Thursday, November 30, 2006
Bush in Translation
Translating the Bush/Maliki Press Conference from Amman, Jordan.
Bush: We talked today about accelerating authority to the Prime Minister so he can do what the Iraqi people expect him to do, and that is bring security to parts of his country that require firm action.
Translation: We’re working on ways of making Maliki a dictator. Dick Cheney, John Yoo, and Newt Gingrich among others will be consulting.
Maliki: And one -- another time [thing?] I would like to say that Iraq and all the Iraqis in the political process; nobody has the right, outside of Iraq, to interfere in the political or the security situation inside of Iraq.
Translation: American troops should leave Iraq?
Maliki: The national unity government is a government formed of all the entities that participated in it. [. . .] As to the issues that would pertain to violating the law or breaking the law, we would deal with them the same way, because the most important principle is the sovereignty and the power and the establishment of the state that must be borne by the state, but only our partners should participate in that.
Translation: The government is made of those holding legislative or administrative positions within it. If you’re not part of the government, shut the fuck up.
Alternate Translation: Winner takes all.
Bush: Part of the Prime Minister's frustration is, is that he doesn't have the tools necessary to take care of those who break the law.
Translation: I was lying my ass off back in 2004 when I claimed we had trained all those thousands upon thousands of Iraqi army and police. Karl told me to do it.
Bush: The Prime Minister and I agree that the outcome in Iraq will affect the entire region. To stop the extremists from dominating the Middle East, we must stop the extremists from achieving their goal of dominating Iraq. If the extremists succeed in Iraq, they will be emboldened in their efforts to undermine other young democracies in the region, or to overthrow moderate governments, establish new safe havens, and impose their hateful ideology on millions. If the Iraqis succeed in establishing a free nation in the heart of the Middle East, the forces of freedom and moderation across the region will be emboldened, and the cause of peace will have new energy and new allies.
Translation: “forces of freedom and moderation” means those states "supporting" the U.S. and which are willing to invest in the U.S. stock market, continue to purchase U.S. government securities, and buy U.S. dollars. As long as OPEC continues to price oil in U.S. Dollars and not Euros, we’ll be willing to call Saudi Arabia a force of freedom and moderation.
Commentary: Don’t look now George, but the extremists already dominate the Middle East—Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the Palestinian Authority. Sure, Saudi Arabia could become more extreme, but as it stands it’s pretty extreme right now, I mean women can’t even drive a car there. I mean, they’ve got full scale and pervasive censorship there. I mean Wahhabism/Salafism is a pretty extreme form of Islam. Maybe you should have borrowed Karen Hughes’s “Middle East” cue cards.
Bush: The unity government of Iraq.
Translation: It’s still a unity government even though a thirty seat block of the Parliament is boycotting the government and a large percentage of the Sunni population didn’t participate in the national elections. See, it’s a unity government because its located in Baghdad.
Translating the Bush/Maliki Press Conference from Amman, Jordan.
Bush: We talked today about accelerating authority to the Prime Minister so he can do what the Iraqi people expect him to do, and that is bring security to parts of his country that require firm action.
Translation: We’re working on ways of making Maliki a dictator. Dick Cheney, John Yoo, and Newt Gingrich among others will be consulting.
Maliki: And one -- another time [thing?] I would like to say that Iraq and all the Iraqis in the political process; nobody has the right, outside of Iraq, to interfere in the political or the security situation inside of Iraq.
Translation: American troops should leave Iraq?
Maliki: The national unity government is a government formed of all the entities that participated in it. [. . .] As to the issues that would pertain to violating the law or breaking the law, we would deal with them the same way, because the most important principle is the sovereignty and the power and the establishment of the state that must be borne by the state, but only our partners should participate in that.
Translation: The government is made of those holding legislative or administrative positions within it. If you’re not part of the government, shut the fuck up.
Alternate Translation: Winner takes all.
Bush: Part of the Prime Minister's frustration is, is that he doesn't have the tools necessary to take care of those who break the law.
Translation: I was lying my ass off back in 2004 when I claimed we had trained all those thousands upon thousands of Iraqi army and police. Karl told me to do it.
Bush: The Prime Minister and I agree that the outcome in Iraq will affect the entire region. To stop the extremists from dominating the Middle East, we must stop the extremists from achieving their goal of dominating Iraq. If the extremists succeed in Iraq, they will be emboldened in their efforts to undermine other young democracies in the region, or to overthrow moderate governments, establish new safe havens, and impose their hateful ideology on millions. If the Iraqis succeed in establishing a free nation in the heart of the Middle East, the forces of freedom and moderation across the region will be emboldened, and the cause of peace will have new energy and new allies.
