Oh what a tangled web we weave.....I found this on The Smoking gun. I came across it while following some leads on the US govements Rendition policy and claims of torture. A former Uzbekistan Ambassador of the British Government named Craig Murry claims proof of torture under American direction and for American profit. Amassador Murry was releived of his post and threatened with concocted accusations if he did not cease and desist his whistle blowing. You see, it really IS about oil. From the oil deal in Uzbekistan to the pipelines in Afghanistan, and the oil fields in Iraq. You see, China is starting to beat us. The only thing that holds them back is energy. They are in the 20th year of a 50 year plan to be the super power in the world. We can't even plan past watching the next episode of Survivor. Given China's recent deals with Canada, and Venezualia, the pressure to secure more oil for the US grows stronger every day. It aint about freedom and democracy folks.
Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Left Of Center Left Of Center

I recently read a slightly dated piece written by Matt Taibbi from Dec, 15, 2005. Mr. Taibbi covers the President and Whitehouse for RollingStone. The interesting thing about what he has to say isn't about the actual events, or press conferences he's attended, but the manner and mood. To me, he speaks of these orchestrated Whitehouse events as if one was watching a bad liar telling a whopper over and over. Here are a few excerpts and a link.

" In the Obey Your Thirst/Image Is Everything era of American politics, Bush's National Victory campaign is a creepy innovation. It features the president thumping a document -- the "National Strategy for Victory in Iraq" -- that was largely written not by diplomats or generals but by a pair of academics from Duke University named Peter Feaver and Christopher Gelpi. Essentially a PR document, the paper is basically a living political experiment, designed to prove that Americans will more readily accept military casualties if the word "victory" is repeated a great many times in public."

"In other words, this was really a National Strategy for Victory at Home. It was classic Bush-think: Instead of bombing the insurgency off the map, he bombs the map -- in lieu of actually fighting the war, a bold strategy, to be sure. But would it work?"

"The point is obvious; Bush's audience was like a guest list for a Monster's Ball of the military-industrial establishment. And even in this crowd full of corporate lawyers, investment bankers, weapons makers, ex-spooks and, for Christ's sake, lobbyists, the president of the United States couldn't cook up more than two tepid applause lines for his Iraq policy -- and one of those was because he was finishing up and, one guesses, freeing the audience to go call their brokers."

"....If the reception at the Omni was stale, that was nothing compared to how it was going over in the White House briefing room. On the day before the Omni speech, I actually worried that gopher-faced administration spokescreature Scott McClellan might be physically attacked by reporters, who appeared ready to give official notice of having had Enough of This Bullshit."

" When a contingent of audibly groaning reporters pressed, McClellan shrugged and tried a new tack: "I'm not going to talk further about intelligence matters of this nature," he said.

A reporter next to me threw his head back in disgust. "Oh, fuckin' A . . ." he whispered. The room broke out into hoots and howls; even the usually dignified Bill Plante of CBS started openly calling McClellan out. "The question you're currently evading is not about an intelligence matter," he hissed."

" On this particular day in the briefing room, it's just more of the same disease. McClellan, a cringing yes-man type who tries to soften the effect of his non- answers by projecting an air of being just as out of the loop as you are, starts pimping lies and crap the moment he enters the room. He's the cheapest kind of political hack, a greedy little bum making a living by throwing his hat on the ground and juggling lemons for pennies."

To read the entire piece go here.

Absurd? Is this the peoples Whitehouse?

So it's nearly three in the morning here, and I'm getting ready to hit the sack. I venture into the kitchen to get a glass of water, turn out the light and I hear a sound. Looking out the window I see the wind has broke the moorings on my neighbors giant inflatable Frosty the Snowman, and he is now happily humping my minivan. ... I Hope everyone had a merry Christmas too.
Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday Brad Shilliday

I spent many years in the jewelry business. I know the processes, and means by which gold and gems are acquired. I left the business much as a result of the following information. Gold and gem mining is dirty, and corrupt. The price we pay for vanity/ego is too great. Mining requires the removal of LARGE amounts of earth; it's often then dumped into local streams and rivers. In the case of gold mining, chemicals are often used to derive the gold from the ore it is contained in, chemicals like cyanide . Mining is often done in third world nations where local laws are easy to subvert with enough money. The miners themselves are often mistreated local peoples who work tirelessly in the hope of getting that big find. When it comes to diamonds, you’re really getting ripped off here. The DeBeers Company has a monopoly on all the diamonds in the world; they even buy black market goods in order to maintain control. DeBeers has so many diamonds in storage that the actual value of a one carat diamond could be measures in the tens of dollars instead of the thousands. Before you buy another piece of jewelry please read the following article.

