Appearing two-thirds through the program, he claimed "George Bush doesn't care about black people" and said America is set up "to help the poor, the black people, the less well-off as slow as possible."
The show, simulcast from New York on NBC, MSNBC, CNBC and Pax, was aired live to the East Coast, enabling the Grammy-winning rapper's outburst to go out uncensored.
There was a several-second tape delay, but the person in charge "was instructed to listen for a curse word, and didn't realize (West) had gone off-script," said NBC spokeswoman Rebecca Marks.
West's comment about the president was cut from NBC's West Coast airing, which showed three hours later on tape.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20050903/D8CCNBNO0.html
9.03.2005
"George Bush doesn't care about black people"
Kanye West on live TV (from MSNBC):
5:41: Mike Myers and Kanye West are on now, talking about the homeless situation. Kanye brings up an important point, talking about how the media portrays white people as seeking food and blacks as looters. He goes into an impassioned speech about the difficulties blacks are having during the Katrina fallout and in the country in general. Mike Myers is with him at the start.
About 10 seconds in, it's clear he's not reading from the prompter. He stumbles a bit on his points, but most of them get across. The basic message to the government? Stop dragging your feet and help the people down there. Myers gives him a couple "oh my God" looks, and then another when Kanye says "They've given them permission to go down and shoot us."
Myers, clearly stressed, goes into another point about the hurricane and how New Orleans is forever changed. Then Kanye drops the biggest bomb.
"George Bush doesn't care about black people," West said. Myers turns to him and clearly has no idea what to say. Then they go to a flabbergasted Chris Tucker.
Kanye was one frustrated man on TV. (And really, I can't do it justice here. Watch the video.)
Not sure what kind of flack Kanye's gonna catch for that last bit, but I'm sure he doesn't care.
And good for him to bring up a point on the media's portrayal of blacks that can't be said enough. Not sure if I agree, but it's always good to have someone out there, challenging the media to be as fair as possible.
5:41: Mike Myers and Kanye West are on now, talking about the homeless situation. Kanye brings up an important point, talking about how the media portrays white people as seeking food and blacks as looters. He goes into an impassioned speech about the difficulties blacks are having during the Katrina fallout and in the country in general. Mike Myers is with him at the start.
About 10 seconds in, it's clear he's not reading from the prompter. He stumbles a bit on his points, but most of them get across. The basic message to the government? Stop dragging your feet and help the people down there. Myers gives him a couple "oh my God" looks, and then another when Kanye says "They've given them permission to go down and shoot us."
Myers, clearly stressed, goes into another point about the hurricane and how New Orleans is forever changed. Then Kanye drops the biggest bomb.
"George Bush doesn't care about black people," West said. Myers turns to him and clearly has no idea what to say. Then they go to a flabbergasted Chris Tucker.
Kanye was one frustrated man on TV. (And really, I can't do it justice here. Watch the video.)
Not sure what kind of flack Kanye's gonna catch for that last bit, but I'm sure he doesn't care.
And good for him to bring up a point on the media's portrayal of blacks that can't be said enough. Not sure if I agree, but it's always good to have someone out there, challenging the media to be as fair as possible.
9.02.2005
It makes the mainstream media..
Budget cuts delayed New Orleans flood control work
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bush administration funding cuts forced federal engineers to delay improvements on the levees, floodgates and pumping stations that failed to protect New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters, agency documents showed on Thursday.
The former head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the agency that handles the infrastructure of the nation's waterways, said the damage in New Orleans probably would have been much less extensive had flood-control efforts been fully funded over the years.
"Levees would have been higher, levees would have been bigger, there would have been other pumps put in," said Mike Parker, a former Mississippi congressman who headed the engineering agency from 2001 to 2002.
"I'm not saying it would have been totally alleviated but it would have been less than the damage that we have got now."
Eighty percent of New Orleans was under water after Katrina blew through with much of the flooding coming after two levees broke.
A May 2005 Corps memo said that funding levels for fiscal years 2005 and 2006 would not be enough to pay for new construction on the levees.
Agency officials said on Thursday in a conference call that delayed work was not related to the breakdown in the levee system and Parker told Reuters the funding problems could not be blamed on the Bush administration alone.
Parker said a project dating to 1965 remains unfinished and that any recent projects would not have been in place by the time the hurricane struck even if they had been fully funded.
"If we do stuff now it's not going to have an effect tomorrow," Parker said. "These projects are huge, they're expensive and they're not sexy."
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the administration had funded flood control efforts adequately.
Tensions over funding for the New Orleans levees emerged more than a year ago when a local official asserted money had been diverted to pay for the Iraq war. In early 2002, Parker told the U.S. Congress that the war on terrorism required spending cuts elsewhere in government.
Situated below sea level, New Orleans relied on a 300-mile network of levees, floodgates and pumps to hold back the waters of the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain.
Levees were fortified after floods in 1927 and 1965, and Congress approved another ambitious upgrade after a 1995 flood killed six people.
Since 2001, the Army Corps has requested $496 million for that project but the Bush administration only budgeted $166 million, according to figures provided by the office of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu Congress ultimately approved $250 million for the project during that time period.
Another project designed to shore up defenses along Lake Pontchartrain was similarly underfunded, as the administration budgeted $22 million of the $99 million requested by the
Corps between 2001 and 2005. Congress boosted spending on that project to $42.5 million, according to Landrieu's office.
"It's clear that we didn't do everything we could to safeguard ourselves from this hurricane or from a natural disaster such as Katrina but hopefully we will learn and be more prepared next time," said Landrieu spokesman Brian Richardson.
The levee defenses had been designed to withstand a milder Category Three hurricane and simply were overwhelmed by Hurricane Katrina, said senior project manager Al Naomi.
"The design was not adequate to protect against a storm of this nature because we were not authorized to provide a Category Four or Five protection design," he said.
A study examining a possible upgrade is under way, he said
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050901/pl_nm/weather_katrina_funding_dc
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Bush administration funding cuts forced federal engineers to delay improvements on the levees, floodgates and pumping stations that failed to protect New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters, agency documents showed on Thursday.
The former head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the agency that handles the infrastructure of the nation's waterways, said the damage in New Orleans probably would have been much less extensive had flood-control efforts been fully funded over the years.
"Levees would have been higher, levees would have been bigger, there would have been other pumps put in," said Mike Parker, a former Mississippi congressman who headed the engineering agency from 2001 to 2002.
"I'm not saying it would have been totally alleviated but it would have been less than the damage that we have got now."
Eighty percent of New Orleans was under water after Katrina blew through with much of the flooding coming after two levees broke.
A May 2005 Corps memo said that funding levels for fiscal years 2005 and 2006 would not be enough to pay for new construction on the levees.
Agency officials said on Thursday in a conference call that delayed work was not related to the breakdown in the levee system and Parker told Reuters the funding problems could not be blamed on the Bush administration alone.
Parker said a project dating to 1965 remains unfinished and that any recent projects would not have been in place by the time the hurricane struck even if they had been fully funded.
"If we do stuff now it's not going to have an effect tomorrow," Parker said. "These projects are huge, they're expensive and they're not sexy."
White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the administration had funded flood control efforts adequately.
Tensions over funding for the New Orleans levees emerged more than a year ago when a local official asserted money had been diverted to pay for the Iraq war. In early 2002, Parker told the U.S. Congress that the war on terrorism required spending cuts elsewhere in government.
Situated below sea level, New Orleans relied on a 300-mile network of levees, floodgates and pumps to hold back the waters of the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain.
Levees were fortified after floods in 1927 and 1965, and Congress approved another ambitious upgrade after a 1995 flood killed six people.
Since 2001, the Army Corps has requested $496 million for that project but the Bush administration only budgeted $166 million, according to figures provided by the office of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu Congress ultimately approved $250 million for the project during that time period.
Another project designed to shore up defenses along Lake Pontchartrain was similarly underfunded, as the administration budgeted $22 million of the $99 million requested by the
Corps between 2001 and 2005. Congress boosted spending on that project to $42.5 million, according to Landrieu's office.
"It's clear that we didn't do everything we could to safeguard ourselves from this hurricane or from a natural disaster such as Katrina but hopefully we will learn and be more prepared next time," said Landrieu spokesman Brian Richardson.
The levee defenses had been designed to withstand a milder Category Three hurricane and simply were overwhelmed by Hurricane Katrina, said senior project manager Al Naomi.
"The design was not adequate to protect against a storm of this nature because we were not authorized to provide a Category Four or Five protection design," he said.
A study examining a possible upgrade is under way, he said
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20050901/pl_nm/weather_katrina_funding_dc
What the Heck?
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=1756&e=1&u=/050901/480/gagb10409010035
Sure am glad my current methods of transport get 35 & 55 miles per gallon.
Sure am glad my current methods of transport get 35 & 55 miles per gallon.
