Monday, August 28, 2006
But it's not a Civil War
BBC NEWS reports
BBC NEWS reports
Iraqi troops have fought battles with Shia militiamen in the southern town of Diwaniya.But no matter what, it's not a civil war. I mean governments routinely lose control of cities, right? And violence always flares in response to an improving security situation, right? It's like the law of thermodynamics or something, right?
[. . .]
Government forces had lost control of parts of the city, officials said.
The Republican Economy
The following paragraph from the New York Times tells you all you need to know about Republican economic policies
The following paragraph from the New York Times tells you all you need to know about Republican economic policies
wages and salaries now make up the lowest share of the nation’s gross domestic product since the government began recording the data in 1947, while corporate profits have climbed to their highest share since the 1960’s.Also, "Total employee compensation" has fallen to levels not seen since 1966. All of this despite double digit gains in worker productivity. While workers are being more productive, the fat cat corporate chiefs are reaping all the benefits. Keep these figures in mind next time you hear some Republican attack dog use the phrase "class warfare."
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Betterer and Betterer
Or the ongoing Iraqi civil war.
The security situation in Baghdad is just looking rosy. Why Baghdad is so safe it makes most U.S. cities look down right dangerous. Except, as CNN reminds us there are the occasional incidents
As is so often the case in Iraq these days (or rather years) the bombing of the Palestine Hotel wasn't the only bombing of the day. The same CNN story notes how,
CNN ought to be ashamed of themselves for implying that the target of the bomb was a Shiite area and not the Palestine Hotel,
Or the ongoing Iraqi civil war.
The security situation in Baghdad is just looking rosy. Why Baghdad is so safe it makes most U.S. cities look down right dangerous. Except, as CNN reminds us there are the occasional incidents
A bomb planted in a minibus killed five people and wounded 10 when it exploded outside a hotel in a commercial area in the heart of central Baghdad.Of course, this is nothing really to worry about. I mean it's not like the Palestine Hotel has come under attack before or anything (really the cement truck bombing in 2005 is just the kind of chaos that happens after an invasion and is the kind of messy thing that happens while democracy takes root).
As is so often the case in Iraq these days (or rather years) the bombing of the Palestine Hotel wasn't the only bombing of the day. The same CNN story notes how,
at least two people were killed and 20 others wounded when a car bomb exploded outside Al-Sabah, Iraq's state-owned daily newspaper.Just so everyone's sure of what happened here, a bomb blows up in front of the Palestine Hotel, which the CNN story fails to mention had been attacked earlier and that the Palestine Hotel was (and perhaps still is) the "home" of many journalists, especially foreign journalists. Next a bomb blows up in front of the state-run newspaer. Hmmm...somehow this strikes me as more than just your run of the mill sectarian violence that CNN claims it to be. This sounds like someone sending a message to someone. It sounds like someone with a plan rather than just random violence. It sounds like the kind of thing that happens in a civil war, where targets are selected for a strategic or tatcial purpose.
CNN ought to be ashamed of themselves for implying that the target of the bomb was a Shiite area and not the Palestine Hotel,
the bus was on Saadoun Street, heading toward a Shiite neighborhood, when it blew up outside the Palestine Hotel.CNN sure is connecting the dots in a very strange manner when it comes to these bombings, doing its very best to put the bombings down as nothing more than two random acts instead of a sign that there maybe a plan behind the violence. Now one may ask why is CNN claiming that the attack on the Palestine Hotel wasn't really an attack on the Palestine Hotel and was really a bomb that missed it real target--a Shiite area? The answer to this query is that random violence isn't a sign of a policy failure. Targeted bombings of journalists, however is a sign that the government in Iraq is powerless, that the Bush policy is a failure (though if someone can acutally point to a "policy" I'd be ever so grateful), and that Iraq is in a state of civil war. Thus, CNN spins the bombing of the Palestine Hotel to make it seem like just another random bombing, and even worse a bombing that missed its real target, in order to obscure the fact that whatever the U.S. and the Iraqi "government" are doing to bring peace and democarcy to Iraq isn't working, hasn't worked for at least two years, and doesn't have much chance of working unless some dramatic policy changes are made.
Friday, August 25, 2006
Nothing but Progress...
Yep, the security situation in Iraq is improving every day and the Iraqi army and police are really standing up so that American and British forces can stand down. CNN.com is reporting that
Big Daddy Cheney, will you tell us the story about the Iraqi roses and kisses again?
Yep, the security situation in Iraq is improving every day and the Iraqi army and police are really standing up so that American and British forces can stand down. CNN.com is reporting that
Hours after British troops handed over a military base to Iraqi forces, hundreds of Iraqis -- some with their faces covered and wielding guns -- looted it.No matter how you spin it, this is not a good sign. With reports like this, it's hard not to think that soon helicopters will be landing on the roof of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad to evacuate the staff while the ground floor is being looted.
