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Dana Milbank appeared on Keith Olbermann last night and pointed out most of the problems that the bloggers have had with Jeff (whatever his name is) Gannon having access to the White House. He gives a hat tip to World O' Crap as a source of information. Listening to Milbank talking about the much more serious issue of Jeff "G" as a shill for the White House after hearing Howard Kurtz completely glaze over the story on Blitzer, shows you the difference in reporting that can go on between "columnists from the same paper.

Milbank: As of Monday I saw whatever-his name-is waiting outside there at the White House, in fact he would probably be allowed to continue doing this as of now if their weren't some website called of all things "World O' Crap" that had gotten into all those personal allegations. It was Jeff's decision or whatever his name's decision to uhh step down. He wasn't kicked out of the White House at all. That's really where all the scandal lies in this whole thing.

The NY Daily News gets into the story and names John Aravosis of AMericaBlog as a source:

"The issue here is whether someone with connections to male prostitution was given unfettered access to the White House and copies of internal CIA documents. For a family values administration, that's pretty creepy," said John Aravosis, one of the bloggers chasing the story."

Date: Thursday Night December 2, 2004
Place: Wadsworth Theatre, Brentwood, CA.
Event: Michael Moore and John Dean

"IF YOU PASS OUT FLIERS YOU WILL BE ARRESTED. THIS IS FEDERAL PROPERTY. WE HAVE MANY PLAIN CLOTHES AGENTS ON THE PROPERTY TONIGHT. IF YOU ARE PROTESTING YOU WILL BE ARRESTED," barked a muscular African-American through an electronic bullhorn.
The crowd, which looked like it was on line for an opera, glanced nervously at one another and muttered.
"NO TALKING RIGHT NOW FOLKS. I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT. PLEASE, IF YOU CONTINUE TO TALK YOU WILL BE ARRESTED. THIS IS FEDERAL PROPERTY," bellowed the Man.
Jerry Rubin, the local West L.A. activist had heard enough. he jumped out of the sedintary line and demanded to know why he couldn't pass out his flyer for his "Fuck Bush New Year's Eve Comedy Showcase & Dance Party."
"SIR, YOU WILL BE ARRESTED IF YOU CONTINUE. THIS IS FEDERAL PROPERTY. ANYONE WITH RECORDING EQUIPMENT OR DEVICES WILL BE TURNED AWAY....YOU WILL BE SEARCHED...."
Anyway, the harangue continued as the quiet crowd shrugged and simply flowed in to fill the theatre to capacity. Apparently folks are getting used to a Post 9/11 Patriot Act world.

The event, featuring Watergate wunderkind, John Dean and filmmaker Michael Moore was structured as an interview/therapy session of sorts with Dean, the lawyer/author/teacher posing the quizicals to Moore the "rebellious student/prodigal son".

"Why did you focus on George W. Bush as a subject for your latest movie?" asked Dean.

Moore explained how he was out here in Santa Monica on 9/11and his daughter was back East in New York. Calling a friend at the World Trade Center, he heard the first tower collapse over the phone while he held it to his ear. In addition, he revealed that his line producer had been on the fateful flight that had come out of Boston and crashed into the WTC. He and his wife rented a car and drove 3,000 miles back to NYC. Along the way, he thought, "What did the President know and when did he know it?" Dean and Moore chuckled as did the audience.

Moore then went on to spin a hilarious long winding story of how he ended up with Miramax as a producer of his latest blockbuster, "Fahrenheit 9/11". The story involved Mel Gibson, 3 Passover sedars and five jews.

Regarding "Bowling For Columbine," Moore's Oscar-winning documentary, he told the crowd not to have any preconceived notions when making a documentary. He explained that when he went to Canada to learn about their gun control policies, he was shocked to learn that Canadian citizens possessed more guns per capita than their American cousins. Moore was confused he said, but soon realized that "Guns don't kill people. Americans kill people!"

He also indicated that an early plot line of "BFC" was for him to run for President of the NRA and beat Charlton Heston. Once elected Moore intended to disband the group permanently.

Dean: "I'm gonna say a word or a phrase and you tell me the first thing that pops into your head."
Mooore: "Oh I thought you were gonna aske me who Deep Throat was?
Dean: "I'm gonna let the audience grade your answers."

