September 30, 2006

A Grievous Blow To The Rovian Reich

Here we are spending years of effort and gazillions of dollars to turn our once Idyllic Cupcakeland™ country into the Rovian Land of Dispair™, and Tim Worstall uncovers stuff like this still going on:

The New York Governor George Pataki ruled that Mr Dicks had not committed a crime while physically in either New York or Louisiana. And, as online gambling was not outlawed in the State of New York, he had no choice but to release him.

The governor's counsels said in a statement: "While the Governor supports efforts to restrict illegal off-shore gaming, he does not have the legal authority to order the extradition of Mr Dicks."

That's the way it works, or ought to. No discretion, rather, the law is the law and if you can't be convicted when the system follows all of said law, then you should not be convicted.

I mean, he's a danged furrner, too!

If we can't make them disappear into the endless morass of the Lileksian Gulag System, well then I fear all is lost, my friends.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:54 AM

No Loss

Rep. Foley has resigned from Congress. Good. It seems he's a scumbag.

As Gaypatriot correctly points out

First — a 16-year old!?!? I just don’t get that!!!

Second — Think a long, long time before you put stuff in email. It never goes away and travels all around the world.

Third – Foley will be lynched, while Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) was given a pass for having his call-boy boyfriend running a prostitution ring out of Frank’s townhouse and he has won re-election ever since.

(I think on his third point Gaypatriot forgets that in our Parliament of Whores prostitution is most certainly not a sin)

I don't care if he's gay or indifferent; the fact is he was at the very least making extremely inappropriate contact with a minor, and perhaps even soliciting sex from the minor. The hubris and arrogance ('stupidity' for us little folk) of these politicians continues to amaze.

And what is the deal with the St. Petersburg Times, which seemed to know all this a year ago and has sat on it until...4 weeks before the election? Aren't they an accessory to any crime by not reporting it to the police?

I don't care about the political impact of this per se, and how it may help the Dems gain another seat; I want this guy to be making license plates.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:33 AM | Comments (6)

September 29, 2006

I Am SMOKIN' Mad

(And probably should have waited until the red glaze cleared from my eyes, but I've never had that kind of self control.)
Don't let the headline fool you.

'It is Time for Muslims to Reciprocate'
This week a Berlin opera house cancelled a performance of Mozart in the latest of many crises over religious sensitivities. A moderate Muslim asks: Have we learned anything?

The voluntary closing of the Deutsche Oper Berlin because of the anticipated sensitivities of Muslims hearing about their Prophet’s severed head assumes great symbolic significance in the age of globalization in which we live. Images, events and words—as we saw in the case of Pope Benedict a few days ago—have the capacity to inflame societies across the world in a matter of hours.

Let's clarify that point ~ just Islamic societies. There are no riotous Baptists, no one burns cars when Falwell speaks, nor riots in the streets at the words of the Arch Bishop of Canterbury. Get my drift? It's not 'societies'...it's JUST Muslims.

The tragic events of September 11, 2001, in one sense could be viewed as a symptom of this growing crisis between the two civilizations. Five years ago, the world was poised at the crossroads: one road led to a clash of civilizations and another toward dialogue and understanding. Developments after September 11 have confirmed in the minds of millions across the world that there is a global conflict in progress. Nearly 3,000 American lives were lost on that day and another 3,000 have been lost in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is estimated that tens of thousands of Muslims have lost their lives in these wars. As a result, an entire generation of young Muslims is coming of age that sees the world through the lens of an ongoing attack on the foundations of its faith.*

*I interpret that as "you brought that sh*t on yourself and CONTINUE to do so." Did I get that wrong?

It is time for Muslims to reciprocate these gestures. As a Muslim committed to interfaith dialogue, I would appeal to the president of Iran not to make provocative remarks about the Holocaust nor to threaten the Jewish population with extermination. It is time for all of us to think about the boldness of the theater owners in Germany. They did, after all, stop a production of Mozart, the quintessential iconic Germanic figure, in order to express their belief in the dialogue of and understanding between civilizations.

Nooooo, they did it out of fear of VIOLENT ISLAMIC retribution, not a chance for dialogue. If they wanted to TALK, they wouldn't have spent a gazillion dollars getting a production together that subsequently had to be cancelled thanks to implied threats of Muslim goonism. They could have simply picked up the phone and dialed the local mullah. What a canard and seeing it in print defies belief.

This is the precise, mealy mouthed BULLSHIT that passes for 'moderate' in the Islamic world and that the MSM swallows whole hog.

NOWHERE does Mr. Akmed call the 9/11 MUSLIM hijackers MURDERERS.
NOWHERE does Mr. Akmed mention the tens of thousands of Muslims MURDERED by fellow MUSLIMS in the name of ISLAM.
NOWHERE does Mr. Akmed CONDEMN ANY of the slaughter in ALLAH's name.

Oh yes, it's presented to us and we have the presence of mind to call it the bullshit that it is. We can see the prevarications and the skillful blame spin game and note that there is NO acceptance YET AGAIN of ANY responsibility on the part of Islam OR it's increasingly strident but FEEBLE apologists.

BUT this Newsweek goes to the WHOLE WORLD and Islamic clerics everywhere will be waving Mr. Akmed's piece as if they now had PROOF positive that Islam has M-O-D-E-R-A-T-E-S ~ that there are lucid and reasonable faces among the mob. What a f*ckin' shell game.

DE-ASSKISSALATION, people. "It's Time for Muslims to Reciprocate" my ass. It's time for them to F*CKING STOP.
Or for US to stop THEM.

Enough already.

Michelle Malkin has transcripts of forbidden op-ed letters. No transcripts of 'moderate' voices raised in protest.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:33 AM | Comments (4)

Who Brought "Disgrace"?

This is rich:

RENO, Nev. Former President Carter is urging northern Nevadans to elect his son, Jack, to the Senate to help combat a Bush administration he says has brought "international disgrace" to the country.
The former president told a crowd of about 300 on the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno today that the nation is more sharply divided that it has ever been as a result of Bush's policies.

The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, he says he's deeply embarrassed that the American government now stands convicted around the world as one of the greatest abusers of civil rights.

What planet is this guy on?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:20 AM | Comments (2)

That About Sums It All Up

...for me, anyway.

From comments at MSNBC's Red Tape Chronicles.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:37 AM | Comments (5)

The Senate Wants Federal Employees

...you know, the mostly air-conditioned office type ~ to get a 2.7% pay raise in January. A pittance and fair enough. Until you realize the Senate also thinks the military's worth only a 2.2% pay raise for what THEY do.

I sent a little note emphasizing that I thought we were worth at least as much as Madge the secretary. (Or her only as much as us.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:48 AM | Comments (6)

September 28, 2006

The European Union Quietly

...cuts out the middle guy.

EU starts social allowances payments to Palestinians at the start of Ramadan
The European Commission announced Monday that it started the payment of social allowances to 40,000 of the neediest Palestinian families through the Temporary International Mechanism (TIM) .

"We are happy to organize the payment at the start of Ramadan," Commission spokesperson for external relations, Emma Udwin, told reporters in Brussels.

Families have been identified from those normally supported through the social welfare scheme of the Palestinian Authority and will receive 270 euro each.

The Middle East Quartet (EU, US, UN and Russia) last week supported an extension of the TIM for a three month period and an expansion of its scope.

"The TIM is helping to meet the most urgent needs of the Palestinian people, and following the Quartet decision, we will be able to do even more," said EU Commissioner for external relations Benita Ferreo-Waldner.

The TIM was established last June by the European Commission at the request of the Quartet and the European Council to facilitate needs-based assistance to the Palestinian people.

The EU and the US stopped all financial payments to the PA Authority after Hamas was elected early this year causing great hardships to the Palestinian population.

Another report here.

"Please don't burn our Fiats" disguised as welfare payments. I LIKE it!

Besides, it's been hard to fund an Intifada since the Saddam/Saudi sugar daddy pipelines were broken.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 06:17 PM | Comments (7)

Inspirational Posters

We at the Swilling always seek to uplift and enlighten our gentle readers, which is why I am so glad that Allahpundit (punditry be upon him) at HotAir linked to a site where you can create your own moving and inspirational posters like those that you see in airline magazines and guidance counselor's offices.

My efforts on your behalf, dear reader, are below the fold.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:07 PM | Comments (2)

But If I Stood Outside HIS Mosque Yelling the Same Things

...betcha they hook me up for something.

Radical Muslim who made death threats against Pope escapes prosecution
A furious row has erupted after it emerged that a notorious preacher will not be prosecuted for issuing a death threat to Pope Benedict over his remarks about Islam.

...But Scotland Yard has concluded that 'no substantive offences' were committed on September 17.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:23 PM

The Ongoing Failure

...of Imagination.

...As we approach the fifth year without a second successful terrorist attack upon U.S. soil, a chorus of skeptics now suggests that 9/11 was a 100-year flood. They conveniently forget the deadly explosions in Bali, Madrid, London, and Mumbai, and dismiss scores of attacks planned against the United States and others that have been disrupted. [1] The idea that terrorists are currently preparing even more deadly assaults seems as far-fetched to them as the possibility of terrorists crashing passenger jets into the World Trade Center did before that fateful Tuesday morning.

As one attempts to assess where we now stand, and what the risks are, the major conclusion of the bipartisan 9/11 Commission deserves repetition: The principal failure to act to prevent the September 11 attack was a "failure of imagination." [2] A similar failure of imagination leads many today to discount the risk of a nuclear 9/11.

...Lest this seem too hypothetical, recall an actual incident that occurred in New York City one month to the day after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. A CIA agent, code-named Dragonfire, reported that Al Qaeda had acquired a live nuclear weapon produced by the former Soviet Union and had successfully smuggled it into New York City. [3] A top-secret Nuclear Emergency Support Team was dispatched to the city. Under a cloak of secrecy that excluded even Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, these nuclear ninjas searched for the 10-kiloton bomb whose blast could have obliterated a significant portion of Manhattan. Fortunately, Dragonfire's report turned out to be a false alarm. But the central takeaway from the Dragonfire case is this: The U.S. government had no grounds in science or in logic to dismiss the warning.

A nuclear terrorist attack on the United States would have catastrophic consequences even for other countries. After the nuclear detonation, the immediate reaction would be to block all entry points to prevent another bomb from reaching its target, resulting in the disruption of the global "just-in-time" flow of goods and raw materials. Vital markets for international products would disappear, and closely linked financial markets would crash. Researchers at RAND, a U.S.-government-funded think tank, estimated that a nuclear explosion at the Port of Long Beach in California would cause immediate indirect costs worldwide of more than $3 trillion and that shutting down U.S. ports would cut world trade by 10 percent. [4]

The negative economic repercussions would reverberate well beyond the developed world. As U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has warned, "Were a nuclear terrorist attack to occur, it would cause not only widespread death and destruction, but would stagger the world economy and thrust tens of millions of people into dire poverty." [5]

How does one assess the probability of an unprecedented event that could have catastrophic consequences? Since there is no established methodology, the soundest way to proceed is to ask and answer the core questions: who, what, where, when, and how?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:28 PM | Comments (7)

Nightfly Gets Caught In LadyBug's Web

Woo-Hoo!

Congratulations! The cheesesteaks are on me!!!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:26 AM | Comments (2)

If THIS Is So True, Then Why Hasn't Bingley

...cured cancer?

WINE EYED AS BRAIN BOOSTER
Giving mice with Alzheimer's-like disease the equivalent of a couple of glasses of red wine daily slows memory loss and brain-cell death, a study shows.

Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine found mice with a brain defect who were fed wine learned to escape from a maze faster than nonalcohol-drinking mice with the same defect.

Maybe just making it home from the office is enough.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:04 AM | Comments (1)

September 27, 2006

Well, HUSH My Mouth!!!

I'll bet he wish he had...

Democratic Senate challenger Jim Webb declined to say definitively Tuesday whether he had ever used a common derogatory term to describe blacks, stepping carefully after watching his campaign rival confront charges of racism.

“I don’t think that there’s anyone who grew up around the South that hasn’t had the word pass through their lips at one time or another in their life,” Webb told reporters.

See "BINGLEY:Chapter 1"

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:56 PM | Comments (1)

What a Sticky Tar Baby

...this is.

7-Eleven Dropping Venezuela-Backed Citgo
Convenience store operator 7-Eleven Inc. is dropping Venezuela-backed Citgo as its gasoline supplier at more than 2,100 locations and switching to its own brand of fuel.

...7-Eleven spokesman Margaret Chabris said that, "Regardless of politics, we sympathize with many Americans' concern over derogatory comments about our country and its leadership recently made by Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez."

Chabris said a boycott of Citgo gasoline would hurt the 4,000 employees of the U.S. subsidiary, who have no connection to Venezuela.

Every drop of gas sold on NAS Pensacola is CITGO. They're the contracted supplier for all the Naval installations here in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. I guess the devil's...in the details.

UPDATE: Seems local military folks are Googling and finding us.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:41 PM

Oh Lord...

Take me now.

Senators Propose Funds for Paper Ballots to Back Up Electronic Ones

Three Senate Democrats proposed emergency legislation today to reimburse states for printing paper ballots that can be ready at polling places in case of problems with electronic voting machines on Nov. 7.

The proposal is a response to grass-roots pressure and growing concern by local and state officials about touch-screen machines. An estimated 40 percent of voters will use those machines in the election.

“If someone asks for a paper ballot they ought to be able to have it,” said Senator Barbara Boxer of California, a co-sponsor of the measure with Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut and Senator Russ Feingold of Wisconson.

They should have left it paper to begin with, duh. But not punchy things that blind-as-a-bat 85 year old transplanted New Yawker ladies in Palm Beach can and do f*ck up routinely. Let's go uncomplicated and eezy cheezy, like here in Escambia County. It's called a BIG FAT MARKER and...a straight line.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:20 AM | Comments (5)

I Have Dropped A Big Fat FATWAH on Tim "Aussie Infidel" BLAIR !!

He has impugned the Prophet (pieces be upon him) AND ARTISTS, calling us a "docile species". Knowing such coward's talk is Aussie Pig Latin for "P-WORDS", I have called upon my friends...

-CAIR News Conference Photo Courtesy of "It Comes in Pints?"

...in all the far lands of Islam (pieces be upon them, too) for support in my outrage at this scurrilous, slurious pigdog.

Our shari’a is the most perfect of the orthodox, merciful shari’as, praise be to God. Our religious scholars said, “That which is absolute in its monotheism (perfection in monotheism), is merciful in its shari’a tenets (ease, simplicity, clarity, practicality, and other characteristics of it). Therefore, unless our military actions are servant to our judicious shari’a policy, and unless our short-term goals and successes are servant to our ultimate goal and highest aims, then they will be akin to exhaustion, strain, and illusion. It will be a bit like the happiness of children over something at the beginning of the day, which wears out by the end of the day and its evening! We ask God for security and safety.*

Oh yeah, heretic Blair. I got yer "docile" right here, big boy.

* Authentic medieval phraseology courtesy of al-Qa`ida

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:38 AM | Comments (33)

If Only We'd Known This About McGreevey Sooner

No, no, not that, you homofoibles you, I'm refering to this crucial information:

When we left the bar he bought Jägermeister at a store and took the bottle home.

This incident happened when he was still Mayor of Woodbridge. It says all we needed to know about his character.

I want any candidate for Governor to be asked "Have you ever bought a bottle of Jägermeister?"

I can answer "No".

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:49 AM | Comments (26)

"Anybody Moves, The Nigger Gets It"

Should we not allow Mel Brooks and Richard Pryor to run for public office?

The MSM has been all a-twitter about what George Allen did or did not say whilst at the University of Virginia in the 70s, and the blogs have been following this frankly ridiculous story.

