More Republi-CON Family Values

UPDATE V: Sanford should blame his monkey ancestors. Read The New York Times, Politicians Are Primates Too.


UPDATE IV: From the internet:

"New GOP Amendment to the Constitution: marriage should be between a man and 2 women."

"This is all Clinton's fault. If he hadn't been unfaithful, then these repubs would not have felt it was OK to do it too. -- signed RNC"

UPDATE III:



UPDATE II: Is Pensacola Joe the party's next Clinton? I ask because he was in town last week promoting his latest book, "The Last Best Hope," and one newspaper article claims Joe is a "political genius." The article, in a paper that claims there are no sacred cows, states:

“Joe walked away from politics to spend more time with his sons, who were 10 and 13 at the time.

Joe has since been approached to be run for both the U.S. Senate and Florida Governor, but has chosen to stay away from politics.”

Is that true, or is Pensacola Joe a sacred cow?

I ask because lord knows that the Republi-con party needs some help after the last week in which the party’s family values propaganda joined the fiscal conservative farce in the trash can of political fraud.

All hail the Republi-con family man.


UPDATE: The South Carolina governor has a future writing Harlequin romance novels. In an email he sent to his Argentina love he wrote:

"You have a particular grace and calm that I adore. You have a level of sophistication that so fitting with your beauty. I could digress and say that you have the ability to give magnificent gentle kisses, or that I love your tan lines or that I love the curve of your hips, the erotic beauty of you holding yourself (or two magnificent parts of yourself) in the faded glow of the night’s light - but hey, that would be going into sexual details."

More bad news for the party wandering in the wilderness. I once asked who the Republi-con Clinton might be who would save all those phony-baloney, cult-like Republi-cons. In a sense, there are now two contenders.

Last week it was Nevada Senator who had a affair with the wife of a good friend and senior staffer.

Now the head of the Republican Governors Association, a Bible-quoting social conservative who called on Clinton to resign over his affair with Lewinsky (saying of Clinton, "He lied under a different oath, and that’s the oath to his wife. So it’s got to be taken very, very seriously.”) admits, in a tearful stream of consciousness, to loving the magnificent gentle kisses, curved hips, tan lines, and erotic beauty of a woman not his wife. Read the Washington Post, S.C. Gov. Sanford Admits to an Affair.

The article says that as a South Carolina Congressman, in 2000 he cast the lone "nay" vote more times than any other member of the House except Ron Paul. He harbored presidential ambitions and was on the Republi-con short list for 2012.

Some think Republi-cons are suffering an identity crisis with the collapse of the Republi-con ideology, but I know that Republi-con family values, like claims of fiscal conservatism, are just all cheap political talk.

Can you say hypocrisy again?

P.S.

Is it time for Republi-cons to to apologize for putting us through the Clinton impeachment?

Top 12 Indicators of a Bad Economy

From the internet, the top 12 indicators of a bad economy:

12. CEO's are now playing miniature golf.
11. I got a pre-declined credit card in the mail.
10. I went to buy a toaster oven and they gave me a bank.
9. Hot wheels and Matchbox car companies are now trading higher than GM in the stock market.
8. Obama met with small businesses - GE, Pfizer, Chrysler, Citigroup and GM, to discuss the Stimulus Package.
7. McDonalds is selling the 1/4 ouncer.
6. People in Beverly Hills fired their nannies and are learning their children's names.
5. The most highly-paid job is now jury duty.
4. People in Africa are donating money to Americans.
3. Motel Six won't leave the lights on.
2. The Mafia is laying off judges.
And the number one indicator:
1. If the bank returns your check marked as "insufficient funds", you have to call them and ask if they meant you or them.

Frown and you frown alone, but smile and the whole world smiles with you.

The Power of a Picture

It is an old cliché, but true nevertheless, a picture is worth a thousand words. Case in point, the death of Neda (WARNING, the video contains images that some might find particularly disturbing):



So is that why Obama doesn't want to release 'the photos.' Read The New York Times, Neda, Obama and the Power of Pictures.

And read a couple of related posts, if you dare:

• Does the Star-Spangled Banner Wave Over the Land of the Torturers?
• Torture/Enhanced Interrogation Demonstration

Is It Reform Not-Good-Enough-to-Work?

The stimulus bill, environmental legislation (cap & trade), and possible health care reform got you confused. Read The New York Times, Vince Lombardi Politics, to understand why Democrats seem open to nearly any idea so long as it will lead to passing legislation, perhaps at the expense of passing sensible legislation.

Then read The New York Times, Not Enough Audacity, in which one editorial writer worries that the many compromises to get legislation passed may doom it to failure and discredit any future efforts. "[T]he perfect is the enemy of the good; but so is the not-good-enough-to-work . . . reform has to be done right."

So Many Lies, So Little Integrity

Pastor Poppins sub'ed for me as host of the Friday show and mentioned the latest internet myth -- that Obama prohibited Naval Academy graduates from wearing swords at their graduation last month. The myth can probably be traced to gossip in the Washington Times.

Only problem, it is not true. Read this article from the Annapolis newspaper, The Capital, Obama bans mids' swords at graduation - not! The article states that "swords have not been worn by midshipmen at graduations for some considerable time." I agree, I graduated in 1981 and we didn't wear swords. There were restriction on items that could be brought to graduation, as usual, and the list included "[o]utside food or drink."

