Koufax Voting
Voting for 2005 Koufax is now open.
I am up for Best New Blog. Go check out each of the blogs in each of the categories, then vote.
Technorati Tags: Koufax Awards
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Thought for the Day
"Bureaucrats write memoranda both because they appear to be busy when they are writing and because the memos, once written, immediately become proof that they were busy."
--Charles Peters
Friday, March 03, 2006
Wal-Mart and Plan-B
Today Wal-Mart gained a bit of sanity, and decided to carry Plan-B at all of its pharmacies:
In a major turnaround, Wal-Mart will begin stocking Plan B contraceptives -- commonly referred to as the "morning-after pill" -- at all of its pharmacies, the company said Friday.
"We expected more states to require us to sell emergency contraceptives in the months ahead," said Ron Chumiuk, vice president of Pharmacy for Wal-Mart, in a statement.
"Because of this, and the fact that this is an FDA-approved product, we feel it is difficult to justify being the country's only major pharmacy chain not selling it."
This will provide a much needed boost to women in areas that are not well served by pharmacies other than Wal-Mart.
However, Wal-Mart will continue to retain is "conscientious objection" policy, which permits pharmacists to not dispense a medication they are morally opposed to, which is a cop-out on their part, but the fact that the medication will be available in their pharmacies is a good first step.
Technorati Tags: Emergency Contraception, Wal-Mart
Lieberman (DINO-Ct)
I haven't written too much about Lieberman, mainly because I live in Texas, which has its own problems. However, it is nice to see that the problem for Democrats that is Joe Lieberman, is getting wider play.
Joe Lieberman is a real issue for Democrats, not the least of which is that Connecticut Republicans are going to endorse Lieberman over his primary opponent, Ned Lamont.
Being in Texas I hear a lot about how if Democrats would field canidates like Lieberman, then Democrats would gain a lot of support from Republicans. The problem with this plan, is that Democrats, on their own, have substantial support across the country. If only they could articulate a coherent plan.
In a few cases, this is actually happening, and with Lieberman's opponent that is happening. What needs to happen, is people taking on Lieberman in effective manner.
When a viable opponent to a DINO such as Lieberman comes along, they need to be supported.
Here's to 2006.
Technorati Tags: Lieberman, Lamont, Ct-Sen
Thought for the Day
"Tradition is what you resort to when you don't have the time or the money to do it right."
--Kurt Herbert Alder
Christ-o-Fascism
Atrios points us to this article (reg. req'd.):
Missouri legislators in Jefferson City considered a bill that would name Christianity the state's official "majority" religion.
House Concurrent Resolution 13 has is pending in the state legislature.
Many Missouri residents had not heard about the bill until Thursday.
Karen Aroesty of the Anti-defamation league, along with other watch-groups, began a letter writing and email campaign to stop the resolution.
The resolution would recognize "a Christian god," and it would not protect minority religions, but "protect the majority's right to express their religious beliefs.
The resolution also recognizes that, "a greater power exists," and only Christianity receives what the resolution calls, "justified recognition."
State representative David Sater of Cassville in southwestern Missouri, sponsored the resolution, but he has refused to talk about it on camera or over the phone.
KMOV also contacted Gov. Matt Blunt's office to see where he stands on the resolution, but he has yet to respond.
There is no doubt that the Religious Right, a.k.a. Christ-o-Fascists want to eliminate most, if not all of the First Amendment of the Constitution.
They want to establish America as a Christian Theocracy, in which they can kick-out the non-Chrisitans and revert to some Dark Ages type society. It is long past time for the Christians in America who don't wish to see their religion perverted into some sort of Fascist theocracy to stand up and be counted.
Unless of course, that is the desired outcome.
Technorati Tags: Christian Fascists, Missouri
Thursday, March 02, 2006
FOIA Yourself
People For the American Way has set up a FOIA request letter page.
Just go fill out the form, print it off, and mail it in.
And wait.
Since we now know the NSA is spying on Americans, wouldn't it be a good idea to know what they know about you?
Technorati Tags: FOIA, PFAW
Parsing Katrina
Repeatedly we have been told that Bush and his supporters hated the way Clinton and Gore and Kerry parsed. You know, "depends on what the meaning of 'is' is".
Over at Powerline, Assrocket parses so much over the revelations that Bush was made aware of potential problems before Katrina hit, I kept looking for that same quote.