Yes, ridiculous. It disgusts me to no end how all these people are primping and parading around saying "Ooh golly, I never said that word with these sainted lips!". Oh bullshit. I was born in 1964, and everyone said it at some point. To our society's great credit as the 60s became the 70s became the 80s people gained awareness of such casual racism and people who used it were mostly quietly shunned, and those who used it and meant it in its full derogatory nature more and more likely to be openly and publically shunned and dressed down. That's called progress, folks, and it's a good thing. Social change does not happen overnight, and frankly the change that I've seen in my lifetime over how minorities are treated by people in everyday life in our country is one of the things I'm proudest of as an American.

And I include myself in that change, as I certainly used all types of racial epithets growing up, as did everyone of my peers, in everyday normal conversation (to set the record straight, I've also jaywalked, smoked pot and run several red lights). But then the strangest thing happened: I grew up, as did my society. What was ok to casually say in 1972 was bound to cause some embarrassed looks by 1982 and would certainly cause problems by 1990 because people had learned that it was false in their hearts, regardless of its status legally; this change in social mores is far more important than any law could ever be.

I attended the University of Virginia in the early 80s, roughly a decade behind the folks embroiled above, and I certainly heard the word used by both blacks and whites, but I have to say that even by then most times the context was more Blazing Saddles than David Duke.

It's only a word, folks. A hateful word. A word that reminds us of the worst in ourselves and our country's past. Perhaps it should remind us of how far we've come from that shameful past.

Oh, I'm certainly not saying we should just casually toss it about (although any quick listen to the music blasting from many cars these days would lead one to assume that that is indeed the case), but for its useage thirty some-odd years ago to become a major issue in a political campaign without any indication of its relevance to Allen's current views seems rather assinine, at the very least. And for his attackers to piously claim never to have uttered it is beyond belief.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:28 AM | Comments (17)

September 26, 2006

I Notice There's Been a Change in the Headline

Where this morning the opera was pulled because it was 'inflammatory', this latest headline has a different tenor (snort) all together.

Mozart opera withdrawn on fears of Islamist attack

Indignation erupted across Germany's political spectrum on Tuesday after a renowned opera house said it had dropped a controversial production of Mozart's Idomeneo from its programme because it feared becoming a target of Islamist extremists.

Wolfgang Schäuble, interior minister, attacked the decision by Berlin's Deutsche Oper not to show the 200-year-old work as "crazy", "ridiculous" and "unacceptable".

...Bernd Neumann, culture minister, said it showed "the democratic culture of free speech is in danger".

...Unlikely bedfellows have been united in protest at Deutsche Oper's decision. Conservative MPs from Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU party found themselves agreeing with Dieter Wiefelspütz, a Social Democratic security expert, calling the cancellation "a concession to terrorists" and a "shameful" move, respectively.

Of course, there's always one apologist included for balance.

...A retired German Muslim leader who asked not to be named said he was concerned.

"This is typically the kind of reaction that shapes this persecution complex among young Muslims when what we need is a policy of de-escalation."

Thank you, Herr Doktor Freud.

Personally, I would instead counter with a swiftly implemented policy of DE-ASSKISSALATION.

Either way un-Medieval Mozart is schpinning in his potter's grave.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:30 PM | Comments (7)

After a Rough Night Out, Paddington Bear Is Sleeping

...with the FISHES. Literally in the tank.

Killer teddy bear behind deaths of 2,500 fish
Stuffed animal was dropped into trout pool, clogged the flow of oxygen

A teddy bear has been implicated in 2,500 deaths. Of trout, that is. State officials say a teddy bear dropped into a pool at a Fish and Game Department hatchery earlier this month clogged a drain. The clog blocked the flow of oxygen to the pool and suffocated the fish.

Hatcheries supervisor Robert Fawcett said the bear — a Paddington Bear dressed in yellow raincoat and hat — is believed to be the first stuffed bear to cause fatalities at the facility.

...He said it's not known who dropped the bear, but urged anyone whose bear ends up in a hatchery pool to find a worker to remove it. "They might save your teddy bear, and keep it from becoming a killer," he said.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:24 PM | Comments (5)

Be Careful What You Pay For

You just might get it.

Paris Hilton is close to signing a deal to promote Ecoist.com, an eco-friendly accessories company, but the execs at the company are getting a tad nervous about the prospect of trotting out the heiress as a spokeswoman.

...“Ecoist is hoping that Paris will join them in October on a trip to Port-Au-Prince to plant more than 40,000 trees,” a source says. “But when she was told about the trip, Paris had no idea where Haiti was. When she was told that they speak French there [along with Creole], she said, ‘I wouldn’t mind spending a few days there and the weekend in Paris.”

Duh. But she's hot!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:23 PM | Comments (6)

Why Bingley Doesn't Let Me

...play with sharp objects.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:54 AM | Comments (13)

Baby, It's HOT Outside

Okay, well, maybe where YOU live. But here in Bangla-cola, it's a delightful 75 and the house is wide open. (Just like it was into the beginning of summer, which never happens, mind you.) This after last night's ABC News doom and gloom report (which had lots of chortle inducing computer screens shots with the infamous 'hockey stick'). In the global warming fracas, I'm gonna take sides with with Dr. Gray, I think.

...Another problem, Essex said, is in the inability to do controlled experiments - one of science's key tools.

"There's only one atmosphere, so you can't hold everything steady and change just one variable to see what happens," he said.

Essex offered his critique of the models at a Los Alamos National Laboratory climate conference in Santa Fe in July.

At the end of the presentation, CSU's Gray jumped up and demanded: "Should we base national policy on these models?"

"I'm not touching that," Essex replied.

And then Essex added: "At every stage of the history of science, there has been some element that was impossible, and we've found a way around it. I am sure we will here."

This did not assuage Bill Gray.

Gray is among the most strident critics, quick to use words like "fraud" or "gang" to describe the modelers.

Instead of model projections, Gray looks at the history and patterns of weather to find trends.

And befitting his 76 years, Gray has a long view. His first report on climate - on the return of the dust bowl - was in the early 1940s when he was in junior high school.

"We'd gone through a warming trend in the '40s, and everybody was saying we were going to win World War II but face terrible droughts," Gray said.

Soon after, temperatures went into a cooling trend and by 1975, Gray points out, there was talk of a coming ice age.

Not because I don't care, or don't think it could be true, mind you. Just because the guys with thick glasses ~ tweaking and twisting their poor computers over the vagaries of Mother Earth, trying to fit it all into patterns that ALWAYS should work, but somehow never completely do, while discounting observation, history and common sense ~ say so? As one person points out in the article ~ how does that thermometer placed next to the heat holding building affect the REAL temperature reading and all your models? Move it away and recompute.

It's too iffy to lose our minds just yet. Like I always preach ~ it shouldn't take global warming to be a good world citizen. major dad and I've talked about how $1.25 gal gas would be horrible, because then the country's back to Ford Excursions instead of driving efficient vehicles for what their NEEDS truly are. From recyling, turning off the lights, the toothbrushing water, etc. on an individual level to power plant emissions, pig poopie run-off, etc. on the industrial side, it ain't hard and it ain't rocket scientist. And every little bit makes it better for everyone.

UPDATE: THIS is a great read.

...Finally, a September 15, 2006 Reuters News article claimed that polar bears in the Arctic are threatened with extinction by global warming. The article by correspondent Alister Doyle, quoted a visitor to the Arctic who claims he saw two distressed polar bears. According to the Reuters article, the man noted that “one of [the polar bears] looked to be dead and the other one looked to be exhausted." The article did not state the bears were actually dead or exhausted, rather that they “looked” that way.

Have we really arrived at the point where major news outlets in the U.S. are reduced to analyzing whether or not polar bears in the Arctic appear restful?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:45 AM | Comments (5)

One Needs Sound for the True Experience

Old Blue Eyes croons...

Strangers on My Flight

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:58 AM | Comments (1)

I Would Ask...

A key Renault executive indicated in quotes cited by newspapers on Tuesday that U.S. carmaker General Motors did not share the same sense of urgency as do Renault and Nissan to fight rival Toyota.

..."hasn't that been GM's problem all along?" If you're looking for a 'nimble responder' to change, it ain't them.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:42 AM | Comments (2)

My Most Favoritest Teeth Gnash Causing Columnist

...is at it again. This time she's, well, going on about the 'rift' her book (on life as a military wife) 'created'.

It's been nearly a year since my book, "Going Overboard: The Misadventures of a Military Wife," went on sale. Immediately upon its release, the book had critics, all of them military spouses. I've waited this long to respond for a reason.

And her response is right up her peculiarly mis-informed, self-absorbed alley.

It's the "just make the casserole and smile" mentality, and it breeds two things -- discontent and rebellion. As military spouses, we need to get with the times or be left in the dust with the 1950s housewives who smiled and nodded, then threw back the alcohol once the kids were in bed.

Oh, please. I'm sure she got most of those impressions and angry letters from long retired Navy wives, who were appalled by her comportment. If she'd actually bothered to speak to a 'not-in-her-age-group-nor-hubby's-chain-o'-command' military wife from the past few decades, she'd lose that whole stupid 'Angie Dickinson in Pearl Harbor' thread and then what would be left for her to write about? Um...pitiful, witless crap like this, I guess...

Military wives also took issue with my inability to cope on my own. I admit, at barely 25 years old (when the book took place), I was helpless. Haven't we all been at one time or another? Maybe, maybe not. But here's what I hope you will remember: there are still so many young military wives struggling the way I was. How can we turn our backs on them by criticizing someone for being honest and real? By being outspoken, I hope I've made other women feel free to ask for help, because no two people experience deployments and military life the same way. And no one's experience should be discounted.

TWENTYFIVE YEARS OLD and HELPLESS??!! Oh, you are so right we took issue with that, since you're a college educated ADMIRAL's daughter who is also an OFFICER'S WIFE. "Helpless", my feckless friend, is reserved for the UN-educated, eighteen year old Lance Corporal's wife with TWO BABIES and he's on a year deployment. The pity meter is pegged for you, Sarah. You have every support mechanism in the world to help you, while those poor kids don't and NEVER have. Maybe if you'd spent less time whining about seemingly self-induced daycare problems and more time helping the younger enlisted spouses find that help, you'd have:

a) gotten answers you needed, too

b) actually done something of service to the military community (granted, you might not have had time for the NYT photo session)

c) have some street cred with ACTIVE DUTY wives like me ( with street cred of their own ) who just think you're a spoiled dolt.

Perhaps what saddened me most about the reactions from fellow wives was the amount of hostility and close-mindedness. I had always thought military women were progressive and accepting. After all, we endure much and become family when our spouses are away. So it surprised me that compassion came not from the women who share my lifestyle, but from those who do not. And it worries me that, in the end, we are the hardest and least tolerant of our own.

Coincidentally enough, that's why we also don't write you letters or show up for book signings...why we roll our eyes when our military husbands mention "Sarah's column..." (see "c" above) and cringe when we see those fawning presentations in our local fishwrap whence you got your start or, God forbid, on a national stage.

We are just so mean.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:54 AM | Comments (3)

I'm Not So Sure This

...is a good idea. But since I wasn't sure if you all knew about it, I thought I'd throw it out there.

S 3696 (PERA), sponsored by Sen. Brownback (R-Kan), a companion bill to H.R. 2679 (PERA), sponsored by Rep. Hostetter (R-Ind.), would amend all relevant federal laws to eliminate the authority of judges to award taxpayer-paid attorney fees to the ACLU, or anyone else, in lawsuits under the Establishment of Religion Clause of the First Amendment against veterans memorials, the Boy Scouts, or the public display of the Ten Commandments of other symbols of America’s history with a religious aspect.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:12 AM | Comments (3)

September 25, 2006

Your Dog's Most Precious Dreams Realized! He Can FINALLY Be

...Princess Leia.

See what happens when you neuter and spay?
Obi-Wan Kenobi...there's no hope.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:52 PM | Comments (7)

Oh

...yeah.

No joke. Rutgers is ranked. The Scarlet Knights, long a college football laughingstock, moved Sunday into The Associated Press Top 25 for the first time in 30 years.

They're #23.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:53 AM | Comments (9)

Manly Taliban Religion of Pieces Types

...are up to their old tricks wimmens-wise.

Gunmen on a motorcycle shot dead the head of a women's department in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar on Monday, a security official and a relative said.

...Ama Jan was on her way to work, getting into a car outside her house, when the gunmen struck, said her nephew, who identified himself as Farhad.

"She died on the spot," he told reporters.

...A Taliban commander, Mullah Hayat Khan, said Ama Jan was killed because she worked for the government.

"We have told people time and time again that anyone working for the government -- including women -- will be killed," Khan said by telephone from an undisclosed location.

Bless her brave heart. When the hell is someone gonna lay the hurt on the a$$holes that they deserve?

Or at the very LEAST (educated women of the LIBERAL LEFT, I'm talking to YOU here...) call them what they ARE?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:44 AM | Comments (3)

People For The Ethical Treatment Of...

Roaches

GURNEE, Ill. (AP) - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals wants Six Flags Great America to scrap its Halloween-themed cockroach-eating promotion.
A spokeswoman for the animal rights organization says the contest at the amusement park's FrightFest is "gratuitously cruel."

The park in Gurnee, Ill., is joining other Six Flags parks in offering unlimited line-jumping privileges to anyone who eats a live Madagascar hissing cockroach. The bugs are up to three inches long.

They are beyond parody.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:51 AM | Comments (11)

Don't Keep Your Mexican Lover In The Closet

This valuable life lesson is brought to us today by Martha Freeman of Nashville who found that, well it just makes things complicated:

(Court TV) -- Almost 16 hours after Martha Freeman's husband was strangled and beaten to death in the couple's upscale south Nashville home, she finally reported his death to police.
If her decision to wait was puzzling, so was the explanation she gave police.

Freeman claimed her lover, an illegal Mexican immigrant who was living in her closet, killed her husband.

...Metro Nashville Police Department detectives also found the closet that Martha Freeman claimed her lover lived in for about a month before her husband's death. The 2-by-8-foot storage space contained a foam pad, pillows, blankets, three loaves of bread, a Nintendo GameBoy, a radio, and several adult magazines. Investigators also found an "overnight bag," which contained lingerie and pictures of Martha Freeman in various stages of undress.

Martha Freeman was seemingly forthcoming with authorities about her relationship with Perez, whom she referred to as "Christian," and his alleged role in her husband's death sometime after 9 p.m. that evening. Initially, only Perez was charged with Jeffrey Freeman's murder. Martha Freeman was a witness at his preliminary hearing, providing detailed information about their relationship and the night her husband was killed.

Freeman said she met Perez at a July 4 celebration in 2004 during a rocky period in her marriage. The two went to a hotel in downtown Nashville with two of his friends, and she admitted to having "intimate" relations with the three men. From there, the lovers conducted an on-and-off relationship with the aid of an English-Spanish translator. Perez moved into a closet in the Freeman home in March 2005.

They "conducted an on-and-off relationship with the aid of an English-Spanish translator"? Was he one of the three from before? Blech!

Blech again!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:43 AM | Comments (5)

A Crime That Staggers The Mind

You just have to wonder "why" after you recoil from the horror of this:

EAST ST. LOUIS, Illinois (AP) -- A woman accused of killing a pregnant woman and her fetus told police she drowned the woman's three young children and stuffed them into a washer and dryer at their apartment, an official said Sunday.

She was this woman's best friend

By all accounts, Hall and Jimella Tunstall were like sisters, survivors in this place defined by crime, poverty, crumbling buildings and potholed roads.
The two were quiet loners who gravitated toward each other at school. They both became teenage mothers.

yet she ends up beating her unconcious, then cutting open her belly with a pair of scissors and removing her 7-month old baby, then she drowns the woman's other 3 children.

WTF-itty-F-F??

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:17 AM | Comments (1)

September 24, 2006

Lights,Camera...Acting

Jake Tapper of ABC News follows up on dogs wagging.

