Latest video from
Countdown
A Small Man in Search of a
Balcony
From Blogenfreude for
Agitprop
 Rudy
is getting himself in
even more trouble:
One of the maddening things about the 24-hour news cycle is
that for a presidential candidate like Rudy Giuliani -- with a
long contradictory public record on top of
new scandals
and the inane things he utters every day -- it's impossible to
keep up with all the undulating story lines.
Here's
a new one percolating
today: Giuliani -- who was for immigration (even the
illegal kind) before he was against it -- is tying himself
further into knots on the issue. He now says when he was mayor
of New York in the 1990s, he wanted to deport all 400,000
undocumented immigrants in the city -- some revisionist history
that flies in the face of what he was saying at that time.
As if he could have deported all those people. What does it
take to force this idiot out of the race? Oh, and the title of
the post is Jimmy Breslin's description of 9iu11iani.
The Election According to
the Des Moines Register
From
NY Texan for BlueBloggin
As the press continues to control elections The Des Moines
Register felt compelled to print their criteria for kicking
Dennis Kucinich from the today’s debate. I find these laughable
for two reasons; 1) Kucinich met all of DMR requirements; 2)
Alan Keyes was allowed to participate because he provided a
lease to prove office space. Not to accuse Keyes of anything but
one can easily make and print anything with computers even
money. So I find production of a lease as proof of a candidate a
very poor excuse to allow Keyes and not Kucinich.
Today,
The Des Moines Register made there criteria for a candidate
to participate in their debate and here they are:
1. Candidates must have filed an FEC Form F-2 “Statement of
Candidacy” with the Federal Election Commission, and
2. Candidates must have publicly announced an intention to
run for the nomination of the Republican or the Democratic Party
for President of the United States, and
3. Candidates must have had a campaign office inside the
State of Iowa as of October 1, 2007, and
4. Candidates must have employed at least one paid campaign
staff representative to perform full-time campaign duties in the
State of Iowa on behalf of the candidate since at least October
1, 2007, and
5. Candidates must have had at least a 1% support showing in
the Des Moines Register’s October, 2007 Iowa Poll.
Neither Dennis Kucinich nor Mike Gravel had a campaign office
in Iowa by the Oct. 1 deadline, according to reports filed with
the Federal Election Commission. Gravel also did not have any
paid staff in the state by the deadline.
Now lets look at what Kucinich did:
1) Kucinich filed his FEC Form F-2 “Statement of Candidacy”;
2) Kunichi publicly announced;
3) Kucinich has had a full-time staffer – an Iowa resident –
on board since April. His name is Marc Rubenstein;
4) Kucinich least 1% in the Des Moines Register October,
2007;
5) Kunicnich has a campaign Office inside the State of Iowa
as of October 1, 2007 . However, the office is in the home of
Marc Rubenstein and The Des Moines Register doesn’t like that
one bit.
According to The Des Moines Register the campaign has to have
actual real estate in Iowa like a store front something with a
lease.
Now for the polls:
- Kucinich polled second in a California straw poll
earlier this fall, behind John Edwards. Edwards received 29%
of the total votes cast, Kucinich received just under 24%,
and Obama and Clinton came in third and fourth, with 22.5%
and 16.8% respectively. The other Democratic candidates were
all in the low single digits.
- Kucinich polled first in both the ABC and MSNBC “who won
the debate” polls a few months ago, to the extreme
embarrassment of ABC, who put up a second poll, which he
also won, which forced them to drop the internet links to
those results. Now, that link is still up, but it opens to a
blank white page, the color of whitewash.
- Dennis Kucinich is first in the online vote taken by The
Nation Magazine a few weeks ago, with 35%, nine points above
Barack Obama, and 22% points above John Edwards. (Edwards
polled 13% to Hillary Clinton’s 5%.)
- In last month’s Democracy for America poll, Kucinich
received almost 32% of the 150,000-plus votes cast, more
than Edwards and Obama combined. He polled first in 47
states, including both Iowa and New Hampshire.
- He polled first in the Progressive Democrats of America
online poll of its membership last week, with 41%. Broken
down by states, in that poll he came in first in 46 states,
including both Iowa and New Hampshire. Edwards was second
with 26%, topping out in four states, beating Kucinich by
one vote in Utah and two votes and the District of Columbia.
Tattoo
Regret
From
The
Boomer
Chronicles
 You were once young and stupid. You got a tattoo on a dare. Or maybe not on a dare. Anyway, you have a tattoo, and maybe it’s been 30 years and you don’t want your tattoo anymore.
‘Tattoo regret’ is a common malady. Tattoos can grow ugly over the years or perhaps you are a whole different person from the time you got the tattoo. Maybe it’s even holding you back in life (preventing you from getting the kind of job you want, etc.).
