I Knew It Was Coming

I was merely only halfway joking when I stated in the post below that it might calm Republicans somewhat in their Dark Age thinking knowing that Sotomayor is probably menopausal. Meaning she no longer has a monthly period thus helping her with her emotions. I was kidding. But I also knew the GOP would not be far behind in announcing their fear that a menstruating woman could not be trusted to serve as a Justice on the United States Supreme Court.

Domestic terrorist and Republican Super Patriot G. Gordon Liddy:

"Let's hope that the key conferences aren't when [Sotomayor]'s menstruating or something, or just before she's going to menstruate. That would really be bad. Lord knows what we would get then."

This is the current Republican Party. They are perpetually in a state of fear that Cavemen will one day be extinct. It's unbelievable the GOP is actually a major national political party. Unbelievable and sickening all at the same time.

My question is where are the women at in denouncing this stuff??

The Gayest Thing I Ever Saw

If there was ever a day to be thankful not to be a Republican watch this "rap video" and it will be today. It's almost embarrassing to watch.

Crusty Old White Men Are Scared To Death!

I swear they're worse than the French.

Karl Rove warns America we should be fearful of having a Latina woman as a Justice since she is capable of making decisions based on emotion.

There is a certain irony in a president who routinely praises America's commitment to "the rule of law" but who picks Supreme Court nominees for their readiness to discard the rule of law whenever emotion moves them.

I cannot believe we are in the 21st century and a major national political party in America is still using 18th and 19th century chauvinist language to argue against a female holding a government office. How can we possibly still be stuck in the rut of 'women are emotional and can't be trusted to make sound decisions?' It's embarrassing just how far we haven't come and just how far a major national party wants us to fall back to.

If it's any comfort to Republicans, I bet Sotomayor no longer has periods but is menopausal. Therefore, her emotions are limited to hot flashes and increased abdominal fat.

100 Days of the Stimulus

I was hoping for a little bit more stimulation actually.

100 days after the president signed his Economic Stimulus Bill, the White House is unveiling its progress in a new report released today. The Obama administration claims over $112 billion has already been obligated and over 150,000 jobs have been saved or created. The key word is "obligated" because the GOP claims only a small fraction of that obligated amount has actually been spent. I'd have to say I agree with them on that.

But then Alan Keyes Michael Steele falls off the deep end by announcing that even though only a small fraction of the total amount has been spent that actually all of it has been spent: "Let's be clear: 100 projects, nearly $1 trillion spent, and 1 million jobs lost doesn't sound like progress to me." Either some has been spent or all, can't have it both ways GOP. And the 1 million jobs lost didn't all just happen since Obama took office. Oh no, unemployment doubled under the GOP Bush administration. Live with it homie.

I think what sent Steele and the GOP over the edge about Obama's stimulus claims was the report actually contained numbers. An accounting method the GOP long ago abandoned.

More Fear From Crusty Old White Men

Yesterday we were made aware of the repercussions of women having "opinions" and having spoken in public. During the days of Cavemen, women weren't allowed to have opinions or speak unless spoken to. So it's understandable that white males in the Republican Party would have personal side effects to the nomination of a non-penis, browned skinned person on the Supreme Court. You have to put yourself in their shoes for a second. In the last two years they have witnessed their whole world crumble apart. Their majority in Congress was overwhelmingly tossed from power, their Great and Brave Leader went down in history as the worst and most unpopular president ever and their newest crusty old white man was thumped in one of the most historical presidential elections ever. It's a terrible time to be a Caveman. What will happen to Glorious War, Freedom Bombs and evildoers?

Today we are made aware of even more consequences from the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, doing such "embraces identity politics."

Deep Thought

America has a black president, female Speaker of the House, black Attorney General, and soon to be its first Hispanic on the Supreme Court, who just also happens to be female. And, and Hillary Clinton is Secretary of State. Welcome to the 21st century America. What happened to all the crusty old white men?

*Update:

Republicans are scared Sotomayor's nomination may present difficulties for crusty old white men.

--Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK): "In the months ahead, it will be important for those of us in the U.S. Senate to weigh [Sotomayor's] qualifications and character as well as her ability to rule fairly without undue influence from her own personal race, gender, or political preferences."

Yes because crusty old white men are free from any undue influence from their own personal race, gender or political preferences. What a freaking joke.

But be more fearful of women with opinions that speak in public.

--Sen. Orrin HATCH (R-UT): In 1998, for the circuit court of appeals, I did vote for her because I believe in giving the president due deference, especially for circuit court of appeals nominations.

But now we’re talking about the most important court on Earth. We’re talking about the court of last resort. We’re talking about a court that everyone of us takes great interest in. And now we’re talking about a woman who has been in the federal judicial system since 1992, who has all kinds of decisions that she’s made, all kinds of opinions that she’s written, who has written articles, who has spoken in public — all of that has to be looked into.

Yes we must be fearful of women with "opinions" and those who've "spoken in public." By all means look into it Mr. Hatch. Republicans, you are a bunch of Cavemen without a single ounce of decency.

More Sotomayor

Reagan adviser David Gergen calls Sotomayor's nomination Obama's "finest hour." Even George W. Bush's second Attorney General and the nation's first Hispanic Attorney General says Sotomayor's nomination "is a powerful message, a powerful message of hope and opportunity of hope."