...In the interview Clinton said that during the 1990s conservatives criticized him for "obsessing" over bin Laden and "they ridiculed me for trying" to kill bin Laden.

So let's examine the record...

How many folks raised the "Wag the Dog" scenario? (The idea, nicknamed from the David Mamet movie, being that the attack was unnecessary and only to distract from the president's troubles.)

..."I think the president did exactly the right thing," said House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) said. "By doing this we're sending the signal there are no sanctuaries for terrorists." Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) called the attacks "appropriate and just," and House Majority Leader Richard K. Armey (R-Tex.) said "the American people stand united in the face of terrorism."

The AP says: "Gingrich dismissed any possibility that Clinton may have ordered the attacks to divert attention from the scandal. Instead, he said, there was an urgent need for a reprisal following the Aug. 7 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. 'Anyone who watched the film of the bombings, anyone who saw the coffins come home knows better than to question this timing,' Gingrich said. 'It was done as early as possible to send a message to terrorists across the globe that killing Americans has a cost. It has no relationship with any other activity of any kind.'

It gets worse for President Clinton's recollection of events.

But that's neither here nor there. A large glass of my BV Cabernet will be lifted to Jake, who seems to always be on the side of "NOT so fast", regardless of party or PC, making him a refreshing voice in the wilderness. He does ABC great credit.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:45 PM

In The Spirit Of World Peace

And understanding, I present some highlights from the following phrasebook guide so that we may build bridges of love and understanding to other cultures as we American tourists traverse the world:

General Expressions
How much is that in real money?
C'est combien en monnaie réelle ?
¿Cuánto es en moneda estable?
Wieviel ist das in richtigem Geld?

At the hotel

There's a corpse on the bed. Please change the sheets.
Il y a un cadavre sur le lit. S'il vous plaît, faites changer les draps.
Hay un muerto en mi cama. Por favor, cambie las sábanas.
Da liegt eine Leiche auf dem Bett. Bitte wechseln sie die Laken.

Making friends

I understand your language perfectly.
Je parle français comme une vache espagnole.
Hablo español como un gringo borracho.
Ich sprechen deutsch wie italienisch Fußballtrainer.

Don't "imperialist pig" me, my good man.
Fichez-moi la paix avec votre "cochon impérialiste", mon petit bonhomme.
¡Váyase usted al cuerno con su "cerdo imperialista", hombre!
Nenn du mich nicht "imperialistisches Schwein", mein Lieber.

A little romance

Girls with big mazongas usually can't rhumba so well.
Avec les roberts comme ça, ta rhumba est exceptionnelle.
Bailas muy bien, a despecho de tus enormes naranjas.
Mädchen mit viel Holz vor die Hütt sind meistens beim Rhumba nicht so gut.

You're very pretty for a foreigner.
Vous êtes très jolie [joli], pour une étrangère [un étranger].
Usted es muy guapa [guapo] para ser extranjera [extranjero].
Du bist sehr schön für eine Ausländerin [einen Ausländer].

Sightseeing

Your country has such lovely dirt.
Votre pays a une saleté vraiment charmante.
¡La suciedad de su país es tan agradable!
Euer Land hat so reizenden Schmutz.

Travel

Make sure my seat isn't next to any Frenchmen (Argentines, Austrians).
J'exige de ne pas être assis à côté d'un français.
No me siente al lado de ningún argentino, por favor.
Passen sie auf, dass ich nicht neben irgendwelchen Östereichern sitze.

Understanding directions

Where is the Cathedral?
Où est le bordel ?
¿Dónde se da masajes?
Wo geht's 'n hier zum Puff?

I know I'm naked, could you just tell me how to get back to the hotel?
Je le sais bien que je suis à poil; je veux simplement savoir comment rentrer à l'hôtel.
Ya se que estoy calato; sólo quiero saber cómo volver al hotel.
Ich weiß, dass ich nackt bin; könnten sie mir vielleicht einfach sagen, wie ich wieder zurück zum Hotel komme?

At the restaurant

Could I have some clean water?
Veuillez m'apporter de l'eau vraiment propre.
¿Podría darme un poco de su agua realmente potable?
Könnte ich etwas sauberes Wasser haben?

Intellectual exchanges

Impressed as I am with the New Wave in cinematography, I must say that this particular film seemed both pretentious and unsatisfying, and that the director's imagery, though compelling, is no substitute for a true cinematic message.
Mais c'est de la merde, ce navet.
A esto le llamo yo estiércol cinematográfico.
Der Film ist Scheiße.

Please do go and read them all; it is out duty as World Citizens.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 12:53 PM | Comments (9)

Searching for Answers Sunday

Are you as sick of these guys...

...as I am? Is this all they have in their day to do?

I've about had it with their 'anger' and 'outrage' and their ugly f*ckin' mugs as big as a cowpaddie on my 'puter screen every f*ckin' day.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:19 AM | Comments (7)

September 23, 2006

Ryder Cup?

Looks more like we've been hit by a Ryder Truck.

(Or team USA got confused and thought their shirts said "UVA"...)

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:29 AM | Comments (2)

September 22, 2006

The Rat Strikes Again?

Let's see, first Armitage ends up as the one who gave Plame's name to Novack.

Now he's mentioned as the one behind the supposed Bush "bomb you back to the Stone Age" threat to Pakistan:

White House spokesman Tony Snow said Richard Armitage, who was deputy secretary of state at the time, had denied warning Musharraf that the United States would bomb his country if it did not cooperate with the U.S. campaign against the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Musharraf, in an interview with CBS News’ magazine show “60 Minutes,” to air on Sunday, said that after the Sept. 11 attacks, Armitage had told Pakistan’s intelligence director, “’Be prepared to be bombed. Be prepared to go back to the Stone Age.’”

What a weasel.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:56 AM | Comments (3)

September 21, 2006

Do We Have a Mug

...for the great Americans quoted over at Brendan Loy's.

A sample...

MrMichaelMT blames Bush: “While Chavez’ tone is undoubtably uncivilized, and his machinations are certainly detrimental to pan-American relations, it’s important to realize whose behavior enabled his tirade. Had Bush not lowered the level of discourse at the United Nations to the level of Kruschev’s shoe, Chavez would not have earned the applause he did.”

Another one to add to the list. Bad Bush!!!

Bad! Bad!! Bad!!!
(Get your own 'mug of truth'....)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:56 PM | Comments (8)

If Only Mr. Karr Would Do the Same Thing

...as his 'puter.

Child porn case against Karr hits a snag
Prosecutors can’t find computer that allegedly contained illegal images

Efforts to prosecute one-time JonBenet Ramsey murder suspect John Mark Karr on child pornography charges should not be jeopardized even though his computer that allegedly contained the images was lost, Sonoma County authorities said Wednesday.

Authorities seized the computer from Karr’s home in 2001 and copied the entire hard drive onto paper, including the five illicit images, said Sheriff’s Department Lt. Dave Edmonds. He said authorities looked for the computer for the past two weeks, but have had no luck.

FIVE images? FIVE? Oh yeah, baby ~ he's a criminal mastermind. And the sheriff's department looks like bumbling, fumbling....astronauts or something. Get this ~~guy~~ WEASEL outta the news, for cryin' out loud. There's a war on! The Mets clinched the division! Natalee Holloway! The world's full of disasters, so please...something, anything but this.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:05 AM | Comments (3)

Run Away!

Drudge is reporting:

CHAVEZ FLEES NYC; CUTS TRIP SHORT AFTER 'DEVIL' SPEECH Thu Sep 21 2006 08:21:15 ET
Fiery Venezuela President Hugo Chavez will 'wrap up' his controversial NYC visit early this morning to return home to Caracas, sources say.

The president cancelled several appointments previously scheduled in NYC today including a second news conference he was to hold at Venezuela's United Nations mission.

On Wednesday, Chavez, in a controversial speech in the UN General Assembly, mocked President George Bush repeatedly calling him 'The Devil'.

Maybe Bolton asked him if he liked Thai food...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:08 AM | Comments (11)

I Doubt It's Just Me But...

...I can't recall seeing such dire headlines EVER during Easter or Christmas or Passover, for instance.

U.S. general: More violence during Ramadan
Military expects increased attacks in Iraq during Muslim holy month

Holey and in pieces. That's one helluva religion.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:35 AM | Comments (17)

September 20, 2006

For Kcruella

Go Mets.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:33 PM | Comments (7)

Bolton On Chavez's "Speech"

I heard him on WCBS on the way home. He said (and I paraphrase) that he didn't mind him giving it, and that in fact he wished he had walked a few blocks over to Central Park, because he has the freedom to give that speech, saying what he did, there as well, and that he (Bolton) wondered what the result would be if one of Chavez's citizens tried to give a speech like that in Venezuela. He also said that none of the US delegation were present for the speech, that they would not dignify him by attending, and that only a "junior note-taker" was present for the US.

"Snort-giggle" is all I have to say.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 05:27 PM

Dear Master TAMAKA ZEBUEBU

Thank you ever so much the kind offer in your email this afternoon. However tempting it might be to come to the aid of a good Zimbabwean friend of impeccable pedigree, I'm afraid I must regretfully and respectfully decline in this instance. To be frank, I have enough trouble keeping track of my own millions and, with the further addition of your 12 to my cache, wouldn't be able to give any of them the oversight they deserve. Plus I blog continuously, as my brother's a bit of a slacker. This requires all my attention and I'm sure you'll understand. I wish you only the best of luck in your further solicitations, but a word of caution ~ I'm afraid the Nigerians may have snapped up all the helpful folks out there. Don't get discouraged.

Yours in Mboutu,
th sister

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:43 PM | Comments (1)

And THIS Scathing Juicy Tidbit

...from as liberal a New Yawker as it gets.

SENATE Democratic leader Harry Reid's party somehow changed this year's calendar order of caucuses and put Nevada, his home state, after Iowa. 'Twas never ever thus before. Always New Hampshire. Only problem with that being, Harry Reid ain't from New Hampshire. But why should his state, home to gamblers, slots, transplanted rootless humans, supplant good old Amurrrrican Yankee New Hampshire stock? Because, says Harry Reid, my state shows diversity. Yeah, right. So power to choose the next president of the United States will come from croupiers and crapshooters. With every pol about to descend on Nevada, this is a big wet kiss to the hotel union and hospitality industry. I don't know where's the beef, but I do know where's the pork. In Nevada.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:54 PM | Comments (1)

Now THAT'S a HEFTY Bag

"While we have not definitively put this interesting little picture to bed, there is considerable thought that it is just a plastic bag that came from somewhere and got loose," Hale said.

New Jersey finds a new dump for medical waste, cleverly timing it's release to coincide with bits and pieces floating off the space shuttle. Director George Lucas is incensed and filing a lawsuit. Lucas is claiming the new disposal plan (devised during a clandestine 'Space Slut Invaders' party at a Garden State Parkway reststop during the previous administration) infringes on his copyright for "The Empire Strikes Back", in which the Millenium Falcon drifts off with the Imperial trash.

Former N.J. Gov. McGreevey is on a ~~torrid truck-stop trysts~~ book tour and unavailable for comment.
- On Uranus, Space Cadet T.H. Sister reporting for TPI ©2006.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:19 PM | Comments (5)

Yanqui Pig Dogs!

To great applause Chavez addressed the UN today:

'THE DEVIL CAME TO THE UN YESTERDAY... It Still Smells of Sulphur here... Bush, I have the feeling you are going to live the rest of your days as a nightmare... We need a psychologist to analyze Bush... YANKEE IMPERIALISTS GO HOME... Maybe we need to move the United Nations out of USA'...

He is entertaining.

Update: An interesting tidbit in the NYT coverage:

''The devil came here yesterday,'' Chavez said, referring to Bush's address on Tuesday and making the sign of the cross. ''He came here talking as if he were the owner of the world.''

Making the sign of the cross? He's a religious extremeist! I'm sure the Left will hate him now.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 01:18 PM | Comments (6)

Orange County Is Home To Simpler Folks, I Guess

Of course, Option B is that the school officials are complete morons.

Blind morons, at that. That's as charitable as I can be after reading this:

A veteran teacher used the font — depicting quasi-anatomically correct male and female stick figures contorting into letters of the alphabet — on the cover sheet of a spelling curriculum given to parents at a Pine Tree Elementary open house last week.
Think Kama Sutra meets Sesame Street.

But at first glance, it's difficult to make out the salaciousness of the type font.

Sources said the teacher had no idea the alphabet was offensive when she downloaded the font from the Internet. It's unclear if any disciplinary action has been or will be taken against the teacher, who sources said has been with the district for many years.

"I definitely believe it was a mistake," said Kelly Stegmann, Pine Tree Parent Teacher Association president. Stegmann said she received very few calls from parents about it.

The design is so subtle that even school officials missed it. And many parents didn't know what they were looking at until they received a letter of apology Friday from Pine Tree principal Jean Maxson.

"This packet was reviewed by a number of people, including myself," Maxson wrote. "I take full responsibility for this inappropriate publication."

Now, here is the cover page, the one that is so innocent at first glance. I'm sorry, even reduced to this size it, ahem, catches the eye shall we say:

Are you telling me that all these people saw this in its full 8 1/2" by 11" glory and didn't notice?

(h/t to Michelle Malkin)

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:52 AM | Comments (21)

A Couple Late Night Gems

...at Radioblogger. And no, this isn't the Pope speaking...

"For 12 years I wandered in the wilderness, went through a divorce and struggled with questions about my direction.

Then suddenly and movingly, I had a revelation about the connection between the work I was doing as a public servant and my formative teachings. Indeed, the scriptures provided a firmer guide about values applied to life," he said.

(Hint: It's another pius guy who wandered the wilderness nattily attired in Orvis tweed breeks and a magic hat, no doubt.) Then Duane asks THE REALLY intriguing question...

Would Jack Bauer want the President's proposed interrogation techniques legislation passed?

DAMN!

That's a toughie.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:26 AM

September 19, 2006

NASA's Mystery Object Identified

I'm not too worried about this latest news from NASA:

NASA delayed the planned landing of the space shuttle Atlantis by at least a day Tuesday after engineers spotted an object that may have accidentally flown out of its cargo bay.
Landing had been scheduled for Wednesday morning. But a poor weather forecast and concerns that something crucial floated out of the craft prompted the delay, space shuttle communicator Terry Virts told the crew.

The Space Mystery!

Really, it's not that difficult to figure out folks. Given the clues over the last week about how one fumble-fingered astronaut kept dropping screws and bolts made it pretty easy to figure out which astronaut it was.

Which of course means the 'mystery object' can only be

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:20 PM | Comments (6)

Don't Let The Doorknob Hit Ya...

Where the good Lord split 'ya:

The chief judge in Saddam Hussein's genocide trial has been replaced, Al-Iraqiya state television reported Tuesday. The station did not say why the change was made, but the Arab satellite stations Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazeera said Judge Abdullah al-Amiri was replaced at the request of the Iraqi prime minister. The name of the new judge was not reported. There was no immediate official confirmation that the judge had been replaced.
Prosecutors had asked for al-Amiri to be replaced after he allowed Saddam to lash out at Kurdish witnesses. And last week, al-Amiri stirred further controversy when he told the former president that "you were not a dictator."

Of course, now we'll probably have a 'mistrial' declared and have to do all this shi'ite over again.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 02:27 PM | Comments (3)

I Have to Question the Wisdom of the Guy

...in charge of the newsletter when this...

Heritage Tail, Bladder Balls, and Laura Ingalls Wilder

...is his subject line.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:25 PM | Comments (11)

Vote Democratic in November!!

Let's stop this sh*t from EVER repeating...

US Treasury Sets New 1-Day Tax Receipt Record Of $85.8 Billion
...Total tax receipts were $85.8 billion on Friday, compared with the previous one-day record of $71 billion on Sept. 15 of last year, the Treasury said.
Within the overall figure, corporate tax receipts Friday were $71.8 billion, up from $63 billion in September of last year.

