You know - for the kids...

Wednesday, January 31, 2007

That was over quick

Joe Biden, a man for which this blog has little love, pretty much George Allened his way out of Presidential contention (IMHO – no big loss). In a combative interview in the New York Observer, Biden threw haymakers at most of the other top tier Democratic candidates. Clinton and Edwards both take hits but Biden really steps in it with his comments regarding Barak Obama.

Mr. Biden is equally skeptical—albeit in a slightly more backhanded way—about Mr. Obama. “I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy,” he said. “I mean, that’s a storybook, man.”

And with that, so ends any chance Biden had to win the nomination - as though your average black guy is an ugly, filthy savage, with a bone through his nose. Comments like that are not exactly going to fire up the African-American base; at least, not in way that is going to help. I can hear Al Sharpton starting his rhetorical engine from here...

Hat tip to TMP.

Saturday, January 27, 2007

Urge to kill rising

Hat tip to ThinkProgress (those guys do good work on calling these bastards out) for this. OK – honest confession, I hate country music. With the exceptions of Bluegrass, and anything by Dolly Parton or Johnny Cash, I just fucking hate that shit. So when Toby Keith stopped metaphorically blowing the Bush administration and got off his knees to bash the Dixie Chicks, I mildly cared. I sorely missed what was to come. Joe is not so smart sometimes.

When I saw the lunatic backlash ensue against the Chicks, well, that’s when I realized how dangerous, stupid, and powerful his sort was. So shame on me for that I guess – I learned my lesson. The band earned my eternal respect for standing their ground. They put more on the line for proudly stating their beliefs than I ever have and I hope that if I am in a similar position, I behave as they did. Those are some very courageous Chicks indeed, though I still can’t dig the music – sorry.

Fast forward to Bush crash landing into Nixon territory. Now Toby Keith has the stones (or lack thereof) to say that he opposes the war and ALWAYS HAS. Way to stick to your guns there you dumbfuck redneck. If I am stuck in a foxhole, I choose the Dixie Chicks over Mr. Keith anyday (obviously) – at least they are steadfast. FUTK indeed.

Friday, January 26, 2007

Praying for Molly

I just read that Molly Ivins has been hospitalized again in her ongoing fight against cancer. So if you think about it, please say a little prayer for her recovery.

I love me the Internets

Every once in a while, I stumble across something on the web that makes me just laugh my ass off. Today I found thingsmyboyfriendsays.com. This is some very, very funny stuff.

Ice dancing.
me: So I was watching ice dancing on TV ...

e: I didn't think it was possible to out-queer figure skating, but look out! Here comes ice dancing!

Megalove.
While snuggling:
me: Who loves you?
e: Megatron.

It ain't over.
While watching Luciano Pavarotti on television:
"Is he wearing a cape? Aah, the fat guy outfit par excellence."


Coors Light.
"If you gave me a car made of diamonds and blowjobs all day I still wouldn't drink that beer."

It’s Friday. Go have a chuckle.

Not what I would call a good use of talent

I am a doughnut fan. And really, who doesn’t like deep fried cake batter dipped in sugar? The doughnut is damn near perfect in the arena of crazy bad for you junk food. Well, a molecular scientist in North Carolina decided that he could leave well enough alone and figured out a way to dump 2 cups of coffee worth of caffeine into a single doughnut. My brain just brims with questions starting with why? Is there a huge untapped market for hopped up pastries that I am unaware of? And what does this guy have against coffee? Finally, what happens when a couple of eight year olds get their hands on a dozen? With that much sugar and caffeine pumping through the blood stream, a handful of kids could destroy whole cities. This is just irresponsible.

A good story

CNN has a really encouraging piece up about a guy who lost 250+ pounds and, in doing so, transformed his life. Give it a read.

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Save us Al

In the latest issue of Rolling Stone, Tim Dickinson lays out the case for Al Gore running for President in 2008. To which I would add, please Al, for the love of God, get into the race.