I'm not sure I can be for it if Gonzo is.

Petraeus Is a Wuss

Following in the form of the tough guy macho talk of Jaz and Kent two weeks ago, Gen. Petraeus must be a wuss. Yes the same man Republicans have praised for the wonderful surge, stated he believes American policy should follow the Geneva Convention and that closing Gitmo is a positive move.

"But doing that in a responsible manner, I think, sends an important message to the world, as does the commitment of the United States to observe the Geneva Convention when it comes to the treatment of detainees."

This guy is obviously a wuss. Splashing water in someone's face never hurt anyone.

Sotomayor

President Obama picks Sonia Sotomayor for the Supreme Court. First Hispanic woman ever selected. Faces confirmation hearing.

1 Corinthians 14:34

Self-labeled Christian college, Liberty University bans Democratic Party.

“The Democratic Party platform is contrary to the mission of Liberty University and to Christian doctrine (supports abortion, federal funding of abortion, advocates repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, promotes the “LGBT” agenda, hate crimes, which include sexual orientation and gender identity, socialism, etc.)”

Yes because 20 years of Republican rule (8 years of Reagan + 4 years of Bush I + 8 years of Bush II = 20) did so much to stop abortion, heal gays, amend the Constitution to enforce Christian Right version of marriage, prevent crime in the least bit, or do anything to lead us away from socialism. In fact, the Republican Party did more to lead us toward socialism than any Party in 80 years. You people really need to get a life and quit worrying about everyone elses.

Radio Host Gets Waterboarded, The Fold Issues Challenge

Chicago radio personality Mancow thought he would prove to all anti-torturists that waterboarding was not torture, that it was merely a splash of water on a face. He described it like this: "They [the terrorists] cut off our heads, we put water on their face." In the Republican Fantasy World, a world where Big Dick Cheney is a tough guy and George Bush is the greatest president ever, waterboarding is splashing water in someone's face. Mancow set out to prove how weak and unmanly Democrats and liberals really are.

Except things didn't go so well for big tough guy Mancow. He lasted at most 6-7 seconds before he gave up. Afterward he stated it was way worse than he thought and "is such an odd feeling to have water poured down your nose with your head back...It was instantaneous...and I don't want to say this: absolutely torture."

Poor Mancow. He had to reverse his stance live on the air. Like Steve Benen says, if it wasn't torture we wouldn't have done it. Of course it's torture. It's meant to make people tell us information they wouldn't under normal circumstances. In the case of Bush's state-sanctioned torture program it is also so tormenting that it makes people confess to things that are outright lies, like connections between Iraq and al Qaeda.

So I am now formally challenging Kent at Right From Left, who specifically stated on this blog that waterboarding was not torture, to be waterboarded and tell the whole world it's not torture. I'd like to see him last more than 6-7 seconds actually. Surely he can beat out Mancow. Come on Kent. A manly, macho conservative Bush-lover and Cheney admirer like yourself can handle it, can't you?

*Update:

Where you at Kent? Got an email this morning from an old college buddy who is a Navy Seal and he said he would be happy to commence the waterboarding for you.

"Barr, where is this guy? I'v e been water boarded twice and would have confessed to killing my little sister who is alive and well right now. Tell him I'll cut the 7ft. plank right now and have a field day with him. That goes for any of your readers who buy in to Cheney's bullsh*t."

Any takers? Come on tough Republicans. Man up.

**Update:

Video of Mancow being tortured waterboarded.

50 Gitmo Prisoners Cleared For Transfer: Bring 'Em to Illinois

AP is reporting 50 Gitmo detainees have been approved for transfer to other facilities. That's good. Bring them to Illinois, we need the jobs. And our Correctional Officers would have no problems handling them. We are a Democratic state and aren't scared like Republicans are.

Porn Star to Challenge Vitter?

Porn actress Stormy Daniels filed this week the beginnings of a U.S. Senate campaign for 2010. Daniels would be challenging incumbent senator David Vitter.

Let's all remember who Vitter is. He is a staunch so-called and self-labeled Christian conservative who ran his 1998 congressional race on the immoral values of President Bill Clinton. Turns out during that time Vitter was frequenting a whore house in New Orleans and was wrapped up in the infamous DC Madam scandal. Vitter later said that he had spoken to God about all this and that was all that needed to be said. He's since had no further comment on his immoral behavior. Normally I could care less about people's personal lives. But Vitter is a classic example of Republican hypocrisy. Vitter claims gay marriage is a perversion and an attack on marriage. Apparently cheating on your wife with the opposite sex is perfectly acceptable. It's only when same sex people hook up that it's a perversion and an attack on marriage. It's almost worth moving to Louisiana to vote for Stormy Daniels, plus I might need to check out one of her movies too.

Cheney Still Tries to Link Iraq with al Qaeda

In his speech Big Dick Cheney still can't get past the fact Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11. Cheney also tries to make the case that torture was rare, only happened to three men and provided valuable intelligence. That's just not the case at all.

How possibly can the Party of "moral values" really claim torture should be part of the American justice system?