For example:
Let's take that apart. The AP says the transcripts show that Bush was "worried" about the levees failing. But the quote they cite is after Katrina hit, and after levee failures had been reported. This obviously has nothing to do with what was anticipated before the fact. What, then, is the AP's basis for saying that "federal disaster officials warned President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees..."? Here is the only support for that claim in the article:
How about:
But this has nothing to do with the levees breaching; it has to do with them being overtopped--a much less dangerous threat. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, there has been endless discussion about the difference between breaching and overtopping. If these AP reporters, Margaret Ebrahim and John Solomon, really don't know the difference, they have no business reporting on Katrina.
I could go on, but what's the point.
Bush is a miserable failure, and those who worship at the altar of Bush won't admit it, even if they have to parse the meaning of the word 'is'.
Technorati Tags: Katrina, Assrocket, Miserable Failure
Thought for the Day
"The truth is always a compound of two half- truths, and you never reach it, because there is always something more to say."
--Tom Stoppard
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Thought for the Day
"If the world should blow itself up, the last audible voice would be that of an expert saying it can't be done."
--Peter Ustinov
The Seriousness of Fake News
Today in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, the issue of The Daily Show comes to the fore.
When Jon Stewart hosts the Academy Awards on Sunday, he’ll be center stage in front of TV’s most mainstream audience.
No more hiding in the wasteland of late-night cable. No more playing the underdog. After this, he’ll be firmly entrenched as a mainstream name in comedy.
Which is great, of course, for his career as a comedian. But how will it affect his role as a newsman?
Don’t laugh. American culture, it seems, can’t decide whether to classify Stewart as a comedian or a journalist.
Stewart’s late-night newscast parody, The Daily Show, airs four nights a week in a time slot that makes it an alternative to local newscasts. Big-name media figures like Ted Koppel and Bill Moyers have indicated they respect his opinions and take him seriously.
What's really sad about this is that those who watch The Daily Show are more informed than those who rely on traditional newscasts, and newspapers alone for their news. I suspect that the demographic that watches the show regularly actually use the traditional forms of news delivery in conjunction with the Internet and The Daily Show and The Colbert Report to augment the other forms. What it speaks to, more so than the quality of those two shows, is that those who are inclined to watch those shows, actually spend time trying to verify what they see in traditional news outlets.
That says alot about the quality of traditional news outlets.
Technorati Tags: The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, News
The War on Women
Frankly what else would you call the anti-abortion movement?
Especially when this happens":
A Suffolk (Virginia) woman who lost her unborn baby after suffering a bullet wound to the abdomen was arrested yesterday and charged with shooting herself to “illegally induce an abortion.”
Frankly, a person who would do that to themselves needs some psychiatric help, but rather than provide her that, the state of Virginia is going to charge her with a felony for trying to "illegally induce an abortion".
Welcome to the America the Religious Right is trying to create.
Technorati Tags: Abortion, Virginia, Religious Right
Impeachment
Glenn Greenwald points us to the Survey-USA 50 state survey on the public's attitude towards the domestic spying scandal.
(1) There is a truly amazing 50-state survey (h/t Markos) on the views of Americans regarding the NSA scandal -- and specifically their beliefs about whether George Bush broke the law. In 37 out of 50 states -- including numerous pure red states -- a plurality believe that it is "clear" that Bush broke the law. The best state for Bush is Oklahoma, where only 42% believe that he clearly did not break the law - the highest number of any state which believes that.
It is clear that America is coming to believe that George W. Bush is and has broken the law (numerous times).
When will our elected representatives begin listening to their consituents?
When will the media?
Technorati Tags: Bush, Impeachment, Glenn Greenwald
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Supporting Veterans
Nearly one in 10 American soldiers who served in Iraq were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, most after witnessing death or participating in combat, a study said on Tuesday.
Mental health screening of veterans showed 21,620 out of 222,620 returning from Iraq and assessed over the year ending April 30, 2004, suffered from post-traumatic stress -- a disorder that can lead to nightmares, flashbacks and delusional thinking.
This is what I was referring to. The Bush administration is ignoring the fundamental responsibilities to our soldiers.
I in no way advocate leaving our soldiers in Iraq, nor do I think we need to "finish the job". I don't even think they should be there. The job they were sent to do was never properly defined. The VA cannot support the soldiers properly when they return from the theater of battle, VA hospital budgets are being cut, services reduced.
