via: Crooks and Liars
Another of their “Write Your Own Caption” posts. This one speaks volumes. Where to begin…
Yet another photo of Rudy Giuliano in drag. Seems he needs a little help with his kicks..
And THIS is the conservative Republican front-runner? OMG…
PACE: MISTAKES WERE MADE AT BEGINNING OF IRAQ WAR: If he knew then what he knows now, he might have made some different decisions before the start of the Iraq war in 2003, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told reporters Friday.”One of the mistakes I made in my assumptions going in was that the Iraqi people and the Iraqi Army would welcome liberation, that the Iraqi Army, given the opportunity, would stand together for the Iraqi people and be available to them to help serve the new nation,” Gen. Peter Pace said. But “they disintegrated in the face of the coalition’s first several weeks of combat, so they weren’t here,” Pace said. Via: LBN E-Lert Link
General Pace seems to blame the Iraqis for the failures of the Iraqi Army. Paul Bremmer wrote a Letter to the Editor at the New York Times including the names of many people who were involved in the disbanding of the army. The film below shows how Paul Bremmer carries much of the responsibility for the dismantling of the Iraqi Army contrary to his claims.
How I Didn’t Dismantle Iraq’s Army
By L. PAUL BREMER III
Published: September 6, 2007
We were right to build a new Iraqi Army. Despite all the difficulties encountered, Iraq’s new professional soldiers are the country’s most effective security force. More
Charles Ferguson, a filmmaker, presents a rebuttal to claims made by L. Paul Bremer III that top American officials approved the decision to disband the Iraqi army.
Via: The New York Times
Via: latimes.com
By: Tina Susman
According to the ORB poll, a survey of 1,461 adults suggested that the total number slain during more than four years of war was more than 1.2 million.
ORB said it drew its conclusion from responses to the question about those living under one roof: “How many members of your household, if any, have died as a result of the conflict in Iraq since 2003?”
…
There was no way to verify the number, because the government does not provide a full count of civilian deaths. Neither does the U.S. military.
…
ORB said its poll had a margin of error of 2.4%. According to its findings, nearly one in two households in Baghdad had lost at least one member to war- related violence, and 22% of households nationwide had suffered at least one death. It said 48% of the victims were shot to death and 20% died as a result of car bombs, with other explosions and military bombardments blamed for most of the other fatalities.
For documented deaths, see Iraq Body Count.
From USA Today:
Several thousand protesters marched Saturday from the White House to the Capitol to demand an end to the Iraq war, and at least 160 people were arrested when they jumped a barricade at the foot of the Capitol steps.
via: The Newshoggers
by CernigSo a company that is headed by someone who was certainly a member of Cheney’s infamous energy task-force, sits on the boards of Halliburton and Dubya’s library and is on Dubya’s team of foreign advisors gets the very first oil contract out of Kurdistan after they pass a law which makes privatized foreign ownership of Iraq’s oil easier.
Tell me again that it wasn’t at least partly about oil.
This is an interesting post about the benefits of being a friend of Bush’s and Cheney’s, AND in the oil business too!
Tom Morello wrote “Alone Without You” after seeing an early screening of ‘SiCKO’ before it was released. He was so inspired that he went back to his hotel and wrote the song that night. It ended up being featured in the closing credits.
This is one very catchy tune.
More history in the making at http://www.michaelmoore.com/
I love listening to this woman. She is right up there with Keith and Jon. She’s hilarious, right on the money, and to the point.
Disappointed with the current batch of presidential candidates?
Not to worry! Alan Keyes has again entered the race.
Recently retired federal judge,
Michael B. Mukasey, 66, was nominated to the bench in 1988 by President Ronald Reagan, and was chief judge until September 2006 for the Southern District of New York — a high-profile U.S. court district that’s one of the nation’s busiest.
Apparently Mukasey is a leading nominee for AG according to two sources who have remained anonymous.
via: Truthdig
By Andy Borowitz
Saying that he was “totally exhausted and drained,” former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson withdrew from the race for the Republican presidential nomination today.
All cartoons are posted with the artists’ express permission to TPZoo.
Nick Anderson, Houston Chronicle Editorial Cartoonist and Animation Artist
For more of Nick’s animations, visit Nick Anderson: Animation Archives.