The problem is, tattoos are meant to be permanent. The American Academy of Dermatology reports that among a group of 18- to 50-year-olds surveyed in 2004, 24 percent reported having a tattoo and 17 percent of those considered getting their tattoo removed.
Today, dermatologists offer laser services to help you get rid of an unwanted tattoo, but it’s often not guaranteed.
A CNN story on tattoo removal
One company shows its Before and After photos
General tattoo info from the NIH
The Mayo Clinic on tattoo removal techniques:
Tattoos are created by ink drops placed under the skin by a needle. Q-switched Yag laser is most often used to remove tattoos and other pigmented or discolored skin. The laser light passes through the skin and is absorbed by the ink, causing it to break into smaller pieces. The body’s natural filtering system absorbs the small pieces of ink. Bright green, yellow and red inks are most difficult to remove. There may be a stinging sensation during the laser treatment. This is sometimes described as “hot specks of bacon grease hitting the skin.” Ointment and a light dressing are applied to the affected area after treatment. Each session lasts five to 15 minutes, depending on the size and color of the tattoo. Multiple treatments are usually needed over a period of months. Usually, fading of the tattoo is the best result that can be accomplished. Sometimes the tattoo will disappear.
Know a blog that
deserves to be featured on the Blog World Report? Contact Robert.
Hillary's
national co-chair takes a cheap shot at Obama. And misses the target
From Eli Blake for
Deep Thought
In the wake of a tightening race that shows Barack Obama pulling into
a tie with Hillary Clinton in his home state of New Hampshire, top
Clinton advisor Bill Shaheen has
raised concerns about Obama's past admissions of drug use.
CONCORD, N.H. - A top adviser to Hillary Rodham Clinton's
campaign said Wednesday that Democrats should give more thought to
Sen. Barack Obama's admissions of illegal drug use before they pick
a presidential candidate....
Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said in response to Shaheen's
remarks:
"Hillary Clinton said attacking other Democrats is the fun part of
this campaign, and now she's moved from Barack Obama's kindergarten
years to his teenage years in an increasingly desperate effort to
slow her slide in the polls. Senator Clinton's campaign is recycling
old news that Barack Obama has been candid about in a book he wrote
years ago, and he's talked about the lessons he's learned from these
mistakes with young people all across the country. He plans on
winning this campaign by focusing on the issues that actually matter
to the American people."
I agree that this is a desperation ploy by the Clinton campaign and
they are worried they might (gasp) lose.
Here is the question: WHAT DOES WHAT SOMEONE DID AS A TEENAGER
HAVE TO DO WITH HOW THEY WOULD CONDUCT THEMSELVES TODAY? Obama
said he has learned from his mistakes, and that is as good an answer
as the question has.
It's been years since Obama's acknowleged use of drugs, and the fact
of the matter is that you probably will find very few people who
were absolutely squeaky clean in every way when they were in high
school.
And at least he admits that he inhaled.
Let me quote from a post I wrote recently, ironically
defending a campaign
advisor to Republican Fred Thompson who it turned out had served
prison time for drug related crimes a quarter century ago:
First and foremost, it's a matter of time. I wrote a post once,
called
the prison that follows prison that dealt with how hard it is
for a convicted felon in America to become a productive member of
society, or for that matter to be anything other than a convicted
felon in the eyes of most people. For that matter, unless he's had
his rights restored, Philip Martin would not be allowed to vote in
most states. But look, his last conviction was TWENTY-FOUR years
ago! TWENTY-FOUR bloody years ago! Do we EVER forgive anybody,
or let them move ahead with their lives? The man has kept out of
trouble for nearly a quarter of a century, and some people want to
haul up what he did in 1979 or 1983. Guess what? Besides it being a
long time ago, he was also a lot younger then. Sometimes younger
people do foolish things, and then they learn from them. All the
evidence is that Philip Martin did learn from his mistakes.
Unfortunately after I wrote the post praising Thompson for standing
by Martin and not pressuring him to resign, Martin did resign under
pressure.
People make mistakes, especially when they are young. I've never
thought that the mistakes that people made in their youth should be
held against them when they get older, assuming of course that they
straighten themselves out and stop making those mistakes. Obviously,
Obama has done that.
And to be honest, I have a former co-worker who lives in Albuquerque
and grew up in Chicago, and he knew Hillary's family and was a
friend of her brother's. He's told me stories about that, but I
won't choose to publish them here.
I won't, because they don't matter.
The reason for the season
From Doug
Masson
for
Masson's Blog
For some reason,
Christmas history is
fascinating to me. The timing of
the celebration is not believed
to have anything to do with
Jesus’ birthday, particularly.