..."In fact, Friday's gross receipts were the largest in a single day in the nation's history - 20% higher than receipts on the same quarterly tax payment date last year," Quarles said in a statement.

...itself. It's sucks! It's a travesty! It's despicable!! And it's a lie!!
I'll whip them into shape when I get the big desk.

Awash in cash ~ who do they think they're fooling?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 01:24 PM

Argh. 'Tis a Fine Tide t' Talk Like an Auld Sea Dog

An' ya will er I'll be splitting ye from yer skippers ta ye jacks. Avast scurvy dogs! How many leagues to me grog-filled Skull & Scuppers? Me mate,ol Rumpot, wants to swill a pint or two of grog afore we mans the braces! Use them Anglais ta Pirate translators I be wavin' so ye'll have a foggy fer the Swilling presented to yer honours...in PIRATE. A wee sample ta tickle yer grey matter.

..."Muslims be havin' all this while felt oppressed, an' th' statement by th' pope sayin' he be sorry about th' angry reaction be inadequate t' calm th' anger — more so on accoun' o' he be th' highest leader o' th' Vatican," Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar spake.

...."This has gravely hurt th' feelings o' th' Muslims across th' world, includin' them from China," Chen Guangyuan, president o' Islamic Association o' China, be quoted as sayin' in an interview wi' th' Xinhua news agency.

..."We be lily livered," spake Sonia Kobatazi, a Christian Lebanese...

When Muslims get "gravely hurt feelings", they usually 'gravely hurt' swabbies aft. - Posted by tree huggin' lassie

Aye ~ that the Muslim horn swollgin' scallywags do.

Argh.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:29 PM | Comments (2)

While The Prime Minister's Away

The Army will play:

BANGKOK, Thailand (CNN) -- Tanks have been seen rolling through the streets of Bangkok, Thailand, on Tuesday amid rumors of an attempted coup, witnesses tell CNN.
Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra -- currently at the U.N. headquarters in New York -- went on a government-owned TV station and declared a state of emergency, The Associated Press reported.

According to officials at the Thai mission at the United Nations, Thaksin has moved up his speech to the General Assembly to Tuesday night and will return to Bangkok after his address.

Better get that expense report in quickly...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 12:18 PM

Another Religion of Pieces Joke

"Honor" killings.

Honour killing claims life of six-year-old
A six-year-old girl was killed in an arson attack on her family home by men who disapproved of a relationship her older brother was having with a teenager, a court heard today.

Alisha Begum, the youngest of 12 children in her Bangladeshi family, became the innocent victim of an attempt to warn her sibling off seeing the 15-year-old when a blaze swept through her Birmingham home earlier this year, prosecutors said.

Those have always been mutually exclusive terms in my book. But ~ unlike the Muslim protestors at Westminister yesterday calling for the Pope's MURDER ~ should you be inclined carry a hand lettered, anti-ISLAMIC HONOR KILLING sign to Crown Court and stand on the sidewalk with it...I'll bet you're hauled off to see the same barrister prosecuting this case.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:09 PM | Comments (3)

Do NOT Run! We Are Your Friends!

Sure you are. We all saw the movie, pal.

NASA Tracks Mystery Object Near Atlantis Shuttle

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – NASA mission controllers are tracking a mystery object hovering between the space shuttle Atlantis and Earth, and traveling at roughly the same speed as the orbiter, agency officials said Tuesday.

“Right now they’re just tying to figure out exactly what it is, how far away it is,” NASA spokesperson Kimberly Harle told SPACE.com. “It’s pretty much assessing the whole situation.”

Harle said that at 2:45 a.m. EDT (0645 GMT), just after Atlantis completed a check of its reaction control thrusters, the instrumentation and communications officer at NASA’s shuttle Mission Control room at Johnson Space Center noted an object between the orbiter and Earth, and traveling at about the same speed of the spacecraft.

NASA's doing the prudent thing.

NASA Postpones Shuttle Landing Due to Mystery Object, Weather

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – NASA will postpone the planned Wednesday landing of the space shuttle Atlantis and its six-astronaut crew to further assess a mystery object seen floating between the orbiter and Earth earlier today.

I'm pretty sure I know who it is. And I wish I could say "don't worry..."

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:59 AM | Comments (3)

"Letter From America"...

Arms and legs from Britain??

NEW YORK (AP) -- After "Masterpiece Theatre" host Alistair Cooke died, errors in the medical records accompanying his body fell through the cracks, one by one.
His name was misspelled. His birthdate was off by 10 years. His Social Security number wasn't even close. The name of his doctor, contact information for a relative, the time and cause of his death: all wrong.

None of that prevented the removal and sale of the 95-year-old's arms and legs. The fate of his pelvis and other tissue remains a mystery.

It's amazing the errors/deceipts/frauds this case has highlighted in the cadaver biz:

...Where Kittredge's name might have appeared on the records, there is instead a bogus name and phone number for a family member who supposedly agreed to donate her father's body parts for tissue transplants.
Donated cadaver tissue is used in more than a million procedures a year in the United States to repair bad backs, fix ailing knees and replace heart valves. Most of these operations are safe and do tremendous good, but tissue that has not been treated properly or is taken from unscreened donors can infect a patient with hepatitis, HIV and other potentially deadly infections.

...The documents say that a person named "Susan Quint" of the Bronx -- identified as Cooke's daughter -- consented to giving BTS the body parts. But Kittredge is Cooke's only daughter, and she lives in Vermont, where she is a minister.

In addition, Cooke died of lung cancer, but the records list his cause of death as "cardiopulmonary arrest." He was 95. BTS said he was 85.

The FDA sets no age and few health limits on donors, but some tissue banks consider cancer a disqualifying condition. It's not known whether the disease can spread to a recipient.

The time the body was recovered was also fudged. Cooke died just after midnight March 30, 2004, but BTS lists it as 6:45 a.m. making the 9:30 p.m. recovery time look shorter and the body fresher and more suitable for processing.

Do you really want parts from a 95 year old guy who died of cancer implanted in to you?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:38 AM | Comments (3)

September 18, 2006

Stoned On The Road Again...

Willie's stoned out on the road again:

LAFAYETTE, Louisiana (AP) -- Willie Nelson and four others were issued misdemeanor citations for possession of narcotic mushrooms and marijuana after a traffic stop Monday morning on a Louisiana highway, state police said.
The citations were issued after a commercial vehicle inspection of the country music star's tour bus, state police said in a news release.

"When the door was opened and the trooper began to speak to the driver, he smelled the strong odor of marijuana," the news release said.

A search of the bus produced 11/2 pounds of marijuana and 0.2 pounds of narcotic mushrooms, according to state police.

11/2 pounds of pot and .2 pounds of 'shrooms and he gets charged with a friggin' misdemeanor???

The next time some celebrity goes on and on about what a fascist regime we live in, remember that.

Oh, and I guess all the peyote explains Willie's pick for President.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:35 PM | Comments (8)

What a Helpful Headline

...from Newsweek.

A Pope’s Holy War

Of course, they ask "what was he thinking" after confirming papist jihad in print for all who live in an "out of context" world.

I haven't gotten as far as St. Peter's Koranic toilet paper, but I'll bet the mullahs will have thought of that already and will SWEAR they read it in there somewhere, too.

F*ckwads.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:45 PM | Comments (6)

Via Tim Blair

...a timely Bill Leak cartoon.

It's not funny because it's true.

An Al Qaeda-linked extremist group warned Pope Benedict XVI on Monday that he and the West were "doomed," as protesters raged across the Muslim world to demand more of an apology from the pontiff for his remarks about Islam and violence.

...The group said Muslims would be victorious and addressed the pope as "the worshipper of the cross" saying "you and the West are doomed as you can see from the defeat in Iraq, Afghanistan, Chechnya and elsewhere. ... We will break up the cross, spill the liquor and impose head tax, then the only thing acceptable is a conversion (to Islam) or (killed by) the sword."

...However, State Minister Mehmet Aydin, who oversees the religious affairs in Turkey, said he expected Turkish authorities to cancel the visit if Benedict does not offer a full apology.

"We are expecting the authorities to unilaterally cancel this visit. The pope's coming to Turkey isn't going to foment the uniting of civilizations, but a clash of civilizations," he said.

The secretary-general of the Turkish HUKUK-DER law association submitted a request to the Justice Ministry asking that the pope be arrested upon entering Turkey.

..."Muslims have all this while felt oppressed, and the statement by the pope saying he is sorry about the angry reaction is inadequate to calm the anger — more so because he is the highest leader of the Vatican," Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said.

...."This has gravely hurt the feelings of the Muslims across the world, including those from China," Chen Guangyuan, president of Islamic Association of China, was quoted as saying in an interview with the Xinhua news agency.

..."We are afraid," said Sonia Kobatazi, a Christian Lebanese...

When Muslims get "gravely hurt feelings", they usually 'gravely hurt' people back. It's inconceivable to me that major dad and I have batted around this horrible hypothetical more than once since the Pope's speech, but we have.

"What happens if one of these whack jobs (and/or their toadies) offs the old guy?"

I mean, what does? Outrage, fist waving, desk pounding with a little 'he brought that sh*t on himself' sprinkled on top from the apologists? Who avenges the Pope? Who speaks for His Holiness while the Islamic world dances in the street at the murder of a truly peaceful man? More importantly, who would lay the hammer of God down if the unthinkable happened? There is no mechanism for retribution and justice.

I really think everyone will be really mad and that's about it. It's terrifying.

UPDATE: One more for the roll call...

A notorious Muslim extremist told a demonstration in London yesterday that the Pope should face execution.

...outside Westminster Cathedral no less. Can't you go to jail for yelling "GO BACK where you CAME from!" outside an Islamic mosque in the U.K.? So what gives?

Macabrely enough, his line reminds me of Caiaphus in 'Jesus Christ Superstar'.

CAIAPHAS

Fools, you have no perception!
The stakes we are gambling are frighteningly high!
We must crush him completely,
So like John before him, this Jesus must die.
For the sake of the nation, this Jesus must die.

ALL (inside)

Must die, must die, this Jesus must die.

CAIAPHAS

So like John before him, this Jesus must die.

ALL (inside)

Must die, must die, this Jesus must, Jesus must, Jesus must die!

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:48 AM | Comments (4)

major dad Says "The Rat Bastards"

I agree.

A nun shot four times at the Somali hospital where she worked forgave her killers as she lay dying, colleagues said Monday in the wake of her slaying, which has focused attention on Islamic radicalism in the Horn of Africa.

Sister Leonella, 65, muttered the words “I forgive, I forgive” in Italian after being shot by gunmen Sunday, the Rev. Maloba Wesonga told The Associated Press at a memorial Mass for the nun in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:22 AM | Comments (3)

"I Told You to Come Alone! So Who Are These Guys?" REDUX

~~"My network"~~
"The French."

Chirac calls for UN to scale down Iran sanctions

Jacques Chirac, France's president, could be heading for another clash with the US over the Middle East, after pushing the United Nations security council to scale down its threat of sanctions against Iran.

..."We must first find an agenda for negotiations, then during these negotiations I suggest that, on the one hand, the six (the US, the UK, France, Germany, China and Russia) renounce involving the security council and Iran renounces uranium-enrichment during the negotiations," said the French president.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:26 AM | Comments (7)

Bean Counters in Bean Town

...have bean proven horribly wrong.

Big Dig project managers persuaded the designer of the Interstate 90 connector tunnel ceiling to reduce by half the number of bolts supporting each ceiling hanger, The Boston Sunday Globe reported.

The newspaper reported it obtained a 1998 memo in which an official of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, the joint venture that supervised the Big Dig, expressed confidence that two bolts would hold up the concrete ceiling panels.

...The ceiling designer, Gannett Fleming Inc., had planned to use four-bolt anchor plates.

"Unless I'm missing something, I don't see why (the ceiling designer) requires a 4 bolt anchor plate when a 2 bolt anchor plate would be sufficient,"Robert Richard of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff wrote.

Not knowing the Bechtel guy's background, I'll just assume the ceiling designers were probably an engineering firm. I think they get taught to figure 'how many bolts per bolted thingee doodle' in school. (Right, Jeffs?)

Richard's memo, dated June 23, 1998 and addressed to Gary Baxter, also of Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, said Gannett Fleming should either cut the number of bolts in half or submit calculations"proving that 2 anchor bolts do not work,"the newspaper reported.

That's a helluva choice ~ prove Richards right OR prove him...right. Sure glad it's not my name on that memo. I wonder if he got a bonus for cost cutting. And I'm curious why the design firm backed down.

Ooooh. Sucks to be them.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:24 AM | Comments (5)

The Pope Murders Children And Canadians

Clearly his insensitive remarks about violence and Muhammed are behind this latest outbreak of Presbyterianism:

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) -- A suicide bomber on a bicycle attacked Canadian troops handing out candy to children in southern Afghanistan on Monday, killing four NATO soldiers and wounding many others, officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the blast.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:18 AM

Presented Without Editorial Comment

Man rejects first penis transplant
Ian Sample, science correspondent
Monday September 18, 2006
The Guardian

Chinese surgeons have performed the world's first penis transplant on a man whose organ was damaged beyond repair in an accident this year. The incident left the man with a 1cm-long stump with which he was unable to urinate or have sexual intercourse. "His quality of life was affected severely," said Dr Weilie Hu, a surgeon at Guangzhou General Hospital.
Doctors spent 15 hours attaching a 10cm penis to the 44-year-old patient after the parents of a brain-dead man half his age agreed to donate their son's organ.

...Although the operation was a surgical success, surgeons said they had to remove the penis two weeks later. "Because of a severe psychological problem of the recipient and his wife, the transplanted penis regretfully had to be cut off," Dr Hu said. An examination of the organ showed no signs of it being rejected by the body.

Jean-Michel Dubernard, the French surgeon who performed the world's first face transplant on a woman who had been attacked by a dog this year, said psychological factors were a serious issue for many patients receiving certain "allografts", or organs from donors. "Psychological consequences of hand and face allografts show that it is not so easy to use and see permanently a dead person's hands, nor is it easy to look in a mirror to see a dead person's face," he wrote in the journal. "Clearly, in the Chinese case the failure at a very early stage was first psychological. It involved the recipient's wife and raised many questions."

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:54 AM | Comments (4)

September 17, 2006

Allah Got Some 'Splainin' to Do

...when ~ in his name ~ shooting a defenseless, geriatric nun four times in the back...

An elderly Italian nun who devoted her life to helping the sick in Africa was shot dead by two gunmen at a hospital Sunday in an attack possibly linked to worldwide Muslim anger toward Pope Benedict XVI.

Sister Leonella, 65, was shot in the back four times by pistol-wielding attackers as she left the Austrian-run S.O.S. hospital at lunch time after finishing nursing school for trainee medics. Her bodyguard was also slain.

...makes you a man.

Michelle Malkin has thoughtfully provided Pope Benedict's email address.
benedictxvi-at-vatican.va

Posted by tree hugging sister at 06:17 PM | Comments (1)

I Wouldn't Be So Quick to Invoke John Paul's Name

...my little Muslim friend.

"We hope that Pope Benedict XVI will follow the steps of Pope John Paul II, who carried out a series of constructive steps to conduct an interfaith dialogue," Al Sabah said.

Perhaps it wasn't in your local paper. I can assure you he had no patience with autocrats ~ religious or otherwise. He would gladly visit to minister, saint that he was...but it was at your peril.

And sometimes it was really, really hard to keep your desk when he left.

UPDATE and BUMP: Goodie. He (Pope Benedict) stuck to his "I'm sorry you don't have the sense Allah gave you" guns.

Pope Benedict XVI said Sunday that he was “deeply sorry” about the angry reaction to his recent remarks about Islam, which he said came from a text that didn’t reflect his personal opinion.

“These (words) were in fact a quotation from a Medieval text which do not in any way express my personal thought,” Benedict told pilgrims at his summer palace outside Rome.