So many lies, so little integrity. But what do you expect from a Republi-con.

Which brings me back to Pastor Poppins, someone wrote a letter to the editor which was printed in the June 25, 2009 edition of the local mullet wrapper. I couldn't find it online but here is what was said:

Stealth supports

I think WEBY radio's morning talk show hosts, Mike Mashburn and Carl Gallups, are probably plants put there by the Obama administration.

I think I've figured what's going on with these two. The purposely go so far over the top with their goofy criticisms of Obama because they know that will make the audience think those opposed to Obama are just a bunch of eccentrics and it will actually serve to garner support for Obama.

I don't think there can be any other explanation for it.

-- Bob Wood, Pensacola

Unfortunately Bob, there is another explanation. Some people are so blinded by hate they are confused by facts and logic. And although Pastor Poppins, AKA Carl Gallups, claims to be a man of God, the devil has blinded him, so that now he is a true brither.

Understand, I have no problem with a lively discussion and debate about the issues, but lies and illogic only serve to undermine credibility.

I suggest praying that God will open Pastor Poppins' eyes so that he may see the futility in his evil rhetoric. Until then, call in and tell him why he is wrong.

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

However, I can't make it today but I hear that Pastor Poppins will substitute. Maybe he can comment on the Pastor who invited "his congregation of 150 and others to wear or carry their firearms into the sanctuary to “celebrate our rights as Americans!” as a promotional flier for the “open carry celebration” puts it" and on the ensuing debate.

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

Unfortunately I can't make it today, but I hear that Pastor Poppins will substitute. Until the next show, post a comment or two.

Why Did We Invade Iraq, Cause the Saudis Financed Terrorism

Doesn't make sense, but read The New York Times, Documents Back Saudi Link to Extremists.

Actually, we all help finance terrorism and dictatorships. Read The New York Times, The Green Revolution(s), which argues that Iranian reformers need praise and empty rhetoric, they need the United States to end its dependency on the oil that finances Middle East dictatorship.

Of course, Bush wouldn't want to hurt his long time Saudi kissing buddies:

Welcome to the New Location

Welcome to the new location.

It is the same great blog, just a new web address.

Lateralpalooza

Watch the final play of the 2007 Trinity vs. Millsaps football game:



Sometimes persistence pays off.

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

But I can't make it today so hopefully Mike or Ken will substitute. Until the next show, post a comment or two.

Plumber with a Sense of Humor

Ya gotta love this guy:

Not So Lite Summer Reading

UPDATE: And for a good movie, based on a true story, about a corporation trying to stick it to the little guy, watch Flash of Genius, which tells the stroy of Robert Kearn, inventor of the intermittent windshield wiper.

It has a happy ending, sort of.

Looking for a good book to read during the summer, then consider the books mentioned in this article, The New York Times, Greed Layered on Greed, Frosted With Recklessness, about the economic mess and the causes, including greed of course.

Tammy, let us know what you think.

The Flyswatter-in-Chief

Obama is no Budda. Watch:

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Or if you like your news with a little, or a lot, of humor, then watch:



And believe it or not, PETA is upset about it. Read The Virginia-Pilot, PETA wishes Obama hadn't swatted that fly.

Torture/Enhanced Interrogation Demonstration

UPDATE: For more about what the government does in the name of 'freedom,' read the decision issued late Friday allowing a civil lawsuit by Jose Padilla to go forward against former Bush administration lawyer, John Yoo, who wrote memos which purported to justify "gross physical and psychological abuse at the hands of federal officials as part off a systematic program of abusive interrogation intended to break down Mr. Padilla’s humanity and his will to live.”

Padilla v. Yoo, Order Denying Motion to Dismiss

Are you ready yet Eric?

In recent weeks at NoBullU on 1330 AM WEBY we have discussed whether the techniques the U.S. used constituted torture or just simple enhanced interrogation. In one radio program I argued with Eric, a caller who denied that waterboarding and other methods, including 10+ days of sleep deprivation, confinement in a small enclosed dark space with insects, exposure to freezing temperatures and very,very cold water while naked, and/or prolonged restraint in stress positions, were torture.

It would be ironic that these methods which were copied from a 1957 USAF study of Chinese Communist techniques used during the Korean War to obtain false confessions, except for the fact that these methods were used because Cheney wanted false confessions linking Iraq to 9/11 in order to justify the invasion.

During the discussion, I challenged Eric, a life long Republi-con party member, to submit himself to these techniques. I would prove that after a short period of time I could force him to swear loyalty and allegiance to the Naive-crats and Reed and Pelosi.

Eric has accepted the challenge, and as soon as I find volunteers who were instructors in military SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape) programs and are trained in these methods, and Eric signs a liability release that includes an acknowledgment of the possibility of death, the demonstration will begin.

In the meantime Eric, in order to help you prepare if you think you could, watch the following:



After the demonstration with Eric, I'll be ready to issue the challenge to Rusty and Sheepish.

If you are a former SERE instructor and would like to volunteer for this demonstration, please contact me.

Unhappy 40th Anniversary?

It has been 40 years since the start of the 'war' on drugs. Is it time to try an alternate strategy? Read The New York Times, Drugs Won the War.

Think of other things that once were illegal, and are now revenue sources, like playing the numbers and gambling. Bought a lottery ticket or been to a casino lately?

