Mike's Blog Round Up
The Heretik is shocked, shocked to discover . . . Bush never wanted to be a war president? He does, however, have an extensive collection of jackets with Commander in Chief embroidered on them. (Bush also hasn't figured out he is in fact a politician in Washington). The reluctant warrior has returned to stay the course terminology in asking for more time for his surge strategy, which replaced his stay the course strategy. About that September report on progress: It isn't the end, it's just the beginning. ""What Congress will get this week is a snapshot of the beginning of the retooling of the mission in Iraq," Snow said. "Everyone says, 'We want to do it a different way.' We agree. It's just now started." The surge of BS will continue forever, possibly longer.
The Numbers Game: Bush may think people are still behind him, but his latest polling numbers are a boot in the ass. Plus so many Friedmans. And you might want to take a closer look at that mortgage rate. One, two, three . . . . some base assumptions.
Communication breakdown: The iPhone hearings are coming! The iPhone hearings are coming! And curious about Iraq? Ask a Shiite. Doctor, doctor, give me the news. But make it a little earlier next time.
Vitter Vittles: what would Wendy do? What does this say about the media? Sob.
McCain and Unable Update: will anybody be on the train when the Straight Talk Express finally gets to the station?
And a message from Chris Floyd: "Until our defenses can be shored up against the relentless hack attacks aimed at shutting down Empire Burlesque, I will be blogging chiefly at my original Blogger outlet, Empire Burlesque 1.0, and at Atlantic Free Press and Pacific Free Press as well. My apologies for these difficulties. Please keep checking back at www.chris-floyd.com. We will be back there soon."
Send hot links to The Heretik at joe.ivory.mattingly AT gmail DOT com
fristitola!
Writer Russ Baker noted in October, 2004, that Mickey Herskowitz, the man Bush had originally hired to write his autobiography ("A Charge To Keep: My Journey To The White House"), told Baker that George Bush was planning his Iraq invasion - to seize and hold political power for himself and the Republican Party - during his first presidential election campaign.
"He was thinking about invading Iraq in 1999," Herskowitz told Baker. "It was on his mind. He [Bush] said to me: 'One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief.' And he said, 'My father had all this political capital built up when he drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait and he wasted it.' He said, 'If I have a chance to invade, if I had that much capital, I'm not going to waste it. I'm going to get everything passed that I want to get passed and I'm going to have a successful presidency."
So much for the "reluctant war president" lie.
"He does, however, have an extensive collection of jackets with Commander in Chief embroidered on them."
...and he always walks around with that big ol' flightsuit codpiece, even while clearing brush. He saw that "Wurd Up" music video in the eighties and thought that was just the coolest thing.
Here's my SWAG cents.
The visit by Russia's Vlad Putin to the Bush family home in Kennebunkport might have been an opportunity for Bush to tell Putin. "I'm thinking about going in to Iran to take out their nukes" and the carrot for Putin would be tacit US approval to let the price of oil (Russian oil and gas is exported) to rise dramatically in the wake of such an event. So Putin could 'sit things out' and wait for the world situation to calm down after such an event.
I watched with great interest a rather lengthy segment about steroids in professional wrestling on Live with Dan Abrams last night on MSNBC, as I am a former fan of the *sport*.
One former headliner named "Superstar" Billy Graham described the littany of horrors he has faced medically and physically thanks to his usage of steroids. Toward the end of the segment, he held up a report with over 100 names of wrestlers who have died in the past 10 years and proclaimed "This list is more important than the D.C. madam's list."
I thought that was a truly salient point. Sex sells, and sex scandals sell even better. Human tragedies created by an uncaring medical profession, however, do not. People are quick to call for the resignation of any politico who gets caught with his thingy where they don't think it should be, yet doctors are allowed to give out damaging or at the very least suspect medications without recrimination.
Chris Benoit's murder of his family and subsequent suicide are not indictments on pro wrestling - they're indictments on our society and our priorities.
Most Americans believe that bigger is better, that America is bigger and better than any country, and that any method should be implemented in maintaining this belief. So, why shouldn't athletes use any method available in achieving the same level of superiority?
What makes me so damn made is this.........bush and cheney are PUBLIC SERVANTS. They were elected to serve the people of this country. It is a damn shame that the founding fathers did not set up a system whereby the PEOPLE that a president and vice president are to serve could kick the S.O.B.'s out of office. Like they do in a recall election. Not leave it up to the congress.
I think the problem was, the founding fathers did not realize how big this country would get. Since it was only seven states and no communication they thought it would be best for the congress to take care of those measures. Little did they know that the congress proves as corrupt at times as the president and vice president and neglect their duty to the people.
In that USA TOday article, there was an interesting sidenote: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-07-09-bush-poll_N.htm
They had to compare Bush to Truman! Of course, since history has been nice to Truman, I gather even though we think Bush is an idiot, well, history will be nice to him, too, and he'll be proven right!
Media bias again. What is wrong with the media? Seriously? How can they sleep at night?