...“At this time I wish also to add that I am deeply sorry for the reactions in some countries to a few passages of my address at the University of Regensburg, which were considered offensive to the sensibility of Muslims,” the pope said Sunday.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:53 AM | Comments (2)

September 16, 2006

Diptera Made Me Think of This

...with his thoughtful post on not-so-thoughtful dressing by teenagers or of small children by parents who should know better but wish only to be known as 'with it', regardless of the cost later down the road. This photo of local HIGHSCHOOLERS was in the paper this morning. major dad couldn't help commenting that if one of them had been our daughter...

...~~quite possibly there would be a problem~~ you wouldn't want to be within 5 miles of our humble abode when major daddy saw the picture over morning java. Even more horrific, I can't imagine Bingley realizing what Bunny Bear wasn't wearing to the game the night before.

Even our local columnist was channeling the DET today. I sense a trend.

But I'm quite sure we're in the minority, as Diptera points out. There wouldn't be an industry if everyone made sure their kids were dressed appropriately. But that would mean making an effort and perhaps an ugly scene laying down the sartorial law. Parents these days are consumed by their children fitting in and where they have to be in an hour, so big deal MacKenzie looks like an even cheaper Madonna ~ the old girl's still raking in the dough, right?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:24 PM | Comments (7)

Scotland Part 4: Whoa Nessie!

Sorry about the delay, but here's Day Four in Scotland. As always, I'll put most of the pictures below the fold to save both of us on bandwidth.

Anyhow, if you're not going to be golfing or distillerying (neither of which were in the cards on this trip, sadly) then the point of going to Scotland is Loch Ness. From this point on, we were amazingly lucky in the weather. Whereas in the first three days we had typical misty-rainy-at-any-given-moment-weather, from this point on the weather was gorgeous: mid 70s with bright sunshine. All you SUV drivers, I salute you!

Loch Ness is just a short drive southwest from Inverness, and the main road hugs the western shore. You drive through the village of Drumnadrochit, which I can only describe as South of the Border with buttered sandwiches and crisps. Its main attraction is the Loch Ness 2000 Exhibition Center (Centre, dammit!), which is a suitably cheesey 'investigation' into the myth of Nessie. But they do have a great gift shop and a huge selection of whiskies, which you can shop at without paying the money to see the exhibit.

About a mile farther on down the road you reach Urquhart Castle, which has the finest visitor center/centre you will ever visit. It has a great view of the Loch, a cafeteria, a decent gift shop, historical exhibit, yadda-yadda, but what sets it above the rest is the film they show. You go into a darkened room and the film begins, detailing the history of the Great Glen and Urquhart Castle. The film goes over the various forces that fought for and controlled the castle, and ends with the garrison in the 18th century deciding to blow up the castle as they leave so that it will not fall into Jacobite hands. Boom! The charges go off, and the castle is in ruins. And then the lights stay off but you notice that the screen is rising? What the? And the curtains behind it are opening? And then you see

the actual ruins. It is very well done and very cool.

After you get your breath back, you walk down the path and the first thing you encounter is a trebuchet from the NOVA show on siege engines. It's very cool to see it sitting there!

We then walked into the castle, and of course the kids ran off and started climbing on everything, which was fine. My bride was very impressed with the state of it; when she was last there in 1979 there was no visitor 'centre' or marked walkways; now it has been restored and there are good pathways to walk upon. There are also great views of the Loch

Sharp-eyed readers will notice the RAF "Tornado" zooming up the Loch in the middle of the picture. I have to say it was pretty neat in the Highlands, as we saw/heard these jets flying over head pretty constantly over the next few days. It felt very comforting, I have to admit.

But the Loch and Castle were just beautiful:

I just don't know where that not-as-brazen-as-I-had-hoped hussy Nessie was hiding while we were there. Sigh.

After Ness we picked up some sandwiches (made with butter...Blech!) and headed to Glen Affric, which is described as the most beautiful Glen in the Highlands. That's a tall order to fill, but it may well have done it. It is stunningly beautiful in the Glen. The mountains rise up, covered with thick growths of trees, as the streams burble and tumble down their slopes.

But as we were driving there (and it's only really a half hour or so from Loch Ness) I saw a sign for Corrimony Cairn, so we made a quick detour. A few minutes later, having only had to back up once because a bus was coming towards us on the single lane track, we arrived

This cairn was very cool, because, while the central roof had long since collapsed, the entry way was still covered

so you had to get on your hands and knees and crawl into it. Very cool, indeed.

What's also neat is that they have a fence around the cairn, as it sits in the middle of a pasture. That's it, really. You've got this 4000 year old ruin...and cows.

So, after being sufficiently diverted, we oddled off to Glen Affric, specifically Dog Falls, which seemed to be the easiest area to reach. And by 'easy' I mean that I only had to back up 200' or so once. Remember, all these darn roads are only 1 car wide. It makes the driving...interesting. But the views are lovely

That's where we had a picnic (oh, those butter sandwiches were tasty...not).

After we lunched we took one of the many hiking tails for a walk. The one we took was just a few miles and afforded some lovely views

What is really amazing are the ferns. They are everywhere. And they are gigantic. As in huge. I'm sixfoot, and they were always above my waist. I felt like a bit player in Land of the Lost or something. They were really neat to see everywhere.

After this busy day we drove back to Inverness and had dinner at La Tortilla Asesino, which was absolutely awful. Well, to be fair, the food, when we eventually got it, wasn't that bad, but the service was horrible.

At least it was close to the hotel!

And that was the end of that day.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:37 PM | Comments (1)

A Note to the Islamic Apologists in the Blogosphere

If you must use examples during your fretful arguments to cast the Catholic Church in the worst light possible and blame it for all the world's ills, stick to this century ~ Pope Pius, child predators, etc.

When all else invariably and inevitably fails (alas, including logic) and all tangents lead not to Rome...

"but Catholics had the Inquisition"

...is NOT the default choice.

On a lighter Inquisition historical note ~ Torquemada died today in 1498.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:24 PM | Comments (6)

Hold On Little Doggies!!

Pope sorry for remarks

This al-Reuters headline is a little misleading. Lemme guess why...

Pope Benedict is sorry Muslims were offended by a speech on Islam that provoked fury around the world and led to calls for the leader of the Catholic church to apologize, an aide said on Saturday.
"The Holy Father is very sorry that some passages of his speech may have sounded offensive to the sensibilities of Muslim believers," said Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone in a statement.

He's just sorry they don't have a clue and not sorry for what he said. The New York Times could use a little schooling in comprehension.

The New York Times said in an editorial the Pope must issue a "deep and persuasive" apology for quotes used in his speech.

"The world listens carefully* to the words of any pope. And it is tragic and dangerous when one sows pain, either deliberately or carelessly," it said.

* One would guess 'not' at the Times.
The German chancellor gets it.

But Chancellor Angela Merkel and other German politicians defended his comments, saying he had been misunderstood.

"It was an invitation to dialogue between religions," she told the mass-circulation Bild newspaper in an interview.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:18 AM | Comments (5)

Very Early This Morning Two Years Ago

...Ivan was busy blowing through major dad's office.

The first thing to greet a visitor were the hallways covered with a slimy, stinky inch and a half worth of God knows what. And then you turn left...

...which hints at what his Marines' office space...

...is going to look like. Ivan's storm surge crashed into the back windows of the building, which stood on the pier at the historic Navy yard. major dad's personal office was on the street side of the building. The door had been locked and was so still when he first arrived on the scene. But when they got it open, his desk had floated around helter skelter, along with the rest of the office furniture, ripping holes in the soaked drywall as they spun. Everything they'd secured in double plastic bags in the top of his six foot wall locker was soaked and reeking, and there was a four foot waterline left of toxic brown sludge.

Ivan's waters came in the back of the historic building...

...and his winds took the front. Almost every building has been razed now and what a shame. You should have seen the beams in just the roof of major dad's building ~ massive. (I believe the keystone said 1873 and there were far older buildings than his still in use.) They're all gone now.

I thought the oddest storm quirk of all were the cheapo white aluminum blinds lining each window. Every last pane of heavy duty glass was completely blown out, steel walls were ripped and twisted, furniture had been tossed like rags and those nasty blinds were still attached and hung ~ a little twisted, but stubbornly intact after all the forces of nature hurled at and through them for hours on end.

I think there's a metaphor in there somewhere.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:34 AM | Comments (2)

September 15, 2006

Do You Know What's Hysterical About This Headline?

Muslim leaders demand apology for Pope's 'medieval' remarks

The words he quoted...were.

Any excuse for a street riot and a helluva way to demonstrate the modernity and tolerance of your beliefs.

UPDATE: Hmmmm. I wonder how this Islamic cleric meant for his words to be interpreted?

At least one Muslim leader, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, the chief cleric of New Delhi's historic Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque, extolled Muslims to "respond in a manner which forces the Pope to apologize". He did not elaborate.

Throw bottles, wave thousands of convenient Vatican flags then burn them, kill each other in the streets, burn down each others shops, blahblahblah ~ the usual or something more sinister? But I am tickled to death to see a quote like this (even if anonymous) in the al-Reuters story.

..."What one can say as an academic is one thing and what a Pope can say is another," the source added.

But another diplomatic source praised the Pope for "calling a spade a spade".

"I see this as a wake up call for Christians. It will be interesting to see what the next step will be, but I don't think he has to apologize for anything, nor do I think he will," the diplomatic source said.

I HAD to lift this from frolickingmole's comment over at Tim Blair's.

“How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy. The effects are apparent in many countries. Improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live. A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement; the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine, must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men. Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities - but the influence of the religion paralyses the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilisation of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilisation of ancient Rome.”
—Sir Winston Churchill, from The River War, first edition, Vol. II, pages 248-50 (London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1899).”

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:20 PM | Comments (3)

An Open Letter to Pope Benedict

Dear Holy Father ~

Tell them to piss off. Anyone who could read understands what you were saying and the jihadists fanning the current flames prove your point. The shrieking blind sheep of the Muslim street prove your point.

Apologize to no one. If they can't see their faces in the mirror for fear or ignorance, they are lost to reason. If there isn't one civilized, sane voice that can rise above the morass of Islamic indignation, ignorance and hysteria, they are lost to humankind.

And that is their eternal loss.

If we bow to them...it is ours.

Another strong voice falls silent and more on Benedict.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:13 AM | Comments (6)

"Don't Use Your 14th Century Quotes" Reflux REDUX

I should have said "Don't use your 14th century quotes on 14th century ~~neanderthals~~ mentalities". Yes, yes ~ they're burning sh*t in the street YET again

...to prove how advanced and tolerant Islam/Muslim culture really is.

Turkish official......compares pope to Hitler
Politician joins outcry across Muslim world over pontiff's comments in Islam

Everybody's Hitler these days ~ give it a rest, why doncha.

...Turkey's top Islamic cleric, Religious Affairs Directorate head Ali Bardakoglu, asked Benedict on Thursday to apologize about the remarks and unleashed a string of accusations against Christianity, raising tensions before the pontiff's planned visit to Turkey in November on what would be his first papal pilgrimage in a Muslim country.

...On Friday, Salih Kapusuz, a deputy leader of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's party, said Benedict's remarks were either "the result of pitiful ignorance" about Islam and its prophet, or worse, a deliberate distortion of the truths.

"He has a dark mentality that comes from the darkness of the Middle Ages. He is a poor thing that has not benefited from the spirit of reform in the Christian world*," Kapusuz blurted out in comments made to the state-owned Anatolia news agency. "It looks like an effort to revive the mentality of the Crusades."

*Isn't that the oddest thing for him to say?

..."Anyone who describes Islam as a religion as intolerant encourages violence," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said.

Oh, you're tellin' us...

"Can't we all just get along?"-Sponge Bob, after a night of drinking heavily.©TPI

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:39 AM | Comments (3)

Who Do They "Represent"?

An important post today from Lawhawk on our who our supposed Representatives really seem to care about:

Why is Congress, and these members in particular, so fixated on the rights of terrorists under the US legal system and what the rest of the world thinks of us? Isn't the first job of Congress to protect and serve the United States of America? Have they forgotten their responsibilities under the law? Or the oath of office they took?
I, _____ , do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.
With that in mind, the Senate Armed Services Committee voted on its own version of a terror tribunal bill, which would grant even more rights to terror suspects than the Administration's version. The vote passed 15-9, with chairman John Warner of Virginia (R) joined by all the Democrats on the committee and McCain, Graham, and Collins. Supporters of this bill claim that it would help improve the US image abroad.

Image is everything, I guess. Who cares about, oh, I don't know, something say so esoteric like the safety of US citizens?

Silly me.

Anywhoo, read the whole thing.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:44 AM | Comments (2)

Searching for Answers Friday

Americana observations on our I-65 'vacation' trek back home (major dad's) to Indiana.

1. Outside Birmingham, a sign on the back of a semi trailer made me think of turducken.

CAUTION: Inedible Contents

(Why anyone would be foraging in the back of it...)

2. Outside Louisville, one of those large, gaudy, do-it-yourself billboards.

TATTOO CHARLIE ~ done while you wait!!

(I would think it hard to do any other way...)

3. Just over the bridge from Louisville, across the Indiana state line, an official sign announcement.

Exit Zero

(Gotta start somewhere...)

4 Motoring toward Indianapolis, a large plastic (I hope) pair of testicles dangled from a tow ball on the back of a trailer.

5. Don't miss Exit 6 on S I-65. Actually, it's hard to miss.

Boobie Bungalow Gentlemen's Club

6. North of Birmingham, the ultimate Marx Brothers' moment on a bridge sign.

DUCK

Scenic River

God Bless America.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:11 AM | Comments (10)

September 14, 2006

WHAT Kind of World Do We Live In

...when MSNBC's HOME PAGE(!) has multiple penis stories in the middle of the day?

Used to be you could go weeks without ever hearing the word unless someone said "Bobbitt" or "Olbermann".

Now it's everywhere.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:36 PM | Comments (3)

Get More Fiber in Your Diet

...'and things start moving more efficiently' works for cars, too.

Honda Develops New Way to Make Biofuel
Honda Motor Co. has developed a way to make ethanol fuel from plant waste matter in a process that has the potential to expand the use of biofuels that fight global warming, the Japanese automaker said Thursday.

Existing bio-ethanol production faces supply limits because it uses sugar and starch of sugarcane or from corn, both of which are also utilized as food. By tapping far greater supplies of inedible plant matter, such as stalks, leaves and rice straw, the new fuel takes a step toward making biofuels more practical, Tokyo-based Honda said in release.

How'd they do it?

...Honda and RITE said they had overcome a major obstacle that limited how much ethanol could be made from cellulosic biomass. A microorganism developed by RITE helps reduce interference in the fermentation process, allowing for far more efficient ethanol production, the partners said.

“This achievement solves the last remaining fundamental hurdle to ethanol production from soft biomass,” RITE researcher Hideaki Yukawa told a news conference in Tokyo.

Dang, that's just cool beans.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:15 PM | Comments (8)

Come One, Come All

...in the state veterans' cemetary.

Wiccan Sign Allowed on Soldier's Plaque
The widow of a soldier killed in Afghanistan won state approval Wednesday to place a Wiccan religious symbol on his memorial plaque, something the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs had refused.

...He was a follower of the Wiccan religion, which the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs does not recognize and therefore prohibits on veterans' headstones in national cemeteries.

..."The VA still has not determined yet if a Wiccan symbol can go on the headstone," said Tim Tetz, executive director of the Nevada Office of Veterans Services. "But we have determined we control the state cemetery and that we therefore have the ability to recognize him for his service to his country."

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:39 AM | Comments (4)

This pretty well hits....

the nail on the head.