For Your Lazy Boy

Need an idea for Father's Day, then watch this:

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

But I can't make it today so Mike will substitute. Until the next show, post a comment or two.

And watch the Baby Boomer Battle Hymn, it is funny:



Must of us don't like getting older, but it beats the alternative.

Republi-Con Treason

Why would a Republi-con Congressman tell Chinese officials "the budget numbers that the U.S. Government has put forward should not be believed."



Don't forget that the executive director of the Beijing Private Equity Association and a director of the China National Association of International Studies, has already demanded "inflation-protection measures for China’s existing investments in America, and [requested] additional security or collateral for its continued investments. America should also provide its largest creditor with greater transparency and information."

Because he wants to bankrupt the country for the benefit of his political party.

So who is the real un-American?

Is NW Florida Going Nuclear?

Didn't we discuss this on the show several months ago? Read NorthEscambia.com, Possible Nuclear Plant? Gulf Power Continues To Buy North Escambia Property.

If NW Florida develops a nuclear program, will there be international sanctions?

Contempt of Court or Contempt For God?

UPDATE IV: An interesting development in the matter, a teacher threatened to sue the Santa Rosa County School Board for violation of his First Amendment rights after "he and other teachers were prohibited [by the School Board] from participating in the private baccalaureate services that were scheduled to occur on Sunday evening, May 31, 2009, and would be terminated if they chose to do so." Read the Santa Rosa Press Gazette, ADF represents Jay Teacher in discrimination case.

It doesn't seem to me that it is a discrimination case as much as a First Amendment case.

And BTW, the School Board decided that the teacher was right and that the Board could not prohibit "district employee from attending or participating in the baccalaureate, or any other religious service or event, while on their own time and in their personal capacities."


UPDATE III: Everyone is trying to spin this story, even Pastor Poppins, AKA Carl Gallups, on WEBY last week. Now read WorldNetDaily, Graduating students defy ACLU.

The article is misleading. The ACLU never tried to prevent students from praying. The lawsuit was aimed only at stopping school officials from leading the students in religious activity.


UPDATE II: Who is wrong here, the school board in its interpretation of the consent decree, or the Principal who is defying his boss? Read the consent decree below and then at the Pensacola News Journal, Pace principal: We won't back down.

Doesn't sound to me like the Principal is setting a good example for the students. But he is getting close to retirement, so maybe he just wants to be the next Roy Moore.


UPDATE: Read the Pensacola New Journal, Superintendent Wyrosdick has a very big problem.

First the lawsuit and settlement.

Then the protest.

Now defiance.

Is it contempt of court, or contempt for God? Read original and follow-up posts (with links to court documents), and then these documents, and decide:

The consent decree and order:

Consent Decree and Order

Publish at Scribd or explore others:

The ACLU motion for contempt:

Motion for Order to Show Cause Why the Court Should Not Find Contempt

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Law & Government Business & Law

And exhibit:

Motion for Order Ot Show Cause Why the Court Should Not Find Contempt, Exhibit 86-02

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Law & Government Business & Law

The School Board's response:

SRCSB Response to Motion for Order to Show Cause Why the Court Should Not Find Contempt

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Law & Government Business & Law

And exhibit:

SRCSB Response to Motion for Order to Show Cause Why the Court Should Not Find Contempt, Exhibit

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Law & Government Business & Law

What do you think?

Operation Iraqi Shtick

Must see TV, Stephen Colbert declares victory:

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
The Word - Why Are You Here?
colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Keyboard Cat

Then gets a hair cut by Gen. Odierno, the commander of the American troops in Iraq:

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Obama Orders Stephen's Haircut - Ray Odierno
colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor Keyboard Cat

A week of shows will be/were taped as part of USO shows in Iraq. Watch the highlights.

I wonder if the suit will catch on.

Cursing Obama

Sub Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

But I can't make it today so Mike will substitute. Until the next show, post a comment or two.

Republi-Cons Warp the Public Debate

Fear, anger, and hatred are powerful weapons. Read the Washington Post, Rush and Newt Are Winning.

More Republi-Con Inspired Violence

UPDATE: More on why FOX News is responsible for a murder, allegedly on behalf of God, in a house of worship. Read the Washington Post, Why I Turned Down O'Reilly.

Fear, Anger, Hatred + Talk Radio & FOX News = Violence

For another example, read The New York Times, Doctor’s Killer Is Not Alone in the Blame, Some Say.

For Republi-cons, like other zealots, abortion doctors are fair game.

Republi-Con Funny Values

It is official, Cheney supports gay marriage, but only because he sees marriage as a form of torture.

Hard as it might be to believe, only the last part is the joke. Watch:

Obama Man Can Continued

UPDATE: Here is an argument that the GM bailout won't work. Read The New York Times, The Quagmire Ahead, which argues convincingly that while the Obama plan for General Motors is bureaucratically smart and financially tough-minded, it won’t revolutionize the company’s corporate culture and will likely make things worse.

From the Washington Post, After Many Tuneups, A Historic Overhaul:

"In the space of five head-spinning months, the economic downturn and a few strong-willed financial officials in the Obama administration have done what legions of car executives, consultants and policymakers had failed to do in three decades: overhaul the U.S. car industry."