Rather, back in the Roman
Empire, Christians were vying
with, among others, the cults of
Mithra and Ishtar for believers.
Mithra and Ishtar had birthdays
around the winter solstice (late
December). That time of the year
had significance for humans
because it meant winter was on
the run and the length of the
days would grow longer. Sun gods
tended to have celebrations in
their honor. By placing a
significant holiday at this
time, it made it easier for
Christians to gain converts in
the Roman Empire in that they
could switch their God without
having to disrupt their festival
celebrations too much. This
apparently worked out pretty
well for co-opting the
Scandinavian Yule celebration,
apparently a raucous winter
celebration devoted to Thor.
By happy accident of the
period of human gestation,
having Christ born around the
winter solstice allows him to
have been conceived and
crucified around the same time —
the vernal equinox, also an
important time of the year for
competing religions of the era,
fertility cults and the like.
During the Reformation, some
Protestants condemned Christmas
as popery — my understanding is
that most Christmas traditions
have little to no support in the
text of the Bible. When
Cromwell’s Puritans took over
England, they banned Christmas
in 1647. The Protestants’
anti-Christmas sentiment
encouraged the Catholic Church
to promote Christmas all the
more. New England Puritans also
banned Christmas for a period of
time.
In post-colonial America,
Christmas fell out of favor
since it was considered to be
too English. Christmas in
America eventually rebounded
through the 1800s due in large
part to various works of
literature, popularizing the
holiday. In 1870, it became a
national holiday.
Santa Claus came on the
scene, largely through the
efforts of popular cartoonist,
Thomas Nast in the late 1800s.
Father Christmas had been a
holiday character from the
1400s, associated with
merry-making and drunkenness.
The Christmas tree seems to have
caught on beginning in the 1700s
and is often explained as a
Christianization of a pagan,
solstice tradition of tree
worship.
I’ve mentioned on many
occasions that I’m not a
religious guy. Nevertheless, I’m
grateful for Christmas.
Regardless of one’s religious
beliefs, I still think it is
useful to have a period of time
devoted to congregating with
one’s family, resting from
labor, showing affection through
the exchange of cards and gifts,
and generally reminding one
another that peace and love are
valuable things. As a parent of
young children, I have to say
that it’s also pretty fun to
observe their sense of magic and
wonder at things I’ve long since
taken for granted — looking at
the kids mesmerized by the
Christmas tree is a beautiful
thing. That, my friends, is the
reason for the season.
Fox Fiction
Posted by
Karen for
Namaste'
Action Alert: No
Immunity for
Telecoms
From
TomCat for
Politics Plus
Senate
Majority
Leader
Harry
Reid
(D-NV)
has a
choice.
Both the
Senate
intelligence
committee
and
Senate
Judiciary
Committee
produced
versions
of the
surveillance
bills
last
month.
But
there's
a
crucial
difference
between
the two.
The
intelligence
committee's
bill
contains
retroactive
immunity
for
telecommunications
companies
that
collaborated
with the
administration's
warrantless
wiretapping
program.
The
judiciary
committee's
does
not.
Today,
fourteen
senators
(thirteen
Dems and
Sen.
Bernie
Sanders
(I-VT))
wrote
Reid to
urge him
to have
the
judiciary
committee's
version
be the
base
bill for
the
Senate
debate.
"As this
is such
a
controversial
issue,
we feel
it would
be
appropriate
to
require
the
proponents
of
immunity
to make
their
case on
the
floor,"
they
write.
Presidential
candidates
Sens.
Joe
Biden
(D-DE),
Hillary
Clinton
(D-NY),
Chris
Dodd
(D-CT),
and
Barack
Obama
(D-IL)
signed
on...
...In
an op-ed
in The
Los
Angeles
Times
this
morning,
Attorney
General
Michael
Mukasey
came out
in favor
of the
Senate
intelligence
committee's
bill...
[emphasis
added]
Inserted
from <TPM>
Please
contact
your
Senators
and tell
them you
want the
Judiciary
Committee's
version,
NOT the
Intelligence
Committee's.
A Portrait of Bush
From
Two Crows for
Preserve, Protect and
Defend
 Do
you
see
the
face?
Do
you
also
see
the
word?
If
not,
tilt
your
head
to
the
right.
See
it
now?
Hint:
it
begins
with
a
capital
L.
Does this qualify as a
miracle?
From Snave for
Various Ecstasies
I don't
know
about
the rest
of you,
but
hearing
that Led
Zeppelin
was
going to
perform
a
16-song
reunion
set
sounded
to me
like a
miracle,
and
hearing
some
clips of
them
playing
on TV
this
morning
was even
better...
it
actually
happened!
