From American Progress:
Think Fast
36 percent: President Bush's approval rating, down from 38 percent in August, according to a new Time poll. "Two-thirds of Americans aware of the congressional-page sex scandal believe Republican leaders tried to cover it up."
After returning home from a week in Iraq, Sen. John Warner (R-VA) yesterday told reporters, "[I]n two or three months, if this thing hasn't come to fruition and if this level of violence is not under control and this government able to function, I think it's a responsibility of our government internally to determine: Is there a change of course that we should take?"
"Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's delay in replacing former deputy Robert Zoellick, who quit in June, is creating policy gaps on major issues from China to Sudan," according to U.S. foreign policy analysts.
Congress passed a law establishing new job qualifications for the FEMA director in last week's homeland security bill, requiring a candidate who has "a demonstrated ability in and knowledge of emergency management" and "not less than five years of executive leadership." Bush signed the homeland-security bill; then, hours later, he issued a signing statement saying he could ignore the new restrictions.
"Despite their packed megachurches, their political clout and their increasing visibility on the national stage, evangelical Christian leaders are warning one another that their teenagers are abandoning the faith in droves."
PBS Newshour -- described as "the mother ship of balance" by a Public Broadcasting ombudsman -- "fails to provide either balance or diversity of perspectives," according to a new study.
CREW, the watchdog group "that first provided the FBI with suspicious e-mails from then-Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL) said yesterday that FBI and Justice Department officials are attempting to cover up their inaction in the case by making false claims about the group."
Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA), the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, again said the Bush administration is suppressing a classified intelligence report on Iraq that paints a "grim" picture of the situation. Harman wrote a letter to CIA Director Michael Hayden requesting the document's release.
A new report from the Justice Department Inspector General says the federal Bureau of Prisons "does not read all the mail for terrorist and other high-risk inmates on its mail monitoring lists." It is also "unable to effectively monitor high-risk inmates' verbal communications," including phone calls. The Washington Post wonders why the Bush administration is "blowing the easy ones."
And finally: Earlier this year, London comedian Mark Thomas made headlines "when he helped a bunch of teenaged schoolgirls set up an online arms dealership. Before long, they were pricing out tanks" and "negotiating for grenade launchers." The stunt spurred action in Parliament, and yesterday, two men were arrested for internet arms sales.
Wrap...
Friday, October 06, 2006
Those suitcases with bombs...
From Strategic Forecasting Inc:
Dirty Bombs: Weapons of Mass Disruption
By Fred Burton
Since the 9/11 attacks catapulted al Qaeda to the top of the evil-doers' list in the United States, one constant question has remained: What is al Qaeda planning now? High among the public's fears, fanned by certain events widely reported in the media, is that the jihadist network or another like-minded group or individual will unleash a radiological dispersion device (RDD), commonly referred to as a "dirty bomb," on U.S. soil.
Among the events that heightened this public interest in RDDs early on was the intense media coverage of the May 2002 apprehension of so-called al Qaeda "dirty bomber " Jose Padilla. Since 9/11, the public awareness of RDDs -- and interest in attacks that might utilize them -- has ebbed and flowed in cycles that often, though not always, are initiated by incidents or statements that get a great deal of media coverage. After the initial excitement dies down, the awareness and concern gradually falls -- until the next incident. We now find ourselves in one of those periods of heightened awareness, this one spurred by Internet rumors of al Qaeda operatives and materials coming into the United States via Mexican smuggling routes for the purpose of creating an "American Hiroshima."
Meanwhile, an audio statement was released Sept. 28 by al Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, who called for scientists to join his group's efforts against U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq, advising them that the large U.S. bases there are good places to "test your unconventional weapons, whether chemical or 'dirty' as they call them." Considering the ease with which an RDD can be manufactured, it is only a matter of time before one is employed. In fact, it is quite surprising that one has not been successfully used already. Certainly, the time is ripe to discuss what RDDs are and are not -- and to consider the mostly likely results of such an attack.
Dirty Bombs are RDDs
An RDD, simply, is a device that disperses radiation. Depending on the motives of those involved in planning the incident, such a device could be a low-key weapon that surreptitiously releases aerosolized radioactive material, dumps out a finely powdered radioactive material or dissolves the radioactive material into water. It would be intended to slowly expose as many people as possible to the radiation. However, unless large amounts of a very strong radioactive material are used, the effects of such an exposure are more likely to be long-term rather than sudden and dramatic: people dying of cancer rather than acute radiation poisoning. By its very nature, however, this kind of RDD will not generate immediate panic or the type of press coverage coveted by most terrorists. Therefore, they more likely will opt for a RDD that delivers a more "spectacular" punch -- a dirty bomb, in other words. The opposite of a surreptitious device, a dirty bomb is intended to immediately cause panic and mass hysteria.
A dirty bomb is simply a RDD made of a traditional improvised explosive device (IED) with a radiological "kicker" added. In a dirty bomb attack, radioactive material not only is dispersed, but the dispersal is accomplished in an obvious manner, and the explosion immediately alerts the victims and authorities that an attack has taken place. The attackers hope notice of their attack will cause mass panic.
Effects of a Dirty Bomb
Perhaps the biggest misconception about dirty bombs -- and there are many -- has to do with their effects. Although radioactive material is utilized in constructing them, they are not nuclear or atomic weapons. They do not produce a nuclear chain reaction and, therefore, the employment of such a device will not produce an "American Hiroshima." In fact, there can be a wide range of effects produced by a dirty bomb depending on the size of the IED and the amount and type of radioactive material involved. Environmental factors such as terrain, weather conditions and population density would also play an important role in determining the effects of such a device. Generally, a dirty bomb that uses a large quantity of highly dangerous radioactive material such as plutonium-238 or cesium-137 will produce more (and stronger) contamination than a device that uses less material or material that is not as radioactive.
However, the most highly radioactive materials are the hardest to obtain and the most difficult to work with. Some materials are so dangerous that even suicide bombers would die before they could use one if they were not properly shielded. For example, in September 1999, two Chechen militants who attempted to steal highly radioactive materials from a chemical plant in the Chechen capital of Grozny were incapacitated after carrying the container for only a few minutes each; one reportedly died.
There are, however, many more-common, less-dangerous materials, such as americium-241 or strontium-90, that would be easier to obtain and work with. It is therefore widely believed that terrorists wanting to construct a dirty bomb would be more likely to use one of them. According to experts from organizations such as the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, unless a large quantity of a very highly radioactive material is used, not many people will be immediately killed by the radiation released by a dirty bomb. Rather, the initial casualties will be a result of the explosive effects of the IED, just as they would be in a conventional IED attack without a radiological component.
While exposure to very strong sources of radiation at close range could cause fatalities, a dirty bomb by design disperses its radiation over a larger area. Therefore, most of the deaths caused by the radiation in a dirty bomb will most likely be from causes like cancer that will take years to develop. Most people who quickly leave the area contaminated by the dirty bomb will have minimum exposure to radioactivity and should not suffer permanent health consequences.
Keep in mind, however, that a dirty bomb is intended to cause a panic -- and the explosion of such a device in a heavily populated urban area could very well result in a panic that could kill more people than the IED or the radiation it disperses. It should also be noted that the radiological effects of a dirty bomb will be larger than the killing radius of the IED itself, and will persist for far longer. The explosion from a conventional IED is over in an instant, but radiation from a RDD can persist for decades. While the radiation level may not be strong enough to affect people who are exposed briefly in the initial explosion, the radiation will persist in the contaminated area and the cumulative effects of such radiation could prove very hazardous. (Here again, the area contaminated will depend on the type and quantity of the radioactive material used.
Materials in a fine powdered form are easier to disperse than solid blocks of material and some radioactive materials possess a far longer half-life than others.) Due to this contamination, it will be necessary to evacuate people from the contaminated area in many, if not most, cases involving a dirty bomb. People will need to stay out of the area until it can be decontaminated, a process that can be lengthy and expensive. Therefore, while a dirty bomb is not truly a weapon of mass destruction (WMD) like a nuclear device, many authorities refer to them as "weapons of mass disruption" or "weapons of mass dislocation" because of the fact that they temporarily render the contaminated areas uninhabitable. The vast expense of decontaminating a large, densely populated area, such as a section of Manhattan or Washington, would also make a dirty bomb a type of economic weapon.
The Actors
Due to the ease of constructing a dirty bomb -- which is really just an IED plus a source of radioactivity -- such a device could be employed by almost any terrorist actor ranging from a "lone-wolf" domestic terrorist to a transnational militant organization such as al Qaeda. However, when considering that the effects of such a device are more likely to be symbolic and economic, the equation begins to shift toward the al Qaeda side, as symbolic targets that harm the U.S. economy are dead in the center of the jihadist network's targeting sweet spot. Al Qaeda also has a history of planning to use such weapons.
In his recent statements about using dirty bombs against U.S. bases in Iraq, al-Muhajer did not present a novel idea. Many in the jihadist universe have a strong fascination with WMDs, and many jihadist Web sites, such as chat rooms and online magazines, regularly post information on how to produce chemical agents, biological toxins, RDDs and even improvised nuclear weapons. Some posts provide instructions on where to obtain radioactive material and, in cases where it cannot be obtained, even purport to provide instruction on how to extract radioactive material from commercial materials, such as distilling radium from luminescent industrial paint.
More specifically to al Qaeda, evidence uncovered in Afghanistan following the U.S. invasion demonstrated that the group was actively pursuing a WMD program that included research on chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological weapons. Based on this evidence, and information obtained from the interrogations of captured high-level al Qaeda members, U.S. intelligence agencies have specifically and repeatedly warned since late 2001 that al Qaeda intends to produce and employ a RDD. When these reports surface, the flow cycle of public concern over RDDs begins anew.
Despite the simplicity of manufacturing dirty bombs, however, they are not often used, possibly due at least in part to their ineffectiveness. Governments such as that of Iraq that experimented with dirty bombs for military purposes abandoned them because they were not effective enough to be militarily significant as a weapon or provide much of a deterrent.
Perhaps the group that has used or attempted to use RDDs the most is the Chechen militants. In November 1995, Chechen militants under commander Shamil Basayev placed a small quantity of cesium-137 in Moscow's Izmailovsky Park. Rather than disperse the material, however, the Chechens used the material as a psychological weapon by directing a television news crew to the location and thus creating a media storm. The material in this incident was thought to have been obtained from a nuclear waste or isotope storage facility in Grozny. In December 1998, the pro-Russian Chechen Security Service announced it had found a dirty bomb consisting of a land mine combined with radioactive materials next to a railway line. It is believed that Chechen militants planted the device.
The Bottom Line
Analytically, based upon the ease of manufacture and the jihadist interest in dirty bombs, it is only a matter of time before jihadists employ one. Since the contamination created by such a device can be long-lasting, more rational international actors probably would prefer to detonate such a device against a target that is outside of their own country. In other words, they would lean toward attacking a target within the United States or United Kingdom rather than the U.S. or British Embassy in their home country. Since it is not likely to produce mass casualties, a dirty bomb attack would likely be directed against a highly symbolic target, such as one representing the economy or government, and designed to cause the maximum amount of disruption at the target site. Therefore, it is not out of the question to imagine such an attack aimed at Wall Street or the Pentagon. The bomb would not destroy these sites, but would deny access to them for as long as it takes to clean up the sites.
Due to the history of RDD threats, the U.S. government has invested a great deal of money in radiation detection equipment, and has strategically located that equipment along the border at ports of entry and near critical sites. If the rumors of radioactive materials being smuggled over the Mexican border are true, the terrorists would want to detonate the device in a city close to the border out of fear that this network of detection systems would allow the material to be detected and seized by U.S. authorities before it could be employed.
The Importance of Contingency Plans
The possibility of an RDD attack underscores the importance of having personal contingency plans. This is especially important for those who live or work near one of these potential targets. In the case of a dirty bomb attack, it will be important to stay calm. Panic, as we have said, could potentially kill more people than the dirty bomb itself. The best countermeasure against irrational panic is education. People who understand the capabilities and limitations of dirty bombs are less likely to panic than those who do not. People caught in close proximity to the detonation site, then, should avoid breathing in the dust as much as possible and then calmly leave the area, paying attention to the instructions given to them by authorities. If possible, they also should bathe and change clothes as soon as possible, and implement their personal or family emergency plan. People not in the immediate vicinity of the dirty bomb should seek shelter where they are -- making sure to close windows and doors and turn off air conditioners -- unless they are instructed to go elsewhere.
However, should communication from the authorities break down or the authorities not provide instruction, the three most important things to remember about protecting oneself from radiation are time, distance and shielding. That means minimizing the time of exposure, maximizing the distance between the person and the radiation source and maximizing the amount of shielding between the person and the radiation source.
Send questions or comments on this article to analysis@stratfor.com.
Wrap...
Dirty Bombs: Weapons of Mass Disruption
By Fred Burton
Since the 9/11 attacks catapulted al Qaeda to the top of the evil-doers' list in the United States, one constant question has remained: What is al Qaeda planning now? High among the public's fears, fanned by certain events widely reported in the media, is that the jihadist network or another like-minded group or individual will unleash a radiological dispersion device (RDD), commonly referred to as a "dirty bomb," on U.S. soil.
Among the events that heightened this public interest in RDDs early on was the intense media coverage of the May 2002 apprehension of so-called al Qaeda "dirty bomber " Jose Padilla. Since 9/11, the public awareness of RDDs -- and interest in attacks that might utilize them -- has ebbed and flowed in cycles that often, though not always, are initiated by incidents or statements that get a great deal of media coverage. After the initial excitement dies down, the awareness and concern gradually falls -- until the next incident. We now find ourselves in one of those periods of heightened awareness, this one spurred by Internet rumors of al Qaeda operatives and materials coming into the United States via Mexican smuggling routes for the purpose of creating an "American Hiroshima."
Meanwhile, an audio statement was released Sept. 28 by al Qaeda leader in Iraq Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, who called for scientists to join his group's efforts against U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq, advising them that the large U.S. bases there are good places to "test your unconventional weapons, whether chemical or 'dirty' as they call them." Considering the ease with which an RDD can be manufactured, it is only a matter of time before one is employed. In fact, it is quite surprising that one has not been successfully used already. Certainly, the time is ripe to discuss what RDDs are and are not -- and to consider the mostly likely results of such an attack.
Dirty Bombs are RDDs
An RDD, simply, is a device that disperses radiation. Depending on the motives of those involved in planning the incident, such a device could be a low-key weapon that surreptitiously releases aerosolized radioactive material, dumps out a finely powdered radioactive material or dissolves the radioactive material into water. It would be intended to slowly expose as many people as possible to the radiation. However, unless large amounts of a very strong radioactive material are used, the effects of such an exposure are more likely to be long-term rather than sudden and dramatic: people dying of cancer rather than acute radiation poisoning. By its very nature, however, this kind of RDD will not generate immediate panic or the type of press coverage coveted by most terrorists. Therefore, they more likely will opt for a RDD that delivers a more "spectacular" punch -- a dirty bomb, in other words. The opposite of a surreptitious device, a dirty bomb is intended to immediately cause panic and mass hysteria.
A dirty bomb is simply a RDD made of a traditional improvised explosive device (IED) with a radiological "kicker" added. In a dirty bomb attack, radioactive material not only is dispersed, but the dispersal is accomplished in an obvious manner, and the explosion immediately alerts the victims and authorities that an attack has taken place. The attackers hope notice of their attack will cause mass panic.
Effects of a Dirty Bomb
Perhaps the biggest misconception about dirty bombs -- and there are many -- has to do with their effects. Although radioactive material is utilized in constructing them, they are not nuclear or atomic weapons. They do not produce a nuclear chain reaction and, therefore, the employment of such a device will not produce an "American Hiroshima." In fact, there can be a wide range of effects produced by a dirty bomb depending on the size of the IED and the amount and type of radioactive material involved. Environmental factors such as terrain, weather conditions and population density would also play an important role in determining the effects of such a device. Generally, a dirty bomb that uses a large quantity of highly dangerous radioactive material such as plutonium-238 or cesium-137 will produce more (and stronger) contamination than a device that uses less material or material that is not as radioactive.
However, the most highly radioactive materials are the hardest to obtain and the most difficult to work with. Some materials are so dangerous that even suicide bombers would die before they could use one if they were not properly shielded. For example, in September 1999, two Chechen militants who attempted to steal highly radioactive materials from a chemical plant in the Chechen capital of Grozny were incapacitated after carrying the container for only a few minutes each; one reportedly died.
There are, however, many more-common, less-dangerous materials, such as americium-241 or strontium-90, that would be easier to obtain and work with. It is therefore widely believed that terrorists wanting to construct a dirty bomb would be more likely to use one of them. According to experts from organizations such as the National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements, unless a large quantity of a very highly radioactive material is used, not many people will be immediately killed by the radiation released by a dirty bomb. Rather, the initial casualties will be a result of the explosive effects of the IED, just as they would be in a conventional IED attack without a radiological component.
