Category: Politics

Behold the Power of Cheese

You must remember, you can’t support George W. Bush unless you are so terrified that you are at risk of wetting yourself.

Thus we have Airport security officers alerted to possibility of terrorists conducting dry runs for attacks.

The seizures at airports in San Diego, Milwaukee, Houston and Baltimore included ‘wires, switches, pipes or tubes, cell phone components and dense clay-like substances,’ including block cheese, the bulletin said. ‘The unusual nature and increase in number of these improvised items raise concern.'”

Another attempt to keep us all in a state of fear so that we will accept whatever Bush does.

Pathetic.

Pathetic Republican Wife Beater

Well, former US Representative John “Drunken Wife Beater” Sweeney is in the news again.

Sweeney says he lied about domestic spat
Ex-congressman claims he wanted to shield wife from blame

By KATE GURNETT, Staff writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Tuesday, July 24, 2007

JOHNSTOWN — Former U.S. Rep. John Sweeney admitted to a gaggle of TV cameras Monday that he lied last year in a news conference when he said “there was no domestic violence” at his home.

He’s claiming that she hit him.

Yeah….sure.

….

On Monday, Sweeney turned to a former wife to defend him publicly. Betty Sweeney went on camera to admonish Gayle Sweeney for allegedly assaulting her ex-husband, saying “I am appalled.”

Hiding behind a former ex-wife? Classy dude, huh?

Last November, with her husband’s congressional seat on the line, Gayle Sweeney, 36, made an 11th-hour campaign commercial accusing Gillibrand of leaking the report in a bid to win office. Mrs. Sweeney told the Times Union last week she was “coerced” by her husband’s political advisers into making certain statements defending him on the eve of the election.

Once again proving that the only thing lower than a Republican politician is a Republican political consultant.

The US Government Wants to Record Religion, Sex Habits, and Politics

The Grauniad has a the scoop on what the US Government wants for Britons coming to the US.

Highly sensitive information about the religious beliefs, political opinions and even the sex life of Europeans traveling to the United States is to be made available to US authorities when the European Commission agrees to a new system of checking passengers.

It appears that the EU is upset about this agreement. So am I.

Eventually, Karl Rove is going to want to get his hands on this sort of information for political micro targeting, and considering that we know that DHS has been compromised politically, he will get this information too.

Why Did We Think She Was Competent?

Here is an interesting article on Condoleeza Rice. It appears that a view months ago, she wrote an article about Lebanon and how public/private partnerships might help in rebuilding the country.

Problem was, no on was willing to publish it. It came back from the “Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and perhaps other papers before the department finally tried a foreign publication, the Financial Times of London, which also turned it down.”

Think about that. A sitting Secretary of State could not get a paper to publish her OP/ED because it was so hactacular.

As a last-ditch strategy, the State Department briefly considered translating the article into Arabic and trying a Lebanese paper. But finally they just gave up. “I kept hearing the same thing: ‘There’s no news in this.’ ” Floyd said. The piece, he said, was littered with glowing references to President Bush’s wise leadership. “It read like a campaign document.”

The author goes on tho show how Bush politicized the State Department, as his administration has every other bureaucracy that they could get their hands on.

This misses the real point. The real point is that Condoleeza Rice is a complete incompetent who, much like Dick Cheney and Don Rumsfeld, has an unbroken record of failure.

This failure exceeds my wildest imagination. The fact that an academic, who was secretary of state was unable to write an article of sufficient quality for publication is a truly pathetic statement. In the publish or perish world of academe, this is inconceivable.

  • In the 1980s, she was lecturing troops in then West Berlin, and when someone wanted details, she did no know what a unit honorific in the Soviet army was.
  • In 1991, she was adamant that Boris Yeltzin not be given head of state protocol, because the USSR was going to reconstitute itself.
  • Throughout her career, she has been the only Sovietologist who did not recognize the sickness of their economy and society.
  • In 2001, she told Clinton’s natinal security team that she wasn’t worrying about al Queida, that the real threat was a resurgent Russia.

She is a fraud, elevated through right wing affirmative action, because it was convenient to have someone with a PhD in Sovietology to parrot right wing talking points.

No doubt her position as a double minority, black and a woman, has also served to elevate her stature in the party and with the pundits too.

Republicans believe that government is stupid, so they leave the stupid to govern.

More JASSM Shenanigans

Aviation week has an article, USAF Needs A Year to Assess Jassm’s Progress(subscription Required), in which the USAF says that the JASSM needs more time.

….

The Pentagaon will wait until at least spring 2008—a rare yearlong pause—to certify that its newest cruise missile is ready to move forward following myriad technical problems and a 42% failure rate this year.

The Lockheed Martin Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff (Jassm) missile fell under scrutiny again this year after the Air Force informed Congress it had breached cost expectations by more than 25%. USAF and company officials are still trying to assess how high the amount will soar above the current $5.8-billion mark. The program’s goal in the mid-1990s included a $400,000-per-unit charge.