With the
help of
the late
John
Bonham's
son
Jason on
drums,
Jimmy
Page,
Robert
Plant
and John
Paul
Jones
delighted
fans
worldwide
by
getting
back
together,
even if
it is
only
momentary.
However,
there
are
rumors
of a
world
tour. If
there is
even a
remote
chance
they
will be
coming
to the
Pacific
Northwest,
which
would
probably
mean
Seattle,
you can
rest
assured
I will
be doing
whatever
I can to
get a
ticket
to their
show.
I
fervently
hope
they are
enjoying
their
playing
together
again,
enough
so that
some new
music
and a
new CD
might
come
from it.
They had
been
practicing
for this
week's
show
since
June,
which to
me
suggests
they are
getting
along.
Here is
a
question
for
you...
If you
could
hear a
reunited
Led
Zeppelin
play a
15-song
set with
two
encores,
which
songs
would
you
request?
Here are
some of
mine.
There
are too
many
songs I
like by
them,
but I'll
toss out
15 + 2.
Communication
Breakdown
Celebration
Day
Nobody's
Fault
But Mine
In The
Evening
Kashmir
Trampled
Under
Foot
In My
Time of
Dying
Over the
Hills
and Far
Away
Good
Times,
Bad
Times
Out on
the
Tiles
Misty
Mountain
Hop
The Song
Remains
the Same
The
Immigrant
Song
Black
Dog
When the
Levee
Breaks
encores:
Whole
Lotta
Love
Rock and
Roll
Why the
Democrats
failed
America
From
Polishifter
for
Pissed
on
Politics
We’ve known now for over a year how the Democrats have failed America. Aside from the occasional strong rhetoric, they have done nothing to stop the torture, done nothing to close Gitmo, done nothing to get us out of Iraq, and done nothing to curb Bush’s reign of terror. This has left most of America scratching their heads asking ‘why’? We voted them in to make some badly needed changes and put the brakes on the Bush Administration. Instead they’ve been just another version of the Republican rubber stamp. They had the mandate for change so why has nothing changed? Why is everything the same as it was in 2005?
Well now we know why. The Democrats knew about everything and signed off on it. They knew about the torture. They knew about the warrantless wiretapping. They knew about the faulty intelligence. The Democrats aided and abetted Bush in his crimes. The Democrats have blood on their hands and their finger prints are at the crime scene.
It’s Crime 101. Bush set out to break some laws. As any good criminal does, he made sure that those who were participating left evidence of their participation. Like a bank robber with a reluctant crew, Bush basically made sure the Democrat’s finger prints were all over the crime scene. He then no doubt said to them “we’re all in this now; you’re just as guilty as me”.
No wonder the Democrats under Pelosi’s watch haven’t lifted a finger to stop torture or close Gitmo. She knew what was going on. She was briefed. She probably watched the video tapes with Bush while munching on popcorn together. No wonder the Democrats keep failing to put the breaks on the warrantless wiretapping program. They knew about it. They knew the law was being broken and signed off on it.
This past year I’ve struggled with understanding why Democrats keep failing to stand up to Bush. I found it odd that Reid and Pelosi would not take tougher stances on such no-brainer topics as torture and domestic spying. I found it odd that Democrats would confirm Mukasey to Attorney General after he failed to admit that water boarding is torture.
Now I know why. The democrats knew the Bush Administration authorized water boarding and video taped it for his pleasure. They knew water boarding was torture. They knew if they made a big deal about it that it would come out that they aided and abetted Bush’s crime spree.
The museums you
have to see!
From
By Ken Levine
|
Bluster-Threat-Fold
From
Mary Ellen for
The Divine
Democrat
House
Democrats
said
that
they
will
no
longer
add
funding
for
the
war,
only
what
is
needed
to
bring
the
troops
home
with
the
time-line
provided.
Instead,they
would
put
together
a
budget
that
would
shift
funds
as
much
as
$22
billion
in
additional
spending
from
the
president's
priorities
to
theirs.
The
final
legislation
which
is
still
under
negotiation
will
be
stripped
of
funding
for
the
war
in
Iraq
when
it
reaches
the
House
floor
on
Friday.
(BLUSTER)
President
Bush
said
that
he
will
veto
any
bill
that
does
not
give
him
the
appropriations
to
continue
with
the
war
in
Iraq
as
planned.
Unless
all
his
demands
are
met,
he
will
veto
the
bill.
(THREAT)
Democratic
leadership
aides
concede
that
the
Senate
will
probably
add
those
funds.
The
new
agreement
signaled
that
congressional
Democrats
are
ready
to
give
in
to
many
of
the
White
House's
demands
as
they
try
to
finish
the
session
before
they
break
for
Christmas
-- a
political
victory
for
the
president,
who
has
refused
to
compromise
on
the
spending
measures.