Dean: "Laura Bush."
Moore: "Killer."
Dean: "That's two words."
Moore: "No! I said killer, not Kill Her!"
Dean: "Explain"
Moore: "She killed a man when she was 17. Her ex-boyfriend who had broken up with her. It was November of 1963 in Midland, Texas. She ran a stop sign. Michael Douglass was his name. Star quarterback of the football team. It was 10 days before the Kennedy assassination. I just say that for the assassination buffs! Imagine if Hillary Clinton had killed her boyfriend? We'd never hear the end of it."
The raucous crowd roared with laughter and hoots.
Dean: "Karl Rove"
Moore: "Congradulations"
(Audience HISSES)

Dean: "Donald Rumsfeld"
Moore: "War criminal"
(Audience CHEERS)
Moore then went on to spin a hilarious long winding story of how he ended up with Miramax as a producer of his latest blockbuster, "Fahrenheit 9/11". The story involved Mel Gibson, 3 Passover sedars and five jews.

Regarding "Bowling For Columbine," Moore's Oscar-winning documentary, he told the crowd not to have any preconceived notions when making a documentary. He explained that when he went to Canada to learn about their gun control policies, he was shocked to learn that Canadian citizens possessed more guns per capita than their American cousins. Moore was confused he said, but soon realized that "Guns don't kill people. Americans kill people!"

He also indicated that an early plot line of "BFC" was for him to run for President of the NRA and beat Charlton Heston. Once elected Moore intended to disband the group permanently.... part II tomorrow

Time 10:47am EST

"Local news posted photo of arrested photog - all arrests were directed by Republican poll watchers. I don't nor does any other legal authority, know why it is illegal" to photograph - TV news cameras abounded. I will challenge it tomorrow. It was intimidation pure and simple and the people buckled after the arrest. I have taken photographs myself and will have them in a few hours. That's if I'm not arrested too!"

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Laura Ingraham is clearly miffed that Muslims are starting to fear that the Right's increasing obsession with the so-called "Ground Zero Mosque" is bringing to life a long-dormant hatred of all things Muslim in the USA. So last night, filling in for Bill O'Reilly on his Fox News show, she brought on Karl Rove to help dismiss the notion as ridiculous -- though you can judge for yourself how effective that was.

What irked Ingraham was this week's Time cover story, which stated a self-evident truth, namely, that "it is plain that many of Park51's opponents are motivated by deep-seated Islamophobia." (See, e.g., Pam Geller.)

Although the American strain of Islamophobia lacks some of the traditional elements of religious persecution — there's no sign that violence against Muslims is on the rise, for instance — there's plenty of anecdotal evidence that hate speech against Muslims and Islam is growing both more widespread and more heated. Meanwhile, a new TIME–Abt SRBI poll found that 46% of Americans believe Islam is more likely than other faiths to encourage violence against nonbelievers. Only 37% know a Muslim American. Overall, 61% oppose the Park51 project, while just 26% are in favor of it. Just 23% say it would be a symbol of religious tolerance, while 44% say it would be an insult to those who died on 9/11.

The problem isn't simply a concern for American Muslims, though -- it's a concern for all Americans. Because the controversy is giving America a black eye around the world:

But many Muslims tuning into the debate see a demonization of their religion by some Americans who have been painting the 1,400-year-old faith as a dangerous political ideology. They bristle at the ignorance of politicians who argue the structure should not be allowed because Muslims don't allow Christian churches in their countries. Saudi Arabia is the only country to specifically bar churches.

While some conservative American critics allege the building would serve as a "victory mosque" to the terrorists who destroyed the World Trade Center, Muslims contend the project could serve as a bridge not only to non-Muslims, but to those of their faith who may have lost their way.

And in the process, they're effectively handing Al Qaeda a propaganda victory:

Some counterterrorism experts say the anti-Muslim sentiment that has saturated the airwaves and blogs in the debate over plans for an Islamic center near ground zero in Lower Manhattan is playing into the hands of extremists by bolstering their claims that the United States is hostile to Islam.

Continue reading »

Karloff, Gods and Monsters, and the Horrors of War

You know how I like horror movies and Arthur ties it into war itself.

"The films added a mythic layer to the stories -- of course, Mary Shelley's original Frankenstein is a modern retelling of an ancient myth (remember the full title: Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus) -- but the impulse to tell these stories anew in that particular time arose in significant part from the transformed world that resulted from The Great War...read on"

He's also having a donation drive because his health has been so bad that he can't work. It forced him to leave blogtopia for a while.

(Let's see if I can get this one right.)

