[Image via Flickr]

There's nothing to see here. Move along. Nothing, that is, but this report of a minor incident in Russellville, Arkansas: “Democratic Congressional candidate Ken Aden’s campaign manager returned home to find his family pet slaughtered, with the word 'liberal' painted on the animal’s corpse.”

A statement from the Aden campaign describes the cat as an adult mixed-breed Siamese and included a graphic description of the pet's injuries.

The statement said that the four children of campaign manager Jacob Burris “discovered the gruesome scene as they exited the family vehicle to enter their home” after “the perpetrators scrawled 'liberal' across the cat’s body and left it on the doorstep of Burris’ house."

“To kill a child's pet is unconscionable,” the candidate is quoted as saying.

I know, I know. It's not the most important story in the news this week. In a time of war and financial crisis, there are a lot bigger stories to report than the death of a house cat. It was just an ordinary pet like millions of others, a playmate to some children and a companion to their parents.

Nor is this an electoral scandal. The Aden campaign said they “did not believe the Womack campaign to be responsible,” adding that “before Christmas ... a (radio) station owned by Womack’s father, actually promoted a toy drive held by Aden’s campaign for children in the Third District.”

People, especially conservatives, will rush to say it's an isolated incident of random violence that could've happened to anyone. They've said that before. Lots of times, in fact.

The shooting of churchgoers at a liberal Unitarian church in Knoxville was an isolated incident.

The shooting of police officers in Pittsburgh was an isolated incident.

The shooting of deputies in Okaloosa, Florida was an isolated incident.

The killing of a Tucson man and the shooting of his wife and daughter (the nine-year-old was shot in the head at point-blank range) was an isolated incident.

The murder of an African-American woman and the raping and wounding of her sister, followed by the killing of a homeless man, was an isolated incident.

The killing of an African-American security guard at the Holocaust Museum was an isolated incident.

Except …

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Newt Gingrich, while thanking the Koch family for hosting a political fundraiser in 2007 adds "I think anytime you can visit a starter home like this..." Received by rounds of laughter from guests, Gingrich continues on to make a joke about the "core" differences between liberals and conservatives while using the no doubt palatial estate of the Koch family in an analogy about public housing.

Personally, I think Casey Anthony could beat him in a personality contest.

Here's the thing about an "entitlement society" the GOP candidates like to rail against: They don't like the fact that too many people would benefit from it. They're 1 percent suck ups.

Charlie Jarvis, chairmen of USA NEXT appeared on Inside Politics and tried to spin his way out of that disgusting ad.

Woodruff: ...is USA NEXT going to run this ad some more, and why'd you only have it up for one day?

Jarvis: We were testing to see if the left liberal groups would over react and they did. The hypothesis was that they'd focus on one single, tiny image on one website ..

Woodruff: It worked.

Jarvis: It worked. By the end of yesterday, to show you how crazy the left liberal groups are and that they have a death wish on Social Security. They were literally having people call (pause)television stations all over the country to pull the ad that didn't exist. Remarkable.

His rational that a scathing reaction to a sickening ad is a "death wish" is ludicrous. That death wish will ultimately rest on the head of Jarvis, and USA NEXT.

Michael Tanner, from the Cato Institute was appalled.

TANNER : Well, we're very disappointed in this ad. full transcript ....We don't think that we should be going down the road to in essence a bigoted approach to gay rights or things of that nature in order to sell the very positive approach that we have for individual accounts.

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When you put an ad on a website, it's real.. This kind of sleazy, disgusting display reflects the moral values that your company holds true and ultimately USA NEXT will be thought of not as an alternative to AARP, but as a bigoted, conniving company that will say anything to make a buck. Let's say we believed your bullshit excuse Charlie, that it was a tiny, little ad to trick the left wing groups. (our influence is appreciated) What do you think the reaction of the right wing sites would be to an ad the AARP ran that said this Charlie?

"A starving, elderly couple with graying hair, homeless and in tattered clothes are scavenging through a dumpster looking for food. The Word "Hopeless" is stencilled across the center in red / Flip side: A well dressed Wall Street executive is laughing, smoking a big cigar, drinking some champagne at a casino with a hot chic on his arm while throwing a pair of dice. The word "Jackpot" stenciled across the center in blue. The copy:

George Bush’s Social Security plan will deprive the elderly and the youth of our country the security they might need to live and eat in dignity. While the fat cats at Wall Street will be gambling away the safety net that Social Security provides for their own personal gain. Thanks President Bush. We know who you really care about."

How do you think that one, tiny ad would play out?

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Earlier this year I posted a story about a mind numbing political conversation I had with some of my conservative friends and relatives. No matter what I said, and no matter how much we agreed on certain issues, I was always dismissed as being "too far left." I had lunch with some of those same relatives earlier this week and as expected, politics took center stage in our conversation -- and I'm happy to report some progress!