While exposure to very strong sources of radiation at close range could cause fatalities, a dirty bomb by design disperses its radiation over a larger area. Therefore, most of the deaths caused by the radiation in a dirty bomb will most likely be from causes like cancer that will take years to develop. Most people who quickly leave the area contaminated by the dirty bomb will have minimum exposure to radioactivity and should not suffer permanent health consequences.
Keep in mind, however, that a dirty bomb is intended to cause a panic -- and the explosion of such a device in a heavily populated urban area could very well result in a panic that could kill more people than the IED or the radiation it disperses. It should also be noted that the radiological effects of a dirty bomb will be larger than the killing radius of the IED itself, and will persist for far longer. The explosion from a conventional IED is over in an instant, but radiation from a RDD can persist for decades. While the radiation level may not be strong enough to affect people who are exposed briefly in the initial explosion, the radiation will persist in the contaminated area and the cumulative effects of such radiation could prove very hazardous. (Here again, the area contaminated will depend on the type and quantity of the radioactive material used.
Materials in a fine powdered form are easier to disperse than solid blocks of material and some radioactive materials possess a far longer half-life than others.) Due to this contamination, it will be necessary to evacuate people from the contaminated area in many, if not most, cases involving a dirty bomb. People will need to stay out of the area until it can be decontaminated, a process that can be lengthy and expensive. Therefore, while a dirty bomb is not truly a weapon of mass destruction (WMD) like a nuclear device, many authorities refer to them as "weapons of mass disruption" or "weapons of mass dislocation" because of the fact that they temporarily render the contaminated areas uninhabitable. The vast expense of decontaminating a large, densely populated area, such as a section of Manhattan or Washington, would also make a dirty bomb a type of economic weapon.
The Actors
Due to the ease of constructing a dirty bomb -- which is really just an IED plus a source of radioactivity -- such a device could be employed by almost any terrorist actor ranging from a "lone-wolf" domestic terrorist to a transnational militant organization such as al Qaeda. However, when considering that the effects of such a device are more likely to be symbolic and economic, the equation begins to shift toward the al Qaeda side, as symbolic targets that harm the U.S. economy are dead in the center of the jihadist network's targeting sweet spot. Al Qaeda also has a history of planning to use such weapons.
In his recent statements about using dirty bombs against U.S. bases in Iraq, al-Muhajer did not present a novel idea. Many in the jihadist universe have a strong fascination with WMDs, and many jihadist Web sites, such as chat rooms and online magazines, regularly post information on how to produce chemical agents, biological toxins, RDDs and even improvised nuclear weapons. Some posts provide instructions on where to obtain radioactive material and, in cases where it cannot be obtained, even purport to provide instruction on how to extract radioactive material from commercial materials, such as distilling radium from luminescent industrial paint.
More specifically to al Qaeda, evidence uncovered in Afghanistan following the U.S. invasion demonstrated that the group was actively pursuing a WMD program that included research on chemical, biological, nuclear and radiological weapons. Based on this evidence, and information obtained from the interrogations of captured high-level al Qaeda members, U.S. intelligence agencies have specifically and repeatedly warned since late 2001 that al Qaeda intends to produce and employ a RDD. When these reports surface, the flow cycle of public concern over RDDs begins anew.
Despite the simplicity of manufacturing dirty bombs, however, they are not often used, possibly due at least in part to their ineffectiveness. Governments such as that of Iraq that experimented with dirty bombs for military purposes abandoned them because they were not effective enough to be militarily significant as a weapon or provide much of a deterrent.
Perhaps the group that has used or attempted to use RDDs the most is the Chechen militants. In November 1995, Chechen militants under commander Shamil Basayev placed a small quantity of cesium-137 in Moscow's Izmailovsky Park. Rather than disperse the material, however, the Chechens used the material as a psychological weapon by directing a television news crew to the location and thus creating a media storm. The material in this incident was thought to have been obtained from a nuclear waste or isotope storage facility in Grozny. In December 1998, the pro-Russian Chechen Security Service announced it had found a dirty bomb consisting of a land mine combined with radioactive materials next to a railway line. It is believed that Chechen militants planted the device.
The Bottom Line
Analytically, based upon the ease of manufacture and the jihadist interest in dirty bombs, it is only a matter of time before jihadists employ one. Since the contamination created by such a device can be long-lasting, more rational international actors probably would prefer to detonate such a device against a target that is outside of their own country. In other words, they would lean toward attacking a target within the United States or United Kingdom rather than the U.S. or British Embassy in their home country. Since it is not likely to produce mass casualties, a dirty bomb attack would likely be directed against a highly symbolic target, such as one representing the economy or government, and designed to cause the maximum amount of disruption at the target site. Therefore, it is not out of the question to imagine such an attack aimed at Wall Street or the Pentagon. The bomb would not destroy these sites, but would deny access to them for as long as it takes to clean up the sites.
Due to the history of RDD threats, the U.S. government has invested a great deal of money in radiation detection equipment, and has strategically located that equipment along the border at ports of entry and near critical sites. If the rumors of radioactive materials being smuggled over the Mexican border are true, the terrorists would want to detonate the device in a city close to the border out of fear that this network of detection systems would allow the material to be detected and seized by U.S. authorities before it could be employed.
The Importance of Contingency Plans
The possibility of an RDD attack underscores the importance of having personal contingency plans. This is especially important for those who live or work near one of these potential targets. In the case of a dirty bomb attack, it will be important to stay calm. Panic, as we have said, could potentially kill more people than the dirty bomb itself. The best countermeasure against irrational panic is education. People who understand the capabilities and limitations of dirty bombs are less likely to panic than those who do not. People caught in close proximity to the detonation site, then, should avoid breathing in the dust as much as possible and then calmly leave the area, paying attention to the instructions given to them by authorities. If possible, they also should bathe and change clothes as soon as possible, and implement their personal or family emergency plan. People not in the immediate vicinity of the dirty bomb should seek shelter where they are -- making sure to close windows and doors and turn off air conditioners -- unless they are instructed to go elsewhere.
However, should communication from the authorities break down or the authorities not provide instruction, the three most important things to remember about protecting oneself from radiation are time, distance and shielding. That means minimizing the time of exposure, maximizing the distance between the person and the radiation source and maximizing the amount of shielding between the person and the radiation source.
Send questions or comments on this article to analysis@stratfor.com.
Wrap...
Duncan Hunter (R-CA) WANTS THAT FENCE!!!
From Voice of San Diego. org :
[To which I say: TOUGH]
All Talk, No Fence
Taking a hard look at the much-hyped border fence legislation approved by Congress last week, the Washington Post found that it may not result in the construction of 700-miles of new barriers as promised.
The Post reports that the legislation, touted by many Republicans as one of Congress' most significant accomplishments this year, is much weaker than its proponents have advertised.
It turns out Congress left the decision of how much fence to build, where to build it and how to spend the associated $1.2 billion in funding in the hands of the Department of Homeland Security. Both President Bush and DHS officials have advocated adding only 350 miles of new fencing to the border and favor using technology to create a virtual fence along the remaining gaps.
A last minute effort to save the bill from failure also gives state and local officials say over where any new fencing is built. Interestingly enough, that doesn't apply to a section of border east of San Diego.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, was so inflamed by the article that he's called a press conference at the border for later this afternoon to refute the ideas that the fence could be stalled by political opposition and that the legislation provides a large degree of flexibility.
For more on the local border fence issue click here.
DANIEL STRUMPF
Friday, October 6 -- 2:15 pm
Wrap...
[To which I say: TOUGH]
All Talk, No Fence
Taking a hard look at the much-hyped border fence legislation approved by Congress last week, the Washington Post found that it may not result in the construction of 700-miles of new barriers as promised.
The Post reports that the legislation, touted by many Republicans as one of Congress' most significant accomplishments this year, is much weaker than its proponents have advertised.
It turns out Congress left the decision of how much fence to build, where to build it and how to spend the associated $1.2 billion in funding in the hands of the Department of Homeland Security. Both President Bush and DHS officials have advocated adding only 350 miles of new fencing to the border and favor using technology to create a virtual fence along the remaining gaps.
A last minute effort to save the bill from failure also gives state and local officials say over where any new fencing is built. Interestingly enough, that doesn't apply to a section of border east of San Diego.
Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-El Cajon, was so inflamed by the article that he's called a press conference at the border for later this afternoon to refute the ideas that the fence could be stalled by political opposition and that the legislation provides a large degree of flexibility.
For more on the local border fence issue click here.
DANIEL STRUMPF
Friday, October 6 -- 2:15 pm
Wrap...
Obermann on Bush lies...
From MSNBC via Raw Story:
www.rawstory.com/news/2006/A_Special_comment_about_lying_by_1006.html
Wrap...
www.rawstory.com/news/2006/A_Special_comment_about_lying_by_1006.html
Wrap...
Pelosi as Majority Leader in the House...
From AP via Yahoo News:
Pelosi says she would drain GOP 'swamp'
By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent
Fri Oct 6, 1:58 AM ET
Franklin Roosevelt had his first hundred days.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi is thinking 100 hours, time enough, she says, to begin to "drain the swamp" after more than a decade of Republican rule.
As in the first 100 hours the House meets after Democrats — in her fondest wish — win control in the Nov. 7 midterm elections and Pelosi takes the gavel as the first Madam Speaker in history.
Day One: Put new rules in place to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation."
Day Two: Enact all the recommendations made by the commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Time remaining until 100 hours: Raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour, maybe in one step.
Cut the interest rate on student loans in half. Allow the government to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices for Medicare patients.
Broaden the types of stem cell research allowed with federal funds — "I hope with a veto-proof majority," she added in an Associated Press interview Thursday.
All the days after that: "Pay as you go," meaning no increasing the deficit, whether the issue is middle class tax relief, health care or some other priority.
To do that, she said, Bush-era tax cuts would have to be rolled back for those above "a certain level." She mentioned annual incomes of $250,000 or $300,000 a year and higher, and said tax rates for those individuals might revert to those of the Clinton era. Details will have to be worked out, she emphasized.
"We believe in the marketplace," Pelosi said of Democrats, then drew a contrast with Republicans. "They have only rewarded wealth, not work."
"We must share the benefits of our wealth" beyond the privileged few, she added.
Pelosi, 66, has been a leader of the House Democrats since 2002. But her political apprenticeship dates to childhood, when her father was mayor of Baltimore.
Now, her political base is about as liberal as it gets, San Francisco. It's a fact that Republicans love to emphasize to voters who might want to visit, but not feel comfortable living there.
Republicans find her an attractive political target, and recently said she would try to "cut-and-run" from Iraq while "launching bitter partisan investigations" of the Bush administration, possibly including impeachment hearings.
A grandmother five times over, Pelosi pops chocolates, shuns coffee and flashes her wit. Asked what offices should would occupy if in the Capitol if she becomes speaker, she laughed. "I'll have any suite I want."
She would, too.
"If the election were held today we'd be successful," Pelosi predicted, claiming that her party's prospects are expanding as the campaign enters its final month. "So many other races are emerging right now," she said.
Democrats must gain 15 seats to regain the majority they lost in 1994, and have candidates in competitive races for 30 or so Republican-held seats, according to strategists in both parties. By contrast, only about a handful of Democratic-controlled seats appear ripe for possible Republican takeover.
Democrats have a pamphlet that lists all their promises and have run through several slogans in the past year or so as they test campaign messages. In recent days, Pelosi said, their prospects have improved by the discovery that former Republican Rep. Mark Foley (news, bio, voting record) of Florida had sent sexually explicit computer messages to teenage male pages.
Not long before sitting down for a lunchtime interview, she turned down a suggestion from Speaker Dennis Hastert that they jointly appoint former FBI Director Louie Freeh to recommend improvements in the page program.
"That was about protecting their majority" rather than the pages, she said dismissively.
Instead, she wants to put Hastert and other Republicans under oath and make them say what they knew of Foley's actions, when they learned it and what they did to stop him.
The potential for political gain is clear to her.
"It's an opportunity for growth among women" for the Democrats, she said. "They don't always vote and this could be a motivation."
With married women, in particular, it's a huge issue, she added.
Among older voters, too.
"If there's an ethical issue, seniors take a hike" and abandon politicians they blame, she said.
"If we hold onto seniors we win the election."
Wrap...
Pelosi says she would drain GOP 'swamp'
By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent
Fri Oct 6, 1:58 AM ET
Franklin Roosevelt had his first hundred days.
House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi is thinking 100 hours, time enough, she says, to begin to "drain the swamp" after more than a decade of Republican rule.
As in the first 100 hours the House meets after Democrats — in her fondest wish — win control in the Nov. 7 midterm elections and Pelosi takes the gavel as the first Madam Speaker in history.
Day One: Put new rules in place to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation."
Day Two: Enact all the recommendations made by the commission that investigated the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Time remaining until 100 hours: Raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour, maybe in one step.
Cut the interest rate on student loans in half. Allow the government to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices for Medicare patients.
Broaden the types of stem cell research allowed with federal funds — "I hope with a veto-proof majority," she added in an Associated Press interview Thursday.
All the days after that: "Pay as you go," meaning no increasing the deficit, whether the issue is middle class tax relief, health care or some other priority.
To do that, she said, Bush-era tax cuts would have to be rolled back for those above "a certain level." She mentioned annual incomes of $250,000 or $300,000 a year and higher, and said tax rates for those individuals might revert to those of the Clinton era. Details will have to be worked out, she emphasized.
"We believe in the marketplace," Pelosi said of Democrats, then drew a contrast with Republicans. "They have only rewarded wealth, not work."
"We must share the benefits of our wealth" beyond the privileged few, she added.
Pelosi, 66, has been a leader of the House Democrats since 2002. But her political apprenticeship dates to childhood, when her father was mayor of Baltimore.
Now, her political base is about as liberal as it gets, San Francisco. It's a fact that Republicans love to emphasize to voters who might want to visit, but not feel comfortable living there.
Republicans find her an attractive political target, and recently said she would try to "cut-and-run" from Iraq while "launching bitter partisan investigations" of the Bush administration, possibly including impeachment hearings.
A grandmother five times over, Pelosi pops chocolates, shuns coffee and flashes her wit. Asked what offices should would occupy if in the Capitol if she becomes speaker, she laughed. "I'll have any suite I want."
She would, too.
"If the election were held today we'd be successful," Pelosi predicted, claiming that her party's prospects are expanding as the campaign enters its final month. "So many other races are emerging right now," she said.
Democrats must gain 15 seats to regain the majority they lost in 1994, and have candidates in competitive races for 30 or so Republican-held seats, according to strategists in both parties. By contrast, only about a handful of Democratic-controlled seats appear ripe for possible Republican takeover.
Democrats have a pamphlet that lists all their promises and have run through several slogans in the past year or so as they test campaign messages. In recent days, Pelosi said, their prospects have improved by the discovery that former Republican Rep. Mark Foley (news, bio, voting record) of Florida had sent sexually explicit computer messages to teenage male pages.
Not long before sitting down for a lunchtime interview, she turned down a suggestion from Speaker Dennis Hastert that they jointly appoint former FBI Director Louie Freeh to recommend improvements in the page program.
"That was about protecting their majority" rather than the pages, she said dismissively.
Instead, she wants to put Hastert and other Republicans under oath and make them say what they knew of Foley's actions, when they learned it and what they did to stop him.
The potential for political gain is clear to her.
"It's an opportunity for growth among women" for the Democrats, she said. "They don't always vote and this could be a motivation."
With married women, in particular, it's a huge issue, she added.
Among older voters, too.
"If there's an ethical issue, seniors take a hike" and abandon politicians they blame, she said.
"If we hold onto seniors we win the election."
Wrap...
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Don't cuss BushCo or you're a threat to the nation!!!
From the International Herald Tribune via Information Clearing House:
Software Being Developed to Monitor Opinions of US:
A consortium of major universities, with Homeland Security Department funds, is developing software that would let the government monitor negative opinions of the United States or its leaders. - The "sentiment analysis" is intended to identify potential threats to the nation, security officials said.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/04/news/scan.php
[Note: to continue reading, click link above]
Wrap...
Software Being Developed to Monitor Opinions of US:
A consortium of major universities, with Homeland Security Department funds, is developing software that would let the government monitor negative opinions of the United States or its leaders. - The "sentiment analysis" is intended to identify potential threats to the nation, security officials said.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/10/04/news/scan.php
[Note: to continue reading, click link above]
Wrap...
Lobbyists spend $200 MILLION monthly on Congress!
