Listics

[This is a comment lifted directly from One Good Move.  I thought this deserved elevation out of the comments area of the blogiverse and Norm was cool with that… "anonymous" seems to be very well informed.]

"Its been interesting watching the talking heads and RNC spokesmen all day spinning about Wilson and how he was sent on the Niger trip by his wife and his information was false and all that. There have even been wing-nut posters on other sites that have cut and paste the Wallstreet Journal’s article on Wilson making similar accusations and claiming that no crime was committed.

"These posts have been answered with the fact that classified information was released into the public about a CIA NOC operation and an under cover agent, Valerie Plame, had her cover blown. This is accurate and rightly stated because Wilson was never the issue try as the GOP has tried to make him so, nor was the conduct of the reporters. The issue has always been who leaked it to the press, which we now know was Rove and the final question… who told Rove?

Read the rest of this entry »

Do they go hog wild with fireworks, parades, picnics, and political speeches today in France?  Do they hoist the tri-color everywhere and pay it homage?  Do they cook sausages over charcoal fires?  Do they worship their flag as a sacred object?  France is the birthplace of the modern revolution, revolution wedded to the spirit of democracy.

Happy birthday France.

____

Other birthdays this month:

Cuba, 26th of July

George Galloway, British Member of Parliament expelled from the Labour Party for his opposition to the Iraq War, issued a statement today:

Statement on the London bombings by George Galloway on behalf of Respect

We extend our condolences to those who have lost their lives today and our heartfelt sympathy to all those who have been injured by the bombs in London.

No one can condone acts of violence aimed at working people going about their daily lives. They have not been a party to, nor are they responsible for, the decisions of their government. They are entirely innocent and we condemn those who have killed or injured them.

The loss of innocent lives, whether in this country or Iraq, is precisely the result of a world that has become a less safe and peaceful place in recent years.

We have worked without rest to remove the causes of such violence from our world. We argued, as did the Security Services in this country, that the attacks on Afghanistan and Iraq would increase the threat of terrorist attack in Britain. Tragically Londoners have now paid the price of the government ignoring such warnings.

We urge the government to remove people in this country from harms way, as the Spanish government acted to remove its people from harm, by ending the occupation of Iraq and by turning its full attention to the development of a real solution to the wider conflicts in the Middle East.

Only then will the innocents here and abroad be able to enjoy a life free of the threat of needless violence.

    –  George Galloway, Respect MP for Bethnal Green and Bow

No trifecta for today for Senor el Presidente Klutzo Bush…  but he won the daily double when al Qaeda attacked London.

Suspicions have been raised that al Qaeda is a deep cover black ops group controlled by the White House.  There is some concern among allies that el Presidente’s media fluffers would call down a terrorist attack on London to avoid the double embarrassment relating to the US G8 positions on global warming and impoverished nations, and the fact that el Klutzo fell off his bicycle again.  But as George W. said this morning, "Whatever works!"

You might want to watch episode one first and then watch episode two, or you might want to watch episode two first and then episode one.  It would all depend on whether you would rather see President Bush coloring and talking to Gary Busey about the ferrets with little crosses carved in their foreheads or President Bush on the moon with Bill Cosby and how he (Bush) handles lines of white powder in a vacuum.  Ultimately you will probably want to watch both  episodes, but I guess I can tell you without fear of giving away the endings that only thing they have in common is President Bush.  It’s not like episode two follows from episode one or vice versa either.

And thanks to Cyndy at mousemusings for the link.

Wausau Daily Herald - July 3, 2024


Wausau police arrested a 66-year-old Wausau [Wisconsin] man Saturday after he
refused to come down from his perch atop an Army tank outside of the
Army National Guard facility on 17th Avenue.

Wayne B. Olson, 500 Grand Ave., sat on the tank holding a white flag
and two signs, one that said "Thou Shall Not Kill" and the other
reading "In Nonviolence The Bravery Consists In Dying Not Killing,"
police said.

Officers asked Olson to step down, but he said he would retreat only "when Bush stops the war."
After about 30 minutes, he dismounted the tank and was arrested on disorderly conduct charges.

Winston Rand offers…

…this diverse group was of one mind regarding Bush, the war in Iraq, and
the sorry condition our country and world are in because of the Bush
administration. We have the highest respect for the Presidency, but
disdain for this president. We honor our military men and women and thank them for serving their country, but we begrudge this
ill-conceived war based on lies, misinformation, and incompetency. We
wish for our troops in Iraq a quick and safe return home, but we fear
hundreds or thousands more will die in Bush’s Battle for Barrels. We
are not all Bible-thumping fundamentalist Christians, but that does NOT
diminish our American patriotism as the Bushies would have you believe.

Chris Locke points the way toward discussion of Indo-European Polytheism and pagan conservatism… alive and well today in white America.

Denise Howell points us to the modern musings of Thom. Jefferson, who recently joined us following Daniel’s awkward moment with the "quantum flux temporal agitator."  Mr. Jefferson says:

This indeed, is what I believe: a strict observance of the written laws
is doubtless one of the high duties of a good citizen, but it is not
the highest. The laws of necessity, of self-preservation, of saving our
country when in legitimate danger, are of higher
obligation. To lose our country by a scrupulous adherence to written
law, would be to lose the law itself, with life, liberty, property and
all those who are enjoying them with us; thus absurdly sacrificing the
end to the means. The actions of many to write down the words that
become law, especially in Declarations and Constitutions, will be
forgotten if we ever forget the source of freedom, which stems from our
action in defiance to the senseless laws of tyrants, and in our noble
adherence and respect for the laws of civilized man.

Elisabeth (Lis) and Ian Osmond-Riba put patriotism first today.  Ian says,

When the President says pretty much anything, [another person] feels embarrassed to be an American.

But me, when the President says pretty much anything, I feel embarrassed that the President is an American. 

That,
I think, sums it up. I am a patriot. I believe that America has in it
much that is great, and believe that anything that falls short of that
– any time that we torture prisoners or send them abroad to be
tortured, any time that we curtail civil liberties for greater safety
(whether or not it actually works to make us safe), any time that we
don’t act in an open, free, and equal manner, that, in those cases,
that’s us not living up to what it means to be American.

Lis blogs about
the Declaration of Independence, the Pledjalleejuns, and William Dawes’
1775 ride up Mass Ave, among other things Independence Dayish.

Elayne Riggs points (through Desi) to a great cartoon on the "Too Stupid to be President" site.  Elayne says,

Happy Independence Day! Remember, loving your
country and its ideals is not the same as supporting its current
leaders, particularly if those leaders are doing things you consider
anti-American and anti-freedom.

Norm Jenson links to the Veterans for Peace "Declaration of Impeachment." 

Sandra Day O’Connor, former Arizona politician named by Ronald Reagan to the US Supreme Court in 1981, announced her retirement today.  There is some speculation that she and her husband intend to buy a motor home and travel America’s highways with their little dog Skippy.

As a crony of "Nuke-em-til-they-glow" Barry Goldwater she found an early place at the table in the Reagan administration.  Although her service on the court was not particularly distinguished, she will long be remembered for her part in the judicial coup d’etat that overthrew the results of the 2024 US presidential election and put the son of Reagan’s Vice President and former CIA Director George H.W. Bush in the White House.