(FOLD)
The
House
Democrats
under
the
leadership
of
Nancy
Pelosi
has
said
that
they
will
no
longer
stand
for
the
Republican
party
giving
tax
breaks
to
the
very
rich
and
putting
the
burden
on
the
backs
of
the
middle
class.
"The
House
approved
a
new
version
of
legislation
that
would
stave
off
the
spread
of
alternative
minimum
tax,
which
is a
parallel
tax
system
which
originally
targeted
the
very
rich
and
gave
the
tax
breaks
to
millions
of
middle-class
families.
The
House
version
would
not
add
to
the
federal
budget
deficit.
The
AMT
bill,
which
was
approved
226-103,
pays
for
the
$50
billion
tax
fix
largely
by
preventing
hedge
fund
managers
from
deferring
compensation
by
shifting
their
pay
to
offshore
tax
shelters.
The
House
AMT
bill
would
prevent
21
million
middle-income
American
households
from
being
hit
with
a
tax
increase
that
could
average
$2,000
per
family
from
a
levy
designed
in
1969
to
target
only
the
super-rich.
The
proposal
would
also
increase
the
number
of
low-income
families
that
could
benefit
from
a
refundable
tax
credit
for
children."(BLUSTER)
The
White
House
issued
a
fresh
veto
threat,
reiterating
Bush's
opposition
to
any
tax
increases
to
pay
for
an
AMT
fix.
(THREAT)
The
threat
by
the
President
virtually
ensured
that
the
Senate
will
not
muster
the
60
votes
needed
to
break
a
threatened
Republican
filibuster.
It
moved
Congress
further
toward
shattering
a
Democratic
pledge
not
to
pass
tax
cuts
that
are
not
fully
offset
by
tax
increases
or
spending
reductions.
(FOLD)
The
Democrat
leaders
said
that
they
will
put
a
stop
to
our
dependence
on
foreign
oil!
The
Democratic
leaders
said
that
they
will
pass
an
energy
bill
that
will
raise
automotive
fuel-efficiency
standards
and
preserve
a
package
of
conservation
and
renewable
energy
tax
incentives,
to
be
funded
by
revoking
tax
breaks
given
to
the
largest
oil
companies.
(BLUSTER)
Republicans
said
they
would
filibuster.
(THREAT)
A
new
version
of
the
bill
that
would
meet
a
key
White
House
demand
by
stripping
out
a
requirement
that
utilities
move
toward
generating
15
percent
of
their
electricity
from
renewable
energy
sources.
It
also
pares
back
tax
increases
on
oil
companies
by
exempting
independent
energy
companies
from
a
provision
that
would
end
a
manufacturer's
tax
credit
awarded
in
2005.
(FOLD)
The
White
House
said
that
they
will
veto
that
legislation,
too.
(MORE
THREATS)
EXCUSES
"Democratic
leaders
tried
to
put
the
best
face
on
their
surrender
on
domestic
spending
levels,
promising
that
the
final
bill
will
reflect
their
priorities,
if
not
their
preferred
funding
--
"the
president's
number,
our
priorities,"
said
House
Speaker
Nancy
Pelosi
(D-Calif.).
She
noted
that
the
bill
would
increase
funding
for
children's
health
programs,
nutrition
and
medical
research
at
the
National
Institutes
of
Health."
(Washington
Post)
The Mirror of the Scared
Scriptures & Paintings
From Human for
Carbon
Paper
In my quest to understand the Secrets of the Masons I run across
some pretty far out stuff. Today's discovery is totally Freaky Deaky.
I'm far from a mathematician or artiste', however it seems that one
could do this with just about any painting. Yet, some of the images
are startling to me. Some seem representative of Masonic symbolism
and others remind me of images depicted on Mayan ruins. In some of
the images, the pyramidal shapes coupled with the duality of Human
Sexuality blew my wee mind.
As I want you to get to the good stuff right away, I'd advise, that
when you click on the following link you scroll down to about the
1st 5th of the page to "Hidden Images : Leonardo Da Vinci - Video
Demonstration" and start playing the short vids.
In addition, the site says this is a one time free visit, just erase
the cookies (or set your browser to do so when you close it, as mine
always is) to return again and again. Greed does appear to be the
motive here. Just look at the price of their DVD!
Here is the link - THE MIRROR
OF THE SACRED SCRIPTURES & PAINTINGS
After you view the vids suggested you can go back to the top and
click on the "free access" and there you will see Mirrored Oriental
art and maybe some others (I have not checked it out fully).
I find it laughable that the site owners are going to make huge
profits and go to lengths to protect their "Copyright" off of
another's work. Especially since their premise is that these are
intentional hidden images.
Here is a Telegraph article about it. (link found at subject
site).