The damning evidence was on the front page of yesterday's Post: A dra matic photo showing more than 100 Taliban terrorists in formation last July for a graveside funeral for one of their own in Afghanistan. The image was shot from high in the sky by an unmanned American drone - which fed a continuous satellite feed back on the ground.
A ripe target for a surprise missile strike? It certainly would seem so.

But according to a statement yesterday from U.S. Central Command in Afghanistan, "a decision was made" - preposterously - "not to strike the group of insurgents at that specific location and time" because the site was a cemetery with a funeral in progress.

Huh? This pretty well sums my thoughts on the whole thing:

How many Coalition soldiers will die because 100-plus Taliban were allowed to walk free will never be known, of course. It can't be.
This much is clear, though: The Taliban never show mercy - and they are contemptuous of those who do.

War is about killing.

Or being killed.

About winning.

Or losing.

Time to change the rules.

When are we going to start fighting this like a war, and put the lawyers back in the courtrooms instead of the battlefields?

Posted by Crusader at 11:15 AM | Comments (7)

Der Kommisar Gespeaks

Henry the K says

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger warned that Europe and the United States must unite to head off a "war of civilizations" arising from a nuclear-armed Middle East. In an opinion column in the Washington Post, the renowned foreign policy expert said the potential for a "global catastrophe" dwarfed lingering transatlantic mistrust left over from the Iraq war.
"A common Atlantic policy backed by moderate Arab states must become a top priority, no matter how pessimistic previous experience with such projects leaves one," Kissinger wrote.

"The debate sparked by the Iraq war over American rashness vs. European escapism is dwarfed by what the world now faces.

"Both sides of the Atlantic should put their best minds together on how to deal with the common danger of a wider war merging into a war of civilizations against the background of a nuclear-armed Middle East."

Kissinger wrote that the big threat lay in the erosion of nation states and the emergence of transnational groups. Iran was at the centre of the challenge, he said, with its support for Hezbollah, radical Shiite groups in Iraq and its nuclear program.

Washington must accept that many European nations were more optimistic about talks designed to convince Iran to halt uranium enrichment -- a process Tehran denies is aimed at making weapons, he wrote.

But in return, he said, Europe should accept the process must include a "bottom line" beyond which diplomatic flexibility must not go and a time limit to ensure talks did not become a shield for "developing new assaults."

I agree with much of what he says, but his vison founders on its reliance on 'moderate Arab states"; what's that? Which Arab state will join openly forces with the West to contain, let alone combat Iran?

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:44 AM

We Never Had to Beat Ourselves Up Over This

...since Ebola never did any.

As Homework Grows, So Do Arguments Against It

Comforting to be an academic trend setter light-years ahead.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:51 AM | Comments (3)

Only But Ask and Ye Shall Receive

...help from the most unlikely of quarters.

Poland to send 1,000 new troops to Afghanistan
Announcement comes in response to NATO pleas for reinforcements

...“Poland will increase its contingent in Afghanistan. We will send 1,000 additional troops from February,” Defense Ministry Spokesman Leszek Laszczak said.

“We know this will be a dangerous operation. Poland understands that NATO will have to be more active in Afghanistan. We are well aware of that, and that is why we decided to increase the size of the force.”

Thank God somebody in Europe 'gets it'.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:32 AM | Comments (3)

I Really Really Hate Fat...

Umbrellas. Son of a biatch. Why do people need an umbrella with a 6 friggin foot diameter? Actually, why do hundreds of people all trying to walk down the same damn sidewalk at the same damn time need them? If you are even moderately tall you are completely screwed, as you spend all your time dodging the sharp edges of these damn things. I mean, god forbid the idjits actually consider that I might want to keep my eyes a little longer and maybe tilt their umbrellas a little to avoid whacking other people. ARGH!!!!

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:19 AM

Don't Use Your 14th Century Quotes

Muslim religious leaders have accused Pope Benedict XVI of quoting anti-Islamic remarks during a speech at a German university this week.
Questioning the concept of holy war, he quoted a 14th-Century Christian emperor who said Muhammad had brought the world only "evil and inhuman" things.

...The emperors words were, he said: "Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."

Benedict said "I quote" twice to stress the words were not his and added that violence was "incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul".

...to criticize us, old man...

Religious leader Ali Badda Kolu said the Pope's comments represented what he called an "abhorrent, hostile and prejudiced point of view".

Whilst Muslims might express their criticism of Islam and of Christianity, he argued, they would never* defame the Holy Bible or Jesus Christ.

He said he hoped the Pope's speech did not reflect "hatred in his heart" against Islam.

...or we might be forced to blow up more of you infidel** donkey bottom wipers. Say you're sorry now, or I pull the pin on the bomb attached to this martyr in the market. (Yes, yes ~ virgins sold separately.)

(* GOT that?! NEVER, ever, ever. N-E-V-E-R. Religion of ~~pieces~~ peace, you know.)

(**Just so we're clear on this 'infidel' thing...)

Reactions to the grotesque jihadist decapitation of yet another "infidel Jew," Mr. Berg, make clear that our intelligentsia are either dangerously uninformed, or simply unwilling to come to terms with this ugly reality: such murders are consistent with sacred jihad practices, as well as Islamic attitudes towards all non-Muslim infidels, in particular, Jews, which date back to the 7th century, and the Prophet Muhammad's own example.

According to Muhammad’s sacralized biography by Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad himself sanctioned the massacre of the Qurayza, a vanquished Jewish tribe. He appointed an "arbiter" who soon rendered this concise verdict: the men were to be put to death, the women and children sold into slavery, the spoils to be divided among the Muslims. Muhammad ratified this judgment stating that it was a decree of God pronounced from above the Seven Heavens.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:11 AM | Comments (1)

Oh Sweet Baby Jeebus

Looks like this a$$wipe just punched his ticket for the World Court in the Hague:

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- The chief judge in Saddam Hussein's genocide trial said Thursday that he does not believe Saddam was a dictator.
...Questioning a Kurdish witness Thursday, Saddam said, "I wonder why this man wanted to meet with me, if I am a dictator?"

The judge interrupted: "You were not a dictator. People around you made you (look like) a dictator."

"Thank you," Saddam responded, bowing his head in respect.

Al-Amiri heads the five-judge panel that oversees the trial and will deliver the verdict.

Yeah, I feel good about the verdict.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:12 AM | Comments (4)

If We Don't Hear From Ken Today...

I may know the reason why

NEW YORK (AP) -- Police say a man grabbed the shoes of several female subway riders in Manhattan and Queens, then kissed and licked their feet.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:04 AM | Comments (6)

Videos Of US Soldiers Being Killed On YouTube

No, I'm not surprised. The terrorists in their puerile impotency against our troops have to celebrate and glorify, and feed off of, whatever damage they can do to the troops;most of it is by a single shot here or there or a bomb hidden somewhere. And they can count on their media-saavy friends around the world to help disseminate it...their trendy concerned friends in various high schools and universities who somehow think that they themselves are protected from these murderous scum simply by cheering them on.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:50 AM

I've Always Really Liked Her a Lot

I always wished I could be half as fast on my feet as she was with that wicked wit of hers. A real American character and too damn young to leave us.

Former Texas governor Ann Richards dies at 73
Flamboyant, outspoken homemaker became national political star

Former Gov. Ann Richards, the witty and flamboyant Democrat who went from homemaker to national political celebrity, died Wednesday night after a battle with cancer, a family spokeswoman said. She was 73.

...Asked once what she might have done differently had she known she was going to be a one-term governor, Richards grinned.

“Oh, I would probably have raised more hell.”

Oh, you betcha. Sweet dreams, Governor Richards.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 12:17 AM | Comments (4)

September 13, 2006

See? The World Recognizes That

...we're not always smart a$$es.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:06 PM

Oh, Fer Chrissake

The vast majority of people would survive the rollover if they'd wear a freakin' seat belt. How hard was that?

U.S. to Mandate Anti-Rollover Technology
The government, impressed by the promise of anti-rollover technology, is planning to require automakers to include electronic stability control devices on all new vehicles in the coming years.

The seat belt's already in the car, duh. And KEEPS you in the car...duh. But when y'ain't got it on, 'n yer shot out yer winder as she's spinnin' an' the SUV keeps on rollin' along over ya, there's bound ta be somethin' squished.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 04:08 PM | Comments (1)

Dear Lou Dobbs: Lay Off The Olbermann Juice

Don't start this blame the generals shit

Both the White House and Congress should be demanding accountability from our generals who have failed so far to succeed in destroying our enemies. Not a single general has been fired for failing to lead our men and women to victory against the insurgencies of Iraq and Afghanistan. I believe it is time for all Americans -- Republicans, Democrats and Independents -- to demand such accountability.
I, for one, do not want to hear another of our generals urge the American people to be patient. Patience favors the enemy. And our generals have the responsibility to our brave troops and this nation to deliver certain victory, and that responsibility rests first and foremost with the commander in chief.

I will demand accountability from our Generals only after they are given the ability to do their jobs. But when they are hamstrung by second-guessers on both sides of the aisle and the MSM, when every mistake is magnified a thousand times and broadcast around the world, then, no, I demand the accountability from the idjits in Washington and the media who are tying the military's hands.

Unleash the dogs of war, focus our whole being on destroying the enemy, and then let's see which generals deserve rebuke.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 03:30 PM | Comments (6)

Vive la France!

Well, Sarkozy anyway.

Visiting French Presidential Hopeful Lauds U.S. in Speech

French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy, the leading presidential candidate for France's ruling conservative party, swept through Washington yesterday, delivering an unabashedly pro-American speech and landing meetings with President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

...Sarkozy also appeared to attack French President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin for their dramatic confrontation -- what he called "sterile grandiloquence" -- with the Bush administration over Iraq. "It's not appropriate to try and embarrass one's allies or give the impression of gloating over their difficulties," he said.

...Sarkozy also noted that despite the breach over Iraq, intelligence cooperation continued between France and the United States because, he said, "we have the same adversaries. Bin Laden targeted New York, but he might just as well have targeted Paris."

That was refreshing.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:28 PM | Comments (2)

Sorry NOAA!

That excuse...

"The weak El Nino is helping to explain why the hurricane season is less than we expected. El Ninos tend to suppress hurricane activity in the Atlantic," said Gerry Bell, a hurricane forecaster for NOAA.

...is taken.

('Weak', indeed. Research scientists. Pffft. Daycare for adults.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:01 PM | Comments (10)

It's Not Exactly Rocket Science

...Mr. Finlayson...

Neanderthal Find Hints at Longer Era

Neanderthals survived for thousands of years longer than scientists thought, with small lingering bands finding refuge in a massive cave near the southern tip of Spain, new research suggests.

...since they're still IN it. It's more a question of...

...how you get the smelly f*ckers OUT.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 03:00 PM | Comments (4)

If Our "Partners" Fail To Do Their Part

Then we should close bases and move our troops, and all the dollars that they represent to the local economies, out of every country that isn't pulling its weight. Screw Germany, France, Spain, and Turkey. The Brits, the Dutch, the Italians* and the Poles are the only ones that deserve our support.

*Update: Thanks to sandspur for pointing out in the comments that I wanted to both screw and support Italy, which immediately made me think of Gina Lollobrigida for some reason...

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:05 AM | Comments (12)

A different 9/11 story...

From someone who made it out of the North Tower. She is the wife of a gentleman I share a hobby with, and have done some trading with in the past. Below is her story,

Here is my wife's story as submitted to the 9/11 Victim's Compensation Fund. To date she still has dreams about the day and sometimes wimpers in the night about "the planes!" It is something that will NEVER go away, but we learn to live with it and each time she talks about it, it helps.
"September 11, 2001

Anne M. Koster

My day started at 7AM; I worked for Bank of America on the 81st floor of 1 World Trade Center – the North tower. This day was normal until 8:46 when my boss caught a glimpse of a plane coming towards us and, after the impact, shouted “A plane hit the building; make whatever calls you need and get out!” When the plane hit, the building swayed, lights shook and ceiling tiles fell. I called my husband, then my father, grabbed my purse and headed for stairway A. This must have been around 8:55 or so. While going down, the lights went out, then flicked back on. I can only now guess that that was when the South tower was hit.

I made it down to the 60th floor landing and had to use my asthma inhaler medicine. I was with many of my co-workers and we started down again. There were so many people coming down past us who were burned; we moved over and stopped to let them pass. Everything was orderly in the stairway.

By the time we reached the 44th floor, I was with my girlfriend, Susan Conlon, who left the group to seek fresh air and rest. We begged her to stay with us, but she was too nervous and wanted to sit. For a second or two, I wanted to go with her to make sure she would continue down, but decided to keep going. She never made it out. I started to hyperventilate but could not use my inhaler again. A firefighter approached carrying a roll of hose on his shoulder, mask and oxygen tank. He stopped to help me, giving me his mask and telling me to breathe in the oxygen and assuring me that I would get out safely. I only hope God was good to him and saw him safely out.

I began back down after giving my pocketbook and suit jacket to my boss, Steve, in hopes that being lightened, I would be able to descend quicker. My knees were getting banged up from the tight turns and narrow stairway and I began holding onto the railing with both hands to steady myself. As we got lower, we encountered smoke and water. By the 11th floor, another co-worker was having a panic attack and Steve went to help her. I told him not to lose me since he had my pocketbook with my cell phone and wallet. He said not to worry, he’d be right behind me.

On the 6th floor, the water was up to our knees and it was dark (I would guess that by this time Tower 2 had collapsed). There was a Port Authority police officer and a firefighter holding flashlights over our heads showing us the way out. We were instructed to feel along the walls to find the door. There were two doors on this level and we were alternately sent out one and then the other to prevent bunching up and delays. Steve was sent to the left and I to the right.

I was now with two Vice Presidents of my firm and had finally reached the Atrium. There were a lot of beams and debris inside which was our first clue of the damage that was inflicted. I turned and said that we were OK now and wanted to rest. Eddie said “We’re not OK until we get out of here.” He grabbed my hand and walked me through the debris and down the escalator leading out to buildings 4 and 5. When we reached the bottom of the escalator, there were police and firemen directing people out to the streets.

All of a sudden, there was a rumbling from above. Firemen yelled that the building was going to come down and to run. Eddie grabbed me again and pulled me across Church Street towards Vesey Street. I stumbled on debris and found out later that I broke three toes on my left foot. We had barely made it into City Hall Park when the building came down and were enveloped in the cloud of dust and smoke.

Police directed everyone to walk North and away from downtown. By this time the East River bridges were closed and we were unable to cross into Brooklyn. By the Supreme Court building, there was an ambulance where I was given oxygen since I was having trouble breathing and had my eyes flushed out. I sat there for a few minutes until another victim staggered up in need of more intensive medical care than I. I got up and the three of us resumed walking uptown. We received water from people along the way, which we poured over ourselves to rid us of the dust.

Somewhere between the Courthouse and Chinatown, I lost my shoes, which had been ruined by the water in the stairway back in the Tower. We walked until we got to Greenwich Village where Steve bought me a pair of slippers. In Little Italy, I managed to get a call through to my husband to let him know I was alive; hurt, but alive all the same. I asked him to try to call my cell phone to see where Steve Giacchi was since he had my bag, and I assumed he had gotten clear himself before the collapse. My husband managed to get Steve on my cell phone and found that he was heading to our former office space at 9 West 57th Street. When I called him again about an hour later, he relayed this information to me and we decided to head there. At 33rd Street and 3rd Avenue we tried to hail a cab to take us the rest of the way. The driver took one look at us and refused, claiming he was off duty.

We arrived at 57th Street at 5:05PM and were relieved to find many of our people there. After embracing and talking about our experiences, I was able to call my family and let them know where I was and that four of us were going to try to drive into New Jersey if we could find a way out of the city open. My brother, who worked in the New Financial Center and caught the last ferry out of Battery Park City, was going to meet us and take me to his house. After many phone calls, we heard that the bridges to Brooklyn and Staten Island were opened again and we headed for home.