The auto industry 'restructuring' will be part of Obama's historic legacy -- good or bad as it may be. It will make an interesting comparison to his predecessor's historic legacy.

A Republi-Con Filibuster Rally

Sometimes, a picture is worth a thousand words:



A party of angry white men isn't much of a party.

UPDATE: Read the Washington Post, GOP Faces Demographic Dilemma and The New York Times, The Howls of a Fading Species.

Fighting Mother Nature

Speaking of mother nature, read the Pensacola News Journal, Flouting Nature.

Replacing sand washed away from barrier islands during storms is a waste of taxpayer money.

Nearly everyone around these parts claims to be conservative, but I hardly think a true-red conservative would approve of throwing money at and into the ocean like this. Just one more example of the Republi-con ideology at work.

Caution, Don't Be Stupid

Should government officials interfere with mother nature's law of survival of the fittest? Read the Washington Post, What Not to Do with a Dead Bat, and you'll know what I mean.

Give new meaning to the saying, stupid is as stupid does.

Potato Chips of the World Unite Against Tax and Spend Judicial Activism

How dare they call Pringles potato chips. Read The New York Times, The Lord Justice Hath Ruled: Pringles Are Potato Chips.

It is outright judicial activism to advance tax and spend socialism. We know how Sotomayor would rule, don't we. I bet that she would even cite the British case.

Beheaded and Put on Display, Not Cruel and Unusual in Saudi Arabia

Is it cruel and unusual or just and appropriate? Read CNN, Convicted killer beheaded, put on display in Saudi Arabia.

For Mom & Pop Tammy

UPDATE: It seems that greed is out of fashion for now. Read The New York Times, A Promise to Be Ethical in an Era of Immorality.

Is it the the goal of a business manager to “serve the greater good” and to act responsibly, ethically and refrain from advancing their “own narrow ambitions” at the expense of others?

And how long will it last?

As a follow up to a radio program in early May on greed, good or bad, with special guest Mom & Pop Tammy, a regualr listener and frequent caller. Read the Washington Post, Greed's Saving Graces.

What do you think Tammy?

Lies, Fear Mongering, and Hope for the Worst

A pattern is emerging to help understand the Republi-con strategy to win elections -- lies, fear-mongering, and hope for the worst.

And the personification of that strategy: Rusty and the Chicken Hawk.

Here is more evidence of the strategy: The New York Times, Who Is to Blame for the Next Attack and McClatchy Newspapers, Cheney's speech ignored some inconvenient truths.

Be afraid, be very, very afraid! Now, Comrade Republi-Cons, for the party, repeat -- be afraid, be very, very afraid!

Our California Future

Want to know the future of the country? Read The New York Times, Deep Cuts Threaten to Reshape California. I particularly liked this statement:

“Government doesn’t provide services to rich people,” Mike Genest, the state’s finance director, said on a conference call with reporters on Friday. “It doesn’t even really provide services to the middle class.” He added: “You have to cut where the money is.”

I don't agree. Good government services benefit everyone. Roads are a case in point. But I do think that the poorer you are, the more you depend on government. And since the Republi-con war on the middle class has effectively destroyed millions of good paying jobs in this country, what will people do as the government cuts back?

Watch California, because as California goes, so goes the country.

Does the Star-Spangled Banner Wave Over the Land of the Torturers?

UPDATE IX: Is Cheney lying about the effectiveness of torture? Read the CNN, Memos don't show what Cheney says they do, so says Sen. Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.


UPDATE VIII: A couple more articles about torture. Read The New York Times, When Israel Confronted and Rejected Torture and the Washington Post, Torture? No. Except . . .

Finally, who is to blame for the policy? We the citizen, who reelected Bush in 2004. Read the Washington Post, Where This Buck Stops.


UPDATE VII: A couple more must read articles about torture (should it be called the torture scandal?). Read The New York Times, Official Defends Signing Interrogation Memos, in which Judge Bybee's defends "the conclusions of legal memorandums he had signed as a Bush administration lawyer" and yet struggles to come to terms with his actions; and A Torturous Compromise, about the 100 or so detainees that have died in U.S. custody, and the decision to expose but not prosecute those responsible for torture.

At one point, as an attorney, I thought that the lawyers involved in providing 'legal justification' for torture should be disbarred. But now I think that if the lawyers would acknowledge violating their oath to uphold the rule of law, the ABA should simply reprimand them.

What do you think?


UPDATE VI: Did torture prevent terrorist attacks? Yes, in the Bush administration's alternate reality. From The New York Times Magazine, Faith, Certainty and the Presidency of George W. Bush:

"In the summer of 2002, after I had written an article in Esquire that the White House didn't like about Bush's former communications director, Karen Hughes, I had a meeting with a senior adviser to Bush. He expressed the White House's displeasure, and then he told me something that at the time I didn't fully comprehend -- but which I now believe gets to the very heart of the Bush presidency.

The aide said that guys like me were ''in what we call the reality-based community,'' which he defined as people who ''believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality.'' I nodded and murmured something about enlightenment principles and empiricism. He cut me off. ''That's not the way the world really works anymore,'' he continued. ''We're an empire now, and when we act, we create our own reality. And while you're studying that reality -- judiciously, as you will -- we'll act again, creating other new realities, which you can study too, and that's how things will sort out. We're history's actors . . . and you, all of you, will be left to just study what we do.''"