This is an easy one to decipher. Dick Cheney was an integral part of the last 8 years of miserable failure. He was one of the main driving forces for invading Iraq and diverting attention away from the country actually responsible for 9/11. He is almost single handily responsible for two ongoing endless wars and the worst financial crisis in 80 years. Only George Bush bears more responsibility than Cheney. Not one thing Cheney has told us about Iraq, Afghanistan or America has been true in the last 8 years. Hilariously the guy co-responsible for all that has wrought our country to its knees still insists Iraq had something to do with 9/11, that torture is great as a state-sanctioned policy and that anyone who disagrees is only helping the terrorists.

He's an embarrassment to our country.

Too Dangerous

When is the GOP going to argue the four men arrested on terrorist charges of blowing up buildings in NYC are too dangerous to detain in U.S. prisons on U.S. soil? C'mon GOP, be consistent.

Speaking Duel

I'm all for the speaking duel supposedly prepped for today by the MSM. Dick Cheney is a has been. Together with George Bush he helped create some of the worst 8 combined years in American history. His thesis today will be that we should continue the American internment camp at Gitmo, that state-sanctioned torture is a wonderful thing and Forever War against evildoers is our only course of action. All this from a draft-dodger who did his very best to avoid military service for his country.

*Update:

Full text of Obama's speech here.

Highlight reference:

As our efforts to close Guantanamo move forward, I know that the politics in Congress will be difficult. These issues are fodder for 30-second commercials and direct mail pieces that are designed to frighten. I get it. But if we continue to make decisions from within a climate of fear, we will make more mistakes. And if we refuse to deal with these issues today, then I guarantee you that they will be an albatross around our efforts to combat terrorism in the future.

I have confidence that the American people are more interested in doing what is right to protect this country than in political posturing. I am not the only person in this city who swore an oath to uphold the Constitution - so did each and every member of Congress. Together we have a responsibility to enlist our values in the effort to secure our people, and to leave behind the legacy that makes it easier for future Presidents to keep this country safe.

Abortion Labels

Awwww finally. Via Steve Benen, I found some more evidence to back up my claim that political labels are stupid. More specifically the abortion debate labels in America are about as inaccurate and lazy as one will find anywhere.

Last week neocons and right wingers were salivating at two polls showing for the first time ever more people considered themselves pro-life versus pro-choice. Typically a person who is pro-life would be against abortion. But even according to the two polls from last week, 74% believed abortion should be a choice sometimes. Such data makes the pro-life label very inaccurate.

CNN released a much more accurate way of polling such responses by asking do you think Roe v. Wade should be overturned. 68% believe Roe should be left alone. In other words, a huge, overwhelming majority believe a woman has a right to privacy and that abortion should be a choice. Does that make America more pro-choice than pro-life? Nope. Just means Americans do support keeping abortion legal.

Tea Bagger of the Day

Kent claims Democrats are in disarray.

This comes on the heels of a new Gallup poll showing Republican identification is at its lowest levels ever and has witnessed steep declines in every category except its church going old white man base.

Senate Dems Hold Up Obama Gitmo Closing

Witness incompetence at work: A large majority of Democratic lawmakers cheered on Bush's rush to war in Iraq and never once set any conditions for the president to do anything less than as he pleased with not only putting this country on the path of endless war, but also in creating a concentration camp where the president ruled we could hold prisoners indefinitely and use systematic torture techniques at will. All of this was allowed by Congress with no oversight whatsoever and with very, very few Democrats ever speaking up.

But now, Harry Reid and his Democratically-controlled Senate has decided the new president must come up with a plan before his requests correcting the last president's blunders can receive any federal funding.

Requiring a plan before we got into this mess would have been nice. As encouraged as I am to finally see Congressional oversight return to Washington, it's too much way too late. Harry Reid, you're a moron.

*Update:

With this news coming from Greg Sargent that Harry Reid could possibly change his mind concerning Gitmo if and when he sees a written plan from President Obama, I really think it's time I publicly call for Reid to step aside. I usually avoid such interactions mainly because what I say means very little, but it's becoming more apparent every day that Harry Reid is not capable to continue leading the Senate Democrats. He's unpopular in his home state and squeamish when it actually comes time to deliver real leadership. With Durbin next in line-- my homestate senator-- I think it gives a little too much power to Illinois. So my next choice what have to be Dodd. But it is time for Reid to resign as majority leader.

GOP Scares Itself

The Party that has done more to socialize this country than any fundamental movement in 80 years, has backtracked in officially labeling their rival Party as the "Democrat Socialist Party."

I'm sure it has nothing to do with the realization that they are responsible for this march toward socialism of which they are apparently now against. They are idiots and can't possibly comprehend anything that isn't on their Fox News teevee set.

GOP Chairman: We're Back Baby!

Today in a Politico op-ed, figurehead of the Republican Party Alan Keyes Michael Steele declared the GOP has turned a corner.

Republicans across America – from our national and state leaders down to our local activists and grassroots supporters – have to get about the business of telling families how Republican principles of less spending, lower taxes, responsive and responsible government, personal freedom and strong national defense stand in stark contrast to the reckless policies we’ve seen from the president and Congressional Democrats in four short months.

There's just one thing wrong with all this. There is not a single shred of evidence to point to that suggests less spending, lower taxes, responsive government, personal freedom and strong national defense are principles of the Republican Party.