Translation: “forces of freedom and moderation” means those states "supporting" the U.S. and which are willing to invest in the U.S. stock market, continue to purchase U.S. government securities, and buy U.S. dollars. As long as OPEC continues to price oil in U.S. Dollars and not Euros, we’ll be willing to call Saudi Arabia a force of freedom and moderation.
Commentary: Don’t look now George, but the extremists already dominate the Middle East—Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the Palestinian Authority. Sure, Saudi Arabia could become more extreme, but as it stands it’s pretty extreme right now, I mean women can’t even drive a car there. I mean, they’ve got full scale and pervasive censorship there. I mean Wahhabism/Salafism is a pretty extreme form of Islam. Maybe you should have borrowed Karen Hughes’s “Middle East” cue cards.
Bush: The unity government of Iraq.
Translation: It’s still a unity government even though a thirty seat block of the Parliament is boycotting the government and a large percentage of the Sunni population didn’t participate in the national elections. See, it’s a unity government because its located in Baghdad.
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
The Bush Disconnect
So we've heard how George Bush breezed through Vietnam and barely even looked outside the bubble. I mean you can really get a "a real sense of the warmth of the Vietnamese people" from behind the bullet proof glass of a speeding limo? Why it's almost as good as getting a sense of the enormity of a natural disaster from the window of Air Force One while wearing your nifty little "Presidential" jacket.
Now, as if one really needs it, come further proof of the Bush disconnect. The BBC reports, that while in Buenos Aires one of the Bush daughters, Barbara, had her purse stolen. But that's not the really revealing part of the story,
Now ask yourself, when was the last time the average working American took three weeks of vacation at one time? Let alone in Buenos Aires? Didn't the Bush twins graduate from college a few years back? Shouldn't they have jobs? Unlike most recent college graduates, the Bush twins aren't working to pay off their student loans, which for most of their peers average $19,000. Nor are they struggling to pay for health insurance. Nor are they wondering how they're going to start saving for their retirement or or whether they can take care of their elderly parents. Nor are they in graduate or professional school. Nor are they busy building careers. Nor are they on some sort of public relations tour. Nor are they doing any sort of charity or humanitarian work. Nope, they're on an extended holiday in Buenos Aires. Just another reminder of how far removed George Bush and his family are from the issues facing most Americans.
So we've heard how George Bush breezed through Vietnam and barely even looked outside the bubble. I mean you can really get a "a real sense of the warmth of the Vietnamese people" from behind the bullet proof glass of a speeding limo? Why it's almost as good as getting a sense of the enormity of a natural disaster from the window of Air Force One while wearing your nifty little "Presidential" jacket.
Now, as if one really needs it, come further proof of the Bush disconnect. The BBC reports, that while in Buenos Aires one of the Bush daughters, Barbara, had her purse stolen. But that's not the really revealing part of the story,
The Bush daughters have been on holiday in the city for the past three weeks.Yep, the Bush twins are on a three week holiday in Buenos Aires. Heck, it could be an even longer holiday for all we know; it could be that they're on permanent holiday and only have been in Buenos Aires for three weeks.
Now ask yourself, when was the last time the average working American took three weeks of vacation at one time? Let alone in Buenos Aires? Didn't the Bush twins graduate from college a few years back? Shouldn't they have jobs? Unlike most recent college graduates, the Bush twins aren't working to pay off their student loans, which for most of their peers average $19,000. Nor are they struggling to pay for health insurance. Nor are they wondering how they're going to start saving for their retirement or or whether they can take care of their elderly parents. Nor are they in graduate or professional school. Nor are they busy building careers. Nor are they on some sort of public relations tour. Nor are they doing any sort of charity or humanitarian work. Nope, they're on an extended holiday in Buenos Aires. Just another reminder of how far removed George Bush and his family are from the issues facing most Americans.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
"May I See Your Papers..."
Today the Bush Regime announced that all immigrants, I assume this order also includes foreign tourists, are now non-persons,
*Corporate Fat Cats, Conservative Radio and TV hosts, Republican elected officials, Conservative "Intellectuals," and generous contributors to the Republican Party exempted, though Big Brother Cheney may change his mind about you at any time.
