Little Lord Pontchartrain
mikethemadbiologist | October 29, 2006Recent estimates suggest that the dollar cost of the Iraq War and Occupation will be over two trillion dollars. The horrible irony is that, had Bush not fought this war--or very quickly declared democracy and 'cut and run'--the amount of money Bush would have added to the federal debt would have been substantially smaller (the debt would have increased, however). In other words, his stupid war/occupation undercut his stupid ecconomic policies. Maybe that's why conservatives are jumping ship...
mikethemadbiologist | October 22, 2006
From The Independent:
In an interview with al-Jazeera, Alberto Fernandez, director of public diplomacy in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the US State Department, also said the US was ready to talk with any Iraqi group - excluding al- Qa'ida in Iraq - to reach national reconciliation in the country, which is racked by widening sectarian strife as well as an enduring insurgency.
"We tried to do our best but I think there is much room for criticism because, undoubtedly, there was arrogance and there was stupidity from the United States in Iraq," he said. "We are open to dialogue because…
mikethemadbiologist | October 18, 2006Did you ever think in 1999 that Congress would pass a bill, and that a President would sign a bill that eliminates habeas corpus at the whim of the president? I sure as hell didn't. This is why the utter warping of our political system by the mindless Christopath Uruk-hai, the anti-gay bigots, and the blastula liberationists is so devastating: because it allows other forms of extremism such as the Federalist Society and those who believe in the 'unitary executive' to flourish unchecked.
From Keith Olbermann:
OLBERMANN: Does this mean that under this law, ultimately the only thing keeping…
mikethemadbiologist | October 15, 2006Everything Paul the Spud says (italics mine):
We're actually starting to hear a lot of this lately. Republicans/"real" Conservatives are fed up with the out-of-control Bush administration, and they're ready to vote for the Dems, just to get them out of office. Well gee and gosh guys, that's all honorable and cool of you, but I just have one question for you. Where the hell were you guys during the last election?
This editorial, in particular, takes the cake. His finger wagging and scolding is just so much hot air, for the simple fact that the Bush Administration has been completely out of…
mikethemadbiologist | October 12, 2006Or maybe this post should have been titled "Faith-based initiatives = anti-Semitism." (I'll get to that) Keith Olbermann has a story about David Kuo's new book, Tempting Faith. Kuo worked in the Office of Faith Based initiatives in the White House and has impecable evangelical credentials. Essentially, Kuo's book details the White House's cynical use of the 'religious' right, supporting what Tucker Carlson previously claimed.
Watch the whole clip. But this quote jumped out at me:
Kuo says they tried to prove their political value by turning the once-bipartisan faith-based initiatives…
mikethemadbiologist | October 11, 2006
(from here)GrrlScientist is wearing yellow...
GrrlScientist was trying to understand how 26% of Americans could think Dennis Hastert should suffer no consequences for covering Foleygate. I had some thoughts on the matter. Tonight, after looking through my neighborhood newspaper, The Beacon Hill Times, I propose an alternative hypothesis: they're batshit crazy.
I've reprinted a letter to the Times, with all of the original language and grammar (such as it is). It's about a councilman's proposal to cover up the giant Citgo sign in Boston because Venezualan president Hugo Chavez insulted…
mikethemadbiologist | October 10, 2006There has been an argument by some liberal hawks that once we entered Iraq, it was our obligation to fix it (the whole "Pottery Barn" metaphor). This always honked me off because I knew from the get-go that this whole thing would go sideways. Nonetheless, there was a brief window after the fall of Saddam Hussein to get things to a stable enough point where we could declare Democracy and leave.
If we Bush had prevented the looting of Baghdad, restored some basic services, and held elections when Gen. Garner (ret.) had wanted (over a year before they were actually held), mabye this whole…
mikethemadbiologist | October 8, 2006
(well they're cuter than rats...)
...impeachment? David Swanson thinks so:
Believe it or not, the impeachment of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney is perfectly possible, although a number of factors will have to come together for it to happen. The public will is already there, and this is quite remarkable given the lack of action in Congress or mention in the mainstream media. The polling that has been done on impeachment is dramatic. The Washington Post finds that a third of the country wants Bush not just impeached but also removed from office. Zogby finds that, by a margin of 53% to 42%,…
mikethemadbiologist | October 6, 2006What's truly terrifying about the Bush phenomenon--at this point, it really can't be called a presidency like any other--is that the 36-40% that think he's doing a good job can vote and own firearms. Seriously, my conception--and I would argue most liberals, moderates, and some conservatives--of what a president should do fundamentally differs from the diehard Bush base. Take it away Jon Stewart (the part at 2:30 is brlliant):
mikethemadbiologist | September 20, 2006
Eric Boehlert compares Bush's approval ratings with those of other presidents:
Here then, is some much-needed historical perspective to put Bush's standing in context:
*According to Gallup, on the eve of President John F. Kennedy's 1963 assassination, he was suffering the worst job-approval ratings of his presidency -- 58 percent.
*In 1968, when the war in Vietnam was claiming hundreds of U.S. casualties each week, President Lyndon Johnson was considered so unpopular that he didn't even run for re-election. Johnson's average Gallup approval rating for that year was 43 percent.