I finally arrived home at 9PM and my husband took me to Staten Island University Hospital right away. The hospital was on alert for possible survivors arriving from the WTC site. I walked up to the triage area, announced that I was involved in the attacks, was having trouble breathing and possibly broke my toes. I was whisked inside, given a nebulizer asthma treatment and had my lower torso, chest and toes x-rayed. After about an hour, I was released and told to go home and rest and call my primary physician in the morning if I didn’t feel better.

The next morning I could hardly walk, went to my doctor’s office and then to Dr Flynn, an Orthopedic Surgeon at Staten Island Sports Medicine. Dr. Flynn x-rayed my knees again and set me up to have MRIs done of them. She also taped my toes together and gave me an air cast for my ankle which was also hurting me. The MRIs showed that I had damage to both knees which would most likely require surgery to repair. Dr Flynn prescribed physical therapy as an alternative, but that surgery was still a possibility in the future.

I received physical therapy treatments for several months for my knees from Ira Reiter on a Workmen’s Compensation claim. The therapy helped to a degree, but was not and is not an alternative to the surgery Dr. Flynn advised I would eventually need.

Later on that day, after calling Steve Giacchi, I was more or less designated to locate my co-workers and see how everyone fared. That’s when I found out about Susan and the other two people who died. Susan and I knew each other for almost 20 years and I cried when I realized that if I had gone with her I would have perished, too.

Through a Bank of America program, I sought out the services of a mental health professional. I was directed to Shirley Ostrega who helped me to deal with the disaster, its aftermath and my feelings of guilt for surviving when others died. Although Shirley helped me through the black days, I still break down when certain images catch my eye or I think about my friends who did not survive.

I also made an appointment with Dr. Sasso, a pulmonary specialist, to evaluate my lungs due to my asthma condition and the fact that I had inhaled a lot of smoke and dust from the collapse. His report is attached.

Because of my injuries, I am unable to stand for long periods of time and suffer from almost constant pain in my knees, my toes bother me under certain weather conditions, and I cannot continue taking the long walks which were part of my physical fitness program that allowed me to lose over 140 pounds in three years.

Due to the financial downturn and slowing of the economy after the attacks, I was laid off from my job in February 2002 in a cost-cutting move. My husband had been laid off from his job in July 2001 due to a takeover and was collecting unemployment. We could not afford the COBRA payments – which would have been more that I was able to collect myself – and pay our mortgage and other bills, so we have been without health coverage since March. We were unable to qualify for a New York State health care program since our combined income was over the allowable maximum. We both take medication that is necessary for our continued health and these prescriptions cost us over $450.00 a month.

The job market has been so bad since September 11th, and remains bad, that I have been unable to return to work in my field or find a suitable paying position in any other career. Some positions I have interviewed for require almost constant standing, walking, lifting and carrying of cumbersome, heavy items."

My wife went from making $68,000 a year to $9,500, still with no health insurance.

The fireman who gave her oxygen on the 44th floor never made it out. After talking with friends in the FDNY, we determined he was from Engine 55. Since they were so far up in the building, he would have been one of the first units to respond.

For years afterwards, she always said that God kept her here for a reason. Me, being the joker that I am, said "He kept you here to harrass me until I die". But God knew I would be lost without her....

Deke

Posted by Crusader at 06:26 AM | Comments (4)

September 12, 2006

Time to (Yet Again) Find a Kinder, Gentler Way

...to call them what they are.

Call for Bush to stop using 'Islamic fascists'
Feingold says term offensive and unconnected to global terrorism fight

Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold called on President Bush to refrain from using the phrase "Islamic fascists," saying it was offensive to Muslims and has nothing to do with global terrorists fighting the United States.

"We must avoid using misleading and offensive terms that link Islam with those who subvert this great religion or who distort its teachings to justify terrorist activities," Feingold said Tuesday in a speech to the Arab American Institute on Capitol Hill.

Well, first point, Russ...this is about the sixth thing the President has called these murdering bastards because of the general outcry when trying to find something inoffensive to call these ~~Muslim~~ (whoops) Islamic ~~extremist~~ (can't use that anymore) ~~homicidal~~ (nope ~ right out) ~~murdering bastards~~ ~~terrorists~~ Presbyterians of Peace. (See, Russ? It's really hard.)

Secondly ~ as far as "linking Islam" to these murdering bastards? A fine point: THEY DID THAT THEIR OWNSELVES, YO. (Remember? "9/11", "jihad", "fatwa", "infidel", "Allah Akbar", blahblahblah... W's pretty smart and deviously evil, but even ROVE couldn't pull all that out his patootie.)

There also seems to be a disconnect between how ~~Muslims~~ ~~Islamics~~ THOSE people view their situation and how they act. On World News Tonight last night (yes, LAST night, the 9/11 anniversiary) ABC sensitively aired a short piece on "Islamophobia". Specifically in London. (yes, the same London of the bombings) They spoke to three of THOSE people, who:

a) talked of the lack of opportunity for these young ~~murderers~~ people being a root cause of their season of discontent. (the male interviewee)

b) complained that people move to a seat as far away from her as possible when she sits next to them on a public conveyence in her full ~~Islamic~~ regalia. (Fatima, the first female interviewee)

c) says that even a hairdresser said how pretty she was ("I am Miss England!") but her looks are different than the usual beauty contestant. "But I am also a Muslim," she replied. (Miss England)

All of THESE people complain about the reaction Joe Brit in the street has to them. And they all piss and moan and ululate, but not one of them ever addresses the rot within their own society ~ at their very doorstep. The hate and ignorance that gets passed out and fomented in the mosques of their own neighborhoods, by their own neighbors. Yet Joe Brit, who gets blown to bits on the tram ride home, should take care not to hurt feelings. He should understand they feel marginalized. Or the President of the United States ~ who watches helplessly as citizens die in the most cowardly, heinous, barbaric manner ~ should mind his tongue. They never address those things they do which marginalize themselves ~ they want to remain in splendid isolation, with the rest of us abdicating to their needs.

I can't imagine, say, Vanessa Williams (when she still had her Miss America crown) answering her hair dresser's compliments ("I am so proud to be the first black Miss America!") with "But I am also a Baptist/Catholic/Druid/WTF EVER/*insert your religion here."

No you're not, baby. You're Miss England (perhaps the first of whatever country's ancestry to make it, granted). You should be delighted to be so and that's as much as anyone should hear from you.

You sure wouldn't be wearing that crown or snappy pink suit in Afghanistan.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:16 PM | Comments (6)

Awwww...

Shepards, goldies, wots of wabbies ~ puppies and sliced up paws of every description in this slideshow...

...bless their brave puppy hearts.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 02:35 PM

A Note to the Angelides Campaign

You need to pick a better political 'puter pilfer. If Arnold Schwarzenegger EVER ~ under ANY circumstances ~ called ME 'hot'...? I'd probably react the same way.

...Garcia said she was not offended and appeared by the governor's side as he apologized.

Nah, I'm lyin' like a D-A-W-G. I'd be doing a Paris Hilton "I'm hot! I'm hot! The Terminator says I'm hot!" imitation like a parrot for the next month.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:38 AM | Comments (1)

Sherman, set the Wayback machine for.....

Japanese bow and grin for the camera but get nowhere in Washington.

Out of Washington last week came definite word that the U.S. is talking very tough to Japan. The talk went on between Special Envoy Saburo Kurusu, who had flown dramatically across the Pacific, President Roosevelt and Secretary of State Cordell Hull. By week’s end, Kurusu’s ears burned with the words that U.S. officials repeated again and again: “Watch out! You’re on Hitler’s list, before we are!”

The “issues” between Japan and the U.S. are simple and clear. Japan wants the U.S. to stop helping China and Russia (at least via Siberia), and cease its economic restrictions against Japan. The U.S. answer is a flat “No.” Worst of all, from Kurusu’s standpoint, Americans do not even seem worried by the prospect of war with Japan, whereas the Japanese are worried stiff by the fearof war with America. The defenses of Manila and Hawaii are stronger than ever. The Navy is ready for action. At week’s end, Saburo Kurusu suddenly called off his conferences at the State Department to do a little more thinking.

Life, 12/1/1941 issue, page 36.

What happened just a week after that was published?

Pearl Harbor.
Nagumo's First Air Fleet had left its harbors on November 26, 1941, for the December 7 attack

And what of the "...stronger than ever...." defenses of Manila?
12/8 – Philippines attacked, 10 hours after Pearl Harbor
12/23 - Decision made to evacuate Manila, fall back to Bataan
1/1/1942 - Japanese troops entered Manila
5/6/1942 - Surrender of Philippines

Just last night I was reading a March 1942 edition of Life, reading their last report from their reporter in the Philippines before he (and his wife) were able to make their way out. They spoke of a Filipino boy strapped and tortured on the front of a Japanese tank in Manila for the offense of...touching it. And that was just a few pages apart from a report from a correspondent who had been with the AVG (Flying Tigers) as they fought in Rangoon until it fell. That alongside ads telling housewives how they could grow their gardens better to help the war effort. (Humorous side note- there is also an ad for Allison Inlines trumpeting the high praise(!) of the British for the P-39 Aircobra. Heh.) Breathtaking reading from the reports at the time.

But how does this fit in to our world today? Who is raising a (figurative) garden to try to help todays War effort? Could you imagine the uproar if a new AVG was even thought of being raised? Are we even being asked to sacrifice anything for this new War? I just don't see it. But what I do see is a population with no connection to the sacrifices of our fighting men and women overseas. I see very few signs that our nation is willing to give up anything. And it saddens and concerns me, the more I read of these 60+ year old magazines, as I am not sure we have what it takes to actually win this new War. How many of our common citizens are willing to give up anything for the freedoms they hold dear, myself included? I am actually more worried that most hold little or nothing dear, other than themselves. As long as you can drink your Starshmucks and drive wherever you want whenever you want in whatever you want, who cares what those odd little brown men are doing over there in the Middle East, right?

And as for our new breed of reporters, well let's see. I have yet to come across a single story in these old Lifes that are reported from the Japanse Army/Navy point of view, and I am fine with that. If you are trying to kill me or my countrymen, I could give a rats patootie about your input on the matter. I either want to see your arms in the air as you give up, or your toes in the air as you are laid in a grave. And I feel the same way about the WW2 Japanese as I do about the modern Islamists in that respect. I have no respect for the mealy-mouthed journalists in the Middle East who want the picture from the terrorists view. I don't care what the root causes are, as I'll worry about that after they are dead and pacified, and those left are living as civil humans. Right now we have a war to win.

The average person on the streets knows what the terrorists are doing, and how bad they really are. They just seem to lack the fortitude, motivation, and willingness to give up anything in the short haul to even keep what we have or have better in the future. And I really fear that if/when they wake up, we will be past the point of being able to fight it in a humane fashion. We will be at the point that it will only be fought as Total War. And more Nukes in the hands of those that brought us the Tehran Embassy Crisis of November 4, 1979. Sorry to ramble, but reading what our parent/grandparents did just makes me really wonder if we still have what it takes to stand for what is right, and if we really even still know what is right. Memorials and anniversaries ain't it. Working to prevent the need for future ones is. That is how we should remember and act.

We need to fight to win, nothing less. Finish what they started.

Posted by Crusader at 09:36 AM | Comments (2)

In The Wake Of The Death Of Steve Irwin...

The Stingray Community fears 'retribution'.

"We are Creatures of Peace," says a spokesfish, "I mean, sure we look like winged devils, and there is the 10 inch long barbed tail loaded with toxin and all, but we are victims of specie profiling."

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:28 AM | Comments (6)

A New Normal

Yesterday was a very draining day. While it's vital and important that we remember our friends and fellow citizens who were murdered that day it is hard. Man. We honor our friends by remembering them, and by going on, by living our lives.

Life will never be as it was prior to September 11th, that 'normal' is irrevocably gone. We have to make a new normal, and I think we have. I think we have a better, more realistic view of the world; well, at least some of us do, and that's a start. We now know beyond a shadow of a reasonable doubt that there are people in this world who simply hate us and our way of life, and that no amount of dialogue or bridge-building or global conferencing will make them change their minds or decide not to kill us; they can not be brought to a reasonable compromise because they are not reasonable people.

In a real sense the figurative veil has been removed from our eyes by people who want to put a literal one in its place.

And so we must, and will, go on as we have these past five years, stumbling occasionally, as we face up to what confronts us, and what we will need to do if we are to defeat it. There are but two choices: defeat it or submit to it. We owe the 2996 from September 11th and the many since to never, ever submit to it.

Otherwise we are not worthy of what they have given.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:26 AM | Comments (5)

September 11, 2006

2996: We Remember John Resta And Sylvia San Pio Resta

We all know the story of how they and so many others died on that day, but we must never forget how these wonderful people lived, either. John and Sylvia adored life, and they adored each other. They were so deeply in love and so happy together. Newsday tells the story of their engagement

Halloween, with its orange candy, spooky costumes and family fun, is not generally considered a romantic holiday. But since John Resta and Sylvia San Pio Resta met five years ago today at an office costume party, Halloween had always been about romance for them.

Two Halloweens ago, on the third anniversary of their meeting, John, 40, stayed home from work and rented a tuxedo. He bought flowers, lit candles and set the table with a stone crab dinner specially flown in from Sylvia's favorite restaurant in Miami. When Sylvia, 27, got back to the couple's Bayside apartment, he got down on his knees and proposed.

In August of 2000 they were married in Hazlet at the Catholic school that John had graduated from. Their reception was held at the Molly Pitcher Inn in Red Bank, which is far and away the nicest place for a wedding reception in the area. And boy did John and Sylvia have a great party: the weather was perfect, and from cocktails out on the deck overlooking the river to dinner and dancing inside every guest spent the evening laughing and basking in the glow of the newlyweds. We sat at a table with a mix of their family friends and business associates and just had a great time passing stories about the couple, which seems to be required at weddings. Sylvia had this habit of reading cookbooks on the train from cover to cover, as if they were mysteries, and we would kid her about it.

They both loved children, and

John's 10 nieces and nephews in New Jersey adored the couple right back, said Mazzeo, of Hazlet, N.J. The Restas spent almost every other weekend in New Jersey, taking the kids out on outings, to movies and for pizza. Sylvia even played Pokémon cards with the smallest ones.

Sylvia also loved to play videos games, and to have an Aunt who'll come over and play them with you surely ranks high atop any young boy's list of dreams!

We had dinner with them in February of 2001 while they were out on one of these visits, and they brought a lovely colorforms-type art present for our daughter. It wasn't a special occasion, but they knew just the right gift to bring that would keep an 8 year old occupied at the table in the nice italian restaurant that we ate in; that's just a small example of how thoughtful they were. John and I spent the whole meal talking about families, and how much he loved having such a large extended family so near by, and how excited he was about his future with Sylvia. I noticed during the meal that Blondie ('Blondie' was my nickname for Sylvia. The first time I met her her hair was dyed blonde, so I always called her that, which in turn would confuse the bejeebus out of people when they finally met her as her natural brunette, which in turn led to a lot of laughter on our parts) wasn't touching her wine, nor had she run out to have a cigarette. I asked her about this odd behavior the next day and she told me the wonderful news that she and John were expecting.

This news set off a crazy period in their lives, as it does in all of our lives. They were living in an apartment in Queens, and their first thought was that they needed to buy a house. With all of John's family out in Monmouth County, NJ, that was where they concentrated their efforts. We all know how stressful home buying can be, let alone when expecting your first child, and I would talk to Sylvia every Monday and hear how the previous weekend's searching had gone, and I would pass along any houses that I saw in our neighborhood onto them as well, because they were the kind of couple you would adore having near you.

As the frustration grew they reached a decision together which to my mind I'm so glad they did: they said the heck with it. They realized that a lot of kids spent their first few years in cramped apartments and turned out ok; family is what matters. As Sylvia's family lived mostly in Spain the summer of 2001 would be their last chance to visit for quite awhile, so they flew to Spain to spend a few weeks visiting them. They had a wonderful trip.