Gov. Doyle's Statement on New Orleans
Thursday, September 1, 2005
Dear Friend:
Yesterday, I called elements of the Wisconsin National Guard to active duty to help in the tremendous rescue and relief efforts now underway in Louisiana and Mississippi. Over the next few days, 500 Wisconsin National Guard soldiers will head to the Gulf Coast to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina in any way they can – from performing rescues to shuttling refugees to providing relief supplies.
It’s the least the State of Wisconsin can do to assist Louisiana and Mississippi as they deal with the hurricane’s aftermath.
The people of Wisconsin can help, too.
The human toll of Hurricane Katrina is staggering, and as the days unfold, the situation in the Gulf States continues to worsen. So many have lost so much, and they are in desperate need of our material, financial, and spiritual support. This is one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, and the people of Louisiana and Mississippi will need our help as they work to rebuild their homes and their lives over the coming months and even years.
America is at its best when we realize we are one community. Now is the time for all Americans to band together and volunteer their time and resources to local and national relief efforts.
The best and quickest way you can help is by donating money. Cash donations will help provide clean water, food, and shelter for disaster victims.
The American Red Cross is a great place to start: www.redcross.org.
To find out other ways you can help, visit the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s website at www.wisdems.org for a list of charitable organizations and agencies assisting hurricane victims.
We are still learning the full extent of the devastation, but this is no time to wait. Please do something now to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families, and we will continue to do everything we can to help our fellow Americans recover from this tragedy.
Sincerely,
Governor Jim Doyle
Dear Friend:
Yesterday, I called elements of the Wisconsin National Guard to active duty to help in the tremendous rescue and relief efforts now underway in Louisiana and Mississippi. Over the next few days, 500 Wisconsin National Guard soldiers will head to the Gulf Coast to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina in any way they can – from performing rescues to shuttling refugees to providing relief supplies.
It’s the least the State of Wisconsin can do to assist Louisiana and Mississippi as they deal with the hurricane’s aftermath.
The people of Wisconsin can help, too.
The human toll of Hurricane Katrina is staggering, and as the days unfold, the situation in the Gulf States continues to worsen. So many have lost so much, and they are in desperate need of our material, financial, and spiritual support. This is one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history, and the people of Louisiana and Mississippi will need our help as they work to rebuild their homes and their lives over the coming months and even years.
America is at its best when we realize we are one community. Now is the time for all Americans to band together and volunteer their time and resources to local and national relief efforts.
The best and quickest way you can help is by donating money. Cash donations will help provide clean water, food, and shelter for disaster victims.
The American Red Cross is a great place to start: www.redcross.org.
To find out other ways you can help, visit the Democratic Party of Wisconsin’s website at www.wisdems.org for a list of charitable organizations and agencies assisting hurricane victims.
We are still learning the full extent of the devastation, but this is no time to wait. Please do something now to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families, and we will continue to do everything we can to help our fellow Americans recover from this tragedy.
Sincerely,
Governor Jim Doyle
9.01.2005
Did the New Orleans disaster need to be as bad as it was?
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001051313
Did New Orleans Catastrophe Have to Happen? 'Times-Picayune' Had Repeatedly Raised Federal Spending Issues
New Orleans had long known it was highly vulnerable to flooding and a direct hit from a hurricane. In fact, the federal government has been working with state and local officials in the region since the late 1960s on major hurricane and flood relief efforts. When flooding from a massive rainstorm in May 1995 killed six people, Congress authorized the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, or SELA.
Over the next 10 years, the Army Corps of Engineers, tasked with carrying out SELA, spent $430 million on shoring up levees and building pumping stations, with $50 million in local aid. But at least $250 million in crucial projects remained, even as hurricane activity in the Atlantic Basin increased dramatically and the levees surrounding New Orleans continued to subside.
Yet after 2003, the flow of federal dollars toward SELA dropped to a trickle. The Corps never tried to hide the fact that the spending pressures of the war in Iraq, as well as homeland security -- coming at the same time as federal tax cuts -- was the reason for the strain. At least nine articles in the Times-Picayune from 2004 and 2005 specifically cite the cost of Iraq as a reason for the lack of hurricane- and flood-control dollars.
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts09012005.html
How New Orleans was Lost
Chalk up the city of New Orleans as a cost of Bush's Iraq war.
There were not enough helicopters to repair the breeched levees and rescue people trapped by rising water. Nor are there enough Louisiana National Guards available to help with rescue efforts and to patrol against looting.
The situation is the same in Mississippi.
The National Guard and helicopters are off on a fools mission in Iraq.
The National Guard is in Iraq because fanatical neoconsevatives in the Bush administration were determined to invade the Middle East and because the incompetent Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld refused to listen to the generals, who told him there were not enough regular troops available to do the job.
After the invasion, the arrogant Rumsfeld found out that the generals were right. The National Guard was called up to fill in the gaping gaps.
Now the Guardsmen, trapped in the Iraqi quagmire, are watching on TV the families they left behind trapped by rising waters and wondering if the floating bodies are family members. None know where their dislocated families are, but, shades of Fallujah, they do see their destroyed homes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1560351,00.html
Why city's defences were down
Cuts in spending to raise levees blamed on cost of war in Iraq
The Louisiana coastline may have been so badly damaged by the hurricane because manmade engineering of the delta has led to erosion of natural defences, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The engineering of the last 100 years that has reworked the Mississippi delta with thousands of miles of levees and flood barriers to protect communities and aid navigation, has also disturbed natural barriers which traditionally prevented storm surges and protected against hurricanes, says the society.
"Human activity, directly or indirectly, has caused 1,500 square miles of natural coastal barriers to be eroded in the past 50 years. Human activity has clearly been a significant factor in coastal Louisiana land losses, along with subsidence, saltwater intrusion, storm events, barrier island degradation, and relative sea level changes," the society said in a paper last year.
The damage done this time may be also linked to White House cuts in funding for hurricane defence to pay for homeland security terrorist defences.
Did New Orleans Catastrophe Have to Happen? 'Times-Picayune' Had Repeatedly Raised Federal Spending Issues
New Orleans had long known it was highly vulnerable to flooding and a direct hit from a hurricane. In fact, the federal government has been working with state and local officials in the region since the late 1960s on major hurricane and flood relief efforts. When flooding from a massive rainstorm in May 1995 killed six people, Congress authorized the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, or SELA.
Over the next 10 years, the Army Corps of Engineers, tasked with carrying out SELA, spent $430 million on shoring up levees and building pumping stations, with $50 million in local aid. But at least $250 million in crucial projects remained, even as hurricane activity in the Atlantic Basin increased dramatically and the levees surrounding New Orleans continued to subside.
Yet after 2003, the flow of federal dollars toward SELA dropped to a trickle. The Corps never tried to hide the fact that the spending pressures of the war in Iraq, as well as homeland security -- coming at the same time as federal tax cuts -- was the reason for the strain. At least nine articles in the Times-Picayune from 2004 and 2005 specifically cite the cost of Iraq as a reason for the lack of hurricane- and flood-control dollars.
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts09012005.html
How New Orleans was Lost
Chalk up the city of New Orleans as a cost of Bush's Iraq war.
There were not enough helicopters to repair the breeched levees and rescue people trapped by rising water. Nor are there enough Louisiana National Guards available to help with rescue efforts and to patrol against looting.
The situation is the same in Mississippi.
The National Guard and helicopters are off on a fools mission in Iraq.
The National Guard is in Iraq because fanatical neoconsevatives in the Bush administration were determined to invade the Middle East and because the incompetent Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld refused to listen to the generals, who told him there were not enough regular troops available to do the job.
After the invasion, the arrogant Rumsfeld found out that the generals were right. The National Guard was called up to fill in the gaping gaps.
Now the Guardsmen, trapped in the Iraqi quagmire, are watching on TV the families they left behind trapped by rising waters and wondering if the floating bodies are family members. None know where their dislocated families are, but, shades of Fallujah, they do see their destroyed homes.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1560351,00.html
Why city's defences were down
Cuts in spending to raise levees blamed on cost of war in Iraq
The Louisiana coastline may have been so badly damaged by the hurricane because manmade engineering of the delta has led to erosion of natural defences, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers.
The engineering of the last 100 years that has reworked the Mississippi delta with thousands of miles of levees and flood barriers to protect communities and aid navigation, has also disturbed natural barriers which traditionally prevented storm surges and protected against hurricanes, says the society.
"Human activity, directly or indirectly, has caused 1,500 square miles of natural coastal barriers to be eroded in the past 50 years. Human activity has clearly been a significant factor in coastal Louisiana land losses, along with subsidence, saltwater intrusion, storm events, barrier island degradation, and relative sea level changes," the society said in a paper last year.
The damage done this time may be also linked to White House cuts in funding for hurricane defence to pay for homeland security terrorist defences.
