Stupid Git Says So!

Vacate Huffington Post

2011-10-20T03:20:00.007-04:00

Author Naomi Wolf was arrested alongside Occupy Wall Street protesters after she disputed police claims that they had to clear sidewalk.

Wolf was led away in handcuffs after addressing protesters outside an awards ceremony held to honour New York's governor, at which she was a guest.

The author had disputed claims by police that a permit granted to the event – organised by the Huffington Post website on Tuesday night – allowed them to clear the sidewalk outside the venue in the Soho district of Manhattan.

Inside, the New York state governor, Andrew Cuomo, was being presented with the "game-changer of the year" award by the Huffington Post. A group of protesters had arrived from the Occupy Wall Street group's camp in Zuccotti Park to demonstrate against his opposition to extending New York State's "millionaire's tax", and his support of the contentious process of extracting natural gas from shale, known as fracking.

There are so many things wrong with this I don't even know where to begin.

1. An award to Cuomo? For what? For "his opposition to extending New York State's "millionaire's tax", and his support of the contentious process of extracting natural gas from shale, known as fracking"?

2. No one (except Wolf) at this event stood up for the protesters? Where was Huffington in all of this or these other "Game Changers"?

3. JP Morgan Chase was a sponsor of the event. Is this another reason why Huffington and her fellow "Game Changers" weren't willing to protect the protesters?

There are many other things that were wrong with the whole "Game Changers" event but the biggest one is that most of the people celebrated are not game changers, they're game players. Add this to the fact that HuffPost has terrible labor practices, is a trashy tabloid along the lines of a Murdoch rag (with a liberal slant) and there is no reason why any self-respecting person who pretends to care about society would continue supporting Huffington Post in any way.

In honor of the #Occupy movement, I propose: #VacateHuffPost

GOP: What do they believe?

2011-10-19T18:34:00.002-04:00

Only one seems to believe in anything. He might have terrible solutions, but at least he has integrity.

Who Do You Trust?

2011-10-03T05:33:00.005-04:00

If your life was on the line who would you trust to decide if you are a traitor to our nation? Barack Obama? Rick Perry? What about Ron Paul or Bernie Sanders?

Obama has decided that he is judge, jury and executioner of any American citizen he decides is a threat to the United States and that he doesn't need to justify that decision with a trial or even hard evidence. You may agree that Anwar Al Awlaki was a threat and there are valid reasons to believe that but there is no hard evidence as you can see quite clearly in this exchange:

So, what we have is a man who was a propagandist for a terrorist organization, though not an actual member:

Ironically enough, despite all his efforts in support of al-Qaida, al-Awlaki had never become a formal member of the terrorist organization or its branch in Yemen. Indeed, it's unclear whether he ever swore the "bai'a," the oath of allegiance necessary to become a member. The first time he showed up in an official AQAP video was in May 2010 -- and that was only as a kind of interview guest.

And this was enough to warrant his assassination. The precedent is set. If the President of the United States decides you, an American citizen, are a threat to our nation or it's allies you can be exterminated without hard evidence or a trial. It is difficult to defend Al Awlaki and I see no reason to. What there is ample reason to defend is the rule of law and our rights to a trial as citizens. What if you are a Secessionist in Texas who believes Obama is destroying America and we need a revolution to set things right? Are you a traitor? What if you are a Socialist who believes Obama and Bush sold America to to corporations and are waving signs in the Occupy Wall Street protests demanding a dismantling of Capitalism? Are you a traitor? What if our next president is Rick Perry who loves executions and has already called Ben Bernanke a traitor and made a veiled threat? By Obama's precedent Perry would have the right to execute Bernanke based on his opinion that he is a traitor.

Obviously some of this is hyperbole but it is meant to illustrate a point. Our 5th Amendment:

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

We're in a time of war you say? True, but it is a potentially never ending war - a war on terror - otherwise known as a war on people who hate us. We are at war in numerous countries (both officially and covertly) and hundreds of thousands of people have died in these wars, many of them innocent civilians. People are going to continue hating us for a very long time. So, that means the justification of "in time of War or public danger" can be used perpetually. Does that mean our 5th Amendment is invalidated due to our war on terror?

Maybe. But we should really think about the ramifications of that and debate it in public before we decide to waive an essential civil liberty for a free and just nation. Sadly, we didn't get to have that debate, Obama decided already and that Amendment is void. Maybe you like Obama and trust his judgement, but will you feel the same about the next president, or the one after that?

Fiscal Conservatism At Work (2001-2011)

2011-08-06T13:31:00.013-04:00

How have the economic policies of the "Fiscal Conservatives" worked out for us?

Fiscal Conservatives compete for the flip-flop gold medal:

From The Weekly Standard in 2005
WHEN DICK CHENEY SAID, "Deficits don't matter," [...] it turns out there is a case to be made that Cheney was onto something.

On the deepest level, the vice president was echoing, in slightly exaggerated form, an idea put forward a few years ago by Irving Kristol, the Godfather of the neoconservatives who have had such a wide-ranging effect on Bush administration policy. Kristol wrote then, and still believes, that "We should figure out what we want before we calculate what we can afford, not the reverse."

On the political level, treating deficits as a non-issue also proved a successful strategy. After all, despite the torrent of red ink that splashed across the national budgets during his first term, George W. Bush was reelected by a substantial margin.

Which brings us to the economic level. The deficits that Bush ran up in the years in which the country was teetering on the verge of a serious recession had the beneficial effect of righting the economy. In that sense, deficits not only didn't matter, but were a force for economic good.
And The Weekly Standard's deficit view in 2011:
The country is reduced to rattling its begging bowl in China and elsewhere to pay for programs that become ever more costly as the president expands the reach of government.

And our current Republican Whip:

Rep. Eric Cantor (R), 2010:
"Government doesn't create jobs and build wealth; entrepreneurs, risk takers and private businesses do."

Rep. Eric Cantor (R), August, 2011:
"The most important thing we can do for somebody who's unemployed is to see if we can get them a job. I mean, that's what needs to be the focus."

This makes you wonder if they actually have any idea what they're talking about - are they just making this up as they go along? Or are they really the con-artists they accuse the poor and working class (i.e. welfare queens) of being? One thing is certainly clear, we do know who their policies are working for.

Carbon Emissions - Dangerous or Not?

2011-07-18T17:45:00.011-04:00

The latest crazy person to claim carbon emissions aren't dangerous is Mitt Romney:

"I don’t think carbon is a pollutant in the sense of harming our bodies."

He continued to say "we can agree to disagree..."

Um, no, we can't.

I could waste time listing off every scientific study which shows the harmful effects on carbon emissions to our environment and how man-made pollutions is changing our earth's environment for the worse (something Romney used to agree with before today) but since many more reputable voices have already trumpeted this for years with little to no effect on much of our deluded Americans, I won't waste your time.

I do have one idea that may finally solve this problem though:

Find the nearest tailpipe and use it like a breathing tube for a few minutes. If after about five minutes you still think carbon emissions aren't harmful I'll let it rest and "agree to disagree".

Hot Commodity

2011-07-04T14:38:00.008-04:00

I'm sure you're familiar with the food crisis going on in many parts of the world, the current rising oil prices here in the US, and the rise in gold prices. Hopefully you're aware that all these are primarily a result of commodities trading.