John and Sylvia worked at Carr Futures; he was a project manager and she was a commodities broker, which is how I knew her. As our market closes around noon, she was able to schedule appointments at very convenient times. On September 11th she and John were going to visit her doctor that very afternoon, and she was one week away from going out on maternity leave.

They were so thrilled at having a boy, and they were going to name him Dylan. I would always kid her that she was condemning him to a life of whiskey drinking, and she would laugh and say that at least they'd get some good poetry out of him.

Carr Futures was on the 92nd floor of the North Tower.

Flight 11 hit the 94th floor.

From the New York Daily News, March 19th, 2002:

John's older brother, Tom, says he finds what little solace he can in the very real possibility that John and Sylvia were together when they died.
"I think my feeling is they wouldn't have wanted to die any other way," Tom said. "They were always together. They were inseparable. Like my sister says, they were like a left and right shoe. I just can't imagine what life would be like if one of them had lived."

Tom doesn't know for sure what happened next. As far as he knows, his brother and sister-in-law didn't make any cell phone calls or write any E-mails after the plane hit. He has heard news reports that the impact of the crash filled the stairwells of the 91st and 92nd floors with rubble, but he also has heard secondhand stories that they were seen several floors lower, working their way down the stairs.

"I can imagine him trying to help her down the stairs, with smoke all around," Tom said.

He thought for about a day and a half that Sylvia might have made it out after a reporter told him she had heard that a pregnant "Spanish" woman had been found alive.

"We had hope," Tom said.

But that hope soon vanished. Philosopher's wisdom In the grief- filled weeks and months since, Tom has thought a lot about something Emanuel Swedenborg, an 18th century philosopher and scientist, once wrote: "Those who are truly married on Earth are in heaven one angel."

On Feb. 14, a police officer and a representative of the Monmouth County, N.J., coroner's office came to the family's house to relay news that John's remains had been identified.

"From dental records," Tom said.

"I think if John could have picked a day to be identified, it would have been Valentine's Day," he said. "He was a very romantic person. He believed in love and friendship."

Sylvia is among the more than 2,000 people whose remains have not been identified. A few days ago, her mother was asked to provide more DNA samples.

So the family has decided to wait until she's found. "We don't want to bury him without her," Tom said. "They did everything else together."

Together forever, as they were meant to be.

We love you and miss you, and we will always remember you.

A special thanks to DCRoe for all the work done in honoring all of the victims.

*Here's a mirror, as the main 2996 site is down.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:22 PM | Comments (12)

September 10, 2006

2996: Remember

Here are some other folks you should honor and remember as you go about your life on this day:

Benito Valentin

Emilio Pete Ortiz

Donna Bernaerts-Kearns

Louis Joseph Modafferi

George Lopez

Richard Todd Myhre

Mike and Larry

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:54 PM | Comments (1)

September 08, 2006

Wunderkraut and His Wunder Family

...have had quite the evening. And you need to visit and watch every little snippet and read every single word. I am so sniffling grateful he thought to share.

The only thing I can add is, if the United States Marine Corps Silent Drill Team and Band have an Battle Colors Ceremony engagement within a hundred miles of your humble abode...GO.

Thank you, Kraut.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 10:15 PM | Comments (1)

Ahhh! My Favoritest Excuse in the World

...will soon ~ once again ~ be legit.

"HONEY! WHY did you get that Louisiana Rescue Labrador??!!!"
"I dunno...
El Niño ??!!"

Works like a charm.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:53 PM | Comments (3)

Nutjobs Update

Now this will get the kooks in a dither:

A controversy over words at BYU this morning. A professor is on paid leave for suggesting the government is responsible for the destruction of the World Trade Center.
The man on paid leave is Dr. Steven Jones. He's a physics professor involved in the so-called "9-11 Truth Movement." Jones believes unnamed government agencies orchestrated the fall of the twin towers and he says there's evidence to back it up.

Two weeks ago he published his theory in a paper called "Why Indeed did the World Trade Center Buildings Collapse?" In it, the professor says the towers fell not because of planes hitting them but rather pre-positioned demolition charges. He cites research conducted at BYU on materials from ground zero, asserting those materials show evidence of thermite, a compound used in military detonations. He says terrorists could have never set those charges.

The State Department has released a rebuttal to Jones' theory in a 10-thousand page report.

BYU made this statement last night.

"Physics Professor Steven Jones has made numerous statements about the collapse of the World Trade Center. BYU has repeatedly said that it does not endorse assertions made by individual faculty.

"We are, however, concerned about the increasingly speculative and accusatory nature of these statements by Dr. Jones."

The university added, "BYU remains concerned that Dr. Jones' works on this topic has not been published in appropriate scientific venues."

It is rare for some in Dr. Jones' position to be under review because he has taught at BYU for more than two decades. He began his career at the university in 1985 and has been known for his cold fusion research. Other professors will teach his classes while he's on paid leave. He will be allowed to conduct research in his field but the university is reviewing his actions.

I'm sure we'll hear the usual screams about free speech, academic freedom, yada yada yada, with a dash of Rovian Conspiracy thrown in. Well, probably mostly that. BDS is awfully common in The Academy.

Stayed tuned and we'll see how this develops.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 02:42 PM | Comments (13)

What a Shame For ABC That Madeleine Albright

...doesn't have Alzheimer's and can publicly dispute the network's version of her and her ~~cohorts'~~ colleagues' conversations

Susan Lyne knew it was a bad idea. That's why the ABC Entertainment president passed on what morphed into The Reagans, CBS's now infamous—and now scrubbed—miniseries. "Either you were going to get something very soft, and you weren't going to get an audience for it," she said. "Or you did something where you played up whatever elements you could and ended up having a bad reaction."

...CBS President Leslie Moonves, who accepted responsibility for the cancellation, said it was based solely on the merits—actually, the lack of merit—of the miniseries, in which, conservatives complained, Reagan was wrongly portrayed as a doddering gay-basher whose wife, Nancy, pulled all the strings.

...Some Democrats on the Hill did weigh in, however. Rep. John Dingell who knocked heads with the Reagan White House in the 1980s, couldn't resist tweaking outraged Republicans and sent Moonves a letter expressing his own "concern" prior to the cancellation announcement. The final cut, Dingell, said should include "$640 Pentagon toilet seats, ketchup as a vegetable, trading arms for hostages" and other scandals that plagued the Reagan administration.

Senate Minority leader Tom Daschle later called the decision to pull the show "appalling." CBS "totally collapsed," he told National Public Radio.

It's just so much easier when you pick on the weak and infirm, right Tom?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:20 AM | Comments (1)

Poll: Most Canadians' Heads Are Indeed Up Their Ass

I guess that's the only way to interpret this:

A majority of Canadians believe U.S. foreign policy was one of the root causes that led to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, and Quebecers are quicker to criticize the U.S. administration for its international actions than other Canadians, a recent poll suggests.
Those conclusions are found in a newly released poll conducted by Léger Marketing for the Association for Canadian Studies.

The poll suggests that 77 per cent of Quebecers polled primarily blame American foreign policy for the Sept. 11 attacks. The results suggest 57 per cent in Ontario hold a similar view.

Gee, no surprise that Ontario is almost sensible, whereas Quebec is, well, France.

"There are a lot of people who think we should be listening closely [to extremist groups] and that there is an opportunity to dialogue with these sort of groups," said Jedwab Wednesday. "So it is showing a real ideological divide on some of these issues."

I listen to the "extremist groups."

They say things like "convert to Islam or die" and then they cut people's heads off. Not much opportunity for dialogue there, it seems to me.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:53 AM | Comments (4)

"Oops! Silly Me!"

So now Armitage is saying he made an innocent boo-boo

In July 2003, Armitage told columnist Robert Novak that Ambassador Wilson's wife worked for the CIA, and Novak mentioned it in a column. It's a crime to knowingly reveal the identity of an undercover CIA officer. But Armitage didn't yet realize what he had done.
So, what exactly did he tell Novak?

"At the end of a wide-ranging interview he asked me, 'Why did the CIA send Ambassador (Wilson) to Africa?' I said I didn't know, but that she worked out at the agency," Armitage says.

Armitage says he told Novak because it was "just an offhand question." "I didn't put any big import on it and I just answered and it was the last question we had," he says.

So for 3 years we've had all this crazy shit going on in the press, all this diversion from the task at hand, and he hasn't come forward to 'fess up until now...why?

That was nearly three years ago, but the political firestorm over who leaked Valerie Plame's identity continued to burn as Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald began hauling White House officials and journalists before a grand jury.
Armitage says he didn't come forward because "the special counsel, once he was appointed, asked me not to discuss this and I honored his request."

"I thought every day about how I'd screwed up," he adds.

Armitage never did tell the president, but he's talking now because Fitzgerald told him he could.

When did he tell this Fitzgerald that he was the source? How much money has been wasted on this witch-hunt, and how much political damage has been done for no good reason? Why didn't Fitzgerald immediately reveal him and end the inquiry?

This whole thing stinks to high heaven.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 06:59 AM | Comments (6)

September 07, 2006

You Know These Guys

...were talkin' sh*t.

Cell phones, complete with a charger and data chips, were found in the body cavities of four inmates at a maximum-security prison, and they had used the phones to direct criminal activities on the street, officials said Wednesday.

...Capt. Juan Ramon Arevalo, director of the Zacatras prison, said the gang members had introduced the cell phones, wrapped in plastic bags, into their bodies through their anuses. The phones were relatively small - about as long as an adult forefinger.

Authorities also found nine cell phone chips, each slightly larger than a fingernail, and one charger.

So what's to stop Ali Blabla (intent on blowing up an airliner, etc.) from being anal retentive, too?

Posted by tree hugging sister at 09:11 PM | Comments (23)

And I'm Sure ABC Would Have Been EQUALLY Obliging

ABC alters 9/11 show under pressure
ABC's upcoming five-hour docudrama "The Path to 9/11" is quickly becoming a political cause célèbre.
The network has in recent days made changes to the film, set to air Sunday and Monday, after leading political figures, many of them Democrats, complained about bias and alleged inaccuracies. Meanwhile, a left-wing organization has launched a letter-writing campaign urging the network to "correct" or dump the miniseries, while conservative blogs have launched a vigorous defense.

...had the offending naughty bits reflected BUSH administration types.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 05:25 PM | Comments (1)

Beam Me Nowhere, Scottie

Kirk went into space like a man (and always looking for a woman) but Shatner won't:

The Star Trek legend was offered a ticket by Richard Branson onboard Virgin Galactic's first passenger flight in 2008. But Shatner, fearing he would be ill in space or the starship would crash, ironically revealed he's terrified of space travel.
The 75-year-old actor said: "I'm interested in man's march into the unknown but to vomit in space is not my idea of a good time. Neither is a fiery crash with the vomit hovering over me."

Mind you, at 75 the idea probably wouldn't appeal to me too much, either.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:27 AM | Comments (6)

France: No To "War On Terror"

Now that's a shock. In his nuanced style, which is foreign to American-educated ears, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin (who is a man), says

Let us not forget that these crises play into the hands of all extremists," the prime minister said in a debate on the Middle East. "We can see this with terrorism, whether it tries to strike inside or outside our frontiers," he added.
"Against terrorism, what's needed is not a war. It is, as France has done for many years, a determined fight based on vigilance at all times and effective cooperation with our partners.

"But we will only end this curse if we also fight against injustice, violence and these crises," he said.

Make determined fights, not war.

Not much of a chant potential there.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:01 AM | Comments (3)

Forty Years Ago Today

...the whole crew beamed up...

...and boldly went where no series had gone before.

(And that James T. Kirk...GAHRRROOwwwllllll.)

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:21 AM | Comments (3)

September 06, 2006

Steve

Irwin.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 11:36 PM | Comments (5)

Speaking of Road Trips

...it's always best to keep safety in mind, regardless of how unfettered the open road might make you feel.

A Swiss driver caught speeding in Canada explained that he had been taking advantage of the ability to drive fast without hitting a goat, police said on Wednesday.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 08:56 PM | Comments (1)

A Courtesy Alert to My Fellow Travelers

There are NO ...

%$@#
DUNKIN' DONUTS*

...in Indianapolis either.

Posted by tree hugging sister at 07:41 PM | Comments (20)

Nuts Are Just Nuts

There's really nothing else you can say about these people:

The 9/11 terrorist attack on America which left almost 3,000 people dead was an "inside job", according to a group of leading academics.
Around 75 top professors and leading scientists believe the attacks were puppeteered by war mongers in the White House to justify the invasion and the occupation of oil-rich Arab countries.

I'm curious what the requirements are to be proclaimed a "leading academic".

Dropped on your head several times immediately after birth?

This ever-growing conspiracy simply amazes me. These people will never be satisfied that they are wrong; they simply expand the net until we were all involved in it, I suppose.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:31 AM | Comments (25)

September 05, 2006

This Time You've Gone Too Far, Mr. President

He is getting out of control

(AP) -- America's hard-line president urged students Tuesday to push for a purge of liberal and secular university teachers, another sign of his determination to strengthen Christian fundamentalism in the country.

...Bush's call was not a surprise -- since taking office six years ago, he also has moved to replace pragmatic veterans in the government and diplomatic corps with former military commanders and inexperienced religious hard-liners.

The US still has strong moderate factions but Bush's administration also has launched crackdowns on independent journalists, Web sites and bloggers.

Speaking to a group of students Tuesday, Bush called on them to pressure his administration to keep driving out moderate instructors, a process that began earlier this year.

Dozens of liberal university professors and teachers were sent into retirement this year after Bush's administration named the first cleric to head Washington University, sparking strong protests from students.

"Today, students should shout at the president and ask why liberal and secular university lecturers are present in the universities," the New York Times quoted Bush as saying during a meeting with students.

Oh, silly me; they were talking about Iran, not Chimpy.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 09:32 PM

Why Bother Going To The Hospital

If you ain't gonna let the doctor look at you?

A hospital in northwest England has introduced a new surgical gown modelled on the burka, allowing female Muslim patients to cover themselves completely in line with their religious beliefs.

I agree 100% with the Daily Express:

"If people want to live in Britain, then they must accept British standards and the British way of life... The standard hospital gown is surely good enough for everyone."

That's some, er, skin rash you got there.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 10:47 AM | Comments (5)

Your Tax Dollars At Work

It's good to know our Legislators are focused with laser-like precision on the pressing issues of the day:

The major legislation on the floor in the House this week is a bill that would ban trading in horses to be slaughtered for human consumption.

We're in good hands, folks.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 07:46 AM | Comments (4)

September 01, 2006

No Mas "Miller Time"

What ever I drink this weekend, I can guarantee you it won't be a Miller product:

This time, as demonstrators march from Chinatown to House Speaker Dennis Hastert's (R-Ill.) Batavia office this weekend, they will have Miller Brewing Co., as a sponsor. The brewer has paid more than $30,000 for a planning convention, materials and newspaper ads publicizing the event.
The support of a major corporation for a controversial political cause shows how fierce the competition has become to woo the growing market of Latino consumers.

Michelle helpfully lists their products.

Foster's. They've corrupted Foster's.

Bastards.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 11:08 AM | Comments (21)

A Wake For Wake

Ioke spoke

HONOLULU (AP) -- Typhoon Ioke knocked out Wake Island's weather sensors on Thursday as it lashed the isle with some of the central Pacific's fiercest winds in over a decade, the National Weather Service said.
Forecasters monitoring the 2.5-square-mile atoll's wind and temperature gauges from Hawaii said the instruments blew out as the storm approached with winds of up to 155 miles per hour and gusts of up to 190 mph.

I can't wait to see the pictures.

Posted by Mr. Bingley at 08:55 AM | Comments (1)

The Coalition of the Swilling

et non sapientior a TOWACA production