In the twenty years of Republican rule (8 years of Reagan + 4 years of Bush I + 8 years of Bush II = 20) not one time did they cut spending, create a responsive government, strengthen personal freedoms or do any better than the Democrats at creating a strong national defense.

In fact, spending rose every year during 20 years of Republican rule. The only Repub who actually cut taxes was Bush II and are nothing in comparison to Obama's recent tax cuts, which are larger and deeper than anything Bush and the GOP gave America. Responsive government is but a figment of every Republican's imagination; government grew larger and more unresponsive under Republican rule than any time since FDR. And personal freedoms shrunk dramatically with the Patriot Act, warrantless spying, and concentration camps. Invading a country just for the smell of it has done very little to strengthen our national defense, needless to say.

No where in the history of America is there any evidence that even remotely suggests once Republicans are in power do they actually govern with their so-called core principles. The sad part is if you talk to a Republican they really believe their entire history is loaded with examples of their principles.

*Update:

Yep he said it. Chairman Steele said change is being delivered by tea bags!! That's right Tea Baggers; you're absolutely official now.



God it's gotta suck having the only energized remnant of your party cheering for tea bags.

Don't Quit Your Day Job

Newest Fox News poll asks all the relevant questions. Like, 'who is more likely to be muzzled first, Joe Biden or Obama's new dog Bo?' And somehow a very popular president seems to have unpopular policies, or at least when you phrase the question as 'do you want bigger government in your life.' Seriously, it's an official Fox News poll. Right wingers will love it! Wheeeeeee!

No Party for Intellectual Conservatism

Last week former Reagan-appointed judge Richard Posner wrote on his blog that conservative intellectuals have no party. His reasoning was that the new modern GOP is founded in emotion, religion, American Exceptionalism, the rejection of science and "fiscal incontinence." My question to him is if all that constitutes modern conservatism then what in the world is intellectual conservatism? I mean, they have such leading thinkers like Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Jonah Goldberg and Bill O'Reilly how possibly can intellectualism not be defined by their thoughts, speeches and writings?

I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest right wingers will insist some sort of conspiracy theory forced Posner to write such a thing and that his post only proves the popularity of GOP ideals in "real American" society.

Finding the Link

Interesting pick up from Zachary Roth this morning. It seems top level Bushies, including that of Big Dick Cheney, bragged in 2004 about gaining evidence about Iraq-al Qaeda links by interrogating detainees at Gitmo. One Army Lt. Col. even admits such links were something "they were tasked to look at." This seems to be right on par with intel officials who stated they were ordered to torture detainees to get false confessions about Iraq-al Qaeda links.

Labels Are Stupid

Couple polls recently show a trend edging slightly toward a more conservative view on abortion in this country. Personally I'd like to see more than a weeks worth of polling to prove a trend; nonetheless, this is the first national poll to show a majority of Americans are pro-life.

Here's the problem with such data. It measures either pro-life or pro-choice but leaves out people like me who are neither. I'm personally opposed to abortion but believe Roe v. Wade should be left alone. I don't see that question being posed in either the Pew poll or the Gallup poll. I also don't think abortion should be used as birth control. But then again I've never been a knocked-up crack whore either so I'm not sure what I would do under those circumstances. And that's my point. Until you've walked in someone else's shoes keep your mouth shut.

Now let's look at the data that best shows my point of view on the subject. When you take the Gallup poll and look at people who believe abortion should be legal in some circumstances but not all (as close as you'll get to me with this data) you'll see that 74% think abortion should be a choice sometimes.

How is that possible? When asked the question do you consider yourself to be pro-choice or pro-life, many people who think abortion should be legal sometimes consider themselves to be pro-life. In other words, a bunch of so-called pro-lifers are really not against abortion. Thus proving just how ridiculous labels are in politics.

Tea Baggers 2.0

The extremely popular Republican Tea Bagger Parties sponsored and promoted by Fox News have reached the second phase of their orgy. This time the GOP is re-branding it as "Tea Bagger 2.0"

Trust me no one can be happier to see the Tea Baggers return than me. It's almost like when Kathy Lee Gifford announced her return to daytime television, without all the expensive eyeliner (well, wait, never mind. I think eyeliner is involved with the Tea Baggers too). It's going to be a feel good time for everyone.

Here's what super tough guy and Governor of South Carolina had to say yesterday:

Let me give you a disclaimer up front, which is it won't be as good as the first round of tea parties. But I suspect there'll be Tea Party 2.0 and 3.0 and 4.0 and 5.0, and go down the list, because what I saw at the original tea party was a level of political energy that I've not seen in the last 15 years that I've been involved in the political process, and I think it's important that that energy gets harnessed toward creating change toward the conservative side.

I guess Sanford didn't watch the 4 million people who showed up at President Obama's inauguration. I'm suspecting with Tea Bagger 3.0 they will have worked out all the kinks, crashes, freezes and everyone laughing at them part.

This is a great day for America!

Deep Thought

Seriously just let this soak in.

The United States of America, systematically tortured people to get them to confess to false accusations so we could invade a country that had nothing to do with 9/11.

Stimulus Update

Remember that fast-acting stimulus package passed by Congress and signed by the president over three months ago? It was a package designed to jump start the American economy and put people back to work. The White House is reporting some 90 days since its passage only 3% of the historic $787 billion has been spent. Yikes!