From truthout.org :
FOCUS: Bill Moyers Lincoln Weeps
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100506Z.shtml
Bill Moyers writes: "Once upon a time the House of Representatives was known as 'the people's house.' No more. It belongs to K Street now. That's the address of the lobbyists who swarm all over Capitol Hill. There are 65 lobbyists for every member of Congress. They spend $200 million per month wining, dining and seducing federal officials. Per month!"
[Note: click link above to continue reading]
Wrap...
FOCUS: Bill Moyers Lincoln Weeps
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100506Z.shtml
Bill Moyers writes: "Once upon a time the House of Representatives was known as 'the people's house.' No more. It belongs to K Street now. That's the address of the lobbyists who swarm all over Capitol Hill. There are 65 lobbyists for every member of Congress. They spend $200 million per month wining, dining and seducing federal officials. Per month!"
[Note: click link above to continue reading]
Wrap...
NY raises the rent on HIV or AIDS adults...
From truthout.org :
Adults on Welfare With HIV or AIDS Hit With Rent Increase
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/100506HA.shtml
In a move that has alarmed local officials and advocates for people with AIDS, the state ordered New York City's welfare agency to sharply increase the rent contribution it requires from about 2,200 poor adults who live in government-subsidized buildings and have HIV or AIDS. The change means that most of the people in the program will be paying more than half their income - which comes entirely from federal assistance - toward rent.
[Note: to continue reading, click link above]
Wrap...
Adults on Welfare With HIV or AIDS Hit With Rent Increase
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/100506HA.shtml
In a move that has alarmed local officials and advocates for people with AIDS, the state ordered New York City's welfare agency to sharply increase the rent contribution it requires from about 2,200 poor adults who live in government-subsidized buildings and have HIV or AIDS. The change means that most of the people in the program will be paying more than half their income - which comes entirely from federal assistance - toward rent.
[Note: to continue reading, click link above]
Wrap...
Gingrich...and what's below ain't the half of it...
From Capitol Hill Blue:
THE RANT: Sex scandals, blow jobs and the 'stench of hypocrisy'
Newt Gingrich should know something about the stench of hypocrisy. He stinks to high heaven from it. This hypocrite is the man who served his first wife with divorce papers while she lay in a hospital bed. He divorced his second wife after his screwing of a House staffer became public while he was Speaker of the House and leading the GOP charge against Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky. This is the same Newt Gingrich who used to take campaign volunteers back to his car and let them give him blow jobs after rallies in his Georgia district.
[Note: Click on link above to read it all]
Wrap...
THE RANT: Sex scandals, blow jobs and the 'stench of hypocrisy'
Newt Gingrich should know something about the stench of hypocrisy. He stinks to high heaven from it. This hypocrite is the man who served his first wife with divorce papers while she lay in a hospital bed. He divorced his second wife after his screwing of a House staffer became public while he was Speaker of the House and leading the GOP charge against Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky. This is the same Newt Gingrich who used to take campaign volunteers back to his car and let them give him blow jobs after rallies in his Georgia district.
[Note: Click on link above to read it all]
Wrap...
These dead Americans don't count...
From truthout.org:
Dahr Jamail
The US Occupation of Iraq: Casualties Not Counted
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100506J.shtml
Dahr Jamail writes: "There are approximately 100,000-125,000 American civilian contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their jobs range from providing security to desk work to interrogating prisoners to driving convoy trucks to clearing unexploded ordnance.... The US Department of Labor listed 428 civilian contractor deaths and 3,963 wounded in Iraq - none of which are ever counted in the official casualty counts."
[Note: continue reading by clicking the link above]
Wrap...
Dahr Jamail
The US Occupation of Iraq: Casualties Not Counted
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/100506J.shtml
Dahr Jamail writes: "There are approximately 100,000-125,000 American civilian contractors working in Iraq and Afghanistan. Their jobs range from providing security to desk work to interrogating prisoners to driving convoy trucks to clearing unexploded ordnance.... The US Department of Labor listed 428 civilian contractor deaths and 3,963 wounded in Iraq - none of which are ever counted in the official casualty counts."
[Note: continue reading by clicking the link above]
Wrap...
The wait for these books will be worth it...
From Publishers Lunch Weekly:
FICTION/DEBUT:
Playwright (and Peabody and an Edgar winner) Theresa Rebeck's first novel, three girls And their brother, narrated in four parts from the point of view of each of four siblings as they experience a year filled with the good, the bad and the ugly of the New York celebrity scene after the sisters are proclaimed "It Girls of the Twenty-First Century," to Shaye Areheart of Shaye Areheart Books, at auction, for two books, for publication beginning in 2008, by Loretta Barrett of Barrett Books (NA).
Author of I Am Not Myself These Days, Josh Kilmer-Purcell's first novel CANDY EVERYBODY WANTS, a coming of age story about a small town boy who makes it big, to Maureen O'Brien at Harper for Perennial, along with another work of nonfiction, by Andy McNicol of the William Morris Agency.
Author of Like Family: Growing Up in Other People's Houses, Paula McLain's A TICKET TO RIDE, about a 15-year-old girl under the dangerous influence of her older cousin, to Emily Takoudes at Ecco, in a pre-empt, for publication in 2008, by Julie Barer at Barer Literary
THRILLER:
NYT bestseller Stephen Coonts' two new hardcover thrillers featuring Tommy Carmellini, to Matthew Shear at St. Martin's, by Robert Gottlieb at Trident Media Group (NA).
NYT bestselling author Robert K. Tanenbaum's ESCAPE, the 20th book in his Butch Karp legal thriller series, another provocative and topical story which blisters the use of the insanity defense pushing the limits of the law and letting murderers go unpunished, to Roger Cooper at CDS Books for hardcover North American rights, and to his longtime paperback publisher Louise Burke at Pocket for paperback reprint, by Bob Diforio at D4EO Literary Agency, in association with Michael Hamilburg at the Mitchell J. Hamilburg Agency.d4eo@optonline.net
[Note: Mike Hamilburg is one of the most respected, honest, decent agents ever...but if you submit to him, the work had better be polished..ready to submit to an editor when he asks that you send it (after you've queried) because he doesn't edit, he doesn't ask for rewrites, nor does he recommend book doctors. With Mike, it's either ready to sell or it's not.]
GENERAL/OTHER:
MEN OF BRONZE author Scott Oden's THE LION OF CAIRO, in which the ancient world's greatest empire -- the 12th century caliphate of Egypt -- begins to crumble and an assassin becomes the caliph's only hope of surviving, to Peter Wolverton at Thomas Dunne Books, in a four-book deal, by Bob Mecoy at Creative Book Services (World).
NON-FICTION/BIOGRAPHY:
Writer for Vanity Fair and Uncut and former Spin magazine senior writer Marc Spitz's GOD AND MAN, a biography of David Bowie that will chronicle his decades-long career, his impact on the current music scene, his evolution as both musician and businessman, and his enduring legacy, to Carrie Thornton at Crown, in a pre-empt, by Jim Fitzgerald at the James Fitzgerald Agency (World).Foreign: lkaplan@randomhouse.com
HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:
Investigative journalist and Middle East authority Richard Sale's CLINTON'S SECRET WARS, presenting a variety of CIA, NSA and Seal operations and Clinton's direction, first against Milosevic, then Bin Laden and Hussein, to Tom Dunne at Thomas Dunne Books, for publication in fall 2007, by Joseph Vallely at Flaming Star Literary Enterprises.
Author of Ahamd's War, Ahmad's Peace Michael Goldfarb's EMANCIPATION: How Liberating the Jews from the Ghetto Led to Revolution and Renaissance, a narrative history following what happened after the Jews were emancipated and led out of their ghettoes by Napoleon, as within a century, Marx, Freud, and Einstein had created revolutions and the likes of Proust, Schoenberg, Mahler, and Kafka redefined cultural expression, to Alice Mayhew at Simon & Schuster, by Kathleen Anderson at Anderson Literary Management (NA).kathleen@andersonliterary.com
Political scientist Alan Wolfe's WHY LIBERALISM MATTERS, a comprehensive, yet compact, Baedeker to the liberal tradition, showing why it is still as relevant as ever, and how it can provide a politics capable of moving modern society forward, to Jonathan Segal at Knopf, at auction, by Andrew Stuart at The Stuart Agency (World).
Senior Middle East correspondent for WSJ Farnaz Fassihi's untitled memoir about what life was really like in Baghdad, to Clive Priddle at Public Affairs, for publication in fall 2007, by Flip Brophy at Sterling Lord Literistic (World).
The Case for Democracy author Natan Sharansky's IDENTITY, exploring the effects of the politics of identity, inspired by his own experience as an imprisoned Soviet citizen forced to question who he was, what he stood for, and what aspect of his sense of self truly gave his life meaning, to Clive Priddle at Public Affairs, by Marvin Josephson of Josephson International (world).
HUMOR:
Peter Allison's WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T RUN, stories from the author's twelve-year career as a safari guide in Botswana, including the antics of the tourists hyped on malaria medication, the vicious animal that adopted him as a pet, and the locals who dubbed him with the African epithet, the Sexually Frustrated Elephant, among others, to Laura Strom at Globe Pequot, in a nice deal, by Kate Epstein of the Epstein Literary Agency (World).kate@epsteinliterary.com
MEMOIR:
Alan Wieder's YEAR OF THE COCK, the unapologetically frank memoir of a TV producer who abruptly leaves his wife to go experience the thrill of having money to burn and freedom to wake up wherever he wants, to Ben Greenberg at Warner, by Pilar Queen and Kim Witherspoon at Inkwell Management (World English).benjamin.greenberg@hbgusa.com
Time's Tehran correspondent and author of Lipstick Jihad and co-author of Shirin Ebadi's Iran Awakening Azadeh Moaveni's memoir about her recent return to Iran, marrying into a large Iranian family and starting a family of her own, as the political tensions between Iran and much of the world increase, to David Ebershoff at Random House, by Diana Finch (world).ctisne@randomhouse.com
REFERENCE:
Philip Dodd's THE REVEREND GUPPY'S AQUARIUM: TALES OF BRIEF LIVES AND IMMORTAL FAME, a personal journey through the stories of those who, deliberately or by chance, left their names embedded in the language and consciousness of future generations: from the Earls of Cardigan and Sandwich to Gabriele Fallopio and Candido Jacuzzi, to Erin Moore at Gotham, in a pre-empt, by Gordon Wise at Curtis Brown UK.
RELIGION/SPIRITUALITY:
Journalist Matt Baglio's THE RITE: The Making of a Modern Day Exorcist, following a priest's year long training and apprenticeship with a senior exorcist as he prepares to return to the US as one of the relatively few exorcists in the country, to Andrew Corbin at Doubleday, at auction, by Christy Fletcher of Fletcher & Parry (US).UK: Robinson Literary Agency
UK:
Michael Bywater's LIKE BROTHERS: Men and Friendship, about the strange (and usually unspoken) world of male friendship, with his 20-year friendship with Douglas Adams as the narrative spine, to George Miller to Granta, (the first of intended "big, bolder acquisitions that will appeal to an international audience" under David Graham's direction), for publication in fall 2008, by Patrick Walsh at Conville & Walsh (world).rights: arose@granta.com
FILM:
Dunstan Prial's THE PRODUCER: John Hammond and the Soul of American Music, a biography of the pioneering music producer who discovered and championed everyone from Billie Holliday, Count Basie and Benny Goodman to Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin and Stevie Ray Vaughn, to Warner Bros. and Jerry Weintraub, by Endeavor, on behalf of the Martha Kaplan Agency.
Wrap...
FICTION/DEBUT:
Playwright (and Peabody and an Edgar winner) Theresa Rebeck's first novel, three girls And their brother, narrated in four parts from the point of view of each of four siblings as they experience a year filled with the good, the bad and the ugly of the New York celebrity scene after the sisters are proclaimed "It Girls of the Twenty-First Century," to Shaye Areheart of Shaye Areheart Books, at auction, for two books, for publication beginning in 2008, by Loretta Barrett of Barrett Books (NA).
Author of I Am Not Myself These Days, Josh Kilmer-Purcell's first novel CANDY EVERYBODY WANTS, a coming of age story about a small town boy who makes it big, to Maureen O'Brien at Harper for Perennial, along with another work of nonfiction, by Andy McNicol of the William Morris Agency.
Author of Like Family: Growing Up in Other People's Houses, Paula McLain's A TICKET TO RIDE, about a 15-year-old girl under the dangerous influence of her older cousin, to Emily Takoudes at Ecco, in a pre-empt, for publication in 2008, by Julie Barer at Barer Literary
THRILLER:
NYT bestseller Stephen Coonts' two new hardcover thrillers featuring Tommy Carmellini, to Matthew Shear at St. Martin's, by Robert Gottlieb at Trident Media Group (NA).
NYT bestselling author Robert K. Tanenbaum's ESCAPE, the 20th book in his Butch Karp legal thriller series, another provocative and topical story which blisters the use of the insanity defense pushing the limits of the law and letting murderers go unpunished, to Roger Cooper at CDS Books for hardcover North American rights, and to his longtime paperback publisher Louise Burke at Pocket for paperback reprint, by Bob Diforio at D4EO Literary Agency, in association with Michael Hamilburg at the Mitchell J. Hamilburg Agency.d4eo@optonline.net
[Note: Mike Hamilburg is one of the most respected, honest, decent agents ever...but if you submit to him, the work had better be polished..ready to submit to an editor when he asks that you send it (after you've queried) because he doesn't edit, he doesn't ask for rewrites, nor does he recommend book doctors. With Mike, it's either ready to sell or it's not.]
GENERAL/OTHER:
MEN OF BRONZE author Scott Oden's THE LION OF CAIRO, in which the ancient world's greatest empire -- the 12th century caliphate of Egypt -- begins to crumble and an assassin becomes the caliph's only hope of surviving, to Peter Wolverton at Thomas Dunne Books, in a four-book deal, by Bob Mecoy at Creative Book Services (World).
NON-FICTION/BIOGRAPHY:
Writer for Vanity Fair and Uncut and former Spin magazine senior writer Marc Spitz's GOD AND MAN, a biography of David Bowie that will chronicle his decades-long career, his impact on the current music scene, his evolution as both musician and businessman, and his enduring legacy, to Carrie Thornton at Crown, in a pre-empt, by Jim Fitzgerald at the James Fitzgerald Agency (World).Foreign: lkaplan@randomhouse.com
HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:
Investigative journalist and Middle East authority Richard Sale's CLINTON'S SECRET WARS, presenting a variety of CIA, NSA and Seal operations and Clinton's direction, first against Milosevic, then Bin Laden and Hussein, to Tom Dunne at Thomas Dunne Books, for publication in fall 2007, by Joseph Vallely at Flaming Star Literary Enterprises.
Author of Ahamd's War, Ahmad's Peace Michael Goldfarb's EMANCIPATION: How Liberating the Jews from the Ghetto Led to Revolution and Renaissance, a narrative history following what happened after the Jews were emancipated and led out of their ghettoes by Napoleon, as within a century, Marx, Freud, and Einstein had created revolutions and the likes of Proust, Schoenberg, Mahler, and Kafka redefined cultural expression, to Alice Mayhew at Simon & Schuster, by Kathleen Anderson at Anderson Literary Management (NA).kathleen@andersonliterary.com
Political scientist Alan Wolfe's WHY LIBERALISM MATTERS, a comprehensive, yet compact, Baedeker to the liberal tradition, showing why it is still as relevant as ever, and how it can provide a politics capable of moving modern society forward, to Jonathan Segal at Knopf, at auction, by Andrew Stuart at The Stuart Agency (World).
Senior Middle East correspondent for WSJ Farnaz Fassihi's untitled memoir about what life was really like in Baghdad, to Clive Priddle at Public Affairs, for publication in fall 2007, by Flip Brophy at Sterling Lord Literistic (World).
The Case for Democracy author Natan Sharansky's IDENTITY, exploring the effects of the politics of identity, inspired by his own experience as an imprisoned Soviet citizen forced to question who he was, what he stood for, and what aspect of his sense of self truly gave his life meaning, to Clive Priddle at Public Affairs, by Marvin Josephson of Josephson International (world).