SOTU

I just couldn’t bring myself to watch Bush’s address last night. I simply didn’t have the stomach for it. But I did watch Jim Webb’s response and it was thing of beauty. He delivered and eloquent but simple speech covering two overarching themes: we need to quit screwing the little guy and let’s get the hell out of Iraq.

He kicked much ass; truly laying the wood to Bush. You owe it to yourself to see what leadership really sounds like. Here is a taste.

On the economy and growing economic disparity:
Regarding the economic imbalance in our country, I am reminded of the situation President Theodore Roosevelt faced in the early days of the 20th century. America was then, as now, drifting apart along class lines. The so-called robber barons were unapologetically raking in a huge percentage of the national wealth. The dispossessed workers at the bottom were threatening revolt.

Roosevelt spoke strongly against these divisions. He told his fellow Republicans that they must set themselves "as resolutely against improper corporate influence on the one hand as against demagogy and mob rule on the other." And he did something about it.

On the clusterfuck meat grinder that is Iraq:
As I look at Iraq, I recall the words of former general and soon-to-be President Dwight Eisenhower during the dark days of the Korean War, which had fallen into a bloody stalemate. "When comes the end?" asked the General who had commanded our forces in Europe during World War Two. And as soon as he became President, he brought the Korean War to an end.

These Presidents took the right kind of action, for the benefit of the American people and for the health of our relations around the world. Tonight we are calling on this President to take similar action, in both areas. If he does, we will join him. If he does not, we will be showing him the way. [Emphasis mine]

That, folks, is how you get it done. Bravo Senator. Take a bow.

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

This makes Joe smile

John Kerry has decided not to run for President. Thank God someone talked some sense into him. 2004 must rank way up there on the list of Worst Campaigns Ever...

Tuesday, January 23, 2007

Rough day

I saw over at TPM that the new CBS News poll finds Bush with a 28% job approval. And on the day of his State of the Union address – ouch. Welcome to Nixonland.

The more, the merrier

The field for Pres got thick over the weekend with Bill Richardson, Sam Brownback, and, of course, Hillary Clinton. Here is my take on the current crop. First the Democrats:

Hillary Clinton

Easily the highest profile candidate and current frontrunner, she has the wherewithal to raise enormous amounts of cash. She is going to need every penny. She, more so than any other person in the race, has some serious obstacles to overcome. People have already made up their minds about Hillary. It will take a ton of TV time to change opinions about her. Plus, the Left is going to have really hard time backing her because she voted for the war. To be honest, I really don’t want Hillary to win. I think she is too polarizing to be an effective leader (right now anyway). It is just damn hard for me to see how she can bring people together when 40% of the country cannot even stand the sight of her. Am I being too harsh? I don’t think so.

Barak Obama

Obama is probably the number two guy right now. The media have a love for him in much the same fashion as John McCain. He gives terrific speeches, has good politics and is second only to Hillary in the fund raising aspect. Being the first serious black candidate (Alan Keyes and Jesse Jackson, IMHO, had no chance to win) will also carry him far. But the question remains, will his relative lack of experience hurt him? I tend to think yes but the guy can communicate. If he can sell his vision, people will overlook that shortcoming.

Bill Richardson

IMHO, Richardson carries perhaps the biggest potential upside of any of the declared folks but there maybe a couple of absolute deal breakers. On the plus side, Richardson appeals to the center (though he is a bit too friendly to Big Bidness for me) has enormous appeal to the growing Hispanic vote, and possesses the best foreign policy resume of just about anyone around. The man has had at least a sit down with nearly every player out there. On the downside, Richardson carries a cart full of Clinton luggage and rumor has it that may those bags may contain a mistress or two. Ugh. Add to that the potential for the immigration debate to get ugly, and Richardson may have some lethal problems. So maybe Richardson could be the best person for the job while being dreadful candidate. Hopefully, a thorough vetting will clear this up but for now, Richardson is probably in third place.