Of the $28 billion already spent, more than half of that went to the states for medical assistance.

There remains $759 billion yet to be spent!

I'm all for Keynesian economics but its main thesis is to stimulate the economy. Three percent of the largest spending bill ever passed doesn't stimulate anything. It's a pretty practical matter really. The stimulus bill was a package designed to be spent. It won't work unless the money is spent. Very easy even for someone like me. I'm willing to suggest the biggest reason the money is not filtering quickly is the large bureaucracy currently in place. Way too many channels for the money to pass through. Or just maybe there aren't enough channels to filter the money through. Maybe we should pass another stimulus bill that designs the bureaucracy to pass the first stimulus money. Interesting if I do say so myself.

Important Developments on Bush's Torture Program

A former FBI agent present during the waterboarding of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed testified to the Senate Judiciary subcommittee yesterday that such torture methods provided no information.

Secondly, Robert Windrem, who covered terrorism for NBC, reports:

*Two U.S. intelligence officers confirm that Vice President Cheney’s office suggested waterboarding an Iraqi prisoner, a former intelligence official for Saddam Hussein, who was suspected to have knowledge of a Saddam-al Qaeda connection.

Two very important items. The first suggests torture didn't work. The second suggests we used torture to get people to confess to false accusations. In this case it was to confess to fake ties of Iraq and al Qaeda, items the government knew weren't true but wanted a confession to anyway. The reason for a fake confession was to gain a justification to invade Iraq. Lies piled on top of lies. I think we all should let it sink in for the full effect: We, the United States of America, tortured people to get them to confess to false accusations so we could invade a country that had nothing to do with 9/11.

*Update:

Jesse Ventura, someone who has been waterboarded, says give him a water board, Dick Cheney and one hour and he would have him confessing to the Sharon Tate murders.



KING: You were a Navy SEAL.

VENTURA: That’s right. I was water boarded, so I know — at SERE School, Survival Escape Resistance Evasion. It was a required school you had to go to prior to going into the combat zone, which in my era was Vietnam. All of us had to go there. We were all, in essence — every one of us was water boarded. It is torture.

KING: What was it like?

VENTURA: It’s drowning. It gives you the complete sensation that you are drowning. It is no good, because you — I’ll put it to you this way, you give me a water board, Dick Cheney and one hour, and I’ll have him confess to the Sharon Tate murders.

GOP Set To Approve A Resolution Calling Democratic Party "Socialists"

Welcome to the show. Take a seat to the far right as possible and enjoy your stay. WHEEEEEEEEE!

Obama Reverses Course On Torture Photos

Call it a 180 or whatever but it's a different course no doubt.

"The president was concerned about harm to the troops," White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Wednesday afternoon. "The president, as you all know, met with his legal team last week because he did not feel comfortable with the release of the photos."

Gibbs added, "the president reflected on this case and believes that they have the potential to pose harm to the troops. ... Nothing is added by the release of the photos."

Must be some photographs. I'm sure they are very pleasant. Nothing is added by their release except of course more proof that torture was a state-sanctioned policy of the Bush administration.

Please Give Us More War, Or At Least Tell Us How Great War Is

Ben Smith's latest Politico blog post is worth a read if you haven't already. For some reason, maybe because he's deranged, Dick Cheney hasn't realized that his opinion no longer matters. A man with five deferments from military service and who hasn't seen an ounce of combat a day in his life (unless you consider the time he shot his friend in the face with a shotgun while bird hunting) can't get enough Glorious War footage on his Fox News teevee set. Now that no one is listening to him, he's decided to travel around the country and tell people that invasion is the only thing that can possibly save us from annihilation by the evildoers.

"Everybody's in a giant conspiracy to achieve a different objective than the one we want to achieve," Cheney said.

The negotiations are "bound to fail unless we are perceived as very credible" in threatening military action against Iran, he said.

"Most of the other nations out there are willing to live with a nuclear-armed Iran" he said, citing France, Germany and the United Kingdom in particular.

Cheney was echoing his daughter's comments during the formal debate at Rockefeller University on Manhattan's East Side.

It's all about talking tough. Of course someone who ran and hid when his country drafted him five times into the military would have to compensate his lack of duty by proving how macho he is with tough, manly words of Forever War. Just as long as he's not doing the fighting that is.

Deep Thought

Kathryn Jean Lopez might be the ugliest woman I've ever seen in my life. She's like a cross between Rosie O'Donnell and Kathy Bates. Yikes, she's just scary!

Editor's Note: I love how she conveniently leaves out Harriet Miers when declaring we should look toward past Republican selections for females on the Supreme Court. Gosh it's just so easy to forget George Bush and these last 8 years.

Cowards Till The Very End

There are some real simple issues to point out about the GOP's stance on torture. It's the same as it is with anything else that Republicans have anything to do with. Talking about torture makes them feel tough. That's it. They feel tough when they tell people not to mess with us because we either will kill you or torture you to the point you'd wish we had killed you. It's the same thing when talking about Forever War or about making government smaller and everything in-between. They feel macho and their psychological disorder that anyone who can't out macho them is weak is what motivates them to wake up every morning.



