They Just Don't Get It
Powell says Iraq war support will revive

Sample quotes:

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says waning support among Americans for the occupation of Iraq will revive once U.S. forces there have stamped out a surge of armed resistance. [ed:, like when you destroy the village in order to save the village?] ... Powell said some might question how sovereign Iraq will be on July 1 if U.S.-led foreign troops remain in the country.

"Because a large military presence will still be required under U.S. command, some would say 'Well you are not giving full sovereignty'. But we are giving sovereignty so that sovereignty can be used to say, 'We invite you to remain'. That is a sovereign decision," Powell said.

Good morning folks. Colin Powell has failed the nation and Tom Skilling has failed me, personally. It is barely 45 degrees out there. Lies, lies, everywhere I turn today! In Powell's case, is he even listening to what's coming out of his mouth any longer, or is this what was always coming out and we were listening to what we wanted to hear (moderate, voice of reason, etc. etc.)?

So will take this opportunity to do some in-studio stuff today, and may amaze you with the quality of new uploads, knitting links, and my usual biting political commentary.

For example, depending on which paragraph of this AP article you read, we're either pulling out of Fallujah with an agreement in place, or not.

Ah, well. More later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:18 AM | | | Link |

 
"Gag" Is Indeed the Right Word
Boing Boing: Patriot Act designed to protect Patriot Act by preventing challenges to it to be made public

The rest of the article is interesting too:

"It is remarkable that a gag provision in the Patriot Act kept the public in the dark about the mere fact that a constitutional challenge had been filed in court," Ann Beeson, the ACLU's associate legal director, said in a statement. "President Bush can talk about extending the life of the Patriot Act, but the ACLU is still gagged from discussing details of our challenge to it."

- posted by Cynthia @ 6:42 PM | | | Link |

 
Is This Another One of Their Flip-Flops?
... or a trial balloon that didn't fly?

MSNBC - Pentagon denies deal in Fallujah; 10 GIs die:

FALLUJAH, Iraq - The Defense Department denied Thursday that a final agreement had been struck to end the bloody siege of Fallujah, saying that negotiations were continuing and that there could still be reasons to continue attacking selected insurgent targets in the turmoil-ridden city of 300,000 people.

I am so confused. Aren't they turning it over to a bunch of Iraqi generals? Haven't they started withdawing? You mean, what they were telling us this morning is a lie?

FALLUJAH, Iraq (AP) U.S. Marines announced Thursday an agreement to end a bloody, nearly monthlong siege of Fallujah, saying American forces will pull back and allow an all-Iraqi force commanded by one of Saddam Hussein's generals to take over security.

Apparently I just can't stop blogging today.
- posted by Cynthia @ 5:19 PM | | | Link |

 
An Unoriginal Thought
If I tell you, hey those are cool shades, does it make them cool? Does it make you cool? What about me?

If the sunglasses company says, "Cool shades! On sale 30% off thru Sunday, only at Sears" are they still cool?

Have been googling for Kennedy. Remember her? The old MTV VJ who was a Republican and an incredible hypocrite? Still don't understand how the RNC thinks they can convince kids that a Republican agenda of trashing the environment, abstinence only, censored rock music, no Howard Stern, plus the likelihood of getting drafted and blown up sometime in '05 or '06 is the way to go. Granted, the "economy" is a meaningless concept to them, and so is getting a decent job until you are kicked out of the house, but Jason Priestley and Drew Carey are not cool role models. Trust us.

- posted by Cynthia @ 4:17 PM | | | Link |

 
Desperately Seeking A Clue
GeorgeWBush.com: Party for the President Event

Is gray and cloudy still, but this website cheered me right up. Had to read everything real close before I was satisfied it wasn't a joke. Still not completely sure. Did you know that today is "National Party for the President Day"? No? Well, then you'll miss the nationwide conference call with Vice President Cheney at 8:30 EST. Check the map. For some reason all the party sites are blue. Hey! That's OUR color.

Are they sure people aren't getting together just to watch Friends? The kids in the Republican Youth pictures look so incredibly uncool and so very, very white.

It's good to know the bushies can com up with lame stuff too. The John Kerry Travel Tracker is one of the most boring ads I've ever broken out of, almost as awful as some of the DNC flash ads. Almost.

Don't know how or why I ended up here, but it's so very unintentionally funny.

Will check back on May 1, which is supposed to be the "National Day of Prayer." As in, I pray people will keep thinking I'm the president.

In a similar vein, we must all enter this contest which in a nutshell explains why no one watches MTV any more.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:50 PM | | | Link |

 
No Ball Point Pens, Number Two Pencils Only
Bush, Cheney Quizzed by Sept. 11 Panel:

"They need to have one story and it's easiest to have one story when they're in the room together," Thurber said about the reason he thought Bush and Cheney wanted to be interviewed together. "I don't mean they're trying to distort anything. [ed: no?] It's useful to them. It protects them if they're both in the room at the same time."

Gonzales [ed:, aka, "The Enforcer"] likely was to make sure that the ground rules of the meeting were followed, offer legal advice, if requested, and interject himself into the discussion to protect the president and vice president, said John Dean, former White House counsel for President Nixon.

"I think it's highly unusual, under the circumstances of an informal meeting like this, to bring your lawyer with you," Dean said. "It escalates the formality of an informal proceeding."

At the administration's request, the meeting was not being electronically recorded. Notetakers from the commission and the White House staff were told they could take detailed notes, White House press secretary Scott McClellan said. The commission's interviews with former President Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore were recorded.

We've all seen the Saturday Night Live sketches, etc., so why are they even bothering to go through with this exercise, unless they plan to choreograph sound bites they can later "leak" to the lapdog press?

White House counsel Alberto Gonzales and two members of his staff whom the White House would not identify joined Bush and Cheney in the session, which began sharply at the scheduled 9:30 a.m. appointment time.

Where are the notetakers? And who are these other people crowding into the room with the twins? Good morning everyone. Skilling Forecast for today, 77:

Unseasonably warm and, although windy, peak velocities 25-35 mph versus Wednesday's 40+ mph gusts. Sun filtered by increasing cloudiness, especially later this morning and this afternoon. Several gusty t-storms possible in western sections later today. Clusters of showers/t-storms grow more numerous at night.

Is clouding now. Waiting for the last luan square to dry before I go out. Looks like I might not have another chance till next Tuesday, because I've become such a weather wuss.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:23 AM | | | Link |

 
Oh, My Gosh!
Los Angeles Times Selects Editor for Its Editorial Pages

Michael Kinsley! A (sort of ) lefty? Are toads falling from the sky yet? Better check the index again. No, we're still ok. Was about to go to bed but heart started going pit-a-pat. Better do a little more prowling before I turn in.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:34 PM | | | Link |

 
We're Supposed To Believe You Now?
The New York Times > Washington > Hussein's Agents Behind Attacks, Pentagon Finds
Directed by him from his spider hole, I take it? Are these the Baathists we're trying to bring back into the military and government? We just don't know any longer, since we can't tell what's a lie and what's the truth with this administration.

The report, completed March 26, was commissioned to answer a simple but provocative question: in Iraq, who is the adversary?

Ummmm, shouldn't we have figured that out over a year ago before we went to war?

The report also illustrates how Hussein loyalists are manipulating dissatisfaction with the occupation and cultivating a climate of fear that did not vanish with Mr. Hussein's capture.

Hello? What about an American occupying force that is pounding the country day and night with bunker busters? Dissatisfaction? I'd be scared shitless if they were pounding my town like that.

Good evening, my friends, and a good evening it is indeed as the latest polls show Bush's support dropping like a rock, though as the good soldiers they are, the NYT spins it as well as they can:

It now stands at 46 percent, the lowest level of his presidency in The Times/CBS News Poll, down from 71 percent last March and a high of 89 percent just after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.

At this point in his winning re-election race in 1996, President Bill Clinton's approval rating in The New York Times/CBS News Poll was 48 percent.

Mr. Bush's approval rating for his handling of Iraq was 41 percent, down from 49 percent last month and 59 percent in December.

So they throw out this report about Saddam directing the troops in Fallujah to make the press not editorialize about Fric and Frack testifying to "Congress." Or any of a dozen other things they don't want us to notice. And in any case, what does it matter who's behind it? Clearly Iraqis are becoming far more united against us than ever before if ex-Baathists are directing the activities of Shia.
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:44 PM | | | Link |

 
My Hero
CNN.com - Gore gives Democrats $6 million - Apr 28, 2004

Gore met privately with Kerry, the presumptive Democratic nominee, Tuesday night in Cleveland, Ohio. He announced Wednesday that he would give $4 million to the Democratic National Committee to boost the senator's campaign.

"John will be a great president for all Americans, and I want to do everything I can to help him fight against the outrageous and misleading campaign being waged by the Bush-Cheney campaign," Gore, the 2000 Democratic presidential nominee, said in a written statement.

The former vice president said he had about $6.5 million left over from his presidential bid. He said he would give $1 million each to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and $250,000 to the Democratic Party in his home state of Tennessee.

"The outcome of this election is extremely important for the future of our country and for all that America stands for," Gore said in his statement. "I want to help John Kerry become president and I want to help Democrats retake control of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives."

He's still Mr. President to me.

Yes, I painted earlier, a 12 x 12 inch square (I know I was complaining about the format a few blogs ago, but I still have a bunch of them). Did wildflowers and tulips foreground, dark ugly trees background. Wind made it nearly impossible. Was holding the palette down with one hand and trying to mix and paint with the other, so it's a little muddy and grayed out in places, but can be fixed (or not). A lot of people came by to chat (am always startled and jump). But learned the names of some of the plants -- Virginia Bluebells are the tall ones. One lady told me I had to go look at the Trillium, because they only bloom for a day or two, and today was the day. Thanks, lady! I really have to get a digital camera.