Today the Bush Regime announced that all immigrants, I assume this order also includes foreign tourists, are now non-persons,
Immigrants arrested in the United States may be held indefinitely on suspicion of terrorism and may not challenge their imprisonment in civilian courts.Now, how far can we be from a requirement that all citizens carry papers? Oh, wait, why don't we require all immigrants and tourists to wear some kind of arm band...we could even color code the arm bands based on the threat level each group or individual poses! Better yet, let's set up detention centers at all airports, ports, border crossings, etc. and require that all immigrants and tourists prove they aren't terrorists before we issue the arm bands! Maybe the RIAA will want to get in on this and require a search of all iPods, MP3 players, laptops, and other media devices to verify that no immigrant or tourist has any unauthorized music, video, or other media content stored on any device. We could even ask them to recite from memory any copyrighted text and then sue them for infringement. Why the number of crimes any individual is guilty of under the Bush Regime is endless.*
*Corporate Fat Cats, Conservative Radio and TV hosts, Republican elected officials, Conservative "Intellectuals," and generous contributors to the Republican Party exempted, though Big Brother Cheney may change his mind about you at any time.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Pryce Hides from CNN & Record on Iraq
On Tuesday, Deborah Pryce (R-OH-15) tried to distance herself from her support of President Bush's failed foreign policy. When CNN asked her about her leadership role in the House, something she holds up as a reason to re-elect her unrepresentative self, and the Republican policy on Iraq she said
You claim to be a leader, but at every turn you deny that the actions of the Republican Congress were under your control. Mark Foley, not your problem. The Iraq debacle, not your problem. The decision by someone in Rep. Hunter's office to pull the plug on the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. You know that nifty little office that exposed over billing and shoddy work by companies like Halliburton (funny how it's our money when you're looking to cut taxes, but you refuse to lift a finger to make sure our money is spent correctly). That nifty little office that uncovered the inconvenient little fact that the U.S. military failed to keep track of hundreds of thousands of weapons being handed out in Iraq. Your idea of leadership is a bit funny; you like calling yourself a leader but find it exhausting and frustrating when called upon to take responsibility for the actions you've taken as a leader. I see why you like George Bush so much.
Oh, and for good measure, you might want to take a look at the U.S. Constitution because it does indeed give the 435 members of the House of Representatives and the 100 members of the Senate a role in setting military policy. It's right there in Article One, Section Eight
On Tuesday, Deborah Pryce (R-OH-15) tried to distance herself from her support of President Bush's failed foreign policy. When CNN asked her about her leadership role in the House, something she holds up as a reason to re-elect her unrepresentative self, and the Republican policy on Iraq she said
"What's happening in Iraq is not a direct reflection on me."Sorry Deb, but as a member of the Republican leadership you are responsible for what's happening in Iraq. Why back in September you said Iraq wasn't "broken" and that Iraq's future was bright, but now you're trying to pretend your support for President Bush and his failed policies are some sort of fiction? I mean here are your very words from the September issue of Columbus Monthly,
“I don’t think that Iraq is broken,” Pryce said. “I think that Iraq was broken. I think Iraq is well on its way to healing. We certainly would have liked to see that happen faster, but they are running their own lives now. They have a democracy in place, a constitution, a government, and I think it certainly is much less broken than it was.”And then just to prove how much you don't really care and how dismissive you are of the people you represent you ran away from questions about your record,
"Thanks, I'm done," Pryce said. She expressed frustration and walked away saying, "Maybe we'll call you later when I'm feeling better."You know Deb, if you're not willing to answer questions about your record without going back to the office and calling Uncle Rove or whatever Republican PR flack you called before issuing your statement about not being "always happy with what I see" happening in Iraq, then maybe, just maybe you don't deserve to be in Congress? I got some bad news for you sunshine, but you're going to be feeling a lot more frustrated when you wake up on Nov. 8 and find the voters of OH-15 have thrown your sorry ass to the curb.
You claim to be a leader, but at every turn you deny that the actions of the Republican Congress were under your control. Mark Foley, not your problem. The Iraq debacle, not your problem. The decision by someone in Rep. Hunter's office to pull the plug on the Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction. You know that nifty little office that exposed over billing and shoddy work by companies like Halliburton (funny how it's our money when you're looking to cut taxes, but you refuse to lift a finger to make sure our money is spent correctly). That nifty little office that uncovered the inconvenient little fact that the U.S. military failed to keep track of hundreds of thousands of weapons being handed out in Iraq. Your idea of leadership is a bit funny; you like calling yourself a leader but find it exhausting and frustrating when called upon to take responsibility for the actions you've taken as a leader. I see why you like George Bush so much.