For Nick’s cartoons, visit Nick Anderson.
In his column today, Glenn Greenwald defends Jim Webb and goes after the Kagans and William “The Bloody” Kristol.
via: Salon
American War Culture in a nutshell
by Glenn Greenwald..”If troops want more time at home, Kagan says, there is an easy way to achieve that: “win the war we’re fighting.” Of course, that would not even work, because Kagan and his friends at the Weekly Standard and the American Enterprise Institute have many more wars planned beyond Iraq for other families’ sons and daughters to fight. For that reason, Kagan actually had the audacity several months ago to type this:
The president must issue a personal call for young Americans to volunteer to fight in the decisive conflict of this generation.That’s the history of our country for the last six years at least. The Fred Kagans and his dad and his brother and his wife and his best friend Bill Kristol sit back casually demanding more wars, demanding that our troops be denied any relief, demanding that the President call for other families to volunteer to fight in their wars — all “as an intellectual or emotional exercise,” as Webb put it.”..
George W. Bush would not be president if it weren’t for Dick Cheney. Cheney would not be co-president if it weren’t for Richard Nixon, and his attempt to enact the Unitary Executive Theory, which Cheney loves and fully supports. Nixon would not have been president if it weren’t for his “Law & Order” campaign, made popular because of the civil turmoil caused by a war in which our involvement was escalated by John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. Kennedy and Johnson would not have made it to the White House if they hadn;t defeated then-Vice President Richard Nixon. Nixon would not have been vice president if it hadn’t been for a speech he gave, on Sept 23, 1952, about 55 years ago, in which he uttered the famous words, “And our little girl Tricia, the six year old, named it ‘Checkers.’ And you know, the kids, like all kids, love the dog, and I just want to say this, right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we’re gonna keep it.” And now, George W. Bush is president. I blame Checkers. (more)
I guess the answer to whether this is good news or whether this is bad news depends on how you want to look at it..
Arctic Sea Route Opens
via: ReutersLONDON (Reuters) – The Arctic’s Northwest Passage has opened up fully because of melting sea ice, clearing a long-sought but historically impassable route between Europe and Asia, the European Space Agency said.
Sea ice has shrunk in the Arctic to its lowest level since satellite measurements began 30 years ago, ESA said, showing images of the now “fully navigable” route between the Atlantic and the Pacific.
A shipping route through the Northwest Passage in the Canadian Arctic has been touted as a possible cheaper option to the Panama Canal for many shippers.
Almost all experts say global warming, stoked by human use of fossil fuels, is happening about twice as fast in the Arctic as elsewhere on the planet. Once exposed, dark ground or sea soak up far more heat than ice and snow.
Last Tuesday the world of music lost yet another legend. Joe Zawinul died in Vienna, aged 75.
The warnings about the war in Iraq and the catastrophe it would end up to be, weren’t heeded. As the crisis about Iran is unfolding and the adminstration’s will to get yet another potentially catastrophic conflict going is becoming obvious, how about sharing our predictions about what the results of an attack on Iran would be ?
Here’s “The Guardian”, with yet another story on the growing danger of War with Iran.
Looks like Mark Foley will get away with it, from a legal standpoint. Florida has a three-year statute of limitations, and since the alleged incident with the minor took place in 2003, and the investigation didn’t start until 2006, he likely won’t be prosecuted. And guess who’s being blamed? The media, of course, for sitting on the story too long, despite the fact that several Republican Congressman knew (or suspected) about Foley even before ABC News got their hands on the e-mails. Raw Story has more.
David Sirota has just had his first blog as a member of Creators Syndicate. Long time posters at ThinkProgress remember David from the early days at The Center for American Progress. He has been a very important voice in the Progressive movement. Call or write your local paper and insist that they carry David’s column.
Watch this film, it’s long but definitely worth watching:
New York Times OpEd
Charles Ferguson, a filmmaker, presents a rebuttal to claims made by L. Paul Bremer III that top American officials approved the decision to disband the Iraqi army.
http://video.on.nytimes.com/?fr_story=54a96b0d367da6ce96eb1401f0e127f76688ddd6