That said, that the soldiers don't want to be fighting in Iraq should not be a surprise to anyone. Nor is it a basis for formulating a strategy to deciding how and when to withdraw. What needs to be the basis for formulating a strategy for deciding how to withdraw (the when is moot, as it shouldn't have happened in the first place), needs to be controlled, staged so as to minimize exposure of non-combat personnel to combat. What we cannot allow to happen is helicopters plucking personnel off of rooftops under fire.
Grousing or a Sign of Something More
Think Progress points us to a New York Times poll which shows that 72% of US soldiers want out of Iraq.
I actually don't find this number too surprising. Mainly because most soldiers really don't want to be in a war zone. It is kind of a no brainer there. Secondly, a timetable for withdraw shouldn't be based on troop morale. While it is definitely a concern, troop morale is a strong indicator of their fighting effectiveness, what should be of primary concern is that the leadership, both military and civilian understand what is the drag on morale of the fighting units. Is it lack of equipment, poor condition of equipment, lack of a clear objective or goal, etc. These conditions all contribute to unit cohesiveness, the ability to perform each mission effectively, relations with the civilian population in their area of operations. Battle fatigue is also a genuine concern, and the compressed timetables for rotating in and out of the theater of battle is a huge contributing factor to the fighting effectiveness of the units.
While I believe that the Iraq war is wrong, and the US needs to either withdraw, or redeploy elsewhere, whether or not the soldiers want to be there is a red herring. This is a distraction from the real issue of the Iraq war. Why are we there, and why do we continue to prosecute this war with no clear objective, and no definable goals.
If the leadership were to actually focus on those issues, and ensure that the soldiers are made aware of those goals, then the morale would improve measurably. Ensuring adequate equipment that is in good repair, and of sufficient capability to protect them should also be a priority.
What we need to focus on is ensuring that the leadership does everything that is necessary to a) support the troops in the field (and not empty platitudes), b) figure out how to get them out of there as quickly and safely as possible, c) care for veterans physically, psychologically, and economically when they return.
Technorati Tags: Iraq War, Troop Morale
Thought for the Day
"The wisdom of the wise, and the experience of ages, may be preserved by quotation."
--Benjamin Disraeli
Oil Politics and Motorsport
Recently I wrote about a proposal by FIA President Max Mosley to change the engine regulations in Formula One racing from a set engine displacement/horsepower rating, to one based on fuel consumption.
Lately Mosley has been making comments about how a possible oil crisis could impact motorsport, and Formula One specifically. First off, it is important to note, that motorsport in general does not consume significan amounts of oil. Certainly one race car does consume more than does the average persons car. However, the number of street cars far out number the number of race cars. However, as Mosley notes, governments can see Formula One as a convenient target.
What this debate can spur, however, is the move to a) even more fuel efficient engines, and even more important b) the development of alternative sources of energy for cars.
The budget of a Formula One team is in the hundreds of millions of dollars, all focused on two or three cars (admittedly cars that get completely rebuilt often), but if some of that money is devoted to those two goals, and the manufacturers who support the teams get behind a program, those advancements would get the needed momentum to be translated into consumer autos. That research has trickled down in the form of composite material use, and increased engine durability and performance without sacrificing fuel efficiency, that is being implemented in the consumer space. It is a small leap to use advancements in alternative fuels, and fuel delivery systems that get developed in the motorsport arena, and pass those down to the consumer space.
It just takes the right incentive to do so.
Technorati Tags: Formula One, F1, Oil
The Rude One
The Rude Pundit speak on the upcoming Right Wing smear attempt of Liberals over the impending Iraq Civil war:
So let's just say it up front here: over here in Liberalburg, we weren't happy when Ronald Reagan was cozying up to Saddam Hussein back in the 1980s. We weren't happy that the United States was backing a brutal, murderous, raping thug, giving him weapons and such. We weren't happy with the first Persian Gulf War. We weren't happy with sanctions that decimated the poorest people in Iraq. We weren't happy that the President wouldn't allow weapons inspectors to finish their work.
We weren't happy with this war to start with, saying, for instance, that a civil war was the inevitable outcome. We're not happy to be proven right. We're not happy, simply, when people are dying for no good cause, with no good outcome on the horizon, and no good way out. Frankly, oh, dear, sweet right wing, on the whole, we'd've rather been wrong and had tens of thousands of people not killed, tens of thousands of America soldiers not wounded. We'd've eaten the crow and, trust us, wonderful, fair right wing, you'd've shoved our faces in the plate of that black bird.
For those of you who haven't read The Rude Pundit before, may not like the images he creates with his writing. However, his is correct.