Cheney has his own special reality for the torture program, code named 24. Now you can read the Congressional debriefing of Cheney to learn about all the terrorist attacks that Cheney and his torture program prevented in this newly declassified report in The New York Times, Vice's Secret Vice.


UPDATE V: A couple of must read articles about torture.

An article in The New York Times, The Banality of Bush White House Evil, gives a good historical synopsis of the torture debate.

Another in the Washington Post, If Everyone Knew, Who's to Blame? , discusses paradoxes of the torture scandal, including this:

"Republicans from Dick Cheney on down have been unflagging in their arguments that these "enhanced interrogation techniques . . . were absolutely crucial" to preventing "a major-casualty attack." This argument, still strongly supported by a great many Americans, is deeply pernicious, for it holds that it is impossible to protect the country without breaking the law. It says that the professed principles of the United States, if genuinely adhered to, doom the country to defeat. It reduces our ideals and laws to a national decoration, to be discarded at the first sign of danger." [Link to definition of pernicious added.]

UPDATE IV: Read the new Senate Armed Services Committee report, which includes testimony from an Army psychologist at Guantanamo Bay who described increasingly relentless pressure from Washington in the summer of 2002 to prove a link between Al Qaeda and Iraq:

"[T]his is my opinion, even though they were giving information and some of it was useful, while we were there a large part of the time we were focused on trying to establish a link between AI Qaeda and Iraq and we were not being successful in establishing a link between Al Qaeda and Iraq. The more frustrated people got in not being able to establish this link...there was more and more pressure to resort to measures that might produce more immediate results."

Sort of ironic if you think about it. American the land of liberty and freedom, abandoned its core values to torture prisoners, adopting "methods used by Communists in the Korean War, methods that had wrung false confessions from Americans," to get information to justify an war which turned out to be a debacle.

Sounds like a Shakespearean plot.

BTW, these recent revelations placing the conduct at Abu Ghraib in a new context. Maybe the soldiers, who Rumsfeld called "a few bad apples," were following orders of higher-ranking military officers or the CIA. Of course who cares? As the war showed, Republi-cons don't mind sacricing a few soldiers for political purposes. The convicted soldiers were just collateral damage necessary for Bush's reelection.

But the soldiers are starting to realize that they were just scapegoats. Read CNN, Abu Ghraib head finds vindication in newly released memos.

UPDATE III: Read the Red Cross report on the CIA's handling of fourteen 'high-value' detainees, which describes the brutal tactics used on detainees, and concludes that the treatment amounted to torture.


UPDATE II: Bush sold America's soul, the Constitution, to the devil, and for what -- lies -- or more accurately false leads procured by torture. Read the Washington Post, Detainee's Harsh Treatment Foiled No Plots.

Time to disbar Bush's lawyers, if the Spanish don't prosecute them first. Read The New York Times, Spanish Court Weighs Inquiry on Torture for 6 Bush-Era Officials.


UPDATE: Read Washington Post, Cleanup Task for a Shining City. For America is to remain that "shining city upon a hill whose beacon light guides freedom-loving people everywhere," there must be a public reckoning of the Bush administration's dark legacy.

"The Star-Spangled Banner" is the national anthem of the United States of America. The final two lines of the first verse are: "O! say does that star-spangled banner yet wave/O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?"

Read this article and tell me if you think that is still true: The New York Review of Books, US Torture: Voices from the Black Sites.

Makes ya wonder if OBL won.

Tape Replay Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Usually on Fridays you can listen to me, the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- no political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

But I can't make it today so tune in and enjoy a replay of last week's show. Until the next show, post a comment or two.

Unhappy Anniversary

For a good reminder about how the current economic mess began, read the Washington Post, An Unhappy Anniversary for the Financial Crisis.

As the old saying goes, may you live in interesting times.

It's a Republi-Con Cat Fight

UPDATE II: Darn, he gave them good advice. Read the Washington Post, Powell, Answering Critics, Urges GOP to 'Reach Out'.

The only thing a true Republi-con wants to do is reach out and chock ya if you don't agree.


UPDATE: Read the Washington Post, In TV Appearance, Powell Plans To Answer Right-Wing Critics. Here is a preview:

"The Republican Party is in deep trouble," Powell told corporate security executives at a conference in Washington this month, according to the National Journal. The party should realize that the country has changed, he said, adding: "Americans do want to pay taxes for services. Americans are looking for more government in their life, not less."

He said of Limbaugh, "I think what Rush does as an entertainer diminishes the party and intrudes or inserts into our public life a kind of nastiness that we would be better to do without."

Who's the real Republi-con?

Read CBSNews, After Criticism From Cheney And Limbaugh, Powell Returns Fire.

Class Friday at NoBullU on WEBY

Listen to the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- No political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- Just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

NoBullU will broadcast today from 4:05 to 6 p.m. at 1330 AM WEBY and on line, courtesy of Cyber Smart Computers.

Topics:

Local and regional: why was a poor black kid prosecuted without any evidence, and why did the PNJ disable comments on the story, and are you having problems with the NoBullU website?; and

Nation and international: Cheney disses Bush not Obama, and China's threat to American sovereignty.

But I'll discuss anything. (Disclaimer: the host reserves the right to end any discussion and hang up on you.)

So tune-in, call-in, but only if you can handle the truth!