Big Daddy Cheney, will you tell us the story about the Iraqi roses and kisses again?
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Nothing to See Here Folks....
Move along...Nothing to see here. Today in Baghdad Reuters.com reports
Move along...Nothing to see here. Today in Baghdad Reuters.com reports
General John Abizaid told reporters: 'I think there has been great progress on the security front in Baghdad recently. We are very optimistic that the situation will stabilize.'Never mind that five bombs went off in Baghdad killing four people and injuring at least another twenty. And it's not only Baghdad that is seeing improvement in the security sitation.
British troops abandoned their base in Maysan province, which had been under almost nightly attack.So sure the security situation is improving. Sure. Different general, same lie.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Hmmm......
Something tells me with Osama bin Laden still running around (not to mention all those corrupt Congressional staffers, lobbyists, and Congresspeople running loose) the FBI has better things to do.
Something tells me with Osama bin Laden still running around (not to mention all those corrupt Congressional staffers, lobbyists, and Congresspeople running loose) the FBI has better things to do.
A coalition of 13 conservative groups -- including the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America -- took out full-page ads in some editions of USA Today earlier this month urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate whether some of the pay-per-view movies widely available in hotels violate federal and state obscenity laws.
Republican Imagination
Gas is above $3.00 a gallon in most places. The Republican Rubber Stamp Congress spent the last half of the summer trying to cut taxes on the wealthy yet again. With the mid-term elections approaching and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress returning from its vacation, I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot about how America needs to open up more areas for oil exploration. Republicans will explain that it's getting too expensive for the average American to get to work or take their kids to school because of high gas prices and thus we should drill for more oil in more places. We won't hear much about fuel efficiency or energy conservation. CNN.com reminds us that
Gas is above $3.00 a gallon in most places. The Republican Rubber Stamp Congress spent the last half of the summer trying to cut taxes on the wealthy yet again. With the mid-term elections approaching and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress returning from its vacation, I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot about how America needs to open up more areas for oil exploration. Republicans will explain that it's getting too expensive for the average American to get to work or take their kids to school because of high gas prices and thus we should drill for more oil in more places. We won't hear much about fuel efficiency or energy conservation. CNN.com reminds us that
federal tax credits for hybrid buyers are being phased out on the most popular models.Now, while the Republican Rubber Stampers in Congress tell us that we need to drill for more oil in order to make life better for the average American, I'm sure they won't be burning the midnight oil figuring out a way to make hybrids more affordable by extending the tax credits (unless there is a way to link tax credits for hybrid cars to repealing the estate tax for the likes of Donald Trump). Of course one way to make hybrids more affordable is for GM, Ford, et al to make more of them, but as we've seen over the year, imagination is just as lacking in the board rooms of Detroit as it is in Washington. I mean who would have thought that gas prices would ever rise?
Under a provision of the tax code, buyers of a Toyota hybrid after Sept. 30 will only qualify for half of the tax credit for which they would have previously qualified.
Tax incentives will also be cut on other hybrids after auto makers sell 60,000 of the vehicles -- a sales threshold Toyota has reached.
The tax credit on Toyota and Lexus hybrids is scheduled to drop to 25 percent in April 2007 and then be eliminated in October 2007.
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Friday, August 18, 2006
Just Roaring Along
The Bush Economic Miracle is continuing to work wonders and improve the live of working Americans. CNN reports
One thing of note is that the plants being mothballed for the rest of the year produce mostly pickups and SUVs. Ford, GM, George Bush, and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress haven't gotten the message that the high price of oil is killing us. One wonders if Ford had really embrace fuel efficient and alternative fuel vehicles if they would be shutting these plants. What if, instead of burying our heads in the sand, Bush, Cheney, and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress had passed a real energy reform bill? One that encourage Ford, GM, etc. to invest in hybrid technologies, one that encouraged consumers to conserve energy of all kinds, one that was more than a give away to the oil companies? If that had happened maybe, just maybe Ford would have a hybrid Ford Focus out there to go head to head with the Honda Civic Hybrid. Maybe if the Republicans were really interested in helping the American economy instead of lining their own pockets, they would have enacted economic policies that bolster American comparative advantages and encourage the adoption of technologies that make us as a country more competitive.
