entirely by U.N. weapons inspectors combing Iraq for WMD.


**********

Perhaps most chillingly, the tapes record Iraq Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz talking about how easy it would be to set off a WMD in Washington. The comments come shortly after Saddam muses about using "proxies" in a terror attack.

**********

These are extraordinary developments. They deserve a full airing in the media, since they essentially validate part of Bush's casus belli for invading Iraq and deposing the murderous Saddam.

But once again, the mainstream media have dropped the ball. They seem more interested in Dick Cheney's marksmanship and American port management than in setting the record straight about one of the most important developments of our time.

Indeed. The media's bias can been seen in what it does, and doesn't report.


h/t : No-Pasaran

The unstoppable Democrats

Howard Dean gave a speech outlining the Democrats' plans for the future :

he Democrats have a better idea. First we will conclude the negotiations with the Chinese and the North Koreans to disarm North Korea. Secondly, under no circumstances will a Democratic Administration ever allow Iran to become a nuclear power. Three, we will kill or capture Osama bin Laden and four, the authority and the control of the ports of the United States must be retained by American companies.

See how easy that is? It's only because Bushitler is such a dunce that these things haven't already been accomplished already. Beware, Republicans, Dean has got a FOUR POINT PLAN.

I have a four point plan too. 1) Win the lotto. 2) Buy and Island. 3) Implement plan for world Peace. 4) Take a nap.

But, Dean has still more plans:

"So our strategy is very simple- we want to make it clear to the American people what the Republicans are about and what their discrepancies are between what they say and what they do. We also want to make sure the American people understand what we are going to do differently.

"One- we will pass ethics legislation within the first 100 days of our re-ascension to power, and eliminate the scandals and the corruption that the Republicans have brought to power. We want honest and open government in America again.

"Two- we want a strong national defense which begins with telling the truth to our citizens and our soldiers and our allies before we send troops abroad.

"Three- we want American jobs that will stay in America by creating a new energy independence industry, creating thousands of manufacturing jobs and construction jobs to retrofit our homes and businesses.

"Four- we want a health care system which works for everyone, just like 36 other countries in the world have.

"And five- we want a strong public education system so we can have opportunity and optimism back in America again. . ."

Yes, Dean, your strategy is simple. Some might called it ... stupid. I might be that someone. As Ace pointed out, Dean's solutions are actually goals. Kinda like my four-point plan to happiness above. The tricky part, Dean, is making your goals something you can actually achieve. For that you actually need a plan.

What worries me is that there might actually be Democrats out there who are impressed by Dean's words.

Of course, Jeff has something to say about this as well.