Am starting to catch up now, and storing up the snarkiness for later. Must shower.
- posted by Cynthia @ 4:23 PM | | | Link |

 
Back Now
Painted. Tired. More later. No red dust yet.


- posted by Cynthia @ 3:08 PM | | | Link |

 
Morning in America
Little birds singing, sun streaming in... is it really Spring? Windy, but wind coming from the south. Tom Skilling's forecast (the only one ever close to accurate in the Chicago area) says

Mid level cloudiness breaks with increasing frequency, allowing extended periods of sun. Becoming very windy from the SW. Gusts to 40+ m.p.h. threaten to send dust airborne creating a orange-tinted haze this afternoon as highs soar 25° above Tuesday’s levels—and 14° above normal.

Ooooooo.....

So will be hitting the road soon.

A note: don't ever let the battery on your laptop run down while you're playing a somewhat ill-behaved game like Hexen II. The program has acquired focus for your mouse, your screen, and tied a bunch of other resources up in knots, so you will have a moment of utter fear when you wake up, discover a dead computer lying in bed next to you, plug it in, it un-hibernates, and everything is mashed in a big gumbo, and you have to spend half the morning un-mashing it.

Maybe the first thing wrong in that paragraph is the part about the dead computer being in bed with me, huh? Maybe I should get a life?

Off to paint. Air America in Chicago (950-AM) wasn't running at 6:30 am (when my laughingly-called alarm clock goes off) but appears to be live again now. Who knows? Will just enjoy the day and get all snarky this evening with the American Idol results show.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:41 AM | | | Link |

 
George's New Best Friend
Gaddafi to West: Don't Force us Back to Bombing:

"I hope that we shall not be prompted or obliged by any evil to go back or to look backwards," Gaddafi said, after defending his past support for militant Third World "freedom fighters."

"We do hope that we shall not be obliged or forced one day to go back to those days when we bomb our cars or put explosive belts around our beds and around our women so that we will not be searched and not be harassed in our bedrooms and in our homes, as it is taking place now in Iraq and in Palestine."

Oh, yes. We feel safe and secure knowing our president is protecting us from terra any way he can by forging alliances with free and democratic nations.

It wouldn't be about oil, would it?

Good evening. Much happening today. What is happening in Fallujah is too awful to contemplate. This is a city about the size of Rochester, New York, about 285,000 and is quickly becoming rubble that some subsidiary of Halliburton will most likely be forced to rebuild from scratch, so let's not spare the infrastructure this time.

Have been knitting and playing games today, since the temperature never got above 45 degrees, which is where it is right now. Should have added my knitting links to the side, but am exhausted from battling a whole bunch of killer spiders (Hexen II).

As I keep saying, maybe tomorrow.
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:23 PM | | | Link |

 
If You're Trying To Scare Us, Please Stop
Blog-Tracking May Gain Ground Among U.S. Intelligence Officials

The CIA and FBI haven't publicly commented about use of blogs in their work, but many D.C. observers believe both agencies monitor certain blogs.

At least one nation, China, is actively tracking blogs. It's also reportedly trying to block blogs. Several press reports earlier this year said the government shut two blogging services and banned access to all Web logs by Chinese citizens.

Remember seeing this the other day on video surveillance of internet cafes:

Authorities have already installed video cameras in every Internet cafe in the city so officials can keep track of youngsters' movements, the newspaper said.

The yet-to-be installed software will force users to input personal identification data to log on, while a supervisory centre will monitor surfing and check whether a cafe was illegally operating at night, it said.

Foreigners will have to input their passport number.

And yes, I believe it could happen here, too.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:30 AM | | | Link |

 
Morning Update
Good morning folks. Is 40 degrees outside as I speak. Hoping it will warm up by this afternoon, since I'm actually in the mood to paint for once.

A program note: C-Span Radio will have the Cheney/Supreme Court oral arguments airing in a few minutes (10:15 Eastern) time. John "Iran/Contra" Negroponte nomination hearing on now. The man is the most boring speaker I've heard recently, which means he can probably lie quite effectively.



- posted by Cynthia @ 10:05 AM | | | Link |

 
Distractions
10 U.S. Contractors in Iraq Penalized

The United States is paying more than $780 million to one British firm that was convicted of fraud on three federal construction projects and banned from U.S. government work during 2002, according to an Associated Press review of government documents.

A Virginia company convicted of rigging bids for American-funded projects in Egypt also has been awarded Iraq contracts worth hundreds of millions. And a third firm found guilty of environmental violations and bid rigging won U.S. Army approval for a subcontract to clean up an Iraqi harbor.

It goes on. Will this story be buried? Or will people howl? This is only one of the things the current idiotic and untrue flap about Kerry's so-called lies is trying to hide.

The second is that Cheney's energy task force case goes to the Supreme Court tomorrow. He's successfully blocked access to details of his little group for three years, and with his hunting buddy Scalia refusing to recuse himself, will likely keep it secret forever. They really don't want us talking about this committee, most likely because of the Enron connection (wasn't Kenneth Lay a frequent White House visitor?). People are still angry at Enron, and haven't forgotten yet. Krugman has more, but neglects to mention the Enron bit, so I had to point it out for your edification.

Good evening, people. Light blogging today, heavy Doom playing. I shouldn't have loaded the old games on my new machine. I told myself I was going to keep it pristine, and strictly for politics, art, and business, not slaughter. Ah, well.

It is bad that I can't remember where all the secrets (in Doom) are, though I got through the whole thing once, back in the day.

Is supposed to be beautiful tomorrow, so will try to paint (how often have you heard that one from me?). Will try Railroad Tycoon next time it rains.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:13 PM | | | Link |

 
Shameless Plug
A friend has informed me that the monotype I donated (Spring #1, from the Simple World series) is one of 10 online at the Evanston Art Center's Benefit page.

No idea whether they're going to rotate images, or if mine is going to stay up thru May 17 -- or even beyond.....

Also, list of the Biennial artists is here. I didn't enter this year, so I can't bitch that I didn't get in -- but looks like a lot of painters and printmakers I know did, so maybe I shoulda.

Ah well, 2 more years...

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:32 AM | | | Link |

 
Some Focus Group, Huh?
Abortion-Rights Marchers Vow to Fight Another Bush Term

Mr. Bush was at Camp David this weekend, but a White House spokesman, Taylor Gross, said: "The president believes we should work to build a culture of life in America. And regardless of where one stands on the issue of abortion, we can all work together to reduce the number of abortions through promotion of abstinence education programs, support for parental notification laws and support for the ban on partial-birth abortions."

On what planet do these people live? I am so sorry I haven't been really paying attention before now, which is really bad. Posting snarky comments here and there on the internet isn't the same as showing up in person.

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:16 AM | | | Link |

 
Gone Away
Air America Radio in Chicago is gone again, but not all is lost. WNTD AM 950 has been playing all those issue songs ("We Didn't Start the Fire," "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," "What's Going On," "Fight The Power," etc.) that I just noticed haven't been played on the radio in a long time. Remember "underground radio" all you oldsters out there?

Every now and then an announcer tells us to hang on and AAR will be back in Chicago someplace else soon.

Oh, all right..... but we are not a patient nation, you know.

- posted by Cynthia @ 6:55 AM | | | Link |

 
Ooops
9/11: He Saw It Coming

(Chicago Reader via ArchPundit)

On February 26, 2001, the Robert R. McCormick Tribune Foundation opened a three-day conference on the theme "Terrorism: Informing the Public" at Cantigny, the colonel's estate in Wheaton. Bremer, who gave the keynote speech, recalled his work on the National Commission on Terrorism.
...
"The new administration seems to be paying no attention to the problem of terrorism. What they will do is stagger along until there's a major incident and then suddenly say, 'Oh, my God, shouldn't we be organized to deal with this?' That's too bad. They've been given a window of opportunity with very little terrorism now, and they're not taking advantage of it. Maybe the folks inthe press ought to be pushing a little bit."

Sounds almost like that sodomizing liar Richard Clarke plagiarized this guy. Who, you ask? Why Viceroy Paul Bremer, Lord of the Flies, gave this talk. A counterterrorism guy -- now we understand why he's in Iraq.
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:27 PM | | | Link |

 
Let's Count, Shall We?
Atrios has a picture here.

UPDATE: NY Times has picture, and article here. They had a permit for 750,000 marchers and think they exceeded it.

- posted by Cynthia @ 4:04 PM | | | Link |

 
Catching Up
U.S. Troops Likely to Move Into Parts of Najaf Soon; American Patrols to Begin in Fallujah

FALLUJAH, Iraq (AP) - U.S. troops will begin patrols with Iraqi security forces in Fallujah, the military said Sunday, as the United States backed down from warnings of an all-out assault that could spark new bloodshed and deepen anti-American sentiment.

Does this sound like they're using Iraqi troops as human shields? Something not right here. We need observers or press or someone going in that can tell us what's really happening. Still don't understand what the objective of all this is. Are these Saddam's Republican Guard soldiers they were talking about re-legalizing yesterday? If so, the neo-cons are more insane than I thought they were. This is a suburb of Baghdad. This is like an army attacking Schaumburg, or maybe Cicero, Illinois.

UPDATE: Now I understand:

The shift in approach followed high-level discussions in the White House and at least one weekend meeting between leaders of the volatile community and U.S. officials led by L. Paul Bremer, the occupation administrator on Saturday.