Chris Dodd

Dodd is a tough one to call. I like his politics. He speaks fluent Spanish. He seems like a decent enough fellow. Dodd supported Ned Lamont as the Dem nominee against Joe Lieberman. He has, however, two major problems. He voted for Iraq and is your prototypical northern liberal. The Republicans will tar and feather him for that a la John Kerry in 2004. He is a long shot.

Dennis Kucinich

Kucinich does not stand a chance in hell. Period. If all of the other candidates openly professed a love for bestiality, Satanism, and poll taxes, Kucinich would still lose – in a landslide.

Joe Biden

Joe Biden is a two bit whore for the insurance and credit card industries. So fuck him. Again, am I being too harsh? Not really. Biden is good on most issues, but really, unforgivably bad on anything having to do with consumer protection, bank regulation, bankruptcy law, etc. In addition, his hair will prevent him from winning, I promise.

Tom Vilsack

Vilsack is about as inspiring as oatmeal. If he were a color, he would be khaki. I mean seriously, this guy makes Jimmy Carter seem like a firebrand revolutionary. Vilsack is the ultimate vanilla centrist. Bland but serviceable, Vilsack hopes to win in Iowa, where he served as Governor, and ride that momentum as far as it takes him. That is to say, not very far. John Edwards is banking on a similar strategy and has cut deeply into Vilsack’s Iowa base. Which leads me to…

John Edwards

Edwards is a bit of a wildcard here. He has a great message (the Two Americas), a great story and a great smile. He has a winning personality and a fierce populist streak that may (though I think still unlikely) catch a fire on the stump. The experience factor is also a problem for Edwards, albeit somewhat less severe than Obama. He has good name recognition stemming from his run as Kerry’s number two in 2004. That campaign, however, is both a plus and a minus. While folks know Edwards, being part of the Dems’ disastrous effort last time around can’t really light up the activists that go out and knock on doors. And God help him if Kerry jumps into the ring. FWIW, John Kerry should never be allowed to even talk about running for President again. I mean it, never. It was that bad.

So that is the Democrats field right now. A couple of people clearly in the lead and one or two others that could give it a real run. If I had to pick a ticket now, I would go with Richardson/Obama. Richardson is the most qualified and Obama is too good to be denied. One not insignificant point -just imagine what our government would look like; a Hispanic President, an African-American Vice, a female Speaker third in succession. Pretty cool.

Thursday, January 18, 2007

Um, wow. These people are crazy.

I saw this over at AmericaBlog – so hat tip for finding this hunk of whackjobbery. The wingnuts on the Michigan Court of Appeals have determined that extramarital sex is first degree sexual misconduct, punishable by life in prison. Read that again, please. Here’s how - the Michigan Legislature passed a law that defined first degree sexual misconduct as when "sexual penetration occurs under circumstances involving the commission of any other felony." So the Court of Appeals drew the conclusion that adultery, still a felony on the books there, met the legal standard. And that kids, is that.

Banging the secretary, while not a position advocated on this site (ha, position – get it!), can land one in the pokey (stop – I am killing me) forever.

My point here is that Michigan has crossed a legal Rubicon into some very weird territory; territory currently occupied by the likes of some of the most repressive theocratic states on the planet (cough – Taliban, cough). At its broadest meaning, the law has been interpreted to mean that fucking someone other than your spouse is criminal behavior. Now, to be fair, there are places where if one is of the fairer sex, one is stoned to death for similar behavior. Men have it a bit better, as one would imagine. Punishment, like genitalia, is extremely variable and so are the other questions in this scramble of legal eggs. So what if you are separated, in an open marriage, or have some other nebulous circumstance? The judges’ holding, to my mind, made no distinction, you criminal pervert.