HUMOR:
Peter Allison's WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T RUN, stories from the author's twelve-year career as a safari guide in Botswana, including the antics of the tourists hyped on malaria medication, the vicious animal that adopted him as a pet, and the locals who dubbed him with the African epithet, the Sexually Frustrated Elephant, among others, to Laura Strom at Globe Pequot, in a nice deal, by Kate Epstein of the Epstein Literary Agency (World).kate@epsteinliterary.com
MEMOIR:
Alan Wieder's YEAR OF THE COCK, the unapologetically frank memoir of a TV producer who abruptly leaves his wife to go experience the thrill of having money to burn and freedom to wake up wherever he wants, to Ben Greenberg at Warner, by Pilar Queen and Kim Witherspoon at Inkwell Management (World English).benjamin.greenberg@hbgusa.com
Time's Tehran correspondent and author of Lipstick Jihad and co-author of Shirin Ebadi's Iran Awakening Azadeh Moaveni's memoir about her recent return to Iran, marrying into a large Iranian family and starting a family of her own, as the political tensions between Iran and much of the world increase, to David Ebershoff at Random House, by Diana Finch (world).ctisne@randomhouse.com
REFERENCE:
Philip Dodd's THE REVEREND GUPPY'S AQUARIUM: TALES OF BRIEF LIVES AND IMMORTAL FAME, a personal journey through the stories of those who, deliberately or by chance, left their names embedded in the language and consciousness of future generations: from the Earls of Cardigan and Sandwich to Gabriele Fallopio and Candido Jacuzzi, to Erin Moore at Gotham, in a pre-empt, by Gordon Wise at Curtis Brown UK.
RELIGION/SPIRITUALITY:
Journalist Matt Baglio's THE RITE: The Making of a Modern Day Exorcist, following a priest's year long training and apprenticeship with a senior exorcist as he prepares to return to the US as one of the relatively few exorcists in the country, to Andrew Corbin at Doubleday, at auction, by Christy Fletcher of Fletcher & Parry (US).UK: Robinson Literary Agency
UK:
Michael Bywater's LIKE BROTHERS: Men and Friendship, about the strange (and usually unspoken) world of male friendship, with his 20-year friendship with Douglas Adams as the narrative spine, to George Miller to Granta, (the first of intended "big, bolder acquisitions that will appeal to an international audience" under David Graham's direction), for publication in fall 2008, by Patrick Walsh at Conville & Walsh (world).rights: arose@granta.com
FILM:
Dunstan Prial's THE PRODUCER: John Hammond and the Soul of American Music, a biography of the pioneering music producer who discovered and championed everyone from Billie Holliday, Count Basie and Benny Goodman to Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Aretha Franklin and Stevie Ray Vaughn, to Warner Bros. and Jerry Weintraub, by Endeavor, on behalf of the Martha Kaplan Agency.
Wrap...
Bring troops home...send BushCo asses over...
From The Washington Post:
Attacks in Baghdad Kill 13 US Soldiers in 3 Days
By Amit R. Paley
The Washington Post
Thursday 05 October 2006
Baghdad - Thirteen U.S. soldiers have been killed in Baghdad since Monday, the American military reported, registering the highest three-day death toll for U.S. forces in the capital since the start of the war.
The latest losses - four soldiers who were killed at 9 a.m. Wednesday by small-arms fire - are part of a recent spike in violent attacks against U.S. forces that have claimed the lives of at least 24 soldiers and Marines in Iraq since Saturday, the military said.
The number of planted bombs is "at an all-time high," said Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, a military spokesman, defying American efforts to stanch the vicious sectarian bloodshed in Baghdad that threatens to plunge the country into civil war.
"This has been a hard week for U.S. forces," Caldwell said. "Unfortunately, as expected, attacks have steadily increased in Baghdad during these past weeks." Independent databases showed the three-day toll for American troops to be the highest in Baghdad so far.
U.S. military officials said the surge in violence could be partly attributed to the increased exposure of American forces as they patrol the dangerous streets of Baghdad to try to quell reprisal killings between Shiites and Sunnis. The number of troops in the capital has been doubled since June to support the Iraqi government's new security plan, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, another military spokesman.
"When you go into bad neighborhoods, you'll have more attacks," said Lt. Col. James A. Gavrilis, a Special Forces officer and expert on the Iraqi insurgency. "If we have more people in one area, there will be an opportunity." He said enemy fighters "are reacting to an opportunity to attack."
Ali al-Dabbagh, a spokesman for the Iraqi government, said another likely cause for the spike in American troop deaths was a recent call by the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, encouraging Iraqis to "eliminate the infidels and the apostates" during the current holy month of Ramadan.
Seventy-four soldiers and Marines were killed in Iraq in September, representing the highest monthly toll since April, when 76 died, according to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count.
Army Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of the Multinational Division Baghdad, said two weeks ago that attacks against U.S.-led coalition forces in Baghdad had reached an average of 42 a day - with about six causing casualties or equipment damage - up from 36 or 38 attacks.
"Why are we seeing an increase in attacks?" he said. "Well, we have twice as many forces operating throughout the city now. We're challenging the anti-Iraqi forces where they live and operate."
The disclosure of heavy American losses came on another day of horrific violence for Iraqis, with at least 59 people killed in separate incidents across the country, Iraqi police said. The single deadliest attack took place at 11 a.m. in Ramadi, a Sunni insurgent stronghold in western Iraq, when a suicide bomber blew up his car at an Iraqi army base, killing at least 19 people and wounding 10, according to a police official.
Caldwell also announced yesterday that an entire Iraqi police brigade - comprising an estimated 800 to 1,200 officers - had been pulled out of service and placed under investigation for alleged complicity with death squads. On Sunday, gunmen burst into a food factory in Amil, a Baghdad neighborhood under the brigade's control, and kidnapped 26 workers.
"There is clear evidence that there was some complicity in allowing death squad elements to move freely when, in fact, they were supposed to have been impeding their movement," Caldwell said. "The government of Iraq had lost trust and confidence in the 8th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division's ability to serve the public due to their poor performance and alleged criminal wrongdoings."
The move appeared to represent a new effort by Iraqi officials to root out corruption in the Iraqi security forces, which are widely believed to be infiltrated by militias and death squads that do more to exacerbate sectarian tensions than protect citizens. Caldwell said the brigade will undergo "anti-militia, anti-sectarian violence and national unity training."
The brigade's commander might be charged with a crime, and the head of the unit's second regiment has already been arrested, said Brig. Abdul Kareem Khalaf, an Interior Ministry spokesman. "They are both under investigation to know how all this happened without the security forces interfering to stop it," he said.
Also on Wednesday, a top aide to Moqtada al-Sadr said the anti-American cleric has specific information that U.S.-led coalition forces plan to launch a major attack on Sadr City, a Shiite slum in Baghdad filled with his followers.
"They want to turn it into mass graves similar to the previous ones conducted by the former regime," said the aide, Sahib al-Amery. "The occupation forces want to start a sectarian crisis on the pretext that there are Shiite militias."
The United States and Sadr have clashed frequently since the 2003 invasion, and some military officials have been calling for more aggressive moves against the Sadr-controlled Mahdi Army, which is considered to be a militia by nearly everyone in Iraq. On Wednesday, though, Amery disputed that characterization.
"The Mahdi Army is a doctrinal and ideological army, not a militia," he said. "It has no camps or headquarters, and its weapons are self-owned by its members. We in the Shiite areas, we have no terrorist groups or organizations. These are found in the Sunni areas only."
------
Staff writer Ann Scott Tyson and staff researcher Robert E. Thomason in Washington and special correspondents Saad al-Izzi in Baghdad and Saad Sarhan in Najaf contributed to this report.
Wrap...
Attacks in Baghdad Kill 13 US Soldiers in 3 Days
By Amit R. Paley
The Washington Post
Thursday 05 October 2006
Baghdad - Thirteen U.S. soldiers have been killed in Baghdad since Monday, the American military reported, registering the highest three-day death toll for U.S. forces in the capital since the start of the war.
The latest losses - four soldiers who were killed at 9 a.m. Wednesday by small-arms fire - are part of a recent spike in violent attacks against U.S. forces that have claimed the lives of at least 24 soldiers and Marines in Iraq since Saturday, the military said.
The number of planted bombs is "at an all-time high," said Maj. Gen. William B. Caldwell, a military spokesman, defying American efforts to stanch the vicious sectarian bloodshed in Baghdad that threatens to plunge the country into civil war.
"This has been a hard week for U.S. forces," Caldwell said. "Unfortunately, as expected, attacks have steadily increased in Baghdad during these past weeks." Independent databases showed the three-day toll for American troops to be the highest in Baghdad so far.
U.S. military officials said the surge in violence could be partly attributed to the increased exposure of American forces as they patrol the dangerous streets of Baghdad to try to quell reprisal killings between Shiites and Sunnis. The number of troops in the capital has been doubled since June to support the Iraqi government's new security plan, said Lt. Col. Barry Johnson, another military spokesman.
"When you go into bad neighborhoods, you'll have more attacks," said Lt. Col. James A. Gavrilis, a Special Forces officer and expert on the Iraqi insurgency. "If we have more people in one area, there will be an opportunity." He said enemy fighters "are reacting to an opportunity to attack."
Ali al-Dabbagh, a spokesman for the Iraqi government, said another likely cause for the spike in American troop deaths was a recent call by the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Hamza al-Muhajer, encouraging Iraqis to "eliminate the infidels and the apostates" during the current holy month of Ramadan.
Seventy-four soldiers and Marines were killed in Iraq in September, representing the highest monthly toll since April, when 76 died, according to the Iraq Coalition Casualty Count.
Army Maj. Gen. James D. Thurman, commander of the Multinational Division Baghdad, said two weeks ago that attacks against U.S.-led coalition forces in Baghdad had reached an average of 42 a day - with about six causing casualties or equipment damage - up from 36 or 38 attacks.
"Why are we seeing an increase in attacks?" he said. "Well, we have twice as many forces operating throughout the city now. We're challenging the anti-Iraqi forces where they live and operate."
The disclosure of heavy American losses came on another day of horrific violence for Iraqis, with at least 59 people killed in separate incidents across the country, Iraqi police said. The single deadliest attack took place at 11 a.m. in Ramadi, a Sunni insurgent stronghold in western Iraq, when a suicide bomber blew up his car at an Iraqi army base, killing at least 19 people and wounding 10, according to a police official.
Caldwell also announced yesterday that an entire Iraqi police brigade - comprising an estimated 800 to 1,200 officers - had been pulled out of service and placed under investigation for alleged complicity with death squads. On Sunday, gunmen burst into a food factory in Amil, a Baghdad neighborhood under the brigade's control, and kidnapped 26 workers.
"There is clear evidence that there was some complicity in allowing death squad elements to move freely when, in fact, they were supposed to have been impeding their movement," Caldwell said. "The government of Iraq had lost trust and confidence in the 8th Brigade, 2nd National Police Division's ability to serve the public due to their poor performance and alleged criminal wrongdoings."
The move appeared to represent a new effort by Iraqi officials to root out corruption in the Iraqi security forces, which are widely believed to be infiltrated by militias and death squads that do more to exacerbate sectarian tensions than protect citizens. Caldwell said the brigade will undergo "anti-militia, anti-sectarian violence and national unity training."
The brigade's commander might be charged with a crime, and the head of the unit's second regiment has already been arrested, said Brig. Abdul Kareem Khalaf, an Interior Ministry spokesman. "They are both under investigation to know how all this happened without the security forces interfering to stop it," he said.
Also on Wednesday, a top aide to Moqtada al-Sadr said the anti-American cleric has specific information that U.S.-led coalition forces plan to launch a major attack on Sadr City, a Shiite slum in Baghdad filled with his followers.
"They want to turn it into mass graves similar to the previous ones conducted by the former regime," said the aide, Sahib al-Amery. "The occupation forces want to start a sectarian crisis on the pretext that there are Shiite militias."
The United States and Sadr have clashed frequently since the 2003 invasion, and some military officials have been calling for more aggressive moves against the Sadr-controlled Mahdi Army, which is considered to be a militia by nearly everyone in Iraq. On Wednesday, though, Amery disputed that characterization.
"The Mahdi Army is a doctrinal and ideological army, not a militia," he said. "It has no camps or headquarters, and its weapons are self-owned by its members. We in the Shiite areas, we have no terrorist groups or organizations. These are found in the Sunni areas only."
------
Staff writer Ann Scott Tyson and staff researcher Robert E. Thomason in Washington and special correspondents Saad al-Izzi in Baghdad and Saad Sarhan in Najaf contributed to this report.
Wrap...
So! Explain this one, anti-smoking advocates...
From the BBC:
Cigars and sex 'boost Cuba lives'
Cuba's high number of centenarians say their longevity is down to laying off alcohol, but indulging in coffee, cigars and sex.
The findings are the result of a study that looked into the lives of 54 out of the more than 100 centenarians who live in Villa Clara province.
More than 60% of them had parents who also lived to be over 100.
Cuba, with a population of 11.2 million, has about 3,000 people who have lived for more than a century.
The results of the study were reported to the National Geriatrics and Social Work workshop in Santa Clara town, the newspaper Juventud Rebelde said.
In the study, the lives of the centenarians were found to be disciplined, but not austere.
None was alcoholic, and they said they loved coffee and cigars, which they consumed in large quantity.
They had a healthy interest in a number of areas, including sex, said Dr Nancy Nepomuceno, who carried out the study.
Most of the centenarians were mentally alert, had a good lifestyle and did manual labour in rural areas.
Almost all ate a diet which included fish, eggs, milk, white meat and vegetables, cooked with little salt and natural seasonings.
The life expectancy in Cuba is 76, but in Villa Clara province, where the study was carried out, it is 78.
Wrap...
Cigars and sex 'boost Cuba lives'
Cuba's high number of centenarians say their longevity is down to laying off alcohol, but indulging in coffee, cigars and sex.
The findings are the result of a study that looked into the lives of 54 out of the more than 100 centenarians who live in Villa Clara province.
More than 60% of them had parents who also lived to be over 100.
Cuba, with a population of 11.2 million, has about 3,000 people who have lived for more than a century.
The results of the study were reported to the National Geriatrics and Social Work workshop in Santa Clara town, the newspaper Juventud Rebelde said.
In the study, the lives of the centenarians were found to be disciplined, but not austere.
None was alcoholic, and they said they loved coffee and cigars, which they consumed in large quantity.
They had a healthy interest in a number of areas, including sex, said Dr Nancy Nepomuceno, who carried out the study.
Most of the centenarians were mentally alert, had a good lifestyle and did manual labour in rural areas.
Almost all ate a diet which included fish, eggs, milk, white meat and vegetables, cooked with little salt and natural seasonings.
The life expectancy in Cuba is 76, but in Villa Clara province, where the study was carried out, it is 78.
Wrap...
Think nobody is gonna notice?!!!
From American Progress:
Think Fast
"The source who in July gave news media Rep. Mark Foley's (R-Fla.) suspect e-mails to a former House page" says the documents came to him from a congressional aide who "has been a registered Republican since becoming eligible to vote," The Hill reports. Nevertheless, Speaker Hastert continues to peddle conspiracy theories: "When the base finds out who's feeding this monster, they're not going to be happy. The people who want to see this thing blow up are ABC News and a lot of Democratic operatives, people funded by George Soros."
A Congressional Research Service report states that Bush's frequent use of signing statements is "an integral part" of his "comprehensive strategy to strengthen and expand executive power" and is meant to "inure Congress, as well as others, to the belief that the president in fact possesses expansive and exclusive powers upon which the other branches may not intrude."
"The government can continue to use its warrantless domestic wiretap program pending the Justice Department's appeal of a federal judge's ruling outlawing the program, an Appeals Court in Cincinnati ruled on Wednesday."
"The Iraqi Interior Ministry has suspended an entire Iraqi police brigade on suspicions that some members may have permitted, or even participated in, death squad killings." Death squads "are the main cause of Iraqi deaths now."
According to a Union of Concerned Scientists report, climate change "could strain the Northeast's power grid, farms, forests and marine fisheries" and "summers in Boston could feel like July in South Carolina," unless carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by 3 percent per year.
British commandos in southeastern Iraq have "found nothing to support the Americans' contention that Iran is providing weapons and training in Iraq."
The scarcity of African Union forces in Darfur has forced them to stop escorting women outside their refugee camps to collect wood for fuel. The result: in one camp, 21 women have been raped in the last two weeks, many in broad daylight.
And finally: "Excessive Indulgences" at the Interior Department. The department's inspector general "has uncovered an impressive amount of time spent by department employees surfing porn, game, gambling and shopping Web sites." "Our review of one week of computer use logs revealed over 4,732 log entries relating to sexually explicit and gambling Web sites by department computers," the report finds, adding that the estimates are "conservative."
Wrap...
Think Fast
"The source who in July gave news media Rep. Mark Foley's (R-Fla.) suspect e-mails to a former House page" says the documents came to him from a congressional aide who "has been a registered Republican since becoming eligible to vote," The Hill reports. Nevertheless, Speaker Hastert continues to peddle conspiracy theories: "When the base finds out who's feeding this monster, they're not going to be happy. The people who want to see this thing blow up are ABC News and a lot of Democratic operatives, people funded by George Soros."
