In addition to the Kent State tragedy, today also marks the 28th anniversary of the first Freedom Ride. This famous interview with Jim Zwerg did much to change white public opinion in the north. His teeth had been knocked out by racists in the Montgomery Bus station. Jim Zwerg was interviewed again by PBS for the 1998 documentary show The People's Century:

I don't feel bad that a young black man can get on a bus that's being driven by a black bus driver and go to visit his grandmother and not be thinking, "Oh, how wonderful that 25 years ago some people made this possible." It's normal, it's expected, there's no big deal about it. You get on a bus, you go visit grandma. Did we accomplish something? Yes, we accomplished something! Is there a lot more to accomplish? Sure there is! There are still pockets, north and south, of people who just don't accept you for the color of your skin, your nationality, whatever.

I look at my grandkids -- I've got one little boy who is part-Korean, part-black, part-white... he's an American, for crying out loud. He's not a Korean-American, he's not a Black-American, he's not a White-American. He's an American, and he's a wonderful little boy.

TPM Election Central: The definitive McMaverick Iraq timeline.

American's Bulletin: Eric Shine is having a bad day

MarketWatch: Eleven reasons America is the top socialist economy

Hullabaloo: Coming soon to an inbox near you!

Jesus' General: BushCo working with the terrorists

Hendrik Hertzberg: Well Regulated

For quite a while, many of us have wondered whether Republican officials in Washington have any apparent talents at all. Governing is clearly not their strong suit, but are they completely without skills?

Absolutely not. The 49-member Senate Republican minority has done something no Senate minority in American history has ever done: they’ve filibustered more bills than any Congress ever has — and they broke the record with a full year to spare.

The latest came this morning, when the Senate GOP filibustered an omnibus budget bill, the 62nd Republican filibuster since the 110th Congress began in January.

“In just one session, a minority in Congress has prevented a mind-blowing 62 pieces of legislation from going to the floor for an up or down vote,” said Campaign for America’s Future co-director Roger Hickey. “Our report shows how over and over again, the uncompromising minority has thwarted the will of majorities in Congress and of the American people, holding the Senate floor hostage to a radical right-wing agenda.” […]

Eric Lotke, Campaign for America’s Future research director and lead author of the new report, calls the obstruction a “deliberate strategy.” He observes that the congressional Republicans block legislation, then blame the Democrats for getting nothing done. “It’s like mugging the postman and then complaining that the mail isn’t delivered on time.”

Brian Young, noting the historic quality of the achievement, added, “Only a group with a near-pathological disregard for the actual health of our democracy, only a group with a single-minded focus on the cynical political strategies of their consultants, only a group with an imperious disdain for the people of the country could’ve pulled off such a feat.”

Michael from The Reaction here. So much good stuff, let's get right to it:

Mustang Bobby at BBWW: Don't ignore the Malkins and Coulters of the world, make fun of them. (And, I would add, call them out on their bigotry and stupidity.)

Pam with the steamin' House Blend: Oh no! Sexual addition among female fundies! Internet porn! Masturbation! Good times.

Maha of Mahablog: Dalai Lama Derangement Syndrome.

Libby Spencer at The Impolitic (who also blogs at my place and at the very fine Newshoggers): Bush's new "Family Planning czar," yet another anti-sex wingnut. See also Thought Theater.

The Gun Toting Liberal: American Oligarchy -- Verizon, AT&T, and the corporatist police state.

Eric at Total Information Awareness: The insurgency in Somalia, and the brutality of America's allies in the region. (Yes, Bush is destroying America's image everywhere.)

Finally, L-girl at We Move to Canada reacts positively to the Doris Lessing Nobel win.

I'm sorry I can't link to everyone, but keep the e-mails coming: mjwstickings [at] yahoo [dot] ca

Good day, class. This is Steven of The Opinion Mill, and I'm your substitute for the week. There's a lot to catching up to do and not much time, so please stop fidgeting and pay attention.

Are you qualified to work for Blackwater? Take the Rude Pundit job exam and find out! And while you're there, do something inappropriate to mark the fourth year of more or less continuous rudeness.

Rest easy, parents of Higley, Arizona: Your children are safe from Shakespeare. Meanwhile, science teachers in The Bronx need your help, and here's Questionable Authority with information on how to do it.

Glenn Greenwald gets some Protein Wisdom squirted at him and immediately feels the need for a shower. So will you after you read the comments.