"The sheer amount of investor money flooding into commodities markets is overshadowing any supply and demand numbers."

Whether this is good or bad is a topic for another discussion. The topic here is the growing trend of privatizing our world's water supply and the future of our most precious and essential natural resource becoming a commodity which is traded on Wall Street.

First, the problem:

Everyone agrees that we are in the midst of a global freshwater crisis. Around the world, rivers, lakes, and aquifers are dwindling faster than Mother Nature can possibly replenish them; industrial and household chemicals are rapidly polluting what’s left. Meanwhile, global population is ticking skyward. Goldman Sachs estimates that global water consumption is doubling every 20 years, and the United Nations expects demand to outstrip supply by more than 30 percent come 2040.

Yes, I made Goldman Sachs bold because I think it's important to highlight the fact an investment bank of is tracking these issues.

Now, the solution... if you want to call it that:

Proponents of privatization say markets are the best way to solve that problem: only the invisible hand can bring supply and demand into harmony, and only market pricing will drive water use down enough to make a dent in water scarcity. But the benefits of the market come at a price. By definition, a commodity is sold to the highest bidder, not the customer with the most compelling moral claim.

Who is buying up our water supply? You'll recognize these names I'm sure:

"Back in September 2010, J.P. Morgan purchased SouthWest Water, a large national water company. The Carlyle Group announced it plans to purchase the Park Water Company, which owns water systems in California and Missoula, Montana."

Yup, the most powerful companies on the planet are buying up our water supply and as the crisis worsens, these will be the companies deciding on prices and availability. Some things are worth more than money. To a moral human being this means it should not be a for-profit commodity. To a corporation, this means it's worth more than all the money in the world.

The reasons why our local governments are selling their water utilities are varied but much of it is due to immediate financial troubles being "fixed" by selling off these public utilities - just as we've seen with prisons, schools and about everything else. Why fix our budgets when we can just pawn off our resources? That works, right? Everyone knows people who pawn off their possessions are making sound financial decisions.

One thing to note is that this privatization does not result in better access or prices, it is often worse and much more expensive. Here's a few links to browse:

Under the plan, the combined monthly wastewater and water bill for the average residential user would climb from the current $63.29 to $117.67 in 2013

Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens is about to make a killing by selling water he doesn’t own.

Aqua America - Strategies of a Water Profiteer

Selling Stability

2011-03-20T18:57:00.007-04:00

Engagement in Libya is not about humanitarian concerns. If it was, why would we have been selling them and other abusive regimes weapons with the intent of securing these regimes?

While much has been made of the uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa, and the brutal force used against these protesters and rebels, there has been only the passing reference to our role in propping up these regimes which we now find ourselves in the sticky situation of having to condemn. The "Made in U.S.A." label on tear gas canisters used against Egyptian protesters made headlines but little else in this regard has.

(click on image to enlarge)

Libya:

The Bush administration approved the sale of $3 million of materials to Libya in 2006 and $5.3 million in 2007. In 2008, Libya was allowed to import $46 million in armaments from the U.S. The approved goods included nearly 400 shipments of explosive and incendiary materials, 25,000 aircraft parts, 56,000 military electronics components and nearly 1,000 items of optical targeting and other guidance equipment.

In the months before Libyans revolted the U.S. government was moving to do business with his regime on an increasing scale by quietly approving a $77 million dollar deal to deliver at least 50 refurbished armored troop carriers to the dictator's military. Congress balked, concerned the deal would improve Libyan army mobility and questioning the Obama administration's support for the agreement, which would have benefited British defense company BAE.

Saudi Arabia:

Obama administration intends to make biggest ever US arms deal with Saudis.

State department official Andrew Shapiro said "It will send a strong message to countries in the region that we are committed to support the security of our key partners and allies in the Arabian Gulf and broader Middle East."

The Bush administration [made] an arms-sale package to Saudi Arabia and five other Persian Gulf countries [United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman] that may total more than $20 billion. Included in the package are advanced satellite-guided bombs, fighter-aircraft upgrades and new naval vessels.

As for why we have gone into Libya while ignoring numerous other atrocities around the globe:

ExxonMobil signed a heads of agreement to execute an Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement (EPSA) with Libya's National Oil Corporation to initiate exploration activity offshore Libya in the Sirte Basin.

BP in February suspended its preparations for onshore drilling after violence broke out across the North African country. Since then, troops loyal to Col. Moammar Ghadhafi's regime have steadily rolled back the rebel advance and re-taken control of most of the country.

Why France and the UK led the way into Libya:

Libya possesses 1,800 kilometers of Mediterranean coastline. The country produces 2 percent of the world's oil, with 85 percent of exports going to Europe. Libyan nationals have been prominent jihadists in Iraq. Since the beginning of the Great Recession and the slump in global demand in 2008, Libya has allocated $200 billion toward new infrastructure spending.

None of this is about the protection of human life no matter how warm and fuzzy it may feel to think it is. One final note: Who is it we claim to be protecting anyway?

Saudi Arabia and Libya, both considered US allies in the fight against terrorism, were the source of about 60% of the foreign fighters who came to Iraq in the past year to become suicide bombers or take part in other attacks, senior American military officials say.

Oh great. This won't come back to bite us in the ass.

Left is Right

2011-03-15T17:29:00.017-04:00

64% of Americans say Afghan war isn’t worth fighting.

Yet, back in 2001 things were different. Those of us who were against this war were told we hate America. We were only 6% of Americans who thought this war was not worth it.

This is one among many important issues that we on the so-called liberal fringe have been vindicated on - even if this vindication comes in the form of great tragedy while we endure continued derision and/or invisibility in the media, political discourse and nation at large.

Protests have been spreading around the country as citizens fight back against union busting efforts, privatization of essential industries and the erasure of democracy by their elected leadership. More Americans are realizing that millions of jobs have been lost to developing and third world countries and economic disparity is at the highest it's been in nearly a century and only getting worse with the top 10% of Americans owning 70% of the wealth, 6 banks controlling 64% of our GDP (up from 17% in 15 years), and corporate profits setting new records while actual joblessness remains around 20%. Yet, a small percentage of us who protest WTO gatherings, NAFTA, deregulation of essential industries and financial markets have been called "commies" and other derogatory names. Even the guy who wrote the book "The Supply Side Revolution" and Reagan cabinet member Paul Craig Roberts admits what a failure these "trickle-down" policies have been.

The environment is another issue that us "tree-huggers" have been on the losing side of opinion for a long time. Our current crop of government leadership is doing all it can to defund and eradicate environmental regulations and investment in clean energy. They even mandated the use of Styro-Foarm and plastic in what can only be seen as a childish act of frivolity. In fact, concern about climate change is declining in America. Yet our impact on the environment has never been more obvious. We're causing earthquakes in Arkansas, we're ruining our fresh water supplies and destroying mountains, causing disease and illness from air pollution and so much more.

With more than 60% of bankruptcies due to medical bills in the US, essential industries becoming more and more privatized and profit driven (life and liberty should not be commodities), more subsidizing of the rich while taking from the poor and countless other issues us "radical liberals" yammer on about endlessly starting to affect larger percentages of Americans I wonder when and if we will ever be welcomed back into the public dialogue. Earlier generations of liberals struggled and fought to bring our fellow countrymen the civil rights movement, labor movement, child labor laws, clean air and water, Social Security and Medicaid, labor unions, desegregation, public education and a few other things that helped make our country strong, fair and looked up to. If we start wearing teabags on our head and carrying automatic weapons to protests can we be invited back to the discussion table?

