Wednesday, November 26, 2003
Congressional Cartel of Crony Collusion Crafts Cache Crop of Cash for Companies, Consequence for Chief Citizens Calamitous
In the British Parliment, representatives are very present on the floor, debating laws and political issues. In the American House and Senate, there are so many empty seats, one often wonders if anyone but the representative speaking is in the room. How many of us can retain a job when we don't show up for work?
Rep. Steve Israel (D-Huntington) writes, "A vote is called, and what previously seemed a desolate floor becomes energized." Why are they not there when the vote is called?
In the case of the vote for the new 'Medicare' bill, Israel tells us that the vote had been defeated: "Imagine the contention and anger on the House floor Saturday when, after the bill overhauling Medicare appeared to be defeated by two votes at 3 a.m., Republicans kept the vote open for an extra three hours - making it the longest vote in House history. If anyone had any doubts about just how bad this 678-page bill had become, that doubt should have been erased by the fact that it took three extra hours of arm-twisting (including frantic calls by President George W. Bush ) to force members of Congress to switch their votes and put this mess over the top."
Seniors will have to pay $25.00 to get a 'discount card', will have a $250. deductible, and will have to pay out of pocket once a limit of $2,251. is reached.
Israel notes: "Seniors with drug costs as high as $5,000 will end up paying $4,000 out of pocket. Someone who spends $800 annually on prescriptions could actually lose money by participating - through a combination of copayments, monthly premiums and a $250 deductible."
In the British Parliment, representatives are very present on the floor, debating laws and political issues. In the American House and Senate, there are so many empty seats, one often wonders if anyone but the representative speaking is in the room. How many of us can retain a job when we don't show up for work?
Rep. Steve Israel (D-Huntington) writes, "A vote is called, and what previously seemed a desolate floor becomes energized." Why are they not there when the vote is called?
In the case of the vote for the new 'Medicare' bill, Israel tells us that the vote had been defeated: "Imagine the contention and anger on the House floor Saturday when, after the bill overhauling Medicare appeared to be defeated by two votes at 3 a.m., Republicans kept the vote open for an extra three hours - making it the longest vote in House history. If anyone had any doubts about just how bad this 678-page bill had become, that doubt should have been erased by the fact that it took three extra hours of arm-twisting (including frantic calls by President George W. Bush ) to force members of Congress to switch their votes and put this mess over the top."
Seniors will have to pay $25.00 to get a 'discount card', will have a $250. deductible, and will have to pay out of pocket once a limit of $2,251. is reached.
Israel notes: "Seniors with drug costs as high as $5,000 will end up paying $4,000 out of pocket. Someone who spends $800 annually on prescriptions could actually lose money by participating - through a combination of copayments, monthly premiums and a $250 deductible."
The Bush regime insist that we are in Iraq fighting for freedom and lauds the fact that now Iraqi's have 'freedom of speech', while here at home, gag orders are placed upon the press to keep them from talking to soldiers during the presidential visit to Fort Carson.
Saturday, November 22, 2003
"When the meeting is almost over, we ask Avraham Shalom (Bendor) if he thinks we are on the brink of an abyss. We are on our way, he says, because all the steps that we have taken are steps that are contrary to the aspiration for peace. If we do not turn away from this path, of adhering to the entire Land of Israel, and if we do not also begin to understand the other side, dammit, we will not get anywhere. We must, once and for all, admit that there is an other side, that it has feelings and that it is suffering, and that we are behaving disgracefully. Yes, there is no other word for it. Disgracefully."
"You prosecute the man or woman Who steals the goose from off the common,
But leave the larger felon loose Who steals the common from the goose."
G.K. Chesterton
But leave the larger felon loose Who steals the common from the goose."
G.K. Chesterton
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
Meanwhile the US press corps here in London who've so far had trouble interesting their editors in this visit have seized on The Mirror's intruder story. Footmangate perhaps?
Salam Pax has a video that was broadcast on the BBC. You can see the Hotel Pax, get a view of Baghdad, and meet Raed.
A new concept for polluters. Are residents concerned about their health and enviromental impacts of that coal dust spewing from your plant? Well, the easy solution is to pay a minimal fine and then buy the whole town. No more pesky neighbors will be calling you to task for those nasty emissions.
Monday, November 17, 2003
Mr. Livingstone, I presume?
Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, launched a stinging attack on President George Bush last night, denouncing him as the "greatest threat to life on this planet that we've most probably ever seen".
Ken Livingstone, the Mayor of London, launched a stinging attack on President George Bush last night, denouncing him as the "greatest threat to life on this planet that we've most probably ever seen".