And yes, the whole thing is absurd. As the article mentioned, the State Attorney General is an admitted adulterer. The smart money says NO ONE gets prosecuted for this, but the situation looks suspiciously like the proverbial camel’s nose under the tent. Yeah, nobody is looking at a charge now. It is the next crazy thing that ought to worry us. And worry me it shall, for a dam breaks not all at once, but one small crack at a time.

Wednesday, January 17, 2007

So very lame

Come on Canada. Aside from hockey, is there anything you guys do that isn’t completely wuss. I mean seriously, paid attendance to a pillow fight? If this is what passes for boxing up there, Canadian porn must be the underwear section of the J C Penney’s advertisement.

Obama is in

As I have stated before, I think it is way too early to put all of our eggs in Obama’s basket yet. He is sooo green and has not put together anything that resembles a concrete platform, so his candidacy does not yet set me on fire. Which is not to say that I won’t support the guy – especially if Al gore decides he wants to save the world via movies instead of politics. Obama has some stuff going for him.

He is smooth as silk at the podium. His politics are pretty good and he has no real baggage. There are two other reasons to give him a good look. First, how cool would it be, purely from a historical point of view, to say you voted for America’s first black President. I am just saying that the chance to break a barrier only happens once. There was only one Rosa Parks, one Jackie Robinson, one Sandra Day O’Connor.

The other reason I think the Obama candidacy is important is that, Dennis Kucinich aside, he is the only guy in field that was four square against the Iraq war from the start. That says a lot about his judgment and the lack thereof among the rest of the candidates. As I have said before and will undoubtedly say again, it is going to be damn hard for me to get behind anyone who was so wrong on the single biggest policy decision of the past 20 years. So he gets a big checkmark on that issue from me.

If the Junior Senator from Illinois thinks he can make a go of it, I say good luck and let’s see what you got.

Sunday, January 14, 2007

How are you going to fix my problem?

Our very manly President has become decidedly more pansiesque of late, no? First there was the look of mortal terror on his face when he delivered his rallying call for Operation Doing the Same Thing, Only More of It. Good Lord, the man looked like he was going to pee his pants. To channel my inner Molly Ivins, he looked more anxious than a ten tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. Bush’s legacy will be defined by the result of his, and by extension the nation’s, catastrophic foreign policy. This is a knot that is going to take generations of money and blood to unwind.

Bush bet that he could transform the Middle East into an egalitarian, democratic society. He believed that with the force of American military power behind him, George Bush thought he could be the George Washington of the Fertile Crescent. That he lost his bet is only now, I think, starting to sink in that thick skull of his.

I think he has finally realized just how badly he fucked up. He has acted his way through the job. Aided by some very able directors and stagehands, a bumbling incompetent is transformed into the facsimile of a tough minded visionary cum statesman. Every charlatan or con-man’s biggest fear is getting exposed as what they really are. That is what is scaring Bush. He has been found out. He knows it. He doesn’t know what to do next.

So in the time honored tradition of frustrated four year olds everywhere, he is basically saying, “if you’re a so smart, you fix it”. I wish I were kidding.

President Bush on Saturday challenged lawmakers skeptical of his new Iraq plan to propose their own strategy for stopping the violence in Baghdad.

"To oppose everything while proposing nothing is irresponsible," Bush said.

Irresponsible? WTF? By everything, I guess he means anything that leaves our troops in the middle of a civil war. Because I distinctly recall that the default position for most Democrats can be summarized by “let’s get the hell out, sooner rather than later”. That is our proposition. It is pretty simple but surely not nothing. Bush does not like though because it admitting that he lost the war. It is the option he will not stomach. His ego cannot handle that, so the casting about for others to fix his mess continues.

Thursday, January 11, 2007

Big few days in the news

So with the House Dems’ 100 hours is well under way and a couple of successes (minimum wage hike, 9/11 recommendations) already, Pelosi et al are starting the debate on the prescription drug benefit. It is good to see the people’s work being done again.