Racist Overcompensation

2011-01-26T00:37:00.008-05:00

Why do so many Americans have a distain for truth? There are so many items I could mention here but the one I'll focus on here is the truth about race in our nation.

From the Texas School Board changing the name of slavery to "Atlantic Triangular Trade" in their school books, to Glenn Beck hosting a rally on the same date and place as MLK's famous speech to South Carolina celebrating their secession, (while claiming secession had nothing to do with slavery), it's really alarming how much a large portion of our nation is trying to erase the success of human rights and civil rights in this country.

From the smearing of Shirley Sherrod as a racist all the while ignoring her inspiring story which emerged from an era when institutionalized racism against black farmers was all too real, to the vilification of ACORN with a slanderous and fictional video, to hyped claims about a rising New Black Panthers movement there is an obvious attempt at elevating the idea of reverse racism as a national issue.

One word sums up all the attempts at revising our nation's history and understanding of racial issues is this:

Overcompensation n. An attempt to make up for a character trait by overexaggerating its opposite.

The conservatives out there who are claiming reverse racism while revising the history of institutionalized and real racism are suffering from the most common traits of denial and lying: The guilty person may speak more than natural, adding unnecessary details to convince you. The guilty person gets defensive. The guilty person will deflect the issue and tell stories that are deliberately aimed at not answering the question you asked. And, the guilty person will reverse the accusation.

A perfect example was this "discussion" with Tea Party promoter Sal Russo on "Hardball" trying to change the subject when discussing Michele Bachmann's ridiculous claims on the Founding Fathers' supposed efforts at eradicating slavery.

Bachmann claims:

"The very founders that wrote those documents [The Constitution] worked tirelessly until slavery was no more in the United States."

As anyone with at least a few years of education will recall the Civil War was almost 100 years after "those documents" were written. And, as anyone with a bit more book learning will tell you, those founders owned slaves too. (Though, Bachmann also claims our nation was founded as a Christian nation so this isn't the only issue she gets totally wrong in early American history).

I can understand why people would want to make themselves think their distain for truth and other human beings is justified and that past atrocities committed in our name never happened but I find it really hard to believe that their efforts seem to actually work. How their listeners can go along with such obvious lies and live in such ignorance of our history is as fascinating as it is frightening. History has a way of repeating itself if it is not remembered and learned from. Just as Holocaust deniers are shunned from a civil conversation, deniers of slavery and institutionalized racism should be shunned as well.

All the political discussions of our economic policies, foreign affairs and social services have valid and important arguments from both conservative and liberal circles but the opinions of people so deluded about the world they live in cannot be taken as anything more than what they are: The opinions of an ignorant person. We wouldn't take medical advice from an anti-vaccine crusader or a pharmaceutical marketing team, infrastructure advice from an anarchist or nutritional advice from an anorexic so why do voters, TV news watchers and a large percentage of Americans listen to these people?

Just like so many issues in this nation, race and our handling of its effects on society need to be discussed by sincere people if we are to continue along our proud journey of elevating the human condition so lets stop supporting the voices of people who prefer a time when women, minorities and the poor were oppressed. And if anyone feels threatened by the reverse racism of hostile words or affirmative action I'd recommend picking up a book or traveling to one of many oppressive places on the planet to learn what real oppression is.

A Message from the Republican Party

2010-12-15T04:08:00.003-05:00

A short and simple message for the unemployed, working families and anyone not in the top 2% financial bracket.

GOP Rebranding 101

2010-11-10T16:44:00.012-05:00

Old: Republican Party
New: Tea Party

The most recent major rebranding success comes in the form of the non-existent "Tea Party" and it's supposed wins in the mid-term elections.

(click to enlarge)

Why would the Republicans need a rebranding?

"Trickle Down Economics"
After 30 years of conservative fiscal policies the average income of the bottom 90% in America from 1980-2008 increased 1% compared to the previous increase of 74.6% from liberal fiscal policies 1950-1980.

War in Afghanistan officially nation's longest war
Yeah, Vietnam can be argued to have started in 1961 but it wasn't official until 1964. By that measure our war in Iraq began in 1991. And there's still no end in sight for Afghanistan or Iraq.

Largest Redistribution of Wealth in Nation's History
An all around awful plan by a Republican Treasury Secretary signed into effect by President Bush.

And so many more things like: lying to get us into Iraq then bungling both wars for years; Hurricane Katrina failures of leadership; the Terri Shiavo fiasco; under-equiping troops at war; moral hypocrisy of Vitter, Craig, Ensign, Sanford, Foley and others; spying on all Americans and granting Telecom immunity from the Constitutional protection of privacy; legitimizing torture as an American value; unaccounted billions of dollars lost to war profiteers; attempting to privatize Social Security... and on and on...

So, with this much needed rebranding how legitimate is the "Tea Party" as an actual political party? Let their own words speak for themselves:

"When a group lists themselves on our website, that's a group," Mark Meckler, a founding member of the Tea Party Patriots, told the Post. "That group could be one person, it could be 10 people, it could come in and out of existence – we don't know."

It will be interesting to see if the new Tea Party has succeeds in reversing the comically obscene failure of "fiscal conservatives" to do anything but inflate the federal debt and size to record levels each time they're in power. My money is on them forgetting what they stood for once they have power.

Wicked

2010-09-19T19:43:00.010-04:00

When did Christians stop fearing and start following witches?
(click to enlarge)

UPDATE: Well, I guess these ladies have another thing in common aside from witchcraft and Jesus - they've both lost elections now.

An Apology on Iraq... Finally

2010-09-01T17:42:00.010-04:00

"My fellow Americans: I'm a pundit, not a president, but since it's a moment for taking stock of America's role in Iraq, I want to remind you that I blew it." - Matt Miller, The Washington Post

I've been waiting for such an apology for years from the people who worked the PR campaign for the lead-up to war. It's good to hear one finally.

It takes courage to admit such an enormous error of judgement and while it may not fix any of the damage done to our nation and Iraq through the past long years of war, divisiveness and fear, it may help lead to some progress in preventing mistakes like this and possibly even some healing of our broken 4th estate.

I've been angered for years every time one of the "chattering class" speaks of faulty intelligence, being mislead or whatever else the excuse may be. How could a small journalistic enterprise like McClatchy get it right and everyone else get it wrong? How was I able to read about the lack of WMD and a nearly prophetic analysis of the debacle that awaited us from a book in my local bookstore called "Behind the Invasion of Iraq" by The Research Unit for Global Economy (a think tank in India) almost six months before the invasion and yet almost no one in the mainstream media in America was clued in to the peril that awaited us?

Was it laziness? Was it corruption? Whatever the reason is, to me it's unforgivable.

Thousands of American lives lost, tens of thousands injured and more psychologically traumatized. The true financial cost of the war is unknown but in these times of skyrocketing deficits it's a cost we didn't need. Our massively privatized military industry is a threat to peace for generations because any industry that's bottom line is based on continued instability is a curse for humanity.