A Congressional Research Service report states that Bush's frequent use of signing statements is "an integral part" of his "comprehensive strategy to strengthen and expand executive power" and is meant to "inure Congress, as well as others, to the belief that the president in fact possesses expansive and exclusive powers upon which the other branches may not intrude."
"The government can continue to use its warrantless domestic wiretap program pending the Justice Department's appeal of a federal judge's ruling outlawing the program, an Appeals Court in Cincinnati ruled on Wednesday."
"The Iraqi Interior Ministry has suspended an entire Iraqi police brigade on suspicions that some members may have permitted, or even participated in, death squad killings." Death squads "are the main cause of Iraqi deaths now."
According to a Union of Concerned Scientists report, climate change "could strain the Northeast's power grid, farms, forests and marine fisheries" and "summers in Boston could feel like July in South Carolina," unless carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by 3 percent per year.
British commandos in southeastern Iraq have "found nothing to support the Americans' contention that Iran is providing weapons and training in Iraq."
The scarcity of African Union forces in Darfur has forced them to stop escorting women outside their refugee camps to collect wood for fuel. The result: in one camp, 21 women have been raped in the last two weeks, many in broad daylight.
And finally: "Excessive Indulgences" at the Interior Department. The department's inspector general "has uncovered an impressive amount of time spent by department employees surfing porn, game, gambling and shopping Web sites." "Our review of one week of computer use logs revealed over 4,732 log entries relating to sexually explicit and gambling Web sites by department computers," the report finds, adding that the estimates are "conservative."
Wrap...
Do your duty: Impeach!
From www.tomdispatch.com :
Tomgram: David Swanson, The Impeachment Moment
If you've been around long enough, you've lived through moments -- there were a couple of striking ones in the Vietnam era -- when all the collective, practical wisdom of pundits and policy makers about what is possible in this world seems to fall away and suddenly the previously inconceivable enters the mainstream. The next thing you know, it's a commonplace and everybody is proudly ready to take credit for making it so. That was the case when it came to the issue of the impeachment of Richard Nixon back in 1973. Will it, in the near future, be true again when it comes to George W. Bush (and Dick Cheney)?
In the last years, impeachment has been the all-American solution that could not speak its name in the vicinity of Washington DC or anywhere in the mainstream media, even as support for it grew among Americans generally. But we may be at the edge of a new moment, judging by the ever-unfolding Mark Foley affair, the ensuing turmoil in the Republican Party, the muffling of the presidential voice, the latest polls, and even a threatened reversal in oil prices. So it se! ems the perfect moment at Tomdispatch for David Swanson, who last wrote about "trophy photos" in Iraq, but has put his prodigious energies into the issue of impeachment, to take up the subject.
Tom
Impeachment Anyone?The Case for Taking the Tape Off Our Mouths
By David Swanson
[This piece is based on seven new books on impeachment, all briefly discussed in a final note.]
Never before has the system of government established by the U.S. Constitution been as seriously threatened; never before has the built-in remedy for the sort of threat we face been as badly needed; never before have we had as good an opportunity to use that remedy exactly as it was intended.
Congress has never impeached a President and removed him from office. Once, with Richard M. Nixon, impeachment proceedings forced a resignation. Twice, with Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, impeachment proceedings led to acquittals. On a few other occasions, Congressional efforts to advance articles of impeachment have had legal and political results. These have always benefited the political party that advanced impeachment. This was even true in the case of the Republicans' unpopular impeachment of Clinton, during which the Republicans lost far fewer seats than the norm for a majority party at that point in its tenure. Two years later, they lost seats in the Senate, which had acquitted, but maintained their strength in the House, with representatives who had led the impeachment charge winning big. (This point -- little noted but important indeed -- was made to me recently by John Nichols, author of the forthcoming book, The Genius of Impeachment.)
In every past case, impeachment efforts were driven by members of Congress or other Washington political players, sometimes with support from the media. The public got behind Nixon's impeachment, but only after the proceedings had revealed massive presidential crimes. The public never got behind Clinton's impeachment, despite saturation news coverage and widespread support among political power players. In the case of George W. Bush's impeachment, with the media and both parties in Congress opposed to it, public support is just about all there is -- so far.
Click here to read more of this dispatch.
Wrap...
Tomgram: David Swanson, The Impeachment Moment
If you've been around long enough, you've lived through moments -- there were a couple of striking ones in the Vietnam era -- when all the collective, practical wisdom of pundits and policy makers about what is possible in this world seems to fall away and suddenly the previously inconceivable enters the mainstream. The next thing you know, it's a commonplace and everybody is proudly ready to take credit for making it so. That was the case when it came to the issue of the impeachment of Richard Nixon back in 1973. Will it, in the near future, be true again when it comes to George W. Bush (and Dick Cheney)?
In the last years, impeachment has been the all-American solution that could not speak its name in the vicinity of Washington DC or anywhere in the mainstream media, even as support for it grew among Americans generally. But we may be at the edge of a new moment, judging by the ever-unfolding Mark Foley affair, the ensuing turmoil in the Republican Party, the muffling of the presidential voice, the latest polls, and even a threatened reversal in oil prices. So it se! ems the perfect moment at Tomdispatch for David Swanson, who last wrote about "trophy photos" in Iraq, but has put his prodigious energies into the issue of impeachment, to take up the subject.
Tom
Impeachment Anyone?The Case for Taking the Tape Off Our Mouths
By David Swanson
[This piece is based on seven new books on impeachment, all briefly discussed in a final note.]
Never before has the system of government established by the U.S. Constitution been as seriously threatened; never before has the built-in remedy for the sort of threat we face been as badly needed; never before have we had as good an opportunity to use that remedy exactly as it was intended.
Congress has never impeached a President and removed him from office. Once, with Richard M. Nixon, impeachment proceedings forced a resignation. Twice, with Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton, impeachment proceedings led to acquittals. On a few other occasions, Congressional efforts to advance articles of impeachment have had legal and political results. These have always benefited the political party that advanced impeachment. This was even true in the case of the Republicans' unpopular impeachment of Clinton, during which the Republicans lost far fewer seats than the norm for a majority party at that point in its tenure. Two years later, they lost seats in the Senate, which had acquitted, but maintained their strength in the House, with representatives who had led the impeachment charge winning big. (This point -- little noted but important indeed -- was made to me recently by John Nichols, author of the forthcoming book, The Genius of Impeachment.)
In every past case, impeachment efforts were driven by members of Congress or other Washington political players, sometimes with support from the media. The public got behind Nixon's impeachment, but only after the proceedings had revealed massive presidential crimes. The public never got behind Clinton's impeachment, despite saturation news coverage and widespread support among political power players. In the case of George W. Bush's impeachment, with the media and both parties in Congress opposed to it, public support is just about all there is -- so far.
Click here to read more of this dispatch.
Wrap...
Can't imagine why these guys would threaten Bush & Cheney...can you?
From Sacramento Bee:
Sacramento man indicted for making threats against Bush
By Ramon Coronado - Bee Staff Writer
Published 1:29 pm PDT Thursday, October 5, 2006
A Sacramento man was indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly making threats against President Bush, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento announced Thursday.
Howard Kinsey, 41, is accused in a Sept. 22 arrest warrant of threatening to take the life and inflict harm upon the president, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott said in a press release.
Agents from the Secret Service arrested Kinsey in Los Angeles on Sept. 25 after investigators found numerous text messages and e-mails Kinsey allegedly sent the president and others.
One of the text messages was sent to a Sacramento County District Attorney investigator which stated in part, "187 for George Bush." The California penal code section for murder is 187.
Under federal law, Kinsey faces 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Earlier this week, an Elk Grove nuclear engineer and lawyer was arrested for allegedly making threats to Bush and others. On Tuesday, Michael Lee Braun, 51, who worked at the decommissioned Rancho Seco nuclear power plant, faces two federal charges of sending threatening letters to Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney and to Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville.
[Please don't hurt the Secret Service folks...]
Wrap...
Sacramento man indicted for making threats against Bush
By Ramon Coronado - Bee Staff Writer
Published 1:29 pm PDT Thursday, October 5, 2006
A Sacramento man was indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly making threats against President Bush, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Sacramento announced Thursday.
Howard Kinsey, 41, is accused in a Sept. 22 arrest warrant of threatening to take the life and inflict harm upon the president, U.S. Attorney McGregor W. Scott said in a press release.
Agents from the Secret Service arrested Kinsey in Los Angeles on Sept. 25 after investigators found numerous text messages and e-mails Kinsey allegedly sent the president and others.
One of the text messages was sent to a Sacramento County District Attorney investigator which stated in part, "187 for George Bush." The California penal code section for murder is 187.
Under federal law, Kinsey faces 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Earlier this week, an Elk Grove nuclear engineer and lawyer was arrested for allegedly making threats to Bush and others. On Tuesday, Michael Lee Braun, 51, who worked at the decommissioned Rancho Seco nuclear power plant, faces two federal charges of sending threatening letters to Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney and to Rep. John Doolittle, R-Roseville.
[Please don't hurt the Secret Service folks...]
Wrap...
Tribune is owned by Republicans...
From the NY Times:
Publisher Is Fired at Los Angeles Times
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
Published: October 5, 2006
Jeff Johnson, the publisher of The Los Angeles Times, was fired today after refusing last month to go along with cutbacks at his paper ordered by The Tribune Company.
Al Seib/The Los Angeles Times, via Associated Press
Jeffrey M. Johnson
RelatedFacts About the Los Angeles Times
The company asked Dean Baquet, the paper’s editor, who had also resisted the cuts, to stay at The Los Angeles Times, and he has agreed to do so. Colleagues said he saw an opportunity to start fresh with a new publisher and to make his case for why the staff should not be cut back as much as Tribune has proposed. But one colleague noted that Mr. Baquet still retained the option to leave.
David D. Hiller, publisher of The Chicago Tribune, has been named as a replacement for Mr. Johnson.
Scott Smith, president of Tribune Publishing, based in Chicago, flew to Los Angeles and fired Mr. Johnson this morning.
“Jeff and I agreed that this change is best at this time because Tribune and Times executives need to be aligned on how to shape our future,” Mr. Smith said in a statement.
In a memo to the staff this morning, Janet Clayton, an editor, wrote: “Sorry to tell you that we are told that Jeff Johnson is out as publisher of The Los Angeles Times.”
Mr. Baquet and Mr. Johnson last month said publicly in the pages of The Los Angeles their newspaper that they would not draw up a budget plan for cuts that Tribune, based in Chicago, had ordered. They included increasing the paper’s profits by 7 percent, or about $17 million.
Wrap...
Publisher Is Fired at Los Angeles Times
By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE
Published: October 5, 2006
Jeff Johnson, the publisher of The Los Angeles Times, was fired today after refusing last month to go along with cutbacks at his paper ordered by The Tribune Company.
Al Seib/The Los Angeles Times, via Associated Press
Jeffrey M. Johnson
RelatedFacts About the Los Angeles Times
The company asked Dean Baquet, the paper’s editor, who had also resisted the cuts, to stay at The Los Angeles Times, and he has agreed to do so. Colleagues said he saw an opportunity to start fresh with a new publisher and to make his case for why the staff should not be cut back as much as Tribune has proposed. But one colleague noted that Mr. Baquet still retained the option to leave.
David D. Hiller, publisher of The Chicago Tribune, has been named as a replacement for Mr. Johnson.
Scott Smith, president of Tribune Publishing, based in Chicago, flew to Los Angeles and fired Mr. Johnson this morning.
“Jeff and I agreed that this change is best at this time because Tribune and Times executives need to be aligned on how to shape our future,” Mr. Smith said in a statement.
In a memo to the staff this morning, Janet Clayton, an editor, wrote: “Sorry to tell you that we are told that Jeff Johnson is out as publisher of The Los Angeles Times.”
Mr. Baquet and Mr. Johnson last month said publicly in the pages of The Los Angeles their newspaper that they would not draw up a budget plan for cuts that Tribune, based in Chicago, had ordered. They included increasing the paper’s profits by 7 percent, or about $17 million.
Wrap...
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
A Coup in Washington, DC?!!!
From http://informationclearinghouse.info/article15215.htm
Why does Thailand have all the Luck?
By Mike Whitney
10/04/06
"Information Clearing House"
About 2 weeks ago, 10 Soviet-era tanks clanked-along the main thoroughfare in downtown Bangkok and stopped in front of the Presidential Palace. Once the palace had been completely surrounded it was stormed by a contingent of fully-armed Thai regulars who secured the grounds while the Thai generals looked on impassively. General Sonthi Tinsulanond took control of the country, with the tacit approval of the King, and quickly repealed the constitution, dismissed the parliament, and forbid any public demonstrations of support for the former regime. In less than an hour, the government of Prime Minister Thanskin Shinawatra was toppled in a perfectly executed, bloodless coup.
Are we there yet?
Would it really be that dreadful if a similar drama unfolded in Washington DC?
Imagine the Abrams tanks and Humvees trundling down Pennsylvania Ave; knocking down the flimsy roadblocks and wrought-iron fencing, and plopping down on the White House lawn waiting for a white flag to emerge from a window in the Oval Office.
Would the American people really cry out in rage if the presidential team was “quick-stepped” to an armored vehicle and rushed off to a secure location? Or, would they go about their business while taking a collective sigh of relief knowing that our long national nightmare had finally ended?
[to continue reading, click the link above]
Wrap...
Why does Thailand have all the Luck?
By Mike Whitney
10/04/06
"Information Clearing House"
About 2 weeks ago, 10 Soviet-era tanks clanked-along the main thoroughfare in downtown Bangkok and stopped in front of the Presidential Palace. Once the palace had been completely surrounded it was stormed by a contingent of fully-armed Thai regulars who secured the grounds while the Thai generals looked on impassively. General Sonthi Tinsulanond took control of the country, with the tacit approval of the King, and quickly repealed the constitution, dismissed the parliament, and forbid any public demonstrations of support for the former regime. In less than an hour, the government of Prime Minister Thanskin Shinawatra was toppled in a perfectly executed, bloodless coup.
Are we there yet?
Would it really be that dreadful if a similar drama unfolded in Washington DC?
Imagine the Abrams tanks and Humvees trundling down Pennsylvania Ave; knocking down the flimsy roadblocks and wrought-iron fencing, and plopping down on the White House lawn waiting for a white flag to emerge from a window in the Oval Office.
Would the American people really cry out in rage if the presidential team was “quick-stepped” to an armored vehicle and rushed off to a secure location? Or, would they go about their business while taking a collective sigh of relief knowing that our long national nightmare had finally ended?
[to continue reading, click the link above]
Wrap...
TJ Waters' book, Class 11...TV series....
Here's the latest:
"Class 11" (2007) [TV-Series]
Writing credits Jeffrey Nachmanoff (writer)
Photos, News, & More
Add to MyMovies
IMDbPro Details
Genre: Drama Plot Outline: A look at the lives of trainees in the CIA's first recruitment class after the attacks on September 11, 2001. Based on T.J. Waters' book "Class 11: Inside the CIA's First Post-9/11 Spy Class." Production Notes/Status:
Status:
Pre-production
Comments:
Status Updated:
23 August 2006
Note:
Since this project is categorized as being in production, the data is subject to change; some data could be removed completely.
[And the book should be in my hands, finally, by the end of this month!!!]
Wrap...
"Class 11" (2007) [TV-Series]
Writing credits Jeffrey Nachmanoff (writer)
Photos, News, & More
Add to MyMovies
IMDbPro Details
Genre: Drama Plot Outline: A look at the lives of trainees in the CIA's first recruitment class after the attacks on September 11, 2001. Based on T.J. Waters' book "Class 11: Inside the CIA's First Post-9/11 Spy Class." Production Notes/Status:
Status:
Pre-production
Comments:
Status Updated:
23 August 2006
Note:
Since this project is categorized as being in production, the data is subject to change; some data could be removed completely.
[And the book should be in my hands, finally, by the end of this month!!!]
Wrap...
Hi-jacking the UN SecGen for Rev Moon....
an excerpt from www.waynemadsenreport.com :
Sun Mying Moon, who was excommunicated by the Korean Presbyterian church for preaching heresy, claims he is the Messiah and intends to take control of the world. The South Korean government, which has close ties with Sun Myung Moon's organization, has used its considerable public relations machinery to convince the Security Council members to elect Ban Ki-moon as the next Secretary General.
Only a veto by one of the four other permanent members -- France, United Kingdom, Russia, or China -- can derail the possibility of a Unification Church ally from becoming the next UN Secretary General.
[click link above to read it all]
Wrap...