Next up, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) has announced that he will seek the Democratic nomination for Pres. I have to admit that I like Dodd, despite his vote for the war. I put him in the same tier as John Edwards. Neither would be my first choice in ’08, but we could do a helluva lot worse.

Speaking of Presidents, Bush gave his “New Way Forward” speech last night (second verse same as the first). Color me underwhelmed. It was more of the same bullshit though Bush looked visibly nervous this time. One surprising note was the degree to which he threw his BFF, Joe Lieberman, under the bus.

Acting on the good advice of Senator Joe Lieberman and other key members of Congress, we will form a new, bipartisan working group that will help us come together across party lines to win the war on terror.

Translation: If you don’t like the escalation policy, blame Joe. He said it was OK.

Also, bear in mind that Holy Joe is no longer a Democrat so I am not so sure this can be labeled bipartisan.

Moving on, the Democrats have chosen Denver for the ’08 convention. This is a brilliant choice given the gains the Party has made in the Mountain West. If we are to combat the Republican dominance in the South, we need a strong and effective Party in the West. That area has the greatest growth potential for the progressive message. And seriously, how many times can New York host. NYC is the Billy Crystal of convention cities. Sometimes you have to spice it up.

And in the world of sports, two big ones. First, David Beckham has signed a huge 5 year $250 million deal with the LA Galaxy of MLS. He is easily the best player to sign with a US team since the Seventies when Pele, Beckenbauer, and Chinaglia played for the NY Cosmos.

And last but not least, Barry Bonds has tested positive for amphetamines. Bonds is already under investigation for steroid use and lying under oath about same. I am praying the Major League Baseball does the right thing for the game and takes this opportunity to boot Bands from the league before he breaks Hank Aaron’s lifetime home run record. Not only would Barry’s ejection be sweet poetic justice, it would preserve whatever integrity is left in baseball’s record books.

Tuesday, January 09, 2007

D’Asshole

If you are not familiar with the insane ramblings of Dinesh D’Souza, consider yourself better for it. Atrios got a preview of Dinesh’s latest foray into the madness and gives us a glimpse of this pipsqueak’s sage understanding of American society.

Not going to place bets either way, but it will be interesting to see how wingnuttia responds to Dinesh D'Souza's latest book. From the back cover blurb of the book which showed up in my mail today;

The cultural left in this country is responsible for causing 9/11.

There you go.

Yeah, I don’t have much else to add either.

Dear God, please let this be true

As an inveterate political junky, I watch candidate debates. Early primary debates are especially fun because they are often chaotic and less formal than the money debates later in races. In 2004, I had the best time watching Al Sharpton get his Reverend voice all fired up. Say what you will about this character or his politics, the man stands alone on his ability to weave a web of bullshit for the cameras. He is dazzling and very, very funny.

For that reason, I am so stoked to see that the man may run again in 2008. He, of course, has absolutely no chance of winning the nomination but it will be a hoot watching him, once again, rhetorically smack people around.

So please Reverend, run. Your nation’s comedy writers, cynics, and political junkies need you.

Stirring the pot

The recent mini-war between Islamic Courts Union militias and Ethiopian forces backing the “legitimate” (in this neighborhood, legitimate is somewhat meaningless) Somali national government seemed to be winding down. The Ethiopian troops did a pretty good job of routing out and dispatching the ICU forces. The situation is about as stable as one could hope for; especially in a country that has not functioned worth a damn in a decade and a half.

So maybe I am missing something but it doesn’t seem like the best idea for us to send in AC-130 gunships (basically, this beast is plane-mounted artillery), even if we are going after some Al Qaeda henchmen. Things were getting back to “normal” (again, a relative term in the corner of the world). If I remember correctly, the Somali reaction to our last visit was less that hospitable. Again, maybe I am making a mountain out of a molehill, but this just looks bad.