Since the British essentially conjured Iraq into existence as a map-drawig exercise, Joe Biden wants to go them one better by having the United States reconfigure Iraq into North Bushistan, Central Bushistan and South Bushistan. Kevin Drum doesn't think this is such a hot idea.

HOLY CRAP: What's the Dutch word for "Bible-banger"? Whatever it is, it applies to these Dutch evangelicals who are censoring BBC nature documentaries to remove references to evolution and other scientific matters. With nonsense like this going on, Richard Dawkins has to wonder if theology has any place in a modern university.

BOOK NOOK: Christopher Hayes is reading Michael Perelman's The Confiscation of American Prosperity, and maybe you should, too. John J. Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt have a new book out called The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, about how the Israel lobby influences U.S. foreign policy by tarring Israel's critics with the brush of anti-semitism. In the New Republic, Jeffrey Goldberg immediately branded the authors as - wait for it - a pair of - hang on while the suspense builds - anti-semites. Reading Goldberg's diatribe, Matt Yglesias at first adopted prim silence , but then expanded on why the article was an embarassment . Eric Alterman has his own take on a related issue.

This is so unbelievably offensive, I got to wonder what it will take to get the FCC to come down on this radio station:

Colorado Media Matters:

Discussing the breakup of an alleged terrorist plot to attack U.S. soldiers at New Jersey's Fort Dix, Newsradio 850 KOA host "Gunny" Bob Newman said on his May 8 show that "every Muslim immigrant to America who holds a green card, a visa, or who is a naturalized citizen [should] be required by law to wear a GPS tracking bracelet at all times," and that the government should "bug their places of work and their residences" and monitor "[a]ll mosques and community centers." Newman added, "If they don't like the idea, or if they refuse, throw their asses out of this country."

Audio and contact names and links available on the CMM site. Considering that Eric Rudolph *, Timothy McVeigh and Chad Castagana are all right wing Christian white men, wouldn't you think Newman would advocate ankle bracelets on all wingnuts males?

*Corrected name

Politics in the Zeros: Thousands will be in Washington, D.C. today to emphasize the unmistakable mandate which American voters gave congress last November: Bring The Troops Home Now!

The Osterley Times: An EU inquiry has concluded that many European governments knew about the hundreds of secret CIA flights across the continent. MEPs lambasted politicians and senior officials for failing to co-operate with an inquiry into secret U.S, renditions.

Britannica Blog: It appears that the number of individuals who no longer file tax returns must be in the millions

BTC News: Latest evidence of the utter abdication of responsibility and integrity in American journalism (h/t CW)

American Prospect Online: Wes Clark just got caught up in the rigged rules for discussing Israel-related issues in America.  Meanwhile, unrepentant bigots like the TNR's Marty Peretz get a pass.

AlterNet Blogs: The Top Ten reasons you should be terrified that "Dr." Eric Keroack runs Bush's Family Planning Program

The media is once again derelict in their duty....

Eric Boehlert

There is, however, ample evidence that the American media, on the eve of the crucial midterm elections, have lost interest in the chaotic saga, with network news coverage in recent weeks plummeting and Page One newspaper dispatches from Iraq growing sparse. The media fade has come at a perfect time for the White House as it attempts to shift voters' attention away from Iraq and move it over to the war on terror.

What's so startling is that we've seen this exact media retreat before -- during the fall of the 2004 campaign. Back then, when sustained, aggressive coverage of the unfolding chaos inside Iraq could have done real damage to the Bush/Cheney ticket, the press shifted its attention away from Baghdad. Instead of a summer of tenacious war coverage, Bush was blessed with a cable news agenda that focused on endless hurricane updates, Martha Stewart's legal woes, and the tawdry Laci Peterson trial...read on

Sic Semper Tyrannis 2006: In view of the current debate surrounding the use of torture in interrogation, it may be helpful, even educational, to define what an interrogation is, and how it is properly carried out, as opposed to the disagreeable prospect of torturing information out of prisoners, a practice which would puke up America's record of promoting human rights...former CIA senior official, Milt Bearden on Interrogation...and Pat Lang on lessons from Vietnam in how to 'flip' an enemy. (h/t taters)

Mock, Paper, Scissors: Before and after the Brush-Clearin' Man's UN speech

Majikthise: Lieberman fundraiser ran the Abu Ghraib of drug rehabs...enough to gag a maggot (h/t Eric J.)

Donkephant: A useful catalog of the Home Team players of 9/11

Taylor Marsh: XM and Clear Channel radio hosts join a Murtha 'swiftboating ' event

Bob Geiger has the "not-so" Funnies