Who wants to bet...
...that Bush says the disaster in New Orleans is a reason we will need tax cuts?
Just a prediction.
Just a prediction.
Look Who Wants to Help...
Aid offers pour in from around the globe
Rice: U.S. will accept assistance that ‘can help alleviate the suffering’
Venezuela, a target of frequent criticism by the Bush administration, offered humanitarian aid and fuel. Venezuela’s Citgo Petroleum Corp. pledged a $1 million donation for hurricane aid.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9161198/
What's Rev. Pat putting in?
Rice: U.S. will accept assistance that ‘can help alleviate the suffering’
Venezuela, a target of frequent criticism by the Bush administration, offered humanitarian aid and fuel. Venezuela’s Citgo Petroleum Corp. pledged a $1 million donation for hurricane aid.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9161198/
What's Rev. Pat putting in?
God Destroyed New Orleans?
Personally, I think this is sick & opportunitic:
HURRICANE KATRINA DESTROYS NEW ORLEANSDAYS BEFORE "SOUTHERN DECADENCE"
PHILADELPHIA - Just days before "Southern Decadence", an annual homosexual celebration attracting tens of thousands of people to the French Quarters section of New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina destroys the city.
"Although the loss of lives is deeply saddening, this act of God destroyed a wicked city," stated Repent America director Michael Marcavage. "From 'Girls Gone Wild' to 'Southern Decadence,' New Orleans was a city that had its doors wide open to the public celebration of sin. From the devastation may a city full of righteousness emerge," he continued.
New Orleans is also known for its Mardi Gras parties where thousands of drunken men revel in the streets to exchange plastic jewelry for drunken women to expose their breasts. This annual event sparked the creation of the "Girls Gone Wild" video series.
"We must help and pray for those ravaged by this disaster, but let us not forget that the citizens of New Orleans tolerated and welcomed the wickedness in their city for so long," Marcavage said. "May this act of God cause us all to think about what we tolerate in our city limits, and bring us trembling before the throne of Almighty God," Marcavage concluded.
"[God] sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matthew 5:45)
http://www.repentamerica.com/pr_hurricanekatrina.html
HURRICANE KATRINA DESTROYS NEW ORLEANSDAYS BEFORE "SOUTHERN DECADENCE"
PHILADELPHIA - Just days before "Southern Decadence", an annual homosexual celebration attracting tens of thousands of people to the French Quarters section of New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina destroys the city.
"Although the loss of lives is deeply saddening, this act of God destroyed a wicked city," stated Repent America director Michael Marcavage. "From 'Girls Gone Wild' to 'Southern Decadence,' New Orleans was a city that had its doors wide open to the public celebration of sin. From the devastation may a city full of righteousness emerge," he continued.
New Orleans is also known for its Mardi Gras parties where thousands of drunken men revel in the streets to exchange plastic jewelry for drunken women to expose their breasts. This annual event sparked the creation of the "Girls Gone Wild" video series.
"We must help and pray for those ravaged by this disaster, but let us not forget that the citizens of New Orleans tolerated and welcomed the wickedness in their city for so long," Marcavage said. "May this act of God cause us all to think about what we tolerate in our city limits, and bring us trembling before the throne of Almighty God," Marcavage concluded.
"[God] sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." (Matthew 5:45)
http://www.repentamerica.com/pr_hurricanekatrina.html
Draft Jenna First!
That was a sign I made for a demonstration a few years back - it looks like others are picking up on the idea:
Questioning Bush's Sacrifice for a 'Noble Cause'
This week, the liberal Web site buzzflash.com noted in an unsigned editorial that "not one -- not one -- of any of Bush's children or his nieces and nephews have volunteered for service in any branch of the military or volunteered to serve in any capacity in Iraq. Not one of them has felt the cause was noble enough to put his or her life on the line."
Publicity stunt or not, it does raise a question. If the sacrifice is so noble, has the president urged his own children, or enlistment-age nieces and nephews - of which there are eight - to join the military and fight in Iraq?
I called the White House to pose this question and was somewhat surprised to learn that none of the supposed liberal baddies in the White House press corps had ever asked the president or any of his spokespersons that question.
Spokeswoman Dana Perino couldn't find that this question had ever been asked. She said she'd have to check and call back. And she did later Tuesday afternoon with this prepared statement: "There are many ways for people to serve their country and to help make the world a better freer and more peaceful place. The president is grateful to all of those who have answered the call to service whether it's in the military or in another capacity and members of his family have done both."
This is a newer version of the old chickenhawk argument - that is, that the administration is filled with hawks who avoided military service themselves. The current argument focuses on the question of whether children of today's Iraq war supporters are urging their children to fight in a war they deem noble.
"It's pretty simple, really. The military doesn't have enough soldiers; the president believes that this is a good and just war; he has two daughters who could enlist in the military, but haven't. These things don't add up.
"So here's a question I think a White House reporter should ask the president: President Bush, if your own two daughters won't enlist, how can you expect anyone else's children to join the military?"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/01/AR2005090100786.html
Questioning Bush's Sacrifice for a 'Noble Cause'
This week, the liberal Web site buzzflash.com noted in an unsigned editorial that "not one -- not one -- of any of Bush's children or his nieces and nephews have volunteered for service in any branch of the military or volunteered to serve in any capacity in Iraq. Not one of them has felt the cause was noble enough to put his or her life on the line."
Publicity stunt or not, it does raise a question. If the sacrifice is so noble, has the president urged his own children, or enlistment-age nieces and nephews - of which there are eight - to join the military and fight in Iraq?
I called the White House to pose this question and was somewhat surprised to learn that none of the supposed liberal baddies in the White House press corps had ever asked the president or any of his spokespersons that question.
Spokeswoman Dana Perino couldn't find that this question had ever been asked. She said she'd have to check and call back. And she did later Tuesday afternoon with this prepared statement: "There are many ways for people to serve their country and to help make the world a better freer and more peaceful place. The president is grateful to all of those who have answered the call to service whether it's in the military or in another capacity and members of his family have done both."
This is a newer version of the old chickenhawk argument - that is, that the administration is filled with hawks who avoided military service themselves. The current argument focuses on the question of whether children of today's Iraq war supporters are urging their children to fight in a war they deem noble.
"It's pretty simple, really. The military doesn't have enough soldiers; the president believes that this is a good and just war; he has two daughters who could enlist in the military, but haven't. These things don't add up.
"So here's a question I think a White House reporter should ask the president: President Bush, if your own two daughters won't enlist, how can you expect anyone else's children to join the military?"
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/01/AR2005090100786.html
Fiddling While Rome Burns for Our Times...
From AMERICAblog:
BREAKING: Sec of State Condi Rice caught buying several-thousand-dollar pair of shoes in NYC moments ago, spends last night at Broadway show!
According to Drudge, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has recently enjoyed a little Broadway entertainment. And Page Six reports that she’s also working on her backhand with Monica Seles. So the Gulf Coast has gone all Mad Max, women are being raped in the Superdome, and Rice is enjoying a brief vacation in New York.
We wish we were surprised.What does surprise us: Just moments ago at the Ferragamo on 5th Avenue, Condoleeza Rice was seen spending several thousands of dollars on some nice, new shoes (we’ve confirmed this, so her new heels will surely get coverage from the WaPo’s Robin Givhan). A fellow shopper, unable to fathom the absurdity of Rice’s timing, went up to the Secretary and reportedly shouted, “How dare you shop for shoes while thousands are dying and homeless!” Never one to have her fashion choices questioned, Rice had security PHYSICALLY REMOVE the woman.
Angry Lady, whoever you are, we love you. You are a true American.
For anyone who still doesn't get it, let's talk for a moment about why this story matters.
The president, finally, has decided that the hurricane is a problem. He claims yesterday at 5pm, finally, that he's going to be devoting his entire administration to saving the lives of the people currently dying in this growing national disaster. And what does a top member of his cabinet do? She goes to a Broadway comedy and today is buying multi-thousand-dollar shoes on 5th Avenue at the same time CNN is showing dead grandmothers in wheelchairs abandoned on the streets of New Orleans.
This is more than just a cheap shot at Condi. What in the blazes is this woman doing at a Broadway show in the middle of a national emergency? This is akin to going to a Broadway show in the middle of September 11. Don't we expect the Secretary of State to work past 5pm on a day an entire American city is being wiped off the face of the planet? And shouldn't she be doing something else today than shopping at filthy rich stores on 5th Avenue? Could she be - oh, I don't know - working with foreign leaders, like the Mexicans, to see what immediate assistance they can offer to the neighbor?New Orleans is ceasing to exist. What in God's name is Bush doing letting his secretary of state go on vacation in the middle of this?Message: "I don't care."