Saturday, December 24, 2005

Secret court modified wiretap requests
Intervention may have led Bush to bypass panel

By STEWART M. POWELL
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON -- Government records show that the administration was encountering unprecedented second-guessing by the secret federal surveillance court when President Bush decided to bypass the panel and order surveillance of U.S.-based terror suspects without the court's approval........ read more here.

I can't beleive those freedom hating courts would deny our Concerned War President his super eavesdropping power!

Dick Morris...world class gas bag. Why is this guy still given a voice on issues? So now he comes out, and says that talking about the domestic spying issue is bad for Dems. His whole point misses the point. You see Dick Morris is a prime example of what is wrong with people who have a voice in Washington. All he is concerned about is the political aspect of the situation, not the fact that we have a President who broke the law. He's concerned about the perception people might have about democrats being weak on national security. (I hate the term homeland security.. sounds to much like Nazis or Soviets) In my opinion, having a President who dismisses the Constitution is a threat to national security. I really wish Dick would go back to banging high priced hookers and stay out of the political arena.

read the gas bag's comments here.
found this on Drudge...talk about a "bag" of another type. He sure is trying to spin this.

Judge Robertson, a federal judge who sits on the 11 person counsel that grants FISA warrants has quit in protest of the Bush administration conducting what he determines to be illegal spying practices on US citizens.......more

Unlike the President I always say US citizens instead of Americans, because technically everyone in this hemisphere is an American.... North America/ South America...Look it up on Google Earth .. you'll see.

Quote from George Bush.

"The person who runs FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency] is someone who must have the trust of the president because the person who runs the FEMA really is the first voice oftentimes that someone whose lives have been turned upside down hears from."

January 4, 2001 - Comment made at press conference.

The truth about the President spying on US citizens.

It was undeeded.
It was didn't improve the speed with which searches would be carried out.
Disclosure of the program did not endanger national security.
Intelligence commitee officials were not told of the details, or the depth of the program.
Rice and Gonzales are liers and Bush Appologists.
It was and is illegal.

I found this excellent blog post today thanks to a link from mikevotes.

The post is excellent, and compares the Bush Presidency to a one hour crime drama. See it here.

"it's unknown who the original photoshoper is, well done though"

"Dear God, help me protect my vital corporate interests."

This requires the proper setting: ok, queue the Empire music from Star Wars....now heavy breathing from Dearth Cheney into Microphone...My fellow Republicans, spending is out of control...the war, the tax cuts, the federal deficit, the trade deficit....something must be done. (cheers and applause is heard from the gallery and the music rises) To this end I propose we cut financial aid to needy students, cut Medicaid the the old and feeble, cut food stamp programs for the hungry. Let them eat cake, or French fries..... Whatever it is THOSE people eat! (the applause reaches a crescendo) Our wealthy patrons will reward us handsomely.


Read More here.

NYT FRIDAY: Under a presidential order signed in 2002, the NSA has monitored international calls and international e-mail messages of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people inside the United States without warrants... MORE...

I don't know about anyone else, but I think this is a serious abuse of Presidential power. There needs to be an investigation. If laws were broken then action needs to be taken. Thanks to the spin control of Carl Rove, this President has sidestepped some very serious issues, for once he needs to be held responsible.

So John McCain and George Bush came to an agreement on torture, in press conference it was " a done deal". However, Republican Duncan Hunter has just come out and said he will oppose it. He wants to make sure that US soldiers, agents and contractors are protected from prosecution. I strongly believe this was all part of the Whitehouse plan. Bush has agreed to the arraignment, knowing full well that Hunter would reject it.

Apparently, many Hurricane Katrina victims will have more problems to deal with. While researching another travesty concerning families of the Louisiana gulf coast, I encountered this little ditty. Because of this countries other war.... the war on drugs, laws were passed that prevent anyone with a drug conviction to get most any kind of government aid, to include money, housing and education. This not only is denied the actual offender, but the whole family of the offender. Hence, families trying to return to their homes, and get some help are being denied. Even if the said offences occurred years ago. These laws affect the poor and the lower middle class more than anyone else, as they are least able to defend themselves in court and are most often targeted by law enforcement because there is a higher prosecution rate. The more affluent, who can afford the drugs are rarely caught, and rarely prosecuted. Once again politicians with knee jerk reactions to social problems, create a law enforcement solution... a solution that is wrong, shortsighted and ultimately detrimental to the society they were trying to protect. Please read the original story here.

Bush/ Cheney Cronyism is pervasive, and destructive. It puts many incompetent people in important positions. It also puts ideologues into decision making positions that are insulated from public scrutiny, and oversight. Of course leaders have always done this, but not to this extent, and at least the appointees were qualified for the positions to which they were appointed. Heading up a Show horse organization does not make one qualified for the head of FEMA, and being a Texas multimillionaire does not make one qualified for an advisor on Foreign intelligence. More detailed information on this topic can be found here.

You are a Social Liberal (76% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (18% permissive) You are best described as a: Socialist Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

First, please watch this informative video.

