A Different Plan
President Bush has complained that others do not offer any alternatives to his (rather limited) plan for success in Iraq. Here is mine.
Plan for the Resolution of the Iraq War
1) President Bush, and the significant allies who counseled him in pursuing the preemptive strike against the Hussein regime, apologize to the world in a widely broadcast and highly visible platform (such as in a speech to the UN) and take full responsibility for their error in judgment (this is a much easier and less painful path for everyone than impeachment or prosecution in the World Court)
2) We begin the immediate withdrawal of all forces and civilians from Iraq to be conducted in as safe and timely a manner as possible (six months to one year time frame)
3) We make it our stated policy (by legislative fiat, preferably) to fully support the United Nations with money and peacekeeping forces (under UN control) should they be necessary, as well as politically with regard to any resolutions the UN passes to deal with any remaining sectarian violence in Iraq should the problem become worse than it currently is
4) We make it our stated policy to build bridges between our country and the rest of the world, especially the Islamic world, by finding the common ground with regard to terrorism and other extreme criminal behavior
5) We outlaw the use of the preemptive strike forever and agree to adhere to international and domestic law with regard to the treatment of prisoners, stripping the executive branch of any special privileges in this area
The first point will probably never happen, but the people of this country could impeach and otherwise prosecute those responsible for the war and associated criminal behavior, and this would go a long way towards accomplishing this point.
The remaining points are all possible through the legislative process (the use of preemptive strike is already illegal, I'm still not clear about how we got away with that one), which again calls on the people of this great country to put in the correction.
Posted by Barto
at 08:42 PM
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Everything You Need To Know About Republicans
As the General says, here's a list of reading material so that you can bone up on Republican candidates in the hottest Senate and House races in the country.
Senate races:
House races:
Click
here for more information about this project, and see
this if you want to do something similar on your blog or web page.
Posted by dwckabal
at 08:16 PM
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Price Gouging?
Are the oil companies price gouging? With a barrel of oil surpassing the $70 mark, one might be tempted to say that gas prices are rising with the price of crude. One would also be wrong. A study commissioned by the Foundation for Taxpayer & Consumer Rights released today concludes that in California, "corporate markups and profiteering are responsible for spring price spikes, not rising crude costs or the national switchover to higher-cost ethanol, as the oil industry claims."
Moving to California almost two years ago, I periodically kept track up gasoline prices in Maryland and Virginia, where we typically had some of the lowest prices in the nation. Up until Hurricane Katrina hit, gas in California was typically $0.60-$0.70 higher per gallon. I attributed some of this to the higher tax, but also the fact that California uses more gasoline that the rest of the nation (supply and demand).
Now however, the difference is around $0.10 per gallon (for Regular Unleaded gasoline). According to the Energy Information Administration, gasoline in the Central Atlantic area has risen $0.60 in the last year, as compared to $0.30 on the West Coast.
Katrina was a convenient excuse for oil companies to sharply increase the price of gas for people on the East coast who were used to typically lower prices. Once the threshold was crossed, they fell back on the "rising cost of crude" canard. This study exposes the oil compaines for what they are: greedy, proft-no-matter-what, exploiters of our citizens.
As stated in their press release, "This study should be a wake-up call for California voters who will vote in November on a ballot initiative to tax windfall profits by oil companies so the state can develop alternatives to the petroleum economy."
We can only hope the alarm is loud enough to wake the people.
Posted by dwckabal
at 06:54 PM
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George Speaks, You Listen
It's A Big Club--And You Ain't In It!
Love him or hate him, George Carlin speaks the truth
in this clip (4 MB) appropriately titled, "Dumb Americans". WARNING: If you are easily offended, do not listen!
Posted by dwckabal
at 09:11 PM
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The Debate Is Over
Not that the debate wasn't already over years ago, but a TIME magazine cover like the one above indicates that it really is over. The cover story is an interesting and informative assessment of the current situation.
In a separate TIME interview, James Hansen, one of the world's leading climate scientists, says:
We are getting close to a tipping point, despite the fact that most people barely notice the warming yet. We have witnessed 1°F warming in the past 30 years. There is 1°F more in the pipeline due to gases already in the air. Still another degree is certain because of energy infrastructure already in place, such as power plants and vehicles on the road. Three degrees will take us to a level at or just above the warmest in the past million years. The changes at that level are substantial but something we can probably adapt to. In order to limit change to that level we need to get on a track that I call the alternative scenario, which requires that we begin to slow emissions this decade and substantially reduce them before mid- century. If we stay on a business-as-usual path for another decade, the alternative scenario becomes impractical if not impossible.
Let's hope we follow the alternative scenario and avoid the disaster of business-as-usual.
Posted by Lawrence
at 04:38 PM
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John McCain, Moderate?