WARNING: You may not want to call in if you have veritasphobia, especially if you are a certain veritasphobic politician.

Why Was a Poor Black Kid Prosecuted Without Any Evidence?

The question answers itself.

The State knew there was inadequate evidence to prosecute Jamal Lee. Read comments made by the prosecutor just a few days ago at the Pensacola New Journal, Lee goes to trial.

So the Judge was forced to dismiss the case. Read the Pensacola News Journal, Jamal Lee goes free.

More telling is that the newspaper disabled comments by readers on the story. If you read comments on earlier stories, you'd know why.

UPDATE: For a full account of the trial, read the Pensacola News Journal, Judge acquits Lee of murder. Still no comment allowed.

UPDATE II: A comment from another blog: "I’m guessing the PNJ disabled the comments for that story because they knew it’d be like a KKK rally on there. All the racists that post on there would be up in arms, much like they were for the fights at the beach by the folks from Mobile this past weekend."

The Worst Slide Story

Really cute, especially if you are a fan of West Side Story:

Check out these other editorial cartoons by Pulitzer Prize winning and nationally syndicated editorial cartoonist Walt Handelsman, including Republicans Sing the Blues.

Who's Drinking the Kool-Aid Now

First "the well-trained Republican loyalists who danced like organ grinder monkeys every time their leadership played a new tune. But [you] hear that organ grinder warming up for the Democrats."

Read the Pensacola News Journal, Democrats should not drink the Kool-Aid.

Class Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Listen to the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- No political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- Just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

NoBullU will broadcast today from 4:05 to 6 p.m. at 1330 AM WEBY and on line, courtesy of Cyber Smart Computers.

Topics:

Local and regional: is it contempt of court, or contempt for God, with guest Matthew Cotton, founder of OK2Pray.org. and are you having problems with the NoBullU website?; and

Nation and international: the Republi-con family feud, with a poll, would you vote for Crist or Rubio in the 2010 Senate race, or just watch to see if the party implodes, and China's threat to American sovereignty.

But I'll discuss anything. (Disclaimer: the host reserves the right to end any discussion and hang up on you.)

So tune-in, call-in, but only if you can handle the truth!

WARNING: You may not want to call in if you have veritasphobia, especially if you are a certain veritasphobic politician.

Don't Confuse the Stimlus With Bailouts

Republi-consare now, as true hypocrites, criticizing any deficit spending. But they are only half right. Don't confuse government bailouts with stimulus spending. Bailouts are generally unnecessary, while spending designed to stimulate the economy is, thanks to the Republi-cons' war on the middle class, now necessary.

To understand why, read Time, If Consumers Won't Kick-Start the Economy, What Will?

Thriving Socialism

You hear it said everyday by the Republi-cons, socialism will bankrupt the country. But maybe it ain't true. Read The New York Times, Thriving Norway Provides an Economics Lesson, which points out an interesting fact:

"[I]n the midst of the worst global downturn since the Depression, Norway’s economy grew last year by just under 3 percent. The government enjoys a budget surplus of 11 percent and its ledger is entirely free of debt.

By comparison, the United States is expected to chalk up a fiscal deficit this year equal to 12.9 percent of its gross domestic product and push its total debt to $11 trillion, or 65 percent of the size of its economy."

Republi-Con Desperation, Delusion, and Hatred

First, I heard Open Mike talk about an Obama takeover of Cheerios. Apparently Obama is personally responsible for anything that the government does wrong (but not what it does right of course), like an unannounced Air Force flyover of New York City.

Then I heard about an article on Bush moving to Dallas in D Magazine, in which David Feherty wrote;

"From my own experience visiting the troops in the Middle East, I can tell you this, though: despite how the conflict has been portrayed by our glorious media, if you gave any U.S. soldier a gun with two bullets in it, and he found himself in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Osama bin Laden, there’s a good chance that Nancy Pelosi would get shot twice, and Harry Reid and bin Laden would be strangled to death."

The new Republi-con strategy is desperation, delusion, and hatred.

It won't be any more successful than fear, anger, and hatred.

Talking about the events above today, even Boortz realizes it is a loser strategy. He referred to an article at Salon.com, Radio rage.

It's almost as if the Republi-cons are determined to lose the next election. Don't believe me? Then read the Washington Post, A Driving Desire To Lose, written by Michael Gerson, a former Bushie.

At this rate, the Naive-crats won't even have to campaign.

Republi-Con Gun Control

No guns once the government designates you a suspected terrorist. See H.R. 2159, sponsored by four Republi-cons: Rep. Peter King [R, NY-3], Rep. Michael Castle [R, DE-0], Rep. Mark Kirk [R, IL-10], Rep. Christopher Smith [R, NJ-4].

And who is a 'suspected terrorist? Anyone the government says is a 'suspected' terrorist.

"In any case in which the Attorney General has denied the transfer of a firearm to a prospective transferee pursuant to section 922A or has made a determination regarding a firearm permit applicant pursuant to section 922B, an action challenging the determination may be brought against the United States. The petition must be filed not later than 60 days after the petitioner has received actual notice of the Attorney General’s determination made pursuant to section 922A or 922B. The court shall sustain the Attorney General’s determination on a showing by the United States by a preponderance of evidence that the Attorney General’s determination satisfied the requirements of section 922A or 922B. To make this showing, the United States may submit, and the court may rely on, summaries or redacted versions of documents containing information the disclosure of which the Attorney General has determined would likely compromise national security. On request of the petitioner or the court’s own motion, the court may review the full, undisclosed documents ex parte and in camera. The court shall determine whether the summaries or redacted versions, as the case may be, are fair and accurate representations of the underlying documents. The court shall not consider the full, undisclosed documents in deciding whether the Attorney General’s determination satisfies the requirements of section 922A or 922B.’."

