Headlines - Friday September 24

 

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WTF?

 

Prison camp staff are making no plans for the lifetime detention of 48 captives who the Obama administration has determined will not be released even if they are never charged with a crime, the admiral in charge of the detention center said Wednesday.

 

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"When I hear Democrats griping and groaning and saying, 'Well, you know, the health care plan didn't have a public option;' and I don't know, 'The financial reform -- there was a provision here that I think we should have gotten better';  I say, folks, wake up. This is not some academic exercise."
--  Obama, barking at his base for unknown reasons, Link 

 

Sir, I think you have it wrong.
The failure here does NOT belong to the people who voted for you.
 
Face the facts or not, you're down 25% in general but maybe 50% with Independents.
You have lost them and they are gone.  They have turned their backs on you.

Things might've been different had you chosen to come to work
back when they were considering leaving you, but that didn't happen.

 

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Unprecedented For the first time in the history of the republic, lower court nominees are being blocked by the threat of fillibuster. Previously, home-state Senators were defered to on matters of appointees to US District Court judgeships, and if the home-state Senators had no objections, they were granted an up-or-down vote. The lower courts are where policy is interpreted and the limits and boundaries of it's application are determined. They are trying to destroy the government, top to bottom, in a fit of pique over being rejected. And voters seem poised to give them yet more power. WTF is wrong with people?

 

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The Richie Rich's hope the masses never figure it out: "Americans vastly underestimate the degree of wealth inequality in America, and we believe that the distribution should be far more equitable than it actually is, according to a new study. ... Or, as the study's authors put it: "All demographic groups -- even those not usually associated with wealth redistribution such as Republicans and the wealthy -- desired a more equal distribution of wealth than the status quo." ... The report (pdf) "Building a Better America -- One Wealth Quintile At A Time" by Dan Ariely of Duke University and Michael I. Norton of Harvard Business School, shows that across ideological, economic and gender groups, Americans thought the richest 20 percent of our society controlled about 59 percent of the wealth, while the real number was closer to 84 percent. ... More interesting than that, the report says, is that the respondents  believed the top 20 percent should own only 32 percent of the wealth. Respondents with incomes over $100,000 per year had similar answers to those making less then $50,000."

 

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Herbert: Two Different Worlds

 

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Documents show 'Bush team wanted Iraq war from start'

 

This is news? I'm so old I remember reading this page in Paul O'Neill's book and wondering why Bush was planning or a Saddamless Iraq days after he was appointed and many months before 9/11 even happened. 

 

War of aggression is a War Crime

A crime against peace, in international law, refers to "planning, preparation, initiation, or waging of wars of aggression, or a war in violation of international treaties, agreements or assurances, or participation in a common plan or conspiracy for the accomplishment of any of the foregoing" . This definition of crimes against peace was first incorporated into the Nuremberg Principles and later included in the United Nations Charter. This definition would play a part in defining aggression as a crime against peace.

During the Nuremberg trial, the chief American prosecutor, Robert H. Jackson, stated:

'To initiate a war of aggression, therefore, is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.'

 

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Huh? The Mexican government is building a wall along the Mexico Guatemala border to keep out the illegals.

 

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The anti-gay Alliance Defense Fund is organizing a meeting of about 100 pastors who will preach "biblical perspectives on the positions of electoral candidates or current government officials" in defiance of IRS rules against such activism by tax-exempt religious organizations.

Pulpit Freedom Sunday is an event associated with the ADF Pulpit Initiative, a legal effort designed to secure the First Amendment rights of pastors in the pulpit. The Pulpit Initiative is part of the larger ADF Church Project. Participating pastors preaching on Pulpit Freedom Sunday will address the subject of current candidates for office, including the positions held by those candidates, in light of Scripture. "Pastors and churches shouldn't live in fear of being punished or penalized by the government—in this case, the IRS," said ADF Senior Legal Counsel Erik Stanley. "ADF is not trying to get politics into the pulpit; we want to get government out of the pulpit. Churches should be allowed to decide for themselves what they want to talk about. The IRS should not be the one making the decision by threatening to revoke a church's tax-exempt status."