The Gaza Strip comes to Iraq, via Coalition Soldiers...
"We were asleep," recalled Mohammed Shakr al-Nassiri, 33, a storekeeper. "When we got up, we found all this barbed wire around us. We don't understand the point of it. Why us? There's been resistance all over Iraq."
Residents appear to think the approach is doomed to fail. A young policeman said over the wire barricade: "It will make the resistance stronger. Even those who did not fight when the Americans came to Iraq are being pushed to join the resistance."
"We were asleep," recalled Mohammed Shakr al-Nassiri, 33, a storekeeper. "When we got up, we found all this barbed wire around us. We don't understand the point of it. Why us? There's been resistance all over Iraq."
Residents appear to think the approach is doomed to fail. A young policeman said over the wire barricade: "It will make the resistance stronger. Even those who did not fight when the Americans came to Iraq are being pushed to join the resistance."
Sunday, November 16, 2003
It's bad enough that we're sending soldiers to fight in a questionable war, but to add insult to injury, many in the National Guard aren't even getting paid for their sacrifices.
Friday, November 14, 2003
Just one Iraqi civilian death is horrible blood on our hands given that the attack on Iraq appears to have been based on a lie. Yes, Saddam Hussein killed thousands of his own people. But an American massacre does not make things right. If Americans have half the humanity they claim, they will no longer accept Bush at face value when his officers say, "We don't do body counts."
If we do not count the bodies, this atrocity will never have a face.
If we do not count the bodies, this atrocity will never have a face.
Tuesday, November 11, 2003
“Don’t they know it was Dad’s Humvee?” she says. “Don’t they know it was Dad doing stuff?” The child asking these questions is the daughter of First Sgt. Robert Dowdy, who was killed in the same ambush that Jessica Lynch was involved in. While he fought bravely, he has received no recognition. He leaves behind his wife and three children. His widow says, "It seems like after a soldier is dead, they’re forgotten.”
But a further, and even graver, set of lies is only now beginning to come to light. Even if all the claims Bush and Blair made about their enemies and their motives had been true, and all their objectives had been legal and just, there may still have been no need to go to war. For, as we discovered last week, Saddam proposed to give Bush and Blair almost everything they wanted before a shot had been fired. Our governments appear both to have withheld this information from the public and to have lied to us about the possibilities for diplomacy.
A salute to Veterans at the nation's Capitol. Washington D. C.?
It was in Ottawa that servicemen were honored with crowds lining the streets, choirs singing, pipe bands swirling in full regalia, Veteran soldiers parading by with salutes to Governor General, Adrienne Clarkson, and citizens placing their poppies upon the grave of the unknown soldier.
Senator Byrd voiced his disappointment that here it was business as usual, with the Senate being in session to impose sanctions upon Syria, rather than honoring those who have valiantly served their country.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
John McCrae
It was in Ottawa that servicemen were honored with crowds lining the streets, choirs singing, pipe bands swirling in full regalia, Veteran soldiers parading by with salutes to Governor General, Adrienne Clarkson, and citizens placing their poppies upon the grave of the unknown soldier.
Senator Byrd voiced his disappointment that here it was business as usual, with the Senate being in session to impose sanctions upon Syria, rather than honoring those who have valiantly served their country.
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
John McCrae
Monday, November 10, 2003
Lying through his teeth: Rumsfeld denies he ever made several pre-war statements
We must be 'disremembering' what we've heard him say...
We must be 'disremembering' what we've heard him say...
Is he talking about deer hunting or job hunting?
"I have laid out a six-point to the United States Congress to make sure that job creation remains strong and vibrant..."
"I have laid out a six-point to the United States Congress to make sure that job creation remains strong and vibrant..."
"I think it behooves a state that has imperial dreams to keep its citizens afraid." Brett Bursey: Arrested on public property for trespassing when he protested. Charges dismissed. Now facing charges for "refusing to leave a restricted area which had been declared the temporary property of the president."
Cordoning themselves off from the rest of Baghdad, they live luxuriously in Saddam's palaces of marble, safely esconced behind layers of razor wire, concrete barriers, and chain linked fences. Guarded by "M1 Abrams tanks, Bradley fighting vehicles and HUMVEEs with .50 caliber machine guns on top. The Green Zone appears under siege..." the occupiers plot the future of this war ravaged country, failing to understand why attacks against them are escalating. They can't seem to make the connection between toddlers being shot down by coalition troops and the vengeful retaliation that ensues.
Violence breeds violence.
When will we ever learn?
Violence breeds violence.
When will we ever learn?
They measure "12 feet tall, is 9 feet wide, 4 feet thick at the base and 8 inches thick at the top. The standard model weighs 9,000 pounds."