They have already started compiling the list -- 'militia' members, 'disgruntled' military veterans, and 'rightwing extremists' -- to name a few. See the Missouri Analysis and Information Center (MIAC) and Department of Homeland Security reports.

Collapse of the Republi-Con Ideology, and the Party

UPDATE VI: The 2010 Florida Senate race is shaping up to be Washington leadership v. grassroots, whether to moderate the political agenda or go all-in conservative hypocrisy, whether the campaign theme should be hope for the future or fear and loathing, whether the party can include people like "a four-star general who spent his life serving his country" or should be limited to those like a chickenhawk, "who had five deferments himself to get out of going to Vietnam, [and] a blowhard entertainer who has had three divorces and a drug problem (who also avoided Vietnam)."

Read the Washington Post, Fla. Governor's Senate Bid Renews Optimism of Some in GOP and The New York Times, Rogue Diva of Doom.

It should be an interesting campaign.


UPDATE V: The 2010 Florida Senate race will help divine the future of those wild and crazy Republi-cons. It is possible we may witness the implosion of the party. And those of us in NW Florida will have a ring-side seat.


UPDATE IV: This man thinks this man is the future of the Republi-con party. Also read The New York Times, G.O.P. Worries About Sounding a Negative Tone.

Of course, playing in the gutter won't help.

The future ain't lookin too bright for those Comrade Republi-cons.

Maybe they should read the Washington Post, An Anti-Obama Agenda for the GOP.


UPDATE III: Republi-cons are "starting to look like the Federalists of the early 19th century: an embittered, over-the-top, out-of-touch regional party en route to extinction, doubling down on dogma the electorate has already rejected."

Read Time, Republicans in the Wilderness: Is the Party Over?


UPDATE II: Republi-cons, the party of "phony-baloney, dime-store philosophies . . . that doesn’t seem to care about anything other than devotion to a set of so-called principles that never amounted to more than cult-like rhetoric." Couldn't have said it better myself.

Read The New York Times, Out of Touch.


UPDATE: It's extreme makeover, Republi-con edition. Read CNN, Republican Party plans comeback.

But if you listen to rabid right-wing radio, it doesn't seem that the 'fear, anger, hatred' group wants a makeover. Read The New York Times, G.O.P. Debate: A Broader Party or a Purer One?

I don't think it is an issue of purity, it is delusional rabid McCarthist ideology and forty years in the wilderness for the Republi-cons.

Just have faith in the market, while Republi-con policies undermine middle class America. But what happens when people quit believing and start questioning certain assumption? Read the Washington Post, Capitalism's Reality Check and The Financial Times, How libertarian dogma led the Fed astray.

With the collapse of the Republi-con ideology it looks like forty years in the wilderness for the Republi-cons.

Bankrupt America

UPDATE: The title says it all. Read The New York Times, Estimate of Budget Deficit Now Tops $1.84 Trillion.

Holy bankrupt America, bat-taxpayers, that's a lot of money! The government can't even figure out how to cut $100 million from the budget, "about 13 minutes of federal spending, and 0.0029 percent -- about a quarter of one-hundredth of 1 percent -- of $3.5 trillion."

The real question is not how much we want to tax, but how much we want to spend. Read The New York Times, The G.D.P. Question.

Tax reform won't work unless there is spending reform.

PSA for The Arc Santa Rosa

The Arc Santa Rosa, Inc. is inviting everyone in the community to attend the 3rd Annual "Spring Fling" on Saturday, May 9th, from 9:00 am until 2:00. This year's event will again include a PLANT SALE, ARTS AND CRAFTS along with a YARD SALE!

The Spring Fling will be held at the Arc's office and Garden Center in Milton, four miles South of NAS Whiting Field.

The Arc Santa Rosa, Inc. is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing services that allow approximately 200 people with physical and developmental disabilities lead productive and independent lives. The Arc Santa Rosa, Inc. is located at 6225 Dixie Road in Milton. For more information about the Spring Fling, contact Debbie Goss at (850) 995-8806 or The Arc Santa Rosa, Inc. at (850) 623-9320.

Class Today at NoBullU on WEBY

Listen to the voice of wisdom and reason in a wilderness of partisan rhetoric -- No political insanity, no conservative hypocrisy, no liberal foolishness -- Just straight talk, straight at you, and that’s no bull!!

NoBullU will broadcast today from 4:05 to 6 p.m. at 1330 AM WEBY and on line, courtesy of Cyber Smart Computers.