Anyone notice the bit about comparing Bush to Truman in the USA Today article about his polling numbers? http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-07-09-bush-poll_N.htm
Of course, history will shine down on Bush in years to come and show that he was right after all.
You gotta love the media.
Boing!
Metallica singer James Hetfield was investigated by British airport officials who believed he was a terrorist last week.
The rocker was barred entry to London's Luton airport on Thursday and questioned by staff who were concerned about his appearance. Fears that Hetfield might be involved in terrorism were apparently founded on his ``Taliban-like beard.''
He was allowed to leave the airport after a brief interrogation, when he persuaded officials that he was a rock star.
And check out the beard from July 2007 (at Wembly)
http://static.nme.com/images/0779_131218_metal_3.jpg
I thought you were joking, LAC. I wish you had been.
http://www.nme.com/news/metallica/29626
ohoh LAC
"It turns out the only people who thought Metallica’s James Hetfield was a potential shoe bomber were writers at London’s The Times, as a Hetfield rep says all stories about the singer-guitarist’s run-in with U.K airport security are “not true.” Meanwhile, “The Other New Song” by Metallica has been posted online.
Rolling stone
http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2007/07/10/beyonce-has-a...
The Times was a once esteemed news organ, worldwide, now owned by Rupert Murdoch...
miss_kitty @ 11:
Oh there you go that explains it Rupert Murdoch's "Just Make It Up" News Empire.
Monkey boy is single handedly bringing down the repugnacan party, hopefully he'll take a couple dozen repug senators with him when he goes. I can't imagine anyone going into a voting booth and selecting the party of prostitution, corruption, and child molestation.
L.A. Confidential @ 12:
Ha ha ha!
Their Solemn Motto:
"Never let the TRUTH get in the way of a good story."
arlen sphincter is at it again!
sorry for that double post back there, the site didn't seem to take the first comment.
ckerst @ 13:
now let's not forget the Meth 'N Man-Ass wing of the party.
nor the Death 'N Pestilence wing
nor the Bankruptcy and Suffering wing.
miss_kitty @ 11:
BINGO!!
Anyone who wants to talk about the sara taylor hearings, go down to the most recent open thread post. We've been talking about it there. :)
L.A. Confidential @ 4:
And it's all away from the WH recorders!
There had to be some inclusion of the Russian Oil company in the spoils. It ain't just about price, it's about quantity. The russian oil is not as valuable as mideast crude. I think it has something to do with 'sweet crude' or the ability to refine the product.
Getting the russian oil cartel in on the Iranian reserves would definitely be a plum. But if I were pooty-poot, I'd keep arming Iran to drive up the price the amurkkkans are willing to pay to invade.
The "Blivet" Presidency
The majority of Americans, both highly informed and barely informed, are now comfortable stating that George W. Bush is incompetent.
The politically active voters are fully aware that what once passed for a Bush strength, that he rarely changed course, has now been unveiled as the cornerstone of his incompetence.
Over and over again he and his crew have offered political slogans in lieu of reasoned action policies only to be dragged to ignoble defeat and capitulation to the forces of reason allied against him.
An image comes to mind for me. Ten pounds of propaganda in a five pound bag, our very own "blivet" presidency.
Hat tips to Tony Snow and Karl Rove.
--cognitorex--
Bush didn't want to be a war president? Yeah, I don't think so.
Everyone here has seen that interview where he says with a twinkle in his eye, "I'm a war president!" He smiled as he said it. He was proud of it.
He smiled as American citizens were sent to their deaths, not to protect us from terrorism but so that George W. Bush could play war.
A disgrace.
So after the first "six months" now the surge is "just getting started"?
This means more Friedman units until we can tell if the surge has started yet...
10 years from now the surge will officially be ready to be reviewed!
[What about the presidential seal cowboy boots...?]
Boy, the Republicans and the diehard war hawks really are a sorry bunch.
They keep calling McCain the "maverick". How impressive. He's a "maverick" if you think being a very typical conservative is one. Hilarious stuff.
Odd Coincidence and Right Wing Blithering Idiots
Gupta's clearly just another, free-market ideological corporate funded whore who "really" believes that because he made it (and good for him), that everyone can make it.
That's not the way the world works. We need reporters, doctors, street cleaners, and gardeners - and though they all may not have the same skilles and potential, they are all entitled to health care. In a "Gupta's" world, a gardener who can't afford health care in a free market system is at fault because he failed in life and didn't become a doctor or a Wall Street analyst - so the free market should make gardeners suffer and doctors flourish. What an a-hole.
We need Dr Ron Paul:
He has never voted to raise taxes.
• He has never voted for an unbalanced budget.
• He has never voted for a federal restriction on gun ownership.
• He has never voted to raise congressional pay.
• He has never taken a government-paid junket.
• He has never voted to increase the power of the executive branch.
• He voted against the Patriot Act.
• He voted against regulating the Internet.
• He voted against the Iraq war.
• He does not participate in the lucrative congressional pension program.
• He returns a portion of his annual congressional office budget to the U.S. treasury every year.
Congressman Paul introduces numerous pieces of substantive legislation each year, probably more than any single member of Congress.
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