And what about Iraq? After losing hundred of thousands in the Iran/Iraq War (which Reagan gamed by selling weapons and strategies to both Iraq and Iran), a brief yet destructive war under Bush Sr., a decade of draconian sanctions under Clinton which was responsible for hundreds of thousands more deaths (Madeline Albright claimed it was "worth it") and now the past 7 years of war. With hundreds of thousands more dead, millions displaced and fled to other countries, an infrastructure in ruins and a non-functioning government it will be generations before Iraq can heal from our intrusions there.

Again, I thank Mr. Miller for his apology. It is one I've been waiting to hear for years and has inspired this long diatribe I needed to get off my shoulders. I only hope his words will have an influence on all the other champions and architects of this war. What have they achieved that they are so proud of? Allowing Iraq to become a training ground for terrorists? Helping install a government with ties to Iran? Or the billions in taxpayer dollars redistributed to war-profiteers and warlords?

Please, take these lessons you've learned Mr. Miller and do everything in your power to correct the attempts at revisionist history and future calls for unnecessary wars.

Oil Money

2010-06-04T23:48:00.008-04:00

Money may not clean up the spill but it will make it go away for BP.

(click to enlarge)

Deadbeat Deity

2009-05-26T10:13:00.003-04:00

After receiving $5 million in incentives from the South Carolina state government, "Inspiration Network" has failed to deliver on it's promises.

Condos. Shops. Outdoor concerts. Internships to prepare students for careers in broadcasting. All were to be part of the Inspiration Networks' 93-acre City of Light.

More than five years after unveiling its plans, however, Inspiration has delivered on few of its development promises, leaving Lancaster officials disappointed as they try to revive a county with 19 percent unemployment.

Today, the City of Light campus is home to two buildings _ both nonprofit projects that don't pay county property taxes.

So, has Inspiration fallen on hard times? After expenses Inspiration's net profit was between $4.2 million and $11.9 million from 2002-2006. Compensation for officers and directors grew from $1.5 million to $5.9 million over the same period of time. Check the numbers here. Yet, with all that money they still felt the need to take $5 million in incentives from taxpayers.

Inspiration Network's mission statement reads: "Our mission is to impact the destiny of people and nations for Christ through media." Thus, implicating Christ himself in their greed scheme.

- - -
On a similar note:

”Foreclosures Don’t Spare House of God" and ”In Hard Times, Houses of God Turn to Chapter 11 in Book of Bankruptcy.” The headlines make God sound like a deadbeat debtor, the kind of deity who buys an expensive house and quickly falls behind on payments.

It's beginning to look more and more like we are a Christian Nation after all.

Moral Authority "Laughable"

2009-04-18T14:15:00.012-04:00

Three American journalists have recently been imprisoned in Iran and North Korea.

Roxana Saberi, a 31-year-old dual American-Iranian citizen, was arrested and sentenced in a closed court to 8 years in prison for spying in Iran.

North Korea said this week that it would put the two American journalists (Laura Ling and Euna Lee) on trial, and suggested that they could face years in a prison camp.

Our government and human rights groups are working hard for their release and concerned for their treatment.

The response has been humbling:

North Koreans scoffed at any suggestion that the Americans were receiving harsh treatment.
"They laughed. 'We are not Guantanamo.'

Iranian judiciary spokesman Ali Reza Jamshidi told reporters, "That a [U.S.] government expresses an opinion without seeing the indictment is laughable."

How can they find our concerns so "laughable"? Maybe because of the case of Sami al-Haj.

Pakistani forces apparently seized al-Haj at the behest of the U.S. authorities who suspected he had interviewed Osama bin Laden.

But that "supposed intelligence" turned out to be false.

"This is wonderful news, and long overdue," said Clive Stafford Smith who has represented al-Haj since 2005.

Al-Haj was never prosecuted at Guantanamo so the U.S did not make public its full allegations against him.

Al-Haj was the only journalist from a major international news organization held at Guantanamo and many of his supporters saw his detention as punishment for a network whose broadcasts angered U.S. officials.

For six years, an innocent man was imprisoned with no charges, no trial, constantly shifting allegations, brutal treatment, no visits with family and not even a phone call home... by the U.S. government.

Sami al-Haj's response to his imprisonment is worth thinking about:

”My last message to the US administration is that torture will not stop terrorism — torture is terrorism.”

But even more important considering the fate of three of our own journalists are the words from The Committee to Protect Journalists:

"His detention for six years, without the most basic due process, is a grave injustice and represents a threat to all journalists working in conflict areas."

- - - -
UPDATE:
Roxana Saberi was set free after an appeals court reduced her punishment to a two-year suspended sentence. So, Iran allows actual trials and appeals to their enemy combatants... And they're the "evil" ones?

When Is Torture Bad?

2009-01-10T04:37:00.009-05:00

While it's now accepted by many of our elected representatives in the United States that torture is good, there are apparently some who still believe acting like barbarians is a bad thing:

The son of ex-Liberian President Charles Taylor was sentenced to 97 years in prison on Friday in a landmark torture case that grew out of a U.S. investigation into arms trafficking in Liberia.

But according to a respected news poodle:

Bill O'Reilly: "In a perfect world, a noble nation like the USA would not need to submerge killers in water. But thousands of dead Americans have changed the rules. To allow captured killers wearing civilian clothing and fighting for no nation the privilege of name, rank, and serial number status is not only stupid, it could be lethal."

Not sure if he's talking about the thousands of dead Americans from 9/11 or from Iraq - or maybe he still thinks they are the same. But I guess, that means O'Reilly and others of the same opinion would support Charles Taylor, and his "Demon Forces" as they called themselves, in their battle against terrorism:

Taylor Jr. was tapped by his father to command an anti-terrorist unit.

Following in the footsteps of Charles Taylor. That's something to be proud of.

UPDATE:

"This is not the America I know," President George W. Bush said after the first, horrifying pictures of U.S. troops torturing prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq surfaced in April 2004. The President was not telling the truth. "This" was the America he had authorized on Feb. 7, 2002, when he signed a memorandum stating that the Third Geneva Convention — the one regarding the treatment of enemy prisoners taken in wartime — did not apply to members of al-Qaeda or the Taliban. That signature led directly to the abuses at Abu Ghraib and Guantánamo Bay. It was his single most callous and despicable act. It stands at the heart of the national embarrassment that was his presidency.

Is God a Pussy?

2008-11-13T03:22:00.010-05:00

Apparently the creator of all has a fragile ego and his followers are out to protect their delicate deity:

"Saudi King Abdullah is quietly enlisting the [UN] leaders' support for a global law to punish blasphemy - a campaign championed by the 56-member Organization of Islamic Conference that puts the rights of religions ahead of individual liberties. If the campaign succeeds, states that presume to speak in the name of religion will be able to crush religious freedom not only in their own country, but abroad."

Discussions touched upon a number of hot issues including ... Prophet Muhammad lampooning cartoons ...

The simple fact that the UN is even considering such a proposal with the slightest bit of sincerity is horrific. A free world demands free speech. If we don't follow your god/prophet/spirit guide/magic 8-ball than we should not be bound by it's rules. The rule of law is the only rule governments should rule by. Let your Almighty cast it's judgement upon us. Until then, we have spent thousands of years fighting for the freedom to speak, think and live under our own diverse beliefs. If you want to be free to practice your beliefs you should allow us the same dignity.