Senior Pentagon officials had been considering terminating Jassm because of the escalating price. The technical problems, including a GPS dropout issue brought on by an interface with the Selective Availability Anti-Spoofing Module (Saasm) in the missile, have only increased the level of scrutiny facing the effort. In recent tests, the GPS problem contributed to three missiles missing targets by nearly 200 ft.

Because of the 25% cost increase, the Nunn-McCurdy law dictates that the Defense Dept. must certify to Congress the program is sound on several points before proceeding. These include: the program is deemed critical for national security; no alternatives providing equal or greater capability exist for equal or lesser cost; new program estimates are reasonable, and management for the program is adequate to control cost.

…..

Meanwhile, Taurus Systems GmbH. is working with its new U.S. partner, Textron, on how to market its KEPD-350 missile to the Pentagon. So far, Germany, Spain, Sweden and South Korea are either purchasing the missile or in discussions. The Taurus pitch for a niche in the U.S. market—offering the German/Swedish KEPD-350 for the hard and deeply buried target set—is already underway. Taurus can penetrate through concrete more than twice as far as Jassm. Some officials in the combatant commands have begun to show an interest in Taurus as a Jassm alternative, according to industry sources.

…..

This is not about making the missile work. This is about Air Force Generals who want to work at Lockheed after they retire.

The system does not work. It’s over budget. There is an alternative. This is throwing a defense contractor a lifeline so that the defense contractor can throw some lucrative consulting or executive gigs to the people supervising the program.

Republicans Hate Brown People More than They Value Their Word

Republicans protest pensions for Filipinos
By Rick Maze – Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Jul 24, 2007 15:46:17 EDT

Republicans on the House Veterans Affairs Committee are trying to scuttle a committee-passed plan to provide pensions for World War II-era Filipino Scouts by getting a major veterans’ service organization to question whether this is the highest priority for improved benefits.

In a letter, the 13 Republicans on the committee complain about being blocked on July 17 from offering amendments that would have redirected the $875 million being spent on disability pay and pensions for Filipino veterans, including those who are not American citizens and who don’t even live in the U.S.

…….

Filner said during the July 17 session in which the bill was passed that he was trying to fulfill a promise made at the end of World War II to provide benefits to people who fought on behalf of U.S. interests but were not part of the U.S. military.

….

It should also be noted that they were citizens of the US when the fought. The Philippines were a US colony at the time.

This is all about another phony way to cast Democrats as N***** lovers.

This is How Much George W. Bush is Hated

If only the degenerate sots who spend their evening at Sally Quinn’s parties got it.

Harold Lischner, and anti-war protestor is suing for false arrest. The defense team for the Upper Darby Township asked the judge to prohibit any mention of George W. Bush, whom Mr. Lischner was protesting, because they fear that he is so unpopular that his name will prejudice the jury.

The judge turned it down. In fact, he turned it down more quickly than I would, because I’d be giggling hysterically for an hour or so.

Back to the Good Old Days of the Cold War

Yet another benefit of the Bush admin’s boneheaded missile defense plan for Europe is that Russia has resumed bomber flights to gage the response of the air defense systems of NATO countries:

Fighter planes from Britain and Norway scrambled on Friday to keep watch on Russian bombers that were approaching the countries’ air space, officials said.

The incidents occurred amid high tensions between Britain and Russia, as each country ordered the expulsion of four diplomats from the other side. There was no indication the fighter plans were connected to the row.

A spokesman for Britain’s defense ministry said two Russian Tu-95 bombers briefly entered British air space in the first incident about 2 a.m. (0100 GMT), but turned back after British F-3s intercepted them. He did not specify where the interception took place.

This is making us so much safer.

Bush to Congress: Drop Dead

The Bush admin has denied a congressman whose responsibility is to oversee homeland security access to the White House’s emergency plans.

Congressman Denied Access To Post-Attack Continuity Plans
By JEFF KOSSEFF
Image
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. (Photo by Faith Cathcart)
c.2007 Newhouse News Service

WASHINGTON — Constituents called Rep. Peter DeFazio’s office, worried there was a conspiracy buried in the classified portion of a White House plan for operating the government after a terrorist attack.

As a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, DeFazio, D-Ore., is permitted to enter a secure “bubbleroom” in the Capitol and examine classified material. So he asked the White House to see the secret documents.

On Wednesday, DeFazio got his answer: DENIED.

“I just can’t believe they’re going to deny a member of Congress the right of reviewing how they plan to conduct the government of the United States after a significant terrorist attack,” DeFazio said.

….

This is how Bush and his Evil Minions operate. Even if congress has a constitutional right to review such things as a part of the budget process, give no information.

It’s a fundamentally unproductive policy, as this secrecy reinforces the idea that the Bush administration has plans for implementing martial law.