By day's end, the coalition was announcing projects totaling $60 million between Fallujah and Ramadi, a nearby city that has also been an insurgency hotbed.

The fix is in.

WaPo has it.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:37 PM | | | Link |

 
Since When?
Huge Throngs March in Support of Abortion Rights

Authorities no longer give formal crowd estimates but said the crowd was hundreds of thousands strong.

When did they stop giving crowd estimates? Since the protests against the war in Iraq last year, maybe? Hard numbers and facts do not amuse King George the Younger.

Feeling guiltier by the minute for not being there, but spent time this pm parading around the land of the republicans to the north with my MoveOn.org t-shirt and Obama sign in back window of car. Saw a few Volvo and Lexus drivers with "Regime Change" bumper stickers on my journeys, and still no "Bush/Cheney" signs on the lawns.

Cloudy and chilly, was gray, then cleared, now gray again. And windy. Did not paint, but recorded colors:

ochre white gray
whiteish blue-black gray
very white gray
yellowish white gray
very thin perfect dark Prussian Blue horizon
(sun now coming out, oh dear, so...)
swimming pool color layer (still a little gray)
pea soup green (pale)
gray violet green
foam white burnt sienna
violet dirt
bright light lemon ochre

Max contrast between sky/horizon/water/sand. Can simplify:

Dark sky
Pale sky
Near black horizon in distance
Pale turquoise
Pale greenish
Sand

Met a woman who was taking a writing class with assignment to "write for ten minutes in nature every day." Was she my angel, or was I her angel? I'd been standing there with my face hanging out not really "in the mood," when along she came, and so I had to describe stuff to her. Then she strolled away and the light immediately changed, waves upon waves of clouds pulling light across the water! And I thought it was time for the rapture....

but if you check the index, we're still in good shape.


- posted by Cynthia @ 3:26 PM | | | Link |

 
The Real Real World
Go see the Blackbird Nestcam (thanks to sweetandsourgoth). The baby birds have hatched and are being fed right now.

If only I had a mother bird to feed me. I had to drive out this morning and buy a half-dozen donuts to feed myself. And I did, but it would have been easier if I could just lie back in my nest with mouth open.

Now I feel so sick all I can do is lie back in my nest. However.... blogging doesn't blog itself.

But maybe it does. SSG also points us to a hilarious site where you can generate your own goth poetry. They must have stolen my old highschool/freshman year diaries to get the phrases. Here is my 10-second cry of despair:



Alone in Darkness

the night falls with a silent sigh, entwined are we.
the salvation for which you pine
flares once, then dies,
taken by a velvet ebon nothingness.
all hope must surely perish.

your heart beats no more.
how could you tear us asunder?
shadows surround us, crying,
we are fallen.

That's all for now. Discovered a utilty called DOSBox that let's your new and fast PC emulate an old PC DOS clunker, including sound, even on a Mac or Unix machine so you can play all those old games you downloaded, stole, or copied from friends 20 years ago. And they're still better than a lot of **** that's out there, though is strange to have them run so much faster than I remember. Have Wolf3D, Doom, and Heretic loaded and working now. I think I'm stupider than I used to be, though, since I keep forgetting which keys mean what, and the keyboard layout is different than it was. Aaaargh. Fragged again.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:07 PM | | | Link |

 
We Are The World
Demonstrators From Around the Country, and the World, Join Women's March

Activists from nearly 60 countries say they'll attend Sunday's event, standing with their American counterparts not only in unity but to highlight the plight of women's health abroad.

"In our country, it's so important to feel solidarity with the rest of the world on women's rights," said Helena Pinto, president of UMAR, an abortion rights group in Portugal, where legal abortion is limited.

As the list of sponsors, which includes the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, attests, abortion rights in the United States is the rallying point but not the only issue at stake for these protesters. Organizers have sought to broaden the gathering to include birth control, sex education and better health care for women worldwide.

I shoulda gone. And so shoulda you. But we can March With Our Money.

Adding links for Planned Parenthood and NARAL.

- posted by Cynthia @ 8:48 AM | | | Link |

 
How Awful
Kerry's Church Known for Charitable Causes, Liberal Stances

Among the horrors:

The Paulist Center began a support group for divorced Catholics that has since been replicated in churches across the country. The center also hosts a group for bisexual, gay and lesbian Catholics, as well as a program for lapsed Catholics who are considering a return to the flock.

The center helped launch the Walk for Hunger, a now annual fund-raiser for soup kitchens across the region, and has held funeral Masses for homeless people who die without family or loved ones.

Excommunicate that guy. No place in heaven for the likes of him.

Good evening, friends. Watching "Almost Famous" on tv right now, one of my very favorite movies, and one I'm surprised is being shown given this current moral climate, so blogging will be light. Will be knitting, blogging, and periodically checking the sky for whether Bush has started a nuclear war yet. And I'm not really kidding.

- posted by Cynthia @ 7:43 PM | | | Link |

 
Tending To the Knitting
Good morning (afternoon) everyone. Have been scampering around the internet this am spreading wisdom right and left (mostly left) instead of blogging here about those topics I've been promising all week.

Let's take care of the new sweater first. I have both arms and half the left (or maybe right) front to do -- cruising under the last underarm in any event. I think I linked to the pattern somewhere in one of the archived threads (am too lazy to dig it out right now). Will see if I can scan an actual sample of what it's looking like.

The Spring Issue of knitty.com is out, but I was a little disappointed with it -- nothing I want to try, so will be starting my search for the next sweater soon elsewhere.

If you prowl the interKnit, er, net, you'll find that most people seem to be addicted to knitting and collecting socks. College girls, in dorms! I have pattern books from 1958 showing college girls in dorms knitting socks!

It still flabbergasts that something I've been doing since I was seven (off and on, sometimes crocheting stuff, sometimes forced to actually work) is trendy. I feel like a snowboarder. Think it's saying something about rebellion, secret female culture, geek girls, oh please de-FearFactorization of tv, anti-Brittanyism, glasses as fashion, 2-tone hair, kazaa, and we're sure Joan of Arcadia knits though they don't show it.

Please, let it not be a march back to the comforts of 1958. Please, let the republicans not find out. Will muse on this more.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:12 PM | | | Link |

 
Horrifying
BBC NEWS | Middle East | Picture emerges of Falluja siege

Dr Obaidi said he had seen the bodies of two men, one aged about 70, the other about 50, both shot in the forehead, in an area controlled by the US.

They had been lying at the front gate of their home for two days, he said, because the family did not dare step outside to retrieve the bodies.

Is he sure they were shot by US troops?

"You are joking?" he said. "There are people dead in an area just controlled by America snipers. Nobody, either civilian or resistance, could enter the area. Who could kill them? We know American bullets. We are not a stupid people."

Ms Wilding said an injured mother and two children had told her they were hit by US gunmen as they tried to leave their house.

She also said she met an old woman, shot in the abdomen, who was still clutching a white flag.

And this:

The US has also faced criticism for blocking access to the city's main hospital by, according to most reports, occupying the river bridge which linked it to the rest of the city.

"If this hospital was working it would have saved a lot of lives," Medecins Sans Frontieres' Emergency Coordinator for Iraq Ibrahim Younis said.

Doctors set up makeshift clinics in the early days of the siege.

Ms Wilding said doctors were storing blood in a drinks fridge at a GP's surgery where they were treating the injured, and warming the bags under the tap in an unhygienic toilet.
...
Part of the deal to end the fighting was a US commitment to allow "unfettered access" to the hospital and to "facilitate the passage of official ambulances" in the city.

What exactly are the terms of this inhuman "deal"? Does anyone actually know? Is it written anywhere? Who says they've complied? And why should they have to anyway? It's their country -- we just "liberated" it for them, right? I am so mad right now. There has been no news out of that region in the American press -- they've spent all day arguing about photos of caskets -- how surreal is that?
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:07 PM | | | Link |

 
You Have to Actually Vote
Added 2 new links to the side:

Link One

Illinois State Board of Elections is a good, easy to use and read site that tells you more than you could possibly want to know about anything even touching the subject of elections, and lets you easily drill down into the election data (money) to find out who your representative is beholden to at the state level. Quite, quite interesting. I didn't realize that mine was so well-funded.

More important, it tells all us Illinois people how, where, and how often to vote, eligibility, weight, height, favorite color restrictions... seriously, it does just about all these things.

Link Two

Opensecrets.org lets you search and look at candidates, donors, and money in dozens of different ways over several election cycles, with some predefined searches on hot topic issues to make it childishly simple. It also tells you everything there is to know about campaign law, 527 Committees, etc. I've seen a couple other sites out there that do this too, and may add some links.

We're all good at whining, but when it comes down to it, voting responsibly will solve a lot of problems this year, and by responsibly I mean for John Kerry and, in Illinois, Barack Obama.

And I don't mean the American Idol Travesty, where my theory is that people "assumed" the top 3 from the previous week were taken care of so they either didn't vote or were trying to work some goofy second-guessing stuff, just like the Naderites. But Chicago gem, Jennifer "Al Gore" Hudson, got voted out.

(Putting on the stupid tin foil hat)
Here's a conspiracy theory for you: Jennifer's original audition number was John Lennon's Imagine, an anti-FOX message song if ever there was one. So was she targeted as possibly being unpatriotic? And that red-headed girl who sang the Dixie Chicks' "Sin Wagon" -- gone, a week or so later, after it was seen how popular she was.
(Taking hat off)

Ok, I'm back, and we won't speak of this again.
- posted by Cynthia @ 4:05 PM | | | Link |

 
Bush Moved
CNN.com - Bush said moved by casket photos - Apr 23, 2004

Liar. Someone told him he was supposed to say that. He never reads a newspaper, so how did he see them? Is he secretly prowling around the internet?