Guess who TheMost Influential Man in the World is, according toEsquire:

The magazine highlights Clinton'saccomplishments in its December issue, which goes on newsstands onThursday, profiling the world's "Best and Brightest" men andwomen.

Via NoCapital.

Avedon

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

The Washington Note

Since the White House has made noises about wanting a UN Ambassador before the United Nations' session opens in September, they've created a phony pretext for the recess appointment -- the time demand -- when in actuality they've spent the whole summer running out the clock.

The Record, a New Jersey paper, has a superb editorial on Bush's "snubbing the Senate" if he recess appoints John Bolton:

He couldn't do it the right way, so President Bush is apparently about to make John Bolton ambassador to the United Nations the wrong way - in what's known as a recess appointment.
It's a sign of defeat, since Mr. Bush couldn't get his choice confirmed, even by a Republican-controlled Senate.

It's a president's prerogative to recess appoint, but has there ever been a case where one has done it after the Senate has so clearly, and so effectively, done its job of advice and consent? When an appointed Bolton would go to New York under not one cloud, but several, what better evidence is there that the Article II nomination process worked?

But his reputation precedes him, and he could have very little influence at the United Nations. That may be a good thing in this case, but it deprives the United States of a strong and credible voice at the world body at a crucial time. A world summit will be held at the United Nations headquarters in September. A respected ambassador can accomplish a great deal, including pressing for substantive internal reform.

The Record, a New Jersey paper, has a superb editorial on Bush's "snubbing the Senate" if he recess appoints John Bolton:

He couldn't do it the right way, so President Bush is apparently about to make John Bolton ambassador to the United Nations the wrong way - in what's known as a recess appointment.
It's a sign of defeat, since Mr. Bush couldn't get his choice confirmed, even by a Republican-controlled Senate.

It's a president's prerogative to recess appoint, but has there ever been a case where one has done it after the Senate has so clearly, and so effectively, done its job of advice and consent? When an appointed Bolton would go to New York under not one cloud, but several, what better evidence is there that the Article II nomination process worked?

But his reputation precedes him, and he could have very little influence at the United Nations. That may be a good thing in this case, but it deprives the United States of a strong and credible voice at the world body at a crucial time. A world summit will be held at the United Nations headquarters in September. A respected ambassador can accomplish a great deal, including pressing for substantive internal reform.

wrote a few weeks ago on the consequences of having a UN Ambassador with so little political support from his own country. Congress has long played an integral role in the United States' relationship to the UN; thus, thwarting the Senate to send up an illegitimate ambassador is exactly the wrong way to begin a UN reform program.

The Record concludes:

All the controversy apparently hasn't fazed Mr. Bolton. The Washington Post reported recently that he has asked to have the State Department office used by U.N. ambassadors doubled in size - because he expects to spend more time in Washington and less time at the United Nations than his predecessors.
If he wants to stay in Washington that badly, he should find another job.
- StygiusSuzanne Nossel wrote a few weeks ago on the consequences of having a UN Ambassador with so little political support from his own country. Congress has long played an integral role in the United States' relationship to the UN; thus, thwarting the Senate to send up an illegitimate ambassador is exactly the wrong way to begin a UN reform program.

The Record concludes:

All the controversy apparently hasn't fazed Mr. Bolton. The Washington Post reported recently that he has asked to have the State Department office used by U.N. ambassadors doubled in size - because he expects to spend more time in Washington and less time at the United Nations than his predecessors.
If he wants to stay in Washington that badly, he should find another job.
- Stygius

via Tbogg via World O' Crap: "Okay, it's the weekend, and we're all tired from coming up with reasons why disclosing the CIA affiliation of covert CIA officers is okay when Karl Rove does it... read the reasons"

WOC is one of the wittiest writers out there.

Vatican: Catholics Who Back Abortion Shouldn't Take Communion

This is coming from LifeNews.com and I haven't found the story anywhere else:

The Catholic Church has produced a new document for bishops across the world to examine that says Catholics who support legalized abortion should refrain from taking communion because they are out of step with church teachings. The Vatican said pro-abortion Catholics are not taking their faith seriously and those who take communion and support abortion are behaving in a scandalous manner...read on

Couple that story with Michael's article about evolution and you can see where the Catholic Church is headed. The divide is growing wider between democracy and theocracy. If the current Vatican continues on this course, Pat Buchanan may finally have his wish. A small and isolated Church.