We decided to meet at a local restaurant and right off the bat, I knew things were going to be interesting. My youngest, and most under-informed cousin pulled up in his ginormous SUV adorned with FIRE PELOSI stickers on both the front and back bumpers, and the sound of Rush Limbaugh's voice blasting from the open windows. You see, he has friends in the military and listens to Limbaugh so he knows everything there is to know about politics, the economy, war and social issues. Oh, and he's 21 and earns just under $22k a year. We'll call him cousin #1.

We were seated at a table and before the server could even introduce herself, cousin #1 looked across at me and said "So, what do you think 'bout your glory boy Obama now?" I knew it was coming and was prepared for battle, but before I could get a word out, cousin #2 jumped in and said "He's still a hell of a lot better than Bush and THANK GOD McCain and Palin didn't win!" And it was on like Donkey Kong. I just sat and smiled because the cousin who came to my defense was the first one to call me a "leftist" in our last conversation. He (and his wife) had finally seen the light and now realize how toxic the GOP and their media are to our nation. I was shocked at how their conversion to the truth was so strong that they even chided corporatist Democrats like Ben Nelson! Can I get an AMEN?

To be perfectly honest, I didn't really participate in the conversation all that much. I didn't have to. The two cousins sparred for the better part of the meal and I sat and nodded my head - when I wasn't defending my new "leftist" cousin. Cousin #1 left the restaurant looking defeated and confused, albeit better informed than when he walked in. He conceded nothing, but was forced to admit that the Republican party had turned into a bunch of far right wing extremists and probably more extreme than he was comfortable with.

It was nice to finally be vindicated by two family members who were at one time, rabid Fox News watching Republicans. It took me years, but it was well worth the fight. If any of you need to vent about Republican friends, family or co-workers, please use this thread to get it off your chest!

AmericaBlog has the latest from MyDD. What's interesting is that Dailykos, TalkingPoints Memo, Raw Story, Eschaton, Crooks and Liars and Americablog nowhave more traffic than Instapundit, which remains the highesttrafficked conservative blog...read on

The Opinion Mill

The Bush family has often been referred to as the WASP version of the Corleones, but the Soprano clan makes for a much better comparison. At its best, "The Sopranos" is an acid mockery of the phony gravitas of the three "Godfather" movies. Where Michael Corleone is heroically evil, an international player who consorts with statesmen and the Vatican before succumbing to his tragic flaw, Tony Soprano is a sewer rat engaged in the grubby business of preying on human weakness and fear -– when his fall comes, it will be tragic only to himself. Until then, however, he’s going to make as much money as he can for himself and his buddies, and leave the rest of the world holding the bill.

I'm not just using hyperbole here. I do think that when honest historians assess the Bush administration, they will find it more useful to treat George II and his Republican cronies as a criminal organization rather than a political party. The best tool for analyzing Bush's policies is not historiography, but the procedures used by federal agents as they pursue a RICO investigation into a mobbed-up business.

Take the money and run. As long as Republicans are in power, that phrase should replace "E Pluribus Unum" on the national seal. It's the natural outcome of a quarter-century of rhetoric about how government is the problem, not the solution; how government doesn't work; how deregulation is the only way to build the economy. If government is nothing but a taxpayer-funded scam, then why not use it to enrich yourself and your buddies? If the very idea of public service as an idealistic calling has been turned into a mealymouthed joke, then where's the shame in abusing power and running the country into the ground? As long as you can convince just over 50 percent of the suckers to vote your way, you can throw yourself a party and leave the world holding the bill. Read on

Bullet Bags for Bush A Liberal Dose

Displaying the singular tact and deep humanitarianism for which he is so deservedly reknowned, Chief Chimp hostedRead on

Bullet Bags for Bush

via A Liberal Dose: "Displaying the singular tact and deep humanitarianism for which he is so deservedly reknowned, Chief Chimp hosted an Army recruiting drive for the BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA.

(Start the indoctrination young, 'cause with them Eye-rakees refusin ta stay beat and just pipe their dang oil straight into Bush Inc.'s personal oil tankers, we sure need the 10 to 18-year-old set learning the joys of triage and how to jerry-rig their own humvee armor -- though it's doubtful they issued new merit badges on such short notice.)

To add to the belief-beggaring, appalling tastelessness of the maneouver, two days after the kids had just witnessed the horrific death of four scout leaders in a freak accident, Bush PULLED A NO-SHOW AT THEIR MEMORIAL, and 300 KIDS COLLAPSED FROM THE HEAT while waiting in vain for his majesty to appear.

>sigh....<

People, you just can't even make shit like this up.

Roe V. Everyone Else .

(Start the indoctrination young, 'cause with them Eye-rakees refusin ta stay beat and just pipe their dang oil straight into Bush Inc.'s personal oil tankers, we sure need the 10 to 18-year-old set learning the joys of triage and how to jerry-rig their own humvee armor -- though it's doubtful they issued new merit badges on such short notice.)