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/09/breaking-sec-of-state-condi-rice.html
BREAKING: Sec of State Condi Rice caught buying several-thousand-dollar pair of shoes in NYC moments ago, spends last night at Broadway show!
According to Drudge, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has recently enjoyed a little Broadway entertainment. And Page Six reports that she’s also working on her backhand with Monica Seles. So the Gulf Coast has gone all Mad Max, women are being raped in the Superdome, and Rice is enjoying a brief vacation in New York.
We wish we were surprised.What does surprise us: Just moments ago at the Ferragamo on 5th Avenue, Condoleeza Rice was seen spending several thousands of dollars on some nice, new shoes (we’ve confirmed this, so her new heels will surely get coverage from the WaPo’s Robin Givhan). A fellow shopper, unable to fathom the absurdity of Rice’s timing, went up to the Secretary and reportedly shouted, “How dare you shop for shoes while thousands are dying and homeless!” Never one to have her fashion choices questioned, Rice had security PHYSICALLY REMOVE the woman.
Angry Lady, whoever you are, we love you. You are a true American.
For anyone who still doesn't get it, let's talk for a moment about why this story matters.
The president, finally, has decided that the hurricane is a problem. He claims yesterday at 5pm, finally, that he's going to be devoting his entire administration to saving the lives of the people currently dying in this growing national disaster. And what does a top member of his cabinet do? She goes to a Broadway comedy and today is buying multi-thousand-dollar shoes on 5th Avenue at the same time CNN is showing dead grandmothers in wheelchairs abandoned on the streets of New Orleans.
This is more than just a cheap shot at Condi. What in the blazes is this woman doing at a Broadway show in the middle of a national emergency? This is akin to going to a Broadway show in the middle of September 11. Don't we expect the Secretary of State to work past 5pm on a day an entire American city is being wiped off the face of the planet? And shouldn't she be doing something else today than shopping at filthy rich stores on 5th Avenue? Could she be - oh, I don't know - working with foreign leaders, like the Mexicans, to see what immediate assistance they can offer to the neighbor?New Orleans is ceasing to exist. What in God's name is Bush doing letting his secretary of state go on vacation in the middle of this?Message: "I don't care."
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/09/breaking-sec-of-state-condi-rice.html
Cell Phone Troubles in New Orleans
I used to sell cell phones, so I found this interesting
Katrina outages reveal phone system quirks
Some cell users can make calls, but not receive them
The storm also revealed some quirks of how the telephone system works: Some Gulf Coast residents who had fled far away before the storm hit were finding that their cell phones could make calls but not receive them.
The problem affected only those whose cell phone numbers came with area codes from the affected region such as 504 for New Orleans.
Gary Morgenstern has been unable to dial the cell phones of his daughter or her boyfriend, both students at Tulane University, since Monday even though they evacuated from New Orleans late Saturday and have been driving west through Texas and Arizona.
As a result, Morgenstern’s been sending text messages to her phone when he wants her to call so he can find out how they’re doing.
“My daughter could be sitting next to me in New Jersey and I could be having the same problem,” said Morgenstern, a public relations executive for AT&T Corp., noting that his daughter and boyfriend have different national providers.
Wireless industry experts said the problem revolves around basic network architecture.Usually, when cell users take their phones outside their local area code, the wireless network checks back with a network computer in the home market to verify account information and let the service provider know where to route calls.
With communications to the home switch in New Orleans and nearby area codes cut off by the storm, cellular operators quickly made arrangements on their networks and with one another to automatically connect any calls dialed from one of those phones.
Incoming calls, however, can present a problem because the phone network can’t determine where to route those calls without first checking in with the New Orleans switch to find out where the cell user is located.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9120503/
Katrina outages reveal phone system quirks
Some cell users can make calls, but not receive them
The storm also revealed some quirks of how the telephone system works: Some Gulf Coast residents who had fled far away before the storm hit were finding that their cell phones could make calls but not receive them.
The problem affected only those whose cell phone numbers came with area codes from the affected region such as 504 for New Orleans.
Gary Morgenstern has been unable to dial the cell phones of his daughter or her boyfriend, both students at Tulane University, since Monday even though they evacuated from New Orleans late Saturday and have been driving west through Texas and Arizona.
As a result, Morgenstern’s been sending text messages to her phone when he wants her to call so he can find out how they’re doing.
“My daughter could be sitting next to me in New Jersey and I could be having the same problem,” said Morgenstern, a public relations executive for AT&T Corp., noting that his daughter and boyfriend have different national providers.
Wireless industry experts said the problem revolves around basic network architecture.Usually, when cell users take their phones outside their local area code, the wireless network checks back with a network computer in the home market to verify account information and let the service provider know where to route calls.
With communications to the home switch in New Orleans and nearby area codes cut off by the storm, cellular operators quickly made arrangements on their networks and with one another to automatically connect any calls dialed from one of those phones.
Incoming calls, however, can present a problem because the phone network can’t determine where to route those calls without first checking in with the New Orleans switch to find out where the cell user is located.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9120503/
8.30.2005
A Must Read...
The Vietnamization of Bush's Vacation
By FRANK RICH
ANOTHER week in Iraq, another light at the end of the tunnel. On Monday President Bush saluted the Iraqis for "completing work on a democratic constitution" even as the process was breaking down yet again. But was anyone even listening to his latest premature celebration?
..two conservative Republicans - actually talking about Iraq instead of Ms. Sheehan, unlike the rest of their breed - stepped up to fill this enormous vacuum: Chuck Hagel and Henry Kissinger. Both pointedly invoked Vietnam, the war that forged their political careers. Their timing, like Ms. Sheehan's, was impeccable. Last week Mr. Bush started saying that the best way to honor the dead would be to "finish the task they gave their lives for" - a dangerous rationale that, as David Halberstam points out, was heard as early as 1963 in Vietnam, when American casualties in that fiasco were still inching toward 100.
..As the retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey reported to the Senate, the National Guard is "in the stage of meltdown and in 24 months we'll be coming apart." At the Army, according to The Los Angeles Times, officials are now predicting an even worse shortfall of recruits in 2006 than in 2005. The Leo Burnett advertising agency has been handed $350 million for a recruitment campaign that avoids any mention of Iraq.
..IN the new pitch there are no mushroom clouds. Instead we get McCarthyesque rhetoric accusing critics of being soft on the war on terrorism, which the Iraq adventure has itself undermined. Before anyone dare say Vietnam, the president, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld drag in the historian David McCullough and liken 2005 in Iraq to 1776 in America - and, by implication, the original George W. to ours. Before you know it, Ahmad Chalabi will be rehabilitated as Ben Franklin.
..Among Washington's Democrats, the only one with a clue seems to be Russell Feingold, the Wisconsin senator who this month proposed setting a "target date" (as opposed to a deadline) for getting out. Mr. Feingold also made the crucial observation that "the president has presented us with a false choice": either "stay the course" or "cut and run." That false choice, in which Mr. Bush pretends that the only alternative to his reckless conduct of the war is Ms. Sheehan's equally apocalyptic retreat, is used to snuff out any legitimate debate. There are in fact plenty of other choices echoing about, from variations on Mr. Feingold's timetable theme to buying off the Sunni insurgents.
The marketing campaign will crescendo in two weeks, on the anniversary of 9/11, when a Defense Department "Freedom Walk" will trek from the site of the Pentagon attack through Arlington National Cemetery to a country music concert on the Mall. There the false linkage of Iraq to 9/11 will be hammered in once more, this time with a beat: Clint Black will sing "I Raq and Roll," a ditty whose lyrics focus on Saddam, not the Islamic radicals who actually attacked America. Lest any propaganda opportunity be missed, Arlington's gravestones are being branded with the Pentagon's slogans for military campaigns, like Operation Iraqi Freedom, The Associated Press reported last week - a historic first. If only the administration had thought of doing the same on the fallen's coffins, it might have allowed photographs.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/28/opinion/28rich.html
By FRANK RICH
ANOTHER week in Iraq, another light at the end of the tunnel. On Monday President Bush saluted the Iraqis for "completing work on a democratic constitution" even as the process was breaking down yet again. But was anyone even listening to his latest premature celebration?
..two conservative Republicans - actually talking about Iraq instead of Ms. Sheehan, unlike the rest of their breed - stepped up to fill this enormous vacuum: Chuck Hagel and Henry Kissinger. Both pointedly invoked Vietnam, the war that forged their political careers. Their timing, like Ms. Sheehan's, was impeccable. Last week Mr. Bush started saying that the best way to honor the dead would be to "finish the task they gave their lives for" - a dangerous rationale that, as David Halberstam points out, was heard as early as 1963 in Vietnam, when American casualties in that fiasco were still inching toward 100.
..As the retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey reported to the Senate, the National Guard is "in the stage of meltdown and in 24 months we'll be coming apart." At the Army, according to The Los Angeles Times, officials are now predicting an even worse shortfall of recruits in 2006 than in 2005. The Leo Burnett advertising agency has been handed $350 million for a recruitment campaign that avoids any mention of Iraq.
