Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Bush Mis-Placing Money in Iraq

Any way you cut it, folks, Bush's misadventure in Iraq has been a total disaster:
"A financial review carried out by the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction (SIGIR), looking into large Iraqi Relief and Reconstruction Fund projects, has revealed that most of the $1.2 billion in funding that the U.S. State Department provided to DynCorp International to train Iraqi police is unaccounted for, CNN reported on Tuesday."
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More Gonzales Scandal

Not good. Former AG charges prosecutions of Democrats were politically motivated:
"Washington - Richard L. Thornburgh, attorney general in the Reagan and first Bush administrations, charged Tuesday that political reasons motivated the Justice Department to open corruption investigations against Democrats in Mr. Thornburgh's home state, Pennsylvania.

In testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, Mr. Thornburgh became the first former Republican attorney general to join with Democratic lawmakers to suggest that the Justice Department under Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales had singled out Democratic politicians for prosecution."
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Presidential Gibberish


Okay, maybe it isn't fair to poke fun at Bush for his mangled syntax, but I can't help myself. See if you can figure out what he's trying to say here. Direct from the White House.
"Because the -- all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculated, for example, is on the table. Whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those -- changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be -- or closer delivered to that has been promised. Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled.

Look, there's a series of things that cause the -- like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate -- the benefits will rise based upon inflation, supposed to wage increases.

There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those -- if that growth is affected, it will help on the red."
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Monday, October 22, 2007

Huckabee's Skeleton in the Closet

Having lived and worked in Arkansas (1992-1998), I remember this scandal unfolding. At the time, it didn't really make it on to the national media's radar, but it was certainly a hot topic in Arkansas. I'm surprised that I was able to find this mention of it on Fox News:
"The Arkansas Ethics Commission has five times found that Huckabee violated state ethics guidelines, including letters of warning and reprimand and fines after finding Huckabee failed to report a $43,150 payment he received from his 1994 lieutenant governor's campaign for use of his personal airplane."
And here's yet another mention of Huckabee's ethics problem, this time from Denver Westword, a New York Times owned publication in Colorado:
"[Jonathan]Weil wound up at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in Little Rock, where he caused persistent pain to Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee. He reported, for instance, that during a previous race for lieutenant governor, Huckabee's campaign paid him over $43,000 for the use of his plane without including the payments on financial disclosure forms. Such scoops reinforced Weil's decision to get back into journalism.
And then there is this:
"Huckabee Defended Ethics Commission's 14 Complaints, Five Resulted in Violations. The Ethics Commission addressed 14 complaints against Mike Huckabee during his political career. Five resulted in findings that he violated ethics guidelines. [Associated Press, 11/23/06]"
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Thursday, October 18, 2007

US Military: Bush/Cheney 'Out of Control'




Military historian, Gabriel Kolko, is the author of "The Age of War: The United States Confronts the World," and "The Anatomy of War." This is from a recent online interview:
"Many in the US military think Bush and Cheney are out of control. They are rebelling against Bush and Cheney. Washington Post reporter Dana Priest recently said in an interview that she believed the US military would revolt and refuse to fly missions against Iran if the White House issued such orders."
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Literacy in the US

In my work, I've only ever encountered one adult who admitted to me that she could not read. Yesterday, I encountered another who apparently cannot read. I was riding the Metro, and the woman next to me asked me which station connected with the #132. There was a chart nearby, where the connections were listed. I pointed out to her that the chart said she could catch the #132 at Wheeler Station, which according to the map on the chart is just about four stops down the line.

"Just watch the electronic sign at the front of the car, and you'll see when we're approaching Wheeler," I told her.

"Will you tell me when we get there?" she asked?

Then, I realized that she couldn't read. How in the world does that woman get along?
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Wednesday, October 17, 2007

US Army Captains - Time to Get out of Iraq


Twelve former US Army captains write in the Washington Post about what they see going on in Iraq. How long before Limbaugh calls them "phony soldiers"?
"Today marks five years since the authorization of military force in Iraq, setting Operation Iraqi Freedom in motion. Five years on, the Iraq war is as undermanned and under-resourced as it was from the start. And, five years on, Iraq is in shambles.

As Army captains who served in Baghdad and beyond, we've seen the corruption and the sectarian division. We understand what it's like to be stretched too thin. And we know when it's time to get out. "
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Friday, October 12, 2007

Gore Wins Nobel Peace Prize

Read excerpts from Gore's Nobel prize citation here.
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Who's Counting?



Clinton/Gore -- one Oscar -- three Grammys - and a Nobel Peace Prize.

Bush/Cheney --- Three DUIs.



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Thursday, October 11, 2007

Invasion of Iraq a "Disastrous Mistake"

Seems Bush's efforts to wage a "war on terror" is "fueling Al Qaeda," rather than making them less of a threat.

From the New York Times:
"LONDON (Reuters) - Six years after the September 11 attacks in the United States, the "war on terror" is failing and instead fueling an increase in support for extremist Islamist movements, a British think-tank said on Monday."
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