Or is he safely inspecting wetlands conveniently located 4 miles from his family's house in Maine, and then jetting down to see the Everglades with his brother in Florida?
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:04 PM | | | Link |

 
Sad News
Have been out of the blogosphere for a little bit -- went to wake yesterday for a gutsy lady, my first real boss, Jean Franz -- and have been on phone with friends a lot yesterday and today. Good life, and a good family. What more can you ask?

More later.

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:11 AM | | | Link |

 
A Better World In So Many Ways
Boing Boing: Help the Kerry campaign design better t-shirts

Excellent idea. They should do something with the Kerry web site, too. Apparently our friends Tom Tomorrow and Atrios will be judging the entries. Yes!
- posted by Cynthia @ 2:27 PM | | | Link |

 
Please, Someone, Stop Me
Body Armor Maker Ceradyne Sees Profits Up:

The company said demand for its body armor will likely remain strong, "at least through the second quarter of 2006," according to a statement.

Does this mean Bush is actually going to buy armor for the troops? Does Congress know we're committed thru 2006?

Clicked on the Ceradyne website and had a Leno moment looking at this armor.



Anything seem odd to you?
- posted by Cynthia @ 1:15 PM | | | Link |

 
What About Bloggers?
CNN.com - Poets die younger than writers, study finds - Apr 22, 2004

It could be because poets are tortured and prone to self-destruction, or it could be that poets become famous young, so their early deaths are noticed, said James Kaufman of the Learning Research Institute at California State University at San Bernardino.

Bloggers! Stop writing all those haiku in comment threads right now! Bad for the health. Many, just bad.

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:40 PM | | | Link |

 
What Did I Just Say?
Baxter International Cutting 3,500 to 4,000 More Jobs

This is one to keep an eye on -- it's one of those underappreciated, poor drug companies that can barely afford a Washngton lobbyist's salary. These people just hate competition in blood clotting drugs, don't they. Drives the prices down. Downright Un-American.

FYI, didn't they just lay off about 3,000 people? Time to google...

Yes, plus other problems. Chicago Tribune in January story has more.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:09 PM | | | Link |

 
Why Are We Not Surprised?
(Via Kate McKinnon)

The Seattle Times: Nation & World: Woman loses her job over coffins photo

Her photograph, taken earlier this month, shows more than 20 flag-draped coffins in a cargo plane about to depart from Kuwait. Since 1991, the Pentagon has banned the media from taking pictures of caskets being returned to the United States.

This woman TAMI SILICIO is a patriot, not a demon. And this is the clean side of war:



Note: "Maytag also fired David Landry, a co-worker who recently wed Silicio."
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:47 AM | | | Link |

 
Does This Sound Familiar?
Marine Commander: Fallujah Residents Have Only 'days' to Hand Over Weapons

In Fallujah, Conway's warning that residents have "days, not weeks" to implement the accord reached this weekend or else fighting could resume followed a disappointing surrender of weapons on Wednesday.

He said only about a pickup truck load's worth of weapons were turned in.

"It was junk, things I wouldn't ask my Marines to begin to fire," Conway said. "We were not pleased at all with the turn-in we saw yesterday."

Conway warned that patience is wearing thin and questioned whether the civic leaders who negotiated with U.S. officials had much influence over the insurgents.

At last! WMDs found! Are they setting up for a massacre? What the **** is going on?

And shouldn't the NRA get involved? Bush is making people give up their guns. Vote for Kerry!
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:01 AM | | | Link |

 
Those Darn Lumps of Flesh
I knew someone must have come up with a convenient listing of plant closings and layoffs. Here's one:

Tons of (actually, only Some) Plant Closings

Did you know that the company firing you is supposed to give you plenty of advance WARNing?

The Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification Act (WARN) is a federal law which requires employers to provide advanced notification to workers when faced with a plant closing or mass layoff.
...
WARN requires that employers with 100 or more full-time workers give employees 60 days notice in advance of plant closings and mass layoffs if they:

-- Close a facility of 50 or more workers

-- Discontinue an operating unit of 50 or more workers

-- Lay off 50 to 499 workers, and these layoffs constitute 33% of the total work force at a single employment site

-- Lay off 500 or more workers at a single employment site (Although some businesses are exempt from WARN, the law encourages all employers to give workers sufficient notice, to the extent possible)

Illinois has a pretty good site here to tell you about it.

UPDATE: Further investigation shows that most (if not all) states have the WARN notices up online (you can Google them). The Illinois notices are current through March.

What happens is that a company reports the intention to fire 1000 workers at the time they release their quarterly report. Then, as they get closer to the actual WARN deadline, they fax the layoff notice to the plant manager, who then gets the word out. The press doesn't report anything that isn't "newsworthy" (ie, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jackson, Jessica Simpson, Janet Jackson), so I suspect most of these events get only very local coverage of the job loss.

The more I look into stuff like this, the more I realize how poorly educated I am. WARN has been around since 1988, and a good thing too, since, like Typhoid Mary, I used to go around and set up outplacement centers in advance of the workers knowing what was going on. An anecdote is brewing, and will be posted in due course.

- posted by Cynthia @ 10:23 PM | | | Link |

 
At Last, News We Can Really Use
Scientists Create Fatherless Mice (washingtonpost.com):

Scientists in Japan have coaxed mouse eggs to grow into apparently healthy mice without being fertilized first by sperm, marking the first creation of mammals from individual egg cells without any contribution from a father.
...
Lacking any paternal genes, all the mice born this way were females. But they are not clones, because each is a genetically unique animal made from its own egg.

The feat does not suggest that men will soon become irrelevant for human reproduction.

No?
- posted by Cynthia @ 7:08 PM | | | Link |

 
Oh, Puleeeze!
John Kerry Releases Military Records

By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON — Records of John Kerry's Vietnam War service released Wednesday show a highly praised naval officer with an Ivy League education who spoke fluent French and had raced sailboats -- the fruits of a privileged upbringing that set him apart from the typical seaman.

Uuuuuuuhhhh.... Nedra, the records show a few other things that might be more important to put in the LEAD PARAGRAPH of an AP news piece that will most likely be picked up by thousands of inattentive editors who will chop everything else out.

I believe you're slipping, however. You left out, "liberal." You forgot to mention "Massachusetts." Surely you could have worked these references in somewhere?

Dear Associated Press:

I realize Mr. Bush gave you a wonderful little speech at your lovely annual meeting today where he told you that presidentin' was hard work, 'cause the country is big, but do you have to flaunt your political ownership quite so much by assigning Pickler to this story?

Regards, (Increasingly) Cynical

- posted by Cynthia @ 4:23 PM | | | Link |

 
John Kerry's War Records
Get Em Here

Also bush's "service" records.

Just look at this sweet face...



Doesn't he look just like the other kids over in Iraq? Let's elect this guy right now.

PS: and while we're at it, let's declassify all those emails and memos they keep talking about at the hearings, and all of Woodward's tapes, and make Bush testify all by himself, under oath, in front of the full committee on TV. And make Cheney do it too, after having been kept in an isolation booth so he can't hear what lies he's supposed to support.

Throw the doors open! It's Spring!
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:42 PM | | | Link |

 
Tornadoes
Three Dead, 4-5 Missing in Illinois Tornadoes

"It is utter devastation," said Mike Chamness of the emergency agency.

Good morning, everyone. Feel like such a toad for whining about the slight damage to my garage roof. Most of us in this world have it so good, we don't even notice.

Still catching up from being out of it yesterday, so I'm sure I'll have some pertinent things to day, possibly about stuff like this or this.
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:16 AM | | | Link |

 
Free! Free!
Roofer has established friendly relations with this nation, so I am now off my phone tether. Best argument for cell phones, I guess.... but I'm just a luddite when it comes to the nasty things. Stuff to do!
- posted by Cynthia @ 2:31 PM | | | Link |

 
Unemployment Line Reaches DuPage County
Spiegel Cuts 255 More Jobs

The company said the job cuts would occur starting immediately and over the next two months. A majority of those laid off, 185 employees, are catalog workers while 70 are from the corporate division. All are based either at company headquarters in Downers Grove or a data center in the nearby western Chicago suburb of Westmont.

Isn't this deep in the land of the DuPage County Republicans? I guess they can always join the army if they need a job. Or they can vote:

Primary election sees surge in Democratic ballots cast

In a county where every member of the County Board is Republican, the other party made a strong showing at the polls.

Forty-two percent of all ballots cast March 16 were Democratic ballots — a bigger share of the voters countywide than they've had anytime in the past 30 years. [ed: the good news] But Republicans have seen surges in DuPage County's Democratic base before and have gained ground in the elections following those spikes. [ed: the bad news]

- posted by Cynthia @ 1:43 PM | | | Link |

 
Desperately Unhappy Update
Warhol Soup Cans only at Giant Eagle stores

Pittsburgh-based Giant Eagle will be the first retailer to carry the colorful cans, which will be on special display beginning April 18 and available for a limited time. The four-pack will contain at least two colorful labels based on the combinations that Warhol created in his silkscreens: green and red, pink and orange, aqua and indigo, or gold and yellow. A copy of Warhol's signature appears on the side of each label.
...
Founded in 1931, Giant Eagle, Inc. has grown to be the number one supermarket retailer in the region with 138 corporate and 84 independently owned and operated stores throughout western Pennsylvania, Ohio, north central West Virginia and Maryland.