The Bush Economic Miracle is continuing to work wonders and improve the live of working Americans. CNN reports
Ford Motor Co. slashed its production plans and announced that 10 North American plants will be shut for extended periods much of the rest of the year as it tries to trim costs and deal with slumping sales of its light trucks.While the 30,000 or so workers will still get paid, the dip in production will trickle down to suppliers who might not pay their laid off workers. Those laid off workers won't go out and buy things or save money for their retirement or for their kids' college education. We're seeing the Bush Trickle Down Economy at work. Even further down the road, the cut in production means less work at Ford dealerships--fewer oil changes, fewer warranty claims (which on the surface saves money for Ford), fewer tire changes, etc., all of which means Ford dealerships will have to cut back on workers. It won't happen today or tomorrow, but in the years to come all those salespeople, mechanics, administrative people, etc. that work for Ford dealerships will find their jobs a bit more less stable. People who feel their jobs are at risk tend to delay major purchases of the kind that keep factories in the U.S. open. Again the Bush Trickle Down Economy at work.
The automaker said Friday the move will result in a 21 percent drop in production in the fourth quarter compared to a year ago, as it makes 168,000 fewer vehicles.
One thing of note is that the plants being mothballed for the rest of the year produce mostly pickups and SUVs. Ford, GM, George Bush, and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress haven't gotten the message that the high price of oil is killing us. One wonders if Ford had really embrace fuel efficient and alternative fuel vehicles if they would be shutting these plants. What if, instead of burying our heads in the sand, Bush, Cheney, and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress had passed a real energy reform bill? One that encourage Ford, GM, etc. to invest in hybrid technologies, one that encouraged consumers to conserve energy of all kinds, one that was more than a give away to the oil companies? If that had happened maybe, just maybe Ford would have a hybrid Ford Focus out there to go head to head with the Honda Civic Hybrid. Maybe if the Republicans were really interested in helping the American economy instead of lining their own pockets, they would have enacted economic policies that bolster American comparative advantages and encourage the adoption of technologies that make us as a country more competitive.
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Just Asking
Can someone explain to me why I have to take off my shoes if as the AP reports, those X-Ray Machines
Oh, and dumping all those liquids, some of which may be explosives into common trash bins is a smart idea too. There's nothing like a witch's brew of potentially reactive liquids to make a person feel "safe."
Can someone explain to me why I have to take off my shoes if as the AP reports, those X-Ray Machines
are unable to detect explosives, according to a Homeland Security report on aviation screening recently obtained by The Associated Press.And while you're at it, explain to me why the logistics around screening points still suck?--how about some more tables and somc benches or chairs to sit on so I can put my shoes on like a human being? At least I don't have to worry about the person in front of or behind me spilling their cappuccino on me while we're bent over, balancing our laptops and our briefcases, being jostled, and struggling out of or into our shoes? Five years on and no one at the TSA has noticed that people might need a place to put their shoes back on? Amateurs.
Oh, and dumping all those liquids, some of which may be explosives into common trash bins is a smart idea too. There's nothing like a witch's brew of potentially reactive liquids to make a person feel "safe."
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Sunday, August 13, 2006
Meanwhile...
Irqaq continues to burn. The New York Times reports
They've done little of real value to protect us and done little to make al-Qaida's message less appealing to college educated, middle class, family folks across the globe. Al-Qaida's message and earlier iterations of it have been around for several decades, yet it is only now that large numbers of people find it appealing enough to act on and we have yet to even begin to address why. Sending Karen Hughes to the "region" with cue cards isn't an answer. Using the language of the Crusades isn't an answer. Continuing to support repressive and unrepresentative regimes isn't the answer. Using "terror alerts" to win elections isn't the answer. Using Homeland Security funds to win elections isn't the answer. I'm not 100% sure what the answer is, but the above ain't it.
Irqaq continues to burn. The New York Times reports
12 bodies were found in Suwayrah, 25 miles south of Baghdad, at one of a series of metal grates fixed in the river to block debris, Mamoun al-Rubaie of the Kut city morgue said.That anyone listens to anything Bush, Cheney, Rice, and Rumsfeld say about anything is utterly amazing. Look for more "terror" alerts as the November elections approach in order to distract the media and voters from the fact that Bush and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress have botched the "war on terror" to an immense degree.
All were men between 35 and 45 years old and had been bound, blindfolded and shot in the head or chest, al-Rubaie said. They appeared to have been the victims of sectarian death squads that operate in the religiously mixed communities in the Baghdad area.
Police also found 15 other bullet-riddled bodies of men who had been handcuffed and blindfolded in six neighborhoods throughout the Baghdad area, police Lt. Mohammed Khayoun said.
They've done little of real value to protect us and done little to make al-Qaida's message less appealing to college educated, middle class, family folks across the globe. Al-Qaida's message and earlier iterations of it have been around for several decades, yet it is only now that large numbers of people find it appealing enough to act on and we have yet to even begin to address why. Sending Karen Hughes to the "region" with cue cards isn't an answer. Using the language of the Crusades isn't an answer. Continuing to support repressive and unrepresentative regimes isn't the answer. Using "terror alerts" to win elections isn't the answer. Using Homeland Security funds to win elections isn't the answer. I'm not 100% sure what the answer is, but the above ain't it.