The ADF is hoping to force the courts to address the constitutionality of the 1954 law.

 

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Mary Landrieu: owned by Big Oil.

Senator Mary Landrieu, Democrat of Louisiana, said Thursday that she would block confirmation of President Obama's new budget director until the administration lifts the moratorium on deep-water oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

Pathetic, awful Democrat. And totally without shame.

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Scarah Palin goes full birther.

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Republicans Pledge To America is exactly what you'd expect from a political party which has absolutely nothing to offer in the way of new ideas.  The following excerpt from their decree which they believe describes the last two years is actually more indicative of the eight years under President Bush than anything else I've ever read.

An unchecked executive, a compliant legislature, and an overreaching judiciary have combined to thwart the will of the people and overturn their votes and their values, striking down long-standing laws and institutions and scorning the deepest beliefs of the American people.

CBS summarizes.

Jobs:

- Stop job-killing tax hikes
- Allow small businesses to take a tax deduction equal to 20 percent of their income
- Require congressional approval for any new federal regulation that would add to the deficit
- Repeal small business mandates in the new health care law.

Cutting Spending:

- Repeal and Replace health care
- Roll back non-discretionary spending to 2008 levels before TARP and stimulus (will save $100 billion in first year alone)
- Establish strict budget caps to limit federal spending going forward
- Cancel all future TARP payments and reform Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac

Reforming Congress:

- Will require that every bill have a citation of constitutional authority
- Give members at least 3 days to read bills before a vote

Defense:

- Provide resources to troops
- Fund missile defense
- Enforce sanctions in Iran

On social issues, the same old bigoted and religious rhetoric.

We pledge to honor families, traditional marriage, life, and the private and faith-based organizations that form
the core of our American values

Yawn.

Some on the radical right feel the pledge does not go far enough as exemplified in a post by Erick Erickson.

These 21 pages tell you lots of things, some contradictory things, but mostly this: it is a serious of compromises and milquetoast rhetorical flourishes in search of unanimity among House Republicans because the House GOP does not have the fortitude to lead boldly in opposition to Barack Obama.

I have one message for John Boehner, Eric Cantor, and the House GOP Leadership: If they do not want to use the GOP to lead, I would like to borrow it for a time.

Yes, yes, it is full of mom tested, kid approved pablum that will make certain hearts on the right sing in solidarity. But like a diet full of sugar, it will actually do nothing but keep making Washington fatter before we crash from the sugar high.

It is dreck — dreck with some stuff I like… Overall, this grand illusion of an agenda that will never happen is best spoken of today and then never again as if it did not happen. It is best forgotten.

David Frum describes it best as a "pledge to do nothing."

Here is the GOP cruising to a handsome election victory. Did you seriously imagine that they would jeopardize the prospect of victory and chairmanships by issuing big, bold promises to do deadly unpopular things?

But if the document is unsurprising, it's also unsurprising that Erickson and those who think like him would find it enraging. The "Pledge to America" is a repudiation of the central, foundational idea behind the Tea Party. Tea Party activists have been claiming all year that there exists in the United States a potential voting majority for radically more limited government.

I'd like to see a Modern Republicanism that responds better to the needs of the country, while retaining still the Tea Party's reforming spirit. What I fear is the worst of all worlds: a Republican majority that rejects not only extremist ideas, but all ideas.
The Republican "Pledge to America" declares: Sorry, we don't believe that.

[...]

I'd like to see a Modern Republicanism that responds better to the needs of the country, while retaining still the Tea Party's reforming spirit. What I fear is the worst of all worlds: a Republican majority that rejects not only extremist ideas, but all ideas.

Exactly.

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Vote on midddle class tax cuts delayed until after election

Corporacrats. A neutered cat has more balls than the current crop of Dems in the Senate. VOTE FOR US BECAUSE WE SUCK LESS is not gonna cut it anymore.