Lest we blame this all on the barbarian mindset of Theocratic Islam, we in the "enlightened" West should look in the mirror. A few highlights:

• Offensive Jesus remark cut from Emmy show
• Danish paper rejected Jesus cartoons
• Everyone's favorite - the supposed War on Christmas! To that I say, "Merry Horusmas!"

“What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist” - Salman Rushdie

Blackwater: "Compliance Challenges?"

2008-11-13T00:07:00.013-05:00

(click to enlarge)

Blackwater CEO Erik Prince said: "our company has experienced remarkable growth in the last few years, this growth, our work for the U.S. Government around the world, and the nature of the services we offer have created compliance challenges."

By this he means:

Blackwater shipped 900 weapons to Iraq without the paperwork required by arms export control regulations, one department official said. Some of the weapons are believed to have ended up on the country's black market.

That's one hell of a "compliance challenge" Mr. Prince.

Blackwater employees are also the subjects of a Justice Department probe into the killing of 17 Iraqi civilians in Baghdad's Nisoor Square on Sept. 16, 2007.

Winning the hearts and minds one bullet at a time.

On a related note, there's been some outrage from the right-wing lately about a comment President-elect Obama made,

"We've got to have a civilian national security force that's just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded."

The response has been interesting:

"A Republican congressman from Georgia said Monday he fears that President-elect Obama will establish a Gestapo-like security force to impose a Marxist dictatorship. We can't be lulled into complacency," Broun said. "You have to remember that Adolf Hitler was elected in a democratic Germany. I'm not comparing him to Adolf Hitler. What I'm saying is there is the potential of going down that road."

Where have these people been while a massive private military force has been taking over the role policing abroad and at home? Their outrage at a vague proposal by Obama sounds a little hollow after the past six years of silence over the emergence of a massive army for hire.

Security for profit means insecurity becomes needed for increased profit.

Where is the right's outrage when it is needed?

Unthinkable Consequences

2008-10-09T04:56:00.007-04:00

PBS's "Wide Angle" did a report about the Iraqi refugee crisis and I found the report truly eye-opening and incredibly important. The point I found most chilling beyond the moral element that these 2 million refugees have nowhere to go, no way to earn a living and are growing increasingly desperate for help despite all the UN has done, is that filling the void are organizations like the Mahdi Army. The same Mahdi Army responsible for the majority of insurgent attacks and sectarian destabilization in Iraq, and they are using the desperation and alienation to recruit more insurgents.

Jordan's Queen Noor says in the report: "Unthinkable consequences await a world that does nothing to solve this refugee crisis." in regard to the 2 million refugees in Syria and Jordan. The obvious consequence is further destabilization of a region already on edge.

If you have the time to watch the report it is full of emotional and eye-opening interviews, offers some uplifting elements and some real problems this crisis poses. It is also a superb example of what quality journalism can be.

Refugee International has information on ways to help. Whether it is a letter to congress, petitions to sign or donations to aid organizations. There is also a lot of information about the crisis on this website if you don't have time to watch the PBS report.

Even with all the issues affecting us like the economy, the elections and the environment I personally feel this is an incredibly important issue. Morally we as Americans have a stake in these peoples lives, and rationally we can't let 2 million people, (500,00 children) become alienated, let moderate countries to become unstable and let radical organizations grow from our lack of attention.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope the issue will attract the attention it merits and we can all help remedy this crisis.

Also, if any of you know of other resources to help please let me know. Thanks.

UPDATE: Here's another great resource: Iraq Action Days

Not My Prophet!

2008-10-07T01:42:00.008-04:00

Freedom of religion is not a one-way street. Instead of simply letting their gods condemn people like me to hell they've forced us all to live a hell of their own creation.

Yet again, followers of Islam have brought terror to the heathen literary world because of a book of fiction. Here are the words of some defenders of this atrocious act of violence:

"Is Muhammad YOUR PROPHET. Only muslims have the right to say anything about him."

"I mean its really pathetic bcoz you have no interest in your own religion therfore are jealous of the fact that muslims have a strong belief."

"Islam is yet again painted in bad light as a result of direct provocation."

Muhammed is not my prophet, so I can or cannot say whatever I want about him. I am definitely not jealous of the horribly primitive laws by which Islam or any other major religion places upon it's followers. And, no one provoked these reactions. No one is forced to read this book. Heck, the book hasn't even been published yet. Is the religion of Islam so fragile that the simple existence of differing ideas fatally threaten it's foundation?

Before anyone of Christian belief starts tossing rocks they may want to remember that with the exception of violent reactions, they too are affiliated with a religion that bans, boycotts and cries about free speech. Here's some recent examples that are pretty absurd: Harry Potter and The Da Vinci Code. And let's not forget Sarah Palin injecting religious beliefs into her policy by trying to ban books.

I've heard some on the liberal side mention banning Right-Wing authors who promote violence and hatred and to them I offer the same advice: If you don't want to hear it, don't read it. That is also your freedom.

Salman Rushdie said it best in his book, "The Satanic Verses":

"To name the unnamable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world and stop it from going to sleep. And if rivers of blood flow from the cuts his verses inflict, then they will nourish him. He is the satirist."

May we all stay awake and may the satirist continue to point at frauds. And if rivers of blood do continue to flow, may the satirist grow even stronger.

Questions For A Christian Nation

2008-01-16T15:02:00.000-05:00

Growing up in a secular country I am finding the growing desire to turn the United States into a "Christian Nation" mystifying and troubling. I have many questions for those who pose this idea such as:

What is your final solution to this Christian Nation you want?

What would you propose my Jewish, Buddhist, Atheist and Agnostic friends do? Should we all pretend to accept Jesus to avoid offending your beliefs? Wouldn't such placating be even more offensive in it's insincerity as well as call into question the strength of you own beliefs if they are so fragile as to be threatened by other ideas?

Would you take the extreme measure of isolating all non-Christians to reservations as was done the the "heathen" natives of our land where we would be free to exercise our own beliefs free from persecution, but without the infrastructure, liberties and opportunities of this nation?

Diving into greater detail, would we banish all gift shops from the temples of God as Jesus had done? Would we turn the other cheek from foreign attacks by offering forgiveness, or would we commit the sin of imposing judgement ourselves?

"Be careful not to do your 'acts of righteousness' before men, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
Do Jesus' words mean nothing to those who profess to follow him? What passage in the Bible justifies their quest for political powers to have rule over the world? Maybe this one:

The devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."
A tempting offer for the Christian Nationalists I guess.

- - -

On a related note:
"Imbued with the desire to secure for the German people the great religious, moral, and cultural values rooted in the two Christian Confessions, we have abolished the political organizations but strengthened the religious institutions.”
-Adolf Hitler, in a speech at Reichstag, Berlin, January 30, 1934.

and

"We were convinced that the people needs and requires this faith. We have therefore undertaken the fight against the atheistic movement, and that not merely with a few theoretical declarations:
we have stamped it out."
-Adolf Hitler, in a speech in Berlin on 24 Oct. 1933

A Prayer From An Atheist

2007-10-10T15:49:00.002-04:00

When there are millions out there caught up in chaos, carnage and corruption, why I am unimaginably fortunate to have personal freedom from such persecutions? What did I do to be blessed with this fortunate life? What did the rest of the world do so wrong to be cursed with such suffering?