..IN the new pitch there are no mushroom clouds. Instead we get McCarthyesque rhetoric accusing critics of being soft on the war on terrorism, which the Iraq adventure has itself undermined. Before anyone dare say Vietnam, the president, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld drag in the historian David McCullough and liken 2005 in Iraq to 1776 in America - and, by implication, the original George W. to ours. Before you know it, Ahmad Chalabi will be rehabilitated as Ben Franklin.
..Among Washington's Democrats, the only one with a clue seems to be Russell Feingold, the Wisconsin senator who this month proposed setting a "target date" (as opposed to a deadline) for getting out. Mr. Feingold also made the crucial observation that "the president has presented us with a false choice": either "stay the course" or "cut and run." That false choice, in which Mr. Bush pretends that the only alternative to his reckless conduct of the war is Ms. Sheehan's equally apocalyptic retreat, is used to snuff out any legitimate debate. There are in fact plenty of other choices echoing about, from variations on Mr. Feingold's timetable theme to buying off the Sunni insurgents.
The marketing campaign will crescendo in two weeks, on the anniversary of 9/11, when a Defense Department "Freedom Walk" will trek from the site of the Pentagon attack through Arlington National Cemetery to a country music concert on the Mall. There the false linkage of Iraq to 9/11 will be hammered in once more, this time with a beat: Clint Black will sing "I Raq and Roll," a ditty whose lyrics focus on Saddam, not the Islamic radicals who actually attacked America. Lest any propaganda opportunity be missed, Arlington's gravestones are being branded with the Pentagon's slogans for military campaigns, like Operation Iraqi Freedom, The Associated Press reported last week - a historic first. If only the administration had thought of doing the same on the fallen's coffins, it might have allowed photographs.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/28/opinion/28rich.html
Where is the Louisiana National Gueard?
Louisiana National Guard troops watch Katrina from Iraq
More than 3,000 members of the Louisiana National Guard’s 256th Brigade serving in Iraq can only watch from Baghdad as Hurricane Katrina bears down on their families and homes in New Orleans and the other south Louisiana communities from which they hail. The deployed soldiers and their equipment, which includes high water vehicles, Humvees and generators, will be sorely missed as Louisiana attempts to prepare for and recover from the historic Category Five storm.
http://www.btcnews.com/btcnews/1093
We need our units here, not in Iraq.
More than 3,000 members of the Louisiana National Guard’s 256th Brigade serving in Iraq can only watch from Baghdad as Hurricane Katrina bears down on their families and homes in New Orleans and the other south Louisiana communities from which they hail. The deployed soldiers and their equipment, which includes high water vehicles, Humvees and generators, will be sorely missed as Louisiana attempts to prepare for and recover from the historic Category Five storm.
http://www.btcnews.com/btcnews/1093
We need our units here, not in Iraq.
8.26.2005
Today in History...
On Aug. 26, 1920, the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution, guaranteeing American women the right to vote, was declared in effect.
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20050826.html
http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/20050826.html
8.25.2005
8.24.2005
Cut Schools for Oil Profits...
It's time to play compare headlines:
High Gas Prices Draining Schools
Sky high gas prices has school districts paying through the hose. And that's taking money ear-marked for kid's education.The Appleton School District had to spend an extra 200-thousand dollars on diesel fuel for its bus fleet this year.
They'd rather have spent the money hiring four teachers than at the Lamers Bus Yard in Menasha. School officials say they anticipated gas prices would soar.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9056150/
Compared to this:
Oil industry awash in record levels of cash
But a smaller portion of profits is going to find new oil discoveries
When major oil companies report their quarterly profits next week, they're once again expected to post record numbers. With crude trading around $60 a barrel, the oil industry is enjoying one of the biggest windfalls in its history. But as the industry looks for places to put that cash, it's finding it harder and harder to put funds to work finding new deposits of oil and natural gas.
By just about any measure, the past three years have produced one of the biggest cash gushers in the oil industry’s history. Since January of 2002, the price of crude has tripled, leaving oil producers awash in profits. During that period, the top 10 major public oil companies have sold some $1.5 trillion worth of crude, pocketing profits of more than $125 billion.
“This is the mother of all booms,” said Oppenheimer & Co. oil analyst Fadel Gheit. “They have so much profit, it’s almost an embarrassment of riches. They don’t know what to do with it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8646744/
So, Appleton will cut 4 teachers while big oil has no idea what to spend it's money on.
Maybe they'd like to hire some teachers.
High Gas Prices Draining Schools
Sky high gas prices has school districts paying through the hose. And that's taking money ear-marked for kid's education.The Appleton School District had to spend an extra 200-thousand dollars on diesel fuel for its bus fleet this year.
They'd rather have spent the money hiring four teachers than at the Lamers Bus Yard in Menasha. School officials say they anticipated gas prices would soar.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9056150/
Compared to this:
Oil industry awash in record levels of cash
But a smaller portion of profits is going to find new oil discoveries
When major oil companies report their quarterly profits next week, they're once again expected to post record numbers. With crude trading around $60 a barrel, the oil industry is enjoying one of the biggest windfalls in its history. But as the industry looks for places to put that cash, it's finding it harder and harder to put funds to work finding new deposits of oil and natural gas.
By just about any measure, the past three years have produced one of the biggest cash gushers in the oil industry’s history. Since January of 2002, the price of crude has tripled, leaving oil producers awash in profits. During that period, the top 10 major public oil companies have sold some $1.5 trillion worth of crude, pocketing profits of more than $125 billion.
“This is the mother of all booms,” said Oppenheimer & Co. oil analyst Fadel Gheit. “They have so much profit, it’s almost an embarrassment of riches. They don’t know what to do with it.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8646744/
So, Appleton will cut 4 teachers while big oil has no idea what to spend it's money on.
Maybe they'd like to hire some teachers.
8.23.2005
What Would Jesus Do?
Robertson: U.S. should 'take out' Venezuela's Chavez
Christian broadcaster calls leader 'a terrific danger'
(CNN) -- Conservative Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson has called for the United States to assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, calling him "a terrific danger" bent on exporting Communism and Islamic extremism across the Americas.
"If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it," Robertson told viewers on his "The 700 Club" show Monday. "It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war."
Robertson, a contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 1988, called Chavez "a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil, that could hurt us badly."
"We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability," Robertson said. "We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."
Maybe Robertson should mention his personal holdings in diamond mines, investment banking and other drilling/mining busineeses that could be effected by Chavez policy:
http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=49&row=1
Christian broadcaster calls leader 'a terrific danger'
(CNN) -- Conservative Christian broadcaster Pat Robertson has called for the United States to assassinate Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, calling him "a terrific danger" bent on exporting Communism and Islamic extremism across the Americas.
"If he thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it," Robertson told viewers on his "The 700 Club" show Monday. "It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war."
Robertson, a contender for the Republican presidential nomination in 1988, called Chavez "a dangerous enemy to our south, controlling a huge pool of oil, that could hurt us badly."
"We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability," Robertson said. "We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with."
Maybe Robertson should mention his personal holdings in diamond mines, investment banking and other drilling/mining busineeses that could be effected by Chavez policy:
http://www.gregpalast.com/detail.cfm?artid=49&row=1
8.19.2005
Shouldn't this guy be in front of some secret military tribunal, or in GITMO?
Man Arrested at Will Rogers World Airport Released on Bail
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A University of Oklahoma student was released on $10,000 bail Thursday after appearing in federal court to be formally accused of a felony for allegedly bringing a small explosive device into Will Rogers World Airport.
Federal agents arrested Charles Alfred Dreyling Jr., 24, on Wednesday at a security checkpoint after a Transportation Security Administration employee noticed something suspicious in his carryon luggage as it went through an X-ray machine about 9:30 a.m., FBI spokesman Gary Johnson said.
The device was described in an FBI affidavit as a carbon dioxide cartridge filled with gunpowder that could be detonated when connected to a power source such as the batteries Dreyling had in his electric razor and in his cell phone, which were also in his carryon bag.
An FBI bomb technician concluded the device could detonate with sufficient force to cause serious injury.
Give me a break! Look at Padilla - years later, no charges yet still in detention without a lawyer. This is hypocrisy at it's greatest, it's not like Oklahoma City has never been bombed by a white guy before...
Why is this guy out on bail, while others are in lock-up?
He was released to the custody of his mother, Vicki Dreyling. His terms of release include living at his parents' home in north Oklahoma City and a 10 p.m. curfew.
Former Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys, who is Dreyling's landlord and his longtime friend, also came to the hearing.
Humphreys said Dreyling had created a ''glorified firecracker'' and then forgotten that it was in his luggage.
