Politics
« Older Entries | Newer Entries »Will Obama Need a Dick Tuck?
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 9, 2008 by admin in Politics
Saturday, August 9th, 2008Or Am I Making A Mountain Out Of A Mole?
While a lot of people, specifically liberals, feel comfortable that Barack Obama’s smooth, articulate style will help him win against the stodgy, brain-fart-laden mannerisms of John McCain, let’s not forget America’s recent political history. Richard Nixon’s presidency will forever be a reminder that even a surly, humorless, sweaty-lipped used car salesman can run for president and win. Even when a legendary prankster like Dick Tuck is working against him. I say legendary, even though I’d never heard of him until yesterday. If anyone out there can find a photo of Mr. Tuck, I’d like to see it. The only image I could find (at left) is from the museumofhoaxes.com site. By the way, I STRONGLY discourage doing a Google Image Search for “Dick Tuck”.
Capitol Hilton
[ 1 Comment ]Posted on August 6, 2008 by admin in Politics
Wednesday, August 6th, 2008The video speaks for itself, if a bit woodenly.
Proving that political campaigns have truly devolved to the level of entertainment, Paris Hilton responds to the McCain campaign’s use of her likeness by announcing she’s running for president. No big deal, I’m running for president too. This got me thinking though, about that rarely-mentioned monster, the Military-Entertainment Complex, which then (curse you, Internet!) led me to spend an hour or so perusing TomDispatch.com, which further led me to impulsively order two books: The Wrecking Crew: How Conservatives Rule
Anthrax: Also Available on CD
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 5, 2008 by admin in Politics
Tuesday, August 5th, 2008Or as a new movie by Oliver Stone
I never cared much for the band Anthrax, but you’ll probably find more factual information on their web site than in any of the following links. The Anthrax case that’s been hitting the press cycle again reminds me of an episode of the original Star Trek series in which Spock tells a beautiful female android: “everything I tell you is a lie”. The simple paradox short-circuits the android’s brain, causing smoke to come from her ears. That’s how I feel as I try to keep up with this. First, there was the Hatfill guy, Ashcroft’s person of interest back in 2001. He’s now won his case against the government, but I personally never believed he was the culprit anyway. Just a little too coincidental for my tastes was the sudden alleged suicide of Bruce E. Ivins, the FBI’s immediate announcement that he had recently been informed he was under investigation, and the sudden appearance of his loose-lipped therapist claiming he was a latent raging homicidal maniac. Anybody smell a patsy scenario? Well, apparently people like Richard Spertzel do , and he’s not your average paranoid conspiracist. He was head of the biological-weapons section of Unscom from 1994-99. This Think Progress piece suggests that the White House pressured the FBI to link the Anthrax to Al Qaeda back in 2001, and now the FBI is urging the DOJ to close the case, while admitting the case against Ivins was largely circumstantial. Can’t wait to see the Oliver Stone version.
How To Win The War Against Terrorism
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 31, 2008 by admin in Politics
Thursday, July 31st, 2008According to the Rand Corporation: Don’t Wage War In The First Place
Maybe, um, stop waging a war on it? Put this in the “things – everybody – except – the – Bush – administration – seems – to – know” box. The Rand Corporation has just put on line a brief called How Terrorist Groups End – Implications for Countering al Qa’ida. They suggest that the only successful ways to counter terror groups pretty much involve anything BUT a military solution: “…most groups ended because of operations carried out by local police or intelligence agencies or because they negotiated a settlement with their governments. Military force was rarely the primary reason a terrorist group ended, and few groups within this time frame achieved victory…” . They have a lot of interesting information in the report, which was culled from data collected on 648 groups that were active between 1968 and 2006.
GOP Discovers Internet
[ Comments Off ]Posted on July 29, 2008 by admin in Politics
Tuesday, July 29th, 2008The GOP wants you to meet Barack Obama – their way
John McCain may be a nearly invisible, doddering old fart (did I really just say may be?) but the GOP is showing a little youthful spring in its step with two new web sites they’ve launched. First, there’s MeetBarackObama.com, which has punchy little headlines for its anti-Obama “news items” like Ich Bin Ein Hypocrite. Perhaps much more clever is BarackBook.com, which mocks Obama’s actual FaceBook page by highlighting his connections with people like William Ayers and Marilyn Katz. Unfortunately for whoever these hip kids of the GOP are, their candidate is still doing more for the Obama campaign than anyone else just by speaking in public.