To add to the belief-beggaring, appalling tastelessness of the maneouver, two days after the kids had just witnessed the horrific death of four scout leaders in a freak accident, Bush PULLED A NO-SHOW AT THEIR MEMORIAL, and 300 KIDS COLLAPSED FROM THE HEAT while waiting in vain for his majesty to appear.

>sigh....<

People, you just can't even make shit like this up."-(filed by Mike )

Did Nancy Skinner Question Karl Rove’s Patriotism? Angry Bear

Cliff May thinks so:

On Fox a moment ago, liberal radio talk show host Nancy Skinner said that Karl Rove “is endangering our national security” – her short-hand reference to the Wilson/Plame brouhaha. So the left, which is always shouting: “How dare you question my patriotism!” to people who are not questioning their patriotism is now questioning the patriotism of Karl Rove and President Bush. Nice twist. This has become the left’s new refrain and a useful one it is since the left has long been seen by many Americans as not trustworthy on national security.

Of course, Mr. May questions the patriotism of liberals when there is no basis for doing so. It would seem that he and John Podhoretz want to give us ample reason to question their commitment to national security when it conflicts with their partisan garbage. I only regret that I was not watching FNC for their reaction to Ms. Skinner’s comment.

Town Square Political Theory Daily Review

From The Nation, a debate of Labor's Future (including Sweeney, Stern, Wilhelm, McEntee, Cohen, and Hoffa). From In These Times, more on Wobblies!, and the religious right wants to include moral values in the debate over how our taxes are spent? Bring it on. Do Democrats need to get religion? Jim Wallis and Susan Jacoby go at it.

From WSWS, an article on secularism and the American Constitution. Christopher Caldwell on the sacred cow of religious rights. An article on Islam and the institutions of a free society. A review of Occidentalism: A Short History of Anti-Westernism.

From LRB, a review of The Indian Mutiny and the British Imagination, and an article on secularism and the American Constitution. Christopher Caldwell on the sacred cow of religious rights. An article on Islam and the institutions of a free society. A review of Occidentalism: A Short History of Anti-Westernism.

From LRB, a review of The Indian Mutiny and the British Imagination, and an article on.

From NYRB, Peter Galbraith on Iraq: Bush's Islamic Republic. Brendan O'Neill on how a risk-averse West has inflamed the terrorism it fears. What turns a man into a terrorist, and what can be done about it? And from Foreign Affairs, an article on How to Help Poor Countries

THOSE CRAZY MUSLIMS      recovering liberal the London bombs.

From NYRB, Peter Galbraith on Iraq: Bush's Islamic Republic. Brendan O'Neill on how a risk-averse West has inflamed the terrorism it fears. What turns a man into a terrorist, and what can be done about it? And from Foreign Affairs, an article on How to Help Poor Countries

recovering liberal
Support for suicide bombings and other acts of violence in defense of Islam has dropped since 2002 by 34 percentage points in Lebanon, 12 points in Indonesia and 8 points in Pakistan, according to the latest survey from Pew Global Attitudes Project.

In the poll released last Thursday, about half of Muslims in Lebanon, Jordan and Morocco said that attacks against Americans and their allies are justified.

On a positive note, the poll also showed that confidence in bin Laden has fallen by double-digit margins in Indonesia, Morocco and Lebanon since 2003. In Lebanon, only 2% now express confidence in him. Sadly, this is offset by Jordan and Pakistan, where more than 50% say they that have confidence in him.

Most importantly, in the nine Western nations polled, fears about radical Islam are tied to perceptions of Muslim communities within those countries. Resident Muslims were seen as having a strong and growing sense of Islamic identity, which most of those surveyed see as a bad thing.

In conclusion, while most of those polled in the United States and other Western Nations claim to have favorable views of Muslims, those in predominantly Muslim countries had mixed views of Christians and very negative views of Jews.

Support for suicide bombings and other acts of violence in defense of Islam has dropped since 2002 by 34 percentage points in Lebanon, 12 points in Indonesia and 8 points in Pakistan, according to the latest survey from Pew Global Attitudes Project.

In the poll released last Thursday, about half of Muslims in Lebanon, Jordan and Morocco said that attacks against Americans and their allies are justified.

On a positive note, the poll also showed that confidence in bin Laden has fallen by double-digit margins in Indonesia, Morocco and Lebanon since 2003. In Lebanon, only 2% now express confidence in him. Sadly, this is offset by Jordan and Pakistan, where more than 50% say they that have confidence in him.

Most importantly, in the nine Western nations polled, fears about radical Islam are tied to perceptions of Muslim communities within those countries. Resident Muslims were seen as having a strong and growing sense of Islamic identity, which most of those surveyed see as a bad thing.

In conclusion, while most of those polled in the United States and other Western Nations claim to have favorable views of Muslims, those in predominantly Muslim countries had mixed views of Christians and very negative views of Jews.