Topics:

Local and state: TBD; and

Nation and international: greed, good or bad, with special guest Mom & Pop Tammy at 4:35 p.m. (BTW, there's talk of a sequel to the movie Wall Street. Remember this quote from the movie by Gordon Gekko: "The richest one percent of this country owns half our country's wealth, five trillion dollars. One third of that comes from hard work, two thirds comes from inheritance, interest on interest accumulating to widows and idiot sons and what I do, stock and real estate speculation. It's bullshit. You got ninety percent of the American public out there with little or no net worth. I create nothing. I own. We make the rules, pal. The news, war, peace, famine, upheaval, the price per paper clip. We pick that rabbit out of the hat while everybody sits out there wondering how the hell we did it. Now you're not naive enough to think we're living in a democracy, are you buddy? It's the free market. And you're a part of it. You've got that killer instinct. Stick around pal, I've still got a lot to teach you.")

But I'll discuss anything. (Disclaimer: the host reserves the right to end any discussion and hang up on you.)

So tune-in, call-in, but only if you can handle the truth!

WARNING: You may not want to call in if you have veritasphobia, especially if you are a certain veritasphobic politician.

Government Sachs

From the beginning I have said that the bailout of the financial institution was designed to save Goldman Sachs. "Former Goldman Sachs employees such as Henry Paulson and Robert Rubin have held high positions in the federal government, regardless of which party was in the White House." As a result, some call the company Government Sachs hereafter just GS.

Finally the conflict of interest became too much for even the Wall Street Journal to ignore. Stephen Friedman was chairman of the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, but also sat on the Board of Directors of GS and had a large holding in GS stock. As a federal reserve official, Friedman helped GS receive speedy approval to become a bank holding company in September and a $10 billion capital injection soon after. Then in December and January he purchased more GS stock.

This is illegal. See 18 U.S.C. 208.

There should be some arrests.

Republi-Cons Have No Shame

UPDATE II: A new email, a new low. From an email titled A mother's love:

"A little boy said to his mother , "Mommy, how come I'm black and you're white?"

His mother replied, "Don't even go there Barack! From what I can remember about that party, you're lucky you don't bark!""

First nude pictures, now this!

Republi-cons need counseling. I am serious, their hatred for Democrats has warped their judgment (and their intelligence).


UPDATE: Snopes.com lists the claim as undermined. However, WikiAnswers.com reports that the "photos are misleadingly attributed to Ann Dunhum."

[EDITOR'S NOTE: I have not included the photo of Stanley Ann Dunham. Are they relevant to the discussion? If you think that the photos are relevant, I will post edited copies only.]

The term "McCarthyism" was coined in 1950s in reference to Senator Joseph McCarthy, a Republican from the state of Wisconsin, who engaged in demagogic, reckless, and unsubstantiated accusations, as well as public attacks, on the character or patriotism of political opponents.

I am reminded of the term after receiving the following email:

"Is Barack Obama's Momma In Nude Porn Pictures?

Some photos have been making their rounds on the internet that claim to be nude shots of Barack Obama's mom. Those photos are attached.

One photo is of the Obama family. Look closely at is his mom so you can compare her face to the face in the porn photos.

It's amazing what can be done these days with PhotoShop. So these may very well be fakes. But the sites I have been to to research this allegation claim the photos are authentic, and that it really is Obama's momma (Stanley Ann Dunham). Snopes lists it as "undetermined."

I seek only the truth. Sooner or later a listener will call me on the air and bring this up. I'd like to respond with a well-documented, or at least well-researched, answer.

Do you have any information on this that I can use to prove or disprove the allegations that Obama's momma posed for nudie shots that are now circulating on the web?"

The writer, a proud member of the right-wing media, later stated that he was only "seeking information to DISPROVE the allegation that those titties belong to Obama's momma. "

I would think that something like this is below even Republi-con low standards for newsworthiness. But I guess if you are a Republi-con, you can have no shame for the sake of the party.

This email proves that there is no limit to shameless Republi-con hatred.

What do you think?

Republi-Cons Have No Shame, Still

UPDATE: And Republi-cons have no intelligence:



Never heard of the "Hoot-Smalley Act." Maybe she was referring to the disastrous Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, signed by Hoover, not FDR.

Trying to blame FDR. the Hoot-Smalley Act, and the New Deal for the depression, just Republi-con revisionist history and delusion, like democracy in Iraq.

So little time, so many stupid and delusional Republi-cons.

As I said before, the term "McCarthyism" was coined in 1950s in reference to Senator Joseph McCarthy, a Republican from the state of Wisconsin, who engaged in demagogic, reckless, and unsubstantiated accusations, as well as public attacks, on the character or patriotism of political opponents.

I am reminded of the term after reading that Rep. Michelle Bachmann, Republican of Minnesota, who said that the outbreak of swine flu in 1976 took place “under another Democrat [sic] President, Jimmy Carter — and I’m not blaming this on President Obama, I just think it’s an interesting coincidence.” Watch it:



She is both shameless and STUPID. Carter was sworn in as President until January 20, 1977.

I guess if you are a Republi-con, you can have no shame for the sake of the party.

This proves yet again that there is no limit to shameless Republi-con hatred.

What do you think?

Let's Start a BOTM Club

UPDATE: Looks like BO and Joe started a BOTM Club. Read the Washington Post, Say Cheese: Obama Lunch Turns Juicy Eat-and-Greet.

Now here is a group I'd like to join, the Burger of the Month Club. Read The New York Times, Turkey Burgers Don’t Count.

If you live in the NW Florida area, and you'd like to start a club, let me know.

Umpire or an Empathizer?

Should the judge be an umpire or an empathizer? Read the Washington Post, Behind Justice's Blindfold.