People of Pittsburgh, rise up and buy them! And don't forget these:

Shoppers who purchase the special Warhol four-pack can also take advantage of an offer for a limited edition Campbell's Andy Warhol magnet set, featuring a collection of four die-cut magnets in the colorful designs of the Warhol labels. Details are available on displays in Giant Eagle supermarkets.

Will continue my quest while waiting for those pesky roofers ("Day 2 -- The Wait").
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:41 PM | | | Link |

 
Next: The Jeff Koons Edition Energizer Bunny
Boing Boing: Soup imitates art: Warhol-style Campbell's tomato soup on sale: "To commemorate the work of Andy Warhol, Campbell's is selling four packs of tomato soup with Warhol-esque labels."

I resolve here and now to track these down in the Chicago area before another day passes, and buy them, and not eat the soup, because they will have become an art object. They will be placed on a shelf until the cans age and burst. I will not call it a crusade, but I'm sure Bush would.

Good evening everyone. It's been a political day, hasn't it? And it's not ending yet. I promise to get my notes together tomorrow on the EAC benefit (a few very nice pieces, a few simply very interesting for all kinds of reasons), and I apologize to everyone because I never got back to the SAIC show, even though I wanted to, thanks to Condoleezza Rice and the 9/11 commission and taxes and my current political madness, as my mother is beginning to call it.

But will sign off with TV, Radio Groups Want FCC Ruling Reversed -- Indecency Decision Unconstitutional, They Say, protesting the current chilly climate for free speech, in particular the Bono exclamation "[Expletive] brilliant" at that awards show, which we all remember and barely noticed as being "fucking", I think. Though could have been "bloody," which is also rude, I'm told.

This is leading up to an anecdote.

More than a hundred years ago, I had a blind friend who used an early voice synthesizer to read text on his computer. We used to roll around on the floor laughing hysterically, all doped up to our ears with marijuana someone's brother got from someone's sister's cousin as George Carlin's synthesized (slightly Swedish-sounding) voice read out those 7 immortal words, which you can find right here, as well as the original court documents for battles we thought had been fought long ago and are horrified to find that we still must fight.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:30 PM | | | Link |

 
Saddam Responsible for Oklahoma City Bombing
On this anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing, I can't begin to describe the disgust I felt when I watched the clip on foxnews.com of "reporter" Jayna Davis (really, could be a twin of Monica Lewinsky) mesmerizing us with "facts" linking Al Qaeda, Iraq, and McVeigh. Started digging a little, and came up with this link of 11/18/2002, where the "Center for Security Policy ('Promoting Peace through Strength')" is obsessed about Iraq and heaps praise on Davis.

The Center for Security Policy

(Washington, D.C.): On Sunday, the New York Times breathlessly reported on its front page (above the fold, no less) that, "The Bush administration has begun to monitor Iraqis in the United States in an effort to identify potential domestic terrorist threats posed by sympathizers of the Baghdad regime."
...
Unfortunately, it appears that at least some of the agencies charged with addressing the threat posed by Saddam's operatives and their sympathizers fail utterly to comprehend the challenge the targeted groups and individuals constitute.

Here is one of her pieces of evidence:

While Timothy McVeigh, the man executed for his role in the bombing, was widely portrayed as no more than a disgruntled Army veteran, he expressed to friends and at least once publicly (on "60 Minutes") his sympathy for Middle Eastern peoples he felt were victimized by American foreign policy. Shortly after McVeigh's arrest, one of his acquaintances from the military told ABC's "Prime Time Live" that "Tim always wanted to become a mercenary" preferably for a Mideast country because they "paid the best."

Started wondering a little who this woman is. Google found this link at Nelson Ministry Services:

Biography: Jayna Davis has worked in broadcast news since 1986, reporting in Texas, California, and Oklahoma. Between 1993 and 1997, she worked at KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City as an investigative reporter and, as such, covered the OKC bombing story from the first moments. In 2001 she founded Journalists’ Committee for Justice, a nonprofit organization that has carried on the OKC investigation. She has received many awards over the years, including "Best Investigative Report" in 1994 from Associated Press and again, in 1995, from Oklahoma Association of Broadcasting. And her rigorous investigative work has garnered her appearances on a number of shows including interviews with Bill O’Reilly, Greta van Susteren, John Gibson, Fox News Live, and Lou Dobbs.

I immediately breathed a sign of relief. They're just a bunch of skinheads like I always thought. And extreme right wing skin heads, too, which is why we have to get distracted today, of all days.

Addendum: This is where I started the day, with the arrest of William Krar, reported here

Just as startling was the identity of the owner of the arsenal, which included nearly half a million rounds of ammunition and more than 60 pipe bombs. He was not some foreign terrorist with ties to Al Qaeda but a 63-year-old Texan with an affinity for anti-government militias and white supremacist views.

- posted by Cynthia @ 6:08 PM | | | Link |

 
Will It Be Televised?
Congress Wants Answers on Bush's Plans for Iraq

"Members of Congress have to go home. They talk to the members of the local news media. Sometimes there's somebody in or near their district who has been killed."

They may want to stay in Washington this summer, safely away from the voters. Let's hope it's a very hot summer for them indeed.

- posted by Cynthia @ 5:43 PM | | | Link |

 
Priorities Nice and Straight
Comic Strip Characters Lose Legs in Iraq War

In Monday's 'Doonesbury,' B.D., a football coach-turned-soldier, was injured after being reactivated in the Army at the end of 2002, following a losing football season.

Later this week, he will wake up to find his left leg amputated, according to Universal Press Syndicate, the strip's distributor.

About 10 newspapers have called Universal Press with concerns about the strip, primarily with language the character uses after learning his leg is gone, company spokeswoman Kathie Kerr said.

You realize, of course, that this may be the only mention of what "wounded" means in a lot of newspapers?
- posted by Cynthia @ 4:54 PM | | | Link |

 
Roof Update
Claim has been filed (roof was garage roof, thankfully -- perhaps I was unclear), waiting now for roofer to call back for repairs. Have been busily frolicking around other peoples' blogs all day sprinkling so much wisdom I continue to surprise myself.

Most recently have been listening to Randi Rhodes and knitting furiously, and keep learning more deliciously paranoid facts -- and thank God she's pointing out who Negroponte is. Iran-Contra is one of those scandals that has managed to slide right off the teflon republicans, and those responsible keep getting appointed to responsible posts or are "respected" talk show hosts (like Oliver North).

Our youngest voters weren't even born when all this was happening, and I must admit I was too busy earning money and whining about boyfriends to pay a lot of attention. I bought my first television so I could watch Miami Vice, not Iran-Contra hearings.

Even worse, that sunny soul, Reagan, continues to have the history of his administration cleansed, soviet style.

Addendum: Great summary of Iran-Contra facts here.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:55 PM | | | Link |

 
An Exciting Morning
I must say. Big wind storm overnight has ripped the tarpaper from most of my roof, just peeling it away like a sardine can, so am waiting to hear from the insurance company before I get it fixed. And had the police next door investigating a door that had blown open (most likely) or else a break-in, or worse....

So haven't had a chance to check the news yet, or report on Art or anything. Stay tuned....
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:33 AM | | | Link |

 
You Decide
Bet you thought I'd forgotten about my other little fisherwoman drawing -- not. Here are two versions. First is the original, second is my graphite "simplification". Looked at them this am for the first time side-by-side, and I must say. Other than that in the first one, the woman has 3 arms as she untangles her fishing line, and looks first away from me, then at me... the graphite one settles on only one angle to the head, and only 2 arms. Think the original is more accurate.



Now am off to do the fluffing and prettifying for the benefit reception at EAC (see below). Hope to see y'all there. Yikes! Is nearly 90 degrees out! So much for basic black.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:16 PM | | | Link |

 
Good
Cheney portrays Kerry as threat to gun owners

Earlier in the day, Tom Mauser, whose son, Daniel, was killed with an assault weapon in the Columbine High School killings five years ago, tried to enter the convention hall where the NRA was meeting, seeking to urge Cheney to support extending the assault weapons ban.

Mauser was turned away by a security guard as several conventioneers applauded. A couple of conventioneers yelled "Get a life" and "Vote for Bush."

Mauser, who marched three blocks to the convention hall literally in his son's shoes, said before the march that continuing the ban would be common sense.
"What is the useful purpose to these weapons? ... They are the weapons of gangs, drug lords and sick people." Mauser said. "It is a weapon of war and we don't want this war on our streets."

Mauser called the NRA "an organization with a Field-and-Stream-magazine membership but a Soldier-of-Fortune-magazine leadership."

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:44 AM | | | Link |

 
Our Suspicions Are Correct
Chicago Tribune | Rice: U.S. Bracing for Terror Before Polls

WASHINGTON -- The United States is bracing for possible terrorist attacks before the November presidential election, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice said Sunday.

The opportunity for terrorists to try to influence the election, as was the case last month in Spain, appears to be an opportunity that would "be too good to pass up for them," Rice said.

Have the Rovians learned nothing? They're still trying to 1) scare us to death and, 2) taunt the terrorists into attacking us (a variant of "bring 'em on", the most irresponsible comment ever made by a world leader). Ok, so if there's no attack, they can take credit for thwarting one. If there is one, they can say, see, we told you so, we were right, vote for bush, you can't change horses in midstream, etc., etc. Or just suspend the elections. And they can accuse the Democrats of actually wanting an attack, because it will get their guy in, if you follow the Spanish Analogy.