UPDATE: I wrote the above last night between bouts of what must surely be cholera (XOXO – Lo). This morning I see that the US sent in a couple more missions, with the approval and even endorsement of Somalia’s President Abdullahi Yusuf. Indeed, the whole operation seems to be coordinated between the Somali government, Kenya, and Ethiopia. That makes me feel a whole lot better.

Monday, January 08, 2007

Traffic jam in Richmond

The Pilot has a great piece on the woeful state of affairs in the Commonwealth’s House. Virginia is fast approaching a point in our funding of transportation that the Commonwealth will only be able to afford basic road maintenance. No new projects for gridlocked NoVa and no desperately needed Third Crossing into Hampton Roads. The primary reason we find ourselves in such a fix is the inability of the Republican House to work with the State Senate or the Governor on any sort of compromise that increases revenue. They argue that we need to cut the money from health care and education to fully fund road construction (as if the state’s education resources are some vast reservoir of ready cash). That idea is just unrealistic. There is not enough money in health care or Ed. to fund transportation if we want our schools and hospitals to open their doors. Really, it is just stupid.

The House’s intransigence on new funding (i.e. higher taxes, tolls, fees) means that projects cost more because we wait to start them. The whole thing is penny wise and pound foolish. This madness has gone on for years. Now, with statewide elections coming next year, the logjam may be about to break. Put simply, George Allen’s defeat at the hands of a political neophyte signaled to Virginia’s leaders that no one is safe. Perhaps the fear of going back to civilian life will be enough of a push to get something meaningful done. Otherwise, make sure the next car you buy has comfy seats. You could be there for a while.

Friday, January 05, 2007

New Yorkers looking out for New Yorkers

The inhabitants of NYC get an undeserved reputation for being overbearing, insular, and disconnected. Life in the big city has a way of hardening people, true, but two stories in the news this week soundly debunked the notion that New Yorkers don’t care about their neighbors.

First, there is the guy who put his own life on the line to save a stranger from being crushed by an oncoming subway train.

Wesley Autrey jumped onto the tracks and rolled with 19-year-old Cameron Hollopeter into the trough between the rails at 137th Street station.

Mr Hollopeter, who had suffered a medical problem, was rescued just as a train was coming into the station.

Two cars passed over the men before stopping just inches above them.

The train operator had seen someone on the tracks and put the emergency brakes on.

The New York Times newspaper reported that Mr Hollopeter had suffered a seizure, which sent him convulsing off the platform and onto the tracks.

That is pretty amazing all by itself. Then today, I saw this.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Two passers-by rescued a toddler who fell four stories, scrambling to catch him as he tumbled from a fire escape, police said.

Julio Gonzalez, 43, and Pedro Nevarez, 40, saw 3-year-old Timothy Addo dangling from a Bronx building on Thursday, police said. The boy had crawled out of a window when his baby sitter briefly took her eyes off of him, police said.

"He was hanging on for dear life," Gonzalez said.

Hearing people in the building scream for help as the boy's grip weakened, the men rushed over to position themselves under the fire escape to catch him.

"No one came," Nevarez said. "We knew it was up to us."

The boy tumbled and hit Nevarez in the chest so hard he knocked him off balance, but he bounced into Gonzalez' arms.

Timothy was treated at the hospital for a cut on his forehead.

"He's fine. He's happy. He's smiling," said his mother, 26-year-old Katrina Cosme, who was working at the time of the accident.

Warms the heart, doesn’t it?

Really now

The FBI released a portion of its file on the late former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court William Rehnquist. There were a couple of bombshells. For starters, the man had ten year addiction to painkillers stemming from back problems in the early Seventies. When he finally got off the pills in 1981, he suffered delusions, hallucinations and even what must be called a psychotic episode.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI's file on former Chief Justice William Rehnquist -- made public more than a year after his death -- offers insight into hallucinations and other symptoms of withdrawal that Rehnquist suffered when he was taken off a prescription painkiller in 1981.