Building 250 a day, thousands have been sold to the occupiers of Iraq to create miles of walls within this country taken hostage.
"Miles of the barriers circle Baghdad's "green zone," the quiet, tree-lined neighborhoods were American occupation authorities live..."
"The Americans weren't worrying about the price..."
Building 250 a day, thousands have been sold to the occupiers of Iraq to create miles of walls within this country taken hostage.
"Miles of the barriers circle Baghdad's "green zone," the quiet, tree-lined neighborhoods were American occupation authorities live..."
"The Americans weren't worrying about the price..."
There's troop support for you.
"The Bush administration is seeking to block a group of American troops who were tortured in Iraqi prisons during the Persian Gulf war in 1991 from collecting any of the hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen Iraqi assets they won last summer..."
"The Bush administration is seeking to block a group of American troops who were tortured in Iraqi prisons during the Persian Gulf war in 1991 from collecting any of the hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen Iraqi assets they won last summer..."
Saturday, November 08, 2003
"Bush's speech is like a boring, broken record that nobody believes," said Gulf-based political analyst Moghazy al-Badrawy.
Shock and Awe points out another instance of 'Israeli' style retribution toward the Iraqi's.
They touched on this a bit on our local news, mentioning that the military is offering $500.00 for shoulder missle launchers. Problem is, they're going for $5,000.00 on the black market.
They touched on this a bit on our local news, mentioning that the military is offering $500.00 for shoulder missle launchers. Problem is, they're going for $5,000.00 on the black market.
You get a line and I'll get a pole, honey...
Texas police officers that were supposed to be guarding a nuclear power plant decide to go fishing instead...
Texas police officers that were supposed to be guarding a nuclear power plant decide to go fishing instead...
Thursday, November 06, 2003
The notices told of an unprecedented new order: everyone must apply for a special permit to remain in Jubara -- the village has about 300 residents. The notices did not specifically mention expulsion, but Palestinian officials and villagers said they understand this to be the implied threat.
To the Middle East and beyond! The Bush Regime plans for "global democratic revolution" led by the United States.
Do you suppose there was a Burning Bush?
"Abbas said that at Aqaba, Bush promised to speak
with Sharon about the siege on Arafat. He said
nobody can speak to or pressure Sharon except
the Americans.
According to Abbas, immediately thereafter Bush
said: 'God told me to strike at al Qaida and I
struck them, and then he instructed me to
strike at Saddam, which I did, and now I am
determined to solve the problem in the Middle
East. If you help me I will act, and if not,
the elections will come and I will have to
focus on them.'"
"Abbas said that at Aqaba, Bush promised to speak
with Sharon about the siege on Arafat. He said
nobody can speak to or pressure Sharon except
the Americans.
According to Abbas, immediately thereafter Bush
said: 'God told me to strike at al Qaida and I
struck them, and then he instructed me to
strike at Saddam, which I did, and now I am
determined to solve the problem in the Middle
East. If you help me I will act, and if not,
the elections will come and I will have to
focus on them.'"
Sunday, November 02, 2003
Shades of Israel in Iraq. Somehow I don't believe people are really praising the blockade of a village.
Saudi money and Bush ties are closer than you may think. The CBC is running an investigative report on the Bush/Saudi connection. It aired on October 29th on the Fifth Estate, and will be repeated November 4th at 10 PM, Wednesday November 5th at 1 AM.
There is an interview with Bill White that proves quite interesting. He worked for James Bath, who was the ‘middleman’ between the Bush family and the Saudi royals. ”They had a large presence here because of the oil interest. And they had banking interests by virtue of Bush Senior’s association with First International Bank which subsequently became Air First...Bath explained to me that he had been tapped by George Senior to set up a quasi private aircraft firm that would basically engage in CIA-sponsored activities funded by the Saudi Royal family. He explained that the Saudis had basically entered into a quid pro quo relationship with Bush…”
White describes a strong connection with the Bin Laden family, including revolving lines of credit that funded George Jr. business ventures.
There is an interview with Bill White that proves quite interesting. He worked for James Bath, who was the ‘middleman’ between the Bush family and the Saudi royals. ”They had a large presence here because of the oil interest. And they had banking interests by virtue of Bush Senior’s association with First International Bank which subsequently became Air First...Bath explained to me that he had been tapped by George Senior to set up a quasi private aircraft firm that would basically engage in CIA-sponsored activities funded by the Saudi Royal family. He explained that the Saudis had basically entered into a quid pro quo relationship with Bush…”
White describes a strong connection with the Bin Laden family, including revolving lines of credit that funded George Jr. business ventures.