Due to largely uncritical press coverage by the traditional media, John McCain is perceived by most of the electorate as a moderate and a maverick. Besides his
attempt at gutting of campaign finance reform and his maverick position that we shouldn't destroy our planet through climate change, here are some of his positions on the issues:
- Wants to overturn Roe v. Wade
- Ardent supporter of President Bush on the war in Iraq
- Pro-death penalty, wants stricter sentencing on capital punishment cases
- Voted to ban same-sex marriage, will now support Federal Marriage Amendment if courts don't allow states to ban
- Voted against expanding hate crimes to include sexual orientation
- Anti-torture, but no objections raised to President Bush's signing statement declaring that he can ignore this law if he so chooses. Bush's action defeats the whole purpose of the amendment
- Voted for amendment that stripped detainees' of their habeas corpus rights. The government is allowed to detain them forever, but at least they won't be tortured -- wait, nevermind
- Called Jerry Falwell an "agent of intolerance" in 2000, but now giving commencement speech at Liberty University. Falwell has blamed 9/11 on gays, lesbians, and feminists, declared that the anti-Christ would be Jewish, and called the prophet Muhammed a terrorist
This list could go on and on. McCain is not really anti-torture and supports indefinite detention for detainees. He's anti-choice, anti-gay and is now associating himself with Jerry Falwell, who is
certifiably insane. McCain must be stopped if he runs in 2008.
Posted by Lawrence
at 07:14 PM
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Rubber Stamp Republican Congress
Over at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) website, they've started a section called Rubber Stamp Republicans. In their press release, they stated:
The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) released a new report today showing that the Republican Congress’ failure to fulfill its oversight duties is responsible for the incompetence that has plagued the Bush administration over the last five years. The report also showed that the GOP Congress’ scrutiny of the Bush White House pales in comparison to the massive oversight the Clinton administration endured.
While we are lucky in CA-23 to have a progressive Democrat representative in Congress, other districts aren't so lucky. One such District, CA-50, suffered for almost 15 years under the corrupt representation of Randy "Duke" Cunningham. Fortunately, that is about to be corrected on April 11th, where Francine Busby is polling close to 50%. But a prime example of the Rubber Stamp Republicans exists in CA-42, "represented" by Gary Miller (R).
Continue reading "Rubber Stamp Republican Congress"
Posted by dwckabal
at 01:09 PM
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Apocalypse Now
The set of quotes presented below is by no means a balanced view. It is simply a compilation of frightening warnings from people who are authorities in their fields.
The economic situation in the U.S. and around the globe is discussed in a series of quotes that contain alarming predictions from experts, in addition to the ones below, about impending "financial apocalypse" and "financial train wrecks."
I think we are skating on increasingly thin ice. On the present trajectory, the deficits and imbalances will increase. At some point, the sense of confidence in capital markets that today so benignly supports the flow of funds to the United States and the growing economy could fade. Then some event, or combination of events, could come along to disturb markets, with damaging volatility in both exchange markets and interest rates. Indeed, there is a 75% chance of a major financial disaster within the next few years.
Paul Volcker
Former Chairman of the Federal Reserve
2004
America's record trade deficit means the dollar will keep falling, interest rates will rise further and U.S. consumers, in debt up to their eyeballs, will get pounded with no better than a 10% chance of avoiding economic Armageddon.
Stephen Roach
Managing Director, Chief Economist, and Director of Global Economic Analysis, Morgan Stanley
November 2004
Robert Webster, the scientist who first discovered the link between bird flu and human flu and who stocks a three-month supply of food and water,
warns of a possible epidemic.
About even odds at this time for the virus to learn how to transmit human to human...
I personally believe it will happen and make personal preparations...
Society just can't accept the idea that 50 percent of the population could die. And I think we have to face that possibility.
Robert Webster
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
March 14, 2006
Global warming and peak oil, below.
Continue reading "Apocalypse Now"
Posted by Lawrence
at 10:52 PM
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Spoiled Kerry
Now that Dick Cheney's had his turn, check out the travel requests of John and Teresa Heinz Kerry. The list mostly contains food preferences and nothing quite as odd as Cheney's requirements that the lights be turned on and televisions tuned to FOX News.
On a more serious note, it is difficult for me to believe that the John Kerry we see today is the same man who gave this amazing 1971 testimony against the Vietnam War in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. (Reading the transcript doesn't quite do it justice, but you can listen to it by clicking on "Listen" or "Watch" at the top of that page.) Many of the points that he makes in that testimony can be directly applied to the Iraq War, yet he would probably never make those statements today. It's odd to think what an inspiring, passionate leader John Kerry used to be and, sadly, how his current self bears little resemblance to the man that he once was.
Posted by Lawrence
at 11:29 PM
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Spoiled Cheney
Recently, The Smoking Gun obtained a document that describes Dick Cheney's Downtime Requirements whenever he travels. Included on the list are these instructions for the hotel staff:
- Temperature set to 68 degrees
- All lights turned on
- All Televisions tuned to FOX News
Putting aside the unsurprising fact that he prefers FOX News, can you ever imagine a point in your life where you would ever request, in advance of your arrival, that lights be turned on and televisions be tuned to a specific channel? It takes an obsessive kind of mindset to be that concerned about whether the lights are on when you arrive or what station is initially on the television.
Speaking of Dick Cheney, there has been some discussion of whether a photo of him in a previous post should be censored. As the government has demonstrated, it is perfectly reasonable to reclassify material that has already been declassified and made available to the public, even though some of the documents are no threat to national security but rather contain facts that are potentially embarrassing. Following the government's lead, I have redacted parts of the photo. If too much has been redacted, then blame the government for having set a bad example. As Donald Rumsfeld said, we should always "err on the side of classification." See the family-friendly version of the photo below.
Continue reading "Spoiled Cheney"
Posted by Lawrence
at 07:03 PM
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