Immoral versus illegal

Whether or not Libby is found guilty, the Bush administration needs to lower the bar below a felony indictment to force a resignation. Considering the implications of these charges Rove and Cheney should also resign. Rove because whether or not he lied he should not have discussed Plame with the media and Cheney because he obviously gave the information to Libby that lead to the investigation. Of course neither of them will resign but they should.

Rove has an extraordinary political intellect. Withdrawing Miers prior to embarrassing congressional hearings and nominating a far right activist judge will solidify the right behind Bush. Letting Libby take the fall by pleading guilty and taking a deal will further take the pressure and the spotlight off himself and Cheney. These are predictable tactics but Rove is a master, the public are gullible and we now know the press is corruptible.

Lest We Forget...

Powerful Government Accounting Office report confirms key 2004 stolen election findings

This story address the subject that was one of the reasons I began blogging in the first place. The Bush regime is illegitimate. I will never forget it, and I will never stop talking about it. The world should always remember what these vile bastards did.

"As a legal noose appears to be tightening around the Bush/Cheney/Rove inner circle, a shocking government report shows the floor under the legitimacy of their alleged election to the White House is crumbling.

"The latest critical confirmation of key indicators that the election of 2004 was stolen comes in an extremely powerful, penetrating report from the General Accounting Office that has gotten virtually no mainstream media coverage.

"The government's lead investigative agency is known for its general incorruptibility and its through, in-depth analyses. Its concurrence with assertions widely dismissed as "conspiracy theories" adds crucial new weight to the case that Team Bush has no legitimate business being in the White House.

"The GAO report now confirms that electronic voting machines as deployed in 2004 were in fact perfectly engineered to allow a very small number of partisans with minimal computer skills and equipment to shift enough votes to put George W. Bush back in the White House.

"Given the growing body of evidence, it appears increasingly clear that's exactly what happened."

What Now?

So Miers withdrew. What does this mean? I'm not exactly sure but it's probably both good and bad. It's good that Bush's own party is finally saying "enough is enough" with appointing unqualified cronies to important posts. We know you love your friends, George, but seriously...

The bad part is the next nominee might be an unabashedly extreme right-winger. Bush might be annoyed enough with GOP dissention that he may just find the most divisive pick in the nation - and if the Republicans climb on board there's no stopping it. Go on with your bad self, Dubbya.

Living in a compassionate conservative led country

Almost 1 out of every 100 people living in the US are currently in prison. Considering that represents an incarceration rate that is 25% higher than any other country in the world, I'd argue that a lack of social responsibility on the part of government is to blame. Does anyone really think that Americans are more prone to crime? More likely they are in a desperate enough socioeconomic condition to chose crime.

Interesting Iraq Constitution Results

The results so far:

• Baghdad: 78 percent, yes; 17 percent, no.
• Duhuk: 99.11 percent yes; .89 percent, no.
• Diyala: 51.76 percent, yes; 48.24 percent, no.
• Karbala: 96.54 percent, yes; 3.46 percent, no.
• Maysan: 97.84 percent, yes; 2.16 percent, no.
• Muthanna: 98.66 percent, yes; 1.34 percent, no
• Najaf: 96.03 percent, yes; 3.97 percent, no.
• Qadisiya: 96.76 percent, yes; 3.24 percent, no.
• Salaheddin: 18.85 percent yes; 81.15 percent, no.
• Sulaimaniya: 98.95 percent, yes; 1.05 percent, no.
• Tameem: 62 percent, yes; 38 percent, no.
• Thi Qar: 97.06 percent, yes; 2.94 percent, no.
• Wasit: 95.80 percent, yes; 4.20 percent no.

I read the constitution this morning. Article 2 and the necessity for the Justices to "understand" Sharia law disturbed me. The constitution thinly veils the idea of creating a Muslim state.

No more insurgents

Reading news on Iraq in newspapers this morning I was taken by the overuse of the word insurgent. Four contractors were killed by a mob in Baghdad after they took a wrong turn. The mob was described as a group of insurgents. US raids in Iraq killed 20 people, all described as insurgents. We should start calling these people what they are, Iraqis. The number of foreign fighters in Iraq is nominal. AP reporters should confirm everything they are told by the US military since it's most of what they are being told is a load of crap. Does anyone believe that the US is able to effectively target "foreign militant safehouses" without killing innocent people?

An insurgent is defined as an individual who rises in revolt against established authority, especially a government. Considering the lack of Sunni involvement in the electoral process I would argue that an established authority in the mind of many Iraqis doesn't exist. These people should be called Iraqi revolutionaries since they are militants in the struggle for revolution.

Control Room

I watched a documentary today about Al Jazeera called Control Room. It's amazing just how blinded the western media was by the administration. Some of the footage is disturbing but the insight into the most popular Arab news network is worth seeing.

But not surprising...

"We were told we weren't even allowed to bring up the topic of religion when John G. Roberts was nominated for the Supreme Court," said the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "Anyone who did was quickly labeled a bigot. Now Bush and Rove are touting where Miers goes to church and using that as a selling point. The hypocrisy is staggering."

Why avian flu is a big deal

The CDC has a fact page explaining avian flu and what we know so far about this virus. The reason that it's the WHO is so concerned about this virus is the extremely high fatality rate. So far 50% of people who have contracted avian flu have died. To put it into perspective the official fatality rate for SARS was 4%. A common influenza pandemic would be forecast to have a 1% fatality rate. Avian flu, when it comes to the US, with our medical care and vaccines could still have a fatality rate of around 20% of those infected. Even if only 10% of the US population contracts the virus, it would have a similar affect to simultaneously dropping atomic bombs on New York and Los Angeles.