Is it because I was born American? Born white? Born male? Is it because I was Baptized and ate the body of Christ? Maybe if I still believed then God would give me the answer. But looking out from these rocks at the sun setting in front of me I found it impossible to believe that this majestic beauty was created by the same God that created us in his own image. That God would have built a big casino with air-conditioning and luxury suites.

These are not new thoughts, they are not profound, but after spending four weeks in an island paradise witnessing the total demolition of it's beauty in the erecting of massive resorts for rich foreigners to come and exploit the gracious (and cheap) labor of the locals for our own selfish escapism... these are important thoughts. Ones that seem very rarely to enter the vacuous heads of our over-privileged capitalist minds. Instead I had conversations with guys who were "amazed" at how easy it is to "make a fortune off these people" and how cheap it was to buy up their property. Not a single thought about where these people will go once you buy their property, not a concern about how this beautiful island they are building on will lose it's beauty once it is saturated in all our "luxuries" we cannot seem to live without. Instead of enjoying the inherent beauty of this place and it's people we must bring our posh resorts, our European restaurants, our McDonald's and Starbucks with us so it feels just like home.

We can't enjoy a foreign land without making it ours... Just like we can't enjoy the earth without making it ours.

Hopefully humanity will one day learn to be humane. Hopefully the fortunate few will one day learn it is not necessary to keep taking more fortune from those who have little.

Hopefully our earth will be kinder to us than we have been to it.

Another Climate Crisis

2007-06-19T07:18:00.000-04:00

A six-to-one plastic to plankton ratio in our ocean is something that seems surreal but is sadly a reality we have created:

In 2002 [Charles Moore] was startled to discover a six-to-one plastic to plankton ratio in the eastern garbage patch: six pieces of plastic to every piece of zooplankton. This past November he was alarmed even more, finding that 600 miles outside the center of the garbage patch, ocean water samples contained a three-to-one plastic to plankton ratio.

We haven’t yet had a plastic-free sample from anywhere in the Pacific Ocean.

According to Mr. Moore's findings about 80% of the plastic comes from humans on land and of that 90% is household pollution. That means that the majority of this plastic filling our oceans is basically litter.

Baby Laysan albatross of Midway Atoll are literally starving to death. Their carcasses litter the beaches, stomachs bursting with plastic bottle caps, cigarette lighters and other recognizable plastic debris. Jellyfish, which thrive on plankton, ingest tiny bits of plastic along with their food.

Dr. Curtis Ebbesmeyer [founder of Beachcombers Alert] has proposed the thesis that all the food in the ocean contains plastic. That’s the alarming possibility.

Very alarming.

God's Word: "Deny!"

2007-04-26T08:54:00.002-04:00

It seems the Almighty has become bored with the grand scheme and is once again dishing out advice on business matters to His devoted prophets.

Oral Roberts University President Richard Roberts, says God is speaking again, telling him to deny lurid allegations in a lawsuit.

Yup, the Supreme Creator can't let a 44 year old college get embroiled in a legal scandal that could threaten to expose it's saintly President as a corrupt scoundrel so He's taken on the case personally. Although, His Holiness may not be entirely clean in the matters Himself as he has a history of financial interests in Oral Robert's University in which He threatened Oral himself that he would "Meet his maker" if he didn't round up $8 million dollars and establish this college in his name. Fortunately Robert's followers managed to scrounge up the payoff and saved Mr. Robert's from the crushing grip of God's henchman, a 900 foot tall Jesus.

Most importantly though, we can all rest assured that this institution of "Higher" learning is in God's hands.

Waking From the American Dream

2007-03-02T04:40:00.000-05:00

In the eternal tug of war that is our nation's great struggle, a Manifest destiny toward Kleptocracy, it appears the ruling class is confidently dragging the unwashed masses toward defeat.

Personal incomes rose in January at the fastest clip in a year, bolstered by bonus payments to high-income executives. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that personal incomes rose by 1 percent in January while consumer spending was up by 0.5 percent.

While at the same time:

The analysis showed that the number of people living in extreme poverty had grown by 26 per cent since 2000. Poverty as a whole has worsened, too, but the number of severe poor is growing 56 per cent faster than the overall segment of the population characterized as poor - about 37 million people in all according to the census data.

Just how poor is this "extreme poverty" they talk about?

The number of Americans living in severe poverty has expanded dramatically under the Bush administration, with nearly 16 million people now living on an individual income of less than $5,000 a year or a family income of less than $10,000, according to an analysis of 2005 official census data.

How can income and consumer spending be rising if there is such a growing mass of extreme poverty? Here's how:

The richest fifth of US households enjoys more than 50 per cent of the national income, while the poorest fifth gets by on an estimated 3.5 per cent. The average after-tax income of the top 1 per cent is 63 times larger than the average for the bottom 20 per cent - both because the rich have grown richer and also because the poor have grown poorer; about 19 per cent poorer since the late 1970s. The middle class, too, has been squeezed ever tighter. Every income group except for the top 20 per cent has lost ground in the past 30 years, regardless of whether the economy has boomed or tanked.

Yes, that's right, for the last 30 years - no matter what party the government was controlled by - the bottom 80 percent lost ground. Do you really need to ask who truly runs this country anymore?

Media Ignores Victories Against Terrorism.

2007-01-29T15:13:00.000-05:00

How is it that in the past ten years over 60 terrorist plots have been foiled and yet not one major TV news station or print newspaper has mentioned this? It's not like they are afraid of sensationalism and putting the fear of imminent death into their viewers - I mean, it's great for ratings. But with all this talk on the Global War on Terror it is really shameful how our media refuses to point out the achievements our country has had in fighting these freedom-hating religious zealots and extremists. Here's a brief rundown of the evil that the liberal media refuses to make a stand against:

In the 10 years since the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing killed 168 people, roughly 60 right-wing terrorist plots have been uncovered in the United States. The plots, all foiled by law enforcement, reportedly included violent plans by antigovernment militia groups, racist skinhead organizations, and Ku Klux Klan members to use various types of chemical bombs and other weapons.

and...

On Sept. 11, 2006, the fifth anniversary of the terror attacks that devastated our nation, a man crashed his car into a building in Davenport, Iowa, hoping to blow it up and kill himself in the fire.

"I am a terrorist," Waagner declared on the Army of God's web site.

I say it's time for the media to stop ignoring these threats to America's security. If these people looked like this you can be sure the press would be all over it!

George W. Bush is the Best President Ever.

2006-09-10T19:08:00.004-04:00

"Stop being good Democrats. Stop being good Republicans. Start being good Americans." - Aaron Russo

The most dangerous thing I keep hearing people talk about in the media, on blogs and in daily conversations is how the administration is incompetent or that they have made mistakes. The administration knows exactly what they are doing, they know what all the critics are saying, what all the intelligence says but they also know who they are working for and it is not the common American citizen.

1. Fed Reserve is profiting off us like never before.
2. Military industrial complex is profiting like never before.
3. Oil companies are profiting like never before.
4. Pharmaceuticals are profiting like never before.

These are their core constituents. The people who got them elected. They know exactly what they are doing and are amazingly good at it.

Remember, the massive debt our country is in is our money that is owed - the interest being paid is pure profit to the Federal Reserve (a private bank, not a government bank).