A doctor was cited as saying that Rehnquist, an associate justice of the Supreme Court at the time, tried to escape the hospital in his pajamas and imagined that the CIA was plotting against him.

Funny thing that this didn’t come out during his confirmation hearings, don’t you think? Seriously, people freaked out about Ruth Ginsburg because she is a liberal and a woman. But a sitting Justice has a paranoid fantasy about being targeted by the CIA and no one has a problem elevating him to Chief five years later? No? Well OK then.

Also of note, it appears that the FBI was used to investigation witnesses against Rehnquist during his confirmation hearings.

Fifteen years later, during the Reagan administration, the FBI was enlisted to conduct background checks on witnesses who were scheduled to testify against Rehnquist's nomination to become chief justice.

The late Sen. Strom Thurmond, a South Carolina Republican, was chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1986 when Rehnquist was nominated to be chief justice. John Bolton, who resigned in December as President Bush's U.N. ambassador, was an assistant attorney general under Reagan.

"Thurmond just gave these names to Bolton they will testify for the Democrats and we want to know what they are going to say," a Justice Department official told a counterpart at the FBI, according to a memo in Rehnquist's file.

Bolton?!?!?! It never ceases to amaze me that certain people keep popping up in Republican power circles for what seems like eternity. Bolton, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Baker, Perle… These guys are like political zombies. The only way to get rid of them is a metaphorical shot to the head (see Rumsfeld, Donald).

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Yikes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seriously – enter at your own risk. This story is about an otherwise normal calf that was born with two faces. Don’t go look at this at lunch – very, very disturbing.

Our long national nightmare is over

When Gerald Ford uttered those words, he was referring to the nightmare that was the Nixon Administration and the scandals it had wrought. I am cribbing Ford here because that is precisely how I feel now that the 110th Congress has been sworn in and the Democrats have taken the reigns. The Gingrich Revolution is officially dead, as is single party rule. GWB is quite firmly ensconced as the lamest of ducks. Progressives can, once again, step in and staunch the bleeding of the body politic.

To that end, Pelosi and Reid have laid out an extensive and fairly impressive agenda for the first 100 hours and have agreed to essentially freeze out the Republicans in these opening days to guarantee passage. Plenty of Republicans will bitch out their exclusion but I say fuck them. This is exactly the way they behaved for most of the past decade and turnabout is fair play. In fact, I think it is high time that the Democrats take their pound of flesh. Revenge is an excellent deterrent to future misdeeds.

With a hat tip to AmericaBlog, I see that Charlie Rangel, whom I love, is getting into that spirit.

Rep. Charles Rangel has evicted Vice President Dick Cheney from his office in the Capitol, and the Harlem heavyweight is moving into the prime digs today, The Post has learned.

Gilded letters were freshly painted atop the office door yesterday proclaiming "Ways and Means Committee" - confirming that the office now belongs to Rangel, the House panel's new chairman.Sources said Cheney's and his staff's belongings were removed over the holidays.

The new digs give Rangel some of the choicest and most politically central real estate in all of Washington - as well as a measure of sweet revenge.

Good on you Charlie. Give ‘em hell.

Smack

In a much publicized bit o’ bigotry, the Commonwealth’s own Rep. Virgil Goode made some controversial remarks regarding immigration, incoming freshman Muslim Keith Ellison (D-MN) and his determination to take the Oath on the Koran, and the notion of separation of Church and State. He then went on to defend these most indefensible statements. It really was a trifecta of batshit cracker philosophy. Most of the non-knuckle dragging population pounced on Goode and his comments, delivering a well deserved rhetorical tar and feathering.

But Mr. Ellison has landed the absolute knockout blow with sly wit and a brilliant turnabout. This morning, Ellison took his oath and he did indeed swear on a Koran. It was a special one borrowed from the National Archive; special because it came from the personal library of Founding Father and Patron Saint of Virginia, Thomas Jefferson. The fact that Goode represents Jefferson’s birthplace is nothing short of deliciously ironic. TJ himself must have had a good laugh from the Monticello in the sky. Mr. Goode has not been available for comment.