This must mean the polls are still saying Bush is "good on terror," -- the only issue he has left, I guess -- so he's now the "terror president," rather than the "war president." He's plenty scary enough.

So when is the terror color going to get hotter? Any predictions? Anyone out there correlating color with polling or other non-"terror" (god, I hate that word) related events?

P.S.: thought Kerry did well on Russert, especially when he got warmed up. He should be encouraged to speak from the heart and with passion, because that's what he does best.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:09 AM | | | Link |

 
Make Sure Those Grass Roots Stay Watered
Taking the Campaign to the People, One Doorstep at a Time (washingtonpost.com)

In Ohio and a small core of other states on which this year's contest will hinge, grass-roots voter registration, persuasion and turnout operations are underway on an unprecedented scale: never so early, never so large, never so central to strategies for victory in a presidential race that likely will be settled, once again, at the wispy margins.

Ohio is vibrating with the oldest kind of politics, being waged in a new and exotic landscape. The overhaul of campaign finance laws two years ago crimped the traditional way Democrats funded and waged campaigns much more than it did the GOP. Here in Ohio, President Bush's fully staffed and methodical campaign would be trampling Sen. John F. Kerry's (D-Mass.) barely existent state operation on the ground and air alike were it not for this year's most novel political fact: the emergence of well-funded and aggressive independent groups on the left. The largest of these, America Coming Together, has 18 offices in Ohio, and its staff of 450 has already knocked on 235,000 doors.

Really good article on grassroots programs in Ohio -- and also what Bush is up to. Grassroots efforts really do work, even though not all the work is as yummy as having a bake sale, unfortunately. In the end, though, the key is personal contact and truth, not rhetoric.

Nighty night, everyone.

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:24 PM | | | Link |

 
Kerry On Meet The Press
Newsday.com - AP Washington: "Russert went to the White House in February for a similar program with President Bush. That show was taped the day before its broadcast; Kerry's appearance on Sunday will be live. "

Because he can walk and chew gum at the same time.
- posted by Cynthia @ 1:00 PM | | | Link |

 
Give Till Your Teeth Hurt
A reminder to hit a Bake Sale for Democracy this weekend -- just came back from one around the corner from me. Yum! Can we liberals bake or what? We have perfect weather in Illinois, and little kids and families are buying brownies and scotties and everything by the dozen. You can easily find a bake sale near your house at MoveOn.org. So wonderful to see people passing by now pushing strollers heaped with muffins and cakes and bread and.... well, go see for yourself, but bring plenty of cash. And if you haven't registered to vote yet, I'm sure most locations will have someone who will be delighted to sign you up. The one around the corner from me did.
- posted by Cynthia @ 11:22 AM | | | Link |

 
This Is Wild
'We're Going to Have to Go to War,' Bush Told Rice (washingtonpost.com)

While Laura Bush sat reading a book, Rove gave a PowerPoint presentation on the campaign's strategy, themes and timetable.

Opening his laptop, he displayed for Bush in bold letters on a dark blue background:

PERSONA:

Strong Leader

Bold Action

Big Ideas

Peace in World

More Compassionate America

Cares About People Like Me

Leads a Strong Team

All things being equal, the president asked, when would you like to begin the campaign and active fundraising?

Rove said he wanted the president to start that February or March and begin raising the money, probably $200 million. He had a schedule. In February, March and April 2003, there would be between 12 and 16 fundraisers.

"We got a war coming," the president told Rove flatly, "and you're just going to have to wait." He had decided. "The moment is coming." The president did not give a date, but he left the impression with Rove that it would be January or February or March at the latest.

- posted by Cynthia @ 9:36 AM | | | Link |

 
Now Bin Laden Can Get Out of That Cave
Afghan President Hails Groundbreaking of New Hyatt Regency Hotel

"In the last two years we have just talked about reconstruction: reconstruction of roads, clinics, hospitals and our country," he said. "Today we are talking about building a hotel, and that is very important for us."

Hmmm.... a hotel. Makes sense. Now how about a road to the hotel?

Good morning, everyone. We had a magnificent thunderstorm overnight, and the leaves have grown an inch. Will try to get out and paint. Coffee first, and bloggings.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:55 AM | | | Link |

 
Cubs Win!
Did ya see it? 10-9 game Reds, bottom of the 9th, Sosa home run to tie it, then the Alou home run to win! 40,000 fans ditching work and school go wild. I tell ya, it's the weather. Has been a perfect day. Radio America on the air again plus.... Cubs Win!

That's all I wanted to say. Except that I have a print in a benefit silent auction starting this weekend with a (free) reception on Sunday, closing gala on May 15th. I'll be there, so if you want to meet Old Paint, er, Fresh Paint, come on along and start the bidding high. Probably won't get to the event on the 15th, or will get there very late, since a friend reminds me we have tickets to a different benefit with Al Franken as the guest "speaker."

Bonus Hint: If you want to know who I "really" am, check the Gillson link at the side. Yeah, yeah, I know.... will come up with a real website one of these days. End of plug.
- posted by Cynthia @ 5:51 PM | | | Link |

 
Yeaaaa!!!
Air America back up on WNTD-950 AM in Chicago!

UPDATE: Chicago Tribune | Liberal talk radio wins court order

While you're there, take the poll on whether you've listened to Air America. And by the way, that's Liberal Liberal Liberal Liberal Liberal.... just in case you don't want your ears to be polluted, or the animals to get all afrighted.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:08 PM | | | Link |

 
Fishing
Not me, but this woman was:



Another view:



Then I walked around the lagoon and saw a tiny little vignette thru the trees (which may become a print or maybe a painting some rainy day):



My other little fisherwoman drawing scanned a bit too dark and marky. Will simplify and show you later. Will go out and find other fishers later, since it might get to 80 degrees today! More than double what it was 2 days ago! These things are so exciting! (Hence all the exclamation points!)
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:38 AM | | | Link |

 
But What About the WMDs on the Turkey Farms?
AP Exclusive: Woodward Book Says Bush Secretly Ordered Iraq War Plan Shortly After U.S. Attacked Afghanistan

Woodward's account fleshes out the degree to which some members of the administration, particularly Vice President Dick Cheney, were focused on Saddam Hussein from the onset of Bush's presidency and even after the terrorist attacks made the destruction of al-Qaida the top priority.

Woodward says Bush pulled Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld aside Nov. 21, 2001 - when U.S. forces and allies were in control of about half of Afghanistan - and asked him what kind of war plan he had on Iraq. When Rumsfeld said it was outdated, Bush told him to get started on a fresh one.

The book says Bush told Rumsfeld to keep quiet about it and when the defense secretary asked to bring CIA Director George Tenet into the planning at some point, the president said not to do so yet.

Will be on 60 Minutes this Sunday, book out next week. Will they stop with the books, already? [ed: just kidding, bring em on] I haven't finished with the Blumenthal book yet, and just got Clarke. I'm afraid I'll get a terrible sunburn from all this light beach reading this year.

I just hope the book gives some inkling of why Bush really wanted to attack Iraq.
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:56 AM | | | Link |

 
Freud Show
Would love to be in London to see this. Those of you who are, treat yourself, but hurry (up thru April 18):

Guardian Unlimited | Arts features | The master at work:

Every inch of the surface has to be won, must be argued through, bears the traces of curiosity and inquisition - above all, takes nothing for granted and demands active engagement from the viewer as its right.

Best (and briefest) description of good painting I've heard in awhile. I'm very fond of Lucian Freud's work.

Will upload some images tomorrow. Tired now. To bed.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:17 AM | | | Link |

 
Air Anti-America
AP Enterprise: NRA Creating News Company to Take to the Airwaves - from TBO.com

WASHINGTON (AP) - The nation's gun lobby is creating an "NRA news" company that will produce a daily talk show for the Internet, buy a radio station and seek a television deal to spread its gun-rights message nationwide.
...
"If that's the only way to bring back the First Amendment, we're going to bring it back," Wayne LaPierre, NRA executive vice president, told The Associated Press. Under the nation's campaign finance law, he said, "if you own the news operation, you can say whatever you want. If you don't, you're gagged."
...
The NRA plans to own a news operation "just as Disney owns ABC, just as GE owns NBC, just as Time Warner AOL owns CNN, and be the broadcast journalist equivalent of those outlets," LaPierre said.

This isn't gun rights. This isn't freedom of speech. This is big, death-dealing business. Wonder who's going to advertise on this show... you really have to read this entire article.
- posted by Cynthia @ 5:06 PM | | | Link |

 
Breaking News!!!
Air America Court Case for Chicago Won! (per announcement on the streaming Air America Radio program via Randi Rhodes). Take that Mr Feder!

This is what I thought the whole thing was really about:

Press Release

Progress Media’s Air America Radio Network Announces Additional Nationwide Affiliations, Bringing Total Number of Broadcast Outlets to 16

KSQR (1240 AM) IN SACRAMENTO, CA
WMTW (870 AM) IN PORTLAND, ME
KBZC (1300 AM) IN COLORADO SPRINGS, CO
WJNO (1290 AM) IN WEST PALM BEACH, FL
WTWK (1070 AM) IN PLATTSBURGH, NY & BURLINGTON, VT
WKIZ (1500 AM) IN KEY WEST, FL

----

MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON

New York, April 13, 2004—Air America Radio, the new national progressive entertainment talk radio network, announced today it will broadcast in six new markets beginning this week, bringing the nationwide total of broadcast outlets to sixteen.