The second law of thermodynamics

Entropy is a measure of the randomness of the universe. Over time, order is consumed by disorder as existence strives for a state of complete diversity. Unfortunately the second law of thermodynamics doesn't bode well for Christian conservatives. As much as they struggle against the diversification of society their ideology will inevitably fail. Any attempt to limit progression by embracing the past will only slow what is natural. The Christian conservative agenda has as much chance of molding the future of America as I do reversing the rotation of the Earth. They may slow things down a little but in the end life will march forward, not back.

More liberal whining

Reading over my posts over the past few weeks I can't help but feel I've become overwhelmed by the cynicism that consumes many liberally inclined Americans. I live in a depressing time. The citizens who claim the moral and intellectual high ground have shown that after all they are in fact human and fallible. Despite the conservative agenda aimed at raising society's moral compass, I can not help but feel they have lead us further into a pit from which we may never emerge. When I'm confronted with a supporter of the war in Iraq, a man who doesn't believe in a woman's right to choose, a Christian who believes evolution should be taught in a science classroom, a judge who believes in the rights of corporations over people, I no longer have the energy for debate. These contentions contradict my sense of morality. If there is a God, and that God has any sense of decency, He would not support a conservative agenda that promotes the lifestyle of one group of individuals to the detriment of another. Would God support the government response to Katrina, would God support the establishment of a theocracy in Iraq that will eradicate women's right, would God support an increase in poverty and decrease in health care for lower income Americans? If He's compassionate and driving the conservative agenda then hasn't something been lost in translation?

We are now faced with another 3 years of what will be judged as the most inept and destructive leadership in Amercican history. Whatever happens, whether it's a flu pandemic, the war in Iraq, a new war, another terrorist attack or a housing market crash; I have no faith in the current leadership to do anything but exacerbate the crisis. They are an administration of Mike Brown's supported by a congress of at least eighty Mike Brown's, and if she's confirmed another Mike Brown on the supreme court. Whether the flavor is Democrat or Republican there is currently an abundance of political hubris. Faith and religion are important to billions of people worldwide but, as the founding favors clearly understood, religion should not be mixed with government and policy. I would challenge any Christian conservative to pull the evangelical mask from the Republican party and show me the moral values that a majority of voting Americans are seeking. I'd challenge them to find those values in themselves.

Another dumb comment

"Obviously, the best way to deal with a pandemic is to isolate it and keep it isolated in the region in which it begins. "

Then by definition it wouldn't be a pandemic now would it Mr President?

Pandemic: Epidemic over a wide geographic area and affecting a large proportion of the population: pandemic influenza.

Just sayin'

--> New Supreme Court nominee's ties to Bush's National Guard scandal
--> Miers Led Law Firm Repeatedly Forced to Pay Damages For Defrauding Investors
--> The Harriet Miers Story: DeLay, TRMPAC, Texas Lottery Scandal and Cleansing Bush's Guard Records
--> Even The Conservative National Review Thinks Bush Crony Miers is An Awful Pick for Supreme Court
--> More right-wing comments against Miers
--> Turley: Miers an “Amazingly Bad Choice”
--> Harriet Miers: The Ultimate Loyalist

In the White House that hero worshipped the president, Miers was distinguished by the intensity of her zeal: She once told me that the president was the most brilliant man she had ever met.

An addition to the neolibs family

Federal Auditors Say Bush Administration Violated the Law

...but do Bush supporters care? Of course not! The law means nothing to them. The term "ethics" is known as "republican toilet paper."

Federal auditors said on Friday that the Bush administration violated the law... In a blistering report, the investigators, from the Government Accountability Office, said the administration had disseminated "covert propaganda" in the United States, in violation of a statutory ban.

Indonesia/Bali - What is Going On?

Bali Bombings Leave 19 Dead, 51 Injured. For the second time in 3 years, Bali has been struck by a terrorist attack. The first one that took place on October 12, 2002, was hardly given the time of day, because the media was fascinated with the D.C. sniper shootings. While worthy of coverage, that story was turned into a tabloid, as I had never seen so many irrelevant articles/stories posted in regards to that. Meanwhile, Bali was hardly given any coverage, thereby not emphasizing how tragic and devastating this was. And the most recent attack there is no different. My beloved Boston Globe's online news lead story is the Red Sox - Yankees game. I did notice the second story listed in the New York Times had a story about Bali, and the link there shows the attacks that have taken place in Indonesia over the past few years. I realized that I have hardly heard of any of them and it disgusts me. This is a global war on terror and Indonesia appears to be the most terror-stricken region the past couple of years, outside of Iraq of course. While casualties have generally been minimal compared to that which takes place in Iraq, or 3,000+ murdered on September 11, 2001, and the London bombings, these attacks have been a crippling blow to Indonesia, its people, and its tourism; ultimately their economy and the global economy are adversely affected. The attacks have also had a far-reaching effect because of all the different nationalities affected. Indonesia and Bali should not be neglected just because their casualties are not as high; the terrorism that has taken place there does indeed have an effect that goes far beyond lost lives. I cannot imagine what it must be like to live there at this time, as they have had to deal with far more of these attacks that they, or anyone, should have to. Also, to be quite honest, I do not understand what the deal is with Indonesia's government, but something isn't right. In an age of trying to spread freedom across the globe, what steps are being taken regarding terrorism in Indonesia, I wonder?