Sun Mying Moon, who was excommunicated by the Korean Presbyterian church for preaching heresy, claims he is the Messiah and intends to take control of the world. The South Korean government, which has close ties with Sun Myung Moon's organization, has used its considerable public relations machinery to convince the Security Council members to elect Ban Ki-moon as the next Secretary General.
Only a veto by one of the four other permanent members -- France, United Kingdom, Russia, or China -- can derail the possibility of a Unification Church ally from becoming the next UN Secretary General.
[click link above to read it all]
Wrap...
BushCo laws...unseen, unheard, but passed....
From American Progress:
Under the Radar
LABOR -- NLRB RULING BARS MILLIONS OF WORKERS FROM UNIONIZING: In a party-line 3-2 decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) voted yesterday to "slash long-time federal labor laws protecting workers’ freedom to form unions and opened the door for employers to classify millions of workers as supervisors." Under the Taft-Hartley Act, supervisors are prohibited from joining unions. In a group of three cases known as "Kentucky River," the Board's decision to classify charge nurses as supervisors means up to 8 million workers may be barred from joining unions. Under the expanded definition, a worker can be classified as a supervisor if "he or she spends as little as 10 percent to 15 percent of his or her time overseeing the work of others," blurring the original intention of the Taft-Hartley act. Even the anti-union authors of Taft-Hartley clarified that they did not intend to deny bargaining rights to "lead workers or others whose jobs do not include major managerial responsibility to hire, fire and discipline other employees." Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) criticized the board for not being thorough enough in its decision. "The board should have heard from workers," DeLauro said, "yet the NLRB has not held oral arguments in a single case since 2001."
IRAQ -- BUSH ADMINISTRATION WINS 'UNDECLARED WAR' AGAINST RECONSTRUCTION INSPECTOR GENERAL: In August, the Washington Times reported an "undeclared war" was going on between the Bush administration and Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction. "As is his mission, Mr. Bowen simply puts out a series of reports detailing failings in the reconstruction effort," the paper wrote. "Privately, Bush administration officials tell us that Mr. Bowen’s quarterly reports and audits are too negative." Today, the Times reports, "Congress has set a 2007 termination date for" Bowen "at the behest of the Bush administration, removing the source of a series of audit reports that have emboldened critics of the president’s war polices." "The just-completed Pentagon authorization bill ends SIGIR, as the post is called, on Oct. 1, 2007." "In Iraq," Bowen wrote in one of his past quarterly reports, "systematic planning for the post-hostilities period was insufficient in both scope and implementation. With respect to human capital, no comprehensive policy or regulatory guidelines were in place for staffing the management of post-war Iraq."
ADMINISTRATION -- FUNDING FOR SCHOOL VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAMS CUT BY BUSH ADMINISTRATION: In the past few weeks, the nation has been stunned by the rash of school shootings in Colorado, Wisconsin, and at an Amish schoolhouse in Pennyslvania. The violence has "prompted changes to school safety rules, sparked debate over the availability of guns and prompted a string of academic studies on the causes of stress, depression and violence in young people." Similarly, President Bush said he was "saddened and deeply concerned" about the shootings and will be convening a summit of education and law enforcement experts to discuss federal action that can help communities prevent violence. While this conference is a good step, it comes a bit late. The Bush administration has repeatedly recommended eliminating funding for a federal grant to prevent school violence. Congress has continued to fund it, but at reduced levels. "Funding was $439.2 million in 2001 but has fallen to $346.5 million this year, with $310 million recommended for 2007." Between 1992 and 2002, 261 kids were killed in school. Funding for the federal school violence and substance abuse programs has been spread so thinly "that more than half the nation's school districts receive $10,000 or less per year -- too little to make a difference," according to Bill Modzeleski, who runs the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools in the U.S. Education Department.
Wrap...
Under the Radar
LABOR -- NLRB RULING BARS MILLIONS OF WORKERS FROM UNIONIZING: In a party-line 3-2 decision, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) voted yesterday to "slash long-time federal labor laws protecting workers’ freedom to form unions and opened the door for employers to classify millions of workers as supervisors." Under the Taft-Hartley Act, supervisors are prohibited from joining unions. In a group of three cases known as "Kentucky River," the Board's decision to classify charge nurses as supervisors means up to 8 million workers may be barred from joining unions. Under the expanded definition, a worker can be classified as a supervisor if "he or she spends as little as 10 percent to 15 percent of his or her time overseeing the work of others," blurring the original intention of the Taft-Hartley act. Even the anti-union authors of Taft-Hartley clarified that they did not intend to deny bargaining rights to "lead workers or others whose jobs do not include major managerial responsibility to hire, fire and discipline other employees." Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) criticized the board for not being thorough enough in its decision. "The board should have heard from workers," DeLauro said, "yet the NLRB has not held oral arguments in a single case since 2001."
IRAQ -- BUSH ADMINISTRATION WINS 'UNDECLARED WAR' AGAINST RECONSTRUCTION INSPECTOR GENERAL: In August, the Washington Times reported an "undeclared war" was going on between the Bush administration and Stuart Bowen, the special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction. "As is his mission, Mr. Bowen simply puts out a series of reports detailing failings in the reconstruction effort," the paper wrote. "Privately, Bush administration officials tell us that Mr. Bowen’s quarterly reports and audits are too negative." Today, the Times reports, "Congress has set a 2007 termination date for" Bowen "at the behest of the Bush administration, removing the source of a series of audit reports that have emboldened critics of the president’s war polices." "The just-completed Pentagon authorization bill ends SIGIR, as the post is called, on Oct. 1, 2007." "In Iraq," Bowen wrote in one of his past quarterly reports, "systematic planning for the post-hostilities period was insufficient in both scope and implementation. With respect to human capital, no comprehensive policy or regulatory guidelines were in place for staffing the management of post-war Iraq."
ADMINISTRATION -- FUNDING FOR SCHOOL VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAMS CUT BY BUSH ADMINISTRATION: In the past few weeks, the nation has been stunned by the rash of school shootings in Colorado, Wisconsin, and at an Amish schoolhouse in Pennyslvania. The violence has "prompted changes to school safety rules, sparked debate over the availability of guns and prompted a string of academic studies on the causes of stress, depression and violence in young people." Similarly, President Bush said he was "saddened and deeply concerned" about the shootings and will be convening a summit of education and law enforcement experts to discuss federal action that can help communities prevent violence. While this conference is a good step, it comes a bit late. The Bush administration has repeatedly recommended eliminating funding for a federal grant to prevent school violence. Congress has continued to fund it, but at reduced levels. "Funding was $439.2 million in 2001 but has fallen to $346.5 million this year, with $310 million recommended for 2007." Between 1992 and 2002, 261 kids were killed in school. Funding for the federal school violence and substance abuse programs has been spread so thinly "that more than half the nation's school districts receive $10,000 or less per year -- too little to make a difference," according to Bill Modzeleski, who runs the Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools in the U.S. Education Department.
Wrap...
Bush trapped himself...
From Strategic Forecasting, Inc:
Bush and the Perception of Weakness
By George Friedman
There is good news for the Republican Party: Things can't get much worse. About five weeks from the midterm elections, a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) asserting that the situation in Iraq will deteriorate in 2007 is leaked. On top of that, Bob Woodward's book is released to massive fanfare, chronicling major disagreements within the White House over prosecution of the Iraq war and warnings to U.S. President George W. Bush in the summer of 2003 that a dangerous insurgency was under way and that the president's strategy of removing Baathists from the government and abolishing the Iraqi army was a mistake. These events are bad enough, but when U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.) -- the head of a congressional committee charged with shutting down child molesters using the Internet -- is caught sending e-mails to 16-year-old male pages, the news doesn't get much worse.
All of this is tied up with the elections of course. The NIE document leak was undoubtedly meant to embarrass the president. The problem is that it did, as it revealed the rift between the intelligence community and the White House's view of the world. The Woodward book was clearly intended to be published more than a month before the elections, and it was expected to have embarrassing revelations in it. The problem is that not a whole lot of people quoted in the book are denying that they said or did what was described. When former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card is quoted as trying to get U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld out of office and the assertion is made that first lady Laura Bush tried as well, and denials are not flying, you know two things: Woodward intended to embarrass Bush just before the election, and he succeeded. For all we know, the leak about Foley asking about a 16-year-old's boxer shorts may have been timed as well. The problem is that the allegations were true, and Foley admitted what he did and resigned.
These problems might be politically timed, but none of them appears to be based on a lie. The fact is that this confluence of events has created the perception that the Bush White House is disintegrating. Bush long ago lost control of leakers in the intelligence community; he has now started to lose control over former longtime staffers who, having resigned, have turned on him via the Woodward book. Bush appears to be locked into a small circle of advisers (particularly Vice President Dick Cheney and Rumsfeld) and locked into his Iraq strategy, and he generally appears to have suspended decision-making in favor of continuing with decisions already made.
Now, this may not be a fair perception. We are not in the White House and do not know what is going on there. But this is now the perception, and that fact must be entered into the equation. True or not, and fair or not, the president appears to be denying what the intelligence communities are saying and what some of his closest advisers have argued, and it appears that this has been going on for a long time. With the election weeks away, and the Foley scandal adding to the administration's difficulties, there is a reasonable probability that the Republicans will get hammered in the elections, potentially losing both houses of Congress if the current trend continues.
One theory is that Bush doesn't care. He believes in the things he is doing and, whatever happens in the 2006 elections, he will continue to be president for the next two years, with the power of the presidency in his hand. That may be the case, although a hostile Congress with control over the purse strings can force policies on presidents (consider Congress suspending military aid to South Vietnam under Gerald Ford). Congress has substantial power when it chooses to exercise it.
But leaving the question of internal politics aside, the perception that Bush's administration is imploding can have a significant impact on his ability to execute his foreign policy because of how foreign nations will behave. The perception of disarray generates a perception of weakness. The perception of weakness encourages foreign states to take advantage of the situation. Bush has argued that changing his Iraq policy might send the Islamic world a signal of weakness. That might be true, but the perception that Bush is losing control of his administration or of Congress can also signal weakness. If Bush's intent is the reasonable goal of not appearing weak, he obviously must examine the current situation's effects on his ability to reach that goal.
Consider a matter not involving the Islamic world. This week, a crisis blew up in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, which is now closely aligned with the United States. Georgia arrested four Russian military officers, charging them with espionage. The Russians demanded their release and halted the withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia -- a withdrawal Moscow had promised before the arrests gave it the opportunity to create a fundamental crisis in Russo-Georgian relations.
Normally a crisis of this magnitude involving a U.S. ally like Georgia would rise to the top of the pile of national security issues at the White House, with suitable threats made and action plans drawn up. Furthermore, the Russians would normally have been quite careful about handling such a crisis. There was little evidence of Russian caution; the Russians refrained from turning the situation into a military conflict, but they certainly turned up the heat on Georgia as the crisis evolved on its own. The Kremlin press service said Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin talked about Georgia in a telephone conversation Oct. 2, and that Putin told Bush third parties should be careful about encouraging Georgia.
The Russians frankly do not see the United States as capable of taking meaningful action at this point. That means Moscow can take risks, exert pressure and shift dynamics in ways it might have avoided a year ago out of fear of U.S. reprisals. The Russians know Bush does not have the political base at home, or even the administrative ability, to manage a crisis. Both National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are obsessed with Iraq and the Washington firestorm. As for Rumsfeld, Woodward quoted the head of U.S. Central Command, Gen. John Abizaid, as saying Rumsfeld lacks credibility. That statement has not been denied. It is bad when a four-star general says that about a secretary of defense. Since the perception of U.S. crisis management is that no one is minding the shop, the Russians tested their strength.
There is, of course, a much more serious matter: Iran. Iran cut its teeth on American domestic politics. After the Iranians seized U.S. Embassy personnel as hostages, they locked the Carter administration into an impossible position, in which its only option was a catastrophic rescue attempt. The Iranians had an enormous impact on the 1980 election, helping to defeat Carter and not releasing the hostages until Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president. They crippled a president once and might like to try it again.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was involved in the hostage-taking and got a close-up view of how to manipulate the United States. Iran already undermined Bush's plans for a stable government in Iraq when it mobilized Shiite forces against the Baghdad government over the summer. Between that and the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict, Iran saw itself in a strong position. Iran then conducted a diplomatic offensive, as a former Iranian president and the current Iranian president both traveled to the United States and tried to make the case that they are more moderate than the Bush administration painted them.
With five weeks until the U.S. congressional midterm elections, the Iranians would love to be able to claim that Bush, having rejected their overtures, was brought down -- or at least crippled -- by Iran. There are rumors swirling about pending major attacks in Iraq by pro-Iranian forces. There are always rumors swirling in Iraq about attacks, but in this particular case, logic would give them credibility. The Iranians might be calculating that if Iranian-sponsored groups could inflict massive casualties on U.S. troops, it would affect the U.S. election enough to get a Democratic Congress in place -- which could cripple Bush's ability to wage war and further weaken the United States' position in the Middle East. This, of course, would increase Iran's standing in the region.
The Iranian perception is that the United States does not have the resources to launch either an invasion or massive airstrikes against Iran. The Bush administration's credibility on weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is too low for that to be regarded as a plausible excuse, and even if strikes were launched to take out WMD, that rationale would not justify an extended, multi-month bombing campaign. Since the Iranians believe the United States lacks the will and ability to try regime change from the air, Tehran is in a position to strike without putting itself at risk.
If the Iranians were to strike hard at the United States in Iraq, and the United States did not respond effectively, then the perception in key countries like Saudi Arabia -- a religious and geopolitical rival of Iran's -- would be that aligning with the United States is a dangerous move because the U.S. ability to protect them is not there, and therefore they need to make other arrangements. Since getting the Saudis' cooperation against al Qaeda was a major achievement for the Bush administration, this would be a major reversal. But if Riyadh perceived the United States as inherently weak, Riyadh would have no choice but to recalculate and relaunch its foreign policy. Iran and others are feeling encouraged to take risks before the upcoming U.S. election -- either because they see this as a period of maximum American weakness or because they hope to influence the election and further weaken Bush. If they succeed, many U.S. allies will, like the Saudis, have to recalculate their positions relative to the United States and move away. The willingness of people in Iraq and Afghanistan to align with the United States will decline. If the United States is seen as a loser, it will become a loser. Furthermore, the NIE and the Woodward book create the perception that Bush has become isolated in his views and unable to control his own people. He needs to reverse this perception.
It is easy to write that. It is much harder to imagine how he will accomplish it, particularly if there is a major attack in Iraq or elsewhere. Bush's solution has been to refuse to bend. That worked for a while, but that strategy is no longer credible because it is not clear that Bush still has the option of not bending. The disarray in his administration and the real possibility of losing Congress means that merely remaining resolved is not enough. Bush needs to bring perceived order to the perceived chaos in the administration. Between the bad luck of degenerate congressmen and the intentions of the Iranians, he does not have many tools at his disposal. The things he might have done a year ago, like replacing Rumsfeld, are not an option now. It would smell of panic, and he cannot afford to be seen as panicky. Perhaps Bush's only option at this point is to remain self-assured and indifferent to the storm around him.
Whatever the perception in the United States, Bush's enemies overseas are not impressed by his self-assurance, and his allies are getting very worried that, like Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, his political weakness will not allow him to control the U.S. course. We believe that, in the end, reality governs perception. But we are not convinced that, in this case, the perception and the reality are not one and the same; and we are not convinced that, in the coming weeks, the perception is not in fact more important than the reality. And if the Republicans lose the upcoming elections, the perception that Bush lacks the plans and political power needed for decisive action will become the reality. For Bush to be able to execute the foreign policy he wants, his party must win the midterm elections. For that to happen, Bush must get control of the political situation quickly. To do that, he must change the perception that his own administration is out of control. Easy to write. Harder to do.
Send questions or comments on this article to analysis@stratfor.com.
Wrap...
Bush and the Perception of Weakness
By George Friedman
There is good news for the Republican Party: Things can't get much worse. About five weeks from the midterm elections, a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) asserting that the situation in Iraq will deteriorate in 2007 is leaked. On top of that, Bob Woodward's book is released to massive fanfare, chronicling major disagreements within the White House over prosecution of the Iraq war and warnings to U.S. President George W. Bush in the summer of 2003 that a dangerous insurgency was under way and that the president's strategy of removing Baathists from the government and abolishing the Iraqi army was a mistake. These events are bad enough, but when U.S. Rep. Mark Foley (R-Fla.) -- the head of a congressional committee charged with shutting down child molesters using the Internet -- is caught sending e-mails to 16-year-old male pages, the news doesn't get much worse.