*When Reagan's…
mikethemadbiologist | September 19, 2006Retired Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner seems to think so:
Air Force Col. Sam Gardiner (Ret.) said, "We are conducting military operations inside Iran right now. The evidence is overwhelming."
Gardiner, who taught at the U.S. Army's National War College, has previously suggested that U.S. forces were already on the ground in Iran. Today he added several additional new points:
1) The House Committee on Emerging Threats recently called on State and Defense Department officials to testify on whether U.S. forces were in Iran. The officials didn't come to the hearing.
2) "We have learned from Time…
mikethemadbiologist | September 16, 2006After reading this Washington Post article about the Iraq War reconstruction effort, I've stumbled across the epitaph of the Bush Administration:
Bush Administration appoints political cronies and ideological wackjobs to important positions. Said appointees pandimensionally clusterfuck everything sideways. People suffer and die due to avoidable ineptitude.
Let's document the idiocies.
Jim O'Beirne was the gatekeeper for hiring in the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA). Because most of these jobs were classified as temporary, provisional jobs, they were exempt from the federal…
mikethemadbiologist | September 14, 2006With all the Neville Chamberlain talk flying around, the neocons are right about one thing: there has been too much appeasement. Appeasement of Bush, that is. tristero writes about the rattling of sabers--and nukes--at Iran (boldface mine):
As for Iran, let me explain: YOU may think it's highly unlikely - the famous 1% probability, as a commenter mentioned - that Bush won't use nukes and is setting us up for conventional warfare. That is because you are sane and sensible. But the Bush administration thinks it's very likely. Hersh is alarmingly clear that there was close to a mutiny at…
mikethemadbiologist | September 11, 2006Doesn't this define the phrase "photo-op"?
(This is almost as ridiculous as the "China Box" photo op).
Update: Michael Tomasky has more.
mikethemadbiologist | September 8, 2006
Granted, going after Little Lord Pontchartrain for being an idiot is like picking on the slow kid, but the 'leader' of the U.S. just burbled this (by way of The Liberal Avenger):
George W. Bush, responding to Katie Couric's question on what the United States has learned from interrogating high-value terrorism suspects:
"Well, for example -- there's a -- we -- we uncovered a -- a potential anthrax attack on the United States. Or the fact that -- Khalid Sheik Mohammed had got somebody to -- to line up people to fly airlines, to -- to crash airlines on, I think, the West Coast or somewhere in…
mikethemadbiologist | September 5, 2006Looking at the comments from a previous post about social security, I wanted to address a couple of other points, and then provide some more evidence about the ridiculousness of the Social Security 'crisis.' First, as I'll discuss below, Social Security will not collapse. There is no serious evidence to support that scenario (please, take a deep breath; I'll get to that). If you want to privatize social security, cut benefits, or change the eligibilty rules (one-third of Social Security payouts do not go to the elderly, but to widows, orphans, and the disabled), you have to make those…
mikethemadbiologist | September 1, 2006
Here's what the mayor of Salt Lake City, UT said yesterday. You would think he's one of those Northeast liberal elitist, latte-drinkin' types...
Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Jackson:
A patriot is a person who loves his or her country.
Who among you loves your country so much that you have come here today to raise your voice out of deep concern for our nation - and for our world?
And who among you loves your country so much that you insist that our nation's leaders tell us the truth?
Let's hear it: "Give us the truth! Give us the truth! Give us the truth!"
Let no one deny we are patriots. We…
mikethemadbiologist | August 27, 2006King Cranky and Shakes are right: if George Bush doesn't want us to dwell on New Orleans, then it's probably a good idea for us to do so. Regarding New Orleans, Publius asks a very simple question:
So why does no one care?
That's the essential question in a nutshell. Here's my short answer: people stopped caring about New Orleans when they realized that the institutions most capable of handling this crisis would not do a fucking thing about it. Looking back on my posts about the New Orleans disaster, I should have realized New Orleans would become a full-blown pandimensional clusterfuck…
mikethemadbiologist | August 22, 2006'Will-based' foreign policy making seems to have overcome the modern conservative movement (maybe it should be called 'realpolitik backlash'...). There is the constant belief--and it has to be called a belief since it doesn't appear to be evidence-based--that if we just wish hard enough, the tactics, strategy, and logistics will simply solve themselves. But reality doesn't work that way.
In 1944, the British 1st Paratroop Division dropped into and around the city of Arnhem, with the goal of taking and holding the Arnhem bridge until relief arrived. For many of reasons, the relief didn't…
mikethemadbiologist | August 20, 2006What's shocking is the utter silence from the White House about the immigration story unfolding in Chicago. Remember, this is the same administration that interrupted the president's vacation for the Terry Schiavo incident. So when it really matters politically the White House is willing to move. But they've remained mysteriously quiet on this.
First, the story. An illegal immigrant whose son is a seven-year old U.S. citizen is to be deported back to Mexico. She refuses to leave and has sought sanctuary in a church. Right now, I'm sure Karl Rove is hoping this goes away quietly. On the…