It's so obvious that we have moved so far from the point in the conversation about the morality of torture to the very acceptance that torture was a state-sanctioned policy of the United States. Republicans are mad because President Obama has declared torture out of the question, not that torture is immoral. How did we get to this point?? If Republicans want to have a debate on torture then I'm all for it.

I'm Back

My power is back on!!

Deficit Gets Bigger

Taking a break from my inland hurricane blogging, I am impatiently approaching my fifth straight day without power. At the moment I'm on gasoline generated power that is loud and about as fuel efficient as a lawn mower. Trying to catch up on the last four days of civilization I've missed out on, I saw where the White House announced the budget deficit will likely hit $1.84 trillion this year. The new number surpasses the $1.7 trillion figure released earlier in the year by the Obama administration. That's a dang ton of money. I'm surprised it's not over $2 trillion honestly.

The administration still maintains it will slash that amount in half by 2012. Good luck with that. The best way to crack down on deficit spending would be to eliminate corporate tax loop holes and corporate tax evasion such as corporations that conveniently move their headquarters to some deserted island to avoid paying taxes and to cheat the government out of tax revenue. That would make a big dent in the deficit. The second best thing to do would be to spend less. Both answers are easier said than done but if revenues do not rise then spending must slow down dramatically. Unless the stimulus spending kicks in rather soon, we all could be in for a long, hot summer. And I better have my power back on before then.

More On Inland Hurricane

Like most people in Southern Illinois last Friday I was gearing up for graduation weekend at SIU. As it turned out Mother Nature would have much different plans for all of us. Sustained hurricane strength winds, combined with torrential rainfall left widespread damage throughout Egypt early Friday afternoon. The disaster filled weekend has yet to end. As I type this I'm still without power but have been graciously loaned a generator to get through the next couple days. The blog will be slowly returning to normal; in the meantime, however, I want to follow up a bit on what exactly hit Southern Illinois on Friday.

Here's a story from a local newspaper whose town just missed out on all the fun by a matter of miles.

Here's the National Weather Services rundown.

Check out this .gif image where you can actually see the storm has an eye comparable to that of a real hurricane.

Here's a jpeg radar image of the same thing.

Very, very odd considering we are a thousand miles from any ocean. It has been quite the weekend actually. Exhausting actually.

Inland Hurricane

Sorry everyone but on Friday afternoon Southern Illinois was hit with an inland hurricane. Yes I didn't know they existed either. But I believe it now. The Fold's world headquarters (my house) has been without power since the hurricane hit. Needless to say, I haven't been able to update the blog since then. Things have been pretty hectic with extensive damage throughout the region. Word is we might not have power until Wednesday or Thursday. So do bare with me if you can.

Here's some local coverage of the storm.

Marion Daily

The Southern Illinoisan

Here are some short amateur videos of the storm and devastation.

Fear What Scares You

Fear. That's really all the GOP has left. They accomplished quite a bit using fear tactics the last 10 years. We were scared into believing an invasion of Iraq was dire to secure our homeland. The result of not invading would have been a large mushroom cloud over large American cities we were told. Nonetheless, had mushroom clouds come it would not have been Iraq doing the exploding. In fact those who attacked us on 9/11, those who love the thought of mushroom clouds and those who persist in waging acts of terrorism against our country are still free as can be. If it had not been for GOP fear that forced us to turn our attention away from the people responsible for 9/11 and toward a country that had absolutely nothing to do with it, things would be much different today. But we heeded to their fear-mongering.

In 2004 fear was used to scare voters into thinking a vote against George Bush was a vote against God. The very future of our country was at stake and Bush was being led by God to save us from evildoers. Fear drove the GOP into instituting torture as a state-sanctioned policy of the United States. Fear led the GOP to illegally wiretap American citizens without warrants-- all in the name of security. Fear was used to silence critics. Anyone who dared speak out against Bush and his government had their patriotism immediately questioned. Their worth as an American lay at the very framework of American society for anyone who dared question the leadership of those who would keep us safe were not real Americans. Everyone was either with George Bush or against him. No middle ground. No dissent. Fear ruled the day.

Today the GOP realized fear again would help them regain their footing. Their "Keep Terrorists Out of America Act" is designed to keep Gitmo from closing and to keep the federal government from relocating prisoners to the mainland and into our prison system. They want to scare people into believing President Obama wants to move Gitmo prisoners to a neighborhood near you. They are demented to a point I'm not sure there can be anything more unpatriotic than to accuse the president of intentionally wanting to harm citizens. They want people to run around in fear at all times. Because if you are scared you are more likely to do as you're told. Fear is a control tactic for the GOP. Remember these are the same people who scared us into invading Iraq, scared us into thinking God was on our side and used fear to create 8 years of the worst and most unpopular presidential administration in history.

I understand Republicans don't like numbers as evidenced by their numberless budget last month, but here's some food for thought. During WWII America held some 450,000 Axis Powers prisoners on the U.S. mainland. About 245 prisoners are held at Gitmo. Our legal system can definitely handle the load.

Good News For Repubs

Good news for Republicans Charlie Crist, Mark Foley and Larry Craig. Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-AL) says he could support a Supreme Court Justice with "gay tendencies." Bad news, though, for full fledged gays since you can't be decided one way or the other. My question is what if you just hold your mouth open, does that count as a tendency or a flamer?