All of this is tied up with the elections of course. The NIE document leak was undoubtedly meant to embarrass the president. The problem is that it did, as it revealed the rift between the intelligence community and the White House's view of the world. The Woodward book was clearly intended to be published more than a month before the elections, and it was expected to have embarrassing revelations in it. The problem is that not a whole lot of people quoted in the book are denying that they said or did what was described. When former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card is quoted as trying to get U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld out of office and the assertion is made that first lady Laura Bush tried as well, and denials are not flying, you know two things: Woodward intended to embarrass Bush just before the election, and he succeeded. For all we know, the leak about Foley asking about a 16-year-old's boxer shorts may have been timed as well. The problem is that the allegations were true, and Foley admitted what he did and resigned.
These problems might be politically timed, but none of them appears to be based on a lie. The fact is that this confluence of events has created the perception that the Bush White House is disintegrating. Bush long ago lost control of leakers in the intelligence community; he has now started to lose control over former longtime staffers who, having resigned, have turned on him via the Woodward book. Bush appears to be locked into a small circle of advisers (particularly Vice President Dick Cheney and Rumsfeld) and locked into his Iraq strategy, and he generally appears to have suspended decision-making in favor of continuing with decisions already made.
Now, this may not be a fair perception. We are not in the White House and do not know what is going on there. But this is now the perception, and that fact must be entered into the equation. True or not, and fair or not, the president appears to be denying what the intelligence communities are saying and what some of his closest advisers have argued, and it appears that this has been going on for a long time. With the election weeks away, and the Foley scandal adding to the administration's difficulties, there is a reasonable probability that the Republicans will get hammered in the elections, potentially losing both houses of Congress if the current trend continues.
One theory is that Bush doesn't care. He believes in the things he is doing and, whatever happens in the 2006 elections, he will continue to be president for the next two years, with the power of the presidency in his hand. That may be the case, although a hostile Congress with control over the purse strings can force policies on presidents (consider Congress suspending military aid to South Vietnam under Gerald Ford). Congress has substantial power when it chooses to exercise it.
But leaving the question of internal politics aside, the perception that Bush's administration is imploding can have a significant impact on his ability to execute his foreign policy because of how foreign nations will behave. The perception of disarray generates a perception of weakness. The perception of weakness encourages foreign states to take advantage of the situation. Bush has argued that changing his Iraq policy might send the Islamic world a signal of weakness. That might be true, but the perception that Bush is losing control of his administration or of Congress can also signal weakness. If Bush's intent is the reasonable goal of not appearing weak, he obviously must examine the current situation's effects on his ability to reach that goal.
Consider a matter not involving the Islamic world. This week, a crisis blew up in the former Soviet republic of Georgia, which is now closely aligned with the United States. Georgia arrested four Russian military officers, charging them with espionage. The Russians demanded their release and halted the withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia -- a withdrawal Moscow had promised before the arrests gave it the opportunity to create a fundamental crisis in Russo-Georgian relations.
Normally a crisis of this magnitude involving a U.S. ally like Georgia would rise to the top of the pile of national security issues at the White House, with suitable threats made and action plans drawn up. Furthermore, the Russians would normally have been quite careful about handling such a crisis. There was little evidence of Russian caution; the Russians refrained from turning the situation into a military conflict, but they certainly turned up the heat on Georgia as the crisis evolved on its own. The Kremlin press service said Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin talked about Georgia in a telephone conversation Oct. 2, and that Putin told Bush third parties should be careful about encouraging Georgia.
The Russians frankly do not see the United States as capable of taking meaningful action at this point. That means Moscow can take risks, exert pressure and shift dynamics in ways it might have avoided a year ago out of fear of U.S. reprisals. The Russians know Bush does not have the political base at home, or even the administrative ability, to manage a crisis. Both National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice are obsessed with Iraq and the Washington firestorm. As for Rumsfeld, Woodward quoted the head of U.S. Central Command, Gen. John Abizaid, as saying Rumsfeld lacks credibility. That statement has not been denied. It is bad when a four-star general says that about a secretary of defense. Since the perception of U.S. crisis management is that no one is minding the shop, the Russians tested their strength.
There is, of course, a much more serious matter: Iran. Iran cut its teeth on American domestic politics. After the Iranians seized U.S. Embassy personnel as hostages, they locked the Carter administration into an impossible position, in which its only option was a catastrophic rescue attempt. The Iranians had an enormous impact on the 1980 election, helping to defeat Carter and not releasing the hostages until Ronald Reagan was sworn in as president. They crippled a president once and might like to try it again.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was involved in the hostage-taking and got a close-up view of how to manipulate the United States. Iran already undermined Bush's plans for a stable government in Iraq when it mobilized Shiite forces against the Baghdad government over the summer. Between that and the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict, Iran saw itself in a strong position. Iran then conducted a diplomatic offensive, as a former Iranian president and the current Iranian president both traveled to the United States and tried to make the case that they are more moderate than the Bush administration painted them.
With five weeks until the U.S. congressional midterm elections, the Iranians would love to be able to claim that Bush, having rejected their overtures, was brought down -- or at least crippled -- by Iran. There are rumors swirling about pending major attacks in Iraq by pro-Iranian forces. There are always rumors swirling in Iraq about attacks, but in this particular case, logic would give them credibility. The Iranians might be calculating that if Iranian-sponsored groups could inflict massive casualties on U.S. troops, it would affect the U.S. election enough to get a Democratic Congress in place -- which could cripple Bush's ability to wage war and further weaken the United States' position in the Middle East. This, of course, would increase Iran's standing in the region.
The Iranian perception is that the United States does not have the resources to launch either an invasion or massive airstrikes against Iran. The Bush administration's credibility on weapons of mass destruction (WMD) is too low for that to be regarded as a plausible excuse, and even if strikes were launched to take out WMD, that rationale would not justify an extended, multi-month bombing campaign. Since the Iranians believe the United States lacks the will and ability to try regime change from the air, Tehran is in a position to strike without putting itself at risk.
If the Iranians were to strike hard at the United States in Iraq, and the United States did not respond effectively, then the perception in key countries like Saudi Arabia -- a religious and geopolitical rival of Iran's -- would be that aligning with the United States is a dangerous move because the U.S. ability to protect them is not there, and therefore they need to make other arrangements. Since getting the Saudis' cooperation against al Qaeda was a major achievement for the Bush administration, this would be a major reversal. But if Riyadh perceived the United States as inherently weak, Riyadh would have no choice but to recalculate and relaunch its foreign policy. Iran and others are feeling encouraged to take risks before the upcoming U.S. election -- either because they see this as a period of maximum American weakness or because they hope to influence the election and further weaken Bush. If they succeed, many U.S. allies will, like the Saudis, have to recalculate their positions relative to the United States and move away. The willingness of people in Iraq and Afghanistan to align with the United States will decline. If the United States is seen as a loser, it will become a loser. Furthermore, the NIE and the Woodward book create the perception that Bush has become isolated in his views and unable to control his own people. He needs to reverse this perception.
It is easy to write that. It is much harder to imagine how he will accomplish it, particularly if there is a major attack in Iraq or elsewhere. Bush's solution has been to refuse to bend. That worked for a while, but that strategy is no longer credible because it is not clear that Bush still has the option of not bending. The disarray in his administration and the real possibility of losing Congress means that merely remaining resolved is not enough. Bush needs to bring perceived order to the perceived chaos in the administration. Between the bad luck of degenerate congressmen and the intentions of the Iranians, he does not have many tools at his disposal. The things he might have done a year ago, like replacing Rumsfeld, are not an option now. It would smell of panic, and he cannot afford to be seen as panicky. Perhaps Bush's only option at this point is to remain self-assured and indifferent to the storm around him.
Whatever the perception in the United States, Bush's enemies overseas are not impressed by his self-assurance, and his allies are getting very worried that, like Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford, his political weakness will not allow him to control the U.S. course. We believe that, in the end, reality governs perception. But we are not convinced that, in this case, the perception and the reality are not one and the same; and we are not convinced that, in the coming weeks, the perception is not in fact more important than the reality. And if the Republicans lose the upcoming elections, the perception that Bush lacks the plans and political power needed for decisive action will become the reality. For Bush to be able to execute the foreign policy he wants, his party must win the midterm elections. For that to happen, Bush must get control of the political situation quickly. To do that, he must change the perception that his own administration is out of control. Easy to write. Harder to do.
Send questions or comments on this article to analysis@stratfor.com.
Wrap...
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Secrecy Reports...take your choice....
From Secrecy News:
A SLEW OF CRS REPORTS
Some new products of the Congressional Research Service obtained bySecrecy News include the following.
"Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court," updated September 26, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL33180.pdf
"Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006: S. 3931 and Title II of S.3929, the Terrorist Tracking, Identification, and Prosecution Act of 2006," September 25, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/RL33669.pdf
"Intelligence Spending: Public Disclosure Issues," updated September25, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/94-261.pdf
"Selected Procedural Safeguards in Federal, Military, and International Courts," updated September 18, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL31262.pdf
"East Asian Regional Architecture: New Economic and SecurityArrangements and U.S. Policy," September 18, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33653.pdf"Critical Infrastructure:
The National Asset Database," September14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/RL33648.pdf
"Information Operations and Cyberwar: Capabilities and Related Policy Issues," updated September 14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL31787.pdf
"China/Taiwan: Evolution of the 'One China' Policy -- Key Statements from Washington, Beijing, and Taipei," updated September 7, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL30341.pdf
"Immigration: Terrorist Grounds for Exclusion of Aliens," updated September 5, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/RL32564.pdf
"Pages of the United States Congress: Selection, Duties, and Program Administration," updated August 14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/98-758.pdf
Wrap...
A SLEW OF CRS REPORTS
Some new products of the Congressional Research Service obtained bySecrecy News include the following.
"Enemy Combatant Detainees: Habeas Corpus Challenges in Federal Court," updated September 26, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL33180.pdf
"Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006: S. 3931 and Title II of S.3929, the Terrorist Tracking, Identification, and Prosecution Act of 2006," September 25, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/RL33669.pdf
"Intelligence Spending: Public Disclosure Issues," updated September25, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/intel/94-261.pdf
"Selected Procedural Safeguards in Federal, Military, and International Courts," updated September 18, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL31262.pdf
"East Asian Regional Architecture: New Economic and SecurityArrangements and U.S. Policy," September 18, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL33653.pdf"Critical Infrastructure:
The National Asset Database," September14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/RL33648.pdf
"Information Operations and Cyberwar: Capabilities and Related Policy Issues," updated September 14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL31787.pdf
"China/Taiwan: Evolution of the 'One China' Policy -- Key Statements from Washington, Beijing, and Taipei," updated September 7, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/row/RL30341.pdf
"Immigration: Terrorist Grounds for Exclusion of Aliens," updated September 5, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/homesec/RL32564.pdf
"Pages of the United States Congress: Selection, Duties, and Program Administration," updated August 14, 2006: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/98-758.pdf
Wrap...
Fitzgerald's about to strike....
From www.tomdispatch.com :
Tomgram: De la Vega, A Libby Pardon for Christmas?
Sometimes, the proximate cause of an unraveling, even an implosion, may catch everyone by surprise. This week the "tipping point" (to borrow a Bush administration phrase from the Iraq War) for the possible unraveling of Republican control of Congress may be the roiling, boiling Mark Foley affair with its sexually explicit emails and instant messages to teenage House pages, which, in the pattern of any such scandal, has surely not yet fully emerged into view.
Only today, the editorial page of the right-wing Washington Times called on House Speaker Dennis Hastert to resign "at once," while the Washington Post reported "intense anger among social conservative activists in Washington yesterday." Meanwhile, news about how much the Republican leadership (and the FBI) knew about Foley's activities without taking any action continues to emerge and the Democrats are clearly about to press their sudden advantage in undoubtedly below-the-belt campaign ads. As Perry Bacon, Jr. of Time Magazine puts it, a potentially expanding "‘throw the bums' out mentality... could result in a Democratic win in the House" -- and, with that, the power to investigate the Bush administration would fall into far less friendly hands at a moment when the landscape is chock-a-block full of investigative possibilities.
In just the last couple of weeks, it was learned that lobbyist Jack Abramoff may have practically camped out in Karl Rove's office; that Henry Kissinger had quietly returned to the Oval Office to re-fight the Vietnam War; that the complete American intelligence community agreed, in a National intelligence Estimate, that Iraq was a veritable machine for creating terrorists; that (according to the Washington Post's Bob Woodward, who created laudatory portraits of the President when things were going so well) George W. Bush (gasp!) actually lied to the American people about the situation in Iraq; that he was also determined to make sure American troops remained mired in Iraq even if only his wife and dog supported his policy; that his former national security advisor and present secretary of state may have shrugged off a meeting with the top two people in the CIA in July 2001 warning about an Osama bin Laden attack; and finally that Congress passed a bill essentially giving the President and the CIA a get-out-of-jail-free card for illegal past acts in the thriving field of torture and illegal detention.
In such a scandal-ridden, edge-of-election moment in Washington, it's easy enough to let older scandals slip from sight. Right now, that's the case with Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald's upcoming prosecution of I. Lewis Libby, Vice President Cheney's former right-hand man. As it happens, however, even if we've taken our eyes off the case (and the set of scandals behind it), key administration figures haven't for a simple reason that former federal prosecutor Elizabeth de la Vega explains in striking fashion below. After all, the Libby case, when laid out in court, would threaten to unravel the Vice President's command post in full view of the public. So, take a moment off from the scandals of the present to consider a scandal of the past which, one way or another, is guaranteed to be a major scandal of the near future. Tom
[to continue reading, click on link above]
Wrap...
Tomgram: De la Vega, A Libby Pardon for Christmas?
Sometimes, the proximate cause of an unraveling, even an implosion, may catch everyone by surprise. This week the "tipping point" (to borrow a Bush administration phrase from the Iraq War) for the possible unraveling of Republican control of Congress may be the roiling, boiling Mark Foley affair with its sexually explicit emails and instant messages to teenage House pages, which, in the pattern of any such scandal, has surely not yet fully emerged into view.
Only today, the editorial page of the right-wing Washington Times called on House Speaker Dennis Hastert to resign "at once," while the Washington Post reported "intense anger among social conservative activists in Washington yesterday." Meanwhile, news about how much the Republican leadership (and the FBI) knew about Foley's activities without taking any action continues to emerge and the Democrats are clearly about to press their sudden advantage in undoubtedly below-the-belt campaign ads. As Perry Bacon, Jr. of Time Magazine puts it, a potentially expanding "‘throw the bums' out mentality... could result in a Democratic win in the House" -- and, with that, the power to investigate the Bush administration would fall into far less friendly hands at a moment when the landscape is chock-a-block full of investigative possibilities.
In just the last couple of weeks, it was learned that lobbyist Jack Abramoff may have practically camped out in Karl Rove's office; that Henry Kissinger had quietly returned to the Oval Office to re-fight the Vietnam War; that the complete American intelligence community agreed, in a National intelligence Estimate, that Iraq was a veritable machine for creating terrorists; that (according to the Washington Post's Bob Woodward, who created laudatory portraits of the President when things were going so well) George W. Bush (gasp!) actually lied to the American people about the situation in Iraq; that he was also determined to make sure American troops remained mired in Iraq even if only his wife and dog supported his policy; that his former national security advisor and present secretary of state may have shrugged off a meeting with the top two people in the CIA in July 2001 warning about an Osama bin Laden attack; and finally that Congress passed a bill essentially giving the President and the CIA a get-out-of-jail-free card for illegal past acts in the thriving field of torture and illegal detention.
In such a scandal-ridden, edge-of-election moment in Washington, it's easy enough to let older scandals slip from sight. Right now, that's the case with Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald's upcoming prosecution of I. Lewis Libby, Vice President Cheney's former right-hand man. As it happens, however, even if we've taken our eyes off the case (and the set of scandals behind it), key administration figures haven't for a simple reason that former federal prosecutor Elizabeth de la Vega explains in striking fashion below. After all, the Libby case, when laid out in court, would threaten to unravel the Vice President's command post in full view of the public. So, take a moment off from the scandals of the present to consider a scandal of the past which, one way or another, is guaranteed to be a major scandal of the near future. Tom
[to continue reading, click on link above]
Wrap...
Lawyers vs churches...
From Voice of San Diego.org :
Who Can Pay for the Lawyers?
My conservative streak says that I don't want to help foot the bill for another guy's lawsuit. On the other hand, there is no justice in the constitution if it's out of reach for those who need it
By Keith Taylor
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2006
San Diego Attorneys Jim McElroy and Kevin Keenan might not feel like reflecting on their new found fame, or is it infamy? A bill in the House and another in the Senate have been working their way through Congress. The House bill passed on Tuesday.
If either HR 2679 or S3696 ends up as law, it will forbid attorneys from collecting fees or expenses when they sue the federal government in cases involving establishment of religion, even if they win the case. The best example is San Diego's "cross case" waged by Jim McElroy on behalf of Phil Paulson. Kevin Keenan, executive director of the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties is also involved. The ACLU has filed its own case, naming the SECDEF, Donald Rumsfeld, himself. It is on behalf of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America.