Spanish Satire Mag Closed for Speaking Truth

The Regester reports that the Spanish satirical humor magazine El Jueves was been shut down because of a cartoon about the Spanish prince.

All existing copies were collected and destroyed, and the judge ordered the “printing plates” destroyed (not up on modern printing tech, I guess)

The Spanish government has decided to pay €2,500 (about $3500 US) for each child that Crown Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia have.

Well, El Jueves published a cartoon (No, you’ll have to find it on Google) with the Crown Prince and Princess in bed, with the caption, “Do you realise that if you get pregnant . . . It will be the closest thing to work I’ve done in my life?“.

Funny, and made even funnier by the banning.

BTW, there are copies of the magazine on Ebay when I last checked

Bush Admin Rules: The Poor Deserve Formaldehyde

Lovely. This is certainly bringing back honor and dignity to the government.

FEMA knew of formaldehyde in trailers:
July 20, 2007

By David Goldstein McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — Federal officials knew that hurricane evacuees housed in temporary trailers were worried about dangerous levels of formaldehyde but took little action, government documents show.

Their primary concern was the legal fallout if the temporary housing presented a health hazard, according to records obtained by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

“Do not initiate any testing until we give the OK,” a lawyer for the Federal Emergency Management Agency wrote. “Once you get the results … the clock is running on our duty to respond to them.”

….

When Christian Dominionists Get Jiggy

He’s president of the Christian Action League of North Carolina, and he’s 74,so hew rented himself a prostitute.

At 74…I’m impressed…That being said, I’m not impressed that he paid the woman with a check.


The 74-year-old Cabarrus County commissioner was arrested at his home in Kannapolis early Thursday. He appeared before a Rowan County magistrate on six misdemeanor charges and was released on a promise to appear in court Aug. 22. He did not return e-mails or calls to his cell and home phones, and no one answered the door at his Kannapolis home.

Privette, a prominent Republican with a 30-year career, is one of the state’s most vocal opponents against alcohol sales and legal gambling. He also serves on the State Baptist Convention of North Carolina and as president of the Christian Action League of North Carolina.
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Let There Be No Kings

During the constitutional convention, there was much debate over the impeachment clauses.

It was finally settled when Ben Franklin said that these provisions were not there, the only way to remove a President who was attempting to install himself as king would be assassination.

Bush is now claiming that if the president wants it, it’s not contempt.

So he is claiming, as Nixon did to David Frost, and as Stalin and Mussolini did, that if he orders it, it is legal.

Impeach Dick Cheney today. Impeach George W. Bush tomorrow.

And the Winner in the Whiskey Tango Foxtrot Category………

This is just whack. These guys are impersonating an officer because it’s convenient.

Your Republican morality at a glance: Laws for the but nor for me.

Romney aide’s bogus badges: Sources detail ‘illegal’ security tactic
By Casey Ross/ Exclusive
Boston Herald Reporter
Friday, July 20, 2007 – Updated: 12:21 PM EST

In an apparent violation of the law, a controversial aide to ex-Gov. Mitt Romney created phony law enforcement badges that he and other staffers used on the campaign trail to strong-arm reporters, avoid paying tolls and trick security guards into giving them immediate access to campaign venues, sources told the Herald.
The bogus badges were part of the bizarre security tactics allegedly employed by Jay Garrity, the director of operations for Romney who is under investigation for impersonating a law enforcement officer in two states. Garrity is on a leave of absence from the campaign while the probe is ongoing.

A campaign source said Garrity directed underlings on Romney’s presidential staff to use the badges at events nationwide to create an image of security and to ensure that the governor’s events went smoothly.

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Blowback from the Blackberry Case Continues

Significant patent reform is heading down the pike, and the Supreme Court has already made changes with its Teleflex ruling, and now Congress is weighing in.

Patent Fight Pending
Brian Wingfield, 07.20.07, 6:00 AM ET

Remember the patent dispute surrounding the BlackBerry wireless device? Last year a communications catastrophe was avoided when BlackBerry maker Research in Motion agreed to settle with NTP over a patent infringement lawsuit.

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This glosses over what happened. NTP was shaking down Blackberry using an injunction as a threat. When they got an injunction against all non-government service, Blackberry responded that they could not separate the business, and that they would comply by shutting everything down in the US.

Blackberries are used by 90% of congressional aids, most of the White House Staff, and most of the Supreme Court clerks, and a lot of congressmen and perhaps a few of the Justices too, so when this happened, they all freaked, and started talking to each other about a fix.

NTP blinked, not Blackberry, and so they settled for far less than they were originally demanding, but the damage had been done. The political establishment is now aware that IP has run amuck, and this bill is an attempt to fix this.

I do not believe that it goes far enough. I believe that the special patent court, which views everything as a nail since all it has is a hammer, should be abolished, and I believe that the bar for injunctive relief should be set much higher, but the fact politicians are finally seeing this as a problem is a very hopeful development.