What exactly was attempted to bring on the plane?
Dreyling told authorities that he had made the device and said it was ''basically a pipe bomb,'' according to an affidavit. Dreyling said he built the device for entertainment value, never intending to hurt anyone, and forgot that it was in his carryon bag when he brought it to the airport, the affidavit said.
Dreyling said he learned as a teenager how to build homemade explosives from Web sites like ''The Anarchist's Cook Book.'' Dreyling said he has built and detonated several explosive devices for recreational purposes, according to the affidavit.
He also told authorities that he had a bag of gunpowder, an empty carbon dioxide cartridge, and several ignitors in his Norman residence, according to the affidavit.
So, if you are a poor minority or Muslim, you are locked up without council, but if you are a wealthy white Christian with Republican party connections, you are released to your parents.
I am not trying to state as to his guilt or innocence, just that justice is not served when we have 2 standards.
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A University of Oklahoma student was released on $10,000 bail Thursday after appearing in federal court to be formally accused of a felony for allegedly bringing a small explosive device into Will Rogers World Airport.
Federal agents arrested Charles Alfred Dreyling Jr., 24, on Wednesday at a security checkpoint after a Transportation Security Administration employee noticed something suspicious in his carryon luggage as it went through an X-ray machine about 9:30 a.m., FBI spokesman Gary Johnson said.
The device was described in an FBI affidavit as a carbon dioxide cartridge filled with gunpowder that could be detonated when connected to a power source such as the batteries Dreyling had in his electric razor and in his cell phone, which were also in his carryon bag.
An FBI bomb technician concluded the device could detonate with sufficient force to cause serious injury.
Give me a break! Look at Padilla - years later, no charges yet still in detention without a lawyer. This is hypocrisy at it's greatest, it's not like Oklahoma City has never been bombed by a white guy before...
Why is this guy out on bail, while others are in lock-up?
He was released to the custody of his mother, Vicki Dreyling. His terms of release include living at his parents' home in north Oklahoma City and a 10 p.m. curfew.
Former Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys, who is Dreyling's landlord and his longtime friend, also came to the hearing.
Humphreys said Dreyling had created a ''glorified firecracker'' and then forgotten that it was in his luggage.
What exactly was attempted to bring on the plane?
Dreyling told authorities that he had made the device and said it was ''basically a pipe bomb,'' according to an affidavit. Dreyling said he built the device for entertainment value, never intending to hurt anyone, and forgot that it was in his carryon bag when he brought it to the airport, the affidavit said.
Dreyling said he learned as a teenager how to build homemade explosives from Web sites like ''The Anarchist's Cook Book.'' Dreyling said he has built and detonated several explosive devices for recreational purposes, according to the affidavit.
He also told authorities that he had a bag of gunpowder, an empty carbon dioxide cartridge, and several ignitors in his Norman residence, according to the affidavit.
So, if you are a poor minority or Muslim, you are locked up without council, but if you are a wealthy white Christian with Republican party connections, you are released to your parents.
I am not trying to state as to his guilt or innocence, just that justice is not served when we have 2 standards.
8.18.2005
"Christian" Organization Recieving Government Funding Refuses to Allow Catholics to Adopt...
Adoption group to address no-Catholics policy in Miss.
Independent state offices criticized for excluding Catholics while accepting state funds
The national board of Bethany Christian Services met Tuesday at its Grand Rapids, Mich., headquarters and is expected to release a statement today about its Mississippi offices' practice of excluding Catholics as adoptive parents, spokesman John VanValkenburg said.
A Christian adoption agency that receives money from the sale of the state's Choose Life speciality car tags, Bethany Christian Services in Mississippi has come under criticism about its practice of excluding Catholic couples as applicants. The group stated the policy in a letter to a Jackson couple this month, and a Ridgeland couple said they were rejected for the same reason last year."
It has been our understanding that Catholicism does not agree with our statement of faith," Bethany state director Karen Stewart wrote. "Our practice to not accept applications from Catholics was an effort to be good stewards of an adoptive applicant's time, money and emotional energy."
The private adoption agency is one of 24 adoption and pregnancy counseling centers in the state that receives money from the sale of the specialty car tags, which advocate against abortion.
And written of other groups that recieve these same government funds:
New Beginnings received $6,357 in 2004 from Choose Life Mississippi. The group works with any Christian couple who agrees to its statement of faith requiring adopting families be "practicing Christians.""If that family say they adhere to our statement of faith, then we would honor that," New Beginnings director Thomas Velie said.
He said several Catholic couples have adopted children through New Beginnings during his three years as director. Velie said he hasn't had any non-Christian families apply for an adoption. But if such a couple requested his group's services, he would take the request to his board or refer the couple to an agency that could meet their needs.
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005507200391
This is the problem with 'faith-based' government funding. It is, by nature, discrimitory.
Independent state offices criticized for excluding Catholics while accepting state funds
The national board of Bethany Christian Services met Tuesday at its Grand Rapids, Mich., headquarters and is expected to release a statement today about its Mississippi offices' practice of excluding Catholics as adoptive parents, spokesman John VanValkenburg said.
A Christian adoption agency that receives money from the sale of the state's Choose Life speciality car tags, Bethany Christian Services in Mississippi has come under criticism about its practice of excluding Catholic couples as applicants. The group stated the policy in a letter to a Jackson couple this month, and a Ridgeland couple said they were rejected for the same reason last year."
It has been our understanding that Catholicism does not agree with our statement of faith," Bethany state director Karen Stewart wrote. "Our practice to not accept applications from Catholics was an effort to be good stewards of an adoptive applicant's time, money and emotional energy."
The private adoption agency is one of 24 adoption and pregnancy counseling centers in the state that receives money from the sale of the specialty car tags, which advocate against abortion.
And written of other groups that recieve these same government funds:
New Beginnings received $6,357 in 2004 from Choose Life Mississippi. The group works with any Christian couple who agrees to its statement of faith requiring adopting families be "practicing Christians.""If that family say they adhere to our statement of faith, then we would honor that," New Beginnings director Thomas Velie said.
He said several Catholic couples have adopted children through New Beginnings during his three years as director. Velie said he hasn't had any non-Christian families apply for an adoption. But if such a couple requested his group's services, he would take the request to his board or refer the couple to an agency that could meet their needs.
http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005507200391
This is the problem with 'faith-based' government funding. It is, by nature, discrimitory.
Go Doyle as well! "Announces Statewide Conservation Agenda, Conserve Wisconsin"
Sweeping Conservation Agenda Will Protect Wisconsin's Environment, Encourage Energy Conservation and Innovation
MADISON, MILWAUKEE, & GREEN BAY - Governor Jim Doyle today unveiled Conserve Wisconsin, a broad package of legislation and executive orders that will safeguard Wisconsin's great environmental legacy. It will focus on three main areas: protecting our waters, conserving our lands, and ensuring a sustainable energy future.
Read it all here: http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=42733
And here is the reaction:
Sierra Club Applauds Governor Doyle’s Conserve Wisconsin Initiatives
Governor Doyle, we commend your environmental initiatives. They will put Wisconsin back on track as a leader in protecting our environment. Wisconsin’s wealth of natural resources must be protected and used in a sustainable way for our children and our grandchildren. You have included conservation items that are near and dear to the hearts of Sierra Club members. I particularly note your plan to restore the position of Public Intervenor.
The statewide membership of the Sierra Club welcomes the opportunity to work with Governor Doyle to implement the Conserve Wisconsin Initiatives announced today. We encourage legislative leaders to join this effort by the Governor. A bipartisan effort can put the "conserve" back in "conservative."
http://wispolitics.com/1006/SC_JMC_Applauds_Governor_Doyle_s_Conserve_WI_Initiatives_p_rel_8_18_05.pdf
And:
(League of Conservation Voters): Governor’s Conservation Initiative Applauded
Presents Opportunities to Implement Pro-Active Conservation Policy
Madison- Today’s release of the Governor’s environmental initiative package, “Conserve Wisconsin” serves as an important indication that Wisconsin is ready to get back on track with setting forward-thinking conservation policies that benefit all Wisconsinites. The environmental policy ideas presented in “Conserve Wisconsin” stand in welcomed contrast to the many environmental rollbacks witnessed in recent years. “
Although Wisconsin was once known as a leader in pro-active natural resource policy, we’ve fallen woefully behind. We are very pleased to see the Governor’s conservation package and welcome this opportunity to work with the legislature and the Governor on pro-active conservation initiatives,” said Kerry Schumann, Executive Director of the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters.
http://wispolitics.com/1006/Conserve_WI_Release.pdf
MADISON, MILWAUKEE, & GREEN BAY - Governor Jim Doyle today unveiled Conserve Wisconsin, a broad package of legislation and executive orders that will safeguard Wisconsin's great environmental legacy. It will focus on three main areas: protecting our waters, conserving our lands, and ensuring a sustainable energy future.