If you want an eye opener, watch: "America Freedom to Fascism". It is the prime example of what the Republican Party once stood for before selling it's soul to private interests.

Stream or download it here.
Go to their website.
Sign the petition.

All the proof you need is in these words right here:
"A great industrial nation is controlled by it's system of credit. Our system of credit is concentrated in the hands of a few men. We have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated governments in the world - no longer a government of free opinion, no longer a government by conviction and vote of the majority, but a government by the opinion and duress of small groups of dominant men." - Former President Woodrow Wilson

Birth to Death Without Ever Leaving Wal-Mart

2006-08-08T03:01:00.000-04:00

The American Dream for Less.
You get what you pay for...

Wal-Mart University is the newest frontier the good ol' boys in Arkansas have planned for our future workforce. No need to worry about all those hard courses in school because now all you need to know is what Wal-Mart wants you to know. No more need to worry about ever having to expand your horizons or explore various aspects of life because you will never need to leave Wal-Mart.

The idea is simple: Wal-Mart needs more people with managerial skills so they ask our government to start offering Wal-Mart curriculum in community colleges and the lucky students have a head start in the exciting field of store management.

So Wal-Mart is moving into education now... How long before Wal-Mart will start offering housing and medical services? Once that is completed the only things modern life requires will be details easily acquired by the behemoth that is that glistening cube of white hope on the horizon. From birth to death spent under the nurturing florescent lights overseen by the friendly greeter who waves to you on your way to work in Aisle 16 or on your way home to that nice little duplex with a garden in Aisle 37. Your kids will be born over in the healthcare center (which you'll have to pay for out of pocket because Wal-Mart won't offer you health insurance benefits) and no need to retire because your meager wages will never allow you the ability to save a spare dime so when your final breath is exhaled and you drop the jar of mayonnaise you were stocking on the shelves, as life slowly leaves your body the final sound your dying ears hear will be, "Clean-up on Aisle 12... Can I get a clean-up on Aisle 12?"

The Tyranny of Feminism!

2006-03-10T18:05:00.001-05:00

A new breed of revolutionary is here and they are breaking down barriers, shattering that glass ceiling and finally giving a voice to the oppressed men of this nation.

• Matt Dubay is a strong man who is proudly taking a stand against his newborn son's oppressive demands for child support. This child and it's cold-hearted mother have used the liberal courts to steal $500 a month from Mr. Dubay - money that could be used in his noble quest to hook up at the local bar. Fortunately for men everywhere he is not giving in and is bravely taking on these socialist oppressors in the fight for the right to ignore his responsibilities.

• In a similar case, Senator Bill Napoli of North Dakota has made a bold statement against the special rights women seem to feel they are entitled to. In backing a statewide ban on abortion Mr. Napoli has stopped women from being able to neglect their obligations and unlike so many lawmakers with less cahones, Mr. Napoli won't take any lame excuses. There is no way for any woman to swindle her way out of her responsibilities unless she is "brutally raped, savaged... The girl was a virgin, she was religious, she planned on saving her virginity until she was married. She was brutalized and raped, sodomized as bad as you can possibly make it, and is impregnated." No weak excuse of just being raped and sodomized - she must also be brutalized and a god-fearing virgin! Take that all you weak-kneed skanks! Mr. Napoli also proudly states that he wants to get back to traditional values like we had back in the "Old West", back in the days when a woman was kept in her proper place, men could rape and sodomize her then apparently was forced to marry her by the community. Keep on fighting the good fight, brother.
Crooks & Liars has the video

• Finally, Doug Anglin, a 17-year-old senior in high school is taking on those Massachusetts liberals in an all out war against his civil rights. It seems this blue-state is unfairly granting more girls to their honor roll than boys. ''The system is designed to the disadvantage of males," Anglin said. ''From the elementary level, they establish a philosophy that if you sit down, follow orders, and listen to what they say, you'll do well and get good grades. Men naturally rebel against this." We stand behind you Mr. Anglin in your quest for acceptance in this world being over-run by feminists and sissy-boys who insist on following the rules and doing schoolwork as some kind of "requirement" for academic achievement. Their elitist ways are a disgrace to our nation founded on the individuals right to success without effort. If we've learned anything these past five years under our Commander and Chief it is that effort and understanding should be punished and being rich and connected is what really matters in this world.
Check out the Curmudgeon Bastard's wise analysis of the story.

Our Fearless Leader in Action...

2006-01-18T06:52:00.000-05:00

God save us.(click image to enlarge)

How Dare They...

2006-01-17T04:38:00.000-05:00

Just because the U.S. military dropped a bomb and killed 18 Pakistani villiagers for no apparent reason does not give these people the right to call us Americans terrorists. That's so insulting. We are not mere terrorists, we are a fully operational, government sanction, technologically superior and morally indifferent military force! Those 18 villagers were not the victim of pointless violence - they were martyrs to the "Global Struggle Against the Enemies of Freedom and the Enemies of Civilization" and their sacrifice is well respected by all Americans as essential in creating stability in an unstable land. I mean, what better way to make friends than by killing their families?

Anyway, I really just wish those ingrates would see that we kill them because we care about their freedoms. And only they can be terrorists, not us.

Terrorists Destroy Christmas!!!

2005-12-05T03:31:00.000-05:00

In a recent Pentagon briefing written by Brit Hume the U.S. has announced a new front in the "War on Terror." The new threat is more frightening than anything we have ever seen because this time the enemy is within and its presence is huge. They have infiltrated every aspect of American life and now they have finally devised the most vicious assault on Western Civilization we have seen since Satan first fell from heaven.

Their plan is quite simple really; they are attacking America at its core by taking the Christ out of Christmas!!!

You see, by taking the "Christ" out of "Christmas" they are taking the "Consume" out "Consumerism" and thus the "Free" out of "Freedom." Once they have managed to do this, Americans nationwide will be helplessly stricken with "Bah-Hum-Bug" fever and unable to flock out to Wal-Mart and buy their loved ones the new "Homedics Pedicure Jet Action Footbath" or "Personalized Fashion Photo Tie" thus creating a staggering seasonal income shortage for manufacturers and retailers. Amidst all this chaos the loss of Christmas Spirit will set off a manic wave of depression through the hearts and souls of Americans everywhere leading to the final plan of attack. The most fiendish and demented part of the operation is the Comedy Central "Holiday Spectacular" where every man woman and child will be subjected to the secular diatribe of liberal terrorist Al Franken's stand up comedy resulting in catastrophic boredom and even possible mass suicides. With America's spirit broken it will only be a matter of days before these terrorists can topple our government and destroy civilization.

Fortunately we have discovered this fiendish plot and are taking the necessary steps to dismantle their network, capture - or kill if needed - all operatives and restore peace and tranquility to our nation. So, please do your part as Americans and remember to say merry Christmas to everyone you see on the street, everyone at your place of work and everyone you go to school with. And if any of them make any mention of not believing in Jesus or celebrating the Christmas holiday you should immediately report these terrorists to your local police who are in direct communication with Homeland Security. We must be vigilant and protect our nation from the terrorists who wish to turn America into a place with no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, thus building a wall of separation between Church and State. We cannot let this happen, otherwise the terrorists have won.

As a great man once said, "We have nothing to fear but God himself!"

I pray for you all.