Obama Proposes $17 billion in Cuts

Classic Republican Fantasy World scenario. President Obama proposes $17 billion be cut from the federal budget totaling 121 proposed program in eliminations and curtailments. Fox News and the GOP mock it.

Fox News calls it a "modest" cut, claims Obama is taking a scalpel to the budget rather than an axe. Sen. Judd Gregg, (R-NH), the ranking member of the Senate Budget Committee, says he is not impressed and House Minority Leader John Boehner says he wants "far more" in the way of cuts. Where have they been for 8 solid years?

As predicted, Republicans have all of a sudden returned to being so-called fiscal conservatives again. Let's see what their track record of fiscal conservatism is when they are actually in power and have the means to live up to their inner-core principles: Not one single penny was ever cut from 8 George Bush budgets. Never, not one single time, did the GOP vote against a Bush budget allowing for the largest deficit in American history. At the hands of the GOP, the largest surplus in history was turned into the largest deficit in history. As if that's not enough to spoil any record of self-proclaimed conservatism, Republicans while in charge of the federal government instituted the largest socialist expansion of prescription drug coverage ever. Their 2006 budget contained over 14,000 pork projects and in 8 years not only did they not cut a single penny, they doubled federal spending!!

These are the same people telling us today that Obama's $17 billion in cuts is "modest" and doesn't go far enough. There is not one single reason to ever believe anything they say about conservatism or fiscal responsibility. They have absolutely no track record of ever living up to the principles they now demand from a Democratic president. Why they are in charge of anything is a gross joke to the country. They are masochistically sick, every last one of them.

Limbaugh Chides Powell About Courage

Yesterday, Gen. Powell rightfully mentioned in a speech that the Republican Party would be better off not to heed the words of Limbaugh. Der Führer's response this afternoon was to call for Powell to leave the Party adding “I don’t care what Colin Powell says. This kind of stuff is said about me three times a day … and Colin Powell is just another liberal. He’s just mad at me because I’m the one person in the country who had the guts to explain [the endorsement], there can be no other explanation for it.”

No other explanation for it, Limbaugh has the guts-- the courage-- to stand up in the face of adversity facing this country and stare it down. He is the most patriotic person to ever live. The Grandest example of servitude to our nation and hands down the head of the GOP.

The Leader of the Republican Party is a man with two deferments from combat service in Vietnam-- a time when his country needed him the most-- three time divorcee, and a convicted drug dealer. There's really no need to define Gen. Powell's service to this country. For the sake of distinguishing courage from outright slander and delusion, it's necessary if for a brief moment. Powell served two tours in Vietnam earning a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and the Army Commendation Medal. In all he spent over 30 years in the U.S. Army serving multiple posts including Chairman of the Joints Chief during the Gulf War. It's an exemplary record of service for his country the least of which is decorated with blood-stained courage from beginning to end.

In comparison, Limbaugh's service to this country doesn't equal the cyst on his ass that he used as an excuse to avoid combat during Vietnam of when he was of prime war fighting age. He's a draft dodger that earns $40 million a year to spread the most filthy, vicious, demented lies about people who do not bow down to worship his every word.

Needless to say, Gen. Powell is a Republican who has dedicated every ounce of his being to this country. But he's a Republican that Rush Limbaugh no longer wants in his Party because Powell does not support the vile that spews from the mouth of their Leader. In the modern GOP not supporting Limbaugh is grounds for dismissal. The Brown Shirts will soon adhere to Rush's order and see to it that Powell be struck from their roster. Marching lockstep, the GOP continues on its path of self-destruction.

Obama Busted Red Handed

This is one of the things you gotta love about the internet. I first saw this on ProPublica, a site that is amazing in its coverage. Last week President Obama's whitehouse.gov site was caught in what appears to be making drastic changes to language on some important issues. Most importantly were Iraq and gay/lesbian support.

The change that is getting the most attention is Obama's earlier pledge to support the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Throughout his run for the presidency Obama routinely made mention of his support for equal rights and led many to believe the military's 'don't ask, don't tell' policy would be one of his first repealed decisions. After 100 days in office there has been no repeal of the policy and now revelation of his support for DOMA has been cleared from the site.

Originally the whitehouse.gov site read:

• Support Full Civil Unions and Federal Rights for LGBT Couples: President Obama supports full civil unions that give same-sex couples legal rights and privileges equal to those of married couples. Obama also believes we need to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and enact legislation that would ensure that the 1,100+ federal legal rights and benefits currently provided on the basis of marital status are extended to same-sex couples in civil unions and other legally-recognized unions. These rights and benefits include the right to assist a loved one in times of emergency, the right to equal health insurance and other employment benefits, and property rights.

Today it reads:

• He supports full civil unions and federal rights for LGBT couples and opposes a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage.

No mention whatsoever about repealing DOMA. Busted! ProPublica's tracking software is an excellent way to hold politicians accountable for their pledges. And it's already proven effective. After complaints were made about the Obama administration deleting support for 'dont' ask, don't tell' the White House quickly added the language back to their site. So far the same has not been done for DOMA. Realizing these people work for us makes a big difference.