Both McElroy and the ACLU will get the short end of the stick if either bill becomes law.
Ordinarily, that wouldn't bother me. My conservative streak says that I don't want to help foot the bill for another guy's lawsuit. And before, you ask, I do have a conservative streak. I just control it. On the other hand, there is no justice in the constitution if it's out of reach for those who need it. If you're unable to sue, you're screwed.
Look at the current case of Phil Paulson. Even though he and Howard Kriesner won the first round without legal representation, the city has been appealing ever since. The legal costs of fighting those appeals have been enormous.
Mostly they were incurred by Jim McElroy. I called Jim. He said that even if he wanted to do the work pro bono, his regular expenses would still continue. They have run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars so far.
He emphasized that this bill specifically only rejects claims against the establishment of religion clause in the First Amendment. What a nice way to enforce your own beliefs, simply put dissent out of reach of those who need it most!
He and his client, Phil Paulson, claim it is not a suit just of one person against a religious symbol. It is a suit on behalf of Americans against establishing one religion. The implications go far beyond whether some folks feel good looking up at a religious symbol on a mountain.
"As it is we have more religious diversity than any other country, and it's because of the First Amendment," says McElroy.
Others disagree, the American Legion for example. In the Legion website, National Commander Thomas Bock wrote, ". . . It (the proposed law) will remove the chilling effect on constitutionally protected free expression of religion in public areas by ending court-ordered attorney fees, or damages, in Establishment Clause cases -- but only those cases."And ain't that just dandy.
People with grievances of all sorts against the government can likely get an attorney to represent them, but if that grievance is against the 600 pound gorilla in our living room -- that untouchable thing called religion -- a litigant is just plain out of luck. Only institutions as large as the churches themselves could afford to go to court. And don't bet against that either. Once we've put enough crosses on mountains and copies of the Decalogue in our court rooms, we can claim this is a Christian nation. Or maybe I'm late with that prediction -- seems I've heard that phrase a lot lately.
What we haven't heard a lot of so far is which particular religion will reign over America. Those who think it'll just stay as a Christian nation without big churches wanting to rule the roost just haven't looked at their history books close enough.
Why a law that singles out just one provision of the Bill of Rights?
McElroy put it best, "It's election-year politics. That's exactly what it is. It is trying to invigorate the Christian right for the election..."
And what a great way to do it, put the First Amendment out of reach of all but the richest of our citizens!
Keith Taylor is program chair for the San Diego Association for Rational Inquiry. He can be reached at KRTaylorxyz@aol.com
Wrap...
Who Can Pay for the Lawyers?
My conservative streak says that I don't want to help foot the bill for another guy's lawsuit. On the other hand, there is no justice in the constitution if it's out of reach for those who need it
By Keith Taylor
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2006
San Diego Attorneys Jim McElroy and Kevin Keenan might not feel like reflecting on their new found fame, or is it infamy? A bill in the House and another in the Senate have been working their way through Congress. The House bill passed on Tuesday.
If either HR 2679 or S3696 ends up as law, it will forbid attorneys from collecting fees or expenses when they sue the federal government in cases involving establishment of religion, even if they win the case. The best example is San Diego's "cross case" waged by Jim McElroy on behalf of Phil Paulson. Kevin Keenan, executive director of the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial Counties is also involved. The ACLU has filed its own case, naming the SECDEF, Donald Rumsfeld, himself. It is on behalf of the Jewish War Veterans of the United States of America.
Both McElroy and the ACLU will get the short end of the stick if either bill becomes law.
Ordinarily, that wouldn't bother me. My conservative streak says that I don't want to help foot the bill for another guy's lawsuit. And before, you ask, I do have a conservative streak. I just control it. On the other hand, there is no justice in the constitution if it's out of reach for those who need it. If you're unable to sue, you're screwed.
Look at the current case of Phil Paulson. Even though he and Howard Kriesner won the first round without legal representation, the city has been appealing ever since. The legal costs of fighting those appeals have been enormous.
Mostly they were incurred by Jim McElroy. I called Jim. He said that even if he wanted to do the work pro bono, his regular expenses would still continue. They have run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars so far.
He emphasized that this bill specifically only rejects claims against the establishment of religion clause in the First Amendment. What a nice way to enforce your own beliefs, simply put dissent out of reach of those who need it most!
He and his client, Phil Paulson, claim it is not a suit just of one person against a religious symbol. It is a suit on behalf of Americans against establishing one religion. The implications go far beyond whether some folks feel good looking up at a religious symbol on a mountain.
"As it is we have more religious diversity than any other country, and it's because of the First Amendment," says McElroy.
Others disagree, the American Legion for example. In the Legion website, National Commander Thomas Bock wrote, ". . . It (the proposed law) will remove the chilling effect on constitutionally protected free expression of religion in public areas by ending court-ordered attorney fees, or damages, in Establishment Clause cases -- but only those cases."And ain't that just dandy.
People with grievances of all sorts against the government can likely get an attorney to represent them, but if that grievance is against the 600 pound gorilla in our living room -- that untouchable thing called religion -- a litigant is just plain out of luck. Only institutions as large as the churches themselves could afford to go to court. And don't bet against that either. Once we've put enough crosses on mountains and copies of the Decalogue in our court rooms, we can claim this is a Christian nation. Or maybe I'm late with that prediction -- seems I've heard that phrase a lot lately.
What we haven't heard a lot of so far is which particular religion will reign over America. Those who think it'll just stay as a Christian nation without big churches wanting to rule the roost just haven't looked at their history books close enough.
Why a law that singles out just one provision of the Bill of Rights?
McElroy put it best, "It's election-year politics. That's exactly what it is. It is trying to invigorate the Christian right for the election..."
And what a great way to do it, put the First Amendment out of reach of all but the richest of our citizens!
Keith Taylor is program chair for the San Diego Association for Rational Inquiry. He can be reached at KRTaylorxyz@aol.com
Wrap...
Lieberman's dirty deal...with Repub $$$ backing...
From Political Wire.com :
October 02, 2006
Lieberman Says He Was Promised Seniority
Very few Democratic senators openly back his independent bid for re-election, but Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) says he's been promised his seniority if he wins the general election against Ned Lamont (D), according to The Hill.
"Lieberman said he assumed that would mean he would continue to serve as the top Democrat on the governmental affairs panel... That could create big problems with Democrats in Congress and around the country if their party takes over the Senate.
The governmental affairs panel is primarily responsible for oversight and investigations of the executive branch."
Categories: 2006 Campaign
Wrap...
October 02, 2006
Lieberman Says He Was Promised Seniority
Very few Democratic senators openly back his independent bid for re-election, but Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) says he's been promised his seniority if he wins the general election against Ned Lamont (D), according to The Hill.
"Lieberman said he assumed that would mean he would continue to serve as the top Democrat on the governmental affairs panel... That could create big problems with Democrats in Congress and around the country if their party takes over the Senate.
The governmental affairs panel is primarily responsible for oversight and investigations of the executive branch."
Categories: 2006 Campaign
Wrap...
Sen Boxer...Fix electronic voting machines!!!
From U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer:
Last week, in the wake of numerous problems with electronic voting machines in recent primary elections, I asked for your help to urge Congress to support my "Confidence in Voting Act" -- a bill that would make paper ballots available at every polling place to any voter who wants one.
More than 15,000 people joined our effort and emailed their Members of Congress about this important legislation. Thank you so much for your support!
While every Democratic Senator stood with us -- in particular, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), an original co-author of the "Help America Vote Act" -- the Republicans stopped us and refused to allow this common-sense legislation to move forward.
I'm very disappointed that the Republican Party continues to play politics with the integrity of our elections system. And really, there is only one conclusion that I can reach: Democratic Senators are united in their desire to restore confidence in our voting system, while Republican Senators are supporting the status quo...again!
So what do we do now? Over the next 35 days we must redouble our efforts to get everyone we know -- our friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues -- out to vote on Election Day. In local races, in statewide races, in House races, and in Senate races, every single vote is incredibly important -- especially with the future of our country on the line.
Then, once Democrats are in control of Congress -- as well as more governors' offices and statehouses -- we'll do the work that the Republicans refuse to do: address the real problems that still exist in our nation's elections system.
Thanks for your continued support!
In Friendship,
Barbara BoxerU.S. Senator
Wrap...
Last week, in the wake of numerous problems with electronic voting machines in recent primary elections, I asked for your help to urge Congress to support my "Confidence in Voting Act" -- a bill that would make paper ballots available at every polling place to any voter who wants one.
More than 15,000 people joined our effort and emailed their Members of Congress about this important legislation. Thank you so much for your support!
While every Democratic Senator stood with us -- in particular, Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT), an original co-author of the "Help America Vote Act" -- the Republicans stopped us and refused to allow this common-sense legislation to move forward.
I'm very disappointed that the Republican Party continues to play politics with the integrity of our elections system. And really, there is only one conclusion that I can reach: Democratic Senators are united in their desire to restore confidence in our voting system, while Republican Senators are supporting the status quo...again!
So what do we do now? Over the next 35 days we must redouble our efforts to get everyone we know -- our friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues -- out to vote on Election Day. In local races, in statewide races, in House races, and in Senate races, every single vote is incredibly important -- especially with the future of our country on the line.
Then, once Democrats are in control of Congress -- as well as more governors' offices and statehouses -- we'll do the work that the Republicans refuse to do: address the real problems that still exist in our nation's elections system.
Thanks for your continued support!
In Friendship,
Barbara BoxerU.S. Senator
Wrap...
Monday, October 02, 2006
The book Bush has written a blurb for...
Just got this news:
Steerforth Press will publish the paperback edition of James Cannon's Apostle Paul: A Novel of the Man Who Brought Christianity to the Western World ($24.95, 1586420941) on November 14 with the following endorsement on the back cover, reading, in its entirety:
Sept. 13, 2006
Dear Mr. Cannon,I have just finished Apostle Paul. I enjoyed your book a lot. I read the Bible, and your book helps me better understand the letters and the life of Paul.I appreciate very much the inscription in the front of the book. These are trying times, and I firmly believe in the decisions I have made. I long for the Peace that freedom can yield. With warm regards,George Bush
*****************************
Yeah...I bet he does. As long as Cheney, et al, "help" him make decisions, and of course God speaks to him. Uh-huh. I wouldn't touch that book with a 90-foot pole.
Wrap...
Steerforth Press will publish the paperback edition of James Cannon's Apostle Paul: A Novel of the Man Who Brought Christianity to the Western World ($24.95, 1586420941) on November 14 with the following endorsement on the back cover, reading, in its entirety:
Sept. 13, 2006
Dear Mr. Cannon,I have just finished Apostle Paul. I enjoyed your book a lot. I read the Bible, and your book helps me better understand the letters and the life of Paul.I appreciate very much the inscription in the front of the book. These are trying times, and I firmly believe in the decisions I have made. I long for the Peace that freedom can yield. With warm regards,George Bush
*****************************
Yeah...I bet he does. As long as Cheney, et al, "help" him make decisions, and of course God speaks to him. Uh-huh. I wouldn't touch that book with a 90-foot pole.
Wrap...
Gonna leave Iraq same way we left Vietnam...
From www.waynemadsenreport.com
October 2, 2006
With Bob Woodward's revelations in his book State of Denial that Vice President Dick Cheney confirmed that Henry Kissinger is frequently consulted by both Cheney and George W. Bush, comes ironic news from our Pentagon sources.
Kissinger, who as Secretary of State, helped oversee the U.S. military evacuation of South Vietnam in 1975, is trying to convince the Bush White House that it should remain in Iraq to make up for Congress' lack of resolve to win in Vietnam. However, our Pentagon sources report that plans for a massive and quick U.S. military evacuation from Iraq have been drawn up -- and that they borrow heavily from the U.S. evacuation experience in South Vietnam.
[continue reading at link above]
Wrap...
October 2, 2006
With Bob Woodward's revelations in his book State of Denial that Vice President Dick Cheney confirmed that Henry Kissinger is frequently consulted by both Cheney and George W. Bush, comes ironic news from our Pentagon sources.
Kissinger, who as Secretary of State, helped oversee the U.S. military evacuation of South Vietnam in 1975, is trying to convince the Bush White House that it should remain in Iraq to make up for Congress' lack of resolve to win in Vietnam. However, our Pentagon sources report that plans for a massive and quick U.S. military evacuation from Iraq have been drawn up -- and that they borrow heavily from the U.S. evacuation experience in South Vietnam.
[continue reading at link above]
Wrap...
Sunday, October 01, 2006
Daylight Saving Time? Changed?!!!
Does anybody know about this?
Daylight Saving Time Schedule
2006 April 2 October 29
New Federal Law in Effect:-----à 2007 March 11 November 4
2008 March 9 November 2
2009 March 8 November 1
2010 March 14 November 7
2011 March 13 November 8
Date change in 2007
On August 8, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This Act changed the time change dates for Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. Beginning in 2007, DST will begin on the second Sunday of March and end the first Sunday of November. The Secretary of Energy will report the impact of this change to Congress. Congress retains the right to revert the Daylight Saving Time back to the 2005 time schedule once the Department of Energy study is complete.
Wrap...
Daylight Saving Time Schedule
2006 April 2 October 29
New Federal Law in Effect:-----à 2007 March 11 November 4
2008 March 9 November 2
2009 March 8 November 1
2010 March 14 November 7
2011 March 13 November 8
Date change in 2007
On August 8, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005. This Act changed the time change dates for Daylight Saving Time in the U.S. Beginning in 2007, DST will begin on the second Sunday of March and end the first Sunday of November. The Secretary of Energy will report the impact of this change to Congress. Congress retains the right to revert the Daylight Saving Time back to the 2005 time schedule once the Department of Energy study is complete.
Wrap...
BushCo's plan for Iran...nuke 'em....
From Information Clearing House:
Attack On Iran Inevitable - Nuke Use In White House Plan
Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner (ret.) says U.S. forces will assassinate Iran's leadership.
A Must Watch Interview
Retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner on the probability of air strikes on Iran and the likely consequences. Click here to view. Real video and windows media.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article15170.htm
Wrap...
Attack On Iran Inevitable - Nuke Use In White House Plan
Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner (ret.) says U.S. forces will assassinate Iran's leadership.
A Must Watch Interview
Retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner on the probability of air strikes on Iran and the likely consequences. Click here to view. Real video and windows media.
http://informationclearinghouse.info/article15170.htm
Wrap...
Too bad BushCo is too dense to understand this...
From Information Clearing House:
On Affairs in America
" My Lords, this ruinous and ignominious situation, where we cannot act with success, nor suffer with honour, calls upon us to remonstrate in the strongest and loudest language of truth, to rescue the ear of Majesty from the delusions which surround it. You cannot, I venture to say, you cannot conquer America.
"What is your present situation there? We do not know the worst; but we know that in three campaigns we have done nothing and suffered much. - You may swell every expense, and strain every effort, still more extravagantly; accumulate every assistance you can beg or borrow; traffic and barter with every pitiful German Prince, that sells and sends his subjects to the shambles of a foreign country: Your efforts are forever vain and impotent-doubly so from this mercenary aid on which you rely; for it irritates to an incurable resentment the minds of your enemies, to overrun them with the sordid sons of rapine and of plunder, devoting them and their possessions to the rapacity of hireling cruelty!
If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign troop was landed in my country, I never would lay down my arms-never-never-never.
William Pitt, Earl of Chatham (1708-78) On Affairs in America 1777.
http://www.bartleby.com/268/3/24.html
Wrap...
On Affairs in America
" My Lords, this ruinous and ignominious situation, where we cannot act with success, nor suffer with honour, calls upon us to remonstrate in the strongest and loudest language of truth, to rescue the ear of Majesty from the delusions which surround it. You cannot, I venture to say, you cannot conquer America.
"What is your present situation there? We do not know the worst; but we know that in three campaigns we have done nothing and suffered much. - You may swell every expense, and strain every effort, still more extravagantly; accumulate every assistance you can beg or borrow; traffic and barter with every pitiful German Prince, that sells and sends his subjects to the shambles of a foreign country: Your efforts are forever vain and impotent-doubly so from this mercenary aid on which you rely; for it irritates to an incurable resentment the minds of your enemies, to overrun them with the sordid sons of rapine and of plunder, devoting them and their possessions to the rapacity of hireling cruelty!
If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign troop was landed in my country, I never would lay down my arms-never-never-never.
William Pitt, Earl of Chatham (1708-78) On Affairs in America 1777.
http://www.bartleby.com/268/3/24.html
Wrap...
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