Read it all here: http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=42733
And here is the reaction:
Sierra Club Applauds Governor Doyle’s Conserve Wisconsin Initiatives
Governor Doyle, we commend your environmental initiatives. They will put Wisconsin back on track as a leader in protecting our environment. Wisconsin’s wealth of natural resources must be protected and used in a sustainable way for our children and our grandchildren. You have included conservation items that are near and dear to the hearts of Sierra Club members. I particularly note your plan to restore the position of Public Intervenor.
The statewide membership of the Sierra Club welcomes the opportunity to work with Governor Doyle to implement the Conserve Wisconsin Initiatives announced today. We encourage legislative leaders to join this effort by the Governor. A bipartisan effort can put the "conserve" back in "conservative."
http://wispolitics.com/1006/SC_JMC_Applauds_Governor_Doyle_s_Conserve_WI_Initiatives_p_rel_8_18_05.pdf
And:
(League of Conservation Voters): Governor’s Conservation Initiative Applauded
Presents Opportunities to Implement Pro-Active Conservation Policy
Madison- Today’s release of the Governor’s environmental initiative package, “Conserve Wisconsin” serves as an important indication that Wisconsin is ready to get back on track with setting forward-thinking conservation policies that benefit all Wisconsinites. The environmental policy ideas presented in “Conserve Wisconsin” stand in welcomed contrast to the many environmental rollbacks witnessed in recent years. “
Although Wisconsin was once known as a leader in pro-active natural resource policy, we’ve fallen woefully behind. We are very pleased to see the Governor’s conservation package and welcome this opportunity to work with the legislature and the Governor on pro-active conservation initiatives,” said Kerry Schumann, Executive Director of the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters.
http://wispolitics.com/1006/Conserve_WI_Release.pdf
Go Sen. Hansen! - "Calls predatory lending ‘immoral’ "
Sen. Hansen: Announces Introduction of Responsible Lending Act
8/18/2005
Contact: Sen. Hansen
608-266-5670
Calls predatory lending ‘immoral’
(Green Bay)— Today Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay) announced that he will be introducing legislation to rein in the practices of predatory lenders. The legislation will cap interest rates on consumer loans at 18%.
“Predatory lending is tearing apart our communities,” said Hansen. “This is an immoral practice that cannot be regulated—it must be abolished. It is leading to bankruptcies, evictions and the breakdown of countless families across the state, and it should not be permitted under state law.”
In addition to capping interest rates, the legislation will also preclude in-state lenders from contracting with out-of-state institutions to avoid state interest rate caps if the in-state lender receives more than 50 percent of the revenues from the transaction.
“These so-called payday lenders are popping up all over the state, and contrary to popular belief, they are not exclusively in low-income neighborhoods,” said Hansen. “Because the majority of Wisconsin wageworkers haven’t seen a real raise in years, more and more families are turning to predatory lenders to keep food on the table. Predatory lenders should not be allowed to take advantage of low-income and middle-class families as the state sits idly by.”
According to a recent study conducted by Stephens Inc., the typical annual percentage rate for a payday loan is between 391% and 443%. The Center for Responsible Lending has further estimated that the industry costs 5 million Americans approximately $3.4 billion annually.
http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=42753
8/18/2005
Contact: Sen. Hansen
608-266-5670
Calls predatory lending ‘immoral’
(Green Bay)— Today Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay) announced that he will be introducing legislation to rein in the practices of predatory lenders. The legislation will cap interest rates on consumer loans at 18%.
“Predatory lending is tearing apart our communities,” said Hansen. “This is an immoral practice that cannot be regulated—it must be abolished. It is leading to bankruptcies, evictions and the breakdown of countless families across the state, and it should not be permitted under state law.”
In addition to capping interest rates, the legislation will also preclude in-state lenders from contracting with out-of-state institutions to avoid state interest rate caps if the in-state lender receives more than 50 percent of the revenues from the transaction.
“These so-called payday lenders are popping up all over the state, and contrary to popular belief, they are not exclusively in low-income neighborhoods,” said Hansen. “Because the majority of Wisconsin wageworkers haven’t seen a real raise in years, more and more families are turning to predatory lenders to keep food on the table. Predatory lenders should not be allowed to take advantage of low-income and middle-class families as the state sits idly by.”
According to a recent study conducted by Stephens Inc., the typical annual percentage rate for a payday loan is between 391% and 443%. The Center for Responsible Lending has further estimated that the industry costs 5 million Americans approximately $3.4 billion annually.
http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=42753
Slowly coming apart (just in time for Nov 2006):
So much for the legendary Republican unity...
Ex-Senate leader blames downfall on Frist
Lott calls successor’s actions a ‘personal betrayal’ in new book
Former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott blames his fall from power in 2002 on a “personal betrayal” by an ambitious Sen. Bill Frist, his successor, adding in a new book that President Bush, Colin Powell and other GOP associates played a role.
Frist, R-Tenn., “didn’t even have the courtesy to call and tell me personally that he was going to run,” the Mississippi Republican wrote of a tumultuous period in which he lost his position as Senate leader after making racially tinged remarks.
He said Frist’s actions amounted to a “personal betrayal,” since he had taken the Tennessean “under my wing” in earlier years.
Other new information in the book, according to MSNBC:
In the book, Lott described an unusual partnership with President Clinton that worked to the detriment of 1996 GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole; praised former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota as trustworthy; and recalled that Vice President Gerald R. Ford personally cautioned him “not to go so far out on a limb” in defending President Nixon during the Watergate scandal.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8989917/
Ex-Senate leader blames downfall on Frist
Lott calls successor’s actions a ‘personal betrayal’ in new book
Former Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott blames his fall from power in 2002 on a “personal betrayal” by an ambitious Sen. Bill Frist, his successor, adding in a new book that President Bush, Colin Powell and other GOP associates played a role.
Frist, R-Tenn., “didn’t even have the courtesy to call and tell me personally that he was going to run,” the Mississippi Republican wrote of a tumultuous period in which he lost his position as Senate leader after making racially tinged remarks.
He said Frist’s actions amounted to a “personal betrayal,” since he had taken the Tennessean “under my wing” in earlier years.
Other new information in the book, according to MSNBC:
In the book, Lott described an unusual partnership with President Clinton that worked to the detriment of 1996 GOP presidential nominee Bob Dole; praised former Senate Democratic leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota as trustworthy; and recalled that Vice President Gerald R. Ford personally cautioned him “not to go so far out on a limb” in defending President Nixon during the Watergate scandal.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/8989917/
This is worth reading...
A Moment of Grace
In an age whose crabbed sense of justice finds expression in dismal phrases like "zero tolerance" and "three strikes and you're out," the events in a Long Island courtroom on Monday came as an undeserved gift, something startling and luminous.
It happened when Ryan Cushing, a 19-year-old charged with assault for tossing a turkey through a car windshield last fall, approached the driver he nearly killed, Victoria Ruvolo. Ms. Ruvolo, 44, suffered severe injuries and needed many hours of surgery to rebuild her shattered facial bones.
When Mr. Cushing left the courtroom after pleading guilty, he came face to face with his victim for the first time. He said he was sorry and begged her to forgive him.
She did. She cradled his head as he sobbed. She stroked his face and patted his back. "It's O.K.; it's O.K.," she said. "I just want you to make your life the best it can be."
Mr. Cushing was one of six teenagers out for a night of joy riding and crime, which often happens when childish aggression and stupidity merge with the ability to drive and steal credit cards. The five others have pleaded guilty to various acts like forgery and larceny, but Mr. Cushing, who threw the turkey, could have faced 25 years in prison. At Ms. Ruvolo's insistence, prosecutors granted him a plea bargain instead: six months in jail and five years' probation.
The prosecutor, Thomas Spota, had been ready to seek harsh punishment for a crime he rightly denounced as heedless and brutal. "This is not an act of mere stupidity," Mr. Spota said. "They're not 9- or 7-year-old children."
That is true. But Ms. Ruvolo's resolute compassion, coming seemingly out of nowhere, disarmed Mr. Spota and led to a far more satisfying result.
Many have assumed that Ms. Ruvolo's motivation is religious. But while we can estimate the size of her heart, we can't peer into it. Her impulse may have been entirely secular.
Court testimony by crime victims is often pitched as a sort of retributive therapy, a way for angry, injured people to force criminals to confront their shame. But while some convicts grovel, others smirk. Many are impassive. It's hard to imagine that those hurt by crime reliably find healing in the courtroom. Given the opportunity for retribution, Ms. Ruvolo gave and got something better: the dissipation of anger and the restoration of hope, in a gesture as cleansing as the tears washing down her damaged face, and the face of the foolish, miserable boy whose life she single-handedly restored.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/17/opinion/17wed4.html
This is abeautiful example of true forgiveness that heals society - something that we need to have more of today.