Just look at these damned liberals, living in tents inside the remains of there own storm damaged homes, just to make our government look bad! After the interview with parish officials a FEMA spokeswoman said that it's the parish's fault for not having a place to put trailers. However, as you heard in the video, the small travel trailers will fit in a driveway. FEMA, since being put under the Dept. of Homeland Security, has been made ineffective, and place for feckless political appointees.

I'm sitting here, and I'm wiping tears from my eyes as I type. I just finished reading a blog written by a woman named Carol. You see her mother had just died after a long bout with cancer. Her daily thoughts on her mother and the life of being a caregiver of someone with cancer is quite poignant as most of us will be and have been in such a position. My own mother died of cancer a couple years ago. The burden on my father who took care of her was great. For a couple years after the diagnosis she was able to live as she wanted and really savored life. She was lucky that successful treatment bought her those couple years. Many upon hearing they have cancer can count their remaining time in weeks and months. I felt quite helpless through much of the time, as I live in Florida, and my parents live in Michigan. When treatments stopped being effective and her health started to decline rapidly, I made that last trip to Michigan to see her.. I wrote her a letter expressing the love and gratitude I had for her. Thanks for all the times she waited in the stands as I had swim practice, or for the few dollars she slipped me when i visited from college. So much, so many moments. Then it was time for me to make my flight back to Florida. I cant describe the sorrow I felt as I kissed my mother for the last time, let go of her hand, and walked out the door.. I received the call from my Dad a few days later... she was gone. Sometimes we need to step back from the pettiness of the world, and take stock of what is truly meaningful..

Lt. General Blum is frustrated. You see, he is responsible for seeing that US National guard forces are ready to defend the country, respond to disasters such as hurricane Katrina, and terrorist attacks. The problem according to General Blum is that he has no equipment left. Whenever national guard units are sent to Iraq or Afghanistan they take all there equipment with them. It is then left there, for the next group. So, the troops left here at home are left without equipment.. Equipment like trucks, humvees, night vision goggles, armor, weapons, radios, and other communication equipment. According to general Blum, there is no plan to replenish these critical supplies. No Plan... that seems to be the credo of the people running the wars we have going now. Oh they TALK, about the plan, but time and time again we see there really is no plan.

This picture says so much. From the faces of the passengers on this commercial airliner, to the service persons, bent over the casket of a dead comrade. Many of the returning dead aren't given benefit of Color guard, many are unceremoniously offloaded from the cargo hold by airport baggage personnel.

The Rev. Barry W. Lynn Writes an open letter to Gods emissary Jerry Falwell.

"seems the REAL war on Christmas is actually being waged by those proclaiming it"

Fallacies do not cease to be fallacies because they become fashions.
- GK Chesterton



"..been camping all weekend with my sons, and the cub scouts, great time but good to be back to a decent bed"

Here is the video The GOP is distributing online. (fellow Firefox users use the link to the left to see video) Intended to use as a backdrop for Republicans as they tow the line, and fire off monotonous diatribes about staying the course in Iraq. Of course, they take all the Democratic dialog out of context. "Oh, don't talk about leavingIraq! Our troops might be listening and think we are abandoning them!". "Our troops need our support!". Yes, as a matter of fact our troops DO need our support.. They need to know we will bring them home as soon as possible. If 20 million plus Iraqis cant secure their own country by now against 10,000 or so insurgents.. then they NEVER will be able to! Of course we could never think that maybe, it's all about securing the oil.. Our sons and daughters couldn't have been used for that...... or could they?

You'll all be please to learn that the U.S. House of Representatives is quickly moving on legislation that will make all U.S citizens carry machine readable social security cards that include photo. In other words.. a universal ID card. How many books and movies do we need to see on the evils of Big Brother? When will we actually elect politicians that will fight moves to become this intrusive state? You can read more about the topic here.

I'm glad she had decided to stop dating liberals. Apparently she has some sort of grotesque tumor under her tongue.





"can you say... candidate for face transplant?"

Center For Amercican Progress


"We tried to Get a picture of Ted Stevens with his sack of loot, but it was so large it obstructed the rest of the picture."

According to the Daily, Whitehouse insiders are talking of Rumsfelds departure after Iraqi elections are finished and the government has solidified. "Democrat" Joe Lieberman is apparently slated to take his place. This would go along way in explaining Liebermans Whitehouse ass kissing as of late.




"Lieby is doing a heck of a job!"

Please Ann, we can't ask you to stop your hideous speech, but we can ask you to put on some slacks and hide those hideous legs.







Someone please take that tablecloth to the cleaners and have it de-skanked.

From Slashdot ::

"Shortly after learning of the New Orleans plan for free city-wide wireless internet, Bellsouth Corp. withdrew an offer to donate a damaged building to be used for police headquarters. According to the Washington Post, 'Bill Oliver, angrily rescinded the offer of the building in a conversation with New Orleans homeland security director Terry Ebbert.'"