Whether or not it is a lead into the Secrets of the Masons, it sure
is fascinating and Spooky. Enjoy!
Symbols
From
Carol
for Peace
A couple of weeks ago, we went to dinner at a restaurant in the
Lodo district
of Denver. Being the non-hipsters that we are, we have not
visited the expensive restaurants in the area, but there are a
couple of less expensive yummy places where we eat about once
every two years or so. I like the Lodo area, because the
buildings are old with lots of brick and nice wood. They feel
like grandmothers and grandfathers.
Because of the time of year, evergreen garlands and beautiful
lights adorned railings and windows around us while we dined.
While sitting there eating, I thought about how I
used to
feel all warm and magical and full of love when surrounded by
Christmas trees and lights and carols sung sweetly. The smell of
fir, the sound of O Holy Night,
our ritual of going to the quaint Christmas Market in the
mountains each year and freezing our butts off while carolers
strolled the streets, a candle-lit room full of angel voices
singing Away in a Manger,
gathering with family and eating too much (ummmm, fudge
and peanut brittle!)... The list could go on and on...
But while stuffing my Mongolian stir-fry into my face that
night, all the glitter and lights seemed like things you put out
because you're supposed to (or because it will bring in money).
Then, before Bah! Humbug!
could pass through my mind, I realized that I could
choose
to feel warm and magical and full of love. Symbols have meaning
if we
choose to give meaning to them - whether our choice is
conscious or not. The feelings that can come from a candlelit
night in the cold winter didn't die - a part of me had.
We have kept this holiday time alive for thousands of years,
first celebrating the light that starts to creep in after the
long, dark night of the solstice, then bringing in the
celebration of the birth of a man who came to bring light by
teaching love, hope, and peace. OK, and being the great consumer
culture that we are, we also add a lot of meaning to wrapping
paper and a bunch of stuff that we don't need.
Still, a tree is a tree is a tree (whether you call it a
Christmas tree or not). A teddy bear is a teddy bear, whether
you call it Mohammed or Fred. A painted statue is just wood and
paint - whether it represents Buddha or Jesus. There is
something that we somehow do that makes a piece of wood or
plastic or metal into something more than the stuff of which
it's made. We embed our words and our things with deep and
important meanings that may or may not reflect how we truly live
our lives.
I think these icons and decorations can be reminders for us,
encouraging us to renew our vows to love and give to others.
They can be warm family traditions, which also happen to bring
about love. I want to think more about the special traditions
and decorations that I can use this year to symbolize the light
and joy that is present for us at all times.
But these things will still just be things that I have chosen to
represent an idea. They are NOT the idea. So, there is no reason
to get all tied up in knots about the symbols that others choose
- even if they happen to be, in my opinion, a garish version of
the manger scene or an over-the-top yard display of every theme
under the sun. I am happy to see people enjoying the celebration
and it's important to respect people's choices. Still, it would
be nice if others remembered that their idea of what's important
for the holidays is THEIRS. They may find joy in forcing their
religion on others, but it does nothing for those with different
beliefs.
And isn't this time of year all about GIVING joy and love to
others? At least, that's the rumor I heard.
I hope you find much meaning and renewal this holiday season, in
the way that most feeds your soul.
Probably the reason we all go so
haywire at Christmas time with the endless, unrestrained and
often silly
buying of gifts is that we don't quite
know
how to put our love into words.
-
Harlan Miller
Danservations
From TUA for
The
Future Was Yesterday
So Scotty's outed
The Idiot. Last year's news.
Despite Impeachment quality
material if true, the sounds
of silence are deafening, as
always.
And he had to write a whole
book before he figured this
out?
=======================
Airline Pilots. They can
carry guns now if trained,
and if they want, per Bush's
new security strategy. How
long before some disgruntled
North West Airlines Pilot
finally figures out the
obvious?
"Atlanta tower? This is NWA
flight tuna can. Tell my
AK47 it can't land on 13
right!!
=======================
And because our airport
screeners are so competent
[sic], how long before some
Michigan Militia Vigilante
Queen, brings his substitute
penis along on the flight
for the ride. He sees some
Arab get up to take a piss,
thinks he's dangerous, so he
tries to pop one in him.
Only he's as incompetent as
the rest of the Militia
Queens, so he instead puts
one in Ole Granny and a
baby, and because it was
such close range, the bullet
went thru Granny and got the
baby too?
=======================
In other late breaking news,
the MSM forecast is for more
of the same old shit, with
occasional squalls.
=======================
I read a comment on a blog
some time ago. Paraphrasing
now:
"I think the most dangerous
time of Bush's Presidency
may well come after the
elections, until the new
President is sworn in."
I agree. Especially if a
Democrat takes the white
house, and Democrats make
inroads into the Congress.