How shocking! This is what the so-called debate is really about. The Rushes and Wall Street Journal Op-Ed pages are trying to scare program directors into not adding new stations, because the company is going toes up, they're irresponsible, they won't pay their bills, and all sorts of other garbage that, if you google this issue, has bubbled to the top of the search list.

Perhaps I'm just paranoid. But the timing is just a leetle suspicious to me -- plus it was 2 major markets unable to hear the scorn being heaped on the bushies by a lot of sharp minds the day after the first so-called press conference of the year.

So I guess they're waiting for the guy to go and unlock the studio doors, then they'll be up and running. I'm sure he'll take his sweet sweet time to do it, however. Surprise, surprise, it's now after business hours. And then we have a weekend coming up, and, and.... let's see what happens.
- posted by Cynthia @ 4:53 PM | | | Link |

 
Taxation Without Representation
Missouri House Votes to End Newspaper Tax Breaks After Critical Editorial

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) - The Missouri House has voted to raise taxes on the state's two largest newspapers after an editorial in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch branded the Republican-led chamber the "House of Hypocrites."

Democratic lawmakers decried the tax proposal as retaliation. But the Republican sponsor insisted he was simply "closing corporate tax loopholes."
...
On Sunday, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch devoted an entire editorial page to criticism of the House of Representatives as the "House of Hypocrites." It included photos of 66 House Republicans who receive state-sponsored health insurance yet voted to approve legislation that would eliminate health coverage for thousands of poor Missourians on Medicaid.

There they go again... those tax and tax Republicans.

Good afternoon, everyone. It's been 75 degees out today, so have been out enjoying life, doing some drawing, and scouting out painting locations for the next few days, since summer has arrived even before the leaves are on the trees. When I wake up tomorrow they'll all be fully bloomed, which is how it happens around here. Will scan a few drawings in later, for your viewing pleasure.

The fisherwomen were out today at the lagoon -- I managed to get drawings of 2 of them. Coincidentally, we were all wearing baggy black leggings. Just one of those interesting things in life. Later...
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:56 PM | | | Link |

 
Is Nothing They Do Not About Votes?
Move Could Help Bush Among Jewish Voters (washingtonpost.com)

In declaring that Israel should be able to keep some of the occupied territories and block Palestinian refugees from settling in Israel, Bush followed a familiar pattern of finding common cause with Jews and increasingly pro-Israel Christian conservatives.
...
Referring to the movie about the Crucifixion that was seen by some critics as dwelling on the role of the Jews in Jesus's death, the official said: "We lost the Jewish vote when 'The Passion' came out. That part of the Jewish community that is concerned about public expression of religiosity gets spooked, because high-profile Republicans were hugging 'The Passion.' " But with Arab American voters already strongly against Bush, strategists see little political downside for Bush in Wednesday's action, even if he does not win large numbers of Jewish votes.

Not to mention he's now switched the debate away from Iraq and 9/11.


- posted by Cynthia @ 10:19 PM | | | Link |

 
How Much Do They Want?
Chicago Tribune | Liberal radio stations silenced:

A Chicago source familiar with the situation said a Multicultural representative showed up at WNTD's offices this morning, kicked out Air America's lone staffer overseeing the network's feed to the station from New York, switched over to a Spanish-language feed, and changed the locks on the doors.

Sounds like the Rovians are trying to play hardball. I thought it was just a little screwup, as is to be expected with a fast-growing new network that's proving more popular than the conventional wisdom had predicted. Apparently they're playing for keeps, and holding 2 major markets (luckily, both blue states) hostage.

UPDATE: Smoking Gun has the court filing. This is disgraceful. What's more disgraceful is that apparently the right wing pundits (neither links nor names will I provide) are saying it's because the network is broke. Boy, oh, boy, is it ever wishful thinking on their part. Don't think Lexus advertises on your show, Rush.

UPDATE: The latest word from AAR is here. We just want our radio station back. I feel personally responsible for twisting people's arms to listen to this thing, so I don't want them to wriggle out of my grasp so easily.
- posted by Cynthia @ 4:21 PM | | | Link |

 
Flip-Flop Barely Covers It
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Americans 'drop demand for handover of killers in Falluja atrocity'

There was no explanation yesterday for the change in policy, though officials may have concluded they would never catch them using current military tactics.

Thalfiqar Mahdi, a member of a volunteer team of doctors which has been working in Falluja since Thursday, gave a horrific account of conditions there. "The main hospital was taken over by the Americans," he said. "Doctors and patients had to evacuate to local health clinics.

"Over 1,000 people were wounded since the attack began, and patients had to lie on the ground because of a shortage of beds. We were doing operations in the open. But we didn't have enough sterilising equipment. About half the injured are women, children, and the elderly."

So will Bush now hug and weep and console with the loved ones of the nearly 90 U.S. soldiers and the more than 600 Iraqis slaughtered in this atrocity -- in error?
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:40 AM | | | Link |

 
Warning: Sexually Explicit! Do Not Read This Message!
Chicago Tribune | FTC to require label on sex spam:

The Federal Trade Commission said that starting May 19, senders of sexually oriented 'spam' will have to put a 'Sexually Explicit:' warning label in the subject line to help consumers identify and filter out unwanted messages.

Or to make it easier for brain-dead young males to identify the good ones? You mean, the spam that begins "In regards to your memmo" isn't suspect enough? Can PG-13 ratings far behind? And what about all that V1@&ra crap? Or, since you can advertise 4-hour erections on TV, are those ads not "explicit"? Maybe they're just not explicit enough.

Here we go...

And another thing.... if those Victoria's Secret ads on TV with a creepy, voyeuristic, sell-out Bob Dylan aren't porn, I don't know what is (this is rhetorical... of course I know what porn porn is). Where's the equal time for the other half? What about Joan Baez with some eye-candy for the rest of us? (this also is rhetorical).

The new law requires all electronic marketers to include a valid postal address, as well as to provide an option that would allow recipients to refuse future mailings.

And verify that the address they've been spamming is valid, and allow them to sell the list, and possibly sell your postal return address to bad people....

See what happens when the coffee at Starbucks isn't strong enough? The beast gets angry.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:09 AM | | | Link |

 
Where is Air America?
Not in Chicago this morning. Where is it? Why are they speaking Spanish? Does anyone know?

Noon Update: Majority Report posts an explanation. Station is down in LA as well. Though conspiracy theories abound, seems to be a crass monetary issue. Wow, liberal radio making money? Take that Rush.
- posted by Cynthia @ 7:41 AM | | | Link |

 
Surreal
President Addresses the Nation in Prime Time Press Conference:

Q Thank you, Mr. President. Sir, you've made it very clear tonight that you're committed to continuing the mission in Iraq. Yet, as Terry pointed out, increasing numbers of Americans have qualms about it. And this is an election year. Will it have been worth it, even if you lose your job because of it?

THE PRESIDENT: I don't plan on losing my job. I plan on telling the American people that I've got a plan to win the war on terror. And I believe they'll stay with me. They understand the stakes. Look, nobody likes to see dead people on their television screens -- I don't. It's a tough time for the American people to see that. It's gut-wrenching. One of my hardest parts of my job is to console the family members who have lost their life. It is a -- it is -- it's a chance to hug and weep and to console and to remind the loved ones that the sacrifice of their loved one was done in the name of security for America and freedom for the world.

Again with the lame terror/Iraq linkage? And when do you plan to plan to tell we family members who have lost our lives what the plan is? While you're hugging and weeping? Or while you're out fundraising?
- posted by Cynthia @ 10:49 PM | | | Link |

 
Update From the Grownups
Yahoo! News - Citing violence, Annan doubts major UN return to Iraq

Annan said he would await the return of trusted political envoy Lakhdar Brahimi from Baghdad to get a fuller picture of the troubles but added that the dangers on the ground made a massive return all but impossible.

My taxes are now done, so, while listening to Janeane Garofalo rip Colin Quinn apart (but still somehow manage to be funny and smart while doing it), am trying to catch up with today's lies and nonsense. Sounds like Bush didn't do so hot at the press conference, but it was to be expected, and the press corps apparently startled him with unusual, genuine questions.

In the real world, my mom said she wouldn't watch because she hated the man so much and it wouldn't be good for her health, which means he's completely lost the super-senior vote.
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:29 PM | | | Link |

 
Will Chat Later
Doing taxes today. Go away.
- posted by Cynthia @ 2:59 PM | | | Link |

 
Following Orders, As Usual
Bush Bumps 'Idol' (washingtonpost.com):

Although Fox announced its plan after the others did, the network denies any internal angst over its decision.

"There was no debate," Fox spokesman Scott Grogin said yesterday. "The president asked for time. We've moved 'American Idol' to Wednesday night."
...
The Tuesday night 'American Idol' is currently the top-rated show in the country, averaging nearly 27 million viewers in its 11 airings this season.

Although presidential prime-time appearances are rare, the Bush White House knows when to schedule them. Last year, he delivered his 'Mission Accomplished' speech -- announcing the end of major combat operations in Iraq -- on the first Thursday of the May sweeps, displacing the top-rated 'CSI' on CBS and the Top 10 show 'Will & Grace' on NBC.

Can I call it, or what? And the theme is "movie night", and the guest is Quentin Tarantino. Is it possible he just happens.... to have a movie coming out right now? I didn't know he was a republican.

The good thing is that 27 million young voters and voters-to-be will see what an American Idol is not, though it hasn't stopped them from voting for people who can't sing so far (the red head.... the guy who can't dance or sing with weird teeth).