I didn't vote for "suck less." I voted for "Change." And can't even get spare change. So voting to extend middle class tax cuts is considered "risky" by these pants-wetting fools? You have to be a special kind of stupid to think that voting for tax cuts for the middle class makes you politically vulnerable before an election. If they're that f**king stupid, it's only a matter of time before they stick their tongues into a light bulb socket or wander into traffic. Spineless shits can't even broadcast a simple but powerful message:

Low taxes for you, higher taxes for millionaires.

Are Dems trying to lose seats intentionally? I mean really. Stand for something, for God's sake.
When the Democrats LOSE in a month, don't blame us the voters. They have no one else but themselves to blame.
The Dems just don't play hardball or any kind of ball - they are the republicans' squeak toys.
Quiz time:
What's 535 out of 300 million?

I'll tell you two things it isn't: It's not representative and it sure as hell ain't democracy. Democracy is dead. Long live the corporatocracy. And bend over just a little more....good things will trickle down to you soon.

Well we're still waiting!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Seriously? Just two short years after economic collapse, plummeting stocks and the devastation of retirement funds, John Boehner says he's cool with privatizing Social Security.

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Back-of-the-envelope arithmetic puts that at about a quarter of a billion gallons. "US scientists who have analysed videos of the oil gushing from the Deepwater Horizon well say about 4.4 million barrels of crude escaped into the Gulf. This new figure is in good agreement with calculations produced by federal government advisers who used different estimation techniques. The Columbia University team reports its findings to the journal Science. They indicate the volume leaking from the well at one stage could have filled four Olympic-sized pools every day. Marine geophysicists Timothy Crone and Maya Tolstoy used a technique called optical plume velocimetry to study the oil escaping through the failed blowout preventer on the seafloor."

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William Rivers Pitt in the wake of the Value Voters Summit this past weekend. A 'recommended read'.

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This is brilliant.

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Jill: The ultimate "We Suck But They're Crazy" political race

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This has to be the absolute worst show ever put on television

 

First of all, whose idea was it that a comedy about outsourcing to India was something that Americans, many of whom are out of work BECAUSE their jobs were outsourced, would ever want to watch?

Second of all, how many ways can said show disrespect Indian culture, people, and food in the first five minutes?

And I'm sorry, painting the Americans as assholes doesn't compensate. Not when you've already had the main character try to pick up the prettiest girl, made fun of a buffoonish nerd who's so far the most likeable character on the show, and made the Indian manager look like an idiot. And it's not even 9:45 yet.

I hope this show is cancelled. Soon. Preferably after tonight. I'm going back to Rachel. Not even for snippets of Indian music will I sit through this.

 

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Remember when Barack Obama was heckled at a fundraiser for not loving the gays enough? Obama responded to that mean heckler by explaining that everyone should be shouting and screaming at the Senate Republicans for preventing the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." But now no one has to heckle anyone about anything ever again, because a federal court just ruled DADT completely unconstitutional, so hooray. (Oh, except the Obama Administration is not very happy about this and says terminating the policy "may pose a threat to the military.") Election Season is upon us, friends. Also, what? [CNN]

 

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OFFICIAL Bristol Palin Facebook Page Up, Idiot Fan Comments Quickly Follow

OMG! Bristol Palin has her own OFFICIAL Bristol Palin OFFICIAL Facebook fan page. So if you were wondering why that site was down this afternoon, there you have it. "I have decided to embark on something new and step out of my 'comfort zone' in order to tell my story and advocate for the pro-life and pro-family cause," she writes. So yes, she has decided to make money. Bristol hasn't put up much of anything yet, but of course her brilliant Facebook fans have taken to commenting on her "wall" of purity, and it's great.

(And today these Facebook messages are brought to you in STUNNING alt-text!) http://wonkette.com/423364/official-bristol-palin-facebook-page-up#more-423364

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What do you call candidates for public office who refuse
to debate their opponents, who refuse to hold press
conferences, and who refuse to appear on Sunday
morning talk shows? If you're polite, you call them
'Fraidy Cats'. If you're impolite, you call them

'Chickenshits'.