Game, set and match to Keith Ellison!

Wednesday, January 03, 2007

Angel mine

There are times late at night when I am working on some problem for the job and I just can’t do it any more. I hit the wall and my mind begins to wander. Usually, those thoughts lead back to some part of my life involving Lo. Sometimes, I go back to when I first saw her in the dining hall a full year before I met her, beautiful in her casual way but way, way too cool for a lowly freshman like myself to approach. On other nights, the brain takes me to seeing her (we still hadn’t met) at a party at Houston Street where she walked in, sat down on a 12 of Beast Lite she had carried in, pulled a fifth of Beam from her huge jacket, took a swig and then, without missing a beat, said her hellos to the crowd in the front room. That moment still makes me smile.

My nights are filled with moments like this.

You told your mother that you were going to marry me before we were on regular speaking terms. I knew I wanted you when I saw you that day in Owens, triple hippied out in Birks, a Guatemalan sweater, and carrying a vegetarian lunch.

So tonight, the brain took me to our wedding dance. There were 175 people in the room but for a minute, I had you all to myself. And the opening verses mean more today than they did the day before, and the day before that.

Cowboy Junkies – Angel Mine…

He searched for those wings that he knew
that this angel should have at her back.
And although he can't find them
he really don't mind
because he knows they'll grow back.
And he reached for that halo that he knows
that she had when she first caught his eye.
Although his hand came back empty
he's really not worried
because he knows it still shines.

I can't promise that I'll grow those wings
or keep this tarnished halo shined
but I'll never betray your trust
angel mine.

Angel mine…
I am a lucky man indeed.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Upping the ante

By all accounts in the press, the new Iraq “strategy” seems to be escalating the number of troops in country in a renewed attempt to pacify Baghdad and the surrounding environs. That this is a bad idea should be obvious on its face. The fact of the matter is that Bush can’t scale back troop numbers; that would be tantamount to admitting he fucked up. And as we all know, the last thing this crowd can do is fest up to a mistake. So that’s out. He can’t keep troop levels the same either. The current plan has failed. Everyone knows and understands that. Still, the Administration has to be seen doing something to try and fix the mess. The only other option then is sending more soldiers in the fray. Which leads me to the three rules of gambling as taught to me by my father.

The first rule of gambling is to only bet what you can afford to lose. That seems simple but the temptation to break #1 mounts quickly when you hit a losing streak. The second rule is no matter how badly you have lost, you can always dig the hole deeper by staying at the table. A good gambler knows when to cut his loses so that he may fight another day. It is hard to get up from the game when you have gotten your ass handed to you but sometimes, you have to take the beating like a man, then get up and walk away. The third rule of gambling (and really, this is just the law of averages) is that over the long haul, the house always wins.

Following that logic, escalation violates all three rules (as I have defined them anyway). The US has bet and lost more than it can afford already. Our international reputation, 3000 dead troops and half a trillion bucks have already been lost. Throwing in for one more hand is such a long, long shot at this point, it makes no sense; especially when you consider the implications of Rule #3. We are fighting an insurgency/civil war on foreign turf. Despite our superior training and equipment, this is still their house. In such circumstances, if you don’t win big and early, the chances are you are going to lose. The longer you stay at the table, the less luck matters and simple statistics takes over.

History has taught us repeatedly that a determined and supplied insurrection will, over the long term, eventually win. Look at Vietnam vs. the US, India vs. the British Empire, Algeria vs. France, American Colonists vs. the Brits, Mao’s Communists vs. the Chinese Nationalist government, and on and on and on. It is not really a question of if but when. We lost the chance (if there was one and I’m not convinced there was) to win early. Now is the time to get up from the table. By upping the ante, we are ensuring further loses. The only remaining variable is the degree.