Here's another SNL skit that writes itself.
- posted by Cynthia @ 9:24 AM | | | Link |

 
No, You Robot
CNN.com - Firm cheers loss of robot in Iraq - Apr 12, 2004

Between 50 and 100 PackBots are now being used in Iraq and Afghanistan for battlefield reconnaissance, search-and-destroy missions of explosives and ordnance disposal, while the soldiers who control them keep out of harm's way.

The 42-pound base unit, known as the PackBot Scout, costs around $50,000 and operates in adverse conditions such as navigating steep terrain, exploring mountain caves, falling off cliffs and fording streams.
...
On Monday, iRobot signed a contract worth an estimated $32 million to develop a smaller, more advanced form of the PackBot for the U.S. military

From the makers of Roomba. You know, the vacuum cleaner that prowls around sucking up WMDs and bin Laden's junk food wrappers?

The SNL skit just writes itself, so luckily I don't have to. Click here for more war porn.

- posted by Cynthia @ 11:02 PM | | | Link |

 
Lawlessness and Gangs
AM - British forces concerned by American tactics:

JOHN SHOVELAN: British officers are reported as highly critical of the way the US military has put down resistance.

A senior British officer in southern Iraq is quoted saying: "My view and the view of the British chain of command is that the Americans' use of violence is not proportionate and is over-responsive to the threat they're facing. They're not concerned about the Iraqi loss of life in the way the British are."

He went on: "The US troops view things in very simplistic terms. As far as they are concerned, Iraq is bandit country and everybody is out to kill them".

Yes, I'm back, and blogging like there's no tomorrow. One of the most ludicrous (but strangely satisfying) movies ever made, "Air Force One", is on tonight. Hope to get some knitting done.

I particularly like Glenn Close's portrayal of Dick Cheney, however.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:59 PM | | | Link |

 
President Announces First Press Conference of the Year
Bush to Answer Questions on Pre-9/11 Intelligence (washingtonpost.com):

He said the memo brought him some comfort when it outlined efforts by the FBI to prevent attacks. "Had they found something, I'm confident they would have reported back to me," Bush said.

Now we know what the new story is. It's all someone else's fault. What's most interesting is the subheading of this article, that this is the first press conference of the year. I guess I hadn't really noticed, because Bush is not really a president.
Yahoo goes on to point out

Bush plans to open the 8:30 p.m. EDT news conference — the 12th of his presidency, but only his third televised in prime evening viewing hours — with a statement on Iraq, White House communications director Dan Bartlett said Monday. He said the president will be prepared to address questions about a memo, titled "Bin Laden Determined to Strike in U.S.," that Bush received on Aug. 6, 2001.

The horrifying thing is that FOX will have to preempt or break into American Idol. I fear that people worry more about what the musical theme will be each week than whether Bush is capable of leading the free world.

I'm just wondering whether a week was enough time for him to memorize what he's supposed to say in this supposed free exchange with the press.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:42 PM | | | Link |

 
4 hrs 47 mins 41 secs
And if you don't know what that means, 1) I pity you, and 2) you don't live in the Chicago Area.

Cubby Home Opener! I have other things to do, so will not be blogging the game.

One of the things that struck me over the weekend with this 9/11 memo thing is, what's the point of a daily briefing? You tell the president stuff, then he thinks about it, and eventually he tells you stuff to do. Is that how it works? If you just tell him stuff and he says, "Huh, well..." what's the point of having a daily briefing, or indeed, a president?

I realize I know nothing about the daily briefing, but does one happen every day? Do people get follow-up items? Were there attachments to this memo? Was there a Powerpoint presentation?

Have never been in a meeting (Bush is an MBA and supposedly proud of being the CEO of the richest corporation -- er, country -- in the world) where one of the above did not take place.

How are the memos delivered? To his desk, in person? Thru interoffice mail? Ahead of a briefing meeting, or passed out during one?

These are the questions I'd like answered, plus do they have donuts or muffins at these meetings.
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:37 AM | | | Link |

 
Haywire
No, I wasn't trying to whack my way thru the blogosphere with a hatchet -- Blogger apparently went wild and posted the last post nearly a dozen times -- maybe because I kept hitting the "publish" button?

No idea whether they'll remain up for awhile, or whether this is just another lull. If anyone out there knows what's going on, please post a comment here. We paranoid types think about DDOS attacks, virusses (viri?) earthquakes, etc.

If things seem to be ok, maybe I'll compose myself, then compose something worth reading. If not, I'll go read a good book.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:26 PM | | | Link |

 
Garbo Speaks
Bush says it's "hard to tell" if casualties will keep mounting in Iraq

Again with the bringing it?

By Associated Press
Sunday, April 11, 2004

Fort Hood, Texas - President Bush [related, bio] says more American casualties may come in Iraq, but, "we're plenty tough."

Bush attended an Easter Sunday service at Fort Hood, Texas -- a base that has lost at least nine service members in the past week of fighting.
After the service, Bush told reporters the U-S campaign in Iraq "is right" and will continue.

Almost 50 American soldiers and more than 550 Iraqis are dead in the violence that spread across the country last week. Bush called it "a tough week."
The president says it's "hard to tell" if such fighting will continue.
Bush met with eleven soldiers at a military hospital, awarding Purple Heart medals to ten of them.

Blogger was down when I read this this morning, so some of my anger has disappated a little, and I've just become Cynical again, since I couldn't immediately vent. This man is such a piece of work. "Hard to Tell" if fighting will continue?

In any event, it's obvious why he hasn't been allowed off the ranch for the last few days.
- posted by Cynthia @ 1:11 PM | | | Link |

 
Any Relation?
New DVD player cuts out the smut

The players, which will sell for $79..., are equipped with technology by a Salt Lake City-based company called ClearPlay. They will be pre-programmed to spare viewers segments of films that feature offensive language, excessive violence or sexual content, by muting the sound or skipping ahead.

Oh puleeeze!
- posted by Cynthia @ 8:33 PM | | | Link |

 
Today's Briefing
Dear Mr. Bush George:

In preparation for your visit to Fort Hood, where 31 newly wounded soldiers have been delivered per your orders, please read through the attached memoranda, to refresh your memory as to what "wounding" means.

These lads are proud Americans, able to receive the best care a grateful nation can provide. I'm afraid I can't provide pictures of grateful Iraquis at this time.

Yours in Christ,

Don

Enc.: (1)
Enc.: (2)

DHR:cyn

- posted by Cynthia @ 1:45 PM | | | Link |

 
!!!
Thousands Flee Iraq Fighting; Council Totters

"It's a gross mischaracterization to say the entire country is at war," Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt told reporters. "The entire country is under combat."

- posted by Cynthia @ 12:08 AM | | | Link |

 
Dream Team
CBS News | Kerry Blasts Bush On Iraq | April 9, 2004 15:15:05:

(CBS/AP) Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry on Friday accused President Bush of a "failure of leadership" in the conduct of the war in Iraq, contending the president has also failed to minimize the risks for American soldiers as well as the costs for taxpayers.
...
Kerry on Friday was touring a job training site and discussing economic issues with Barack Obama, the Democratic Senate nominee for an open seat in Illinois for which Democrats have high hopes.

Remember: not just an open seat, but a REPUBLICAN open seat, so give to both of them till you can't (legally) give any more (links at the side). Though if anyone can make sense of the FEC website I believe they have no need to take the bar exam for their state.
- posted by Cynthia @ 6:03 PM | | | Link |

 
October Surprise?
Illinois May Sue FDA Over Canadian Drug Imports| Reuters.com:

Gov. Rod Blagojevich, a Democrat, claims the FDA is stonewalling on the state's request, submitted in December, to set up a pilot program for importing Canadian prescriptions for state employees and seniors.
...
The state's Democratic attorney general, Lisa Madigan, sent a so-called citizens' petition to the FDA on Thursday, her aide said. The petition requires the agency to respond within six months, aides to the governor said on Thursday.

Illinois officials said if they get no response within six months, FDA rules allow them to file suit in the U.S. District Court.

Love the timing!
- posted by Cynthia @ 5:38 PM | | | Link |

 
Sanitized For Your Protection
Herald.com: Miami & Ft. Lauderdale News, Weather, Dolphins & More:

ATLANTA - An edgy and sometimes controversial radio duo has been canned as the latest victim of Clear Channel Communications' zero-tolerance policy.
Larry Wachs and Eric Von Haessler, also known as 96 Rock's 'The Regular Guys,' were fired Friday after Clear Channel finished its investigation of a March 19 radio skit in which explicit sexual talk was broadcast during a car commercial. The move comes a day after shock jock Howard Stern was fired for alleged indecency.

This is getting scary.
- posted by Cynthia @ 3:23 PM | | | Link |

 
Or They Could Just Send Condi Over There
The New York Times > International > Iraq in Turmoil on Anniversary of Saddam's Fall:

Mowaffaq al-Rubaie, a Shi'ite independent, takes on the newly created role of national security adviser [ed: to whom?]

I remember watching the live raw video when the statue was torn down via a Baghdad webcam last year, and marveling at how un-jubilant it looked, and how few people were involved, many of them looking clearly uncomfortable, almost embarrassed at being there. A few people had been milling around, then a truckload of young men showed up and tried to drag the statue down with a chain, then a tank came by and they attached the chain to the tank, and at some point they put up the American flag, then it was quickly taken down again. There couldn't have been more than 50 in the crowd, but the pictures that came back to us implied thousands were involved. I don't know that it felt staged, exactly, but everyone knew where the reporters and webcams were.

Then going to a class and everyone excited that the war was finally over, it was over, they pulled down the statue, like it was the Berlin Wall! I thought they were demented. It was so obvious to me that the war had just begun.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:22 PM | | | Link |