Say It Ain't So Moe

There’s always been something that gets me hung up on the portrayal of the recent Democratic electoral success. I’m not suggesting that the Dems have created a new world order or anything like that, but I do believe they have accomplished quite a bit these last two years. So when I read stuff like this from Moe Lane, his lackluster acknowledgment of how things have vastly changed gives me pause…and then immediate laughter.

For the record, I like reading Moe and could care less about his argument with Barney Frank. Or about his disagreement with the Dems being a big tent. Having a Republican say the Party that just overwhelmingly elected the first black president with majority support from every demographic except the over 65 white crowd, is not an argument that will gain traction outside of the Republican Fantasy World.

Instead what immediately jumps out at me is this:

“The leadership (which is somewhat more liberal than its current Congressional roster, and very much more so than the rank and file) have been throwing this inclusion line around, with admittedly some success: but they have no intention of actually living up to it.”

“[A]dmittedly some success?” Really? Had the GOP accomplished anything remotely similar to what the Democrats have done in the last two years all we would hear about is how great and superior the Republican Party is. To be clear, what the GOP did in ’94 was no small feat, yet hardly the revolution it was named by Republicans. Within two years the Repubs lost House and Senate seats barely hanging onto Congressional power and failed miserably at the presidency. By 2000 it had already lost the Senate, until 2002 at least.

In 2006 the Democrats took back both the House and Senate and in 2008 added to both majorities and won the presidency. The Dem majorities today in government are far larger than anything the Republican Revolution ever produced. “Some success” indeed.

Part of Moe’s reluctance to label it anything greater than “some success” is due in large part to the Republican belief the Dems are “liberal” and that the GOP is still “real America.” Instead of admitting defeat they just blame the other side for cheating. Maybe I'm reading too much into it and Moe is acknowledging the last two years just not to my delight.

A Look Back in Time

Hahahahahahhahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahahhahahahahahahahaha!!!!

Thank God these people no longer run our country.

Great Patriots, Unite!

Is it just me or does anyone else find it odd that it's the tough talking, ultra-capitalist, super-conservative Republicans who are promulgating revolution and overthrowing the ruling class? In other words, the political form of a society wherein the proletariat Patriot is victorious in overthrowing the bourgeoisie Democrats will be a true democracy.

This is serious stuff. They are running around the country inciting revolution against the tyranny of a ruling class. Read Big Love Romney's words again in the context of Che or Marx. Not only is it victimization, it's socialist innuendo.

Bereft and They Know It

Trying desperately to remain relevant in today's political discourse, the Republican Party has embarked on some new initiatives to re-brand themselves to the American people. Over the weekend was their first public outreach. In between their self ranting and totally false suggestions that they are "mainstream America" and that they are the true descendants of the American Revolution, the Republican group took questions from some voters about real issues facing real Americans-- you know the kind of people Republicans claim to be. One of the best questions was in regards to rising insurance rates that smother small businesses and how to fix this system. The question came from the owner of the restaurant and small business that was hosting the event.

Eric Cantor's response is all one needs to fully understand this latest round of tripe from the GOP.

Instead of actually offering solutions to help the small business owner, Cantor said, "that should be a sure sign we ought to be promoting anything that can try to bring health care costs down.” You think? His response essentially was 'we don't have one.' A good way to promote a plan that would bring down health care costs would be first to have a plan to offer. But the GOP has no plan. Seriously, there is no plan, no alternative offer by the GOP, unless we consider their half-witted attempt that we should privatize and allow capitalism to run its course as a plan.

Check it out for yourself, the GOP website under "Solutions" and then "health care" has not one solution or alternative plan to help the small business owner or anyone in America. It's a press release center that immediately attacks anything the president or a Democrat might say about health care. And that's exactly what the GOP is and what their latest re-branding effort is as well. It's a place where Republicans can get together with some press involved, call themselves Great Patriots and the true bearers of the Revolution, bump peter heads, and claim that they are Mainstream "Real America." It's the same old tune, fiddle and guitar. It's lipstick on an elephant. I'm so glad these people are no longer in charge of this country.

The Specter of Politics

There is something entirely disingenuous about Arlen Specter's Party switch. I read once that in 1980 he first ran as a Republican not because of any loyalty to Republican core principles of big government, fiscal irresponsibility and war without end, but because he didn't really want to mess with Democratic primaries in Pennsylvania (they tend to get rather messy). As it seems, Party politics are something he's never been a big fan of. That can be respectable for most people but unless you want to be an Independent and he has that option, Party politics comes with the territory. Maybe Specter can be summed up as being his own man, and if you include that to mean all the self-serving perks along with it, then I would agree with you. Right now I'd like to see Specter get beat in the Democratic primary. I'm also willing to bet Specter is either going to support the president's agenda or not even bother with that primary.

The Return of Big Love

"We are the party of the revolutionaries, they [Democrats] are the party of the monarchists." This from a guy who belongs to a cult.

It All Boils Down To Winning Elections

It will come as no surprise to anyone the GOP thinks the best way to regain its footing as a serious national party will be to oppose President Obama's nominee for the Supreme Court. Just as they have not supported one single item the very popular president has issued in this year, they will again raise ruckus over the fact that the best way to get your people where you want them is to win elections. For some deranged reason Republicans believe they are mainstream. Nothing could be farther from the truth, however.