The Bush administration continues to deny that it condones torture, or that it has sent detainees to countries for the express purpose of being tortured. To this end they have sent Condolesa Rice to Europe to deny these charges and to to explain how lawfully we have acted. Meanwhile back in the real world, the bill being put through congress by John McCain, that will legally end torture by the US, is being fought by the Bush administration. Hmmm.. If the Bush doesn't condone torture, then why is he fighting the enactment of this law. You see, not only does Bush condone torture, but the administration fights the act of legally and definitively defining it and outlawing it. Currently they can hide behind semantics and legalistic definitions of the word torture. Remember, this administration acts in the name of the people of the United States. We must not allow leaders of low moral standards and challenged ethics to let us to sink to the level of those we are purportedly at war against.

Today Darth Cheney, spoke in front a captive military audience. Among the many ridiculous things he said was that " people who say that removing Saddam Hussein just stirred up a Hornets nest in Iraq forget one fundamental thing... that we were not in Iraq on September eleventh." What twisted logic these douche bags use! What's even worse is that many people in the US actually believe Iraq had something to do with 9/11.The fact is that most of the fighters in Iraq are Iraqis that simply want us out of their country, just the same as many of us would fight tooth and nail to evict any foreign force on our soil.. The remainder of the fighters in Iraq are foreign jihadist that would not have not entered Iraq under the reign of Saddam Hussein. These fighters are in Iraq to train, where better to train than in a country that's in so much turmoil and where the enemies of the Jihadist movement are so plentiful.. Where tons of ammunition were left unguarded as our troops were directed to guard oil facilities instead of ammunition depots. Where many of the native people are sympathetic to their cause., and or fearful of their reprisals. Since the moment George Bush stood on the deck of an aircraft carrier with the banner proclaiming "mission accomplished" the Iraqi people have suffered greatly. Fewer Iraqis have electricity, running water, or sewer than before we showed up to "improve" their lives. Thousands in poor urban areas suffer from dysentery. What keeps Fueling Cheney's need to lie time and time again? money...money! money! money! From Halliburton, and it's many shell game subsidiary companies to Conoco-Phillips, who's board members once included Condolesa Rice and The Current President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai. The Bush administration told us that Iraqi Oil would pay for the War.... they lied. Current oil production is less than under Hussein. The 9/11 commission stated that Iraq had nothing to do with the events of 9/11. The 9/11 commission made recommendations that would help secure America against terrorist attack. How many of these ideas were implemented? ....One.... the office of homeland Security. They didn't secure our borders, inspect cargo baggage on commercial flights or ramp up inspection of incoming cargo containers coming from overseas. Dick Cheney and George bush are dismal failures when it comes to making America safe. And keeping our troops in Iraq doesn't make us or them one bit safer.

Today Dick Cheney was in Texas fundraising for Tom Delay who is under indictment for money Laundering. Previously made charges of conspiracy were thrown out by a Texas judge today. In my opinion it is an abuse of power, and highly unscrupulous for a sitting Vice President to be doing such a thing. I don't want my tax dollars going to shuttle Cheney's fat ass around the country, making money to defend an accused money launderer.

Today President Bush will give yet another speech on how great the economy is. He'll quote some specific numbers, say how many jobs the economy has added, and use the usual litany of Bushisms we all have heard a million times. He'll gesture broadly, lean over the podium, and have that pained, desperate smile plastered on his face that we see him wear when things are tough. Trent Duffy, White House deputy press secretary, said Bush would say that Americans have every reason to be optimistic and discuss "how often in history Americans have been told our best days are behind us." Well, I would say that at no other time have we been faced with the challenges we face now. Challenges, that our leaders have thoughtlessly created for us because of their greed, shortsightedness, and lack of vision. We owe Billions to China. China!! What the hell would Reagan think of that?! Our largest retailer buys Chinese goods by the hundreds of millions. Meanwhile, the Chinese are having the largest military buildup in the history of the world, thanks to us. Our healthcare system is still broken, and hasn't even been a topic for the Republicans in charge. My family pays a huge portion of our earnings to maintain our coverage, and over 40 million other families have no coverage. Republican are so determined to have private schools be the mainstream, they are willing to ruin and bankrupt the public school system to make it happen. As other industrial nations keep outpacing us in education we will continue to fall behind in the global market. We will become a nation of landscapers, Wal-Mart employees, and lawyers. Left to Republicans, our best days are behind us.

Members of Congress are changing and examining their position on Iraq right now. It is critical that they hear from all of us. For the next two weeks we're circulating a petition calling on Congress to insist on an exit strategy to bring the troops home in 2006. Will you sign? Click below.

http://political.moveon.org/iraq/