He starts WWIII then walks
out the door.
=======================
We've been predicted
a 60% chance of rain
for the last three
days. We keep
getting the other
40%...(: It's
getting bad down
here. Real bad.
"Exceptional
Drought" they
call it, and if they
had a worse
category, we'd be in
that one too.
=======================
A breast in the hand is
worth two in the bra.
=======================
Seen on the back of a huge
earth mover down here:
"God works in mysterious
ways."
"So do I. So know where this
machine is at, at all
times!!"
What Did She Know and When
Did She Know It?
From
Larry Sadler for
Let's Talk About It
See Washington Post
In September 2002, four members of Congress met in secret for a first look at a unique CIA program designed to wring vital information from reticent terrorism suspects in U.S. custody. For more than an hour, the bipartisan group, which included current House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), was given a virtual tour of the CIA’s overseas detention sites and the harsh techniques interrogators had devised to try to make their prisoners talk.
Among the techniques described, said two officials present, was waterboarding, a practice that years later would be condemned as torture by Democrats and some Republicans on Capitol Hill. But on that day, no objections were raised. Instead, at least two lawmakers in the room asked the CIA to push harder, two U.S. officials said.
"The briefer was specifically asked if the methods were tough enough," said a U.S. official who witnessed the exchange.
So exactly what does this mean for Pelosi and most important, what does this mean for President Bush and torture? Someone had to order this type of abuse and at some point, the President had to know of it or he ordered this type of torture.
Is it worth selling your
soul to win a war?
From
Pissed Off Patricia for
Morning Martini
I must
preface this
post by saying I
know there are
wonderful
religious people
who I feel do
the things Jesus
would choose for
them to do. They
feed the hungry
and provide what
they can for the
needy. I know
there are people
like that and I
admire them for
their efforts.
Then there are
the other
religious
people. These
are the
troubling ones.
These are the
ones who seem to
hide behind
religion as they
do deeds which
seem contrary to
the very
religious views
they claim.
These are the
ones who seem to
welcome the fear
of terrorism as
it gives them an
excuse to do
things most of
us find
repugnant. They
would appear to
sell their
righteous souls
in order to
torture another
human being, all
in the name of a
claim of feeling
more secure and
more safe.
George Bush said
he would be a “uniter”,
and to some
degree he has
been. He has
united much of
our country in
fear. As a
result, much of
our country has
been willing to
give up their
soul, their
purpose and
their core
beliefs if it
makes them feel
safe.
Why are so many
willing to sell
their soul to
win a “war”?
When you
surrender your
ideals and
yourself and
your soul, how
can you say you
have won
anything?
Our prices are
insane
From
Nancy Nall
My
sister
shared a
Christmas-shopping
moment
the
other
day:
Standing
in a
crowded
store in
a
crowded
mall,
trying
to find
a decent
outfit
for her
teenage
granddaughter.
The girl
and her
brother
generally
get one
nice
outfit
every
year,
the
sorts of
splurge-y
name
brands
they
wouldn’t
normally
get.
Every
kid
needs to
feel
cool at
least
sometimes.
So
she
found
something,
then
looked
at the
price
tag: A
pair of
Baby
Phat
jeans,
juniors
size 5.
Price:
$80.
“Kimora
Lee
Simmons
should
be
ashamed
of
herself!”
she
exploded.
I
heartily
agree
(although
it has
nothing
to do
with her
jeans).
I had
my own
moment
today,
in Bath
& Body
Works. I
was
buying a
few
stocking
stuffers
for a
Girl
Scout
Christmas
project
—
personal-care
products
for the
girls at
a local
children’s
home. I
figure
one of
the
thousand
petty
humiliations
of being
poor and
institutionalized
at
Christmas
is
having
to
settle
for
everyone’s
hand-me-downs,
so I was
determined
to buy
something
that
didn’t
say
“dollar
store.”
I went
into the
ubiquitous
mall
soap
store
for some
cute
crap-in-a-bottle.
Picked
up a
tiny tin
of
American
Girl-branded
lip
balm.
Four-fifty.
“Leslie
Wexner
should
be
ashamed
of
himself!”
I said.
It
didn’t
quite
have the
same
ring to
it. Not
here,
anyway —
it would
play in
Columbus.
But the
day I
spend
nearly
five
bucks
for two
cents’
worth of
flavored
wax
hasn’t
yet
arrived.
I went
next
door to
Rite Aid
and
loaded
up with
a bunch
of
perfectly
acceptable
stuff
and
spent
around
$30.
I
shouldn’t
even set
foot in
that
store,
anyway.
It
always
smells
like a
chemistry
set.