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Six Lessons
John Tirman, executive director of the Center for International Studies at MIT, has a piece titled the "Six Lessons from the London Airline Bombing Plot. The first lesson is that it "was law enforcement. Law enforcement. Not a military invasion of Pakistan, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, or Iraq" that led to the plot being uncovered. He's right, bombing other people really doesn't do much to stop terrorism. In fact, bombing other people and occupying their countries may foster terrorism. Tirman's fifth lesson is something everyone should remember while the Bush regime and the Republican Party engages in its latest round of scare politics.
For all the billions we've spent on the "war on terror" we've done precious little to curb the attraction of al Qaeda style terrorism. Why is it that college educated family men in the UK find al Qaeda's message attractive? Five years on and we really don't have a good answer because we haven't really been trying to find one. Until we do, we'll face more plots.
John Tirman, executive director of the Center for International Studies at MIT, has a piece titled the "Six Lessons from the London Airline Bombing Plot. The first lesson is that it "was law enforcement. Law enforcement. Not a military invasion of Pakistan, Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, or Iraq" that led to the plot being uncovered. He's right, bombing other people really doesn't do much to stop terrorism. In fact, bombing other people and occupying their countries may foster terrorism. Tirman's fifth lesson is something everyone should remember while the Bush regime and the Republican Party engages in its latest round of scare politics.
the plot again reveals how ill-equipped the U.S. Government has been in anticipating plausible attack scenarios and taking steps to prevent them. Liquid bombs were so hard to figure out? Al Qaeda already tried it. DHS has almost completely missed the threat, just as they are missing the vulnerability of cargo holds and God knows what else.Spending money protecting pop corn factories in the midwest instead of improving port security, really improving airport screening (as opposed to the dumb show we currently have), and focusing on known threats isn't making America any safer.
For all the billions we've spent on the "war on terror" we've done precious little to curb the attraction of al Qaeda style terrorism. Why is it that college educated family men in the UK find al Qaeda's message attractive? Five years on and we really don't have a good answer because we haven't really been trying to find one. Until we do, we'll face more plots.
Friday, August 11, 2006
33%
33%. That's Georgie's new approval rating. That and the fact that Osama bin Laden is still at large explains the shrill propaganda issuing from the White House, the RNC, and Fox News. When a party and a President spends more time attacking the opposition than in coming up with ideas and putting them into action you know they're in trouble.
33%. That's Georgie's new approval rating. That and the fact that Osama bin Laden is still at large explains the shrill propaganda issuing from the White House, the RNC, and Fox News. When a party and a President spends more time attacking the opposition than in coming up with ideas and putting them into action you know they're in trouble.
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Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Get Yer Red Hot Economy Here!
The Dow Jones Industrial Average falls over a hundred points to close at 11,069.14. Back when Georgie took the oath of office in January, 2001 the Dow closed at 10678.28. Five plus years of Bush and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress cutting taxes, gutting regulations, and otherwise giving handouts to the wealthy and corporate America and the Dow can only manage a 400 point rise? To add to the "good" news, the dollar lost ground to the euro, which will make imports more expensive. Oil rose to $76.35/barrel to round out another day of the Bush Red Hot Economy.
Like in Iraq, Bush and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress have no vision when it comes to the economy. Tax cuts and more tax cuts (roughly $860 billion in cuts) haven't done a whole lot for the stock market or wages. People who work for a living and small businesses aren't reaping the benefits of the Republican give aways. According to the Dept. of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis in the second quarter of 2006,
The Dow Jones Industrial Average falls over a hundred points to close at 11,069.14. Back when Georgie took the oath of office in January, 2001 the Dow closed at 10678.28. Five plus years of Bush and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress cutting taxes, gutting regulations, and otherwise giving handouts to the wealthy and corporate America and the Dow can only manage a 400 point rise? To add to the "good" news, the dollar lost ground to the euro, which will make imports more expensive. Oil rose to $76.35/barrel to round out another day of the Bush Red Hot Economy.
Like in Iraq, Bush and the Republican Rubber Stamp Congress have no vision when it comes to the economy. Tax cuts and more tax cuts (roughly $860 billion in cuts) haven't done a whole lot for the stock market or wages. People who work for a living and small businesses aren't reaping the benefits of the Republican give aways. According to the Dept. of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis in the second quarter of 2006,
Business investment in equipment and software turned down [. . .] Exports decelerated [. . .] Inflation [. . .] increased 4.0 percent in the second quarter.Not exactly great news and helps explain why the stock markets are tumbling. That 4.0% rise in the inflation rate means that fact that
Real disposable personal income, the amount of personal income available for spending or saving, increased 0.4 percent in June [2006]is relatively meaningless. So get yer red hot Bush economy right here!
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