Oh, and for good measure, you might want to take a look at the U.S. Constitution because it does indeed give the 435 members of the House of Representatives and the 100 members of the Senate a role in setting military policy. It's right there in Article One, Section Eight
To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water;And again
To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;And just to make sure it's clear, it's also right there again a few paragraphs later
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;So, show some leadership in the next few days, because that's all you've got as an elected official, and own up to the things you've done. Flip Flop. Flip. Flip Flop.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Abandoning An American Soldier?
Andrew Sullivan thinks we're seeing the end of the Republican Daddy Party because George Bush ordered the U.S. Military to effectively give up its search for a missing U.S. solider. He could be right. How are Republicans going to say they're strong on defense and that they and only they can do the right things by the military when Bush is willing to abandon a U.S. solider? Sure the situation is a bit more complex than that, but in George Bush's "either you're with us or against us" world, maybe not?
Andrew doesn't pull any punches in his criticism of Bush and the Republican sock puppets
Andrew Sullivan thinks we're seeing the end of the Republican Daddy Party because George Bush ordered the U.S. Military to effectively give up its search for a missing U.S. solider. He could be right. How are Republicans going to say they're strong on defense and that they and only they can do the right things by the military when Bush is willing to abandon a U.S. solider? Sure the situation is a bit more complex than that, but in George Bush's "either you're with us or against us" world, maybe not?
Andrew doesn't pull any punches in his criticism of Bush and the Republican sock puppets
The U.S. military does not have a tradition of abandoning its own soldiers to foreign militias, or of taking orders from foreign governments. No commander-in-chief who actually walks the walk, rather than swaggering the swagger, would acquiesce to such a thing. [. . .] authorized abandoning him to the enemy? Who is really giving the orders to the U.S. military in Iraq? These are real questions about honor and sacrifice and a war that is now careening out of any control. They are not phony questions drummed up by a partisan media machine to appeal to emotions to maintain power.As for the tears Andrew is shedding for McCain, I'm not all that impressed. McCain was and is nothing more than a Republican sock puppet.
And where, by the way, is McCain on this? Silent on Cheney's "no-brainer" on waterboarding. Silent recently on Iraq. But vocal - oh, how vocal - on Kerry. It tells you something about what has happened to him. And to America.
TSA Idiocy or Sound and Fury, Signifying Nothing
How safe do you feel?
But hey, at least we're fighting the terrorists over "there" so we don't have to fight them over "here." Well, maybe it's not quite so clear exactly what we're doing over "there."
How safe do you feel?
Screeners at Newark Liberty International Airport failed 20 of 22 security tests conducted by undercover U.S. agents last week, missing an array of concealed bombs and guns at checkpoints throughout the hub's three terminals, federal security officials familiar with the results said.It gets worse
screeners at Newark missed fake explosive devices that were hidden under bottles of water in carry-on luggage, taped beneath an agent's clothing and concealed under a leg bandage another tester wore.So all that taking off of shoes, waiting in endless lines, throwing away of water and other liquids, not being able to bring toothpaste along, and watch lists are just a dumb show or to remind us peons that Big Brother is in charge and ready to keep us in our places. Somehow I think if high ranking government officials, shit any kind of government official or even the occasional member of Congress flew commercial that these sorts of "we just totally missed everything" incidents wouldn't happen.
Additionally, the official said screeners failed to use hand-held metal detector wands when required, missed an explosive device during a pat-down and failed to properly hand-check suspicious carry-on bags. Supervisors also were cited for failing to properly monitor checkpoint screeners, the official said.
"We just totally missed everything," the official said.
But hey, at least we're fighting the terrorists over "there" so we don't have to fight them over "here." Well, maybe it's not quite so clear exactly what we're doing over "there."
Sen. Allen's Thugs
AlterNet has a copy of a CNN video of Sen. George Allen's thugs in action. My favorite line? "Now you're getting personal." Sorry thugs, but politics is personal, just ask Uncle Rove.
Oh, and thugs, remember the first words of the U.S. Constitution are "WE the people. . ." so next time a voter wants to approach a Senator and ask a question you might want to let him or her do so.
AlterNet has a copy of a CNN video of Sen. George Allen's thugs in action. My favorite line? "Now you're getting personal." Sorry thugs, but politics is personal, just ask Uncle Rove.
Oh, and thugs, remember the first words of the U.S. Constitution are "WE the people. . ." so next time a voter wants to approach a Senator and ask a question you might want to let him or her do so.