In an age whose crabbed sense of justice finds expression in dismal phrases like "zero tolerance" and "three strikes and you're out," the events in a Long Island courtroom on Monday came as an undeserved gift, something startling and luminous.
It happened when Ryan Cushing, a 19-year-old charged with assault for tossing a turkey through a car windshield last fall, approached the driver he nearly killed, Victoria Ruvolo. Ms. Ruvolo, 44, suffered severe injuries and needed many hours of surgery to rebuild her shattered facial bones.
When Mr. Cushing left the courtroom after pleading guilty, he came face to face with his victim for the first time. He said he was sorry and begged her to forgive him.
She did. She cradled his head as he sobbed. She stroked his face and patted his back. "It's O.K.; it's O.K.," she said. "I just want you to make your life the best it can be."
Mr. Cushing was one of six teenagers out for a night of joy riding and crime, which often happens when childish aggression and stupidity merge with the ability to drive and steal credit cards. The five others have pleaded guilty to various acts like forgery and larceny, but Mr. Cushing, who threw the turkey, could have faced 25 years in prison. At Ms. Ruvolo's insistence, prosecutors granted him a plea bargain instead: six months in jail and five years' probation.
The prosecutor, Thomas Spota, had been ready to seek harsh punishment for a crime he rightly denounced as heedless and brutal. "This is not an act of mere stupidity," Mr. Spota said. "They're not 9- or 7-year-old children."
That is true. But Ms. Ruvolo's resolute compassion, coming seemingly out of nowhere, disarmed Mr. Spota and led to a far more satisfying result.
Many have assumed that Ms. Ruvolo's motivation is religious. But while we can estimate the size of her heart, we can't peer into it. Her impulse may have been entirely secular.
Court testimony by crime victims is often pitched as a sort of retributive therapy, a way for angry, injured people to force criminals to confront their shame. But while some convicts grovel, others smirk. Many are impassive. It's hard to imagine that those hurt by crime reliably find healing in the courtroom. Given the opportunity for retribution, Ms. Ruvolo gave and got something better: the dissipation of anger and the restoration of hope, in a gesture as cleansing as the tears washing down her damaged face, and the face of the foolish, miserable boy whose life she single-handedly restored.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/17/opinion/17wed4.html
This is abeautiful example of true forgiveness that heals society - something that we need to have more of today.
Sensenbrenner in Rolling Stone (from Bablemur)
Bablemur quotes a rolling Stone article:
Nodding bashfully in agreement with [Tom] Cole's words was Wisconsin Republican James Sensenbrenner Jr. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sensenbrenner is the majority lawmaker in whose scaly womb the Patriot Act gestated until its recent delivery to Rules [Committee]. Though he was here as a witness, his obvious purpose was to bare his fangs in the direction of anyone or anything who would threaten his offspring.
Sensenbrenner is your basic Fat Evil Prick, perfectly cast as a dictatorial committee chairman: He has the requisite moist-with-sweat pink neck, the dour expression, the penchant for pointless bile and vengefullness.
http://babblemur.blogspot.com/2005/08/sensenbrenners-scaly-womb.html
Nodding bashfully in agreement with [Tom] Cole's words was Wisconsin Republican James Sensenbrenner Jr. As chairman of the Judiciary Committee, Sensenbrenner is the majority lawmaker in whose scaly womb the Patriot Act gestated until its recent delivery to Rules [Committee]. Though he was here as a witness, his obvious purpose was to bare his fangs in the direction of anyone or anything who would threaten his offspring.
Sensenbrenner is your basic Fat Evil Prick, perfectly cast as a dictatorial committee chairman: He has the requisite moist-with-sweat pink neck, the dour expression, the penchant for pointless bile and vengefullness.
http://babblemur.blogspot.com/2005/08/sensenbrenners-scaly-womb.html
Great Wal-Mart Letter in the Northwestern Today!
Wal-Mart can readily afford health insurance
Hats off to the teacher’s union for calling for a boycott of Wal-Mart. I won’t buy so much as a spiral notebook there. Clearly the only way to reach the folks at Wal-Mart is to affect their bottom line.
According to the August 11 article “nearly 1,200 Wal-Mart employees receive $2.7 million in taxpayer assistance through the BadgerCare health insurance.” Add in the children of Wal-Mart employees who participate in the state’s Medicaid program, and the estimated annual cost to taxpayers for insuring Wal-Mart workers and their family members reaches $4.75 million. The largest retailer in the world is shifting the cost of their employee benefits to taxpayers. This is unacceptable.
It is frequently argued that Wal-Mart must keep labor costs low to keep prices low. So the question is “Can Wal-Mart afford to offer low prices and pay employees a living wage and health benefits?” The answer is a resounding, “yes.”
Wal-Mart had a profit of $10 billion last year. Lee Scott, Wal-Mart CEO was paid $23 million dollars last year. Of the 10 richest people in the world, five are Waltons. In fact, Sam Walton’s daughter Alice recently spent a whopping $35 million on a single piece of art in New York City. $35 million would buy a whole lot of health insurance.
Not only can Wal-Mart afford to provide decent wages and benefits to it’s employees, the company should be required to pay us taxpayers back for picking up their health insurance tab.
Jennifer Neary Oshkosh
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/news/opinion/stories/opinion_22231369.shtml
Hats off to the teacher’s union for calling for a boycott of Wal-Mart. I won’t buy so much as a spiral notebook there. Clearly the only way to reach the folks at Wal-Mart is to affect their bottom line.
According to the August 11 article “nearly 1,200 Wal-Mart employees receive $2.7 million in taxpayer assistance through the BadgerCare health insurance.” Add in the children of Wal-Mart employees who participate in the state’s Medicaid program, and the estimated annual cost to taxpayers for insuring Wal-Mart workers and their family members reaches $4.75 million. The largest retailer in the world is shifting the cost of their employee benefits to taxpayers. This is unacceptable.
It is frequently argued that Wal-Mart must keep labor costs low to keep prices low. So the question is “Can Wal-Mart afford to offer low prices and pay employees a living wage and health benefits?” The answer is a resounding, “yes.”
Wal-Mart had a profit of $10 billion last year. Lee Scott, Wal-Mart CEO was paid $23 million dollars last year. Of the 10 richest people in the world, five are Waltons. In fact, Sam Walton’s daughter Alice recently spent a whopping $35 million on a single piece of art in New York City. $35 million would buy a whole lot of health insurance.
Not only can Wal-Mart afford to provide decent wages and benefits to it’s employees, the company should be required to pay us taxpayers back for picking up their health insurance tab.
Jennifer Neary Oshkosh
http://www.wisinfo.com/northwestern/news/opinion/stories/opinion_22231369.shtml
8.17.2005
Why are the Onion and the Daily Show the best journalism (editorial or otherwise) we have?
Evangelical Scientists Refute Gravity With New 'Intelligent Falling' Theory
KANSAS CITY, KS—As the debate over the teaching of evolution in public schools continues, a new controversy over the science curriculum arose Monday in this embattled Midwestern state. Scientists from the Evangelical Center For Faith-Based Reasoning are now asserting that the long-held "theory of gravity" is flawed, and they have responded to it with a new theory of Intelligent Falling.
"Things fall not because they are acted upon by some gravitational force, but because a higher intelligence, 'God' if you will, is pushing them down," said Gabriel Burdett, who holds degrees in education, applied Scripture, and physics from Oral Roberts University.
Burdett added: "Gravity—which is taught to our children as a law—is founded on great gaps in understanding. The laws predict the mutual force between all bodies of mass, but they cannot explain that force. Isaac Newton himself said, 'I suspect that my theories may all depend upon a force for which philosophers have searched all of nature in vain.' Of course, he is alluding to a higher power."
Read it all here (it is worth it):
http://www.theonion.com/news/index.php?issue=4133&n=2
KANSAS CITY, KS—As the debate over the teaching of evolution in public schools continues, a new controversy over the science curriculum arose Monday in this embattled Midwestern state. Scientists from the Evangelical Center For Faith-Based Reasoning are now asserting that the long-held "theory of gravity" is flawed, and they have responded to it with a new theory of Intelligent Falling.
"Things fall not because they are acted upon by some gravitational force, but because a higher intelligence, 'God' if you will, is pushing them down," said Gabriel Burdett, who holds degrees in education, applied Scripture, and physics from Oral Roberts University.
Burdett added: "Gravity—which is taught to our children as a law—is founded on great gaps in understanding. The laws predict the mutual force between all bodies of mass, but they cannot explain that force. Isaac Newton himself said, 'I suspect that my theories may all depend upon a force for which philosophers have searched all of nature in vain.' Of course, he is alluding to a higher power."
Read it all here (it is worth it):
http://www.theonion.com/news/index.php?issue=4133&n=2
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