Just like "Us"

2005-12-01T08:10:00.000-05:00

The institutions of marriage, faith and celebrity have never looked better... It feels so good to know that folks like Tom Cruise, Paris Hilton, Britney Spears and other wonderful examples of humanity are just like "us" - makes everything seem right in the world.

Infallible Diva

2005-11-30T08:12:00.000-05:00

The Pope Wears Prada?

"He may never make the best-dressed lists, but Pope Benedict XVI is nothing short of a religious-fashion icon, riding in the Popemobile with red Prada loafers under his cassock and Gucci shades."

Say what you will about a religion that doesn't want women or homos to be their club leaders yet thinks a former Nazi has the credentials needed to be an infallible spiritual middleman to God himself, but this thing about wearing designer duds is just plain loony. Not that there is anything wrong with a full grown man drenched in gold and glittering sequins with red little shoes and gaudy sunglasses, parading about in a "Popemobile." But for a religion that preaches humility it is teetering on the verge of hypocrisy if you ask me. I'm not an expert on the bible but I don't think Jesus pranced around in ruby slippers and got prissy when his tailors cut his robe a bit shorter than he preferred. And while supporting local merchants is respectable, Mr. Benedict may want to reconsider his choices. Can you find more of a fashion whore than Gucci? These are the classy folks who stick their "G" logo on everything from dog dishes to i-Pod cases.

It all reminds me of my first visit to the venerable St. Patrick's Cathedral in NYC. Upon entering this majestic temple of worship, Christ's eager pilgrims are treated to a cute little gift-shop hawking $2,000 jeweled rosaries and other such lavish prayer devices. I guess God will listen more intently if you rub your fingers elegantly upon shiny diamonds than if you just smear your filthy mitts on plastic beads. It's so amazing how these people don't even pretend to have read the Bible and yet have such a devoted following.

Normally, I don't get too concerned about fashion choices or things like that but when an organization holds obscene amounts of money and influence like this one does than it would be really nice if it's followers would think about the idiocy of their decision to support it. Like before you make decisions about what a woman has a right to do with her own uterus, wouldn't it seem appropriate to listen to a woman? I know it's often a burden having to discuss serious issues with women since God created them so darn irrational and inferior but it is their body at stake, they should have some say in the matter. And before you start kicking fags out of the ministry you might want to reel in your mascot who's waltzing around looking like a transvestite diva.

God's great insurance scam.

2005-11-01T04:35:00.000-05:00

It's the first moments of November, the month of my birth, and this one thing keeps running through my mind and dancing upon what little fragments of esteem my "self" still clings onto with compulsive delusions: "Why?"

Why am I concerned about anything that this world has to say anymore? There are so many voices out there and nobody seems to have any control over the reality of our predicament. Everyday it seems I hear another voice telling me it is all over, we will see the end in our days. Then another voice fights back that we must make drastic changes or we will all perish. And then yet another voice shouts out with indignation that we are on the right path and must stay the course. And these voices just circle around my consciousness like moths straining to enter into the light and in the end they all just burn up in reality's brutal glare. The reality is that no ones knows what the hell is going on and when ever anything happens it catches us all with our pants down looking stunned and stupid.

The war, the hurricanes, the terrorism, the economy, the crime and the racism and the suffering is all a suprise to everyone because no one expected humanity of such inhumanity. In hindsight we are all arguing over whose to blame and what to do and how we are right and they are wrong. One side will say it was obvious that we were headed for trouble and the other will say the trouble was there from the beginning. It's all a big catastrophe because they don't have any morals and our god is taking his vengeance out on their evil ways. And in the end it is everyone's fault because humanity is inhumane. Caring doesn't pay the bills. And you know what, in the end it's all gonna end so what are you gonna do about it?

Why all the focus on morals too? Whose morals, yours or mine? There's a good chance my morals differ drastically from yours and who's to say either one of us is right? Whose morals are at fault? Is it mine? Is it because I don't believe in god that this world is going to hell in a handbasket? Or is it because so many people follow a god that doesn't exist? Do they believe in god the creator or "godTM" that is sold on TV by spiritual salesman offering salvation for low monthly payments and the god that hates fags and feminists and fucking? And why can't believers agree on what they believe in? How are nonbelievers supposed to take their argument seriously when they don't even take their own kind seriously? Forget about all the different gods out there stirring up wars and oppression but focus on just one god - any one of 'em. Whose to say that every sect of christianity is wrong but the Jehovah's Witnesses, or the Southern Baptists, or the Christian Scientists, or the Jews For Jesus, or the lost but not forgotten Branch Davidians? Are they all not just fastfood chains shucking out edible byproducts to impatient consumers with no concern for nutritious content? When did a person's soul become a commodity to be bought through spiritual free trade? It was Jesus who said "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life." Now it is his sheep who have been devoured by the wolves of power and money just as so many other sheep of different flocks. They all have been herded into factions and made pawns of war. The moral crusaders fight on with contrived notions of morality spun intricately out of writings in an ancient tome that is said to be the word of whatever god they are pushing and thread throughout the fabric of societies until we are all tightly wound in their web of obedience. These morals that keep us from pleasuring in the flesh and pleasuring in the mind so that we may one day be rewarded with pleasures of the soul. The problem with deals where the payment comes in the back end is that the payee usually ends up taking it in the ass. So I'm sorry god but no deal for you. If you want my services I want half up front and the final half upon completion. Yes that's right, I want pleasures now and pleasures when I am done with this life. If you can't agree with those conditions I'll just have to take my business elsewhere. That's how we deal now in corporate spirituality. You can thank your salesmen Osama, Falwell and the 700 Thug for them apples.

They all say they are about love and compassion but condemn acts of love and show compassion to none who oppose them. What is it that we all want salvation from anyway? Are we asking for salvation from god? Doesn't say much for god if the guy can supposedly create the heavens and earth but can't control a bit of bad temper. No, I guess we're asking for salvation from ourselves. Seems to be right, how else can you explain the popularity of daytime talkshows other than that we really hate who we are and want everyone to make amends for our wicked ways.

Everyone wants salvation but it seems to be that everyone's idea of it is totally different. The notion that life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are ideals worth dying for have been trampled by a chanting chorus of bigger, better and faster; which is clashing with symphonies of Who Would Jesus Damn which is utterly out of tune with the hippie jamfest of peaceniks and treehuggers. So in come the insurance salesman to offer us a deal on our souls. "Pay now and we guarantee your soul eternal security." Call it afterlife insurance. How do you get salvation and where do you buy it? Who has the best rates and the lowest deductables? What's in the fine print, what are the rules? Who should we hate and when should we kill them?

Everywhere you go there is someone who says they can offer you insight on the path to righteousness. And with all these voices screaming out for attention the average American mind changes the channel and listens to the battling voices on American Idol. With all the voices wanting to be heard it is almost funny how no one is really listening. It's just too many voices and too little time on this planet to care anymore.

So if it's all going to end then why not go out with a bang? Let's leave an unmistakable mark here for future civilizations to debate over and future fundamentalist zealots to deny the existence of. Why not cut down every tree, mine every rock, pump out every last drop of oil? Once we've turned the earth inside out we'll ignite every bomb we've got and send the whole place up in a blaze of glory letting god know that the deal is off, he can have his fucking planet back and forget about any future payments because he sold us insurance on souls he never gave us.