The coming meme from the right will be that Liberals, and the left in general wanted this all along. Nothing can be further from the truth, the right just doesn't like being told "I told you so".
I was one of the people who, since the war was inevitable, wished fervently that the neo-cons dreams of a new Iraq would have worked out. The last thing the US needs is a protracted war, with no definable outcome, no clearly defined enemy, with an ambiguous goal. However, I knew that exactly what we are seeing today, was going to be the outcome.
We, on the left, need to be prepared for this tactic the right is about to employ. We need to counter it now, while it is just the wankers at Powerline who are breathlessly pronouncing our supposed joy at civil war breaking out in Iraq. Nothing can be further from the truth, but people like that, don't traffic in the truth.
Technorati Tags: Rude Pundit, Iraq War, Powerline
Monday, February 27, 2006
Frivolous Pursuits
I held off on reporting about the DeLay prompted IRS audit of a Texas based non-profit, Texans for Public Justice, until I could see a final report.
Needless to say, what was the anticpated result, was the actual result:
The Internal Revenue Service recently audited the books of a Texas nonprofit group that was critical of campaign spending by former House majority leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) after receiving a request for the audit from one of DeLay's political allies in the House.
The lawmaker, House Ways and Means Committee member Sam Johnson (R-Tex.), was in turn responding to a complaint about the group, Texans for Public Justice, from Barnaby W. Zall, a Washington lawyer close to DeLay and his fundraising apparatus, according to IRS documents.
[...]
The IRS sent two auditors last year to comb the 2003 books of Texans for Public Justice and an affiliated foundation that collected donations for the organization. No tax violations were found, according to a letter the IRS sent the group.
Tom DeLay can't stand criticism.
So he sends the IRS on a futile, taxpayer funded investigation of a non-profit to try and intimidate them into silence.
Thanks Tom.
Technorati Tags: Tom DeLay, IRS, Texans for Public Justice
At What Point Will the Media ...
The latest CBS News poll finds President Bush's approval rating has fallen to an all-time low of 34 percent, while pessimism about the Iraq war has risen to a new high.
[...]
In a separate poll, two out of three Americans said they do not think President Bush has responded adequately to the needs of Katrina victims. Only 32 percent approve of the way President Bush is responding to those needs, a drop of 12 points from last September’s poll, taken just two weeks after the storm made landfall.
Is this the most unpopular President in history?
Technorati Tags: George Bush, Unpopular President, Bush Popularity
Sites for Democratic National Convention
Unlike Chicago, which said no to Republicans for the RNC, 11 cities are interested in the DNC:
The DNC initially sent out letters to more than 30 cities, giving them an overview and finding out their level of interest.
The 11 cities that said they were interested: Anaheim, Calif.; Dallas; Denver; Detroit; Las Vegas; Minneapolis; New Orleans; New York; Orlando, Fla.; Phoenix and San Antonio.
My hope is that Democrats will take the convention into the belly of the beast, and hold it in San Antonio, or Dallas.
Then again, Democrats could show the residents of the Gulf Coast that they haven't forgotten them, and select New Orleans for the convention.
FWIW (since ultimately I have no say), those are the cities I would like to see at the top of the list.
Technorati Tags: DNC, Democratic National Convention
So Who Actually Vetted this Deal?
Apparently not the Coast Guard:
Citing broad gaps in U.S. intelligence, the Coast Guard cautioned the Bush administration that it was unable to determine whether a United Arab Emirates-owned company might support terrorist operations, a Senate panel said Monday.
The surprise disclosure came during a hearing on Dubai-owned DP World's plans to take over significant operations at six leading U.S. ports. The port operations are now handled by London-based Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company.
"There are many intelligence gaps, concerning the potential for DPW or P&O assets to support terrorist operations, that precludes an overall threat assessment of the potential" merger," an undated Coast Guard intelligence assessment says.
"The breadth of the intelligence gaps also infer potential unknown threats against a large number of potential vulnerabilities," the document says.
I personally am not too keen on going down the "Arabs can't be trusted" line, but the fact that Dubai Ports World is a government owned company, rather than a publicly traded company adds a new dimension to the security angle. One that cannot be casually tossed aside.
Add to that my general unease with foreign owned companies operating America's ports the "warm fuzzies" just aren't there. It is very clear at this point, that there is far more to this deal (Carlyle Group anyone?) than the administration is willing to divulge, even to Congress.
