Mismanagement by Objective Eyewitness Muse

Why am I not surprised that the Bush Administration has discovered 22 “ineffective” federal initiatives that they want eliminated and that among these programs’ intended beneficiaries are preschool children, displaced workers, at-risk youth, migrant agriculture workers, low-income college students, the disabled and families that cannot afford housing. After all, if anybody deserves to feel the pinch, it’s a grimy lot like that. Read More

Greatscat!:

From Reuters yesterday afternoon:

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp [..] will sell eight U.S. television stations to private equity firm Oak Hill Partners for about $1.1 billion.

I couldn't help but wonder who was buying up tv stations in an election year, so a quick check of Oak Hill Partners :

Oak Hill Capital Partners traces its roots to Robert M. Bass, one of the four brothers who founded Bass Brothers Enterprises in Fort Worth, Texas.

From Texas, eh? A little more checking as a Texas based company raised my eyebrows right away:

Robert Muse Bass is a Texas billionaire worth approximately $5.46 billion as of 2006.

Bass was born into an extremely wealthy family with an uncle, Sid Richardson, worth $810 million. He and his three brothers Lee, Ed, and Sid Bass all attended Yale University, where they solidified their moneyed and political connections. Ed Bass was a classmate and personal friend of George W. Bush, and the brothers, especially Lee Bass, helped Bush financially both before and throughout his political career.

As Diane points out on her blog, it would be interesting to monitor these stations to see what kind of coverage they offer during the election and what impact, if any, it might have.

Linkage
tekkeh in comments wants someone to post this:
Vatican Official Refutes Intelligent Design.

And Eyewitness Muse says: Society of Co-opted Journalists Presents Inaugural Judy Miller Award to Bob Woodward.

Yes, Anonymous, there is a good Roger Ailes.

And just for fun: Bubbles! (via)

Posted by Avedon

The Moderate Voice has a huge Katrina post on the Blog reaction...

the entire world is appalled, watching the richest country in the world let its people die of thirst, and yet that is the inevitable result of a ruling party who feels little obligation to its citizens," writes Shakespeare's Sister in a powerful and moving post. Go read it all.

Eyewitness Muse has this scoop: "Bush Recalled to National Guard"... Iraq-depleted, desperate Guard calling back those with unfilled commitments for hurricane emergency....

Where in the world is Dick Cheney? Planning a trip to Alberta's oilsands at Fort McMurray on September 9.

"The Rest of the Goddamn Nation" Those aren't the words of a starving prisoner of the New Orleans Superdome, radicalized by the realization that he or she may well die for lack of a school bus. They're the words of Col. Terry Ebert, director of Homeland Security for New Orleans. FEMA's response -- or lack thereof -- he told The New York Times, has been "criminal." oilsands at Fort McMurray on September 9.

"The Rest of the Goddamn Nation" Those aren't the words of a starving prisoner of the New Orleans Superdome, radicalized by the realization that he or she may well die for lack of a school bus. They're the words of Col. Terry Ebert, director of Homeland Security for New Orleans. FEMA's response -- or lack thereof -- he told The New York Times, has been "criminal."