Everything
under
The
Limited’s
umbrella
made its
rep
selling
goods of
barely
acceptable
quality
to the
greatest
number
of
people.
I
haven’t
trusted
the
place
since I
tucked a
Victoria’s
Secret
bra away
for six
months,
and took
it out
again to
find
half the
elastic
had
rotted.
Ah,
well. We
have
greater
things
to
discuss
today
than lip
balm.
The
death of
Ike
Turner,
say.
The
way of
all
flesh,
etc. I
saw Ike
and Tina
once, at
the Ohio
State
Fair.
Mid-’70s,
sometime
in
there.
Tina and
the
Ikettes
wore
their
trademark
minidresses
with
fringe,
and
shook
that
shit
into
knots. A
highly
memorable
performance.
Ike did
what Ike
always
did: He
hung
back and
led the
band.
From
what we
know
now,
Tina
already
hated
his guts
by then
and was
plotting
her
escape.
Their
marriage
seemed a
tragic
case of
“A Star
is
Born,”
if James
Mason
had
bounced
Judy
Garland
off the
walls
when he
had a
snoot
full of
coke.
Rock ‘n’
roll
historians
are
making
the case
that
it’s
unfair
for the
man who
gave the
world
“Rocket
88″ to
be
remembered
solely
as a
wife-beater.
Miles
Davis
was not
very
nice to
his
women,
either,
but it
didn’t
lead his
obituaries.
(Note:
Davis
was also
lucky
none of
them
became
stars
like
Tina, or
the
story
might be
different.)
Two
things
need to
be said
about
Ike.
One,
that he
was very
lucky in
the
casting
of the
man who
would
play him
in
Tina’s
version
of her
life
story.
Laurence
Fishburne
brought
something
extra to
that
role and
made it
memorable.
And
second,
that he
found
Tina.
There
wouldn’t
have
been a
Tina
without
Ike. So
there’s
that.
I
once
heard
Tina
interviewed
on “60
Minutes,”
and Ed
Bradley
asked if
she’d
had any
plastic
surgery
done.
She
freely
admitted
to a
breast
lift and
a nose
job, the
latter
because
Ike had
connected
with it
so many
times it
needed
the
repair,
and the
former
to “put
them
back
where
they
belong.”
Gotta
chuckle.
Best
line in
“What’s
Love Got
to Do
With
It?”:
“Get
back in
there
and do
it
again,
and this
time put
some
stink on
it.”
They
were
recording
“Nutbush
City
Limits.”
I’d say
she did
so.
So,
bloggage:
I
read the
New York
Times
Styles
section
these
days for
a look
into a
world I
don’t
and (I
hope)
never
will
occupy —
one
where,
when a
person
is
invited
to
dinner,
they
feel
free to
present
the
hostess
with a
long
list of
objectionable
foods;
where
people
fret
over the
carbon
footprint
of their
holiday
gifts;
where
there
are no
more
entrees
in
restaurants,
because
17 bites
is 14
too many
for
boredom
not to
set in.
Today,
another
nose-against-the-glass
moment:
People
who
don’t
know
when to
leave
the dog
at home.
It
was
a
dark
and
stormy
night
—
actually
four
stormy
nights
—
when
Jayme
Otto,
31,
and
her
husband,
Ryan
Otto,
33,
drove
1,200
miles
from
their
home
in
Boulder,
Colo.,
to
her
parents’
house
in
Cleveland
for
Christmas.
“We
traveled
all
this
way
to
bring
our
yellow
Labrador,
Cody
Bear,
home
to
spend
time
with
his
grandparents,”
Ms.
Otto
said,
“grandparents”
being
dog-person-speak
for
her
parents.
Besides
wanting
Cody
Bear
“to
participate
in
his
favorite
yearly
activity
of
unwrapping
gifts
and
destroying
all
the
boxes,”
as
Ms.
Otto
put
it,
they
wanted
the
dog
to
meet
her
brother’s
fiancée.
But
on
Christmas
morning,
a
commotion
ensued:
the
fiancée
was
allergic
to
dogs
and
broke
out
in
hives.
“The
dog
was
banished
to
the
guest
bedroom
and
we
were
unable
to
share
our
Christmas
morning
with
Cody
Bear,”
Ms.
Otto
said
bitterly.
“The
family
blowup
between
my
brother
and
I
over
the
dog
resulted
in
my
mother
not
speaking
to
me
for
two
months
and
my
brother
for
four.”
This
Christmas
will
mark
the
first
time
that
the
Ottos
will
not
be
returning
home.
I’m
trying
to think
of the
people I
know who
remained
virginal
until
marriage.
(think,
think,
think.)
OK, I
know a
few. Now
I’m
trying
to think
of the
people
who did
the
opposite
— who
pretty
much
fell
into bed
on date
|