Technorati Tags: Coast Guard, DPW, Port Security
John Carter's Priorities
Mary Beth Harrell is running to unseat John Carter from the 31st Congressional District here in Texas. I have written about her in the past, and she has been using the internet, fairly effectively, to spread the word about her campaign. The Texas Tuesdays project was created to help spread the word about Democratic candidates running in Texas, as well as provide a central location to get information.
Today Harrell has written a post about her visit to the local VA hospital on Valentines day:
Recently, I was privileged to be at our local VA hospital on Valentine’s Day for their annual tribute to our veterans. Carter was also invited but didn’t show.
Carter’s office did send a rep who told us Carter must be real busy because he wouldn't normally miss the chance to spend the afternoon with Miss Texas who was touring the VA hospital.... It seems he missed the point.
As the wife of a veteran, and the mother of two sons currently serving in the Army, she is aware of the ramifications of Bush's disasterous war on individuals serving, and their families. It is obvious that Carter, based on his representatives response, does not. The purpose of the visit was not to spend a day with Miss Texas.
However, it is interesting to note what event John Carter was able to take time out of his apparently busy schedule to attend:
So, I was surprised last Thursday when John Carter managed to make time in his busy schedule to show up at yet another press conference for Travis County Defendant, Tom DeLay, and once again voice his support for his hero and mentor.
Carter actually compared DeLay to a World War I lieutenant fearlessly leading his men in battle.
Maybe if Carter was sent back to private life, he would have more time to spend with Miss Texas, and maybe, just maybe, he could go visit the servicemen and servicewomen who went to fight in the war he supports.
Help Harrell oust Carter
Technorati Tags: Mary Beth Harrell, John Carter, Tx-31
Thought for the Day
"Drawing on my fine command of the English language, I said nothing."
--Robert Benchley
The Cult of Bush
E.J. Dionne points out the obvious hypocrisy in the Bush supporters continued claim that a foreign government owned company should manage ports in the US:
Republicans and conservatives would be aghast at the idea of our government owning a company that operated so many of our ports. That would be -- just imagine! -- socialism. But Dubai Ports World is, well, a socialist operation, a state-owned company in the United Arab Emirates. Why is it bad for the federal government to own our port operations, but okay for a foreign government?
Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't the mantra of Republicans that what the government does, private industry can do better?
Or is it really, that the what the US government does, private industry and foreign governemnts can do better. When Grover Norquist said:
"I don't want to abolish government. I simply want to reduce it to the size where I can drag it into the bathroom and drown it in the bathtub."
was he referring only to the American government?
Or is this yet another example of the Cult of Bush?
Because George W. Bush says it is acceptable, Republicans say it is acceptable?
Technorati Tags: Dionne, Republican Hypocrisy
DeLay Woes
Via Holden at First Draft we learn that Tom DeLay ain't doin' so hot:
Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, is trailing his potential Democratic opponent, former Rep. Nick Lampson, in fundraising and cash in the bank, according to new financial reports that covered the first six weeks of the year.
DeLay, who faces three contenders in the March 7 Republican primary for the 22nd Congressional District seat, raised $154,712 and spent $304,795 between Jan. 1 and Feb. 15, the time span covered in the reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. The lawmaker reported having about $1.3 million in the bank.
Nick Lampson has $1.4 million in the bank and is spending less money. Tom DeLay's expenditures also include spending on lawyers having to defend his money launering charges. I suspect this is also impacting his fundraising ability significantly.
Poor DeLay.
Technorati Tags: Tom DeLay, Nick Lampson, Tx-22
Continuing the Narrative
We are supposed to believe that DPW actually requested this review?
However, if you rely on the media for information, that is the conclusion you are left with.
Technorati Tags: DPW, Port Security
Sunday, February 26, 2006
Texas as the Model
Over the past year, I have been looking at the Republicans in Washington, shaking my head, and wondering what the hell is going on.
Well, February's issue of Texas Monthly (paid sub. req.), we can see by what is playing out in the Texas legislature, in a rather public manner, what is probably happening in Washington, in a more private setting.
AT SOME POINT, YOU’D THINK the state’s Republican leadership would be ashamed of the mess it’s made of things. The laundry list includes the school finance debacle; Tom DeLay’s fund-raising activities in the 2002 election; the midcycle congressional redistricting, another DeLay-inspired adventure, which now faces review by the U.S. Supreme Court amid revelations that the fix was in when the Department of Justice gave the plan its blessing; the continual sniping and snubbing by and among the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the Speaker; and the current campaign by the party hierarchy to defeat legislators who have dared to suggest, by their votes, that the leadership is on the wrong track. The common flaw uniting these embarrassments is a desire for power that exceeds a desire for policy—and a complete lack of shame. There is no sense of restraint. There is no impulse to govern. There is only the desire for more power.
The first clue of what we can see, is "the desire for more power". This desire for more power, exceeds the mandate to implement conservative values.
In Texas Republican Party activist, and those not officially affiliated with the TxGOP, are actively trying to oust and/or undermine solidly conservative members of the Texas senate, which has a long history of treating the minority party, fairly. It all has the same flavor as what we have seen and written about by myself, Glenn Greenwald, and others, about the RNC.
Party ideology trumps governing, a.k.a. Party over country.
It started with Texas Lt. Governor, David Dewhurst. Although he has violated the rule himself, most notably with redistricting, generally he has held to what is called the two-thirds rule. It involves a lot of Senate rules that pretty much ensures that the Lt. Governor can control the legislative calendar, rather than a bunch of over zealous Senators. This rule has been in force for over 50 years, and has ensured that even the minority party has the ability to get legislation introduced and considered. However, these various Republican aligned groups in Texas are pressuring Dewhurst to eliminate this rule, so that their far right Republican Senators can guarantee that their otherwise odious legislation cannot be spiked with these rules. However,
The two-thirds rule may seem like an anachronism in these days of intense partisan politics. But if none of its obvious advantages—civility, consensus, fairness—cut any sway with Republicans, they should consider this: If they continue to govern without shame, they will only hasten the day when they are out of power. Then they will dearly regret that they did away with the minority’s ability to temper the passions of the majority.
It is obvious that the current Republican majority has no plan to relinquish its majority in Congress, both at the state and federal levels, but unless they plan on destroying our government (not outside the realm of possibility), it is highly likely they will, one day, lose their majority.
Watch them howl like a bunch of crybabies when these same partisan rules changes are used against them.
But, getting back to the main topic, what is happening here in Texas, as has probably happened elsewhere, is probably what is happening behind closed doors in Washington. Bill Frist waffles between acting like a real Conservative, and acting like a Republican when his Conservative views come in conflict with his Republican views. It is at these times that there are those, both within Congress, and without, who are quick to remind him that if he wants to remain in power, he will toe the line. And because he wants to remain in power, he does.
This is all the more reason we need to elect a Democratic majority this year, as well as not re-electing people like Henry Cuellar, and Joe Lieberman. People like them, who are more than willing to undercut their own party, and side with Republicans, need to be removed from the party. From the war in Iraq, to the criminalization of abortion, to the privatization of Social Security, etc, etc, the Republican party has made it clear, through words and actions, that they are only interested in dismantling the Constitution, the laws, and the institutions of the United States which have made it a great and strong country. I am afraid to find out what kind of country they would like to see implemented in its stead.
Technorati Tags: Paul Burka, Rebpublican, Democrat, Texas
Thought for the Day
"I have never made but one prayer to God, a very short one: 'O Lord, make my enemies ridiculous.' And God granted it."
--Voltaire
Well, Duh
Abortion measure could mean big legal battle.
This is exactly what the anti-Abortion crowd wants. They want a big public fight on their hands pitting the abortion rights crowd against the anti-abortion crowd. With a majority of the public nationwide supporting Roe v Wade, and wanting the Supreme Court to uphold it, the only way this issue will be resolved is if this battle goes all the way to the top.
I have no expectation that if Roe is upheld, that the challenges will stop. The justices that vote to uphold will be painted as activist judges who have no respect for the rule of law (this despite Roe being the current law of the land), but it will be a major setback.
If the anti-Abortion crowd prevails then the issue reverts to the state, and a state-by-state battle will ensue.
Technorati Tags: Abortion Rights, South Dakota
"I Was Against the Port Deal ...
... before I was for it:
Frist said Republicans trust the Bush administration and think its determination that the port deal doesn't threaten American security is "in all likelihood absolutely the right one."
The Cult of Bush rears its ugly head yet again.
Technorati Tags: Bush Cultism, Frist
Saturday, February 25, 2006
More Bush Cultism
Because George Bush cannot be wrong:
Moving toward a deal that could allow President Bush and congressional GOP leaders to save face and avert a prolonged confrontation, GOP officials said today that they were discussing the idea of having Dubai Ports World seek a new review of its acquisition of a British company's operation that runs several key U.S. ports.
Because the only thing that matters is George Bush, and the GOP.
Technorati Tags: Bush Cultism.